The most cruel people in the world. War in blood: the most brutal peoples of antiquity
Any nation experiences a time of active wars and expansion. But there are tribes where militancy and cruelty are an integral part of their culture. These are ideal warriors without fear and morality. And what’s most interesting is that they retained these qualities through centuries and generations.
1. Maori
The name of the New Zealand tribe "Maori" means "ordinary", although, in truth, there is nothing ordinary about them. Even Charles Darwin, who happened to meet them during his voyage on the Beagle, noted their cruelty, especially towards the whites (English), with whom they had to fight for territories during the Maori wars.
Maori are considered the indigenous people of New Zealand. Their ancestors sailed to the island approximately 2000-700 years ago from Eastern Polynesia. Before the arrival of the British in the middle of the 19th century, they had no serious enemies; they had fun mainly with civil strife.
During this time, their unique customs, characteristic of many Polynesian tribes, were formed. For example, they cut off the heads of captured enemies and ate their bodies - this is how, according to their beliefs, the enemy’s power passed to them. Unlike their neighbors, the Australian Aborigines, the Maori fought in two world wars.
Moreover, during World War II they themselves insisted on forming their own 28th battalion. By the way, it is known that during the First World War they drove away the enemy with their “haku” battle dance, during offensive operation on the Gallipoli Peninsula. This ritual was accompanied by war cries and scary faces, which literally discouraged enemies and gave the Maori an advantage.
2. Gurkhas
Another warlike people, who also fought on the side of the British - Nepalese Gurkhas. Even during colonial policy, the British classified them as the “most militant” peoples they encountered.
According to them, the Gurkhas were distinguished by aggressiveness in battle, courage, self-sufficiency, physical strength and lowered pain threshold. England itself had to surrender to the pressure of their warriors, armed only with knives.
It is not surprising that back in 1815 a wide campaign was launched to attract Gurkha volunteers into the British army. Skilled fighters quickly gained fame as the best soldiers in the world.
They managed to take part in the suppression of the Sikh uprising, the Afghan, First and Second World Wars, as well as in the Falklands conflict. Today, the Gurkhas are still the elite fighters of the British army. They are all recruited there – in Nepal. I must say, the competition for selection is crazy - according to the modernarmy portal, there are 28,000 candidates for 200 places.
The British themselves admit that the Gurkhas are better soldiers than themselves. Maybe because they are more motivated. Although the Nepalese themselves say, it’s not about money at all. They are proud of their martial art and are always happy to put it into action. Even if someone pats them on the shoulder in a friendly manner, in their tradition this is considered an insult.
3. Dayaks
When some small peoples are actively integrated into modern world, others prefer to preserve traditions, even if they are far from the values of humanism.
For example, the Dayak tribe from the island of Kalimantan, who have earned a terrible reputation as headhunters. What to do - you can become a man only by bringing the head of your enemy to the tribe. At least this was the case back in the 20th century. The Dayak people (Malay for “pagan”) are an ethnic group that unites numerous peoples inhabiting the island of Kalimantan in Indonesia.
Among them: Ibans, Kayans, Modangs, Segais, Trings, Inichings, Longwais, Longhat, Otnadom, Serai, Mardahik, Ulu-Ayer. Even today, some villages can only be reached by boat.
The bloodthirsty rituals of the Dayaks and the hunt for human heads were officially stopped in the 19th century, when the local sultanate asked the Englishman Charles Brooke from the dynasty of white rajahs to somehow influence the people who knew no other way to become a man except to cut off someone's head.
Having captured the most militant leaders, he managed to guide the Dayaks to a peaceful path through a “carrot and stick policy.” But people continued to disappear without a trace. The last bloody wave swept across the island in 1997-1999, when all world agencies shouted about ritual cannibalism and little Dayaks playing with human heads.
4. Kalmyks
Among the peoples of Russia, one of the most warlike are the Kalmyks, descendants of the Western Mongols. Their self-name translates as “breakaways,” which means Oirats who did not convert to Islam. Today, most of them live in the Republic of Kalmykia. Nomads are always more aggressive than farmers.
The ancestors of the Kalmyks, the Oirats, who lived in Dzungaria, were freedom-loving and warlike. Even Genghis Khan did not immediately manage to subjugate them, for which he demanded the complete destruction of one of the tribes. Later, the Oirat warriors became part of the army of the great commander, and many of them became related to the Genghisids. Therefore, it is not without reason that some of the modern Kalmyks consider themselves descendants of Genghis Khan.
In the 17th century, the Oirats left Dzungaria and, having made a huge transition, reached the Volga steppes. In 1641, Russia recognized the Kalmyk Khanate, and from now on, from the 17th century, Kalmyks became permanent participants in the Russian army. They say that the battle cry “hurray” once came from the Kalmyk “uralan”, which means “forward”. They especially distinguished themselves in Patriotic War 1812. 3 Kalmyk regiments, numbering more than three and a half thousand people, took part in it. For the Battle of Borodino alone, more than 260 Kalmyks were awarded the highest orders of Russia.
