History is littered with rebels, and because there are so many examples, I’ve specifically chosen rebels with a low social standing. People with low social origins have more reason to become rebels than members of the upper class, but the rebels that originate from the upper class have a better chance at becoming leaders. That’s why certain famous people are missing from this list, including William I, Prince of Orange, Simon Bolivar, Rani Lakshmibai or José Gabriel Condorcanqui. Besides the issue of social standing, I have also chosen to focus on rebels with a military background. That’s why there are no political leaders from the French or Russian Revolutions on this list.
Guillaume Cale
C. 1320 – 1358
Guillaume Cale was most likely a peasant from Mello, a town north of Paris. Rebellion began in the spring of 1358, when an army of approximately 5,000 men took control in the region of Beauvais, and killed hundreds of nobles. The army, under Cale’s command, having taken over much of the region, stayed on the hills near Mello and awaited the arrival of the king’s army, led by Charles II, King of Navarre. On June 10, 1358, promising safe passage, Charles of Navarre offered Cale a chance to discuss treaty terms in his camp, an opportunity Cale accepted. He left his lines, having prepared an efficient defense and entered the noble forces, from which he never emerged. Cale was dragged in irons to Clermont where, following brutal torture, he was beheaded in the town square, along with the remnants of his army. (Some accounts offer that he was tortured to death by being crowned with a red-hot crown.)