History of Madagascar
By the 15th century, Europeans had wrested control of the spice trade from the Muslims. They did this by bypassing the Middle East and sending their cargo-ships around the Cape of Good Hope to India. The Portuguese mariner Diogo Dias became the first European to set foot on Madagascar when his ship, bound for India, blew off course in 1500. In the ensuing two-hundred years, the English and French tried (and failed) to establish settlements on the island.
Madagascar commemorative medal
The Madagascar commemorative medal () was a French commemorative medal isuued to the participants to the First Madagascar expedition in 1883, and the Second Madagascar expedition in 1894-95. Two different medals were issued, the first one by the law of 31 July 1886, the second one by the law of 15 January 1896.