Title: [Letters Written by Lieutenant Lucien Simonin Between 1900 – 1903, with map and 10 photographs]
Authors: Simonin, Lucien 1875-1915.
Contents: "[Rare Historically Significant Comprehensive and Very Extensive Archive of Over 100 Letters Written by Lieutenant Lucien Simonin Between 1900 – 1903, Describing Activities during the Pacification of South Madagascar under Colonel Hubert Lyautey, Including Detailed Accounts of Administrative and Military Organization, Personal Critiques of Colonization Efforts, Economic Development (Rice Cultivation, Beef Exports, Building Roads and Railways), Collection of Taxes, Resolving Disputes Between Tribes, Rebellion of Natives, Local Traditions &c; With Descriptions of the Towns of Majunga, Benenitra, Marovitsika, Ihosy, Ambositra, Fianarantsoa, Ranohira and Antananarivo; With: Ten Original Gelatin Silver Snapshot Photos of Madagascar People and Villages, Apparently Taken and Annotated by Simonin].1900-1903.  Mild fold marks and minor tears on some letters and the map, the upper corner of one letter has been torn off with minor loss of text, one letter has been slightly smudged, one photograph is torn, but otherwise an excellent collection of very legible and well-preserved letters.This historically significant and extensive archive contains over one hundred letters written by Lieutenant Lucien Simonin during his service in the Southern region of Madagascar for the pacification of the island under the command of Colonel Hubert Lyautey (1854-1934), between 1900 and 1903. Rich in content and insight, Simonin’s correspondence meticulously (and often critically) documents anecdotes of a colonist’s everyday life, political and administrative structures, local customs, French interventions in economic and social affairs, tensions between local people and French officials, and local landscapes, sometimes illustrated by small sketches and maps. The collection also includes photographs of local people and views, and a map of bovine populations and exports for the entire country, annotated to indicate the different villages where Simonin was placed during his service.Madagascar was annexed by France in 1896, after which General Gallieni (1849-1916) became the civil and military commander of the colony, abolishing the monarchy and exiling Queen Ranavalona III in 1897. From 1900 to 1902, Colonel Lyautey was responsible for the “pacification” of the southern region and worked towards the area’s economic development. It is in this region that lieutenant Simonin, originally from Charleville, was sent after his first few months in Antanarivo, and remained until the pacification was completed. Simonin’s vivid descriptions provide insight into activities that were foundational to Gallieni’s colonial efforts on the island. Writing to his mother who knows little of Madagascar, he explains in great detail the nature of his work and the pacification efforts: “Madagascar is divided into a number of departments. These departments are called provinces if they are managed by a civilian, or else circles or territories if they have military chiefs. As we have conquered and pacified these regions, we have replaced the military officers by civilian administrators.” He adds his perspectives on the effectiveness of the operations. In fact, some of his criticisms are unpopular, evident by the following inscription at the front of one of his letters: “ATTENTION: Some sections are not to be read in public.”“This part of the country will soon transition to civilian administration. However, further south there are some tribes who are holding strong in the countryside, hidden in the forests […]. They are real savages who seem quite rebellious to the beauty of civilization […] when there aren’t any left, we will be secure, or at least more secure, because we already are. In the end all these colonies, they’re a joke. They only serve to work people up. Colonel Lyautey is a perfect stage director […] It’s the indigenous person who usually pays for the destruction, even if he can’t afford to. Everything seems to be simmering in the south.”When Simonin is sent to serve in the southern part of the island, he takes part in a variety of administrative activities that are meant to rally the local population and take control of the region’s administration, without resorting to brute force. These activities include carrying out a population census, recruiting Malagasy people for the army (five years of service are required) and collecting taxes: “The population […] of Ihozy fulfills its responsibilities as good citizens and each day, each village comes to pay their part. […] In exchange for their 5 f., we give them a piece of paper, a kind of voter’s card. Any indigenous person found without this paper will be considered a transgressor.”Being on the front lines of this tribally diverse region, he describes many assignments to help locals resolve disputes between their groups, many of which happen to result from the stealing of