Military Strategists
Sengoku Japan
The man who invented the Sengoku period's model of conquest
The man who invented the Sengoku period's model of conquest (1432-1519). Hojo Soun rose from obscure
A Sengoku-era daimyo who transformed a single prov
A Sengoku-era daimyo who transformed a single province into western Japan's dominant power through d
The 'One-Eyed Dragon' of northern Japan who carved
The 'One-Eyed Dragon' of northern Japan who carved out a powerful domain through audacious military
The 'Dragon of Echigo' — a Sengoku-era warlord whose devotion to righteous warfare and Buddhist faith made him Japan's most paradoxical military figure
The 'Dragon of Echigo' — a Sengoku-era warlord whose devotion to righteous warfare and Buddhist fait
Toyotomi Hideyoshi's chief strategist and the architect of his greatest victories
Toyotomi Hideyoshi's chief strategist and the architect of his greatest victories (1546-1604). Kurod
Called 'the greatest warrior in Japan' by his enem
Called 'the greatest warrior in Japan' by his enemies, Sanada Yukimura made his last stand at the Si
The 'Tiger of Kai' who transformed his landlocked mountain domain into one of Sengoku Japan's most formidable military powers
The 'Tiger of Kai' who transformed his landlocked mountain domain into one of Sengoku Japan's most f
The peasant who became ruler of all Japan
The peasant who became ruler of all Japan (1537-1598). Toyotomi Hideyoshi completed the unification
The founder of Japan's Tokugawa shogunate
The founder of Japan's Tokugawa shogunate, who achieved through patience what others sought through
The revolutionary warlord who dismantled feudal Japan's medieval order and launched the country toward unification
The revolutionary warlord who dismantled feudal Japan's medieval order and launched the country towa
Bakumatsu Japan
The admiral who destroyed the Russian Baltic Fleet at the Battle of Tsushima
The admiral who destroyed the Russian Baltic Fleet at the Battle of Tsushima (1905) — the most decis
The ruthlessly effective architect of modern Japan who built the Meiji state's institutions while his more charismatic peers took the glory
The ruthlessly effective architect of modern Japan who built the Meiji state's institutions while hi
The charismatic giant who led Japan's Meiji Restoration through force of personality and moral authority
The charismatic giant who led Japan's Meiji Restoration through force of personality and moral autho
The radical samurai who created Japan's first modern militia and ignited the revolution that ended feudal rule
The radical samurai who created Japan's first modern militia and ignited the revolution that ended f
The visionary who brokered the alliance that overthrew Japan's feudal government and launched the country into modernity
The visionary who brokered the alliance that overthrew Japan's feudal government and launched the co
Ancient China
A 4th-century BCE Chinese general and military the
A 4th-century BCE Chinese general and military theorist who authored 'The Wuzi' — one of the Seven M
The legendary chancellor and military strategist of the Shu Han kingdom during China's Three Kingdoms period
The legendary chancellor and military strategist of the Shu Han kingdom during China's Three Kingdom
The dominant warlord of China's Three Kingdoms era
The dominant warlord of China's Three Kingdoms era (155-220 CE), who unified the war-torn north thro
The greatest military mind of early imperial China, whose campaigns established the Han dynasty (c. 231-196 BCE). Han Xin's tactical innovations — including the legendary 'battle with backs to the river' — demonstrated that battlefield psychology and terrain exploitation could overcome any numerical disadvantage. His reward
The greatest military mind of early imperial China, whose campaigns established the Han dynasty (c.
