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Who were the major luminaries through history whose deeds still impact us today?

Chagos said:
Martin Luther (not King, the original one).
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Luther is a super luminary in the annals of the Protestant revolution.

Between him and King Henry 8th they each took a big bite out of the Catholic Church right about the same time and started the snowball rolling.

So you are correct -- that a big chunk of the 2 billion Christians on the Earth today is indeed beholden to one of these two men for their religious freedom.

He did not make my own list however because I was raised Catholic.

Hence my own Teutonic Knights Crusader Cross avatar.
 
Riveroaks said:
Luther is a super luminary in the annals of the Protestant revolution.

Between him and King Henry 8th they each took a big bite out of the Catholic Church right about the same time and started the snowball rolling.........................
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Don't much like him being mentioned in the same breath with Luther. Egomaniac monarch (which one wasn't in his time?), he reformed nothing but was merely hell bent on curbing anything that interfered with his own status of absolutism.

Luther OTH had everything to lose and acted out of a sense of ethics and moral. He had no intention of creating a schism but rather one of reforming a totally corrupt (by then) church.

Protestantism arose not from Henry VIII in its impact on the world, twas the likes of Luther and Calvin and Jan Hus before them that set the ball rolling. Henry had no doctrinal beef with Rome, his moves were political in pursuit of self interest.
 
Risky Thicket said:
...

Cleopatra

...
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Although she was a ruthless queen of the provincial Egyptians in the Roman Empire, she seemed to have time to love several Roman generals including Julius Caesar.

Her son by him was killed by order of Augustus/Octavian.

Being a beauty, judging from the statues of her, if you got to dine with her then you got to sleep with her also.

I'm not sure you can attribute any deeds of greatness to her however, other than international intrigue.

I could see her making the list of any femme fatale. But definitely not my list.

If we are going to talk about the most dynamic (only) women in history, my list would go something like this:

- Miriam, sister of Moses

- Mary, mother of Christ (same name btw)

- Queen Elizabeth 1st

- Betsy Ross

- Marie Curie (I see that she did make your list too -- I agree)

- Margaret Thatcher
 
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Chagos said:
Don't much like him being mentioned in the same breath with Luther. Egomaniac monarch (which one wasn't in his time?), he reformed nothing but was merely hell bent on curbing anything that interfered with his own status of absolutism.

Luther OTH had everything to lose and acted out of a sense of ethics and moral. He had no intention of creating a schism but rather one of reforming a totally corrupt (by then) church.

Protestantism arose not from Henry VIII in its impact on the world, twas the likes of Luther and Calvin and Jan Hus before them that set the ball rolling. Henry had no doctrinal beef with Rome, his moves were political in pursuit of self interest.
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You can be sure though that the Vatican views both Henry and Luther in the same light however.
 
betsy ross?

what the hell did she accomplish?!
 
any list of 20th century icons must include George Marshall, Churchill, and FDR* (Ike was already included)


*oops. already listed, tho i disagree with the 'mixed' designation
 
Riveroaks said:
You can be sure though that the Vatican views both Henry and Luther in the same light however.
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On heresy yes, on impact no.

It lost half a continent due to Luther eventually, only a (comparably) negligible little country to Henry.
 
Chagos said:
Objection.

Nothing luminary, let alone illuminated.
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She was the first modern leader of a major power in modern times. So that deserves some credit.

Hillary wants to be the second. And we'll have to wait and see about that.

Not if Jeb can help it.

Clinton v Bush should be a powerful clash of dynasties in 2016.
 
Chagos said:
On heresy yes, on impact no.

It lost half a continent due to Luther eventually, only a (comparably) negligible little country to Henry.
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But if you look at the then-power of the English church it at least rivals the influence of Luther all over the Northern Hemisphere plus Australia.
 
justabubba said:
any list of 20th century icons must include George Marshall, Churchill, and FDR* (Ike was already included)


*oops. already listed, tho i disagree with the 'mixed' designation
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True, but Marshal and Churchill would both be on the European list.

Right about now, the USA probably would have been better off economically if it had NOT rebuilt Europe and Japan after WW2.
 
Riveroaks said:
But if you look at the then-power of the English church it at least rivals the influence of Luther all over the Northern Hemisphere plus Australia.
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I assume you mean "nowadays" power/influence/folllowing.
 
Riveroaks said:
She was the first modern leader of a major power in modern times. So that deserves some credit.

Hillary wants to be the second. And we'll have to wait and see about that.

Not if Jeb can help it.

Clinton v Bush should be a powerful clash of dynasties in 2016.
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Housewife thinking that growing up in a corner shop makes you a wizard in economics. Major power?
 
Riveroaks said:
When I was a kid in high school, I learned to "dance" by watching him on tv.

However in college I learned how to waltz, polka, foxtrot, mambo, triple mambo, rumba, tango, and samba.

So I did not need James Brown after that.
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James Brown's greatness will forever be his musical genius. He was truly, truly, gifted. But that was not enough for Mr. Brown. He was not about to rest on his laurels. James Brown used to be called "the hardest working man in show business" and he arguably was.

