"Devapria-Kalappa, a Kurg man who was baptised on 12th January 1913 in Anandapur."; "Devapria-Kalappa, ein am 12. Januar 1913 in Anandapur getaufter Kurg."

Coorg

Coorg has a fascinating history and one of the interesting aspects of its colorful past was the fact that Queen Victoria of England was the godmother of a Coorg princess! After Coorg was annexed by the British in 1834, Chikka Veerarajendra, the last Raja of Coorg, was taken by the British to Vellore in Tamil Nadu, and then to Varanasi in 1835. Chikka Veerarajendra, with two of his wives and his favorite daughter Gowramma sailed to England in 1852. He was the first Indian Raja to sail from India to England. He died in London in 1859. Queen Victoria was the godmother of princess Gowramma. The Queen was present during Gowramma' s baptism by the Archbishop of Canterbury on June 30, 1852, and the princess was given the name Victoria Gowramma.

The first picture above is a remarkable water-colour sketch by artist John Johnson, of the guest-house in Mercara which was very likely built around 1795-1801 during Dodda Veerarajendra’s reign. There are several mentions of this guest-house in the writing of British visitors to Coorg. This accommodation was exclusively for the European visitors and had all amenities the westerners were used to. It was located at the area where the Government Central School is now situated. Mercara Fort can be seen in the background. One of the guests during Lingarajendra’s rule, General James Welsh, gave the following description of the building when he visited Coorg in 1811:

“I must now describe our own habitation, built on a small island, surrounded by paddy ground, now dry for the sole accommodation of Europeans. It is a large square, having a hall in the centre, a large covered-in verandah all round it, and four bed-rooms projecting at the angles of the verandah, all on an upper story, the lower rooms serving for the guard, attendants, store-rooms etc. It stands on a square of seventy feet, the verandah having thirty-eight glass windows, with venetian blinds outside. The bed-rooms have sixteen windows, and the hall eight glass door; every part being neatly furnished, in the English style, with beds, tables, card-tables, writing boxes, chairs, chandeliers, settees etc. etc. And there is an old butler of my Vellore friend Colonel Ridgway Mealay, and a dozen active servants, who very speedily produce an English breakfast or dinner, served up on handsome Queen’s ware, with every kind of European liquor; and what is even still more extraordinary, the cook bakes good bread!”

Another visitor, Dr. William Jeafreson, was a guest of Chikka Veerarajendra in 1830. He spent 22 days in Coorg. He wrote about the guest-house in these words:

“…There we found a splendid bungalow, fitted up for our accommodation, with every possible convenience.

Round this residence grew flowers of the richest hues and the sweetest perfume, while trees, laden with delicious fruit, among whose branches perched wild birds of the brightest and most variegated plumage, cast over us their agreeable shade.

Near this bungalow was a tank, made of black marble of the highest polish and most elaborate workmanship, in the centre of which rose a fountain, throwing up jets of water so clear and pellucid that hundreds of large and beautiful fish might be seen disporting in the basin, or else darting about in every direction after their prey. This tank was the favourite resort of the Rajah who was wont to visit it daily, at noon. Standing beside it, he would ring a small gold bell, he carried in his hand, and, at its tinkling, all the fish collected together at one spot, anxiously waiting their food (young frogs, parched peas etc.), which an attendant threw to them from a basket.

In another part of the garden was an immense black marble stand, of pyramidal form, along the five front steps of which were arranged hundreds of bleached skulls of elephants, being the Optima Spolia of the chase.”
After the British annexed Coorg in 1834, this building was surprisingly neglected. By 1860s it was in bad shape and was crumbling. It was in 1862 that 64 Coorg elders approached the British government to build a boarding house for boys attending the Central School. They suggested the site of the guest-house for the hostel, and further requested the material from the collapsed building be used for construction! The British agreed, and the boarding house was ready by 1871 under Rev. Richter’s supervision.

Even today peecehkathis are worn by Coorgi men for important social functions. The Peeche kathi cannot be purchased off the shelf even in the heart of Coorg(Mercara). It is often handed down over generations or has to be made to order and surprisingly not at a Swordsmiths shop but at a Jeweller's.

The jewellers were and still are the ones responsible for making the Peechekathis. This is because many of them are of ornate design and embellished with Gold or Silver. The Coorgi men would insert the Peechekathi at their waist and it was more of a status symbol rather than an instrument of war. All the Peechekathis  have handled have the sharp edge only near the tip along the lower edge. Perhaps they were intended for use like the Katar or the Pesh-Kabz.

When it came to war and yes, the Coorgis were the Lords of War, they preferred to use the 'AyudhaKathi', which was invariably strapped to the Coorgi's waistband at the back or held in the hand. So we had the Peechekathi strapped to his front and the more potent 'AyudhaKathi' strapped to the back. Ayudha incidentally is Sanskrit for 'Weapon'.

The Ayda Katti (AyudhaKathi) or more commonly known as Odi Katti was the national sword of the Coorgs . The large well forged blade is sharp on the concave side, and the base of the blade is very thick. The handle is made from two pieces of horn and has a very good patina from age and use.

Pen-and-ink and water-colour sketch of Madikeri by an unknown artist, c.1840. On the back is an unfinished portrait sketch. Inscribed on the front in ink is: 'Mercara Fort; The line of the Western Ghauts of India'; also notes on various buildings and hills.
Mercara or Madikeri is situated in southern Karnataka (formerly Mysore), southern India in the Western Ghats at an elevation of 3,800 feet (1,160 metres). The Lingayat Rajas ruled over the area from 1600 onwards and established their capital at Madikeri where they built a mud fort. The fort is set on a rocky outcrop surrounded by hills. It is roughly hexagon in shape set behind a ditch with a sloping bank to the north face. In the 1770s and 1780s the fort was attacked by Haidar Ali and Tipu Sultan. In 1791 the fort was overwhelmed by Vira Raja of Coorg (Kodagu). The British excluded Tipu from the area by the treaty of Seringapatam (1792) and Vira Raja was restored to power. Later the subjects of Vira Raja complained of their ill treatment and sought British protection which was secured by the unopposed annexation of Coorg in 1834.

Courtesy : The British Library