This MedLibrary.org supplementary page on List of military commanders is provided directly from the open source Wikipedia as a service to our readers. Please see the note below on authorship of this content, as well as the Wikipedia usage guidelines. To search for other content from our encyclopedia supplement, please use the form below:
Related Sponsors
Ads by Tiva
This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.
| Warfare
|
|---|
| War Portal |
See also: Military History
Ancient
Albania
- Agron (250 BC-230 BC) The first king to unite the Illyrian tribes together and form a kingdom. During his rule Illyria was a strong kingdom which had a strong military force, especially naval. He successfully stopped the attacks of the Roman Empire and the Aetolians by keeping his kingdom free till his death.
Armenia
- Artaxias I (189 BC-159 BC) Armenian king, founded the Artaxiad Dynasty, the beginnings of the Armenian Golden Age
- Tigranes the Great (95 BC-55 BC) Armenian king, extended the Kingdom of Armenia to its greatest extent
- Vartan Mamikonian (d. 451) Sparapet, commander of Armenian forces during the Battle of Avarayr against the Sassanids which preserved Christianity in Armenia
Barbarians
- Arminius (16 BC–21 AD), war chief of the Germanic tribe of the Cherusci
- Alaric I (375–410), Gothic King, sacked Rome
- Theodoric (471–526), Gothic King
- Lusius Quietus, governor of Judaea and one of the best Trajan's chief generals. See Kitos War.
- Masinissa (c. 238 BC - c. 148 BC) was the first King of Numidia, an ancient Amazigh North African nation of ancient Libyan peoples, and is most famous for his role as a Roman ally in the Battle of Zama.
Berbers
Carthage
- Hamilcar Barca, father of Hannibal.
- Hannibal, famed Punic general who was Rome's greatest rival during the Second Punic War
China
- Sun Tzu (ca 6th century BC) (Chinese general during the Warring States period) Author of "The Art of War"
- Lian Po (Warring States period)
- Qin Shi Huang (First emperor of the Qin) Unifier of China
- Xiang Yu (Chinese general during the fall of the Qin)
- Han Xin (Chinese general during the Han Dynasty) Served Liu Bang, First Emperor of the Han
- Wang Mang (General and rebel during the Han)
- Lu Bu (Chinese warlord during the Three Kingdoms period)
- Cao Cao (Chinese warlord of the Wei Kingdom during the Three Kingdoms period)
- Sima Yi (Chinese military strategist for the Wei Kingdom during the Three Kingdoms period) Laid the foundations for the Jin Dynasty
- Sun Quan (Chinese warlord of the Wu Kingdom during the Three Kingdoms period)
- Zhou Yu (Chinese general and strategist of the Wu Kingdom during the Three Kingdoms period)
- Liu Bei (Chinese warlord of the Shu Kingdom during the Three Kingdoms period) Member of the fallen Han Imperial Family
- Zhang Liang (Chinese military strategist serving Emperor Gaozu of Han)
- Guan Yu (Chinese general of the Shu Kingdom during the Three Kingdoms period) Leader of the legendary Five Tiger Generals, and deified as the God of War in the Sui Dynasty
- Zhao Yun (Chinese general of the Shu Kingdom during the Three Kingdoms period) One of the Five Tiger Generals
- Zhuge Liang (Chinese military strategist for the Shu Kingdom during the Three Kingdoms period)
Egypt
- Mentuhotep II
- Senusret III
- Ahmose I
- Thutmose I
- Thutmose III
- Seti I
- Ramesses II
- Merneptah
- Ramesses III
- Shoshenq I
- Psamtik I
- Necho II
- Psammetichus II
- Ahmose II
Gaul
- Vercingetorix (72 BC–46 BC), Gallic warlord who led a rebellion against Rome
Greece
- Miltiades the Younger (550 BC–489 BC), athenian general during the Persian Wars
- Callimachus, athenian general during the Persian Wars
- Themistocles (525 BC–460 BC), athenian admiral during the Persian Wars
- Leonidas (d. 480 BC), Spartan king, leader of the 300 Spartans in the Battle of Thermopylae
- Eurybiades, spartan general during the Persian Wars
- Pausanias (Spartan general during the Persian Wars)
- Mardonius (Persian general during the Persian Wars)
- Cimon (Athenian general)
- Callias (Athenian general)
- Pericles (Athenian politician and general during the Peloponnesian War)
- Pyrrhus of Epirus (king of the Greek tribe of Molossians(from ca. 297 BC), Epirus (306-301, 297-272 BC) and Macedon (288-284, 273-272 BC))
- Demosthenes (Athenian general during the Peloponnesian War)
- Cleon (Athenian general during the Peloponnesian War)
- Nicias (Athenian general during the Peloponnesian War)
- Thucydides (Athenian general during the Peloponnesian War)
- Brasidas (Spartan general during the Peloponnesian War)
- Alcibiades (Athenian general during the Peloponnesian War)
- Phormio (Athenian admiral during the Peloponnesian War)
- Thrasybulus (Athenian admiral during the Peloponnesian War)
- Lysander (Spartan admiral during the Peloponnesian War)
- Xenophon – Elected Commander of the Ten Thousand Greek mercenaries against Artaxerxes II of Persia
- Epaminondas (Theban general)
- Philip II of Macedon (Macedonian king and father of Alexander the Great)
- Alexander the Great (King of Macedon who conquered the Achaemenid Empire and the Punjab and Indus)
- Ptolemy I Soter, One of Alexander the Great's generals, founder of the Ptolemaic dynasty, he was the first king
- Demetrius I of Bactria, a Greek-born king who conquered much of what is now Iran, Pakistan and northern India. He was nicknamed "The Invincible"
- Memnon (Greek mercenary in Persian service)
- Xanthippus Greek Mercenary General, fought for carthage against Pyrrhus of Epirus
- Antigonus I Monophthalmus Founder of the Antigonid Dynasty.
