GLOBAL HISTORY IIMPORTANT

INDIVIDUALS

HAMMURABI• Babylonian ruler

• Established first written law code that set standards of justice for all classes, although laws favored the upper classes.

• Main principle behind his laws, “Eye for an Eye, Tooth for a Tooth”.

ALEXANDER THE GREAT• Greek King

• Expanded the Greek empire to include Egypt, the Middle East, and parts of India.

• Hellenistic culture spread by Alexander throughout his exploits.

SOCRATES

• Greek philosopher

• Developed Socratic method, which is learning about beliefs and ideas by asking questions.

PLATO• Greek philosopher.

• Socrates' student.

• Wrote political essay The Republic.

• Believed government should control lives of people.

ARISTOTLE• Greek philosopher.

• Student of Plato. Teacher of Alexander the Great.

• Believed people learned through reason.

• Believed that one strong moral leader should rule.

JULIUS CAESAR• Roman General.

• Appointed dictator for life in Rome.

• Introduced many reforms, which strengthened Rome's power.

• Assassinated on the Ides of March (March 15).

CONFUCIUS• Chinese philosopher.

• Believed that in order to maintain stability, citizens must perform duties and services depending on their roles in society.

• Wrote The Analects, a collection of his teachings and beliefs.

JESUS OF NAZARETH• According to Christian teaching, Jesus is the

Messiah, sent by God.

• Traveled throughout Israel and Palestine preaching his philosophies.

• Followers of Jesus formed the Christian religion based on Jesus’ teachings.

MUHAMMAD

• According to Islamic tradition, the angel Gabriel commanded Muhammad to spread the message of Allah and Islam.

• Proclaimed that Allah was the one true God.

• Muslims believe in the Five Pillars of Islam, taught by Muhammad.

SIDDHARTHA GAUTAMABUDDHA

• By meditation he found out the meaning of human suffering, then became the Buddha.

• The central philosophy of Buddhism revolve around the Four Noble Truths.

• Ultimate goal for Buddhist is to reach nirvana.

LAOZI• Chinese philosopher.

• Believed people should live in harmony with nature.

• Believed in the balance between

yin (darkness) and yang (light).

• Beliefs form the basis of Taoism.

JUSTINIAN• Emperor of the Byzantine Empire.

• Created Justinian Code. It organized ancient laws of the Romans, which became a body of civil laws.

• Justinian code basis for laws of the Roman Catholic Church and medieval rulers.

CHARLEMAGNE(CHARLES THE GREAT)

• King of the Franks, a Germanic tribe.

• Built an empire across Europe.

• Brought stability to Europe after the fall of the Roman Empire.

• Responsible for spreading Christianity throughout empire.

• Established schools and libraries.

GENGHIS KHAN

• Leader of the Mongols (Northern China).

• Assembled a disciplined and organized military which conquered much of Asia and Eastern Europe.

• Spread Mongol culture throughout his empire.

KUBLAI KHAN• Grandson of Genghis Khan.

• Leader of the Mongols.

• Took Control of China.

• Kublai Khan spread terror and destruction throughout his empire.

MARCO POLO• Italian merchant.

• Traveled to China, which was under the control of Kublai Khan.

• He introduced Europeans to Chinese culture.

ZHENG HE

• Chinese admiral.

• Traveled extensively to promote trade with China and western societies.

LEONARDO DA VINCI• Renaissance painter, sculptor, inventor, and

architect.

• Painted the Mona Lisa and Last Supper.

MICHELANGELO• Renaissance sculptor, engineer, and architect.

• Created statue of David.

• Painted the dome of St. Peters Basilica in Rome.

NICCOLO MACHIAVELLI• Renaissance writer. Wrote The Prince.

• His book advises rulers on how to maintain power by using any means necessary to ensure their success.

• Machiavelli’s philosophy was “The End Justifies the Mean”.

MARTIN LUTHER• German monk.

• Wrote 95 These, which were arguments against the Roman Catholic Church’s abuse of power.

• Event sparked the Protestant Reformation.

• Luther believed that heaven could be attained by faith.

