Joan of Arc (#97)

Background

Joan of Arc was born in eastern France to a small French family in AD 1412. She was born in the height of the Hundred Years' War. The Hundred Years' War was a war mainly between England and France. Burgundy had sided with the British in the war, and together, England and Burgundy had taken over about half of France. At the time, the city of Orleans was the only thing   that was keeping England from invading the French heartland. Charles VII, the future king of France, known as Dauphin, was destined for the throne, and was to be crowned in Reims, but Reims was currently controlled by the English. In 1424, when Joan was about 12 years old, she said she saw visions of Saint Michael, Saint Catherine, and Saint Margaret, who told her to drive out the English and bring Dauphin to Reims. 

Saving France

When she was 16, Joan through a series of personal connections, was able to get a private conference with Dauphin, predicting a military reversal during the Siege of Orleans. When her prediction came true, Dauphin sent her with reinforcements to Orleans, where Joan traveled with the army, dressed as a knight. After a background check to see if Joan of Arc was not a sorceress or whatnot, Dauphin tested her by sending her out into the thick of the Siege of Orleans. Though she was excluded from the war councils, Joan of Arc engaged the enemy in battle and is said to have worked during the Siege as a tactician and strategist. Soon, Orleans was free from the English siege, and Joan led troops upwards, capturing three fortresses in four days, taking an arrow wound to the neck in the process. This sudden victory led Dauphin to give Joan co-command of the army with Duke John II of Alencon. Joan made a series of victories, heading in a general direction towards Paris. The English put reinforcements in Paris to stop an attack, but instead, Joan attacked Reims, capturing it on June 29, 1429. Her series of victories had won her favor with much of the nobility, and her success in bringing Dauphin to his coronation in Reims led to Dauphin granting nobility to Joan's family.

The End

In May of 1430, Joan was helping out at a Burgundian siege of the French city of Compiegne. While her forces were attacking a Burgundian camp, she was captured and sold to the English. The English brought Joan to Rouen, the center of the English occupation government, where she was tried for heresy. She was found guilty of the charges, though some court functionaries later testified that the transcripts of the trial were altered in her disfavor and that several clerics at the trial were forced to serve, some even receiving death threats from the English. She was executed by burning on May 30, 1431. The Hundred Years' war came to an end in 1453, and in 1452, a nullification trial was authorized by Pope Callixtus to see if Joan was truly guilty of heresy. In 1456, she was declared innocent. Later, in 1920, she was canonized by Pope Benedict XV. Joan of Arc is on our list because she was one of the first women to lead a country militarily and is also one of the most famous religious and war heroes of Europe and the world.

Steve Irwin (#98)

Background

Stephen Robert Irwin was born on February 22, 1962 in Australia. In 1970, Irwin moved to Queensland with his parents. His father was a herpetologist and wildlife expert, and his mother was a wildlife rehabilitator. Both of Irwin's parents worked in the Queensland Reptile and Fauna Park. Steve would help to do feeding and maintenance jobs around the park. He began handling crocodiles at the age of 9, and he wrestled his first crocodile that year. Irwin volunteered for Queensland's East coast Crocodile Management program, and captured over 100 crocodiles. In 1991, Irwin took over as the manager of the Reptile and Fauna Park and renamed it Australia Zoo the following year.

The Crocodile Hunter

In 1991, Terri Raines, a naturalist from Eugene, Oregon, was visiting wildlife rehabilitation facilitis in Australia, and met Irwin while visiting the zoo. Four months later, the couple was engaged, getting married in June on 1992. The Irwins' honeymoon consisted of trapping crocodiles together. Film footage of their honeymoon was taken by John Stainton. This footage became the first episode of the Crocodile Hunter, which came out in Australia in 1996, and into North American television by 1997. The Crocodile Hunter was a massive success, reaching 130 countries and 500 million people. As the show progressed, the cast included Steve, Terri, their dog Sui, and their children: Bindi Sue and Bob Irwin. The show continued until 2006, though Irwin continued to appear in other shows, including Croc Files and The Crocodile Hunter Diaries. 

Later Roles

Irwin continued to appear on television. He was in several episodes of The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. He also had cameos in Dr. Dolittle 2, Happy Feet, and The Wiggles. In 2002, he starred in the movie The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course. He also was part of the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service's media campaign to promote Australian customs requirements. Irwin also remained active in conservation, founding the Steve Irwin Conservation Foundation, an independent charity that was renamed Wildlife Warriors Worldwide. He also helped to found the International Crocodile Rescue, the Lyn Irwin Memorial fund, and the Iron Bark Station Wildlife Rehabilitation Facility. In November of 2003, Irwin was in Baja California filming a documentary when two scuba divers were reported missing. Irwin suspended the filming and helped in the search for the missing people, saving one person and finding the body of the other.  

