A narrative of the campaign in India, which terminated the war with Tippoo Sultan, in 1792. With maps and plans illustrative of the subject, and a view of Seringapatam. By Major Dirom, deputy adjutant general of His Majesty‘s forces in India

Major Alexander Dirom, A narrative of the campaign in India, which terminated the war with Tippoo Sultan, in 1792. With maps and plans illustrative of the subject, and a view of Seringapatam. By Major Dirom, deputy adjutant general of His Majesty's forces in India, London: Printed by W Bulmer and Co. and sold by G Nicol, Pall-Mall; and J Sewell, CornHill, 1793, first edition

xv, [1], 300 pages including frontispiece View of Seringapatam, 7 engraved plates and 2 engraved maps; full leather binding
10.83 x 8.74 x 1.38 in (27.5 x 22.2 x 3.5 cm)

An Authoritative Contemporary Account of Cornwallis’ Mysore Campaign, Illustrated with Important Siege Plans and Maps

Alexander Dirom’s Narrative of the Campaign in India (1793) stands among the most important early British military texts relating to the Anglo-Mysore conflicts. Written in the immediate aftermath of the Third Anglo-Mysore War (1790–92), the work provides a meticulously structured, first-hand account of the campaigns against Tipu Sultan, integrating battlefield observations, logistical detail, geographic intelligence, political commentary, and an early articulation of British imperial ideology in southern India. Its publication coincided with the consolidation of British dominion after the Treaty of Seringapatam and formed part of the broader effort to situate the Company’s military operations within a moral and strategic narrative accessible to British readers.

Dirom, who served as Deputy Adjutant-General to Lord Cornwallis, enjoyed unparalleled access to military dispatches, engineering papers, route maps, and confidential correspondence. This insider vantage point is evident throughout the text, which moves fluidly between strategic analysis and ethnographic description. He offers detailed accounts of the sieges of Bangalore and Seringapatam, the logistical complexities of campaigning across the Western and Eastern Ghats, the role of sepoy regiments, the integration of Maratha and Hyderabad allies, and the administrative challenges of maintaining supply chains in monsoon-affected terrain. His narrative is also one of the earliest extended European descriptions of Mysore’s military organisation—including its rock fortresses, armouries, infantry corps, and Tipu Sultan’s innovative use of rockets.

The work is equally significant for its articulation of British imperial self-presentation. Dirom frames the campaign as a civilising mission, contrasting the Company’s “moderation” and “discipline” with what he represents as the despotism of Tipu Sultan—a rhetorical strategy consistent with late-eighteenth-century British political writing on India. In doing so, he contributes to the ideological foundation upon which subsequent expansions were justified. Yet the text is also valuable for its moments of candour: Dirom acknowledges the severe difficulties faced by British forces, the devastating effects of disease and climate, and the sophistication of Mysorean resistance.

Published with maps and engraved plans (often removed in surviving copies), the Narrative served both as a military record and as an educational text for officers entering service with the Company. It remains a key primary source for historians of the Anglo-Mysore Wars, the evolution of British military professionalism in India, and the political culture of early imperial writing.

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