Top 10 Assassins in History

Top 10 Assassins in History

These people committed murders that shook the world. Welcome to WatchMojo.com, and today we’re counting down our picks for the top 10 assassins in history.

For this list, we’re looking at people that have made an impact on history by committing targeted murders of prominent individuals or important figures.

#10: Assassin: Sirhan Sirhan
Target: Robert F. Kennedy

Born into a Palestinian Christian family, Sirhan Sirhan was radical in his beliefs against Israel. In fact, when he learned that Senator Robert Kennedy supported Israel in the Arab-Israeli conflict, he was extremely offended. One night as Senator Kennedy was walking through a crowd in a hotel, Sirhan shot Kennedy three times, resulting in fatal injuries. Since Kennedy was the frontrunner in the Democratic presidential race, his death largely influenced the election of Richard Nixon. This assassination was not only a big news story, but ultimately affected the course of history.

#9: Assassin: Ramón Mercader
Target: Leon Trotsky

Growing up in France, Ramon Mercader lived under the influence of his mother, who worked for leftist organizations. Mercader believed in this ideology and was recruited to become a Soviet Spy. Meanwhile, Russian revolutionist Leon Trotsky was exiled after criticizing Stalin and promoting socialism. As a spy, Mercader befriended Trotsky by pretending to sympathize with him. In August 1940, Mercader attacked Trotsky with an ice pick and he died the next day. His death created a setback on the socialist movement and promoted the global dominance of Stalinism.

#8: Assassin: Soghomon Tehlirian
Target: Talaat Pasha

Born in the Ottoman Empire, Soghomon Tehlirian moved to Russia to join the army in 1914. However, while he was there, the Ottoman police ordered all Armenians – including his family – to be deported and they were all killed, among up to 1.5 million others, in the Armenian Genocide. Soon after, Tehlirian joined a secret program that targeted officials behind the genocide called Operation Nemesis. He rented an apartment near Talaat Pasha, one of the Ottoman rulers, in order to follow his every move. On March 15, 1921, Tehlirian shot and killed Pasha in broad daylight. However, he was acquitted by his jury and is considered a hero by many Armenians.

#7: Assassin: Richard Leonard ‘The Iceman’ Kuklinski
Target: Multiple

Growing up in a gang, Richard Kuklinski killed his first victim at age 14. After he continued to kill, the mafia began to recognize this ability. He soon became a hitman of New Jersey’s DeCavalcante crime family and was responsible for killing and disposing of those he killed. He developed the nickname “The Iceman” because he would often freeze victims. In December 1986, he was caught and tried for 5 murders, several of which were his collaborators. However, law officials suspect that he is responsible for 100-200 murders after he confessed in several interviews. He died in 2006 under mysterious circumstances at the St. Francis Medical Center at age 70.

#6: Assassin: Daniel James ‘Dan’ White
Target: Harvey Milk

A conservative San Francisco supervisor, Dan White was upset by the tolerance of homosexuality. On November 10, 1978, White resigned when he felt his salary was insufficient, but backtracked a few days later and requested to be reappointed. However, Mayor George Moscone, along with other supervisors, including Harvey Milk, the first gay person to hold public office, intervened and the board members elected a liberal official instead. On the 27th of that same month, White then fatally shot Moscone and Milk while they were in City Hall. Instead of first-degree murder, White was sentenced to seven years in prison for manslaughter thanks to the Twinkie defense. After serving only five, the city ostracized him, and he committed suicide. This assassination took away one of the first gay rights activists.

#5: Assassin: Mark David Chapman
Target: John Lennon

Mark David Chapman grew up as a longtime fan of The Beatles. In fact, two days after he bought John Lennon’s newly released album, he waited outside Lennon’s apartment for an autograph. Lennon agreed and also allowed a photographer to take a picture of him with Chapman. However, Chapman remained near Lennon’s apartment until the musician returned home later that night. Shockingly, Chapman fired 5 shots at Lennon, four of which hit him and soon after caused his death. Chapman later said he killed him because “he was very famous,” though he had already previously turned on the former Beatles member because of his “more popular than Jesus” comment. His lawyer sought an insanity plea, but Chapman pled guilty and was sentenced to life imprisonment with psychiatric treatment.

#4: Assassin: Gavrilo Princip
Target: Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria

Born in Bosnia, Gavrillo Princip was trained in terrorism by the secret Serbian society Black Hand. Being a South Slav nationalist, Princip sought to take down Austro-Hungarian rule in order to unite the South Slav peoples. Therefore, he wished to assassinate the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand. An associate first threw a bomb that bounced off the convertible carrying Franz Ferdinand and subsequently detonated under a nearby car, allowing the procession to make its way to Town Hall. It was during the motorcade’s drive to the hospital to visit the bomb victims that Princip had his chance to shoot Ferdinand and his wife Sophie on June 28, 1914. This assassination instigated the war between Austria-Hungary and Serbia and the First World War.

#3: Assassin: James Earl Ray
Target: Martin Luther King, Jr.

James Earl Ray had a long criminal history, serving jail sentences for different crimes in the ‘50s and ‘60s. In addition, Ray had racist beliefs, being against the integration policies that were taking place. In 1968, Ray rented a room in the same motel at which civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr was staying. As King stood on a balcony, Ray shot him in the face and the single bullet was enough to ultimately kill him. Ray fled to Canada and then to England, but he was caught and sentenced to 99 years in prison. April 4, 1968 will forever be remembered as the day Ray took away the life of a great civil rights leader.

#2: Assassin: John Wilkes Booth
Target: Abraham Lincoln

Unlike other assassins, John Wilkes Booth had established a good reputation for himself as one of the most popular actors of his time. However, during the Civil War, Booth supported the Confederates. When President Abraham Lincoln granted freedom to slaves, Booth decided that it was the last speech that he would ever make. When Lincoln attended the play Our American Cousin, Booth slipped into Lincoln’s booth and shot him in the head. But even though Booth took Lincoln’s life, the Union was still able to win the war.

Before we reveal our top pick, here are some honorable, or in this case, dishonorable, mentions:
- Assassin: Mustafa Ahmed Muhammad Uthman Abu al-Yazid
Target: Benazir Bhutto
- Assassin: Leon Frank Czolgosz
Target: William McKinley
- Assassin: Jared Lee Loughner
Target: John Roll

#1: Assassin: Lee Harvey Oswald
Target: John F. Kennedy

Even though there are countless conspiracy theories surrounding JFK’s death, Lee Harvey Oswald was the man ultimately arrested for assassinating President John F. Kennedy. After being court-martialed in the military for violent behavior, Oswald moved to the Soviet Union where he hoped to defect, but ultimately worked and got married. He eventually returned to Texas, where Kennedy was scheduled to visit. On November 22, 1963, while Kennedy was traveling through Texas, Oswald shot Kennedy three times from the Book Depository while the Presidential motorcade drove by. Two days later, as he was being brought to the county jail, nightclub operator Jack Ruby shot Oswald in plain view out of rage. Kennedy’s assassination had a massive impact in America, creating hysteria and a distrust in federal institutions.

Do you agree with our list? What do you think is the most notorious assassination? For more informational Top 10s posted daily, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.