The smartest rulers in history. Great rulers of the world - list, history and interesting facts
From time immemorial, power has been the prerogative of men. Tsars and kings, khans and shahs became fathers to their peoples, led countries to prosperity and prosperity. The role of a woman in power was limited to dynastic marriage and the birth of healthy, strong heirs. However, since the time of the pharaohs, there have been wise and majestic persons who can bear the weight of the Monomakh's cap.
Hatshepsut
"Woman with a beard". The beliefs of Egypt required that the holder of the crown of the Upper and Lower Kingdoms embodied the god Horus. Therefore, Hatshepsut, having ascended the throne after the death of her husband Thutmose II, was forced to wear men's clothing and wear a false beard. She was the eldest daughter and sole heir of Pharaoh Thutmose I - the future Thutmose III, the illegitimate son of her husband, had barely reached the age of six. Having come to power, she sent the bastard prince to be raised in the temple and single-handedly led Egypt for 22 years. The country ravaged by nomads under the rule of Hatshepsut experienced unprecedented economic growth, construction and trade developed, Egyptian ships reached the country of Punt. The female pharaoh personally led a military campaign in Nubia and won. Hatshepsut was supported by the priestly elite and loved the people. The only thing she (like most female rulers) can be reproached for is her favorite, the architect Senenmut, the son of a simple scribe. He, of course, could not marry a living incarnation of God, but he loved his queen so much that he even erected a tomb for himself, exactly repeating the sarcophagus of his beloved.
« You will proclaim her word, you will obey her command. Whoever worships her will live; he who blasphemously speaks ill of her majesty will die» (Thutmose I about Queen Hatshepsut).
Cleopatra
"Fatal Beauty". To understand the irony of Cleopatra VII's fate, you need to know the history of her "fun" family. Egyptian rulers, descendants of Ptolemy, commander Alexander the Great, married sisters for 12 generations in a row, executed, slaughtered and poisoned children, parents, brothers, husbands and wives. To ascend the throne, Cleopatra had to defeat two sisters - Berenice and Arsinoe, marry alternately two young brothers and poison both. She charmed the young Caesar and bore him a son, Ptolemy Caesarion, to rule in his name. She fell in love with the elderly Roman commander Mark Antony and bore him three children. She almost managed to embarrass Emperor Octavian, but age still took its toll. And at the same time, Cleopatra should not be considered a frivolous depraved woman. In terms of education, the Egyptian princess surpassed most of the ladies of her time - she knew eight languages, understood not only Homer, but also tactics, medicine, and toxicology. And for almost 30 years she successfully fought against Rome, defending the independence of Egypt.
« Although the beauty of this woman was not that which is called incomparable and strikes at first sight, her manner was distinguished by irresistible charm. The very sounds of her voice caressed and delighted the ear, and her tongue was like a multi-stringed instrument, easily tuned to any tune.» (Plutarch about Cleopatra).
Elizabeth Taylor as Queen Cleopatra in the film of the same name (1963, dir. J. Mankiewicz)
Princess Sophia
"Bogatyr-princess". Undeservedly forgotten, slandered and relegated to the shadows, the regent-ruler, the elder sister of Peter I from another mother (Miloslavskaya). The very fact of its existence denies rumors about the illegal origin of the first All-Russian emperor - brother and sister resembled each other, like twins, with iron will, stubbornness, tenacious mind and exorbitant ambition. If Pyotr Alekseevich had been born as weak as his older brothers Ivan and Fyodor, the history of Russia would have taken a different path - Sofya Alekseevna not only tried on Monomakh's hat, but also wore it with pride. Unlike the princess sisters, she was educated, composed poetry, received ambassadors, founded the first higher education in Russia in Moscow. educational institution- Slavic-Greco-Roman Academy. And she would have been a good queen ... but Peter turned out to be stronger.
« An example of a historical woman: she was freed from the tower, but did not take moral restraints out of it and did not find them in society» (S. Solovyov about Sofya Alekseevna).
