Abbakka: The Warrior Queen of India

Film on Abbakka :

The legacy of the 16th century queen Abbakka of Ullal will be revived. A 14th century Jain basadi in Ullal where she used to offer prayers is being rebuilt, a film on her is being planned, and a permanent memorial for her will soon be ready.

The film will be made by well-known film personality Jayamala. She told The Hindu that the film was still in the research stage and a number of consultations with the experts had been going on. While historians might have brushed aside Abbakka’s first battle with the Portuguese in 1546 as a small incident where a feudal kingdom was fighting to save itself, this brave queen with her small band of loyal soldiers kept the Portuguese forces out of Ullal and the Dakshina Kannada region. If not the enemy forces would have established their presence here much before they conquered Goa. The previous government had cleared Rs. 68 lakhs for constructing a “Abbakka Bhavan” in Ullal which is going to be a permanent memorial for the queen.

Former president of the Ullal Nagar Panchayat Dinakar Ullal says the town had struggled for a long time to restore Abbakka’s legacy but things started moving only recently. The Abbakka Rani Utsava Samithi had received the government’s approval for the project of Abbakka Bhavan and soon the work would be started. Several MPs and MLAs have promised funds, said Mr. Ullal.

Ullal town first organised the Rani Abbakka Utsav as a Nada Habba of Ullal in 1998. Rani Abbakka fought the Portuguese forces in 1546, destroyed a flotilla of their ships, and drove them away with a handful of her sailors who were a mix of communities, including Muslims, fishermen, Billavas, and Kshatriyas.

But all is not well with the Abbakka Utsav.

The committee headed by Mr. Ullal has found it extremely difficult to augment funds for holding the utsav on the scale of a Nada Habba. The committee has appealed to the Governor to provide funds to hold the utsav to honour the spirited queen.


Abbakka Ignored By Historians

Mangalore, Oct 17: Queen Abbakka was the first woman freedom fighter of the state. But unfortunately historians neglected her, lamented Prof Amrutha Someshwara, senior scholar in folklore and writer in Kannada, Tulu and Malayam here on Wednesday October 17.

He was addressing the gathering at Karnataka Tulu Sahitya Academy office after releasing the Tulu books titled Mannda Magal Abbakka' (Queen Abbakka daughter of the soil) and 'Darmogu Darmada Saval' written by MK Seetharam Kulal, president Tulu Sahitya Academy on Wednesday here.

Queen Abbakka has been neglected politically, socially and historically, the negligence and soft nature of the Tuluvas might have been the reason for this. She stands tall in the Indian history as she is the epitome of communal harmony and ideal ruler, he added.

History must be the outcome of a deep study, extensive research and vast reading. Details given by a historian must be authentic. This applies in the case of Queen Abbakka in all respects, as she ruled Ullal taking every one into confidence, he emphasized.

Language must be refined and scholarly when it comes to lives of historical figures, the write-up must neither be exaggerated nor neglected. Hence layman's language can not be used. Author must know the thin line drawn between day-to-day language and language used by the historical figures, he remarked.

The history of India must be read by children so that they are inspired to read the histor;, otherwise Rani Abbakka would mere be an entry in the India history. It is a rude fact that 95%of people living in Ullal do not know who Abbakka is. This must not continue, he cautioned.

Sharavu Raghavendra Shastri, managing trustee, Sharavu Mahaganapathi temple presided over the function. A paper was presented on Darmogu Darmada Saval by Dr Vamana Nandavara, scholar in folklore while Dr Gananatha Yekkar, HoD of Kannada, Government College, Udupi presented a paper on Mannda Magal Abbakka



The renowned Queen Abbakka Devi who ruled over the Ullal region of Dakshina Kannada during the medieval period has over the ages acquired undying fame for her brave defiance of Western invaders. She belonged to the Jain Dynasty of the Chowtas, who ruled over a wide domain with the temple town of Moodabidri as their headquarters. Their subsidiary capital was the port town of Ullal on the Arabian Sea Coast.

Succession in the Chowta dynasty was through the maternal line. The heir-apparent ruled over the Ullal. It was a prosperous port of export of merchandise like pepper, cardamom and other spices grown in the littoral south of the Portuguese colony of Goa. The Poruguese, the Dutch and the British vied with one another for control of the region. Their aim was colonization through naval supremacy. But the local Chieftains were powerful enough to resist their incursions. They also forged alliances to prevent the foreigners from gaining control over the coastal stretch. The fertile coastal belt thus remained the last bastion of Independence on the West coast during the middle ages. Resistance to alien domination cut across the caste and community lines.

