The Most Powerful Women Of The Past Centuary

TIME surveys the women who have most influenced our world

Jane Addams (1860-1935)

Any down-on-his-luck person who's been helped by a social worker has Jane Addams to thank. In grimy late 19th century Chicago, she pioneered the idea of settlement houses that offered night classes for adults, a kindergarten, a coffeehouse, a gym and social groups meant to create a sense of community among the downtrodden of the neighborhood. Her Hull House was a residence for about 25 women, and at its peak was visited by more than 2,000 people a week. As her community influence grew, Addams was appointed to prominent state governmental and community boards, where she focused on improving sanitation, midwifery and food safety and reducing narcotics consumption. An ardent pacifist and outspoken advocate for women's suffrage, Addams was also the first American woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize.

Corazon Aquino (1933-2009)

Cory Aquino had no political ambitions of her own until her husband Senator Benigno Aquino was assassinated in 1983. Almost instantly, she became a unifying force against the autocratic President Ferdinand Marcos and ran in the 1986 presidential election. The ruling powers declared Marcos the winner, but a series of peaceful demonstrations along with backing from the church finally put Aquino in power. Her sudden ascension as the first female President of the Philippines was the battered islands' first step toward democracy. Weathering both coup attempts and corruption charges, Aquino was unable to push through much of the social reform that her supporters had hoped for. But when she stepped down in 1992, she still stood tall as the people's choice.

Rachel Carson (1907-1964)

If it weren't for Rachel Carson, the green movement might not exist today. Her monumental book Silent Spring documented the devastating effects of pesticides like DDT on birds and the environment, and the revelations eventually helped lead to the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency. In addition, Carson wrote feature articles and novels about natural history and the environment, including her prize-winning sea trilogy (Under the Seawind, The Sea Around Us and The Ends of the Sea), which explained oceanic life in accessible story form.

Coco Chanel (1883-1971)

Coco Chanel revolutionized women's fashion in the early 20th century by introducing a looser, more comfortable silhouette that freed women from the corsets and frills that then dominated the apparel industry. Born into poverty in Saumur, France, Chanel worked as a cabaret singer before opening a hat shop in 1910 with the financial backing of a lover. She soon turned her attention to clothing and became the first designer to create with jersey — a cheap fabric used in men's underwear at the time — and bring a menswear aesthetic to women's clothing. Chanel's tweed blazer and skirt, two-toned ballet flat, little black dress, costume jewelry and quilted bag with chain strap remain staples in the fashion pantheon, and contemporary labels introduce reiterations of them season after season. In 1923, she launched Chanel No. 5, marking the first time a fashion designer had forayed into fragrance. She closed her shops at the beginning of World War II in 1939 and did not return to fashion until 1954, when she debuted bell-bottoms. Chanel died in 1971; Karl Lagerfeld has served as head designer of the house since 1983.

Indira Gandhi (1917-1984)

She was the nation's daughter, brought up under the close watch of both her father Jawaharlal Nehru, who was India's first Prime Minister after decades of British rule, and her country. When Indira Gandhi (no relation to Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi) was elected Prime Minister in 1966, a TIME cover line read, "Troubled India in a Woman's Hands." Those steady hands went on to steer India, not without controversy, for much of the next two decades through recession, famine, the detonation of the nation's first atomic bomb, a corruption scandal and a civil war in neighboring Pakistan that, under her guidance, led to the creation of a new state, Bangladesh. By the time she was assassinated, in 1984, Gandhi was the world's longest-serving female Prime Minister, a distinction she holds to this day.

Marie Curie (1867-1934)

Two-time Nobel laureate Marie Curie discovered polonium and radium, founded the concept of radiology and — above all — made the possibility of a scientific career seem within reach for countless girls and women around the world. The first woman to receive the Nobel Prize and the first female Professor of General Physics in the Faculty of Sciences at the Sorbonne in Paris, Curie was beloved by her colleagues for her calm, singular focus, lack of pretense and professional drive. Her work with radiation is now part of the most sophisticated cancer-treatment protocols in the world, though she herself succumbed to leukemia after decades of daily radiation exposure.

