Coup d'État: A Practical Handbook [Paperback]

Edward N. Luttwak (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 12, 1979

The coup is the most frequently attempted method of changing government, and the most successful. Coup d’État outlines the mechanism of the coup and analyzes the conditions—political, military, and social, that gives rise to it. In doing so, the book sheds much light on societies where power does indeed grow out of the barrel of a gun and the role of law is a concept little understood.

Editorial Reviews

Review

This short book is…wicked, truthful, and entertaining. The author, after outlining a step-by-step procedure for bringing about a coup, analyzes modern (post–Second World War) coups, and points out why some succeeded and others failed. (New Yorker )

An extraordinarily competent and well-written work, displaying very wide knowledge of the ways in which coups, both successful and unsuccessful, have actually been organized. (Times Literary Supplement )

Coup d'État demonstrates that scholarly analysis can be good social science and at the same time fun to read. It is nontechnical in approach and informal in style… Moreover, Edward Luttwak's familiarity with the basic concepts and problems of political science is evident throughout. He is seldom superficial and never trivial in his treatment of his subject. The result is a book of value to everyone interested in the sudden changes of government that occur so frequently in many parts of the world and also curious as to why they so often seem to result in more of the same… We can all have the satisfaction of understanding the strategies and techniques employed, and we can enjoy learning them from this lucid and witty book. (Virginia Quarterly Review )

About the Author

Edward N. Luttwak is a Senior Associate at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Product Details

• Paperback: 216 pages
• Publisher: Harvard University Press (November 12, 1979)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0674175476
• ISBN-13: 978-0674175471
• Product Dimensions: 5.4 x 0.5 x 8.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #71,909 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Edward N. Luttwak is senior associate (non-resident) at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. He has served as a consultant to numerous government offices including: the Office of the Secretary of Defense, the National Security Council, the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. Army, Navy, and Air Force. He is the author of numerous books and articles including Strategy and Politics, The Endangered American Dream, and Turbo-Capitalism: Winners and Losers in the Global Economy.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 31 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Only comprehensive book on such an important topic February 23, 2003

By Denis Benchimol Minev VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

With Coup d'Etats continuously occurring all over the world, this book is more relevant than ever in dealing with the subject. For example, using the framework developed in this book, it is easy to understand why the many recent coup attempts in Venezuela have failed (both by Chavez and the more recent one against him). Every time there is a coup I find myself referring back to the book in order to determine if there were any telltale signs to predict whether the coup will be successful or not.

His basic framework involves timing, media control and popular support, and government organizational structure. With these factors in mind, the author examines a large number of coups, both successful and failed. The inner stories of many of these coups is fascinating by itself, yet the author does a good job of telling the tale while drawing the main lessons from it.

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Valuable political technology September 15, 2004

By J Michael Waller

Format:Paperback

Edward Luttwak's first and finest work, Coup d'Etat is the product of the close study of how dozens of governments around the world were successfully overthrown.

By examining the successful and failed strategies and tactics of those who staged the coups, Luttwak synthesizes a step-by-step guide to oust a regime and install a replacement. The political technology he develops, like military hardware, is value-neutral - like a firearm, anyone can employ it for ends good or evil.

As long as there are tyrannical regimes, there will always be a need for good people to be able to stage or sponsor successful coups d'etat. This volume is a practical handbook of immense value to the planning, execution, and long-term success of a regime change. Likewise, it provides a real-world aid to devise defensive means of protecting a government against a coup d'etat.

Advances in information technology since the book was written enter new variables into the formula, but Luttwak's basic concept remains fundamentally sound. As long as there will be coups d'etat, there will be a need for students and policymakers to study and master this book.

45 of 50 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The True Cookbook April 10, 2000

By Coleman Fuel

Format:Paperback

WARNING: This book is not in the class of typical, vague strategy compendiums that business gurus and self-help seekers can read in hope of finding some inner meaning to help them find their "way." Coup d'Etat is merely a book on overthrowing government structures with the intention of deterring unpopular regimes from the quest for dominion. Accurate in strategic principles, this book could be very dangerous or totally useless in the wrong hands. If you are one of the rare ones out there who actually reads strategy books with the intention of war, then this work is definitely required reading. Study it as a guidebook, and go overthrow a facist regime in a third world country (for fun and profit), or die a horribly violent death while trying. It's up to you, but my guess is that most people who read this will end up infamous, dead, or writing stupid reviews for it saying how well it can be used as a metaphor for human life.

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A must for any political observer June 12, 2002

By BP

Format:Paperback

Luttwak himself provides the best justification for this book, which is that coups remain the single most common form of power change throughout the world but are rarely studied as a phenomenon.

With remarkable detail and historical examples, Luttwak examines the patterns that exist in all coups, including which ones make a successful or failed takeover, including timing of assault, control of media organs, and the role of the populace.

Coup D'Etat is an older book, but remains as relevant as ever. A great guide when forcasting the results of coups that make headlines to this day.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Machivellian guide to taking over control of the state April 17, 2007

By Shalom Freedman HALL OF FAMETOP 1000 REVIEWER

Format:Paperback

Perhaps my impression is wrong but it seems to me that there have not been as many coup d'etats in the past decade as there were in the fifties and sixties. Nonetheless the subject remains one of perennial interest. Luttwalk here provides a kind of step-by- step guidebook for any would be coup-ist. He teaches that , "the coup d'etat uses precisely those parts of the state apparatus which are the prime target of revolutionary war: the armed forces, the police and the security agencies. The technique of the coup s the technique of judo : the planners of the coup infiltrate and subvert a small critical part of the security apparatus, which they then use with surgical precisionto displace the political leadership from its control of the rest of the state bureaucracy"
Luttwalk in this book describes and details the intelligence techniques required before the coup, the military techniques required during it and the propaganda techniques required to provide it with legitimacy afterwards..
He says it has no ideology behind it.
This is a compact richly informative work which makes use a variety of examples to establish its principal points.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The How-to manual for third world politics February 9, 1999

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

Many countries don't change administrations with elections, though, happily, their numbers are decreasing. How do other countries change rulers? This provocative, slightly dangerous book discusses the question from a practical point of view. As you might expect, it has also had a history of being found in the suites of those who seek power in these countries, so the advice doesn't always work.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Need for a modern version January 20, 2007

By Michael J. Field

Format:Paperback

An excellent, if somewhat dated book. And here in the South Pacific - complete with its coups and mutinies now - Luttwak seems downright wrong in a number of respects. Perhaps our region is different from 60s Africa. Still, an immensely readable and frighteningly enjoyable book