The End

While filming a documentary on ocean creatures, Irwin was snorkeling at the Great Barrier Reef when a ray turned and attacked Steve, stabbing Steve with the spine of its tail. Irwin died shortly afterwards. Steve Irwin makes our list because of his personality. He was able to capture the attention of the entire world with his show and was able to put that attention to good use. Irwin is also probably one of the most important conservationists in the history of the world. Also, Irwin had two species of animals and a gorilla named after him. Steve Irwin changed the world we live in and is remembered for his contributions to it.

Chandragupta Maurya (#99)

Background

Chandragupta Maurya was born around the year 340 BC in India. He is said to have come from the Moriya (or Maurya) section of the Khattya clan. Chandragupta was a prince of the Maurya family. Chandragupta was known by Greeks and Romans as Sandracottos, and Plutarch even said that in 326 BC, Chandragupta met Alexander the Great during Alexander's invasion of India.

Chanakya and Empire Formation

Chanakya was an advisor in the Nanda court. The Nanda kingdom was one of the larger clans in India at the time. For one reason or another, Chanakya was thrown out of the court by the king. Chanakya went to Magadha, the hometown of Chandragupta. When he met Chandragupta, Chanakya saw the potential Gupta had as a leader. Chanakya took the role as Chandragupta's teacher, hoping that Chandragupta would help him to one day get his revenge on the Nanda king. Chanakya helped Maurya to defeat the Magadha kings and the Chandravanshi clan. These areas became the foundation of the empire Chandragupta would create. At the same time, Alexander the Great and his generals were conquering western India. Several of the kings of India had signed peace treaties with Alexanders, while others, like the king of Punjab, were defeated in battle. Chanakya believed the only way to defeat the foreign invaders was to unite the kingdoms in an alliance and fight, but when none of the kings agreed to the alliance, Chandragupta decided that he needed to build an empire to protect the Indian territories. The first major kingdom for Chandragupta to conquer was the Nanda Empire. Nanda was so large and powerful that Alexander the Great's men simply refused to fight them. Chandragupta made an alliance with king Parvatka, who ruled a kingdom in the Himalayas. Though Bhadrasala, the commander of the Nanda army, originally had the upper hand in the war, Chandragupta pulled through and in 321 BC, he had captured Pataliputra, the capital of the Nanda Empire. The conquest of the Nanda Empire turned the Maurya kingdom into the Maurya Empire.

Expansion

When Alexander the Great died in 323 BC, Chandragupta turned to Northwestern India, now in the hands of Greek generals left in charge by Alexander. By 316 BC, Chandragupta had conquered everything East of the Indus River. Chandragupta continued his expansion into Seleucid Persia, the most powerful of the territories left by Alexander. Seleucus I Nicator entered confrontation with Chandragupta in 305 BC, eventually going to war with him. Seleucus did not do too well in battle, and Seleucus had to cede a large amount of territory east of the Indus to Chandragupta. This stretched the Mauryan Empire into Pakistan and Afghanistan. Chandragupta is said to have married Seleucus's daughter to formalize the alliance, which would explain the 500 war-elephants that Chandragupta sent to Seleucus. These elephants helped Sleucus to win the Battle of Ipsus in 302 BC against other generals of Alexander. After expanding in the Northwest, Chandragupta moved to the South, on the Deccan Plateau, where he conquered most of the kingdoms there as well. 

The End

In 298 BC, Chandragupta gave up his throne to become an ascetic. Chandragupta migrated to southern India to what is now Karnataka. A temple marks the Bhadrabahu cave, the place where Chandragupta is said to have died while fasting. After he left, Chandragupta's son, Bindusara, took over the throne of the Mauryan empire. Chandragupta's grandson, Ashoka the Great, is said to have been one of the most influential kings in the history of India and the world. Chandragupta Maurya is on our list for founding on of the greatest empires in Indian history and in the world. Maurya tried to build an empire at the same time and place as Alexander the Great, and succeeded.

Giuseppe Fiorelli (#100)

Background 

Giuseppe Fiorelli was born in Naples, Italy in 1823, though not much is known about his childhood.

