Velu Nachiyar, also known as “Veeramangai” (brave woman) by Tamils, is Sivaganga, Zamindari Estate, Madura District, Madras Presidency of queen. She contributed significantly to establishing the initial platform for India’s freedom from British rule. She worked with many freedom fighters and with their help she was able to take over Sivaganga from the British again. Her courage and determination made Rani Veeru Nachiyar the first queen of India to fight against the British for India’s freedom. Velu Nachiyar died on December 25, 1796 at the age of 66.
Wiki/Biography
Velu Nachiyar was born on Tuesday, January 3, 1730, in Ramanathapuram, Kingdom of Sivaganga, British India (now Tamil Nadu, India) (aged 66 years; at the time of death). Although Veeru is the princess of Ramanathapuram, she is not like other princesses at all. Since childhood, she has not only been interested in martial arts such as Valarii and Silambam, but also likes horse riding, swordsmanship, archery and the use of weapons. She is a master of combat without weapons and ammunition. She is fluent in languages including English, French and Urdu, including her mother tongue.
family
Viru was born and raised in the Tamil royal family of Ramanathapuram in the Sivaganga kingdom.
Parents and siblings
Viru was born to King Chellamuthu Vijayaragunatha Sethupathy of Ramnad Kingdom and Queen Sakandhimuthathal. She is the only child of her parents.
husband and children
At the age of 16, she married Muthu Vaduganatha Periyavudaya Thevar, king of Sivaganga, and gave birth to their only child, a daughter named Veera Vellachi Nachiyar, who later became the heiress of Sivaganga.
Rule the kingdom of Sivaganga
A few years ago, before her birth, a part of the land was separated from the Ramnad Kingdom and was named Sivaganga Kingdom and Sasivana Thevar became the king of Sivaganga Kingdom. When she turned 16, her family began searching for her perfect partner. In 1746, the rulers of Ramnad and the Sivaganga Kingdom decided to sign a marriage agreement, and Princess Viru would marry the Prince of Sivaganga Kingdom, Muthu Vaduganath Thevar. Some time later, she married Muthu Vaduganatha Periyavudaya Thevar, king of Sivaganga. For about 20 years, the couple ruled the kingdom and lived happily with their families and people of the kingdom until the British attacked Sivaganga.
The fugitive queen who lost everything
When the British came to India, a few years later they became allies of Muhammad Ali Khan Walaja, the Nawab of Akot, and had captured Maduraina before attacking Sivaganga The Yaka Empire, but King Sivaganga refused to give up his kingdom and that’s when the war started. One day in 1772, the King of Sivaganga went to the Kalayalkovir Shiva Temple near Sivaganga to perform routine worship. With the help of the Nawab of Akot, the East India Company (EIC) attacked the temple and the kingdom of Sivaganga. British troops under Lieutenant Colonel Abraham Beaujour invaded the temple but were not captured. The armless king was unaware of the attack and was mercilessly killed. They stole all the jewelry from the temple, including 50,000 gold coins. Another group of British soldiers, led by Commander Joseph Smith, attacked the Sivaganga fort in the King’s absence. Many people died in that war, including the king himself. She had to escape with her young daughter with the help of minister Dalavoy Thandavaraya Pillai.
sacred oath of vengeance
Even after killing King Sivaganga and wresting the throne from him, Nawab Muhammad Ali Khan Walaja did not rest in peace. He wanted to wipe out the entire family of Muthu Vaduganatha Periyavudaya Thevar so that no one would try to wrest the throne from him in the future. So, he decided to end the lives of the king’s widow Vilu and his youngest daughter Vilachi. The vicious and cunning Nawab ordered the queen and princess to be hunted down as soon as possible. Fortunately, the two were not near the attack at the time. However, the Marutu brothers, two reliable chiefs, and the queen knew about the hunt. They went to Korangudi and managed to help them escape to Dindigul, which was far enough away from the Nawab’s soldiers. During her stay at Virupachi near Dindigul, she was strengthened both mentally and physically. Udayal, Veeru’s trusted bodyguard, was tortured and forced to reveal the Queen’s hiding place, but the brave and loyal Udayal did not reveal any information and was eventually brutally killed. When the Queen learned the news, she was heartbroken and filled with pent-up anger. She vowed to take revenge on Udayar’s murderers, regain the throne, and make the British pay for what they had done.
