formerly
MadrasCity (pop., 2001: city, 4,343,645; metro. area, 6,560,242), capital of Tamil Nadu state, southern India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. Founded in 1639 by the British East India Company as a fort and trading post, it was known as Fort St. George and was used as a base for the company's expansion in southern India. The city of St. Thomé, established by the Portuguese in the 16th century, was ceded to the British in 1749 and incorporated into it. The English made the city their administrative and commercial capital circa 1800. It is an industrial centre and the site of numerous educational and cultural institutions. It is traditionally considered the burial place of St. Thomas the Apostle.
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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
