Tipu Sultan:
A Pioneer of Rocket Technology
By Kaleem Kawaja
Washington, DC
May 4, 2005, marked the 206th
death anniversary of Tipu Sultan, king of Mysore
State (1750-1799), who ruled for 17 years (1782-1799).
Tipu pioneered and perfected the use of rockets
for military purposes, effectively using them
in wars against the invading British armies. Tipu
Sultan had 27 brigades (called kushoons); each
brigade had a company of rocket-firing men called
jourks.
At the Battle of Seringapatam in 1792, Tipu’s
soldiers launched a huge barrage of rockets against
British troops, followed by an assault of 36,000
men. Although the rockets were primitive by modern
standards, their sheer numbers, noise and brilliance
were said to have been quite effective at disorienting
British soldiers. During the night, the rockets
were often seen as blue lights bursting in the
air. Since Tipu’s forces were able to launch
these bursting rockets in front of and behind
British lines, they were a tremendous tool for
throwing the British off-guard. The bursting rockets
were usually followed by a deadly shower of rockets
aimed directly at the soldiers.
Some of these rockets passed from the front of
the British columns to the rear, inflicting injury
and death as they passed. Sharp bamboo was typically
affixed to the rockets, which were designed to
bounce along the ground to produce maximum damage.
Two of the rockets fired by Tipu's troops in 1792
war are on display at the Royal Artillery Museum
in London.
Later, at the battle of Srirangapattana (4'th
Anglo-Mysore war) April 1799, British forces lead
by Col Arthur Wellesley (Duke of Wellington) ran
away from battlefield when attacked by rockets
and musket fire of Tipu Sultan's army. Unlike
contemporary rockets whose combustion chamber
was made of wood (bamboo), Tipu's rockets used
iron cylinder casing that allowed greater pressure,
thrust and range.
The British were greatly impressed by the Mysorean
rockets using iron tubes. At the end of the war,
more than 700 rockets and sub-systems of 900 rockets
were captured and sent to England. William Congreve
thoroughly examined the Indian specimens to reverse
engineer and make copies that were later used
successfully in naval attack on Bologne, France,
the siege of Copenhagen and also against Fort
Washington (New York) during the America independence
war.
(The writer is an activist in the Muslim community
in Washington DC)
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