Pazhassi Raja

Pazhassi Raja initiated a guerrilla war against the British East India Company in the forests of Wayanad and Kottayam. He refused to pay tribute and resisted British annexation, using local terrain to ambush Company forces for over a decade.

Pazhassi Raja's forces attacked and captured the British fort at Panamaram in Wayanad. The victory temporarily expelled British control from the region and boosted rebel morale, though the British later regrouped and retaliated.

Pazhassi Raja was killed in a skirmish with British forces near Mavila Thodu in Wayanad. His death ended the Cotiote War, and the British subsequently annexed Kottayam. He became a symbol of resistance in Kerala.