1.
East India Company
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The company also ruled the beginnings of the British Empire in India. The company received a Royal Charter from Queen Elizabeth I on 31 December 1600, wealthy merchants and aristocrats owned the Companys shares. Initially the government owned no shares and had only indirect control, during its first century of operation the focus of the Company was trade, not the building of an empire in India. The company eventually came to rule large areas of India with its own armies, exercising military power. Despite frequent government intervention, the company had recurring problems with its finances, the official government machinery of British India had assumed its governmental functions and absorbed its armies. Soon after the defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588, London merchants presented a petition to Queen Elizabeth I for permission to sail to the Indian Ocean, one of them, Edward Bonventure, then sailed around Cape Comorin to the Malay Peninsula and returned to England in 1594. In 1596, three ships sailed east, however, these were all lost at sea. Two days later, on 24 September, the Adventurers reconvened and resolved to apply to the Queen for support of the project, the Adventurers convened again a year later. For a period of fifteen years the charter awarded the newly formed company a monopoly on trade with all countries east of the Cape of Good Hope and west of the Straits of Magellan. Anybody who traded in breach of the charter without a licence from the Company was liable to forfeiture of their ships and cargo, the governance of the company was in the hands of one governor and 24 directors or committees, who made up the Court of Directors. They, in turn, reported to the Court of Proprietors, ten committees reported to the Court of Directors. According to tradition, business was transacted at the Nags Head Inn, opposite St Botolphs church in Bishopsgate. Sir James Lancaster commanded the first East India Company voyage in 1601, in March 1604 Sir Henry Middleton commanded the second voyage. Early in 1608 Alexander Sharpeigh was appointed captain of the Companys Ascension, thereafter two ships, Ascension and Union sailed from Woolwich on 14 March 1607–8. Initially, the company struggled in the trade because of the competition from the already well-established Dutch East India Company. The company opened a factory in Bantam on the first voyage, the factory in Bantam was closed in 1683. During this time belonging to the company arriving in India docked at Surat. In the next two years, the company established its first factory in south India in the town of Machilipatnam on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal
2.
United Kingdom
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The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom or Britain, is a sovereign country in western Europe. Lying off the north-western coast of the European mainland, the United Kingdom includes the island of Great Britain, Northern Ireland is the only part of the United Kingdom that shares a land border with another sovereign state—the Republic of Ireland. The Irish Sea lies between Great Britain and Ireland, with an area of 242,500 square kilometres, the United Kingdom is the 78th-largest sovereign state in the world and the 11th-largest in Europe. It is also the 21st-most populous country, with an estimated 65.1 million inhabitants, together, this makes it the fourth-most densely populated country in the European Union. The United Kingdom is a monarchy with a parliamentary system of governance. The monarch is Queen Elizabeth II, who has reigned since 6 February 1952, other major urban areas in the United Kingdom include the regions of Birmingham, Leeds, Glasgow, Liverpool and Manchester. The United Kingdom consists of four countries—England, Scotland, Wales, the last three have devolved administrations, each with varying powers, based in their capitals, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Belfast, respectively. The relationships among the countries of the UK have changed over time, Wales was annexed by the Kingdom of England under the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. A treaty between England and Scotland resulted in 1707 in a unified Kingdom of Great Britain, which merged in 1801 with the Kingdom of Ireland to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. Five-sixths of Ireland seceded from the UK in 1922, leaving the present formulation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain, there are fourteen British Overseas Territories. These are the remnants of the British Empire which, at its height in the 1920s, British influence can be observed in the language, culture and legal systems of many of its former colonies. The United Kingdom is a country and has the worlds fifth-largest economy by nominal GDP. The UK is considered to have an economy and is categorised as very high in the Human Development Index. It was the worlds first industrialised country and the worlds foremost power during the 19th, the UK remains a great power with considerable economic, cultural, military, scientific and political influence internationally. It is a nuclear weapons state and its military expenditure ranks fourth or fifth in the world. The UK has been a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council since its first session in 1946 and it has been a leading member state of the EU and its predecessor, the European Economic Community, since 1973. However, on 23 June 2016, a referendum on the UKs membership of the EU resulted in a decision to leave. The Acts of Union 1800 united the Kingdom of Great Britain, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have devolved self-government
3.
Madras Army
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The Madras Army was the army of the Presidency of Madras, one of the three presidencies of British India within the British Empire. In 1903 all three armies were merged into the British Indian Army. The Madras Army of the Honourable East India Company came into being through the need to protect the Companys commercial interests and these were mostly untrained guards, with only some bearing arms. The French attack and capture of Madras in 1746 forced the British hand, in 1757, the British decided to raise well-trained military units to conduct operations, conquer territory, and force allegiance from local rulers. The loosely organised military units were combined into battalions with Indian officers commanding local troops. One of the first major actions fought by these troops was in the battle of Wandiwash in 1760, the troops were highly praised for their steadiness under fire. Earlier a good part of the force was sent to Bengal under young Clive, who made history, the Madras Army officers were in the early years very conscious of the soldiers local customs, caste rituals, dress, and social hierarchy. Some leading landowners joined the Madras Army, one of whom is recorded as Mootoo Nayak from the nobility in Madura, as the army expanded and new officers came in, mostly from Company sources, the leadership style and care of the men changed for the worse. The most famous incident in the Madras Army was the Vellore mutiny, looting was an organised activity among the East India Company officers. Arthur Wellesley, later the Duke of Wellington, was in the Seringapatnam battle, in keeping with the times, he laid down the share of every officer and sepoy from the loot that was organised after Tipu was killed. The defeat of Hyder Ali and the death of Tipu with the most widespread looting of Seringapatnam rankled with Indians at all levels, after Tipu Sultan was killed, his two sons were held in British custody in Vellore Fort. In the 1830s the Madras Army was concerned with internal security and this was a multi-ethnic army in which the British officers were encouraged to learn and speak Asian languages. In 1832–33 the Madras Army put down a rebellion in the Visakhapatnam district, the Army of the Madras Presidency remained almost unaffected by the Indian Rebellion of 1857. Four regiments of Madras Light Cavalry and the Madras Artillery batteries did however disappear in the reorganisation of all three of the Presidency Armies. The Madras Fusiliers was transferred to the regular British Army, in 1895 the three separate Presidency Armies were abolished and the Army of India was divided into four commands, each commanded by a lieutenant-general. These comprised Madras, Punjab, Bengal and Bombay, while the Madras Army remained in existence as a separate entity until 1895, twelve of the Madras Native Infantry regiments were disbanded between 1862 and 1864. A further eight went in 1882, three between 1902 and 1904, two in 1907 and four in 1922, both of these regiments continue to exist in the modern Indian Army. A Matter of Honour - an Account of the Indian Army, the Victorians at War, 1815-1914, An Encyclopedia of British Military History
4.
British Army
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The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom. As of 2017 the British Army comprises just over 80,000 trained Regular, or full-time, personnel and just over 26,500 trained Reserve, or part-time personnel. Therefore, the UK Parliament approves the continued existence of the Army by passing an Armed Forces Act at least once every five years, day to day the Army comes under administration of the Ministry of Defence and is commanded by the Chief of the General Staff. Repeatedly emerging victorious from these decisive wars allowed Britain to influence world events with its policies and establish itself as one of the leading military. In 1660 the English, Scottish and Irish monarchies were restored under Charles II, Charles favoured the foundation of a new army under royal control and began work towards its establishment by August 1660. The Royal Scots Army and the Irish Army were financed by the Parliament of Scotland, the order of seniority of the most senior line regiments in the British Army is based on the order of seniority in the English army. At that time there was only one English regiment of dragoons, after William and Marys accession to the throne, England involved itself in the War of the Grand Alliance, primarily to prevent a French invasion restoring Marys father, James II. Spain, in the two centuries, had been the dominant global power, and the chief threat to Englands early transatlantic ambitions. The territorial ambitions of the French, however, led to the War of the Spanish Succession and the Napoleonic Wars. From the time of the end of the Seven Years War in 1763, Great Britain was the naval power. As had its predecessor, the English Army, the British Army fought the Kingdoms of Spain, France, and the Netherlands for supremacy in North America and the West Indies. With native and provincial assistance, the Army conquered New France in the North American theatre of the Seven Years War, the British Army suffered defeat in the American War of Independence, losing the Thirteen Colonies but holding on to Canada. The British Army was heavily involved in the Napoleonic Wars and served in campaigns across Europe. The war between the British and the First French Empire of Napoleon Bonaparte stretched around the world and at its peak, in 1813, the regular army contained over 250,000 men. A Coalition of Anglo-Dutch and Prussian Armies under the Duke of Wellington, the English had been involved, both politically and militarily, in Ireland since being given the Lordship of Ireland by the Pope in 1171. The campaign of the English republican Protector, Oliver Cromwell, involved uncompromising treatment of the Irish towns that had supported the Royalists during the English Civil War, the English Army stayed in Ireland primarily to suppress numerous Irish revolts and campaigns for independence. Having learnt from their experience in America, the British government sought a political solution, the British Army found itself fighting Irish rebels, both Protestant and Catholic, primarily in Ulster and Leinster in the 1798 rebellion. The Haldane Reforms of 1907 formally created the Territorial Force as the Armys volunteer reserve component by merging and reorganising the Volunteer Force, Militia, Great Britains dominance of the world had been challenged by numerous other powers, in the 20th century, most notably Germany
5.
Line infantry
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Line infantry is the type of infantry that composed the basis of European land armies from the middle of the 17th century to the middle of the 19th century. For both battle and parade drill it consisted of 2 to 4 ranks of soldiers drawn up side by side in rigid alignment. By extension, the term came to be applied to the regiments of the line as opposed to skirmishers, foot guards, militia. Line infantry mainly used three formations in its battles, the line, the square and the column, a line consisted of 2,3 or 4 ranks of soldiers. During the time period that line infantry were prevalent, the object was to cause the formation to rout, which was done by breaking it. The line was considered as the battle formation as it allowed for the largest deployment of firepower. Troops in skirmish formation, though able to cover and use initiative, were highly vulnerable to cavalry. Line infantry provided an anchor for skirmishers and cavalry to retreat to if threatened, against surrounding enemy cavalry, line infantry could swiftly adopt square formations to provide protection. Such squares were hollow, unlike the pikemen and old-style musketeers square, movement in line formation was very slow, and unless the battalion was superbly trained, a breakdown in cohesion was virtually assured, especially in any kind of uneven or wooded terrain. As a result, line was used as a stationary formation, with troops moving in column formations. Usually, columns would be adopted for movement and melee attacks, line infantry was trained in the manual of arms evolutions, the main objectives of which were fast deployment of a line, rapid shooting and manoeuvre. Line tactics required a strict discipline and simple movements, practiced to the point where they became second-nature, during training, the drill and corporal punishments were widely used. Line infantry quickly became the most common type of infantry in European countries, musketeers and grenadiers, formerly elite troops, gradually became part of the line infantry, switching to linear tactics. In the middle of the 17th century, the muskets of some line infantry were equipped with bayonets. Bayonets were attached to the muzzles of muskets and were used when line troops entered melee combat and they also helped to defend against cavalry. In many countries, the new fusils retained the name musket, both muskets and fusils were smoothbore, which lessened their accuracy and range, but made for faster loading, lesser amount of bore fouling and more robust, less complicated firearms. The bulk of the infantry had no protective equipment, as armor that could provide protection from musket fire were considered too expensive. Only the former elite troops could keep by tradition some elements of protection, for example, initially, soldiers equipped with firearms formed only a small part of the infantry branch of most armies, because of their vulnerability to hostile cavalry
6.
