Vladimir Putin went to one of the two best universities in Russia which puts him in the top 0.1 percent as they only accepted the very best that Russia had and still that is the case.
Then he was accepted and recruited into the KGB which only took the very best of the best graduates and they actively sought out the best of the best, you couldn’t just apply to join them, and was considered to be the pinnacle of government service so its a fair bet that he is in the top one percent minimum based on KGB recruitment and career progression in the KGB.
The fact that he has done an incredible job of getting Russia back on its feet after the chaos and mayhem of the post soviet collapse speaks volumes.
He will certainly go down in history as one of the greatest Russian rulers ever so that should put him in the top one percent based on what he has achieved. Having watched him talk in numerous media interviews over the years confirms his status.
Stalin in his life was definitely a genius. In his personal library there were more than 5000 books with his own pen marks. Also his idea of rest was to read textbooks for colleges.
To come from a poor, non-Russian-speaking, non-Slavic background in a corner of the Russian Empire and to become the head of the largest country in the world and the leader of a global movement.
After Lenin’s death, he became unchallenged leader and led the USSR through a rapid process of industrialisation, turning it from an underdeveloped agrarian country to the leader of the space race. He then lead the country in a war against Hitler. At Stalingrad, he handed Hitler the worst defeat in world history.
Back to Putin, he is certainly very smart. He survived many political revolutions and turns-around where other political persona disappeared. He could be compared to the French politician Talleyrand (1754–1838) who kept power in the most turbulent times of French politics. Putin’s IQ is a state secret, but it will be a very high number.
His political decision-making shows the full toolbox of any advanced spy and secret police organization. It’s an obsession with secrecy, careful preparation, deep layering, multi-option planning, highly sophisticated tactical thinking. How much of this comes from himself, and how much from his aides and government organization, is unknown.
Regardless of their IQ’s, I think you can look at the accomplishments of a Putin, Stalin, or Peter the Great and say that they are undoubtedly geniuses. One simply cannot amass the sort of power any of these men amassed by the means that each of them amassed it, without having a deep understanding of human nature.
It is only normal to conclude that each of them had and IQ that was well above average, but it wouldn’t be shocking to find out that their IQ measured in the 80th to 90th percentile range.
