| Monarchy of Madagascar | |
|---|---|
 Coat of Arms (1896–97) | |
 | |
| Details | |
| First monarch | Radama I |
| Last monarch | Ranavalona III |
| Formation | 6 July 1810 |
| Abolition | 28 February 1897 |
| Residence | Ambohimanga (spiritual) Rova of Antananarivo (political) |
This article lists the Imerina monarchs, from the earliest origins of the Merina monarchy until the French conquest of the Merina Kingdom during the Second Madagascar expedition.
Below is a list of the line of Merina monarchs that ruled in the Central Highlands of Madagascar and from whom were issued the first true monarchs of a united Madagascar in the 19th century. Before the uniting of Madagascar, succession was based on the current monarch's designation of an heir, typically from among his or her own children. As such, the list below represents a direct genealogical line from the last 19th-century queen of Madagascar to some of the earliest known rulers identified in the 15th century or before. Prior to the 16th century, detailed information about the names and dates of Merina rulers becomes less consistent. Genealogy in this early period are derived primarily from oral history, while later names and dates are verifiable from primary sources. These combined sources provide the following list of Merina rulers preceding Andrianampoinimerina's unification of Imerina in the Central Highlands and his son Radama I's successful conquest of the majority of Madagascar, bringing the island under his rule.
Asterisks denote names drawn from oral history without substantive evidence to verify the ruler's life or reign, viz., legendary or semi-legendary monarchs.
| Name | Lifespan | Reign start | Reign end | Notes | Family | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Radama I
| 1793 – 27 July 1828 (aged 35) | 6 July 1810 | 27 July 1828 | Son of Andrianampoinimerina | Merina |  |
| Ranavalona I | 1778 – 16 August 1861 (aged 83) | 1 August 1828 | 16 August 1861 | Wife of Radama I | Merina |  |
| Radama II | 23 September 1829 – 12 May 1863 (aged 33) | 16 August 1861 | 12 May 1863 (murdered) | Son of Ranavalona I | Merina |  |
| Rasoherina | 1814 – 1 April 1868 (aged 54) | 12 May 1863 | 1 April 1868 | Wife of Radama II | Merina |  |
| Ranavalona II | 1829 – 13 July 1883 (aged 54) | 1 April 1868 | 13 July 1883 | Wife of Radama II | Merina |  |
| Ranavalona III | 22 November 1861 – 23 May 1917 (aged 55) | 30 July 1883 | 28 February 1897 (deposed) | Niece of Ranavalona II Granddaughter of Radama I | Merina |  |
| Andrianampoinimerina 1745–c. 1787–1810 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Radama I King of Madagascar 1793–1810–1828 | Ranavalona I Queen of Madagascar 1778–1828–1861 | Andriamihaja | Rainiharo d. 1852 | Rainijohary | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Radama II King of Madagascar 1829–1861–1863 | Ranavalona II Queen of Madagascar 1829–1868–1883 | Rainilaiarivony Prime Minister of Madagascar 1828–1864– 1895–1896 | Ranavalona III Queen of Madagascar 1861–1883– 1897–1917 | Raharo Prime Minister of Madagascar 1824–1852– 1865–1868 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rasoherina Queen of Madagascar 1814–1863–1868 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
After the fall of the Royal House, and the death of the last ruling Sovereign, Queen Ranavalona III's heir apparent, Princess Marie-Louise of Madagascar, remained. She died childless in 1948. [2]
Antananarivo, also known by its colonial shorthand form Tana, is the capital and largest city of Madagascar. The administrative area of the city, known as Antananarivo-Renivohitra, is the capital of Analamanga region. The city sits at 1,280 m (4,199 ft) above sea level in the center of the island, the highest national capital by elevation among the island countries. It has been the country's largest population center since at least the 18th century. The presidency, National Assembly, Senate and Supreme Court are located there, as are 21 diplomatic missions and the headquarters of many national and international businesses and NGOs. It has more universities, nightclubs, art venues, and medical services than any city on the island. Several national and local sports teams, including the championship-winning national rugby team, the Makis, are based here.
