Buy new:
-33% $34.63
FREE delivery Friday, May 31 on orders shipped by Amazon over $35
Ships from: Amazon
Sold by: Phoenix Seller Store
$34.63 with 33 percent savings
List Price: $51.99

The List Price is the suggested retail price of a new product as provided by a manufacturer, supplier, or seller. Except for books, Amazon will display a List Price if the product was purchased by customers on Amazon or offered by other retailers at or above the List Price in at least the past 90 days. List prices may not necessarily reflect the product's prevailing market price.
Learn more
Get Fast, Free Shipping with Amazon Prime FREE Returns
FREE delivery Friday, May 31 on orders shipped by Amazon over $35
Or fastest delivery Thursday, May 30. Order within 4 hrs 40 mins
In Stock
$$34.63 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details
Price
Subtotal
$$34.63
Subtotal
Initial payment breakdown
Shipping cost, delivery date, and order total (including tax) shown at checkout.
Ships from
Amazon
Ships from
Amazon
Returns
30-day easy returns
30-day easy returns
This item can be returned in its original condition for a full refund or replacement within 30 days of receipt.
Returns
30-day easy returns
This item can be returned in its original condition for a full refund or replacement within 30 days of receipt.
Payment
Secure transaction
Your transaction is secure
We work hard to protect your security and privacy. Our payment security system encrypts your information during transmission. We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. Learn more
Payment
Secure transaction
We work hard to protect your security and privacy. Our payment security system encrypts your information during transmission. We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. Learn more
$28.78
Get Fast, Free Shipping with Amazon Prime FREE Returns
All pages and the cover are intact, but shrink wrap, dust covers, or boxed set case may be missing. Pages may include limited notes, highlighting, or minor water damage but the text is readable. Item may be missing bundled media. All pages and the cover are intact, but shrink wrap, dust covers, or boxed set case may be missing. Pages may include limited notes, highlighting, or minor water damage but the text is readable. Item may be missing bundled media. See less
FREE delivery Friday, May 31 on orders shipped by Amazon over $35
Or fastest delivery Thursday, May 30. Order within 21 hrs 40 mins
Only 1 left in stock - order soon.
$$34.63 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details
Price
Subtotal
$$34.63
Subtotal
Initial payment breakdown
Shipping cost, delivery date, and order total (including tax) shown at checkout.
Access codes and supplements are not guaranteed with used items.
Kindle app logo image

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

QR code to download the Kindle App

Something went wrong. Please try your request again later.

Death by Government: Genocide and Mass Murder Since 1900 5th PRINTING Edition

4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 80 ratings

{"desktop_buybox_group_1":[{"displayPrice":"$34.63","priceAmount":34.63,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"34","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"63","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"cdr7ZshhdY4zXlGCW0vpRlZc7mN10MsUot1zNU%2FipIBY0HoyOnfmBlrzreNijfpcAeLf4WrfW9j1x8Lm7B5TW9lm7WYnTp0WWl7inpPtdoShFlcNp5hcm92NEujaQTL4cU%2FoohxsB2y%2FkktdPcDaNJT2Qi9BYo7vpQbiNKGYqHL121I9WMudT%2B0rex66XOwc","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"NEW","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":0}, {"displayPrice":"$28.78","priceAmount":28.78,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"28","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"78","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"cdr7ZshhdY4zXlGCW0vpRlZc7mN10MsU%2BjkeWGSKSwT0iyKMEQyQt0iWW%2B4hW%2FzM%2FSGH4VrpyDjP9xi%2FGswn%2FlFza3kY%2FDDeO%2Fe%2BtIYf6C7r2D%2BWdkDnzVKWkODixZyXk80bcY%2B%2BJN7OoIwKS%2B%2BdIKEk%2FP1jSYtu224cXBTdz2dSY6w1JOLMHA%3D%3D","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"USED","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":1}]}

Purchase options and add-ons

This is R. J. Rummel's fourth book in a series devoted to genocide and government mass murder, or what he calls democide. He presents the primary results, in tables and figures, as well as a historical sketch of the major cases of democide, those in which one million or more people were killed by a regime. In Death by Government, Rummel does not aim to describe democide itself, but to determine its nature and scope in order to test the theory that democracies are inherently nonviolent.

