Anatomy of Assassinations

Assassination of prominent people occurred in all countries at all times over the history of mankind. They are not random events in the sense that there is always a motive behind them. In our analysis we shall more or less adhere to the following criteria: (i) The victim must be a public personage, (ii) The assassination must be premeditated, (iii) It must be done by stealth, (iv) There must be a motive and (v) The assassin aims only at the death of the person selected.

In Part I we give a chronology of all major assassinations from biblical times onward. The number of assassinations in any particular year may often be seen to bear some strong correlation with the historical events unfolding. There is actually a year, 1934, that presages most major conflicts in Europe.

Part II contains brief biographies of both victims and perpetrators. It is not unusual that he who arranges an assassination will be assassinated in his turn. As stated in Matthew's gospel: 'They that take the sword shall perish with the sword.'

The various categories of assassinations `are discussed in Part III together with definitions and classifications and with descriptions of historical periods dominated by assassinations, as for example the French Wars of Religion.