Description |
Letter from Dalhousie at Malta to Lt-Col George Ramsay [probably a kinsman] in Nepal. Is worried about the potential consequences of using Nepalese and Sikh troops to help suppress the Mutiny. Their aid was needed and properly accepted by the Government but the Jung [Bahadar, ruler of Nepal] and the Sikhs are not doing all this for nothing. "And the troops who have seen us in need of their help and calling for it are not unlikely to conclude that they may be as formidable to us tomorrow as they are to our enemies today, and may act on this conclusion". People at home think only of the fact that they are on the British side. Cannot provide him with any fresh news of events. In Malta the winter has been cold, worse than in England, and so his health has not improved. Is returning home soon. William Ramsay, recently arrived there, gave a "sad account" of Hindustan. Jimmy has been hunting all winter and must therefore be better than he was. |
Admin
history |
James Andrew Broun Ramsay (1812-1860), 10th Earl and 1st Marquis of Dalhousie, was appointed as Governor-General of India in 1848. He was the youngest ever appointment to the post but eventually suffered a decline in health and returned home in 1856, having made over his government to Lord Canning. A year later, in 1857, the Indian Mutiny of the Bengal Army erupted. |