VANCHINATHAN

Vanchinathan (1886 - June 17, 1911) , popularly known as Vanchi, was an Indian Tamil independence activist. He is best remembered for having shot dead Ashe, the Collector of Thirunelveli and having later committed suicide in order to evade arrest.
 Personal life

Vanchinathan was born in 1886 in Shenkottai to Raghupathy Iyer and Rukmani Ammal. His actual name was Shankaran. He did his schooling in Shenkottai and graduated in M.A. from Moolam Thirunal Maharaja College in Thiruvananthapuram. Even while in college, he married Ponnammal and got into a lucrative Government job.
Freedom Movement

On June 17, 1911, Vanchi assassinated Ashe, the district collector of Tirunelveli, who was also known as Collector Dorai. He shot Ashe at point-blank range when Ashe's train had stopped at the Maniyachi station, en route to Madras. He committed suicide thereafter. The railway station has since been renamed Vanchi Maniyachi.

Vanchi was a close collaborator of Varahaneri Venkatesa Subrahmanya Iyer (normally shortened to V.V.S.Aiyar or Va.Ve.Su Iyer), another freedom fighter who sought arms to defeat the British.
 Trivia

In the movie Kappalottiya Tamizhan, Actor Balaji played the role of Vanchinathan. Sivaji Ganesan roled as Va.U. Chidamparam
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== == More about the incident: == == A.R. VENKATACHALAPATHY

With the family of Robert William Escourt Ashe, the only British official to be assassinated during the freedom struggle in South India.

I ARRIVED at Dublin airport on a Ryanair flight on Bloomsday in 2006 - it commemorates events in James Joyce's Ulysses, all of which took place on June 16, 1904, in Dublin. My trip was to be punctuated by more than one such coincidence.

The man I had come to meet had no difficulty in spotting me; I was probably the only Indian in that crowd. He was a tall, handsome man with a grey beard and heavy spectacles. We exchanged pleasantries. After he paid for the parking ticket and jumped into the car we looked at each other, fumbling for the right words.

PICTURES: FROM THE ASHE FAMILY ALBUM/ COURTESY ROBERT ASHE

ROBERT WILLIAM D'ESCOURT Ashe with his wife, Mary, and children. It is not clear when and where this picture was taken. This is probably the first time a picture of Ashe is being published.

If I was a bit edgy and he a little inquisitive it was but natural, for the purpose of my visit was to research the man who had killed his grandfather.

On June 17, 1911, at Maniyachi railway junction, between Tirunelveli and Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu, Collector Robert William d'Escourt Ashe was killed by R. Vanchi Aiyar of Senkottai. Ashe was the first and, as subsequent history showed, the last British official to be assassinated during the course of the freedom struggle in South India. As Subramania Bharati remarked, \ldblquote The terrorist movement in the Madras Presidency was still-born." J.C. Molony, who succeeded Ashe, called it "the blackest political crime ever committed in South India".

A chapter in A. Sivasubramanian's Tamil monograph "The Ashe Murder and the revolutionary movement in India" (1986) has a chapter titled "Who is this Ashe?" Two decades of research into colonial documents in the Tamil Nadu Archives in Chennai, the National Archives of India in New Delhi, and the India Office Library of the British Library had failed to throw much light on Ashe.

Then, in Spring 2006, I was Charles Wallace Visiting Fellow at the Centre of South Asian Studies at the University of Cambridge. Among the holdings of the centre was a box called "Ashe papers". I pounced on it and with help from the archivist Kevin Greenbank traced the source of the papers. In the correspondence file was an Ashe address in Newmountkennedy, County Wicklow of Ireland, to which I shot off a letter. A few days later, one evening, I went to the Wolfson College computer room to check my mail. "J.R. Ashe" flickered in the inbox. Janet, 87, was the wife of Ashe's son Arthur. It was a pleasure making contact, she wrote. Could I possibly visit her? Her son and daughter-in-law would also love to meet me!


THE ASHE MEMORIAL established in Tuticorin in 1913. The octagonal mantapam is set in a garden at the eastern end of the Great Cotton Road.

Now, a month later, I was in Dublin. The Ireland I knew through literature was one of poverty. I saw none of it though, Ireland being the fastest-growing economy since its integration with the European Union.

Some 50 miles (80 kilometres) south of Dublin, Robert Ashe took a detour to his country house, Griesemont. We drove past a deserted Quaker village complete with an abandoned mill. Carolyn, his wife, welcomed us. The house was big, and as I wandered through it I saw books everywhere, lined on shelves, stacked on landings and even in the toilet. I began to feel at home.

Curiously, for a family whose forebear had met with violent death in the line of duty in the colony, it had continued its colonial links. Robert's father had served in the Indian Army until 1947. But, surprisingly, a family with such a well-preserved cache of family papers and an evident interest in books knew little about the assassination except as family lore. David Davidar's The House of Blue Mangoes had kindled some interest fanned by their daughter studying history at Edinburgh.

BY SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

A VIEW OF the memorial today. An amount of Rs.3,002 was collected as subscription almost exclusively from Indians for the memorial.

Another coincidence struck me the next day, June 17. It was the 95th anniversary of the Ashe murder. Robert, too, remembered. I began rummaging through the papers and was fortunate to spot some real nuggets. As I pored over the manuscripts, we talked - I reconstructing the background to the assassination and Robert filling me in on family information. As the day passed, a genuine friendship had formed and there was little trace of the edginess of the previous evening.

It is also extraordinary how time can erase historical bitterness if only people chose to. When we opened a bottle of wine that evening and toasted to Ashe's memory, Robert movingly toasted to Vanchi as well. He had died the same day, barely minutes after Ashe's killing. (When, later, I sent Robert a picture of Vanchi, he wrote, "What a lovely young face he has! Have just been reading a novel in our book club - Bel Canto by Ann Patchett - in which the young revolutionaries all seemed to look like that and all got shot by the government soldiers in the end. Vanchi, on the other hand, took his own life: to protect his comrades? Or to become a martyr?")

Ashe came from an Anglo-Irish family that traced its origins to the 16th century. Until the disestablishment of the Church in Ireland, the Ashes were all Protestant Reverends. One St George Ashe had even been the provost of Trinity College, Dublin, in 1692. A certain Sir George Ashe was a member of Jonathan Swift's Trinity-based intellectual circle.

Robert William d'Escourt Ashe was born on November 23, 1872, to Dr Isaac and Sarah Ashe at Sprackburn, Letterkenny, Ireland. His father was resident medical superintendent of Central Criminal Asylum, Dundrum, until he was killed, in 1891, by an inmate. Ashe studied at the High School, Dublin. In 1892 he entered Trinity College, Dublin, winning the First Entrance Prize and also the Vice-Chancellor's Prize for a poem "On the Tercentenary of Trinity College, Dublin. In 1894 Ashe passed fortieth among 61 successful candidates in the Indian Civil Service (ICS) examination. On December 4, 1895, he arrived in India, where he began his career as an Assistant Collector and rose up to be District Magistrate and Collector.

