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The Rova of Antananarivo ((マダガスカル語:Rovan'i Manjakamiadana) (:ˈruvən manˌdzakəmiˈadə̥nə)) is a royal palace complex (''rova'') in Madagascar that served as the home of the sovereigns of the Kingdom of Imerina in the 17th and 18th centuries, as well as of the rulers of the Kingdom of Madagascar in the 19th century. Its counterpart is the nearby fortified village of Ambohimanga, which served as the spiritual seat of the kingdom in contrast to the political significance of the Rova in the capital. Located in the central highland city of Antananarivo, the Rova occupies the highest point on Analamanga, formerly the highest of Antananarivo's many hills. Merina king Andrianjaka, who ruled Imerina from around 1610 until 1630, is believed to have captured Analamanga from a Vazimba king around 1610 or 1625 and erected the site's first fortified royal structure. Successive Merina kings continued to rule from the site until the fall of the monarchy in 1896, frequently restoring, modifying or adding royal structures within the compound to suit their needs. Over time, the number of buildings within the site varied. Andrianjaka founded the Rova with three buildings and a dedicated tomb site in the early 17th century. The number of structures rose to approximately twenty during the late 18th-century reign of King Andrianampoinimerina. By the late 20th century, the Rova's structures had been reduced to eleven, representing various architectural styles and historical periods. The largest and most prominent of these was Manjakamiadana, also known as the "Queen's Palace" after Queen Ranavalona I, for whom the original wooden palace was built between 1839–1841 by Frenchman Jean Laborde. In 1867 the palace was encased in stone for Queen Ranavalona II by Scotsman James Cameron, an artisan missionary of the London Missionary Society. The neighbouring Tranovola, a smaller wooden palace constructed in 1819 by Creole trader Louis Gros for King Radama I, was the first multi-storey building with verandas in the Rova. The model offered by Tranovola transformed architecture throughout the highlands over the course of the 19th century, inspiring a widespread shift toward two-storey houses with verandas. The Rova grounds also contained a cross-shaped wooden house (Manampisoa) built as the private residence of Queen Rasoherina, a stone Protestant chapel (Fiangonana), nine royal tombs, and a number of named wooden houses built in the traditional style reserved for the ''andriana'' (nobles) in Imerina. Among the most significant of these were Besakana, erected in the early 17th century by Andrianjaka and considered the throne of the kingdom, and Mahitsielafanjaka, a later building which came to represent the seat of ancestral spiritual authority at the Rova. A fire on the night of 6 November 1995 destroyed or damaged all the structures within the Rova complex shortly before it was due to be inscribed on the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Although officially declared an accident, rumours persist that politically motivated arson may have been the actual cause of the fire. The chapel and tombs, as well as Besakana and Mahitsielafanjaka, have since been fully restored with bilateral government donations, state funds and grants from intergovernmental and private donors. Completion of the reconstruction of the Manjakamiadana exterior is estimated for 2012, while interior restoration work will continue until at least 2013. Once the building is fully restored, Manjakamiadana will serve as a museum showcasing royal artefacts saved from destruction in the fire. == Background == Madagascar's central highlands were first inhabited between 200 BCE–300 CE by the island's earliest settlers, the Vazimba, who appear to have arrived by pirogue from southeastern Borneo and established simple villages in the island's dense forests. By the 15th century the Merina ethnic group from the southeastern coast had gradually migrated into the central highlands where they established hilltop villages interspersed among existing Vazimba settlements ruled by local kings. In the mid-16th century these royal Merina villages (''rova''s)—now fortified with stone walls, gateways and deep defensive trenches—were united under the rule of King Andriamanelo (1540–1575), who initiated the first military campaigns to expel or assimilate the Vazimba population by force. Villages inhabited by the ''andriana'' (noble) class established by Andriamanelo typically contained a ''rova'' or palace compound. The rova's earliest defining features had crystallised among the Merina as residences for local rulers at least 100 years before the emergence of the united Kingdom of Imerina under Andriamanelo. According to custom, a rova's foundation was always elevated relative to the surrounding village. The compound also always featured a ''kianja'' (central courtyard) marked by a ''vatomasina'' (tall sacred stone) where the sovereign would stand to deliver ''kabary'' (royal speeches or decrees). Contained within the rova was at least one ''lapa'' (royal palace or residence) as well as the ''fasana'' (tomb) of one or more of the site's founders. The sovereign's lodgings typically stood in the northern part of the rova, while the spouse or spouses lived in the southern part. It was not until the dawn of the 19th century that a perimeter wall of sharpened wooden stakes would constitute another defining feature of rova construction. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Rova of Antananarivo」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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