- Seleucus I Nicator Founder of the Seleucid Dynasty.
- The Diadochi
Huns
- Attila the Hun (406–453), king of the Huns, often referred as "Scourge of God"
India
- Sudas (circa 15th century BC), Indian king who defeated the ten Rigvedic tribes in the Battle of the Ten Kings
- Chanakya (Kautilya) (c. 350-283 BC), Prime Minister of the Maurya Empire and author of the Arthashastra
- Chandragupta Maurya (Sandrocottus) (c. 340-293 BC), Maurya King who conquered the Nanda Empire and northern Indian subcontinent, and defeated Seleucus I Nicator of the Seleucid Empire and other former generals of Alexander the Great
- Ashoka the Great (c. 304 BC–232 BC), Maurya King who conquered Kalinga
- Samudragupta (a.k.a. the Napoleon of India) (4th century), Gupta king who conquered over 20 Indian, Scythian and Kushan kingdoms
- Chandragupta II (a.k.a. Vikramaditya or Raghu) (4th century), Gupta king who conquered 21 Indian, Greek, Persian, Huna, Kamboja, Kirata and Transoxianan kingdoms
Israel
- Joshua (circa 1200 BC), led Hebrew forces against Amalek and Canaan.
- David (d. 965 BC), conquered an empire from Homs to Eilat
- Judas Maccabeus (d. 160 BC), leader of Maccabean revolt against the Seleucid Empire
- Jonathan Maccabeus (d. 143 BC)
- Simon Maccabeus (d. 132 BC), took part in the Jewish revolt against the Seleucid Empire led by his brothers. First prince of the Hasmonean Dynasty
- Simon Bar Kokhba (d. 135 AC), leader of the second Jewish rebellion against Rome
Korea
- King Dongmyeongseong (Founder of the Goguryeo Kingdom ;one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea)
- Myeongnim Dap-bu
- Eulji Mundeok (Goguryeo general)
- Gang Yi-sik
- Yeon Gaesomun (Goguryeo general)
- Yang Manchun (Goguryeo general)
- Gyebaek (Baekje general)
- Kim Yusin (Silla general)
- Won-Sul (Silla general, Kim Yusin's son)
- King Go (Founder of the Balhae Kingdom)
- Yi Jeonggi
- Jang Bogo
- Go Seonji
Mesopotamia
- Hammurabi King of Babylon conquered many native peoples
- Nebuchadrezzar II King of the Chaldeans and conqueror of Judah.
- Tiglath-Pileser III King of Assyria. Conqueror of Israel, Syria, other lands that became Assyria, force Judah to pay tribute.
- Sargon King of Akkad. Created strong Akkadian kingdom.
- Ben-hadad King of Aram. Often fought Israel and, on occasion, Judah.
Persia
- Cyrus the Great (590 BC–529 BC), king of Persia who conquered the Median Empire, Neo-Babylonian Empire, Lydian Empire and Asia Minor
- Darius I of Persia (Darius the Great) (549 BC–486 BC), conquered all the territories between Asia Minor, Egypt, northern Greece and the Danube
- Xerxes I of Persia (519 BC–465 BC), conqueror of several Greek cities, including the mighty Athens
- Artaphernes, Persian general, brother of Darius I
- Mithridates the Great,expanded Parthia's control eastward by defeating King Eucratides of the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom. During his reign the Parthians took Herat (in 167 BC), Babylonia in (144 BC), Media in (141 BC) and Persia in (139 BC). In Persia in 139 BC, Mithridates I captured the Seleucid King Demetrius II, and held him captive for 10 years while consolidating his conquests. Demetrius II later married Mithridates I's daughter Rhodogune and had several children with her.
- Phraates II,defeated and killed Antiochus VII Sidetes in a battle in Media in 129 BC, which ended the Seleucid rule east of the Euphrates.
- Mithridates II,Parthia reached its greatest extent during his reign. He saved the kingdom from the Saka tribes, who occupied Bactria and the east of Iran and killed two of his his predecessors in battle. He defeated King Artavasdes I of Armenia and conquered seventy valleys, making the heir to the Armenian throne, prince Tigranes, a political hostage. In 123 BC and 115 BC he received Chinese ambassadors sent by the Han emperor Wu Di to reopen the Silk Road through negotiations.
