The Greatest of the Great?

[DAv2003]

Throughout history, there has been a title which has been saved for those whose accomplishments rise above all others. The title of 'The Great' is given to those who have molded the fate of their countries for centuries afterwards. Whether it be the modernisation of a country like Peter the Great, or the actual creation of a national identity like Alfred the Great.
I've made a poll of several leaders who have been able to obtain the title but feel free to add in any of those I've missed!

 

[Dark Khan]

Sargon the Great ,the first great is the best great

 

[sydhe]

Alfonso the Great (Asturias in what is now Spain)
Canute the Great (Denmark, Norway and England)
Constantine the Great (Roman Empire)
Cyrus the Great (Persia)
Catherine the Great (Russia)
Gregory the Great (Pope)
Ivan the Great (Muscovy)
Justinian the Great (Eastern Roman Empire)
Louis the Great (Hungary and Poland)
Nicholas the Great (Pope)
Stefan the Great (Moldavia)
Theodoric the Great (Ostrogoths)
Theodosius the Great (Roman Empire)

 

[Adso de Fimnu]

Would Genghis Khan count?

 

[Mongoloid Cow]

No. Genghis Khan did not receive the title "the Great".

More greats:
Mithridates the Great (Pontus)
Tiridates the Great (Armenia)
Ashot the Great (Armenia)
Menadrus the Great (Bactria)
Xerxes the Great (Persia)
Ramesses the Great (Egypt)
Antiochus the Great (Seleucid Empire)
Otto the Great (Saxony, German Emperor)

Of the ones in the poll, I'm going with Alexander the Great because he is the most legendary (even if he never secured the future of his empire).

 

[Adso de Fimnu]

No. Genghis Khan did not receive the title "the Great".

I suppose you're right. I heard somewhere that "Genghis Khan" means "Great King", but I'm not sure that's correct, and besides, it's not "the Great".

 

[Mongoloid Cow]

"Genghis Khan" means "Universal Ruler" more or less.

 

[DAv2003]

Just checking in and I'm surprised that Alexander is getting the majority of votes. Considering what happened to his empire after his death.

 

[BCLG100]

Just checking in and I'm surprised that Alexander is getting the majority of votes. Considering what happened to his empire after his death.

maybe because he is the most famous.

 

[Plotinus]

But what exactly is the criterion for inclusion? Alfred wasn't known as "the Great" until about a thousand years after he lived. Can I dub Gladstone "the Great" and vote for him? How many people have to call you "the Great" before you count?

I vote "other" and go for Gregory the Great. I don't think Greatness should be defined by being able to kill more people than anyone else, which seems to be the criterion for an awful lot of these Great characters.

 

[Israelite9191]

I voted Alexander the Great. His empire may not have lasted, but his legacy is huge. He expanded Greek culture all the way to the Indus, even if in Persia it was overiden by native culture. Even if the political institutions of his legacy collapsed, the cultural ones remained.

 

[DAv2003]

But what exactly is the criterion for inclusion? Alfred wasn't known as "the Great" until about a thousand years after he lived. Can I dub Gladstone "the Great" and vote for him? How many people have to call you "the Great" before you count?

I included those who have been officaily been given the title by historians. BTW, isn't Gregory the Great responsible for the First Crusade as he loathed Muslims controlling Jerusalem, or am I misinformed?

 

[Richard Cribb]

I voted for Kazimierz Wielki.
Admittedly he also had blood on his hands, but I think his reign was one of great benefit to his country.

 

[Plotinus]

I fear you've been desperately misinformed, given that Gregory the Great lived in the sixth and seventh centuries, and the First Crusade took place in the eleventh...

Besides which, when Pope Urban II preached the First Crusade, it was not because the Muslims controlled Jerusalem. They had done so for over 450 years. It was because of new anti-Christian measures and actions on the part of first the Fatimids and then the Seljuks, who conquered Jerusalem in 1070 and began mistreating Christians there.

 

[North King]

Frederick the Great of Prussia, because if not for him, Prussia would have died long before Germany united.

 

[Ukas]

I vote for effect had on the world, so it's Charlemagne, most likely. Well, with Alexander of course there may be a tie.

 

[sydhe]

I think I'd go with Cyrus the Great.

 

[7ronin]

Don't forget Pompey the Great

 

[Dreadnought]

I voted Federick. The way he beat Russia, Sweden, Austria, and France, while outnumbered 4 to 1 by each nation, is amazing!

 

[Xshayathiya]

I voted Darius, but i'd take Cyrus over him.

btw for a full list see here