Rummel discusses genocide in China, Nazi Germany, Japan, Cambodia, Turkey, Yugoslavia, Poland, the Soviet Union, and Pakistan. He also writes about areas of suspected genocide: North Korea, Mexico, and feudal Russia. His results clearly and decisively show that democracies commit less democide than other regimes. The underlying principle is that the less freedom people have, the greater the violence; the more freedom, the less the violence. Thus, as Rummel says, "The problem is power. The solution is democracy. The course of action is to foster freedom."

Death by Government is a compelling look at the horrors that occur in modern societies. It depicts how democide has been very much a part of human history. Among other examples, the book includes the massacre of Europeans during the Thirty Years' War, the relatively unknown genocide of the French Revolution, and the slaughtering of American Indians by colonists in the New World. This riveting account is an essential tool for historians, political scientists, and scholars interested in the study of genocide.

Read more Read less

Amazon First Reads | Editors' picks at exclusive prices

Frequently bought together

$34.63
Get it as soon as Friday, May 31
In Stock
Sold by Phoenix Seller Store and ships from Amazon Fulfillment.
+
$67.45
Get it as soon as Thursday, May 30
Only 19 left in stock (more on the way).
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
+
$17.29
Get it as soon as Thursday, May 30
In Stock
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
Total price:
To see our price, add these items to your cart.
Details
Added to Cart
spCSRF_Control
Some of these items ship sooner than the others.
Choose items to buy together.

Editorial Reviews

Review

* Named an Outstanding Academic Title by Choice!

-[Death by Government] is a compelling study of what the author calls democide--the intentional killing by governments through genocide, politicide, massacre, and terror. . . . A product of eight years of research by a distinguished political scientist, this is an unrivaled magnum opus with dozens of tables, figures, copious notes, and a massive bibliography. Essential reading for historians, political scientists, and readers interested in genocide.-

--R. H. Dekmejian, Choice

-Death by Government should be read in history classes not just across America, but around the world. The problem of power, as Rummel terms it, remains with us today. . . . Only if we learn from the past can we ever hope to end state-sanctioned murder. The case for human liberty and limited government has never been made more effectively than by this fearsome book.-

--Doug Bandow, Cato Institute

-Death by Government is a good introduction to the general phenomena of state-sponsored mass murder or democide (Rummel's concept). The numerous case studies are a mizture of carefully wrought description of the horrendous suffering of peoples under maily authoritarian political systems, with just the right dose of personal horror stories to make the book a memorable study of human deprivation and misery. For this effort, Rummel ought to be applauded.-

--Barbara Harff, the Journal of Interdisciplinary History

-With this volume, Rummel has completed his magnum opus on genocide and government mass murder, in short what Rummel calls 'democide'. . . . Rummel's methodology is based on averaging figures from a large number of sources, rather than historical source criticism or demographic estimates. This is a controversial method, yet it is clearly documented and well argued. . . . This work if a major achievement and will provide a reference point which no future systematic work on democide can ignore.-

--Nils Petter Gleditsch, Journal of Peace Research

-Governments have murdered about 169 million people in the twentieth century, according to Rummel's estimate. . . . Yet mass murder by governments has been largely ignored by political science. Rummel argues that, to rectify this omission, a reconceptualization of government and politics is required. To this end he proposes the concept of 'democide', which he defines as the intentional killing by a government of unarmed people. . . . Rummerl draws our attention to facts that are often ignored and should not be.-

--Michael Freeman, the Slavonic and East European Review



* Named an Outstanding Academic Title by Choice!

"[Death by Government] is a compelling study of what the author calls democide--the intentional killing by governments through genocide, politicide, massacre, and terror. . . . A product of eight years of research by a distinguished political scientist, this is an unrivaled magnum opus with dozens of tables, figures, copious notes, and a massive bibliography. Essential reading for historians, political scientists, and readers interested in genocide."

