Siege of Negapatam - Revision history

Mohit8811: corrected article also and fixed typos as per guidelines

2026-01-30T17:05:45Z

corrected article also and fixed typos as per guidelines

← Older revision		Revision as of 22:35, 30 January 2026
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			{{Short description\|1781 siege of the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War}}
	{{Use dmy dates\|date=June 2017}}		{{Use dmy dates\|date=June 2017}}
	{{Use Indian English\|date=June 2017}}		{{Use Indian English\|date=June 2017}}
	{{Infobox military conflict		{{Infobox military conflict
	\|conflict=Siege of Negapatam		\|conflict=Siege of Negapatam
	\|image=		\|image=File:Portrait of Admiral Sir Edward Hughes.jpg
	\|caption=		\|caption=A portrait of Edward Hughes
	\|partof=the [[Fourth Anglo-Dutch War]]<br>and the [[Second Anglo-Mysore War]]		\|partof=the [[Fourth Anglo-Dutch War]]<br>and the [[Second Anglo-Mysore War]]
	\|date=21 ~~October–11~~ November 1781		\|date=21 October – 11 November 1781<br>({{age in years, months, weeks and days\|1781\|10\|21\|1781\|11\|11}})
	\|place=[[Negapatam]], ~~then a~~ [[Dutch Coromandel~~\|Dutch colony]] in [[India~~]]		\|place=[[Negapatam]], [[Dutch Coromandel]]
	\|result=British victory		\|result=British victory
	\|combatant1={{flagcountry\|Kingdom of Great Britain}}		\|combatant1={{flagcountry\|Kingdom of Great Britain}}
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	2,100 Mysorean troops		2,100 Mysorean troops
	\|casualties1=Light		\|casualties1=Light
	\|casualties2= ~~unknown~~ killed/wounded<br>thousands captured		\|casualties2= Unknown killed/wounded<br>thousands captured
	\|campaignbox=		\|campaignbox=
	{{Campaignbox Fourth Anglo-Dutch War}}		{{Campaignbox Fourth Anglo-Dutch War}}
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	}}		}}

	The '''~~Siege~~ of Negapatam''' was the first major offensive military action on the [[India]]n subcontinent following the arrival of news that war had been declared between Great Britain and the [[Dutch Republic]], beginning the [[Fourth Anglo-Dutch War]]. A British force besieged the Dutch-controlled port of [[Negapatam]], the capital of [[Dutch Coromandel]], on the eastern coast of India, which capitulated after the fortification's walls were breached. The Dutch garrison consisted of 500 European troops, 5,500 local troops, and 2,000 troops of [[Hyder Ali]], the ruler of [[Kingdom of Mysore\|Mysore]].		The '''siege of Negapatam''' was the first major offensive military action on the [[India]]n subcontinent following the arrival of news that war had been declared between Great Britain and the [[Dutch Republic]], beginning the [[Fourth Anglo-Dutch War]]. A British force besieged the Dutch-controlled port of [[Nagapattinam\|Negapatam]], the capital of [[Dutch Coromandel]], on the eastern coast of India, which capitulated after the fortification's walls were breached. The Dutch garrison consisted of 500 European troops, 5,500 local troops, and 2,000 troops of [[Hyder Ali]], the ruler of [[Kingdom of Mysore\|Mysore]].

	While many British troops were occupied with fighting Hyder Ali's armies as part of the [[Second Anglo-Mysore War]], and General [[Eyre Coote (East India Company officer)\|Eyre Coote]] was opposed to offensive actions against the Dutch, [[George Macartney, 1st Earl Macartney\|Lord Macartney]], the governor of [[Madras]], was able to raise more than 4,000 troops and secure the assistance of Admiral Sir [[Edward Hughes (admiral)\|Edward Hughes]] to defeat the larger Dutch and Mysorean defence force.		While many British troops were occupied with fighting Hyder Ali's armies as part of the [[Second Anglo-Mysore War]], and General [[Eyre Coote (East India Company officer)\|Eyre Coote]] was opposed to offensive actions against the Dutch, [[George Macartney, 1st Earl Macartney\|Lord Macartney]], the governor of [[Madras]], was able to raise more than 4,000 troops and secure the assistance of Admiral Sir [[Edward Hughes (admiral)\|Edward Hughes]] to defeat the larger Dutch and Mysorean defence force.
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	Negotiations over the terms of capitulation were finalized on 12 November and the garrison surrendered that day.<ref name=L117/> The Dutch held an inquiry into the defeat, which highlighted unusual behavior by van Vlissingen during the siege: he had claimed illness during the later stages of the siege and may have been in some way responsible for the rather abrupt shortage of gunpowder.<ref>Lohuizen, p. 118</ref>		Negotiations over the terms of capitulation were finalized on 12 November and the garrison surrendered that day.<ref name=L117/> The Dutch held an inquiry into the defeat, which highlighted unusual behavior by van Vlissingen during the siege: he had claimed illness during the later stages of the siege and may have been in some way responsible for the rather abrupt shortage of gunpowder.<ref>Lohuizen, p. 118</ref>

