Most outstanding leaders of the 15th century

JoanOfArc007 · Jun 15, 2019

Christopher Columbus comes to my mind. He was a leader in the sense of being a leading explorer of the world. Columbus was also into different cultures, writing of the Taino People he encountered in the so called New world as the most outstanding people of the world.

martin76 · Jun 17, 2019

Frank81 said:
And that Castile just retained the Canaries in the Atlantic fachade of Africa was the result of the outcome of the war. In the Iberian Peninsula, in spite of the Portuguese victory at Toro, the cause of Juana and Alfonso V was lost.

However, in the ocean the Portuguese navy defeated all the Castilian attempts to seize African possesions. The Portuguese navy overpowered the Castilian in every front, excepting the Canaries (and even there, the Portuguese ships roamed freely). So the Spanish were effectively pushed away from the eastern Atlantic (forever).

That's why the Catholic Monarchs supported Columbus: he offered a way to future expansion, free from the Portuguese

Are you talking about 15th Century or 16th Century?

johnincornwall · Jun 20, 2019

Frank81 said:
And that Castile just retained the Canaries in the Atlantic fachade of Africa was the result of the outcome of the war. In the Iberian Peninsula, in spite of the Portuguese victory at Toro, the cause of Juana and Alfonso V was lost.

However, in the ocean the Portuguese navy defeated all the Castilian attempts to seize African possesions. The Portuguese navy overpowered the Castilian in every front, excepting the Canaries (and even there, the Portuguese ships roamed freely). So the Spanish were effectively pushed away from the eastern Atlantic (forever).

That's why the Catholic Monarchs supported Columbus: he offered a way to future expansion, free from the Portuguese

I don't think it's practical to compare the turbulent and hang-by-a-thread politics of Iberia during the accession of Isobel la Catolica with the established power of Fernando and Isobel by, lets say, 1491.

Besides Tenerife wasn't conquered until 1495, despite Fernando de Lugo's catastrophic defeat to the Guanches the previous year. From Toro to Granada was a whole universe of power and politics.

Just lucky Brazil turned out to be on the eastern side of the line!!!

Comnena · Jul 16, 2019

Isabella and Ferdinand, not just for their impact on history as we view it, but they held great prestige in their own time as well.
Henry V as a military leader.
Interestingly enough, Henry IV would have probably been known as legendary knight-adventurer if fate and Richard didn't move him towards usurpation.

Futurist said:
Was he more accomplished than his father was, though?

I would definitely call him more competent than his father, yes.
I know the Hundred Years War ended during the reign of Charles VII, but the successes were often in spite of him more than because of him.
Yolanda of Aragon should be on this list for powerbroking during his reign and playing a large role behind the scene. If not for her, the Armagnac cause would have been deader than the Crusades before Joan could even walk out of Domremy.

Louis XI made some mistakes (like walking into Peronne and right into the power of the volatile Charles of Burgundy), but overall he played the long game and strengthened France against many powerful threads.

Doskinas · Jul 17, 2019

I would say in Europe there are 3!

Ferdinand and Isabella - Who by marriage has united 2 kingdoms. Spain and Portugal. And set up the foundation for the future expansion of the Empire of Spain. Their influence was global as they were the ones that supported Columbus for its Voyages.

Henry VII of England - probably the most well-known monarch in the English speaking world. Mainly for his 6 wives. He was the man who oversaw the English Reformation, engaged in wars and crusades, built a humongous navy and promoted the position of the monarch to the head of the nation. He is both loved and hated to this day!

I think there are no 3 greater leaders than these two!

johnincornwall · Jul 17, 2019

Doskinas said:
Ferdinand and Isabella - Who by marriage has united 2 kingdoms. Spain and Portugal. And set up the foundation for the future expansion of the Empire of Spain. Their influence was global as they were the ones that supported Columbus for its Voyages.

!

You probably realise now it was technically Castille and Aragon united, but they also dragged in other places like far-flung Aragonese possessions, Kingdom of Granada, eventually Navarra etc. Portugal came under this umbrella 1580-1640 I think.

