Marcus Licinius Crassus was known as the richest man in Rome, and used his money to become one of the most powerful men in Roman politics. Who would have inherited his property after he died? The Wikiped does have short articles on his surviving son and grandson, but there doesn't seem to be any mention of the wealth they inherited or how they used it. Would it all have gone to them under Roman law, and if so, why were they comparatively minor players in the politics of their era?
Most of Crassus’ fantastic wealth was probably inherited by his son Marcus.
Although Augustus would later introduce a 5% estate tax on legacies given to any but close relatives, there were no legal restrictions or duties on wealth passed between father and son. We know nothing about the contents of Crassus’ will (which would have been deposited before his departure, per the usual practice, with the Vestals back in Rome), but it can be safely assumed that he left the bulk of his wealth to his two sons Publius and Marcus. Publius died at Carrhae; but Marcus would live on for at least another five years. The wealth he inherited, in fact, may have financed the construction of a famous Roman monument.
Marcus married a noblewoman named Caecilia Metella. When she died, either Marcus or his identically-named son (whom we’ll call Marcus Jr.) commissioned a colossal tomb near the third milestone of the Appian Way. This structure, so large that it was converted into a castle in the middle ages, still stands today. When Marcus Crassus died, Marcus Jr. probably received the bulk of his grandfather’s immense fortune, which helped to finance his very active military career in the first years of Augustus’ reign.
The wealth of Crassus was likely passed on for generations, gradually diminishing from the elite Roman practice of splitting wealth between sons and leaving legacies to emperors and friends.
