Editing Tipu Sultan (section)

== Administration ==
Tipu introduced a new calendar, new coinage, and seven new government departments, during his reign, and made military innovations in the use of rocketry.

===Mysorean rockets===
{{main|Mysorean rockets}}

[[File:Indian soldier of Tipu Sultan's army.jpg|thumb|upright|A soldier from Tipu Sultan's army, using his [[rocket]] as a flagstaff.]]
[[File:Congreve rockets.gif|thumb|Tipu Sultan organised his [[Rocket]] artillery brigades known as ''Cushoons'', Tipu Sultan expanded the number of servicemen in the various ''Cushoons'' from 1500 to almost 5000. The [[Mysorean rockets]] utilised by Tipu Sultan, were later updated by the British and successively employed during the [[Napoleonic Wars]].]]

Dr [[APJ Abdul Kalam]], the former [[President of India]], in his Tipu Sultan Shaheed Memorial Lecture in Bangalore (30 November 1991), called Tipu Sultan the innovator of the world's first war rocket. Two of these rockets, captured by the British at Srirangapatna, were displayed in the [[Firepower – The Royal Artillery Museum|Royal Artillery Museum]] in London. According to historian Dr [[Dulari Qureshi]] Tipu Sultan was a fierce warrior king and was so quick in his movement that it seemed to the enemy that he was fighting on many fronts at the same time.<ref name="hindu">{{cite news |url=http://www.hindu.com/mag/2010/11/07/stories/2010110750210500.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131029152509/http://www.hindu.com/mag/2010/11/07/stories/2010110750210500.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=29 October 2013 |title=Tipu's legend lives on  |last1=Zachariah |first1=Mini Pant |newspaper=[[The Hindu]] |date=7 November 2010 |access-date=18 December 2013}}</ref> Tipu managed to subdue all the petty kingdoms in the south. He was also one of the few Indian rulers to have defeated British armies.

Tipu Sultan's father had expanded on [[Mysorean rockets|Mysore's use of rocketry]], making critical innovations in the rockets themselves and the military logistics of their use. He deployed as many as 1,200 specialised troops in his army to operate rocket launchers. These men were skilled in operating the weapons and were trained to launch their rockets at an angle calculated from the diameter of the cylinder and the distance to the target. The rockets had twin side sharpened blades mounted on them, and when fired ''en masse'', spun and wreaked significant damage against a large army. Tipu greatly expanded the use of rockets after Hyder's death, deploying as many as 5,000 rocketeers at a time.<ref name="5000 rockets">{{cite news |title=Over 5,000 'war rockets' of Tipu Sultan unearthed |url=https://www.deccanherald.com/state/over-1000-war-rockets-tipu-684169.html |access-date=16 September 2020 |work=Deccan Herald |date=28 July 2018}}</ref> The rockets deployed by Tipu during the [[Battle of Pollilur (1780)|Battle of Pollilur]] were much more advanced than those the British East India Company had previously seen, chiefly because of the use of iron tubes for holding the propellant; this enabled higher thrust and longer range for the missiles (up to 2&nbsp;km range).<ref name="5000 rockets"/><ref name=Narasimha/>

British accounts describe the use of the rockets during the third and fourth wars.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://indianexpress.com/article/research/how-the-mysorean-rocket-helped-tipu-sultans-military-might-gain-new-heights/|title=How the Mysorean rocket helped Tipu Sultan's military might gain new heights|date=5 August 2018}}</ref> During the climactic battle at Srirangapatna in 1799, British shells struck a magazine containing rockets, causing it to explode and send a towering cloud of black smoke with cascades of exploding white light rising up from the battlements. After Tipu's defeat in the fourth war the British captured a number of the Mysorean rockets. These became influential in British rocket development, inspiring the [[Congreve rocket]], which was soon put into use in the [[Napoleonic Wars]].<ref name=Narasimha>{{cite web |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/37179995 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110727034357/https://www.nal.res.in/pdf/pdfrocket.pdf |title=Rockets in Mysore and Britain, 1750–1850 A.D. |last=Narasimha |first=Roddam |date=27 July 2011 |archive-date=27 July 2011 |publisher=National Aeronautical Laboratory and Indian Institute of Science.}}</ref>