Finding Pompeii

In the article on Pliny the Elder, Pliny died during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius, a mountain along the Bay of Naples. In the eruption, the city of Pompeii was buried along with many of its people. Parts of Pompeii and its neighboring city, Herculaneum were discovered at various points in time. A few frescoes were discovered in 1599, when an underground channel was being dug. In 1738, Herculaneum was discovered while workers were building the King of Naples's summer palace. Karl Weber directed the first real excavations in 1764, but the full excavation did not start until 1860, when Giuseppe Fiorelli took charge. In 1860, King Victor Emmanuel II of Naples came to power and appointed Giuseppe Fiorelli as the head of the excavations in Pompeii. Fiorelli also became a professor of archaeology at Naples University. 

New Methods

As the director of excavations, Fiorelli introduced new excavation techniques. First, he made the excavation site study the site layer by layer. Though this took a long time, much more was could be learned the site. He also created a training school where students could learn how to study particular materials and building techniques used in Pompeii. Fiorelli's most famous excavation technique was that of pouring plaster into cavities left by bodies in the hardened lava and volcanic ash. This process, now known as the Fiorelli process, allowed the archaeologists to recreate the position and look of the body at the time of death. Fiorelli also pushed for the restoration of Pompeii's buildings, though most of the artwork was brought to Naples.

The End

Fiorelli directed the excavation of Pompeii from 1860 to 1875.  Fiorelli was appointed the director of the Naples National Archaeological Museum in 1863, and in 1875, he was appointed as the director general of Italian Antiquities and Fine Arts.  Fiorelli died on January 28th, 1896, though the cause of death is unknown. Pompeii remains one of the most famous archaeological sites of all time, and although little is known about his life, Fiorelli makes our list because the methods of archaeology that he used on Pompeii became the basis of modern archaeology. Though plastering body cavities is not used often, it was a creative and useful way to study the bodies. Also, Fiorelli's layer-by-layer method of archaeology and his study of building methods and materials are still used today. The excavation of Pompeii is now widely accepted as the first modern archaeological dig.

Gore Vidal (#101)

Background

Eugene Louis Vidal, Jr. was born in the United States Military Academy in West Point, New York on October 3, 1925. He was the son Eugene Luther Vidal, an aeronautics instructor at the Academy, and Nina Gore, a socialite and Broadway extra. Vidal's grandfather, Thomas Gore, was a Democratic senator from Oklahoma. Vidal was raised in Washington, D.C., and when World War II broke out, Vidal enlisted in the US Navy. Vidal worked as a warrant officer until he contracted hypothermia and developed rheumatoid arthritis. After that, Vidal became a mess officer. When Vidal realized that he wanted do be a political leader and writer, he changed his name to Gore Vidal because it was a unique and memorable name.

Writer and Actor

Vidal began his writing career at the age of nineteen, when he wrote Williwaw, a novel about World War II. Two years later in 1948, Vidal wrote The City and the Pillar, which focused on the issue of homosexuality. This book received a mix of reactions. Book critic Orville Prescott found the book so objectionable that he did not allow the New York Times to review any of Vidal's next five books, people within the Gay Rights movement see Gore Vidal as an early champion of sexual liberation. Vidal also wrote plays and scripts during his career. He helped to revise the script of Ben Hur, and he also wrote several of his own scripts, including that of The Best Man and Visit to a Small Planet. Vidal continued to write novels as well, most of which fell into two categories: American history and satire. Vidal also wrote many essays and pamphlets, many of which criticized certain parts of the U.S. government, including the military-industrial complex and American expansionism. In 2009, he was given the Medal of Distinguished Contribution to American Letters by the National Book Foundation. Vidal also appeared in several films and television shows, including Gattaca, With Honors, The Simpsons, and Family Guy. 

Politics

Gore Vidal had a very active role in American politics as well. In 1960, Vidal ran for Congress under the Democratic party and was supported by many, including Eleanor Roosevelt and Paul Newman, but lost by a margin of 57% to 43%. He was also a chairman of the People's Party from 1970 to 1972, and ran against Jerry Brown for the Democratic primaries for the seat in the United States Senate. Vidal also claimed that Roosevelt had provoked the Japanese into attacking Pearl Harbor and that Truman dropped the atomic bombs even though the Japanese had already asked to surrender. Vidal was an advisory board member of the World Can't Wait group that advocated the impeachment of George W. Bush for war crimes. 

