The Battle of

Bobbili Bobbili is a town in Vizianagaram district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Geography Bobbili is located at . It has an average elevation of 103 metres (337 feet). History The town of Bobbili was founded during the 17th c ...

, comprising the attack on the fort of Bobbili on 24 January 1757, was a significant event in the princely state of

Vizianagaram Vizianagaram, also known as Vijayanagaram, is a city and the headquarters of the Vizianagaram district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is located in the Eastern Ghats, about west of the Bay of Bengal and north-northeast of Visakhapa ...

(present day

Vizianagaram district Vizianagaram district is one of the six districts in the Uttarandhra region of the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Andhra Pradesh with its headquarters located at Vizianagaram. The district was once the part of ancient Ka ...

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...

). Gen.

Tandra Paparayudu Tandra Paparayudu was an Army General of Bobbili who assassinated Pusapati Vijayarama Gajapati Raju I Raja of Vizianagaram, and committed his ''Royal suicide'' during the Battle of Bobbili in 1757, a significant historical event in the Prince ...

gained the sobriquet ''The Tiger of Bobbili'' for his fierce, ultimately hopeless resistance, and final vengeance.

Background

On 23 November 1753, a Paravana of Asif ad-Dawlah Mir Ali

Salabat Jang Salabat Jung, born as Mir Sa'id Muhammad Khan Siddiqi Bayafandi on 24 November 1718, was the fourth Nizam of Hyderabad State. He was the third son of Asaf Jah I. During the Second Carnatic War he was a prisoner, first in Nasir Jung's camp a ...

Subedar Subedar ( ) is a military rank in the militaries of South Asia roughly equivalent to that of a warrant officer. Historically classed in the British Indian Army as a Viceroy's commissioned officer, the rank was retained in the Indian Army an ...

Deccan The Deccan is a plateau extending over an area of and occupies the majority of the Indian peninsula. It stretches from the Satpura and Vindhya Ranges in the north to the northern fringes of Tamil Nadu in the south. It is bound by the mount ...

conceded to Gen.

Marquis de Bussy-Castelnau Charles Joseph Patissier, Marquis de Bussy-Castelnau (8 February 1718 or 8 February 1720 – 7 January 1785) or Charles Joseph Patissier de Bussy was the Governor General of the French colony of Pondicherry from 1783 to 1785. He served with di ...

the

pargana Pargana or parganah, also spelt pergunnah, equivalent to Mohallah as a subunit of Subah (Suba), was a type of former administrative division in the Indian subcontinent during the time of the Delhi Sultanate, Mughal and British Colonial empire ...

s of Chicacole, Ellore,

Rajahmundry Rajahmundry ( ), officially Rajamahendravaram, is a city in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and district headquarters of East Godavari district. It is the fifth most populated city in the state. During British rule, the district of Rajahmu ...

etc. with an annual revenue RS.2, 00,000 towards the maintenance of the French troops in the Subah; this recognition of the help of these Circars amounted up to 10 lakhs of Rupees per year. De Bussy helped

to become the Subedar of Deccan. The Treaty of Aurangabad (made between the French and Salabat Jang in

Aurangabad Aurangabad (), officially renamed as Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar in 2023, is a city in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the administrative headquarters of Aurangabad district and is the largest city in the Marathwada region. Located on a ...

) bears the signature of Said Loukshur, Minister of Salabat Jang. He was one of the key sub-ordinates of Dupleix, who assisted him in expanding French activities in

Northern Circars The Northern Circars (also spelt Sarkars) was a division of British India's Madras Presidency. It consisted of a narrow slip of territory lying along the western side of the Bay of Bengal from 15° 40′ to 20° 17′ north latitude, in the pre ...

and along the

Coromandel Coast The Coromandel Coast is a coastal region along the southeastern front of the Indian peninsula. Its delimitations are numerous, but generally admitted to be bounded by the Krishna River, Krishna river River mouth, mouth to the north, the Bay of B ...

