Leading Figures in History

Discover the people who shaped our world — from rulers and scientists to artists and activists.

39104 persons found

Samuel Clarke

English philosopher and cleric (1675–1729)

Samuel Coleridge-Taylor

b. 1875

English composer and conductor (1875–1912)

Samuel Colt

b. 1814

American industrialist and inventor (1814–1862)

Samuel Cooper (general)

b. 1798

Adjutant and Inspector General of the armies of the Confederate States

Samuel Cooper (painter)

17th-century English painter of miniatures

Samuel Cunard

British-Canadian shipping magnate (1787–1865)

Samuel Dash

American lawyer

Samuel David Luzzatto

b. 1800

Italian Orthodox rabbi, linguist and poet (1800–1865)

Samuel de Champlain

b. 1567

French explorer of North America (1574–1635)

Samuel Dexter

American politician (1761–1816)

Samuel Dirksz van Hoogstraten

b. 1627

Painter and writer from the Northern Netherlands

Samuel Doe

b. 1951

Leader of Liberia from 1980 to 1990

Samuel Eliot Morison

b. 1887

American historian, Navy officer (1887–1976)

Samuel F. Miller (U.S. politician)

b. 1827

19th century American politician

Samuel Ferguson

Irish poet, barrister and antiquarian

Samuel Fuller

b. 1912

American filmmaker, writer, and actor (1912–1997)

Samuel G. Armistead

American linguist (1927–2013)

Samuel Goudsmit

b. 1902

Dutch-American physicist (1902–1978)

Samuel Griffith

b. 1845

Australian judge and politician (1845–1920)

Samuel Hahnemann

German physician who created homeopathy (1755–1843)

Samuel Huntington (Connecticut politician)

b. 1731

American Founding Father and politician (1731–1796)

Samuel Irving Newhouse Sr.

b. 1895

American broadcasting businessman, magazine and newspaper publisher (1895–1979)

Samuel J. Tilden

Governor of New York from 1875 to 1876

Samuel John Hazo

b. 1928

American writer (born 1928)