10 Richest People Of All Time

2. Croesus ~ Unknown (But Bloody Loads)

Richest Men Augustus Caesar
Gerard van Honthorst [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

The total zeroes on the end of Lydian king Croesus' bank account were so numerous that he gradually transformed into myth, a man said to be "outside the conventional restraints of chronology."

Croesus didn't just have money; he invented money, issuing Lydia with its first true gold and silver coins, making it the first civilisation in the world to use them as currency in the process. The city was literally flowing with gold; the River Pactolus was said to bear the precious metal which provided the leader with his great reserves. In reality, the waters contained deposits of electrum - an alloy of gold and silver which the Greeks referred to as 'white gold'.

According to the legend of Herodotus, Croesus invited the sage Solon to luxuriate in the light of his infinite riches. Presuming he had it all made, the Lydian king smugly asked his guest who the happiest man on the planet was - thoroughly expecting his name to echo back. He was gravely disappointed, as Solon went on to forewarn that the fickleness of fortune meant true happiness couldn't be gauged until life was over.

True enough, Croesus' mountains of money offered little sympathy when his son was accidentally killed and his wife committed suicide. Today, he is sometimes held as a parable for the pitfalls of greed - but his name is more commonly synonymous with supreme affluence.

Editorial Team
Editorial Team

Benjamin was born in 1987, and is still not dead. He variously enjoys classical music, old-school adventure games (they're not dead), and walks on the beach (albeit short - asthma, you know). He's currently trying to compile a comprehensive history of video game music, yet denies accusations that he purposefully targets niche audiences. He's often wrong about these things.