Since he’s become president, Donald Trump has become enmeshed in a power struggle with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un over that country’s relentless development of its nuclear capabilities. The stakes could not be higher — a misstep could mean a conflagration that engulfs all of civilization.
Despite having the world’s most powerful military at his disposal, the consequences of using such overwhelming force is itself a check against Trump’s power. On the other hand, despite being the leader of a small country, and because Kim Jong-un is unpredictable, he has power disproportionate to his military strength. For many people, it was encouraging that Trump announced earlier this month that he would meet with Kim Jong-un in late May.
Such is the nature of power in the modern age.
Throughout history, people have pondered over the concept of power and how attaining it changes an individual. Abraham Lincoln considered this when he said “nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.”
Since time immemorial, power has tested a leader’s character. During the Renaissance, Niccolo Machiavelli famously meditated on the amorality of how power is exercised in his book “The Prince,” written as a guide for his patron, the Florentine statesman Lorenzo De Medici.
Many of the great rulers and leaders have used their power to achieve prosperity for their people, creating laws that brought stability to a civilization, and raising living standards. Many other leaders abused their power in the name of some visioned future or to simply gain more power. They brought war, misery, genocide, and famine — speaking truth to Lord Acton’s axiom that power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
With these considerations in mind, 24/7 Wall St. has compiled a list of 50 of the most powerful leaders of all time.
Click here to see the 50 most powerful leaders of all time.
Click here to see our detailed findings and methodology.
Source: Musée du Louvre / Wikimedia Commons
1. Hammurabi
> Nation/Territory: Ancient Babylon
> Title: King
> Time in power/Reign: 1792-1750 B.C.E.
> Known for: The oldest rendering of laws are named after him.
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Source: Dean Mouhtaropoulos / Getty Images
2. Hatshepsut
> Nation/Territory: Egypt
> Title: Pharaoh
> Time in power/Reign 1473-1458 B.C.E.
> Known for: One of history’s first woman leaders who oversaw ambitious building projects.
Source: yuelan / iStock
3. Ramses II
> Nation/Territory: Egypt
> Title: Pharaoh
> Time in power/Reign 1279-1213 B.C.E.
> Known for: Extended Egyptian empire during prosperous period.
Source: Hulton Archive / Getty Images
4. Nebuchadnezzar II
> Nation/Territory: Babylon
> Title: King
> Time in power/Reign 605-c. 562 B.C.E.
> Known for: Built Babylon in one of wonders of ancient world.
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Source: Sompao / iStock
5. Gautama Buddha
> Nation/Territory: Nepal/India
> Title: Religious leader
> Time in power/Reign: c. 563/480 – c. 483/400 B.C.E.
> Known for: Teachings founded one of world’s biggest religions.
Source: Hulton Archive / Getty Images
6. Cyrus the Great
> Nation/Territory: Persian Nation/Territory
> Title: Emperor
> Time in power/Reign: 550-530 B.C.E.
> Known for: Founded the Persian Empire.
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Source: Hulton Archive / Getty Images
7. Alexander the Great
> Title: King
> Country: Ancient Macedonia
> Time in power/Reign 336-323 B.C.E.
> Known for: Conquered much of known world.
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8. Ashoka the Great
> Nation/Territory: Present-day India
> Title: Emperor
> Time in power/Reign: 268-232 B.C.E.
> Known for: Empire included parts of India, South Asia, and present-day Afghanistan and Iran.
Source: Hulton Archive / Getty Images
9. Hannibal Barca
> Nation/Territory: Carthage
> Title: General
> Time in power/Reign: 241-183 B.C.E.
> Known for: One of history’s greatest generals, he crossed Alps with elephants to defeat Rome.
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Source: Anonymous artist of the Qing dynasty / Wikimedia Commons
10. Qin Shi Huang
> Nation/Territory: Present-day China
> Title: Emperor
> Time in power/Reign: 221-210 B.C.E.
> Known for: First emperor of unified China.
Source: Hulton Archive / Getty Images
11. Julius Caesar
> Nation/Territory: Ancient Rome
> Title: Dictator
> Time in power/Reign: 46-44 B.C.E.
