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South Arcot District was a district in theMadras Presidency ofBritish India. It covered the area of the present-day districts ofCuddalore,Kallakurichi andViluppuram in the Indian state ofTamil Nadu. The district was divided into eight taluks and covered a total area of 13,510 square kilometres (5,217 sq mi). The administrative headquarters was the town ofCuddalore.
In ancient times, South Arcot was a part of theChola and thePallava kingdoms. British presence in the district dates to 1690 when theBritish East India Company set up a factory atFort St David near Cuddalore. South Arcot was the scene of confrontation between the British and theFrench and the British andTipu Sultan. The British took over the administration in 1781 and established full sovereignty in 1801.
The economy is largely agricultural. South Arcot is noteworthy for lignite mines in Neyveli.
South Arcot was the southern portion of theMughal province (subah) ofArcot. In ancient times, the northern part of South Arcot was under the rule of the Pallavas while the southern part was a portion of the traditional Chola homeland. In the 14th century, South Arcot was conquered by theDelhi Sultanate and later, by Vijayanagar kings. In 1646, South Arcot came under the Bijapur sultans who ruled till 1676, when it was conquered by theMarathas. In 1698, theMughal EmperorAurangazeb tookGingee and established his rule over South Arcot.
The British presence dates back to 1682, when theBritish East India Company established a factory at Cuddalore and Kanimedu. When these two failed, the Company set up another factory at Fort St David near Cuddalore. Fort St David served as the temporary capital of Madras Presidency from 1746 onwards whenMadras was taken by theFrench East India Company, till 1752. Cuddalore was taken by the French from 1758 to 1760, when it was retaken by the British. From 1767 to 1790,Hyder Ali and his sonTipu Sultan launched repeated attacks on the region.
Thesubah of Arcot was ceded to theBritish East India Company by theNawab of the Carnatic in 1801, and subsequently the district was split intoNorth Arcot and South Arcot. On 30 September 1993, South Arcot District was split intoCuddalore District andVillupuram District. Cuddalore was the capital of the erstwhile South Arcot district.
South Arcot district was sub-divided into four sub-divisions:
As of 1901, South Arcot district was sub-divided into eight taluks:
South Arcot had a population of 2,349,894 in 1901 and was the third most populous district in Madras Presidency. 94 percent of the population wereHindus while 3 percent were Muslims and 3 percent Christian, of whom, 92 percent wereRoman Catholics. Tamil is official language.
The economy of the district is largely agricultural. Attempts were made in the early part of the 19th century to establish iron mines atPorto Novo but failed due to lack of fuel. The most important industrial units in the district were the East India Distilleries factories atNellikuppam and Thiruvennainallur. Chidambaram was an important centre of cotton and silk weaving.
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