Siege of Madras

Siege of Madras
Part of Seven Years' War
An 18th Century sketch of Fort St. George
Date December 1758 – February 1759 Location Madras, Madras Presidency, India Result British victory
Belligerents
Kingdom of Great Britain East India Company	Kingdom of France French East India Company
Commanders and leaders
William Draper Muhammad Yusuf Khan Major John Caillaud Abdul Wahab, Prince of Arcot	Comte de Lally Marquis de Bussy-Castelnau
Strength
3,900 total 2,200 sepoys 1,700 Europeans	8,000 total 4,000 Europeans 3,400 sepoys 600 native cavalry
Casualties and losses
	1,200

 Kingdom of Great Britain

 Kingdom of France

The Siege of Madras was a siege of Madras, British India, between December 1758 and February 1759 by French forces under the command of Lally during the Seven Years' War. The British garrison was able to hold out until it was relieved. The British fired 26,554 cannonballs and more than 200,000 cartridge rounds in defence of the town. The failure to take Madras was a huge disappointment for the French and a massive setback to their campaign in India compounded by the later Battle of Wandiwash.

The British victory helped contribute to the Annus Mirabilis of 1759.

Great Britain and France had been struggling for colonial supremacy in India for several years. in 1746 the city had been captured by the French, but it was returned to the British in 1748. Following the fresh outbreak of war both sides were soon in conflict again. By 1757 Britain held the upper hands after several victories by Robert Clive. In 1758 French reinforcements under Lally had arrived in Pondicherry and set about advancing France's position on the Coromandel Coast, notably capturing Fort St. David. This caused alarm to the British, most of whose troops were with Clive in Bengal. Lally was poised to strike against Madras in June 1758, but short of money, he launched an unsuccessful attack on Tanjore hoping to raise revenue there. By the time he was ready to launch his assault on Madras it was December before the first French troops reached Madras, delayed partly by the onset of the monsoon season. This gave the British extra time to prepare their defences, and withdraw their outposts - boosting the garrison to nearly 4,000 troops.

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