> Known for: Military leader played role in changing Rome to empire from republic.
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Source: vladacanon / iStock
12. Augustus Caesar
> Nation/Territory: Ancient Rome
> Title: Emperor
> Time in power/Reign: 27 B.C.E.-14 C.E.
> Known for: First Roman emperor oversaw peaceful period for Roman Empire.
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Source: Hulton Archive / Getty Images
13. Jesus Christ
> Nation/Territory: Present-day Israel
> Title: Religious leader
> Time in power/Reign: c.?4 B.C.E.-c. 30/33 C.E.
> Known for: Most important figure in Christianity, believed in living more spiritual life.
Source: Hulton Archive / Getty Images
14. Marcus Aurelius
> Nation/Territory: Ancient Rome
> Title: Emperor
> Time in power/Reign: 161-180
> Known for: Philosopher-king who prided himself on wisdom and virtue.
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Source: muratcalik.com
15. Attila the Hun
> Nation/Territory: Hunnic Nation/Territory
> Title: King
> Time in power/Reign: 434-453
> Known for: Conquered vast swaths of central and eastern Europe,
Source: AishaAbdel / Wikimedia Commons
16. Muhammad
> Nation/Territory: Present-day Saudi Arabia
> Title: Prophet
> Time in power/Reign: 610-632
> Known for: Founded Islam and put religion on path of rapid expansion.
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Source: Sascha Schuermann / Getty Images
17. Charlemagne
> Nation/Territory: Holy Roman Nation/Territory
> Title: Emperor
> Time in power/Reign: 768-814
> Known for: United much of western Europe.
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Source: Andreyuu / Getty Images
18. Genghis Khan
> Nation/Territory: Mongol Nation/Territory
> Title: Khan or leader
> Time in power/Reign: 1206-1227
> Known for: Created empire that stretched from central Asia to eastern Europe.
Source: Hulton Archive / Getty Images
19. Joan of Arc
> Nation/Territory: France
> Title: Military Leader
> Time in power/Reign: 1428-1431
> Known for: Led French to victories over English.
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Source: A follower of Gentile Bellini / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain
20. Mehmed II
> Nation/Territory: Ottoman Nation/Territory
> Title: Sultan
> Time in power/Reign: 1444-1446, 1451-1481
> Known for: Conquered Istanbul and ended Byzantine Empire
Source: Hulton Archive / Getty Images
21. Isabella I
> Nation/Territory: Spain
> Title: Queen
> Time in power/Reign: 1479-1504
> Known for: Unified Spain, expelled Moors, bankrolled Columbus’ trip to western hemisphere.
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Source: Hulton Archive / Getty Images
22. Martin Luther
> Nation/Territory: Germany
> Title: Leader of Reformation movement
> Time in power/Reign: 1517-1546
> Known for: Advocated reforming Catholic Church that led to creation of Protestantism.
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Source: Hulton Archive / Getty Images
23. Suleiman the Magnificent
> Nation/Territory: Ottoman Nation/Territory
> Title: Sultan
> Time in power/Reign: 1520-1566
> Known for: Longest reigning sultan of Ottoman Empire that saw accomplishments in law and literature.
Source: Hulton Archive / Getty Images
24. Elizabeth I
> Nation/Territory: United Kingdom
> Title: Queen
> Time in power/Reign: 1558-1603
> Known for: Launched the United Kingdom into world power.
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Source: Louis XIV Collection / Wikimedia Commons
25. Louis XIV of France
> Nation/Territory: France
> Title: King
> Time in power/Reign: 1643-1715
> Known for: Established France as strongest European continental power.
Source: goodfreephotos.com
26. Peter the Great
> Nation/Territory: Russia
> Title: Tsar
> Time in power/Reign: 1682-1725
> Known for: Modernized Russia, reformed military, and expanded empire.
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Source: Ф. С. Рокотов / Wikimedia Commons
27. Catherine the Great
> Nation/Territory: Russia
> Title: Empress
> Time in power/Reign: 1762-1796
> Known for: Grew Russian Empire by adding Crimea and parts of Poland.
