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50 Great Military Leaders of All Time
50 Great Military Leaders of All Time
50 Great Military Leaders of All Time
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50 Great Military Leaders of All Time

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Throughout history we have had leaders and followers. Naturally one cannot work without the other, but most if not all of the time, history remembers the leaders, the revolutionaries, erstwhile the followers are mere footnotes.
Military commanders lead thousands of their men in the vicious battle. Their flourishes speech prior to the battle, inspired thousands of their men in the battlefield, which is still invoked by various historians.
In this book we would be exploring the lives of 50 most brilliant Military Leaders of all times. Their cunning, their audaciousness and sheer brilliance will come to the forefront. They come but once in a lifetime, and in that lifetime they, albeit through the unpleasant act of war rise above the rest and rightly or wrongly leave their mark on human civilization.
LanguageEnglish
Release dateSep 1, 2016
ISBN9789386834195
50 Great Military Leaders of All Time
Author

Jann Tibbetts

The author is an Independent Researcher on subjects related to Military sciences. This is his first Book.

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    50 Great Military Leaders of All Time - Jann Tibbetts

    INTRODUCTION

    Throughout history we have had leaders and followers. Naturally one cannot work without the other, but most if not all of the time, history remembers the leaders, the revolutionaries, erstwhile the followers are mere footnotes. There have been many men who have achieved great successes through their military knowledge and actions. But only a select few military geniuses can truly be considered the greatest military commanders who ever lived.

    Military commanders lead thousands of their men in the vicious battle. Their flourishes speech prior to the battle, inspired thousands of their men in the battlefield, which is still invoked by various historians.

    In this book we would be exoloring the lives of 50 most brilliant Military Leaders of all times. Their cunning, their audaciousness and sheer brilliance will come to the forefront. They come but once in a lifetime, and in that lifetime they, albeit through the unpleasant act of war rise above the rest and rightly or wrongly leave their mark on human civilization.

    Adolf Hitler

    Adolf Hitler was the leader of Nazi Germany from 1934 to 1945. He initiated World War II and oversaw fascist policies that resulted in millions of deaths. Born in Austria in 1889, Adolf Hitler rose to power in German politics as leader of the National Socialist German Workers Party, also known as the Nazi Party. Hitler was chancellor of Germany from 1933 to 1945, and served as dictator from 1934 to 1945. His policies precipitated World War II and the Holocaust. Hitler committed suicide with wife Eva Braun on April 30, 1945, in his Berlin bunker.

    Early Years

    Dictator Adolf Hitler was born in Branau am Inn, Austria, on April 20, 1889, and was the fourth of six children born to Alois Hitler and Klara Polzl. When Hitler was 3 years old, the family moved from Austria to Germany. As a child, Hitler clashed frequently with his father. Following the death of his younger brother, Edmund, in 1900, he became detached and introverted. His father did not approve of his interest in fine art rather than business. In addition to art, Hitler showed an early interest in German nationalism, rejecting the authority of Austria-Hungary. This nationalism would become the motivating force of Hitler’s life.

    Alois died suddenly in 1903. Two years later, Adolf’s mother allowed her son to drop out of school. He moved to Vienna and worked as a casual laborer and a watercolor painter. Hitler applied to the Academy of Fine Arts twice, and was rejected both times. Out of money, he moved into a homeless shelter, where he remained for several years. Hitler later pointed to these years as the time when he first cultivated his antiSemitism, though there is some debate about this account.

    At the outbreak of World War I, Hitler applied to serve in the German army. He was accepted in August 1914, though he was still an Austrian citizen. Although he spent much of his time away from the front lines, Hitler was present at a number of significant battles and was wounded at the Somme. He was decorated for bravery, receiving the Iron Cross First Class and the Black Wound Badge.

    Hitler became embittered over the collapse of the war effort. The experience reinforced his passionate German patriotism, and he was shocked by Germany’s surrender in 1918. Like other German nationalists, he believed that the German army had been betrayed by civilian leaders and Marxists. He found the Treaty of Versailles degrading, particularly the demilitarization of the Rhineland and the stipulation that Germany accept responsibility for starting the war.

    After World War I, Hitler returned to Munich and continued to work for the military as an intelligence officer. While monitoring the activities of the German Workers’ Party (DAP), Hitler adopted many of the antiSemitic, nationalist and anti-Marxist ideas of DAP founder Anton Drexler. Drexler invited Hitler to join the DAP, which he did in 1919.

    To increase its appeal, the DAP changed its name to the Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei (NSDAP). Hitler personally designed the party banner, featuring a swastika in a white circle on a red background. Hitler soon gained notoriety for his vitriolic speeches against the Treaty of Versailles, rival politicians, Marxists and Jews. In 1921, Hitler replaced Drexler as NSDAP party chairman.

    Hitler’s vitriolic beer-hall speeches began attracting regular audiences. Early followers included army captain Ernst Rohm, the head of the Nazi paramilitary organization, the Sturmabteilung (SA), which protected meetings and frequently attacked political opponents.

    On November 8, 1923, Hitler and the SA stormed a public meeting of 3,000 people at a large beer hall in Munich. Hitler announced that the national revolution had begun and declared the formation of a new government. After a short struggle including 20 deaths, the coup, known as the Beer Hall Putsch, failed.

    Hitler was arrested three days later and tried for high treason. He served a year in prison, during which time he dictated most of the first volume of Mein Kampf (My Struggle) to his deputy, Rudolf Hess. The book laid out Hitler’s plans for transforming German society into one based on race.

    Rise to Power

    The Great Depression in Germany provided a political opportunity for Hitler. Germans were ambivalent to the parliamentary republic and increasingly open to extremist options. In 1932, Hitler ran against Paul von Hindenburg for the presidency. Hitler came in second in both rounds of the election, garnering more than 35 percent of the vote in the final election. The election established Hitler as a strong force in German politics. Hindenburg reluctantly agreed to appoint Hitler as chancellor in order to promote political balance.

    Hitler used his position as chancellor to form a de facto legal dictatorship. The Reichstag Fire Decree, announced after a suspicious fire at the Reichstag, suspended basic rights and allowed detention without trial. Hitler also engineered the passage of the Enabling Act, which gave his cabinet full legislative powers for a period of four years and allowed deviations from the constitution.

    Having achieved full control over the legislative and executive branches of government, Hitler and his political allies embarked on a systematic suppression of the remaining political opposition. By the end of June, the other parties had been intimidated into disbanding. On July 14, 1933, Hitler’s Nazi Party was declared the only legal political party in Germany.

    Military opposition was also punished. The demands of the SA for more political and military power led to the Night of the Long Knives, which took place from June 30 to July 2, 1934. Ernst Röhm and other SA leaders, along with a number of Hitler’s political enemies, were rounded up and shot.

