All Time Top 5 Richest Women in the World
I was inspired to look back at history and single out the richest women of all time. This list from Neatorama takes a good look at the top ten richest men in history. Although today when we think of the richest men we might think of Bill Gates or Warren Buffett, the richest man in history was indeed John D. Rockafeller. The top five richest women in history are also not necessarily from our time. Keep reading to find out about the top 5 richest women in world, throughout history.
Elizabeth I of England
Peak Wealth: $142.9 Billion USD
Elizabeth I inherited her wealth after rising to the throne of England. Her life before the throne was full of commotion as her family members were all vying for the crown. She narrowly escaped death many times. After she took a hold of the crown her life was far from simplified. She ruled for forty-five years and provided a consistent government for England that helped form a sense of nationality among the people of England. Elizabeth I never married and the reasons for this are unclear. Perhaps she did not want the interference of another country or monarch in her government. She took many suitors, but her childhood may have put her off the idea of marriage.
Although near the end of her reign people were starting to speak badly of her, after the next few rulers took over, there was a revival of Elizabethan ideals. She was touted as a great leader of the protestant movement and of a golden age. Elizabeth I is a woman who shaped the course of history.
Cleopatra
Peak Wealth: $95.8 Billion USD
Cleopatra claimed the throne of Egypt when she was 18 years old. She was married to her younger brother, but she showed signs that she had no intention of sharing the throne with him. The first three years of her reign were turbulent because of famine and other harsh conditions in Egypt at the time. She had coins made to display her face instead of her brother’s and this went against the tradition that women rulers had to be subordinate to male ones. She fled Egypt with her sister to escape persecution. Julius Ceasar, Emperor of Rome, tried to control the feud between Cleopatra and her brother. At this time she returned to Egypt, met Ceasar soon after she and Julius had a child. This produced peace between Egypt and Rome for a short time.
When Ceasar was murdered in Rome, Cleopatra and her son returned to Egypt. One of the potential successors to Ceasar, Mark Antony, came to Egypt. He and Cleopatra had three children and he married her in Alexandria. He lived in Alexandria with her, though the Romans were outraged. Cleopatra had plans to have the Eastern countries attack Rome and rule the world, but Rome attacked Egypt first and both Cleopatra and Mark Antony’s fleets were unsuccessful. Cleopatra escaped and died from the poison of a cobra bite to her wrist.
Cleopatra was a women who endured many trials in her life and she took the challenges that she faced head on. She also formed alliances with other countries that were beneficial to her people.
Hetty Green
Peak Wealth: $58.8 Billion USD
Hetty Green inherited nearly $7 Million from her aunt and father in 1865, at age 31, and was one of the first women to parlay her wealth on Wall Street into even bigger sums. In fifty years she turned her inheritance into over $200 Million by herself, because she trusted no one with her money. As a girl she spent her evenings reading the financial section of newspapers from New York and Boston. When her father tried to introduce her to society in New York and Boston by giving her the equivalent of tens of thousands of dollars worth of new clothes, she sold them all and invested in the stock market.
Hetty married and had two children. She was very strict with money and often argued about having to pay for things, despite earning the equivalent of millions of dollars per year. She was a very successful Stock Exchange operator in New York City, and took the 6 hour train back and forth from Vermont to live with her husband and children. People were calling her the Witch of Wall Street because she always seemed to make the right investments and her wealth was always on the rise. She also provided mortgages to churches and acted as bank. The name calling bore an undercurrent of jealously because whenever someone needed money fast, Hetty was there to lend it. More than once the City of New York called on her to keep the city solvent.
After Hetty Green died and her son passed away, her daughter Sylvia Green lived in New York as a widow. At her passing, she left the estate for donations and almost $90 Million was donated to schools, hospitals and charities. Although Hetty would never have donated her money so easily, her daughter Sylvia learned that money is best given to good causes than to be locked in a vault.
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Peak Wealth: $26.2 Billion USD
Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom is the first woman in the top 5 richest women in history who is still alive. She inherited her wealth through her royal lineage. I visited some of the Royal castles in England and they are all beautiful. Queen Elizabeth is the second longest reigning monarch. She is a very devoted monarch and on her 21st birthday made the following pledge:
I declare before you all that my whole life, whether it be long or short, shall be devoted to your service and the service of our great imperial family to which we all belong.
When she was only 18 years old, the Princess Elizabeth asked her father to allow her to participate in the war effort. He agreed and she was trained with other members of the armed forces. She drove a truck during the war and she was the only female royal member to participate in the war efforts. Soon after the passing of her father, Elizabeth and her husband Phillip traveled the world for a whole year. They were the first monarchs to travel around the world. This gave Elizabeth a different view of the world and the other countries of which she was now a Queen. The Queen has often shown that she has determination by continuing with her travels despite some fears of attacks or extremist activism.
Elizabeth II helped keep the United Kingdom and other countries of which she is a monarch stable. She spends much of her time tending to her duties and governments of the world have agreed that she is a very devoted and knowledgeable monarch.
Lilianne Bettencourt
Peak Wealth: $20.7 Billion USD
You can find out more about Liliane Bettencourt by reading the feature that Billionaire Woman recently did. Lilianne is the second woman in the top 5 richest women in history who is still alive.
If you are interested in seeing the full list of richest historical figures you can see it here. Each of the women on this list inherited their wealth. Although Hetty Green was probably the most industrious in growing her fortune by herself, she began her investments with a nice helping hand from her father and aunt. Generally speaking the top 5 richest women in history were either royal or were handed down a large sum of money from her father and ancestors. Each woman used her wealth to improve the lives of the people, save Hetty (although her daughter saw that the money helped people in the end). I believe that this is the nature of female leadership and that the next time you find yourself with an overabundance of money, sharing it for the greater good is the way to go.
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