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Republic of Upper Volta

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Template:Expand French

The Republic of Upper Volta (Template:Langx) was a landlocked West African country established on 11 December 1958 as a self-governing state within the French Community.[1][2] Before becoming autonomous, it had been part of the French Union as the French Upper Volta. On 5 August 1960, it gained full independence from France.[3] On 4 August 1984, it changed its name to Burkina Faso.

Etymology

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Map showing the Volta River in Upper Volta

The name Upper Volta indicated that the country contains the upper part of the Volta River.

History

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Upper Volta obtained independence on 5 August 1960, with Maurice Yaméogo of the Voltaic Democratic Union-African Democratic Rally (UDV-RDA) becoming the country's first president. A constitution was ratified the same year, establishing presidential elections by direct universal suffrage and a National Assembly, both with five-year terms. Shortly after coming to power, Yaméogo banned all political parties other than the UDV-RDA, as a result of a deep authoritarian streak that began prior to his presidency. Between the time he became prime minister of Upper Volta, while it was still a French colony, and independence two years later, his government subjected opposition parties to increased harassment.

On 3 January 1966, Yaméogo was overthrown in a coup d'état led by army chief Sangoulé Lamizana. Although multiparty democracy was nominally restored four years later, Lamizana dominated the country's politics until he was himself overthrown in 1980.

After a series of short-term presidencies, Thomas Sankara came to power through yet another military coup d'état on 4 August 1983.[4] After the coup, he formed the National Council for the Revolution (CNR), with himself as president. Under the direction of Sankara, the country changed its name on 4 August 1984, from Upper Volta to Burkina Faso, which means "Land of Incorruptible People".[5]

Politics

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From 1958 to 1960, the Republic of Upper Volta was led by a high commissioner:

From 1971 to 1987, the Republic of Upper Volta was led by a prime minister:

Cultural references

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During the 1960s, the Soviet Union was sometimes derisively referred to as "Upper Volta with rockets",[6] coined by a journalist Xan Smiley,[7] referencing USSR's disproportion of defence sector over relatively undeveloped civilian economy.[8]

See also

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References

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  1. ↑ "Burkina Faso". Afripedia. Africa.com. Archived from the original on 11 February 2017. Retrieved 9 February 2017.CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  2. ↑ "Field Listing: National Holiday". The World Factbook. CIA. Archived from the original on 22 September 2020. Retrieved 30 November 2020.
  3. ↑ Meredith, Martin (2013). The State of Africa. Simon & Schuster. p. 69. ISBN 9780857203885.
  4. ↑ "Thomas Sankara". Encyclopedia Britannica. Archived from the original on 10 October 2016. Retrieved 9 February 2017.
  5. ↑ "More (Language of the Mossi Tribe) Phrase Book". World Digital Library. Archived from the original on 23 November 2018. Retrieved 16 February 2013.
  6. ↑ Crashaw, Steve (15 November 1998). "Televison [sic]: From Burkina Faso with rockets to Upper Volta without". The Independent. London. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
  7. ↑ "Research Topics". www.russialist.org. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
  8. ↑ Harrison, Mark (7 November 2017). "The Soviet economy, 1917-1991: Its life and afterlife". VoxEU.org. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
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Le president Maurice Yamego-a documentary in French about the first President of Upper Volta, Maurice YamégoTemplate:Burkina Faso topics Template:Years in Burkina Faso Template:Former French colonies Coordinates: 12°06′N 1°42′W / 12.1°N 1.7°W / 12.1; -1.7

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