The person I think most influenced the world is ...

MLE (Emily Cotton) · Post by **MLE (Emily Cotton)** » Fri October 17th, 2008, 8:28 pm

[quote=""Ash""]Not even correct. A better and more far reaching suggestion would be the Portugese king in the 1500s who encouraged and supported discovery missions. (Sorry I can't remember his name, someone here will

)[/quote]
That would be Prince Henry the Navigator. See former post.

Alaric · Post by **Alaric** » Sat October 18th, 2008, 12:40 am

I think Karl Benz's invention of the car has had a pretty profound effect on the world, although that was the late 19th century.

Christine Blevins · Post by **Christine Blevins** » Sat October 18th, 2008, 1:14 am

I want to join with Donroc and say Gutenburg and his mechanical press which promoted the spread and access of ideas.

Ash · Post by **Ash** » Sat October 18th, 2008, 2:20 am

[quote=""MLE""]But if you are limiting it to the last 1000 years, hmm-- how about Portugal's Prince Henry the Navigator, who started the whole European sea exploration in his bid to bypass the Mediterranean trade routes, a generation before Columbus? He was also instrumental in develping the caravel from the Duthch 'round ship' and the north sea fishing cog. Not to mention the navigation instruments he developed and perfected, without which columbus would not have been able to find the West Indies.
[/quote]

Mea culpa. I obviously did not read your entire post, just saw the last line. Yes, Prince Henry the Navigator, thats the guy. He also IIRC helped with the discovery of longitude (tho I may have that mixed up)

eclecticreader10 · Post by **eclecticreader10** » Sat October 25th, 2008, 3:30 am

[quote=""Christine Blevins""]I want to join with Donroc and say Gutenburg and his mechanical press which promoted the spread and access of ideas.[/quote]

According to the History Channel's list Gutenberg was #1. I can't remember all of the top 5, but Jefferson and Hitler were in it.

Christine Blevins · Post by **Christine Blevins** » Sat October 25th, 2008, 4:19 am

[quote=""eclecticreader10""]According to the History Channel's list Gutenberg was #1. I can't remember all of the top 5, but Jefferson and Hitler were in it.[/quote]

Hitler had a huge influence on my life. My parents were both taken from different regions of Ukraine to work as forced laborers in Nazi Germany. They met in the refugee camp after the war. If not for Hitler, I wouldn't exist.

diamondlil · Post by **diamondlil** » Sat October 25th, 2008, 9:02 am

It's interesting. Most often I would automatically think of positive influences, but there can be no doubt that the world was changed by Hitler and friends actions.

Ash · Post by **Ash** » Sat October 25th, 2008, 3:01 pm

No question. Because of him, whole branches of my family on both sides were massacred in Poland and The Ukraine. My grandmother was in constant mourning, my elderly cousin forever guilt ridden for escaping. Whole communities destroyed, looted. Yes, he was an influence certainly. As were Mao, Stalin, and any other mass murderer. They can't help but be an influence.

Interesting question tho - how do we define 'influence'? When I see questions like the thread header, I immediately think positive. Then I remember that Times called Hitler "man of the year', because based on how they defined it, he was the man who affected the events of the world that year, not that he was a good man by any means.

xiaotien · Post by **xiaotien** » Sat October 25th, 2008, 7:46 pm

i automatically thought hitler.

for me "influence" is not an automatic positive.
it's whatever an individual may have done, good
or bad, to change the world somehow, alter history,
perspective, perception, the future...

he is the epitome of "infamous".

red805 · Post by **red805** » Sat October 25th, 2008, 8:16 pm

[quote=""Christine Blevins""]I want to join with Donroc and say Gutenburg and his mechanical press which promoted the spread and access of ideas.[/quote]

Another vote here for Gutenberg. Now he would make a great protagonist for a HF novel. His invention was so key to European emergance from the Middle Ages, & played a part in the Protestant Reformation and the spread of scientific ideas. I remember hearing that at the turn of the first millenium AD, that there were only some low-thousands number of books in existance in the world. Hard to imagine, given my TBR stacks!