In history and political science, to purge is to remove 'undesirable' people from a government, political party, profession, or from community/society as a whole, usually by violent means. In the latter case it is also called political repression. A history resource for kids -Chronology of Events in History, Mythology, and Folklore. ... Niccolò Machiavelli, ca 1500, became the key figure in realistic political theory, crucial to political science Political Science is an academic and research discipline that deals with the theory and practice of politics and the description and analysis of political systems and political behavior. ... A political party is a political organization that subscribes to a certain ideology and seeks to attain political power within a government. ... Political repression means restriction of abilities of certain groups of people to take part in political life of a society or persecution of people for their political adherence. ...

Notable Purges in History

The purge has been a political tool throughout recorded history.

In the era of Republican Rome, Marius proscribed Sullan supporters after he and Cinna ousted Cnaeus Octavius; Sulla followed with even more brutal proscriptions against Marian supporters when he came into the dictatorship. The Second Triumvirate instituted more proscriptions some forty years afterward after taking control of Rome from Caesar's murderers. Gaius Marius Gaius Marius (Latin: C·MARIVS·C·F·C·N)¹ (157 BC - January 13, 86 BC) was a Roman general and politician who was mostly known for his reform of Roman armies. ... This page is about the Roman dictator Sulla, for the Brythonic goddess sometimes called Sulla, see Sul. ... The Second Triumvirate is the name historians give to the official political alliance of Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus (Octavian, later Caesar Augustus), Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, and Mark Antony. ...

The earliest use of the term itself was the English Civil War's Pride's Purge. In 1648, the moderate members of the English Long Parliament were purged by the army. Parliament would suffer subsequent purges under the Commonwealth including the purge of the entire House of Lords. Counter-revolutionaries such as royalists were purged as well as more radical revolutionaries such as the Levellers. After the Restoration, obstinate republicans were purged while some fled to New England. The term English Civil War (or Wars) refers to the series of armed conflicts and political machinations which took place between Parliamentarians and Royalists from 1642 until 1651, specifically to the first (1642–1645) and to second (1648–1649) (civil wars between the supporters of King Charles I and the... Prides Purge was the occasion when troops under the command of Colonel Thomas Pride forcibly removed from the House of Commons all those who were not supporters of Oliver Cromwell. ... The Long Parliament is the name of the English Parliament called by Charles I, in 1640, following the Bishops Wars. ... This article is about the British House of Lords. ... The Levellers were a mid 17th century English political party, who came to prominence during the English Civil Wars. ... Restoration can be one of several things, depending on context: In criminal justice, restoration is another term for restorative justice. ... Modern New England, the six northeastern-most states of the United States, indicated by red The New England region of the United States is located in the northeastern corner of the country. ...

The French Revolution saw revolutionary factions purging each other. The most famous purge was Robespierre's Terror which ended with him being purged as well. After the fall of Napoleon, all those associated with revolutionary activity were purged. The period of the French Revolution is very important in the history of France and the world. ... Maximilien François Marie Isidore de Robespierre, (May 6, 1758–July 28, 1794), known also to his contemporaries as the Incorruptible, is one of the best known of the leaders of the French Revolution. ... The Reign of Terror (June 1793 - July 1794) was a period in the French Revolution characterized by brutal repression. ... For other uses, see Napoleon (disambiguation). ...

Purges are often associated with the Stalinist and Maoist regimes. Those who were purged (among them artists, scientists, teachers, people in the military, but also many long-time communists who dared to disagree with the party leadership) were sent to labor camps or executed. The most notorious purge was the Great Purge initiated by Joseph Stalin during the 1930s. Deng Xiaoping was known for the distinction of returning to power multiple times after surviving multiple purges. Stalinism is a brand of political theory, and the political and economic system implemented by Joseph Stalin in the Soviet Union. ... Maoism or Mao Tse-tung Thought (Chinese: 毛泽东思想, pinyin: Máo Zédōng Sīxiǎng), is a variant of Marxism-Leninism derived from the teachings of Mao Zedong (1893–1976). ... This article is about communism as a form of society built around a gift economy, as an ideology that advocates that form of society, and as a popular movement. ... A labor camp is a simplified detention facility where inmates are engaged in forced labor. ... The Great Purge is the name given to campaigns of repression in the Soviet Union during the late 1930s which included a purge of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union. ... Iosif (usually anglicized as Joseph) Vissarionovich Stalin (Russian: Иосиф Виссарионович Сталин), original name Ioseb Jughashvili (Georgian: იოსებ ჯუღაშვილი; see Other names section) (December 21, 1879[1] – March 5, 1953) was a Bolshevik revolutionary and leader of the Soviet Union. ... 1930 is a common year starting on Wednesday. ... Deng Xiaoping Deng Xiaoping  listen? (Simplified Chinese: 邓小平; Traditional Chinese: 鄧小平; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Teng Hsiao-ping; pronounced Dung Shyao-ping; August 22, 1904—February 19, 1997) was a revolutionary elder in the Communist Party of China (CPC) who served as the de facto ruler of the Peoples...

The Nazis also engaged in purges, most notably in the Night of the Long Knives and the mass reprisals against Adolf Hitler's opponents following the July Plot. The Nazi party used a right-facing swastika as their symbol and the red and black colors were said to represent Blut und Boden (blood and soil). ... The Night of the Long Knives (1934) (German, Nacht der langen Messer), also known as Reichsmordwoche (Imperial Week of Murder) or the Blood Purge, was a mass murder (purge) of potential political rivals in the Sturmabteilung (S.A.) paramilitary wing of the Nazi Party. ... Adolf Hitler (April 20, 1889–April 30, 1945) was the Führer und Reichskanzler (Leader and Imperial chancellor) of Germany from 1933 to his death. ... The July 20 Plot was a failed coup détat which involved an attempt to assassinate Adolf Hitler. ...

See also: CPSU purges Purge, in Communist Party political slang, is an abbreviation of the expression purge of the Party ranks. ...