Squillionaires, wild lives and a marriage of two dynasties
She’s the sister of better-known Paris Hilton. He’s a Rothschild dynasty moneybags with a tragic past. This weekend they’ll wed in the highest style at Diana’s old palace…
TODAY, in the exquisite surroundings of the Orangery in Kensington Palace, famous, infamous and merely monied guests will come together to celebrate the wedding of blonde socialite Nicky Hilton, youngest heiress of the great American tribe of hoteliers, and James Rothschild, scion of Europe’s greatest banking family.
It is a somewhat unlikely dynastic alliance – a collision of two scandal-soaked families who have, until now, had little in common beyond a stupendous fortune on each side.
The bride, who is 31, will be wearing a couture Valentino gown worth at least £50 000 (R1 million) and a smile which says that, for once, she has trumped her attention-seeking big sister Paris. Nicky will also be wearing her enormous eight-carat diamond engagement ring, worth an estimated R20 million.
The nuptial celebrations, with a dress code that follows the American style of black tie rather than morning suits, have been overseen by Nicky’s mother Kathy, reputedly the most pushy of matriarchs. If the engagement party she threw is any guide – it was attended by the Princess Aga Khan – the wedding party will be anything but low-key.
We can expect at least one Ecclestone daughter, a clutch of Guinnesses – the groom’s mother is a Guinness by birth – and, awkwardly, a handful of Goldsmiths, caught up in the fall-out from the messy end of the groom’s sister Kate Rothschild’s marriage to Ben Goldsmith.
Just don’t mention the bride’s first lurch up the aisle, which was one of those late-night-in-Vegas mistakes, and ended in an annulment.
But let’s take a peep behind the scenes…
The Hilton hotel dynasty was founded by Nicky’s great-grandfather Conrad Hilton, who married the actress Zsa Zsa Gabor. Nicky’s uncle, Conrad Nicholson Hilton, was disastrously and briefly married to another actress, Elizabeth Taylor, and when drunk punched her in the stomach, causing her to miscarry.
Her grandfather Barron Hilton has said he intends to leave most of his R30bn fortune to charity. The house of Rothschild was founded by Mayer Amschel in a Jewish ghetto in Frankfurt 250 years ago.
Amschel began as a coin dealer and rose to become the court banker, building his fortune during the instability of the French Revolution. His five sons joined the business.
From the second half of the 19th century, competition eroded their power, although they remained one of Britain’s wealthiest families.
James’s father Amschel was being groomed to take over the family bank from his cousin Sir Evelyn de Rothschild – even though he was more interested in farming and car racing.
His suicide in 1996 came six weeks after the death of his mother. At the inquest, his family said he had suffered from depressive tendencies. He was found by a chambermaid, hanged in the room of the Hotel Bristol in Paris.
Slender, pretty and relatively shy, Nicky Hilton was propelled into the celebrity sphere as the more charming, but less fascinating, adjunct to her sister Paris.
In her mid-teens, she and Paris were launched on the New York social scene by their mother, who went with them to benefits and balls. She would also fly them to Europe to attend the couture fashion shows.
The sisters were soon part of a wild crowd, with friends including actresses Lindsay Lohan and Tara Reid, and Rod Stewart’s daughter Kimberly.
Paris went on to release a book, Confessions Of An Heiress, appeared in films and TV shows and released perfumes and records. Now, despite having no discernible talent, she is a globally successful DJ. Nicky, meanwhile, tur ned down the chance to follow in her sister’s footsteps. Instead, Nicky pursued a career in fashion, designing lines and collaborating with other brands. She published a book, 365 Style, in September 2014, and launched a jewellery collection, a bag collection and recently a make-up range.
Now 31, James has been a banker for some years. He recently put the family house in Suffolk on the market for £24 million, (R480m) signalling a permanent move to New York.
Friends say he is shy. An earlier lady love was Astrid Harbord, a member of Prince Harry’s inner circle.
And the wedding is at Kensington Palace where Princess Diana once lived.
The ring is a massive diamond. Nicky said: “He didn’t ask anyone for help with the ring. He has very good taste.” – Daily Mail