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Btw Queen Elizabeth II is actually Queen Elizabeth III but her mum renamed herself to Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother to not get each other too relative with name Elizabeth ty for ur time
My 10: Charles Chaplin, Stephen Hawking, Charles Dickens, Tim Berners-Lee, Robert Stephenson, Florence Nightingale, Alexander Fleming, Charles Babbage, Emmeline Pankhurst, Alan Turing.
i agree with it all but id have to cram churchill into my list somewhere haha, and Jack Churchill too, he landed in normalndy with a broadsword on D-day.... >
@@simpsonwykewane I have to reply to this Fred Dibnah, a right Yorkshireman, he reminds me of my past Uncle, who was also a steeplejack roofer. They both be having a piss pint of tea, builders tea.
Great video guys! I would have added the following to the list Stephen Hawking for his work in theoretical physics. Sir David Attenborough for his work in conservation etc. Florence Nightingale for revolutionising nursing. Emmeline Pankhurst for her contribution to the suffragette movement. Aneurin Bevan for creating the NHS.
Definetly should of had Aneurin Bevan on this list for creating the NHS. A boy from the South of Wales, whom came from a coal mining family background, whom also left school at 13 to work should of definetly been on the list. I don't even want to think about where we would have been today especially during this covid period without our NHS. Happy 72nd birthday NHS (Penblwydd Happus NHS)! 🎉🎂. Great video again Eric and Grace 😊.
We'd have been in shit creek if Mrs.T hadn't come along to face the unions that were calling strikes over nothing every few weeks. And please don't whine about the miners, coal was on the way out anyway.
"The Black Prince" my favourite Brit of all time... The only British General never to be beaten in battle, but more importantly, I like him because he stuck it to the French.
Off the top of my head I don't believe the Duke of Marlborough, Robert Clive, Frederick Roberts or Bernard Mongomery ever lost lost a battle either. I could be wrong but I suspect there could be quite a few.
How about Alan Turing? Could have been a very different World War II if he hadn't built one of the first ever computers and cracked the German enigma machine.
Turing did not actually build the first computers (the Bomb and then Colossus). That was down to a brilliant chap and his team from the, er... Post Office Telephone and Telegraph Department, Tommy Flowers.They made the dream a reality. And they were definitively the first ever computers as we would understand the term, firstly with a specific use, and afterwards, programmable. A pity that tosser Churchill ordered that they should be destroyed towards the end of the war! What a cretin. Oh: I included the phrase “as we would understand the term” in relation to computers, because originally a computer was someone, usually a woman, who was employed specifically to perform complicated calculations quickly and accurately.
@@allenwilliams1306 actually the principles of the machine designed by Babage were extremely similar to a modern computer and Ada Lovelace wrote the first algorithm.
As a proud Bristolian I'd like to point out that Brunel's middle name was his mother's maiden name, also one of Brunel's lasting legacies (at least in Bristol) is the Clifton suspension bridge
The theory of gravity and calculus makes Isaac Newton a major figure in world history. But I think his biggest contribution to British history was as Master of the Mint, he made the currency reliable. The Bank of England was established around this time and a stable currency made the Pound and City of London global powers.
@@WanderingRavens Appear as himself on an episode of Star Trek. Stephen Hawking is - so far - the only person to do that* *He appears as a hologram of himself, technically, along with holograms of Newton and Einstein, who are playing poker with Data.
@Wandering Ravens his main passion was alchemy - the mystical attempt to transmute base metal into gold. It is possible he actually succeeded. When you look at the timeline alchemy fell out of favour at about the same time as the Bank of England and modern finance came into being. Following the inflation that was caused by the influx of gold and silver from the Americas anyone as bright as Newton who found a way of making gold would keep it a dark secret injecting only so much gold as needed to build a vast trading empire. Probably not true but the co-incidence is remarkable 🧐 it more plausible than a lot of modern conspiracy theories. 🤓🤫
Newton's invention of the reflecting telescope was a major breakthrough for astronomy. His innovation of telescopic mirrors allowed for much larger instruments to be made than if we'd been stuck with lens-based "Galilean" refractors. Centuries later, it would take a 100-inch reflecting telescope (basically a Newtonian one) to allow Edwin Hubble to discover the expansion of the Universe.
Smashing video guys. Also, love how you even know William Wilberforce is let alone think he should be in there. He should, very cool chap, especially in current climate...people should know him.
@@WanderingRavens He is very well known indeed. It is just that slavery did not exist in Britain itself in his time, and had not for hundreds of years. His interest was in slavery in the Empire, and, not being a domestic concern, did not, and does not engage the British population.
@Rob Crossgrove I also think she simply wasn't up to the job, which I admit is a tough one. I remember saying to my wife I was sick of seeing her face on the front of the newspaper every single day. (No, Diana, not my wife.) It really was over the top at the time. The very next day she was a dead'un and I felt pretty bad. I mean, I didn't wish her dead or anything. I'll always remember it as it was my niece's wedding. Still, it's an ill wind...
History nerd here....Brunels second name was from his mother Sophia Kingdom so its basically what we call a double barrelled name to honour the Maternal family after marriage. Marc Brunel was a famous French engineer himself who came to England in the late 18th century. Father and son both worked together for nearly 20 years on the Thames tunnel project which was the first tunnel to be built under a navigable river and employed a tunnel shield device, something never tried before. It was originally a pedestrian tunnel but It is now incorporated into the Underground crossing the Thames at Rotherhithe. Its no wonder Ismbard followed in his fathers mighty footsteps and even surpassed them later. Sir Kenneth Branagh portrayed him at the opening ceremony of the 2012 Olympics.
Aneurin Bevan should definitely be there, dump Diana to make room. So she spent some time doing charity work, I and thousands of people like me volunteer for charities but we don't do it for the photo ops.
@Rob Crossgrove What about all the medical staff who had contact with patients and had to draw blood etc at that time when it was a disease with a definite death sentence. They were far more heroic.
What for? Massacring thousands of innocent civilians and then being inept enough to get massacred in turn? You notice that she didn't actually have any long term effects either. Pretty ineffective all round.
@@slightlyconfused876 No long term effects? Really? By AD60 the Romans had managed to almost bury the knowledge of the defeats in the Second Punic War. Boudica wiping out a good chunk of the Roman armed forces in Britain and leveling Colchester (which was full of Roman Veterans) cracked at least the image of Roman invincibility.There is a possible link between that and the Jewish Revolt that led to Jerusalem being leveled in AD70 along with several other revolts. There is a school of thought that Nero's debate with the senate over pulling out of Britain due to the Boudica revolt which in turn led to his downfall and the nonsense about him fiddling while Rome burned. That was obviously propaganda as the more average Roman citizen thought he was a good leader.
Watt Tyler, Cromwell was a kinda revolutionary in order to become dictator. A dictator that left in place a design for future democracy. A complicated historical figure. Brunel: not just the biggest ship, the first ship made of metal, not wood
He ignored and reduced Parliament to an irrelevance, his rule was backed up by military force and he designated his son as his successor. A democrat he was not.
The civil war happened because Charles 1st dismissed Parliment because they wouldn't give him what he wanted, when Oliver Cromwell became Lord protector (King in all but name) he did the same thing.
@@WanderingRavens Cromwell also banned quite a lot of things like Christmas, pubs, theatre, sports etc. As he was against them on religious and moral grounds. It was only until Charles II came back that things were reinstated.
I know you guys have a great thirst for British knowledge, so hearing you refer to the "Thames River" made me think of another nugget to add to your repertoire. In the UK we tend to put River before the name, so it would be the River Thames, River Tyne, River Avon, River Taff, River Clyde etc. etc. P.S. Well done for pronouncing Thames correctly! 👍
Love your videos. ACIREMA reminds me of that wonderfully named village in Dylan Thomas's “Under Milk Wood”. That was LLAREGGUB, in theory near Fishguard, Pembrokeshire, West Wales. Peter
Another recommendation for Nye (Aneurin) Bevan , we can only thank him for sparing us the horrendous health system that the USA has ........ Why is the concept of “all pay in and all take out when it’s needed” such an anathema to American?
