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Alexander the Great (385-323 B.C.)-
King of the Greek Empire after the Peloponnesian wars. He was well known for
his military campaigns, spreading Greek (Hellenistic) culture.
Leif Erickson (c. 970 – 1025) One of the first Europeans to sail to North America. He most likely landed in what is now New Brunswick.
Edward the Confessor (1003 – 1066) Saintly King of England with no children who built Westminster Abbey.
Thomas a Becket (1118 – 1170) Archbishop of Canterbury who was murdered by four knights of Henry II. Canterbury became an important destination for Christian pilgrims.
Eleanor of Aquitaine (1122 – 1204) She inherited Aquitaine and Poitiers and married Louis VII of France but later their marriage was annulled and she married Henry II of England. Her land then became part of England.
John I of England (1166 – 1216) Son of Eleanor of Aquitaine and Henry II. He was a very unpopular king who was forced to sign the Magna Charta by his barons.
Aquinas, Thomas (1225 – 1274) Wrote the Summa Theologica which helped to integrate Christian theology and ancient philosophy, especially Aristotle.
Aristotle (384-322 B.C.) – An ancient Greek philosopher and a student of Plato. He advanced science and developed new methods of observation.
Augustus (or Octavian) (27 B.C.- 14 A.D)- Co-ruler with Mark Antony after Caesar’s death. A strong military ruler, he brought peace and prosperity to the Romans, as well as made improvements to the city itself.
Bacon, Roger (1214-1292) - A scientist who made great advances in the field of alchemy He developed a view that understanding can be discovered through experimentation rather than logic.
Bonaparte, Napoleon (1769-1821)- A French general who later seized control of France. Besides being a brilliant military leader who led the French army through the Napoleonic wars, he also reformed the government; making lasting changes in the legal, educational, and banking systems.
Caesar, Julius (c. 100-44 B.C.)- A well known soldier and politician who went on to become the most powerful man in Rome. He was murdered by a group of senators who believed he had become too powerful.
Calvin, John (1509-1564)- A reformer within the Protestant denomination who founded Calvinism, a belief that only those whom God chooses will be saved.
| Charlemagne (742- 814)- Ruler of the Franks in the 700’s. He was from the Carolingian dynasty and a great conqueror, establishing a large European empire. He was crowned by the pope, becoming the first Holy Roman Emperor. |  |
Columbus, Christopher (c.1451-1506)- The explorer credited with the discovery of America. He was funded for his voyages by King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain.
Constantine (c.274-337)- The first Christian Emperor of Rome. He established Constantinople as his capital after he took power, and declared the edict of Milan, granting freedom of worship for Christians.
Cook, James (1728-1779)- A British explorer who claimed Australia for Britain, and even traveled to Hawaii, where he was killed.
Copernicus, Nicolaus (1473-1543)- An astronomer during the Scientific Revolution in Europe. He developed the theory that the universe revolved around the sun.
Dante Alighieri (1265 – 1321) He wrote the Divine Comedy which consisted of three parts; Inferno, Purgatorio and Paradiso. He was part of the movement to write things in the common tongue, in this case, Italian.
Da Vinci, Leonardo (1452-1519)- An Italian inventor, scientist and artist. His advances in anatomy, mechanical inventions, and artistic creations have lasted to this day.
Elizabeth I (1533-1503)- Queen of England and daughter of Henry VIII. She was a powerful and effective ruler, creating a stable period in England, allowing cultural and economic growth, and defeating the Spanish Armada.
Ericcson, Leif (970-1020)- A Viking explorer from Greenland, who, after converting to Christianity, discovered America.
King Ferdinand (1452-1516) and Queen Isabella (1451-1504)- Husband and wife, and rulers of Spain. They united what were then various countries. In addition, they got rid of the Moors, started the Spanish Inquisition and financed Christopher Columbus’s explorations.
Fredrick the Great (1712-1786)- King of Prussia in the 1700’s. Prussia became a strong nation under his leadership, and he established religious tolerance in the country.
Galilei, Galileo (1564-1642)- An astronomer, physicist, and mathematician who angered the Catholic Church because of his radically different views.
Pope Boniface VIII (1294-1303)- A pope who established the doctrine that salvation doesn’t exist other than through submission to the pope and the Roman Catholic Church.
Pope Gregory VII (1073-1085)- A reformer of the Roman Catholic Church who made the church free from state control and made it absolute over the state. This change greatly effected the government for many years.
Pope Innocent III (1160 – 1216) Tried to make the papacy more powerful and tried to tell the rulers of Europe what to do. He put England under an interdict.
Gutenburg, Johannes (c. 1396-1468)- A German who invented the printing press using moveable type. He printed the first bible, and his invention revolutionized methods of copying.
Henry V of England (1387 – 1422) Conquered most of France during the Hundred Years War and married the princess of France.
Henry VIII (1491-1547)- King of England in the 1500’s who is known for his having many wives. He broke with the Roman Church and made himself head of the Church of England. His reform of the church is just the beginning of many changes that took place later in church history.
Hitler, Adolf (1889-1945)- Leader of the Nazis (Nation Socialist German Workers’ Party) in the 1900’s. He led Germany into World War II and is responsible for the murder of millions of Jews in his attempt to create an Aryan world.
Jan Hus (1369 – 1415) A Bohemian precursor to the Reformation. He was burned at the stake as a heretic by the Catholic Church.
Joan of Arc (1412-1431)- A peasant girl who led a small force against the English during the Hundred Years War. She was courageous and patriotic warrior, but eventually burned at the stake.
Justinian (c. 484-565)- The Emperor of Rome (527-565) who reformed the judicial system and recaptured much of the territory taken by the barbarians.
Louis XVI (1754-1793)- King during the French Revolution. His decisions led the revolution, and he was executed in 1793.
Luther, Martin (1483-1546)- A German priest and reformer of the Church of England’s doctrine. Through his ideas the Lutheran denomination was formed.
Newton, Isaac (1642-1727)- A great physicist who developed the view of a mechanical universe. He developed the theory of gravity, and used this and other such theories to explain the universe through mathematics.
Plato (427-347 B.C.)- An Ancient Greek philosopher and scientist, who was greatly influenced by the works of Socrates. He went on after the death of Socrates to develop his own philosophical ideas.
Polo, Marco (c.1254-1323)- A Venetian explorer who gained favor with Kublai Khan during the Mongol dynasty in China. His writings spread knowledge about the Chinese to those in other countries.
Socrates (469-399 B.C.)- An Ancient Greek philosopher who developed a method of reasoning called the Socratic Method.
Richard I ( 1157-1199)- King of England; also known as “Richard the Lionheart.” He lead an army to the Holy Land in 1191, during the crusades.
| Robespierre, Maximilian (1758-1794)- Leader of a revolutionary group called the Jacobins during the French Revolution. He supported the execution of the King and Queen, and his control of the government for the brief period was known as the Reign of Terror because of the number of executions with the guillotine |  |
| Queen Victoria (1819-1901)- A queen of the British Empire who encouraged trade and expansion. During her reign the empire was at its largest, having colonies all over the world and encompassing one quarter of the world’s land. |  |
William the Conqueror (1027 – 1087) Duke of Normandy who conquered England from Harold of Wessex.
Wycliffe, John (c.1328-1384)- An English pre-reformer. His beliefs very closely matched those of Luther and other reformers. He is best known for translating the English Bible.
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