Year in Pictures: 2001

DOUG MILLS / AP

September:
He was, without a doubt, the man of the hour. "America's Mayor," more than one magazine cover proclaimed. The attacks of September 11th elevated this prickly, confrontational New Yorker into a national hero — a calm voice when everything else was chaos, a comforting word when all hell had broken loose. Mayor Giuliani will relinquish his office to Mike Bloomberg in January.

Get the Latest Photos from Time.com
Get TIME photos and pictures of the week delivered directly to your inbox.