TIPPOO SAIB. 



TIPPOO SAIB. 



preferred martial exercises, into which he was initiated at an early age. 

 The French officers in the employment of his father instructed him 

 in tactics; and in 1767, when Hyder Aly overran the Carnatio, Tippoo 

 was entrusted with the command of a corps of cavalry. He was at 

 that time nineteen years of age ; but the success with which he carried 

 on the war in the neighbourhood of Madras sufficiently proved how 

 much he had profited by his European teachers. During the war 

 with the Mahrattas, which lasted from 1775 to 1779, Tippoo acquired 

 the universal esteem of the army ; and he rose so high in the favour 

 of hi father and his counsellors, that the left division of the Mysore 

 army, consisting of 18,000 cavalry and 6000 regular infantry, was put 

 under his command. With this force Tippoo attacked Colonel Bailey 

 in the neighbourhood of Perimbakum, on the 6th of September 1780. 

 He was obliged to retire; but on the 10th of the same month an 

 engagement, in which Tippoo Saib is said to have taken an active part, 

 ended in the entire defeat of the English army. The whole of the 

 war in tho Carnatic gave him opportunities of perfecting himself in 

 the art of war ; and on the 18th of February 1782, he showed his 

 skill in the attack and complete defeat of Colonel Braithwaite, on the 

 banks of the Kolerun. This was undoubtedly his greatest stroke of 

 generali-hip, yet the disproportion of force was very great. Tippoo 

 had 400 Europeans, 10,000 native infantry, and 10,000 cavalry, besides 

 20 guns ; while the entire force under Colonel Braithwaite consisted 

 of 100 European soldiers, 1,500 sepoys, and 300 native cavalry. A 

 few months afterwards Tippoo was obliged to move towards the south, 

 in order to meet the English troops in the provinces of Tanjore and 

 Malwa, under the command of Colonel Humbertson. On the 20th of 

 November Tippoo found the English at Paniany. He made a vigorous 

 attack, but was repulsed and compelled to retreat. He crossed the 

 river Paniany, and prepared himselt for another engagement, when on 

 the llth of December 1782, he received intelligence of the death of 

 his father. On the 20th he was at Seringapatam, where he mounted 

 the musnud without much display or ceremony. He had scarcely per- 

 formed the funeral rites of his father when he returned to Arcot, and 

 assumed the command of his army. But whilst he was engaged in 

 the Carnatic General Matthews took Onore, and the country of Bed- 

 nore was in the hands of the English. In order to regain these more 

 valuable possessions, Tippoo was obliged to relinquish his conquest in 

 the Carnatic, and by the end of March 1783, scarce a Mysorean was 

 left in that country. His operations were so rapid and successful, 

 that on the 28th of April Tippoo Saib had already reduced the garri- 

 son of Bednore to the necessity of capitulating. General Matthews 

 and several of the principal officers were barbarously put to death. 

 After the reduction of this city, it was Tippoo's object to repossess 

 himself of Mangalore, the principal seaport in his dominions. But 

 the place was well -defended; and in the midst of his preparations for 

 the assault accounts were received in the camp of peace having been 

 concluded between England and France. It was early in July 1783 

 when M. de Bussy, in consequence of this news, declined to act any 

 longer against the English. He -quitted the camp with his detach- 

 ment. A considerable reinforcement having arrived under General 

 Macleod, Tippoo agreed to a suspension of arms; and early in the 

 year 1784 Sir George Staunton and two other ambassadors from 

 Madras arrived in the camp, and on the llth of March a treaty of 

 peace, which stipulated for the liberation of all the prisoners and the 

 restitution of all places taken by either party during the war, was 

 concluded. About the end of the same year Tippoo concluded a 

 treaty of peace with the court of Poonah. He then returned to Serin- 

 gapatam, and assumed the title of Sultan, thereby throwing off all 

 dependence on or allegiance to the captive Rajah (imprisoned by his 

 father) or the Great Mogul. 



In 1786 he occupied himself with internal regulations; and from 

 an inventory made at this period we find that the treasure, jewels, and 

 other valuable articles were estimated at eighty millions sterling. He 

 had also 700 elephants, 6000 camels, 11,000 horses, 400,000 bullocks 

 and COWB, 100,000 buffaloes, 600,000 sheep, 300,000 firelocks, 300,000 

 matchlocks, 200,000 swords, and 2000 pieces of cannon, and an 

 immense quantity of gunpowder and other military stores. His 

 regular army consisted of 19,000 cavalry, 10,000 artillery, and 

 70,000 infantry. He had also 5000 rocket-men, and 40,000 irregular 

 infantry. 



During the years 1787 and 1788 the attention of the sultan was 

 principally engaged in the conversion and subjection of the Na'irs, or 

 chiefs of Malabar. He is said to have carried away from that province 

 70,000 Christians, and to have made Mussulmans of 100,000 Hindus. 

 This he effected by forcible circumcision, and compelling them to 

 eat beef. 



It was about this time that he published an edict for the destruction 

 of all the Hindoo temples in his dominions, excepting>those of Seringa- 

 patam and Mail Cottah. Fortunately his officers did not enforce this 

 barbarous regulation. 



Although Tippoo Saib did not show any overt hostility toward the 

 English after he had signed the treaty of 1784, yet in 1787 he sent an 

 embassy to France, to enter into an offensive and defensive alliance, 

 and to stimulate the court of Versailles to a speedy renewal of hostili- 

 ties with England. The ambassadors returned to Seringapatam in the 

 month of May 1789, without having obtained their object. The dis- 

 appointed sultan vented his rage by putting two of them to death as 



having betrayed his interests. Tippoo hated the British power in 

 India, and he took every opportunity to annoy such of the native 

 kings as were under its protection. The Rajah of Travancore had by 

 the treaty of Mangalore stipulated for the security of his territories. 

