S4E17: The Forges of Amoronkay

 

Malagasy workers running an iron forge.

Following the Merina abolition of the exportation of enslaved workers to European colonies in 1817, Radama had hoped that a stipend obtained from the British Empire would be enough to offset economic losses. On the one hand, this hope made sense. The slave trade between Madagascar and the primary British colony in the region, Mauritius, had been on the decline since the legal abolition of the practice in 1807. While local plantation owners continued smuggling enslaved workers, the colonial government began clamping down harder on the underground trade. Initially, the colonial government instead began importing Chinese indentured servants in the early 1810s, further weakening Mauritian demand for enslaved workers (our latest premium episode focuses on the history of the Chinese diaspora population in Mauritius, so if that sounds cool to you, please support the show and check it out!)

Chinatown, Port Louis Mauritius, ~1860s

However, Radama's hope that the stipend would cover the costs of abolition proved untrue. A combination of expensive wars of conquest throughout Madagascar as well as the unforeseen indirect costs of ending the trade ensured that the stipend was insufficient. While Imerina continued exporting small numbers of enslaved workers to other countries, the declining sales of enslaved workers in Merina-owned ports like Toamasina and Mahajanga ensured that non-Merina-owned Malagasy ports enjoyed a competitive advantage with Swahili, Arab, and Indian merchants.

Bezanozano porters carrying cattle skins to Toamasina

Instead, Radama had to reform his economy to produce competing products outside of the slave trade. This namely took the form of a concerted industrialization campaign. Through a combination of the invitation of foreign craftsmen and the training of domestic managers, Radama's reign saw the creation of major industrial centers at the hands of British, Mauritian Creole, and even Bengali craftsmen, as well as the training of hundreds of Malagasy to serve as shop managers and industrial directors.