V.S. WASSON

A SKETCH OF R. Vanchi Iyer, who killed Robert Ashe on June 17, 1911, at Maniyachi railway junction.

In 1907, Ashe found himself posted in the southernmost corner of the Presidency, in Tirunelveli. After a period of long leave he rejoined duty on February 17, 1908. The two months he spent officiating in the Tuticorin division were to be fateful. Tuticorin, a major port in the Presidency, also had a major spinning mill, the Coral Mills, managed by the European firm A. & F. Harvey. The Harveys were also the agents of the British India Steam Navigation Company, which had a virtual monopoly over the trade between Tuticorin and Colombo. After the eventful months in Tuticorin, Ashe was posted out to Godavari. He took charge of Tirunelveli district on August 2, 1910, as Acting Collector.

On June 17, 1911, Ashe boarded the 9-30 a.m. Maniyachi Mail at Tirunelveli junction. With him was his wife, Mary Lillian Patterson, who had arrived from Ireland only a few days earlier. They had married on April 6, 1898, in Berhampore; Mary was about a year older than Ashe. They were on their way to Kodaikanal where their four children, Molly, Arthur, Sheila, and Herbert, lived in a rented bungalow.

At 10-38 the train pulled in at Maniyachi. The Ceylon Boat Mail was due to arrive at 10-48. As the Ashes sat facing each other in the first class carriage, waiting for the Boat Mail to arrive, a neatly dressed man with tufted hair and another young man wearing a dhoti approached the carriage. The former boarded the carriage and pulled out a Belgian-made Browning automatic pistol. The bullet hit Ashe in the chest and he collapsed. The sound of the pistol shot was absorbed by the howling wind.

Vanchi's letter


THE TOMBSTONE ERECTED in 1912 by Ashe's fellow-officers at the English Church in Palayamkottai, Tamil Nadu, where he was interred.

After the shooting the assassin ran along the platform and hid in the latrine. Some time later he was found dead, having shot himself in the mouth. In his pocket was found the following letter:

The mlechas of England having captured our country, tread over the sanathana dharma of the Hindus and destroy them. Every Indian is trying to drive out the English and get swarajyam and restore sanathana dharma. Our Raman, Sivaji, Krishnan, Guru Govindan, Arjuna ruled our land protecting all dharmas and in this land they are making arrangements to crown George V, a mlecha, and one who eats the flesh of cows. Three thousand Madrasees have taken a vow to kill George V as soon as he lands in our country. In order to make others know our intention, I who am the least in the company, have done this deed this day. This is what everyone in Hindustan should consider it as his duty.

sd/- R. Vanchi Aiyar, Shencottah

The contents of the letter indicated that the murder was political and caused great apprehension. The timing of the assassination indicated a protest against the impending coronation.

A massive manhunt followed the assassination. Vanchi, born c. 1886, was the son of Raghupathy Iyer, a former employee of the Travancore temple board. He was married to Ponnammal, and his infant daughter had died recently. The father and son were estranged; Raghupathy Iyer even refused to perform his last rites. The investigation showed that Vanchi had been a forest guard in Punalur and had been to Baroda (now Vadodara) and Pondicherry (now Puducherry) in the recent past. In Senkottai, Ottapidaram and Tuticorin, seized correspondence indicated the existence of a secret society, complete with blood oath and Kali puja. Also found was extremist literature, especially two pamphlets printed in the Feringhee Destroyer Press, calling on Indians to kill Europeans. It was clear that the society had links with other secret societies based in Bengal. Investigations also indicated that the assassination had a direct link with the political events in the district in 1908.

Fourteen persons were arrested and charged with conspiracy to murder Ashe. Two others committed suicide - Dharmaraja Aiyar took poison, while Venkateswara Aiyar slit his own throat. Madasamy, widely believed to be Vanchi's accomplice and who was seen running away after the assassination, was never traced.

As can be expected in conspiracy cases in the colonial context, testimony of approvers formed the backbone of the prosecution's case, which revealed the intent of the crime. O. Somasundaram Pillai, one such approver, testified that in a conversation Vanchi had stated that "English rule was ruining the country and that it could only be removed if all white men were killed, [and] went on to suggest that Mr Ashe should be first killed as he was the head of the district and an officer who had taken a leading part in the suppressing of the Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company [founded by the freedom fighter V.O. Chidambaram Pillai; Madasamy was one of his staunch supporters] and the events of 1908".


A MEMORIAL TABLET for Ashe made around 1912.

During the trial, if Chief Justice Charles Arnold White and Justice Ayling of the Madras High Court accepted this approver's testimony, the third judge, C. Sankaran Nair, went even further. He narrated the sequence of events, starting from the fervent swadeshi propaganda in Tirunelveli district, and elaborated on the efforts of VOC in launching the Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company and leading the Coral Mills strike and on the eventual arrest of Swadeshi movement leaders, which led to riots. He hit the nail on the head with the observation: "The murder of Mr Ashe was a direct consequence of this bitter hostility. \'85 [T]hat Mr Ashe's conduct at Tuticorin with reference to the conviction of Subramania Siva and Chidambaram Pillai and with reference to the [Swadeshi] Steam Navigation Co. was one of the main causes of the murder".

Though the conspiracy aspect of the case could not be proved to the satisfaction of the High Court bench, nine of the 14 accused were convicted and sentenced.

The Ashe murder case did not end with the trial and conviction. The government strongly suspected that the Indian nationalists who had sought refuge in the French enclave of Pondicherry were directly connected with the murder. A huge posse of policemen, spies and informers was stationed in Pondicherry. The Ashe murder remained, in the official mind, a spectacular example of what could go wrong.

Tirunelveli, where Ashe arrived in February 1908 was no ordinary district. The Swadeshi movement had burst out in 1905 in the wake of Lord Curzon's ill-advised move to partition Bengal in an effort to stem the rising tide of nationalism. As a response, the nationalist movement, after decades of constitutional efforts, began to take on the proportions of a mass movement with genuine popular participation. Madras, for long derided as "the benighted province", soon joined the swadeshi fray. In December 1906, the government found out that "the only district from which any suspicion of anti-British feeling is reported is Tinnevelly district and there only in the town of Tuticorin".

Ashe was stationed in Tuticorin. While the swadeshi enterprise across India was limited to such tokenisms as making candles and bangles, in Tuticorin it took the spectacular form of running nothing less than a steam shipping company. The man behind this, Chidambaram Pillai, was closely aligned to the extremist faction of the Congress and was a follower of Bal Gangadhar Tilak. VOC galvanised local merchants to launch the Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company. For VOC, the shipping company was a patriotic venture, a step on the road towards shaking off the colonial yoke. The company gave the British India Steam Navigation Company a run for its money.

Shortly after his return from the Surat Congress at the end of December 1907, VOC organised political meetings on Tuticorin beach and in Tirunelveli. A particularly fiery orator, Subramania Siva spoke in these meetings. Emotionally charged speeches directed against the European ruling classes and calling for a free and representative government were made. By all accounts - even those of the police and the CID - the effect was electrifying.

