Republic of Upper Volta Republic of Upper Volta The Republic of Upper Volta (), now Burkina Faso, was a landlocked West African country established on December 11, 1958, as a self-governing colony within the French Community. Before attaining autonomy it had been French Upper Volta and part of the French Union. On August 5, 1960, it attained full independence from France. Thomas Sankara came to power through a military coup d'état on August 4, 1983. 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 August 4,
1948 Upper Voltan Territorial Assembly election 1948 Upper Voltan Territorial Assembly election Territorial Assembly elections were held in French Upper Volta on 30 May 1948, with a second round on 20 June. They were the first elections to the new Territorial Assembly, which had been created following the separation of Upper Volta from Ivory Coast the previous year. The Territorial Assembly had 50 seats, with 10 elected by the First College (French citizens) and 40 by the Second College (non-French citizens). The 1948 elections elected an additional 24 seats; six to the first college and 16 to the second. Governor Albert Mouragues was accused of favouring