===Navy===
In 1786 Tipu Sultan, again following the lead of his father, decided to build a navy consisting of 20 battleships of 72 cannons and 20 frigates of 65 cannons. In the year 1790 he appointed Kamaluddin as his ''Mir Bahar'' and established massive dockyards at [[Jamalabad]] and Majidabad. Tipu Sultan's board of admiralty consisted of 11 commanders in service of a ''Mir Yam''. A ''Mir Yam'' led 30 admirals and each one of them had two ships. Tipu Sultan ordered that the ships have [[copper sheathing|copper-bottoms]], an idea that increased the longevity of the ships and was introduced to Tipu by [[Pierre André de Suffren de Saint Tropez|Admiral Suffren]].{{sfn|Roy|2011|p=22}}

===Army===
Due to their perpetual battle engagements, Haidar and Tipu required a disciplined standing army. Thus, [[Rajput]]s, Muslims and able tribal men were enrolled for full time service replacing the local militia called the ''Kandachar''<ref>{{cite book |first=Mysore Hatti |last=Gopal|date=1960|title=The Finances Of The Mysore State 1799 – 1831 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9UJKAAAAMAAJ&q=Kandachar+militia|publisher=Orient Longmans|page=255|quote=These were armed militia who served as police officers, helped in the collection of revenue and often garrisoned small forts . They resembled the sibundi in the Company ' s territories . In Mysore they were divided into the huzur kandachar or those who were in the capital and about the Maharaja, and the taluq kandachar or those in the taluqs, the latter being far more numerous than the former.}}</ref> force of agricultural origin which existed in the Mysore army earlier. The removal of the [[Vokkaliga]]s from the local militia which had taken part in wars for centuries and the imposition of higher taxes on them in place of their quit rent led indirectly to the implementation of [[Ryotwari]] system. Now the [[Ryot#Ryotwari system|Ryots]] could not rely upon slaves for their agricultural activities since their slaves were enrolled in the army in some places. Besides paying higher taxes they had to endure the additional responsibility of feeding the slaves and financing their marriages. This led to the weakening of the system of slavery in [[Mysore]].<ref>{{cite book |editor=R. Gopal|date=2010|title=Tipu Sultan: The Tiger of Mysore |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tDT0UsWn7mUC&q=vokkaliga+kandachar|location=Mysore|publisher=Directorate of Archaeology and Museums, Government of Karnataka|page=279|oclc=813417527|quote=Since Haidar and Tipu were perpetually engaged in battles, they formed a disciplined standing army . Thus, instead of the local militia called the Kandachar force of agricultural origin which existed in the Mysore army earlier, Haidar and Tipu enrolled to their army forces the able tribal men, Muslims and Rajputs on full time service. In this way, Haidar and Tipu removed the Vokkaligas of the agricultural base from the local militia which took part in wars for centuries and in place of their quit rent, they imposed higher taxes and thus became indirectly responsible for implementation of Ryotwari system. The Ryots were not liberated from the shackles of Kandachar service; the slaves who were with them were enrolled in the army in some places. As a result, the Ryots removed from the military service could not even rely upon slaves for their agricultural activities. Hence these ryots had to endure the greater responsibility of feeding the slaves and of financing their marriages besides paying the higher taxes. So in the plains of Mysore the system of slavery was loosened.}}</ref>

=== Economy ===
{{Main|Economy of the Kingdom of Mysore}}
{{Further|Mysore silk|Economic history of India}}

The peak of [[Economy of the Kingdom of Mysore|Mysore's economic power]] was under Tipu Sultan in the late 18th century. Along with his father Hyder Ali, he embarked on an ambitious program of economic development, aiming to increase the wealth and revenue of Mysore.{{sfn|Parthasarathi|2011|p=207}} Under his reign, Mysore overtook [[Bengal Subah]] as [[Economic history of India|India's dominant economic power]], with highly productive [[agriculture]] and [[textile manufacturing]].{{sfn|Parthasarathi|2011|pp=38, 271}} Mysore's average income was five times higher than [[subsistence]] level at the time.{{sfn|Parthasarathi|2011|p=45}}

Tipu Sultan laid the foundation for the construction of the [[Kannambadi]] dam (present-day [[Krishna Raja Sagara]] or KRS dam) on the [[Kaveri]] river, as attested by an extant stone plaque bearing his name, but was unable to begin the construction.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.deccanchronicle.com/opinion/op-ed/040819/tiger-of-mysore-saviour-or-savage.html|title=Tiger of Mysore: Saviour or savage?|website=Deccan Chronicle|date=4 August 2019|access-date=22 September 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/miscellaneous/how-tipu-sultan-was-the-original-tech-innovator/articleshow/61588682.cms|title=How Tipu Sultan was the original tech innovator|website=[[The Economic Times]]|date=10 November 2017|access-date=22 September 2019|last1=Shekhar|first1=Divya}}</ref> The dam was later built and opened in 1938. It is a major source of drinking water for the people of Mysore and Bangalore.

