They transformed human history, who are the 30 most important figures we know today

2023-09-21 14:38:00, Blog CNA

They transformed human history, who are the 30 most important figures we know

Thanks to their thinking, creations or ideas, the humanity we know today is, to a large extent, the result of the contributions of these historical figures.

History is full of characters who have transformed the history of mankind. Today the world is what it is thanks to their thoughts, ideas or actions. "Bota.al" presents a list of the 30 most important historical figures.

Of course the selection is incomplete, as dozens of heroes, writers, philosophers and scientists could easily be chosen for each country. The list is not about people famous for their ethics, but rather about the consequences their ideas or actions have had. While many of them have changed things for the better, others have done nothing but sow darkness. The order is not in order of importance.

Jesus of Nazareth

A prominent figure in Christianity, Jesus of Nazareth was a Jewish preacher who lived around the 1st century AD. His great divide with Judaism today unites more than 2.4 billion believers, and his thought has been the focus of theologians for two millennia. Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea and, according to tradition, was a descendant of King David.

Muhammad

For Islam, Muhammad is the last of the prophets (preceded by Jesus, Moses, and Abraham, among others). He was born in 570 AD. and died in 632 AD. According to tradition, the prophet founded Islam after a revelation from the archangel Gabriel in the cave of Hira. Today there are more than 1.7 billion Muslims worldwide.

Christopher Columbus

The navigator and cartographer in the service of the Crown of Castile was responsible for leading the exploration that would lead to the discovery of America. The modern era, and with it globalization, began on October 12, 1492, when they landed on Guanahani Island (present-day Bahamas). Columbus made a total of four voyages before he died on May 20, 1506.

Julius Caesar

Gaius Julius Caesar was one of the most important politicians and soldiers of ancient Rome. He was born in 100 BC and died in 44 BC. His control of the Republic was fraught with controversy and betrayal. One of his greatest successes was the Gallic War, which would expand Roman territory into parts of what is now France, Belgium, Switzerland, Germany and the Netherlands. A plot prepared by several senators ended his life.

Alexander the Great

Alexander the Great was the king of Macedonia until he died. Aristotle was the teacher who took care of his education, and Alexander's reign is considered by historians to be the beginning of the Hellenistic period. He was born in July 356 BC and died in June 323 BC, possibly poisoned. Alexander the Great is one of the most important heroic figures of antiquity.

Plato

Plato is one of the most important philosophers in the history of philosophy. A disciple of Socrates and teacher of Aristotle, his ideas on politics, ethics, citizenship, law, and psychology, among other things, helped consolidate the thought of Western civilization. He founded the Academy in 387 BC, considered the first university in the West.

Lao Tzu

Despite the unknowns surrounding his life, Lao Tzu is one of the most important historical figures of the East. He is believed to have lived between the 6th and 6th centuries BC. And he is credited with authorship of the Tao Te Ching, the most important work of Taoism. Taoist philosophy is practiced in China, Japan and South Korea, although it has millions of followers worldwide.

Leonardo da Vinci

The Florentine polymath Leonardo da Vinci is the main figure of the Renaissance. His contributions to science, art, music, medicine and philosophy are indisputable. It is a universal icon thanks to paintings such as the Mona Lisa or The Last Supper. Also because he designed, centuries ago, sketches of what are now submarines, helicopters and cars. He was born in April 1452 and died in May 1519.

Johannes Gutenberg

In this list of the most important historical figures, the inventor of the modern printing machine could not be missing. His invention not only allowed the spread of culture, but is considered the beginning of propaganda. This coincided with the Lutheran schism, so it was a lever for the promulgation of Protestant ideas. Gutenberg was born in Mainz in 1400 and died in 1468.

Miguel de Cervantes

Considered one of the most important writers of universal literature, Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra was born in 1547 and died in 1616. His major work, Don Quixote of Mancha, is the first modern novel and the second most edited and translated book in world, second only to the Bible. Cervantes took part in the Battle of Lepanto and was imprisoned in Algiers for five years.

Albert Einstein

Perhaps the most famous physicist of all time. Albert Einstein is one of the fathers of quantum mechanics through his work on special relativity and general relativity.

Einstein was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics, although not for these works, but for his publications on the photoelectric effect. His equation, E=mc², is arguably the best known in all of history.

Adolf Hitler

The leader of Nazi Germany is the most important historical figure of the 20th century. His ideas are summarized in his book Mein Kampf, written in part while he was in prison after a failed coup in 1923. Hitler committed suicide with Eva Braun in 1945 in the Chancellery bunker, when the Allied victory it was inevitable.

Charles Darwin

The author of The Origin of Species (1859) laid the foundations of what is now known as the theory of evolution. Today his ideas, such as natural selection, are widely accepted by science. The observations that led him to postulate his theory were made after the Beagle's voyage of about five years, in which he was able to cover most of the globe.

