Malabari Conquest of the Maldives
 

An artist's impression of the battle. The drawing depicts the battle between the Malabars and the Maldives at Male' in 1166 AH (1753 AD). In this engagement, the Malabars attacked Male', came ashore and burnt down the palace and nearly half of the settlement at Male'. They captured the reigning Sultan Mukarram Muhammed Imaduddin and many leading nobles and took them away with them. Some of the Malabars remained at Male' to occupy and administer the country.

 

 
 

The second time that the Maldives lost independence was in the year 1166 AH (1752 AD) when a group of Malabars captured the Maldives and stayed on for three months and twenty days. The conquest came during the reign of Sultan Mukarram Muhammed Imaduddin III.

Sultan Imaduddin was the younger brother of Sultan Ibrahim Iskandhar II (Ibrahim Rasgefaanu). Before ascending the throne, Sultan Imaduddin was known as Ali Faashana Kilegefaan. He ascended the throne in 1163 AH (1749 AD). He is popularly known in history as Koru Bandaarain. During the third year of his reign, a group of Malabars sent by the Ali Raja of Cananore, captured Malé and burnt down the palace. It is said that in the blaze, half of the settlement at Malé was burnt down. The Malabars took away the Sultan and his nephew Muhammed, who was the son of Ibrahim Rasgefaanu. Several other nobles were also kidnapped by the Malabars. Thereafter, the Malabars occupied the country for 3 months and 20 days. These events took place in 1166 AH (1752 AD).

It is believed that what was behind the Malabari conquest were the intrigues of Qadi Muhammed Shamsuddin and Katheeb Ahmed Muhiyyuddin, sons of Hassan Thaajuddin. The two of them sent a plan to Ali Raja on how to capture the Maldives. For a while, after capturing Malé, the Malabari contingent at Malé looked up to Qadi Muhammed Shamsuddin as their leader. However, subsequently, the Malabars arrested the two brothers, tortured them and disposed of them. What was done to them was not known at the time but it was later believed that they were thrown into the sea with weights tied to their bodies.

 
 

In the past, the most frequent attacks on the sovereignty of the Maldives were launched by the Malabars. A Malabari expedition sent by Ali Raja of Cananore attacked Male' and burnt down the palace in 1166 AH.