	Britain went on to capture Trincomalee on Ceylon<ref>Nicolas, pp. 123–124</ref> and other Dutch possessions in India. The British returned them all to the Dutch, except for Negapatam, after the war ended in 1784.		Britain went on to [[Capture of Trincomalee\|capture Trincomalee]] on Ceylon<ref>Nicolas, pp. 123–124</ref> and other Dutch possessions in India. The British returned them all to the Dutch, except for Negapatam, after the war ended in 1784.

	Munro had the [[Fyrish Monument]] constructed in Easter Ross in Scotland to represent the gate of Negapatam.		Munro had the [[Fyrish Monument]] constructed in Easter Ross in Scotland to represent the gate of Negapatam.
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	[[Category:Sieges of the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War\|Negapatam (Siege of)]]		[[Category:Sieges of the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War\|Negapatam (Siege of)]]
	[[Category:Sieges involving British India\|Negapatam]]		[[Category:Sieges involving the British East India Company\|Negapatam]]
	[[Category:Sieges involving Great Britain~~\|Negapatam 1781~~]]		[[Category:Sieges of the American Revolutionary War involving Great Britain]]
	[[Category:Sieges involving the Dutch Republic\|Negapatam (1781 Siege of)]]		[[Category:Sieges involving the Dutch Republic\|Negapatam (1781 Siege of)]]
	[[Category:Conflicts in 1781\|Negapatam (Siege of)]]		[[Category:Conflicts in 1781\|Negapatam (Siege of)]]
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	[[Category:1781 in India]]		[[Category:1781 in India]]
	[[Category:Battles of the Second Anglo-Mysore War\|Negapatam]]		[[Category:Battles of the Second Anglo-Mysore War\|Negapatam]]
			[[Category:History of Tamil Nadu]]

imported>DB1729: new key for Category:Battles of the Second Anglo-Mysore War: "Negapatam" using HotCat

2021-08-13T04:34:12Z

new key for Category:Battles of the Second Anglo-Mysore War: "Negapatam" using HotCat

New page

{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2017}}
{{Use Indian English|date=June 2017}}
{{Infobox military conflict
|conflict=Siege of Negapatam
|image=
|caption=
|partof=the [[Fourth Anglo-Dutch War]] and the [[Second Anglo-Mysore War]]
|date=21 October–11 November 1781
|place=[[Negapatam]], then a [[Dutch Coromandel|Dutch colony]] in [[India]]
|result=British victory
|combatant1={{flagcountry|Kingdom of Great Britain}}
|combatant2={{flag|Dutch Republic}} [[File:Flag of Mysore.svg|22x20px]] [[Sultanate of Mysore]]
|commander1=[[Hector Munro, 8th of Novar|Hector Munro]] [[Edward Hughes (admiral)|Edward Hughes]]
|commander2={{Flagicon|Dutch Republic}} Reynier van Vlissingen [[File:Flag of Mysore.svg|22x20px]] [[Hyder Ali]]
|strength1= 4,000 troops
|strength2= 6,100 Dutch colonial troops
*600 Dutch
*5,500 Indian sepoys
2,100 Mysorean troops
|casualties1=Light
|casualties2= unknown killed/wounded thousands captured
|campaignbox=
{{Campaignbox Fourth Anglo-Dutch War}}
{{Campaignbox Second Anglo-Mysore War}}
{{Dutch colonial campaigns}}
}}

The '''Siege of Negapatam''' was the first major offensive military action on the [[India]]n subcontinent following the arrival of news that war had been declared between Great Britain and the [[Dutch Republic]], beginning the [[Fourth Anglo-Dutch War]]. A British force besieged the Dutch-controlled port of [[Negapatam]], the capital of [[Dutch Coromandel]], on the eastern coast of India, which capitulated after the fortification's walls were breached. The Dutch garrison consisted of 500 European troops, 5,500 local troops, and 2,000 troops of [[Hyder Ali]], the ruler of [[Kingdom of Mysore|Mysore]].

