Albert Grant
When Abraham Gottheimer (who changed his name by deed poll to Albert Grant in 1863) was born in Dublin in 1831, his parents were so poor that the local Jewish community had to supply them with everything needed to take care of the newborn. His father was a recent immigrant from a part of Eastern Prussia that is now in Poland. From 1859 onwards, Gottheimer/Grant ran a succession of high-profile international investment companies, most of which were essentially pyramid schemes. He also served as MP for Kidderminster. In 1874, Grant, who had a sterling reputation as an extremely generous philanthropist, acquired Leicester Gardens, then a derelict and unsafe former public garden, completely redeveloped it at his own (considerable) expense and then gifted the redeveloped Leicester Square, which has been a well-known landmark ever since, to the Metropolitan Board of Works for public use. Yet, 1874 was also the year in which he was no longer able to bribe journalists into hushing up his fraudulent dealings and his career came to an abrupt end. Although Grant converted to Christianity, he was still identified as a Jew not only by many of his non-Jewish peers but also by the Jewish Chronicle.
Lithograph by Vincent Brooks. Printed by Vanity Fair, 21 February 1874 (original size: 24.9 x 37.1 cm).
Antique print from the book: Jews in Old Postcards and Prints