ercised in any year, and to order and direct that no training or exercising of the militia of the United Kingdom, or of any county or counties, riding or ridings, shire or shires, stewartry or stewartries, city or cities, town or towns, or place or places, specified in any such Order or Orders in Council, shall take place in any year, any thing contained in any Act or Acts of Parliament relating to the militia, to the contrary notwithstanding: And whereas it is deemed expedient that such training and exer, cising should be dispensed with in the present year, it is ordered by His Royal Highness the Prince Regent, in the name and on the behalf of His Majesty, and by and with the advice of His Majesty's Privy Council, that the calling out of the militia of that part of the United Kingdom called Great Britain, for the purpose of being trained and exercised in the present year, be suspended, and that no training or exercising of the said militia do take place in the present year.

Chetwynd.

Lord Chamberlain's-Office, April 10, 1818.

The Lord Chamberlain has appointed the Rewerend Cholmeley Edward John Dering to be Chaplain in Ordinary to His Majesty, in the room of the Reverend Dr. Price, resigned.

India-Board, April 18, 1818.

DISPATCHES have been received at the. East India-House, addressed to the Secret Committee by the Governor in Council at Bombay, inclosing reports of the commencement and progress of hostilities between the British Government and the Peishwa, of which reports and dispatches the following are copies and extracts;

Extract from a Dispatch from the Honourable. Mountstuart Elphinstone, the Resident at the Court of the Peishwa, to the Governor-General, dated, Camp at Kirky, November 6, 1817.

THE pressure of business for these several days, and the uncertainty of the result, have prevented my hitherto reporting to your Excellency; but as we are now in a state of war with the Peishwa, it is necessary to acquaint you with the manner in which the rupture was brought on, leaving all detail for a subsequent dispatch.

The great military preparation of His Highness the Peishwa, his distinct refusal to send any part of the force he had collected away from Poons, the threatening position he had occupied in the neighbourhood of our camp, and, above alli bis & 1818. K

un

unremitting endeavours to corrupt the fidelity of our native troops, rendered it absolutely necessary, in my judgment, to remove the brigade from the very bad position it occupied at the town to that selected for it by General Smith. This circumstance, and that of our cantonment being on the alert on the 29th, the night before the arrival of the European regiment, removed the appearance of confidence, which had, in some measure, been kept up between us and the Peishwa. This appearance had afforded no advantage, except that of protracting an open rupture, for His Highness proceeded, in all respects, as if he were at open war, and all his subjects spoke of his declaring war against us, as an event in which nothing was uncertain but the time.

The effect of our withdrawing was to encourage the Peishwa's people, who plundered our cantonment without any obstruction from their own Government, and who talked openly of the impending destruction of our detachment. An Officer on his road to Bombay was also attacked, wounded, and plundered, in open day, about two miles from Poona, and as far from the Residency; and the language of the Peishwa's Ministers was that of perfect estrangement and disregard. His Highness also continued to push his troops up towards ours, as if in defiance; it was announced, that he intended to form à camp between our old cantonment and our new position, and one thousand or one thousand five hundred horse moved down for the purpose.

I renewed my assurances of our wish for peace, and said that if His Highness moved to his army I should withdraw to camp; that if he remained quiet or receded we should still consider him as a friend, and should be careful not to cross the river that separates our camp from the town; but that if his troops advanced towards ours we should be obliged to attack them. The Peishwa left the town and withdrew to Purbutta, and within less than an hour large .: bodies

ཡ།

bodies of troops began to move in the direction of our camp, and in such a manner as to cut off the Residency. I had withdrawn a company that had been left in the old cantonments, and as soon as it reached the Residency the detachnrent there marched off to camp, keeping a river between them and the Peishwa's troops, who were moving in the same direction. The Residency was immediately? plundered and burned.

Copy of a Report from Lieutenant-Colonel Burr, of the Bombay Establishment, to the Deputy Adju- · tant-General of the fourth Division of the Army of the Deccan.

SIR,

Camp, at Kirky, Nov. 6, 1817, MY letter of yesterday's date will have informed you of my having removed the whole of the stores, treasure, and provisions from our late cantonments to the village of Kirky; and of their being lodged in security therein; and of the brigade being in a state of preparation to move as circumstances may require.

I have now the honour to report, for the information of the General Officer commanding this force, that soon after 1 had dispatched it, I received: an intimation from the Resident of the probability of an immediate rupture with the Peishwa, fol-? lowed by a requisition to move out and attack the Mahratta force, which was then visible, and advancing to the attack of our camp.

I in consequence formed the brigade, and leaving the head quarters of the 2d battalion 6th regiment, who were previously weakened by several strong detachments, in charge of the post of Kirky, toge ther with the drill, sick, unfits, and two iron twelve pounders, under the command of Major Roome, advanced to meet the enemy, a party of

K 2

whose

whose horse hovered near the column and preceded

our march.

T

Having chosen a situation in advance of ong position, at the distance of about one mile, we. formed hne, waiting the junction of the Dapore*: battalion, under the command of Major Ford, with three field pieces at this period I was joined by the Resident, who most gallantly exerted him-. self throughout the day, in setting a distinguished example of zeal and animation to the troops, encouraging the men wherever it became necessary, and by his suggestions and information, aiding my judgment in the execution of the measures it became necessary to adopt.

t

On the approach of Major Ford's division, and being reinforced by the Resident's escort and troops which had been stationed at the Sungomt, under the command of Major Cleiland, who had handsomely offered his services to me; I ordered the line to advance, which we continued doing for half a mile.

The Mahratta army, which was drawn up with its left resting on the height of the front of Gupnes-Cundy, where a large body of the Vinehoor. Rajah's horse, were posted, extended its right to the Mootah river, in which direction the principalmasses of their cavalry wege formed, the totals amount of which is supposed to have been fifteen thousand; the intermediate undulating plain being occupied by a long line of infantry and guns, supported by successive lines of horse, as far as the eye could see, who, seeing us advance, moved forward from their position, and at the very moment we

Part of a brigade raised by the Peishwa, but officered-and disciplined by Europeans.

The Residency.

This person is one of the Peishwa's principal Officers, and on former occasions had been conspiendus for his attach-` ment to the. British interests,

were