Coorg Province

Coorg Province was a distinct state within the Dominion of India, also known as Union of India, from the year 1950 to 1956. The capital of the state was at Mercara. The region of Coorg, also known as Kodagu, was initially a small autonomous kingdom until 1834, but after the war of Coorg, the native king of the territory was deposed and Coorg was annexed by the British East India Company. Thus in the year 1834, the region became a separate province under the rule of the British Empire in India. After the withdrawal of the British and Indian independence, the territory of Kodagu or Coorg was appointed as one of the states under the newly formed Union of India.

History of Coorg Province
The Coorg Province was located in the Western Ghats between the princely state of Mysore and Malabar. After the fall of the Vijayanagar Empire in 1565, many native rulers declared their sovereignty. Vira Raja, a member of the ruling family of Bednur relocated to the region of Haleri, which was in the northern part of Coorg. Eventually he gained dominance over other nayaks in the territory. His brother Muddu Raja moved the capital to Madikeri in the year 1681. Muddu Raja had 3 sons who belonged to the 3 branches of the Wadiyar family who reigned over Coorg until the annexation of the Coorg state in the year 1834. The British army invaded the region of Coorg in March, 1834 and the native ruler accepted the supremacy of the British administration. During this period, the province covered a total area of 2,100 sq m and comprised of a total population of 125,000 in the year 1851.

The state of Coorg or Kodagu was created out of the region of the erstwhile Coorg Province that was incorporated into the Union of India, after the country achieved independence from the dominion of the British Government of India on 15th August, 1947. The territory of Coorg was administered as one of the provinces of India, until it was formed as a Class C State and renamed as Coorg State on 26th January, 1950, located in the newly independent Republic of India. Such type of Class C State was under direct rule of Central Government of India. In the year 1956, when the borders of Indian states were reorganized and restructured, Coorg was incorporated as a part of the then Mysore state.

The former state of Mysore was eventually renamed as Karnataka state, and the historically significant territory of Coorg became a part of the district of Kodagu of Karnataka state.