Bot at 18:06, 30 August 2022

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{{Short description|Fort in Tamil Nadu, India}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2020}}
{{Use Indian English|date=July 2020}}
{{Infobox military installation
|name = Fort St David
|partof = [[Tamil Nadu]]
|location = [[Cuddalore district]], [[Tamil Nadu]], [[India]]
| image =
| image_size = 250px
|caption = Fort St David
|map_type = India Tamil Nadu
|map_size =
|map_caption =
|type = [[Fort]]
|coordinates = {{coord|11.75|79.75|type:landmark|display=inline}}
|code =
|built =
|builder =
|materials =
|height =
|used =
|demolished =
|condition = Ruins
|open_to_public =
|controlledby = [[Government of Tamil Nadu]]
|garrison =
|current_commander =
|commanders =
|occupants =
|battles =
|events =
|image2 =
|caption2 =
}}

'''Fort St David''', now in ruins, was a British fort near the town of [[Cuddalore]], a hundred miles south of [[Chennai]] on the [[Coromandel Coast]] of [[India]]. It is located near silver beach without any maintenance. It was named for the patron saint of Wales because the governor of Madras at the time, [[Elihu Yale]], was Welsh.<ref name=britannica>[http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9064829/Fort-Saint-David Encyclopædia Britannica entry on Fort St David]</ref>

==History==
[[File:Fort St David map 1758.jpg|thumb|Fort St David in 1758]]
Fort St David, situated on the mouth of [[Gadilam River|River Gadilam]], has a memorable history. The region was under the domains of the [[Nayaks of Gingee]]. The Dutch in early 17th century wishing to expand their trade in the Bay of Bengal region and take advantage of the local manufacturing of goods choose the Cuddalore region and sought the permission of Krishnappa Nayaka of Gingee, to build a fort at Devanampatnam which was, subsequently granted in 1608 and construction was started. But the Nayak pulled back after the [[Portuguese Empire|Portuguese]], then dominant players at the Coramandal Coast trade, pressured Gingee's overlord rulers, [[Venkata I]] of [[Vijayanagara Empire]] to prevent [[Netherlands|Dutch]] entry.<ref>[https://archive.org/stream/historyofgingeea035396mbp/historyofgingeea035396mbp_djvu.txt/Full text of "History_Of_Gingee_And_Its_Rulers"]</ref> Therefore, the fort was left with the Gingee Nayaks under appointed traders. Overseas trade continued and the port became an important source of sandalwood, camphor, cloves, nutmeg, mace, green velvet, porcelain, copper, and brass.

Later when Gingee was occupied by the Marathas, [[Shivaji]]'s son [[Rajaram Chhatrapati]] who was under siege in Gingee fort by the [[Mughal army]] intended to sell the Devanampatnam fort to the highest European bidder. In 1690, the [[Kingdom of Great Britain|British]] won by out bidding the [[Netherlands|Dutch]] and the [[France|French]]. [[Elihu Yale]], Governor of Madras, after long protracted negotiations, acquired the fort and named it Fort Saint David after a Welsh Saint.<ref name=britannica/>

The purchase price included not only the fort but also the adjacent towns and villages within the range of a random shot of a piece of [[ammunition|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 "[[Round shot|cannonball]] villages".<ref name="EB1911">{{EB1911|inline=y|wstitle=Cuddalore|volume=7|pages=611–612}}</ref>

[[File:Ft St David, c.1763.jpg|thumb|Fort St. David, c. 1763, [[Francis Swaine]]]]
[[James Macrae]] had been governor of the fort and in 1725 he became the Governor of the Madras Presidency.<ref name="C34">Cuthbertson, Page 33</ref> From 1725 onwards the British greatly strengthened the fortifications. In 1746 Fort St David became the British headquarters for the [[South India|southern India]], and [[Siege of Cuddalore (First Carnatic War)|attacks by French forces]] under [[Joseph François Dupleix|Dupleix]] were successfully repulsed.<ref name=Naravane>{{Cite book |last=Naravane |first=M.S. |title=Battles of the Honorourable East India Company |publisher=A.P.H. Publishing Corporation |year=2014 |isbn=9788131300343 |pages=152–154}}</ref> [[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]].<ref name="EB1911"/>


In 1782 the French again retook the fort and restored it sufficiently to withstand [[Siege of Cuddalore|a British attack]] in 1783. In 1785 it finally passed into British possession.<ref name="EB1911"/> With the end of the French threat, it was abandoned and fell into ruins.{{cn|date=July 2022}}

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

===Sources===
* Cuthbertson, David Cuningham (1945). ''Autumn in Kyle and the Charm of Cunninghame''. London : Jenkins.

{{AmCyc Poster}}
{{Forts in Tamil Nadu}}
{{Forts in India}}
{{Cuddalore district}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Forts in Tamil Nadu|St. David]]
[[Category:Trading posts in India]]
[[Category:Cuddalore]]
[[Category:British forts]]
[[Category:1690 establishments in the British Empire]]

Fort St. David - Revision history

Bot at 18:06, 30 August 2022