TIPU SULTAN DEFEATED AT ALUVA

Jihad and Genocide in Malabar

Ramachandran

14. Astrologers Played with his Mind

The defeat at Nedumkotta in Travancore made the superstitious Tipu Sultan consult more astrologers and diviners, since a danger to his life soon, had been predicted. He was defeated by the Travancore forces when he broke the Nedumkotta lines and reached the mouth of the Periyar River at Aluva (Alwaye).

The Marxist and Islamic historians have tried to paint Tipu as a secular Sultan by dropping the names of certain Hindu officials of Tipu. It was difficult for him to get learned Muslims for such jobs; Tipu also began appeasing Hindus, after his debacle at Nedumkotta. Thus the Mysore temples and the Sringeri Mutt got grants and lands. Brahmin astrologers had told him that he would be a Badusha if he won the battle with the British. His high officials like Poornaiah and Madanna got those seats not because of secularism, but out of Tipu's superstition.

Lewis Rice who wrote History of Mysore after going through various official records satiated thus:

" In the vast empire of Tipu Sultan, on the eve of his death, there were only two Hindu temples having daily pujas within the Srirangapatanam fortress. It is only for the satisfaction of Brahmin astrologers who used to study his horoscope that Tipu Sultan had spared those two temples. The entire wealth of every Hindu temple was confiscated before 1790 itself mainly to make up for the revenue loss due to total prohibition in the country."

If Karthika Thirunal Ramavarma, popularly known as Dharmaraja (1724-1798) of Travancore was not there, the Hindus of Malabar would have faced a total genocide; Malabar would have been an Islamic country. Dharmaraja gave asylum and protected the Hindus who had fled Malabar during the invasion of Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan.

Since Tipu's defeat has been subdued in the pseudo-secular historical sphere, it has to be retold. When Tipu's invasion was looming large on the horizon, Dharmaraja removed the Paravur, and Alangad princes and bought their principalities. He bought Kodungallur and Pallipuram forts from the Zamorin. He sent the powerful Dewan Ayyappan Marthandan Pillai and the armed forces Commander Eustachius De Lannoy to Cochin and built the 48-kilometre-long Nedumkotta, from Kodungallur to Anamala, to block Tipu from entering Travancore. Tipu was defeated at Alwaye, without any help from the nearby Kochi king.

Srirangapatanam Fort

Kochi had become a vassal of Tipu, by paying an annual tribute. Dharmaraja got a lover from the Zamorin family, which had fled Malabar: the Sanskrit scholar Manorama Thampuratty, who had been a guru to even Nambudiri males.

Dharmaraja had ascended the throne after the death of his uncle Marthanda Varma, in 1758. He had a Malabar connection and was the son of the princess of Kolathunadu, who was adopted to Attingal in 1718. While he became the king, the threat of the Ettuveettil nobles and Kayamkulam king was at its peak. When Dharmaraja was just four years old, his father, Kilimanur Keralavarma had been killed in an attempt by the Kayamkulam king. Dharmaraja had to flee from Haripad to Budhanur Brahmin ruler, Vanjipuzha Adhikari.

Travancore's story as a powerful Hindu kingdom began with Marthanda Varma, who inherited the kingdom of Venad (Thrippappur) and extended it to Travancore during his reign (1729–58). After defeating a union of feudal lords and establishing internal peace, he expanded the kingdom of Venad through a series of military campaigns from Kanyakumari in the south to the borders of Kochi in the north during his 29-year reign. This led to the Travancore-Dutch War (1739-1753) between the Dutch East India Company which had become an ally of some of these kingdoms and Travancore.

In 1741 Travancore won the Battle of Colachel against the Dutch East India Company, which resulted in a complete eclipse of Dutch power in the region. In this battle, the admiral of the Dutch, Eustachius De Lannoy, was captured and the Dutch dismissed him to Travancore. De Lannoy was named Captain of Travancore Raja's bodyguard and later Senior Admiral ("Valiya Captain") and he modernized the Travancore Army by introducing firearms and artillery. Travancore became the most dominant state in Kerala by defeating the mighty Zamorin in the Battle of Purakkad in 1755. Ramayyan Dalawa, the Prime Minister (1737–1756) of Marthanda Varma, played an important role in the consolidation and expansion.

At the battle of Ambalapuzha, Marthanda Varma defeated the union of the kings deposed and the king of Cochin.

Consolidation

After Marthanda Varma consolidated his position, neighbouring countries tried for a treaty. From 1755 onwards, a part of Kochi was with Marthanda Varma. Though Varma signed a treaty with Kochi in 1756, he refrained from helping Kochi, which was under Dutch Suzerainty. The barons of Kochi were under Zamorin's henchmen. The Dutch ditched Kochi when the Zamorin promised to cede Chettuva, which he had seized from the Dutch earlier.

The Kochi king met Dharmaraja and begged him to have an alliance, with Hindus. A treaty was signed between them, in 1761, at the Sthanu Murthy Temple at Sucheendram, in the presence of Hindu religious leaders. Then, Dharmaraja gave orders to Ayyappan Marthandan Pillai and de Lanoy to rescue Kochi from the clutches of Zamorin.

When Pillai's army reached Paravur, the Paravur ruler fled first to Kodungallur and then to Mapranam, near Irinjalakuda.The Kochi army consisted of Nairs from Kavalappara and Perattuvithi. The Zamorin force was routed at Mapranam and they retreated to Trichur. From there, they went back to Kunnamkulam, and Chelakkara camps.

