The House of Bokassa claims to be an African Noble and Imperial House. Its founder ruled as Emperor over the territories of the Central African Empire

Central African Empire

The Central African Empire was a short-lived, self-declared autocratic monarchy that replaced the Central African Republic and was, in turn, replaced by the restoration of the republic. The empire was formed when Jean-Bédel Bokassa, President of the republic, declared himself Emperor Bokassa I on...

 from 4 December 1976, until he was overthrown on 21 September 1979.

Establishment and ruling history

The short-lived "dynasty" was created in 1976, when Jean-Bédel Bokassa

Jean-Bédel Bokassa

Jean-Bédel Bokassa , a military officer, was the head of state of the Central African Republic and its successor state, the Central African Empire, from his coup d'état on 1 January 1966 until 20 September 1979...

, formerly authoritarian President

President

A president is a leader of an organization, company, trade union, university, or country.Etymologically, a president is one who presides, who sits in leadership...

 of the Central African Republic

Central African Republic

The Central African Republic , is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It borders Chad in the north, Sudan in the north east, South Sudan in the east, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Republic of the Congo in the south, and Cameroon in the west. The CAR covers a land area of about ,...

, changed the name of the state and transformed it into a monarchy. Jean-Bédel Bokassa II

Jean-Bedel Bokassa II

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 was declared Crown Prince

Crown Prince

A crown prince or crown princess is the heir or heiress apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The wife of a crown prince is also titled crown princess....

 and heir to the imperial throne. Pope Paul VI

Pope Paul VI

Paul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church from 21 June 1963 until his death on 6 August 1978. Succeeding Pope John XXIII, who had convened the Second Vatican Council, he decided to continue it...

 refused to take part in the coronation

Coronation

A coronation is a ceremony marking the formal investiture of a monarch and/or their consort with regal power, usually involving the placement of a crown upon their head and the presentation of other items of regalia...

 ceremony. (In spite of that, Bokassa held the baseless claim that Paul VI had appointed him "the 13th apostle of Christ"; around the same time, he officially declared himself "Grand Master of the International Brotherhood of Knights Collectors of Postage Stamps".) Neither the US nor any European country acknowledged or supported the newly founded monarchy, with the exception of France whose President Valéry Giscard d'Estaing

Valéry Giscard d'Estaing

Valéry Marie René Georges Giscard d'Estaing is a French centre-right politician who was President of the French Republic from 1974 until 1981...

 held close ties to Bokassa. By 1979, France had withdrawn its support as well.

The Emperor's sixth wife (he had a total harem

Harem

Harem refers to the sphere of women in what is usually a polygynous household and their enclosed quarters which are forbidden to men...

 of nineteen even after converting to Roman Catholicism), Catherine Denguiadé became Her Imperial Majesty The Empress of Central Africa.

The ruling house was deposed along with Emperor Bokassa I when he was succeeded by David Dacko

David Dacko

David Dacko was the first President of the Central African Republic , from August 14, 1960 to January 1, 1966, and the third president of the CAR from September 21, 1979 to September 1, 1981...

 in 1976. Bokassa continued to consider himself the head of the ruling house in exile, even after being sentenced to death for murder in absentia. He later served a jail sentence in his home country, was pardoned and died of natural causes in 1996. Jean-Bédel Bokassa II

Jean-Bedel Bokassa II

-External links:* *...

 claims to be the current head of the Imperial Family and Pretender to the Imperial Throne. He and most of Bokassa's other descendants deny the countless atrocities and human rights violations perpetrated by the self-styled Emperor.

Ancestry

.

Descent

Bokassa I. had 40 children by his 19 wives.

Among these are:

• Georges Bokassa, 24 December 1949. Among others, he is the father of Romuald Bokassa and Estelle-Marguerite Bokassa.
• Martine Bokassa, born 2 February 1953. She herself is the mother of six children, amongst which are Jean-Barthélémy Dédéavode-Bokassa and Marie Catherine Yokowo Dédéavode-Bokassa
• Jean Charles Bokassa
• Saint Cyr Bokassa
• Saint Sylvestre Bokassa
• Jean Le Grand Bokassa
• Charlemagne Bokassa
• Jean-Serge Bokassa
  Jean-Serge Bokassa
  -References:...
  
  
• Jean-Bédel Bokassa II, the Heir Apparent
• Jean Bédel Bokassa Jr., born 1985, last recorded child of Emperor Bokassa

Adopted children

Bokassa also adopted several children, three of which were Africans. One of these, however, was born in Vietnam as Martine Nguyễn Thị Bái and became Martine Bokassa upon her adoption.

Other relatives bearing imperial titles

• Catherine Bagalama, sister of Bokassa I
• Constantin Mbalanga, cousin of Bokassa I
• Elisabeth Kpomanzia, aunt of Bokassa I

Sources

• Jean-Bedel Bokassa Genealogy