Fort St David
Encyclopedia
Fort St. David was a British fort near the town of Cuddalore
, a hundred miles south of Madras on the Coromandel Coast
of India
.
in 1690. Robert Clive served as the governor of Fort St David in 1756.
The ruins of Fort St David situated on the River Gadilam has as memorable history. As a small fort built by a Hindu
merchant it fell into the hands of the Maratha
s after the capture of Gingee Fort
by Shivaji in 1677. From them it was purchased by the English in 1690: with the English renaming it as Fort St David after the patron Saint of Wales
, since the then Governor of Madras, Elihu Yale, was Welsh. The purchase including not only the fort but the adjacent towns and villages within the random shot of a piece of ordnance
. A great gun was fired to different points of the compass and all the country within its range, including the town of Cuddalore, passed into the possession of the English. The villages thus obtained are still spoken of as cannonball
villages.
James MacRae
had been governor of the fort and in 1725 he became the Governor of the Madras Presidency. From 1725 onwards the fortifications were greatly strengthened. In 1746 Fort St David became the British
headquarters for the southern India
, and Dupleix
attack was successfully repulsed. Robert Clive was appointed its governor in 1756; in 1758 the French
captured it, but abandoned it two years later to Sir Eyre Coote, KB. In 1782 they again took it and restored it sufficiently to withstand a British attack in 1783. In 1785 it finally passed into British possession.
Cuddalore
Cuddalore is a fast growing industrial city and headquarter of Cuddalore district in the Tamil Nadu state of southern India. Located south of Pondicherry on the coast of Bay of Bengal, Cuddalore has a large number of industries which employ a great deal of the city's population.Cuddalore is known...
, a hundred miles south of Madras on the Coromandel Coast
Coromandel Coast
The Coromandel Coast is the name given to the southeastern coast of the Indian Subcontinent between Cape Comorin and False Divi Point...
of India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
.
History
It was bought from the Mahrattas by the British East India CompanyBritish East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
in 1690. Robert Clive served as the governor of Fort St David in 1756.
The ruins of Fort St David situated on the River Gadilam has as memorable history. As a small fort built by a Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
merchant it fell into the hands of the Maratha
Maratha
The Maratha are an Indian caste, predominantly in the state of Maharashtra. The term Marāthā has three related usages: within the Marathi speaking region it describes the dominant Maratha caste; outside Maharashtra it can refer to the entire regional population of Marathi-speaking people;...
s after the capture of Gingee Fort
Gingee Fort
Gingee Fort also known as Chenji or Jinji in Tamil Nadu, India is one of the few surviving forts in Tamil Nadu, India. It lies in Villupuram District, from the state capital, Chennai, and is close to the Union Territory of Pondicherry...
by Shivaji in 1677. From them it was purchased by the English in 1690: with the English renaming it as Fort St David after the patron Saint of Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
, since the then Governor of Madras, Elihu Yale, was Welsh. The purchase including not only the fort but the adjacent towns and villages within the random shot of a piece of ordnance
Ammunition
Ammunition is a generic term derived from the French language la munition which embraced all material used for war , but which in time came to refer specifically to gunpowder and artillery. The collective term for all types of ammunition is munitions...
. A great gun was fired to different points of the compass and all the country within its range, including the town of Cuddalore, passed into the possession of the English. The villages thus obtained are still spoken of as cannonball
Round shot
Round shot is a solid projectile without explosive charge, fired from a cannon. As the name implies, round shot is spherical; its diameter is slightly less than the bore of the gun it is fired from.Round shot was made in early times from dressed stone, but by the 17th century, from iron...
villages.
James MacRae
Monkton, Ayrshire
Monkton is a small village in the Parish of Monkton and Prestwick in South Ayrshire, Scotland.The nearest town is Prestwick and the settlement borders upon Glasgow Prestwick Airport.- History :The village was originally known as Prestwick Monachorum....
had been governor of the fort and in 1725 he became the Governor of the Madras Presidency. From 1725 onwards the fortifications were greatly strengthened. In 1746 Fort St David became the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
headquarters for the southern India
South India
South India is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of India's area...
, and Dupleix
Dupleix
Dupleix could refer to one of the following:*Joseph François Dupleix, governor general of the French establishment in India in the 18th centuryFour ships of the French Navy have been named Dupleix:...
attack was successfully repulsed. Robert Clive was appointed its governor in 1756; in 1758 the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
captured it, but abandoned it two years later to Sir Eyre Coote, KB. In 1782 they again took it and restored it sufficiently to withstand a British attack in 1783. In 1785 it finally passed into British possession.
Sources
- Cuthbertson, David Cuningham (1945). Autumn in Kyle and the Charm of Cunninghame. London : Jenkins.