The End

Vidal died while in his home in California on July 31, 2012 due to complications from pneumonia. Vidal makes our list because he was a major figure in two major fields. He was both a politician and writer, and he was respected in both of those fields. Vidal was involved in many projects spanning from the film industry to the American political arena and worked with such people as Eleanor Roosevelt, Paul Newman, Ralph Nader, and many others. He not only lived in the world we see, he was involved in its formation.

Jean Lafitte (#102)

Background

Jean Lafitte was born around the year 1776 to a French family. Little is known about where he was born though, and theories on where he was born say that he could from St. Malo, Bordeaux, Orduna, or even Westchester, New York. Most agree, though, that Jean Lafitte worked with his brother, Pierre, who was either a privateer or smuggler. By 1806, Pierre's work had brought them to New Orleans, where Jean Lafitte would spend a large chunk of his career.

New Orleans

New Orleans had become part of the United States in 1803 with the Louisiana Purchase. New Orleans was a major trading port in the Caribbean, but their foothold in Caribbean trade was weakened by the Embargo Act of 1807. This Act said that American ships were no longer allowed to go into any foreign ports. This was a major problems with merchants who got their goods and supplies from European colonies in the Caribbean. This Act, though, opened up the door for smugglers, two of which were the Lafitte brothers. Jean Lafitte set up a smuggling business on the island of Barataria, which was located outside Barataria Bay, the home of New Orleans. Barataria was far from the United States naval base, which allowed Lafitte to smuggle in goods. Jean Lafitte, would receive and buy goods from smugglers, which he would then transport into New Orleans, where Jean's brother, Pierre, would put the goods on the legal market. Soon, though, the Lafitte brothers decided to become smugglers themselves, so they bought a schooner and hired Captain Trey cook. Soon, the Lafitte brothers had captured two more ships, the Dorada and the Petit Milan. With their small fleet, the Lafitte brothers were able to acquire goods and sell them at Barataria. Their smuggling did not sit well with the government, and the Lafitte brothers were captured and charged, but they posted bail and never showed up for the trial. Jean Lafitte acquired a letter of marque from Cartagena, which Lafitte used mainly as a reason to continue attacking ships. Louisiana's Governor Claiborne became fed up with Lafitte and offered a $500 dollar reward for him. He also attempted to raid Lafitte's camp at Barataria several times. 

War of 1812

When the United States declared war on Great Britain, Lafitte was approached by the British, offering him British citizenship and land in return for help in the war. Lafitte, however, refused, and decided to stay neutral as the war played out. In 1814, United States commodore Daniel Patterson attacked and took Barataria. Along with 80 captives, Patterson took eight of Lafitte's ships, though Lafitte escaped the raid alive. Lafitte reappeared when Andrew Jackson was preparing to defend New Orleans from the British in December of 1814. New Orleans had weak defenses and few soldiers, so Jackson met with Lafitte, offering to pardon Lafitte and his men if they helped to defend the city. Lafitte agreed, and suggested several of the battle strategies used in the fight. When British ships began firing on American lines in on the 28th of December, two of Lafitte's lieutenants led the artillery crews that repulsed the ships. After defeating the British, the United States government granted Jean, Pierre, and Lafitte's crew full pardon.

Galveston

Pierre and Jean Lafitte, in 1815 and 1816, acted as spies for the Spanish during the Mexican War of Independence. Pierre would inform the Spanish from New Orleans, while Jean went to Galveston Island in Spanish Texas to capture it. In 1817, Lafitte captured the island and the Spanish allowed Lafitte to stay there if he gave weekly reports of the events that took place. Lafitte turned Galveston, like Barataria, into a smuggling base. Lafitte avoided conflict by continuing to report to the Spanish, but sailing under the Mexican flag. When the United States banned the slave trade, Lafitte found a loophole. Lafitte would capture slave ships from other countries. If Lafitte turned these slaves that he captured to the customs office, he could get half the profits from the sale of the slaves. After one of Lafitte's ships attacked an American merchant ship in 1821, the USS Enterprise came to remove Lafitte from the island. Lafitte agreed to leave Galveston without a fight, though he took an immense amount of treasure with him.

