Ah, the innocence of youth. Even some of the most despicable people were once adorable children. Factors such as our parents and environment wind up molding our personalities and character. Some kids transform into upstanding citizens while others turn into a life of murder, or worse, genocide. Let’s meet some of history’s most evil people before their turn to the dark side.

His Name Translate To “One Who Confronts”

This young boy was born to a modest family of shepherds. He unfortunately never knew his father. When his mother remarried, this future leader moved in with his uncle, a man who instilled invaluable leadership qualities in him. Ironically, his name appropriately translates to “one who confronts” in his native language. Click Next Page to find out the monster this child became…

Insane In The Hussein

In July 1968, Saddam Hussein planned and implemented a purge of non-Ba’ath Party members in the Iraqi government. Throughout his twenty-four-year reign, Hussein is estimated to have killed upwards of one million people. Following the invasion by the United States and its allies in 2003, Saddam was captured and convicted of crimes against humanity by an Iraqi court. Hussein was later executed for these crimes.

From Dear Little Boy…

According to official records, this little tyke was born in a military camp when his country was occupied by Japan. After his country gained its independence, he returned home with his family. His interest in politics led him to adopt anti-factionalism and encourage his classmates to take interest in his ideologies.

To Dear Leader…

By 1994, Kim Jong-Il assumed control of North Korea and began to consolidate power within his government. According to Human Rights Watch, North Korea was considered to be one of the globe’s most oppressive governments under Kim’s rule. He was known for being ruthless against dissidents and estimates indicate he imprisoned up to 200,000 people in labor camps.

Could Have Been A Rock Star

This poor little lad was born to a 16-year-old mother and most likely never knew his biological father. His mother often abandoned him to go on drinking binges and he decided to adopt music as an outlet. His opportunity to break into the music industry came from a chance connection with Dennis Wilson of the Beach Boys.

Helter Skelter

The music career didn’t last long for Charles Manson who fell into a life of crime and murder. From 1968 to 1969, Manson’s followers went on a terror spree across California, including the attempted assassination of President Gerald Ford. He was sentenced to the death penalty until California’s laws changed leaving him with life behind bars until he died in 2017.

Red Poet’s Society

As a child, he lived with an abusive father until he and his mother left to live with a family friend. He became the first person in his family to attend school and excelled in his studies. He earned scholarships to attend a seminary and began writing poetry. Five of his poems were published in the local newspaper.

Stalin For Time

As he got older, Joseph Stalin’s grades dropped as he lost interest in school. He wound up in politics around the time of Russia’s 1905 revolution and was elected as a delegate to a Bolshevik conference. He assumed control of the Soviet Union following Vladimir Lenin’s death and was responsible for the deaths of between 20 and 25 million people.

From Rags To Silk

Born to an impoverished peasant who became a wealthy, yet abusive, farmer. He spent most of his days working before losing himself in books at night. He became fascinated by uncompromising leaders like George Washington and Napoleon Bonaparte. His country’s monarchy was falling apart as he gained an interest in politics. He believed strong leaders were not confined to morality.

More Power Mao Problems

Mao Zedong unsurprisingly adopted the Consequentialist phrase “the ends justify the means.” Following the Chinese Civil War, Mao established the People’s Republic of China and consolidated control through various land reforms. During his “Great Leap Forward” and “Cultural Revolution,” Mao killed an unprecedented 49 to 78 million people.

A Little Too Energetic

Like many children in the 1960s, this boy was born to a stand-up working-class family. His mother was a teletype machine instructor and his father attended university, working towards a degree in chemistry. As a child, he was known for being energetic and happy. That is until his parents grew further apart.

The Dahmer Party

Jeffrey Dahmer became interested in animals and insects at a young age. That interest led to a creepy obsession with animal carcasses. This further developed into a frightening fascination with the sound of breaking bones. He committed his first murder at the age of 18. He was responsible for the rapes and deaths of at least 17 men and boys at the time of his conviction.

Early Signs Of Evil

Raised by his grandparents, this future killer respected and identified with his grandfather, who abused his grandmother and, strangely, the neighborhood cats. His aunt recollected a time when she woke up surrounded by knives from the kitchen. Standing above the bed was her three-year-old nephew with a horrific and antagonizing smile on his face.

Ted Bundy’s Heartless Evil

That three-year-old boy was Ted Bundy, who wound up becoming one of the most infamous serial killers in American history. Bundy confessed to over 30 killings throughout seven states during the 1970s. He was known for being a good-looking and charismatic man who charmed his way into his victims’ lives before they met their brutal end.

A Life Of Abuse

This little whippersnapper was born to a father who was a World War I veteran and auto repair machinist. His mother spent her days as a homemaker. After stealing a toy car one day, the six-year-old boy was verbally and physically abused by his father. He was also the frequent target of bullies at his school.

