Politics of Benin century until the colonial period, the Kingdom of Dahomey (whose borders encompassed more than present day Benin) was ruled by an "Oba". The French were the colonial power from 1892 to 1960, when independence was finally achieved. Between 1960 and 1972, a series of military coups in Benin (known until 1975 as the Republic of Dahomey) brought about many changes of government. The last of these brought Major Mathieu Kérékou to power as the head of a regime professing strict Marxist-Leninist principles. The Revolutionary Party of the People of Benin (PRPB) remained in complete power until the beginning of the
Republic Day In 1990, Slovenia was the first federal republic to cease observing the holiday. Other seceded republics followed suit as Yugoslavia dissolved. The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia kept the holiday until 2002. The date "29.XI.1943" figured prominently on the Yugoslav coat of arms. On 1 December 1958, Ubangi-Shari became an autonomous territory within the French Community as the Central African Republic. On 11 December 1958, Upper Volta became an autonomous republic in the French Community. This is commemorated in Burkina Faso as the Proclamation of the Republic. Kenya gained independence from the United Kingdom on 12 December 1963. For one year,