to the gun powder stock in their ship buried all their rice reserves. The foodless army had no other go than surrendering to the Travancore contingent. Further, the Dutch were helpless against the cavalry of Travancore. The local legends state that, in accordance with the orders of the Maharajah, the local fisherfolk had made cannon replicas, diverting the attention of the Dutch. This battle is important as it marked the decline of Dutch influence in India. In all, twenty-four Dutch officers were imprisoned, including De Lannoy and Donadi, while the rest of the Dutchmen either retreated to their ships or were killed. Appointment as Travancore Army Commander The Dutch prisoners expressed their willingness to serve the Maharaja of Travancore. De Lannoy was entrusted with the job of training a Regiment of the army in European tactics of war and discipline. De Lannoy performed this task to the satisfaction of Marthanda Varma who appointed him Captain. Donadi also was given a high military post. De-Lannoy gave attention to the reorganization of the army of Travancore which consisted of 50,000 troops of all branches such as infantry, cavalry, artillery and irregular troops, trained and drilled on Western lines under his direction and supervision De Lannoy organized the Travancore army on European lines, introduced gunpowder and firearms, hitherto not used in the kingdom, and increased the regiments and improved defence fortifications. Captain De Lannoy was a skilled military strategist. His military skills, combined with the tactics of the Dewan of Travancore, Ramayyan Dalawa, and statesmanship of Maharaja Marthanda Varma proved very effective in the future military exploitations and annexations of the Northern kingdoms up to Cochin over a period of time. They defeated and annexed Quilon, Kayamkulam, Kottarakkara, Pandalam, Ambalapuzha, Edappally, Thekkumkoor and Vadakkumkoor with Travancore. Captain De Lannoy's military skills and loyalty were recognised not only by the king and his state officials, but also by the subjects of Travancore, who called him by the nom de guerre "Valiya Kappithaan ", meaning 'The Great Captain'. Forts built under De Lennoy’s supervision Nedumkotta De Lannoy built the Nedumkotta, a line of fortifications in the North of the Kingdom, known as the Travancore Lines. This fortification proved immensely useful in defending the kingdom against the attacks of Tipu Sultan and other marauders. The Wall was well-fortified and garrisoned. It had mounds, underground tunnels, barracks, arsenals and supply depots. It was a great stoppage to