Kittur or Kitturu, historically known as Kittoor, is a town and a taluk in the

Belagavi district Belagavi district, formerly also known as Belgaum district, is a district in the state of Karnataka, India. The district is known as the sugar bowl of Karnataka with hectares being used for commercial production. It has overtaken Mandya distri ...

of the

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

n state of Karnataka. It was part of Bailhongal taluka but was declared as an independent taluka on 23October 2012 by the Chief Minister of Karnataka on the inauguration of Kittur Utsav. It is 177th

Taluk A tehsil (, also known as tahsil, taluk, or taluka () is a local unit of administrative division in India and Pakistan. It is a subdistrict of the area within a district including the designated populated place that serves as its administrative ...

of Karnataka State. It is a place of historical importance because of the armed rebellion of Kittur Chennamma (1778–1829), Rani of the State of Kittur against the

British East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...

, during which a British Commissioner, St John Thackeray was killed. At the 2011 census, it was a village under Sampagaon C D Block with a location code number 598110.

History

Kittur was known as Geejaganahalli in the 12th century. In 1746, Kittur came under the

Maratha Empire The Maratha Empire, also referred to as the Maratha Confederacy, was an early modern India, early modern polity in the Indian subcontinent. It comprised the realms of the Peshwa and four major independent List of Maratha dynasties and states, Ma ...

when it was handed over to them by the Nawab of Savanur. In 1782, Mallasarja, the most powerful of the rulers of Kittur ascended the throne. His only son predeceased him, and so on his death in 1816, his second wife, Chennamma succeeded him to the throne. She is famous for her campaigns against the British

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company that was founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to Indian Ocean trade, trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (South A ...

. On the outskirts of the town lie the ruins of the palace within a fort. The palace was the residence of the Rani Chennamma. In the 18th century, Kittur was ruled by the

Marathas The Maratha Empire, also referred to as the Maratha Confederacy, was an early modern India, early modern polity in the Indian subcontinent. It comprised the realms of the Peshwa and four major independent List of Maratha dynasties and states, Ma ...

, until the Third Anglo-Maratha War, when it came under British suzerainty. In connection with a disputed succession to this chiefship in 1824, St John Thackeray, Commissioner of Dharwad, was killed in a battle when approaching the Kittur fort. Later another unit stormed Kittur and captured Queen Chennamma, who was imprisoned in Bailhongal Jail where she died. Rani Chennamma became a legend. Her death was followed by subsequent revolts by her general Sangolli Rayanna, who also waged several campaigns against the British East India Company. He was later hanged in 1831. The town lends its name to the fictitious coastal town in the 2008 novel '' Between the Assassinations'' by Aravind Adiga (

Belagavi District Belagavi district, formerly also known as Belgaum district, is a district in the state of Karnataka, India. The district is known as the sugar bowl of Karnataka with hectares being used for commercial production. It has overtaken Mandya distri ...

has no coast, which rules out the real Kittur being the setting).

References

{{Reflist

External links

Kittur Fort on Google Maps
Villages in Belagavi district Kittur State

History

See also

References

External links