Kittur Chennamma
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For the 1961 film, see Kittur Chennamma (film).
Kittur Chennamma
Nationality Indian
Kittur Chennamma (21 October 1778 – 21 February 1829)[1] was a rani (queen) of the
Nayakas of kingdom of Kittur ruled Mallarudra sarja, who were vassals of the Maharaja of
Mysore. She is a famously remembered freedom fighter who led an armed force against the
British East India Company in 1824 in defiance of the doctrine of lapse to retain control over
her territory, but was defeated in the third war and died in a prison. She was one of the first
female freedom fighters to resist British colonisation, she is a national heroine[disambiguation needed]
well known in Karnataka and a symbol of the independence movement in India.
Contents
1 Early life
2 Fight to retrieve supremacy of Kittur from the British
3 Statue at Parliament House complex, New Delhi
o 3.1 Burial place
4 Descendants
5 In popular culture
6 External links
7 References
Early life
Kittur Rani Chennamma was born on 23 October 1778, in Kakati, a small village in the
present Belagavi District of Karnataka, India. She belonged to the Lingayat community and
received training in horse riding, sword fighting and archery from a young age.
She married Raja Mallasarja of the Desai family at the age of 14.
Fight to retrieve supremacy of Kittur from the British
Chennamma’s husband died in 1824, leaving her with a son and a state full of volatility. This
was followed by her son’s death in 1824. Rani Chennamma was left with the state of Kittur
and an uphill task to save it from the British. Following the death of her husband and son,
Rani Chennamma adopted Shivalingappa in the year 1824 and made him the heir to the
throne. This irked the East India Company, who ordered Shivalingappa’s expulsion, on the
pretext of the Doctrine of Lapse. This doctrine was based on the idea that in case the ruler of
an independent state died childless, the right of ruling the State reverted or ‘lapsed’ to the
sovereign. The state of Kittur came under the administration of Dharwad collectorate in
charge of St John Thackeray of which Mr. Chaplin was the commissioner, both of whom did
not recognize the new ruler and regent and notified Kittur to accept the British regime.
Rani Chennamma sent a letter to Mountstuart Elphinstone, Lieutenant-Governor of the
Bombay Presidency pleading her cause, but the request was turned down, and war broke out.
[2]
The British tried to confiscate the treasure and jewels of Kittur, valued at around 1.5
million rupees.[3] They attacked with a force of 20,797 men and 437 guns, mainly from the
third troop of Madras Native Horse Artillery.[4]
In the first round of war, during October 1824, British forces lost heavily and St John
Thackeray, collector and political agent,[5] was killed in the war.[2] Amatur Balappa, a
lieutenant of Chennamma, was mainly responsible for his killing and losses to British forces.
[6]
Two British officers, Sir Walter Elliot and Mr. Stevenson[5] were also taken as hostages.[2]
Rani Chennamma released them with an understanding with Chaplin that the war would be
terminated but Chaplin continued the war with more forces.[2] During the second assault,
Subcollector of Solapur, Mr. Munro, nephew of Thomas Munro was killed.[5] Rani
Chennamma fought fiercely with the aid of her lieutenant, Sangolli Rayanna, but was
ultimately captured and imprisoned at Bailhongal Fort, where she died on 21 February 1829.
[2]
Chennamma was also helped by her lieutenant Gurusiddappa in the war against British.[7]
Sangolli Rayanna, the army chief of Kittur Kingdom, continued the guerrilla war to 1829, in
vain, until his capture.[2] He wanted to install the adopted boy Shivalingappa as the ruler of
Kittur, and Sangolli Rayanna gave a valiant fight using Guerrilla war fare for the first time.
Britishers could not catch Rayanna in straight fights. Finally Rayanna's own uncle helped
Britishers to capture him and he was caught and hanged. Shivalingappa was arrested by the
British.[2] Chennamma's legacy and first victory are still commemorated in Kittur, during the
Kittur Utsava that is held between 22nd–24th of October every year. The three-day festivities
include sports, cultural programs, and lectures by notable historians on the kingdom of Rani
Channamma.
Statue at Parliament House complex, New Delhi
On 11 September 2007 a statue of Rani Chennamma was unveiled at the Indian Parliament
Complex by Pratibha Patil, the first woman President of India.[8] On the occasion, Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh, Home Minister Shivraj Patil, Lok Sabha Speaker Somanath
Chatarjee, BJP leader L. K. Advani, Karnataka Chief Minister H. D. Kumaraswamy and
others were present, marking the importance of the function.[9] The statue was donated by
Kittur Rani Chennamma Memorial Committee and sculpted by Vijay Gaur.[9]
There are also statues commemorating her at Bangalore, Belgaum and Kittur.[10]
Burial place
Rani Chennamma's samadhi or burial place is in Bailhongal taluk, and is currently in a poor
state due to poor maintenance of the surrounding park area by Government agencies.[10]
Descendants
Around 11 families are identified as the descendants of Kittur Rani Chennamma. They reside
at Kittur and Khanapur in Belagavi district and Gadhinglaj in Kolhapur district of
Maharashtra.[11]
In popular culture
The heroics of Kittur Rani Chennamma are sung by folk in the form of ballads, lavani
and GiGi pada.[12]
Kittur Chennamma is a 1962 film in Kannada played by B. Saroja Devi and directed
by B. Ramakrishnaiah Panthulu.[13]
Coast guard ship "Kittur Chennamma" was commissioned in 1983 and
decommissioned in 2011.[14]
The Indian Railways train Rani Chennamma Express connecting Bangalore and
Kolhapur is named after her.
Raiganj University Professor Pinaki Roy's essay "Alternative History: A Postcolonial
Rereading of Naikar’s The Queen of Kittur", published in the Indian Journal of
Multidisciplinary Academic Research (ISSN 2347-9884), 1(2), August 2014: 105-15,
offers several instances of critical references to literary representations of the Queen
of Kittur.
Rani Channamma University in Belagavi is named in her honour.
Kittur Chennamma is the name of a Martian vessel in the science fiction series The
Expanse
A commemorative postage stamp was released on 23 October 1977 by Government of
India.
