India 1805

After the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War (1798–99) the British East India Company consolidated its strong position in South India by taking control of territory that was formerly part of the state of Mysore and its allies. After the death of Tipu Sultan in 1799 the Wodeyar family, who had ruled Mysore for generations before Hyder Ali and Tipu became the de facto rulers, were restored to the throne; they ruled with British approval until 1947. The Company also took advantage of Indian disunity, expanding northwestward and into Bundelkhand at the expense of local rulers and the Maratha Confederacy. The Nizam’s Dominions had been allied to the British during their struggle with Mysore and would remain so – Nizam Ali Khan had been forced to sign an agreement that placed his state under British protection, the first Indian prince to do so. This left the Marathas at a considerable disadvantage during the Second Maratha War (1803–06). They, the only remaining power in India, would slowly lose ground to the British advance.