Alfred Dreyfus   France : Amidst a political storm Born : 1859        Died.: 1935 The Dreyfus affair created such a political storm in France that the country was vertically split into pro- and anti-Dreyfus elements and nearly came to the brink of a civil war. Dreyfus was a captain in the French army and his family owned cotton mills. His only fault was that he was an honest Jew. Many...

Fa-hsien   China : Traveller and a learned man It is a tragedy of Indian history that very little is known about the ancient period as no records were kept about the events and progress made in those times. We shall remain indebted to many foreign travellers who toured our land and left a record of what they saw or thought about the conditions prevailing at that time. The Chinese traveller...

Lord William Bentinck   England : A remarkable Governor-General Born : 1774   Died : 1839 William Bentinck (Lord William Cavendish Bentinck), who came to India as Governor-General in 1828, will always be remembered as a man of enlightened vision and liberal bent of mind. Though some people may doubt his motives, this country shall for ever be grateful for his efforts to eradicate social evils from the Indian society. William Bentinck...

Rasputin   Russia: A mysterious power wielder Born: 1872         Died : 1916 Gregory Rasputin was endowed with a mysterious personality and some extraordinary powers. He was one of the most powerful personalities of 19th century and wielded enormous power in the Soviet Union where people held him in awe. This powerful man was born in a farmer’s family in 1872. He was a man of religious values and became known...

Mohammad Reza Pahlavi   Iran: Last ruler of Iran Born: 1919          Died : 1980 This last monarch of Iran had a passion for sophistication and wanted his country to be democratically governed. He ascended the throne of Iran in 1941. Thereafter, he took steps to eradicate age-old traditions and bring his country on par with western nations. He abolished the feudal jagirdari system. In his policies, he was pm-American and he...

Metternich   Austria : A pillar of European politics Born : 1773                 Died : 1859 Metternich was a very astute diplomat. He had such a control over European political affairs that the period following Napoleon and before the emergence of Bismarck in Prussia is called the ‘ Age of Metternich’. He was the towering personality during this period who was at the helm of European politics. Metternich was born in...

Cleopatra   Egypt : Beaux Yeux Born : 69 B.C.     Died : 30 B.C. ‘Beaux Yeux’ in French means a pretty woman and Cleopatra has been for ages regarded as a goddess of beauty. Actually, ‘Cleopatra’ was a title with which queens and princesses were addressed in ancient Egypt. Amongst them the familiar woman exceedingly beautiful is Cleopatra VII. She was the eldest born of Ptolmey XI and as such was...