Everything Everywhere Daily: History, Science, Geography & More - Queen Ranavalona I of Madagascar

Episode Date: October 8, 2026

European powers, missionaries, and foreign merchants seeking influence over her kingdom.  She responded by closing much of her country to outsiders, strengthening royal authority, and using methods that made her one of the most feared and controversial monarchs of her age.  Her reign would later be remembered as both brutal and fiercely independent. Learn more about Queen Ranavalona I, on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily. ⁠Shop the store at ⁠⁠Shop.Everything-Everywhere.com⁠ Sponsors Hexclad Get 10% off your order at hexclad.com/DAILY Mint Mobile Save 50% on Unlimited premium wireless plans starting at $15/month at MintMobile.com/EED Quince Go to quince.com/daily for 365-day returns, plus free shipping on your order! DripDrop Go to dripdrop.com and use promo code EVERYTHING for 20% off your first order! Nobl NOBL gives you real travel peace of mind — security, design, and convenience all in one. Head to NOBLTravel.com for 46% off your entire order! Ramp New customers get $250 off at ramp.com/eed Subscribe to the podcast!  ⁠https://everything-everywhere.com/everything-everywhere-daily-podcast/⁠ -------------------------------- Executive Producer: Charles Daniel Associate Producers: Austin Oetken & Cameron Kieffer   Become a supporter on Patreon: ⁠https://www.patreon.com/everythingeverywhere⁠ Discord Server: ⁠https://discord.gg/Ds7Rx7jvPJ⁠ Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/everythingeverywhere/⁠ Facebook Group: ⁠https://www.facebook.com/groups/everythingeverywheredaily⁠ Twitter: ⁠https://twitter.com/everywheretrip⁠ Website: ⁠https://everything-everywhere.com/⁠  Disce aliquid novi cotidie Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the 19th century, one African ruler faced growing pressure from European powers, missionaries, and foreign merchants seeking influence over her kingdom. She responded by closing much of her country to outsiders, strengthening royal authority, and using methods that made her one of the most feared and controversial monarchs of her age. Her reign would later be remembered for both its brutality and its fierce independence. Learn more about Queen Ranavallona I of Madagascar. on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily.

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You can't get people to understand the humaning that happens in this damn show. Keep doing what you're doing because it's awesome. You might not think it, but you are far more important than you realize. Thank you. At the nexus of all things, there is a diner. Look for Midnight Burger on your favorite podcasting app, or just go to we open at 6.com. The woman who had become known to the world as Queen Ranavelona I was born in 1778 as Rabo donandria Anampoi Mi Marina, but was informally just known as Princess Romavo.

Her father was Prince Andriat Solomon Jaka, and her mother was Princess Raboto Nandre Antopo. She was born at the royal residence of Mbatu Manoina in the Central Highlands of Madagascar. Her family rose to power when she was a young girl, when her father alerted the king at the time, Andrana Anapoi Nimarina, of an assassination plot led by the king's uncle. The Marina Kingdom, located in the central highlands of Madagascar, developed over several centuries and expanded greatly in the late 18th century. The leaders who later ruled all of Madagascar were descendants of the Marina royalty. These strong family ties allowed the king and his son, Prince Radhama, to conquer most of the island and centralized power. In gratitude for her father's

role in saving the king's life, the king arranged for Romavaux to marry his son and heir, Prince Radima. He also declared that any children born to Rodima and Ramavow would take precedence in the royal secession after Rodama. Despite being at an elevated rank compared to the other royal wives, Ramavo was not his favorite wife and nor did she bear any children. Their relationship grew more strained after the king's death and Radima's ascension to the throne. In the course of consolidating his power, Rodima executed potential political opponents, including some of Ramavaux's relatives. Unable to find satisfaction in her marriage, Ramavaux spent most of her time socializing and drinking. Among the Europeans at Radamah's court was a Welsh missionary named