The only difference in the US and UK healthcare is that the americans have to voluntary pay for health insurance and the UK its compulsory insurance as in national insurance. Quite a lot of US companies include health insurance as part of the contracts. I'm not knocking the UK system by any means but with what I pay, I could probably get private treatment and better unemployment insurance for less. I'm quite happy to pay the extra so people on lower wages can benefit.
Nye Bevan and Jennie Lee, husband and wife, he created the NHS and she created the Open University. Clement Attlee, probably our greatest Prime Minister. Alexander Fleming,discovered penicillin and comes from my part of the world. Alan Turing broke the enigma code
Clem Attlee, deputy Prime Minister during most of the War, provided the support that Churchill needed to become PM in the first place. Despite his myriad faults, no other Conservative leaders had the backbone or inclination to oppose Hitler “come what may”, and Chamberlain's replacement had to be a Conservative, because they held the majority in the Commons. Attlee has never been given the credit that is his due for his actions at this crucial time, or for his, and other Labour ministers', complete running of the Home Front for the rest of the War. The people, and, particularly, the servicemen of the time knew this, and responded by booting out Churchill (whose usefulness had expired) in 1945. Attlee then presided over the post-war transformation which defined Britain at least until Margaret Thatcher sharpened her claws, and, arguably, ever since, because the failures of Thatcherism have now been revealed. Clem: the Greatest Prime Minister!
My Personal List: 10) Alexander Graham Bell 9) William Shakespeare 8) Charles Dickens (Yes, I do think Dickens was a better writer than Shakespeare) 7) Christina Rossetti (And Rossetti was a better poet) 6) Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (Less a better writer, more a generally better person) 5) Henry Tudor (later King Henry VII) 4) Sir Francis Drake 3) Florence Nightingale 2) Mary Seacole (Her father was Scottish, and she was a subject of the Empire, so yes she counts as British) 1) Alan Turing
Wandering Ravens Catholicism in England was heavily repressed under Queen Elizabeth I, particularly after the pope excommunicated her in 1570. During her reign, dozens of priests were put to death, and Catholics could not even legally celebrate Mass or be married according to their own rites. As a result, many Catholics had high hopes when King James I took the throne upon Elizabeth’s death in 1603. James’ wife, Anne, is believed to have previously converted to Catholicism, and his mother, Mary Queen of Scots, was Elizabeth’s Catholic archrival prior to being executed. There were even rumors, inspired by his diplomatic overtures to the pope, that James himself would become Catholic. It soon became clear, however, that James did not support religious tolerance for Catholics. In 1604 he publicly condemned Catholicism as a superstition, ordered all Catholic priests to leave England and expressed concern that the number of Catholics was increasing. He also largely continued with the repressive policies of his predecessor, such as fines for those refusing to attend Protestant services. Guy Fawkes and others attempted to blow up Parliament and kill King James in the belief that it would encourage Catholic’s to stand up and fight. As we all know it was a total failure.
@@mrjohn.whereyoufrom Queen Elizabeth 1st was fairly liberal and tolerant of other religions by the standards of the times. The catholics put to death were involved in a number of plots to assassinate her. In particular a number of Jesuit priests came to England with the specific aim of killing her.
It always makes me laugh when John Lennon is included in these lists of great people. He was not a nice person at all. It’s well documented about how he treated his first wife and his son. His son has written about the abuse in the past. Ps I know you didn’t compile the list, but I wanted to add this comment before everyone started pouring all over him and how much of a great musician he was. On a positive note, your videos are superb. It’s always interesting to get the American perspective on us Brits!!!
As a wise guy once said, “it's my estimation that every man ever got a statue made of him was one kind of a son of a bitch or another", and it's difficult to disagree.
Harold Godwinson, the last English king of England before the Normans took over.. He took his army on a forced march up north, fought a battle, defeated the Vikings, then had another forced march back to meet William - and still held him off for the better part of a day.
My top ten. 10. William Shakespeare 9. Edward Jenner 8. Isambard Kingdom Brunel 7. Isaac Newton 6. William Wilberforce 5. Lord Nelson 4. The Iron Duke 3. Alan Turing 2. The Black Prince 1. Winston Churchill Honourable mention: Freddie Mercury
Not someone many people will have heard of, but one of my favourites (certainly my favourite local - she was from Liverpool) is Eleanor Rathbone. Suffragist, one of the first female MPs, uni lecturer, and a key campaigner on issues including women's and children's rights (both in the UK and internationally - e.g. in India and Kenya, on issues from female circumcision to child marriage), human rights, and refugees (including campaigning to take in Jews and dissident Germans during WW2). She campaigned for a family allowance that eventually became the child benefit system in the UK today.
Hello, I am a student who went to middle school after taking Eric's class at Changhyeon Elementary School. It's a pity that I can't see you, but always try!
My English name is Seo Sang-kyung, and I was in grade 5, class 2. I remember the fun and memories of your class... I'll support you in the future, waiting for another day.
상경서 . He is now Eric W Raven. He is an American who talks about British culture to British people from France. He is confused! Fortunately he has a saving Grace! We Bri
Not sure who I'd remove, probably John Lennon, but it always shocks me when Florence Nightgale doesn't appear in a list like this. Churchill was also not great. He may have down some great things for the country, but also, he did a lot of bad too.
You see everyone remembers Issac newton for Gravity but really his three laws of Motion and the ideas that became known as Newtonian mechanics that are far more important. It allowed precise calculations to be made regarding velocity, acceleration, forces, and made sending men to the moon possible... remember the classic line from the Apollo film with Tom hanks - 'we just put Issac Newton in the driving seat'. Additionally he developed , discovered, invented (delete as you see fit) Calculus. I know the Germans claim it was Leibniz as well, but of as a patriotic Englishman that is just not true of course, although he may have helped a little. One of my most exciting moments in my life was to look on one of the original Newton's Principia on display in the Bodeian library in Oxford.
The question wasn't greatest it was best. Churchill was on there for his efforts defeating Germany in WW1 but can anyone (without looking it up) tell me who helped defeat them in WW1 and why he's not in the list. It's just a popularity survey and naturally people will pick people they consider popular to them. Kate might get in the top 1000 but the establishment will prevent her getting higher. After all they dont want another Diana scandal.
It's nothing to do with looks, people love Diana because she was a good, present mother (something they had NEVER seen in the royal family before), she was far more normal and non-judgemental, she was kind, she was present with the working class people and didnt just sweep them aside - she used to hand write replies to all of her letters. The only reason people "dont mind" that she had an affair is that Charles was cheating on her since before they were even married with Camilla (who was also married and this is why she would never make it onto the list) and was such an awful husband that he triggered her to develop a very severe mental health disorder. so what if she wanted to shag her bodyguard? her husband refused to live with her, or talk to her, cheated on her publicly with a married woman, and made her life miserable. She would have divorced him if they werent in the royal family.
@@autisticackermann100 well one good thing now is the royals can marry who they want, not what's forced upon them...if that was the case in Charles and Diana's day then everyone would of been happy
My Personal list: 1) Nye Bevan 2) Isaac Newton 3) Isambard Kingdom Brunel 4) Clem Attlee 5) Charles Darwin 6) Arthur Wellesley 7) Horatio Nelson 8) Florence Nightingale 9) Alan Turing 10) Stephen Hawking
I would remove John Lennon and Princess Diana. I would add Joseph Bazalgette (1819 - 1891). He was the Chief Engineer who created the Sewer Network for Central London (the same one that is still used today). A great achievement in itself but it was also instrumental in relieving the city from cholera epidemics. I would also add Henry VIII. I know this is a strange one but hear my reasoning. I nominate him because he created the Church of England which meant we broke away from the rich and powerful rule of the Catholic Church making us independent from the rest of Europe. If it had not been for him I would not exist. My ancestors were French Huguenots (Protestants) from La Rochelle who were persecuted by the French Catholics which included the Nobility. If it had not been for Henry VIII my ancestors would not have had anywhere to flee to and would have been killed in the genocides. They were the first people to be called refugees and this is why a french word is still used today to describe people fleeing from persecution.
