Calicut Salt fields of Yore

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Kozhikodinte Uppupadangal

Not many today would be aware that once upon a time, there existed a number of salt pans or salt fields around Calicut. Historians past and present have alluded to it and stressed on their importance while Prof Raghava Varier had penned an article around the topic. It was interestingly a major trade as well as an important source of income to the people of Calicut at one time. Later during the last stages of the British reign over India, when Gandhiji started his salt satyagraha, a similar one was conducted in Calicut.

But let us see what the salty history of Calicut has to narrate from ancient times to the days when the people of Calicut had to shell out large taxes to the British for consuming a natural produce!

As CHF told us some years ago, Calicut, it was claimed, was a marshy expanse with only salt pans and a rugged sea coast before it suddenly developed in the 12th Century into a bustling sea port which traders from many nationalities frequented and acclaimed as 'the City of Truth'. So what was part did salt have to play before the advent of sea trade and all the politics and wars which followed, culminating in colonization?

Prof Raghava Varier, our esteemed historian provides an insight in his excellent article analyzing the place names around Calicut. Following a Toponymical approach, Varier provides a detailed analysis which I will attempt to summarize below. He starts with a basic explanation as to why salt found its way into human diet. In the earliest of times, salt in the meat itself satisfied the salt requirements of the eater but as diet moved to a grain based one, this had to added externally (as we see, it went from trace amounts to dollops these days!!) and then again it was a good preservative agent. Other uses were in glazing earthen pots, worship and for use in burials of a certain caste.

As one can imagine, salt produced in the salt fields on the coastal belt was carried inwards to the larger user base laden in carts and sold in exchange for paddy, sometimes costing as much as the latter. We also note that the saltpan owners lived close to their production pits. These locations, many of them around Calicut, are identified by their old place names (not current or applicable today). ‘Kali’ was salt, ‘uppalam’ is salty area, uppupattanam was saltpan, ‘uppukootam’ is a salt warehouse, ‘uppuchungam’ was salt tax and each of these terms were used together with the locale providing basic identification. According to Varier’s study, these 52 or so production and storage areas were located all around Calicut, in the midst of which grew up the town as we know today. One of the two salt tolls named Palaya Gunkam was located in Velapuram. The second toll was situated 2-3 miles North, at Kurumbrakattucheri.

We also note from this study that these locations depict a strong Buddhist presence, that they were the purveyors of the salt trade or the ‘Umanar’ and the trade routes went across to Waynad, Mysore and Kongu Nadu (around Coimbatore). Varier concludes that the Zamorin’s attack on the Porlathiris to take over Calicut was actually for control over the lucrative salt production and trading network that would help him also control the spice traffic from the eastern production centers which were beyond his domains, but terminating at the coast. Eventually as the acquisition of Calicut was completed, a bureaucracy was set up to control all aspects of salt production. So we can conclude that the ancient salt pans of Calicut now came under the Zamorin’s control.

We get a picture of Calicut under the Zamorin from the accounts of F Buchanan (1800) who recorded that Calicut had salt pans in abundance and that Calicut was a large manufacturer and exporter of salt using high tide sea water. He calls the salt makers ‘vaytuvans’ from the Punchuma tribe (Thurston defines them as the Patunna group in the Kannakkan caste) and explains the 92 day process starting between February - June. These tribes also carried on with stone work, coir rope, built mud walls and so on, when not working on salt fields. Buchnan also explains with a summary of costs that the business is quite lucrative, but required access to a large square footages of land (the soil had to be hard and smooth, sort of clayish). These lands were leased out by the local Jenmis on short and long terms. We also note that they were a different lot where it was taboo to touch a Vaytuvan woman, as she could be killed for adultery by her husband and that the caste buried their dead.

Even though salt production at Calicut largely ceased by 1807, the salt business did well in Malabar for another century, and the British were soon to monopolize the business in 1807. The monopolization Regulation AD 1807 II extract shows how it was done …

A Regulation for extending the Salt Monopoly to the Provinces of Canara and Malabar: Passed by the Governor in Council of Fort St. George, July 1807
Whereas it has been resolved that the salt monopoly, which by section XXIII Regulation I, A.D. 1805, is temporarily exempted from operation in Canara and Malabar, should be now extended to those provinces, wherefore the following rules are hereby enacted for that purpose.

II First -The landholders, proprietors, and inhabitants of Canara and Malabar shall be at liberty to carry on the manufacture of salt as heretofore.

Second - The salt so manufactured shall be sold by the landholders, proprietors, or inhabitants to the officers of Government alone, at a price to be determined with the consent of the respective parties, and with reference to the average sale price of several years preceding the establishment of the monopoly.

III All salt which may be sold by a proprietor, landholder, inhabitant, or manufacturer, to any other than the officers of Government, or others authorized by Government to purchase it, shall be confiscated and, on a repetition of the offence, the party shall be liable to be fined, at the discretion of the judge, in a sum not exceeding one thousand pagodas.

But we also see that lighter Bombay salt is preferred over the heavier Calicut coarse salt and that it was exported to Wynad, Coonoor etc from Calicut. So Calicut indeed continued it ways as a warehouse for spices, salt and other items of value.

Thomas Warden was cross examined by House of Lords in 1830, The Q&A is interesting and lends perspective

Do you know whether the salt tax was introduced for any particular object? It was introduced, as far as I can understand, to cover the expenses incident upon the judicial establishments. The salt monopoly of Malabar was introduced under my administration.

The government have a monopoly there, no salt can be sold but by the government?Just so.

And that at a fixed price? Yes. The salt warehouses are open to all purchasers at a fixed price. They are established in different parts of the country, so as to give a facility to the inhabitants to purchase salt at the government price. Stipendiary servants are attached to them, who retail the salt.

No salt can be sold by the manufacturer but to the government? Just so; but a great proportion of the salt consumed in Malabar is foreign salt, which on importation is purchased by the government. It comes from Bombay and the Red Sea, and is preferable to that manufactured in the country.

The government equally derive a profit from it? Yes.

And those profits are appropriated to the support of the judicial establishment? That object originated the salt monopoly under the Madras Presidency.

Let us see what Thomas Baber had to add in his testimony to the House of Lords in 1830

Were you in Malabar before the Introduction of the Monopoly of Salt?

I was; and for years both before and afterwards.

Can you state whether any Salt was manufactured, and in what manner previous to the Monopoly?

There are what they call Ooppadam, Salt Pans, all along and in a parallel line with the Coast. The lands are overflowed by the sea; some of them are dammed up, into which the Salt Water is admitted, which, by the heat of the sun, being evaporated, leaves the salt Residue.

Was that a source of Income to the Proprietors previously?

Very considerable; the Diminution of which is a Source of great Grievance to the Inhabitants.

Was any Compensation made to the Proprietors of Salt?

Yes.

To what Extent?

Not by any means equal to what they enjoyed before the Monopoly.

Was more Salt manufactured in the Aggregate before the Introduction of that Monopoly than has been since?

Considerably. One Reason is, that a great deal of Foreign Salt, from being more profitable to the Government, has been imported from Goa, Bombay, Cutch, Mocha and the Gulf.

Has the Price of Salt been enhanced in consequence of the Monopoly?

From Three hundred to Four hundred per Cent in some parts of the Country. I have known it stand the Consumer perhaps as high as Six hundred or Seven hundred per Cent; but this and other Grievances of the People I noticed in a Memorial to the Honorable the Court of Directors in August last, which, if it is the pleasure of your Lordships, I can produce.

We also find that the business was becoming a corrupt one as the officials colluded with the proprietors. In a letter written by T Baber to Sir Thomas Munro in 1817, several of these criticisms are aired. He believed that most of the officials running the salt and tobacco monopolies in Calicut were corrupt, and that the monopolies should be stopped. He says in the letter, amongst other issues………..

 I am not at all surprised at you not having found amongst the Malabar Cutcherry, records what Europeans are employed in the Salt and tobacco department because I never can suppose Government would lose sight of what was due to the Company and their subjects as to give their sanction to such a wanton enhancement of the monopoly price (which in all conscience is high enough) of those commodities – The arrangements, I believe, to be entirely Mr Warden’s and so far from any advantage to the company from it, I know quite sufficient, of these excise agents to pronounce that they would not hesitate to avail themselves of any opening to enrich themselves at the public expense .

How was it done? It was done with a play of the measures at Bombay & Calicut. Alfred Delisle explains - Of these measures the Malabar ‘para’ approaches nearest to that of Bombay in shape, and will consequently admit of fair comparison. From their respective cubic contents, it appears that a shipper, having taken 1000 maunds at the salt pans, need only send 812 to Calicut to get his certificate for the full quantity; so that he can smuggle, or otherwise dispose of the difference, viz. 188 measures; of course in this calculation I suppose no loss to have occurred from waste.

We also note that the Calicut inspector was quite important as there was no salt work near Mahe, Bombay, so its salt was locally purchased and supplied to Mahe by the Salt Inspector stationed at Calicut. Salt was also diverted to Conoor, Wynad etc. As one can imagine, the salt pans started their slow death as imported salt from Bombay came into Malabar, and this as we saw above, soon became a conduit for corruption. This salt was thence termed Sircar salt.