    The day before Hindenburg’s death in August 1934, the cabinet had enacted a law abolishing the office of president and combining its powers with those of the chancellor. Hitler thus became head of state as well as head of government, and was formally named as leader and chancellor. As head of state, Hitler became supreme commander of the armed forces. He began to mobilize for war. Germany withdrew from the League of Nations, and Hitler announced a massive expansion of Germany’s armed forces.

    The Nazi regime also included social reform measures. Hitler promoted anti-smoking campaigns across the country. These campaigns stemmed from Hitler’s self-imposed dietary restrictions, which included abstinence from alcohol and meat. At dinners, Hitler sometimes told graphic stories about the slaughter of animals in an effort to shame his fellow diners. He encouraged all Germans to keep their bodies pure of any intoxicating or unclean substance.

    A main Nazi concept was the notion of racial hygiene. New laws banned marriage between non-Jewish and Jewish Germans, and deprived non-Aryans of the benefits of German citizenship. Hitler’s early eugenic policies targeted children with physical and developmental disabilities, and later authorized a euthanasia program for disabled adults.

    The Holocaust was also conducted under the auspices of racial hygiene. Between 1939 and 1945, Nazis and their collaborators were responsible for the deaths of 11 million to 14 million people, including about 6 million Jews, representing two-thirds of the Jewish population in Europe. Deaths took place in concentration and extermination camps and through mass executions. Other persecuted groups included Poles, communists, homosexuals, Jehovah’s Witnesses and trade unionists, among others. Hitler probably never visited the concentration camps and did not speak publicly about the killings.

    World War II

    In 1938, Hitler, along with several other European leaders, signed the Munich Agreement. The treaty ceded the Sudetenland districts to Germany, reversing part of the Versailles Treaty. As a result of the summit, Hitler was named Time magazine’s Man of the Year for 1938. This diplomatic win only whetted his appetite for a renewed German dominance. On September 1, Germany invaded Poland. In response, Britain and France declared war on Germany.

    Hitler escalated his activities in 1940, invading Scandinavia as well as France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Belgium. Hitler ordered bombing raids on the United Kingdom, with the goal of invasion. Germany’s formal alliance with Japan and Italy, known collectively as the Axis powers, was signed to deter the United States from supporting and protecting the British.

    On June 22, 1941, Hitler violated a non-aggression pact with Joseph Stalin, sending 3 million German troops into the Soviet Union. The invading force seized a huge area before the German advance was stopped outside Moscow in December 1941.

    On December 7, Japan attacked Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. Hitler was now at war against a coalition that included the world’s largest empire (Britain), the world’s greatest financial power (the U.S.) and the world’s largest army (the Soviet Union).

    Facing these odds, Hitler’s military judgment became increasingly erratic. Germany’s military and economic position deteriorated along with Hitler’s health. Germany and the Axis could not sustain Hitler’s aggressive and expansive war. In late 1942, German forces failed to seize the Suez Canal. The German army also suffered defeats at the Battle of Stalingrad and the Battle of Kursk. On June 6, 1944, the Western Allied armies landed in northern France. As a result of these significant setbacks, many German officers concluded that defeat was inevitable and that Hitler’s denial would result in the destruction of the country.

    Death and Legacy

    By early 1945, Hitler realized that Germany was going to lose the war. The Soviets had driven the German army back into Western Europe, and the Allies were advancing into Germany. On April 29, 1945, Hitler married his girlfriend, Eva Braun, in a small civil ceremony in his Berlin bunker. Around this time, Hitler was informed of the assassination of Italian dictator Benito Mussolini. Afraid of falling into the hands of enemy troops, Hitler and Braun committed suicide the day after their wedding, on April 30, 1945. Their bodies were carried to the bombed-out garden behind the Reich Chancellery, where they were burned. Berlin fell on May 2,1945. Five days later, on May 7, 1945, Germany surrendered unconditionally to the Allies.

    Hitler’s political program had brought about a world war, leaving behind a devastated and impoverished Eastern and Central Europe, including Germany. His policies inflicted human suffering on an unprecedented scale and resulted in the death of an estimated 40 million people, including about 27 million in the Soviet Union. Hitler’s defeat marked the end of a phase of European history dominated by Germany, and the defeat of fascism. A new ideological global conflict, the Cold War, emerged in the aftermath of World War II.

    Akbar the Great

    Born on October 15, 1542 in Umarkot, India, and enthroned at age 14, Akbar the Great began his military conquests under the tutelage of a regent before claiming imperial power and expanding the Mughal Empire. Known as much for his inclusive leadership style as for his war mongering, Akbar ushered in an era of religious tolerance and appreciation for the arts. Akbar the Great died in 1605.

    The conditions of Akbar’s birth in Umarkot, Sindh, India on October 15, 1542, gave no indication that he would be a great leader. Though Akbar was a direct descendent of Ghengis Khan, and his grandfather Babur was the first emperor of the Mughal dynasty, his father, Humayun, had been driven from the throne by Sher Shah Suri. He was impoverished and in exile when Akbar was born.

    Humayun managed to regain power in 1555, but ruled only a few months before he died, leaving Akbar to succeed him at just 14 years old. The kingdom Akbar inherited was little more than a collection of frail fiefs. Under the regency of Bairam Khan, however, Akbar achieved relative stability in the region. Most notably, Khan won control of northern India from the Afghans and successfully led the army against the Hindu king Hemu at the Second Battle of Panipat. In spite of this loyal service, when Akbar came of age in March of 1560, he dismissed Bairam Khan and took full control of the government.

    Expanding the Empire

    Akbar was a cunning general, and he continued his military expansion throughout his reign. By the time he died, his empire extended to Afghanistan in the north, Sindh in the west, Bengal in the east, and the Godavari River in the south.Akbar’s success in creating his empire was as much a result of his ability to earn the loyalty of his conquered people as it was of his ability to conquer them. He allied himself with the defeated Rajput rulers, and rather than demanding a high tribute tax and leaving them to rule their territories unsupervised, he created a system of central government, integrating them into his administration. Akbar was known for rewarding talent, loyalty, and intellect, regardless of ethnic background or religious practice. In addition to compiling an able administration, this practice brought stability to his dynasty by establishing a base of loyalty to Akbar that was greater than that of any one religion.

    Beyond military conciliation, he appealed to the Rajput people by ruling in a spirit of cooperation and tolerance. He did not force India’s majority Hindu population to convert to Islam; he accommodated them instead, abolishing the poll tax on non-Muslims, translating Hindu literature and participating in Hindu festivals.

    Akbar also formed powerful matrimonial alliances. When he married Hindu princesses—including Jodha Bai, the eldest daughter of the house of Jaipur, as well princesses of Bikaner and Jaisalmer—their fathers and brothers became members of his court and were elevated to the same status as his Muslim fathers- and brothers- in-law. While marrying off the daughters of conquered Hindu leaders to Muslim royalty was not a new practice, it had always been viewed as a humiliation. By elevating the status of the princesses’ families, Akbar removed this stigma among all but the most orthodox Hindu sects.