Princess Sophia in the Novodevichy Convent. I. Repin
Elizabeth of England
"Virgin Queen". Like many women-rulers of antiquity - with a difficult fate. An unloved daughter from Anne Boleyn, the second wife of King Henry VIII, who was executed by him allegedly for treason, in fact - for the inability to give birth to a son. She went through disgrace, exile, exile, imprisonment in the Tower, and yet she took the royal throne. The reign of Elizabeth was called the "golden age", under her wise rule, England defeated the "Invincible Armada" of Spain and became the queen of the seas. Despite the fact that Elizabeth had an official favorite, Robert Dudley, and many courtiers swore love to their queen, who was indeed distinguished by her amazing beauty, at least in her youth, she claimed to have retained her virginity and was pure before God.
« I'd rather be a lonely beggar than a married queen».
Eleanor of Aquitaine
"Beautiful lady". Daughter and sole heiress of the Duke of Aquitaine, wife of Louis VII of France and Henry II of Plantagenet, mother of Kings Richard the Lionheart, John the Landless, Queens Eleanor of Spain and Joanna of Sicily. Ideal beloved, Beautiful lady of all the troubadours of her time. Self-willed, decisive, formidable, amorous and jealous - according to rumors, she poisoned the "beautiful Rosamund", Henry's lover, about which many sentimental ballads were composed. Issued for a young french king 15-year-old girl, she did not love her husband, but lived with him for 20 years, bore him two daughters and even went with him to Crusade. A year after the annulment of her first marriage, she married Heinrich, gave birth to seven more (!) Children. When her husband imprisoned her in a tower for insatiable jealousy, she raised her sons against him. Lived until age 80 last day actively participated in European politics, protecting the interests of children.
I'll call that lady young
Whose noble thoughts and deeds,
Whose beauty cannot be tarnished by rumor,
Whose heart is pure, far from evil.
(Troubadour Bertrand de Born about Eleanor of Aquitaine)
Queen Eleanor. Frederick Sandys
Elizaveta Petrovna
"Merry Queen" Daughter of Peter I and Catherine I, a carefree beauty, a skilled dancer and kindest soul human. She did not plan to take the Russian throne, being content with the life of a girl of royal blood. According to foreign ambassadors, it was not a serious political force. However, at the age of 31, she led a rebellion of the guards and ascended the throne, supported by the bayonets of the Preobrazhenians. The merry princess turned out to be a good ruler, at least she was smart enough to find herself wise ministers. She waged victorious wars, opened the first banks in Russia, the imperial theater, and a porcelain factory. And ... abolished the death penalty - a couple of hundred years earlier than in Europe. The queen was also lucky with her personal life - she entered into a morganatic marriage with the singer Razumovsky. He loved his wife so much that after his death he destroyed the wedding documents so as not to compromise Peter's daughter.
« I have no Alians and correspondence with the enemy of my fatherland».
Portrait of Empress Elizabeth Petrovna. I. Argunov
"Land of the moon" - this is how the name of Indira is translated. Contrary to legend, she is not a daughter or even a relative of Mahatma (Teacher) Gandhi, but her father, Jawaharlal Nehru, was one of his closest associates. The whole family of young Indira took part in the liberation struggle of India, in the destruction of the patriarchal order and the removal of caste restrictions. Contrary to class prejudices (in India they are still stronger than any laws), Indira married Feroz Gandhi, who professes Zoroastrianism. Marriage landed them in prison, but love was stronger. Even the birth of two sons did not prevent Indira from actively participating in political life countries. In 1964, she became Prime Minister of India and remained in power for twenty years, with few interruptions. Developed the country, eliminated dependence on food imports, built schools, plants, factories. She was killed by political opponents.
« You can't shake hands with clenched fists» .