David Griffiths, a member of the London Missionary Society, who became an important figure in the development of Malagasy schools, writing, and Bible translation. He and his wife preached every Sunday and established different schools in the country. He was also well connected to King Rodhamma and worked to create a Roman letter alphabet for the Malagasy language. During this time, Ramavow and Griffiths became good friends, and their relationship lasted for the next three decades. Under King Radhama, Madagascar worked to strengthen its foreign relationships with European powers. They formed a strategic alliance with Great Britain,

which ensured the island's independence in exchange for trade. This alliance also allowed Rodama to block French colonial ambitions from reaching Madagascar, helping eliminate competing claims in the eastern side of the island. Both France and Britain wanted to influence Madagascar. The French held several islands off of Madagascar's coast and wanted to control the main island. Britain regarded Madagascar as strategically important because of its location in the western Indian Ocean and wanted to prevent the island from falling under French influence. Radhama was the first ruler of Madagascar to create significant diplomatic ties with European nations.

He expanded the kingdom's territory and helped modernize the island. His legacy is that he brought Madagascar to the rest of the world and helped develop his nation. Rathema died on July 27, 1828. And according to the rules of succession at the time, the crown should have passed to the eldest son of the deceased king's eldest sister. Rocotobe. Roccoe was considered an intelligent young man and studied at the schools established by the London missionary society on the grounds of the royal palace. However, when Rodima passed, he was with two of his trusted courtiers.

Although they favored Rocotoba as the next king, they failed to report the king's death for several days fearing a backlash. They were scared because declaring their support for Roccobe as king would directly involve them in denouncing one of the king's rivals, leaving them vulnerable to some future political intrigue. This move proved disastrous, as another courtier heard of the king's passing and collaborated with other powerful officers in Madagascar to support Romavo's claim to the throne. As part of their support, the officers hid Romovo and one of her friends in a safe location. After doing so, these officers then went out and secured the support of several other power brokers in the kingdom.

This included judges and holders of royal idols, which were important spiritual leaders in Madagascar. After securing the support of leading officials and other influential figures in the kingdom, Ramavovo publicly proclaimed herself Radima's successor on July 11, 1828. As she took her place on the throne, she officially adopted the royal name, Rana Valona. After capturing the crown, she followed in the footsteps of previous royalty by capturing and killing her political rivals. And this included Rocotobe and the king's family, much as the previous king had done to her own family. Rana Valona's coronation ceremony took place on March 12, 1829,

making her the first female sovereign in the kingdom of Madagascar since it was founded in the 16th century. Her rise to power may have been due to Madagascar's traditional culture. At the time, it was believed that rulers had special abilities to innovate and circumvent establish customs and norms. Interestingly, female rulers were common among the first inhabitants of Madagascar, according to oral history. But this tradition appears to have ended by the 16th century.

Radovalona was queen for 33 years. Much of her reign was focused on strengthening Madagascar's domestic authority against colonization. Ravenelona saw European influence growing over her kingdom and noticed competing European bids to dominate the island. She also witnessed neighboring African and Asian nations becoming colonized and felt the colonial powers would use their customs to undermine traditional Malagasy values. Rana Valona did not take kindly to this and began taking steps to distance Madagascar from European powers and purge foreign influence from the island. These fears were not unfounded,

as the French repeatedly attempted to land on the island and launch attacks. Additionally, both France and Britain attempted to meddle in Malagasy politics. In 1835, Rana Valo Volona restricted European influence and sharply reduced Madagascar's political and commercial ties with Britain. And this included expelling Christian missionaries, banning Christianity, and persecuting converts. Following her ban on Christianity, most Protestant missionaries and many other foreigners left Madagascar within the year. In the eyes of European powers, her strict isolationist policy made her a cause for concern. They painted her as being barbaric, and violent while ignoring all of their own actions. After greatly reducing foreign trade

relationships, Queen Rana Valona governed the state on a policy of intense self-reliance. This decision was justified based on the long-standing Madagascar tradition known as Fanu Poena. Fanu Poena was a practice of unpaid forced labor that served as a form of tax payment. The practice helped Rana Volona pursue greater economic self-sufficiency by mobilizing domestic labor instead of relying as heavily on foreign capital, goods, and expertise. Commoners who were subject to Fanumpona could be compelled to perform arduous unpaid labor for the state, often under extremely harsh conditions. As part of their role, the impoverished Malagasy were forced to build houses, serve as soldiers,