Widow turned warrior
She lived under the protection of Palayakaarar Kopaala Naayakkar in Virupachi, Dindigul for 8 years. Everything was taken away from Rani Viru, her husband and Sivaganga. She just wants to avenge her husband and take back her kingdom. While she was planning and plotting against the British and how to make them lose control of Sivaganga, she had to keep moving and changing her hideout over time just to stay away from the East India Company and continue to work for Prepare for war. Meanwhile, the Nawab of Akot changed the name of the kingdom from Sivaganga to Hussain Nagar. The soldiers were divided into three main camps, Valari Padai led by Periya Maruthu (also known as Vellai Maruthu) and Vaal Padai led by Chinna Maruthu, an all-women army in honor of his loyal bodyguards. She begins recruiting various women and training them for the upcoming battle. Kuyili was a Dalit woman who was appointed commander of the army. At the same time, she met Hyder Ali, the Sultan of Mysore and the father of Tipu Sultan. Even when Veeru approached him for help in fluent Urdu, he refused, but later, after being impressed by her, he decided to offer gunpowder weapons, training, gold of 400 pounds per month, and include infantry 5,000 soldiers including cavalry. Apart from Hyder Ali, many feudal lords, Tipu Sultan, the Maruthu brothers and Tandavarayan Pillai supported her against the British East India Company.
Kuyili, the Marutu brothers and other freedom fighters
Attack: It’s time to claim the throne!
Over the next few years, Rani Viru continued to win regions that she had previously lost. The first place she recaptured was the Temple of Kalea. By 1980, only Sivaganga was left to conquer as they had better weapons than Velu and her army. So, she came up with a solid plan to win the battle against the British as she knew it would not be easy to trick them, this strategy was called “Chakra Vyuh”. Her commanders Kuyili and Rani decided that they would enter the fort on the occasion of Vijayadashami and there would be more people coming in and out of the fort to worship at the Rajarajeshwari Amman temple than on any normal day and there would be less customs checks and roadblocks. Will make it easier to invade the fortress. Commander Kuiri and her troops entered the fort disguised as local women from a neighboring village. While the British figured anything out, Rani’s trusted spies told Kuyili the location of their ammunition. This was her only chance of victory, so without further delay she poured a bucket of ghee all over herself, set herself on fire, and walked straight into the ammunition depot. The whole storehouse was blown up, and then entered Verunachiyar with her army, and attacked the British in fury, massacring all who came. With that unforgettable explosion, the British Empire’s rule in Sivaganga came to an end in 1780.
Come, fight, win!
Rani Velu regained her husband’s kingdom and guarded it for another ten years. She was responsible for the administration of the kingdom with the help of the Marudu brothers. The elder brother Periya Marudhu was appointed commander-in-chief, and the ministerial position was given to his younger brother Chinna. In 1790, Velu’s only daughter Veerach Nachiyar succeeded to the throne and became the second queen of Sivaganga. In 1796, the Queen died and her name was written in gold among those who contributed to our country’s movement for independence from the East India Company (EIC). She will always be remembered as a brave queen who was determined to free her kingdom and its people from British rule at any cost. The people of that land still respect her and she remains a source of inspiration to them.
die
It is reported that in the last few years of her life, the Queen suffered from heart disease and even traveled to France for treatment. Velu Nachiyar died on December 25, 1796, after a restless life of 66 years.
Facts/Trivia
- Theater director Sriram Sharma has spent nearly 10 years researching the Queen’s history. He directed a play depicting Veeru through a large-scale dance ballet held at Naradha Gana Sabha in Chennai on 21 August 2017, Mumbai on 9 September 2017 and Delhi on 21 September 2017. The life story of Queen Nakiyar.
Sriram Sharma’s patriotic dance drama based on the life history of Velu Nachiyar
- To commemorate her contribution to the fight against the East India Company, the Government of India issued a stamp in her honor on December 31, 2008.
The stamps of Velu Nachchiyar were issued in 2008
- Viru Nachiyar was the first queen of India to fight and win against the British. She fought against them in 1780, 77 years before India’s first war of independence.
- The Queen and her Dalit commander Kuyili were the first to record suicide bombings in Indian history.
- Tamil-American hip-hop artist Professor ALI composed a song dedicated to her in 2016, “Our Queen”, as one of the tracks on his album “Tamilmatic”.
- On July 18, 2014, the then Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu Jayaram Jayalalithaa visited Weeramangai Viru Nachi in Sivaganga Veeramangai Velu Nachiyar monument was unveiled. She also unveiled a bronze statue of the Queen and announced that January 3 will be commemorated as the birth anniversary of the brave Queen Veeru Nachiyar.
6 feet bronze statue of Viru Nachiyar at Sivaganga
- In gratitude to Hyder Ali for supporting Virul Naqiyar in the war, she built a mosque to express her gratitude to him. Even after Haider Ali’s death, she maintained the same strong relationship with his son Tipu Sultan.
- Velu Nachiyar was a well-educated queen who was fluent in many languages, including Urdu, English and French.
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education