Golda Meir
"Grandmother of the State" She was born into a hungry, impoverished family, the daughter of a nurse and a carpenter. Five of the eight children died from malnutrition and disease. Together with her parents, she emigrated to America, graduated from a free primary school. She earned money for further education by teaching English to new immigrants. She married a modest young accountant who shared the ideas of Zionism, and together with him emigrated to Palestine in 1921. She worked in a kibbutz, washed clothes, participated in the resistance movement. merged into labor movement and soon became one of its leaders. In 3 months, she collected $50 million for the newly proclaimed Jewish state, was the ambassador to the USSR, negotiated with the king of Jordan, and eventually became the fourth prime minister of Israel. She never used makeup, didn't follow fashion, didn't dress up, but was always surrounded by admirers and romantic stories.
"A person who loses his conscience loses everything."
Margaret Thatcher
"The Iron Lady". The path of this woman to power is an example of perseverance and long, hard work. Initially, Margaret did not plan to become a politician, she was attracted to chemistry. She received an Oxford scholarship, worked in the laboratory where they created one of the first antibiotics, under the direction of Dorothy Hodgkin, the future Nobel laureate. Politics was her hobby, her youthful passion, but you can't escape fate. First, Margaret joined the Conservative Party, then met her future husband, Dennis Thatcher, trained as a lawyer, and gave birth to twins four months before passing the exam. Four years later, young Mrs. Thatcher entered the British Parliament. In 1970 she became a minister, and in 1979 - the prime minister of Great Britain. " iron lady”, as the Soviet newspapers called Margaret, many did not like her for her tough social policy, for the Falklands War and radical views. However, she improved the education system, making it more accessible to children from poor families, raised the economy and production. In 2007, a monument to Margaret Thatcher was erected in the British Parliament - she became the only English Prime Minister to receive such an honor in her lifetime.
« It is not at all necessary to agree with the interlocutor in order to find a common language with him.».
Vigdis Finnbogadottir
"Daughter of the Snows" De jure the second, de facto the first legally elected woman president in the world. She held this post four times, left it of her own free will. Initially, she had nothing to do with politics. Vigdis studied in Denmark and France, studied theater, French, returned to her homeland in Iceland, single-handedly raised children. On October 24, 1975, she became one of the initiators of the women's strike - all women refused to go to work and do housework in order to demonstrate how much work falls on their shoulders. In 1980, Vigdis was elected president of the country. She was a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador, dealt with the problems of women and children, and after leaving politics, she founded the Association for the Study of Spinal Cord Injuries - the doctors of this organization collect and analyze world experience in the treatment of spinal injuries.
« Women are inherently closer to nature, especially girls and women from the "common people", who often have direct contact with environment. To succeed, to save mother earth from impending catastrophes, we must enlist the help of women.».
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It's no secret that many of the great rulers of this world not only shone in the world of politics and on the battlefield, but managed to excel at the same time on the love front. Some sovereigns became famous for amorous adventures much more than for great deeds for the benefit of their state. And although history is silent on a lot, the loving nature of some rulers was impossible to hide. I offer a list of rulers whose weakness was love affairs and amorous intrigues.
Caligula
Gaius Caesar, nicknamed Caligula, was the emperor of Rome for a short time. He was a cruel and perverted man who gained his power through intrigue and betrayal.
In life, only three things brought him pleasure - power, terrible torture, which he watched in awe, and women. Speaking of the latter, he is still considered one of the most depraved rulers of Rome.
Caligula was officially married several times. But this did not prevent him from entering into relations with married ladies in order to get the necessary posts or political support with their help. He executed some mistresses along with their husbands.
It is said that he even had a criminal connection with his sisters.
One of them, Drusilla, he loved so much that when she died, he declared such mourning throughout the country, in which it was considered a mortal sin to laugh, bathe, dine with parents, children and wife.
And he stole one of his mistresses, Livia, right before her wedding with another man, and returned it to her husband a few days later.
After their relationship, he forbade many women to have relationships with other men, and he executed him for breaking a vow.
He declared his last wife Caesonia "wife" only many years after she bore him a child.
Nero
Nero, one of the Roman emperors, was surrounded by an atmosphere of debauchery since childhood. His father had countless mistresses, whom he did not even hide, and his mother was in a criminal relationship with her brother Caligula.