The [[Mysore silk]] industry was first initiated during the reign of Tipu Sultan.<ref name="Hunter512">{{cite book |last1=Hunter |first1=William Wilson |title=The Indian empire : its peoples, history, and products |year=1886 |publisher=Trubner, London |page=512 |url=https://archive.org/details/indianempireitsp00huntrich/page/512/mode/1up?q=tipu |access-date=21 June 2020}}</ref> He sent an expert to [[Bengal Subah]] to study [[silk]] cultivation and processing, after which Mysore began developing polyvoltine silk.<ref name="Global Silk Industry"/>

The greater prominence of the [[Channapatna toys]] can be traced to patronage from Tipu Sultan, the historic ruler of [[Mysore]], though these toys existed before this period historically given as gifts as part of [[Mysore Dasara|Dusshera]] celebrations. It is known that he was an ardent admirer of arts, and in particular of woodwork.<ref name="Handmade">Handmade in India: A Geographic Encyclopedia of Indian, Page 362, Aditi Ranjan, M. P. Ranjan (2009)</ref>

==== Road development ====
Tipu Sultan was considered as pioneer of road construction, especially in Malabar, as part of his campaigns, he connected most of the cities by roads.<ref name="Edgar185">{{cite book |last1=Edgar |first1=Thurston |title=The Madras presidency, with Mysore, Coorg and the associated states |publisher=Cambridge, University press |page=185 |url=https://archive.org/details/cu31924021471002/page/n200/mode/1up |access-date=9 May 2020}}</ref>

===Foreign relations===

[[File:Louis XVI Receives the Ambassadors of Tipu Sultan 1788 Voyer after Emile Wattier 19th century.jpg|thumb|[[Louis XVI]] receives the ambassadors of Tipu Sultan in 1788. Tipu Sultan is known to have sent many diplomatic missions to France, the [[Ottoman Empire]], [[Sultanate of Oman]], [[Zand dynasty]] and [[Durrani Empire]].<ref>{{cite web|author=B. Sheik Ali |date=August 1999 |title=The Vision and Mission of Tipu Sultan |work=Islamic Voice |url=http://www.islamicvoice.com/august.99/tippu.htm |access-date=16 August 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-date=5 October 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111005002119/http://www.islamicvoice.com/august.99/tippu.htm}}</ref>]]

;Mughal Empire

Both Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan owed nominal allegiance to the [[Mughal Emperor]] [[Shah Alam II]]; both were described as [[Nabob]]s by the [[British East India Company]] in all existing treaties. But unlike the [[Nawab of Carnatic]], they did not acknowledge the overlordship of the [[Nizam of Hyderabad]].{{sfn|Brittlebank|1999|p={{page needed|date=September 2023}}}}

Immediately after his coronation as ''Badshah'', Tipu Sultan sought the investiture of the Mughal emperor. He earned the title ''"Nasib-ud-Daula"'' with the heavy heart of those loyal to Shah Alam II. Tipu was a selfdeclared "[[Sultan]]" this fact drew towards him the hostility of [[Nizam Ali Khan]], the Nizam of Hyderabad, who clearly expressed his hostility by dissuading the Mughal emperor and laying claims on Mysore. Disheartened, Tipu Sultan began to establish contacts with other Muslim rulers of that period.<ref name="auto2">{{Cite book | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=s04pus5jBNwC&q=tipu+sultan+and+ottoman&pg=PA11 |title=Pan-Islamism: Indian Muslims, the Ottomans and Britain, 1877–1924 |isbn=978-90-04-10632-1 |last1=Özcan |first1=Azmi |year=1997| publisher=BRILL}}</ref>

Tipu Sultan was the master of his own diplomacy with foreign nations, in his quest to rid India of the [[East India Company]] and to ensure the international strength of [[France]]. Like his father before him he fought battles on behalf of foreign nations which were not in the best interests of Shah Alam II.

