1. Jacob Fugger
Net worth (2019): Approximately $400 billion
寿命： 1459 – 1525
Born in: Augsburg, Holy Roman Empire
Died: Augsburg, Holy Roman Empire
Nationality: German
Sources of wealth: mining, commerce and banking
Of all the non-kings and non-emperors, Jacob Fugger was the richest man of all time. His total wealth was about 2.1 million guilders, equivalent to around $400 billion today. The German merchant was born on March 6, 1459, in the Free Empire city of Augsburg, then part of the Holy Roman Empire (modern Germany). Fugger's eponymous father was already a successful merchant and the founder of the later Fugger dynasty. But it was Jacob Fugger who really made the name famous throughout Europe.
The main part of Fugger's wealth came from mining and the trade in medals, especially copper. From the 15th century onwards, the value of copper continued to increase as it was used in the production of various types of armories and kitchen utensils. Fugger recognized this trend and ventured heavily into the mining industry. He borrowed money from various mine owners in the area and, in return, demanded a right of first refusal to buy his metal. This move gave Fugger almost complete control of the metal trade in the region, from Augsburg all the way to Rome. When it came to copper, Fugger even created a monopoly far beyond the borders of the Holy Roman Empire, as far as Gdansk in the Kingdom of Poland.
In addition to his dominance in mining and metals trading, Fugger established himself as a banker. Fugger financed many members of the Habsburgs, most notably Maximilian I, who became Holy Roman Emperor in 1508 with Fugger's help. Even the Vatican owes Jacob Fugger a debt. In fact, by the beginning of the 16th century, various nobles, dukes, and kings across Europe owed money to Fugger.
Fugger died in his hometown on December 30, 1525. He is 66 years old. Since he had no children, all his wealth was bequeathed to his eldest nephew, Anton Fugger, who, along with his siblings, inherited his uncle's legacy and even expanded the family business to the "New World" of the Americas.
2. John D. Rockefeller
Net worth (2019): Approximately $350 billion
Lifespan: 1839 – 1937
Born: Ridgeford, New York, USA
Died: Ormond Beach, Florida, USA
Nationality: American
Source of wealth: oil tycoon, founder of Standard Oil
John D. Rockefeller was the second richest commoner in history. He is still the richest American of all time. Rockefeller was born on July 8, 1839, in the small town of Ridgeford in upstate New York. His father, William Rockefeller, was a shady traveling salesman who earned himself the nickname "Bill the Devil" by selling what he called a "panacea" to gullible buyers. Rockefeller began working as a bookkeeper at the age of 16. At just 20 years old, Rockefeller started his own business in the agricultural commission industry with his brother and business partners. But shortly thereafter, in the 1860s, Rockefeller had a new area of interest: oil, which he saw as the most valuable resource of the future. In 1863, Rockefeller and his partners built their first oil refinery in Cleveland, Ohio. After the end of the American Civil War, the Cleveland refinery was just one of five still operating refineries in the United States.
In 1870, Rockefeller dissolved the partnership and founded his own Standard Oil Company. He secretly struck an agreement with a railroad supplier that dramatically increased the freight that oil producers had to pay to distribute their products. As a result, the oil company was able to quickly acquire rival refineries. Rockefeller's Standard Oil Company became by far the world's largest oil producer. At the beginning of the 20th century, Rockefeller owned about 90% of all oil production in the United States and 85% of the world's oil production at that time. Obviously, this made Rockefeller the richest man in the world, with a fortune equivalent to about $350 billion today. In 1911, the U.S. Supreme Court found Standard Oil an illegal monopoly and split the company into 34 separate companies. Many of these companies, such as ExxonMobil, Chevron, or ConocoPhillips, remain among the largest oil producers in the United States.
The forced breakup didn't make Rockefeller poorer. He was allowed to hold a sizable stake in each company, which rose in value by an average of five times. Rockefeller spent the last years of his life in Florida. He died on May 23, 1937, in Ormond Beach, Florida, at the age of 97. He was married once and had 5 children.
3. Andrew Carnegie
Net worth (2019): Approximately $310 billion
Life: 1835 – 1919
Born: Dunfermline, Scotland, England
Died: Lenox, Massachusetts, USA
Nationality: British-American
Source of wealth: Railroad and oil investment, founder of Carnegie Steel
Born on November 25, 1835 in the small town of Dunfermline, Scotland, Andrew Carnecki is the third richest non-ruler in human history and the richest non-British royal-born person of all time. The Carnegie family has a long tradition of Scottish weavers. In 1848, after the Carnegie family's financial situation deteriorated, the family decided to immigrate to the United States and settled in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Andrew Carnegie got his first job at the age of 14 when he became a telegraph newsboy at a Pittsburgh telegraph company. At the age of 18, he was employed by the Pennsylvania Railroad as a telegraph operator. With the help of his owner, Thomas Scott, he gradually became familiar with the world of investing. Carnegie first focused on the railroad industry, the largest industry in the United States. Later, recognizing the value of natural resources for the industry of the future, he also invested in several oil companies.
Andrew Carnegie was already wealthy at the time, but after recognizing the value of another resource: steel, he became one of the richest people in history. Carnegie recognized that the rapidly developing United States would need a lot of steel to build many of the railroads, bridges, and buildings it planned to build. In 1892, he founded the Carnegie Steel Company, which quickly became the largest steel producer in the United States and the world. By the beginning of the 20th century, the company also became the most valuable company in the world. All of this created the equivalent of about $310 billion in modern wealth for Carnegie.
