Tamil Nadu in 1700-1761
Edited by Gemini for clarity
The Landscape in 1700
At the close of the 17th century, Tamil Nadu was a patchwork of powers:
The Marathas: Established in the Thanjavur Maratha dynasty and remaining a potent force in the Deccan.
The Madurai Nayaks: Holding sway over the Madurai region and polygars further south.
The Nawab of the Carnatic: Serving as the Mughal representative for the Tamil region.
European Powers: Remaining minor players confined to small coastal enclaves.
1700–1745: Nawab rises
While this period was relatively stable, minor skirmishes occurred. One notable legend is that of Desingaraja; the Nawab of the Carnatic attacked the Gingee Fort after the local chieftain, Tej Singh, fell into tax arrears—a battle later immortalized in local folklore.
The primary story of these 45 years, however, was the decline of the Madurai Nayaks. Three events stand out:
1707: The Ramnad Sethupathi declared independence from the Madurai Nayaks, emerging as a third regional power.
1736: Madurai fell to the Nawab of Arcot. In a famous betrayal, the Queen Regent Meenakshi requested aid from Chanda Sahib (nephew of the Nawab of Arcot) to quell a rebellion. Chanda Sahib swore his support on a fake Quran (actually a brick wrapped in cloth), then seized power and declared himself the Nawab of Madurai.
1740: Tamil Nadu became a playground for the Deccan powers. Threatened by the fall of Madurai, the Thanjavur Marathas called for reinforcements from the Deccan. Maratha forces descended upon Tamil Nadu, killed the Nawab of Arcot, and captured Chanda Sahib. Their dominance was brief; the Nizam of Hyderabad soon dispatched a massive army to drive the Marathas out and reinstate the Nawab of Arcot.
1746–1748: The First Carnatic War and the European Flex
The European "flex" began when the French East India Company occupied Fort St. George. This was an extension of the War of the Austrian Succession in Europe, with the capture led by La Bourdonnais and Dupleix, the Governor of Pondicherry.
This incensed Anwar-ud-din Khan, the Nawab of the Carnatic, who still viewed the Europeans as mere tenants. He dispatched a massive force to discipline the 'insolvent' French, but the resulting Battle of Adyar became a singular pivot point in history. A small, disciplined French unit—relying on rapid-fire field artillery and synchronized infantry drills—shattered the Nawab’s vastly superior numbers. As we have noted before, this was the moment the veil was lifted: for the first time, European-style warfare dismantled the traditional Indian army. In a single afternoon, the Europeans ceased being traders with muskets and emerged as the new players on the political chessboard
Hostilities continued with a failed French attempt on Fort St. David (where a young Robert Clive first saw action) and an unsuccessful British siege of Pondicherry. The war ended in 1748 with the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, which saw Fort St. George returned to the British.
1749–1754: The Second Carnatic War and the European Dominance
The French Governor Joseph François Dupleix, having witnessed the superiority of his troops, began interfering in local politics to monetize his military advantage. This triggered a "tag-team" succession war following the deaths of the Nizam of Hyderabad (1748) and the Nawab of Arcot (1749). While these appointments were technically the purview of the Mughal Emperor, the central empire had been hollowed out following Nadir Shah’s invasion in 1739. The European powers filled the void and decided to intefere.
The two sides aligned as follows:
Team France: Supported Chanda Sahib (for Arcot) and Muzaffar Jung (for Hyderabad). Chanda Sahib had the support of his old base in Madurai; the polygars
Team Britain: Supported Muhammad Ali Khan Wallajah (for Arcot) and Nasir Jung (for Hyderabad). The British gathered allies—including Mysore and the Thanjavur Marathas.
The French initially dominated after the Battle of Ambur (1749), briefly installing their candidates in power. The British-backed Nawab, Anwar-ud-din, was killed in the battle, and his son, Muhammad Ali, fled to the safety of Trichy Rockfort. With a small British garrison protecting him, this ancient stronghold became the most critical battlefront in the Second Carnatic War.
Chanda Sahib soon laid siege to the fort, intending to end the last of the resistance. However, the British struck back with a brilliant diversion: Robert Clive’s Siege of Arcot (1751). This forced Chanda Sahib to pull thousands of troops away from Trichy to defend his capital. Weakened and desperate, Chanda Sahib was eventually betrayed and captured by Manakji, the general of the Thanjavur Marathas, and immediately beheaded. This made Wallajah the undisputed Nawab of Carnatic. Yusuf Khan aka Marudhunayagam and his regiment served under Chanda Sahib and the French. He laid siege to the Trichy fort. But, after the fall of Chanda Sahib they entered the service of the Engish East India Company.
The Carnatic war should have ended here but it did not. Muhammad Ali reneged on his promise to the Mysore and refused to hand over Trichy and surrounding regions as payment. Mysore now laid siege on the Trichy fort for a long 3 year period. The siege had the coolest crossover in History. On the Mysore side the siege involved a young army general, Haider Ali, who would later become the Mysore Sultan. We have written about Haider Ali and his coin here. Yusuf Khan was this time fighting for the English and built his reputation breaking through enemy lines to provide supply to the city. His loyalty was cemented through an interesting suplot. Through Ponniappan, who was in Yusuf Khan's service, the Mysore offered Yusuf Khan large bribes and positions to turn against the English. Yusuf Khan refused the bribe and instead exposed Ponniappan as a turncoat to the British.
The war ended with the Treaty of Pondicherry (1754). Mysore had to withdraw because its frontiers were threatened by the Marathas. The French ended up with a puppet as the Nizam of Hyderbad and got the Nothern Circars as payment for installing him. The British installed Wallajah as the Nawab of Arcot. The Nawab was hugely in debt (called the Arcot debts) for all the services the British rendered. We shall see how this would lead to the Polygar Wars By the end of the Second Carnatic War, the European powers moved from being players to masters on the political chessboard
Post 1755, after the Treaty, the Nawab of Carnatic made his older brother Mahfuz Khan the Governor of Trichy, Madurai and the South. Mahfuz Khan was in Trichy Fort and we will see how he played a part in the Polygar Wars. He also issued his own coin
1758–1760: The Third Carnatic War and the British East India Supremacy
We won’t go into exhausting depth with the Third Carnatic War. Honestly, it's the least interesting of the three, and the history books often relegate it to a mere footnote. The primary outcome, however, was monumental: clearing the field for the British East India Company and permanently removing their only true European rival—the French.
As hostilities between France and Britain resumed in Europe (the Seven Years' War), the Carnatic once again became a bloody theater of war. The French, now led by the aggressive Count de Lally, struck first, even managing to capture Arcot. However, things came to a final head at the Battle of Wandiwash (1760).
The British had captured the fort at Wandiwash, and when the French arrived to take it back, they were decisively beaten and driven all the way to the coast. The British then laid siege to Pondicherry, captured Lally, and—in a fit of " scorched earth" pragmatism—razed the city to the ground.
The French were eventually handed back the keys to the rubble in 1763 as part of a broader global truce. But there was a catch: they were strictly limited to commercial trade. No fortifications, no armies, and no more dreams of an Indian Empire.
Over a short 15-year period (1745–1760), we see the British East India Company transition from traders with muskets to the dominant power in Tamil Nadu. On paper, the Nawab of Arcot remained the nominal ruler of the Carnatic. Technically, the Company didn't "own" or govern a single acre outside the walls of Madras. But in reality, the roles had flipped. The Nawab was drowning in debt to the Company and relied entirely on British bayonets to keep his throne. The Nawab's army was essentially units loaned by the Company for which he paid the Company.
Comments
Post a Comment