The Committee to Nuke Elysium

In 1490, the von Thurn und Taxis clan organized a postal line between European cities. Albert’s father claimed the family had the resources and manpower to start the organization after a stint as brigands in the Alps.

The Thurn und Taxis family eventually won the lucrative position of postmasters-general for the Holy Roman Empire. Their riches piled up. They moved into their 500-room castle in Regensburg in 1812. Albert still lives there with his mother and older sisters.

In our 2008 list of the planet’s richest, published in March, we found 1,125 billionaires worldwide. Of that group, 370 inherited their money. Many have had plenty of wealth in their families for multiple generations.

The U.K.’s richest citizen Gerald Cavendish Grosvenor traces his $14 billion fortune back centuries. In the 1600s, his family bought a cabbage farm. Cabbages may not make billionaires, but great real estate does. Those hundreds of acres are now hugely valuable because of their central London location. Like Albert, Grosvenor also has a title to go along with his fortune. He’s the sixth Duke of Westminster.