Battle of Ramu

The Battle of Ramu, fought in May 1824, was one of the opening battles of the First Anglo-Burmese War. On May 10, 1824, the Burmese under General Maha Bandula launched an invasion of Chittagong from Arakan as the southern part of a two-pronged attack aimed at Calcutta. They offered to end the invasion if the British were to hand over some Arakanese rebels that had taken refuge in the Bengal Presidency. The British commander at Ramu, Captain Cotton, rejected the offer, and the Burmese attacked. After three days of fighting the British troops, a mixed force of Sepoys and police with a total strength of several hundred men, was routed and forced from Ramu on May 17. The British losses in killed, wounded and missing amounted to more than half the strength of the garrison. The Burmese failed to exploit their advantage, and Maha Bandula's army withdrew to counter the British conquest of Rangoon.