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Pudukkottai ((タミル語:புதுக்கோட்டை சமஸ்தானம் ''Pūdūcōtai samasthānam'')) was a kingdom and later, princely state in British India which existed from 1680 to 1948. From 1800 to 1923, it was one of the five princely states that were under political control of the Government of Madras. From 1923, when the Madras States Agency was abolished till 1948, it was under the political control of the Government of India. The kingdom of Pudukkottai was founded in about 1680 as a feudatory of Ramnad and grew with subsequent additions from Tanjore, Sivaganga and Ramnad, itself. One of the staunch allies of the British East India Company in the Carnatic, Anglo-Mysore and Polygar wars, the kingdom was brought under the Company's protection in 1800 as per the system of Subsidiary Alliance. The state was placed under the control of the Madras Presidency from 1800 till 1 October 1923, when it was brought under the direct control of the Government of India. The princely state covered a total area of and had a population of 438,648 in 1941. It extended over the whole of the present-day Pudukkottai district of Tamil Nadu, India (with the exception of Aranthangi taluk which was then a part of Tanjore district). The town of Pudukkottai was its capital. The ruler of Pudukkottai was entitled to a 17-gun salute. == History == (詳細はKalabhras. From the 6th to the 14th century AD, Pudukkottai was successively ruled by the Mutharaiyars, Cholas and the Pandyas. When the Pandya kingdom was conquered by Malik Kafur, Pudukkottai came under the rule of Muslim sultans who held power for about 50 years before being vanquished by the Vijayanagar kings. When the Vijayanagar kingdom disintegrated, Pudukkottai came under the rule of the Nayaks of Madurai from whom Raghunatha Kilavan, the Sethupathi of Ramnad wrested the country in 1680 and confirmed the independence of his brother-in-law and Vijayanagar's viceroy of Pudukkottai, Raghunatha Raya Tondaiman allowing him to use the title "Maharaja". In 1730, Raghunatha Raya Tondaiman was succeeded to the throne by his grandson, Vijaya Raghunatha Raya Tondaiman I who was able to ascend the throne only after a bloody war of succession. Gradually, the Rajas of Pudukkottai shook off the nominal allegiance they owed to Ramnad and assumed complete independence over their territories. The Pudukkottai kings were staunch allies of the East India Company and provided crucial logistic and military support during the Carnatic Wars, the Anglo-Mysore Wars and the Polygar Wars. As a result, while the Ramnad and Sivaganga kingdoms were annexed to British India, Pudukkottai was allowed to remain independent. In 1800, the Raja of Pudukkottai, Vijaya Raghunatha Tondaiman submitted to the scheme of Subsidiary Alliance and the kingdom was inducted as a princely state under the paramountcy of the East India Company and a resident was appointed to represent the Madras government. On Vijaya Raghunatha Tondaiman's death in 1807, his ten-year old son Vijaya Raghunatha Raya Tondaiman II was crowned as Raja. As Vijaya Raghunatha Raya Tondaiman was a minor, the kingdom was administered in his stead by a Council of Superintendence led by William Blackburn. During his brief administration, Blackburn widened the roads of Pudukkottai town and built a new palace for the Raja. On assuming majority, the Raja personally took over the reins of administration. However, he died shortly afterwards and was succeeded by his younger brother Raghunatha Tondaiman II who reigned from 1827 to 1839. On Raghunatha Tondaiman's death in 1839, his nine-year old son Ramachandra Tondaiman succeeded to the throne. As Ramachandra Tondaiman was as yet a minor, the state was administered by a regent. Ramachandra Tondaiman assumed complete control in 1844 when he turned 15. In 1878, the Madras government appointed A. Seshayya Sastri as Diwan of Pudukkottai to expunge the durbar's unsavoury reputation for financial mismanagement. Sastri reformed the administration and rebuilt the city of Pudukkottai as per modern principles of town planning. The Pudukulam and Pallavankulam tanks in the city were renovated and a series of economic, educational and infrastructural reforms transformed the state. At Sastri's suggestion, Ramachandra renovated many Hindu temples in the state. In 1881, Ramachandra officially adopted the hereditary title "Brihadambadas" with the consent of Sastri. In 1886, Ramachandra Tondaiman was succeeded to the throne by his grandson Martanda Bhairava Tondaiman with Seshayya Sastri was diwan-regent. Martanda set up the first representative assembly in Pudukkottai with a total of 30 nominated members. The members of the assembly were nominated by heads of government departments and public institutions. The assmebly was enlarged in 1907 and 1916 and a council with full legislative powers was set up in 1924. Martanda Bhairava Tondaiman attended the Delhi Durbar of 1903 and George V's coronation at Westminster Abbey and was made a Knight Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire in the 1913 New Year Honours' List. In March 1915, Martanda travelled to Australia where he fell in love with an Australian socialite Molly Fink and married her at a civil ceremony in Melbourne on 10 August 1915. But British officials and Indian independence activists were both hostile to their marriage. Following Molly's poisoning and King George V's refusal to recognise her as the Maharani of Pudukkottai in 1922, Martanda renounced the throne and settled down in France. During Martanda's absence from India, state of Pudukkottai was administered in his name by his brother Raghunatha Pallavarayar. On Martanda's death in 1928, his six-year old nephew Rajagopala Tondaiman succeeded him assisted by a council of regency headed by Raghunatha Pallavarayar and after him, T. Raghavaiah. Raghavaiah organised a reassessment of land revenue resulting in a serious riot in Pudukkottai town on 15 July 1931 which was put down with a firm hand. This, and organized dacoities at Kannandgudi and Andakkulam created a serious law and order problem for the state. The council of regency was eventually disbanded in November 1931 and a diwan, B. G. Holdsworth was appointed, the first European to hold the post. Holdsworth served till 3 January 1934, when he was succeeded as diwan by Alexander Tottenham. The only major event of Holdsworth's tenure was the construction of the Holdsworth anicut across the Vellar River. Tottenham administered Pudukkottai from 1934 to 1946 ordering a remission of farmer loans and reducing taxes to combat the effects of the Great Depression. In 1946, Tottenham was succeeded by P. Kalifullah. On 1 March 1948, the state of Pudukkottai acceeded to the Dominion of India and became a part of Madras state in 1950. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Pudukkottai state」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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