Guddemane Appaiah Gowda was an Indian freedom fighter and revolutionary, he instated a peasant army from Kodagu and became its commander in-chief to lead the Amara Sullia Rebellion in 1837. They were successful in hoisting the native flag after lowering the

Union Jack The Union Jack, or Union Flag, is the ''de facto'' national flag of the United Kingdom. Although no law has been passed making the Union Flag the official national flag of the United Kingdom, it has effectively become such through precedent. ...

, which is known to be the first-ever freedom movement against the

East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...

. They established a civil government in

Mangalore Mangalore (), officially known as Mangaluru, is a major port city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It is located between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghats about west of Bangalore, the state capital, 20 km north of Karnataka–Ker ...

for 13 days under his leadership.

Early life

Guddemane Appaiah Gowda was born in 1792, the eldest son of Guddemane Subbaiah at Balamuri village in Kodagu. He belonged to the

Arebhashe Arebhashe (, ''Arebhāṣe'') or Aregannada or Gowda Kannada is a dialect of Kannada mainly by Gowda and other communities in the region Madikeri, Somwarpet, and Virajpet taluks of Kodagu district, Sullia, taluks of Dakshina Kannada district; ...

community. Appaiah initially served as a Jemadar under King

Linga Rajendra II Linga Rajendra II or Linga Raja II was the ruler of Kodagu Kingdom (r.1811-1820). He renovated Madikeri Fort Madikeri Fort also called Mercara Fort is a fort in Madikeri, in the Kodagu district of the Indian state of Karnataka, first built b ...

of Kodagu. He was later promoted as

Subedar Subedar is a rank of junior commissioned officer in the Indian Army; a senior non-commissioned officer in the Pakistan Army, and formerly a Viceroy's commissioned officer in the British Indian Army. History ''Subedar'' or ''subadar'' was the ...

during the rule of

Chikka Virarajendra Chikavira Rajendra or Chikka Vira Rajendra (Kannada: , ''cika/cikka vīrarājendra'') (also in other variations, including Chikkaveera Rajendra), was the last ruler of the Kodagu (Coorg) kingdom in South India. His actual name was Vira Rajendra ...

Contributions

The people of Kodagu were ordered to pay the heavy tax to the

. In opposition to this, Appaiah Gowda built his own army and became its commander-in-chief. He led the Amara Sullia Rebellion along with leaders like

Kedambadi Ramaiah Gowda Kedambadi Ramaiah Gowda was an Indian freedom fighter and revolutionary, he united the farmers from Sullia and lead the Amara Sullia Rebellion in 1837. Ramaiah hoisted the native flag after lowering the Union Jack, which is known to be the fir ...

. They ruled for 13 days in Mangalore's Bautagudde. Under his leadership, the Native ''Jangama'' flag was hoisted in Mangalore's Bautagudde. Appaiah and his associates established a civil government and ruled for 13 days. Until they were defeated by the British troops.

Death

Guddemane Appaiah Gowda was hanged in front of

Madikeri Fort Madikeri Fort also called Mercara Fort is a fort in Madikeri, in the Kodagu district of the Indian state of Karnataka, first built by Mudduraja in the second half of the 17th century. Mudduraja also built the palace within the fort. It was rebu ...

on 31 October 1837 at 10-45 AM, sentenced as an open traitor by the

Company rule in India Company rule in India (sometimes, Company ''Raj'', from hi, rāj, lit=rule) refers to the rule of the British East India Company on the Indian subcontinent. This is variously taken to have commenced in 1757, after the Battle of Plassey, when ...

Legacy

Statue of Subedar Guddemane Appaiah Gowda in Madikeri

A bronze statue of Guddemane Appaiah Gowda was unveiled by D. V. Sadananda Gowda at Field Marshal K.M. Cariappa Circle in Madikeri. Demands have been made to include the contribution of Guddemane Appaiah Gowda in school textbooks.

Reference

{{reflist People from Kodagu district Indian independence movement History of social movements History of India Indian revolutionaries 1792 births 1837 deaths Revolutionary movement for Indian independence Executed revolutionaries 19th-century executions by British India Executed Indian people People executed by British India by hanging