Light infantry
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Light infantry are soldiers whose job was to provide a skirmishing screen ahead of the main body of infantry, harassing and delaying the enemy advance. Light infantry was distinct from medium, heavy or line infantry, heavy infantry were dedicated primarily to fighting in tight formations that were the core of large battles. Heavy infantry originally had heavier arms and more armour than light infantry, as with so called light infantry of later periods, the term more adequately describes the role of such infantry rather than the actual weight of their equipment. Peltast equipment, for example, grew steadily heavier at the time as hoplite equipment grew lighter. It was the fact that peltasts fought in order as skirmishers that made them light infantry. Early regular armies of the era frequently relied on irregulars to perform the duties of light infantry skirmishers. In the 18th and 19th centuries most infantry regiments or battalions had a company as an integral part of its composition. Its members were often smaller, more men with high shooting ability and capability of using initiative. They did not usually fight in disciplined ranks as did the infantry but often in widely dispersed groups. They were expected to avoid melee engagements unless necessary, and would fight ahead of the line to harass the enemy before falling back to the main position. Light infantry sometimes carried lighter muskets than ordinary infantrymen while others carried rifles and these became designated as rifle regiments in Britain and Jäger regiments in German speaking Europe. In France, during the Napoleonic Wars, light infantry were called voltigeurs and chasseurs, the Austrian army had Grenzer regiments from the middle of the 18th century, who originally served as irregular militia skirmishers recruited from mountainous frontier areas. Light infantry officers sometimes carried muskets or rifles, rather than pistols, orders were sent by bugle or whistle instead of drum. Some armies, including the British and French, recruited whole regiments of light infantry, by the late 19th century the concept of fighting in formation was on the wane due to advancements in weaponry and the distinctions between light and heavy infantry began to disappear. Essentially, all infantry became light infantry in operational practice, some regiments retained the name and customs, but there was in effect little difference between them and other infantry regiments. On the eve of World War I the British Army included seven light infantry regiments, today the term light denotes, in the United States table of organization and equipment, units lacking heavy weapons and armor or with a reduced vehicle footprint. At its height, this included the 6th Infantry Division, 7th Infantry Division, 10th Mountain Division, 25th Infantry Division, operation Just Cause is often cited as proof of concept. Almost 30,000 U. S. Forces, mostly light, during the 1990s, the concept of purely light forces in the US military came under scrutiny due to their decreased lethality and survivability
7.
Devoy Barracks
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Devoy Barracks was a military installation in Naas, County Kildare in Ireland. The barracks, which were known as Naas Barracks, were built for local militia units in 1813. In 1873 a system of recruiting areas based on counties was instituted under the Cardwell Reforms and the became the depot for the 102nd Regiment of Foot. Following the Childers Reforms, the 102nd and 103rd regiments amalgamated to form the Royal Dublin Fusiliers with its depot in the barracks in 1881, the Royal Dublin Fusiliers were disbanded at the time of Irish Independence in 1922. The barracks were secured by the forces of the Irish Free State in February 1922, the barracks, which were renamed Devoy Barracks after John Devoy, the Irish republican, closed in 1928 and the site was subsequently used for a variety of industrial uses. The Irish Army Apprentice School was established on the site in 1956 but closed in 1998 when the barracks were finally decommissioned
8.
County Kildare
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County Kildare is a county in Ireland. It is located in the province of Leinster and is part of the Mid-East Region and it is named after the town of Kildare. Kildare County Council is the authority for the county which has a population of 222,130. Kildare is the 24th largest of Irelands 32 counties in area and it is the eighth largest of Leinsters twelve counties in size, and second largest in terms of population. It is bordered by the counties of Carlow, Laois, Meath, Offaly, Dublin, as an inland county, Kildare is a generally lowland region. The countys highest points are the foothills of the Wicklow Mountains bordering to the east, the highest point in Kildare is Cupidstown Hill on the border with Dublin, with the better known Hill of Allen in central Kildare. The county has three rivers running through it, the Barrow, the Liffey and the Boyne. The Grand Canal crosses the county from Lyons on the east to Rathangan, a southern branch joins the Barrow navigation at Athy. The Royal Canal stretches across the north of the county along the border with Meath, the Bog of Allen is a large bog that extends across 958 km2 and into County Kildare, County Meath, County Offaly, County Laois, and County Westmeath. Kildare has 243 km2 of bog mostly located in the south-west and north-west and it is habitat to over 185 plant and animal species. There are 8,472 hectares of Forested land in Kildare,4,056 hectares of this is Coniferous, while there is 2,963 hectares of Broadleaf and the remaining area are Unclassified Species. Coillte and Dúchas currently own 47% of the forestry, coillte run Donadea Forest Park which is in North-Central Kildare. The forest covers 259 hectares of mixed woodland and is the largest forest park in Kildare, Kildare was shired in 1297 and assumed its present borders in 1832, following amendments to remove a number of enclaves and exclaves. The county was the home of the powerful Fitzgerald family, parts of the county were also part of the Pale area around Dublin. Kildare County Council is the authority for the county. The Local Electoral Areas of Kildare are Athy, Celbridge - Leixlip, Maynooth, Kildare - Newbridge, the current council was elected in May 2013. Under the Local Government Reform Act 2014 the towns of Leixlip, Naas, Newbridge, for elections to Dáil Éireann, there are two constituencies in the area of the county, Kildare North, which returns four TDs and Kildare South which returns three TDs. As part of the Mid-East Region, it is within the purview of the Mid-East Regional Authority, for elections to the European Parliament, it is part of the Midlands North-West constituency which returns four MEPs
9.
Carnatic Wars
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The Carnatic Wars were a series of military conflicts in the middle of the 18th century in India. They were mainly fought on the territories in India which were dominated by the Nizam of Hyderabad up to the Godavari delta, as a result of these military contests, the British East India Company established its dominance among the European trading companies within India. The French company was pushed to a corner and was confined primarily to Pondichéry, the East India companys dominance eventually led to control by the British Company over most of India and eventually to the establishment of the British Raj. In the 18th century, the coastal Carnatic region was a dependency of Hyderabad, three Carnatic Wars were fought between 1746 and 1763. The Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb died in 1707 and he was succeeded by Bahadur Shah I, but there was a general decline in central control over the empire during the tenure of Jahandar Shah and later emperors. Nizam-ul-Mulk established Hyderabad as an independent kingdom, a power struggle ensued after his death between his son, Nasir Jung, and his grandson, Muzaffar Jung, which was the opportunity France and England needed to interfere in Indian politics. France aided Muzaffar Jung while England aided Nasir Jung, several erstwhile Mughal territories were autonomous such as the Carnatic, ruled by Nawab Dost Ali Khan, despite being under the legal purview of the Nizam of Hyderabad. French and English interference included those of the affairs of the Nawab, Dost Alis death sparked a power struggle between his son-in-law Chanda Sahib, supported by the French, and Muhammad Ali, supported by the English. One major instigator of the Carnatic Wars was the Frenchman Joseph François Dupleix, Dupleix sought to expand French influence in India, which was limited to a few trading outposts, the chief one being Pondicherry on the Coromandel Coast. Immediately upon his arrival in India, he organized Indian recruits under French officers for the first time, however, he was met by the equally challenging and determined young officer from the British Army, Robert Clive. The Austrian War of Succession in 1740 and later the war in 1756 automatically led to a conflict in India. in 1740 the War of the Austrian Succession broke out in Europe. Great Britain was only drawn into the war in 1744, when it entered the war opposed to France, the trading companies of both countries maintained cordial relations among themselves in India while their parent countries were bitter enemies on the European continent. Dodwell writes, Such were the relations between the English and the French that the French sent their goods and merchandise from Pondicherry to Madras for safe custody. Although French company officials were ordered to avoid conflict, British officials were not, after the British initially captured a few French merchant ships, the French called for backup from as far afield as Isle de France, beginning an escalation in naval forces in the area. In July 1746 French commander La Bourdonnais and British Admiral Edward Peyton fought an action off Negapatam. On 21 September 1746, the French captured the British outpost at Madras, La Bourdonnais had promised to return Madras to the English, but Dupleix withdrew that promise, and one to give Madras to Anwar-ud-din after the capture. The Nawab then sent a 10, 000-man army to take Madras from the French, the French then made several attempts to capture the British Fort St. David at Cuddalore, but the timely arrivals of reinforcements halted these, and eventually turned the tables on the French. British Admiral Edward Boscawen besieged Pondicherry in the months of 1748
10.
Seven Years' War
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The Seven Years War was a war fought between 1754 and 1763, the main conflict occurring in the seven-year period from 1756 to 1763. It involved every European great power of the time except the Ottoman Empire and spanned five continents, affecting Europe, the Americas, West Africa, India, and the Philippines. The conflict split Europe into two coalitions, led by the Kingdom of Great Britain on one side and the Kingdom of France on the other. Meanwhile, in India, the Mughal Empire, with the support of the French, faced with this sudden turn of events, Britain aligned herself with Prussia, in a series of political manoeuvres known as the Diplomatic Revolution. Conflict between Great Britain and France broke out in 1754–1756 when the British attacked disputed French positions in North America, meanwhile, rising power Prussia was struggling with Austria for dominance within and outside the Holy Roman Empire in central Europe. In 1756, the major powers switched partners, realizing that war was imminent, Prussia preemptively struck Saxony and quickly overran it. The result caused uproar across Europe, because of Austrias alliance with France to recapture Silesia, which had been lost in a previous war, Prussia formed an alliance with Britain. Reluctantly, by following the diet, most of the states of the empire joined Austrias cause. The Anglo-Prussian alliance was joined by smaller German states, Sweden, seeking to re-gain Pomerania joined the coalition, seeing its chance when virtually all of Europe opposed Prussia. Spain, bound by the Pacte de Famille, intervened on behalf of France, the Russian Empire was originally aligned with Austria, fearing Prussias ambition on the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, but switched sides upon the succession of Tsar Peter III in 1762. Naples, Sicily, and Savoy, although sided with the Franco-Spanish alliance, like Sweden, Russia concluded a separate peace with Prussia. The war ended with the Treaty of Paris between France, Spain and Great Britain and the Treaty of Hubertusburg between Saxony, Austria and Prussia, in 1763. The Native American tribes were excluded from the settlement, a subsequent conflict, Prussia emerged as a new European great power. Although Austria failed to retrieve the territory of Silesia from Prussia its military prowess was noted by the other powers. The involvement of Portugal, Spain and Sweden did not return them to their status as great powers. France was deprived of many of its colonies and had saddled itself with heavy war debts that its inefficient financial system could barely handle. Spain lost Florida but gained French Louisiana and regained control of its colonies, e. g. Cuba and the Philippines, France and Spain avenged their defeat in 1778 when the American Revolutionary War broke out, with hopes of destroying Britains dominance once and for all. The Seven Years War was perhaps the first true world war, having taken place almost 160 years before World War I and it was characterized in Europe by sieges and the arson of towns as well as open battles with heavy losses
11.
