Magnates and Masterpieces

John Hilary is an honorary professor in the School of Politics and International Relations at the University of Nottingham, and author of From Refugees to Royalty: The Remarkable Story of the Messel Family of Nymans.

"In 12 case studies, Hilary explores the prominent role that German-Jewish emigrants played in British social, cultural and political life. In doing so, he examines the lives of women as much as men, demonstrating that the art collections formed at this time were more often than not a joint effort.”—Lloyd de Beer, ApolloLonglisted for The Berger Prize 2026“The story is enthralling, but its pictorial presentation catches the eye too: how the design of this book, its choice of paper, and the way in which each double-page spread manages to be faithful to all aspects.”—Michael Glover, The TabletA Jewish Chronicle Book of the Year 2025“[As a] meticulously researched . . . exercise in restoration, Magnates and Masterpieces reveals the importance of this group of collectors to histories of British (and also Irish, German, and South African) national collections.”—Keren Rosa Hammerschlag, Nineteenth-Century Art Worldwide“A real treasure.”—Lavinia Braun, Oxford MenorahLonglisted for The Berger Prize 2026“John Hilary tells the fascinating story of German-Jewish collectors in Edwardian Britain, many almost forgotten, whose astonishing collections have been spread across museums worldwide. The combination of scholarship and scandal makes a gripping read.”—Charles Sebag-Montefiore“Cultural, financial and social history meet biography in John Hilary’s absorbing account of twelve outstanding Anglo-German collectors in Edwardian Britain. Hilary analyses how the collections they formed were influenced by their Jewish origins and their commitment to the New Humanist tradition of German education. The result is cultural history at its most incisive.”—Elizabeth A. Pergam, Society for the History of Collecting“This scrupulously researched and evocatively written book is indeed ‘a work of restoration,’ allowing us to appreciate the variety, sophistication and splendour of collections whose dispersal often robbed their creators of any enduring recognition. It is a thoughtful study of taste, money and minority experience in the years before the outbreak of the First World War.”—Tom Stammers, Courtauld Institute of Art