It is also arguable that a Roman Catholic England would not have established colonies in America - Catholic Spain and Portugal carved the new world between themselves and would have claimed precedence. No non-conformist Protestants, no mayflower pilgrims. No Quakers, no Pennsylvania. etc. etc.
@@WanderingRavens Luckily for me my mum was a genealogist. There were several waves coming to England. My ancestors were not the first to flee and hung on until they really had no choice. We have traced other family lines back even further than that. On my dad's side we have trace back to the early 1600's (Northamptonshire).
1) Clement Attlee 2) Winston Churchill 3) Issac Newton 4) Charles Darwin 5) Alan Turning 6) William Shakespeare 7) Charles Dickens 8) Lord Nelson 9) Alfred the Great 10) Elizabeth I
Loving the content guys! My top pick for best brit would be Billy connolly (he is from Glasgow) OR Jimmy Page. They are both GODS in my eyes. Can't wait for the next video! X
Outrageous! An absolute travesty! Where is the name of Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington? The greatest general Britain ever produced, every time he met the French he thrashed them. He was, on land, what Nelson was at sea and even served as Prime Minister in his later days. Also, in company with King George IV, he founded England's third oldest university, Kings College London.
What, no Frank Whittle? No Tim Berners-Lee? No Stephen Hawking? No Charles Dickens? No Captain James Cook? No Alan Turing? No Charles Babbage? No Alexander Fleming? No John Logie Baird? No James Watt? No Francis Bacon? No Ada Lovelace? No Edmond Halley? No William Herschel? No Ernest Rutherford? No Bernard Lovell? No Arthur Eddington? No Henry Cavendish? No Michael Faraday? No Alexander Graham Bell? No James Clerk Maxwell? No Trevor Bayliss? No James Dyson? No Peter Higgs? Who even comes up with these lists?
I think Vera Lynn would be a worthy candidate. Born during the First World War, entertained troops in Burma during the Second World War as few entertainers were there. She did a great deal of charity work and topped the UK album chart at the age of 100. She was a person we all could rally around and was even quoted by the queen during her address on corona virus. Plus she lived to a 103 years old meaning she had an impact in UK life for almost 80 years.
Loving the irreverence in this video. 😁 I've not genuinely laughed out loud at anything for a long time but Eric describing the 'total mess' that was life before gravity was invented, all with a perfectly straight face had me spitting my drink out for laughing! Brilliant!!
1.Charles Darwin 2.Isaac Newton 3.James Watt 4.Michael Faraday 5.William Shakespeare 6.Charles Dickens 7.Emmeline Pankhurst 8.Nye Bevan 9.William Wilberforce 10.Alan Turing. With special shout-out to John Maynard-Keynes, Wat Tyler, Tim Berners-Lee and James Lovelock. I’m amazed Watt and Faraday aren’t on the list, arguably the most important figures in the industrial revolution, much more so than Brunel. In defence of John Lennon, he’s probably more there to represent British popular music, the Beatles being widely acknowledged as the most influential band of all time.
@@WanderingRavens although in medieval and restoration periods Scotland and France had been allies ('the Auld alliance'), Scotland had already been part of the UK for nearly 90 years by the outbreak of the revolutionary and Napoleonic wars with France (1793-1815). In that time, the UK was involved with several wars with France, including the Wars of the Spanish and Austrian succession, and the US War of Independence. Although to be fair, there are very few countries in the world the UK hasn't had a war with at some point...
And being an enemy of France is not uniquely English. The Spanish, Germans and Italians have all had very good reasons to hate the French for their aggression.
The last naval engagement between France and the UK was in 1940 - Churchill ordered the Royal Navy to fire upon the French fleet (ostensibly to prevent it from falling into German hands) with the loss of 1300 French sailors lives.
Isambard Kingdom Brunel got his name from his father and mother...Marc Isambard Brunel ( a French civil engineer) and the English lady he married, Sophia Kingdom. Marc designed the Thames tunnel at Rotherhithe (which is still in use today), but Isambard was the resident engineer. He almost died when the river broke through during the works and during his convalesence in Bristol, entered the competition to design a bridge at Clifton. The susupension bridge was completed to a modified design after his death as a memorial. Although the SS Great Britain was the biggest ship at the time, it was eclipsed by the SS Great Eastern, which at 692 feet long, was the biggest ship in the world until the RMS Lusitania was built 48 years later! It also was instrumental in the first econmically successful trans Atlantic telegraph cable, as it was the only ship big enough to carry all the cable at once!. She was scrapped in Liverpool and the only piece of her that remains is her jackstaff, which is used at Liverpool FC's ground at Anfield as a flagpole. Can you tell I'm a bit of a Brunel fan?! Loads more I could tell you.
My top 10: Mary Seacole, Ada Lovelace, Alan Turing, Emmeline Pankhurst, Boudica, Stephen Hawking, Isaac Newton, Mary Shelley, Alexander Fleming, Benjamin Zephaniah.
Awesome list of famous British People Wandering Ravens. Fun Fact: Winston Churchill was a POW during the Boer Wars and he escaped. I know that Churchill had faced controversy, especially to this day, but let's give him credit for defending the UK from Nazi Germany.
He was a racist, a believer in empire when empire had had its day, and other than his glory time against Hitler, which I am not denigrating, he was pretty much a failure in everything he did. He even wanted to have a war with Russia at the end of WW2.
Though we admire his stoic leadership in wartime, Winston Churchill is roundly denounced in Scotland as before being PM ,as an MP hes sent tanks and troops into Glasgow under the guise of the Defence of the Realm Act to subdue the striking workers demanding a 40 hour week
Boudica would have been in my top ten. Not only did she unite all the various tribes but she nearly drove the mighty Roman Empire out of England. Evidence of her rampage still exists. Layers of soot where she burnt down entire towns can still be found in London and Gloucester.
I think there is an argument for John Lennon, mainly because of the impact and influence the Beatles had on music as we know it today. Princess Di certainly shouldn't be on there though, there are plenty of others who deserve to be in the top 10 instead: Alan Turing, Emmeline Pankhurst, Stephen Hawking, and Wilberforce as you said
Perhaps since this list was made so long ago it might be fun for you to ask your subscribers and everyone in general who they might consider the top 10 or 20 Britons of all time. Just for fun and a glimpse at how generational perceptions differ. Might prove to be fascinating :D Oh and also I enjoy your content very much :)
@@WanderingRavens If you do a poll please try to word it so as not to include people's favorites. Something like greatest or influential brittains or you will get peoples favourite musicians or footballers as shown on this thread. Its strange no ones mentioned any of the spice girls on this thread 🤣
Fun fact about Brunel: Whilst performing a coin magic trick for his children, Brunel accidentally got a coin stuck in his throat. This story made the papers and became national news. It stayed there for a while until Brunel designed and built a device to hang himself upside down with and remove the coin. His contraption worked and again made the news.
I am British not American, but to be honest, I think all of the kings and queens, and all those soldiers who died for us, all the best people in the Uk and the people who served our country and serve our country
Btw....Winston Churchill was officially half American as his Mother was American socialite Jenny Jerome. I think the special relationship we have with America can be said to be a lot to do with his influence and appeal in the States due to his background.
To be fair, Queen Victoria would not have been so influential without Oliver Cromwell. Cromwell created the first, formal British Army, and without that groundwork Queen Victoria wouldn't have presided over a Empire encompassing 1/3 of the globe, and - therefore - wouldn't have been so influential.
It was her husband Prince Albert who was the radical and creative thinker and got things done. Victoria herself might have ruled over a mighty empire, but seems to have been overly conservative and a bit of an airhead!
Interesting! Personally I would take out Cromwell and Churchill. Cromwell because he did far more damage than he did good, the ransacking of a lot of our history and he was only interested in gaining control for his kind (namely the landed gentry). Churchill for much the same reasons as Cromwell, whilst he most definitely was the type of person needed to bring the country together during WWII the rest of his legacy was one of racism, bigotry and outright contempt for the British people in general. I would replace them both with any of these. George Stephenson industrial engineer and founder of the railways that helped Britain become a driving force with the industrial revolution. Sir Frank Whittle, inventor of the Turbojet Engine that revolutionised world travel. Thanks for the video, it got the brain cells working.
