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Famous People

In this section, we shed light on some of the most famous and infamous people known throughout history, from powerful pharaohs, to emperors and empresses, acclaimed military leaders, or just regular civilians who’ve been thrown into the spotlight for great crimes or for heroic actions, leaving an indelible mark on the world.

Three runners. Side B of an Attic black-figured Panathenaic prize amphora (Marie-Lan Nguyen/CC BY 2.5) ) and detail of a statue of a Greek runner by Sir William Blake Richmond, in St Peter's Square, Hammersmith, London. (CC BY SA 3.0)
4 September, 2017 - 14:01 Theodoros Karasavvas

The Greatest Runner You Have Never Heard Of: The Other Famous Greek Leonidas

Thanks to Zack Snyder’s 2007 fantasy historical film, 300 , the Battle of Thermopylae has become one of the most famous battles in history, while the name Leonidas is now synonymous with the...
Tang and Shakespeare’s dramas are being blended together in a series of adaptions.
4 September, 2017 - 01:55 ancient origins

From China with Love: Tang Xianzu Was the Shakespeare of the Orient

After 400 years, Shakespeare is still rightly celebrated as a great wordsmith and playwright. But he was not the only great master of dramatic writing to die in 1616, and he is certainly not the only...
Ior Bock.
14 August, 2017 - 19:00 Caleb Strom

The Ior Bock Saga: Is Everything We Know about History Wrong?

There are many disagreements among scholars regarding historical events and individuals, however there is a consensus that most historians follow - a mainstream view of world history. At the same...
An image of the goddess Meenakshi.
13 August, 2017 - 23:03 dhwty

Meenakshi: The Warrior Goddess Who Could Not Be Defeated by Any Man …Until She Met Shiva

Meenakshi is a goddess in the Hindu pantheon who is worshipped mainly in the southern part of India. This goddess is believed to be an avatar of the goddess Parvati, the wife of Shiva. The most...
Edited image from the Tokyo National Museum of the actor Nakazō Nakamura playing Goemon Ishikawa (or, in Japanese style, Ishikawa Goemon), a legendary ninja
4 August, 2017 - 01:50 dhwty

Ninja Warrior Ishikawa Goemon: Charitable Hero or Violent Outlaw?

Ishikawa Goemon was a legendary Japanese outlaw and folk hero who lived during the 16th century. This outlaw has sometimes been compared to Robin Hood, as he stole from the rich to give to the poor...
his head of indurated limestone is a fragment from a group statue that represented Amun seated on a throne, and Tutankhamun standing or kneeling in front of him. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
27 July, 2017 - 01:50 anand balaji

The Hunt for Ankhesenamun: A Murderess, Vixen or Helpless Child in this Ancient Egyptian Soap Opera? Part II

Ankhesenamun, wife of the boy-king Tutankhamun , is portrayed in many ways; as a terrified and hapless youngster; a power-hungry murderess; or a loathsome vixen who will stop at nothing to achieve...
A painted relief of Ankhesenamun; design by Anand Balaji
26 July, 2017 - 19:05 anand balaji

The Hunt for Ankhesenamun: How Did a Young Woman Stop an Ancient Dynasty from Imploding? Part I

The names of Akhenaten, Nefertiti, and Tutankhamun —prominent players from the Eighteenth Dynasty of the New Kingdom period in ancient Egypt—have been in the spotlight for well over a century...
Alexander on his deathbed, surrounded by mourners, and dictating his will to his notary, Unknown Flemish artist
21 July, 2017 - 01:58 aprilholloway

The Cold Case of Alexander the Great: Have Toxicologists Finally Explained His Untimely Death?

It might be a surprise to learn that Alexander the Great was only 32 when he died in Babylon in June 323 BC. In a short period of 12 years as ruler he managed to create an empire stretching from...
Representational image of a pharaoh from ‘Pharaoh Notes the Importance of the Jewish People,’ by James Jacques Joseph Tissot.
18 July, 2017 - 14:03 Clyde Winters

A King’s Seal? Was Pharaoh Apophis Originally King of the Mythical Kushites?

“A race divided, whom the sloping rays; the rising and the setting sun surveys…” Most researchers assume that the ancient assertion of Kushites ruling the Middle East from Phoenicia to Syria is pure...
A magician or wizard with a hidden face.
17 July, 2017 - 18:59 ashley cowie

Mathematical Genius or Mesmerizing Magician? The Psychomagic of Scotland's Ancient Lost Wizard

"Scotland's First Scientist", "The Lost Genius", "The Scottish Wizard", "The White Wizard", or "The Wizard of the North" are some of the terms used to describe Michael Scot. And although this...
Deadly Female Ninja Assassins Used Deception and Disguise to Strike Their Target
15 July, 2017 - 18:59 Riley Winters

Deadly Female Ninja Assassins Used Deception and Disguise to Strike Their Target

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles got a lot of ninja qualities right: their preference for sticking to the shadows, the emphasis on reconnaissance and espionage, and, of course, their choice of weapons...
This Too Shall Pass: Will Jinichi Kawakami Be the Last of the Ninjas?
8 July, 2017 - 14:01 Riley Winters

This Too Shall Pass: Will Jinichi Kawakami Be the Last of the Ninjas?