Nero was married early to a woman, Octavia, for whom he openly detested. He found consolation in the arms of other, beautiful and cheerful girls.
He became seriously infatuated with his friend's wife, Poppea, under whose influence his latent depravity began to take over him.
This woman even pushed him to kill his own mother. He soon divorced his wife and married Poppea. Nero, together with his newly-made wife, arranged such depraved feasts that lasted for days in their Golden Palace, completely made of this precious material.
After the death of his wife, he executed the girl Anthony, because she refused to become his new wife. And then he killed Statilla's husband in order to be able to freely enter into marriage with her.
The dissolute rule of Nero doomed him to exile, and then to suicide.
Henry VIII
Henry VIII Tudor, unlike Nero and Caligula, was a great king of England. He not only became famous as a commander, but also made one of the most important reforms in the life of the country - he created a new Anglican church, independent of the influence of the Pope. But not everyone knows that he did this not because of political considerations, but because of a woman. Henry VIII, popularly nicknamed the Bluebeard, had six official wives and many mistresses.
His first wife was a decent Spanish Catholic Catherine, the former wife of his late elder brother, from whom he inherited the throne. After meeting with Anne Boleyn, a Protestant by religion, he set about trying to marry her, but the Pope did not give him permission to divorce.
That is why he severed all ties with the Catholic Church, divorced himself and married Anna. In addition, he was in touch with Anna's younger sister, Mary, who bore children from him. Passion for Anna quickly cooled, and the king found an excuse to execute his wife and marry a new one, the day after the execution.
The third wife, Jane, is said to have been his favorite woman, but she died in childbirth. Then Heinrich married Anna, whom he saw only in painted portraits. When he saw the girl with his own eyes, he was so disappointed that he broke up with her and sent her to a distant fortress. The fifth wife Catherine was as loving as the aging king, so she was soon beheaded for treason.
The last wife was not a young beauty, or a cheerful laugher, whom the king had loved before.
He finally chose a wife for himself to quietly meet his old age.
Napoleon
The man who went from an ordinary army captain to the emperor of the French Empire is known not only for conquering most of Europe and creating a new powerful state. A Corsican by birth, Napoleon Bonaparte, according to his contemporaries, despite his small stature, was a very attractive man who had not only a sharp mind, but also a strong charm that conquered women.
Napoleon's first wife, Josephine Beauharnais, was older than her husband and had a daughter from her first marriage. He loved her and even after the divorce, they maintained friendly relations. Despite this, Bonaparte had countless affairs on the side, just like his wife. Despite this, mutual understanding, support and respect reigned in their marriage. At the same time, many argue that Napoleon had an affair even with his stepdaughter.
During the countless conquests of Europe, Napoleon started new novels on campaigns. So during the campaign against Poland, Bonaparte sought the impregnable Polish beauty Maria Walewska, who tried to resist him to the end, but involuntarily fell in love with him.
On the day of their last meeting, from the sofa on which the emperor was sitting, the girl cut off a piece of fabric and carried it with her until the end of her days as a memory.
Due to Josephine's infertility, Napoleon was forced to take a new wife, Louise.
The girl was young, not bad-looking, although plump, but he still cheated on her. Among the famous ladies he had the famous actress Mademoiselle Georges and the opera singer Giusapina Grassini.
In total, Bonaparte had 51 mistresses, whose names are preserved in history.
John Kennedy
The President of the United States of America, according to many experts, had a rare disease, which became the reason for his constant love affairs.
Having a beautiful wife - Jacqueline, he started more and more novels in front of her eyes. Journalists, actresses, singers, secretaries, and even girls of easy virtue. According to people close to the president, Kennedy was never completely satisfied, he was constantly tired of women, and he started new relationships. He himself said that if he did not have a connection with a woman for about three days, his head began to ache terribly.
He often threw wild parties, festivities by the pool, in which White House employees took part. Among the president's most famous mistresses was film star Marilyn Monroe.
Some historians claim that the President had for his short life about fifteen hundred women.
