A Comprehensive History of India - Vol. 1

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A COMPREHENSIVE

HISTORY OF INDIA.

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Digitized by the Internet Archive
in

2011 with funding from
University of Toronto

http://www.archive.org/details/comprehensivehis01beve

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COMPEEHENSIVE

HISTORY OF INDIA,
CIVIL, MILITARY,

AND

SOCIAL,

FROM

THE FIRST LANDINa OF THE ENGLISH,
TO THE SUPPRESSION OF THE SEPOY REVOLT;
INCLUDING

an outline of the early history of hindoostan.

By

henry BEVERIDGE,

Esq,

ADVOCATE.

ILLUSTRATED BY ABOVE FIVE HUNDRED ENGRAVINGS.

VOLUME

L

lDi.*^cminamu.8:.<

LONDON:
BLACKIE AND SON, PATERNOSTER BUILDINGS,
AND GLASGOW AND EDINBURGH.

E.G.;

J
io
GLASGOW:
W.

G. BLACfeJE^^i^X) CO.,

V o^^o J

LL A FIELD,

^KT

;

PREFACE.
India, the most valuable de2)enclency of the British crown,

Even some

interesting portions of the globe.

its

physical features are on a scale of

The stupendous mountain chain along

unparalleled grandeui*.
rising gradually

of

from a plain of inexhaustible

one of the most

also

is

its

northern frontier

has snowy summits which tower

fertility,

nearly six thousand feet above the loftiest of any other country in either hemisphere

while over the vast expanse of

its

magnificently diversified surface almost every jiroduct

possessed of economical value grows indigenously, or ha\'ing been introduced

Nor

with success.

are

its

moral

less

remarkable than

nigged recesses and jungly forests various
inhabitants,

may

tribes,

though far advanced in
for ages lived

carried

most of the

civilization, at least in

supposed to represent

arts of

are subservient, shoidd be

common

life

new phase

full

of

and treated

as

That the dominant
is

class, to

deficient in natural acuteness,

culture.

Hindooism, though

not only counts
its votai-ies,

ledge,

its

that those

cities,

and

and slaves

which

all othei's

nothing more than might have been

mere outcasts whose very touch
is

aboriginal

The great

to high perfection, are yet the dupes

when

nature seems to be presented

submission the more extraordinary,

its

the ordinary sense of the term, since they

of religious zeal,

human

In

or rather aggi'egation of races, who,

is

those occupying

murmur

the lower grades of the social scale are seen submitting ^vithout a
over,

its

under regular government, dwelt in large and splendid

of a most childish and galling superstition.

expected, but a

I'ace,

cultivated

physical features.

be seen in a state bordering on absolute barbarism.

still

bulk of the pojiulation, howevei", consists of a

have

its

is

"What makes this

pollution.

who exemplify

to be lorded

it

are by no

means

and, on the contrary, often give proofs of intellectual

little

better than a tissue of obscene

and monstrous

fancies,

domination by thousands of years, but can boast of having had among

men who,

in the ages in

which they

lived,

extended the boundaries of know-

and earned some of the abstrusest of the sciences to a height Avhich they had

never i-eached before.
supei-stition,

nowhere

This remarkable combination of pure intellect and grovelling
dis})layed so strikingly

and unequiA'Ocally

as in

India,

gives a

peculiar value even to that part of its histoiy which, relating only to its social state,

is

necessarily the least fruitful in stirring incidents.

So long as the leading powei-s of Europe made India a kind of common

battle-field,

on which they met to contend for s\ipremacy, no one nation could be said to possess any
exclusive or peculiar intei-est in

its affairs;

but from the

forth, virtually if not formally recognized as the
tries

became in a manner

The

vast space which separates

identified,

them

moment when Great

paramoinit power, the history of both coun-

and ought therefore
is

Britain stood

to be studied as one gi'eat whole.

a mere circumstance which,

if it

have any weight

VI

J 'It

at nil, rm^^lit ratlicr to increase

to

new

iind sees tln-m in a
tlie

the int<;rcHtof the BritiHli

new modes

Hceues and

now

sjjirit,

given her

tlie

rca<ler,

who

is jiot

only intifxluced

of social existence, but follows his countrj'nien

same unrivalled

sjthere disjjlayin;;^ the

talents, civil

st<'p

and

by

military,

wiiich have placed Great Britain at the hea<l of nuxleni nations, and

and mightiest empire that the world has yet beheld.

largest

was placed under a kind of

and those intrusted with

tutelage,

Wliile India

administration, iiintcad

its

of encouraging, systematically repressed the public curiosity, there was doubtless

excuse for a feeling of apathy in regard to

its affairs

any adventitious

resources, as one of the

its

upon her loving

intervention, has called

welfare of all her dominions,

how can

most

some

but now that the anomalous fomi

;

own name without

of government has been abolished, and the Queen, ruling India in her

developing

Kt«'ii,

and perseverance, the same eidightened, humane, and

sanu! in(l<jniitabl(r courage

generous

L FACE.

subjects to unite with her in

means of promoting the general

effectual

the call be properly resjx)nded

to,

unless the actual

circumstances of the country, and the whole course of events by which these have V>een

formed

A

—

—are

in other words, all the details of its history

carefully studied ?

subject so impoi'tant and so attractive as that of India could not faU to engage

many

the pens of

writers,

and accordingly a number of works relating to

it

has appeared,

some of them by distinguished men, who bore no unimportant part in many of the
actions

which

To

tliey iian'ate.

all

these works, however, there

is

traas-

one serious objection,

which, without impugning their merits, goes to prove that so far from exhausting the

have

subject, they

Some

histories.

provinces

left

them

of

down

history, or after bringing it

very period when

work, which

it

differs

as far as

was practicable

from them in plan, and

at the time, stop short at the

is

it

due research, in a

ui-gency.

a Comprehensive History of IncUa, beginning with

its

it,

matei'ials as
it

eai'liest

much

as possible

from original and

official sources.

—

as its

period,

name

implies,

and continued,
In

The only part
is

of the

How far he has succeeded,

work on which he ventures

that of the maps, plans, and

which, independently of their merit as embeUishments, bring

the history

is,

the author has not trusted to previous compilations, but derived his

to anticipate the judgment of the public

its

campaigns,

most celebrated personages

much

It

felt,

omission of any transaction of importance, to the present time.

remains for his readers to decide.

tions,

pei'spicu-

might supply a want which had long been

and to which recent events had given much additional

composing

The present
more popular

also intended to be of a

in the belief that if written after

ous style, and with strict impartiality,

known

of the earlier

pai't

becomes at once most interesting and most instructive.

was undertaken

without the

comj)lete

are jjrofessedly confined to particular jjeriods or pailicular

while others of a more general description either omit

;

character,

them of the character of

imijortant blanks, which depiive

credit to those

perusal of the history

its

battle-fields, its

cities,

—immediately before the

and other

eye, in a

employed upon them, but must
itself.

all

numerous

illustra-

the leading topics of

localities,

and even

its

manner which not only does

gi-eatly facilitate

the inteUigent

—

CONTENTS.
VOL. L
PAGE

Introduction,

1

BOOK
CHAPTER

I.

Ancient India

—The pre-historic period — Native sources of information— Other accounts

— Invasion
Great

I.

of India by Sesostris, Semiramis, Darius

Hystaspes, Alexander the

— Subsequent state of India,

.

CHAPTER
— Arab conquests — First

Medieval India

of Scinde by

Sebektegiu

Mahomed

Casira

.

II.

Arabs

of the

— House

of

Ghuznee
39

.

CHAPTER

III.

— Altamsh— Sultana
Rezia — Mogul irruptions into India— Gheias-u-diu Biilbun — House of Khilji
Jelal-u-din— Proceedings in the Deccan— House of Toghlak — House of Lodi,

Medieval India continued- The Slave

Kings— Eibuk

or Kutb-u-din

.

Invasion of Tiraour or

Timour's deputy

CHAPTER IV.
Tamerlaue — Battle of Delhi — Sack

— Independent

monarchy — Proceedings

— Syud

successor

Lody

— Sikundur

of

— Life

Khizr Khan

Mahomed— Syud

— Khizr

62

Khan,

— His death — Moobarik, his son and
— Afghan Lody dynasty— Bheilole

Ala-u-din

Lody — Ibrahim Lody

and reign

of Delhi

.

kingdoms established on the ruins of the Delhi

and renewal of that of the Moguls

Mogul dynasty

15

appearance of Mahometans in India— Conquest

— Expulsion

— Sultan Mahmood,

.

— Extinction

of the

Lody Afghan dynasty,

in the person of Baber,

CHAPTER V.
of Baber — Hoomayoon— His

94

expulsion and return

—

State of India at his death,

105

CHAPTER VL
Reign of Akber

121

CHAPTER VIL
Modern India— Changes
establisheil

of the

in

the

mode

of

intercourse

by the Venetians, the Genoese, and other

Cape of Good Hope

with the East— Monopolies
Italian republics— Doubling

— Portuguese progress in India

U4

—

Mil

(JONTENTS.

CirAl'TER VIII.
Portuguese progress in the East

—The viceroyrthips

of Fntucisco Ahneida and Alfonuo

....

Alljiiquenine,

CHAPTER
by other routes than

Att'iiipts to reach India
iini tli-\v(

sL

and north-east

Superiority of

tlie

—The

IX,
of the Cape

tliat

—Their

fiiilure Vjy

the

south-west passage practicable, but circuitous

passage by the Cape generally recognized

— First voyages of the
lOO

English and Dutch by that route,

CHAPTER

X.

Association of merchant adventurers for a voyage to the East

Their memorial

—The

first

— Their

proceedings

—
224

English East India charter,

BOOK

II.

CHAPTER
The

1 S

I.

—Localities selected— Opposition from the Dutch and
the Portuguese — First English factory on the continent of India — Sir Thomas Roe's
embassy to the court of the Great Mogul — State of that court — Establishment of a
first

voyages of the

trade with Persia,

Company

.............
CHAPTER

238

II.

— Proceedings in the Persian Gulf— New joint stock
Arrangement with the Dutch — The council of defence — The massacre of Amboyna,

Progress of the Company's trade

CHAPTER

III.

— Establishment of a rival
— State of the Company under Cromwell,

Truce with the Portuguese

Dutch

CHAPTER

company

—Settlement

wdth the
267

IV.

Reign of Shah Jehan— His deposition by Aurungzebe

Mahrattas

258

— Rise

and

progi-ess

ot

the

— Reign of Aurungzebe,

251

CHAPTER

V.

—New general charter by Charles
Company's proceedings — Grant of the

Resumption of the history of the East India Company
II.

— Constitutional

island of

question raised by the

Bombay,

309

CHAPTER VI.
Administration and progress of Bombay — Difficulties— State of the other settlements of
the Company,

.

324

—

L

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER
Marked change

the Company's policy ou

in

preparations

VII.

the accession

of

James

II.

— Hostile

— War with the Mogul — Disastrous results,

CHAPTER
New

IX

crown charters

— Hostile feeling of

scandalous disclosures— Rival

Company

of

Coramons

established

BOOK

successors of

act of parliament,

i

,

state of India

—The

and other native states

immediate

— Tlie

invasion

382

of Nadir Shah,

CHAPTER
The

351

I.

Company— Political

Aurungzebe — Tlie Mahrattas

by

—Wholesale bribery and

III.

CHAPTER
Actual position of the United

340

VIII.

House

tlie

PACE

])rogress of the

French

in

II.

India— War between France and England

— Naval

and

—The capture of Madras,
CHAPTER III.
repulsed — The
Proceedings of the French at Madras — An attempt of the nabob upon
terms of capitulation shamefully violated — Unsuccessful attempts of the French
David — Proceedings of the English
under Admiral Boscawen
upon Fort
Siege of Pondicherry — The peace of Aix-la-Chapelle,
military operations

407

it

fleet

St.

CHAPTER
The Carnatic

—Its

political state

—Transactions

IV.

in Tanjore

— Early

career of Clive

Siege of Trichinopoly,

42'.)

CHAPTER
Intrigues of

Mahomed

Trichinopoly

Ali

—Vacillating

— Mahomed

All's

toriuous

Attempts at negotiation

ments

—Arrival

of

proceedings
lost

Major Lawrence with a

1.

rein-

— Discontent of his allies
— Clive sails for England
471

of Dupleix,

superseded returns to France

of a British fleet— Return of Clive

the French

— New

— Destruction

arrange-

of pirates at

Gheriah,

Vol.

453

ground

CHAPTER VI
Bussy — Great accession of territory to

— Dupleix

of

VI.

— Arrival

Major Lawrence — New intrigues

Proceedings of Salabut Jung and

— Siege

..........

— Capture of Arcot,
CHAPTER

Attempts of the French to recover their
Successes of

V.

conduct of the Madras government

Continuation of the Siege of Trichinopoly

forcement

418

oOl
I,

CONTENTS.

CirAPTEK VIM.
PAMK

State of
;iiiJ

Honi^'.il

All

-Ailmiiiiatnitiou ul

J.-illit-r

Kliau, Sliujah-u-din

Khau, Serferaz

Rlrtii,

Verdy Kliau,

.OK;

CITAPTER

IX.

— His early career — First acts of his government—
against Piirneah — His suHpicion and hatred of the
East India Company — The factory of Cossimhazar seized and plundered — Calcutta
besieged and taken — The horrors of the Black Hole,

Stiijijah

Dowlah, N.bob of Bengal

rival claimant

— His expedition

CHAPTER
Deliberations at

Madras

— Armament

and military operations

factory at Chaudernagore

the nabob

sails for

— Treaty of

X.

Bengal

— Recapture

peace with the nabob

— Recommencement

'/.iO

—

— Naval

of Calcutta

Capture of the French

— Conspiracy

of Iiostilities

to depose

— The battle of Plassey,

547

CHAPTER

XI.

— Desultory warfare — Arrival of a French squadron
Lally, commander-in-chief of French forces — Naval action — Siege and capture of
Fort St. David — Siege of Taujore — Siege of Madras — French reverses— Forde in

Position of affairs in the Caruatic

the Northern Circars —Battle of

Waudiwash — Siege and capture

Destruction of Fz-ench interests in the Deccan,

CHAPTER
Meer

Jaffier nabob,

son

and Clive governor of Bengal

.......
of Pondicherry

594

XIT.

— Attempt

upon

it

by the Mogul'-s

— Hostilities with the Dutch— Departure of Clive— His successors, Holwell and
— Meer Jaffier deposed, and Meer Cossim appointed nabob — ^leer Cossim

Vansittart

deposed, and

second

Meer

— Dewannee

— Nugum-ud-Dowlah

titular

nabob— Clive's

..............

government

Company,

Jaffier reinstated

of

Bengal, Behar, and Orissa granted

to

the

645

I

7

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
VOLUME
FRONTISPIECE.—Openinq

L

up of direct European Trade with India— Yasco de

Gama and the zamorin

fo

Calicut.

EXGRAVED TITLE.-The Rock

cut Temple of Kylas, at Ellora.

Sketch Mai' of India to illustrate the Uistory from the Earliest Period to the Battle of Pla.ssey.
Map to illustrate the Waks in Coromandel, 1744-178I).

Map to illustrate the Wars ix Mysore, 1707-1799.
Map of the Valley of the Ganges, from Caixjutta
Bbhar,

to Benabes, including the Provinces of noal,

iio.

Map of Malwah, includino Holkar's and Scindia'.s Dominions.
Map of the Maur.vtta Country and Adjacent Territories.

Map
Map

of the

....

Jummoodeep,

of India according to Ptolemy,

.

Interior of the Cave of Klephanta,
E.xterior of Great

.

Chaitya Cave, Salsotle,

Exterior of the Chaitya Cave, Adjiiuta,
Interior of the

Bisma Kiirm,

Ellora,

lUiius of Tyre,

.

.

.

.

.

of Alexander

the Great,

Silver Coin of Eucratidcs V.,

Ruins at Canouge,
Gates of the Temple at Somnautli,

Ghnznee,

Ajmeer, from near the Gogra Pass,

Tomb

Silver

and

Woman

Coin of Ala-u-din,

.

Huins of the Castle of Sehwan

.19

Mausoleum of Emperor Akber

.

.

24
25

.

.

.

....
.

Akber's Tombstone at Secuudra,

,

140

Palace of Akber, Futtipoor Sikra,

.

.

.

142

'Ihe Chalees Sitoon, Allahabad,

.

.

.

.

3-1

Portrait of Christopher Columbus,

38

Vievv of the

47
50

Portrait of Vasco de

Gama,

General View of Calicut,

.

Portrait of Alfonso de Albuquerque,

.

.

59

General View of Lisbon, a.d. 1574,

.

.

174

C3

Bird's-eye

.

175

View of Alexandria,

Thecity of Ormuz,

Baber, Cabool

Chunarghur, near Benares,
Bihistee, or
t-heer Shah's

....

Water Carrier of Bengal,

Mausoleum

at Sasseram, near

.

in the Persian Gulf, a.d.

1574,

General View of Din, A.D. 1574,
Portrait of Sebastian Cabut,

80

General View of Greenwich in 1662,

.

.

Portrait of Ferdinand Magellan,

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

93

now

in

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

178
190

.190

Greenwich Hospital,

201

206
208
208

Jewel presented to Drake by Queen Elizabeth, in
possession of Sir T. T. Elliott Fulke Drake,

209

Bait

Thomas Cavendish,

107

Portrait of

110

Cape Comorin, from uear Calead,
Portuguese Residents at Bantam, circ. A.D. 1600

113

172

.185

7-5

.

.

Bird's-eye

View of Bantam,

circ.

.

.

a.d. 1600,

.

209

.

217

.

219
213

11:^

Governor of Bantam and Attendants, eir. a.d. 1600 221

114

Portrait of George, third Earl of Cumberland,

.

232

Manchc

.

.

237

.

.

239

.115

Benares

1574,

A.I).

162

.168

71

102

.

.

General View of Aden, A.D. 1574,

The Snowy Range of the Himalayas, from Marma, 89

Emperor Baber, near Cabool,
White Marble Mosque at the Tomb of Emperor

.

65

Portrait of Sir Francis Drake,

of the

156

.161

53

Drake's Astrolabe,

Tomb

.

.

.

89

.

.

.

(Native Boat), circa 1598,

86

Usbeks of Khoondooz, and a Khojah of Usbek,
View of Kandahar,

.153

General View of Cananore, A. D. 1574,

.

...

152

.

An Almadia

.

A Brahmin,

.

.

52

.

Part of the Serai, Toghlakabad,

.

.

52

.

Bin Toghlak,

.

.

Ship of Spain, Fifteenth Century,

Mausoleum

Mahomed

.

1574,

A. D.

143

147
149

Cape of Good Hope,

82

Khosrow, near Allahabad,

140

.

.

of

136

.

.

Ruins of the Palace of Hana Bheum, Chittoor,

Copper Coiu of

at Secnnilra,

Constantinople, end of Seventeenth Century,

.03

,

(Afghanistan;,

136
(Sciiule),

27

.

...

.

Armed Afghan

Yoosoofzye,

of Sultan Altamsh, Delhi,

Group of Ancient Indian Armour,
Khilji Chieftain

.

.

Futtipoor Sikra,

18

Miliar, Delhi,

Gheughis Khan,

.135

at

19

Mahmood's Tomb, Oliuzncc,
Sultan Mahmood's Tomb, Ghuznec,

Interior of the

.

...
...
....51
.

Silver Coin of

Attock, from west bank of the Ganges,

Tomb

.

E.xlerior of Sultan

Kutb

133

18

Selini's

.

Gold and Silver Coins of Sultan Mahmood,

Interior of

.

Sheikh

.

.

.

General View of the Kuins of Palmyra,

Pillars,

131

.

3

from a Silver

Tetradrachina of Lysiinaciius,

.Mahmood's

.

liuins of Goor, the old capital of Bengal,

Distant View of Cabool,

.

rian of Soor, the Ancient Tyre,

Head

.121

2

.17

.

PAOB
.

.

......
...

Ancient Indian Zodiac,

PAOE

1 1

of Calicut (Native Boat),

General View of Woolwich

in

1602,

.

LIST

Xll

(>V

View of Amboyiia

(Jfiicral

.....

Tlic I'owii and Volcano of

Java Junk, circa 1000,

M cell

a,

View

of Pointdc-Galle,

Tematc,

in

from the Nortli,

Tomb

of

Anns

of East India

tlic

Company,

Castle of AinboyiKi,

.

.

.

.

.

Krnpcror Jchangir

.

1005,

.

.

lCOO-50,
.

.

General View of iMasulipatam,

.

.

.

•

.

Seal used by Sir William Courteen's Association,

Gateway

to

tlie

Fort of Agra,

.

.

.

Huins of Old Delhi

Mahal

Interior of the Tiije

Tomb

of

at Agra,

Emperor Shah Jehan

.

in the Taje

Itock und

Pagoda

240

A

.

Mahal,

....

Horseback, with Attendants,

Wagnuck, or Tiger's Claws,
Tower of Victory, Chittoor,

.

.

.

.

,

.

.

riie

200

The Fort of Dowjelabad,

209

A Grab—a

The English
Bird's-eye

Fort,

Bombay,

circa

1672,

.

290

Musjid at Cuttack,

294

Ganges

535
.

538

300

View of

.

543

Monument

William, Calcutta, a.d. 1754,

F'ort

to those

.....
....

who

Hole, Calcutta,
Portrait of

perished in the Black

Admiral Watson,

Mocrshedabad, on the Ganges,

Cutwah, on the Ganges,

325

Portrait of Lieutenant-General Sir

327

Gateway

at Rajmahal,

.

on the Ganges,

Portrait of

Patna, on the Ganges,

343
347

352
The Old Eait India House, circa a.d. 1650,
Portrait of Thomas Osborne, first Duke of Leeds, 364
,

Jhalledar

— Palanquin

View of Boorhanpoor,
View of Joodpoor,

Portrait of Nadir Shah,

View

Emperor of

Persia,

Peons of ^Mysore,

Portrait of Major-General Stringer Lawrence,

Lord Clive,
Amboor, in ^lysore,

Portrait of Robert,

The

Hill-fort of

Plan of the Fort of Gingee,

.

.

Caparisoned Elephant with Howdah,

.

View

.

Fort of Madura,

.

607

.611

View of Conjeveram, near the Great Pagoda,

.

Sepoys of the Bengal Army,

395

Plau of Pondicherrj' and

395

Masula Boat of the Coromandel Coast,

398

The Chouk and Husseinee Delauu at Dacca,

.

047

401

Part of the City of Moorshedabad,

.

649

405

Feal Charra, or Elepliaut's-head State Boat,

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

Admiral

.

.

George Pococke,

Sir

its

.

.

.

022

.

625

.631

.

.

.

.

644

054

C54

— Grain Boats of Calcutta,

Fort of Chunarghur, near Benares,
Palace, Allahabad,

Fort of Allahabad,

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

602

.

663

.671
.681

....
.....
....

Portrait of Sujah Dowlah,

Patile

619

.

View of Chinsurah, on the Hooghly,
Portrait of the Emperor Shah Alum,

455

.

Puukee, or Peacock's-head Pleasure Boat,

421

The

014

.

.

Wolacks

444

.

Environs, a.d. 1760, 639

Moor

423

.

.

415

.446
.451
.

gapatam,

409

.440
.

.

in the

,

.

.

Peer Musjid, and Hill near the Dolphins, Viza-

Plan of the Fort of Waudiwash iu 1759,

......
.

606

380

....

Eort St. George, Madras, a.d. 1754,

.

598

.

390
393

— Afghans Mounted and on Foot,

Portrait of Labourdounais,

.

596

.

.

at Sattarah,

Dooranees

.

.589
.

Portrait of

.

.

.

577

381

.....

in the Deccan,

587

.

.

used by Rajahs,

.

.

Plan of the Fort of Masulipatam, a.d. 1759,

....

Rajpoots on i'oot and on Horseback,

Mahrattas on Horseback,

.

576

379
380

Earl of (iodolphin,

Garool.uh, a Boat of the Persian Gulf,

574

.

.

View of Gombroon, or Bender- Abbaz, a.d. 1676
first

.

.

Thomas Arthur, Co.rite de Lally,
Plan of Fort St. Dadd, near Cuddalore,
View of Mount St. Thome, near Madras,
View of the Black Town, Madras,

545

54S

.

Eyre Coote,

The Fort of Monghir, on the Gauges,

Portrait of Sidney,

523

.Map of the Territorj- of Calcutta, A.D. 1757,

at

.

.

295

at

.

485

489
500

531

338

.

.

481

.503
,510
.5)8

Ganges,

335

Street of the Fountains, Bejapoor,

.

472
4*9

Ruins of the Rajah's Palace, Rajmahal, on the

Fort of Eaje Ghur, Gingee,

General View of Canton,

.

.

Ghaut

.

.

Jumma

Ghaut

.

.

.

314

....
....
.....

View of Trincomalee,

.

Bombay,

.317

.

.

.

.

Najar Nultoo Sing's Mh'jot at Dacca, on the

.310

.

.

28y

,

.

.

Mackerey, or Ballot k Cart of Bengal,

View of the Island

the Adjacent Coast,

.

.

The

304

Bombay and

.

282

308

of

402

,

....

Tanjore,

Vessel of

.

284

.

General View of Surat,

hiiij;lcput,

201

.

Map

Gnat Pagoda,

.

.

.

.Map of the Environs of Trichiooiwly,

.

.

View of Aurungabad,
(

45'j

.....

Scringham,

at

250

.

of St. Helena,

,

.

.

Armed,

I'olyger coinpletely

Gateway of Pagoda

.

View of the Fort of

Aurungzebe's Burial-place at Rozah,

of the Kings, Golconda,

Temple of Tricbioopo^j,

at Conjcverarii,

2.07

Founder of the Mahratta Empire, on

Sevajce,

Tombs

242
2415

.251
.253

at Laliore,
circ.

JLMJSTRATIONS.

— Boat of the Ganges,

692
693
702
707

8

o
o
1^

o
c
m

o

.,„,.

M

KW,.U.1-

KHi;

f- ^-'^-it*f fr»

ULACXII A iON. GLASCOK. SDIXBURfiS * LOKUOS.

E W#4].T

L<**ft^«i

ft..-n

l.

r Wollrr

KRCS
SUCXtE &

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(fLA.-!riW.

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BtAClUR A SON.aLASOOW.KDNBrRCA & LOSnOS.

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KW«'JLrrJL->ii<ii-'i

THE

MAHRATTA COUNTRY, AND ADJACENT TERRITORIES

BUAOMB

t SON,

GLASGOW EBnTBTJKSH t LONDON

COMPREHENSIVE

HISTORY OF INDIA
INTRODUCTION.
dONG

after the

name

of India had become famiHar in the

uieas of In-

earliest seats of civilization in the Mediterranean, little

was known of the country designated by

was a region

more

than that

it,

'•'»» seo-

it

of vast extent situated in the far East, near

known

the outermost verge of the

^a

Ancient

world.

From

the in-

habitants themselves no satisfactory information could be

Accustomed to

obtained.

everything in mystery, they

veil

divided the terrestrial globe into seven deeps or islands, each

ii>^

human

of the

lifjr^-'"

•^1^

encompassed by

'

(.-onsists

most

and
his

own

Jummoodeep,

race in

above the

hiy-hly favoured localities.'

obscvu-ed

peculiar oce.an

;

and placing the habitation

whicli

is

nearest the centre, and Hmdooidea

partly of Meru, a mountain of gold of enormous height, reaching

as far beneath as

r

its

by

fancy to run

The notions of the Greeks,

were of a more definite description.

fable,
riot,

surface, appropriated to themselves

him, India was, as
consisted of

empire,

its

name

tliouffh disfirrured Greek

no-

Instead of allowing

result.

implies, the country drained

two great divisions

and formed the

siitrapies or

its

Herodotus diligently consulted the few sources of know-

within his reach, and honestly communicated the

leilge

one of

— a western,

by the

Indus, and

which was included in the

largest, as well as the

provinces into which that empire

According to

Per.sian

most productive of the twenty

was then

divided;

and an

eastern,

which, stretching beyond the limits supposed to be habitable, terminated in a

sandy

desert.-'

them, that

Crude as these ideas

when Alexander, dm-ing

Indus, he mistook

means
it to

it

are, so httle

by

to correct or enlarge

his celebrated expedition, first reached the Alexanders

for the Nile.

to undeceive himself,

was done

Fortunately he took the most effectual

fitting out a fleet,

Nearchus, who, after descending the river to

and giving the command of
its

mouth

in

tlie

ocean, con-

tinued his coui-se westwards along the shores of the Arabian Sea, and finally
'

»

Gladwin's Aycen Akhery, vol.
Herodotus, book

--Vol.

I.

iii.

iii.

p. 23, et scq.,

with

its

curious map, illustrative of Hindoo geography.

97-106.
1

-

IIISTOTIY

arrived in

tli(!

Persian Gulf.

OF INDIA.

AlexaTuler, ulio

had acconipanicd

his de-scent, afterwarrlH acconiplisliod the rest of the rliHtance
'^'^^'^

suaoa""

o^'^'^t

routes to India

.Nearclius in

overland

had thu« been simultaneously explored

latHZIItg

*f

An a

itDeO.liJt..

tASI

ST-

Map of the JrMMOODEEP.'

natural consequence, regular intercom-se with
figure
is

and dimensions began

furnished

that with

it

rapidly increased, and both

its

to be better understood.

Ample evidence of this
the works of Strabo and Ptolemy, and yet it cannot
be denied,
their industry and sagacity, they have ratlier
distorted than de-

by

all

lineated India.

The maritime

portion, in particular,

is miserably cm-tailed, and
characteristic projection, instead of forming the vertex
of a triangle, is' con-

its

'

This

map though

explanation.

sufficiently curious, could scarcely be

made more intelligible by any amount of
and all the attempts which have been made to find fixed localities
ranges of mountains, have failed. The ocean surrounding
Jummoodeep is

It is fanciful throughout,

for Its cardinal points,

and

its

only one which looks like reality, because it is
said to consist of salt water.
The other six oceai.s
beyond it consist
succession of milk, milk curds, ghee or clarified
butter, sugar-cane juice, wine, and
j
tlie

m

iresh water.

.

>

o

INTRODUCTION.
verted into the side of a square.'
blunder, which, indeed,

is

It

is

not

difficult to

many

only one of the

avoid, so long as the only accounts of the country

who

reached

it

by journeying

the infiincy of their

account for this serious

wliicii it

was impossible

to

were derived from travellers

across inhospitable deserts, or navigators who, in

art, effected

a long and perilous passage by following the

A

windino-s of the intervening shores

great advance

Portuguese doubled the Cape of Good Hope.

From

was made when the

that time, the Indian coast

Portuguese
di»tx)vei'ie».

became

accessible in all directions,

out the interior was a
covdd be

No

made while

sooner, however,

work

tlie

and

its

outline

of greater difficulty

was

easily traced.

—a work in which

little

To map
progress

struggle for supremacy in the East remained undecided.

were the foundations of

oiu-

Indian empu-e securely

laid,

India, ACCORDir^o to Ppolemt.

....

than the necessity of obtaining a tliorough
urgently

felt.

coimtry in

all

filled up,

tlie

its

surfiice

was

In

this

all

the aids which

tlie

refinements of modern

way, most of the blanks in Indian geogra])hy have been

advancing to completion.

course of the following work, the important })urposes to which the

by

Mo.iem geo
gniphj'.

length and breadth has been undertaken at the instance of

valuable materials accumulated
'

its

.

and a map, not unworthy of the vast and magnificent coimtry which

it delineate.s, is

In

knowledge of

Accordingly, in addition to district sm-veys, one embracing the

government, and carried on with
science supply.

.

these surveys are applicable will often be-

Forbiger's Ilandhuch dcr alien Geographic, particularly the illustrative majis in vol.

i

IflSTORV OF INTiTA.

4

come apparent; but

in the

meantime

it

Heems impossible to employ tliem to

the groundwork of a brief sketch, which, in

betttjr {iccount

than

exhibiting

leading features of the geography of India, will be at once an

tiie

in furnisiiing

appropriate introduction and a usefid guide to the study of
India:

it8

India, taken in its widest sense as a

ex-

I'uuudaiioa.

territories in Asia,

between

8°

common name

for all the contiguous

which are directly or indirectly subject

and 37" north

latitude,

and

GQ''

to British rule, lies

and 99" east longitude.

which extend north and south from the Himalaya

limits,

its history.

to

Within these

Cape Comorin, and

west and east from Afghanistan and Beloochistan to the Burman empire,

it

covers an area of a million and a half of square miles, and contaiiLS one hundre<l

and eighty millions of inhabitants. As these enormous numbers are not ea.sily
comprehended, a more definite idea may be formed, by considering that the
space

is

about twelve times, and the population six times greater than those

The portion

of the British Islands.

of Bengal, consisting chiefly of acquisitions from the Burmese, are only

Bay

politically associated

with India

may

be

for the present

left

which the name of India

and
Divisions,

of these va.st dominions lying east of the

is,

for the

most

is

;

and, having few features in

out of view.

more properly

part, well defined

division of ancient date,

it

The other and

consists of

common with

far larger portion, to

applied, forms one

by natural

it,

compact whole,
According to a

boundaries.

Hindoostan and the Deccan

—the former

meaning the Land of the Hindoo, and the latter the Land of the
The line of demarcation between the di\dsions is marked by the

desio-nation

South.

Vindhya Mountains, wliich stretch irregularly across the country from sea
sea, between the mouths of the Indus and the Ganges.
Hindoostan, thus defined, includes the whole of India which
to other parts of the Asiatic continent,

great river basins

and

lies

to

contiguous

consists almost entirely of

two

—that of the Indus in the west, and that of the Ganges in the

Both basins have a common and magnificent boundary in the north,
where the Himalaya, by far the loftiest mountain system in the world, with
snowy summits which, measiu-ed from the level of the sea, have more than five
east.

miles of vertical height, diverges as from a central nucleus in opposite directions

— on
Basin of the

the one hand, sloping north-west, and gi%'ing

ludus,

and on the

other, cm-ving

round toward the

its

waters chiefly to

east,

tlie

and supphing innu-

merable feeders to the Ganges. The basin of the Indus has its greate.st length
from north to south, and, with exception of the beautiful valley of Cashmere

and of the Punjab,

is

remarkable for a barrenness, which, in

becomes so great that cultivation

is

away

miles, has its occasional oases,

to the east

but

lower part,

confined to the breadth of a few miles on

either side of the river, while the adjacent country

This desert, stretching

its

is,

is

converted into a desert.

and north-east

for the

most

part, a

for several

hundred

sandy waste, mono-

tonous and dreary in the extreme.

On

entering the basin of the Ganges, a striking contrast

is

presented.

On

4

INTRODUCTION.
the north

by a

the Himalaya, descending

side,

5
series of magnificent terraces Basin

of the

with parallel or intersecting valleys, approaches the edge of an immense plain
of sm-passing beauty and fertility,

versed near

by a

centre

its

gently from west to east, and tra-

sl()[)ing

On

majestic river.

])oth

Himalaya, but partly also from the Vindhya range,

which so augment

tributaries,

bei'ed

with

and unable

its spoils,

volume that

its

to carry

Accordingly, in the lower part of

them along

its course, it

which form a kind of network across

little if

A

its delta.

The

at all inferior to its own.

from the

by numerous
a manner encum-

joined

in one amdivided channel.

throws off numerous branches,

municates with the Brahmapootra, coming from the
of water

it is

becomes in

it

chiefly

sides,

little

east,

down

lower

and carrying a volume

difficulty of discharge is

and can only be met by an additional number of

greatly increased,

com-

it

thus

outlet.s.

In the dry season, these flow witliin their banks, and have the appearance of

independent streams

but when the waters

;

and the whole country

A similar

tion.

consequence

is,

is

covered for

result is produced

rise,

many

a sudden overflow takes place,

miles around with one vast inunda-

on the lower

flats

of the Indus;

and one

that both rivers become far less available for navigation than

might be supposed from the volumes of water which they carry.

The channels

becoming shallow and attenuated in proportion to their number,

it

to find

any

which large vessels can safely

single one

is difficult

use.

The two great basins now described do not completely exhaust the whole
area included within the Himalaya and the Vindhya range; and therefore it is
.

central
ludia.

necessary to mention, that the ramifications of the range cover a considerable
tract of great

beauty and

Central India, and

is

fertility,

drained

the Taptee, which carry

its

but one, and

as a peninsula.

It

is

is

i^elongs to

by the independent

what has been

basins of the

called

Nerbudda and

waters west to the Gulf of Cambay.

The Deccan, the other great
all sides

which

division of India,

is

washed by the ocean on

The oeccin.

hence, though not with strict accuracy, usually described

an immense

in the form of

which

triangle,

rests

on the

and terminates in Cape Comorin as its vertex. Of
its two sides, one running S.S.E. in an almost unbroken line, faces the Arabian
Sea, the other, whose continuity is more broken, lies south-west, and faces the

Vindhya range

Bay

as its base,

of Bengal.

Names

so

common

as not to be

the lower halves of the sides

distinguish

—that

imworthy of

notice serve to

on the west being usually

designated as the Malabar, and that on the east as the Coromandel coast.

The

structm-e of the

extremities of the

exceed 3000
tions nearly

Ghauts,

between
it

is

feet,

Deccan

Vindhya

is

range,

two mountain chains proceed, and

parallel

to

10'

and

the coasts.

15°, rise to

far

whose greatest height

continued to Cape Comorin.

lat.

Not

very simple.

stretch

That on the west,

is

seldom recedes more than forty miles,

feet.

it

is

not supposed to

southward in
called the

Its loftiest summits,

about 6000

from the opposite

direc-

Western

which are situated

Towards the

sea.,

from which

very precipitous; towards the

westem

HISTORY OF INDIA.

6
land,

wliicli

in

nificent timbei-,

are not above 3000 feet,
tlie

descent

a

is

less

and

its

seldom abrupt.

is

li<;ight,

both sides

tinued to the extremity,

oeccan
table ir,id.

^^

^^^^^

^yi^j^jj^

Way

a

it

distance from the sea

In

its

stops about

and by which

feet,

ncw

Qf

j^\^^^

is

always

clothed with

is

it

elevated and tfimer ran^je.
'^

iiuig-

it

Its loftiest

so considerable that

Is

midway, and turning

gra^lually srjuth-we.st,

which have summits

Hills,

becomes linked with the Western Ghauts.

with sides composed of mountain

triangle,

summits

course sfjutliwards, instead of being con-

meets with a transverse range called the Neilgiieiry
exceeding 7000

slope

its

and displays much grand scenery.

Eastem Ghauts

"jj^g

Ohauts.

in

it

On

and occasionally imperceptible.

gradual,

i:a.<!terii

almost efjuals

parts,

ni;iii>

range.s, is

formed

Dcccau, and incloses an elevated table-land, which has a

\\^q

gradual but continuous slope eastward from the Western Ghauts to the

In accordance with this

slope, all the rivers of

any magnitude

sea.

—the Mahanuddy,

the Godavery, the Krishna, the Pennar, the Pelar, and the Coleroon or Cavery,
carry the drainage to
fertility of the

scorching heat,

Bay

tlie

This table-land cannot

of Bengal.

basin of the Ganges, because, while
it

it

is

has no streams fed by pei-petual snow.

h>oast the

expo.sed to a

The

more

torrents of rain,

however, which periodically descend on the Western Ghauts, compensate in

some degree

for this defect,

which, carried on

by

and provide the means of a system of

collecting the supei-fluous

made many

the rainy season, at one time

water in immense tanks during

parts of the

Unfortunately, in too

beauty and productiveness.

many

and more especially in those where native misrule
tanks are in ruins, and

sterility

seems to show that

its

All

other countries.

is

tlie

districts of the countr}',

continues,

many

of these

fully investigated,

but what

is

known

great mountain ranges are composed of the rocks

In the stupendous heights of the Himalaya

particularly predominant,

blende-schist, chloride-slate,

sula the

f<jr

leading features are less complicated than those of mo.st

usually classified as granitic.
gneiss

still

Deccan proverbial

has returned.

The geology of India has not been

Geology.

irrigation,

same rocks prevail

and

is

associated with mica schist, horn-

and primitive limestone.

In the chains of the penin-

—granite in the south-west and south, and

sienite in

the south-east, covering a considerable portion of the surface, and composing

some of the highest peaks.

and

its

One great exception to

accompanj'ing schists

is

spade,

predominance of gi'anite

in the southern portion of the

where these rocks disappear beneath the
species of iron clay, which, from its being

by the

this

and hardening on exposure

Western Ghauts,

and are overlaid by a peculiar
where it lies as to be easily cut

surface,

so soft

to the air so as to be

has received the name of laterite or brick-stone.

fit

for building,

This mineral, instead of being

a mere local deposit, almost assumes the dignity of a distinct formation, continuing with

little

interruption to the extremity of the continent, and even re-

appearing beyond

it

in the Island of Ceylon.

Another great exception

to the

predominance of granitic rocks

.

is

in the

INTRODUCTION.

7

upper part of the Western Ghauts, and the adjoining raniiiications of the

Vindhya range.

Hei*e basaltic

globular, tabular, porphyritic,
to

an extent

une(pialled,

it is

in its various forms of prismatic, columnar,

ti'ap,

and amygdaloid, spreads out as an overlying

rock,

A

very

believed, in

large portion of the table-land of the

in i)rcci})itous isolated

any other

Deccan

is

pai-t

of the world.

entirely covered

by

Not

it.

and the granite pierce the surface abruptly, and

unfreqiiently both the trap

Ba«iitic

rise

JMany of these standing

masses of considerable height.

out prominently from the surrounding plains and crowned with

hill- forts,

form

the most remarkable featm'es in the landscape.

The more

secondary and

regulfir
strata of the
*=

-^

tei-tiary iieriods are
"

larwly
"^
^

*

leveloped on the lower sides of the Himalaya, and occupy considerable tracts in

e:

various other

and

tertiary

strata.

and shales of the former period

i\Iany of the sandstones

localities.

secomiary

belong to the coal measm*es and coal has not only been fountl at several places,
;

actually worked, particularly in the valley

])ut is

of

Burdwan, where a

carefully explored,

this field to the capital,
facility of carriage

notice

;

Damooda

the

in the district

with a main seam 9 feet in thickness has been

coal field

and found

i)f

The proximity of

to extend over a large area.

from which

it is

by water, and now

about 150 miles north-west, and the

by

also

rail,

have brought

many

but there cannot be a doubt that there are

early into

it

other fields equally

demand about to
of railways. The teiliary

promising, and, at all events, productive enough to supply the

be created by the establishment of an extensive S3-stem
formation appears to obtain

greatest breadth in the north-west, towards

its

Scinde and the Punjab, from which, and the mountains of adjacent
fossil

districts,

remains of singular forms and gigantic dimensions have recently been

brought to enrich our maseums.
It nuist
title

be admitted

that, as

Though

to a pi'ominent place.

the Indian

a mineral country, India has not yet proved
in ancient times gold

was the oidy one of the Persian

that precious metal,
productive.

Its

it

has

now only a few

diamond mines

also,

satrapies

was

which paid

washings, wiiich are

its

tribute in

by no means

once so famous, have long been exhausted.

much economi-

value are copper, of which several mines are worked; iron, from which steel

of the finest quality
tant article of export

Of the
tropical,
it

^'"'erais.

so abundant, that

Besides the coal already mentioned, the only mineral products of
cal

its

is
;

manufactm-ed

and

\1\''

might be easy to give the theory of

how

case, as in

its

Taking

climate

many

;

intensely the sun during

its

but

it

its

would merely be

others, theory differs

from

climate

is

by which,

determined.

to

reality.

shows how long and

annual revolution will shine upon

gives no information as to the modifying causes

ciimate.

this fact only into view,

relatively to the equator, simply

than by degrees of latitude,

as to form an impur-

which India extends, 15^° are within the

within the tem])erate zone.

show how widely in this
The position of a country

abundant

said to exist in beds which are inexhaastible.

salt,

28° of north latitude over

and

nitre, so

;

it,

often far

but

more

In regard to India

J

HISTORY OF INDIA.

8
Mollifying

these causes are so numerous, and operate so differently in different

Ifxxilities,

ciiiiMes.

that

may Le

it

truly

.said

to

few degrees from the

tropic,

wanting; westwards,

it

have not one,

with the parclied

desei-t

of the African Sahara; eitstwards,

it

mean annual

Nortliwar<Ls a

climates.

j)lain«

has a deep alluvial

moisture; and southwards, while the isothermal
tity of

many

a region in which snow and ice are never

it h}j.s

has a

Ijiit

and

scfjrching heats

overcharged with

Ija-sin

indicating the greatest quan-

line,

heat on the surface of the globe, crosses

the Coromandel to the Malabar coast, the Neilgheiry

Hill.s,

it

obliquely from

situated nearly in

the same latitude, enjoy the climate of the finest part of the temperate zone.

Where

many

so

adequate description,
therefore the utmost

which, though

would obviously be impo.ssible t^> give an
without entering into numero as complicated details; and

anomalies

much

exist,

it

which can here be done
diversified

by

to point out a

is

circumstances,

may

few features

be considered charac-

teristic of the climate of India.
Heat

—

The most prominent of tliese features are heat and humidity heat produced
chiefly by the direct action of the sun's rays, but intensified in many districts by

alow
iiiunidity.

and sultry winds from other countries and
humidity, not derived, as in Europe, from moderate showers occurring more or
level,

a natm-ally arid

soil,

;

less at all seasons,

but the result of rains which occm* regularly at stated periods,

and are

and incessant as often to pour

than

so copious

falls

in

any part of England

4935°; in Calcutta

do%\Ti

more water in a month

In London, the mean annual tem

in a year.

-

79 37°; in Bombay, 819°; in Madras, Sii'.

perature

is

In order

to perceive the full effect of these differences, it is nece.ssar\'' to attend

it is

number

to the annual range of tempera|:,m-e, or the

greatest

mean heat and

the greatest

mean

cold.

of degi'ees

between the

In London, this range amounts

than 40 3° whereas in the above three cities it amounts respectively to
no more than to 11 -9° 10°, and 72° Inotlier words, heat is far more equally difto

no

less

fused in India than in our

which takes place in the

An

in the former.

The average annual
quantity has been

about 85 inches.

even

own

latter

e(T[ually
fall

island

fall is

and the complete cessation of vegetation

during the rigour of winter,

of rain in England

is

is

and the average has been estimated at 136
In Calcutta, the range of the

only a local extreme.

from 50 to 85 inches; and on the Coromandel

sn'eat

unknowTi

known to fall in twelve days, while the average of the year is
On the Malabar coast and many parts of the Western Ghauts,

This, however,

The

totally

In Bombay, as large a

32 inches.

hood of Madras, the annual average of England
Jlonsoons.

is

striking contrast appears in the degrees of himiidity.

this quantity is largely exceeded,

inches.

;

is

coast, in

the neighbom--

supposed not to be exceeded.

agents in reffulatino; the climate of India and fixing

are the periodical winds

its

known by the name of monsoons. With the

about a month, they divide the year between them

—

^the

character,

interval of

one blowing regularly

from the north-east from October to March, and the other from the south-west
from April to September. The noiih-east monsoon is, strictly speaking identical

INTRODUCTION.
with the north-east trade-wind, and would accordingly blow without inten-upmonsoons.

were

tion throughout the year,

This

counteracting cause.

is

not brought under the influence of a great

it

found on the central plains of Asia, which,

becoming immoderately heated while the sun

smTounding
it,

north of the equator, rarify the

is

and thereby disturb the atmospherical equilibrium.

air,

a current of colder air begins to rush in from the Indian Ocean.

struggle takes place

new

while the

tion,

—the north-east monsoon endeavouring
current endeavours to establish

monsoon

struggle, the north-east

is

its

To

A

restore

kind of

to maintain its direc-

In the

ascendency.

placed at great disadvantage, for at the very

when it is engaged with its opponent, part of its own forces are diverted,
and drawn off to the regions where the equilibrium has been disturbed. After
a month of warfare, in which all the elements seem to mingle, and thunderstorms and hurricanes rage with the greatest fury, the new cuiTent prevails,
time

and becomes established as the south-west monsoon.

new

half a year, a

state of the atmosphere

Asiatic plains are cooled

with

struggle,

its

down by

accompanying thunder and hurricanes,

effects of the

its

is

renewed, and in about

superiority, begins again to blow.^

monsoons in determining the climate of India are very

The south-west monsoon,

remarkable.

The overheated

the sun's departure for the south, the aerial

a month the north-east monsoon, recovering

The

After blowing for nearly

superinduced.

is

Their causes

Their

blowing over the Indian Ocean,

in

becomes surcharged with vapour, which, being suddenly condensed on the heights
of the Western Ghauts,
as fast as
at the

is

anives on the Malabar

it

Coromandel coast

Thus deprived of

discharged in torrents.

cis

contents

blows across the country, and arrives

coast, it

a dry wind.

its

This

cotist,

accordingly,

and the eastern

part of the Deccan, generally at this time receive no direct supplies of rain,

become in conse(|uence
impossible,

were

it

so parched, that the culture of the

filled to

overflowing,

and thus

})lains

means of carryWestern

limits of the

near the mouths of the Indus, and the sandy desert to

any moistm-e from the mon.soon, which

the east and north, are unable to attract

arrives well charged with water on the heights of the Himalaya.

here deflected,
])lains

it

of Bengal.

The south-west monsoon having
process,

fore unable to supply

it

I.

derived,

scale,

because the

of less extent, and there-

is

in India will

now

l)e

easily undei-stood.

other,

and the year performs

its

Maury, The Sia,

sec.

474 to

In the

summer,

round of grateful

In India an entirely different aiTangement takes place
'

Vol.

is

the north-ea.st

in the temperate zone generally, Avinter, spring,

and autumn succeed each
vicissitudes.

its course,

so copiously.

The course of the seasons
and

nm

though on a somewhat minoi-

of Bengal, from which the moisture

British Islands,

Beinf>-

descends into the basin of the Ganges, and floods the lower

monsoon repeats the

Bay

fui-nish the

Beyond the

ing on an extensive system of irrigation.

now

gromid would become

not that most of the rivers, having their sources in the West-

ern Gliauts, become

Ghauts, the low

and

;

and the

sec. 470.

2

seasons.

niSTORY OF INDIA.

10
Ijoations.

only seasons
hot.

can

wliicli

l)oiindaries

'J'h(;

rains, wiiicli

may

prf)perly recognized are the rainy, the cool,

l^e

between them are not very exactly

coast, for instance,

continent, at the

tiie

they are retarded
lea,st

As India

north

tin!

proceeding northwards, and liave copi-

in

of the efjuator, the

side

seasons should correspond nearly with our

out entering too nmcli into
districts, it is

would not

detail,

and

own

winter and

The

best

to select a particular locality,

fall

in others.

and the hot

co<;l

summer

;

btit witli-

.specifying the peculiarities of different

make any statement, in general
mode of illustrating the seasons will

almost impossible to

mislead.

Vjeji^in,

Mahibar

CJn the

period.

a month before they begin Uy

ously flooded some districts at

wholly on

same

tl)e

defined, becaiwe the

be considered as the commencement of the year, do not

even on the same side of

lies

and

and give a short description of

tenns, which
therefore be

Calcutta

its year.

being adopted for this purpose, the cycle wiU be as follows.

After nearly a

montli of storms, connected with the setting in of the monsoon, the rains com-

mence about the beginning of June, and continue,
vals, till

the middle of October.

November, the
first

air

the weather

is fair

and

pleasant,

and the sky, generally

free

till

the morning sun disperses
47''

them

to 78',

Both in
but the

winds from the north and west doubtless contribute to
the thermometer begins to

is

rise,

and generally before

this

is

month and

this result.

it closes

greatly relieved

by winds and storms

this disagreeable

month the season

till

In February,

the hot season has
increase,

May, when an oppressive

body and depressing the mind

closes,

and the annual

than

Cold but bracing

During the three following months the heat continues to

ness prevails, at once unnerving the

Vegetable

from clouds,

air feels colder

the lower of these numbers might be expected to indicate.

but

in

At

having previously cleared up, the cool season begins.

in January, the thermometer ranges from

commenced.

and then,

brief stormy period eiLSues,

In December, fogs become frequent towards evening, and con-

of a deep blue.

tinue unbroken

A

witli occasional short inter-

still-

With

cycle again begins.

In heat and humidity, India possesses the two main agents of luxuriant

products.

vegetation.

On

its

lower plains the most valuable plants of the tropics are indi-

genous or acclimatized, and on
several of

them

its loftier

heights forests of the noblest trees,

of a peculiar ty^Q, furnish inexhaastible supplies of the finest

timber, including the teak, which covei-s the rugged terraces of the Western

Ghauts.

which

Equally deserving of notice are the magnificent woody amphitheatres

rise successively

are approached.

while possessed

on the Himalaya,

the limits of the vegetable

till

Among the plants winch belong
in common ^\ith other countries, are

as to form a leading featm-e in its botany, are the

a grass, shoots up in one season to the height of 60
so consolidated in its textui-e as to supply

the ornamental purposes to which timber
variety, including the cocoa-nut ]ialm

—the

kingdom

exclusively to India,
so widely diffused over

bamboo, which, though
feet,

or,
it

tinily

and in another becomes

most of the ordinary, and some of

is

applied

;

palms in almost endless

most usefid of

its class

—the

sago.

1;

INTRODUCTION.
the areca, and

tlu;

great fan-palm

ordinary dimensions that a dozen

—a majestic
men

1

could take shelter under

one of the most beautiful and useful of acacias

tree,

with a leaf of such extra-

tree,

bearing plants and

among

trees,

including

among others

the babal

;

the sandal-wood tree, valued

;

East for the perfume, and in Europe for the dye which

in the

it

vegetaUou.

fields; spice-

it

the pepper- vine, which entwines

the cocoas and other palms of the Malabar coast, and forms a consider-

able article of export

the bread-fruit tree, the banana, and above

;

at once the finest

and the most widely

India can boast.

Among

diffused of all the fruit-trees of

which

the cultivated plants which are important as staple

wheat, millet, barley, varieties of pulse, yams,

articles of food, are rice, maize,

Among

sweet potatoes, &c.

the mango,

all

those most deserving of notice, from furnishing

raw materials of manufacture and export, are cotton, flax, hemp, indigo, and
various dyes cardamoms and other spices, sugar-cane, tobacco, and opium.
The zoology of India is no less rich and varied than its botany. Among
the

;

quadrupeds the

first

place

living wild in herds, has

(>mployed in

The

imquestionably due to the ele})hant, which, besides

from time immemorial been domesticated, and

numbers

employed to

also

been domesticated

in the west, particularly

traverse.

Among

and

;

for

usually

forms often humbling to

for swiftness, or

reared in

is

desert,

tiger,

human

size

and strength

is

the one-

leopard, panther, hyena,

lion,

pride,

some other property which

the argali, or wild sheep, the wild goat, the wild

numerous
singles

species of

them out

monkeys

for the chase,

stag,

nearly as

''arge

as a horse, the saumer, or black rusa of Bengal, the hog-deer, the

stag,

and many other

varieties of the cervine tribe.

and

and

the bear, the wild boar and

ass,

wild hog, the chickara, or four-horned antelope, the great rusa

species of the vidture

which

the animals which have not been subjected

horned rhinoceros; for ferocity, the
jackal

and the camel

;

on the borders of the

dominion of man, the most remarkable for

to the

is

labours in which strength and singular sagacity are required.

all

and yak have

buffalo

considerable
it is

is

The

eagle, wild peacocks, pheasants,

Nepal

birds include several

and in great profusion

and paroquets, of gorgeous plumage or singular articulating
powers.
Though not a permanent resident anywhere, the gigantic stork makes
its appearance in large flocks during the rains, and renders essential service by
cockatoos, parrots,

destroying snakes and other noxious reptiles, and
venger, for which nature evidently intended

of the animal kingdom, the transition

is

it.

by plying the trade

On

of sca-

passing to the lower orders

disagreeable, for

it

brings us to the

hideous alligators, abundant in most streams, and more especially in those of the

Indus and Ganges, and to large and venomous snakes which infest both the
land and the water, and are so numerous that forty-three varieties, including
the deadly cobra

Hastening

de

rapello,

have been described as of common occurrence.

li-om these to the fishes,

with numerous

varieties, often in

both the coasts and the rivers present us

unlimited abundance and excellent for food.

particularly distinguished in the latter respect,

it

As

may suffice to notice the leopard-

zuoiogy.

HISTORY OK INDIA.

12
inaitki'icl ;unl the,

4 feet in length.

iimn^o

fish,

Both frequently

of them

a place

on the

of Euroy)ean residentH.

tallies
;

mention that they consist mainly of two great

and Hindoos.

The

population, are far

otlier oc<:ii«ional)y

but a« a

be interwoven in the course of the work,

will necessarily

suffice to

finfl

fi;et, Jirid tlic

would next claim attention

Tlu! inhabitants of India

IiiliabitaiiU.

the one rnwusuring 3

former,

more

classes

full accrjunt
it

may

liere

— Mahometans

amounting only to about a tenth of the whole
than their numbers imply, because, having

influential

been the dominant race before European ascendency was established, they have
never entirely

most native

lost the

states are

wealth and power which this position gave them, and in

under the government of princes of their own

Hindoos, though classed under a
race,

but exhibit numerous

common name, by no meaas

varieties,

speaking the same language, have
the Sanscrit, which

is

even in physical form

dialects,

The

represent a single
and, instead of

founded indeed, for the most

part,

all

on

no longer spoken, but differing as much from each other

Europe which have the Latin

as those languages of

;

faith.

for their

common

basis.

In the preceding sketch, attention has been drawn only to the physical geo-

Political

geograpliy.

graphy of

upon

it,

India, or to the features

and the most remarkable

which

natiu-e herself has indeliVjly impressed

by

objects presented

its

mineral, vegetable,

and animal kingdoms. As yet nothing has been said of another department of
geography that which treats of the artificial divisions introduced for adminis-

—

These, though they

trative purposes, or in consequence of political changes.

necessarily partake of the instability

serve

many

important piu-poses, and, in

be used when particular

fact,

A

may

suffice,

arrangements,

furnish the vocabulary which mu.st

the events of which they

thorough knowledge of this vocabulary

only to be obtained by a diligent study of the

a more ciu^sory knowledge

human

to all

localities are referred to, or

have been the theatre are described.
is

which attaches

map but
;

for ordinary purposes

,

at least so far as to prevent the per-

by the frequent use of names of which no previous information had been given. With the \aew of fm-nishing such a knowledge,
and guarding against thLs perplexity, a summary of the political geography of
plexity which might be caused

India, in accordance with

actually subsisting arrangements,

within the narrowest possible compass,
Kuropean

At

present, not

much more than

rulei's in

India.

sion of Great Britain.
spots

Goa on

here subjoined.

the half of India

Two European

—the Portuguese at

is

and compressed

nations

still

is

in the undi^'ided posses-

linger at a

the west coast and at

few

insignificant

Diu on the north-west

between the Gulfs of Cutch and Cambay; and the French at Pondicherry and
Carricall, on the east coast, at Mahe, on the south-west coast, and at Chandernagore on the Hooghl3^ above Calcutta.

Two

Nepal, situated on the southern slopes of the Himalaya
pendent.

—Bhotan

native states

—are

M

and

nominally inde-

M

All the other native states are under a British protectorate oi greater

or less stringency.

Of

these states in the upper and inland portion of India,

the most extensive are Scindia's dominions, capital Gwalior, stretching fi'om the

J

i

INTRODUCTION.

1

Taptee north to the banks of the Chmnbul; Holkars dominions, capital Indore,

much

intersected

by those

bound them on the north

of Scindia, which

and

;

xative
**

"
''

Rajpootana, consisting of a great number of states, which, though individually
small,
to

have a large aggregate

area,

and reach from

In the south-west of

the frontiers of Scinde.

Scindia's dominions west
tlie

country, are the Guicowar's territories, capital Baroda,

tlie

most extensive native

Hyderabad, area 95,337

states are

by

scjuare miles,

single native chief, consisting of a

sular plateau,

— the

Nizam's dominions, capital

for the largest territory

imder any

compact and central portion of the penin-

bounded north by the Vindhya range, south by the Krishna, east

and north-east by the Godavery, and west by an
slopes of the

and the rajahship of

In the Deccan, or soutliern and maritime portion of

Cutch, capital Bhooj.
India,

same portion of the

indefinite line near the last

Western Ghauts; Mysore, the country of the famous Hyder Ali

and Tippoo Saib,

capital Seringa patam, area 30,886 square miles, consisting of

a lofty table-land within the angle which

Eastern and Western Ghauts

;

is

formed by the junction of the

and Travancore,

capital

Trivandrum, area 4722

square miles, forming the south-west portion of the extremity of the peninsula.

The whole of the native

states

and the Portuguese and French possessions

The

have an area of 631,470 square miles, and a population of 49,074,527.

whole of the remainder
British territory,
all

India,

and

is

—area 824,232 square

which has the seat of

comprehended

The presidency

its

miles, population 130,897,195

government at Calcutta, the

in the presidencies of Bengal, Madras,

of Bengal

— area

of the Burmese,
(^ast

It also includes

coast of the Deccan,

where

Circars, belonging to Maib'as.

it

them

is

Gantjes,

it

to the other.

i"^"^'^"^y-

territories

Ganjam, on the

far the largest

and most populous of

own

its

lieutenant-governor.

The

line

nearly in the direction of the meridian of 84°,

the whole of the presidency east of that line belonging to the one, and
of

Bengal

subdivided into Bengal proper and the

is

North-western Provinces, each having
of demarcation between

and

—

bounds with what are called the Northern

Being by

the three, the presidency of Bengal

to

is

and Bombay.

Assam and the annexed

and the province of Cuttack, extending south

^^^.^^

capital of

517,839 miles, population 38,883,337

includes all the British territories witiiin the basins of the Indus

with exception of Scinde.

—

j,,^^

i"-e«ideucies.

all

west

the North-western Provinces include

Strictly speaking,

only the six great divisions of Benares, Allahabad, Agra, Rohilcund, Meerut,

and

Delhi.

The Punjab and Oude are thus

left out, because,

though they are

doubtless destined to be formally incorporated with this subdivision, they are
still,

in

consequence of their recent acquisition, under a separate administration.

The presidency of Madras

—area 132,090 square miles, population 22,437,297

-^bounds with that of Bengal, near lai

and south-east coast of the peninsula

1

to

8^ and continues south, along the east

Cape Comorin, with no

interruption,

except from the interposed French districts of Pondicherry and Carricall.

Cape Comorin,

it

is

cut off from the sea

by

At

the interjected native states of

jia.inia
i"^"*''^«"'=y

HISTORY OF INDIA.

14

Travancore and Coohin; hut beyoMd

M;ulnui

tliern

it

becomes maritime, and

again

protiidency.

continues north along the coast of Malabar,

Bombay, near the
wiien

At

hemmed

Circars, it is so

in

first,

between

of Bengal and the east frontiers of the Nizam's dominions, that

narrow

consists only of a comparatively

west,

meets the presidency of

has a very irregular shape.

It

commences with the Northern

it

Bay

the

of Uoa.

di.strict

it

till

where

is

it

hemmed

similarly

belt.

The same thing happens

in Vjetween the

it

in the

Arabian Gulf and the west

Near the middle, between the mouths of the Krishna and
widens out and stretches so far west between these two native

frontiers of Mysore.

the Pennar,
states as to

it

approach the Western Ghauts.

Madi-as and Palk's Strait,

extends across the whole peninsula, from sea

—area 120,065 square

The presidency of Bombay

Bombay
prosidency.

it

Further south, between the city of

—

is,

sea.

population 14,109,067

from similar causes, as irregular in shape as the presidency of Ma/lras.

Beginning near Goa,
then widening
it

mile.s,

t^j

out,

continues northwards in a long and narrow

it

it,

Kurrachee,

is

its

and forms the three

by

and

becomes so intermingled with the native states as to make

almost impossible to define

added to

strip,

far its

The above sketch

boundaries.

Scinde,

which has recently been

collectorates of Sliikarpoor,

Hyderabad, and

most compact province.

of the physical and political geography of India seemed

necessary in order to furnish information which some might not possess, and

remove the

indistinct, if

in endeavouring to

and
is

not erroneous impressions which

it is difficult to

avoid,

form an acquaintance with a country so remote, so vast,

By

so extraordinary.

neither overpowered

exhibiting

by the

it

on a

scale so

reduced that the )nind

magnitiide, nor perplexed

singularity of its features, a kind of imity

is

given to

it,

by the

variety and

and

assumes the

it

appearance of a stage on which great actors are to appear, and wonderful

achievements are to be performed.
plicity

which

it

In this way, the history acquires a sim-

might not otherwise

possess,

a deeper interest

is

felt in

the

and the important lessons drawn from it become at once more
obvious, intelligible, and impressive.
an ancient, a
The History of India embraces tliree distinct periods

narrative,

Distinct

periods of

ludiau
tory.

his-

—

medieval, and a modern.

The ancient

period,

beginning with the earliest

authentic accounts, extends to the establishment of a ^Mahometan d\Tiasty.

The medieval period terminates with the doubling of the Cape of Good Hope,
and the consequent discovery of a continuovis oceanic route to the East. The
commencing with the great changes introduced by this discontinued down to the present time. The last of these periods,

modern

period,

covery,

is

forming the proper subject of the present history, will be treated with a
ness proportioned to
its

its

intrinsic importance,

and the

intimate connection with British history.

ful-

interest it derives from

The other two could not be

omitted without leaving the work incomplete, but being only subordinate, will
not occupy more than a few preliminary chapters.

I

—

BOOK

I.

FROM THE EARLIEST TIMES TO THE YEAR

1600,

WIIKN THE FIRST CROWN CHARTER INCORPORATING

AN EAST INDIA COMPANY WAS GRANTED.

CHAPTER
Ancient India

— Tiie

of

India

Invasion

Subsequent

pre-historic

by

period

Sesostris,

— Native

I.

sources

Darius

Serairamis,

intormation

oi

— Other

Hystaspes, Alexander

accounts

the

Great

statu of India.

)N tracing the early history of a country,

tlie

apply to the sources of information which
be able to furnish.

Long

In

this respect India

rich.

to

emerge from barbarism,

it

was in

remarkable for the completeness of

and

been written in

tlie

country

for the

it.

is

itself

to No

may

proper

toryofin-

might be presumed to

before the nations of Western Europe had

be

copiousness,

natural course

begun

possession of a language

its

number and variety

grammatical forms,
of the

fcjr

works which had

Several of these works were of a scientific and

metaphysical character, requiring talent of a higher order than would

have been neces.sary for

historical compilation

;

and

yet, strange to say,

while the more difficult intellectual effoit was successfully made, the less
difficult,

tive,

was

the more useful, and, as one would have imagined, the more attrac-

work on Cashmere

so entirely neglected, that with the exception of a

of no very ancient date, the literature of India has failed to furnish a single

production to which the

of history can in

any proper sense of the term

In dealing with the past, ages are heaped upon ages

be applied.

amount

name

to millions;

of the sun

human, and

and endless

details are given of

and moon, and creatures
bestial forms

—but

men

still

short, the

more monstrous, combining

as they really hved;

had been moulded into some

subser\nent to an extravagant

and in many respects

if

they were unfit

fantastic shape.

mHhology,

skilfully framed, to secure their

own

divine,

and the events pro-

Brahmins, the only depositories of learning, abusing their

made everything

the years

gods and demigods, children

duced by their agency are entirely overlot)ked, or treated as
to be recorded until they

till

trust,

In

have

obviou-sly designed,

aggrandizement.

In the absence of direct information from historical records in India,
proper before abandoning the search there as hopeless, to in<|uire whether

it

it is sources of

may

not be possible to discover other native som'ces from which some amount of

tion.

;

TTTSTORY OF TXDIA.

16
DC.

—

may

authentic information

and

he ohtaincd indirectly hy meariH

In ancient W(jrkH, not jjroperly

timate deduction.

[Book

con.se(|uent degree of civilization at the period

for that special purpose;

the state of wK'iety,

when they were

often exhihited, not lens accurately, and perhaps far

had been composed

cautioiw and legi-

ol"

hiHt^jrical,

more

vividly,

and hence, provided

be fixed with any degree of certainty, much informati<jn of an

may be easily and

safely extracted

and

of aucicnt liymus

prayers,

known by

commentary upon them contained

in

written, are

than

they

if

their date can

nature

hist^jriwil

Of the writings which thas tend

from them.

to elucidate the primitive history of India, the
The vudaa.

I.

the

most valuable are the wjllectioas

name

of Vedas,

and the kind of

a compilation, which the translation of

made familiar to English readers under the title of the
The Vedas, four in number, prove by diversities both of

Sir William Jones has

Institutes of
style

and

Menu.

contents, that they are the productions of different periods,

which a considerable interval mvLst have
are a

little

elapsed.

more than 3000 years older than our

compared with that which

According to the Hindoos, they
era,

was able

tlie

is

short

it is

doubtless an

by a very ingenious and convincing

process,' has

cut off sixteen centuries from the Hindoo date.

antique form by which

but though this age

figures generally in their chronology,

Mr. Colebrooke,

exaggeration.

between

Founding on a calendar of

Vedas regulate the times of devotional

service,

he

to ascertain the exact position of the solstitial points in accordance

with which the calendar was regtdated and assuming, as he well might, that
;

the position was not hypothetical, he had only to compare
at present,

and

calculate

how many

The annual

the difference.

with the position

years must have elapsed in order to produce

precession of the equinoxes

and by counting backwards and deducting
whole amount of difference

it

is

an invariable quantity;

this quantity successively

exhausted, the true date appears.

is

till

the

In this way the

completion of the Vedas has been fixed in the fifteenth centm-y before the Chrisinstitutes

of Menu.

The Institutes of Menu, referring to the Vedas as productions venerable even then for antiquity, must be much more recent.
How much, is the important question and unfortunately a question which does not admit of a very
tian era.

;

definite answer.

The Institutes themselves give no

dates,

and any conclusion

which can be founded on internal evidence is little better than conjecture.

Still,

however, though a large margin must be allowed' as a kind of debatable ground

on which the

sticklers for

warfare, there

is

an earlier and a

later period

may carry on

their

wordy

enough, both in the comparatively pure and primitive form of

the religion inculcated, in the sanction of usages which are

known

to

have

become obsolete some centuries before the Cluistian era, and in the omission of
religious sects and controversies which would certainly have been mentioned if
they had then been in existence, to support the conclusion that the Institutes of
Menu must have appeared not later than the fifth, and probably as early as the
ninth century

B.C.

Either period would carry us back to a remote antiquity
'

Asiatic Researches, vol.

viii.

Chap.

KOCK-CUT TEMPLES.

I.]

IT

for it is

always to be remembered, that the laws and manners which the work

details,

and the coiTesponding

when

exist at the time
ages.

Every page of the

it

state of society

was

wiitten, but

which

it

able evidence that about 3000 years ago India

it

by

must be held

to furnish indubit-

was nearly

as far advanced in

scattered over the country in rural villages, but collected into large

was

gi-eatly

These, under the government of rulers

merely

towns and

extensively engaged in manufactures and trade, and forming a

of independent states.

—

several

civilization as in the present day, containing a dense population, not

cities,

c.

implies, did not begin to

must have preceded

Institutes, therefore,

b

number

whose despotism

modified by customs and laws, raised large revenues by a compli-

cated system of taxation, brought into the field powerful armies, and executed

many stupendous and

magnificent works.

Among

works are the

these

tem])les nock
temples.

of Elephanta, Salsette, Adjunta,
as the rocks out of
far short of that

and EUora, whose testimony,

which they have been hewn,'

tells of

an

as imperishable

age, which,

though

which was at one time extravagantly assigned, must

still

in

the most ancient be not less than 2000 years.

...m

Another testimony to the antiquity of Indian
its

astronomy.

mi

This testnnony,

consequence

n

civilization has

been found in
p

-I

oi the perverse attem})ts of

philosophers of the French revolutionary school to confront

it

aatrouorav.

some

with the Sacred

LvTERioR OK THE Cave OF Elephanta.— Froiii Griiidlays Scenery of India.

Records, for the purpose of bringing

them

into discredit,

a very rigorous examination, and did not come out of
'

As

tlie

celebrated works mentioned in the text

as a collateral evidence of ancient civilization, will

afterwards be referred to, along with other works of
a similar nature, under the head of Indian architecture, it is sufficient to observe here that they belong
to two distinct classes, both hewn out of the solid
rock, but differin- essentially in this respect— that the

one dass consists of pillared and sculptured caverns,
of which only the entrance is visible externally; whi'e

Vol.

I.

it

was justly subjected
unscathed.

The

to

astro-

the other consists of rock temples, properly so called,
because standing visible in the open air, and composed of masses of solid rock, which, fixed ininioveably in their original site, have been hewn down into
the form of temples (see view of the Kylas Tenijile
at EUora, on engraved title of vol.

i.), covered over
with sculptures and inscriptions, and accompanied

w itli numerous

statues, often of fantastic shapes

colossal dimensions.

8

niiuioo

and

:

18
B.C.

—

ov ixdfa.

insToj'.y

nomical

ward

tahles,

to a

[Boc

because fouiidcil on calcidationH wliich haxl been airried

very remote period, were erroneously atwumed to

Exterior of Great Chaitya Cave, Salsette.

and

bi

exliibit the rt

— From Ferguseon's Rock-cut Temples of Indin.

was gravely maintained that the Hindoo

Hindoo

of actual observations,

astronomy

nomer must have been sittmg m his observator\', surrounded by his instrum
and patiently committing the results of his obsei'vations to writing, nearly 1
.

.

it
.

,

Exterior of the Chaitya Cave, Abjtjkta.

years before

Noah

a.«

.

entered the ark.

—From Fergusson's Rock-cut Temples of ludia.

As usual

in cases of similar extravaga

a reactionary feeling was produced, and many, running to the opposite extre
Siiidtobe

ijxsisted

that Indian astronomy had no independent existence, and

was

at be

borroweil.

rude plagiarism from the Chaldeans and the Greeks.

now

More moderate views

entertained on both sides- and those best quahfied to judge, agree in hole

I

Uhap.

that,

INDIAN ASTRONOMY.

I.]

19

while recorded actual observations by the astronomers of India cannot be

carried farther

back than the sixth century

A.D., their science

bc.

had prol)ably made

some progress 200 years before there was any mention of astronomy in Greece.

Interior of the Bisma Kurm, Elloua.— From

One of the most pregnant

facts

Elliott's

Views in

In<lia

on which this conclusion

is

founded,

is

the

remarkable coincidence between the signs of the zodiac in the Indian and Ai-ab
systems

Indian
^<>^^-

—a coincidence which, while

it

proves that they must have had

ii

common

cannot be ex-

origin,

plained without admitting that the

system has the better

Intlian
to

be regarded as the original.

While there

thus abundant

is

show that India must

evidence to

have received
at

title

its first

inhabitants

no distant period after the

I)ersion of

the

human

come one of the
civilization,

tained;
of the

no

race,

first

dis-

and be-

cradles

^

of

distinct dates are ob-

and consequently the history

country cannot be said to be-

gin tiU

we

qiut

its

own

soil,

and

apply for information to the WTiters
of the West,

_eyen

who

when they

for the

6

^^i^:^

Oriental Zodiac.

K,^?-*^^ ^

—Maurice's Historvof Hindostan.'

most pait follow some sort of chronological

indulge in fable, have generally some foundation in

order,

and

fact.

The

Foreign

information.

^ Figa. 1-12 are the signs of the Zodiac, a, The
6, The Moon, r, Mars. (/.Mercury, e, Jupiter.
/.Venus. £/, Saturn. A, Dragon's Head, or ascending
Sun.

node.
is

?',

Dragon's Tail, or descending node. Thecentre
marked with the

the earth, surrounded by the sea,

four carilinal i>oints, E. (w),

W.

(x).

N.

(y), S. (z).

20
n.c. 1500?

HISTORY OF INDIA.

first

Greek writers who throw

the father of
firook

exists;

and

liistory,

,'iiiy

[BrjoK

li^ht on tlio history of India are Herodotiw,

wliose immortal work, written in the fifth century

Ctesias, wlio,

though

lie

may have

been

for

B.c,, still

a short time c^^ntemfK^rary

writers.

Among

with Herodotus, properly belongs to the immefliately succeeding century.

His

other historical work.s, he wrote one expressly on India.

Having been taken

obtaining materials were considerable.

some other way carried
xerxes by his

years preceding

many

but

B.C.

398.

fragments

of

it,

script,

because

the

which,

it

is

court during the seventeen

have been preserved, paiticularly by Diodorus

it

was written

a compilation, and in

more ancient

of

of India,

by

liLs

in the first years of the Christian

but possesses far more value as an autliority than

give

writers,

many

whose -works are

The

lost.

the nature of the

details

earliest accounts

—a gravity, however,
occasionally becomes

considered,

is

an exact tran-

these writers, and especially

are presented with aU the gravity of history

when

date might seem to

its

cases apparently

drawn from the materials furnished by

last,

prisoner, or been in

Unfortunately, his work as a whole has perished,

Siculus in his Bihliotheca, which
era,

opfioitunities for

to the Persian capital, he gained the favour of Artar

a phy.sician, and Uved at

skill as

I.

ludicrous.

An

Expedition

Egjq^tian king,

of Sesostris.

Sesostris,

and who

is

whom

now

Diodorus

calls Sesoosis

and most other writers

belonged to the nineteenth djTiasty, came into the world about 1500

happy omens which

who

generally believed to be identical with Rameses,

To prepare him

foretold his future greatness.

father caused all the male children

bom

B.C.,

for

after

his

it,

in Egj-pt on the same day to be

As they grew up they were
and formed a chosen band, bound to their j'oung

brought to court and educated along with him.
trained in
prince

all

by the

manly

exercises,

and prepared

strongest ties of affection,

com-age and fidelity wherever he might lead.

to follow with unflinching

During

his father's lifetime

he

began his military campaigns, and proceeding first into Arabia and then westward into Libya, subdued both. His ambition having been thus inflamed, he

had no sooner succeeded to the throne than he resolved on the subjugation of the
His first step was to conciliate the affections of his subjects his next to
world.

—

collect

an army adequate to the contemplated

infantry, 24,000 cavalry,

enterprise.

and 27,000 war-chariots.

It consisted of 600,000

The

commands were

chief

who had been brought up with him. The Ethiopians were
who were made to feel his power. Their country was adjacent to

given to the youths
the

first

Egypt, and could be reached by a land
necessity of a fleet

became apparent.

to maritime enterprise,

built the first ships of

400

sail.

He

but on turning to the east the

force,

Hitherto the Egj^^tians had been averse

but everji^hing pelded to the energy of

war which Egj^t

did not allow

it

to

remain

possessed,
idle

;

and

ere long

but setting

out,

the Ai'abian Gulf into the main ocean, which then bore the
raean Sea,

and then coasting along the shores continued

had a

who

fleet of

proceeded down

name

his

Sesostris,

of the Eryth-

voyage as

far as

Chap.

EXPEDITION OF SESOSTRIS.

I.]

India.

lead a

He

returned, but

was only

still

on

to the frontiers of India,

be erected in various

pillars to

and

his victorious career,

with

places,

new

inscri})tion3

and at the same time

lauthncj the courajje or stiifmatizinof

the cowardice of those

who had encountered

him.

narrative,

which Diodorus admits to be only the most probable

of several contradictory accounts circulated in Egypt, can'ies

on the face of

youths
tiiat

who

it.

One

of the most palatable of these

are said to have been born on the

monarch

more than a third of what
children born in Egy])t
and, consequently,

it

was

number
at

of the

When

Sesostris.

the

to

at forty years of age could not be

In other words, the number of male

fii'st.

on the same day with Sesostris must have been 5000,

At the

Founding on

which, besides being

would give Egypt a
a population so enormous as to be

usual rate of increase, this

bordering upon 40,000,000

utterly incredible.

somewhat

—

this discrepancy,

and some other

hypercritical, are stated

objections,

more strongly than

to justify, Dr. Robertson, in the first note to his Historical Disquisi-

tion concerning

Ancient India, labours

expedition of Sesostris to India
that,

same day with

number

adding female children, the whole number of births must

have been 10,000.

seem

the

Assuming that they were subject

sm*viving.

still

ordinary law of mortality, their

facts

some extravagances

and yet even then more than 1700 persons born on the

borders of forty,

population

Narrative of

on his Eastern expedition, he must have been on the

set out

same day were

is

imo?

ocean.

attestinij his victories,

The above

b.c.

but beyond the

he traversed the whole country and reached a

till

he caused

his return,

recommence

to

mighty army eastward, not only

Ganges, and

On

it

21

is

to prove that the

fabulous.

It

whole account of the

ought to be observed, however,

in this instance, Diodorus does not stand alone.

Herodotas,

whom

Dr.

Testimony of

Robertson not very fairly quotes against him, bears strong testimony in his
favour,

and

in fact confirms his statement in all that is essential to

distinctly refers

both to the maritime and the land expeditions of

He

it.

Se.sostris,

and

though he does not expressly use the word India, he says that in the one
Sesostris continued sailing

eastward

till

he came to a sea so shallow

a.s

to

be

no longer navigable, and that in the other he subdued every nation that came
in

his

way, and built

pillars

mentioned by Diodorus.

Haws

may

To

of the very kind and for the very piu'pose

reject a statement thus supported, because

be picked in particular parts of

it, is

some

to strike at the foundation of

luunan testimony, and countenance the captious quibbling process under which
all

ancient history, sacred as well as profane, runs some risk of being converted

into a mji,h.

The

fair conclusion

concerning the Indian expeditions of Sesostris

seems to be that they really took place, but that in the accounts given of them,
both the means which he emj^loyed and the extent of country which he

subdued or traversed are exasrcerated.

Of another Indian

expedition, also mentioned

authority of Ctesias, gi-eater doubt

may

by Diodorus Siculus on the

reasonably be entertained, notwith-

Expedition
amis.

IIISTOKV OV INDIA.

22
B.C. 1300?

[HfiOK

staiuling the minuteness witli vvhicli the 'letails are given.

India was the greatest and

country in the world, and wa.s ruled

riche.st

Kxpoilitinii

of

Suiiiir-

])owerful

iiiMiiJnch

(railed

Stauroljates,

who

and a great number of elephants trained
terror, slie

innumerable hosts of

re.st

till

m equipped as

and

}>y

a

wjldiers,

tfj

made proof

she had

that

insjtire

of her

She accordingly commenced preparations, and canied them

on uj)on so immense a

scale,

that tliough myriads of artificers were employefl,

three years were spent in completing them.
jire-

liad

to war,

determined to give herself no

j)roweas against him.

Great

Tl»e leafier of this

Having learned

expedition wivs the famoas Assyrian queen Seniirarnls

I.

All the country west of the Indus

but in order to cross that mighty

Avas already subject to her power,

river,

an

paratious.

immense number of ships was
sliip -builders

In order to provide them, she Ijrought

necessaiy.

no timber, she was obliged to procure

fiu-nislied

modem

Bactria, the

As

from Phoenicia, Syiia, and Cypms.

Here she

Bokhara.

it

the banks of the ln<las

in the adjacent territory of

and

establislied her building yards,

her ships in such a manner that she could afterwards transport them

fitted out

piece-meal on the backs of camels, and launch

them when they were

required.

In the number of her troops, which Diodorus, quoting Ctesias as his authority,
the fabulous

states at

number

of 3,000,000

500,000 cavalry, and

infantry,

100,000 war-chariots, each provided with a charioteer and carrpng a soldier

armed with a sword 6

more than a match

feet long, she considered herself

Staiu'obates; but she feared his elephants,

and

was a kind of

as this

which she had no means of coping with him, she had
HaAdnof collected 300,000 black

stratao;eni.

feed the countless

workmen employed

as to be readily

man

to guide

mistaken for

it.

it,

By

manner that

had not been

idle.

slaufjhtered

them

to

when a camel was

each,

bore such a resemblance to an elephant
this deAnce she

which they had imagined to be exclusively their own.
part,

recoiu-se to a singular

and

hoped that the Indians

would be ten'or-struck on seeing themselves opposed
on his

force in

in her vast arsenal in Bactria, she caused

skins to be sewe<:l together in such a

placed inside with a

cattle,

for

.to

a species of force

Meanwhile Stanrobates,

Besides a land force scarcely less nmnerous

than that of Semiramis, and headed by a formidable array of elephants, his
fleet,

composed of 4000 vessels constructed out of reeds or bamboos, covered

the river.
fought.

Here the

fii'st

encoimter took place, and a great naval battle was

Victory was long undecided, but at length,

superior naval skill of the Phoenician

the warlike queen.
EiicOTinter

with Staurobates.

and an immense

and

o\\'ing

mainly to the

C\'priot sailors, declared in favour of

Staurobates, with the loss of a large portion of his

carnasfe of his soldiers,

the passage of the river

free.

was obliged

to

fleet,

withdraw and leave

The queen immediately caused a bridge of

boats to be constructed, and crossing with her whole army, hastened fonvard,

with the hope of soon completing the conquest which she had so successfully
begun.

Staurobates, however,

for her approach.

At

first,

had no idea of submission, and stood prepared

in the general

engagement which ensued, the Indians

Chap.

EXPEDITION OF SEMIKAMIS.

I.]

were greatly disconcerted at the appearance of the
kind of panic took place

23

and a

fictitious elephants,

b.c. 520?

but the trick which had imposed upon them was

;

soon discovered, and the real elephants advancing to the charge, carried everything before them.

It

was now the tm-n of Semiramis

to

Most of her

flee.

army perished in the field, or in attempting to regain the right bank of the
She herself, severely wounded durinnj a personal encoimttr with Stauroriver.
bates, made her escape with difiiculty with a mere handful of troops, and retiring

01

''

^

into the interior

with humbled

by the conquest of

pride,

^

dreamed no more of crowning her fame

India.

Notwithstanding the circumstantiality with which the Indian expedition of

Semiramis

detailed, it is impossible to

is

and

colom'ed,

many

in

Semiramis
wounded.

doubt that the whole account

enormous army which she

is

have

said to

collected. Sir

highly

is

parts not less fictitious than her elephants.

xumiur

of

fabulous.

Of the

Walter Raleigh quaintly

and sln-ewdly observes, that no one place on the earth could have nourished so

"had every man and beast but fed on

vast a concourse of living creatm-es,
grass."

Similar exaggeration

'

apparent in other parts of the narrative

is

and

;

grave doubts have even been raised as to the individual existence of Semiramis,

whom some
others to

whom

maintain to have been a creation of Assyrian mythology, and

have been the common name of an Assyrian dynasty.

Diodorus borrowed the account,

records, it is

not improbable that

is

said to have extracted

its ba.sis

India

or west

right

is

Persian empire.

This position

it

figiu-es

of the

as a

when

Thus incorporated,

them

In

all.

it

than that which

is

by

assigned

felt in

satrapies,

and must,

more

if

not

rational

According to him, the Persian

Herodotus.-'

fitted out,

ivrsian
®"'^"^®-

regard to the Indus,

monarch was merely desirous to know where the river had
view caused some ships to be

'"'li'i"

paid nearly a third

this foct it is easy to find a

account of the curiosity which Darius Hystaspes

vScylax,

lying along the

be presumed to have been the wealthiest and most populous,

the most extensive of

tliis

it

the Ass}Tian empire

whole tribute which Darius levied from his twenty

therefore,

from Persian

satrapy or province of the

natm-ally assumed

was overthrown by Cyrus the Great.

from

tale.

next brought under notice, the portion of

bank of the Indus

it

Ctesias,

of fact has been overlaid with the

embellishments which usually adorn a Persian

When

As

its

mouth, and with

and gave the command of

a Greek of Caryanda, who, after sailing

down

tlieni to

the stream to the ocean,

turned west, and spent two years and a half in a tedious voyage along the

That Darius, when he

coast.

of enlarging his dominions
wl:
hich

I

fitted

out the expedition, entertained the thought

by new

conquests,

is

confirmed by the statement

Herodotus adds, that immediately after the voyage was comj)leted, he

maade himself master of the
ever, are so general, that

no

sea

and subdued the Indians.

definite limits can

These terms, how-

be assigned to the new territory

thus subjected to Persian nile.
'

Raleiiih's History of the

World,

p. 125.

=

Herodotus, b. iv.

c.

44.

•

xi>e<iition

24

OF INDIA.

llLSTOIiV

[li^XJK

Hitherto only a succession of ambitioas inonarchs has appeared on the scene,

B.C. 332.

and India has become the prey successively of devastating annies from
Assyria,

was

Plinmiiciaus.

i%

and

in the

been
The

I.

Persia.

An

intercourse of a

meantime carried on hoth

estaljlished,

more peaceful and pleasing

)>y luiid

by which the East and

VN'est

and

sea,

K<ry])i,

descrijjtion

and an active trade

hiul

exchanged their peculiar products

against each other, to the great advantage of both.

Tim

trade

was

chiefly in

the hands of the Phoenicians, who.se cajntal, T^tc, situated on the shores of the

Levant, had in consequence risen to be one of the richest, mightiest, and most

RiiNS OF Tyre.

splendid cities in the world. ^
Tyre.

vices,

and the day of

— From Cassas, Voyage Pittoresque de la Syrie,

This unexampled prcsperity had engendered

retribution,

wliicli

Tyre had

its

original site

on the mainland, and

stretched along the Syrian coast, from the

mouth

of

the Leontes to the headland of Eas-el-Ain, a distance

from north tosouth of about seven miles. Immediately
opposite to the centre of the town, and separated from
it by a strait about 1200 yards or two-thirds of a mile
wide, was an island nearly three miles in circuit. It
is more than probable, that while the city on the
mainland was standing, the island also was partly
built upon; but it never became the proper site of
the city, which, in contradistinction to Old, was
called

New

Tyre,

till

the inhabitants, obliged to

flee

before the countless hosts of Assyrian conquerors,

found the necessity of placing the sea between them
and their enemies. They accordingly abandoned
the mainland and took up their abode on the island,
which, under the fostering influence of commerce,
soon rose to be one of the finest and wealthiest cities
Such was the Tyre to which Alexanin the world.
Nearly in the direction of a line
der laid siege.

drawn due north through the
already mentioned.
of the island, are

On

letter E,

was the

strait

the north and south sides

two curves which formed

liar-

many

prophets had been Divinel}' com-

missioned to denounce, was fast approaching.
1

ic.

"\Miile

Alexander the Great was

by a chain of rocky islets and seawalls or breakwaters from the surges of the Medibours, protected

terranean and the various prevailing winds.
The
north harbour, marked A, was the better and more
frequented of the two; but the commerce of Tyre

must have required the use of both, and additional
facilities were given by a canal a a, which established
a navigable communication between them.
Alexander having no ships, must have seen at once that there
was no possible way of taking a city thus situated, except by making a pathway across the strait. On both
shores the water was shallow; and near the centre,
where it was deepest, it did not exceed 6 fathoms.
With the immense force at his command, there could
be no want of labourers, while the materials necessary were within easy reach. The most formidable
obstacle to success was in the means of resistance
which the inhabitants possessed; and had Tyre been
having an Archimedes,
The mound of Alexander, once completed, formed a nucleus to which the
waves of the sea and the winds of the desert made
constant accretions, and hence, in coarse of time, the
as fortunate as Syracuse, in

Alexander must have

failed.

Cfi.vr.

THE SIEGE OF

I.]

making

his first

TYP.E.