While many British troops were occupied with fighting Hyder Ali's armies as part of the [[Second Anglo-Mysore War]], and General [[Eyre Coote (East India Company officer)|Eyre Coote]] was opposed to offensive actions against the Dutch, [[George Macartney, 1st Earl Macartney|Lord Macartney]], the governor of [[Madras]], was able to raise more than 4,000 troops and secure the assistance of Admiral Sir [[Edward Hughes (admiral)|Edward Hughes]] to defeat the larger Dutch and Mysorean defence force.

==Background==
{{main|Fourth Anglo-Dutch War|Second Anglo-Mysore War}}

Following French entry into the [[American War of Independence]] in 1778, Great Britain had moved rapidly to gain control over French colonial outposts in India. Their seizure of the French port of [[Mahé, India|Mahé]] on the west coast in 1779 prompted Hyder Ali, the de facto ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore, who claimed the port to be under his protection, to open the Second Anglo-Mysore War against British holdings in southern India.<ref>Cust, p. 222</ref> He made strong initial gains, with his troops occasionally threatening the main British outpost of Madras on the east coast. By the start of the 1781 monsoon season, the British and Mysoreans were at an uneasy stalemate.

In December 1780 Britain declared war on the Dutch Republic, citing Dutch trafficking in arms in support of the French and American rebels as one of the reasons. While this news reached some of the Dutch colonial governors in India early in 1781, it did not reach Governor [[Reynier van Vlissingen]] at the main outpost of Negapatam until rumors of war became widespread, and [[Iman Willem Falck]], the governor of [[Trincomalee]], notified him in June of the war declaration.<ref name=L115>Lohuizen, p. 115</ref>

The relationship among the Dutch at Negapatam, the British, and the Mysoreans was at the time quite fluid. Hyder's forces had been raiding villages near Negapatam early in 1781, and van Vlissingen, in an attempt to collect damages from Hyder, had instead been forced to pay ransom to release the envoys he had sent to Hyder's camp at [[Tanjore]] after Hyder not only refused to release them, but also made verbal threats concerning the Dutch outposts at [[Pulicat]] and [[Sadras]].<ref>Lohuizen, pp. 113-114</ref> Van Vlissingen had received offers of assistance from General Eyre Coote, the British commander at Madras during these negotiations.<ref>Lohuizen, p. 112</ref>

In the summer of 1781, Lord Macartney arrived to take over as governor of Madras, brought news to the British outpost of the new war, and mobilised British troops to gain control over Dutch possessions in India and [[Ceylon]].<ref>Cust, p. 303</ref> Van Vlissingen, when he learned of the war, immediately negotiated an alliance with Hyder, which was agreed on 29 July (although it was not formally ratified until 4 September).<ref name=L115/>

==Prelude==
Van Vlissingen at first sent 600 men, as well as gunpowder and ammunition, to Hyder's camp at Tanjore in early August 1781. However, the rising threat of a British move against Negapatam prompted the allies to instead consider building up its defences. The Dutch 600 returned to Negapatam in late September with 2,100 Mysoreans, and established a defensive line outside the city's walls,<ref name=L116>Lohuizen, p. 116</ref> which were also defended by a mixed army composed mostly of local [[sepoy]]s, along with some European and [[Malays (ethnic group)|Malay]] troops.

Most of the British forces on India's east coast were occupied by Hyder's actions, and General Coote was not agreeable to releasing significant forces from that effort. Lord Macartney secured the services of [[Hector Munro, 8th of Novar|Hector Munro]], who was preparing to retire to England, and was able to convince Colonel John Braithwaite, whose troops were active to the south of Madras, to release his men for action against the Dutch outposts. Braithwaite, who had been recently wounded, sent men under Colonel Eccles Nixon toward Negapatam,<ref>Vibert, p. 162</ref> while Munro's force was carried there by the fleet of Admiral Sir Edward Hughes. On 20 October Nixon seized the Dutch outpost at [[Karikal]], and the next day took control of [[Nagore]], a Dutch outpost that had been under Hyder's control. That same day Hughes's fleet arrived and delivered Munro and his army.<ref name=L116/>