As time went by, a salt department was formed. Prior to 1889, the Salt Abkari and Customs department were together. However by the Madras Salt Act 1889, Salt and Abkari were organized under the Madras Salt department and it functioned from the Customs House at Madras. In more ways than one, in the Salt and Abkari department which stood separated from the Customs but functioned from the Customs House, Madras the initial Excise administration in Madras was initiated.

The Salt department, under the Collector of Salt Revenue, Madras had three divisions- Northern, Central and Southern. Northern division consisted of Cocanada, Nellore, Massulipattinam and Chicacole. Central Division consisted of Chengleput, Bellary, Arcot and Cuddalore. Southern division consisted of sub-divisions like Nagapattinam, Tirunelvelli, Trichinapally, and Calicut. Besides Salt and Abkari revenue, the Salt department also administered all the Customs out ports in the coastal areas and land customs stations.

The effect of the monopoly is explained in the Memorandum on the Progress of the Madras Presidency by SS Raghavaiyengar.

Before the Government monopoly came into force, the price of salt at Calicut in 1800 was, according to Buchanan, 4 annas a maund. In Mangalore, Bombay salt was sold for less than 4 annas and Goa salt less than 3 annas a maund. At Taikulam (near Bangalore) the price of earth salt was 10 annas 8 pies per maund, and of Madras sea salt 2 rupees or three times as much. After the creation of the Government monopoly the price at the Government factories was fixed at 9 annas at first, and it has been continually enhanced till it amounts now to 2 rupees 11 annas. Till 1882, the manufacture of salt except on Government account was prohibited. Between 1882 and 1886, the system of manufacture and sale of salt by private individuals on payment of an excise duty was substituted for the Government monopoly system throughout the Presidency, with the exception of half a dozen places where the old system is still maintained.

There can, however, be little doubt that the salt tax presses with severity on the poorer classes, especially on the sea coast, where the duty has been enhanced in recent years, and large preventive establishments have at the same time been employed to put down illicit manufacture and smuggling. There has been much discussion as regards the soundness of the policy of taxing a necessary of life like salt.

The Duke of Argyle, the Secretary of State for India, said in 1869: "On all grounds of general principle, salt is a perfectly legitimate subject of taxation. It is impossible to reach the masses of the people by direct taxes; if they are to contribute at all to the expenditure of the State, it must be through taxes levied upon some articles of universal consumption. If such taxes are fairly adjusted, a large revenue can thus be raised, not only with less consciousness on the part of the people, but with less real hardship on them than in any other…

Ah! How easy it is to make such fancy explanations!

And so after many years of oppression, like in Gujarat, the people of Calicut also rose up against the authorities and protested. In 1930 we too had a Salt Satyagraha in Malabar.

The Hindu report explains

Removal of the Salt Tax was one of the 11 demands of the Indian National Congress, and observing Poorna Swaraj (Complete Freedom) on January 26, 1930. Following Gandhiji, salt marches were held by freedom fighters in different parts of the country, in Vedaranyam, led by Rajaji in Tamil Nadu, and K.Kelappan at Payyanur in Kerala.

It was on April 21, 1930, that the volunteers under the leadership of K. Kelappan, the ‘Kerala Gandhi', collected salty sand with coconut shells in gunny bags and distilled it and sold small packets in the evening. Ninety-five year-old Madhavan recollects that packets with a pinch of salt were sold then at the incredible price of Rs. 25 per piece and the demand could not be fully met. That was the fervor with which people of the area heralded mass participation in the Satyagraha movement.

Gandhi chose salt as the very basis of the mass civil disobedience for a greater reason. Salt invariably formed part of the food of every Indian, rich or poor, Hindu or Muslim. Leaders like TR Krishna Swamy, Muhammad Abdul Rehiman Saheb, Moidu Moulavi, Moyyarath Sankaran also participated in this agitation.

So many volunteers were arrested and brutally tortured by the Police. PC Kunhiraman Adiyodi and Andra Kanna Poduval, who were students, were arrested and put in Kannur Jail. Later they were shifted to Madhura and then to Bellary Jail. In Bellary, Kunhiraman Adiyodi started hunger strike against the cruel and brutal torture. After 43 days of his 'upavasa' Adiyodi breathed his last in the Jail itself and was cremated in the Jail compound itself by the authorities.

In Calicut crowds were large for the salt march but notwithstanding the presence of some younger militants the overall tenor was Gandhian. The agitation however did not elicit much enthusiasm among peasants & laborers.

The Town Hall building in Calicut was originally constructed (1891) by the salt merchants and called the Salt Abkari Townhall. It is a strange coincidence of history that the appeal for salt satyagraha was launched from this place. In May 1930 was when the coastal town of Calicut saw a determined group of Congress volunteers getting beaten and booted by the police for their efforts to make salt from seawater as part of the salt satyagraha launched by Mahatma Gandhi.

 Well, the indigenous production of salt in Calicut, the very reason for its importance and rise, fizzled out and was eventually replaced by Bombay salt, just like its famed Calico cloth had declined in popularity. The town hall stands a mute testimony to the power salt had over the masses and the rapacious tax policy of the British. Today the importance of  salt has not abated at all, in fact readymade food suppliers increase salt in their produce ever so gradually, people become over salted and end up with high sodium levels and high blood pressure, and drug companies mint money…That’s life..
A passing note – Do you know the British were even considering taxing betel leaves in Malabar???

References

A Journey from Madras through the Countries of Mysore, Canara and Malabar – Francis Buchnan
Some place names in and around Calicut suggesting Salt industry – M R Raghava Varier

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The tale of Palora Jamen

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Pallur Emmen Nair or (Muppainad Pallur Eman, Yemen, Yeman, Yemmin, Emman Nayar)
1809 Pulo Penang – Kampong Malabar - The stooping man who walked about the Georgetown - Fort Cornwallis area, looked nothing like the proud warrior he once was and one who roamed the forests of Waynad. The sinewy muscles had been replaced by sagging skin, the tone of his skin had darkened to a leathery hue, more like that of a water buffalo and his face wizened and filled with sorrow, showing eyes full of defeat. In fact he was not old at all, he must have been just 40 or so, but looked well past 60! He was a tired man and sat often with his head between his hands, near the Kapitan Kling mosque, making aimless conversation with a few of his country folk who came to pray. Often he sat at the pond steps looking at the pond or kolam. Sometimes he was seen near the Chowrusta lines, where other convicts from India were housed, on other days the old man could be seen looking for any new compatriots who had been transported from Malabar. The Pole or mata mata as the police were known, troubled him no longer nor did he bother with them. Sometimes he was seen helping with public works activities as other convicts did, but then again he was a political prisoner and not a convict bound in chains or imprisoned, he was a transportee. What a horrible word that was and what a terrible experience it was, for only the one who underwent it could understand it. Of the worst kind, if you ask the old man, being cut away from family, his land, and his people and its customs, to forget them forever. Banishment or exile of the worst sort!


Often he would look across the waters in the westerly direction to the land he once hailed from, sights now reduced to a distant memory. Malaria and other sicknesses had reduced him to a decrepit soul with no hope left, only looking forward to the deliverance promised by death. Nobody who saw him would connect him to a once proud overlord of Pallur or Mupainad.
Some years ago, John Leyden (remember my article about him and his ode?) too had moved to Penang to teach Hindoostanee and wrote with the same agony that our convict faced - for his heart was sad too, and his spirits depressed,

Friends of my youth forever dear,
Where are you from this bosom fled?
A lonely man I linger here,
Like one that has been long time dead.

Foredoomed to seek an early tomb,
For whom the pallid grave-flowers blow,
I hasten on my destined doom,
And sternly mock at joy or woe!

Pallur Emen Nair’s story has never been told and though we do not know about his youth or his family, we do know of his role in the Southern Indian rebellion against the British and we do know some about his last days in Penang. But before we go there, we must start at the dense jungles of Wynad, near the Kottayam region which is somewhat sandwiched between the Zamorin’s domains in the south and the Kolathiri kingdom in the North.


Emman Nair originally hailed from today’s Mayyazhi or Mahe and Palloor was a part of the Naaluthara comprising Chaalakkara, Pallur, Chembra and Pandakkal desas. How he got connected to Muppainad in the Meppadi area of wayanad is not clear, but Palloor Emman was also called Muppainad Emman, where he led the Kurumbar tribals there. His story intertwines the accounts, fortunes and diaries of Baber, Wellesley, Macleod, Dow and Duncan and of course that of Pazhassi Raja, Chandu, Kungan, Ambu and Kannavath Nambiar.
Tipu had accompanied his father Hyder during the 1766 Mysore invasion of Malabar. Various events occurred since then and it was finally in 1789 that Tipu lost to the Travancore forces at Nedumkotta and retired to Seringapatnam. After the 1792 battles with the British, he ceded Malabar to the EIC. However based on the premise ‘my enemy and your enemy is our enemy’ he carried on many intrigues with Malabar Nair lords who were dispossessed of their power or territories by the EIC. Some of these included the lesser princes of Calicut, the Kottayam raja and so on. The situation was exacerbated when it was rumored that Napoleon was setting his sights on India. We talked previously about the events concerning Ripaud and how Wellesley then laid a siege on Seringapatnam resulting in the killing of Tipu Sultan.


