As you look at the history of Madagascar you can see a few turning points that shaped the country into what it is today. The first critical event was the settlement attempts in 1600's that were made for trade as many European powers tried to acquire land, the most successful of the group were the french who ended up being a headache for the Malagasy people. Continuing to push for more control the french wanted to establish a military position in 1700's to begin colonizing Madagascar but there was a push back as the country was not going to give in that easy. After years of turmoil a treaty was signed with the french and later with the English in 1877, to create peace for the time being, although the french would not give up and along came the Franco-Malagasy War in 1883. This was not a long war; however it did give control of affairs to the french who now became the central power of Madagascar. Then in 1896 the french finally declared Madagascar a colony under french rule adding a lot of french influences, religions, and beliefs but most of all stripping the country of its natural resources. Finally through the ups and downs of government the people finally had enough and went to the streets to have the current government in 1991 removed showing the people have finally got a voice for themselves.