At heart I'm an anglophile/germanophile, so here are some of my favourite lesser known historical figures.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/August_..._von_Gneisenau

Blüchers chief of staff and one of the reformers of the Prussian Army.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friedri...m_von_Seydlitz

A great cavalry general under Frederick the Great. He played a major part in several Prussian battles like Rossbach and Zorndorf.

Now to Brits from the 20th Century:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_Keyes

Propably my favourite British Admiral in the 20th century. Shame that his career peaked in early 1930's.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adrian_Carton_de_Wiart

Propably one of my favourite British Generals of WWII. Didn't do much commanding due to his age, but he's still a very impressive person.