Third Anglo-Mysore War
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The Third Anglo–Mysore War was a conflict in South India between the Kingdom of Mysore and the East India Company and its allies, including the Maratha Empire and the Nizam of Hyderabad. It was the third of four Anglo–Mysore Wars, Tipu Sultan, the ruler of Kingdom of Mysore, and his father Hyder Ali before him, had previously fought twice with the forces of the British East India Company. The First Anglo-Mysore War, fought in the 1760s, had ended inconclusively, British failure to support Mysore in conflicts with the Maratha Empire and other actions supportive of Mysores enemies led Hyder to develop a dislike for the British. This war also ended somewhat inconclusively in 1784 with the signing of the Treaty of Mangalore and he refused to free British prisoners taken during the war, one of the conditions of the treaty. British General Charles, 2nd Earl Cornwallis became the Governor-General of India, in 1788 the company gained control of the Circar of Guntur, the southernmost of the Northern Circars, which the company had acquired under earlier agreements with the Nizam. In exchange, the company provided the Nizam with two battalions of company troops, both of these acts placed British troops closer to Mysore, but also guaranteed the Nizam would support the British in the event of conflict. The kingdom of Travancore had been a target of Tipu for acquisition or conquest since the end of the previous war, in 1789 Tipu Sultan sent forces onto the Malabar Coast to put down a rebellion. Many people fled to Travancore and Cochin, a state paying tribute to Tipu, Cornwallis, observing this build-up, reiterated to Campbells successor, John Holland, that an attack on Travancore should be considered a declaration of war, and met with a strong British response. On 29 December 1789, Tipu marched 14,000 troops from Coimbatore, the first phase was an embarrassing defeat for Tipu, when the defenders inflicted severe losses on the Tipus forces and drove them back. While the Mysorean forces and their allies regrouped, Governor Holland, much to Cornwallis dismay, Cornwallis was on the brink of going to Madras to take command when he received word that Hollands replacement, General William Medows was about to arrive. Medows forcibly removed Holland, and set about planning operations against Tipu while building up troops at Trichinopoly and it was May before Medows was prepared to march. In the meantime, Tipu had renewed his attack on Travancore, the plan of attack developed by Medows called for a two-pronged attack, with the main thrust against the Coimbatore district and a diversionary thrust into Mysore from the northeast. Cornwallis was unhappy with this plan, due in part to the lateness of the season, however, he was willing to give Medows the opportunity for independent command. Medows moved out of Trichinopoly in late May, hampered by weather and equipment problems, his progress was slow. He met little resistance, as Tipu had withdrawn his forces to the Mysore highlands. On 21 July Medows entered Coimbatore unopposed, after having some of the smaller fortifications in the district by either abandonment or the immediate surrender of the garrison. Further strong points in the fell, with Palghat and Dindigul requiring significant action to capture. The attack from Bengal, and a third from Bombay, were late in getting started when Tipu made his counterattack, on 2 September, Tipu left Srirangapatnam at the head of a 40, 000-man army
12.
Third Anglo-Maratha War
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The Third Anglo-Maratha War was the final and decisive conflict between the British East India Company and the Maratha Empire in India. The war left the Company in control of most of India and it began with an invasion of the Maratha territory by British East India Company troops, the largest such British controlled force massed in India. The troops were led by the Governor General Hastings supported by a force under General Thomas Hislop, operations began against the Pindaris, a band of Muslims and Marathas from central India. Peshwa Baji Rao IIs forces, supported by those of Mudhoji II Bhonsle of Nagpur and Malharrao Holkar III of Indore, pressure and diplomacy convinced the fourth major Maratha leader, Daulatrao Shinde of Gwalior, to remain neutral even though he lost control of Rajasthan. British victories were swift, resulting in the breakup of the Maratha Empire, the Peshwa was defeated in the battles of Khadki and Koregaon. Several minor battles were fought by the Peshwas forces to prevent his capture, the Peshwa was eventually captured and placed on a small estate at Bithur, near Kanpur. Most of his territory was annexed and became part of the Bombay Presidency, the Maharaja of Satara was restored as the ruler of his territory as a princely state. In 1848 this territory was annexed by the Bombay Presidency under the doctrine of lapse policy of Lord Dalhousie. Bhonsle was defeated in the battle of Sitabuldi and Holkar in the battle of Mahidpur, the northern portion of Bhonsles dominions in and around Nagpur, together with the Peshwas territories in Bundelkhand, were annexed by British India as the Saugor and Nerbudda Territories. The defeat of the Bhonsle and Holkar also resulted in the acquisition of the Maratha kingdoms of Nagpur, along with Gwalior from Shinde and Jhansi from the Peshwa, all of these territories became princely states acknowledging British control. The British proficiency in Indian war-making was demonstrated through their victories in Khadki, Sitabuldi, Mahidpur, Koregaon. The Maratha Empire was founded in 1645 by Raja Shivaji of the Bhosle dynasty, common elements among the citizens of Raja Shivajis Maratha Empire were the Marathi language, the Hindu religion, a strong sense of belonging, and a national feeling. Raja Shivaji led resistance efforts to free the Hindus from the Mughals and Muslim Sultanate of Bijapur and this kingdom was known as the Hindavi Swarajya in the Marathi language. He utterly destroyed the power of the orthodox and infamous Muslim ruler Aurangzeb, a key component of the Maratha administration was the council of eight ministers, called the Ashta Pradhan. The senior-most member of the Ashta Pradhan was called the Peshwa or the Mukhya Pradhan, the Peshwa was the right-hand man of Raja Shivaji. Raja Shivaji and most of the Maratha warriors belonged to the Maratha caste of the four-tier Hindu caste system, after Raja Shivajis death, the Peshwas gradually became the effective rulers of the state. While the Marathas were fighting the Mughals in the early 18th century, the British fortified the naval base of Bombay after they saw the Marathas defeat the Portuguese at neighbouring Vasai in May 1739. In an effort to keep the Marathas out of Bombay, the British sent envoys to negotiate a treaty, the envoys were successful, and a treaty was signed on 12 July 1739 that gave the British East India Company rights to free trade in Maratha territory
13.
First Anglo-Burmese War
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The First Anglo-Burmese War, also known as the First Burma War, was the first of three wars fought between the British and Burmese empires in the 19th century. The Burmese were also forced to pay an indemnity of one million pounds sterling, fifteen thousand European and Indian soldiers died, together with an unknown number of Burmese military and civilian casualties. The high cost of the campaign to the British, 5–13 million pounds sterling, for the Burmese Empire, it was the beginning of the end of their independence. The Third Burmese Empire, for a time the terror of British India, was crippled. The Burmese would be crushed for years to come by repaying the large indemnity of one million pounds, the British would wage two more wars against a much-weakened Burma, and swallow up the entire country by 1885. By 1822, Burmese expansion into Manipur and Assam had created a border between British India and the Burmese Empire. The British, based in Calcutta, supported rebels from Manipur, Assam, Calcutta unilaterally declared Cachar and Jaintia British protectorates, and sent in troops. Cross border raids into these newly acquired territories from British territories and spheres of influence vexed the Burmese, convinced that war was inevitable, Burmese commander-in-chief, Maha Bandula, became a main proponent of offensive policy against the British. Bandula was part of the war party at Bagyidaws court, which also included Queen Me Nu and her brother, the Lord of Salin. Bandula believed that a decisive victory could allow Ava to consolidate its gains in its new western empire in Arakan, Manipur, Assam, Cachar and Jaintia, as well as take over eastern Bengal. In September 1823, the casus belli was Burma occupying Shalpuri Island near Chittagong, in January 1824, Burma sent one of their top generals, Thado Thiri Maha Uzana, into Cachar and Jaintia to disperse the rebels. The British sent in their own force to meet the Burmese in Cachar, the war formally broke out on 5 March 1824, following border clashes in Arakan. The British reason for the war was, in addition to expanding British Bengals sphere of influence, the British were also anxious to deny the French the use of Burmese harbours and concerned about French influence at the Court of Ava, as the kingdom was still known to them. Anglo–French rivalry had played a role during Alaungpayas endeavours of unifying the kingdom. The commander in chief of the Burmese army, Maha Bandula, was supported by twelve of the countrys best divisions, including one under his personal command, all totaling 10,000 men and 500 horses. His general staff included some of the countrys most decorated soldiers, men like the Lord of Salay, Bandulas plan was to attack the British on two fronts, Chittagong from Arakan in the southeast, and Sylhet from Cachar and Jaintia in the north. Bandula personally commanded the Arakan theatre while Uzana commanded Cachar and Jaintia theater, Uzana had already defeated the British units in Cachar and Jaintia in January 1824. In May, Burmese forces led by U Sa, Lord Myawaddy fought their way into Bengal, sas column then joined Bandulas column on the march to defeat British forces at Gadawpalin, and went on to capture Coxs Bazar
14.
Indian Rebellion of 1857
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The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major, but ultimately unsuccessful, uprising in India in 1857–58 against British rule. For nearly 100 years, that rule had been presided over by the British East India Company, the rebellion began on 10 May 1857 in the form of a mutiny of sepoys of the Companys army in the garrison town of Meerut,40 miles northeast of Delhi. It then erupted into other mutinies and civilian rebellions chiefly in the upper Gangetic plain and central India, though incidents of revolt also occurred farther north and east. The rebellion posed a threat to British power in that region. On 1 November 1858, the British granted amnesty to all rebels not involved in murder, though they did not declare the hostilities formally to have ended until 8 July 1859. The rebellion is known by names, including the Sepoy Mutiny, the Indian Mutiny, the Great Rebellion, the Revolt of 1857, the Indian Insurrection. Many Indians did rise against the British, however, very many also fought for the British, after the outbreak of the mutiny in Meerut, the rebels very quickly reached Delhi, whose 81-year-old Mughal ruler, Bahadur Shah Zafar, they declared the Emperor of Hindustan. Soon, the rebels had captured large tracts of the North-Western Provinces. The East India Companys response came rapidly as well, with help from reinforcements, Kanpur was retaken by mid-July 1857, and Delhi by the end of September. However, it took the remainder of 1857 and the better part of 1858 for the rebellion to be suppressed in Jhansi, Lucknow. Other regions of Company controlled India—Bengal province, the Bombay Presidency, in the Punjab, the Sikh princes crucially helped the British by providing both soldiers and support. In some regions, most notably in Awadh, the took on the attributes of a patriotic revolt against European presence. However, the rebel leaders proclaimed no articles of faith that presaged a new political system, even so, the rebellion proved to be an important watershed in Indian- and British Empire history. India was thereafter administered directly by the British government in the new British Raj, on 1 November 1858, Queen Victoria issued a proclamation to Indians, which while lacking the authority of a constitutional provision, promised rights similar to those of other British subjects. In the following decades, when admission to these rights was not always forthcoming, the victory was consolidated in 1764 at the Battle of Buxar, when the East India Company army defeated Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II. After his defeat, the granted the Company the right to the collection of Revenue in the provinces of Bengal, Bihar. The Company soon expanded its territories around its bases in Bombay and Madras, later, the Anglo-Mysore Wars, in 1806, the Vellore Mutiny was sparked by new uniform regulations that created resentment amongst both Hindu and Muslim sepoys. After the turn of the 19th century, Governor-General Wellesley began what became two decades of accelerated expansion of Company territories and this was achieved either by subsidiary alliances between the Company and local rulers or by direct military annexation
15.
