1960: The former French colony achieves independence with Philibert Tsiranana as president.
January 1972: Tsiranana is re-elected unopposed, with 99% of votes cast.
May 1972: General Gabriel Ramanantsoa takes power after a revolt by students and workers.
February 1975: Colonel Richard Ratsimandrava stages a coup. A week later he is assassinated and martial law is declared.
June 1975: The armed forces put Didier Ratsiraka in power. He sets up the Second Republic with a programme of nationalisation and introduces a single party, Vanguard of the Malagasy Revolution.
December 1975: Adoption of the Charter of the Malagasy Socialist Revolution.
1980: Balance of payments difficulties force Madagascar to agree to structural adjustments imposed by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.
1981: Protests after Ratsiraka’s defeat of Monja Joana in the presidential election with 80% of vote.
1986: Famine and demonstrations in the rural south.
1989: Press censorship ends.
1990: Introduction of a multiparty system.
1991: During major demonstrations the army fires on the crowd, killing 30 people. A transitional government is formed.
August 1992: 73% of voters approve a new parliamentary constitution.
February 1993: Albert Zafy wins the presidential election and inaugurates the Third Republic. He embarks upon the liberalisation of the economy.
1996: The national assembly impeaches Zafy for violating the constitution.
1997: Ratsiraka regains power.
1998: National assembly adopts a new constitution granting significant autonomy to provinces.
December 2001: Demonstrations and violence after both Ratsiraka and Marc Ravalomanana claim victory in the first round of the presidential election.
January 2002: The high constitutional court gives Ravalomanana 46.21% of the vote, Ratsiraka 40.89%, and announces a second round. Ravalomanana insists that he won more than half the votes, rejects the result and calls for an indefinite general strike.
February 2002: Ravalomanana proclaims himself president and forms a parallel government.
18 April 2002: Meeting in Dakar under the auspices of the Organisation of African Unity, the rivals agree to form a government of national reconciliation and to hold a referendum within six months if a recount of the votes gives neither a majority.
29 April 2002: The high constitutional court awards victory to Ravalomanana. Ratsiraka rejects the decision and two provinces declare independence.
May 2002: Ravalomanana is sworn in.
July 2002: Ratsiraka flees to France.
December 2002: Ravalomanana’s party wins a decisive victory in the legislative elections.