Couple of things I know you didn't compile the list but 1 Ask the Irish what they think of Cromwell it will not be a conversation without a good amount of FS and Cs 2 While everybody seems to fawn over Churchill he wasn't a great defender of the poor. Love your videos keep up the great work Ps the edit was because of some typos
They fawn over churchil because his a big reason that we didn't give in against hitler? Not because his a saint who can do no wrong, yes has done bad things but I honestly think him saving our country outweighs the bad that he has done.
@@WanderingRavens Cromwell is controversial in England, disliked in Scotland, and absolutely reviled in Ireland. But he was very important in breaking the power of absolute monarchy, and setting the country on the road to sortof-democracy. On the other hand, if he hadn't turned into a dictator and imposed lots of rules based on religious prudery, then maybe we would still be a republic.
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I thought of you the other day when making black currant jelly and having some black currants with strawberries last night. Did you try a kir royale?
I would include Michael Faraday. If you have ever used electricity you have him to thank. Strangely unknown, James Clerk-Maxwell deserves consideration. Known as the Scottish Einstein, he unified electricity and magnetism, and was once voted the third greatest physicist of all time. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Faraday en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Clerk_Maxwell
Alan Turing cracked The Enigma Code in WW2, saving thousands of lives & helping end the war. He was also one of the pioneers of modern computing. He was gay and after the war made to undergo therapy for it, such that he ended up committing suicide. A formal apology was issued by the government some decades later.
It's been said that, if it hadn't been for Turing (and many of the others at Bletchley Park), millions of people who are alive today would never have been born.
Roger Bacon James I/VI Thomas Paine James Clerk Maxwell William Armstrong Josiah Wedgewood Chosen on the basis that being influential is great. If it was most underrated Wedgewood would be a front runner. He had strong connections to Wilberforce & Darwin on the Raven's list. Knocking Newton off top spot is a tall order though. Probably the most influential original genius of all time.
Tim Berners-Lee, William Wilberforce, Colin Chapman, Stan Laurel, Alfred Hitchcock, Bob Hope, Isaac Newton, without whom apples would fall from trees and fly off into space.
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If I remember correctly, and it was a long time ago if I have made the mistake it was only to include brits who had passed
You say you detest the song imagine .....why is this? I'm off for some tea and scones
Do not praise Cromwell in front of an Irishman big mistake
Btw Queen Elizabeth II is actually Queen Elizabeth III but her mum renamed herself to Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother to not get each other too relative with name Elizabeth ty for ur time
My 10:
Charles Chaplin, Stephen Hawking, Charles Dickens, Tim Berners-Lee, Robert Stephenson, Florence Nightingale, Alexander Fleming, Charles Babbage, Emmeline Pankhurst, Alan Turing.
Ada Lovelace as well just for her book on computing - she had the vision where Babbage had the practicality - Turing was a fan of hers, ^oo^
@@adeaston6553 There is: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alan_Turing_Memorial
Decent list :)
Damn that's a good list
i agree with it all but id have to cram churchill into my list somewhere haha, and Jack Churchill too, he landed in normalndy with a broadsword on D-day.... >
I recon Fred Dibnah should be on that list as well
What about Fred Titmus......subject of a song by "Half Man Half Biscuit"
@@simpsonwykewane I have to reply to this Fred Dibnah, a right Yorkshireman, he reminds me of my past Uncle, who was also a steeplejack roofer. They both be having a piss pint of tea, builders tea.
He use to go past my house as kid in the 80s on his steam roller and my dad and brother watched him knock a chimney down up the road.
Absolutely!
@@davebram4052 He was from Bolton.
Great video guys! I would have added the following to the list
Stephen Hawking for his work in theoretical physics.
Sir David Attenborough for his work in conservation etc.
Florence Nightingale for revolutionising nursing.
Emmeline Pankhurst for her contribution to the suffragette movement.
Aneurin Bevan for creating the NHS.
So glad you enjoyed it! And great additions!!
Definetly should of had Aneurin Bevan on this list for creating the NHS. A boy from the South of Wales, whom came from a coal mining family background, whom also left school at 13 to work should of definetly been on the list. I don't even want to think about where we would have been today especially during this covid period without our NHS. Happy 72nd birthday NHS (Penblwydd Happus NHS)! 🎉🎂. Great video again Eric and Grace 😊.
So glad you enjoyed it! And thank you for introducing us to Aneurin Bevan :D
No Margaret Thatcher?
Thank you for restoring my faith in humanity!
We'd have been in shit creek if Mrs.T hadn't come along to face the unions that were calling strikes over nothing every few weeks. And please don't whine about the miners, coal was on the way out anyway.
Thatcher is marmite. Half of the people love her, the other half hate her. The Argentinians definitely hate her though so that's a bonus 😂
leedsman54 Agree wholeheartedly strongest leader bar none ( although Churchill was a whisper away. )
But Churchill is still on there though.
@Winston O'Leary He was as evil as Hitler
I just wondered: if Isaac Newton had been a US citizen, gravity would probably have been patented...
Sorry friend, only Americans are allowed to not float away!
Your videos are so well put together and I love your enthusiasm, keep up the great work
Thank you so much!!
"The Black Prince" my favourite Brit of all time... The only British General never to be beaten in battle, but more importantly, I like him because he stuck it to the French.
Oh my! There's a name I don't remember! **Goes to find a documentary**
Off the top of my head I don't believe the Duke of Marlborough, Robert Clive, Frederick Roberts or Bernard Mongomery ever lost lost a battle either. I could be wrong but I suspect there could be quite a few.
@@WanderingRavens he was the son of Edward III.
@@kennethfishwick4061 Monty ? aahhmm what about Arnham . it failed , operation Market Garden , pompous old Git !
@@kennethfishwick4061 or Wellington
How about Alan Turing? Could have been a very different World War II if he hadn't built one of the first ever computers and cracked the German enigma machine.
Turing did not actually build the first computers (the Bomb and then Colossus). That was down to a brilliant chap and his team from the, er... Post Office Telephone and Telegraph Department, Tommy Flowers.They made the dream a reality. And they were definitively the first ever computers as we would understand the term, firstly with a specific use, and afterwards, programmable. A pity that tosser Churchill ordered that they should be destroyed towards the end of the war! What a cretin.
Oh: I included the phrase “as we would understand the term” in relation to computers, because originally a computer was someone, usually a woman, who was employed specifically to perform complicated calculations quickly and accurately.
@Pnoch Eowell no they didn't.
@@allenwilliams1306 actually the principles of the machine designed by Babage were extremely similar to a modern computer and Ada Lovelace wrote the first algorithm.
Princess Di on the list is truly depressing
Did seem a little out of place
The survey was done in the early 2000s, there was still a boatload of Diana hysteria back then.
ua-cam.com/video/WkJqbO0zHss/v-deo.html
As a proud Bristolian I'd like to point out that Brunel's middle name was his mother's maiden name, also one of Brunel's lasting legacies (at least in Bristol) is the Clifton suspension bridge
The theory of gravity and calculus makes Isaac Newton a major figure in world history. But I think his biggest contribution to British history was as Master of the Mint, he made the currency reliable. The Bank of England was established around this time and a stable currency made the Pound and City of London global powers.
Haven't heard about his association with currency! Is there anything Newton didn't do??!
@@WanderingRavens Appear as himself on an episode of Star Trek. Stephen Hawking is - so far - the only person to do that*
*He appears as a hologram of himself, technically, along with holograms of Newton and Einstein, who are playing poker with Data.
@Wandering Ravens his main passion was alchemy - the mystical attempt to transmute base metal into gold. It is possible he actually succeeded. When you look at the timeline alchemy fell out of favour at about the same time as the Bank of England and modern finance came into being. Following the inflation that was caused by the influx of gold and silver from the Americas anyone as bright as Newton who found a way of making gold would keep it a dark secret injecting only so much gold as needed to build a vast trading empire. Probably not true but the co-incidence is remarkable 🧐 it more plausible than a lot of modern conspiracy theories. 🤓🤫
@Wandering Ravens anything he didn’t do? probably “have sex”
Newton's invention of the reflecting telescope was a major breakthrough for astronomy. His innovation of telescopic mirrors allowed for much larger instruments to be made than if we'd been stuck with lens-based "Galilean" refractors. Centuries later, it would take a 100-inch reflecting telescope (basically a Newtonian one) to allow Edwin Hubble to discover the expansion of the Universe.
