Vellore Fort
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Vellore Fort is a large historic 16th Century fort situated in Vellore town near Chennai in Tamil Nadu; India. It was built by Nayakar chieftains of the Vijayanagara Empire. It is constructed of large granite blocks, known for grand ramparts, wide moat and robust masonry. It passed from the Nayaks to Bijapur Sultans, then Marathas and to Carnatic Nawabs and finally to British till Independence. During the British rule the fort had Tipu Sultan s family and the last Nayak king of Kandy (Sri Lanka) in captivity. The Fort also houses a Hindu temple, Christian church and Muslim mosque. The first rebellion against British rule erupted at this fort in 1806. The Fort is considered to be one the best specimen of a ground fort in India and the Temple within the Fort is famous for the magnificent carvings.
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[edit] Location
The Fort is situated in centre of the town of Vellore (also district headquarters) in Tamil Nadu state of India, 138 Kms east of Chennai on the Chennai-Bangalore; Chennai-Salem highway. It is 33 Kms from the Town of Arcot, 212kms from Bangalore, 124 Kms from Gingee, 104 Kms from Tirupathi and Chandragiri and 6kms from the Katpadi Railway Junction.
[edit] History and events
The Fort was built in the third quarter of 16th century (around 1566) by Chinna Bommi Nayak and Thimma Reddy Nayak, subordinate Chieftains under Sadasiva Raya of Vijayanagara Empire. The Vijayanagara kings called it "Raya Vellore" to differentiate it from Uppu Vellore in the Godavari region and the name Vellore is also spelt "Belur". The present day Chennai region and Tirupathi were under the domains of this Fort.
[edit] Under Vijayanagara Empire (1566 – 1656)
The Fort gained strategic prominence following the re-establishment of Vijayanagar rule in Chandragiri. The Aravidu Dynasty that held the title of Rayas in 17th century resided in this fort using it as a base in the battle of Toppur in 1620s. This major battle took place for the claimant of the Raya title within two faction of the Raya family. They were supported by their subordinates; the Nayaks of Tanjore, Gingee and Madurai taking sides to suit their interests.
The Rayas also had long-running battles with their long time rivals, the Bijapur Sultans; and with the Nayaks of Madurai and Gingee over non remittance of annual tributes. In the 1640s during the reign of Sriranga Raya III, the Fort was briefly captured by the Bijapur army but was eventually defeated and sent back with help from Nayaks of Tanjore.
In 1639 Francis Day of the East India Company obtained a small strip of Land in the Coromandel Coast from the Chieftains of Vellore-Chandragiri regions do trading, which is the present day Chennai.
[edit] Capture by Bijapur (1656 - 1678)
In the 1650s Sriranga allied with the Mysore and Tanjore Nayaks and marched south to attack Gingee and Madurai. His first stop was the capture of Gingee Fort, but Thirumalai Nayak of Madurai responded by requesting the Sultan of Bijapur to attack Vellore from the North to divert Sriranga’s attention. The Bijapur Sultan promptly dispatched a large army and captured the Vellore Fort, later both the Madurai-Bijapur armies converged in Gingee defeating the Vellore-Tanjore forces. After a melee both the Forts ended up with the Sultan of Bijapur. The defeat also marked the end of the last direct line of Vijaynagara Emperors. In 20 years the Marathas seized the fort from the Bijapur Sultans.
[edit] Capture by Marathas (1678 – 1707)
In 1676 the Marathas under Shivaji marched South to the Tanjore country which was recently attacked and captured by Chokkanatha Nayak of Madurai. In 1676 Ekoji,the brother of Shivaji took control of Tanjore, but was under threat from their immediate neighbours Madurai and Bijapur Sultans based in Gingee and Vellore. Shivaji’s army first captured the Gingee Fort in 1677, but left the task of attacking Vellore to his assistant and rushed to Deccan as his territories were attacked by Mughal Emperor Aurangazeb. In 1788 after a prolonged seize of fourteen months, the Fort passed on to Marathas. Shivaji’s representative ruled this area with relative peace till 1710 strengthening the fortifications.
[edit] Capture by Mughal Army 1707 -1760
In 1707 the same year Aurangazeb died, the Delhi Army under Daud Khan captured the Vellore Fort after defeating the Marathas. The struggle for Delhi throne made Deccan Muslim governors declare Independence. In 1710 the recently established Nawab of Arcot under Sadat Ullah Khan followed suit. The latter’s successor in 1733, Dost Ali gifted the Fort to one of his son-in-laws.
