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Radical politics denotes the intent to transform or replace the principles of a society or political system, often through social change, structural change, revolution or radical reform. (2025). 9780230236257, Palgrave Macmillan UK. ISBN 9780230236257 The process of adopting radical views is termed radicalisation.
The word derives from the Latin ("root") and Late Latin ("of or pertaining to the root, radical"). Historically, political use of the term referred exclusively to a form of progressivism , known as Radicalism, that had developed in Europe during the 18th and 19th centuries. However, the denotation has changed since its 18th century coinage to comprehend the entire political spectrum, though retaining the connotation of "change at the root".
Throughout the 19th century, the concept of radical politics broadened into a variety of political notions and doctrines. Party politics in England began to favour moderate positions, marginalising other movements into more politically aggressive factions. As open advocacy of republicanism was illegal in France following the Napoleonic Wars, Radicals emerged under similar reformist ideals as their British counterparts, though they later branched out to form the Radical-Socialist movement with a focus on proletarian solidarity. With the rise of Marxism, the notion of radical politics shifted away from reformism and became more associated with revolutionary politics. In United States politics, the term is used among conservatism and to denote political extremism, (2025). 9780415205269, Taylor & Francis. ISBN 9780415205269 with the 19th-century Cyclopaedia of Political Science describing it as "characterized less by its principles than by the manner of their application".
During the 20th century, radical politicians took power in many countries across the world. Such radical leaders included Vladimir Lenin and Joseph Stalin in Russia, Mao Zedong in China, Ruhollah Khomeini in Iran, Adolf Hitler in Germany, as well as more mainstream radicals such as Ronald Reagan in the United States and Margaret Thatcher in the United Kingdom.
This view reflects "a consensus among radicals of all stripes on the role of law as a force to safeguard the unjust relations of the status quo." This radical critique of ideology is especially prominent within post-leftism. In addressing specific issues, some radical politics may completely forgo any overarching ideological plan.
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