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Coordinates: 18°56′S 47°31′E. Part of a series on the. History of Madagascar. Ancient history. c. 500 BCE –700 CE. Exploration era. c. 700–1500. Merina Kingdom. 1540–1897. French protectorate. 1882–1897. French colony. 1897–1958. First Republic. 1958–1975. Second Republic. 1975–1992. Third Republic. 1992–2010. High Transitional Authority. 2009–2014
- Colony of France (1897–1946), Overseas Territory of France (1946–1958)
- Overview
- Land
- Relief
- Drainage
- Soils
Madagascar, island country lying off the southeastern coast of Africa. Madagascar is the fourth largest island in the world, after Greenland, New Guinea, and Borneo.
Although located some 250 miles (400 km) from the African continent, Madagascar’s population is primarily related not to African peoples but rather to those of Indonesia, more than 3,000 miles (4,800 km) to the east. The Malagasy peoples, moreover, do not consider themselves to be Africans, but, because of the continuing bond with France that resulted from former colonial rule, the island developed political, economic, and cultural links with the French-speaking countries of western Africa. The animal life and vegetation of the island are equally anomalous, differing greatly from that of nearby Africa and being in many respects unique. Although the coastlands have been known to Europeans for more than 400 years and to Arabs for much longer, recent historical development has been more intense and concentrated in the central plateau, which contains the capital city of Antananarivo (formerly Tananarive).
Madagascar is located in the southwestern Indian Ocean and is separated from the African coast by the 250-mile- (400-km-) wide Mozambique Channel.
Madagascar consists of three parallel longitudinal zones—the central plateau, the coastal strip in the east, and the zone of low plateaus and plains in the west.
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Situated between 2,500 and 4,500 feet (800 and 1,400 metres) above sea level, the plateau has been uplifted and worn down several times and is tilted to the west. Three massifs are more than 8,500 feet (2,600 metres) high. The Tsaratanana region in the north is separated from the rest of the plateau by the Tsaratanana Massif, whose summit, Maromokotro, reaches 9,436 feet (2,876 metres) and is the highest point on the island. Ankaratra Massif in the centre is an enormous volcanic mass whose summit, Tsiafajavona, is 8,671 feet (2,643 metres) high. Ankaratra is a major watershed divide separating three main river basins. Farther south, Andringitra is a vast granite massif north of Tôlan̈aro (Faradofay); it rises to 8,720 feet (2,658 metres) at Boby Peak.
The plateau slopes with some regularity toward the extreme southern plain, but its boundaries to the east and west are more abrupt. To the east it descends in a sharp fault, by vertical steps of 1,000 to 2,000 feet (300 to 600 metres). This cliff, which is called the Great Cliff or the Cliff of Angavo, is often impassable and is itself bordered by the Betsimisaraka Escarpment, a second and lower cliff to the east, which overhangs the coastal plain. Behind the scarp face are the remains of ancient lakes, including one called Alaotra. To the south the two steep gradients meet and form the Mahafaly and the Androy plateaus, which overhang the sea in precipitous cliffs. Toward the west the descent is made in a series of steps. However, in places the central plateau is bordered by an impassable escarpment, such as the Cliff of Bongolava in the west-central part of the island. To the extreme north the plateau is bordered by the low belt of the Ambohitra Mountains, which include a series of volcanic craters.
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The steep eastern face of the plateau is drained by numerous short, torrential rivers, such as the Mandrare, the Mananara, the Faraony, the Ivondro, and the Maningory, which discharge either into the coastal lagoons or directly into the sea over waterfalls and rapids. The more gently sloping western side of the plateau is crossed by longer and larger rivers, including the Onilahy, the Mangoky, the Tsiribihina, and the Betsiboka, which bring huge deposits of fertile alluvium down into the vast plains and many-channeled estuaries; the river mouths, while not completely blocked by this sediment, are studded with numerous sandbanks.
There are many lakes of volcanic origin on the island, such as Lake Itasy. Alaotra is the last surviving lake of the eastern slope. Lake Tsimanampetsotsa, near the coast south of Toliara (formerly Tuléar), is a large body of saline water that has no outlet.
The central plateau and the eastern coast are mainly composed of gneiss, granite, quartz, and other crystalline rock formations. The gneiss decomposes into red murrum, laterite, and deeper and more fertile red earths, giving Madagascar its colloquial name the Great Red Island. Fertile alluvial soils in the valleys support intensive cultivation. The...
The British and French launched an expedition against Ranavalona but were repulsed at Tamatave in 1845. By the time of her death (1861), Madagascar was isolated from European influence. Madagascar - Colonization, Merina Kingdom, Trade: Archaeological investigations in the 20th century indicated that human settlers reached Madagascar about 700 ce.
The Colony of Madagascar and Dependencies was a French colony off the coast of Southeast Africa between 1897 and 1958 in what is now Madagascar. The colony was formerly a protectorate of France known as Malagasy Protectorate. The protectorate became a colony, following Queen Ranavalona III's exile to Réunion.
In 1890 the British recognized Madagascar as a French protectorate, but Rainilaiarivony refused to submit to French suzerainty. In January 1895, French troops landed at Majunga , and on September 30, 1895, they occupied Antananarivo.
In 1896 the French colonizers of Madagascar adopted the Merina capital as their center of colonial administration. The city remained the capital of Madagascar after regaining independence in 1960. In 2017, the capital's population was estimated at 1,391,433 inhabitants. [157]
Summary. Madagascar’s colonization by France took place in the wake of rising nationalism. If its colonization corresponded with French strategic interests such as the establishment of an area of influence in the southern part of the Indian Ocean, then, except for the small colony of Réunion, France’s purely economic interest in Madagascar ...