After [[Ghulam Kadir|Ghulam Qadir]] had Shah Alam II blinded on 10 August 1788, Tipu Sultan is believed to have broken into tears.<ref>{{Cite book |quote=plight. |title=Secret correspondence of Tipu Sultan |publisher=Light and Life Publishers |last1=Kausar |first1=Kabir |year=1980 |url=https://archive.org/details/dli.bengal.10689.12717}}</ref>{{page needed|date=September 2022}}

[[File:The storming of Seringapatam - John Vendramini, 1802 - BL P779.jpg|thumb|Tipu Sultan's forces during the [[Siege of Seringapatam (1799)|Siege of Srirangapatna]].]]

After the [[Siege of Seringapatam (1799)|Fall of Seringapatam]] in 1799, the blind emperor did remorse for Tipu, but maintained his confidence in the [[Nizam of Hyderabad]], who had now made peace with the British.

; Afghanistan

After facing substantial threats from the [[Maratha Empire|Marathas]], Tipu Sultan began to correspond with [[Zaman Shah Durrani]], the ruler of the Afghan [[Durrani Empire]], so they could defeat the British and Marathas. Initially, Zaman Shah agreed to help Tipu, but the Persian attack on Afghanistan's Western border diverted its forces, and hence no help could be provided to Tipu.

; Ottoman Empire

In 1787, Tipu Sultan sent an embassy to the [[Turkish Ottoman Empire|Ottoman]] capital Constantinople, to the Ottoman [[Sultan]] [[Abdul Hamid I]] requesting urgent assistance against the [[British East India Company]]. Tipu Sultan requested the Ottoman Sultan to send him troops and military experts. Furthermore, Tipu Sultan also requested permission from the Ottomans to contribute to the maintenance of the [[Islam]]ic shrines in [[Mecca]], [[Medina]], [[Najaf]] and [[Karbala]].

However, the Ottomans were themselves in crisis and still recuperating from the devastating [[Austro-Turkish War of 1716–18|Austro-Ottoman War]] and a new conflict with the [[Russian Empire]] had begun, for which Ottoman Turkey needed British alliance to keep off the Russians, hence it could not risk being hostile to the British in the Indian theatre.

Due to the Ottoman inability to organise a fleet in the Indian Ocean, Tipu Sultan's ambassadors returned home only with gifts from their Ottoman brothers.

Nevertheless, Tipu Sultan's correspondence with the Ottoman Empire and particularly its new Sultan [[Selim III]] continued till his final battle in the year 1799.<ref name="auto2"/>

; Persia and Oman

Like his father before him, Tipu Sultan maintained friendly relations with [[Mohammad Ali Khan Zand|Mohammad Ali Khan]], ruler of the [[Zand dynasty]] in [[Persia]]. Tipu Sultan also maintained correspondence with [[Hamad bin Said]], the ruler of the [[Sultanate of Oman]].<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Bhacker |first1=Mohmed Reda |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QxtpQSa1DXgC&q=tipu+sultan+oman&pg=PA214 |title=Trade and Empire in Muscat and Zanzibar: The Roots of British Domination |isbn=978-0-415-07997-6 |year=1992| publisher=Routledge}}</ref>

;Qing China

Tipu's and Mysore's tryst with silk began in the early 1780s when he received an ambassador from the [[Qing dynasty|Qing dynasty-ruled China]] at his court. The ambassador presented him with a silk cloth. Tipu was said to be enchanted by the item to such an extent that he resolved to introduce its production in his kingdom. He sent a return journey to China, which returned after twelve years.<ref>{{Cite web |title=A sultan's silken dreams |url=https://www.downtoearth.org.in/news/economy/a-sultan-s-silken-dreams-51808 |access-date=2022-08-21 |website=downtoearth.org.in}}</ref>

; France

[[File:Louis-François Baron Lejeune 001.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.35|In his attempts to junction with Tipu Sultan, [[Napoleon]] annexed [[Ottoman Egypt]] in the year 1798.]]

