The guns of Travancore or how much powder may a Maharaja blaze away?

Abstract

The main focus of this article is the chequered history of Travancore state's gun salutes. After the somewhat unexpected award of a prestigious dynastic salute in 1866, all later efforts to rise in the hierarchy of guns remained in vain. What were the grounds on which gun salutes were claimed by the rulers of Travancore, and granted or withheld by the British-Indian government? A related question is the paucity of documentary evidence that both parties had to cope with. What kind of knowledge did both parties actually posses when invoking the sanction of immemorial custom in support of their claims?

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