far from wishing to intermeddle in the interior concerns of France, and that it by no means intended to fupport the interefts of the emigrants. "The reply of count Cobentzel," faid M. Noailles in his difpatch, "confirmed me in the opi"nion which I had always held, that his court did not wish to at"tack us, but would make requifi❝tions, on which it would be dif"cult to come to an understanding, "without having tried our mutual ftrength in arms." Count Cobentzel then remarked, that the concert fo frequently alluded to, was not perfonal to the king of Hungary and Bohemia, other fovereigns being likewife concerned in it; and specified three points, an attention to which, he conceived, would annul it. These were; that fatisfaction should be given to the princes, who had poffeffions in Lorraine and Alface; that the Pope fhould be indemnified for the Comtat and Avignon; and that the French government, regulating its own interior concerns, fhould acquire fufficient ability to reprefs every thing, which might give uneafiness to the neighbouring states. M. Noailles wifhed to know, if the last dispatch of prince Kaunitz, was to be confidered as containing the fentiments of the cabinet of Vienna, on the general fubject of their conference. After confulting the king, count Cobentzel replied, that it was to be fo confidered, adding, that his Apoftolic majefty would be less inclined to alter any thing in that dispatch, as it was perfectly conformable to the opinion of the king of Pruffia on the affairs of France. It is worthy of remark, as a circumftance which throws additional light on the real motives of the negociation, that, during its whole continuance, the conduct of the French towards the House of Auftria, formed a perfect contrast to that which they ftudioufly obferved towards the king of Pruflia. Although Frederick William, with much lefs immediate intereft, was known to have taken a more active part in the concert of princes, which was now dextroufly converted into a popular pretext for war, and had pointedly affronted M. Segur, the new ambaffador, yet fo far were Briffot and his friends from quarrelling with him on that account, that they never ceafed to flatter him, hoping probably by thefe means to feduce him from his alliance with the court of Vienna. On the arrival of a letter from M. Noailles, intimating that the cabinet of Vienna was unwilling to retract any part of prince Kaunitz's official dispatch, dated March 18th, the French miniftry refolved upon an immediate declaration of war At the particular request of the minifter for foreign affairs, Louis had written a letter on the subject of the negociations, to his nephew the king of Hungary and Bohemia, with his own hand, which it was intended to fend off by an ambas fador extraordinary; but the language of the cabinet of Vienna, through count Cobentzel, was contemplated in fo unfavourable a point of view, that this letter was never fent. + During the greatest part of the negociation, a fecret agent from Vienna was refident at Paris, who conftantly laboured at an accommo Vie de Dumouriez, book iv. chap. i. † Ibid. dation, dation, in a manner, which was The speech of the king, pro- * Vie de Dumouriez, book iv. chap. i. refting, as the event had been for fome time anticipated. When M. Mailhe remarked, "That they were poffibly about to decree the li"berty of the whole world; that "a war undertaken for fuch a "cause, and under fuch circum"ftances, ought not to be confider"ed as a fcourge, but as the tri"umph of humanity;" the hall refounded with acclamations. War was decreed in the evening-fitting of the fame day againft the king of Hungary and Bohemia,and plans immediately laid, that comprehended in the line of operations parts of the German empire, against which war had not been, and could not with any pretence of juftice be, decreed. On the other hand, no hoftility was declared or propofed against the king of Pruffia, though M. Noailles, concluded the principal letter of his laft difpatches + with explicit afsurances, that according to all his notions, the court of Vienna had adopted a plan purely defenfive, and that the court of Berlin bad preffed the adoption of contrary meafures. † State Papers, p, 242*. War in India.