Who Are Your Favorite Historical Personalities?

[Esteban]

Everyone study history.Sometimes it gets boring terribly .But it's not completely boring.If we understand some (interesting) subjects clearly,history enjoys us a lot .
Some personalities in history have great affections for us.Sometimes we idolize some of them.My idols are;
Julius Caesar:We know enough about him.But the most important point is his neurological illness for me (because i have anemia so i can't do physical activities completely.but his illness is too terrible than mine that's why his achievements encourages me).for instance,he won too many wars also defeated domestic and foreign enemies.His rivals had to assasinate to stop him.I came,I saw and I admired him a lot ;D .
Cenghis Khan:Most people don't believe that a person can't be educated,trained in deserts,steppes or tundras.Cenghis Khan contradicts those people for hundreds of years .His first rivals was nature and tribes.(as I remember)his wife was kidnapped by merkits and father was killed by tatars.In addition he was left in the nature with only a tent and a horse(left with horse!!!it was a terrible mistake by rivals xD he was able to do what he want with a horse!!).Although young Cenghis (a.k.a. Temuchin) suffered too much,he managed to form a "Mongol Union".In my opinion that's enough.If I try to write all of his achievements,Cenghis invades this forum too .
Changpogo:Last year I watched Korean tv series a lot [especially Queen Seon-Duk and Sea God(a.k.a. Emperor of The Sea)].I saw Changpogo(a.k.a. Gung-Bok) in Sea God.He was born to a low class family(maybe slave :S ).But he managed to rise exteremely,he was assigned as governer of Cheong-Hae-Jin.Firstly,Changpogo moved to Cheong-Hae-Jin in Wando Island.He protected Cheong-Hae-Jin against pirates with 10.000 soldiers.Then he eliminated all of pirates in that region.Secondly,Gung-Bok developed Cheong with an unbelievable effort.Cheong became a trade center in Far East.As i watched on tv,he canceled slavery in his province although that was a custom in entire Korea peninsula .He was local deity .
note:mom said that i looked like Changpogo with my beard and long hair.To be honest,i try to look like him .english.changpogo.or.kr/index.html you can learn more details about him from this site

...and what about yours ?

[Arivse]

This is nice topic!

Mine are:

Julius Caesar: I've been reading books about him from elementary school. I have found his childhood and time before he was a Dictator much more interesting than his time after that. Especialy the time when he was captured by the pirates and when he figth againts the slaves in slave revolt. In short his time before politics

Elias Lönnrot: A Guy who wrote/compiled such a epic book, can't be ignored here

[Bartbär]

Great topic, and I'll have much to say and come back about on this one.

I'm an odd person, usually when Idolize someone from history it is not generally a ruler or leader, but the people who wrote down their stories. Afterall, if it wasn't for these people we would know virtually nothing about these rulers aside from archaeological evidence, but that evidence isn't very helpful if there is no source to compare it to. Therefore my idols are the true bookworms and scholars: Suetonius (who I've admired even more since reading his works), Tacitus, Bede, and of course the "father of History" Herodotus. Just to name a few, I haven't always read their works extensively, and in some cases not at all, but I admire the fact that they preserved a history. My only complaint is that, like most scholars, their concern was only towards rulers and nobles rather than the general public. It would be interesting to know a little bit more about the lives of the 99%.


Aside from historians, my first, and perhaps most prominent, love and idols are the Philosophers and Thinkers of history. I could list here a ton of names, but I'll save the typing. I've mostly been concerned with European philosophers, although I acknowledge non-european contributions to Philosophy once I come across them and learn about them.

[Esteban]

Arivse:I know that incident with pirates.They wanted 20 talents(i don't know this currency :/ ) to release Caesar.But he got 50 talents for pirates ;D because he said that 20 talents weren't enough for ransom .years after,he eliminated those pirates .That incident took place in Lykia (but now in Antalya,one of most touristic cities in Turkey.)

Bartbär:You're right.The history isn't written only by leaders.Philosophers,artists write the history too.I understand that as i read The Republic by Plato nowadays (= .

[Deleted]

Good thinking to open this thread.

I mostly agree to Anwend, and in this moment I cannot stop having a thought for a relative of mine who was historian and wrote books of local History not only researching the classic sources, but he went and looked for old people and war veterans recording their testimonies upon events. A great man. But this is not the topic. Or it is, but related.

For now, without posting the actual names I admire (it will come to that too) ...will just leave two quotes I like.

''History teaches us that men and nations behave wisely once they have exausted all other alternatives." (Abba Eban)

''History repeats itself because nobody listens. " (Laurence Peter)

[Bartbär]

Changpogo: The Republic is a very interesting read, and foundational for Social Political Philosophy and History alike. It amazes me just how detailed Plato went into his writing, and just how detailed those who were founding the Republic looked into virtually every aspect of living, from Poetry to Plays and Laws to Rulers. Intriguing!


Tiina: Wow! That's wonderful you have a relative who has done that work! Does he mostly do histories of his local area or of Romania in general? Localized histories have always intrigued me, which is why I appreciate writers like Herodotus who not only wrote about their own civilization but also did field work in other countries who didn't have preserved histories and wrote it down "for them" in a sense.


Haha, whilst reading Suetonius and coming across this thread, it made me think of something funny yet perverse. I should have surprised everyone by coming on here saying my idols were Tiberius and Caligula... haha, I think I'd have to throw myself into an insane asylum if that was really the case.

