I propose, in the present article, to give such a general idea of the formation and amount of the late Tippoo Sultan’s army (but particularly of the regular part of it) as the materials in my possession enable me to furnish: and although the scanti­ness of these does not admit of my rendering the account so complete as I could wish, I nevertheless trust, that it will, on the whole, be found to be tolerably accurate, as well as sufficiently minute, for the gratification of literary curiosity; which is now the chief, if not the only, purpose it can answer.

The documents from which I have formed this statement consist of: 1, A Hûkm-nâmeh, or ordinance, dated the 14th of Ahmedy, year Sâhir, or A.M. 1221,* and addressed to the Meer Meerân, or military department;* and 2, Some rough memoranda, relative to the military establishment, written, for the most part, in the Sultan’s own hand, and dated in the month of Jaafury, of the year Sâhir, or about five months subsequently to the ordinance. There is no essential dif­ference between these two statements, excepting in the article of irregular cavalry, in which branch of his army the Sultan appears, during the intermediate period, to have made a reduction of six thousand men; namely, five thousand Silâhdâr, and one thousand Kuzzâk, or Looty, horse.

I have not the means of ascertaining what reduction, if any, was made in the military force of Mysore, in consequence of the diminution of its resources pro­duced by the partition treaty of 1792. It is probable, however, considering the hostile views which the Sultan never ceased to entertain, from the moment in which he was compelled to surrender half his country into the hands of his ene­mies, that he disbanded no other part of his army on the occasion, than the num­ber of cavalry specified above. Indeed, the great marine establishment which he resolved to form about the same period, sufficiently proves, that nothing was less in his contemplation, than any material abridgment of the means, by which he still hoped to repair his losses, and to recover his military reputation. The irregu­lar horse, now dismissed, could at any time be replaced: and, in the meanwhile, the money saved by their discharge would go far towards defraying the expence of his proposed navy.*

The copy of the Futhûl Mûjâhideen, now before me, containing merely the formation of a single Kushoon of infantry, without either stating the total number of such Kushoons, or furnishing any other data for estimating the aggregate strength of the army; and this being the only document in my possession, relating to the military establishments of the Sultan, during the early part of his reign, it is not in my power to ascertain what changes, if any, took place in those establishments, between the date of the work in question and the year 1793, when they were formed on the model to be presently shown. I am alike unable to determine, whether the force brought by Tippoo Sultan into the field, in the war of 1799, exceeded or fell short of that contained in the following enumeration. Adverting, however, to the vindictive projects which he conceived and pursued in this interval, it may be safely presumed, that it was, at least, equal to the establishment of 1793.* Indeed, the official papers, of the time here alluded to, afford numerous proofs of his unceasing anxiety, not only to complete, to their full extent, the various corps of his army, but also to draw to his standard the greatest possible number of followers, and particularly those of the Mahommedan religion.

Total twenty-seven Kushoons, with three independent Teeps of Uskur and fifty-four field pieces.

Besides the guns belonging to the Kushoons, there was a park of artillery attached (apparently) to the whole body of infantry, and consisting of a heavy train of

The staff of each Kuchurry seems to have consisted of

Each Kushoon was composed of four Teeps* of Uskur; of which the first, second, and third were denominated Ouwuls (or of the first class), and the fourth Dooem (or of the second class).

Each Teep consisted of four Yooz,* and each Yooz was composed as follows:

Strength of a Kushoon, or four Teeps, 1392 men, (of which, however, only 1056 are stated to have carried musquets).

It appears by the foregoing statement, that a considerable change had been made in the formation of a Kushoon, since the period when the establishment given in the Futhûl Mûjâhideen was formed; the strength of a Kushoon consisting then (including all descriptions, as above) of 2,928 men, of which number 2,400 appear to have carried muskets.

It is not, however, to be inferred from this circumstance, that the aggregate amount of the Sultan’s infantry in 1783, exceeded that of 1793, because, though the Kushoons were stronger at the former period, they may have been, and probably were, fewer in number; and such an alteration as this may be easily supposed to have been adopted, with the sole view of rendering these corps less unwieldly than formerly.

The total of the foot forces amounted, however, according to an abstract in the Sultan’s own hand, to 52,774 men, making a difference in the two statements of fourteen men: which may either be referred to the omission (on account of the great obscurity of the passage in the original) of the Chowdries, &c. attached to the hired carts, or to some other petty error in the detail.

The Kushoons composing the fifth, or Usud Ilhye Kuchurry, of regular infan­try, differed a little in their formation, as well as in point of pay, from the other Kuchurries, as will appear by the following specification. The reason of this difference I am unable to explain, otherwise than by supposing (what, indeed, there are some grounds for believing) that, in addition to their pay, both the Ahmedies and Usud Ilhyes received rations of Dâl (dry peas), and perhaps other articles of provision, from government.

The Ehshâm, or garrison troops, are stated, in the ordinance of 1793, addressed to the Sudoor department, at 25,000 men.* I have no means of estimating the amount of Kunduchâr; that is, the provincial troops, or militia.

I now proceed to a summary statement of the cavalry, according to the establish­ment of 1793.

Each Kuchurry consisting of six Mokubs (or regiments), of 389 horses and 376 men each.*

The detail of the Mokub is not given in the original; but the latter appears to have been divided into Teeps and stables, each stable consisting of twenty-two horses. The strength of a Teep is not stated.*

To each Kuchurry of regular horse two guns were attached, with a proportionate number of gunners, &c.

Two Kuchurries, composed of Musulmans and unbelievers.

Each Kuchurry commanded by two Bukhshies, and divided into eight Risâlas, of 250 horse each, besides the usual staff:

Three Kuchurries, of 2,666 horses each, divided into Risâlas of 260 each.

Total of the three Kuchurries stated at eight thousand horse, which appear to have been officered in the same manner as the Silahdâr cavalry, the officers receiving a regular pay, like those of the latter body. It may be presumed, that the men composing this predatory corps must also have received pay during peace, whatever might be the case in time of war.*

The foregoing seems to have been the establishment of Kuzzâks, or Looties, in time of peace. They would, of course, be augmented during a war. In addition to the above, a Khâs, or special Risâla, of Kuzzaks, is mentioned. It was composed of Musulmans of various denominations, and amounted to fifty men and horses, commanded by a separate Bukhshy.