John Hawkwood

Sir John Hawkwood (c. 1320 – 17 March 1394) was an English soldier who served as a mercenary leader or condottiero in Italy. His exploits made him a man shrouded in myth in both England and Italy. Much of his enduring fame results from the large, surviving fresco portrait of him in the Florence Cathedral, made in 1436 by Paolo Uccello, seen every year by millions of tourists.