Battle of Plassey

Introduction

Plassey's battle was mainly taken place because of the afraid of losing full control of the company. The officials of the company were looking for rulers who became their puppets of them, as they were willing to get complete political as well as administrative control of all the provinces of Bengal. The issue between the company and the rulers of India started in 1756 when Alivardi Khan died and Siraj-Ud-Daulah became the Nawab.

What are The Causes of The Battle of Plassey?

Multiple reasons were developed for the occurrence of Plassey's battle.

• The most important cause of this battle is the full misuse of the trade policy provided by Bengal’s Nawab to EIC.

• The company gradually secured its place in the several territories of Bengal and started duty-free business practices. All these activities caused the loss of Bengal’s Nawab in terms of political, administrative as well as financial position (Mekala, Vu & Shang, 2022).

• Fortification of Bengal region was led by EIC without the permission of Nawab.

• British officials intentionally misled the orders of Nawab in several aspects.

• The asylum was given to the enemy of Nawab. Britishers gave asylum to the enemy of Nawab, which increase the anger of Bengal’s Nawab (Zeb-un-Nisa, Mustafa & Gill, 2021).

• All the issues were one of the most important reasons for the battle as the officials of EUC totally seized Bengal’s port and Calcutta fort.

Robert Clive's victory at the Battle of Plassey established the East India Company as a military as well as a commercial power

Francis Hayman, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Plassey’s Battle − Background

Siraj-Ud-Daulah the last successful and independent Nawab of the region of Bengal succeeded Alivardi Khan who was his own grandfather and captured the throne of Bengal. He was worried about the gradual expansion of EIC in the several provinces of India and the misuse of all trading rights (Zeb-un-Nisa, Mustafa & Gill, 2021). The Company officials also invaded all types of taxes and started a duty-free business culture.

After the victory of the war of Carnatic, the Britishers grew perturbed against the Nawab. After that, Bengal's Nawab ordered to stop the business performance of EIC in the provinces of India without giving any taxes to the rulers of India (Mekala, Vu & Shang, 2022). The continuous extension of the fortification of EIC in India also increased the chances of a battle between the Nawab and the EIC.

Important Personalities of The Battle

Some significant personalities were seen in this battle and they played an important role.

Siraj-Ud-Daulah

He is considered the principal protagonist of this battle and fought single-handedly with the vast army of British rulers. He was involved in the tragedy of Black-hole where 143 Britishers are captivated and imprisoned in a small room.

He opposed the misuse of the Dustak as well as Farman provided by the rulers of India (Zeb-un-Nisa, Mustafa & Gill, 2021). He attacked the Calcutta fort and that opened hostility among the officials of EIC.

Robert Clive

He gave asylum to Krishna Das the political fugitive of India that disappointed the Nawab. He misused the privileges of trade as used as per their preference (ncert, 2022). He fortified some provisions of Bengal without any permission from Nawab.

Mir Jafar

He was completely bribed by EIC and used as a spy of Britishers against the former Nawab of Bengal. He cheated the Nawab during the battle.

Jagat Seth

He was one of the most influential bankers of the region of Bengal and was also engaged in a conspiracy against the Nawab and helped in the imprisonment as well as killing Siraj-Ud-Daulah.

Omi Chand

The famous merchant of Bengal, this personality was the mastermind of the conspiracy against Nawab. He fully associated the treaty with Nawab alongside Robert Clive before the battle in 1757.

Impact on Indian Politics of this Battle

Plassey's battle has a great impact on the Indian atmosphere in terms of financial, political as well as administrative perspectives. This battle mainly ruined the political and economic structure of the country. The reason for losing this battle was irreverent leadership, no unity among the leaders, feudal natured battle, unorganised battle and scarcity of resources.

Reasons for losing the battle

Political Impact

This battle ended the other forces in India such as the French, Portuguese as well as Dutch.

• Mir Jafar was installed on the throne of Bengal and he became a puppet of EIC.

• Mir Jafar gradually became unhappy with his position of him and this is the reason for his connection with Dutch for making an attack on the British (jstor, 2022).

• After this battle, Robert Clive was entitled Lord Clive he became more influential to the rulers of India than before.

Economic Impact

This battle completely ruined the economic structure of India.

• The economy of the country was greatly affected during the battle and in the postbattle situation, the Britishers started to collect more amount of taxes from the farmers and businesspersons (geeksforgeeks, 2022).

• After the battle, the officials of EIC started to collect more amounts of taxes by imposing several rules and regulations.

Conclusion

Siraj-Ud-Daulah gained full control of the factory of British at Kashimbazar which was fully unexpected to the Company and this caused a conflict between them. Nawab then captured the Factory of Calcutta consequently. Then Robert Clive the former head of the EIC send officials to the Nawab with the intention of negotiation but he was not at all agreed to negotiate with them. As a result, this battle took place between them.

FAQs

Q1. What is called a Black-hole incident?

Ans. Siraj imposed 146 British people in a little dungeon in Bengal and it is said that 123 prisoners died because of suffocation. Several historians did not support this incident.

Q2. What is the significance of this battle?

Ans. This battle is very significant in the administration of Bengal along with India. After this battle, the EIC started to expand their business in different provinces of India.

Q3. Who was Rai Durlabh?

Ans. He was one of the most influential personalities of Bengal and a commander of the army of Siraj-ud-daula. He was also engaged in a conspiracy against the Nawab.