Regiment
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A regiment is a military unit. Their role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, in Medieval Europe, the term regiment denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscripted in one geographical area, by a leader who was often also the feudal lord of the soldiers. By the 17th century, a regiment was usually about a thousand personnel. In many armies, the first role has been assumed by independent battalions, battlegroups, task forces, brigades and other, similarly-sized operational units. By the beginning of the 18th century, regiments in most European continental armies had evolved into permanent units with distinctive titles and uniforms, when at full strength, an infantry regiment normally comprised two field battalions of about 800 men each or 8–10 companies. In some armies, an independent regiment with fewer companies was labelled a demi-regiment, a cavalry regiment numbered 600 to 900 troopers, making up a single entity. With the widespread adoption of conscription in European armies during the nineteenth century, the regimental system underwent modification. Prior to World War I, a regiment in the French, German, Russian. As far as possible, the battalions would be garrisoned in the same military district, so that the regiment could be mobilized. A cavalry regiment by contrast made up an entity of up to 1,000 troopers. Usually, the regiment is responsible for recruiting and administering all of a military career. Depending upon the country, regiments can be either combat units or administrative units or both and this is often contrasted to the continental system adopted by many armies. Generally, divisions are garrisoned together and share the same installations, thus, in divisional administration, soldiers and officers are transferred in and out of divisions as required. Some regiments recruited from specific areas, and usually incorporated the place name into the regimental name. In other cases, regiments would recruit from an age group within a nation. In other cases, new regiments were raised for new functions within an army, e. g. the Fusiliers, the Parachute Regiment, a key aspect of the regimental system is that the regiment or battalion is the fundamental tactical building block. This flows historically from the period, when battalions were widely dispersed and virtually autonomous. For example, a regiment might include different types of battalions of different origins, within the regimental system, soldiers, and usually officers, are always posted to a tactical unit of their own regiment whenever posted to field duty
16.
Royal Dublin Fusiliers
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The Royal Dublin Fusiliers was an Irish infantry Regiment of the British Army created in 1881, one of eight Irish regiments raised and garrisoned in Ireland, with its home depot in Naas. Both regular battalions of the Regiment fought in the Second Boer War, in the First World War, a further six battalions were raised and the regiment saw action on the Western Front, the Mediterranean, and the Middle East. In the course of the war three Victoria Cross were awarded, following the establishment of the independent Irish Free State in 1922, the five regiments that had their traditional recruiting grounds in the counties of the new state were disbanded. The regiment was created on 1 July 1881 as a result of Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 102nd Regiment of Foot and the 103rd Regiment of Foot. Under the reforms five infantry battalions were given Irish territorial titles and it was one of eight Irish regiments raised largely in Ireland, and served the counties of Dublin, Kildare, Wicklow and Carlow, with its garrison depot located at Naas. Militarily, the whole of Ireland was administered as a command within the United Kingdom with Command Headquarters at Parkgate Dublin. Many of those killed while on service with the regiment and some of their relatives are buried in the Grangegorman Military Cemetery, the 102nd was based in Ceylon when it became the 1st Battalion. It moved back to the UK in 1886, being based in England and it returned to England in 1893, remaining there until the Second Boer War began in South Africa in 1899, it arrived in South Africa in November 1899. When the 103rd became the 2nd Battalion, it was based in England before moving to sunnier climes in 1884, the following year it arrived in Egypt and then moved to India in 1889, being located in a variety of places there. In 1897 the 2nd Dublins was based in Natal Colony, where it would still be when the Boer War began in 1899, the Boers declared war on 12 October and invaded Natal and the Cape Colony. On 20 October the 2nd Dublins took part in the first major battle of the war, the Boers had appeared on Talana Hill in the early morning and after they launched a few shells at Dundee, the garrison responded and attacked the hill. The 2nd Dublins took part in the attack and, after fierce fighting. They suffered heavy casualties in the process, losing, amongst others, Captain George Anderson Weldon, the British had to abandon Dundee soon afterwards, withdrawing to Ladysmith. The Boers besieged the town in late October, on 30 October the garrisons commander, Sir George Stuart White VC, ordered an attack on Lombards Kop which the Dublin Fusiliers took part in. On 15 November 1899, a detachment of Dubliners and the Durban Light Infantry were garrisoning an armoured train operating from Estcourt with the objective of monitoring Boer movements, the Boers ambushed them on their return and a section of the train was de-railed in the chaos. The remaining troops put up a stout defence until they were compelled to surrender. Churchill later made an escape attempt from his prison in Pretoria. He wrote glowingly of the gallantry displayed by the Dublin Fusiliers, the Dublins lost three men during the ambush
17.
Sepoy
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A sepoy was formerly the designation given to an Indian soldier. In the modern Nepalese Army, Indian Army, Pakistan Army, the term sepoy is derived from the Persian word sepāhī meaning infantry soldier in the Mughal Empire. In the Ottoman Empire the term Sipahi was used to refer to cavalry troopers, in its most common application, sepoy was the term used in the British Indian Army, and earlier in that of the British East India Company, for an infantry private. Initially it referred to Hindu or Muslim soldiers without regular uniform or discipline and it later generically referred to all native soldiers in the service of the European powers in India. Close to ninety-six percent of the British East India Companys army of 300,000 men were native to India, a Sipahi or a sepoy was an infantryman in both the Mughal Empire and the Kingdom of Mysore. The Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb raised battalions of sepoys variously armed with matchlocks, rockets and these troops were successfully employed in siege warfare, particularly during the Siege of Bidar, the Siege of Bijapur and the Siege of Golconda. Initially the British recruited sepoys from the communities in the Madras and Bombay Presidencies. In the Bengal Army however, recruitment was only amongst high caste Brahmin and Rajput communities, mainly of the Uttar Pradesh, recruitment was undertaken locally by battalions or regiments often from the same community, village and even family. The commanding officer of a battalion became a form of substitute for the chief or gaon bura. He was the mai-baap or the father and mother of the making up the paltan. There were many family and community ties amongst the troops and numerous instances where family members enlisted in the battalion or regiment. The izzat of the unit was represented by the regimental colours and these colours were stored in honour in the quarter guard and frequently paraded before the men. They formed a point in battle. The oath of fealty by the sepoy was given to the East India Company, the salary of the sepoys employed by the East India Company, while not substantially greater than that paid by the rulers of Indian states, was usually paid regularly. Advances could be given and family allotments from pay due were permitted when the troops served abroad, there was a commisariat and regular rations were provided. Weapons, clothing and ammunition were provided centrally, in contrast to the soldiers of local kings whose pay was often in arrears, in addition local rulers usually expected their sepoys to arm themselves and to sustain themselves through plunder. Following the Indian Rebellion of 1857 the surviving East India Company regiments were merged into a new Indian Army under the control of the British Crown. The designation of sepoy was retained for Indian soldiers below the rank of lance naik, following the formation of the French East India Company in 1719, companies of Indian sepoys were raised to augment the French regulars and Swiss mercenary troops available
18.
Siege of Arcot
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It was part of the Second Carnatic War. In the early part of 18th century, the Mughal Empire of India was in its last throes, the princely states of India a few hundred in number, became more and more autonomous and independent with the reduced oversight of the vast Mughal empire. The British East India Company represented British trading interests with factories, ports at Calcutta, Madras, the French East India Company operated out of Pondicherry, just down the coast from Madras. As England and France were rivals in Europe, they carried on their rivalry to the new Eastern trade frontier by way of extending their support to rival Nawabs in India. In the Deccan proper, the Asaf Jah I had founded a dynasty, with Hyderabad for its capital. The Carnatic – that is, the tract between the central plateau and the Bay of Bengal – was ruled by the Nizams deputy. Farther to the south, a Hindu king reigned at Trichinopoly, when the Nizam of the Deccan, Asaf Jah I died in 1748, the British and French supported rival claimants to the throne and the French candidate ultimately won out. In another disputed succession of the Carnatic which was ruled by the Nizams deputy, the French supported Chanda Sahib in his intrigues and military campaigns to become Nawab of Arcot. The net result of the two important events was the British factory and port situated at Madras was surrounded by hostile territory. Chanda Sahib, after consolidating his control of Arcot, wanted to eliminate his last major British-supported rival, Muhammed Ali Khan Wallajah, Chanda Sahib led a large force to besiege Trichinopoly. Ali was supported by a handful of his own men and about 600 British troops, robert Clive, a one-time East India Company clerk who had served in the companys forces during the First Carnatic War, was outraged at the weak British response to French expansion. He proposed a plan to the governor at Madras, Thomas Saunders, rather than challenge the strong Franco-Indian forces at Trichinopoly, he would strike at Arcot, Chanda Sahibs capital city, with the goal of forcing Chanda Sahib to lift the siege at Trichinopoly. Saunders agreed, but could only part with 200 of the 350 British soldiers under his command and those 200 soldiers and a further 300 sepoys along with 3 small guns and eight European officers marched towards Arcot from Madras on 26 August 1751. On the morning of the 29 August they reached Conjeeveram, which was at a distance of 42 miles from Madras, clivess intelligence informed him that the enemy garrison at Arcot was twice the size of his marching forces. From Conjeeveram to Arcot is 27 miles and the troops of Clive, in spite of a delay caused by a storm of thunder and lighting. The garrison left by Chanda Sahib to defend Arcot, struck with panic at the coming of the foe, at once abandoned the fort. Clive and his forces took over the city and the fort without firing a single shot. When apprised of the loss of Arcot, Chanda Sahib immediately dispatched 4,000 of his best troops with 150 of the French, under the command of his son, Raza Sahib, to recapture it
19.
