Star.
London, England, 1801-04-06 00:00:00

CONVENTION OF EL-ARISCH.

PAPERS PRESINTED TO THE HOUSE OP COMMONS
BY LORD HAMELSIIVILY, RESPECTING EGYPT.

RIMIER /...-.4IICRET ORDER TOTICR.ADIAIRAL LORD
REITH, DATED DEC. 15, 1799.

By the Commiffinners for executing the Wee of Lord
High Admiral of Great Britain and Ireland, tee.
Whereas the Right Hon. Lord GRIN viLLE,
one of his Majefty't Principal Secretaries of State,
has acquainted us, by his Letter of this day's date,
that a Difpatch has been received from Lord Et.-
me, Majefty's Ambaffador at Conftantinople,
Rating that the Commander of the French Army
in Egypt had made Propofals to the Turkifh Go-
vernment, offering to evacuate that Ceuntry,upon
condition of being fuffered to return unmokfted
to France ; that the Tui kith Government appear.
ed difpofed to acquiefce is this offer, and that ap-
plication had been made to his Lordthip, requeft-
mg him to grant paffports for this purpofe t And
whereas, in confequence of this information, Lord
Gattootte has Signified to us his Majesty's Com-
mands, that inftruaions Should be given to the
Commander in Chief of his•Majefty's Fleet in the
Mediterranean, enjoining him not to content, on
any account, to the return of the French Army
to France, or to their capitulating in any other
manner, than jointly to the Allied Powers, whole
Forces are employed agairdt them, or upon any
other terms than that of giving up their arms,
and furrendering as Prifoners of War to the Al.
lied Forces fo employed ; your Lordfhip is hereby
required and direeted, in purfuance of his Majef- '
ty's Commands as above tignified,!togovern your-
fell accordingly, and on no account to content to
the return oldie French Army in Egypt to France,
or to their capitubting, excepting on the condi-
tions above fpecified.
In cafe of the furrender of the Army on thole
tei ms, your Lorchhip is on no account to admit of
the return to France of the Officers, or any part
of the Army, on an engagement not to terve until
exchanged ; the fallacy of all fuels engagements,
and the bad faith with which they have been ob-
ferved by the Enemy, having been proved by re-
peated inftances, particularly in the cafe of the
Seamen taken in the Battle of the Nile, and after-
wards landed in Egypt ; but in any fuch Capitu-
lation, to take care that a Stipulation be made for
the actual detention of the Officers and Men, as
Prifoners of War, in fome part of the territories
of the Allied Powers, until they (hall be etc] a iged
that the Vends of every defcription, belonging to
. the Enemy, in the port of Alexandria, Shall alto
be furrendered, and be divided amongdthe Allies,
in proportion to the Naval Force which each of
them may have employed at that time in the
blockade of Alexandria, or in any other opera-
a• again(' the Enemy.
It it Should In happen, that his Niajefty's Am-
bafrador at Conftantinople fhould have granted
Patfports, before his Majelty's pleafure in this re-
fpea can have been Signified to him, your Lord-
Ship is in filch cafe to dired the Commanders of
his Majeft y's Ships of War under your orders, who
may fall in with any other Veirels having on hoard
any of the Enemy's Troops, and being furniffied
with loch paffports, to declare to the Comman-
ding Officer of Such Troop,, that the Paid Fairport*
are of no validity, not he'ng g'ven as the Laws
of War require, by perfons having any authority
for that purpofe ; but that in this cafe they fhould
not exercile any other as of Hoftility against fuch
Ships, or the Tror.; s therein embarked, than
what may be neceffary in order to compel the Vcf-
fel to return with the troops to Alexandria.
Your Lorcilhip is to communicate there deter-
minations lay a Flag of Truce, with as little de-
lay as poflible, tr, the French Army in Egypt;
unlefs you, or the Officer employed by you for
that purpofe, (hall have certain information that
the whole Negotiation has been broken off, and
that there k no longer any queltion of fuch feparate
and unauthorized Capitulation.
Given under cur hands, the tsth
December, 1799.
Right Ho*. Lord Kerns. K. & 'PINCER.
Vice-Adantrai of the Red. Re. 3. 13•MBIRR.
Re. fee. NlLdtterrancan. W. TOO/10.
By Command of their Lordfhips,
karate Nsrzaw•
SWAM ORDIR TO VICI-ADMIRAL
LORD 11LITH, DATED MARCH 28, 1800.