cattle, by intervening and facilitating exchanges. He observes the customs of local people in wonder as he assists to welcome ceremonies and meetings between tribes, some of which are illustrated by his photographs of Bara women clapping and men on their way to a kabary in Benenitra, as described below:“A few months ago, some indigenous people from Marovitsika had come to complain that their cattle had been stolen by another […] Bara, accompanied by militiamen. […] So, the captain decided to pursue an investigation to figure out how militiamen, who are in charge of maintaining order, could participate in a robbery. After obtaining permission, I left with 5 workers and a Malagasy interpreter […] to interrogate the villagers. […] As soon as Wahaza was seen from the village, all the women and children, some men, came out of the village to greet him, clapping their hands and singing a song. It was funny and I think you would have laughed to see your servant straight faced on his sedan chair surrounded by fifteen or twenty women singing and jumping.”“After several hours of walking, we arrived at Benenitra. […] the colonel [Lyautey] was there, along with […] his wife, and a colonist from the region […] Charming meal, and then, on to serious affairs! But these serious affairs consisted only of a large Kabary [improvised conference between two groups from different cultures], where nearly nine [hundred] to a thousand Baras from the region had assembled. […] The results weren’t particularly compelling, I think. In this kabary, two chiefs […] sat face to face on the ground, their people behind them, and told each other numerous stories, about women from other places, accusing each other in turn […] But finally, they discovered that they shared the same great grandmother and declared that they were happy to get along. On this note, the colonel invited them all to take an aperitif.”Simonin describes the challenges involved in enforcing order on the population: “The administrators speak only of this word, legality, law. As if, we could apply our regime to these people, who know only one law, fear, and who only obey the strongest person.” He describes the pushback faced by colonists, after one of their buildings is set on fire: “Without a doubt, one of those numerous indigenous people who are hunted, traded by the colonies that we are building in the east, and who have escaped tell themselves, why, we are going to annoy the Vazoha! And they start a fire. For these purposes they use dry cow dung. […] You are likely going to deduce that the French would have done better to stay home. This is certainly true.”Another key aspect of pacification is the economic development of the region, in particular the export of beef and rice. The map included in the collection shows the population count of cattle across Madagascar and the capacity for export of different ports. Simonin describes the process of deforestation for rice cultivation, the construction of roads and railways, and the impact of French intervention on the local economy: “There is a large weekly market on Fridays […] The prices are rising these days, because workers are in short supply. We are building roads, especially the Tomatave road. 23 000 people […] have been requisitioned by force or of their own accord […] We must finish building the road by January 1st, after which they will be released from service. Naturally, these people are not working their usual jobs during this time, hence the rise in prices.”Also included in this collection is a letter from General Gallieni to deputee Charles Bos sent in 1900, announcing that the lieutenant Simonin is placed at Antananarivo “until he can demonstrate that he has the right qualities and aptitudes needed by officers who are put in contact with indigenous people that are still quite unruly.” Overall, an excellent and invaluable archive that tells the story of pacification in the southern part of Madagascar from the perspective of military official who worked closely with other administrators and local people in a region that transitioned from a military to a civil (pacified) zone over the course of three years.Itinerary: Lieutenant Simonin leaves Marseille October 12 1900 on board L'Oscus and reaches Majunga on October 31. He arrives in Tananarive on November 17 and is sent to the southern part of Madagascar in March 1901, staying in Ambositra and Fianarantsoa. On April 6th, he meets Colonel Lyautey, then goes to his post at Ihosy. In early 1902, he is sent to Benenitra (about 100 km from Tuléar). He is moved again in 1902 to Ranohira, where he remains until returning to France in November 1903.Photograph captions: Au loin Poste de Habonaro; Cheval a Moulet de Brossia; Poste de Benenitra; Vue du Poste de Benenitra; Benenitra; Mahavory et Chefs de Village allant a Kabary; Femmes rammassant des sauterelles; Vue du poste de Ranohira; Chefs Baras; Femmes Baras Souhaitant la bienvenue; Baras au bain; Femmes Baras." -- Vendor catalogue