De Lannoy confronted the Zamorin forces at Kodungallur. It fled to Trichur via Chettuva and Enamakkal Lannoy joined with Pillai's force and they together reached Chelakkara. They defeated the Zamorin force, which then crossed the northern border and fled. When the Travancore force reached Kunnamkulam, the Zamorin army there, retreated to Ponnani.The Zamorin yielded to the pressure for a treaty when De Lannoy decided to march to Calicut. The Zamorin went all the way to Padmanabhapuram to sign the treaty; it was decided that Zamorin pay Rs 1.5 Lakh as war expenses. Paravur and Alangad rulers were retired and the principalities were amalgamated into Travancore.

Then began the building of Nedumkotta or the Big Fort.

The idea to build the fort was one Marthanda Varma nurtured. Varma had deliberately left Kochi without conquering, it as a buffer zone, between Travancore and Malabar, according to Dutch documents.

The Dutch began to spy for Travancore when they were defeated at the Colachal battle. They didn't allow a safe passage for Hyder Ali to Travancore when it was asked for. Hyder demanded war expenses from Kochi and Travancore, alleging that giving asylum to his enemies was an act of war. He died without fulfilling his wish to conquer both Kochi and Travancore.

Hyder had sent epistles to Cochin and Travancore through the Dutch Commissioners and demanded acknowledgement of his suzerainty. The Dutch were successful in concluding an accord with Hyder not to molest Cochin on the condition of paying two lakhs of rupees and eight elephants. The Raja of Cochin accepted the suzerainty of Hyder. But Travancore Raja objected on the ground that he was already a tributary to Arcot Nawab Muhammad Ali and he could not afford to subsidize two suzerains at a time. At the same time, Travancore feared an attack from Hyder. This was reported by the Raja of Travancore to the Governor of Bombay, Charles Crommelin. He gave expression to the fear "Hyder Ali may attack my kingdom also and my reliance is entirely on the ancient friendship with the Company, to them I will transfer 3000 candies of pepper […] on condition that the English Company will supply me with money and warlike stores and that the Company will defend my kingdom at my expense". (1)

Since Travancore resisted his conditions, Hyder wanted to invade that territory. However, the monsoon that had set in by that time on the Malabar Coast averted his plan to attack Travancore.

March to Malabar

Revolts began in 1788 in Tipu's vassal states. Tipu marched to Malabar and Coorg to confront it. Hindus were forcibly taken en masse to Srirangapatnam and converted to Islam. Hindus including the Zamorin family and Christians fled Malabar.Tipu asked Kochi to claim Paravur and Alangad.Kochi king delayed by saying he would try to persuade the Travancore king to become a vassal of Tipu. Tipu sent his messengers to Travancore, with a Khareeda. Travancore King received them in the presence of the East India Company. Tipu saw the presence of the British as an insult; he led his army in 1789 to Kochi, alleging, that the building of the Nedumkotta in his vassal state was illegal. He could not cross into Travancore.

The strength of the Travancore Nair Army was greatly reduced after several earlier battles with Hyder Ali's forces. The death of the Dutch-born commander De Lannoy in 1777 further diminished the morale of the soldiers. The death of Makayiram Thirunal and Aswati Thirunal in 1786 forced the Travancore royal family to adopt two princesses from Kolathunad. As the threat of an invasion by Tipu Sultan loomed large, Dharma Raja tried to rebuild his army by appointing Raman Pillai as the Dalawa (Dewan) and Kesava Pillai as the Sarvadhikaryakkar.

Tipu had planned the invasion of Travancore for many years, and he was especially concerned with the Nedumkotta fortifications, which had prevented his father Hyder Ali from annexing the kingdom.

But the situation changed very much in favour of Rama Varma Dharmaraja when he was included by the British ‘as a friend and ally’ of the Company in the Treaty of Mangalore, after the Second Anglo-Mysore War. As a shrewd politician, Tipu quickly adjusted himself to the altered situation. Instead of an aggressive policy of ‘demanding vassalage’ from Travancore, as Hyder Ali did, Tipu’s policy was to appease the Travancore Raja and win him over by settling peacefully the outstanding disputes with him. Quoting Tipu’s letter to Rama Varma, Islamic historian C K Kareem comments: "The request here was for alliance and not for vassalage, clearly unfolds the shift of Mysorean policy".On the other hand, Rama Varma who was confident of ‘English support’ not only ignored the friendly overtures of Tipu but also continued his hostile activities breaking there by the provisions of the Treaty of Mangalore, to which he was also one of the signatories.

Dispute over Nedumkotta

A dispute arose between Tipu and Travancore Raja with respect to the strengthening of defensive lines by Travancore at Travancore – Cochin boundary by the Nedumkotta. Rama Varma extended the Travancore Lines through the territory of Raja of Cochin up to the Fort of Cranganore, thus cutting the small Kingdom of Cochin into two unequal divisions. Tipu demanded the demolition of these lines as they sheltered the hostile elements from Mysore and moreover, Cochin was his vassal state. The Raja refused to demolish them and it became a serious point of dispute. Tipu asserted his right to remove them as these lines stood in the territory of his tributary, the Raja of Cochin; and the Travancore Raja felt justified in not removing them as they had existed long before Cochin had passed under Tipu’s suzerainty. Tipu was already furious by the asylum provided by Travancore Raja to the fugitive chieftains of Malabar and his secret aids in encouraging the rebellious elements in Malabar. Apart from the question of lines, the purchasing of the two Dutch forts, Cranganore and Ayikotta, by the Raja added fuel to the fire. Ayikotta was a military post on the northern extremity of the narrow island of Vypin on the Malabar Coast and Cranganore about two miles from Ayikotta. Travancore Raja's purchase of these two places became the ultimate cause of the Third Anglo-Mysore War.

Towards the end of 1789, Tipu Sultan marched his troops from Coimbatore. Tipu's army consisted of 20,000 infantry, 10,000 spearmen and match-lockmen, 5,000 cavalry and 20 field guns.

