Republic of Upper Volta
Republic of Upper Volta | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1958–1984 | |||||||||
| Motto: "Unité – Travail – Justice" (in French) "Unity – Work – Justice" | |||||||||
| Anthem: Hymne National Voltaïque | |||||||||
 | |||||||||
| Status | Self-governing colony in the French Community (1958-1960) Sovereign state (1960-1984) | ||||||||
| Capital | Ouagadougou | ||||||||
| Common languages |
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| Demonym | Upper Voltan[1] | ||||||||
| Government | Presidential republic (1960–1966) Military dictatorship (1966–1984) | ||||||||
| President | |||||||||
• 1959–1966 | Maurice Yaméogo | ||||||||
• 1966–1980 | Sangoulé Lamizana | ||||||||
• 1980–1982 | Saye Zerbo | ||||||||
• 1982–1983 | Jean-Baptiste Ouédraogo | ||||||||
• 1983–1984 | Thomas Sankara | ||||||||
| High Commissioner | |||||||||
• 1958–1959 | Max Berthet | ||||||||
• 1959–1960 | Paul Masson | ||||||||
| Prime Minister | |||||||||
• 1971–1974 | Gérard Kango Ouédraogo | ||||||||
• 1983 | Thomas Sankara | ||||||||
| Historical era | Cold War | ||||||||
| 11 December 1958 | |||||||||
| 5 August 1960 | |||||||||
| 3 January 1966 | |||||||||
| 25 November 1980 | |||||||||
| 7 November 1982 | |||||||||
| 4 August 1983 | |||||||||
• Renamed | 4 August 1984 | ||||||||
| Area | |||||||||
• Total | 274,200 km2 (105,900 sq mi) | ||||||||
| Population | |||||||||
• 1980[2] estimate | 6,823,000 | ||||||||
| Currency | CFA franc | ||||||||
| ISO 3166 code | HV | ||||||||
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| Today part of | Burkina Faso | ||||||||
| History of Burkina Faso | ||||||||||||||||||
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The Republic of Upper Volta (French: République de Haute-Volta), or simply Upper Volta, was a landlocked West African country established on 11 December 1958 as a self-governing state within the French Community.[3][4] Before becoming autonomous, it was part of the French Union as the French Upper Volta. On 5 August 1960, it gained full independence from France.[5] On 4 August 1984, it changed its name to Burkina Faso.
Etymology
[edit]The name Upper Volta indicated that the country contains the upper part of the Volta River.
History
[edit]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.[6] 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".[7]
Politics
[edit]From 1958 to 1960, the Republic of Upper Volta was led by a high commissioner:
- Max Berthet (11 December 1958 to February 1959)[citation needed]
- Paul Masson (February 1959 to 5 August 1960)[citation needed]
From 1971 to 1987, the Republic of Upper Volta was led by a prime minister:
- Gérard Kango Ouédraogo (13 February 1971 to 8 February 1974)
- Thomas Sankara (4 August 1983 to 14 October 1987)
Symbols
[edit]Flag
[edit]The three colours of the Upper Volta's national flag are based on the three sections of the Volta:[8]
- The Black Volta;
- The White Volta;
- The Red Volta.
Map showing the Volta River in Upper Volta
Cultural references
[edit]The Soviet Union was sometimes derisively referred to as "Upper Volta with rockets",[9] coined by a journalist Xan Smiley,[10] referencing USSR's disproportion of defence sector over relatively undeveloped civilian economy.[11]
The West German chancellor Helmut Schmidt also described the Soviet Union in this matter, according to Perry Anderson who wrote about the popularity of this phrase amongst politicians in the 1970s.[12] Anderson also suggested in 2007 that modern-day Russia could be described as "Saudi Arabia with rockets".
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ↑ National Basic Intelligence Factbook. United States: Central Intelligence Agency, 1980, p. 205
- ↑ "Population Division of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations Secretariat, World Population Prospects: Data Query". esa.un.org. United Nations. Retrieved 4 April 2025.
- ↑ "Burkina Faso". Afripedia. Africa.com. Archived from the original on 11 February 2017. Retrieved 9 February 2017.
- ↑ "Field Listing: National Holiday". The World Factbook. CIA. Archived from the original on 22 September 2020. Retrieved 30 November 2020.
- ↑ Meredith, Martin (2013). The State of Africa. Simon & Schuster. p. 69. ISBN 9780857203885.
- ↑ "Thomas Sankara". Encyclopedia Britannica. Archived from the original on 10 October 2016. Retrieved 9 February 2017.
- ↑ "More (Language of the Mossi Tribe) Phrase Book". World Digital Library. Archived from the original on 23 November 2018. Retrieved 16 February 2013.
- ↑ "Flag of Upper Volta (1960-1984) Symbol". www.symbols.com. Retrieved 22 July 2026.
- ↑ Crashaw, Steve (15 November 1998). "Televison [sic]: From Burkina Faso with rockets to Upper Volta without". The Independent. London. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
- ↑ "Research Topics". www.russialist.org. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
- ↑ Harrison, Mark (7 November 2017). "The Soviet economy, 1917-1991: Its life and afterlife". VoxEU.org. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
- ↑ Anderson, Perry. "2". 25 January 2007. Vol. 29.
{{cite book}}:|journal=ignored (help)
External links
[edit]Le president Maurice Yamego-a documentary in French about the first President of Upper Volta, Maurice Yamégo
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
- French West Africa
- Former colonies in Africa
- Former French colonies
- French colonisation in Africa
- Former republics
- 20th century in Burkina Faso
- States and territories established in 1958
- States and territories disestablished in 1960
- 1958 establishments in French West Africa
- 1958 establishments in the French colonial empire
- 1960 disestablishments in the French colonial empire
- Burkina Faso–France relations
- Military dictatorships
- States and territories disestablished in 1984