1871 Liberian coup d'état
Overthrow and death of President Edward James Roye / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 1871 Liberian coup d'état, also known as the Roye affair, resulted in the overthrow and death of President Edward James Roye of the True Whig Party and his eventual replacement by Joseph Jenkins Roberts of the Republican Party.
1871 Liberian coup d'état | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
True Whig Party | Republican Party | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Edward James Roye † | Joseph Jenkins Roberts |
Roye, a wealthy businessman, had been elected president of Liberia at the 1869 general election as the first True Whig to hold the office. Early in his term a referendum was held to extend the length of the presidential term from two years to four years. Republicans refused to recognise the results as valid and instead organised a presidential election in 1871. Roye and the True Whigs did not recognise the election as invalid and did not participate, with Republicans declaring Roberts to have been elected unopposed.
In October 1871, prompted by a controversial loan agreement signed by Roye's government, riots and street fights broke out between the supporters of Roye and Roberts. The Republicans sent multiple delegations demanding Roye's resignation, but he refused to resign and instead declared a state of emergency. He was ultimately arrested by a Republican mob on 28 October and imprisoned. Roye was initially succeeded by a provisional government and then by his vice-president James Skivring Smith, pending the commencement of Roberts' term in January 1872. Along with six of his supporters, Roye was convicted of treason in February 1872 and sentenced to death. He died in disputed circumstances while attempting to escape from custody a few days later.