1. Thomas, Lord Cochrane

By the time of his death, Cochrane had been acquitted twice at court martial, suffered disgrace for stock market fraud, been imprisoned, escaped and been imprisoned again, yet seen his honours and titles restored and his status as one of Britain’s greatest naval heroes finally recognised. His life inspired the Hornblower stories by C S Forester and later formed the fictional career of Jack Aubrey in the books by Patrick O’Brian.

"He ordered his brave little crew into the explosion boat, and followed them, after putting fire to the fuse, which was calculated to give them 15 minutes to get out of reach." Lord Cochrane's victory, 1809

2. Robert Clive

Twice tried to shoot himself in the head with a pistol. When the gun misfired both times he handed it to a passing friend, saying: “Fire that out of the window would you?” The gun fired perfectly into the bushes. Robert Clive believed he had been saved for some great destiny – and went on to save India from the French.

"The great Empire of the East was opened to us by the audacity and discernment which led a battalion against a host, and counted with confidence on the British bayonet." A memorial to Clive

3. Sir Henry Morgan

Morgan was a knight and a politician, a ruffian and a pirate. Morgan’s combination of ruthlessness, leadership and seamanship would make him the terror of the West Indies and strike fear into the Spanish settlements. He sacked Panama and raided Cuba, yet managed to become Acting Governor of Jamaica and was knighted by King Charles II.

4. Douglas Bader

Bader was most famous for losing his legs in a pre-war crash. Despite that loss, he refused to use a stick and walked again on tin legs. He flew in the Battle of Britain and is credited with 22 kills. He was brash, aggressive, unapologetic, rude and fantastically courageous. He had no concept of diplomacy and made enemies far more easily than friends. We need more like him.

'Legless airman' gets a blue plaque

5. Cecil Rhodes

Prime Minister of Cape Colony, the owner of the De Beers diamond company and of course the creator of Rhodesia, a territory larger than France and Germany put together, Rhodes has a claim to being the greatest non-military achiever in human history. Astonishingly, he lived for just 48 years. Alexander the Great did more, but in fairness to Rhodes, Alexander had an army.

"We conquered the Matabele and destroyed their power," Dr Cecil Rhodes, 1894

6. James Brooke

A combination of comic amateurism, wild courage and fervent self-belief led to James Brooke negotiating the kingdom of Sarawak in Borneo as his personal fiefdom in 1841, appalling the colonial powers of Britain and Holland. Once in his charge, he wrote a code of laws and enforced them impartially, running up huge debts to keep his colony afloat.

"Between 12 and 1 o'clock I was awakened by yells and shots, and, seizing my sword and revolver, I opened a window and saw that the house was surrounded," Sir James Brooke, 1857

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