She Wasn’t Crazy—She Was Colonized | The Story of Queen Ranavalona

Was Queen Ranavalona I really the “Mad Queen of Madagascar”… or just a brilliant ruler smeared by colonial propaganda? In this episode of For the Love of History, we dive headfirst into one of the most misunderstood figures in African history—and it gets spicy. Queen Ranavalona has long been labeled a tyrant, a murderer, even a monster. But when you follow the paper trail (and by paper, we mean wildly biased missionary records), it becomes clear that the real madness was colonialism. You’ll hear about: The actual history behind her so-called reign of terror How Eurocentric historians rewrote her legacy with a misogynist, colonialist pen Her fight to protect Malagasy sovereignty during the height of European imperialism And why context is everything when judging historical figures (especially women) So grab a bevvy, hop in the time machine, and prepare to rethink everything you thought you knew about Queen Ranavalona I. 👑 Was she ruthless? Sure. But was she wrong? That’s up for you to decide. Patreon⁠ ⁠Instagram⁠ ⁠Website⁠ ⁠TikTok⁠ ⁠Merch Store⁠ ⁠YouTube⁠ Key Moments 00:00 – Intro: Rewriting the Story of Queen Ranavalona I 03:30 – Colonial Myths vs. Historical Truth 10:00 – How Ranavalona Took Power (and Why It Matters) 16:00 – Her Own Words: The Queen’s Letter to Europe 22:00 – The Fight for Sovereignty and Cultural Survival 29:00 – What Happened After She Died 33:00 – Final Thoughts: She Wasn’t Mad—She Was Misrepresented 📚 Find Resources Here 📚 www.fortheloveofhistorypod.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices