Battle of Tellicherry
Encyclopedia
The Battle of Tellicherry was a naval action fought off the Indian
port of Tellicherry
between British and French warships in November 1791 during the Third Anglo-Mysore War
. Britain and France were not at war at the time of the engagement, but French support for the Kingdom of Mysore
in the conflict with the British East India Company
had led to Royal Navy
patrols stopping and searching French ships sailing for the Mysorean port of Mangalore
. When a French convoy from Mahé passed the British port of Tellicherry in November 1791, Commodore William Cornwallis
sent a small squadron to intercept the French ships.
As the British force under Captain Sir Richard Strachan approached the convoy, the escorting frigate Résolue
opened fire. A general action followed, with Strachan succeeding in forcing the French ship to surrender within twenty minutes and both sides suffering damage and casualties. All of the French vessels were searched and subsequently returned to Mahé, the local French authorities reacting furiously at what they perceived as a violation of their neutral
position. Messages were sent back to France reporting the action from Commodore Saint-Félix but they evoked little response. Although under normal circumstances the battle might have provoked a diplomatic incident, the upheavals of the ongoing French Revolution
meant that the despatches had little effect.
that had ended the Second Anglo-Mysore War
, the ruler of Mysore
Tipu Sultan
again declared war on the British East India Company
and their allies in Southern India
. For the next two years the war continued as British forces and their allies drove the Mysore armies back towards the capital of Seringapatam. Both sides were reliant on supply by sea to maintain their campaigns inland: the British forces were supported from their major ports at Bombay and Madras, later stationing additional forces at the small port of Tellicherry
inside Mysore territory. The Mysorean forces were supplied through Mangalore
by French ships. France had been an ally of the Tipu Sultan's father Hyder Ali
during the Second Anglo-Mysore War and although the political instability caused by the French Revolution
in Europe prevented active involvement, they ensured that their ships kept up a supply of equipment to Mysore throughout the war.
In an effort to eliminate French support Commodore William Cornwallis
, the British naval commander in the region, stationed a squadron of frigates at Tellicherry, where they were ideally situated to blockade
Mangalore and prevent the passage of shipping into Mysorean territory. The squadron consisted of Cornwallis in HMS Minerva
, Captain Sir Richard Strachan in HMS Phoenix
and HMS Perseverance under Captain Isaac Smith. The French operated a squadron of their own on the coast, led by Commodore Saint-Félix and consisting of two frigates based at Mahé, a small French port 7 miles (11 km) south of Tellicherry. The French had communicated to the British at Tellicherry that they would not submit to any attempts to search their vessels, but Strachan and Cornwallis replied that they would enforce the blockade of Mangalore whatever the consequences.
, a 36-gun warship. Passing northwards, the convoy soon passed Tellicherry and Cornwallis sent Strachan with Phoenix and Perseverance to stop and inspect the French ships to ensure they were not carrying military supplies. As Smith halted the merchant ships and sent boats to inspect them, Strachan did the same to Résolue, hailing the French captain and placing an officer in a small boat to board the frigate. The French captain was outraged at this violation of his neutrality, and responded by opening fire: British sources suggest that his initial target was the small boat, although Phoenix was the ship most immediately damaged.
Strachan was unsurprised at the French reaction, and returned fire immediately, the proximity of the ships preventing any manoeuvres. Within twenty minutes the combat was decided, the French captain hauling down his colours with his ship battered and more than 60 men wounded or dead. The French ship carried significantly weaker cannon
than Phoenix, with 6 and 12 pounder guns to the 9 and 18 pounders aboard the British squadron. In addition, Résolue was heavily outnumbered: no other French warships were in the area while the British had three large frigates within sight. French losses eventually totalled 25 men killed and 60 wounded, Strachan suffering just six killed and 11 wounded in return.
and reacted furiously at the discovery that one of his neutral ships had been attacked and captured by the British. When Cornwallis insisted that his ships had been acting within their orders, Saint-Félix promised reprisals if any of his vessels were attacked again and withdrew with both Cybèle and Résolue later in the day, followed by Minerva and Phoenix. The British shadowed the French for several days, openly stopping and searching French merchant ships but without provoking a response from Saint-Félix. Résolue and Phoenix were subsequently detached by their commanders, Cornwallis and Saint-Félix remaining in contact for several more days before finally separating.
