Some of the most famous individuals in history are transformational in one form or another. In fact, transformational leaders have been written about for thousands of years and have both praised (Christ and Buddha) and cursed (Attila the Hun and Genghis Khan). 

Transformational leadership comes in many flavors, is seen on all continents, is practiced in many contexts. For example, entrepreneurs must function as transformational leaders to transform a small business into a large one.  It must be said, however, that few managers or CEO’s are transformational. Most like the status quo and want to keep it that way. Below are different lists of famous transformational leaders, some military, many political, and more than a few who have achieved greatness in the area of business. List 1:  Over 100 Famous Historical Leaders From Many Countries

Alexander The Great

Arnold, Henry

Ataturk, Mustapha

Aristotle

Attila the Hun

Aurelius, Marcus

Bolivar, Simon

Boyington, Gregory

Bradley, Omar

Buddha

Caligula

Carnegie, Andrew

Catherine the Great

Caesar, Augustus

Caesar, Julius

Chaka

Chanel Coco

Charlemagne

Charles I (King of England)

Chief Joseph

Christ, Jesus

Churchill, Winston

Elizabeth I

Ford, Henry

Franklin Benjamin

Frederick the Great

Freud, Sigmund

Gates, Bill and Melinda

Geronimo

Giannini, A. P.

Giap, Vo Nguen

Goering, Herman

Goldwyn, Samuel

Gorbachev, MikhailGrant, Ulysses

Guderian, Heinz

Hadrian

Hannibal

Hitler, Adolf

Ho, Chi Min

Homer

Iacocca, Lee

Ivan the Terrible

Jackson, Thomas (Stonewall)

Jacqueline Cochrane

Joan of Arc

Jobs, Steve

Jodl, Alfred

Johnson, Samuel

Jones, Jim

Jones, John Paul

Jung, Carl

Kahn, Herman

Kaiser, Henry

Khan, Genghis

Kissinger, Henry

Koresh, David

Kroc, Ray

Lao-tse

Lee, Robert E.

Lombardi, Vince

Louis XIV (Sun King)

Lynch, Peter

Marshall, George C.

McArthur, Douglas

Mohammed

Montgomery, Bernard

Morgan, J. Pierpoint

Mountbatten, Louis

Napoleon

Nelson, Heratio

Nero

Nightingale, Florence

Ogilvy, David

Packard, David

Park, Chung Hee

Patten, George

Penny, J. C.

Pericles

Pershing, John

Peter the Great

Pharaoh Ramses II

Pharaoh Tuthmose III

Plato

Pot, Pol

Queen Elizabeth II

Queen Victoria

Rickover, Hyman

Rockefeller, John D.

Rommel, Erwin

Roosevelt, Eleanor

Roosevelt, Franklin

Roosevelt, Teddy

Saladin

Schwab, Charles

Sejong the Great

Sloan, Alfred

Socrates

Tacitus

Thucydides

Tse-Tung, Mao

Vanderbilt, Cornelius

Villa, Francisco (Poncho)

Von Clausewitz, Carl

From Motlke, Helmuth

von Schlieffen, Alfred

Walton, Sam

Washington, George

Zhou, Enlai

Below are lists of famous transformational leaders are grouped into transformational entrepreneurs and CEOs and geographically into the regions of America, Europe, Asia ,and Africa.

List 1: EUROPEAN TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADERS

European history is full of transformational leaders.

Some used their power to build; some used their power to destroy. Some established a new order; others destroyed the old leaving nothing new in its place. Many were successful; others tried and ultimately failed. However they lived, they exerted strong influence on their followers.

List 2: TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADERS WHO ARE ENTREPRENEURS

By definintion, entreprenerus must be transformational leaders. And while the American business schools are great believers in that they have to be managers, they completely neglect how to be a lead.

List 3: TRANSFORMATIONAL CEOS 

While there are exceptions such as , most CEO’s of Fortune 500 companies are not transformational. Decades spent obeying corporate rules to get to the top, typically creates hesitation when it comes to changing those rules.

This lists concentrates on CEOs and business leaders who:

Are not founders of the corporation. These individuals could be considered . Can heal an unhealthy culture. For example, Steve Jobs makes makes our list of as a successful entrepreneur, but also makes this list since after he returned to Apple, it was a dysfunctional organization headed toward bankruptcy. Did not grow organization through acquisition. Many CEOs, being men and women of action, like to buy things. However, different sources have said that as many as 2/3 of corporate acquisitions are not good deals from the stand point of the acquiring organization’s stockholders. Do not need good PR firms. Some CEOS who put on a pretty good facade as an enlightened, successful leader but the reality is much different. A classic example was “Chainsaw” — .

While there are many great business leaders, this page concentrates on those that had books written about them or who wrote there own autobiography.

List 4: FAMOUS TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADERS FROM ASIA

Many Asian leaders have been lost to history. Those that remain are truly fascinating. Great men and women who created nations were there was none.

 is undergoing something of leadership revival in Mongolia today. This site presents background information on the life of a transformational leader few of us would want to face, let alone oppose.

On the other hand, while some leaders accomplish things through the use of the sword,  chose the method of nonviolence.

List 5: TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADERS WHO ARE AMERICAN

Business only forms one arena for the transformational leader. Another is government. In fact, you might argue that government is a tougher test for the transformational leader than is business. For one thing, the scale is much different. A CEO influences thousands, a head of state, millions. And military leaders often function as heads of state.

 as a general, he had a long and illustrious history. Transformational to a great degree, he set-up a new and completely different Japan compared to what had existed before World War II. This article also lists a series of leadership questions one can ask about your treatment of others.

List 6: FAMOUS TRANSFORMATIONAL LEADERS FROM AFRICA

Unfortunately, while humans began in Africa and migrated else where, the story of those great leaders who are now nameless and long forgotten. Here a few that are still remembered.