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,
Teresa Cristina of the Two Sicilies other reasons (as stated in his own words) and to pay a visit to Leopoldina's four small boys, who had lived in Coburg with their parents since the late 1860s. The Imperial couple would travel abroad again during 1876 and 1887. Teresa Cristina preferred her ordinary life in Brazil, "dedicating herself to her family, religious devotions, and charitable works." In fact, visiting her native land only served to resurrect painful memories. Her family had been dethroned in 1861 and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies had been annexed to what would later become the unified Kingdom of Italy. Everyone she