Trump says Democrats are plotting a 'coup.' These 8 real-life military takeovers show what coups are really like.

Associated Press/Evan Vucci

• US President Donald Trump tweeted Tuesday that he believed Democrats initiating an impeachment inquiry were staging a "coup." But the impeachment inquiry is a baked-in process of the government — not a tool of hostile takeover. 
• The 20th and 21st centuries have seen a number of military coups all around the world— like in Thailand, where military coups occur an average of every seven years. 
• While military coups are actually quite rare, they do have some things in common, Nathaniel D.F Allen, assistant professor at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, told Insider. "Most military coups occur when things are not going well – during an economic downturn, mass protests over living conditions, and government corruption."
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US President Donald Trump tweeted Tuesday that he suspected Democrats in Congress of staging a coup against him by ordering ain impeachment inquiry regarding a whistleblower report about his dealings with Ukraine. 

While Trump may see the institutional proceedings of the government as a hostile takeover of his power, the process of an impeachment inquiry follows the rules and norms of the government. 

While not always hostile, a coup is a takeover of power outside the norms of political processes. The 20th and 21st centuries have seen a number of coups, and particularly military coups, in many African countries, as well as Turkey, Thailand, Pakistan, and in South America. 

"One of the most important factors is popular unrest," Nathaniel D.F. Allen, assistant professor at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, told Insider via email.

"Most military coups occur when things are not going well – during an economic downturn, mass protests over living conditions, and government corruption."

A military coup is extremely unlikely to occur in the US for a number of reasons, including the high standard of living and balance of power between political and military forces; "Even in cases where it may have the capacity, militaries rarely act to overthrow popular leaders," Allen told Insider. But ensuring broad popular support and committing to good governance is a part of fending off a military overthrow, he said.

Read on to learn about military coups around the world.

Pakistan has experienced several military coups since its founding in 1947.

Most recently, in 1999, Gen. Pervez Musharraf took over the government in a bloodless coup, overthrowing democratically-elected Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif. While the takeover was not violent, Musharraf was later indicted in the murder of his political opponent, and Pakistan's first female prime minister, Benazir Bhutto, which he denied. 

In 1977, Gen. Zia ul-Haq overthrew the government of Prime Minsiter Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the father of Benazir. Again, while the coup wasn't violent, ul-Haq had Bhutto executed on murder charges, then censored the press, imposed martial law, outlawed labor strikes, and did away with political parties, according to the Encyclopedia Brittanica. A 1958 military coup preceded the 1977 coup, resulting in the leadership of Army Gen. Ayub Khan. 

"A past history of military coups or previous military involvement in politics significantly increases the likelihood of additional military coups," Allen told Insider via email. 

"This could be because the military in such countries has more political influence and control over the security sector than in others," which is certainly true in Pakistan, "or it could also be because the knowledge of how to enact a successful coup and desire to do so how to enact is passed down."

Thailand has had a staggering number of military coups over the years.

Military coups are "business as usual" in Thailand, Eugenie Merieu wrote in The Atlantic earlier this year. In fact, since 1932, Thailand has averaged one coup every seven years. 

Although the coup that brought Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha to power in 2014 was without violence, that hasn't been true of previous coups; according to Merieu, past coups, specifically the ones in 2010, 1992, and 1976 resulted in a combined hundreds of protesters being killed by the army for protesting against the government in power.

Turkey has also dealt with several military coups throughout the years.

Although an apparent 2016 military coup failed against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government, Turkey is no stranger to military coups. Coups in 1960 and 1980 resulted in mass arrests and executions; between a coup in 1971 and 1980, instability reigned, inflation skyrocketed, and thousands were assassinated. While the coup of 1980 did bring about some stability, hundreds of thousands were arrested, and many were executed or forcibly disappeared, Al-Jazeera reports.

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