Travancore purchased the strategic forts of Cranganore and Ayacottah from the Dutch to improve the country's defences. The deal was finalized by Dewan Kesava Pillai and three Jewish merchants under the instruction of Dharma Raja and Dutch East India Company Governor John Gerard van Anglebeck. Travancore also held a treaty with the British East India Company, under whose terms two battalions of the Company army were stationed at the Travancore-Cochin frontier. Both Tipu Sultan and Governor John Holland of Madras objected to these purchases because the forts, though they had long been in Dutch possession, were in the Kingdom of Cochin, which was a tributary state of Mysore.

Both Cranganore and Ayikottah were strategic places coveted by both the Raja and Tipu. It was Tipu who initiated the negotiation with the Dutch for the sale of these places and when they were about to close the deal, the Travancore Raja intervened. The British Madras Government also did not encourage the Raja to purchase them, as it would lead to unnecessary complications. Despite the warning, the Raja proceeded to acquire these places without consulting the Company any further in the matter. On 31 July 1789, the sale was effected, but the English were unaware of these transactions until August 17 when George Powney, the Resident at Travancore, wrote to Holland, the Governor of Madras. The forts were sold for three lakh Surat silver rupees. The Jewish merchants David Rahaboy, Euphram Cohen and Anta Setty acted as sureties of the debt. The Dutch preferred the Travancore Raja to Tipu for the sale, because the Dutch relations with Tipu were not happy. The Jewish merchants in the area, who were highly influential, felt that their trade would be in danger if Tipu were to acquire these places.

The Raja, the Dutch and the Jewish merchants all found themselves in dread of Tipu. The Raja of Cochin indirectly supported this deal, though he pretended to be on Tipu’s side. C K Kareem guesses: "The Cochin Raja wanted to be free from the vassalage at the earliest opportunity as any other ruler would desire. Therefore, his relation was always shady and full of intrigue."

But in the Cochin State Manual, C Achutha Menon sets down the reason for Cochin Raja's antagonism towards Tipu: "With all this, his subjection to a Mohammedan usurper of Mysore was felt as an irksome burden by Cochin".

In his correspondence with the governor–general and Governor of Madras, the Travancore Raja openly admitted that he had his negotiations with the English and had purchased these forts from the Dutch with the knowledge of the Company. George Powney, the Resident of Travancore, was censured by Lord Cornwallis for his unjustifiable conduct in conniving with the Raja in these transactions. (2).

Nedumkotta Battle

Although Tipu was enraged by the sale, he waited for five months, hoping that the English might solve the dispute amicably. The Madras Government was anxious not to offer Tipu any excuse for war, but Cornwallis gradually changed his policy. When nothing happened for five months, Tipu marched towards the Travancore lines hoping that at least his presence would make the Raja change his mind. Travancore Raja remained firm and the first clash of arms took place on 29 December 1789. Tipu invited Powney, but the change of Governor at Madras had altered the entire situation. Tipu attacked the Travancore lines. The war was on, and according to oral history, the Cochin Raja fled to Cherthala and stayed at the Anjili palace, inside the Velorvattam temple compound.

Kesava Pillai (Raja Kesavadas) was appointed as the Commander-in-Chief of the Travancore Army. To boost the strength of the armed forces, several thousand young militiamen were called up from all over the kingdom. The forts of Cranganore and Ayikotta were repaired and garrisoned. Tipu sent a letter to the King of Travancore demanding the withdrawal of the Travancore forces garrisoned in Cranganore Fort, the transfer to him of Malabar lords who have been sheltered by the king, and the demolition of Travancore ramparts built within the territory of Cochin. The king refused Tipu's demands.

Sriranganathaswamy Temple

Twenty-four years after his father Hyder Ali had attacked Kochi, Tipu began a march to conquer Kochi and Travancore. The Mysore army entered the Cochin kingdom from Coimbatore in November 1789 and reached Trichur in December. On 28 December 1789, Tipu attacked Nedumkotta (northern lines) from the north, causing the Battle of Nedumkotta. The Mysore army under Tipu was repulsed. Tipu's army consisted of 20,000 infantry, 10,000 spearmen and match-lockmen, 5,000 cavalry and 20 field guns.

A number of Mysorean soldiers encroached into Travancore jungles, ostensibly to apprehend fugitives, and came under fire when discovered by Travancore patrols. (3). On 28 December 1789, Mysorean troops attacked the eastern part of the Travancore lines and captured the ramparts as the Travancoreans retreated, but were eventually stopped when the Travancore force of 800 Nair soldiers made a stand with six-pounder guns (4). Travancore reinforcements arrived during the four-hour battle, and they inflicted heavy casualties on the Mysoreans, who lost 1000-1500 soldiers and fled in panic (5). Several Mysorean troops were captured as prisoners of war, including soldiers of European and Maratha origin (6). Travancore forces recovered the sword, the palanquin, the dagger, the ring and many other personal effects of Tipu Sultan from the ditches of the Nedumkotta and presented them to the ruler of Travancore. Some of them were sent to the Nawab of Carnatic at his request.

After Nedumkotta Battle

According to Mohibul Hasan, approximately two months after this incident, on 1 March 1790, 1,000 Travancore troops advanced onto Mysore territory, where they were stopped and pushed back with considerable losses by Mysorean troops. On 9 April 1790, a similar attempt was made once again by 3,000 Travancore troops on Mysore territory, however, they were once again stopped by Mysorean troops and repulsed.

In the march towards Travancore after the Nedumkotta Battle, it is said that Tipu's 400 horsemen drowned in Periyar. His commander Kamaruddin Khan requested Tipu to climb down from the palanquin. Khan fell down, held Tipu's legs, and begged for a retreat. The loyal soldiers held Tipu on their shoulders and swam to safety. The palanquin, bed and sword became the victory trophies to Travancore. It is said that Tipu limped to his last after a fall in a ditch at the mouth of the Periyar.

