Siege of Pondicherry 1761
| Siege of Pondicherry 1761 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Part of 3rd Carnatic War Seven Years War | ||
| Date: | 13 January 1761 | |
| Location: | Pondicherry, Puducherry Union Territory | |
| Presidency: | Madras | |
| Co-ordinates: | 11.845116°N 79.875241°E | |
| Result: | British victory | |
| Combatants | ||
| East India Company | French | |
| Commanders | ||
| Lt Gen Sir Eyre Coote | Comte de Lally | |
| Strength | ||
| Casualties | ||
| 32 officer and 500 other ranks | ||
This was an event during the 3rd Carnatic War
Summary
After a series of military successes, Eyre Coote moved to blockade Pondicherry with reinforcements from Britain. In September Major Monson was promoted colonel and took over command. He mounted an assault on the redoubts in the boundary hedge which formed the outer defence of the city. This was successful though Monson was wounded and had to relinquish command to Coote who completed the capture of the redoubts. In October batteries were constructed and bombardment began in November. In January 1761 the British blockading naval squadron under Rear-Admiral Charles Stevens was hit by a hurricane and severely reduced. Despite this set back the siege continued and the French garrison surrendered on 16 January.
Monson's assault force
1st Column under Col George Monson
- Draper's 79th Foot (500 men)
- Coote's 84th Foot (500 men)
- Marines (200 men)
- Morris's 89th Highlanders (150 men)
- Sepoys (500 men)
2nd Column under Maj Joseph Smith
- Madras European Regiment (800 men)
- Foreigners (120 men)
- Bombay European Regiment 9350 men) under Capt Gore
- Sepys (600 men)
Biographies
Entries in the Dictionary of Indian Biography 1906
Eyre Coote (1726-83)
Comte de Lally (1700-66)
George Monson (1730-76)
External Link
Carnatic Wars Heritage History
3rd Carnatic War Wikipedia
Seven Years War www.historyofwar.org
The Siege of Pondicherry www.historyofwar.org
Capture of Pondicherry Google Books -