Source: pixabay.com
28. Napoleon Bonaparte
> Nation/Territory: France
> Title: Emperor
> Time in power/Reign: 1804-1814, 1815
> Known for: Military genius who nearly conquered all of Europe.
Source: Jacob Truedson Demitz for Ristesson History / Wikimedia Commons
29. Shaka Zulu
> Nation/Territory: Present-day Natal Province
> Title: Monarch
> Time in power/Reign: 1816-1828
> Known for: United 100 chiefdoms into one Zulu kingdom.
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Source: Hulton Archive / Getty Images
30. Simon Bolivar
> Nation/Territory: South America
> Title: President/Dictator
> Time in power/Reign: 1819-1830
> Known for: Led independence movement in six South American nations.
Source: Alessandro Bassano / Wikimedia Commons
31. Victoria
> Nation/Territory: United Kingdom
> Title: Queen
> Time in power/Reign: 1837-1901
> Known for: Presided over greatest period of British Empire.
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Source: Hulton Archive / Getty Images
32. Otto von Bismarck
> Nation/Territory: Germany
> Title: Chancellor
> Time in power/Reign: 1871-1890
> Known for: Driving force behind unification of Germany.
Source: Keystone / Hulton Archive / Getty Images
33. Wilhelm II
> Nation/Territory: Germany
> Title: Kaiser
> Time in power/Reign: 1888-1918
> Known for: Steered Germany toward militaristic path that contributed to start of World War I.
Source: Hulton Archive / Getty Images
34. Theodore Roosevelt
> Nation/Territory: United States
> Title: President
> Time in power/Reign: 1901-1909
> Known for: Directed U.S. to world power status.
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Source: Elliott & Fry / Getty Images
35. Mohandas Gandhi
> Nation/Territory: India
> Title: Mahatma
> Time in power/Reign: 1915-1948
> Known for: Helped liberate India from Great Britain.
Source: Keystone / Getty Images
36. Joseph Stalin
> Nation/Territory: Soviet Union
> Title: Dictator
> Time in power/Reign: 1924-1953
> Known for: Committed genocide, defeated Nazi Germany, and brought on Cold War.
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Source: Hulton Archive / Getty Images
37. Adolf Hitler
> Nation/Territory: Germany
> Title: Dictator
> Time in power/Reign: 1933-1945
> Known for: Unleashed World War II, committed genocide.
Source: Keystone Features / Getty Images
38. Franklin Roosevelt
> Nation/Territory: United States
> Title: President
> Time in power/Reign: 1933-1945
> Known for: New Deal changed relationship between Americans and their government.
Source: H F Davis / Getty Images
39. Winston Churchill
> Nation/Territory: United Kingdom
> Title: Prime Minister
> Time in power/Reign: 1940-1945, 1951-1955
> Known for: Rallied Great Britain against Nazi Germany.
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Source: Keystone / Getty Images
40. Hideki Tojo
> Nation/Territory: Japan
> Title: Prime Minister/military leader
> Time in power/Reign: 1941-1944
> Known for: Militarist who steered Japan toward war with U.S.
Source: Keystone / Getty Images
41. Jawaharlal Nehru
> Nation/Territory: India
> Title: Prime Minister
> Time in power/Reign: 1947-1964
> Known for: Led India in its first years of independence, stayed neutral during Cold War.
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Source: Keystone / Getty Images
42. Mao Zedong
> Nation/Territory: China
> Title: Chairman
> Time in power/Reign: 1949-1976
> Known for: His Great Leap Forward agricultural program led to famine.
Source: Keystone / Getty Images
43. Martin Luther King Jr.
> Nation/Territory: United States
> Title: Civil Rights Leader
> Time in power/Reign: 1955-1968
> Known for: Led civil rights movement in the United States.
Source: Keystone / Hulton Archive / Getty Images
44. Leonid Brezhnev
> Nation/Territory: Soviet Union
> Title: General Secretary/President
> Time in power/Reign: 1964-1982
> Known for: Expanded Soviet military, suppressed Eastern Europe, invaded Afghanistan.