On 12 April 1790, Tipu decided to attack the Travancore lines and within approximately three days was able to breach three-quarters of a mile of the lines: On 15 April 1790 he took approximately 6,000 soldiers and advanced on the Travancore position. The Travancore troops were taken by surprise and fled. On 18 April 1790, Tipu arrived within one mile of Cranganore and erected batteries. On 8 May 1790, Tipu successfully occupied Cranganore. Soon other forts such as Ayikotta and Parur surrendered without fighting. Tipu destroyed the Travancore lines and reached all the way to Varapuzha (Verapoly).

He destroyed the wall at Konoor Kotta or Kottamuri and advanced further. He filled trenches for a few kilometres to enable his army to move forward. He destroyed many temples but he didn’t touch the mosques. He finally reached the Periyar river banks at Aluva and camped there. The Travancore forces regrouped, but the onset of monsoons prevented Tipu from moving south.

According to Logan, Tipu's army crossed the Periyar River from Kodungallur to Varapuzha, where it was confronted by the Travancore army under Raja Kesavadas. Tipu lost 4,000 men and his commander Ali Baig was hacked to death. Tipu's army retreated to Chettuva, and he got reinforcements from Mysore and Coimbatore. The Mysore army again crossed the river. At this crucial hour, a French emissary met Tipu and informed him that an English naval contingent under Head Lingley was on its way from Mumbai, to support the Travancore Army. Tipu assessed that the Navy would confront him from the north at Kondungallur. The Travancore guns were waiting in the South. It was the Arabian Sea in the West, and the Periyar River in the East, and The Periyar was flooded in the untimely rain showers. Tipu escaped to the Northern bank and he was informed that an army under General Medows was on its way from Trichy, to capture Srirangapatna. He left the Ttravancore theatre of war.

The folklore says a small group led by Ayyappan Marthandan Pillai and Kali Kutty went upstream and managed to break the walls of a natural dam at Bhoothathankettu causing heavy flash floods downstream of Periyar River. All the ammunition and gunpowder of Tipu's army got wet and became inactive. He was thus forced to return. Information that the British army was planning an attack on Srirangapatnam hastened Tipu's retreat. Kalikutty became a character called Kunchaikutty Pillai, in C V Raman Pillai's novel, Ramaraja Bahadur. Kalikutty got the honorific Pillai after this adventure. The character is roughly based on Vaikam Padmanabha Pillai.

The defeated Tipu, writes P K Balakrishnan, while retreating, saw a nutmeg plant at Chalakkudy, which he took to Srirangapatanam. He had planted Fir trees in the capital. (7).

The Kochi royal family fled to Vaikam when Tipu reached Alwaye.

Travancore Dewan T Madhava Rao later assessed that it was the Nedumkotta that blocked Tipu's entry. Tipu could unleash destruction, arson and looting only at Angamaly, Alwaye, Varapuzha and Alangad.

Mysore actions against Travancore brought it into further conflict with the British Empire and led to the Third Anglo-Mysore War. Tipu told the Madras Governor Edward Holland that he got defeated at Nedumkotta because his army concentrated on finding the people of Malabar who had sought asylum in Travancore and Kochi. Thus, Tipu himself admitted that he lost a Jihad.

Ruins of Nedumkotta

Tipu was in the habit of writing several letters a day and those letters prove that he was a fanatic.

Tipu wrote to Abdul Khadir on 22 March 1788:

“Over 12,000 Hindus were honoured with Islam. There were many Namboodri Brahmins among them. This achievement should be widely publicised among the Hindus. Then the local Hindus should be brought before you and converted to Islam. No Namboodri Brahmin should be spared.”

Tipu wrote to his army Commander at Calicut Hussain Ali Khan, on 14 December 1788:

“I am sending two of my followers with Mir Hussain Ali. With their assistance, you should capture and kill all Hindus. Those below 20 may be kept in prison and 5,000 from the rest should be killed from the tree-tops. These are my orders.”

This instruction could not be adhered to by the Mappilas fully, because the British intervened to stop the genocide.

He wrote to Budroos Usman Khan on 13 February 1790:

"Your two letters, with the enclosed memorandums of the Naimar (or Nair) captives, have been received. You did right in ordering a hundred and thirty-five of them to be circumcised, and in putting eleven of the youngest of these into the Usud Ilhye band (or class) and the remaining ninety-four into the Ahmedy Troop, consigning the whole, at the same time, to the charge of the Kilaaddar of Nugr…" (8).

Tipu wrote to the Afghan King Saman Sha:

"we should come together in carrying on a holy war against the infidels, and for freeing the region of Hindustan from the contamination of the enemies of our religion (Hindus)".

Tipu wrote to Sayyid Abdul Dhula on 18 January 1790:

"With the grace of Prophet Mohammed and Allah, almost all Hindus in Calicut are converted to Islam. Only on the borders of Cochin State a few are still not converted. I am determined to convert them very soon. I consider this as Jehad to achieve that object" (9)

Tipu wrote to Bekal Governor Budroos Usman Khan, on 19 January 1790:

"Don't you know I have achieved a great victory recently in Malabar and over four lakh Hindus were converted to Islam? I am determined to march against that cursed 'Raman Nair' very soon (reference is to Rama Varma Raja of Travancore State who was popularly known as Dharma Raja). Since I am overjoyed at the prospect of converting him and his subjects to Islam, I have happily abandoned the idea of going back to Srirangapatanam now" (10).

The Raman Nair mentioned here is Dharmaraja.

