The Anglo Mysore Wars | British Conquest of Mysore

The first of the four Anglo-Mysore Wars started in 1767 and ended in 1799. The East India Company was constantly attempting to suppress the Mysore Empire in south India during this turbulent time of British administration in India. The battles began when the British attempted to unite India as a country; British power had already expanded throughout north India, but Haider Ali, the king of the Mysore Empire, provided unexpected resistance. Haider Ali made his debut as a soldier in the state of Mysore, where he rose through the ranks to become the police officer of Dindigul. He was able to create a modern armoury in Dindigul with the support of the French. Haider Ali deposed Nanjaraja in 1761, the Wodeyar kingdom’s prime minister under KingKrishnaraja I. He continued to recognise the king as the legitimate ruler. 

The Anglo-Mysore Wars 

The Anglo-Mysore Wars are the greatest military conflicts in India’s history. These battles were fought between the British and the monarchs of Mysore for control of the Mysorean territories. Haider Ali, the commander in chief of the Mysorean Army, became the de-facto king of Mysore in 1761. With the support of French experts, he prepared his army using his military and administrative skills. Under Haider Ali, Mysore grew into a strong force. The British were irritated by the French’s proximity to Haider Ali. Haider wasn’t just in charge of the lucrative Malabar Coast trade, but he was also a threat to the British financial and political interests in Madras. To counter this, the British sought Hyderabad’s Nizam and persuaded him to conspire against Haider Ali. This marked the start of a series of wars between the rulers of the Mysore state and the British.

First Anglo-Mysore War (1767 – 69)

The British, the Nizam Ali of Hyderabad, and the Marathas established a tripartite alliance against Haider Ali. Haider Ali broke the alliance by purchasing Marathas and tempting the Nizam with territorial ambitions. By emerging at the gates of Madras with the Nizam, he led an invasion against Arcot and then the English. The Madras government, in despair, agreed to sign the Treaty of Madras on April 4, 1769, on the premise of mutual territorial restitution and a defence alliance, in which the English agreed to assist Haider if another state attacked him. 

The Nizam of Hyderabad signed a Subsidiary Alliance with the British to protect himself against Haider Ali. The British gained control of the Northern Sarkars as a result of this.  Haider Ali was then pitted against the Marathas, the Nizam of Hyderabad, and the English. They were at war with each other for almost over a year with no end in sight. The Treaty of Madras, signed on April 4, 1769, prompted the British to end the war. The stipulations for the exchange of captives and the conquered regions were agreed upon in the treaty. If another power attacked the rulers of Mysore, the British agreed to assist him.

Second Anglo-Mysore War (1780 – 84)

The Second Anglo-Mysore War was sparked by mutual animosity between Haider Ali and the British. When the Marathas besieged Mysore in 1771, Haider Ali accused the Government of violating the conditions of the Treaty of Madras by refusing to assist him. Furthermore, the French aided Haider Ali by meeting his military requirements. 

Mahe, a French colony under Haider’s protection, was conquered by the British. In 1779, Haider Ali allied with the Marathas and the Nizam of Hyderabad to combat the British Raj. The Second Anglo-Mysore Wars started in July 1780, when Haider entered the Carnatic and defeated an English army led by Colonel Baillie to seize Arcot. Haider died in 1782, leaving his son, Tipu, to finish the job. Tipu maintained the struggle with English next year. The conflict came to an end with the Treaty of Mangalore, which agreed on the reciprocal return of lands.

Third Anglo-Mysore War (1790 – 92)

In 1790, Tipu attacked Travancore because he disagreed with the Raja of Travancore, resulting in the Third Anglo-Mysore War. The British waged war on Tipu for backing Travancore’s monarch. They were aided by the Nizam’s and Marathas troops, who marched into Seringapatam with the English army led by Cornwallis (1792). The Treaty of Seringapatam was signed in 1792 after the conflict. Half of Mysore’s territory was to be handed to the Nizam, British, and Marathas under this pact. The Third Anglo-Mysore War solidified British control over South India. 

Fourth Anglo-Mysore War (1798 – 99)

It was asked of Tipu Sultan by Wellesley, the Governor of England, that he give up his connection with the French. During the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War. Tipu Sultan passed away. On the battlefield, the English fought with the Nizam’s army and the Marathas, as well as their men from Bombay and Madras. The British force of 60,000 troops defeated the Mysorean army. At the Siege of Seringapatam, the British won a crucial victory. 

Conclusion 

The Nizams and the Marathas once again supported the British. The Nizam had accepted the Subsidiary Alliance, which granted the Maratha half of Tipu’s dominion. Rulers of Mysore took 32 years to conquer. And the threat of a French renaissance in the Deccan was extinguished once and for all. Later, the British appointed a maharaja from a Hindu royal family in Mysore, the Wodeyar dynasty, and enforced a subsidiary alliance with him. Before Haider Ali, the Wodeyars were the true rulers. They ruled over what remained of the state of Mysore till it entered the Union of India in 1947.