5. Kurds
The Kurds, along with the Arabs, Persians and Armenians, are one of the ancient peoples Middle East. They live in the ethnogeographical region of Kurdistan, which was divided among themselves by Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and Syria after the First World War.
The Kurdish language, according to scientists, belongs to the Iranian group. In religious terms, they have no unity - among them there are Muslims, Jews and Christians. It is generally difficult for Kurds to come to an agreement with each other. Even Doctor of Medical Sciences E.V. Erikson noted in his work on ethnopsychology that the Kurds are a people merciless to the enemy and unreliable in friendship: “they respect only themselves and their elders. Their morality is generally very low, superstition is extremely high, and real religious feeling is extremely poorly developed. War is their direct innate need and absorbs all interests.”
It is difficult to judge how applicable this thesis, written at the beginning of the 20th century, is today. But the fact that they never lived under their own centralized power makes itself felt. According to Sandrine Alexi of the Kurdish University in Paris: “Every Kurd is a king on his own mountain. That’s why they quarrel with each other, conflicts arise often and easily.”
But for all their uncompromising attitude towards each other, the Kurds dream of a centralized state. Today, the “Kurdish issue” is one of the most pressing in the Middle East. Numerous unrest in order to achieve autonomy and unite into one state have been ongoing since 1925. From 1992 to 1996, the Kurds fought civil war in northern Iraq, permanent protests still occur in Iran. In a word, the “question” hangs in the air. Today, the only Kurdish state entity with broad autonomy is Iraqi Kurdistan.
Any civilization knows a period of brutal wars. All human history is a list of bloody battles: for territory, for fame, wealth and other earthly goods. We call ourselves cultured people, but even today, in the era of flights to Mars and experimental technologies, we only need a small push to again slide into the abyss of the bloody darkness of eternal battles. And who will win in such a battle? Here is a list of the most warlike peoples in the world who certainly will not lose.
Maori warriors
The Maori people were one of the most warlike in the region. This tribe believed that a fight with the enemy - best way raise prestige and mood. Cannibalism was required in order to gain the enemy's mana. Unlike most national cultures, the Maori were never conquered, and their bloodthirsty dance, the haka, is still performed by the national rugby team.
Gurkhas
The Nepalese Gurkhas were able to seriously moderate the colonial attacks of the British Empire, and very few peoples succeeded in this. According to the British who fought with the Nepalese, the Gurkhas are distinguished by a lower pain threshold and increased aggressiveness: England even decided to accept former opponents for military service.
Dayaks
Only the young man who brings the head of an enemy to the leader is considered a man of the tribe. From this tradition alone one can imagine how warlike the Dayak people are. Fortunately, the Dayaks live only on the island of Kalimantan, far from us, but even from there they manage to scare the civilized population of the rest of the globe.
Kalmyks
There is no need to be surprised: the Kalmyks are indeed considered one of the most warlike peoples on the planet. The ancestors of the Kalmyks, the Oirats, once refused to accept Islam, and then became related to the tribe of Genghis Khan himself. To this day, many Kalmyks consider themselves descendants of the great conqueror - it must be said, not without good reason.
Apache
The Apache tribes fought against the Mexican Indians for centuries. A little later, they used their skills against the white man and for a long time successfully held their territories. The Apaches carried out a real terror in the southwestern United States and the military machine of a huge country was forced to concentrate its efforts only on this tribe.
Ninja Warriors
Around the 15th century AD, the history of ninjas began, assassins whose name has become famous throughout the centuries. These secretive, well-trained warriors became a real legend of medieval Japan - despite the fact that some historians are even trying to distinguish them as a separate nationality.
Normans
The Vikings were a real scourge ancient Europe. The fact is that it was extremely difficult for the population of modern Denmark, Iceland and Norway to raise livestock and crops on their icy territories. The only chance of survival was raids on coastal states, which over time turned into full-scale raids. It is not surprising that under such conditions entire nations turned into real castes of ferocious warriors.
Tuvins, Mansi, Kalmyks and others are the most warlike peoples in the history of Russia according to the “Russian Seven”.
Russians
The harsh climate, vast territories and an endless series of conquerors forged the Russians with enormous willpower and perseverance in achieving victories.
“The Russians often attacked our machine guns and artillery, even when their attack was doomed to defeat. They paid no attention either to the strength of our fire or to their losses,” recalled World War I German general Anton von Poseck.
A quarter of a century later, another German general, Gunther Blumentritt, complemented his compatriot: “The Russian soldier prefers hand-to-hand combat. His ability to endure hardship without flinching is truly amazing. This is the Russian soldier whom we came to know and respect.”