However the chiefs of Malabar had not given up. The next uprising the British faced was the loosely coordinated revolts in Southern India, at Coimbatore, Dindigiul, Panchalamkurichy (Polygar revolts), some Kannada chiefs and eventually the Pazhassi revolt headed by the Kottayam raja. The interesting aspect here is that there was some element of coordination between the Tamilians, Malabar people and the Kannadigas, only that it was very ineffective and was quickly nipped in the bud by the much militarily stronger British. K Rajayyam’s accounts provide quite some details of the confederation which included Polygars of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka and Maharashtra. Backed up by brief mentions in the Malabar district records 1714-1835, we can trace the life and times of Emman Nair.
With this background, let us ascend to the hills of Wynad where the next events took place starting with the 1797 time frame. Dhondia Waugh, another Kannada rebel also played a link role in these affairs but his death ensured rebel disarray in front of the well-organized British. In many ways it was an ineffectual alliance, with vast distances and bad terrains separating the various groups. The Pazhassi Raja himself first settled for peace with the EIC after his house and treasure were restored by them, but fell out again when the EIC insisted that Wynad belonged to them as part of Tipu’s territories, following the sultan’s death. Pazhassi of course contented that Wynad was part of Kottayam and the continuing struggles between the two were primarily based on this difference of opinion. The common man too cast his support to the rebels as they too were suffering heavily from heavy taxation (3 gold fanams per pepper vine, ½ a gold fanam per coconut tree, ¼ fanam per arecanut tree) amounting at times to double that of the produce!!

Readers - Note that I have used the names Yemen, Emman signifying the same person and similarly Kottayam and Pzhassi raja to mean the same person)
In 1796 the EIC took the first misstep of raiding the Pazhassi palace and looting the kovilakom and money worth Rs 17,000 therein, and the raja fled to the jungles. The Bombay government decided to let him back but did not return all the money. When the people threw their lot with the king and refused to pay any taxes, the EIC took heed. However there was no respite for 2 years which followed. We start with the relations between the Pazhassi raja and Tipu Sultan, 1797 as reported by the Coorg raja. It appears that Emmen Nair was deputed to Seringapatnam to meet and discuss potential alliances on behalf of the raja. The Sultan gifted him a Palankeen, a pair of gold bangles a necklace and a shawl. It appears that Emman promised some of the tax collection to Tipu but did not carry out the promise. We also see from the files that the people discussing anti-British activities with Tipu are the Raja, Yaman nair and the Padinjare kovilakom rajas. It is mentioned that Emman nair was the Kariakkar of the Kottayam raja. We also see that meetings are arranged and messages sent, Ranga Pandit being an emissary from Tipu’s side and Emman Nair from the Malabar side. Between 1796 and 1798, a number of skirmishes take place and finally the EIC concluded a treaty with the Raja in 1797 after restoring the house and treasure of the Raja.
We also note that Yeman nair was held or imprisoned by Tipu in 1798 over nonpayment of tax arrears by the Kottayam raja. Presumably this caused a rift between the Raja and Yeman Nair. All this was reported to the EIC by their faithful ally, the Coorg raja. The EIC promptly relinquished claims on Wynad, but later discovered that the Raja and Dhoondaji Waugh had been corresponding. They get alarmed and Wellesley is involved in quelling the disturbances and the death of Dhoondaji Waugh.

Records from March 1799 detail the fallout between the Kottayam Raja and Emman Nair. Apparently the Raja wanted Emman to go and visit Tipu Sultan at Seringapatnam, again. Emman refused (perhaps due to the bad treatment he suffered) and informed Spencer of the EIC as well as the Ganabadiya (Kannavath?) Nambiyar. Yeman is now in a standoff with the Raja who is reportedly trying to take his life with 500 men at Kunjimangalam while the Emman Nair is trying to defend himself with 300 men. Emmen Nair talks about being oppressed by the Raja, signifying some kind of a monetary quarrel. At the same time, Tipu is expected to arrive in Wynad and the Raja is not feeling too happy about it. The Parappanad Raja has informed the Kottayam raja that the British are planning to send troops up the Ghats. Coincidentally there are a series of Moplah attacks in the region. The British also expect the Pazhassi raja to attack their Tellichery factory and get prepared.

Ganabadiah who is allied to the EIC however brings around Emmen Nair and the Kottayam Raja to the EIC side. The EIC decides to provide Emman Nair support, in their own interests. The British also play the Kurumbranad raja and Ambu who are allied with them, against the Pazhassi raja and try to split the people’s support. In June the EIC informs Emman Nair to try and go on an offensive against the Raja. Emman Nair continues to feed the EIC with information about rebel movements in Malabar and Wynad. The EIC also obtain an agreement from the Travancore king that they will not allow any asylum to anybody going there from the Malabar region without their permission.

1799- Pazhassi refuses to meet Tipu when summons him. Soon Emman Nayar announces his allegiance with the EIC and requests 10,000 cartridges and 10,000 flints to fortify himself and his troops. Pazhassi raja decides to get rid of Yeman Nayar. Emman Nayar requests protection and an allowance of Rs 200 for him and his family per month. The EIC provide Emman Nayar with an assurance that his family and children are now under EIC protection and that he could attack the Kaikeni kottah and the Edatara kottah. The Pazhassi Raja quickly contacts the EIC to mend fences and tells them that he sent his emissary to Tipu only to ensure security for his people in Kottayam and had nothing to do with securing Wynad. The EIC continue to try and drive a wedge between the Emman Nayar and Pazhassi raja. Emman reports that Pazhassi Raja has raided the house of Tondura Chatu and has decided to stop the Kurumbranad Raja from coming up the Ghats. We also note here that Emman Nayar’s assistant (karyasthan) is one Krishna Ayyar. Was Emen Nair at this stage a Pazhassi spy? It is not quite clear, though many have provided such a hypothesis.
Anyway by May, Emman is accorded formal protection and an allowance of Rs 200 per month. At the same time, Seringapatnam has been taken and Tipu finally killed. So Tipu has no more role in this story and the Raja is now on his own. He cannot use Tipu’s name to play against the EIC. However as the EIC prepares to consolidate once and for all, it is seen that the Pazhassi raja now forms a coalition with the Dhondia Waugh, other Nambiars and Unnimoota. And Yeman Nayar, a key player aligned to the EIC surfaces often in the Wellesley dispatches. Wellessley has been deputed to quell the rebellion in Malabar and cleanse the area after his successes against Tipu in Mysore.
1800 - Emman Nair is in those days living at Muppainad (Parahmetal Hoobly of Nemeyn) and over lording the Kurumbar’s (gold dust collecting tribe) and offers many ideas to Col Wellesley about effective troop movements against the Pazhassi Raja. The EIC record that Yeman Nair’s influence, it appears, is most prevalent in the districts to the southward of the great road to Tambercherry
Wellesley is by now considered Yeman Nair’s friend and considering that Wellesly is already in high standing after his successes in Mysore and his relation to the Marquis Wellesley (brother), Yeman Nair gets his way often. However the prospect of a Napoleonic invasion is feared by Wellesley. Later in the year he requests the presence of Yeman Nair in Seringapatnam so they can formalize the relationship and have a detailed face to face discussion which happens. It has been decided to keep Wynad under the Malabar administration. He has big plans for he states – “It is proposed to leave to the decision of this Council all the future arrangements in Wynaad, whether regarding the settlement with Yeman Nair and other chiefs of the same description, or the employment of the Nairs in general in the service”. Yeman Nayar then meets the iron Duke and suggests various courses of action against the Raja, though it is not clear if Wellesley used them. I believe he also gets the title of a Tahsildar of the EIC by then and Major Macleod, the principal Collector, took charge of the district of Malabar on October 1, 1801
The Pazhassi raja is soon dispossessed of his lands and he becomes a fugitive in the jungles with his friends. A couple of years pass and we are now at the tail end of 1802. Kannavatt Nambiar and his son have been hanged by the EIC, much to the disgust of some British soldiers (G Stratchan – Indian atrocities, Sep 20, Sept 27, Nov 1- 1818) one who even wrote three articles detailing the atrocities without fear of being tried for treason. Nick Balmer had written about part 1 of the article, in his blog dated 30th May 2010 and provided some detail on what happened to Stratchan afterwards. Part 2 is actually more detailed about the gruesome atrocities committed by those sepoys and Part 3 concludes his opinions and commentary. These two articles provide details of the barbarous fashion in which the war was fought, and shows ample reason for a native like Yeman Nair to switch sides. After he absconded, his movements are not recorded and he is elusive, sighted rarely, so we know little of his activities, but only that he is in league with the Raja.
Following this, a sense of normalcy was seen in North Malabar, but it was not to remain so. Collector Major MacLeod ordered a total disarmament of Malabar and threatened death penalty for those who carried arms. Taxation issues also created discontent. The rebels retaliate at the Panamarathu kotta in Oct 1802 where EIC soldiers are killed, and for the first time, a British report mentions that Yeman Nair has changed sides. Wellesley reports - It is said that the Rajah himself, with Coongan and Yeman Nair, were present; but this can only be mere conjecture, as every inhabitant in the vicinity of Pancoorta Cottah had deserted their houses. On Dec 6th 1802, Yeman Nayar’s duplicity is seemingly brought to light by the EIC and Yeman Nair is now seen as an enemy rebel.

