The British mathematician Ada Lovelace (1815-52) is recognised as the first computer programmer. Her magnum opus is an academic paper on a computer dubbed the ‘Analytical Engine’, which was never built. But her work as a visionary, from conceptualising a flying machine at age 12, to writing the first algorithm to be carried out by a machine, is still recognised today.
Post-war Italy’s Prime Minister Alcide De Gasperi (1881-1954) was a founding father of the EU: ‘Europe will exist, and none of the happiness of each nation will be lost’. Born in the Italian minority in South Tyrol, he studied in Vienna and campaigned actively for European unity. Imprisoned by the fascists, he later founded the Italian People’s Part.
As prime minister of Lisbon, António Guterres (born 1949) reportedly visited slums near Lisbon to teach children maths. The engineering lecturer joined the Socialists after the dictatorship ended in 1974, and was later UN Commissioner for Refugees and president of the EU Council. Currently serving as UN Secretary-General, Guterres is keen on promoting social responsibility.
Despite the Byzantines in the east, the Pope in the south and warlords everywhere, it was the ambition of Charlemagne, or Charles the Great (742-814), to unite much of Western Europe. The ‘founder of Europe’ and Emperor of the West, this legendary Frankish king used military tactics to expand Europe as we know it. He realigned modern Belgium, Luxembourg, France, Germany, the Netherlands, northern Italy and Spain.
With his splayed walk, bowler hat and madcap moustache, Charlie Chaplin (1889-1977) was one of the most memorable entertainers of the 20th century. Born in poverty in London, he performed eccentric characters such as the drunken tramp or the great dictator with pathos and comedy. As Hollywood’s silent cinema moved into ‘talkies’, he continued work as a writer, composer and director.
They smashed windows and went on hunger strikes, all in the tireless campaign to bring the right to vote to women in Britain. Leader of the Suffragettes Emmeline Pankhurst (1858-1928), incarcerated multiple times, died a month before her dream was realised. Her encouragement of women in the war effort went a long way in convincing the government of their cause.
The founder of modern nursing, Britain’s Florence Nightingale (1820-1910) rebelled against the expected role of a woman of her status in Victorian Britain, training in Germany and visiting hospitals in Paris and Rome. The support of her humanitarian efforts in the Crimean War enabled ‘the Lady with the Lamp’ to push for healthcare reform in Europe.
From soprano singer to organist and composer, Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750) created masterpieces in every Baroque genre. Augmenting established German musical styles, he declared his 200 cantatas ‘for the glory of God alone’. His music influenced modern genres, and is infused by tragedy in his life; as an orphan, or in his violin solo after losing his wife.
Famous for his moustache, Polish former electrician Lech Wałęsa (born 1943) entered politics when he became the leader of Solidarity, the largest anti-communist social movement in Central Europe. In the 1980s he led mass protests in Poland, which eventually contributed to the downfall of the Soviet Union. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1983, and elected as the president of Poland in 1990.
The “Grandmother of the European Union”, French journalist and feminist Louise Weiss (1893-1983) was an influential voice in international affairs from the 1920s. She founded The New Europe magazine, inspired ideas about European integration, and led France to granting voting rights for women in 1944. Elected to the European Parliament at the age of 86, she was the oldest MEP at the time.
