RATKDRI1KIB, CHRISTOPHER. 



I1AIRD, SIR DAY IP. 



above all olhn are apt to look forward, lie did the work of a lifetime. 

 Ho wt (in 1820) one of the founder* of the Agronomical Society, and 

 paid v.-ry great attention to ite affair*. He was one of those who 

 exerted themselves to produce a reformation and enlargement of the 

 Nautical Almanack, and whose effort* at last prevailed upon the 

 government to place it upon it* preaent distinguished footing. In 

 pendulum experiment* he wa* among the foremost of those who inves- 

 tigated the newly obaerred effects of the air upon that instrument 

 The repetition of the Cavendish experiment was conducted in hi* 

 house and under hi* niperintendence. The Astronomical Society's 

 catalogue of tar* wa* the luggeation of Mr. Daily and Mr. Gompertz, 

 and wa. auperintended by Mr. Baily. The remarkable circumstances 

 attending the publication of Mr. Baily 'Life of Flamiteed' are 

 detailed in anoth* r place. [FLAMSTFED.] He pnt the finishing hand 

 to hi* revision of ancient catalogue* in the 13th volume of the 

 'Memoir* of the Astronomical Society' which i* entirely his own 

 work, and printed at his own expense. He suggested to the I'.rltixh 

 Association the repnblication of the immense catalogue of Ltdunde, 

 called the 'Hutoire Celeste,' combined with that of Lacaille ; the 

 two together containing 67,000 stars. He suggested to the same 

 body the extension of the Astronomical Society's catalogue to 10,000 

 stars, accompanied by the coefficients of reduction. He superintended 

 the construction of the tables and a portion of the printing, and he 

 left the preface to the latter completely written. All the-e catalogues 

 are now published ; the Lalande and Lacaille very recently. He had 

 also undertaken the construction of the new standard scale, wanted by 

 the government in consequence of the destruction of the old one. 



Mr. Baily died August 30, 1844. His last public appearance was at 

 Oxford, on the 2nd of July, to which place he went, with some diffi- 

 culty, to receive the honorary degree of Doctor of Civil Law. He was 

 never married. Mr. Baily was distinguished by great industry, which 

 was made more effective by bis methodic*! habits, and also by a 

 suavity of manner which greatly enlarged the circle of his friends. 

 In the last twenty yean of his life, be did much more and better 

 work than younger-men of much greater original power have done in 

 twice the time. And, besides this, Ma admirable personal qualities, 

 which made it so easy to co-operate with him, led to his being able to 

 make others do more than they could have done without him. His 

 high moral worth added to his power; and all these together made 

 him the most influential member of the astronomical world. The 

 history of the astronomy of the 19th century would be incomplete 

 without an account of his valuable labours. Those who are well 

 acquainted with Delambre's history of the science will easily imagine 

 how much that severe judge would have abated of his rigour, had 

 there come before him such models of patient thought, all but impec- 

 cable accuracy, careful research, and well-chosen objects, as the 

 writings of Francis Uaily. A minute account of Mr. Daily's writings 

 is given in a memoir by Sir John Herschel, read to the Astronomical 

 Society in 1844. 



BAINBRIDGE, or BAMBRIDOE, CHRISTOPHER, archbishop of 

 York, and cardinal-priest of the Roman Church, was born at Hilton, 

 near Appleby, in Westmorland, and received bis education at Queen's 

 Collage, Oxford, of which he became provost in 1495, and was created 

 Doctor of Laws about the same time. He was afterwards a liberal 

 benefactor to his college. In 1503 he became Dean of York ; in 1505 

 Dean of Windsor ; and, in the same year, Master of the Rolls and one 

 of the king's privy council. In 1507 he was advanced to the see of 

 Durham, and was translated the next year to the archbishopric of York. 



Bainbri'lRe distinguished himself chiefly by his embassy from king 

 Henry VIII. to Pope Julius II., who created him cardinal of St. 

 I'raxede, in March, 1511, and eight days afterwards appointed him 

 legato of the ecclesiastical army which had been sent into the 

 Ferrarese, and wa* then besiegiug the fort of Bastia. His letter to 

 king Henry VIII., concerning the pope's bull giving him the title of 

 moat Christian King, is extant in Rymer's 'Kcodera' (edit. 1704-35, 

 vol. xiii. p. 376). Cardinal Bainbridge died at Rome, July 14th, 1514, 

 and was buried in the English hospital (since called the English 

 college) there. His death was caused by poison administered by 

 KiuaMo de Modem, a priest whom he had employed in menial offices, 

 and who after confessing that be was suborned to this act by Sylvester 

 de Giglis, bishop of Worcester, who was at that time envoy from king 

 Henry VII L to Rome, committed suicide. The violence of the 

 cardinal's temper to those about him is particularly dwelt upon by 

 Oldoiuna, the continuator of Ciaconius. 



(Bieffnrlu* Bnltnmiea, edit 1778, vol. L p. 515; Wood, Athena 

 team, edit Bliss, voL ii. p. 702; Ellis, Original letter,, 1st series, 

 ToL i pp. 99. io, 108 ; 2nd scries, voL L p. 226.) 



BAINBRIDQE, JOHN, an astronomer of merit, was born In 1582 

 at Ashby .le-la Zoi.ch, and died in 1643 at Oxford. He was the first 

 Savilian professor of astronomy in that university, being appointed to 

 that office in 1619 by Sir Henry Saville himself. He was also a 

 Doctor of Medicine, and a good oriental Kbolar, having studied Arabic 

 for the purpose of reading the astronomer* who have written in that 

 laocnas;*. He published an 'Astronomical Description of the Comet 

 of 1618,' and several other works, of which, as well as of his unpub- 

 Usbed manuscripts, a li-t i* given by Hutton. (Martin, Biograpkia 

 ntl>+.,Jiir a ; Hutton, McstesW) 



BAUD, H1K DAVID, l!rt., general in the British army, and 



K.C.B., was born on the 6th December 1757, at Ncwbyth, in Scotland. 

