Siege of Pondicherry (1778)
Encyclopedia
The 1778 Siege of Pondicherry was the first military action on the India
n subcontinent following the declaration of war between Great Britain
and France
in the American War of Independence. A British force besieged the French-controlled port of Pondicherry, which capitulated after ten weeks of siege.
decided to enter the American War of Independence as an ally to the United States
. Word first reached the French India
n colony of Pondicherry in July 1778 that France and Britain
had recalled their ambassadors, a sign that war was imminent. The British colonies had already received orders to seize the French possessions in India and begun military preparations.
, had at his disposal about 700 French troops and 400 sepoy
s (local Indian troops), and a city whose fortifications were in some disrepair. Pondicherry, as was the case with a number of other European colonial outposts in India, changed hands due to military action several times in the colonial period. Attempts to significantly improve its defences after the last round of battles in the Seven Years' War
were frustrated by political infighting in the French colonial administration. In 1778 the outer works of the city were largely incomplete, with significant elements unfinished and parts of the city exposed to direct attack.
Bellecombe immediately set about improving the defences, working as quickly as possible in anticipation of British movements. Key gates were blocked, stockade
s and gun batteries were constructed along the shore, and anything that might give cover to the British on their advance on the defences was removed or destroyed. Bellecombe also received additional troops before the British arrived. The garrison from Karikal (which the British occupied on 10 August) add about 100 sepoys to the defence, and some of Pondicherry's inhabitants also took up arms.
A small French navy was assembled to counteract the small British navy. Admiral Tronjoli took command of the 64-gun ship of the line
Le Brillant, and the rest of the fleet consisted of the frigate La Pourvoyeuse and three smaller ships, La Sartine, Le Lauriston, and Le Brisson.
The first noteworthy exchange between the forces was a naval encounter. Admiral Edward Vernon's fleet also consisted of five ships, carrying slightly less firepower than the French fleet. Vernon commanded the 60-gun ship of the line , and was assisted by Coventry, Seahorse, Cormorant, and Valentine. In a largely inconsequential two-hour engagement in which Tronjoli was wounded, the French fleet drove Vernon away on 10 August. On 14 August French ships spotted two unknown sails; they were transport ships of the British East India Company
. Their captains, apparently unaware of the hostilities, sailed before Pondicherry with British flags flying. Two of the French fleet lazily gave chase, resulting in the capture of La Sartine when she strayed too close too the British squadron. The loss of parity between the navies was partially made up by the arrival at Pondicherry of the 26-gun frigate Elizabeth, a private ship that was pressed into service in the French fleet.
On 20 August, the British fleet, now six ships, appeared again. The French fleet, although it had been augmented by Elizabeth, was forced to leave Le Brisson in the harbour due to damage sustained in the first engagement, and was thus at a disadvantage. The next day, Tronjoli sailed the rest of the fleet south. Sources disagree on whether or not battle was offered or attempted on either side, but apparently no battle took place, and Tronjoli continued south. Bellecombe was surprised and dismayed to learn on 2 September that Tronjoli had sailed for Île de France
, leaving Elizabeth and La Pourvoyeuse behind.
The British troops were not noticeably active in their siege operations until September. Bellecombe used the remaining time to further strengthen the defences, constructing more dikes and iron-cladding the powder magazine. He also repeatedly had to stop the ineffective fire of cannon at the distant British positions.
, and the southernmost bastion. Batteries were established to cover this work, and a third battery was placed to the southwest on 3 September that was positioned to enfilade the French defences. Bellecombe's response was to send out a few hundred men to feint
an attack on the southern battery. This drew nearly 3,000 British troops within reach of the French guns, which inflicted significant damage with only a single French death.
The British siege operation proceeded throughout September, often under heavy fire. British batteries moved progressively closer to the walls, inflicting heavy damage within the city. The hospital had to be evacuated, and the powder magazine (a particular target of the British guns) was also emptied. On 19 September a British cannonball killed the commander of the French artillery. By 24 September breaches were beginning to show in the bastions under attack, and by 6 October the British trenches had reached the inner ditches, with additional gun batteries doing significant damage along the entire French works.