 In 1803, Wellesley left for Europe, after three years of inconclusive war with the Pazhassi Raja, becomes the Duke of Wellington, and goes on to defeat Napoleon at Waterloo. Emman Nair, his friend is still in the jungles, now supposedly involved in the Calicut Sub Jail attack - One thing I am not sure if Eman was really involved in the jail attack at Calicut in March 1803 though some articles state so. KKN Kurup who provides some details of the attack in his Modern Kerala book does not name Eman as a leader. As it appears, rebels marched through Thamarasseri towards Calicut and overran the Sub-Jail. They tried to free the prisoners, through a hole in the wall. In the melee, 40 of them were killed, some 130 escaped and 38 were retaken by the British. This prompted a resignation by the then Collector of Malabar, Major McLeod but historian KKN Kurup is clear in stating that the leadership could not be ascertained. Perhaps it was Emen, for the Calicut leadership was very severe in the case of Emman‘s petition later

In 1804 a reward is posted by Col Macleod where Pallur Eman (Col Wellesley’s friend) carries a bounty of 1000 pagodas. We also note that Pallur Eman has an elder brother Pallur Rayarappan who carried a 300 pagoda bounty for his head. And that is about the time frame when TH Baber has entered the scene and is in pursuit of the rebels.
We note from his reports that the Koormers - Kurumbrar’s are under the leadership of Pallur Eman , termed in his report as Palora jamen (It surprises me why Baber called him so when even in Wellesley’s reports he is named more correctly as Yeman Nayar).
Baber states - As these people were exclusively under the influence of Palora Jamen, it is not difficult to explain whence this unfortunate notion originated: it is only those who have had a personal opportunity of knowing the extensive abilities and artifices of this man who can justly calculate upon the mischief and dire consequence that must ensue where such qualifications are employed against us. This was unfortunately instanced in the Kooramars, who, from the time of Palora Jamen’s defection, had become in a manner desperate; they had been foremost amongst the rebel ranks, and there is no crime, no species of cruelty and outrage, which they have not committed.
We note then that during May or June of 1805, an attack on a post at Choorcharry took place, led by Welatory Rama Thareakarar accompanied by Palora Yemen who exhorted his men to fight - Palora Yemen urged and persuaded the party to proceed, saying “go on never fear” according to Rama Tharakar.
Later, we see the last mention of Emman Nayar in Wynad, in the report of final decisive foray by Baber during 1805 against the rebels. With many agents, I could not fail of success in some one of them. On the 30th ultimo, three of them at last brought me intelligence of the Pyche (Palassi) Raja and all the rebel leaders, with the exception of Palora Jamen (Pallur Eman) being then in the opposite side of the Kangara river, a short distance in Mysore, and this so unequivocally that I determined to act upon it.………..Previous to this I had deemed it expedient to make a feint to divert the attention of the rebels (who I thought it probable might have their spies in camp) by detaching 70 of my kolkars, under the Sheristadar, under the pretext of going in pursuit of Palora Jamen who was reported to be in the Komanpany Mala in the South-eastern direction, while they had secret instructions after marching half-way to this mountain to strike off eastward to the Kallir Mountain and there lie in ambush near to paths to cut off the retreat of any fugitives who would, in most probability, go off in that direction in the event of our party coming up with the rebels.
Nov 1805 - As we now know, this supposed pursuit of Yeman Nair led to the discovery and death of the Pazhassi Raja who was hiding in the area. Thereafter Emman Naiar was captured in 1806 together with his brother near the mountains near Nilambur where his brother Rayarappan died in the fighting. The trial reports suggest that it was actually the Coorg Raja who (a big time EIC supporter) who discovered his hideout. Pallaur Eman, Colonel Wellesley’s friend was captured alive and sent to Seringapatnam to face a trial. In April 1806, he and four of his friends were sentenced after trial and sent to the Dindigul jail. The Court Marshall found all the men guilty and sentenced them to hang, but an appeal resulted in the men having their sentences commuted to transportation to Prince of Wales Island. The official transcript states - Yemen Nayar, the principal adherent of the Pyche Raja of Cotiote, is captured and put on trial for rebellion - he is sentenced to transportation for life to Prince of Wales Island. Papers regarding the trial of the rebel Yemen Nayar - question as to why the death sentence was not imposed and a finger of doubt is pointed to the fact that it was perhaps due to his earlier friendship with Col Wellesley. Macleod questions the court repeatedly why he was not executed and the court emphatically replies that its ruling is commensurate with the crime.
Accordingly the five were transported to Penang in 1807 where a number of Polygar prisoners captured in South India had already been dispatched. Some of these people were apparently known to Emman Nayar and they were involved in some amount of coordination on rebellious matters. Wellesley, who heard about this, expressed some alarm that Penang was not entirely a wise location to send them to, for Penang was frequented by south Indian Muslim traders who could try to bring them back to India. But his doubts were soon to prove farfetched.
Now we refer to a couple of papers written by the eminent Anand Yang, who deals with the subject of Indian convicts in Penang, and transportation as such in great detail. The British evolved the method of transportation as an effective way to ostracize these culprits. Foremost, it would effectively result in a loss of caste position due to the ocean crossing taboo. British officials considered transportation to be "a weapon of tremendous power as it packed an extra punitive punch because of its negative cultural and religious implications. In fact they fell upon the base that banishment was a very Hindu way of punishment since Vedic times.
It was different in those days, for the journey of the banished to Penang took 50-80 days by sea!! These convicts were not kept behind bars in Penang, but were allowed to roam about and even paid a small stipend and live amongst the other Polygar prisoners. It is said that at least some of the Polygar prisoners knew Eman or of him, as he had been one of those who coordinated with them on the matters concerning rebellion. They were provided 1 seer of rice per day, 1 ½ seers of ghee per month and a piece of cloth per annum.


They also kept themselves active by sending petitions for pardon and return to India.  Many of them wrote asking for better conditions and escalation of status compared to others. Seven years is the usual banishment or exile term, but in the case of Emen Nayar it was for a lifetime. The Polygar prisoners were not allowed to return by the Tinnevelly magistrate. In fact they tried to compare that even Rama in Ramayana had to remain banished for 14 years and not more, so they should be allowed to return. It fell on deaf ears but some got an increased stipend of 7 Spanish dollars per month and later up to 15 dollars, but it is not clear of Emman Nair received such amounts. In Penang, the situation deteriorated and owing to the acute depression many convicts suffered and adding the rigors of tropical confinement, by 1817 only 15 of these political prisoners survived from the original 71.
So after 7 years, Emman Nair appealed for relief in March 1814. Some appeals were collective, some individual like in the case of Emman Nair. Krishna Iyer, his accomplice was allowed to return to Malabar. Emman Nair’s appeal was disallowed. We are not sure about the other four Malabar accomplices.
The Malabar magistrate refused to allow release of Emman nayar. The magistrate wrote to the secretary of the Madras Government expressing no objection to the release of the rebels of 1798 and 1801 EXCEPT Yemen Nair: "he is a character who ought never to be allowed to revisit Malabar.  His determined opposition to government, his treacherous conduct on various occasions, his talents as a partisan, his daring courage, are all so many arguments against it."  He then goes on to say that Malabar although in a "tranquil state" had "many disaffected persons, who would, if men of rank and situation secretly encourage opposition and tumult, and if otherwise, would readily join any gangs which might hold out to them hopes of plunder."
The Polygar convicts were finally sent back to India in 1819 following deliberations in Britain as they felt that the situation was somewhat unjust. Finally only five remained and then four out of the five were repatriated to Madras, but only one remained for fear of national security.
You guessed right, that was Pallur Emman Nair. He did not live long and died shortly thereafter in 1819, with all hopes of seeing his beloved land, shattered. Nobody in Pallur or Muppainad remember him, nothing is known about his progeny, no tombstone of his exists in Penang so far as I know, nor is there a picture or statue of this rebel. He may soon be forgotten, but I did not want it to be so and hence, this article.
Now who could that magistrate be, the person who hastened the death of Emman Nair? It was the very same James Vaughan who was mentioned by Walsh (if you recall Walsh also wrote about Karunakara Menon’s house etc). Vaughan was also the person who believed that the practice of slavery in Malabar should continue (Baber was against it) and one who had to contend with the beginnings of the Moplah disturbances.
Penang is a teeming city today which has showcased its history, but tells little of the efforts of the Indian prisoners who built it up. They were the ones who laid the foundations and got the place running for the British. The Malays today talk more about the Chinese and English in their history and are at times unkind in referring to the Indian convicts or klings, but little do they know of the imposition of transportation by the British and the sad stories from those early days.
Wynad – It is a beautiful place and people go there these days to spend a few days in solitude. But in the 1796-1804 time frame, it was full of action, soldiers, cannons and guns, bows and arrows, spies, bravery, valor, cowardice, Frenchmen, Englishmen, locals, tribals, kings, princesses and what not. Their stories are consigned to what they call ‘forgotten history’.
References
South Indian Rebellion: the First War of Independence, 1800-1801 - K. Rajayyan
From Contact to Conquest: Transition to British Rule – M Frenz
“Bandits and Kings: Moral Authority and Resistance in Early Colonial India,” The Journal of Asian Studies 66, 4(2007):881-96 - Anand yang
“Indian Convict Workers in Southeast Asia in the Late Eighteenth and Early Nineteenth Centuries,” Journal of World History, 14, 2 (2003):179-208 - Anand yang
Indians in Malaya: Some Aspects of Their Immigration and Settlement (1786-1957) - Kernial Singh Sandhu
Various dispatches by Col Wellesley
Malabar manual – W Logan

Authors note – Emman Nayar was perhaps one of the most complex characters in the rebellion and perhaps the most important rebels of all, even rivaling Pazhassi Raja, in my opinion. If anybody knows more at Pallur Emman Nayar or Krishan Ayyar or any of their descendants, please do let me know.