- Surena, Parthian general who defeated the Romans at the Battle of Carrhae despite being outnumbered four to one.
- Phraates IV,initially lost territory to Roman general Mark Antony in 36 BC but quickly recovered Media Atropatene and drove Artaxes, the son of Artavasdes, back into Armenia when Mark Antony's war with Octavian broke out.
- Artabanus II, after a civil war with his predecessor Vonones I he succeeded to the throne and under him Parthia was no longer a Roman vassal.
- Vardanes I,In 43 he forced the city of Seleucia on the Tigris to submit.Civil war with his brother Gotarzes II of Parthia resulted in his assassination.
- Vologases IV,he reunited the two halves of the empire.He also reconquered the kingdom of Characene,he also might have been the king who began compiling the writings of Zoroaster.In about 155 BC with a dispute over the kingdom of Armenia war began with Rome which Parthia lost in 166
- Artabanus IV, defeated the Roman Empire under Marcus Opellius Macrinus at the Battle of Nisibis (217) after which the Romans gave up all their ambitions in the region, restored the booty, and paid a heavy contribution to the Parthians.
- Ardashir I,established the Sassanid Persian Empire by defeating the Parthian King Artabanus IV after several years of brutal warfare.Artabanus IV was killed in 216 BCE .Thus the 400-year rule of the Arsacid Dynasty came to an end.He conquered the provinces of Sistan, Gorgan, Khorasan, Margiana (in modern Turkmenistan), Balkh, and Chorasmia. Bahrain and Mosul were also added to Sassanid possessions later as well.He defeated Roman Emperor Alexander Severus in 232 at the Battle near Ctesiphon.
Rome
- Fabius Maximus (275 BC–203 BC), Roman general remembered for intimidating Hannibal with a stalking technique still known today as Fabian strategy
- Scipio Africanus (Scipio Africanus Major) (235 BC–183 BC), defeated Hannibal at the Battle of Zama in Second Punic War)
- Lucius Aemilius Paullus, known as "Macedonicus" for subduing and annexing the Greek province of Macedonia
- Scipio Asiaticus (2nd century BC), he was a brother of Scipio Africanus Maior, he got his nickname "Asiaticus" when he defeated Antiochus III the Great of the Seleucid Empire
- Titus Quinctius Flamininus (228 BC–174 BC), Roman general
- Scipio Aemilianus Africanus (Scipio Africanus Minor) (185 BC–129 BC), adopted grandson of Scipio Africanus, he was active during the Third Punic War
- Quintus Caecilius Metellus Macedonicus (d. 115 BC), Roman Consul, conqueror of Macedon
- Gaius Marius (157 BC–86 BC), Roman general, reorganized the Roman Legion
- Lucius Cornelius Sulla (138 BC–78 BC), Roman general and dictator
- Quintus Sertorius (122 BC–72 BC), Roman general
- Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (106 BC–48 BC), Roman general, Ceasars greatest rival and leader of the S.P.Q.R army during the civil war
- Julius Caesar (100 BC–44 BC), Roman military leader and dictator, conquered Gaul and defeated his rival Pompey in a civil war
- Mark Antony (83 BC–30 BC), Roman general and triumvir, served under Julius Caesar as his Master of Horse
- Augustus Caesar (63 BC–14 AD), the first Roman Emperor, successor of Julius Caesar, defeated Mark Antony in a civil war
- Marcus Agrippa (63 BC–12 BC), Roman general that was Augustus' leading general
- Trajan (53–117), Roman Emperor, extended the empire to its greatest extent
- Stilicho (359–408), a late Roman general
- Aurelian (215–275), Roman Emperor, Regain its power during the latter part of the third century and the beginning of the fourth
- Aëtius (396–454), Roman general, defeated Attila
- Constantine I (272)–337, Roman Emperor, Best know for being the first Christian Roman Emperor.Helped to put an end to institutionalized persecution of Christians in the Empire.
Middle Ages
- Songtsen Gampo (Tibetan warrior king)
- Theodoric the Great (King of Ostrogoths and ruler of Italy)
- Topiltzin Ce Acatl Quetzalcoatl Toltec leader and conqueror
- Maharana Pratap Rana of Mewar
- Lapu-Lapu (Datu in Mactan Island, Philippines)
- George of Antioch (Sicilian admiral)
- Tran Hung Dao (Vietnamese Grand General, under his guidance, Vietnamese defeated the Mongols twice)
- Wolter von Plettenberg (Master of the Livonian Order)
- Hermann of Salza (Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights)
- Roger de Flor (leader of the Catalan Company)
- Władysław II Jagiełło (King of Poland, Grand Duke of Lithuania, winer of great battle with Teutonic Order Army - Grunwald 1410)
- Scanderbeg (Albanian prince and general against the Ottoman encroachement in Europe 1443-1468)
- Stephen the Great (Moldavia ruler)
- Jan Zizka (Commander of Taborite Army in Bohemia's Hussite Wars)
- John Hunyadi (vlach-hugnarian general, governor of Hungary)
- Nicholas Zrinski/Zrinyi (Croatian-Hungarian military leader)
- Milos Obilic (Serbian Knight who killed Turkish Sultan Murad I during the Battle of Kosovo)
Africa
- Sundiata Keita defeated Sosso king Sumanguru Kanté at the Battle of Kirina in 1235 and established the Mali Empire. Mali became one of the wealthiest Muslim kingdoms in the world at the time (roughly 1230-1450), exporting gold by the ton to North Africa, Europe and the Middle East.
