Located on the historic river island town of Srirangapatna, Karnataka—just 19 kilometers from Mysore—lies Colonel Bailey’s Dungeon. This subterranean prison serves as a grim monument to the brutal realities of the Anglo-Mysore Wars. While the foundations of the Srirangapatna Fort date back to 1454 during the Vijayanagara Empire, it was Tipu Sultan and his father, Hyder Ali, who transformed it into an impregnable stronghold. Bolstered by an alliance with French military engineers, they designed a complex defensive system to repel their arch-enemy: the British East India Company (EIC).
Architectural Design and Hidden Defenses
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| Ground level view Col. Bailey's Dungeon Srirangapatna Fort, Karnataka en.wikipedia.org |
Built beneath an oblong defensive bastion known as the Sultan Bateri, the dungeon was intentionally obscured from the view of passersby. Constructed entirely of brick and lime mortar, the vaulted underground bunker measures roughly 30.5 meters long by 12.2 meters wide. The structure features a low, heavy roof supported by a symmetrical series of wide arches resting on massive pillars that divide the interior space into bays. This architectural design includes a uniquely practical, bulbous ceiling style reminiscent of Islamic mausoleums, which allowed guards and prisoners to stand to their full height despite the low-profile exterior.
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| Srirangapatna fort, Dungeon. abhinavagarwal.net |
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| Col Bailey's dungeon, Srirangapatna fort, KA mygreedybackpack.com |
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| UG arches, Col Bailey's Dungeon, en.wikipedia.org |
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| Srirangapatna,Karnataka, news18.com |
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| gyanipandit.com |
The Capture of Colonel Baillie (Pollilur, 1780)
The prison owes its name to Lieutenant-Colonel William Baillie (often spelled Bailey), a Scottish commander in the EIC's Madras Army. During the Second Anglo-Mysore War, Baillie’s forces were ambushed and decisively defeated by Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan at the Battle of Pollilur in September 1780.
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| Ground view Col. Bailey's dungeon srirangapatna Fort mysoreadda.com |
While thousands of sepoys fell, several high-ranking British officers were taken alive as prisoners of war (POWs). Trailing behind Colonel Baillie into the dark casemate were prominent officials including Captain David Baird, Colonel Brathwaite, Samson, Fraser, Lindsay, and Captain Rulay. Conditions of Imprisonment and Torture The captivity endured by these officers was psychologically and physically agonizing:
Chained to the Stone: Along the walls of the dungeon, the ASI has preserved projecting stone slabs fitted with hooks. Prisoners were chained by their wrists to these slabs.
Waist-Deep Submersion: Because the dungeon sat lower than the adjacent Cauvery River, the floor routinely filled with waist-high (and occasionally neck-high) water.
The Leech Infestation: The stagnant water was heavily infested with leeches. Because the prisoners' hands were pinned securely to the stone hooks, they were completely unable to brush the blood-sucking parasites off their fatigued, exposed skin.
This sensory deprivation and physical torture were systematically deployed to force confessions, intelligence, or political compliance. Colonel Baillie eventually succumbed to long-term illness and the grim conditions of the jail, dying in captivity on November 13, 1782.
The Fallen Cannon
A striking anomaly inside the dungeon today is a massive iron cannon resting on the floor. During the historic Fourth Anglo-Mysore War (The Siege of Srirangapatna) in 1799, British forces launched a massive bombardment to breach the fort walls.
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| fallen cannon and hole above abhinavagarwal.net |
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| Fallen cannon, Col. Bailey's dungeon justdial.com |
As the heavy artillery exchanges shattered the ramparts, a top-side cannon rolled backward off its defensive battery. Under its immense weight, it crashed straight through the thick mortar ceiling, punching a hole that still lets sunlight stream into the otherwise pitch-black dungeon today.
Modern Status and Preservation
Today, Colonel Bailey's Dungeon is a protected heritage site under the jurisdiction of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) - Bengaluru Circle (Monument ID: N-KA-B146). Recent preservation works have focused on maintaining the structural integrity of the stone arches against moisture damage from the nearby river, installing security railings around the open ceiling hole, and setting up steps to allow visitors to descend safely into the bays to view the historic stone hooks and fallen cannon.
https://navrangindia.blogspot.com/2018/03/col-baileys-dirty-dungeon-srirangapatna.html
http://blog.abhinavagarwal.net/2009/07/colonel-baileys-dungeon-srirangapatna.html
http://www.deccanherald.com/content/201497/dark-dingy-dungeons-srirangapatna
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colonel_Bailey%27s_Dungeon
https://www.talesofanomad.com/2014/02/srirangapatna-tipu-sultans-isle.html
tps://rediscoveryproject.com/2015/12/21/the-old-man-and-the-dungeon
K. N. Jayaraman (Author: navrangindia.blogspot.com)
