In history, not the names of heroes often remain, but the names of traitors. Some do it for the sake of money, others out of fear, others under the pressure of circumstances. Betrayal has different consequences - some affect only a certain person, while others, based on massive collusion, affect entire nations …
Judas Iscariot
The story of Judas is known to everyone: originally being one of the 12 apostles of Jesus Christ, Judas was in charge of all their common money and, possibly, loved money. In the writings of John Chrysostom, there are references to the fact that Judas, along with the other apostles, performed miracles: he raised the dead, healed the sick, but later “lost the kingdom of heaven”, for he betrayed the Lord.
The Bible contains some information about the childhood of Judas: his parents threw the child into the sea in the ark, because they had a dream that the son would become their death. And so it happened: Judas, like the ancient Greek Oedipus, after many years, returning to his hometown, killed his father and entered into an incestuous relationship with his mother. After repentance and repentance, the Lord forgave Judas all sins, and he became one of the 12 apostles of Christ.
Judas betrayed Jesus Christ for 30 pieces of silver - exactly the same amount he received from the high priests. After Jesus was sentenced to death by crucifixion, Judas repented of his deed and tried to return the coins back, but the chief priests told him that they did not care about his repentance. Then Judas threw coins in the temple and committed suicide - he hanged himself.
An interesting fact: it is believed that the tree on which Judas hanged himself was an aspen, and that is why in many fantastic works a vampire can be stopped by driving an aspen stake into his heart.
It is impossible to say with certainty whether Judas actually existed. However, the same cannot be said about the rest of the apostles, as well as about all the people described in the Bible. However, in 1978, the so-called "Gospel of Judas" was found in Egypt, allegedly written by himself. In it, Judas Iscariot appears as the only disciple of Christ, to whom he revealed all the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven. Nevertheless, the Christian Church does not recognize the document as authentic, and it is not included in the list of canonical gospels.
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Mark Junius Brutus
Marcus Junius Brutus Cepion was a Roman senator living in the 1st century BC. e. He came from a respected and wealthy Roman family whose members were traditionally part of the Senate. Nevertheless, the antiquity of his family was questioned by some Roman citizens of that time.
Initially, Brutus was a supporter of Pompey, but after Caesar's victory at the Battle of Pharsalus, he joined the Roman general. Caesar received Brutus with honors and even transferred one of the provinces under his control - Cisalpine Gaul. An important role in bringing Brutus closer to Caesar was that his mother, Servilia, was Caesar's mistress for many years.
Meanwhile, Caesar gradually turned from the main military leader into the emperor and sole ruler of Rome. Then the quaestor Guy Cassius Longinus attracted Brutus to his side with the help of both promises and threats.
There is evidence that Longinus repeatedly reminded Brutus of his origin - allegedly Mark Junius Brutus was a descendant of Lucius Junius Brutus, who overthrew the last Roman emperor Tarquinius the Proud: since the ancestor did a similar act and freed the Empire from the dictator, then the descendant is destined to do the same. So Brutus stood at the head of a conspiracy against Julius Caesar, which was joined by several more senators, as a result of which Caesar was stabbed to death right in the Senate building.
Nevertheless, the conspiracy was never crowned with complete success, since the people did not follow the conspirators. As a result, Caesar's nephew Octavian gained power, and Brutus and Longinus had to flee. Brutus later returned to Rome at the head of a large army, but was defeated by the combined forces of Octavian and Antony. Upon learning of the defeat, Brutus committed suicide, preferring death to captivity.
Getman Ivan Stepanovich Mazepa
Hetman Ivan Mazepa was an advisor to Peter I's sister Sophia and her favorite Golitsyn. When the young emperor Peter I ascended the throne, Mazepa did not lose his influence and managed to gain confidence in the new monarch, and later become his close friend.
Peter respected the old commander, and not without reason: Mazepa was able to drive the Tatar troops away from Ukrainian cities, and later participated in both campaigns to Azov. His career in the service of the imperial throne was very successful: Mazepa received several orders and awards from Peter's hands, and also enjoyed the unconditional trust of the sovereign and eventually became one of the richest and most respected people in Russia at that time.
