WilheminaJanzen at 06:23, 28 February 2026

2026-02-28T06:23:25Z

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{{Use Indian English|date=July 2017}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2023}}

[[File:Kodagu in Karnataka (India).svg|right|thumb|200px|Kodagu: home of the Kodavas shown above in the map of Karnataka, India (in orange)]]
The district of [[Kodagu]] in present-day [[Karnataka]] comprises the area of the former princely state of the same name.

==Early history==
[[File:CromlechCoorg.jpg|thumb|left|200px|A [[Megalithic]] burial or "[[cromlech]]" near Virarajendrepet, Joshika in 1868]]
[[File:Portico of the Coorg Rajah's Palace at Somwaspett (May 1853, X, p.48) - Copy.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Portico of the Coorg Rajah's Palace at Somwaspett (May 1853, X, p.48)<ref name="Juvenile1853">{{cite journal|title=Portico of the Coorg Rajah's Palace at Somwaspett|journal=The Wesleyan Juvenile Offering: A Miscellany of Missionary Information for Young Persons|date=May 1853|volume=X|page=48|url=https://archive.org/details/wesleyanjuvenil19socigoog|accessdate=29 February 2016|publisher=Wesleyan Missionary Society}}</ref>]]

The earliest mention about Coorg can be seen in the works those date back to [[Sangam period]] (300 BCE – 300 CE). The [[Ezhimala]] dynasty had jurisdiction over two ''Nadu''s – The coastal ''[[Puzhinadu|Poozhinadu]]'' and the hilly eastern ''Karkanadu''.<ref>A Shreedhara Menon, A Survey of Kerala history</ref> According to the works of [[Sangam literature]], ''Poozhinadu'' consisted much of the coastal belt between [[Mangalore]] and [[Kozhikode]].<ref name="Census_Handbook">{{Cite book|title=District Census Handbook, Kasaragod (2011)|publisher=Directorate of Census Operation, Kerala|location=Thiruvananthapuram|pages=9|url=https://censusindia.gov.in/2011census/dchb/3201_PART_B_KASARAGOD.pdf}}</ref> ''Karkanadu'' consisted of [[Wayanad]]-[[Gudalur, Nilgiris|Gudalur]] hilly region with parts of [[Kodagu]] (Coorg).<ref name="wnd">{{cite book
| author = Government of India | year=2014–15
| title= District Census Handbook – Wayanad (Part-B) 2011 | publisher=Directorate of Census Operations, Kerala
| url= https://censusindia.gov.in/2011census/dchb/3203_PART_B_WAYANAD.pdf
}}</ref> [[Kannada]] inscriptions speak of ''Kudagu nad'' (parts of Kodagu, Western Mysore and Kerala) as well. Both the name of the natives and of the region are synonymous (Kodava-Kodavu; Kodaga-Kodagu; Coorgs-Coorg).<ref name="Kamath 1993 160">{{cite book|last=Kamath|first=Dr. S. U.|title=Karnataka State Gazetteer: Kodagu District|year=1993|publisher=Government Press|location=Bangalore|page=160}}</ref>

==The Haleri dynasty==
{{See also|Haleri Kingdom|Captivity of Kodavas at Seringapatam}}

===Early Haleri===
The [[Haleri Kingdom|Haleri dynasty]] was an offshoot of [[Nayakas of Keladi|Keladi Nayakas]] also called Ikkeri Arasu dynasty. Kodagu was independent of Mysore, which was hard pressed by enemies, and a prince of the [[Nayakas of Keladi|Ikkeri]] or [[Nayakas of Keladi|Bednur]] family (perhaps related to the Changalvas) succeeded in bringing the whole country under his sway, his descendants continuing to be [[Haleri Kingdom|Rajas of Kodagu]] till 1834. The capital was removed in 1681 by Muddu Raja to [[Madikeri]] (Mercara).

===Mysore Sultan===
[[File:Dungeon dwelling of Seringapatam.jpg|thumb|left|A [[dungeon]] at [[Seringapatam]]. Prisoners of war were imprisoned into such dungeons.]]
[[File:Edward Nash - Portrait of Mooda Maji of Coorg.jpg|right|thumb|A daughter of [[Dodda Vira Rajendra]]]]
[[File:The temple tank of Omkareshwara Temple of Madikeri.jpg|right|thumb|Omkareshwara Temple built by Linga Raja in Madikeri]]
In the late 1760s, Hyder Ali tried to invade Kodagu thrice and was defeated by the then general of Kodagu [[Kannanda Doddayya]]. In 1770 a disputed succession led to the intervention of [[Hyder Ali]] of Mysore in favour of Linga Raja, who had fled to him for justice, and whom he placed on the throne benevolently. As a gesture of his gratitude, the Raja ceded certain territories and offered to pay tribute. On Linga Rajas death in 1780 Hyder Ali interned his sons, who were minors, in a fort in Mysore, and installed a governor as their guardian at Mercara with a Mysore garrison. In 1782, however, the [[Kodava people|Kodava]] rose in rebellion and drove out the Mysore troops.

