Seringapatam
SERINGAPATAM, or SRIRANGAPATANA, a town of India, formerly capital of the state of Mysore, situated on an island of the same name in the Cauvery river. Pop. (1901) 8584. The town is chiefly noted for its fortress, which figured prominently in Indian history at the close of the 18th century. This formidable stronghold of Tippoo Sultan twice sustained a siege from the British, and was finally stormed in 1799. After its capture the island was ceded to the British, but restored to Mysore in 1881. The island of Seringapatam is about 3 m. in length from east to west and i in breadth, and yields valuable crops of rice and sugar-cane. The fort occupies the western side, immediately overhanging the river. Seringapatam is said to have been founded in 1454 by a descendant of one of the local officers appointed by Ramanuja, the Vishnuite apostle, who named it the city of Sri Ranga or Vishnu. At the eastern or lower end of the island is the Lai Bagh or " red garden," containing the mausoleum built by Tippoo Sultan for his father Hyder Ali, in which Tippoo himself also lies.
Note - this article incorporates content from Encyclopaedia Britannica, Eleventh Edition, (1910-1911)