 In April 1790 Tippoo invaded the country and subjected the whole of 

 the northern district. The reasons assigned by Tippoo for the infrac- 

 tion of the terms of the treaty were, that two forts, Cranganagore and 

 Jyacotta, which were on the northern boundaries of the raja's pos- 

 session, had belonged to his father. This aggression was considered 

 by the English equivalent to a declaration of war, and Colonel Hartley 

 was sent with a considerable detachment to the assistance of the raja. 

 At this intelligence Tippoo withdrew hie army from Travancore, and 

 returned to Seringapatam, when, to his dismay, he heard that the 

 Mahrattas and the Nizam had promised the English a zealous co-opera- 

 tion with their forces. 



On the 15th of Juno 1790 the English troops, under the command 

 of General Meadows, entered the sultan's territory, and took possession 

 of the fort of Carur without resistance. Daraporam and Coimbatore 

 were shortly afterwards reduced. About the same time a detachment, 

 under Colonel Stuart, captured Dindigul and Paligautchcry. The 

 movements and operations of the English forces were so well con- 

 ducted that Tippoo found himself unable to oppose them, and he 

 resolved to follow the plan of warfare adopted by his father : instead 

 of defending his own territories, to lay waste those of his enemy. 

 This he did with considerable ability ; for in the beginning of 1791 

 the English, instead of being masters of great part of Mysore, as they 

 had expected, found themselves attacked and annoyed in the very 

 neighbourhood of Madras. 



On the 29th of January 1791, Lord Cornwallis assumed the command 

 of the army, and on the llth of the same month he was at Vellore. 

 On the 21st of March the fort of Bangalore was taken by storm. On 

 this event Tippoo retired to some distance, and wrote to Lord Corn- 

 wallis, requesting a truce. This was refused, and he proceeded to 

 Seriugapatam, leaving his army under the command of one of his gene- 

 rals, to watch the motions of the English. On the 3rd of May Lord 

 Cornwallis was at Arakery, within sight of the sultan's capital ; but 

 his troops had suffered a great deal froin want of food and forage, and 

 he was compelled to retreat towards Bangalore. The Mahrattas came 

 however to his assistance, and the warfare was carried on with great 

 success. 



However, whilst the English were carrying on their successful 

 operations in the north-west part of Mysore, the sultan made a diver- 

 sion towards Coimbatore, situated to the south of Seringapatam ; and 

 Lieutenant Chalmers with the whole of his party were made prisoners. 

 The skill of Tippoo Sultan enabled him to protract the war till the 

 month of February 1792, when the allies (the English, the Mahrattas, 

 and the troops of the Nizam) encamped in sight of the capital. But 

 it was not until General Abercromby Lad united his forces to those of 

 Lord Cornwallis, and had determined to take the town by storm, that 

 the haughty mind of the sultan was humbled. He agreed to give the 

 allies one-half of his dominions, and to pay them in the course of 

 twelve months the sum of three krores and thirty lacs of rupees 

 (3,030,OOOZ.), to restore all the prisoners, and to deliver up as hostages 

 two of his sons. Abdul-khalik and Moaz Addeen were the names of 

 the two princes, and the attention and kindness evinced by Lord 

 Cornwallis towards them, were such as to afford the highest gratifica- 

 tion to the sultan their father. By signing the definitive treaty of the 

 16th of March 1792, the sultan lost one-half of his dominions. Soon 

 after this the allies quitted the neighbourhood of Seringapatam, and 

 Tippoo sought the means of replenishing his treasury. This was soon 

 done by imposing exorbitant and extraordinary taxes, which were 

 chiefly levied upon the agriculturists. 



Notwithstanding this seeming tranquillity from 1792 to 1796, the 

 sultan was engaged in inciting all the native chiefs against the British 

 power in India ; but it was not until 1798 that the whole extent of 

 his secret machinations and intrigues became known. At the com- 

 mencement of this year ambassadors were sent from Seringapatam to 

 the Mauritius. Their object was to renew the sultan's relations with 

 France, and to solicit the aid of 10,000 European and 30,000 negro 

 troops. The proceedings of the embassy were first made known in 

 the month of June to the Marquis Wellesley, the governor-general. 

 About the same time intelligence was received in India of the opera- 

 tions of the French in Egypt. Circumstances like these left no doubt 

 as to the intentions of the sultan, and on the 3rd of February 1799, 

 orders were issued for the British armies and those of the allies imme- 

 diately to invade the dominions of Tippoo. Hostilities commenced on 

 the 5th of March ; and on the 5th of April General Harris took a 

 strong position opposite the west side of Seringapatam. After be- 

 sieging the place some time, a general attack was made on the 4th of 

 May 1799. The sultan had scarcely finished his repast when he heard 

 the noise of the assault. He instantly repaired towards a breach which 

 the English had succeeded in making a few days before. His troops 

 fled ; he endeavoured to rally them ; and so long as any of his men 

 remained firm, he continued to dispute the ground against an English 

 column which had forced the breach and gained the ramparts. Finding 

 all his efforts against the enemy fruitless, he mounted his horse, and, 

 in endeavouring to effect his retreat, arrived at a bridge leading to the 

 inner fort ; but the place was already occupied by the English, and in 



