Tintingue

Tintingue is a sheltered bay on Madagascar's eastern coast, opposite the island of Sainte-Marie. Forested hills surround the harbour, whose anchorage attracted European interest in the early nineteenth century. A local chief ruled the neighbouring country, while the position of the bay made it a point of contact between the mainland and ships in the Indian Ocean.

In 1818 a French expedition surveyed Tintingue and declared possession in the presence of local inhabitants gathered for a public assembly. The claim was challenged as Radama I extended Merina authority along the coast. In 1826 Tsifanin, the local ruler of Tintingue, joined other northern Betsimisaraka leaders in an attempt to retake Foulpointe; he was pursued to his own country and killed by Radama's soldiers.