[edit] Under control of British 1760 – 1947
Following the decline of Madurai Nayaks coinciding with the emergence of the British on the Madras coast, the Nawab and his Son-in-laws broke out into a feud for the title of Nawab. The Nawab was supported by the British and the rival claimants by the French resulting in the Carnatic Wars. The British Nawab combine’s victory in 1760s in the Battle of Plassey finally sealed the fate of the French in India and launched them to dominance of the Indian subcontinent. Also the British took possession of the Vellore fort with relative ease and used the Fort as a major garrison till Indian Independence. The British also experienced their first rebellion in 1806 in this Fort by its Indian Soldiers who killed over 100 Europeans.
[edit] Attacks by Mysore 1780-1782
In 1780 the Fort was attacked by Hyder Ali in his wars against the British, but an English garrison held out against Hyder Ali for over two years.
[edit] Sepoy Mutiny 1806
See below for detailed events
[edit] Construction
The Built area is around 133 acres, situated above 220 mts on plains nestled within the broken range of Eastern Ghats near Palar riverbanks. The walls are constructed using heavy blocks of green granite rocks sourced from nearby hills in Arcot and Chitoor Districts.
The fortification consists of a main rampart broken at irregular intervals by round towers and rectangular projections. The crenellated parapets have wide merlons for musket fire. The fort is surrounded by a moat which was once filled with crocodiles to create a formidable extra line of defense.This broad moat is fed with water by subterranean drains from the Suryagunta tank. The rampart can also accommodate two cart wagons abreast.
The fort is considered to one of the most perfect specimens of military architecture in Southern India and is known for its grand ramparts, wide moat and robust masonry. The Vellore Fort is now maintained by the Archaeological Survey of India.
[edit] Spiritual complex
The fort is an interesting complex compromising a temple, a mosque, a church and a series of British military buildings. Among the various protected historical monument inside the fort, the most magnificent is the Sri Jalakanteswarar temple devoted to Lord Siva. The temple manifests a double Gopuram and impressive mandapam.
[edit] Jalakanteswarar Temple
The large impressive Siva temple was built about the same time as the fort in Vijayanagara architecture style and is located on the Northern wall within the fort. The lingam of Lord Shiva gets its name from the natural underground spring upon which it resides, on of the reasons why the moat has never dried, no matter how severe a drought. Named after Jalakanteswara, or “Lord Siva residing in the water”, the temple has a Nataraja Siva deity on the northern altar and Siva-lingam on the western altar.
The 30m (100ft) high, seven-storey Gopuram is made of blue granite, flanked by two carved dwarpalas (door guards). The temple is renowned for the magnificent carvings on the pillars of the kalyana mandapam (Marriage Hall) which are fashioned as rearing lions, horses with riders, yalis and other mythical beasts and considered to be one of the most impressive in India.
Though worship ceased during the battles with the Adil Shahis of Bijapur legend has it that, fearing the Muslim invasion, the reigning ruler hid the deity to prevent Vandalism. But so well was the lingam protected that it was never found and the Temple remained for centuries. Eventually, post-independence in 1981, the locals consecrated the statues again and rituals resumed after a kumbhabishekam. The temple itself is now cared for by a trust and re-established as a place of worship.
[edit] Mosque
The Mosque built by the Muslim rulers is situated inside the fort signifies the earliest Islamic structure in the town.
[edit] Church
A British era Church in the same fort complex is known impressive stairway and its bell tower. On the right of the Fort there is a cemetery for British officers Soldiers killed in the final campaign against Tipu Sultan and in the following 1806 Sepoy Mutiny.
[edit] First Sepoy Mutiny
[edit] Causes
In 1806, the Vellore fort was used by the British to station Infantry Military units of the Madras Regiment.The British Commander in chief of the Madras Army prescribed a new round hat for soldiers replacing the turbans and removal of beards, caste markings and jewellery, which the Sepoys considered offensive and were further fuelled by rumours that the hat was made of the hide of cows and pigs.
[edit] Events
On July 10, 1806, before sunrise, Indian Sepoys stationed in the Fort attacked the European barracks stationed there, and by late morning killed around 15 Officers and 100 English soldiers and ransacking their houses. Some of the rebelling Soldiers also instigated the sons of Tipu Sultan to lead the campaign. The news quickly reached a Colonel commanding the Cavalry Cantonment in Arcot, who reached the Fort reached with heavy battalions and quickly put down the rebelling solders. The rebelling native Sepoys numbering more than 800 were mercilessly hounded and killed. By noon the rebellion was put down. The events lead to a Court inquiry by the British who also decided to shift Tipu Sultans family from Vellore to faraway Calcutta in isolation.
