Alarmed at the danger, the Rajah | dispatched a messenger to Madras to inform the English government of the movements of Tippoo. Sir Archibald Campbell sent some troops to his assistance; and declared that if Tippoo should attack the lines of Travancore, it would be considered by the English as a declaration of war. The steps were approved by the supreme government of Bengal; and Tippoo, awed by this resolute opposition, withdrew his troops and returned to Seringapatam.

The following summer, however, produced a plausible picture for executing his scheme, and spread the flames of war all over India. The Dutch, from the vicinity of Cochin to the Mysore, trembled for their most valuable possessions. Their two parts of Cranganore and Jacottah they offered for sale to the Rajah of Travancore, who eagerly accepted of the terms. Tippoo was, or pretended to be, highly incensed at this transaction. He asserted that he was the sovereign of that part of the Malabar coast, and that of course no transfer could be made of the property without his leave; and upon the Rajah's refusal to relinquish the purchase, he marched with a powerful army to the frontiers of Travancore, which he attempted to take by storm. At first he carried away every thing before him; but the fortune of the day soon changed, and the Sultan escaped from the enemy with great difficulty. In his retreat he was thrown from his horse into a ditch, where he was severely bruised. Galled at this disappointment and disgrace, he made a vow never again to wear his turban till he had taken the lines of Travancore. Accordingly he sent to Mysore for supplies of troops and battering-cannon, and prepared to beseige them by regular approach.

The English attempted to settle this affair by negociation; but Tippoo, confident of his strength, already considered Travancore as his own; from which he foresaw there would be no difficulty in crossing over to the Coromandel coast, driving the English from the Carnatic, pursuing them from Bengal, and finally extirpating them from India: such were the delusive hopes of the Sultan. The juncture was still more favourable to the views of his enemies. The English had formed a close alliance with the

Mahratta states, and the nizam of Deccan. There own affairs were in a state of unexampled prosperity. Tippoo's first attacks were completely successful: Jacottah, Paroor, and Curiapilly, successively surrendered to his arms; and not a fort in the northern part of his dominions remained in the possession of the unfortunate rajah. He was obliged to remain an inactive spectator of the devastations of Tippoo, who now laid waste the whole country with fire and sword. But the triumphs of Tippoo were but of short duration. The career which he began so prosperously was to be terminated in his defeat and disgrace in the loss of his dominions, and nearly in the extinction of his power.

War was now publicly drclared against Mysore, by the supreme government of Bengal: an army of fifteen thousand men was formed in the Carnatic, and one of nearly half that number in the presidency of Bombay. Tippoo, daunted by these vigorous measures, and alarmed at the storm that he saw gathering in every direction, made offers of submission, which were treated with contempt. "The English, equally incapable of offering an insult, as of submitting to one," said general Meadows to him in reply, "have always looked upon war as declared from the moment that you attacked their ally the king of Travancore. God does not always give the battle to the strong, nor the race to the swift; but generally success to those whose cause is just on that we depend."

*

The war was carried on with the greatest fury on both sides: an almost incalculable number of lives were lost; and early in the year 1792, Tippoo found himself in a very critical situation. Of his extensive dominions he retained in February only a single fort, and this he had reason to fear would not much longer be tenable. To the British general, lord Cornwallis, he attributed all his misfortunes: and he now made a daring attempt to extricate himself from his difficulties, by aiming a secret blow at his life: fortunately the assassins were conducted by a guide who was not properly informed as to the situation of his lordship's tent. Had their information been more accurate, or had their judgment been equal to their spirit, they

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might very probably have effected their atrocious design.

Seringapatam was the place at which all the British force was assembled: it was exceedingly strong and difficult of approach. Every thing was ready for commencing the attack: and Tippoo, alarmed at the resolution and preparations of the British army, and fearing that a breach would soon be followed up by an assault, thought of an expedient by which he proposed to retard such an event. He sent a body of soldiers, who cut off a stream of water which ran through the English camp. But it was soon reconveyed to its former channel, by a detachment sent by lord Cornwallis to investigate the cause of the failure of the usual supply; who drove the Mysoreans from its banks, and established themselves in a station on the spot to protect it during the remainder of the siege.

In the mean time the operations were carried on with vigour, and promised soon to be brought to a happy conclusion on the part of the besiegers: indeed, no doubt was now entertained of a speedy surrender, or capture by assault, of this last hope of Tippoo; and the soldiers already considered as their own the immense treasures which the town contained.

Tippoo had often sought for peace: he now renewed his solicitations; and as in this instance he appeared to be actuated by sincerity, lord Cornwallis, at the representations of the Mahrattas and the nizam, agreed to his proposals for the appointment of commissioners to settle the terms. Tippoo, it afterwards appeared, made this application with a view only of gaining time, in the expectation of having succour and supplies from Bednore. None, however, arrived; when, looking upon his affairs as desperate, being importuned by all his friends, and fearing sedition within the fort from farther obstinacy, he submitted, and the preliminary articles of peace were signed. These were exceedingly humiliating to the Sultan, but glorious to the British arms. It was stipulated that he should cede one half of his dominions to the allied powers; pay them three crores and thirty lacks of rupees; that he should unequivocally restore all the prisoners which had been taken by the Mysoreans,

from the time of Hyder Ally; and that two of his sons should be delivered up as hostages for the due performance of the treaty.