Albania
- Scanderbeg (Albanian prince and general against the Ottoman encroachement in Europe 1443-1468)
Franks
- Clovis (First Christian King of the Franks)
- Charles Martel (Mayor of the Palace of the Kingdom of the Franks)
- Charlemagne (King of the Franks, and Holy Roman Emperor)
- Philip II (King of France, Crusader, and Conqueror of Normandy, Aquitaine, and Maine)
Chinese
- An Lushan (General during Emperor Xuanzong's reign, An Lushan is of Turkic descent)
- Yue Fei (Chinese general during the Southern Song Dynasty) known for his legendary tattoo saying Ultimate Loyalty, Serve your Country
- Yang Ye (General serving the Later Han and Northern Song Dynasties)
- Han Shizhong (Chinese general during the Southern Song Dynasty) fought beside Yue Fei in the campaign to drive out the Jin Jurchen dynasty
- Zhu Yuanzhang (First Emperor of the Ming Dynasty) led the rebellion against the Mongol Yuan Dynasty
Korean
- Wang Geon (Founder of Goryeo Dynasty)
- Gang Jo
- Gang Gam-chan
- Yoon Gwan
- Jeong Jung-bu
- Gyeong Dae-seung
- Choe Chung-heon
- Choe U
- Choe Mu-seon
- Choe Yeong
- Yi Ja-chun
- Yi Seong-gye (Founder of Joseon Dynasty)
- Yi Jong Mu
- Yi Sun-shin (Korean Admiral) known for his innovation of the Turtle Ship
- Kwon Yul (Marshal of Korea)
- Gwak Jae-woo
- Kim Si-min
- Yi Eok-gi
- Won Gyun
- Sin Rip
- Gang Hong-rip
- Im Gyeong Eop (Korean General)
- Shin Ryu
Bulgarian
- Krum (Bulgarian Khan)
- Simeon the Great (Bulgarian Emperor)
- Samuil (Bulgarian Emperor)
- Ivan Asen I (Bulgarian Emperor)
- Kaloyan (Bulgarian Emperor)
Byzantine
- Belisarius - one of the most acclaimed generals in history, served during the reign of Justinian I
- Narses - general of Armenian origin, in service of Justinian I
- Mundus - Gepid general general under Justinian I
- Nicephorus Phocas the elder - Byzantine general, grandfather of later emperor and namesake
- Bardas Phokas the elder - Byzantine general and father of Nicephorus II
- Nicephorus II Phocas - Byzantine Emperor and successful general
- Basil II - Byzantine emperor, conquered Bulgaria, defeated Abbassids, annexed Armenia
- Basil Boiannes - Byzantine general and catepan of Italy
- George Maniaces - 11th century Byzantine general
- Nicephorus Botaniates - 11th century Byzantine general, later emperor
- Nicephorus Bryennius - 11th century Byzantine general
- Taticius - 11th century Byzantine general
- Alexios I Komnenos - Byzantine emperor and general
- John II Komnenos - Byzantine emperor
- Roussel de Bailleul - Norman mercenary in Byzantine service
- Michael Palaeologus - Byzantine general
- Alexios Strategopoulos - retook Constantinople from the Latin Empire.
- Alexios Philanthropenos - defeated the Turks in the 1290s.
Arabs
Rashidun Caliphate Generals
- Abu Bakr (First Caliph of Islam)
- Umar ibn al Khattab (Second Caliph of Islam)
- Uthman (Third Caliph of Islam)
- Ali ibn Abi Talib (Fourth Caliph of Islam)
- Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah- was Commander in Chief of the Rashidun army and the areas of Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Israel, Palestine and Southern Turkey.He defeated the Byzantine army in the Battle of Maraj-al-Rome and Yarmouk.He appointed Khalid ibn al-Walid as commander of his Mobile guard.
- Amr ibn al-Aas- defeated Byzantine forces in Egypt, under Theodore at the Battle of Heliopolis and the subsequent capitulation of Alexandria in November 641, Arab troops had taken over what was Roman Egypt.Later he defeated Manuel at Battle of Nikiou.
- Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas- defeated the Persian Sassanid Empire at the Battle of al-Qādisiyyah.
- Yazid ibn Abu Sufyan
- Muawiyah I - sacked Caesarea Mazaca in 647 AD,Salamis of Cyprus in 650 AD and re-invaded the island in 654 AD and taking Rhodes as well.His initial naval campaigns were very successful defeating the Roman navy off the coast of Lycia (655).
