WELLINGTON
2067
WEI^LS
In 1784 he obtained a seat in the British house of commons, and in 1797 entered the house of lords as Baron Wellesley. He was sent to India in 1798 as governor-general, where he found the British possessions threatened by the French in a, tance with Tippoo Sahib (q. v.), a powerful native prince. He secured the French officers who were over the native troops, sent them out of the country, and defeated Tippoo Sahib, who was slain in battle. He effected a treaty with Persia, and carried on successfully the Mahratta War, which ended by making England the great power in India, adding 40 million people and $50,000,000 of revenue to her kingdom. He built the palace of Calcutta, founded the College of Fort William, and introduced financial reforms that doubled the revenues of the East India Company. The great expense of his administration and charges of cruelty to native princes were the complaints made against him, and articles of impeachment were presented but rejected by the house of commons. He was ambassador to Spain, secretary of state, lord lieutenant of Ireland and lord chamberlain. He had an annuity of $25,000 from the East India Company and a gift of $100,000 toward the close of his life. He died at London, Sept. 26, 1842.
Wellington, Arthur Wellesley, Duke of, one of England's greatest generals, was born at Dungan Castle, Ireland, May i, 1769. He studied in a military college in France. His first actual service was in command of a regiment in the Netherlands in 1794. While his brother was governor of India, he won his first fame in the Mahratta War with the brilliant victory of Assaye, gained with 4,500 men against 40,000 Mahratta troops. After serving in Hannover and Denmark and commanding an expedition sent to Portugal, he was put in command of the peninsular army in Portugal and Spain, which was opposed to the veteran forces of Soult and Victor. He won the battle of Talavera (July 27-28, 1809), for which he was created a peer and given a pension of $10,000. He carried the war into Spain, which was held by the French, gained the battles of Bada-jos and Salamanca, and was made general-in-chief of the Spanish armies, as he had already been of the Portuguese forces. His pension was doubled, and $500,000 given him to purchase lands. He followed the retreating army into France, took Pamplona, and defeated Soult under the walls of Toulouse. He received for the twelfth time the thanks of Parliament and, also, a gift of $2,000,000. When Napoleon escaped from Elba, Wellington was put in command of the British forces, while the Prussian army was led by Blticher. On June 18, 1815, came the great battle
of Waterloo, which finally crushed the power of Napoleon. The allied 4rmii|s marched upon Paris, and Louis XVIII entered the city the day after the English army. Wellington took command of the army of occupation, living in Paris for three years, where two attempts were made upon his life. He was created field-marshal of the armies of Russia, Prussia and Austria, and prince of Waterloo by the king of the Netherlands, while Parliament added $1,000,000 to its former gift. He represented Great Britain at the congress of Vienna, was sent on an embassy to Russia, and became cpmmander-in-chief of the British army. His political career, during which he filled the first positions in the country, lost him much of his great popularity, as he took a firm stand against reform, his opposition to the reform bill being followed by an attack of a London mob on his house, and hooting and pelting in the streets. His share in the repeal of the corn laws restored the Iron Duke, as the people loved to call him, to popularity. He died at Walmer Castle, Kent, Sept. 14, 1852. Consult Lives by Browne, Gleig, Maxwell and Yonge and his own Dispatches and Memoranda.
Wellington, New Zealand, a provincial district in, and the seat of the government of, the newly formed Dominion in the southern Pacific. It is situated in the southern part of North Island, the city being on Cook Strait, which separates North and South Islands. It has a fine harbor on an inlet of th© strait, and has a large shipping-trade, chiefly exporting wool, frozen meat, ka<uri gum, butter, cheese and gold. The value of the total trade in 1910 was £9,156,634. The area of Wellington District is 11,003 square miles, with a population in 1911 of 199,094, exclusive of the native Maoris; in the same year the city had a population of 64,372 or, with suburbs, 70,729. In the city, besides the Houses of "Parliament, Government House and public buildings, are the general post-office, the life-insurance offices, those of the harbor-board, churches, schools and a number of attractive stores. Its industries include potteries, foundries, soap and candle and freezing works, woolen mills, a wax-match factory, several boot and shoe factories and a rope-works.
Wells College. This college for women, which is attended by from one to two hundred women who are candidates for the degrees of bachelor or master of arts, was founded at Aurora, N. Y., by Henry Weha in 18 68. The college is under ^minational; and has 24 instructors, 180 students and a library of 15,181 volumes. In 1907 the income was $96,169; the productive funds $243,000 and the receipts from benefactions $610,000.
Wells, David Ames, an American econo mist of note, free trader, lecturer and writer