The Chowta head of the dynasty Thirumala Raya had ensured Abbakka’s proficiency in martial arts and combat strategies through her training before sending her to Ullal, he also taught her the nuances of diplomacy and State-craft.

As the visitor proceeds to the beach-resort of Ullal to the south of Mangalore, he is attracted to the statue of Abbakka Devi on horseback. The inspiring statue of the Queen with a scimitar in her hand is indeed a reminder of the fearless Queen beckoning her army to fight the hoards of invaders attempting to invade the territory. Her courage in rallying her soldiers to battle against the alien forces had earned her the name of ABHAYA (fearless) Abbakka Devi.

The Queen’s uncle, Thirumala Raya had forged matrimonial alliance with the powerful head of the Banga dynasty of Mangalore. Abbakka was married to Lakshmappa Arasa, the Mangalore monarch. Mangalore was strategically situated to the north of Ullal across the harbour. The Bangas ruled over a vast area that included Bangawadi at the foot of the Western Ghats and Nandavara on the Netravathi river. The Banga – Chowta alliance was designed as a ploy to deter any aggressors.

Queen Abbakka Devi also had the foresight to arrive at mutual defence friendship agreement with the Zamorin of Calicut. The Zamorin was a marked enemy of the Portuguese colonial government in Goa. The Portuguese administration was clearly upset by the Queen’s tactics. They wanted her to pay them tribute for her alliance with the Zamorin. But paying them tribute would have implied knuckling down to their blandishments. The Queen therefore did not yield to their preposterous threat. That also would have meant conceding their authority over the Arabian Sea-coast. The Queen decided to withstand the threat posed by the foreign depredators. The Portugese administration of Goa sent a formidable naval force down the Arabian Sea to take over Ullal by storming the port. The Queen took up the challenge and met force by force. The battle against the Portuguese invaders took place in 1456 A.D. There was no clear decision in the battle. It ended with an uneasy truce.

Foiled by Abbakka Devi’s dominance, the Portuguese colonialists sent a much more formidable naval contingent to the Ullal area two years later. The next confrontation with the Queen’s forces followed in 1958. But when the Prouguese fleet led by Louis DE’ mellow attempted to take over Ullal they were confronted by a strong counter attack by the Queen’s army. The Portuguese were surprised by the Zamorin’s men who came to the aid of Queen Abbakka. The Arab Moors and the Muslim battallions of Malabar and southern Karnataka were also there to help the Queen’s forces.

The Portuguese invaders who were rattled then proceeded to go on a spree of sacking and pillaging the Ullal settlement. A number of houses were burnt down in this nefarious venture of indiscriminate plunder. The depredators were, however, stunned with the courageous defiance by the Queen’s soldiers. The Italian chronicler Pietro De’ valle said that the Queen’s astounding feat was on par with that of the British Queen Elizabeth I who defeated the Spanish armada.

The Portuguese freebooters who were thus beaten back then hit upon the ploy of concluding a trade pact with the Queen. Under the pretext of this arrangement they persisted with their bullying tactics. The Queen was asked not to strengthen her trade ties with the Zamorin. They also denounced the Queen’s trade agreement with Persia as a hostile act. The Portuguese imperialists sent a demarche to Queen Abbakka asking her to route all trade transactions with other countries through their intermediaries. Portuguese agents should be permitted to set up trade depots at Ullal, they demanded. But the Queen turned down their plea for any concessions.

Intrigue and treachery were the other weapons deployed by the Portuguese colonialists. They began resorting to upset Queen Abbakka by plotting discord between her and her husband’s court at Mangalore.
They also bribed Kama Raya, the ambitious heir-apparent to the throne of Abbakka Devi’s husband, King Lakshmappa Arasa. The senior counsellors of the Mangalore king’s court were also similarly bought over. The King was served with a stern warning that the Mangalore settlement would be burnt down if he were to help out the Ullal Queen. The King was thus prevented from sending reinforcements to help his wife Abbakka Devi in the next round of hostilities against the Portuguese invaders.

Confrontation between Queen Abbakka and the Portuguese continued unabated with the colonial power determined to make inroads into the Indian mainland. They attempted to seize and annex the Ullal territory by overthrowing the Queen. In the year 1481 A.D. the Goa Viceroy Anthony D’ Noronha led the attack against Ullal by an overwhelmingly superior armada. He came to the Ullal sea-front with a large number of battleships and a contingent of 3000 troops. Launching a pre-dawn surprise attack, the Portuguese mercenaries sneaked into the Ullal settlement. They set upon a rampage of indiscriminate killing, large-scale looting and wanton destruction.