On February 27, 1908, about 1,000 workers struck work in the Coral Mills of Tuticorin. Section 144 of the CrPC was imposed and additional police were brought in. Ashe, as the divisional officer in charge, called for a meeting with VOC. In the face of a united workforce and strong leadership, the workers' demands were met and they returned to work. It is likely that Ashe took this as a personal defeat.

The daily swadeshi meetings continued, with thousands of people attending them. When the movement's leaders planned to celebrate the release from prison of Bipin Chandra Pal, the Bengali swadeshi leader, as "Swarajya Day", the district administration swung into action. VOC, along with his swadeshi colleagues Subramania Siva and Padmanabha Iyengar, was arrested on March 12, 1908.

The violence in Tirunelveli was more widespread than elsewhere and the damage more extensive and compounded by fatalities. How, then, did Ashe become unpopular, ultimately paying for it with his life? asked Robert. I mentioned a report in The Hindu that stated that Ashe had walked into the Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company after office hours and demanded to inspect the share register. As I narrated this to Robert, flipping through the family papers, I came across an extraordinary letter by the legal adviser of the company testifying to this transgression.

In the popular mind, Ashe was linked personally to the downfall of the Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company, the pride and symbol of the Swadeshi movement. The surviving personal letters from Collector Wynch to Ashe reveal also a personal, racial and colonial interest in suppressing the uprising and wrecking the company.

Despite his role being appreciated by his immediate boss, Collector Wynch, Ashe was transferred to Godavari district within a month of the "riots". In March 1910, and later in August 1910, he returned as acting Collector of Tirunelveli.

In a sense, Ashe was an unlikely target of the conspiracy. There were no casualties in Tuticorin, while four persons were shot dead in Tirunelveli. In any case, Wynch, as the Collector of the district, was in charge. Even in the press it was Wynch rather than Ashe who was the target of criticism. Ashe was criticised in the press but not so much as Wynch. Another railed figure in the whole affair was A.F. Pinhey, who sentenced VOC to two terms of life imprisonment.

Ashe, based as he was in Tuticorin, was, however, seen to have a direct and hands-on role in crushing the Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company. Hence, it is not surprising that he was hated more than Wynch, who was based in the district headquarters a good 80 km away. Along with the reality that in the Indian mind Ashe's role made a big and hateful impact, he fell victim probably to the fact that he was in the wrong place at the wrong time, with both Wynch (on furlough leave) and Pinhey (retired on annuity) out of reach of the fledgling revolutionary terrorist organisation.

News of Ashe's murder was received with outrage and disbelief. The moderates and the government-fearing intelligentsia, who thought that the events of 1908 were an aberration, panicked. A spectacular show of loyalty followed. Two memorials were planned and executed. At the English Church, Palayamkottai, where Ashe was interred, his fellow-officers erected a tombstone. The Tuticorin Municipality built an octagonal mantapam set in a garden at the eastern end of the main Great Cotton Road. The subscription of Rs.3,002 was collected almost exclusively from Indians. The 38 subscribers included a few who had backed the Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company and who had testified in VOC's favour in the Tirunelveli sedition trials.

Mary and her children returned to Exeter, her hometown, in April 1912 on a decent government pension. She never remarried. Their four children were aged 12, 10, eight and six at the time of Ashe's death. Arthur went on to become a colonel in the Indian Army and retired in 1947. It is curious that he should have chosen to work in a country that had claimed his father's life. Robert said his father had a deep love for India even though he or his family never visited Maniyachi or Tirunelveli. Herbert died in combat during the Second World War. The girls remained unmarried. Janet thought that their spinsterhood had much to do with Mary. Apparently, Mary, who died in 1954, never let people forget the tragedy she had suffered, of seeing her husband being shot at point-blank range right in front of her eyes.

The Ashe murder and Vanchi remain etched in Tamil memory. In some narratives it is seen as a watershed in the freedom struggle in Tamil Nadu. In a region short of patriotic martyrs, Vanchi, evoking the image of a selfless young man who laid down his life for a nationalist cause he believed in, secured a sacred halo. His name has been given to many radical characters in Tamil fiction and cinema.

As the centenary of the Ashe assassination approaches, it is likely that there will be some commemorative events. As he saw me off, Robert expressed the wish to visit Maniyachi in June 2011, but remarked in jest that he too might be shot. Perish the thought, I said, but if it came to that I promised a memorial.

A.R. Venkatachalapathy (chalapathy@mids.ac.in) is a historian and Tamil writer.

VELLORE SEPOY REVOLT

The Vellore Mutiny (July 10, 1806) was the first instance of a mutiny by Indian sepoys against the British East India Company. It predates even the Indian Rebellion of 1857 by half a century. The revolt, which took place in the South Indian town of Vellore, was rather brief, lasting only one full day but brutal, as mutineers broke into the Vellore fort and killed or injured 200 British troops, before they were subdued by reinforcements from nearby Arcot.

The reasons for the mutiny revolved mainly around resentment against changes in sepoy dress code in November 1805. Hindus were prohibited from wearing religious marks on their foreheads and Muslims were required to shave their beard and trim their moustache. This created a strong resentment among the soldiers. In May 1806, some revolting soldiers were sent to Fort St. George. Two soldiers — a Hindu and a Muslim — were given 900 lashes each and their services terminated. Nineteen soldiers were punished with 500 lashes each and forced to seek pardon from the East India Company.

The rebellion was also instigated by the sons of the defeated Tippu Sultan, imprisoned at the Vellore fort since 1799. One of Tipu Sultan's daughters was to be married on July 9 1806, and the plotters of the uprising gathered at the fort under the pretext of attending the wedding. Two hours after midnight, on July 10, the sepoys surrounded the fort and killed most of the Europeans. The rebels seized control by dawn, and raised the flag of the Mysore Sultanate over the fort. Tipu's second son Fateh Hyder was declared King.

However, a British Officer escaped, and alerted the garrison in Arcot. Nine hours later, the British 19th Light Dragoons, led by Sir Rollo Gillespie, and the Madras Cavalry entered the fort through gates that had not been fully secured by the sepoys. Nearly 350 of the rebels were killed, and another 350 injured before the fighting had stopped. Some accounts have it that 800 rebels died.

After the incident the incarcerated royals were transferred to Calcutta. The Governor of Madras, William Bentinck, was recalled, and the controversial interference with social and religious customs of the sepoys was abolished, as was flogging.

The British East India Company had paid little heed to the grievances of the sepoys. However they learnt little from this incident, general resentment culminating in the Mutiny of 1857, when similar circumstances of ignoring native sentiments nearly cost them the whole of India.

It is also interesting to note that the mutineers in Vellore planned to bring back the sons of Tippu Sultan to power, just as the mutiny in 1857 attempted to restore Mughal rule by re-instating Bahadur Shah Zafar II as Emperor of India.

