Tyrannicide
Tyrannicide literally means the killing of a tyrant, or one who has committed the act. Typically, the term is taken to mean the killing or assassination of tyrants for the common good. The term "tyrannicide" does not apply to tyrants killed in battle or killed by an enemy in an armed conflict. It is rarely applied when a tyrant is killed by a person acting for selfish reasons, such as to take power for themselves, or to the killing of a former tyrant. Sometimes, the term is restricted to killings undertaken by people who are actually subject to the tyrant.[1] The term is also used to denote those who actually commit the act of killing a tyrant: i.e., Harmodius and Aristogeiton are called 'the tyrannicides'.[2]
Political theory
Tyrannicide can also be a political theory.[3] Support for tyrannicide can be found in Plutarch's Lives, Cicero's De Officiis,[4] and Thomas Aquinas's Commentary on the Sentences of Peter Lombard.[5] The Monarchomachs in particular developed a theory of tyrannicide, with Juan de Mariana describing their views in the 1598 work De rege et regis institutione,[6] in which he wrote, "[B]oth the philosophers and theologians agree, that the prince who seizes the state with force and arms, and with no legal right, no public, civic approval, may be killed by anyone and deprived of his life..."[4]
The Jesuistic casuistry developed a similar theory, criticized by Blaise Pascal in the Provincial Letters.[citation needed] Before them, the scholastic philosopher John of Salisbury also legitimised tyrannicide, under specific conditions, in the Policraticus, circa 1159.[7] His theory was derived from his idea of the state as a political organism in which all the members cooperate actively in the realization of the common utility and justice. He held that when the ruler of this body politic behaves tyrannically, failing to perform his characteristic responsibilities, the other limbs and organs are bound by their duty to the public welfare and God to correct and, ultimately, to slay the tyrant.[8]
In 1408 the theologian Jean Petit used biblical examples to justify tyrannicide following the murder of Louis I, Duke of Orleans by Petit's patron John the Fearless, Duke of Burgundy. Petit's thesis was extensively discussed and eventually condemned by the church. A Shone Treatise of Politike Power, written by John Ponet in 1556, argued that the people are custodians of natural and divine law, and that if governors and kings violated their trust, then they forfeited their power, whether they relinquished their positions voluntarily or whether they had to be removed forcefully.[9] The Tenure of Kings and Magistrates by John Milton in 1649 also described the history of tyrannicide, and a defense of it when appropriate.[10]
Cambridge's David George has also argued that terrorism is a form of tyranny of which tyrannicide is a negation.[11] Libertarian Nick Roberts argues, "Top-level assassination hurts only volunteers — the willing tyrants. It leaves the innocent alive. If rulers choose to rule and to go to war, their lives become forfeit because they are acting coercively towards their subjects and intended conquests. As a 'natural rights' libertarian, I do not consider that the Hitlers, the Kennedys, the Gadaffis or the Attilas have any right to mercy. Those who plan and order the deaths of millions deserve to die. After all, who else is there to blame?"[12] Abraham Lincoln believed that assassinating a leader is morally justified when a people has suffered under a tyrant for an extended period of time and has exhausted all legal and peaceful means of ouster.[13]
Notable tyrannicides
Throughout history, many leaders have died under the pretext of tyrannicide. As there exist no objectively defined criteria for a "tyrant", many rulers and heads of state had been considered as such by their enemies but not by their adherents and supporters - correspondingly making debatable their death's definition as "tyrannicide". Some examples of those who have died under the banner of tyrannicide include (arranged by date):
 |
- Hipparchus, a ruler of Athens, stabbed in 514 BC by Harmodius and Aristogeiton, considered by some to be the original tyrannicide.[2]
- Abraham Lincoln, President of the USA, shot by John Wilkes Booth in 1865.
- Julius Caesar, Roman Dictator, stabbed in 44 BC by Marcus Junius Brutus, Gaius Cassius Longinus, and numerous others (Liberatores).
- Caligula, Roman Emperor, stabbed in 41 by Cassius Chaerea and other Praetorian Guards.
- Domitian, Roman Emperor, stabbed in 96 by various freedmen, possibly with the help of the Praetorian Guard.
- Commodus, Roman Emperor, strangled and poisoned in 192 by Narcissus and his mistress Marcia.
- Aurelian, Roman Emperor, stabbed in 275 by Mucapor and other Praetorian Guards.
- Maximilien Robespierre, President of the National Convention, executed by beheading in 1794 by the National Convention.
