- Moses
The pages of history are filled with real and fictionalized orphans:
Moses' mother saved him by letting him drift down the Nile in a woven basket. He was adopted by the Pharaoh’s daughter, who found him in the bulrushes and raised him as an Egyptian prince. Moses discovered his Jewish identity and led his people of out slavery and into the Promised Land.
King Arthur was also an orphan. He was magically able to pull a sword from a stone, giving him the authority to organize an entire nation. Till this very day, his story provides inspiration for novels, poems, motion pictures and even a Broadway musical.
- The Colosseum in Rome
Romulus and Remus are said to have founded the ancient city of Rome. These twin boys were sons of Mars, the god of war. They were left out to die as tiny infants, but miraculously saved by a female wolf who nursed them until they were found by a shepherd who adopted them as his own.
Historical or mythological, each of these humble, orphaned figures is credited with changing the course of our history.
For more information read Perspectives by Andrew Fedynsky.
World-Famous Orphans
Political and Religious Leaders:
Alexander Hamilton
Herbert Hoover
Imam Al-Suyuti
Ivan IV of Russia "Ivan the Terrible"
Moses
Muhammad
Simon Bolivar
Zhou Enlai
Philosophers, Scientists, and Writers:
Aristotle
Edgar Allan Poe
Elie Wiesel
George Washington Carver
Johann Sebastian Bach
Jean Racine
Leo Tolstoy
Maxim Gorky
Percy Spenser
Actors, Singers:
Famous Orphanage Residents
Antwone Fisher (Screenwriter/Poet)
Ben Nighthorse Campbell (Senator)
Charlotte Ayanna (Former Miss Teen USA/Actress/ Author)
Cher (Singer/Actress)
Kitty and Peter Carruthers (Former Olympic Figure Skaters)
Marilyn Monroe (Actress)
Marlon Shirley (Olympic Track & Field Medalist)
Nicholas Scopetta (NYC Commissioner)
Tom Monaghan (Founder/CEO)
Wayne Dyer (Self-help Author)
