Alot of people know who the richest people are in the world right now, but their networths often pale in comparison to the richest people of all-time. Many of the people who have achieved the greatest wealth in our world’s history weren’t inventors or salesmen, but instead came from royalty. Yet, there are still a few rich people in more modern history to be included among the wealthiest people who have ever lived. It would be impossible to go through the amount of money these people made in one lifetime, so thanks to them, they have made their relatives rich today.
If you ever want to make this list, you better get cracking because it will take at least $80 billion in today’s money just to get the 20th spot. These numbers are adjusted for inflation so they might not be accurate on the penny, but it will give you a good idea of who really had the most wealth during their lifetime.
If you can’t make it onto this list, don’t feel bad. This represents less than 99.9999999999 percent of the people who have ever lived. So let’s get started and take a look at the 7 richest people of all-time, starting with number 7.#7 – Muammar Gaddafi ($200 Billion)
You may remember Muammar Gaddafi from a few years ago as the highly controversial leader of Libya. He held the title for 42 years after taking the power for himself in a coup d’etat, until the bloody Libyan Civil War of 2011. When Gaddafi started, he used ideals from the socialist regime but quickly started playing by his own rules.
After making pretty much everyone in the world hate him, Gaddafi was caught in a crossfire during the Civil War. The rebels were quick to catch up to him, and they beat him bloody and left him for dead. Gaddafi had a lot of money at the time of his death, but since it was blood money, it probably shouldn’t count all that much.
#6 – William The Conqueror ($229.6 Billion)
William was the Norman King of England from 1066 to 1087, when he died. Previously, he had been the Duke of Normandy and led the Normans into a battle with England, which they won. That’s how he got the title “The Conqueror”, to be the man you have to beat the man.
William was almost knocked out of his Dukehood before it even started. Since he was born out of wedlock to a mistress, he was dubbed “William The Bastard”. After holding off rebels that didn’t think he was fit for royalty, they realized that William was not a pushover and that he kind of earned his spot. The expansion of William’s territory and conquering of England were what really made him very rich. Not bad for “The Bastard”.
#5 – Mir Osman Ali Khan ($230 Billion)
Mir Osman Ali Khan was the final Nizam in the history of Hyderabad and Berar. The reason his reign came to an end was because India annexed Hyderabad and he lost most of his power in the region. Before that, Ali Khan held a tremendous amount of wealth in his position due to his long history of royal family.
It was a bit of a sad ending for Ali Khan, who was worth around $1 billion at the time of his death. Legal disputes among the family split the money in about 100 different directions, but he was still incredibly wealthy. It just goes to show you that every family fights over money at some point, no matter how much of it there is.
#4 – Nikolai Alexandrovich Romanov ($300
Billion)
Nicholas II was the final Emperor in the history of Russia. The Romanovs had a good run, but it had to come to an end at some point. Nicholas II earned the titles of Grand Duke Of Finland and King Of Poland. It was much easier just to call him a czar (or tsar, however you prefer). He wasn’t really the nicest guy in the world, either.
Nicholas II was forced out of office in 1917 after Russia went from the world’s most thriving empire to a complete train wreck in their economy and military. He also was quite fond of war, which could no longer be supported after losing money. When Nicholas II started, though, there was a lot of wealth to his name. He still makes the top 5, despite the fact that he probably finished well outside of the top 100.
#3 – Andrew Carnegie ($310 Billion)
Moving from Scotland to the United States was the best thing the Carnegies could have done for their son, Andrew. Andrew Carnegie saved up his money from working as a telegrapher and used it to invest in railroads and oil, which ended up being a pretty smart move.
Using his new-found great wealth, Carnegie started his own business in the steel industry, which was another fantastic idea at the time (this was a smart man). 18 years before Carnegie’s death, he sold his steel company for $13.6 billion in today’s money and went on to expand his name into colleges, a concert venue, a museum and much more. His name is still thrown around quite a bit in New York.
#2 – John D. Rockefeller ($340 Billion)
Americans did not use much oil until the invention of the automobile. After that, it was open season. Before the automobile, though, John D. Rockefeller founded the largest oil company (Standard Oil) which essentially ran a monopoly in the United States thanks to the railroad industry. It was still big business as Rockefeller owned 90 percent of America’s oil.
Colleges are also a great way to make money and Rockefeller started three of them from the ground up (University of Chicago, Rockefeller University, Central Philippine University). If only he were getting today’s tuition rates, he may be at the top of this list. The Rockefeller name can still be seen plastered on buildings across the country, as he owned pretty much everything as the richest man in the world during his time.
#1 – The Rothschild Family ($350 Billion)
The Rothschild Family started out with Mayer Amschel Rothschild, who got into the banking business in Frankfurt during the late 1700’s. Mayer spread his wealth among his five children, which took off from there as they all got into the business. Many of the Rothschilds became so successful that they became Austrian nobles.
Banks started popping up left and right under the Rothschild name and at one point, Lord Nathan Rothschild had more power than even the royals in Great Britain. The family went on hiatus for nearly 90 years and started business back up in 1989. Just like Michael Jordan, the great ones always come back sooner or later.
- Sunday, September 13, 2015
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