 He entered the service at 6fteen year* of age, a* an ensign in the 2nd 

 regiment of foot, and obtained a company in 1778, in the T^r I High- 

 land regiment. Before entering upon active service he spent some 

 month* at an academy at Chelsea, then held in much esteem as a 

 school of military discipline, where ho displayed some of that firm- 

 ness of character by which he was afterwards characterise'!. In 177:* 

 Captain Baird accompanied his regiment to India, and wa present 

 at the disastrous affair of Peramboucum, on the 10th September 1780, 

 when a handful of British troops, after a most gallant defence, were 

 perfidiously slaughtered by the army of Hydcr Ali, after they had 

 surrendered to a force twenty times their number. As soon as the 

 British had laid down their arms, the cavalry of Hydcr, commanded 

 by his son Tippoo, rushed forward, and literally cut them to \ 

 Captain Baird received several severe wounds, and barely escaped 

 with life. He surrendered to some French officers in the enemy's 

 service, by whom he was treated with much kindness. They had not 

 however the power of restoring the English prisoners to liberty. The 

 strong fortress of Seringapatam was thn desi ination of Baird and about 

 400 British soldiers. Here he endured with firmness and equanimity 

 a captivity of nearly four years' duration, embittered by every privation 

 nnd suffering which savage vengeance could devise. After his release 

 Baird visited England, and returned to India in 1791 with the rank 

 of lieutenant-colonel. Believing that the British authorities acted 

 oppressively ill the affairs of the Rajah of Tanjore, he quarrelled 

 with them, and left India in disgust ou the 17th October 1797, for 

 the Cpe of Good Hope. He however returned goon after with the 

 rank of brigadier-general, and was engaged in active service under 

 General Harris in the war which again broke out between the British 

 government and the Sultan of Mysore, Tippoo, the son of Hyder All 

 After various successes the British army encamped under the walls of 

 Seringapatam, a fortress of great strength, and defended by a numer- 

 ous and confident army. The British commander determined to lake 

 it by storm; and the conduct of the dangerous enterprise was, at 

 his own solicitation, given to Major-General Baird, the reserve being 

 intrusted to Colonel Wellesley, while Harris held himself prepared to 

 lead on the main body of the army in case of the failure of the assault. 

 Baird gallantly led the assault ou the 4th of May 1799. Ascending 

 the parapet of the trenches in full view of both armies " a military 

 figure," observes Colonel Wilks, "suited to such an occa 

 and drawing his sword with the gallant bearing of a knight of romance, 

 he hhout'il, in a tone that thrilled along the trenches, " Now, my brave 

 fellows, follow me, and prove yourselves worthy the name of British 

 soldiers." Within a very brief space the English flag waved from 

 the outer bastion of the fortress ; and before night Seriogapatu 

 in possession of the besiegers. The skill and intrepidity displayed by 

 General Baird on this memorable occasion were only equalled by his 

 humanity towards the captives. 



Throughout his professional career General Baird complained that 

 he had to endure many of those slights and mortifications to which 

 persons not of commanding birth and ininiitrtial influence are too 

 frequently subjected in the British army. At the time of the taking 

 of Seringapatam, Lord Mornington (afterwards Marquis Wellesley) 

 was governor-general of India : his brother, Colonel Arthur Wellesley 

 (the late Duke of Wellington, who even then displayed the qualities 

 of a skilful officer) commanded a corps of reserve under General 

 li-iiril. Usage entitled Baird to the command or governorship of the 

 town which he had taken, even had his services been less brilliant and 

 successful. Under this impression he took possession of the palace 

 of Tippoo, who was among the slain, as his head quarters. He was 

 next day abruptly commanded to deliver up the keys of the town to 

 Colonel Wellesley, who, as it happened, had no active share in the 

 capture. " And thus," said Baird, " before the sweat was dry on my 

 brow, I was superseded by an inferior officer." Whether the super- 

 seding of Baird was contrary to military etiquette or not, has been 

 warmly discussed. Baird himself was extremely annoyed at ; 

 it is asserted that he had requested to he relieved ; and it is certain 

 that Colonel Wellesley had already shown those powers of organisa- 

 tion, decision, and cool judgment so important in the commander of 

 a city just captured by iis-ault, and for which Wellington was so 

 remarkable, and in which Baird was always deficient Baird's friends 

 have however always maintained that Wellesley was appointed to the 

 command because he was brother to the governor-general, and not 

 because of his peculiar fitness. The storming of Seringapatam was 

 the great achievement of Sir David Baird's military life. Ho received 

 the thanks of Parliament and the East India Company for his brilliant 

 conduct at Seringapatam, and declined a pension from the company, 

 in the hope, which was not at that time realised, of being rewarded 

 by a red ribbon by his sovereign. 



In 1801 General Baird was sent from India to co-operate with the 

 British troops in Egypt against the French, but a truce having 

 agreed to just as he was approaching the British position, ho returned 

 to India by way of the lied Sea, and landed at Calcutta July 31, 

 1802. Soon after hi* arrival he was removed to the staff of the 

 establishment at Fort St. George, Madras, at his own request. II r 

 was afterwards engaged in the hostilities against Scindiah and the 

 Rajah of Rajpore. During this campaign, considering himself n. ; > ! 

 and thwarted, and having in vain remonstrated with the government 