'Zo

campaigns against the Persians, the inhabitants of Tyre had

taken part with the

and by

hitter,

B.C. 332.

their maritime superiority, kept the coast of

Macedonia and Greece in pei'petual ahirm.

Alexander, incensed, tm'ned back

from his Persian conquests, and after subduing several of the adjoining

The
riiu.iiic:iiri

cities,

To a mind capable of being repelled by ordinary obstacles,
the task would have been a sufficient dissuasive from attempt-

laid siege to Tyi'e.

difficulty of

tlie

To him it was only an additional incentive, because, if he succeeded,
It also appears from a speech which Arrian
liis fame would be the greater.
puts into his mouth,' that he was actuated as much by policy as by revenge.
ing

it.

While the Tyrians remained independent and maintained a hostile

he

attitude,

ventm-e

not

could

with safety to prosecute the am-

which

schemes

bitious

had

he

begun in the East, and was also

Hope-

contemplating in Egypt.
less,

as

therefore,

seemed for a

it

land

might have

army

to at-

tempt the captiu-e of a great mari-

by art,
stronger by its

time city strongly fortified

and rendered

still

natural position

on an

island,

and

the possession of a powerful fleet

commanding
it,

all

the approaches to

he at once commenced opera-

by constructing a mound,

tions

which, after the greatest difficulties

had been surmounted, connected
the island with the mainland,

B. Southern Harbour.
A. Northern Harbour.
C. Northern (or Sidonian) Roadstead.

and

D. Southern (or Eg.viitian) Roadstead.
E. Isthmus formed by Alexander the Great.
a a. Line of Ancient Canal, connecting the Northern and
Southern Harbours.

formed a highway for the passage
of his troops.
in

The

result

was

that,

about seven months. Tyre lay in

ruins

It

might have risen from them

acrain, for

the lucrative trade which

monopolized would soon have made wealth to flow in upon

means of repairing

I* was

not struck

till

its disaster.

fatal

blow which extinguished

its

greatness

The

site

was

so happily chosen that the

new city soon

features of the locality have undergone a re-

siderable depth of water, but are supposed to have

now

been originally built on the western shore.
Of the present condition of Tyre it is unnecessary

markable change.

What was

once an island

is

Other chan^'es have taken place; and
there is reason to believe that the island had at one
time a larger extent than now appears. In fact, the
encroachment of the sea is established by the appearance of walls, which are now coverea by a con-

a peninsula.

VoL.

and furnished the

Alexander, after a successful campaign in Egypt, laid the

foundation of Alexandi'ia.
pliy.-,ical

The

it,

it Fail of Tyre,

T.

to say

more than that it is little better than a fishing
composed of wretched hovels huddled together

village,

in narrow, crooked,
'

and

filthy streets.

Arrian's Anabasis Alcxandri, b.

ii. c.

17.

-<>

B.C.

s.'ii

JIISTOJtY

became the

central

was thus diverted
not be revived.

was

indirectly

because to

now

it

emporium

into a

of

OF INDIA,

tlie Eixnt

new channel, and

and

tlie

[liwK
tra/le

of the world

Plujenician i^rosjierity, once fallen,

amid

The downfall of Tyre has been dwelt upon here, both because it
the means of greatly extending the intercourse with India, and

proljaldy

be ascribed the determination which Alexander

to

is

While he was engaged

expressed to persevere in his E<istem conquests.

the siege of Tyre, Darius, humbled

by

told

him that

a decision by the sword.

spumed

his only alternative

is

all

in

the offer

ideas of compromi.se,

was imqualified submission, or

The war thus resumed,

within the limits of Persia,

made him

his previous defeats,

of a most advantageous peace, but he haughtily

and plainly

The

West.

I.

so long as

it

was

c<^>nfined

foreign to our subject, but the course which

subsequently took brings us at once to the most interesting period

it

in tlie

history of ancient India.
Flight of

After the battle of Arbela, which was fought

Darius.

.

.

.

.

.

B.C.

331,

.

and decided the

fate

.

of the Persian empire, Darias continued his flight eastwards into Bactria, through

by the name

a pass in the Elbm-z Mountains, kno^vn to the Greeks

Alexander, following in pursuit, was informed that Bessas, the

pian Gates.

satrap of Bactria, had not only thro\vn off

all

allegiance to the Persian monarch,

With mingled

but had made him his prisoner.

feelings of compassion for the

monarch, and indignation at the conduct of the satrap, he quickened hLs

fallen

and was

pace,

of the Cas-

flattering himself

with the hope of a speedy capture, when he

learned that Bessus, to increase his speed, and, at the same time, remove a great
obstacle to his ambition,

him on the

road,

L^m

°

spot,

Darius was breathing his

Determined to punish the
pm-sviit of

his royal ma.ster,

dying of woimds which he had treacherously

Alexander reached the
A]exander's

had disencumbered himself of

atrocity,

Alexander

A thorough

the perpetrator.

lost

his steps.

his escape,

no time in continuing the

him and

when Alexander was

Dm-ing the winter of

B.C.

AMien

inflicted.

knowledge of the coimtry gave

devastating, so as to interpose a desert between

left

last.

great advantages, and these he improved to the utmost,

seemed to favour

and

obliged,

by burning and

his piu^uer.

by a

Be-ssus

Fortime

revolt, to retrace

330, Bessus was, in consequence, left in

King of Persia. In the folloA\dng
spring, however, the pvirsuit was resumed, and the criminal having been
delivered up by his own associates, paid the forfeit of his crimes by a barbarous
imdistiirbed possession of the usurped title of

mutilation and an excruciating death.

In
seen a

aveno-ino- the

death of Darius, Alexander had advanced far to the

new world open

before him.

east,

and

For a time, however, sensuality seemed

to

have gained the mastery over him, and many months were wasted in Bactria in
Ambition did not re-assume its ascendency
ch-unken and licentious reveUings.

when he reached the banks of
with an army consistmg of 1 20,000 foot and
till B.C.

were

327,

Asiatics.

The point

at

which he

first

the Indus, and prepared to cross

it

About 70,000 of these
reached the Indus has been made a

15,000 horse.

Chap.

EXPEDITION OF ALEXANDER.

I.J

question

but

;

it is

admitted on

all hanels

now

Punjab, where the towTi of Attock

that he crossed
stands.

army

west monsoon had set

and the

in,

the passage been opposed,

whose

chief

^

territories lay

and

mission,

Uke

itself,

it

river

was

an enemy, proved a valuable

Ijetween the Indus and

hospitality, Taxiles received

its

Alexander

rains.

city,

crosses the

ludus.

Had

but Taxiles, the

;

in his sub-

In Taxila,

auxiliary.

unequalled by any situated,

nearest tributary, the Hydaspes or Jailum,

In return for this

an arbitrary grant of as much adjoining territory

he chose to ask.
If

Alexander expected that

moiis as Taxiles, he

bounded

tones

demand for
army on the

all

the Indian princes would prove as pusillani-

was soon undeceived.

those

of

Porus, a native

with

tribute

defiance,

bank of

left

it

he

materials,

Indus

the

to

be

more serious obstacle

taken

still

Hv.hili)es.

met a
his

On reaching

an undisputed
gi-eat

number

of

not furnishing the necessary
Alrxanuer the Great.'

the

caused

even

without a

The neighbom'hood

terri-

Passage

running broad, deep, and

that

passage could not be effected
boats.

whose

and lay with

the Hydaspes.

and inmiediately saw

rapid,

rulei',

Taxiles on the east,

_^_

the river, Alexander found

on

by the

could scarcely have been forced

Alexander and his army were hospitably entertained.

as

sent forward with

Alexander arrived, the south-

gi-eatly swollen

a populous and wealthy

3i

Here a bridge of boats had

on the eastern bank, had hastened to give

thus, instead of

his capital, described as

When

for that purpose.

^c

in the north of the

it

who had been

been constructed by Hephsestion and Perdiccas,
a division of the

27

to

and

pieces,

remained.

boats which he had used

transported

Porus kept

strict

overland.

The

watch on the bank.

His army appears to have been greatly outnumbered by that of Alexander,
for the

main body

consisted of only 30,000 infantry, with an inconsiderable

body of cavalry, 200 elephants, and 300 chariots; but placed as he was,
numl)ers counted as nothing against him, since he could easily, with a mere

handful of troops, overmatch any numl)er,
passage were

made

openly.

ceive this at a single glance,
to trust less to

open

force

provided the attempt to force a

Alexander was too

skilful

a tactician not to per-

and had, accordingly, from the very fii-st, determined

By

than to stratagem.

a series of movements and

comiter-movements, he distracted the attention of the enemy, and kept him in a
state of uncertainty as to the point

be made.
false

where the attempt at crossing was

likely to

Next, by selecting a number of stations along the bank, and making

alarms during the night, he obliged the troops of Porus to be always in

motion,

till

natm-e

itself

was completely exhausted by want of repose.

ordering provisions to be brought in from

all

that he

had abandoned the idea of crossing

sided.

Under

Silver tetradrachma of Lysimacbus.

by

quarters, he encouraged the belief

until the swollen waters

this impression, the vigilance of
'

Lastly,

Porus relaxed.

— From Briti.sh Museum.

had sub-

Meanwhile,

in

Aiex.uuier-s

IILSTOKY OF INDIA.

28
B.C. 327.

the course of reconnoitring, Alexander luul di.scovered a

was greatly contracted by an
Alexander's

[Book

the stream, and, to

nj>

nonc of his troops were allowed to be seen near

lull suspicion,

stationed considerably below, with the main

ing that there
der, selecting

where the cliannel

Hj)ot

was a good way

It

island.

tlie

greatest danger lay,

Craterus was

it

body of the army; and

was encamped

I.

oj»i)Osite

Poru.s,

think-

Alexan-

to him.

a body of chosen troops, amounting U) about 6000 men, quitted the

banks of the river and marched back into the

away by some sudden emergency.

When

interior, as if

he ha/1 been called

out of sight he bent gradually round,

and in the course of the night arrived on the bank opposite the island. The
boats of the Indus were hastily launched, and he was steering his way among
the foremost to tlie opposite bank, when the enemy's sentinels discovered him
and gave the alarm.

Porus

first

sent forward one of his sons with a small body,

but these being speedily routed, he himself, leaving only a few troops to watch
the motions of Craterus, hastened to the encounter.

was too

Alexan-

late.

der,

with a large portion of his detachment, had effected a landing, and stood on

the

bank among marshes,

into which the elephants, to

He

trusted, could not venture.

therefore

field in

which the

soldiers of

As

all its

q^q]^ q^

and

is

the

first battle-

arrangements, and will justify a fuller

than might have been necessary under different circumstances.

Porus stationed his elephants in

Battle of the

this

solid

Europe were arrayed against those of India, a

deep interest naturally attaches to
detail

which Porus mainly

withdrew to the nearest spot of

ground, and calmly waited Alexander's approach.

Hydaspes.

It

them.

in such a

cavalry,

The infantry were placed

way

and of the

as to

fill

with an interval of 100

front,

up the

feet

between

in a second line behind the elephants,

intervals.

The two

"wings consisted of

beyond them.

chariots ranged on either side

Alexander

commenced the battle by attacking the enemy's left wing with his cavalry and
mounted archers.
He had anticipated that this attack would compel the
enemy's right wing to move forward in support of its left, and had ordered that,
in that case, a detachment of his cavalry under Ccenus should move round to the
rear, and thus place the enemy's cavalry, as it were, between two fir&s.
The
result was as he had foreseen and the enemy's cavalry was obliged, in order to
meet the double attack, to face about and form two fi-onts. Taking advantage
of the partial confusion thus produced, Alexander brought up his phalanx to the
charge, and the enemy's wing.s, totally imable to sustain it, sought .shelter by
;

rushing into the intervals between the elephants.

By

these powerful animals

the fortune of the day seemed for a short time to be retrieved, as they pressed

forward and trampled

down everything

was only momentary.
their ranks,

The advantage, however,

The Macedonians, imder thorough

and then, as the elephants

down

that opposed.

passed, attacked

discipline,

opened

them on flank and

rear,

wounds which, without being mortal,
so galled them that they became utterly unmanageable.
Thus hunied back
among the Indian ranks, they produced irremediable confusion. At this critical

shooting

their guides,

and

inflicting

Chap.

I

EXPEDITION OF ALEXANDEE.

I.]

moment

who had

Crateras,

made
exhausted by

succeeded in crossing the river,

His troops were perfectly fresh, while the Indians,

and thinned

in spirit,

29

had

in numbers,

slaughter ensued, and Porus

saw

power of

lost all

his troops falling

by

his appearance,
fatigue,

A

resistance.

He

thousands.

b.c.

.!27.

broken

ch'eadful

still,

how-

roms
defeated.

kept the

ever,

During the whole day he

field.

mingled in the thickest of

hatl

the fight, and performed prodigies of valour.

His

which was almost

stature,

and the elephant on which he was mounted, made him a

gigantic,

object for the

Macedonian archers

and he must have

;

worn a coat of mail which no arrow coidd
only part exposed, and in

spot, for

he was

and 9000 taken

right shoulder

was the

His determination

About 12,000 of

fuo^itives.

The Macedonian

prisoners.

had he not

almost alone before his atten-

left

dants could induce him to minfjle with the
troops were slain,

The

pierce.

he was severely wounded.

it

seemed to be to perish on the

fallen early

consi)icuous

loss

was

his

trifling,

amoimting, at the utmost, according to Diodorus, to 700 infantry and 230 cavalry.

According to AiTian, the

loss of infantry

was only

eighty.

Alexander, struck with admiration of the valour which Porus had

was anxious

him

to save his

The

to surrender.

life,

and sent Taxiles

choice

was unfortunate,

long been at deadly feud; and Porus,
sight

of.

enemy,

his old

whom

after

when

him

dis]:)layed, S'»rrender
of Poms.
.

to endeavoiu* to induce

for the

two native

chiefs

had

overtaken, was so exasperated at the

he probably also regarded as a main cause of the

great disaster which

had just befallen him, that he aimed a blow which Taxiles

narrowly escaped.

A

second summons, by a more influential messenger, suc-

and Porus, finding escape impossible, yielded himself a

ceeded,

prisoner.

In the midst of his misfortunes, Porus displayed a manliness and dignity

which proved him worthy of a better

and seen three of

his sons fall in battle, b\it

of a suppliant, and,

how he wished

when

In one day he had

do for

lost his kingilom,

he disdained to assmne the attitude

Alexander, riding up at the head of his
"

to be treated, simply answered,

" I shall

Alexander,

ftite.

my own

sake, but

Royally."

what am

I to

do

officers,

a«ked

" That," rejoined

for youre?"

"

Do

was the reply. Soimd policy combined with Alexander's
natural magnanimity in making him desirous to secure the friendship of such a

just as I

have

He

man.

said,"

accordingly heaped favoiu's upon him, not only restoring his former

but enlarging them by

ungi-ateful,

and continued

I

territories,

i

many new

faithful to his

annexations.

Porus was not

Macedonian masters.

In commemoration of his victory, Alexander erected a city on the spot, and

Another city, which he erected on the site of
name of Nicrea.
his encampment on the right bank of the Hydaspes, he called Bucephala, in
honom* of his horse Bucephalus, which, after can-\dng him through all his cam-

gave

it

aigns,

ce

the

had recently died of old age or

been

identified.

in battle.

Neither of these

cities

has

After reposing for a time in the dominions of Porus, he

gain set out, and proceeded north-east into the territory of the Glaus?e, which
represented as densely peopled and covered with

cities,

many

of

them with

Alexander •>
'""°^'^"

I

30
BC.

327.

inSTOKV OF IM)IA.

•

more than lO.OOO

The

iiiliahitHiits,

the chiefs hastened to

make

fitted for the purpose,

and employed

in

Meanwhile

that, before quit-

for

on finding

down

cut

h>e

t^>

ambition urged him forward, and he arrived

banks of the Acesines or Chenaub.

at the

would weem

he caased innneiLse quantities to

his

1.

preceded him, and

building vessels, with which he proposed, at a later period,

descend the Indus.
Pa^aKoof

Jt

\iiu\

had been turned homewards;

ting the Hydaspes, his tliouglits

timber well

name

terror of his

their Hubmission.

[li'joK.

Thougli

much

l^roa/ler

impetuous than the Hydaspes, there was no enemy to dispute the

and more

pas.sage,

and

was crossed with comparative ea.se. It seems, however, that though no enemy
appeared, the country was in possession of one whose name, somewhat strange

it

to sa}^

was

He was

also Poras.

not only not related to the Poras of

whom

the

above account has been given, but was at open enmity with him, and, probably
under the influence of this enmity, had, prcAdously to the battle of the Hydaspes,
It appears, however, that the favour into

sent in his submission to Alexander.

which the other Porus had been received had offended or alarmed him
liim as a friend or oppose

cariying almost

all

him

as

fit

him

;

for

arms along with him.

Alex-

and in the course of the pursuit

arrived at another of the Punjab rivers, called the Hydraotes or Ravee.
it,

to

an enemy, he suddenly disappeared,

the youth of the country

ander, offended, endeavoured to overtake

crossing

and

on the news of Alexander's approach, instead of waiting either

therefore,

welcome

;

Before

he bestowed the tenitories of the fugitive Porus on his more deserving

The

namesake.

passage, which, according to Rennel,' took place near Lahore, he

appears to have effected without difficulty; but in the country beyond, he found a

formidable combination formed to resist him.

Three native

states,

of which that

was the most powerful, had united their forces agamst the invader.
In the campaign which followed, Alexander was di'awn far to the south, where a
strong city, which bore the name of Sangala or Sagala was situated, somewhere

of the Malli

Both from the description and the name of the

between Lahore and Mooltan.
inhabitants,

open

field

selves

it is

conjectured to have been nearer the

soon proved hopeless; and the confederates, as a last refuge, shut them-

up in Sangala, which occupied a commanding

as strono- as Indian art coiild
carried

it

resistance

Resistance in the

latter.

make

and was

position,

Alexander commenced the

it.

othei'wise
siecre,

and

much \ngour that the place soon feU into his hands. The
had exasperated him and forgetting the magnanimity which he had

on with

so

;

displayed in the case of Porus, he disgraced himself

by a

horrible massacre, in

which neither age nor sex was spared.
Anivai
'

sis.

at

From

tlus atrocity

Alexander tm-ned to make new conquests, and reached

Here he was met by an

the banks of the H3q)hasis or Beas.

His Em'opean

midable than any he had yet encountered.
long service, had become impatient

;

and,

when he

:'t

Eeune], Memoir of a

Map

troops,

more

for-

worn out with

formally intimated his inten-

tion to cross the river, broke out into loud murmurs.
'

obstacle

of Hindoostan.

In vain he harangued

I

EXPEDITION OF ALEXANDER.

Chap. L]

them, and pointed to the country beyond, where

new

victories

and

rich spoils

b.c. 327.

Their hearts were set on home, and they plainly declared their

awaited them.

Even

determination not to proceed.

Coenus, one of the generals

highest in his favom-, espoused the cause of the soldiers,

which,

31

if less rhetorical

own

if his

and delivered a speech

For a time Alexander was immoveable, and

countrjonen should abandon him, he would place

himself at the head of his Asiatic subjects.

and on finding that

stood

than that of his master, made a deeper impression, and

was received with acclamations.
declared that, even

who

his Greeks

This, however,

was mere bravado

were not to be worked upon, either by threats

or promises, he announced his intention to return.

Late in the autumn of

and found the

fleet

B.C.

327, he

had retraced

his steps to the Hydaspes, Alexanders

which he had ordered to be constructed, in readiness to carry

The voyage itself was not free from danger but the
greatest risk which Alexander ran, was during one of the frequent descents which
he made on land for the pm-pose of subjugating the adjoining territories. While
him down the

stream.

;

storming: one of the cities of the Malli, he found himself almost alone

He

on the

by a retrograde movement, but
di.sdaining to have it said that he had tiu-ned his back, he leaped inside, and
was for a time exposed to the whole fury of the defenders. Having gained a
tree and placed his back against it, he made almost superhuman exertions, and
kept his opponents at bay till an arrow pierced deep into his shoulder, and he
Another moment and his death was inevitable but the
fell down in a swoon.
rampart.

could easily have saved himself

;

time gained by his defence had been gallantly redeemed by his troops, and several of his officers
tirst

deemed

rushing

in,

placed their shields around him.

mortal, spread grief

and consternation among

The wound,

his followers;

but the

vigour of his constitution and the skill of his physicians prevailed, and he

make his appearance amid general rejoicings.
In proceeding down the river, Alexander formed his army

at

was

able ere long to

into three divi-

two of which marched along the opposite bank, while the third, under his
o^vn command, kept the stream.
He afterwards despatched Craterus with a

sions,

thii'd

of the

army by an inland

route across Arachosia and

Drangiana

Carmania or Kerman, and proceeded with the remainder down the Indus.

modern

arrival at Pattala, evidently the
delta,

he remained for some time

;

Tatta, situated near the

and, on departing, sent a

explore the adjoining coimtry, and afterwards join

rendezvous.

He

him

to serious danorer.

ing the estuary.
ranean,

what was

On

apex of the

body of troops

to

at a fixed place of

selected the west branch of the river for the remainder of his

voyage, during which his

I

him

to

want of

pilots

and ignorance of navigation exposed

This was not diminished but rather increased on reach-

Acciuainted only with
his astoni.shment

tlie

insignificant tides of the Meditei*-

and that of

his

magnificent tide of the Indian Ocean rushing

Greeks when they beheld the

in,

and, in consequence of the

sudden contraction of the opposite shores, moving rapidly along in one volume

Descent
*****

of

'"'*™'

32
DC.

:i2o.

IIISTOIJV OP' INF^TA.

of water several feet

lii^^li!

'J'lii.s

by the name of the

niai'iuers

to portend the destruction of the

damage was sustained

the necessary precautions could

The

sea had

These he

dangers.

the

fleet,

ever

more

seemed

it

considerable

taken.

he luul seen of the

become better acquainted with

desire to

its

Nearchas to encounter, by giving him the command of

left

with injunctions to skirt and explore the shore from the Indas west-

He

ward.

him no

j)roljably left

fact,

)je

little

well

because

ten'or,

In point of

Heet.

Here Alexanders maritime adventures ended.

Voyage of
"^"^

Ijefore

whole

wonder but

I.

known to
Indas with many othei-

and common to the

bore,

now

|jlienoinenori,

.sin;;ular

similarly situated, produced not only

rivei"s

[Br>oK

himself with the main body of the army, took leave of India for

by an inland

though he was not aware of the

route, which,

periloas of the two, as

it

led through the heart of a

sandy

fact,

was the

desert,

which

almost without inteiruption, from the eastern edge of the basin of the

stretches,

Indas across the south of the Asiatic and the north of the African continent to
the Atlantic Ocean.

The Indian expedition of Alexander cannot be

K.Tecuof
expedition.

on moral grounds.

justified

was dictated by a wild and ung jvernable ambition and spread misery and
death among thousands and tens of thousands who had done nothing to offend
It

;

him, and were peacefully pursuing their different branches of industry,

he made his appearance among them like a destropng demon.
once deemed the only avenues to fame, are

now judged more

Such

wisely.

when

exploits,
Still it Ls

impossible to deny that conquerors were often in early times pioneers of ciWlization,

commerce following peacefully along

sating for their devastation

by the

and compendiffused.
Such was

their bloody track,

which

blessings

it

and

certainly the result of the Indian expedition of Alexander;

while reprobating the motives in which
that

it

was

so overrviled

and valuable

by Pro\ddence

it

originated,

rejoice

results.

nominal Macedonian empire, which
Nicator.

we cannot but

as to be productive of mo.st impoi-tant

The conquests of Alexander were never
Selenois

therefore,

to pieces

on

his death,

and was

parti-

was given to Seleucixs Nicator,
who established himself in Babylon, and became the foiinder of the d}Tiasty of
tlie SeleucidsB, which lasted for two centmies and a half
In the early part of
his reign, the stiiiggles which he had to maintain with powerful competitoi-s
tioned

by

his officers.

The most

fell

and foimed only a

consolidated,

eastern portion

completely engi-ossed his attention

he

felt

but when, by the overthrow of Antigonas,

firmly seated on the throne, he appeai-s to have become animated with

an ambition
East,

;

to imitate the exploits of Alexander,

and caiTv

India, indeed, he natvu'aUy regarded as fonning

]-)art

his

of

arms

Ms

far to the

tenitory, and,

on hearing that the natives had risen in insmTection, killed Alexander's

and thro^vn

off*

the Macedonian yoke, he resolved to treat them as rebels.

Accordingly, after ha\'ing

and entered the

prefects,

made himself master

territories of

of Bactria, he crossed the Indus,

which Taxiles and Ponis were

still ridel's.

Neither

Chap.

of

SANDRACOTTUS AND SELEUCUS.

I.]

them

and he continued

disptited his authority,

country of the

Prasii,

over

whom

who

Chandragupta,

his progress

till

he reached the

This usurper, whose identity with

tigures in the traditions

and

also in a

drama of the Hindoos,

has been established, was of low origin, and, according to Justin,' the chief
classical

authority for

first

that

known

is

of him,

owed

his rise to a pretended zeal

His countrymen, believing him, placed power

for liberty.

the

all

use he

made

of

was

it

B.C. aos?

Sandracottus had usurped the sovereignty,

he had murdered their lawful king.

after

»JO
ti

in his hands,

Siimiracot-

c'lmiuira^"''*"*

and

to enslave them.

Unprincipled though Sandracottus had proved himself to be by the

mode

in

which he attained the throne, he soon showed by his talents that he was not

by force, fear, or persuasion, had extended his
dominions on every side, till he was able to bring into the field an army estimated
Such was the enemy with whom Seleucus was
by hundreds of thousands.
about to come into collision. We cannot wonder that the prospect made him
imworthy of

and

pause,

reigning, and,

that,

more

especially

on learning how much

his pre.sence

was required

s^n'iracottii3

in the

West, where

accommodation.

new wars were

was glad

Sandracottus, aware of his advantage,

that Seleucus obtained

all

raging, he

was 500

to propo.se terms of

made

elephants, in return for

the most of

it

;

and

Seieucus.

and

which he ceded

all

As a means of cementinfj the
The capital of the kingtreaty, Sandracottus married the daughter of Seleucus.
dom of the Px-asii, called by classical writers Palibothra, and by the Hindoos
Pataliputra, and believed to have stood on or near the site of the modern Patna,
formed a quadrangle of vast extent, inclosed by wooden walls loop-holed for
Indian territories on both sides of the Indus.

his

arrows.^

The

alliance

Meacasthenes,

a

between Seleucus and Sandracottus was not disturbed; and

who

Palibothra as ambassador from the former, wrote

loner lived at

work which, notwithstanding

its

excessive leaning to the marvellous,

great source from which ancient classical writers derived most of

knew concerning

the interior of India.

to the reign of Seleucus
light has

The period

been thrown upon

it

by the discovery

what they

of Indian history subsequent

very imperfectly known.

is

was the

Recently an unexpected

of large quantities of coins,

which show that the western portion of the country continued subject to the

Greek kings, who had the seat of their government
progress, also, has

iascriptions

seemed as

Lpuzzle posterity.

if

they had been designed not so

The key having

at length been found,

mation has already been obtained, and more

amount

lere

is,

lost

'

is

too scanty to justify

may

any attempt at

that after several of the Seleucid.B,

Justiu, IliMoriie I'lulippica; b. xv.
I.

c.

-1.

like the

much

Egyptian

to inform as to

some valuable

infor-

be expected; but as yet

detail.

All that need be said

among whom Antiochus

conspicuous, and several Kings of Bactria. which

Vol.

Con.siderable

been made in deciphering and interpreting certain monumental

which are written in an imknown alphabet, and,

liierogly|-)hics,

the

in Bactria

fii-st

the Great

is

became independent
'•'

Strabo,

.\v. 1,

5

35.

Cioek Kiiig«

34
U.C.

20.

OF INDIA.

nT.ST()l;\'

under

Tlieo(l<>tus

about

B.C.

had

200,

fB'^OK

sovereignty to a greater or

li(;ld

les.s

I.

extent

in India, a horde of Scythiaii.s, driven }>y the Hun.s from the 8hore.s of the JaxHuns ami

made

aites,

their aj>])earance ab^ut a century l>efore the Chri.stian era,

and

Hcythians.

Here they fonned what

gained a firm footing in the lower basin of the Indas.

has been called the Indo-Scythic province of Scinde, and were endeavouring,
against a bold and often successful oj^position from the natives, to force their

way

into the fertile ba.sin of the

when another horde

Ganges,

-"f^^i^W N',^,
'//

rived from Persia about

^nmJM

B.C.

ar-

26

under the leadership of Yu-chi,

who gained

them a temporary ascendency, and became
for

the founder of an Indo-Scythian

About the same time

dynasty.
Silver Coin or Eucratides.'

—From a specimen in British Hoseum.

a native prince called Vicramaditya,

Vicraina-

who

is

one of the greatest

heroes in Hindoo story, established an extensive sovereignty, which had the

ditya.

Nerbudda

for its southern

remarkable not only for

whom

boundary; and at Oojein, his

its

also, several

held a court,

number of learned men
the sovereign had drawn around him.
In

splendour, but for the

the enlightened liberality of

Southern India,

capital,

native sovereignties appear to have been estab-

Among

lished as early as the Christian era.

these the mo.st conspicuoas are

Pandya, which occupied a large tract in the south-west of the peninsula, and
one of whose kings, called Pandion,
to the

Roman emperor

is

said

by Strabo

to

have sent an ambas.sador

Augustus; and Chola, which, including the Camatic,

extended over a large portion of the south-east of the peninsula, and reached

They

north to the banks of the Godavery.

empty names,

as they do not furnish during their long duration

well authenticated as to entitle
Roman

in-

tercourse

with India.

are now, however, little better than

them

any

facts so

to a place in history.

somewhat remarkable that the Romans, though they boasted of being
the rulers of the world, never possessed an inch of ten*itoiy in India. On several
occasions during their wars in the East, they came into collision with sovereigns
It

is

whose dominions reached beyond the Indus, but the
invariably stopped, as
celebrated stream.

if it

It

had met an insuperable

was not ignorance

barrier, before it

On

^-ictoiy

reached that

Romans

the contrary, several of

most popular wTiters had made them well acquainted with the geography

and the leading physical features of
were exhibited for

enormous
'

Roman

or indifference that led the

thus to contract the limits of their eastern frontier.
their

tide of

prices.

Eucratides,

sale
The}'^

in their marts,

181)

was

Parthia,

many

of

its

peculiar products

and found eager pm-chasers, often

must often have longed

King of Bactria (about B.C.
I., King of

contemporary with Mitbridates

India, while

at

to be masters of a countr}-

and appears to Lave been one of the most powerful
of the Bactrian kings.

Chap.

ROUTES OF INDIAN COMMERCE.

l.J

3.">

which ministered so greatly to their luxury and comfort; and however much they

may have wished

had they believed that there was anything beyond to tempt

farther,

bition, it is sufficiently

obvious that India never

-

have carried their conquests

to be thought that they could

it

b.c.

felt

their

am-

the terror of their power,

merely because inhospitable deserts and warlike nations interposed to place

it

lieyond their reach.

While

impossible to give the

it is

from any attempt to conquer India,
illustration of the

carries

important

fact,

Romans
it

credit for moderation in refraining

pleasing to find in their conduct an

is

that the peaceful intercourse which commerce

on between distant nations, besides escaping
in

carries

train,

its

secures

and more than

all

all

war

the horrors which

all

the advantages

which

could have been hoped from the most absolute and least expensive form of con-

In

quest.

Rome and

all

dependencies, the rich products of the soil and the

its

looms of India arrived as surely, as abundantly, and as cheaply as they could

have done had the whole country from the Himalaya to Cape Comorin been
one vast

Roman

province.

Before leaving ancient India,

will not be out of ])lace to take a survey of Leading

it
_

by which,

the leading routes

routes of

_

at this early period, the traffic between the East

Overland the only practicable method of

and West was conducted.

by means of caravans, which,
ceeded directly to Bactria.

Indian com-

traffic w.is

after (quitting the western confines of India, pro-

made at Balkh, on
emporium was established. From Bactria

Here the

southern frontiers, and a great

first

great halt was

the
the

usual line of route

was toward Babylon, which,

great emporium.

In pursuing this line the shores of the Caspian were nearly

in like manner,

approached, and advantage was often taken of
carried north to a convenient spot,

it

to ship goods,

and then conveyed by land

by wiiich not only the countries adjacent

became another
which were

to the Black Sea,

to the coasts could be supplied,

but an

easy access could be had through the Dardanelles to the ports of the Mediter-

From Babylon

ranean.

the route westward led directly to Palmp-a, which, in imand

consequence of the mart thus

establislied,

situation in the heart of a desert,

much

difficidty,

and

ters of the globe,

!• against

its

and became the

all

the di.sadvantages of

capital of

called its

its

a powerful and

the coast of the Levant was reached without

harbours became places of exchange for the three quar-

bartering the spices of India and the frankincense of Ai-abia

the peculiar products both of Europe and Africa.

overland route

tbe
which

From PalmjTa

kingdom.

oi)ulent

overcame

now

traced, there

main trunk.

were many

Besides the direct

lines of divergence

from what

may

These were chiefly intended to supj^ly the places

lay at a distance on either side of

it,

and thus furnished the means of

transport for a very extensive inland trade.

The overland
impracticable,
less

was

route, which,

but for the camel, would have been altogether

necessarily slow, toilsome,

and expensive, and was therefore

extensively used than the maritime route, especially after a knowled<Te of

IIIsroKV OF INDIA.

36
B.C.

—

I

[Ii<^OK

the monsoons in the Indian Ocean liad emboldened navigaU^rs, even before the

compass was discovered, to humch

<.»ut int<j

way

the deep and steer their course directl}'

was accomplished
by the south-west, and the homeward by the north-east monswjn the fonner,

across from shore to shore.

In

tliis

the outward voyage

—

Maritime

consequently, in the summer, and the latter in

routes.

mode

a vast improvement on the earlier
discovered the trade

by

This was

winter months.

of navigation, but even }>efore

of Tyre princes, and a

it,

was

it

Mention ha« already

sea obtained great importance.

been made of the Phoenicians, who, by means of

made the merchants

tlie

acquired an opulence which

power which

it

took

prowess, and perseverance of Alexander the Great to overthrow.

the

skill,

As they

could

all

not communicate directly with India, and were unwilling to depend for transport

on the Egyptian.s, who might at any time, by declining to perform their
it,

yjart

of

have extinguished the trade, they, by force or negotiation, made themselves

masters of some convenient harbours on the Arabian coast, near the entrance

Red Sea,
TjTe by a land

of the

distance

was

for the trade

them

and, using

which they had

route, of

still

as entrepots, formed a communication with

so great as to be very inconvenient;

were obtained when

colura, the nearest port in the

tlie

The

.secured the entire cfjntrol.

and

Phoenicians took

lience

new

pos.se.ssion

Mediterranean to the Red Sea.

facilities

of Rhino-

It is true that

before the goods could reach Tyre a double re-shipment thus became nece.sRouteused

sary

;

but the diminished land carriage more than compensated for this

dis-

hy the
pucenicians.

advantage, and enabled tliem, by the abundance and cheapness with which

they could supply other nations, to establish almost a complete monopoly of
the Indian trade.

On

the destruction of Tyre and the foundation of Alexandria, the trade with

India entered a

new channel,

Route by
Alexandria.

to

see

which

it

continued afterwards to flow for nearly

Alexander had the merit of selecting

eighteen centuries.
too soon

in

its

advantages

realized.

in the erection of

played, that

it

which

so

capital,

much

and provided

officer,

its

on becoming master of

harbour with a light-house,

magnificence and engineering skill were dis-

ranked as one of the seven wonders of the world.

were followed out by his son and
endeavouring, but without

succes.s,

successor,

to

form a canal

acro.ss

made

difficulties,

was

ea.sily

after

to Alexandria,

From

this

which great exertions were

to surmount, brought the products of India to Coptos.

distance to Alexandria

^'ievvs

the istlimus of Suez,

founded the new city of Berenice on the west coast of the Red Sea.
unattended with

His

Ptolemy Philadelphus, who,

which would have given a continuous water communication
city a land carriage, not

but died

So thoroughly, however, had he

imparted his ideas to Ptolemy Lagu.s, that that
Egypt, made Alexandria his

this channel,

Tlie

remaining

completed by a short canal and the Nile.

Through the channel thus opened, the wealth of India continued to flow into
Egypt so long as it remained an independent kingdom. Outward vessels
leaving Berenice with such articles of European and African export as were in

Chap.

ROUTES OF INDIAN COMMERCE.

I.]

demand

in the East, skirted the

Arabian and Persian

37
taking advantage

coasts,

B.C.

—

of sucli prominent head-lands as enabled tliem to steer direct without following

the windings of the shore, and thus reached the Indian coast near the mouths

How

of the Indus.

was no

there

they afterwards proceeded south

far

obstacle in the way,

country lay in that direction,

is

not known; but as

and some of the most prized products of the

it is

presumed

to be

that, instead of confining

themselves to a few isolated spots, they formed a general acquaintance with the

To

whole sea-bord.

secure the

kings maintained a large

command

fleet at sea,

of

Egyptian

lucrative trade, the

tliis

which, while

kept

it

down

piracy, deterred

The nation which

other nations from entering into competition with them.

could have done so with most effect was Persia, which possessed the obvious and

From

very im})ortant advantage of a far shorter sea passage.

the Persian Gulf

they could have reached India in about half the time which the Egyptians must

have taken.
prise

their

great, that

and Euphrates
it

had long an aversion to maritime enter-

Persians, however,

—an aversion so

Tigris

may,

The

they are said to have erected barriers across the

Be

for the purpose of rendering it impossible.

this as it

Tiie Persians

maritime
'^"'*"i"''^*

seems established that the Indian produce which they obtained for

own

caravans.

use, or

the supply of adjacent countries, came mostly overland

by the

Another cause of the supineness of the Persians in regard to mari-

time intercom'se with India,

may

be found in the erroneous ideas generally

entertained respecting the proper limits of the Caspian Sea on the north, and
its

The Caspian was somewhat unaccount-

Black Sea.

relative position to the

ably imagined to be a branch of the great Northern Ocean, and
that

by means

of

it

was believed

a channel of communication might be opened up with

it

Europe, which might thus be

made

to receive the products of India

shorter route than the Indian Ocean,

and consequently at a

than they could be furnished by the Egyptians.

by a

far

Krrorein
^*°^'"'*'"y-

far cheaper rate

Ideas of this kind seem to

have weighed particularly with some of Alexander's successors in the East.
Seleucus Nicator, the

first

and one of the

ablest of them,

is

even said to have

contemplated a canal which would have joined the Caspian and Black Seas, and
thereby secured a monopoly of European and Indian
After the
30, the

Romans conquered Egypt and converted

channels of

traffic

received an impulse unfelt before,

Hippalus conceived the idea of cutting
the.

Red Sea and

India,

iutervenins: shores,

whicli

suggested

it

off"

by abandoning

and steering boldlv

very middle of the ocean.
so

it

into a province, in B.C.

with the East continued unchanged, while

was enormously increased both by land and
tlie traffic

traffic.

sea.

By

when a

the

its

amount

latter, in particular,

navigator of the

name

of

nearly a half of the voyage between

HippaUis

the timid track ])ursued along the rlnugoof

far out of sioht of

The plan seems

so natural,

obvious, that one finds

some

land throucrh the

and the considerations

difficulty in

recognizing

Hippalus as the inventor, or in giving him miich credit for the invention.

He

*''^ '^'°'^'

38
B.C.

HISTOItV OF INDIA.

choosing the proper seasons,

tlie

[Book

1.

one would carry him out and the other bring

him home.
riin/8account of tlio
voyage to

'^''Ik;

course of the voyage,
and even the time occupied
hv
^ r>
l
j
'

detailed

by the elder

it,

is

>

minuUdv
J

1'he cargo destined for India being endjaiked

Pliny.'

on

India.

the Nile, was conveyed by

At Coptos

it

and a short canal

the land carriage commenced, and

on the west shore of the Red Sea.

midsummer, and
final

From

to Copto.s, a distance of

was continued 258 miles

ta Berenice,

after a short halt near the Straits of Bab-el- mandeb, took its

an average, from the Mediterranean

three months, or ninety-four days.

Of

to India

was a

The

wliole time

little

thirty,

and the voyage

more than

these, the inland navigation to

occupied twelve, the land transport to Berenice twelve, the voyage

Red Sea

mih-.s.

Berenice the vessel started aljout

departure usually for Musiris on the Malabar coast.

occupied, on

303

across the Indian

Ocean forty

day.s.

Coptos

down

the

The time

occupied by the

Red Sea voyage seems out of all proportion to the other, but
may be accounted for partly by the difficulty of navigating a sea notorious for

RliNS OF Tai

baffling

.mvea.

— From Cassas,

Voyage Pittoresque

winds and storms, and perhaps partly

also

<le

la Syrie, &c.

by delays which may have

been occasioned by calling on both sides of the coast

for the pm-pose of

com-

The homeward voyage, commenced earl}'" in December,
appears to have been tlie far more tedious of the two.
Though the Persians had failed to take advantage of their maritime proximity to India, the Romans had no sooner carried their eastern frontier to the

pleting the cargo.

'

Plinii Historia Naturalis, b. vi.

c.

23.

Chap.

MEDIEVAL

II.]

39

INDIA.

banks of the Euphrates, than an important trade sprung up in the Persian Gulf,

and Indian produce was transported in large quantities up the

river,

west to Pahnyra, which reaijed the advantajije to such an extent
condescended at one time to com't
declined

and was tottering

which had been

to its

established,

expense of the Greeks,

fall,

even

Rome

I'x^'"" *™<^®

simiCuif.

the Persian monarchs continued the traffic

and by means of

who had made

and then

After this proud city had

alliance.

its

tliat

ad —

it

enriched themselves at the

Constantinople the capital of their empire.

As we have now touched on medieval

times, it

may

suffice,

sketch of ancient India, to mention that the great staples of

in concluding the
its

trade were then

nearly the same as at present, and consisted chiefly of cotton and silk goods,
dyes, drugs, spices
stones.

and aromatics,

These were paid

woollen cloth, lead,

ciiietiy

tin, brass,

])assage in the Institutes of

pearls,

diamonds, emeralds, and other precious

in the precious metals, but partly also

Though a

wine, and a few foreign perfumes.

Menu, which

voyages as well as land

refers to sea

journeys, implies that the inhabitants of India

in

had begun at an early period

to

navigate the ocean, they seem to have confined themselves to coasting, and to

have
to

left

the external trade entirely in the hands of strangers.

commit themselves

still

to the open sea

had

its

This aversicm

origin in superstitious

feai-s,

which

contiime to operate.

CHAPTEIi
Medieval India— Arab conquests

— First

Mohamed Casim— E.xpulsion

11.

appearance of Mahometans in India

of the Arabs

— Conquest of

— House of Ghuznee — Sebektegin — Sultan

'AHOMETANISM,

which had made

as persuasion only

was employed
sword than

little

to %vield the

side.

Before the death of Mahomet, in 632,
all Ai-abia,

it.

no sooner

spread rapidly on every

began
dued

Mahmood.

progress so long

to propagate
it

Scinde by

it

had sub-

and made a considerable impression both

on Syria and Persia; and iinder his successors

it

had, in the course of less

than a centmy, not only con-solidated these conquests, but established an empire
which stretched continuously from Arabia as a centre, west to the Atlantic,
engulfing

Spain and threatening the

fairest portion

of France

— north

and

north-east through Pei"sia, to the vast region which extends between the

—

and the Jaxartes, from the Caspian to Mount Imaus and east
banks of the Indus. Its progress in this last direction must now be

IB
I

tlie

As

Oxus
beyond the
traced.

early as the calijihate of Omar, the Arabs, coasting along the shores of

Indian Ocean, had made predatory descents upon Scinde, chiefly for the

Rapui
Mahuiiiu
tniiisiu.

40
AD.

CGI.

OF INDIA,

IIISTOIIV

[Book

purpose of carrying ofF the wouu-n, whose beauty was in

iiigli

the Arabian liarems; but no land expedition deserving of
Kirstapiiear-

Aral* in

Arab

664, wlien i)art of an

and gained,

it is said,

1

force

2,000 converts, wfis despatched

wards figured as a wan*ior

command

and Arabia, forced

in Persia

and returned with numerous

t^>

it)

julorn

nr)tiai t^jok phice till

which had penetrated from Merv

This detachment, under the

of the Punjab.

repute,

I,

t<^>

Ca>K>o!,

explore the lower part

of Mohalib,
its

way

who

aft<;r-

into Mooltan,

The next expedition was on a greater
scale, and led to more permanent results.
An Arab siiip had been seized at
Dewal, a .seaport of Scinde. Restitution was demanded, but Rajah Dahir, who.se
territories are said to

captive.s.

have included Mooltan and

all

to

and 300

Mohame.1

^^™"

The Arabs, thus refused redre.ss, determined
view, sent a body con.sisting only of 1000 infantry

subject to his authority.

compel

failiu-e,

some

by pretending that Dewal

adjacent plains, endeavoiired to evade compliance,

was not

Scinde, together with

it,

and, with this

horse.

It

was altogether inadequate, and

Exasperated at the

perished.

Hejaj, governor of Bussorah in 711, despatched a regular force of

mcu, uudcr the command of his nephew

Mohamed

youth of twenty, possessed great military

talents,

6000

Casim, who, though only a

and

The

after siuroounting all

commenced with an
attack on a celebrated pagoda contiguous to the town, and inclosed by a high
wall of hewn stone.
In addition to the Brahmins who XLSually occupied it, it
difficulties,

encamped under the walls of Dewal.

siege

The defence was

had a strong garrison of Rajpoots.

resolute,

and might have

had not Casim learned that the safety of the place was
conceived to depend on a flag which was flying from a tower. Acting on this

been

successful,

information, he directed all his engines against the

His capture

do\vn, than the resistance

struck

it

easy.

With barbarous

became

and on finding

seventeen to death, and

made

of

Dcwal

itsclf

all

it ineffectual,

slaves of the

and had no sooner

so feeble as to

fanaticism he circumcised

step to their conversion,

flag,

make

his entrance

the Brahmins, as a

put

women and

all

fir.^Jt

the males above

childreiL

The capture

soon foUowed, and Casim continued his victorious progress,

taking in succession, Nerun (the modern Hyderabad), Sehwan, and a fortress
called Salim.

A more

formidable resistance was, however, in preparation; and

the arrival of the rajah's eldest son at the head of a strong force, reduced
to the necessity of acting

on the defensive.

This continued,

till

him

the arrival of

2000 Persian horse gave him once more the superiority; and he began
advance on Alor, the
the
Hissubi^queiit coilquests.

capital,

to

which was situated in the north of Scinde, near

modern Bukkur.
The rajah himself being now,

make a

final stroke for his

50,000 men.

as

it

were, brought to bay, determined to

kingdom, and appeared at the head of an ai-my of

Casim again stood on the

defensive,

and

skilfully

compensated

for

numbers by the strength of his position. The rajah, advancing
boldly to the attack, was wounded by an arrow, and at the same time the
elephant on which he was mounted, being struck by a fireball, rushed oflT in

inferiority of

MOHAMED

CiiAP. II.]

CART^f.

41

The occurrence completely disconcerted the Indians and though Dahir mounted a horse, and displayed both
skill and courage in endeavouring to rally them, it was too late.
The fortune
and plunged with

terror

into the river.

liini

a.d.

714.

;

was

of the day

decided,

and

his gallant effort to retrieve

it

only cost him his

life.

The remains of the Indian army took refuge

in the city of

Brahmanabad.

neroic
ilefence of

Casim advanced against

The

anticipated.

rajah's

good while provisions

became

and met a

it,

widow

heroically

When

lasted.

they

Many

of

assumed the defence, and made

and

failed,

it

resistance in consequence

met

garrison, equally prepared for death,

tlie

Brahmana

and committed herself and children

hopeless, she erected a funeral pile,

to the flames.

which probably he had not

resistance

it

by

throwing open the gates and rushing out to perish by the swords of the

Those who remained had no better

besiegers.

were slaughtered; the

which had belonged to Rajah

would seem

It

in

the assault,

all in

arms

Casim, in pursuing his

were carried into bondage.

rest

conquests, took Mooltan without resistance,
tories

On

fate.

and became master of

all

the terri-

Dahii-.

that, beside the chikh-en

who

perished with their mother

singular

Brahmanabad, the rajah had two daughters possessed of great personal

They were among the

attractions.

captives

;

and seeming

fit

to grace the cali2)h's

harem, were accordingly conveyed to Damascus, which was at this time the

On

capital of the caliphate.

their arrival, Walid, the caliph,

On

had been excited, ordered the elder to be brought to him.
burst into tears, exclaiming,

"How

can

I

whose

cui'iosity

entering, she

be worthy of your notice, after having

been dishonoiu-ed by Casim?" Walid, consulting only his indignation, sent orders

him

forthwith to sew up Casim in a raw hide, and send

body

arrived, it

"Now

I

am

was produced

satisfied;

was the ruin of

my

to the rajah's daughter,

and

I

have had

After Casim's death in 714, the Arabs

Even those which he had

Ommeiad dynasty
all

in 7oO,

effected

when

my

the

who, overjoyed, exclaimed,

Casim was innocent of the crime

family,

When

forward.

imputed to him, but he

I

revenge."

made no new conquests

were maintained only

till

in India.

the downfall of the

the Hindoos rose in insurrection, and recovered

that had been wrested from them.

made to the Ai-ab conquest of the territory between the
Oxus and the Jaxartes. From its po.sition it is usually called by classical
writers Transoxiana, and by Arab writers Mawar ul Nahr, words literally
Reference has been

meaning beyond

the river.

fixed habitations,

and nomadic

Its inhabitants

Pei"sians,

the course of the eight following years,

first

entered in 706, and overran in

became

finally dissevered

empire about 820, and was ruled successively by the Tahirites
Sof\u-ides

till

iteresting,

Vol.

I.

892,

and the Somanis

because during

it,

living in

Tartars, the latter forming apparently the great

This territory, which the Arabs

majority.

were mostly

till

and owing

1004.
to

The

one of

its

last

from their

till

872, the

dynasty becomes

princes, the house of
6

^\™''

conquest

ofxians

42
AD.

970.

If'

[Book

Glmznce, wliich plays a most important part in

of India, was

hist^jry

tlie

I.

founded.
Alptcgin,

Aiptegin,

tho h.MHo of

Ghuznee.

tlie

founder of the hoase of Ghuznee, wa-s originally a Tinki

Abdulmelek, the

to

|.jj.^jj

was

^j^^^^

.slave

and had no higher

office

^^ amusing his master hy tumbling and tricks of legerdemain.

He

prince of the

fifth

capable, however, of

On

Khorasan.

much

better,

Somani

line,

and gradually

rose

be governor of

t^j

the death of Abdulmelek, in 961, he lost the favour of his

Mansur, by recommending that another member of the family should

successor,

be selected for the throne, was deprived of his government, and ran great
of losing both his liberty and his

life.

death,

in

976.

He was

been originally a Tm-ki

him
Sebektegin:
anecdote of

him.

slave,

and made him

him.self,

his

had

while a private horseman, he hunted

his heir.

said to have been early foretold.

is

.,

its

who, like

till

but had risen so much in his favour that he gave

his daughter in marriage,

he looked behind and saw

in maintaining it

succeeded by Sebektegin,

Scbcktegin's futurc Sovereignty
,

the mountains of Soliman.

and .succeeded

his independence,

he found an asylum with

talent,

among

a body of faithful followers at Ghuznee,

Here he declared

ri.sk

After a variety of narrow escapes, in

which he displayed much courage and military

down

a

fawn and was carrying

mother foUowino- with such sicms of

he was moved with compassion and

set

the fawn at

it

One day,
off, when

distress,

that

The joy and

libei-ty.

apparent gratitude expressed by the mother made so strong an impression upon
him, that

when he went

Mahomet appeared

to sleep

to him,

been

fulfilled,

it

The

prediction, if

it

for his

left

bank

of the Indus

had

of the

cruelty

and oppression which

their

filled

they saw a new Mahometan kingdom established on their
federation
agaiiiathim.

f^j.^

;

but they

forefathers

while subjected to an Arab yoke, and were naturally
Native con-

it fruitless.

for nearly three centuries

been living in the enjoyment of their recovered independence

enough

humanity

was made, had no sooner

than an event took place which threatened to render

The inhabitants on the

knew

had endured

with alarm when

frontiei"s.

It there-

or./

sccmcd to them good policy not to wait tiU the threatened calamity
J over-

took them, but to cndcavour by anticipating to prevent

it.

The

initiative in

was undertaken by Rajah Jeipal, who ruled over a large
Crossing the Indus, he
extent of territory, and kept his court at Lahore.
advanced till he came up with the troops of Sebektegin, who commanded
in person, and was accompanied by his son, who, then only a boy, gave proof of
the talents which afterwards made him celebrated under the name of Sultan
this bold enterprise

Mahmood.

After some time spent in skirmishing, the annies were on the eve of

fighting a great battle,

when

Both armies suffered

gi'eatly,

a fearful storm of wind, thunder, and hail occurred-

but not to the same extent.

Ghuznee soon recovered from the
at once less hardy

and more

1

became the subject of a dream, in which

and announced that as a reward

he was destined to be a king.

li[

^1

OF INDIA.

IIISTOItV

disaster,

The troops of

whereas those of Hindoostan, being

superstitiou.s,

were so dispirited that Jeipal was

]

Chap.

SEBEKTEGIN— SULTAN MAHMOOD.

II.]

Mahmood

glad to propose terms of accommodation.

43

stood out, and would be

a.d.

997.

with nothing short of a decisive victory; but his father, more prudent

satisfied

and moderate, was

the promise of a certain
to Lahore,

with a present payment in elephants and gold, and

satisfied

amount

and endeavoured

of annual tribute.

to hide his

Jeipal returned humiliated

shame by breaking

When

his promise.

the messengers of Sebektegin arrived to receive the tribute, he not only refused
it,

but threw them into prison.

Warlike preparations on a grander

scale

than before again commenced

bektegin advanced to take revenge; and Jeipal, aware

provoke

endeavoured to ward

it,

Se- war between

how much he had done to

by means of a confederacy, in which,
importance, he was joined by those of Delhi,
it off

in addition to other rajahs of less

amujiljah
"^'"''"''

Thus supported, he advanced at the head of
an army composed of an innumerable host of foot and 100,000 horse. In his
Ajmeer, Callinger, and Canouge.

when Sebektegin

Oriental phraseology Ferishta says,^ that

view the
in

forces of Jeipal, they

number

mayed

"appeared in extent like

like the ants or locusts of the wilderness

tlie

;"

a.scended a hill to

boundless ocean, and

but instead of beinsr

dis-

at his vast inferiority in point of numbers, "he considered himself as a

wolf about to attack a flock of sheep."

So

confident, indeed,

daining to act on the defensive, he commenced the attack
certain point in the enemy's line,

When

500 men.

in this

way

and charging

he had tlirown

assault,

and carried everything before him

only of

flight,

and

suffered

immense

The more permanent

plunder.

was acknowledged king of
and sent one of

all

it

by

was

by

singling out a

successive squadrons of

into disorder, he

it

he, that, dis-

made

a general

Tiie Hindoos, panic-struck, thought

The Indian camp yielded a

slaughter.

results of the victory were, that

the territory west of the Neelab or

his officers with 10,000 horse to

rich

Sebektegin

Upper Indus,

govern Peshawer.

Sebektegin died in 997, after a reign of twenty years distinguished by

His death was sudden, but during his

prudence, equity, and moderation.

Sebektegins

last

moments he named his son Ismael his heir. He appears, indeed, to have had a
better title than Mahmood, who, though elder, was illegitimate.
Ultimately,
however, after a war of succession, in whicli Ismael was worsted and imprisoned for

of sultan, which, though well

known

had not previously been borne by any prince of Turkish

origin,

life,

in Arabia,

Mahmood, assuming the

title

seated himself firmly on his father's throne.

Mahmood was

of an athletic form, but

.

pox,

a

and

glass,

was strongly marked with the

.

so deficient in personal beauty, that one day, on

he exclaimed,

"

The

sight of a

beholders, but nature has been so

unkind

forbidding."

This defect probably

ful pleasures,

and concurred with

fame by military

exploits.

He
•

small- smtan

iiii'i.
ic
beholding himself

•

in

king should brighten the eyes of the
to

me

made him

that

less

my appearance

positively

disposed to indulge in youth-

temper

his natural

is

in inducing

him

to seek

has already been seen ui-ging his father to reject

Brigg's FerislUa, vol.

i.

p. 18.

Mahmood.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

441

AD.

inoi.

[Book

the terms of accommodation ofl'eied l>y llajali Jeipal, and

prepared to see him enter
struggles,

which ended

a career of Indian conquest.

in the extinction of the

attention, but no sooner

His

(jn

/.

we are therefore
At first a series of

Somani dynasty,

engro.ssed his

were these settled than he turned his eye to India

expedition took phice in 1001, wlien, at Peshawer with only 10,000

first

enemy Rajah Jeipal at the heaxl of 1 2,000
horse, 30,000 foot, and 300 elephants.
The field was keenly contested, but at
hist Jeipal, witli fifteen of his chiefs, was taken pri.soner.
Mahmood, whose
avarice was at least equal to his ambition, was able to gi'atify l)oth pa.ssions by
the victory, which, in addition to its fame, yielded him a rich spoil, partly in
Jeipal's jewelled necklaces, one of which was valued at 180,000 dinars, or about
£81,000.
The value of tlie spoil was largely increased by the large ransom
chosen horse, he encountered his old

Defeat and
death of
Jeipal.

,

which he obtained
freedom.

for the prisoners.

Dispirited

by

his

two

Jeipal did not long avail himself of his

by them,
he resigned the crown

defeats, or, it is said, disqualified

according to a Hindoo custom, from any longer reigning,
to his son,

and placing himself on a funeral

Jn lOOl, ou

Defeat of

failure of the tribute

pile, set fire

to

it

own hand.s.
Sultan Mahmood

with his

promised by the Hindoo.s,

again set out, and passing through the province of Mooltan arrived at a city
called Bhateea.

Its position is

not ascertained

;

but

it

was surrounded by a very

high wall and a deep and broad ditch, and belonged to a Rajah Beejy Ray, who,
trusting both to its fortifications
country,

had

was not

and the

difficult

nature of the suiTOundincf

so skilfully seized the strong posts, that for three days he not only

Mahometans

He

afraid to mea.sure his strength against that of the sultan.

at bay, but inflicted

on them such severe

the point of abandoning the enterprise.

In

this

losses that

kept the

they were on

emergency. Sultan

Mahmood

displayed his wonted inflexibility of purpose, and in announcing his intention
to lead the

conquest or

main attack in person, added, " To-day I have devoted myself to
Both armies, indeed, had worked themselves up to the
death."

highest pitch of enthusiasm; Beejy Ray, on his side, performing religious services

by which he was

believed

by

his followers to

have propitiated the gods; while

the sultan, after turning his face to Mecca, and prostrating himself in sight of his
troops, started

suddenly up, exclaiming, "Advance! advance! our prayers have

found favour with God!"

An

obstinate struggle took place, but

Mahometan

prowess prevailed, and the Indians were pursued to the gates of the town.
Here, though a stand of a few days took place, resistance was found to be hopeless;

and the rajah being overtaken during an attempt

night, only escaped

and eighty

elephants,

which with
Sultan

Mahmood
encountered

its

numerous

captains,

Abul

had thrown

sword.

Two

hundi'ed

dependencies was annexed to Ghuznee.
'^

to chastisc

own

by

and a large spoil were taken in Bhateea,

Mahmood's next Indian expedition
took place
'

by Anangpal.

imprisonment by rushing on his

to lead off his troops

in 1005.

Its

main

object
"

was

Fattcli Lodi, the chief of 3*Iooltan, who, though a Mu.ssulman,
ii
it
i
i
off his allegiance and leagued with Anangpal, the son and succes.sor
i

•

•

•

p
chap.

mmf

I

sultan mahmood's wars.

ii.j

Not deterred by

the unfortunate Rajah Jeipal.

encountered

him

Mahmood

The

to take refu<xe in Cashmere.

its

He would

chief

doubtless have

made Anangpal

to repel the formidable invasion of a Tartar prince of the

make an

Khan, who had hoped to

feel

the

had he not been under the necessity of hastening

weiglit of his vengeance,

forces

a.d. 1005.

march to

victorious sultan continued his

exacted more rigorous terms than submission, and also

home

Anangpal

his father's fate,

near Peshawer, and sustained a defeat which compelled

Mooltan, and obtained the submission of

full

45

were beyond the Indus.

name

of Elik

easy comjuest of Khorasan while the Ghuznee

He had

miscalculated

;

and on the

sultan's arrival,

Oxus with only a few attendants.
On this occasion the sultan's victory was greatly aided by 500 elephants which
The Tartar horses would not face them and the
he had brought from India.
soldiers, who had never seen them before, were overawed by their huge bulk and
defeat, to recross the

was obliged, after a signal

;

strange appearance, especially after they had seen the one on which the sultan

himself was mounted seize Elik Khan's standard-bearer and toss
air

him

into the

with his trunk.
Anangpal's escape was only temporary, for

Mahmood was no

sooner lid of

.

.

coalition of
rajalis.

.

the Tartar invader than he hastened Ixick to India at the head of a formidable

army.

Anangpal meanwhile, anticipating the return of the

exertions,

and succeeded

common enemy
into the

in forming a powerful coalition of rajahs against the

of their freedom and their

faith.

Their united forces brought

Punjab a larger army than had ever been seen in

sultan seemed to hesitate

;

it

Even the

before.

and instead of advancing with the headlong courage

which he usually displayed, began
Peshawer.

had made

sultan,

to

entrench himself in the vicinity of

This sign of weakness added greatly to the strength of the confede-

who were daily joined by new auxiliaries, and received large supplies of
money from all quarters, even the Hindoo women selling their jewels and
meltinof down the gold of their other ornaments to assist in what was regarded
rates,

as a holy war.

Mahmood

kept within his entrenchments, well aware that

attacked, his position

would give him a decided advantage; and

Indians, through fear of this, refrained from attacking, their
force could not

if

be long kept together.

The

first

they were
tliat

if

the

immense tumultuary

skirmishes were not to his

advantage, for the Gukkurs, and other mountaineer tribes, rushing impetuously

among

the

knives that

Mahometan
hoi-se

and

cavalry,

riders

made such dexterous

tumbled

to the ground, and, to the

thousands, were despatched in a twinkling.'
'The Gukkurs, Guckers, Gakkars, Guikkers, or
Kahkares (for the name is spelled in all these different
ways, and not always in the same way by the same
author), are first mentioned in the history of the Arab
coiiquests in India, as forming a league with the Afghans, and, in union with them, wrestinij; a tract of
territory from the Rajah of Lahore.
Their e.\|iloit

i

use of their swords

Mahmood

still

number

and

of several

remained motionless,

mentioned in the text seems to indicate that, as their
mode of warfare bore a considerable resemblance to
that for which the Ghorkas of Nepanl have recently
distinguished themselves, they may have had a conimon origin. This, however, is improbable, as their
localities are very remote from each other. The Gukkurs, according to Elphiustone (Cabul, Introduction,

Defeat of

HISTORY OF INDIA.

4G
x.D. :oo5

watching

liis

opportunity.

came

It

arrows and frightened by the

fireballs,

The Hindoos, thinking themselves
and

resistance,

and

hy

deserted

dead upon the

field.

field.

their general, slackened their

time was given them to

The

rest

to his avaricioas

rally,

were so complet<dy

nothing more to do than gather the

The one most gratifying

victory.

turned round and hurried him off the

No

Mahmood had

I.

AnangfjaVs elephant, galled hy the

Ijust.

turned their backs.

ere long 20,000 lay

dispersed that

Tenii)le of

finally

at

[Book

fruits of his

temper was the capture of

the fortified temple of Nagarcote, situated on one of the lower ranges of the

NaKiircoto.

Himalaya.

ground
of

its

It

owed

its

sanctity to

a natural flame which issued from the

and, from the veneration in which

;

position,

was not only

it

was

held, as well as the strength

rich in votive offerings, but

To

depository of the wealth of the adjacent country.

it,

assist

the recent

in

had been withdrawn, and when Sultan Mahmood arrived

struggle, its garrison

before

was the common

he was met only by a crowd of defenceless Brahmins clamorou.sly

The inventory of its treasures was, according to Feri.shta,
700,000 golden dinars, 700 maunds of gold and silver plate, 200 maunds of
pxire gold in ingots, 2000 maunds of un wrought silver, and 20 maunds of pearl
The value mast have been fabuloas, and justifies
corals, diamonds, and rubies.
Ferishta's assertion, that it was greater than ever was collected before into any

imploring mercy.

s,

The

royal treasury.^
Splendid
banquet.

on his return to Ghuznee, gave a triumphal

sultan,

banquet, which was spread out on a spacious plain, and lasted three days.

The

spoils of India, exhibited

made a

on thrones of

gold,

and

and

tables of gold

silver,

display rivalling the utmost that has been told of Oriental wealth

i. p. 100) " once possessed the whole country between the Indus and the Hydaspes ( Jailum), but have
been driven out by the Siks." In his map, they are represented as occupying a considerable tract of the
Punjab east of the town of Attock, in the direction of
On his homeward journey lie passed
Cashmere.
through their country, in consequence of a letter of
invitation which he received from the .sultan, accompanied by a vast quantity of grapes, which tlieregrow
Shortly after passing Rawil Plndee, lie made
wild.
a circuit of about forty miles, and saw "the ruins of
some Gucker towns destroyed by the Siks, and those
of some others, still more ancient, which had suffered
the same fate from the Mussulmans." The only other

vol.

information he gives respecting them

is,

that they

"have still a high military reputation." Ferishta,
in narrating the exploit of the Gukkurs in their encounter with Mahmood, says, that they "repulsed
and followed them ko closely, that
no less than 30,000 Gukkurs, with their heads and
feet bare, and armed with various weapons, pene-

his light troops,

trated into the

Mahometan

lines,

when

a dreadful

carnage ensued, and 5000 Mahometans in a few
minutes were slain." Price, in his Chronological Retrospect, or

Memoirs of

hommedan

Historji, vol.

the
ii.

Principal Events in

borrowini,'from Ferishta, improvesupon his narrative,
it

still

of

more

Mahmood, and

"In

spite of the circmnspection

in the heat of the action, a

body

of 1000 Kahkares or Guikkers, bareheaded and barefooted, variously and strangely armed, passed the

entrenchments on both flanks
astonishing fury

among the

:

and

falling in

with

cavalry, proceeded with

the desperation of savages, and with their swords

and knives, to cut down and maim both the horse
and his rider, until almost in the twinkling of an
eye, between 3000 and 4000 men had fallen victims
to the rage of these infuriated maniacs."'
That
the}' had the cunning and vindictiveness of savages
will become apparent in the coufse of the narrative,
from an assassination which some of them committed
under singular circumstances; but that they were
under regular government, and ruled by princes
who occupied no mean place among their contemporaries, may be inferred from the fact that they
were recognized by the title of sultan, and that the
daughter of one of them was considered a fit match
for the celebrated Jelalu-din, son of the King of
Kharism, and the only prince in whom Gheniihis
Khan found a formidable opponent. See Bri^'g's

—

Ferishta, vol. iv. p. 415-418.

Ma-

p. 284, while professedly

apparently for the purpose of making

graphic, and says,

and

'

ling.

The value of the

only 11
is

about 9«. sterand the Persian
The latter seems to be the one which

Tlie Indian
lbs.

here intended.

.;olden dinar is

maund weighs

80,

\

Chap.

SULTAN MAHMOOD'S CONQUESTS.

II.]

Mahmood

splendoiu'.

forgot his avarice on the occasion

;

47

and while mjTiads

a.d.

loio.

of spectators were luxuriously feasted, splendid presents were bestowed on merit,

and

liberal

alms given to the poor.

The beginning of the year 1010 was employed by Sultan Mahmood
conquest of Ghor, situated among the branches of the Hindoo Koosh
Herat, but before the year closed he

For some succeeding

India.

is

in the

east of

again found pursuing his conquests in

years, his operations there

and interrupted by an important expedition

Suitan
comiuests
"' ^"'^'^^

were somewhat desultory

to Transoxiana, dm-ing

which he

extended his west frontier to the Caspian; but in 1017, determined no longer

he set out at the head of an army of 100,000

to confine himself to the Punjab,
foot

and 20,000

horse, for the purpose of penetrating into the basin of the

Ganges, and thus opening up a

way

into the very heart of Hindoostan.

ing from Peshawer, he kept close to the mountains

and then turning suddenly south, made

explained, took precedence of
writers,

at present, as

all

the other Rajahs of Hindoostan,

Hindoo and Mahometan,

magnificent of Indian

cities,

but

his family

most ffimous
diflferent

Mahometan

seats of

him.self

He

Hindoo

outrage on humanity

acknowledged

have been the largest and most
submission of the rajah,

upon

his mercy, left

it

it

who

uninjured,

next bent his steps towards Aluttra, one

The treatment it experienced
During twenty days of plunder,

superstition.

and licentiousness had their

was

is

unnecessary to give any description of

from that of Canouge.

fixnaticism

to

witli the abject

and threw

after a short stay of three days.'

was very

it is

Mahmood, delighted

came out with
of the

unexpected appearance before

— From Daniell's Oriental Sceiiorv.

Ruins at Canouoe.

all

he passed the Jumna,

This great capital, the rajah of which, for some reason not well

Canouge.

by

his

till

March-

perpetrated.

full

swing, and every kind of

In the midst of these horrors, Mahmood,

while struck with the maijnificence of the buildings, divided his thoughts between

them and the immense sums which
to the
'

governor of Ghuznee a

letter,

it

Its ruins are

now surrounded with

cost to erect them,

and

Nvi'ote

of which the following very characteristic

This once magnificent city has long since fallen

to decay.

must have

jungle,

and once formed a place of retreat for desperadoes
of all kinds.

jr«ttra

plundered.

A.D. 1022.

OF INDIA.

11IS'|-()|;V

•t'S

passage has been preserved:

— "Here there are a thfjusand

millions of dinars; nor could such another

two

M.iiionietan
'"

luOia""

is

spoil

and above 5000

respectively in 1022 and 102-3, the second only

a Mahometan garrison was, for the

it

beyond the Indus.

whose

several other

captives.

the two next Indian expeditions of Sultan

<Jiii'hig

coastructed und<'r a jxM'iod

waste a large extent of country, and then returned to Ghuznee, with

an incalculable am')unt of

Of

h»e

Mahmood stormed

After leaving Muttra,

centuries."'

town.s, laid

riist

as finn as the

likely that this city has attained its present condition but at the expense of

many
of

e«lifices

I.

innumerable temples; nor

faith of the faitliful, inost of thcin iiiarhle, besides
it

flJooK

Mahmood and

place

is

deserving of notice, becau.se

first

time, permanently stationed

This unenviable distinction belongs to the city of Lahore,

Jeipal

rajah,

Mahmood, which took

the

II.,

Anangpal,

of

submitting

after

to

some time on friendly terms with him, was tempted

living for

in an evil hour to

throw

have been

was the

foreseen,

successor

The

off his allegiance.

which might

result,

easily

were forthwith

loss of all his territories, whicii

annexed to Ghuznee.
Capture and
somtiauth.

We

liave

now

arrived at Sultan

Mahmood's

generally reckoned as his twelfth, and has

though

its political results

last expedition to India.

made more

were not important.

noise than

Its destined goal

all

It is

the

rest,

was Somnauth,

one of the most celebrated seats of Hindoo superstition, situated near the shore

To

of the Arabian Sea, in the south of the peninsula of Gujerat.

this expedi-

fanaticism and the love of plunder appear to have been the actuating

tion,

The way from Ghuznee to Somnauth lay for hundreds of miles
through a parched sandy desert. The army, whose numbers are not stated, set
motives.

out in Septembei',

1024<,

and reached Mooltan

camels had been provided

;

and

expedition

For

transport, 20,000

had moreover been ordered

as the soldiers

carry as large a supply as possible
difficulties of

in October.

of provisions,

and

water,

forage,

to

the

the desert were surmounted without any serioas disaster, and the

made

its

The

appearance in the cultivated country around Ajmeer.

Hindoos, though aware of the threatened attack upon their temple, had calcu
lated on a different route,
resistance, that their

and the

city of

Mahmood
easily

and were, in consequence,

only safety was in

Ajmeer was given up

have made himself master of

reached.

It

was

with the mainland.

it,

unprepared

for

The usual devastation

followed,

Continuing his

progi-ess,

to plunder.

entered Gujerat, and arrived at Anhulwara,

on higher game, and refused

was

flight.

so totally

for the rajah

to be turned aside

had

from

He might

its capital.

fled

;

At

it.

but he was intent
lencrth

Somnauth

situated on a peninsula, which a fortified isthmus connected

Here he was met by a

of the god, and menaced

him with

herald,

who

'

it

and implore

Brigg's Ferishta, vol.

its help.

i

him

in the

name

]\Iahmood only answered with

destruction.

a shower of arrows, and cleared the walls of defenders,
to prostrate themselves before

defied

p.

who

hastened to the idol

Meantime the

besiegers

.53.

•

Chap.

SOMNAUTH SACKED.

II.]

4.9

when the defenders returned and
unable to make good a footing, were forced

advanced, and had nearly effected an entrance,
fouglit so furiously, that their enemies,

The next day the attack was

to retire.

repeated,

The

was the same.

more

propitiously for the defenders, for several native chiefs having vuiited

tiieir

had advanced

forces,

new enemy was
and seemed

The

disposed of

day opened

third

Tiie attack could not be continued

to the rescue.

battle

1024.

and assumed the form of a
still

general assault, but the result

ad.

till

this Somnautu

which ensued was furiously contested,

at one time about to be decided in favour of the

Hindoos by the

sudden arrival of the Rajah of Anhulwara with a large body of fresh troops.

The Mahometans, who had previously been unable

now began

their ground,

sultan, recm-ring to

do more than maintain

to

and a general route was imminent, when the
a device which had succeeded with him on other occasion.s,
to waver,

prostrated himself in presence of his army, and then, as if confident that his

prayer had been heard, leaped to his horse, raised the war cry, and rushed into
tlie

thickest of the fight.

His

ashamed not

troops,

to follow

master would lead, followed close upon his track, and bore

down

before

all

moment was passed, and they had gained a com[)lete
No further attempt was made to defend the temple, and the defenders,

The

them.

where such a

victory.

critical

number

Mahmood, in the com\se of his
plunderings, had seen the interior of many Hindoo temples, but the magnificence
of Somnauth was so surpassing that it filled him with wonder.
The interior,
whose lofty roof was supported by fifty-six pillars curiou.sly carved and glittering
with precious stones, received its light, not from the sun, but from a lamp which
was suspended in its centre by a golden chain. The real object of worship at
Somnauth was simply a cylinder of stone, but Ferishta takes no notice of it,
to the

of 4000, took to their boats.

and says that the

idol,

15 feet in height, but six of them .sunk beneath the

Mahmood

sm-face, stood opposite the entrance.

when

but hesitated
to

spare

and

it,

offering

an immense ransom.

known

he struck the idol with his mace.

the blow,

till

at once ordered its destruction,

the Brahmins threw themselves at his feet imploring

exclaiming that he would rather be
idols,

the idol broke a.sunder.

It

and

The

delighted.

ransom which the

had

priests

as a breaker than as a seller of

His followers

in.stantly followed

was hollow, and

disclosed

and was regarded by him and

up

diamonds

Mahmood was

it.

treasure obtained far exceeded •the

offered,

him

After a momentary pause,

and other jewels of immense value hidden within
surprised

its ceiebrat-

equally

amount of

his followei-s

from the Prophet in return for the zeal which they had displayed in

as a gift
his cause.

Two
1^
^r ^

pieces of the idol

One of the

latter

sixteenth century,

was

were sent to

in the palace

when

]\Iecca

and Medina, and two to Ghuznee.
1

and another

Ferishta wi'ote his history.

1

•

1

1

at the

grand mosque in the

It is

somewhat remarkable

that he says nothing of the gates of the tem})le, which, according to a prevalent tradition,

were

also carried to

Ghuznee, and ultimately formed one of the

'

Vol.

I.

7

Tradition as
tothegatesof

somnauth.

L

m

HISTORY OF INDIA.

50
AD.

1024.

trophies placed on Sultan Mahinood's
consid(;rable

Tlie Rllence of Ferislita

douht on the authenticity of the tradition;

been there in his time, and

«

tfjrnb.

[Book

if there,

1.

throws

for the gates should liave

he certainly would have mentioned them.

Be

it

may, the

was

so fiiTnly

this as

tradition

when the
army
finally

believed, that
J

-k-

British

quitted Cabool, in 1842,

the gates were brought

away
;

triumph,

in

and

Lord Ellenboroujfh, then
Governor-general of India,

made them the

ject of a very

unchristian,

sub-

pompous,

and impolitic

proclamation.'

Mahmood, on
turn,

his re-

stopped for some

time at Anhulwara, with
which,

as

well

as

the

surrounding countrv", he

was
he

so
is

much

pleased that

said to have

had

some thoughts of adopting
Gates of Somnavth.

it

Many

— From Hart's Afghan Scenery.

as a

MahmooiVs
projects.

his mind,

but they

new

setting up a

all

capital.

other magnificent

projects
Sultan

new

passed tlirough

vanished in smoke, and he contented himself with

The person

rajah in Gujerat.

selected

was an anchoret of

the ancient royal stock, and seems to have recommended himself to ^lahmood
as the person

most likely to yield him implicit submission.

Another member

of the royal stock thought himself better entitled to the rajahship, and, to

prevent a disputed succession, his person was secured.

AMien Mahmood was

leaving Gujerftt, the anchoret rajah requested that his competitor might be
delivered up to

him

;

request was granted.

holy a

man

and, on the assiu-ance that his

The

hj-pocrite

life

woiild be spared, the

kept his promise to the

to be guilty of shedding the blood of

any

ear.

He was

living creature.

too

He

only dug a hole, in which he meant to have immured his prisoner, and regaled
'

Fergusson, in his

Hand-Book of

says that these gates are

the

wood

7iot

Architecture,

of sandal wood, but of

of the deodar pine tree;

therefore the

having been the gates of the
The decorations
temple at Somnaiith is wrong.
tradition of

tlieir

bear no resemblance to Hindoo work; and as the
ornaments are similar to those of the mosque of Ebn

Touloun at Cairo, they show the same date of conand that the like ornamentation was used
at the e.xtreme ends of the Moslem empire.
struction,

—

HAP.

SULTAN MAHMOOD.

II.]

By

ear with his groans.

lis

a

wliirl of fortune the position of the parties

and the anchoret, deposed from

reversed;

51

his rajahship,

was consigned

was

A D

1030.

to the

while the throne was occupied by his intended victim.

hole,

Though Mahmood had made his first passage across the desert without loss,
He had employed Hindoo guides, who kept
he was less fortunate in returning.
the army wandering for three days and nights over desolate tracts, where
Numbers of the troops died raving
neither forage nor water could be found.
mad, from the intolerable heat and

Mahmood, suspecting that

thirst.

had not erred, but led him wilfully astray,

him a

wrunof from

confession that he

])ut

Passage of
the desert.

the guides

one of them to the torture, and

was

one of the priests of Somnauth, and had

by misleading the army, to
destruction, and thereby obtain

sought,

insm-e

its

a rich

revenue.

On

the

homeward march, Mahmood was

greatly harassed

by a

tribe of Juts,

who

are

described as occupying a district intersected

by

rivers,

which form numerous

He determined

to chastise

islands.

them; and with

view took up a position at Mooltan,

this

where he ordered 1400 boats to be

S!^i

built,

and armed with iron spikes projecting from

bows and

tiie

them against

sides, to secure

being boarded, as the Juts were particularly
dexterous at this species of warfjire.
series of

A

naval enoragements were fought in
Mahmood's

Pii.i.aks,

Ghlzsee.'

neighbom-hood of the locality where

tlie

Alexander equipped his

fleet

thirteen

struggle the Juts were overpowered,

were carried

off"

Mahmood

After a desperate

centuries before.

and those who had not

fallen in battle

into slavery.

returned in triumph to Ghuznee, but had ceased to

l)e

capable of

Mabmood's
death

enjoying
l>im

off",

for

it,

he was suffering under an excruciating disease, which carried

April 29, 1030, in the sixty-third year of his age, and the thirty-fifth

of his reign.

Two

days before his death, he ordered

stones

which he possessed to be placed before him.

think

how

»

soon he must part with them for ever

The two minars or pillara outside the city of
Ghuznee were erected, aa appears from inscrii)tion8
in Kufic cliaractera upon them, the one nearest the
village of Kozah by Mahmood, the other (nearest
Ghuznee) by Masaood, son of Mahmood. The inscription on Mahmood's pillar is as follows:
" In the name
of God the most merciful
the liigh and mighty Sul'

—

—

,

the melic of Islam, the right

arm

of the state,

;

all

the gold and precious

He wept

with regret to

but he had not the heart to

trustee of the faith, the victory crowned, the patron

of Moslems, the aid of the destitute, the munificence

endowed Malimood (may God glorify
son of Sabaktageen, the champion

his testimony),

of champions,

the emir of Moslems, ordered the construction of

monuments; and of a cerhas been happily and prosperously comJownaJ of Asiatic Society of Beugnl, 1843.

this lofty of loftiest of
taintj- it

jdeted."

-

IIISTOIIV
A.D. loso.

bestcnv

any of tliem

OF

as fiirewell presents,

[liOOK

1NI>IA.

and

sirnply caused

them

1.

to be taken

The next day he ordered a review of the anny, and,
travellin;^ throne, saw all his elephants, camels, horses, and

back to the treasury.
seated on his

chariots pass before him.

and once more burst
corpse,

fesisted his eyes,

The day

into tears.

but could not witisfy his heart,

after, he-

lay on his bed a

lifeless

and an impressive example of the vanity of human wishes.

Avarice, which

Mahraood's
character.

He

was one of

his ruling pa.ssion.s,

incompatible with true greatness

;

and yet

is

generally supixj.sed to be

impossible to deny that Sultan

it is

Malimood, the founder of the Mahometan Indian empire, po.ssessed in a high

many

degree

procured for

He

Great.

otlier

gained signal

ability of his govern-

ment retained them,
with

name of
victories, made

sovereigns the

and by the

conquests,

have

of the qualities which

magnificent

adorned

buildings,

capital

his

and

ke]jt

splendid court, to which he attracted

a

many

of the most distinguished writers of his time.

He must

thus have been a munificent patron

of literature
greatest

and

on his reputation

blots

GoLD AND Silver Coins of Mahmood.'

treatment of Ferdusi.
His

treat-

ment of
Ferdusi.

though one of the

art,

was

his

That celebrated poet

long lived at his court, and was commissioned to write a poem, for which he

was promised

at the rate of a dinar a line.

There can be no doubt that a

golden dinar was understood; but Mahmood, on making pajTnent, had the

meanness to take advantage of the ambiguity in the term, and gave only
silver.

at

its

Ferdusi quitted the court in disgust, and took his revenge by launching
sovereign a stinging
_.
""

satire.

=^s^^^i^

s^—

.

.-d

Mahmood was magnanimous enough

not

only to forgive him, but to endea-

—

vour to make amends for the

by sending him a
was,

past,

rich present.

imfortunately,

It

too late, for

while Mahmood's messencrer enter-

ed at one door, Ferdusi was beinor
carried out on his bier at another.

Mahmood
legislator,
told,
Exterior of Sultan Mahmood's Tomb. — Hart's Afghan Scenery.

ally

made

but several anecdotes are

Avhich

show that he had a

high sense of justice, and occasion-

great sacrifices of personal feeling in administering

anecdotes will bear repetition.

An

it.

One

of these

inhabitant of Ghuznee, unhappy in a hand-

Gold coin of Malimood -weight, 76'8 grains.
On reverse, "MahoA.H. 33-5, British Museum.
'

does not figure as a

med, the apostle of God whom he sent with instruction and the true faith, that he might exalt it above

—

Chap.

—

SULTAN MAHMOOD.

II.]

53

i

1^

lome wife, complained to the king that one of his courtiers,

who had

conceived ad,

io3o.

a passion for her, took forcible possession of his house every night, and turned

him

where he was obliged

into the street,

He had

take his departure.
to

obtain

The

it.

hasten back to
long to wait.

to

remain

till

the intruder chose to

sought redress from the proper judges, and failed summary

sultan, indignant, ordered the

him the first time the
The sultan, on

1*1

man

gross outrage

justice

to say nothing, but to

was

He had

repeated.

not

being informed, wi'apped a loose

and was con-

cloak about him,

On

ducted to the house.

enter-

ing the chamber he found the

A

guilty parties asleep.

He

was bm-ning.
it;

light

extinguished

and then, going up

to the

bed, cut off the adulterer's

at

a

This

stroke.

called for a light,

amining

the

done,

he

and on

ex-

of

the

features

threw himself pros-

adulterer,

trate

head

on the ground, and gave

Interior of Sultan Mahmood's Tomb.'— iiiirt's

Al'ghaii Scenery.

utterance to his joy in thanks-

The audacious manner in which the offence was committed had convinced him that the offender must be one of his sons, or near relatives.
He
had extinguished the light lest natural affection might stay his hand from

giving.

doing justice; and
suspicions

now

that

it

was done, he was

were unfounded, and that he had not been under the necessity of

staining his hands with the blood of one of the

Sultan

Another

rejoiced to find that his

Mahmood

left

members

a will appointing his son

of his o^vn family.

Mahomed

his successor. Musaood

Musaood, Mahomed's twin brother, but born some hours

son,

conceived he had as good a
father's death,

title.

Both sons were absent at the time of

but Mahomed, on his arrival in Ghuznee, was crowned.

later,

their

JMusaood,

however, was the favourite both of soldiers and people, and the household troops

marched

off in a

body

to join him.

A

large force, headed

and composed principally of Hindoo cavalry, was sent in
encounter which took place, the king's party was defeated.

was hastening on to assert
Nishapoor.
all

his claim,

pursuit,

chief,

but in the

Meanwhile Musaood

and was met by the household troops

at

Before actually appealing to arms, he offered to divide the empire,

other creeds, even though unbelievers be adverse

and Ixi. 9). On the
obverse, " Dominion both past and future is of God,
and in that day the Faithful shall rejoice in the aid
of the Lord" (Koran, Surah xxx. 4, 5).
Silver coin

thereto" {Koran, Surah

ix. 33,

—

Mahmood — weight, 50 grains. On the Coins of
the Kings of Ohuzni, by Edward Thomas. Lon. 1848.

of

by an Indian

The inscription, in Kufic characters, on the sarcophagus of Mahmood'a tomb is to the following
efTect
" Jlay there be forgiveness of God, upon
liini who is the great lord, the noble Nizam-u-din
'

:

—

Abul Casim Mahmood, the son of Sebektegin. May
God have mercy upon him." Journal of the Asiatic
Society of Bengal, 1843.

54
A.D. 1030.

hy

ictaininj^ iiien;ly the portions wliich

condition he added
liis

name

sliould

Wcos,

be read

consent; and a civil

In-

[Br^oK

liiin.self

li;ul

I.

The only

conquered.

that in the Khootlja, or puljHc prayer for the soverei^,

within his

first

war broke

out,

own

Mahomed

dominions.

refused to

which tenninated in his overthrow and

According to the barljarous practice of the times, he wa« deprived

capture.

of sight, and imjtrisoned.
Miiaaood's

OF IXniA.

IIIS'I'OKV

able for personal strength.

Musa/jod mounted the throne.

He was

Ferishta says

" his

(vol.

i.

that

p. 98;,

remai'k-

arrow, after

l)er8onal
qualities.

piercing

tiie

mace was

He was

so {)onderou.s, that

distinguished

also

offended his father

The

by

man

no

of his time could

by valour and

his bold

liberality,

and independent

which here we have alone

among

situated

the hills of Cashmere,

It offered to submit,

garrison.

He

palace

at Ghuznee.

and not unfrequently

Of these

relating

took the route for Soorsooty,

summoned

the

di.sposed to grant easy terms,

till

and on arriving at

and he was

it,

seized,

and were then

Enraged at the information, he caused the ditch to be

up with sugar-canes from the adjoining

plantation.s,

planted scaling

The garrison to a man were put to
by storm.
the sword, and all the women and children were enslaved.
In 1036, when a new palace was finished at Ghuznee, containing a golden
throne, studded with jewels, and surmounted with a canopy, in which was a
golden crown, seventy maunds in weight, suspended by a golden chain, and
glistening with jewels, Musaood again set out for India, mainly with the
view of reducing the fort of Hansi, the ancient capital of Sewalik.
The
Indians believed it impregnable; and were confirmed in this belief by their
soothsayers, who assured them that it was not destined ever to fall into
Mahometan hands.
The result falsified their predictions, for in the coiu'se
The treasure found in it was immense.
of six days it was taken by storm.
Musaood next proceeded to Sonput, which he found abandoned. Lea^'ing an
ladders,

New

fort.

with one hand"

Vjearing.

he learned that some Mahometan merchants had been
captives in the

his iron

to do, the first de.serving of notice

an expedition to that country in 1033.

filled

rai.se it

transactions of Musaood's reign are not important.

to India, with
is

and

strongest mail, penetrated the hide of an elepliant;

and took the

ojSicer in

tries

charge of

he had

it,

place

he retraced his

left in his rear,

steps,

taking possession of

all

the coun-

and arrived at Lahore, the government of which

he conferred on his son Modood.
Defeat by

Musaood on

his return

found

occupation in repelling the Seljuks, who,

full

the Seljuks
iinder Togli-

rul Beg.

after passing to the left

bank of the

Jaxartes,

and residing

for

some time

in

Transoxiana, had settled and acquired considerable influence in Khorasan.

While they professed the utmost submission to
stantly

waning with

his lieutenants

his authority,

and ravaging

they were con-

his tenitories.

At

length,

in 1039, Toghrul Beg, a celebrated Seljuk warrior, mustered so strongly, that

Musaood fomid

was fought

it

necessary to take the field in person.

at Zendecan, near Merv,

The

decisive battle

and ended, in consequence of the desertion

Chap.

of

SULTANS MODOOD, AND MUSAOOD

II.]

After endeavouring to

Turkish followers, in Musaood's complete defeat.

liis

collect the

wreck of

awaited him

and, unable to repress the mutinous spirit of his troops, he began

;

to look to India as a place of refuge,

being able to retrieve his

No

ca})ital.

and

finally

withdrew

to

in the

it

hope of

Anarchy now reigned uncontrolled

affairs.

in his

own guards attempted to
army immediately followed,

sooner had he crossed the Indus than his

plunder the treasury

;

a general insui'rection of the

and Musaood, being formally
in prison,

was

A

restored.

depo.sed, his brother

Mahomed, whom he had kept
was

sovereign deprived of sight

totally unfitted to

rule in such troublous times,

and he devolved the administration on

Ahmed, one of whose

was

acts

first

to put

Musaood

Modood, son of Musaood, had, as we have
Lahore, but was at Balkh

moment he hastened

when

his father

east with his army,

seen,

his son

to death in lO+O.

been appointed governor of

was murdered.

and crushed

Ghuznee

his rivals.

of Delhi,

working on the

exertions.

