Emperor Nero

AD15 - AD68. Born in Corsica, Nero was what was called a 'bit of a lad', who enjoyed drinking, chariot races and a good night at the Colosseum watching the gladiators knocking seven bells out of each other. When one night Rome caught light, Nero famously spent the evening playing the violin. His dying words were 'What an artist the World loses in me'.

Marshall Ney

Unfairly held responsible for fellow Redhead Napoleon Bonaparte’s defeat at Waterloo on 18th June 1815. 
The form book went out of the window during this great battle as the Duke of Wellington ended Napoleon’s career as Emperor, Dictator and all together Bad Egg. Ney was criticised for his tactical failures and not deploying his cavalry correctly. It could happen to anyone.

Florence Nightingale

If the lamp wasn’t bright enough Florence had a great head of hair to light up the darkest of Crimean barracks. Born in Florence (ah, that all ads up) on 12th May 1820, young Flo had a calling from God to soothe brows and change dressings. Ms Nightingale continued her sterling medical work right up to her death in August 1910.

Rob Roy

1671 - 1734. Chief of the Clan Gregor, Red-topped Rob led his outlaw clansmen in many skirmishes with the English troops. Liam Neeson played the role of Rob Roy in the eponymous film of 1995.

Salome

The daughter of King Herod (a rather nasty piece of work who ordered The Massacre of The Innocents in an attempt to kill Our Baby Jesus).
She danced to obtain the head of John The Baptist. A rather distasteful family, it has to be said, saved only by Salome’s flaming Red Hair.

Margaret Sanger

14th September 1874 – 6th June 1966. New York born liberal who became determined to improve the standards of womens' health. Margaret’s work and research into Birth Control and Sex Education caused much uproar in US society. She worked tirelessly so working class women could liberate themselves from the economic burden of unwanted pregnancy. Jailed and continually harassed by the authorities, she had to flee the US under an assumed name to settle in England.

Svetlana Stalin

The Redheaded daughter of Ruthless Dictator Uncle Joe Stalin, born in 1926 with a head full of Bolshevik Auburn hair. Her father was born Iosif Vissarionovich Dzhugashvili and chose his name from the Russian for Steel. Svetlana, a writer by trade, defected to the West in 1966 and became a US citizen. Svetlana's picture, right, shows Dad in the background.

We've classified our Famous Redheads in the following categories. Click below to tour the various galleries 

The famous Redheads A-Z ... sorted by name, the complete reference guide to all our Famous Redheads