In conformity to these terms the treasure was carried out, and the young princes conducted to the English camp. The ceremony was performed with great pomp. The princes were mounted on elephants magnificently caparisoned, and attended by a numerous suite. Vast crowds, actuated by curiosity or affection, assembled to witness their departure. Lord Cornwallis, attended by his staff, met the princes at the door of the tent, conducted them in, and treated them with the utmost tenderness and respect. They were dressed in long white muslin gowns and red turbans. They had several rows of large pearls round their necks, from which was suspended an ornament consisting of a ruby and an emerald of considerable size, surrounded with large brilliants; and in their turbans each had a string of rich pearls. Educated from their infancy with infinite care, and instructed in their manners to imitate the reserve of politeness of their rank, it astonished every one present to observe the correctness and propriety of their conduct.

Notwithstanding these princes were delivered into the power of the enemy, yet Tippoo refused to negociate till lord Cornwallis issued orders for the recommencement of the siege, and for the young hostages to be sent to the Carnatic. Upon this show of vigour and resolution Tippoo became daunted, knowing that if hostilities should recommence they would probably not terminate but in his utter destruction. He therefore sent word that he would submit to the demands of the victors: and the definitive treaty, as dictated by lord Cornwallis, was delivered by his sons to the ambassadors of the three allied powers, with the greatest solemnity.

As soon as the late war was entered into between England and France, early intelligence was transmitted of the important event to the East Indies; Pondicherry, Mahe, and the other French settlements on the coast of Coromandel and Malabar, were captured, with little resistance, by the troops of the India company, under the conduct of general Stewart; and it was not till some years after

formed, that Meer Gofhar had been killed by a cannon shot near the breach; which intelligence appeared to agitate him greatly. He immediately ordered the troops that were near him under arms, and his personal servants, to load the carbines which they carried for his own use, and hastened along the ramparts towards the breach, accompanied by a select guard and several of his chiefs, till he met a number of his troops flying before the van of the Europeans, who he perceived had already mounted and gained the ramparts. Here he exerted himself to rally the fugitives, and uniting them with his own guard, encouraged them by his voice and example to make a determined stand. He repeatedly fired on our troops himself; and one of his servants asserted, that he saw him bring down several Europeans near the top of the breach.

Notwithstanding these exertions, when the front of the European flank companies of the left attack approached the spot where the Sultan stood, he found himself almost entirely deserted, and was forced to retire to the traverses of the north ramparts. These he defended, one after another, with the bravest of his men and officers; and, assisted by the fire of his people on the inner wall, he several times obliged the front of our troops, who were pushing on with their usual ardour, to make a stand. The loss here would have been much greater on our part, had not the light infantry, and part of the battalion companies of the 12th regiment, crossing the inner ditch, and mounting the ramparts, driven the enemy from them, and taken in reverse those who, with the Sultan, were defending the traverses of the outer ramparts.

While any of his troops remained with him, the Sultan continued to dispute the ground, until he approached the passage across the ditch to the gate of the inner fort. Here he complained of pain and weakness in one of his legs, in which he had received a bad wound when very young; and, ordering his horse to be brought, he mounted: but seeing the Europeans still advancing on both the ramparts, he made for the gate, followed by his palankeen, and a number of officers, troops, and servants. It was then, probably, his intention either to have entered and shut the gate, in order to attack the small body of our troops which had got

into the inner fort, and, if successful in driving them out, to have attempted to maintain it against us, or to endeavour to make his way to the palace, and there make his last stand; but as he was crossing to the gate, by the communication from the outer rampart, he received a musket ball in the right side, nearly as high as the breast: he, however, still pressed on, till he was stopped about half way through the arch of the gateway, by the fire of the 12th light infantry from within, when he received a second ball close to the other. The horse he rode on, being also wounded, sunk under him; and his turban fell to the ground. Many of his people fell at the same time, on every side, by musketry, both from within and without the gate.

The fallen Sultan was immediately raised by some of his adherents, and placed upon his palankeen, under the arch, and on one side of the gateway, where he lay, or sat, for some minutes, faint and ex-hausted, till some Europeans entered the gateway. A servant, who survived, related, that one of the soldiers seized the Sultan's sword-belt, which was very rich, and attempted to pull it off; when the Sultan, who still held his sword in his hand, made a cut at the soldier with all his remaining strength, and wounded him about the knee; on which he put his piece to his shoulder and shot the Sultan through the temple, when he instantly expired.

Not less than three hundred men were killed, and numbers wounded, under the arch of this gateway, which soon became impassable, excepting over the bodies of the dead and dying.

About dusk, General Baird, in consequence of information he had received at the palace, came with lights to the gate, accompanied by the late Killadar of the fort, and others, to search for the body of the Sultan; and after much labour, it was found, and brought from under a heap of slain, to the inside of the gate. The countenance was no way distorted, but had an expression of stern composure. His turban, jacket, and swordbelt were gone; but the body was recognized by some of his people who where there, to be the Sultan's; and an officer who was present, with the leave of General Baird, took from off his right arm the talisman, which contained, sewed up in