Louis XIV
The founder of the absolute monarchy in France, King Louis XIV was nicknamed "the sun king" for his cheerful and loving character.
He was a wise and great ruler who made many reforms for the benefit of his people. And besides, until the age of 22, he already dictated fashion and was famous, for the most part, for love affairs, which he easily combined with wise rule.
He began to make friends with the ladies so early that he quickly got bored with this occupation.
Among his mistresses was even the Princess of Monaco - Catherine. And his touching connection with the ugly and lame Louise, they say, was based on the fairy tale "Cinderella" by Charles Perot.
For a long time, his favorite was Francoise de Montespan.
She personally pushed all his mistresses aside and won the attention of Louis. With his favorites, he always lived openly at court. And when the king was tired of his numerous love affairs, the Marquise de Maintenon took possession of his heart, with whom they secretly married.
Thanks to her, he abandoned his wild life, became a religious and restrained person. She remained his only woman until the death of the king.
Catherine II
Catherine the Great, as Sophia Augusta is also called, was married at the age of 16 to the mad Emperor Peter. Her life in Petersburg was a school of survival. She sought power through intrigues and, in the end, became a great ruler, but very subject to the influence of her many favorites.
Trying to fill the void of her life, she started an affair with Sergei Saltikov, Count Poniatkovsky, Grigory Orlov.
The latter had a huge impact on the life and reign of Catherine. After Orlov's resignation, his place was taken by Grigory Potemkin, who became the most powerful man in the country.
Catherine in every possible way indulged his desires, and he, in turn, did everything for the good of his empress. In the intervals between her main lovers, even the already aged, the ruler turned on young favorites who tried to achieve high ranks at her expense. After the death of Potemkin, Catherine was crushed, but quickly found a replacement - the young favorite Zubava, who was with her until her death.
In total, the empress had 23 lovers, including her husband, but these are only those whose names are precisely known to history.
Margarita Navarskaya
The daughter of Catherine de Medici, Queen of France, Marguerite, thanks to her marriage to Henry IV, became, though not for a long time, Queen of Navarre.
Margarita was a very beautiful, educated and witty girl. But she had a weakness for men, about which A. Dumas very truthfully wrote in the book “Queen Margot”.
A girl, when she married, was no longer innocent, as a noble young lady was supposed to be. Historians say that already at the age of 15, Margarita had a relationship with her siblings. And her affair with the Duke of Guise was discussed by the whole court.
During their marriage to Henry IV, the couple actively sought happiness on the side. Her affair with the Comte de la Mole cost the poor fellow his head. Rumor has it that she even seduced her guard during a short imprisonment.
After her divorce from Heinrich, former queen began to lead a completely free lifestyle.
Even at the age of 54, when she was very fat and there was nothing left of her beauty, young boys of eighteen years old regularly visited her. She died from her vicious nature: Margarita was very fond of walking naked in front of open windows, even in winter, so that everyone could look at her. So one day she fell ill and died.
A hero to one is often a tyrant to another. This aphorism is often remembered even today, not to mention the past - it was very, very ambiguous in the politics of many countries. Everyone knows that history is written by the victors, and even the most cruel of them could be rehabilitated with time and the right ideology.
These rulers and politicians of the past - old and not so long ago, built their states at the expense of the lives of many people. And it doesn't matter how they did it - sent to crazy wars or used as labor force. In both cases, one can speak of a merciless tactic to achieve goals. It is these rulers that are included in our list of the 12 most cruel rulers in the history of mankind.
Caligula - Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus
Reigned: 37-41 AD
Caligula was very popular because he first freed citizens who were unjustly imprisoned and freed them from a brutal sales tax. But then he went crazy and was never the same again. Caligula eliminated political rivals with sophisticated cruelty, arranged wild revelry with people and animals, and generally behaved unrestrainedly.
