He at once ordered preparations to be made for war. Owing to the scattered position and insufficient strength carried out, within a few months after Lord Mornington's arrival in India, by the despatch of a British force to Hyderabad, in the presence of which the French officers were dismissed, and the native troops under their command, numbering some 14,000 men, disarmed. Munro refers to this force and its projected dispersion in one of his letters in the following terms: The Nizam has for several years had a few corps of sepoys, 'officered by Europeans of different nations, but the whole commanded 'by Monsieur Raymond. They were for a long time neither well paid 'nor well armed, nor were they dangerous either from their numbers 'or discipline; but after the late war Raymond was permitted to 'make new levies. He obtained a large tract of country in jágír for 'their maintenance, and was enabled to pay them regularly, to clothe ' and arm them completely, and to bring them into a high state of 'order. He was soon at the head of 15,000 men, with a train of 'artillery; he hoisted the tricoloured flag on all occasions, and at last 'became formidable to his master. Could any strong body of French 'troops have been landed in India, it is most likely he would have 'joined them and Tippoo against the English and the Nizam; but 'whatever his projects might have been, he, fortunately for us, died in the midst of them, about two months ago. He has left no successor of equal ability or influence; and as the different com'mandants have various interests, and show but little deference to 'their present chief, the Nizam has, either of himself, or by the 'interference of the Supreme Government, conceived the design of 'breaking them altogether, or, at least, of disbanding all the corps 'that are suspected of being under French influence. A strong 'detachment has been formed in Guntúr, to march in case of necessity 'to Hyderabad. The sooner they move the better, for no time ought 'to be lost in destroying this party so hostile to our interests in the 'Deccan. Raymond owed the rapid increase of his power to the weak, 'timid policy of , who might have suppressed it in the beginning, if not by remonstrance, at least by menace; but he chose rather to 'sit and view its progress quietly than to do anything to risk, or what 'he thought was risking, hostilities.' 6 The disbandment of the troops under French command was accompanied by the establishment at Hyderabad of a British subsidiary force, which, under the command of Colonel Wellesley, took part in the final campaign against Tippoo. This force, composed partly of British and partly of native regiments of the Madras army, has been ever since maintained at Hyderabad, under the designation of the Hyderabad Subsidiary Force. To meet the cost of its maintenance, the districts of Ballári, Cuddapah, etc., now known as the Ceded Districts, were ceded to the East India Company in 1800. * The Governor-General was debarred by an Act of Parliament of the Madras troops available for an expedition against Mysore, and the utter want of transport and commissariat, some delay unavoidably occurred; but under the energetic supervision of the Governor-General, who repaired to Madras at the end of the year for the purpose of assuming the immediate direction of the political and military arrangements, an army of 20,000 men was collected at Vellore early in February, 1799, and was supplemented by a force of 13,000 men furnished by the Nizam, under the command of Colonel Arthur Wellesley; while another force of 6400 men was ordered to co-operate from the Bombay side, besides smaller bodies under Colonels Read and Brown. The command of the whole was entrusted to General Harris, the Commander-in-chief at Madras. On the 4th of May the war was practically brought to an end by the capture of Seringa patam and the death of Tippoo, who was killed in the assault. Read's force was not present at the taking of the fortress, having been left behind the main body of the army for the purpose of reducing various small forts in their rear and collecting supplies. It was subsequently employed in taking possession of Bangalore and other forts; but early in June Munro left it and returned to Seringapatam, having been nominated one of the secretaries to the Commission appointed by the Governor-General to consider and arrange measures for the future disposal of the Mysore passed in 1793 from either declaring war, or commencing hostilities, or entering into any treaty for making war, against any of the country princes or states in India, except in the case of hostilities having been commenced or hostile preparations having been made by a native prince. Lord Mornington regarded the Mauritius proclamation-the genuineness of which he considered to have been established -as affording sufficient evidence that Tippoo was engaged in making hostile preparations against the English, and this was the view taken by the President of the Board of Control. The opinion of the Court of Directors was more guardedly expressed; but their orders conveyed the requisite authority to the Governor-General to declare war, if he was satisfied of Tippoo's hostile intentions. territory, and to settle other questions arising out of the recent conquest. The Commission consisted of General Harris, Colonel Barry Close, Colonel Arthur Wellesley, Mr. Henry Wellesley, and Colonel Kirkpatrick-Captain (afterwards Sir) John Malcolm was Munro's colleague as secretary. The labours of the Commission, conducted in close correspondence with the Governor-General, who had remained at Madras for the purpose of superintending their work, resulted in the treaty of partition which divided the Mysore territory between the East India. Company and the Nizam, and the subsidiary treaty which made over a considerable portion of the Company's share to a member of the old Hindu dynasty subverted by Hyder Ali, but now revived in the person of the late Maharájá of Mysore. It was while employed on