At the head

in

1

i9,

He

in

had

Ghuznee and recovered

his absence;

and the Rajah

them

feelings of the Hindoos, roased

unwonted

to

army he recovered Nagarcote, overran
siege to Lahore, which, however, made good

of a powerful

great part of the Punjab, and Laid
defence.

still

who had married Toghrul

turned their attention more to the west, and Modood,

Begs grand-daughter, both maintained himself
Transoxiana.
In India advantage was taken of

Modood

Without losing a

lay open to the inroads of the Seljuks, but these formidable intruders

its

a.d. iiu.

Here new troubles

army, he returned to Gliuznee.

his

55

II.

Modood, meanwhile, was imable personally

to interfere

;

and died

without again visiting India.

left

an infant

son, wiio

was murdered by

his uncle

Abul

Has.san.

A

Musaood u.

by great crimes, now took place, and no
when Musaood II. ascended the throne. Durins:

series of usurpations, usually effected

name

of note occurs

till

1098,

the sixteen years of his reign, which ended with his death in 1114', he distin-

guished himself more as a legislator than a warrior, though his generals carried
his

arms beyond the Ganges.

On

the death of

Musaood

For some years
II.,

his court resided at Lahore.

another usurpation took

j)lace

in the person

The

of his son Arslan, who, to secure the throne, imprisoned his brothers.

unnatural act did not avail him; and he was, in his turn, deposed

by Behram,

Behrama
reign.

the only brother

who had

thirty-four years,

Behram's

e.scaped imprisonment.

was not more long than

brilliant,

reign,

which lasted

and he might have

trans-

mitted his power unimpaired, had he not been guilty of a crime which brought
its

pimishment along with

It will

I

it,

and

led to the extinction of the Gliuznee dyna.sty.

be necessary to go back a few years in order to explain the circumstances.

The

territory of Ghor, situated, as has already

northern ramifications of the Hindoo Koosh,
their original seat.

^ Arabs, and a

At a comparatively
it

regarded by the Afghans as

early period

large ])ortion of its inhabitants

the Arab dynasties were overthrown,

is

been mentioned, among the

it

was invaded by the

embraced Mahometanism.

resumed

its

When

independence, and

pi*e-

HISTORY OF INIMA.

5G
A.I). ni'<

servcfl

it

even while Sulbiii Muliiiiood was extending

Two

side.

generations

was

It

lii.s

I.

eonqueHts on every

was treacherously seized by Modood, and became

after, it

a dependency of Ghuznee.

who

[Book

still,

however, governed by

its

own

princes,

One

lived almost on terms of equality with the Sultans of Ghuznee.

of

these princes, called Kutb-u-din Sur, had married a daugliter of Sultan Behram.
Uehram'.s

This affinity might have been supposed to bring the houses of Ghuznee and

treaoliery to
tlif

houxo

of Ghor.

Ghor

most friendly

into the

It turned out otherwise.

relations.

and Behram, having obtained poaseasion of the person of

arose;

which he had acquired

sullied the reputation

brothers, Seif-u-din

death

among
His

The}'^ at

Kutb-u-din Sur had two

once flew

arms

t^j

avenge his

to

advancing upon Ghuznee, obliged Behram to seek an asylum

and,

;

and Ala-u-din.

his son-in-law,

and humanity by

for jastice

poisoning him, or putting him to an open death.

Differences

the mountains of Kerman.

Ghuznee, and

Seif-u-din, the elder brother, established him.self in

.sent

back

exinilsion.

most of

his army,

He

vmder Ala-u-din, to Feruz Coh, his former capital

thought he had gained the affections of the inhabitants, and only learned his
mistake when
to the

it

was

too late to

remedy

it.

dynasty to which Ghuznee owed

and, as soon as the winter
tion with Ghor,

Behram made

u-din, totally unprepared,

support from

had

tlie

A

strong attachment was

all its

prosperity and

prevent

set in so severely as to

his appearance at the

was about

inhabitants induced

to retire,

him

to

its
all

still

splendour;

communica-

head of an army.

when

felt

Seif-

treacherous promises of

march out and

risk a battle.

It

was no sooner commenced than the greater part of his troops passed over to
his enemy.
For a time he was able, by the aid of a small body of his o^v•n
people

who remained

stanch, to

maintain an unequal contest, but was at

length wounded, overpowered, and taken prisoner.
!

Behram, instead of availing

himself of the opportunity to wipe off the stain which he had brought on his
reputation

by the murder of the

eldest brother, acted

Seif-u-din, after being ignominiously

paraded round the

more

still

city,

atrociously.

and subjected

to

every species of indignity, was put to death by torture.
Ala-u-din, the third brother,

His
defeat 1)y

Ala

u-diii.

geance.

still

remained, and set out burning for ven-

In his eagerness, his preparations were imperfect

in insult or because the blood already shed

had

;

and Behram,

satiated him,

made an

either

offer of

was indignantly rejected, and the battle immediately began to rage.
Behram's superiority of numbers made the issue for some time doubtful, but
at last, when left almost alone, he turned his back and fled from the field.

peace.

Extinction
of

The

It

victor immediately advanced on Ghuznee,

Ghuzna-

vide dyuasty

ance.

Its

doom was

sealed.

which cordd

For three or seven days

(for

offer

no

resist-

accounts varj")

fire

and sword continued the work of destruction, and all the proud monuments
which attested the power, wealth, and splendour of the Ghuznavide kings were
laid in ruins.

had found

it.

Behram hastened to seek an asylum in India, but
His son Khosru was more fortunate, and reached

died before he
Lahore, where

iAP.

AND

ALA-U-DIN

IT.]

SUCCESSORS.

he was received with acclamations, and fixed the seat of
reigned

f

till

1160,

and was succeeded by

his son

liis

He

government.

\ d

iivs.

Khosru Melik, at whose death,

wreck of the Ghuznavide empire passed to the house of Ghor,
and the Ghuznavide dynasty became extinct.
in

186, the last

1

The two
resume

to

it,

last reigns
is

it

have anticipated the course of the narrative.

In order

necessary to return to Ala-u-din, and trace the history of the

house of Ghor through him and his successors.
After the signal vengeance taken for the murder of his two brothers, Ala-udin acted as

if

the heroic part of his

life

had been played out; and,

retiring to

the old Ghorite capital of Feruz Cob, he followed his natural bent

by giving
himself up to pleasure.
He found it even more perilous than war would have
been, for the Seljuks, under Sultan Sanjar, during an invasion of Ghor and
Ghuznee, made him prisoner.
He was soon, however, set at liberty, and
reinstated in his dominions, which he held for four years,
Sliortly before,
u-din,

confidence

set

them

was not

at liberty,

and replaced them

misplaced, but he
a.ssassin.

had reigned

He was

little

His

more than a year when he

succeeded, in 1157,

by the above

cousins,

ruled jointly and, contrary to the general rule in such cases, harmoniously.

attention to the east; and, from consolidating the

sometimes been thought to have a better

title

— Shahab-u-din

Mahometan power

gave

his

there,

has

even than Sultan Mahmood,

be regarded as the true founder of the Mahometan empire in India.

In 1176, he took the town of Ooch, situated at the point where the rivers
of the Punjab, united into one stream under the

bank

left
it

(^l^uliL

""'"'"'

but this

;

in their governments.

Gheias-u-din superintended the territories in the west

to

by

he had imprisoned his two nephews, Gheias-u-din and Shahab-

by the hand of an

who

udin

his death in 11.56.

with the view of securing the succession to Seif-u-din, his son

young prince

fell

till

.\ia

of the Indus.

proved disastrous.

name

of the Punjnud, join the

In 1178 he undertook an expedition to Gujerat, but

His next expedition, after he had marched twice to

Lahore, and obliged Khosru Melik, the last of the Ghuznavides, to submit to a

disadvantageous treaty, and give his son as a hostage, was to Scinde.
completely overrun

it,

he once more attacked Kho.sru Melik.

Having

This prince,

assuming the courage of despair, made an alliance with the Gukkm's, and opened
the

campaign with the capture of one of

diu, niuler the

pretext that he

his

was about

enemy's strongest

to

march

for

forts.

Shahab-u-

Khorasan, where

affairs

nad assumed an alarming appearance, increased his army, and at the same
time

made

overtures of peace to Khosru Melik, sending back his son,

whom

he

The stratagem succeeded. Khosru
Melik, thrown completely off" his guard, set out to welcome his returning son,
and was surpi'ised by Shaliab-u-din, who surrounded his camp with a strong
body of cavalry, and took him prisoner. The last of the Ghuznavides and his
held as a hostage, in proof of his sincerity.

family were sent to Gheias-u-din,
after

a long confinement, they were

Vol.

I.

who imprisoned them
all.

in a castle.

Here,

put to death.
8

Exploits of
"
di'n.'^

HISTORY OF

r^s

AD,

[Book

INI>I.\.

Sh;iliab-u-din, being tlius left in India witliout a

ll'.il.

mined

to extend his conquests.

difficulty,

It

as his army, diviwn Irom the warlike province of the west,

have been considered more than a match
to

The

it.

cessfully

rival, deter-

he did not anticipate much

prol^aljle

is

Mahometan

struggle, however,

was

for

I.

must

any that the Hindoos could oppose
Several of the Indian rajahs suc-

severe.

maintained their ground, while few of them yielded without a manful

resistance.

In this war of independence the Rajpoots particularly distinguished them-

Hindoo
struggle
for iiulo-

paiulence.

Belonging to the military

selves.

bom

were

soldiers,

and lived under a kind of military feudal system, not unlike

that of the clans in the

While

had

eacli chief

rajah as their

Highlands of Scotland and some other

common

some disadvantages.

head,

and were thus in the

At

most favourable

for

same time they laboured under

tiie

them

made

again.st political wile.s,

it difficult

and an indolence and love

keep them under regular

to

di.scipline.

Near the time of Shahab-u-din,' Hindoostan was mainly composed

Dissensions

among the
rajahs.

po.sition

Living almost secluded, they had a simplicity of manners

to protect

of freedom which

countrie.s.

his hereditary territory, all the chiefs held under the

united action and individual exertion.

little fitted

Hindoo system, they

class in the original

leading sovereignties

— Delhi, Canouge, Ajmeer, and

On

Callinjer.

of four

a failure of

heirs in the third, the heir-apparent of the first

had been adopted, and thus

Delhi and Ajmeer were united under one head.

This arrangement had given

who thought he ought to have been
when cordial union among the rajahs

great offence to the Rajah of Callinjer,

adoption; and thus,

preferred in the

The

constituted their only safety, considerable dissension prevailed.

disunion,

thus dangex'ous to them, was most opportune for Shahab-u-din, who, taking

advantage of

it,

made

on the newly amalgamated, but by no

his first attack

means firmly cemented rajahships of Delhi and Ajmeer.

He

1191, with the capture of Batinda.
scarcely left

when he

confederation,

the
Their victory over

Shahab-u-

enemy on

commenced

placed a garrison in

it;

in

but had

learned that the Rajah of Delhi, at the head of a powerful

was advancing against

with an army of 200,000 horse and

it

In retracing his steps to relieve the garrison, he was met by

3000 elephants.

Il

It

the banks of the Soorsooty, about eighty

immediately joined

battle,

mUes from

Delhi.

He

but with forces so inferior that both wings, being

outflanked, bent backwards tiU they

met

in the rear,

and gave

his

army

the

din.

form of a
that he
cut

was advised

down

lines,

While standing within

circle.

to provide for his safety.

This so enraged him that he

the messenger sent with the advice, and rushed into the enemy's

making

terrible slaughter.

The

smote, drove his elephant right against

time to frustrate
'

centre, affair's looked so desperate

its

it,

Ferishta gives his full

Mahomed. Ghoory, and

Rajali of Delhi, observing

him

;

and struck a blow with
name

speak.s of

as Moiz - n - din
him under the name

of

where he

but Shahab saw his intention in
his lance

Mahomed Ghoory,

which knocked out a
not as joint sovereign, but

onlv as the general of Gheias-u-din.

CnAP.

number of

The rajah returned the thrust by

his teeth,

He was

which pierced Shahab's right arm.
which his army had
at Lahore,

now

with

he returned to Ghor, and disgraced the

filled

them

of his

whose

officers to

to

walk round the

with barley, about their necks.

After a year, spent partly in pleasure and festivity, and partly in preparation
for

new campaign, Shahab

a

from Ghuznee at the head of 120,000

set out

shahab-a
veugeanco.

chosen horse, and took the road to India without disclosing his intentions.

At Peshawer an aged
trust

ill

much

sage, prostrating himself before him, said

the time of

among

my defeat

in

us."

On

my

Shahab

Hindoostan

but in sorrow and anxiety
recover

—

king,

"

we

thy conduct and wisdom, but as yet thy design has been a subject of

speculation

;

I

replied

— "Know,

old man, that since

have never slumbered

I Jiave, therefore,

honour from those

lost

in ease,

nor waked

determined with this army to

idolaters, or die in the attempt."

arriving at Lahore, he sent an ambassador to Ajmeer, offering, as the New

only alternative,

war or

conversion.

The rajah returned an indignant answer,

.\JMEER, from near the Gogra Pass.'— From Dixon's Sketch of Mairwara.

and immediately applied for succour to
readily granted

victory again
l)rinces,

their

;

and an army equal

all

to that

encamped on the same

"who had sworn by

1192.

off the field,

Having recovered

almost wholly deserted.

mouth-bags,

horses'

an arrow, ad.

on the point of falUng, when one

desertion he attributed his discomfiture, com])elling
city

letting tiy

up behind him and bore him

of his faithful attendants leaped

wound

59

SHAHAB-U-DIN,

II.]

the neighbouring princes.

It

was

which had recently given them the
In this army were 150 Rajpoot

field.

the water of the Ganges that they would concpicr

enemies or die mart}Ts to their

While the camps were separated

faith."

V

'
Ajmeer was occasionally the resilience of the
emperor, .Jehan>;eer, who was here visited, in IGIO,

by Sir Thomas Roe, the En;;lish ambassador.
In
1818 it was ceded to the British, and was then in a
ruinous state, from which, however, it soon recovered,

and

is

India.

now one

On

of the liandsonie.st cities in British

thesuniniit of the

stands a fortress,

named

in circumference,

hill,

in the back ground,

two miles
capable of containing 12U0 men,
Taraglinr, nearly

but fast going to decay.— /?n/f;'ia/ Gazetteer,

60
AD.

lur.

by

insTOIlY OF INDI.x.
Soorsooty, the Indian princes sent a measage to

tlie

if

in safety.

He was

humble

so

and, in the midst of

in

surprise; and,

tlifir joy,

gave themselves up to revelry.

confusion, they

tlie least

managed

continued the contest

till

near sunset,

to

to

Shahab,

in

when Shahab,
steel

Notwithstanding

and had

placing hiraself at the

armour,

The Indians were

do but slaughter them.

for a

in the camj) of

to bring their line into tolerable order,

which carried the day.

Mahometans had nothing

was

river,

notice of his approach.

head of 12,000 chosen horsemen, covered with
charge,

liini

it

would produce, prepared

by the early dawn, having forded the

the Indians before they had

HiiMioo

warning

answer that they at once attributed

his

anticipation of the effect wliich his mes,sage

tlie

Slialial>,

I.

he persisted, but at the same time offering to allow him to retreat

of his fate

fear,

fBooK

made a

and the

panic-struck,

Many

rajahs

furious

fell

on the

the Rajah of Delhi and Ajmeer was taken prisoner, and aftenvards

field;

The immediate

put to death in cold blood.

were the

results of the victory

surrender of the forts Soorsooty, Samana, Koram, and Hansi, and the capture
of Ajmeer, where

all

in arms were put to the sword,

and the

rest reserved for

slavery.

Shahab next turned

On

sents.

his

arms towards Delhi, but was propitiated by pre-

his return to Ghuznee, he

marched north to the Sewalik Mountairts,

plundering and destroying wherever he went.
Exi)ioits

Eibuk, the

officer

whom

he had

left

with a strong detachment in Koram, took

the fort of Meerut and the city of Delhi.

We

Indian

The

In the

shall afterwards see

1193, he fixed the

latter, in

and compelled the surrounding

seat of his government,

Mahometanism.

After he had reached home,

districts to

him make a prominent

embrace
figure in

affairs.

restless

spirit

Ghuznee, and he

is

of

Shahab would not allow him

to remain

His proceedings were not

soon again found in India.

unimportant, but the personal share which he had in them
of in consequence of the prominence given to Eibuk,

Viceroy of India, and to
are mainly ascribed.

whom

During

his future military

this visit to his

long at

is

whom

almost lost sight

he had

now made

achievements in this country

Indian dominions, he defeated

the Rajah of Canouge and Benares, took the fort of A.sny, where the rajah had

up

laid

idols in

with

his treasure;

and afterwards, entering the

more than a thousand

spoil, his

city of Benares,

broke the

After his return to Ghuznee, laden

temples.

conquests and \dctories were continued

by Eibuk. who,

in

1

194,

defeated and slew the Rajah of Hemraj, and took revenge in the capital of

Gujerat for the defeat which his master had there sustained.

In 1195 Shahab, retui'ning once more to Hindoostan, took Byana, and sent
the
His d«fMt
tena."'^'

new governor whom he

after a long siege.

appointed against Gwalior, which

The following year

Eibiik sustained in Rajpootana

is

chiefly

—a defeat

shut himself up in the fort of Ajmeer

;y-ielded

only

remarkable for a defeat which

so severe that he

Having again

was compelled

to

recruited his strength

CiiAP.

lie

SHAHAB-U-DIN.

ir.]

assumed the

offensive,

and took the

dencies,

During these

reduced the capital of Gujerat, with

Shahab received

Gheias-u-din, and returned to Ghuznee,

all its

depen- ad

intelligence of the death of his brother

where he was crowned

sole sovereign.

Y\'iien

he attained this additional elevation, his good fortune seemed to forsake

liiia

During a struggle with the King of Kharism, he sustained a defeat

wliich cost

him the

loss of all his

army

annihilation of a noble

Dn

was

left

treasure,

and

siege,

and was not

Gliuznee, he found

allow him to enter

;

fort,

of Samarcand.

in possession of one of his

it

the King of
'^'"*™"'

but had no

suffered to return to his dominions

Khan

he had paid a large ransom to the

an

so complete

simhabde-

with scarcely a hundred men.

escaping from the field of battle, he shut himself up in a

means of sustaining a
till

elephants and

that he

i.'Oj

and Budaoon.

forts of CaUinjer, Kalpi,

events,

61

own

officers,

and he was, in consequence, obliged

On amving
who would

at

not

to continue his route to

Having here been reinforced, he retm'ned to Ghuznee, and regained
possession.
Meanwhile, the Gukkurs had been laying waste the country around
Lahore.
They continued to ravage with impunity, for Shahab's disasters
left him without the means of chastising them, till a treaty which he had
concluded wnth the King of Kharism left him fully at leisure to bring all
Mooltan.

into

his forces

the field

against

He

them.

accordingly again set out for

and placed the Gukkurs between two

India,

Eibuk marched against them from the

west, while

fallen into their hands,

dispersed.

It

was

rescued,

and

engaging them on the

fires,

Lahore, which had

east.

their plundering hordes

would seem, however, that they, not long

after,

were entirely

again collected in

Ravages
of the

great

numbers at the

minating war

again.st the

and cut

crueltie.s,

and Mooltan.

off the

to
his

mountains of Sewalik, carried on an exter-

Mahometans, on

whom

cukkuw.

they exercised unheard-of

communication between the provinces of Peshawer

Their incm'sions continued

captive, con.sented to

much

foot of the

till

embrace Mahometanism.

influence with his people, that

many

their king,

On

who had been made

being sent home, he had so

of them, to

whom

religion appeai-s

have been very much a matter of indifference, were easily induced to adopt

new

Many

creed.

others,

not so easily pereuaded, yielded to

force,

and

Islamism became the prevailing religion of the mountaineers both east and

west of the Indus.

The

affairs

of India being settled, Shahab, in the end of 1205, set out from

Lahore to return to Ghuznee.

He was

meditating an expedition beyond the

Oxus, and had given orders to throw a bridge across
its

banks.

Meanwhile he had only advanced on

his

it,

and

collect

an ami}' on

homeward journey

as far

A

body of twenty Gukkurs, who had lost some of their relatives
during the war, and had entered into a conspiracy to avenge their death
by assassinating him, had been tracking his footsteps, and watching their
as the Indus.

opportunity.

Owing

to the excessive heat,

he had ordered the screens which

surrounded the royal tents in the form of a square to be struck, in order to

Assassina

hab-u-ain.

HISTORY OF IXniA.

62
A.D. 1200.

obtain a IVccr circulation of

a view of the interior so far

In the dead of

ment.

was

asleep,

tiie

fanned by two

Gukkur consjiirators had
know tlie position of Shahab's

;iif,

fis

fliooK

'I'Iil-

to

night they crept stealthily up

olttained

tliu.s

private apart-

H«

the tent door.

and before any alarm could ha given they

slaves,

had done the bloody deed so

tfj

f.

that

effectually,

his lifeless

body

la,y

pierced

with twenty-two wounds.
This tragical termination of Shahab's eventful

Disputed

took place on the 14th

life

sucoos-sioii

His

of March, 1206.

reign, including that of the joint sovereignty with hLs

The succession was disputed. The chiefs of
Baha-u-din, who was Shahab's cousin, and had been ap-

brother, lasted thirty-two years.

Ghor claimed it for
pointed by him governor of Bainian; the

vizier

and

officers

of the Turkish

mercenaries supported the claim of Shaliab's nepliew, the son of his brother

The

Gheias-n-din.

claimants, however,

decision, for Shahab's

had comparatively

little interest

in the

death was the signal for internal commotions, which were

by the dismemberment of his dominions. His nephew Mahmood was indeed proclaimed king, and held a nominal supremacy; but the
Eldoz at Ghuznee, and Eibuk,
real power was in the hands of two individuals
shortly followed

HI
Eidoz and

—

or,

as

he

is

often called, Kutb-u-din, in India.

have now to do

;

for

It is

with the latter that

we

vmder him India, dissevered from the governments beyond

the Indus, assumed the form of a distinct and independent kingdom.
first

heads of this kingdom were originally

slaves, their d3Tiasty is

As the
known as

that of the Slave Kings.

CHAPTETl
Medieval India continued

— The Slave

Kings

— Eibuk

—Altamsh— Sultana Eezia— Mogul
Khilji Jelal-u-din — Proceedings in tie

or Kutb-u-din

— Gheias-u-din Bulbun — House
— House of Lodi.
Toghlak
of
—
House
Deccan

irruptions into India

ijIBUK had been

III.

of

carried off in infancy,

and was brought

to

Nishapoor, where a wealthy citizen purchased him, and spent

some pains on

his education.

sold to a merchant,

who

On

presented

the citizen's death, he was

him

to Shahab-u-din.

the prince he became so great a favourite that he
into his confldence,
Eibiik or

Kutb-u-din.

talents

made him

and lived with him as

a friend.

at once his royal master's

His

fidelity

With

was taken

and military

most trusted and most successful

and he was ultimately dignified with the title of Viceroy of India. In
this character, he fixed his government at DeUii, which thus began the course
The longer.
of prosperity wliich it was destined to rmi under Mahometan nile.

general,

EIBUK OK KUTB-U-DIN.

CiiAr. III.]

and by

more

far the

became independent,

He
He

iiad

G3

brilliant part of Eibuk's career

finished before he

for he afterwards reigned only fom- years,

and died

in 1210.

displayed considerable tact in strengthening his position by

affinity.

ad.

1210.

Married the
'|;'"K''t«'-

"»"

himself married the daughter

who

of Eldoz,

Ghuznee

ruled supreme in

gave in

his sister he

;

:a-

marriage to Nasir-u-din Kubachi,

who

m

was

held a delegated sovereignty

Ctcmcie
Scindt

and

;

his

daughter he

gave in marriage to Altamsh, who,

though purchased with his money,
held

tlie

place in his esteem,

first

and possessed talents which

ulti-

mately made liim his successor.
Eibuk's
di<l

pated.

with

Eldoz

produce the cordiality

not

wliich

affinity

might have been

They not only

antici-

quarrelled,

but proceeded to open war, and
carri(Hl

it

on with a virulence

which brought each of them
ternately to the

al-

brink of ruin.

Nasir-u-din never thought

t)f

puting Eibuk's authority

and so

;

dis-

long as his brother-in-law lived,

was

KfTB

perfectly

with

satisfied

He was

delegated sovereignty.
deference to Altamsh,

lIiNAR, Ueliii.'— After

Diiiiiell.

a

not

dispo.sed,

however, to yield the same

and made himself independent

ruler of

Mooltan and

Scinde.

Shortly after Altamsii had secured his position as Eibuk's successor, the

whole of Asia was thrown into consternation by the appearance of Ghenghis
Khan."'

Originally a })etty

sovereign of

all

Mogul

Tartary, and, at

burst through

its

mountain passes

of Kharism,

at

whom

the treachery

the

first

and barbarity of

y««s3aigtv

^Jil^^
l^^^MW
^^^SZ^^*^

murdering the ambjvssadors of Ghenghis
the crime,

when he

fled

to die

;

^^^^

head of

with

its

countless hordes,

ii-resistible fury.

blow was

The Sultan

struck, deserved it for

which he had been

guilty,

in

and the penalty was not more than

broken - hearted on

The Kutb Minar is a column of victory, built by
Kutb-udiu, to celebrate his conquest of the Hindoos.
It is 4S feet 4 inches diameter at the base, and when
nieasuied in U'M, was 242 feet in height. The base.
'

he had become the acknowledged

chief,

a

solitary island of the

which is circular, forms a polygon of 27 sides, and
there are four balconies running round the pillar.
- Silver coin of Ghenghis Khan ;
weight, 47 grains,

From Thomas's

Coinn of the Kings of Ghuznt.

Aitamsiihi.s
successor

HISTORY OF INDIA.

T)!'

AD

i2.il),

Caspian.

His son Jdal-u din

Itore

ii])

iiioic inanl'iilly

[TV>ok

;

but

seemed to have no power either to intimidate or weaken

I.

after victf>ry

vicfc<')ry

his fearful a/lversary,

.\ppoaraiico

..ffihenghiH

and he only saved
showered

by swimmin;^ the Indu.s, while the enemy's arrow.i
him
Tlie Motfuls threatenirif; to cro.ss the river in

him.self

tliick ai'ound

Altamsh,

pm'suit, he continued his fliglit to Delhi.
for

t^j

wlwm

he here

applierl

an asylum, feared to expose himself to Mogul vengeance, and gave an answer

with whicii Jelal-u-din was

.so

dissatisfied, that

he

made a party

for him.self,

and, in alliance with the Gukkurs, roamed the country, plundering and devas-

and even making himself master of Scinde, while Nasir-u-din Kubachi
was glad to take refuge in Mooltan. To all appearance he might have ma/Ie
good his footing, if he had not been lured away by a brighter pro.spect, which
tating,

seemed opening in

army

crossed the Indus,

provisions compelled
Nasir-u-din,

Before he quitted Scinde a detaehment of the Mogul

Persia.

and commenced

them

who had

their barbarous warfare

;

but want of

to depart, after slaughtering 10,000 Indian prisoners.

detachment when

repulsed the Mogul

Mooltan, was less fortunate

when he was

it

attacked a second time

laid siege to

by Altamsh.

After retreating to Bukkur, he had, with the view of proceeding to Scinde,

embarked with
and

all

family on the Indus,

all his

on board perished.

Altamsh was thus

when

a sudden squall upset the boat,

This tragical event happened in 1225.

rid of a fonnidable competitor,

Another competitor, however, remained, in the person

accession of territory.

of Bakhtiar Khilji, the governor of Behar

and Bengal.

instrumental in conquering these provinces

;

acknowledging any supremacy in Altamsh.

Deiiii

the

Mahometan

to force,

He had

been mainly

and though he was contented to

hold them under Eibuk, one of whose sisters he had

had recourse

and obtained a large

The

mamed, he had no

latter, after

and Bakhtiar was not only worsted, but

Altamsh, throned in his capital at Delhi,

now swayed

idea of

persuasion failed,
lost his

life.

his sceptre over all

Mahometans had conquered in India. They were
enough to satisfy any reasonable ambition, but he was

the territories which the

empire.

j^rge
still

euough and

rich

bent on conquests, which, being wholly his own, might form the most solid

basis of his fame.

Six years, from 1226 to 1232, were spent in executing these

ambitious schemes; and in the end, after the conquest of Malwah, with

its

famous

had been completed, all Hindoostan proper, with a few isolated
and unimportant exceptions, did homage to Altamsh. The additional greatness
thus conferred on him was not enjoyed long, for he died fom' years after, in
capital Oojein,

Ap-'i,

1236.

It

may

Ilahometans of India

be mentioned, as a proof of the anxiety which the
still

felt

to

keep up their connection with the central

authority of Islamlsm in the west, that Altamsh, in the com-se of his reign,

LI

received his investitm-e from the Caliph of Bagdad.
'

Rnkn
unuorthy
reign.

Rukn-u-din, the son and successor of Altamsh, was a very unworthy represeutative of his talents.

women, and

buffoons,

was thronged with musicians, dancinghe was too indolent and effeminate to support the
Wliile his coiu-t

THE SULTANA

ITT.]

CiiAP.

government, and devolved them on

cares of

enough to undertake the task, but performed

assumed

make way for

the

She was not
father,

of

title

Sultana

l^is

"Rezia

so capriciously

and

ad.

viss.

tp'annically,

who

__^

__

..___

for her

his campaigns,

the administration

intrusted her with
in preference to

who was ambitious

mother,

Rezia.

new to government,

when absent on

Ferishta,

his sister,

it

liis

end of seven months, Kukn-u-din was

that a rebellion broke out, and, at the
de[)0,sed to

Go

KEZIA.

According to

sons.

Begum was endowed

with every princely virtue; and those

who

scrutinize her actions

most severely,

her no fault but that she

will find in

was a woman."

The circumstances under which she
assumed the government were difficult.
The two most powerful
state

i.r.Hr-.'l-

parties in the

were cordially united in deposing

them

her brother, but only one of

con-

The malcon-

curred in her elevation.

tent faction, lieaded by the vizier of the

two previous

reigns, at once appealed to

the sword, and, appearing before Delhi,

IXTKRIOR OK

From

defeated an
to its relief

army which was advancing
But though Rezia was weak

THfc;

ToMU OK ALTAMSH.

Lviiiril's

Views in India.

was powerful

in arms, she

in intrigue, uei

and succeeded so well in sowing dissensions, that the confederacy formed against
her melted

away of its own

Equal

accord.

Seated daily on her

administration.

skill

and

tin-one, she

success

was

marked her

accessible to

and

her reputation,

impartially.

Unfortunately, she had one failing which affected

and lowered her

in the estimation of her subjects.

a strong and undisguised favour for her master of the horse,
originally

appointing

an Abyssinian

slave,

she raised above

him commander-in-chief

It does

to

lift

her up

when

to excite a rebellion,

sinian

she

it

successful.

Here her blandishments again availed
he

fell

who had been
her,

1.

At

V>y

is,

that she allowed

was enough, however,

After a short struggle, the Abys-

and she

de.sperately in love with her, married her,

to the throne.
Vci,

It

She was confided

was murdered, and Sultana Rezia was deposed.

charge of a Turki chief called Altunia,

nol)ilitv,

not seem that her honour was

mounted on horseback.

and make

Sbe showed

whom, though

her other

all

compromised; for the utmost said against her in this respect

him

gave a

and dispensed

patient ear to complaints, redressed grievances, reformed abuses,
justice firmly

all,

internal

to the

the leader in the rebellion.
so

won upon

Altunia that

and attempted to

restore her

the head of an army, she advanced to Delhi, fought
9

two

skiii in

A

U. 1260.

OF IVDTA.

IITSTOJIV

6t)

bloody

I

with

She had reigned three years and a

half.

them,

.'ind

when Uczia was

In 1239,

Miiiz ii-din

t;iken jtrLsoner

Kittles, lo.st

put to death.

was

[Bof»K

lier

Both were

hiwhand.

Behnim was

brother Moiz-u-din

deposed, her

I.

Itelintm

Kucceeds
liezia.

He was

placed on the throne.

alto<:^etlier

unworthy of

rid himself of the importunities of tho.se to

He was

treachery and assas.sination.

reigned

was an
and

more than two

years.

The

to

he owed his elevation, by

imprisoned and put to death after he had

The only event of importance
Another

irruption of the Moguls into the Punjab.

in his reign

reign, equally short

was Ala-u-din Masaood, a son of Ilukn-uHis crimes were soon terminated by a violent death. During his reign

worthless, followed.

din.

two

little

whom

and endeavoured

it;

irruptions of the

niler

Moguls took place

;

the one into the north-west, and the

by a route which they had not previously attempted

other

— through

Thibet

into Bengal.
Reign of

Nasir-u-din

Mahmood, grandson

of Altam.sh, after a short

was

interval,

Nasir-\i-din

Mahmood.

He was

raised to the throne in 1246.

of retired

and studious

habits,

and

rid

himself of the cares of government by devolving them on his vizier Gheia.s-u-din

Bulbun.

The Moguls were now the great enemies

of Herat, Balkh, Kandahar, Cabool, and

Ghuznee were

as India

was constantly threatened by them,

standing

army along

the frontier.

to be feared.

it

was

portant.

generally.

pro\'inces

in their posse&sion;

and

keep up

nece.ssary to

a.

Several of the earlier years of this reign

were employed in suppressing disturbances which had

and the Punjab

The

The events

arisen, chiefly in ilooltan

of the latter years are, generally, unim-

In 1259, the Rajpoots of Meerut, ha\'ing risen in insurrection, the

Bulbun led an army against them; and, having obliged them to take
refuge among the mountainous districts, continued for four months to ravage
Vizier

by

the country

The

and sword.

fire

barbarities thus committed, however,

the Rajpoots desperate, and they nished
plain, attacking the

difficulty in

Mahometans

keeping his

men

down with aU

so suddenly

together.

and

their forces into the

fiercely that

Bulbun had great

Superior discipline finally prevailed,

and the Rajpoots were driven back to their fastnesses with great
Above 10,000 fell on the field; 200 chiefs, taken prisoners, were put
and the great body of
Embassy
from the
King of

their followers

made

were condemned to

slavery.

slaughter.

to death;

Shortly

before this formidable outbreak, an ambassador arrived at Delhi from Hoolakoo,

King

went out

in state to

these last were

is

fights

uncertain.

They may have been merely

style.

fii-e,

were then well acquainted.

then in the

for display,

with which the Mahometans,

A

series of

reviews and sham

and the ambassador was thep led through the city to
where everything was arranged for his ^'eception in the most gorAmong those who graced the ceremony, and stood next the throne,

were performed

the palace,

geous

east,

horse,

2000 elephants, and 3000 carriages of fireworks.

but more probably consisted of the Greek

even of the far

his approach, the vizier

meet him, with a train of 50.000 foreign

service of the Delhi government,

What

On

of Persia, and grandson of Ghenghis Khan.

Persia.

;

[

GHEIAS-U-DIN BULBUN.

Chap

TTT

were

many

]

67

There were present,

tributary Indian princes.

also,

twenty-five princes of Irak-Ajemi, Khorasan, and Transoxiana,
])rotection at Delhi

no fewer than ad.

who had sought

from the devastating hordes of Ghenghis Khan.

Nasir-u-din died of a lingering disease in 1266, after a reign of twenty years,

"abitaof
Naair

He makes

on the page of history; and was, both by nature and

figure

little

Though

adapted for a private than for a public

])arentage,

he had acquired parsimonious habits, and lived in the utmost sim-

When

imprisoned in early

of his pen; and,
as

much

as

when seated on

would

an-angements

is

the throne, he

made

it

his daily practice to wi'ite

Ferishta's account of his domestic

— "Contrary to the custom of other

He had but one wife, whom
of housewifery.
When she complained one

concubines

in

not to burden

was only a

m her duty with

kept no

day, that she had burned her fingers
assist her,

trustee for the state,

with needless expenses.

it

princes, he

he obliged to do every homely part

baking his bread, and desired he would allow a maid to

her request, saying that he

of royal

he maintained himself by the labours

purchase his food.

suffice to

curious:

life,

station.

u-(Jiii.

habit,

far better

plicity.

)2<>t)

He

he rejected

and was determined

therefore exhorted her to persevere

and God would reward her on the day of judgment."

patience,

by European writers Balin, had long
been virtual, and on his master's death, became actual sovereign.
He was the
son of a powerfid Turki chief, but, when a youth, had been carried off" by the
Moguls and sold to a merchant, who took him to Bagdad. Here he was bought
Gheias-u-din Bulbun, usually called

iJuiimn

by an inhabitant of Bussorah, who, on learning that he belonged to the same
Altamsh, toolc

tribe as

him

liberally that his previous

His

first

in

when

paid for him so

that monarch

master returned with an independent fortune.

emplo}Tnent wjis as falconer, because he was ])articularly

hawking;

the art of

to Delhi,

but,

by the

influence of a brother,

whom

skilful in

he found living

high favom' at court, he obtained a higher position and became a noble.

the reign of Rukn-u-diu, he
to return,

commanded

in the Punjab.

On

that remained,

life.

He

t_yTant,

and declared himself independent.

and was taken

prisoner.

who,

therefore took the only alternative

Wlien the Sultana Rezia

mounted the throne, he joined the confederacy which marched to Delhi
her,

In

receiving an order

he refused to place himself in the power of that worthless

he learned, had a design upon his

iiiseaiiy

to depose

After a time he effected his escape, and became

a leading supporter of Behram, during whose reign he held the government of

Hansi and Rewaree, and distinguished himself in suppressing the insun-ections
in

Meerut.

In the reign of Ala-u-din Musaood, he held the

Hajib; and at

last,

as has been seen, exercised

all

office

of

Ameer

the powei-s of sovereign,

though nominally only the \nzier of Nasir-u-din.

Bulbun began

his reign

with some acts of what he deemed necessary severity;

and having thus made his position secm'e, acquired a high reputation for justice

seems
Bidom.

He was

a liberal rewarder of merit, and a rigid coirector of crime;

to have attached

more imiiortance

to birth than mii^ht have been

"'"

i>at""n-

literature

OS
A.D.

1206.

HTSTOP.Y

expected in so wise a man; and,

Hindoo

to a place of trust

and power.

many

found

was the most

INDIA.

in i^articular, rnfule

of the most distinguished wiiters of
credit Ferishta,

<<V

polite

t<^>

apfK>int

and kissagoes or

tiie

period to his court, which,

and magnificent

in the

Khan Shaheed, another

Various other

societies,

story-tellers,

I.

any

His jjatronage of literature brought srnne

laneous but not less attractive descrijjtion, as
actors,

a rule never

world

met

society, of

we may

if

His example

imitators in the cajutal; and, while a society of learned

at the house of a prince called

Hook

I

men

a more miscel-

consisted of masiciarLS, dancers,

it

at the hoase of the king's seajnd

were formed

for similar purj)Oses,

inet

in

s^ni.

every quarter of

Not merely the literary tastes of the king, but his love of show wa.s
sedulously imitated and splendid palaces, equipages, and liveries became quite
Delhi.

;

a rage amonfj the courtiers.
love

warms

Ferishta

Unlbnii's

as he describes the

pomp and

i)f

l)oinp.

surrounded

and proceeds

him.self,

monies of introduction to

tlie

throne without a mixture of

Bulbun

less

as follows:

with which the monarch
imposing were the cere-

royal pre.sence, that none could approach the

awe and

splendid in his procession.s.

purple and gold tra])pings.

state

— "So

admiration.

Nor was Gheias-u-din

His state elephants were covered with

His horse -guards, consisting of 1000 Tartars,

appeared in glittering armour, mounted on the finest steeds of Persia and
Arabia, with silver

bits,

foot, in rich liveries,

and housings of

rich embroidery.

Five hundred chosen

with drawn swords, preceded him, proclaiming

his

approach

His nobles followed according to their rank, wuth their

and clearing the way.

various equipages and attendants."
His

zeal for

is

not unworthy of notice, that Bulbun took a very marked interest in

is

now known

It

temperance.

what

An

as the temperance cause.

officer

of rank, son of the

keeper of the royal wardrobe, and governor of the pro\'ince of Budaoon, had,
while in a state of drunkenness, slain one of his personal dependants, and, on the

complaint of the widow, was sent

Another

the whole court.
guilty of the

higli officer, the

and beaten to death in presence of
governor of Oude,

same crime under the influence of

whipping of 500
he had

for, tried,

lashes,

who had been

intoxication, received a public

and was given over as a slave to the widow of the man

These are not to be regarded as solitary instances of rigid

killed.

justice,

but rather part of a general system adopted for the purpose of putting

In the following statement of Ferishta, there

drunkenness.

an enactment of the

like

was addicted
a great

Maine-law: — "Gheias-u-din

to the use of wine, but

enemy

is

down

something very

Bulbun in

his

youth

on his accession to the throne he became

to the luxury, prohibiting the use

and manufacture of fermented

liquors throughout his dominions, under the severest penalties.'"'

Though fond of

Fits of

splendour, and

by no means

niggardly,

of economy.

During one of

Bulbun seems some-

economy

times to have been seized with

a

list

and

of

all

fits

these,

the veterans wdio had served in the preceding reigns to be

settled half-pay,

with exeni|)tion from active duty, on

all

he caused

made

who were

out,

reported

MOOUL INCURSIONS.

Chap. III.]

as

worn

of

modern times have adopted, gave great

til)

The arrangement, though one which the most enlightened

out.

dissatisfaction;

states

a.d.

1-270.

sheer

Khan

and the veterans

induced a magistrate of Delhi, venerable for years and character, and high in

He

favour, to represent their case to the king.

put on a face of great dejection.

to court, and, while standing in the presence,

The king observing

it,

magistrate, " that

in the presence of

if,

was

inquired the cause: "I

God,

accordingly went the next day

all

just thinking," replied

men were

the old

tlie

what

rejected,

The device succeeded, and the veterans were again

would become of me."
placed on full pay.

In the year 1270 the king's nei)hew. Sheer Khan,
Mooltan,

of Lahore,

Mogul

incursions.

ance.

It

them

;

Sirhind,

These

Batinda,

restless

&;c.,

and

all

He was

died.

governor

the districts exposed to

depredators immediately

made

their appear-

seems that several of the subordinate governors were in league with

and owing

to this cause, as well as to

mutual jealousies and

dis.sensions

made such head that Bulbun was obliged to
appoint his eldest son. Prince Mahmood, viceroy of the frontier provinces.
At
the same time he caused him to be proclaimed his successor.
The Moguls had hitherto been the only enemy against whom it was thought
in

other cpiarters, the Moguls

necessary to provide, but in 1279 a formidable insurrection broke out in a dif-

During a serious

ferent quarter.
liad died,

illness,

which led to a rumour that Bulbun

Toghrul Kiian, the governor of Bengal,

irregularities,

revolted, but,

for

which he feared he might be

assuming the

declared himself

King

scarlet

of Bengal.

who had been
called

army

At

Khan advanced

loghmi

" ''"'

to account, not only
roj^alty,

Bulbun immediately gave the government of

Ameer Khan, and

.sur-

the same time, he sent several generals with a large

Aluptujeen, thus reinforced, crossed the Gogi-a, and

to his assistance.

Toghrul

i.y

guilty of some

canopy along with other insignia of

Bengal to the governor of Oude, Aluptujeen, entitled
nametl the Hairy.

insunectiou

to

meet him.

This he did with the more confidence,

was aware that many of the Turki

army had
been gained by his largesses.
The consequence was that the royal army sustained a total overtlu'ow.
When the news reached Bulbun, he bit his own Hi'sh
with vexation, hung Aluptujeen at the gate of Oude, and sent Mullik Tirmuny
Toork with another army against the rebel. Not more successful than his prehecause he

decessor, he

was

Bulbun now

defeated, lost all his baggage,

and roads, however, occiisioned so
a large army, though

the risk of
all

and with

set out in pei-son, crossed the

dry season, and proceeded to Bengal

collect

chiefs in Aluptujeen's

an encounter

it

in the

his elephants, trejisure,

and

b}^

the public treasure.

Ganges without waiting

forced marche.s.

much

it

The

delay, that Toglirul

for the Ruibmrs

state of the river

Khan had time

to

did not seem to have been large enough to justif}'

open

field.

effects

king should return to his capitid.

;

He

therefore evacuated Bengal with

intending to keep out of sight

till

This .scheme he followed out with so

dexterity, that Bulbun, following close

tlie

much

upon the route which he was understood

,[,

Uengai.

70
A

I)

1270

to

OF

IIISTOI'.V

liJive

taken, could not obtain a inum

TNT)TA

(jf liini

The

saw some bullocks with pack -saddles.

when

last

Mullik

drivere were seized, but in aiLswer

to all inquiries, obstinately pretended ignorance,
off,

At

for several days.

I

Kolc, l;eing out witli a small ieconnoiti'ing party,

Mookudur, the governor of

was struck

[Book

the rest

the head of one of them

till

on their faces and confessed that they had

fell

jast left Toghrul Khan's camp, which

was four miles

Mullik going

farther on.

forward climbed a rising ground, from which he saw the whole encampment
spread over a plain, with the ele[)hants and cavalry picketted, and everything
in apparent security.
exploit,

Having

s tents, situated

camp, because

men
it

he had with him at

full speed,

he was allowed to enter the

was never doubted that he belonged
and ordering

for head-quarters,

"

tent of audience, shouting

his

men

to

draw

near

Advancing

the centre of the camp, he determined on a very daring enterprise.

with the forty

Toghrul

on Toghrul

fixed his eye

to

it.

He made

directly

their swords, rushed into the

Victory to Sultan Bulljun!"

Toghrul thought he had been surprised by the royal army, and leaped from

make way

his throne to

mounted

it,

and

fled

sight of him, pursued,

in

Finding a horse without a saddle, he

to the rear.

direction of the river.

tlie

Mullik, having cauglit

and shot him with an arrow while he was

in the act of

swimming the stream. Toglnail fell from his horee, and was seized by Mullik.
who di-agged him out by the hair, and cut off his head, leaving the body to be
carried down the stream.
He had just time to hide the head in the .sand when
They found Mullik bathing, and neveisome of Toghrul's people came up.
suspecting how matters stood, left him after asking a few questions.
The
confusion produced by the supposed surprise spread into a general panic, and
Mullik
the whole camp dispersed, every one thinking only of his own safety.
ever after bore the surname of Toghrul Koosh, or the Slayer of Toghnil.

Bulbun arrived next day, and finding that no enemy remained, returned
execute vengeance on the rebel's family, every

member of which he put

Before returning from this expedition, on which he
years, he appointed his son,

is

to

to death.

said to have spent three

Khurra Khan, King of Bengal, and gave him

all

the spoils of Toghrul, except the elephants and treasure, which he removed to
Delhi.

As soon

from Mooltan to

iiLvasion of

visit him,

of his father's ariival, he hastened

and was received with the greatest

affection.

The

two were almost inseparable; but they had not been three months together
when an event occui'red which was to part them for ever. The Moguls had

Mooltau by
tiieMogiuJ

Mahmood heard

as Prince

.

i

The prince made

invaded Mooltan.

on the borders of eighty, bitterly
probably was

tliat

The

i-r-.ii

i

haste to oppose them, and Bulbun,

the pang of sejiaration.

now

His presentiment

he himself was about to be gathered to his fathers, and that

the prince would survive him.
in counselling

felt

ii

all

him

Accordingly he spent much of the

as to the conduct he should pui-sue

counsels were wise,

and the

doubtless have acted upon

them

if

prince,

who had given

last interxdew

when on

the throne.

great promise, would

the succession had opened to him.

It

was

;

WARS WITH THE MOGULS.

Chap. III.]

As soon

otherwise determined.

Moguls, recovered

tlie

Cia.

as the prince arrived in Mooltan, he attiicked

had

the territories which tliey

all

71

seized,

A.D. 1285.

and expelled

them with great slaughter. These Moguls were subjects of Timour Khan, of
different
the house of Ghenghis Khan; and though not unknown to fame, a very
person from the still more ftimous Timour or Tamerlane, who did not make his
appearance

till

a century

after.

Khorasan to

of Persia, from

The present Timour ruled the eastern provinces
the Indus, and with the view of avenging the

expulsion of his Moguls, appeared next year in Hindoostan, at the head of

20,000 chosen horse.
in

After ravaging the country around Laliore, he advanced
Prince

the direction of Mooltan.

lay between them,

river
easily

A

hastened to meet him.

Mahmood

Defeat of the
Moguls,

and might

have been converted

an

into

inseparable barrier against the further
progress of the Moguls, but the prince

disdained to avail himself of this advantage,

and

left

passage

the

free.

After Timour had crossed, the armies

drew up and a great

battle

was

fought.

Both leaders distinguished themselves
but after contesting the
three hours, the

victory

foi-

Moguls were obliged

and the Indians followed hotly
pursuit.
Prince Mahmood, worn

to flee,

in

out with fatigue, halted on the banks
of a stream to qiiench his thirst.
iiad

He

only 500 attendants, and was spied
Groi'p of Indian Armoi'r.'

who lay concealed in
an adjoining wood with 2000 horse.
The prince had barely time
before the IMoguls were upon him.
With his small band he thrice

by a Mogul

chief,

repulsed his assailants

;

but at

la,st,

overpowered by numbers, he

wounded, and almost instantly expired.
of the

troops,

to wailing,

mortally

in pvu-suit

The voice of triumph was immediately turned

and every eye was in

and he only lingered

When

on,

a\

tears.
ishi

g

The dismal news broke

the old king's

for death to release him.

he found his end approaching, he recalled his son, Khurra Khan,

from Bengal, and nominated him his successor.

He

should appoint a deputy in Bengal, and remain with
'The suits of mail are in the Meyrick Collection
Goodrich Court, as also the battle-a.\e, paiscash,
and khanjar iu the foreground.
The rest of the
at

heroically

fell

who had gone

mount

flpng enemy, on returning with the shouts of victory, found their

prince weltering in his blood.

heart,

His

to

only sti))ulated that he

him

at Delhi

till

his death.

weapons are from Lan^les, Mnniimrnit Ancieps el
Mmlerncx ile 1' Thrtilnriatan, taken from an ancient
MS. of the Ayeen Akbery.

neatiiof

lili

;

72
A

I)

I2S0.

niSTOUV OF INDIA.

This event not

enough
Dentil of

Uulbuii.

so .soon

liappi'iiiiifj

a.s

for

Bengal without announcing

BuUxni, both grieved and indignant, went for

intention.

I.

Kliurra Kliaii oxpftcted, he wa-s unnatunil

become impatient, and depart

to

[Book

hi.s

his

Kei

gi-and.wn,

Khosru, Prince Mahmood's son, from Mooltan, settled the succeHsion on him,

and a few

day.s

aftei-,

for twenty-one years.
effect to

Delhi,

Bulbun's

1286.

Tliough

all

the officens of the court had swoni to give

no sooner was he dead than the chief magistrate of

will,

at variance with Kei

young prince with such

influence against the

Khosru s

effect,

father, exerted

was

that he

Keikobad, the son of Khun-a Khan.

for his cousin,

glad to escape with his

reigned with great succeh-

in

who had always been

make way

He had

exjjired,

life,

set aside

He was

of Moiz-u-din.

returned to his government.

remarkably handsome

mild in temper, of a literary

taste,

own master

and well informed.

and on Vjreaking

his

which

had kept upon him, he passed

;

Unfortunately he

from

loose

tlie

tight rein

to the opposite extreme,

His example was soon followed by his

became a debauchee.

title

in person, affable in his manners,

became too soon
his father

i/)

Kei Kho.sru,

Keikobad, on mounting the throne in his eighteenth year, assumed the

Keikobail
succeeds.

liLs

courtiers,

and
and

once more, to borrow the description of Ferishta, "every shady gi'ove was
filled

with

tumult

;

women and

parties of pleasure,

and every

rung with

sti'eet

At Kelookery, on the banks of the Jumna, he

fitted

players, musicians,

dill's

treacherous
(le.sigiis.

and

up a

—

palace where he might revel undisturbed amidst his only companion;?

u

and

even the magistrates were seen drunk in public, and music was heard

in every house."

singei-s,

buffoons.

Nizam-u-din, the chief secretary of Keikobad, seeing

Nizaiii-

riot

how

completely his

master was engrossed by pleasure, conceived the idea of usurping the throne

and having no

scruples as to the means,

he conceived to be the greatest obstacle.
to Ghuznee,

and

solicited

began by endeavouring to remove what
This was Kei Khosru,

Timour Khan, the Mogul

who had gone

viceroy, to aid

him with

troops for the purpose of driving Keikobad from the throne, which,

by the

will of his grandfather Bulbun, belonged of right to himself

He

attempt, but returned, notwithstanding, to his government.

Either thinking

that his attempt
enticed to

pay a

was unknown,
visit

to Delhi,

murdered by the hired

was

or hoping tliat

had been forgiven, he was

and before he reached

assassins of Nizam-u-din.

to procure the disgrace of Keikobad's \izier,

of the late King Bulbun.

it

They disappeared one

failed in the

was

w^aylaid

and

The next part of the

plot

and cut

it,

off all the old serv^ants

after another

by some kind

mysterious agency, and a general feeling of dismay was produced.

of

Nizam-u-din,

the real instigator, though not the actual perpetrator of the murdei-s, was not

even suspected.

Though the Moguls on the other side of the Indus were constantly crossing
it, and making predatory incursions into India, it is a remarkable fact that vast
numbers of their countrymen had voluntarily enlisted in the army of Delhi as

SULTAN KEIKOBAD.

Chap. Ill]
soldiers of fortune,

and were even understood

73

have done good and

to

Nizam-u-din, anxious to get quit of the Mogul mercenaries

service.

feared, mifjlit refuse to

be the instruments of his designs

—took

faitliful

A.D. 1287.

—who, he

advantage of a

Massacre of
tlie

recent

Mogul

inciu'sion, to

persuade Keikobad that

it

was impolitic

to retain

them, as in the event of a general invasion, they would certainly join their

countrymen.

was

It

atrocious.

Nizam-u-din was thus clearing away

was equally busy in the

them by any means,
assemble the Mogul chiefs, and

officers

connection

While

imaginary

obstacles, his wife

inmates at her devotion.

all its

who had

father,

who had any

off to distant garrisons.

real or

all

and had

seraglio,

Khurra Kiian, Keikobad's

hitherto been contented with

warn his son of his
No attention was paid to his advice and Khurra Khan, seeing the
danger.
crisis approaching, determined to anticipate it, by marching with a large army
upon Delhi. Keikobad advanced with a still larger army to oppose his progress.
Bengal, hearing of the state of affairs at Delhi, wrote to
;

The

father, feeling his inferiority,

proposed negotiation, but the son assumed a

liaughty tone, and would appeal to nothing but the sword.

Before mattere

were allowed to come to this extremity, Khurra Kiian made a

last effort,

wi'ote

a letter in the most tender and affectionate terms,

beijffinof

he

and

mifflit

be

Keikobad was melted, and a reconciliation
of which
~ ~r ~^^-r
his trea-

blessed with one sight of his son.

took place, the ultimate effect
was, that Nizam-ii-din

saw

all

cherous designs frustrated, and was shortly
after cut

oft"

by

poison.

For a time Keikobad seemed about
to reform

and

character,

new

but he had no decision of

;

facticms

his old habits returning,

were formed, and a kind of

anarchy prevailed.
fusion,

To

dissipation

his

constituticm,

increa.se

the con-

undermined

and he became

his

paralytic.

Every noble now began to intrigue

for

power, and two great parties were formed

— the
name

one headed by a Khilji of the
of JVIullik Jelal-u-din Feroze,

and
.iV-

the other

bv two

hijjh court oflicei's.

—

-.^

who,
Khiuti Chieftain- and

more loyally disposed, wished to secure

Afglian

the

crown

• The Khiljies
were in former times by far the
most
celebrated of the Afghans and though now
f

li

;

I,

Woman '—From

Hart's

Scoiier}-.

to Keikobad's only son, Prince

Keiomoors, an infant of three vears of age.

Vol.

aries.

therefore resolved to get quit of

The plan adopted was to
Even all other
massacre them by the guards.
with them were first imprisoned, and then sent
however

Mugul

mercen-

The

Khiljies, almost to a

among the races of their
fondly cherish a remembrance of

holding only the second rank
country, they

still

man,

10

Intervifiw of

Keikobad
with his
father,

Khurra
Kliaii.

w
A.D. 1288.

or

JiisToity

71-

took part with their countryman

whom

of the prince,

;

[Book

iNi^iA.

the Moguls were equally unanimous in favour

they canied off from the harem, for the

IiItu

upon the throne.

bed,

might continue

It

for

which the contending

was not yet vaamt,

a time to linger
{Kirties

I,

on.

purj-K^se

for Keikoba/1,

of seating

though on a sick-

This was a state of uncertainty

could not endure;

and

after

mutual attempts

at assas.sination, the emissaries of Jelal-u-din, having forced their

way

into the

palace of Kelookery, where they found Keikobad lying in a dying state, deserted
Keikobad's
death.

by all liis attendants, they beat out his braias with bludgeons, rolled up the
body in the bed-clothes, and threw it out of the window into the river. The
young prince was shortly after put to death; and Jelal-u-din having been proclaimed king, became the founder of the Khilji d_ynasty.

pened in

1

288.

Jelal-u-din Feroze

Jelal-ii-diu

had reached the age of seventy when he usurped the

succeeds.

The

throne.

This revolution hap-

footsteps to it he

had stained with

either remoi"se or policy induced

him

to

was seated,
Having no great

blood, but after he

become humane.

confidence in the people of Delhi, he fixed his residence at Kelookery, which he

and

fortified,

adorned with

also

gardens and terraced walls along the river.

fine

Numerous other buildings rapidly sprung up; and Kelookery, having thus
assumed the appearance of a city, was known for a time by the name of Xew
The year

Delhi.

after Jelal-u-din's usurpation, a competitor for the

crown

appeared in the person of Mullik Juhoo, one of the late Bulbun's nephews,
instigated

chiefly

by Ameer

Ally, governor of Oude.

After

an obstinate

engagement, Juhoo was defeated, and Ameer Ally and several other leaders

were taken

They were immediately sent off to Kelookery but
he saw them, ordered them to be unbound, and gave

prisoners.

;

Jelal-u-din, as soon as

them a

free pardon, while (quoting

a verse of which the purport

but he only

evil is easily returned,

great

is

who

Khilji chiefs could not understand this humanity,

sight, to deter

down

Ind '.X'*'
taken lenity

returns good for evil"

The

which they condemned as at

At all events," they observed, " the rebels should
them from further mischief, and as an example to

If this

the ordinary rules of policy

His humane

Evil for

was not done, treason would soon raise its head in every quarter
The king answered, " What you say is certainly according to
the empire."

others.

of

"

"

variance with sound policy.

be deprived of

—

is

;

but,

my

to the grave without shedding

fiiends, I

more

^q^^^ partaking

so

much

old,

and

I

wish to go

blood."

It is refreshing to be able to turn aside

in the course of the narrative

am now

from the massacres which we have

been compelled to witness, and

of the spirit of Christianity.

listen to senti-

It seems, however, that

the Khiljies were not altogether wrong, for the king's lenity was often mistaken,
their former greatness, ere the

Dooraunee dynasty

succeeded in wre.sting from them the sovereignty.
In the beginning of last century this tribe alone
After a hard struggle, the
conquered all Persia.
third Khilji

Shah.

The

King

of Persia was expelled by Nadir

territory occupied

by them

is

situated in

the north of Afghanistan, and forms a parallelogram
of about 180 miles in length, by 8.5 miles in breadth.
It is comprised more especially in the valley of the
Cabool River, from its source to the town of Jelalabad, and also in the valleys which descend from tha
Hindoo Koosh.

I

—

REIGN OF JELAL-U-DIN.

Chap. Ill]

and the hope of impunity produced numeroas
"

breaking, robbery, murder,

and every

The

streets

and

a.d. 1291.

House-

was committed by many

species of crime

Insurrections prevailed in every

subsistence.

numerous gangs of freebooters interrupted commerce, and even

province;

common

means of

as a

"

disorders.

were infested by thieves and banditti.

highways," says Ferishta,

who adopted them

io

Add

intercourse.

to this, the king's governors neglected to render

any account either of their revenues or their administration."
Crime, thus encouraged, did not stop shoit of treason, and two plots were

formed against the king's
conspirators,

One, in which some Khilji chiefs were the

life.

was no sooner detected than forgiven;

coiispiraciee

X.'"**

which was

the other,

headed by a celebrated dervis, called Siddy Mollah, wixs visited more severely.
Tins dervis, originally from Persia, after visiting various countries in the west,
arrived at Delhi, where his reputation for sanctity, joined to the liberality of
his alms,

made him a

great favourite, especially with the populace,

For a time he appeared to have no

constantly crowded around his gates.

higher aspiration than popularity
soul,

and an

intriguer, to

whom
him

that the people looked on
Khilji misrule,

and

bless

but at

;

who were

ambition took possession of his

last,

he had given his confidence, persuaded him

as sent from

God

to deliver the

kingdom from

Hindoostan with a wise and just government.

The throne having thus become

his object, he

determined to take the nearest

Piopoaed
trial

road to

it,

and sent two of

his followers to assassinate the

One

ceeding to the public mosque.
remorse,

and disclosed the

of the two, however,

Siddy Mollah and

plot.

by

king as he was pro-

was

seized with

his confidential intriguer

were apprehended; but as they persisted in their innocence, and no witness
appeared against them,

it

was determined

to

have recourse to the

that they might purge themselves of their guilt.

fiery ordeal,

Everything was ready, and

the accused having said their prayers, were about to plunge into the
Jelal-u-din,

who had come

to his ministers,

to witness the ceremony, stopped them,

put the question,

" Is it lawful to try

fire,

when

and turning

Mussulmans by the

fiery

They unanimously answered that the practice was heathenish, and
contrary to the Mahometan law as well as to reason, inasmuch as it was the
ordeal?"

consume, paying no respect to the righteous more than to the

nature of

fire to

wicked.

Siddy Mollah was ordered to

before he reached

it.

but was barbarously murdered

prison,

This murder was associated in the minds of the populace

with a series of public calamities which ensued, and particularly with two
the one a dreadful famine in the com*se of the

same year

(1291),

and the other

a Mogul invasion in the year following.

The invading force, headed by a kinsman of Hoolakoo Khan, Ghenghis Khan's

^'"^'i'

invasion

grandson, consisted of

100,000

advanced 'against them.

For

with a stream between them.

hoi-se.

five

On

Jelal-u-din collected his anny, and

days the amiies lay in sight of each other,
the sixth morning, as

if

by mutual

they drew up on an extensive plain, to fight a })itched battle.

consent,

After an

iei>eiie<i

fire.

HISTORY OF TNniA.

/^

AD.

i2fl3.

obstinate conflict, the Moguls were defcHted.

was not

gave

decisive, for Jelal-u-din

from his dominions, and excljanged

On

this occasion,

had

who were

rising

among

with them

in

withdraw
of amity.

t<jken

induced 3000 of his countrymen to remain in the service

who gave him

daughter in mairiage.

his

of Kurra, obtained in addition to

it

who had

pieviously V>een governor

the government of Oude, and began to

One

entertain schemes of conquest, with a view to ultimate independence.
his expeditions

Deccan.

who

is

is

was

It

directed against

after reaching the

Mahometans maxle to the
Dew, Rajah of Dewghur or Dowletabad,

Ram

Deccan

force,

Mahometans about

was

easily repulsed,

forward towards the

frontier, pressed

rajah happened to be absent, and hastened

the

composed

home

feet,

defence

Tlie

Having sud-

in great alarm.

chiefly of citizens

Ala-u-din,

capital.

and domestics, he encountered

four miles from the city; but, though he behaved gallantly,

and driven back into the

Its ditch,

fort.

now one
many places

which

of the most remarkaVjle sights of the Deccan, the scarp being in

100

of

interesting as the first which the

described as possessing the wealth of a long line of kings.

denly collected a

he

tliat

the numerous relations of that warrior

In 1293 Ala-u-diu, the king's ne[>hew,

Invasion of

by Ala-

of

still alive,

of Jelal-u-din,

j^resents

free permission Uj

Oghloo Kiian, a grandson of Ghenghis Klian, aware

chance

little

I.

It is prol»able that the vict^jry

Moguls

tlie

[Ik.oK

is

excavated in the solid rock, was not then in existence, and the chief

was a bare

The

wall.

city

was taken

at once,

and

Many

pillaged.

of

the inhabitants, after hea-vy contributions had been levied from them, were

The

cruelly tortured for the discovery of their property.

but

Ram Dew

present force

fort

still

held out,

began to despond, as the Mahometans had given out that their

was only the advanced guard

therefore offered a large ransom,
difficulties of his position in

of the

King

which Ala-u-din, who had begun to

feel

the

the centre of a hostile country, was fain to accept.

The terms had just been concluded when Shunkul Dew, the rajahs
son,

He

of Delhi's army.

was seen advancing with a numerous army.

eldest

His father sent a message to

him, intimating that peace was concluded, and ordering him to desist from

The youth

hostilities.

in

which he

said, " If

refused,

and sent messengers

you have any love

for

life,

and

to Ala-u-din with a letter,
desire safety, restore

you have plundered, and proceed quietly homeward,

rejoicing at

your happy

The Mahometan indignation was so roused that the messengers,
having their faces blackened with soot, were hooted out of the camp.

escape."

Defeat of the

Dowieta-

Ala-u-din immediately

moved out

to

meet the approaching enemy,

Only Mullik Noosroot, with 1000 horse, to
sally.

what
after

lea\Tiig

invest the foit and prevent a

In the contest which ensued, the j\Iahometans were overpowered by

numbers, and falling back on
Noosroot,

who had

sides,

when

the sudden aiTival of Mullik

station at the fort without orders, changed the fortune

The Hindoos, supposing that the royal army, of which they had
much, was actually arrived, were seized with a panic, and fled in all

of the day.

heard so

left his

all

TREACHERY OF ALA-U-DIN.

Chap. III.]
directions.

Ala-u-din returned to the

pressed for provisions,

77

the besiegers of which were

fort,

now

a. d. 1295

number of bags,
Ram Dew was obliged to sub-

liaving been ascertained that a great

it

supposed to contain grain, were

filled

with

salt.

mit to any terms; and Ala-u-din, besides obtaining the cession of Elliciij)Oor and

He had many

immense ransom.

dependencies, retired with an

its

difficulties

to

contend with, as his route lay through the hostile and powerful kingdoms

of

Malwah, Gundwana, and Candeish

safely at Kurra, where,

;

but he siu-mounted them

and arrived

all,

from the interruption of the communications, nothing

had been heard of him for several months.
Jelal-u-din,

on hearing of the immense booty which

nephew was

liis

was overjoyed, because he had no doubt that the greater
part of it would go to enrich the royal treasury at Delhi.
His more sagacious
servants thought otherwise, and hinted that Ala-u-din had ultimate designs
of a treasonable nature, and would use the booty as a means of accomplishing
them.
The king refused to entertain suspicions which might prove unfounded;
bringing with him,

and,

on receiving a

letter

KuiTa, and partly

crisis

When

him of his continued

was approaching.

fatal resolution of

ffivour.

Partly by flattering letters from

by the treacherous advice

was inveighled into the

aI^u jinf
^*'"'"^'

from his nephew, couched in the most submissive

terms, felt only anxious to assure

Meanwhile, the

Jeiain.iia

of counsellors at Delhi, the king

paying a

visit to his

nephew

visits .\ia""' '"'

in 1295.

the royal canopy appeared in sight, Ala-u-din di-ew out his troops under

pretence of doing honour to his majesty,

Almas was deep

forward to arrange for his reception.
suggested that
feared he

had

if

and sent

his brother

in the plot,

the king advanced with a large retinue,

incui-red the royal displeasure,

Almas Beg
and artfully

Ala-u-din,

might be alarmed.

So

who

plausible

was the tongue of Almas Beg, that the king embarked in his own solitary barge
with only a few select attendants, and, as

if this

had not been enough, ordered

them to unbuckle their armour, and lay their swords
state,

aside.

In this defenceless

he reached the landing-place, and ordered his attendants to

walked forward to meet
trate at his feet.

familiarly

The

his

nephew,

while he

who advanced alone, and threw himself proshim

old king raised

on the cheek, exclaimed,

halt,

"How

up,

embraced him, and, tapping him

could you be suspicious of me,

who

have brought you up from yom- childhood, and cherished you with a fatherly
affection,

holding you dearer in

my

sight, if possible, tlian

my own

oflspring?"

by the nephew by a .signal to his soldiers,
one of whom made a cut "with his sword, and wounded Jelal-u-din in the
shoulder.
He immediately ran to regain his barge, crying, "Ah! thou villain,
Ala-u-din I" but, before he reached it, was overtaken by another of the soldiers,
who threw him on the ground, and cut off his head, which was fixed on a
spear, and carried in triumph through the cam]).
The A\Tetch whose sword
This kind-hearted appeal was answered

completed the bloody deed

nation before he died.

is

said to have suffereil a thousand deaths in imagi-

He became

mad, and expired, screaming incessantly

is

murdered.

78

AD

12.10.

HISTORY OF TXDIA.

but

la.sted

When

din
UBurim tlio

AI;i

11

throuo.

Jelal-u-din Feroze wa,s cutting off his head.

tliat

murder reached

tidings of Jelal-u-din's

Kuddur Khan, a mere
tiien

This reign

is full

f

of incident,

only for the comparatively short period of seven years.

own accord, without

of her

[Book

con.sulting the chiefs, placed her

boy, on the throne.

He had

governor of Mooltan.

all

The

queen-dowager,

the

Dellii,

youngest son, Prince

real lieir

was Arkally

Klian,

the qualities of a king, but the queen's

proceedings disconcerted him, and he resolved, in the meantime, to take no
active steps to secure his right.
uncle,

aimed not at the throne of

pendent kingdom.

Ala-u-din,
Dellii,

new

inde-

he began

state of matters,

t<>

of the rainy season, set out at once

.spite

There was nothing to oppose his progress; and the queen-mother,

for the capital.
son,

atrociously murdered his

but at the e.stabli.shment of a

However, on learning the

entertain higher aspirations; and, in

with her

when he

having

with the treasure to Mooltan, he made a triumphal

fled

entry into the city in the end of 1296.
Ala-u-din began his reign with splendid shows and

Courts
popularity

festivities,

by which he

made them forget, or overlook, the enormity which
had placed him on the throne. At the same time, he conciliated tiie great by
titles, and the venal and avaricious by gifts.
The army, also, ha\'ing V>een
gained by six months' pay, he turned his thoughts to the rival claimants in
dazzled the populace, and

Mooltan, and sent thither his brother, Aluf Khan, at the head of 40,000 horse.

The

citizens, to

save themselves, betrayed the princes, and delivered up Arkally

Khan and Kuddm- Khan, on an
spared.

It

is

assurance that the lives of both would be

almost needless to say that the promise was not kept.

While the

princes were being conveyed to Delhi, a messenger arrived with orders from
Ala-u-din, that they should be deprived of sight.

was done, they were imprisoned

After this barbarous deed

in the fort of Hansi,

and shortly

after a.ssas-

sinated.

A Mogul

In

1

296, after Ala-u-din

inviision
defeateil

ling intelligence arrived that

had

finished the first year of his reign, the start-

Ameer Dawood, King of

an army of 100,000 Moguls, with a design

Transoxiana, had prepared

to conquer the

Punjab and Scinde,

and was actually on the way, carrying everything before him with fij'e and
Aluf Khan was sent against them and, after a bloody conflict on the
sword.
;

plains of Lahore, defeated

them with the

loss of

the numerous prisoners, not excepting the

12,000 men.

women and

Some days

childi'en,

after,

found in the

Mogid camp, were inhumanly butchered.
In the beginning of the following year, Aluf

Reduction of
Gujerat.

Khan, were sent to reduce Gujerat.
Rajah Ray Kurrun escaped into the

On

Khan and

the Vizier Noosroot

their approach to the capital, the

territories of

Ram

Dew, Rajah of Dewghur,

in the Deccan, but not without the capture of his "wives, childi-en, elephants,

baggage, and treasure.
to

Noosroot

Cambay, which, being a

booty.

With

this,

Khan

then proceeded with part of the army

rich country full of merchants, jdelded a prodigious

the whole troops were retm-ning to Delhi,

when

the two

Chap.

REIGN OF ALA-U-DIN.

III.]

by demanding a

generals,

fifth

of the spoil

79

among

they had already obtained, caused a wide-spread mutiny, especially

Mogul mercenaries.

who was

Aluf Khan narrowly escaped with

sleeping in his tent,

When

was mistaken

which ad.

in addition to the shares

for

his

1207.

the

His nephew,

life.

him by the mutineers, and

army reached Delhi, Ala-u-din gratified his passion by
taking into his harem Kowla Devy, one of the captive wives of the Rajah of
Gujerat, so celebrated for beauty, wit, and accomplishments, that she was styled
and his blood-thirsty revenge, by an indiscriminate
the "Flower of India"
massacre of all the families of those who had been concerned in the late mutiny.
murdered.

the

—

About

who had

Kootloogh Khan, son of the Ameer Dawood,
Their

Moguls took

this time, another great invasion of the

army

consisted of 200,000 horse,

entire comiuest of Hindoostan.

under

place,

led the former expedition.

and contemplated nothing

Kootloogh Khan, after

less

than the

Mogul inva-

Kootwgh
'^'""*

cro.ssing the Indus, pro-

ceeded direct for Delhi, and encamped, without opposition, on the banks of the

Zuffur Khan, the chief secretary and governor of the adjoining pro-

Jumna.

The

gradually retired as the Moguls advanced.

vinces,

dismay, crowded into the capital

inhabitants, fieeing in

and the supply of provisions being cut

;

Dismay

while the consumption was immensely increased, famine began to rage.

and despair were painted on every countenance.

In

this

emergency, Ala-u-din

a council of nobles, but, on finding them opposed to action, took his

called

way, and determined to attack the enemy.

With

off,

this view,

own

he marched out

by the Budaoon gate with 300,000 horse and 2700 elephants, and, proceeding

beyond the suburbs, drew up in order of

into the plains

Khan drew up

Kootloogh
in

to receive him.

Two

such armies had not mustered

Hindoostan since the Mahometans appeared in

the

it.

wing of the Delhi army was commanded by
greatest general of the age, and the left by Aluf

The

|)ost

right

in the centre, with

by the
front,

vizier,

Here, too,

battle.

Zufi'ur

Khan, considered

Kiian.

Ala-u-din took

12,000 volunteers, mostly of noble family, and headed

The

Noosroot Khan.

choicest of the elephants occupied a line in

Khan began the
which he l)ore away before

and a body of chosen cavalry guarded the

rear.

Zuffur

by impetuously charging the enemy's left,
him, breaking up the line by his elephants, and thus committing dreadful
slaughter.
The enemy's left flank, thus turned back, was di'iven upon his centre,
battle

and considerable confusion ensued.
to advance,
to Zufi'ur

but

he, dissatisfied

up

his

advantage as he could.

contimiing the pureuit for
of 10,000 horse,

him

;

Khan

because the place of honour had been given

Khan, of whose fame he was envious, meanly kept

rival to follow

to attack

Ala-u-din, seeing this, ordered Aluf

many mile.s.

A

aloof,

and

left his

This he did almost heedlessly,

Mogul

chief,

whose toman, or division

had not been engaged, seeing Zuffur Khan un.supported, resolved
and, at the same time, sent information to Kootloogh Khan,

who hastened forward with another toman.
attacked in front and rear.

Thus

Zuffur

Khan was

placed, he .saw his danger;

con.sequently

but as

it

was too

Pitched

HISTORY OF TXDIA.

80
A.D.

1299.

liite

to retreat,

drew up

he,

liis

having been cut through by a sabre, he

bow and

seized a

Most of his

})ut

liis

conflict.

The

leg of his horse

to the ground, but rose instantly,

fell

quiver, and, being a dexterous archer, dealt death around liim

soldiers

admiration of

were now

slain or di.spersed,

and Kootloogh Khan

would have saved him

valour,

—

called

him

to take

alive,

but

—who,

fioni

upon him to surrender,

On

he persisted in discharging his arrows, and refused quarter.

Mogul attempted

J

nuiuher not half those of the enemy,

forces, in

two squadrons, and continued the unequal

in

[BfjOK

thi.s,

the

could not be done, and he was at

it

last cut in pieces.

Notwithstanding

tliis

advantage, the Moguls did not venture to continue

the contest; and, abandoning

all

hopes of

evacuated India as fast as

succes.s,

Their departure was celebrated at Delhi with great

they could.

Ala-u-din, in consequence of the success which

Ala-ii din's

rejoicino-.

had attended

his

arms,

projects.

One

in-ojects.

became
of

so elated, that he

them was

to imitate

began to entertain some extraordinary

Mahomet, and become,

religion; another, to leave a viceroy in India,

Alexander the Great, to conquer the world.
he was so

illiterate,

new

like him, the founder of a

and

set out, in the

manner of

While meditating such schemes,

that he could neither read nor write.

The only part which

he executed, was to assume the

and

issue coinage impressed

name

A

of Alexander II.

ticable coui-se of action

when he

1299,

—

with the

more

prac-

was adopted

resolved to attempt

conquests in India.
Silver Coin- of Ala-u-din.' From Thomas's Coins
of the Patan Sultans.

title,

With

in

new

this view,

he sent his brother, Aluf Klian, and the
vizier,

Noosroot Khan, on an expedition

against the Rajah of Runtunbhore, or Rintimbore, a strong fortress in the

Rajpoot state of Jeypoor.
killed

stone thrown from an engine.

Tlie rajah,

marched out from the

fort,

hastily collected, drove

Aluf Khan back with great

Avail,

was

Humber Dew, immediately

and, placing himself at the head of a large army,
loss.

On

Ala-u-din, informed of the defeat, resolved to take the field in person.

Attempts on
his

by a

Noosroot Khan, going too near to the

life.

the way, he one day engaged in hunting, and having wandered far from the

camp, spent the night in a
his

nephew and

forest, witli

only a few attendants.

brother-in-law, tempted l)y the opportunity, thought he could

not do better than gain the throne in the same
assassinating his predecessor.

way

as Ala-u-din

had done,

b}-

Accordingly, having communicated his design

some Moguls, on whose co-operation and

to

Rukn Khan,

at suni'ise to the place whei*e the king was,

On obverse —The

fidelity

and

he could

rely,

he rode up

dischai'ged a flight of arrows.

most mighty
Ahul Muzafar

der the second, right hand of the khalifat, Biipporter
This
of the commander of the faithful. On margin

Mahomed Shah, the Sultan. On reverse, area — Sekun-

silver (was) struck at the capital, Delhi, in the year 712,

'

Weight, 170

sovereign,

grs.

Ala-ud-diinia-wa-iid-din,

—

REIGN OF ALA-U-DIN.

Chap. Ill]

Two

them took

of

sword to cut

effect,

and he

head

off his

and time was precious, he

fell,

Rukn

apparently dead.

but, as the deed

;

81

seemed already

desisted, and, hastening to the

Klian drew his

a.d. 1299.

effectually done,

camp, was proclaimed

king.

wounds were not mortal; and he was

Ala-u-din's

up, to reach the

able, after

camp, where, to the astonisliment of

Rukn Khan was

on an eminence.

all,

holdinfj his court

he suddenly appeared

when

news reached him, and had only time to mount his horse and
in pursuit, speedily

the {istounding

A

flee.

party sent

overtook him, and, returning with his head, laid

who

feet of the king,

they were bound

shortly after continued his

march

at the

it

and

to Rintimbore,

capture of
Hiiitimbore.

renewed the

The

was obstinately defended; and, after standing out
was only taken at List by stratagem. Humber Dew, his family,

siege.

a whole year,

phice

and the garrison were put to the sword.
turned traitor, and gone over to the

He no

the siege.

It seems that the rajah's minister

had

Mahometans with a strong party during

doubt anticipated a splendid reward; but met the fate he

deserved, wlien, with

all

justified the sentence

by

was ordered

his followers, he

observing, that "those

Ala-u-din

to execution.

who have betrayed

their natural

sovereign will never be true to another."
Ala-u-din, alarmed at the frequency of conspiracies against his

...
preventing

anxious to adopt some effectual means 01

life,

became

their recurrence.

tiT.

1

With

summoned his nobles, and commanded them to give their opinions
without reserve.
They spoke more freely than might have been expected and
mentioned, among other causes of treason, his own inattention to business, and
this view,

he

;

the consequent difficulty of obtaining redress of grievances
intoxictxtion

— the power of aristocratical

—and

—the

prevalence of

families in connection with the abuse

The opinion thus given
made a deep impression upon him, and he immediately began to act upon it,
though in a manner which left as much room for censure as for approbation.

of patronage

He

the unequal division of property.

applied himself to reform the administration of justice, and

first

intpiiry into the private as well as public characters of all officials.

made

strict

He

next

adopted a kind of universal spy system, by which he obtained a knowledge of
all

that

was said or done

the country.

Crime,

in ftxmilies of distinction in the capital, or throughout

also,

was

so rigorously punished, that robbery

and

theft,

common, became almost unknown; "the traveller slept secure on the
highway, and the merchant carried his commodities in safety, from the Sea of
Bengal to the Mountains of Cabool, and from Tulingana to Cashmere."
These
are Ferishta's words; but the description must be taken with considerable

formerly

allowance, as a portion of the territories within these limits
the jurisdiction of the

King

edict similar to that of
ctipital

offence.

pm])tied his
T.

own

of Delhi.

To

was not yet under

repress drunkenness, he issued

an

Bulbun, making the use of wine and strong liquors a

To prove

his sincerity

and determination on the

cellars into the streets,

and was imitated

subject, he

in this respect to

U

Aiau dins
a<lmini.str.iI

tive i-efonn

I

82
A.i).

imi.

OF

JllWTUitV

Huch

extent,

ail

\>y

classeH of jtcojilc,

;ill

1N1;1A.

tliiit

[I'AXJK

lor

Hcveral

I.

days the comiaou

sewers ran wine.
'rvTiiiiiiy

Al

1-11

As

of

too often happens under despotiHins,

radical refonns of Ala-u-din

tlie

din.

degenerated into unmitigated tyranny and rapacity.
the nobility in check, he emicUtd that they should

Vje

As a means

of keeping

incapable of contnicting

marriage without the previous consent of the crown, and prohibited them from

To such a

holding private meetings, or engaging in political discuasions.

was

this prohibition carried, that

written permission from the
private

no

man

vizier.

durst entertain his friends without a

His rapacity he gratified by seizing the

property and confiscating the estates of Mussulmans and Hindoos,

without distinction, and cutting down the salaries of public

were

filled

offices, till

the}'

only by needy men, ready to act as his servile instruments.

did he confine himself to

officials

;

for all classes

minute and vexatious regulations.

to

length

Noi-

and employments were subjected

His views in regard to

ecclesiastical

matters are evinced by a

common

no connection with

government, but was only the basiness, or rather the

civil

amusement of private

life."

In 1303, Ala-u-din having

Chittoor

saying attributed to him, "that religion had

set out to attack the strong fort of Chittoor, in

attacked.

Rajpootana, Toorghay Khan, a Mogul

chief,

took advantage of his

ab.sence, to

prepare a

new

ex-

pedition into Hindoo.stan.

He

cordingly

entered

at the

head of

it

ac-

twelve tomans of
horse

(120,000)

and,

proceeding

towards

directly

Delhi,

;

encamped

on the banks of
the Jumna.
u-din,
Ruins of the Palace of Rana Bheum, Chittoor.'

having been

made aware

— From Tod's Annals of Rajastlian.

intention,
Delhi
blockaded
by the

Moguls.

tened home by forced marches, and arrived before him.
ever, to take the

open

field,

as great part of his

He was

anny had been

Ala-

had has-

unable,
left

of his

how-

behind

was to entrench himself on a plain beyond the suburbs,
where he remained two months; wliile the Mogul, in possession of the surrounding country, cut off all suppUes, and phmdered up to the very suburbs of
From some cause never understood, and therefore ascribed to the
the capital.
All he could do

was also taken by Akbcr (1507); by Azim
of Aurungzebe (IGSO), by whom it was
son
Ushaun,
'

Cbittooi-

I

I

pluiiclered,

and

(1700),

by Sindia, from Blieum Singh,
Rana of Odeypoor.

the rebellious subject of the

Chap.

REIGN OF ALA-U-DIN.

III.)

miraculous intervention of a saint,

and never halted

panic,

Moguls were one night seized with a

tlie

own

they had regained their

till

83

The extreme danger which he thus

country.

so singularly escaped, convinced Ala- Minute nnu

u-din of the necessity of greatly increasing his forces, but the expense seemed

army on

could not support an

the scale proposed, for more than six years.

Retrenchment then became the order of the day, and

His

devised for that purpose.

many

curious plans were

resolution was, to lower the pay, but

first

own

according to the custom of that period, the soldiers furnished their

and provisions, a reduced pay was impossible, unless these

were lowered in

This, therefore,

price.

By an

to pursue.

reguiationa.

Large as his treasures and revenues were, he found that he

beyond his means.

arm.s,

a.d. 1304.

as,

horses,

articles also

was the course which Ala-u-din resolved

edict to be strictly enforced throughout the empire, he fixed

the price of every article of consumption or use, grain of every kind, horses, asses,

oxen and cows, sheep and goats, cloths coarse and

camels,

sugar and sugar-candy, onions, and garlic.

butter, salt,

ofjened a loan to furni.sh

fine,

ghee or

clarified

The treasury *Viven

merchants with ready money, with which they could

import manufactured goods from the cheaper markets of adjoining countries.
It is said that

"Very

prostitution.
classes,

a court favourite proposed, by

About

well," said the king, "that shall

scheme of

new irruption
make the conquest
a

40,000 horse and 100,000 foot; but

who

confinement at Delhi.

Amid

An

was

defeated,
so

joy, that the capital

was

the general rejoicings, there was one poor

imprison-

This was the Rajah of Chittoor,

Rajah of

had been kept

in close

made

a daughter celebrated for her beauty and accomplishments, and

inmate of his harem.

Be

much

insulting otter of liberty had, indeed, been

Ala-u-din wsis willing to give

consent.

a sample of

The rajah met him with
and his capital, Oojein, with

Sein, who, ever since the capture of his fort,

He had

is

of Malwah.

sat solitary in his prison, mourning.

Ray Ruttun

Such

of Moguls had been chastised, Ein-ool-

The news gave

were taken.

cities,

illuminated for seven days.

him.

be fixed also;" and three

finance.

1304j, after

Moolk was sent to

lajah

of joke, to fix a price for

with fixed prices for each, were actually formed.

Ala-u-din's

other

way

this as it

him

his release, provided she

It is said that

may, he sent

he consented

would become an

perhaps he only seemed to

;

for his daughter,

but his family determined

sooner to poison her, than subject her to the degradation intendeil.

took the matter into her

own hands; and adopted

The

princess

a scheme which, happily,

proved successful in both saving her ovn\ honour and procuring her father's
freedom.

Every arrangement having been made
to say that

for the proposed exchange, she

on a certain day she would arrive at Delhi with her attendants.

royal passport w<is inunediately sent her,

A

and her cavalcade, proceeding by slow

marches, reached the capital as the evening closed.
the litters

wrote

By

the king's special orders

were carried directly into the prison, without being subjected to

nis escape,

I'

84
An.

iiioit.

iriSTOHY OV INDIA.

any

inspecti(jn.

not then;, but in

jtrinceHs wa.s

I'lie

dependants of her family

[Book

comj)l(it(iIy arrned,

i.

several trusty

lier stea<J

who, as 80on as they were admitted

H

within the prison, cut
escape to the

hills,

down

the sentinels, and set the rajah

He made

free.

liis

from which he continued to make frequent desaints, and

avenge himself on the Mahometans

for the insults

and

sufferings

which he

harl

endured.
A new Mogul
invaBion dofeated

In 1305,

tlic

Moguls again, under the leadership of an

the namt^

officer of

,

ol

Elbuk Khan, crossed the Indus, and

after i-avaging Mooltan, proceeded to

Ghazy Beg Toghlak, aware of the route by which they would
placed himself in ambush near the banks of the Indus, and rusliing out

Sewalik.
return,

suddenly, defeated the invaders with great slaughter.
off,

Seeing their return cut

the survivors had no alternative but to return into the desert.

hot season, and, in a short time, out of 57,000 cavalry, and

outnumbered them, only 3000 remained

alive.

were trodden to death by elephants, and a

pillar

to pass in

followers

who

taken to Delhi, they

raised before the
after

was the

Budaoon

having met with no

Moguls were so discouraged, as well as exhausted, that they

not only desisted for
selves placed

was

Another invasion shortly

gate with their skulls.
better success, the

When

camp

It

many

years from entering Hindoostan, but found them-

on the defensive, Ghazy Beg Toghlak scarcely allowing a season

which he did not

cross to the

west bank of the Indus, and plunder

the provinces of Cabool, Ghuznee, and Kandahar.
Ala-u-din,

Conquest of

now

rid of his

conquests in the Deccan

;

most formidable enemies, had time to resume

and with

had been originally purchased

this

Rajah of Dewghur, who had neglected

The army, when

tribute.

view despatched Mullik Kafoor, who

a slave, with an

as

it set out,

army

for three years to

Ram Dew,

against

pay

his stipulated

mustered 100,000 horse, and was reinforced

on the way by the troops of the governors of Malwah and Gujerat.
Kafoor, after encamping on the frontiers of the Deccan,
opposed, that for a time he

made

his

little

progress,

was

Mullik

so strenuously

and had nothing

himself upon except the capture of a daughter of the beautiful

to

plume

Kowla Dey>%

who, from being the wife of a Hindoo rajah, as already mentioned, had become

The daughter had a similar fate, for she was
on the way to become the bride of a rajah when she was captured and afterwards, on being brought to Delhi, was married to Khizr Khan, Ala-u-din's son.

the favourite of the Delhi harem.

;

On

a second expedition to the Deccan, in 1309, Mullik Kafoor proceeded

way of Dewghur towards Wurvmgole,

a place of great strength.

at Indoor, about ninety miles north of

by

After appearing

Hyderabad, and causing great conster-

among the inhabitants, wdio had never seen the Mahometans before, he
down before Wui'ungole, which made a valiant defence, but was ultimately

nation
sat

taken by

assault.

In the following year he proceeded

still

further south,

reached the Malabar coast, and then, turning inland, continued his victorious
career to the frontiers of Mysore.

Much

of his time

was employed

in plundering

i

Chap

REIGN OF ALA-U-DIN.

III.]

the temples,

and the

which he brought back to

spoil

85
Dellii

was enonnous.

not mentioned as fonning any part of

curious that silver

is

seems to have been

tlie

It

is

a.v. i3io.