The 'Hegemon-King of Western Chu' whose raw military genius made him the most feared commander of ancient China's civil wars
The 'Hegemon-King of Western Chu' whose raw military genius made him the most feared commander of an
A 5th-century BCE Chinese military theorist whose
A 5th-century BCE Chinese military theorist whose treatise 'The Art of War' remains the most influen
Ancient West
The Spartan king who led 300 warriors in a suicidal last stand at Thermopylae
The Spartan king who led 300 warriors in a suicidal last stand at Thermopylae (480 BCE), buying Gree
The Macedonian king who conquered the known world before his thirtieth birthday
The Macedonian king who conquered the known world before his thirtieth birthday (356-323 BCE). Alexa
The Roman general
The Roman general, statesman, and dictator whose conquest of Gaul and crossing of the Rubicon transf
The Roman general who defeated Hannibal at Zama
The Roman general who defeated Hannibal at Zama (202 BCE) and ended the Second Punic War. Scipio Afr
The Carthaginian general who crossed the Alps with elephants and brought Rome to its knees
The Carthaginian general who crossed the Alps with elephants and brought Rome to its knees (247-183
Medieval West
The greatest English military commander of the Hun
The greatest English military commander of the Hundred Years' War, whose victories at Crecy and Poit
The Lionheart — England's warrior-king who spent his reign on crusade and battlefield rather than in governance
The Lionheart — England's warrior-king who spent his reign on crusade and battlefield rather than in
The peasant girl who reversed France's fortunes in the Hundred Years' War and was burned at the stake at age nineteen
The peasant girl who reversed France's fortunes in the Hundred Years' War and was burned at the stak
Modern West
The 'Lion of the North' who revolutionized European warfare through combined-arms tactics and transformed Sweden into a continental great power during the Thirty Years' War
The 'Lion of the North' who revolutionized European warfare through combined-arms tactics and transf
The British general who defeated Napoleon at Water
The British general who defeated Napoleon at Waterloo and proved that defensive mastery, coalition m
The Prussian king whose oblique order and disciplined army made a small northern kingdom into a European great power
The Prussian king whose oblique order and disciplined army made a small northern kingdom into a Euro
Britain's greatest naval hero
Britain's greatest naval hero, whose victory at Trafalgar (1805) secured British maritime supremacy
The French emperor whose military genius reshaped
The French emperor whose military genius reshaped Europe and whose innovations in warfare, law, and
The Prussian military theorist whose 'On War' became the most influential work of strategic theory in Western history
The Prussian military theorist whose 'On War' became the most influential work of strategic theory i
20th Century
The 'Desert Fox' whose North African campaigns made him the most respected German general of World War II among both allies and enemies
The 'Desert Fox' whose North African campaigns made him the most respected German general of World W
The American general who commanded in the Pacific War and oversaw Japan's postwar occupation
The American general who commanded in the Pacific War and oversaw Japan's postwar occupation (1880-1
America's most aggressive World War II general, whose Third Army's lightning advance across France in 1944 demonstrated that speed and audacity in exploitation could collapse enemy resistance faster than methodical advance (1885-1945). Patton believed he
America's most aggressive World War II general, whose Third Army's lightning advance across France i
The Japanese general whose siege of Port Arthur during the Russo-Japanese War became synonymous with both the terrible cost of modern warfare and the samurai ideal of duty unto death
The Japanese general whose siege of Port Arthur during the Russo-Japanese War became synonymous with
The British prime minister whose leadership during World War II embodied national defiance against Nazi Germany
The British prime minister whose leadership during World War II embodied national defiance against N
The Japanese admiral who planned the Pearl Harbor attack and commanded the Combined Fleet during the Pacific War's decisive early phase
The Japanese admiral who planned the Pearl Harbor attack and commanded the Combined Fleet during the
Asia & Middle East
The Turco-Mongol conqueror who built an empire fro
The Turco-Mongol conqueror who built an empire from Central Asia to India, the Middle East, and Anat
The Mamluk sultan who stopped the Mongol advance at Ain Jalut
The Mamluk sultan who stopped the Mongol advance at Ain Jalut (1260) and systematically eliminated C
The sultan who recaptured Jerusalem from the Crusa
The sultan who recaptured Jerusalem from the Crusaders in 1187, earning respect from both Muslim and
The founder of the Mongol Empire who created histo
The founder of the Mongol Empire who created history's largest contiguous land empire through revolu
The Korean naval commander who defeated the Japanese navy in every engagement during the Imjin War
The Korean naval commander who defeated the Japanese navy in every engagement during the Imjin War (
Others
The undefeated Russian generalissimus whose three
The undefeated Russian generalissimus whose three principles — speed, surprise, and attack — made hi
The Byzantine Empire's greatest general
The Byzantine Empire's greatest general, who reconquered North Africa and Italy with hopelessly inad
The Zulu king who transformed a minor southern Afr
The Zulu king who transformed a minor southern African tribe into a military superpower through revo
The Theban general who shattered Sparta's military supremacy at Leuctra
The Theban general who shattered Sparta's military supremacy at Leuctra (371 BCE) by inventing the o
The brilliant young commander whose daring raids destroyed the Taira clan and ended Japan's first great civil war
The brilliant young commander whose daring raids destroyed the Taira clan and ended Japan's first gr