Maaveran Dheeran Chinnamalai

Maaveran Dheeran Chinnamalai (Tamil: மாவீரன் தீரன் சின்னமலை born as Theerthagiri Gounder on April 17, 1756) was a Kongu chieftain and Palayakkarar from Tamil Nadu who rose up in revolt against the British East India Company in the Kongu Nadu, Southern India. He was born in Melapalayam, near Erode in the South Indian state of Tamilnadu.

He was one of the main leaders in the Polygar Wars and commanded a vast army made up of Kongu youths, notably during the Second Polygar War that took place in 1801-1802. A thousand-strong Kongu army under him took French Military training in modern warfare alongside Tipu's Mysore forces to fight against the British East India company. They helped Tipu Sultan in his war against the British and were instrumental in victories at Chitheswaram, Mazahavalli and Srirangapatna. After Tipu's death, Chinnamalai settled down at Odanilai in Kongu Nadu and constructed a fort there and defeated the British in battles at Cauvery in 1801, Odanilai in 1802 and Arachalur in 1804. Later, Chinnamalai left his fort to avoid cannon attack and engaged in guerrilla warfare while he was stationed at Karumalai in the Palani region. He was betrayed by his cook and was captured by the British who hanged him at Sankagiri Fort on Adiperukku day.
Early life

Theerthagiri Gounder comes from the Royal House of Palayakottai Pattakarar family of Kangeyam. Dheeran was born into the "Payiran Kootam". The Palayakottai Pattakarar family had the title of Mandradiar and controlled large tracts of land from their royal palace at Palayakottai. Dheeran Chinnmalai's grandfather "Kotravel Sarkarai Mandradiar" was issueless. He adopted two sons; the first son, Senapathy, was groomed by his first wife and the second, named Rathnaswamy, was groomed by the second wife. Both the adopted sons were educated at the palace as it was the custom those days for the people of Royal families. In course of time, the brothers got married. As per the tradition, the first son Senapathi took the titles of "Mandradiar" in the year 1731 and continued to control the lands from Palayakottai. The second son Rathnaswamy moved to nearby village named Melapalayam and took care of the farming of the lands that belonged to the Palayakottai Pattakkarar family.

Rathanaswamy and his wife Periyathal had six children in all – five sons and one daughter. The first son was Kulandaiswamy, the second was Theerthagiri, the third was Thambi, fourth was Kirlother and the fifth was Kuttiswamy. Their only daughter was named Parvatham. Theerthagiri Gounder who later became Maveeran Dheeran Chinnamalai was born in the English month of April, 1756.

The eldest son Kulandaiswamy and the last son Kuttiswamy mainly attended to farming and took care of the vast tracts of lands of the family. However, the three brothers Theerthagiri, Kilothar and Thambi soon devoted their attention to the administration and safety of the villages they ruled. They always rode on their horses throughout their jurisdiction and dispensed impartial and fair justice to all as Politics and Justice was the duty of Kshatriyas. They learnt the native martial arts of Silambam, archery and others from a very young age. They formed Kongu youth organizations for the betterment and welfare of Kongu region and its people. They also trained the Kongu youth in their native martial arts. They protected their areas from robbers, thieves and other evil doers. They conducted Village Panchayats which were the popular and speedy form of judicial systems in those days to resolve disputes arising out of land and civic nature between individuals and families.

In course of time, they got their sister Parvatham married to Ulagapuram Muthi Thirumalai Gounder. As they were rich, they conducted the marriage lavishly and made their sister happy by giving generous marriage presents in the form of jewellery, ornaments and vessels.
Dispute with Hyder Ali


When Mysore came under a Muslim king Hyder Ali, he soon started casting his spell on Kongunadu too. Hyder Ali started taxing and troubling the Kongu people. A Diwan of Hyder Ali, named Mohammed Ali, and a tax collector were troubling the farmers in the collection of the taxes in the Kongu area. They humiliated the farmers by confiscating their land – their only means of livelihood – away from them. Hearing the atrocity committed by the Mysore King's Diwan, Theerthagiri and his two brothers mounted on their horses to stop them and save the farmers from humiliation and get them back their lost rights. As they were searching for the Diwan, the Diwan and his party were returning to their tents with taxes. Theerthagiri met them on a road between Sivan Malai and Chenni Malai. They recovered all the taxes from the Diwan and asked him to go and report to the Mysore King that a "Chinnamalai" between Sivan Malai and Chenni Malai took what rightfully belonged to Kongu. Diwan became envious and said that Theerthagiri would face severe consequences for this action. When Diwan replied him that Kongunadu is under Hyder Ali, Theerthagiri told the Diwan that Kongus know how to rule themselves and that they do not need a Mysore King and asked the Diwan to tell Hyder Ali to better look after Mysore. He distributed the land and taxes back to the farmers. The story of this encounter with Mysore King's Diwan spread like wild fire and soon people named him as "Chinnamalai" for his act of bravery.

Mysore Diwan wanted to take revenge against Chinnamalai for standing up to the Mysore King for Kongu's rights. The Diwan sent a contingent of soldiers from Sankagiri. Theerthagiri and his soldiers met them on their way to Kangeyam at the Noyyal River and defeated them. This was the first battlefield experience for Chinnamalai and his young troop. Knowing that he has to meet Mysore King in the battle sooner or later, Chinnamalai collected an army of soldiers from all the Kongu villages. He gave the young Kongu soldiers training in warfare. Soon Chinnamalai and his young army's daring exploits earned the love and respect of the people in the Kongu region.[citation needed]
[edit] Tippu Sultan joining forces with Dheeran Chinnamalai

The palatial residence of the Royal Palayakottai Mandradiar in Kangeyam is popularly known as "அரண்மனை" (Aranmanai - Royal Palace) became a guest house for the all Kongu freedom and national activities. The Kongus are known for their friendliness and hospitality,[by whom?] the eldest brother Kulandaiswamy and his wife Kempayammal lived up to their reputation and took good care of the all the guests who visited them by providing food and shelter.

Hyder Ali died on 12 July 1782 and his son Tippu Sultan became the Mysore King. After Tippu became Mysore King, hostilities broke out between British and Tippu Sultan, as Tippu claimed sovereignty to his kingdom and refused to pay taxes to the British. Tippu Sultan wanted to raise a big army of soldiers to fight the British and invited the Kongus to join him to fight against the British who were left unchecked and unchallenged by the petty Kings who ruled India at that time and the allies of the British East India Company. Chinnamalai, and his brothers Kilother, Thambi decided to join with Tippu Sultan keeping in mind the larger national interest. They also took with them their loyal friend Karuppan and Velappan. Chinnamalai was the commander-in-chief of the Kongu Regiment. About thousand young Kongus joined the Kongu Regiment. They were given military training by French in modern warfare who were ready to help anyone in their global hegemony with the British. The war between Mysore King and the British are known as Mysore Wars. The fourth and crucial battle between Tippu took place in the year 1799. Chinnamalai's soldiers battled against the British at Malavalli front and caused severe damage to the British and their large number of allied forces. The Srirangapatnam war front was led by Tippu himself. In the battle that took place, Tippu was killed on 5 April 1799.
Battles against the British

After death of Tippu Sultan, Chinnamalai led all his soldiers through Kaveri River into Kongunadu. However, their loyal friend Velappan was captured by the British and remained in their custody. Velappan promised the British that he would act as their agent. Believing his words, they gave him a position in their army. However, Velappan remained loyal to Chinnamalai and sent notes concerning British activities and helped Chinnamalai in many ways.

