Andriantsitakatrandriana (1613-) was the king of
Imerina
The Merina Kingdom, or Kingdom of Madagascar, officially the Kingdom of Imerina (–1897), was a pre-colonial state off the coast of Southeast Africa that, by the 19th century, dominated most of what is now Madagascar. It spread outward from I ...
from 1630 to 1650, acceding to the throne upon the death of his father,
Andrianjaka
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 char ...
. He took two wives: the first, Ravololontsimitovy, gave birth to his first son and successor
Andriantsimitoviaminandriandehibe
Andriantsimitoviaminandriandehibe ("the noble without equal among great nobles") was the King of Imerina in the central highlands of Madagascar from 1650 to 1670. He acceded to the throne on the death of his father, King Andriantsitakatrandriana. ...
, while his second wife, Rafoloarivo, gave birth to a son named Andriamanjakatokana.
[ During his reign, he chased his second wife and son from his territory, and constructed dikes to transform the Betsimitatatra swamps around ]Antananarivo
Antananarivo ( French: ''Tananarive'', ), 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 ("Antananarivo-Mother Hill" or "An ...
into vast rice paddies to feed the local population.
Reign
The chief accomplishment of Andriantsitakatrandriana's reign was the initial transformation of the vast Betsimitatatra swamps surrounding the hill of Analamanga Analamanga is a region in central Madagascar, containing the capital Antananarivo and its surrounding metropolitan area. The region has an area of , and had a population of 3,618,128 in 2018.
Administrative divisions
Analamanga Region is divided in ...
into fertile rice paddies through the construction of dikes. Until his time, only ''zozoro'' (an indigenous sedge), rushes, and clusters of trees grew in the marshy lands around the capital city of Antananarivo
Antananarivo ( French: ''Tananarive'', ), 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 ("Antananarivo-Mother Hill" or "An ...
, which his father had at last wrested from its Vazimba
The Vazimba (Malagasy ), 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 aver ...
occupants several decades before. After clear-cutting the marshes, Andriantsitakatrandriana ordered the construction of a dike at the southern end of the swamp near Andriantany. The marshes to the west of Antananarivo were the first to be planted as rice paddies. Successive sovereigns would continue this work and progressively transform the entire Betsimitatatra into a continuous patchwork of rice paddies.
Oral history relates that Andriantsitakatrandriana devised a ruse to chase his second wife and her son from his territory, although a justification for this uncharitable act is not explicitly stated. According to legend, Andriantsitakatrandriana made an unusual request of his second wife, Rafoloarivo: he asked her to travel to the village of Ambohitrakely to give '' hasina'' to her son (i.e. engage in actions that were believed to multiply his metaphysical worth)—an act that a woman was viewed as unfit to enact for the benefit of a royal male. The queen expressed reluctance to transgress this taboo, but her husband assured her that her concerns should be mitigated by his magnanimous intent to likewise transmit hasina to his first son. He declared that he would reward the queen for her obedience by changing the name of his newly constructed rice paddies from his own name to that of her son. Rafoloarivo complied and departed for Ambohitrakely where she organized a celebration that attracted all the inhabitants of the village of Mahatsinjo.[Callet (1908), p. 521]
While Mahatsinjo was empty and unguarded, Andriantsitakatrandriana stealthily set fire to the buildings. The distraught populace noticed the blaze and cried out, "Queen, look at this terrible misfortune that has befallen us!" Rafoloarivo and her son escaped the angry crowd and first fled north to Ilafy
Ilafy is a town and commune ( mg, kaominina) in Madagascar. It belongs to the district of Ambatondrazaka, which is a part of Alaotra-Mangoro Region. The population of the commune was estimated to be approximately 13,000 in 2001 commune census.
Pr ...
, then west and south to Mahatsinjo and Ankosy, all without finding a single person willing to open their doors to the pair. Early in the morning they reached Ambohitrinimanjaka where, at last, the people offered them shelter. Her son, sighting a rocky outcropping in the distance that the locals called Anosivato, declared an interest in continuing to the more distant location, but the queen preferred to remain at Amohitrinimanjaka where Andriamanjakatokana is buried. Locals would traditionally visit the tomb to pray to his spirit whenever a heavy fog descended. The tomb of Andriamanjakatokana's son, also named Andriamanjakatokana, can be visited at Anosivato.[Callet (1908), pp. 521–522]
Death
Andriantsitakatrandriana died around 1650 and was buried in the Fitomiandalana tombs at the Rova
Rova may refer to:
* Rova, Domžale, a village in the municipality of Domžale in Slovenia
* Rova (Madagascar), a type of fortified royal complex found throughout the highlands of Madagascar
* Rova of Antananarivo, a royal-palace complex in Antana ...
of Antananarivo
Antananarivo ( French: ''Tananarive'', ), 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 ("Antananarivo-Mother Hill" or "An ...
. He was succeeded by his oldest son, Andriantsimitoviaminandriandehibe
Andriantsimitoviaminandriandehibe ("the noble without equal among great nobles") was the King of Imerina in the central highlands of Madagascar from 1650 to 1670. He acceded to the throne on the death of his father, King Andriantsitakatrandriana. ...
.
References
Bibliography
*
{{Merina monarchy
Malagasy monarchs
17th-century monarchs in Africa