The Warburgs: The Twentieth-Century Odyssey of a Remarkable Jewish Family

While less well known than his later biographies of George Washington and Alexander Hamilton, this book stands equal to them. Rather than a biography of a single man this is the biography of a most extraordinary family and their impact on banking and the history of the twentieth century. This is a terrific book and one that I recommend without reservation. Chernow tells a very complex story in the tradition of a great novelist, without sacrificing any of the historical details that define the picture of a family whose story mirrors the triumphs and tragedies of the 20th century.The book traces the history of the Warburg family from the 16th century to the 1990's, with the emphasis on the 20th century. The story is told through the biographies of many of its members, focusing on the brothers Aby, Max, Paul, Felix and Fritz, their sons and nephews. Individual chapters cover individuals, interwoven and progressing through the 20th century. There is the scholarly eldest brother, Aby, who exchanged his birthright for the promise of being provided all the books he desired (and created one of the world's greatest private libraries), the next eldest brother Max who autocratically ran the familie's Hamburg bank, the next brother Paul who made his mark in the US (providing the banking expertise behind his idea for the US Federal Reserve System), Felix who also made his mark in the US (both as a banker, but even more so as a philanthropist) and on to the youngest Fritz who served in both the Prussian and American Armies, and eventually fought to revive the Warburg position as preeminent Hamburg bankers. The book follows these brothers and their nephew Sigmund who made his mark in the US, in Great Britain (becoming Sir Sigmund) and in Europe after WWII. The book also discusses the sons of these brothers, their wives and other relatives. Fortunately, there are several pages of genealogy charts which help in keeping all the relationships between family member straight and many photographs that help flesh out the many stories that are discussed.Were the book just about the history of the family members it would have been very good, but it is about much more. The book is about the turmoil of 20th century Germany, about how this family suffered and recovered. It is about family members who were loyal to their adopted homes in the US and Great Britain, but still, before the 1930's, had strong emotional ties to Germany. It tries to explain how some in the family still had warm feeling for Germany, in spite of what happened to them in the 1930's. It is about how Fritz left his comfortable life in the US to return to Germany to reestablish their stolen Hamburg bank, but also to serve as a bridge between Germany and the rest of the post-WWII world. It is about strong men with sons who often failed to live up to their high expectations. It is about loyalty, deceit, struggle, success and failure. It is a cautionary tail about the evolution of 20th century politics and war, as well as about banking. In short this is a terrific book.

If the author uses varnish writing this book,he doesn't know it.There is so much info in these pages,I have to struggle to understand what went wrong.While some went to America,those that stayed in Germany helped the losing side.Who wins wars?The military?The Military/Industrial Complex?The politicians?The bankers?Germany certainly turned on the bankers(Jewish);both in their propaganda and through their deeds.This was the exception throughout the history of the Warburgs;but very significant.Moving ownership of assets from Warburg to Aryan control does not detract from the Austrian theory of subjective value,no matter how contrived it was.Freedom was diminished and values suffered.It's also interesting to note that John Maynard Keynes was personally reading portions of Economic Consequences of the Peace to some of the 5 brothers.About the "5 Clowns:"We might have to wait four or five generations or simply honour our fathers and mothers.By the 1960's though we get a contract hitman in prison writing this poetry-Better to live on your feet and not on your knees and know your concepts are true.Could Paul Warburg disagree?On the other hand, this family more than deserved their place in the sun,as it were.They made plenty of money and settled in what seems to be intelligent real estate locations.They certainly knew how to live.They also did so much for so many people.Sadly,the Nazis exhibited the negative side of "no good deed goes unpunished."I have to appreciate the author for not translating their money into late 20th Century money as he did in Titan.They made it when they made it,spent it when they spent it,and lost it when they lost it.It was and still is a very competitive business;wealth management in it's most rudimentary form at the time.S.G. Warburg's foray into Eurobonds was an interesting innovation given one major fact.U.S. Dollars may have been better than gold as people were holding them in some form outside of the United States.We were still a creditor nation and debtors tapped this as a source of funds to borrow from.All-in-all?This family comprised a greater proportion of international bankers.4 out of 5 brothers and so on. They made their money,got taxed,and they made some mistakes.After World War II,some members of their family still got into banking.Their talent showed.It was that obvious.

One of the greatest biographies ever written. The odyssey of the Warburg family is related in great detail, character and business wise. The in-depth personality analysis of mothers and sons is essential to understanding the extraordinary achievements of so many members of the Warburg family, generation after generation. Congratulations and thanks to Ron Chernow for the impressive research and refined, lively writing style, it was a dreamlike ride. Aby, Paul, Max and Sigmund, amongst others, will live for ever.

Powerful family shaped the world

Well written. Great story

I am always amazed at how much research goes into writing a book like this. Ron Chernow and authors like him bring to life interesting stories about interesting families and what they did to first survive and succeed. This book walks you through some turbulent times in the 20th century and how this family dealt with success, war and reveals history through their eyes. Both the history and the family come to life in this book. If either topic is of interest to you then this is worth the read.

17 of the first 36 pages of The Warburgs are so badly smudged by the printer that the book is unreadable. See attached photo of pages 22 & 23. Amazon requires return of this defective book at buyer's expense in order to receive a replacement or credit. Lesson learned = don't use Amazon.