“Suvorov’s Crossing of the Alps”, Vasily Surikov, 1899
Writer Nikolai Shefov in his book “Battles of Russia” provides statistics on wars from the 18th to the 20th centuries in which Russia participated. According to the author, for 250 years Russian regular army Out of 34 wars, she won 31, out of 392 battles, she won 279. In the vast majority of battles, Russian troops were inferior to their opponents in numbers.
Varangians
The Varangians were not a united people. However, these ethnically diverse groups that inhabited, among other things, the northern lands Ancient Rus', were distinguished by their unity and warlike disposition. You could either fight with them or negotiate with them.
Europe failed to achieve either one or the other. Along the rivers, the Varangians penetrated deep into the continent, devastating Cologne, Trier, Bordeaux, and Paris.
“Deliver us, Lord, from the ferocity of the Normans!” came from many churches in Western Europe.
Along the Dnieper, the Varangians reached the Black Sea, from where they carried out their devastating campaigns against Constantinople.
Oleg's farewell to his horse. Victor Vasnetsov, 1899
The developed technology of iron processing allowed the Varangians to create high-quality weapons and armor that had practically no analogues. Historian Alexander Khlevov notes that neither Europe nor Asia at that time were able to create military formations equal in combat capability to the Varangians.
Byzantine emperors and Russian princes preferred to have Varangians as mercenaries. When the Novgorod prince Vladimir Svyatoslavich, with the help of the Varangian squad, seized the Kiev throne in 979, he tried to get rid of his wayward comrades, but in response he heard: “This is our city, we captured it, we want to take a ransom from the townspeople at two hryvnias per person.”
Baltic Germans
In the 12th century, following the Hanseatic merchants, the Crusaders came to the eastern shore of the Baltic. Main goal expansion - the conquest and baptism of pagan peoples. In 1224, the Germans captured Yuriev, founded by Yaroslav the Wise, and the Livonian Order, which they soon created, would for a long time become one of the main threats to the western borders of Rus'.
Descendants of the Livonian captives of Ivan the Terrible early XVII centuries are actively involved in the formation of “regiments of a foreign system.”
At the end of the 18th century, along with the Baltic nobles, Prussian discipline, well-trainedness and combat training brought to automaticity came to the Russian army - this is what inspired Paul I to military reforms.
Many of the Baltic Germans reach career heights in Russian military service. For example, Karl von Toll comes from an old Estonian family. This talented staff general owned the plan for the war with Napoleon; it was he who developed the operational plan for the Battle of Borodino. Later, Tol led successful operations during the Russian-Turkish War of 1828-1829.
Another famous Baltic Sea resident was Barclay de Tolly. The “scorched earth tactics,” which was used by the general during the war with Napoleon, aroused protest among the Russian landed nobility, but it was precisely this tactic that largely determined the outcome of the military campaign.
Before Russian-Japanese war the share of generals of German origin in the general ranks of the Russian army was 21.6%. On April 15, 1914, among 169 “full generals” there were 48 Germans (28.4%), among 371 lieutenant generals there were 73 Germans (19.7%), among 1034 major generals there were 196 Germans (19%).
A large percentage of officers of German origin were in the Life Guards Horse Regiment, which, according to tradition, recruited mainly Baltic (Baltic) Germans.
Other famous Baltic Germans in the Russian army and navy were P.K. Rennenkampf, E.K. Miller, Admiral von Essen, Baron A. Budberg, General N.E. Bredov.
Baron Roman Ungern von Sternberg.
Baron Ungern von Sternberg stands apart from the Baltic Germans. Extremely decisive, disregarding dangers, he gained fame as a hero even on the fronts of the First World War.
During the Civil War, the army under the command of General Ungern became one of the main threats to Soviet Russia. The name of Baron Ungern is especially memorable in Mongolia: largely thanks to the general’s leadership talent, this country was able to defend its independence from China.
Nobles
The gentry of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth more than once caused problems for the Russian state, not only encroaching on the territory of its eastern neighbor, but also owning the Moscow throne. The English historian Norman Davis characterizes the “arrogant gentry” as follows: “They did not engage in any craft or trade, but could only enter military service or manage an estate.”
The gentry was originally a military knightly class. The lion's share of the nobleman's way of life was occupied by hunting, fencing, horse racing and shooting. In the colleges of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, military sports games were practiced, for example, finger fighting, which imitated saber duels.
“This fighting principle was a projection of noble fights, duels - games with death in real life,” notes historian Igor Uglik.
The “winged hussars” - the elite cavalry of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, which repeatedly defeated the Russians, Swedes, Turks and Germans - made a lot of noise in Europe. The success of the hussars was brought by its favorite tactics: the increasing tempo of the attack and the compacted front of the banner, which made it possible to inflict maximum damage on the enemy in a collision.