- Shurhabil ibn Hasana
- Qa'qa ibn Amr
- Abd-Allah ibn al-Zubayr - under leadership of Abdullah ibn Saad marched to Sbeitla,Tunisia, the capital of exarchate of Carthage, King Gregory. Gregory was defeated and killed in the Battle of Sufetula in 647 CE.
- Zirrar ibn Azwar
- Walid ibn Uqba - quelled a rebellion in Azerbaijan
- Asim ibn Amr
- Hakam ibn Amr - conquered Makran in 644 after defeating Hindu King of Sind Raja Rasal at a battle near River Indus.
- Majasha ibn Masood - In 652, Balochistan (Iran) was re-conquered during the campaign against the revolt in Kermān.
- Abdul Rehman ibn Samrah - crushed a revolt in Zarang, Afghanistan.He conquered Kabul and Ghazni. At the same time another column moved towards the Quetta District in the north-western part of Balochistan (Pakistan) and in 654 conquered an area up to the ancient city of Dawar and Qandabil today known as Bolan.
- Abdullah ibn Aamir
- Khalid ibn al-Walid- won numerous battles for Arab Muslims in the Roman Syria,Roman Egypt and Persian fronts.He helped defeat the Byzantine forces at the Battle of Yarmouk.This battle is also considered to be one of Khalid ibn al-Walid's most decisive victories, and cemented his reputation as one of the greatest military strategists and cavalry commanders of the Medieval Ages.
- Abdullah ibn Saad - Tripolitania was taken, followed by Sufetula, 150 miles south of Carthage. Abdallah's booty-laden force returned to Egypt in 648 AD.He defeated Constans II at the Naval Battle of the Masts in 655 AD.
- Al-Ahnaf Ibn Qays - helped complete the conquest of Khurasan by bringing Tustar and Marwir-Rawdh into the fold of Muslim Arab Empire and pushed Yazdgerd III all the way to Merv in Turkmenistan where he died bringing the Persian Sassanian Imperial family to an end.
- Al-Nu'man ibn Muqarrin al-Muzani defeated the PersianYazdgerd III at the Battle of Nihawānd.
- Salman ibn Rabiah
- Abd ar-Rahman ibn Rabiah
- Ayadh ibn Ghanam - raided Armenia
- Habib ibn Muslaimah - was sent for a full-scale invasion up to the Black sea. He conquered Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia during Caliph Umar's reign the territories emerged as an autonomous principality within the Muslim Arab Empire. During Caliph Uthman ibn Affan's reign, a revolt broke out, and Uthman commissioned Habib ibn Muslaimah again to re-conquer Armenia and Georgia.
Umayyad Caliphate Generals
- Yazid bin Muawiyah- First Arab Siege of Constantinople
- Umar ibn Sa'ad defeats Husayn ibn Ali at the Battle of Karbala in 680.
- Ubayd-Allah ibn Ziyad invades Bukhara in 674; He also helps defeat Husayn ibn Ali at the Battle of Karbala in 680.
- Muslim bin Uqbah al-Murri took Medina after the Battle of al-Harrah in 683 CE.
- Maslama bin Abdul-Malik
- Sulayman ibn Hisham
- Sa'id bin Uthman invaded Sughd in 676 CE.
- Al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf - crushed Ibn al-Zubair's revolt and helped reunite the Islamic Empire under the Umayyads.
- Qutayba ibn Muslim - conquered Turkestan
- Al Muhallab ibn Abi Suffrah began raids in Kirman and the first exploratory Islamic forays into the Indian frontier.Under him the conquest of Makran, where susbstantial Azdi Arabs were settled, was consolidated and military incursions into Sindh penetrating up to Multan, in the Punjab in present day Pakistan, carried out.
- Muhammad ibn-Qasīm, who in 712 conquered Sindh after defeating Raja Dahir.
- Yazid ibn al-Muhallab
- Abu al-Muhajir Dinar
- Kusaila
- Uqba ibn Nafi - responsible for Islamic conquest of the Maghreb, including present-day western Algeria and Morocco in North Africa. He was also the nephew of Amr ibn al-Aas
- Hasan ibn al-Nu'man - He captured Carthage after defeating Ioannes the Patrician and Tiberios III at the Battle of Carthage in 698 CE. and advanced into the Atlas Mountains.
- Tarif ibn Malluk
- Musa ibn Nusayr conquest of North Africa (Ifriqiya).
- Abd al-Aziz ibn Musa
- Tariq ibn Ziyad conquered Al-Andalus(Spain) at the Battle of Guadalete.
- Ayyub ibn Habib al-Lakhmi
- Al-Djarrah ibn Abdullah
- Al-Hurr ibn Abd al-Rahman al-Thaqafi
- Yusuf ibn 'Amr al-Thaqafi defeated and killed Zayd ibn Ali at a battle in 740 CE.