Karl Marx

Karl Marx's thoughts completely shaped political, philosophical and economic history after his death. The current that bears his name, Marxism, modern communism and scientific socialism originate from his ideas expressed in the Communist Manifesto (1848) and Capital (1867). Marx focused on the idea that societies progress through the dialectic of class struggle.

Isaac Newton

Considered by many to be the greatest scientist of all time, Isaac Newton is the father of the law of universal gravitation and classical physics. His contributions to computation, mathematics, light and optics made him a landmark in his lifetime. He also wrote several treatises on alchemy and theology. He died at the age of 84.

Genghis Khan

Genghis Khan was one of the most ambitious military leaders in history. In just a few years he managed to expand the Mongol empire by thousands of kilometers, thus consolidating, at least in terms of territory, one of the largest empires in history. He died in 1227 at the age of 65.

Mahatma Gandhi

Gandhi managed to leave his mark as one of the most important historical figures thanks to his thoughts and the creation of the "institution" of non-violent protests. One of the most important events of his life was the Salt March, which would lead to India's independence from the British Empire. He was killed at the age of 78 by an integralist fanatic.

18. Louis Pasteur

Pasteur is not only responsible for the pasteurization process, but his studies contributed greatly to the creation of vaccines, antibiotics, and sterilization processes. Pasteur marked a "before" and "after" in the natural sciences, especially in chemistry and bacteriology. He died in September 1895 in France, aged 72.

Galileo Galilei: one of the most important historical figures

The famous astronomer is one of the founding fathers of the scientific revolution of the Renaissance. He made improvements to the telescope with which he could carry out various experimental works. Contrary to popular belief, he was not executed by the Inquisition, but sentenced to house arrest. Although there are doubts about the authorship, the expression "And yet, it moves" has entered the history of popular culture.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Undisputed genius in the history of music, Mozart is a character who needs no introduction. He is considered the greatest exponent of the classical style, with a large number of works, despite his untimely death (only 35 years old). A lot of speculation has been raised about this. His work is as lauded today as it was then.

Aristotle

Aristotle's works are a reference for Western political, religious, philosophical, scientific and natural theory. He founded the Lyceum, which would take part in the formal birth of the Peripatetic school. More than 2,000 years after his death, Aristotle's thoughts continue to influence writers, thinkers, artists, and philosophers.

Michelangelo

The Renaissance painter, sculptor and architect is responsible for works of universal scope such as David or the Sistine Chapel. Perfectionism was his main characteristic, which led to a reputation that few artists had in life. He died at the age of 88, after a career in the arts spanning over 70 years.

Neil Armstrong

The first man to walk on the moon certainly deserves a place among the most important historical figures. In July 1969, millions of viewers around the world heard the legendary phrase "One small step for man, one giant leap for mankind". Today, at the dawn of Mars exploration, these words resonate more than ever.

Sigmund Freud: among the most important historical figures

The father of psychoanalysis is one of the intellectual figures of the 20th century. Like the other figures on this list, his life and contributions are not without controversy. Today some of his ideas, such as the Oedipus complex, are familiar to a large part of humanity.

Joseph Stalin

Lenin's successor as the leading figure of the Soviet Union played a leading role in the political and military events of the first half of the 20th century. Stalin died on March 5, 1953, apparently from an attack caused by high blood pressure.

Marie Curie

Curie is the most popular scientist in popular culture, thanks to the revival of her discoveries in recent decades. She was the first person to receive two different Nobel Prizes, one in physics (for her contributions to the field of radiation) and another in chemistry (for her studies on radium and polonium). Curie died of aplastic anemia aged 66 in France.

Martin Luther King

Activist for the civil rights of African Americans in the United States, work which earned him the Nobel Peace Prize in 1964. He combined these activities with his service as a pastor of the Baptist church. Martin Luther King was assassinated in Memphis in 1968, in one of the most publicized assassinations in the nation's history. His legacy is felt to this day.

Napoleon Bonaparte

Considered one of the greatest military strategists of the modern era, Napoleon Bonaparte played a decisive role in the political-administrative reorganization of Europe in the early nineteenth century. He was proclaimed emperor of the French and king of Italy. He died in May 1821.

Martin Luther

Along with Calvin, Luther is the most representative figure of the Protestant Reformation and could not be missing from any list of the most important historical figures. Their revolution is known today as the Lutheran Schism, which forever split the church into two halves. He was born in 1483 and died in 1546.

William Shakespeare

Considered the most important writer in the English language, Shakespeare is the author of works that are today emblematic of popular culture: Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Macbeth and Othello are just a few of them. During his lifetime he achieved great fame, although not as much as he received after his death. To be or not to be, this is the question echoing in the eardrums of all his fans./ Taken from "Bota.al"