But no one would doubt their greatness - even those who don't realise what an unholy inter-warring mess 'Spain' was prior to their reigns.

WhatAnArtist · Jul 20, 2019

Doskinas said:
Henry VII of England - probably the most well-known monarch in the English speaking world. Mainly for his 6 wives. He was the man who oversaw the English Reformation, engaged in wars and crusades, built a humongous navy and promoted the position of the monarch to the head of the nation. He is both loved and hated to this day!

I think you're confusing Henry VII with his more well-known and infamous son Henry VIII, who was also not a 15th century leader, his reign extending from 1509 to 1547.

Gvelion · Jul 20, 2019

Doskinas said:
Henry VII of England - probably the most well-known monarch in the English speaking world. Mainly for his 6 wives. He was the man who oversaw the English Reformation, engaged in wars and crusades, built a humongous navy and promoted the position of the monarch to the head of the nation. He is both loved and hated to this day!

You've made a mistake. It was Henry VIII, not Henry VII. Not to mention, that Henry VIII and English Reformation happened in 16th century. Henry VII ( his father ) achieved victory in War of the Roses and defeated Richard III. Then Henry married Elizabeth of York. His daughter Margaret Tudor ( sister of Henry VIII ) married James IV of Scotland and became great-grandmother to a future King of England, Scotland and Ireland - James I Stuart ( James VI in Scotland ).

Henry VIII was the King of England and Ireland in 1509 - 1547. He was ,, Lord of Ireland '' before 1542 and then became ,, King of Ireland '' after the Crown of Ireland Act in 1542. He also styled himself as King of France, as did all English monarchs between 1420 and 1800.

Maki · Jul 21, 2019

Skenderbeg Kastrioti, an Albanian-Serb leader that opposed the Ottomans and managed to inflict several important defeats upon them. In fact, they never managed to take his stronghold of Kruje during his lifetime. He became a European hero for his victories.

Theseus · Feb 16, 2020

Openminded said:
They can be both political and military leaders. Which of them had the most amazing legacies in the 15th century?

In the Americas we have: Moctezuma I and Pachacuti
In Western Europe we have: the 2 John's of Portugal, Joan of Arc and Henry V of England
In Eastern Europe we have: Vlad the Impaler, John Hunyadi, Skanderbeg, Ivan III the Great and Stephen the Great
In the Middle East we have: Timur the Great, Shah Rukh, Ulugh Beg, Selim and Mehmed the Conqueror
In the Indian subcontinent we have: Kumbha of Merwar
In Eastern Asia we have: the Yongle and Xuande Emperors, Sejong the Great and Le Loi

Are there other, even more exceptional leaders I missed?

In the Indian subcontinent it has to be Deva Raya who was easily the most powerful ruler in South Asia as he defeated the Bahmani Sultanate
who already started to use gun powder.
Even the Italian traveler Conti called Deva Raya the most powerful ruler in India and was impressed by the wealth and power of Vijayanagar

Haakbus · Feb 16, 2020

Sejong the Great (r. 1418-1450). Oversaw intellectual and technological development, expanded Korea's borders to what they are today and a really compassionate ruler who cared for his people. Some later Choson kings tried to emulate him.

Theodoric · Feb 17, 2020

Gvelion said:
James I Stuart .

Loved him in Rear Window and Vertigo.
Married Princes Grace.

Picard · Feb 18, 2020

turing said:
I disagree with Vlad the Impaler. He was a half-sane mediocrity. Not sure why is he on the list. Selim is also half-sane, but at least incredibly successful and a fine soldier. Intellectually, Mehmed is a better, smarter individual but I like Selim for his endurance. He did not mind long campaigns. A true soldier he is.

Vlad was actually one of better rulers in Europe at the time. He actually enforced the rule of law, managed to break the power of the nobles, reorganized the military and protected the peasants from everyone except his own self. If it weren't for his occasional bouts of murderous insanity, I would have no trouble labelling him one of the best European rulers of the time. As it is, he is "merely" better than average.