On 25 September the French attempted a nighttime sortie
to destroy the southern battery. The effort was abandoned when secrecy was lost (a sentry was disarmed but not killed, so he was able to raise the alarm) and when the company lost its way. A second sortie on 4 October was a little more successful. The southwest gun battery was reached while its crew was asleep; the guns were spiked (albeit poorly enough that they were soon back in service), and some of the crew were slaughtered. Bellecombe also received a minor injury after being struck by a musketball on 4 October, but was able to continue leading the defence.
Bellecombe, in addition to the proximity of the British siege trenches, was also running out of ammunition. After holding a war council on 15 October, he sent a truce flag to Munro the next day, and terms of capitulation were signed on 18 October.
Britain followed up the victory by seizing France's other Indian colonies, contributing to the outbreak of the of Second Mysore War.
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n subcontinent following the declaration of war between Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
in the American War of Independence. A British force besieged the French-controlled port of Pondicherry, which capitulated after ten weeks of siege.
Background
Following the stunning American victory at Saratoga in October 1777, FranceFrance
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
decided to enter the American War of Independence as an ally to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Word first reached the French India
French India
French India is a general name for the former French possessions in India These included Pondichéry , Karikal and Yanaon on the Coromandel Coast, Mahé on the Malabar Coast, and Chandannagar in Bengal...
n colony of Pondicherry in July 1778 that France and Britain
Kingdom of Great Britain
The former Kingdom of Great Britain, sometimes described as the 'United Kingdom of Great Britain', That the Two Kingdoms of Scotland and England, shall upon the 1st May next ensuing the date hereof, and forever after, be United into One Kingdom by the Name of GREAT BRITAIN. was a sovereign...
had recalled their ambassadors, a sign that war was imminent. The British colonies had already received orders to seize the French possessions in India and begun military preparations.
French defenses
Pondicherry was the capital of French India and the largest of France's possessions on the subcontinent. The British would capture all of the other possessions without resistance in 1778; only Pondicherry was actively defended. The French governor, General Guillaume de BellecombeGuillaume de Bellecombe
Guillaume Léonard de Bellecombe was Governor General of Réunion, Haiti and Pondichéry. According to most accounts he was born in 1728 in France....
, had at his disposal about 700 French troops and 400 sepoy
Sepoy
A sepoy was formerly the designation given to an Indian soldier in the service of a European power. In the modern Indian Army, Pakistan Army and Bangladesh Army it remains in use for the rank of private soldier.-Etymology and Historical usage:...
s (local Indian troops), and a city whose fortifications were in some disrepair. Pondicherry, as was the case with a number of other European colonial outposts in India, changed hands due to military action several times in the colonial period. Attempts to significantly improve its defences after the last round of battles in the Seven Years' War
Seven Years' War
The Seven Years' War was a global military war between 1756 and 1763, involving most of the great powers of the time and affecting Europe, North America, Central America, the West African coast, India, and the Philippines...
were frustrated by political infighting in the French colonial administration. In 1778 the outer works of the city were largely incomplete, with significant elements unfinished and parts of the city exposed to direct attack.
Bellecombe immediately set about improving the defences, working as quickly as possible in anticipation of British movements. Key gates were blocked, stockade
Stockade
A stockade is an enclosure of palisades and tall walls made of logs placed side by side vertically with the tops sharpened to provide security.-Stockade as a security fence:...
s and gun batteries were constructed along the shore, and anything that might give cover to the British on their advance on the defences was removed or destroyed. Bellecombe also received additional troops before the British arrived. The garrison from Karikal (which the British occupied on 10 August) add about 100 sepoys to the defence, and some of Pondicherry's inhabitants also took up arms.
A small French navy was assembled to counteract the small British navy. Admiral Tronjoli took command of the 64-gun ship of the line
Ship of the line
A ship of the line was a type of naval warship constructed from the 17th through the mid-19th century to take part in the naval tactic known as the line of battle, in which two columns of opposing warships would manoeuvre to bring the greatest weight of broadside guns to bear...
Le Brillant, and the rest of the fleet consisted of the frigate La Pourvoyeuse and three smaller ships, La Sartine, Le Lauriston, and Le Brisson.
