|
Haidar Ali
|
|
Details
|
- He was born in 1721 in a normal family. He entered the service of Nanjaraj and was appointed faujdar of Dindigul in 1755. He was uneducated but possessed a keen intellect. He was a man of great energy and daring determination. He was a brilliant commander and a shrewd diplomat.
- Haidar Ali soon found his opportunity in prevailing anarchy which led to the wars which involved Mysore for more than twenty years. He was clever enough to use the opportunities that came his way. And thus he gradually raised in the Mysore army.
|
|
Administration
|
- Though Haidar Ali was illiterate he was an efficient administrator. He took over Mysore when it was weak. There was anarchy prevailing everywhere after the collapse of Vijayanagar Kingdom.
- Mysore was also facing the crisis of efficient leadership. The state was divided and economy of state was also not doing well. There were chances of being captured by the neighbouring Marathas and Nizam of Hyderabad. Mysore was in crisis. It needed efficient leadership. Haider Ali recognised the problems and took control of situation.
|
|
Military Reforms
|
- He was well aware of the developments going on in world through the companies which came for trade. He was also worried with the calculation of his neighbours.
- Thus as soon as he took the throne he soon recognized the advantages of western military training and applied it to the troops under his own command. He established a modern arsenal in Dindigul in 1755 with the help of French experts.
|
|
Religion
|
- Though he was himself a staunch believer of Islam, he practiced religious toleration. He also gave priority to merit. Those who were capable were elevated up the order irrespective of the faith or religion he belonged. Thus he recruited many other officials in his administration. His first Dewan was a Hindu.
- He used to respect all the religions and allowed people to pursue their faith. He encouraged temple construction and religious activity of the Hindu majority Mysore province. This policy was also followed by his son Tipu Sultan. But there are also some historians who doubt the religious policies of Tipu Sultan.
|
|
Political Strategies
|
Came to Power
- In 1761, Haidar Ali overthrew Nanjaraj and established his authority over the Mysore state.
- He extended full control over the rebellious poligars (zamindars) and conquered the territories of Bidnur, Sunda, Sira, Canara and Malabar.
Good Negotiator:
- But Peshwa Madhavao I adopted an aggressive policy. Haidar Ali was defeated at Ratehalli in May 1764. After that a treaty was concluded. Haidar paid 28 lakhs as tribute and restored territories between the Krishna and Tungabhadra River.
- Again in 1766, the Peshwa marched against Haidar. Nizam Ali also joined the Peshwa in this conflict. But soon after Nizam Ali concluded an alliance with the British. This made Peshwa to march alone against Mysore state. Again Haider Ali was compelled to submit. Haidar agreed to pay a tribute of Rs 33 lakhs to the Peshwa and got back most of his territory including Sira, Chik Balapur and Kolar, but the Marathas retained Hoskote and some other places. Nizam Ali thought it proper to come to terms with Haidar.
Changing calculations with English
- In the beginning, Haidar looked upon the British power as hostile to him. He along with his cavalry made a sudden dash on Madras in March 1769. The English made peace in the next month providing for mutual restoration of conquest and a defensive alliance.
- As a realist, Haidar felt that the defensive alliance of 1769 must be the basis of his foreign policy. This will help him against the Nizam (his traditional enemy) and the Marathas (dangerous neighbour). But soon he was disappointed by the British. The English gave him no aid during the Maratha invasion of 1769-72. As he once said ‘I have wasted several years of my life by the supposition that England was a great nation.’
First Anglo Maratha War:
- The behaviour of English made him to change his propositions of foreign policy. He decided to support the Maratha, the Nizam and Bhonsle during the First Anglo-Maratha War, as a common struggle against the English.
- This brought in the hostilities of British towards Mysore and their ambition to gain control of Northern Circars. Also Nizam of Hyderabad instigated British against Mysore. But Haidar Ali managed the situation well despite having no allies. He defeated the British during first Anglo-Mysore war.
- French was a key Mysore ally and during the Anglo – French rivalry in Europe, Mysore also got dragged in. Thus second Anglo Mysore war started. Initially Mysore made significant success. But later on peace was reached between France and British. This also led to peace in Mysore war. But during this war, Haidar Ali died. Later on his son Tipu Sultan continued the war.
|
|
Tipu Sultan
|
|
Details
|
- He ruled Mysore till his death at the hands of the British in 1799. He was a man of complex character. He was young and energetic. He usually took quick decisions. Unlike his father he was not a great strategist. The Madras Governor, Lord Macartney, who was anxious for peace, concluded the Treaty of Mangalore (March 1784) on the basis of mutual restoration of conquests and release of prisoners. Warren Hastings regarded the treaty as ‘humiliating pacification.’
- Mysore under Tipu continued to grow as a formidable power. He sent envoys to France and Turkey (1787) and received some vague encouragement.
- The new Governor General, Lord Cornwallis, from the moment of his arrival, considered that a war with Tipu was inevitable.
- Tipu’s attack on the Raja of Travancore, an ally of the Company, freed the Governor-General from the strict policy of neutrality laid down by Pitt’s India Act of 1784. Lord Cornwallis found no difficulty in securing the alliance of the Peshwa and the Nizam. In this war (Third Anglo Mysore War, 1790-92), the Mysore ruler was defeated.
