Alexander Graham Bell   Scotland : An Inventor Born : AD 1847                    Died : AD 1922   My God, it speaks” uttered the Emperor of Brazil and the receiver of the Telephone slipped from his hand and banged aground. At the other end Alexander Graham Bell was still on line. This incident goes back to 1876 when at an exhibition in Philadelphia (USA), Alexander Graham Bell was giving a demonstration...

Swami Shradhananda   India : Originator of Gurukul System Born : AD 1859          Died : AD 1926 Swami Shradhananda left an indelible mark of his works on the 10 spiritual progress of the country. He founded the institution Gurukul Kangri, with a view to spreading education. This helped in spreading female-education and also in improving the image of Hindi language. He edited Saddharma Pracharak in 1889, Shraddha in 1918, Vijay...

Swami Dayanand Saraswati   India : Founder of Arya Samaj Born : AD 1824                    Died : AD 1883 Swami Dayanand is remembered with reverence and affection among the social-reformers of the nineteenth century. He raised his voice against idol-worship. That was a time when religious hypocrisy was rife, social evils like child-marriage was an accepted practice, widows were ill-treated. It was Swami Dayanand who showed remarkable courage in decrying these...

Shachindra Nath Sanyal   India Great Revolutionary Born : AD 1895                    Died : AD 1945 Shachindra Nath Sanyal was born in Benaras where he completed his education. He started participating in revolutionary activities-for his student days itself. Shachindra Nath jumped in the independence-struggle fray in 1908 when he formed Young Men’s Association. The same year he came into contact with Ras Behari Bose and gave Hindustan Republican Association a revolutionary...

Nana Saheb   India : A Great Freedom Fighter Born : AD 1824           Died : (Uncertain date) Nana Saheb, along with Rani Laxmi Bai of Jhansi, is remembered as the pioneer of the 1857 war of Independence. In fact, Nana Saheb was accredited for having lit the torch of the 1857 revolt and spreading its light to other parts of the country. He himself took up the sword and spread...

Dadabhai Naoroji   India : Founder-Member of INC Born : AD 1825                    Died : AD 1917 Dadabhai Naoroji is one of those personalities of the nineteenth century, who were respected by the British and were also honoured by Indians. In fact, he was considered to be a father figure among the nationalist, being a founder-member of the Indian National Congress (INC). Dadabhai not only worked towards attaining Independence but also...

Prince Ottovon Bismarck   Germany : German. Statesman Born : AD 1815                    Died : AD 1898 Bismarck’s mission in life was to unite the small Prussian states into a single nation. Germany was divided into smaller states and a portion of it was called Prussia, which formed an important part. Bismarck had a towering personality and he nursed an ambition to play an important role in the German polity, right...

Yatindra Nath Mukherjee   India : Great Revolutionary Born : AD 1879                    Died : AD 1915   Yatindra Nath Mukherjee was known for brave deeds right from his childhood. He is among the forefront revolutionaries. He was born on 8th December 1879 at Nadia in Bengal. He passed his entrance examination in 1898 but in 1900, he gave up studies for the cause of revolution. ‘Anandmath’ inspired him to join...