the rebels who were entrenched in a fortified dugout in Kottar. The rebels were routed by Col. McLeod and within a few days, the strategic forts of Udayagiri and Padmanabhapuram fell to the British without a fight. On hearing the news, the rebels at Quilon dispersed and Col. Chalmers approached Trivandrum from the North and Hon. Col. St. Leger approached from the south in a pincer movement. Velu Thampi fled from Trivandrum to Kilimanoor and the Maharajah turned against him and denounced him. On 24 February 1809, the Hon. Col. St. Leger had a letter delivered to the Maharajah demanding the surrender of Thambi. The Maharajah appointed one of his nobility, Marthandam Eravi Ummini Thampi, a sworn enemy of Velu Thampi, as a mediator between Travancore and the British. Ummini Thampi reached the British forces who were camped at Pappenamcode and conveyed the Maharajah's terms to them. A reward of Rs. 50,000, a princely sum in those days, was offered for Velu Thampi's capture and both Travancore and British officers were deployed to find him. On 18 March 1809, the Maharajah appointed Ummuni Thampi as Dalawa with the blessings of the British. His officials tracked the former Dalawa Velu Thampi to the forests of Kunnathoor. Velu fled from there and took refuge with a priest at Mannadi. Velu Thampi's servant who had some gold utensils on his person, was noticed by a shopkeeper who informed Dalawa Ummini Thampi's men. The servant was arrested by the new Dalawa's officials who elicited the information from him regarding Velu Thampi. Velu Thampi fled to the Bhagavathy temple at Mannadi where, when surrounded by the would-be captors, he committed suicide . Velu Thampi's brother Padmanabhan Thampi was caught at the scene. The body of Velu Thampi was exposed in the gibbet at Kannammoola. Lord Minto, the then Governor General, strongly condemned this act, describing the act as "repugnant to the feelings of common humanity and the principles of a civilised government". Aftermath During the trial for the murder of prisoners on 30 January 1809 at Purrakad beach, Padmanabhan Thampi was found guilty of complicity in the act and was hanged in Trivandrum on 10 April. Dalawa Ummuni Thampi took revenge on the family of Dalawa Velu Thampi by levelling their ancestral house to the ground and had most of Velu Thampi's family banished to the Maldives. Other leaders such as Vaikom Padmanabha Pillai were