Battle of Plassey
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The Battle of Plassey was a decisive victory of the British East India Company over the Nawab of Bengal and his French allies on 23 June 1757. The battle consolidated the Companys presence in Bengal, which expanded to cover much of India over the next hundred years. The battle took place at Palashi on the banks of the Bhagirathi River, about 150 kilometres north of Calcutta and south of Murshidabad, the belligerents were the Nawab Siraj-ud-daulah, the last independent Nawab of Bengal, and the British East India Company. Siraj-ud-daulah had become the Nawab of Bengal the year before, Robert Clive bribed Mir Jafar, the commander in chief of the nawabs army, and also promised him to make him Nawab of Bengal. He defeated the Nawab at Plassey in 1757 and captured Calcutta, the battle was preceded by the attack on British-controlled Calcutta by Nawab Siraj-ud-daulah and the Black Hole massacre. The British sent reinforcements under Colonel Robert Clive and Admiral Charles Watson from Madras to Bengal, Clive then seized the initiative to capture the French fort of Chandernagar. Tensions and suspicions between Siraj-ud-daulah and the British culminated in the Battle of Plassey, the battle was waged during the Seven Years War, and, in a mirror of their European rivalry, the French East India Company sent a small contingent to fight against the British. Siraj-ud-Daulah had a superior force and made his stand at Plassey. The British, worried about being outnumbered, formed a conspiracy with Siraj-ud-Daulahs demoted army chief Mir Jafar, along with such as Yar Lutuf Khan, Jagat Seths, Omichund. Mir Jafar, Rai Durlabh and Yar Lutuf Khan thus assembled their troops near the battlefield, the battle was ended in 11 hours. This is judged to be one of the battles in the control of Indian subcontinent by the colonial powers. The British now wielded enormous influence over the Nawab and consequently acquired significant concessions for previous losses and revenue from trade. The British East India Company had a presence in India with the three main stations of Fort St. George in Madras, Fort William in Calcutta and Bombay Castle in western India. These stations were independent presidencies governed by a president and a council, the British adopted a policy of allying themselves with various princes and Nawabs, promising security against usurpers and rebels. The Nawabs often gave them concessions in return for the security, by then, all rivalry had ceased between the British East India Company and the Dutch or Portuguese. The French were a late comer in India trade, but they established themselves in India and were poised to overtake Britain for control. The War of the Austrian Succession marked the beginning of the struggle between Britain and France and of European military ascendancy and political intervention in the Indian subcontinent. In September 1746, Mahé de La Bourdonnais landed off Madras with a naval squadron, the defences of Madras were weak and the garrison sustained a bombardment of three days before surrendering
20.
Battle of Wandiwash
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The Battle of Wandiwash was a decisive battle in India during the Seven Years War. The Count de Lallys army, burdened by a lack of support and funds, attempted to regain the fort at Vandavasi. He was attacked by Sir Eyre Cootes forces and decisively defeated, the French general Marquis de Bussy-Castelnau and the French were then restricted to Pondichéry, where they surrendered on 16 January 1761. Wandiwash is the Anglicised pronunciation of Vandavasi and this was the Third Carnatic War fought between the French and the British. Having made substantial gains in Bengal and Hyderabad, the British, after collecting huge amount of revenue, were equipped to face the French in Wandiwash. The Battle of Wandiwash involved capture of Chetpattu, Tirunomalai, Tindivanam, great Britain in the Seven Years War France in the Seven Years War Thomas J. Mullen, Jr. Seven Years’ War, Battle of Wandiwash February 1994 issue of Military History magazine
21.
Siege of Pondicherry (1760)
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The 1760–1761 Siege of Pondicherry was a conflict in the Third Carnatic War, part of the global Seven Years War. Lasting from 4 September 1760 to 15 January 1761, British land and naval forces besieged, the city was on the verge of starvation when French commander Lally surrendered. Many civilians were killed in fire between the lines when Lally attempted to evict them from the city in order to reduce the population under siege and it was the third British victory under Robert Clive. Fortescues History of the British Army
22.
Siege of Seringapatam (1792)
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The 1792 Siege of Seringapatam was a battle and siege of the Mysorean capital city of Seringapatam at the end of the Third Anglo-Mysore War. With his agreement to the Treaty of Seringapatam on 18 March 1792, the prospects for Tipu Sultan, the Muslim ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore, had declined significantly during the 1791 campaign season of the Third Anglo-Mysore War. Cornwallis, whose army had been short of provisions, withdrew to Bangalore in May 1791 to resupply his army. Tipu punctuated the arrival of the British by showering them with rockets in an ineffective yet impressive display of technology, in addition to the grand army, Cornwallis had ordered General Robert Abercromby to lead a supporting army of about 6,000 men from the Malabar coast. The city of Seringapatam occupied an island in the Kaveri River and this line, three to four miles long, was studded with six redoubts, and much of the line was protected by a thick hedge. To the east the line was anchored by Karigaut Hill, Cornwallis, after inspecting the citys defences on 6 February, decided to attack even though Abercrombys column had not yet reached the area. Cornwallis planned an attack with three components. General Medows would lead 7 battalions on the right, where he was to drive Tipus left back toward the fort, Cornwallis himself would direct 8 battalions in the center with the objective of gaining the river near the eastern end of the fort. If successful, the Mysoreans would be driven onto the island, since the battle was to take place at night, they would be unable to use artillery to provide covering fire, so he ordered the attacks to be made only with musket and bayonet. Cornwallis deliberately excluded the nizams forces from the action, since he did not trust them to act effectively, Cornwallis did not divulge details of the plan until one hour before the attack. At around 9 pm the three divisions left camp, in the center, Cornwallis advanced to the hedge, which his force reached around 11. By then gunfire from his left indicated that Maxwells men had begun their attack on Karigaut Hill. Cornwallis ordered his men through the hedge, the British troops closed with the bayonet on the Mysoreans, who fled in near-panic, leaving artillery, tents, one redoubt gave resistance and was stormed. Maxwells and Cornwallis men chased the fleeing Mysoreans as they crossed the bridges onto the island, while this secured his own position, it left many of his troops at the mercy of the British. The division of General Medows did not fare quite as well as the other two and this created a gap in the British lines between the center and right, exposing Cornwallis, who had held back from the lines with a single battalion, to personal danger. Tipu sought to exploit this gap in order to recover the camp, Cornwallis was able to rally his men and repulse the counterattack, but his hand was grazed by a bullet during the action. When daylight arrived the field of battle was clearly visible to all. Significantly exposed, Cornwallis withdrew his command to Karigaut Hill, abandoning part of his camp in the process and this enabled the Mysorean cavalry to roam freely through the area while Tipus artillery continued to play on exposed British positions
23.
Ternate
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Ternate is an island in the Maluku Islands of eastern Indonesia. It was the center of the former Sultanate of Ternate and it is off the west coast of the larger island of Halmahera. The city has a population of just under 200,000 on some 111.39 km2, like its neighbouring island, Tidore, Ternate is a visually dramatic cone-shape. The two are ancient Islamic sultanates with a history of bitter rivalry. The islands were once the single major producer of cloves. In the precolonial era, Ternate was the dominant political and economic power over most of the Spice Islands of Maluku, today, Ternate City is the largest town in the province of North Maluku, within which the island constitutes a municipality. It is, however, no longer the capital, a title now held by the town of Sofifi on Halmahera. The Ternate Essay was an account of evolution by natural selection written on the island by Alfred Russel Wallace in 1858. Darwin at once responded by publishing Wallaces essay alongside his own accounts of the theory, Ternate is dominated by the volcanic Mount Gamalama. An 1840 eruption destroyed most houses, recent eruptions occurred in 1980,1983,1994 and 2011. During the 2011 eruption, Indonesia closed an airport near the volcano for several days following ash emissions that reached 2,000 metres into the atmosphere. The foothills are home to groves of trees, and climbs to the peak of the volcano can be made. The airport lies along the northeast coastline, hiri island is a volcanic cone lying off the northern tip of Ternate. Crocodile-infested crater Tolire Lake lies in the northwest and is bordered by sheer cliffs, Ternate beaches include Sulamadaha, Afetaduma and Jouburiki in the west, and the beach at the village of Kastela in the southeast. Ternate is governed as Ternate City within the province of North Maluku, connections are via Makassar, and Manado via Sorong. In addition there are flights to Jakarta on Batavia Air, Sriwijaya Air. Greater Ternate City spreads 10 kilometres from the airport to Bastiong port, the commercial centre stretches 2 km from the bus terminal near Fort Oranye to Ahmad Yani Port where Pelni ships arrive. It is the largest town in North Maluku province, the current Sultans Palace, built in 1796, is partly a museum
24.
Dutch East Indies
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The Dutch East Indies was a Dutch colony. It was formed from the colonies of the Dutch East India Company. During the 19th century, Dutch possessions and hegemony were expanded and this colony was one of the most valuable European colonies under the Dutch Empires rule, and contributed to Dutch global prominence in spice and cash crop trade in the 19th to early 20th century. The colonial social order was based on racial and social structures with a Dutch elite living separate from. The term Indonesia came into use for the location after 1880. In the early 20th century, local intellectuals began developing the concept of Indonesia as a nation state, Japans World War II occupation dismantled much of the Dutch colonial state and economy. Following the Japanese surrender in August 1945, Indonesian nationalists declared independence which they fought to secure during the subsequent Indonesian National Revolution, the word Indies comes from Latin, Indus. The original name Dutch Indies was translated by the English as the Dutch East Indies, the name Dutch Indies is recorded in the Dutch East India Companys documents of the early 1620s. Scholars writing in English use the terms Indië, Indies, the Dutch East Indies, the Netherlands Indies, centuries before Europeans arrived, the Indonesian archipelago supported various states, including commercially oriented coastal trading states and inland agrarian states. The first Europeans to arrive were the Portuguese in the late 15th century, following disruption of Dutch access to spices in Europe, the first Dutch expedition set sail for the East Indies in 1595 to access spices directly from Asia. When it made a 400% profit on its return, other Dutch expeditions soon followed, recognising the potential of the East Indies trade, the Dutch government amalgamated the competing companies into the United East India Company. The VOC was granted a charter to wage war, build fortresses, a capital was established in Batavia, which became the centre of the VOCs Asian trading network. Smuggling, the expense of war, corruption, and mismanagement led to bankruptcy by the end of the 18th century. The company was dissolved in 1800 and its colonial possessions in the Indonesian archipelago were nationalised under the Dutch Republic as the Dutch East Indies. From the arrival of the first Dutch ships in the late 16th century, to the declaration of independence in 1945, although Java was dominated by the Dutch, many areas remained independent throughout much of this time, including Aceh, Bali, Lombok and Borneo. Piracy remained a problem until the mid-19th century, finally in the early 20th century, imperial dominance was extended across what was to become the territory of modern-day Indonesia. In 1811, British forces occupied several Dutch East Indies ports including Java, Dutch control was restored in 1816. Under the 1824 Anglo-Dutch Treaty, the Dutch secured British settlements such as Bengkulu in Sumatra, in exchange for ceding control of their possessions in the Malay Peninsula, the resulting borders between British and Dutch possessions remain between Malaysia and Indonesia
25.