-Tippoo Sultan attacks the lines of Travancore. Is repulfed. The East India company interfere. The Sultan attacks the lines a fecond time, and is fuccessful. Preparations for war in the British fettlements, Plan of the campaign. The Sultan retires from Travancore, and ineffectually endeavours to negociate with General Medows. The general takes poffeffion of Caroor, Daraporum, and Coimbatore. Capture of Erroad, Dindigul, and Sattimungulum. Chain of posts from the Coromandel coaft eftablished. The enemy fuddenly defcends the Gauts, and attacks Colonel Floyd, who retreats. Particulars of the retreat. General Medows, avith the main army, joins the colonel at Velladi. Marches after the Sultan. Rapid movements of the enemy. General Medows returns to Coimbatore. Wishes to effect a junction with the Carnatic army. Proceeds to the northeast with that view. Is preceded by the Sultan, who after having fhewn himself bimfelf in order of battle before the Carnatic army returns, and falling in with the general, hurries in confufion towards the Gauts. Junction of the grand and the Carnatic armies. The Sultan now bends his courfe to the Carnatic. Is overtaken by the English at the pafs of Tapoor. Gets the ftart again, and reaches Trichinopoly. Pafjes through the Carnatic to Tiagar and Trinomaly. Captures the fort of Permacoil near Pondicherry. General Medows pursues him no farther than Trinomaly, but proceeds to Vellout. Tranfactions of the Carnatic army previous to its junction, and of the Bombay army. Reflections on the termination of the first campaign. Lord Cornwallis affumes the command. The Sultan retires to his own dominions. Lord Cornwallis enters Myfore by the Muglee pass. Marches` immediately to Bangalore. Skirmish before Bangalore. The Pettah or town ftormed and taken. The enemy in vain attempts to dislodge our troops from the Pettah. The fort captured. Correfpondence between Lord Corn-1. wallis and the Sultan refpecting the body of the governor, who was killed in the affault. Lord Cornwallis returns to the North, is joined by the Nizam's cavalry, and receives confiderable fupplies. Returns to Bangalore. General Abercromby, with the Bombay army, afcends the Western Gauts, and is ordered to Periapatam. Lord Cornwallis proceeds to Seringapatam. Encamps at Arakeery. Attacks the enemy, and drives him into the island. Incapable of undertaking the fiege of Seringapatam. Refolves upon a retreat. Falls in with the Mahratta armies. Unjuccessful attempt of the Sultan to negociate. The combined armies feparate. Lord Cornwallis reaches Bangalore. Plan of operations for the rainy feufon. Capture of Ouffoor, Rayacottah, and other hill forts. The Sultan again in vain endeavours to negociate. Communication with the Nizam's country opened. Spirited Speech of General Medows at Nundrydoog. The enemy retakes Coimbatore, and ravages the Barramaul. The Barramaul cleared by Colonel Maxwell. Lord Cornwallis takes Savendroog, Outradoog, Ram Gurry, and Sheria Gurry. Proceedings of the armies of the Nizam and that of the Mahrattas under Perferam Bhow. Lord Cornwallis encamps before Seringapatam. Short defcription of the island. Lord Cornwallis attacks the enemy's fortified camp in the night. Particulars of the attack. A poft of confequence established on the island. The Sultan is reduced to the fole defence of the fort. Releafes the officers taken at Coimbetore, and fues for peace. Attempts the life of lord Cornwallis. Junction of General Abercromby. Operations of the fiege. General Abercromby invefts the fouth-weft fide of the fort. Conflict at an advanced poft. Termination of Hoftilities. Preliminary articles of peace. Delivery of two of the Sultan's fons as boftages. Definitive treaty. Divifion of the ceded territories. Reflections on the advantages and policy of the peace. WHILE the flames of war HILE the flames of war were thus breaking out in different quarters of Europe, the diftant poffeffions of Great Britain in the Eaft were returning to the enjoyment of a safe and glorious peace, after a career of brilliant and profitable victories. This event was the more important, as those leaders of the republican faction, * See note in p. 85, Hift. Art. Vol. xxx111. and Briffot's Travels, &c. who who now in reality poffeffed the entire government of France, even exceeded all their predeceffors in their attachment to the plan, which had been long systematically kept in view by the cabinet * of Versailles, for humbling, if not annihilating the British power in Hindoftan. Indeed it is but too apparent from many incidental paflages of this hiftory, that they early looked forward to the period, when, if their intrigues with our malcontents, fhould fail to plunge us into anarchy and ruin, the victorious force of France, after having overcome all continental oppofition, might ultimately be employed in the deftruction of our rank and influence in the fcale of nations. But to have provoked, in the outfet, the combined hoftility of the furrounding flates, especially of the maritime powers, with whom they thought themselves leaft able to cope, would have hazarded the fuccefs of the ambitious schemes which they had formed of courfe it was their obvious policy, by infulating and attacking fuch as they chose in detail, to render the fubjugation of all fafer and more practicable. Their firft great object was the extenfion of their boundaries to the Rhine, and the frontiers of Holland, that they might remove from their neighbourhood the houfe of Auftria, the old and moft formidable antagonist of France upon the continent, and be at hand by artifices, menaces, or open violence, more eafily to bring the United