Gheriah

a port on the Malabar Mahrattah coast of Hindu stan, the capital part of Angria’s dominions, which consisted of an extent of coast, from whence this warlike state was a perpetual source of uneasine to the trading ships of all the European nations in India. It cost the English East-India company 50,000 l. annually to protect their own ships. Eight or ten grabs, and forty or fifty gallivats, crowded with men, generally composed Angria’s principal fleet in 1754, destined to attack ships of force or burthen. The ve el no sooner came in sight of the port or bay where the fleet was lying, than they slipped their cables and put out to sea. If the wind blew, their construction enabled them to sail almost as fast as the wind; and if it was calm, the gallivats rowing towed the grabs: when within cannon shot of the chace, they generally a embled in her wake, and the grabs attacked her at a distance with their prow guns, firing first only at the masts, and taking aim when the three masts of the ve el just opened all together to their view; by which means the shot would probably strike one or other of the three. As soon as the chase was dismasted, they came nearer, and battered her on all sides until she struck: and if the defence was obstinate, they sent a number of gallivats, with two or three hundred men in each, who boarded sword in hand from all quarters in the same instant. The English trusting to the report of the natives, had until the year 1756, believed Gheriah to be at least as strong as Gibraltar, and like that situated on a mountain which was inacce ible from the sea, for this reason it was resolved to send ve els to reconnoitre it; which service commodore James, in the Protector, with two other ships, performed. He found the enemy’s fleet at anchor in the harbor, notwithstanding which, he approached within cannon shot of the fort, and having attentively considered it, returned at the end of December to Bombay, and described the place, such as it truly was, very strong indeed, but far from being inacce ible or impregnable. This place was taken by the English troops under the command of colonel Clive. There were found in it 200 pieces of cannon, six bra mortars, and a great quantity of ammunition, and military and naval stores of all kinds; the money and effects of other kinds, amounted to 1,200,000 l. sterling. All this booty was divided amongst the captors, without any reserve either for the nation, or the company. In le than a month the English, with their allies the Mahrattas got po e ion of all the territories wrested from the latter by Angria’s predece ors, and which they had for seventy years despaired of ever being able to recover.