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th 25 of April 1782. They said, %u201cThat the Governor and the majority of the council of Fort. St. George did by menace and harsh treatment compel Vizayarama Raj to employ Sitaramaraju as Diwan and the gross ill-treatment, which he received at the hands of the Presidency were humiliating and unjust and cruel in themselves and highly derogatory to the interests of the East India Company and the honour of the British nation.%u201dHowever, matters on the ground remained the same. Adding insult to injury, the East India Company outrageously demanded eight and a half lakhs in rupees to be paid as arrears in tribute that was due to be paid with the full knowledge that it could not be paid. The result was that Vizianagaram Fort was sequestered by the East India Company and the Maharaja was compelled to leave, banished to live in Machilipatnam on a miserly pension of one thousand two hundred rupees. This expulsion proved to be the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back. Humiliated, Maharaja Vijayarama Raj left for Machilipatnam. Stopping at a place called Padmanabham, he changed his mind. He decided he would take a stand; last or not. He refused to slink away to live his life out in shameful exile and instead took on the British knowing he would be outnumbered and outgunned. The Battle of th Padmanabham, as it was called, was fought on the 10 of July, 1794. It was here that the Maharaja lost his life. Today, Pusapati Chinna Vijayarama Raj is recognised as one of the earliest fighters who rebelled against the foreign yoke. The Battle of Padmanabham proved to be a watershed moment in the chequered history of the Pusapati family. Up until that time, except for the occasional vicissitudes, their importance had steadily increased during the century until their 34