Battle of Sedaseer

01The western column

In 1799 the Bombay army under General James Stuart climbed up from the Malabar coast through Kodagu, whose raja was a Company ally, to join Harris’s main army before Srirangapatna. Its leading brigade under Montresor camped on the hill of Sedaseer, from which, it was said, the capital itself could almost be seen. Tipu marched west with the pick of his army, hoping to destroy it before Harris arrived.

02Surrounded in the jungle

On 6 March Mysorean columns came through the thick jungle and fell on the brigade from front and rear. The sepoy battalions, cut off, fought for hours without relief. In the afternoon Stuart arrived with the rest of the army and Tipu’s men gave way. Tipu fell back to Periyapatna and then turned east to face Harris at Malavalli. The Bombay army joined the siege of the capital in April.