    Administration

    In 1574 Akbar revised his tax system, separating revenue collection from military administration. Each subah, or governor, was responsible for maintaining order in his region, while a separate tax collector collected property taxes and sent them to the capital. This created checks and balances in each region, since the individuals with the money had no troops, and the troops had no money, and all were dependent on the central government. The central government then doled out fixed salaries to both military and civilian personnel according to rank.

    Religion

    Akbar was religiously curious. He regularly participated in the festivals of other faiths, and in 1575 in Fatehpur Sikri—a walled city that Akbar had designed in the Persian style—he built a temple (ibadat-khana) where he frequently hosted scholars from other religions, including Hindus, Zoroastrians, Christians, yogis, and Muslims of other sects. He allowed the Jesuits to construct a church at Agra, and discouraged the slaughter of cattle out of respect for Hindu custom. Not everyone appreciated these forays into multiculturalism, however, and many called him a heretic.

    In 1579, a mazhar, or declaration, was issued that granted Akbar the authority to interpret religious law, superseding the authority of the mullahs. This became known as the Infallibility Decree, and it furthered Akbar’s ability to create an interreligious and multicultural state. In 1582 he established a new cult, the Din-i-Ilahi (divine faith), which combined elements of many religions, including Islam, Hinduism and Zoroastrianism. The faith centered around Akbar as a prophet or spiritual leader, but it did not procure many converts and died with Akbar.

    Patronage of the Arts

    Unlike his father, Humayun, and grandfather Babur, Akbar was not a poet or diarist, and many have speculated that he was illiterate. Nonetheless, he appreciated the arts, culture and intellectual discourse, and cultivated them throughout the empire. Akbar is known for ushering in the Mughal style of architecture, which combined elements of Islamic, Persian and Hindu design, and sponsored some of the best and brightest minds of the era—including poets, musicians, artists, philosophers and engineers—in his courts at Delhi, Agra and Fatehpur Sikri.

    Some of Akbar’s more well-known courtiers are his navaratna, or nine gems. They served to both advise and entertain Akbar, and included Abul Fazl, Akbar’s biographer, who chronicled his reign in the three-volume book Akbarnama; Abul Faizi, a poet and scholar as well as Abul Fazl’s brother; Miyan Tansen, a singer and musician; Raja Birbal, the court jester; Raja Todar Mal, Akbar’s minister of finance; Raja Man Singh, a celebrated lieutenant; Abdul Rahim Khan-I-Khana, a poet; and Fagir Aziao-Din and Mullah Do Piaza, who were both advisors.

    Death and Succession

    Akbar died in 1605. Some sources say Akbar became fatally ill with dysentery, while others cite a possible poisoning, likely traced to Akbar’s son Jahangir. Many favored Jahangir’s eldest son, Khusrau, to succeed Akbar as emperor, but Jahangir forcefully ascended days after Akbar’s death.

    Alexander the Great

    Alexander the Great served as king of Macedonia from 336 to 323 B.C. During his time of leadership, he united Greece, reestablished the Corinthian League and conquered the Persian Empire. Conqueror and king of Macedonia, Alexander the Great was born on July 20, 356 B.C., in Pella, Macedonia. During his leadership, from 336 to 323 B.C., he united the Greek city-states and led the Corinthian League. He also became the king of Persia, Babylon and Asia, and created Macedonian colonies in the region. While considering the conquests of Carthage and Rome, Alexander died of malaria in Babylon (now Iraq), on June 13, 323 B.C.

    Early Life

    Alexander the Great was born in the Pella region of Macedonia on July 20, 356 B.C., to parents King Philip

    II of Macedon and Queen Olympia, daughter of King Neoptolemus. The young prince and his sister were raised in Pella’s royal court. Growing up, the dark-eyed and curly-headed Alexander hardly ever saw his father, who spent most of his time engaged in military campaigns and extra-marital affairs. Although Olympia served as a powerful role model for the boy, Alexander grew to resent his father’s absence and philandering.

    Alexander received his earliest education under the tutelage of Leonidas. Leonidas, who had been hired by King Phillip to teach Alexander math, horsemanship and archery, struggled to control his rebellious student. Alexander’s next tutor was Lysimachus, who used role-playing to capture the restless boy’s attention. Alexander particularly delighted in impersonating the warrior Achilles.

    In 343 B.C., King Philip II hired the philosopher Aristotle to tutor Alexander at the Temple of the Nymphs at Meiza. Over the course of three years, Aristotle taught Alexander and a handful of his friends philosophy, poetry, drama, science and politics. Seeing that Homer’s Iliad inspired Alexander to dream of becoming a heroic warrior, Aristotle created an abridged version of the tome for Alexander to carry with him on military campaigns.

    Alexander completed his education at Meiza in 340 B.C. A year later, while still just a teen, he became a soldier and embarked on his first military expedition, against the Thracian tribes. In 338, Alexander took charge of the Companion Cavalry and aided his father in defeating the Athenian and Theban armies at Chaeronea. Once Philip II had succeeded in his campaign to unite all the Greek states (minus Sparta) into the Corinthian League, the alliance between father and son soon disintegrated. Philip married Cleopatra Eurydice, niece of General Attalus, and ousted Alexander’s mother, Olympia. Alexander and Olympia were forced to flee Macedonia and stay with Olympia’s family in Epirus until Alexander and King Philip II were able to reconcile their differences.

    King of Macedonia

    In 336, Alexander’s sister wed the Molossian king, an uncle who was also called Alexander. During the festival that followed, King Philip II was murdered at the hands of Pausanias, a Macedonian noble.

    In the wake of his father’s death, Alexander, then 19, was determined to seize the throne by any means necessary. He quickly garnered the support of the Macedonian army, including the general and troops he had had fought with at Chaeronea. The army proclaimed Alexander the feudal king and proceeded to help him murder other potential heirs to the throne. Ever a loyal mother, Olympia further ensured her son’s claim to the throne by slaughtering the daughter of King Philip II and Cleopatra and driving Cleopatra herself to suicide.

    Even though Alexander was the feudal king of Macedonia, he didn’t obtain automatic control of the Corinthian League. In fact, the southern states of Greece were celebrating Philip II’s death and expressed divided interests. Athens had its own agenda: Under the leadership of democratic Demosthenes, the state hoped to take charge of the league. As they launched independence movements, Alexander sent his army south and coerced the region of Thessaly into acknowledging him as the leader of the Corinthian League. Then during a meeting of league members at Thermopylae, Alexander elicited their acceptance of his leadership. By the fall of 336, he reissued treaties with the Greek city-states that belonged to the Corinthian League—with Athens still refusing membership—and was granted full military power in the campaign against the Persian Empire. But, before preparing for war with Persia, Alexander first conquered the Thracian Triballians in 335, securing Macedonia’s northern borders.

