Central African Empire
| Central African Empire | ||||||||||
| Empire centrafricain | ||||||||||
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Motto "Zo À Yeke Zo" (Sango) "A person is also a person" |
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Anthem La Renaissance The Renaissance |
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 Location of the Central African Empire.
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| Capital | Bangui | |||||||||
| Languages |
Sango French |
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| Religion | Protestantism (official) Roman Catholicism (official) Sunni Islam (minority) |
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| Government | Constitutional monarchy (de jure) Absolute monarchy under one-party military dictatorship (de facto) |
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| Emperor | ||||||||||
| • | 1976–1979 | Bokassa I | ||||||||
| Prime Minister | ||||||||||
| • | 1976–1978 | Ange-Félix Patassé | ||||||||
| • | 1978–1979 | Henri Maïdou | ||||||||
| Historical era | Cold War | |||||||||
| • | Established | 4 December 1976 | ||||||||
| • | Disestablished | 21 September 1979 | ||||||||
| Currency | Central African franc | |||||||||
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The Central African Empire (French: Empire centrafricain) was a short-lived, self-declared "constitutional monarchy", but in reality an absolute monarchy under a one-party military dictatorship, that replaced the Central African Republic and was, in turn, replaced by the restoration of the Republic. The empire was formed by and under the command of Marshal Jean-Bédel Bokassa, president for life of the Republic, who declared himself Emperor Bokassa I on 4 December 1976.
Bokassa spent the equivalent of over 20 million United States dollars, a third of the country’s government annual income, on his coronation ceremony. The monarchy was abolished and the name "Central African Republic" was restored on 21 September 1979, when Bokassa was ousted with French support.
In September 1976, Bokassa dissolved the government and replaced it with the Conseil de la Révolution Centrafricaine ("Central African Revolutionary Council"). On 4 December 1976, at the MESAN congress, Bokassa instituted a new constitution, converted back to Roman Catholicism (he had briefly become a Muslim earlier in the year) and declared the republic to be a monarchy: the "Central African Empire". He had himself crowned "S.M.I. Bokassa 1er", with S.M.I. standing for Sa Majesté Impériale: "His Imperial Majesty", on 4 December 1977.
Bokassa’s full title was Empereur de Centrafrique par la volonté du peuple Centrafricain, uni au sein du parti politique national, le MESAN ("Emperor of Central Africa by the Will of the Central African People, United within the National Political Party, the MESAN"). His regalia, lavish coronation ceremony and régime were largely inspired by Napoleon I, who had converted the French First Republic, of which he was First Consul, into the First French Empire. The coronation ceremony was estimated to cost his country roughly $20,000,000—one-third of the country's budget and all of France's aid for that year.
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