Both Hyder Ali and Tipu sought an alliance with the French, the only European power still strong enough to challenge the British East India Company in the subcontinent. In 1782, Louis XVI concluded an alliance with the [[Peshwa]] [[Madhavrao II|Madhu Rao Narayan]]. This treaty enabled [[Marquis de Bussy-Castelnau|Bussy]] to move his troops to the [[Isle de France (Mauritius)|Isle de France]] (now [[Mauritius]]). In the same year, French Admiral [[Pierre André de Suffren de Saint Tropez|De Suffren]] ceremonially presented a portrait of Louis XVI to Haidar Ali and sought his alliance.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tigerandthistle.net/tipu315.htm |title=Tipu Sultan and the Scots in India |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081121224521/http://www.tigerandthistle.net//tipu315.htm |archive-date=21 November 2008|url-status=dead |access-date=11 March 2017|website=The Tiger and The Thistle}}</ref>

[[Napoleon]] conquered [[Egypt]] in an attempt to link with Tipu Sultan.{{citation needed|date=January 2018}} In February 1798, Napoleon wrote a letter to Tipu Sultan appreciating his efforts of resisting the British annexation and plans, but this letter never reached Tipu and was seized by a British spy in Muscat. The idea of a possible Tipu-Napoleon alliance alarmed the British Governor, General Sir [[Richard Wellesley, 1st Marquess Wellesley|Richard Wellesley]] (also known as Lord Wellesley), so much that he immediately started large scale preparations for a final battle against Tipu Sultan.

===Social system===
====Judicial system====
Tipu Sultan appointed judges from both communities for Hindu and Muslim subjects. '''Qadi''' for Muslims and '''Pandit''' for Hindus in each province. Upper courts also had similar systems.<ref name="SocialScientist110">{{cite journal|last1=Panikkar|first1=K.N.|date=1991|title=Men of Valour and Vision|journal=Social Scientist|volume=19|issue=8|page=110|doi=10.2307/3517708|jstor=3517708}}</ref>

====Moral Administration====
Usage of liquor and prostitution were strictly prohibited in his administration.{{sfn|Sastri|1943|p=269}} Usage and agriculture of [[psychedelic]]s, such as [[Cannabis]], was also prohibited.<ref name="BSN211">{{cite book |last=Naik |first= B. Shreedhara |title=The society and politics in South Kanara 1500 A D to 1800 A D |page=211 |url=https://sg.inflibnet.ac.in/bitstream/10603/132248/13/13_chapter%205.pdf |access-date=7 September 2019}}</ref>

Polyandry in Kerala was prohibited by Tipu Sultan. He passed a decree for all women to cover their breasts, which was not practised in Kerala in the previous era.<ref name="REMiller">{{cite book |last1=Miller |first1=Rolland E. |title=Mappila Muslim Culture |date=27 April 2015 |page=34 |publisher=State University of New York Press |isbn=9781438456027 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XjSzCAAAQBAJ&q=history%20of%20india%2C%20miller&pg=PA34 |access-date=28 March 2020}}</ref>{{sfn|Sastri|1943|p=270}}

===Religious policy===

On a personal level, Tipu was a devout Muslim, saying his prayers daily and paying special attention to mosques in the area.<ref>{{Cite journal |jstor = 4397149|title = Tipu Sultan: Giving 'The Devil' His Due|journal = Economic and Political Weekly|volume = 25|issue = 52|pages = 2835–2837|last1 = Yadav|first1 = Bhupendra|year = 1990}}</ref> Regular endowments were made during this period to about 156 Hindu temples,<ref name="chetty2">A. Subbaraya Chetty "Tipu's endowments to Hindus and Hindu institutions" in [[#Confronting|''Confronting Colonialism'']]</ref> including the famed [[Ranganathaswamy Temple, Srirangapatna|Ranganathaswami Temple]] at [[Srirangapatna]].<ref name="pande">{{cite book|title=Aurangzeb and Tipu Sultan: Evaluation of Their Religious Policies|last=Pande |first=B. N. |publisher=[[University of Michigan]]|year=1996|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FgbXAAAAMAAJ|isbn=9788185220383}}</ref> Many sources mention the appointment of Hindu officers in Tipu's administration{{sfn|Hasan|2005|pp=357–358}} and his land grants and endowments to Hindu temples,<ref name="padiga3">[[#Confronting|''Confronting Colonialism'']], p. 118</ref><ref name="A. Subbaraya Chetty 2002">A. Subbaraya Chetty, "Tipu's endowments to Hindus", pp. 111–115 in [[#Confronting|''Confronting Colonialism'']].</ref>{{sfn|Hasan|2005|p=360}} which are cited as evidence for his religious tolerance.

