South Arcot was the southern portion of the
Mughal province (
subah) of
Arcot. In ancient times, the northern part of South Arcot was under the rule of the Pallavas while the southern part was a portion of the traditional Chola homeland. In the 14th century, South Arcot was conquered by the
Delhi Sultanate and later, by Vijayanagar kings. In 1646, South Arcot came under the Bijapur sultans who ruled till 1676, when it was conquered by the
Marathas. In 1698, the
Mughal Emperor Aurangazeb took
Gingee and established his rule over South Arcot. The British presence dates back to 1682, when the
British East India Company established a factory at Cuddalore and Kanimedu. When these two failed, the Company set up another factory at Fort St David near Cuddalore. Fort St David served as the temporary capital of Madras Presidency from 1746 onwards when
Madras was taken by the
French East India Company, till 1752. Cuddalore was taken by the French from 1758 to 1760, when it was retaken by the British. From 1767 to 1790,
Hyder Ali and his son
Tipu Sultan launched repeated attacks on the region. The
subah of Arcot was ceded to the
British East India Company by the
Nawab of the Carnatic in 1801, and subsequently the district was split into
North Arcot and South Arcot. On 30 September 1993, South Arcot District was split into
Cuddalore District and
Villupuram District. Cuddalore was the capital of the erstwhile South Arcot district. == Administration ==