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Did any ruthless dictator have a peaceful ending? (Original Post) multigraincracker Feb 2 OP
Franco of Spain? nt delisen Feb 2 #1
Thank you. multigraincracker Feb 2 #2
And Google says... Ponietz Feb 2 #3
Depends on your definition of peaceful DetroitLegalBeagle Feb 2 #4
I can think of many whose lives ended living in luxury in other countries rurallib Feb 2 #5
If not dweller Feb 2 #6
Stalin died of natural causes. /nt bucolic_frolic Feb 2 #7
Monarchies have lasted for ages. unblock Feb 2 #8
General Augusto Pinochet - Chile OutNow Feb 2 #9
Look back far enough and we've had our hand multigraincracker Feb 2 #10

Ponietz

(3,469 posts)
3. And Google says...
Sun Feb 2, 2025, 01:34 PM
Feb 2

The article lists Stalin, Mao, Franco, Baby Doc, Pinochet, Kim Il-sung, Kim Jong-il, and Idi Amin all dying in comfort of natural causes

https://www.realclearhistory.com/2019/12/20/how_dictators_die_211577.html

Live by the sword, die by the sword? For brutal dictators, the adage is more often than not completely false.

In fact, dictators and warlords are more likely to die of old age or disease than at the hands of an enraged populace or sneaky assassin, according to an analysis by Matthew White, author of "The Great Big Book of Horrible Things: The Definitive Chronicle of History's 100 Worst Atrocities" (W. W. Norton & Company, 2011). White's look back at history found that 60 percent of oppressive warmongering types l

DetroitLegalBeagle

(2,330 posts)
4. Depends on your definition of peaceful
Sun Feb 2, 2025, 01:37 PM
Feb 2

Stalin had a stroke and Mao had a heart attack. Both were still in power when they died and neither met a violent demise.

rurallib

(63,566 posts)
5. I can think of many whose lives ended living in luxury in other countries
Sun Feb 2, 2025, 01:37 PM
Feb 2

from their own. But the lives of the people in their countries were always shattered for generations.

Franco comes to mind. I can't remember how Peron ended. Didn't the Shah end up in luxury? If you got the money someone will be willing to save your worthless ass.

unblock

(54,875 posts)
8. Monarchies have lasted for ages.
Sun Feb 2, 2025, 01:46 PM
Feb 2

Monarchies aren't exactly dictatorships, as they vary in the extent of their autocracy, but some are pretty much dictatorships.

The key for an autocrat to survive long-term is not so much brutal repression, but actually gaining cooperation (implicit consent) from anyone else with power, I.e., rich people.

The brutal end usually comes when a dictator gets too greedy and posses off the wrong people.

OutNow

(894 posts)
9. General Augusto Pinochet - Chile
Sun Feb 2, 2025, 02:04 PM
Feb 2

Pinochet was never brought to justice for his crimes of overthrowing the elected government of Chile and running a brutal dictatorship. He was fond of throwing his political opponents out of helicopters over the sea. Thousands were "disappeared" and almost 200,000 fled the country. He lived into his 90s. Oh, and his rise to power was assisted by the CIA.

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