Gold, indeed,

it.

precious metal chietiy used at this time in India, as coin,

ornament, or plate.
Ala-u-din had

now

Though he had been
guilty of many crimes, fortune had never ceased to favour him, and his territories had extended on every side, till tliey assumed the magnitude and s})lenThe period of decline, however, had now arrived. Mullik
dour of an empire.
Kafoor, who possessed his utmost confidence, and used it for the promotion of
reached the zenith of his power.

among

treasonable designs, disgusted the nobles, and spread discontent

liis

His own health,

people.

gence,

too,

i\lullika

foTtu""'''

the

undermined by intemperance and vicious indul-

gave way; and his family, to whose training he

entirely neglected him,

Aia u ain-s

and spent

time in revelry.

tlieir

Jehan, was equally indifferent

and he found

;

liad

never attended,

His principal

him.self in tlie

wife,

midst of

a palace, glittering with gold and jewels, destitute of every domestic comfort.

He made

his complaints to Mullik

who turned them to good account,
sons Khizr Khan and Shady Khan,

Kafoor,

by insinuating that the queen and her
together with his brother Aluf Khan,
his

The brother was accordingly

life.

had entered into a conspiracy against

seized

and put to death, while the queen

and her sons were imprisoned.

During these domestic
various quarters.
it

Gujerat took the lead, and defeated the general sent against

with great slaughter.

metan

officers,

calamities, the flames of insurrection burst forth in

The Rajpoots of

Chittoor, rising against their

hurled them from the walls, and resumed their independence

Dew, the son-in-law of Ram Dew,
The
several of the Mahometan garrisons.

while Hurpal

stirred

>ixpelled

tidings

with rage, and so increased his

him

off in 1316, after

illness,

that

after the death,

son,

his

late

up the Deccan, and
made Ala-u-din mad

It

doubtful

is

if his

death was

Mullik Kafoor,

fiivourite,

was employed.

Mullik Kafoor produced a

will, said to

be spurious,

king gave the crown to Prince Oomor Khan, his youngest

and made Mullik regent during

his minority.

The young

prince, then in

seventh year, was placed upon the throne, while Mullik u.sed him as a

and proceeded to carry out his
out the eyes of Khizr
sultana's confinement.

own

wife.

He

schemes.

One

Khan and Shady Khan, and

of his

fii-st

acts

was

tool,

to put

increase the rigour of the

somewhat singular, as he was an eunuch,
mother, who had ranked as Ala-u-din's third

Anotlier act,

was to marry the young king's

meant, for additional security, to have put out the eyes of Prince

Moobarik Khan, the son of the second wife of Ala-u-din, and had even pro-

more atrocious step of sending assassins to murder him. The
prince succeeded in buying them off; and a lieutenant of the guards, on hearing
ceeded to the

still

uis death.

took a fotal form, and earned

conduct of his worthless

tends to confirm the suspicion that poison

by which the

it

a reign of twenty years.

natural, for the subsequent

The day

Maho-

>J>uiik

Ka-

sonabie pro
'^'^'^

"^

|l

8G
A.D.

1321.

of

IlISTORV
tlie

Ivliail

I

liiiii,

and several of

Prince Moobarik

d(!ath.

Hook

I.

soldiers to Mullik Kafoor's

lii.s

tiie princijjal

eunuchs in his

Khan immediately ascended

interest, to

the throne, and Prrnwi

Hlli:

ceodH.

Oomor, who had occupied

and imprisoned
FT is

iNlJJA.

attempt, proceeded at once with Heveral of

apartment, and put
Mootmrik

()!•

wicked

for

it

nominally for three montliH, was deprived of

sight,

life.

Moobarik's reign, which lasted four years,

a mere tissue of vices and

is

roigii.

The

crimes.

officer

his elevation,

upon

who had saved

was put

to

and been the main instrument of
death, merely because it was said that he j)resumed
his

life,

After this most ungi-ateful

his services.

act,

he began to show some

little

activity; and, besides sending Ein-ool-Moolk, a general of great abilities, into

and recovered the country of the
favourite, Mullik Khosrow, to whom he

Gujerat, proceeded in person into the Deccan,

Mahrattas.

On

returning, he sent his

had given the ensigns of royalty, as far as the Malabar coast. Here he remained
about a year, and acquired immense wealth by plunder. His ambition being
thus excited, he proposed to

make

With

himself sovereign of the Deccan.

He

view, he endeavoured to gain over the chief officers of his army.

succeed

;

and a formal charge of treason was made agaiast him

this

did not

who

to the king,

was, however, so blinded in his favour, that he punished his accusers, and trusted

him still more than before.
Moobarik no sooner found himself in quiet

possession of Gujerat, the Deccan,

and most parts of Northern India, than the little activity wliich he had begun
to display ceased, and he gave himself up to unbounded and shameless excesses.
Universal
Indecencies which cannot be mentioned, were his daily amusements.
discontent and disgust were in consequence excited

;

but the

first

attempt on

life

was made by

his favourite,

Khos-

He had

row.

liis

been

repeatedly warned
that

a

conspu-acy

was being hatched,
and the proofs of it
were
that
the

so
it

evident,

had become

common

talk.

StiU, his infatuation

was continued; and
he was not roused
from

it

tni the con-

spii-ators

Mausoleum of Khosrow. — From

He is

Daniell's Oriental Scenery.

were

ac-

tually on the stairs

endeavom-ed to make his escape by a private passage but
Khosrow, who knew of it, intercepted him, and a deadl}' struggle took place.
of the palace.

He

;

g

SULTAN GHEIAS-U-DIN TOGHLAK.

Ciur. III.]

87

Moobarik, being the stronger of the two, threw Khosrow on
could not disentangle himself from his grasp, as his hair

The other

enemy's hand.
barik's

conspirators

to

ground, but

a.d. 1321.

was twisted in his
come up, and Moo-

head was severed from his body by a scimitar.

Khosrow was not allowed long
throne in 1321, under the

tlie

had thus time

tlie

to profit

title

by

He, indeed, a.scended

his crime.

of Nasir-u-din, but a confederation of the

usun)ation
"

"**'""

was immediately fomied against him. It was headed by Ghazy Beg
Toghlak, who had acquired gi-eat renown by his expedition against the Mogui.s.
In the battle which ensued, Khosrow was defeated, captured, and slain; and
nobility

mounted the throne amid
universiil acclamations.
Tlie people saluted him Shah Jehan, " The King of the
Universe;" but he assmued the more modest title of Gheias-u-din, "The Aid
Ghazy Beg Toghlak, with some degree of

reluctance,

of Religion."

Gheias-u-din Toghlak reigned

wjis

resumed

his

fame as a warrior, and secured

the Rajah Luddur

themselves,

and the

who not only

losses

failed to

Dew

were

tlie

the defence.

severe, particularly

make a

his Reign

of

^in''''^g",.
'''''

king's eldest son, conducted

Both

sides greatly exerted

on the part of the besiegers,

practicable breach, but, in consequence of the

siege of

winds and severe weather, were seized with a malignant distemper, which

daily swept off hundreds.

home

to return

and

;

The

sm'vivoi"s,

suddenly during the night,

deserted,

completely

di.spirited,

were anxious

by the disaffected, caused
of which, a number of ofticers moved

sinister rumours, circulated

general consternation, under the influence
off

He owed

it

Prince Aluf Khan,

independence.

its

the siege;

iiot

j-ears.

by the better fame of a wise and
ruler.
The incidents of his reign are few. One of the mo.st important
the siege of Wurungole, which had thrown off the Mahometan yoke, and

crown to
just

more than four

little

with

had no alternative but to

all

Aluf Khan, thus

their followers.

raise the siege.

In the haste and

dis-

was pursued by the enemy with great slaughter. The
One died in a Hindoo prison, another
officers who deseiied suffered equally.
was cut off by the IMahrattas, and their whole baggage was captured. One

order of his retreat, he

of the

authors of
alive,

bm-ied

was the death of the king. The
the rumour having been discovered, were condemned to be buried

rumours which had been

circulated,

king jocularly but barbarously remarking,

the

him

alive

in jest,

"

that as they

had

A

new

he would bury them alive in earaest."

{u-my having been collected,

Aluf Khan renewed the siege of Wurungole,

and obliged

The news were

it

to suiTender.

new citadel of Delhi, which had
name of Toghlakabad.

in the

the

celebrated with great rejoieing-s

just been finished, and

had received

In 1325 Gheias-u-din Toghlak, after a journey to Bengal to inquire uito
complaints
his return.

made

against the governors hi that quarter, reached Afghanpoor on

His son Aluf Khan, who had previously arrived with the nobles of

the com-t to offer their congratidations,

had hastily erected a wooden building

T,.ghiak
'^

j^'th"

88
A.D. 1327.

OF INDIA.

JIISTOliy

Here a sj>k;ndid

for his recei)tion.

eritei'taininent ha<l

having ordered his equipage, was in the act of
1

lis

The cause

bute

some even

to accident:

it

been given; and the

liirn,

One

to design.

kinj^,

}m

with five of

Most

been variously explained

lias

I.

(quitting the building to wjiitinue

way and cnwhed

journey, wlien the roof suddenly gave

attendants, in the ruins.

[Book

attri-

author, not satinfied with either

explanation, offers one of his own, and asserts, " that the building had been

by magic, and

raised
solved,
Toghlak's
Hon succuods
iiiuler tlie

title

Mahomed

was

it

dis-

it fell."

Aluf Klian, the

He

Toghlak.

late king's eldest son, succeeded,

said to

is

of

Toglilak.

the instant the magical cliarm which upheld

title

of

Mahomed

have been the most learned, eloquent, and accomplished

He was

prince of his time.

under the

well versed in history, having a memorj'^ so reten-

tive that every date or event of

which he once

wrote good poetry; and had made

read,

remained treasured up in

it;

mathematics, astronomy, and medicine

logic,

The philosophy of the Greek schools was well known to him.
literary accomplishments, he was a skilful and valiant warrior,

his special study.

With aU

these

and thus united

qualities so opposite that his contemporaries describe

They

of the wonders of the age.

also extol

him

for his piety,

him

which he

as one

e\'inced

by a careful observance of the rites enjoined, and strict abstinence from drunkenThis is the fair side of his
ness and other vices forbidden by the Koran.
He was stem, cruel, and vindiccharacter for it had also its darker features.
:

tive.

Gods

As Ferishta

expresses

creatm-es, that

"

it,

So

when anything

little

did he hesitate to

occuiTed which excited

extremity, one might have supposed his object

was

spill

him

the blood of

to that horrid

to extinguish the

human

species altogether."
Mogul
incursions

resumed.

In

1

327 the Moguls, who

Ijad ceased their incursions for

many

years, resimied

them; and a celebrated leader, called Toormooshreen Khan, belonging to the tribe
of Choghtay,

made

his appearance in

Hindoostan at the head of a

va.st

Province after province was overrun, and he advanced rapidly towards

Mahomed

Toghlak, unable to meet him in the

field,

army.
Dellii.

saved his capital by the

and humiliating expedient of bujdng him ofi" by a ransom so large as to
be almost equal to the price of his kingdom. The Mogul withdrew by way of
Gujerat and Scinde, but plundered both, and carried off an immense number

fatal

of captives.
Mahomed 's
grinding
taxation

and cruelty.

To compensate

for

what he had thus

Deccan, the greater part of which he

is

with his dominions as the villages in the

lost,

Mahomed

turned his eyes to the

said to have as effectually incoi^orated
vicinitj^ of Delhi.

All these conquests,

however, were destined to be wrested from him in consequence of
taxation, cruelty,
levied

and inordinate ambition.

on the necessaries of

life,

vinces

fruits,

by rapine and
were desolated by famine.
;

gidnding

So heavy were the duties rigorously

that the industrious, having no security that they

would be permitted to reap the
the woods, lived

liis

ceased to labour.

The

farmers, flying to

the fields remaining uncultivated, whole pro-

The currency,

too,

was tampered with; and

—

MAHOMED

Chap. III.]

TOGIILAK.

89
Cm.

Mahomed

struck a copper coin, which, becaase

liis

name

wiis inij)ressed

ordered to be received at an extravagant imaginary value.

lie

said

by Ferishta

to

with the royal

of ready money."

lieu

A.D. 1330.

is

He

em-

tlie

seal aj)pended, in

shrewdly adds:

"The great calamity consequent upon
basement of the

This idea, he

it,

have borrowed "from a

Chinese custom of issuing paper on
peror's credit,

upon

this de-

from the known

coin, arose

inCorPER CoiK OF Mahomed bin Togiii.ak.'

stability of the

government.

Public credit could

not lonof subsist in a state so liable to revolutions as Hindoostan
the people in the remote provinces receive for

money

tlie

;

for

how

could

base representative of

a treasury that so often changed its master?"

In the midst of the discontent and ruin produced by these wretched financial

MalKHiiml'H
project of

devices,

Mahomed

conceived the idea of enriching himself by the concjuest of the

As a first
nephew Khosrow MuUik,

China

empire of China.

step to the realization of this idea, he despatched

his

at the head of 100,000 horse, to subdue Nepaul,

and the mountainous region on both

TiiF.

frontiers.

and

Snowy Range of the

sides of tlie

IIimalayas, from Marin.i

—From

This done, he was to follow in person.

faithfid counsellors assure

Himalaya, as for as the Chinese

G. F. White's Views in Him.ilay.is.

In vain did

his

him that the whole scheme was

more sagacious
visionary.

He

had made up his mind, and was not to be dissuaded.
'

ill

On tlie obverse— Struck as a piece of fifty kniii'«,
the time of the servant, hopeful (of Divine mercy),

iMahomed To^hlak.

Vol.

I.

On

the reverse

conquering

— He who obeys

tlio

king, truly

lie

obeys the Merciful (God).

13S grs.

H, Dowletabad. — Thoiuaa's Coins of the Patau
Svltans of Hindustan.

7^?-

A

12

^'^

^•"-

HISTORY OF INDIA.
Kho.srow MuUik miulc

"•''s-

way with

lii.s

[Book

gi(;at difficulty aoros,s tlni inountains,

buiifliug foits as he proceeded, in order to secure the road.

boundary

at the Chinese
Disartn.uH

tothe
fron"tIer

I.

witli forces fearfully reduced,

On

arriving, in 1337,

he found

liiin.self

in front

anny prepared to oppose his further progress. The sight struck
Indian army with dismay, and a precipitate retreat wa« commenced. 'J'hc

of a numerous
t'^6

ChinesB followcd

closely,

while the mountaineers occupied the parses in the rear

and plundered the baggage.
ous position, suffering

The

in torrents.

fall

For seven days the Indians remained

the liorrors of famine.

all

first effect

and Khosrow began

distance,

was

At length the

in this peril-

rain began to

to oblige the Chinese to retire to a greater

to conceive hopes of

making good

liLs

He

retreat.

was soon undeceived.

The low grounds became inundated, while the mountains
continued impervious. The result is easily told.
The wliole army melted awa}-,
and scarcely a man returned to relate the particulars.

Ouo

Tiarbanms
of a traitor,

of

tlic

king's ncphcws,

who was

called Khoorshasip,

and held a goveni-

luent in the Deccan,

was tempted by the general discontent which prevailed

to

aspire to the throne,

and

He

at

in

1338 openly raised the standard of

revolt.

gained some advantages, but was afterwards captured and carried to Delhi,

first

where he was flayed

and then paraded a horrid

alive,

spectacle

around the

city,

the executioner going before and proclaiming aloud, " Thus shall aU traitors

t<j

their king perish."

Bcfore this rebellion was suppressed, the king had taken the

Attempted
thTcIpitri
to

Dowle

tabad.

Dewghur.

fixed his head-quarters at

'^'^^

field in person,

and strength

Its situation

so pleased

him that he determined to make it his capital. His resolution once announced
was inflexible, and orders were forthwith issued that Delhi should be evacuated,
and all its inhabitants, men, women, and children, with aU their property, should
migrate to Dewghirr, the name of which was changed to Dovjletabad.
The
abandonment of Delhi, which was styled, in the hyperbolical style of the East,
" The Envy of the World," was productive of great misery and discontent, and

Mahomed began
his

was an exploit w^hich even all
energy and despotism could hardly accomplish. Having been led in the
to feel that the change of capital

course of an expedition to the proximity of the old capital, those of his

who

originally belonged to

army

were seized with such a longing to return, that

it,

they deserted in great numbers and took refuge in the woods, detenniued to
i-emain

till

army should have

the rest of the

were so thinned by

this desertion, that the

his residence at Delhi,

and

tluis lure

however, was not abandoned

;

left.

The numbers of the troops

king had no alternative but to

the deserters back.

polis of Delhi

Before he
occasion,

left,

"

ofi"

the

leaving the noble metro-

a resort for owls, and a dwelling-place for the beasts of the desert."
he was guilty of barbarities which are almost incredible.

having

district of

His original prnpose,

and at the end of two years he carried

whole of the inhabitants a second time to the Deccan,

fix

set out

On one

with an immense himting party, on arriving at the

Behram, he made the startling announcement that he had come

to

III.]

FEROZE TOGHLAK.

liunt not beasts

but men, and began to massacre the inhabitants.

Chap.

by carrying back some
and hanging them over the city

91

He

the barbarity

tliousands of the heads of

Deliii,

walls.

These atrocities were more than
on a greater or

less scale,

—

These two

Dowletabad.

capital,

seem to have somewhat cooled the king's partiality
permission was given to those

whom

Thousands made the attempt

Delhi.

only to die in
south.

It

was the

tiLs.

;

and

free

but a general famine w.is then raging,

many more

The most formidable

it.

various

rebellions

last

Deccan

for the

vm.

he had forced to migrate, to return to
;

and while many perished by the way,

on the Malabar

in Bengal,

.\.n.

slain to

tlie

nature could endure, and rebellion,

broke out in every quarter

and even in the new

coast,

human

com])leted

reached their beloved Delhi,

insurrection of

result of a confederacy

broke out

all

in the

formed for the express ])urpose of

Mahometans from the Deccan.
Tiie principal leaders were
Krishn Naig, son of Luddur Dew, who live<l near Wurungole, and Belal Dew,
Rajah of the Carnatic. So extensive and so successful was the confederacy,
that, in a short time, Dowletabad was the only place within the Deccan which

extirpating the

Mahometans could

the

was

portion of the lost territory
as before, into four

Ultimately, however, a considerable

their own.

call

Mahometan

recovered,

and the whole Deccan was divided,

Though

provinces.

scarcely a

month now passed

without a revolt, and everything seemed ripe for a general revolution,

Toghlak kept his throne, and at

last

descended to the grave by a death which

was not

violent,

number

of boats to be collected at Tatta,

to chastise the

Mahomed

and yet cannot well be

called natural.

He had

ordered a large

and proceeded thither across the Indus,

Soomara Prince of Scinde, who had given protection

to

MuUik

Toghan, when heading a formidable revolt of Mogul mercenaries in Gujerat.

When within

sixty miles of Tatta, he wjis seized with fever, attributed

l)hysicians to a surfeit of fish.
spirit

would not allow him

ensued.

to

The symptoms were
remain to complete

by

his

favom'able, but his restless

his recovery,

and a

fatal relapse

His death took place in 1351, after a reign of twenty-seven years.

After a short struggle, in which a re])uted son of the late king, a mere child,

was put forward and immediately
title

of Feroze Toghlak,

set aside, his cousin Feroze,

mounted the

tin-one.

known by

the

Considering the troubled state

two of the most remarkable facts of
years, and its termination, by a peacefid

of the country,

his reign are, its length of

thirty-eight

death, at the age ot ninety.

The empire of Delhi, however, was

The
and Bengal was so

evidcTitly in a rapid state of decline.

Deccan could hardly be said to be incorporated with

it;

completely dissevered, that in 1356 Feroze consented to receive an ambassador

from

its

king, Avith proposals of peace;

acknowledged
however,
as

of

it

<is

and thus

an independent kingdom.

virtualh',

if

not formally,

Both Bengal and the Deccjin,

Though Feroze does not figiu-e
a warrior, he obtained a high name for wise legislation, and a large number
public works, in which, while magnificence was not forgotten, utilitv was
still

continued to i)ay a small tribute.

nui-i. of

92
AD. vm.

OF

IITSTOJtY

Kpeciully

One

(-onsultfiil.

of

INI>IA.

works,

iIk^w;

tlie

I.

50,000 lahourers were

wliidi

in

a winal, iMtended to connect

enii)loye(l, wsis

[BrjoK

Soorsooty or Soorsa, a hiduII

tributary of the Sutlej, witli a small stream, called the Sulima or Khanjioor,

and thereby obtain a perennial stream
poor.

Tlie canal, if ever completed,

the remarkable

fact,

to flow through Sirhind

no longer

that in the digging of

exiHts

;

but

it

and Murisur-

deserves notice for

aVjout five centuries ago, fossil

it,

remains of a gigantic size were discovered and attracted much attentioiL

It Is

not easy to say to what animals they belonged; but Ferishta, adopting the
opinion which appears to have been formed at the time of the discovery, says

they were the bones of elephants and
fore

arm measured

men

;

and

some of

three gaz (5 feet 2 inches);

human

adds, "the bones of the
tlie

bones were

petrifiefl,

and some retained the appearance of bone."

Among

Public

FerozV'^

the other works of Feroze are enumerated

— 40 mosques,

30

20 palaces, 100 hospitals, 100 caravansaries, 100 public baths, loO
50 dams across

have been

rivers,

and 30

reservoirs or lakes for irrigation.

sufficiently conscious of his

some of them

to be inscribed

He

colleges,

bridges,

appears to

good deeds and rather pharisaically
;

causerl

on the mosque of Ferozabad, a city which he had

The following may be taken as a sample:
"It has been usual in former times to spill Mahometan blood on trivial
occasions and, for small crimes, to mutilate and torture them, by cutting oft'
the hands and feet, and noses and ears, by putting out eyes, by pulverizing the
built in the vicinity of Delhi,

—

;

bones of the living criminal with mallets, by burning the body with
crucifixion,

and by nailing the hands and

of hamstringing, and

feet,

by

by cutting human beings

goodness, having been pleased to confer on

me

flaying alive,

to pieces.

fire,

by

by the operation

God, in his infinite

the power, has also inspired

me

with the disposition to put an end to these practices."
Reign of
Gheias u-

Glieias-u-diu,

whom

his grandftither Feroze

government a year before he

unworthy of

reigning,

for the succession

died,

now became

and within

six

had associated with him in the

sole sovereign,

but proved utterly

months was assassinated

A

contest

took place between Abubekr, a grandson, and Mahomed, a

The former had been placed on the throne by the
as.sassins of Gheias- u- din; but in the coiu-se of eighteen months the latter
displaced him, and assumed the title of Nasir-u-din Mahomed Toghlak.
He
died in 1394, after a reign of six years and seven months, entirely barren of
son of the late Feroze.

great events, and fruitful only in intestine dissensions; and

was succeeded by his
son Hoomayoon, who assumed the name of Sikundur, and died suddenly, in
the course of forty-five days.
disorder,

These constant changes threw everji^hing into

and a kind of anarchy ensued

enough making no scruple of throwing
independent.

;

each chief

ofi"

who thought

his allegiance,

In Delhi alone there were two

parties, each

the one occupying Delhi proper, and the other Ferozabad.

pying the

citadel,

professed neutrality, but this only

himself strong

and declaring himself
with a separate king,

A third

party, occu-

meant that they were

Chap.

PEER MAHOMED JEIIANGIR.

III.]

93

endeavouring to hold the balance, with the view of ultimately selling themselves to the

and the

city,

During

most advantage.

Civil

streets freciuently ran

war thus raged

with blood.

this confusion, intelligence arrived, in 1396, that Prince

tan

by a bridge

was preparing

Peer Ma- New

The governor of Moolwhen Peer Mahomed, anticipating his

of boats, and laid siege to Ooch.

for the relief of it

movements, amved, just in time to surpnse the Mooltanies immediately after
they had crossed the Beas.
those

who

Their show of resistance was useless

A

escaped the sword perished in the river.

retreat to Mooltan,

but the victor was close at their

retire into the fort.

months, want of provisions obliged

him

fearfully

enemy

new

and the governor,

After a siege of six

to sun-ender at discretion.

The

pre-

Mahomed Jehangir was a dire calamity. H(jw
have been increased when lie proved to be only the

must the calamity

The event

is

of sufficient importance to

demand

(;hapter.

Ri'iss OF TooHr.AKABAT).

From

Uucoii'«

Vint

Toglilakabad wa.s named after its foiuuler, tlie
En\peror Glieias-ii-din Toghlak, who <lied A.n. l'i'2Ct.
A faw miserable huts contain all its present inhabi'

and most of

as Peer

forerunner of his grandfather.
a

;

few made good their

heels,

Sarung Khan, had barely time to
sence of such an

^^^\

in the very heart of the

liomed Jehangir, grandson of the celebrated Timour or Tamerlane, had crossed
the Indus

^^

Part of the Serai.'

linpresitoiis of India

taiits;

iiia.<!sy, and stiipendous ruins of
and subterranean apartments still

but the nule,

its walla,

palaces,

attract the notice of travellers.

M.>gia

91.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

CHAPTER

[Book

I.

IV.

Invasion of Tiinour or Tamerlane —Battle of Delhi— Sack of Delhi— Khizr Khan, Timour's deputy—
In(le[ien(lent

kingdoms established on the ruins of the Delhi monarchy —Proceedings of Khizr

—

—

Khan His death Moobarik, his son and successor — Syud Mahorned — Syud Ala-udin — Afghan
Lody dynasty— Bheilole Lody— Sikundur Lody— Ibrahim Lody— ilxtinction of the L<idy Afghan
dynasty, and renewal of that of the Moguls in the person of Baber.

IMOUR,

or

Timour Beg, usually

by the

called

Asiatics

Ameer

Teimoor, and by Europeans Tamerlane or Tamerlan, evidently

Lame Timour, an

a corruption for Timour Leng, or

epitliet

applied to liim on account of a certain degree of lameness,

was

born about 1336, in a village in the vicinity of Samarcand.
A.D.

139S.

According to some, he was only the son of a herdsman
accoimt

is,

that he

was the son

liimself traced his descent

Samarcand

his capital.

or grandson of a Tartar or

managed

He

Mogul chief

the downfall of the Moijul

to obtain the

supremacy, and

made

Possessing the ambition as well as the ttilents of a

and extended

conqueror, he had overrun Persia,

TamerLane

On

from Ghenghis Khan.

Dschaggatai, he

d}Tiasty of

but a more probable

;

his

dominions over Central Asia,

from the wall of China west to the frontiers of Europe, and even beyond, to
Moscow.
He was not yet satisfied; and in 1398, when his age miLst have

approaclies

the Indus.

exceeded sixty, he made his appearance on the west bank of the Indus, at the

The convulsed state of the country promising an easy
and the immense plunder which would necessarily follow, were his

head of a mighty
conquest,

host.

His grandson had, as we have

great inducements.

apparently to feel the way.

He

himself

now

seen,

been sent before,

crossed the river,

and commenced

Having arrived at
the junction of the Chenab and Ravee, where the town and strong fort of
Tulumba are situated, he crossed by a bridge and, entering the town, plundered it, and slaughtered the inhabitants without mercy. The fort was too
He therefore left it, and proceeded to a to^vn
strong to be taken by assaidt.
called Shahnowaz, where, finding more grain than his own troops required, he
a course of almost unparalleled massacre and devastation.

;

caused the rest to be burned.
tiful country.
His
ison

graiiil-

more

On

crossing the Beas, he entered a rich

Meanwhile, his grandson, Peer

obstruction.

Mahomed

Jehangu", had

and plen-

met with

After taking Mooltan, the rainy season commenced, and so

takes

Jlooltan.

many

of the cavalry encamped in the open country were destroyed, that he

under the necessity of lodging

became

so completely

hemmed

his

in

whole army within the walla

and cut

greatest danger of losing his whole army,

oif

from

supplies, that

when Tamerlane,

was

Here he

he was in the

after sending for-^ard

a detachment of 30,000 select horse, joined him with his whole army.

p

Chap.

I

INVASION OF TAMERLANE.

V.J

95

Tamerlane now marched to Bhatneer, which was crowded with

On

in terror from the siurounding districts.

driven out of the town,

their

his api)roach half of

to take shelter

under the

their lives as dearly as

fire to

After a

walls.

Tamoriane'a
tioiw.

the place, and, rushing out, sold

they could, by killing some thousands of the iloguls.

Tamerlane, in revenge, laid Bhatneer in ashes, after causing every soul in
to

1393.

which awaited them, killed

cruelties that the garrison, seeing the fate

wives and children in despair, set

ad

them were

from the governor, he forced his entrance, and committed so

short resistance

many

and obliged

j^eople flying

it

Soorsooty, Futtehabad, Rajpoor, and other towns, were sub-

be massacred.

These, however, were merely preludes to a

jected to similar barbarities.

more

general extermination.

Tamerlane's great object was Delhi, towards which he kept steadily advancing.

Having

at length

advanced opposite to

horse, to reconnoitre.
his minister,

Mahmood

he crossed the river with only 700

it,

Toghlak, then the pageant King of Delhi, and

Mulloo Yekbal Khan, tempted by the smallness of his attendants,

out with 5000 horse, and twenty-seven elephants.

sallied

Notwithstanding their

A

were repidsed.

superiority in numbers, the Delhi troops

siege of

number of

vast

were in the Mogul camp, and some of them, on seeing Tamerlane

prisoners

attacked at a disadvantage, could not refrain from expressing their joy.

The

by

order-

circumstance being reported to this cruel barbarian, he took his revenge

ing that all the prisoners above the age of fifteen shoiild be put to the sword.
In this horrid massacre, nearly 100,000 men, almost all Hindoos, are said to

have perished.

Having now forded the
on the plain of Ferozabad.
the encounter, but with the

river with his whole army,

The King of Delhi and
same

they mainly trusted, being, at
drivel's,

I'll-

king,
lleil

the

;

The

elephants, on

own

which

of most of their

ranks.

Tamerlane gave

!!•

and, following the fugitives u}) to the very gates of Delhi,
•

fixed his head- (quarters.

Consternation

instead of attein])ting to allny
in

his minister again risked

charge, depriv^ed

first

turned back, and spread confusion in their

no time to rally
thei'e

result as before.

Tamerlane encamped

the direction of Gujerat.

it,

now

1

spread over the city; and the

thought only of his

own

safety,

and

All idea of resistance being abandoned, the

chief

men

lane

was formally proclaimed emperor.

of the city, crowding to the camp,

made

A

their submission,

and Tamer-

heavy contribution having been

was found in levying it. On this pretext, a body of
soldiers were sent into the city, and immediately commenced an indisci'iminate
plunder.
It had continued for five days before Tamerlane was even aware of it.

ordered,

some

difiiculty

He had remained
victory,

he saw

and the
it

outside in the cjimp to celebrate a festival in honour of his

first

in flames

;

intimaticm of the proceedings in Delhi was given him
fi)r

the Hindoos, in despair, had murdered their wives and

children, set fire to their houses,

A

when

general massacre ensued,

and then rushed out

and some

streets

to perish

by the sword.

became impassable from heaps of

ooiin
flicked

;

HISTORY OF INDIA.

no
A.D.

(lead.

1308.

Jiinount of pluixler

'I'lu;

own

hi.s

share of the

great Tinnil)er of curious animals

He

Toglilak had formed.

is

120

spoil,

return home, carrying with him,

elejihants,

twelve rljinoceroses, and a

a

menagerie which Feroze

h(;Ionging

also said to

ration at the mo.sque which that

hi.s

I.

Tamerlane remained

Ixjyond wilculation.

v\';us

at Delhi fifteen days, and then comm(;need
as part of

[Book

to

have heen so much struck with admi-

monarch had

and on the walls of which

built,

he had inscribed the history of his reign, that he took back the architects and

masons to Samarcand to build one on a similar
captuic of

He

plaiL

gan'ison, confiding in its strength, ridiculed the very idea of capture,

tained before

who

it.

The

officer,

seemed too slow to
scaling-ladders

his

sus-

without attempting anything, returned to Tamer-

it

and many other

modern

commenced running mines with
ultimate success was certain.
The process, however,
Moguls, who, haAnng filled up the ditch, applied their

and grappling-irons

put every soul within

as in

insult-

forthwith ap2)eared in person, and

such rapidity that his

in this

and

Mogul general had

ingly reminded the officer of the defeat which another

lane,

The

halted at Paniput, and sent a detachment to besiege Meerut.

first

by assault, and
The mines employed by Tamerlane

to the walls, carried the place

to the sword.

sieges,

were not intended to be

filled

with gunpowder,

warfare, but merely to sap the foundations of the

wall.s,

which,

while the process was being earned on, were supported by wooden frames.

When

walls, thus left

were

fi-ames

without support, necessarily tiimbled.

Mogul conqueror,
mines

wooden

the process was finished, the

wreak

to

after the place

his

vengeance more

set

on

fire,

and the

In this iiLstance the

effectually,

had been taken without them, and thus

completed Ids

entirely destroyed

its defences.
Tamerlane's
return.

Continuing
^ lus marcli, Tamerlane skirted the mountains of Sewahk, cros.sed
the Ganges, and laid waste the whole country with fire and sword along its
jj^

banks up

to the point

repassed

the river, and ultimately

Before he

left,

where

a Gukkur

bursts from

it

chief,

reached

city,

rocky gorges.

He

afterwards

Samarcand by way of CabooL

taking advantage of his absence, got possession

of Lahore, and refused to acknowledge

tachment against that

its

which

fell

liis

in a

He

therefore sent a de-

"NMiile

he halted at Jamoo,

authority.

few days.

Khizr Khan, who had submitted to him and become a favourite, was appointed

by him viceroy
Dismemberi)!u!i

•^"^

kuig^

of Mooltan, Lahore,

For two montlis

and Depalpoor.

was a prey

after Tamerlane's departure, Delhi

to anarchy,

and was at the same time ravaged by pestilence and famine. After a series of
sanguinary struggles, Mulloo Yekbal Khan, the old Mahometan ^'izier, gained
the ascendency, and something like regular govermnent was re-established.

This return to order induced

and the

city,

many

of the inhabitants

which had recently been a smoking

who had

ruin,

fled to retm'n

began to recover.

In

addition to a small district around the city, Mulloo Yekbal obtained possession
of the Doab, or the tract lying between the

Jumna and

Ganges.

Tliis

was now

MULLOO YEKBAL, AND KHIZR KHAN.

CiiAP. IV.]

all

that remaiued of

what had recently been a

own names

All the other ad.

gi-eat empire.

by the governors, who continued

provinces were seized

97

them in

to hold

1421.

theii'

as independent kingdom.s.

Khan was

Mulloo Yekbal

not contented that Delhi should be thus shorn of

usurpation
of Mill loo

its

He

greatness.

added considerably to

neighbouring governors

;

and made

Mahmood

that the ex-king,

atfau'S to

Toghlak,

territory

its

by

successfid attacks

still

who had found an asylum

first
1

ill

at ease,

was provided

for

by being put

at Gujerat,

Mulloo

401.

continued to retain the sovereign power in his

and Mahmood, feeling

Vekbai.

assume an appearance so promising

and then at Malwah, was induced, by his invitation, to return in
Yekbal, however,

on

own

hands;

in possession

Mulloo Yekbal, having thus got quit of him, ai)pears soon to have

of Canouge.

forgotten all the deference
victory wliich filled

which he used to show him;

him with ambitious

an army against his old sovereign.
Mulloo, unable to reduce
against Khizr

Khan, but

it,

in 140-i, after

a

longings, he did not hesitate to lead

Mahmood

raised the siege.

his

for,

sliut

He

himself up in Canouge

;

and

shortly after tm-ned his arms

good fortune forsook him, and he was defeated and

slain in 1405.

On this event, the officers who had been left in Delhi gave an invitation
to Mahmood Toghlak, who, leaving Canouge, came with a small retinue, and
was re-seated on his throne.
Mahmood had neither the sense nor courage
necessary to maintain his positions;

and

Rotumof
Mainnoixi
^''°''''''

after various vicissitudes, shut himself

up in Ferozabad, where he was besieged by Khizr Khan, who was, however, obliged
to raise the siege

from want of forage and pro\asions.

The

release

temporary, for having obtained supplies, he immediately returned.

was only

Meanwhile,

Mahmood had removed to Siry, the old citadel of Delhi. A similar cause
•l>ligt' d Khizr Khan to retire as before
but the deliverance proved as fatal to
Mahmood as the captm*e of the citadel would have been. The transition from

(

;

fear to joy,

and immoderate exertion during a hunting excursion, brought on a

fever, of wliich

he died in

slaves of SiUtan
liisted,

1

41

2.

With him ended

Shahab-u-din Ghoory.

His inglorious and disastrous reign had

with interruptions, twenty years.

Afghan, of the
for fifteen

Khizr

name

of

the race of Toorks, the adopted

The nobles immediately placed an

Dowlut Khan Lody, on the

throne.

He held

it

nominally

months, and Wfis then deposed by Khizr Khan, in 1416.

Khan had gained

and been appointed, a.s
already mentioned, governor of Lahore, Mooltan, and Depalpoor.
Hence,
thougli on the deposition of Dowlut Khan Lody, he assumed the reins of
the favour of Tamerlane,

government at Delhi, he refused to appropriate regal
himself as only the deputy of Tamerlane, in
tlie

Khootba was

Khizr

Khan

to

read.

Even

titles,

affecting to regard

whose name money was coined, and

after Tamerlane's death, the

acknowledge the supremacy of

same policy induced

his successor,

Shahrokh Mirza,

and even send tribute occasionally to Samarcand. His reign or regency, which
was terminated by his death in 1421, after it had lasted little more than seven
Vol.

I.

13

loiizr

KUan.

deputy.

HISTOliY OK INI>IA.

98
years, presents

(!iu.

few

imi)Oi'tant events;

but

liis

[Hook

I.

conduct contrawts favourably with

A.I). 14 K).

that of his predecessors, and the inliabitants of Delhi showed their respect ior

-

memory by wearing

liis

Khizr Khan's eldest

Mo()l)arik,

Mo()l)!irik

black, their garb of mourning, during three days.
son, succeeded him, in virtue of a

nomination

Bucoeoils

Kliizr

by

when he

his father,

Kh;i[i.

felt

his

end approaching.

in the Punjab,

were carried on

repeatedly defeated,

managed always

some other quarter as strong as

by forming an

in his favour

first

military (jperati'^ns

where he succeeded, but not without

The

suppressing a serious insurrection.

in

His

He

ever.

alliance

Jusrut Gukkur,

rebel,

to escape,

and

even succeeded

in creating a divei-sion

with Ameer Sheikh Ally, a Mogul chief

The King of Malwah,

ances, invested Gwalior, in the

him

in

make an

to

takinj; a^lvantajje of these di.sturb-

hope of adding

Moobariks

to his dominions.

it

was thus fully occupied and liis whole reign of thirteen years furnothing more important than a succession of revolts. HLs temper, said tf)

attention
nishes

though

to a|)pear unexpectedly in

the service of Shahrokh Mirza, governor of Cabool. and inducing
incursion into Scinde.

difficulty,

;

have been so equable that he never spoke in anger during his
iU fitted for the times in

which he

lived.

life,

was probably

A conspiracy, in which some

of

liLs

own

family were implicated, was formed against him, and he was basely assassinated
in the

new

city of Delhi, while at worship in a mosque.

Prince Mahomed, Moobarik's son, though not one of the actual perpetiu-

Uinvortliy
reign of

Mahomed,

tors of his father's mui-der,

his son.

turn

it

was

perfectly cogniztmt of

it,

and endeavoured

to

by immediately mounting the throne. His fu"st act was to
own shame and guilt, by rewarding the conspirators. The appoint-

to account

proclaim his

ment of the ringleader, Survui"-ool-Moolk, to the office of vizier, produced general
inchgnation; and a confederacy was formed, which soon broke out into open rebellion.
The malcontents marched at once upon Delhi; and Mahomed, seeing that
his vizier

him

was

chiefly

aimed

The

vizier,

to his fate.

at,

thought he might save himself by abandoning

however, was too crafty to be thus caught

;

and no

sooner learned that the king was in communication with his enemies, than he

formed a band of
He,

master.

who
Bheilole

into

fell

too,
it

assassins,

and broke into the palace

had been put on

and was cut to

his guard,

and had

in order to mui'der his

laid a trap for the vizier,

pieces.

Mahomed, now apparently on good terms

Avith the confederates

who had

laid

Lody aim3
at the

throne.

siege to Delhi, thought himself safe

;

and, throwing

ofi"

all restraint,

spent his time

The administration of affairs, thas neglected, fell into
disorder discontent prevailed, and an insiurection broke out in Mooltan among
Bheilole Lody, who had placed himself at their head, had previthe Afghans.
in sensual indidgence.
;

ously usurped the government of Sirhind, and
Lahore, Depalpoor, and
to cope with the royal
hills,

all

now made

himself master of

the country as far south as Panipiit.

army which was

sent against him,

Bheilole, unable

was driven

into the

and, abandoning open force, determined to try the effect of intrigue.

he managed so dexterously that the king, on his suggestion,

]iut

This

one of

bis

REIGN OF ALA-U-DIN.

Chap. IV.]
ablest

and most

(U.sturbances

faitliful

which

99

servants to death; and then, in order to suppress the

this imbecile

and

The

inic^uitous act

Afghan

had produced, had

summons,

and marched to Delhi with 20,000 horsemen iUTayed in armour.

'J'hough

this

made the

reinforcement

crafty

army

royal

superior to that of the insurgents,

refused to take the Held, and, like a coward, shut himself

lie

The brunt of the action which ensued
manfully

self

;

fell

upon

now

Matters seemed

which Bheilole had

all

up

in his ])alace.

who acquitted liimthat Mahomed adopted

Bheilole,

and, in consequence, rose into such ftivour

liim as his son.

ms.

recoiu-se

at once obeyed the

to Bheilole for assistance.

.\.i).

schemes

ripe for the execution of the

along contemplated.

He

accordingly strengthened his

army by numerous bodies of Afghans, and, throwing off the mask, marched
upon Delhi. The siege which he commenced proved more formidable than he
had anticipated, and he determined to wait a little longer.
Meantime the
weak and dissolute Mahomed was permitted, notwithstanding his crime of
to die a natm-al death, in 14-10, after a reign of twelve years.

jtarricide,

Ala-u-din,

Mahomed's

son,

mounted the

throne,

and immediately received

-Ma-w-diirs
feeble reign.

homage of all the

tlie

chiefs except Bheilole,

provoke a contest in which he

felt

who was

jn-obably not

unwillmg

to

confident that he would prove the victor.

Ala-u-din was too j)owerless or too mean-spirited to resent the insult,

and soon

into general contempt, the people not hesitating to say openly that

he was a

tell

man than

weaker

shadow of

its

(iujerat,
<tll

posses.sed scarcely a

former greatness; for the whole that could be considered as pro-

perly belonging to it

the rest of

The kingdom of Delhi now

his father.

was the

Hindoostan

wtis

city of Delhi

and a small

broken up into separate

Malwah, Jounpoor, and Bengal had each

})rincipalities.
its

All

tract in its vicinity.

The Deccan.

independent king

;

while

the other territories, though nominally subordinate to Delhi, were in the

At

hands of chiefs e(pially independent.

the head of these was,

tis

a.ii ions

kingdoms.

has been

already seen, Bheilole Lody, whose designs on the ca})ital had been re})eatedly
declared

by overt

acts, ;ind

were only postponed

to a fitting opportunity.

This

op])ortuuity soon arrived.

Ala-u-din had early taken a great ftmcy for Budaoon, where he had spent

He

some time in building pleasiu-e-houses and laying out gardens.
its

air

agreed better with his health than Delhi, and wished to

The remonstrances of

dence.

him

for a

time; but crafty

into disgrace,
of

him

thought
reeling,

corn-tiers,

and

having succeeded

at Delhi.

set off to enjoy him.self at

The

vizier,

The order to that

made

ett'ect

in

it

his lesi-

bringing the vizier

own

wi.shes, regardless

Budaoon, leaving a deputy to
still

alive.

The very

of his comisellors. tfiking advantage of the
policy

would

])e

to take the vizier's

was accordingly given; but the

his escape to Delhi,

make

the danger, dissuaded

though disgraced, was

made him uneasy; and some
persuaded him that his best

guard, and

who showed him

he immediately proceeded to follow out his

the consequences,

act for

his vizier,

thought that

Mas put on his
enough to obtain

vizier

where he had intiucnce

life.

Ai,iu<iiii'«

ii,„i;,.H,n.

100
A.D.

m:;1.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

possession of
capital

and

all tiio

The king

royul effects.

[JiooK

wsts urg(;(l

strike a decisive blow, but he only

made

to

to

baxrk

li}iHt<;n

I.

lii.s

frivoloas excas^jH for ihJay.

One day it was tlie weather, which made it fli.sagreeable to travel another day
it was the stars, whicli pronounced it unlucky.
The vizier made better ukc of
;

the time, and invited Bheilole

out at once, but gave a

Lody

assume the government.

to

new specimen

din that his only object in going was to expel the

even for the imbecile monarch to believe

which he saw he would soon be
Bheilole's favour,

He had

founds
the Lody

Afghan
dynasty.

his

to

by formally abdicating the throne

in

previoasly reigned seven years at Delhi.

The circumstances of

Lody Afghan dynasty, began

his reign in 1450.

were extraordinary, and being interpreted

his birth

portend his future greatness, very probably contributed to realize

was

bom

his

much

extending to nearly twenty-eight years, was

life,

Bheilole, the founder of the

Bheilole

This wa.s too

vizier.

and he voluntarily took the step

;

forced,

wi-iting to Ala-u-

on condition of being permitted to reside quietly at Budaoon.

Here the remainder of
spent.

by

of his Afghan craft

Bheilole set

mother was killed by the

fall

t<>

Before he

it.

Her husband, Mullik

of her hoase.

Kaly, governor of a district in Sirhind, immediately ordered her body to be
opened, and, strange to say, the

of the infant

who had been appointed governor

Sultan,

Khan, rewarded

him

life

his valour

by giving him

was

His

saved.

of Sirhind with the

uncle, Mullik
title

his daughter in marriage,

and making

Khan had

Islam

his heir, to the exclusion of his o^vn full-grown sons.

of Islam

The

usually retained 12,000 Afghans, mostly of his owii tribe, in his service.

The King of Delhi

greater part of these joined Bheilole.

by inducing Jusrut

roused as to the ultimate objects of the Afghans; and,

Gukkur

to take the field against them, drove

headed them, made

many

which he divided the

spoil,

Hissam Khan,
result, as

whom

them

to the

harl his suspicions

hills.

Here Bheilole

predatory incursions, and, by the liberality with
attracted great

numbers

The

to his standard

vizier,

The

the kinsr sent against him, was signallv defeated

has been ah*eady related, was that Bheilole foimd means to ingi'atiate

himself with the king, was adopted as his son, and at last succeeded in displac-

ing Moobarik,

who

retired into private

life,

and went to

reside, despised or

forgotten, at his favourite residence of Budaoon.
Aftei'

whom

Bheilole succeeded, he continued for a time to treat the vizier, to

he was mainly indebted for his elevation, with

wards, thinking he presumed too
his servants to seize him.

The

much on what he had

vizier,

had given, expected nothing but death
for past services,

\I

;

but

done, he caused

after-

some of

though not aware of the offence which he
;

but Bheilole told him

he had a security for his

life

;

that, in gratitude

the only thing necessary

that he should cease to intermeddle with public
insuiTection

gi-eat respect

affairs,

now

and spend the

was,

rest of

In 1451, during
o an absence of Bheilole in Mooltan. a formidable insuiTection broke out, headed by Mahmood Shah Shui'ky, King of

his life in retirement.

'

It

Jounpoor,

who advanced with

a large army, and laid siege to Delhi.

Bheilole

BHEILOLE AND HIS SUCCESSOES.

CnAP. IV.]

returned with precipitation

power on a firmer basis than

by putting down the

and,

;

began to think of
obliged to
tories

make a

new

rebellion, placed his

a.d. 1499.

then was, could not satisfy

FomiiiiHbie

before.

The kingdom of Delhi, contracted

who no

the ambition of Bheilole,

101

in extent as

sooner found himself firmly seated than he

conquests.

He was

bound him

treaty which

it

not very successful

;

for

he was

'""
j,"^'
|^f

^^^^-^^

to limit his possession to the terri-

which had belonfjed to Delhi in the time of Moobarik.

His most form id-

members of the Shurky family. Among them,
Hoossein Shah Shurky took the lead.
At one time he advanced against Dellii
with 100,000 horse and 1000 elephants; at another he obliged him to make a
able enemies

were the

by which he

treaty,

difierent

reliniiuished all right to

Ultimately, however, Bheilole gained so

Shurky

part of the

Bheilole,

any

many

territory east of the Ganges.

decided advantages, that a great

was incorporated with his own.
when he mounted the throne, had a family of nine
territory

advanced in years, and

felt

As he

sons.

the cares of government weighing heavily upon him,

he adopted the very injudicious measure of partitioning his territory

way

In this

them.

great object of his

among

Biieiioie'«

pnrtition

territories

the amalgamation of the conquests, which had been the

life,

was completely

arrangement he was seized with

illness,

Shortly after making this

frastrated.

and died in

1

488, after a reign of nearly

thirty-nine years.

He had

previously declared that his son

whom he had allotted
his successor.
He was not the

Nizam Khan,

Delhi and several districts in the Doab, should be

to

lawful heir; for the eldest son of Bheilole, though dead,

according to the ordinary rules of succession,

title,

Nizam Khan owed
of a goldsmith,

title

all o])position

His

of Sikundur.

at least

was

left

a son, whose

certainly preferaljle.

this preference to the influence of his mother, the

whose beauty had given her the

a short contest,

had

to the

daughter

place in the harem.

After

appointment ceased, and he assumed the

which lasted twenty-eight years,

reign,

compared with that of

first

neiiin nf

his predecessoi*s

able alike for the comeliness of his person

;

and he

is

wsis peaceful,

described as remark-

and the excellence of

his character.

In general, justice was administered impartially, but some remarkable instances
of intolerance

have

left

a stain (m his reputation.

One

of these desei^ves to be

recorded.

About

\4i99,

a Brahmin of the name of Boodlum, an inhabitant of a village

near Lucknow, being upbraided
defentled himself

Hindoos,

if

by some Mahometans on account of

by maintaining

" that the religions,

was

was publicly discussed before the cazis of Lucknow.
.agi-ee

excited,

He

argued

and the subject

These judges did not

and the governor, as the best way of settling the
sent the Brahmin and all the other parties to Sumbuhl, where the court

in their conclusion

matter,

both of the Moslems and

acted on with sincerity, were equally acceptable to God."

the point so ingeniously that considerable attention

his faith,

then happened to be.

;

The

king,

who was

well informed on religious subjects,

Mahometan
anTintoiCTaiice.

102
Cm.

AD.

1600.

HISTOIIV or INDfA.

and was fond of
to assemble

and

licaiiii;^ tlit^iu

deljate with

iiis('u.s.s(;(i,

tli(;

oidercd

[Book
luoHt learned of

t\u-

At the very

Braliniin.

liis

I.

subjects

outset of the pro«;ed-

ing then; was thus a considerable want of fairness, as the lirahnjin wa>* uiiKupported, while no fewer than nine of the al>lest

The

against him.

result

Mahometan

doctfjrs

were arrayed

was that the chosen nine found themselves perfectly
and the Brahmin altogether

in the right,

As a

the wrong.

natural consequence, they

were rewarded with
Iteen well if these

gifts;

had

and

satisfied

had allowed their opponent

Uj

it

would have

them, and they

The Brah-

maintaining that the Hindofj faith

in

was

A

go his way.

very different course was followed
min,

in

rank on a footing of equality

entitled to

with the Mahometan, wa.s
sulted the Pro])het;

to have in-

lield

and the only alternative

left

was

Mahometan

or suffer death.

He

prefeired the latter, and

was accordingly

to turn

executed.

The king appears
-=r" "II

to liave been as fond of

and often

as of religious questions,

judicial

Some

sat in ])ei'son in tlie coui-ts of law.
A Brah.min.— Friira
Sikuiiclur

Belnos' Smidhva.

,

i

i

•

i

i

the decisions which

brated.

Two

brothers,

during a

siege,

become possessed of

private

•

had,

soldiers,

i

i

lie

among

of
i

i)ronounced are celeother booty obtained

celebrate<l

as a juilge.

One

tw(j large i-ubies of different shapes.

of the brothers having determined to

qviit

the service and retui'n to his family

him with his share of the plunder, including
one of the rubies, and told him to deliver it to his wife. The soldier who had
continued to serve, on returning after the war was ended, asked his wife
for the ruby, and was told that she had never seen it
The brother, (jn the
at Delhi,

the other intrusted

was brought
before the court, produced a number of witnesses who swore that they had seen
hiiu deliver it.
The judge, acting on this testimony, decided against the woman,
telling her to go home and give the ruby to her hiLsband.
Her home was thus
contrary, declared that he

had delivered

it;

and

vrheii the case

rendered so uncomfortable that, as a last resource, she laid her complaint before
the king.
})arties

He

listened patiently to her statement,

strengthen

it,

wax

all

the

%vitnesses repeated their e\-idence; and, in order to

affirmed that they perfectly recollected the size and shape of the

ruby, which they
piece of

The

before him.

and then summoned

had seen given.

On

this the witnesses

were separated, and a

being given to each of them, as well as to each of the

were told to mould

it

into the form of the gem.

On

the soldiers agreed, but that of all the othei-s differed.

soldiers,

they

examination, the models of

The king drew the

infer-

ence that the soldiers alone had seen the ruby, and the witnesses had been

REIGN OF IBRAHIM.

Chap. IV. ]

suborned to

perjiu*e themselves.

103

added that a confession

It is

to this effect wits a.d.

isiz.

afterwards extorted from them.

Sikundur was succeeded iu 1517 by
and

father, the

Afghans had regarded them.selves as a dominant

besides monopolizing

chiefs,

presence, while all others

them mortal

all

his grandfather
race,

and

their

were constrained to stand.

make no

sikiuIaMr.

Ibrahim accordingly gave

between

distinction

his

They did

the weight of their indignation.

and

officei-s,

his

said publicly,

He was

soon made

not, indeed,

attempt to

have no relations nor clansmen."

that "kings should

ibrai.im

the great offices of the state, sat in the royal

when, at the connnencement of his reign, he announced

offence,

determination to

to feel

Under

his son Ibrahim.

dethrone him; but endeavoured to partition his temtories by placing his brother,
Julal

Khan, on the throne of Jounpoor.

king, appointed his

own

eastern provinces.

The Afghan

and was acknowledged by

vizier,

their followers

the officers of the

all

themselves as against Ibrahim.

again.st

formed a small minority of the population, and nothing

but perfect union could enable them to maintain their ascendency.

by

they would fain have retraced their

this consideration,

steps,

the

Influenced

but Julal

Khan

war ensued. In
end, Ibrahim, having regained the confidence of the Afghan chiefs, crushed
rebelHon of Julal Khan, who, having fallen into his brother's hand.s, was by

had no idea of resigning his newly-acquired honom-s, and a
the

Afgimn

began to discover that the revenge

chiefs soon

which thev had taken told as much

They and

J\dal accoi'dingly assiuned the title of

civil

his private orders assassinated.

This rebellion was no sooner suppressed than another,

vizier,

whom

Islam Khan, brother of Futteh Khan,

broke out.

believing that Ibrahim had

of his influence as governor

vowed

and

The

first

suffered a very severe

and

The

loss.

man

in

fell

insurgents, in conse-

so reinforced that they mustered

in sight of each other, but, instead of fighting,

Sheikh Rajoo Bokhar}', a

his

imme-

detachment sent against him

The armies arrived

40,000 cavalry, 500 elephants, and a large body of infantry.

came

to a i)arley,

on the sugges-

universal esteem for his reputed

Terras of accommodation were proposed and agreed to; but the king-

sanctity.

was only

He had

plaj'ing a part.

the governor of Oude, to advance,

amu-sed

till

when

it

was too

terras,

chose the latter.

Ibrahim

sent orders to the collector of Ghazipoor, and

and

his object

he should be able to ovei'power them.

dictated rather

respite.

made

Julal had

the ruin of his family, availed himself

quence, advanced, flushed with victory,

tion of

more formidable,

of Kurra, to form a strong party, and

diately raised the standard of revolt.
into an ambuscade,

still

late

;

The

issue

himself secure

;

keep the insurgents

flee

was not long doubtful.

by despair than by any ho]ie

now thought

to

They discovered

and having no alternative but to

Bahadur Khan, on the death of

inunediately

was

their error

or fight on unequal

After a resistance,

of victory, they fled in

all directions.

but he had only obtained a short

his father,

declared himself independent,

and

who was governor
a.'^sumed

the

title

of Behar,
of king.

a

civii

war.

s

HISTORY OF INDIA.

101
AD.

1626.

Keiwiii..!.

govoniors

ami Lahore

[Book

I.

Numeroas malcontent cluefs joined him; and, at tlie head (;f 100,000 horw^, he
made himself master of all the country as far {is Sumbuhl, defeating the Delhi
army in several engagements. A still more fatal step wa« taken by Dowlut
Klian Lody, the governor of Lahore.
'^^^^

He

had at

first

bccame alamicd at the repeated instances of

taken part with the king,

his pei-fidy.

Not

seeing

any

seemity for his family in any temis of accommodation which Ibrahim might
induced to
in the

gi'ant,

open

field,

and

conscious, at the

same time, of

his inability to

he entered into a communication with Baber,

That prince had long kept

reigning in Cabool.

his eye fixed

)>('

meet him

who was

then

on Hindoostan,

which, as a direct descendant of Tamerlane, he regarded as part of his inheritance.

Nothing, therefore, could be more in accordance with his wishes than Dowlut

Khan's invitation.

He was

country

very time Ala-u-din, the brother of Ibrahim, was living in

;

for at this

exile at his com-t.
])rince,

well acquainted with the convulsed state of the

Before taking the field in person, Baber sent forward this

who was immediately joined by Dowlut Khan.

distinction also rallied around his standard,

Delhi, with the intention of laying siege to

and

lie

Many

other officers of

continued his march towards

His army mustered 40,000

it.

Ibrahim went out to oppose him, but suffered himself to be surprised

when

night, and, after a tumultuous conflict, found,

the day dawTied,

hor.se.

in the

tliat

most

The troops, however, had remained
faithful, and an opportunity of regaining more than he had lost immediately
presented itself.
The troops of Ala-u-din, thinking they had secured the
victory, had dispersed to plunder.
Ibrahim, before they were aware, w^as on
them with his elephants and as many of his soldiers as he had rallied, and
of his officers had deserted to the enemy.

drove them from the
lost,

made a

Invitation

with great slaughter.

precipitate retreat to the Punjab,

Delhi in triumph.
to

field

discomfitm'e was to

Ala-u-din, giving

up

all for

and Ibraliim once more entered

was of .short dm-ation for the only effect of Ala-u-din'
bring Baber across the Indus in the end of 1525. As the

It

;

Baber

must be left for another chapter, it is sufficient here to mention the
result.
The kings met in the beginning of the following year, on the plain of
Paniput, and a sanguinary battle was fought, which teiininated the life of
Ibrahim, and extinguished the Lody Afghan dvTiasty.
On its ruins the far
details

more celebrated dynasty of the Great Mogul was

erected.

Chap V.]

OF BABER.

ItEIGN

CHAPTER
Mogul dynasty -Life

Y.

-Hoomayoon — Ilis

aiul reign of Ilaber

10^

expuUiuii and return —State of India at

his death.

ABER

was the

Abu

fathei',

Said Mirza,

was

among wliom

eleven sons,

left

Omar Sheikh

extensive dominions were divided.
fom*th son,

His grand- ad

sixth in descent from Tamerhine.

uss.

his

Mirza, the

some time i^overnor of Cabool, but was

for

transferred to Fergliana, situated on the upper course of the

This province, of wliich he was in possession

Jaxartes

was afterwards

lield

l)y liim

Jis

an independent sovereignty.

Mahmood Khan,

ried the sister of

He had

a descendant of Dschaggatai

Baber was

him connected with CJhenghis Khan.

tlu-ougl»

when Abu Said

lier

died, unVw, bom

mar-

lusorifrin

Khan, and

"i""^,'".'^

son,

and was,

somewhat singular that, in
Ills own Memoirs, lie always speaks with contempt of the Mogul race, though the
tlvnasty which he was about to e.stablisii in India was destined to take its name
from it.
Tiie exphmation is, that the title Great Mogul was not chosen by
liini, but was applied, in accordance with the Hindoo ciustom of giving the name
by

conseciuently,

Moguls to

(»f

the

all

mother's side, a Mogul.

tlie

Mahometans

When

the Afghans

It is

of the north-west, with the single excei)tion of

his father died,

Baber was only twelve years of

was thus de])rive(lof

his natural protector before he could

to act for himself

To add

enough

position.

liis

On

room

learning his father's death,

As the

the succession

eldest son, he

It Wiis necessary,

for tUs])ute.

Mirza, ruler of

to re.sent a (piarrel

But Baber had

command

servant

;

if

you

ap]>oint me,

toiy manner."

'i'his

answer was returned
to

your purpose
])lain

The uncle

lie

had had

took immediate steps to secure

whom

to

title to

it,

and there was no

I

you must place one of your

;un at once

your son and your

answered

in the mo.st satisfac-

will be

dealing gave

wius, in fa<:t,

Ahmed

the .suiu'emac}' belonged; and

plain

is

of this country;

honest but

tliey

however, to consult his uncle. Sultan

Baber sent an embassy to him. to say, "It
servants in the

which

have

talents equal to the difliculties of

had the best

Samarcand and Bokhara,

He

be expecteil to be able

to the misfortune, his uncles, wh(^ ought to

befriended him, were \ingenerous

with the father, on the son

age.

dis.sati.sfaction.

and a

hostile

already on the marcli, determined

complete the conquest which he had begun while Baber's father was alive, and

make himself

sole

friendless youth.
unele's troops,
Thi.s

I.

On

this occasion fortune favoured the

In crossing a river, the bridge, which was crowded with his

gave way, and great numbers of men,

was regarded

Vol.

master of Fertrhana

as ominous, particularly

jus

hoi-ses.

a defeat

and camels

])erished.

had been sustained at the
14

iiis mes-sagfi

;

106
At)

iifli;

OF INDIA.

TIFSTOIJV

snmo spot
struck,

tliree

The anny,

or four years before.

and showed the utmost reluctance to

r.

in consequence, Ixicarne panic-

While they were

axlvance.

tating, the horses

were seized with a

fatal di.sease,

appearance.

these circumstances

made

All

[iiooK

hesi-

and Baber's arrny marie

its

the invaders disposed to listen to

terms of accommodation, and patch up a hasty peace, when a resolute a/lvance
of a few miles would probably have put them in possession of Indijan, Baber's
capital.

No

Raber'H

sooner was this danger escaped, than another, of an equally formidaljle

(lilfilMllt

positiuu.

The Sultan Mahmood Khan made

nature, thrcatejied him.

and

north,

his af)[»earance in the

After re[)eated

laid siege to Baber's fortress of Akhsi.

which

ftssaidts,

were repulsed with great valour, he abandoned the attempt as hopeless, and
the best of his

A

way home.

and devastating

He

as he came.

enemy advanced from

third

was, however,

more

still

the

jilundering

efist,

easily disposed of than

the others, having brought himself into a position out of which,

had been taken, he could not have extricated himself

ma<^Ie

Balder,

if full

advantage

thus freed from

the perils wliich had environed him, turned his leism-e to good account, and

Alteniate
success

many important internal
He had hitherto been

made

improvements.
contented to act on the defensive, but in 1495 he found

and

himself strong enough to change his

defeat.

It

had at one time belonged

self entitled to

take

he

it if

on Uratuppa
vender, thus

was about

to hLs father,

it

and on

ground he thought him-

this

The task proved

could.

and he gained possession of

and attempt the conquest of Kliojend.

tactics,

His next attempt was

almost without resistance.

but as the inhabitants had canied home

;

making

it

to set in, he

Samarcand having been
the country in

tloi-ee

him

impossible for

was obliged to

disputed, three

their grain

all

to obtain s\ipphes,

In

retreat.

diff'ei'ent

different directions.

than he anticipated,

easier

and

and pro-

as the winter

1496, the succession to

claimants appeared, and invaded

Baber was one of them

but as none

;

them was able to establish an ascendency, they all three retired. In the following year Baber renewed the attempt, and conducted his operations with so
much skill and valour, that, before the year expired, both the city and teiritory
of

of Samarcand

were in

his

possession.

acknowledged by most of the nobles

was anxious

;

He

this,

His serious
illne-a

went

off in a body,

who was

and

this time,

dispei-se.

Others, not satisfied

offered their ser\-ices to Jehangir Mu-za,

treacherous enough to listen to their overtm-es, and

on Indijan, one of the leading

At

The troops

to conciliate the inhabitants, he forbade all plunder.

Baber's brother,
seize

accordingly crowned, and

but as the city had capitulated, and he

were gi-ievously (Usappointed, and began to
with

wjis

when aU

districts of

Ferghana.

the talents which Baber possessed would scarceh^

and

luisfortuiies

have

sufficed,

verge of ruin.

he was seized with a dangerous

and foimd

his affairs

Samarcand was held by a most precarious tenure

obvious that the

would

illness,

moment he

lose it altogether.

He

ceased to overawe

it

by

liis

;

and

on the
it

was

personal presence, he

resolved, notwithstanding, to

make

this sacrifice

FORTUNi:S OF BABEH.

Chap. V.]
for his paternal

domiuions were dearer to hini than any new conquest, however M)

HO!)

and he could not brook the idea of having them dismembered by the

valuable,

He

perfidy of a brother.

oidy in time enough
intrusted,

accordingly set out towards Indijan, but he arrived

had been induced, by a rumour of

lost.

Baber

wiis

maternal uncle, Sultan

the defence of

his death, to surrender,

it

wa«

and that

Both Samarcand and Indijan were

now in the utmost distress, and applied
Mahmood Klian. His brother Jehangir

same time, and Mahmood, unwilling
gave no assistance to

whom

learn that the officers to

t(^

Jehangir had actually mounted the throne.
thus

107

for aid to his

applied at the

to interfere in the quarrels of his nephews,

Ultimately, however, he departed so far from this

either.

MaliiiKMMl
8\l|>I><>l'ts

resolution as to take open ]>art with

Baber, who, after various vicissitudes,

recovered his paternal kingdom in 1499.

He

recovery of Samarcand, but was only on the

way when he

H.ilicr.

even set out to attempt the
received the morti-

fying intelligence that the Usbeks had anticipated him, and

made themselves

masters both of Samarcand and Bokhara.

The consequence was, that he was not
only

frustrated

Samarcand,

in

again

but

which had been oveiTun

^

hope of taking

the

lost

Ferghana,

in his absence.

His only resource was to betake himself to the

mountains, and wait there

should

fortune

again

smile

upon

While almost disconsolate at the

him.

disasters

which had Wallen him, he lay down
grove to

sleep,

He

in a

and dreamed that AbdoUah,

a dervis of grwit
iiou.se.

till

invited

re])ute,

him

cjxlled

to sit

at

his

down, and

ordered a table-cloth to be spread for him;

but the dervis, apjiarently offended, rose
to

go away.

While Baber endeavoured

to

Usbeks of Khoondooz, and a Kiiojaii ok Usbf.k
Taktarv.— From Rattmy's AfKh&ni5tan &iid Klpliiiistoiie's Cabool.

detain him, the dervis took hold of his

arm, and lifled him up towards the sky.
.significant;

fortune,

The ch'eam

but Baber and his followers regarded

and determined,

The captm'e

in consequence, to

of the city

was one of the

it

is

neither striking nor

as a promise of future good

make another attempt on Samarcand.
exploits on which

Baber particularly

neniarkal)l8
rv covery of

j)hnned himself, and he dwells on
Here,

it

with evident exultation in his ^femoil•s.

His small

however, only the leading facts can be mentioned.

])arty

mustered only 320 men, and yet with these he succeeded in making himself
master of a large

ca])ital,

occupied by warlike Usbeks,

a veteran general of high rej)utation, commanded.

whom

Having

Sheebani Khan,

secretly arrived in

the vicinity at midnight, he sent forward <-ighty of his party to a low part of
the wall, which they immediately scaled

by means

of a gi-ap})ling-rope.

Going

Sainarcaiid

108
Tin.

A.D.

1000.

HLST(;JiV

OF INDIA.

[lirjoK

afterwards round, they surjiriHed and over[)owor<id the guard
of the gates, opened

They immediately
immediately

let in

a charm with

rallied

place, ignorant

and

it

charge of

Baber with the 240 wlio were with

i-ushed along the .streets, proclaiming Baber's

It carried

passed.

it,

in

to the ears of

many

name

on<;
hiin.

as they

who

of the inhabitants,

around him, while the Usbeks ran c^mfasedly from

plH/;e to

When

both of the position and numbers of their assailants.

I.

the

alarm reached the head-quarters, Sheebani Khan, who occupied the fort with

7000 men,

set out

with a small body to reconnoitre, and on finding that Babei'

had gained some thousands of the inhabitants, who were rending the

was

acclamations,

so frightened that he took the opposite gate,

Baber obtained quiet

Bokhara.

and

fled

with

air

towards

possession.

Baber was aware that the victory was only half won so long as the Usljeks

Baber
defeated

hy the
Uabeks.

maintained

theii*

footing in the country, and he laboured to unite the neighbour-

Owing

ing chiefs in a general coalition for the pm'pose of expelling them.
dissensions

and

jealousies,

tight single-handed

for

him

liis

exertions were unavailing, and he

the walls.

Here he defended himself

and saw no resource but
100 faithful attendants.

foes.

till

Here

and escape with about

This flight took place in the beginning of loOl, and

Mahmood Khan, who gave him

his relentless

he suffered aU the horrors of famine,

to take advantage of the night,

He

he was once more a homeless wanderer.
Sultan

left to

They proved more than a match
which obliged him to shut himself up within

with his formidable

and he sustained a defeat

;

was

the

foTind

town

an asylum with his

uncle.

of Aratiba for his residence.

enemy, Sheebani Khan, found him

out,

and he removed to

At

Tashkend, where he remained for some time in a state of despondency.
length an opening appeared in his hereditary kingdom, and

two uncles he obtained

to

by the

aid of his

possession of Akhsi, one of its strongest forts.

only a gleam of sunshine before the coming storm.
appeared, and conquered as before.

In addition to

his

Sheebani

own

It

Khan

was

again

misfortune, Baber

had the misery to see his imcles involved in his fate. They were both taken
prisoners, and released only at the expense of their kingdoms.
Sultan Mahmood

Khan was
One

unable to bear up imder the stroke, and his health began to decHne.

of his friends, hinting that Sheebani

tiriak of Khutta, a medicine

The sultan

replied,

taken away

Khutta
Becomes
master of
Cabool and
Kandahar.

my

Khan had

which was then in high repute as an antidote.

"Yes! Sheebani Khan has poisoned

kingdom, which

it is

me

indeed!

He

has

not in the power of yom- tiriak of

to restore."

Baber had at one time some thoughts of trying

own

poisoned him, offered some

liis

fortune in China.

country, at all events, seemed shut against him, and he qmtted

HLs

it for ever.

Though he had seen much of the
world, and experienced many reverses, he had only attained the age when most
men begin to make their appearance in the public stage of life. He was httle
more than twenty, and was borne up by tlie behef, which conscious talent and
But he had no intention of

closing his career.

BABER INVADES INDIA.

Chap. V.J

great natural buoyancy of

s})irits

suggested, that

In 150i he took the direction of the

east,

109

some great destiny awaited him

where he saw no

ad.

ists.

field of enterprise so

promising as Cabool, which had fallen into a state of anarchy.

had once

It

been ruled by his father, and subsef^uently by his uncle, Ulugh Beg, who had
died in 1501, leaving an infant son.
into his

own

The minister took the whole government

convulsions followed, and Cabool became a

and

invcision

He

arrived.

from without.
found

A

and ruled

it

in his

common

foreign usurper

alive,

still

own name.

pi-ey to dissensions within,

him and though his cousin, the
he regarded the kingdom as a la\\i"ul
His ambition was n(jt yet satisfied,
;

and, taking advantage of favourable circmnstances, he

Kandahar.

It

would seem that at

Hindoostan, and the invasion of
court.

made himself master

this early period his thoughts

it

Groat

assa-ssinated.

was on the throne when Baber

in displacing

little ditiiculty

above son of Ulugh Beg, was
conquest,

was

hands, but soon disgusted the nobles, and

of

were turned to

was openly talked of and discussed

in his

Various circum.stances, however, concurred to po.stpone any actual

preparations.

The

earliest of these

Sheebani Khan,

was the appeai'ance of the

who drove Baber from Kandahar, and

Siieebani Khan, having ultimately
Persia,

was defeated and

met

his

and

restless

re-seated the former ruler.

master in Shah Ismael Sophi of

Baber immediately proposed an

slain.

alliance

the shah, Ijy whose aid he hoped to regain his former dominions.
disappointed.

With an army

of 60,000

im[)lacable

hoi-se,

partly furnished

n;i'«>- •'"•'"^

«itii tiie

perel,,'

with

Nor was he

by the Persian

monarch, he took Khoondooz, subdued Bokhara, and in 1511 was seated for the
third time on the throne of Samarcand.

Here he fixed

his residence,

Cabool to be governed under him by his brother, Nasir Mirza.
prosperity

was

short-lived;

for he

and

left

This return of

was inmiediately engaged

in a series of

sanguinary struggles with the Usbeks.

These were generally to his disad-

vantage; and in 1518 he arrived, shorn of

all

government of Cabool.

his

new

conquests, to resume the

His brother Nasir Mirza returned to

his

government

of Glniznee.

Baber had now been nearly twenty

yeai's

King

long period had often turned a wistful eye to India.

had rejieatedly started up and tempted him to try
the ditticulties had proved insurmountable,
\ipon him, that if his

name was

of Cabool,

and during that

Other objects of ambition
his fortune in the

of

Afghan

chiefs,

to descend to posterity as a great conqueror
iiis

the affections of the people,

While thus requiring

all

series

the aid which union could give,

much by

by court intrigue, ftxction, and assassination.
wretched system the kingdom had been broken up into fragments,

the ordinary rules of relationship, as
this

and

and ruled

interminable feuds prevailed, and the succession was regulated not so

Under

but

laurels.

The throne of Delhi had been occupied by a

who had never gained

only by the sword.

;

and the conviction had been forced

mighty monarch, the east was the quarter in which he must gain

The times were favourable.

west

Pie|vir.»

imUa.

10

A.D. 1824.

IIISTOlty

and

Dell)i exhibited

merely a sliadow of

sible not to pereeive that

facilities

furnish

;

and

and the only wonder

inroad into
first

Baber's

former

grasiUieHH.

and

fairest,

It

I.

was impos-

richest regioiLs of the globe, pre-

attractioius to the con(jueror far greater

Baber should have remained
Baber-s

its

[Book

a country thus ruled, and acknowledged at the same

time to be one of the grandest,
sented

OF INDIA.

is,

than the west could

that a }>rince so talented and w) ambitious as

so Ion;; on its fiontiers without makiiiir

an actual

it.

first

Indian cami)aign took place in 1519.

On

that occasion, after

overrunning the territory between Cabool and the Indas, he crossed over into
the Punjab, and advanced as far as Bhira.
to

From

this place

he sent a mes.sage

Ibrahim Lody, the King of Delhi, reminding him that the Punjab had been

frequently possessed

by the house of Tamerlane, and demanding that

as a branch of that house,

it

should be voluntarily resigned, miless he was pre-

pared to see the war carried farther into India.
the Chenaub, and then returned to Cabool.

made

in the course of the

to him,

same

In this cainj>aign he reached

His second Indian campaign

Avas

His main object was to reduce Lahore,

year.

but after reaching Peshawer, and advancing to the Indus, intelhgence of an
invasion of Budukshan

by

the

King

of Cashgar compelled

him

to retmii.

He

marched a third time against India in 1520, and had reached Sealkote when he
learned that his presence was immediately required to defend hLs capital against

an invasion from Kandahar.

He had

not only repulsed the invader, but pur-

sued him to Kandahar,

^

-—^^^

^^^=^^

^^d captured
in 1524,

it,

when,

Dowlut Khan

sent the tempting in-

menIn compHance

vitation formerly
tioned.

with it, Baber advanced
to

the neighbourhood

of Lahore, which he en-

tered in triumph, after

gaining a signal victory.

Dowlut Khan having
.,..-,.,r--«<5.

Kandahar.

— From Sale's Defence of Jelalabad.

afterwards

turned

acrainst him,

he found

his prospects of success
so

seriously

affected,

that he rested satisfied with app(jinting governors over the districts \\hich he

had conquered, and again
Defeat

retvu*ned home.

Ala-u-din Lody, the brother of Ibrahim Lody, King of Delhi, had been

i>f

Ala-u-iliii

in

command

of the Cabool forces,

pushed forward to the vicinity of

and

for

Dellii.

left

a time was so successful, that he

Here he seemed

to

have gained a

1

BABER'S SUCCESSES.

Chap. V.]
victory,

own

his

till

carelessness

and obliged him

plete defeat,

and the want of

1

disci[)line

turned

into a

it

1

com- ad.

1526.

Baber, on

to retire })recipitately into the Punjab.

hearing of the disaster, immediately bestirred himself, ami made his appearance

This was his

in India.

His

fifth,

and proved

was comparatively

force

After crossing the Indus on the

small.

horse.

considerable reinforcement.

Dowlut Khan, and

King

of the

oth

Hater's

his

it,

The fii'st ajipearance of opposition was on the part
son Ghazy Khan, who had again espoused the ciiuse
encamped on the banks of the Ravee,

of Delhi, and were

army

Lahore, with an

They were

of 40,000.

Baber advanced, retreated

—the former

to

neiir

afraid to risk an action, and, as

Malwat, and the

Baber immediately invested Malwat, and obliged

On

1

and found that he had only 10,000 chosen
At Sealkote, however, he was joined by Ala-u-din, and thus obtained a

of December, 1525, he mustered

of

most decisive Indian cam})aign.

his

latter to the

hilLs.

to capitulate in a few (hiys.

it

Dowlut Khan, and exerted himself

this occasion he generously forgave

in

restraining the rapacity of his troops, who, as soon as the gates were openeil,

broke

and commenced an indiscriminate plunder.

in,

Rushing

among them,

in

he at great ]>ersonal risk rescued a lady belonging to Dowlut Khan's family,

whom

a ruffian had seized, and saved a

fine library

Ghazy Khan, who was a poet and a man
The dissensions which prevailed at

Delhi,

received from

him

experienced

the malcontents, induced
serious opposition

little

at the head of 10,000 horse

of this

number

;

but every

and resolved

to his chief,

man

in

it

of learning.

and the invitations wliich he

elephants.

was a

Babers army was not a

whereas the Delhi force was a

to conquer or die;

among

not long doubtful, and Ibrahim him.self was
wjis fought

Baber did not
his son

tail

on the 20th of
to

Hoomayoon

on Delhi,

wliile

make
to

The

result wjus

This battle,

the slain.

April, 1526, decided the fate of Hindoostan.

the most of his victory.

occupy

fifth

soldier highly discii)lined, attached

hetei'ogeneous mass, composed of the most discordant materials.

which

He

to advance without delay.

Ibrahim himself advanced to meet him,

till

and 1000

which had been collected by

Agi-a,

He

inmiediately despatched

and another detachment

he followed with the main body.

to

march rapidly

His entrance wjis unopposed,

The fort of Agra offered some
Mogul arms was now so general, that the

and he took formal possession as sovereign.
resistance

Rajpoots

but the terror of the

;

who defended

it

offered to capitulate.

Instead of levying a ransom

from individuals, Baber consented to accept of a diamond, weighing 672

which he presented to

his son

On

Hoomayoon.

carats,

entering the Delhi treasur}',

he appears to have been a,stonished at the amount, and immediately began to
distribute

Not

satisfied

chants

who

countries,

the

with the greatest profusion, as

it

with making rich presents to

followed his camp, he

made

if

he had imagined

all

his chiefs,

it

inexhaustible.

and even

to the

mer-

large donations to holy places in various

and caused a skarokh to be given to every man, woman, and child

kingdom of Cabool, without

distinction of slave or free.

The

in

gift to eiich

capture
Deii.i.

..r

"

IILSTOKY OF JNIHA.

112
A.D. 1630

was rather

less

than a

His prodigality on

,sliilliii<^,

this occasion

a religious order whose rule
iiaber

Had Babcr

makes

pennaiient

oi the trcasurv

might

^^j.

^jj^ folly

.

i^^j^

that he from the

make

is

procured

smallness of his

must have been enormoufi.

kuiii

the nickname of "Callender," after

])rovision

Tamerlane,

tf)

f<jr

([uit

the morrow.
India, this wjuandering

of the proceeding seems extreme,

regarded

it

as a

when

it is

considered

permanent conquest, and determined

The question had midergone formal

Delhi his future capital.

and many of

after the capture,

I.

have been explained, and even jastined, on grounds

easily

first

liini

make no

to

becii intending, like

lusK tnoo

pQjj^,^,

hut the a<^gregate

fUooK

most expeiieuced

his

di.scassion

contrasting the

officers,

army with the threatening appearance which

to

the Afghans

still

continued to present in various quarters, were urgent for his return to Cabool,
or at least retreat to the Punjab; but he at once put an end to
strances,

by

exclaiming, "

whom

say of a monarch
Hisdiffitni-

lUmgers.

What would

all

the

all

Mahometan kings

their

remonworld

in the

the fear of death obliged to abandon such a kingdom

!

The idea of departure being abandoned, it required all Baber's skill and
eiicrgy to make good his position
Several Afghan competitors connected with
the late i-oyal family were set np against him and sanguinary l:)attles were
fought, generally, however, to his advantage.
As a necessary consequence, liis
cause advanced, while that of his enemies rapidly declined

;

and many who had

made

stood aloof with the intention of ultimately joining the winning side,

But

their submission.

who feared

to encounter

to be successful.

were not in the

his gi*eatest dangers

him

there, cUd not scruple at

any means

most flagrant attempts made on

(>ne of the

mother of Ibrahim Lody, the

field

he had treated her with great respect and kindness

for tho.se

wliich promised

his life

She had become

late .sovereign.

;

was by the

his captive,

and

but the destruction which

;

he liad brought on her family was not to be forgiven, and she bribed Baber's
taster

and cook

took of

it,

to poison

some hare-soup intended

<ieath.

him

He

but the poisoning having been overdone, affected the

desisted in time to save his
Preiaatuve
old age and

for

Baber was

still

taste,

and he

life.

in the full vigour of

have been expected to have

actually par-

and might,

life,

a long career before

him

;

in the course of nature,

but he had crowded the

events of a lifetime into a comparativ^el}' short period and began to exhibit

symptoms

of a premature old age.

Fever after fever attacked him

lieginning to feel his end approaching, he sent for his son

appointed him his successor.
1530, he breathed his

last.

A

few months

He had

it

is

wonderful

new

Hoomayoon, and

on the 21th of December,

how much had been

Considering the .shortness of the

Not only had
whole Mahometan population

accomplislied in

Afghan insurrections been put down, and the
reconcileil to the

and,

reigned thirty-eight years, but of the.se

only five were spent on the throne of Delhi.
period,

after,

;

it.

dynasty, Init great battles had been fought, and great

victories gained over in.surgent Hindoos.

had been subdued, Behar, on both

After Mewar, M;ilwah, and

sides of the Ganges, w;is overrun,

Mewat
and the

BABER'S CHARACTEIL

Chap. V.]

King of Bengal barely saved
be fu"mly

The
and

independence by submitting to an ignominious

liis

The throne of the Great Mogul was thus not only

|:)eace.

to

113
wo.

I.

but seemed

establislied.

love of natm-e, which Baber retained in

all its

freshness to the very

last,

which

of

many

set up,

A.n.

touching

instances are re-

corded by himself,

a[)peared in

his

selection of

a

final

was

It

place.

the

restingin

of

vicinity

on

the

banks of a

clear

Cabool,

running stream,
at the foot of a
liill

commanding

Tomb of Kmperor Babkr— From

Atkinson's SketcJies in Afghauittiin.

a noble prospect.

There his tomb

still

stands,

and

His character

white marble.

but chaste mosque

in front of it a small
is

Memoirs

best learned from his

or

ol' nabei'situt.ibiogiai>hy.

A ufo-

hiography, in which his oi)inions and feelings are candidly expressed, and a
<jiven

into the conduct both

full

insijxht

Few

lives so full of vicissitudes

investigated,

is

and

sulfer so little

of the monarch

and temptations would bear
his varied

to be so

Take him

from the investigation.
in

and the num.
minutely
all

in

and seldom combined

capacities as a writer, a soldier,
a ruler,

all,

and

nuist be admitted that his

it

proper place

men whom

among

is

the greatest

the Eiist has j)roduced.

It is almo.st needless to .say that

and

his public

both

his private life exhibit

Among those of the
description may be mentioned

blemishes.

former

his folly in sqiiandering the treasiu'e

found in Delhi
WuiTi-

Marble Mosque

at tlie

From Vtum'i

Tomb

Vi.-it to

of

the

Kmperor naber

which he
doned

they had

till

Baber
'

four

made
son.s.

serious inroads

The

second,

Tlie sm.-iU but very ole^'aiit white niaiUle iiios<|Uc

at tlio

tomb

Vot,.

I

left

I.

of Sultan Baber,

his

latter,

(ihuzin.

was built

in

KMO, by

is

I

bacchanalian habits,

said not to have aban-

on his constitution.

Kannan. who
|

and among those of

;

Rliali Jehai), in

at the time of his father's

l.onour of liis great ancestor.

Vi^il to Ghuziii.

15

— Vigne's

114

AD

1530.

JSiiber.

[Book

death was governor of Cabool and Kandahar, not only retained \)f>memi(>n

them,
nonmavoon

OF INDIA.

JIISTOItV

l)iit

iriade

good a chiim to

tlie

Contented to hold governments in

son,

and by Babers
it

The two youngest sons were at
India under Hoomayoon, who, an eldest

special appointment,

anything but a bed of

Kamran, without any

effort

mounted

roses.

preserve

t<j

it,

The

tlie tlirone

of Delhi.

He

Punjab to

cession of the

was a kind of premium

offered to

which was accordingly attempted in varioas quarters.

aggression,

ol'

Punjab.

first

soon found

I.

The

first

was with Bahadur Shah, King of Gujerat, who had rendered liimself
formidable by the annexation of Malwah, and the establishment of his supremacy
contest

over several adjoining
])rotection

given by Bahadur Shah to

refuge with

Siege of
Cliviiiiir.

teiritories.

him

The

was the
Mahomed Zuman Mirza, who had taken
ostensible cause of f|uarrel

after a rebellion against his brother-in-law,

failed

During a

Bahadur

first lost,

series of struggle.s,

and then recovered

Hoomayoon, had

with various alternations of

success,

his kinfjdom.

The next formidable opponent who appeared was Sheer Klian Sur, who
had made himself master both of Behar and Bengal.
Hoomayoon advanced

The Chunar-ohcr, from

against liim from Agra, and

the South-west.

amved

— From Hodge's Views in ludia.

with a powerful army before the fort of

Chunar, near Benares, in the beginning of 1538.

somewhat by

surprise,

Chunar strongly

and as

garrisoned,

Sheer

his object, therefore,

and

was

Khan had been taken
to gain time, he left

Hoomayoon

retired farther into the interior.

enemy possessed such a place in his rear,
He was thus detained for several months, and

did not venture to advance while the

and resolved to lay siege to

it.

only succeeded at last because the provisions of the garrison were exhausted.
This siege derives importance from the regular manner in which
ducted,

and
Hoomayoon

and the great use made of gunpowder and

artillery,

it

was

con-

both by besiegers

besieged.

Hoomayoon now advanced along

the Ganges, but Sheer

Khan

continued to

pursue his tactics of not risking a general engagement, and only offering such

FORTUNES OF IIOOMAYOON.

Chap. V.]

115

Hooniayoon ought now

resistance as miglit suffice to protract the advance.

have become perfectly aware of the trap which was laid

some strong

satisfied to select

Instead of

this,

])osition, at least till

to

AD

1540.

and been
the rainy season was over.
for him,

he found himself in the lower basin of the Ganges when

its

whole delta was Hooded, and every brook had swollen into an impassjible

Meanwhile Sheer Khan, by a dexterous movement,

torrent.
his rear,

and cut

The King of Delhi was

off his retreat.

])erilous condition,

and endeavoui'ed

to elude his

enemy by

himself to be completely surprised, and had barely time to
for the river.

him nobly

He

immediately plunged

had not a water-carrier, who was

])re paring

boats to

in,

momit

his horse

and

but his steed, after bearing

His fate would have been the same,

a while, sunk exhausted

for

at last alive to his

While thus occupied, he allowed

cross over to the other side of the Ganges.

make

i)laced himself in

crossing,

XaiTow
escape of

HooniayooH

by the aid of the water-skin, which

he had inflated for that purpose, seized him
before he

and carried him
He reached Agra

sunk,

opposite bank.

end of June, 1539, but
jierished,

and

his

queen

his

to

the

in the

whole army had

Wfxs

Sheer Khan's

captive.

Hoomayoon made the best use of his
escape; and, by the aid of his brothers,
Kamran and Hindal, who, after taking
very suspicious measures, had become cordially imited with him. kept the

bay.

By

at

the spring of 15-tO he thought

himself strong enough for a

The armies came
and continued
till

enemy

for

new campaign.

in sight of each other,

some time manoeuvring,

Hoomayoon, alarmed

at

BmiSTEE OH Water-carrier —From Luard's

some symptoms

'

Views

iti

liidta.

of desertion, determined to risk a general

engagement.

It

proved disastrous; and in the

His

as extraordinary as before.

hoi-se wsis

flight

which ensued,

his escape

was

wounded, and he was on the point

when he found an ele})hant, mounted it, and htistened
The driver hesitated to swim the river, and gave place to an

of being Icilled or taken,
to the Ganges.

eunuch who undertook the

on account of

its

'

is

The bag

He

reached the opposite bank in

whioli the Hiliistee carries

on his back,

called a luushk of p.inee, or skin full of water.

It

a goat -skin carefully sewed up, and made perfectly
open at one end, which he

tight; a valve being left

holds in his hand to enalde

siifety, but,

two soldiers who hajipened
turbans, and throwing one end to him, drew him up

height, could not land,

present joined their

i.*

task.

him

to guide the water

into porous earthenware bottles, in which

it is

placed

till

to be

His

Some Bihistees go about leading a bullock
with two large skins of water for sale, slung acros.s
the animal's back, and nearly reaching to the ground.
In tiie baik-ground to our engraving, men are represented filling skius so slung. BihisUc means Itcato cool.

venly.

His sticoud
lefeitt

and

HISTORY OF INDIA,

I<>

A

I).

1.-.40.

situation

was now

treasure from

reception

lio[)ele.ss;

Agra and

was not very

ami

Delhi,

and

cpf

HoomayoKii

it.

He

failed;

To

Marwar.

Here

his

Kamran feared he might prove
preparing to make Ills ])eace with .Sheer

Punjab

to him.
liis

brother, turned his thouglits to Scinde,

and endeavoured, partly by {)ersuasion and
of

his

gracious, as his brotiier

Hof)mayoon, thus abandoned by

Siibsefiuont

fortunes

tlie

I.

and

itMiiovt; his fauiily

with them to Laliore.

liasten off

a dangeroas competitor, and was also

Khan, by ceding

only time to

luil

Ik;

[Hook

j)ajtly

by

obtain possession

force, to

and then tlirew himself on the protection of the Rajah of

accomplisli

was obliged

this he

and even

to cross the de.sert,

there had the mortification to perceive that the rajah

was only meditating how
Flight into the desert was again his

he might best deliver him to his enemies.