I thank Dr Anand Alan Yang and Nick Balmer for helping me with their own notes and comments, without which this story would have been incomplete.

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A naval officer who met some of these Polygar prisoners (perhaps the last lot who were finally pardoned and sent back to Madras), wrote in the United Service magazine thus….

The day previous to the sailing of the fleet, we received on board as passengers, or rather prisoners, for the island of Pulo Penang, whither they were exiled for some political delinquency, two Polygar Chiefs, or Rajahs, Currapoovance and Shunderlingum, by name. The situation of these unfortunate men was truly pitiable: torn from their country, from friends, and home—for the first time in their lives on board a ship, on a strange element, and among a strange people ; it was not the least among the catalogue of their ills at this trying moment that they should be separated from the only beings to whom they might look for sympathy or consolation, whose services were indispensable, and the only persons, in short, from their religious prejudices, with whom they could hold communion. It so happened, they had arrived on board the evening prior to the intended sailing of the fleet, and not having completed the arrangements for their voyage, two or three native servants, the only portion of their household which accompanied them, were sent on shore for that purpose: owing, however, to some misconception, the convoy having weighed early the ensuing morning, they were left behind. To those acquainted with the tenets of the Hindoos, and the scrupulous tenacity with which they adhere to them, it will readily be imagined that this circumstance, which among any other people would have occasioned but a temporary inconvenience, was in this case an irreparable misfortune. We had, it is true, some few natives, Lascars, on board, but these not being of the same caste, their services were not available. It was amusing to observe to what various and minute circumstances their scruples extended: the touch of an European, as of another sect, was shunned as pollution; and it was no easy matter to avoid at all times on a crowded deck, where they sometimes came for air, the contact of someone or other, and whenever this occurred their chagrin was evident.
They were men of an uncommon stature, robust, and of noble men, and bore their lot with dignity and resignation: part of the great cabin was screened off for their use, here they shifted for themselves as well as circumstances would permit. They cooked their own plain rice meal; fortunately their simple habits required but little, and they had provided their own stock of water, and a few other necessaries. Nothing remarkable occurred during the remainder of the passage to China, the coast of which, after a few days' stay at Penang, where we took in a cargo of rattans, we reached in little more than a fortnight from Madras, and proceeded to the usual anchorage of the East India fleets off the village of Whampoa, in the river of Canton, where we remained between three and four months to take in a cargo of tea.

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The Palghat Achans or Shekhari Varmas of Nedumpuraiyur

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The Achans of Tarur Swaroopam, the Edams of Palghat, and the events which prompted Hyder’s intervention

Some months ago we touched upon the topic related to the ancient royalty of Palghat. We covered the Palghat Achans and the Kollengode nambis briefly. As a number of requests came in for more detail on the history of the Palghat Achans, I decided to delve a little deeper, armed with details that I had collected from a few sources.

We start by covering some recorded descriptions. The following description of the Palghat royal family was given in Mr. Warden's report to the Board of Revenue dated 19th March, 1801 :-

"It originally consisted of eight Edams or houses equally divided from each other by the appellation of the northern and southern branch The members of these Edams are called Atchimars, five of whom, the eldest in age, bear the title of Rajahs, under the denomination of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th Rajahs, ranked according to their age, the senior being the first. On the death of the 1st Rajah, the 2nd succeeds and becomes the senior, the 3rd becomes 2nd, and so on to the 5th, the vacation of which rank is filled by the oldest of the Atchimars. By this mode of succession, the eldest Rajah is very far advanced in years before he accedes to the seniority, in consequence of which it used to be customary to entrust the ministry of the country to one of the Atchimars chosen by the Rajah.
The eight Edams of Atchimars above mentioned multiplied so numerously in their members that they afterwards divided and formed themselves at pleasure into separate Edams, which they distinguished by their own names. The number now in existence consists of twenty-seven, of which twenty belong to the northern and seven to the southern branch. The number of Atchimars they contain including minors is about one hundred and thirty ".

You will now need to note that by the 18th century, there were 35 Principalities (Naads) in Malabar which are listed as: Kottayam (Malabar), Kadathanad, Kurumbranad, Tamarasseri-Wynad, North Parappanad, South Parappanad, Valluvanad, Vadamalapuram, Tenmalapuram, Kolathunad (All ruled by Samanta Kshatriyas); Polanad, Payyanad, Ramanad, Cheranad, Nedunganad, Naduvattam, Kuttanad, Chavakkad, Chetwai, Eranad, Neeleswaram, Konad, Kodikkunninad, Vettattnad, Kakkad, Beypore, Talapilli, Chirakkal, Kollamkode, Punnathur (All ruled by Samantan Nairs); Kavalapara, Kurangott, Payyurmala, Pulavai (All ruled by Moopil Nairs). We will be talking about the overlordship of three of them, in the Palghat region.

But let us get to some basics first. Some 10 km away from Alathur is the place called Tarur. How did the Swaroopam or royal family of Palghat get its seat rightly or wrongly connected to this place? Taru, Taravayur, Taravur and Tharoor are synonyms for the Swaroopam that can be seen mentioned in various sources. Looking at the Oriental library Granthas 263 & 266, we see the following - The name of the land was mentioned as Nedumpuraiyur and earlier as Taravayur – or Devalokesharajya in the times of the Cherman Perumal who is so deeply connected to mediaeval Kerala History. It was only much later that the location Tarur which was just one of the edoms intermingled with the old name of the region and the family and was considered a seat of the family (wrongly). The region is even considered to have been part of the Chera kingdom in ancient times and a part of the Perumal’s territory.

The rulers of Palghat it seems originated from the Athavanaad Amsam in Ponnani.  For some obscure reason they traded their original lands with the Azvancheri thampurans who gave them Palghat in return, a very strategic location due to the importance of the Palghat gap among the trade routes to the western ports. They are mentioned in the Rabban plates and at that time, Palghat also included the Talapilly taluk. There are also other rumors that they originated from Madurai but we also note that they were closely related by marriage to the Perumbadappu Swaroopam or the Cochin royals. The family did not really gain any sort of overriding importance in the Malabar events until the 18th century and when they did enter into it, it was to pave the way for the destruction of the old fabric, the ways and the practices of the land.  We will get to all that a little later.

As times went by, the splits in the family occurred owing to the kings relations with a non-Kshatriya woman resulted (read the earlier article). Two of the Kshatritya women from the family marrying Namboothiris went on to start the Vadamalappuram and Thenmalapuram family lines. The resulting families, many hundreds of them were aligned either to the northern or the southern factions. The various resulting Edoms were

Southern faction (Thekke Thavazhi)

Elayachan edom
Vadakke eleyachan edom
Thekke eleyachan edom

Paruvakkal edom
Vadake Paruvakkal edom
Thekke Paruvakkal edom
Akkare Paruvakkal edom

Northern faction (Vadakke Thavazhi)

Cherukottar (Cherukotham) edom

Pulikkel edom
Vadakke Pulikkel edom
Thekke Pulikkel edom
Maruthingal Pulikkel edom
Puthal pulikkel edom

Mel Edom
Malikamel edom
Kolamkulangurmel edom
Kizhakkemel edom
Tatchadmel edom
Vellambalaikkalmel edom
Vadakkmel edom
Valiyamel edom
Chitlanjerimel edom

Poojakkal edom

Konikkal edom
Valiya konikkal edom
Kizhakke konikkal edom
Tharoor konikkal edom
Kavasseri konikkal edom

Nellikkal edom

As is evident, only the Tharoor Konikkal edom maintained the original family name for some unknown reason. By the 19th century the northern branch had 20 families and the south seven. By 1879, the royal family count was roughly 519. They were also called the Shekhari varams or Shekari rajas.

Every Swaroopam maintained the structure and control with their Nair numbers. More the Nairs available for a fight, the more powerful they were. In that old principality, the chieftains exercised control over 8,000 Nair soldiers in the following fashion. Tenmalapuram contributed 3,000, Naduvattom 3,000 and Vadamalapuram with 2,000. You may of course recall the name Naduvattom which is towards the South eastern periphery of Palghat, and this was the area that was to become a bone of contention between the Paghat Raja and the Zamorin of Calicut.

With this background, let us join Francis Hamilton Buchanan who made some of the earliest accounts of Palghat.

I went a long stage to Pali ghat. The country through which I passed is the most beautiful that I have ever seen. It resembles the finest parts of Bengal; but its trees are loftier, and its palms more numerous. In many places the rice grounds are interspersed with high swells, that are crowded with houses, while the view to the north is bounded by naked rocky mountains, and that to the south by the lofty forests of the Travancore hills. The cultivation of the high grounds is much neglected.
Pali-ghat-shery, on the division of Malayala, fell to the lot of Shekhury Raja, of the Kshatriya cast; but as this family invited Hyder into the country, they are considered by all the people of Malabar as having lost cast, and none of the Rajas of Kshatriya descent will admit them into their company.
To a European the succession in this family appears very extraordinary; but it is similar to that which prevails in the families of all the chiefs of Malayala. The males of the Shekhury family are called Achuns, and never marry. The ladies are called Naitears, and live in the houses of their brothers, whose families they manage. They have no husbands; but are not expected to observe celibacy, and may grant their favours to any person of the Kshatriya cast, who is not an Achun. All the male children of these ladies are Achuns, all the females are Naitears, and all are of equal rank according to seniority; but they are divided into two houses, descended from the two sisters of the first Shekhury Raja.