After the third Anglo-Mysore war, Major Alex Dirom found Tipu's seal:

"I am the Messenger of the true faith."

"I bring Unto you the Edicts of Truth."

"From CONQUEST and the Protection of the Royal Hyder comes my tide of SULTAN and the world under the Sun and Moon is subject to my Signet."

Portuguese traveller Fr Paulino Bartholomew wrote in his travelogue, Voyage to East Indies (1772 ) :

First, a corps of 30,000 barbarians who butchered everybody on the way… followed by the field-gun unit under the French Commander, M. Lally… Tipu was riding on an elephant behind which another army of 30,000 soldiers followed. Most of the men and women were hanged in Calicut, first mothers were hanged with their children tied to necks of mothers. That barbarian Tipu Sultan tied the naked Christians and Hindus to the legs of elephants and made the elephants move around till the bodies of the helpless victims were torn to pieces. Temples and churches were ordered to be burned down, desecrated and destroyed. Christian and Hindu women were forced to marry Mohammadans and similarly, their men were forced to marry Mohammadan women. Those Christians who refused to be honoured with Islam were ordered to be killed by hanging immediately. These atrocities were told to me by the victims of Tipu Sultan who escaped from the clutches of his army and reached Varappuzha, which is the centre of Carmichael Christian Mission. I myself helped many victims to cross the Varappuzha River by boat.

The report of Major Fullarton, who fought Tipu at Mangalore states:

(During the siege 1783) Tipu”s soldiers daily exposed the heads of many innocent Brahmins within sight of the fort for Zamorin and his Hindu followers to see. It is asserted that the Zamorin rather than witness such enormities and to avoid further killing of innocent Brahmins, chose to abandon the Palghat Fort... It was not only against the Brahmins who were thus put in a state of terror of forcible circumcision and conversion; but against all sections of Hindus. In August 1788, a Raja of the Kshatriya family of Parappanad and also Trichera Thiruppad, a chieftain of Nilamboor, and many other Hindu nobles who had been carried away earlier to Coimbatore by Tipu Sultan, were forcibly circumcised and forced to cat beef.

Lewis B. Boury quoted in P.C.N. Raja: (11)

To show his ardent devotion and steadfast faith in the Muhammaddan religion, Tipu Sultan found Kozhikode to be the most suitable place. It was because the Hindus of Malabar 'refused to reject the matriarchal system, polyandry and half nakedness of women' that the 'great reformer' Tipu Sultan tried to honour the entire population with Islam.

Tipu's proclamation against Nairs in 1788:

"From the period of the conquest until this day, during twenty-four years, you have been a turbulent and refractory people, and in the wars waged during your rainy season, you have caused a number of our warriors to taste the drought of martyrdom. Be it so. What is past is past. Hereafter you must proceed in an opposite manner, dwell quietly and pay your dues like good subjects and since it is the practice with you for one woman to associate with ten men, and you leave your mothers and sisters unconstrained in their obscene practices, and are thence all born in adultery, and are more shameless in your connections than the beasts of the fields: I hereby require you to forsake these sinful practices and be like the rest of mankind; and if you are disobedient to these commands, I have made repeated vows to honour the whole of you with Islam and to march all the chief persons to the seat of Government."

P A Syed Muhammad, the historian wrote that Tipu's invasion was similar to that of Genghis Khan and Timur ( Muslim Charithram).

The prominent royal families, who have migrated from Malabar and settled in Travancore are 16:

Neerazhi Kovilakam(Changanacherry), Lakshmipuram Palace (Changanacherry ), Ennakkad Gramathil Kovilakam (from where Communist leader George Chadayammuri found his life partner), Paliyakkara(Tiruvalla), Nedumparampu, Chempara Madom, Ananthapuram Kottaram (Haripad), Ezhumattur Palace, Aranmula Kottaram, Varanad Kovilakam, Mavelikara, Murikoyikkal Palace, Mariapilly(Kottayam), Koratti Swarupam, Kaipuzha Kovilakam, Kottapuram.

Prominent Historian Ilamkulam Kunjan Pillai has recorded that with the forcible conversion of Hindus by Tipu, there was a steep hike in the Muslim population in Malabar. According to Vadakkumkoor Rajaraja Varma, Tipu enjoyed in destroying temples and adorning the idols with the heads and entrails of cows. He spared the two temples inside the Srirangapatanam fort because he believed in astrological predictions.

The list of temples attacked by Tipu:

Thaliparanm, Thrichambram, Thali,

Sree Valliyanat Kavu,Thiruvannur,Varaykkal,Puthur,Govindapuram,

Thalikunnu,Thirunnavaya,Thiruvangat,Vadakara,Ponmeri,

Chalakudi,Mannumpuram,Kalpathi,Hemambika,Kachamkurissi,Palakkad Jainatemple,Keraladeeswaram,Thrikandiyur,Thriprangat,

Kodikunnu,Thrithala,Panniyur,Sukapuram,Edappatt Perumparamp,

Maranelira temples of Azhvancheri,Vengeri,Thrikulam,Ramanattukara,

Azhinjilla,Indianur,Mannur,Venkidangu,Parambathli,Panmayanad.

Maniyur Masjid was a temple; Ponnani Thrikkav temple became Tipu's arsenal. The Jaina temple at present Sulthan Bathery became Tipu's gun godown, and hence it acquired the place name, Sultan's Battery. Its original name was Ganapathivattam.

In 1789 Tipu sent Gulam Ali, Gaji Khan and Darvedil Khan with troops into Coorg by way of Siddhesvara. where they took up strong positions and seized grain, men, women and children while burning houses that they pillaged. They set fire to the Padinalkanadu temple. Later the 'Malayalam' (Malabar region) people joined the Coorgs. Tipu sent Gulam Ali into Malabar but en route, Gulam was attacked by the Coorgs. Gulam managed to reach Malabar where he burnt down the Payyavur temple and attacked that region.

