5 famous rulers who went down in history because of their weirdness

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

History knows a lot of political leaders and monarchs who lack the talent to govern the state. Many of them compensated for this lack with an unpredictable disposition and outrageous antics. This did not lead to political success, but people still remember them. As a rule, shuddering or terrified.

Roman emperor who appointed his horse senator

Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus is a Roman emperor, whose antics have been remembered for 2 thousand years. His term of office was only 4 years (from 37 to 41). And ended with a violent death, which is associated with the unwillingness of subjects to endure more excessive cruelty, megalomania and cynicism. Caligula became the first ruler of the Roman Empire who was not buried in accordance with the established ritual procedure.

The results of the government: • Liberalization of society - abolished the law on insult to grandeur, which served as a pretext for imprisonment on political grounds;

• Roman citizens are allowed to form non-political associations - guilds;

• minor expansion of the Roman Empire - the annexation of Mauritania;

• emptying of the state treasury, in connection with which the emperor was forced to look for alternative ways to replenish it.

The turning point that changed the policy of Caligula was a serious illness that held the emperor between life and death. After his recovery, the Roman ruler rethought the issue of replenishing the treasury. In addition to increasing the tax burden, he announced a law that had no precedent. All subjects pledged to include the emperor in the will. In the event that the name of Gaius Julius Caesar was absent in such a document, it was invalidated in court. False witnesses claimed that the deceased was eager to bequeath part of his property to the emperor. This was enough to revise the will.

Caligula was remembered for his outrageousness and love for exotic images. He often wore women's outfits, dressed like a commoner, and also portrayed himself as one of the gods of the Roman pantheon.

Caligula expressed reverence for the performing arts. To make people more willing to attend the performances, the mass mourning was reduced, the court sessions were postponed. But noisy spectators, preventing them from enjoying the action on stage, could receive several lashes - to maintain order.

Caligula's horse was recognized as the highest-ranking stallion in history, Incitatus lived in comfortable chambers, drank from golden dishes, and in addition was a senator. And even after the death of the eccentric emperor, the horse remained a member of the government, since it was impossible by law to drive the animal out. He had to cut his salary, after which Incitatus became too poor to remain a senator.

King of France Charles VI Beloved - beat your own, so that strangers are afraid

Charles took the throne at the age of 12, by the age of 20 he refused the services of the regent. But too much responsibility led to poor health. At the age of 24, the monarch had his first mysterious attack, when he fell into a rampage, scaring away the courtiers and his wife, as well as destroying several chambers.

In the subsequent clouding of the mind of the king happened regularly. He suspected conspiracies and treason in his entourage, did not recognize his wife, claimed that he did not belong to the royal family, erased the image of the Valois coats of arms from the family dishes.

In 1392, during a military campaign to Nantes, the king killed a page who accidentally dropped a spear. A nervous and suspicious monarch shouting "Forward to the traitors!" next he killed his knight, wounded three more, then began to chase his own brother.

Subsequently, the king's attacks did not reach the point of murder, but other oddities were revealed. For example, Charles VI assured that his bones were made of glass. Due to the particular fragility of his body, he demanded clothes with an iron frame.

The following results of the reign of Charles VI are noted: • France with this king lost many territories during the Hundred Years War, the provinces of Normandy, Brittany and Guyenne were ceded to the British;

• disintegration and weakening of the state;

• a large number of internecine wars, uprisings.

Spanish king Carlos II the Obsessed

European monarch Carlos II was the victim of prolonged incest or imbreeding. The representative of the Habsburg dynasty, who did not leave an heir to the Spanish throne, was remembered as a melancholic, lack of initiative. The infertility of the monarch is directly related to genetic diseases. Also, the ruler did not achieve any outstanding results in the conduct of public affairs. On the contrary, the results of the government were unsatisfactory: • deep economic crisis;

• Spain has repeatedly experienced famine;

• strengthening of separatist sentiments.

Carlos II showed no talent or desire for state affairs. His favorite pastime was children's games with court dwarfs. The monarch had a complex character - he was distrustful, capricious, unnecessarily anxious. In adulthood, hobbies changed - now he preferred the silent society of his departed ancestors. He ordered the bodies to be removed from the crypts and spent a lot of time looking at the remains.

François Duvalier - President of Haiti who practiced voodoo

This notorious dictator was one of the first blacks in the world to lead the republic. He enjoyed the support of the US government, which turned a blind eye to the fact that the Duvalier regime was far from the principles of democracy. The tough ruler began almost every morning by compiling lists of political opponents who were waiting for prison or death.

In addition, the money channeled from the United States to the development of democracy was dubiously distributed. They settled in the pockets of Duvalier and his inner circle.

The situation changed when Kennedy became president, who made it clear that the aid would end due to its misuse. Duvalier also found something to threaten with - reprisal with the help of magical voodoo practices. Mockery of the Haitian ruler gave way to silent fear when John F. Kennedy was indeed overtaken by a violent death. Duvalier categorically announced that this was the result of his work.

On this wave, the Haitian dictator managed to prepare a decree on life-long presidency and get its approval among the masses. Another brilliant economic success was the "popularity" of Duvalier's book. Every citizen of Haiti was required to buy a collection of quotes from the "democratic" leader for $ 15. The deduction of this amount from the salaries of the population was carried out automatically.

Governance results: • Poverty • Corruption • Hunger - Haitians sold children into slavery in the hope that they would be fed • A significant lag in economic development compared to neighboring countries.

Go Amin - Black Hitler

Idi Amin took over as President of Uganda in 1971 in a military coup. Soon he declared himself the country's leader for life. Idi Amin was not original in the fight against dissent - all the dissatisfied, posing any threat to the existing regime, were destroyed.

But the dictator showed unprecedented ingenuity in creating a new way of replenishing the state treasury. Ugandan intelligence officers killed bystanders. Their bodies were handed over to their relatives only after the payment of the prescribed amount. And people paid for the murderers, because in Uganda they worship the cult of ancestors, according to the prescription of which it is extremely important to observe the ritual of burying the body.

Results of activity: • strengthening of extremist nationalism; • economic collapse.