He Divorced, Married an 18 Year Old, and Left Her $5 Million Not to Remarry: John Jacob Astor IV

When the Titanic went down on April 15, 1912, the richest man aboard was John Jacob Astor IV, whose estate was reported at $85 to 87 million. A week later his body was drawn from the North Atlantic as number 124, a gold watch and more than $2,400 still in his pockets. He was 47 when he married Madeleine Force, who was just 18, after a 1909 divorce that scandalized New York. In his will he left her the income of a $5 million trust, on a single condition: that she never remarry. In 1916, at 22, she remarried anyway, and gave up a fortune to do it. Subscribe to the channel: @cursedfortunes In this video, we tell the full story of John Jacob Astor IV, including the family that owned the ground beneath New York, his mother Caroline Astor and her Four Hundred, the divorce that money had to hide, the wedding no minister would bless, the exile honeymoon through Europe and Egypt, the night the Titanic sank and the lifeboat he was refused, the recovery of his body, and the clause in his will that set a price on his young widow's freedom. 🔔 Subscribe so the next Gilded Age story finds you. 💬 Comment where you're watching from and tell me what you make of Astor's will and the price he set on Madeleine's freedom. 📢 Share this on Facebook, Reddit, or wherever you talk history, because you are the reason this channel keeps telling these stories. Chapters: 00:00 Opening 07:54 The queen of four hundred people 14:33 The awkward heir who wanted to matter 30:46 The divorce that money had to hide 37:58 The girl of eighteen 51:43 Egypt, and a decision made out of love 58:39 The unsinkable answer to every doubt 1:13:46 Tell me the number of the boat 1:20:41 The coldest hour 1:35:08 The clause 1:42:20 The price of loving again 1:57:40 The futurist and the cold water Sources: Encyclopedia Titanica — John Jacob Astor (biography and body record) Colonel John Jacob Astor IV (1864–1912) : Titanic First Class Passenger (Victim) : JJ Astor Encyclopedia Titanica — Col. Astor Weds Madeleine Force (New York Times, 1911) Col. Astor Weds Madeleine Force Wikipedia — John Jacob Astor IV John Jacob Astor IV Wikipedia — Madeleine Astor Madeleine Astor Wikipedia — A Journey in Other Worlds (1894 novel) A Journey in Other Worlds New Netherland Institute — John Jacob Astor IV John Jacob Astor IV 1864-1912 Smithsonian Magazine — Astor's gold pocket watch at auction The Titanic's Wealthiest Victim Was Carrying a Gold Pocket Watch When He Died. Now, It Could Sell for $500,000 at Auction DISCLAIMER: This video is based on real historical events and figures, drawn from the sources listed above alongside primary archives, biographies, court records, period press, and leading historical scholarship. While every video is heavily researched, occasional minor inaccuracies in dates, quotes, or specific details may occur — historical sources sometimes disagree, and interpretation is sometimes required where the historical record is silent. Any errors are unintentional. #JohnJacobAstor #JohnJacobAstorIV #Astor #Astors #Titanic #TitanicHistory #MadeleineAstor #GildedAge #GildedAgeNewYork #NewYorkHistory #AmericanHistory #FifthAvenue #WaldorfAstoria #ColonelAstor #History #Documentary #CursedFortunes #1912