- Al-Samh ibn Malik al-Khawlani
- Anbasa ibn Suhaym Al-Kalbi
- Abdul Rahman Al Ghafiqi
- Munuza
- Alqama
- Yusuf ibn 'Abd al-Rahman al-Fihri
- Abd ar-Rahman I
Abbasid Caliphate Generals
- As-Saffah - established the Abbasid empire after defeating the Umayyads at Battle of the Zab in 750.
- Ziyad ibn Salih - defeated the Chinese Tang Dynasty at the Battle of Talas in 751 and took control of Syr Darya (Central Asia).
- Abu Muslim Khorasani
- Asad ibn al-Furat - began a major campaign for the conquest of Sicily.
- Ali ibn Isa ibn Mahan was defeated at the Battle of Rayy in March 811
- Tahir ibn Husayn, a Persian general served under al-Ma'mun and led the armies that would defeat Caliph al-Amin at the Battle of Rayy in March 811 CE, followed by the Siege of Baghdad in which Caliph al-Amin was killed and al-Ma'mun became the next Caliph.
- Abdullah ibn Tahir al-Khurasani, most famous for pacifying the lands of the Caliphate following the civil war between al-Amin and al-Ma'mun.
- Simjur al-Dawati received the surrender of Zaranj from al- Mu'addal.
- Ghassan ibn Abbad crushed a rebellion in Sind in 831-832 CE.
- Muhammad ibn Humayd al-Tusi is defeated by Babak Khorramdin, a Persian revolutionary leader of the Khurramiyyah in 831 CE.
- Al-Afshin laid Siege to Babak Castle, he brought up siege machinery and naphtha-throwers, and finally stormed Babak Castle in August 837 defeating and capturing Babak Khorramdin who was later executed.
- Ishaq ibn Ibrahim ibn Mu'sab defeated the Khurramiyyah at Hamadan in 833 CE.
- Ujayf ibn Anbasah
- Caliph Al-Mu'tasim defeated Byzantine emperor Theophilus with the help of general Al-Afshin on July 21, 838 at the Battle of Anzen taking Ancyra followed by the Siege of Amorium the same year in which the city fell.
- Bugha al-Kabir helped Calpihs Al-Wathiq and Al-Mutawakkil crush revolts. He attacked and burned Tiflis in 851-852 CE.
- Caliph Al-Mutawakkil defeated Byzantine emperor Michael III at Dazimon in 860 CE.
- al-Qummi crushed the Bujah African rebellion of Upper Egypt in 856 CE
- Al-Muwaffaq along with Musa bin Bugha defeated Ya'qub-i Laith Saffari at the Battle of Dair al-'Aqul in Iraq in 876.
- Ahmad ibn Tulun declared his independence from the Abbasid Caliphate in 874, amid chaos in Iraq due to the Zanj Rebellion establishing the Tulunid Dynasty of Egypt. In 877 he defeated Abbasid forces under Musa bin Bugha
- Muhammad bin Sulayman with naval support from frontier forces based in Tarsus invaded Egypt and Shaiban ibn Ahmad ibn Tulun was forced to retreat with his army to Fustat, where on 10 January 905 he surrendered unconditionally thus bringing an end to the Tulunid Dynasty of Egypt.
- Nasir ad-Daula the Hamdanid ruler of Al-Jazira supported Caliph Al-Muttaqi by restoring order in Baghdad between 940-941.
- Tuzun the Turk took Baghdad and removed Caliph Al-Muttaqi in 944 CE. He defeated the Buwayhids in a Battle at Wasit.
- Ahmad Mu'izz al-Daula the Buwayhid, took power in Baghdad after appeal from Caliph Al-Mustakfi to restore order in the city.
Mashriq Muslim Dynasties Generals
Zengid dynasty 1127-1250
- Imad ad-Din Zengi- In 1144 took the crusader County of Edessa (see Siege of Edessa)
- Nur ad-Din Zengi- defeated the second crusade and destroyed the crusader army at the Battle of Inab killing Raymond of Antioch in 1149
Ayyubid dynasty 1171-1246
- Saladin
- Al-Adil I
- Al-Afdal
- Al-Kamil
- As-Salih Ayyub
Mamluks 1250-1517
- Saif ad-Din Qutuz - defeated the Mongols at the Battle of Ain Jalut in 1260.
- Baybars I - defeated the Mongols at the Battle of Ain Jalut in 1260.He fought a large crusader army and defeated it at the Battle of La Forbie.He also fought the Battle of al Mansurah during the seventh crusade.Fought and defeated the 7th,8th and 9th Crusades.
- Faris ad-Din Aktai
- Saif al-Din Qalawun - fought Abaqa Khan's army under Möngke Temur in the Second Battle of Homs and defeated him in 1281.
- Al-Ashraf Khalil - took the last crusader city of Acre ending the crusader kingdoms in 1291 CE.
- Al-Nasir Muhammad, Battle of Marj al-Saffar
- Baybars II - defeated Kutlushah sent by Ghazan at the Battle of Marj al-Saffar in 1303 between Mongols and Mamluks.
- Al-Ashraf Qansuh al-Ghawri was defeated by the Ottoman Sultan Selim I at the Battle of Marj Dabiq north of Aleppo, Syria in 1516 CE.
