Hyder Ali won the First Mysore War (1767-1769). He made the British promise to help Mysore if the Marathas attacked it.
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When the Marathas invaded Mysore in 1771, the British failed to keep their promise. This angered Hyder Ali. There was renewed Anglo-French rivalry during the War of American Independence (1775-1783), in which the British and the French took opposite sides. Hyder Ali’s friendly relations with the French worsened his relations with the British.
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The British also occupied the port of Mahe, Mysore’s only outlet to European trade. This led to the Second Mysore War (1779-1784). Hyder Ali was defeated, but carried on fighting until his death in 1782. His son Tipu Sultan continued the war, but had to make peace in 1784.
Tipu Sultan’s attack on Travancore, the only source of pepper for the British, led to the Third Mysore War (1790-1792). The British, in alliance with the Nizam and the Marathas, defeated Tipu.