Smashing video guys. Also, love how you even know William Wilberforce is let alone think he should be in there. He should, very cool chap, especially in current climate...people should know him.
Yes! He should be much more well known!
@@WanderingRavens He is very well known indeed. It is just that slavery did not exist in Britain itself in his time, and had not for hundreds of years. His interest was in slavery in the Empire, and, not being a domestic concern, did not, and does not engage the British population.
Ada Lovelace. Not to be confused with Linda ...
Linda Lovelace! A blast from the past that is!
@@Davey-Boyd more like a blow.
@@davidmarsden9800 that,s hard to swallow
AL was inconsequential and even her contributions are highly disputed.
@@10wanderer that's going deep.
Why the hell is David Attenborough not number 1!?
RIGHT?!
I was looking through the comments to see if anyone else put it as I was thinking exactly the same!! :D
He is a sell out to the climate change death cult. A great man who destroyed his reputation in his twilight years.
Replevideo Wash your mouth out with soap .!!!!!
Attenborough jumped on the climate change bandwagon very late in his career and that's recorded on BBC fact
I would put Tommy Flowers there, Turing designed the Colossus , but it was TOMMY Flowers and 19 GPO workers that made his dream a reality.
A true unsung hero. :-)
Turing designed the Bombe, not the Colossus. Different systems.
Ada Lovelace was programming computers way back in the mid 1800s.
Princess diana was mostly on there because her death was so recent
Makes sense
@Rob Crossgrove I also think she simply wasn't up to the job, which I admit is a tough one.
I remember saying to my wife I was sick of seeing her face on the front of the newspaper every single day. (No, Diana, not my wife.) It really was over the top at the time. The very next day she was a dead'un and I felt pretty bad. I mean, I didn't wish her dead or anything. I'll always remember it as it was my niece's wedding.
Still, it's an ill wind...
History nerd here....Brunels second name was from his mother Sophia Kingdom so its basically what we call a double barrelled name to honour the Maternal family after marriage. Marc Brunel was a famous French engineer himself who came to England in the late 18th century. Father and son both worked together for nearly 20 years on the Thames tunnel project which was the first tunnel to be built under a navigable river and employed a tunnel shield device, something never tried before. It was originally a pedestrian tunnel but It is now incorporated into the Underground crossing the Thames at Rotherhithe. Its no wonder Ismbard followed in his fathers mighty footsteps and even surpassed them later. Sir Kenneth Branagh portrayed him at the opening ceremony of the 2012 Olympics.
Aneurin Bevan should definitely be there, dump Diana to make room. So she spent some time doing charity work, I and thousands of people like me volunteer for charities but we don't do it for the photo ops.
Diana: deluded cow.
@Rob Crossgrove What about all the medical staff who had contact with patients and had to draw blood etc at that time when it was a disease with a definite death sentence. They were far more heroic.
Aneurin Bevan made 45. The full list actual goes as far as 100
Boudicca!
She should have been on this!
What for? Massacring thousands of innocent civilians and then being inept enough to get massacred in turn? You notice that she didn't actually have any long term effects either. Pretty ineffective all round.
slightly confused What did you expect? She had her land stolen, flogged and made to watch her two daughters being raped by roman soldiers.
@@slightlyconfused876 No long term effects? Really? By AD60 the Romans had managed to almost bury the knowledge of the defeats in the Second Punic War. Boudica wiping out a good chunk of the Roman armed forces in Britain and leveling Colchester (which was full of Roman Veterans) cracked at least the image of Roman invincibility.There is a possible link between that and the Jewish Revolt that led to Jerusalem being leveled in AD70 along with several other revolts. There is a school of thought that Nero's debate with the senate over pulling out of Britain due to the Boudica revolt which in turn led to his downfall and the nonsense about him fiddling while Rome burned. That was obviously propaganda as the more average Roman citizen thought he was a good leader.
@@gordonlawrence1448 Now that's what I call a put down!
Watt Tyler,
Cromwell was a kinda revolutionary in order to become dictator. A dictator that left in place a design for future democracy. A complicated historical figure.
Brunel: not just the biggest ship, the first ship made of metal, not wood
He ignored and reduced Parliament to an irrelevance, his rule was backed up by military force and he designated his son as his successor.
A democrat he was not.
Very complicated. Love studying his battles! He was a brilliant tactician.
The civil war happened because Charles 1st dismissed Parliment because they wouldn't give him what he wanted, when Oliver Cromwell became Lord protector (King in all but name) he did the same thing.
Cromwell was responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Irish people.
@@WanderingRavens Cromwell also banned quite a lot of things like Christmas, pubs, theatre, sports etc. As he was against them on religious and moral grounds. It was only until Charles II came back that things were reinstated.
Wife waking me in the morning:
Wife: Princess Diana been killed in a car crash in Paris
Me: What took them so long!
I know you guys have a great thirst for British knowledge, so hearing you refer to the "Thames River" made me think of another nugget to add to your repertoire. In the UK we tend to put River before the name, so it would be the River Thames, River Tyne, River Avon, River Taff, River Clyde etc. etc.
P.S. Well done for pronouncing Thames correctly! 👍
Oh! We had no idea! So thank you for setting us straight on that :D
Avon is from the Welsh for river, so it’s really the River River 🙂
Though even more often we just refer to 'the Thames' or 'the Mersey' etc.
@@benjapin A bit like when people talk about Koi Carp, what with Koi being the Japanese word for Carp an' all! 😁
@@benjapin heh about half the rivers in the world are called River River if translated
Love your videos. ACIREMA reminds me of that wonderfully named village in Dylan Thomas's “Under Milk Wood”. That was LLAREGGUB, in theory near Fishguard, Pembrokeshire, West Wales. Peter
So glad you enjoy our videos! And thank you for introducing us to LLAREGGUB :D
Read it backwards.
@@mmigesh4735 If you can get hold of Under Milk Wood by Dylan Thomas read it, there's a lot of subtle Welsh humour in it. Peter
Listen to Richard Burton read Under Milkwood. Never has a voice blended so well with the poetry. Burton was born to read Dylan Thomas.
Another recommendation for Nye (Aneurin) Bevan , we can only thank him for sparing us the horrendous health system that the USA has ........
Why is the concept of “all pay in and all take out when it’s needed” such an anathema to American?
Because in the US you are a "revenue stream" and not a patient, it's all about making money and not about healing humans.
To America the NHS is socialism is my guess
He didn't invent the NHS. The Tories did. He just passed the law
The only difference in the US and UK healthcare is that the americans have to voluntary pay for health insurance and the UK its compulsory insurance as in national insurance. Quite a lot of US companies include health insurance as part of the contracts. I'm not knocking the UK system by any means but with what I pay, I could probably get private treatment and better unemployment insurance for less. I'm quite happy to pay the extra so people on lower wages can benefit.
Royboy 68 ...carry on fooling yourself pal.
Aneurin Bevan fellow Welshman and instigator of the NHS, probably has saved more brits than anyone
I'd give that credit to the amazing NHS staff...but yeah Bevan should be on the list.
Nye Bevan and Jennie Lee, husband and wife, he created the NHS and she created the Open University.
Clement Attlee, probably our greatest Prime Minister.
Alexander Fleming,discovered penicillin and comes from my part of the world.
Alan Turing broke the enigma code
The best of the best 👍
Clem Attlee, deputy Prime Minister during most of the War, provided the support that Churchill needed to become PM in the first place. Despite his myriad faults, no other Conservative leaders had the backbone or inclination to oppose Hitler “come what may”, and Chamberlain's replacement had to be a Conservative, because they held the majority in the Commons. Attlee has never been given the credit that is his due for his actions at this crucial time, or for his, and other Labour ministers', complete running of the Home Front for the rest of the War. The people, and, particularly, the servicemen of the time knew this, and responded by booting out Churchill (whose usefulness had expired) in 1945. Attlee then presided over the post-war transformation which defined Britain at least until Margaret Thatcher sharpened her claws, and, arguably, ever since, because the failures of Thatcherism have now been revealed. Clem: the Greatest Prime Minister!
