Early History

Madagascar was uninhabited until the 1st century CE. Sailors from Indonesia were first to arrive to the Island. Migrates from other Pacific lands, Africa, and tribal groups started to develop Madagascar. The Malagasy are the largest group. There is no written history before the 7th century CE. Around this time Arabs set up trading posts on the island’s northern coast. Madagascar had no contact with Europeans until the 1500s. Portuguese captain Diego Dias was the first to discover the island. He discovered it while traveling to India. The French then created settlements on the east coast in the 17th century. 

Start of Colonization

The United Kingdom was an old alley of Madagascar. The United Kingdom had advised Madagascar to stay away from foreign powers, but by 1883 the French had started to occupy many of the northern and westerns territories of Madagascar. In 1883 the French-Hova Wars began and ended with Queen Ranavalona III signing a treaty which made Madagascar a French protectorate on December 17, 1885. Although Queen Ranavalona thought the treaty was supoosed keep her in power of Madagascar she was removed from power and exiled 2 years later and Madagascar became an official French colony. 

Colonization

Madagascar became an official colony on August 6, 1896. After taking control the French abolished slavery, which freed over 500,000 slaves, although many stayed with their former owners working as servents. The Malagasy fought with the French in World War I. Following this many of the veterans joined a national movement against the French asking for labor reform and equal civil and political status for the Malagasy with the French. In the 1930s the anti-colony movement first started to gain some traction. The Malagasy formed the Malagasy trade unionism underground and the Communist Party of the Region of Madagascar. But, the French administration shut both down by 1939. Following World War II the French accepted a form of self-rule for the Malagasy. Seperate French and Malagasy electoral colleges voted to elect two delegates from Madagascar to the Constituent Assembly of the Forth Republic in Paris. The constitution of the Forth French Republic granted full French citizenship to all Malagasy. The two Madagascar delegates, Joseph Raseta and Joseph Ravoahangy voted against this because their goal was full independence. On March 27, 1947 the Malagasy revolted against the French. The French stopped this revolt and about 90,000 Malagasy died in this uprising. In 1956 the French National Assembly voted to allow Madagascar citizens the right to vote and build their own government. On October 14, 1958, Madagascar was declared an autonomous state inside the French Community and the first constitution of Madagascar was passed in 1959. On June 26, 1960 Madagascar became fully independent from France. 

Independence

Philibert Tsiranana was elected the first president, but other French settlers still held positions of power. In 1975 Lieutenant-Commander Didier Ratsiraka came to power in a coup and cut all ties with France. This resulted in an even faster economic decline. Ratsiraka implemented economic reforms which moved away from socialism. The economic challenges stayed and in 1992 Madagascar shifted to a multi-party democratic system. Madagascar still continues to face poverty and political instability issues to this day.