Cavalry in the streets of Paris, after President Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte seized dictatorial power in the 1851 French coup d'état

A self-coup, also called an autocoup (from Spanish autogolpe) or coup from the top, is a form of coup d'état in which a political leader, having come to power through legal means, stays in office or vastly increases their power illegally through the actions of themselves or their supporters, thus performing a coup on one's own government. The leader may dissolve or render powerless the national legislature and unlawfully assume extraordinary powers. Other measures may include annulling the constitution, suspending civil courts, and having the head of government assume dictatorial powers.

From 1946 to the beginning of 2021, an estimated 148 self-coup attempts took place, 110 in autocracies and 38 in democracies.

List of self-coups

Notable events described as attempted self-coups

See also

Notes

Further reading

  • Arthur A Goldsmith. 2024. "Power Grabs from the Top: A Database of Self-Coups." International Studies Quarterly, Volume 68, Issue 4
  • F. E. Guerra-Pujol. 2024. "." Southwestern Journal of International Law, Volume 30, Issue 2

External links

  • The dictionary definition of self-coup at Wiktionary