In our own time, national leaders with especially evil reputations have been compared to Hitler. As Hitler was coming to power, what evil figure in history was he being compared to?
Also, did Henry Ford actually have on his desk a picture of Hitler?
As I recall it was Attilla the Hun.
I never heard about the picture on the desk, but it is possible in the early 30’s he did.
Maybe Stalin.
Didn’t they call the German’s ‘Huns’ as a slur during WWI (later ‘Jerries’ and ‘Krauts’)?
No, as I recall, it was WWI, and it was Hungarians, not Germans.
The Germans has huns was both an insult and badge of honor to some of their military. I read several of Churchill’s Books back in the late 80’s. I remember him comparing Hitler to Attilla. It was very dry reading and I don’t think I have the books anymore.
Nope, “Hun” was an epithet for the Germans in both world wars.
I’ve always heard it the other way round.
:mad: Oh yeah, well I-
Oh, hold on a second. I just googled it, and it appears that I am wrong. :smack:
I was about to post a link to the “Beat back the hun” poster Colibri linked to.
Ironically enough, the Germans themselves initiated the epithet “Huns”: In a 1900 speech (the “Hun speech”) to the German corps that was sent to China to participate in the international action against the Boxer Rebellion, Emperor Wilhelm II. incited his warriors to fight as brave as the ancient Huns under Attila did, whose fame persists after a thousand years.
Just shows that a militaristic society could take pride in what more peaceful nations considered barbaric.
Anybody notice the Google ads for this topic? :dubious: 
Ah, fooey. Figures they’d change. Nevermind.
Prolly from the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
You know, I’d argue that the answer to the OP is Hitler. Mind you, I disapprove of Hitlering and Hitlery in the strongest possible terms, but you gotta admit he was a real Hitler’s Hitler. Nobody Hitlered like that guy.
Yep…here’s what they say now.
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WTF is up with that?
So when people were talking about Hitler, they said “Man, that guy’s as bad as Hitler!”? Somehow, that doesn’t quite seem right.
It gets weirder. When Attilla waged his famous campaigns, inhabitants of sacked villages would say to one another, “Man, that dude’s as bad as Hitler.” “Wait, who’s Hitler?” “Damned if I know.” Then the spear through the belly. It was a bad scene.
Napoleon is now an admired character to most of the western world, but to Germans (whose only Reich that really did come close to a thousand years he ended) he was a hated tyrannical figure. Also Robespierre and other horrible figures of the French Revolution may have figured in.