Baron Edmond James de Rothschild. When the baron, as patron of Jewish settlement activity, began substantial investment in Jewish community of Ottoman Syria in the 1880s, he was assisted by the bank through transfers and deposits. There was a strong social connection too – when visiting Europe, Haim Aharon and members of the family stayed as personal guests of the Rothschilds. Acquisition of land Over the years of the bank's contacts within the spheres of finance and real estate, the bank gained titles of land, often through defaults on loans made for land purchases in various parts of the country. At the same time Haim Aharon also made his own land purchases in Jerusalem including many plots along Jaffa Street, at the Damascus Gate, in the suburbs that are today Katamon and Mekor Chaim, as well as in the towns of Hebron and Jaffa. Yeshayahu Press described Haim Aharon as ‘the Rothschild of Jerusalem’. A number of important buildings were erected on land acquired from the Valero family, including Bikur Cholim Hospital and the Mahane Yehuda market (which was originally named the Valero Market). In the latter part of the 19th century the bank faced competition from European banks, which by then established a growing presence in Mutasarrifate of Jerusalem. The bank finally closed in 1915 with the onset of the First World War. Haim Aharon died eight years later. Communal activism His activities and wealth soon earned Haim Aharon an important standing in the city, both in the Jewish and the wider community. His education and mastery of different languages were critical to Haim Aharon's ability to perform his various roles in the social, commercial and political spheres. He served as the representative of the Jewish community with the city authorities, under the tutelage of the Ottomans, but amongst his friends Haim Aharon counted many of the local Arab residents, including several of the leading Arab families. Between 1831 and 1841, after the conquest of Jerusalem by Egypt, he served as member of the district management committee. This enabled him to extend his business and social networks and in 1868 he was appointed as one of two Jewish representatives on the Jerusalem municipality. In the mid 19th century the population of Jerusalem was 13,000, of whom 5,000 were Jews, mostly Sephardic and Oriental. By the 1880 the Jewish population trebled with the majority being Ashkenazi (of European descent). Rivalries