T. E. Lawrence (1888-1935) and Rafael De Nogales (1879-1937) had careers which intersected and clarified many of the major attributes of the modern era. These include the rise of cheap energy, the oil age and global petroleum companies; the birth of the modern "Middle East"; the rise of religion as a political marker in emerging societies; and the slow decline of British imperial ascendancy and the gradual rise of the "dollar diplomacy" and increasingly global military activities of the U.S.A. Other key changes were heightened concerns about "crimes against humanity" involving massacres, ethnic cleansing and genocide and the increasing use of electronic media like radio and films as political mobilization machines and propaganda and persuasion tools. "Lawrence of Arabia" was one of the most famous figures to emerge from World War I. His Venezuelan contemporary, Rafael De Nogales, remains almost completely unknown outside of his native country. One fought with the Arabs against the Turks; the other fought with the Turks against Arabs, Armenians, Australians, British and Russian forces. Comparing and contrasting the careers of the two men helps clarify differences and similarities in historical narrative and analysis of a formative period of world affairs.