Reigns of Terror: Dictators Who Took the Most Lives
The term “dictator” is thrown around casually. We often fail to consider what a true dictatorship looks like. Restricting freedom of speech, oppressively targeting opposition groups, and rigging elections are some of the hallmarks of dictatorial regimes. A dictator's unbridled power often leads to mass-scale death as their thirst to retain power (and unchallenged ideological blunders) goes unchecked.
As a means of preserving Western freedoms, it is essential to remind ourselves how terroristic dictators inevitably become. We must remember the most horrific annals of history to stymie dictatorial tendencies in our societies. As times, technologies, and social mores evolve, humans' penchant for abusing power remains a constant.
While there are several ways to measure the detrimental effects of tyranny, the sheer loss of life a regime oversees is perhaps the most compelling metric. These leaders took their disregard for human life to frightening extremes, reminding us of what happens when checks and balances go out the window.
Chairman Mao Zedong
Mao Zedong's Communist philosophies reverted China to the Stone Age as much of the world embraced modern technology. Nobody could question Chairman Mao as he forced the population into rural communes. His subjects were forced to level their mud homes for fertilizer, break their backs constructing dams that were doomed from the start (and eventually abandoned), and turn on their countrymen as the Cultural Revolution spiraled into mass starvation.
An estimated 65 million Chinese lost their lives in the forced pursuit of a dystopian socialist utopia. If you were educated or opinionated, you were automatically an enemy of Mao's regime—though, in truth, nobody was safe. I highly recommend Frank Dikotter's Mao's Great Famine: The History of China's Most Devastating Catastrophe, 1958-1962, for an in-depth accounting of Mao's reign of terror.
Genghis Khan
Genghis Khan did not fit the mold of modern dictators, who often rule from decadent palaces while obedient minions do their dirty work. Khan was a marauding warrior who brought death on horseback, but his direct participation in conquering does not give him any bonus points.
Khan built one of the largest contiguous land empires during the 13th and 14th centuries, dominating Central Asia and part of Central Europe through bloodshed and pillaging. Roughly 40 million people lost their lives at the hands of Khan and his horde. Khan endured a brutal upbringing, with his father being poisoned when he was only nine and his family being expelled from his native tribe. Khan was also a prolific procreator (often with no consent from his female victims), with an astounding 1 in 200 men being Khan's direct descendants.
Joseph Stalin
Read Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn's The Gulag Archipelago for an inside look at the horrifically absurd prison camp system Stalin implemented to control dissidents, those who traveled abroad (even to fight in Stalin's army), or merely rubbed Stalin or his cronies the wrong way.
Hong Xiuquan
Hong Xiuquan was a self-acclaimed prophet. The 19th-century Chinese leader claimed to be Jesus' brother, and he used this bold claim to lead several large-scale peasant rebellions over 15 years. Inspired by Christian missionaries, Hong serves as an example of religious extremism gone wrong.
After his conversion and revelation, Hong determined that the Manchurian Qing dynasty (which ruled China then) were the devils referred to in the New Testament. He helped organize the Taiping Rebellion in 1850, attracting more than one million armed followers. Hong eventually made the city of Nanjing his people's capital, but the Qing dynasty's forces would ultimately quash the rebellion, costing 20 million of Hong's followers their lives.
Timur/Tamerlane
Just because mass homicides happened in the 1300s doesn't mean they don't count. This is why Tamerlane, also known as Timur, appears on this list. Founder of the Central Asian Timurid Empire, Tamerlane ruled from the Mediterranean Sea to Mongolia—and did so with a ferocity rarely matched throughout history. Historians estimate that he was responsible for about 17 million deaths in total.
Barbarity was the man's calling card, similar to other Mongol conquerors like Genghis Khan. Timur was one to get creative with his depravity. Power struggles are one thing, but we'd argue Tamerlane was that guy who didn't know when to quit.
Adolf Hitler
You knew that the Fuhrer would make an appearance on this list. While Adolf Hitler has (by far) the greatest profile of any dictator in history, his regime is responsible for the death of about 17 million people. The nature of the victims, the incendiary imagery of the Nazi regime, and how the Nazis carried out their agenda may account for the massive cultural attention paid to Adolf Hitler's war crimes.
