Curated playlist
Leaders who took power by coup
- NapoleonNapoleon crowned himself emperor with a replica of Charlemagne's crown. The pope had just anointed him.
- Bumin QaghanBumin Qaghan killed a messenger after his overlord called him a blacksmith slave. He then broke with the Rouran.
- Fidel CastroFidel Castro's yacht carried eighty-one men toward Cuba, but only nineteen safely reached the mountains.
- Benito MussoliniBenito Mussolini was named after a Mexican president. His socialist father chose the name to honor Benito Juárez.
- Mahmud IISultan Mahmud II hid on a palace roof in 1808 while assassins hunted him. A slave girl's thrown ashes blinded them.
- SuhartoSuharto ruled Indonesia for 31 years, longer than any other president. He grew up poor, passed between relatives.
- Edward IIIEdward III seized power at 17 by capturing Roger Mortimer at Nottingham Castle. Mortimer was executed.
- Józef PiłsudskiJózef Piłsudski robbed a Russian mail train in 1908 to fund his secret army. The haul was 200,812 rubles.
- Hafizullah AminHafizullah Amin believed Soviet troops were there to protect him as they stormed his palace.
- Elizabeth of RussiaBefore taking Russia's throne, Elizabeth vowed never to sign a death sentence.
- Catherine the GreatCatherine the Great seized Russia's throne by overthrowing her own husband. The coup came in July 1762.
- GalbaRoman emperor Galba refused to pay the Praetorian Guard, and it cost him his life.
- OthoRoman emperor Otho stabbed himself the day after losing a battle. He had ruled for just 91 days.
- Francisco FrancoFrancisco Franco was shot in the abdomen at 23 and was not expected to live. He ruled Spain from 1939 to 1975.
- TrajanTrajan, born in a small Spanish town without baths or a theater, became Rome's emperor.
- Vladimir LeninLenin's name came from no person, and the N in N. Lenin stood for nothing. One theory points to the Lena River.
- Mobutu Sese SekoMobutu renamed his country Zaire, its cities and himself. He also banned Western suits and European baby names.
- Carlos Castillo ArmasCarlos Castillo Armas, Guatemala's president, was shot dead in his palace by a guard in 1957.
- Paul BarrasPaul Barras helped rule France as a Director, then Napoleon interned him in Montpellier.
- SullaSulla wrote his own epitaph for his tomb in Rome. It boasted he repaid every friend and enemy in full.
- Efraín Ríos MonttEfraín Ríos Montt was sentenced to 80 years for genocide, and the ruling collapsed within days.
- SomerledSomerled was killed at the Battle of Renfrew in 1164. A priest then brought his severed head to a bishop.