How Tyrants Fall

And How Nations Survive

By: Marcel Dirsus

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Paperback | 9 September 2025 | Edition Number 1

At a Glance

Paperback
304 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
19.6 x 12.9 x 2.4

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HOW DO WE END TYRANNY?

Tyrants seem invincible, but they face constant threats from all sides. Whether it's by members of their inner circle, military elites, alienated masses, assassins, revolutionaries, or simply old age - they always fall. And when they do, they cannot retire: they face exile, prison or death. The aftermath can be catastrophic.

Meeting with improbable coup plotters, intelligence officers, rebel commanders and fugitive dissidents, Dr Marcel Dirsus draws on extraordinary interviews to unpick the vulnerabilities of the world's strongmen. How Tyrants Fall is an essential guide to decapitating tyranny, and a warning of what happens if we do.

About the Author

Marcel Dirsus studied at Oxford and worked in the Democratic Republic of Congo during a failed coup in 2013. In addition to writing the politics newsletter The Hundred, Dirsus has advised major foundations and international organisations like NATO and the OECD.

Industry Reviews

Fascinating, sweeping, and jaw-dropping. Dirsus takes everything you think you know about dictators and turns it on its head, with provocative insights into the warped minds of despots and the twisted systems that keep them on top. With dazzling stories and convincing analysis, How Tyrants Fall provides a roadmap to a world with fewer Putins and Kim Jong-Uns

A fascinating, wide-ranging and highly-entertaining journey

Gripping . . . An essential and captivating look at the perils of authoritarian rule and the remarkable ways in which even the most ruthless despots can be toppled

A sparkling read full of original observations and captivating insights. This handbook on the vulnerability of tyrants is an important contribution to our political discourse at a time when democracy is once again competing against the lure of autocracy

Timely, authoritative and accessible . . . Essential reading

A compelling and intricate portrait of how dictators survive and how they fall. Grounded in the latest research, it uses colourful real-world experiences to shed light on the central tensions underlying the reign of today's tyrants . . . How Tyrants Fall expertly captures the complex nature of strongman rule

A smart, accessible, engaging reminder of the brittleness of tyrannical regimes. It is also a resource for policies that can weaken those repressive governments and prevent chaos in their aftermath. We in the West have lost confidence in the university of our political values; this excellent book ought to restore our commitment to advancing those values

A timely and engaging romp through the world of dictators, exploring how they survive, how they fall, and what comes next when they collapse. A joy to read!

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