Ranavalona I was the spouse of Radama I and daughter-in-law of Andrianampoinimerina. In 1828, upon the death of King Radama, Ramavo survived royal court drama and out-maneuvered her rivals, and finally ascended to the throne on August 4, 1829, according to the succession law, and changed her name to Ranavalona. She was sovereign of the Kingdom of Madagascar from 1828 to 1861. After positioning herself as queen following the premature death of her young husband, Radama I, Ranavalona pursued a policy of caution with regards to foreign influence and self-sufficiency, reducing economic and political ties with European powers, repelling a French attack on the coastal town of Foulpointe, and taking vigorous measures to contain the small but growing Malagasy Christian movement initiated under Radama I by members of the London Missionary Society.
Andrianampoinimerina (1745–1810) ruled the Kingdom of Imerina on Madagascar from 1787 until his death. His reign was marked by the reunification of Imerina following 77 years of civil war, and the subsequent expansion of his kingdom into neighboring territories, thereby initiating the unification of Madagascar under Merina rule. Andrianampoinimerina is a cultural hero and holds near mythic status among the Merina people, and is considered one of the greatest military and political leaders in the history of Madagascar.
Ambohimanga is a hill and traditional fortified royal settlement (rova) in Madagascar, located approximately 24 kilometers (15 mi) northeast of the capital city of Antananarivo. It is situated in the commune of Ambohimanga Rova.
Andriambelomasina was a Merina King of Imerina Avaradrano, the northern part of the central highlands of Madagascar. The kingdom's capital was located at Ambohimanga.
The Rova of Antananarivo is a royal palace complex (rova) in Madagascar that served as the home of the sovereigns of the Kingdom of Imerina in the 17th and 18th centuries, as well as of the rulers of the Kingdom of Madagascar in the 19th century. Its counterpart is the nearby fortified village of Ambohimanga, which served as the spiritual seat of the kingdom in contrast to the political significance of the Rova in the capital. Located in the central highland city of Antananarivo, the Rova occupies the highest point on Analamanga, formerly the highest of Antananarivo's many hills. Merina king Andrianjaka, who ruled Imerina from around 1610 until 1630, is believed to have captured Analamanga from a Vazimba king around 1610 or 1625 and erected the site's first fortified royal structure. Successive Merina kings continued to rule from the site until the fall of the monarchy in 1896, frequently restoring, modifying or adding royal structures within the compound to suit their needs.
Andriana was both the noble class and a title of nobility in Madagascar. Historically, many Malagasy ethnic groups lived in highly stratified caste-based social orders in which the andriana were the highest strata. They were above the Hova and Andevo (slaves). The Andriana and the Hova were a part of Fotsy, while the Andevo were Mainty in local terminology.
The Merina Kingdom, or Kingdom of Madagascar, officially the Kingdom of Imerina, was a pre-colonial state off the coast of Southeast Africa that, by the 18th century, dominated most of what is now Madagascar. It spread outward from Imerina, the Central Highlands region primarily inhabited by the Merina ethnic group with a spiritual capital at Ambohimanga and a political capital 24 km (15 mi) west at Antananarivo, currently the seat of government for the modern state of Madagascar. The Merina kings and queens who ruled over greater Madagascar in the 19th century were the descendants of a long line of hereditary Merina royalty originating with Andriamanelo, who is traditionally credited with founding Imerina in 1540.
Field Marshal Rainiharo was from 1833 to 1852 prime minister of the Kingdom of Imerina in the central highlands of Madagascar.
The Vazimba, according to popular belief, were the first inhabitants of Madagascar. While beliefs about the physical appearance of the Vazimba reflect regional variation, they are generally described as smaller in stature than the average person, leading some scientists to speculate that they may have been a pygmy people who migrated from the islands that constitute modern-day Indonesia and settled in Madagascar over the course of the period between 350 BCE–500 CE. Scientific evidence confirms the first arrival and subsequent increase of human settlers on the island during this period, but the pygmy theory has not been proven.
