Rani Chennamma led the 1824 Kittur Rebellion against the British East India Company after they refused to recognise her adopted son Shivalingappa as heir; she was later imprisoned at Bailhongal Fort, while Sangolli Rayanna continued the resistance.
NEWS: The 202nd anniversary of Rani Chennamma’s victory against the British East India Company was commemorated at Prerana Sthal, Parliament premises, New Delhi.
KEY FACTS
- Born: 1778, Kakati village near Belagavi, Karnataka.
- Title: Queen of Kittur.
- Kittur Rebellion: 1824 → opposed British attempts to take over Kittur.
- Cause: British refused to recognise her adopted son, Shivalingappa, as heir.
- First Battle (1824): British political agent St. John Thackeray was killed.
- Imprisonment: Captured and imprisoned at Bailhongal Fort.
- Death: 21 February 1829.
- Sangolli Rayanna: Continued the resistance against British rule.
LEGACY
- Kittur Utsava: Celebrated annually from 22–24 October.
- Remembered through Karnataka’s folk songs (Janapada).
- Her statue was unveiled in the Parliament complex in 2007.