Mysore Resistance to British Expansion

The Kingdom of Mysore emerged as a major challenge to British territorial ambitions in South India during the second half of the eighteenth century. Originally a vassal state under the Vijayanagara Empire, Mysore came under the control of the Wodeyar dynasty in 1399. Following the death of Chikka Krishnaraja Wodeyar II, effective power shifted to ministers Devaraja and Nanjaraja. Hyder Ali, an officer in the Mysore army, overthrew Nanjaraja in 1761 and established control over the state. Hyder Ali modernized the Mysore military by establishing a modern arsenal at Dindigul in 1755 with French assistance. He incorporated European training methods, artillery tactics, and cavalry maneuvers into his forces. Under Hyder Ali and his son Tipu Sultan, Mysore expanded its control over the Malabar Coast, securing lucrative trade routes for spices, pepper, and timber. This commercial expansion brought Mysore into direct conflict with the British East India Company (EIC), which sought trade monopolies and political hegemony in the Deccan.

The Four Anglo-Mysore Wars

The British East India Company fought four military campaigns between 1767 and 1799 to neutralize Mysore.

First Anglo-Mysore War (1767–1769)

• Causes: The British formed a triple alliance with the Nizam of Hyderabad and the Marathas against Hyder Ali. Hyder Ali neutralized the alliance through diplomacy, buying off the Marathas and winning over the Nizam.
• Course: Hyder Ali launched a counter-offensive and reached the gates of Madras, surprising the British forces.
• Outcome: The war concluded with the Treaty of Madras in April 1769. It was a defensive alliance where both parties agreed to restore captured territories and assist each other in case of foreign attack.

Second Anglo-Mysore War (1780–1784)

• Causes: The British violated the Treaty of Madras by refusing to aid Hyder Ali when the Marathas attacked Mysore in 1771. The British capture of the French-controlled port of Mahe within Mysore territory in 1779 triggered open war.
• Course: Hyder Ali allied with the Nizam and the Marathas. He defeated Colonel Baillie at the Battle of Pollilur (1780). Sir Eyre Coote later defeated Hyder Ali at Porto Novo (1781). Hyder Ali died of cancer in December 1782, and his son Tipu Sultan continued the war.
• Outcome: The war ended with the Treaty of Mangalore in March 1784, signed on the basis of status quo ante bellum, where both sides returned captured lands and prisoners.

Third Anglo-Mysore War (1790–1792)

• Causes: Tipu Sultan attacked Travancore in 1789, a British ally, over disputes regarding the control of Cranganore and Ayacotta. Governor-General Lord Cornwallis formed a coalition with the Nizam and the Marathas against Tipu.
• Course: Cornwallis led the British forces, captured Bangalore in 1791, and besieged Tipu’s capital, Seringapatam.
• Outcome: Tipu Sultan signed the Treaty of Seringapatam in March 1792. Tipu surrendered half of his territory, paid a war indemnity of over three crore rupees, and surrendered two of his sons as hostages to the British until the payment was completed. The ceded territories were divided among the British, the Nizam, and the Marathas.

Fourth Anglo-Mysore War (1799)

• Causes: Governor-General Lord Wellesley introduced the Subsidiary Alliance system and demanded Tipu’s absolute submission. Tipu rejected the terms, citing his sovereign status and maintaining secret diplomatic contact with revolutionary France, the Ottoman Empire, and Arabia.
• Course: Wellesley launched a joint attack with troops from Bombay and Madras, supported by the Nizam. General Harris and Arthur Wellesley led the offensive against Seringapatam.
• Outcome: Tipu Sultan died defending the fort of Seringapatam on May 4, 1799. The British partitioned Mysore, keeping strategic coastal areas and handing parts to the Nizam.

Comparative Summary of Anglo-Mysore Wars

Reforms and Innovations Under Tipu Sultan

Tipu Sultan implemented comprehensive military, administrative, and economic reforms to strengthen Mysore against British expansion.

Military and Technological Innovations

Tipu Sultan developed iron-cased Mysorean rockets, which were used effectively during the Battles of Pollilur and Seringapatam. These artillery weapons contained black powder propellant housed in soft iron tubes, offering longer range and stability compared to earlier bamboo rockets. The British later studied captured Mysorean rockets to develop the Congreve rocket system. He also established state-owned workshops to manufacture flintlock muskets and heavy cannons.

Economic and Administrative Reforms

• State Trading Company: Tipu set up a state-monopolized trading network with overseas factories in Muscat, Jeddah, Basra, and Pegu.
• Agriculture and Taxation: He abolished the intermediary revenue farming system (Ijaradari) and established direct tax collection through state officials. He encouraged cash crop cultivation, including mulberry for silk manufacturing.
• New Calendar and Coinage: He introduced a new solar-lunar calendar (Maudi) and a modernized system of weights, measures, and gold, silver, and copper coins.

Post-1799 Administrative Realignment

After the death of Tipu Sultan in 1799, Lord Wellesley carved up the Mysore Kingdom. The core core territories were restored to the Hindu Wodeyar dynasty under five-year-old Krishnaraja Wodeyar III. A Subsidiary Alliance treaty was forced upon Mysore, allowing the EIC to garrison troops in the state at Mysore’s expense and intervene in internal governance. In 1831, Governor-General Lord William Bentinck took over direct administration of Mysore, citing misgovernance and rural rebellions such as the Nagar Rebellion of 1830. Direct British administration continued until 1881, when Governor-General Lord Ripon restored administrative powers to Chamarajendra Wodeyar X under the Rendition of Mysore.

Essential Facts for Quick Reference

Hyder Ali established the modern arsenal at Dindigul in 1755 with the help of French experts to train his infantry. The Battle of Pollilur in September 1780 resulted in a victory for Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan against British forces commanded by Colonel William Baillie. Tipu Sultan became a member of the French Jacobin Club in 1797 and planted a Tree of Liberty at his capital, Seringapatam, to mark his alliance with the French Republic. The Treaty of Seringapatam in 1792 forced Tipu Sultan to yield the districts of Baramahal, Dindigul, and Malabar to the British East India Company. British military engineer William Congreve reverse-engineered captured Mysorean iron rockets, developing the Congreve rockets used by the British military during the Napoleonic Wars. The Nizam received the districts of Gooty and Gurramkonda, while the Marathas obtained territories up to the Krishna River following the division of Mysore in 1799. Purnaiah, a prominent minister who served under Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan, was appointed as the first Dewan of Mysore under the restored Wodeyar ruler in 1799.