- The Treaty of Seringapatam (March 1792) deprived Tipu Sultan half of his territories. After the treaty, Tipu paid a visit to the Maratha general Haripant to get cooperation against the English. He warned him that English are their real enemy and not Mysore.
- Tipu Sultan was a brave man. Instead of being crippled by the British after the 3rd Anglo-Mysore war, Tipu showed unexpected signs of recovery:
- He strengthened the fortifications of Seringapatam,
- Reorganised the army and tried to establish contact with France.
- This threatened the British. Wellesley immediately called Tipu Sultan to sever his connections with the French and enter into a Subsidiary Alliance with the British. Tipu Sultan was a man of self respect. He could not accept the stern conditions made by British. This led to fourth Anglo-Mysore war. The war was brief but decisive. Seringapatam was taken by assault on May 4, 1799. Tipu Sultan himself was killed in action and his son surrendered. A chief of the old Hindu dynasty Wodeyars were made King of Mysore. Purnia, Tipu’s Brahmin minister, was made the de facto ruler. The new Mysore state entered into a subsidiary treaty (July 1799) with the British which reduced it to the position of a dependency of the Company. Thus the English had to fight four wars with Mysore in order to reduce it to complete subjection. This task was made easy by:
- the resources of the Company,
- the narrow policy of the Marathas and the Nizam who became the allies of the Company,
- Tipu Sultan was also responsible for driving the Indian powers to the arms of the Company. His military policy was also defective. He depended too much on defensive strategy and neglected cavalry which had rendered signal service in the campaign of his father.
- Tipu Sultan was a great ruler who took great pains to improve the prosperity of his dominion. He was a good learner. He used to read books of diverse fields. His personal library contained books on such diverse subjects as religion, history, military science, medicine, and mathematics.
|
|
Administration
|
- Like his father, Tipu Sultan was a good administrator. He managed his subjects well. He was religiously tolerant and had a distinguishing character. He was a great innovator.
- He was one who believed in philosophy of change with the times. This was symbolised with the introduction of a new calendar, a new system of coinage, and a new scales of weights and measures.
|
|
Foreign Relations
|
- Tipu Sultan was a man of international exposure. He used to be aware of the happening of the world. He was well aware of the French revolution and was an admirer of French revolution. He planted a ‘Tree of Liberty’ at Srirangapatnam and he was also in favour of forming laws which will be according to the principles of Republic.
- Jacobin club of Mysore was a revolutionary organisation formed by French in Mysore. Tipu Sultan became a member of a Jacobin Club. He called himself citizen Tippo. He also had trade relation with many countries. Under Tipu Sultan Mysore became a formidable power. He sent and received envoys especially from France and Turkey.
|
|
Military Organisation
|
- Because of warring nature of Indian states, they had to be prepared for war any time. Defence was the only option. So a person who could manage the military well was required. Father of Tipu Sultan Hyder Ali was himself a Military officer and had managed the security of Mysore in the best possible way.
- Like his father Tipu was also a capable ruler and military organiser. This is evident from the fact that during those days of general indiscipline among Indian armies, his troops remained disciplined and loyal to him to the last. His infantry was armed with muskets and bayonets which were manufactured in Mysore. So he also emphasised the modernisation of the arsenal. He used to keep various types of guns which were difficult to be recognised. In order to protect the Malabar Coast from attacks he made an effort to build a modern navy after 1796. He had fleet of boats in his navy.
|
|
Agriculture
|
- Agriculture was the major sector for economy in those days. It was a major source of revenue for kingdom. Every ruler had to frame such policies which would ensure the well-being of the farmers and also will earn a good amount of revenue for the kingdom. Tipu Sultan was well aware of all this. He made certain changes in Agricultural sector.
- He tried to do away with the custom of giving jagirs because this had led to subjugation of farmers and also the loss of revenue because of corruption by intermediaries. Second change was that he increased the revenue to increase the state income. Third change was that he made an attemp to reduce the hereditary possessions of the poligars in order to bring the land under the control of state.
- Though his land revenue was as high as that of other contemporary rulers – it ranged up to 1/3rd of the gross produce. He checked the collection of illegal cesses, and he was liberal in granting remissions. This led to reduction in pilferage and also reduced the corruption to a great extent.
- Some English historians have said that the peasants of Mysore were happier in the regime of Tipu and Haider Ali than that compared with territory which was controlled by the English Company. This was all because of policies of Tipu Sultan.
|
|
Religion
|
- Tipu Sultan was also tolerant towards other religions like his father. He participated in the religious functions and respected the religious freedom of the majority Hindu population. He never tried to impose his religion on his subjects. His religious toleration is evident from the fact that he gave money for the construction of goddess Sharda idol in the Shringeri Temple. This famous temple was situated barely 100 yards from his palace. Also he used to give gifts to several other temples on regular basis.
- But some historians differ from this view and say that Tipu’s religious freedom was limited only within his territory. He has been accused of conversions in territory of Malabar. He did not respect the people of other religion from different kingdom.
|
