13. One of the few documented individuals to fight for William the Conqueror at the Battle of Hastings, William de Warenne amassed lands worth almost $150,000,000,000
William de Warenne, 1st Earl of Surrey, Low of Lewes, Seigneur to Varennes, was a Norman nobleman and supporter of William the Conqueror. Although Williams’ genealogy and birth are unclear, it has been suggested that he was a descendant of Richard I of Rouen. A second son, and thus not likely to inherit his family’s small estate, William fervently supported Duke William II of Normandy during his early reign, being rewarded with confiscated lands including the Castle of Mortimer. Fighting at the Battle of Hastings in support of the Duke of Normandy’s claim to the throne of England, victory in the conflict saw William’s holdings expand considerably.
Granted lands in at least thirteen counties of England in reward for his loyal service and companionship to the new monarch, the Domesday Book records William, later the Earl of Surrey, as one of the foremost landowners in the entire country. Continuing to fight to secure his lord’s crown, William saw further battle at the Isle of Ely before being mortally wounded during the First Siege of Pevensey Castle in 1088. Modern projections value the adjusted wealth of the Norman nobleman’s estates to range between one hundred and forty and one hundred and fifty billion dollars.