Battle of Pollilur (1781)

Battle of Pollilur
Part of the Second Anglo-Mysore War
Date27 August 1781; 243 years ago (1781-08-27)
Location
Pollilur, Kanchipuram, India
12°58′N 79°42′E / 12.967°N 79.700°E / 12.967; 79.700
Result Indecisive
Belligerents
 East India Company  Mysore
Commanders and leaders
Eyre Coote Hyder Ali
Strength
11,000[1] Unknown
Casualties and losses
421[1] 2,000+[1]
Pollilur is located in Tamil Nadu
Pollilur
Pollilur
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Location within Tamil Nadu
Pollilur is located in India
Pollilur
Pollilur
Pollilur (India)

The Battle of Pollilur was fought on 27 August 1781, between forces of the Kingdom of Mysore under Hyder Ali and British East India Company forces led by General Eyre Coote. The battle was fought on the site of a 1780 encounter in which a Company force was almost completely routed or captured.

In the 1781 battle, the company's army was organized into two lines. One line fought against the troops under Tipu Sultan. But Hyder Ali's army faced severe casualties and retreated to Kanchipuram.

After the battle, a shortage of provisions led Coote to move his forces toward Tripassore.[1] Both the sides retreated in a drawn battle and both claimed victory by firing a salute though the British claimed "dubious victory".[2][3]

  1. ^ a b c d Roy p.85
  2. ^ Ramaswami, N.S. (1984). Political History of Carnatic under the Nawabs. New Delhi: Abhinav Publications. p. 228.
  3. ^ Wilks, Mark. "Historical Sketches of the South of India, in an Attempt to Trace the History of Mysoor" (PDF). Retrieved 5 March 2017.