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Source: Express Newspapers / Getty Images
45. Indira Gandhi
> Nation/Territory: India
> Title: Prime Minister
> Time in power/Reign: 1966-1977, 1980-1984
> Known for: Centralized power and projected Indian hegemony through southern Asia.
Source: Keystone / Getty Images
46. Deng Xiaoping
> Nation/Territory: China
> Title: Paramount leader
> Time in power/Reign: 1978-1989
> Known for: Advocated market reforms that contributed to higher living standards in China.
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Source: Express / Getty Images
47. Margaret Thatcher
> Nation/Territory: United Kingdom
> Title: Prime Minister
> Time in power/Reign: 1979-1990
> Known for: Free market beliefs put her at odds with unions, led to deregulation of financial markets.
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Source: Michael Evans / The White House / Getty Images
48. Ronald Reagan
> Nation/Territory: United States
> Title: President
> Time in power/Reign: 1981-1989
> Known for: Advocated smaller government and a more bellicose posture toward the Soviet Union.
Source: Pascal Le Segretain / Getty Images
49. Vladimir Putin
> Nation/Territory: Russia
> Title: President
> Time in power/Reign: 2000-2008, 2012-present
> Known for: Trying to restore Russian military and political influence.
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Source: Jochen Zick - Pool / Getty Images
50. Angela Merkel
> Nation/Territory: Germany
> Title: Chancellor
> Time in power/Reign: 2005-present
> Known for: Has been serving as chancellor of Germany since 2005.
Detailed Findings & Methodology
Researchers who’ve looked into the notion of power have determined that those who possess it are more oblivious to what others think, are poorer judges of other people’s reactions, and are more likely to take risks.
Other research indicates that power accentuates the behavior of those who have it. Those who are naturally selfish grow more so when they attain power, while those who are selfless and giving become more so with greater power.
Risk-taking is a common theme among many who have had power. When President Barack Obama gave the go-ahead to U.S. special forces to kill Osama bin Laden, he risked the lives of the soldiers as well as the future of his presidency on that decision. The mission succeeded. When President Jimmy Carter chose to try and rescue the hostages in Iran, the mission ended in tragedy, and probably cost him the election in 1980.
Many of the leaders on the list are among the most well-known, and infamous, figures in history: Napoleon Bonaparte, Julius Caesar, Adolf Hitler, Genghis Khan, and Attila the Hun. They translated power into conquest and destruction, forging vast empires and altering the historical destiny of nations for generations. These leaders had a vision of the future, and they had the resolve to try and carry it out.
Some of the people on this list are not as recognizable, but they, nevertheless, made an indelible imprint on their civilizations. In the third century BC, the vast empire of Ashoka the Great included parts of India, South Asia, and present-day Afghanistan and Iran. Around the same time, Qin Shi Huang united disparate parts of China.
Three of the powerful women on the list are from England: Queens Victoria and Elizabeth I, and Margaret Thatcher. Other recognizable women on our list are Joan of Arc, Catherine the Great, and Queen Isabella. One woman’s name you may not know is Hatshepsut, an ancient leader of Egypt. Hundreds of years before Cleopatra held sway over Egypt, Hatshepsut was supervising massive building projects.
Not all of the powerful leaders on our list used military means to realize their ambitions. Martin Luther King Jr. never held elected office, but his commitment to civil rights as well as his charismatic personality created a powerful movement for justice and equality in the 1950s and 1960s in the United States. Mohandas Gandhi emphasized nonviolent tactics that helped liberate India from British colonialism.
24/7 Wall St. used research materials and historical rankings of historical figures to help determine its list of the most powerful leaders of all time. An argument can be made that every American president since 1945, as well as every leader from the former Soviet Union since the end of World War II, should be on the list. Some of those men do appear on the list. But in the interest of diversity and the understanding that power is relative to the era in which it is exercised, we’ve included leaders from the distant past as well as those not in government, such as religious, inspirational, and civil rights figures.
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