News of the encounter was conveyed back to France, but the country was at this time in one of the most turbulent eras of the ongoing Revolution and little notice was taken of events in India. Historian William James
notes that under normal political circumstances the action would have had more significant ramifications, while Edward Pelham Brenton
claims that the French deliberately ignored the report out of fear of antagonising Britain. In Britain, the Admiralty
approved of Cornwallis' actions, suggesting that the French were deliberately using the guise of trade to support Mysore against Britain. The action had no effect on the ongoing war in India, which was now centred around the inland city of Seringapatam. As British forces closed on the city
in February 1792, the Tipu Sultan initiated peace talks which brought the war to an end
in exchange for concessions to the Company and its Indian allies.
Indian subcontinent
The Indian subcontinent, also Indian Subcontinent, Indo-Pak Subcontinent or South Asian Subcontinent is a region of the Asian continent on the Indian tectonic plate from the Hindu Kush or Hindu Koh, Himalayas and including the Kuen Lun and Karakoram ranges, forming a land mass which extends...
port of Tellicherry
Thalassery
Thalassery , also known as Tellicherry, is a city on the Malabar Coast of Kerala, India. This is the second largest city of North Malabar in terms of population. The name Tellicherry is the anglicized form of Thalassery. Thalassery municipality has a population just less than 100,000. Established...
between British and French warships in November 1791 during the Third Anglo-Mysore War
Third Anglo-Mysore War
The Third Anglo-Mysore War was a war in South India between the Sultanate of Mysore and the British East India Company and its allies, including the Mahratta Empire and the Nizam of Hyderabad...
. Britain and France were not at war at the time of the engagement, but French support for the Kingdom of Mysore
Kingdom of Mysore
The Kingdom of Mysore was a kingdom of southern India, traditionally believed to have been founded in 1399 in the vicinity of the modern city of Mysore. The kingdom, which was ruled by the Wodeyar family, initially served as a vassal state of the Vijayanagara Empire...
in the conflict with the British East India Company
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...
had led to Royal Navy
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
patrols stopping and searching French ships sailing for the Mysorean port of Mangalore
Mangalore
Mangalore is the chief port city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is located about west of the state capital, Bangalore. Mangalore lies between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghat mountain ranges, and is the administrative headquarters of the Dakshina Kannada district in south western...
. When a French convoy from Mahé passed the British port of Tellicherry in November 1791, Commodore William Cornwallis
William Cornwallis
Admiral the Honourable Sir William Cornwallis GCB was a Royal Navy officer who fought in the Napoleonic Wars. He was the brother of Charles Cornwallis, the 1st Marquess Cornwallis, governor-general of India...
sent a small squadron to intercept the French ships.
As the British force under Captain Sir Richard Strachan approached the convoy, the escorting frigate Résolue
French frigate Résolue (1778)
Résolue was an Iphigénie-class 32-gun frigate of the French Navy.-French service:On 19 March 1779, Résolue captured a British fort in Senegal....
opened fire. A general action followed, with Strachan succeeding in forcing the French ship to surrender within twenty minutes and both sides suffering damage and casualties. All of the French vessels were searched and subsequently returned to Mahé, the local French authorities reacting furiously at what they perceived as a violation of their neutral
Neutrality (international relations)
A neutral power in a particular war is a sovereign state which declares itself to be neutral towards the belligerents. A non-belligerent state does not need to be neutral. The rights and duties of a neutral power are defined in Sections 5 and 13 of the Hague Convention of 1907...
position. Messages were sent back to France reporting the action from Commodore Saint-Félix but they evoked little response. Although under normal circumstances the battle might have provoked a diplomatic incident, the upheavals of the ongoing French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
meant that the despatches had little effect.
Background
In December 1789, after five years of diplomatic wrangling about the terms of the Treaty of MangaloreTreaty of Mangalore
The Treaty of Mangalore was signed between Tippu Sultan and the British East India Company on 11 March 1784. It was signed in Mangalore and brought an end to the Second Anglo-Mysore War.-Background:...
that had ended the Second Anglo-Mysore War
Second Anglo-Mysore War
The Second Anglo-Mysore War was a conflict in Mughal India between the Sultanate of Mysore and the British East India Company. At the time, Mysore was a key French ally in India, and the Franco-British conflict raging on account of the American Revolutionary War helped spark Anglo-Mysorean...