From the 16th century, gentry began to join the ranks of the Zaporozhye Cossacks, introducing into it a knightly luster and military democracy. For the impoverished or guilty part of the Polish-Lithuanian gentry, the Cossacks were perceived as the restoration of honor - “either fall with glory, or return with military spoils.”
After the Pereyaslav Rada, part of the so-called Russian gentry from Left Bank Ukraine voluntarily swore allegiance to the Moscow Tsar. The nobles more than once had the opportunity to prove themselves in military affairs. So, in 1676, when the Bashkirs and Kyrgyz besieged the Menzepin fortress, the nobles fought bravely and held the city for a long time, until reinforcements arrived.
Cossacks
These free people were often in the vanguard of those who raised uprisings and riots; they were also in the ranks of the pioneers who conquered new lands for the empire.
The exceptional military qualities of the Cossacks are the result of multi-stage combat training. For example, the long process of training a Cossack soldier allowed him to develop different skills: “crunch shot” - the ability to hit any target in poor visibility, “wolf’s mouth” - the ability to carry out a lightning-fast striking attack, or “fox tail” - the art of covering one’s tracks when returning from assignments.
The feat is woven into the chronicle of the Cossacks as a bright page Don Cossack Kozma Kryuchkov - St. George Order Bearer of the First World War. In August 1914, a small troop of Cossacks attacked a pair of German cavalry patrols. “I was surrounded by eleven people. Not wanting to be alive, I decided to sell my life dearly,” the hero recalled. Despite the 16 puncture wounds that the Cossack received, not one of the 11 Germans remained alive that day.
Circassians
Already the self-name of the Circassians - “Adyg” - means “warrior”. The entire way of life of the Circassians was permeated with military life. As the writer A.S. Marzei notes, “this state of their life is in constant readiness for defense and battle, there is less choice vulnerable spot for settlements and temporary stops, mobility in gathering and movement, moderation and unpretentiousness in food, a developed sense of solidarity and duty, led, of course, to militarization.”
Along with other Trans-Kubans, the Circassians offered the most fierce resistance to the Russian army during the Caucasian Wars. Only a century later, at the cost of more than a million soldiers’ lives, Russia was able to conquer this proud and warlike people. The most powerful tribe of western Circassia, the Abadzekhs, also comes to terms with Shamil’s captivity.
Over the centuries, the Circassians created a special military culture - “Work Khabze”, which distinguished them from their neighbors. An integral feature of this culture was respect for the enemy.
The Circassians did not burn houses, did not trample fields, and did not destroy vineyards. The care of the Circassians for their wounded or fallen comrades also deserves admiration. Despite the danger, they rushed to the deceased in the middle of the battle, only to carry out his body.
Adhering to the knightly code of honor, the Circassians always waged open war. They preferred death in battle to surrender. “I can praise one thing about the Circassians,” wrote the Astrakhan governor to Peter I, “that all of them are such warriors as cannot be found in these countries, for while there are a thousand Tatars or Kumyks, there are enough Circassians here to be two hundred.”
Vainakh
There is a hypothesis according to which the ancient Vainakh peoples laid the foundations of the Sarmatian and Alan ethnic groups. We know the Vainakhs primarily as Chechens and Ingush, who left no less a bright mark on history than their formidable ancestors.
During the invasion of the hordes of first Genghis Khan and then Timur, the Vainakhs who retreated to the mountains managed to offer heroic resistance to them.
During this period, the Vainakhs perfected their defensive architecture: the watchtowers and fortresses that rise today in the Caucasus Mountains - the best for that confirmation.
An interesting description of the Vainakh is found in the diary of a Russian soldier who was captured by the mountaineers during the Caucasian War: “This is truly a beast, perfectly equipped with all sorts of military weapons, sharp claws, powerful teeth, jumping like rubber, evasive like rubber, rushing away with the speed of lightning, with overtaking and striking with the speed of lightning.”
Ossetians
In the motley ethnic ancestry of the Ossetians, the warlike Iranian-speaking tribes of the North Caucasus clearly emerge: Scythians, Sarmatians and Alans. Unlike others Caucasian peoples, Ossetians establish relations with Russia quite early. Already in the middle of the 18th century, the head of the Ossetian embassy in St. Petersburg, Zurab Magkaev, declared his readiness to deploy an army of 30 thousand people to participate in military operations against Iran and Turkey.
Devotion, courage and valor are the traits that most accurately characterize Ossetian warriors:
“Ossetians are especially fearless and hardened like Spartans. It is a political necessity to negotiate with them,”
Russian playwright Mikhail Vladykin writes in his notes. General Skobelev noted that if the Ossetians are the last, it is only during retreat.
