Chennai (Madras) is the capital of Tamil Nadu and is India's fourth largest city. Before 1996, the city was called Madras. Chennai is one of the port cities on the banks of the Bay of Bengal. It is home to about 10 million (1 crore) people, one of the 35 largest metropolitan cities in the world. Since the English footprint in the 17th century, Chennai has grown to become a major city. Chennai is regarded as the gateway to South India. Marina Beach is one of the longest beaches in the world. Chennai is home to the Tamil film industry known as Kollywood. Many sports competitions are held in Chennai in many sports stadiums.
History of Chennai
Chennai has a long history. Since the 1st century AD, Chennai has been considered a major site in the Pallava, Chola and Vijayanagar empires. Traders and religious teachers from overseas have come through the coast of Chennai. This area was originally a small village called Chennapattana.
The city was one of the identities of Tamils on August 22, 1639. On that day, the French company, Andrés Gogan of the East India Company, now with their assistant Perthimmappa, now bought the St George Castle. The place was known as Chepanappinam in the north of the fort in memory of Chennappa Naikan, the father of Ayyappan and Venkatappan who sold the place to them.
While the city of Chennai grew in the aftermath of the construction of St George Fort in 1639, the towns of Tiruvallikhenai, Mylapore, Thiruvottiyur and Thirumanimoor are centuries old. Mylapore is the main port of the Pallava government in Chennai. One of Jesus' companions, St. Thomas who think that the people have come here from 52 to 70 in numbers. The Portuguese arrived in the 16th century and established a port in the name of Santhom (San Tama - "Holy Thomas") in 1522. Then it was handed over to the Dutch in 1612.
In 1639, the British East India Company's agents, Francis Day and Andrew Gogan, were selected as the residence of the British.
St George's Fortress was built a year later. The settlement was centered on the British settlement. The villages of Thiruvallikani, Purasivakkam, Ezhampur and Chettupadu accompanied by Chennapattinam which were associated with this.
In 1522, the Poles came here to build the St. Thomas Fort. The area was followed by the Pope. Their settlement was established in 1612 in the northern part of present-day Pulicat. The first city of Chennai was declared by King James II in 1688. Thus making Chennai the first municipality of India, Robert Clive of the East India Company used it as a base for operations. It later became known as the "Madras Province", one of the four provinces in the Indian residential area of the British Government.
In 1746, the French Fortress was captured by the Fort of St. George and Chennai. In 1749 they were again accommodated by the British. After that, the city of Chennai was greatly developed. The major cities in India were connected by train to Chennai. After independence in 1947, Madras became the capital of Madras province. The Madras Province was renamed Tamil Nadu in 1969. The name of the city was renamed Madras as Chennai in 1996.
A few years after the Indian Independence, when the division of the states in 1956 was a part of Tamil Nadu, the capital of the state was Madras. The Madras name was changed by the Portuguese and the Government of Tamil Nadu changed in 1966 to Madras. The Venkatapathy brothers demanded that the city be brought to Chennai by the name of their father, 'Chennappa Naicker', because the British bought the fort of the Fort George from the Venkatapati brothers. Thus, the Fort of George Fort and its surrounding area are called Chennai.
