Capture of Serampore (1801)

The Capture of Serampore (Overtagelsen af Serampore), alternatively the Capture of Frederiknagore (Overtagelsen af Frederiknagore), was a British capture of the Danish colony of Serampore (Frederiknagore) on 8 May 1801 during the English Wars. The British met no resistance, and could subsequently quickly capture the settlement.

Background
During the French Revolutionary Wars in 1800 and early 180, rising tensions between Denmark–Norway and the United Kingdom arose and the Danish colonies in India subsequently received the intelligence of the rising tensions between the two nations. As a result, Danish merchants in Tranquebar and Serampore sold their ships in order for them not to be seized by the British, and the colonies prepared for war.

Capture
On the night of 8 May, a detachment from the British Fort William garrison, under the command of Colonel Dickson, proceeded from Barrackpore to the Danish settlement of Serampore (Frederiknagore.) The Dano-Norwegian governor, Ole Bie, was woken up by the arrival of a British official, who demanded his surrender. With only 44 men at his disposal, Bie was not able to resist, and would subsequently surrender without opposition.

Thereby Serampore's capture was unattended by the consequences of a siege, and the British flag would be hoisted without a gun being fired.

Aftermath
Immediately after, Colonel Dickson detached a party of sepoys under the command of Captain Morris to guard the place. However, the occupation did not last long, and in the following year, Britain would retreat from Danish India in coordination with the Treaty of Amiens.