The ninja warriors seen in Hollywood are, sadly, born more of myth than reality. Truths were exaggerated and those exaggerations misconstrued as fact. One cannot wholly blame the screenwriters or...
Medieval miniature of Æthelflæd in Genealogical roll of the kings of England. 14th century
2 July, 2017 - 15:18 ancient-origins

Æthelflæd: The Anglo-Saxon Iron Lady Who Showed the Vikings No Fear

The UK now has a female prime minister and Elizabeth II has been queen for more than six decades, but few would associate Anglo-Saxon England with powerful women. Nearly 1,100 years ago, however,...
Painting from the Ajanta Caves, India.
28 June, 2017 - 14:01 Theodoros Karasavvas

The Venomous Visha Kanyas Versus the Thugs: Which Would You Prefer Were Real?

Even a touch can kill. The Visha Kanyas were supposedly poisonous young women who operated as executioners in ancient India. Any contact with these toxic ladies would mean death. However, no one can...
An artistic representation of Al-Muqanna, the Veiled Prophet.
27 June, 2017 - 18:35 Ryszard Antolak

Second Moon Uprising: How Science and Skullduggery Helped an 8th Century Prophet Raise a Revolt

“The 'Moon of Nakhshab' was an artificial moon which Hakim Ibn-e 'Ata, known as Muqanna' (the Veiled One), caused to arise from the Pit of Nakhshab. This moon had been prepared by means of [magical]...
Was the Heretic Pharaoh Akhenaton in Fact the Father of Modern Monotheism?
24 June, 2017 - 18:49 ML Childs

Was the Heretic Pharaoh Akhenaton in Fact the Father of Modern Monotheism?

How plentiful it is, what you have made, Although they are hidden from view, Sole god, without another beside you; You created the earth as you wished, When you were by yourself, Mankind, all cattle...
Subutai: The Forgotten Force Behind the Fearsome Mongol Military
24 June, 2017 - 14:07 dhwty

Subutai: The Forgotten Force Behind the Fearsome Mongol Military

"They are the Four Dogs of Temujin. They have foreheads of brass, their jaws are like scissors, their tongues like piercing awls, their heads are iron, their whipping tails swords . . . In the day of...
The theory that Tsar Alexander I craved a holy life as a monk is based on him seeking forgiveness for coming to power after the murder of his father, Paul I. Source: Vesti Tomsk
24 June, 2017 - 02:03 ancient-origins

Science ‘To Answer Russian Royal Mystery’: Did Tsar Stage Death to Become Siberian Monk?

By The Siberian Times reporter Officially, Alexander I died of typhus aged 47 on December 1, 1825, but evidence suggests he faked his demise and lived as a holy man. Genetic analysis is soon to be...
Frederick Barbarossa awards the city of Haarlem with a sword for its shield or coat-of-arms. By Pieter de Greber, 1630.
22 June, 2017 - 14:00 dhwty

Frederick I Barbarossa: A Megalomaniac Roman Emperor On a Crusade for Power

Some people believe they were born for greatness but fall short and some go on to exceed all expectations. Frederick I Barbarossa falls into the second category. His ambition for power was limitless...
A miniature from the Rashid al-Din’s Jami‘ al-Tawarikh showing Mahmud of Ghazni receiving a richly decorated robe of honour form the Abbasid caliph in 1000 AD.
18 June, 2017 - 01:58 dhwty

Mahmud of Ghazni: Merciless Tyrant Obliterated Hindu Temples and Conquered Territories Through Plunder and Slaughter

God be merciful to both father and son! Mahmud utterly ruined the prosperity of the country [India], and performed wonderful exploits, by which the Hindus became like atoms of dust scattered in all...
A portrait of Toyotomi Hideyoshi.
16 June, 2017 - 13:59 dhwty

Toyotomi Hideyoshi: How an Adventuresome Peasant Boy Became Japan’s Second Great Unifier

Toyotomi Hideyoshi was a powerful Japanese daimyo (feudal lord) who lived during the 16th century. He is regarded as Japan’s second ‘great unifier’, the first being Oda Nobunaga, and the third being...
Artist’s representation of Wei Zhongxian.
15 June, 2017 - 22:53 dhwty

Wei Zhongxian: When China Yielded to the Terrifying Power of a Notorious Eunuch

Wei Zhongxian is often considered to be the most powerful and notorious eunuch in Chinese history. He had powers almost equivalent to that of the emperor’s and those who opposed him were ruthlessly...
From Slave to Sultan: Baibars I - The Slave Warrior Who Fought His Way to the Top
15 June, 2017 - 02:01 dhwty

From Slave to Sultan: Baibars I - The Slave Warrior Who Fought His Way to the Top

Baibars I was a powerful Sultan who is remembered most for his military leadership, especially against Crusaders and Mongols, but also for his diplomatic skills. He is often regarded as the most...
What Role Did Skepticism Play in the Conquests of Alexander the Great?
13 June, 2017 - 18:59 Riley Winters

What Role Did Skepticism Play in the Conquests of Alexander the Great?

Anaxarchus and Pyrrho. These are two names which are not as well known to the general public as those of Socrates, Plato and Aristotle. Yet these men are no less important. While the latter three...

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