The Nazi victim count includes the publicized death of Jewish populations in Germany and other Nazi-occupied territories. It also accounts for the deaths of approximately 3.3 million Soviet prisoners of war, 1.8 million ethnic Poles, and hundreds of thousands of Gypsies, Serbs, and disabled victims. While this is substantially less than certain other dictators (even of Hitler's time, like Joseph Stalin), these losses undeniably qualify as an atrocity.
Leopold II
Leopold II of Belgium has seen a steep decline in public image recently. Although he is memorialized in statutes throughout Belgium, those statutes have been set on fire and defaced as awareness of Leopold's heavy-handed expansion tactics spreads.
The controversy stems from Leopold's rule over the Congo between 1885 and 1908. The Belgians were occupying the Central African region to harvest rubber and ivory, forcing the native population to aid (often unwillingly) in extracting natural resources. Though Leopold outsourced his force to commissioners who ruled 14 districts in the Congo, Leopold shoulders the buck for the estimated 5 to 10 million people who died as a result of Belgium's merciless occupation.
Hideki Tojo
Former Japanese Prime Minister Hideki Tojo (also known as Tojo Hideki) was among those arrested for war crimes following the Allied victory in World War II. He was executed in 1948 after facing an international tribunal, but his legacy of by-any-means military strategy lives on in infamy.
Tojo was one of the minds behind the Pearl Harbor attack. He was also held responsible for executing millions of Chinese citizens and Allied prisoners of war. Historians attributed the death of about 4 million Chinese to Tojo and many more non-Chinese victims. The charges he faced by the international tribunal included waging wars of aggression, waging unprovoked war, and ordering the inhumane treatment of prisoners of war. These acts, authorities determined, were grounds for his execution.
Attila the Hun
Attila was king of the Huns between 434 and 453, and his reign was unbridled terror. Leading one of the groups that served as a perpetual thorn in the Roman Empire's side, Attila even murdered his brother to gain power. This gives insight into the Machiavellian tactics this ruthless leader embraced in conquering family and foes.
Attila is credited with saying, “There, where I have passed, the grass will never grow again.” That's some dark stuff. His body count proves that Attila was just as much bite as bark. Though it is difficult to pin down exactly how many lives Attila claimed during his reign, he is held responsible for 160,000 deaths in a single battle. Regarding dictatorial ruthlessness, Attila the Hun ranks near the top of the list.
Pol Pot
We rightfully place genocidal leaders in a category of their own. It is one thing to claim lives on the battlefield. It is a whole other atrocity to systematically round up populations and execute them without justification or mercy. For this reason, Pol Pot's ordering of the Cambodian genocide ranks him among the most evil dictators ever to live.
Pot led a particularly ruthless Communist regime known as the Khmer Rouge. Between 1975 and 1979, the Pot's forces rounded up and executed between 1.5 and 3 million people, nearly one-quarter of the Cambodian population. The roving gangs committed various other atrocities, operating with impunity under a leader who forced Cambodians out of the cities and into rural communes. The effects of this painful period are still felt in modern-day Cambodia, which struggles with widespread poverty and lingering resentment.
Mehmet Talaat Pasha
The Armenian genocide has received increased attention in recent years due in part to the rise of Armenian celebrities like the Kardashians and System of a Down frontman Serj Tankian. Mehmet Talaat Pasha is the man primarily responsible for this travesty, which resulted in the death of as many as 1.2 million Armenians.
Turkish leaders attributed the nation's loss in World War I to “Armenian treachery.” This served as the justification to murder the Armenian population and drive those who remained into the Syrian desert. In this way, the rule of the “Three Pashas” of Turkey draws chilly parallels between the treatment of European Jews circa World War II.
Omar al-Bashir
When you Google search “Omar al-Bashir,” one of the first links refers you to the “Coalition for the International Criminal Court.” This serves as a preview of the sort of guy we're dealing with, as al-Bashir is a former Sudanese military officer who overthrew the government and (predictably) enacted his reign of terror. Military coups are cliche in this way.
