Sao Tome and Principe (STP)Central Africa, AfricaAugust 15, 1995
Event Summary
On August 15, 1995 a group of young military officers in Sao Tome and Principe briefly seized power from President Miguel Trovoada, detaining him, but under international pressure they handed power back within a week. The tiny island democracy had held its first free elections in 1991, and the soldiers acted out of grievances over roughly six months of unpaid salaries and poor conditions. Led by Lieutenant Manuel Quintas de Almeida, the officers detained President Trovoada and announced a takeover.
The coup drew swift regional and international condemnation, and after negotiations, including guarantees, the military returned power to Trovoada on August 22, 1995, one week after the takeover. Trovoada was released unharmed and resumed the presidency. The dataset dates this August 15, 1995 and codes his fate as arrested or jailed.
Researched Details
Researched
Independent research, added record by record. Hover any label for what it means.
Target identified in Coup Atlas research: President Miguel Trovoada, detained in the August 15, 1995 coup and restored a week later; the dataset codes his fate as arrested or jailed, reflecting his brief detention, after which he was released unharmed.
RESEARCHED NAME
Key figures
Miguel Trovoada (president briefly detained)
Manuel Quintas de Almeida (lieutenant who led the coup)
Sources
The 1995 Sao Tome and Principe coup was an attempted military coup on August 15, 1995 launched against the government of President Miguel Trovoada and led by Lieutenant Manuel Quintas de Almeida, the immediate cause being a long six-month delay in the soldiers' salary and poor supply and living conditions.
SOURCE REVIEWEDMilitary Wiki, 1995 Sao Tome and Principe coup d'etatopen source ↗
Under pressure from the international community, the military returned power to Trovoada on August 22, one week after the takeover.
SOURCE REVIEWEDMilitary Wiki, 1995 Sao Tome and Principe coup d'etatopen source ↗
Sao Tome and Principe held its first free elections in 1991, but frequent internal wrangling between political parties precipitated repeated changes in leadership and a series of non-violent coup attempts beginning in 1995, in a young democracy with a history of internal power struggles.
SOURCE REVIEWEDParley Policy Initiative, Examining the Sao Tome and Principe Coup attemptopen source ↗
Miguel Trovoada served as president from 1991 to 2001, and his son Patrice Trovoada later served as prime minister across several terms, reflecting a dynastic thread in Santomean politics.
SOURCE REVIEWEDParley Policy Initiative, Examining the Sao Tome and Principe Coup attemptopen source ↗
Editorial Note
Coding note and dataset examination: the dataset labels this a military coup with an arrested-or-jailed fate, dated August 15, 1995. The coded fate reflects that President Miguel Trovoada was detained by the coup-makers during the takeover; he was held rather than exiled or harmed. Important nuance flagged: the coup was short-lived and reversed. Under international pressure the officers returned power to Trovoada on August 22, 1995, one week later, and he was released unharmed and resumed the presidency, so while the dataset codes the seizure as successful, its practical effect lasted only a week. Who is coded deposed: President Miguel Trovoada. Context recorded and handled neutrally: the trigger was about six months of unpaid military salaries and poor conditions, a recurring grievance in the small island state; this was the first in a series of mostly non-violent Santomean coup attempts (1995, 1998, 2003, 2009, 2022). Neutrality maintained on a contested subject.
Cross-Reference
Datasets agree. At least two of the three reference datasets we check against carry this event, and none of them disagrees about its date or its result.
Identifiers for finding this same event in the other datasets:
Coup Atlas research identifies the target as: President Miguel Trovoada, detained in the August 15, 1995 coup and restored a week later; the dataset codes his fate as arrested or jailed, reflecting his brief detention, after which he was released unharmed..
Baseline coding: Incumbent executive removed from power. Recorded leader fate: deposed; arrested or jailed. The baseline file does not name individual targets; researched names are kept in a separate layer.
Baseline Dataset Citation
Cline Center Coup d’État Project Dataset, v2.2.2
Peyton, Buddy, Joseph Bajjalieh, Michael Martin, and Andrea Gerald. 2026. Cline Center Coup d’État Project Dataset. Cline Center for Advanced Social Research. V.2.2.2. February 17. University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. doi: 10.13012/B2IDB-9651987_V10
⚑ This citation establishes the coded baseline record; use the claim-level sources above for the researched narrative.
Baseline Source-Document Entries
Powell and Thyne
Named in the baseline source document; no article citation was recorded.
Washington Post
“Rebel Officers Seize Power in Sao Tome, Arrest President,” August 16, 1995
Irish Times
“W African island president arrested in coup: SAO TOME AND PRINCIPE,” August 16, 1995
Jerusalem Post
“Sao Tome coup collapses,” August 23, 1995
This is the citation trail carried by the baseline dataset, grouped by outlet and rejoined from the line-wrapped original. Coup Atlas has not independently re-checked every document; read the original before citing a specific claim. URLs the import damaged beyond safe repair are shown as plain text and listed in citations-report.md. How this list is built →