His religious legacy has become a source of considerable controversy in India, with some groups (including Christians<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HMoP4lsmGXoC&pg=PA30|title=The Chaldean Syrian Church of the East|publisher=ISPCK|page=30|year=1983}}</ref> and even Muslims) proclaiming him a great warrior for the faith or ''Ghazi''{{sfn|Brittlebank|1999|pp=1-3}}<ref name="rpersecutor1">{{Cite book | last = Valath | first = V. V. K. | title = Keralathile Sthacharithrangal&nbsp;– Thrissur Jilla | year = 1981 | publisher = Kerala Sahithya Academy | language = ml | pages = 74–79}}</ref> for both religious and political reasons.<ref name="pande"/> Various sources describe the massacres,<ref>{{cite book|title=Tipu Sultan: Villain Or Hero? : an Anthology|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bk5uAAAAMAAJ|year=1993|publisher=Voice of India|isbn=978-81-85990-08-8|last1=Goel|first1=Sita Ram}}</ref> imprisonment<ref name="acc">{{Citation
 |last= Farias
 |first= Kranti K.
 |title= The Christian Impact on South Kanara
 |year= 1999|page=76
 |publisher= Church History Association of India
 }}</ref> and forced conversion<ref name=cariappa>{{citation |last1=Cariappa |first1=M. P. |last2=Cariappa |first2=Ponnamma |title=The Coorgs and their Origins |publisher=Aakar Books |year=1981 |oclc=641505186|page=48}}</ref> of Hindus ([[Captivity of Kodavas at Seringapatam|Kodavas of Coorg]], [[Captivity of Nairs at Seringapatam|Nairs of Malabar]]) and Christians ([[Captivity of Mangalorean Catholics at Seringapatam|Catholics of Mangalore]]), the destruction of churches<ref name="Lobo2">[https://archive.today/20140829175532/http://portal.kinnigoli.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=28:sarasvatis-chi. Sarasvati's Children] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221206081443/https://archive.today/20140829175532/http://portal.kinnigoli.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=28:sarasvatis-chi. |date=6 December 2022 }}, Joe Lobo</ref> and temples, and the clamping down on Muslims ([[Mappila|Mappila of Kerala]], the [[Mahdavia]] Muslims, the [[Savanur State|rulers of Savanur]] and the people of [[Hyderabad State]]), which are sometimes cited as evidence for his intolerance.

====British accounts====
Historians such as Brittlebank, Hasan, Chetty, Habib, and Saletare, amongst others, argue that controversial stories of Tipu Sultan's religious persecution of Hindus and Christians are largely derived from the work of early British authors (who were very much against Tipu Sultan's independence and harboured prejudice against the Sultan) such as [[James Achilles Kirkpatrick|James Kirkpatrick]]<ref>Kirkpatrick, W. (1811)  [https://archive.org/details/selectlettersoft00tipu ''Select Letters of Tipu Sultan''], London</ref> and [[Mark Wilks]],<ref>Wilks, M. (1930) ''Report on the Interior Administration, Resources and Expenditure of the Government of Mysore under the System prescribed by the Order of the Governor-General in Council dated 4 September 1799'', Bangalore 1864, and ''Historical Sketches of the South of India in an Attempt to Trace the History of Mysore'', 2 vols, ed. M. Hammick, Mysore.</ref> whom they do not consider to be entirely reliable and likely fabricated.<ref name="habib"/> A. S. Chetty argues that Wilks' account in particular cannot be trusted.<ref name="chetty111">A. Subbaraya Chetty "Tipu's endowments to Hindus and Hindu institutions", p. 111 in [[#Confronting|''Confronting Colonialism'']]</ref>

[[Irfan Habib]] and Mohibbul Hasan argue that these early British authors had a strong vested interest in presenting Tipu Sultan as a tyrant from whom the British had liberated Mysore.<ref name="habib">Habib, Irfan (2001). "War and Peace. Tipu Sultan's Account of the last Phase of the Second War with the English, 1783-4", p. 5 in ''State and Diplomacy Under Tipu Sultan: Documents and Essays'', Manohar Publishers and Distributors, {{ISBN|81-85229-52-X}}</ref>{{sfn|Hasan|2005|p=368}} This assessment is echoed by Brittlebank in her recent work where she writes that Wilks and Kirkpatrick must be used with particular care as both authors had taken part in the wars against Tipu Sultan and were closely connected to the administrations of [[Charles Cornwallis, 1st Marquess Cornwallis|Lord Cornwallis]] and [[Richard Wellesley, 1st Marquess Wellesley]].{{sfn|Brittlebank|1999|pp=2–12}}