• Excommunicated from RC Church.

JOHN CALVIN• French, Roman Catholic priest.

• Promoted the idea of Predestination, or the idea that God has chosen, before time began, who would be saved.

• Calvin’s followers, Calvinists, lived strict, disciplined, and frugal lives.

IGNATIUS LOYOLA• Founder of the Jesuit Order (Catholicism).

• The religious order was created during the Counter Reformation, which emphasized spiritual and moral discipline of the Catholic authorities.

JOAN OF ARC• French peasant (serf).

• Disguised as a man she fought the English in the 100 Years War.

• She rallied the French troops to many victories.

• Joan claimed to hear the voice of God, who told her to fight.

• The English capture Joan, and burned. She has come to symbolize French nationalism.

MANSA MUSA• Powerful ruler of the Mali Kingdom.

• Dominated West Africa.

• Brought Islamic faith to Africa, by converting to Islam.

• The great city of Timbuktu became a center for Muslim learning.

SULEIMAN THE MAGNIFICENT

• Ruled the Ottoman Empire from 1520-1566.

• Effective military leader.

• Expanded the Ottoman Empire.

• His reign considered the “Golden Years” of the empire

HENRY THE NAVIGATOR• Prince Henry of Portugal.

• Gathered experts in science, mapmaking, and ship-building in order to find trade routes to Asia.

• His explorations opened up much of West Africa to Portuguese interests.

BARTHOLOMEU DIAS• Portuguese Explorer.

• In 1488, rounded the Cape of Good Hope at the southern tip of Africa.

VASCO DE GAMA• He followed Dias’ route around Africa into the

Indian Ocean, opening important trade locations.

• Brought a variety of valuable spices back to Portugal, which he sold for high profits.

• Created a all-water route to Asia.

CHRISTOPHER COLUMBUS• Italian sailor.

• Convinced Spanish monarchs, Isabella and Ferdinand, to finance his trip.

• Believed if he sailed west he would reach Asia, creating a faster route to Asia.

• Ship landed in the Caribbean, where Columbus inadvertently discovered The New World.

FERDINAND MAGELLAN• Portuguese noble and explorer.

• First person to circumnavigate (go completely around) the world.

• Claimed the Philippine islands for Spain in 1521.

• Established a trading port in Philippines for trade with China, and spread Catholicism.

HERNAN CORTES• Spanish conquistador.

• Conquered the Aztec empire in Mexico in 1521.

• Came to the New World in search of gold and silver.

FRANCISCO PIZARRO• Spanish conquistador.

• Conquered the Incan Empire in 1532.

LOUIS XIV• Ruled France for 72 years.

• Referred to as the “The Sun King”.

• Used the sun as symbol of power.

• Used the idea of Divine Right.

• Wars and extravagant living caused social unrest and political instability.

IVAN THE TERRIBLE• Czar Ivan IV.

• Harsh treatment of his subjects and violent disposition earned him the nickname, “Terrible”.

• Organized a personal police force to slaughter anyone who opposed him.

PETER THE GREAT• Czar of Russia from 1682-1725.

• Adopted Western ideas in an attempt

to modernize Russia. (Westernization).

• Expanded territory to incorporate ports in the Baltic Sea.

• Tried to gain warm-weather port in Black sea, but failed.

NICOLAUS COPERNICUS• Polish scholar.

• Challenged the belief that the earth was the center of the universe.

• Used mathematics to state that sun was at center of universe (Heliocentric model).

GALILEO GALILEI

• Italian astronomer.

• Provided evidence regarding Copernicus’ theory by observing the skies with a telescope that he constructed.

• His findings enraged the Church, and he was forced to take back his statements, or face execution.

ISAAC NEWTON• English scholar.

• Used math to prove theory of gravity.

• Used same formulas to prove that the Earth rotates around the sun staying in a fixed orbit.

THOMAS HOBBES• English philosopher

• Wrote, Leviathan, a political essay which stated that people were naturally selfish, and in need of a strong government to maintain order.

• Believed that a Absolute Monarchy was needed to maintain order.