In 1706, the Polish king Augustus II was defeated in the war with Sweden and abdicated in favor of the Swedish ally Stanislav Leszczynski. At the same time, Mazepa began a correspondence with Leshchinsky with the clear intention of going over to the side of the Swedish king Charles XII, who was actually ruling Poland at that time. However, in his mind, he could not be denied: he prepared the way for a possible retreat in case Russia emerges victorious from this conflict.
One way or another, Peter began to receive numerous denunciations against Mazepa, which spoke of his betrayal. The emperor closed his eyes to all the evidence: he punished the informers, and he trusted Mazepa even more. The last straw was the denunciation of the general judge Kochubei, whom Peter also did not believe, since Kochubei had personal reasons for dislike - earlier Mazepa had an affair with his daughter Matryona, his goddaughter.
Apparently, Mazepa was scared and finally decided to go over to the side of the Swedish king. Saying sick, the hetman refused to take part in the hostilities, and later fled to Karl, who was camped in Russia. Karl, with a howl, in 1709 concluded an official agreement with Mazepa, in which he promised to make him the prince of Ukraine. Peter, together with the church, anathematized Mazepa and carried out a demonstrative execution: a straw effigy was taken out to the square and his head was cut off.
In June 1709, the Swedish troops were defeated, and Mazepa fled to the city of Bender, where he soon died. His body was buried in Galati with great pomp.
Prince Andrey Mikhailovich Kurbsky
Andrei Mikhailovich Kurbsky was the closest adviser to Tsar Ivan the Terrible. The Kurbsky clan originated from the Yaroslavl princes, its descendants traditionally had a boyar dignity, but during the time of Grozny they were not honored, since they supported the opposition to the tsarist government.
Andrei chose a military career: he took part in campaigns against Kazan, and later fought with the Tatars in the vicinity of Tula - the prince earned the trust of the tsar, as he proved himself to be a brilliant commander. Some sources indicate that he and Ivan the Terrible were friendly, but at the same time Andrei became close to the priest Sylvester, who later became one of the leaders of the Chosen Rada.
Grozny was known for his tough disposition and did not tolerate such moods in his country, so during the Livonian War, persecution began against Sylvester and his closest supporter, voivode Alexei Adashev. And, although Andrei Kurbsky himself did not fall under suspicion, he nevertheless, knowing the character of the tsar, had every reason to assume that the same fate awaited him.
In this regard, Kurbsky fled to Lithuania under the wing of the Lithuanian king Sigismund. There he was granted several estates, Sigismund trusted him, and subsequently, since Kurbsky knew the defense system of the western borders of Russia very well, the Lithuanians repeatedly raided these places.
Andrei's relatives - mother, wife and little son - were taken into custody, where they died, and his closest relatives were killed by order of Ivan IV. The tsar accused him of many crimes, including an attempt to subjugate Yaroslavl, which was already sheer madness.
To tell the truth, it is rather difficult to call Kurbsky an insidious traitor: yes, he, of course, switched to the service of the Lithuanian sovereign, but he did it out of fear for his life.
Heinrich Lyushkov
In 1937, the NKVD fought, including in the Far East. It was Genrikh Lyushkov who headed this punitive body at that time. One year later, a purge began in the "organs" themselves, many executioners themselves were in the place of their victims. Lyushkov was suddenly summoned to Moscow, ostensibly to appoint the head of all the camps in the country. But Heinrich suspected that Stalin wanted to remove him.
Frightened by the reprisals, Lyushkov fled to Japan. In an interview with the local newspaper Yomiuri, the former executioner said that he really does recognize himself as a traitor. But only in relation to Stalin. But Lyushkov's subsequent behavior suggests just the opposite. The general told the Japanese about the entire structure of the NKVD and the residents of the USSR, about exactly where the Soviet troops were located, where and how defensive structures and fortresses were built.