Tatars
Since the time of the first conquests of Genghis Khan, the Tatar cavalry has been a formidable force.
On the battlefield, Tatar archers used the perfected tactics of maneuvering and bombarding the enemy with arrows. The military art of the Tatars was also famous for reconnaissance, thanks to which small detachments could set up ambushes and carry out lightning attacks.
In the middle of the 15th century, the Moscow kings had the idea of subordinating Tatar militancy to their interests.
Thus, Tatar enclaves arose on the territory of the Russian state, whose members were obliged to bear military service in exchange for the inviolability of territory and religion.
Vasily II and Ivan III actively used Tatar troops to solve political problems. Ivan the Terrible relied on the Tatars during the capture of Kazan and Astrakhan, in Livonian War and in the oprichnina.
Nogais
The Golden Horde beklyarbek Nogai gave rise to the ethnonym with which one of the most formidable and warlike peoples of Eurasia is associated. Already under its founder, the Nogai Horde extended its influence over vast territories from the Don to the Danube; the possessions of Byzantium, Serbia, Bulgaria and many south-eastern lands of Rus' recognized vassal dependence on it.
The Nogais, who by the middle of the 16th century could field an army of 300,000, were a force with which few dared to compete. The Moscow tsars preferred to build good neighborly relations with the Horde. In exchange for economic assistance, the Nogais carried out cordon service in the south of Rus', and their cavalry regiments helped Russian troops in the Livonian War.
Kalmyks
An integral part of a Kalmyk’s life was his physical training. Thus, the national wrestling “Nooldan” trained youth in strength, endurance and an unbending will to win.
During the Tsagan Sar holiday, Kalmyk youths met each other in a real “cutting room”, however, using whips instead of sabers. Such fun subsequently made Kalmyk warriors unsurpassed “slashers.”
A special place among the Kalmyks was occupied by the ability to control negative emotions, which allowed them to accumulate physical and moral strength.
During the battle, the Kalmyk warrior entered a special state of mind, in which he felt neither pain nor fatigue, and his strength seemed to increase tenfold.
Since the 17th century, Kalmyks have been demonstrating their military skills, defending the borders of the Russian kingdom: the irregular cavalry of the Kalmyk Khanate took part in many wars waged by Russia throughout the 18th century.
Muncie
Having chosen the harsh northern region, the Voguls (or Mansi) have perfectly mastered the art of survival. Excellent hunters and fearless warriors, they forced their neighbors to reckon with them: Siberian Tatars, Nenets and Zyryans.
The squad of the Mansi Khan consisted of a detachment of professional warriors - “oblique otyrs”. The key to their success was hidden movement and unnoticed tracking of the enemy.
IN different times The hordes of Batu and detachments of Novgorodians tried to penetrate the lands of the Voguls - all without success. Only after suffering a painful defeat from Ermak’s Cossacks did the Mansi retreat further to the North.
Tuvans
During the Great Patriotic War, this small pastoral people demonstrated miracles of fortitude and courage. It is no coincidence that the Germans called the Tuvans Der Schwarze Tod - “the black death”. Of the 80 thousand population of Tuva, 8 thousand people fought in the ranks of the Red Army.
Without exaggeration, the Tuvan cavalry that fought in Galicia and Volyn made an indelible impression on the German troops.
A captured Wehrmacht officer admitted during interrogation that his subordinates “subconsciously perceived these barbarians as the hordes of Attila and lost all combat effectiveness.”
It should be noted that the Tuvan cavalrymen added to their bellicosity appearance: on small shaggy horses, dressed in national costumes with outlandish amulets, they fearlessly rushed towards German units. The horror of the Germans was intensified by the fact that the Tuvans, committed to their own ideas about military rules, as a matter of principle, they did not take the enemy prisoner, but when the enemy was clearly superior, they fought to the death.
Villains and simply sadists, that it was decided to make a rating of people who have caused the greatest evil to humanity. That's how this list came about.
10. Delphine LaLaurie - bloodthirsty sadist from New Orleans.
Delphine LaLaurie's family belonged to secular society and enjoyed great authority in New Orleans.
From early childhood, while still a little girl, Delphine was accustomed to luxurious balls and receptions. No one could even suspect that a real monster could grow out of this sweet child.
Madame LaLaurie's house at 140 Royal Street was a veritable chamber of horror and pain.
On April 10, 1834, a fire broke out in the mansion's kitchen and firefighters found two slaves chained to the stove. Apparently, the slaves themselves set fire to the kitchen to attract attention.
The firefighters who freed the slaves followed them into the attic, where a real surprise awaited them. More than a dozen mutilated and mutilated slaves were shackled to the walls or floor.
Some were subjected to terrible medical experiments. One man underwent gender reassignment surgery.
Not far from him sat a woman in a cramped cage with mutilated limbs, resembling a crab.