While wandering

only resource.

encumbered with the women of

here,

his

body of horse was seen approaching They were headed by the son
of the Rajah of Marwar.
Nothing short of death or captivity was foreboded
family, a

;

but after a great show of
He

reaches

hostility, the rajah's

son apparently

I'elented,

furnished

them with water, and allowed them to proceed The horrors of the desert were
still before them
and at last Hoomayoon, with only seven attendants, reached
Amerkote. Here he was not only hospitably entertained, but furnished with
;

Ameikote.

the means of making a second attempt upon Scinde.

but the rajah
insult

who accompanied

which he had

to

with

all his

and he was only too glad

despei-ate,

ment which permitted him

might have succeeded,

him, indignant at obtaining no redress for an

received, suddenly withdi'ew

His position was now

It

withdraw from Scinde and

to

Hindoo

make an

set out for

This province belonged to Kamran, and was then held for him

younger brothers.

Hoomayoon,

travelling with his wife

followers.

arrange-

Kandahar.

by one

of his

and an infant

child,

afterwards the celebrated Emperor Akber, had arrived within 130 miles of his

when one

destination,

of his old adherents rode hastily up, and gave

startling intelligence that his

him the

brother Mirza Askari was at hand, with the

making him prisoner.
He had only time to mount the queen
behind him, and take to flight. The infant could not be thus carried, and fell,
with his attendants, into the hands of his im^cle. Hoomayoon contiimed his
intention of

flight

with a few followers

was sent
Slieer

Khan

to

till

he

amved

Herat to await the shah's

Sheer Khan, on Hoomayoon's

within the Pei-sian dcjminions.

He

orders.

flight,

made a kind

of trimnphant progress,

seated on

the throne

and was soon in possession of

all

the territories which had acknowledged the

of Dellii.

authoi'ity of the
called,
1

540.

though

King

his title

of Delhi.

was

His

at least as

reign, or usurpation as

it

is

sometimes

good as Baber's, had been commenced

in

During the three following years he made himself master of Malwah.

Marwar, and Mewar, and was carrying on the siege of

Callinjer, in loio,

he was killed by the explosion of a powder magazine.

Khan, had previously been recognized by him as
of his character induced the chiefs to set

him

His eldest

his successor;

aside,

son,

when
Adil

but the feebleness

and give the

throiie to his

THE USURPER

Chap. V.J

117

ADILF.

Tib.

Khan, wlio

brother, Jelal

lasted nine years, durinor

a.ssnineJ the title of

Selim Shah.

Hi.s reign,

which

a d

i.w.

which several important internal improvements were

He

made, and public works erected, was on the whole peaceful

a son of

left

succeo-u.

age of twelve,

tlie

but he was nuu'dered
his

uncle,

Ma-

homed

Khan,

who

by

usurped the throne,

and

known by the

is

His

of Adili.

title

conduct on the throne

was such

miglit

as

have been expected
after the atrocity

by

which he had oained
it,

and he made himSuKKH

From UiinicUs

SiiAU's .Mausoleum at tSA.s.sKKAii.'

Oriental .\iinunl.

self universally odi-

by his follies and ini([uities. For a time, however, the abilities of Hemoo,
a Hindoo oi low origiji, to whom he had committed the government, kept him
ous

TT-

1

1-

on his seat
treasury,

1

1

and he pm'sued a course of utter lawlessness,

;

means of indulging

was formed against him.
succes.sful

was

scjuandering

liLs

his subjects, in

.an assassin,

It failed in the first instance,

•

and low debauch-

in his extravagances

After he had naiTOwly escaped the dagger of

eries.

first

and then indiscriminately confiscating the property of

order to procm'e the

1

1

a confederacy

but other revolts were

and Ibrahim Sur, making himself ma.ster of Delhi and Agra, Adili

;

Ibrahim, having in his

possession only of the eastern pro\4nces.

left in

turn been driven out of Delhi and Agra

by Sikundur

who

Sur,

h.ad

proclaimed

himself King of the Punjab, endeavoured to compensate himself by wresting

some more
not at

all

territory from Adili, but

was repulsed by Hemoo.

This success did

improve his condition, for intelligence immediately arrived that Bengal

and Malwah had both
defeated Sikundur, and

proved the most

revolted,

and that Hoomayoon, who had returned, had

was once more seated

fatal of all

;

for

in Delhi.

Tiiis la^t intelligence

though Hoomayoon soon

died, his son

Akber

and brought the Mogul empire to its highest pitch of glory. Adili
was maintained for some time by Hemoo but on that Hindoo's death his

succeeded,

;

success

was

at

an end, and he

Hoomayoon's
Kings of
'

Pei"sia,

rece])tion

lost his life fighting in

by Shah Tamasp, the second of the Safavi or Sophi

had been (m the whole favourable, though accompanied with

Sheer Shah's mansoleu'.ii .at S-is-scram. near ]?ebuilt in the midst of .v hirge tank, altoiit a

iiavaa. is

niile

iit

circumference.

to decay,
age.

and the stone

Bengal.

Tiic I'uiUling
i.s

The remains of Sheer

now

is

r.ipidly falling

grsafly di-icolonred hy

Sliah,\vitli those of several

nicnilier.s of

lii.s

faniilj-

were dei>osited

story of the mausoleum.

an octagon, 100

The

in the

feet in diimeter, standiiig

sivo square terrace, each angle of

with an octagonal kiosk.

lower

central apartment

which

is

on a

is

nias-

ornamented

u»uri«tioii
of

iMaliiiiii.-il

Kiian^.r

118
A.I). I'.is

TTISTORV OF INDIA.

many

niortityiug circuia.stances,

Before

lie

[Bf^oK

couM obtain any

a.s.siHtance,

he wa.s

Maho-

obliged to cede the province of Kandahai', and a/lopt the Shiite form of

metanism.

After these conceasions, he

mustered oidy about 700.
reached in March,

154:5.

his other brother,

Kamran.

recovers

Kandaimr.

furnished with a body of H-,00()

under the command of the whah's son, Morad Mirza.

horse,

Hoomayooii

\va,s

It

first

was

in possession of Mirza Askari, as governor

proceeded agaiast Kamlahar, whicli he

was immediately commence^l, Vjut prothe end of which desertion and famine

cceded languidly for five montlis, at
obliged Mii'za Askari to surrendei'.

i>i'

siege

,

Hoomayoon, probably soured by misfortune,

humanity which had formed the best feature

forgot the

His own followern

He

The

F.

in

liis

character

;

and,

disregarding the promise of pardon which he had given, subjected his brother
to the

most contumelious treatment, and then kept him nearly three yeara as a

He

prisoner in chains

Kandahar
He

to himself,

and maltreating

From Kandahar he proceeded

recover

agreement with the shah, by keeping

also violated his

his Persian auxiliaries.

Kamran, who

against Cabool, and e.xpelled

Cabool.

was obliged
that

it

to take refuge in Scinde

The capture was the more gratifying

enabled him to recover his son Akber,
After a time

of age.

Kamran

returned,

now

and a

a child of about three vears

took place,

series of struggles

dm'ing which the greatest barbarities were perpetrated on both

and Akber,

sides;

who had again fallen into the enemy's hands, escaped almost miractdously, after
Ms uncle had. with savage cruelty, exposed him to the full tii"e of his fathers
cannon.
Kamran was ultimately defeated and obliged again to tiee but, by
the aid of the Usbeks, obtained possession of Budukshan
Tliither Hoomayoon
;

He was

followed
154)8.

His

affairs

victorious,

and returned in triumph

now assumed

so promising

battle \vith

On

a total defeat.
soldier

New

;

but his bad fortune retmiied,

Kamran, who had once more taken the

this occasion

end of

an appearance that he began to

talk of attempting the conquest of Transoxiana

and in a

to Cabool in the

field,

he made another of his remarkable

he sustained

A

e-scapes.

had wounded him. and was about to repeat the blow, when he was

confounded by the sternness with wliich Hoomayoon exclaimed, 'Wretch!

vicissitudes

dare you?" that he dropped his

arm and

let

him

escape.

He

lied Avith

so

how
only

Akber again fell into liis uncle's hands. Another tm*n
in the wheel of fortune placed Hoomayoon in the ascendent, and Kamran
became his prisoner. The manner in wliich he disposed of him is a great blot
on liis memory. At first he gave him a most friendly reception, seated him on
eleven attendants, while

his right hand, feasted him, shared half of lus shce of

and

sjjent the

evening with lum in "jollity and carousing."

peremptory orders were to put out his brother's

Kamran exclaiming during
ever sins

I

passion on
to

end

water-melon with him.

eyes.

the agony of the tortm-e,

"O

have committed have been amply punished in

me

in the next."

his days.

He

In the morning his

They were
Lord,

my

executed,

God! what-

this world;

have com-

died soon after at Mecca, where he had wished

DEATH OF IIOOMAYOON.

CuAP. v.]

119

In the meantime circumstances in India had become favom-able, and Hooma- ad.
yoon, setting out from Cabool in January, 1555, at the head of 15,000

issc.

liorse,

After some delay he continued his march, noomayoon

invaded the Punjab and took Lahore.

agfiiii iiins-

Shah

obliged Sikundur

and made

liimself

to take refuge

among

master of Delhi and

Agi*a.

the lower ranges of the Himalaya,

He had

thus regained possession

ter..f ueiiu

""

'^^'^

was not destined long
to enjoy them
His life had been the sport of fortune his death was to
resemble it.
He had only been six months in Delhi, and was one day, after a
walk on the terrace of his library, descending by the stair, which wjis placed on

of his capital and a portion of his original ten-itories, but

—

the outside, and consisted of narrow steps, guarded only
foot high.

Hearing the

call to

prayer from the minaret, he stopped, as

down

repeated his creed, and sat

by a parapet about a

to wait

till

made

the muezzin had

is

usual,

his round.

by which he was supporting himself slipped, and he fell
headlong over the parapet. He was taken up insensible, and died four days after,
In

rising,

his staff

on the 25th of January, 1556, at the age of

fifty-one.

He had commenced

Hia

dentil.

his

reign twenty -five years before, but sixteen of these had been spent in exile from
his capital.

As Hoomayoon's

may be
It

reign reached to the middle of the sixteenth century,

considered as forming the link between medieval and

modern

it

India.

be proper, therefore, before continuing the narrative, to take a survey

will

of the political condition of India at this period.

Mahomed

In the reign of

Toghlak, which commenced in

1

325, almost the

—understanding

by that name both Hindoostan and the
Deccan was subject to Mahometan sway. The chief territories not thus subject
were a long narrow tract in the south-west of the ]ieninsula, the kingdom of
Orissa, consisting of an unexplored and densely wooded region, stretching for
whole of India proper

—

about 500 miles along the coast from the Ganges to the Godavery, with a

width of about 350 miles

number of independent
assigned, as they

and Rajpootana

chieftainships,

in the north-west, consisting of

a

of which the lunits cannot easily be

were constantly changing in their dimensions, according as the

Mahometan invaders
termination of

;

medium

or the native chiefs gained the ascendency.

Mahomed Toghlaks

reign, in 1351, the extent of his

had shrunk exceedingly, in consequence of his inisgovernment.
tlirew off its yoke,

Before the

and became an independent kingdom;

In

1

dominions

3 10 Bengal

in 1344, the

example

was imitated by the Rajahs of Telingana and Carnata, the former recovering
Wurungole, and the

liis

capital of

(»n

the Toombudi-a

frontier

;

latter establishing

ca])ital at

Eijanagm*,

which extended no farther south than the banks of the Krishna, and

still

across the
in the

new

while the Mahometans were obliged to rest satisfied with a

no farther east than the meridian of Hyderabad.
on a

a

more extended
Nerbudda.

scale

In 1347, a Hindoo movement

took place, and the ^lahometans were driven

Hassan Gangii, the head of

this last

movement, founded

Deccan the extensive kingdom of Bahmani, which continued to subsist

Political

india.

;

1:20

A

I).

I'lM

II1S'J'()IIV

170 years.

lor

the

VVliiN;

strove in vain to regain

tliey

[Hook

INIJIA.

mjaliM roinaincd

II'iikIoo

what

or

had

iinitx'fl.

F.

the Maljoinetans

and ma<le scarcely any impression;

lost,

wJKin they began again to indulge in internal dissensions, the Mahcnnetans

V>ut

again extended

tlieir

conquests, subdued Wurungole, and oljtfiined jx^ssession of

the country between the Krishna and the Toombudra,

In Hindoostan and the adjoining

ii.dupcna.jnt
sdViM'eignties in uiii-

<>i

territories, various

11*11*Among these, one 01/'ithe
Uellii wcrc established.

x»Tvii"

kingdoms independent

vvas Gujerat, which, instead of

being confined

1111
<lui-able

•

1

mo.st exteiLSive

and

which bore that

b> the teiritor}^

name, extended over Malwah, which wa.s twice concjuered, and finally annexed
to

The Rajpoots of Mewar

it.

acknowledged

its

soon recovered

Malwah, before

supremacy.

itself,

it

also repeatedly bent Ijefore

Hoomayoon

occupied

and was inde[)endent

fell

it

for

it,

and Candeisii

a short time, but

at the acceasion of his son Akber.

under the power of Gujerat, had long maintained a

was under the domination
who, though not the nominal, was virtually the real sovereign, and
separate independence, and for some time

highest offices wath his
and, besides

it,

own countrymen.

Bengal

ha.s

Of

of a Hindoo,

the

filled all

been already mentioned

Candeish, Jounpoor, Scinde, and Mooltan were

at Akber's succession.

it

all

independent

the Rajpoot states, the most important wliich were

independent at the same period, are Mewar, ruled by the Ranas of Odeypoor,

though at one time reduced to a kind of vassalage under Gujerat
held

by

tlie

— ^larwar,

Rhahtors, who, after being driven out of Canouge, vv^here they had

early established themselves, retired to the desert between the table-land and

the Indus, subdued

the Juts, the onginal

dominion over a large

teriitory,

formed the separate

throwing

state of Bicanere

off a

inliabitants,

and extended

then-

younger branch, wliich afterwards

—Jessulmeer, where the BhattLs had made

their settlement in tlie western part of the desert, at so early a period that their

history

waha,

is lost

in fable

who do not

Je\q)oor, possessed

and along the east of the table-land

north, along the slopes of the Himalaya, fi-om

which overlook the delta of the Ganges,

coiiinieucc-

ment of a
new era.

Sucli

was the

tribe of Cach-

much in early times, but have a proof of their imporAkber married their rajah's daughter. Besides these are

states in the desert

own independent

by the

figure

tance in the fact that

many minor

—and Amber, or

all

In the

Cashmere east to the highlands

the petty states were i-uled

by

their

sovereigns.

when Akber came
forms a new era in the

state of matters

His long and prosperous reign

to the throne in

history of India.

556.

1

It

is

remember that before it commenced, another event,
in which the future destiny of India was more deeply involved, had occurred.
The route to the East by the Cape of Good Hope had been discovered moi-e

of importance, however, to

than half a century before; and the Portuguese had set the

first

example of those

European settlements which, imitated and improved upon, were afterwards to
expand, under British energy and prowess, into a magnificent empire.
great event, therefore, were

we now to

give om-

first

attention

we

To

this

should only be

;

OF AKBER.

IIEIGN

VI.]

CiiAp.

following' the order

ot"

time, but .some atlvaiitage.s in respeet of arriuiociiieiit will

Mahometan

be gained by continuing the thread of

Akbers

conclusion of

The empire of the

reign.

Hoomayoon,

guished during the misfortunes of

re-established, but raised to a degree of splendour

and

121

narrative unbroken to

a.u. 1&42.

ti»e

(Jreat Mogul, almost extin-

will thus

which

it

be seen not oidy

never attained before;

ni consequence, be unnecessary, in tracing Eiu'opean progress, to be

it will,

constantly turning aside in order to contemplate the internal changes which

were at the same tune taking

place.

CHAPTER

YI.

Peifrn of Akber.

KBER
at

might be

called a child of the desert,

Amerkote, on

after his

tlie

])arents.

edge of

it,

having been born

on the 14th of October,

with a few followers, had traversed

154-2,
it

homeless wanderers, under almost unparalleled privations.
fore

he was a year old he became a captive

uncle with wiiom his father

was

at

war; and, while

barously placed in the most exposed position on

tlie

still a

m

as

Be-

the hands of an

mere

was

child,

bar-

ramparts of Cabool, wliich

was besieged, in the malicious expectation that some

ball

from the cannon of

the besieijers would de-

him

prive

of

life.

His

caj)tivity was afterward'^

renewed

repeatedly
b\it,

had been

as if he

reserved for something

he

great,

harmed

])assed

in tlie

danger, and

hair-breadth

vui-

midst of

made many
escajies.

If

anything had been wantconfirm the belief

insj to

C\ii>'LlL.

that a

liigli

waited him,
at

it

would have been found

an early age, to display.

and the confidence reposed

mand

.-.

ll^tan.

.

in the remarkaltle talents

which he began,

Such were the expectations which he had
in him, that

excited,

he was sent into the Punjab in the com-

At this time
died he was only in his

of an army, and gained distinction on the field of battle.

he must have been a mere boy, for
Vol.

— .MkllL-iUll

destiny a-

I.

when

his father

16

Akbei

s

history.

122

A D.

1660.

IirSTORV OF TNDTA.

(Ml

this coinuiaMd.

forthwith
liis

13elirain
riiJea in

Ak

ber'a uuiiiu.

Wl H'M

fourteeiitli yeai'.

own

tl le

luflaiicholy tidings readied

i)r()claiined as hiwf'ul

had stood hioh

were

Tlu; necessary steps

family to dispute

it

fB^JOK

ho wuh

liiui

iinine<liately taken,

possessor of the throne.

aWnt

and he waH

Tliere wa.s no rival in

with him; hut in Jieiiram Khan, a Toorkoman

and

in his father's confidence,

also

1

been his

own

tutor,

who

he found

who seemed determined to leave him little more than a nrmiinal
sovereignty.
Behrams talents were of the highest order; and he probably

a minister

retained the power not for

any treasonable purpose, but merely because he ha/1
persuaded himself that the interest of his youthful sovereign would thereby be
most effectually promoted.

Akber was not the kind

of person to be long kept in leading-strings, though

he had prudence enough not to take any decisive step
ing from thraldom

At

first,

till

he was sm-e that he would be able to give

Behram

therefore, he left

much

to extricate

very outset of
Akber's
thvoiie in

danger.

and declared

liis

;

for

It

Behrams

Akber from
reign.

effect to

undisturbed, and readily consented to

measm-es which he rertommended.
considerable gainer

for the purpo.se of escap-

is

probable that in this

all

it.

the

way he was

a

experience was great, and mast have done

the difficulties which encompassed

In the Punjab, Sikundur Sur

his determination to be satisfied

still

with nothing

him

at the

kept his gi-ound,

.short

of the throne

made a sudden in-uption,
and made himself absolute master and from an opposite direction, Hemoo, the
talented Hindoo minister of the usurper Adih, was advancing towards Agi'a at
of Delhi; in Cabool, Mirza Soliman of Buduk.shan had
;

the head of a powerful army.

Behram and

last,

as the

young sovereign immediately took the

his

too late; for the

Against the

Mogul generals had sustained a severe

most pressing danger,
It

field.

defeat,

was almost

and Hemoo had,

in consequence, not only captured Agra, but forced his entrance into Delhi.

The contest now about to be waged wore a very ominous aspect for Akber.
His army at the utmo.st mustered only 20,000 horse, wdiUe that of the enemy
exceeded 1 00,000. No wonder that many of the ofiicers urged an instant retreat
in the direction of Cabool.

The minister and

they resolved to risk the encounter.

He

gains a

signal

victory at

Paniput

Some

his sovereign stood alone

addition was

made

when

to Akber's force

by the arrival of soldiers who had belonged to the defeated detachments, but
when the armies met his was still far inferior in numbers. The decisive battle
was fought near Paniput, on the 5th of November, 1556. Hemoo began the
action with his elephants, and pushed forward with them into Akber s very
centre but these powerful and unwieldy animals acted as they almost invariably
Furiously attacked
did when their first charge failed to produce a general panic.
on all sides by the Moguls, who galled them with lances, aiTows, and javelins,
they L'ecame unruly, and carried confusion into their own ranks. The day was
thus quickly decided in Akber's favour but Hemoo, mounted on an elephant
;

;

of procUgious size,

still

bravely continued the action, at the head of 4000 horse.

An arrow pierced his eye and he sunk senseless into his howdah.

•

A few moments

Chap. VF.)

REIGN OF AKHER.

after, liaviiig coine to himself,

he

out the

|)hicke(l

brought the eye out along with

12.",

which

arrfivv,

and in the midst of

it;

this

is

said to

have

He

line.

On

deserved to succeed, but unhappily

Khan

and was taken

failed,

iscio.

agony had the

energy and presence of mind to attem}>t his escape by breaking through the

enemy's

\.v.

ueroigm
aiiiiidoo.

Akber to gain the
envied title of Ohazy, or Champion of the Faith, by killing him with his own
He had too much spirit to do the executioner's office. It would have
hand.
been pleasing to add that he went a step farther, and magnanimously interpose(i

prisoner.

being brought back, Behram

Hindoo's

his sovereign authority to save the

life,

lu-ged

irnfoitunately, he left liim

Behram Khan, who cut off" his head at a stroke.
Innnediately after the victory Akber marched upon Delhi, and entered it
He had not remained hmg when his presence was imperawithout opjjosition.
to the will of

tively recpiired
U'enerals,

On

and

Sikundur Shah,

the Punjab.

in

jum

oblio-ino-

to take refuo-e in Lahore,

after defeating (me

who had been

Shah,

commenced, and

and give

his son as

to be thus rid of his

Behram Khan,

it,

accord to

he regarded

fus

i)ass

galling,

lie

own

The

tei'ms

power

in India
his sovereign Anogimce

sis

began to presume more than ever on his

of

tiie

whom

persons

if

to

whom

he banished was

make

the act more

which he had thus rendered vacant by

Akber was gTeatly

})rece[>tor in his stead.

a

bomid

ho.stage for his future behaviour.

preceptor; and, as

at once tilled ui) the office

immediately prepai'ed to adopt

The

when Sikundur

most formidable opponent

One

his private enemies.

appointing another

of his

it.

sentence of death and banishment on individuals

Molla Peer Mahomcul, the king's

i>eiiii.

had not been worth the asking, proceeded

services; and, as if Akber's consent

own

an

instead of gradually retiring from

became more capable of exercising
of his

lasted six months,

severely wounded, offered to ca})itulate.

liim to evacuate the fort,

Akber was happy

liad

re-enter.

had advanced to Kalanoi-e.

Akber's approach he retired to Mankote, and shut himself up in

siege wa,s immediately

'^^^^

mejwure which

it

is

incensed, ami

probable he had long-

meditated.

Having gone on

a hunting party in the beginning

(tf

1560, he received, or no

is

ilisiiiissoO

])reten<led to
ill,

have received, a message from Delhi that his mother was extremely

and wished

to see him.

announciiiiT that
in

Immediately cu

lie

future no orders

ai

riving he issued a prochunatiou,

had taken the government into
Init

those issued

liy

his

his

own

hands, and that

authority weiv to be oluyed.

Hehi'am at once saw what was intended, and endeavoured to avert his downfall,

by sending two of
terms.

Akber

his principal friends to

most by

his submis.sion in the

humblest

refused to see them, and shortly after imprisoned them.

disgraced minister soon found
fited

make

his prosperity,

how

and

little

he could trust to those

.saw himself rapidly deserted.

who

The

ha<l pro-

Various schemes

At one time he thought of proceeding to Malwah and
setting up an independent sovereignty; at another, of making this experiment
in Bengal, where it might be eas}- to expel the Afghans.
The prospect, in either

passed through his mind.

jui.irebeu.

I2t
A.D.

1500.

HISTOIIY OF INDIA.
not

case, did

designs,

altle

very hopcfiil

scciri

he set out

;

and at

as

if Ik;

had abandoned

I.

treaw^n-

all

avowed intention of taking
Having halted at Nagore, in the

Gujerat with

for

and making a pilgrimage

shipping-

last,

[Book

tiie

to Mecca.

hope that the kings i-esentment might be withdrawn, he was deeply mortified
on receiving a message which dismissed him from office, and ordered him to
continue his pilgrimage without delay.

terms: —

following

"Till

now

But

concerns

it

said to have been in the

was our royal

you should regulate

will that

being our intenti(jn henceforward to govern

it

own judgment,

our people by our

is

our mind haa Ijeen taken up with our education

and the amusements of youth, and
the affairs of our empire.

The message

let

our wellwisher withdraw from aU worldly

and, retiring to Mecca, far removed from the toils of public

;

spend

life,

the rest of his days in prayer."
Behram'i

It

seems that Behram

Khan had been

travelling with

all

the insignia of

i'el)eIU(ii

fails.

office

;

on receiving this message, he retiuTied his state elephants, banners,

for,

and drums, and
a

new thought seemed

and gave such decided evidence of treasonable

Here he began

retired into the

and perhaps

also

to thi'ow himself

intentions, that

As they approached he

openly raised the standard of

and

on arriving at Bicanere, he

to have struck him, for,

stopped short and retraced his steps to Nagore.

of troops against him.

Suddenly

shorn of his public honours, for Gujerat.

set out,

He

revolt.

Akber sent a
but

battle,

He was

it,

combined

;

it,

cause,

in determining

at once forgiven

and

lost

Here the hopelessneas of Ms

remorse for having engaged in

Vjody

retired into the Punjab,

even fought one

mountains of Sewalik.

on Akbers mercy.

to collect troops,

him

and some of the

him into the
On entering the court he hung Ms

leading officers of the court were sent to receive him, and conduct
[)resence

with every mark of distinction.

turban round his neck
He

is

;

and, advancing rapidly, threw himself in tears at the

Akber, giving him

foot of the throne.

Ms

hand, caused him to

l)ai'doued

him

in his former .station at the head of the nobles.

given him

;

and the king, addressing him,

court, a provincial

government, or

escoi't suitable to his

witli a lai'ge retinue

rank.

offered

libei"ty to

Behram

and placed

A splendid dress was then
him the

choice of a place at

continue his pilgrimage with an

preferred the

last,

and

set out for

and an annual pension of about £5000.

Gujerat, he halted in the suburbs of Puttun,

rise,

Mecca

After reaching

and turned aside to

visit

a

cele-

Having
hired a boat and a band of musicians, he spent all mght on the lake in company
with his friends. As he was returning in the morning he was acco.sted by an
Afglian, who, pretending to embrace him, drew a dagger and pierced him to the

brated spot, called Sahasnak, from the thousand temples in

lieart

It

battle }»y

was an

its \'icinity.

act of revenge for the death of his father,

who had

fallen in

Behram's sword

Akber soon showed that, in taking the government into his own hand, he
had not presumed too much on his own talents. While success almost invariably
attended liis arms, his internal measui'es exhibited a model of liberal and

(

CiiAP

REIGN OF AKBER.

VI.]

When

enlightened administration.

he succeeded

125
possessed

lie

more than

little

a.d. i56i.

the territory aroimd Delhi and Agra, together with an imperfect and precarious

During Behram's regency Ajmeer was added to

hold of the Punjab.

his

dominions without a contest, the strong fort of Gwalior wjis captured, and the

Afghans were driven as

and a large
of

Juanpoor, after being dispossessed of

far enst as

tract of country

and with that view despatched an army under the connnand of

The

Atka.

was then

princi[)ality

success-

Lucknow

desire perhaps to signalize his full assumi)tion

resolved to attempt the contjuest of

of the reins of government,

ana

In loGO, shortly after the dismissal

on the Ganges.

Behram Khan, Akber, from a

Akber's
vigorous

Adam Khan

Baz Bahadur, who

possession of

in the

Malwah,

kept his court at Sarungpoor, where he had become so much the slave of indo-

and

lence

Moguls were within twenty miles of

pleasure, that the

Even then

before he could be roused to action.
his troops

his

having been routed at the

and family behind.

propert}'

Adam

He

Khan.

first onset,

be

at once disposed of tliem as if he

who was

without delay to

liim

call

account.

to

was

feeble

;

and

Boorhanpoor, leaving

fled for

These immediately

sending only a few elephants to Akber,
set out

his resistance

his capital

fell

into the

hands of

had been absolute master,

so

much

Adam

dissatisfied that

Khan,

if

he

he really

them completely frustrated by Akber's
make his peace.
He had previously, by the

entertained treasonable designs, found
ex])edition,

and hastened to

indulgence of unbridled passion, been the cause of an aft'ecting catastrophe.

One

of the inmates of the

harem

a Hindoo of surpassing beauty, highly

wtis

accomplished, and celebrated as a poetess.
the importunities

and violence of

When

the hour of meeting.

Adam

it

dress, sprinkled the richest perfumes,

attendants, seeing her

lie

down on

her couch and cover

asleej),

on the khan

they attempted to waken

Akber retm-ned

to

Agi-a,

lier

and fixed

her corpse.

chamber, put on her

and taken

poison.

lier face witli

and did not become aware of the

thought she had fallen
s a))proach,

yield,

Wcis only to behold

Immediately after the appointment she had retired to

most splendid

Her

her mantle,

real fact

till,

her.

and shortly after made Mahomed Khan Atka.

governor of the Punjab, his prime minister, and confeired the government of

Malwah on
in

a

fit

his old preceptor,

Peer

Mahomed Khan, whom

of jealou.sy, driven into exile.

In 1561, while on a

Behraiu
visit to

Khan

had,

a celebrated

Akber married the daughter of Poorunmul, Rajah of Je^qwor,
This
and enrolled botli the rajah and his son among the nobles of his court
is said to be the first instance in which a Hindoo chief was ennobled or ])laced
Akber,
in any position of high ti-ust under the government of the Great Mogul.

shrine in Ajmeer,

before (putting Ajmeer, despatched Mirza Shurf-u-din Hoossein to invest the
fort of

Merta, belonging to Maldo, Rajah of Marwar; and then set out for Agra

with such ex])edition
interruptitni.

that,

by taking only

tivigiciU

After endeavouring in vain to resist

Khan, she pretended to

he arrived

a

six attendants,

and travelling without

he pei-foi-med the distance of above 200 miles

in three da>'S.

Aki>er
niiuioo.

;

20
A

1).

ir,in.

of Mt'ita proved nioic

sicgi!

'I'lic

of the principal Rajpoot
Sie^j of

OF INDIA.

III.STOl;^'

Lliaii

liu'l

l.ct-ii

I.

Two

anticipated.

Marwar had thrown themselves into it, and
much skill and valour that the mirza's ojierations,

cliiefs

conducted the defence with so

(lifHi.i.ilt

[i;ooK

of

Moi'Cu.

though carried on with great vigour, were completely baffled, Aft<ir carrying
mines under one of the bastioas, and making a prfK;tiwi])le breach, he advanced
to the assault,

but was

i-enew the assault, he found that in the course of
built

Some

up.

one of

tlie

to

provisiorts

Favourable terms were given; but

capitulate.

disdaining to accept of them, collected 500 of his followers,

fajalis

and, after burning whatever they could not take with them, rushed out

cut

tlieir

to

night the breach had been

tlie

had thas passed away when want of

montlis

compelled the garrison

when he was preparing

In the morning,

re))ulsed.

way through

About

the enemy.

half the

number succeeded

and

the rest

;

perished.

The war with Baz Bahadur,

Malwah.

last so closely pressed that

Still,

and not only kept the country

was enabled

and

all

Malwah

in

1

ferment and alarm

561

Ijy fre-

with the rulers of Candeish anrl

Mahomed Khan

officers,

lost his life in

Baz Bahadur continued the pursuit
of

alliance

Peer

it

when, conti-ary to the advice of his
defeated,

however, he had no thoughts of peace,

to take the field with so powerful an

were obliged to retreat before

He was

continued, though he was at

in a con.staut state of

by means of an

(juent incursions, but

still

he was obliged to seek a refuge at Boorhanpoor,

within the limits of Candeish.

Berar,

Malwah,

in

army that the Moguls
fell

back on Beezygur

he resolved to risk an engagement.

attempting to cross the Nerbudda

as far as Agra,

while

;

and once more became master

His triumph was short-lived, for the governor of Kalpee,

.

being appointed to the command, expelled him a second time, and obliged him
to flee to the mountains.
Rivalship

among
Akber's

One
rivalry

of the greatest difficulties with which

and

strife

among

Akber had

to contend, arose from

Mahomed Khan

his leading officers.

Atka.

who had

officers.

been appointed minister at Delhi with the
favour at court

For

this

voured to undermine him
only issued in his
the minister

was

own

;

he was hated by

and

disgrace.

sittino- in

title

Adam

for this pm-pose

was high

of Shahab-u-din,

had

Klian Khoka,

who

endea-

recoui-se to intrigues,

He determined on revenge;

antl

in

one day,

which

whUe

the hall of audience reading the Kc)ran, entered and

The minister continued, as was visual in such circumstances, to
read on without taking any notice of his enti^ance, and Adam Khan, whether
from momentary im])ulse or premeditation, drew his dagger and stabbed him
Akber was sleeping in one of the inner apartments, and, liearing
to the heart.
saluted him.

the noise and ascei-taining the cause, rushed out in his sleeping dress.
lay the minister weltering in his blood, while the murderer

Akber s
by his own atrf)city, on an adjoining teiTace.
draw his sword and put him to death, but, recollecting
the sword to

its scal)bard.

Adam

stot)d,
first

There

as if stupified

impvdse was

t(»

himself, he letm-ned

Klian took advantage of the interval to clasp

KEKJN OF AKIJEU.

Chap. VI.]

the king's

and

liaiul

his attendants to

About

tliis

l)eg fur

127

mercy; but he shook him

off in disgust,

do summary jastice by flinging him over the

time Akber himself narrowly escaped

and ordered

parajjct.

A

assfussination.

famous

chief of Tm'kestan, called Mirza Shurf-udin Hoos.sein, arriving from Lahore at

Agra, was received at court with great distinction

but shortly

;

I'oyal

army he

who happened

of his retainers,

One

retreated to the frontiers of Gujerat.

neighbourhood of Delhi when the

to be in the

it;

and, looking upwards, fixed

bow and pointed
in the air.
The

.sky,

as if he were going to shoot

at

in his

some object

towards the

it

bow and

did not inteifere, and he had time to lower the

and

tlie

arrow was with some

was aiming

attendants, thinking he

The

in the flesh of Ak])er"s shoulder.

Nissi„atioii.

On

royal retinue was pa.ssing along the road, joined

an arrow

-^kber

being

after,

suspected of treasonable designs, fled to Ajmeer and went into rebellion.

the advance of the

a.u. isor

assassin

at a

lodge the arrow deep

was immediately cut
I'he

difficulty extracted.

l)ird,

to pieces,

wound, though deep,

did not prove serious, and healed over in about ten days.

Shortly after Akber set out from Agra on
ostensible object, but his real design

was

a

hunting excui'sion.

to nij) in the

This was his

bud an insurrection which

was meditated by Abdollah Khan Usbek, the governor of Malwah.
ingly turned suddenly aside, and, in spite of the r.ainy season,

He had

Usbek

He

made an

accord-

incursion

when Abdollah Khan, taking
guilt to himself, marched off with his forces and treasure for Gujerat.
Akber
chivalrously pursued with a small body of hor.se, but met with so much opposiinto that province.

only reached Oojein

The annoyance caused by this
U.sbek was said to have given Akber a rooted dislike to the whole race and it
was generally rumoured that he meant to seize and impri.son all the Usbek chiefs.
was obliged

tion that he

to fall

back on Mando.

;

The consequence was a general Usbek
mustered 40,000 horse,

In a short time the insurgents

revolt.

which they ravaged

witli

tlie

teriitories of

Berar and

was Asuf Khan Heroy, governor

Juanpoor.

One

of Kurra.

Shortly after his a])pointment he obtained permission to sulxlue a

of the leadei-s of the revolt

country called Gurrah, which was at the time governed by Doorgawutty, a ranee
or

Hindoo queen,

to

have been un])rincipled, for the only reason assigned

as celebrated for beauty

sis

for ability.

The

aggi-ession appears

for it is that

Asuf Khan

After several predatory excui'sions he invaded

had heard of the riches of Gurrah.

The queen opposed him with
an army of 8000 horse and foot, and 1 500 elej)hant.s. The battle was sanguinary
antl well contested, till the queen, who was mounted on an elephant, was struck
it

with a force of about GOOO

by an arrow
into the

driver

in the eye

hor.se

and infantiy.

and disabled from giving

ordei-s.

Determined not to

fall

hands of the enemy, she plucked a dagger from the girdle of her elephant ^",1^

Her

and stabbed herself

her infant son trampled to death.

capital

A.suf

was immeiliately taken by storm, and
Khan obtained an immense booty in

gold and jewels, but sent only a small part to the royal treasmy, and was thus
able,

i)e,itiiof

on joining the

revolt, to

add largely to

its

pecuniary resources.

^"^"^^

.

128
A.U.

HISTORY OF INDIA.
Akljcr, liiuUug that littN;

I5<jr,.

was uvula by

|)ro;rn;s.s

the revolt, detenniiied to take the field in person.
Campaign
against

seized, obliged

him

this

Usbuka.

to retuiTi to Agra,

then resumed the campaign.
forced

in the

A

lii.s

select

fever,

body of

liOOK

I

officers in suijpressin;^

where he remained

Taking a

march toward Lucknow,

'

with which he
April,

till

w{i.s

and

lofifi,

by a

horse, he j)roceedefl

hope of surjjrising Sikun<lur Khan;

Ijut

that rebel chief, having received warning, evacuated the place and joined his

Several of these, worked upon by emissanes from Aklicr,

confederates.

who

always displayed great dexterity in breaking up any confederacy formed against

made their submission but a formidby Bahadur Khan Seestany, who, after crossing

him, abandoned the cause as hopeless, and

;

was still offered
the Jumna and raising disturbances in the Doab, encountered the royalist
general, Meer Moiz ool -Moolk, in the open field.
The royalists were at first
successful; and, in the full confidence of victory, commenced the pursuit without
observing any order.
Baliadur Khan immediately seized the advantage, and
able opposition

changed
resvilt

his defeat into a victory, so complete that

Akbers

tidings of the

first

were received from Meer Moiz himself, who never halted in

his flight

till

he joined him at Canouge, witli the wreck of his army.
A

The

serioiis

repaired

—

was greatly aggravated by its indirect effects ^some of the confedwho had made their submission, conceiving new hopes, and again joining

reverse

erates,

loss

the revolt.

Among

these

was Khan Zuman, who immediately occupied Ghazi-

poor and the adjoining country.

Akber

set out against

him with

all

expedition,

but Bahadm* Khan, taking advantage of his absence, advanced to Juanpoor and
captured

it

by

This disaster seeming the more serious of the two,

escalade.

Akber retraced his steps, and, by the junction of forces from the loyal
was soon at the head of an army strong enough to crush the rebellion.

Khan

provinces,

Bahadur

accordingly evacuated Juanpoor and fled toward Benares, from wliich he

Akbers leanings
were to the generous side, but on this occasion his leniency was carried to an
extreme.
When the king, after having given his royal word of pardon, ordered
The

sent an offer of submission.

liim

and

shame
till

his brother

Klian

Zuman

for his past offences alone

offer

was accepted;

for all

to appear at coui't, the latter

answered "that

prevented him from appearing in the presence,

tima should have convinced his majesty of his loyalty; but that when the

king should return to Agra, both he and his brother Bahadur Khan would, at a
future time,

pay

their respects."

There was no sincerity in these words, for the

brothers were only endeavouring to gain time, and took the

first

opportunity of

revolting and seizing upon GuiTah.

The next quarter

Proceedinga
in Cabool.

It

was

in

to

which Akbers attention was

the hands of his half-brother,

.specially called

Mahomed Hakim

was Cabool.

Mirza,

who was

threatened by Suliman Mirza, chief of Budukshan. and sent a message to Akber,
earnestly soliciting his aid.

A strong

arrived the struggle

was

reinforcement was accordingly sent

Suliman Mirza had made good

before

it

threat

by attacking Cabool, and Mahomed Hakim

over.

;

Mii'za

but
his

had been compelled

REIGN OF AKBER.

Chap. VI.]
to evacuate

I

In his retreat he took the direction of the Indu.s, and wa.s

it.

ungratefid enoiigli to endeavour to compensate himself for the loss of Cabool
seizing u{)ou

The attempt

u])on

ances were so alarming that

Usbeks

Doab, and

in the

Lahore was made; and, though

Akber

the noise of

by

in

November, 1566, directed

drums and trumpets

appear- An

i.aiioio

the

mju'ch into

his

i.titnii't

Hakim Mirza was awakened by

and, calling to ask

;

it failed,

by the

po.stponed a projected expedition against the

In the dead of the night ]\Iahomed

Punjab.

a.d. loce.

This he was more readily tempted to do, because he

Lahore.

believed that Akber's hands were fully occupied in the eastern provinces

Usbeks.

2<)

what

it

meant, was told

that the citizens of Lahore were manifesting their joy at the intelligence they

had received of Akber's approach.
his steed in the

to

;

for

ab.sence of

Akber

in the

it

his

enemy, Suliman Mirza, had retired

Cabool very imperfectly defended.

for the winter, leaving

consequence was, that he recovered

The

mounted

Fortune was far more favourable to him than he

on arriving he found that

Budukshan

to learn more, he

utmost alarm, and, taking his cavalry along with him, was off

on the instant for Cabool.
deserved

Without waiting

as quickly as he had lost

The

it.

Punjab was no sooner known to the Usbeks

than they put themselves in motion, took Canouge and Oude, and extended

He

their conquests in all directions.

He

of Sheergur.

Seestany,

who was

inunediately raised

Khan Zuman Khan, when

was engaged

in laying siege to the fort

and, with his brother

it,

besieging Kurra, crossed the Ganges in

intending either to join some insurgents

who had

full retreat to

and finding no boats

his haste that,

in readiness,

Malwah,

Akbei', fully alive to the

magnitude of the danger which thus threatened, determined,
Such was

Bahadur Khan

a])peared in that province,

or to form an alliance with the kings of the Deccan.

overtake him.

revolt.

and

therefore hastened back to Agra,

having collected his troops, set out for Juanpoor.
this startling intelligence reached him,

Progress of

if possible,

to

on arriving at the ferry of Muneepoor,

he mounted his elephant and plunged into the

One hundred of his body-guard imitated his example; and though
the water was then high, they all reached the opposite bank in safety.
At the
head of this small party Akber proceeded, and had actually come in sight of the
enemy's camp before he was reinforced by the garrison from Kurra.
The enemy, never imagining that Akber would venture to cross without his

stream.

army,

felt perfectly secure,

They were

first

and had accordingly passed the night

brought to their

mikara, or kettle-drum.

numbers that the contest

sen.ses

in festivity.

by the ominous sound of the

Though completely
was for some time

surprised, they

doubtfid, and

royal

were so superior in

Akber was

in great

personal danger; but his elei)hants, advancing rapidly into the midst of the

enemy no time to rally. Khan Zuman, while endeavouring to extract an arrow which had wounded him, fell with his horse, and was
His brother, Bahadur Khan, was taken
tram])led to death by an ele]>hant.
prisoner; and on being bronght before the king, who asked him what injury he

confused mass,

Vol.

I.

left

the

17

lurap

A

IX

LIT-.'

liad susttiiuL'(l to justify

be to

OF INDIA.

IlJSTOJiV

:]{}

God

drawing the sword,

in uguiii

liiiii

that he has rescued

me

[Hook

ill-judged leniency, put

once more to see your majesty's wmntenance."

Siege of

it

now

provi;d

perhaps of a renewal of the kings

officers, afraid

The

to death without orders.

i-evolt

of the Usbeks

Akber returned to Agi"a in July, 1.jG7.
Akber next marched against Rana Cody Sing, who had hitherto refased to
acknowledge the Mogul supremacy. He immediately directed his steps against
The rana quitted it before his arrival, and retired
Cliittoor, in Rajpootana.
being

Cliittoor.

now

him

"Praise

siinj>ly replied,

This impudent hypocrisy had saved him on a former occasion, but
unavailing; for some of the

I.

considered at an end,

into the mountains, but left

8000 Rajpoots.
said to

am])ly provisioned and strongly garrisoned Ijy

it

was immediately invested by

It

have been made in the most

scientific

AkVjer, who.se ap[jroaches are

manner, in the mode recommended

by Vauban, and practised by the best engineers of modem times. After arriving
near the walls by means of zigzag trenches and stuffed gabions, two mines
were carried under bastions, filled with gunpowder, and fired. The stonning
party advanced, and, finding a practicable breach, di\'ided, with the view of

From some

entering both breaches at once.

was

exploded, and the second division

close

cause only one of the mines had

upon the other when the second

explosion took place, and 500 of the Moguls were blown into the

consequence was, that both attacks
Akber shoot;

Akber's

spu-it generally rose

The

air.

failed.

with the

difficulties

he encountered, and he

.lagmul.

immediately began to run new mines and carry on other works.

One

even-

ing while they were in progress, he perceived Jagmul, the governor, superin-

tending the repair of the breaches by torch-light.

one of his attendants, he

with so sure an aim as to lodge the

fired

The garrison were

Jagmul's forehead.

at once seized with despair,

a funeral pile for the dead body of their
along with

it.

chief,

Not a

soul appeared,

The Rajpoots had

the fort without opposition.

cliildi-en

had hitherto died

;

men

cliildren

forward to

and they entered

retired to their temples,

there, disdaining to accept of quarter, perished to a

Akber's

ball in

and erecting

bm-ned their wives and

Akber, aware of what was going on, ordered his

the breaches under the cover of night.

Sheikh

Seizing a matchlock from

and

man.

but in 1569, shortly after he had made

Seliiri.

a pilgrimage to a celebrated shrine at Ajmeer. and paid a

Selim

\dsit to Sheikli

Chishty, in the village of Sikra, his favourite sultana gave birth to his son

In the following year another

Selim.

him.

As both

births

whom

had taken place in the

particularly propitious spot,

period received the

son,

name

and

selected

it

he called Murad, was

village of Sikra, he regarded

as the site of a city,

which

Having

for all the chiefs

as a

of Futtipoor.

who had

therefore resolved to

ber, 1572.

it

to

at a later

Gujerat had long been torn by intestine factions, and also become a

asylum

bom

common

risen in rebellion against Akber's government.

march against

Puttun and Ahmedabad

fell

it

in person, he set out in Septem-

into his hands without a blow.

At

Chap

REIGN OF AKBER.

VI.

131

Baroach and Surat matters wore a more threatening appearance, Ibrahim ad.

Mahomed Hoossein Mirza
head of an independent army. On Akbers approach

i67-.>.

Hoossein Mirza being near the one, and his brother
near the other, each at the

uujorat.

towards Baroach, Ibrahim suddenly quitted the place, and set

by a

out

hoped to

where

Punjab,

the

reach

route to

circuitous

he

an insurrection.

raise

Akber, informed of his inten-

immediately adopted one

tion,

those

t)f

resolutions

chivalric

which, notwithstanding the suc-

which

cess

usually

attended

them, cannot be justiiied against
the charge of rashness.

nine o'clock at night

It

was

when he

SiiFiKH Sklim's
I'Voiii

heard of Ibrahim's departure.

Tomb at

Ki'TTirooit Sikra.*

un Oriental tlrawing, Kist Indiu House.

Immediately, taking only a small body of horse, he hastened off to intercept

On

his retreat.

reaching the Mhendry, which runs by the town of Surtal,

he found his i)arty reduced to forty troopers, and saw Ibrahim on the opposite
1)ank with 1000.

He

troopers.
river,

At

moment Akber was

this

expected more, but refused to wait for

Many

he advanced to the charge.

])erformed, i)articularly

by some Hindoo

which Akl)er had placed

of his enemies single handed,

rajahs,

himself,

;

were

acts of individual heroism

who, proud of the confidence

were eager to justify

in them,

more chivalrously than the king

by seventy additional
them and crossing the

joined

who

it

but none behaved

;

repeatedly engaged the bravest

and charged right against Ibrahim, who, shunning

by the

the encounter, only saved himself

fleetness of his horse.

Satisfied with this achievement, Akber, instead of attempting to pursue the
fleeing
Sui'at.

enemy, waited

A

till

his

valiant resistance

army

arrived,

was at

first

and then ])roceeded

threatened

were ready to open, the inhabitants surrendered.

;

to lay siege to

but as soon as the batteries

Meanwhile Ibrahim Hoossein

Mirza carried out his scheme of attempting an insuirection in the Punjab.
learning his arrival, Hoossein Koolly Khan, Akber's general,

who was

On

besieg-

ing Nagarcote, immediately raised the siege and pursued him through the

He

Punjab to Tatta on the Indus
escape, or believed

continuing his

'

Tliis

tomb

Koolly

flight,

Khan

probably thought

to be

lie

he set out on a hunting excm'sion.

waserecteil by .Xkber to Slieikli Selim,

in gratituile for the prayers of the holy

man.

a very beautiful little building, in

centre of a

tiue

more distant than

tliat

tlie

It is

quadran;j;le575feet square, surrounded by a lofty

wall, with a magnificent
it.

he had made his
was, for instead of
Oji his retiu'n

cloi.'ster all

he

around witliin

The sarcophagus containing the body

is

inclosed

within a screen of marble, carved into lattice work,
and inlaid with niother-ofjiearl.

suppression
voit in

""^"

tiio
'

FTTSTORY OF TXT)TA,

l:{2

A.U.

1.073.

found

lii.s

caiiip

stormed, and

Itrotlier

lii.s

Miusa/jod Hoossein a prisoner.

resolved to retrieve the day or perish, and

being repulsed at every point,
severely

wounded and taken

who

governor of Mooltan,

made many desperate

desi.sted, an«l fled

shortly

alt<.'r

He

onsets; hut

was delivered up

to tlie

His head was sent

beheaded him.

I,

Here, after being

to Mooltan.

prisoner l>y a Beloochee, he

Agra, and by Akber's order jilaced above one of
Nuw troubles

[Rook

to

its gates.

In July, 1573, the affairs of Gujerat were again thrown into disorder by

in Uujorat.

the union of one of

former chiefs with ^lahomed Hoossein Mirza.

its

These

enough to attempt

confederates, after overrunning several districts, felt strong

The presence of Akber seemed absolutely necessary,
but a foi^midable obstacle was in the way. The rainy season had commenced,
and the march of a large army was impracticable. In these circumstances, he
made one of those decisive movements for which he had become famou.s. Sending
Ahmedabad.

the siege of

off

a body of 2000 chosen horse, he followed rapidly with a retinue of 300

mounted on camels and accompanied by led hoi"ses.
Having come up with the main body at Puttun, he found that his whole force
mustered 3000.
Without halting he set forward for Ahmedabad, while a swift
persons, chiefly nobles,

messenger hastened before to make the gan-ison aware of his approach.

enemy

first

learned

it

by the sound of

measure, prepared for action.

vent a

sally,

Mahomed

set out

his

drum

and though astonished above

Leaving 5000 horse to watch the gates and pre-

Akber

with 7000 horse.

at first waited, in the

him but on learning that this was not
and drew up on the plain. The battle was

expectation that the garrison would join
to be expected, he crossed the river
fiercely contested,

;

and was not decided

;

till

the king, with his body-guard of 100

men, made an attack in flank on Mahomed, who, losing
turned his back and
in the face

The rout now became

fled.

and mounted on a horse which had

leap a hedge, but both

fell,

and he was made

claim to the honour of the capture,

took you ? "

He

general,

also

liis

all

presence of mind,

^lahomed, wounded

been wounded, attempted to

prisoner.

Akber put the

Mahomed, holding down

of ingratitude overtook me."

The

Several persons laying

—

(question to himself

head, replied, " Nobody.

spoke truth, and paid the penalty

The
^

"

Who
cirrse

for before

Akber had given any orders respecting him. Rajah Ray Sing, in whose charge
he had been left, put him to death. The siege of Ahmedabad was immediately
raised, and Akber entered it in triumph.
Revolt in
Bengal.

In the com'se of

Bengal, took up arms.

him

Dawood Khan, son of Suliman Kirany,
Moonyim Khan, sent by Akber against him,

this year

in several actions,

and compelled him to sign a

the terms, refused to ratify

it,

and

expelled or obliged to pay tribute.
to gain time;
hostilities.

insisted that

He

latter,

defeated

Akber, disHking

treaty.

Dawood Khan

promised the

ruler of

should either be

but

it

was merely

and as soon as he thought himself strong enough, he resumed

Moonyim Khan again

defeated him, took his fleet of boats, and,

after crossing the Ganges, laid siege to Patna.

Akber, thinking his presence

;

REIGN OF AKBER.

Chap. VI.j
required, left

Agm

in the

embarked

as could be

middle of

tlie rains,

in 1000 boats.

On

and

i;j3

set out

with as

many

troops

it

was

Hajeepoor, on the opposite side of the Ganges,

Dawood Khan,

without resistance.

also yielded

a.u. 1579.

arriving within a few miles of Patna

he had the satisfaction to learn that, in consequence of Moon^'im's success,

on the point of being evacuated.

.

thus defeated at

points,

all

iio^-mt in

wished to make terms; but Akber insisted on his unconditional submission, at
the same time observing to his messenger, " Tell Dawooil

sand

men

my army

iu

as

good as

issue in single combat, 1 will

manner

this

he,

and

if

he

myself meet him."

of settling the contest,

Dawood
take

Kiian
refuji'e

1

have a thou-

disposed to put the point to

Dawood Khan had no

idea of

and made a precipitate retreat to Bengal.

In the pm-suit 400 of his elephants were taken.

and Moonyim Khan, continuing

is

Khun

Akber now returned

to

Agra

to prosecute the subjugation of Bengal, obliged

to
in

S?

r"*"-

Ultimately

Orissa.

was overtaken

he

on the shores of the

Bav

of Bengal, and

obliijed

The

submit.

to

terms

were

that he should relinquish

preten-

all

sions to

Bengal and

Beliar,

but

Orissa

retain

and Cuttack.

Moonyim Khan was

RuiN8 OF GooR '— DanieU's Oriental Scenery.

appointed governor

and removed the seat of government from Khowaspoor Tanda to
Goor, which had been the capital till it was abandoned on account of its in-

of Bengal,

He had

salubrity.

better have left matters as he found them, for he soon

a victim to the climate, and was succeeded by Hoossein Koolly Khan, a

fell

Toorkoman, who bore the

title

Before Hoossein Koolly

of

Khan

Jehan.

Khan had taken

actual possession of his government,

itss'ippressioii

'

"Takin? the extent

of tlie ruins of

most reasonable calculation,

it is

not

Goor

at the

than

fifteen

less

miles in length (e.\tenfling along the old bank of the
Ganges), and from two to three in breadth. Several
villages stand

on part of

its site; tlie

remainder

i.s

cither covered witli thick forest, the habitations of
tigers and other beasts of prey, or become arable
laud,

whose

soil

Tlie principal

is

chiefly

composed of

brick-ilust.

ruins are a mosque, lined with bl.ick

marble elaborately wrought, and two gates of the
citadel, which are strikingly grand and lofty. These
fabrics, and some few others, appear to owe their
duration to the nature of their materials, which are

marketable and more difficult to separate, than
those of the ordinary brick-buildings, which have
been, and continue to be an article of merchandise,
and are transported to Moorshedabad, Malda, and
other places, for the purposes of building. The situation of Goor was higiily convenient for the capital
of Bengal and Behar as united under one government, being nearly centrical with re.spect to the
populous parts of tho>e provinces and near the
junction of the principal rivers that, compose that
less

e.vtraordinary inland navigation for which those pro-

vinces are

famed."— Major Reunell, quoted

ton's Oazettecr of Indiit.

in

Thorn-

A D 1585

DawooJ

Kliau,

of 50,000

liavin;;^

hor.se,

and retook the greater part
for,

taken prisoner, and put

Afghan

in

<^t"

chiefs,

Bengal,

The

to death.

was

defeated,

hea<led

stilJ

by some

were fought; but ultimately the

battles

The

Moguls proved everywhere trium{>hant.

possession, however,

after, lie

was

iiLsuirection

I

appeared at the hea«l

ili.s

a battle fought shortly

and several sanguinary

chiefs,

[Hook

leagued with several ^Vfgliau

was only momentary;

l!oii?al an.l

OF INDIA.

IIIS'IOHV

:; !

which

fort of Khotas, in Behar,

JJehar incoi'poratail

had long held

was obliged

out,

to surrender;

and Bengal and Behar were

in the

Mo-ul
empire.

formally incorporated with the empire of the Great Mogul, though they both
4

continued to be, from

time to time, the seats of fonnidable insurrections.

These had hitherto for the most part originated with Afghans,
thither

when

when

the

who had

J
fled

Afghan dynasty was driven from the throne of Delhi; but
had ceased

their hostility

to be fonnidable, the

began to give considerable trouble,

Mogul

quarrelling with

first

chiefs themselves

Akbers

arrangements, and then making open war by appearing in the

with an army of 30,000 men.

financial

1579.

field in

After an intestine war, which the Afghans again

endeavoured to turn to account, tranquillity was restored.

While Akbers

Akber
advances on
tlie Punjab.

to

march

officers

were thus occupied in Bengal, he was himself obliged

to the north-western provinces, in consecjuence of a

new attempt by

his half-brother,

the

Punjab.

Mahomed Hakim Mirza, to make himself master of ])art of
Mahomed had advanced as far as Lahore and laid siege to it, when

the

arrival of

Akber

He had

to Cabool.

mined not

at Sirhind disconcerted all his schemes,

to let

him

march upon Cabool

now

so often before escaped in the
off so easily

itself,

and

making
and was left

set out

on

its return.

On

same way, that Akber deter-

after crossing the Indus, continued his

which he entered

at his mercy; but, on

terms than he deserved,

army

;

and he hastened back

in trixunph in

1

579.

his submission, received

Mahomed was
more favourable

in possession of his capital, wlule the royal

Akber

this occasion

built the fort of

Attock

;

a

Jumna

short time after he built the fort of Allahabad, at the junction of the

and Ganges.
New trouMi!

After MoozufFur Shah, the former ruler of Gujerat, had been forced to

iu Gujerat.

abdicate, he

was taken

to Agra,

and

he was presented with an extensive domain, and allowed to

seemed

satisfied;

but in 1581,

worked upon by some of the

when new

insurgents,

troubles arose

and suddenly quitted Hindoostan

the purpose of attempting to recover his lost throne.
rection soon

Akber that
reside upon it.
He
in Gujerat, he was

so far ingratiated himself with

Thus headed, the

became formidable, and the royal generals were obliged

for

insur-

to retreat

northwards to Puttun, leaving MoozufFur in possession of Alimedabad, Baroach,

and nearly the whole of the province.
of

tlie late

Behram Khan, recovered a

An

army, sent imder Mirza Khan, son

large portion of

what had been

lo.st

;

but

MoozufFur, retiring into the more inaccessible parts of the peninsula, maintained
himself in a kind of independence for several years.

In 1585,

Mahomed Hakim Mirza havmg

died,

Akber immediately

set out

In this he found no

to take possession of Cabool.
after

135

REIGN OF AKBER.

Chap. V[.]

difficulty;

undertook another task, which brought him into

but he immediately

collision

with tribes of a

more warlike character than he had previously encountered, and

called for his Aki^rt

.

utmost

and

skill

Cashmere, with

pi'owess.

ambition, and he resolved to
ftivourable

;

for dissensions liad

make a conquest
broken out

kingdom was torn asunder by contentling
<piest

beautiiui valley,

its

of

it.

canii)aigns

•

1

1

tempted

his

The circumstances were

in the reigning family,

But the

factions.

a.u. i5s7

ill C'al)(Kil

atul Cashluere.

and the whole

facilities for con-

thus afforded were greatly counteracted by the physical features of the

embosomed among lofty mountain chains, and is accessible
only through perilous pavSses.
At first Akber, then at Attock, was contented to

country.

It lies

AiTouK, from West Bank of the Gauges. —Viguu's Visit to Olnixui

send forward a detachment of his armv.
pass which had not been guarded

sudden setting
in

command

in of

;

It succeeded in i)enetratin<; throu-'h

but a threatened want of provisions, and the

winter with a heavy

of snow, so intimidated the officers

fiiU

that they hastily concluded a treaty

acknowledged the Mogul su]>remacy, but was
possession of

its

a

by which Cashmere nominally

left,

in every other respect, in full

former independence.

This treaty was utterly at variance with AkV)er's views; and he therefore

Cashmere
eoiHUierwl.

not only refused to ratify

it,

but, in the following year

(1587), sent a second

mvading army, the commander of which, by dexterously availing himself of the
intestine dissensions, was admitted within the pas.ses without a struggle, and

made an easy
among the nobles

afterwards
enrolled
in

Behar.

The

conquest.

king, having been

captured,

of Delhi, and sent to live on a domain

Cashmere, rob1)ed of

its

indo])endence, which

a.s.sirnu'd

was
him

had maintained

it

for

nearly 1000 years, became merely a i\logul ])rovince.

The

struggles in this quarter were not yet over;
t,o

mountain

districts

Afghan

which encircle the plain of Peshawer.

tribes in this direction

rise

above

it

and

stretch

back

to the

snowv

The most powerful

and the mountain terraces

ridires

of the

Campaign
against

Af'dian

were the Yoo.soofzyes or Eusofzeis, who

possessed the northern part of the Peshawer plain,

which

Akber's ambitjon

the subiuixation, not nierelv of Ca.shmere, but of the

extended

of the

for

Hindoo Koosh.

tlio

Y<H>s<K>fzyes

and Rosbiiyes.

;

HISTORY

136
A.u. iMi.

The

Mi)<^ul iiriiiy

('iii[)l(»y(;(l

in

INI»IA.

OF'

the expedition a^^uinst thiH AI';L^han tribe

commanded by Zein Khan Koka, who allowed
and had great

difficulty in

[Book

I.

whh

himself to be wm|)letely defeat<id,

reaching the royal camp at Attr)ck.

Rajah Beerbui,

a special favourite of Akber, perished on this
occasion

;

and the monarch had thus

to endure,

not merely the mortification of defeat, but the

deep

grief,

which he could not but

one of his most valued

loss of

Yoosoofzyes,
victory,

having

to

at the

friends.

The

improve

their

were ultimately obliged to make some

sort of submission,

more formal than
nias,

failed

feel,

which appears to have been

real.

The Roshnyes or Rooshe-

another of the mountain

a leader of the

name

of Jelala,

tribes,

headed by

made a

more

still

valiant defence, but were also at last oblicred to

Afghan contest was being
waged, Akber was extending and consolidatincj
submit.

his

While

this

empire in other directions.

Taking advan-

tage of dissensions in Scinde, he in 1591 sent

Mirza
YoosooFZYE.

— Elphiiistoue's Kingdom of
Cabool.

sciiide raado

province,

to enter it from the north,
fort of

in Sciiidc, advanccd with a

with

Sehwan.

and lay

Lahore,

siege to the

Mirza Jany Beg, then ruling

numerous army and a train of

arriving within twelve miles of the
filled

Khan with an invading army from

artillery.

After

Mogul camp, he sent forward 100 boats

artillery-

men and archers,
to make an attack.
Mirza Khan had
twenty - five

only

command

boats at

but, taking advan-

tage of the night,

came upon the ene-

my by

surprise,

and

compelled him to a
precipitate

flight.

i

Mirza Jany Beg became,

in

future,

more cautious; and
having

down

his

Ruins of the Castle of Sehwan.

—Jackson's Afghanistan.

bronslit

whole

inaccessible.

fleet,

landed on a

Here he

swampy ground,

which, at high water, became

successfully resisted all attempts to dislodge

him

;

and

KEIGN OF AKBER.

Chap. VI.]
at the

same

time, while he kept his

lo7

own commimications

open, so interrupted

those of the Moguls, that they were unable to obtain the necessary supplies.

Khan had no

these ciremnstances, Mirza

taking part

(^f

it

to Tatta, while the

may

soldiers,

and

alternative but to divide his army,

remainder cojitiimed the

Mirza

siege.

be regarded as the

It

have had 200 natives dressed as Eui'opeans.

to

first

Sepoys

and ceding

it

to that

and kept the contjuest to himself

making the compiest

Kandahar passed

fulfil

from

Persia,

his agreement,

but the circumstances afterwards became

;

to Persia shortly after Akber's accession.

remained in

this position

till loy-t,

to account,

was able

make

to

monarch, refused to

Kand.ihar

Internal troubles prevented the shah from

resenting the injustice at the time
favom'able, and

These

Akber's father, after obtaining

military aid from the vSliah of Persia, on condition of
of Kandahar,

'i'i>f fii-st

in India.

how Hoomayoon,

has been mentioned

1594.

In

Jany Beg, thus tempted to assume the offensive, lost the advantages of his
])()sition, and was finally caught in a trap, which compelled him to accept of
any terms of peace that the Moguls chose to dictate. His kingdom became a
Mogul province, and he himself exchanged his position as a king for that of
an officer in the Mogul service. In this war he is said to have employed some
Portuguese

ad.

when

It

Akl)er, turning the Pei-sian dissensions

himself master both of the town and temtory

without being obliged to strike a blow, the Persian prince

who

held the fort

being contented to exchange his possession for the government of Mooltan and
a

command

in the

Mogul

ai'my.

In the whole of India north of the Nerbudda, Mogul supremacy was
completely established.

now earnestly

Akber's attention was

an opportunity

was otherwise

It

m

the Deccan

;

and to

now

therefore,

it,

In 1586 he had availed himself of

turned.

to interfere in the internal concerns of

Ahmednuggur

;

and had

endeavoiu'ed, though without success, to aid a claimant in obtaining the throne.

In 151)0 he had recourse to a

much more

formal proceeding, and sent aml)assa-

—Asseer and Boorhanpoor, Ahmednuggur,
modern Hyderabad— demanding an acknowledgment

dors to four different courts

and Bhagnagur, the
his

supremacy.

Bejajjoor,

When a common

which he had anticipated, and

was given, he only received the answer
which he was })repared. For the avowed

refusal

for

purpose of reducing them to subjection, Mirza

He

of

Khan was immediately

sent

Mando.

Meanwhile a messenger
had arrived from Boorhan, King of Ahmednuggur, who had lived for some time

south with an army.

in exile at

after, in

to

15f)4.

name

of

Ahmed,

jMurad Mirza, then in Gujerat.

immediately put his army

in

His death having

and his son and successor having

a disputed succession took place, and the minister,

claim of a boy of the
Prince

fii-st

Akber's court, announcing his entire submission.

taken place shortly
battle,

proceeded

who favoured

ap])lied for assistance to

The

]>rince,

by

fallen in

Akber's son.

his father's orders,

motion and marched for the Deccfin, taking the

direction of Ahmednuixonir.
Vol.

I.

the

18

Akbercinims
in the

'"^^""

HISTORY OF

l.'i.S

A

I).

The

1090.

the
Siego of All

miniHter, Mceaii Muiija,

and therefore prepared

.step,

to

called in this {orei;^ri aid,

meet the prince a«

I.

had repented of

he had wjnie not oh an

if

Having provisioned and otherwise prepared

but as an enemy.

ally,

who

[Book

1NI>IA.

for the

ludUiiuggur.

defence of Alimednu<ro-ur, he jjave the

who had been queen and dowager-regent

Beeby,

of the army.

met the

Chand
Beeby.

of

Chand
the neighbouring kingdom
it

to the

Princess

frontier with the remainder

Murad Mirza and Mirza Khan having united their forces,
circumstances by laying aside their o.stensiljle character as

Prince

altered

and assuming that of

auxiliaries,

of"

and marched toward the Bejapoor

of Bejapoor,

Heroism of

command

principals in the war.

Chand Beeby, equally j^repared to act her part, and when the Moguls opened
the siege of Ahmednuggur, made a most resolute defence, counterworking their
mines, superintending the repairing of breaches, and often

sword

ance,

in hand, to

animate the garrison when their

contented with thus resisting in the

neighbouring kings

tlie

;

and,

by

making her appear-

spirits

began to

Not

fail.

she entered into correspondence with

fort,

vivid description of the

common danger by

which they were threatened, succeeded in forming a confederacy which levied
a powerful army for the purpo:!e of advancing to her relief
to effect a capture before this

up about eighty

army could

feet of the wall,

The Moguls, anxioas

arrive, fired their mines,

which blew

and threw the garrison into such consternation

that they would have given

up the plase had not Chand Beeby, appearing
on her face and a naked sword in her hand, animated

among them with a veil
them to new exertions. She caused gims
and stones

ants,

to be hurled

and did not depart

she had seen

till

longer practicable.

It

to renounce

built

its

in the

Dec?an.

filled

with their

to such a height as to be

which

left

Ahmednuggur and

native sovereign, and only required

sooner was this treaty ratified than the dissensions

the Deccan, which had only been suspended

no

to be disheartened;

some obsolete or unavailable claim on the throne of

personal

campaign

up

to conclude a peace

dependencies entire in the hands of

No

Akber's

it

was now the turn of the Moguls

and Prince Murad was glad

him

was

so that the ditch

assail-

During the night she stood by the breach, superintending the workmen,

dead.

its

upon them,

on the

to be brought to bear

by a common

among

Berar.

the princes of

danger, again broke out.

Among

other

Mogul

and, in the very face of their recent engagement, marched a hostile force

;

into Berar.

follies,

they voluntarily assumed the offensive against the Great

Akber had thus only

too good ground for interfering;

accordingly resolved, in 1599, to take the field in person.
resolution
grief

is

said to

which he

the loss of his second son. Prince Murad,

and treated

ungrateful return.
its

influence

who had

died

Another care weighing heavily upon him was the miscon-

duct of his eldest son, Prince Selim.
cessor,

cause of this

have been the desire to divert his thoughts, and lighten the

felt for

of a sudden Ulness.

One

and he

liim

He had

him

his suc-

with the utmost indulgence, but met with a most

The prince had become the

was hurried

formally appointed

into several crimes.

slave of intoxication,

One

of these

was

and imder

treason, wdiich

J

EEIGN OF AKBEll.

CfiAP. VI.

he carried so far

tliat it

had assumed the form of open

second and better thouglits induced him to

ever,

stains

memory,

his

had long been
torian of his

is

share he

tlie

had

and

from which, how-

revolt,

celebrated

is still

the his-

cis

him, at the instigation of Prince Selim, and

fell

been aware of the share which his son

in this atrocity,

have taken effectual steps to disinherit him

since,

without this additional
bitterly,

and

days and

over, he

vowed

and took

without

niglits
it

by

sleep.

on Narsing Deo

inflicting

\"',lif,^_i

he would probably

aggravation, the tidings so affected

him that he wept
This first paroxysm

laid for

Assassina-

Had Akber

fighting valiantly.

;

into

fell

an ambuscade, which Narsing Deo, Rajah of Orcha, in Bundelcvmd, had

iiad

ioo6

murder of Abulfazl, who

was returning from the Deccan when he

Abulfa^sl

ad.

Another crime wliich

desist.

in the

his father's favourite minister,

re'vnx.

13!)

two

])assed

siud all his race severities of

revenge,

which

his

reign happily affords few examples.

In the south Akber's usual good fortune had attended him

his arm.s,

;

though

Akiwrs
''

not uniformly, were so generally successful, that most of the princes hastened to

make

their submission;

retui-ned to

Agra

in 1602, so satisfied

with the

""'^'^"'•

that in a proclamation wiiich he issued, he tissumed, in addition to his

result,

other

and he

i„ t'ho

titles,

emj)ii'e,

that of Prince of the Deccan.

of which he had himself been the

magnificence which few

was

declining years,

second son,

when

far

While thus at the head of a mighty

main

architect,

any sovereigns have ever

if

from happy.

He had

his third son, Piince Daniel,

and surrounded by a
Akber, in his

eiiualletl,

scarcely cesised to

whose marriage

mourn

for his

in 1601< he

had

celebrated with great festivities, died within a twelvemonth, the victim of his

own drunken

habits.

But

his

sorrow for the dead members of his family was

His domestio

not so distressmg as the shame and agony produced by the misconduct of the
Selim, his only surviving son

living.

and destined

successor, after a promise of

reform, had sunk deepei- than ever in his vicious courses, acting habitually with

madman and

the caprice of a
soi\

Khosroo had such an

self

by poison

seems

now

to

the cruelty of a tyrant.

effect

the thought of being succeeded

(|uarrel

life

to his future arrangements.

by Selim, and yet

He had entwined

Khurram

own

manifested the gi-eatest decision,

in

He

shuddered at

Khosroo, Selim's eldest son,

he beheld the very passions which disgraced Selim himself
son,

with his

on that youths nxother, that she destroyed her-

Akber, who had through

have hesitated as

A

There wtis a third

himself around the heart of his grandfather,

but the fearful consetiuences of a disj)uted succession appear to have deterred

him from making any
and

per{)lexities,

during the

last

tlestination in his favour.

his health

Amid

these distressing trials

began visibly to give way, and after an

illness,

ten days of which he w;is confined to bed, and employed

of his time in giving good counsels to his son, he expired (m

t!ie

much

13th of

Of the sixty-foiu" years of his life, fifty-one had been spent (jn
the throne. He was l)uried near Agra, in a tomb consisting of a solid pyramid,
surrounded by cloisters, galleries, and domes, and of such innnense dimensions,
October,

1

605.

nisUeatu.

JIISTfJiiY

lO

A.n. 1605.

that for a year or two after

tlie

OF

(IJOOK

ISI>\.\.

coii<[ue.st f>f

the surrounding t<jrritory hy the

a whole European regiment of dragoons was quartered

Britisl),

I.

in

it.

iy_J'.ii::ij.il

Mausoleum of Emperor Akber at

Akber

Akber'sper-

is

— From an Oriental drawing in East India Hoose.

described as of a manly, athletic, and handsome form, fair com-

son, talents,

andcha-

SectsiJitA.'

^

plexion, pleasing features,

_

and captivating manners.

racter.

i

In early

i

• <»

i

life

•

his tastes

were

somewhat

curean,

and he indulged

in wine;
yeai-s

in

epi-

his latter

he was abstemious,

both in meat and drink

He

had no

ness in

liis

\Tndictive-

nature

;

and,

however much he migh t
have been provoked, was
always ready to extend
pai'don to every one wlio

asked
Akber's Tombstone at Secundha.'— Oriental drawing, East India House.

to

amount

to rashness

;

and the chivalrous prevailed

"

The tomb of Akber at Secundra, near Delhi,
and doings, exceptional, and
unlike those of any of his race, but still of great magnificence.
The tomb is pyramidal in external form.
The outer or lower terrace is .320 feet square by 30
feet in height, and its architecture is bold and massive.
On this terrace stands another far more ornate, measuring 186 feet on each side, and 14 feet 9 inches in
height.
A third and a fourth of similar design, and
respectively 1.5 feet "2 inches and 14 feet 6 inches high,
stand on this, all these being of red sandstone. Within
and above the last is a white marble inclosure 1.57 feet
is,

like all his buildings

e.ach

way,

or, e.Kternally, just half

the length of the

so

His

it.
t

•

i

t

coiu-age

n

was

so decided as oiten

much

in Ins temper, that

lowest terrace. The outer wall of this is entirely composed of marble trellis-work of the most beautiful
patterns.
Inside it is surrounded by a colonnade of
the same material. In the centre of this cloister, ou
a raised platform, is the tombstone of the founder, a
splendid piece of the most beautiful arabesque tracery
(see accompanying engraving).
This, however, is not

the true burial place; but the mortal remains of this
great king repose under a far plainer tombstone, in a
vaulted chamber in the basement, 35 feet square,
exactly under tlie simulated tomb that adorns the

summit of the mausoleum."
of Architeciure.

—-Fergusson's Iland-Book

]

REIGN OF AKBER

Chap, VI.

he often underwent great

His

love of adventure.

toils

though not of the

intellect,

great

hinisell' to

from a mere ad

perils,

first order, wiis

1005.

remarkably

and nothing pleased him more than discussions of a metaphysical and

acute,

When

[)uzzling nature.

to be present at

them

not actually engaged in these discussions, he delighted

and amused himself with the wianglings of
whose leaders he on varioas occasions summoned

as a listener

philosoi)hical or religious sects,

took place

when he

of the most remarkable of these discussions

held a meeting of Maliometan doctors and Portuguese mis-

and deluded the

sionaries,

;

One

to court for this veiy purpose.

latter

by pretending

The truth seems

a Christian convert.
of

and exposed

141

any kind, and employed

to

have some idea of becoming

to be, that he

his acuteness,

had few serious convictions

not so much for the purpo.se of disco-

vering, as of evading truth.

In private

he was a kind and imlulgent parent, and a generous, warm-

life

and strongly attached

hearted,

Indeed,

friend.

only real griets which he suffered through

As a

relations.

many
lost

life

may

it

be truly

had their

that the

said,

soui'ce in these

He

military commander, he takes high rank.

Akbers

two

did not fight

great battles, but often, after some of his ablest officers had fought and

made

them, he no sooner

his appearance in the field

than fortune, which

had forsaken them, seemed to return, and defeat was converted into victory.
In the cabinet he

was

the

the art of winninii the affections of all with

hiijliest degfree

in contact,

and rendering

advancement of
seen,

still

more

successful than in the field;

and possessed in

whom

he came

their varied talents antl influence subservient to the

his service.

For the

first

time Mahometans and Hindoos were

during his reign, working harmoniously together, while holding places of

lionour

and

Akbers

trust near the throne.

best fame

is

founded on his internal administration, into wliich so

many important inn)rovements were
enumerate them.

Suffice

it hei'e

introduced, that

to say, that in every

it

would be

difficult to tum.

department of the

state,

business wtis conducted on rational, liberal,

and tolerant

was administered impartially among

of subjects, without reference to

birth or religious profession;

all chiases

and the revenue was

posed to be mo.st equitable and least oppressive.

standard

principles; justice

raised in the

Having

inteniai
nilniinistra-

^

,

first

manner sup-

fixed a uniform

meivsurement, he carefully ascertained the extent and relative pro-

t)f

amount
room for

ductiveness of each landed tenement, and then fairly apportioned the
of taxation which each ought to bear.

iavouritism
sive in its

;

ami

a burdtMi wliieh,

while

In this
it

way

there

was

lay equall}' upon

all,

little

was not

exces-

amount, was borne easily and without gnidging.

In connection with Akbers revenue sv.stem

may

be mentioned his adminis-

trative divisions of the empire into pro^^nces or suhihs, each of

governed by a head
those of a viceroy,

officer called

all

being vested in him

which wjis

a suhahdar, whose powers were equivalent to

authority, civil as well as military, within the province

Subordinate to the subahdar,

tliougli a])|)ointed

not by

Division

<.f

einpire int..

U2
AT),

um.

OF INDIA.

HrSTOI'.V

him,

}>y

l)iit

t!i(!

king,

was an

had the sn[)erintendence of

all

with

officer,

tlic;

[Book

title

of

dewan

or diwnn,

The

matters of revenue and finance.

I

who

subahs,

originally fifteen, were, in consequence of additional conquests, raised to eigh-

Of

teen.
spirit of

bers

these twelve were in Hindoostan

Among

Liberal

Ak-

rule,

and

six in the Deccan.

Akber which deserve notice for their humane and
liberal Spirit, and at the same time throw some reflection on the tardy legislation of the British government on the same subjects, are his prohibition of the
burning of Hindoo widows against their will, and his permitting them to
marry again, though the Hindoo law expressly forbids it. The same humane
and

the enactments of

liberal spirit appears in his prohibition of the jezia or capitation tax

infidels,

which had placed an enormous,

irresponsiVjle,

on

and much-abased power

Mahometans and in the aboHtion of the practice of
making slaves of prisoners taken in war a practice under the cover of which
not only the wives and children captured in camps or fortified places, but the
peaceable inhabitants of any hostile country, were seized and earned off into
in the hands of fanatical

;

—

slavery.

These enactments gave grievous offence

beino- odious to the

infidel

A

still

by the

is

beard,

and m-ged

Mollahs,

stronger proof

court etiquette, on wliich

than

affecting the

Hindoos

Brahmins, and those which laid restraints on the Mahome-

tans being seized upon

was an

—those

as a proof that

was supposed

Akber seems

Akber

him.self

to be found in a matter of

more pertinacity
He had a dLslike to the

to have insisted with

easily reconcilable with his usual moderation.

and would scarcely admit a person who wore

it

to his presence.

Unfor-

tunately his feeling in this respect was in direct opposition to an injunction of
the

Koran

;

and

several of the

more zealous Mahometan

Palace of Akber, Puttipook Sikra. — From an

forego the honours

original

chiefs chose rather to

drawing by Capt. R. Smith, 44th Regiment.

and pleasm-es of the court than conform to a

regulation, the

observance of which seemed incompatible with orthodoxy,
"^

works"

Among

the public works executed dm-ing the reign of Akber, are the walls

Chap. VI.

and

REIGN OF AKBER.

1

citadels of

on the

site of

Agra and Allahabad, the

own

city for his

touudatioii

oi"

the city of Futti[)(X)r

the village of Sikra, for which, as the birth-place of two of

he had conceived a strong partiality

sons,

143

residence,

and near

it

;

palace of Agra, in

its

iiis

the splendid })alace erected in that

architecture;

Another work of Akber, though not

'

— DauieU's Oriental Scenery.

tomb of
his father Hoomayoon at Delhi.
Its commanding position, its magnitude and
solidity, and its stupendous dome of white marble, have long made it celeln'ated
strictly of

as one of the greatest of his structures

;

while a

a pubHc nature,

new

King of

Delhi.

formances of Akbers

It

reiffn,

the

is

interest has recently

as the scene of the capture of the last and,

most worthless representative of the Great Mogul
so-called

1G06.

a mosque remarkable for the beauty and

Chalees Sitoon, Axlauauao.

it

I).

and the white marble mosque and
both of which simplicity and elegance are happily combined.

majestic proportions of

given to

A.

all

—the

would be unpardonable,

Akters
lie

,.iii,-

worKs,

been

things considered, the

present (January,

1

858)

in referring to the per-

not to mention anotiier work which, though of a

very different nature from any of the above, might have shed gi-eater lustre on
his reign than the
^

•

L

-r\

most celebrated of them

This work was a translation of the

i»ii'
It was undertaken by Akbers
T

•

gospels nito Persian.

1

1

-IT
special directions,
-

in-

trasted to a Portuguese missionary, who, unfortunately, in.stead of executing

committed what

faithfully,

translation, disfigured

sequence

is,

that a

is

called a pious fraud,

and adulterated by lying

work which,

issued under

tlie au.spices

might have given a knowledge of pure Christianity in

it

and produced a spurious

Popi.sli legends.

The sad con-

of the Great Mogul,

influential quarters

could not otherwise be reached, has only had the effect of presenting

it

which

under a

debased and ])olluted form.
'

"

The most

beautiful tiling [at Allaiiabadl

was

the pavilion of the Chaleea Sitoon, or forty pillars,
RO called from having tliat number on the principal
floor, ilisposeil

one internal of

in

two concentric octagonal ranges;

si.\tcen pillars,

the other outside of

twenty-four; above

this,

supported by the inner colon-

nade, wa.s an upper range of pillars crowned by a

dome.

This building has entirely disappeared,

its

materials being wanted to repair the fortifications."

— Fergussou's Hand-Iiook of Architecture.

His order for

!•"
and

Persian

translation

gosp'^u.

—

JIISTOHY OK INlJlA.

Iil<

[PjfJOK

I.

CTTArTKPv YIT.
Modera India -Clianges

in

mode

the

of intercourse with

tlie

East

— M'^napolies

c^itahlLiihed

by the

Good Hope

Venetians, tho Genoese, and other ItaUan republics- Doubling of the Cape of

Portuguese progress in India.

N

the time of the

establishing a
led

wJien the Pei-sians,

Ju.stiiiian,

to Constantinople,

had raised the price of

A.D. MO.

how an

adequate supply might be obtained at home.

labours as Christian missionaries, they
Indian

traile

silk eiKjr-

opportune arrival of two Persian

in that luxurious capital, the

Wi monks dissipated the alami which had begun
C.R.

by

monopoly of the Indian trade along the route whicli

most directly

mously

Roman emperor

had penetrated

by showing

to prevail,

In the course of their

and become

into China,

acquainted with the whole process of the sUk manufacture, from

its

commence-

under
Justinian.

ment

in the rearing of silk- worms, to its termination in the finished product.

Their information attracted general attention
its

and the emperor,

importance, determined immediately to act upon

monks, under his auspices, paid a second
Silk-worm-i

;

a supply of the eggs of the

it.

visit to Cliina,

silk -worm, concealed in the

With

fully alive to

view the

this

ami returned with

The

hollow of a cane.

first

brought to
Europe.

worms hatched from

these eggs being carefully reared, multiplied so rapidly

that in a short time Greece, Sicily, and Italy were both producing

manufacturing
thus

ill

on an extensive

it

scale.

One branch

raw

silk,

and

of the Indian trade

was

some degree superseded, but the others which remained were

cient to create a large

of supplying

it.

partially opened,

demand, and excite to strenuous exertions

In this

way

for the purpose

the ancient channels of intercourse were again

and Indian products were beginning

to flow into

Europe by

when new

the inland and maritime routes which have been already described,
obstacles of a very formidable character

The Mahometan imposture,

Changes in
the route of
Indian
traflRc.

were suddenly

whole

and soon placed both

Pema

and Egypt under the absolute control of
mosities thus engendered, left no

tor.

regarded

Mahomet

room

as a prophet,

its

fanatical adherents.

for friendly intercourse

and those who knew him

Exterminating warfare alone was thought

the utmost fury.

interposed.

after spreading like wild-fii-e over the

of Arabia, continued its conquests in all directions,

who

still suffi-

of,

The

fierce ani-

between those
to be

an impos-

and continued to rage with

In these circumstances, as the demand

for

Eastern products,

more wealthy, had become generally diffused among all
the only alternative was to endeavour to obtain them by a channel which

originally confined to the
classes,

lay so far to the north as to run

tan fanaticism.

little

risk of being interfered with

Mention was formerly made of the commercial

by Mahome-

route,

which

after

EARLY INTERCOURSE WITH EUROPE.

Chap. VII.)

and then sent a branch north

crossing the Indus continued west,

now adopted

This route, with a slight modification, was

and continued

practicable,

J

for a long period to be the

45

to the Ca.s{)ian.

as the safest

w

109.3.

and most

main trunk by which the

commerce between Em-ope and the more remote regions of Asia was main-

Two

tained.

one from the western frontiers of China, and

lines of caravans, the

met

the other from the western frontiers of India,

Amoo

or Oxus, where that stream

became available

fii".st

goods by both lines were here embarked

at a connnon point of the

down

being carried

;

Lake Aral, they were again conveyed by land

the stream into

carri.age to the Caspian,

by water to the mouth of the Kur, and up the stream as

The

for transport.

and thence

An-

far as navigable.

them to the Phasis, down which they were tranand thence to Constantinople, which thus became a

other land conveyance brought
sported into the Black Sea,

At a

great commercial emporium.

a direct caravan route brought

later period

the products of the East to Astrakhan, from which they were conveyed either

down
or

the Volga into the Caspian, thereafter to follow the same route as before,

by land

to the Don,

This route, with

and thence to the Sea of Azof

all its

obvious disadvantages, was the best which Europe

Houtebytiio
Persian

possessed for

more than two

The

centuries.

cfiliphs

They were

ing to renew the ancient channels of commerce.
the riches which

would thus

enough to keep their
sacrificing tlieir

was confined almost
to extend

it,

when

both by affording

by founding the port and

made

and both from

;

aware of
politic

could not be indulged without

own subjects, they carefidly endea\^ured
new facilities at home, and encouraging the

entirely to their
it

In this way, at an early period, the caliphs

Bagdad had provided a new emporium

Tigris

it

ouif.

Accordingly, even while the Indian trade

interests.

exploration of foreign coimtries.
of

perfectly

poured into their treasury, and were

l)e

f\inaticism in check

pecuniary

would not have been unwill-

tiie

for the trade of the Persian Gulf,

city of Bussorah, at the junction of the Euj^hrates

Persian Gulf and the

Red Sea numeroiis voyages were

to both sides of the peninsula of India, to Ceylon, to Malacca,

shores of countries lying far beyond

By means of these

it.

and

voyages

all

and

to the

the valued

productions of the East Indies arrived in their ports, and found ready purchasers in merchants,

The

who earned them

friendly intercourse

for distribution into the interior.

between Christian and Mahometan nations seemed

on the point of being renewed, at least commercially, when the })reaching of

and myriads of Crusjiders hastened
from every quarter to wrest the holy sepulchre from the hands of infidels
War
Peter the Hermit set

all

Europe

in a flame,

accordingly began again to rage with

new

fury

;

and the exasperation which had

been gi'adually softened by time, became more bitter and imiversal than

had ever been

doned

;

and

bef(»re.

was now

necessarily aban-

])eriod did the trade of the

West make more

All idea of peaceful trade

yet, perhaps, at

no

rapid progress than during the Cnisades.

The armies destined

brated expeditions never could have reached the East without
Vol.

I.

it

for these celetlie

aid of the
19

i:ffect.<<oftiio

1

A

1)

12(11.

lllS'lOliV

1()

Genoese, the

and the Venetians, whose

Pi.sans,

march along the nearest

their

the incaiis of transport.

them

shores, 8uj)j)lied

accompanying

whom

causc,

t!i(;nj

].

in

with provisions and

b<jth

naturally shared

they had assisted, ami, when vahialde harbours

hands of the Crusaders, obtained many imfjortant

into the

Italian

maritime

fleets

i

•

privileges.

engaged

Tlic maritime states of Italy, while thas ostensibly

Pro-ieasof
tlio

[Book

In return for these services they

in the success of those
fell

OF IM>IA.

in

a wjinmon

wcre by no means prepai-ed to admit that they had a common
i

i

i

i

i

interest,

and were hence disposed to act towards each other on the narrowest and most

The old maxim, that the commercial prosperity of a state
was best promoted by depressing the trade of its neighbour, though now exploded, was then universally received and in acting upon it, there was no injustice or perfidy of which the rival Italian republics scrupled to be guilty when
illiberal principles.

;

it

seemed possible in

able illustration of
I'lie

tliis

way to

fact wiis

tliis

establish a maritime ascendency.

given in

1

204,

when

tlie

Venetians induced the

avowed

leaders of the fourth crusade to turn aside fi-om tlieir

One remark-

object of warring

Venetians.

with

wrest Constantinople from the hands of a monarch,

infidels in order to

who, whatever his demerits might
of motives
step

;

may have

be,

was by

profession Christian.

A variety

influenced the Crusadei-s in taking this unwarrantable

but the subsequent conduct of the Venetians leaves no room to doubt that

their only object

was

After Constantinople had been

aggrandizement.

selfish

stormed and plundered, the dominions which had belonged to the Greek emperor

were partitioned among
ders \^as placed

upon

his unprincipled conquerors

;

and while an Earl of Flan

his tlirone, the Venetians obtained a chain of settlements

from the Dardanelles to the Adriatic, and made them virtually

wliicli stretched

masters of the navigation and trade of the Levant.

