Description: This dataset identifies all military and non-military coup attempts in the world since 1946 through a comprehensive review of related prior datasets, historical documents and secondary literature. It also provides data on the identity of coup leaders and codes whether the coup leaders sought or achieved “regime change” (coups de regime) or “leader reshuffling” (coups de chef).
Colpus 1.1 Dataset [1946-2022, includes micro-states]
Master coup list, 1946-2022 (Excel, Stata)
If using the Colpus 1.1 data, please cite the ISQ 2021 article below as well as the following article:
John J. Chin and Jessica Kirkpatrick. "African Coups D'etat in the Covid-19 Era: A Current History." Frontiers in Political Science 5 (2023): 1-20.
Colpus 1.0 Dataset [1946-2019, excludes micro-states]
Master coup list, 1946-2019 (Excel, Stata)
Candidate dataset, 1946-2019 (Excel, Stata)
If you use the Colpus dataset in your research, please cite the following article:
John J. Chin, David B. Carter, and Joseph G. Wright. “The Varieties of Coups D'etat: Introducing the Colpus Dataset.” International Studies Quarterly 65, no. 4 (2021): 1040-1051. (Replication data, Table1.do, Appendix.do, Figure8.R)
Codebook: This document (1) outlines our definition of coup d'état events and (2) details our coding rules for distinguishing between coup and non-coup events and between different types of coups.
Colpus Regime Data: This document summarizes the updated regime data for 1946-2019 underlying the Colpus dataset. The dataset is compatible with the autocratic regimes data of Geddes, Wright, & Frantz.
Colpus Regime Leader Data: This document summarizes the updated regime leader data for 1946-2019 underlying the Colpus dataset.
Summary Tables: This document includes a series of summary tables, including a comparison of Colpus data with candidate datasets and our main coup lists.
Summary Figures: This document includes a series of summary figures that describe trends in the data at different levels of analysis: temporal, geographic, etc.
Coup Event Narratives: Historical case summaries and coding justifications for 1,172 candidate coup events are documented in a series five documents of over 1,900 pages, including over 5,800 citations. The documents are organized by "home region", as defined by the Correlates of War (COW) project.
Americas (529 pages)
Europe (146 pages)
Sub-Saharan Africa (538 pages)
Middle East and North Africa (331 pages)
Asia (379 pages)
Related Publications:
John J. Chin, Joseph G. Wright, and David B. Carter. Historical Dictionary of Modern Coups D'état. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield (2022). Now available at the publisher or Amazon.
John J. Chin, Mirren Hibbert, and Staten Rector. “Restoring Democracy: Lessons from Bolivia since the 2019 Coupvolution.” The SAIS Review of International Affairs, December 18, 2024.
John J. Chin and Joseph Wright. “What is a self-coup? South Korea president's attempt ended in failure – a notable exception in a growing global trend.” The Conversation, December 5, 2024.
John J. Chin and Joseph Wright. “Can Bolivia Ever Escape the Coup Trap?” Journal of Democracy. June 28, 2024.
John J. Chin. “Coup Politics in the COVID-19 Era.” The Brown Journal of World Affairs 28, 2 (2022): 161-174.
John J. Chin. "A ‘good coup’ in Africa? Mali’s Latest Military Coup in Perspective." CIRP Journal (online). October 5, 2020.
See the accompanying appendix of historical narratives of Colpus coup events in Mali here.
John J. Chin. "When are coups fake news?" Political Violence at a Glance. June 16, 2020.
John J. Chin, Joseph G. Wright, and David B. Carter. "Could a Coup D'etat Happen in the United States in 2020?" Political Violence at a Glance. June 2, 2020.
John J. Chin. "Five myths about coups." The Washington Post (Outlook section). May 8, 2020.
John J. Chin, David B. Carter, and Joseph G. Wright. "No, the Trump impeachment inquiry is not a coup." The Washington Post (The Monkey Cage blog) . October 15, 2019.
See the accompanying appendix of historical narratives of Colpus coup events in the United States here.
Related Media Mentions:
Randolph Nagel. "Was the January 6th attack on the US Capitol a one-off or an omen?" ABC News (Australia). January 8, 2022.
Timothy McLaughlin. "The Diplomats without a Country." The Atlantic, August 5, 2021.
David Nakamura. "With brazen assault on election, Trump prompts critics to warn of a coup." Washington Post, January 5, 2021.
Kaity Kline. "Are We Living Through a Coup? Or Something Else?" NPR 1A (National Public Radio). December 9, 2020.
Nicole Narea. "3 scholars say Trump isn't staging a coup-but he still poses a threat to democracy." Vox. November 14, 2020.
Nick Turse. "Tantrum and Theater: Trump's Desperation after Election Loss Isn't Yet a Coup." The Intercept. November 13, 2020.
"Statskupper [Coups]." P3 Dystopia Podcast, Sveriges Radio (Swedish Public Radio), September 30, 2020.
Description: This dataset is an extension of the Colpus dataset. It provides data on:
Self-coup attempts by regime leaders since 1946;
The targets and tactics of self-coup attempts;
Coming Soon.
Description: This dataset is an extension of the Colpus dataset. It provides data on:
The ethnic identity and military rank of all coup leaders since 1946;
The presence or absence of ethnic grievance for all coup attempts;
Whether or not the coup attempt led to a change in ethnic power relations.
Coming Soon.
Description: This dataset is an extension of the Colpus dataset. It provides data on:
Whether or not coup attempts since 1946 involved (1) the threat of force, (2) troop movements, and/or (3) the use of force (e.g. shots fired).
Estimate of fatalities and civil war violence for all coup attempts.
The location (capital city; outside capital city; both) of all coup attempts
Coming Soon.
Description: This dataset is an extension of the Colpus dataset. It provides data on:
Pro-coup and anti-coup mass mobilization during all coup attempts since 1946
Characteristics (e.g. scale, tactics) of anti-coup mass mobilization within seven days of the onset or success of coups.
Coming Soon.