Stone Forest In Madagascar, Manambulu - Bemaraha

Under colonial rule, plantations were established for the production of a variety of export crops. Wide paved boulevards and gathering spaces were constructed in the capital city of Antananarivo and the Rova palace compound was turned into a museum. Schools were built, particularly in rural and coastal areas where the schools of the Merina had not reached; education became mandatory between the ages of 6 to 13 and focused primarily on French language and practical skills. The Merina royal tradition of corvee—taxes paid in the form of labor—was continued under the French and used to construct a railway and roads linking the coastal cities to Antananarivo. During World War I, 46,000 Malagasy troops fought in France, Morocco, and Syria. Some leaders in Nazi Germany proposed deporting all of Europe's Jews to Madagascar (the Madagascar Plan), but nothing came of this. After France fell to Germany, the Vichy government administered Madagascar. During the Battle of Madagascar, British troops occupied the island in 1942 to preclude its seizure by the Japanese, after which the Free French took over. With French prestige at low ebb after the end of World War II, the Malagasy Uprising of 1947 broke out. It was suppressed after over a year of bitter fighting, with death toll estimates ranging from 10,000 to over 80,000. The French later established reformed institutions in 1956 under the Loi Cadre (Overseas Reform Act), and Madagascar moved peacefully towards independence. The Malagasy Republic was proclaimed on October 14, 1958, as an autonomous state within the French Community. A period of provisional government ended with the adoption of a constitution in 1959 and full independence on June 26, 1960.
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