From: 1,000 Years, 1,000 People : The Men and Women Who Charted the Course of History for the Last Millennium, by Barbara and Brent Bowers, Agnes and Henry Gottlieb.

1. Johannes Gutenberg (1394?-1468) Inventor of the printing press.

2. Christopher Columbus (1451-1506) The agent of Western Civilization

3. Martin Luther (1483-1586) Monk who challenged the power of the Pope.

4. Galileo Galilei (1564-1642) Creator of the telescope.

5. William Shakespeare (1564-1642) Mirror of the millennium's soul.

6. Isaac Newton (1642-1727) Father of modern science.

7. Charles Darwin (1809-1882) Theory of evolution.

8. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) -- proof for God's existence.

9. Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) The ultimate Renaissaince man.

10. Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827) Music's titan.

11. John Locke (1632-1704) Writings influenced U.S. Constitution and Declaration of Independence.

12 . Mohandas K. Gandhi (1869-1948) the power of peaceful disobedience.

13. Michelangelo (1474-1564) First among artists.

14. Karl Marx (1818-1883) Founder of communism.

15. Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) Sage of the subconscious.

16. Napoleon I (1769-1821) The human god of war.

17. Albert Einstein (1879-1955) The theory of relativity supplanted Newton's universe.

18. Nicholas Copernicus (1473-1543) Questioned whether earth was the center of the universe.

19. Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778) The spiritual father of just about everything.

20. Adolf Hitler (1889-1945) Villain of the millennium.

21. Adam Smith (1723-1790) Wealth of Nations: classic economics.

22. George Washington (1723-1799) Father of the American people.

23./24. Wilbur Wright (1867-1912) and Orville Wright (1871-1948). First airplane.

25. Rene Descartes (1596-1650) Philosopher and Inventor of analytic geometry.

26. Louis Pasteur (1822-1895) Theorized germ-borne diseases.

27. Peter the Great (1672-1725) Czar who built modern Russia.

28. Thomas Alva Edison (1847-1931) Inventor.

29. William I of England (1847-1087) French lord who conquered England in 1066.

30. Dante Alighieri (1265-1321) His choice of Italian over Latin paved the way for European literature.

31 Elizabeth I of England (1533-1603) Molder of the modern British state.

32 Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865) American President who "saved" the nation.

33. Johannes Kepler (1571-1630) Discoverer of the paths of the planets.

34. Leo Tolstoy (1828-1910) Writer.

35. Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) Inspiration for 3 centuries of musicians.

36. Voltaire (1694-1778) Writer who inspired the French revolution.

37. Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882-1945) American President.

38. Winston Churchill (1874-1965) British guy.

39. Francis of Assisi (1181-1226) Saint's Franciscan order greatly influenced scholarship and spirituality.

40. Niccolo Machiavelli (1469-1527) The Prince -- one of history's most influential books.