    Campaigns and Conquests

    As Alexander was nearing the end of his northern campaign, he was delivered the news that Thebes, a Greek city-state, had forced out the Macedonian troops that were garrisoned there. Fearing a revolt among the other city-states, Alexander leapt into action, marching his massive army—consisting of 3,000 cavalry and 30,000 infantry—southward all the way to the tip of the Greek peninsula. Meanwhile, Alexander’s general, Parmenion, had already made his way to Asia Minor.

    Alexander and his forces arrived in Thebes so quickly that the city-state didn’t have a chance to pull together allies for its defense. Three days after his arrival, Alexander led the massacre of Thebes. It was Alexander’s hope that the destruction of Thebes would serve as a warning to city-states contemplating revolt. His intimidation tactic proved effective; the other Greek city-states, including Athens, chose to pledge their alliance to the Macedonian Empire or opted to remain neutral.

    In 334, Alexander embarked on his Asiatic expedition, arriving in Troy that spring. Alexander then faced Persian King Darius III’s army near the Grancius River; Darius’ forces were swiftly defeated. By fall, Alexander and his army had made it across the southern coast of Asia Minor to Gordium, where they took the winter to rest. In the summer of 333, the troops of Alexander and Darius once again went head to head in battle at Issus. Although Alexander’s army was outnumbered, he used his flair for military strategy to create formations that defeated the Persians again and caused Darius to flee. In November of 333, Alexander declared himself the king of Persia after capturing Darius and making him a fugitive.

    Next up on Alexander’s agenda was his campaign to conquer Egypt. After besieging Gaza on his way to Egypt, Alexander easily achieved his conquest; Egypt fell without resistance. In 331, he created the city of Alexandria, designed as a hub for Greek culture and commerce. Later that year, Alexander defeated the Persians at the Battle of Gaugamela. With the collapse of the Persian army, Alexander became King of Babylon, King of Asia, King of the Four Quarters of the World.

    Alexander’s next conquest was eastern Iran, where he created Macedonian colonies and in 327 seized the fortress in Ariamazes. After capturing Prince Oxyartes, Alexander married the prince’s daughter, Rhoxana.

    Alexander the Great’s tomb was one of the biggest tourist attractions of the ancient world. Roman emperors including Pompey, Julius Caesar, and Caligula traveled to Alexandria to pay their respects; and Augustus was reportedly so overwhelmed during his visit that he accidentally broke the nose off Alexander’s mummy while laying a wreath at his grave.

    In 328, Alexander defeated King Porus’ armies in northern India. Finding himself impressed by Porus, Alexander reinstated him as king and won his loyalty and forgiveness. Alexander forged eastward to the Ganges but headed back when his armies refused to advance any farther. On their way back along the Indus, Alexander was wounded by Malli warriors.

    In 325, after Alexander had recovered, he and his army headed north along the rugged Persian Gulf, where many fell prey to illness, injury and death. In February 324, Alexander at last reached the city of Susa. Desperate to retain his leadership and recruit more soldiers, he tried to connect Persian nobles to Macedonians in order to create a ruling class. To this end, at Susa he commanded that a large number of Macedonians marry Persian princesses. After Alexander managed to recruit tens of thousands of Persian soldiers into his army, he dismissed many of his existing Macedonian soldiers. This enraged the soldiers, who spoke critically of Alexander’s new troops and condemned him for adopting Persian customs and manners. Alexander appeased the Macedonian soldiers by killing 13 Persian military leaders. The Thanksgiving Feast at Susa, which had been geared towards solidifying the bond between Persians and Macedonians, shaped up to be quite the opposite.

    Death

    While considering the conquests of Carthage and Rome, Alexander the Great died of malaria in Babylon (now Iraq), on June 13, 323 B.C. He was just 32 years old. Rhoxana gave birth to his son a few months later.

    After Alexander died, his empire collapsed and the nations within it battled for power. Over time, the cultures of Greece and the Orient synthesized and thrived as a side effect of Alexander’s empire, becoming part of his legacy and spreading the spirit of Panhellenism.

    Mustafa Kemal Atatürk

    Mustafa Kemal Atatürk was a revolutionary who helped establish the Republic of Turkey. He was Turkey’s first president, and his reforms modernized the country. Mustafa Kemal Atatürk was born in 1881 in the former Ottoman Empire. As a young man he was involved with the Young Turks, a revolutionary group that deposed the sultan in 1909. Atatürk led the Turkish War of Independence and signed the Treaty of Lausanne in 1923, which made Turkey a republic. He was elected its first president and ushered in reforms that modernized Turkey. He died in 1938.

    Early Life

    Mustafa Kemal Atatürk was born simply Mustafa on March 12, 1881, in Salonika, in what was then the Ottoman Empire (his birthplace is now known as Thessalonika, in modern-day Greece). When he was 12 years old, Mustafa was sent to the military academy in Istanbul. There, his mathematics teacher gave him the name Kemal—meaning perfection—because he excelled in academics. He graduated in 1905.

    Military Career

    As a young man, Mustafa Kemal became a member of the Young Turks, a revolutionary movement of intellectuals. He participated in the Young Turk Revolution of July 1908, which successfully deposed Sultan Abdülhamid II. From 1909 to 1918, Mustafa Kemal held a number of posts in the Ottoman army. He fought against Italy in the Balkan Wars from 1911 to 1912, and in the second Balkan War he became chief of staff before being posted at the Turkish embassy in Bulgaria. He made a name for himself as the commander of the 19th Division, where his bravery and strategic prowess helped thwart the Allied invasion of the Dardanelles in 1915, and received repeated promotions until the Armistice of Mudros ended the fighting in 1918.

    Although the battles had ended, the treaty gave the Allies the right to occupy forts that controlled major waterways, as well as any territory that might pose a threat to security. In 1919, Atatürk organized resistance to these forces, and when the Treaty of Sèvres was signed at the end of World War I, divvying up the Ottoman Empire, Mustafa Kemal demanded complete independence for Turkey. The Great National Assembly—the new Turkish parliament—engaged in a series of battles with Greek and Armenian forces until Mustafa signed the Treaty of Lausanne on October 29, 1923. This established the Republic of Turkey, and Mustafa Kemal became the country’s first president.

    Presidency

    Mustafa Kemal’s first order of business was to modernize and secularize the country, which he did by studying Western governments and adapting their structure for the people of Turkey. He believed that modernization necessarily entailed Westernization, and he established a policy of state secularism, with a constitution that separated the government from religion.

    Social and economic reforms were a crucial part of his strategy as well. He replaced the Arabic alphabet with a Latin one, introduced the Gregorian calendar and urged people to dress in Western clothes. Mustafa industrialized the nation, establishing state-owned factories around the country as well as a railway network. And a multitude of new laws established legal equality between the sexes. Mustafa removed women’s veiling laws and gave women the right to vote.