Genghis Khan
Reign: 1206-1227
Genghis Khan's father was poisoned when the boy was nine. He spent his childhood as a slave, but was able to unite the Mongol tribes and conquer a huge piece of Central Asia and China. Genghis Khan is called the most cruel ruler because of his massacres, when not just groups, but entire peoples or classes were slaughtered.
Thomas Torquemada
Reigned: 1483-1498 (as Grand Inquisitor)
Torquemada was appointed Grand Inquisitor during the Spanish Inquisition. He set up tribunals in several cities, set up a system for other inquisitors, and made torture the main tool for extracting confessions. Historians believe that Torquemada was responsible for the two thousand people burned at the stake.
Ivan IV (Ivan the Terrible)
Reign: 1547-1584
Ivan IV began his brutal reign by reorganizing the central government and limiting the power of hereditary aristocrats (princes and boyars). After the death of his first wife, Ivan began a reign of terror, eliminating the main boyar families. He also beat his pregnant daughter and killed his son in a fit of rage.
Queen Mary I (Bloody Mary)
Reign: 1553-1558
The only child of King Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon, Mary, became Queen of England in 1553 and soon established Catholicism (after previous Protestant rulers) as the main religion and married Philip II of Spain. During her cruel reign, the Protestants burned at the stake like dry branches, and Mary herself became Bloody.
Countess Elizabeth Bathory
Reign: 1590-1610
This cruel ruler lured young peasant women to her castle by promising them jobs as servants, after which she brutally tortured them to death. According to the popular version, she tortured and killed about 600 young women.
Mehmed Talaat Pasha
Years of government: 1913-1918
Historians believe that Talaat Pasha was the most brutal ruler and the leading figure in the Armenian genocide. As Minister of the Interior, he was responsible for the deportations that ultimately resulted in the deaths of 600,000 Armenians. He was killed in Berlin in 1921. A history buff, Adolf Hitler sent his body back to Istanbul in 1943, hoping to sway Turkey into cooperation.
Joseph Stalin
Years of government: 1922-1953
Stalin became the most brutal ruler in the 1930s, coinciding with mass starvation, the imprisonment of millions of people in Gulag labor camps, and the "Great Purge" of the intelligentsia, government and military.
Adolf Gitler
Years of government: 1933-1945
By the end of 1941, Hitler was at the head of the Third Reich, an empire that included almost every country in Europe plus most of North Africa. He became one of the most brutal rulers in the history of mankind, developed a plan to create an ideal race, eliminating Jews, Slavs, gypsies and political opponents, sending them by force to concentration camps where they were tortured and worked to death.
Mao Zedong
Years of government: 1949-1976
Communist leader Mao founded the People's Republic. Under his leadership, industry was placed under state control, and farmers were organized into collectives, following the example of Soviet collective farms. Any opposition was quickly crushed. Mao's supporters point out that he modernized and unified China and turned it into a world superpower. However, others point out that his policies resulted in the death of as many as 40 million people from starvation, forced labor and executions.
go amin
Years of government: 1971-1979
Amin overthrew the elected government in Uganda with a military coup and declared himself president. Then he cruelly, for eight years, exterminated all opposition. Amin completely expelled Asians from Uganda: Hindus, Chinese and Pakistanis.
Augusto Pinochet
Years of government: 1973-1990
Pinochet overthrew the government of Chile in 1973 with a US-backed military coup. Researchers say many people simply "disappeared" while another 35,000 languished in the camps. Pinochet died before he could stand trial on human rights charges.
He introduced a free market economic policy that led to lower inflation and even an economic boom in the late 70s. It is noteworthy that Chile had one of the most efficient economies in Latin America from the mid 80s to the late 90s.
Idi Amin (1923–16–28 August 2003) – 3rd President of Uganda from 1971 to 1979 His rule is characterized by human rights violations, political repression, ethnic persecution, severe economic recession, extrajudicial executions, corruption, etc. According to estimates made after the overthrow of Amin, about 500,000 (from 19,000,000) Ugandan citizens became victims of his repression, of which at least 2 thousand he killed with his own hands. Amin was also a cannibal and one of the most curious and shocking people of the 20th century. So, in 1974, he proposed moving the UN headquarters to Uganda, motivating this decision by the fact that his country is the "geographical heart of the planet."