Cuba and Colombia

Lafitte continued to smuggle, but when the United States increased its patrols in the Caribbean, Lafitte was captured after he attacked an American ship. He escaped prison four months later. Lafitte moved his operation to Cuba, where he bribed local officials with a portion of the spoils. When Lafitte continued to attack Cuban ships, Cuba decided to ban sea raiding in 1822. Lafitte left Cuba and went to Colombia, who was hiring former privateers to be part of its navy. Lafitte was given a ship, the General Santander, and was authorized to attack Spanish ships. He raided Spanish shipping lanes for another year. 

The End

In February of 1823, Lafitte attacked two Spanish ships off the coast of the Honduras. The ships appeared to be merchant vessels in the cover of night, but they turned out to be two heavily armed warships. In the resulting battle, Lafitte is said to have been killed. He was buried at sea, receiving obituaries in newspapers both in Cartagena and Colombia, but not in the United States. Lafitte is on our list because he was one of the most infamous pirates ever to sail. Also, Lafitte and his men helped the United States to win one of its most important battles: the Battle of New Orleans. Without him, Jackson may not have succeeded in defeating the British. He was also on our list because he was the last great Caribbean pirate. By 1825, piracy in the Caribbean was all but completely eradicated. Lafitte succeeded in a world where the pirates were dying out. He was able to survive in a world when Spain, Britain, and the United States wanted him dead.

Roald Amundsen (#103)

Childhood

Roald Engelbregt Gravning Amundsen was born on July 16th, 1872, the forth son of his father, Jens Amundsen. He came from a Norwegian family of shipowners and captains. Due to the wishes of his mother, Amundsen studied to be a doctor, but chose a life at sea when his mother died when he was 21.

Belgian Antarctic Expedition

 In 1897, Amundsen went on the Belgian Antarctic Expedition. When the expedition's ship, the Belgica, froze in the ice, the crew of the ship became the first people to spend a winter in Antarctica. The crew survived due to the crew's doctor, the American Fredrick Cook,who hunted for fresh meat, thus saving the crew from scurvy. This would be a lesson Amundsen would use in his later expeditions.

Discovering the Northwest Passage

 In 1903, Amundsen set out to traverse the Northwest Passage, through Canada. On this trip, Amundsen learned how to use sled dogs and of the use of animal skin coats. The 45-ton fishing ship, Gjoa, was a perfect ship for the mission because it was small enough to travel through the shallow waters encounter, which sometimes got as low as 3 ft. deep. Amundsen became the first person to pass through the Northwest Passage in 1906, when he reached Nome, Alaska.

The South Pole

Amundsen, in 1909, was setting up to go to the North Pole, but when news reached him that Frederick Cook and Robert Peary had both reached the Pole, he decided to go to the South Pole. He kept his intentions secret from almost everybody, leaving Oslo on June 3rd, 1910. He did, however, send a telegram to his competitor, Englishman Robert F. Scott, that he was heading for Antarctica as well. Amundsen reached Antarctica on January 14th, 1911, where he created his base camp, Framheim. Using his prior learning about expeditions in frozen lands, Amundsen used fur-skin coats instead of wool coats and travelled by dog sled. Amundsen used the dogs he brought for warmth, transportation, and food. On his first attempt, cold weather had forced the team to head back to the base came, but on his second attempt to get to the South Pole, which Amundsen brought four sleds and 52 dogs on, Amundsen made it to the South Pole on December 14th, 1911. The team made it back to Framheim with only 11 of the dogs surviving. 

The Northeast Passage and the North Pole

Amundsen, in 1918, began a trip to find the Northeast Passage, over Russia. His plan was to freeze his ship in ice and have it float over or near the North Pole to the Pacific. This plan did not work, and the only thing that Amundsen came back with was a broken arm and body attacked by polar bears. Amundsen, in 1925, attempted to make it to the North Pole by plane. In 1926, Amundsen and his crew made it to the North Pole. This not only made Amundsen the fourth expedition leader to reach the North Pole, but the first person to fly a plane so far North.

The End

On the 18th of June in 1928, Amundsen was flying a rescue mission to retrieve Rene Guilbaud, a French pilot. It was on that day that Amundsen disappeared, never to be seen again. Most believe that Amundsen crashed, but in the two attempts by the Royal Norwegian Navy to find his plane (2004, 2009), the wreckage was never found. Amundsen is on our list because of several reasons. First, Amundsen was the first sailor to sail the Northwest passage, succeeding where Columbus, Cabot, Cartier, and Hudson had failed. He also was the first person to reach the South Pole even though Robert F. Scott started an English expedition to the South Pole before him. His discovery expanded our knowledge of the Arctic, the Antarctic, and how to survive both.