The Queen who had gone to the Somanatheshwara temple was alerted about the treacherous invasion. She rushed to the battle-front rallying her forces to fight the enemy in a never-say-die defiance. She sounded the battle-cry of “Save the motherland, fight the invaders on land and the sea and push them back to the waters”. Abbakka led her men a desperate counter attack in her firm resolve to safeguard the freedom of the motherland to the last breath of her life.

The indomitable Queen came under a barrage of gunfire and was grievously hurt. Her loyal soldiers carried the Queen away so that the trecherous aliens do not lay their perfidious hands on her. Abbakka Devi was whisked away to the palace. Even as she breathed her last the Queen was heard sighing, “Push them back, throw them into the sea”. That was the brave Queen’s swan song. (PIB Features)
Posted by Mahavir S. Chavan at 10:24 AM 2 comments Labels: Abakka, Abbaka, Abbakka, Abhayadevi, jain queen, Tulunadu, Ullal
Warrior Queen Abbakka
Four hundred years ago, the emperor of Spain was fuming with anger and asked his Minister to bring the Commander of the Portuguese forces to his presence immediately.

The Portuguese Commander presented himself before the emperor soon. The emperor chastised the Commander and shouted with anger, "Are you not ashamed of being defeated again and again by a black dwarfish Indian woman by name Abbakka? Who is she? Is she superhuman as to challenge us? The entire Europe today is talking about our defeat; in the Clubs, the Churches, the markets and everywhere people are discussing about our defeat by a woman. Though she is our enemy, I have great admiration for that heroic woman Abbakka. Tell me something more about her".

The Portuguese Commander heaved a sigh of relief and said, "Your Majesty, there is a small State called Ullala, very near Mangalore, where we have our trading centres and that area is under our control. Abbakka belongs to a family known as Chauta; her husband belongs to Banga family and Mangalore is under his control. But husband and wife do not like each other and have fought many battles too. Taking advantage of their quarrel, we helped the husband to wage a war against his wife Abbakka, but she repulsed us and we had to withdraw many times."The Portuguese Minister joined the conversation and said, "There are two queens by the same name Abbakka, the mother and the daughter. Both of them have defeated us but the daughter Abbakka is more dangerous and she is the one who has brought disgrace to us". Are there no kings in that kingdom, asked the emperor. "Your Majesty! They have a different system of succession. If a king dies, his sister's son becomes the King. If the sister has no son, then the daughter gets the kingdom. This is called Aliya Santana in their language. That is how senior Abbakka's kingdom has come down to junior Abbakka about whom we are talking". The emperor walked out in disgust.

Pietro Della Valle was an Italian traveller and when he was in Persia, he had an audience with Persian emperor Shiya Abbas. During the conversation with the emperor, Pietro told him that he would be visiting India shortly. The Persian emperor was supremely happy and told Pietro, "When you go to India, please go to Mangalore without fail. There is a pepper queen by name Abbakka, who is the talk of the town in Europe for her victory over the Portuguese. Do not miss to meet that heroic woman.

The wretched Portuguese are most unethical I have seen. There was a family quarrel between Abbakka and her husband Narasimha, and taking advantage of this, the treacherous Portuguese sided with the husband and made him fight a war against his own wife. Of course, ultimately queen Abbakka taught a lesson both to her husband and to the Portuguese. I admire that great queen". Pietro became curious and he came to India, went to Ullala and met the queen Abbakka many times and had dinner with her and subsequently wrote gloriously about her. The Portuguese had the monopoly of trade in the Western coast and compelled all the kings and merchants to sell pepper, cardamom, cotton, rice and other commodities to them only at very low prices.

Abbakka refused to the Portuguese terms of trade. She sent ships laden with pepper and other commodities directly to Arabia and Persia and earned huge profits. The Persian and Arabian merchants were also happy because the prices quoted by Abbakka were far less as compared to the prices demanded by the Portuguese and hailed Abbakka as a trader practicing fair means. She became famous as pepper queen. The Portuguese obstructed her trade and waged wars against her. Undaunted Abbakka with the help of Keladi King Venkatappa Nayaka and Zamorin of Calicut, fought against the Portuguese, seized four Portuguese ships and made the Portuguese withdraw.