My Personal List:
10) Alexander Graham Bell
9) William Shakespeare
8) Charles Dickens (Yes, I do think Dickens was a better writer than Shakespeare)
7) Christina Rossetti (And Rossetti was a better poet)
6) Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (Less a better writer, more a generally better person)
5) Henry Tudor (later King Henry VII)
4) Sir Francis Drake
3) Florence Nightingale
2) Mary Seacole (Her father was Scottish, and she was a subject of the Empire, so yes she counts as British)
1) Alan Turing
Guy Fawkes deserves a mention.
What a guy😁👍
Not too familiar with Guy Fawkes. From what I understand, he didn't have any lasting impact on British politics. Set me straight? :D
Now if he came back again today and did the job properly this time he'd get my vote.
Wandering Ravens Catholicism in England was heavily repressed under Queen Elizabeth I, particularly after the pope excommunicated her in 1570. During her reign, dozens of priests were put to death, and Catholics could not even legally celebrate Mass or be married according to their own rites. As a result, many Catholics had high hopes when King James I took the throne upon Elizabeth’s death in 1603. James’ wife, Anne, is believed to have previously converted to Catholicism, and his mother, Mary Queen of Scots, was Elizabeth’s Catholic archrival prior to being executed. There were even rumors, inspired by his diplomatic overtures to the pope, that James himself would become Catholic.
It soon became clear, however, that James did not support religious tolerance for Catholics. In 1604 he publicly condemned Catholicism as a superstition, ordered all Catholic priests to leave England and expressed concern that the number of Catholics was increasing. He also largely continued with the repressive policies of his predecessor, such as fines for those refusing to attend Protestant services.
Guy Fawkes and others attempted to blow up Parliament and kill King James in the belief that it would encourage Catholic’s to stand up and fight. As we all know it was a total failure.
@@mrjohn.whereyoufrom Queen Elizabeth 1st was fairly liberal and tolerant of other religions by the standards of the times. The catholics put to death were involved in a number of plots to assassinate her. In particular a number of Jesuit priests came to England with the specific aim of killing her.
It always makes me laugh when John Lennon is included in these lists of great people. He was not a nice person at all. It’s well documented about how he treated his first wife and his son. His son has written about the abuse in the past.
Ps I know you didn’t compile the list, but I wanted to add this comment before everyone started pouring all over him and how much of a great musician he was.
On a positive note, your videos are superb. It’s always interesting to get the American perspective on us Brits!!!
So glad you enjoyed the video! And thanks for sharing a bit more insight about John Lennon with us!
As a wise guy once said, “it's my estimation that every man ever got a statue made of him was one kind of a son of a bitch or another", and it's difficult to disagree.
Derpimus Maximus ha ha! That’s so true
jordan blakeley I couldn’t agree more 👍🏻👍🏻
@@Jorpando true especially in the mid to late sixties he kept them going and in the cultural forefront.
Douglas Adams would get my vote!🤖📖😄
Tied for first place with Terry Pratchett
“I see comedy as...” Thank You, Mr Different Adams.
Harold Godwinson, the last English king of England before the Normans took over.. He took his army on a forced march up north, fought a battle, defeated the Vikings, then had another forced march back to meet William - and still held him off for the better part of a day.
Anyone else think David Attenborough should be on a top ten list, he`s a national treasure
He is now a sell out to the Climate nutters and the shill BBC.
My top ten.
10. William Shakespeare
9. Edward Jenner
8. Isambard Kingdom Brunel
7. Isaac Newton
6. William Wilberforce
5. Lord Nelson
4. The Iron Duke
3. Alan Turing
2. The Black Prince
1. Winston Churchill
Honourable mention: Freddie Mercury
Not someone many people will have heard of, but one of my favourites (certainly my favourite local - she was from Liverpool) is Eleanor Rathbone.
Suffragist, one of the first female MPs, uni lecturer, and a key campaigner on issues including women's and children's rights (both in the UK and internationally - e.g. in India and Kenya, on issues from female circumcision to child marriage), human rights, and refugees (including campaigning to take in Jews and dissident Germans during WW2). She campaigned for a family allowance that eventually became the child benefit system in the UK today.
It used to be called family allowance a few decades ago.
I would personally exchange John Lennon for Charles Babbage "Father of the computer"
Hello, I am a student who went to middle school after taking Eric's class at Changhyeon Elementary School. It's a pity that I can't see you, but always try!
Hi!! This is Eric! :D I hope you're doing well! Can you remind me which class you were in? What was your English name? 😆
My English name is Seo Sang-kyung, and I was in grade 5, class 2. I remember the fun and memories of your class... I'll support you in the future, waiting for another day.
상경서 . He is now Eric W Raven. He is an American who talks about British culture to British people from France. He is confused!
Fortunately he has a saving Grace!
We Bri
How Princess Diana gets on the list is beyond. Brunel was a genius.
So glad to learn about Brunel! Watched a documentary about him after shooting this video. How did one man do so much?!
Not sure who I'd remove, probably John Lennon, but it always shocks me when Florence Nightgale doesn't appear in a list like this.
Churchill was also not great. He may have down some great things for the country, but also, he did a lot of bad too.
To be honest I wouldn't consider being Prime Minister during WW2 to be that great, others who were less evil could have gotten us through the war.
Isambard Kingdom Brunel is my call for greatest Brit.Bridges ,Tunnels The Great Western Railway and Ships
Fred Dibnah!
He was a really nasty man. Very cruel to his wife.
You see everyone remembers Issac newton for Gravity but really his three laws of Motion and the ideas that became known as Newtonian mechanics that are far more important. It allowed precise calculations to be made regarding velocity, acceleration, forces, and made sending men to the moon possible... remember the classic line from the Apollo film with Tom hanks - 'we just put Issac Newton in the driving seat'. Additionally he developed , discovered, invented (delete as you see fit) Calculus. I know the Germans claim it was Leibniz as well, but of as a patriotic Englishman that is just not true of course, although he may have helped a little. One of my most exciting moments in my life was to look on one of the original Newton's Principia on display in the Bodeian library in Oxford.
As much as I like Princess Diana, she's hardly one of the greatest Brits, if she looked like Camilla she wouldn't make it into the top 1000 🤷🤣🤣
The question wasn't greatest it was best. Churchill was on there for his efforts defeating Germany in WW1 but can anyone (without looking it up) tell me who helped defeat them in WW1 and why he's not in the list. It's just a popularity survey and naturally people will pick people they consider popular to them. Kate might get in the top 1000 but the establishment will prevent her getting higher. After all they dont want another Diana scandal.
@@royboy6890 it was top 10 Brits of all time, do of assume greatest or best will do , all stupid semantics
@John Mitchell nope because we can join in 🤣🤣🤣
It's nothing to do with looks, people love Diana because she was a good, present mother (something they had NEVER seen in the royal family before), she was far more normal and non-judgemental, she was kind, she was present with the working class people and didnt just sweep them aside - she used to hand write replies to all of her letters. The only reason people "dont mind" that she had an affair is that Charles was cheating on her since before they were even married with Camilla (who was also married and this is why she would never make it onto the list) and was such an awful husband that he triggered her to develop a very severe mental health disorder. so what if she wanted to shag her bodyguard? her husband refused to live with her, or talk to her, cheated on her publicly with a married woman, and made her life miserable. She would have divorced him if they werent in the royal family.
