Hermann de Stern, Baron de Stern (1815–1887) was a German-born British banker and senior partner of the firm of Stern Brothers.

Early life and career

Stern was born in 1815 in

Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , "Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on its na ...

Grand Duchy of Frankfurt The Grand Duchy of Frankfurt was a German satellite state of Napoleonic creation. It came into existence in 1810 through the combination of the former territories of the Archbishopric of Mainz along with the Free City of Frankfurt itself. Histor ...

, to the prominent Stern banking family. He moved to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

in 1844 to join his brother

David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

. Together, they co-founded Stern Brothers, a financial institution based in London. According to '' The Jewish Encyclopedia'', "Baron de Stern was principally connected with Portuguese finance, but he was prominently concerned also in floating the Danubian 7-per-cent loan of 1864, the Spanish mortgage loan, and the Italian tobacco-monopoly loan." Stern served on the board of directors of the Imperial Bank, the Bank of Rumania, the London and San Francisco Bank, and the East London Waterworks Company. He also served on the board of directors of the London Banking Association. In 1869, Stern received the Portuguese noble title of ''barão'' (

baron Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...

) from King

Luís I of Portugal Dom Luís I (31 October 1838, in Lisbon – 19 October 1889, in Cascais), known as The Popular (Portuguese: O Popular) was a member of the ruling House of Braganza,"While remaining patrilineal dynasts of the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha accord ...

Personal life

Stern married Julia Goldsmid, daughter of Aaron Asher Goldsmid, brother of Sir

Isaac Goldsmid Sir Isaac Lyon Goldsmid, 1st Baronet (13 January 1778 – 27 April 1859) was a financier and one of the leading figures in the Jewish emancipation in the United Kingdom, who became the first British Jew to receive a hereditary title. Biography ...

. Their son was Herbert Stern, 1st Baron Michelham. From 1883 to 1887, Stern was the owner of Strawberry Hill House in

Twickenham Twickenham is a suburban district in London, England. It is situated on the River Thames southwest of Charing Cross. Historically part of Middlesex, it has formed part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames since 1965, and the boroug ...

, but he never lived there. He was associated with the

Anglo-Jewish Association The Anglo-Jewish Association (AJA) is a British organisation. It was formed in 1871 for the 'promotion of social, moral, and intellectual progress among the Jews; and the obtaining of protection for those who may suffer in consequence of being Jew ...

and the Jews' Free School. Stern died in London on 20 October 1887 and was buried at Balls Pond Road Cemetery. One of the wealthiest men of his time, he left an estate of £3,544,978 (equivalent to £ billion in ).

References

1815 births 1887 deaths 19th-century English businesspeople 19th-century English Jews 19th-century German Jews Barons of Portugal Burials at Balls Pond Road Cemetery Businesspeople from Frankfurt English bankers German bankers German emigrants to the United Kingdom Stern family (banking) {{London-stub