    Although he believed he was advancing the country, not all of Mustafa Kemal’s reforms were warmly received. His policy of state secularism was particularly controversial, and he was accused of decimating important cultural traditions.

    Personal Life

    Mustafa Kemal was married briefly from 1923 to 1925, and although he never fathered children, he adopted 12 daughters and one son. In 1935 he introduced surnames in Turkey, and he took the last name Atatürk, which means Father of the Turks. He died on November 10, 1938, from cirrhosis of the liver.

    Legacy

    Mustafa Kemal Atatürk is commemorated by many memorials throughout Turkey, such as the Atatürk International Airport in Istanbul, the Atatürk Bridge over the Golden Horn (Haliç), the Atatürk Dam, and Atatürk Stadium. Atatürk statues have been erected in all Turkish cities by Turkish Government, and most towns have their own memorial to him. His face and name are seen and heard everywhere in Turkey; his portrait can be seen in all public buildings, in all schools and classrooms, on all school books, on all Turkish lira banknotes, and in the homes of many Turkish families. At the exact time of his death, on every 10 November, at 09:05 am, most vehicles and people in the country’s streets pause for one minute in remembrance.

    In 1951, the Democrat Party-controlled Turkish parliament led by Prime Minister Adnan Menderes (despite being the conservative opposition to Atatürk’s own Republican People’s Party) issued a law (5816) outlawing insults to his memory (Turkish: hatirasi) or destruction of objects representing him. The demarcation between a criticism and an insult was defined as a political argument and the Minister of Justice (a political position) was assigned in Article 5 to execute the law rather than the public prosecutor. A government website was created to denounce the websites that violate this law.

    In 2007, YouTube, Geocities, and several blogger webpages were blocked by a Turkish court due to the violation of this law. The YouTube ban in the country lasted for 30 months, in retaliation for four videos on Atatürk. These videos alleged that Atatürk was a Freemason, and was a homosexual, citing a book printed in Belgium on this subject that is currently banned in Turkey. In the last week of October 2010, a German company, following a request from the Turkish Internet Board, exploited YouTube automatic copyright-en-forcement mechanism to take down the videos. On 30 October, shortly after the removal, a court lifted the ban. But a few days later, Google concluded that the videos did not infringe copyright and restored them on YouTube.

    In 2010, the French-based NGO Reporters Without Borders objected to the Turkish laws to protect the memory of Kemal Atatürk, saying they are in contradiction with the current European Union standards of

    Attila the Hun

    Attila the Hun was one of the most successful barbarian rulers of the Hunnic Empire, attacking the Eastern and Western Roman empires. Born in what is now Hungary circa 406, Attila the Hun, 5th century king of the Hunnic Empire, devastated lands from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean, inspiring fear throughout the late Roman Empire. Dubbed Flagellum Dei (Scourge of God), Attila consolidated power after murdering his brother to become sole ruler of the Huns, expanded the rule of the Huns to include many Germanic tribes and attacked the Eastern Roman Empire in wars of extraction. He never invaded Constantinople or Rome, and left a divided family following his death in 453.

    Attila the Hun and his brother, Bleda, were named co-rulers of the Huns in 434. Upon murdering his brother in 445, Attila became the 5th century king of the Hunnic Empire, and the sole ruler of the Huns. Attila united the tribes of the Hun kingdom and was said to be a just ruler to his own people. But Attila was also an aggressive and ruthless leader. He expanded the rule of the Huns to include many Germanic tribes and attacked the Eastern Roman Empire in wars of extraction, devastating lands from the Black Sea to the Mediterranean, and inspiring fear throughout the late Roman Empire.

    Attila was notorious for his fierce gaze; according to historian Edward Gibbon, he frequently rolled his eyes as if to enjoy the terror he inspired. He also reputedly scared others by claiming to own the actual sword of Mars, the Roman god of war.

    In 434, Roman Emperor Theodosius II paid a tribute—in essence, protection money—to Attila, but Attila broke the peace treaty, destroying towns along the Danube river before moving into the empire’s interior and obliterating Naissus (Nis) and Serdica (Sofia). He then moved toward Constantinople (present-day Istanbul), defeating the main Eastern Roman forces in a number of battles. Upon reaching the sea both north and south of Constantinople, however, Attila realized the impossibility of an attack on the capital’s great walls by his army, which consisted largely of horsemen. (Theodosius II had specifically built the great walls to defend against Attila.) Subsequently, Attila retargeted and destroyed what was left of the Eastern Roman Empire’s forces.

    In 441, Attila invaded the Balkans. When Theodosius begged for terms, Attila’s tribute was tripled, but, in 447, he struck the empire again and negotiated yet another new treaty. When the new Eastern Roman emperor, Marcian, and Western Roman Emperor Valentinian III, refused to pay tribute, Attila the Hun amassed an army of half a million men and invaded Gaul (now France). He was defeated at Chalons in 451 by Aetius, who had banded together with the Visigoths.

    Legacy

    Dubbed Flagellum Dei (meaning Scourge of God in Latin), Attila the Hun invaded northern Italy in 452, but spared the city of Rome due to the diplomacy of Pope Leo I and the rough shape of his own troops. (Legend has it that St. Peter and St. Paul appeared to Attila, threatening to strike him dead if he did not settle with Pope Leo I.) Attila died the following year, in 453, before he could try once again to take Italy.

    Among many memorable quotes, Attila the Hun is remembered for saying of his powerful reign,

    Tere, where I have passed, the grass will never grow gain.

    Attila left behind a divided family. His appointed successor, his oldest son Ellac, fought with his other sons, Dengizich and Ernakh, over control of their father’s empire, which was ultimately divided among them.

    In World War I, Allied propaganda referred to Germans as the Huns, based on a 1900 speech by Emperor Wilhelm II praising Attila the Hun’s military prowess, according to Jawaharlal Nehru’s Glimpses of World History.

    In modern Hungary and in Turkey, Attila and its Turkish variation Atilla are commonly used as a male first name. In Hungary, several public places are named after Attila; for instance, in Budapest there are 10 Attila Streets, one of which is an important street behind the Buda Castle. When the Turkish Armed Forces invaded Cyprus in 1974, the operations were named after Attila (The Attila Plan)

    Babur

    Zahir-ud-din Muhammad Babur (14 February 1483 – 26 December 1530; sometimes also spelt Baber or Babar) was a conqueror from Central Asia who, following a series of setbacks, finally succeeded in laying the basis for the Mughal dynasty in the Indian subcontinent and became the first Mughal emperor. He was a direct descendant of Turco-Mongol conqueror Timur(Timurlane) from the Barlas clan, through his father, and also a descendant of Genghis Khan through his mother. He was also influenced by the Persian culture and this affected both his own actions and those of his successors, giving rise to a significant expansion of the Persianate ethos in the Indian subcontinent.