Ambon Island
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Ambon Island is part of the Maluku Islands of Indonesia. The island has an area of 775 km2 and is mountainous, well watered, Ambon Island consists of two territories. The main city and seaport is Ambon, which is also the capital of Maluku province, Ambon Island lies off the southwest coast of the much larger Seram island. It is on the side of the Banda Sea, part of a chain of volcanic islands that encircle the sea. It is 51 kilometres long and is of irregular shape. The southeastern and smaller portion, a peninsula is united to the northern by a neck of land. Ambon city is on the northwest of Leitimor, facing Hitoe, the highest mountains, Wawani at 1,100 metres and Salahutu at 1,225 metres, have hot springs and solfataras. They are volcanoes, and the mountains of the neighboring Lease Islands are extinct volcanoes, granite and serpentine rocks predominate, but the shores of Amboina Bay are of chalk and contain stalactite caves. Wild areas of Ambon Island are covered by tropical rainforest, part of the Seram rain forests ecoregion, as a result of this isolation, Ambon has few indigenous mammals, birds are more abundant. The insect diversity of the island, however, is rich, seashells are obtained in great numbers and variety. The population of the island, including a tiny sparsely populated island to the north, is just below 441,000 in the 2010 Census, the average temperature is 27 °C, rarely falling below 22 °C. Rainfall can be heavy, especially after the monsoons. The wet season coincides with the period of the west monsoon, cassava and sago are the chief crops, which also include breadfruit, sugarcane, coffee, cocoa, pepper and cotton. In addition to these, hunting and fishing supplement the local diet, nutmeg and cloves were once the dominant export crops but are now produced in limited quantities. Amboina wood, obtained from the tree and highly valued for ornamental woodwork, is now mostly grown on Seram. The main employers in Ambon Island are the Gubernatorial Office, the Mayoral Office, Raiders 733, the whole economy of Ambon Island is starting to shift out of the Old Towne toward Passo, which is the newly appointed central business district of the island region. The economy of Ambon Island was recently boosted by the investment made by Ciputra Group in creating a new satellite city in Lateri, Kotamadya Ambon, Maluku. Furthermore, the new international standard shopping center, Ambon City Center, the Ambonese are of mixed Malay-Papuan origin
26.
Banda Islands
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The main town and administrative centre is Bandanaira, located on the island of the same name. They rise out of 4-to-6-kilometre deep ocean and have a land area of approximately 180 square kilometres. They have a population of about 15,000, until the mid-19th century the Banda Islands were the worlds only source of the spices nutmeg and mace, produced from the nutmeg tree. The islands are popular destinations for scuba diving and snorkeling. The first documented presence in the Banda Islands comes from a rockshelter site on Pulau Ay that was in use at least 8000 years ago. Before the arrival of Europeans, Banda had a form of government led by orang kaya. Banda was the only source of nutmeg and mace, spices used as flavourings, medicines. They were sold by Arab traders to the Venetians for exorbitant prices, the traders did not divulge the exact location of their source and no European was able to deduce their location. The first written accounts of Banda are in Suma Oriental, a written by the Portuguese apothecary Tomé Pires who was based in Malacca from 1512 to 1515. On his first visit, he interviewed the Portuguese and the far more knowledgeable Malay sailors in Malacca and he estimated the early sixteenth century population to be 2500–3000. In exchange, Banda predominantly received rice and cloth, namely light cotton batik from Java, calicoes from India, in 1603, an average quality sarong-sized cloth traded for eighteen kilograms of nutmeg. Some of these textiles were then on-sold, ending up in Halmahera, coarser ikat from the Lesser Sundas was traded for sago from the Kei Islands, Aru and Seram. In August 1511 on behalf of the king of Portugal, Afonso de Albuquerque conquered Malacca, which at the time was the hub of Asian trade. In November of that year, after having secured Malacca and learning of the Bandas location, Malay pilots, either recruited or forcibly conscripted, guided them via Java, the Lesser Sundas and Ambon to Banda, arriving in early 1512. DAbreu sailed through Ambon and Seram while his second in command Francisco Serrão went ahead towards the Maluku islands, was shipwrecked and ended up in Ternate. Distracted by hostilities elsewhere in the archipelago, such as Ambon and Ternate, the Portuguese did not return until 1529, a Portuguese trader Captain Garcia Henriques landed troops in the Bandas. Five of the Banda islands were within gunshot of each other, the Bandanese were, however, hostile to such a plan, and their warlike antics were both costly and tiresome to Garcia whose men were attacked when they attempted to build a fort. From then on, the Portuguese were infrequent visitors to the islands preferring to buy their nutmeg from traders in Malacca, maintaining their independence, the Bandanese never allowed the Portuguese to build a fort or a permanent post in the islands
27.
Myanmar
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Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar and also known as Burma, is a sovereign state in South East Asia bordered by Bangladesh, India, China, Laos and Thailand. About one third of Myanmars total perimeter of 5,876 km, forms an uninterrupted coastline of 1,930 km along the Bay of Bengal, the countrys 2014 census revealed a much lower population than expected, with 51 million people recorded. Myanmar is 676,578 square kilometres in size and its capital city is Naypyidaw and its largest city and former capital city is Yangon. Early civilizations in Myanmar included the Tibeto-Burman-speaking Pyu city-states in Upper Burma, the Pagan Kingdom fell due to the Mongol invasions and several warring states emerged. In the 16th century, reunified by the Taungoo Dynasty, the country was for a period the largest empire in the history of Mainland Southeast Asia. The early 19th century Konbaung Dynasty ruled over an area included modern Myanmar and briefly controlled Manipur. The British invaded Myanmar after three Anglo-Burmese Wars in the 19th century and the became a British colony. Myanmar became an independent nation in 1948, initially as a nation and then, following a coup détat in 1962. For most of its independent years, the country has been engrossed in rampant ethnic strife, during this time, the United Nations and several other organisations have reported consistent and systematic human rights violations in the country. In 2011, the junta was officially dissolved following a 2010 general election. While former military leaders still wield enormous power in the country, there is, however, continuing criticism of the governments treatment of the Muslim Rohingya minority and its poor response to the religious clashes. In the landmark 2015 election, Aung San Suu Kyis party won a majority in both houses, Myanmar is a country rich in jade and gems, oil, natural gas and other mineral resources. In 2013, its GDP stood at US$56.7 billion, the income gap in Myanmar is among the widest in the world, as a large proportion of the economy is controlled by supporters of the former military government. As of 2016, according to the Human Development Index, Myanmar had a level of human development. The renaming remains a contested issue, many political and ethnic opposition groups and countries continue to use Burma because they do not recognise the legitimacy of the ruling military government or its authority to rename the country. The countrys official name is the Republic of the Union of Myanmar. Countries that do not officially recognise that name use the long form Union of Burma instead, in English, the country is popularly known as either Burma or Myanmar /ˈmjɑːnˌmɑːr/. Both these names are derived from the name of the majority Burmese Bamar ethnic group, Myanmar is considered to be the literary form of the name of the group, while Burma is derived from Bamar, the colloquial form of the groups name
28.
Irrawaddy River
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The Irrawaddy River or Ayeyarwady River is a river that flows from north to south through Myanmar. It is the countrys largest river and most important commercial waterway, originating from the confluence of the Nmai and Mali rivers, it flows relatively straight North-South before emptying through the Irrawaddy Delta into the Andaman Sea. Its drainage basin of about 404,200 square kilometres covers a part of Burma. After Rudyard Kiplings poem, it is referred to as The Road to Mandalay. As early as the century the river was used for trade. Having developed a network of irrigation canals, the river became important to the British Empire after it had colonized Burma. The river is still as vital today, as an amount of goods. Rice is produced in the Irrawaddy Delta, irrigated by water from the river, environmental organisations have raised concerns about the ecological impacts on the rivers biodiverse ecosystems. Animals potentially impacted include the threatened Irrawaddy dolphin and the Irrawaddy river shark, the native Kachin people named the river Mali-Nmai-Hka. The Burmese name of Irrawaddy is derived from a Pali name for the Ravi River of India, airavati was the Pali version of the name of the elephant mount of Sakka, an important deva in Buddhism. Elephants were often a symbol for water and was used as the name for several others rivers, the Irrawaddy gives its name to the Irrawaddy dolphin, which is found in the lower reaches of the river and known to help fishermen who practice cast-net fishing. Though called Irrawaddy dolphin, it has also found in the Bay of Bengal. The Irrawaddy River bisects Myanmar from north to south and empties through the nine-armed Irrawaddy Delta into the Indian Ocean, the Irrawaddy River arises by the confluence of the Nmai and Mali Rivers in Kachin State. Both the Nmai and Mali Rivers find their sources in the Himalayan glaciers of Upper Burma near 28° N, the eastern branch of the two, Nmai, is the larger and rises in the Languela Glacier north of Putao. It is unnavigable because of the strong current whereas the western branch. Herefore, the Mali river is called by the same name as the main river by locals. The controversial Myitsone Dam is currently under construction at the convergence of these rivers, the city of Myitkyina lies 50 kilometres south of the confluence and can be reached during the dry season. Between Myitkyina and Mandalay, the Irrawaddy flows through three well-marked defiles, About 65 kilometres downstream from Myitkyinā is the first defile, below Bhamo the river makes a sharp westward swing, leaving the Bhamo alluvial basin to cut through the limestone rocks of the second defile
29.
Kingdom of Ava
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The Ava Kingdom was the dominant kingdom that ruled upper Burma from 1364 to 1555. Like the small kingdoms that preceded it, Ava was led by Bamarised Shan kings who claimed descent from the kings of Pagan. The kingdom was founded by Thado Minbya in 1364 following the collapse of the Sagaing, while it was able to hold Taungoo and some peripheral Shan States within its fold at the peak of its power, Ava failed to reconquer the rest. The Forty Years War with Hanthawaddy left Ava exhausted, from the 1420s to early 1480s, Ava regularly faced rebellions in its vassal regions whenever a new king came to power. In the 1480s and 1490s, the Prome Kingdom in the south and the Shan states under Ava sway in the north broke away, in 1510, Taungoo also broke away. Ava was under intensified Shan raids for the first quarter of the 16th century, in 1527, the Confederation of Shan States, led by the state of Mohnyin in alliance with Prome, sacked Ava. The Confederation placed nominal kings on the Ava throne and ruled much of Upper Burma, as Prome was in alliance with the Confederation, only the tiny Taungoo in the southeastern corner, east of the Bago Yoma mountain range remained as the last holdout of independent Bamar people. The Confederations failure to snuff out Taungoo proved costly, surrounded by hostile kingdoms, Taungoo took the initiative to consolidate its position, and defeated a much stronger Hanthawaddy in 1534–1541. When Taungoo turned against Prome, the Shans belatedly sent in their armies, Taungoo took Prome in 1542 and Bagan, just below Ava, in 1544. In January 1555, King Bayinnaung of Taungoo conquered Ava, ending the role as the capital of Upper Burma for nearly two centuries. List of monarchs Ava kings family tree Kingdom of Mrauk U Harvey, history of Burma, From the Earliest Times to 10 March 1824. London, Frank Cass & Co. Ltd, new York and London, Cambridge University Press
30.