- Mehmed Talat, Minister of Interior Affairs and then Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire, shot by Soghomon Tehlirian in 1921.
- Reinhard Heydrich, chief of the Reich Main Security Office and the acting Protector of Bohemia and Moravia, assassinated by grenade in 1942 by Czechoslovak soldiers.
- Benito Mussolini, Italian Fascist and Duce, executed by firing squad in 1945 by Walter Audisio and other Italian partisans.
- Anastasio Somoza García, dictator of Nicaragua, shot in 1956 by Rigoberto López Pérez.
- Rafael Trujillo, dictator of the Dominican Republic, shot in 1961 by Antonio de la Maza with the aid of ten other conspirators.
- Park Chung-hee, dictator of South Korea, shot in 1979 by Kim Jaegyu.
- Nicolae Ceauşescu, communist leader of Romania, executed by firing squad in 1989 after being named as a tyrant.
Tyrannicide in fiction
Tyrannicide is a popular literary trope. Many works of fiction deal with the struggle of an individual or group of individuals to overthrow and kill an unjust tyrant. Often the tyranny is caused by an usurper to a royal throne, where the conclusion restores the proper heir. Children's literature frequently deals with the subject. Folk tales like The Nutcracker include the act, as do some video games series, like The Legend of Zelda and Star Fox. Classical examples in Disney animation include The Lion King or The Little Mermaid which both involve the tyrannical takeover of a monarchy. Fantasy works like The Lord of the Rings, The Chronicles of Narnia, or a science-fiction series like Star Wars all deal with killing tyrants. V for Vendetta is a popular comic and film to deal with tyrannicide.[citation needed] Besides Julius Caesar, a number of William Shakespeare's plays deal with the subject, including Hamlet, Macbeth, and The Tempest.[14]
See also
References
- ^ Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). . Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
- ^ a b Webb, E. Kent (October 18, 1997). "The Athenian Tyrannicides: Icons of a Democratic Society". University of Washington. Retrieved 2008-10-30.
- ^ Goebel, Julius Ludwig (1915). The recognition policy of the United States. Columbia University. pp. 24–29. Retrieved October 30, 2008.
- ^ a b Beres, Louis Rene (1990–1991), Assassinating Saddam: A Post-War View from International Law, vol. 19, Denv. J. Int'l L. & Pol'y, p. 613
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: date format (link) - ^ For Aquinas, "when what is ordered by an authority is opposed to the object for which that authority was constituted ... not only is there no obligation to obey the authority, but one is obliged to disobey it, as did the holy martyrs who suffered death rather than obey the impious commands of tyrants." One may even be "praised and rewarded" for being the "one who liberates his country by killing a tyrant." Commentary on the Sentences of Peter Lombard, trans. J.G. Dawson (Oxford, 1959), 44, 2 in O’Donovan, p. 329-30.
- ^ Fülöp-Miller, René (1997). Power and Secret of the Jesuits. Kessinger Publishing. pp. 313–318. ISBN 0766100561. Retrieved October 30, 2008.
- ^ Voegelin, Eric (1989). The collected works of Eric Voegelin. University of Missouri Press. pp. 122–123. ISBN 0826211429. Retrieved October 30, 2008.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (|author=suggested) (help) - ^ A Duty to Kill: John of Salisbury's Theory of Tyrannicide, vol. 50, Cambridge University Press, 1988, pp. 365–389, doi:10.1017/S0034670500036305
- ^ C Watner (1986), "Oh, Ye Are For Anarchy!": Consent Theory in the Radical Libertarian Tradition (PDF), Journal of Libertarian Studies
- ^ Luxon, Thomas H., ed. (March 2008). "Milton: The Tenure of Kings and Magistrates". The Milton Reading Room. Dartmouth College. Retrieved 2008-10-30.
{{cite web}}:|first=has generic name (help)CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Distinguishing Classical Tyrannicide from Modern Terrorism, vol. 50, Cambridge University Press, 1988, pp. 390–419, doi:10.1017/S0034670500036317
- ^ Nick Roberts (1989), In Praise of Jackals: Assassination and Moral Defence Policy (PDF), Libertarian Alliance, ISSN 0267-6761
- ^ Johnson, Boyd M. III (1992), Executive Order 12,333: The Permissibility of an American Assassination of a Foreign Leader, vol. 25, Cornell Int'l L. J., p. 401
- ^ McGrail, Mary Ann (2001). "Tyranny in Shakespeare". Utah Valley State College. Retrieved 2008-09-18.