
Enrica Medugno
Senior Sale Coordinator


Sold for £16,640 inc. premium
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Senior Sale Coordinator

Head of Department
Provenance
Private collection, USA.
The text reads:
Dear Sir//We must ascertain the possibility of our marching before twelve o'clock, for if Captn. [S...] marches, we must follow. Be so kind as to send the Countersign for Captn [S...], and to let the Field Officer of the day know that he is to march.//Yrs Faithfully, Cornwallis.
This letter was written six days after the culmination of the Siege of Bangalore (5 February - 21 March 1791), when Cornwallis elected to attack secretly on the night of the 21st of March. The fort was captured and secured against Tipu Sultan, though it only remained in British hands for one year as it was returned to Tipu following the Treaty of Seringapatam (18 March 1792).