    Though born as Zahiruddin Muhammad Babur, he was commonly known as Babur. He was the eldest son of Umar Sheikh Mirza. He ascended the throne of Fergana in 1495 at the age of twelve and faced rebellion from his own relatives. He conquered Samarkand two years later, only to lose the city of Fergana soon after. In his attempt to reconquer it, he lost control of Samarkand. In 1501, his attempt to recapture both cities went in vain as he was defeated by Muhammad Shaybani Khan. In 1504, he conquered Kabul, which was under the rule of the infant heir of Ulugh Begh. Babur formed a partnership with Safavid ruler Ismail I and reconquered parts of central Asia including Samarkand, only to lose again to the Uzbeks.

    After losing the city for the third time, Babur turned his attention to creating his empire in north India. At that time, north India was ruled by Ibrahim Lodi of the Lodi dynasty. In 1524, Daulat Khan Lodi invited his nephew, Babur, to overthrow Ibrahim and become ruler. Babur defeated Ibrahim Lodi at the First Battle of Panipat in 1526 and so founded the Mughal empire. However, he again had to face opposition, this time from Rana Sanga of Mewar who considered Babur as a foreigner. The Rana was defeated at the Battle of Khanwa. Babur married several times. Notable among his sons are Humayun, Kamran Mirza and Hindal Mirza. He died in 1530 and was succeeded by Humayun. According to Babur’s wishes, he was buried in Bagh-e-Babur at Kabul in Afghanistan. Being a patrilineal descendant of Timur, Babur considered himself as a Timurid and Turk, though Uzbek sources claim him as an ethnic Uzbek. He is considered a national hero in Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. Many of his poems also have become popular folk songs. He wrote his autobiography, Baburnama, in Chaghatai Turkic and this was later translated to Persian during Akbar’s reign.

    As a Ruler

    In 1494, at eleven years old, Babur became the ruler of Fergana, in present-day Uzbekistan, after Umar Sheikh Mirza died while tending pigeons in an ill-constructed dovecote that toppled into the ravine below the palace. During this time, two of his uncles from the neighbouring kingdoms, who were hostile to his father, and a group of nobles who wanted his younger brother Jahangir to be the ruler, threatened his succession to the throne. His uncles were relentless in their attempts to dislodge him from this position as well as from many of his other territorial possessions to come. Babur was able to secure his throne mainly because of help from his maternal grandmother, Aisan Daulat Begum, although there was also some luck involved. Most territories around his kingdom were ruled by his relatives, who were descendants of either Timur or Genghis Khan, and were constantly in conflict. At that time, rival princes were fighting over the city of Samarkand to the west, which was ruled by his paternal cousin. Babur had a great ambition to capture it and in 1497, he besieged Samarkand for seven months before eventually gaining control over it. He was fifteen years old and for him, this campaign was a huge achievement. Babur was able to hold it despite desertions in his army but later fell seriously ill. Meanwhile, a rebellion amongst nobles who favoured his brother, back home approximately 350 kilometres (220 mi) away robbed him of Fergana. As he was marching to recover it, he lost the Samarkand to a rival prince, leaving him with neither Fergana nor Samarkand. He had held Samarkand for 100 days and he considered this defeat as his biggest loss, obsessing over it even later in his life after his conquests in India.

    In 1501, he laid siege on Samarkand once more, but was soon defeated by his most formidable rival, Muhammad Shaybani, khan of the Uzbeks. amarkand, his lifelong obsession, was lost again. He tried to reclaim Fergana but lost it too and escaping with a small band of followers, he wandered to the mountains of central Asia and took refuge with hill tribes. Thus, during the ten years since becoming the ruler of Fergana, Babur suffered many short-lived victories and was without shelter and in exile, aided by friends and peasants.

    He finally stayed in Tashkent, which was ruled by his maternal uncle. Babur wrote, During my stay in Tashkent, I endured much poverty and humiliation. No country, or hope of one! For three years Babur concentrated on building up a strong army, recruiting widely amongst the Tajiks of Badakhshan in particular. By 1502, Babur had resigned all hopes of recovering Fergana, he was left with nothing and was forced to try his luck someplace else. Kabul was ruled by Ulugh Begh Mirza of the Arghun Dynasty, who died leaving only an infant as heir.

    The city was then claimed by Mukin Begh, who was considered to be a usurper and was opposed by the local populace. In 1504, by using the whole situation to his own advantage, Babur was able to cross the snowy Hindu Kush mountains and capture Kabul; the remaining Arghunids were forced to retreat to Kandahar. With this move, he gained a new kingdom, re-established his fortunes and would remain its ruler until 1526. In 1505, because of the low revenue generated by his new mountain kingdom, Babur began his first expedition to India; in his memoirs, he wrote, My desire for Hindustan had been constant. It was in the month of Shaban, the Sun being in Aquarius, that we rode out of Kabul for Hindustan. It was a brief raid across the Khyber Pass.

    In the same year, Babur united with Sultan Husayn Mirza Bayqarah of Herat, a fellow Timurid and distant relative, against their common enemy, the Uzbek Shaybani. However, this venture did not take place because Husayn Mirza died in 1506 and his two sons were reluctant to go to war. Babur instead stayed at Herat after being invited by the two Mirza brothers. It was then the cultural capital of the eastern Muslim world.

    Though he was disgusted by the vices and luxuries of the city, he marvelled at the intellectual abundance there, which he stated was filled with learned and matched men. He became acquainted with the work of the Chagatai poet Mir Ali Shir Nava’i, who encouraged the use of Chagatai as a literary language. Nava’i’s proficiency with the language, which he is credited with founding, may have influenced Babur in his decision to use it for his memoirs. He spent two months there before being forced to leave because of diminishing resources; it later was overrun by Shaybani and the Mirzas fled.

    Babur became the only reigning ruler of the Timurid dynasty after the loss of Herat, and many princes sought refuge from him at Kabul because of Shaybani’s invasion in the west. He thus assumed the title of Padshah (emperor) among the Timurids—though this tile was insignificant since most of his ancestral lands were taken, Kabul itself was in danger and Shaybani continued to be a threat. He prevailed during a potential rebellion in Kabul, but two years later a revolt among some of his leading generals drove him out of Kabul. Escaping with very few companions, Babur soon returned to the city, capturing Kabul again and regaining the allegiance of the rebels. Meanwhile, Shaybani was defeated and killed by Ismail I, Shah of Shia Safavid Persia, in 1510.

