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Benito Mussolini - Italy -

Benito Mussolini was the fascist dictator who ruled over Italy from 1922 to 1943. He followed Adolf Hitler’s lead during World War II and signed in anti-Semitic policies that discriminated against the Jewish people of Italy at every level. He was also prepared to deport 20% of Italy's Jewish population and send them to Nazi deaths camps.

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Benito Mussolini - Italy -

He was voted out of office in 1943, a decision that he ignored. He showed up to work at his office the next day as if he was untouchable, but was promptly arrested and thrown in jail. His German allies launched a successful mission to break him out, but by 1945 he was recaptured and shot, along with his mistress, Claretta Petacci. Their bodies were hung upside down in the Piazza Loreto in Milan.

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Saddam Hussein - Iraq -

Saddam Hussein came to power in 1979 and repressed the people of Iraq through violence and fear, showing disdain for the law and basic human rights. By the early 2000s, his regime was starting to fall apart due to tough international sanctions and repeated attempts to overthrow him.

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Saddam Hussein - Iraq -

In 2003, Iraq was invaded by the US, and Hussein disappeared amidst the chaos. American soldiers helped the local people pull down a statue of the deposed dictator, but it was seven months before they found Hussein, literally hiding in a hole in the ground. He was tried for war crimes in Baghdad and sentenced to death by hanging.

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Muammar Gadhafi - Libya -

Muammar Gadhafi seized power in 1969 by leading a coup that overthrew the monarchy. He ruled over Libya for the next 42 years, removing all political parties, formal government, and unions. He called himself "Brother Leader" and became incredibly wealthy thanks to the country’s plentiful oil reserves.

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Muammar Gadhafi - Libya -

In 2011, inspired by the Arab Spring, the people of Libya took to the streets to protest the corrupt dictatorship. Gadhafi had his forces respond with unprecedented and disproportionate violence, all while telling the international press, “All my people love me." The rebellion grew and the fighting carried on for six months, with the support of NATO. In August of that year, the rebels seized Tripoli, ending his reign. Two months later, he was found and executed on sight.

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Nicolae Ceausescu - Romania -

Nicolae Ceausescu was the totalitarian leader of Romania from 1965 until his death in 1989. He was known for having one of the most feared secret police forces in the USSR, infamous for their oppression and human rights violations. He starved his people by squandering billions in loans, making Romania the only European country where hunger and malnutrition were widespread and rising. Regardless, he embarked on an egotistical plan to build the Palace of the Parliament, the largest civilian administrative building in the world.

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Nicolae Ceausescu - Romania -

In 1989, civil unrest had grown to the point of rebellion, and Ceausescu fled Bucharest with his wife, Elena Ceausescu. They were seized by police and, after a rushed trial, they were found guilty of crimes against the state and sentenced to death. They were both executed by firing squad on Christmas Day. The footage of the execution is still aired on Romanian TV every year.

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Ion Antonescu - Romania -

Nicolae Ceausescu is the most notorious and most hated of Romania’s dictators, but he wasn’t the first. Ion Antonescu ruled over Romania during the military dictatorship that came to power during World War II. He formed an alliance with Hitler in 1940 while serving as prime minister, foreign minister, and defense minister, all at the same time.

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Ion Antonescu - Romania -

He carried out his own ethnic cleansing in Romania through massacres and death camps. He is thought to be responsible for the deaths of 400,000 Jewish and Romani people. In 1944, he was overthrown by King Michael I of Romania. He was tried for war crimes and executed by firing squad in 1946.

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Park Chung-hee - South Korea -

North Korea is the first country that comes to mind when we think of strict dictatorships, but South Korea’s Park Chung-hee made North Korea look welcoming! The maniacal despot gained power in 1961 by leading a military coup, becoming the de facto ruler. He maintained a policy of “guided democracy,” the same policy seen in Russia today, which is not really a democracy at all...

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Park Chung-hee - South Korea -

He used the Korean Central Intelligence Agencies (KCIA) to repress those who opposed him as he restricted the freedom of citizens, the press, universities, and other political parties. He declared martial law in 1972, which led to a revolution that toppled his regime. Park was actually assassinated by his lifelong friend and ally, Kim Jae Kyu, who was the head of the KCIA.

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Hideki Tojo - Japan -

Hideki Tojo was the prime minister of Japan during most of World War II, from 1941 to 1944. Tojo was responsible for Japan’s decision to go to war at the time, and he presided over many terrible atrocities. Under his regime, both civilians and prisoners of war were starved, and thousands of women and girls were kidnapped and used as sex slaves for Japanese soldiers during the invasion of Korea.

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Hideki Tojo - Japan -

As it became clear that Japan was losing the war, Tojo was forced to resign in 1944. Japan surrendered in 1945, and Tojo was arrested for war crimes by the International Military Tribunal. He was sentenced to death by hanging.