That same year (1789), when Tipu was marching against the Nairs at Calicut who had become rebellious, he heard of another rebellion in Coorg. He sent a force towards Coorg under Burhan ud Din and Sayed Hamid. Tipu himself crossed the Tamarasseri(Tamrachadi) Ghat and entered the Malabar region. There he ordered some of the inhabitants to be converted (made Asadulai), placed Officer Ghafar in command there and had a wooden fort or stockade built.

__________________________________________

1. Quoted in C K Kareem/Kerala Under Haider Ali and Tipu Sultan

2. N. A. D., Fgn. Pol. Sec. Proc., Dec. 15, 1789; p. 2882, Cornwallis to Powney

3. Mia Carter, Barbara Harlow (31 December 2003) /Archives of Empire: Volume I. From The East India Company to the Suez Canal p. 174

4. Mohibbul Hasan (2005) History of Tipu Sultan 

5. John Clark Marshman (1863) / The History of India, p. 450 

6.Veeraraghavapuram, Nagam Aiya (1906) /  Travancore State Manual

7. P K Balakrishnan / Tipu Sultan

8.W. Kirkpatrick /Select Letters of Tipoo Sultan /  London 1811

9. K.M. Panicker /Bhasha Poshini, August, 1923

10. K M Panicker    

11. Raja PCN /Religious Intolerance of Tipu Sultan 

© Ramachandran

THE MURDER OF RAJA KESAVADAS

The Cause of his Death was Arsenic Poisoning

Raja Kesavadas(1745-1799) was the first individual in Travancore to be raised to the position of Dewan, showing an amazing ability in different spheres, as varied as finance, commerce, infrastructure and military. Enjoying complete freedom under Dharmaraja, appointing his relatives to key posts in the palace, he virtually reigned supreme and the British gave him the title, Raja. The death of the King pushed him into misery, losing all his assets, and eventually, the coterie around the new King, poisoned him to death, making him a tragic figure in the history of Travancore.

Accounts of his life indicate that Kesavan was an illegitimate son of a woman called Kaliamma Pillai, of Kunnathur in Vilavamkode. His father is said to be a Chief in the army, who allowed the destitute Kaliamma to stay in his home when she sought a job in the palace. Everything about his father seems to be fiction: he doesn't have a name, and the biographers of Kesavadas escape midway through the story saying his father left his job and became a Sannyasin. Later, she lived with a Thriprayar-born priest of the Munchira Madam temple and had four more children: Kumaran Thampi, Thathi Pillai, Chempakakutty Pillai and Neelamma Pillai. Police Commissioner K Padmanabhan Thampi and Dr K Raman Thampi were from the Thathi Pillai family branch. 

After becoming Dewan, Kesava Das built homes for each of his sisters, at Kunnathur, Kakkurichi and Thevikode, and his mother lived with the younger sister at Kunnathur. Kaliamma had a brother, Raman, whom the historian P Sangunni Menon mistook as the father of Kesavadas, thereby referring to him, as Raman Kesavan, or, the historian just gave a name for the father.

Kesavadas Statue, 2013

Acute poverty drove the uneducated Kesavan at age 12 to win daily bread for the family and he joined as an apprentice accountant of a Chettiar at Puthukkadai. The Chettiar was also a kind of secretary to the influential trader, who owned a fleet of ships, Poovar Pokku Moosa Marikkar, with a large warehouse at Thengapattinam. Kesavan joined Marikkar at Thengapattinam, picked up a few languages from workers of the ships, and the knowledge of Hindi helped him to land a job at the palace when he accompanied Marikkar to see Dharmaraja. The King, on holiday, was miserably trying to prepare a reply in Hindi, to a letter from the Carnatic Nawab. Kesavan was assigned the job to write the palace orders and became Rayasam (Head, Commerce) in 1765 and Samprathi (Head, Finance)  in 1768. 

Palino da San Bartolomeo, the Carmelite missionary who came to India towards the end of July 1776,  in his book,  A Voyage to the East Indies, mentions meeting Kesavadas as Samprathi. Samprathi was an important job in the palace. Paulinus has described a meeting with Dharmaraja from which we understand that the missionary had learnt Amarakosam! Paulinus met the King again in 1784, with Portuguese grammar. He interfered in the conflicts Christian laymen had with the priests, on behalf of the King, in which Kesavadas helped him. He also records, Kesavadas spoke to him about Hindu scriptures.

He was in the position of Samprathi for 20 years, when the attack of Tipu Sultan became imminent. Hyder Ali, after Cochin agreed to give him, two lakhs and eight elephants as tribute,  pressurized Travancore, for 15 lakhs and 30 elephants. Since the state had the support of the English East India Company and Carnatic Nawab, the King rejected the demand. In 1788, when, Krishnan Chempaka Raman was promoted as Dalava, Kesavadas replaced him as Sarvadhikaryakkar, or, Chief Secretary. Dharmaraja retired to Aluva, performed a Yaga and went to Mavelikkara. Krishnan Chempaka Raman passed away, and on 22 September 1789, Kesavadas was made Dalava, but he preferred the title, Dewan, and changed his name to Kesavadas, from Kesava Pillai.

War with Tipu

 

He brought pepper and cardamom under state monopoly, raising funds for war efforts. He bought the Kodungallur, Azhikotta (Ayikotta) Forts from the Dutch on 21 July 1789, for 3 lakhs, blocking the entry of Tipu to Cochin and Travancore. The angry Tipu decided to seize the Forts, started the march from Coimbatore, and entered Cochin in November. He sent a letter to Dharmaraja with three demands. (1) All the Malabar royal family members who have sought asylum should be sent back. (2) The forces from Kodungallur and Azhikotta should be withdrawn since the agreement with the Dutch is invalid. (3) Since Mysore has suzerainty over Cochin, Travancore should demolish the Nedunkotta that it has built in Cochin.