In Constantinople, which,

from the cause already mentioned, had long rivalled Alexandria as an emporium
for the traffic

which made
furnished

between Europe and India, they obtained exclusive

it

privileges,

impossible for any maritime state to compete with them, and

them with the means

The ungenerous
efiect of greatly

coui'se

of lording

it

over

all their rivals.

pursued by the Venetians had undoubtedly the

extending their trade generally, and of giving them an almost

monopoly of that large portion of the Indian trade which had its
centre in Constantinople. The superiority they had thus acquired remained with
them for rather more than half a century; and the injustice to which they owed
it seemed almost to be forgotten, when the day of retribution arrived, and thenexclusive

own

tactics

were successfully employed against them.

The Greeks had never

been reconciled to the Latin yoke, which had been fraudulently imposed upon
them, and were therefore prepared to avail themselves of the
The Genoese,

opportunity of shaking

it

off".

Had

they been

left to their

own

fii'st

favourable

resources they

could scarcely have hoped lor success, but they had powerful auxiliaries in the

Genoese, wlio wei'e animated at once by a feeling of revenge for the injustice

which they had

suffered,

and a

desire to

become

mastei's of a traffic, the posses-

!

VENETIANS AND GENOESE.

Chap. VTL]
sion of

which had given the Venetians an immense superiority over

settled.

were to supplant the Venetians in

objects

all their

Cm.
A.u. xaso.

The terms of alliance between the Greeks and the Genoese were easily
The former were again to be ruled by their own dynasty, and the

rivals.

latter

147

A

were accomplished.

exclusive privileges.

Both

Greek emperor once more mounted the throne

and the Genoese,

of Constantinople,

all their

in addition to other imj)ortant privileges,

took formal j)Ossession of the suburb of Pera, subject only to the condition of
holding
It

it Jis

a

flef

of the empire.

was now the turn

of the Venetians to be depressed; while the Genoese,

Gonoeee

as-

cendoiicy at

not contented with their supremacy in the harbour of Constantinople, extended
it

to the Black Sea, where,

particularly

by

Coimtaiiti-

erecting forts on various points of the coast, and

on commanding positions in the Crimea and within the Sea of Azof,

they secured a monopoly of the extensive and lucrative trade carried on with the
East by

way of the

In virtue of this monopoly Genoa became for a time

Caspian.

the greatest commercial power in Europe.
to

The Venetians

at first attempted

compete with the Genoese, even in the harbour of Constantinople, but soon

;t;

'.

i4.

CoNSTANTiNOPLK, end of Scveuteeiith Century

—

!•

rcnn a print

by noniann.

found the terms so unequal, in consequence of being burdened with heavy duties,

from which their rivals were exempted, that they abandoned the struggle as
hopeless.

Their only alternative

now was

or endeavour to re-open

its

met

by deep-rooted

at the very outset

to resign the Indian trade altogether,

ancient channels.

In prefeiTing the

prejudices,

which made

latter,
it

they were

unlaAvful

even impious to enter into alliances of any kind with Mahometan rulers

;

and

but no

sooner were these prejudices overcome than the remainder of the tivsk was comparatively easy.
as

on many

With the sanction

others, allowed the

who on

this occasion,

supposed impiety to be committed in considera-

tion of the profit anticipated from

the Sultan of Egy^it.

of the pope himself,

it,

a commercial treaty was concluded with

It contemplated the caiTying

on of the Eastern

traffic

Venetians
the'luiun.'

JH
A.D.

1453.

IIISKJJCV UJ' 1NJ>1A.

(liooK

way

i

Red Sea. With
this view the Venetian senate was empowered to appoint two eoiwuLs, with
mercantile jurisdiction, tlie one to reside at Damascus and the other at Alexboth by the overhind

rijute across Syi'ia, Jiiid Ijy

Both of these

andria.

cities

the

of the

were accordingly resorted to

Ijy

Venetian mer-

chants and artisans; while at Beyrout, as the port of the former, and in the

harbour of the

at

mercantile vessels bearing the Venetian flag far outnum-

The Genoese, contented with their undisimted
Constantinople, seem not at this time to have made any attempt to

bered those of

monopoly

hitter,
all

other countries.

share in the advantages which the Egyptian sultans had conferred on the VeneTlie Floren-

by the conquest

tians; but the Florentines, after they had,

of Pisa, in 1405,

tines.

acquired the seaport of Leghorn, turned their attention to the Indian trade, and
succeeded, in 1425, in concluding a treaty which placed
as the Venetians in respect of commercial privilege.

made

them on the same footing

Tlie earnest attempts thus

would of themselves lead

to share in the trade to the East Indies,

under that

conclusion that a taste for the products of the- regions included

name must no

general

longer have been confined, as at

few countries

to a

fii'st,

on the eastern part of the Mediterranean, but must have spread

The

north, so as to include a large portion of Europe.

there

is

not

much

difficulty in

accounting for

leaders of the Crusades, with their followers,
European

demand

far

west and

really so

;

and

Many of the most distinguished

it.

came from those

home with them new

their return brought

was

fact

to tlie

new

ideas and

quartei-s

;

and on

To

wants.

theii"

for

Indian com-

astonishment they had found that in several points, usually considered as tests of

modities.

civilization,

tomed

they were far surpassed by the

to regard

they had

respects,

as

mere barbarians.

little difficulty in

infidels

Galled

whom

by

their inferiority in

these

and imbibed

tastes

learning to sm-mount

and formed habits which they could not

it

;

indvilge in the absence of Eastern pro-

The demand naturally produced a supply; and

ducts.

they had been accus-

Italian ships, freighted

with these products, were frequently seen in the English Channel, in the Gennan
Ocean, and even within the Baltic.

North was completely roused and
;

visits,

sent

theii-

own

In course of time the maritime
its

Genoese.

In

hand from the

and there became pur-

Florentines, Venetians,

and

was taken by the cities of the Hanseatic
by Bruges, which in consequence became one of the

this traffic the lead

League, and ])articularly

most populous and
Capture of

merchants, instead of waiting for Italian

vessels into the MediteiTanean,

chasers of Indian produce at second

spirit of the

floui'ishing

The Genoese were

still

marts in Northern Europe.
in 1453,

when an

and was followed by a

series of

in possession of theii-

monopoly

Constanti-

nople by
the Tuiks.

event occurred which abruptly terminated
disasters

was the

which ultimately annihilated

it,

their maritime greatness.

This event

and the extinction of the Greek empire, by
They made an effort to escape the destruction

captiu^e of Constantinople,

the Turks under

Mahomet

II.

which threatened them, by attempting

Mameluke Sultans

of

Egypt

;

to

form a commercial treaty with the

but the monopoly which they had held at Con-

;

CIUIISTOPHER COLUMBUS.

CiiAP. vir.

stantinople under the

negotiation proved

The Venetians,

fruitless.

in a false position,

accordingly, were once

and the

more

fill.

A.IJ. 1460.

in the

Their most formidable rival had been obliged to resign the contest

ascendent.

new

to rmi a

and they began

foresight reached,

coui-se of prosperity, to whicii, as far as

At

no limit could be assigned.

Venice was tottering to her

])rosperity

The

Greek emperors, placed them

4!)

revival of learning

this period of

human

unexampled

fall.

and the discovery

of printing

had at once awakened a

I'logrcss of

the art of

and furnished the most

spirit of in(][uiry,

effectual

means of

diffusing

departments of literature and science rapid progress was made

;

Among

footsteps.

the arts thus improved was navigation.

the shore was lost sight
vessel at sea

there had been no

of,

means of

were con-

life,

to follow in his

when

Hitherto,

dii'ecting the com'se of

a

and the utmost which the boldest and most experienced navigator

;

was

attem})ted,

and stimulating others

iiavigntioii.

and discoveries

leading to practical results in some of the m)st important arts of
stantly rewarding the diligent inquirer,

In aU

it.

to steer from headland to headland without

hugging the

inter-

vening shore, or to take advantage of a wind which blew regularly like the

monsoons of the Indian Ocean, and thus use
which

blew

it

for traversing a

When

voyage.

it

according to the direction from

wide expanse of sea on an outward or a homeward

the compass was discovered, the greatest obstacle to a voyage

out of sight of land was at once removed

;

and there was even

less

danger in

launching out on the wide ocean than in
following the windings of the coast, exposed
to rocks

and

shoals,

and the many

dangei's

who proposed

to tui'n

of a lee shore.

Among

the

first

the use of the compass to jjractical account
in the discovery of

new

brated

Christopher

become

satisfied,

lands,

Marco

grounds

scientific

and from the accounts of

cele-

He had

Columbus.

both on

ticularly those of

was the

par-

travellers,

Polo, that as the

continent of Asia extended

much

further

eastward than had been generally imagined,
it

would be

possible to arrive at the East

by sailing west across the Atlantic.
The immense importance of such a passage,
Indies

once proved to be practicable,

was

perfectly

Chuistopher CoLVMBrs.

obvious.

dispense with the tedious and expensive overland routes
of the East

noi8.«.ir.i.

would at once

by which the produce

to those
;

of Christians.

Europe, and transfer the most valuable
infidels

These were the grand objects at which Columbus

but so much were

iiis

Cliristoiilier

Coluiubua.

to

with which the world was yet acquainted, from the hands of

traffic

aimed

was then brought

It

— From

views in advance of his n^e, that

manv

vears

a

UISTOKV or INDIA.

!.">()

A

u.

i4o.i.

passed

away

whiuli

would

before he couid induce
Im!

necessary in

oi-d<;r

[Book

any Euroj)can

state to incwr the expenm:

Spain at

to realize tljem.

New

the task, and was rewarded with the discovery of a

more than even Columbus had
were

more accurate than

far

underrated

which he

tlie

first

undertook

la«t

World.

wan

Tliis

TJKMigh his geographifxil ideaK

anticipated.

he had greatly

crmtemporaries,

of his

tho.se

T.

magnitude of the globe; and hence, imagining that the land
reached belonged to Asia, he gave

name

the

it

of

West

Indies.

In this name he informs us of the goal after which he had been striving, and

which he was so confident of having actually

attainecl, that for

would scarcely believe the evidence of

and

which he saw was Indian.

The

his senses,

India,

Columbus thas laboured

delusion under which

and of the eager longings of the maritime

share in

that everything

in.si.sted

now

a striking proof of the general interest which was

is

a time he

regard to

felt in

Europe to obtain a

states of

without being fettered by the monopolies which the Maho-

its trade,

metans and Venetians had established in the Levant.
ProUabie

Tliougli

Columbus faded

routes to

the East

to discover

_

_

_

an oceanic route to

_

pointed out the direction in which

It

it lay.

India, he clearly

was previously known that the

Xiidiss

by the continents

Atlantic was bounded on the east

The

west.

was

conclusion, therefore,

obvious, that

Europe by a continuous sea voyage,

it

these continents to

and then

with

tliis

termination,

its

As

Portugal.

;

but the

the only one with which

Trince

if

it

and

on the

India was accessible from

sailing

round

In accordance

it.

conclusion, four lines of passage presented themselves as possible

subsequently attempted

of

Africa,

could only be by tracing one or other of

and a

north-west, a north-east, a south-west,

Henry

and

had now proved that an equally insurmountable barrier bounded

lie

is

of Europe

last,

The

south-east.

tliree first

—

were

which was certainly the most promising,

we have now

to do.

more than twenty years before Columbus was bom,

early as 1415,

_

Prince Henry, fourth son of John
at the capture of Ceuta,

I.,

King of Portugal,

on the coast of

after distinguishing himself

with a determination

Africa, returned

to devote himself to maritime discovery,

by employing navigators

to trace the

western coast of that continent, and thereby perhaps solve the great proljlem of
a practicable route to the East Indies,

He had
him

all

by

sailing

round

the talent and scientific acquirement necessary, in order to qualif\'

for superintending the great task thus undertaken,

proof of his inflexibility of purpose

by

Avithdi'awing from

residence in the seaport of Sagres, not far from

erected an observatory,

of youth,

southern extremity.

its

whom

Cape

and gave a striking
coiu"t,

St.

and fixing

Here he

Vincent.

and established a school of navigation

for the training

He was

he might afterwards employ on voyages of discovery.

not destined to solve the grand problem

;

paved the way

for

called because

no previous navigator had

it,

by

fitting

Madeira and the Cape Verd

but before his death, in

1

out expeditions, which, leaving Cape

Islands,

pavssed

it)

and penetraf ed as

far behind,

fiir

his

had

463,

Non

(so

discovered

south as Sierra Leone.

"

PROGRESS OF DISCOVERY.

Chap. VTT.]

The

him

and under Alonso

;

was explored ahnost

coast

which Prince Henry had fostered was not allowed

spirit of enterprise

to expire with

•

•

151

V.,

who was then
John

to the equator.
/•

1

T

Alonso, continuing the progress of discovery,
ultimately be reached, that, in

was

H8i, he took a

ordinary nature, appears to have been dictated

II.,

so

a d. uso.

reigning, the African

the son and succe.ssor of

-11
convinced that

discovery

India would

step which, though of an extra-

by sound and

Progicfisof

far-sighted policy.

un.ier

a,,!!"*"

'"'"'

Great exertions had been made by the government of Portugal in fitting out
expeditions for maritime discovery

crowned with

success, tlie

on sharing in the

sadors to several of

tiie

means of preventing

and furnishing men and money

this,

them the
to

own

would be awarded them, or leave him

entire resj)onsibility,

and of

anil insist

{i«sist

fair

alternative
in the con-

proportion

to proceed as hitherto,

common

course, in

to be

he sent ambas-

which he was contemplating, on the understanding that a

of the benefit
his

best

leading European courts, and offered

of either uniting with him,
(juests

and now, when they seemed about

danger was, that other states might step in

As the

fruits.

;

fairness, for his

on

own

exclusive benefit.

This attempt to form what

may

be called a joint-stock company, in which

kings were to be the only sluu'eholders,
to,

declined to entertain the proposal

;

failed.

All the

crowned heads

Grant from

ap|)lied

and John took the additional precaution

of calling in the aid of the pope, who, in the plenitude of an arrogant power,

then undisputed, but soon after to be shaken to

an imaginary

line

from north

to south,

its

very foundations, drew

by which he divided the world into

west to east

and decreed that discoveries of new countries made from
should only be competent, and shouUl belong exclusively to the

Portuguese.

It

two

halves,

eipial

discoveries

grant

futile,

From

seems not to have occurred either to the king

made from

to

eixat

and convert

this period the

it

ai'

the pope that

west might be carried so far as to

into a great

make

this

bone of contention.

King of Portugal assumed the

additional title of

Lord

of Guinea, and evinced a detennination to turn his grant to the best account.

Besides fitting out an expedition, under Diego

Cam, who,

in

1481, reached

and must consequently have been within 12^ of the

22" of south latitude,

southern extremity of the African continent, he sent two messenger overland

with instructions to discover the country of Prester John, then believed to be

though since ascertained to have had only a fabulous existence.

a great reality,

They were

to ascertain

also

Venetians traded

in,

reaching
letter

India,

conveying

and whether there

One

Africa to India

whence the drugs and
wjis

any

spices

sailing

from the south of

of these messengers, Pedro de Covillam, succeeded in

and obtained much im}M)rtant information;
it

came which the

but before the

reached Portugal, the great problem had been solved by

Bartolommeo Diaz, who had

sailed south with

thive ships in 1486.

After

reaching a higher southern latitude than any ])revious navigator, a storm arose

which drove him out to

.sea.

His direction under such circum.stances could not

Overiand
journey to
tiieEiisi

HISTORY OF INDIA.
A.I).

ltii:i

1)6

Diaz duublo^
tlio Cape of
Good Hope.

from hot

to cold,

steering eastward.

He

that the land which,

when he

and

south,

lie

readied

it;

but, to his gi-eat a.stonlshment, discovered

quitted

was now stretching

east

it,

lay on his left hand, nearly due noith

and west, and trending

round the soutliern extremity of Africa, and was now on

and he was obliged

south-eastern coast.

which Africa terminates.

Cape of Good Hope.

him

to give

it

the

much more

name

his crews in forcing

name ominous,

appropriate, and, in allusion to the great promise

which

Cabo de Buena Esperanza,

it

Cape of Good Hope.

Arrival of

It is singular that,

though John survived

this cUscovery nine years,

Columbus
in the

him

of Caho de Todos los Tormentos,

the doubling of the promontory held out, called
or

and.

—From an old print.

or Cape of Storms, but the king, on his return, tliinking this

chose one

He was

The weather he had met with.

remembrance of the conduct of

perhaps, also a painful
to return, determined

to turn his face homewards.

few days brought him in sight of the magnificent pro-

so far rewarded, for a

in

been carried

anxious to prosecute this auspicious commencement, but his crews

refused to follow him,

montory

its

The

north-east.

He had

cause was too apparent to leave any room for doubt.

He was most

T.

knew it to he southerly. After tossing about
arul suffering much by a sudden transition of the tJ^niperature
he attemjjted, when tiie st^jnn abated, to regain the land by

accurately ascertained, but

for thirteen days,

[Book

no attempt to follow

Tagus.

it

up.

One

cause of the indifference thus manifested

been the mortification wliich he

liave

he made

felt at

the

still

more

may

brilliant success

which Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain had achieved by the emplojTnent of
Christopher Columbus.
of a

had

New

This renowned navigator, returning from

World, arrived in the Tagus in 1493.

offered his services to Poiiugal,

and been

discovery

Before applying to Spain, he

refu.sed.

now have given

to be able to recall that refusal?

counsellors base

enough to suggest that the remedy was

He had

liis

It

"\iMiat

was

would John not

too late

;

stiU in his

but he had

own

hands.

only to assassinate Coliunbus, and take po.ssession of his papers; his

'

VASCO DE GAMA'S FIRST VOYAGE.

Chap. VI I.]

discovery would thus die with

infamous suggestion
able to
his

;

and Columbus,

giver than

tlie

hiiii.

John was succeeded
imbued with the s])irit

for his owii

in l-i95

by

Emanuel, who was thoroughly

his cousin

of enterj)rise

which had animated

and not run the

what

it

was,

predecessors, under

to rest satisfied

with the

seen, in the third

avowed purpose

it

of not only doubling the Ca])e of
till

Good Hope,

the coast of

In this expedition, which consisted of three small

India was reached.

new

year of his reign, fitting out a

but afterwards continuing the voyage without intermission

ships,

carrying 160 men, Bartolommeo Diaz held only a subordinate station.

had he even the

satisfaction of seeing his discovery prosecuted

on arriving at the

""'"^
'

was impossible to foresee the
resolution had been formed, and there could be no doubt

when he was

expedition for the

his

Portuguese

risk of impoverishing his hereditary

dominions by expensive expeditions, of which
but his

honour-

to the court of Spain.

discoveries already made,

;

less

1497.

to the receiver, continued

Timid counsellors were not wanting who advised him

final result

fame he spurned the ad.

becoming reception, not

after a

must have been gratifying

it

triumphant progress

Happily

15;3

fort of

by

others

Nor
for,

;

El Mina, he wsis sent back to Portugal, and not long

after his return perished at sea.

The command

of the expedition, thus rather ungenerously withheld from

was conferred on Vasco de Gama, a
gentleman of the royal household, who had
Diaz,

previously done good sei*vice at sea, and,

by his subsequent conduct,
choice which had been
a

made

pompous ceremonial, more

justified

of him.

the

After

in accordance

with the great object contemplated by the
expedition than with the very inadequate

means furnished

for

its

accomplishment,

the three small ships left the port of Belem,

on Saturday, the 8th of July, 1497-

They

were accomjxinied by a small l)ark cam-ing
provisions,

was

and a

captain.

encountered

caravel, of

Ofi" tlie

a

which Diaz

Canaries the vessels

storm,

which

separated

Vasco de Gama.
From Vincent's Voyage

them, but they met again at Cape Verd,

of Nearchu*.

Ha\nng next day anchored
at Santa Maria, on the African coast, they repaired their damages, and took
the other vessels
in water.
Diaz, proceeding no farther, returned homewards
which had been fixed as the place of rendezvous.

;

pursued their voyage.

Another storm,

still

more violent than

tlie

former, over-

hope of weathering
o it, when it
abated, and they took shelter in a bay, to which they gave the name of Santa
Elena.
Vasco de Gama attempted to hohl communication with the natives, but

took them

;
^

given up
and they
1
J had almost t>

all

I

De canm
enters the

^

Vol.

I.

20

bayofsanta

l.Jt

A

\).

1408.

met with an

He

stay.

reception, wliicli left

iiiliospital^le

set sail again

Good Hope, which,

[Book

no ineiination

liini

tf>

I.

ju'olong Iuh

on the HJth of November, liaving already been more

than four months at sea; and two
of

OF TNDTA.

lIlST(JliV

<

came within

lays after

sight of the

Cape

about in consequence of baffling winds,

after tacking

they doubled on the 20th of November, amid the sound of music and general
rejoicing.
I)e

Gama's

They were now

launched on the Indian Ocean, but instead of steering

fairly

course along
east coast

right across

of Africa.

vations,

it,

continued for a time to follow the coast, making careful obser-

and daily discovering some new object

Christmas,

they saw land, which, in honour of the day, they called

1497,

Tierra de Natal;

and which,

whom

retaining

still

its

The next land

importance as a British colony.

with

On

to excite their wonder.

name, promises to

rise

into

visited belonged to the KafFres,

they had much friendly intercourse.

In proceeding farther north, the expedition was much impeded by currents,

which induced De

Gama

to give the

name

of Caho de Corrientes to a prominent

headland, and to keep far out to sea in order to avoid the risk of being embayed.

Owing

to this, Sofala,

which was then the great emporium of

this part of Africa,

was passed without being seen. The natives appeared now to be more civilized
than those who had previously been seen, and instead of the timid and suspicious looks which others had manifested, made themselves as familiar with the
Portuguese as

if

they had been old acquaintances.

As

their language wa-s not

by signs was necessarily confined within very
narrow limits, but enough was communicated to satisfy Vasco de Gama that
they were accustomed to mingle with people in a still more advanced state of
civilization.
Two chiefs in particular, who paid him a visit in their own boats,
gave him to understand that they had seen ships as large as those of the Portuguese and after they had returned to the shore, sent two pieces of calico on
understood, the conversation

;

board for
usual

sale.

This cloth, which

name from the town
it

was the

fii'st

with in their voyage.

It

is

almost needless to mention, takes

it,

perhaps erroneously, to be the product of

specimen of Indian manufacture which they had met

was regarded

great undertaking, and hence Vasco de

as

His proceedings at Mosair)bi(iue.

Good

Having again
their

an omen of future success in their

Gama

of which these transactions took place, the
or River of

its

of Calicut, excited a particular interest in the

Portuguese, because supposing
that city,

it

gave to the stream, at the mouth

name

of

Rio de Buenos Slnays,

Signs.
set sail

on the

2^i\\ of

February,

14?98,

the vessels continued

voyage along the coast through the channel of Mosambique, and on

town of that name, were hailed by a number of little
The vessels cast anchor,
boats, the crews of which made signs to stay for them.
and the boatmen, without showing the least fear, leaped at once aboard, made
themselves perfectly at home, ate and di'ank freely, and conversed in Arabic
with one of the crew who understood that lanouaore. The intercourse at first

arriving opposite to the

VASCO DE GAMA'S FIRST VOYAGE.

Chap Vrr.]

promised to be very friendly, but

oii its

1 •'55

being discovered by the sheikh or

that the Portuguese were not, as he had originally supposed, Turks

but Christians, his manner suddenly changed, and

metans,

was

friendship

Ultimately open

at an end.

all

chief,

ad.

w.is.

and Mahoseeming

his

were declared, and the

hostilities

Portuguese avenged themselves by bombarding and destroying the town of
Mosambicpie.

The

weighing anchor, continued their course northwards, and

vessels again

arrived at the island

ot

Mombas, with a town

seeming friendship of the Moors proved as

Mosambique

oi

same name.

Here the

false as that of the inhal)itants of

by dropping hot bacon upon

liiida

their flesh,

that a plot had been formed for his destructicni, hastened his departure,

not again halt

till

and did

he arrived off Melinda, which delighted the Portuguese, as

reminded them more of home than any African city they had yet
seated on the level part of a rocky shore,

built of stone, three stories high,

the inhabitants,

seen.

It

it

was

amid plantations of palms and orchards

of orange and other fruit trees, covered a large space,

first

and Me-

and Vasco de Gama, believing, on the confession of two Moors,

;

wlu^in he barbarously ])ut to the torture

At

rrocoe<iiii(;8

and with terraced

and consisted of hoases

roofs.

who were probably acquainted with

the transac-

Mosambique and Mombas, kept aloof, but a good understanding wa.s
eventually established; and the king, though a Mahometan, so far forgot his

tions at

]M-ejudices that
visions,

It

he afforded the Portuguese every

and even made a formal

was now unnecessary

the African coast.

facility for

obtaining pro-

visit in his barge.

for the Portuguese to continue their course along

Their object had been to obtain such information as might

enable them to proceed with safety across the ocean towards India.
furnislied

lying in

them with

its

Four ships from India were then

that they requu-ed.

all

harbour, and

little diffijulty

Melinda

was found

in obtaining a pilot capable

named Melemo Kana, was a native of GuThe compass, charts,
jerat, and had a thorough knowledge of his profe.ssion.
and quadrants were quite familiar to him and an astrolabe shown him seemed
This

of acting as their guide.

pilot,

a Gujemt
gaged.

;

so inferior to other instruments

which he had seen used

that he scarcely condescended to notice

for the

same purpose,

De Gama

Before leaving Melinda,

it.

by persons belonging to the Indian ships. He imagined them to
be Christians, because on coming aboard they })rostrated themselves before an
was

visited

image of the Virgin, probably mistaking
])lain,

women,

gowns

own

after a prosperous

May.

leagues,

of white calico, wore their hair, which

plaited under their turbans,

The expedition
of

one of their

idols

from the description given of them, that they were Hindoos.

clothed in long
of

for

it

sailed

and

rose high

Malabar

it is

They were

was long

from Melinda on Tuesday, the 22d of April,

off the

but

like that

and ate no beef

voyage of twenty- three

They were

;

day.s,

coast,

and bold from the

saw

India,

l-ti)S,

and

on Friday, the 17th

which was at the distance of eight
sea.

Their destination was Calicut,

Arrival on

olst.

lIISTOIiY C>r INDIA.

i:)f;

A

I)

1498.

and

as tliey were con.siderably nortli

east.

On

they

tlie 20tli

belield,

]>artially

tlieir

tlieir uii.speakuble delight,

on the open

after ca«t anchor

course to Houtli-

the lofty wofxled

about two leagues

without roadstead or harbour, though

inside of

which small vessels

— Bran et Hogenburjj, Theatre des prmuipale^s Villes de tuus

was then the

sheltered,

l>each,

by a rocky bank,

protected

CALicax.

Itszamorin.

changed

r.

it.

Calicut, situated

Calicut,

tliey

it,

and shortly

terraces rising behiml that city,

below

tf>

of"

fHooK

capital of a

Hindoo

les

tolerably

lie

UniveiB, 1574.

sovereign, who, under the title of

samiry or zaniorin, ruled a considerable extent of country in the south-west
This

of the peninsula.

title is

probably the corruption of Tamuri, the

name

of

whom, according to popular tradition, a prince called Cheruman. after
dividing his territories among his other cliieftains, had nothincr more remainincj
a rajah on

to bestow than his sword, " with all the territory in

small temple here could be heard
singular nature of the grant, the

'^

The

name

in course of time

was metamorphosed

aside as fabulous

but

;

it is

which a cock crowing at a

territory thus assigned took,

from the

of Colico-du, or the Cock-crowing, which
into Calicut.

certain that in whatever

the territory was acquired, the sword of

may

This account

way

be

set

the original nucleus of

Cheruman proved the most valuable

part of his bequest, and enabled Tamuri to place himself at the head of

all his

and transmit his power to a series of successors. One of
these had been converted to Mahometanism " by some pilgrims who had been
wrecked on his coast while proceeding to visit Adam's Peak in Ceylon and,
Ijrother chieftains,

;

with the zeal of a new convert,

set out

on a pilgrimage to Mecca.

He

never

returned; but the favour shown to Mahometans during his reign, and the

encouragement which, in consequence of his recommendation, they received

from his

them
'

^

successor,

to acquire

had induced them to

much

settle in great numbei"s,

influence in Cranganore, Calicut,

and enabled

and the surrounding

Buchanan, Narrative of a Journey frora Madras, tJirouyh Mi/sorc, Canara, and Malabar,

vol.

ii.

p.

47i.

Brigg's FcrUhta, vol. iv. p. 531, 532.

i

DK GAMA AND THE ZAMOTIIN.

Chap. VIL]

Such was the

districts.

necessary to attend to

De Gama having
by some

it,

key

as furnishing a

the Portuguese arrived, and

many

to

it is

was immediately

visited

small fishing-boats, and imder their guidance sailed as near to Calicut

would

He had

allow.

whose sentence had been remitted

of these criminals

i-in-t

land-

Portuguese

in consideration of the danger to
to hold intercom'se

the natives, under circumstances too hazardous to justify

One

hos

brought several criuiinals from

which they were to be exposed by being sent ashore

any of the crew.

ad

subsecjuent proceedings.

anchored, as ah'eady mentioned,

as the depth of water

Portugal,

when

state of matters

157

tlie

with

em])loyment of

was accordingly despatched along with

him might enable De Gama to
shape his futm-e com'se.
He was immediately surrounded by a crowd whose
curiosity could hardly be satisfied, though it was more importunate than rude.
As his ignorance of the language made it useless to ask him any questions, they
took him to the house of two Moors, one of wliom, called Monzaide who, from
the fishermen, in order that the reception given

—

knew him

being a native of Tunis,

to be Portuguese

astonishment by exclaiming in Spanish,

and on approaching De Gama,

Many

luck!
for

and

all

What brought

devil take you!

rubies,

many

cried aloud in Spanish, "

emeralds!

having brought thee wliere there are

with

The

utterance to his

After some exj)lanations, Monzaide went off with him to the

you hither r'
ships,

"

—gave

Thou

art

all sorts

bound

Good luck

to give

of spices and ]irecious stones,

De Gama and his crew were so
meeting with one who could speak their language so

home, that they wept for

good

God thanks

the riches of the world."

affected at

1

surprised
far

from

joy.

Having learned from Monzaide that the zamorin was then at Ponan}^ a
village at the mouth of a river of same name, about thii-ty-six miles south from
Calicut, De Gama immediately announced his arrival, intimating at the same
time that he was the bearer of a letter to him from his master the King of
Portugal, a Christian prince.
The zamorin, in aaswer, bade him welcome, and

DeCanm
"shore.

sent a pilot to conduct the ships to a safer anchorage, near a village called

Pandarane.

He

avail himself of

accepted of the services of the

pilot,

but demurred at

first

to

an invitation by the cotwal or chief magistrate, to go ashore

by land to Calicut. On second thoughts, however, he became convinced that tliis was a risk which he ought to run and while his brother Paul,
who commanded one of the ships, and the other officers, reminded him of the

and

})roceed

;

danger to be apprehended, not so much from the natives,

whom

they insisted

on regarding as Christians, as from the Moors, whose deadly enmity they had
already experienced on the African coast, he announced his determination, let

what would
treaty of

On

betide him, to go a.shore and leave no

commerce and

i>er{)etual

means

luitried to settle

a

amity.

the 28th of May, after leaving orders that in the event of any accident

befalling him, the vessels

were to return home with the news of

uisfiret

"
liis

discovery,

he set out in his boat, attended by twelve of his company, with flags waving

zilmorin.

;;

nrSTOUY

l-'jS

A.i)

ii.is

trumpets Houndinj^.

jtiid

fii-st

visit to

thozamo-

Two

assemblage.
°

Mobility of

tlx;

had been

palantiuias
^
^

[Book

was waiting

Tlie ootwal

nairs, understoorl to he
DeG.ama'8

INDIA.

()]•

one for

T)rovided,
'

made

sliip,

hung seven

In front of

with 200

on

De Gama and

another

During the jour-

foot.

a temple built of freestone, covered with

visit to

large as a great monastery.

a

liini

country, and a large [jroniis^mouH

tlte

for the cotwal; the rest of the attendants followed

ney they paid a

receive

tf>

T.

tiles,

and a«

stood a pillar as high as the ma.st of

it

of wire, with a weather-cock on the top, and over the entrance

The

bells.

was

interior

full

images

(jf

and

;

these, as well as

some

of the ceremonies, confirming the Portuguese in their previous belief that the

natives were Christians, they began to

the light did not allow

them

pay

The dimness of

their devotions.

to see the kind of figures they

were worshipjnng,

but on looking around they discerned monstrous shapes on the walls, some

with great teeth sticking an inch out of their mouth, others with four arms and
such

which he was making

fore
is

that one of the Portuf^uese, on beholdinc; one of them, be-

faces,

frio-jitful

God

On

I worship."

his genuflexion, exclaimed, " If this

be the

devil, it

approaching the city the multitude became immen.se,

who was waiting, along with
a number of nairs, to conduct De Gama with all the pomp of an ambassador
into the royal presence.
Though almost stifled by the press, he was so much
and the cotwal halted

gratified that

at the house of his brother,

think in Portugal what honour
nisreception at
i.aiacd

'pjig

tike

"

he could not help observing to those around him,

palacc,
at
^

little

done us here."

is

which they arrived an hour before

by

trees,

had a handsome

sunset,

-^

appearance, and was surrounded

They

and gardens adorned with

fountains.

was entered by a series of five inclosm-es, each having its own separate gate
and such was the eagerness of the populace to S(^ueeze themselves in, that
At the grand entrance De Gama was received
several were crushed to death.
It

by the

chief minister

and

high-priest, a little old

man, who,

him, took him with his attendants into the presence.
set

round with

velvet,

seats, rising as in

a theatre

and the walls hung round with

;

wrought with

gold,

and a

rich

He wore

roses of beaten gold
calico

;

and

;

legs, left

a large, stout

and with something majestic in

the buttons were large pearls.

reached to his knees.

and both

He was

a short coat of fine caHco, adorned with branches and

A

cious stones, covered his head;

kind

years,

the head of

with a covering of white

canopy overhead.

man, of dark complexion, advanced in
his appearance.

At

silks of diverse colom's.
sofa,

embracing

The hall of audience was
was carpeted with gi-een

the floor

the hall the zamorin lay reclined on a kind of
silk

after

his finders

Another piece of white

kind of mitre, ghttering with pearls and preliis

ears

were stning with jewels of the same

and toes were loaded with diamond

rinofs.

His aims

Near him stood two
the one bason contained betel and areca nut,

naked, were adorned with gold bracelets.

gold basons and a gold fountain

;

which was handed him by an attendant, the other received

it

when chewed

the fountain supplied water to rinse his mouth.

i

DE GAMA AND THE ZAMOKIN.

Chap. Vll.J

After

De Gama

the country,

entered and

by bowing

made

his obeisance accordinjr
& to the

body three times and

his

lo9

lifting

up

custom of
hands, the

liis

zamorin looked kindly at him, recognized him by a scarcely perceptible
nation of the head, and ordered

by signs

liini

The attendants being admitted, took

him.

On

regaled with fruits.

was brought, but

tliey

the vessel with their

advance and

to

a d hus

iiu-li-

iheiuur-

down near

sit

their seats opposite,

and were

calHng for water to drink, a golden cup witii a spout

were told that

it

was considered bad manners

The awkwardness of the Portuguese,

li{)s.

to touch

wlio, in at-

tempting to drink by the spout, either choked themselves with the water or

upon

spilled it

their clothes,

gave much amusement

to the court.

De Gama

having been asked by the zamorin to open his business, gave him to understand

custom of princes in Europe was to hear amba.ssadors in the i)resence of

tliat tiie

only a few of their chief counsellors.

and the audience took place
only

De Gama and another

side,

and the zamorin,

his betel-server

with what

in another

Portuguese,

apartment similar

who

to the former,

where

acted as his interpreter, on the one

his cliief minister, the comptroller of his household,

on the

object,

was immediately adopted,

Tlie suggestion

When

otlier, Avere present.

De Gama answered

of Portugal, the greatest prince in

were Christian princes

that he

and

asked whence he came, and

was an ambassador

King

of the

the West, who, having heard that there

all

in the Indies, of

whom

the King of Calicut was the chief,

had sent an ambassador to conclude a treaty of trade and friendship with him.

He

King
India by

added, that for sixty years the

been endeavouring to discover
the

intrusted

and had

sea,

In anticipation of this success,

time.

first

him with two

letters,

his

welcome, made

made a

till

his predecessors

had

at length succeeded for

master, had

the king, his

the delivery of which, as

would, with the zamorin's permission, defer
reason to think he had

and

of Portugal

it

was now

late,

he

De Gama had

to morrow.

favourable impression, as the zamorin repeated
as to the distance to

incjuiries

Portugal,

and the time

occupied by the voyage, and declared his willingness not only to recognize the

King of Portugal as

his fiiend

and brother, but to send an ambassador

to his

coiu-t.

De Gama,

after passing the night

with his attendants in a lodging specially
.

provided for them, began next morning to prepare a present for the zamorin.

He was

not well supplied for that purpose

scarlet, six hats, four

of sugar,

two

branches of

barrels of oil

wal to ask their opinion.

and

told

present.

but after selecting four pieces of

coral, six almasars,

and two of honey, sent

On

A

He

arose,

and

to the port

at last the factor

he would not

visit the

king

made a

arrived,

cot-

and he complained of

better

and cotwal depaiied,
till

they returned to

waited the whole day, but they never appeared.

when they

and

looking at the articles they burst into a laugh,

kind of altercation

go with him.

a parcel of brass, a chest

for the royal factor

him that the poorest merchant who came

after taking his promise that

following,

;

On

the day

their behaviour, they

made

De aama's
proposed
present.

liiO

A

I).

1108.

IIIS'I'OKV

light of

and Ijegan

it

they had been gained

[liOOK

The

to talk indiffereDtly of other matters.
})y

new

of a

uj)

sequent decline of that which had
to leave

fact

J.

wa8 that

the Moorn, who, fearing that their interests might be

seriously affected Ijy the opening

were determined

OF 1M>1A.

ti-ade

with

l>een carried

hith(;rt<j

and the don-

?^iro[»e,

no meaas untried to fnistrate the

on hy the Red Sea,
of the Portu-

oVjject

guese expedition.

When De Gama went

Do (Jama's

to the palace to

pay the

visit

which, according to

Hoooiul visit

to tho zai"<iriii.

appointment, should have been paid a day sooner, the effect of the Moorish

was very apparent. He was kept waiting for three hours anrl when at
last admitted, was told angi'ily by the zamorin that he had waited for him all
He was then asked how it was that, if he came from so great
the day before.
intrigue

;

rich a prince as he represented his

and

king to

be,

he brought no pr&sent with

him, though in every embassy of friendship that must be regarded as a neces-

De Gama made

sary credential.

by

the best excuse possible in the circumstances,

referring to the uncertain issue of his voyage,

provide a present which there might

mising that

if

V)e

which made

it

imprudent to

no opportunity of delivering, and pro-

he lived to carry home the news of his discovery, a suitable

The zamorin, not yet satisfied, observed, "I hear
you have a St. Mary in gold, and desire I may have that." De Gama, taken
somewhat aback at this demand, replied that the image was not gold, but only
wood gilded; and as he attributed his preservation at sea to its influence, he
must be excused for not parting with it. The zamorin, quitting the .subject,
present would certainly arrive.

asked for the two
cate,

letters,

which indeed contained only the same thing in dupli-

the one written in Portuguese and the other in Ai-abic.

— "As soon as
preted by Monzaide, was in pui-port as follows:
King of Por

the

King

of Portugal that the

King

The

latter, inter-

was known

to

of Calicut, one of the mightiest princes of

all

it

tiigal's

letter.

the Indies,

was a

with him,

for the

Christian, he

was desirous

to cultivate a trade

and

friendshi]:)

conveniency of lading spices in his ports; for which, in

exchange, the commodities of Portugal should be sent, or else gold and
in case his majesty chose the

same

;

referring

make a further report." This letter, and
Gama, who throughout the interview behaved

to

character which he claimed, disabused the

it

silver,

to the general, his ambassador,

the noble bearing of Yasco de
in a

manner becoming the

higli

mind of the zamorin of the impres-

him throvigh the intrigues of the Moors, who had sedulously
circulated a rumour that he was no ambassador, but merely a pu-ate. He therefore conversed with him in the most friendly manner, and gave him full liberty
to bring any merchandise he had with him ashore and dispose of it to the best
sion received of

advantage.
Effect of

Moorish
intrigues.

The next day, the 31st of May, De Gama prepared to return to his
and was actiially on the way to Pandarane, when the Moors, fearing that
once got

away he would not again

to hasten after

and detain him,

if

he

by a

large bribe,

them an opportunity

of disposing

return, induced the cotwal,

so as to afford

ships,

;

DE GAM A AND THE ZAMORIN.

Chap. VII.]
of

him summarily.

Gama

luistening

The cotwal accordingly

"Yes;

I

am

him

if

till

and continued

he reached the

I)e

a.d. urn.

The cotwal

He

answered,

his journey, the cot-

was sunset before

It

village.

The cotwal

immediately for a boat.

up, but he called

and found

his attendants.

he was running away.

running away from the heat;'

wal keeping close by him

men came

set out in pursuit,

on considerably in advance of

ralKed him on his haste, and asked

IGl

his

at first endea-

voured to dissuade him, but finding him resolute, pretended to send for the
boatmen, while at the same time he sent another messacre, orderin<j them to

keep out of the way.

The consequence was that no boat appeared, and there

was no alternative but

to pass the night

lu the morning matters assumed a

on

shore.

more threatening appearance.

still

The

i>eGain.i
forcibly

cotwal, instead of bringing a boat, told

him

to

ilo-

tiiiued ushore

order his ships nearer shore, and on his refusal,

threw

off all

disguise,

him that

telling

as he

would not do what he was ordered he should

De Gama was

not go on board.

The doors of

tents a prisoner.
shut,

in-

all

his lodging

were

and several nairs with drawn swords kept

guard within.

Coello

and, fortunately,

De Gamas

by communicating with one of

sailors,

was apprised of
still

meantime had come with

within a short distance of the shore

his boats

he

thus to

who had been

his situation.

The

left outside,

cotwal, while

detained him, seemed afraid to proceed

to violent

extremes; and after finding that he

could not lure the vessels into the harbour, so
as to give the

Moors an

oppoi't unity of destroy-

ing them, changed his tactics and asked only

merchandise should be sent ashore.

that the

Ship of Spaik, Fifteenth Century
EpiiloUk Crutoferi Colom..

His object apparently was to appropriate
himself;

and

as

De Gama's

it

presence interfered with this object, he

—From

I9.S.

him

was

easily His

but took care by his

more celebrated Bartolommeo, who

the zamorin ^vith the

first

unworthy treatment

to depart.

to

factor,

Diego Diaz, brother

doubled the Cape, to acquaint

which he had been subjected.

and promised both to punish the offenders
and send merchants to purchase the goods. He could scarcely have been sinand the goods, which they took
cere, for the insolence of the Moors increased

The zamorin seemed much

incensed,

;

A

every opportunity to depreciate, found few purchasers.
ever,

was

established

;

and

after permission

was given

to

kind of

traffic,

how-

remove the goods from

Pandarane to Calicut, as a more suitable market, much friendly intercourse took
Vol.

1.

I.

release,

once free of the cotwal and his associates, determined not again

to place himself in their power,

of the

1

to

induced, as soon as the merchandise arrived, to allow

De Gama,

Ac.

21

Traffic

commencoi..

H)2
AC.

1498.

JIIS'IOIIV

OF INDIA.

between the Portuguese and the natives.

place

[Book

They were not

I,

how-

destined,

ever, to part so amicaljly.
Tiie

zamoriii

liooomes
hostile.

More than two montlis had elapsed since the arrival of tiie Portuguese
vessels, and as the north-east monsoon, on which they depended for their return
homewards, was about to

set in,

De Gama, on

Diaz to the zamorin with a present of
admission, and

He was

obliged

t^.)

things,

and

wait four days

The

was then received with a frowning countenance.

mind had been completely poisoned and he regarded the Portuguese
pirates, who had come for plunder, or .spies, who, after acquainting

zamorin's

;

either as

themselves with the country, intended to return with a

fleet .sufficient to

invade

Accordingly a guard was set over the house which the Portuguese had used

it.

for

and other

scarfs, silks, coral,

a notification of his intention to depart.
for

the 10th of Augast, sent Diego

a factory, preventing

egress;

all

and a proclamation

prohibiting

i.ssued

all

intercourse with the Portuguese ships.

De Gama, on
mined

what had happened, was much incen.sed, Vjut deterand employ craft against craft. Two days after the

learning

to proceed warily,

proclamation,

arrived

with
sale.

four

an

in

lads

almadia,

preciotLS

.stones

for

They were suspected

to be spies

;

but

De Gama

spoke to them as

he

if

were entirely ignorant of

what had taken place in
Calicut, and allowed them
to depart, in the hope that their return would induce other persons of more consequence to pay him a visit. Nor was he mistaken. For the zamorin, convinced
by De Gama's conduct that he was ignorant of the detention of his factor Diaz,
An

and
over

Almadia.

— From

Hughen's Discours of Voyages in Indiistan,

his secretary Braga,
it,

who were both

sent people on board to keep

the destruction of his

sliips

De Gama
retaliates.

when

six

when

in the factory

him amused

by preparing a

one from Mecca for that purpose.

15S5.

till

the guard was set

he should be able to

own ports,
own coiinsel,

fleet in his

De Gama kept

his

effect

or bringing
till

one day

He

of the principal inhabitants arrived with fifteen attendants.

immediately seized them, and sent a letter ashore, demanding his factor and
secretary in exchange.

and the

After some parleying, Diaz and Braga were sent aboard,

principal inhabitants,

who were

nairs,

were returned.

The

attendants,

however, were detained, on the plea that some of the Portuguese merchandise

was

stiU

unaccounted

for.

This was mere pretence on

had already determined to carry

off"

them

as the vouchers of his discovery.

ment

to those

who had been

De Gama's

part, for

he

the poor natives to Portugal, and exhibit

Immediately after making

sent for the natives,

this

and desiring them

the zamorin that he would shortly return and give

him

full

announceto inform

means of judging

PORTUGUESE EXPEDITION UNDER CABRAL.

Chap. VII.]

Ido

whether the Christians were thieves, as the Moors had persuaded him, he weighed
anchor and set

Two

isou.

.\.ij.

on his homeward voyage.

sail

days after their departure, wlien the ships were lying becalmed a league

De Cawn
attiicked

from Calicut, the zamorin's

was seen approaching,

fleet of forty vessels

of

Their object was obvious; but the Portuguese, by means of their

soldiers.

ordnance,

managed

they got clear

De Gama,

for

otf,

to keep

them

bay

at

and that in

though not without being pursued

a short time, kept near the coast

all its

sea.

tiio

tiaet.

for

an hour and a half

and when within twelve leagues

;

whole coast was in motion,

harbours vessels were being fitted out for the purpose of inter-

Longer delay,

cepting him.

by

a gale fortunately sprung up, and

till

of Goa, received the alarming intelligence that the

out to

full

therefore,

seemed dangerous, and he at once put

The voyage home was tedious and

disastrous; but ultimately

Belem

Anive-sin
Portugal.

was reached

Of the

in September, 1499, after

an absence of two years and two months.

The news of

original crew, only fifty returned alive.

their arrival

was

kingdom and
De Gama, after being conducted into Lisbon in triumphal procession, was raised
to new honours and liberally pensioned.
So elated was King Emanuel with the
hailed with extraordinary demonstrations of joy throughout the

success of the expedition, that

forthwith added to his

lie

titles

;

that of Lord of

the Conquest and Navigation of Ethiopia, Arabia, Persia, and the Indies.

No

time was

lost in fitting

out a

expedition on a more extended

on the 9th of March, 1500, under the

command

of Pedro Alvarez Cabral.

first
little

1

8th

but from them the

;

new

land they reached was a

was

Brazil.

coiu-se

was

The expedition again

Good Hope, but was thrown

sailed

The

so far west-

continent, the discovery of

importance ai)pears to have been attached to

lUtimately proved the most valuable acquisition
It

rvpciitioi.

Bartolommeo Diaz, the discoverer of the Cape of Good Hope,

Canaries were seen on the

which, though

.socond

Amonjr

and his brother, Diego Diaz, who had been factor to Vasco de Gama.

ward that the

scale,

containing 1200 men, and sailed from Belem

It consisted of tliirteen vessels,

the captains were

new

made by

the crown of Portugal.

on the 2d of

into considerable alarm

at the time,

it

May

for the

Cape of

by the appearance

of a

comet, which continued to increfise for ten days, and shone so brightly as to be
visible

both day and night.

The

runner, seemed to be realized

and fury

di.siisters,

by the bursting

that, before the sails could

commanded by Bartolommeo
others were so shattered

and

of wliich

it

was dreaded

as the fore-

of a storm with suoli suddenness

be furled, four of the

vessels,

one of them

Diaz, simk, with every soul on board,

and the

with water that, had not their

been so

filled

.sails

torn as to leave nothing but bare poles, they

Dreadful as the storm was,

on

its

abating, that the

Cape of Good Hope was already doubled.

along the south-east coast of
Sofala.

taken.

it

must certainly have foundered.
was ultimately weathered, and Cabral found,

Africii,

They took fright and made
They proved to be Moorish

he

fell

in

vessels

Continuing *g3

with two vessels at anchor near

for the shore,

bound

but were pursued and overfor Melinda.

As

^>torm <>n

the Portu-

Hope,

Kit
AD.

1M)0

Jil.ST(JllV

guese were on IViendly terms with

more

liappened,

OF

its

INJJIA

fli^WK

I.

Cahral was sorry for what liad

chief"

most valuable part of the cargo coasisted of

especially as the

gold, which, during the teiTor of the tiight,

had been thrown overboard.

On

expressing his regret, the Moorish captain gravely asked wliether he ha/J not

some wizard with him, who might conjure

it

up from the bottom of the

At

sea.

Melinda, where the chief proved as friendly as before, Cabral wa,s funiished

with two Gujerat

Under

pilots.

and

across the Indian Ocean,

their guidance he

made a prosperous voyage

cast anchor within a league of Calicut

on the

1

3th

of September.

Shortly after his arrival several nairs came on board, bringing the zamorin's

Cabral
arrives at
Calicut.

welcome, and making great
take his ships nearer the

Gama had

carried

from Portugal purely to

some delay and

Cabral ventured ashore.

till

and friendship

;

came

by De Gama's
This demand produced

but, taught

last six of the principal natives arrived,

The interview took

purpose, near the water-edge.

Vasco de

sent a messenger, intimating that he

hostages were given.

but at

altercation,

whom

and sent ashore four natives

settle trade

he refused to land

expei-ience,

Interview

city,

He afterwards

off.

Cabral was thus induced to

offers of friendship.

and

place in a pavilion, erected on

The zamorin, dressed nearly

when De Gama

as

witli tlie

zamoriii.

visited him, dazzled all eyes

sapphires,

and

pearls,

covered his fingers and
silver,

with the

size

which studded
toes.

and

his girdle

His chair of

state

curiously wrought, glistened with

articles

brilliancy of the diamonds, rubies,

and hung from

and palanquin,

all

precious stones; and,

liLs

ears,

of gold and

among

composed of the precious metals, were three gold and seventeen

trumpets, and various silver lamps, and censers smoking with perfumes.
after delivering his credentials,

and stating the

desire of the

King

or

other
silver

Cabral,

of Portugal

t<j

enjoy the zamorin's friendship, and establish at Calicut a factory, which should

be supplied with

pay for them

all

kinds of European goods, and take spices in exchange, or

in ready

money, caused the present to be brought

of a wrought silver basin

gilt,

in.

It consisted

a fountain of the same, a silver cup with a

gilt

two cushions of cloth of gold, and two of crimson velvet, a cloth of state of
the same velvet striped and bound with gold lace, and two rich pieces of arras.
cover,

Mutual

So

far all things

had gone on smoothly but beneath
;

this

seeming friendship

ilisti'ust.

mutual distrust was at work, preparing for a

final rupture.

First, the hostages,

on learning that Cabral was preparing to retm-n, began to suspect that they

might be detained altogether, and endeavom-ed to escape by leaping into the
sea.

Some

harshness.

succeeded, while those re-captured were treated with .some degree of

Before the misunderstanding thus occasioned was completely cleared

up, Cabral proposed to send a message to the zamorin, to ask

willing to finish the aoreeraent which he

conviction

among

So strong was the

the Portumiese that this message would onlv

worse, that Fiancisco Correa

volunteer to carry

had begun.

whether he was

it.

was the only man

make

matters

in the fleet bold enough

to

Contrary to expectation, Correa met with a friendly

;

CABRAL'S EXPEDITION.

Chai'. A'II]

reception,

165

and completed an arrangement by whicli a regular Portuguese factory

was established

in Calicut,

under the charge of his brother, Ayres Correa

seems to have been very inditlerently qualified for his

factor

himself to be imposed upon at

had never ceased

made

all

their intrijjues

At

their appearance

hands, and

from the

their instigation

stood out to

The zamorin

sea.

at the cause of Cabral's removal,

This

and allowed

especially

some

hostile manifestations

made, particularly by Khoja Comireci, the admiral of Calicut

became so alarming that Cabral deemed

liou.

by the Moors, M'ho
moment when the Portusfuese

more
first

office;

a.d.

;

were

and appejwances

necessary to quit the harbour, and

it

expi'essed deep

and apparently

sincere regret

and showed a willingness to take whatever

He gave orders to prevent the
ijiterference of the Moors, removed an officer whom he had placed in the factory,
and substituted another, who, he thought, would be more acceptable. He even
steps miglit be necessaiy to restore confidence.

took the

more decided step of removing the factory from a

still

locality whicli

and gave the Portuguese a perpetual
The
grant of a new house more conveniently situated near the sea-shore.

gave the Moors too great control over

good

it,

measures was soon visible; and the Portuguese walked

effect of these

the streets of Calicut as safely, and as free from molestation, as if they had

been

in Lisbon.

The

Mooi-s,

whose resources

were inexhaustible, determined to

in intrigue

break up this understanding, and tried to effect

it

by a

rather singular expedient.

Availino- themselves of the vindictive feelings of the officer

removed horn the Portuguese

factory,

Moorish

who had been

they employed him to persuade Correa

that Cabral could not confer a greater service on the zamorin than to capture

Cambay

a large ship, which was bound from Ceylon to
elephants.

and

as he

One

whom

of these animals, which the zamorin coveted, had been refused

had thus been unable

glad to obtain

it

or Gujerat, with

to obtain it

The Moors

anyhow.

by

means, he would be very

ftm-

calculated that the master of the vessel,

they had put on his guard, would be more than a match for the Portu-

guese admiral, and, at

events, that the Portuguese,

all

by attacking a

vessel with

which they had no proper ground of quarrel, would justify the reputation M'hich
they had given them as mere depredators.
thus laid for him
could,

by

;

but, ai"ter discovering the trick,

fell

too easily into the snai*e

made

the best reparation he

restoring the vessel to its owners.

The Moors, disappointed
1

•

threw many obstructions
1

Cabral

•

in their object,
1

in the

i>

1

way of the

resumed

T«

their former practices,
1

and

•

Portuguese; who, in consequence, saw

the time for their departure a]iproaching while their ships remained unladen,

Cabral complained to the zamorin, and was authorized to search the vessels
of the Moore and take whatever spices were found in them, only paying the

The Moors were too numerous and influential to be thus
with and on one of their ships being seized, obtamed permis-

original cost prices.

summarily dealt

;

sion from the fickle zamorin to retaliate.

They took

measui-es accordingly; and

rortuguefactory

stormed,

:

166
A D \:m.

IIISTOIIY

having excited n

stormed the Poi-tugue.se

riot,

and among others Ayres Correa,

principal

tlie

any apology

Cabral, not having received

i.i.i„o,u.i8

Calicut.

OF INDIA.

own method

determined to take his

made a

and

possession of the cargoes

opened

and

from the zamorin,

for this outrage

without note of warning,

which were lying in the harljour

600 of the Moors and natives perished, gained

on

set the ships

Many

upon the town.

his fire

of the inmates,

their lives.

fsicUjr, lost

On a sudden,

furious onset on ten large ships

after a contest, dm-ing wliicli

Many

fjictory.

I.

of revenge, without giving him.self any

concern as to the lawfulness of the means.

he

[B/jok

;

of

fire.

Not

with

satisfied

this,

he

public buildings were destroyed,

its

and the inhabitants, becoming crowded in their flight, fell in great numbers.
The zamorin him.self made a narrow escape, as one of his nair.s, who was
immediately behind him, was struck down
Peace was

Fiieiidshii)

of Cochin

now

guese, however,

Vjy

a cannon-ball.

out of the question, and open

had no idea of abandoning

war was declared

their Indian traffic;

dispossessed of one factory, immediately looked out for another.

than Calicut, and bounding with
It recognized the

supremacy of

and was therefore

was the kingdom

Calicut,

new

these

recent contest with the zamorin

;

and on being
Farther soutli

or rajahship of Cocliia

but had often aspired to independence,

easily induced to listen to proposals of

The power of

guese.

it,

The Portu-

visitors

amity from the Portu-

had been signally displayed in

and the King of Cochin could

their

scarcely doul>t

that,

were their powerful aid secured, the yoke of Calicut might soon be shaken

off".

Accordingly,

make

when Cabral appeared

off"

the coast, and stated his desire to

town and harbour of Cochin the seat of Portuguese commerce, the
terms were easily arranged. The rajah, whose name was Truimpara or Trimumthe

para, at once agreed to give hostages as a security that the Portuguese should

not be treacherously dealt with

whom

when

ashore, only stij^ulating that the

he sent for the purpose should be changed daily, as they

shipboard without becoming unfit for the royal presence,

or,

coiild

two

nairs

not eat on

in other words,

losing caste.

The harbouT of

The Porturemove

coast,

and have

Cocliin,

forming one of a

occasional openings

to that of Calicut

;

first

;

which here

ships can enter,

was

line the

far superior

to congratulate themselves

but recent experience made them cautious, and

an

who were

interpreter,

and four criminals

to act as servants.

whom

he had brought

Their reception was very gracious

but the court presented none of the dazzling state conspicuous at Calicut.
soon appeared, however, that

promise
vessels

made was

it

fulfilled. to

possessed

more valuable

the letter; and

qualities.

It

For every

the lading of the Portuguese

with the spices which the country produced in abundance, was accom-

plished without delay.
so

all

ventured to do Avas to land a factor of the name of Gonzalo

Gil Barbosa, a clerk,

from Portugal,

by which

and the Portuguese saw reason

on their change of locality
that Cabral at

series of lagoons

much

This difference of treatment was probably

to the personal qualities of the sovereigns of Calicut

omng, not

and Cochin, as

to

f":
1C7

THIRD PORTUGUESE EXPEDITION.

Chap. VII.]
tiieir relative

positions

—the former considering himself strong enough

make ad

to

looi

his will law, and, if so disposed, to play the tyrant, while the latter, writhing

under a galling yoke, was convinced that his best chance of escaping
tlu-ow himself into the hands of

tiie

Tiiis feeling of

Portuguese.

a

it

was

to

common

and a common danger naturally smoothed down many tlifficulties, and
made friendship, when once established, firm and lasting.
The impression which the Portuguese had produced, both by the terror of

Fnendiy

.1
.,
their arms and the extent of their commercial transactions, was strikingly

from other

interest

/.

•

.

1

evinced by the anxiety which several native states

From

their alliance.

the chiefs of

two of

these

now

,

.

manifested to secure

^'^^'^ "*

— Cananore, situated consider-

north of Calicut, and Coulan, or rather Quilon, situated considerably south

ably^

of Cochin, in the state of Travancore

—mes.sengers

amved

to invite the Portu-

gne.se to their harbours,

promising them

be obtained at Cochin.

Cabral was, of course, inchned to open communications

many quarters as possible, with

in as
it

overtures

was impossible

a view to subsequent

do more than promise a future

to

y)osed of twenty-tive large ships,

visit,

avenge the injuries

inflicted

traffic;

as he

but at the time

had more

the assi.stance in his

tiiis

his fidelity to his

new

power but Cabral, thanking him
;

that he would prove

to be destined to

allies

by

offering

them

all

for the offer, felt confident

them single-handed. It would seem,
somewhat shaken, for after some manoeuvring

more than a match

confidence v/as

and

com-

fleet,

appeared off the

vessels,

boai'd,

serious

This information was furnisiied by the

on Cabcut.

who proved

Rajah of Cochin,

and many smaller

have 15,000 soldiers on

It wjxs said to

however, that

on cheaper terms than they could

Just as he was completing his cargo, a formidable

work on hand.
coast.

.spices

for

with the view of bruiging the enemy to action, he suddenly changed his mind,

and

saileil

ho.stages

away

whom

in such haste, that he did not even take time to restore the

he had received from the rajah.

To

increase the

he was pursued a whole day by the Calicut

flight,

at night he appears to

fleet.

ignominy of the

When

it left

him

cabrai

by the
*

^^t""'

have availed hhnself of the darkness to regain the Mala-

bar coast, and anchored in front of Cananore, where he took in 400 quintals of

cinnamon.
the reason
credit
1>\-

;

The

why

rajah

was

so friendly that, supposing the

want of money

to be

he did not take more, he offered him any additional quantity on

and showed how anxious he was

to cultivate the Portuguese alliance,

actually sending an amba.ssador with Cabral to Europe for that purjiose.

Nothing of much

interest

occun-ed on the

an-ived in Lisbon on the 31st of July, 1501.

homeward voyage, and Cabral
Of the ships which originallv

formed the expedition only six returned.
Before Cabral
It

had

s ari'ival

sailed in IMarch,

a third Portuguese expedition

and consisted only of three

was on

sliips

its

and a

way to

India.

caravel,

with

+00 men, under the command of an experienced seaman of the name of Juan de
Nueva.
His instructions, proceeding on the assumption that Cabral had established factories at Sotala

and at

Calicut,

were to leave two of the vessels with

TUini
expedition.

168
A.D.

1501.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

their cargoes at the fonner,

[lioOK

and proceed with the two others

I.

to the latter town.

As a precautionary measure the experlition was to call at San Bhis, situated east
of the Cape of Good Hope, and wait ten days to give an opportunity of meeting
with any of Cabral's ships which might be on their way home.
Here they
found a

letter

which had been

left for

them, detailing the events which

taken place

Calicut

at

and Cochin.

liad

In

corLse-

«juence of this informa'

Juan

tion,

-

^'

deemed
W-%'

Nueva

de

imprudent

it

to

separate his vessels, and

proceeded with the whole
India,

for

in

arrivinir

j*S%'iti?.:

November
a

small

coast

at Anchediva,

on

i.sland

south

of

tlie

Goa.

Shortly after he anchored
off
Cananore.

— Bnin et Ho^jenburg,

Cananore, the rajah

of which

1574.

was very urgent

that he shoidd lade there;

but anxiety to learn the state of matters at the factory induced liim

t(j

decline

and hasten on to Cochin.
De Nueva

On

arriving, he learned that the rajah,

though greatly offended with Cabral

arrives at

for leaving

Cocliin.

ally,

without notice and carrying

and given

full

protection to

Moors had carried their

all

the

off his hostages,

members

hostility so far as

had proved a

of the factory

on one occasion to

;

faithful

but that

set fire to

it,

tlie

and

by depreciating the value of their merchandise, had prejudiced
the native traders against them to such a degree, that they refused to part
with their spices except for ready money.
As this was a commodity witli
which Juan de Nueva was very scantily provided, he immediately retiu-ned to
Cananore, where tlie rajah dealt with him much more liberally, and furnished
him with 1000 (quintals of pepper, 50 of ginger, and 450 of cinnamon, together
in various ways,

with some cotton

had lodged

cloth, to

for sale in

be paid out of the proceeds of the goods which he

a Portuguese factory established there.

While occupied

with these commercial transactions, Juan de Nueva received intelligence that a

Defeats

tlie

large fleet belonging to the zamorin

was on the way

who sent
make an

him

was not

the intelligence advised

to

to attack him.

land his

men and

The

ordnance, and

enti'enchment on shore, as the only effectual means of defence.

SO casily intimidated

;

and,

on the next da}^ when

1

rajah

He

00 vessels were seen

zjimoriii s
fleet

entering the bay, he advanced to meet them, and poured in his shot with such

good

effect,

that the zamorin's

commander hung out a

parley, agreed to quit the bay,

flag of truce, and, after

a

and make the best of his way back to Calicut

!

EXPEDITION UNDEIi DE GAMA.

Chap. VII.]

169

made such an impression on the zamorin that he proposed terms of
accommodation. Juan de Nueva, probably feeling that his powere were not
sufficient for transacting basiness of so much importance, set sail for Europe.
This failm-e

His homeward voyage was prosperous, and he arrived safely with all his ships.
The accounts brought home by Cabral satisfied the King of Portugal that
he must either
desist

out his expeditions on a scale of greater magnitude, or

fit

from the attempt to establish a trade in the East.

was not

native

to be

thought

for

of;

even under

stances the profit had counterbalanced the

tlie

It

loss.

The

a.d

1502,

~

Expidition

d"'cr!.nr"

latter alter-

most adverse circum-

was

therefore determined

that the next expedition would be more adequate to the objects contemplated.

These were not merely to overawe any of the native Indian princes who might
be disposed to be

hostile,

but to chastise the insolence of the Moors by attacking

then* trade in its principal seat.

Accordingly, the expedition

consisted in all of twenty-

The c(jmmand,

shii)s.

now

fitted out

at first offered to Cabral,

was

Gama, who was to proceed directly to India with
Stephen de Gama, and Vicente Sodre, were each to

ultimately given to Vasco de

ten ships

;

while his brother,

have the command of a squadron of

five,

and

scouring the Malabar coast, and the other

Ked

clear the sea of Moors, the one

by cruizing

off"

by

the entrance to the

Sea.

Gama, honoured with the

Viisco de

title

of Admiral of the Eastern Seas, set

«'» "

"'

title

sail

with Vicente Sodre on the 3d of March, 1502, before Juan de Nuevas

Stephen de

i-etm-n;

Gama

did

Having

not leave before the 1st of May.

doubled the Cajie of Good Hope, and sailed up the east coast of Africa, for the
purpose of establishing factories at Sofala and Mosambique, Vasco de Gama,
after waiting

till

he was joined by his brother, continued his course

Indian Ocean, and had arrived within sight of Mount Dilly, a
of Cananore,

Egypt.

when

lie

was richly

It

laden,

and wealth, bound on a
anil ca])tm'ed

it

in

fell

or in goods.

They

Mecca.

To

Going on board, he
to produce

He
liis

immediately attacked

di.sgi-ace

all

called the principal pa.ssengers

whatever property they had

He

to his

own

all

events to have been satisfied with

I.

and

but

threat-

it.

In.stead of this

he had thrown aside every feeling of humanity, and resolved

tiie

plunder

ship, in order to

jirofit,

but merely for the plea-sure

it

afforded.

among his crews, and removing all the children
fulfil a vow which bound him to make monks of all

the males he should thus ca])ture, he forced
Vol.

sea,

;

had thus secured a rich prize by questionable

to ])lay the barbarian, not for the

After dividing

money

the others in the same way, they became temfied, and

means, and ought at
if

in

declared that most of both had been left in Calicut

yielded to his demand.

he acted as

it,

he made an atro- "« capt.-.res

on his throwing one of them bound hantl and foot into the
ening to treat

north

and had on board many Mahometans of rank

after a vigorous resistance.

and onlered tliem

before him,

little

the

with a large ship belonging to the Sultan of

jiilgrimage to

eious use of his victory

acro.ss

all

the jiassengei's and crew of the
22

shiji

HISTORY OF

170
A.D. 1502.

on

it

[Rook

the hatches upon thern,

Had

they been the

wretches possible, instead of being for the most part inoffensive

had now surely done enough to save their
had been ordered, and Vasco de

who proved

hi8

was executed; but the unhapjiy
made superhuman efi^orts, and having broken o[)en

the liatchcs, succecdcd in (juenching the flames.

Stephen,

t^jld

[.

Tiie fiendish (jrder

fire.

victims, rendered desperate,
DeGama's

down

Moorisli vessel below, and, iiaving nailed

brother to set

INF'IA.

But

lives.

Gama was

giiiltiest

pilgi-ims,

they

Their destruction

no.

not to be satisfied with

less.

himself no unwilling instrument in his brother's hands,

and made the attempt, but met with such a reception
from the Mahometaas, when they saw that no mercy was to be expected, as
was told

to board,

compelled him to
passion, he

had now

could be done
order

:

tliirty
all

full

time to

been acting tmder a sudden burst of

for night

cool,

Wlien he

moi-ning.

till

rose, it

were women, were burned

who were

in the vessel

whom

when

this

came

on,

was only

the vessel .was again boarded and set on

except the children,
His arrival
at Gauanore

Had De Gama

retire.

fire,

to death, or

and nothing more

to repeat

and 300

liis

inhuman

persons, of

whom

drowned, or slaughtered-

Of

the capture was made, not a soul escaped

bloody baptism initiated into the Romish

faith.

name

After this iufamous transaction one almost shudders to mention the

of

Vasco de Gama, but the course of the narrative cannot in the meantime proceed
without him.

thought

it

In his next proceeding, the caution which he used, when he

own life might be in danger, contrasts strangely with
he showed when iniquitously di.sposing of the lives of others.

possible that his

the recklessness

Having anchored

off"

Cananore, he desired an interview with the rajah

the captivity he had suffered at Calicut on his

first

voyage seemed

;

but as

still

upper-

most in his mind, he adopted the device of having a wooden bridge, which
projected a considerable

was covered with

way

carpets,

into the water.

At the end

of this bridge, wliich

a pavilion was reared to form the

hall of audience.

The rajah made his appearance first, attended by 10,000 nairs, and advanced to
the pavilion amid the beating of drums and floiu-ishes of trumpets.
De Gama
came accompanied by all his boats, adorned with flags, and took his place in the
The result of the interview was a treaty
pavilion, under a salute of artillery.
of amity, and the estaljlishment of a Portuguese factory at Cananore.
His pro-

From Cananore De Gama

continued his course to Calicut, and, making his

ceediiigs at

Calicut

appearance unexpectedly in the roads, captured several small boats, containing

about

fifty natives.

Whatever just cause

of quarrel he

may have had

with the

zamorin, these poor creatures were not implicated, and yet, on not obtaining
redress for the destruction of the Portuguese factory,

sioned
their

by it, he hung them up

arms and

zamorin, that

breaches of

feet,

at the yard-arm, and, after they

and caused them

similar treatment

faith.

and the

loss of lives occa-

were dead, cut

oft'

to be carried ashore, with a message to the

was

in reserve for himself for his repeated

To show that he was

in earnest, he ordered three ships to

stand in as near as possible to the town, and open their

fii'e

upon

it.

The royal

DK CxAMA RETURNS HOME.

Chap. VII.]

171
•

was one of the many buildings thus demolished.

palace

Without waiting

tt^

ad.

i5u3.

ascertain the effect, he left Vicente Sodre with a squadron to scour the coast

and destroy the Moorish

and

trade,

Here matters were

set sail for Cochin.

on their former friendly footing, mutual presents were ex-

easily re-established

changed, and a commercial treaty of a more formal nature than that previously
existing

was concluded.

The next proceeding
as

if

was very

of the zamorin

inexciLsable, and, indeed, looks

m

he had determined to put hnnself entirely

De Gama was

him

lading at Cochin, he sent a messenger, iii\ating

be so desu-able that

felt to

more to secure

and

it,

De Gama determined

out alone, leaving

.set

other

all his

to Calicut,

his entire satisfaction

This was rather a slender foundation on which to negotiate
Calicut was

Hearing that

the wrong.

and promising that everything would be arranged to

;

to

but peace with

make one

effort

behind.

The

shij)s

temptation was too strong for the fickle and tortuous court of Calicut

Gama, instead of the friendly reception which he had

by a

large fleet of small vessels,

and very narrowly

Treachei-y of

and De

;

anticipated, wjis set

esca])ed being

made

upon

prisoner.

Fm'ther negotiation was of course impossible, though he ought certainly to

have disdained to take the petty revenge of putting the zamorin's messenger
to deatli.

The

them De Gama,
two

after putting to flight a large

large Moorish ships,

whicii

weight, with emeralds for

its eyes,

cious stones for its covering,

triple alliance, for

his squadron, sailed for

Portugal

till

Rotun. of

of small vessels, captured oanm

prizes,

both of them being

to

"'"'**

a robe curiously wrought and set with pre-

and on

and united with

visited Cananore,

number

proved valual)le

In one of

little interest.

on board one of them was an image of gold of thirty pounds

richly laden, wliile

kind of

which ensued possess

details of the conflicts

its bi'east

its

Having again

a large ruby.

rajah and that of Cochin in forming a

mutual defence, De Gama, leaving Vicente Sodre with

Europe on the 20th of December, 1503, but did not reach

He had

the following September.

again proved himself an able

navigator; but his proceedings had rather tarnished than increased

His sovereign, however, was

satisfied

;

and rewarded him with the

title

fame.

liis

of Count

of Vidogueii-a.

Before

De Gama

tlireatening messages

which a

ally

faithful

consideration than

zamorin's revenge.
ture

was

it

which

lie

had received from the zamorin.

was thus exposed,
received,

Nor was

it

entitled his case to a

and he was
long before

left

it

too favom-able an opportunity to be

most formidable

had made him aware of

departed, the Rajah of Cochin

scale

lost,

and

were immediately commenced.

about sixteen leagues north of Ctn^hin.

.')0,000

more

to

careful

fmy

of the

De Gama's

depar-

exposed to the

overtook him.

Ihe penl

full

hostile preparations

on a

In the vicinity of Ponany,

men were

assembled.

Before

commencing operations the zamorin asked nothing more than the siuTender
of the Portuguese

who had

fixed

tlieir

residence in Cochin.

The population

xiie

zamorm

attack

^

'"'

172

AD

1501.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

were urgent that the demand
and, though his force

The
till

was too unequal

last obliged to

I.

be complied with, but the rajah stood finn,

was comparatively

contest, however,

he was at

slioulfl

[Book

abandon

insignificant,
;

advanced to the

enc^junter.

and he was driven from post

his capital,

to post,

and seek an asylum

in the

island of Vaipi, or Vipeen, in its vicinity.

While iu

Arrival of

Alfonso Al-

bunuorquB.

.

this extremity
,

,

.

he received no support from Vicente Sodre,

who

.

Kept cruizmg about raakmg captm-es, but on some shallow pretext or other
refused to give
ing.

any

direct assistance.

Nine ships had

sailed

Powerful

aid,

however, was approach-

from Lisbon, in three equal .squadroas, under the

commands

respective

of Alonso or Alfonso

Albuquerque, Francisco Albuquerque, and

Antonio Saldanha.
in the

mouth

was

Tlie last

Red Sea

of the

were to proceed directly
Albuquerque arrived

the others

;

to India.

first,

to cruize

Franci.sco

and with a con-

siderable addition to his squadron, in con-

sequence of having fallen in with some of
the ships belonging to Vicente Sodi-e.

This

powerful reinforcement completely changed
the a-spect of

and

affairs,

defeated at every point.

zamorin wa.s

tlie

Triumpara, in the

joy of his heart, not only conferred
privileges

on the Portuguese, but gave them

permission to build a

Alfon'so de Albuquerque.
From a print after Silva.

On

operations,

The

sea.

and many

made a voluntary

the establishment of a factory;

The

.\lbu-

(luerqnes
sail for

Europe.

the

was compelled

offer to lade

two

ships,

to sue for peace.

It

sail for

by a

series of

was granted, but on
first

pretext for a

For some reason not explained

at this very time, wdien

necessary than ever, set

and consent to

while the zamorin, dispirited

and was soon again at open war.

two Albuquerques,

of these wa.s

eflfect

terms so disadvantageous, that he availed liimseLf of the
rupture,

successful

In the south Coulan, or Quilon, then under

manifested in various ways.

disastrous defeats,

fort.

the arrival of Alfonso Albuquerque

new energy was thrown into the Portuguese
expeditions were made both by land and
female government,

new

theii'

presence seemed more

Europe, lea^^ng only Duarte Pacheco with

the ship which he commanded, two caravels, and 110 men, for the defence of
Cochin.

Francisco Albuquerque appears to have perished in a storm, for he

was never more heard
safety,

of;

Alfonso, reserved for greater things,

amved

in

bringing with him for the king forty pounds of pearls, a diamond of

remarkable

size,

and two

horses, a Persian

and an Arab, the

first

of the kind

which were imported into Portugal.

The zamorin had become convinced that he would never be able

single-

LOPE SOARE/.

Chap. VII.]

handed to overcome the Portuguese; and
the

made

field,

coalition

173

therefore, in again preparing to take

by entering

his first business to strengthen himself

it

with neighbouring

In

states.

this

he found

sea,

attacking and making prizes of

of what-

all vessels

ever country, whenever they found any pretext for stigmatizing tliem

name

We

of Moors.

have already met with instances of

confessed, or rather complacently dwelt

doubted that

lie

Tiumerous.

Be

in.stances

tlie

this as it

;

it

terror,

can scarcely
still

provided with nearly 400 cannons,

sea,

an army, estimated at 50,000, begun

overwhelming

desei't.

force,

for not only Heroism

but his subjects, under the influence of

the greatest alarm,

Paeheco made

out with so
retire

much

with a severe

all his

arrangements with so much

resolution, that the confederates
loss.

to

him

him
This was no empty

and spoke of surrender, scouted the

that a valiant defence woidd certainly prove successful.
boast.

i-acheco.

The only person whose courage remained luishaken

was the Portuguese captain, Duarte Paeheco, who, when the rajah came
in

more

larul.

in

began to

by the

fleet,

Triumpara was dismayed, and apparently with good reason,
was the enemy

coalition

may, the coalition soon assumed a very formidable

prepared to bomlmrd Cochin from the

by

upon by themselves and

The zamouu

kind candidly

which they have not recorded were

appearance; and while a niunerous

to apj)roach it

this

idea, assuring

skill,

and carried them

were ultimately obliged to

Attempts were repeatedly made to renew the attack,

but the result was always the same

and the zamorin with

;

his allies

had the

by a mere handful of Europeans.
example of what one daring spirit can

mortification of seeing all their efforts baffled

Seldom has there been a more striking

accomplish than was furnished by Paeheco in this struggle.
the zamorin had lost 18,000 men, and

was now

so

In the course of

humbled

again meet with Paeheco,

A

fleet

we may

As we

here conclude his history.

It

is

having arrived under the

command

government of El Mina, on the west coast of
his private fortune, to

which he was too

would be improved.
first

not

a melancholy

of Lope Soarez, Paeheco,

though treated with merited distinction, was superseded, and invested

which

shall

of thirteen ships, of larger dimensions than had ever before been

built in Portugal,

tion,

it

as gladly to accej)t

of terms of peace from his o^vn tributary Rajah of Cochin.

one.

1505

for the

little difiiculty,

Portuguese were not only viewed with jealousy as strangers, but had pursued a

very reckless course at

ad.

into a

Africa.

Here

it

heroiccilly dispo.sed to

Avith the

was thouijht that
give

much

atten-

This object was entirely defeated by a violent faction,

thwarted his measures, and then had the audacity to seize his

person on a false ciiarge, and send

him home

in chains.

After languishing for a

time in prison he obtained an honourable acquittal, but

it

was too

late.

The

ungrateful return for his di.stingaished services had broken his heart, and he

died either in prison or shortly after he

Lope Soarez, soon

after his arrival,

was

released from

moved up

messenger from the zamorin, who was

now

it.

to Calicut,

willing

to

and was met by a

com])ly with every

His

fate,

of

IIISTOHV OF INI>IA.

174
A

I)

I.

mi:

[Book

made upon liiiii except one. This was t<> deliver up an Eur<;p«ian, a
of Milan, who liad entered his service, and taught him the art of aisting

(lemaiKl

native

cannon, along with other important naval and military improvements.
llulioill'.'ihli.'

conduct

I.

honour the zamorin demurred to

tlie

To

his

delivery of an individual who.se only

i)f

was the

ability

and

fidelity

with which he had served him

Soarez

the za-

offence

moriii

unable or unwilling to appreciate the hoiK^ur and justice of the zamorin's refusal,

immediately bombarded the town, and laid the greater part of

This

it in ashe.s.

of destruction accomplished, he immediately proceeded to another, and

work

town of Cranganore, which had adhered to the zamorin, in the same
His next exploit began more ominously, but ended still more triumph-

treated the

way.

In sailing north from Cranganore to attack Ponany, he was met

antly.

zamorin's
peril

fleet,

the

Here he found himself in imminent
before which he had been obliged to retiie,

and driven into a bay.

for in addition to the fleet

;

V>y

seventeen large Moori.sh ship?, well provided with cannon, and carrying 4000
He

is

do

f Jilted l)y

Lape
Soarez.

men, were waiting to receive him
a very

trifling loss to the

lading were destroyed.

A fierce

Portuguese,

all

conflict

the ships of the

Soarez, thinking he

remainder.

enemy with

had now done enough

his return, left four ships at the fort of Cochin,

Lisbon.

ensued; but ultimately, with

and

— From Bnin et Hogenburg,

set sail for

their rich
to justify

Europe with the

1.574.

His arrival at Lisbon, on the 22d of July, 1506, was gladly wel-

comed, as no richer cargo in goods and prizes had ever retuiTied from the East.
Don Fran

The next Indian armament

ciiico .VI-

nieidas
arrival
:is

viceroy

scale

than any which preceded

fitted
it.

out by Portugal was on a more magnificent

It consisted of

twenty-two

ships, cari-}ing, in

addition to the crew, 1500 fighting men, and

was placed under the command

Don

time the proud

Francisco Almeida,

India.

who

bore for the

first

His arrival in India took place in 1507.

island of Anchediva, where, as

it

occupied a

and had become a common station

The

first

commanding

title

of

of Viceroy of

land reached was the

position

on the

for Portucruese vessels, he built a fort.

coast,

On

arriving at Cochin, where he intended to have rewarded Triumpara, the old and

Chap.

NATIVE COMBINATION.

VI I.]

faithful ally of the Portuguese,

had brought from Portugal
liad retired

with a crown of gold, set with jewels, whicli he

for the purpose,

1507

he was astonished to find that he

in his stead,

and received the crown from the

hands of Almeida during a pompous ceremonial.
understand

A.D

from the world, to spend the remainder uf his days as a solitary

His nephew was reigning

devotee.

175

all

that

was meant by

it,

for

It

is

probable that he did not

from that day he was to be regarded,

not as an independent sovereign, but a vassal holding his crown during

tlie

|)leasure of the Portuguese.

Before Almeida arrived, the zamorin had once

more placed

fortunes

Native coin-

aware that the struggle in which he was about to

.'igiiiiist tlii-

all his

tiiiiation

on a venture; and, as

if fully

engage would prove decisive of his

At

.success.

tiie

no means unemployed to insure

Portuguesc.

time a powerful dynasty was reigning in the Deccan over

which included a considerable

territories

while

this

fate, left

kingdom

of Gujerat or

tract of sea-coast,

Cambaya had

risen to

from Goa northwards,

be a great naval power.

Both of these states had been wantonly attacked by the Portuguese, and their

commerce had
to

provoke

suffered severely before they

hostility.

were aware of having done anything

Naturally exasperated, they entered with readiness into

.;<!!

HiRDs EYE View ok Alexandria

— Kroni

Bnui

et

Uogenburg, 1&T4.

a combination intended to banisli the Portuguese for ever from the E<istern seas.
Even with these auxiUaries the zamorin did not feel secure. He therefore

extended

liis

views much further, and entered into communication with the

Sultan of Egyi>t.

The Mameluke

sultan at once responded to the call thus

made upon

him, Thcsiun

and the more readily that his attention had previously been di-awn to tlie sub- S^t."
ject from another quarter.
The success of the Portuguese in tlie East was
already telling powerfully against the lucrative trade wliich the Venetians had
long been accustomed to regard as their special monopoly.
Goods brought into

the Levant, either overland or

by way of Alexandria,

liad so

heavy

a

burden of

;

176
AD.

1507

OF INDIA.

lIISTOilV

transport and taxation to

they could not possibly wjmpete with

l^uar, tliat

comparatively inexpensive

[Book

I.

tiie

a single voyage, however long, from the

i)rocess of

The Venetians thas found themselves
every European market, and became perfectly aware that they

port of lading to the port of delivery.
Intrigues of

undersold in

theveue-

by

either destroy the Portuguese trade or be destroyed

j^yj^t,
tiaiis.

it.

Their

first

endeavour was to work upon the fears of the King of Portugal and the pope, by
instigating the sultan to send a tlireatening letter

mating that

if

t(^

Lisbon and Rome,

the Portuguese did not forthwith relinquish the

new

inti-

course

by which they had penetrated into the Indian Ocean, and cease
from encroacliing on a commerce which had been carried on from time immemorial between Asia and his dominions, he would put to death all the Christians in Egyi^t, Syria, and Palestine, bum their churches, and demoli.sh the
of navigation,

holy sepulchre itself
An

This menace having failed to produce the effect anticipated, the Venetian.s

Egyptian

flejt fitted

out.

did not scniple to urge the sultan to take the remedy into hLs

own

hands, and.

by the zamorin, become a powerful
auxiliary in the crusade against the Portuguese.
There was only one difficulty.
The Egyptian fleet in its actual state was overmatched by that of Portugal. If
the war was undertaken, the first thing necessary would be to build a new fleet.
Egypt had no proper timber for the purpose. How, then, was it to be obtained
in accordance with the invitation given

?

The Venetians were not

to be balked of their object

by such an

Had

ob.stacle.

they not whole forests of naval timber in Dalmatia? and ha\'ing gone so far

why

need they scruple to place them at the disposal of the sultan, who. after

hewing down
route to the

much as he required, might easily transport it by a well known
Red Sea?
Such was the plan actually adopted; and Europe
as

saw the maritime power which had taken a prominent part

in the cnisade of

Christian piinces against Mahometans, as zealously engaged in promoting a

Mahometan crusade

By

It^ arrival in
lii:lia.

built

against Christians.

these extraordinary

and

means a

fleet of

fully equipped, set sail for the Indian coast in 1507.

men, and was commanded by an experienced
Hoosseiu, and the Portuguese

Mullik Eiaz, admiral of
that kingdom,

double

its

Meer Hashim.

Mahmood Shah

was prepared

numbers and

to join

it

streng-th.

of the danger which threatened liim
tactics obviously should

In this
detail.

late.

I.,

whom Ferishta

Ameer

It sailed first to Gujerat,

where

who was then

reigning sovereign of

with a squadron wliich would more than

Almeida seems not to have been aware
till

he was almost overtaken by

have been to attack the Tirrkish

had resolved

to pursue this obvious course

His son Lorenzo,

intercept the sultan's

fleet,

whom

It carried 1500
calls

officer,

fleet

way it might not liave been difficult for him to beat
He may have been prevented by obstacles of which we

for after he

too

twelve ships of war ha^^ng been

it

on

its passage.

his enemies in

are not aware

was found

he had despatched with eleven

having been detained,

first

off

His

it.

to be
sail

to

Cananore, where he

LORENZO KILLED.

Chap. VIT]

attacked and, with scarcely any

loss,

177

destroyed a native squadi'on far larger than ad.

isot

own, and afterwards at Anchediva, where sixty Moorish and native vessels

his

had made an attempt on the

fort,

arrived in the harbom- of Choul, or Chowul,

about twenty-three miles south of Bombay, jast in time to see the Egyptian
admiral enter

A

it.

tierce conflict

without any decided advantage

till

immediately ensued, and was continued

Mullik Eiaz with the Gujerat

renewed the

battle,

fleet.

to

Ameer Hoossein by

Lorenzo,

the arrival of

undismayed, immediately

still

but found the Egyptian admiral a much more formidable

antagonist than he had been accustomed to deal with.

After another day's

were so much

fighting had left the victory undecided, the Portuguese ships

shattered that
niijht

and

it

was determined by a council of war

who had

previously incurred his father's displeasm'e,

^

.

one occasion to lorce the

fleet oi

and continued

when he began
it

to linger

on

till

sell

to follow, his ship grounded,

He might

have escaped in

his life as dearly as possible,

and

his boat,

after

method of keeping

having been struck by a

at a distance

ball,

men

and

him

left

to

The enemy

at first

that he adopted the more

and pouring

which broke

ineffectual efforts to

his post.

resisted,

another ball broke his back and killed him.

crew of 100

some

this

but at )uce made up his mind

in his shot.

his thigh, ordered

placed against the mainmast, and there remained,

its

Lorenzo,

himself to be

encouraging his men,

Tiie shij)

shortly after sunk.

till

Of

only nineteen escaped.

According to Faria y Sousa, the
of the Portuguese amounted only to eighty-one men, while the

whole

loss

enemy

lost 600.

The Mahometan account given by Ferishta

is

very

different.

After mentioning that the Portuguese flag-ship, valued at a crore of rupees
(a million sterling),

the

Mahometan

was sunk, and every man on board

fleet

returned

victoriously;

for

perished, he adds, that

although

400 Turks were

honoured with the crown of mtu'tyi-dom, no fewer than 3000 or 4000 Portuguese
infidels

Vol..

son. i,o-

Unfortunately

sail.

their flight,

and die at

attempted to board, but was so bravely
cjiutious

He had by

the day began to dawn.

the rest of the squadron continued

off",

his fate.

to

Heroism of
Almeida's

the zamorin to action, wtis very reluctant

time consented to retreat, and several of his vessels had set

tow

by declining on

.

a step which would justly be considered as an acknowledgment of

to take
defeat,

to take advantage of the

a retreat.

effect

Lorenzo,

Next day

night separated the combatants.

an immense preponderance was given

a navai

were at the same time sent to the infernal regions.

r.

His death,

HISTORY OF INDIA.

178

CHAPTER
Portuguese progress

l

in the

UE

East

VIII.

now

committed to their career of

fully

and successive armaments, on a grand

One

Lisbon for the East.

of

consisted of thirteen vessels,

the.se,

and

A.D.

1508,

scale,

quitted

under Tristan da Cunha,

1*300 fighting

command

of twelve vessels, sailed under the
CiR.

I.

— The viceroyships of Francisco Almeida and Alfonso Albuquerque.

Portu^iese were

oiK^uest,
I

[Book

men.

Another,

of Alfoaso Albu-

querque, who, after performing sevei'al exploits on the African coast, and taking

~~ effectual

measures to cripple the trade from India by the Red Sea, continued

along the coast of Arabia, and entered the Persian Gulf, determined to stiike
Alfonso Al-

a

still

more

biKinerqiie

returns to
India.

There the Mahometan

fatal blow.

Albuquerque, in

active.

whom

bined, at once perceived liow

with India was

still

great military and political talents were com-

an

effectual interdict

Ormuz, situated on an island

in the

mouth

might be

make

only thing necessary for this purpose was to
of

traffic

upon

laid

The

it.

himself master of the city

of the gulf

J^

way he could
command
completely
In this

the passage, and
the trade at

After

mercy.

liis

capture

the

and

Muscat,

jjlace

of

several

other places of minor

importance,

he

pro-

ceeded to the execution
of his grand enterprise.

His design had been
penetrated; and in.stead
of being able to take
Ormuz.