. Furthermore, men under his command included the famous

Hyder Ali Hyder Ali (''Haidar'alī''; ; 1720 – 7 December 1782) was the Sultan and ''de facto'' ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore in southern India. Born as Hyder Ali, he distinguished himself as a soldier, eventually drawing the attention of Mysore's ...

Mysore Mysore ( ), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern Indian state of Karnataka. It is the headquarters of Mysore district and Mysore division. As the traditional seat of the Wadiyar dynasty, the city functioned as the capital of the ...

. In 1756 Marquis de Bussy visited Rajahmundry. Vijayaramaraju had given a warm welcome to Bussy by going in front at Rajahmundry. There were differences between Vizianagaram Maharaja and the ruler of Bobbili, which led to the battle of Bobbili on 23 January 1757. It was fought by Bussy and the Raja of Vizianagaram-Pusapati Vijayarama Gajapati Raju I (Ruled 1710 – Died 1757) (Founder of

Battle

On January 24, 1757, the combined armies of Gens. De Bussy and Pusapati marched towards the Bobbili Fort; ''Gopalakrishna Rayudu'' had stalwart Gen. ''Tandra Paparayudu''. The French General knew that it would be impossible to reach Bobbili via Rajam inasmuch as Paparayudu's bivouac was there, and thus took a different route. Rani Mallamma Devi, wife of Ranga Rao and sister of Paparayudu, sent a message to him warning him of the advance. The courier was intercepted, however, and the vital message did not reach Paparayudu. Meanwhile, Ranga Rao and his men after defending the fort for several hours realised that the enemy could not held off for much longer. Ranga Rao, not wanting the women and children to be at the mercy of the enemy, ordered them to be sacrificed. Rani Mallamma Devi committed suicide. When the news reached him, Tandra Paparayudu rushed to the now invested and demolished fort and saw his sister and the entire family lying on the ground in a pool of blood. Seething with vengeance he took an oath then and there to kill Pusapati. Thereafter, Pusapati bivouacked in his pavilion, basking in the glory of his victory, for he had annihilated his enemy. He fell asleep, but he was not to enjoy his sleep for long. Tandra Paparayudu, along with his comrades Devulapalli Peddanna and Buddaraju Venkaiah, evaded the lax camp security and reached the tent. Paparayudu gained entry through the rear whereas his comrades stood guard at the entrance. He awoke his sworn enemy by announcing his presence, shouting "Puli, Puli... Bobbili Puli" ''(Tiger, Tiger... The Tiger of Bobbili)''. Pusapati, startled awake, ejaculated that they would belittle their entire clan as cowards for his having gained entry by stealth through the rear. Paparayudu riposted, "You have wiped out our entire clan through dubious means and have no right to get ethical treatment," and slew him by stabbed him repeatedly in the chest. Upon hearing the commotion, the negligent bodyguard of Pusapati tried to enter but was killed by Peddanna at the entrance. The entire army was then alerted, whereupon Paparayudu and his comrades killed themselves, thus joining their families in like manner. The fort had been totally destroyed, the clan destroyed, and innumerable Bobbili soldiers had become casualties. There is still a street named after De Bussy in

Yanam Yanam () (previously Yanaon, ()) is a town located in the Yanam district in Puducherry, India. It has a population of 35,000 and is entirely surrounded by Andhra Pradesh. It was formerly a French colony for nearly 200 years, and, though unite ...

.''A History of Telugu Literature''
p. 36

In popular culture

Bobbili Yuddham ''Bobbili Yuddham'' () is a 1964 Indian Telugu-language war film, based on the eponymous battle between Bobbili and Vizianagaram kingdoms in 1757. The film was produced and directed by C. Seetaram. It stars N. T. Rama Rao, Bhanumathi Ramakrishna ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bobbili 1757 in India History of Andhra Pradesh Battles involving the Indian kingdoms Conflicts in 1757