page_title: Rainilaiarivony
section_title: Deposition and exile
hierarchical_section_title: Rainilaiarivony / Deposition and exile
caption_attribution_description: English: Cover of L'Illustration magazine showing Prime Minister Rainilaiarivony of Madagascar en route to his exile in Algeria. Français&#160;: La couverture de la magazine L'Illustration montrant le depart de l'ex-Premier Ministre de Madagascar, Rainilaiarivony, vers l'Algerie, lieu de son exil.
context_page_description: Rainilaiarivony was a Malagasy politician who served as the Prime Minister of Madagascar from 1864 to 1895, succeeding his older brother Rainivoninahitriniony, who had held the post for thirteen years. His career mirrored that of his father Rainiharo, a renowned military man who became Prime Minister during the reign of Queen Ranavalona I.
  Despite a childhood marked by ostracism from his family, as a young man Rainilaiarivony was elevated to a position of high authority and confidence in the royal court, serving alongside his father and brother. He co-led a critical military expedition with Rainivoninahitriniony at the age of 24 and was promoted to Commander-in-Chief of the army following the death of the queen in 1861. In that position he oversaw continuing efforts to maintain royal authority in the outlying regions of Madagascar and acted as adviser to his brother, who had been promoted to Prime Minister in 1852. He also influenced the transformation of the kingdom's government from an absolute monarchy to a constitutional one, in which power was shared between the sovereign and the Prime Minister.
context_section_description: The cessation of diplomatic relations between France and Madagascar prompted immediate French military action in a campaign that became known as the Second Franco-Hova War. The expedition ended eleven months later in September 1895 when a French military column reached Antananarivo and bombarded the royal palace with heavy artillery, blasting a hole through the roof of the queen's quarters and inflicting heavy casualties among the numerous courtiers gathered in the palace courtyard. Rainilaiarivony sent an interpreter to carry a white flag to the French commander and entreat his clemency. Forty-five minutes later he was joined by Radilifera, the Prime Minister's son, to request the conditions of surrender; these were immediately accepted. The following day Queen Ranavalona signed a treaty accepting the French protectorate over Madagascar. She and her court were permitted to remain at the palace and administer the country according to French dictates.
  Upon the queen's signing of the treaty, the French government deposed Rainilaiarivony from his position as Prime Minister and Commander-in-Chief. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, an elderly man named Rainitsimbazafy, was jointly selected by the French and Ranavalona as his replacement. The French ordered Rainilaiarivony to be exiled to French Algeria, although he initially remained in Antananarivo for several months after the treaty was signed. On 15 October 1895 the former prime minister was placed under house arrest and put under the guard of Senegalese soldiers at his home in Amboditsiry. On 6 February 1896, at the age of 68, Rainilaiarivony boarded a ship bound for Algiers and left his island for the first time in his life. He was accompanied by his grandson, Ratelifera, as well as an interpreter and four servants. On 17 March 1896 the ship docked at the port of Algiers, where he would live out the few remaining months of his life.
  The French government installed Rainilaiarivony in the Geryville neighborhood of Algiers, one of the derelict parts of town. He was assigned a French attendant and guard named Joseph Vassé, who maintained detailed documentation on the personality and activities of Rainilaiarivony throughout his exile in French Algeria. Vassé described the former prime minister as a man of great spontaneity, sincere friendliness, and openness of heart, but also prone to mood swings, touchiness, and a tendency to be demanding, especially in regard to his particular tastes in clothing. His intelligence, tact and leadership qualities won him the admiration of many who knew him, including Le Myre des Vilers, who referred to him as both an enemy and a friend. Upon learning of Rainilaiarivony's living situation in Algiers, Le Myre de Vilers privately lobbied the French government for better accommodation. Consequently, Vassé found a new home for the former Prime Minister at the elegant estate called Villa des Fleurs ("Villa of the Flowers") in the upscale Mustapha Supérieur neighborhood, neighboring the residence of the exiled former king of Annam.
  The beauty of his Villa des Fleurs home and the warm reception he received in French Algeria pleased Rainilaiarivony and contributed to a positive impression of his new life in Algiers. He quickly developed an excellent reputation among the local high society, who perceived him as a kind, intelligent, generous and charming figure. The Governor-General of French Algeria regularly invited him to diplomatic balls and social events where Rainilaiarivony danced with the enthusiasm and endurance of a much younger man. When not busy with diverse social engagements, Rainilaiarivony avidly read the newspaper and corresponded with contacts in Madagascar. As an insurrection in Madagascar emerged against French rule, the former prime minister wrote a letter published in a Malagasy newspaper on 5 July 1896 that condemned the participants as ungrateful for the benefits that contact with the French would bring to the island. His last outing in Algiers was on 14 July 1896 to watch the Bastille Day fireworks show. As he walked through the 
caption: Cover of L'Illustration magazine depicting Rainilaiarivony arriving at the port of Algiers (1896)
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