The Killer Clown

In a titular moment, John Wayne Gacy became a mortician’s assistant. He slept behind the embalming room and even confessed to sleeping with a corpse one night. Gacy’s known killings took place in his home through coercion of his victims. He sexually assaulted and murdered 33 teenage boys, 26 of whom were found in a crawl space at his house.

Born Of A Billionaire

One would think the son of a billionaire would be content with life. Inheriting $25 to $30 million typically leads to expensive vacations, lavish summer homes, large yachts, and a collection of fancy jewelry. During his time at university, he developed a keen interest in religion, which fueled the future of his extremism.

A Terrorist Is Born

Osama Bin Laden developed a belief that civilians from enemy nations were fair game for his jihad. He called upon Americans to convert to Islam and reject the sinful ways of the West, including gambling, sex, and alcohol. Bin Laden took credit for some of the deadliest terrorist attacks in the world.

The Artist…

Like many of the evilest people in human history, this little child was beaten by his father. The youngster took up singing lessons so he could participate in his church’s choir. He even thought about joining the priesthood. He was also a painter who loved his wife with uncompromising affection.

The Fuhrer…

The incredibly despicable acts of Adolf Hitler will never be forgotten. As Chancellor of Germany, Hitler initiated World War II with his aggressive foreign policy and racially-motivated ideals. He was directly responsible for the deaths of 29 million soldiers and civilians, including at least 5.5 million Jews during the Holocaust.

Anders Breivik

Norwegian far-right terrorist, Anders Breivik killed 8 people by setting off a van bomb amid the government quarter Regjeringskvartalet in Oslo and then murdered 69 participants of a summer camp on the island of Utoya on 22 July 2011.

Benito Mussolini

Italian politician and leader of the National Fascist Party, Mussolini (known as “Duce” – Leader) was ruling Italy as Prime Minister from 1922 to 1943. Under his totalitarian regime, many people were killed not only in Italy but also in some African and Balkan countries.

Aileen Wuornos

Born as Aileen Carol Pittman, Aileen Wuornos was an American serial killer who killed seven men in Florida between 1989 and 1990. Her story inspired several films such as “Overkill: The Aileen Wuornos Story” (1992) and “Monster” (2003).

Heinrich Himmler

Leading member of the Nazi Party of Nazi Germany, Himmler was a military commander and one of the people most directly responsible for the Holocaust. He was in charge of the notorious concentration camps where millions of people died.

Myra Hindley

Known as “the evilest woman in Britain”, Myra Hindley was a sadistic killer who, together with her boyfriend Ian Brady, raped and killed 5 children between 1963 and 1965 in and around Manchester, UK.

Hirohito

Hirohito was the 124th Emperor of Japan, reigning from 1926 until he died in 1989. Some historians believe he was directly responsible for the atrocities committed by the imperial forces in the Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II.

Andrej Chikatilo

Nicknamed the Butcher of Rostov, the Red Ripper, and the Rostov Ripper, Chikatilo was a Soviet serial killer who committed sexual assault, murder, and mutilation of a minimum of 52 women and children between 1978 and 1990 in the former Soviet Union.

Harold Shipman

British doctor Harold Shipman was the most prolific serial killer in recorded history, proven to have been responsible for up to 250 murders. Shipman purposely injected fatal doses of diamorphine in his patients, causing their death. About 80% of his victims were women.

Vladimir Lenin

Notorious Soviet communist revolutionary, politician, and political theorist, Vladimir Lenin was the founder of a totalitarian dictatorship responsible for civil war and mass human rights abuses. Under his regime, millions of people died due to mass killings, famine, etc.

Karla Homolka

Known as Karla Leanne Teale and Leanne Bordelais, Karla Homolka is a convicted Canadian serial killer who helped her husband rape and murder at least three young women, including her sister, in the 1990s.

Reinhard Heidrich

Reinhard Heydrich was a high-ranking German Nazi officer during World War II and one of the main architects of the Holocaust. Many historians regard him as the darkest figure within the Nazi elite. Adolf Hitler even described him as “the man with the iron heart“.

Adam Lanza

In December 2012, Adam Lanza, aged 20, committed one of the deadliest mass shootings in US history as he killed 6 staff members and 20 children at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. Before the attack, he also killed his mother.

James Holmes

James Holmes is an American mass murderer convicted on 24 counts of murder and 140 counts of attempted murder for the 2012 shooting that killed 12 people and injured 70 others at a Century movie theater in Aurora, Colorado.

Josef Mengele

Known as the “Angel of Death”, Mengele was an officer and doctor in Nazi Germany. Infamous for his extremely brutal experiments on prisoners held in concentration camps, he sent hundreds of thousands to their deaths in gas chambers and killed many more during his experiments.

Timothy McVeigh

Timothy McVeigh was an American terrorist convicted and executed for the detonation of a truck bomb in Oklahoma City in 1995 in which he killed 168 people and injured over 600. Known as the Oklahoma City Bombing, it remains one of the worst terrorist acts ever committed in the US.