It requires some luck to become truly wealthy from anything but the top quartile or so in a single generation.<p>It requires responsibility, dedication, and intentionality to accomplish it in two generations, or to maintain wealth earned more than one generation ago. Luck always helps, and exceptionally bad luck will doom anyone, but it isn't so necessary for the long road to wealth<p>Intelligence, beyond a certain moderate amount, is not required. It is a significant asset, of course, but the other ingredients are still required