Political Recollections Relative To Egypt ... with a narrative of the ever-memorable British campaign in the spring of 1801

286 Pages·1802·6.078 MB·English

by  George Baldwin

POLITICAL RECOLLECTIONS
RELATIVE TO
EGYPT.
* **
-
POLITICAL RECOLLECTIONS
RELATIVE TO
E G Y P T :
CONTAINING
Observations on its Government under the Mamaluks;
its geographical Position; its intrinsic and extrinsic
Resources; its relative Importance to England and
France; anditsDangers toEnglandin thePossession
of France:
WITH
A NARRATIVE
OF THE
EVER -MEMORABLE BRITISH CAMPAIGN
IN THE SPRING OF 1801.
THE SECOND EDITION.
WITH INTERESTING ADDITIONS,
Recording the Campaign to its splendid Conclusion; and
commemoratingitsgloriousConsequencesbyanInsertion of
theVote ofThanksofthe HouseofCommons to theArmy
and Navy, equally meritorious ofthewhole Empire.
BY GEORGE BALDWIN, ESQ.
Late His Majesty's Consul-General in Egypt; and invited by
the Commanders inChief, as deemed,from his Experience,
essential to the Success ofthe Expedition.
LONDON:
PRINTED BY W. BULMER AND CO. CLEVELAND
ROW, ST. JAMES's,
FOR THE AUTHOR; AND SOLD BY S. STAUNTON, BOOK
SELLER AND STATIONER, NO. 474, CORNER OF
LANCASTER-COURT, STRAND.
1802.
11
*
1
CONTENTS.
ADVERTISEMENT
page ix
Preface
1
Letter to the Rt. Hon. Henry Dundas,
one of His Majesty'sprincipal Secre
taries ofState 41
CONSIDERATIONS FOR THE ARMY, ON AN
INTENDED EXPEDITION TO EGYPT, &c.
As to the Climate
65
As to the Disembarkation ofthe Army.
The Coast considered 68
Letter to the Right Hon. Sir Ralph
Abercrombie, K. B. Commander in
Chiefof the British Forces destined
on an Expedition to Egypt
81
Letter to John Baldwin, Esq. compre
hending a Narrative of the British
Campaign in Egypt, in the Spring of
1801 87
Supplement to the above Letter 146
1
vi CONTENTS.
Letter to the Rt. Hon. Henry Dundas,
one of His Majesty'sprincipal Secre
taries of State, onthe Expediency of
retaining Egypt under the Controul
ofGreat Britain page 159
SPECULATIONS ON THE SITUATION AND
RESOURCES OF EGYPT, &c.
CHAPTER I.
As to its Situation relative to other
Parts ofthe Globe 178
CHAPTER II.
As to its Commerce
183
CHAPTER III.
As to its Productions and commercial
Resources
184
CHAPTER IV.
As to its Government
185
CHAPTER V.
As to its Means ofConquest
192
CONTENTS. vii
CHAPTER VI.
As to itspresent State, and Aptibility of
Defence page 195
CHAPTER VII.
As to the Importance of this Situation
to England, simply in Subservience
to her political and commercial Cor
respondence with India 203
CHAPTER VIII.
As to the Importance of Egypt to
France 206
CHAPTER IX.
As to the Conquest of Egyptby France 211
Memorial relating to the Trade in
Slaves carried on in Egypt 219
Remarkson theUse ofOilinthePlague.
By Citizen Desgenettes, Chief Physi
cian to the Army ofthe East
235
Essay on the Plague, supported by a
Variety of Evidence in support of
the Efficacy of Oil 249
1
1
1
1
1
1
ADVERTISEMENT.
An effect ofthe very flattering review of
my little publication upon Egypt, has been
to exhaust the first edition, comparatively
speaking, in a moment of time, and to
create, in consequence, a demand for this
second edition, which, to correspond pro
perly with the extreme indulgence of the
public, I have endeavoured to render, as
to arrangement, and as to further relative
information upon the contents of it, if not
more interesting, considerably less incom
plete.
I should have been glad, I confess, from
faithful materials, had any such come into
my hands, to have continued my narrative
х ADVERTISEMENT.
of the famous campaign in Egypt to its
splendid and happy termination. It cannot,
however, have escaped the reader's obser
vation, that all which I had assumed, and
held out as consequences of our victories
on the 8th, 13th, and 21st of March, under
Abercrombie,were, under Hutchinson,with
the same men, and with additional lustre to
their arms, exactly fulfilled.
“ Thepeace we have accomplished is their
work.”
This just and honourable testimony of
their worth, was pronounced to the country
by Mr. Addington, Chancellor of his Ma
jesty's Exchequer, in prefacing a motion of
Thanks in the House of Commons to this
gallant army, and to the army and navy, 1
“ equally deserving' ofthe wholeEmpire.
I have thought that the public acknow
ledgment of their services ought to be