Attila is the last and most powerful ruler of the Huns, who ruled from 434 until his death in 453. Under his leadership, the united Turkic, Germanic and other tribes became the biggest threat to the eastern and western Roman Empire. Although the power of Attila died with him, he became a legendary figure in history. In Western Europe, I perceive him as a symbol of cruelty, greed and wild barbarism, bringing nothing but destruction, while in some countries, such as Hungary and Turkey, Attila is considered the greatest ruler.
Eighth place in the list of the most cruel rulers in history is Genghis Khan (1155 or 1162-August 25, 1227) - the commander, the founder of the Mongol Empire, one of the largest in history. He united all the Mongol tribes and created a powerful all-Mongolian army, distinguished by brilliant discipline and tactics, thanks to which he conquered China, Central Asia, Caucasus and Eastern Europe, thereby forming one of the greatest empires in history. In modern Mongolia and China, it is considered national hero and "father of the Mongolian nation".
Pol Pot (April 15-1925, 1998) - statesman and politician, as well as Prime Minister of Cambodia, general secretary Communist Party of Kampuchea from 1963 to 1979, leader of the Khmer Rouge. According to many researchers, Pol Pot is the creator of the most cruel forms of totalitarianism in the history of mankind. His reign was accompanied by mass repressions, executions, poor medical care, starvation, the destruction of the intelligentsia and other "bourgeois enemies", which led to the death, according to various estimates, of about 25% of the entire population of Cambodia. In general, from 1 to 3 million people.
In sixth place in the list of the most cruel rulers in the history of mankind is Vlad III Tepes (1431-1476 / 77) - the ruler and governor of Wallachia in 1448, 1456-1462 and 1476. He was distinguished by extreme cruelty in reprisals against enemies and subjects, whom he impaled. He led a policy of systematic cleansing of society from "asocial elements". The court was simple and quick: vagrants and thieves were waiting for a fire or block. The same waited for gypsies, unreliable people and horse thieves. It was Vlad Tepes who became the prototype of the protagonist in the famous novel by Bram Stoker "Dracula" published in 1897.
Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus, better known by the nickname Caligula (August 31, 12 - January 24, 41) - princeps and Roman emperor. According to ancient Roman historians, Caligula was distinguished by cruelty, sadism, extravagance and sexual perversion. He is often described as a crazy tyrant. So, once he appointed his horse to the post of consul, arranged a brothel in his own dwelling, declared himself the personification of all the gods and often appeared before his subjects in costumes of not only male, but also female deities. He is also credited with sexual intercourse with his sisters (incest) and murders for entertainment purposes.
Otto Adolf Eichmann (1906-1962) - Gestapo officer, one of the main organizers of the mass extermination of Jews (the Holocaust). In August 1944 he presented a report in which he reported on the destruction of 4 million people. His crimes against the Jewish people included the arrest of millions of Jews, concentrating them in certain places, sending them to death camps, killing and confiscation of property. After Eichmann's arrest, the indictment dealt not only with crimes against the Jewish people, but also with crimes against representatives of other peoples: the deportation of millions of Poles, the arrest and sending to death camps of tens of thousands of Gypsies, the sending of 100 children from the Czech village of Lidice to the Lodz ghetto and their destruction. Eichmann was sentenced to death and hanged on June 1, 1962 in a prison in the Israeli city of Ramla.
Leopold II (April 9 - December 17, 1835, 1909) - King of the Belgians from 1865 until his death in 1909. Known for his activities to seize the Congo Basin and form the Congo Free State, which, together with its inhabitants, is the personal possession of the king (and not the state). Here, on the orders of Leopold II, various commercial companies for the extraction of ivory and rubber were organized, which cruelly exploited the local population (up to genocide). He justified the atrocities in the region by the fact that tribes practicing cannibalism live on the territory of the Congo Free State. The population in the colonial region is estimated to have dropped from 20 million to 10 million during the reign of Leopold II.
