228 



ANNUAL REGISTER, 1804. 



and found the enemy's troops in 

 considerable force, encamped on 

 the other side, under the command 

 of Shumsherc Bahadur, who though 

 in fact an onicer of the ])oish-\va, 

 had, from the weakness of the court 

 of Poonah, succeeded in making 

 himself nearly independent in Bun- 

 delcund. Aficr some petfy successes, 

 col. Por,-ell crossed the Cane on the 

 12th, and having succeeded in forc- 

 ing the enemy to a general engage- 

 ment, entirely defeated them alter 

 a short though sharp contest. In 

 consequence of this event the v/hcle 

 province was freed froii} the armies 

 of Shumshcre Bahadur, and the nu- 

 merous inhabitants of that valuable 

 district became the warm friends 

 and supporters of the British cause. 

 On the 2ud of Oftober general 

 Lake^ reached the city of INlathura 

 (or Muttra), where he joined col. 

 Vandeleur, who had occupied it 

 ■with his detachment.* To the latter, 

 some few days boTore, INI. Doder- 

 naigucand two oilier French officers 

 (who had been detached by Scindiali 

 at the head of some regular batta- 

 lions, to reinforce M. Perron in 

 July), surrendered themselves pri- 

 soners. At Alathura also colonel 

 Vandeleur had j)ossessed himself of 

 one of M. Perron's principal foun- 

 dories for casting cannon. 



In two days, the whole army 

 reached Agra, which was immedi- 

 ately summoned to surrender, but 

 no ans\/er was returned, owing, as 

 It afterwards ap})eared, to the dis- 

 trust which the garrison had con- 

 ceived of their European officers, 

 ■whom they had put into close con- 

 finement. On a nearer view of the 

 defences of the place, it was found 



that seven battalions of the enemy's 

 regular infantry, with some ord- 

 nance, were encamped on the out- 

 side of the fort, and occupied <he 

 town and the principal mosque of 

 Agra, as well as some ravines w hich 

 led tlirough broken ground, from 

 the British camp to the ditch, on 

 the south side of the fort, and to 

 the Delhi gateway. These ravines 

 general Lake determined to seize, 

 and to dislodge the enemy from the 

 town, before he proceeded further 

 against the fortress. Accordingly, 

 after a long and .severe contest on 

 the morning of the 10th of Oftober, 

 both these obje6ls were attained, 

 although with consider<Tblc loss in 

 men and officers. The enemy were 

 entirely defeated, having si.x. hurf- 

 dritd men killed, and losing twenty- 

 six guns with several tumbrils of 

 ammunition. The 'remainder of 

 their battalions, to the number of 

 2, .500, agreed to surrender to gene- 

 ral Lake; and marched into the 

 British camp, prisoners of war on 

 the following morning. After some 

 insidious attempts of the garri.=!on 

 in the fort to protract the period of 

 negociation, and its treacherously 

 firing upon the British force, while it 

 was actually dependiug,general Lake 

 determined upon taking the place 

 by storm : accordingly the breaching 

 batteries were opened on the morn- 

 ing of the 17th, and considerable 

 impression being made on the walls 

 in the course of the day, the fort 

 capitulated in the evening. At noon 

 on tlu^ day following the garrison, 

 consisting of 5000 men, marched 

 out, and the place was immediately 

 occupied by the British troops. — 

 An immense quantity of ammuni- 



* Composed of tlie 8th and '29th ro!;inients of di-apnon.'^, tlie 1st and lih of na- 

 tive eavalry, three battalions and ^l^■e conipanic? of native infantry 



3 tion 