The oldest male of the family is called the Shekhury, or first raja; the second is called Ellea Raja, the third Cavashery Raja, the fourth Talan Tamburan Raja, and the fifth Tariputamura Raja. On the death of the Shekhury, the Ellea Raja succeeds to the highest dignity, each inferior Raja gets a step, and the oldest Achun becomes Tariputamura. There are at present between one and two hundred Achuns, and each of them receives a certain proportion of the fifth of the revenue that has been granted for their support, and which amounts in all to 66,000 Viraraya Fanams a year, but one sixth part of this has been appropriated for the support of the temples. Formerly the whole was given to the head of the family; but, it having been found that he defrauded his juniors, a division was made for each, according to his rank; and every one receives his own share from the collector. (Note that this was written in 1807 and Thomas Warden then was district collector)

Every branch of the family is possessed of private estates, that are called Chericul lands; and several of them have the administration of lands belonging to temples; but in this they are too closely watched by the Namburis, to be able to make any profit. The present Skekhury Raja is a poor looking, stupid old man, and his abode and attendance are the most wretched of any thing that I have seen, belonging to a. person who claimed sovereignty. His principal house, or Coilgum, is called Hatay Toray, and stands about three miles north from the fort.

We note that during the 13th century, the Palakkad royal family had no male heir to succeed to the throne and only two Tampurattis or princesses of the royal blood remained. These princesses therefore cohabited with the chosen two of the Perumpadoppu Swarupam at the Vadakknathan temple at Trichur after some serious praying. Progeny were created and the line continued. The succession of Tarur Swarupam was thus maintained through these alliances. As compensation, the region around Kunisseri became part of Cochin, together with the Nair’s of the region. But as the tale goes on to state, this land was retaken by the Palghat rajas later.During this period the relation between the Raja of Perumpadappu and Tarur Swarupam was maintained in a cordial fashion and in the war between Zamorin of Kozhikode and the Raja of Cochin, we see that the Palakkad rajas sided with the Cochin kings.

KVK Iyer explains that the original family seat and shrine was near the Victoria College location. The formal accession of a new head takes place here and then they proceed to the banks of the Bharatapuzha termed Tirunilakkadavu for standing in state.

One other matter of interest is the battle between the combined forces of Malabar (which included the troops of the Zamorin) against the Vijayanagar forces led by Ramappayyar and Devapayyar at Palghat and I had detailed it separately in an earlier article. During this and after this event many forts of Palghat were destroyed including the old Tarur Kovilakom. The ancient forts at Akathethara were built following this event. Readers must  not confuse these mentions with the massive granite fort you can even now see in Palghat, but they were small mud fortifications at strategic locations. In later days many lakkidi kotta’s or wooden forts were constructed by the Mysore forces.

With this brief introduction, I will now continue with the 18th century situations that prompted the invasion of Naduvattom by the Zamorin and the arrival of Hyder. We will get to that story in greater detail, for there was not much detail mentioned in the popular history books other than the invitation of Hyder by the Kombi Achan of Palghat after the Zamorin invaded Naduvattom. Well, there is more to it than meets the eye!! And so we now traverse down to the year 1756-57.

In 1755-56, after the demise of the raja from the Cherukotha Edam, the raja from the Elayachan edam named Raman Kombi took over. It was during his reign that the Zamorin sent out his forces headed by the Chencheri Namboothiri ( Aiyers accounts mention the Zamorin’s son – the Kuthiravattom Chief as the head of this operation) to take over Naduvattom in 1757. Some geographical knowledge is a must and interestingly this is where my maternal family had settled down. Vadavannur, Palassena, Erimayur, Koduvayur, Manjalur, Kozhal mannam, Pallasena etc…, formed part of the Naduvatton area which the Zamorin forces eventually captured to trigger panic among the Palghat Achans. Aiyar mentions that they came through Pattikad and descended on vadakancheri and Trippalur and detoured to Kollangode. The Kollengode nampi submitted to the Zamorin quickly. The Kuthiravattom Nair then built a fort at Koduvayoor (the present town was formed after this event).

But let us continue with what we see in the Grantha - The Namboothiri was vicious in his execution of the order. He raided the area – comprising the Kavasseri and Pulikkel Edams as well as the Vadakachery Puzhakkal Edam and took them over. Bereft of leadership, the Tenmalapuram 3000 nairs decided to put closure to the situation by paying a reparation fee to the Zamorin amounting to a fifth of the total claim and suing for peace. The Chencheri namboothiri next trained his guns at Palghat and marched to the Yakkara banks, while Ittikombi atchan, nephew of the Elayachan Edam raja prepared for the attack with the Vadamalapuram 2000 nairs. A terrible fight took place where over 5000 were killed and the Chokanatha puram fort was taken over. As a result, the various remaining members in the Palghat Edams fled to Coimbatore and decided to approach the Coimbatore king Shankar raja for assistance. Peace was negotiated in the meantime by the Tiruvalathur Koikkatiri for another fifth of the reparation war expense claim. This amounted to 1/4th viraraya fanam per para of paddy during the harvest.

The Zamorin now paused and instead of moving northwards to Palghat saw a golden opportunity in Cochin where an opportunity presented itself due to other struggles. It appears that the Zamorin was victorious there and succeeded in obtaining large reparations from the Cochin kings in this effort. Not only did the overtures against the Palghat rajas grant him access to the rice lands of Palghat, but also the Kuttanad regions after the success at Cochin.

As it is stated in the grantha, the Pangi Achan (nephew of elayachan edam thampuran), Kelu achan of Pulikkel edam and a few of the important regional heads travelled to Coimbatore to meet the Sankara Raja who gave them known emissaries to accompany them to Srirangam (Mysore – Srirangapatanam) to meet the Dalawa there. From there they were redirected to meet Hyder Ali who was the Faujedar or commander in chief of the infantry at Dindigul, nearer to Palghat. Hyder then deputed his brother-in-law Muquadam Ali with his forces to Palghat. This resulted in a severe war with the Zamorin’s forces in Feb 1758 where the Mysore forces were victorious.  Muqadam Ali’s forces withdrew after collecting their compensation by way of gold melted out of the ornaments worn by the Emoor bhagavathi (the tutelary deity of the Palghat Achans), as rakshabhogam (equivalent of 12,000 old Viraraya fanams). The Zamorin it is said (not in this grantha though, but in British records) apparently sued for peace by promising to pay 12,00,000 fanams as reparation.

After the Mysore forces had left with their booty, the Zamorin’s forces visited Palghat to collect their previously agreed war reparation costs from the Palghat edoms. As negotiations were going (this was in 1760) on at Vaidyanathapuram, some 2,000 people surrounded the area and many of the elders of the Palghat edoms were massacred. Interestingly none of the records identify the perpetrators of the treachery or lay it at the doors of the Zamorin. The rest of the Palghat royals including the women fled to Coimbatore again through the dense forests. Sankara raja provided them asylum and Panki Achan and Kelu Achan went to Mysore to meet Hyder who had by then worked his way to take over the Mysore throne. However in all this the Mysore sultan profited greatly, not only getting reparations from the Palghat Raja, but also a promise from the Zamorin. The Zamorin’s reparation expenses as previously agreed was never met by the Paghat raja.

It is stated in other records that a Zamorin emissary met Devaraja of Mysore in the meantime and agreed to pay a reduced reparation of 3 lakhs instead of the 12 lakhs claimed by Hyder, This was agreed by Devaraja, but he was soon usurped by Hyder who refused to accept Devaraja’s agreements with the Zamorin. It was with this backdrop that Hyder proceeded to Mangalore with 12,000 troops and invaded Kolathunaad and later Calicut with a stated aim of collecting the 12 lakhs from the Zamorin. This quickly degenerated into the suicide of the Zamoirn in 1766 which we detailed earlier.

Following this, the Palghat ruler Kelu Achan was removed from his position and Ittikombi Achan was appointed ruler by Hyder and after an agreement to pay him 4 lakhs per annum. Hyder Ali moved to Coimbatore, displaced the Coimbatore raja and took over his palace. That was what Coimbatore raja got for supporting the Palghat raja. Following this the now famous fort was constructed at Palghat, we mentioned it briefly in another article.

The situation never improved for the Ittikombi achan’s descendants. A number of succession struggles took place, and we see the attempts of Kelu Achan in trying to wrest the power out of the Ittikombi Achan’s hands. More wars took place involving the British at Palghat. Hyder passed on and gave the reins to Tipu, who continued with warring efforts. It seems that when Haider took a stronghold over Palghat later, the Kallekulangara family moved to Kallekulangara. During Tipu’s arrival the dietey was saved in a pond and the family apparently took to the hills. During the British occupation, the diety was reinstalled in the shrine.