The body of a girl with amputated arms and legs was also discovered. The crazy housewife tried to make a caterpillar out of her.
Most of the victims were found dead, but some were alive and asked to be killed, thus freeing them from terrible torment.
People were going to execute the villain, but Madame LaLaurie managed to escape to Europe. The further fate of the bloodthirsty sadist is unknown. According to unconfirmed sources, she died in France while hunting a boar.
9. Ilse Koch- Nazi nicknamed "The Witch of Buchenwald"
Ilse Koch was the wife of the chief commandant of the Majdanek and Buchenwald concentration camps.
Being ideologically savvy in the theory of the racial superiority of the Aryans over other peoples, the “Buchenwald witch” conducted sophisticated experiments and tortures on concentration camp prisoners.
In 1936, Ilse worked as a secretary and security guard in Sachsenhausen. In 1937, her husband, Karl Koch, received the post of commandant of Buchenwald, where the Nazis began to brutally operate.
According to the prisoners, when she walked around the camp, she beat the people she met with a whip and set a shepherd dog on them. Ilsa was also accused of ordering the killing of prisoners with tattoos, in order to then make various things out of their skin. original crafts: lampshades, lampshades, book bindings.
In 1941, for “special merits,” Ilse Koch became the senior guard among female guards.
On June 30, 1945, Koch was arrested by American troops and sentenced to life imprisonment in 1947. However, a few years later, American General Lucius Clay, the military commandant of the American occupation zone in Germany, released her, considering the charges of ordering executions and making souvenirs from human skin insufficiently proven.
This decision caused public protest, so in 1951 Ilse Koch was arrested in West Germany. A German court again sentenced her to life imprisonment.
On September 1, 1967, Koch committed suicide by hanging herself in her cell in the Bavarian prison of Eibach.
8. Shiro Ishii- Japanese microbiologist, war criminal.
In 1932, Ishii Shiro began experimenting with biological weapons as a secret project of the Japanese army at Zhongma Fortress.
In 1936, a notorious camp called “Detachment 731” was set up near Harbin. The research was strictly classified and, according to official documents, the detachment studied methods of water disinfection.
On February 9, 1939, in Tokyo, Ishii Shiro gave a lecture on bacteriological weapons in the large conference hall of the War Ministry. A vivisection was also performed in front of the audience.
In 1942, tests of bacteriological weapons began, for which Chinese prisoners of war and civilians were used. In parallel, Detachment 731 carried out experiments to infect people using various microorganisms, abortions, heart attacks, and frostbite were provoked.
Prisoners had their limbs amputated and sewn onto other parts of their bodies. People were also used as living targets for testing new grenades and flamethrowers, special infection was carried out with diseases, and the effects of new vaccines and drugs were tested.
To study an effective cure for syphilis, men and women were deliberately infected with the venereal disease through forced rape by patients.
At the end of World War II, he was arrested by the Americans, but in 1946 he received immunity in exchange for data on biological weapons research based on experiments on humans.
As a result, Ishii Shiro was never punished for war crimes. According to his daughter Harumi, Shiro died in Japan from throat cancer. According to other sources, he moved to Maryland, where he continued his research.
7. Ivan IV- aka Grozny.
Russian Tsar Ivan IV, in addition to introducing the oprichnina and strict centralization of power through bloody executions, was also distinguished by his cruelty towards his children.
So, in 1581, Ivan the Terrible beat his pregnant daughter because, in his opinion, she dressed provocatively. Thus, the sovereign provoked a miscarriage. Having learned about this, his son Ivan wanted to bring the king to reason, but Ivan the Terrible did not want to listen to moral teachings and hit the heir hard on the head, which was the cause of death.
It is also worth noting the unprecedented cruelty of the Russian Tsar in the massacre of the Novgorodians. Arriving in Novgorod, Ivan the Terrible accused the townspeople of treason and began carrying out reprisals on Gorodishche for many days in a row.
Adults and children were tortured, tied to sleighs, dragged to the great Volkhov Bridge and thrown into the river. Those who managed to swim out were pushed under the ice with sticks.
Historians still argue about the number of victims of the pogrom. A variety of figures are cited - from one and a half to forty thousand people.
6. Oliver Cromwell- English revolutionary who drowned Ireland in blood.
Cromwell was a zealous Protestant, the leader of the round-headed Puritans.
The catch phrase was Cromwell’s words addressed to the soldiers while crossing the river: “Trust in God, but keep your gunpowder dry!”
Cromwell's pacification of Ireland cost it 5/6 of its population. Ireland never recovered from this blow.
The consequence of this conquest (to oust Catholic power) was 200,000 civilian deaths from war-related famine and disease, and 50,000 Irish men and women became slaves.
Cromwell considered Catholics to be heretics and declared a real crusade against the Irish.