Iosif Vissarionovich Stalin (9 (21) December 5-1879 March 1953) - statesman, political and military leader of the USSR. His reign was accompanied by the establishment of a dictatorial regime, the violation of human rights and freedoms, war crimes and crimes against humanity, the creation of a system of mass repression, and the conduct of genocide Ukrainian people and the forcible deportation of peoples to the USSR, which was accompanied by numerous human losses. According to various sources, from 11-12 million to 38-39 million people became victims of Stalin's political terror.
The most cruel ruler in history is Adolf Hitler (April 20, April 30-1889, 1945) - German politician, leader of the National Socialist German Workers' Party (NSDAP), Chancellor of Germany, Fuhrer of Germany (1934-1945). According to most historians, Hitler is responsible for the policies of racial Nazi Germany, the Holocaust, and the deaths of millions of people who died during his reign. His aggressive foreign policy considered the main cause of the outbreak of World War II, which killed about 50 million people.
Throughout the history of planet Earth, there have been many rulers, from friendly kings to aggressive dictators. Here is a list of the greatest monarchs in history - those rulers who made the life of their people better.
Monarch Suleiman I of the Ottoman Empire
Suleiman I, also known as Suleiman the Magnificent, Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, he ruled for 69 years. His reign marked the beginning of a golden age in the Ottoman Empire. During his reign, Ottoman Empire covered most Middle East and Southeast Europe.
Monarch James I of Great Britain
James I, also known as "the wisest fool in Christendom", was the King of England and Scotland. During his reign, these two kingdoms were united. Literature and art flourished under his rule. He also wrote many books and poems himself.
Monarch Jan III Sobieski in Poland and Lithuania
Reign: 1674–1696
Jan III Sobieski, also known as Leo Lehistan, was a military and political genius. During his reign, Poland and Lithuania became stable, prosperous states. Nicknamed Lion Lehistan Jan received after defeating the Turks at the Battle of Vienna.
Emperor Meiji of Japan
Meiji became Emperor of Japan at the age of 14, when it was a primitive and isolated country. However, thanks to Meiji, towards the end of his reign, Japan became a great industrial power.
Monarch Gustav II Adolf in Sweden
Gustav II was king of Sweden for 21 years. During his reign, Sweden became a major European power. Gustav II led his army against the Protestant Catholic army of France and Spain. After his death in battle, Sweden became a prominent military power.
Augustus Caesar in Rome
Augustus Caesar, was Emperor of Rome for 41 years. During this time, Augustus improved Rome's infrastructure and military strength. He also reformed taxation. His reign is called the Pax Romana, or Roman peace, because diplomacy flourished during this period.
Monarch Cyrus II of Persia
Reign: 559 BC e.–530 BC e.
Cyrus II, also known as Cyrus the Great, ruled Persia for 30 years. During his reign, the Persian Empire covered most of the Middle East, including Iran, Israel, and Mesopotamia. In the reign of Cyrus, human rights and military strategy have been significantly improved.
Monarch Frederick II of Prussia
Frederick II, also known as Frederick the Great, ruled Prussia for 46 years. During his reign, the borders of Prussia were greatly expanded and the infrastructure improved.
Queen Victoria in the UK
Victoria has been on the throne for over 63 years - more than any other British monarch. The Victorian era coincided with the Industrial Revolution and the greater rise of the British Empire. The multiple dynastic marriages of her children and grandchildren cemented ties between the royal dynasties of Europe and increased England's influence on the continent (she was called the "Grandmother of Europe"). Her birthday is still considered a holiday in Canada.
Monarch Louis XIV of France
King of France and Navara from May 14, 1643. He reigned for 72 years - longer than any other European king in history. The reign of Louis is a time of significant consolidation of the unity of France, its military power, socio-political weight, intellectual prestige and the flourishing of culture, this time went down in history as the Great Age.
Louis was a firm believer in the divine right of kings, once saying he was like the sun and his courtiers and France should revolve around him like planets.