political upheaval
Government violently overturned
Political upheaval is a sudden, dramatic change in a government or political system—a revolution, coup, or mass movement that disrupts the existing order.
The phrase emphasizes instability and turmoil rather than smooth transition: The country experienced political upheaval after the disputed election.
It often implies violence or the threat of it.
- civil warDomestic armed conflict
- dissidentsPolitical objectors
- revolutionViolent governmental overthrow
- revolutionary fervorPassionate drive for upheaval
- popular uprisingCollective revolt against authority
insurgency · rebellion · economic inequality · overthrow · power vacuum · authoritarianism · failed state · activists · coup d'état · corruption · policy reform · human rights violations · opposition parties · protests · economic downturn · regime change · Arab Spring · social unrest
- power shiftsregime change, coup d'etat, overthrow, abdication, inauguration
- Latin AmericaArgentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Cuba
- Revolutionrevolt, uprising, insurrection, overthrow, revolutionaries
- 1800sVictorian era, Napoleon, Gilded Age, Queen Victoria, Industrial Revolution
- uprisingsuprising, revolt, rebellion, insurrection, mutiny
- 1848 RevolutionsHungarian Revolution, February Revolution, Roman Republic, Marx, Karl Marx
political upheavalpolitical stability
Enduring, predictable state authority
stability · status quo · political order · continuity · established order
political upheavalevolutionary change
Inherited trait shifts over generations
reform · gradualism · progressive reform · incrementalism · democratic transition
political upheavalpeace
Freedom from disturbance
tranquility · normalcy · calm · social harmony · civil order