An usurper is an illegitimate or controversial claimant to power, often but not always in a monarchy. In other words, a person who takes the power of a country, city, or established region for themselves, without any formal or legal right to claim it as their own. ^[1] Usurpers can rise to power in a region by often unexpected physical force, as well as through political influence and deceit. One tactic to deter or defeat usurpation is civilian-based defense.

Etymology

The word originally came from the Latin word usurpare ("to seize" or "to use").^[2]

Politics

The Greeks had their own conception of what a usurper was, calling them tyrants.^[3] In the ancient Greek usage, a tyrant (tyrannos in Greek) was an individual who rose to power via unconstitutional or illegitimate means, usually not being an heir to an existing throne.^[4] Such individuals were perceived negatively by political philosophers such as Socrates, Plato and Aristotle.^[5][6]

Usurpers often try to legitimize their position by claiming to be a descendant of a ruler that they may or may not be related to.

References

Further reading

• Key, T. Hewitt (1855). "On the Derivation and Meaning of the Latin Verb usurpare". Transactions of the Philological Society (8).

See also

• Roman usurper
• List of usurpers
• Coup d'etat
• civilian-based defense

This government-related article is a stub. You can help popflock.com resource by expanding it. v t e