Brown paid his dues on "the chitlin' circuit" and moved across the color barrier to become an R&B legend in his own time while his music climbed the charts and his audiences were as black or white as the venue he played and everything in between. As popular tastes changed James Brown's music changed as well. He continued to evolve and remained relevant with soul, funk, and even disco.

Brown was at times larger than life, but he never lost his sense of self. Coming from extreme poverty that is a remarkable achievement in and of itself.

James Brown contributed much to the world and inspired many people in many ways.

Try Me

Papa Don't Take No Mess

Say It Loud
 
Riveroaks said:
Thanks! This thread has not gotten a lot of traction yet. Hoping that it will. Everyone has heroes, whether they know it or not.

I'll discuss these one at a time from my own perspective ...

Siddhartha Gautama was a wealthy prince who was restless and decided to give up all his wealth to travel.

At some point he became enlightened and spent the rest of his life teaching others what he learned during his odyssey of poverty.

He certainly must have learned that alms to the poor are critical for anyone to go on an odyssey of poverty.

My view of Buddha is thus jaded because everyone needs to do something to support themselves or they will die.

Relying on others around you to support you seems very selfish and short sighted to me.

Hence I did not put him on my own list.
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Riveroaks said:
Passive resistance does not work for me.

I prefer the way George Washington addressed the issue of British occupation. And that's what I would do if in the same situation as either man.
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Riveroaks said:
Robert E. Lee was a traitor who should have been hanged after the US Civil War.

He was responsible for the deaths of more Americans than any other person in history.

One of the Union generals who defeated Lee at Gettysburg came from my dad's home town of Rock Island Illinois. That was Brigadier General John Buford. I am proud of them both. Both were soldiers in the U.S. Army their whole lives long.
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I thought your list was about people who had the greatest impact on history, whether you liked them or not? I notice how you have Hitler, Tojo, and Wilhelm on the list, do you approve of their actions then?
 
LaughAtTheWorld said:
I thought your list was about people who had the greatest impact on history, whether you liked them or not? I notice how you have Hitler, Tojo, and Wilhelm on the list, do you approve of their actions then?
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You know, you're right, I don't approve of the Kaiser, of Tojo, or of Adolf -- but they each definitely had a huge impact on each of us even today. That's why they stand out.

Some of the others mentioned by others, like Cleopatra, had absolutely no influence on us at all, to top it off her behavior got her only child killed. If she had been a loyal subject of Rome rather than a conniving fem fatale, she might have been remembered more favorably.

The Southern boyz still adore Gen. Lee but he really should have met a traitor's doom at high noon.

I am Southern born (in Florida -- if that counts as "Southern" -- maybe not to some people) but Yankee raised by Yankee parents from Illinois -- although not IN Illinois. We lived all over the world. I got to live at Sheppard AFB in north Texas for a while and that's where I learned all about Sam Houston, William Travis, and Robert E Lee.

Texas is the Southwest not really "Southern." But they still believe in Lee down there too.

Southern culture is fascinating. I love the food -- steamed crayfish, okra, and sweet potatoes!
 
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another who deserves mention is Gorbachev
he was the key to ending the cold war
now, that is not a slight against reagan, as he was willing to move in that direction, too
 
Riveroaks said:
Ok thanks. Looks like Edison won the free-for-all raging around electricity then. I was not aware of the sparring going on.
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yes edison and tesla were at war with each other. however it was JP morgan who outwitted TD waterhouse for the patent for tesla's AC current over edison's DC. in fact
he dropped edisons DC current in a hearbeat.

yet another name to add to the list is
Martin Luther himself. (not king).

He led to one of the biggest religious changes and courses in history and actually started the protestant movement.
 
how can you have a thread about the most influential people ever to grace the world, and not have the writers of the constitution and the bill of rights

George Mason
James Madison
Alexander Hamilton
Ben Franklin
John Jay

these men, and others wrote a document that completely changed the history of the world

as an american, maybe i am biased....but this was one of the most important documents ever created
 
gdgyva said:
how can you have a thread about the most influential people ever to grace the world, and not have the writers of the constitution and the bill of rights

George Mason
James Madison
Alexander Hamilton
Ben Franklin
John Jay

these men, and others wrote a document that completely changed the history of the world

as an american, maybe i am biased....but this was one of the most important documents ever created
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I guess because we ignore the U.S. Constitution so much these days, that it did not strike me that it affects us all terribly anymore.

King George 3rd's incompetence led to the document's drafting, ultimately, after the revolution and then a short period under the Articles Of Confederation.

So indirectly I have given credit for all that to King George.

Also, I tended to focus on individuals not on group efforts. And it was the Philadelphia and Boston Freemasons that were largely responsible for the American Revolution and the subsequent creation of a new government. So I would be inclined to credit the Freemasons with that instead.
 
There are no people who've created things of significance in isolation. It's misplaced accolades to give individuals credit for societal products.
 
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