Ravivarma Narasimha Domba Heggade (died 1800) was the
raja
''Raja'' (; from , IAST ') is a royal title used for South Asian monarchs. The title is equivalent to king or princely ruler in South Asia and Southeast Asia.
The title has a long history in South Asia and Southeast Asia, being attested f ...
(sovereign) of
Vitla principality who led a resistance against
British colonisers in the erstwhile
South Canara
South Canara was a district of the Madras Presidency of British India, located at . It comprised the towns of Kassergode and Udipi and adjacent villages, with the capital in Mangalore city. South Canara was one of the most heterogeneous areas o ...
district of
British India
The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...
.
Life and death
Ravivarma was born in a royal
Kadamba dynasty known as ''Domba Heggade'' who ruled the Vitla principality which roughly comprised the southern talukas of the present
Dakshina Kannada
Dakshina Kannada district is a district of Karnataka state in India, with its headquarters in the coastal city of Mangalore. It is part of the larger Tulu Nadu region. The district covers an area nestled in between the Western Ghats to its east ...
,
Karnataka
Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reorganisation Act. Originally known as Mysore State , it was renamed ''Karnat ...
,
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
. He succeeded his maternal uncle Achyuta Domba Heggade to the throne according to the matrilineal inheritance laws of the
Kadamba
to which the dynasty belonged. Ravivarma succeeded the throne in turbulent times as Achuyta Heggade was beheaded by
Hyder Ali
Hyder Ali ( حیدر علی, ''Haidarālī''; 1720 – 7 December 1782) was the Sultan and ''de facto'' ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore in southern India. Born as Hyder Ali, he distinguished himself as a soldier, eventually drawing the att ...
, the Muslim Ruler of
Mysore
Mysore (), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern part of the state of Karnataka, India. Mysore city is geographically located between 12° 18′ 26″ north latitude and 76° 38′ 59″ east longitude. It is located at an altitude of ...
after being captured in a conquest campaign. The royal family had fled to
Tellicherry
Thalassery (), formerly Tellicherry, is a municipality, Commercial City on the Malabar Coast in Kannur district, in the state of Kerala, India, bordered by the districts of Mahé (Pondicherry), Kozhikode, Wayanad, Kasaragod and Kodagu (Karna ...
in present-day
Kerala
Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...
during Hyder Ali's campaign and hence survived.
After a few years in exile, Ravivarma led a military campaign to reclaim his kingdom and was successful. He was helped by the Raja of
Nileshwaram and the
British. But later on, when the British tried to reduce the influence of the
Domba Heggade dynasty, Ravivarma openly revolted against their presence in south Canara district along with the neighbouring Raja of
Kumbla and Raja Of
Nileshwaram. The three principalities led a combined revolt against the British but were unsuccessful and defeated. Ravivarma was hanged along with 9 members of the Domba Heggade dynasty by the British after they gained complete control of south Canara region on 22 August 1800.
[N. Shyam Bhat, "South Kanara, 1799–1860: a study in colonial administration and regional response", 1998, (Paperback), (Hardbound), Mittal Publications, p. 75]
References
1800 deaths
Tulu people
18th-century Indian monarchs
Mangaloreans
History of Karnataka
Year of birth unknown
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