After his return from the Mysore War to Kongu, Chinnamalai built a palace in a village called Odanilai. He advocated to all Kongus and the neighboring Palayakarars that they should all unite together and fight the British. At that time, Salem and Malabar areas were under the control of British. But, British could not control the Kongunadu due to opposition by Chinnamalai and his alliance. If the British wanted to travel to Malabar from Salem, they had to take a circuitous route through Mysore. Kongu soldiers were guarding Kongunadu and were preventing the entry of British through Kaveri River. The British wanted to take over the control of Kongunadu without a fight. They sent a messenger to inform Chinnamalai to accept the British Control of Kongunadu and pay the taxes. Chinnamalai refused the offer and challenged the British for the sovereignty of Kongunadu.

Although Velappan was serving the British, he informed Chinnamalai and warned him in advance of the British activities through some secret messengers. Chinnamalai knew that British would enter Kongunadu in course of time. He made preparations to the eventual fight with the British. During this time he built an ordinance factory at Odanilai to make war preparations to face the British.

During this time, Theeran Chinnamalai was generous to poets and learned men under his rule. He made Arunachala Kavi the poet of his kingdom. He also rewarded poet Punthurai Ambikapathi with large sums of gold coins and honored him in his kingdom. He punished the infiltrators sent out by the British into his Kingdom and made his kingdom safer for its subjects. In all, people lived a peaceful and happy life under his rule.

The British were very much annoyed that Theeran Chinnamalai was still being an independent King and soverign monarch in Southern India when most of the petty Indian kings who ruled at that time have sided with the British but him able to run his kingdom independently without yielding and subjugating to the British East India company's demands. The British decided to eliminate him and take the land by force. Initially, they sent out a troop of soldiers under the leadership of Colonel Makiskan to arrest Chinnamalai. Velappan who was in serving the British informed Chinnamalai of the British plan through his informers. As Chinnamalai was forewarned, he met Makiskan and his soldiers on the banks of Noyyal River and defeated them in the battle thoroughly. Makiskan was beheaded in the battle and it is said that this head was paraded in the villages of Kongu.

Hearing what had happened to Makiskan, the British sent a cavalry unit under Captain Harris to capture Chinnamalai. When Harris was approaching Arachalur, he heard the Puja sounds from the Arachalur Amman Temple. Thinking that Chinnmalai might be in the temple, Captain Harris entered the temple in search of Chnnamalai. As he could nor find him, he was greatly disappointed and proceeded to Odanilai where Chinnamalai's palace is located.

A sentry at the top of the palace noticed the movement of the troop led by Harris and immediately informed Chinnamalai what he saw. Chinnamalai planned to attack them alone with a hand grenade first. He advised his soldiers to attack them after he had a chance to throw the grenade at them. Chinnamalai mounted a horse and sped towards Harris and his troop. As Harris was still wondering why a single person was approaching him, Chinnamalai swiftly threw his grenade at his horse's side. The horse became bewildered and started running away from the bomb and the smoke. Harris lost control of his horse and pandemonium ensued. Meanwhile Chnnamalai's troop joined him. Harris and his troop had to withdraw . Chinnamalai and his troop drove all the way to Kaveri River in the north. This battle took place in the year 1802.

Hearing what has happened to Harris, the British decided to send in a troop carrying Cannons. As soon as Velappan knew of the British plan, he sent a word through the informers about the impending British attack on Odanilai. Chinnamalai used to wear a new pair of shoes every day. The informer wrote the news in a chit and left it in his shoes. When Chinnamalai was about the wear the shoes, he found the note from Velappan. After reading the note, he left in there by mistake which cost him dear later.

Chinnamalai consulted with his brothers for a plan of action. They decided to leave Karuppan in Melapalayam in a hiding. Chinnamalai and two of his brothers and the cook Nallappan decided to hide in the Karumalai area that is adjacent to well known Palani Malai. Karumalai area was full of thick forests and provided cover for the brothers to cover from the British attack.

The British came to Odanilai with their cannons and found that all had vacated the palace. When they were searching the palace area they found the note sent out by Velappan. The moment British came to know that Velappan was still being loyal only to his master Chinnamalai they shot him dead. They demolished the entire palace with cannon shots. They decided to search and eliminate Chinnamalai and his brothers.

Meanwhile, Chinnamalai and his brothers stayed during the day time in the Karumalai area and returned in the night to a house at the foot of the hills for dinner and little nap. They ate the food prepared by the cook Nallappan. They always carried guns for in the event of ever present danger.

Cook Nallapan was an informer and traitor. He was tempted to accept company's bribe and inform Chinnamalai and his brothers whereabouts. He secretly informed a British agent about Chinnamalai and his brothers and their daily routine of eating food in the house at the foot of the hills. The British dug an underground trench leading to the house and waited for Chinnamalai and his brothers.

As usual when the brothers were entering the house he served them food. That day, he cunningly asked the brothers to leave their guns on the floor, as there was no danger when they were eating food. The brothers believed his words and left their guns on the floor, as they did not know about his plans nor about who was acting behind the scenes.

When they were about to eat, Nallapan opened the secret door leading to the underground trench and allowed the British soldiers inside the kitchen. The British soldiers surrounded Chinnamalai and his brothers. With all the fury, Chinnamalai hit the traitor and killed him on the spot.

The British arrested Chinnamalai and his brothers and kept them in Sankagiri prison. A four person tribunal consisting of Genaman, Marvul, Horse and Backy Hart was formed. Their loyal servant Karuppan who was in hiding at Melapalayam also surrendered to the British. That tribunal asked Chinnamalai to accept the British rule over his Kingdom and pay taxes to the British. They also offered him amnesty if he tendered an apology. Chinnamalai refused the British offer and informed his decision to face the consequences.

Preparations were made to hang them by rope tied to a Tamarind tree located at the top of the Sankagiri fort. Chinnamalai, his two brothers and Karuppan were brought to the tree on the day of the hanging. They asked the surrounding soldiers to move away from them. Then each one tied the rope around his neck and jumped down. The British saw to that that Chinnamalai name did not become household name by banning books or any literature on Chinnamalai for a long period of time fearing their reputation among the people.[Theeran Chinnamalai and his brothers was hanged on 31 July 1805.
Remembering Dheeran Chinnamalai

The story of Dheeran Chinnamalai and his brothers historical battles with the British and the eventual sacrifice would have been completely consigned to oblivion but for the heritage of oral story telling that existed in our culture. The singular credit goes to Puzhavar Kulanthai who heard this story from his grand father during early 1900s. However, during the British rule it was not possible to write about the freedom fighters as the those literature was banned Puzhavar Kulandai could write about Chinnamalai only after independence from the colonial British rule. However, by the time he was about to write, he could not recollect everything his grand father told him. However he was able to create the first account of the story of Dheeran Chinnamalai and in course of time not just the Kongus but also people of India understood Dheeran Chinnamalai's role in their independence from the British.

