History’s biggest Badasses
Gustavus Adolphus
The King of Sweden revolutionized European warfare with mobile artillery, disciplined infantry tactics, and aggressive battlefield coordination during the Thirty Years’ War. Called the Lion of the North, he died leading a cavalry charge at Lützen and became one of history’s most mythologized warrior-kings.
Rank - 117
Shah Abbas I
He rebuilt the faltering Safavid Empire by crushing tribal warlords, reforming the military with gunpowder forces loyal to the crown, and reclaiming key territories including Baghdad from the Ottomans. He transformed Isfahan into a glittering imperial capital, but secured his rule with ruthless purges that weakened his own dynasty after his death.
Rank - 121
Queen Amina of Zazzau
She turned the savannah into her empire and built walls strong enough to outlast the men who doubted her.
Rank - 136
Mehmed II “The Conqueror”
Mehmed II “the Conqueror” was the Ottoman sultan who captured Constantinople in 1453, ending the Byzantine Empire and reshaping the balance of power between East and West. A scholar-warrior with ruthless ambition, he fused gunpowder, centralized rule, and imperial vision to build the foundation of a world-spanning Ottoman state.
Rank - 140
John III Sobieski
John III Sobieski was the Polish king who thundered downhill at Vienna and changed Europe’s fate in a single charge.
Rank - 152
Bayinnaung
Bayinnaung rose from minor nobility to command an empire that dominated Burma, Siam, Lan Na, and Laos.
Rank - 158
Askia Muhmmad I
Askia Muhammad I rose from seasoned commander to empire-shaping monarch, forging the largest realm in West African history through ruthless discipline, political precision, and relentless conquest.
Rank - 164
Hernan Cortés
The bastard who burned his ships and an empire with them, Hernán Cortés turned ambition into apocalypse and called it salvation.
Rank - 200