A few people have had the luxury of enjoying representative governments in human history. Most of the dictators may have fallen short of the likes of Stalin or Hitler in regard to the cruelty to the people, however, history is rife with war criminals, oppressors, morally complacent individuals, and sociopaths who were elected as government heads. If you’re studying history, there are dictators you may want to know about but you don’t often learn about them in your history classes. For help on how to write a history thesis, you can contact an academic writing company.
Having said that, here are five dictators you may not have learned about in your history class:
1. Jozef Tiso
Jozef Tiso was a catholic priest who headed the fascist moment of Slovakia. He was the man in charge of numerous satellite regimes of Nazi Germany. Tiso headed the satellite regime during World War II. While Tiso as regarded as a less energetic fascist compared to other leaders of the Nazi puppet regimes, he took charge of a brutal crackdown that occurred after the anti-fascist rebellion of 1944. Josef facilitated the deportation of most Jews to concentration camps. During that time, there were more than 88,000 Jews in Slovakia, but only about 5,000 remained in the country by the end of the conflict.
2. Ante Pavelić
Starting out as a politician, Ante Pavelić was opposed to the aspect of centralization, which later transformed into the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. In 1929, Yugoslavia’s king declared Pavelić a dictator. Ante Pavelić fled Yugoslavia to organize Ustaše, an ultra-nationalist movement. Ustaše had the dedication to create an independent Croatia while at times resorting to terrorism. Ustaše, in 1934 eventually assassinated King Alexander. When Axis forces gained control of Yugoslavia in 1941, Ante took control by becoming the leader of the Independent State of Croatia. Originally, the Ustaše nominally ruled the country, but it was regarded as a puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. The regime headed by Pavelić prosecuted Jews, Orthodox Serbs, and Romani in the Independent State of Croatia. Pavelić went hiding after Germany was defeated in 1945. He eventually took refuge in Argentina before dying in Spain in 1959.
3. Khorloogiin Choibalsan
Khorloogiin Choibalsan adopted the leadership policies and methods that were Soviet leaders. Khorloogiin has numerous meetings with Stalin and applied the leader’s policies to Mongolia. Choibalsan created a dictatorial system in which he suppressed the opposition. He often killed thousands of people. In the 1930s, he started arresting and killing leading workers in the government, party, and other organizations, including army officers, faithful workers, and intellectuals.
4. Enver Hoxha
During Enver Hoxha’s four-decade rule, he banned religion and ordered the construction of concrete pillboxes in various locations in Albania. Hoxha displayed a cult of personality resembling that of Stalin. He created an isolated society that had no tolerance for political dissent.
5. Ian Smith
A controversial figure in post-colonial African history, Smith was a decorated fighter pilot serving in World War II. Being a prime minister of Rhodesia, he oversaw an apartheid system resembling that of South Africa. The government of Smith survived almost 15 years of civil war and international isolation.
These are some of the dictators you may not have heard of, although they display personalities, policies, and leadership methods seen with other well-known dictators.