But the Portuguese did not keep quiet. Again and finally in 1618 AD, the Portuguese attacked Abbakka again and she crushed the Portuguese and their allies and this made great news in Europe, Persia and other countries. Abbakka, though a queen of a small kingdom of Ullala, took great interest in the welfare of her subjects helping them in agriculture by building dams. She also took other measures to help the people.

Actually, she always worked with her people taking part personally and earned a good name as a benevolent queen. She was very simple, always dressed in simple attire and Pietro mistook her for the first time for an ordinary common woman. She never used a parasol or a white umbrella as all queens do but carried an umbrella made of palm or areca tree feather - like leaves.

But she was the first person to stand against the foreigners, in this case the Portuguese, and put an end to their political ambition, commercial malpractices, religious conversions and destruction of temples. From this point of view, she may be considered as an early freedom fighter. But alas! The historians have not paid attention to this aspect and have neglected her. But she received rich encomiums from Persians and many Europeans including her enemies and they saluted her silently. That is the greatness of Abbakka.

Historical Queens

Born Manikarnika
19 November 1828(1828-11-19)
Kashi, Varanasi, India
Died 17 June 1858 (aged 29)
Gwalior, India
Other names Manu, Chhabili
Title Rani of Jhansi

Lakshmi bai, The Rani (Queen) of Jhansi (c.19 November 1828 – 17 June 1858) (Devanagari- झाँसी की रानी Marathi- झाशीची राणी), known as Jhansi Ki Rani, the queen of the Jhansi, was one of the leading figures of the First Freedom Struggle of India, and a symbol of resistance to British rule in India. She has gone down in Indian history as a legendary figure, the firebrand who began the Indian Revolution against British Colonialism and for Indian independence.


Originally named Manikarnika at birth (nicknamed Manu), she was born on 19 November 1828 at Kashi (Varanasi) to a Brahmin family.She was also known as Chulbuli because of her jolly ways & beauty. She lost her mother at the age of four. She was educated at home. Her father Moropant Tambe worked at the court of Peshwa at Bithur and then travelled to the court of Raja Bal Gangadhar Rao Newalkar, the Maharaja of Jhansi, when Manu was thirteen years old. She was married to Gangadhar Rao, the Raja of Jhansi, at the age of fourteen[1] and was given the new name 'Lakshmi Bai'. Because of her father's influence at court, Rani Lakshmi Bai had more independence than most women, who were normally restricted to the zenana[citation needed]: She studied self defence, horsemanship, archery, and even formed [2] her own army out of her female friends at court.

Rani Lakshmi Bai[3] gave birth to a son in 1851, however this child died when he was about four months old. After the death of their son, the Raja and Rani of Jhansi adopted Damodar Rao. However, it is said that her husband the Raja never recovered from his son's death, and he died on 21 November 1853 of a broken heart.

Because Damodar Rao was adopted and not biologically related to the Raja, the East India Company, under Governor-General Lord Dalhousie, was able to install the Doctrine of Lapse, rejecting Rao's claim to the throne. Dalhousie then annexed Jhansi, saying that the throne had become "lapsed" and thus put Jhansi under his "protection". In March 1854, the Rani was given a pension of 60,000 rupees and ordered to leave the palace at the Jhansi fort.

[edit] The Great Rebellion of 1857
While this was happening in Jhansi, on May 10, 1857 the Sepoy (soldier) Mutiny of India started in Meerut. This would become the starting point for the rebellion against the British. It began after rumours were put about that the new bullet casings for their Enfield rifles were coated with pork/beef fat, pigs being taboo to Muslims and cows sacred to Hindus and thus forbidden to eat. British commanders insisted on their use and started to discipline anyone who disobeyed. During this rebellion many British soldiers and officers of the East India Company were killed by the sepoys. The British wanted to end the rebellion quickly.

Meanwhile, unrest began to spread throughout India and in May 1857, the First War of Indian Independence erupted in numerous pockets across the northern subcontinent. During this chaotic time, the British were forced to focus their attentions elsewhere, and Lakshmi Bai was essentially left to rule Jhansi alone. During this time, her qualities were repeatedly demonstrated as she was able swiftly and efficiently to lead her troops against skirmishes breaking out in Jhansi. Through this leadership Lakshmi Bai was able to keep Jhansi relatively calm and peaceful in the midst of the Empire’s unrest.[4]

