The Freedom Fighters of Tamilnadu

We have all heard of Mahatma Gandhi, Bhagat Singh and Subhas Chandra
Bose’s struggles and sacrifices for the independence of India. But each state
had its own struggle and contribution in the freedom struggle. The Indian
independence movement has a long history of the people from the then
Madras Presidency (Present day Tamilnadu)These stories date back to the
18th century. Both men and women from Tamil Nadu , were very brave and
active in the freedom struggle. As most of these heroes remain uncelebrated,
we felt it is about time we pay tribute to these warriors. Therefore, we bring to
you the major men and women freedom fighters of Tamil Nadu. These warriors
have given their lives for our independence.
Though most of these names are forgotten and not given a place in the pages
of history, they still remain a story in the modern Tamil Nadu houses. To pay
them the tribute and give them the recognition they deserve, let us see the
stories of a few ordinary people who went through extraordinary struggles to
make the dream of independence a reality.
Veera Mangai Velunachiyar
The first Indian queen to raise a revolt against the British
Veera Mangai Velunachiyar (1730 –1796) was one of the brave female freedom
fighters of Tamil Nadu. She was a queen in the 18th century who rebelled
against the British Empire and fought for India’s independence.
She was born in 1730 AD to the Mannar Sellamuthu Sethupathy and to Rani
Sakandhimuthal of  Ramnad Kingdom.  She was the only daughter of this Royal
family. The Royal couple had no male heir.  The royal family brought up the
Princess, Velunachiyar, like  Prince of Ramnad due to this reason.  Velunachiyar
has been trained in the skills of stick fighting, using weapons and martial arts
like Valari, horse riding and archery from a young age. She had also learned
many languages like English, Urdu and French. She married Sivagangai Mannar
Muthuvaduganathar at the age of sixteen.  In the year 1772 , the English
invaded her kingdom and they killed her husband Raja Muthu Vaduganathar
and her daughter young Princess Gowri Nachiyar in the subsequent Kalaiyar
Koil war. . She was disturbed by this and wanted revenge. She started moving
to different places often to avoid British invaders.IS
 she gradually built a powerful army to fight against the British. In 1780 she met
Sultan Hyder Ali ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore in southern India.  As she
conversed with him in Urdu, the queen highly impressed Sultan Hyder Ali with her
resolute and courageousness and requested him to provide her 5000 infantries and
5000 cavalries to defeat the British army. The Sultan gave his word to support
the queen in her crusade to retrieve her kingdom. He also equipped her with
necessary weapons so that she could put up a tough fight against the British.

She fought the British fearlessly and recaptured her kingdom. She was the first
queen to raise a revolt against the British, 85 years before Rani Lakshmi Bai
fought for freedom.
A commemorative postage stamp in her name was released in the year 2008.
Veera Pandiya Kattaboman
Kattaboman was fondly called as Veera Pandiya Kattaboman. He was called so
because he was a very brave man from the Pandiya dynasty.He was born in
Panchalankurichi in Tamil Nadu.  Even after repeated request from the british
to pay tax for his country he did not pay and in return wanted to fight against
the British Emperor. He was the first king from Tamil Nadu who dared to fight
against the mighty British. Though he fought the British to the utmost he was
then captured by the British and was hanged to Death at kayathar in the year
1799.
" The Government of Tamil Nadu maintains a memorial at Kayathar and the
remnants of the old fort at Panchalankurichi is protected by the Archaeological
Survey of India
To commemorate the bicentenary of Kattabomman’s hanging, the Government of
India released a postal stamp in his honour on 16 October 1999.[9] The Indian
Navy communications centre at Vijayanarayanam is named INS Kattabomman.[10]
The Tamil-language film Veerapandiya Kattabomman, starring Sivaji Ganesan, is
based on his life.[8
On this special day, let’s remember the brave Palayakarar from Panchalankurichi
who refused to bow down to the British and sacrificed his life for his homeland.
V. O. Chidambaram Pillai
Valliyappan Ulaganathan Chidambaram (5 September 1872 – 18 November 1936),
popularly known by his initials, V.O.C. (spelled Va Voo Cee in Tamil), also known
as Kappalottiya Tamizhan
was an Indian freedom fighter and leader of Indian National Congress. 

