ENCIENT WORLD
Sargon I (reigned about 2335-2279 BC), Akkadian king who for the first time in Mesopotamian history united the ancient lands of Sumer and Akkad, in present-day Iraq and Syria. Little is known of Sargon's early life. One Sumerian legend says he was placed in a sealed reed basket and floated down the Euphrates River like Moses before being rescued. Earning the approval of the deity Ishtar, Sargon rose to establish his kingdom. Another source describes Sargon as the adopted son of a palm grower. It is not clear how Sargon ascended the throne. His Akkadian name, Sharrum-kin, means “the true or legitimate king,” though one theory holds that he stole the throne.
Better established is that, after founding the city Agade in northern Sumer, Sargon conquered all of Mesopotamia (in parts of present-day Iraq, Syria, and Turkey), including Sumer; parts of northern Syria; and Elam (in present-day Iran). He thus secured command of major trade routes; goods reached Akkad from as far away as Magan, south of the Persian Gulf, by ship. Sargon consolidated his rule by granting royal servants the administration of large estates, something which not only earned their loyalty but fostered a new economic structure. Where earlier rulers had spoken Sumerian, Sargon and his successors spoke a Semitic language known as Akkadian, contributing to the decline of the previous Sumerian speech.

Queen Elizabeth I
Elizabeth I was one of England's greatest monarchs, ruling from 1558 until her death in 1603. Her reign, known as the Elizabethan Age, was marked by great prosperity and achievement in many fields. This famous portrait of Queen Elizabeth standing on a map of Enlgand was painted by M. Gheeraerts. It is housed in the National Portrait Gallery, in London.

William Shakespeare
English playwright and poet William Shakespeare, who lived in the late 1500s and early 1600s, is regarded as the greatest dramatist in the history of English literature. He had a profound understanding of human nature and human behavior, and he was able to communicate this knowledge through the wide variety of characters he created in his plays.