He was present for the expedition that took the Cape of Good Hope in 1795, and commanded the engineers in Sir David Baird's Indian army sent to help expel the French from Egypt in 1801.
He was present for the expedition that took the Cape of Good Hope in 1795, and was promoted to lieutenant on 5 February 1796 and captain on 1 July 1800. Elphinstone commanded the engineers in Sir David Baird's Indian army sent to help expel the French from Egypt in 1801.