Favourite Historical Figure

[Chechosaurus]

Well then... Here we are. I'm interested to know who you, the people of the Escapist, think is is best historical figure in your own opinion.
I want to know:
Who they are
When were they alive
What they did
and best of all... How they died.

Any other interesting facts would be great as well.

My favourite historical figure would have to be Leon Trotsky. It was second only to Lenin in the early days of Bolshevik Russia and was one of the leaders of the October Revolution. He also formed the Red Army and played a major role in winning the Russian Civil War. Basically, he was a complete legend and met his untimely demise in 1940 when he was assassinated in Mexico with an Ice Axe. Poor sod.

 

[ae86gamer]

Violette Szabo.

1920-1940's

She was a S.O.E agent who she reorganized a French resistance network that had been smashed by the Germans. She led the group in sabotaging road and rail bridges. She reported on the local factories producing war materials for the Germans were extremely important in establishing Allied bombing targets. She coordinated the activities of the local Maquis in sabotaging communication lines during German attempts to stem the Normandy landings.

She died one her second mission after a gun battle against German Nazis where she ran out of gun ammo. She was tortured and then sent to a concentration camp.

 

[Inarticulate_Underachiever]

I'll say Winston Churchill until I come up with a more interesting answer

 

[Gitsnik]

I always take a big risk when I say this, and a lot of people call me out on it so I tend to try and cover my ass before I say it. First and foremost let me say that I feel a lot of the policies and methods were flat out WRONG and I would definitely have gone a different way.

I'm not going to say the name because that's just begging for someone to flame me, but he pulled an entire nation out of a depression (and they were hit *hard*) with ideas of patriotism and a better world. He gave them an enemy, and he built them an army and for a while life was good. He was so motivational that he consumed almost an entire continent before he was stopped, and he survived at least 5 assassination attempts (including one really big bomb).

Pity he was an ass-hole, but he did - in the (butchered) words of JK Rowling - Great things. Terrible, but great.

 

[sms_117b]

Dian Wei

? ? 197

Cao Cao's bodyguard (one of the three rulers during the three kingdoms of China)

Drunk and drugged he stood at a gate guarding his lords retreat from a surprise night attack, he took many arrows, puncture wounds, slash wounds but let no-one pass, breaking weapons and (according to some sources) using two MEN as weapons to fight off the horde. After he dies, the soldiers still refused to pass through the gate

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dian_Wei

 

[Chechosaurus]

I always take a big risk when I say this, and a lot of people call me out on it so I tend to try and cover my ass before I say it. First and foremost let me say that I feel a lot of the policies and methods were flat out WRONG and I would definitely have gone a different way.

I'm not going to say the name because that's just begging for someone to flame me, but he pulled an entire nation out of a depression (and they were hit *hard*) with ideas of patriotism and a better world. He gave them an enemy, and he built them an army and for a while life was good. He was so motivational that he consumed almost an entire continent before he was stopped, and he survived at least 5 assassination attempts (including one really big bomb).

Pity he was an ass-hole, but he did - in the (butchered) words of JK Rowling - Great things. Terrible, but great.

I'm just going go ahead and say Hitler?
I studied Nazi German a lot for my A-Levels and I am not going to flame you for your choice. He gave us some serious hindsight for the future. He did do a bloody good job of pulling Germany back onto it's feet even if he was a tad extreme in his methods. Just because he was evil, doesn't mean he can't be great.

 

[SmilingKitsune]

I've always been fond of Leonardo DeVinci, mostly for the things he invented, he had concepts for a (primitive)tank, a helicopter and many others.

 

[ElephantGuts]

I always take a big risk when I say this, and a lot of people call me out on it so I tend to try and cover my ass before I say it. First and foremost let me say that I feel a lot of the policies and methods were flat out WRONG and I would definitely have gone a different way.

I'm not going to say the name because that's just begging for someone to flame me, but he pulled an entire nation out of a depression (and they were hit *hard*) with ideas of patriotism and a better world. He gave them an enemy, and he built them an army and for a while life was good. He was so motivational that he consumed almost an entire continent before he was stopped, and he survived at least 5 assassination attempts (including one really big bomb).

Pity he was an ass-hole, but he did - in the (butchered) words of JK Rowling - Great things. Terrible, but great.

I agree with you (and I'm Jewish). Hitler was a very smart man, atleast until he apparently descended into madness as the Reich collapsed around him. He devised and employed the Bltizkrieg tactics and completely revolutionized warfare when the British and French were still sitting in trenches in France ready to fight World War 1 all over again. And of course that he seemingly pulled off the impossible, pulling Germany out of its post-WW1 depression and motivating the entire country to the extent that he did. It's a real shame he decided to use his power and attributes to murder millions of people, or else he probably would have been one of my favorite historical figures. Don't get me wrong, I still hate him, but I do sort of respect him and really wish he went in a different direction.

And didn't Hitler survive like 40 or 50 assassination attempts, or plots atleast?

As for my favorite historical figures, there are just too many for me to choose from. And I can't pick favorites between anything anyway.