- Tuman bay II was defeated by the Ottoman Sultan Selim I at the Battle of Ridanieh in 1517 CE thus ending the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt.
- Murad Bey and Ibrahim Bey both of Georgian descent, jointly ruled Egypt and were defeated at the Battle of the Pyramids in 1798 by the French leader Napoleon Bonaparte.
Maghreb Muslim Dynasties Generals
- Abd ar-Rahman ibn Rustam
- Ubaydallah al-Mahdi Billah ,founder of Fatimid Empire
- Idris I
- Jawhar as-Siqilli,conquered Egypt for the Fatimids and founded the city of Cairo
- Yusuf ibn Tashfin, Almoravid General,defeated King Alfonso VI of Castile and the combined armies of León, Aragón and Castile on October 23, 1086, at the Battle of Sagrajas,the Christian advance was halted for four generations in the Iberian Peninsula.
- Abd al-Mu'min, Almohad General and founder of the Almohad Empire.
- Yaqub al-Mansur, the Almohad General and Amir, defeated Castilian King Alfonso VIII at the Battle of Alarcos, on July 18, 1195.
- Al-Afdal Shahanshah was Fatimid vizier and commander of Egyptian forces during the First Crusade
- Abu Marwan Abd al-Malik I Saadi, annihilated the much larger Portuguese army under Abu Abdallah Mohammed II Saadi and King Sebastian I of Portugal at the Battle of Alcácer Quibir on August 4, 1578
- Ahmad al-Mansur
- Judar Pasha, defeated Askia Ishaq II of the Songhai Empire at The Battle of Tondibi, a decisive confrontation in Morocco's sixteenth-century invasion of the Sub-Saharan Empire.
- Al-Rashid, In 1666 he took Fes and ended the rule of the Saadi dynasty. Later he captured Marrakech in 1669 and occupied the Sus and the Anti-Atlas.
- Ahmed Bey
- Abd al-Qadir
- Lalla Fatma N'Soumer
- Omar Mukhtar
Afghan Generals
Ghaznavid empire
GhuridsSultanate
- Muhammad of Ghor- defeated Prithviraj Chauhan at the Second Battle of Tarain.He also conquered the Ghaznavid empire and extended his territory up to Lahore.Upon his death, Qutb-ud-din Aybak, Muhammad Ghori's most capable general, took control of Muhammad's Indian conquests and declared himself the first Sultan of Delhi thus establishing Sultanate of Delhi.
Durrani Empire
- Ahmad Shah Abdali - defeated the Maratha Empire at the Battle of Panipat (1761).He established The Durrani Empire which was a large state that included territories within modern Afghanistan, Pakistan, the Khorasan province of Iran and a smaller section of western India.
Turkic Muslim Generals
Seljuks
- Toğrül Beg - defeated the Ghaznavid Empire at The Battle of Dandanaqan and conquered Khorasan in 1040 CE.
- Alp Arslan - defeated the Byzantine Empire and captured Emperor Romanos IV at the Battle of Manzikert in 1071 preparing the way for the Turkish settlement in Anatolia.
- Malik Shah I
- Kilij Arslan I fought during the First Crusade and at the end of losing the First Crusade halted the Christian advance at the Battles of Mersivan and Heraclea in 1101 CE.
- Abu Nasr Shams al-Muluk Duqaq of Damascus
- Kerbogha of Mosul
- Yaghi-Siyan of Antioch
- Fakhr al-Mulk Radwan of Aleppo
- Kilij Arslan II defeated Manuel I Komnenos at the Battle of Myriokephalon which was an unsuccessful,final effort by the Byzantines to recover the interior of Anatolia from the Seljuk Turks in 1176 CE.
- Kayqubad I defeated Jalal ad-Din Mingburnu at Arzinjan on the Upper Euphrates at the Battle of Yassi Chemen in 1230
Ortoqids
- Sokman ibn Artuq - defeated the crusaders at the Battle of Harran
- Najm ad-Din Ilghazi ibn Artuq - defeated Roger of Salerno at the Battle of Ager Sanguinis in 1119.
Danishmends
Ottoman
- Murad I - defeated Lazar of Serbia at the Battle of Kosovo in 1389 CE.
- Bayezid I - defeated Allied Europe at the Battle of Nicopolis in 1396 CE.
- Murad II - took Thessaloniki, from the Venetians in 1423 CE.He defeated Władysław III of Poland and János Hunyadi at The Battle of Varna in 1444 CE and Battle of Kosovo (1448).
- Mehmed II- he conquered Constantinople, bringing an end to the medieval Byzantine Empire in 1453 CE.
- Gedik Ahmet Pasha - conquered the Principality of Theodoro and Genoese colonies in Cembalo, Soldaia, and Caffa in 1475 CE
- Kemal Reis - defeated the Venetians first at Battle of Zonchio in 1499 CE and at Battle of Modon in 1500 CE.