carry nobles, and perform other tasks. After completing their work, impoverished people were often sent back to their home villages. Their homes were often long distances away, which meant that they had to walk on foot, with no money, and without food, which resulted in many of them dying of hunger on the journey home. Additionally, she worked to consolidate power back into the hands of nobles and shamans. All previous liberal reforms made by the two prior kings were quickly rolled back. However, like her predecessor and husband, Radima and Radima's father, Rana Valona continued to expand her kingdom,

waging aggressive wars to conquer the entire island. To do this, she raised an army of 20 to 30,000 soldiers. These troops were deployed to extend her rule, suppress resistance, collect tribute, and maintain control over the conquered regions. To quell the population, mass executions were carried out to force submission. Those who were not murdered were enslaved, with all their valuables seized for the crown.

Historian Gwyn Campbell has estimated that roughly 60,000, non-marina people died violently in the campaigns conducted by Radima and Ronandova between the years 1816 and 1853. The soldiers carrying out the campaign also had very high mortality rates. Many died outside of the battlefield suffering from famine that they caused through partaking in scorched earth tactics or from diseases like malaria. Those perceived as acting against her were severely punished. and this was a large reason for the loss of life under her reign.

This escalated to mass purges, executions, and the creation of an intensive surveillance state. One of the main punishments used during Rana Valona's reign was trial by ordeal. The most famous of these was the Tengenna ordeal. In the Tengenna ordeal, the accused swallowed poison from the Tengenna nut along with pieces of chicken skin. Survival and the successful regurgitation of the prescribed pieces, could be interpreted as proof of innocence. Some historical demographic reconstructions estimate that Madagascar's population fell for roughly $5 million to $2.5 million during part of Rana Novova's reign, although population

estimates for early 19th century Madagascar are necessarily uncertain. As this continued, foreign powers still tried to gain influence over Madagascar. The French, in particular were relentless. One of their main goals was to get Rana Valona's son in power. Ranavalona's son, Rakoto, aka the future Radima II, was officially treated as the son of Radhama I. Even though he was born on September 23, 1829, nearly 14 months after Rodhama's death. The French had a better relationship with Radima II and had already signed an extremely predatory treaty that would come into effect once he took the throne. The treaty was known as the Lambert Charter. Signed in 1855, the agreement gave French businessman Joseph Francois Lambert exclusive rights

to exploit all minerals, forests, and unoccupied territory in Madagascar in exchange for paying a royalty to the monarchy. To speed up the process, Lambert tried to conduct a coup against Ronanilova in 1857. And the plot for failed as the queen was tipped off. Radovalona eventually died in her sleep on August 16, 1861, and she went out with a bang, quite literally. At her funeral, a spark ignited a barrel of gunpowder, resulting in an explosion and fire that killed several bystanders.

Her son did end up succeeding her. Under Rodema II, her efforts to remove European influence were reversed, and religious freedom was restored. European missionaries and other foreign observers produced many of the accounts that shaped Rana Vologna's later reputation, and those sources have to be read with a pinch of salt. European accounts sometimes exaggerated or framed Rana Vola's actions in ways that served missionary and colonial interests, and they were also extremely bitter that they had been expelled from the country. While her actions were undeniably brutal, her basic instinct to protect Madagascar's independence can be understood, especially given how colonization ended up impacting other African countries. Madagascar ultimately became a French colony in 1896, 35 years after Rana

Valona's death, and remained under French rule until independence in 1960. Queen Rana Valona remains one of the most controversial rulers in African history. Her reign was marked by forced labor, persecution, and enormous loss of life. but it was also shaped by a determination to preserve Madagascar's independence in the face of growing European pressure. The executive producer of Everything Everywhere Daily is Charles Daniel. The associate producers are Austin Otkin and Cameron Kiefer. Research and writing for this episode was provided by Olivia Ash.

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