Karnataka > Anti-British Uprisings
Karnataka did not tamely submit to the foreign rule of the British. There were anti-British violent uprisings between 1800 and 1858. The earliest of these was of Dhondia Wagh, who after the fall of Tipu, unfurled the flag of revolt against the British in 1800 from the Bidanur-Shikaripur region; many former princes joined him. His revolt spread from Jamalabad to Sode in Coastal Districts and above the Ghats upto Belgaum and Raichur Districts. He was killed at Konagal in September 1800, and his colleague Krishnappa Nayak of Belur (Balam) was killed in February 1802. This was followed by the Koppal Rebellion led by one Virappa in 1819. The year-1820 saw the Deshmukh rebellion near Bidar. A strong revolt was witnessed at Sindhagi in Bijapur District in 1824. The revolt of Kittur Channamma in 1824 and of Sangolli Rayanna in the same kingdom in 1829 are also famous. This was followed by the Nagar Uprising of 1830-31 accompanied by similar agrarian revolts in the Kanara District in 1831. Sarja Hanumappa Nayak of Tarikere also joined the insurgents. Though this revolt failed, it cost Krishnaraja III his throne. There was an uprising in Kodagu during 1835-37, which was also strong in Dakshina Kannada (Sullya and Mangalore). One former official of the Peshwa called Narasappa Petkar organized a revolt against the British in 1841. Karnataka responded to the 1857-58 uprisings positively. In November 1857, the Halagali Bedas revolted against the Arms Act. The rulers of Naragund and Surapur, joined by Mundargi Bheemarao, a Zamindar and the Desais of Govanakoppa, Hammige, Soraturu etc, also revolted in 1858. There was a long revolt in Supa jointly led by men from Goa and Uttara Kannada who included some Siddis (Negroes) in 1858-59. Though the uprisings were suppressed, their lessons were not totally forgotten. It was the Nagar Uprising (1830) which ultimately resulted in the founding of Mysore Representative Assembly in 1881. The British learnt to respond to the grievances of the people quickly. Local self governing bodies were founded in towns in 1850's and 1860's. People also learnt that without proper organisation, it is not possible to free the country from the British. The British also felt the need to improve the means of transport and communication to enable them to meet situations of breach of peace. The communication facilities initiated by them mainly served their colonial economic purposes.
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