this Commission that Munro was first brought into close intercourse with the future Duke of Wellington, then Colonel Arthur Wellesley, with whom he contracted a lasting friendship. There were many points of resemblance in the characters of the two men. Simple in their habits, practical and clear-sighted in their views, earnest in the discharge of duty, cordially detesting everything that savoured of sham or pretension of whatever description, it was hardly possible that they should be brought much together without being speedily inspired by sentiments of mutual regard and esteem. And similar as they were in character, there was enough difference in the views which they held on some subjects, to give zest to their intercourse. Munro, at this period of his life, was an ardent supporter of the policy of extending British rule in India. His observation of the effects of native misgovernment in the Baramahal, his patriotic desire for the aggrandizement of his country, and the poor opinion which he entertained of the power of most of the native states-all impelled him to advocate the extension of British rule whenever and wherever opportunity offered. The resolution of the Governor-General to set up another native dynasty in Mysore, notwithstanding the conditions annexed to the measure, whereby, in the words of Lord Mornington, 'the most unqualified community of interests 'was established between the Government of Mysore and 'the Company,' and the Rájá was placed in a position of strict dependence upon the Government of British India, was viewed by Munro with but little satisfaction. If he had had any voice in the decision of the question, he 'certainly would have had no Rájá of Mysore, in the 'person of a child dragged forth from oblivion, to be placed 'on a throne on which his ancestors, for three generations, 'had not sat during more than half a century.' Colonel Wellesley, on the other hand, appears to have been favourable to the arrangement, and though by no means opposed to the general policy of his brother, which was essentially the reverse of a policy of inactivity, he regarded, perhaps, with greater apprehension than Munro the consequences of moving too rapidly. In one of his letters addressed to Munro in the following year, he writes: 'I fancy that you will have the pleasure ' of seeing some of your grand plans carried into execution.' In another the following sentence occurs: This is ex'pensive, but if you are determined to conquer all India 'at the same moment, you must pay for it.'* We may be * The following is the text of the two letters in question. The original manuscripts are in the British Museum. The first does not appear to have been published before it appeared in the first edition of this work. 'MY DEAR MUNRO, 'Camp at Hoobly, October 6th, 1800. 'I have received your letter of the 27th September. I 'have been ordered by Government to remain for some time in this 'country, and I have come in order to eat rice, which I propose to 'draw from the borders of Soonda without using that brought from 'Nagpore by my brinjarries. You will therefore perceive the necessity ‘that my brinjarries should return to me to the northward, but I am not in a hurry about them, and it does not much signify if they do E certain that in those few weeks in the summer of 1799 which Munro spent at Seringapatam, there was many an 'not go to Cundapore and Mangalore to receive their loads. I fancy 'that you will have the pleasure of seeing some of your grand plans 'carried into execution: all I can say is that I am ready primed, ' and that if all matters suit I shall go off with a dreadful explosion, 'and shall probably destroy some campoos and pultons which have 'been indiscreetly pushed across the Kistna-that is to say, if the 'river remains full. 'I have written to tell Colonel Close about your money which I shall want. The only reason why I cannot get it is that you are 'obliged to keep enough in your hands to pay the troops in Kanara, etc., till January. I have written to desire that a sum of money for 'that purpose may be sent round from Madras in one of the ships of 'the squadron, and whatever sum I hear that they will send I will 'draw an equal one from you. That is the only mode that occurs of 'procuring the supply of money which I shall want in December. Believe me, yours most sincerely, 'DEAR MUNRO, 6 'ARTHUR WELLESLEY.' 'Camp at Hoobly, October 10th, 1800. 'Webbe informs me, in a letter of the 4th instant, that you are appointed to be Collector of the countries ceded to the Company by the Nizam, and has desired me to write to you to state at what place it will be most convenient that you should join me. 'You had better come here and through Soonda. I am sadly pressed 'for troops for all our extensive objects, and I must draw copiously 'upon Kanara in order to be able to make up a detachment at all 'equal to taking possession of the ceded countries. I shall in the 'first place want three companies for Nuggur from Cundapore, and 'eight companies of the 75th for Malabar, in lieu of five companies of 'the 12th which must go into the ceded countries. I recommend it 'to you, therefore, to keep in employment in Kanara all your peons. 'You will thus have plenty of troops and no enemy. 'After all my efforts to provide a proper detachment for the ceded 'districts, I shall be able to collect only one regiment of Europeans, one battalion and eight companies of sepoys, with as many guns as 'they please. I should recommend that this detachment should be 'kept together in one body, to be thrown on any point where their 'assistance may be wanted; that the common business should be done by peons till more troops can be spared from other services. You will thus have no enemy. 'This is expensive, I acknowledge, but if you are determined to 'conquer all India at the same moment you must pay for it. 'Don't forget to recommend my brinjarries to the gentleman whom 'you leave in charge of Kanara. 'Major Munro.' 'Believe me, ever yours most sincerely, |