November 25

Born in 1467 into the influential Dacre family, Thomas Dacre inherited the title of 2nd Baron Dacre of Gilsland. As a courtier and military knight during the reign of Henry VIII, he participated in royal campaigns and held significant regional authority in northern England. He managed his family's extensive estates along the Anglo-Scottish border during a period of frequent cross-border conflicts. Dacre's service to the crown was marked by his roles as both a military leader and local administrator, defending the realm against incursions. He maintained the Dacre family's standing at court through strategic alliances and marriage connections. Lord Dacre died in 1525, having shaped the political and military landscape of northern England in the early Tudor period.

Born in Delfshaven in 1577, Piet Pieterszoon Hein rose from humble beginnings to become one of the Dutch Republic's most renowned naval commanders. Serving under Admiral Maurice of Nassau, he honed his skills in the Dutch fight for independence from Spain. In 1628, Hein achieved a historic victory by seizing the Spanish treasure fleet off Cuba, capturing enormous riches that bolstered the Dutch war effort. His aggressive tactics and maritime expertise earned him widespread acclaim and fear among his enemies. Hein continued to lead successful expeditions in the Caribbean and the North Sea, helping to secure Dutch trade routes. He died in battle during a naval engagement in 1629, remembered as a national hero and symbol of Dutch naval prowess.

John Armstrong Jr. began his career in the Continental Army during the American Revolution before entering politics as a U.S. senator from New York. Appointed Secretary of War in 1813, he oversaw American defenses during the War of 1812 but faced criticism after the burning of Washington. Later he served as U.S. minister to France and continued writing on military strategy. His blend of military service and diplomatic roles marked him as a prominent early American leader.

Originally a painter and writer in London’s East End, Rosenberg enlisted in the British Army in 1915. He served on the Western Front, where his wartime poems conveyed the grim realities of trench warfare. His best-known poem, 'Break of Day in the Trenches', combines vivid imagery with dark humor. Rosenberg was killed in action in April 1918, at age 27, leaving behind a small but powerful body of work. His letters and sketches offer insight into the life of a soldier-artist during the Great War. Posthumously, his poetry has been recognized for its emotional depth and technical skill.

Ludvík Svoboda (1895-1979) was a Czechoslovak army officer and politician who commanded Czechoslovak forces on the Eastern Front during World War II. After the war, he held various government posts and became Minister of Defence. In 1968, amid the Prague Spring, he was elected President of Czechoslovakia, a position he held until 1975. Svoboda was respected for his wartime leadership and seen as a national hero. Though constrained by Soviet influence, he strove to balance reformist aspirations with geopolitical realities.

Rudolf Höss (1900-1947) was a high-ranking SS officer and the longest-serving commandant of Auschwitz concentration camp. He oversaw the expansion of Auschwitz into an industrialized center of mass murder during the Holocaust. Höss implemented the use of gas chambers and was complicit in the deaths of over a million people. Arrested in 1946, he stood trial at Nuremberg and was executed by hanging in 1947. His post-war memoirs provided chilling insight into the mechanics of genocide and the Nazi regime's bureaucratic cruelty.

Born in Munich, he joined the SS in the early 1930s and rose through the camp system. In 1943 he succeeded Rudolf Höss as commandant of Auschwitz I, implementing administrative changes. Later that year, he was appointed commandant of Majdanek, overseeing forced labor and mass executions. After World War II, he was captured by Allied forces and stood trial in the Auschwitz Trials in Poland. Convicted of war crimes, he was executed in 1948 for his role in the Holocaust.

Augusto Pinochet was a Chilean army general who rose to power after leading a coup d’état against President Salvador Allende in 1973. As the country’s head of state, he established a military dictatorship that lasted until 1990 and implemented sweeping free-market economic reforms. While these policies spurred economic growth, his regime was also marked by widespread human rights abuses, including political imprisonment and torture. After stepping down from the presidency, Pinochet remained commander-in-chief of the army and later served as a senator-for-life. He faced numerous legal challenges over allegations of atrocities but invoked an amnesty law to avoid prosecution. Pinochet died in 2006, leaving a deeply polarized legacy as both a nation-builder and a dictator in Chilean history.

Alparslan Türkeş was a prominent Cypriot-born Turkish military officer and nationalist politician best known for founding the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) in 1969. After rising to the rank of colonel in the Turkish Army, he entered politics advocating pan-Turkic ideals and conservative social policies. In the 1970s, Türkeş served as Deputy Prime Minister, influencing coalition governments with his party’s nationalist platform. A charismatic orator, he played a pivotal role in shaping modern Turkish nationalism and fostering alliances between nationalist and conservative factions. Türkeş’s vision emphasized the cultural and political unity of Turkic peoples across national borders. He died in 1997, leaving a complex legacy as the architect of contemporary Turkish nationalism.