 

[Wertbag]

Nicola Tesla 1856-1943, true genius, invented AC power and dozens of other world changing electrical and mechanical devices.
If you don't know of him google or wikipedia...
He had an amazing way of looking at problems, he could solve engineering issues in his head before he put pen to paper. He was famous for making claims considered to be ridiculous but then achieving them.
Sadly due to fire, thieft and because he simply didn't document everything he did many of his inventions were lost or cannot not be fully recreated to this day. This has led to a whole industry of guess work and rumour about what he was possible of. Considering what he was able to achieve it does make it hard to filter rumour from fact.
He never cared about money, only on the next project. He died a pauper when theortically he should have ended up one of the wealthiest men in history.

 

[Claytonic3000]

US President Andrew Jackson, March 15, 1767 - June 8, 1845.

He did a lot, being a general, a gorvernor, and a president over his lifetime. The one thing he did that I like the most was eliminating the US national debt for the first an only time in history.


He died of chronic tuberculosis.

 

[Svenparty]

Friedrich Nietzsche<----Had a very Interesting philosophy and lived them out to the full

Oscar Wilde<---If he is as outrageous and Absinthe minded as I have heard

Adolf Hitler<----- Granted he is regarded as a VERY Evil man but I'd still have some questions.

Walt Disney<-----He wanted to create an Utopia, it's a shame how much his company has played down his greatness as an Industrialist and turned his EP (Though marketing dept wouldn't have a very good time)

Anton Lavey-Founder of the Church of Satan a very great man who saw through everyone and unleashed their primal instincts

 

[Gitsnik]

And didn't Hitler survive like 40 or 50 assassination attempts, or plots atleast?

My recollection is only 4 or 5 active ones, I don't really count plots if they don't get close. And yes that was my choice, I'm surprised the escapist held together for me on that one (I was actually expecting a flame for it).

Interesting non sequitur, I spent 4 years working on a paper (that was later lost to the bowels of the university) which postulated that he could have been killed as early as mid-1942 and the war would still have lasted as long as it did - the people still believed, even in to 1945, that the 3rd was the way to go. They wanted to believe, and he just rocked on in and said "hey follow me and no more bullshit from England and France screwing us for that dumb-ass war a few years back", so they followed. Any time before 1942 and the armies could still have swung south for the oil-fields rather than getting caught up in his egotistical battle at Stalingrad, and (should that have happened) we might all be speaking German now.

 

[hairymammoth]

I always take a big risk when I say this, and a lot of people call me out on it so I tend to try and cover my ass before I say it. First and foremost let me say that I feel a lot of the policies and methods were flat out WRONG and I would definitely have gone a different way.

I'm not going to say the name because that's just begging for someone to flame me, but he pulled an entire nation out of a depression (and they were hit *hard*) with ideas of patriotism and a better world. He gave them an enemy, and he built them an army and for a while life was good. He was so motivational that he consumed almost an entire continent before he was stopped, and he survived at least 5 assassination attempts (including one really big bomb).

Pity he was an ass-hole, but he did - in the (butchered) words of JK Rowling - Great things. Terrible, but great.

I see what you mean, he was a good leader, just a bit twisted and one hell of a twat.

 

[bjj hero]

I quite like John F kennedy.

John tried to get into the military but was rejected on health grounds. He then had his dad pull some strings to get him into the Nacy; unlike George Bush who deserted the military.

When his boat was sunk John saved one of his men, swimming him to safety even though John himself was injured.

He went on to become president and was a veteran "swordsman" an absolute bush master, he even tapped Marylin Monroe. He got more ass than a London bus seat. Legend.

Then some douche shot him. Must have been jealousy.

 

[Ridergurl10]

Frederick the second, Holy Roman Emperor (1220 - 1250)

He was very interesting. He conquered Jerusalem while many other crusaders failed. He also did it without fighting at all. He actually negotiated with the rulers of Jerusalem and they let him in. He was crowned king of Jerusalem while he was excommunicated from the Roman Catholic Church. The Pope realized he had made a mistake and re communicated him. He was later excommunicated again. He never did anything the normal way.

He also did some very interesting science experiments. He wanted to know the language of God so he locked newborns in a room and never let anyone speak to them. They were fed and cared for, but never allowed to hear any spoken words. He figued they would learn God's language that way. They didn't, but it was an interesting experiment for that time period!

 

[Pseudonym2]

(1810?1903)
Cassius Marcellus Clay, he fought of multiple assassination attempts, one of which was when he was in his 80's. When he wasn't beating up 10 or more attackers, he was acting as an abolitionist activist. He fought everything from from robber barons to imperialists and kicked ass while doing so.

Died from old age.

 

[RavingPenguin]

Ulysses S. Grant
1822-1885
One of the, if not the, greatest general during the Civil War and perhaps history. Wrote his widely acclaimed memoirs. 16th President of the United States
Died of cancer of the throat

You're joking right? The reason Grant was chosen as general was because he was stubborn, almost stupidly so. Lincoln saw that the strategies Grant employed, which was to send wave after wave of men at the South, were the best way of wearing the South down.

Albert Einstein is my favorite historical person, the way he pondered things is incredibly similar to the way I do. Einstein had a very vivid imagination, which is the reason he came up with so many interesting theories. I patricullarly like his redefinition of gravity. Instead of the earth pulling on us, it has sufficient mas to bend the space around it, that space pushes us towards the the earth. The same applies for all heavenly bodies.