The Kingdom of Mysore under Hyder Ali and then his son Tipu Sultan had been a repeated burr in the saddle for British attempts to conquer South India. The first two wars against Hyder Ali had ended in a draw. In 1792 the British won a resounding victory over Tipu Sultan in the Third Anglo-Mysore war forcing him to surrender half his Kingdom. This defeat did not stop Tipu’s desire to defeat the British and he continued to intrigue with the French for an alliance.
in 1798 Napoleon invaded Egypt, intended to be the first step to drive the British from India. Even though Nelson’s victory at the Battle of the Nile and Napoleon’s repulse at Acre ended that threat, the British decided to rid themselves of the threat of Tipu Sultan commencing the Fourth Anglo-Mysore war. Unlike the previous wars this was a relatively short affair. After a few engagements in March 1799, Tipu was besieged in his de facto capital Seringaptnam by April 5, 1799.
The walls were breached on May 2. The breach was stormed on May 4, the assault commencing at 1:00 p.m. the hottest part of the day when the defenders were seeking refreshments. The assault was allegedly aided by Mir Sadiq, a minister of Tipu, who allegedly withdrew soldiers at the time of the assault to pay them their salaries. Tipu hurried to the breach and there met his end fighting the British troops entering the city.
Mir Sadiq was killed by Mysorean troops before he completed his defection to the British. Tipu’s body was identified by the British that evening after the fall of the city.
This battle completed the British conquest of South India. Tipu’s heirs were packed off to exile. The British restored the Wodeyar dynasty to the throne of Mysore as their satellites. In the next few years the Nizam of Rajasthan and the Princes of Rajasthan submitted to the British. This set the stage for the Anglo-Maratha wars that effectively completed the British subjugation of the subcontinent.