| Battle of Changanassery | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Travancore-Thekkumkur War | |||||||
 Map of Thekkumkur Kingdom | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
 Kingdom of Travancore |  Kingdom of Thekkumkur | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
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| Strength | |||||||
| 10,000–12,000 soldiers | Unknown | ||||||
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The Battle of Changanacherry was a battle between the kingdoms ofThekkumkur andTravancore in September 1749.[1] Defeat in this decisive battle led to Thekkumkur losing its dominance and expanding the Tranvancore empire to the southern border ofthe river Meenachilar.[2]
The kingdom of Travancore conquered the princely states ofKayamkulam andAmbalapuzha under the leadership ofRamayyan Dalawa (the Dewan of Travancore). Thekkumkur army provided assistance to counter Travancore's invasion of princely state Ambalapuzha. Realizing this, King Marthanda Varma decided to invade Thekkumkoor following the fall of Champakassery (Ampalapuzha).[3][4]
In the 13th century, Thekkumkur Rajdhani was shifted toPuzhavathu inChanganassery afterThrikkodithanam,Vennimala,[5]Manikandapuram and others. The last king of Thekkumkur wasAditya Varma Manikandan and he resided in theNeerazhi Palace at Changanassery. After hearing of the military advance of theTravancore under the leadership ofRamayyan Dalawa; the crown prince ofThekkumkur then advisedAditya Varma Manikandan to make a friendship with Travancore kingdom by understanding the downfall of princely stateAmpalapuzha (Chempakassery) and the fall of princely stateKayamkulam.[6]
Then crown prince (Ilaya rajah) went toThiruvananthapuram and metAnizham Thirunal Marthanda Varma and requested help. Aditya Varma Manikandan, angry at the crown prince's action, a messenger was sent to Thiruvananthapuram carrying a letter purportedly written by his sick mother.[7] The crown prince had told king Marthanda Varma that this was a strategy to annihilate him, but king persuaded him to go to Changanassery to meet his sick mother and gave him some gifts for Thekkumkur king Aditya Varma Manikandan.
When the young prince reached Thekkumkur, he was assassinated by the royal guards at the behest of his elder brother.[8] The king spread the news that the prince Kotha Varma had died of a snake bite. Recognizing the news from Thekkumkur about the wrong decision of the Thekkumkur king, Marthanda Varma of Travancore ordered Ramayyan Dalawa to march to Thekkumkur and capture the king Aditya Varma Manikandan[9][10]
When theTravancore troops reachedAranmula in the south ofThekkumkur kingdom, theTelugu Brahmins stopped the Travancore army in the belief, that in Travancore the life of a Brahman was sacred, and consequently that they would not be in danger of being attacked. On this,Ramayya requested Captain D'Lanoy to do his duty without shrinking. D'Lanoy called a few companies of his detachment, consisting of Christians, Moplahs and fishermen, directed them to drive away the mob of Brahmans and clear the way for the march. By the confusion created by the Brahmins, sufficient time was afforded to the KingAditya Varma Manikandan, who was at a place near Aranmula, to flee from his country to the north. After defeating the Telugu Brahmins at Aranmula, Ramayan Dalawa took overThiruvalla gramam, where theVilakkilli Madom Pottimar gave no resistance. Ramayyan's next target was theNeerazhi Palace ofThekkumkur atChanganassery. The Thekkumkur had a larger and stronger army than the other princely states (Kayamkulam,Ampalapuzha) conquered by the Ramayyan. The Thekkumkur fort and the Neerazhi palace at Changanasseri were attacked in September 1749.[11]
On 11 September 1750,Ramayyan Dalawah took possession ofChanganasserri, the seat of the Thakankoor Rajah. The State treasury, jewels, arms and property of a considerable value, fell intoRamayyan's hands, among which were some brass guns and mortars of European manufacture.
TheVazhappally Pathillathil Potimar (administrator ofVazhappally Maha Siva Temple) assisted the Thekkumkur king in the Neerazhi Palace and transferred him to Nattassery atKottayam. The Kannamperoor wooden bridge atVazhappally was destroyed to prevent the Travancore troops from following them in the event of adverse weather. The Thekkumkur king Aditya Verma fled toCalicut and was given refuge by theZamorin (Zamuthiri). By this time, Ramayyan had influenced Vazhappadathu Paniker, the commander of Thekkumkur, and had learned the movement secret of the Pathillathil Pottimar. Proceedings of 11 September 1749; On the 28th of the year Malayalam era 925 Chingam (11_September_1749 AD), the capital of the Thekkumkur conquered by Ramayyan Dalawa and merged to Travancore kingdom.[12][9][13]
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The Pathillathil pottimar (10 Brahmin families as the administrator of Vazhappally Maha Siva Temple) were charged with treason because they helped the Thekkumkur' Rajah Aditya Varma Manikandan to escape the Changanassery and resist the march of Marthanda Varma's army by demolishing the Kannanperoor bridge at Vazhappally.[14] The Vazhappally Pottimar initially deterred the Travancore army by the fate of the Thekkumkur Rajah and they did not expect Marthanda Varma to kill Brahmins who is the administrator of Vazhappally Maha Siva Temple.
Most of the male members of the Brahmins family were either killed or exiled after sufficient evidence of conspiracy and murder was procured. Their houses were dug up (Kulamthondal -Malayalam:കുളംതോണ്ടൽ - a common punishment of the time) and all their assets and armies seized by the victoriousMarthanda Varma.[15][16] At the beginning of the 20th century, only one family was left in the Vazhappally Gramam from Pathillathil Pottimar.
After the battle, Marthanda Varma arrived atChanganassery. Many of the Nair nobles and chiefs calledKarthavu,Kaimal, Elayadam andPanicker of the Thekkumkoor, as well as those ofAmbalapuzha andVadakkumkur presented themselves before the victorious Marthanda Varma atChanganasserry and acknowledging his sovereignty, paid homage with large nuzzers.[1]Ramayya marched to the north, and after fortifying the positions between Thekkumkoor and Vadakkumkoor from Kumarakam to the east up to the hills at Koondoor, marched towards the north to settle the northern boundary, which was extended to the southern bank of the Periyar which runs to the west byAluva.[1] All the country south of the Dutch possessions atKodungalloor thus became the Travancore Maha Raja's dominions. Marthanda Varma thus extended his country fromKanyakumari toPeriyar, and brought all the Rajas, petty chiefs, and nobles into subjection.[1]
