Tricks of ancient assassins

In ancient times, assassins were people who specialized in assassinating kings, leaders, or causing internal unrest among enemies.

According to Ancient Origins, assassinations appeared long ago in the history of human civilization. The goal of this secret operation is to destroy the important characters in the enemy barracks. Some military strategists even wrote about how leaders could use assassins to increase military power.

Assassins are professional assassins.(Photo: Ancient Origins).

Chinese strategist

Sun Tzu , Chinese military strategist, though not explicitly wrote about the use of secret assassins, but the 13th chapter of Sun Tzu's Army mentions espionage and uses war spies.

Sun Tzu writes that he should use spies to gather information about the enemy's personnel, regardless of the target to destroy an army, attack the city or assassinate an individual. But he did not go into the details of assassins and the use of assassinations.

The statue of Sun Tzu at Yurihama, Tottori, Japan.(Photo: Wikipedia).

Kautilya's work

Unlike Sun Tzu, the chief advisor of the Mauryan empire, Kautilya, wrote in more detail about the use of assassins in the "espionage" heading of Arthashastra's book, translated as "Economic Science. politic". This is a treatise with different topics on the art of country management, economic policy, military strategy.

According to Kautilya, spies are classified into different types, including assassins. Assassins can split into small groups, each using different tactics to complete the mission. For example, a group of poisoning assassins include members who are chefs, who make sauces. Their characteristic is cruel, no filial piety, good pain.

In addition to killing the target, assassins are also used to eliminate the great gods that make it difficult or cause disunity in the court.

Hashshashin killer

Hashshashin Assassin is a member of Ismailis Nizari, a Shia Muslim branch. This is the place to train the most famous assassins in history. They established a state in the Middle East during the Middle Ages. During this time, many countries strongly dominated the Middle East, such as the Seljuk empire in Sunni Islam and Christian Crusaders.

On the battlefield, Hashshashin cannot fight against the enemy due to its small number. They used a different approach to control the fortress in the Middle East, thereby sending people to assassinate enemy leaders.

A 14th-century painting depicting the assassination of Nizam al-Mulk.(Photo: Wikipedia).

Hashshashin's notable victims include Tripoli Earl Raymond III, Conrad of Montferrat, as well as Seljuk's prime minister, Nizam al-Mulk. Even the leader of Muslim Muslim Saladin became a target of assassination but failed.

One of the commonly used Hashshashin tactics is to kill targets in public places. In this way, Hashshashin has just destroyed the opponent and created fear in the minds of the enemy.

In the 13th century, Mongolia invaded the Middle East. About 40 Hashshashin's fortresses, including the famous Alamut castle, were occupied and razed by the Mongols. This marks the disintegration of Hashshashin killer organization.