Historical figures in London
The atlas holds 101 people and 455 moments here, from 1374 to 2022. The most recorded lives are Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Jawaharlal Nehru and Rudyard Kipling. Among them Writers, Political Leaders and Scientists, across the Space Age and the Cold War.
Notable people
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
from 1861 to 1893
3 moments here
Russian Romantic composer whose career ranged from civil-service work and conservatory teaching in Saint Petersburg and Moscow to international…
Jawaharlal Nehru
from 1905 to 1948
3 moments here
Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist and statesman who became independent India’s first prime minister, serving from 15 August 1947 until his…
Rudyard Kipling
from 1889 to 1936
3 moments here
English journalist, novelist, poet, and short-story writer. Born in Bombay, Kipling spent his childhood in India and England, worked as a journalist…
Jonathan Swift
from 1707 to 1726
3 moments here
Anglo-Irish writer, satirist, political pamphleteer, and Church of Ireland cleric, best known for Gulliver's Travels, A Tale of a Tub, and A Modest…
Prince
from 2006 to 2014
3 moments here
Prince Rogers Nelson was an American singer, songwriter, musician, producer, actor, and filmmaker associated with the Minneapolis sound.…
Albert Einstein
from 1921 to 1933
2 moments here
German-born theoretical physicist who transformed modern physics through special and general relativity, foundational work on quantum theory, and…
Salvador Dalí
from 1936 to 1938
2 moments here
Spanish painter, sculptor, writer, designer, filmmaker, and leading exponent of Surrealism. Born in Figueres, Dalí trained in Madrid, joined the…
Hans Christian Andersen
in 1847
2 moments here
Danish writer renowned for literary fairy tales including “The Little Mermaid,” “The Emperor’s New Clothes,” “The Snow Queen,” and “The Ugly…
Rabindranath Tagore
from 1879 to 1912
2 moments here
Bengali poet, novelist, dramatist, composer, painter, philosopher, social reformer, and educationist.…
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
in 1766
2 moments here
Genevan philosopher, writer, composer, and a major figure of the European Enlightenment. Rousseau’s documented movements ranged across Geneva, Savoy,…
Edgar Allan Poe
from 1816 to 1817
2 moments here
American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic whose work helped shape Gothic fiction, detective fiction, and early science fiction.…
Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz
from 1673 to 1676
2 moments here
German polymath, philosopher, mathematician, jurist, diplomat, court councillor, historian, and librarian.…
Mikhail Gorbachev
from 1984 to 1991
2 moments here
Soviet and Russian politician who led the Soviet Union from 1985 until its dissolution in 1991.…
Marlene Dietrich
from 1964 to 1972
2 moments here
German-American actress and singer Marlene Dietrich (Marie Magdalene Dietrich) was born in Berlin and achieved international fame through stage,…
Stephen Hawking
from 2012 to 2015
2 moments here
English theoretical physicist, cosmologist, and author whose work on singularities, black-hole thermodynamics, and Hawking radiation reshaped modern…
Sarah Bernhardt
from 1879 to 1882
2 moments here
French stage and early film actress, born Henriette-Rosine Bernard in Paris. Bernhardt became an international theatrical star through performances…
Dwight D. Eisenhower
in 1942
2 moments here
Dwight D. Eisenhower was a United States Army officer, Supreme Allied Commander in Europe during World War II, and the 34th president of the United…
Hugo Chávez
from 2001 to 2006
2 moments here
Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías was a Venezuelan army officer and politician who led the failed February 1992 coup attempt, became president of Venezuela in…
Peter the Great
in 1698
2 moments here
Peter I of Russia, known as Peter the Great, was tsar from 1682 and emperor from 1721 until 1725.…
Giuseppe Verdi
from 1847 to 1875
2 moments here
Italian composer whose career transformed nineteenth-century opera. Born near Busseto, Verdi studied and worked in Busseto and Milan, then traveled…
Indira Gandhi
from 1966 to 1969
2 moments here
Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi was an Indian stateswoman who served as prime minister from 1966 to 1977 and from 1980 until her assassination in 1984.…
Peter Paul Rubens
in 1629
2 moments here
Flemish Baroque painter, designer, humanist, collector, and diplomat. Rubens was born at Siegen, spent formative years in Cologne and Antwerp, worked…
Montesquieu
from 1729 to 1730
2 moments here
Charles-Louis de Secondat, Baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu, was a French jurist, historian, and political philosopher.…
Thomas Hobbes
from 1651 to 1660
2 moments here
English philosopher and political theorist, best known for Leviathan (1651). Hobbes’s documented movements include study at Oxford, European travel…
Moments
- 1724 Journeyman printer in London Benjamin Franklin
- 1724 House at Stoke Newington Daniel Defoe
- 1725 Moves to Kensington for his health Isaac Newton
- 1726 Stayed with Pope at Twickenham Jonathan Swift
- 1726 Lives with Fawkener in Wandsworth Voltaire
- 1726 Takes rooms at Durham Court Voltaire
- 1726 Recounts the falling-apple insight Isaac Newton
- 1727 Dies at Kensington Isaac Newton
- 1727 Lodges above the White Peruke Voltaire
- 1729 Arrival in London Montesquieu
- 1730 Initiation at Horn Tavern Lodge Montesquieu
- 1731 Burial at Bunhill Fields Daniel Defoe
- 1731 Death in Ropemakers Alley Daniel Defoe
- 1734 Mary Delany's London party George Frideric Handel
- 1749 Foundling Hospital benefit concert George Frideric Handel
- 1750 Return to Foundling Hospital George Frideric Handel
- 1757 London colonial agency Benjamin Franklin
- 1759 Burial at Westminster Abbey George Frideric Handel
- 1759 Death at Brook Street George Frideric Handel
- 1762 Returns to England and marries in London James Cook
- 1764 Departure from Glasgow for London Adam Smith
- 1764 Second London mission Benjamin Franklin
- 1764 Stays at Ebury Street Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
- 1764 Arrives in London Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
- 1764 Lodges in Cecil Court Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
- 1764 Performs before George III Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
- 1764 Second London royal engagement Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
- 1764 Appears at Ranelagh Gardens Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
- 1764 Performs in Grosvenor Square Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
- 1764 Moves to Frith Street Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
- 1765 Performs at Hickford's Long Room Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
- 1765 Performs daily at a Cornhill tavern Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
- 1766 Arrival in London Jean-Jacques Rousseau
- 1766 Stay at Chiswick Jean-Jacques Rousseau
- 1766 Return to London from France Adam Smith
- 1773 London research and writing Adam Smith
- 1774 London residence while finishing The Wealth of Nations Adam Smith
- 1777 London lodgings in Suffolk Street Adam Smith
- 1785 First audience with George III John Adams
- 1786 London meeting with George III Thomas Jefferson
- 1788 Kent and London family journey Jane Austen
- 1788 Birth on Holles Street Lord Byron
- 1791 Birth at Newington Butts Michael Faraday
- 1796 Journey through London to Rowling Jane Austen
- 1799 Medical treatment at Sloane Terrace Lord Byron
- 1799 Schooling at Dulwich Lord Byron
- 1801 Harrow School Lord Byron
- 1803 Schooling at Eagle House, Wimbledon Arthur Schopenhauer
- 1804 Return to Harrow Lord Byron
- 1804 Bookbinder's apprenticeship Michael Faraday