Carnegie eventually sold his company to John Morgan (founder of the investment bank JPMorgan Chase), which became American Steel Corporation (popularly known as American Steel Corporation), which still exists today. Carnegie spent the last 18 years of his life as a popular philanthropist. He used his own money to build about 3,000 public libraries in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada. He also invested in the arts, including the construction of Carnegie Hall in New York City, one of the most prestigious concert halls in the world. He also made significant investments in the U.S. education system, including the creation of the Carnegie Institute of Technology (now known as Carnegie Mellon University) in Pittsburgh. Carnegie was also involved in many social causes. He was a fierce opponent of apartheid and the growing US imperialism of the early 20th century. Similarly, Carnegie criticized the royal family in the United Kingdom, where he was born, and praised republicanism in the United States.
Andrew Carnegie died of bronchopneumonia on August 11, 1919, in Lenox, Massachusetts, where he had moved two years earlier. He is 83 years old. He left behind his wife (married in 1887) and his only child, daughter (born in 1897).
4. William Vanderbilt
Net assets (2019): Approximately $230 billion
Lifespan: 1821 – 1885
Born in: New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA
Died: New York, New York, USA
Nationality: American
Sources of wealth: inheritance, railroad tycoons
William Vanderbilt is fourth in the list of the ten richest people in history. Vanderbilt was born on May 8, 1821, in New Brunswick, New Jersey. The American's father was Cornelius Vanderbilt, an American (Dutch) water and railroad tycoon who laid the foundation for Vanderbilt's fortune. As his eldest son, William inherited his father's fortune after his death in 1877. He took over his father's railroad empire and nearly doubled its value over the next 9 years.
His personal wealth is about $230 billion (the modern inflation-adjusted equivalent), which is also higher than his father's. In addition to being a railroad magnate, Vanderbilt is one of the biggest philanthropists in the United States. He has donated to many causes, such as the YMCA (YMCA). He also founded his own university, Vanderbilt University, in Nashville, Tennessee.
William Vanderbilt died at his home in New York City on December 8, 1885, just nine years after his father's death. He left behind his wife and a total of 8 children.
5. Henry Ford
Net worth (2019): Approximately $200 billion
Lifespan: 1863 – 1947
Born: Greenfield, Michigan, USA
Died: Dearborn, Michigan, USA
Nationality: American
Source of wealth: Founder of Ford Motor Company
Henry Ford completed the top five of the top ten richest people in history. Ford was born on July 30, 1863 in Greenfield, Michigan (a suburb of Detroit, Michigan). He was born into a family of immigrant farmers. His father was born in Ireland and his mother was born in Belgium. Ford despised farm work, but had greater ambitions. Ford, who is known for his technical talent and passion for technical work, first became a mechanic and then an engineer. Ford began working for the Detroit Edison Company, an electrical company founded by inventor Thomas Edison. There, he was soon promoted to chief engineer. Ford used his senior position to experiment with his vision of a gasoline engine. In 1896, he succeeded in inventing a self-propelled vehicle and called it the "Ford four-wheeler". While this was not the first automobile in history (German engineer Carl Benz had already invented the car in 1885), Ford wanted to make the car a mass product with his model.
In addition to being a successful business owner, Ford also tried to establish himself as a politician. In 1918, he ran for a seat in the U.S. Senate in Michigan as a Democratic candidate, but failed. The most controversial aspect of Ford was his overtly anti-Semitism. In the 1920s, he bought The Dearborn Independent, which he used to spread many anti-Semitic conspiracy theories. His book, The International Jew, remains considered one of the most anti-Semitic publications in history. The book was published worldwide and was also read by Adolf Hitler, the leader of anti-Semitism in Nazi Germany, who admired Ford, calling him "a source of inspiration." Ford later retracted some of his anti-Semitic rhetoric and conspiracy theories and distanced himself from the Nazis.
Although there is some controversy over Ford's views, he is undoubtedly one of the most talented and visionary businessmen in human history. Ford died on April 7, 1947, in Dearborn, Michigan. He is 83 years old and has left his wife behind. His only child, Edsel Ford, died of stomach cancer four years ago at the age of 49.
6. Cornelius Vanderbilt
Net worth (2019): Approximately $185 billion
Lifespan: 1794 – 1877
Born in: Staten Island, New York, USA
Died: New York, New York, USA
Nationality: American
Source of wealth: water and railway tycoons
7. Alan Rufus
Net worth (2019): Approximately $180 billion
寿命： 1040 – 1093
Born: Duchy of Brittany, Kingdom of France (exact place of birth unknown)
Died: Kingdom of England (exact place of death unknown)
Nationality: Brittany
Source of wealth: Companion of the landowner tycoon King William I (aka "William the Conqueror").
8. William de Valen
Net worth (2019): Approximately $150 billion
Lifespan: Year of birth unknown – 1088
Born: Duchy of Normandy, Kingdom of France (exact place of birth unknown)
Died: Lewis, Sussex, Kingdom of England
Nationality: Norman
Source of wealth: Companion of the landowner tycoon King William I (aka "William the Conqueror").
9. John Astor
Net worth (2019): Approximately $140 billion
Lifespan: 1763 – 1848
Born in: Roman Empire
Died: New York, New York, USA
Nationality: German-American
Source of wealth: Founder of the American Fur Company, real estate tycoon
10. Stephen Girard
Net worth (2019): Approximately $120 billion
寿命： 1750 – 1831
Born: Bordeaux, Guienne and Gascony, Kingdom of France
Died: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Nationality: French-American
Sources of wealth: Business, Investment, Founder of Girard Bank
Top 10 richest people in history