Pope John Paul II (Karol Wojtyła)
1920–2005 · Polish (Wadowice) · 20th Century
Known for: The Polish pope who helped end Soviet communism, traveled to 129 countries, and became the most-seen human being in history
Karol Wojtyła became Pope John Paul II in 1978 — the first non-Italian pope in 455 years. His papacy was transformative: he helped inspire the Solidarity movement that contributed to communism's fall, traveled more than any previous pope (129 countries), and survived an assassination attempt in 1981.
He was also deeply conservative on doctrine — opposing contraception, women's ordination, and liberation theology. He was canonized in 2014.
Browse all 1,000 figures by category
Enable JavaScript to view the full "if they lived today" Q&A and personality profile.