Chennai
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Chennai /ˈtʃɛnnaɪ/, formerly known as Madras /məˈdrɑːs/ or /-ˈdræs/) is the capital of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal, it is one of the biggest cultural, economic, according to the 2011 Indian census, it is the sixth-largest city and fourth-most populous urban agglomeration in India. The city together with the adjoining regions constitute the Chennai Metropolitan Area, Chennai is among the most visited Indian cities by foreign tourists. It was ranked 43rd most visited city in the world for year 2015, the Quality of Living Survey rated Chennai as the safest city in India. Chennai attracts 45 percent of tourists visiting India, and 30 to 40 percent of domestic health tourists. As such, it is termed Indias health capital, as a growing metropolitan city in a developing country, Chennai confronts substantial pollution and other logistical and socio-economic problems. Chennai has the third-largest expatriate population in India at 35,000 in 2009,82,790 in 2011, tourism guide publisher Lonely Planet named Chennai as one of the top ten cities in the world to visit in 2015. Chennai is ranked as a city in the Global Cities Index and was ranked the best city in India by India Today in the 2014 annual Indian city survey. In 2015 Chennai was named the hottest city by the BBC, National Geographic ranked Chennais food as second best in the world, it was the only Indian city to feature in the list. Chennai was also named the ninth-best cosmopolitan city in the world by Lonely Planet, the Chennai Metropolitan Area is one of the largest city economies of India. Chennai is nicknamed The Detroit of India, with more than one-third of Indias automobile industry being based in the city, in January 2015, it was ranked third in terms of per capita GDP. Chennai has been selected as one of the 100 Indian cities to be developed as a city under PM Narendra Modis flagship Smart Cities Mission. The name Madras originated even before the British presence was established in India, the name Madras is said to have originated from a Portuguese phrase mae de Deus which means mother of god, due to Portuguese influence on the port city. According to some sources, Madras was derived from Madraspattinam, a north of Fort St George. However, it is whether the name was in use before the arrival of Europeans. The British military mapmakers believed Madras was originally Mundir-raj or Mundiraj, Madras might have also been derived from the word Madhuras meaning juice of honey or sugarcane in Sanskrit. The nativity of name Chennai, being of Telugu origin is clearly proved by the historians. The first official use of the name Chennai is said to be in a deed, dated 8 August 1639
31.
Malacca
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Malacca, dubbed The Historic State, is a state in Malaysia and located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, next to the Strait of Malacca. The state is bordered by Negeri Sembilan to the north and west, the exclave of Tanjung Tuan also borders Negeri Sembilan to the north. This historical city centre has listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 7 July 2008. Although it was the location of one of the earliest Malay sultanates, the head of state is the Yang di-Pertua Negeri or Governor, rather than a Sultan. Before the arrival of the first Sultan, Malacca was a village inhabited by local Malays known as Orang Laut. Malacca was founded by Parameswara, also known as Iskandar Shah or Sri Majara and he found his way to Malacca around 1400 where he found a good port—it was accessible in all seasons and on the strategically located narrowest point of the Malacca Straits. According to a legend, Parameswara was resting under a tree near a river during a hunt. In self-defence, the mouse deer pushed the dog into the river, impressed by the courage of the deer, and taking it as a propitious omen of the weak overcoming the powerful, Parameswara decided then and there to found an empire on that very spot. He named it Melaka after the tree where he had just taken shelter at, prominent Malaysian artist Syed Thajudeen visually depicted the epic tale of the founding of Malacca on canvas. The Beginning, a 4 panel painting measuring 183 x 512 cm is now a permanent collection at Galeri Petronas, because of its strategic location, Malacca was an important stopping point for Zheng Hes fleet. Her attendants married locals and settled mostly in Bukit Cina, the Chinese Emperor also ordered the Malaccans to raise soldiers and fight back with violent force if the Vietnamese attacked them again. In April 1511, Alfonso de Albuquerque set sail from Goa to Malacca with a force of some 1200 men and seventeen or eighteen ships and they conquered the city on 24 August 1511. After seizing the city Afonso de Albuquerque spared the Hindu, Chinese and Burmese inhabitants but had the Muslim inhabitants massacred or sold into slavery and it soon became clear that Portuguese control of Malacca did not also mean they controlled Asian trade centred there. Their Malaccan rule was severely hampered by administrative and economic difficulties, rather than achieving their ambition of dominating Asian trade, the Portuguese had disrupted the organisation of the network. The centralised port of exchange of Asian wealth had now gone, trade was now scattered over a number of ports among bitter warfare in the Straits. The Jesuit missionary Francis Xavier spent several months in Malacca in 1545,1546, the Dutch launched several attacks on the Portuguese colony during the first four decades of the seventeenth century. The first attack took place in 1606 under the command of Dutch Admiral Cornelis Matelief de Jonge who laid siege to the town with the help of his Johor allies and he engaged the Portuguese armada which had been sent from Goa to offer armed relief to the besieged port. In 1641, the Dutch defeated the Portuguese in an effort to capture Malacca, the Dutch ruled Malacca from 1641 to 1798 but they were not interested in developing it as a trading centre, placing greater importance to Batavia on Java as their administrative centre
32.
Bago, Myanmar
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Bago, formerly known as Hanthawaddy, is a city and the capital of the Bago Region in Myanmar. It is located 50 miles north-east of Yangon, the Gulf of Martaban was colonized by Mon people from the Thaton Kingdom, who established Bago. In 825, the twin brothers Samala and Vimala founded Pegu, the earliest mention of Bago in history is by the Arab geographer ibn Khordadbeh around 850 AD. At the time, the Mon capital had shifted to Thaton, the area came under rule of the Burmese from Bagan in 1056. After the collapse of Bagan to the Mongols in 1287, the Mon regained their independence, in Lower Burma, a Mon dynasty established itself first at Mottama and then at Bago. During the reign of King Razadarit, Bago and Ava Kingdom were engaged in the Forty Years War, the peaceful reign of Queen Shin Sawbu came to an end when she chose the Buddhist monk Dhammazedi to succeed her. Under Dhammazedi, Bago became a centre of commerce and Theravada Buddhism, from 1353–1539, Binnya U, descendant of the Thai chief Wareru, established Hanthawaddy as the capital of the Mon Hanthawaddy Kingdom, which covered all of what is now Lower Burma. The area came under Burman control again in 1539, when it was annexed by King Tabinshwehti of the Taungoo Dynasty, the kings of Taungoo made Bago their royal capital from 1539–1599 and again in 1613–1635, and used it as a base for repeated invasions of the Ayutthaya Kingdom. In 1519, António Correia, then a merchant from the Portuguese casados settlement at Cochin landed in Bago, then known to the Portuguese as Pegu, a year later, Portuguese India Governor Diogo Lopes de Sequeira sent an ambassador to Pegu. As a major seaport, the city was visited by Europeans, among these. The Europeans often commented on its magnificence, the capital was looted by the viceroy of Toungoo, Minye Thihathu II of Toungoo, and then burned by the viceroy of Arakin during the Burmese–Siamese War. Anaukpetlun wanted to rebuild Hongsawadi, which had been deserted since Nanda Bayin had abandoned it and he was only able to build a temporary palace, however. The Burmese capital relocated to Ava in 1634, in 1740, the Mon revolted and founded the Restored Hanthawaddy Kingdom. However, a Bamar king, Alaungpaya, captured the city in May 1757, Bago was rebuilt by King Bodawpaya, but by then the river had shifted course, cutting the city off from the sea. It never regained its previous importance, after the Second Anglo-Burmese War, the British annexed Bago in 1852. In 1862, the province of British Burma was formed, the substantial differences between the colloquial and literary pronunciations, as with Burmese words, was a reason of the British corruption Pegu. In 1911, Hanthawaddy was described as a district in the Bago division of Lower Burma and it lay in the home district of Yangon, from which the town was detached to make a separate district in 1880. It had an area of 3,023 square miles, with a population of 48,411 in 1901, Hanthawaddy and Hinthada were the two most densely populated districts in the province
33.
Siege of Lucknow
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The Siege of Lucknow was the prolonged defence of the Residency within the city of Lucknow during the Indian Rebellion of 1857. After two successive relief attempts had reached the city, the defenders and civilians were evacuated from the Residency, the state of Oudh/Awadh had been annexed by the British East India Company and the Nawab Wajid Ali Shah was exiled to Calcutta the year before the rebellion broke out. This high-handed action by the East India Company was greatly resented within the state, the first British Commissioner appointed to the newly acquired territory was Coverley Jackson. He behaved tactlessly, and Sir Henry Lawrence, an experienced administrator. Lawrence was well aware of the mood of the Indian troops under his command. On 18 April, he warned the Governor General, Lord Canning, of some of the manifestations of discontent, on 1 May, the 7th Oudh Irregular Infantry refused to bite the cartridge, and on 3 May they were disarmed by other regiments. On 10 May, the Indian soldiers at Meerut broke into open rebellion, on 23 May, Lawrence began fortifying the Residency and laying in supplies for a siege, large numbers of British civilians made their way there from outlying districts. On 30 May, most of the Oudh and Bengal troops at Lucknow broke into open rebellion. In addition to his locally recruited pensioners, Lawrence also had the bulk of the British 32nd Regiment of Foot available, on 4 June, there was a rebellion at Sitapur, a large and important station 51 miles from Lucknow. This was followed by another at Faizabad, one of the most important cities in the province, thus, in the course of ten days, British authority in Oudh practically vanished. On 30 June, Lawrence learned that the rebels were gathering north of Lucknow and ordered a reconnaissance in force, although he had comparatively little military experience, Lawrence led the expedition himself. The expedition was not very well organised, whilst they were under attack, some of Lawrences sepoys and Indian artillerymen defected to the rebels, overturning their guns and cutting the traces. His exhausted British soldiers retreated in disorder, some died of heatstroke within sight of the Residency. Lawrence retreated into the Residency, where the siege now began, the actual defended line was based on six detached smaller buildings and four entrenched batteries. The position covered some 60 acres of ground, and the garrison was too small to defend it effectively against a prepared and supported attack. Also, the Residency lay in the midst of several palaces, mosques and administrative buildings, Lawrence initially refused permission for these to be demolished, urging his engineers to spare the holy places. During the siege, they provided good vantage points and cover for rebel sharpshooters, one of the first bombardments following the beginning of the siege, on 30 June, caused a civilian to be trapped by a falling roof. Corporal William Oxenham of the 32nd Foot saved him while under intense musket and cannon fire, the first attack was repulsed on 1 July
34.
