LEADERSHIP BY TERROR 171in his harem who became pregnant had been killed. In the absence of
a direct heir, one of his half - brothers ascended the throne.
Shaka ’ s military genius and leadership transformed a chiefdom of
100 square miles into an empire that extended to over a million. In a
period of ten years he succeeded in building a vast kingdom and a pow-
erful sense of national identity that is retained even today. He swiftly
passed into legend as the founder of the Zulu nation. However, it is
estimated that Shaka was directly or indirectly responsible for the death
of more than two million people. When white settlers arrived in Zulu-
land Natal, they found the desolate landscape littered with skeletons.
Deconstructing the despot’s inner theater
When a despotic leader takes charge of a country, the demons that
populate his inner theater are reproduced in wider society. The despot ’ s
desires, ideals, and hatreds become the fears and wishes of his subjects.
It has been argued, from an ethological point of view, that aggres-
sion is needed for the survival of the species (Lorenz, 1966 ; Tinbergen,
1968 ). While it is likely that a certain level of aggression is both inherent
in and necessary to the human race, a case can be made for a ‘ malignant ’
type of aggression that is characterological rather than instinctually
programmed (Fromm, 1973 ). The salient characteristics of this form of
aggression are interpersonal abrasiveness and the attainment of narcis-
sistic satisfaction through intimidating and humiliating others. Shaka
typifi es a leader in whom malignant aggression patterns were so thor-
oughly internalized that they infl uenced not only his own behavior but
also that of his followers.
Malevolent Antisocial Behavior
We have all known people who show signs of antisocial behavior.
Although they are unpleasant to be around, they function adequately in
the world of work, if less successfully in the social sphere. Fortunately,
few of us know, or will ever meet, someone with the most extreme form
of antisocial behavior: malevolent antisocial personality disorder.
Malevolent antisocial personalities, whose behavior shows elements
of sadism, extreme aggressiveness, narcissism, and paranoia, are the least
attractive among people with antisocial tendencies; they demonstrate
extremely callous, vengeful, belligerent, and brutal behavior (American