Coup d'État: A Practical Handbook, Revised Edition

by Edward N. Luttwak

Book Overview

Coup d' tat astonished readers when it first appeared in 1968 because it showed, step by step, how governments could be overthrown. Translated into sixteen languages, it has inspired anti-coup precautions by regimes around the world. In addition to these detailed instructions, Edward Luttwak's revised handbook offers an altogether new way of looking at political power--one that considers, for example, the vulnerability to coups of even the...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0674737261
• ISBN13: 9780674737266
• Release Date: April 2016
• Publisher: Harvard University Press
• Length: 304 Pages
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.5" x 8.2"

Customer Reviews

A Machivellian guide to taking over control of the state

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.

Valuable political technology

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.

Only comprehensive book on such an important topic

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.

A must for any political observer

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.

The True Cookbook

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.