2016-05-04 Wed

Tipu Sultan ascended the throne of Mysore, on 4th May 1783 and the Kingdom of Mysore fell in the able hand s of a mighty ruler. Also known as Sher – e – Mysore or the Tiger of Mysore, Tipu Sultan was a legendary ruler.

Since his childhood, Tipu Sultan witnessed the capable administration and the aggressive military career of his father Hyder Ali. At the very young age of 15 years, Tipu Sultan led a successful battle against the Malabar chief. Tutored under the chief military officer of Hyder Ali, the young boy 15 grew into a great soldier as well as a great general.

His early life experience proved to be useful when he acquired the throne of Mysore. As he has already fought two battles against the British, he was well aware of the capabilities of British Forces. He, therefore, focused more on military advances. His most remarkable achievement was the use of “Mysorean Rockets” in wars which are considered to be one of the history-changing innovations.

Mysorean missiles were iron-cased rockets fitted with swords in them. These rockets used to travel long, covering various kilometres and attacking the enemies with a sword. Although there were missiles in the Europe, Mysorean Missiles became famous due to their coverage and destructive capacity.

His short reign of 17 years has, thus, became the most celebrated one. Tipu Sultan was martyred on the battlefield on 4th May 1799 while defending his Kingdom against the Colonial British. Ironically, enough he died on the same date on which he ascended the throne.

Tipu Sultan’s innovation is also seen on his coins which show a greater variety and very distinctive features. The first ever issue after his succession was an eleven-gram gold Pagoda (Ahmedi) which he minted in the same year in the name of his father Hyder Ali.

The last issued coin was a 5.5 gm copper Behram. The coin depicted an elephant on the obverse with a Persian letter “Se” above it. The use of Persian letter on the obverse side of the coin is a typical feature of the coins of Tipu Sultan.

The government of India issued a commemorative stamp of Tipu Sultan in 1974 with the denomination of INR 0.50 featuring a portrait of the King.

To read more about Tipu Sultan’s Coins Click here