People
Historical Figures and Influential People in History
Explore rulers, generals, thinkers, scientists and reformers who shaped world history. Search for a specific person, or browse by era, region, country and A–Z.
Historical Figures Beginning with B
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12 results
Barack Obama
1961–?Modern HistoryAmericasUnited States
He ran for president two years into his first Senate term, won on a message of hope, and spent eight years discovering what hope costs in practice.
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Bartolomeu Dias
1450–1500Medieval PeriodEuropePortugal
He sailed further south than any European had gone, rounded the tip of Africa in a storm, and returned to find that nobody wanted to talk about anything except Columbus.
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Bede
673–735Medieval PeriodEuropeUnited Kingdom
He never left his monastery and never sought power — yet the history he wrote in a Northumbrian cell shaped how an entire nation understood itself.
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Benito Mussolini
1883–1945Industrial AgeEuropeItaly
He invented fascism, made the trains run on time, and allied himself with Hitler — a sequence of decisions that ended with him hanging upside down from a petrol station.
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Benjamin Disraeli
1804–1881Industrial AgeEuropeUnited Kingdom
He transformed himself from an outsider mocked in Parliament into a dominant prime minister who reshaped British conservatism and expanded imperial ambition with calculated flair.
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Benjamin Franklin
1706–1790Early Modern EraAmericasUnited States
He flew a kite in a thunderstorm, charmed the French court, and helped write a declaration that started a revolution — and still found time to invent bifocals.
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Benjamin Harrison
1833–1901Industrial AgeAmericasUnited States
He won the presidency with fewer votes than his opponent, served a single quiet term, then lost to the same man four years later.
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Bill Clinton
1946–?Modern HistoryAmericasUnited States
He governed through a decade of prosperity, survived impeachment, and left office with the highest approval ratings of any departing president — and the most complicated legacy.
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Bonar Law
1858–1923Industrial AgeAmericasCanada
He spent years as the hard-edged organiser behind Conservative revival, then finally reached Downing Street only to be driven out almost at once by terminal illness.
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Boris Johnson
1964–?Modern HistoryEuropeUnited Kingdom
He built a career on being underestimated, won a referendum nobody thought he'd win, became prime minister, then resigned over a party he claimed he didn't know had happened.
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Boris Yeltsin
1931–2007Modern HistoryEuropeRussia
He stood on a tank to face down a coup — then spent the next decade watching the country he'd saved slowly come apart.
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Boudica
?–61Unknown EraEuropeUnited Kingdom
She led the most serious uprising against Roman Britain in history, burnt three cities to the ground, and came closer than anyone to making the Romans leave.
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