Rothschild Country Houses & Castles in Europe (That You Can Visit)
Spread across Europe you will find splendid Rothschild country houses, most of which are open to the public. The Rothschild family is one of the most prominent families in Europe. Originally from Frankfurt, Germany, Mayer Amschel Rothschild founded a banking business that quickly expanded to London, Paris, Frankfurt, Vienna, and Naples.
The Rothschild country houses that you can visit are spread over several countries, from the United Kingdom to France, Italy, and The Netherlands. These stately homes and castles are architectural master pieces and often filled with art from the Rothschild collection.
Rothschild country houses in the U.K.
Waddesdon Manor
Waddesdon Manor was built between 1874 and 1885 by Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild. The country house in Buckinghamshire is built in Neo-Renaissance style and is clearly inspired by French châteaux. The house was built to display the Baron’s collection of art and to entertain the fashionable world. The house entertained notable guests such as the future King Edward VII and Queen Victoria.
In 1959, Waddesdon Manor opened to the public. It shows the Rothschild Collections of paintings, sculptures, and decorative arts.
Eythrope Gardens
On the Waddesdon Estate stands Eythrope. This house is a combination of Jacobean and French Renaissance style was built for Alice de Rothschild to house her collection and entertain. During a visit to Waddesdon the four-acre walled garden, glasshouses and orchard can be visited.
Waddesdon Manor opening times: the house and gardens are open through the year. It’s strongly recommended to book your ticket in advice. Visit the website for more information.
Address: Waddesdon, Aylesbury HP18 0JH, United Kingdom
Ascott House
Contrary to most Rothschild residences, Ascott House has a more informal architecture style. Leopold de Rothschild, who used Ascott as his hunting lodge, asked architect George Devey to enlarge the house. Ascott is now described as “English cottage meets Tudor Cheshire”. In the early 20th-century the house was enlarged again. The current interiors full of art and a large collection of 18th-century English furniture is thanks to the new owners (Anthony Gustav de Rothschild and his wife). .
Ascott House opening times: Tickets to the house and grounds have to be booked in advance. Visit the website for more information.
Address: Well Ln, Wing, Leighton Buzzard LU7 0PR, United Kingdom
Exbury House & Gardens
Exbury House is an 18th-century country house which was redesigned and refaced in 1927 by Lionel de Rothschild. The Neoclassical house is surrounded by the Exbury Gardens also laid out by Lionel de Rothschild. The 200-acre woodland garden houses a large collection of rhododendrons, azaleas, and camellias. Exbury Gardens is considered one of the finest gardens in England.
Exbury Gardens opening times: The house is not open to the public. The gardens are open daily 19th March – 30 October. Visit the website for current opening hours.
Address: 5 The Court Yd, Exbury, Southampton SO45 1AF, United Kingdom
Spencer House
Spencer House in London is one of the first Neoclassical buildings in London. The townhouse was built in the late 18th-century for John Spencer (who would become the first Earl Spencer). The house is still owned by the Earls Spencer (currently the 9th Earl, who is the brother of Princess Diana). However the house is leased out to Jacob Rothschild, 4th Baron Rothschild. He restored the state rooms and garden to its original appearance. It is one of the few aristocratic houses left in London.
Spencer House opening times: the house and garden can be visited though pre-booked tour. Visit the website to book your house tour.
Address: 27 St James’s Pl, St. James’s, London SW1A 1NR, United Kingdom
Dalmeny House
Dalmeny House is the home of the Earl and Countess of Rosebery. The house is located to the north-west of Edinburgh on the Fifth of Forth. Dalmeny was the first country house in Scotland to be built in Gothic Revival (or Tudor Revival) style.
While the exterior of Dalmeny House is in Gothic Revival style, the interiors are in Regency style. The house has a large art collection partly due to the marriage of the 5th Earl to Hannah, the daughter and heir of Meyer de Rothschild.
Dalmeny House visitor information: The house is open for guided tours on selected days. Visit the website for more information.
Address: South Queensferry EH30 9TQ, United Kingdom
Gunnersbury Park
Gunnersbury Park in London consists of two Georgian manor houses that were acquired by Leopold de Rothschild in the 19th-century. He also added the woodland gardens with Asian plants and an early example of a Japanese garden in England.
Gunnersbury House now houses a museum with pemanent and temporary exhibitions ranging from archaeological collections to fashion, and social history,
Gunnersbury Park opening times: the museum is open Tuesday-Sunday. The park is open daily. Visit the website for more information.
Address: Gunnersbury Park House, Popes Lane, London, W5 4NH
Champneys
Champneys is a French Second Empire style house in Hertfordshire. The house was built in 1874 and in 1900 the house was bought by Lady Rotschild, who already owned Tring Park Mansion nearby. Today, Champneys is a luxury health spa resort.
Rothschild Castle in The Netherlands
De Haar Castle
De Haar Castle in The Netherlands (close to Utrecht) is the perfect example of a Medieval castle with its towers and ramparts, moats, gates and drawbridges. Kasteel de Haar is the biggest and most luxurious castle in The Netherlands.
