History Profiles

The Greatest Military Commanders of All Time

Brilliant tacticians and bold strategists who reshaped maps and toppled empires. These are history's greatest military commanders.

  1. 1

    Alexander the Great

    Military Leader · 356 BC – 323 BC

    Alexander the Great was the king of Macedon who built one of the largest empires in history by his early thirties, spreading Greek culture across three continents.

    96
  2. 2

    Julius Caesar

    Military Leader · 100 BC – 44 BC

    Julius Caesar was a Roman general and statesman whose conquest of Gaul and victory in civil war made him dictator of Rome, ending the Republic and paving the way for the Empire.

    95
  3. 3

    Augustus

    Emperor · 63 BC – 14

    Augustus was the first Roman emperor, the heir of Julius Caesar who ended a century of civil war, established the Roman Empire, and inaugurated the Pax Romana.

    94
  4. 4

    Napoleon Bonaparte

    Military Leader · 1769 – 1821

    Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader who rose during the French Revolution, crowned himself Emperor, and dominated European affairs for over a decade.

    94
  5. 5

    Genghis Khan

    Military Leader · 1162 – 1227

    Genghis Khan was the founder and first Great Khan of the Mongol Empire, a military genius who united the nomadic tribes of the steppe and forged the largest contiguous land empire in history.

    93
  6. 6

    Qin Shi Huang

    Emperor · 259 BC – 210 BC

    Qin Shi Huang was the founder of the Qin dynasty and the first emperor of a unified China, who standardized the state, began the Great Wall, and built the Terracotta Army.

    92
  7. 7

    George Washington

    Statesman · 1732 – 1799

    George Washington was the commander of the Continental Army in the American Revolution and the first President of the United States, whose leadership and restraint shaped the new republic.

    91
  8. 8

    Hannibal Barca

    Military Leader · 247 BC – 183 BC

    Hannibal Barca was a Carthaginian general regarded as one of the greatest military commanders in history, famed for crossing the Alps with war elephants to invade Italy during the Second Punic War.

    91
  9. 9

    Ashoka the Great

    Emperor · 304 BC – 232 BC

    Ashoka was the third emperor of the Maurya Empire who, after a devastating war, embraced Buddhism and non-violence, becoming one of history's most remarkable rulers.

    90
  10. 10

    Cyrus the Great

    Ruler · 600 BC – 530 BC

    Cyrus the Great was the founder of the Achaemenid Persian Empire, the largest empire the ancient world had yet seen, remembered for his military genius and his tolerance toward conquered peoples.

    90
  11. 11

    Marcus Aurelius

    Emperor · 121 – 180

    Marcus Aurelius was a Roman emperor and Stoic philosopher, the last of the "Five Good Emperors", whose private journal, the Meditations, is the most cherished work of Stoic thought.

    90
  12. 12

    Suleiman I

    Sultan · 1494 – 1566

    Suleiman the Magnificent was the longest-reigning sultan of the Ottoman Empire, who led it to the height of its power through military conquest, legal reform and a brilliant flowering of art and architecture.

    90
  13. 13

    Sun Tzu

    Military Strategist · 544 BC – 496 BC

    Sun Tzu was an ancient Chinese general and strategist, traditionally the author of The Art of War, the most influential treatise on strategy ever written.

    90
  14. 14

    Charlemagne

    Emperor · 748 – 814

    Charlemagne was the King of the Franks who united much of Western Europe and was crowned Emperor in 800 AD, reviving the idea of a Roman empire in the West and sparking a cultural revival.

    89
  15. 15

    Abu'l-Fath Jalal-ud-din Muhammad Akbar

    Emperor · 1542 – 1605

    Akbar was the third Mughal emperor, who expanded the empire across much of the Indian subcontinent and is remembered for his administrative reforms, religious tolerance and patronage of the arts during a long and powerful reign.

    88
  16. 16

    Hammurabi

    Ruler · 1810 BC – 1750 BC

    Hammurabi was the sixth king of Babylon who united Mesopotamia under his rule and issued the Code of Hammurabi, one of the earliest and most complete written law codes in history.

    86
  17. 17

    Saladin

    Military Leader · 1137 – 1193

    Saladin was a Kurdish Muslim sultan who founded the Ayyubid dynasty, united Egypt and Syria, and famously recaptured Jerusalem from the Crusaders, earning renown even among his enemies for his chivalry.

    86
  18. 18

    Chandragupta Maurya

    Emperor · 350 BC – 295 BC

    Chandragupta Maurya was the founder of the Maurya Empire, who united most of the Indian subcontinent for the first time and established one of the ancient world's great states.

    85
  19. 19

    Joan of Arc

    Military Leader · 1412 – 1431

    Joan of Arc was a peasant girl who, believing herself guided by divine visions, led French forces to crucial victories in the Hundred Years' War before being captured, tried and burned at the stake — and later made a saint.

    85
  20. 20

    Zheng He

    Admiral · 1371 – 1433

    Zheng He was a Chinese admiral and explorer of the Ming dynasty who commanded vast treasure fleets on seven voyages across the Indian Ocean, reaching as far as Arabia and East Africa.

    83
  21. 21

    Vasco da Gama

    Explorer · 1460 – 1524

    Vasco da Gama was a Portuguese explorer and navigator who opened the first sea route from Europe to India around the southern tip of Africa, transforming global trade.

    82
  22. 22

    Hernán Cortés

    Conquistador · 1485 – 1547

    Hernán Cortés was a Spanish conquistador who led the expedition that overthrew the Aztec Empire, bringing much of Mexico under Spanish rule and inaugurating centuries of colonial domination.

    80