--R. H. Dekmejian, Choice

"Death by Government should be read in history classes not just across America, but around the world. The problem of power, as Rummel terms it, remains with us today. . . . Only if we learn from the past can we ever hope to end state-sanctioned murder. The case for human liberty and limited government has never been made more effectively than by this fearsome book."

--Doug Bandow, Cato Institute

"Death by Government is a good introduction to the general phenomena of state-sponsored mass murder or democide (Rummel's concept). The numerous case studies are a mizture of carefully wrought description of the horrendous suffering of peoples under maily authoritarian political systems, with just the right dose of personal horror stories to make the book a memorable study of human deprivation and misery. For this effort, Rummel ought to be applauded."

--Barbara Harff, the Journal of Interdisciplinary History

"With this volume, Rummel has completed his magnum opus on genocide and government mass murder, in short what Rummel calls 'democide'. . . . Rummel's methodology is based on averaging figures from a large number of sources, rather than historical source criticism or demographic estimates. This is a controversial method, yet it is clearly documented and well argued. . . . This work if a major achievement and will provide a reference point which no future systematic work on democide can ignore."

--Nils Petter Gleditsch, Journal of Peace Research

"Governments have murdered about 169 million people in the twentieth century, according to Rummel's estimate. . . . Yet mass murder by governments has been largely ignored by political science. Rummel argues that, to rectify this omission, a reconceptualization of government and politics is required. To this end he proposes the concept of 'democide', which he defines as the intentional killing by a government of unarmed people. . . . Rummerl draws our attention to facts that are often ignored and should not be."

--Michael Freeman, the Slavonic and East European Review

"Outstanding Title! [This is] a compelling study of what the author calls democide--the intentional killing by governments through genocide, politicide, massacre, and terror. The book focuses on 14 democides of the 20th century by the governments of the Soviet Union, Communist China, Nazi Germany, Nationalist China, Japan, Cambodia, Turkey, Vietnam, Poland, Pakistan, Communist Yugoslavia, North Korea, Mexico, and Feudal Russia--a total of 169 million murders, which Rummel carefully documents through elaborate statistical techniques... A product of eight years of research by a distinguished political scientist, this is an unrivaled magnum opus with dozens of tables, figures, copious notes, and massive bibliography. Essential reading for historians, political scientists, and readers interested in genocide."

--R. H. Dekmejian, Choice

"["Death by Government"] should be read in history classes not just across America, but around the world. The problem of power, as Rummel terms it, remains with us today: . . . Only if we learn from the past can we ever hope to end state-sanctioned murder. The case for human liberty and limited government has never been made more effectively than by this fearsome book."

--Doug Bandow, Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute.

"["Death by Government"] is a compelling study of what the author calls democide--the intentional killing by governments through genocide, politicide, massacre, and terror. . . . A product of eight years of research by a distinguished political scientist, this is an unrivaled magnum opus with dozens of tables, figures, copious notes, and a massive bibliography. Essential reading for historians, political scientists, and readers interested in genocide."

--R. H. Dekmejian, University of Southern California

"Death by Government should be read in history classes not just across America, but around the world. The problem of power, as Rummel terms it, remains with us today. . . . Only if we learn from

"["Death by Government"] should be read in history classes not just across America, but around the world. The problem of power, as Rummel terms it, remains with us today: . . . Only if we learn from the past can we ever hope to end state-sanctioned murder. The case for human liberty and limited government has never been made more effectively than by this fearsome book."

--Doug Bandow, Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute.

"["Death by Government"] is a compelling study of what the author calls democide--the intentional killing by governments through genocide, politicide, massacre, and terror. . . . A product of eight years of research by a distinguished political scientist, this is an unrivaled magnum opus with dozens of tables, figures, copious notes, and a massive bibliography. Essential reading for historians, political scientists, and readers interested in genocide."

--R. H. Dekmejian, University of Southern California

"["Death by Government"] should be read in history classes not just across America, but around the world. The problem of power, as Rummel terms it, remains with us today: . . . Only if we learn from the past can we ever hope to end state-sanctioned murder. The case for human liberty and limited government has never been made more effectively than by this fearsome book."

