17 Maximilien Robespierre
He was the leader of the French Revolution. Before he became a tyrant, he wanted the people of France to have freedom and rights but when he gained power his personality changed and he became obsessed with guillotining people. He began to create a reign of terror, a 10-month period in which mass executions were carried out. He also began to see everyone including friends as enemies. People were guillotined for not supporting the French Revolution, hoarding, desertion, rebellion, and other things he saw as crimes. He guillotined entire families of aristocrats and ordinary people. He even guillotined his closest friends. Most were killed without trials. As many as 40,000 were either executed or died in prison including King Louis XVI and Queen Marie Antoinette. He was also responsible for hundreds of thousands that died in battles during the Revolution. Under his orders, his men attacked Vendee, killing well over 100,000 men, women and children. He believed that killing people was better than forgiving people. Ultimately, in 1794, Robespierre was guillotined without trial.
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