Coup d ' état A coup d ' état ( ; plural : coups d ' état ) , also known as a coup , a putsch , or an overthrow , is the sudden deposition of a government , usually by a small group of the existing state establishment — typically the military — to depose the extant government and replace it with another body , civil or military . A coup d ' état is considered successful when the usurper s establish their dominance . When the coup neither fails completely nor succeeds , a civil war is a likely consequence . A coup d ' état typically uses the extant government ' s power to assume political control of the country . In " " , military historian Edward Luttwak states that " [ a ] coup consists of the infiltration of a small , but critical , segment of the state apparatus , which is then used to displace the government from its control of the remainder . " The armed forces , whether military or paramilitary , are not a defining factor of a coup d ' état . Lately a view that all coups are a danger to democracy and stability has been challenged by the notion of a " democratic coup d ' état " , which " respond to a popular uprising against an authoritarian or totalitarian regime and topple that regime for the limited purpose of holding the free and fair elections of civilian leaders . " Etymology . The phrase " coup d ' État " ( ) is French , literally meaning a " stroke of state " or in practice a " blow against the state " . In French the word " État " , denoting a sovereign political entity , is capitalized . Although the coup d ' état has featured in politics since antiquity , the phrase is of relatively recent coinage ; the Oxford Dictionary identifies it as a French expression meaning a " stroke of State " . Since the unsuccessful coups d ' état of Wolfgang Kapp in 1920 ( the Kapp Putsch ) , the Swiss German word " Putsch " ( pronounced ; coined for the Züriputsch of 1839 ) also denotes the same politico - military actions : in Metropolitan France , " putsch " denoted the 1942 and 1961 anti - government attacks in Algiers , and the 1991 August Putsch in the USSR ; the German equivalent is " Staatsstreich " ( the German literal translation of " coup d ' état " ) , yet a " putsch " is not always a " coup d ' état " , for example , the Beer Hall Putsch was by politicians without military support . Usage of the phrase . Politically , a coup d ' état is a usually violent political engineering , which affects who rules in the government , without radical changes in the form of the government , the political system . Tactically , a coup d ' état involves control , by an active minority of usurpers , who block the remaining ( non - participant ) defenders of the state ' s possible defence of the attacked government , by either capturing or expelling the politico - military leaders , and seizing physical control of the country ' s key government offices , communications media , and infrastructure . It is to be noted that in the latest years there has been a broad use of the phrase in mass media , which may contradict the legal definition of " coup d ' état " . In looser usage ( as in intelligence coup , boardroom coup ) the term simply refers to gaining a sudden advantage on a rival . " Pronunciamiento " . " Pronunciamiento " ( pronouncement ) is a Spanish and Latin American type of coup d ' état . The coup d ' état ( called " golpe de Estado " in Spanish ) was more common in Spain and South America , while the pronunciamiento was more common in Central America . The " pronunciamiento " is the formal explanation for deposing the regnant government , justifying the installation of the new government that was effected with the " golpe de Estado " . The difference between a coup and a pronunciamento is that in the former , a military , paramilitary and / or opposing political faction deposes the current civilian government and assumes power , in the latter , the military depose the civil government and install another civil government . History . Historically speaking , variations of coup d ' état have been amongst the most common forms of governmental transition in human societies . In the modern day , coups d ' état are common in Africa ; between 1952 and 2000 , thirty - three countries experienced 85 such depositions . Western Africa had most of them , 42 ; most were against civil regimes ; 27 were against military regimes ; and only in five were the deposed incumbents killed . Moreover , as a change - of - government method , the incidence of the coup d ' état has declined worldwide . Types . The political scientist Samuel P . Huntington identifies three classes of coup d ' état : A coup d ' état is typed according to the military rank of the lead usurper . The self - coup denotes an incumbent government – aided and abetted by the military – assuming extra - constitutional powers . A historical example is President , then Emperor , Louis Napoléon Bonaparte . Modern examples include Alberto Fujimori , in Peru , who , although elected , temporarily suspended the legislature and the judiciary in 1992 , becoming an authoritarian ruler , and King Gyanendra ' s assumption of " emergency powers " in Nepal . Another form of self - coup is when a government , having been defeated in an election , refuses to step down . Resistance to coups d ' état . Many coups d ' état , even if initially successful in seizing the main centres of state power , are actively opposed by certain segments of society or by the international community . Opposition can take many different forms , including an attempted counter - coup by sections of the armed forces , international isolation of the new regime , and military intervention . Sometimes opposition takes the form of civil resistance , in which the coup is met with mass demonstrations from the population generally , and disobedience among civil servants and members of the armed forces . Cases in which civil resistance played a significant part in defeating armed coups d ' état include : the Kornilov Putsch in Russia in August 1917 ; the Kapp Putsch in Berlin in March 1920 ; and the Generals ' Revolt in Algiers in April 1961 . The coup in the Soviet Union on 19 – 21 August 1991 is another case in which civil resistance was part of an effective opposition to a coup : Boris Yeltsin , President of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic , stood on top of a tank in the centre of Moscow and urged people to refuse co - operation with the coup . Post - military - coup governments . After the coup d ' état , the military faces the matter of what type of government to establish . In Latin America , it was common for the post - coup government to be led by a junta , a committee of the chiefs of staff of the armed forces . A common form of African post - coup government is the revolutionary assembly , a quasi - legislative body elected by the army . In Pakistan , the military leader typically assumes the title of chief martial law administrator . According to Huntington , most leaders of a coup d ' état act under the concept of " right orders " : they believe that the best resolution of the country ' s problems is merely " to issue correct orders " . This view of government underestimates the difficulty of implementing government policy , and the degree of political resistance to certain correct orders . It presupposes that everyone who matters in the country shares a single , common interest , and that the only question is " how " to pursue that single , common interest . Current leaders who assumed power via coups d ' état . < nowiki > * < / nowiki > Monarch who overthrew his father in a bloodless palace coup . < nowiki > * * < / nowiki > Subsequently confirmed in office by an apparently free and fair election . < nowiki > * * * < / nowiki > Subsequently confirmed by a narrow margin in the Mauritanian presidential election , 2009 , which was regarded as " satisfactory " by international observers . < nowiki > * * * * < / nowiki > Placed in office as part of transitional agreement following the 2012 Guinea - Bissau coup d ' état . < nowiki > * * * * * < / nowiki > Placed in office on an interim basis following the 2013 Egyptian coup d ' état . Other uses of the term . The term has also been used in a corporate context more specifically as " boardroom coup " . CEOs that have been sacked by behind - the - scenes maneuvering include Robert Stempel of General Motors and John Akers of IBM , in 1992 and 1993 , respectively . Steve Jobs attempted management coups twice at Apple Inc . ; first in 1985 when he unsuccessfully tried to oust John Sculley and then again in 1997 which successfully forced Gil Amelio to resign .