, the ruler of Mysore
Kingdom of Mysore
The Kingdom of Mysore was a kingdom of southern India, traditionally believed to have been founded in 1399 in the vicinity of the modern city of Mysore. The kingdom, which was ruled by the Wodeyar family, initially served as a vassal state of the Vijayanagara Empire...
Tipu Sultan
Tipu Sultan
Tipu Sultan , also known as the Tiger of Mysore, was the de facto ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore. He was the son of Hyder Ali, at that time an officer in the Mysorean army, and his second wife, Fatima or Fakhr-un-Nissa...
again declared war on the British East India Company
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...
and their allies in Southern 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...
. For the next two years the war continued as British forces and their allies drove the Mysore armies back towards the capital of Seringapatam. Both sides were reliant on supply by sea to maintain their campaigns inland: the British forces were supported from their major ports at Bombay and Madras, later stationing additional forces at the small port of Tellicherry
Thalassery
Thalassery , also known as Tellicherry, is a city on the Malabar Coast of Kerala, India. This is the second largest city of North Malabar in terms of population. The name Tellicherry is the anglicized form of Thalassery. Thalassery municipality has a population just less than 100,000. Established...
inside Mysore territory. The Mysorean forces were supplied through Mangalore
Mangalore
Mangalore is the chief port city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is located about west of the state capital, Bangalore. Mangalore lies between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghat mountain ranges, and is the administrative headquarters of the Dakshina Kannada district in south western...
by French ships. France had been an ally of the Tipu Sultan's father Hyder Ali
Hyder Ali
Hyder Ali was the de facto ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore in southern India. Born Hyder Naik, he distinguished himself militarily, eventually drawing the attention of Mysore's rulers...
during the Second Anglo-Mysore War and although the political instability caused by the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
in Europe prevented active involvement, they ensured that their ships kept up a supply of equipment to Mysore throughout the war.
In an effort to eliminate French support Commodore William Cornwallis
William Cornwallis
Admiral the Honourable Sir William Cornwallis GCB was a Royal Navy officer who fought in the Napoleonic Wars. He was the brother of Charles Cornwallis, the 1st Marquess Cornwallis, governor-general of India...
, the British naval commander in the region, stationed a squadron of frigates at Tellicherry, where they were ideally situated to blockade
Blockade
A blockade is an effort to cut off food, supplies, war material or communications from a particular area by force, either in part or totally. A blockade should not be confused with an embargo or sanctions, which are legal barriers to trade, and is distinct from a siege in that a blockade is usually...
Mangalore and prevent the passage of shipping into Mysorean territory. The squadron consisted of Cornwallis in HMS Minerva
HMS Minerva (1780)
HMS Minerva was a 38-gun fifth-rate Royal Navy frigate. The first of four Minerva-class frigates, she was launched on 3 June 1780, and commissioned soon thereafter. In 1798 she was renamed Pallas and employed as a troopship...
, Captain Sir Richard Strachan in HMS Phoenix
HMS Phoenix (1783)
HMS Phoenix was a 36-gun Perseverance-class fifth-rate frigate of the Royal Navy. The shipbuilder George Parsons built her at Bursledon and launched her on 15 July 1783. She served in the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars and was instrumental in the events leading up to the battle of Trafalgar...
and HMS Perseverance under Captain Isaac Smith. The French operated a squadron of their own on the coast, led by Commodore Saint-Félix and consisting of two frigates based at Mahé, a small French port 7 miles (11 km) south of Tellicherry. The French had communicated to the British at Tellicherry that they would not submit to any attempts to search their vessels, but Strachan and Cornwallis replied that they would enforce the blockade of Mangalore whatever the consequences.
Battle
In November 1791, a French convoy sailed from Mahé on the short journey to Mangalore. The convoy included two merchant vessels and the frigate RésolueFrench frigate Résolue (1778)
Résolue was an Iphigénie-class 32-gun frigate of the French Navy.-French service:On 19 March 1779, Résolue captured a British fort in Senegal....
