Amazon Audible Gift Memberships
Detail of the Elephant Riders in
‘The Reception of the Mysorean Hostage Princes by Marquis Cornwallis’
by Robert Home
National Army Museum in Chelsea, London
The reality is that though by that time elephants were not used for combat in battle, they still served the part of draught animals in both the Mysorean and British armies. Dennys Forrest writes [Tiger of Mysore: The Life and Death of Tipu Sultan] of elephants hauling heavy cannon when Tipu descended through the Satyamangalam ghats from Mysore into Coimbatore. The use of elephants to haul heavy artillery continued in parts of central India till late in the 19th century. Though some British were not comfortable riding elephants, Indian royalty still preferred their use. This is why we see the two young princes riding to meet Lord Cornwallis seated in silver howdahs on elephants. Tipu’s elephant howdahs were exquisite and so much valued that in the list of presents carried by Tipu’s diplomatic mission to Istanbul and France, 4 elephants and 3 silver howdahs were prominent. Unfortunately none of the elephants survived the long journey and the howdahs were lost when the ship carrying them sank during a storm at Basra.
Source: toshkhana
‘The Reception of the Mysorean Hostage Princes by Marquis Cornwallis’, 26 February 1792.
Oil on canvas by Robert Home (1752-1834), c.1793.
Location: National Army Museum, Battle gallery
AM Accession Number: NAM. 1976-11-86-1