Al-Bashir enlisted an Arab militia group called Janjaweed to put down rebel uprisings in the Darfur region of Sudan. This led to the death of more than 500,000 people and garnered allegations of genocide by the regime. The International Criminal Court eventually issued an arrest warrant for al-Bashir, the first time a sitting head of state was the subject of such a warrant.
Queen Ranavalona I
History tells us that men are most likely to become tyrants, but perhaps it's just a numbers game. Queen Ranavalona I of Madagascar proves that women, too, can inflict tyranny when given the chance. Between 1828 and 1861, the Queen established herself as the Most Murderous Woman in History.
Also known as Ramavo, the Queen married into royalty and launched a coup to take over the throne after her husband died. Having completed a hostile takeover herself, Ranavalona's first course of action was eliminating potential threats to her power, including her deceased husband's family members. She banned Christianity and foreign inventions, showing a rare level of paranoia common among the most ruthless tyrants. Hangings, boilings, and beheadings were among the tactics the Queen used to keep subjects in line, and she accounted for millions of deaths during her ruthless reign.
Kim II-Sung
The Korean Peninsula has never been the same since Kim Il-Sung's rise to power. As the ruler of the ironically-named Democratic People's Republic of Korea between 1948 and 1987, Kim eradicated all semblance of freedom while setting up a multi-generational dictatorship.
The hallmarks that make modern North Korea an Orwellian hellscape started with Kim Il-Sung. From mass purges of those who questioned his tactics to forced labor camps and invasive surveillance of the civilian population, the Kim regime is one defined by paranoia and total control. Historians estimate that as many as 3.5 million innocents may have died under the rule of Kim Il-Sung, though the nation's nature makes it difficult to measure the precise toll.
Saddam Hussein
Americans most know Saddam Hussein as the prime target of the United States' War on Terror. While many of us question the impetus for invading Iraq in the wake of September 11th, 2001, there is no denying that Hussein embodied the worst traits of Middle Eastern strongmen.
Ruling in a region constantly plagued by religious and ethnic feuds, Hussein was a Sunni Muslim who felt it necessary to tamp down potential rebellion by rival Shia leaders. Estimates place Hussein's death toll around 500,000, though it could well be higher. Kurds and Shia Muslims were among Hussein's primary targets, and he was not above mass slayings and public hangings as a means of consolidating his power.
Mengistu Haile Mariam
Ethiopia's Marxist dictator, Mengistu Haile Mariam, was head of state between 1974 and 1991. As Marxist dictators are known to do, Mengistu took extreme measures to enforce his ideology and suppress dissent. The nation's Red Terror period, which unfolded between 1977 and 1978, was the darkest point in a regime defined by darkness.
The regime was borne of thuggish tactics, as Mengistu's rise to power began with the strangulation of Emperor Haile Selassie in his own bed. The Mengistu regime proceeded to systematically execute opponents, leaving bodies in the street as a chilling warning to anyone who might consider speaking (or acting) out against his tight-fisted leadership. Mengistu's policies fomented a famine that resulted in the death of one million Ethiopians, and even more victims died as a result of execution.
Sukarno
Former Indonesian president Sukarno is one in a long line of leaders who saw mass homicide as a necessary job requirement. Amidst the tension of the Cold War, Sukarno implemented a system of “Guided Democracy,” a polite aphorism for totalitarian rule. Between 1965 and 1966, the ruthless demagogue purged an estimated one million perceived opponents, using the military and police force to achieve his aims.
Documents have since revealed that United States leadership tacitly approved of the purge. While the conflict between Communist forces and non-Communists was real, Sukarno serves as a reminder of how political disagreements can spiral into madness. Indonesia became a nation of horrors under Sukarno's rule, and he resides among the most ruthless leaders in world history.
Théoneste Bagosora
It is never flattering when you are branded as the “architect” of genocide, and that's the dubious label former Rwandan leader Théoneste Bagosora dons. As the cabinet director under Rwandan president Juvenal Habyarimana, Bagosora was one heartbeat away from the Rwandan presidency. When Habyarimana died in a plane crash, Bagosora became the de facto president.
The former army colonel nearly immediately ordered a genocide of the nation's ethnic Tutsi population. In only 100 days, an estimated 800,000 victims were slain. After his regime lost power, Bagosora fled to Cameroon. He was eventually arrested and convicted of war crimes and sentenced to life imprisonment (though this penalty was later reduced to a 35-year sentence).