--Doug Bandow, Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute.

"["Death by Government"] is a compelling study of what the author calls democide--the intentional killing by governments through genocide, politicide, massacre, and terror. . . . A product of eight years of research by a distinguished political scientist, this is an unrivaled magnum opus with dozens of tables, figures, copious notes, and a massive bibliography. Essential reading for historians, political scientists, and readers interested in genocide."

--R. H. Dekmejian, University of Southern California

About the Author

Rummel, R. J.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Routledge; 5th PRINTING edition (January 30, 1997)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 520 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1560009276
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1560009276
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.12 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 1.18 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 80 ratings

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
R. J. Rummel
Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

R.J. Rummel is a Professor Emeritus of Political Science. He has published twenty-four nonfiction books (one that received an award for being among the most referenced), six novels, and about 100 peer-reviewed professional articles; has received the Susan Strange Award of the International Studies Association in 1999 for having intellectually most challenged the field; and in 2003 was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Conflict Processes Section, American Political Science Association. He has been frequently nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.

See also "about R.J. Rummel www.hawaii.edu/powerkills/PERSONAL.HTM, or his curriculum vita at www.hawaii.edu/powerkills/LONGVITA.HTM. His website is at www.hawaii.edu/powerkills, his daily blog is at http://democraticpeace.wordpress.com/

Many of his books are downloadable free in pdf at: www.hawaii.edu/powerkills/NH.HTM

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
80 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Reviewed in the United States on October 31, 2007
R.J. Rummel has spent his career assembling data on genocide, politicide and other government mass murder (studying more than 8,200 reports with estimates). He introduced a concept he calls "democide" which includes genocide, politicide, mass murder, and indiscriminate killing of civilians. It does not include battle deaths or collateral damage. He is using a scientific methodology that he applies consistently to come up with consistent mid-range estimates for democide. His findings are horrifying. 170 million people were murdered in the 20th century alone. Later he revised this number to 262 million. For comparison, it is estimated that 70 million people died from famine in the 20th century, 25 million has died from AIDS, 250 million died from Malaria in the 20th century, and 300 million from small pox. In conclusion democide killed considerably more people than war, famine, and AIDS and as much people as the two worst 20th century diseases. It should also be noted that previous centuries were just as democidal.

Rummels book "Statistics of Democide" presents his findings in great detail (very long lists of statistics), and additional information can be found on his web site. This book "Death by Government" gives some statistics on the topic, but the focus of the book is not on the statistics but descriptions of the democides and the regimes that perpetrated them. Therefore this book is easier to read and perhaps a bit more interesting (but just as gruesome) compared to "Statistics of Democide". However, "Statistics of Democide" is a better factoid resource.

In this book he describes the following murder regimes and their democides in more detail: Soviet Gulag State (62M), Chinese Communist Anthill (35M later revised to 78M), The Nazi Genocide State (21M mostly genocide), The Depraved Nationalist Regime, KMT (10M), Japans Savage Military (6M), The Hell State Cambodia under the Khmer Rouge (2M), Turkeys Genocidal Purges (1.9M), The Vietnamese War State (Vietcong) (1.7M), Poland's Ethnic Cleansing after the war (1.6M), The Pakistani Cutthroat state (1.5M), Titos Slaughter House (1.1M), Orwellian North Korea (1.7M), Barbarous Mexico (1.4M), Feudal Russia (1.1M). M=million killed.

The descriptions of the democides are horrific and very sad. The big questions are how can these things happen? People can be very cruel and brutal towards each other that is for sure, but regimes that hold a lot of power over their citizens are the regimes that will commit these crimes. To quote from Rummels web site: "Why do dictators kill and make war? Is it for glory; for things, for beliefs, for hatred, for power? Yes, but more, because they can". Regimes that can't do it won't. Democratic regimes, especially liberal democracies commit very little democide.
30 people found this helpful
Report
Reviewed in the United States on April 15, 2007
It is bewildering to reflect on how many people were murdered in the 20th century by the hand of brutish governments. According to this book's estimates, the figure is around 169,000,000. This one-of-a-kind book is an indispensible compendium that informs the reader about why these mass murders were carried out, but more importantly, how. Hopefully, we will one day learn the lessons of history and stop these kinds of atrocities before they are allowed to reach the magnitude of those chronicled here.

