Marie Elisabeth "Bety" Sobobie of Betsimisaraka or ''Betia'' (c. 1735–1805), was queen regnant of the kingdom of Betsimisaraka, consisting of the island Île Sainte-Marie and parts of eastern

Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...

, from 1750 to 1754 (Île Sainte-Marie) and 1762 (Eastern Madagascar). She famously ceded the Île Sainte-Marie to France in 1750.

Life

Bety was the daughter of king Ratsimilaho of Betsimisaraka (also known as Tom Smilo) and the

sakalava The Sakalava are an ethnic group of Madagascar. They are primarily found on the western edge of Madagascar from Toliara in the south to the Sambirano River in the north. The Sakalava constitute about 6.2 percent of the total population, or abou ...

princess Mamadion of Boina. She was the paternal granddaughter of a British or American pirate by the name Thomas (Thomas Tew, Thomas White or Thomas Collins), and queen Antavaratra Rahena of Zana Malata. The Île Sainte Marie was at this time inhabited by the Zana Malata, which was a mixture of the local inhabitants and the Western pirates who had used the island as a base since the 1680s. The father of Bety united the island to one kingdom and also conquered a part of the Eastern coast of Malagasy, and gave the kingdom the name Betsimisaraka. Bety succeeded her father upon his death, and on 30 July that year, she fulfilled his wish by placing it under the protection of the

French East India Company Compagnie des Indes () may refer to several French chartered companies involved in long-distance trading: * First French East Indies Company, in existence from 1604 to 1614 * French West India Company, active in the Western Hemisphere from 1664 t ...

on a ceremony on the ship ''Mars'', with the support of 60 local chiefs and in the presence of representatives of the French governor of

Isle de France (Mauritius) Isle de France (, ) was a French colony in the Indian Ocean from 1715 to 1810, comprising the island now known as Mauritius and its dependent territories. It was governed by the French East India Company and formed part of the French colonial e ...

. Queen Bety formally continued to rule the island as a French protectorate. Upon her accession to the throne, she had a permanent love relationship with the Frenchman Jean Onésime Filet (d. 1767), who became her prince consort. In September 1751, a rebellion broke out on Île Sainte-Marie where the French were massacred. Bety and her mother traveled to Île de France were they successfully convinced the French governor of their innocence. She spent the following five years at Île de France. In 1756, she left for her remaining kingdom at the East coast of Madagascar, which she ruled for six years. In 1762, she seeded Foulpointe, to her half brother Jean Hare, which is regarded as the de facto end point of the kingdom of Betsimisaraka, though some smaller provinces nominally remained under her control. Queen Bety settled permanently at Isle de France (

Mauritius Mauritius, officially the Republic of Mauritius, is an island country in the Indian Ocean, about off the southeastern coast of East Africa, east of Madagascar. It includes the main island (also called Mauritius), as well as Rodrigues, Ag ...

), where she was a major landowner. She was described as a warm-hearted beauty and enjoyed respect among the French. Upon her death in 1805, in

Vacoas Vacoas-Phoenix () also known as French language, French: ''Villes Jumelles'' (Twin Cities), is a town in Mauritius, located in the Plaines Wilhems District, the eastern part also lies in the Moka District. The town is administered by the Municipal ...

(Mauritius), she left the remains of nominal kingdom to her nephew Iavy, but in practice, Betsimisaraka no longer existed and the remains were under French control.

References

{{reflist 1730s births 1805 deaths 18th-century women monarchs Queens regnant of Madagascar