Hillary Clinton (1947-Present)

When her husband ran for President in 1992, he famously told American voters they would be getting "two for the price of one." Hillary Clinton had been a fierce advocate for victims of child abuse since her law-school days, and throughout her tenure as First Lady, she became a leading voice on the global stage on behalf of women in the developing world. And while many political wives are content with being a behind-the-scenes adviser, Clinton decided in 2000 to embark on a second career, this time with her name on the ticket. As New York Senator, she won over a state skeptical of the Chicago-born, Arkansas-reared celebrity by leading the efforts to boost funding for the recovery in lower Manhattan after the Sept. 11 attacks. She also staked her claim as an authority on military affairs, gaining the trust of the armed forces and several Senate Republicans. Indeed, when she became Secretary of State in 2009, her vision for a military escalation in Afghanistan won out over competing plans. And while her attempt to become the first female President of the United States came up short in 2008, she paid no attention to her supporters who asked her not to join the cause of her Democratic competitor, Barack Obama, saying that wasn't why she had "spent the past 35 years in the trenches."

Madonna (1958-Present)

Every pop star of the last two to three decades has Madonna to thank in some part for his or her success. The triple threat who does it all — chart-topping singer, energetic dancer and all-around provocateur — left her home state of Michigan with $35 in her pocket and a dream to make it in New York City, and far exceeded that goal with hit singles like "Vogue," "Like a Virgin" and "Ray of Light." The one-named wonder's memorable music videos and live performances, which almost always include extravagant dance numbers, over-the-top outfits and eyebrow-raising concepts, made her one of MTV's most popular artists. After causing no shortage of controversy with her unabashed sexuality and outspokenness, Madonna has since turned some of her efforts toward being a mother and humanitarian — but not before cementing her place in pop culture as the best-selling female rock artist of the 20th century.

Mother Teresa (1910-1997)

Her iconic white garb with its blue stripe trim is now equated with her ideals of service and charity among "the poorest of the poor." Born Agnes Bojaxhiu to Albanian parents living under the Ottoman Empire, the petite nun made her way to India in 1929, building her start-up missionary community of 13 members in Kolkata (formerly Calcutta) into a global network of more than 4,000 sisters running orphanages and AIDS hospices. Sometimes criticized for lacking adequate medical training, not addressing poverty on a grander scale, actively opposing birth control and abortion and even cozying up to dictators, the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize nonetheless inspired countless volunteers to serve, and will wear her white habit all the way to Catholic sainthood.

Oprah Winfrey (1954-Present)

Daytime television host, businesswoman and philanthropist, Oprah Winfrey overcame an impoverished childhood in rural Mississippi to build an eponymous media empire. The Oprah Winfrey Show, which has won multiple Emmy Awards and is broadcast in 145 countries, is the most successful daytime TV program in history. Winfrey's unparalleled influence on culture — often called "the Oprah effect" — has boosted lesser-known authors onto the New York Times best-sellers list while reviving America's interest in classic literature (John Steinbeck), turned obscure products into household brands (Spanx, Ciao Bella), and helped a whole battery of other personalities become full-fledged media powers of their own (Dr. Phil, Dr. Oz, Rachael Ray). Her 2008 endorsement of Barack Obama was worth 1 million votes to the then candidate in his primary battle with Hillary Clinton, according to one study. Oprah has also dabbled in acting, garnering Golden Globe and Oscar nominations for her role as Sofia in Steven Spielberg's The Color Purple. Beyond television, Winfrey is the co-author of several books and the publisher of O, the Oprah Magazine. After 25 years as the queen of daytime talk on network television, Winfrey, in partnership with Discovery Communications, is set to launch OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network, in January 2011. Godmother of the confessional media setting and unquestioned arbiter of self-help and spiritual trends, Oprah's influence on broader pop culture is peerless.