    Babur and the remaining Timurids used this opportunity to reconquer their ancestral territories. Over the following few years, Babur and Shah Ismail formed a partnership in an attempt to take over parts of Central Asia. In return for Ismail’s assistance, Babur permitted the Safavids to act as a suzerain over him and his followers. Thus, in 1513, after leaving his brother Nasir Mirza to rule Kabul, he managed to get Samarkand for the third time and Bokhara but lost both again to the Uzbeks. Shah Ismail reunited Babur with his sister Khanzada, who had been imprisoned by and forced to marry the recently deceased Shaybani. He returned to Kabul after three years in 1514. The following 11 years of his rule mainly involved dealing with relatively insignificant rebellions from Afghan tribes, his nobles and relatives, in addition to conducting raids across the eastern mountains. Babur began to modernise and train his army despite it being, for him, relatively peaceful times

    Mughal Empire

    Babur still wanted to escape from the Uzbeks, and finally chose India as a refuge instead of Badakhshan, which was to the north of Kabul. He wrote, In the presence of such power and potency, we had to think of some place for ourselves and, at this crisis and in the crack of time there was, put a wider space between us and the strong foeman. After his third loss of Samarkand, Babur gave full attention on conquest of India, launching a campaign, he reached Chenab in 1519. Until 1524, his aim was to only expand his rule to Punjab, mainly to fulfil his ancestor Timur’s legacy, since it used to be part of his empire.

    At the time parts of north India was under the rule of Ibrahim Lodi of the Lodi dynasty, but the empire was crumbling and there were many defectors. He received invitations from Daulat Khan Lodi, Governor of Punjab and Ala-ud-Din, uncle of Ibrahim. He sent an ambassador to Ibrahim, claiming himself the rightful heir to the throne of the country, however the ambassador was detained at Lahore and released months later.

    Babur started for Lahore, Punjab, in 1524 but found that Daulat Khan Lodi had been driven out by forces sent by Ibrahim Lodi. When Babur arrived at Lahore, the Lodi army marched out and was his army was routed. In response, Babur burned Lahore for two days, then marched to Dipalpur, placing Alam Khan, another rebel uncle of Lodi’s, as governor. Alam Khan was quickly overthrown and fled to Kabul. In response, Babur supplied Alam Khan with troops who later joined up with Daulat Khan Lodi and together with about 30,000 troops, they besieged Ibrahim Lodi at Delhi. He easily defeated and drove off Alam’s army and Babur realized Lodi would not allow him to occupy the Punjab.

    Babur started his campaign in November 1525. He got news at Peshawar that Daulat Khan Lodi had switched sides and drove out Ala-ud-Din. Babur then marched onto Lahore to confront Daulat Khan Lodi, only to see Daulat’s army melt away at their approach. Daulat surrendered and was pardoned, thus within three weeks of crossing the Indus Babur became the master of Punjab.

    Babur marched on to Delhi via Sirhind. He reached Panipat on 20 April 1526 and there met Ibrahim Lodi’s numerically superior army of about 100,000 soldiers and 100 elephants. In the battle that began on the following day, Babur utilised the tactic of Tulugma, encircling Ibrahim Lodi’s army and forcing it to face artillery fire directly, as well as frightening its war elephants.

    Ibrahim Lodi died during the battle thus ending the Lodi dynasty. After the battle, Babur occupied Delhi and Agra, took the throne of Lodi, and laid the foundation for the eventual rise of Mughal Rule in India.

    Personal Life

    There are no descriptions about Babur’s physical appearance, except the paintings from his memoirs which were made during the reign of his grandson Akbar, when he translated it. Babur claimed to be strong and physically fit, saying to have swam across every major river he encountered, including twice across the Ganges River in North India. Unlike his father, he had ascetic tendencies and did not have any great interest in women. In his first marriage, he was bashful towards Aisha Sultan Begum. later losing his affection for her. However, he acquired several more wives and concubines over the years, and as required for a prince, he was able to ensure the continuity of his line; Babur treated them and his other women relatives well. In his memoirs, there is a mention of his infatuation for a younger boy when Babur was 16 years old. According to the historian Abraham Eraly, bisexuality was common and pederasty high fashion among the central Asian aristocrats of the time.

    Babur’s first wife, Aisha Sultan Begum, was his cousin, the daughter of Sultan Ahmad Mirza, his father’s brother. She was an infant when betrothed to Babur, who was himself five years old. They married eleven years later, c.1498–99 AD. The couple had one daughter by her, Fakhr-un-Nissa, who died within a year in 1500. Three years later, after Babur’s first defeat at Fergana, Aisha left him and returned to her father’s household. In 1504, Babur married Zaynab Sultan Begum, who died childless within two years. In the period 1506–08, Babur married four women, being Maham Begum (in 1506), Masuma Sultan Begum, Gulrukh Begum and Dildar Begum. Babur had four children by Maham Begum, of whom only one survived infancy. This was his eldest son and heir, Humayun. Masuma Sultan Begum died during childbirth; the year of her death is disputed (either 1508 or 1519). Gulrukh bore Babur two sons, Kamran and Askari, and Dildar Begum was the mother of Babur’s youngest son, Hindal. Babur later married Mubaraka Yusufzai, a Pashtun woman of the Yusufzai tribe. Gulnar Aghacha and Nargul Aghacha were two Circassian slaves given to Babur as gifts by Tahmasp Shah Safavi, the Shah of Persia. They became recognized ladies of the royal household.

    During his rule in Kabul, when there was a relative time of peace, Babur pursued his interests in literature, art, music and gardening. Previously, he never drank alcohol and avoided it when he was in Herat. In Kabul, he first tasted it at the age of thirty. He then began to drink regularly, host wine parties and consume preparations made from opium. Though religion had a central place in his life, Babur also approvingly quoted a line of poetry by one of his contemporaries: I am drunk, officer. Punish me when I am sober. He quit drinking for health reasons before the Battle of Khanwa, just two years before his death, and demanded that his court do the same. But he did not stop chewing narcotic preparations, and did not lose his sense of irony.

    Legacy

    Babur died at the age of 47 on 5 January O.S. 26 December 1530 1531, and was succeeded by his eldest son, Humayun. After death, his body was moved to Kabul, Afghanistan where it lies in Bagh-e Babur (Babur Gardens).

    It is generally agreed that, as a Timurid, Babur was not only significantly influenced by the Persian culture, but that his empire also gave rise to the expansion of the Persianate ethos in the Indian subcontinent.

    Although all applications of modern Central Asian ethnicities to people of Babur’s time are anachronistic, Soviet and Uzbek sources regard Babur as an ethnic Uzbek. At the same time, during the Soviet Union Uzbek scholars were censored for idealizing and praising Babur and other historical figures such as Ali-Shir Nava’i.

    Babur is considered a national hero in Uzbekistan. In 14 February 2008, stamps in his name were published in the country to commemorate his 525th birth anniversary. Many of Babur’s poems have become popular Uzbek folk songs, especially by Sherali Jo’rayev. Some sources claim that Babur is a national hero in Kyrgyzstan too. Babur is also held in high esteem in Afghanistan and Iran. In October 2005, Pakistan developed the Babur Cruise Missile, named in his honor.

    Chandragupta Maurya

    Chandragupta Maurya was the founder of the Maurya Empire and the first emperor to unify most of Greater India into one state. He ruled from 322 BC until his voluntary retirement and abdication in favour of his son Bindusara in 298 BC.