Up to this point, she had been hesitant to rebel against the British, and there is still some controversy over her role in the massacre of the British HEIC officials and their wives and children on the 8th June 1857 at Jokhan Bagh[5]. Her hesitation finally ended when British troops arrived under Sir Hugh Rose and laid siege to Jhansi on 23 March 1858. Rani Laxmibai with her faithful warriors decided not to surrender. The fighting continued for about two weeks. Shelling on Jhansi was very fierce. In the Jhansi army women were also carrying ammunition and were supplying food to the soldiers. Rani Lakshmi Bai was very active. She herself was inspecting the defense of the city. She rallied her troops around her and fought fiercely against the British. An army of 20,000, headed by the rebel leader Tatya Tope, was sent to relieve Jhansi and to take Lakshmi Bai to freedom. However, the British, though numbering only 1,540 in the field so as not to break the siege, were better trained and disciplined than the “raw recruits,” and these inexperienced soldiers turned and fled shortly after the British began to attack on the 31st March. Lakshmi Bai’s forces could not hold out and three days later the British were able to breach the city walls and capture the city. Yet Lakshmi Bai escaped over the wall at night and fled from her city, surrounded by her guards, many of whom were from her women’s military.[6]

Along with the young Damodar Rao, the Rani decamped to Kalpi along with her forces where she joined other rebel forces, including those of Tantiya Tope. The Rani and Tatya Tope moved on to Gwalior, where the combined rebel forces defeated the army of the Maharaja of Gwalior after his armies deserted to the rebel forces. They then occupied the strategic fort at Gwalior. However on the second day of fighting, on 18 June 1858, the Rani died.

She died on 17 June 1858 during the battle for Gwalior with 8th Hussars that took place in Kotah-Ki-Serai near Phool Bagh area of Gwalior. She donned warrior's clothes and rode into battle to save Gwalior Fort, about 120 miles west of Lucknow in what is now the state of Uttar Pradesh. The British captured Gwalior three days later. In the report of the battle for Gwalior, General Hugh Rose (was known as sir Hugh Rose) commented that the rani "remarkable for her beauty, cleverness and perseverance" had been "the most dangerous of all the rebel leaders"[7].

However, the lack of a corpse to be convincingly identified as the Rani convinced Captain Rheese of the so called "bravest" regiment that she had not actually perished in the battle for Gwalior, stating publicly that:"[the] Queen of Jhansi is alive!" [8]. It is believed her funeral was arranged on same day near the spot where she was wounded. One of the her maidservants helped with the arrangement of quick funeral.

Because of her bravery, courage, and wisdom, and her progressive views on women's empowerment in 19th century India, and due to her sacrifices, she became an icon of Indian independence movement. The Rani was memorialized in bronze statues at both Jhansi and Gwalior, both of which portray her on horseback.She was a very brave queen who sacrificed her self for India.

Her father, Moropant Tambey, was captured and hanged a few days after the fall of Jhansi. Her adopted son, Damodar Rao, was given a pension by the British Raj and cared for, although he never received his inheritance.

[edit] Legacy
Rani Lakshmi Bai became a national heroine and was seen as the epitome of female bravery in India. When the Indian National Army created its first female unit, it was named after her.

Indian poetess Subhadra Kumari Chauhan wrote a poem in the Veer Ras style about her, which is still recited by children in schools of contemporary India.

In a prophetic statement in the 1878 book The History of the Indian Mutiny, Colonel Malleson said "...her countrymen will always believe that she was driven by ill-treatment into rebellion; that her cause was a righteous cause; ..... To them she will always be a heroine."[9]

[edit] In fiction
Flashman in the Great Game by George MacDonald Fraser, a historical fiction novel about the Indian Revolt describing several meetings between Flashman and the Rani.
La femme sacrée, in French, by Michel de Grèce. A novel based on the Rani of Jhansi's life in which the author imagines an affair between the Rani and an English lawyer.
Nightrunners of Bengal by John Masters provides a fictional account of the relationship between a British officer, Rodney Savage, and a rani based on Lakshmi Bai. It was the American Literary Guild's Book of the Month on publication in January 1951, but faced some criticism for perceived political views. It is part of a series of historical novels about a fictional British family serving in India.
The Queen of Jhansi, the English translation of Jhansir Rani by Mahashweta Devi. This book is fictional reconstruction of life of Rani Lakshmi Bai and was originally published in Bengali in 1956. ISBN 81-7046-175-8
Flow Red the Ganges, a 1972 novel in English by Norman Partington.
Raj of the Rani by Tapti Roy. A biography of Lakshmi bai in English. Published by Penguin Books in 2006.
Rani, a 2007 novel in English by Jaishree Misra.