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Finally, the French managed to obtain the island of Sainte Marie in 1750 via Queen Betia (or Betty), one of Ratsimilaho’s
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daughters.
This «happy ending» was not the result of a feat of arms, but moreover the work of a certain Jean Onésime Filet, better known under
the name of Corporal Labigorne, who ended up marrying this famous queen.
After the last disappointment of Maudave (or Modave) in 1768, and in an attempt to resettle in Fort Dauphin, France gave a new
colonization mission to Benyowsky
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who arrived in Maroantsetra on 14 February 1774 and settled at the Saint Louis site also
known as Louisbourg. After many ups and downs and a reversal of fortune, he was killed at the age of 45 by some French who were
sent from Bourbon on 25 May 1786. France deemed that the occasionally annoying and uncontrollable actions of Benyowsky were
detrimental to its interests.
Fearful of losing their dominance in the face of the English, France appealed to various successive agents of authority. The situation
worsened in the 19th century when the recently established Kingdom of Antananarivo, encouraged by the British Governor of
Mauritius, Robert Farquhar, also sought to control the ports. There were numerous conflicts, which required heavy military presence
on both sides. In order to better control trade in its own favour, the Kingdom of Antananarivo built a series of fortifications between
Tamatave and Fénérive-Est. The best-preserved monument bearing witness to this period is the
Manda
of Foulpointe, which was
built in 1822. It is worth a brief description as it denotes the essence of the time. The Fort of Foulpointe, also known as Manda
Mahavelona and still visible today, is one of the buildings constructed during this period of conflict. It is one of a series of the same
type of fortifications built to protect this portion of the coastline. Vohimasina, Mahambo, Mahavelona are other major cities that were
fortified.
The architecture and design of Manda Mahavelona is a symbiosis of technology inspired by two cultures: European and Malagasy.
The general form is a copy of those fortifications that were used by European nations since the 16th century to strengthen their
presence in this part of the Indian Ocean. The construction of the walls is derived from a well-known longstanding practice in
Madagascar, that of strengthening the mortar by adding egg white
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.
These different trading posts were widely preferred to Tamatave, which was still only a small fishing village at that time.
Its growth, to eventually become Madagascar’s main port and the largest city on the east coast, came about from a number of
favourable circumstances.
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Ratsimilaho was the son of a pirate, Tom White. He reigned in the eastern region from 1720 to 1745
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Benyowsky, a native of Central Europe, managed to gain the confidence of sponsors to build a colony in Madagascar
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Over time, the number of eggs was greatly exaggerated to attract more attention.