RENE DESCARTES• French philosopher.

• Emphasized the power of human reason.

• Believed reason could be used to discover truth.

JOHN LOCKE

• English philosopher of the late 1600s.

• Believed all people had natural rights, which include; right to life, liberty, and property.

• Stated that government should protect these rights, and if not people have right to overthrow government.

BARON DE MONTESQUIEU• French thinker.

• Believed government should be separated into three branches; executive, legislative, and judicial.

• This, he argued, would prevent abuses of power. Basically creating a system of checks and balances.

JEAN-JACQUES ROUSSEAU• French philosopher of 1700s.

• Wrote, The Social Contract.

• Believed that people were naturally good, but corrupted by the evils of society.

• Thought that when governments were formed people give up their personal interests for the benefit of society.

VOLTAIRE• French philosopher of the 1700s.

• Believed in the idea of free speech.

• Used his “sharp-wit” to criticize the French government and Catholic church for their failure to permit religious tolerance.

• Served many years in jail for his beliefs.

LOUIS XVI• Absolute ruler of France during the

Old Regime.

• Third Estate opposed the lifestyle of the First/Second Estate .

• Third Estate started the French Revolution to gain a voice in the government.

• Executed by Radicals that gained control of the French Government.

MARIE ANTOINETTE• Wife of Louis XVI.

• Lavish spending epitomized what the French radicals hated about the First Estate.

• Executed by French Radicals after the French revolutionaries took control of the government.

MAXIMILIEN ROBESPIERRE• Headed the Committee of Public Safety that

later took control of the French government after the French Revolution.

• Set in motion the Reign of Terror that killed

“enemies of the state”.

• Executed by more moderate radicals that feared how much power he had.

49) Napoleon Bonaparte-French General

-Took control and later named Emperor of France after overthrowing the Directory that controlled France after the Reign of Terror

-Formed the Grand Empire that took over much of Europe

-Unsuccessfully tried to invade Russia

-Tried again to take over France from Louis XVII, failed and exiled to St. Helena

50) Toussaint L’Ouverture-Led a successful peasant revolution in Haiti against European colonial rule

-1st independent state in Latin America

-Started the Latin American revolutionary period

against Imperial rule

51) Simon Bolivar

-Led revolts against Spanish rule in Venezuela, Colombia and Ecuador

-Became known as the Liberator

52) Jose de San Martin

-Liberated Argentina from Spanish Rule

-Moved on to liberate Chile

53) Victor Emmanuel II

-King of Sardinia that led the unification movement of Italy

-Named Cavour as Prime Minister to carry out the unification process

54) Camillo Di Cavour

-Prime Minister of Sardinia under Victor Emmanuel II that led the unification movement of Italy

-Entered into a series of wars with Austria to gain control of the Northern Italian territories

-Successfully united Italian republics into one country

55) Guiseppe Garibaldi

-Italian Revolutionary that took control of Sicily and Naples

-Leader of the pro-unification army “ Red Shirts”

-One of the Founding Fathers of Italy

(Cavour, Victor Emmanuel, Mazzini)

56) Guiseppe Mazzini-Leader of the Young Italy revolutionary movement that organized uprisings against Austria

-Pushed for a democratic style of government in Italy

57) Otto von Bismarck

-Prime Minister of Prussia, largest and strongest of the German states

-Used militarism to unify Germany

-Concept of “Blood and Iron” to carry out

the unification process

58) Theodor Herzl

-Leader of the Zionist movement

-Push to gain an Independent country for

the Jewish community (Israel)

59) Porfirio Diaz-President of Mexico during Mexican Revolution

-Favored large landowners and the Catholic

Church, poor had no land and little say in the government

-Civil war between Zapata and Pancho Villa’s

peasant armies

-Lost in Mexican Revolution

Jeremy Lin

-Point Guard for the NY Knicks

-Best basketball player ever

60) Francisco “Pancho” Villa

-Most prominent Mexican Revolutionary Generals

-Led peasant armies to many victories against government forces during the Mexican Revolution

