Siege of Seringapatam (1799)
This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (November 2008) |
Siege of Seringapatam | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Part of the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War | |||||||
The Last Effort and Fall of Tipu Sultan by Henry Singleton | |||||||
| |||||||
Belligerents | |||||||
Mysore | |||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Sipahsalar Sayyid Abdul Ghaffar Sahib † | |||||||
Strength | |||||||
50,000 |
20,000 soldiers 10,000 volunteers | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
1,400 killed and wounded | 6,000 to 10,000 killed |
The siege of Seringapatam (5 April – 4 May 1799) was the final confrontation of the
Opposing forces
The battle consisted of a series of encounters around Seringapatam (the anglicised version of
British troop composition
When the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War broke out, the British assembled two large columns under General
The British forces consisted of the following:[3]
- 19th Regiment of (Light) Dragoons
- 25th Regiment of (Light) Dragoons
- 12th (East Suffolk) Regiment of Foot
- 33rd (1st Yorkshire West Riding) Regiment of Foot
- 73rd (Highland) Regiment of Foot
- 74th (Highland) Regiment of Foot
- 75th (Highland) Regiment of Foot
- 77th Regiment of Foot
- Scotch Brigade [later 94th Regiment]
- Regiment de Meuron (Swiss mercenaries in British pay)
The Indian (sepoy) forces consisted of the following:[3][4]
- 1st Madras Native Infantry
- 2nd Madras Native Infantry
- 1st Madras Native Cavalry
- 2nd Madras Native Cavalry
- 3rd Madras Native Cavalry
- 4th Madras Native Cavalry
- Madras Pioneers
- Madras Artillery
- 1st Bengal Native Infantry
- 2nd Bengal Native Infantry
- Bengal Artillery
- 71st Coorg Rifles
Siege
Seringapatam was besieged by the British forces on 5 April 1799. The
The breach
The Governor-General of India,
The leader of the British troops was Major General David Baird, an implacable enemy of Tipu Sultan: twenty years earlier, he had been held captive for 44 months. The storming troops, including men of the 73rd and 74th regiments, clambered up the breach and fought their way along the ramparts.
On the night of 3 May some officers crossed over to the glacis, examined the breach and the manner of attacking the fort (Lushington, Life of Harris, p. 325). It was probably on this occasion that it was arranged between the English officers and Mir Sadiq that the assault should take place at midday([6] p. 313).
Storming of Seringapatam
The assault was to begin at 1:00 p.m. to coincide with the hottest part of the day when the defenders would be taking refreshment. Led by two forlorn hopes, two columns would advance upon the defences around the breach, then wheel right and left to take over the fortifications. A third reserve column, commanded by Arthur Wellesley, would deploy as required to provide support where needed.
At 11:00 a.m., on 4 May 1799, the British troops were briefed and whiskey and a biscuit issued to the European soldiers, before the signal to attack was given. The forlorn-hopes, numbering seventy-six men, led the charge. The columns quickly formed, were ordered to fix bayonets, and began to move forward.
As the hour approached, Mir Sadiq withdrew the troops stationed at the breach under the pretext of distributing their pay. There was no one to protest against such a measure. Sayyid Abdul Ghaffar, who was very loyal to the Sultan, was killed by a cannon ball. Immediately after the Sayyid was killed, the traitors made a signal from the fort holding out a white handkerchief to the English troops who were assembled in the trenches, waiting for such a signal[6] p. 313-314).
The storming party dashed across the River Cauvery in water four feet deep, with covering fire from British batteries, and within 16 minutes had scaled the ramparts and swept aside the defenders quickly. The British follow-up columns turned right and left, sweeping along the inside of the walls until they met on the far side of the city.
Death of Tipu
The column that rounded the northwest corner of the outer wall was immediately involved in a serious fight with a group of Mysorean warriors under a fat officer, which defended every traverse. The officer was observed to be discharging hunting weapons loaded and passed to him by servants. After the fall of the city, in the gathering dusk, some of the British officers went to look for the body of Tipu Sultan. He was identified as the fat officer who had fired hunting weapons at the attackers, and his body was found in a choked tunnel-like passage near the Water Gate.
Benjamin Sydenham described the body as:
wounded a little above the right ear, and the ball lodged in the left cheek, he had also three wounds in the body, he was in stature about 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) and not very fair, he was rather corpulent, had a short neck and high shoulders, but his wrists and ankles were small and delicate.
He had large full eyes, with small arched eyebrows and very small whiskers. His appearance denoted him to be above the Common Stamp. And his countenance expressed a mixture of haughtiness and resolution. He was dressed in a fine white linen jacket, chintz drawers, a crimson cloth round his waist with a red silk belt and pouch across his body and head.
He had lost his turban and there were no weapons of defence about him.[7]
Legacy
All members of the British-led forces who took part in the siege were awarded a
Two cannon captured by the British during the battle are displayed at the
Much of the site of the battle is still intact including the ramparts, the Water Gate where the Tipu Sultan's body was found, the area where the British prisoners were held, and the site of the destroyed palace.
Around 80 men of the Swiss ‘de Meuron Regiment’, who fell during the siege, and their family members are buried in the Garrison Cemetery, Seringapatam.[9]
Depictions in literature
Wilkie Collins's novel The Moonstone begins with the looting of the jewels removed from Seringapatam in 1799 from Tipu's treasury. The siege was also depicted in H.M Milner's play ""Tippo Saib, Or The Storming of Seringatam" in 1823 at the Royal Colburg Theatre on the South Bank, London. The siege and Tipu's death also received considerable attention in France, as Tipu had been viewed as an ally of the French, with the most prominent being Étienne de Jouy's "Tippo-Saëb,tragédie" which premiered at the Comédie-Française in 1813 with Talma in the lead role.
The Battle of Seringapatam is the main conflict in the novel Sharpe's Tiger, by Bernard Cornwell.
Memorial by the Mysore government
-
Memorial the siege of Seringapatam (1799) by the Mysore government, Seringapatam
-
European officers killed in the siege of Seringapatam (1799), Seringapatam
-
Forces engaged before Seringapatam (1799), Seringapatam
-
Forces engaged before Seringapatam (1799), Seringapatam
-
Memorial to the siege of Seringapatam (1799), Seringapatam
See also
- Anglo-Mysore Wars
- Garrison Cemetery, Seringapatam
- Regiment de Meuron
- Seringapatam medal
References
Cited sources
- ^ Burton, Lady Isabel (1879). Arabia, Egypt, India: A Narrative of Travel.
- ISBN 9788131300343.
- ^ a b Macquarie University "Seringapatam 1799: British Regiments". Archived from the original on 7 October 2008. Retrieved 9 January 2009.
- ^ "History of the Madras Army". E. Keys at the Government Press. 27 July 1882 – via Google Books.
- ^ "Mysorean Military Commanders and Officials". Seringapatam 1799. Retrieved 10 June 2019.
- ^ )
- ^ "Tipu Sultan throne finial to be auctioned - Indian Express".
- ^ Mayo, John Horsley (1897). Medals and Decorations of the British Army and Navy, Volume 1. A. Constable & Co. p. 134. Retrieved 10 June 2019.
- ^ Kumar, M T Shiva (9 March 2013). "There is life at the cemetery". The Hindu. No. Bangalore. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
Further reading
- Jac Weller, 2006, Wellington in India, Greenhill Books, London, ISBN 978-1-85367-397-9. (Review.)
- ISBN 978-0-8317-5646-8.