That being said, I would still rate Matthias Corvinus (Hungary), Stephen I (Moldova) and Gjergji Kastrioti / Skanderbeg (Albania) as being above Vlad. They also all prospered in difficult circumstances, and all had diplomatic skill which Vlad lacked. Matthias however was too focused on affairs in Western Europe, though it is possible he was merely trying to increase his resources for wars against Ottomans. Skanderbeg managed to defend Albania from Ottomans, oftentimes being almost alone in that endeavour. Stephen I did the same in Moldova. I would also nominate John VIII Palaiologos - if not for him, I doubt Roman Empire would have lasted until 1453. Last but not least there is John Hunyadi - while not formally a ruler, he was a leader, basically the lynchpin of anti-Ottoman defense right until his death, and proved the only one able to actually achieve anything with crappy crusader armies - the only problem is, kings rarely listened to him.

Some that might have been good but I am not certain about enough to conclusively conclude they were are Jan Vitovec and Matija Gereb.

Condottiero · Feb 18, 2020

Charles VII, Louis XI, Ferdinad and Isabel, Lorenzo de Medici, Vlad the impaler, John Hunyadi, Mathias Corvinus, Ivan III, Vytautas, Mehmet II, Vlad Teples, Skanderberg, Casimir IV

deaf tuner · Feb 18, 2020

Condottiero said:
Charles VII, Louis XI, Ferdinad and Isabel, Lorenzo de Medici, Vlad the impaler, John Hunyadi, Mathias Corvinus, Ivan III, Vytautas, Mehmet II, Vlad Teples, Skanderberg, Casimir IV

(emphasis in the quote is mine)

Vlad the impaler and Vlad Teples are one and same person.

Futurist · Feb 18, 2020

Willempie said:
I think Philip le Bon of Burgundy should be in there as well. That his son squandered the inheritance is not his fault.

What are his achievements?

NordicDemosthenes said:
Lorenzo di Medici should maybe be on the list? If one looks at where in 15th century Europe much of "the action" was, he is definitely worth a mention anyway.

Yes, he was certainly a true Renaissance man. I wonder how he would have handled the French invasion of Italy in 1494 had he lived just several years longer. Could that have tarnished his image?

Futurist · Feb 18, 2020

Tulius said:
The Catholic Monarchs (Castile/Aragon) come to my mind.

Yes, indisputably.

Willempie · Feb 19, 2020

Futurist said:
What are his achievements?

Unlike with French kings "le bon" actually means something in his case.
He expanded his territories, but he also instituted all kinds of useful reforms, the most important one being the establishment of the general estates of the low countries. Most importantly he was responsible for the boom in Flanders and Brabant, by stopping all feudal squabbling and supporting the economy either directly (he knew how to throw a party) or indirectly (making the taxes predictable for the payers)

Bharata · Feb 19, 2020

I would say Kapilendra Deva - Wikipedia and Deva Raya II - Wikipedia from India

SilasMarner · Mar 11, 2020

For Western Europe I would say Louis XI. He essentially cemented the French victory of the hundred years war. He also successfully consolidated and expanded the French state whilst fighting a minimal number of wars. For the English, Henry V was a highly successful and energetic military leader but if you take a longer term view of his reign he was a bit of a disaster. He over extended the English in France to a degree that was untenable in the long run and his methods of conquest alienated the French population to a degree that made the territories he had conquered essentially ungovernable except by force of arms - an expensive drain on the English treasury for years to come.

I would say that Henry VII was ultimately the most successful and effective English King of the C.15th in so far as he brought an end to the war of the roses and established a successful dynasty. Some of his methods were certain harsh and at times brutal, but perhaps that was what the times called for.

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Most outstanding leaders of the 15th century

JoanOfArc007

martin76

johnincornwall

Comnena

Doskinas

johnincornwall

WhatAnArtist

Gvelion

Maki

Theseus

Haakbus

Theodoric

Picard

Condottiero

deaf tuner

Futurist

Futurist

Willempie

Bharata

SilasMarner

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