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Feb 19, 1473
Nicolaus Copernicus
Was a mathematician and astronomer who proposed that the sun was stationary in the center of the universe and the earth revolved around it.
Nicolaus Copernicus was a Polish astronomer and mathematician known as the father of modern astronomy. He was the first European scientist to propose that Earth and other planets revolve around the sun, the heliocentric theory of the solar system. -
Jan 22, 1561
Francis Bacon
To the present day Bacon is well known for his treatises on empiricist natural philosophy (The Advancement of Learning, Novum Organum Scientiarum) and for his doctrine of the idols, which he put forward in his early writings, as well as for the idea of a modern research institute, which he described in Nova Atlantis. -
Feb 15, 1564
Galileo Galilei
He is renowned for his discoveries: he was the first to report telescopic observations of the mountains on the moon, the moons of Jupiter, the phases of Venus, and the rings of Saturn. He invented an early microscope and a predecessor to the thermometer. -
Rene Descartes
Descartes has been heralded as the first modern philosopher. He is famous for having made an important connection between geometry and algebra, which allowed for the solving of geometrical problems by way of algebraic equations. -
John Locke
His political theory of government by the consent of the governed as a means to protect the three natural rights of “life, liberty and estate” deeply influenced the United States' founding documents. His essays on religious tolerance provided an early model for the separation of church and state. -
Isaac Newton
He's famous for:
Newton's Orbital Cannon.
Newtonian Cat Doors.
Laying Down the Three Laws of Motion.
The Philosopher's Stone. -
Montesquieu
Montesquieu is famous for his articulation of the theory of separation of powers, which is implemented in many constitutions throughout the world. He is also known for doing more than any other author to secure the place of the word “despotism” in the political lexicon. -
Voltaire
He was an extraordinary prolific writer.
Voltaire wrote more than 50 plays, dozens of treatises on science, politics and philosophy, and several books of history on everything from the russian Empire to the French Parliament. -
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Jean-Jacques Rousseau is famous for reconceiving the social contract as a compact between the individual and a collective “general will” aimed at the common good and reflected in the laws of an ideal state and for maintaining that existing society rests on a false social contract that perpetuates inequality. -
Denis Diderot
Denis Diderot was a French philosopher, art critic, and writer, best known for serving as co-founder, chief editor, and contributor to the Encyclopédie along with Jean le Rond d'Alembert. He was a prominent figure during the Enlightenment. -
George Washington
George Washington is often called the “Father of His Country.” He not only served as the first president of the United States, but he also commanded the Continental Army during the American Revolution (1775–83) and presided over the convention that drafted the U.S. Constitution. -
James Watt
The Scottish inventor is known for his efficient steam engine that was first patented in 1769. James Watt is chiefly known for inventing different types of steam engine that helped start the Industrial Revolution. To describe the efficiency of his engines, he coined the term 'horsepower' and devised a rev counter. Watt's inventions were not confined to engines. -
Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson, a spokesman for democracy, was an American Founding Father, the principal author of the Declaration of Independence (1776), and the third President of the United States (1801–1809). -
Miguel Hidalgo
Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla is generally regarded as the “Father of Mexican Independence.” He was born in a rural area of Guanajuato where his father managed a hacienda. He was an excellent student in both theology and philosophy at the then Colegio de San Nicolás Obispo in present-day Morelia. -
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) was one of the most influential, popular and prolific composers of the classical period. He composed over 600 works, including some of the most famous and loved pieces of symphonic, chamber, operatic, and choral music. -
Maximillien Robespierre
Maximilien Robespierre, the architect of the French Revolution's Reign of Terror, is overthrown and arrested by the National Convention. As the leading member of the Committee of Public Safety from 1793, Robespierre encouraged the execution, mostly by guillotine, of more than 17,000 enemies of the Revolution. -
Simon Bolivar
Simón Bolivar is remembered today as the greatest leader of South American independence. Highly influenced by the examples of the United States, the French Revolution and Napoleon, he led a massive revolt against Spanish colonial rule in South America, beginning in 1810. -
Adam Smith
Smith is most famous for his 1776 book, "The Wealth of Nations." Smith's writings were studied by 20th-century philosophers, writers, and economists. Smith's ideas–the importance of free markets, assembly-line production methods, and gross domestic product (GDP)–formed the basis for theories of classical economics.