After discussing the lives and leadership of a state under personal. It raised the question of what happens to these regimes if they either collapse or are overruled. The ultimate result of an ousted dictators life can be varied. If a dictator is able to leave the state it once ruled, the United States, Russia and even the United Kingdom have held many (Krcmaric, 2017). While others have faced brutal deaths in the hands of either the people or an opposing political party (sometimes equally as bad as the previous rule).
Kleptocrat Ferdinand Marcos was exiled to Hawaii of all places. Where he lived with his family and died peacefully at the age of 72. The ruler was returned to the Philippines after his death in 1993. but instead lived on an estate in Honolulu. The return of Marcos' remains saw a 145 person entourage with a loving reception by the Phillopino people as a whole (Learner, 1994). Marcos' life was highly regarded as important to the people of the nation and the ex-leader still had loyalists within government many years after his exile. The repercussions of his rule are still widely felt today within the states society. Especially within his own museum which holds 30 mannequins, detailing and portraying his youth.
Many, but not all leaders meet such a comforting end. Benito Mussolini's death is a prominent example of a more brutal demise. After being taken to Germany and then back to Northern Italy where he was captured by communist party members whilst trying to flee to Spain. Mussolini was subsequently, captured, shot, and hung upside down for the public to do as they wish. The Italian leader's death was noted as being a major motivation as to Hitler's suicide by his own hands, as to not become a symbol to the people (Soloway, 2015).
It is rare for leaders to meet their demise at the hands of the people. Age is often the most prominent factor in a leaders death. But it seems apparent that there is no one consistent way for a leader with a personal rule to face judgement by an international entity or even by the state itself.
Bibliography
Krcmaric, D. (2017, January 30). Where do ousted dictators go? Fewer countries now offer a warm welcome. The Washington Post. Retrieved August 9th, 2019, from www.washingtonpost.com
Lerner, Ted. "Burying Marcos." Transpacific, Mar. 1994, p. 50+. Gale General OneFile, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A14965070/ITOF?u=vuw&sid=ITOF&xid=b3881236. Accessed 8 Aug. 2019.
Soloway, B. (2015, April 28). Did the Brutal Death of Mussolini Contribute to Hitler’s Suicide? FP. Retrieved August 9th, 2019, from Foreignpolicy.com
Thanks for this, Tom. There's a bunch of research on this question (some of which we will be looking at) that indicates that your end as a dictator depends a bit on how much power you have accumulated. In highly personalized regimes (e.g., Libya under Qaddafi) you often either die in your bed of old age, or get overthrown in an insurgency. Only rarely you find a peaceful exile (though it does happen: Mobutu in Morocco is another example).
ReplyDeleteFantastic response glorious leader. I think it is important often the circumstances upon which a dictator comes to power when considering the circumstances leading to their death, exile or succession.
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