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		In May, we wanted your choice of the greatest world leader of the last thousand years. We also asked two experts for their views: John Simpson and Jon Snow, who chose Winston Churchill and Elizabeth I respectively. BBC News Online users begged to differ and put Mahatma Gandhi firmly into the top spot. Below is your top ten - and some of your comments. Return to the winners



			Mahatma Gandhi

			Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born on 2 October 1869 in Porbandar, India. He led India's movement for independence from British rule and is one of the most respected spiritual and political leaders of the 1900s.

He developed a method of direct social action based upon the principles of courage, non-violence and truth. He believed passive resistance and civil disobedience were the most appropriate methods for obtaining political and social goals.

In 1948 he was assassinated by a Hindu fanatic who opposed his tolerance for all creeds and religions.

Gandhi is honoured by his people as the father of the Indian nation and is called Mahatma, which means Great Soul.

Your Top 10 world leaders:

1.	Mahatma Gandhi
2.	Winston Churchill
3.	Elizabeth I
4.	George Washington
5.	Abraham Lincoln
6.	Nelson Mandela
7.	Martin Luther King
8.	Franklin D. Roosevelt
9.	Ronald Reagan
10.	Adolf Hitler

What you have said:

"Mahatma Gandhi taught the world the importance of freedom and non-violence. It is a pity that we have forgotten his lessons today." *Padma S.Narayanan* "Gandhi is the only man who managed to single-handedly unite millions of people of different religions, languages and cultures to resist passively an alien rule and accomplish the objective without total anarchy." *Daleep Akoi* "Mahatma Gandhi taught us how humanity can solve international conflict without resorting to violence or war." *James Michael Taylor* "Quite simply, Elizabeth I made Britain the greatest power in Europe." *Stephen Nelson* "Queen Elizabeth I was a great leader in one of Britain's serious times of crisis." *Chris Mather* "Churchill was not merely a war leader, but he prevented an entire continent from falling under tyranny." *Jon Livesey* "George Washington could have been king, but believed in a democratic republic so much that he would not even be president for more than two terms." *Tom Wier* "Martin Luther King had the vision of a widely based multi-cultural world without cutting off the roots to his own culture." *Sean Karlin* "What defines a modern day leader is their ability to be a politician, or more specifically, their ability to rouse the people behind their own cause. Adolf Hitler did so with a perfection like no other." *Tom Sufleta*


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