[[Tipu Sultan]] first negotiated with the Coorgs, worked an amicable settlement and made them feel secure. But then a surprise attack was launched upon the Kodavas following which 500 were killed and over 40,000 Kodavas fled to the woods and concealed themselves in the mountains. The Coorgs were defeated and a large number of them (including women and children) were taken captive. The territories seized were held down by garrisons in four forts. The captured Coorgis were subjected to forcible conversions to Islam. The prisoners were converted into Muslim Ahmadees. The young men were all forcibly circumcised and incorporated into the Ahmadee Corps. They were trained and made to form 8 Assad Ilahi (Asadulai) and Ahmadi Risalas (or regiments).

In 1788, however, [[Dodda Vira Rajendra|Dodda Vira Raja]] (or Vira Rajendra Wodeyar), with his wife and his brothers Linga Raja and Appaji, succeeded in escaping from his captivity, at Periapatam and, placing himself at the head of a [[Kodava people|Kodava]] rebellion, aligned with the British and succeeded in driving the forces of Tipu (who had aligned with the French) out of the country.<ref name="Coorg Memoirs">{{cite book |last1=Mögling |first1=Herrmann |title=Coorg Memoirs |date=1855 |page=222 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=k5ABAAAAQAAJ |access-date=28 June 2018}}</ref> On the spot where he had first met the British commander, General Abercromby, the Kodagu Raja founded the city of Virarajendrapet (this is now usually called [[Virajpet]]).<ref>{{cite web|title=A melting pot of cultures|url=http://www.deccanherald.com/content/212863/a-melting-pot-cultures.html|work=Deccan Herald|access-date=17 November 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170224150529/http://www.deccanherald.com/content/212863/a-melting-pot-cultures.html|archive-date=24 February 2017|date=19 December 2011}}</ref>

===Later Haleri===
[[File:Kheddah.jpg|thumb|right|200px]]

Dodda Vira Raja, who, in consequence of his mind becoming unhinged, was guilty towards the end of his reign of hideous atrocities, died in 1809 without male heirs, leaving his favourite daughter Devammji as Rani. His brother Linga Raja, however, after acting as regent for his niece, announced in 1811, his own assumption of the government. He died in 1820 and was succeeded by his son [[Chikka Virarajendra|Chikka Veera Raja]], a youth of twenty. He had members of the families of his predecessors, including Devammaji put to death.The last few Rajas and their family members married members of the Mukkatira and Palanganda Kodava families. At last, in 1833, overnight production of evidence of treasonable designs on the Raja's part led to inquiries on the spot by the British resident at Mysore, as the result of which, and of the Raja's refusal to amend his ways, a British force marched into Kodagu in 1834 after a medium-sized war, when the Raja surrendered. It was a short but bloody campaign that occurred in which a number of British men and officers were killed. Near Somwarpet, where the Coorgs were led by '''Mathanda Appachu''' the resistance had been most furious, by the Kodava warriors. But this [[Coorg War|Coorg campaign]] came to a quick end when the Rajah had to surrender to the British.<ref name="Kamath 1993 160"/><ref name="Muthanna 1953">{{cite book|last=Muthanna|first=I. M. |title=A Tiny Model State of South India|year= 1953 |publisher=Tiny Spot|location=Kodagu|page=99}}</ref><ref name="Ponnappa 1953">{{cite book|last=Ponnappa|first=Lt. Col. K. C. |title=A Study of the Origins of Coorgs|year= 1999 |publisher=Kodagu|location=Kodagu|page=23}}</ref>

==British rule==
[[File:Madras Prov 1859.gif|left|thumb|Coorg in 1859]]
[[File:Madras map 1913.jpg|thumb|Coorg province in British India in 1913]]
[[File:Nalknad Palace by Shashidhara Halady.jpg|thumb|Nalknad Palace]]
{{See also|Coorg War}}

On 11 April 1834, the raja was deposed by Colonel Fraser, the political agent with the force, and on 7 May the state was formally annexed to the [[East India Company]]'s territory, as Coorg. In 1852 the Raja, who had been deported to Vellore, obtained leave to visit England with his favourite daughter Gauramma, to whom he wished to give a European education. On 30 June she was baptised, [[Queen Victoria]] being one of her godmothers; she afterwards married a British officer who, after her death in 1864, mysteriously disappeared together with their child. Vira Raja himself died in 1863 and was buried in [[Kensal Green Cemetery]].<ref>[http://www.coorgnews.in/history/ Coorg History: CoorgNews.In website]</ref>