61) Emiliano Zapata

-Called for reform against the Diaz’s corrupt government

-Organized a peasant revolt which started the Mexican Revolution

62)Adam Smith-Founding Father of Modern Economics

-Believed that individuals are free to pursue their own economic self-interests

-Concept known as Laissez-Faire, which government should not interrupt the free play of the natural economic forces

-Wrote Wealth of Nations

63) Karl Marx-Blamed the system of industrial capitalism for the terrible conditions in factories

-Constant struggle between the owners (capitalists) and the workers (proletariat)

-Co-writer of the Communist Manifesto with Frederich Engles

-Described a form of socialism (Communism) in which there would be public ownership of all land and all other means of production

64) Friedrich Engles

-Co-Writer of the Communist Manifesto with Karl Marx

65) Shaka Zulu-Leader of the Zulu tribe in South Africa

-Zulus fought against British Imperialism in South Africa

-Defeated by the British as they took control of South Africa

66) Matthew Perry-Commodore in the US Navy

-Played a leading role in the opening of Japanese ports to the West (US)

-Led to the Meiji period of Japanese history were Japan attempted to modernize (industrialize) and embrace Western ideals

67) Rudyard Kipling

-Wrote the poem, White Man’s Burden

-Tried to justify imperialism by stating that “White” Europeans have a moral obligation to educate the “Natives” of less developed nations

68) Archduke Francis Ferdinand

- Austrian/Hungarian Prince- While traveling through Sarajevo, he was

assassinated with his wife- Assassination started a chain reaction of events

which led to the beginning of WWI

69) Vladimir Lenin

-Russian Revolutionary

-Headed the revolutionary socialist party called the Bolsheviks

-Applied Karl Marx’s socialist principles (Communism)

-Led the Communist Revolution in Russia in 1917

-First Communist Leader of Soviet Union (Russia)

70) Joseph Stalin-Took Control of Soviet Union after Lenin’s death

-Turned the Soviet Union into a totalitarian state

-Adopted policy of Russification (Policy to spread Russian culture to the non-Russian areas incorporated in the Soviet Union)

-Launched a series of 5 Year Plans to help stimulate Soviet industry and farming

-Leader of the Soviet Union during WWII

71) Kemal Ataturk

-General and war hero of Turkey

-After WWI, led a nationalistic movement to overtake the government

-Father of the Turks

-Attempted to modernize and westernize Turkey

72) Mohandas Gandhi

-Headed the Indian Nationalist Movement

-Used Passive resistance and Non-violent means to protest English imperialism

-Assassinated in 1946 by a Hindu fanatic

73) Benito Mussolini

-Fascist Leader of Italy

-In 1922, used force and terror to gain control of Italy

-Formed alliance with Germany and Japan

(Axis powers)

-Executed at the end of WWII

74) Adolf Hitler-Believed Germans were a superior race and deserved to rebuild their

once great empire (Depression due to the Treaty of Versailles WWI)

-In 1920, headed the Nationalist Socialist German Workers Party, or Nazi Party

-Committed genocide of Jewish race

-Invasions of Eastern European countries started WWII

-Committed suicide when Allied troops were storming his bunker

75) Winston Churchill

-Prime Minister of Great Britain during WWII

-Opposed Great Britain’s policy of appeasement toward Germany prior to WWII

76) Emperor Hirohito

-Japanese leader during WWII

-Invaded Southeast Asia in order to increase its natural resource supply to fuel Japan’s industries

-Competition with US for SE Asia’s interests

-Attacked Pearl Harbor which brought the US into WWII

77) Ho Chi Minh

-Communist leader of North Vietnam

-Invaded South Vietnam to try to unite the region under Socialist rule

-In 1975, captured Saigon, capital of South Vietnam and created a united communist Vietnam

78) Chiang Kai-shek (Jiang Jieshi)

-Leader of the Chinese Nationalist Party that controlled China

-Fought against communist revolutionaries in China for control

-Lost to Communists, then went into exile in Taiwan

79) Mao Zedong

-Leader of the Communist Party in China in 1930

-Established People’s Republic of China

-Instituted Great Leap Forward to increase agricultural and industrial productivity