The Tamil Nadu government earlier named a Transport corporation in the honour of Dheeran Chinnamalai. A "Mani Mandapam" (memorial) for Dheeran Chinnamalai was constructed in Arachalur, Erode district by the Tamilnadu government at a cost of about 30 lakhs. Tamil Nadu government recently placed a statue of Dheeran Chinnamalai in Chennai city

The Marudhu Pandiyar brothers

The Marudhu Pandiyar brothers (Periya Marudhu and Chinna Marudhu) ruled Sivagangai, Tamil Nadu towards the end of the 18th century. The Marudhu brothers were the first to issue a proclamation of independence from the colonial British rule from Trichy Thiruvarangam Temple, Tamil Nadu on 10th of June 1801, more than 56 years before what is generally said to be the First War of Indian Independence which broke out mainly in Northern India in the year 1857.

Childhood

The Marudhu brothers were the sons of Udayar Servai alias Mookiah Palaniappan (Agamudayar) Servai and Anandayer alias Ponnathal. Marudhu Pandiyar, the Elder was born on 15.12.1748 in a small hamlet called Narikkudi near Aruppukkottai in then Ramnad principal state (now Virudhunagar district). In 1753 the younger Marudhu Pandiyar was born in Ramnad. Their father "Udayar Servai" served as the General in the Ramnad state military and he shifted his family to Virudhunagar from Narikkudi.
Early life

The Marudhu brothers were trained in native martial arts at Surankottai which traditionally served as a training centre for the Ramnad state army. The Valari boomerang is a peculiar weapon unique to India used originally by the indigenous people (ancient Tamils) of the South Asia. Two forms of this weapon are used in India. These are normally made of wood. They are known as Valari sticks in Sangam Tamil. It is said that Marudhu brothers were great experts in the art of throwing the Valari stick and using it as a weapon. It is said that Marudhu brothers succesfully used Valari in their Poligar Wars against the British colonial forces. They contested in and won many competitions of martial arts and distinguished themselves as brave warrirors. The Raja of Ramnad Muthu Vijaya Raghunatha Sethupathy issued the title of Pandiyas to honour the legendary Marudhu Pandiyargal.
Bravery

The Raja of Sivagangai, a principal state near Ramnad, Muthu Vaduganadhar came to know of their brave and courageous deeds and requested the Ramnad king to assign them to serve the Sivaganga state army. They were appointed as Generals of the Sivaganga military and the brothers left an indelible impression in the military history of India.

In the year 1772, the English military of the British East India Company, under the command of Lt.Col. Bon Jour attacked the state at Kalayar Kovil. During the war, Raja Muthu Vaduganadhar lost his life in the battlefield. But the Marudhu brothers managed to escape along with Rani Velu Nachiar, wife of Raja Muthu Vadughanadhar and arrived at Dindigul which was ruled by Hyder Ali – the Sultan of Mysore as refugees. Hyder Ali supported them in all respects.

The Nawab of Arcot, the alliance partner of British East India Company, was not able to collect any taxes from the people of Sivaganga state for eight long years. He entered into an agreement whereby the rule of Sivaganga was restored to "Rani Velu Nachiar" after he collected his dues from her. The Marudhu brothers with 12,000 armed men surrounded Sivaganga and plundered the Arcot Nawab's territories. The Nawab on the 10th of March 1789 appealed to the Madras Council for aid. On 29 April 1789, the British forces attacked Kollangudi. It was defeated by a large body of Marudhu troops. It is said that the Marudhu brothers could kill a tiger without using any weapons.[citation needed]
Marudhu Pandiyars Battles against the British

They were in close association with Veera Pandiya Kattabomman of Panchalankurichi. Kattabomman held frequent consultations with the Marudhus. After the execution of Kattabomman in 17 October 1799 at Kayattar, Chinna Marudhu gave asylum to Kattabomman's brother Oomadurai (mute brother). But the British took this reason to invade and attacked Sivaganga in 1801 with a powerful army. The Maruthu Pandiyars and their allies were quite successful and captured three districts from the British. The British considered it such a serious threat to their future in India that they rushed additional troops from Britain to put down the Maruthu Pandiyars' rebellion. These forces surrounded the Maruthu Pandiyars' army at Kalayar Koil, and the latter scattered. The Maruthu Brothers and their top commanders escaped. They regrouped and fought the British and their allies at Viruppatchi, Dindigul and Cholapuram. While they won the battle at Viruppatchi, they lost the other two battles.
Administration

Marudhu brothers were not only warriors and noted for bravery, but they were very great administrators. Rani Velu Nachiar made a will and paved the way for Marudhu Pandiyar Elder to rule. Marudhu Pandiar younger was made the Dewan of the state. During the period from 1783 to 1801, they worked for the welfare of their subjects and the Sivaganga Seemai was made fertile. They constructed many notable temples like Kalayar Kovil, Sivaganga many Ooranis and Tanks.
Death

The Marudhu Pandiyars and many of their family members were captured at Cholapuram and they were infamously hanged on the English month of October 24, 1801.

VEERA PANDIYA KATTABOMMAN

Early life

Veerapandiya Kattabomman was born to Jagaveera Kattabomman and Arumugattammal on January 3, 1760. He had two younger brothers Dalavai Kumarasami and Duraisingam. Veerapandiyan was fondly called ‘Karuthaiah’ (the black prince) and Dalavai Kumarasami was nicknamed ‘Sevathaiah’ (the white prince) and since Duraisingam was a good orator he was nicknamed ‘Oomaidurai’ meaning the dumb (speach impaired) Prince. The name could be attributed as VEERAM in Tamil means Bravery and Veerajakkadevi a Hindu God worshiped by his family, hence the name JegaVeeraPandia Kattabomman.
Ancestors

Kattabomman ancestors are from Azhagiya Veerapandiapuram (Otta-pidaram of today) was ruled by Jagaveera Pandiyan. His minister Bommu, a brave warrior, was named after the god Sasta Ayyappan Swamy to describe his strength and fighting qualities. Over a period of time, the name became Kattabomman in Tamil. Katta-bomman ascended the throne after Jagaveera Pandiyan, who had no issue, as Adi Kattabomman, the first of the Katta-bomman clan.
Panchalankurichi

Legend has it that during a hunting trip into the forests of Salikulam (close to Azhagiya Pandiyapuram) one of the Kattabommans was amazed to see a hare chasing seven hounds. Believing that the land possessed the power to instil courage in his people, he built his fort there and named it Panchalankurichi.

