Madagascar

The royal hill of Ambohimanga

About 24 km north-east of Antananarivo, the fortified hill of Ambohimanga is the best-preserved monument of the precolonial Merina Kingdom. A World Heritage Site since 2001, it holds royal residences and tombs.

The royal compound on the hill of Ambohimanga
Lemurbaby · CC BY-SA 3.0

Key facts

Before you go.

Starting point
Antananarivo, about 24 km awayAmbohimanga (Wikipedia)

Good to know

Three things to remember.

  • The hill keeps a sacred character: rituals are still practised there.

    Ambohimanga (Wikipedia)
  • The large Mahandrihono compound holds the royal tombs, King Andrianampoinimerina’s house and Queen Ranavalona II’s summer palace.

    Ambohimanga (Wikipedia)
  • It is the country’s only cultural World Heritage Site, since the Rova of Antananarivo burned in 1995.

    Ambohimanga (Wikipedia)

Plan the trip

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Sources · 1 pages consulted, with the exact sentence used
  1. Ambohimanga (Wikipedia)
    Ambohimanga is a hill and traditional fortified royal settlement (rova) in Madagascar, located approximately 24 kilometers […] northeast of the capital city of Antananarivo. […] the most important and best-preserved monument of the precolonial Merina Kingdom. The walled historic village includes residences and burial sites of several key monarchs. […] has maintained its spiritual and sacred character both in ritual practice […] Mahandrihono, the largest compound […] contains the royal tombs, house of King Andrianampoinimerina, summer palace of Queen Ranavalona II […] added to the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 2001 and represent Madagascar's only cultural site following the destruction by fire in 1995 of its historic sister city, the Rova of Antananarivo […] (coordinates -18.75917, 47.56278)

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