The most powerful and richest people in the history of mankind
10. Cornelius Vanderbilt
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In terms of modern prices: ~165 billion dollars
The future American businessman was born in the family of an impoverished farmer and boatman in May 1794. The story of Cornelius Vanderbilt is a perfect example of the confirmation of the proverb "from rags to riches". At the age of 11, Vanderbilt left school to work on a ferry line. According to legend, by the age of 16, Vanderbilt already owned two of his own sailing freighters.
By the age of 18, he was contracted by the United States government to provide supplies for the army during the Anglo-American War of 1812. By the end of the war, he had studied the art of shipbuilding and already owned a small fleet of boats as well as $10,000 in working capital. Over the next decade, Vanderbilt seized a monopoly on Hudson River traffic with his luxury ships and cheap fares.
He further expanded his transportation company to New York, Providence, and Boston, where he acquired the railroad. By 1846, Vanderbilt was a millionaire, and by 1863 he owned the New York and Harlem railroads, later buying out the New York Central Railroad outright and establishing the first rail service between New York and Chicago.
In 1877, at the age of 83, Vanderbilt died due to health complications. To date, his fortune would be (in terms of modern prices) almost 165 billion dollars.
9. Basil II
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In terms of modern prices: ~168 billion dollars
Basil II (aka Basil the Bulgar Slayer) was the Byzantine emperor for 49 years. As the son of Emperor Romanos II, he was crowned as co-emperor in 960 AD. When Basil II came to power, his main focus was on expanding imperial power both at home and abroad.
He sent troops throughout Asia Minor and eventually expanded Byzantium to its largest size in five centuries. Although Basil's fortune exceeded $168 billion in today's prices, he did not have a heir. After his death, the Byzantine Empire collapsed within half a century.
8. Marcus Licinius Crassus
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In terms of modern prices: ~170 billion dollars
Marcus Licinius Crassus was a Roman general and politician who not only transformed the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire, but also amassed quite a fortune during his lifetime. The rich senator Crassus was brought up from childhood as an aristocrat. He later married the wife of his late brother, who secured an alliance between Sulla and Rome. It was at this time that Crassus began to make his fortune.
He bought the houses and property of the citizens of Sulla for next to nothing, and then resold them at a great profit. He also sold slaves and ran the family's silver mines. At the end of his life in 53 BC Crassus owned a fortune of almost 170 billion dollars (in today's prices).
7. Henry Ford
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In today's prices: ~$186 billion
Known as America's premier industrialist, Henry Ford revolutionized automobile manufacturing and practically brought about an industrial revolution in America. Ford was born July 30, 1863 on his family's farm in Wayne County, Michigan. Since childhood, Henry has been interested in mechanics. When he was only 13 years old, his father gave him a pocket watch. The curious boy took the watch apart and quickly put it back together.
At the age of 16, Ford went to work as an apprentice machinist in Detroit, where he learned how to service steam engines and learned accounting. In 1891, the Edison Electric Company offered him a job as an engineer. Just two years later, Ford was already the chief engineer of this company.
In 1896, he completed the drawings for a horseless vehicle and founded the Ford Motor Company, soon introducing the famous "Model T" to the world. Henry Ford died of a cerebral hemorrhage on April 7, 1947, with a net worth of approximately $186 billion.
6. Andrew Mellon
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In terms of modern prices: ~188 billion dollars
In the 1880s, Andrew Mellon seemed like a jack-of-all-trades. He was a businessman, banker, industrialist, philanthropist, art collector and US Secretary of the Treasury. Mellon was born March 24, 1855 in Pittsburgh. At age 20, he began working for his father's banking firm, T. Mellon amp; Sons, and became its full owner in 1882.
The firm continued to grow steadily in size and profitability. Eventually, he began to provide capital to large corporations. By the early 1920s, Mellon was already one of the richest men in the United States, owning $188 billion (in today's dollars).
5. Osman Ali Khan, Asaf Jah VII
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In terms of modern prices: ~230 billion dollars
Osman Ali Khan was born on April 6, 1886 in Andhra Pradesh, India. In 1911, he succeeded his father as Nizam (Ruler) of the Principality of Hyderabad. During his 37-year reign as Nizam, Osman did a lot for his country, contributing to the development of electricity, railways, roads, air traffic and irrigation systems.
Osman also donated a huge amount of money to educational institutions. By the time he passed away in 1967, he had seven wives, 42 concubines and a net worth of nearly $230 billion.
4. William Henry Vanderbilt
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In terms of modern prices: ~239 billion dollars
William Vanderbilt was born on May 8, 1821 in Braunschweig, New Jersey, one of 13 children of Cornelius Vanderbilt, one of the world's most imposing industrialists. His father considered him incompetent in financial matters and sent him to a farm on Staten Island. Immediately, William was able to increase the profitability of the farm, and these actions did not go unnoticed by his father: in the 1840s, his father sent him to reorganize the Long Island Rail Road railway business.
William again managed to turn a loss-making business into a very successful enterprise. In 1877, when Cornelius Vanderbilt died, William took over his company. Just eight years after his father's death, William Vanderbilt himself died. Incredibly, in such a short time as president of the company, he doubled his family's wealth from $100 million to an incredible $200 million. Today, in terms of money, Vanderbilt would be worth a whopping $239 billion.
3. Nicholas II
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In terms of modern prices: ~300 billion dollars
Nicholas II was born on May 6, 1868 and was the last Emperor of All Russia. When his father died in 1894, Nicholas succeeded to the Russian throne and soon married Princess Victoria Alice Helena Louise Beatrice of Hesse-Darmstadt.
Soon they had children, but family happiness was short-lived. In 1917, the February Revolution happened and Nikolai was overthrown, and the Bolsheviks shot his entire family. Before his death, the state of the monarch was about 900 million dollars, which is equivalent to modern 300 billion.
2. Andrew Carnegie
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In terms of modern prices: ~310 billion dollars
The famous industrialist and steel magnate Andrew Carnegie was one of the richest businessmen of the 19th century. He was born on November 25, 1835 in Dunfermline, Scotland. In 1848 his family moved to America and eventually settled in Pennsylvania. In 1853, Carnegie took a job with the Pennsylvania Railroad as a telegraph operator and later as an assistant to company manager Thomas Scott.
During this work, Carnegie gained extensive experience about the industry and about business in general. In 1865 he left the railroad business to focus on other industries, and by 1889 Carnegie had created the largest manufacturing company in the world, the Carnegie Steel Corporation. In 1901, Carnegie sold his business to the United States Steel Corporation for over $200 million, equivalent to about $310 billion in today's market.
1. John D. Rockefeller
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In terms of modern prices: ~340 billion dollars
John D. Rockefeller is often referred to as the "Father of the Oil World". Born an oil tycoon in 1839, he eventually became not only the founder of the Standard Oil Company, but one of the richest men in the world. At the age of 16, Rockefeller went to work as an accountant at Hewitt amp; Tuttle.
At the age of 20, Rockefeller was already working with his business partner as a trader. Selling hay, meat, grain, and other commodities, the company had made nearly $450,000 by the end of its first year. In 1863, the magnate opened the first oil refinery, which by 1868 had become the largest in the world.
In 1870, Rockefeller created the famous Standard Oil Company, which immediately became prosperous. When Rockefeller died in 1937, his assets accounted for 1.5 percent of America's total economic output. Today it would be about 340 billion.
When looking for the answer to the question “who is the richest person of all time”, Bill Gates or Warren Buffett immediately come to mind. Although these people are extremely wealthy, they are far from the "ten" richest people in history, who owned simply legendary fortunes and had incredible opportunities.
