Marquess Wellesley sat down on the chair opposite and recalled the news he had heard in Congress:
"According to Fox, nearly two months ago, Mysore sent out 6,000 troops to invade Cannanore. The defending soldiers of the East India Company resisted for only three days before they were completely defeated."
Cannanore is an important stronghold for the East India Company in the southwest of the Indian peninsula; losing it would greatly affect trade in the southwest of India.
Although the East India Company is, in name, a company, it is in fact the administrative arm of England in India—from the government to members of Congress, from officials to businessmen, nearly everyone owns shares of the East India Company. One could say that the damage to this company's interests could even have a greater impact on England than a significant financial loss to the government.
William Pitt Junior frowned deeply:
"Are you saying that those native Indians put in only 5,000 men and..."