He died in 1658, and was so hated by his people that in 1661, his body was removed from the grave and hanged and quartered, which was the traditional punishment for treason in England.
5. Jiang Qing- Chinese actress, wife of communist dictator Mao Zedong
Using cunning and good looks, Jiang Qing managed to reach the highest positions within the Chinese Communist Party.
She is believed to have been the main driving force behind the Cultural Revolution in China. During the Cultural Revolution, countless ancient buildings, artifacts, antiques, books and paintings were destroyed on her orders.
The decade of the Cultural Revolution brought almost irreparable losses to the Chinese education system; many intellectuals were sent to camps.
Millions of people in China have lost their right to freedom of speech and cultural development. Tens of millions were deported from their homes.
The death toll is estimated at approximately 500,000, but some sources claim that up to three million people were killed, with 36 million subject to reprisals.
4. Pol Pot- executioner of his people
Pol Pot was a Cambodian politician, leader of the Khmer Rouge and Prime Minister of Cambodia.
He was one of the leaders of the far-left Khmer Rouge regime, which carried out genocide of its people, exterminating several million people in 3.5 years.
The Khmer Rouge carried their bestial experiments to their logical conclusion, not allowing conventional morality to dominate their views. To fight the bourgeoisie is to fight.
Immediately after the Khmer seized power, the cities were declared hotbeds of debauchery and bourgeois values, and the entire urban population was deported into the jungle into forced labor camps.
All people who disagreed or even did not understand were shot or beaten to death with hoes (in order to save ammunition). Throughout the country, the entire intelligentsia was systematically exterminated: teachers, doctors, engineers. People were killed just because a person wore glasses....
According to independent studies, from genocide against their own people, between 1.5 and 2 million Kampucheans died, which was about a quarter of the country's population.
3. Heinrich Himmler- Reichsführer SS
The main ideologist of the final solution to the Jewish question.
The Holocaust would not have happened if it were not for this man. In fact, after Joseph Stalin, Heinrich Himmler is the second person who killed millions of people on his orders.
Himmler was captured after the war. He tried unsuccessfully to negotiate with the West and committed suicide by biting into a cyanide capsule.
2. Adolf Hitler- leader of the Third Reich
Adolf Hitler was appointed Chancellor of Germany in 1933, becoming "Führer" in 1934, he lasted as leader of the German people for 11 years - until his suicide in 1945.
By the end of World War II, Hitler's policies of military expansion and racial domination had brought death and destruction to tens of millions of people, including the genocide of some six million Jews, known as the Holocaust.
On April 30, 1945, Hitler committed suicide when Soviet troops were spotted very close to the office of the Third Reich.
Hitler took his beloved woman, Eva Braun, with him to the next world.
1. Joseph Stalin
From 1922 to 1953, right up to his death, Stalin was general secretary Communist Party Central Committee Soviet Union.
Under Stalin's leadership, Ukraine and other areas of the Soviet Union suffered from an artificially planned Holodomor.
The number of deaths is estimated by modern historians differently - from 2.5 million to 10 million people. The famine was caused specifically to solve the political and administrative problems of the Communist Party.
In addition to the famine, Stalin ordered a purge of "enemies of the people." In total, the number of people killed ranges from 10 million to 60 million. Even more were repressed.
Any nation experiences a time of active wars and expansion. But there are tribes where militancy and cruelty are an integral part of their culture. These are ideal warriors without fear and morality.
The name of the New Zealand tribe "Maori" means "ordinary", although, in truth, there is nothing ordinary about them. Even Charles Darwin, who happened to meet them during his voyage on the Beagle, noted their cruelty, especially towards the whites (English), with whom they had to fight for territories during the Maori wars.
Maori are considered the indigenous people of New Zealand. Their ancestors sailed to the island approximately 2000-700 years ago from Eastern Polynesia. Before the arrival of the British in the middle of the 19th century, they had no serious enemies; they had fun mainly with civil strife.
During this time, their unique customs, characteristic of many Polynesian tribes, were formed. For example, they cut off the heads of captured enemies and ate their bodies - this is how, according to their beliefs, the enemy’s power passed to them. Unlike their neighbors, the Australian Aborigines, the Maori fought in two world wars.
Moreover, during World War II they themselves insisted on forming their own 28th battalion. By the way, it is known that during the First World War they drove away the enemy with their “haku” battle dance during the offensive operation on the Gallipoli Peninsula. This ritual was accompanied by war cries and scary faces, which literally discouraged enemies and gave the Maori an advantage.
Another warlike people who also fought on the side of the British are the Nepalese Gurkhas. Even during colonial policy, the British classified them as the “most militant” peoples they encountered.
According to them, the Gurkhas were distinguished by aggressiveness in battle, courage, self-sufficiency, physical strength and a low pain threshold. England itself had to surrender to the pressure of their warriors, armed only with knives.
