His purges killed many people

One of the interesting facts about Joseph Stalin is that his purges killed many people. The Communist Parties fought for control after Lenin's passing. Stalin and two Russian MPs fought it out as the primary contenders. Stalin maintained his position of dominance during a brief power struggle, and he exiled his rivals for a protracted period. Stalin started the Great Purge, which eliminated politicians, generals, and even members of his army, to eliminate any residual threats. A bizarre fact about Joseph Stalin is that some historians estimate the number of deaths to be closer to a million, whilst others claim that the number is much higher.

Overall, according to some historians, Stalin was personally to blame for around 10 million fatalities, not counting those brought on by World War II, the several famines he started, as well as the Great Purge of 1930. For example, some historians believe that Stalin's Great Purge and subsequent starvation killed some 20 million people, and an even higher estimate places the death toll at 30 million! Given that the Soviets destroyed the majority of the documents about Stalin's purges and genocides, we will likely never know the exact scope of his atrocities, let alone the lowest estimate.