What Made Crassus so Rich?

When people today compare their wealth, it is still not that uncommon to hear the analogy that "so and so is richer than Crassus," appealing to a member of the First Triumvirate that existed over two thousand years ago. To this day, his name still remains an iconic symbol of wealth and prosperity, even though most people don't exactly know what made him so. To hear one speak of this Triumvir, you might even think he was simply born with a bag of denarii in his hand.

Crassus started out with modest wealth - his father was a Roman censor (an individual responsible for maintaining the census and ensuring the morality of the city) who had amassed a considerable fortune in his respective professions. In fact, the family had been given the nickname "dives", meaning rich. But a series of less than profitable ventures - specifically supporting the traitor Sulla - was temporarily devastating to his aspirations of personal ambition.

Crassus' family was in ardent support of the mos maiorum, which was in essence an unwritten series of laws based on precedent - a Roman equivalent of Islam's hadiths. This was often, however, little more than an excuse to justify ardent Roman conservatism, which usually resulted in the decline of the impoverished in favor of society's elite. Political parties and families were often formed around this mos maiorum, recognizing the benefits that would come from perceived Roman stoicism, or more importantly, the indisputable law of the land that favored the upper classes.

To this end, Marcus Licinius Crassus threw his support behind Lucius Cornelius Sulla - the hard line conservative would-be Roman dictator.

These were during turbulent Roman times - Gaius Marius had just crossed a dangerous line by officially abolishing the line between land owners and the poor, creating a professional, state run army that forever challenged the dominance of the upper classes. As if this were not insult enough, Marius himself was in a constant rivalry with the increasingly popular Sulla - and this was seen as a direct challenge.

Frustrations were further fueled when Sulla was elected by the Senate for a post to battle the Greek rebel Mithradates VI of Pontus, but the People's Assembly had overturned the measure, as was the right of the Tribune of the Plebs. Incensed by this notion, Sulla openly refused to adhere to the People's wishes, stating that it was in contradiction to the mos maiorum, appealing to it as a legal Constitution.

Following Sulla's disastrous marches upon Rome and his violent purging of anyone not loyal to him upon his return, he further laid down proscriptions on supporters of Gaius Marius in the hopes of refilling his empty coffers. This was part and parcel to his bloody cleansing of the city - a hint of loyalty equated to political and economic ruin for one's family.

Incensed by the bloodbath and brazen defiance of Roman code, Lucius Cornelius Cinna imposed his own proscriptions on any Sulla loyalists following the death of Gaius Marius. Facing economic hardships and a potential ruination, Crassus fled to Hispania where he later reunited with Sulla for a second march against Rome. This time, however, as more, and heavier, proscriptions were laid in, the tables were turned and it was Crassus's turn to cash in.

Rebuilding from what Cinna had taken from him, he swooped in to collect the property and valuables of those whom Sulla deemed "unfavorable". Although this gave him a temporary boost in acclaim, Crassus understood that this was not a sustainable source of income and crafted an ingenious, if not devious, way to maintain and control his fortune.

One of the biggest problems in the city of Rome was the constant risk of fires - and once the smallest flame broke out it was very possible that the entire city was be turned into a quick inferno. Fire fighters were little more than soldiers and later Praetorians that put down their swords and picked up a bucket of water. Fire fighting tactics were very primitive, and usually involved destroying all property immediately surrounding the inflamed structure and dousing it with water. This was usually terribly ineffective.

This was where Crassus realized a small fortune could be made: using a force of 300 elite fire fighters, he had a network of informers who kept him up in the know about where fires were quickly starting in the city. Armed with his small fortune, Crassus was on hand to buy the now worthless property at a modest value from the now bankrupt owner of the building. He likewise bought the property from the surrounding buildings which were expected to be destroyed by the fire at modest, if not market value, prices.

When the transaction was complete, Crassus's fire fighters set to putting out the fire with abandon, usually successfully. With the threat gone, Crassus now had a remarkable amount of real estate worth selling, netting him remarkable profits.

As his wealth increased, he continued to dip his fingers into more conventional methods of money making; investing heavily in slave trafficking, tax farmers, playing the real estate market, investing in the silver mines, and acting as a creditor.

By the time he entered into the First Triumvirate, Crassus had become so remarkably wealthy that, as Rome's generals were all overseas battling with the entirety of the Roman Army, he single handedly paid for, raised, trained, and armed the Roman legions necessary to put down the rebel slave Spartacus. Perhaps weary of this rapidly growing power, he was denied the Triumph he deserved upon winning the Third Servile War and effectively putting down the slave rebellion.

As much as this shamed and infuriated Crassus, however, he was not entirely deterred. Fueled by his alliance with Caesar and Pompey, Crassus was able to generate the loyalty of the almighty Asian tax farmers, who pressed the Senate for reforms on the tax codes.

It seems somehow ironic, one must confess, that a man whose entire life was built around avarice and wealth met his hand when a Persian king poured molten gold down his throat.

Sources:

Plutarch - http://classics.mit.edu/Plutarch/crassus.html
Jerry Fielden - http://www.jerryfielden.com/essays/SULLA.HTM
California State University Northridge - http://www.csun.edu/~hcfll004/61BC.html