Army commemorates King Marthanda Varma''s 1741 triumph over Dutch at Colachel

Thiruvananthapuram | The Madras Regiment of the Indian Army on Thursday commemorated the 284th anniversary of the Battle of Colachel, where Travancore forces under King Marthanda Varma defeated the Dutch East India Company in a unique amphibious battle fought both at sea and on land in 1741.

The Battle of Colachel was fought on July 31, 1741, about 68 km south of present-day Thiruvananthapuram, and historians describe it as the first victory of an Indian force over a well-armed European power.

Travancore forces under King Marthanda Varma, fighting both at sea and on land, overcame the Dutch. Colachel is now part of the state of Tamil Nadu.

"This earned the House of Travancore the unique distinction of being the only Asian military power to ever have defeated a leading European sea power at sea and land," a Defence release said here.

The victorious Marthanda Varma commemorated this achievement of Indian soldiers and sailors by erecting a majestic Victory Pillar near the beach at Colachel.

The commemoration took place at the Colachel War Memorial in Tamil Nadu's Kanyakumari district, which stands as a pillar of valour and remembrance of the Travancore Army's great victory over the Dutch forces.

A testimony: This pillar commemorates the victory of the Travancore army over the Dutch in the battle of Colachel.

Colonel Avinash Kumar Singh, Commanding Officer of the Madras Regiment at Thiruvananthapuram's Pangode Military Station, was the chief guest and laid a wreath at the memorial.

The event was attended by military and civilian dignitaries, retired officers, police officials, NCC cadets and local residents.

Among them were Major General VDI Devavaram, SM, VSM (Retd), Major General Flora (Retd), Vinayakumar Meena, IAS, Sub-Collector of Thakkalai, Kannadasan, Colachel DSP, and Kanniyappan, Municipal Commissioner.

The Indian Army also organised a public weapons display as part of the celebrations.