Victoria Cross
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The Victoria Cross is the highest award of the United Kingdom honours system. It is awarded for gallantry in the face of the enemy to members of the British armed forces and it was previously awarded to Commonwealth countries, most of which have established their own honours systems and no longer recommend British honours. It may be awarded to a person of any rank in any service. Since the first awards were presented by Queen Victoria in 1857 and these investitures are usually held at Buckingham Palace. The VC was introduced on 29 January 1856 by Queen Victoria to honour acts of valour during the Crimean War, since then, the medal has been awarded 1,358 times to 1,355 individual recipients. Only 15 medals,11 to members of the British Army, the traditional explanation of the source of the metal from which the medals are struck is that it derives from Russian cannon captured at the Siege of Sevastopol. Some research has suggested a variety of origins for the material, research has established that the metal for most of the medals made since December 1914 came from two Chinese cannons that were captured from the Russians in 1855. Owing to its rarity, the VC is highly prized and the medal has fetched over £400,000 at auction, a number of public and private collections are devoted to the Victoria Cross. The private collection of Lord Ashcroft, amassed since 1986, contains over one-tenth of all VCs awarded, following a 2008 donation to the Imperial War Museum, the Ashcroft collection went on public display alongside the museums Victoria and George Cross collection in November 2010. These are unique awards of honours system, recommended, assessed, gazetted and presented by each country. In 1854, after 39 years of peace, Britain found itself fighting a war against Russia. The Crimean War was one of the first wars with modern reporting, before the Crimean War, there was no official standardised system for recognition of gallantry within the British armed forces. This structure was limited, in practice awards of the Order of the Bath were confined to officers of field rank. Brevet promotions or Mentions in Despatches were largely confined to those who were under the notice of the commanders in the field. Other European countries had awards that did not discriminate against class or rank, France awarded the Légion dhonneur and The Netherlands gave the Order of William. There was a feeling among the public and in the Royal Court that a new award was needed to recognise incidents of gallantry that were unconnected with a mans lengthy or meritorious service. Queen Victoria issued a Warrant under the Royal sign-manual on 29 January 1856 that officially constituted the VC, the order was backdated to 1854 to recognise acts of valour during the Crimean War. Queen Victoria had instructed the War Office to strike a new medal that would not recognise birth or class, the medal was meant to be a simple decoration that would be highly prized and eagerly sought after by those in the military services
35.
Presidency armies
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The presidency armies were the armies of the three presidencies of the East India Companys rule in India, later the forces of the British Crown in India. The presidency armies were named after the presidencies, the Bengal Army, the Madras Army, initially, only Europeans served as commissioned or non-commissioned officers. In time, Indian Army units were garrisoned from Peshawar in the north, to Sind in the west, the army was engaged in the wars to extend British control in India and beyond. The presidency armies, like the presidencies themselves, belonged to the Company until the Indian Rebellion of 1857, in 1895 the three presidency armies were merged into a united Indian Army. The origin of the British Indian Army and subsequently the army of independent India lies in the origins of the Presidency Armies which preceded them. The first purely Indian troops employed by the British were watchmen employed in each of the Presidencies of the British East India Company to protect their trading stations. These were all placed in 1748 under one Commander-in-Chief, Major-General Stringer Lawrence who is regarded as the Father of the Indian Army. From the mid-eighteenth century, the East India Company began to maintain armies at each of its three stations, or Presidencies of British India, at Calcutta, Madras and Bombay. The Bengal Army, Madras Army, and Bombay Army were quite distinct, each with its own Regiments and they included Artillery, Cavalry and Infantry regiments, so historical sources refer to the Bengal/Madras/Bombay Artillery/Cavalry/Infantry. From the mid-eighteenth century onwards, the Crown began to dispatch regiments of the regular British Army to India and these troops are often referred to as ‘H. M. ’s Regiments’ or ‘Royal regiments’. By 1824, the size of the armies of Bengal, Madras. In 1844 the combined strength of the three armies was 235,446 native and 14,584 European. In 1757, Robert Clive came up with the idea of sepoy battalions for the Bengal Presidency, the Madras Army followed suit with six battalions in 1759 followed by the Bombay Army in 1767. Recruitment in all cases was done locally amongst single castes, from specific communities, villages and families, regular cavalry regiments were raised in 1784 of which only three survived the Indian Rebellion of 1857. Irregular cavalry were raised based on the system of raising cavalry by rulers of Indian states called the silladar system. Irregular cavalry regiments had very few British officers, in addition, native artillery and pioneers were also raised. Between 1796 and 1804, a system on two battalion basis was introduced. The battalions were only theoretically linked together and shared no esprit-de-corps, the number of British officers went up to 22 per battalion which led to the diminished importance of native officers
36.
Gibraltar
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Gibraltar is a British Overseas Territory located on the southern end of the Iberian Peninsula. It has an area of 6.7 km2 and shares its border with Spain. The Rock of Gibraltar is the landmark of the region. At its foot is a populated city area, home to over 30,000 Gibraltarians. An Anglo-Dutch force captured Gibraltar from Spain in 1704 during the War of the Spanish Succession on behalf of the Habsburg claim to the Spanish throne, the territory was subsequently ceded to Great Britain in perpetuity under the Treaty of Utrecht in 1713. Today Gibraltars economy is based largely on tourism, online gambling, financial services, the sovereignty of Gibraltar is a major point of contention in Anglo-Spanish relations as Spain asserts a claim to the territory. Gibraltarians overwhelmingly rejected proposals for Spanish sovereignty in a 1967 referendum, under the Gibraltar constitution of 2006, Gibraltar governs its own affairs, though some powers, such as defence and foreign relations, remain the responsibility of the British government. The name Gibraltar is the Spanish derivation of the Arabic name Jabal Ṭāriq, earlier, it was known as Mons Calpe, a name of Phoenician origin and one of the Pillars of Hercules. The pronunciation of the name in modern Spanish is, evidence of Neanderthal habitation in Gibraltar between 28,000 and 24,000 BP has been discovered at Gorhams Cave, making Gibraltar possibly the last known holdout of the Neanderthals. Within recorded history, the first inhabitants were the Phoenicians, around 950 BC, subsequently, Gibraltar became known as one of the Pillars of Hercules, after the Greek legend of the creation of the Strait of Gibraltar by Heracles. The Carthaginians and Romans also established semi-permanent settlements, after the collapse of the Roman Empire, Gibraltar came briefly under the control of the Vandals. The area later formed part of the Visigothic Kingdom of Hispania from 414 AD until the Islamic conquest of Iberia in 711 AD, in 1160, the Almohad Sultan Abd al-Mumin ordered that a permanent settlement, including a castle, be built. It received the name of Medinat al-Fath, on completion of the works in the town, the Sultan crossed the Strait to look at the works and stayed in Gibraltar for two months. The Tower of Homage of the Moorish Castle remains standing today, from 1274 onwards, the town was fought over and captured by the Nasrids of Granada, the Marinids of Morocco and the kings of Castile. In 1462, Gibraltar was finally captured by Juan Alonso de Guzmán, after the conquest, King Henry IV of Castile assumed the additional title of King of Gibraltar, establishing it as part of the comarca of the Campo Llano de Gibraltar. In 1501, Gibraltar passed back to the Spanish Crown, the occupation of the town by Alliance forces caused the exodus of the population to the surrounding area of the Campo de Gibraltar. As the Alliances campaign faltered, the 1713 Treaty of Utrecht was negotiated and ceded control of Gibraltar to Britain to secure Britains withdrawal from the war. Unsuccessful attempts by Spanish monarchs to regain Gibraltar were made with the siege of 1727 and again with the Great Siege of Gibraltar, during the American War of Independence
37.
Sri Lanka
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Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an island country in South Asia near south-east India. Sri Lanka has maritime borders with India to the northwest and the Maldives to the southwest, Sri Lankas documented history spans 3,000 years, with evidence of pre-historic human settlements dating back to at least 125,000 years. Its geographic location and deep harbours made it of strategic importance from the time of the ancient Silk Road through to World War II. Sri Lanka was known from the beginning of British colonial rule until 1972 as Ceylon, Sri Lankas recent history has been marred by a thirty-year civil war which decisively ended when the Sri Lankan military defeated the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam in 2009. A diverse and multicultural country, Sri Lanka is home to many religions, ethnic groups, in addition to the majority Sinhalese, it is home to large groups of Sri Lankan and Indian Tamils, Moors, Burghers, Malays, Kaffirs and the aboriginal Vedda. Sri Lanka has a rich Buddhist heritage, and the first known Buddhist writings of Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka is a republic and a unitary state governed by a semi-presidential system. The legislative capital, Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte, is a suburb of the capital and largest city. Along with the Maldives, Sri Lanka is one of the two countries in South Asia that are rated among high human development on the Human Development Index. In antiquity, Sri Lanka was known to travellers by a variety of names, according to the Mahavamsa, the legendary Prince Vijaya named the land Tambapanni, because his followers hands were reddened by the red soil of the area. In Hindu mythology, such as the Mahabharata, the island was referred to as Lankā, in Tamil, the island is referred to as Eelam. Ancient Greek geographers called it Taprobanā or Taprobanē from the word Tambapanni, as a British crown colony, the island was known as Ceylon, it achieved independence as the Dominion of Ceylon in 1948. The country is known in Sinhalese as Śrī Laṃkā and in Tamil as Ilaṅkai, in 1972, its formal name was changed to Free, Sovereign and Independent Republic of Sri Lanka. Later in 1978 it was changed to the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, as the name Ceylon still appears in the names of a number of organisations, the Sri Lankan government announced in 2011 a plan to rename all those over which it has authority. The pre-history of Sri Lanka goes back 125,000 years, the era spans the Palaeolithic, Mesolithic and early Iron Ages. Among the Paleolithic human settlements discovered in Sri Lanka, Pahiyangala and it is said that Kubera was overthrown by his demon stepbrother Ravana, the powerful emperor who built a mythical flying machine named Dandu Monara. The modern city of Wariyapola is described as Ravanas airport, early inhabitants of Sri Lanka were probably ancestors of the Vedda people, an indigenous people numbering approximately 2,500 living in modern-day Sri Lanka. According to the Mahāvamsa, a written in Pāḷi, the original inhabitants of Sri Lanka are the Yakshas and Nagas. Ancient cemeteries that were used before 600BC and other signs of advanced civilization has also discovered in Sri Lanka
38.
Thomas Duffy (VC)
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Private Duffy, however, who went out with two others, managed to fasten a rope to the gun in such a manner that it could be pulled away and was saved from falling into the hands of the enemy. His citation reads, For his cool intrepidity and daring skill and he died in Dublin on 24 December 1868 and is buried in Glasnevin Cemetery. His Victoria Cross is displayed at the National Army Museum in Chelsea, the Register of the Victoria Cross Clarke, Brian D. H. A register of awards to Irish-born officers and men, irelands VCs Monuments to Courage Irish Winners of the Victoria Cross Location of grave and VC medal
39.
John Ryan (VC 1857)
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John Ryan VC was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. He was most anxious to visit every dooly and he later achieved the rank of Sergeant and was killed in action at Cawnpore, India, on 4 March 1858. His Victoria Cross is displayed at the National Army Museum, Chelsea, listed in order of publication year The Register of the Victoria Cross Clarke, Brian D. H. A register of awards to Irish-born officers and men, irelands VCs ISBN 1-899243-00-3 Monuments to Courage Irish Winners of the Victoria Cross
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East India Company (1742–1858)
United Kingdom (1858–1881)
British Army (1862–1881)