-Introduced Cultural Revolution in order to renew people’s loyalty to Communism

80) Deng Xiaoping

-Took control of China after death of Mao

-Introduced foreign trade and contact with Western nations to make China a more modern and stable country

81) Jawaharlal Nehru

-India’s First Prime Minister

-Instituted policy of nonalignment which allowed India to receive aid from both capitalist and socialist nations

82) Indira Gandhi

-Became Prime Minister of India in 1966

-Assassinated in 1984

-Nehru’s daughter

83) Kwame Nhrumah

-American educated leader of Ghana

-Led many strikes and boycotts against Britain

-1st Prime Minister of Ghana

-Created the Organization of African Unity

(OAU)

84) Joma Kenyatta

-Led independence struggle against British in Kenya

-Became Kenya’s 1st Prime Minister on an independent Kenya

85) Nelson Mandela

-Important leader of African National Congress (ANC)

-Practiced nonviolent protests against apartheid

-Jailed for 27 years

-Elected President of South Africa in 1996

86) Desmond Tutu

-Anglican Bishop and civil rights activist in South Africa

-Convinced foreign nations to limit trade with South Africa due to apartheid

87)F.W. de Klerk

-President of South Africa in 1989

-Instilled many reforms in South African government

-Released Nelson Mandela from prison

-Repealed segregation laws

88) Pol Pot

- Leader of Cambodian Communist guerillas known as Khmer Rouge

-Took control of Cambodia and tried to remove any Western influences

-More than 1 million Cambodians were killed during his reign

89) Yasir Arafat

-Leader of Palestine Liberation organization

(PLO)

-Used terrorism and guerilla warfare to fight Israelis

-Wanted Palestinians to take back lands that were originally theirs

-Died in 2004

90) Yitzhak Rabin

-Prime Minister of Israel

-In 1993, signed agreement with PLO that gave Palestinians in Gaza and Jericho self-rule, but no independence

91) Ariel Sharon

-Prime Minister of Israel in 2001

-Goal was to ensure total security for Israel

92) Ayatollah Khomeini

-Exiled Shiite Muslim from Iran

-Led opposition of the Shah of Iran, who came to power with the help of the US

-Fled Iran in 1979

-Died in 1989

93) Saddam Hussein

-Former dictator of Iraq

-Invaded Kuwait in 1990 with began the Persian Gulf War with the US

-Practiced genocide on the Kurds

(Northern Iraqi Muslims)

-Executed for human right violated and war crimes

94) Mikhail Gorbachev

-Premier of Soviet Union in 1985

-Instituted many reforms including Perestroika (free market and westernization) in attempts to stimulate economy

-Instituted Glasnost (Openness) which wanted to start discussions about Soviet problems

-Resigned in 1991 when communist hardliners threatened to overthrow him

95) Lech Walesa-Led Solidarity movement in Poland

-Wanted to end Communist control of Poland

-In 1989, first free elections held in over 50 years

-Elected President of newly independent Poland

96) Juan Peron

-Came to power in Argentina through a successful coup d’etat

-Gained popularity by boosting wages, strengthening labor unions and social welfare programs

-Policies led to huge debt

-In 1955, lost power to another coup

97) Slobodan Milosevic-Serbian President that supported ethnic cleansing to take

control of the former Yugoslavian republics

-In 1990s, sent troops to kill ethnic Albanians and Muslims

-NATO forces invaded to put a stop to his reign

-Arrested and put on trial for crimes against humanity

-Committed suicide when in jail

98) Mother Theresa

-Roman Catholic nun

-Human right Activist

-Started many programs to help the poor and sick in many third world nations especially India

99) Dalai Lama

-Title given to the Leader of Tibetan Buddhism

-Currently, 14th Dalai Lama

-Exiled from Tibet after Chinese Communist

takeover of the Tibetan Region

-Travels the world spreading the Buddhist message and opinions about World Issues

99) Osama Bin Laden

-Leader of terrorist group al-Qaeda

-Planned attacks on World Trade Center on 9/11

-Killed by US forces