History Main / TheConqueror

[[folder:Film]]

* On the Literature/{{Discworld}}, the very word "tactics" is derived from a famous Morporkian leader of antiquity, General Tacticus. He more or less wrote the Disc's [[BigBookOfWar book on military strategy]], helped Ankh-Morpork forge a mighty empire, and when given command of a satellite city-state, promptly made the most rational choice in its self-interest and declared war on Ankh-Morpork (and won, of course). This is only partly why he isn't much liked by Ankh-Morpork's modern leaders - Tacticus was a CombatPragmatist who tended to minimize his own side's casualties, something the likes of [[GeneralFailure Lord Rust]] consider cheating.
* Artur "Hawkwing" Paendrag of ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'' not only managed to take over the entire continent but also ran it so well that "a child could carry a bag of gold from one coast to the other without fear", although his justice system became a bit draconian in later years. The only group he failed to conquer were the Aes Sedai, and possibly only because he died before his war against them was concluded. Unfortunately, he succumbed to VetinariJobSecurity, and his hard-won Empire collapsed soon after he died.

* Part of the irony in Percy Bysshe Shelley's ''Ozymandias'' is that the empire of the Great Conqueror Ozymandias [[LookOnMyWorksYeMightyAndDespair is now nothing more than sand and ruins]]. The message being that all things pass away, even Empires.
* Aegon the First, also called The Conqueror, in ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'', went from ruling a small volcanic island to ruling the better part of a continent in only a few years. He only managed it since he and his sisters were the last three {{Dragon Rider}}s in the world, and no conventional army could stop them.
* Kieron in Steven Brust's ''Literature/{{Dragaera}}''. In addition, Sethra the Younger is a wannabe TheConqueror, though she has not succeeded (yet).
* Creator/RobertAsprin's ''Myth Conceptions'' introduces Big Julie, the general in charge of one of the largest armies anyone has ever seen. He's conquered a fair bit of the entire world by the time he's stopped by the heroes. Of course, he's a CaptainErsatz of Julius Caesar.
* In the BackStory to the first ''Literature/{{Gor}}'' book, Marlenus, the Ubar of Ar, has captured the Home Stones of about a hundred other city-states, which in practical terms means those city-states are vassal to Ar. It is Tarl's assignment to steal Ar's Home Stone, thereby breaking their power.
* In the distant backstory of ''Literature/DeepSecret'', there's Koryfos, a pseudo-Alexander the Great who conquered entire ''universes''. By the time of the story, his empire has dwindled and is on the verge of total collapse. Then he comes back at the end to fix it.

Most Conquerors are by nature {{Magnificent Bastard}}s. Some even dip into OmnicidalManiac territory. They are also their own {{Trope Namer}}s. Quite often, these characters appear in the {{Backstory}} of a setting, and all that is left of their conquests is a VestigialEmpire.

* SequelSeries ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra'' gives Chin a spiritual successor in Kuvira, ArcVillain of the fourth season. Though her Sobriquet is "the Great Uniter", she's definitely a conqueror (albeit a [[WellIntentionedExtremist well-intentioned one]]), and even outdoes Chin by successfully usurping the Earth Monarchy and making herself [[SheIsTheKing Emperor]] of the new Earth Empire.
* ''WesternAnimation/Ben10'' gives us Vilgax the Conqueror, the BigBad of the franchise who has conquered 10 worlds and blown up planets.

* ''Film/TheConqueror'' was a 1956 {{Biopic}} about the life of Genghis Khan, who by his death had taken over a whacking big chunk of Central Asia. Nowadays it's best remembered for [[WTHCastingAgency inexplicably casting]] Creator/JohnWayne as UsefulNotes/GenghisKhan.

* Rider in ''LightNovel/FateZero'' is none other than Alexander the Great and is known by the additional title ''King of Conquerors''. Unusually for this trope and despite the acknowledged ruthlessness of his conquest, Rider is one of the most sympathetic characters in the story.

* Walhart of ''VideoGame/FireEmblemAwakening'' may as well be the trope page provider, as he unified the warring states of Valm into a mighty empire through force prior to the events of the game. He now sets his eyes on the neighboring continent of Ylisse. His unique class is even called Conqueror and his special class skill is called "Conquest".

* Suleiman the Magnificent, great-grandson of Mehmet II. Under his rule, the Ottomans controlled everything from Algeria to Iran and from Ethiopia to Hungary. In a bit of a departure from some of the other Conquerors here, Suleiman was also known for the great improvements he made to the administrative system of his country. While in the West he was Suleiman the Magnificent, in the East he was known as Suleiman the Lawgiver.

* The deceased emperor [[Wiki/TheWorldbuildProject Verek kel Aldeos]] desperately wanted to be one of these. After spending nearly his entire reign at war, he still wasn't very close, though.