It is not surprising that back in 1815 a wide campaign was launched to attract Gurkha volunteers into the British army. Skilled fighters quickly gained fame as the best soldiers in the world.
They managed to take part in the suppression of the Sikh uprising, the Afghan, First and Second World Wars, as well as in the Falklands conflict. Today, the Gurkhas are still the elite fighters of the British army. They are all recruited there – in Nepal. I must say, the competition for selection is crazy - according to the modernarmy portal, there are 28,000 candidates for 200 places.
The British themselves admit that the Gurkhas are better soldiers than themselves. Maybe because they are more motivated. Although the Nepalese themselves say, it’s not about money at all. They are proud of their martial art and are always happy to put it into action. Even if someone pats them on the shoulder in a friendly manner, in their tradition this is considered an insult.
When some small peoples are actively integrating into the modern world, others prefer to preserve traditions, even if they are far from the values of humanism.
For example, the Dayak tribe from the island of Kalimantan, who have earned a terrible reputation as headhunters. What to do - you can become a man only by bringing the head of your enemy to the tribe. At least this was the case back in the 20th century. The Dayak people (Malay for “pagan”) are an ethnic group that unites numerous peoples inhabiting the island of Kalimantan in Indonesia.
Among them: Ibans, Kayans, Modangs, Segais, Trings, Inichings, Longwais, Longhat, Otnadom, Serai, Mardahik, Ulu-Ayer. Even today, some villages can only be reached by boat.
The bloodthirsty rituals of the Dayaks and the hunt for human heads were officially stopped in the 19th century, when the local sultanate asked the Englishman Charles Brooke from the dynasty of white rajahs to somehow influence the people who knew no other way to become a man except to cut off someone's head.
Having captured the most militant leaders, he managed to guide the Dayaks to a peaceful path through a “carrot and stick policy.” But people continued to disappear without a trace. The last bloody wave swept across the island in 1997-1999, when all world agencies shouted about ritual cannibalism and little Dayaks playing with human heads.
Among the peoples of Russia, one of the most warlike are the Kalmyks, descendants of the Western Mongols. Their self-name translates as “breakaways,” which means Oirats who did not convert to Islam. Today, most of them live in the Republic of Kalmykia. Nomads are always more aggressive than farmers.
The ancestors of the Kalmyks, the Oirats, who lived in Dzungaria, were freedom-loving and warlike. Even Genghis Khan did not immediately manage to subjugate them, for which he demanded the complete destruction of one of the tribes. Later, the Oirat warriors became part of the army of the great commander, and many of them became related to the Genghisids. Therefore, it is not without reason that some of the modern Kalmyks consider themselves descendants of Genghis Khan.
In the 17th century, the Oirats left Dzungaria and, having made a huge transition, reached the Volga steppes. In 1641, Russia recognized the Kalmyk Khanate, and from now on, from the 17th century, Kalmyks became permanent participants in the Russian army. They say that the battle cry “hurray” once came from the Kalmyk “uralan”, which means “forward”. They especially distinguished themselves in the Patriotic War of 1812. 3 Kalmyk regiments, numbering more than three and a half thousand people, took part in it. For the Battle of Borodino alone, more than 260 Kalmyks were awarded the highest orders of Russia.
The Kurds, along with the Arabs, Persians and Armenians, are one of the most ancient peoples of the Middle East. They live in the ethnogeographical region of Kurdistan, which was divided among themselves by Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and Syria after the First World War.
The Kurdish language, according to scientists, belongs to the Iranian group. In religious terms, they have no unity - among them there are Muslims, Jews and Christians. It is generally difficult for Kurds to come to an agreement with each other. Even Doctor of Medical Sciences E.V. Erikson noted in his work on ethnopsychology that the Kurds are a people merciless to the enemy and unreliable in friendship: “they respect only themselves and their elders. Their morality is generally very low, superstition is extremely high, and real religious feeling is extremely poorly developed. War is their direct innate need and absorbs all interests.”
It is difficult to judge how applicable this thesis, written at the beginning of the 20th century, is today. But the fact that they never lived under their own centralized power makes itself felt. According to Sandrine Alexi of the Kurdish University in Paris: “Every Kurd is a king on his own mountain. That’s why they quarrel with each other, conflicts arise often and easily.”
But for all their uncompromising attitude towards each other, the Kurds dream of a centralized state. Today, the “Kurdish issue” is one of the most pressing in the Middle East. Numerous unrest in order to achieve autonomy and unite into one state have been ongoing since 1925. From 1992 to 1996, the Kurds fought a civil war in northern Iraq; permanent protests still occur in Iran. In a word, the “question” hangs in the air. Today, the only Kurdish state entity with broad autonomy is Iraqi Kurdistan.