 Valliappan Olaganathan Chidambaram Pillai was born on 5 September 1872

to Olaganathan


 Pillai and Paramyee Ammai in Ottapidaram, District Tirunelveli in modern

Tamil Nadu.
 He graduated from Caldwell College in Thoothukudi. and then went to
trichi to pursue law After that, he became a lawyer in 1895 practising in his
birthplace Ottapidaram.
 V.O.C’s entry into politics happened in 1905 when he joined the Congress
Party
 At that time,Tuticorin was a business centre and the merchants there did a
lot of business with Sri Lanka. At that time, shipping, both passenger as well
as cargo, was entirely controlled by European shipping companies. The
British Indian Steam Navigation Company Ltd., the only shipping business
that had a regular steamer service between Tuticorin and Colombo was
infamous for its cheap treatment of its Indian clients.
 SO IN 1906, V.O.C decided to establish an Indian shipping company called
the Swadeshi Steam Navigation Company. The company was founded on 16
October 1906, largely due to the efforts of V.O.C with support from his
merchant-friends. He purchased two ships from France named SS Gaila and
SS Lavo that arrived at Tuticorin port in May 1907. It was a proud moment
for the entire nation and Pillai received high praise. The first ship SS Galia
was purchased with the help of Bal Gangadar Tilak and Aurobindo Ghosh
and could carry 1300 passengers and could carry 40000 bags of cargo. The
flags of both ships were emblazoned with Vande Mathram.
 Sadly the success of SSNS was short lived. To drive pillai’s company into the
ground the British navigation company offered freebies to the public.
  This was not all. In the year 1908 Pillai was charged with sedition and
sentenced to 40 years jail term as part of the Tuticorin coral mill strike .
 V.O.C was subject to hard labour in prison and his health suffered a great
deal. For instance, he was put in place of an ox and made to draw an oil
press in the hot sun. His sentence was reduced and he was released in
December 1912.
 After he was released, he had to move to Chennai with his family since he
was not permitted to return to Tirunelveli. His license to practice law was
cancelled and he had to run a provisions store to feed his family. His
steamer company had been liquidated and the assets sold to the rival
company.

Subramanya Bharathi
Bharathi was born to Chinnasami Subramanya Iyer and Elakkumi ( Lakshmi )
Ammaal as “Subbayya” on December 11, 1882 in the Tamil Village of Ettayapuram
.

Bharathi’s entry into politics happened in 1905 when he attended the meeting of
the All India National Congress in Varanasi and he also got the opportunity to
meet Sister Nivedita, the spiritual daughter of Swami Vivekananda. Subramanya
Bharathi felt very impressed on meeting Sister Nivedita. This phase proved to be a
crucial turning point in the life history of Subramanya Bharathi
Then Bharati flung himself into the freedom struggle heart and soul. He entered
the field of journalism as an assistant editor of a Tamil daily 'Swadeshamitran'.
Later he became the editor of a Tamil weekly 'India' and another English
newspaper 'Bala Bharatham'. The Tamil weekly ‘India’ was the first South Indian
language paper that used the entire front page for political cartoons attacking the
British. These newspapers helped to awaken the feeling of nationalism among the
people and inform about the daily affairs of the outside world
He went on to write many poems and his revolutionary writings as the editor of
India and in the English weekly, Bala Bharati enraged the British Government.
 In 1908, he released his first book of poems, Songs of Freedom which proved to
be a strong call for freedom from foreign rule. The patriotic flavour in these
poems encouraged the people to join the independence struggle and work
vigorously for the liberation of the country. Instead of merely being proud of his
country he also outlined his vision for a free India
Bharathi did not live for himself but for the people and nation. That is why he is
respectfully called as Bharathiyar.

Tiruppur Kumaran 
Kumaran also known as Tiruppur Kumaran or Kodi Kaatha Kumaran (4 October
1904 – 11 January 1932) was an Indian revolutionary and freedom fighter who
participated in the Indian independence movement.
His family couldn’t afford his education, so young Kumaraswamy had to drop out
of school by class 5.
Inspired by Gandhi’s principles and ideals, Kumaran began to participate in the
demonstrations announced by Bapu.

started lathi

The British cops started thrashing all the protestors, and Kumaran was caught in
the beatings. The young man fell but did not let the flag touch the ground.
HE then became unconscious and died but still holding the Indian flag and
preserving its dignity even in death.

Tirupur Kumaran was only 27 when he lost his life. While he may not have played
a major part in the country’s independence, his national pride, patriotic fire and
selfless commitment garner credit. A martyr, Tirupur Kumaran is remembered in
Tamil Nadu by the title ‘Kodi Katha Kumaran’–The Kumaran who saved the flag.
The Tirupur Kumaran Memorial was constructed in Kumaran Salai near the
Railway Station in Tirupur in his memory.

We salute this brave soldier who lost his life for our freedom.