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| 2. Burkina Faso |
| 1960, Aug. 5 |
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| Upper Volta gained independence from France. Maurice Yameogo and his Mouvement Démocratique Voltaique formed the country's first government. | 1 |
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| 1965 |
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| Civil servants and trade unionists staged mass demonstrations to protest government austerity measures. | 2 |
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| 1966, Jan |
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| The military seized power and suspended the constitution, forming a new government under Lt. Col. Sangoule Lamizana. | 3 |
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| 1970, Dec |
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| After countrywide elections, Gerard Ouedraogo became the head of a civilian government. | 4 |
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| 1974 |
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| The military retook power and placed Lamizana at the helm of a new government. A border dispute with Mali led to inconclusive bouts of armed conflict. | 5 |
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| 1977–78 |
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| A new constitution was drafted, and political parties were allowed to operate freely. The Union Démocratique Voltaique won a plurality of seats in the legislative assembly. | 6 |
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| 1980, Nov. 25 |
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| Forces loyal to Col. Saye Zerbo overthrew Lamizana. The new regime dissolved the National Assembly and banned all political parties. | 7 |
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| 1982, Nov. 7 |
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| Following a successful coup, Maj. Jean-Baptiste Ouedraogo was installed as the leader of a new military regime. | 8 |
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| 1983, Jan |
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| Former information minister Thomas Sankara was appointed prime minister. Sankara gained strong support from the military and left-wing activists. He sought to strengthen the role of peasants in the government and the economy. | 9 |
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| 1984 |
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| Upper Volta was renamed Burkina Faso, meaning “the Land of Free Men,” by Sankara. | 10 |
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| 1987, Oct. 15 |
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| Sankara was assassinated in a coup that claimed at least 100 lives. The Burkinabe government fell under the control of the Popular Front. | 11 |
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