The Dictators: 64 Dictators, 64 Authors, 64 Warnings from History

by Iain Dale

**THE LATEST COLLECTION OF ESSAYS EDITED BY IAIN AVAILABLE TO PRE-ORDER NOW**

Praise for Iain
'Riveting and enlightening. A history lesson via a novel route. ' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'Really enjoying reading this book. It is easy to dip in and out and each chapter is well written.' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'Illuminating yet balanced' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Were the signs that Putin is a ruthless dictator there all along? How should we deal with President Xi of China? Given the world seems to be moving more and more in favour of authoritarian rule, this is the right moment to seek warnings, and lessons, from history.

The Lessons from History includes elected and unelected dictators, wartime and peacetime dictators, those driven by ideology and those with a reputation for sheer brutality. How did these tyrants, autocrats and despots seize power and how did they exercise it? And how did they lose it? Very few dictators die peacefully in their own beds. Are there specific character traits that all dictators share? What can we learn from them in order to spot the warning signs in future?

Examining sixty of the most significant and notorious dictators from the 4th century BC to the present day reveals that there are common signs and conditions that enable dictators to seize power. Through the spectrum of a wide variety of dictators in different parts of the world and throughout history, themes and patterns inevitably emerge.

Iain Dale has brought together 64 different authors - a mix of historians, academics, journalists and politicians - to write about 67 different dictators.

The Lessons from History is acutely relevant to world politics it is indeed a warning from history.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Politics, Essays

624 pages, Hardcover

Expected publication July 7, 2026

Reviews

[Spencer Warner · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good book that gets a little repetitive

Book Review: The Dictators by Iain Dale
Rating: 6/10
Difficulty: Easy

The Dictators by Iain Dale is an ambitious compendium of 64 of world history's most infamous figures, offering concise pen portraits of some of the most notorious and evil rulers—from Alexander the Great to Vladimir Putin. It serves as an accessible introduction to the lives and legacies of these dictators, spanning a wide arc of human history.

While the book provides a broad overview of these historical figures, its formulaic structure hampers its overall impact. Each chapter follows a similar template, which makes the reading experience feel repetitive over time. Additionally, events and themes are revisited across multiple chapters, which can make the narrative feel redundant for readers already familiar with these periods of history.

The book shines most in chapters that delve into lesser-known dictators, where the reader is introduced to unfamiliar and intriguing historical contexts. However, for more widely studied figures, the brevity of the entries often leaves much to be desired, offering little new insight for those already knowledgeable on the subject.

Despite its flaws, The Dictators is a solid starting point for readers seeking a broad survey of history's tyrants. However, those looking for a deeper dive or a more nuanced analysis of these complex figures may find it lacking.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting and thought provoking overview of selected dictators throughout history. The book does not include Kings and Queens but looks at individuals who came to power in political systems that were democratic to at least some extent. Perhaps unsurprisingly, there is only one woman among the 64 dictators covered by the book. Each dictator is reviewed by a different author and they do not always explicitly state the warnings from history. If there is one common thread, it is that dictators will stop at nothing to retain their position of power. Dictators, such as Hitler, won democratic elections but then retained their position as leader by removing the very mechanism that had brought them to power. For me, the key lesson is the importance of ensuring there are transparent elections on a regular basis so that populations have the opportunity to replace tyrants. On balance the book overall warrants 3 rather even though some of the chapters were worth 4 stars.

[Rose · Rating 2 out of 5]

As with the previous collections in this series, this book contained some really interesting essays, and some I struggled with. Compared with pervious books in the series, the essays in this one had a much harder challenge, so the variation in quality was more extreme. Unlike with The Presidents or The Prime ministers, the leaders in this book often ruled for decades, and because the book covers dictators from across the world and a long span of history, there's isn't the same build-up of context you got on the other books. Writers in this one had ~7 pages to explain the history of the afflicted nation, the (often extreme) events of their reign, and their demise.

[Michael Lovito · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like Iain Dale's The Presidents, definitely more of a launching pad for further research than a definitive work on any of the people profiled, but, what can I say, I was compelled for most of it. Would have appreciated more synthesis regarding the "warnings from history" titled and connections between some of the ancient world dictators and the more modern figures, but as I said, an interesting read nonetheless, even if some of the essays are weaker than others (and, as in The Presidents, it features at least one American-related malapropism -- it's the "Democratic National Committee," no the "Democratic National Congress").

[Harry Cobbett · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5

The scope of this was enormous. Lots of the significant events in world history make it on here. It's made me want to dive more into the French and Russian Revolutions, the history of post colonial South America and Africa, the complexities of the Middle East. In fact, I bought another book covering one of those topics after reading a chapter of this in Waterstones cafe.

As usual, some chapters are better written than others and very much an overview rather than the detail, but it achieves what it sets out to very well.

[Arthur · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sixty-four stories about dictators written by various authors. I read this book non-sequentially and picked and chose which ones I felt like reading at the time. The dictators include many well-known suspects but also some that are less well-known to the public. Overall an interesting book with useful insights.

[Terry Tucker · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was not particularly enamored with this book. It would be my personal preference to download Rand, or other think tank papers to glean lessons learned. Additionally, Samuel Huntington wrote a book titled, Political Order in Changing Societies that offers better insights into the dynamics and psychology. I do not suggest this book.

[Ollie Ledger · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well thought out compilation of the most infamous dictators in history. The book becomes a bit boring when going through heaps of 20th century Communists written by conservative MPs. Some personal stories by the authors makes the book special, however it is a little bit of a grind and definitely only highlights the main parts of some extremely complex people and regimes.

[Alexander Claeys · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like the scope of people that make it in the book. Many of whom I have not heard from before. The only thing that slightly bothers me is that there is no coherent writing style because of all authors involved.

Doesn't make this a bad read.

[Andy Holdcroft · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very very uneven..... the essayists all seem to be right wing and range from academics & journalists to a current student which is a bit bizarre plus the crook Nadhim Zahawi. The worst essays are virtually lifts straight from Wikipedia. Few insights in many chapters

[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

An inspiring read for the aspiring dictator.

[Roland Glotzer · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is an interesting book discussing the life of 64 dictators and the conditions that allowed them to seize power. However because it is written by 64 different authors the quality of the 64 essays is different going from very bad to excellent. The chapter on Salazar written by Thomas Gallagher is by far the worst as it doesn’t even discuss his life or how he seized power, only explaining why he was a dictator. On the other hand, the chapter on Bashar Al-Assad written by Brooks Newark was very good with personal experience meeting the dictator and witnessing his evolution from a shy ophthalmologist to a cruel dictator. However the best chapter written with emotion by someone who faced the dictator, was the one covering Idi Amin written by Yasmin Alibhai-Brown. In summary the book is an excellent overview and warning about sometimes ordinary people who become dictators. More attention should however have been put in the editing stage in order not to have useless chapters like the one on Salazar slip through.