The contemporary Torah society did not evolve out of a vacuum. There were three paramount leaders whose insight, far-sight, devotion and innovation changed, indeed created, the Yeshivah and Bais Yaakov world of today. Each one faced what appeared to be the annihilation of the religious infrastructure as they knew it, and they responded with far-reaching leadership that stymied their critics and built an empire unparalleled in Jewish history. The lives of these three spiritual luminaries is fundamental knowledge for any observant Jew.