Dharmaraja

Dharmaraja refused to accede to the demands, replying he is related to Malabar; he himself was the son of an adopted Kolathiri Princess. Another threat fell upon Travancore when Governor John Holland declared Travancore buying the Forts, invalid. Raja appointed Kesavadas the Military Chief to devise the war strategy.

Tipu reached Thrissur on 14 December and breached the Fort on the morning of the 29th. They were defeated by the Travancore forces on 1 January 1790. Tipu, who got injured, falling in the trench, became lame for life. His palanquin, crest, rings and the ornaments on his body were confiscated by Travancore. The casualty on the Travancore side was 200;2000 on Tipu's side, if the history written by Dewan T Madhava Rao, could be believed. From Tipu's side, Jeevanna Rao, Buttaiya, one Rajput and five Europeans were taken prisoners. The Europeans were imprisoned at Udayagiri Fort and the others in Padmanabhapuram. Records show all of them were given, rice and ghee. Mohibul Hassan, the historian, has accepted the letter written by Tipu to Governor John Holland, which portrays the war as just a border dispute. Tipu's force was 15,000 strong. One doesn't need such a huge force to negotiate a border dispute.

Paulinus

The furious Tipu came again in April with reinforcements. Nedunkotta, which was built taking 13 years, was demolished within 6 days. The Travancore force retreated to Kodungallur, and the Travancore force under Captain Flory in Kodungalur Fort, fled from the scene. The army of Tipu under M Laly, on 8 May, razed the Fort to the ground. Tipu reached Aluva. Kesavadas returned to Thiruvananthapuram and wrote a letter to the Governor General Cornwallis in Kolkata, against the Holland brothers, John and Edward, who were Governors of Madras from 1789 February to 1790 February,  complaining about the English Force remaining neutral. Edward Holland was Governor for only 7 days. The rampage of the victorious Tipu has been described by Paulinus, who was staying at Varapuzha. There was an exodus of refugees. The Hollands, known for bribes, had been removed, and William Medows had taken over. 

The British declared war against Tipu.

The retreated Kesavadas was asked to go back to the North by the Raja. Tipu, making Aluva his camp, unleashed cruelties in Alangad, Paravur and Kunnathunad.For the fortunate Kesavadas, nature interfered, and monsoon rained early in May. The gunpowder of Tipu became damp. The movement was made impossible by the floods in the Periyar River. When the news came that the English planned to attack Srirangapattana, Tipu returned on May 24. He never came back. Kesavadas went and stayed at Srirangapattana, to help the British in the war. A letter he is supposed to have written from there, requesting more funds, is there in the history written by Sangunni Menon-it has a lot of Islamic words. But the important thing in the letter is the reference to Samprathi Kunjuneelan Pillai, in the last line. It says the letter should be read by Pillai and then, he should brief the Raja. Kunjuneelan Pillai became the central character in the murder of Kesavadas, later.

Wellesley

Travancore paid 14 lakhs as war expenses and was asked to pay 10 lakhs every year, for protection. On his return from Srirangapattana, Kesavadas was briefed on the debt, and by his efforts, Governor General Cornwallis waived further payment. Kesavadas concentrated on the rehabilitation of the royal family members from Malabar. Surprisingly, the Zamorin, who was then 70 plus, wished to stay in Travancore again, and the Crown Prince, Krishna Raja was sent to Kozhikode, instead. The continued stay of the Zamorin affected the life of Kesavadas directly, because the Jayanthan brothers of Uthiyeri, Malabar, who plotted against him, had come with the Zamorin, though there is no record to show the Zamorin wished to be adopted to the Venad family!

In the peaceful atmosphere that followed, Kesavadas built the Alapuzha port and stayed there. He built a house for the Chettiar, who gave him his first job. Most of the families of Travancore began naming their male child, Kesavan. He took the initiative in signing the treaty of April 26, 1798, with the British, after Lord Wellesley became Governor General, in May. Wellesley, in appreciation, gave him the title Raja.

Napoleon

Fortunes dwindle

The fortunes of Kesavadas began to dwindle, after the death of Dharmaraja on 17 February 1798. He lived only a year more, poisoned to death on 21 April 1799.

The successor of Dharmaraja, Balarama Varma (1798-1810) was just 16, with no administrative experience because, till that time, Kesavadas was only informing the King, after taking decisions himself. The prince was never part of the administration. Dharmaraja had become a puppet of Kesavadas and the British. The suzerainty of Carnatic Nawab over Travancore was transferred to the British by the treaty of 1798, by Kesavadas. He would have continued to be powerful, had he been successful in improving the financial mess. 

Kesavadas continued to be the Dewan for the next year, till the new King finished observing the obsequies of the dead uncle. The Sraddha, after a year, was celebrated with an extravaganza by Kesavadas, trying to get into the good books of the new King. Dharmaraja had four consorts; the young Balarama Varma also had four women from those four families. The Thampis from those houses advised him, in the absence of Kesavadas, who was stationed at Alapuzha. The distance between them became huge, and Balarama Varma took the reins after the Sraddha. All the key positions were held by the relatives of Kesavadas: his brother-in-law, Padmanabhan Chempaka Raman was, Kizhakumukham Sarvadhikaryakkar. His nephew, Irayimman Thampi(not the poet), was in Thekkumukam, with the title, Peshkar. The army was divided into two, making his brother, Kumaran Thampi, a General and the Chief of one Division. His loyal official Kunjuneelan Pillai was Samprathi. The British, made, Major John Alexander Bannerman, an old friend of Kesavadas, who was the Commander of the Subsidiary Force, a Resident of Travancore and Cochin. Since Bannerman(1759-1819), who captured and hanged, Veerapandya Kattabomman, was staying in Cochin, the friendship with Kesavadas grew since, Alapuzha was, close.

