The Top 100 Leaders in History

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##Original Post:##

I have worked on the Top 100 Generals listing for several years now, and think it is time to look at a new topic.  Several times in that thread I have noted that a man was not a great general, but was a great leader.  George Washington is a prime example.  Or that a man was a great general but not a great leader--Hannibal, perhaps.

I should define "leader."  By a leader, I am talking about the leader of a nation, or the leader of a people.  The man (or woman--I'm not leaving out Joan...) does not have to be a political leader or even a military leader.  However, this person must change the trajectory of the nation.  This is less subjective than the Top 100 Generals, because the impact is more measurable, even for subjects in the far distant past about which we have little detail.

What do I mean by trajectory?  A nation is on a specific path--or tribes, or whatever the entity is.  After the person's life, they are on a different trajectory or path.  What is the difference between those paths?  Thus, a great general who creates an empire and then loses it is worthless.   Thus Napoleon is not a very great leader.

I do wish to take into account somewhat of what occurred within the person's lifetime, but that should be relatively unimportant--say 25% of the ranking.

I have not yet assembled a full top 100 list, as I do not have enough resources at my disposal.  I will, however, comment on what I do have understanding of.

I do not yet want people to simply give their top 10 or 100.  I would like people to rank the top that they know of for individual nations/peoples.  Eventually, these will all be combined into a cohesive whole.

One thing this more objective system allows for is for great leaders of distant history to be properly evaluated.  For example, Sargon of Akkad will be on the list for sure.  Hammurabi as well.  As generals, they could not be considered.


Here are a few of my considerations/evaluations of one country to start out--I'll add more later as I think about them longer.  I start with my own: the US.

Top United States Leaders
1. George Washington.  Without him, the nation is totally different or non-existent.   He changed the course of history.  Probably a top 5 overall.
2. Abraham Lincoln.  Again, changed the course of history.  Do I agree with his policies?  No.  But he changed the trajectory of the US, for the stronger.  (Of course, I'm in the South, so I don't like him much...)  Probably a top 25 overall.
3. Thomas Jefferson.  Molded the shape of the US, purchased Louisiana.  Top 100 overall.
4. Dwight D. Eisenhower.  WWII and President.  Top 100 overall.
5. Douglas MacArthur.  WWII and Korea.  Top 100 overall?
6. Franklin Roosevelt.  WWII!  Top 100 overall?
7. Ronald Reagan.  End of Cold War.
Honestly, that's about all I could come up with.  Only the top 2 I consider very strong candidates overall.  We just don't have enough history!

I note this list dovetails in with the Top 100 Generals and the Top Political leaders Justinian is putting together.  I'm not trying to steal the idea, but rather come up with a coherent combined approach.

1. Muhammad - Top 5 (in fact, 1)

2. Saladdin - Top 20

3. Nasser - Around 20

4. Selim I -  Beteen 20-30

5. Timur - Over 40

 

 

Spanish:

 

1. Isabel the Catholic - Top 10

2. Phillip II - Top 20

3. Charles III - Between 20-30

4. Charles I and V - Between 20-30

5. Ferdinand III - Hardly into the 100

 

6. Felipe Gonz�lez - Out of 100