Rebellion, Reform, Coup or Revolution?

Labels for political upheaval are not neutral; they carry judgments about legitimacy. British officials in 1775 called the fighting in Massachusetts a rebellion, while colonists called it a defense of their rights, and only later did 'Revolution' become the standard American term. A rebellion challenges rulers but may aim only to correct grievances; a reform changes institutions through legal channels; a coup is a seizure of power by a small group, often military; a revolution transforms the regime itself. Real events blur these categories.

Napoleon's seizure of power in 1799 was a coup that consolidated revolutionary changes, and historians still debate whether the Bolsheviks' takeover in October 1917 was a popular revolution or a party coup. Asking who chose a label, and when, is a key sourcing skill, because victors usually name the events they won.