Since the 15th-century the castle has belonged to the nobel Van Zuylen family. Though the current castle was rebuilt in the 16th-century after a fire burned the original castle down.
In the 19th-century Etianne Gustave Frédéric Baron van Zuylen van Nyevelt van der Haar married Baroness Hélene de Rothschild. Thanks to that marriage you can find many works from the Rothschild collection in the castle. A parkland surrounds the castle.
De Haar Castle opening times: The castle is open though the year, visit the website for current opening hours and closures. You can also buy your ticket online.
Address: Kasteellaan 1, 3455 RR Haarzuilens, The Netherlands
Rothschild Country Houses in France
Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild
Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild is a rose-colored villa on the French Riviera between Nice and Monaco. The villa was built by Baroness Béatrice de Rothschild in 1907. Béatrice was an avid art collector and she filled the villa with antique furniture, Old Masters paintings, sculptures, objets d’art, and porcelain. Surrounding the house are nine gardens designed by landscape architect Achille Duchêne, that each have their own style.
Upon Béatrice’s death the house was gifted to the Académie des Beaux-Arts. The house and its art collection and the gardens are now open to the public.
Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild opening times: the villa is open every day of the year. You can book your ticket on the website.
Address: 1 Av. Ephrussi de Rothschild, 06230 Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, France
Villa Rothschild (Cannes)
Villa Rothschild is a neoclassical villa on the Côte d’Azur in France. The villa was built in 1881 by Dowager Baroness Betty de Rothschild. Surrounding the villa is a park with large trees and exotic plants. The villa now houses the Noailles Media Library but the park and gardens are open to visitors from Monday-Saturday.
Address: 1 avenue Jean de Noailles, Villa Rothschild, 06400 Cannes
Hôtel Salomon de Rothschild
Hôtel Salomon de Rothschild is a Neoclassical mansion in Paris. The mansion was built in 1872 and was the residence of Adèle von Rothschild (the wife of Salomon). When she died in 1922 she gifted the mansion to the French government fine arts administration. Her daughter Hélène de Rothschild (who lived at De Haar Castle in The Netherlands) had married a Roman Catholic and was disinherited by her mother.
On the 6th of May 1932, French President Paul Doumer was shot at Hôtel Salomon de Rothschild, he died the day after. Today, the mansion is an exclusive event venue, but you can visit the garden.
Address: 12 Av. de Friedland, 75008 Paris, France
Rothschild Wine Estates
There are several Rothschild wine estates in France. Château Duhart-Milon, Château Mouton, and Château Lafite are Rothschild wine estates that can be visited for wine tastings and a tour (you need to book a tour in advance). Château Mouton also houses a museum of wine in art.
Rothschild Country Houses in Germany
Rothschild Palais
Rothschild Palais is a Neoclassical mansion in Frankfurt. The townhouse was built in 1820 after a design by Friedrich Christian Hess. Baron Mayer Carl von Rothschild bought the house in 1846 who refurbished and extended the house. Some of these rooms have been preserved, this includes the staircase with mirrors and colorful marble paneling in the Renaissance style and three prestigious salons with their original features.
Today, the Rothschild Palais houses the Jewish Museum in Frankfurt, the historic rooms can be visited in a permanent exhibition. Visit the website for more information.
Jewish Museum in the Rothschild Palais opening times: the museum is open Tuesday-Sunday (closed on 05.10.2022 , 24.12.2022 , 31.12.2022)
Address: Bertha-Pappenheim-Platz 1, 60311 Frankfurt am Main
Villa Rothschild (Königstein im Taunus)
Villa Rothschild in Königstein im Taunus (just north of Frankfurt) was a summer residence and spa villa for the Rothschild family. The villa was built in an English country-style with a half-timbered facade, towers, and bay windows. One of the first social events was visited by Queen Victoria and the Prince of Wales. Since the mid 20th-century the villa houses a luxury hotel.
Rothschild Country House in Italy
Villa Pignatelli
Villa Pignatelli is a 19th-century villa in the Chiaia district of Naples. The Neoclassical mansion has been owned by many noble families, and in 1841 it was bought by Carl Mayer von Rothschild. However its the last owners (the Aragona Pignatelli Cortés family) who transformed the house into a cultural center with a colection of marbles, bronzes, porcelains, books, and records. In 1955 the villa became property of the state and it’s now a historic house museum called the Museo Pignatelli Cortès.
Museo Pignatelli Cortès opening times: the museum is open Wednesday-Monday (closed on 1 January and 25 December). Visit the website for current opening hours and to book your ticket.
Address: Riviera di Chiaia, 200, 80121 Napoli NA, Italy
Rothschild Castle in Austria
Schloss Rothschild
Rothschild Castle is a 13th-century Medieval castle in Waidhofen an der Ybbs. In 1875 the castle was bought by Albert Salomon Anselm von Rothschild who transformed it into the Neo-Gothic castle you see today. The castle now houses the 5 Elements Museum and is used as en avent venue.
Address: Schloßweg 2, 3340 Bezirk Waidhofen an der Ybbs, Austria