@@autisticackermann100 well one good thing now is the royals can marry who they want, not what's forced upon them...if that was the case in Charles and Diana's day then everyone would of been happy
My Personal list:
1) Nye Bevan
2) Isaac Newton
3) Isambard Kingdom Brunel
4) Clem Attlee
5) Charles Darwin
6) Arthur Wellesley
7) Horatio Nelson
8) Florence Nightingale
9) Alan Turing
10) Stephen Hawking
I would remove John Lennon and Princess Diana. I would add Joseph Bazalgette (1819 - 1891). He was the Chief Engineer who created the Sewer Network for Central London (the same one that is still used today). A great achievement in itself but it was also instrumental in relieving the city from cholera epidemics. I would also add Henry VIII. I know this is a strange one but hear my reasoning. I nominate him because he created the Church of England which meant we broke away from the rich and powerful rule of the Catholic Church making us independent from the rest of Europe. If it had not been for him I would not exist. My ancestors were French Huguenots (Protestants) from La Rochelle who were persecuted by the French Catholics which included the Nobility. If it had not been for Henry VIII my ancestors would not have had anywhere to flee to and would have been killed in the genocides. They were the first people to be called refugees and this is why a french word is still used today to describe people fleeing from persecution.
Thank you for taking the time to add some names to the list! And I think it's incredible that you can trace your family back to the Huguenots!
It is also arguable that a Roman Catholic England would not have established colonies in America - Catholic Spain and Portugal carved the new world between themselves and would have claimed precedence. No non-conformist Protestants, no mayflower pilgrims. No Quakers, no Pennsylvania. etc. etc.
@@WanderingRavens Luckily for me my mum was a genealogist. There were several waves coming to England. My ancestors were not the first to flee and hung on until they really had no choice. We have traced other family lines back even further than that. On my dad's side we have trace back to the early 1600's (Northamptonshire).
@@ShiningBlueCircle Good point. Hadn't thought of that.
1) Clement Attlee
2) Winston Churchill
3) Issac Newton
4) Charles Darwin
5) Alan Turning
6) William Shakespeare
7) Charles Dickens
8) Lord Nelson
9) Alfred the Great
10) Elizabeth I
Ok Tom Holland has to be on this 😂😂 Edit: Half if these people I didn't know existed
😂😂😂
Same I never knew half of them 🤣
Loving the content guys!
My top pick for best brit would be Billy connolly (he is from Glasgow) OR Jimmy Page.
They are both GODS in my eyes.
Can't wait for the next video!
X
So glad you enjoyed it! Great additions :D x
Outrageous! An absolute travesty! Where is the name of Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington? The greatest general Britain ever produced, every time
he met the French he thrashed them. He was, on land, what Nelson was at sea and even served as Prime Minister in his later days. Also, in company with
King George IV, he founded England's third oldest university, Kings College London.
They ran the same poll and supporting shows on the international BBC World channel a few months later and the winner was Isaac Newton.
6:03 grace is a lucky lady
😆
What, no Frank Whittle? No Tim Berners-Lee? No Stephen Hawking? No Charles Dickens? No Captain James Cook? No Alan Turing? No Charles Babbage? No Alexander Fleming? No John Logie Baird? No James Watt? No Francis Bacon? No Ada Lovelace? No Edmond Halley? No William Herschel? No Ernest Rutherford? No Bernard Lovell? No Arthur Eddington? No Henry Cavendish? No Michael Faraday? No Alexander Graham Bell? No James Clerk Maxwell? No Trevor Bayliss? No James Dyson? No Peter Higgs?
Who even comes up with these lists?
People vote for them, and people are too stupid to have heard of any of those.
And don't forget Joseph Swan THE actual light bulb inventor but stupidly sold the patent to an American.
Tom Paine ...
I think Vera Lynn would be a worthy candidate. Born during the First World War, entertained troops in Burma during the Second World War as few entertainers were there. She did a great deal of charity work and topped the UK album chart at the age of 100. She was a person we all could rally around and was even quoted by the queen during her address on corona virus. Plus she lived to a 103 years old meaning she had an impact in UK life for almost 80 years.
Why wasn't Freddie Mercury here 😭
SAME
@@WanderingRavens hahaaha I love Freddie lol ❤️ he's my hero
He was 58 on the list
@@WanderingRavens Freddie wasn't born in Britain. For the record Freddie was born in Zanzibar
@@Westcountrynordic Mind you, old Winnie was half-American (his mum was a Yank)
Loving the irreverence in this video. 😁
I've not genuinely laughed out loud at anything for a long time but Eric describing the 'total mess' that was life before gravity was invented, all with a perfectly straight face had me spitting my drink out for laughing!
Brilliant!!
So glad you appreciated the joke 😆
And there's me thinking it was discovered and not invented.
The Queen is above all lists...
Good point
She actually came 24th
She is on my list as public enemy number one!
My most favourite brit of all time is Sir Christopher Lee. His life could be made into multiple movies and they all would be entertaining asf.
Churchill was vile. People should actually study history before they post nonsense.
"Living inside the belly of Britain's oldest enemy" tore a new mouth where my throat used to be. Crying 😂
Quite frankly if John Lennon's is on the list Freddie mercury should definitely be on there.
John lennon is 10 times better than Freddie
RADCLIFFE AMMIES completely agree with you
1.Charles Darwin 2.Isaac Newton 3.James Watt 4.Michael Faraday 5.William Shakespeare 6.Charles Dickens 7.Emmeline Pankhurst 8.Nye Bevan 9.William Wilberforce 10.Alan Turing. With special shout-out to John Maynard-Keynes, Wat Tyler, Tim Berners-Lee and James Lovelock. I’m amazed Watt and Faraday aren’t on the list, arguably the most important figures in the industrial revolution, much more so than Brunel. In defence of John Lennon, he’s probably more there to represent British popular music, the Beatles being widely acknowledged as the most influential band of all time.
France was not Britons enemy they were England's enemy, France was actually good friends/allies of Scotland
Great point! Thank you for setting us straight on that one!
@@WanderingRavens although in medieval and restoration periods Scotland and France had been allies ('the Auld alliance'), Scotland had already been part of the UK for nearly 90 years by the outbreak of the revolutionary and Napoleonic wars with France (1793-1815). In that time, the UK was involved with several wars with France, including the Wars of the Spanish and Austrian succession, and the US War of Independence. Although to be fair, there are very few countries in the world the UK hasn't had a war with at some point...
Indeed. There were also friendships/alliances between Wales and France in mediæval times.
And being an enemy of France is not uniquely English. The Spanish, Germans and Italians have all had very good reasons to hate the French for their aggression.
The last naval engagement between France and the UK was in 1940 - Churchill ordered the Royal Navy to fire upon the French fleet (ostensibly to prevent it from falling into German hands) with the loss of 1300 French sailors lives.
I was surprised the guy who made digestive biscuits and Tunnocks Tea Cakes wasn’t here, heart broken
dickens, nightingale, bell, logie-baird, darwin, newton, turing, lovelace, beveridge, henry II, victoria and that's eleven
Marconi?
It was Isambard's father Marc who built the first Thames tunnel, although his son did help.
Yay, you mentioned William Wilburforce. He was a great man! Yes I am an American and I know who WW is. Everyone should read about him! 😉
And what the British empire ( eventually) and the Royal Navy did to try to stop slavery
Isambard Kingdom Brunel got his name from his father and mother...Marc Isambard Brunel ( a French civil engineer) and the English lady he married, Sophia Kingdom. Marc designed the Thames tunnel at Rotherhithe (which is still in use today), but Isambard was the resident engineer. He almost died when the river broke through during the works and during his convalesence in Bristol, entered the competition to design a bridge at Clifton. The susupension bridge was completed to a modified design after his death as a memorial. Although the SS Great Britain was the biggest ship at the time, it was eclipsed by the SS Great Eastern, which at 692 feet long, was the biggest ship in the world until the RMS Lusitania was built 48 years later! It also was instrumental in the first econmically successful trans Atlantic telegraph cable, as it was the only ship big enough to carry all the cable at once!. She was scrapped in Liverpool and the only piece of her that remains is her jackstaff, which is used at Liverpool FC's ground at Anfield as a flagpole. Can you tell I'm a bit of a Brunel fan?! Loads more I could tell you.
My top 10:
Mary Seacole,
Ada Lovelace,
Alan Turing,
Emmeline Pankhurst,
Boudica,
Stephen Hawking,
Isaac Newton,
Mary Shelley,
Alexander Fleming,
Benjamin Zephaniah.
What about posh spice????
@@sidsnot6952 I knew there would be one 🤣
Awesome list of famous British People Wandering Ravens. Fun Fact: Winston Churchill was a POW during the Boer Wars and he escaped. I know that Churchill had faced controversy, especially to this day, but let's give him credit for defending the UK from Nazi Germany.
