Leopold II of Belgium

As a leader, Leopold II displayed a cunning ability to manipulate international politics and secure personal control over the Congo Free State, which he ruled as his private colony. Despite his professed intentions of humanitarianism and economic development, his regime oversaw a brutal system of forced labor, violence, and exploitation, leading to the deaths and suffering of countless Congolese people. His leadership in the Congo has since become a symbol of European colonialism's darkest and most exploitative aspects.