The Amara Sulya Movement of 1837 began when the British bifurcated Amara Sulya from Kodagu Samsthaana and demanded agricultural tax to be paid in the form of money by Sulya residents. The British had also deposed the Raja. The freedom movement to reinstate tradition over English Hegemony was led Sri Kedambadi Ramè Gowda, Coorgs, Koojugodu Mallayya Gowda and Chetty Kudiya among others.<ref name="Newspaper Report">{{cite web|author=Staff Correspondent|title=Appaiah Gowda's feats to be remembered|url=http://www.hindu.com/2004/10/31/stories/2004103102280300.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20041116010812/http://www.hindu.com/2004/10/31/stories/2004103102280300.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=16 November 2004|work=[[The Hindu]]|date=2004-10-31|accessdate=23 October 2013}}</ref>{{Contradictory inline|article=History of Kodagu|section=British rule|reason=Some names in the source have been replaced here|date=December 2022}}<br> After the rebellion the British presented Coorg chiefs who had remained loyal with gifts including horses, while a special [[Coorg Medal]] was awarded to chiefs, local leaders and those Kodavas who had supported the British during the conflict.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Mayo|first1=John Horsley|title= Medals and Decorations of the British Army and Navy, Volume II|date=1897|publisher= A. Constable & Co|page=[https://archive.org/details/medalsdecoration02mayouoft/page/531 531]-534|url=https://archive.org/details/medalsdecoration02mayouoft|accessdate=8 May 2019}}</ref>{{Contradictory inline|article=History of Kodagu|section=British rule|reason=The Kodava caste of the recipients are not mentioned in the source|date=December 2022}}

Coorg (Kodagu) was the smallest province in India, with an area of only 1,582 square miles (4,100 km<sup>2</sup>). As a [[British India|province of British India]], it was administered by a commissioner, subordinate to the [[Governor-General of India]] through the resident of Mysore, who was also officially chief commissioner of Coorg. Later freedom fighters from Kodagu supported the National Independence Movement. One of them, [[Pandyanda Belliappa]] was known as Kodagu's Gandhi.<ref name="News">{{cite news|last=Correspondent|first=C M Ramachandra|title=Coorg and the Reorganisation of States|url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/coorg-and-the-reorganisation-of-states/article5253820.ece|work=The Hindu|date=20 October 2013|accessdate=15 August 2017}}</ref><ref name="Kamath 1993 160"/>

==Independent India==
[[File: South Indian territories.svg|right|thumb|Map of South Indian states prior to the States Reorganisation Act,1956. Kodagu (then called Coorg) is in dark green.]]
{{See also|Coorg State}}

After India's independence in 1947, Coorg became a province, and in 1950 a state by name of [[Coorg State]] of Republic of India. In [[1952 Coorg Legislative Assembly election|1952 elections to the Coorg Legislative Assembly]] were held. In 1956, when India's state boundaries were reorganized along linguistic lines, it became a district of the then [[Mysore state]].

The Chief commissioners of Coorg were;
: 1947 – 1949 Dewan Bahadur Ketolira Chengappa
: 1949 – 1950 C.T. Mudaliar
: 1950 – 1956 Kanwar Daya Singh Bedi

The Chief minister 1952-1956 was [[C.M. Poonacha]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://rulers.org/indstat3.html|title = Indian states after 1947 A-L}}</ref>

Mysore state later became the modern state of [[Karnataka]], and the formal name of the district returned to the original, Kodagu.<ref name="britannica.com">{{cite encyclopedia|url=http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/136442/Coorg |title=Coorg (district, India) |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica Encyclopedia|accessdate=2012-06-01}}</ref>

Many Coorgs joined the Indian army, the Indian hockey team and other sports. Prominent among them were [[K. M. Cariappa|Field Marshal K. M.Cariappa]], [[Kodandera Subayya Thimayya|General K.S.Thimayya]], Lt. Gen. Iyappa (BEL chairman Aiyappa), Sqdn Leader [[Ajjamada B. Devaiah]] (war martyr), hockey captain M P Ganesh, tennis player [[Rohan Bopanna]], CAG [[C. G. Somiah]], etc., [[Kodagu district#Notable people]]

==See also==
*[[Haleri Kingdom]]
*[[Kodagu]]
*[[Kodava people|Kodava]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Further reading==
{{Refbegin|colwidth=60em}}
* {{cite book |last=Richter |first=G |year=1870 |title=Manual of Coorg- A Gazetteer of the natural features of the country and the social and political condition of its inhabitants |url=https://archive.org/details/manualcoorgagaz00richgoog/page/n6/mode/2up |location=Mangalore |publisher=C Stolz, Basel Mission Book Depository |isbn=9781333863098}}
* {{Citation
| author = Government of Coorg | year=1953
| title= Handbook of Coorg Census-1951 | publisher=Assistant Commissioner and District Census Officer, Coorg
| url= http://lsi.gov.in:8081/jspui/bitstream/123456789/6036/1/42086_1951_COO.pdf
}}
{{Refend}}

==External links==
*[http://kushalmucon.blogspot.in/ Kodagu (Coorg) History]
*[http://www.coorg.com/district-profile/ COORG /Kodagu Information]

{{Karnataka topics}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kodagu}}
[[Category:History of Karnataka by district]]
[[Category:History of India by region]]
[[Category:History of Coorg]]

History of Kodagu - Revision history

WilheminaJanzen at 06:23, 28 February 2026