Thirumylai Sri Madhava Perumal Pavithrothsavam 2026

 

Pre-script:  though a long winding post starting with battlefield of 1746 – No war post this !! 

 

A war nearer home ! centuries ago – ramification of ‘War of Austrian Succession’  - stop Madras to Austria – crossing seas and multiple continents – approx 7000 km away .. and a war fought between British East India Company and French East India Company !!  

According to historians, French reinforcements from Pondicherry did not sail into Madras harbour. Instead they landed on the open coast near present-day Thiruvanmiyur/Besant Nagar, where the surf permitted boats to land troops. They numbered approximately: 300 French, 700 Indian sepoys commanded by Louis Paradis. From the beach the troops marched north-west.  There was no Marina Beach as we know it.  Instead there were – sand dunes, scrub vegetarion, marshes, tidal channels and a wider river (Adyaru). 

Their rivals the British with Nawab's Army blocked the crossing. The Nawab's son Mahfuz Khan understood the French had to cross the river. He therefore deployed nearly 10,000 cavalry and infantry on the north bank of the Adyar, stretching from San Thome toward what is now Quibble Island, with artillery covering likely crossing points. 

So a battle of Adyar occurring somewhere nearer Mylapore !!   The French did not build a bridge. They crossed the shallow estuary at low tide, wading through water while maintaining disciplined formations. Contemporary re-enactments place the crossing in the coastal strip between today's Adyar Estuary and Elliot's Beach.  History records that in  September 1746 the French fleet under La Bourdonnais captured Fort St. George from the British. 

The Nawab of Arcot, Anwar-ud-din Khan, objected because neither European company technically owned Madras outright; they held it under the Nawab's authority. He ordered the French to hand over Madras. The French refused. That refusal led directly to the Battle of Adyar.  French commander Louis Paradis marched from  mylapore area  toward Madras. Instead of remaining on the defensive, he crossed the Adyar River and attacked. The disciplined French infantry advanced in compact formations supported by well-drilled artillery. The Nawab's forces, although vastly superior in numbers, fought largely in traditional cavalry formations that proved ineffective against concentrated musket volleys and field artillery. Within a short time, the Nawab's army broke and retreated. French casualties were remarkably light, while the Nawab suffered much heavier losses.  

Many historians consider the Battle of Adyar one of the most significant military engagements in early colonial India.  It demonstrated European military superiority. The battle proved that disciplined infantry using coordinated musket fire and artillery could defeat armies many times their size. The French victory relied not only on Europeans but also on Indian soldiers trained in European tactics. The British quickly learned the same lesson and later developed their own large sepoy armies.  

Strangely the loss in war paved the way for British expansion as they invested on Indian sepoys to defeat their own Nation and keep parts of India unified under their control.  Much of the original battlefield has since been urbanised, and the river's course has changed somewhat over nearly three centuries.  

Today’s post is on this Thirumylai and an important uthsavam at this temple in the centre of Mylapore.

 

In the capital of Tamil Nadu is the pristine Temple of Sri Parthasarathi Swami at Thiruvallikkeni.   Though not the earliest British settlement in the Indian Peninsula, Madras possessed a peculiar interest as constituting, with the exception of the insignificant site at Armagon, the first territorial acquisition by the English in Hindustan.    It is a place that predates British rule by several centuries; it was occupied by the Portuguese in 1523, which  lasted until 1749, later falling  into the hands of the British East India Company.   It is “Mylapore” [Thiru Mayilai],  a cultural hub; one of the oldest residential parts of the city, also known as VEdapuri and Mayurapuri ~    Thirumayilai has the avathara sthalam of Sri Peyalwar at Arundale Street – nearer is Sri Madhava Perumal thirukovil.  Mylai is famous for Sri Kapaleeswarar temple which is connected with the S'aivite Nayanmars.   

Now is the time for Thirupavithrothsavam for Sri Madhava Perumal – this morning there was yaga salai and goshti of Thirupallandu, Thiruppavai and 5^th and 6^th decads of Swami Nammalwar’s Thiruvaimozhi. Here are some photos of most beautiful Sri Madhava Perumal at Thirumylai taken during His pavithrothsavam. 

adiyen Srinivasadhasan
Mamandur Veeravalli Srinivasan Sampathukmar
26^th July 2o26.