The fortifications were extensive, and the descent on all sides but one was precipitous. The south-west angle formed a tremendous cliff, now called 'Tipú's Drop,' from a tradition that prisoners were hurled over it by orders of the Sultán. An extremely steep and almost impracticable path leads down direct to the town beneath, but this was quite inaccessible to troops, and the only side on which an approach could be made was strengthened by a double line of ramparts. A spirited defence was made by Lutf Alí Bég, the commandant, the garrison using their guns with effect, and rolling down huge masses of rock on the assailants. But notwithstanding the difficulty of dragging guns up the rugged hill to play on the walls, and the want of cover, two breaches were made after an interval of three weeks. On October 19 an assault was ordered, and the fort was carried in the most gallant manner, after a sharp struggle, and with little loss. The splendid rock is now, owing to its salubrious climate, a favourite resort of the Europeans at Bangalore.
These successes were to some extent counterbalanced by the failure of Colonel Maxwell to seize Krishnagiri, while an unexpected reverse befell a small detachment which occupied Coimbatore. Tipú Sultán, having heard of its weak state, sent a considerable force to invest Coimbatore, but it was energetically defended by Lieutenant Chalmers and a young Frenchman named De la Combe. With a small body of half-caste Europeans and some Travancore soldiers,