11 is

expedi-

tion to tlie

Persian
Uuif.

found

it

— Brun

defended by a

the city
et

sui'prise, as

he had anticipated, he

fleet of

an army of 30,000 men.

by

Hogenbiirg, 1374.

400

vessels, sixty of

To show how

far

them of

large size,

and by

he was from being dismayed at

these preparations, he immediately advanced into the harbour, and anchored

among

five of the

largest ships,

firing his

cannon as

if in

defiance.

After

waiting for a message from the king, but receiving none, he sent him his
ultimatum, which, considering the relative position of the parties, was certainly of a very extraordinary

that

lie

had come with orders

and arrogant
to take the

description.

King

of

It

was

Ormuz imder

to the effect

his protection,

ALMEIDA SUPERSEDED.

Chap. VIIT.]

'ITU

on the condition of paying a reasonable tribute to Portugal, or to treat him as a

d^'iooo.

an enemy by declaring war against him.
There was

room

little

doubt which of the alternatives, thus arbitrarily

to

Ormuz would

])laced before him, the sovereign of

tions

were not yet completed,

it

was important

Aibuquer-

'l"® attacks
c
n
accept, but as his fortinca- onmu.
1

to gain time;

and

•

•

solely

with

that view, instead of sending a resolute defiance, he entered into negotiation.

Albuquerque saw what wtis intended, and at once brought matters to a point,

by

telling the

messenger that when he next came,

acceptance of peace, or a declaration of war.
for choice,

and made two furious onsets

destroyed

all

were the

walls,

The

;

Persians, in the meantime,

loss of

were not

idle,

but neither in weapons nor discipline could they
is

said to have l^een coloured with their

only ten men, Albuquerque burned, sunk, or otherwise

the ships of Ormuz, and received a tiag of tiiice with an offer

comply with

to

commencing a

in

feaiful slaughter, as not only

cope with the Portuguese, and the sea

With the

moment

crowded with combatants, but even the tops of the houses

vessels

were covered with spectators.

blood.

either an

There had never been any room

Albu(iuerque lost not a

cannonade which must have caused

and

must be with

and the message accordingly was, that Ormuz was in use not to pay,

but to receive tribute.

shore,

it

all

his

demands.

The terms

were,

the annual pajTuent of

Siii)mi8«ioii

Persians.

bout £2000 as tribute to the Kinfj of Portuo-al, and trround on which to build

SI

a

No

fort.

sooner were the terms arranged, than the fort was immediately

commenced, and carried on with such

ra])idity, as to

assume

shai)e in the course

of a few days.

Khojah Attar, who governed Ormuz
minor, had no sooner

in the

name

made the arrangement than he

of Sailaddin,

re})ented of

it.

who was a
From the

destruction which Albuquerque had caused, he had formed an extravagant idea
of the force under his
that

it

tilities,

command and was
;

did not muster above 460 men.

and dexteroush'

astonished above measure, on learning

He

av^ailed himself of a

therefore prepared

mutinous

Portuguese commanders, to escape the consequences.
his rage

feelinsr

amonjj the

for hosinferioi-

Albuquerque, after venting

by some very barbaroas proceedings, was obliged

to depai-t

the winter at Socotra, which had become a Portuguese conquest.
returned, he gave formal notice of his arrival to the

anew

and

si)end

Having again

government of Ormuz, and

was immediately informed that the tribute stipulated would be paid, but that
he would not be j^ermitted to build the fort.
He would fain have resumed the
siege, but more important interests required his presence in India.
He iiad been
appointed viceroy.
Almeida, in the midst of his preparations to avenge the death of his son,
received the mortifying intelligence that he had ])een superseded in his govern-

ment.

Obedience to the royal mandate

wsis,

of course, his duty; but both

ri'vengeand ambition pointed to an opposite comvse, and he detennined to follow
it

at

all

hazards

On

the pretext that the ])nblic iutere-t would not allow him.

Almeida
avenge
*"*

hu

180
A.a"i509.

HISTORY OF

in present circum.stanceH, to

demit his

of office; and leaving Albuqueique,

who was

powerful armament.

(Book

he refased to resi^ the

autliority,

devour his disappointment as he could,
tilTrol
Dabiu

TNT)TA.

no condition

in

set out

t<j

fleets,

there received information which determined

insigriiu

force him,

coast, in search

he stopped at Anchediva, and

him

make

to

the important com-

mercial city of Dabul, situated on the coast about half-way between

Bombay, the

who had

first

object of attack.

belonged

It

t^;

note of warning, he suddenly

In

ship.s.

any severity; and, without any

ju.stify

commenced

Goa and

a king of the Deccan,

joined the zamorin's confederation, and assisted him with

Almeida's view this was sufficient to

i(}

without him at the head of a

While proceeding northwards along the

of the combined Egyptian and Gujerat

1.

by sea and land,
and never desisted till he had laid Dabul in ashes. An immense plunder
might have been obtained; but fearing the effect upon his troops, he chose
i-ather to
11.;

From

dufeats

the Tui-kish
ami Gujerat

his attack both

hurn than to preserve the booty.

which certainly added

this achievement,

-^

little

Almeida

to his laurels,
'

_

procecded to Diu, finely and strongly situated on an island of the same name, on
the southern shore of the peninsula of Gujerat.

and Mullik

Eiaz, with their fleets.

Had

Here he found Ameer Hoossein

they remained in their position under

the batteries of Diu, as the Gujerat admiral strongly urged, Almeida,

ventured an attack at

all,

must have made

it

if

he had

under great disadvantage; but

Egyptian admiiul, who was naturally of a chivalrous temper, and perhaps

tlie

also

when Lorenzo was slain, disdained
when he could meet his enemy in the open sea,

rendered over-confident by his recent success,
to

be cooped up in a harboiu",

and

sailed out, displaying

more valour than

some time, terminated

furiously for

guese, who, however, converted

massacre.

they murdered

possible excuse for the atrocity

an indelible

into

coiild

Eiaz that he

and the only explanation given

not otherwise be satiated.

made

overtures of peace.

The

defeat

They were

might have obtained advantageous terms,

if

it

He

retains

a peremptory

is

no

that Almeida's

so dispirited ]\Iullik

readily listened to

;

and he

As much

to his

honour as

Portuguese for making such a demand, he at once gave

refusal.

Almeida, liaviug returned to Cochin, was again pressed by Albuquerque to

the viceroyship.

had

is,

There

he would have stooped to the

meanness of delivering up his Eg}^)tian colleague.
to the disgrace of the

raging

by the Portu
disgrace, by an atrocioas
and they had sailed away

prisoners in cold blood.

all their
;

conflict, after

in a glorious victory gained

Several days after the battle was fought,

for Cananore,

revenge

it

The

discretion.

,

resign the viceroyship,

mandate of

,

,

his sovereign.

So

far

,

.

from complying, he took the extraordinary

step of seizing the person of his competitor,

the fort of Cananore.

,

which he had persisted in holding, in defiance of the

He would

and sending him as a prisoner

to

probably have completed the treasonaljle

was now committed, by declaring himself independent, had
not the ojjportune arrival of Don Fernando Coutinho, witli a lai'ge fleet and

course to which he

DEATH OF ALMEIDA.

Chap VIII.]

181

The

extraordinary powers, enabled him to act with effect as a mediator.

Almeida abandoned

was, that
of

him that he was not destined

pa.ssed

it,

d. isio.

Before leaving, a native conjuror had

make merry with

when an
The three

the prediction,

event took place which terminated his career somewhat ignobly.

him anchored

in

Saldanha Bay, a

One

and sent ashore a watering- party.

He had

Cape of Good Hope.

to pass the

however, and had begun to

ships he had with

a

idea of resistance, and, resigning the insignia

took his departure for Em'ope.

office,

told

all

result

little

north of the Cape,

of the ex-viceroy's servants insulted

one of the natives, and wa.s roughly handled by tliem in return.

Almeida,

Death of

contrary to his wish and better judgment, was induced to take part in this
petty stpiabble, and having gone ashore, was returning with the cattle carried
oft

in

a foray, when

tlie

They were armed only with pointed

upon him.
efiectujdly,

stakes, but tiiese they used so

of the Portuguese soon lay dead at their

tliat tifty

them was the ex-viceroy
liis

been lying in ambuscade, rushed out

natives, wlio liad

himself, morttdly

wounded by

Among

feet.

a thrust whicli ])ierced

throat.

Albuquerque,

now

fully installed as viceroy,

was bent on following out

his

Aii,u<iuer-

que's attack

career of con(iuest, and sailed for Calicut, before which he appeared on the 2d

of January, 1510, with thirty vessels

natives

who

and 1800 men, together

airived from Europe with an earnest longing for Eastern
the opportunity offered, he

had

800 men, after administering

forward as

if

all tiie

it,

iiad

renown and now that
;

heart on signalizing himself as the captor

cautions which his superior talents and expe-

Unfortunately Coutinho thought only of his

prize,

he had been running a race rather than fighting a

looking behind him, he forced his
liimself in

iiis

Coutinho

Albuquerque indulged him by giving him the command of

of the royal palace.

rience suggested.

set

a number of

witli

followed in boats, allured by the hope of plunder.

on caikm

for the purpose of

way

to the palace,

and

set

and rushed

Never

battle.

about installing

His infatuation was

celebratmg his triumph.

who took advantage of it so silently and
not awake to a sense of his peril, till he found

soon perceived by the native troops,

Coutinho did

effectually, that

himself

hemmed

in

by thousands of

natives,

Albuquerque, in exerting himself for his

and dei^rived of every
•^

relief,

was

head by a stone, and in the throat by a dart, that
shore.

lie

fell

escape

wounded

was borne

Coutinho, and several young nobles from Lisbon,

in the

senseless to the

in the palace fighting

ami the whole detachment would have perished to a man, had not
hirge body of reserve arrived and obHged the enemy to retire.
Notwith-

desperately
a

so severely

outlet, """""'ow

standing

;

tills

disastrous retreat, the inhabitants suffered

much more

than the Portuguese, and saw the greater part of their city laid in

Ormuz was

severely

ruins.

the next place to which Albuquerque turned his attention.

had there been baffled by the supineness or treachery of his

officers,

He

particularly

Lope de Soarez and Juan de Nueva, and obliged, in consecpxence, to leave one
of the

main avenues of Mahomet<iii trade

still

open.

He

accordingly began to

>82
AD.

1510.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

make such
when his

preparations for a

new

attack upon

was attracted

attention

employ

lilies to

become the seat of Portuguese government

armament against Goa.

was

history,

have proved

it a.s inu.st

I.

Hucce.s.sfuJ,

another quarter, and he resolved

to

Mi.iiiuoi-

his

[Book

t^>

This town which, from having afterwards

makes some

the East,

in

figure in

on an island at the mouth of an estuary, forming one

finely situated

of the very few good harbours which occur on the western coast of the Indian

At

peninsula,

kings of

time (1510;

this

Deccan,

tlie

who had

it

was included

in the territ<jries of

and

his capital at Bejapoor,

is

asually called

Portuguese writers Sabay or Savay, though his proper name or
Adil Shah.

He had

recently wrested

of Albuquerque's quarrel with

that he did not

was

object
it

deem

it

it

worth

;

wliile to inquire

and

;

if

by

Yasuf

The grounds

and

it is

probable

His only

neces.sary either to allege or invent any.

to extend the Portuguese rule

as scarcely

title wa.s

from the Rajah of Onore.

Yusuf are not very apparent

one of the

he could succeed, he regarded

whether the means which he employed

One inducement may have been, that, as a new conquest,
Yusuf s possession of Goa must have been somewhat insecure. Another inducement was, that the Rajah of Onore, the legitimate ov/ner, was ready to assist to
could be justified.

the utmost in recapturing
still

more

He

it.

foimd a third auxiliary capable of rendering

who figures sometimes as Rajah of
which was bounded by Goa on the north, and .sometimes
in Timoja,

effectual assistance

Canara, a district

simply as a privateer, roaming the seas with a powerful

fleet,

and lising

b\-

plunder.

Thus

Ciipture

assisted,

ning of 1510.

Albuquerque made

At

first

his appearance

ofi'

the

coa.st in

the begin-

nephew
which was weU

anticipating a valiant resistance, he sent his

They discovered a

along with Timoja to take soundings.

fort

provided ^vith guns, and defended by 400 men, and not only had the hardihood
to attack, but the

good fortune to capture

commencement, and proved only the

first

This seemed a most auspicious

it.

of a series of fortunate events which

followed rapidly, and put Albuquerqiie in possession of this most important
locality, before

accounts,

he was required to strike a blow.

some conjuror or

According to the Portuguese

whose predictions were implicitly believed,

fakir,

had announced that Goa was destined shortly to become subject to

On the

faith of this prediction, the inhabitants

thought

instead of enduring the miseries of a siege which
to

make a voluntary

surrender.

it

foreigners.

a stroke of good policy,

must ultimately be

successful,

Accordingly, to the gi'eat but most agi'eeable

was received ashore by the population

had

Reception

surprise of Albuquerque, he

ciuerque.

becu their native prince, conducted in state to the gate, when he received the
keys,

and thereafter put in

posses.sion of the palace.

says nothing of the conjuror

;

and with

may have

and thus rendered defence

The Mahometan account

far greater probability represents the

capture as the necessary result of a surprise.

Albuquerque's nephew

The

fort captured

given them complete

impossible.

as if he

by Timoja and

command

of the city,

GOA CAPTURED.

Chap. VIII]

At

this time, however,

Yusnf Adil Shall having

it \v;i.s

died,

lo.st

183

almost as easily a«

was succeeded by

had been gained, ad.

it

his son Ismael Adil JShah,

who,

abont four months after the hasty surrender of Goa, collected an army estimated

Kumal Khan,

at 60,000.

whom

the general to

this

army was

denly made his appearance, and conducted the siege with so
Albu(i[uerque,

twenty days, finding

after

was glad

seriously threatened,
finally

from Cananore with a

.sail

iruich ability, that
fleet

fleet of

which had arrived from

twenty-three ships, and 1500

After landing at Onore, to assist at the celebration of Timoja

righting men.

taken.

In the course of the same year, having

prize.

collected all his forces, including several additional ships

Portugal, he set

^oa takeu
nnd le-

But he had no idea of

to evacuate the place.

abandoning so valuable a

intrusted, sud-

communication with the

his

1511.

s

marriage with the daughter of a native ([ueen, he h.ustened off to Goa, and,

anchoring before

a second time, immediately prepared for the

it

It

.issault.

took place before daybreak, and with such success, that the Portuguese entered
the city along with those of the defenders

who had been

a time every inch of gi'ound within the city
at the palace the fight
their retreat to the

was

alive

left

;

was furiously renewed,

mainland might be cut

The enemy

confusion.

was

lost

6000

;

.stationed outside.

disputed,

till

the defenders, fearing that

the Portuguese only

but the natives were

ti

and more especially

([uitted the place in the

off,

For

utmost

Not one Moor

fifty.

eated with great moderation.

Besides

recovering theu' property, they had the satisfaction of being placed under the

government of

their

countryman Timoja, who ruled more equitably than might

have been anticipated from his predatory habits.
dechired his intention to

The remaining

make Goa

Before departing, Albuquerque

the capital of Portuguese India.

exploits of Albuquerque, though they

had not India

for their Aibuqner-

theatre, are so intimately connected witli its history, that a short account of

them

is

here subjoined.

After returning to Cochin he began to prepare another

armament, and gave out that

was destined

to act against

Aden, which was

then, as it is

now, the key to the navigation of the Red Sea.

The importance

of the object

was

sufficient to justify all the preparations

but while preteiuling to

The

tion.

it

l(K)k to

the west, his eye

city of Malacca, situated

long been the most important

was

tion iigainst

^^'^

which he was making;

fixed in an opposite direc-

on the peninsula of the same name, had

emporium of the

rich countries lying further east

The Moors were still carrying on a lucrative traffic in that quarter
by means of it were almo.st able to compensate themselves for all the losses

than India.

;

:ind

which they had sustjiined from the Portuguese.
,

sufficient

wiiich he

to determine

ships

itself

Albuquercpie to undertake the important expedition

was now meditating, though the

might expect to derive from

On

This consideration was of

it

direct benefits

were of themselves a

which

sufficient

his

own country

inducement.

the 2d of May, 1511, Albuquerque set sail from Cochin with nineteen

and 1400 fighting men,

Of

these, however,

600 were natives of India.

Malacca was at this time under the rrovemment of a king of the

name

of

capture of

HISTORY OF INDIA.

IcSl

A

D. 1513.

Miihomcd, whu

by an
('ai>tureof

liad trcacherou.sly

officer called

iiiij)risoii(;il

a number

osteiisible object of Albu({uer(jue's expedition.

and was now defended by 30,000

these

means of

defence,

with, did not feel secure,
if

tliis

was ready

it

With

enemy he had

of the kind of

command

at his

boldest he

tlie

and 8000 cannon.

and sent a messenger to the viceroy

he came for merchandise,

commanded
outrage was the

have contained 100,000 inhabi-

soldiers,

Mahomed, aware

I.

Portugues*.',

waH one of

It

itself is said to

tants,

of"

To avenge

Diego Lo[)ez de Siqueira.

had ever undertaken, as the city

[Book

t^>

all

deal

to intimate that,

Albuquerque replied

by Siqueira,
and that on the delivery of them he would be prepared to say what more lie
wanted.
After some parleying, the captives were delivered, and Albuquerque
It demanded compensation for the outrage, and for the
sent his ultimatum.
expenses incurred in obtaining redress, and a site for the erection of a Portuthat the merchandise he required

guese

This

fort.

last

was some Portuguese

proposal the king refused to entertain, and Albuquerque

The Malays

immediately prepared to compel him.

but

it is difficult

artillery,

to believe

it

;

for

with

all

are said to have fought well,

the aid which they could derive from

poisoned aiTows, poisoned thorns, and mines of gunpowder laid in the

streets, their tens of

way

thousands gave

before a mere handful of Portuguese,

and the viceroy took triumphant possession of the
received and sent several embassies

He

to Pegu.

of these

there

left

is

;

among

the

also sent out several navigators

said to

While here he both

city.

latter,

one to Siam, and another

One

on exploring expeditions.

have been commanded by Magalhaens,

whom

to

it

suggested

the idea of his subsequent celebrated circmnnavigation.

On

•\i'"i^

iieroisraaud

the voyage home, Albuquerque lost his finest ship, which was nearl}' cut

across the kccl

position he

on a sharp rock

was obliged

otf the coast of

to pass the night

;

girl

whom

in India, he

In this perilous

and when the morning dawned, was

seen peiforming an act of humanity and heroism,

young

Sumatra.

by

sheltering with his

he had saved in the midst of the confusion.

When

found that advantage had been taken of his absence.

arms a

he arrived

Adel Khan

Goa with an army of 20,000 men, and the zamorin
was again in arms. Goa was easily relieved and the zamorin, despairing of
The subversion of the Mameluke djTiasty in
success, retired from the contest.
Egypt had deprived him of any fui-ther assistance from Ameer Hoossein, and
on looking round he saw no quarter to which he could appeal for new aid.
had resumed the

siege of

;

According to Ferishta,

tiiis

humbling conviction so completely overwhelmed

him, that his health gave way, and he died of a broken heart.
Hisexpedi
tion against

Aden.

fhe attack on Aden, which Albuquerque meditated, had been postponed
that of Malacca, but by no means abandoned.
Accordingly, on the 18th

^

to

,

February, 1513, he appeared before

board

1

it

with a

fleet

700 Portuguese, and 800 natives of India.

and hastened forward, in the hope
he might gain possession of the

that,

place.

by applying

He had

of twenty

He

lost

sail,

having on

no time in landing,

scaling-ladders to the

underrated

of

its

strength,

w^alls,

and the

ORMUZ CAPTURED.

Chap. VIII.

valour of

defenders,

its

and was obliged

to retire with a loss too severe to leave

He

him any inclination to renew the attempt.
degree by entering the Red Sea, which then,
on

vessel

compensated himself in some

for the first time,

saw an European

After re-

several valuable prizes.

maining; for some time at the island
of

a.d isu.

made

bosom, and

its

18;")

„

Kamaran, he returned and again

looked

upon Aden, but found

in

that

in the

tions

had been

that

it

interval its fortifica-

much improved

so

would have been madness

to attack

He

it.

therefore passed
Aden.

and continued

on,

On

India.

— Bruii et Hogenburg, 1574.

voyage to

his

reaching Gujerat he

made an

ineffectual application for permission

but did not attempt to enforce

to build a fort at Diu,

another project, on which his heart had long been
nestly that his attempts to accomplish
project

it,

as he

and

set,

had hitherto been

it

all

This

frustrated.

His

was the command of the Persian Gulf by the capture of Ormuz.

third attempt

upon

it

was made

in March,

The circumstances were

1514.

opportune; and when he demanded permission to complete the

though disposed to

nor,

was intent on ^^^^ °^
the more ear-

The name

comply.

of

resist, felt

the gover-

fort,

he had not the means, and was obhged to

Albuquerque was now famous

all

over the East; and

even Ismael, the I'ounder of the famous Persian dynasty of Sophi, sent him
an ambassador with valuable presents, and concluded a treaty with him.
Before leaving Ormuz, Albuquerque not only finished his

king to lodge

in inducing or forcing the

way Portuguese supremacy was completely
Under Albuquerque the Portuguese
more firmly

an empire, as

it

but succeeded

cannon within

In this

it.

established.

])ower extended

more widely, and was

It cannot, however,

seated, tiian before or since.

[)riety styled

all his

fort,

be with any pro-

was not composed of contiguous

immense

rather consisted of a vast niunber of isolated forts, scattered over an

extent of coast, and situated at wide distances from each other.
for the
gi-eat

this

The

sites

most part admirably chosen, and gave a complete control over

maritime thoroughfares from the East Indies to Eurojie.

mode

of rule

easily acquired,
stability

is

lias its

advantages over

territorial

but

teiTitories,

were
the

all

In some respects

possession.

It

is

more

and admits of being maintained at a cheaper rate; but

very precarious.

necessarily extinguished.
(juerque's regency, there

The moment the command at sea

This, however,

were no

is

lost,

its

it

is

was an event of which, during Albu-

s^Tn})tonis;

and the

fact that they

began to be

manifested not long after he disappeared from the scene, serves to impress us

with a higher idea of the wisdom and vigour of his government.

countrymen hailed him
Vol.

I.

as " Great."

all

When

his

impartial observers of his exploits were
24

Porttieuese

tha kuh.

:

mSTOilY OF INDIA

186
A.I),

i&i.":

ready to

[Book

His greatness, however, was

eclio their acc-lamations

1

now drawing

to a close.
Albuquer-

While at Ormuz

had suffered much from

lie

sickness,

que's Ul1163:;.

become

make him hasten

sufficiently serious to

and seemed unbroken

year,

grief tliat killed iiim.

Duke

of

title

It

In

in constitution.

is

ti-uth,

had applied

said that he

There was no

his departure.

He had

reason, however, to suspect a fatal termination.

and the sympUjms had
only passed his sixtieth
it

was not

disease but

to his sovereign for the

His enemies took advantage of the circum.stance to

of Goa.

was cherishing schemes of ambition, and had manifested, by

insinuate that he

the arrogance of his application, the treasonable purpose which he had at heart.

Once Duke of Goa, he would
whole East as

rule the

establish him.self in tliat Eastern metropolis,

There was

ab-solute master.

was enough

insinuations; but there

to form the

little

plausibility in these

groundwork of a

successful

court intrigue.

Albuquerque, wliile oppressed by sickneas, was yet dreaming

of a ducal

when he

title,

received the mortifying intelligence that the only

reward which he was to obtain

He was

no longer viceroy

seded to

make way

than he could bear

was

for all his services

and

;

as if this

for his mortal

and when the

;

On

in a dying state.

how

exclaimed, " See

it is

the

vessel in

first

which he

news of

my

To the

grave, then, old man, for

his last acts

mending
wliich

is

was

The shock was more

sailed arrived off Goa, he

his dismis.sal, he

is

fellow-men has brought

now

high time

to write a touching letter to

his son to his protection, he says:

of small

impose, and this

him and

it is

amount but
;

for me."

It

was thought he

advanced with such rapid
after the vessel

strides,

had crossed the

buried with great

pomp

at

Goa

said to have

me

my

into bad

fellow-men.

to the grave

!

"

One

of

in which, recom-

my property,
obligation which my ser\dces

"I bec^ueath to
affairs of India,

liim

they will speak for

micrht be able to reach Goa, but death

that he breathed his last almost immediately

bar,
;

:

King Emanuel

Mm the

In regard to the

great.

is

I also leave

dLsmis-sal.

was not enough, he had been super-

enemy, Lope Soarez.

Love to

!

was a summarj'

odour with the king, and love to the king into bad odour with
His death.

and

on the 16th of December, 1515.

He was

but in accordance with a request in his

will.

his remains, in 1566, v/ere transported to Lisbon.
Lope Soarez

After the death of Albuquerque, the Portuguese power began visibly to

succeeds.

decline.

"Up

to this time," says Faria

y

Sousa, "the gentlemen

had followed

the dictates of true honour, esteeming their arms the greatest riches

;

from

time forward, they so wholly gave themselves up to trading, that those

ought to have been captains became merchants."

and eager scramble

for riches,

There was, in

from the highest to the lowest

and public was held subordinate and made subservient
very

first

sail,

a general

to private interest.

fleet of thirteen sail, and, ha\'ing increased it

to twenty-seven

who

class of officials

proceedings of Soarez gave evidence of his incapacity.

brought with him a

ments

short,

this

by

He

The
had

reinforce-

proceeded, in accordance with the orders which he

DIEGO LOPEZ DE SEQUEIRA.

Chap. VIIL]

187

had received at Lisbon, on an expedition to the Red Sea, with the view of ad.
encountering a large
at Suez.

On

arriving

the keys.

Egypt was

Aden, he found a large breach

ott"

consequence of a siege which

(Tovemor of

the Sultan of

fleet wliicli

had

it

lately sustained

defenceless condition, that he actually

its

The compliments with which they were

his vanity, that

he returned

said to be fitting out

in the fortificsitions, in

and

;

so conscious Wi\s the

made Soarez an

offered

were

ofter of

so soothing to

keys thas tendered, and desired the governor

tlie

.

to

keep them

him

for

He

which admitted of no delay.

was at present on an expedition

as he

his return,

till

1521.

accordingly entered the

cruizing about to no purpose, retraced his .steps to Aden,

Red

ineffectual
atteiii))t

uiion .\<ien

Sea, and, after

and was very much

astonished when, on announcing his arrival to the complimentary governor, he

proud defiance to come and take them.

received, insteatl of the keys, a

The

explanation was soon given.
visit,

A bold

had, in the interval, been thoroughly repaired.

have put him in pos.session of

and he moved

it;

which were defenceless on

walls,

off to

attempt some petty

mitted him, for nearly a third of
liastened

back to Goa with

Tlie native princes,

tlie

fleet

liis

Even

captiu-e.

was destroyed

his former

stroke might yet

man

but Soarez was not the

tlie place,

The

this

make

to

was not

in a storm,

per-

and he

remainder.

who had been overawed by Albuquerque, were not

Ill

/.|.
to duscover the character of his .successor,

and take advantage

.slow rortupiew

(••T->i/^
of
Both Goa
it.

build a fort
at

Colombo

and Malacca were seriously threatened, though as much of ancient discipline
still

remained to ward

ott'

the danger.

these disasters were the submission of
to

become tributary

to Portugal,

The only occuiTences to compen.sate for
the King of Ceylon, who, in 1517, agreed

and allow a

fort to

be built at Colombo

;

and

the successful voyage of Fernando Perez de Andrada, who, in the same year,

penetrated to Canton, and laid the foundation of a lucrative trade.

Diego Lopez de

who

Se(iueira,

succeeded Soarez, was a

man

of a similar

temper, and instead of doing anything to retrieve the honour of the Portuguese
arms,

tarnishetl

appearing before

them
it

further

still

by a dastardly

manned by 3000 Portuguese, and 800

natives.

MuUik

Febniary, 1521, he sent a mes.senger to
permission to build a

fort,

The Gujerat admiral

much

from Diu, after

with one of the largest armaments which had ever sailed

under Portuguese colours in the Indian Ocean.

it.

retreat

and a menace, that
told

him

to

He had in all forty .ships,
On his arrival, on the 9th of
Eiaz, with the old re([uest for

if it

were

do his worst

;

refused, he

would

force

and must have been as

pleased as sur]irised when, instead of being attacked in the style of which

Almeiila and Albuipierque had given examples, he

saw the Portuguese

fleet

weigh anchor, and gradually disappear from the coast.
The fortiflcations, it
seems, had been strengthened and Lopez, after endeavouring to .shelter himself
;

by

calling a council of war,

which sanctioned

his cowardice, decided that the

attack was too hazardous to be attempted.

This disgraceful retreat was not

lost

upon the native

princes,

and

in the

Diego Lopez

from uin

;

188
A.I). l.Vil

HLSTORY OF INDIA,

coui'se of the

same year

formed against them.
Xative coin-

[Book

I.

Purtuji^uese .saw .several foniiiflahle conibination.s

tin;

Mullik. Eiaz

deemed

unnecessary any longer

it

seek

it)

the protection of his batterie.s at Diu, and, sailing out, converted the Portuguese

)>iii:it.i(>us
:i(?iiiii«t

tlie

retreat into a Hight, taking one of their ships

and disperaing the

Not

rest.

I'ortugueso.

with this

satisfied

he continued his course to

success,

where the Portu-

(Jlioul,

guese were engaged in building a factory, again defeated them, and remained
off the port

fni-

twenty days, cutting

and the Portuguese

communication Vjetween the

which kept iiovering

fleet,

or attemi)ting to force a

outside,

run much

risk,

but

The

the adjoining territory

all

without offering

became emboldened, and Adel Khan,

appearance once more in the vicinity of Goa.

his

fact^jry

battle,

In ])roportion as Portuguese pasillanimit\

pa.s.sage.

increased, their assailants

to

ott' all

city

was

1522, ma«L'

in

was too well

occupied,

fortifier 1

and once more

acknowledged the supremacy of the King of Bejapoor.
Naval
off

In

fight

1

527 the hopes of the Portuguese were much revived by a decisive

victors'

Choul.

gained at Ohoid over the Gujerat

Of

these, seventy-three

fieet,

which consisted of eighty-three

were burned, destroyed, or driven ashore.

Silveira, the victor, following his advantage,

Bombay now

bay, where

stands, to

ve.ssel.-s

Hector de

proceeded up to the head of the

Tannah, and then northwards to

Bas.sein,

levying contributions from both places, and compelling both to become tributary.

Three years

Antonio de

his brother,

after,

vessels, crossed the

sacked and burned

with a

Silveira,

bar of the river Taptee, and, forcing his

of fifty-one

fleet

way up

to Surat.

In the following year Daman, a large town situated on

it.

the same coast, shared the same

fate.

These, however, were only desultory attacks, preparatory to a gi-eat

Kxpeditioii

effcjrt

against Diu.

The King

about to be made for the capture of Diu.

of Portugal, iiTitated at

having been so often baffled in his attempts to take
it

The expedition had

attempted.

sent out peremptory

The preparations were on a
magnitude anything that the Portuguese had ever before

orders to obtain possession of
scale far exceeding in

it,

on any terms!

its

rendezvous in

Bombay

harbour, where

mustered 400 vessels of aU descriptions, having on board 22,200 men.

3600

soldiers

and 1400

sailors

were Europeans.

On

it

Of these,

the 16th February, 1531,

commanded by Nmino de Cunha, governor of India, arrived
Nine days before, it had attacked the town and island of Bet, or Be}t,

the expedition,
off"

Diu.

which

lies

not far from the south side of the entrance to the Gulf of Cutch.

and was strongly
of 18,000
Its faUure.

men

men and

sixty cannon to the enemy,

to the Portuguese.

disaster.

Among

both by nature and

fortified

The

art.

It

was taken with a

and with the

loss of

victory, however, great as it seemed,

loss

only twelve

was

in fact a

the twelve slain was Hector de Silveira, the hero of the

fleet

while the time lost was so diligently improved by the enemy, that Diu was

rendered

all

The defence was conducted by Mustapha Khan,
much courage and ability, that all the efforts of the

but impregnable.

an European Turk, with so
besiegers proved fruitless,

and they found

it

necessary, at the end of a month,

4

J

BAHADUR SHAH.

Chap. VIII.

According to the Portuguese accounts,

to retire.

the sole cau.se of

failui-e

;

Mahometan

but the

180
tlie

strength of the place

was

ad.

1534

add that the immediate

historians

cause of raising the siege was the approach of Bahadm- Shah, then ruler of

This so frightened the Portuguese,

Gujerat, at the head of a formidable army.

that they

made a

tiiese is said

to

precipitate retreat, leaving their
"

have been

avenge themselves

and committed

coast

One

of

the largest ever before seen in India, and recjuired

a machine to be constructed for conveying
ti)

gmis behind them.

for their defeat,

it

to

The Portuguese,

Champanere."

bm-ned a great number of towns upon the

fearful devastation

Notwithstanding their discomfiture, the Portuguese had not abandoned the

naiu-uiur,

k"

make themselves masters of Diu. If direct force
failed, policy might yet succeed.
Chand Khan, a brother of Bahadur, was at
first set up as a competitor for the throne, and when this failed, a league was

liope of

being yet able to

f

Gujemt

formed with Hoomayoon, King of Delhi, who, regarding Bahadur as a revolted

make

Bahadur, thus pressed on

had invaded Gujerat.

vassal,

his choice

between submission

He

the Portuguese.

King of

to the

preferred the latter;

was obliged

to

and submission

to

all sides,

Delhi,

and accordingly,

in 1534, concluded

a treaty by which he ceded Bassein, which was thenceforth to be the only port
at which vessels sailing from India were to

He

pay duties and take out

clearances.

further engaged not to assist the Turkish fleets in the Indian seas.

made the Portuguese
his friends, but made him more obnoxious than ever to the King of Delhi, who,
following up the advantages which he had gained, obliged him to take refuge
This treaty gave him only a very partial relief

It

.

.

.

.

^ir

aiii.an.-e

vrith thu

portugtieso

Here, as the assistance of the Portuguese was indispensable to him, he

in Diu.

was obliged

by giving them permission to build a fortified factory.
As the work proceeded Bahadur became more and more uneasy, and besides
to purchase

it

entering into communication with the Turks,
the destruction of his Portuguese

allies.

The

is

said to have formed a plot for

stjxtements on the subject

Portuguese and the Mahometans vary so much, that

it is difficult

by the

to pronoimce

The probability is, that both parties were anxious to be quit
and that thus there were plots and counter-plots. All that can

between them.
of each other,

now

be considered certain

was on a

visit to the

is,

tlmt a frav commenced, and that Bahadur,

Portuguese admiral, having fallen or leaped into the

who

sea, a

Portuguese sailor threw a boarding-pike at him, which pierced his skull, and hu
killed
ciii

him on the

spot.

bono, the decision

wlille

Bahadur

Were

would necessarily be given against the Portuguese;

lost his life,

from them.

It has

for

they gained the island of Diu.

They had not been long
it

the question to be decided on the principle of

when an attem])t was made to wrest
been mentioned that when Bahadur repented of his
in possession

Solyman the
The application

cimcession to the Portuguese, he applied for aid to the Turks.

Magnificent was then upon the throne of Constantinople.
therefore could not

have been made under more favourable circumstances.

death

HISTORY OF INDIA.

190
AD.

1537.

[Book

Solyinan was a great and a successful warrior, and his irnajrination fired at
idea of estahlisliing an additional emj)ire in the Eant

Turkisii ox-

news of Bahadur's death

taken, the

arrived, but

tliis

inination to

fit

For

of Diu.

out an armament on such a

this pur[)ose instructions

8tep.s

tlie

were

only confirmed the deter''

peditioii to

Gujerat.

Before any

I.

.scale

as

would insure the conquest

were given to Solyman, the Egyptian

P^=9^-_

General View of Diu.

pacha, to

— Brun et Hogenburg, 1574.

commence preparations immediately

of seventy-six galleys, having 7000 Turkish soldiers on board,

fleet

equipped; and, sailing under the

command

There a

in the port of Suez.

was forthwith

of the pacha, arrived off

Diu

in the

beginning of September, 1537.
Portuguese

Thouo'li the dano-er

had been

foreseen, the Portucjuese councils

were at

this

besieged
in Diu.

time so dilatory and distracted, that no adequate preparations were made to

meet

it.'

The government of India had just been conferred on Garcia de

Noronha, and the time which ought to have been devoted to the supply of

Diu with everything necessary to

its

was spent

defence

in petty squabbles

The consequence was, that when the

between the old governor and the new.

Turki.sh fleet arrived, the garrison consisted only of about 600 men,

them

sickly.

Nor was

so deficient, that nothing could save the place

which the Portuguese had to

was

fear.

A

Nor was

from capture

if

the siege

the Tm-kish the only

was

armament

Gujerat army, estimated at 20,000 men,

in the vicinity, ready to co-operate

Such was the apparently desperate

Heroic

of

Both ammunition and provisions were

this the worst.

persisted in or relief did not arrive.

many

with the besiegers.
state

of matters

when

the governor,

defence.

Antonio de
in

the

fort.

Silveira,

unable to maintain a footing in the town, shut himself up

In himself, however, he was equal to a host, possessing not only

military talents of the highest order, but also the rare gilt of infusing his

own

who were under

Not only was every
soldier within the garrison prepared to do his duty, but the women, forgetting
the feebleness of their sex, fearlessly encountered every danger, and worked with
their own hands in repairing the walls as they crumbled beneath the jwwerful
lieroic spirit into all

his

command.

SIEGE OF DIU.

Chap. VIII]

Turkish

It is told of

artillery.

by night she viewed

that

instead of giving

retin-ned to lier post,

jiside,

all

way

Anna

posts,

tlie

She even saw

encouraofino- the soldiers.
ball, but,

one lady,

to the

and only

191

Fernandez, wife of a physician,

and during the

own

lier

stood by

assaults

down by a cannon-

son struck

agony she must have

after the assault

a.d. 1545.

drew

felt,

body

his

had been repulsed went to

bury him.
It

was

however,

imi)ossible,

the

that

defence

could

much

last

The
longer.
°

Every new

assault thinned the

numbers of the

siege ot

Diu

.

garrison,

and

raised

many

scarcely as

remained as could make even a show of resistance, when a breach was nuide.

The governor saw

way
was

nothinij befoie

him but death or surrender, and was

to the gloomiest forebodings,

when, to his uns])eakable delight, the siege

The Turkish commander, when

raised.

by the

dispirited

his greatest efforts, received the startling intelligence that
fleet

was

at

hand

and, without staying to ascertain

;

the utmost precipitation.
circulated, strange to say,

who commanded

It

ffivino-

its

failure of

one of

a powerful Portuguese

accuracy,

made

with

ofi'

turned out to be a false rumour, invented and

by Khojah Zofar, a renegade Turk, of Italian

the Gujerat forces.

origin,

His pride had been repeatedly offended

by the arrogance of Solyman Pacha; and he had, moreover, ascertained that the
Turks were determined,

if

they gained the place, to retain

There was thus only a choice of mastere

])ossession.

;

as a

it

permanent

and as the Portuguese

seemed the more tolerable of the two, Zotar had given them the preference.
After Khojaii Zofar had rid himself of his Turkish

by

allies

this stratagem,
^

he entered into friendly communications with the Portuguese, but at the same

Attcinptto
the
gmrisou.

I'Oisoii

time took several steps whicli convinced them that enmity was rankling at his

He was

heart

in the highest possible

favour with the King of Gujerat; and

feeling satisfied that that sovereign's complete

ascendency in the peninsula

own aggrandizement, was

prepared to adopt any means,

wouUl best secure

his

however unscrupulous, that promised
attempt was an infamous

an immense

When this

cistern

from the town

Portuguese.

laid,

His

first

which he endeavoured to poison the water of
to the magazine.

fire

which would have comj)letely

The Portuguese objected

and the foundation

;

he had no sooner completed his preparations,

than he made an open declaration of war.

Mascarenhas, the

m

the

which supplied the garrison, and to set

a quarrel being thus

in 1545,

expel

plot failed, he attempted to build a wall

isolated the fort
foi-

plot, in

to

the cn-cumstances

commander
;

of Diu,

made

the best aiTanorements

but his means being inadecpiate, he

lost

iios-sible

no time

in

acquainting Juan de Castro of his danger. Zofar, at the same time, aware of his
advantage, resolved to assault the place before succour could an-ive.
With this

view he prepared an immense
lery,

caused

it

it

with heavy

to be steered opposite to the .sea-bastion, in the

such a breach in

clumsy device,

floating battery, and, filling

it

as

would give him access into the

for before

he could bring

it

artil-

hope of making
It

proved a very

to bear the garrison

made a night

fort.

R<^'»»'^' »«

;

192
A

D. 1.04V

HISTORY OF INDIA.

atta-k upon

and, settin;^

it,

fire to

blew

it,

to complete the wall already mentioned,

kept up
an incessant and crushinf;
*
"^

Zofar's
efforts to

was of extraordinary

takb uia

size,

killed the

it nit/j tlie air.

and

on the

his great

come and witness

fort to

'

said Uj

it is

Happily

fly.

gun did more harm

killed

was

far

It proved hotter

it.

I)usillanimous prince

neiskiiie.i

fort.

Every shot from

have shook the

for the besieged,

was

on the way back

success, that

to the Portuarrived.

;

and the

which lighted on

his tent

and never looked behind him

fled,

A

to his capital.

ball

still

more fortunate shot

This gave the exhausted garrison some respite; but

short duration, for

Roumi Khan,

Zofar's

.son,

It

he hafl invited him to

work than he had anticipated

by a chance

so terrified

one of his attendants, that he

Zofar himself

till

killed

was

it

of

succeeded him, and, not satisfied

with the slow process which had hitherto been pursued, made a general
It failed,

island,

one of their shot

own party than

to his

seems that Zofar had become so confident of

lie

mount it with cannon, which
One of the nieces of ordnance

t<>

While the siege was thus proceeding, the King of Gujerat

guese.

was

Frenchman, and the gunner who succeeded him managed so awk

wardly that

and

Zofar's next plan

i.

and bein^ managed by an expert French renegade,

did con.siderable damage.

and made pieces of the

fire

[B<jok

new attempt

but scarcely a day passed without some

assault.

to force an

entrance into the place.

The

had now lasted several months, while the preparations at Goa

siege

proved so dilatory, that the only

progiess of

commanded by Fernando de Castro, the
govcmors son, and the other by Don Alvaro. The latter consisted of 400 men,
and brought supplies of ammunition and provision, when they were just on the
point of being exhausted.
The Portuguese were so elated that they disdained
to

be cooped up any longer in the

against his better
ness,

judgment

to lead

and retreated with such

and almost compelled Mascarenhas

fort,

them

out.

They paid dearly

precipitation, that they

had the greatest

This domestic misfortune seems to have had the effect of hastenincr

De

enemy

fi'om entering the fort along

was the governor's own

but

it

with them.

son.

Castro's departvu-e from Goa.

What

the cause of delay

possessed in the East,

any

other,

first

was

and the

in the

acquisition of

not exjDlained

is

_

_

tlirce Sail, lost

coast,

but at

doul)tful.

course,

.

^

cost

them more than

His

fleet,

which consisted of

some time in committing barbarities at various

last,

in

loio,

was observed from Diu.

and gained a signal

and the Portuguese

for the

ninet}'

.

After relieving the garrison,

of his troops

which had

which the Portuguese

most imminent danger, Ms prepai-ations were

time considered to be complete.

l)y

L'astro

was

gives a poor idea of his energy and resources to learn, that at the end of

eight months, while one of the most important stations

De

difficulty

the

slain

relieved

for their rash-

Among

in preventing the

Dill finally

two

detachments, the one

insignificant

the siege

relief sent to the garrison consisted of

De

victory.

The

localities

result

on the

was not long

Castro marched out at the head

The

fall

of the

town followed of

acted, as they almost invariably did

on such occa-

DEATH OF DE

Chap. VITI.]

by indulging

sions,

" Tlie

in horrid atrocities.

193

CASTliU.

women

e.scaped not the fate of

ad

1570.

the men, and children were slain at their mothers' breasts."

The victory which De Castro had gained was not very remarkable. His
troops bore a considerable proportion to those of the enemy, and with the superiority of discipline which they possessed, it would have been disgraceful to him
But the Portuguese,

not to have succeeded.

had

their power,
;i

for several years before

in consequence of the decline of De

enjoyed few opportunities of celebrating
feelings of the governor,

and therefore entered readily into the

victory,

who
a Roman

thought himself entitled to be received at

The gates and

triumph.

streets

c-wtro-s

ceiei.rati...,

"l^y""^"'

Goa with all the magnilicence of
were hung with silk, all places

resounded with music and salvos of cannon, and vessels gaily adorned covered

The governor on arriving

the harbour.

presented with a crown of laurel,

branch of

with a

it

which he carried

he had borne

crucifix, as

the royal standard

like

in the

;

walked one Friar Anthony,

in front

and

fiofht,

windows throwing

On

him with sweet water.

Queen

hand

The governor walked on

the ladies from the

Catherine,

it

was

with which he encircled his head, and a

besi(ie

behind was Jazar Khan, a Moorish

;

captives in chains.
silks,

in his

at the gate, under a rich canopy,

him an
chief,

leaves of gold

officer

bearing

followed by 600

and

and

silver,

rich

upon him, and sprinkling

flowers

reading the account of this pompous procession,

"De

of Portugal, shrewdly remarked, that

He

a Christian and triumphed like a heathen."

Castro had overcome

did not long .survive his

His death

and charac-

trunnph

;

and was on

his death-bed

when

the honours sent out from Portugal to

reward his victory were announced to him at Goa.
man, but

this

failing

He must have

was compensated by many good

t«r.

been a vain

He was

qualities.

so

zealous for the public service, that gi-ief for the miserable condition into which
it

had

his

fallen is said to

have broken his heart

honesty by dj-ing in extreme poverty.

and he gave the best proof of

;

One

of his last acts

was

to

make

a

formal protest, which he desired to be recorded, to the effect that "he had never

made

u.se

any other man's money, nor driven any trade t<»
The practices of which he thus solemnly declared his

of the king's nor

increase his

own

stock."

innocence, undoubtedly prevailed to a great
officials,

and go

far to account for the rapidity

extent

among

the

with which Portugal

Portuguese
fell

from the

From time to time, however, .she
and showed how much she might .still have

high place which she once held in the East.

seemed to resume her ancient

spirit,

been able to accomplish, had

men

intriguers,

In

of spirit and integi'ity. instead of mere court

been placed at the helm of

1570,

when

affairs.

Luis de Ataida was \'iceroy, one of the most fomiidable

combmations into which the native princes had ever entered, was triumphant!}defeated.

It

was headed by the Deccan Kings of Ahmednuggm* and Bejapoor,

and a new zamorin, who, undeterred by the fate of his predecessor, was bent on
recovering all that had been wi-ested from him.
Their common object was to
expel the Portuguese from the country, but each had his
VoL.

I.

own

separate griev25

^'"m'""''

tivepmices.

—

194
A.D

li70.

HISTOKVr OF INDIA.

ance; and hence, thovigli the attack was

important stations

—

V)y tlie

is

the only one to which

Ally Adil Shah,

who

was mafle

it

at Choul

—by

I.

at thret

tlie zarnorin,

which overawed his capital at Calicut

and by the King of Bejapoor, at Goa.
memorable,

.siiiiultaiieons,

King of Ahniednuggnr,

at Cliale, wliere a fort liad been erected

l'\)niii(lable

[?K,f,K

The

it is

as in every respect the

last,

most

necessary liere to advert.

then sovereign of Bejapoor, having assembled an

wfis

attack on
(ioa by Ally

army

of 100,000 foot

and 35,000

2140 elephants and 350 pieces of

horse,

Adil Shah.

cannon, suddenly descended from one of the passes of the Western Ghauts

intfj

the Concan, and then, turning south, marched without of)position upon Goa.

No

preparations had been

made

for this formidable attack

;

and the governor, on

mustering his European troops, found that they did not exceed 700.
these he

had about

1

300 monks, whose zeal and fanaticism compen.sated in some

number

degree for their want of discipline, and a considerable

of natives, on

whom

no great confidence could be placed.

His great security was

in his insular

position, which, so long as

command

impo.ssible for

enemy

the

to attempt

the mainland.

he held the

Against this

the Portuguese, aware that

it

Ally Adil Shah directed

side, accordingly,

if

all his

heroic valour

was

It

was only a temporary

and by one great

wliich the

effort, in

a short time, took his

for

;

into

and, after lingeiing

;

More than 12,000 of

final departure.

most

them

displayed, cut their assailants to pieces, or drove

Ally Adil Shah had no heart to renew the combat

sea.

succeas

they made good their footing the place must sur-

render, mustered all their strength,

for

made

an approach on any side but the one which lay nearest to

succeeded in passing over into the island.

the

at sea,

and with such overpowering numbers and perseverance, that 5000 men

efforts,
It is repulsed

Besides

his troops

had

The attacks on Choul and Chale were equally unsuccessful. New
lustre was thus added to the Portuguese arms and many who looked only at
the surface imagined that their power had never been established on a firmer
perished.

;

Those

basis.

who

looked deeper could not but see that the whole fabric wac

undermined and tlireatening
Causes of
Portuguese
decline.

It

ruin.

would be out of place here

to

examine in

detail the various causes to

which the overthrow of Portuguese supremacy in the East
few, however,

may

One

be briefly mentioned.

and

By

all

attributable.

of the most obvious

parative indifference of the Portuguese themselves.

the Cape of

is

Good Hope, India was the great goal

for

When

they

the com-

is

first

which they were

doubled
stiiving,

the exertions of which they were capable were exclusively devoted to

the discovery of Brazil a

new

interest

was

created,

A

it.

and gradually became

the more absorbing because the more lucrative of the two.

A

smaU

state like

Portugal was unable to superintend the affairs of two mighty empires, situated
at the opposite extremities of the globe

;

and experience seems to have proved

that in giving the preference to the American continent she
choice.

own

Both empires, indeed, are now

race of kings

still sits

enthroned.

lost to

her

;

made

the wiser

but in that of the West her

Chap.

PORTUGUESE DECLINE.

TX]

may be

Another caase of Portuguese decline in the East
Eui'opean

and became subject

Cardinal, Portugal lost her national independence,

bigoted and t^Taimical rule of Philip

wake

of

II.

While her domestic

see all her interests

interests

were

sacrificed,

decline

cause of rapid decay in the hostility which

Pliilip's

not to be

it is

In connection

to.

we

with the degrading bondage to which Portugal was thus reduced,

see a tliirJ

an'ogance provoked in other

The United Provinces of Holland,

states.

Causes of

from which she could not possibly reap

supposed that those of her colonies were duly attended

European

a.d. isso

to the

She was thus obliged to

of Spain.

more powerful neighbour, and

lier

sacrificed in the prosecution of objects

any advantage.

found in the state of

In 1580, after the short and inglorious reign of Henry the

politics.

follow in the

195

throwing

after

off his yoke,

continued at open war with him, and saw no quarter in which they could so
effectually resent the wrongs,

To the same quarter the eyes

suffered, as in the East.

been turned

was

to

and

;

and indemnify themselves

establish

an independent

moment when

had she been

Rome,

the friendly or prudential con-

all

had prevented them from claiming a share in the Portuguese

Indian monopoly ceased

left

to

have any weight, and their determination to

traffic

was openly avowed.

in the East

Thus, at the

Portugal Wfis scarcely able to maintain her position, even

own

alone to deal with native powers after her

herself brought face to face with

these

of the English had long

have en.slaved tliem by a double yoke of the most intolerable description

siderations wliich

saw

they had

they had triumplied gloriously over the Armada, which

after

—the yoke of Spain and the yoke of

very

for the losses

two most formidable

fashion, she

competitors.

To

we now tmn.

CHAPTEll
Attempts

to roach India

north-east

—The

IX.

by other routes than that of the Cape —Their

south-west passage practicable but circuitous

Cape generally recognized

ENRY
1

tlie

failure

— Superiority

"of

the passage by the

— First voyages of the English and Dutch by that route.
VII.

of Enghind had the reputation of being one of

ii'i
most enlightened
1

accordingly.

1

monarchs

Columbus hoped

/!•

of

lus

vance the fvmds necessary for carrying
all his talents,

was of

age,

i-iand ni lum,

to find a patron at once able to

appreciate his grand scheme of discovery,

tunately Henry, with

by the north-west and

it

and disposed
into effect.

to ad-

Unfor-

a penurious, avaricious temper,

and

remained so long in suspense between the advantages to be gained by the
enterprise if

it

should succeed, and the pecuniary

loss to

which

it

would subject

Maritime
enter|)ri»e

inKngiaui.

HISTORY OF JNDIA.

196
A

I)

1408.

him

if it

I.

should prove a failure, that he lost the opportunity, and only Kignified

his intention to accef)t the services of the great

no longer

(BrjOK

possiVjle for

him

Genoese navigator when

it

was

Before Bartolommeo ColumljUK wjul'l

to obtain them.

return to announce the success of his mission to England, the discovery of the

New World

had ah-eady been achieved, and

his illustrious Vjrother

was

prose-

cuting a second voyage.

The

(^harter

disappointrn.:;nt

which Henry

appears in the readiness with which

felt

granted by

Henry VII.

he entered into a rival scheme of maritime discovery.

A

Venetian of the name

John Cabot, or Giovanni Caboto, had been settled for some time at Bristol,
and to him and his three sons, Ludovico, Sebastiano, and Sanzio, the English

of

monarch, on the 5th of March, 1496, granted a charter, empowering them, in the

most unlimited terms,

to

make voyages

no great liberality in the grant, for
to bear

it

cost

him nothing

any part of the expense, he was niggardly enough

of the whole profit.

Simply

There was

of discovery in his name.

for the privilege of sailing

and while he

;

refu.se<l

to stipulate for a fifth

under the Englisli

flag,

and becoming governors under the English crown of any lands which might be
discovered, they

another to share
enterprise in

were to bear the whole
it

with them

England at

for
Newfoviiul-

profit allow

maritime

even when subjected to such rigorous

his three sons,

were able

to

out five vessels

fit

an experimental voyage to the West.

As a mercantile specvilation the voyage entirely failed but by the discovery
Newfoundland and of the west coast of North America, a foundation was laid
;

land (liscov
ered.

and

and in the event of

It gives a high idea of the spirit of

this period, that

terms, a Venetian stranger,

loss,

of

for the series of colonies or plantations which,

under the united influences of

have made

freedom and commerce,

the language and not a few of the

most valued

institutions of

triumphant in

western

the

England
world.

The accounts of the early proceedings
of the Cabots are so indistinct, that
it

to say

is difiicult

whether one or

two voyages were made.

If,

as seems

most probable, there were two, the
latter,

which took place in 1498,

commanded by

Sebastian,

w^as

whose fame

as a navigator ultimately thi'ew that

of his
shade.
Sebastian Cabot

Sebastian

— Syer's History of Bristol.

small, that he quitted the service of

At

and brothers into the

this

encouragement

England

Cnbot.

the high sense entertained of his merits
the Indies.

father

time,

he

received

for that of Spain,

by giving him a

however,

was

the
so

which showed

seat in the coimcil of

CASPAR CORTEREAL.

Chap. IX.]

About the same time when EughuiJ
and faltering

Columbus

steps, to follow

in

197

wa.s attempting,
liis

though with slow ad

i.mh.

was

career of discovery, Portugal

not so entirely absorbed in the prosecution of discoveries in the direction of Africa
•^

rortug\iese

which might be anticipated from the

as to be insensible to the vast changes
^

covery of a western world.

If,

,

dis-

according to the idea then generally entertained

by geographers, the northern extremity of America formed a rocky headland,
with an open sea beyond
iliscover

then

it,

the efforts which Portugal had

all

attempts to
discover the

,

,

made

north-west

^"^^®

to

a passage to India by the south-east must prove in a great measure

abortive, because a

Western Europe

much

nearer passage would enable the maritime nations of

to secure

the advantages for which she had been striving.

sill

This was a danger too obvious and imminent to be overlooked
the Portuguese no

and therefore

;

New

sooner were acquainted with the discovery of the

World, than they determined on an exploratory voyage to the north-west, for
the purpose of ascertaining whether such a practicable passage existed, and
it

did, of securing

a monopoly of

it

on the grovunl of priority of discovery.

The only Portuguese navigators wliose names

•ii'taken with this view,

were a father and

house of Cortereal.

Of the

11
three

/>

ftither,

known, and hence, probalily because
for fact, it has

Jolin

1

sons,

Vaz

voyages under-

figure in the
•

^

belonging to

I'llthe illustrious

Cortereal, scarcely anything

fiction has

made

New-

The proceedings of

his first voyage.

his

In 1500, having been furnished by King

Emanuel with two

first

he touched,

C'ortereal.

is

son Caspar are better authenticated.
ships,

Caspar

been employed as a substitute

been confidently maintained that he reached the shores of

foundland even before Columbus

if

at Terceira, one of the Azores,

and

then sailed north-west, in the ho]ie of finding an open ocean, by which he could

Having reached land in tlie ^jarallel of 50°, he
Both fi-om its po.sition, and the
course northwards along the coast.

penetrate directly to India.

pursued his

description given of

it,

must have formed part of Labrador, which, accord-

it

ingly, in the earliest

maps, bears not this name, but that of Corterealis.

advanced to latitude

60°,

fioating

mountains of

natives,

and canned them

but being deterred

from proceeding

ice

the rigour of the climate an<l

b}'

farther,

he seized fifty-seven of the

off to Portugal, whei*e, to his disgrace

sovereign, they appear to have been

employed as

He

He

slaves.

and that of

his

arrived at Li-sbon

on the 8th of October, 1501, and immediately resolved on another voyage.
Early in spring, having completed his preparations, he again set

two

vessels,

reached.

and steered directly

So

far the

for the

sail

with his

most northerly point he had previously

voyage was prosperous; but immediately

a

\'iolent

storm, in a sea covei'ed with icebergs, obliged the vessels to separate.

That

in

which Ga.spar

after,

sailed Wivs never heard of

As .soon as tidings of
name of Miguel, hastily

tlie

disaster reached Lisbon, a

fitted

out three vessels, and set

object of searching for the missing ship,

which Gaspar had began

younger brother, of the

On

sail,

with the double

and following up the course of discovery

arriving at that

arm

of the Atlantic which

Miguel

^^^
A.D. 1517.

lll.STOJJV

]>iaiiches

off"

OF INDIA.

[Book

I.

between the coasts of Greenland and Labrador, the vessels parted

comi)any, in order that each mi<^ht explore a separate entrance.
dient seemed judicioas, ])ut the result jjioved
vessels returned 'to Portugal:

A

fate as Gasj)ar.

The expeOnly two of the

disa.stroas.

Miguel appears to liave met the same

in the third

third h)rother, Vasco Eanes, inspired

by the

heroic spirit of

his family, volunteered to

head a new expedition

enough had already been

sacrificed in enteq)ri.ses the .succe.ss of

now more than

problematical, refased

liis

;

consent,

but the king, tiiinking that

which seemed

and the Portuguese

desisted

from any further attempt to discover a north- we.st [)assage to India.

Henry VIII.

Shoi'tly after the accession of

British

attempt was made to revive the

to the

during the latter years of his

more congenial

tions

had allowed to

his long reign English

to the

maritime

The only important exception

discovery presents an almost continuous blank.

an expedition

but other occupa-

langui.sh,

to his taste, though less conducive to his honour, soon

began to engross Henry's attention, and during

is

England an

maritime enterpnse, which his father

spirit ot

life

to the throne of

Sebastian Cabot had probably

north-west in 1517.

expected that Spain, to which he had transferred his services, would employ

them
If

an endeavour to ascertain the practicability of a north-west passage.

in

tliis

was

Spain was

his hope, it

ac(][uiring in

was disappointed
the more genial

;

for the magnificent territories

and the immen.se

latitude of Mexico,

wealth which had in consequence began to flow into her treasury,
inclination to prosecute a hazardous

little

regions of the North.

satisfaction to learn that

He was

confident of success

on the

fair

Thomas
ordinate

memorial

Peart,

in the frozen

;

liis

and

it,

and returned to England, where he

services,

again volunteered, were accepted.

after entering

Hudson's Bay, considered him-

to Cataia, or China, to which, according to his

own

strong

under whom, as Vice-admiral of England, he held only a sub-

command, and a

him to retui-n.
The failure
to

way

her

"both could and would have gone," when the opposition of Sir

expression, he

Robert

abandon

to

had the
self

and doubtful enterprise

left

Cabot, however, having gained his earliest laurels in

was determined not

this field,

which

failure of courage

on the part of

Henry

of this expedition seemed to justify

liis

crew, obliged

in the a^^athy he

had prcviously manifested, and ten additional years had passed away, when
his attention was once more called to the subject by an English merchant of the

name

of Robert

settled in

Thome, who,

London.

after a long residence at

the practicability of reaching the East Indies

from the Atlantic.

had

finally

This gentleman, while in Spain, had formed a close con-

nection with Sebastian Cabot, and become thoroughly
to

Se\Tlle,

Seeing

how completely the

imbued with

his ideas

by some northern

subject

had

a.s

outlet

fallen into abeyance,

he presented a memorial to the king, in which, after adverting to the natural
desire

which

all

princes have to extend their dominions,

and which

himself had evinced by his recent expedition to France, he thus proceeds:

Hemy

—

——

THORNE'S MEMORIAL TO HENRY VIIL

TX]

Chap.

Now

"

I,

considering

your noble courage and

tliis

199

desire,

and

by a

ceiving that yoiu' grace may, at your pleasiu-e, to your greater glory,

godly raeane, with
subjects, amplifie

and

duety to mamfest

hath beene hid; which
discovered divers

winne

shall

new

grace,

number of

that with a small

is,

and your subjects

may

ships there

Thorne«
memorial to
Henry vi 11.

be

infinite profite.".

thus announced rather more pompously than the com-

paratively trite ideas composing

seem to

it

justify,

way

one

is left

was simply the

possibility

The memorial accordingly thus

by a voyage northwards.

of reaching the East

1527.

lands and kingdomes, in which without doubt your grace

perj3etual glory,

continues: — "There

your

secret unto

so-called " secret,"

The

know it is my bounden
i'ii-i
T
which hitherto, as I suppose,

inrich this youi* sayd realme, I

•/>!•
this

^ d
"

labour to your grace, or any of your

cost, perill, or

little

per-

also

which

to discover,

into the Northe; for'

is

by other
the Indies and Seas

that of the foure partes of the worlde, three partes are discovered

For out of Spaine they have discovered

princes.

Occidental!,

by

and out of Portingall

this part of the Orient

Tiie

the Indies and Seas Orientall; so that

all

and Occident they have encompassed the worlde."

North being thus the only

field of

maritime discovery not foreclosed,

the memorial, after adducing several pithy reasons
diately occupy

The

really the

why Henry

sliould

imme-

enters into an explanation of the different courses which

it,

might

vessels fitted out for discovery

cipated.

all

first

crowning

take,

object, of course,

results that

to pass the pole

is

Thome makes

Mr.

difficulty,

and the

"If they will go toward the Orient, they

light,

;

might be

but of

this,

though

and then proceeds:

shall injoy the region of all the ins

mid - day,

and from thence they

may

goe and proceede to the land of the Chinas, and from tlience to the land of

Cathaio Orientall, which

of

is

all

the maine land most Orientall that can be

And

reckoned from our habitation.

navigation, following the coasts that
fsill

in with Malaca,

lowing

tiie

and

if

from thence they doe continue their

retume toward the Occident, they

so with all the Indies

way may retume

hither

which we

by the Cape

And

they shall compass the whole worlde.

if

of

call

Orientall,

Buona Speransa

;

shall

and

fol-

and thus

they will take their course after

they be past the Pole toward the Occident, they shall goe to the backe side of
the

New

untill

And

found land, which of

was discovered by your

grace's subjects,

they come to the backe side and South Seas of the Indies Occidentall.
so continuing their voyage,

Magellan to this countrey

And

late

if

;

and

may retume

they

so they

through the Streight of

compass also the world by

tliis

way.

they goe the thirde way, and after they be past the Pole, goe right

toward the Pole Antartique, and then decline toward the lands and islands
situated between the Tropikes
shall

and under the Equinoctiall, without doubt they

find there the riciiest lands

stones, balmes, spices,

and

islands of the world, of golde, precious

and other thinges that we here esteeme most

out of strange countries, and

may

views as

to a iiorth-

,

Tartarians that extend toward the

anti-

returne the same way."

;

which come

The conclusion

is:

em

passage

*> r.'

.'»

200
A.D. 1547.

HISTOIIV OF INDIA.

"By

this

it

appeareth, your grace

liatli

[liOOK

not onely a great advantage of

but also your subjects shall not travell half of the

riches,

way

tliat <jther

I

tin;

doe

which go round about as aforesayd."
This memorial, though containing

Etrectsof

that

little

new and

is

mucli

tliat

Is

Tlioriio'a

memorial.

eiToneous, seemed

worthy of quotation, both becaase

of the views entertained

by the

best geographers of the period,

appears to have had the effect of bestin-ing

maritime discovery.

As

led to

it

are scanty in the extreme,

it

gives a good account

it

is

Henry

no important

make a

to

silence lies buried another expedition, undertaken, a

it

further.

few years

expense, not of the crown, but of a wealthy inliabitant of London,

an appearance
for the task

it

In similar
after,

at the

who gave

it

and fortune were induced
associates were well qualified

so attractive that the youths of family

embark along with him.

to

it

final effort of

and the accounts of

results,

unnecessary to notice

and because

Neither he nor his

which they had undertaken; and

disa.ster

famine reduced them to the dire necessity of cannibalism.
to cast lots for the next victim,

when

followed di.saster

till

They were preparing

the capture of a French ve&sel furnished a

small remnant with provisions and the means of regaining their native land.

On

Maritime

the accession of

Edward

VI., in

1547. an era

more favourable to mari-

enterprise
uiuier Ed-

time enterprise was anticipated, and would doubtless have been realized had his

w.ird VI.

been prolonged.

life

Sebastian Cabot, as ardent and sanguine as ever, had

and the youthful monarch, smitten with kindred enthusiasm, had appointed him grand-pilot of England, with a liberal .salary.
Under the stimulus
arrived

;

thus applied, a

new scheme

of discovery

by London merchants, "men

ported

was soon arranged and zealoasly sup-

of great

wisdom and

graxity."

Robert

Thorne, in the memorial above quoted, had pointed out three different du*ections
in

which experimental voyages might be made.

been

tried,

Hitherto only one of them had

but the results were most discouraging and
;

it

was

therefore resolved

that the next voyage should change the direction, and endeavour to discover a

passage to the Indies

by the

north-east.

amoimting to £6000, were raised in shares of £25 each,
apportioned among the members of a kind of joint-stock companj' formed for
the purpose.
With this sum three vessels were built, and fitted up in a style

The

requisite funds,

with which Sebastian Cabot,

who was governor

of the company,

and undertook

management of its nautical afFau's, was so well pleased as to declare that
" the like was never in any realm seen used or known." The chief command was
Under him,
given to Sir Hugh Willoughby, who sailed in the principal vessel
the

Sir Hugli

wiiioughby.

^^^

.^^

command

of the second vessel,

was Richard

Chancellor.

Besides a series

drawn up by Cabot for the guidance of the officere and crew, the
expedition was furnished by King Edward with a letter addressed to all "kings,
princes, rulers, judges, and governors of the earth," requesting them "to permit
unto these om- servants free passage by your regions and dominions, for they
shall not touch anything of yours unwilling unto you," and promising " by the
of instructions

EXPEDITION OF

Chap. IX.]

God
life

of

we

tranquillity of oiu- kingdoms, that

}'Our servants if at
]\Iay,

any time they

shall

1553, the three vessels dropped

Greenwich,

a vast {Assemblage from
artillery

201

things that are contained in heaven, earth, and the sea, and

all

and

WlLLoriJHBV.

n.

Sill

all

in 1662.

come

down

—Cruden's

will with like

1553.

On

the 10th

where the court and

History of Gravesend.

(juarters witnessed their dejjarture

and the shouting of the mariners,

ad.

humanity accept

to om- kingdoms."

to Greenwich,

by the

" in

amid salvos of

such sort that the sky rang with

the noise thereof"

After leaving the river, the vessels were detained on the Essex coast

till tlie

23d, when, the winds becoming favourable, they began their coui'se across the

Departure
aition

German Ocean. On the 1-tth of July they had reached lat. 68°, among the
islands of the Norway coast, and not long after came within sight of the North
Cape. Their intention was to remain together but in the event of their being
obliged to part company, Wardhuys. in Finmark, was appointed as the port ol"
rendezvous.
The contingency thus provided for happened sooner than any had
;

anticipated,

weather
the

and with very

becair-v, so

fatal results.

Shortly after passing the cape, the

stormy that the vessels were forced out to

mercy of the winds.

Willoughby, whose

been equal to his courage, carried so much

keep up with him, and never saw him more.

some Ru.ssian
land.

On

sailors discovered

two

that Chancellor

lifeless

date, that the

crews were alive in January, 1554.
able to land

deeper into the abysses of the Arctic

they retraced their

steps,

have

was unable

to
till

bodies of Willoughby and his

Along with the journal of the voyage was a

Nova Zembla without being

at

frozen in on the coast of Lap-

companions.

of

to

His fate remained unkno^^^l

tall vessels

entering them, they found the

and caution seem not

skill
sail

and driven

sea,

upon

note, showing,

by

They had reached the
it,

and then penetrated

Oceaa Convinced

its

coast
still

at last of their mistake,

and in returning westward unfortunately missed the

opening of the White Sea, within which they might have found a sheltered
anchorage.

On

reaching the coast beyond, they had resolved to

make

it

their

winter- quarters, intending to prosecute their voyage in the ensuing spring
Before

it

Vol.

I.

arrived the intense cold had frozen

them

to death.
26

Fate of

202
AD,

1568.

^
Chancellor

HISTORY OF INDIA.

By keeping

Chancellor was more fortunate.

Wardhuys without much
tluit tlic

near the coa«t

after waiting seven

othcr vesscls might arrive, continued his course "

to the place

where he found no night at

ness of the sun, shining clearly

was

and

difficulty;

[IVk>k

carried into the

learning that

White

had reached

lie

days in the hope

till

he came at

and anchored

Ultimately

sea."

lie

On

in the harbour of Arcliangel.

formed part of the vast dominions of the Czar of Muscovy, he

it

determined on visiting his capital of Moscow
he carried from his sovereign, and his

own

and by means of the

;

letter

Muscovy

the foundation of the

Company
l
J on very
J

or Ru.ssian

•'

which

address, obtained such a favourable

reception from the reigning sovereign, Ivan Vasilovitsch, as enabled
The Russian
Company.

hi.st

but a continued light and hright-

all,

upon the great and mighty

Sea,

I.

him

to lay

advantajreoas
ts

_

The important

by this company withdrew attention, for
a time, from the north-east passage; and many were even so sanguine as to
imagine that by this company alone it might be possible to establish an interterms.

secured

traffic

by which the

course with India,

necessity of

any other passage would be

in a

great measure superseded.
Attempts to
reach India

through

fhe plan
was
^
Volga where

make Archangel
»

to

it first

Russia.

.

the starting
and then, strikincj
o the
& point,
1

becomes navigable,

.

.

>

>

down

sail

into the Caspian,

and thus

-

,

form a commumcation with the ancient overland routes from the East.
neys, with a

luidertaken,

view to the establishment of

and several of the

communication, were actually

employed penetrated

The whole scheme, however, was a

terior of Asia.

when

travellers

this

in complete

command

of the overland traffic

convenient routes, had been driven from
the Portuguese.

How,

all

The Venetians,

delusion.

by much

far into the in-

shorter and

least

more

the leading markets of Europe

then, could the Russian

Company hope

2000 miles of expensive transport, part of

by

to compete with

them, when, in addition to the carriage paid by the Venetians, they were

dened with at

Jom--

it

biu--

over an ocean

always dangerous, and during half the year rendered inaccessible by mountains
of ice
North west

?

These considerations soon opened men's eyes to the hopelessness of estabhsh-

passage.

ing a profitable traffic with India
tion of the north-east
ever.

The

sibility of

of the

latter passage, indeed, continued to

using

it

as

White

Sea,

and the explora-

and north-west passages was resmned more ardently than
be explored long after the impos-

an ocean thoroughfare to the East was universally recog-

nized; and even in our
passage,

by the way

own

times, in the formidable task of exploring this

some of our most distinguished British navigators have earned

their

The north-east
passage, which at one time seemed the more hopeful of the two, was sooner abandoned, but not before the utmost skill and hardihood both of British and Dutch

best laurels,

and some of them,

seamen had been expended upon

too,

it

in vain.

as preliminary steps in the process
collision

have unhappily perished.

Some

of their attempts, considered

which eventually brought them into direct

with the Portuguese, are here entitled to at least a passing

notice.

203

NORTH-EAST PASSAGE.

Chap TX.j

About the time wlien the Muscovy- ludiau scheme proved abortive, some ad
accui'ate knowledge was obtained of the great Asiatic rivei-s, the Obe and
Yenisei

and Gerard Mercator, the celebrated cosmographer, when consulted

;

isso.

cerani
Mercator.

on the

subject,

gave

it

beyond the point

as his opinion that at no great distance

which navigators had already reached, a great headland, then supposed to form
This headland once passed,

the north-east extremity of Asia, would be found.

nothing more was necessary than to turn south, and steer directly for Japan and
This was an enormoas blunder, for

China.

cut

it

a foLU-th of the whole circumference of the globe
to observe, that

it

was not

so

much

but

;

more than

at one sweep,

off,

it is

his blunder as the

only

fair to

Mercator

common blunder

of the

time, for all his contemporaries shared it with him.

In accordance with Mercator's opinion, the great problem of a north-east passage to India

now seemed on

two English

vessels,

sailed for
tliey

1

580,

again at-

under the command of Arthur Pet and Charles Jackman,

A

Wardhuys, which they reached on the 23d of June.

continued their voyage eastwai-d, and on approaching

rowly escaped being embedded in a

by taking a very

In

the eve of receiving a favourable solution.

Noiti. ea«t

had no possible outlet except by retracing their

had a most favourable wind, but found

it

Nova Zembla

nar-

open passage, and had

formed a kind of cul de

it

after,

After disentangling themselves

field of ice.

circuitous route, they proceeded along an

the mortification to discover that

few days

sac,

from which they

This accomplished, they

steps.

impossible to avail themselves of

it

in

consequence of enormous icebergs which blocked up the course, lea\'ing no space
between, and along which they could not steer without risking almost certain
destruction.

Thus obstructed, and

with patience, "abiding
Straits
furtlier

till

tiie

obliged, as they piously express

Lords

the middle of August.

eastward,

and the expedition

was consequently too

years from

idl

advance

The English, having found

in another quarter, desisted for

many

The

task,

further attempts to discover a north-east passage.

however, instead of being abandoned, was only transferred to

The United

late to

returned without having added one

particle to the inlbrmation previoasly possessed.

more necessary and hopeful emplojnnent

to wait

they did not arrive at Vaigatz

leisure,"

It

it,

Provinces, after a long, arduous,

and noble

new

struggle,

hands.

had achieved

Att^-mpts
tilts

their independence,

and

rid them.selves for ever of the galling

Even while groaning under
and the narrow scope

tiiat

yoke of Spain.

yoke, the untiring industry of the population,

for exercising

in a

it

country

hemmed

in

on

all sides,

and

constantly threatened by the sea, hail turned their attention chiefly to commerce.

On

the broad expanse of

and gradually

ro.se

ocean they found their true thoroughfare,

tiie

to a foremost place

among

own consumption was not great, but
acting as common carriers for other nations.

Their

large share in the Indian trade,
;^oods

which had

were brought from the East

b\-

the maritime nations of Europe.

their vessels

its

In

this

were found in

way they had

emporium

all

seas

obtained a

at Lisbon, to

which the

the Portuguese, and from which they were

..f

Dutch

sot

AD

iMo.

HISTOItY OF INDIA.

At

afterwards diffused over Europe.

tlie

[Pkjok

very time when the Dutch

Portuguese were deprived of their independence, Philip

crown of Portugal, and incorporated

usur[)ed the

its

the

s<^cur(;d,

of Spain having

II.

dominioas with Ids own.

Lisbon having, in consequence, fallen into the hands of their vindictive enemy,

Dutch were,
their trade

in

1

oSi, completely excluded from

was at

first

severely

a determination not to rest

till

but

felt,

tlie

The injury thus

it.

[.

only effect was to

tlie

inflicted

on

them with

in-syjire

they had .succeeded in e.stablishing a direct com-

The route by the Cape of Good Hope was now well
the Portugue.se po.ssessions had fallen under the power of

munication with the East.

known; and

as all

enemy, they covdd have no

their declared

instance, however,

an independent route by

The

expedition, undertaken

first

tlie

1594,

first

north-east.

by a private company, with the sanction but

without any direct assistance from the States, consisted of four

command

In the

they imitated the example of the English, and endeavoured

to discover
William

attacking them.

.scruple in

vessels,

under the

They sailed from the Texel on the 5th of June,
and on approaching Nova Zembla separated, two of the vessels taking the

old route

of William Barentz.

toward Vaigatz

Straits,

while the other two, under the

command

of

Barentz, adopted the bolder course of sailing northwards, with the view of
Iceeping clear of the masses of ice

which clustered round the island

Barentz

By

the 1st of

does not seem to have justified his high reputation as a seaman.

August he had not advanced beyond the north extremity of Nova Zembla, in
lat. 77°,

and

by the

then, deterred

violence of the

wind and the

large ma&ses of

The other detachment was
more persevering. After working their way through Vaigatz Straits, and succeeding, with much difficulty, in sailing round some immense icebergs which had
threatened to bar their future progress, the two vessels arrived at a blue open
floating

ice,

prematurely determined to return.

and saw the coast trending rapidly southwards.

sea,

It

was only the Gulf

of

by Mercator's blunder, they believed that they had doiibled
the north extremity of Asia, and consequently discovered the passage of which

Obe

;

but, led astray

they were in search.
fied

with

.sure,

this,

It

might have been expected, that instead of resting

conviction they would have endeavoured to

and prevented the

possibility of mistake

leagues into the sea, which,

them

directly to Japan.

if their

make

satis-

assurance doubly

by advancing some himdred

opinion had been correct, would have carried

Instead of this they immediately retraced their steps,

and having again joined Barentz on the coast of Russian Lapland, arrived in the
Texel on the 10th of September.
False hopes.

The
general,

tidiugs whicli they brought diffused universal joy;

no longer

in fitting out a
vessels,

satisfied

new

and the

with giving a bare sanction, took the

expedition on a more extensive

scale.

belief,

was about

lead, in 1595,

It consisted of six

intended not merely to explore, but to commence the

according to the general

States-

traffic

which,

to be permanently established,

pour the wealth of the East into the ports of Holland.

and

Such being the expecta-

]

EXPEDITION UNDER BARENTZ AND RYP.

Chap. IX.

arrangements were adapted to

tion, the

it;

and the

manner

the

instead of being

vessels,

constructed as before to bear the rude shocks of the polar

205

were framed

ice,

a

d. i-we.

in

best adapted for the rich cargoes of merciiandise with which they

The very idea of such an expedition had originated in a gi*oss
error but, as if this had not been sufficient, the period of saihng was protracted
to the 2d of June, when nearly two months of the season most favourable for
a northern voyage were already past. The vessels never got farther than the
were

laden.

;

eastern entrance of the Straits of Vaigatz.

met by immense bodies
till

of floating

Then

the end of September.

it,

they were

against which they struggled manfully

upon them

and that nothing more remained than

to turn

homewards.

Not one

of the results so confidently anticii)ated
/»

1

•

proportion to the extravagance of the expectation

The States-general

appointment.
project,

they reached

at last the conviction forced itself

that they were labouring in vain,
their face

ice,

When

and deemed

dual or association

it sufficient

who

was

had been

to hold out a pecuniary

Disarpoi"t"lent.

of the distiie

reward to any indivi-

The town of Amsterdam

vain.

the gauntlet which the government had thus in a

which they

manner thrown down

The command of the one was given

to

up

at once took

wisely, in the meantime, renouncing all idea of traffic, fitted out
solely for exploration.

•

/»

at once disconnected themselves with

.should first succeed in eflfecting the pa.s.sage

had themselves attempted in

In

oVjtained.

11the bitterness

two

;

ami

vessels

William Barentz,

whose previous voyage has already been mentioned; and of the other to John

As some

Corneliz Ryj).

security against that longing for home, under the influ-

ence of which the previous expeditions were supposed to have returned prematurely, all the individuals belonging to the expedition

The

vessels sailed

dangers of the

coast,

were unman-ied.

on the 10th of May, 1596; and, in order
sailed nearly

due

noi'th.

to avoid the

Currents and easterly winds

them so far west that they came in sight of the Shetland Isles on the
Here the commanders, who appear to have had equal powers, differed in

carried
22d.

opinion.

Barentz wished to tack about, and steer due

argued that in this
tions,

among
His

way they would

while Ryp,

ea.st;

who

only become entangled, like previous expedi-

the fioating icebergs of the Vaigatz Straits, insisted on .sailing

They were soon in the depths of the Arctic
Ocean, and after a dangerous and dreary navigation, constantly obstructed by
fields of ice, reached the coast of Spitzbergen, in lat. 80°.
They now changed
N.N.E.

oi)inion prevailed.

their coui-se, and, sailing south, arrived at

Bear Island, which they had

]>re-

Here the captains again (littered in opinion and, as on this
occasion neither would yield, the vessels parted company. Ryp proceeded north,
with the view of following the east coast of Spitzbergen, and was ultimately
viously passed.

;

obliged to retrace his steps without doing anything which his contemporaries

deemed worthy of being
series

recorded.

of adventures which,

Barentz sailed E.S.E., and met with a

though they form a most interesting narrative.

K.\i..-.iitioii

alui

Ryp.

A.I)

1.0(17

OF INDIA.

JIISTOllY

2()(i

would here be out of

place, as

ship

embedded

obhged, in

and

in the ice,

the climate had destroyed

liis

tlie

tlie

on the shore of

year, to leave his

survivors of his crew, to

make

the

Anxiety, fatigue, and the severities of

boats.

and he died by the way.

health,

I.

the attempted north-

June of the following

with

set out,

voyage homewards in two small

after

new hght on

Suffice it to say, that, after wintering

east passage to India.

Nova Zembla, he was

they throw no

[Book

His companioiLS,

enduring almost unparalleled hardships, reached Kola, where, to their

astonishment and delight, they found the other vessel from which they had Vjeen
so long parted,
Henry
Hudson

The

and proceeded

in

it

to

Amsterdam.

though subsequent explorations took

Henry Hudson, who was employed
the English, and on another by the Dutch,
reasonable

men were now

tically available for the

virtually disproved;

place, particularly

gator,

choice

was now

existence of a north-east passage

satisfied that

by the

celebrated navi-

for this purpose on one occasion
it is

unnecessary to trace them.

by
All

no north-east passage to India, prac-

ordinary purposes of commerce, existed

now remaining was between

and

;

and the only

the old beaten track of the Portuguese

by

Good Hope, and a south-west passage by the southern extremity of
Of the latter passage a brief account must now be
the American continent.

the Cape of

given.
South-west

The

practicability of a south-west passage to the East

passage.

was proved

at a com-

Fex'nando de Magellan, or more properly MagalhaeiLS,

paratively early period.

a native of Portugal, after serving

five

years in the East under Albuquerque, and
distinguishing himself at the taking of

Malacca, being dissatisfied with the nig-

gardly maim^er in wliich his services had

been rewarded, made an

Emperor Charles

the

ofi'er

V.

of

them

to

They were

accepted; and he immediately presented

by which he proEast Indies by sailing

the project of a voyage,

posed to reach the
south-west.

The great

in that quarter

grew the
Ferdinand Magellan.— From

a portrait

in such high

there

These were then

and general

request, that

Portuguese trade of which a share was more
There was one great obstacle in the way. The pope had

was no branch

eagerly coveted.

was the Moluccas, which

finest spices.

by F. Selma.'

object of attraction

of the

divided the world into two halves.

How

could Charles, as a professed cham-

pion of the church, appropriate any portion of the half which his holiness had
given to the Portuguese?

The

true

way

of loosing the knot

was

In Relaeion del ultimo Viage al estrecho de Magellanes, Madrid, 1787.

to cut

it,

and

MAGALHAENS' VOYAGE ROUND THE GLOBE.

Chap. IX.]

many

to maintain that, in this instance, as in

and arrogantly made

free

207

pope had ignorantly ad.

others, the

yet arrived

and Magalhaens undertook to

;

The

with a property which did not belong to him.

time for such a solution of the difficulty was rai>idly approaching, but

it

had not

by proving

rid Charles of his scruples

He

that the Moluccas were not in the Portuguese but in the Spanish half

was wronir

in fact,

but correct according to the idea then entertained of the

dimensions of the globe.
difficult to .satisfy, as

It is probable,

Be

On

when they

of the

this as it

On

and 236 men.

La

who deemed

By

])ru<lence

occjisions,

any

interfered with

how

easily he

of his favourite

his wish.

command

he sailed from Sanlucar in

of

Maguiiiaeiw'
circumiiavi-

mouth

the 12tli of January, 1520, he reached the
for

degradation to obey one

it

Poituguese.

1.519,

where he was detained

Plata,

many

may, Magalhaens obtained

the 20th of September,
^

five ships

however, that the emperor was not

he afterwards showed, on

could dispose of Papal claims
political objects.

lass.

some time by a mutiny of

whom

gationof
^'1*6

.

globe.

men,

his

they stigmatized as a renegade

and resolution he regained

and

his ascendency;

towards the end of October began to enter the strait which has since borne his
name.

On

November he obtained

the 27th of

steering directly across

again saw land for the

missed

it,

first

all

his first

view of the

the islands by which

Pacific, and,

studded, and

it is

time on the 6th of March, 1521, when he came in

view of the islands which, from the thievish practices of the inhabitants, were

named

Continuing onwards, he arrived at the archipelago of

the Ladrones.

Lazarus, afterwards called the Philippines, in honour of Philip

he induced the chief of the island of Zebu to

make a

IL

i)rofe.ssion

island of Matan.

liaens unfortunately lost his life

tion which he

who

had

so

ftir

In

on the 26th of

assisted in his

Magal-

fulfilling this condition,

April, 1521.

successfully accomplished,

here,

of Christianity,

and become tributary to the King of Spain, on condition of being

war with the chief of the

While

St.

The circumnaviga-

was completed by Sebastian

him in the command, and arrived at Saiducar on the
22d of September, 1522, by doubling the Cape of Good Hope from the eastward.
Magalhaens' voyage gave proof of two important facts first, that there was
no physical impo.ssibility of reaching the East Indies by sailing we.st; and,

del Cano,

succeeded

—

secondly, that, mider ordinary circumstances, this route never could

ocean thoroughfare from Europe.

It

might be used

become the

for special purposes,

but

being far more circuitous, was also necessarily both more tedioas and more
expensive.

Further notice of

it

would hence

an adventitious interest has been given to

it

l>e

unneces.sary,

as the route

were

which

it

not that

first

led the

British to the East,

and fm-nished the information which determined them not

to rest satisfied

they had obtained a direct share in

voyages

are,

on

till

this account, well entitled to special

its traffic.

mention

—the

Two

of the

one by Sir

by Mr. Tliomas Cavendish.
After the acces.sion of Queen Elizabeth, in 1 558, and the decided refusal of
her hand when impertinently Jisked by Philip II the frientlly relations between
Francis Drake, and the other

,

its resnita.

—

208
A

0. 1679

IlISTOilY

OF INDIA.

[liOOK

and Spain ware entirely at an end; and though

Eii;;flaiid

oi)enly declared,

it

was

howtilities

I.

were not

perfectly understood that, at least on the part of Spain,

they were only delayed in order that
preparations for carrying them

the

on with

effect

more complete.
that,

might

be rendered

It is not surfmsing

under these circumstances,

fre-

rencounters took place

and

([uent

;

the natives of either country, when-

ever favourable opportunities occur-

made no

red,

scruples

of

treating

those of the other as open enemies.

In this kind of irregidar, predator}warfare, Francis Drake, who, originally of obscure parentage

from the

vicinity of Tavistock, in Devonshire,

had won a high name

seamanship, particularly distinguished

Sir Fraxcis Drake.
After a picture in the CoUection of the Blarquis of Lothian.

liimself.
tSir

P'rancii

and

for valour

cruises against the Spaniards,

and acquired

He had made two

much wealth

so

that he

successful

was

able,

Draki

in 1577, to

The

men.

smallest

out a

fit

fleet of five

small vessels, with an aggi'egate crew of 164

commanded by himself, did not exceed 100 tons;
tons.
With these he set sail from PhTnouth on the

the

largest vessel,

was only

of December,

5

1

3th

1577, and steered directh' across the

On

Atlantic.

1

the 20th of August, 1578, he arrived

in the Straits of Magalhaens, passed them,

and then

continued his course northwards alongf the west coast
of.

America

till

he had reached 48° N. latitude.

had probably proceeded thus
covering some opening
pass into the
pectation,

then,

Atlantic.

far in the

hope of

round

dis-

by which he might again
Disappointed in this ex-

he retraced his steps for about

with the only vessel

10°,

now remaining

original five, shot boldly across the Pacific.
sails

He

and

of his

On

the

29th of September, 1579, he came in sight of the

the globe.

Moluccas.
Ternate,

among

On
He

November he cast anchor at
afterwards wound his way westward
the 4th of

origiD&l in

the islands of the Indian Archipelago, doubled the Cape of

Among

the many relics of England's naval heroes
enshrined in that appropriate repository, Greenwich
'

Drake's A.stkolabe.i
From

Hospital, few are more interesting, few attract

more

attention, than the subject of the above engraving

Greenwich Hospital.

Good Hope.

the astrolabe, or instrument for taking the altitude
of the sun or stars once belonging to the famous
Drake, which was constructed for him prior to las
first expedition to the West Indies in 1570.

—

—

VOYAGES OF DRAKE AND CAVENDISH.

Chap. IX.]

209

and, on the 26th of September, 1580, cast anchor again in the harboui" of

ad

isss.

Plymouth.
It

is

government, but
as WtU-

it

it

declared,

was

elated

to profit

was

easier

by

were certainly of a

His proceedings,

it.

piratical

The

nation, however,

was

so

and the determination

his achievements,

by the information which he had brought home

Queen

Elizabeth, after standing-

some time, threw aside

him on

visited

acknowledge

disavow his authority than to

to

so unanimous, that

aloof for

to

and when the Spanish court complained of

apologize for his conduct.

much

had an understanding with the

set out he

was not deemed poUtic

had not been

character;

them,

when Drake

presmned, that

publicly

reserve,

all

boai'd his ship at Deptfoi-d,

and attested

her approbation of his conduct by confemng upon him

A

the honour of knighthood.

few

yeai"s later, Sir

Drake again awakened the public mind
of the trade with India

Francis

to the importance

by the capture

of a Portuguese

whose cargo of almost fabulous value inflamed

carrack,

Jewel presented to Drake
HV

the imagination, while

its

papers and journals furnished

KKN

<l

Elizabbtii.

most important information as to the means by which a direct trade

might be most

easily established,

and most

^ Front

oriRinal in Nulwel. Couit

India

witli

successfully carried on.