Rummel delves into the historical tensions that brought about most of the conflicts that lead to mass exterminations. Many of us may know nothing beyond the basics about Stalin's Great Terror or Hitler's Holocaust. What's frightening to realize as you read this book is how the demagoguery that lead to these mass murder incidents is not all that far removed from what we hear from some of our own politicians today.

The author also goes into quite a bit of detail about some of the lesser known campaigns of genocide (or democide, as he insists on calling it) of the 20th century, such as that of Turkey against the Armenians, and incidents by the Polish, Japanese, and Pakistanis.

This is an important book. I believe it is one of the most important books I've ever read. No one who considers himself a serious scholar of 20th century history can omit this book from his collection.
16 people found this helpful
Report
Reviewed in the United States on March 9, 2018
"Death by Government" is a book of numbers. Author Rummel defines "democide" as the intentional killing of people by government, and goes into detail on what this includes. His study is filled with statistics and charts and graphs and is well documented. In addition, he gives a summary of the situation or the war that the numbers address. These summaries will be more valuable to the reader who has an in-depth understanding of each of these situations as the massacres by government are too complicated to explain adequately in just a summary no matter how well-written. As the co-author of "Spare Them? No Profit. Remove Them? No Loss," an autobiography of a teen who spent four years under the Khmer Rouge, much of that time in the infamous work groups, I found the chapter on Cambodia to be sketchy. Nevertheless, Rummel's comments throughout the summary were interesting and insightful. This book is not for the casual reader, but is rather for someone who is interested in how many people have been slaughtered by governments that have gone rogue.
6 people found this helpful
Report
Reviewed in the United States on April 13, 2019
This is a history of the details and number of deaths caused by governments, mostly communists governments and dictatorships. From the data, Rommel gives the total in the last century alone is over 220 million innocent people, and probably much higher. Russia democide is estimated at 80 million and China close to that. The true number will never be known. The fact is we need governments to run an orderly society, but governments can easily abuse their power, and they have a lot of power, especially those that exercise a lot of control over their people, such as socialist governments. Those today who believe that socialism can pay for our college, our health needs, and our other needs, may get more than they bargained for. It is well to keep in mind that much of the data Rummel provides are estimates, actually guestimates, but as time goes on they tend to go higher as more is found out about the history of an area. This 496-page book should be required reading in all colleges to counter frightening trends there by those who ignore Rummel's life work.
20 people found this helpful
Report

Top reviews from other countries

Translate all reviews to English
park3r
5.0 out of 5 stars Government are more dangerous to humans than malaria.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 10, 2021
This book is proof that your own government are the greatest threat to your own life.

20th century is the bloodiest on record. More innocent people were killed by their own government than in all the wars that took place, combined.

This book shows why citizens should own firearms and it is no coincidence that these regimes disarmed their citizens before carrying out their evil deeds.

If you think this can never happen in western countries; humans haven’t changed much and we are closer than you think.
2 people found this helpful
Report
Davor
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in Canada on June 14, 2018
As advertised.
Godoy
5.0 out of 5 stars Esclarecedor
Reviewed in Brazil on July 28, 2014
Primor em análise e pesquisa para esclarecer aos incautos como tem sido enviesado o contexto das discussões sobre comunismo e sua repressão sobre seus oponentes.
Massimo Piras
4.0 out of 5 stars Very important book!
Reviewed in France on April 9, 2014
Arrived quickly.

Sometimes hard to read given how terrible the subject matter is and maybe too many figures. But a must to understand the grave danger that unchecked power represents. Should be required reading in senior high school history class.
Roland M
5.0 out of 5 stars classic text
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 6, 2013
this is a classic text detailing the evil done by governments in the 20th century and should be read by all
3 people found this helpful
Report