History’s Worst Rulers, and Why They Were So Bad
Ruling a kingdom sounds glamorous until some leaders turn it into a nonstop disaster. They didn’t just mismanage taxes or ignore the guards; they invented new ways to ruin lives, topple empires, and embarrass themselves. History remembers them not for victories but for mistakes that make office politics look heroic.
Emperors consulting pet cats, kings whose wardrobe sparked revolts, and rulers mixing arrogance, recklessness, and bad timing made the list. Some launched wars over insults, squandered treasure on bizarre hobbies, and a few ignored reality entirely.
Here is a tour of history’s worst rulers and the catastrophes they created, each story more absurd and unbelievable than the last.
Louis XVI, 1774–1792
France revolted as his indecision and failure to fix the financial crisis paved the way to the guillotine.
Maximilian I, 1864–1867
Mexico rejected his foreign-installed rule when harsh decrees and naïveté triggered revolt and execution.
Peter III, 1762
Russia revolted after his Prussia-obsessed diplomacy reversed a winning war and enraged the army.
Zhu Youxiao “Tianqi”, 1620–1627
China decayed while he built furniture and let a corrupt eunuch run the collapsing Ming court.
Charles VI “The Mad”, 1380–1422
France weakened as his psychosis opened internal conflict and enabled English victories.
Wenceslaus IV, 1378–1419
Bohemia slid into crisis while he drank, hunted, and ignored the state until civil war erupted.
Ferdinand VII, 1813–1833
Spain lost colonies as his repression, absolutism, and refusal to modernize wrecked political stability.
Queen Ranavalona I, 1828–1861
Madagascar suffered deadly forced labor and isolationist brutality that killed a massive share of the population.
Sultan Ibrahim, 1640–1648
Ottoman Empire unraveled under his obsessions with corpulent concubines, ridiculous spending, and erratic decisions.
Leopold II, 1865–1909
Congo Free State became a slaughterhouse as his greed drove mass mutilation and industrial-scale brutality.
George IV, 1820–1830
The United Kingdom groaned under his extravagance, crushing debts, and scandalous self-indulgence.
Shah Hussein, 1694–1722
Persia fell when he hid in his harem, ignored military warnings, and let corruption swallow the dynasty.
Christina of Sweden, 1632–1654
Sweden sank financially while she chased art, parties, and an abrupt Catholic exit instead of governing.
Emperor Gong of Jin, 290–307 AD
China fractured as his inability to govern led regents to trigger the catastrophic War of the Eight Princes.
Charles II, 1665–1700
Spain stumbled toward collapse because his inbred frailty made effective rule impossible and succession disastrous.
Mary I “Bloody Mary”, 1553–1558
England burned as her religious fanaticism sent hundreds to execution in an attempt to reverse reform.
Ivan IV “The Terrible”, 1547–1584
Russia bled under his paranoia, mass killings, and the deadly rage that even claimed his own son.
Nero, 54–68 AD
Rome suffered as he performed during the fire and used it to justify terror and vanity-driven waste.
Philip IV “The Fair”, 1285–1314
France endured currency devaluation and greed as he crushed Templars and looted communities to fund his wars.
Caligula, 37–41 AD
Roman rule collapsed under his cruelty, sexual whims, and the horse-as-consul stunt that proved his megalomania.