Bengal War
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (February 2019) |
| Bengal War | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of the Seven Years' War and Anglo-Mughal Wars | |||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||
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 British East India Company | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
 Shah Alam II[1] Najaf Khan  Shuja-ud-Daula Siraj ud-Daulah Mir Qasim |
Hector Munro of Novar John Caillaud John Knox | ||||||
The Bengal War,[2] also called campaign for the eastern Subahs, was waged by the Mughal imperial crown Prince Ali Gauhar (later known as Shah Alam II) so as to recapture Bengal from the British East India Company (EIC). Hostilities began in 1756 and ended in 1765.
Background[edit]
Mughal Emperor Farrukhsiyar in 1717 granted the EIC the right to trade within Benghal coupled with some exemptions for taxation. In the eyes of the Company, this decree granted it sovereignty, a right to trade undisturbed by the imperial powers. The EIC's opinion was that the emperor thus devolved its power and became a mere "official".[3]
Hostilities[edit]
Shah Alam II did manage to capture and hold Bihar.[citation needed] In 1764, in a battle of Buxar, he surrendered to the British.[4]
John Caillaud had set three official seals to document expressing an intent to kill Shah Alam II, while he had the Mughal Crown Prince, allegations that Caillaud would later strongly deny.[5]
Aftermath[edit]
As a result of the war, the EIC became an indispensable military and fiscal instrument for the Mughal Emperor who was relying on the Company's military protection and financial means.[4] While becoming effectively a sovereign in Bengal and Northern India by controlling the Bengal diwani in exchange for a fixed payment, the company was saddled with a large cost that EIC was forced to continue carrying due to commercial and political reasons.[6] The document grantine the revenues to the EIC was treated as a proto-constitution, a "Magna Carta".[7]
The EIC waged a campaign to overthrow Shuja-ud-Daula.[citation needed]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ a b History of the Freedom Movement in India (1857–1947), p. 2, at Google Books
- ^ Jaques, Tony (2007). Dictionary of Battles and Sieges: F-O. ISBN 9780313335389.
- ^ Bayly 2013, p. 329.
- ^ a b Nadeau 2023, p. 17.
- ^ John Caillaud at Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
- ^ Nadeau 2023, p. 216.
- ^ Bayly 2013, p. 330.
Sources[edit]
- Nadeau, Adam (June 2023). Inheriting Empire: Royal proclamations, parliamentary legislation, and imperial integration in British North America and India, 1760-1793 (Doctor of Philosophy thesis). University of New Brunswick.
- Bayly, C. A. (2013). "The British Military–Fiscal State and Indigenous Resistance India 1750–1820". An Imperial State at War: Britain From 1689-1815. Taylor & Francis. pp. 322–354. ISBN 978-1-134-54602-2. Retrieved 2024-06-02.