By 1790 the victors were the British and the Mysore Sultans gave way to another new order in Malabar and Palghat. By 1792, the Palghat Achan had to bargain with the British to maintain his title and signed a treaty with the EIC where he ended up paying 80,000 per annum to them instead! We see then that by 1794 that titular position was also lost and the Achan became a pensioner with just an annual malikhana. The roughly 1000 year old family thus slowly descended to pensioner staus like most of Malabar’s other royals, after leading lives sandwiched between the Zamorin and the Cochin king. Their choice of treacherous allies ultimately paved the way for the Mysore Sultans victorious march into Malabar.

In the next article we will dwell upon the British attempts at taking strong control over Palghat and study the role of Unni Moosa Moopan.

References

Oriental Manuscripts – Madras Library – D266, 263 – Malayalam transcript by KN Ezhuthachan
Kerala District gazetteers - Palghat – Dr CK Kareem
Malabar Law and custom – Lewis Moore
A journey from Madras through the countries of Mysore, Canara and Malabar Vol 2 – Francis Hamilton Buchanan
History of Kerala – KV Krishna Ayyar
Historic alleys articles – Palghat gap ( 1 and 2 ), Royaltyof Palghat, Rayar invasion through Palghat, Kavalappara, The Zamorin’s demise, Palghat fort

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RH Hitchcock, the individual

Posted by Maddy Labels: ,

In the 20’s, after a troubled period with cries of Khilafat, freedom, Gandhi and so on, a large number of misguided attacks took place on both (religious) sides of a divided Malabar. During this phase, a person held the unenviable position of being the most hated and feared Englishman in power. That was Richard Howard Hitchcock, the district superintendent of police, Malabar. While his confidential accounts covering those troubled days are reference material for today’s historian dealing with the Moplah revolts, his life and times are hardly known to the lay Malayali. In fact other contemporary writers like Gangadhara Menon, Brahmadattan Nambudiri, Gopalan Nair, Tottenham, AR Knapp etc mention him briefly with references to his role in the matter, but hardly as an individual of flesh and blood.  The only place where he is described without rancor is the Malabar Special Police website, that too in the briefest terms.

I decided to pick up this individual today because I read the other day that the medals and effects of Hitchcock were under auction (asking price £1400-£1800) in England, though it is not clear if somebody picked them up. Anyway, it is close to a hundred years since Richard came to Malabar. He may have been iron fisted; he may have been cruel, he may have been following orders from the Military who were in control, so as to maintain law and order. Whatever said and done, he ended up as part of Malabar history and did add his own thread, good or bad to the fabric of Malabar. Interestingly, nobody has covered his character so far, I wondered why, when a number of Englishmen of his period, good, bad and terrible have been talked about and analyzed at will! So without further ado, let’s see what we can unearth about him from those musty old archives. I do not promise an extensive study, but just a brief caricature based on little data that I could unearth.
Richard Howard Hitchcock - that was his full name. He hailed from the East Midlands area of Britain, bordering South Yorkshire. The fella was born on 12 March 1884 at Basford - Nottinghamshire, but grew up in Fordwich in Kent. His father Richard happened to be a Rector of Fordwich for many years and as the auction notice indicates, there is a window commemorating the father’s memory in the parish church. RH was educated at King's School Canterbury, 1894-1903, had been termed academically bright, and he sat for the competitive examination to join the Imperial Indian Police coming ‘first’ in the results. As an indication of the times, a position in British India was coveted and competition was severe. Compared to Sandhurst where 200 places were annually available, only 15-20 places were available per year for entry into the Indian Police. Hitchcock got into the Indian police in 1903 and was posted to Bengal. But he was to soon find himself in the balmy, hot and rainy land of spices, Malabar. Well, his staid life was soon spiced up, as we know….

We see that he had been around in Malabar since the first days of the revolt, for in 1916 he was awarded the Kings Police Medal for heading off an uprising by the Mapillas. What was that about? We know that in 1915, KP Kesava Menon returned from England to take up the INC leadership and lead the home rule movement. We know also that the Malabar Tenancy association was formed and the tenant leaders took control of the INC. So that was the start of the organized agitation and Annie Besant had participated in the Palghat conference. But what did Hitchcock do to get a medal? The Moplah’s at that time apparently believed a rumor that the British were losing the war and that Turks and Germans were coming to liberate them. Also at that point of time a Tiya boy who was converted, got reconverted to Hinduism though that was not the cause for what happened next.  Well as it transpired, CA Innes the collector was attacked by five people. It failed and they took refuge in a temple near Alanellur only to be shot dead in a Special Police Force Police retaliation. Hitchcock was involved in the quick suppression and resolution (The special police force MSP1 was originally formed under HV Conolly in 1884). In addition two youths committed arson, pillage and murder at Pandalur and they were quickly hanged, but all this resulted in loss of public support for the British. So it is clear that he was in Malabar from the second decade of the 20th century and as Intelligence chief, had collected much information on the trouble makers.
We then see that he was involved in recruiting officers for the English army from Malabar, around 1915. RH employed Malayali officers to recruit a huge number of high quality men for the British army, topping the presidency polls and was able to repeat the feat even during the rebellion, with people from both the Hindu and Muslim sides. In the final year of the Great War, Hitchcock was seconded to the Army and granted the temporary rank of Captain. The LG March 1918 states that as of Oct 17th he was awarded the rank of captain but without the pay and allowances of that rank. He then helped raise the 2/73 Malabar Battalion at Cannanore for which he was awarded the M.B.E. in 1919.

By 1919 the war had ended, there was a usual amount of robbery and unrest in South Malabar, Ernad and Valluvanad areas. The Zamorin, my great grandpa had passed on, and the new Zamorin was in place. My grandfather on my mother’s side had returned from the war…Jobs were scarce, timber prices had fallen, the Moplah population had risen, and life was not looking too rosy.
The Khilafat movement in Malabar (we will detail this another day) was the next trigger in 1921, when all kinds of wild rumors that Afghans were on the way (offshoot of a comment by Gandhi about foreign invasion being welcomed) to liberate their wretched lives and help them get land, started a frenzy.

At the end of April came the two Conferences, at Calicut and Ottapalam. A lot of talk resulted from the latter about the collision between the Police and some Khilafat volunteers at Ottapalam which led up to the filing of a civil libel suit by Mr. Hitchcock against the five authors of the non-official report and the Hindu. The sub-Judge, Calicut, decided it in favour of Mr. Hitchcock, the defendants being ordered to pay Rs 30,000 damages to him. The Judge recorded a finding that the assault was committed by the men of the Special Force and that, to that extent the facts stated in the report are true," but the charge of conspiracy was groundless.
Soon he was to be involved in what was according to the historian Charles Townshend, ‘the most serious insurrection since the mutiny of 1857 or the Malabar Rebellion, a.k.a. Moplah revolt.

Khilafat-Non-cooperation meetings were held with increasing frequency, and these were sometimes accompanied by incidents of violence. Some incidents were resulting from the picketing of toddy-shops, a part of the non-cooperation campaign that particularly appealed to Muslim sentiment. There were stories, too, that in anticipation of Swaraj, Khilafat leaders had already parceled out the land among poor Mappillas and were only awaiting the movement to take actual possession.
Hitchcock sneered at all this - It was 'pure mockery,' Hitchcock wrote, to deck the excitable Mappilla 'in the garb of a soldier and yet tell him that he should attain his aims by spinning!!

He was a sharp guy indeed for he quickly identified the methods used by the Moplah’s for communication. He said - Perhaps far more important than the network of the Khilafat movement, however, was the traditional system of communications among the Mappillas, something which constituted a major difference between the Hindu and Mappilla. The few bazaars that exist are entirely Mappilla and most Mappillas do congregate at least once a week for Friday prayers and often at other times in Mosques. They can therefore form some kind of a public opinion of their own and combine but the fact that this is done under the cover of religion makes it difficult for Hindu or European even to become aware of it. Except at very occasional festivals the Hindus have no such opportunity of meeting.
This was to become a source of all kinds of problems. Hitchcock focused time and again on this problem, the mosque as a source of news and motivation. It was to play havoc in the minds of the Moplah, who was led to believe that their religion was under attack, while Hitchcock was trying to stop the flow of orders to revolt and jihad and bring about peace.

In the autumn of 1921, the revolt boiled over. Late July, I92I, in the village of Pukkottur north of Malappuram in Ernad taluk, a dispute arose between the Nilambur Raja and a Mappilla active in the Khilafat movement. Tension grew in the village, and on August 1, drums began to beat in the mosques of the area, and in the course of the day, several thousand Mappillas shouting war cries, had gathered in Pukkottur before the palace gates. The district collector EF Thomas said - 'the crowd was heard to express a desire or determination to add the heads of Mr. Hitchcock and myself to the bag.' As you can see, Hitchcock was by now already identified as the face of the British retaliation, for he had provided information and local police support to precipitate the actions and was always at the head of the physical force that confronted them, fielding European and Malyali constables to beat them up.
Accordingly Thomas reported to the Governor of Madras that the Moplahs were organizing a resistance using force and that it will not be possible for the police to quell the unrest. He requested a battalion of infantry for support together with two companies of British troops. ET Humphreys of the Leinsters regiment came in August and was soon joined by other officers such as CG Tottenham and AR Knapp. They decided to act at Tirurangadi and arrest 24 or so identified persons in connection with the unrest. By this time, Mohammed Haji was proclaimed the Caliph of the Moplah Khilafat and flags of Islamic Caliphate were raised and Khilafat kingdoms declared. Martial law was not introduced until three weeks after the rising began, and then in such a diluted form that the civil authorities retained much of the responsibility for its suppression and the restoration of government control. The commander of the Madras Military District, General Burnett-Stuart, had under his command a British cavalry regiment, a brigade of Field Artillery, two British battalions, including 2nd Dorsets and seven Indian battalions (including a battalion of Pioneers), and a company of the Madras Sappers and Miners. Malabar.

