Dark age

Description:

Dark Age recounts the turbulent political career of the late Jean-Bedel Bokassa, flamboyant president-for-life and later emperor of the Central African Republic/Empire. Brian Titley examines the myths and legends surrounding the man, probes their origins and veracity, and attempts to provide a more balanced perspective on this controversial and misunderstood figure. Following a lengthy career in the French army, Bokassa seized power in the Central African Republic in 1966. His excesses soon became legendary: he was accused of cannibalism, feeding enemies to lions and crocodiles, and beating schoolchildren to death. Bokassa's tendency for self-aggrandizement culminated in 1977 when he named himself emperor and orchestrated a coronation based on Napoleon's. He was overthrown by French paratroopers in 1979 and went into exile, but returned to his homeland in 1985 to face a sensational trial. Titley interprets Bokassa's authoritarian and self-aggrandizing style as an attempt to legitimize his regime in a context devoid of indigenous political structures and explores the troubled relations between France and its former colonies. Combining techniques of historical inquiry and investigative journalism, he has produced a fascinating account of a pivotal chapter in contemporary African history.

subjects: Politics and government,  Dictators,  History,  Heads of state,  Biography,  Biography: general,  Revolutions & coups,  Emperor of the Central African Empire,,  Bokassa,  Central Africa - History,  Historical - General,  Biography & Autobiography,  Biography / Autobiography,  Emperor of the Central African,  Biography/Autobiography,  Central Africa,  I,,  Political,  1921-1996,  Central African Republic,  Politique et gouvernement,  Dictateurs,  Biographies

People: Bokassa I Emperor of the Central African Empire (1921-1996),  Bokassa I Emperor of the Central African Empire (1921-)

Places: Central African Republic

Times: 1966-1979