THE MOST DANGEROUS KINGS THROUGHOUT HISTORY

Every American knows that monarchies are bad news. In the wise words of Monty Python, you can't expect to wield supreme executive power just 'cause some watery tart threw a sword at you (a phrase which describes most coronation ceremonies fairly accurately). For every good king or emperor who writes a code of law or maintains a lengthy period of peace and prosperity, you get a King Charles VI running around his palace telling everyone that he's made of glass.

It's bad enough when a monarch simply runs your entire country into the ground, but it's something else when they also turn out to be a murderous thug. The combination of power, wealth, and a near-total lack of normal consequences is a perfect recipe for revealing someone to be a sociopathic monster, and that supreme executive power makes it difficult to stop an insane king once he gets a taste for doing crazy things.

That said, throughout much of history being a murderous sociopath was actually considered a good skill set for kingship. In order to be considered exceptionally horrifying, you really had to put in an effort. Here are some of the most dangerous kings throughout history.

CALIGULA: FROM HERO TO ASSASSINATED IN LESS THAN FOUR YEARS

When one of the most notorious pornographic films ever produced is named after you, you know you've done something wrong in your career as a monarch. Such is the legacy of Gaius Julius Caesar Germanicus, who History tells us received the name Caligula, meaning "little boot," from his father's troops 

Rome's third emperor started off his reign with a lot of potential. The Great Courses Daily reports that at the time of his accession, Caligula was greeted with great enthusiasm. At 25, he was young and was very careful to do and say the right things to get the Roman Senate and the populace behind him.

But then things went south very, very fast. PBS reports that, after an illness in his first year as emperor, 37 A.D., the young emperor went on a rampage. He referred to himself as a god and began executing anyone he considered a threat or a traitor. The Foundation for Economic Education says that he ruined ancient Rome's economy with profligate spending and a disastrous policy of zero-interest credit, that he mismanaged military campaigns and alienated the legions, and that he seized the property of leading citizens to pay for his ruinous mistakes. By 41 A.D., everyone considered the emperor to be Rome's greatest threat, and Caligula was murdered by a group that included his own bodyguards.

IVAN THE TERRIBLE: REDEFINED THE WORD TERRIBLE

When Russians referred to Ivan IV, the first man to rule all of Russia as tsar, as "terrible" they meant it in an old-school way, as in "intimidating." By the time Ivan was done, the modern understanding of the word was more appropriate.



The Middle Ages reports that Ivan was crowned tsar at age 16 in 1547, and that he was a pretty decent monarch in the early years of his reign. He modernized and reformed the government and the army and opened up new trade and diplomatic channels with other powers. But History says that two events changed Ivan forever: He was betrayed by his great friend Prince Kurbsky in his war against the Lithuanians, and his wife Anastasia died. Ivan had some sort of mental breakdown and tried to abdicate. The aristocracy soon found it impossible to rule without him, so they lured him back by promising him a huge swath of territory called the Oprichnina, where he could pretty much do whatever he wanted. Unfortunately, what Ivan wanted to do was be terrible.