He was a racist, a believer in empire when empire had had its day, and other than his glory time against Hitler, which I am not denigrating, he was pretty much a failure in everything he did. He even wanted to have a war with Russia at the end of WW2.
@@slightlyconfused876 oh f f sake!!!!
Colin Harbinson I echo that sentiment.. He was a great man , and like all great men or women they have flaws,....
Kier Hardy, Robert Tressel, and Dickens
Though we admire his stoic leadership in wartime, Winston Churchill is roundly denounced in Scotland as before being PM ,as an MP hes sent tanks and troops into Glasgow under the guise of the Defence of the Realm Act to subdue the striking workers demanding a 40 hour week
He's not much liked in certain parts of South Wales for a similar reason.
@@ftumschk I'm English. I think he was a murdering bastard. Ask the Indians. And he hated the working class.
@@Davey-Boyd You have to admit if it wasn't for Churchill Britain would be suffering under Nazi German occupation right now
Same for Wales, plus other countries in which he committed genocide.
@@AdamTheMan1993 You have to admit if the Soviets hadn't joined the war we'd have been fucked.
Kitty Wilkinson. Liverpool's 'saint of the slums'.
Boudica would have been in my top ten. Not only did she unite all the various tribes but she nearly drove the mighty Roman Empire out of England. Evidence of her rampage still exists. Layers of soot where she burnt down entire towns can still be found in London and Gloucester.
You should check and research Kier Hardie.
Britain's Stalin. No way, he is on par with Jimmy Saville.
I think there is an argument for John Lennon, mainly because of the impact and influence the Beatles had on music as we know it today. Princess Di certainly shouldn't be on there though, there are plenty of others who deserve to be in the top 10 instead: Alan Turing, Emmeline Pankhurst, Stephen Hawking, and Wilberforce as you said
The US Navy have a warship named after Winston Churchill, and it always numbers a British officer amongst the crew.
Personally I think Douglas Badar should be on there as well, WWII flying hero, flew spitfires ......WITH NO LEGS.
And made what long term contribution to history? A brave man but just one of many hundreds of thousands who fought evil.
Haven't heard of him before! NO LEGS??!
@@WanderingRavens www.rafmuseum.org.uk/research/online-exhibitions/douglas-bader-fighter-pilot.aspx
Something of a 'Bill and Ted' adventures feel to this - no bad thing, ^oo^
Perhaps since this list was made so long ago it might be fun for you to ask your subscribers and everyone in general who they might consider the top 10 or 20 Britons of all time. Just for fun and a glimpse at how generational perceptions differ. Might prove to be fascinating :D Oh and also I enjoy your content very much :)
Great idea! We'll do that!
So glad you enjoy our videos :)
@@WanderingRavens If you do a poll please try to word it so as not to include people's favorites. Something like greatest or influential brittains or you will get peoples favourite musicians or footballers as shown on this thread. Its strange no ones mentioned any of the spice girls on this thread 🤣
Fun fact about Brunel: Whilst performing a coin magic trick for his children, Brunel accidentally got a coin stuck in his throat. This story made the papers and became national news. It stayed there for a while until Brunel designed and built a device to hang himself upside down with and remove the coin. His contraption worked and again made the news.
Wow! That's a wild story!! XD
I am British not American, but to be honest, I think all of the kings and queens, and all those soldiers who died for us, all the best people in the Uk and the people who served our country and serve our country
Btw....Winston Churchill was officially half American as his Mother was American socialite Jenny Jerome. I think the special relationship we have with America can be said to be a lot to do with his influence and appeal in the States due to his background.
I would swap jolly Ollie for queen Vickie. Probably the most influential monarch to ever grace our planet.
To be fair, Queen Victoria would not have been so influential without Oliver Cromwell. Cromwell created the first, formal British Army, and without that groundwork Queen Victoria wouldn't have presided over a Empire encompassing 1/3 of the globe, and - therefore - wouldn't have been so influential.
@@samuellawrencesbookclub8250 Touchè my friend. Touché.
It was her husband Prince Albert who was the radical and creative thinker and got things done. Victoria herself might have ruled over a mighty empire, but seems to have been overly conservative and a bit of an airhead!
Thanks for another interesting video. Not my cup of tea, but keep up the good work.
I would add Daniel Defoe, Emily Bronte, Christopher Wren.
Interesting! Personally I would take out Cromwell and Churchill. Cromwell because he did far more damage than he did good, the ransacking of a lot of our history and he was only interested in gaining control for his kind (namely the landed gentry). Churchill for much the same reasons as Cromwell, whilst he most definitely was the type of person needed to bring the country together during WWII the rest of his legacy was one of racism, bigotry and outright contempt for the British people in general.
I would replace them both with any of these. George Stephenson industrial engineer and founder of the railways that helped Britain become a driving force with the industrial revolution. Sir Frank Whittle, inventor of the Turbojet Engine that revolutionised world travel.
Thanks for the video, it got the brain cells working.
Yawn . Another Churchill hater. Please read his memoirs and more detailed books about him.
I'd add Alexander Fleming (penicillin) John Logie Baird (tv) James Young Simpson (anaesthetic)
^^^ spot the Scot ;)
Couple of things I know you didn't compile the list but
1 Ask the Irish what they think of Cromwell it will not be a conversation without a good amount of FS and Cs
2 While everybody seems to fawn over Churchill he wasn't a great defender of the poor.
Love your videos keep up the great work
Ps the edit was because of some typos
Yeah, we were wondering why Cromwell was on here, given what he did to the Irish
@@WanderingRavens The bog-trotters got what they deserved, no more, no less!
They fawn over churchil because his a big reason that we didn't give in against hitler? Not because his a saint who can do no wrong, yes has done bad things but I honestly think him saving our country outweighs the bad that he has done.
@@WanderingRavens Cromwell is controversial in England, disliked in Scotland, and absolutely reviled in Ireland. But he was very important in breaking the power of absolute monarchy, and setting the country on the road to sortof-democracy. On the other hand, if he hadn't turned into a dictator and imposed lots of rules based on religious prudery, then maybe we would still be a republic.
I thought of you the other day when making black currant jelly and having some black currants with strawberries last night. Did you try a kir royale?
I would include Michael Faraday. If you have ever used electricity you have him to thank. Strangely unknown, James Clerk-Maxwell deserves consideration. Known as the Scottish Einstein, he unified electricity and magnetism, and was once voted the third greatest physicist of all time.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Faraday
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Clerk_Maxwell
Florence nightingale, Emline pankhurst and Grace darling all woman but they did great things
Great additions! Thank you!
These days, saying that you don't like the song Imagine is like saying you enjoy punching kittens, lol.
Kingdom was Brunel's Mother's maiden name.
Alan Turing cracked The Enigma Code in WW2, saving thousands of lives & helping end the war. He was also one of the pioneers of modern computing. He was gay and after the war made to undergo therapy for it, such that he ended up committing suicide. A formal apology was issued by the government some decades later.
It's been said that, if it hadn't been for Turing (and many of the others at Bletchley Park), millions of people who are alive today would never have been born.
Agree about Wilberforce.
Lennon and Princess Diana are footnotes at most.
How about the Pankhursts and the suffragettes ?
Roger Bacon
James I/VI
Thomas Paine
James Clerk Maxwell
William Armstrong
Josiah Wedgewood
Chosen on the basis that being influential is great.
If it was most underrated Wedgewood would be a front runner. He had strong connections to Wilberforce & Darwin on the Raven's list.
Knocking Newton off top spot is a tall order though. Probably the most influential original genius of all time.
Tim Berners-Lee, William Wilberforce, Colin Chapman, Stan Laurel, Alfred Hitchcock, Bob Hope, Isaac Newton, without whom apples would fall from trees and fly off into space.
Churchill was not a nice person, and is only number 1 because of WW2. Ithink everythink else he did kinda gets brushed under the carpet.
Oh no! Our history classes didn't touch on the not nice things. What did he do?
@@WanderingRavens medium.com/@write_12958/the-crimes-of-winston-churchill-c5e3ecb229b3