Many of the great personal fortunes of the past 100 years have flowed from holes in the ground: oil wells. Once the steam engine had been adapted to drive a drill and a method of cleaning. or ‘retining’, oil had been developed in the mid-19th century. the way was Open for oil products to become an indispensable fuel for modern industry. For those who foresaw this, and had the chance to invest in the new oil business. there were vast riches to be gained.
It was oil which gave American tycoon John D. Rockefeller the opportunity to acquire probably the biggest personal fortune of modern times. At present day values, it would be worth in the multi million region. Rockefeller (1839 -1937) began his business life at 16 as a book-keeper. By the age of 19 he had saved enough to help start a small company, and he then entered the oil business, backing Samuel Andrews. the inventor of an oil-refining process. In 1870 Rockefeller helped found Standard Oil, which swallowed smaller firms, and by 1879 controlled 90 per cent of US oil refineries, making Rockefeller master of 75 per cent of the world’s oil production. His huge combine survived until 1911 when the US Supreme Court ordered it to be broken up because of its overwhelming commercial power.
Arab oil sheikhs are now often thought to be the wealthiest people in the world, but they are usually rulers of states rather than gatherers of purely personal riches. Sheikh Zayid ibn Sultan an-Nuhayan of the United Arab Emirates is said to be entitled to £600 million a year, more than £16 million a day-from oil royalties which have not been made over officially to the state. He is not thought, however.to draw anything approaching that amount, and so the remainder of the money is kept by the state.
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