David Dwight Eisenhower
Nicknamed "Ike," this American General was Supreme Commander of the Allied forces in Europe and was responsible for planning and supervising the successful invasion of France and Germany
Elected the 34th U.S. President in 1953, he ended the Korean War, kept up the pressure on the Soviet Union during the Cold War, made nuclear weapons a higher defense priority, launched the Space Race, enlarged the Social Security program, and began the Interstate Highway System
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer-Churchill
Was Prime Minister of Great Britain during most of the war, from 1940 to 1945
An early opponent of Hitler, he came into power after the Invasion of Poland
During the Battle of Britain, Churchill's speeches boosted the British morale during the darkest moments.
A noted statesman, orator and strategist he was also a soldier in the Britsh Army in his younger days
Adolf Hitler
Was Chancellor of Germany from 1933 and Furer from 1934 to 1945. He also led the Nazi Party
Although Nazi Germany occupied most of Europe and parts of Asia at their zenith, they were eventually defeated by the Allies and by the end of the war, Hitler's policies had brought death and destruction to tens of millions of people
In the final days of the war, Hitler and his new wife, Eva Braun, commited suicide in his Berlin underground bunker; as the city was being overrun by the Red Army of the Soviet Union
Franklin Delano Roosevelt
Was the thirty-second President of the United States of America
Elected to four terms in office, he served from 1933 to 1945, and is the only U.S. president to have served more than two terms
A central figure of the 20th century during a time of worldwide economic crisis and world war, he has consistently been ranked as one of the three greatest U.S. presidents
Prior to the Japanese bombing of Pearl Harbor; he attempted to aid the Allies without declaring war
He died in office, two weeks before the surrender of Germany
Josef Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili
Was better known by his adopted name, Joseph Stalin
He was General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1922 until his death in 1953
After the war Stalin put communist leaders in power throughout Eastern Europe, triggering the 'Cold War'
It was during Stalin's reign that the USSR emerged as a superpower that rivaled that of the United States
Heinrich Luitpold Himmler
Was the commander of the SS and the Gestapo and second only to Adolph Hitler as the most powerful man in Nazi Germany
As founder and officer-in-charge of the Concentration Camps and Death Squads, Himmler held final command responsibility for annihilating "subhumans" who were deemed unworthy to live
He committed suicide with a cyanide pill when he was captured by the British Army
George Smith Patton
Was a leading U.S Army General in campaigns in North Africa, Sicily, France and Germany
In World War I he was a senior commander of the new tank corps, becoming a great advocate of armoured warefare
His popular image of "Old Blood and Guts", contrasts with the historians' image of a brilliant military leader whose record was marred by insubordination and some periods of apparent mental instability
Karl Rudolf Gerd von Rundstedt
Was a 'Generalfeldmarschell', who held some of the highest field commands of the war
Largely responsible for the German breakthrough in France in 1940, he was defeated on the Ukrainian front in 1941, then as commander-in-chief in France from 1942, he resisted the Allied invasion in 1944 and in December launched a temporarily successful counter attack -
'The Ardennes Offensive' (The Battle of the Bulge)
He was captured in 1945, but war-crime charges were dropped in 1949 owing to his ill health
Bernard Law Montgomery
Often referred to as "Monty", was a Field Marshal who led the Allied forces in North Africa and defeated Rommel's Afrika Korps at the battle of El Alemein
This battle became a major turning point in World War II
He was later a prominent commander in Italy and North-West Europe, where he was in command of all Allied ground forces during Operation Overlord.
Erwin Johannes Eugen Rommel
Was one of the most famous German Field Marshals of World War II
He was the commander of the Deutsches Afrika Korps and became known by the nickname “The Desert Fox”, for the skillful military campaigns he waged in North Africa
He was later in command of the German forces opposing the Allied Normandy invasion
Rommel's military successes earned the respect not only of his troops and Adolph Hitler, but also that of his enemies troops in the North African Campaign
Hugh Caswell Tremenheere Dowding
Was the commander of the RAF Fighter Command during the Battle of Britain
In the years prior to World War II he was the commanding officer of the RAF's Fighter Command and oversaw development of the 'Dowding System' -- an integrated air defence system of radar, raid plotting and radio control of aircraft
He introduced modern aircraft into service such as the eight-gun Spitfire and Hurricane
Hermann Wilhelm Göring
During World War II Göring was a German politician, military leader, leading member of the Nazi Party and commander of the Luftwaffe
During World War I he was the last commander of Baron von Richthofen's famous squadron and was awarded the coveted Pour le Merite for continuous courage in action as a fighter ace
He was tried and sentenced to death by hanging at the Nuremburg Trials but escaped the hangman's noose by taking a cyanide pill just two hours before his scheduled execution
