History Main / Tyrannicide

** Jaime Lannister, who killed an evil, mad king, [[TheCaligula Aerys II]] through BackStab [[spoiler:to stop them burning down King's Landing with wildfire]]. He did a lot of good to the realm [[spoiler:and had the most genuinely noble intentions]]. [[OnceDoneNeverForgotten No one will let him forget it]], though, as he was sworn to protect the King.

!!As a DeathTrope, spoilers will be unmarked on this page.

* John Wilkes Booth apparently believed he was doing this when he shot President Abraham Lincoln at the end of the UsefulNotes/AmericanCivilWar, as he shouted "Sic semper tyrannis!", the motto of Virginia, after he did the deed.

* Harmodius and Aristogeiton killed the tyrant Hipparchus.

* ''WebVideo/PiratesSMP'': The island state of Naya is effectively a military dictatorship ruled over by the Armada, itself headed by ten commanders. The finale reveals that Kuervo killed eight of the commanders in their sleep after finding out they were responsible for his CoolBigBro's death, before being violently caught on the ninth and sent on the run, thus going from star indoctrinated {{Child Soldier|s}} to outlaw DefectorFromDecadence in one night.

* ''Literature/{{Discworld}}''

-->'''Master Debator''': While murder may be a crime, tyrannicide is ''not''.
* In ''Literature/DragonBlood'', high king Jakoven is an overall bad ruler, who also kills innocent men and rapes children. LaResistance has been planning his carefully timed demise for some time and is only waiting for him to dig himself a bit deeper so that even more people will oppose him. After [[spoiler:the revolutionaries get the HiddenBackupPrince out of prison]], there is nothing that stands between the tyrant and a sharp blade anymore ... at least nothing that would hinder the heroes in any meaningful way.

* ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire''

* ''Literature/TheHungerGames: Mockingjay'':
** Katniss kills President Coin after realising she and Snow weren't so different.
** Snow is later lynched by the mob.

Related to TheKingslayer, AssholeVictim, and BullyHunter. If done by a foreign power, then it's RegimeChange. Compare MeetTheNewBoss and FullCircleRevolution, and contrast TyrantTakesTheHelm

[[caption-width-right:256:Seal of Virginia[[note]]''Sic semper tyrannis'' means "Thus always to tyrants"[[/note]]]]

* In the backstory of ''WesternAnimation/StevenUniverse'', Rose Quartz killed Pink Diamond six thousand years ago to end the GreatOffscreenWar and free the Earth from her rule. Unfortunately, she was only leading a small part of an interstellar empire, and the other rulers decided to SaltTheEarth in retribution. [[spoiler:Then things get more complicated when it's revealed that both Rose and Pink Diamond were one and the same...]]
* In ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra'', Zaheer murders the Earth Queen, a tyrant who conscripted her own citizens to be part of a private army. After her death, the city of Ba Sing Se descends into anarchy. With the rest of the Earth Kingdom falling into chaos.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendofKorra'', Zaheer murders the Earth Queen, a tyrant who conscripted her own citizens to be part of a private army. After her death, the city of Ba Sing Se descends into anarchy. With the rest of the Earth Kingdom falling into chaos.

* In ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendofKorra'', Zaheer murders the Earth Queen. A tyrant who conscripted her own citizens to be part of a private army. After her death, the city of Ba Sing Se descends into anarchy. With the rest of the Earth Kingdom falling into chaos.

* ''Film/XMenApocalypse'': The Ancient Egyptians who are fed up with En Sabah Nur's blood-thirsty reign attempt to assassinate him, but his Four Horsemen sacrifice themselves to save his life.

* ''Series/{{Rome}}'' depicts the assassination of UsefulNotes/GaiusJuliusCaesar by Brutus and his allies at the end of the first season. When they later discuss the aftermath with Caesar's surviving ally Mark Antony, the latter points out that justifying Caesar's murder as tyrannicide has created a conundrum for everyone, as all of Caesar's motions, including the appointment of Brutus' and Antony's offices, are legally null and void. The factions agree to [[DemocracyIsBad forego a new election]] by declaring a general amnesty for both factions. Antony then rouses the common people (for whom Caesar was a hero) against the assassins, forcing them to flee Rome.

* In the 20th century, the July 1918 mass shooting of the Romanovs by Lenin's Red Guards during World War I's last months, the lynching of Mussolini and his mistress in April 1945 during World War II's last months, and the Christmas Day, 1989 executions of Communist dictator Nicolae Ceausescu and his equally unpopular wife Elena in that year's Romanian Revolution.

* '' Series/LordOfTheRingsRingsOfPower'': After Morgoth's demise, Sauron was left to take control over the Orcs. Instead of trying to be better than his predecesor, Sauron continued Morgoth's horrible treatment of The Orcs, which absolutely garanteed a BetrayalByMistreatment from The Orcs. He was "split open" by Adar.

->''"[H]e who kills the tyrant in order to free his country is praised and rewarded."''
-->-- '''St. Creator/ThomasAquinas''', ''Commentary to the Sentences''