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Vidkun Quisling - Norway -

Like many of the tyrants on this list, Norway’s Vidkun Quisling saw the chaos of World War II as the perfect opportunity to seize power. Quisling was an anti-Semitic fascist who met with Hitler and urged him to invade Norway. Hitler did so the following year, and Quisling named himself the head of government. His regime collapsed within a week due to public backlash, but he remained the leading Norwegian politician under German leadership while Norway was occupied by the Nazis.

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Vidkun Quisling - Norway -

Quisling was responsible for sending at least 1,000 Jewish people to their deaths and was despised by the Norwegian people. In fact, his name, Quisling, is a word synonymous with “traitor” in Norway to this day. He was put on trial for war crimes when Norway was liberated in 1945, and executed.

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Peter III - Russia -

Peter III became emperor of Russia in 1762 and immediately made enemies of his counsel, noblemen, armies, people, and the church. He waged unpopular wars that killed thousands of men. He also withdrew from the Seven Years’ War and made peace with Prussia, outraging those who had been fighting for that cause for years.

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Peter III - Russia -

Within six months of taking power, it was clear that Peter was a sinking ship. His wife Catherine plotted to overthrow her husband and take the Russian throne herself. She became Catherine II, later to be known as Catherine the Great. Peter abdicated the following day and was arrested and killed. There is still much mystery surrounding his death, but it’s believed he was assassinated.

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Nicholas II - Russia -

Nicholas II of Russia is best known as the last emperor of Russia, and the last of the Romanovs. He came to power in 1894, and his entire reign was marred by social and political unrest due to the increased oppression and corruption under his regime. The tension came to a head in 1905, when crowds marched to his Winter Palace in Saint Petersburg to protest the Russo-Japanese War. The emperor responded with violent force, killing and wounding hundreds. The incident came to be known as Bloody Sunday.

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Nicholas II - Russia -

It was his mishandling of Russia’s involvement in World War I that finally lost him the throne. Even those who weren’t part of the socialist revolution wanted him gone, and he abdicated in 1917. A couple of months later, Nicholas II was brutally executed along with his wife, his four daughters, and his son. They were put in a cellar and gunned down by a group of soldiers. 

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Samuel Doe - Liberia -

Samuel Doe became the ruler of Liberia in 1980 after staging a violent coup and murdering the previous president. He dismantled the country’s constitution and 'won' a presidential election in 1985 that was denounced by many as fraudulent. His regime was both corrupt and brutal to those who opposed his tyranny.

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Samuel Doe - Liberia -

Doe was constantly suppressing plots to assassinate and overthrow him using violent force. Eventually, a rebellion in 1990 had him cornered, but he refused to give up his power. He was captured and brutally tortured for 12 hours before he was finally killed.

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Charles I - England -

King Charles I of England was like many kings before him in that he believed he was divinely appointed by God. However, Charles I was determined to secure absolute power for himself and believed that he was second only to God. He thought he had the right to make and change the laws at will, and that those who disagreed with him were in contempt of God. He was a dictator to his very core!

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Charles I - England -

His refusal to take advice or meet with dignitaries made him an incredibly unpopular ruler. His tyrannical rule and refusal to abide by the same laws as previous leaders led to a devastating civil war. Historians say it was the bloodiest war ever fought on British soil. He was captured and given many opportunities to repent and negotiate peace, but he refused to admit any wrongdoing. He was sentenced to death and beheaded in 1649 in front of a crowd in Whitehall.

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Julius Caesar - Rome -

Julius Caesar is the most famous figure from ancient Rome. He was a popular general and politician who was beloved by the people for expanding and strengthening the Roman Republic. However, in 44 BCE, Caesar was given the title of dictator for life. He named his grandnephew as his heir, but stipulated that the general Decimus Junius Brutus Albinus was second in line if his grandnephew died.

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Julius Caesar - Rome -

Caesar intended to put many reforms in place including the creation of a strong central government. To do so, he increased his own power and reduced the authority of Rome’s other politicians. This didn’t go down well. A large group of politicians who opposed Caesar hatched a plan to kill him.

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Julius Caesar - Rome -

The conspirators decided to assassinate him together at the next gathering of the Senate. It’s believed that as many as 60 senators were in on the plot. At the next meeting, they rushed at him with knives and stabbed him 23 times.

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Domitian - Rome -

Julius Caesar was an exception in this list as a benevolent dictator who was loved by his people. Sadly, Rome would have its fair share of disastrous leaders after his death. Emperor Domitian came to power in 81 CE. He is widely considered to be one of the worst Roman emperors in history. He had a reputation for being narcissistic, paranoid, and cruel.

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Domitian - Rome -

He lacked clarity and saw threats and insults everywhere, which made him a vindictive and cruel leader. He distrusted the Senate and had several senators executed for treason. He eventually tried to assign himself absolute power. There was almost no one left who wasn’t plotting his downfall by this point. A member of his imperial staff was enlisted to stab the unsuspecting emperor. His death was celebrated in the streets as his statues were torn down all over Rome.

Sources: (Time) (Live Science) (Hoover Institution) (Britannica) 

See more: History's cruelest despots and dictators

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