- Selim I - marched to Iran in 1514 CE and defeated Shah Ismail at the Battle of Chaldiran.He attacked and destroyed the Mamluk Sultanate at the Battle of Marj Dabiq and Battle of Ridanieh in 1517 CE.
- Suleiman the Magnificent- Belgrade fell in August 1521 CE.He defeated Louis II of Hungary at the Battle of Mohács in 1526 CE.He also defeated Habsburg Monarchy at the Battle of Szigetvár in 1566 CE.
- Hayreddin Barbarossa - In February 1538, Pope Paul III succeeded in assembling a Holy League (comprising the Papacy, Spain, the Holy Roman Empire, the Republic of Venice and the Maltese Knights) against the Ottomans, but Barbarossa defeated its combined fleet, commanded by Andrea Doria, at the Battle of Preveza.
- Piyale Pasha - defeated the Holy League at Battle of Djerba in 1560 CE.
- Lala Kara Mustafa Pasha, besieger of Malta 1565 and conqueror of Cyprus 1570-71.
- Mehmed III's armies conquered Erlau and defeated the Habsburg and Transylvanian forces at the Battle of Mezőkeresztes in 1596 CE.
- Murad IV captured Baghdad in 1638 CE.
- Köprülü Fazıl Ahmed Pasha - conquered Heraklion and ended the Cretan War (1645–1669).
- Baltacı Mehmet Paşa - won a major victory at the Battle of Prut against the Russians in 1710-1711 CE.
- Silahdar Damat Ali Pasha - conquered the Morea in the Turkish-Venetian War (1714–1718).
- Ahmed al-Jazzar Pasha successfully defended Acre against Napoleon Bonaparte's Siege of Acre in 1799.
- Sultan Selim III defeated Admiral John Thomas Duckworth of the English navy at the First Battle of Dardanelles in 1807.
- Alemdar Mustafa Pasha lead his army of Albanians and Bosnians to Istanbul in 1808 in an attempt to reinstate Selim III as Sultan and restore his reforms.
- Mahmud Dramali Pasha - fought in the Greek War of Independence.
- Reşid Mehmed Pasha - fought in the Greek War of Independence and the Egyptian-Ottoman War.
- Omar Pasha - fought in the Crimean War.
- Mustafa Kemal Atatürk - defeated Allies of World War I at the Battle of Gallipoli in 1915 CE.
others
- Mawdud ibn Altuntash Turkish general during the First Crusade
- Zahir ad-Din Toghtekin Turkic military leader during the First Crusade, who was Atabeg of Damascus and founder of the Burid dynasty of Damascus.
Norman
- King William I of England (Duke of Normandy, which was known as William the Bastard before known as William the Conqueror)
- Robert of Selby (Anglo-Norman general in the service of Sicily)
- Robert Guiscard (Norman conqueror of Naples and S. Sicily)
Persians
- Shapur I conquered the Mesopotamian fortresses Nisibis and Carrhae and advanced into Syria. But was defeated by Timesitheus at the Battle of Resaena in 243. He defeated Roman Emperor Philip the Arab (244–249) at the Battle of Misiche. In 253 he defeated Roman Emperor Valerian at the Battle of Barbalissos. This resulted in the conquest of Armenia and invasion of Syria, and he plundered Antioch. Roman Emperor Valerian marched against him, but was defeated and captured at the Battle of Edessa by Shahpur I. The outcome of the battle was an overwhelming Persian victory, with the entire 70,000-strong Roman force being slain or captured.
- Narseh, in 296, fed up with incursions made by the Armenian monarch Tiridates III, Narseh invaded Armenia.Surprised by the sudden attack, Tiridates fled his kingdom. The Roman Emperor Diocletian dispatched his son-in-law Galerius with a large army to Tiridates's aid. Galerius invaded Mesopotamia, which Narseh had occupied hoping to check his advance. Three battles were fought subsequently, the first two of which were indecisive. In the third fought at Callinicum, Galerius suffered a complete defeat and was forced to retreat. Later Galerius too would have his revenge and defeat Narseh.The result was a peace treaty.
- Shapur II,led an expedition through Bahrain, defeated the combined forces of the Arab tribes of "Taghleb", "Bakr bin Wael", and "Abd Al-Qays" and advanced temporarily into Yamama in central Najd. He resettled these tribes in Kerman and Ahvaz. Arabs named him, as Shabur Dhul-aktaf which means "The owner of the shoulders" after this battle.A twenty-six year conflict (337–363) began in two series of wars with Roman Empire, the first from 337 to 350 against Constantius II.Although often victorious, Shapur II made scarcely any progress. The second series of war began in 359 with Shahpur II conquering Amida and he took Singara and some other fortresses in the next year (360). In 363 the Emperor Julian defeated a superior Sassanid army in the Battle of Ctesiphon, but was killed during his retreat at the Battle of Samarra. His successor Jovian (363–364) made an ignominious peace, by which the districts beyond the Tigris which had been acquired in 298 were given to the Persians along with Nisibis and Singara, and the Romans promised to interfere no more in Armenia.The outcome was a Strategic Persian victory for Shahpur II.Shapur II invaded Armenia