Famous Military Leaders - List of Famous Military Leaders - page 5
Military Leaders are the leaders of the military forces—armed forces, armed services, military, military machine, war machine—of a nation. Military leaders influence others by providing purpose, direction, and motivation to accomplish the mission, and have the legal authority to lawfully exercise control over subordinates by virtue of their rank or position. Warlords who exercise absolute civil power and individual autonomy in regions where the government is weak are also considered to be military leaders. History is replete with the legends of military leaders and revolutionaries who left their indelible marks on human civilization. Alexander the Great, who established one of the largest empires of the ancient world, is undoubtedly one of the best known military leaders. Ancient China’s Sun Tzu was not just a brilliant military leader, but also the author of ‘The Art of War’, an ancient Chinese text on military strategy. While Saladin, William the Conqueror and Henry V were the famous military leaders who lived during the Middle Ages, Oliver Cromwell, Shivaji and Peter the Great were courageous warriors of the Early Modern Period. Even though a majority of military leaders throughout history have been men, brave ladies like Joan of Arc, Boudicca, Laskarina Bouboulina, and Lakshmibai have proven that women too can be powerful military leaders. Read on to discover about the life and works of various famous military leaders from all over the world.
The Most Famous Military Leaders | |||
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Name | Birthday | Nationality | Bio |
William Wallace | 1270 | Scottish | William Wallace was a Scottish knight who was a central figure in the Wars of Scottish Independence |
Reinhard Heydrich | March 7, 1904 | German | Reinhard Heydrich was a high-ranking German Nazi official during the World War II |
Heinrich Himmler | October 7, 1900 | German | Heinrich Himmler was a German Nazi military commander and a close associate of Adolf Hitler |
Che Guevara | June 14, 1928 | Argentinian | Che Guevara is one of the most revered and legendary political figures in world history |
Vasili Arkhipov | January 30, 1926 | Russian | Vasili Arkhipov was a Soviet Navy officer who is credited for 'saving the world' from a nuclear war by casting the decisive vote that prevented a Soviet nuclear strike on U.S |
Herbert Sobel | January 26, 1912 | American | Herbert Sobel was a commissioned officer in the U.S |
Joan of Arc | 1412 | French | Joan of Arc was a young woman who led the French army to victory over the British in a crucial battle during the Hundred Years' War |
Ariel Sharon | February 26, 1928 | Israeli | Ariel Sharon was an Israeli general and politician who later on served as the eleventh Prime Minister of Israel |
Crazy Horse | American | Crazy Horse was one of the most celebrated Native American warriors to have ever lived | |
Ahmad Shah Massoud | September 2, 1953 | Afghan | Ahmad Shah Massoud, who was known in his native Afghanistan as the ‘Lion of Panjshir’, was a political and military leader |
Marquis de Lafayette
Marquis de Lafayette was a French aristocrat and for the United States in the American Revolutionary War
Isoroku Yamamoto
Isoroku Yamamoto was a Japanese naval commander during World War II
Hermann Goring
Hermann Goring was a German politician and military leader in Hitler’s Nazi party
Heinrich Himmler
Heinrich Himmler was a German Nazi military commander and a close associate of Adolf Hitler
Curtis Lemay
Curtis LeMay was one of the greatest generals in the United States Air Force
Smedley Butler
Smedley Butler was a highly decorated Major General in the US Marine Corps and a vocal critic of war profiteering
Pervez Musharraf
Pervez Musharraf served as the Army Chief and President of Pakistan
Kublai Khan
Kublai Khan was a Mongol emperor who founded the Yuan dynasty in Mongolia and China
Anthony Wayne
Anthony Wayne was an American Army officer and statesman
William Tecumseh Sherman
William Tecumseh Sherman was an American soldier who rose to the rank of General during the American Civil war