The most powerful man ever.

[Corinthian Hoplite]

Who was (or is), in your opinion, the most powerful man to ever have lived?

Inspiring obedience and respect in friend and foe are a requirement. As well as a natural mental prowess, adaptability and overall health.

These are found in a few historical characters. But what about effectiveness? Of all those, which ones actually fulfilled their (known) desires?

 

[Seff]

I dunno about 'most powerful', because that's a pretty wild criteria - but I've always thought Theodore Roosevelt was a manly man.

 

[Captain Pyjama Shark]

There have been lots of those people.

 

[Sushiman70]

Victoria. He had the worlds biggest empire, and the worlds biggest diamond.

 

[Anarion]

Victoria. He had the worlds biggest empire, and the worlds biggest diamond.

Alright. Wait, what? Have I missed anything?

 

[Llew2]

She was the man.

 

[Edwards]

Also, he had no power.

Theoretical power is still not power.

 

[Swadius 2.0]

Just because his powers were not written into legislation, it doesn't mean he had no power.

 

[Stubb]

I'd say whoever has your balls in a vice grip.

 

[Archonsod]

Theoretical power is still not power.

It wasn't theoretical. It's not until Elizabeth II that the powers of the British monarch became theoretical rather than practical, and even then it's purely a matter of discretion.

 

[Sushiman70]

People still have to do what they're told, it's just she's not allowed to tell them some things.

 

[Archonsod]

She is, she's just chose not to plunge the country into civil war for the past few decades.

Can't really blame her since the monarchy lost the last one, but you never know when they'll fancy taking another crack at it. Mind you, if she was to trigger one tomorrow I could see it basically boiling down to G. Brown vs. The Rest of the Country, which should make for a rather interesting match.

 

[LavaLampMaster]

I would say, just based on his cumulative impact on humanity, Socrates. As far as being such a powerful force to control the world's fate in his lifetime, pretty much any ruler of the USSR and/or USA after 1949.

 

[ScientiaExcelsa]

I'll go with the driving force known as Alexander the Great, just to be generic.  One of the few "Greats" who truly deserves the title.  To me he embodied and epitomized power as much as or more than any other man or woman.

 

[shrankalin]

Attila  the Hun, he was pretty powerfull, and he killed his brother for full control over the Huns, and he took out alot of the roman empire and sacked almost all their cities except rome. Atilla was the best in my mind

 

[Swadius 2.0]

I would say, just based on his cumulative impact on humanity, Socrates. As far as being such a powerful force to control the world's fate in his lifetime, pretty much any ruler of the USSR and/or USA after 1949.

If you're going for cumulative impact, you might as well choose one of the primates that gave birth to the first homo sapien .

 

[Archonsod]

Probably most of the reasonably effective Pope's throughout history. They've commanded the obedience of millions simply by being the head of the largest church on the planet, and at times their power has been such that they could remove an entire nation from consideration with a few simple words.

If it came down to individuals, probably Napoleon. He almost managed to subjugate the whole of Europe, was believed to be invincible for many years and his social reforms still form the backbone of modern society even today. Can't think of many you can say the same thing about.

 

[funk]

Genghis Khan

 

[Kalnia]

Genghis Khan, with his brouthers Khachiun and Khasar.

Had 120,000 people killed for merely resisting him in one day. And the way he had his empire was a pretty useful one. The Mongolians never wanted to settle, so kept on the move. If a nation rebelled, it was flattenned when they returned. Any armed group large enough to oppose him, Genghis Khan flattened. A Chinese historian remarked you could ride form sun up to sun down to moon up to moon down in Genghis's empire without fear of being robbed, as all the fighting men were either with Genghis or dead by Genghis. The fact that fear kept an entire empire in check effectively without constant reinforcement is impressive, even if it did only last for a lifetime.

 

[Dudro]

Kublai Khan controlled the WHOLE empire though...