This handy list of the richest people ever will either a) motivate you to work harder or b) cause an inner hatred for another group of people. At least some of them are dead, so it’s not like they’re living the life right now.
You know a couple of the usual suspects — Carnegie, Billy Gates, Rockefeller but more than a few names might be surprising considering they’ve been dead hundreds of years. Like check out Akbar 1 from India on the list of the richest people ever:—
Ruled empire with 25% of global GDP
The greatest emperor of India’s Mughal dynasty, Akbar controlled an empire that accounted for about one-fourth of global economic output. Fortune’s Chris Matthews cites the late economic historian Angus Maddison, who speculates India’s GDP per capita under Akbar was comparable to Elizabethan England, but with “a ruling class whose extravagant lifestyle surpassed that of the European society.”
That assertion that India’s elite class was wealthier than their counterparts to the west is backed up by data from economist Branko Milanovic, whose research shows the Mughal Dynasty was one of the most effective empires of all time at extracting wealth from the population.
Not bad. And how about number one on the list, Donald Trump. I’m fucking with you, it’s Mansa Musa who’s “richer than anyone could describe.” Now that’s rich. He was worth so much money it’s actually impossible to calculate it all.
[via MSN]