Coups in Europe (1945-Present)
Since the end of World War Two, Europe has enjoyed relatively stable politics (compared to Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa) despite the Cold War and the subsequent fall of Communism in the 1990s. By stable, we refer to the relatively small number of coups, coup attempts, or other forms of military takeovers in Europe since 1945.
Of those coups that have occurred, two were related to the Soviet Union’s establishment of the Iron Curtain right after World War Two (Romania 1946 and Czechoslovakia 1948), one was an assertion of Communist power against pro-democracy agitators (Poland 1980), two were an attempted assertion of one Communist faction against a rival Communist faction (Bulgaria 1965 and Soviet Union 1991), and two were related to an ongoing colonial war (France in 1958 and 1961).
Several of the coups and coup attempts were in NATO member countries: France 1958 and 1961; Greece 1967, 1973 and 1975; and Turkey in 1960, 1971, 1980, 1997, and 2016.
Two attempted coups in Russia also occured, one with hard-line Communists attempting to overthrow the Gorbachev government and return to a more Marxist rule, and the other, in 2023, came during the height of the Ukraine War, when the Wagner mercenary army began a march on Moscow.
*NOTE: The Soviet Union and Turkey are unique in that they are both nations that are partially in Europe and partially in Asia. For the purposes of this listing, they are considered European nations.
Here is a list of coups, attempted coups, and military takeovers in Europe since the end of World War Two:
1946-Communist coup in Romania: Soviet-inspired coup overthrows the the Romanian monarchy of King Michael. Romania suffers under Communist rule until the 1989 revolution.
1948-Communist coup in Czechoslovakia: Soviet-inspired coup overthrows the democratic government. Czechoslovakia remains a Soviet satellite until the end of the Cold War.
1958-French Army in Algiers Putsch: Algeria was a French Colony at this time, and pro-coloinial forces seized power in Algiers and threatened to attack Paris if the weak government of the Fourth Republic did not step down in favor of Charles de Gaulle. The government did resign and de Gaulle became president of France.
1960- Military coup in Turkey:
1961-Attempted military coup in French-ruled Algeria: The plan called for rebel troops to seize control of the cities in Algeria, while paratroopers seized stragic airfields in France itself. This was designed to thwart Charles de Gaulle’s negotiations to end the Algerian War and end French rule in Algeria. Also known as the Algiers Putsch.
1965-Planned/Failed Coup in Bulgaria: Planned coup against the Communist government of Bulgaria by other Communist elements in Bulgaria is uncovered before the coup could be launched.
1967-Military coup in Greece: Military coup overthows the government of Greece. This begins the rule of a junta of Greek Colonels. The military ruled Greece until 1974.
1971- Coup in Turkey:
1973-Military coup in Greece: One faction of the Greek military overthrows the ruling military faction.
1974- Military coup in Cyprus: Sponsored by the Greek military junta, this coup caused Turkey to invade Cyprus and set up a Turkish ethnic government in the northern part of Cyprus. This nearly caused a war between Greece and Turkey. To this day, Cyprus remains divided.
1975-Failed military coup in Greece:
1980- Military coup in Turkey:
1981-Failed military coup in Spain: This right-wing coup failed in large part because King Juan Carlos went on Spanish television to oppose the coup. The rebels sought to reinstall a Franco-like fascist regime in Spain.
1981- Military rule in Poland: General of the Army Wojciech Jaruzelski declared martial law in order to suppress the Solidarit labor movement.
1991-Failed coup in the Soviet Union against the government of Mikhail Gorbachev: This led to the swift dissolution of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold War.
2016-Failed coup in Turkey: A bloody attempt by the military to overthrow President Erdogan. The president was then able to solidify his hold on power, and thousands of military personnel were jailed.
2023: The Wagner Uprising in Russia: After months of tension between the Wagner mercenary army of Yevgeny Prigozhin, an uprising began in June, 2023 that saw the Wagner mercenaries sieze the cities of Rostov-on-Don, and Voronezh, as they marched, almost unopposed, towards Moscow. The cassus belli according to Prigozhin, was the incompetence of Russia’s military leadership in the Ukraine War. The Wagner forces halted short of Moscow after a deal was negotiated.
In August, 2023, Prigozhin was killed in a “mysterious” plane crash. It is generally assumed that Putin arranged for the assassination of a rival following this failed rebellion. The Wagner Group continues as an arm of the Russian government.