By the Con2ntilboners for executing the Offre of Lord
High Admiral of Great Britain and Ircland,&e.
The Right Hon. Lord Guilty, lAA, one of his
Majefly's Principal Secretaries of State, having, in
his letter of this day's date, acquainted us, that in
confequenee of the information contained in the
Difpatches lately received from your Lordlhip, the
Earl of Escia and Sir SIDN Er SMITH, relative to
the Capitulation of the French Army in Egypt,
his Msprry has been pleafed to fignify his Com-
mands, that Inflrueions should be tranfmitted to

your iordlhip, exprefling his Majefty's difappro.
bation of the terms entered into by the raid Capi.
tulAtion, thole terms appearing to his Majefly to
11 be more advantageous to the enemy than their fi-
tuation entitled them to expeft, and being likely to
prejudice the interefts of the Allies, by refforing
to the French Government the fervices of a conk•
d:rable and difciplincd body of troops ; that be-
files this objection to the terms, his Majefly does
no: confider Captain Sir SIDNEY SMITH as having
been autlwrized either to enter into or to fanCtion
iinv full agieerrent in his Majefty's name, that
Otter basing had no fpecial authority for that
ppiirpere, and the cafe not being one in which the
Captain commanding his Majefly's Ships on the
coafts of Egypt, ought to have taken upon himfelf
to enter into an agreement of this nature, without
the Linflion of his Commandiag Officer ; but that,
as the Gcr..:r.il commanding the enemy's troops 1
appears to have treated him as a perfon whom he
bona fide conceived to parch filch authority, and
as a part of the Treaty was immediately to be ex.
ecuted by the enemy, In that by annulling this
tninfaltinn (in as far as his Majefty's Officer was
a party thereto), the enemy could not be replaced
at the Woe &nation is which ht before flood, his.

eM-ije;ty, from a fcrupolons regard to the Public
Faith, has judged it proper that his Officers mould
abflain from any at inconfiftent with the engage-
ments to which Captain SiriSioney SMITH has
erroneouflygiven the fa naion of his Majefty's name.
And whereas Lord Gluey:LLß has at the fame
time acquainted us, that with this view he !hall
tranfmit to the Earl of Ezoia his Majefty's Com
mands to fettle with the Porte, the form of a Par-
port to be given in the name of his Majefty, not
as a arty to the Capitulation, but as an Ally to
the Porte; and that it is his Majefty's farther
pleaihre, the Paid Paiports, as well as thofe which
may have been in the interval (however informally)
granted by Sir SIDNEY SMITH, are to be refpeded
by his Majefty's Officers; but that although, from
the confideration above mentioned, his Welly
does not think proper to obftruft the execution of
this Treaty by the Porte in the manner therein
ftipulated, he does not feel himfelf bound to au-
thorize his Officers to take any attive part in it, or
to furnifh any Convoy or Tranfports for its execu-
tion, or to take any other Share in carrying it into
ea& t—yet, if any application should be made to
your Lordfhip, for liberty to fend Cartel Ships
from France to Egypt, for the Tranfpor: of the
Army under the Capitulation, your Lordthip is to
grant fuch Pafrports accordingly, under fuch re-
ftridions and precautions as you may judge necef-
fary, according to circumftances :—to prevent this
liberty being Awl-cc! to any other purpofc, we do,
in purfuance of his Majefty's Commands, as above
fignified, hereby require and direct your Lordfhip
to govern yourfelf accordingly, and to give the ne-
ceffary orders in confequence to the Commanders
of his Majelly's (hips and yeah under your com-
mand, taking care at the fame time to apprize
Captain Sir SIDNEY SMITH, of his Majefty's plea-
Cure on the fulled of his proceedings herein; and in
cafe your Lordfhip fhould fee any ground to ap-
prehend any intention on the part of the Turks,
or of the Ruffians, to prevent the execution of the
Capitulation, or to commit any ad of hoftility
againft the French army, either before or after its
embarkation, we do farther direct your Lordfhip,
in fuch cafe, to ufe your utmoft endeavours to per-
fuade them to all fuch meafures as may be molt
confißent with the faithful obfervance of the en.
gagement contracted with the enemy.
Given under our hands, the zBth

March iBOO.