==Siege==
Munro's first moves were attempts by relatively small detachments to gain control over some of the [[redoubt]]s on the outer lines of defence. On 27 and 28 October two such attacks against a redoubt on the west side of the line were repulsed. After sending one of Hughes's ships to reconnoiter the defences to the east, a third attack on a redoubt there succeeded on 30 October.<ref>Vibert, pp. 162-163</ref> According to Dutch reports, this battle resulted in most of the Mysorean cavalry fleeing the scene, and most of the remaining Dutch forces withdrew within the town's walls.<ref name="L117"/>

From that point Munro began digging siege trenches on 1 November, and construction of a forward battery began on 5 November. That night, the Dutch made a [[sortie (siege warfare)|sortie]] in an attempt to disrupt the works, but the battery of eight cannon was completed the next day, and opened fire on 7 November, doing significant damage to the town's northern walls.<ref>Vibert, p. 163</ref> A second Dutch sally on 10 November also failed to disrupt the siege.

Dutch requests to Hyder Ali for reinforcements had been made. On 28 October Hyder had sent another detachment of troops toward Negapatam. These reached Kuttur, about one day's march west of Negapatam, on 8 November, and van Vlissingen urged them to attack the British. However, they were reluctant to do so, given the large number of British troops, and asked Hyder for additional troops from Tanjore. These arrived on 10 November, but Munro seized the initiative and attacked the Mysoreans before they were prepared for battle, forcing them to retreat. A third wave of Mysorean reinforcements neared Negapatam on 13 November, only to learn the town had already surrendered.<ref name=L117/>

Van Vlissingen held a council of war after the failed sally on the night of 10 November, in which it was revealed that the town had but one day's supply of gunpowder left; the council voted for surrender, and raised the white flag the next day.<ref name=L117>Lohuizen, p. 117</ref>

==Aftermath==
Negotiations over the terms of capitulation were finalized on 12 November and the garrison surrendered that day.<ref name=L117/> The Dutch held an inquiry into the defeat, which highlighted unusual behavior by van Vlissingen during the siege: he had claimed illness during the later stages of the siege and may have been in some way responsible for the rather abrupt shortage of gunpowder.<ref>Lohuizen, p. 118</ref>

Britain went on to capture Trincomalee on Ceylon<ref>Nicolas, pp. 123–124</ref> and other Dutch possessions in India. The British returned them all to the Dutch, except for Negapatam, after the war ended in 1784.

Munro had the [[Fyrish Monument]] constructed in Easter Ross in Scotland to represent the gate of Negapatam.

==Notes==
{{reflist|2}}

==References==
{{refbegin}}
* [https://books.google.com/books?id=btEHAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA300&dq=negapatam+mossel&lr= Beatson's Naval and Military Memoirs] (contains terms of capitulation)
* [https://archive.org/details/annalswarseight04custgoog/page/n335  Cust, Annals of the wars of the eighteenth century]
* {{cite book|last=Lohuizen|first=Jan|title=The Dutch East India Company and Mysore, 1762-1790|location='s-Gravenhage|year=1961|publisher=M. Nijhoff|ref=Lohuizen|oclc=2217208}}
* {{cite book|title=The history of India, Volume 1|first=John Clark|last=Marshman|publisher=Harrison|year=1867|oclc=41875959|url=https://archive.org/details/historyindiafro04marsgoog|quote=Mahe capture 1781.}}
* {{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/historicalrecor00harrgoog|page=[https://archive.org/details/historicalrecor00harrgoog/page/n167 119]|quote=port praya suffren 1781.|title=Historical record of the Royal Marine Forces, Volume 2|first=Paul Harris|last=Nicolas|ref=Nicolas|year=1845|publisher=Thomas and William Boone|location=London}}
* {{cite book|title=The military history of the Madras engineers and pioneers, Volume 1|last=Vibert|first=Henry|year=1881|publisher=W. H. Allen|ref=Vibert|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=d8uEAAAAIAAJ&q=munro+nixon+negapatam}}
{{refend}}
{{coord|10|46|34.73|N|79|50|22.94|E|type:event|display=title}}

[[Category:Sieges of the Fourth Anglo-Dutch War|Negapatam (Siege of)]]
[[Category:Sieges involving British India|Negapatam]]
[[Category:Sieges involving Great Britain|Negapatam 1781]]
[[Category:Sieges involving the Dutch Republic|Negapatam (1781 Siege of)]]
[[Category:Conflicts in 1781|Negapatam (Siege of)]]
[[Category:Sieges involving the Kingdom of Mysore|Negapatam 1781]]
[[Category:1781 in India]]
[[Category:Battles of the Second Anglo-Mysore War|Negapatam]]