The most influential European of the 20th Century

[uptown]

Ferdinand Porsche[2] (3 September 1875 – 30 January 1951)

I'm not a car guy.  I do respect those who take lemons and make Lamborghinis (Volkswagon owns Lamborghini and Porsce started Volkswagon).  He with American Henry Ford, both changed how humans relied on the horseless carriage for everyday needs.

Some men may be charasmatic to start aggression and others to defend from aggression.  It takes the thinkers and tinkers to make war happen.  After the wars are over, to use that experience and create peaceful pursuits that everyday people utilize fosters a great accomplishment.

Take these suggestions and choose one that will fit your needs or choose someone not listed.

Henry Ford  that's a good one.

[kilo2]

Vladimir Ilyich Lenin.

[nrshida]

Hitler was not influential, that's entirely the incorrect adjective.

Banshee7, are you going to tell us what grade we get collectively if we help you with this class project?  

[Rob52240]

Still Tesla.

[Old Sport]

Arguably the trigger (pun intended) of the greatest long-term effect on Europe with a minimum of input:



None other than Gavrilo Princip.

[vonKrimm]

Arguably the trigger (pun intended) of the greatest long-term effect on Europe with a minimum of input:

None other than Gavrilo Princip.

Good, but very argueabel as to the degree of influence.

Now for obscure but influential, I give you: Watson and Crick

[Rash]

Monty Python

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vuW6tQ0218

[rpm]

Hitler?! Hitler was a failure with 1 nut and bugs in the brain.

 Dwight D. Eisenhower or Ronald Reagan was the most influential men of the last century IMO.

I never realized Eisenhower and Reagan were Europeans...

[MrRiplEy[H]]

Hitler?! Hitler was a failure with 1 nut and bugs in the brain.

 Dwight D. Eisenhower or Ronald Reagan was the most influential men of the last century IMO.

Yep great Europeans indeed.

[Rob52240]

Yep great Europeans indeed.

I agree.  And Lincoln and Colt wus the most influential the century before that.

[mthrockmor]

Hitler was incredibly influential, not for good but massively influential. There are literally hundreds of modern manifestations of Adolph Hitler and his Nazi Third Reich.

One somewhat random one would be our current military intelligence and the US State Dept. During the closing days of WW2 we began to realize that the next threat was the Communists of the Soviet Union. A significant hurdle was the fact that we had almost zero intelligence infrastructure into the Soviet Union. I think most historical buffs know how the Nazi rocket program became the basis of our own rocket program which ultimately lead to John Glenn in space and a man on the moon. Did you know that most of our European intelligence through CIA (former OSS) came through a similar adoption of the Nazi SS intelligence network throughout Europe and into the Soviet Union? On Monday they worked for Adolph and the Third Reich; On Tuesday they began to work for Donovan, the OSS and Truman.

I attended a lecture at BYU years back by a retired State Dept diplomat who provided an extensive history and many of the questions raised by the influence within the State Dept by this adoption. In fact, at some level DoD still looks at the State Dept with suspicion that is long a hold over from the distrust developed afterwards. Much to debate and watching State and DoD go back and forth is good sport.

Hitler's influence in our own intelligence leading to influence in thousands of policies. Much to debate there.

Boo

[APDrone]

While I admit that Hitler and Stalin were certainly influential, their scope is restricted somewhat.

They will always exist as examples of the level of evil that Man is capable of achieving.

Einstein, however, gave us knowledge and insight that is the framework for understanding our world at levels we still haven't achieved.

Look at all the hoopla generated when a bunch of scientists thought he might have actually been wrong about the speed of light limit.

Tesla would be right up there with him, imho, except he went and died before we could translate his brain into something we could comprehend.

[Wildcat1]

Gavrilo Princep.

He's the one who ignited the whole powder keg. Without WW1, there would not have been a Nazi party or WW2 for that matter. Without WW2, there likely would have been no cold war. No cold war, no NATO, probably not so much of a global market either

[Rash]

Do you think he knew what he caused?  Only if they had Scuz back then.
  To nip it in the bud.

[Rash]

Stalin, rule 256. you are png.  Hitler, 1120 for being a jack but