Coup D'État, seizure of an existing government by a small group. This overthrow is sometimes accompanied by limited violence, as when the head of state is killed in the coup. A coup d'état involves relatively few members of the population, and these few frequently are military officers. Participants generally control strategic elements of the armed forces and police, and have the cooperation of at least some civilian and political leaders.

For many years the coup d'état has been used to overthrow governments in developing countries. Poverty and illiteracy among the people and a long tradition of military leadership have made many countries especially susceptible to overthrow from within. This pattern now seems to be prevalent in some of the nations of Africa.