Public Figures & Cultural Luminaries

Military Leaders & Strategists

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Saint Alexander Nevsky

Александр Ярославич Невский

Kievan Rus (Russia)

1221 – 1263 (42 years old)

Prince of Novgorod and Grand Prince of Vladimir who crushed the Swedish invasion at the Neva and defeated the Teutonic Knights in the Battle on the Ice.

Saint Petersburg, Russia

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Military Leaders & Strategists

3

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Qutuz

سيف الدين قطز

Khwarazmian Empire

c. 1200 CE – 1260 (60 years old)

Mamluk Sultan of Egypt who rallied the Islamic world following the Mongol sack of Baghdad, executed Hulagu Khan's envoys, and personally led the Muslim army to victory at Ain Jalut.

Al-Qusayr (Sharqia), Egypt

3 Full Record →

Military Leaders & Strategists

1

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Subutai

Сүбээдэй (Subutai Baghatur)

Khamag Mongol

c. 1175 CE – c. 1248 CE (73 years old)

Primary military strategist of Genghis Khan and Ogedei Khan who conquered more territory than any general in human history, orchestrating campaigns across China, Persia, Russia, and Central Europe.

Central Tuv Province, Mongolia

1 Full Record →

Military Leaders & Strategists

1

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Jebe

Зэв (Jebe Noyan)

🌐 Mongol Empire

c. 1180 CE – c. 1223 CE (43 years old)

Legendary Mongol general and one of Genghis Khan's 'Four Dogs of War', who earned his name 'The Arrow' by shooting Genghis Khan's horse in battle and went on to conquer the Qara Khitai.

Southern Steppes, Russia

1 Full Record →

Military Leaders & Strategists

2

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William Marshal (1st Earl of Pembroke)

William Marshal / Guillaume le Maréchal

Kingdom of England

1 – 1219 (73 years old)

1st Earl of Pembroke celebrated as 'The Greatest Knight That Ever Lived', who served five English kings, negotiated the Magna Carta, and won the Battle of Lincoln at age 70.

London, United Kingdom

2 Full Record →

Military Leaders & Strategists

2

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Prithviraj Chauhan

पृथ्वीराज चौहान

Chahamana Kingdom

c. 1166 CE – c. 1192 CE (26 years old)

Last Hindu king to rule Delhi and Ajmer before the establishment of the Delhi Sultanate, celebrated in the epic poem Prithviraj Raso for defeating Muhammad of Ghor at the First Battle of Tarain.

Mehrauli (New Delhi), India

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Military Leaders & Strategists

2

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Minamoto no Yoshitsune

源義経

Japan

1 – 1189 (30 years old)

Brilliant samurai commander of the Genpei War who led the Minamoto clan to total victory over the Taira at Ichi-no-Tani, Yashima, and Dan-no-ura.

Hiraizumi (Iwate), Japan

2 Full Record →

Military Leaders & Strategists

2

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Nur ad-Din Zengi

الملك العادل نور الدين محمود زنكي

🌐 Zengid Dynasty

1118 – 1174 (56 years old)

Zengid ruler of Syria celebrated as 'The Just King' (al-Malik al-Adil) who united Damascus and Aleppo, defeated the Second Crusade, and commissioned the famous minbar built for the liberation of Jerusalem.

Damascus, Syria

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Military Leaders & Strategists

2

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Shirkuh

أسد الدين شيركوه بن شاذي

Seljuk Empire

c. 1110 CE – 1169 (59 years old)

Kurdish general in the service of Nur ad-Din Zengi known as 'Lion of the Mountains', who led three military expeditions to conquer Egypt, paving the way for the Ayyubid Dynasty.

Cairo, Egypt

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Military Leaders & Strategists

1

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Yue Fei

岳飞 (岳鹏举)

Northern Song Dynasty

1103 – 1142 (38 years old)

Revered military hero of the Southern Song Dynasty who defended China against the Jurchen Jin invasion with his disciplined Yue Family Army, bearing the tattoo 'Serve the Country with Utmost Loyalty'.

Hangzhou (West Lake), China

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Military Leaders & Strategists

2

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Yue Fei (General Yue Pengju)

岳飛 / 岳鵬舉

Song Dynasty (China)

1103 – 1142 (38 years old)

National hero and supreme commander of the Southern Song dynasty whose elite Yue Family Army repelled the Jurchen Jin dynasty with unbroken patriotism.

Hangzhou, China

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Military Leaders & Strategists

2

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Bohemond I of Antioch

Bohemond de Hauteville

Duchy of Calabria (Italy)

1 – 1111 (57 years old)

Norman prince and supreme military strategist of the First Crusade who captured Antioch through bribery and routed Kerbogha's relief army to found the Principality of Antioch.

Canosa di Puglia, Italy

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Military Leaders & Strategists

1

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Kilij Arslan I

I. Kılıç Arslan

Sultanate of Rum

1079 – 1107 (28 years old)

Second Sultan of the Seljuk Sultanate of Rum who was the first Muslim commander to face the First Crusade, wiped out the Peoples' Crusade in 1096, and established Konya as the capital of Anatolia.

Silvan (Diyarbakir), Turkey

1 Full Record →

Military Leaders & Strategists

2

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Godfrey of Bouillon

Godefroy de Bouillon

Duchy of Lower Lorraine (Belgium)

1 – 1100 (40 years old)

Leader of the First Crusade and first ruler of the Kingdom of Jerusalem who took the title 'Advocate of the Holy Sepulchre' and won the Battle of Ascalon.

Jerusalem, Palestine

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Military Leaders & Strategists

2

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Rodrigo Diaz de Vivar (El Cid)

Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar

Kingdom of Castile (Spain)

1 – 1099 (56 years old)

Castilian military leader and folk hero of the Reconquista who served both Christian and Muslim lords, never lost a battle, and conquered Valencia.

Burgos, Spain

2 Full Record →

Military Leaders & Strategists

1

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Malik Shah I

جلال الدولة معز الدنيا والدين ملكشاه

Seljuk Empire

1055 – 1092 (37 years old)

Third and greatest Sultan of the Great Seljuk Empire whose reign, alongside Grand Vizier Nizam al-Mulk, represented the military and cultural zenith of medieval Islamic civilization.

Isfahan, Iran

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Military Leaders & Strategists

2

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Robert Guiscard (The Cunning)

Robert Guiscard / Robert de Hauteville

Duchy of Normandy (France)

1 – 1085 (70 years old)

Norman adventurer and conqueror who established the Duchy of Apulia and Calabria, drove Byzantium and Saracens from southern Italy, and sacked Rome.

Venosa, Italy

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Military Leaders & Strategists

1

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Alp Arslan

آلب أرسلان (محمد بن داود)

Seljuk Empire

1029 – 1072 (43 years old)

Second Sultan of the Great Seljuk Empire whose historic victory over Byzantine Emperor Romanos IV at the Battle of Manzikert in 1071 opened Anatolia to Turkish settlement.

Merv, Turkmenistan

1 Full Record →