Fritz Mannheimer
Fritz Mannheimer | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1890-09-19 Stuttgart, Württemberg, Germany |
| Died | 1939-08-09 |
| Occupation(s) | Banker, art connoisseur |
| Known for | Leading Amsterdam office of Mendelssohn & Co.; art collection |
Fritz Mannheimer (19 September 1890 – 9 August 1939) was a banker and art connoisseur, originally from Germany and later a Dutch national, who led the Amsterdam office of the Berlin-based investment firm Mendelssohn & Co., a prominent entity in the Dutch financial market. Dubbed the "King of Flying Capital," he was instrumental in structuring credit systems for Germany's post-World War I recovery. His global financial stature earned him distinctions including the rank of Grand Officer of the Légion d'honneur. In 1941, Adolf Hitler acquired his art collection, which was subsequently returned to the Netherlands following the Second World War.
Early life
Mannheimer was born into a Jewish household in Stuttgart, Württemberg, as the son of Max Mannheimer, a merchant specializing in wine, and Lili Sara Fränkel. He completed his Doctorate in Law at Heidelberg University and obtained Dutch citizenship in 1936.
Professional career and personal style
During the First World War, Mannheimer rapidly ascended to head a German governmental office responsible for regulating raw material distribution. By age 27, he successfully convinced Belgian industrialists to accept paper money issued under occupation. Post-war, he oversaw Germany’s central monetary administration and founded Mendelssohn & Co.’s Amsterdam branch. Concurrently, he held positions with several Central European central banks and twice declined offers to lead the German Reichsbank, endorsing Hjalmar Schacht instead.
The Amsterdam branch of Mendelssohn & Co. operated autonomously from its Berlin headquarters and played a pivotal role in projects such as assisting German industrialist Robert Bosch in setting up an American company to circumvent U.S. restrictions on German capital.
Despite his substantial financial clout, Mannheimer was noted for his opulent lifestyle—favoring travel by Rolls-Royce over typical Amsterdam taxis, maintaining two grand residences (a 1913 redbrick mansion at Hobbemastraat 20 in Amsterdam known as "Villa Protski" and Villa Monte Cristo near Vaucresson, France), and occupying luxurious offices at Herengracht 412 in Amsterdam.
Marriage and offspring
On 1 June 1939, Mannheimer wed Marie Jane Reiss (1917–2004) at their residence in Vaucresson. Born in China, she was the daughter of Hugo Reiss, a distinguished German Jewish entrepreneur based in Shanghai who also served as Brazil’s consul there, and Marie Ignatius Murphy, an American-born woman of Irish Catholic descent. According to Time, Mannheimer—who had long battled obesity and health problems—suffered a heart attack during the wedding ceremony and needed resuscitation. The best man was Paul Reynaud, then serving as France’s finance minister and later prime minister; Mannheimer also maintained close ties with Prime Minister Édouard Daladier.
The couple had one daughter, Anne France Mannheimer (later Anne France Engelhard), born on 24 December 1939—six months following their marriage and four months after Mannheimer’s passing. Known familiarly as Annette, she became the second spouse of Dominican-American fashion designer Oscar de la Renta.
Demise
On 9 August 1939, just two months post-marriage, Mannheimer reportedly left his Amsterdam office after a telephone call, traveled to France to join his wife at their home, and passed away that same day. While numerous newspapers speculated that his death was by suicide, his chronic health challenges—including a heart attack at his wedding and another episode in Egypt in 1937—pointed to alternative causes. Shortly before his demise, reports indicated he had lost half of his usual body weight.
The New York Times along with other major publications remarked that Mannheimer’s death occurred amid somewhat enigmatic circumstances. The day after his passing, Mendelssohn & Co.’s Amsterdam branch declared insolvency; much of Mannheimer’s art collection—valued at over thirteen million guilders (roughly equivalent to $100 million today)—had been acquired through unrestricted bank credit. This vast collection, housed across residences in the Netherlands and France, featured masterpieces by Chardin, Fragonard, Watteau, Rubens, included at least one counterfeit Vermeer, gold reliquary busts, tapestries, Meissen porcelain, and Judaica such as an 1800s naturalistic Hanukkah lamp known as the "Oak Tree Menorah." The collection also contained eighteenth-century furniture extensively sourced by decorators Elsie de Wolfe and Stéphane Boudin, which was seized by the bank following insolvency. A historical account of Mendelssohn & Co. remarks that "the Amsterdam branch had to cease operations due to erroneous speculations by its director."
Collapse of the Bank and Distribution of the Art Holdings
In 1939, the Mendelssohn banking institution was compulsorily liquidated under Nazi authority, with its assets subsequently absorbed by Deutsche Bank. Following the Battle of the Netherlands, a significant portion of Mannheimer's art collection was obtained by Adolf Hitler in 1941. Meanwhile, Mannheimer’s widow safeguarded other artworks by placing them in locations across England and Vichy, France until the conclusion of World War II.
By 1952, most of Mannheimer's art pieces were returned to the Rijksmuseum, which, under pressure from the Dutch Ministry of Finance, was required to auction off half of the collection. Interestingly, Mannheimer’s former home in Amsterdam has since been repurposed as administrative offices for the Rijksmuseum. Among the notable works dispersed from his collection is "Young Man Blowing Bubbles" (circa 1734) by Jean-Baptiste-Siméon Chardin, now part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. This painting was sold in 1949 through Wildenstein & Co. after being repatriated to France in 1946.
References
- New archival research, 2014
- "Fritz Mannheimer, Financier, Is Dead", The New York Times, 11 August 1939.
- "Action Follows Shortly After Mannheimer's Death – House Granted Government Loans", The New York Times, 12 August 1939.
- "Mendelssohn Lost Heavily on Bonds; Huge Fortune of Mannheimer Is Believed to Have Been Lost in His Operations", The New York Times, 14 August 1939.
- "Trustees Named for Mendelssohn", The New York Times, 15 August 1939.
- "Holland Unmoved by Bank's Crisis", The New York Times, 21 August 1939.
- "Daladier Testifies in War Guilt Court", The New York Times, 23 September 1940.
- "Met Painting Traced to Nazis", The New York Times, 24 November 1987.
- "Records at the Met Disprove Charge of Acquiring 5 Paintings Improperly", The New York Times, 25 November 1987.
- "F. Mannheimer"
- J.P.B. Jonker, 'Mannheimer, Fritz (1890–1939)', Biografisch Woordenboek van Nederland.
- S. Bailly, 'Fritz Mannheimer - Le banquier qui a tenté de sauver l'Europe du nazisme', Paris, Éditions Jourdan, 2019.