Josip Broz Tito
Soviet-era Communism does not lack villains, and former Yugoslavian president Josip Broz Tito belongs among the most reviled. Tito was the architect of Yugoslavia, a nation that was an ethnic melting pot held together by Communist ideology and Tito's iron-fisted rule. A huge figure in the rise of European Communism, Tito fomented armed revolution and even went to prison as a consequence.
Tito would emerge from prison and ride the Soviet Red Wave to consolidate power in Yugoslavia. Amidst the heightened paranoia of World War II, the Tito regime was constantly identifying potential dissidents in the ethnically fractured nation. The systematic targeting of undesirables amounted to an estimated 1.1 million unjustified deaths between 1944 and 1963.
Caligula
Brutality was a fact of life in the Roman Empire, but the “Mad Emperor” Caligula branded it an ultraviolent strain of tyranny. Over a relatively brief tenure as Emperor between 37 and 41 CE, Caligula monopolized command of the Roman forces. Records indicate that Caligula considered himself a divine ruler, but his systematic execution of rivals extended even to the head of his bodyguards.
In one story that defines Caligula's unique madness, he was slated to sacrifice an animal. During this act, Caligula unexpectedly turned to a nearby priest, fatally striking them with a mallet. While Caligula's total victim count does not touch the likes of Joseph Stalin or Mao, his erratic manner of terror defined his rule.
Idi Amin
Former Ugandan president Idi Amin was a larger-than-life figure who rose to power following Uganda's independence from the United Kingdom in 1962. As chief of the Ugandan army and air force between 1966 and 1970, Amin earned the loyalty of the nation's most dangerous citizens. He leveraged this loyalty by staging a military coup and seizing the presidency in 1971.
Understanding the importance of consolidating his power, Amin eradicated an estimated 300,000 citizens while expelling the nation's Indian and Pakistani populations. He diverted an unsustainable percentage of the country's resources to his military and even admitted to engaging in cannibalism. Forest Whitaker's portrayal of Amin in The Last King of Scotland provides a vivid look into the hulking ruler's savagery.
Francisco Solano Lopez
Paraguayan dictator Francisco Solano Lopez oversaw one of the darkest chapters in Latin American history: the Paraguayan War (also known as the War of the Triple Alliance). Having inherited the presidency from his father, Lopez's desire to enhance Paraguay's standing in the region led him to join military conflicts with Brazil and Argentina. This foolhardy decision would result in the death of at least 280,000 Paraguayans.
Lopez perhaps only realized the full scale of his errors when Brazilian troops tracked him down and ended his life on March 1st, 1870. As the war spiraled out of control, Lopez ruthlessly targeted any countrymen he suspected of undermining his efforts or questioning his orders. Paraguay suffered immensely because of Lopez's recklessness, leading to Brazil's occupation of the nation until 1876 and long-lasting economic sanctions as a condition of Brazil's exit.
Vlad the Impaler
Few leaders' names perfectly summarize their reputation as well as Vlad…the Impaler's.
Vlad Tepes was the prince of Wallachia and Transylvania, and the most generous reading is that Vlad defended his people from Germanic and Turkish invaders. A less generous reading is that Vlad the Impaler ruled with an iron fist, demanding complete submission from his subjects. While he is only said to have caused the death of 80,000 victims during his rule, it was his penchant for skin-curdling torture that justified his nickname. This guy was reportedly one of the inspirations for Count Dracula. No human should ever be the “inspiration” for a vampire.
Ivan the Terrible
Someone whose nickname (The Terrible) captures his essence, Russian Tsar Ivan IV was the first ruler to receive tsar status. His enemies received the full measure of his wrath, but Ivan's wanton infliction of terror on the Russian population makes him particularly terrible. Viewing terror as “a deterrent,” the Russian madman thought nothing of removing his victims' heads and tossing them in front of their traumatized family members.
From publicly humiliating priests to tying enemies to stakes and commissioning a roving band of black-robed mercenaries to eradicate his enemies, Ivan the Terrible's Machiavellian tactics knew no bounds. If there was ever a well-earned monicker, Ivan the Terrible is it.