On February 2, 1790, Veerapandiyan, 30, became the king of Panchalankurichi as Veera Pandia Kattabomman supposedly the 47th ruler of the region and the 5th ruler from the Kattabomman clan and a Palya-karrar (or Polygar) of the Madurai Nayak kingdom.
Role of Palayakkarars

Following its collapse in the mid-16th century, the Tamil governors of the Vijayanagara Empire broke away from the empire and established independent kingdoms. The old Pandiya country came to be governed by Naicker rulers in Madurai, who in turn divided their territories into 72 Palayams. These 72 Palayams were franchised to Palayakarrars (Tamil word) or Polygars or Poligars (a British Term), who had to administer their territories, collect taxes, run the local judiciary, and maintain a battalion of troops on behalf of the Naicker rulers of Madurai. Their function was a mixture of military governance and civil administration.

The regional/local chieftains and rulers who were earlier subordinates to the Madurai Kings became Polygars (or Palaya-karrar).
Origins of Dispute

The Nayak rule in Madurai which controlled the entire West Tamil Nadu after two centuries came to an abrupt end in 1736 when Chanda Sahib of Arcot seized the Madurai throne from the last queen of Madurai in an act of treason. Chanda Sahib was later killed after the Carnatic Wars and the territory came under the Nawab of Arcot. The Palaya-karrars of the old Madurai country refused to recognize the new Muslim rulers driving the Nawab of Arcot to bankruptcy, who also indulged in lavishes like building palaces before sustaining his authority in the region.

Finally the Nawab resorted to borrowing huge sums from the British East India Company, erupting as a scandal in the British Parliament. The Nawab of Arcot finally gave the British the right to collect taxes and levies from the southern region in lieu of the money he had borrowed. The East India Company took advantage of the situation and plundered all the wealth of the people in the name of tax collection. They even leased the country in 1750’s to a savage warrior Muhammed Yusuf Khan (alias Marutha Nayagam), who defeated and killed many of the Polygars and later got himself killed by the Arcot - British forces.

Many of the Polygars submitted, with the exception of Katta-bomman and a few others who formed an alliance with the Maruthu Brothers of Sivagangai.
Events

Kattabomman refused to pay his dues and for a long time refused to meet Jackson the Collector of the East India Company. Finally, he met Jackson at Ramalinga Vilasam, the palace of Sethupathi of Ramanathapuram. The meeting turned violent and ended in a skirmish in which the Deputy Commandant of the Company’s forces, Clarke was slain. Kattabomman and his men fought their way to freedom and safety, but Thanapathi Pillai, Kattabomman’s secretary was taken prisoner.

The Commission of Enquiry that went into the incident fixed the blame on Jackson and relieved him of his post, thinking the Company’s plan to take over the entire country gradually could be marred by Jackson’s fight with Veerapandiya Kattabomman.

The new Collector of Tirunelveli wrote to Kattabomman calling him for a meeting on 16 March, 1799. Kattabomman wrote back citing the extreme drought conditions for the delay in the payment of dues and also demanded that all that was robbed off him at Ramanathapuram be restored to him. The Collector wanted the ruling house of Sethupathis to prevent Kattabomman from aligning himself with the enemies of the Company and decided to attack Kattabomman.

The British also instigated his long time feuding neighbor Ettayapuram Poligar to make provocative wars over Kattabomman on their long pending territorial disputes.
War

Kattabomman refused to meet the Collector and a fight broke out. Under Major Bannerman, the army stood at all the four entrances of Panchalankurichi’s fort. At the southern end, Lieutenant Collins was on the attack. When the fort’s southern doors opened, Kattabomman and his forces audaciously attacked the corps stationed at the back of his fort, and slew their commander Lt. Collins.

The British after suffering heavy losses, decided to wait for reinforcements and heavy artillery from Palayamkottai. Sensing that his fort could not survive a barrage from heavy cannons, Kattabomman left the fort that night.

A price was set on Kattabomman’s head. Thanapathi Pillai and 16 others were taken prisoners. Thanapathi Pillai was executed and his head perched on a bamboo pole was displayed at Panchalankurichi to demoralise the fighters. Soundra Pandian Nayak, another rebel leader, was brutally done to death by having his head dashed against a village wall.
Capture and Sentence

Veerapandiya Kattabomman hid in so many places including thirumayam, virachilai and finally stayed at Kolarpatti at Rajagopala Naicker’s house where the forces surrounded the house. Kattabomman and his aides fled from there and took refuge in the Thirukalambur forests close to Pudukkottai. Bannerman ordered the Raja of Pudukkottai to arrest Kattabomman. Accordingly, Kattabomman was captured and on October 16, 1799 the case was taken up (nearly three weeks after his arrest near Pudukkottai).

After a summary trial, Kattabomman was hanged unceremoniously on a Tamarind tree in Kayathar (near Thirunelveli).

Some of the other noteworthy persons who were hanged along with Kattabomman were Veeraghechayan Naicker, Dali Ethalappa Naicker and Palayakarrars of Kaadalkudi, Nagalapuram Puthur, Vripachy, Sivagangai, to death by hanging on charges of treason.
Aftermath

The Fort of Panchalankurichi was razed to the ground and all of Kattabomman’s wealth was looted by the English soldiers. Few years later, after the second Polygar war, the site of the captured fort was ploughed up and sowed with castor oil and salt so that it should never again be inhabited by the orders of the colonial government.
Legend and folklore

In subsequent years, a good deal of legend and folklore developed around Kattabomman and the Marudu Brothers. Kayatharu, where Kattabomman was executed has remained a place of political pilgrimage.

In his Tinnevelly Gazetteer of 1917, H. R. Pate notes the presence, in Kayatharu, of "a great pile of stones of all sizes, which represents the accumulated offerings by wayfarers of the past hundred years. Folk songs recalling the heroism of the Poligar leaders remain alive in Tamil Nadu to this day..."

The popular Tamil slang for a traitor or committing treason is Ettapa or Ettapan, courtesy the Ettayapuram Polygar whom the British later conferred the title of Raja. But it is disputed that Ettapan committed treason Kattabomman was arrested by King of Pudukottai. The Campa Cola ground in Chennai belongs/belonged to Ettappan family. Lately there is cry that unfair portrayal of Ettappan in the film Kattabomman in which actor Sivaji Ganesan gave a great performance, is the main cause for this. It seems that Ma.Po.Si(Ma.Po.Sivanyanam) who wrote the dialogues for the film had some misunderstanding with the Ettappan family.
Honor and Monuments

Kattabomman became thus the pivot of the emerging feeling of Tamil nationhood. His story is celebrated in many legends and epic poetry in Tamil. Kattabomman is today recognised by the government as one of the earliest independence fighters opposing the British and has been hailed as the inspiration behind the first battle of independence of 1857, which the British called the Sepoy Mutiny.

