General A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

Gilles Andriamahazo (5 May 1919 – 13 September 1989) was a Malagasy

general A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED ...

and

political figure A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

. Originally he was a

Merina The Merina people (also known as the Imerina, Antimerina, or Hova) are the largest ethnic group in Madagascar.Merina ...

and served as the military president of Madagascar (''Chairman of the National Military Leadership Committee'') between 12 February and 15 June 1975.

Early life and military career

Born in Fort Dauphin,

Anosy Anosy is one of the 22 regions of Madagascar. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the eastern side of what was once the Toliara Province. The name ''Anosy'' means "island(s)" in Malagasy language, Malagasy. Due to a strategic sea ...

Region on 13 MayBiography
at s9.com, accessed 10 March 2009. 1919, he followed a military career. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

Andriamahazo served in the

French Army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (french: Armée de Terre, ), is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces. It is responsible to the Government of France, along with the other components of the Armed Force ...

and participated in the French military campaign against

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

n nationalists in the 1950s. He retired as an army officer in 1976.

Government

He was the successor of Richard Ratsimandrava after the latter's assassination. He served as head of state from 12 February to 15 June 1975, when he resigned in favour of

Didier Ratsiraka Didier Ignace Ratsiraka (; 4 November 1936 – 28 March 2021) was a Malagasy politician and naval officer who was President of Madagascar from 1975 to 1993 and from 1997 to 2002. At the time of his death, he was the longest-serving President o ...

. He is widely credited with having prevented an outbreak of civil war during the tension that followed Colonel Ratsimandrava's assassination. He died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which ma ...

at the age of 70, on 14 September 1989.Obituary at New York Times
15 September 1989, retrieved 10 March 2009.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Andriamahazo, Gilles 1919 births 1989 deaths People from Anosy Merina people Presidents of Madagascar Malagasy military personnel