Colonial and World War I · 1799

Siege of Seringapatam

Tipu Sultan died fighting at the walls of his capital, and Mysore, the strongest kingdom resisting the Company in the south, fell.

The site of the battle on the 1683 map. Shaded: Ottoman Empire, 1683, Safavid Iran, Mughal Empire, 1707.

Key facts

When: 1799
Where: Srirangapatna, Karnataka, India
Sides: Kingdom of Mysore vs East India Company
Commanders: Tipu Sultan vs George Harris
Result: British victory
Type: Colonial and World War I
Chapter: 4. Al-Andalus and the Subcontinent

Who led it

Tipu Sultan1751 to 1799
Ruler of Mysore who fought the East India Company in three wars, using iron-cased rockets that the British later copied.

The wider picture: Three gunpowder empires

Mehmed II took Constantinople in 1453. Selim I conquered Egypt in 1517 and the caliphate passed to the Ottomans. Suleiman won at Mohacs in 1526, and a second siege of Vienna failed in 1683. Further east, Safavid Iran and the Mughals of India ruled at the same time.

See the 1683 map Read chapter 4

More colonial and world war i battles

All 14 colonial wars and world war i battles · Battle explorer

Spotted a mistake on this page? Tell us