Thalassery is situated in the district of Kannur. The geography of Thalassery is adorned with four rivers, hills and a long coast line. One of the four rivers is the Mahé (Mayyazhi) river. During the British rule, the Mahé river was monikered as the English Channel, because it separated Tellicherry (ruled by Britain) from Mahé (ruled by French). Muzhappilangad beach, a 5km long pristine beach is located within 10 km from the city centre.
History
The roots of the name can probably be traced as follows. The Chera dynasty that ruled Kerala from 9th century AD declined by the beginning of 12th century AD. After the decline of Cheras, the kingdom broke into smaller regions under local chieftains. This led to the formation of provincial states. Venadu, Kolathunadu, Kochi and Kozhikode were prominent among them.
Thalassery was the northernmost place in Kolathunadu. Due to this fact, the place was called "Thalakkathe" (for Northernmost or Topmost to be precise - in Malayalam language) "Cheri" (for Place) which later was abbreviated to Thalassery.
The British established their presence in Kerala in 1682, when they obtained permission from the Vadakkilamkur Prince of Kolattunad, to settle at Thalassery. In the following years, the British presence in the state of Kerala strengthened. During this period, there were many organised revolts held by the natives of the region against the empire. Among them was the revolt of 1704, that the natives of Thalassery organised, but this revolt was quickly crushed by the British forces due to its localised non-nationalistic nature.
Due to its coastal location, the town of Thalassery was a major commercial centre during the British rule of India. During the British rule, the Malayalam name Thalassery was anglicised into Tellicherry.
The British built a seaport in Tellicherry through which a variety of spices such as pepper and cardamom where exported. The world famous Tellicherry Peppers are named after this quaint little town. In 1708, the British built a fort by the sea to protect and control the spice trade from the town. In 1781, this fort was attacked unsuccessfully by the Indian ruler and military commander Hyder Ali of Mysore.
The British also established the district judicial court in Tellicherry. During the British rule, jurisdiction of Tellicherry Court extended up to Mysore.