Princess Of Madagascar Marielouise

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Malagasy royalty, the last heiress apparent and pretender to the throne of the Kingdom of Madagascar. She was a grandniece, and the adoptive daughter, of Ranavalona III. During World War II she worked as a nurse and was awarded the Legion of Honour by the French government for her medical service. Princess Marie-Louise was born while the royal family was in exile in French territory after the Malagasy monarchy was abolished due to French colonial rule. Her mother, Princess Razafinandriamanitra, was a daughter of Princess Rasendranoro and a niece of Ranavalona III. Marie-Louise was an illegitimate child, as her 15-year-old mother had conceived her with an unknown French soldier. Her mother died five days after giving birth. Although the royal family were Protestant, Marie-Louise was baptized in the Catholic faith at the Cathedral of St. Denis to appease the French. She was later adopted by Queen Ranavalona and was, according to the traditional rules of succession, the heir apparent to the abolished throne of Madagascar. On 1 February 1899 the royal family sailed to Marseilles. They were held in France for several months before being transferred to a villa in Mustapha Superieur in French Algeria. Marie-Louise left Algeria for France to attend secondary school in Versailles. During that time, her great-aunt Queen Ranavalona died in 1917. In France, Marie-Louise met a French agricultural engineer named Andre Bosshard. They married on 24 June 1921. She continued to receive a small pension from the French government, but decided to pursue a career as a nurse. Marie-Louise and Bosshard's marriage was childless, and they later divorced. She lived her remaining years as a socialite in Parisian high society. She died in Bazoches-sur-le-Betz on 18 January 1948 at age 50. Link to Wikipedia biography