Martanda Sydney Tondaiman

Martanda Sydney Tondaiman
Martanda Sydney Tondaiman in Florence, Italy, 1943
Born	July 22, 1916(1916-07-22) Sydney, Australia
Died	January 20, 1984(1984-01-20) (aged 67) Florence, Italy
Resting place	Golders Green Crematorium
Known for	being the only son of Martanda Bhairava Tondaiman, Raja of Pudukkottai
Religion	Hindu
Children	None

Martanda Sydney Tondaiman (22 July 1916 – 20 January 1984) was the one and only son of Martanda Bhairava Tondaiman, Raja of Pudukkottai and his Australian wife Molly Fink.

Early life

Martanda Sydney Tondaiman was born to Martanda Bhairava Tondaiman and Molly Fink on July 22, 1916 while they were residing in Sydney, Australia. Martanda Bhairava Tondaiman had left India as the British government had refused to give official recognition to his interracial marriage with Molly Fink. Sydney was not baptised as he born to a non-Christian father.

Education

Sydney was educated at the Institut Le Rosey, Switzerland and the Clare College, Cambridge from where he graduated in history. At Le Rosey, his closest friend was Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who later sent Sydney a special invitation for his coronation in 1967. In 1938, while travelling between Cannes and Paris, Sydney met with a road accident and was left with a limp. Sydney moved to the United State of America ans became an U. S. citizen on September 1, 1943.

Arrest

From his childhood, Sydney was a kleptomaniac. In 1945, Sydney was arrested in New York for stealing money from his rich friends. The New York Times reported the prince as reasoning that "he had only a couple of thousand dollars in the bank, not nearly enough to maintain my usual style of living". Sydney was convicted and imprisoned, firstly at Sing Sing and then, at Cuba. As a result of his conviction, Sydney's U. S. citizenship was revoked. In 1946, when the Nawab of Palanpur requested the government of British India for permission to marry his Australian girlfriend, the authorities opposed citing Martanda Sydney as an example.

Later years

After serving his sentence, Martanda returned to London and lived with his mother until her death in 1967. Sydney, himself, died sixteen years later, on January 20, 1984, in a room in Hotel de la Ville, Florence, of heart failure. His body was cremated at the Golders Green Crematorium and his ashes were interred beside those of his parents.

References

• "Pudukkottai 4". Tondaiman Dynasty. Christopher Buyers. http://www.royalark.net/India/pudukk4.htm. 
• Younger, Coralie (2003). "Molly Fink". Wicked women of the Raj. Harper Collins. pp. 115–137. ISBN 978-81-7223-454-6.