Though the police went into a secondary role as soon as the military took over, their conduct was not exemplary. As later enquires revealed, many of them took advantage and TK Madhava Menon the police inspector was dismissed. Neelakantan Nair was found to be extorting people as well and thrown out. As they all reported to Hitchcock, he was culpable.
His moves against mosques and the Khilafat flag have been cited as the very reasons for subsequent armed revolt, whatever be the underlying reasons agrarian or religious motivation by Syed fazil’s exhortations. Nevertheless we do find evidence in the many documents that first Thomas and later Evans vacillated often and this resulted in large losses of life and a bloody revolt. But we will study this separately when we get to the analysis of the revolt itself and its many after effects. Hitchcock was the British instrument, the person involved in collecting field and inside information as the head of the CID and also partially responsible to suppress counter insurgency, which he did effectively, looking at it from the British angle, for within 6 months, law and order had been implemented and a sullen peace was restored.

Hitchcock had during the revolt spearhead the formation of the regular MSP and clarified the reasoning - the extent of the rebellion and the spirit of the rebels soon made it obvious that a force would be required to maintain peace after the rebellion and the value of such a force would depend on the experience it might have in the present rebellion.
Hitchcock organized a new Police force on the model of the British Army and this came into existence on 30th September 1921 as Malabar Special Police-2. Hitchcock himself was the first Commandant of M.S.P. In 1932 the strength of the force was increased to 16 companies. Thus 300 extra police were added, 12 Indian officers, and 30 NCO’s. By October all had been trained, armed and ready for field operations. The force then comprised fully of Hindus and Christians from the Ernad and Valluvanad areas, some from Calicut. Hitchcock also makes it clear that this firmly dispelled the notion that Hindus would stay away from such action and were cowardly in hostile situations. Soon enough this was increased to 600 following William Vincent’s visit and they were owing to Tottenham’s efforts - in place by Jan 1922. The M.S.P. was equipped with magazine Lee-Enfields because the single-shot Martini Henry rifles of the Malappuram Specials had been disastrously ineffective against the Moplahs. Towards the end of the rising each company was supplied with two Lewis guns to increase its fire power. Recruitment of the first three M.S.P. companies (almost entirely from recently demobilized Malayali sepoys) was very rapid and by November I92I they were in action) following behind army thrusts into Moplah territory and tracking down isolated guerrilla bands.

Underlying the development of the MSP as a striking force was the belief prevalent in government and army circles that the Malayalis of the west coast were the finest fighting material in the presidency and were in great demand to stiffen Tamil and Telugu forces.
If you were to dispassionately read the reports of Hitcock, you will realize the seriousness in which they were written, and though many say this was very biased, does remain an account recorded with little malice or partiality. He holds the people he dealt with, both Muslims and Hindus in the right level of respect though often viewing them from a higher plane, wearing glasses with a British tint. He has done a serious amount of introspection and analysis and I would at no time call him a fanatical suppressor of the people involved and one who acted with utter contempt of the masses, like Gen Dyer at Jalianwala Bagh. In fact I found him as a man who did his job, ruthlessly, clinically and well, perhaps with a “Himmler bent”. But it is a matter widely known that the smooth working of martial law was largely due to Messrs Evans and Hitchcock.

A British report explains - It has already been noted that the special police working under the Martial Law commander gave a very good account of themselves. Its company commanders were C.G.Tottenham, l.M.Farser, King Colebrook, Charsley and Bayzand. Elliot and Bishop also worked with the troops during the martial law period, but the services of Mr Hitchcock stood apart as altogether exceptional. With his unique local knowledge and splendid devotion to duty, he might be truly said to have been the mainspring of the suppression of the rebellion both as the Chief Intelligence officer of the martial Law Commander and as the superintendent of Police after the abrogation of the martial law. The magnitude of the devastation caused by the rebellion can be seen from the fact that, during its progress, 19 Police stations had been sacked, 8 revenue officers including sub treasuries looted, 10 sub registrar’s offices destroyed and 16 post-offices pillaged. The destruction of village office, travelers’ bungalows and bridges was terrific. Railway lines and stations also did not escape the hands of rebels.
But then those were turbulent times and it is not really possible to be impartial in a period of Martial law. Everybody had cross purposes. Today when we see the revolt through words, it is not possible to realize the pain, suffering, fear, revulsion and so on that the witnesses and participants went through. So from that angle, Hitchcock was at the inflicting end and the only one seen by the masses, leading the armed constabulary. And that resulted in him getting the brunt of the blame.

In November 1921 Hitchcock was involved in the 'Moplah Train Tragedy'. Hitchcock was the police officer who ordered the transportation of Moplah prisoners in an enclosed wagon, during which 70 prisoners died in a terrible fashion. The subsequent enquiry found that the deaths were due to a defect of the van (painted mesh which prevented air from coming in) but also that that Hitchcock and Evans (the civilian in joint charge of the operation) failed to exercise proper supervision of the vans containing the prisoners. Police and railway officials of lesser rank were found guilty of culpable negligence.  
However it should also be noted that Sgt Andrews had previous experience in this kind of transportation and had transported 112 people once in a luggage wagon without problems. In this case the air vents were painted over and that was the reason for the deaths. Nevertheless the escorts should have taken care of the prisoners and their wellbeing, in general terms. That one event destroyed his name, in posterity.

Mr.  Hitchcock's Responsibility as concluded by the Knapp report.
We have considered whether some part of the indirect responsibility would fall on Mr. Hitchcock, It is not certain that he was present at the first selection of a van, but we have it on his own statement that he did witness and take part in the despatch of prisoners on September 3 and saw no reason to object to the arrangements made. The actual care of prisoners during their journey and responsibility for their safe delivery at their destination lay upon the Police and to this extent at least it was for Mr. Hitchcock to see that the arrangements made for their transport wore safe and satisfactory. But the obscurity arising from the Martial Law arrangements is again found here, for Mr. Hitchcock and his force were themselves under the orders of the Military Commander, We shall not, however, labour this technical point. Mr. Hitchcock having been continuously employed from the beginning of September with the troops in active warfare with the rebels, it would be unreasonable to expect that he would have had time or opportunity to give personal attention to the local arrangements at Tirur.

After he left, a Hitchcock Memorial was erected at Mongam – Evans outlived him and oversaw the inauguration of the memorial. The police training college was named the Hitchcock Police School, Malappuram.  The memorial statue in Malappuram was removed after popular protest after 1936. See note below
It looks like he moved to Salem in Coimbatore district as DIG. Not much more is known about him as a person and no accounts can be seen of a family with him or outliving him. We note that he was a keen hockey player at Calicut and played for the ‘Early closers’. We also note that during the latter half of July, at a very critical juncture, Mr Hitchcock was not in the Calicut district, but at Coonoor undergoing treatment for dog-bite.

In June 1922 he was awarded the C.l.E and was also made a Member of the British Empire. Hitchcock eventually died of a perforated ulcer on 31 August 1926, aged 42 years, whilst on home leave in Tunbridge Wells. A memorial was erected to his memory at Vizagapatum.
After the rebellion, the Malabar Special Police was not allowed to rest on its laurels. Its fame as experts in guerilla warfare spread. When a similar rebellion broke out in the Gudem Hills in the Vizagapatam Agency, the local reserves could not make any headway and the Government wisely thought of utilizing the Malabar Special to put down the insurrection in preference to a martial-law administration.

References
Mappila Muslims of Kerala – Roland E Miller
The Moplah rebellion and its genesis – Conrad Wood
The Mappilla Rebellion, 1921: Peasant Revolt in Malabar: Robert L. Hardgrave, Jr.
The Mappilla Outbreaks: Ideology and Social Conflict in Nineteenth-Century Kerala Stephen F. Dale
The Moplah Rebellion 1921 – C Gopalan Nair
Khilafat Smaranakal- Brahmadattan Nambudiri
Jividhakatha –Moyarath Sankaran Nambiar
Malabar Kalapam – Madhavan nair
MP Narayana Menon – MPS Menon
Peasant revolt in Malabar: a history of the Malabar rebellion, 1921– RH Hitchcock
See Historic alleys – Wagon tragedy articles 1 and 2

Notes

My friend Premnath provides the following additional information
Please find below the photo of the memorial for the fallen Policemen (MSP) during the Mopla Rebellion, inside the old Dist Police Office near Mananchira.It is also known as Hitchcock memorial.This was in Malapuram and was shifted to Calicut due to public opinion against this in Malapuram
Hitchcock memorial reinstalled at Calicut DPO - Photo provided by Premnath Murkoth

A reader, Yusuf Ali, recently (Jan 2026) objected to the input (May 2014) from the late Premnath above and clarified that it was not known as the Hitchcock memorial. He explains: " The memorial in Kozhikode mentioned above was built by the then British government in the name of police officers killed in 1921. The names of several police officers are accurately inscribed on it. It was not built solely for Hitchcock, as incorrectly stated above.

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