====Relations with Hindus====
Tipu Sultan's treasurer was Krishna Rao, [[Shamaiya Iyengar]] was his Minister of Post and Police, his brother Ranga Iyengar was also an officer, and [[Purnaiah|Purnaiya]] held the very important post of "Mir Asaf". Moolchand and Sujan Rai were his chief agents at the Mughal court, and his chief "Peshkar", Suba Rao, was also a Hindu.{{sfn|Hasan|2005|pp=357–358}}

The Editor of Mysore Gazette reports of correspondence between his court and temples, and his having donated jewellery and deeded land grants to several temples, which he was compelled to for forming alliances with Hindu rulers. Between 1782 and 1799 Tipu Sultan issued 34 "Sanads" (deeds) of endowment to temples in his domain, while also presenting many of them with gifts of silver and gold plate.{{sfn|Hasan|2005|p=360}}

The Srikanteswara Temple in Nanjangud still possesses a jeweled cup presented by the Sultan.<ref name="A. Subbaraya Chetty 2002"/> He also gave a greenish [[linga]]; to Ranganatha temple at Srirangapatna, he donated seven silver cups and a silver [[camphor]] burner. This temple was hardly a stone's throw from his palace from where he would listen with equal respect to the ringing of temple bells and the [[muezzin]]'s call from the mosque; to the [[Lakshmikanta Temple, Kalale|Lakshmikanta Temple]] at [[Kalale]] he gifted four cups, a plate and [[Spitoon]] in silver.<ref name="padiga3"/>{{sfn|Hasan|2005|p=360}}

During the [[Maratha–Mysore War]] in 1791, a group of [[Maratha Empire|Maratha]] horsemen under Raghunath Rao Patwardhan raided the temple and ''matha'' of [[Sringeri]] ''[[Shankaracharya]]''. They wounded and killed many people, including Brahmins, plundered the monastery of all its valuable possessions, and desecrated the temple by displacing the image of goddess Sarada.{{sfn|Hasan|2005|pp=357–358}}

The incumbent ''Shankaracharya'' petitioned Tipu Sultan for help. About 30 letters written in [[Kannada]], which were exchanged between Tipu Sultan's court and the [[Sringeri]] [[Shankaracharya]], were discovered in 1916 by the Director of Archaeology in [[Mysore]]. Tipu Sultan expressed his indignation and grief at the news of the raid:{{sfn|Hasan|2005|pp=357–358}}<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.livemint.com/Leisure/bO9Ma9Sb2g4aUvIUT29fCP/Why-we-love-to-hate-Tipu-Sultan.html|title=Why we love to hate Tipu Sultan|last=Sampath |first=Vikram |work=livemint.com|date=31 January 2014}}</ref>

<blockquote>"People who have sinned against such a holy place are sure to suffer the consequences of their misdeeds at no distant date in this Kali age in accordance with the verse: "Hasadbhih kriyate karma rudadbhir-anubhuyate" (People do [evil] deeds smilingly but suffer the consequences crying)."<ref>''Annual Report of the Mysore Archaeological Department'' 1916 pp&nbsp;10–11, 73–6</ref> </blockquote>

He immediately ordered the Asaf of [[Bednur]] to supply the Swami with 200 ''rahati''s (''[[Travancore Fanam|fanam]]''s) in cash and other gifts and articles. Tipu Sultan's interest in the Sringeri temple continued for many years, and he was still writing to the Swami in the 1790s.{{sfn|Hasan|2005|p=359}}

In light of this and other events, historian B. A. Saletare has described Tipu Sultan as a defender of the Hindu [[dharma]], who also patronised other temples including one at Melkote, for which he issued a Kannada decree that the Shrivaishnava invocatory verses there should be recited in the traditional form.<ref name='tipu defender of Hindu faith'>Saletare, B.A. "Tipu Sultan as Defender of the Hindu Dharma", pp. 116–8 in [[#Confronting|''Confronting Colonialism'']]</ref> The temple at Melkote still has gold and silver vessels with inscriptions indicating that they were presented by the Sultan. Tipu Sultan also presented four silver cups to the Lakshmikanta Temple at Kalale.<ref name='tipu defender of Hindu faith'/> Tipu Sultan does seem to have repossessed unauthorised grants of land made to [[Brahmin]]s and temples, but those which had proper ''sanads'' (certificates) were not. It was a normal practice for any ruler, Muslim or Hindu, on his accession or on the conquest of new territory.