[kuusuru]

This is a difficult subject. The further back into history you go, the more does historiography descend into hagiography, and so it becomes difficult to really know what any individual was like once you go back beyond, say, the Renaissance. But let's not let that get in the way of a great thread so here are mine, in no particular order:

Michael I of Romania:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_I_of_Romania
Now this is a monarch. If only there were more like him.

Mustafa Kemal:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mustafa_Kemal
As an Australian, as an Australian who served, of course I knew of him. We even placed a monument to him in our nation's capital, in the avenue where we honour our dead, that is the degree with which is accorded respect, though he was our enemy. But now that I read more histories, the more I am astounded at his achievement in transforming the defeated remnants of the decayed Ottoman Empire into a modern, secular democracy.

Aristide de Sousa Mendes:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aristides_de_Sousa_Mendes
This man was a hero! He disobeyed his government and worked feverishly to rescue as many as he could. His career, life and health ruined, his viciously anti-semitic and cowardly government doing everything they could to punish him for the rest of his life. This is true courage.

Mary Shelley:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Shelley
A powerful woman, who wrote much, and is now remembered for so little.

Count Ernst Rüdiger von Starhemberg:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ernst_R%C3%BCdiger_Graf_von_Starhemberg
Led through force of will and great cunning the vastly outnumbered and outgunned Viennese forces to resist the second Ottoman siege of Vienna. His name is overshadowed by the likes of John Sobieski and Charles of Lorraine, but it was his inspired and remarkably incessant efforts which saved the city.

George Eliot:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Eliot
The only author who has ever moved me to tears.

William Shakespeare:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Shakespeare
To whom I owe my language, but about whom so little is known.

[Mighty Croc]

Hey, that's a great topic! Mine of course is Sviatoslav the Brave. Here's the wikipedia, but they've use some strange sources to write it.

[Deleted]

Bartbär: yes, I know; when teen didn't fully realised his accomplishments and used to have with him all kinds of polemics (it was both of our tempers, both too stubborn and independent ). After , I realised what a great research work he has done and how valuable his books are. They're about our local area in the context of WWI and WWII, also a monography of the locality and in the last years of his activity (still alive, but had a stroke 2 years ago ) he published many articles on Dacian history (a new historical view/approach he afiliated to,and whose mastermind is a romanian living in States ). Apologise if I bored with so many details..had even more to say, but I stop here. ;D

kuusuru: what can I say?!!.......... Maybe just this: King Michael is one of those men that suffered a whole series of injustice for all their lives and still does, but I rarely saw someone taking that with such dignity, reserve, calm , class, wise discourse...yes, that's a monarch and a real man. One of the rare ones, a real model in the full acceptance of the word.

I will start a list of prefferences too, but as they aren't just a few....will post one at a time.
And I start with one that is my favourite since early childhood, that is Vlad The Impaler. I know he wasn't the most innocent figure but I cannot delete from my pride having him as one of the most strong leaders we had in this country. Unfortunately there still are people that wrongly perceive him, and that is due to a guy named Bram Stoker . Ok, here's a link for those interested. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vlad_III_the_Impaler

[Deleted]

Sorry for double posting, but the next i can think of is Alexander Fleming; it will always stay in my top of preferences.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Fleming

[vladtheimpaler]

Buna zi, doamnelor şi domnilor!
(Good afternoon, Ladies and Gentlemen!)

I'm so flattered to find my name amongst so great persons!

But you missed a group of humble people, ready to entertain even my vampire heart! This time I'm not going to impale you, but beware!
These are the people, who created the alpha and omega of the forum, making my blood to... want more blood and even some beer and vodka!

Jonne Järvelä
Jaakko "Hittavainen" Lemmetty
Kalle "Cane" Savijärvi
Matti "Matson" Johansson
Jarkko Aaltonen
Juho Kauppinen

Bow before them (and before me)!

[Deleted]

Firstly, Vlad: you say it ''buna ziua!" .
Secondly: I know who you are! ;D
Thirdly: everyone think they know who you are, but I really do!

Hat off for your post! ;D But the blood will stay where it is, you can have the rest of the fluids the afore mentioned personalities preach. ;D

[vladtheimpaler]

Oh, my gracious lady Tiina, I'm so old that I forget sometimes even my own language and how it is modern to say nowadays - I'm a citizen of the blo... world I mean. So accept my excuses, next time we see, I promise to let you choose the best place for your execution - I have one wonderful little meadow on the top of the mountain and taking the height of the pole it is a one-life-time landscape for 2-3 days journey.

One young lad, Kuusuru, had mentioned my cousin Bill (Shakespeare, not the blow...saxophone lover). How many times I told to Billy: "Not on spears, they are week!" But he cut the whole Birnam Wood for three witches! He had not a vague idea about green living - Much Ado About Nothing.

[Arivse]

"Graps his wooden stake, few cross, bottle some holy water to his pocket flask, digs some garlic from the garden" and Arivse is ready to hunt some vampires again! Last hunt took too long ago, 300 years really feel like centuries..

Ready, Set, Kill!




Sorry, but couldn't resist writing this deja vu feeling

[noncho]

Bulgarian national hero Vasil Levski - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vasil_Levski
Peter the Great - en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_I_of_Russia