Preliminaries
The British colonial administration in Madras placed General Hector Munro in command of an army of nearly 20,000 men, which began arriving within a few miles of Pondicherry on 8 August. By 20 August the full army had arrived, the city was surrounded, and siege operations began.The first noteworthy exchange between the forces was a naval encounter. Admiral Edward Vernon's fleet also consisted of five ships, carrying slightly less firepower than the French fleet. Vernon commanded the 60-gun ship of the line , and was assisted by Coventry, Seahorse, Cormorant, and Valentine. In a largely inconsequential two-hour engagement in which Tronjoli was wounded, the French fleet drove Vernon away on 10 August. On 14 August French ships spotted two unknown sails; they were transport ships of the British East India Company
British East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
. Their captains, apparently unaware of the hostilities, sailed before Pondicherry with British flags flying. Two of the French fleet lazily gave chase, resulting in the capture of La Sartine when she strayed too close too the British squadron. The loss of parity between the navies was partially made up by the arrival at Pondicherry of the 26-gun frigate Elizabeth, a private ship that was pressed into service in the French fleet.
On 20 August, the British fleet, now six ships, appeared again. The French fleet, although it had been augmented by Elizabeth, was forced to leave Le Brisson in the harbour due to damage sustained in the first engagement, and was thus at a disadvantage. The next day, Tronjoli sailed the rest of the fleet south. Sources disagree on whether or not battle was offered or attempted on either side, but apparently no battle took place, and Tronjoli continued south. Bellecombe was surprised and dismayed to learn on 2 September that Tronjoli had sailed for Île de France
Mauritius
Mauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar...
, leaving Elizabeth and La Pourvoyeuse behind.
The British troops were not noticeably active in their siege operations until September. Bellecombe used the remaining time to further strengthen the defences, constructing more dikes and iron-cladding the powder magazine. He also repeatedly had to stop the ineffective fire of cannon at the distant British positions.
Siege operations
On the night of 1 September the British advanced a force of about 300 as cover for engineers to begin siege operations. Two positions were identified for attack; the northwest bastionBastion
A bastion, or a bulwark, is a structure projecting outward from the main enclosure of a fortification, situated in both corners of a straight wall , facilitating active defence against assaulting troops...
, and the southernmost bastion. Batteries were established to cover this work, and a third battery was placed to the southwest on 3 September that was positioned to enfilade the French defences. Bellecombe's response was to send out a few hundred men to feint
Feint
Feint is a French term that entered English from the discipline of fencing. Feints are maneuvers designed to distract or mislead, done by giving the impression that a certain maneuver will take place, while in fact another, or even none, will...
an attack on the southern battery. This drew nearly 3,000 British troops within reach of the French guns, which inflicted significant damage with only a single French death.
The British siege operation proceeded throughout September, often under heavy fire. British batteries moved progressively closer to the walls, inflicting heavy damage within the city. The hospital had to be evacuated, and the powder magazine (a particular target of the British guns) was also emptied. On 19 September a British cannonball killed the commander of the French artillery. By 24 September breaches were beginning to show in the bastions under attack, and by 6 October the British trenches had reached the inner ditches, with additional gun batteries doing significant damage along the entire French works.
On 25 September the French attempted a nighttime sortie
Sortie
Sortie is a term for deployment or dispatch of one military unit, be it an aircraft, ship, or troops from a strongpoint. The sortie, whether by one or more aircraft or vessels, usually has a specific mission....
to destroy the southern battery. The effort was abandoned when secrecy was lost (a sentry was disarmed but not killed, so he was able to raise the alarm) and when the company lost its way. A second sortie on 4 October was a little more successful. The southwest gun battery was reached while its crew was asleep; the guns were spiked (albeit poorly enough that they were soon back in service), and some of the crew were slaughtered. Bellecombe also received a minor injury after being struck by a musketball on 4 October, but was able to continue leading the defence.
Siege ends
Between 6 and 13 October the British siege operations continued, but were hampered by heavy rains. The British succeeded in draining the northern ditch, which the French unsuccessfully attempted to reflood. On 14 October the walls of the two bastions targeted by the besiegers lay in ruins, and preparations began for an assault.Bellecombe, in addition to the proximity of the British siege trenches, was also running out of ammunition. After holding a war council on 15 October, he sent a truce flag to Munro the next day, and terms of capitulation were signed on 18 October.
Aftermath
The French defence force of less than 1,500 had withstood a siege of nearly eighty days by a British force that numbered 20,000. The defenders losses were high: more than 300 French and nearly 150 sepoy casualties, along with more than 200 civilian casualties. The British suffered more than 900 casualties. The French defenders were allowed to march out with full colours, and were eventually returned to France.Britain followed up the victory by seizing France's other Indian colonies, contributing to the outbreak of the of Second Mysore War.