Ralambo was the ruler of the Kingdom of Imerina in the central Highlands region of Madagascar from 1575 to 1612. Ruling from Ambohidrabiby, Ralambo expanded the realm of his father, Andriamanelo, and was the first to assign the name of Imerina to the region. Oral history has preserved numerous legends about this king, including several dramatic military victories, contributing to his heroic and near-mythical status among the kings of ancient Imerina. The circumstances surrounding his birth, which occurred on the highly auspicious date of the first of the year, are said to be supernatural in nature and further add to the mystique of this sovereign.
Andrianjaka reigned over the Kingdom of Imerina in the central highlands region of Madagascar from around 1612 to 1630. Despite being the younger of King Ralambo's two sons, Andrianjaka succeeded to the throne on the basis of his strength of character and skill as a military tactician. The most celebrated accomplishment of his reign was the capture of the hill of Analamanga from a Vazimba king. There he established the fortified compound (rova) that would form the heart of his new capital city of Antananarivo. Upon his orders, the first structures within this fortified compound were constructed: several traditional royal houses were built, and plans for a series of royal tombs were designed. These buildings took on an enduring political and spiritual significance, ensuring their preservation until being destroyed by fire in 1995. Andrianjaka obtained a sizable cache of firearms and gunpowder, materials that helped to establish and preserve his dominance and expand his rule over greater Imerina.
The architecture of Madagascar is unique in Africa, bearing strong resemblance to the construction norms and methods of Southern Borneo from which the earliest inhabitants of Madagascar are believed to have immigrated. Throughout Madagascar, the Kalimantan region of Borneo and Oceania, most traditional houses follow a rectangular rather than round form, and feature a steeply sloped, peaked roof supported by a central pillar.
Queen Rafohy was a Vazimba queen who ruled at Alasora in the central Highlands of Madagascar from 1530 until her death in 1540. Her name means "The Short One." She succeeded upon the death of Vazimba Queen Rangita, who by different accounts was either her mother or her adoptive sister. This confusion in the oral tradition extends to the two women's very identities - according to different accounts, Rafohy may have been the mother of Rangita, and Rangita may have been the mother of the famed king Andriamanelo.
The twelve sacred hills of Imerina are hills of historical significance to the Merina people of Madagascar. Located throughout Imerina, the central area of the highlands of Madagascar, the sites were often ancient capitals, the birthplaces of key public figures, or the tomb sites of esteemed political or spiritual leaders. The first set of sacred sites was designated by early 17th-century king Andrianjaka. The notion was re-sanctified under late 18th-century king Andrianampoinimerina, who replaced several of the earlier sites with new ones. More than 12 sites were thus designated as sacred over time, although the notion of twelve sacred hills was perpetuated because of the significance of the number 12 in Malagasy cosmology. Today, little concrete evidence of the former importance of many of these sites remains, but the significant archeological and cultural heritage of several of the sites has been preserved. The historic significance of the sites is best represented by the Rova of Antananarivo at Analamanga, the ancient fortified city at Alasora, the houses and tombs of the andriana at Antsahadinta and the ancient fortifications and palaces at Ambohimanga, protected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2001.
A rova is a fortified royal complex built in the central highlands of Madagascar by Merina of the Andriana (noble) class. The first rova was established at Alasora by king Andriamanelo around 1540 to protect his residence throughout a war with the neighboring Vazimba. Rovas are organized according to traditional symbolic notions of space and enclose the royal residences, the tomb of the founder, and a town square marked with a stone. They are protected with walls, trenches and stone gateways and are planted with fig trees symbolic of royalty.
Andriamangarira was a king from the Merina Kingdom in Madagascar. He founded the royal city of Antsahadinta in around 1725. He was the grandson of King Andriamasinavalona, son of Rasohanamanjaka of Ambohimahamanina, one of his daughters, with a certain Andriandambozozoro, Lord of Ivatobe avaratra and Malaza in Ambodirano Imerinatsimo. The tomb of Andriamangarira, qualified as a « Pirogue grave », and his « Tranomasina » according to traditions, are still visible in Antsahadinta.