To the Right Honoutuble Lord
KEITH, K. B. Vice Admiral
of the Red,&c. &c.
By comm.ul, of their Lordthips,
EVAN NEPSAN.

No. 111. and IV. are the French Originals, and
the Englifh TranfLttion of the Conveneun for the
Evacuation of Egypt, figned at El-Arifch, January
24, tBOO. (0. S.
No. V. are Mr. SMITH'S and Sir SIDNEY SMITH'S
full Powers.

NUMBER IT.-..,COPY OF INSTRUCTIONS TO SIR SIDNEY

SMITH ♦ND MR. SMITH.

Gentlemen, Downing-ltreet, 3d Oa. 1798.
Having laid before the KING the Projet tranf-
mitted to me by Mr. Set or os, of a Treaty of Alliance
between his MAJESTY and the OTTOMAN PORTE,
his MAJESTY has judged proper to furnifh you
with his full Powers to treat and conclude this im-
portant Winds._

His MAJESTY having been informed, by the con-
fidential Communication made to him by his Im-
perial Majefty the EMPEROR of Russia, of the
Litet of the Negotiation between the Court of Pc-
terfburgh and the OTTOMAN PORTE' has judged
that it will be better, on account b.th of the friend.
(hip fublifting between his Majesty and the Era •
PEROR of Russia, and of that public and oftenlible
Union which fhould fublift betwhn Powers ading
in concert againft the Common Enemy, to give
to the new 'treaty rather the form of an acceilion
on the part ofhis Majtary to the Alliance between
the two Courts above.mentioned, than that of a
diaind and fcparate Negotiation.
Moft of the points of difference which yon will
find between the Contre-projet I now fend you, and
the Projet tranfmitted to me by Mr. SMITH, have
reference to this refolution ; the principal objefts in
framing the Contre-Projet, have been to adhere, as
clofcly as pofflble, to the form, and even to the ex-
prellions of the Ruffian Treaty, as far as they were
applicable to the local circumftances of his Ma-
jefty's Dominions.
I have no other obfervation than this to make,
on the fubjed of the Preamble and the Firit Ar-
ticle—the engagement to make Common Caufe in
the prefent War, which was contained in the Firft
Article of the Projet tranfmitted by Mr. SMITH,
being the fubjed of one of the fucceeding Articles
in the Contre-projet.
The Second Article. as well as all the others as
far as the Eighth, art framed conformably to thole
in the Ruffian Treaty, which treat on the fame
fubjeds. The variations, where there are any, are
founded on principles fo evident, that his MAJESTY
does not think they can meet with any difficulty.
In the Ninth Article, you will obfervc the terms
which are made life of, on the fubjeft of the Naval
Forces which his MAJESTY has contented to employ
for the defence of the coafts of the Ottoman Em-
pire, and to affift in offenfive operations againft
the Enemy, either in Egypt, or elfewhere.
From the Rate of uncertainty in which we (till
remain, with refped to the details of the anion
which has taken place between the Britifh and
French fleets, (although the known fuperiority of
his Majefty's navy, and the concurrent teftimony
of fo many different reports, afford the heft hopes
of a complete fnccefs,) it is as yet impoilible to
take a definitive refolution with regard to the num-
ber and the force of the flips of the line and others,
that it will be neceffary to leave in the Seas of the
Levant, fir the purpofes above.mentioned.
But you are authorifed to give the nsoft diftind
and pofitive atfurances, that it is his Majefty's in-
tention to maintain the fuperiority of his Maritime
Force, wherever that of the enemy may be found ;
and by this means to provide, in concert with his
Allies, for the defence of the coafts of the Otto-
man Empire, and alfofor thing offenfively againft
the enemy wherever it is poffible, and particularly
in Egypt. It is evident that the number of (hips
of the hoe necetary for there purples, will depend