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Marie-Hélène de Rothschild | |
|---|---|
 Marie-Hélène and her father Egmont, at her 1950 wedding | |
| Born | Marie-Hélène Naila Stephanie Josina van Zuylen van Nyevelt van de Haar (1927-11-17)November 17, 1927 New York City, United States |
| Died | March 1, 1996(1996-03-01) (aged 68) Touques, Calvados, France |
| Spouses | |
Marie-Hélène Naila Stephanie Josina de Rothschild (pronounced[maʁielɛndəʁɔt.ʃild]; November 17, 1927 – March 1, 1996) was a Frenchsocialite who became a doyenne ofParisian high-society and was a member of the prominentRothschild banking family of France.
BornBaroness Marie-Hélène Naila Stephanie Josina van Zuylen van Nyevelt van de Haar inNew York City, she was the eldest of the three children of Marguerite Marie Namétalla and Baron Egmont Van Zuylen van Nyevelt. Her mother was born inEgypt ofSyrian-immigrant parents, and her father was a diplomat and businessman ofJewish andDutch descent.[1] Marie-Hélène's paternal grandmother wasBaronessHélène de Rothschild, the first woman to take part in an international motor race and the daughter of BaronSalomon James de Rothschild. Marie-Hélène's paternal grandfather was the DutchRoman Catholic BaronEtienne van Zuylen van Nyevelt of theHouse of Van Zuylen van Nievelt.
She was educated atMarymount College inTarrytown, New York, and after finishing school she went toParis.[2]
Marie-Hélène was married twice:
Her husband and his sisters,Jacqueline andBethsabée, had been raised at theChâteau de Ferrières in the country outside of Paris. Seized by theGermans during the occupation of France inWorld War II, the château remained empty until 1959 when the newlywed Rothschilds decided to reopen it. Marie-Hélène took charge of refurbishing the huge château, making it a place where European nobility mingled withmusicians,artists,fashion designers andHollywoodmovie stars at grand soirées. Much talked about for the lavish and creative themeballs andcharity fundraisers she organized both in Paris and New York, in 1973, she brought together five Frenchcouturiers and five American designers for a fashion show at theThéâtre Gabriel in theChâteau de Versailles.[4]
She hosted regular parties at the Château, mainly inviting aristocracy, but which also included her friends from a wider society such asGrace Kelly andAudrey Hepburn (with whom she was a close friend).[5][6]
Notable among these were the1972 Surrealist Ball. The event drew international attention for its extravagant costumes and avant-garde décor, transforming the château into a dreamlike spectacle inspired by the Surrealist movement. Guests included Salvador Dalí, Audrey Hepburn, and Baron Alexis de Redé.[7]
In 1975, Château de Ferrières was gifted to the chancellery of theuniversities of Paris by Guy and Marie-Hélène de Rothschild but they retained the home they had built in the woods surrounding the château.
In 1975, the couple purchasedHôtel Lambert on theÎle Saint-Louis, one of the most luxurious mansions in Paris, where they took up residence in the top floors. Marie-Hélène became friends with the socialiteBaron Alexis de Redé who was a tenant on the first floor in Hôtel Lambert and who would later become a fixture at her gatherings. In recognition of her importance in promoting French culture and fashion on an international level, Marie-Hélène de Rothschild was awarded theLegion of Honor.
After battlingcancer and cripplingrheumatoid arthritis for more than ten years, Marie-Hélène de Rothschild died in 1996 at her Ferrières country home, aged 68. A Catholic funeral mass was held at theSaint-Louis-en-l'Île church in Paris,[8] funeral guests wereValéry Giscard d’Estaing,Claude Pompidou,Bernadette Chirac,Gianni Agnelli,Alain Delon andYves Saint Laurent. She was buried inTouques, Calvados where for more than a century her husband's branch of the French Rothschild family has ownedHaras de Meautry, a notedhorse farm.