LECTURE X.

EXTENSION OF THE BRITISH RULE.

PART I. LORD WELLESLEY AND HIS SUCCESSORS (1798-1813).

Alternations of Peace and War Policy-Lord Wellesley-The Fourth Mysore War-Mallavelly-Taking of Seringapatam -Tippoo's Death-Division of Territory-The Mysore Rajas restored-Dhoondia Waugh-The Egyptian Expedition-Sir J. Malcolm's Persian Mission-Subsidiary Treaty with the Nizam: with Oude-Arrangements with Surat, Tanjore, the Carnatic-Subsidiary Treaty with the Peshwa-The first great Struggle with the MahrattasAssaye-Laswaree-Treaties with Berar, with ScindiaOchterlony's Defence of Delhi-The First Siege of Bhurtpore-Holkar's Retreat-Lord Wellesley's Recall-His Unpopularity with the Company-The subsidiary Alliance System, its Speciousness and its Evils-Annexation its necessary ultimate Result-It develops a School of AngloIndian Statesmen-Lord Cornwallis reverses Lord Wellesley's Policy-Sir George Barlow follows him-Mischievous Treaties with Scindia and Holkar-The Vellore MutinyLord William Bentinck's Recall from, and Sir G. Barlow's Appointment to, Madras-Lord Minto; his Administration transitional-Reduction of Bundelcund-The Travancore War-The Pindarrees-The Madras Mutiny-Abolition of the Company's Indian Trade Monopoly.

PART II. THE history of British India, since the rise of History. our power, exhibits a curious alternation of warLECT. X. like and of peaceful governors. The warlike governors conquer territory, contract loans, generally end by insulting their immediate masters, the Court of Directors. Then conquest is denounced; moderation and neutrality are cried up. The peaceful governor is very careful to obey his

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masters to the letter, not very careful to protect allies. Salaries are clipped, coffers refill; but native princes take liberties; military officers grumble and sneer; the Court of Directors begin to feel ashamed of the ingloriousness of peace. And then again comes a new spell of war, and conquest, and expenditure, and loans, to be followed by another one of peace, and moderation and retrenchment. So Warren Hastings is followed by Cornwallis and Shore, so these are followed by Wellesley. It is much the history of trade societies and their strikes. They are moderate upon empty purses; aggressive upon full ones.

Cornwallis and Shore, in truth, bequeathed a war to their successor. There was no solid peace possible for the English, whilst the house of Hyder retained its power. If Hyder Ali hated the English much, Tippoo Sultan hated them more, with a deep, implacable, Mussulman hatred. He had every motive, good and bad, for his hate. He was a fanatical Moslem, and he saw clearly that the English power was the great obstacle to the spread of Islam in India. He was the ablest of Indian sovereigns since the death of Aurungzebe, and again the English power was the great obstacle to the spread of his rule. He hated them because he had dictated a peace to them; he hated them because they had dictated a peace to him. He hated them because he deemed them treacherous; he hated them because he had been treacherous to them. He hated them because his subjects hated them; he hated them because his dependent princes clung to them. He disdained to

PART II.
History.

LECT. X.

PART II. disguise his hatred. When Lord Cornwallis sent History. back his sons, who had been detained as hostages LECT. X. after the treaty of Seringapatam, he repelled all

advances towards friendliness.

But both Hyder Ali and Tippoo were wise enough to know that they were too weak to cope singly with England, when the latter put forth all her strength. Hence, no doubt, their moderation, whenever they were able to dictate a peace; never claiming more from the English than a restitution of conquests, and giving the like in exchange. Hence also their constant looking to France for aid.

It was now the glorious period of French revolutionary history, when France, with a bankrupt treasury, with armies of hungry and ragged recruits, not only kept all Europe at bay, but pursued foe after foe upon his own territory, dictated peace after peace at the sword's point; the days of Desaix and Hoche, of Bonaparte and Moreau. The clash of that great conflict echoed loud in the far East, and no ear was more open to it than that of the ruler of Mysore. We have already seen how French stragglers were at work everywhere in India, disciplining Mahrattas for Scindia, disciplining Mussulmen for the Nizam. Tippoo did not wait for Frenchmen to come to him; he sent to them.

Three weeks after the arrival in Calcutta of Lord Mornington (whom I shall call at once Lord Wellesley), sent to replace Sir John Shore (17th May, 1798), the former received a proclamation issued by the French Governor of the Mauritius, stating that two ambassadors from

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Tippoo had arrived in the island, to propose an alliance offensive and defensive, and solicit aid in troops for the expulsion of the English, and inviting volunteers for the purpose. Lord Wellesley treated the proclamation at first as a forgery; but finding it authentic, resolved to proclaim war. It was vigorously conducted.

The French corps-I mean the corps disciplined and officered by Frenchmen - in the Nizam's service, now under Perron, seemed a most dangerous obstacle to success. Reversing Sir John Shore's policy, Lord Wellesley offered additional British forces to the Nizam, on condition of the French being disarmed. Fortunately for the English, the latter were in mutiny for want of pay. By prompt and vigorous measures, 14,000 men were disarmed without the loss of a

man.

News now came of the invasion of Egypt by Napoleon, which looked too like an attempt to form a junction with Tippoo. Lord Wellesley wrote letters of remonstrance. Tippoo protested friendship, but equivocated and shuffled. Lord Wellesley proceeded in person to Madras. Two armies were to attack Mysore simultaneously, — one from the Carnatic, numbering nearly 30,000 men, under General Harris,—another from Bombay, under General Stuart. A contingent, supplied by the Nizam, was placed under the command of Colonel Arthur Wellesley, of the 33rd. Born in 1769, he was the dullest of several brothers, and, therefore, probably, was put into the army, where he obtained his first commission at eighteen. He rose rapidly; and at twenty-six commanded his regiment, during the

PART II.
History.
LECT. X.

PART II. disastrous expedition of the Duke of York to History. Holland (1794), where, however, he seems to LECT. X. have earned some distinction. He was now in India since 1797.

The fourth and last Mysore war now began. Tippoo's first endeavour was to surprise and cut off an English brigade, under Colonel Montresor, at Sedaseer. His advance was discovered, however, in a somewhat singular manner. You will remember that the defection of 10,000 Coorgees, or subjects of the Raja of Coorg, had been the turning-point of the last Mysore war against Tippoo, and that, at the peace, Coorg had passed under English protection, much to the disgust of the Sultan. The Raja, with some English officers, happened to be on this occasion on the look-out from a high hill; making merry together, I dare say, for the Coorgees are said to be free and easy fellows, and not particular about caste observances. Suddenly they descried in the distance, not some roving party, as perhaps they might have expected, but the whole Mysorean army in march towards Sedaseer. This gave them time to make some preparations for defence, and Montresor was enabled, by a desperate resistance, to hold out till relieved by General Stuart, when the Mysoreans were completely repulsed (9th March, 1799). Tippoo now turned against the army of the Carnatic, which he attacked at Mallavelly, endeavouring to cut a gap through it with 300 cavalry under his chief adviser, Poorneah. But the English reserved their fire till the enemy were close, and delivered such a volley that one man only cut his way through their lines. Colonel Wellesley, who commanded the left wing,