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The charm of Nosy Be was already appreciated back in 1649 when English Colonel Robert Hunt wrote: "I believe, and I swear by God, that no part of the world is more suitable for plantations than this island; a land that seems perfect for both pleasure and profit." Hunt was trying to establish a colony on the island, which was named Assada, but his plan soon failed due to the hostility of the natives and diseases. Subsequent immigrations contributed to the variety of races present on Nosy Be.
Nosy Be became part of Madagascar's written history when King Radama I
proposed to conquer the western part of the mainland island, aiming to reach the sea from within.
He successfully carried out his plan, taking control of the Sakalava kingdom of Boina. It was in 1830 when King Radama I attempted to unify all the tribes of Madagascar under his rule.
In 1839, Queen Tsyomeko of the Sakalava, defeated by the Merina but followed by many subjects, took refuge on the islands of Nosy Komba and Tanikely.
The Merina were unable to pursue them to these islands but established themselves on the nearby coast, keeping the Sakalava under threat. Nosy Be sought help from the Sultan of Zanzibar, but the latter, not realizing that the Merina enemies were coming from the highlands, mistakenly sent a warship to discourage any naval conquest attempts. In 1840, the French warship "Colibri" anchored in the bay of Nosy Be, and the Sakalava turned to the commander to seek protection from France.
Seizing the opportunity, Captain Passot sent a message to Admiral Hell, governor of the island of Bourbon (now Réunion), who, as aware as Passot of the opportunity at hand, signed
a treaty establishing the protectorate over the Sakalava Kingdom. In 1841, the Sakalava ceded both Nosy Be and the nearby Nosy Komba to France. Captain Passot and Admiral Hell would be remembered in Nosy Be, with the names attributed to them: Mont Passot and the island's capital, Hell-Ville. However, the French protectorate was marked by many years of turmoil, including incidents and raids. On June 26, 1960, Nosy Be and all of Madagascar gained independence from French colonization through General De Gaulle.
One of the most incredible stories is that of the Russian warship sent by the Tsar to Nosy Be during the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905. The mission was to protect the Mozambique Channel from Japanese incursions. After the war ended, the Russian ship was forgotten by the Tsar, and the unfortunate men of the contingent remained stranded, unaware that their sovereign had signed peace. They ended up settling in Nosy Be, where most of them died of malaria, typhus, and other tropical diseases. They are still buried in a corner of the vast cemetery in Hell-Ville.
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