Victor Rothschild, youthful heir and nephew of Baron Lionel Walter Rothschild, has disclosed that he was the Jew involved in the first case reported in England of refusal to serve a Jew in a public restaurant.
The heir to the baronetcy told the press that he had entered a roadhouse with a party of friends and was politely informed he could not be served.
“As soon as I entered, the manager came up and asked me whether I was a Jew,” Rothschild declared. “My appearance is hardly ‘Aryan.’ I confirmed the fact that I was a Jew and he replied he was sorry he couldn’t serve me and that I must leave. No explanation was offered. I left with my party.”
In answer to comment by a reporter that the incident was most unusual for England, Rothschild, described in the press as “tall, dark, shy and slightly Byronic,” replied:
“Ah, we live in a changed age, but this sounds rather like Nazi Germany.”
Victor Rothschild was married last January 3 to Barbara Hutch-###son, daughter of the British judge. She became a Jewess prior to her engagement, in keeping with the House of Rothschild tradition that male members of the family must not marry outside the faith.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
