The guilty verdict marks the beginning of the final chapter in the controversial life story of the deposed dictator.
In an ironic twist, the tyrant has been forced to face trial for his crimes in front of the people he once ruled with an iron fist for more than 20 years.
The man who used fear and intimidation to cement his rule has spent the past three years as a prisoner himself, following his capture at the hands of the US Army in December 2003.
From the time he came to power in 1979, Saddam, lived and ruled by oppressing his people, building a reputation as one of the most reviled dictators of modern times, His regime employed a ruthlessness that came with a burgeoning paranoia and an obsessive need for absolute control.
Because of it he became the world's most notorious and recognisable leader, his gun-toting, black-bereted moustachioed image visible everywhere.
Born on April 28, 1937, in the village of Al-Awja, near Tikrit, north of Baghdad, Saddam grew up in a peasant family.
Saddam joined the fledgling Arab Socialist Baath or Renaissance Party in 1957, and a year later he played a part in the attempted assassination of a supporter of Iraqi ruler Abdul-Karim Qassim.
By this time he had become a trusted member of the Baath party, and took his place at the top table when it swept to power in the 1960s.
After achieving power in 1979, he proved himself willing to go to any lengths to retain his position. As president, Saddam spent little time visiting his people, preferring to study reports from his secret police, or meet high officials.
The coalition's war against the dictator dealt a fatal blow, not only to his regime, but also to his fragile vanity and the place in history he so coveted.