Guanxu

In these circumstances, it was difficult to remove Kesavadas. But Balarama Varma, who depended on the Jaynthan Nambudiri brothers from Uthiyeri (Udayagiri), avoided every encounter, with Kesavadas. The brothers, Jayanthan Sankaran, Jayanthan Jayanthan and Jayanthan Subramanyan had entered the palace service through the good offices of, Zamorin, who had sought asylum in Thiruvananthapuram. Jayanthan Sankaran influenced the King to cede the area known as Karappuram(Cherthala), to Cochin, and the messenger, Thottappaya Nambudiri, with the order was intercepted by Kesavadas at Paravur, Kollam, en route to Cochin, and the order was torn into pieces. When Jayanthan was carried, in a procession, on a palanquin, used by Dharmaraja, Kesavadas admonished him, saying it was seditious. The palanquin after the death of the King had to be abandoned, at the Pallakkupura, at Pondar Street, Sreekanteswaram, because the dead body was carried in the palanquin, to the burial ground. Kesavadas was suspended immediately, and put under house arrest.

Kesavadas

Kesavadas died on the arattu day at Sreevaraham, Thiruvananthapuram, 21 April 1799, in front of a relative's house, after returning from a dinner at the Palace. The French doctor Seytres, who was appointed the Commission to inquire into the death, reported to Resident Colin Campbell Macaulay (1759-1836), who took over in January 1800, that Kesavadas, after dinner, had complained of stomach pain and numbness of the tongue. Though the King was against the inquiry, the Resident ordered the arrest of the accused, Kunjuneelan Pillai. The King vouched for his innocence and even the relatives of Kesavadas didn't accuse him. The doctor's diagnosis was that Kesavadas died of food poisoning. The charge sheet accused Kunjuneelan Pillai of paying Rs 2000 for mixing the poison in the food.

When Macaulay went on military duty to Palayamkottai, all the relatives of Rajakesavadas were murdered, including General Kumaran Thampi, the only brother of Kesavadas and nephew Peshkar Irayimman Thampi. Kunjuneelan Pillai was held responsible for killing both. Though Pillai may have been responsible for killing Kumaran and Irayimman, who were ambitious, the role of Kunjuneelan in the murder of Kesavadas is disputed, because, he was loyal to Kesavadas, was personally recruited by him, and he was not in the good books of the  Dewan Velu Thampi. While Velu Thampi was once loyal to Macaulay, Kunjuneelan was steadfast in his loyalty to Travancore. Kunjuneelan was selected Samprathi by Kesavadas when he left that job for the position of Dewan. Kunjuneelan was removed from that post after the murder of Kesavadas and Jayanthan Subramanyan was appointed instead. If he had poisoned Kesavadas, he would have been in the post, if not promoted.

Veluthampi

The public suspected that the sorcerer Palanattu Nambudiri, married to the sister of the Jayanthan brothers, was behind the murder. He was put on trial for practising black magic and was deported from the state. Kunjuneelan was on very good terms with Balarama Varma, hence, hated by Macaulay. Not only the King, the brother-in-law of Kesavadas, Parassala Padmanabha Pillai, had also exonerated, Kunjuneelan. The four people, who had testified against Kunjuneelan had detracted later. But the Chief of Army, Marthandan Cempaka Raman and Chief Secretary, Krishnan Chempakaraman had held Kunjuneelan guilty, in the murder of Kumaran and Irayimman. 

When the Chief, Marthandan Chempaka Raman had only the position of Colonel, Kumaran Thampi was appointed creating the senior post of General. Likewise, Kesavadas had created the new post of Peshkar to accommodate his nephew. Kumaran Thampi had sent letters of protest to the British when Ayyappan Chempakaraman was made Dewan after Jayanthan Sankaran and when his own brother-in-law Parassala Padmanabha Pillai was appointed Dewan. Kumaran and Irayimman were killed when Kumaran continued to send letters after Velu Thampi became Dewan. The suspicion that Kunjuneelan was behind the King's order to kill Velu Thampi also seems baseless. The jobless Kunjuneelan was called to Thiruvananthapuram, from Padmanabhapuram, by the King, sending a messenger, and reinstated.

Simon Bolivar

In reverse diagnosis by famous Neurologist Dr K Rajasekharan Nair, the cause of the death of Kesavadas has been ascertained as arsenic poisoning,based on the symptoms. He is not in bad company-Napoleon Bonaparte died of arsenic poisoning, 22 years after him, in 1821. The cause of death was found by examining the preserved hair, from his dead body. Simon Bolivar and second to the last emperor of China, Guangxu were also the victims of arsenic, mixed in food. Chempaka Raman Pillai, Foreign Minister in the INA provisional government was, poisoned to death by Hitler. It was a slow death from food poisoning.

There is no evidence, but the death of King Balarama Varma (1782-1810), when he was just 28, is suspected to be a murder. Coronated on 18 February 1798, he ruled for 12 years, a country in turmoil, seeing the rebellion and suicide of Velu Thampi, in February 1809. The King died in mysterious circumstances, on November 7, 1810.

Reference:
1. Raja Kesavadas/V R Parameswaran Pillai
2. Marthandavarma Muthal Munro Vare/K Sivasankaran Nair
3. Tragic End of Raja Kesavadas and his Family/Dr B Sobhanan
4. A Voyage to the East Indies/Paulinus

See my Post,MURDER OF KOTTAYAM KERALA VARMA