Hippolyte Laroche (26 January 1848 - 14 September 1914) was a French naval officer, colonial administrator and politician. While Resident General of Madagascar he succeeded in abolishing slavery.
Hippolyte Laroche | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 26 January 1848 Lyon, France |
| Died | 14 September 1914 (aged 66) Le Mans, Sarthe, France |
| Nationality | French |
| Occupation(s) | Colonial administrator, politician |
| Known for | Abolition of slavery in Madagascar |
Career
editHippolyte Laroche was born on 26 January 1848 in Lyon, France. His father was a colonel of the Engineers. Laroche attended Naval Academy and became a naval officer. He was then made prefect of Charente, Algiers, Loire and Haute-Garonne.[1]
Laroche was appointed Resident General in Madagascar, and arrived at Tananarive on 16 January 1896.[2] Paul Anthelme Bourde was appointed Secretary General of Madagascar in 1895.[3] Bourde left France for Madagascar in January 1896. He soon fell out with Laroche, who accused him of trying to usurp his position.[4] In his short term of office, Laroche succeeded in passing a law that abolished slavery. He had the difficult task of keeping a balance between the French settlers and military and Queen Ranavalona III. He did not succeed since he had no control over the military, who pursued a scorched earth policy in suppressing an uprising of the local people. He left on 10 October 1896 when the government ended his mission.[2]
Laroche signed the Adresse à Dreyfus that appeared in L'Aurore in September 1899.[5] On 19 February 1904 Laroche was an unsuccessful candidate for the Assembly in a by-election for the arrondissement of La Flèche. In the general elections the next year he ran again and won by a narrow margin. He ran again in 1910 and was reelected. He was a member of commissions on Foreign affairs and the colonies, posts and telegraphs and the military.[1]
Laroche died on 14 September 1914 in Le Mans, Sarthe, France.[1]
References
editCitations
- ^ a b c Jolly 1960.
- ^ a b Ranaivo 1979.
- ^ Voizard 1989.
- ^ Finch 2013, p. 173.
- ^ Hippolyte Laroche et Martin Freystaetter.
Sources
- Finch, Michael P.M. (2013-08-15). A Progressive Occupation?: The Gallieni-Lyautey Method and Colonial Pacification in Tonkin and Madagascar, 1885–1900. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-967457-2. Retrieved 2014-02-03.
- "Hippolyte Laroche et Martin Freystaetter". Le site des archives Zola. Retrieved 2014-02-18.
- Jolly, Jean (1960). "Hippolyte Laroche". Dictionnaire des parlementaires français de 1889 à 1940. Retrieved 2014-02-18.
- Ranaivo, Flavien (1979). "Hippolyte Laroche". Hommes et destins: dictionnaire biographique d'Outre-mer. Madagascar. Académie des sciences d'outre-mer. Retrieved 2014-02-18.
- Voizard, Pierre (1989). "Paul, Anthelme BOURDE (1851–1914)" (PDF). Hommes et destines (Dictionnaire biographique d'Outre-Mer). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-02-21. Retrieved 2014-03-03.