5. Herodes Atticus made use of his family wealth and connections to be the first great ancient philanthropist
Centuries before wealthy European businessmen or American industrialists decided to give away large sums of money, Herodes Atticus was making a name for himself as one of the most generous men in ancient Rome. In fact, Herodes is possibly the earliest example we have of civic-minded philanthropy, plus he is also remembered for his writing and contributions to philosophy.
It’s believed Herodes was born to a fabulously wealthy Athenian family in the year 101AD. Since his father was a Senator, he enjoyed excellent connections and, as a young man, he benefitted from the best possible education. He also made friends with the future emperor Hadrian. When Hadrian did indeed come to power, Herodes was sent to Asia to tackle corruption in several major cities. Upon returning to Athens, he worked as a teacher and then, in the year 140, the Emperor Antonius Pius invited him to Rome to work as the private tutor of his sons.
After a short spell serving as Consul, he returned to his native Greece to settle down and enjoy family life. Determined that ordinary people could enjoy the same cultural and spiritual life as he himself did, Herodes became a notable philanthropist. He used his private wealth to fund a number of building projects. Under him, new stadiums and theatres were built in Athens, another stadium was constructed in Delphi, plus baths, aqueducts and temples were all built bearing his name.
When Herodes died, the people of Athens mourned him greatly. Many of his philanthropic projects had created large numbers of jobs, plus the completed works brought great joy to the city. He was given an honorable burial and his funeral took place in a stadium that he himself had commissioned. Sadly, almost all of his writing has been lost, though his reputation as one of the great philanthropists of the ancient world endues to this day.