Tipu Sultan, Rani of Jhansi among Britain's greatest foes

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Tipu Sultan and Rani of Jhansi have been included in a poll by the National Army Museum in London to find Britain's most formidable foes among 20 contrasting personalities that share a common trait of giving the British forces a tough time.

The poll, which includes 20 enemy commanders including Tipu Sultan and Rani of Jhansi, seeks to find Britain's most formidable foes since the modern army came into being in the 17th century.

The list of enemy commanders includes the likes of Erwin Rommel from Germany, Napoleon Bonaparte, Zulu warrior Ntshingwayo kaMahole and Afghanistan's Muhammad Akbar Khan. Former US president George Washington, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk of Turkey, Irish republican Michael Collins, Boer War commander Louis Botha and Japanese World War II general Tomoyuki Yamashita are also on the list.

The top five military leaders would be decided by the online poll which closes on March 30, when historians will make the final choice.

The favourites from the online survey so far are Irish republican Michael Collins, French emperor Napoleon and Germany's field marshal Erwin Rommel.