====Persecution of Hindus in Melkote ====

Tipu killed 1200+ Iyengar Brahmins in Melkote, as part of his military campaign against the Wodeyars of Mysore and the Marathas. The Hindu Iyengar Brahmins, who were closely associated with the Sri Cheluvanarayana Swamy Temple in Melkote, were targeted during this attack.

The town of Melkote in Karnataka has stopped celebrating Deepavali as a mark of mourning for the massacre of Hindu Iyengar Brahmins carried out by Tipu Sultan's forces.

====Persecution of Kodavas outside Mysore====
{{Main|Captivity of Kodavas at Seringapatam}}<!--
The battles between Kodavas and Tipu Sultan is one of the most bitter rivalries in South India. There were repeated attempts to capture Kodagu by the sultan and his father [[Hyder Ali]] before him. The primary reason for Sultan's interest in Kodagu was that annexing Kodagu would provide access to Mangalore port. The Kodavas knew their lands and mountains very well which made them excellent at guerrilla warfare. Kodavas were outnumbered 3 to 1 in most of Tipu's attempts to annex Kodagu but they managed to beat back Tipu most of the times by drawing his army towards hilly regions of their land. On few occasions Tipu's army managed to reach Madikeri (Capital of Kodagu) but the Kodavas always ambushed the contingent left behind by Tipu. Kodavas refusal to bow to the sultan was primarily because throughout their history they enjoyed independence, though there were Rajahs ruling over them, governance of the land mainly rested with Kodavas. After capturing Kodagu on another occasion, Tipu proclaimed, "If you ever dare to ambush my men again, I will honor everyone of you with Islam", undeterred, the resilient Kodavas ambushed his men yet again and drove them back to Mysore. By now Tipu realised conventional warfare would never yield him Kodagu. He devised a plan to annex Kodagu by offering his friendship. His offer of friendship was welcomed by Kodavas as the battles with the Sultan over the years had cost them dearly. When Kodavas welcomed Sultan to their land in the name of friendship, the Sultan and his men attacked them and took thousands as prisoners. -->
Tipu got Runmust Khan, the ''[[Kurnool|Nawab of Kurnool]]'', to launch a surprise attack upon the [[Kodava people|Kodavas]] who were besieged by the invading Muslim army. 500 were killed and over 40,000 Kodavas fled to the woods and concealed themselves in the mountains.{{sfn|Prabhu|1999|p=223}} Thousands of Kodavas were seized along with the Raja and held captive at Seringapatam.<ref name=cariappa/>

Mohibbul Hasan, Prof. Sheikh Ali, and other historians cast great doubt on the scale of the deportations and forced conversions in Coorg in particular. Hassan says that it is difficult to estimate the real number of [[Kodava people|Kodava]] captured by Tipu.{{sfn|Hasan|2005|p=79}}

In a letter to Runmust Khan, Tipu himself stated:<ref>{{Cite book
|last=Sen
|first=Surendranath
|title=Studies in Indian history
|url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.511908
|publisher=University of Calcutta
|year=1930|page=157
}}</ref> 
{{blockquote|"We proceeded with the utmost speed, and, at once, made prisoners of 40,000 occasion-seeking and sedition-exciting [[Kodava people|Kodavas]], who alarmed at the approach of our victorious army, had slunk into woods, and concealed themselves in lofty mountains, inaccessible even to birds. Then carrying them away from their native country (the native place of sedition) we raised them to the honour of Islam, and incorporated them into our Ahmedy corps."
<ref>{{cite book|last=Sultan|first=Tipu|title=Select letters of Tippoo Sultan to various public functionaries|publisher=Black|year=1811|location=London|page=[https://archive.org/details/selectlettersoft00tipu/page/228 228]|url=https://archive.org/details/selectlettersoft00tipu}}</ref>}}