[edit] Aftermath
The news of the Vellore Rebellion sent shockwaves in England. The Governor, William Bentinck and Commander-in-Chief of the Madras Army, Sir John Cradock both were recalled on this count.
[edit] Royal Captives
[edit] Family of Tipu Sultan
After the fall of Serangapatnam in 1799 and the death of Tipu Sultan, his family was detained in the fort. They were Tipu Sultans sons and daughters, Wife and his Mother, the wife ofHyder Ali. After the 1806 Sepoy Mutiny, the British transferred Tipu’s sons and daughters to Calcutta. The Tombs of Bakshi Begum (d.1806), widow of Hyder Ali and Padshah Begum, Tipu's wife, who died in 1834 are located with a kilometre to the eastern side of the Fort.
[edit] Last King of Kandy
Vellore Fort also became the final destination for the last ruling monarch of Sri Lanka, the Nayaks of Kandy, who were of Telugu origins, an extension of the Madurai rulers. Sri Wikramaraja Singha 1798-1815 was defeated by the British in 1816 and the whole family was taken as royal prisoners.
The King and his family were supplied with everything they needed. In addition, the government supplied clothing, jewels and workmen for making ornaments for the ladies. The King lived for 17 years in confinement, and died of dropsy on January 30, 1832, aged fifty-two years and his ashes bringing to an end the Royal line of Kandy.
[edit] Conservation
The Fort is maintained by the Archaeological Survey of India, while the Temple is cared by a Trust. The fort is well maintained when compared to other monuments.
[edit] Tourism
The Fort complex is promoted by the state government as a historical tourist destination. It attracts people who come to Vellore, which also houses the renowned Vellore Christian Hospital. The National Highway that connects Chennai with the Western parts of the region passes through Vellore town, and the Katpadi Railway Junction is just 6 Kms from the Town. Nearest Airports are Tirupathi, Chennai and Bangalore.
[edit] Commemorations
In 1981 the Post and Telegraph Department of India released a stamp commemorating the Fort. In July 2006 a stamp marking the 200th anniversary of the Mutiny was released by the Tamilnadu Chief Minister M.Karunanidhi.
[edit] Early Traveller Chronicles
Jacques de Coutré was a European traveller in the region during 1610’s and noted the Vellore Fort as following…
“We arrived in the city of Belur, which is also walled, with two walls of stone, and is more than two leagues in circuit, with very deep moats full of water. It seemed to be almost two cities. I have never seen a city that was so fortified and which had such lovely walls and bastions as this one. We prize the cities of Antwerp and Flanders, but neither can compare in their fortifications or loveliness to this city”
[edit] External links
[edit] History / Reference
- Article on Vellore Revolt 1806 - Bi-Centenary Commemoration Committee
- Vellore — the town with the "healing touch"
- Vellore Fort History by Indian Postal Dept.
- When the Vellore sepoys rebelled
- Revisiting Vellore's hoary past
- Colonial British perspective on the Sepoy Mutiny at Vellore Fort
- Rulers of Arcot
- Tamils dispute India mutiny date
- Historic monuments in Vellore district
[edit] Bibliography
- Rao, Velcheru Narayana, and David Shulman, Sanjay Subrahmanyam. Symbols of substance : court and state in Nayaka period Tamilnadu (Delhi ; Oxford : Oxford University Press, 1998) ; xix, 349 p., [16] p. of plates : ill., maps ; 22 cm. ; Oxford India paperbacks ; Includes bibliographical references and index ; ISBN 0-19-564399-2.
- Sathianathaier, R. History of the Nayaks of Madura [microform] by R. Sathyanatha Aiyar ; edited for the University, with introduction and notes by S. Krishnaswami Aiyangar ([Madras] : Oxford University Press, 1924) ; see also ([London] : H. Milford, Oxford university press, 1924) ; xvi, 403 p. ; 21 cm. ; SAMP early 20th-century Indian books project item 10819.
- Vriddhagirisan V,Nayaks of Tanjore ,ISBN : 8120609964,Reprint Annamalainagar 1942 edn.) 1995