    Chandragupta Maurya was a pivotal figure in the history of India. Prior to his consolidation of power, most of the Indian Subcontinent was divided into small states, while the Nanda Empire dominated the Indus- Gangetic Plain. Chandragupta succeeded in conquering and subjugating almost all of the Indian subcontinent by the end of his reign, except the Tamil regions (Chera, Chola and Pandya) and modern day state Odisha (Kalinga). His empire extended from Bengal in the east, to Afghanistan and Balochistan in the west, to the Himalayas and Kashmir in the north, and to the Deccan Plateau in the south. It was the largest empire yet seen in Indian history.

    After unifying much of India, Chandragupta and his chief advisor Chanakya passed a series of major economic and political reforms. He established a strong central administration patterned after Chanakya’s text on politics, the Arthashastra ("Economics and political science’). Maurya’s India was characterised by an efficient and highly organised bureaucratic structure with a large civil service. Due to its unified structure, the empire developed a strong economy, with internal and external trade thriving and agriculture flourishing. In both art and architecture, the Maurya Empire made important contributions, deriving some of its inspiration from the culture of the Achaemenid Empire and the Hellenistic world. Chandragupta’s reign was a time of great social and religious reform in India. Buddhism and Jainism became increasingly prominent.

    In foreign Greek and Latin accounts, Chandragupta is known as Sandrokottos and Androcottus. He became well known in the Hellenistic world for conquering Alexander the Great’s easternmost satrapies, and for defeating the most powerful of Alexander’s successors, Seleucus I Nicator, in battle. Chandragupta subsequently married Seleucus’s daughter to formalize an alliance and established a policy of friendship with the Hellenistic kingdoms, which stimulated India’s trade and contact with the western world. The Greek diplomat Megasthenes, who visited the Maurya capital Pataliputra, is an important source of Maurya history.

    Chandragupta became Jain by faith after renouncing the throne. In the last years of his reign he took Jain Diksha from the last Shrutakevali in Jainism Bhadrabahu to be a Jain Muni. So he abdicated his throne and with the sangha, he went to spend his last days at Shravanabelagola, a famous religious site in south India in Karnataka, where he fasted to death. Along with his grandson, Ashoka, Chandragupta Maurya is one of the most celebrated rulers in the history of India and is also known as Chakravartin. He played a crucial role in shaping the national identity of modern India, and has been lionised as a model ruler and as a national hero. Foundation of the Maurya Empire

    Chandragupta Maurya, with the help of Chanakya, defeated the Magadha king and the army of the Chandravanshi clan. Following his victory, the defeated generals of Alexander settled in Gandhara (the Kamboja kingdom), today’s Afghanistan. At the time of Alexander’s invasion, Chanakya was a teacher in Takshasila. The king of Takshasila and Gandhara, Ambhi (also known as Taxiles), made a peace treaty with Alexander. Chanakya, however, planned to defeat the foreign invasion and sought help from other kings to unite and fight Alexander. Parvateshwara (Porus), a king of Punjab, was the only local king who was able to challenge Alexander at the Battle of the Hydaspes River, but he was defeated.

    Chanakya then went further east to Magadha, to seek the help of Dhana Nanda, who ruled the vast Nanda Empire which extended from Bihar and Bengal in the east to Punjab and Sindh in the west, but Dhana Nanda refused to help him. After this incident, Chanakya began to persuade his disciple Chandragupta of the need to build an empire that could protect Indian territories from foreign invasion.

    Chanakya had trained and guided Chandragupta and together they planned the destruction of Dhana Nanda. The Mudrarakshasa of Visakhadutta as well as the Jain work Parisishtaparvan talk of Chandragupta’s alliance with the Himalayan king Parvatka, sometimes identified with Porus. It is noted in the Chandraguptakatha that Chandragupta and Chanakya were initially rebuffed by the Nanda forces. Regardless, in the ensuing war, Chandragupta faced off against Bhadrasala, the commander of Dhana Nanda’s armies. He was eventually able to defeat Bhadrasala and Dhana Nanda in a series of battles, culminating in the siege of the capital city Pataliputra and the conquest of the Nanda Empire around 322 BCE, thus founding the powerful Maurya Empire in Northern India by the time he was about 20 years old.

    After Alexander’s death in 323 BCE, Chandragupta turned his attention to Northwestern South Asia (modern Pakistan), where he defeated the satrapies (described as prefects in classical Western sources) left in place by Alexander (according to Justin), and may have assassinated two of his governors, Nicanor and Philip. The satrapies he fought may have included Eudemus, ruler in western Punjab until his departure in 317 BCE; and Peithon, son of Agenor, ruler of the Greek colonies along the Indus until his departure for Babylon in 316 BCE.

    Death

    The last shruta-kevali, Bhadrabahu swami was a Jain Acharya. He was a spiritual teacher of Chandragupta Maurya and wrote several texts related to Jainism, including Uvasagharam Stotra. Bhadrabahu and his pupil Chandragupta Maurya, are believed to have meditated there Chandragupta Basadi

    Chandragupta adopted Jainism after voluntarily renouncing the throne. He gave up his throne at the beginning of the third century BC when he was forty-two years old and became an ascetic under the last Shrutakevali Bhadrabahu, migrating south with them and ending his days in sallekhana (death by fasting) according to Jain spiritual tradition at Srava Begoa in present-day Karnataka, though fifth-century inscriptions in the area support the concept of a larger southern migration around that time.

    Che Guevara

    Che Guevara was a Marxist revolutionary allied with Fidel Castro who went on to become an iconic cultural hero. Born in Rosario, Argentina, on June 14, 1928, Ernesto R Guevara de la Serna studied medicine before traveling around South America, observing conditions that spurred his Marxist beliefs. He aided Fidel Castro in overturning the Cuban government and then worked in a political post. Guevara later engaged in guerrilla action in Bolivia, where he was killed. He’s revered by many as a cultural hero.

    Revolutionary leader Ernesto Guevara de la Serna, better known as Che Guevara, was born on June 14, 1928, in Rosario, Argentina. After completing his medical studies at the University of Buenos Aires, Guevara first became politically active in his native Argentina and then in neighboring Bolivia and Guatemala. In 1954, he met Cuban revolutionary Fidel Castro and his brother Raul while in Mexico.

    Guevara became part of Fidel Castro’s efforts to overthrow the Batista government in Cuba. He served as a military advisor to Castro and led guerrilla troops in battles against Batista forces. When Castro took power in 1959, Guevara became in charge of La Cabaña Fortress prison. It is estimated that between 156 and 550 people were executed on Guevara’s extra-judicial orders during this time.

    Rise to Power

    Later, he became president of the Cuban national bank and helped to shift the country’s trade relations from the United States to the Soviet Union. Three years later, he was appointed minister of industry. Guevara left this post in 1965 to export the ideas of Cuba’s revolution to other parts of the world. In 1966,

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