, a 36-gun warship. Passing northwards, the convoy soon passed Tellicherry and Cornwallis sent Strachan with Phoenix and Perseverance to stop and inspect the French ships to ensure they were not carrying military supplies. As Smith halted the merchant ships and sent boats to inspect them, Strachan did the same to Résolue, hailing the French captain and placing an officer in a small boat to board the frigate. The French captain was outraged at this violation of his neutrality, and responded by opening fire: British sources suggest that his initial target was the small boat, although Phoenix was the ship most immediately damaged.
Strachan was unsurprised at the French reaction, and returned fire immediately, the proximity of the ships preventing any manoeuvres. Within twenty minutes the combat was decided, the French captain hauling down his colours with his ship battered and more than 60 men wounded or dead. The French ship carried significantly weaker cannon
Cannon
A cannon is any piece of artillery that uses gunpowder or other usually explosive-based propellents to launch a projectile. Cannon vary in caliber, range, mobility, rate of fire, angle of fire, and firepower; different forms of cannon combine and balance these attributes in varying degrees,...
than Phoenix, with 6 and 12 pounder guns to the 9 and 18 pounders aboard the British squadron. In addition, Résolue was heavily outnumbered: no other French warships were in the area while the British had three large frigates within sight. French losses eventually totalled 25 men killed and 60 wounded, Strachan suffering just six killed and 11 wounded in return.
Aftermath
With the enemy subdued, Strachan ordered a thorough search of the captured vessels, but could find no contraband and returned control to the French commander. The French officer however refused, insisting that he and his ship were treated as prisoners of war. Cornwallis ordered the merchant ships released to continue their journey and for the frigate to be towed back to Mahé, where it was anchored in the roads with its sails and topmasts struck. Provision was subsequently made at Mahé by Strachan for the wounded French sailors. Soon afterwards Saint-Félix arrived at Mahé in his frigate CybèleFrench frigate Cybèle (1790)
The Cybèle was an Nymphe class 40-gun frigate of the French Navy.On 22 October 1794, soon after the outbreak of the war with England, and along with the 32-gun Prudente and the brig Coureur, she fought HMS Centurion and , who blockaded Ile de France. The French ships managed to drive away the...
and reacted furiously at the discovery that one of his neutral ships had been attacked and captured by the British. When Cornwallis insisted that his ships had been acting within their orders, Saint-Félix promised reprisals if any of his vessels were attacked again and withdrew with both Cybèle and Résolue later in the day, followed by Minerva and Phoenix. The British shadowed the French for several days, openly stopping and searching French merchant ships but without provoking a response from Saint-Félix. Résolue and Phoenix were subsequently detached by their commanders, Cornwallis and Saint-Félix remaining in contact for several more days before finally separating.
News of the encounter was conveyed back to France, but the country was at this time in one of the most turbulent eras of the ongoing Revolution and little notice was taken of events in India. Historian William James
William James (naval historian)
William M. James was a British lawyer turned naval historian who wrote important naval histories of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, 1793-1815.-Career:...
notes that under normal political circumstances the action would have had more significant ramifications, while Edward Pelham Brenton
Edward Pelham Brenton
Captain Edward Pelham Brenton was an officer of the British Royal Navy during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars who military career was relatively quiet, apart from involvement in the capture of Martinique in 1809...
claims that the French deliberately ignored the report out of fear of antagonising Britain. In Britain, the Admiralty
Admiralty
The Admiralty was formerly the authority in the Kingdom of England, and later in the United Kingdom, responsible for the command of the Royal Navy...
approved of Cornwallis' actions, suggesting that the French were deliberately using the guise of trade to support Mysore against Britain. The action had no effect on the ongoing war in India, which was now centred around the inland city of Seringapatam. As British forces closed on the city
Siege of Seringapatam (1792)
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. An army led by Charles, Earl Cornwallis consisting of British East India Company and British Army forces, along with allied forces from the Maratha Empire...
in February 1792, the Tipu Sultan initiated peace talks which brought the war to an end
Treaty of Seringapatam
The Treaty of Seringapatam, signed 19 March 1792, ended the Third Anglo-Mysore War. Its signatories included Lord Cornwallis on behalf of the British East India Company, representatives of the Nizam of Hyderabad and the Mahratta Empire, and Tipu Sultan, the ruler of Mysore.-Background:The war...
in exchange for concessions to the Company and its Indian allies.