Lyushkov passed military radio codes to the enemies, actively urging the Japanese to oppose the USSR. The traitor himself tortured Soviet intelligence officers arrested in Japan, resorting to cruel atrocities. The pinnacle of Lyushkov's activity was his development of a plan to assassinate Stalin. The General personally set about implementing his project.
Historians today believe that this was the only serious attempt to eliminate the Soviet leader. However, she did not have any success. After the defeat of Japan in 1945, Lyushkov was killed by the Japanese themselves, who did not want their secrets to fall into the hands of the USSR.
Andrey Vlasov
This Soviet lieutenant general was known as the most important Soviet traitor during the Great Patriotic War. Even in the winter of 41-42, Vlasov commanded the 20th Army, making a significant contribution to the defeat of the Nazis near Moscow. Among the people, this particular general was called the main savior of the capital.
In the summer of 1942, Vlasov took the post of deputy commander of the Volkhov front. However, soon his troops were captured, and the general himself was captured by the Germans. Vlasov was sent to the Vinnitsa military camp for the captive high military ranks. There the general agreed to serve the fascists and headed the "Committee for the Liberation of the Peoples of Russia" created by them.
On the basis of KONR, even a whole "Russian Liberation Army" (ROA) was created. It included captured Soviet servicemen. The general showed cowardice, according to rumors, since then he began to drink a lot. On May 12, Vlasov was captured by Soviet troops in an attempt to escape. The trial over him was closed, as he, with his own words, could inspire people dissatisfied with the government.
In August 1946, General Vlasov was stripped of his titles and awards, his property was confiscated, and he himself was hanged. At the trial, the accused admitted that he pleaded guilty, as he became weak-minded in captivity. Already in our time, an attempt was made to justify Vlasov. But only a small part of the charges were dropped from him, while the main ones remained in force.
Friedrich Paulus
Friedrich Paulus is famous for the "Barbarossa" plan, according to which Germany was to invade the USSR. Combat operations under this plan were conducted by Germany at the very beginning of the Great Patriotic War.
In adulthood, Paulus married the Romanian aristocrat Elena-Constance Rosetti-Solescu, which greatly helped him in moving up the career ladder. After the outbreak of World War II, in 1939, Paulus was appointed chief of staff of the Tenth Army, which was later renumbered as the Sixth. In 1942, he led the operations of the Sixth Army on the Eastern Front and was awarded the Knight's Cross for military services.
However, in September of the same year, German troops failed - the Soviet Union won the battle at Stalingrad. Paulus wanted to leave the besieged city and repeatedly wrote about this personally to Hitler, but the Fuhrer forbade him to surrender and promised that in the near future the Sixth Army would receive help - ammunition and food would be delivered to the German troops locked in the city by air. Paulus did not wait for help - all attempts to support the army failed, and after a while Hitler abandoned his intention to recapture the city.
Paulus received a letter from his Fuehrer, which said that no German officer had the right to be captured - in other words, Hitler actually offered Paulus to commit suicide. He did not want to die, and on January 31, 1943, he turned to the Soviet military leaders with a request for surrender. On the same day he was taken to Colonel General K. K. Rokossovsky, he was interrogated, and two days later the last resistance in Stalingrad was broken.
Until 1944, Paulus was faithful to his political views and flatly refused to do what they wanted him to do, namely, to tell everything he knew about Germany's future plans.
However, the events that happened in 1944 finally broke him: Germany was defeated on several fronts, Hitler was attacked by his own officers and, in addition, Paulus's son died. And the military leader surrendered: he laid out everything he knew, and also wrote a letter to the German officers, in which he spoke about the need to eliminate Hitler, and later actively opposed Nazism. From that day on, he began to defend the ideals of socialism.
This affected the members of his family: they were taken into custody, and Paulus never saw his wife again. After the victory of the Soviet Union in the war, already in 1951, Paulus fell seriously ill, suffered from depression, but until the end of his life he remained faithful to his new ideals. It is not known for sure whether he blamed himself for "renouncing" his former beliefs, but in Soviet history he appears not as a cruel Nazi or a traitor, but as a person who admitted his mistakes.