Uganda, 1975 — military coup attempt
Event Summary
The dataset records an attempted military coup in Uganda on 9 September 1975, during the terror ridden rule of Idi Amin, whose army continued to be convulsed by plots, purges, and killings as Amin destroyed real and suspected rivals. By 1975 Amin's regime was internationally notorious for its brutality, and within Uganda the security agencies waged constant bloodletting against officers and civilians alike, while Amin cultivated a grandiose public image, having that year assumed the chairmanship of the Organization of African Unity. This atmosphere of paranoia and violence produced recurrent conspiracies among officers alienated by Amin's rule.
Any coup attempt in September 1975 came within that context and did not unseat Amin, who met every challenge with fresh purges. His regime endured through terror until it was destroyed from outside, when Tanzanian forces and Ugandan exiles overthrew him in the 1979 war, ending one of postcolonial Africa's most murderous dictatorships.
Researched Details
Researched
Independent research, added record by record. Hover any label for what it means.
Sources
Editorial Note
Cross-Reference
Only one dataset carries it. One of the three reference datasets we check against carries this event; the others do not list it. That is not a contradiction — the datasets cover different periods and use different thresholds — but it means the record has had less outside corroboration.
Identifiers for finding this same event in the other datasets:
- Cline Center id
50009091975
How the match is made is described in crossref-report.md.
Outcome and Target
Coup Atlas research identifies the target as: Idi Amin crushed the September 1975 plotting and remained in power through terror until 1979.
Baseline coding: Coup attempt failed to remove the incumbent. Recorded leader fate: remained in office; not physically harmed. The baseline file does not name individual targets; researched names are kept in a separate layer.
Baseline Dataset Citation
Baseline Source-Document Entries
CSP
LA Times
Boston Globe
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 →