    * In 1974, the Government of Tamil Nadu constructed a new Memorial fort. The Memorial Hall has beautiful paintings on the walls depicting the heroic deeds of the saga which gives a good idea about the history of the period. A cemetery of British soldiers are also seen near the fort.
    * The remnants of the old fort are protected by the Archaeological Survey of India.
    * At Kayathar, near Tirunelveli on the present day NH7, the place where he was hanged, there is another memorial for Kattabomman.
    * To commemorate the bicentenary on 16 October 1999 of Kattabomman’s hanging, the Government of India brought out a postal stamp in his honour.
    * India's premier communication nerve centre of the Indian Navy, at Vijayanarayanam, about 40 km from here, is named as INS Kattabomman.
    * Till recently (1999) the state transport buses of Kanniyakumari and Thirunelveli Districts were named Kattabomman Transport Corporation.
    * Veerapandia Kattabomman Panpattu Kazhagam (Veerapandia Kattabomman Cultural association) is an organisation named in his honour.
    * The district administration celebrates `Veerapandia Kattabomman festival' at Panchalankurichi on his anniversaries.

From Hindu Newspaper The district administration celebrates `Veerapandia Kattabomman festival' at Panchalankurichi

Later, he unveiled a huge portrait of Kattabomman at the function, which was held near the Kattabomman memorial fort constructed by the Government of Tamil Nadu in 1974.

Special pujas were conducted at Sri Devi Jakkammal temple, hereditary goddess of Kattabomman, located near the fort.

Members of Veerapandia Kattabomman Panpattu Kazhagam brought torches in as relay to the Kattabomman fort from places like Tiruchendur, Pudur, Soorangudi and Kulathur, to mark the occasion.

Hundreds of people thronged the Kattabomman fort, which was thrown open to the public on Friday, to get a glimpse of the beautiful paintings on the walls of memorial hall inside it, which depicted the heroic deeds of the saga.

The visitors were also told by the officials how the Britons sentenced Kattabomman along with Kaadalkudi Zamin, Nagalapuram Puthur Zamin, Vripachy Zamin, Sivagangai Zamin, Veeraghechayan naicker Zamin and Dali Ethalappa Naicker Zamin, to death by hanging on charges of treason.

Heirs of Kattabomman attended the function.
Movie

See Veerapandiya Kattabomman (film)

Much of the modern currency of the legend comes from the 1959 motion picture starring Chevalier Sivaji Ganesan in lead role portraying the life of Veerapandiya Kattabomman. The Movie was directed by B.R. Panthulu and Nadigar Thilagam Sivaji Ganesan got a wide international recognition and earned many international awards for his electrifying performance and is one movie the Thespian is most remembered for in his 45 years in filmdom. The film received rave reviews and adjudjed the best film at the Cairo International Film Festival and Sivaji received the best actor prize from Col. Nasser, the then president of Egypt.

PULI DEVAR The first freedom fighter in India

PULI DEVAR was the first man who fought against the British people in India


Puli Devar or Pooli Devar was a poligar (or palayakarar, this is a local chieftain) who ruled an area called Nelkatumseval or Avudayapuram situated now in the Sankarankoil taluk of Tamil Nadu.

He is recognised as one of the earliest opponent of the British rule in South India. He was involved in a vendetta with the Nawab of Arcot who in turn was supported by the British. His prominent exploits were his confrontations with Marudhanayagam, who later on rebelled against the British himself. All this happened in late 1750s and early 1760s, way before Kattabomman appeared on the scene. However little importance is given to these details.

Puli Devar was known for his astute diplomacy, cunningness and war strategy though he was much maligned by the British historians as a deceitful person who never kept his word. He remained invincible. He defeated a battalion of British and Nawab Soldiers on the banks of Thamirabarani. But he fell prey to the cunningness of the Nawab of Arcot. He was arrested by the British and led in a procession when he wanted to worship at the Sankaran kovil temple. So he was left alone in the Sanctum sanctorum. He sang lyrics praising the female deity. Then there was this sound of the handcuffs getting broken. When the troops rushed in, all they were able to find was the broken handcuffs and chains. The invincible hero turned invisible into the history.

Nelkatumseval was the headquarters of Puli Thevar, the first chieftain in Tamil Nadu to resist the British.

The author of the Thirunelveli District Gazetteer, H.R.Pate, observes as follows: "Nelkatumseval is chiefly memorable as having been in the eighteenth Century stronghold of the redoubtable Puli Thevar, who figured for many years as the leader of the Marava Confederacy against the troops of the Nawab and the Company. He had a shrewd insight into the political situation of the time and was a veritable thorn against the side of the Nawab's agents".

Pulithevar remains one of the illustrious figures in the chequered history of palayakkars. The vivacity of his character gave him an ascendancy over the western palayakkars, while his determined resistance to the Nawab's overlordship made him a potential enemy of the Wallajahs. He was in fact the principal architect of the coalition of the palayakkars organised against the Nawab. The Nawab acknowledged his victory by presenting him with a gold plate and sword.

Pulithevar is regarded as the First Ruler in Indian History, who sowed the seed, by his gallant resistance, to expel the foreigners from the soil. His services to the nation is honoured in many respects and the government of Tamilnadu has erected a memorial for him in Nelkattumsevval where there are the remnants of his palace.
Puli Thevan War

The scale of the revolts by local powers in the South, the first being as early as 1757. When Mohammed Ali, the Nawab of the Carnatic, supported by the Company, attempted to extend his control over the "Madurai" and "Thirunelveli" districts, the poligars rebelled. The western poligars, led by Puli Thevar of Nelkattumsevval, forged local alliances and then a grand alliance as they revolted against Mohammed Ali. Of necessity he had to seek John Company assistance, and, though battles were won and lost, the revolt was finally put down in 1761 by Yusuf Khan, who had been nominated the Governor of "Madurai" and "Thirunelveli" in 1758 by the British, despite Nawab Mohammed Ali's objections.

The western confederacy by nel kattum sevval. "nel kattum sevval" literally translates to "Rice tribute paying place", but after its' ruler puli Thevan's successful (initially) attempts at defying Mohammed ali, the name changed into nel kattan sevval ("place which doesn't pay rice tribute"). In effect by 1757, these paLayams had declared their independence.

Into this situation came yusuf khan aka mar

udhanayagam sent by the British to bring the poligars under control and make them pay kisthi. Earlier campaigns in 1755 by Mahfuz khan (mohammaed ali's brother;yusuf khan was a subordinate) were unsuccessful in subduing the poligars' partly because of their sticking to each other and partly because British troops had to be withdrawn to raise the french siege of Madras (by Lally). Yusuf Khan quickly intimidated the eastern poligars (no major details of the capitulation of panchalamkurichi is known) and moved against Pooli thevan. A series of sieges of Pooli Thevan's forts followed and eventually Nerkattansevval fort was reduced by British artillery. Puli thevan was captured and escaped/encountered on the way to incarceration. No verifiable records are found about him after his capture/escape. The rise of Western Poligars of south Tamil Nadu is literally the first war of Indian Independence and not the 1857 sepoy mutiny as written by Savarkar.