Provinces under their controul, or at least to break off the natural connexion of that country with Great Britain. In the mean time they trufted to Tippoo Sultan, as their great ininftrument for keeping our miniftry in check, and intimidating them into neutrality, if France fhould feel herself preffed by the combined forces of Auftria and Pruffia; or for giving the readiest and severest blow to our interefts, if in the progrefs of hoftilities, fhe fhould add Great Britain to the number of her enemies; for they imagined, according to a popular error of their countrymen, that our profperity is lefs to be attributed to our population, our industry, and general commerce, than to our oriental poffeffions. They could not even conceal their fentiments at the time when they moft defired to preferve measures with this country. The journals devoted to their politics, and edited under their management or influence, repeated, with undisguised fatisfaction, every rumour of our ill-fuccefs in the Eaft. The peace, therefore, which was made by lord Cornwallis, at the very juncture when France was refolved on kindling war in Europe, was highly feafonable for this country, and left Our government more free and difembarraffed to take such part as expediency or neceffity might direct, in the great fcene, which was now opening nearer home. In our former volume we endea voured to trace, with accuracy and impartiality, the origin of the rupture with the fultan of Myfore, and at the fame time to give, what we conceived to have been the general outline of Indian politics for a confiderable period previous to the war. Our present task will be to purfue the detail of events in order as they happened, from the firft ag See a particular account in M. Bouille's Memoirs, p. 41, 42. greffion greffion of the fultan to the peace of Seringapatam. With the profeffed intention of wrefting from the rajah of Travancore the forts of Cranganore and Jacottah, which that prince had lately purchased of the Dutch, Tippoo Sultan, towards the end of the year 1789, marched a powerful army to the lines of Travancore. The kingdom of Travancore is fo favoured by nature as to be acceffible only to an enemy on its northweft frontier; and even that but for an inconfiderable space. To render this expofed quarter as fecure as poffible, the lines were formed about thirty years fince, which confift of a ditch fixteen feet broad, and twenty, deep, with a thick bamboo hedge inferted in it, a flight parapet, and a good rampart and baftions almoft flanking each other. Their extent from the coaft, where they commence, to a broad river called Chinamungulum, is four or five miles; and from the oppofite fide of the river to the Elephant Mountains, where they terminate, twenty-four or twenty-five miles. They run in a direction nearly eastward. The fultan fuddenly attacked the eaftern extremity of thefe 1789. Dec. 29th. lines, and made himself mafter of the adjacent height. Thence doubling, and advancing with rapidity towards the centre, he feemed to carry all before him. His triumph however was but of short duration. The rajah's troops being recovered from their first panic, and animated by the example of a fimall body, confifting of about 800 men, which forming in a narrow pafs withstood the whole force of the affailants, returned to the conflict with new fpirit, and fucceeded at length in completely routing the Myforean army. The fultan, who was perfonally engaged in the battle, nar rowly escaped with his life. His horfe was fhot under him; and in repaffing the lines, fo great was his hurry and trepidation, that he is faid to have leaped with violence against the bamboo hedge, which was in the ditch, and confiderably to have bruifed himself in forcing his way. Our governors in India, being informed by the rajah of this attack, remonftrated with Tippoo against the impropriety of his proceedings. They obferved, that as the rajah was an ally of Great Britain, they fhould think themselves bound to refent an invafion of that prince's dominions; but that, if the fultan would confent to an amicable adjustment of the point in difpute between himself and the rajah, they would fend commiffioners to meet any which he might appoint, on the borders of their refpective territories, whofe joint decifion should be final to both parties. The fultan answered, that if they would fend confidential perfons to him, with whom he might hold a perfonal conference upon the fubject, he doubted not but that he could explain himself to their fatisfaction. No effectual step towards an accommodation being taken, the fultan procured as foon as poffible, from Myfore, an additional supplý of troops and battering guns. With thefe he again attacked the lines and after fome weeks, having made a confiderable breach in the walls, advanced to the ftorm, and bore down all oppofition. Nothing but confternation and difmay pervaded the troops of the rajah, who fled in |