In 1586, about two years before Drake had made this capture, Mr. Thom.us

Thomas

Cavendish commenced the other voyage by the Straits of Magalhaens above
refeired

to.

His

out at

fitted

fleet of three

own

his

manned by 1 26

officers

expense,

and

whom

wiien

he circumnavifjated the

had accompanied Drake

The expedition
;

was

sailors, seve-

ral of

July

ships,

sailed

globe.

on the 21st of

and, following the coiu'se which

sails for
Pacific.

Drake had taken, proceeded through the
Straits of Magalhaens, skirted the west

making many

coast of America,
captm-es,
tifiable

rich

and committing much unjus-

devastation

;

and then steered

across the Pacific for the Ladrones, which

were reached on the 3d of January,
1

Thomas Cavendish. — From

a print by

587.

is

self

The future

coui-se of the

voyage

Pa<.-<

thus

summed up by Cavendish him-

In a letter to Lord Hunsdon, lord -chamberlain, dated 9th September,

1588, he says,

"I am humbly
Vol.

I.

to desire yovu*

honour

to

make kuowen unto her majesty

the desire T have
27

""

HISTORY OF INDIA.

210
A.D. 1588.

liud to

doe her majesty service in

tlie

performance of

to give lier tlie victory over part of her enemies, ho
all.

now

For the places

of their wealth,

perfectly' discovered

s[ioile of

them

all.

and

;

if it

tliis

1118

voyage.

Esperan9a.

And

voyage.

hh

trust yer long to see her overthrowe

I

Almighty

me

to suffer

may take

to circompasse the

and returning

]>y

them

their warres, are

please her majesty, with a very smal ix)wer she

It liath pleased the

I.

hath pleased (iod

it

whereby they have maintained and made

of the worlde, entering in at the Streight of Magellan,
Cavendish's

[Hook

the

whole globe

the Cape of Biiena

In whicli voyage I have either discovered or brought certain intelligence of

all

knowen or discovered by any Christian. I naviPeru, and Nueva Espanna, wliere I made great spoiles I

the rich places of the world that ever were

gated alongst the coast of Chili,

;

burnt and sunk nineteen sailes of ships, small and great. All the villages and townes that ever
I landed at I burnt and spoiled
and had I not bene discovered upon the coast I had taken
;

of most profit unto me was a great ship of the king's
which ship came from the Philippina.s, being one of the richest
of merchandise that ever passed those seas, as the king's register and merchants' accounts did
shew; for it did amount in value to
Which goods (for that my
in Mexico to be solde.
From
ships were not able to conteine the least part of them) I was inforced to set on fire.

The matter

great qiuxntitie of treasure.

which

I took at California,

the Cape of California, being the uttermost part of
islands of the Philippinas, hard

upon the coast

of

all

Nueva Espanna,

China

navigated to the

I

which country

of

;

I

have brought

such intelligence as hath not been heard of in these parts. The statelinesse and riches of
which countrey I feare to make report of, least I should not be credited for if I had not
:

knowen

sufficiently the

incomparable wealth of that countrey, I should have bene as

credulous thei'eof as others will be that have not had the like experience.
islands of the Malucos,

our countrey

where among some

men may have

of the heathen people I

trade as freely as the Portugals

if

was well

island of St. Helena, where the Portugals use to relieve themselves;
suffered

me

to return into England.

prostrate at her majestie's feet, desiring the
for at this

day she

is

intreated,

where

From
way homeward the

they will themselves.

thence I passed by the Cape of Buena Esperan9a, and found out by the

God hath

in-

I sailed along the

and from that island

humbly
among us;

All whicli services, with myself, I

Almighty long

to continue her reigue

the most famous and victorious prince that liveth in the world."

In returning homewards, the Cape of Good Hope was doubled on the

1

6th of

March, 1588; and Plymouth harbour was reached, after a prosperous voyage, on
the 9th of September.

While the information thas flowing
was pavinfj
^ in from successful na\-igators
*

Establish-

mentofthe
Levant

_

the

way

_

for the establishment of direct trafiic

.

with the East Indies, other

dents were contiibuting powerfully to the same end.

.

inci-

Notice has been repeatedly

taken of the important Indian trade which had been carried on, almost from

time immemorial, by the

way

For many

of the Levant.

English

centiiries the

had been contented to receive then- suppHes of Indian produce at second hand
from some one or other of the Italian maritime
after the accession of

;

but

latterly, particularly

Queen EHzabeth, they had agents of

different ports of the Levant,

active

cities

and lucrative trade in

their

own

in the

and thus procured the means of carrjdng on an

their

own

such extent and consistency as to entitle

vessels.
it to

When

this trade

had acquired

be regarded as a national

interest,

the queen entered into a commercial treaty with Tm-key, seciu-ing for her subjects all the
after, in

tion

advantages which other nations enjoyed; and immediately there-

1581, granted a charter of exclusive pri\dleges to a mercantile associa-

which assumed the name of the Levant Company.

satisfied

with confining

its

This company, not

connections to the ports of the Levant, extended

—

—

ESTABLISHMENT OF THE LEVANT COMPANY.

Chap. IX.]

them

into

far

furnished,

travels

Indian

many

the interior, and sent out

agents,

211

whose journals and ad

issi.

from time to time, valuable inforaiation with regard to

traffic.

It has

sometimes been alleged that the immediate occasion of the formation

Venetian
argosy lost

Levant Company, was the

of the

the

Goodwin Sands.

derived the name,

lo.ss

of a vessel laden witii Indian })roduce on

The argosy which

common

to all vessels of its class,

in Dalmatia, belonged to the Venetians,
as

much Indian produce

a whole year.

referred

is

and

as supplied the

The wreck of this

vessel

ceased thenceforth to pay their annual

to,

and

thought to have

is

from the

tovvTi

on

ti.e

>,^„|i^

of Ragusa,

sufficed to carr}', at a single voyage,

demand

of the

kingdom

of England for

proved so disastrous, that the Venetians
The. English, thus cut off from the

visit.

supply on whicii they had been accustomed to depend, had no alteraative but to
send for the goods which they could not otherwise obtain
tion of the

dance with
of the

Levant Company.
is

it, it

Such

is

and hence the forma-

;

the theory propounded

and, in accor-

;

added that the same circumstance which led to the formation

Levant Company, suggested

to Shakspeare the idea of the

"Merchant of

Venice."

The

lo.ss

of an argosy on the

usually assigned to the

well-authenticated fact
says (act

ii.

scene 8)

before the date

representation of Shakspeare's immortal play,

first
;

Goodwin Sands, about ten years

and he speaks with

the tnith of history

all

is

a

when he

:

" I reasoned

Who

told

with a Freuehiuan yesterday,
me, iu the narrow seas that part

The French and English, there miscarried

A vessel of our country,
And

again (act

iii.

scene 1)

"The Goodwins,

richly fraught."

:

I

think they

call the place

Unfortunately, however, for the theory,

it is

a very dangerous

flat."

impossible to connect the loss of

the argosy with the foundation of the Levant

The

;

Company without committing

a

company was granted in 1581 the
argo.sy was not lost till 1587.
If the Venetians sent no more argosies after this
date, the fact was prol^abl}' owing, not to any hon-or of "the naiTOw seas that
part the French and English," for they were well inured to brave far greater
[)alpable anachronism.

dangei-s,

chai-ter of the

but to their inability to derive any

;

profit fi-om a traffic

which could

never have been very lucrative after the Portuguese had fairly entered the

European market, and

in

which they had recently been brought into competi-

company powerful iu itself, and enjoying the special favour
The retirement of the Venetians was only one of the signs from

tion with a native

of the crown.

which a sagacious merchant might have inferred that

Indian trade had

ancient channels, and that England had become too well acquainted

deserted

its

with

nature,

its

tlie

and too much

alive

to

longer monopolized by Spaniards and

its

impoi-tance, to allow

it

to be an}-

Portuguese claiming the monopoly on

-xnachron-

—

212
A.U. 1582.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

the ground, not so

by the execrable

much

of priority of di.scovery, as of a

brutum

I.

fuLritea issued

pope, Alexander VI.

Queen Elizabeth had

Queen

[Book

early struck at the root of

claims to monopolize the

all

Rlizabeth's
eiiliglitened

navigation of the ocean by declaring, in answer to

tlie

complaints of the Spanish

views.

ambassador against the

was

free to

all,

the Indian

En<?li.sh for navigatinfj

seas, "

fora.smuch as neither nature nor regard of public use do permit

the exclusive possession thereof;" and again, " that as to

Indian

seas, it

that the ocean

was as lawful

the sea and air are

common

for her subjects to

do so as

Drake

for the

sailing on the

Spaniards

;

since

This latter declaration was made in

to all men."

1580; and evidence was soon given that, instead of being maintained merely
as

an abstract

principle, the justice of

which could not be disputed,

754-757, there

was hence-

In the third volume of Hackluyt,

forth to be carried into practical operation.
pp.

it

a paper dated 9th Apiil, 1582, and entitled, "Instructions

is

given by the right honourable the Lordes of the Counsell to Mr. Edward Fenton,

recommended

Esquire, for the order to be observed in the voyage

to

him

for the

East Indies and Cathay."
It appears

Fenton's

from these "Instructions," which are twenty-four in number, that

direct

voyage to
the East.

the direct, and, indeed, the exclusive route, intended for this voyage to "the

East Indies and Cathay," was by the Cape of
tion

is

as follows

:

—

You

"

ampton with your sayd
of Aprill,

and

so goe

Good Hope.

The ninth

shall use all diligence possible to depart

ships

and

Instruc-

from South-

vessels before the last of this present

moneth

on your course by Cape de Buena Esperan9a, not passing

by the Streight of Magellan

either going or returning,

except upon great

by the advise
the least." The tenth

occasion incident that shall bee thought otherwise good to you,

and consent of your sayd

assistants, or foure of

Instruction, following out the

same

them

says, "

route,

at

You

shall

not passe to the

northeastward of the 40 degree of latitude at the most, but shall take your right
course to the isles of the J\Iulucos, for the better discovery of the north-west passage, if

get

without hinderance of your trade

any knowledge touching that

sitive,

as occasion in this sort

means of
Instructions

this voyage,

and within the same degree you can

passage, whereof

may

It does not exactly appear to

;

you

shall

do wel to be inqui-

serve."

what extent government had furnished the

but the language employed clearly implies that the lords

of council possessed the entire control over

it.

Thus, at the very outset, they

for the

voyage.

say (Instructions
"First,

you

1, 2,

3)

:

shall enter as captaine-generall iuto the

charge and government of these

Bonaventure, the barke Francis, and the small frigate,
or pinnesse.
Item, you shall appoint, for the furnishing of the vessels, in the -w hole to the
number of 200 able persons, accompting in that number the gentlemen and their men, the

shippes, the Beare gallion, the

Edward

which sayd number is no way to be exceeded, whereof as
many as may be to be sea-men and shall distribute them into every vessels, as by advise here
before your going shall be thought meete. Item, for the more and better circumspect execution, and determination in any waightie causes incident in this voyage, we will that you shall
take unto you for assistants, Captaine Hawkins, (Viptaiue Ward," and six other per.^oii.s
ministers, cliirurgiaus, factors, &c.,
;

—

—

Chap. IX.]

named, "with

whom you

FENTON'S

VOYAGE TO THE

shall consult

and conferre

213

EAST.

in all causes, matters,

portance, not provided for in these Instructions, touching this service
all

—

—

and actions of

now

ira-

And

in hand.

ad.

15s-j.

in

such matters so handled, argued, and debated, wee thiuke that convenyent alwayes to be

executed which you shall think meetest, with the assent also of any four of them, the matter

and so assented unto

iiaving bene debated

The

in the presence of

Instruction proceeds in the

sixtli

your

saitl assi.stauts."

same peremptory

style

:

you shall not remoove Captaiue William Hawkins, your lieutenant; Mastei'-capLuke Ward, your vice-admiral, or captaine of the Edxoard Bonaventure ; nor Caj)taine
Carlile from his charge by land, whom we will not to refuse any such service as shall be
appointed to him by the generall and the councill nor any captaine of other vessels from these
charges, but upon just cause duely pi'ooved, and by consent of your assistants, or of four of
" Item,

taine

;

them

...

at the least."

From

appointment of a military

tlie

him, and in regard to

and enterprises that
Carlile shall

whom

maj'^fall

it

is

uHicer, of course

added (Instruction

23),

out to bee upon the lande,

have the generall and

cliief

having soldiers under

charge thereof,"

wee
it

"in

all

instnictions

partly

occasions

miiitiir>-,

will that Captaine

might be supposed

that the government had undertaken the entire responsibility of the expedition.

This impression
lains

strengthened by Instruction 24, which shows

is

had been appointed by public authority.

With

chaj)-

tlijit

reference to them,

it

is

said:

"And

end God

may

and prosperous successe you
shall have an especiall care to see that reverence and respect bee had to the ministers
ajjpointed to accompanie you in this voyage as appertaineth to their place and calling and to
see such good order as by them shall be set downe for reformation of life and manners duely
obeyed and perfourmed, by causing the transgressours and contemners of the same to be
severely punished
and the ministers to remove sometime from one vessell to another."
to the

blesse this voyage with happie

;

;

;

It is plain, liowever,

from other Instructions, that the expedition partook

of the character of a mercantile adventure.
"

You

make a

Tims

it is

said (Instruction 8)

:

and true enventorie, in every ship and vessell appointed for this
and furniture belonging to them, at their setting foorth
hence, and of all the provisions whatsoever and one copie thereof under your hand, and
luidcr the hands of your vice-admirall and lieutenant, to be delivered to the Earle of Leicester,
and the other to the governour of the companie for them, before your departure hence .and
the like to be done at your returne home of all things then remaining in the sayd ships and
vessels, with a true certificate how and by what meanes any parcell of the same shall have bene
shall

just

voyage, of all the tackle, munition,

;

;

spent or

lost."

The mercantile character

is

still

more

fully

brought out both by

inci-

dental mention of merchants and factors in various passages, and particularly
in

the

following

Instructions,

in

which equity, soimd

policy,

and worldly

prudence are so happily combined, that they seem not unworthy of being
(quoted entire:
" 12. Item, we do straightly enjoin you, and consequently all the rest employed in this
voyage in any wise, and as you and they will answere the contrary at your comming home by
the lawes of this realme, that neither going, tarrying abroad, nor returning, you doe spoyle or
take anything from any of the queen's majestie's friends or allies, or any Christians, without

]iaying justly for the

such, excei)t in your

owne safegard

to

do

same

owne
it.

;

nor that you use any maner of violence or force against any
if you shall be set upon, or otherwise be forced for your

defence,

paniy

;

214
A.D.

108:;.

HLSTOIiV OF IS III A.

" 13.

[Book

I.

Item, wee will that you deale altogether in

thi.s voyage like good and lioucHt nierand exchanging ware for ware, with all courtewie, to the nationw you Hhall
'^^'*'^^ with,a3 well Ethuiks aa others; and for that cause you shall instruct
all those that shall
^^^ ^'^'' i'^^h tliat whensoever you, or any of you, shall happen to come in any place to coufei-ence with the people of those parts, that in all your doings and theirs, you and they so
behave yourselves towards the sayd people as may rather procure their friendhhij; and good
liking toward you by courtesie than to turne them to offence or misliking; and especially you
shall have great care of the performance of your word and promise to them.
" 14. Item, wee will, that by the advise of your a.ssistants, in places where you and
they
shall thinke most fit, you settl, if you can, a beginning of a further trade to be had hereafter:
and from such places doe bring over with you some fewe men and women if you may; and do
also leave some one or two, or more, as to you and your assistants shall seem convenient, of
our nation with them for pledges, and to learn the tongue and secrets of the countreys, ha\nng
diligent care, that, in delivering and taking of hostages, you deliver not personages of more
value then you i-eceive, but rather deliver meane persons under colour of men of value, as the
infidels do for the most part use.
Provided that you stay not longer to make continuance of
further trade, then shall be expedient for good exchange of the wares presently carried with

chants, trafHckiiig

Instructions

continued

you.
" 15. Item,

you shall have care, and give generall warning, that no person, of M'hat calling
soever hee be, shall take up or keepe to himself or his private use, any stone, pearle, golde,
silver, or

other matter of commoditie to be had or found in places where you shall come but
such stone, pearle, golde, silver, or other matter of commoditie,
;

he, the said person, so seased of

shall

with

your

selfe,

all

speede, or so soone as he can, detect the same,

and make

deliverie thereof to

or your vice-admirall, or lieutenant, and the factor appointed for this voyage, upon

paine of forfeiture of

the recompense he

have for his service in this voyage by share
and further, to receive such punishment as to you and your assistants, or the
more part of them, shall seeme good, and otherwise to be j^unished here at his returne, if
according to the qualitie of his offence it shall be thought needful.
or otherwise

all

is

to

;

" 16. Item,

if

the captaines, merchants, or any other, shall have any apparell, jewels,

any other thing whatsoever, which may be desired in countreys where
it shall not be lawful for them, or any of them, to trafRque or sell
any thing thereof for their private accompt but the same shall be prized by the most part
of those that shall be in commission in the places where the same may be so required, rated
at such value as it may bee reasonably worth in England and then solde to the profite of the
whole voyage, and to goe as in adventure for those to whom it doeth appertaine."
chaines, armour, or

they shall traffique, that

;

;

Interest

attaoMngto
the voyage,

This vovasre, as the first in which a direct attempt was made by any Euro°
pean powcr to break up the Portuguese monopoly of na\agation by the Cape of
''

.

Good Hope,
to its

natiu'ally excites

a deep interest

and hence even the

instructions

commander, from the insight they give into the motives with which the

voyage was undertaken, deserve
them.

The voyage

itself ought,

of com'se, to have been
it

meaofre in the extreme, and does

proved a complete

failure.

tions does not appear to

the space which has above been allotted to

all

but unfortunately the account of
is

;

.

written

Little

still

more interesting

by Luke Ward, the

more than

The good sense apparent

vice-admiral,

establish the fact that

in

drawing up the

instruc-

have been employed in making the appointments

the expedition had not proceeded far on

its

way when

Fenton,

it

;

and

who com-

manded it, appears to have betrayed, if not incompetency, at least indecision.
The four vessels, consisting of the Beare, which changed its name to the Leicester,

the

Edward Bonaventure,

the Francis, and the Elizabeth, sailed on the 1st of

May, but spent a whole month before they

finally quitted the English coast,

and

FENTON'S

Chap. IX.]

launched out to

.sea.

VOYAGE TO THE

215

EAST.

In the beginning of August, they reached the coast of ad.

and then the commander, instead of deciding on his own responsibility
as to the propriety of taking in water, deemed it necessary to summon a formal
1
meeting of his a.ssistant.s, or councd, and submit two pomts for decision first,
Guinea

;

.

whether they ouglit to water at

all

;

.

—

/»

and, secondly, assuming this

while

unanimously approved of watering, only a majority agreed in thinking

all

but had gone so

locality,

in finding it

in

They accordingly proceeded

ought to be at Sierra Leone.

it

what

;

seems, occasioned long debates;

it

far out of their

proceedings.

and

what place?

These points,

c'ouree of

was resolved

upon, at

that

i582.

for this

reckoning that they were several days

and the council was again summoned

to decide, after long debate,

direction they ought to steer.

After leaving Sierra Leone, they appear to have acted as
their instructions overboard

;

for

if

they are afterwards found far south, on

coast of Brazil, not considering, in terms of their instructions,

best double the

they had thrown

Faiiura

tlie expedition

how they might

Cape of Good Hope, but debating on the expediency or inexpe-

diency of passing the Straits of Magalhaens, though this was the direction which

they had been expressly forbidden to take.

have taken

it,

It seems, however, that they

would

On

had they not feared an encounter with the Spaniards.

this

ground alone they abandoned the idea of prosecuting their voyage, and had
determined to retrace their
pany.

did

by

steps,

when

the vessels were obliged to part com-

The Bonaventure was the only one which reached England; and

this it

Vincent, and then across the Atlantic.

The

sailing

northwards to

St.

blundering manner in which the expedition had been conducted,
explain the silence which has been kept respecting
entitles

state

of

it;

and yet

England to claim the high honour of having been the

may

it

perhaps

undoubtedly

fii*st

European

which entered into competition with the Portuguese on their peculiar

traffic,

and sent a regular expedition

by the way of the Cape of Good Hope.
owing to

projectors; and,

its

line

for the purpose of trading witli the E<ist

The

however much

failm-e of the expedition

it is

to

was not

be lamented, cannot derogate

from their merit in having both devised the expedition, and liberally furnished
it

with everything deemed necessary to insure

its success.

Nine years passed away before any expedition intended
.

,

the Cape quitted the shores of England.
})e

to reach the

East by

This apparent supineness, however, must

imputed, not to indiff*erence to the object or despair of being able to accom-

pUsh

it,

but to

political causes.

Philip II. of Spain

was engaged

in fitting out his

boasted Armada, and Queen Elizabeth, in her heroic efforts to defeat him, could

not spare a single seaman

;

but no sooner Wcis the battle of national independence

fought and won, than the determination to establish a trade in the East was

resumed. Accordingly, in October,

1

589, the verj^ year after the invincible

was discomfited, a body of English merchants presented a memorial
in council, in which, after

East, for the purpose of

Armada

to the lords

a rapid survey of the Portuguese settlements in the

showing

that, in the countries

Preparations
for another

.

bordering on the Indian

voyage.

IILSTOIIY

2l(.i

A.D. 1589.

and Ciiina

and Eastern produce
permission to

with

[B«;OK

ports in which a trade in English rnanufactnre.s

be advantageously established,

rni<^iit

I.

prayed

tiiey

for

out three ships and three pinnaces to be employed in this trade,

fit

queen's

tlie

many

were

tliere

.sea.s,

OF INDIA.

liceiLse

and

protection,

and subject

to

no other c^jndition than

the payment of the usual customs on their return.
Petition to

Before presenting this petition, the memorialists had

the queen.

had actually obtained, or at

success that they

meant

of the vessels which they

felt

bargained

least

confident of

.so

for,

pos.sessioii

mentioned in the

to employ: these are hence

EdvMrd

memorial by their names as the Royal Merchant, the Susan, and the
These names are of some consequence,

Bonaventuve.

as,

in the absence of

information as to the answer given to the memorial

direct

we

council,

are enabled to infer that

it

V.)y

any

the lords of

was favourable from the

fact that,

1591, less than eighteen months from the date of the application,

in April,

three ships, of which

two were the same as those named,

sailed

on this wery

voyage.
Sailing of

a

^g

new

expedition,

in the former case the accounts are

than prove that a second
enced.

The leading

failm-e,

ship, the

very imperfect, and do

though not so complete as

Penelope, was

more

little

before, ^vas experi-

commanded by George Bajinond,

by Abraham Kendal, and the Edward Bonaventure by
They sailed from Plymouth on the 1 0th of April, reached the

the Royal Merchant

James Lancaster.
Canaries

by the

25th,

were

off

Cape Blanco on the 2d of May, passed the

of Cancer on the 5th, and continued with a fair

when they were within

13th,

which obliged them
passed the hne.

from Lisbon to
necessaries.

many
Its pro-

to lie

oli"

in the sea

at north-east

till

the 6th of June,

They had previously captured a Portuguese
Brazil,

These

and loaded

last are said to

chiefly

till

the

Here they encountered a gale

8° of the equator.

and on

wind

tropic

with wine,

oil,

when they

caravel,

olives,

bound

and divers

have proved better to them than

gold, as

of the crew had previously fallen sick.

An E S.E. wind prevailing,

carried

them

far

west

till

within 100 leagues of the

ceedings.

i-ound to

saw

for the first

from douliling
as the

when the wind, veering
steer for the Cape of Good Hope, which the}28th of July. Being prevented by contrary* winds

They had reached
the north, enabled them to

coast of Brazil.

number

it,

time on the

they cast anchor on the 1st of August in Saldanha Bay.

of hands

had been reduced by

attacked with scurvy, had become
liack the

26° south latitude,

Royal Merchant with the

Penelope and the Edivard.

On

death,

inefficient, it

sick,

and many, from having been

was deemed expedient

and continue the voyage only

to send

"wdth the

reaching Cape Corrientes, on the east coast of

Africa, near the tropic of Capricorn, a hiu'ricane arose, during

parted company.

Here,

The Penelojoe was never afterwards heard

who

continues the account, persevered in the voyage.

and

losing a large part of his crew

by an attack

which the

of;

vessels

but Lancaster,

After coasting northward,

of the Mooi"s,

who came

sud-

denly upon them while procuring water, they sailed directly for Cape Comorin,

EXPEDITION UNDER RAYMOND.

CnAP. IX.

meant

wliere the}^

to cruise witli a

view

to intercept

217

and capture the richly

a

n. 1592.

laden vessels from the Indian peninsula, Ceylon, Malacca, the Moluccas, and

The south-west

Japan.

'*?€.*--

mon.soon having set

they foimd
culty

great

in,

diffi-

doubling

in

the

Cape, but at length suc-

ceeded

May,

in

Six days
rived

at

after,

they ar-

the

Nicobar

and

Islands;

1692.

then, after

plying off and on the
of Sumatra,

coast

pro-

ceeded to the coast of
Cape Comorin, from near Calcad

— Fnun

Daiiieil's

Views

in India.

Malacca, where they de-

termined to pass what Lanciister

They were now reduced

season.

calls

the winter, meaning thereby the rain}'

to thirty-three persons in all

but, towards

;

the end of August, having espied three vessels, each of about seventy tons, they

were bold enough to attack and capture the whole of them.

Pegu

released because they were the property of merchants in

which they understood

to belong

was transferred

They next

;

of

them they

but the

third,

"to certain Portuguese Jesuits, and a biscuit-

same nation," was considered lawful

l)aker of the

Two

Pre.iatorj'

prize.

Its cargo of pepper

Edward.

to the

sailed for the Straits of Malacca, still

bent on privateering, and

made two important captures, the one a Portuguese ship of 250 tons, laden with
rice from Negapatam to Malacca, and the other a Malacca ship of 700 tons,
that came from Goa.
The latter carried fifteen brass Ciinnon, and had on board
300 men, women, and children, but made scarcely any defence against Lancaster's

She was laden

mere handful.

but had no treasure

was sent

On

now

the 21st of

to the

with wine and European goods,
so rich a prize as

goods had been taken

spread, they

and returned

locality,

and thus proving not

;

adrift after the choicest

presence being

chiefly

deemed

it

out.

was

anticipated,

The alarm of

their

dangerous to remain longer in

this

Nicobar Islands.

November they departed

for the

island of Ceylon, and,

anchoring at the Point de Galle, waited in the hope of intercepting the Portuguese

fleets

from Bengal, Pegu, and Temisserim.

iiregular

and predatory

mutinous

spirit

ness to

life

which the crew had

began to appear

;

for

Owing, doubtless, to the

some time been

and advantage was taken of Lancaster's

announce their determination that they would stay no

their direct com'se for England.

and the

Tiiere

;

wards, returning as

had come by the Cape of Good Hope

1.

it

vessel

sick-

longer, but take

was no means of i)reventing them from
having weighed anchor, set sail home-

doing as they pleased

Vol.

leading, a

Here the weather
28

voyage

218
A.D. 1504.

HISTORY

was

weeks were spent

so stormy that four

On

arrived at St. Helena.
of Brazil,

leaving

and kept wandering

for

among

of Paria, and afterward

tlirown off

OB^

it

INDIA.

[Book

in doubling the Cape.

West India

the

At

tr>

the wajst

first in

the Gulf

The

Islands.

subordination, did as they pleased.

all

In April they

they were carried westward

a time under great hardships,

I.

having

crew,

on the 15th of

last,

November, 1593, while the captain and sixteen of the crew were ashore searching for provisions, the car[)enter cut the ship's cable, and she drifted

only five

men and

as the only

a boy in

her.

Lancaster and his peo[)le separated into parties,

means of obtaining even a scanty
French

six others got off in a

away with

su-stenance.

which took them to

vessel,

Ultimately, he and
St.

Domingo.*

Here,

leaving the rest to follow, he embarked with his lieutenant in another French
vessel for Diejjpe.

he landed,
Expedition

Houtmann.

24)th

Having reached

it

He had

May, 1594.

in safety, he crossed over to Rye,

where

been absent three years and six weeks.

The Dutch, though they did not attempt the passage by the Cape of Good
Hope SO early as the English, appear to have been more careful in preparing
for

and were accordingly rewarded with more abundant

it,

voyage, undertaken

first

name

of the

Company

who had assumed

of merchants,

for Distant Countries, sailed

The expedition

of April, 1595.
tons,

by a number

Their

success.

tlie

from the Texel on the 2d

consisted of four vessels

— the Maurice, of 400

men; the Holland, nearly of
the Maurice; the Amsterdam, of about 200 tons,

carrying twenty cannon and eighty-four

the same size and strength as

men and a pinnace, of about 30 tons,
cannon and twenty men. The command of the vessels was given

carrying sixteen cannon and fifty-nine
carrying eight
to captains of

was intrusted

;

high naval reputation; but the general commercial superintendence
to Cornelius

mation, the voyage

is

Houtmann,

said to

at

whose suggestion, and on whose

have been luidertaken.

He had

infor-

spent some time

in Lisbon acquainting himself with the nature of the Portuguese traffic to the

East; and, in the course of his inquiries, had incurred the saspicion of the

Portuguese government,

him
to

till it

who imposed

should be paid.

a heavy fine upon him, and imprisoned

He had no means

of doing so

;

but,

ha\dng managed

communicate with some merchants of Amsterdam, induced them to pay the

fine

and obtain

his release, in consideration of the valuable information

which

he would be able to communicate.

On

Its pro-

the 19th of April, the four vessels reached the Canaries, and on the 14th

ceedings,

of

June they crossed the

line.

They had previously

fallen in

mth

several

Portuguese vessels, which they might have taken as lawful prizes; but, with
a moderation in which

much good

policy

was combined, they met and parted

They now began to long anxiously for land, as the crews were
They had
suffering much by scurvy, and reached it on the 4th of Augiist.
passed the Cape of Good Hope without seeing it, and had anchored in a bay
called the Aguada de San Bras, situated about forty-five leagues beyond it.

like friends.

After some intercourse with the natives, they continued their voyage on the

]

EXPEDITION UNDER HOUTMANN.

Chap. IX.

219

11th of August, but were again obliged, by the ravages of scurvy, to seek
refreshments on the coast of Madagascar.

ing them

;

Tliey

had some

and, in the meantime, were so reduced

scarcely muster

twenty men

by

ad.

159a.

difficulty in obtain-

sickness, that they could Houtmann
reaches

for service, while

fit

Having somewhat recovered by means
they obtained ashore, they again set
various adventm*es not possessed of

they had actually

of the fruit

sail

much

and

lost seventy. Madagascar.

fresh provisions

which

on the 14th of December; and,
interest, directed their course

after

towards

the southern islands of the Maldive
group.

They were thus canied

yond the Indian peninsula, and
saw land on the

1st of June,

befirst

1596.

Tliey were off the coast of Sumatra.

Continuing southwards, they arrived,

on the

11th, at the entrance of the

Straits

of

Sunda,

and

proceeding

through them, much impeded by contrary winds and cmi'ents, aiTived at

Bantam, on the north-west extremity
of Java.

On their arrival
by

six Portuguese,

they were visited

with their

slaves,

who assumed the character of deputies, sent by the governor and people
visit.

Tlie

;

intercom'se

commenced,

Bantam

to ascertain the object of their

Under

their only object.
aixl

a

full

all

this impression

cargo of pepper, at a very

moderate

have

rate, miglit easily

been

obtained;

but

Houtmann, determined

to

do everything at the cheapest, wsis

the

induced to wait for

new

crop,

wliich

was

represented to him as so very

abundant, that

it

would be

obtained at almost nominal
prices.

This

injudicious

delay gave the Portuguese
Bird'8-eve

View of Bantam

Arrival at

Bantam.

England, particularly Cavendish and

but the Dutch endeavoured to dissipate

by declaring that commerce was

a friendly

of

previous navigators from

Lancaster, had spread great alarm
fear,

PORTUQUESB RKSIDENT3 AT B.4NTAM.'

time to prepare a series of
intrigues,

by means of which

the good understanding with the natives was on the point of being broken up.
'ITrom Uistoirc de la Xarigation aiu Iiulcs One7ifales par hs Hollandais, par G. in A.

W.

L.,

Amst. 1C09.

220
A.D.

1590.

IIISTOKY OF INDIA.

Ultimately, however, a treaty, offensive and defensive,

though

natives,

was

The immediate corisequence

to be expected from them.

Houtmann,

injudicious

still

tlie

nothing but enmity in every form, secret or open,

j)retend,

the establishment of a
Houtiniinii's

I.

was formed with the

evidence was given, that whatever friendship

sufficient

Portuguese might

conduct.

[Book

was

of the treaty

Dutch factory at Bantam.

continuing to wait for the anticipated reduction in the price

of pepper, began to di.spose of his merchandise, to be paid for in pepper, at the

which

price

it

when

should bear

new

the

crop should be delivered.

terms he found ready purchasers in the governor and

.several of the

On

other

these

officials

Meanwhile, the Portuguese continued their intrigues, and very

of the town.

Houtmann was

plausibly maintained, that the irrational course which

could only be accounted for
that his real object

was

to

by assuming that commerce was only a

make

pursuing^

and

pretext,

himself thoroughly acquainted with the loca-

lity,

with the view of afterwards returning and taking forcible

The

effect of these insinuations

A

soon became apparent.

posse.ssion of

pilot,

who had

it.

all

along manifested great friendship for the Dutch, was barbarously assassinated,

and the pepper due on the purchases which had been made was not delivered.
The Dutch, after uttering vain complaints, had recourse to menaces.
Tliese
were not

lost

upon the

All the

tions.

Java

inhabitants,

vessels in the

At the same

time, the

a large

destined to act against

fleet,

Dutch were

who immediately took
harbour cut their

all possible

precau-

and ran

ashore.

cables,

by the alarming intelligence that
them, was being prepared in a neiglibour-

startled

ing harbour.
Houtnianii

made

Houtmann, though thus put upon

had the rashness to go ashore

his guard,

j)ri-

iier.

with only seven attendants, and pay a visit to the governor.

might have been foreseen immediately followed

;

The

result

which

and the whole party, as soon

The Dutch immediately attempted
reprisals, by seizing the governor's interpreter and a number of his slaves.
Houtmann's position was now precarious in the extreme; and he only saved
himself from the death with which he was threatened, by sending a letter to
as they entered the palace,

the

fleet,

Threatened

It

arrested.

ordering the interpreter to be delivered up.

were accordingly
himself

were

still

released,

Five of his companions

and an appearance of trade was resumed, though he

remained in captivity.

was impossible that matters could long remain

in this position;

and

retaliation.

it

was therefore formally

resolved, at a council held on board the Maurice, to

intimate to the governor, that

if

the captain,

Houtmann, and

all

his people,

with

everything belonging to them, were not delivered on the following day, the

utmost force which they possessed v/ould forthwith be employed to obtain
redress.

No

answer having been returned by mid-day, the four

near the town, and anchored in three fathoms.

On

proceeding, the governor, in a rage, ordered the arrest

the factory.

They were

all

carried

off,

ves.sels

drew

news of this
of every Dutchman in

the

Houtmann along with

first

tliem, to the place

EXPEDITION UNDER HOUTMANN.

Chap. IX.]

221

and nothing but excruciating deaths were looked for, when
consequences, recoiled from them,
the governor, who had begun to calculate the

of public execution;

proposed

and
It

was

1597.

negotiation.

spun out

so

A.D.

that

Dutch once more lost
patience and commenced

the

which

in

hostilities,

their

became

superiority soon

so

apparent, that the governor

saw the

necessity of yield-

Many delays were

ing.

but

interposed,

still

idtimately

an arrangement was come
Governor of Banta.m and AiTENDASrs.— iiistoire de
to.

by which

sum

agreed to pay a considerable

and Houtmann and

la Navigation, ic.

Dutch

the

liis

money

of

for the

damage they had

caused,

companions regained then* freedom.

Friendship seemed about to be re-established,

when a

.Portuguese deputy
""J^'^JI"^"''!"

and the promise
of one still more valuable, provided he would shut the port against all commerce
with the Dutch.
The bribe was too tempting to be resisted and an order was
arrived from Malacca with a large present to the governor,

i.roceedii.i;8

;

by the governor which

issued

left

no doubt as to his

mann, convinced that negotiation was now

and

his people

Hout-

hastened to remove with

useless,

Immediately

their effects.

hostile intentions.

after,

it

was decided by a

all

council

held on board the Maurice, to give full scope to their resentment and take a

Second thoughts proved

signal revenge.

could be gained, and

much might be

lost

and

better,

by the

reflecting that nothing

indiscriminate carnage which

they had contemplated, they weighed anchor, and proceeded eastward along the

were

lives

After a fearful encounter with the natives, in which

of Java.

cojust

lost

on both

sides,

and

all

hopes of establishing a friendly

were destroyed, the vessels quitted the north-west
the

isle

coast,

and

many

intercour.^^e

sailed north to

of Lubok, which they reached on the 9th of December.

They now

c-hanged their course to west, but, on the 2.5th, after they had beaten about,

obstructed

by contrary

selves

within sight of the island.

still

remaining,

many

of

Avinds

them

and

so

were astonished to find them-

Here, as they had only ninety-four

imfit for service,

Amstenkim, which had become
kept

currents, they

it

was resolved

to

men

abandon the

leaky that she could with difficulty be

afloat.

On

the

1

2th of Januarv,

1

597, anchor

was again
°

proceeded tor the eastern extremity of Java.

On

weisched,

and the

vessels Return

°
the 1 Sth they came in sight

of an active volcano, and, a few days after, entered the strait which separates

Java from

Bali.

latter island,

After some friendly intercom^e with the inhabitants of the

they tiu-ned their face homewards on the 26th of February, and

tlie

of

Dutch

expedition

;

222
A

u. 1598.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

began to steer for the Cape of Good Hope.

had been reduced
eiglity-nine
negi-oes

of Java,

now

to tliree

Their

[Book

veaseLs,

and of the 249 men who

;

a.s

I.

alrea*ly mentioned,

ha<l quitted Holland,

only

Besides these, however, they had with them two

survived.

taken up on the coast of Madagascar, a Chinese, two Malabars, a native

and a

volunteered to

make

the coast of Natal

was

wlio

pilot,

the voyage to Europe.

was reached on the

Sailing

on the

5th,

luid

by the south of Java,

24!th of Apiil, St.

Helena on the

of May, the island of Ascension on the 2d of June, the Azores on
July, the English Channel

and

said to be originally from Gujerat,

tlie

25tli

12th of

and the port of Amsterdam on the 14th

of August.
Results of
voyage.

Though the results of Houtmann's voyage were by no means brilliant, his
arrival was hailed with loud acclamations.
He had successfully performed a
voyage in which the English had twice failed, and made it plain that, with due
circumspection, a direct and lucrative trade with the East, by the way of the
Cape of Good Hope, might easily be established.
The Portuguese would
doubtless throw every possible obstacle in the way; but their power of mischief

was greatly abridged by the

loss of their independence,

and more was

to

be hoped from the victories which might be gained over them, than feared from
the injm'ies which they might be able to

The native powers,

inflict.

too,

had

evidently no love for the Portuguese, of whose tyranny and bigotry they had
too good reason to complain,

with any foreigners by
or finally overthrown.

whom
Even

and were disposed

to

form friendly connections

the Portuguese supremacy might be undermined
the returns

by Houtmann's voyage, though

ob-

tained under the most unfavourable circumstances, nearly covered the expense

and there was therefore every reason

to hope, that in proportion as the na^i-

gation and the nature of the trade came to be better understood, great profits

would be regularly
Newexpe

realized.

Influenced by these and similar considerations, Houtmann's return was no
"^

ditiODS.

sooner announced than aU the principal ports of Holland were eager to share in

new Indian traffic; and various companies, having that object in \dew, were
formed.
As before, the Company for Distant Countries, which had sent out
Houtmann, took the lead, and made all haste to fit out four ships. Other four
were fitted out by a rival company. The leading merchants in both, afi-aid of
the injury which they might inflict on each other, by appearing in the Indian
the

market as competitors, proposed and

vessels thus fitted out at the expense of private individuals,

cannon by the government,
remarkable for

its

sailed in

1598.

Four of them made a voyage

rapidity at that early period,

occupied more time, but appear to have turned

Amboyna, Banda, and

which yielded an immense

profit.

Ternate, came

eight

but provided with

and

in the course of fifteen

months returned from Bantam with a valuable cargo of pepper
visiting

The

an amalgamation.

eflfected

it

to

;

the other fom-

good account

home laden with

During another voyage,

fitted out

;

and

rich

after

spices,

by Middel-

THE DUTCH EAST INDIA TRADE.

IX.]

Ch-AP.

burg merchants, also in

Houtmann, who had been intrusted with

598,

1

was again unfortunate, and

in and,

King

the part of the

223

of Acheen, in

The Dutch East India trade

lost his life

by an

com-

tlie

act of gross treachery

had originated in private

liave

on

now be

miidit
°

considered as fairly
established.
"^

enterprise,

and had the times been

,

peaceful,

might

rr.«icw
the

ot

DuKh

KastinUia

been successfully carried on by the same means but the Spaniards and Por;

tuguese having
at all hazards,
tlie

1602.

island of Sumatra.

tlie

.

It

ad.

means of

left
it

no doubt of their determination to cling to their monopoly

became necessary

by

repelling force

for the

Dutch

At

force.

first

to provide themselves with

the States-general contented

themselves with granting the necessary authority for this purpose

appeared that separate companies, pursuing different, and
adverse interests, could not well co-operate in repelling a

two

circumstances,

it

it

soon

might be

also

common

coiu^es lay open to the government.

but

;

foe.

In these

might adhere

It

to

the system generally followed in Europe, and, while permitting individuals or
jissociations full freeilom of trade in

protection against foreign enemies
wiiere danger

was apprehended

into one great

its

by
it

stationing ships of

might, by uniting

and exclusive company, enable

not only to maintain

become in

or

;

every region of the East, provide for their

its

in every quarter

private associations

all

to acquire sufficient strength

who might assail it, but even to
and make new conquests. The latter was the

ground against

turn the aggressor

it

war

all

plan adopted; and on the 20th of March, 1602, a general charter

was granted,

incorporating the chfferent companies into one gi'eat association, and conferring

upon

it

the exclusive privilege of trade to the East.

merits or demerits,

was not

original, for the

The

plan,

whatever be

model had been furnished

its

fifteen

months before in a charter granted with a similar object by the crown of England.

To

must now

this charter,

and the preparatory measvu-es taken

to procure

it,

we

turn.

If those

who

took the lead in the expeditions of Fenton and Lanca.ster had

been deteired by their

ftiilure

direct trade with India, they

when they became

from persevering in the attempt to

must have been ashamed of

accpiainted with the success of the

Dutch

estaljlish

a

their ])usillanimity
;

and

nuist have felt the necessity of immediately bestirring themselves

at all events
if

they were

not prepared to allow a rival nation to forestall them in what was then imiversally,

world.

though not very accurately, regarded as the most lucrative market in the

The proceedings thus originated must be reserved

for the

next chapter

liret charter

oftheUiitih
p:a8t India

224

OF 1M)IA.

HlhiTOlJV

CHAPTER
Association of merchant adventurers for a voyage to the

The

^^^;jN
^^ ^;|

first

X.

East— Their proceedings— Their memorial

many

j^relirninaiy conferences,

merchant adventurers was formed in London

At

purpose of prosecuting a voyage to the East Indies.
a

D. 1599.

"

to be

-

an

for the

first, tliougli

permanent company was evidently contemplated, only a

voyage was proposed.
A

I.

English East India charter.

September, 1599, doubtless after

association of

[booK

single

Accordingly, their contract simply pur[)orts

The names of suche persons

owne

as have written with there

venter in the pretended voiage to the Easte Indias (the whiche

it

handes, to

male please

As.iDciatioii

of merchant

the Lorde to prosper) and the somes that they will adventure, the xxij Sep-

adventurers

The aggregate sum amounted

tember, 1599."

sented 101 adventures or shares, varying in

At
Petition to

the

first

was resolved

to £30,133,

8d.,

6-s.

amount from £100

and

repre-

to £3000.

general meeting, held two days after the date of the contract,

to petition the

queen for her royal

it

a project "intended

as.sent to

the queen.

for the

honour of their native country and the advancement of trade and mer-

chandize within the realm of England

;

and

voyage to the East

to set forth a

On the following
whom the management

Indies and other islands and countries thereabouts."

when

the fifteen committee men, or directors, to

been intrusted, held their

first

day,

had

meeting, the petition was read and approved.

After stating that "divers merchants, induced by the successe of the viage

performed by the Duche nacion, and being informed that the Dutchemen
prepare for a

new

viage,

and

to that ende

have bought divers ships

here, in

Englande, were stirred with noe lesse afieccion to advaunce the trade of their
native countrie, than the

Duche merchaimts were

to benefite theii'e

wealthe, and upon that afieccion have resolved to
Indias," they pray to be incorporated into a

make

common-

a viage to the Ea-st

company, 'for that the trade of the

Indies being so remote could not be traded on but on a jointe and united stocke."

They

also

prayed to be permitted to export foreign

deficiency, to

have bullion coined

for

them

coin, or, in the

at the queen's

mint

;

event of a

and, lastly, to

be exempted for several years, as the Dutch merchants were, from payment of
export or import duties
Voyage to
the East

approved

On

the 16th of October, the queen having signified her approbation of the

voyage, the committee were exerting themselves to obtain permission for the
vessels to proceed

on their voyage \vithout further delay, when an insurmount-

able obstacle arose from an unexpected (quarter

during her late wars that she began to

Spain had suffered so much

feel the necessity of peace.

Philip

II.,

—

too,

MEMORIAL OF ENGLISH MERCHANTS.

X]

Chap.

whose bigotry and ambition were the great obstacles to

to his account;

and

was

sincere in the matter,

government took

Were anything wanting

result.
it

might be found

•

^

•

1

and

;

•

ri

to prove that

1

1

•

The committee of adventurers, fearing such a

and elaborate memorial,

ment of all the

in

localities in

ad.

1599.

EnghuKj

Its approba-

impression

luider the

yet,

voyage miglit give umbrage to bpain, that approbation was
drawn.

called

the retrograde step which

in

voyage to India.

in regard to the projected

had been formally declared

tion

had been

it,

were commenced under circumstances which

nejjotiations

promised a favourable

225

result,

that the

1-1
expressly with-

Approval
withdrawn.

presented a long

which they endeavoured to show, by a careful

state-

which the Spaniards could, with any show of reason,

claim an exclusive right of trade, that the projected voyage would be so con-

ducted as not to interfere in the least with the })rogress of the pending negotiations

;

but the lords of council answered that

" it

was more

beneticiall fur the

generall state of merchandize to enterta^nie a peace, then that the

by the standing with the Spanische commissioners,

be hindred

same should

for the

mayn-

tayning of this trade, to foregoe the oportunety of the concluding of the peace."

To

answer no

this

lest,

after they

effectual reply could be

made; and the adventm'ers, "fearing

were drawen into a charg, they shuld be required to

viage, did proceede noe further in the

desist their

matter for this ye re, but did enter into

the preparacion of a viage the next yere foUowinge."
Tlie

memorial above referred

to,

furnishing an excellent

summaiy

of the

grounds on which the adventm-ers claimed and ultimately obtained permission
to establish
historical

an East Indian

trade, possesses,

independent of

document, intrinsic merits which justify a very

is entitled,

"Certayne Reasons

why

its interest

as an

liberal ([notation.

the English Merchants

may

It

trade into the

East Indies, especially to such rich kingdoms and dominions as are not sub-

King of Spayne and Portugal together with the true limits of the
Portugals conquest and jurisdiction in those Oriental parts;" an<l proceeds as

jecte to the

;

follows:

Whereas, right houorable, upou a treatie of peace betweene the crownes of Eiighind
and Spayne like to ensue, that is not to be doubted, but that greate exception will bee taken
ngaynst the intended voyage of her majestie's subjects into the East Indies, by the Cape of
Kuena Speran^a therefore the adventurers in the sayd intended voyage most liuinblv crave,
at your honors" liands,t<i take perfecte knowledge of these fewe considerations underwritten.
'•

;

"

Fii-st,

they desire that

Si)anishe jieaee to ])ut

it

wold please your honors to urge the commissioners

downe under

their hands, the

names

of the

of all such islands, cities, townes.

l>laces, castels, and fortresses, as they are actually, at this present, possessed of, from the sayd
("ape of Biieua Speran^a, along the cost of Africa, on the cost of Arabia, in the East Indies,
the Malucos, and other Orientid parts of the world: which, if they may bee drawne truly anil

faythfully to put downe. so that wee cannot be able, manifestly, to prove the contrarie, then
wil wee be content, in noe sort, to disturbe nor molest
them, whei-soever they are alreadie
oommandei-s and in actual authoritie.

" Secondly,

your

if

they wil not, by any meanes, bee drawne to this themselves, then wee, for

lordshi|)pes' j)erfect instruction in this behalfe, wil take the

That may please your honors, therefore,
Vol.

I.

paynes to doe

it

for them.

to luulei-stand, that these bee al the islands, cities,

29

Memoiiai of
merchants
ooundi'"^'^*

—

—

'

HISTORY OF INDIA.

22f>

A.D. 1599.

—

[Book

I.

townes, places, castlfs and fortresses, whereof they be, at this present, actual commauixlerH,

beyond the Cape

After a

of ijueiia Sjjeranfa, eastward."

of Spanish and Portuguese pos.sessions, arranged according to

list

"On

their positions

Mouth

the Coste of Africa," "In the

and "From the Persian Golfe along the Coste of

of the Persian Golfe,"

India, .southward," the

memorial

proceeds:
Memorial—
tion third,

« Thirdly, All the places which are under their

govemement and commaund being thus

by many evident and
that there remayueth tliat all the
invinci1)le proof es, and some eye-witne.sses, if need recjuire
rest rich kingdoms and islands of the East, which are in number very many, are out of their
power and jurisdiction, and free for any other princes or people of the world to repayre unto,
whome the soveraigne lords and governors of those territories wil bee willing to adniitte into
their dominions
a chiefe parte whereof are the.se here eusuinge."
Here follows a catalogue
under the title of "The names of the chiefe knowne islands and kingdoms beyond the Cape of
Buena Speranca, wholy out of the dominion of the Portugalls and Spaniards, in the east,
south-east, and north-east parts of the world."

exactly and truely put downe, and wee being able to avouch

it

to be so,

:

:

As

Catalogue of
chief lino wn
islands in

the East.

—

this Catalogue furnishes, in the

brilliant results anticipated
.

IS

,

i

•

•

i

i

very terms employed, a vivid idea of the

from the establishment of an East India trade,

it

•

i

here subjomed verbatim

:

" The Isle of Madagascar, or San Lorenso, upon the backeside of Africa

—

The kingdoms of
and might ie kingdome of
Pegu The kingdome of Jun9alaon The kingdome of Siam The kingdome of Camboia
The kingdome of Canchinchina The most mighty and welthy empire of China The rich and
gouldeu island of Sumatra The whole islands of Java Major, Java Minor, and Baly The
large and rich islands of Borneo, Celebes, Gilolo, and Os Papuas
The long tracte of Nova
Guinea and the Isles of Solomon The rich and innumerable islands of Malucos and the
Spicerie, except the two small isles of Tidore and Amboyno, where the Portugals have only
two smal forts The large islands of Mindinas and Calamines The gouldeu islands of the
greate and smal Lequeos The manifold and populos sylver islands of the Japones The
counti-y of Coray newly discovered to the north-east."
Orixa, Bengala, and Aracan, on the Gulfe of Bengala

—

—

—

— The

rich

—

—

—

—

—

—

—

Immediately after
that " in
riches,

—

—

all these,

and

—

this catalogue,

the memorial reiterates the statement

infinite places more,

abounding with

the Portugales and Spaniards have not any

or commaunderaent,"

and appeals

in proof of it to

sisting of " Portugalle authors printed

in Spayne,

'

"Italiens,"

castle,

gi'eate
forte,

numerous

blockehouse,

authorities, con-

and written," "Spani.sh authors printed

"Englishmen," and "Hollanders."

The

last two,

—

which

now pos.sess much interest, include under the former head "Su* Francis
Drak's men yet living, and his own writing printed," "Mr. Thomas Candishes

alone
Authoritie.s

welthe and

Companye, yet

living,

and

his writings printed," "Mr.

Ralph Fitche's Travayles

through most of the Portugal Indies, in print," and "Mr. James Lancaster's

and

his

Companye's voyage

head— "John
in India,"

Huygen de

"The

first

"The second voyage

as farre as Malacca, printed;'

and under the

latter

Linschoten's worke, which lived above seven yeres

voyage of the Hollanders to Java and
to Java,

in

Balj^, in printe,

Dutch and English," "The testimonie of

William Pers, Englishman, with them in the sayd voj^age," and "The third
returne of the Hollanders from the East Indies this

3^ere."

After this

anay

—

—

;

REPORT BV FFLKE GREVILLE.

Chap. X.]

227

of authorities, the memorialists, confident that they had triumphantly estaLlislied ad.

continue thus:

tlieir case,

" Fourtlily,

why they

let

these shewe any juste and laweful reasons, voyd of afteetion and partialitie,

should barre her

vaste,

wyde, and

many

free ])rinces, kings,

soveraign

infinitely

commaund

niajestie,

and

open ocean

and

al

sea,

other Christian princes and states, of the use of the

and of

acces.s to

the territories and dominions of so

whose dominions they have noe more

jjotentates in the East, in

or authoritie, then wee, or any Christians whosoever."

The point thus argued could not be

and yet

rationally contested,

was

it

They claimed in
virtue of a Papal grant, which had arrogantly bestowed upon them exclusive
riofht to all new lands which mijjht be discovered either in the East or West

(juite clear tluit

and hence,

the Spaniards woitld not consent to yield

until

this

were doing

little

"

always ready to answer,

we have

We

discovered, or

claim not merely what

may

Elizabetli,

of the
'

^^^"

the

that every
to all

of the memorialists, their opponents were

we

occupy, but the whole

yet be discovered in those regions."

so extravagant could not be acquiesced in

Queen

when they argued

by the Spaniards and Poi-tuguese was open

To every such argument

Extravagai.t

between them and such claimants,

better than beating the air

locality not actually occupied

the world.

it.

claim was set aside, or voluntarily relinquished,

memorialists, in so far as the question lay

tliat

i509.

A claim

by any Protestant government

;

but

though she had doubtless determined that the maritime enter-

prise of her subjects should
n\ the cautious spirit in

have

full

scope in the East, dealt with the memorial

which she usually

rej)ort to

be made upon

Brooke.

In this report,

acted,

and before

deciding, caused a

by the celebrated Fidke Greville, afterwards Lord
which was made to Sir Francis Walsingham, who had

it

names of such kings as are absolute in the East, and either have
or traffique with the Kinge of Sj^aine," Greville entei-s very fully into

refpiested " tlie
vvarr
detail,
fii-st

commencing rather superfluously on the

south to

tlie

coast of Barbary,

Cape of Good Hope, and then north to the mouth of the Red

It is here only that his report begins to

Sea.

and proceeding

Though he acknowledges

it

to be

bear properly upon our subject.

merely a compilation from two or three

authors,

"having neither meanes nor t3-me to seak other

entitled,

notwithstanding several geographical blunders, to more than a passing

notice.

After tiacing the east African coast as far as the Cape of Gardafuy, he

helpes," it

is

well

thus proceeds:
" At the said cape the Portugalls yeerly lye in wayte for the Turki.sh shippes, which
adventure to traffique without their licence, houldinge themselves the only comraaunders of

From the cape to the mouth of the Red Sea are also many small dominions of
white Mahometans, rich in gould, sylver, ivory, and all kynd of victuuUs and behind thes

these seas.

:

mayue, lyeth the great empire of Prester John, to whom the Portugalls (as
some write) doe yeerly send eight shippes, laden with all kynde of merchandi.se, and also furnish
themselves with many .'?ayllei-s out of his coa.st townes in the Red Sea. In the bottom of
cuntries, in the

this sea, at a place ealletl Sues, the
Jis

Turekes build gallies which scoure all that coast, as far
Melinde, and everie yeere annoy the Portugalls exceedinge much. Beyond the Red Sea.

Arabia
land

;

governed by manie sidtans of greate and absolute jwwer, both by sea and
iippon the pointe thereof standeth the riohe and stronge cittie Aden, wher both InFa'lix is

Report by
crevuie.

—

—

228
A.D. 1590.

lllSTOKY OF INDIA.

tlians, Persians,

I

Ethiopians, Turkes, and Portugals, have exceadinge greate traffique.

the Gulf of Persia that kinge possesseth all the coast, and

Portugals, with pearles, carpetta,

mouth

the

forte in

it,

of this golf,

and ther

the

is

lie

subject to the Persians, but so that
India, Arabia, Persia,

staj)le of ai

Beyond

great traffique witli the

The

rich commodities.

i.

of

tlie

Orinus lyeth

in

Portugals liath a

and Turkic, whither Christian

resort, from Alepjjo and Tripolis, twyse in the year."

merchants do also
Report by
FiUke

is

and

and other

lialh

Book

Continuing eastward he arrives at India, of which he says:
"Beyond the Persian

Greville.

lieth the

and hath exceedinge greate
in

kingdome

trafficque

of

Cambaia, which

is

the fruitfullest of

all

India,

the Portugals possesse ther the towne of Dieu, scituatv

:

an iland in the mouth of the Indus, wher he hath great trade with the Cambaians, and

jiartes.
Next is the cuntrie of the Malabars, who are the Vjesi
and greatest enemies of the Portugals it was once an entyer empier, now
divided into many kingdoms part is subject to the Queen of Baticola, who selleth great store
of pepper to the Portugals, at a towne called Onor, which they hould in her state the rest of
Malabar is divided into fyve kingdoms. Cochin, Chananor, Choule, Coulon,and Calechut; the
last was the greatest, but, by the assistance of the Portugals, Cochin hath now prevailed
above him.
Beyond the Malabars is the kingdome of Narsinga, wher the Portugals also
traffique
then the kingdom of Orixen and Bengalen by the ryver Granges, as also of Aracan,
Pegu, Tanassaria and Queda."
all

other nations in these

souldiers of India,

:

;

:

:

The

latter part of the report is less carefully

drawn

up,

and commits the

egregious blunder of confounding Taprobana, or Ceylon, with Sumatra.

It

continues thus:

Sumatra or Taprobuna is possessed by many kinges, enemies to the Porthe King of Dachem, who besieged them in Malacca, and with his gallies
stopped the passage of victuails and traffique from China, Japan, and Molucco, till, by a
mayne ileete, the coast was cleared. The Kinge of Spaigne, in regai'de of the importance
of this passage, hath often resolved to conquer Sumatra, but nothinge is done.
The Kinges
of Acheyn and Tor are, in lyke sorte, enemies to the Portugals.
The Philippinas belonged
to the crowne of China, but, abandoned by him, were possessed by the Spaniards, who have
trafficque ther with the merchants of China, which yeerly bring to them above twenty shippes,
laden with all manner of wares, which they carry into New Spaine and Mexico. They
trafficque also with the Chinois at Mackau, and Japan.
And, lastlie, at Goa, there is great
resort of all nations, from Arabia, Armenia, Persia, Cambaia, Bengala, Pegu, Siam, Malacca,
Java, Molucca, and China, and the Portugals suffer them all to lyve ther, after their owne
manners and relligions only for matter of justice they are ruled by the Portugal! law. In
the yeere 1584, many ambassadors came to Goa from Persia, Cambaia, and the Malabars, and

"The

tugals

;

iland of

the cheif

is

;

concluded peace with the Portugals

This report

English prefor

an

em

voyage.

east-

old,

but

1

is

1586, the Arabians slew above 800 Portugals."

dated the 10th of March, in the year 1599, according to the

600 accorduig to the present mode of reckoning, and must have had a

f.^^Q^^j.g^|j|g effect,

as the queen's approbation of the projected

voyage was shortly

and a general meeting of the adventurers was held at Founders'
on the 2od of September, when it was resolved " that they would goe

after signified

Hall,

;

;

management was

forwards with the voiage."

Tlie

they were then

called,

tors, or, as

committees,

intrusted to seventeen direc-

who met

for the first

time on the

very same day, and two days after made a purchase of the ship Susan for the

sum

of £1600.

The economical

spirit in

which the pm-chase was made appears

by which the sellers agreed to take her back at half-price
on her return. The next day (26th) the purchase of two other ships, the Hector
a,ud Ascension, was agreed to; and a call was made upon the subscribers for

in a stipulation

I

'

ARRANGEMENTS FOR

Chap. X.J

229

FIRST VOYAGE.

payment of a third of the whole stock on or before the

On

30th.

day a

this

draft of the patent of privileges, or charter, to be submitted to the crown,

read and approved.

.\

d

leoo.

was

had been prepared by a Mr. Altham, who received a

It

fee of £4.

In the com'se of these preparations, the directors were somewhat startled by
'

•'

'

spirited cou

duct of the

_

an application from the Lord-treasm-er Burleigh, recommending the employment

Edward Michelbome

of Sir

The ground of the application

in the voyage.

directors,

is

not stated, but various circumstances lead to the conclusion that the possession

was

of court favour

The

Sir Edward's highest qualification.

directors

were

only petitioning for their charter, and must have been perfectly aware of the

they ran in refusing to comply with the wishes of such a statesman as

risk

Lord Burleigh.

much both

It says

for their firmness

and

their prudence, that

they managed to place their objection to his lordship's nominee not on personal
"

but on public grounds, declaring their resolution
in

any

place of chai-ge,"'

and requesting

men

theire business with

of their

"

own

not to employ any gentleman

that they might be allowed to sort
qualitye,

the suspiccion of the

lest

employment of gentlemen being taken hold upon by the
a great

number of the adventurers

Were
which

is

their contributions.

the

in

sense

usually attached to them, the answer would not only afford

Mr. Mill thinks he finds in
the times,"

withdraw

and gentlemen here employed

the words gentleman

now

to

do dryve

generalitie,

it,

what

Quaiifica-

,,ioyniei.t

"a curious specimen of the mode of thinking of

but indicate a narrowness and illiberality of mind sufficient to

prove that the directors were unworthy of the honoiu^able
iiad

been intrusted.

of a

company

It

is

office

with which they

impossible to believe, that in laying the foimdations

which one of the leading objects contemplated was, to use their

in

own expression, " the honor of theii' native countrie," they intended to lay it
down
a general and inflexible rule, that a man, however well qualified he
ixs,

—liowever

— however expert as an
accountant— however slu-ewd and experienced as a merchant— was
be deemed
might be

in other respects

unfit

employment

skilful as

a seaman

to

l>i>rn

for

of a good family,

entitled

language
ill

" in

him

to

may

making

place of charge," if he happened to have been

and to possess the manners and accomplishments which

move

sound,

any

in
its

the

first

circles

strange the

meaning evidently went no further than

their appointments the directors

and were determined

sional ability,

However

of society.

to

would be guided

s(»lely

this,

by

that

profes-

have nothing to do with those who,

pluming themselves on being gentlemen and nothing more, would only draw
the profit, without performing the duties of any office to which they might be
appointed.

Though

tiie

of obtaining

charter

it,

was not yet granted, the

directors,

proceeded with their arrangements.

vessels luus already

been mentioned

Malice Scourge, and double the

On

size of

having

now no doubt

The purchase

of three

the 5th of October, a fourth, called the

any of the

othei-s.

was purchased

fi-om

Arrange
firetvoylge.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

2;j()

A.D.

1000.

[BfKJK

the Eai'l of Cumberlanfl, after some liiggling, for £3700.

'Jo

I.

these purchasfjs tliat

of a pinnace was added; and the whole exjjedition, as tlien projected, Ht<jod thas:

—The

Malice Scourge, whose name was subsequently changed to

lied Dragon, 200 men, 600 tons; the Hector, 100 men, 300 tons;
sion, 80 men, 260 tons; the Susan, 80 men, 24-0 tons;

100 tons

—in

all,

500

men and 1500

(wrought and unwrought),

80 pieces of Vjroadcloths of

was computed at £4545

twenty months' voyage at £6600,
scription of £30,133, 6s.

of the vessels

8cZ.,

all colours,

with smaller

stuffs,

and the provisions
of

tlie

for a

original sub-

under deduction of the pui'chase and equijtment

and other payments, was

to be

taken out in

bullion.

The.se

and afterwards, as

will be

underwent considerable modifications.

seen,

On

the 30th of October, the same

attoniey-general for his opinion,

turers.

day on which the charter was sent

to the

a general meeting of the adventurers was

and the important resolution was adopted of increasing the number of

held,

directors

and

;

The remainder

4s. lOcZ.

calculations could only be considered conjectiural,

General
meeting of
adven-

Ascen-

and a pinnace, 40 men,

60 pieces of Devonshire kerseys, and 100 pieces of Noi'wich
articles chiefly for presents,

tlie

Tiie investment, consisting of iron

tons.

lead,

tin,

of the

tliat

from

fifteen to twenty-four.

their names, along with that of

honour of being the

first

the anticipated charter.

That number was accordingly

elected,

Alderman Thomas Smith, who had the

governor appointed, were ordered to be inserted in

Another resolution was that each adventurer

On

sliould

whose Annals of the East
India Company furnish the only printed information, makes statements whicli

pay up

his subscription.

are very obscure,

he

says, " It is

this subject Bruce,

and apparently

iiTeconcilable.

(vol.

i.

p.

130;

remarkable that these pajTnents were made by the whole of

the adventurers, with the exception of four only,

Immediately after he speaks of

tions."

In one passage

" the

who withdrew

their subscrip-

funds of the society being thus pro-

vided for;" and yet he afterwards quotes from the minutes of another meeting
Subscrip-

of the adventurers,

"summoned on

the 8th of December, to

make up

the fund

tions paid

up.

with which the voyage was to be

fitted out,"

and

at

which

"it

was agreed

sum subscribed by the adventm-ers should be paid in by
month and declared, as the ships were now ready to proceed

that the whole of the
the

1

3th of that

;

to sea, that such of the subscribers as should not, at the preceding date, have

paid in their proportions, should be held to he liable for any losses that might

happen in consequence of the stipulated subscription not having been made
good by them."
original

could

it

These statements cannot easily be reconciled.

subscriptions,

If all the

with the exception of four only, were paid up, how

be necessary to hold out a general menace threatening

with actions of damages?

Tlie

original list of 101 subscriptions

most probable explanation

was completed, other

parties

is,

all defaultei^s

that after the

had been tempted,

by the near prospect of obtaining a charter on advantageous terms, to come
forward and put down their names. It is almost certain that something of this

CHARTER GRANTED.

Chap. X.]

231

kind must have been done, since the number of persons actually incorporated ad.

by the charter

not confined to those of the original

is

but amounts in

list,

leoo.

all

to 218.

Among

made previoas to the date of the
appomtments of Captam James Lancaster

other arrangements

be mentioned

the

Dragon, with the

of general or admiral of the

title

Davis to the second command, with the
officers

the

Red

to

Appointofficers to

ti^J^^

Both of these

had previously made the voyage: the one under Captain Raymond, in

the unfortunate expedition which has already been described
1

may

and of Captain John

fleet,

of pilot-major.

title

charter,

598, as a pilot, in the

and the other

;

in

The terms of agreement with

employment of the Dutch.

the former are not mentioned; but those with the latter deserve notice, in

was undertaken, and
The terms were £100 wages, £200

furnishing a good idea of the spirit in which the voyage
of the hopes entertained as to

its success.

on credit as an adventure, and a commission on the

profit,

rated alternatively

at £500, £1000, £1500, or £2000, according as the clear retm-ns on the capital

should yield two for one, three for one, four for one, or five for one.
ing object in this arrangement

was

to give Captain

The

lead-

Davis a personal interest

The same object was kept steadily in view in
other parties.
Thus the factors or supercargoes, thirty-six

in the success of the voyage.

arranging with
in

all

number, were arranged in four different

of which the

classes:

first

received

£100 wages, and £200 advanced as an adventure; the second £50 wages, and
£100 adventure; the third £30 wages, and £50 adventure; and the foui-th
£20 wages, and £-lr0 adventure. Even the common seamen were treated on
the same principle, and received four months' pay, of which the half only was
paid

{IS

wages, while the other half was advanced as an adventure.

The charter was

on the

gi'anted

day of the sixteenth century, 31st

last

,

December,

1

Like

600.

deeds of the same kind,

all

^''•'^'"ter

grauted.

_

it

is

spun out to such a

length by verbiage and vain tautology, as to occupy twenty-six pages of a

printed quarto volume.

tunately

it

is

It

is,

of course, impossible to give

it

at length.

unnecessary, as everything of importance

also

in it

For-

may

be

C(mipressed within comparatively narrow limits.

Proceeding
/v.

all

our

this

.

officers,

name

in the queen's
,

.

in the

.

form of

mmisters, and subjects, and to

our realm of England as elsewhere,"

it

letters- patent,

addressed "to

all

other people, as well within

begins with stating that "

Our most

dear and loving cousin, George, Earl of Cumberland, and our well-beloved subjects, Sir

Sir

John Hart, of London, knight.

Edward

Sir

John Spencer, of London, knight,

Michelborne, knight, William Cavendish, esquire.

of London, and other individuals specially named, amounting in

"been petitioners unto us

own

adventiu-es, costs,

for

our royal assent and licence,

and charges, as well as

El) gland, as for the increase of our navigation,

merchandize, within our

sjiid

'*^

*'o™

and

,

for the

"

'

nine aldermen

all

to 218,

have

that they, "at their

honour of our realm of

and advancement of trade of
realm, and the dominions of the same, mi^ht adven-

object.

;

2;32

A.D.

1600.

IliSTOKY OF INDIA.

[liOOK

ture and set forth one or more voyages, with convenient
pirmaces,

by way

of trafHc

and merchandize

number

i

of ships anrl

to the East Indies, in the countries

and parts of Asia and Africa, and to as many of tiie islands, ports and cities,
towns and places, thereabouts, as where trade and traffick may by all likelihood
be discovered, establi.shed, or had divers of whicli countries, and many of the
;

islands, cities,

and ports

have

thereof,

long since been discovered by others
of our subjects, albeit not frequented
in trade of merchandize."

In accordance with this petition,
her majesty, 'greatly tendering the

honour of our nation, the wealth of
our people, and the encouragement of

them, and others of our loving subjects

in their good

the increase of

enterprises,

oiu- na\'io:ation,

the advancement of la%vful
the benefit of

George, Earl of Cumberland.

—Lodge's

traffic,

to

"body
deed and

petitioners a

corporate and politick, in
in

and

commonwealth,"

oiir

constitutes the

for

name, by the name of The Gover-

nor

and Company

of the Merchants

Portraits.

of London, trading into the East
Indies,"

empowering them and

to possess or dispose of land, tenements,
seal,

to sue

and be sued; and,

and hereditaments,

in general "to do

by the same name,"

other things

name and

in that

their successors,

as fully

and

to have a

and execute

freely as

all

capacity,

common

and singular

"any other our

liege

people."

The

Mode of management

affairs of

the company, fixing

called committees,

who

it

in

are to have "the direction of the voyages of or for the

belonging, and also the sale of

all

merchandizes retm-ned in the voyages

in general, " the

managing and handling of

said company."

Thomas Smith, alderman

" first

" first

(^f

all

of the city of London,

and,

is

nominated

and present governor," and twenty-four other members as the
as these nominations

in force only for a year from the date of the charter, the

electing their successors in office is next pointed out.

the company, or a majority of those "present at

monly

'

;

other things belonging to the

and present committees" of the company; but

to continue

of

and the provision of the shipping and merchandizes thereto

said company,

as the

mode

management of the
a governor, and twenty-four other members

charter then goes on to prescribe the

called the court, holden for the said

For

were

mode

this purpose

any public assembly, com-

company," the governor always

being one, are empowered to elect a deputy to act in the governor's absence

CONDITIONS OF THE CHARTEK.

Chap. X.J

thereafter, " every year

and

on the

first

2^3

day of July, or at any time within

six

a.d. leoo.

days after that day, to assemble and meet together in some convenient place,"

and twenty-four

and, while so assembled, to elect a governor

the ensuing year.

In the event of the death or deprivation by misconduct of

any of the persons thus
to

connriittees for

elected, the

company, again met in

court, are authorized

supply the vacancies thus occurring, but ordy for the time of

Not only the

remained unexpiretl.

and truly"

office

company,

others to be here-

all

to take a corporal oatli before the

governor of the said company, or his deputy for the time being, to such
said governor

and company, or the more part of them,

freeman of the
In this
alluded

sjiid

last

to.

A

shall be allowed or

admitted to trade or

quotation the important point of membership

more

several ages of one

effect,

any public

down

set

traffick as a

company."'
is

incidentally

Quaiifica-

which

member-

explicit statement occurs in a subsequent clause, in

that are or shall be of the said company,"

" all

in

manner

court to be held for the said company, shall be in reasonable

and devised, before they

well

committed to them, but "as well every one

to execute the offices

after admitted, or free of the said

by the

"

thus elected were to swear

officials

above named to be of the said company or fellowship, as

MS

which

and

all

and twenty years or upwards," and

factors, or servants," "

which

shall hereafter

their sons, " at their

all

"

'^*'

their " apprentices,

be employed by the said governor

and company, in the trade of merchandize of or to the East Indies," are em-

powered

freely to traffic during the period

company.

tiie

The period

an extension to other

is

and within the

limits assigned to

restricted to " fifteen years," ^vith the promise of

fifteen, if

asked by the company and approved by the

crown, but the charter might be recalled at any time after a notice of

two

years.

The space over which the company might trade

is

of enormous extent

though spoken of under the general name of the East Indies,
larly described as including " the countries

is

more

jjarticu-

and places of

Asia, Africa,

and America, or any of them beyond the Cape of Bona Esperanza
or had."
in

seas,

which

any trade

or traffick of merchandize

Within these limits the company are empowered to

may

to the

be used

traffic freely "

by

and by such ways and passages already found out and discovered, or

shall hereafter

be found out and discovered, as they shall esteem and take

to be fittest;" the only restriction being, that

"the same trade be not under-

taken nor addre.ssed to any country, island, port, haven,
place,

and,

and parts of Asia and Africa," and

"all the islands, ports, havens, cities, creeks, towns,

Streights of Magellan, where

;

city,

creek, town, or

already in the lawful and actual possession of any such Christian prince

or state, as at this present
British crown,

and

"

is

or shall hereafter be in league or amity" with the

who doth

not or will not accept of such trade, but doth

overtly declare and publish the same, to be utterly against his or their good- will

and

liking."

Vol.

I.

30

ceographi-

;

23

HISTORY OF INDIA.

!•

1'li<i

A.D. 1600.

more

powers.

tutions, ordcrs,

to time,

and make "such and

ners,
tr-ade

and other
;

many

so

officers;

and

for the better

and not only to make such

I.

are authorized U)

reasonable laws, coasti-

and ordinances," as may seem "neces.sary and a>nvenient"

good government of the company, and of

t,he

company

effectually to can-}- on this trade, the

meet from time
a!^ju!iidai

[Book

for

their factors, masters, mari-

all

advancement and continuance of the

laws, but to enforce the observance of

them

by inflicting upon offenders "pains, punishments, and penalties, by imprLsonment of body, or by fines and amercements, or by all or any of them," it being,
however, always understood that "the said laws,

ordei-s, constitutions,

orders

and ordinances be reasonable, and not contrary or repugnant to the laws,
customs" of the realm.

statutes, or

The

Exclusive

privilege of trade within the limits above described

is

declared to

privilege

of trade.

bclong exclusivcly to the company; and

what degree or quality soever they
our prerogative royal, which

we

all

subjects of the English crown, "of

be," are strictly forbidden,

will not in that behalf

"by

virtue of

have argued or brought

in question," to "visit, haunt, frequent or trade, traffick or adventure,

any of the

of merchandise, into or from

the islands, ports, havens,

persons presuming to

and the

indignation,

cities,

by way

said East Indies, or into or from

towns, or places aforesaid,"

any

—every person

or

in defiance of this prohibition "shall incur our

traffic

forfeiture

and

loss of the goods, merchandizes,

and other

things whatsoever, which so shall be brought into this realm of England, or anv
of the dominions of the same, contrary to our said prohil^ition, or the purport or

true meaning of these presents, as also of the ship and ships with the fui^niture

One-half of the forfeitures thus incurred

thereof"

the other half

is

granted to the company.

their said contempt, to suffer

punishment as to

us,

them

the

sum

shall

of

pleasui'e,

and such other

our heirs or successors, for so high a contempt, shall seem

become bound

£1000

reserved to the crown

offenders are, moreover, " for

imprisonment during our

meet and convenient, and not
of

The

is

to be in
to

any wise delivered

imtil they

pay unto the said governor

for the

and every

time being

at the least" not to repeat the offence.

These severe enactments against interlopers strikingly contrast ^vith the
large discretion given to the company, who, in addition to

of

traffic

carefully guarded against encroachment,

an exclusive right

are empowered,

better encouragement of merchants, strangers, or others, to bring in
dities to

own

"for the

commo-

our realm," and "for any consideration or benefit to be taken to their

use," to "give license to

any person or persons

or from the said East Indies."

to sad, trade, or traffick into

To enhance the value

power, the queen gratuitously binds

herself,

of this large discretional'}-

her heirs and successors, not to

grant Hcense of trading within the limits of the charter to any person whatever
"
other privi-

without the consent" of the company.
Qj^ ^}^g

ground that the company "have not yet experienced of the kinds

of commodities and merchandizes which are or aahU be vendible" in the East

—

PRIVILEGES CONFERRED.

Chap. X.]

"and therefore

Indies,

outward,

shall

be driven to carry to those parts, in their voyages ad.

and sundiy commodities which are

divei's

235
leoo.

likely to be returned again"

into the realm, the exports of then* four first voyages are declared "free of

On

custom, subsidy, or pomidage, or any other duties or payments."

imports,

during the whole period of the charter, credit of six months on the one

and of twelve months on the other

half,

of the duties exigible,

after sufficient security for ultimate pa}Tnent has

company "are

like to bring to this our realm a

commodities" than can be required

for

been given

much

;

is

half,

to be allowed

and

bfecause the

greater quantity of foreign

home consumption,

tlie

duties which

might have been exigible on the export of such commodities as are afterwards
reshipped for transport to other countries are to be remitted, provided the

reshipment take place in English bottoms, and not later tiian thirteen months

The only other

from the date of import.
is

the permission annually to export the

privilege necessary to be

sum

of £30,000 in bullion or coin, of

£6000 should previoasly be coined

which at

least

permission

—which,

owing

to the crude

at the royal mint.

first

— was

voyage a sum at

Tliis

idea« then generally entertained

the subject of the cm-rency, was probably regarded at the time
defensible of all

mentioned

fis

on

least

tlie

granted only on the express proviso, that after the

least equal to that

exported should previously have been

imported.

Though the
parts

several

original adventurers contemplated trading on a joint-stock,

of the charter seem

original intention
gi-eatest

obscmnty.

there

nothing in

is

the charter

was

to be carried out, the subject

was granted possessed any higher

remains involved in the

became bound by

it

proceeded.

(qualification

It

is

known

than that of liaving

that 101 individuals or

their subscriptions to adventiu*e

on an experimental

voyage, sums which, in the great majority of cases, amounted to £200 each, and

fonned an aggregate of £30,133,

8d; but whether these were the only sums
subscribed at the date of the charter, or whether all the new parties who con6.s'.

curred in petitioning the cro\vn had previoasly qujilified themselves for membership

by

subscribing, are points

The only

of certainty.
wiiich

makes

it

it is

impossible to decide with any degree

clause in the charter

optional for the

slu)uld fail against a certain

follows

which

day

company

to

pay up

which bears on these points

is

one

members who
The clause is as

to disfranchise those
their subscriptions.

:

" Proviiled

always that

to be free of the said

if any of the persons before named and appointed by these presents,
Companif of Merchant of Lomhm, trading into the Etvut Itulics, shall

not before the going forth of the

appointed for this

first voyage, from the poi-t of
London, bring in and deliver to the treasurer or treasurers appointed, or which, within the
space of twenty days from the date hereof, shall be appointed by the said governor and
company, or the more part of them, to receive the contributions and adventures, set down

fleet

svibscription

this mentof

The words joint dock do not once occur in tl»e charter; and
any part of it to indicate that the 218 individuals to whom

signed the petition on which
firms

framed on the understanding that

and

stock.

:

—

:

IirSTOIlV

2:}G

A.D.

1600.

[Book

I,

by Iho several ailveiiturers in this lu.sl and pro-scnt voyage, now in liand to be Bet fortli, such
sums of money, as liave been, by any of the said peraon.^ by these presents nominated to be
of the said company, expressed, set down, and written in a l>ook for that purpose, and left in
the hands of the said Thomas Smith, governor of the said company, or of the said Paul
Banning, alderman of London, and subscribed with tlie names of the same adventurers,
under their hands, and agreed upon to be adventured in the said first voyage, that then, it
shall be lawful for the said governor and company, or the more part of them, whereof the
said governor or his deputy to be one, at any their general court, or general assembly, to
remove, disfranchise, and displace him or them, at their wills and pleasures."

Letter of

In order to

Queen
Elizabeth

OF INDIA.

tries

facilitate

communication and friendly intercourse with the coun-

which might be visited during the

commander was

fiu-nished

with duplicate

voyage under the

first

letters,

their supposed sovereigns in the following tenns

in

charter, the

which the queen addressed

:

"Elizabethe, by the grace of God, Queene of England, Fraunce, and Ireland, Defenrler
of the Faithe, &c.,

—To

the greate and mightie

King

of

,

our lovinge Brother,

gi'eetinge

"

Whereas Almightie God, in his infinite wisdome and providence, haith so disposed of
his blessings, and of all the good things of this world, which are created and ordeined for
the use of man, that howesoever they be brought forthe, and do either originallie gi'owe, and
are gathered, or otherwise composed and made, some in one countrie, and some in another,
yet they are, by the Industrie of man, directed by the hand of God, dispersed and sent out
into all the partes of the world, that thereby his wonderfull bountie in his creatures

appeare unto

all

may

nacions, his Divine Majestic havinge so ordeyned, that no one place should

all things apperteyninge to man's use, but that
one countrie should have uede of another, and out of the aboundance of the fruits which
some region enjoyeth, that the necessities or wants of another should be supplied, l)y which

enjoy (as the native commodities thereof)

men of severall and farr remote countries have commerce and traffique, one
with another, and by their euterchange of commodities are linked togeather in amytie and
meanes,

friendshipp

Queen's
letter.

"This consideration, most noble king, togeather with the honorable report of your
majestic, for the well enterteyuinge of strangers which visitt your countrie in love and peace
(with lawful traflfique of merchaundizinge) have moved us to geave licence to divere of our
subjects, who have bene stirred upp with a desire (by a long and daungerous navigacion) to
finde out and visitt jonr tei-ritories and dominions, beinge famous in theise partes of the world,
and to offer you commerce and traffique, in buyiuge and euterchauuginge of commodities
with our people, accordinge to the course of merchaunts of which commerce and interchanging, yf your majestic shall accept, and shall receive and entertayne our merchaunts with
favour, accordinge to that hope which hath encouraged them to attempt so long and daungerous a voiadge, you shall finde them a people, in their dealinge and conversacion, of that
justice and civilitie, that you shall not mislike of their repaire to your dominions, and uppou
further conference and inquisicion had with them, both of theire kindes of merchaundize
brouo-hte in their shippes, and of other necessarie commodities which our domminions may
afforthe, it may appeare to your majestic that, by their meanes, you may be furnished, in their
next retourne into your portes, in better sort then you have bene heretofore supplied, ether
by the Spauyard or Portugale, who, of all other nacions in these partes of Europe, have onlie
;

hetherto frequented your countries with trade of merchaundize, and have bene the onlie
impediments, both to our subjects, and diverse other merchaunts in the partes of Europe, that

they have not hitherto visited your countrie with trade, whilest the said Portugales pretended themselves to be the soveraigne lordes and princes of all your territories, and gave it
oiTt

that they held your nacion and j^eople as subjects to them, and, in their stiles and

do write themselves Kinges of the East Indies:
"And yf your majestic shall, in your princelie favour, accept, with good

titles,

likinge. this

;

THE QUEEN'S LETTER.

Chap. X.|

237

fii"st

repaire of our merchauuts unto your countrie, resortinge thether in i)eaceable traftique,

and

shall entertaiue this their first voiage, as

an iutroducion to a further contiuewaunee of
friendshippe betvveeiie your majestie and us, for oomniorce and intercourse betweene your
subjects and ours, wee have geaven order to this, our principall merchaunt (yf your niajestie
shall be j^leased therwith) to leave in your countrie some such of our said merchaunts as he
shall make choice of, to reside in your domminons, under your j)rincelie and safe proteciou,
untill the retourne of another fleete, which wee shall send unto you, who may, in the meane
tyme, learne the language of your countrie, and
to converse with

your majestie's subjects,

entertayned and begun, the same

how

instructed
"

And

may

to

apjilie their behavior, as it

may

best sorte,

the end that amitie and friendshii)p beinge

when our people
your countrie.

the better be continewed,

to direct themselves accordinge to the fashions of

shall be

becawse, in the consideraciou of the enterteyninge of amytie and friendshipp, and

in the establishinge of an intercoui-se to be continewed betweene us, ther may be required, on
your majestie's behaulfe, such promise or capitulacions to be ])erformed by us, which wee
cannot, in theise our lettres, take knowledge of, wee therefore pray your niajestie to geave

eare tlierein unto this bearer, and to geave liim creditt, in whatsoever he shall promise or

undertake

in

our parte),

in

our name, concerniiige our aniitye and eiitercourse, which jiromise, wee (for
the word of a prince, will see performed, and wilbe readie gratefullie to requite

anie love, kindness, or favour, that our said subjects shall receive at your majestie's handes
Itrayinge

your

niajestie that, for our better satisfaciou of

your kinde acceptauuce of

this our

i)ve and amytie offered your highenes, you would, by this bearer, give te.stymonie thereof,
by your iiriiicelie lettres, directed unto us, in which wee shall receive very great contentenient.

And

thus," &c.

.Manche of Caucut,

A boat

U9<->I

on

ttu'

M

t.:vl>ar

c^&st,
tlip

having a

biri at thf

tlat

bottom, renderinit

mouths

of

rlvi-rs.

it

suitable for croii:ng

ad

igoo.

;

BOOK

H.

FROM THE DATE OF THE FIRST CHARTER TO THE AMALGAMATION
OF THE LONDON AND ENGLISH EAST INDIA COMPANIES,
UNDEB THE NAME OF THE

UNITED COMPANY OF MERCHANTS OF ENGLAND, TRADING TO THE EAST INDIES,

CHAPTER
The
f^J

first

voyages of the Company

— Localities

L

— Opposition from the Dutch and tie
of India — Sir Thomas Roe's embassy to

selected

— First English factory on the continent
the court of the Great Mogul — State of that court — Estabhshment of a trade with Persia.

Portuguese

fyxv-rc--i^o-i^-rs>TN

1-s.

»-,vrv-x^

HE

interest

which naturally attaches to the

under an East India charter,

-will

first

voyage

justify a larger detail

than would be due to the incidents tliemselves, wliich are

The Red Dragon, Hector.

comparatively uninteresting.

^

Ascension, and Susan, already mentioned, together with

^'^S^^^^^^^p

the Guest, of 130 tons, added as a victualler,
the

1

3th

of

at Dartmouth, that they

when they

the 2 2d of April,
of Guinea they

A.D. 1601.

1601,

but

fell

her.

sailed for the Canaries.

scurvy,

down her upper works

making a quick

While

and took

of the victuals

from England,

sailed

and

for firewood,

and began

which prevailed to such an extent, that some of the

till

off the coast

in the English Channel,
voj'^age;

de-

of arrangements

Having afterwards unloaded the Guest

During their long delay

the opportunity of

long

so

in with a Portuguese ship, outward bound,

they dismantled her, broke

lost

Woolwicli

were not able to quit the English coast

which they had been unable to take on board when they
a floating hulk.

were

by contrary winds and the completion

tained

and plundered

February,

left

left

they had

to suffer

vessels

her

from

had not

hands enough to manage them, and the merchants on board were obliged
Details of

to act as

common

seamen.

On

the 9th of September they reached Saldanlia

the Company's

first

voyage.

Bay, where the sick rapidly recovered

:

the previous mortality,

however, had

been so great, that the number of deaths amounted to 105, or more than a
of the whole crews.

On

Sunday, the 1st of November, the Cape was doubled

and they proceeded northwards along the

new

fiftli

attack of scm-vy again proved very

east coast of Madagascar,

fatal,

and

oljliged

them

to

where

a

spend some

'

EXPEDITION UNDER LANCASTER.

Chap. I]

On

time on shore in the Bay of Antongil.
Indian Ocean, they arrived, on

tlie

continuing their voyage across the ad.

sail for

the island of Sumatra; and, on

tlie 6'th

After a short stay

of June, cast anchor in

Here

the road of Acheen, on the north-west extremity of that island.

and were

the language

visited

by two Dutch merchants, who had been

and mannei's of the country.

reception;

ho.spitable

tliey

from Bengal, Mahibai", Gujerat, and other quar-

f()und about eighteen vessels
ters,

1602.

9th of May, 1602, at the Nicobar Islands,

without having seen any part of the continent of India.

they set

239

Everything gave indication of a

and a deputation was immediately sent

nounce that the commander of the

fleet

to learn

left

was bearer of a

letter

to an-

ashore,

from the most

famous Queen of England to the most worthy King of Acheen and Sumatra.

The day

after his arrival,

Lancaster himself went ashore, and, having been

conducted with great ceremony to the king's presence, delivered his
along with

it

a present of considerable value.

Tlie interview

was formed,

in

was of the most amicable nature

istering justice

among

liberty of conscience.

their

life

;

and ultimately a treaty

.1
obtanied

*

by the English were,
and property, the power of admin-

which the leading privileges

perfect freedom of trade, protection to

own countrymen

according to English law, and

But while the natives displayed

The Portuguese had an ambassador

Friendly reception at

Acheen.

full

this friendly spirit, all

the proceedings of the English were w<itched with the utmost jealousy
third party.

and

letter,

and

at Acheen,

by a
soon

it

J.

,

I ;

11

•wry"*

Woolwich,

in

became apparent that he was

lurv of Gr.ivcaoud.

.

deterinineil to leave no

means imtried

to pre-

vent the establishment of a trade, which he naturally regarded as an unjustifi:i1)le

invasion of the Portuguese monopoly.

hiiving failed, he determined

on open

Attempts to prejudice the king

hostility,

and with that view despatched

messengers to Malacca, to inform the authorities in the Portuguese settlement
there of the arrival of the English ships,

and urge the necessity of immediately

sending a sufficient force to capture them.
covered; and
Mjilacca

his

messengei's

Fortunately his plans were dis-

having been apprehended, the Portuguese in

were not even made aware that the Euirlish had amved.

Lancaster determined to turn this ignorance to good account

;

and, leaving

the Susan, which had been sent round to Priaman, on the south coast of the
island, to

take in a cargo of pepper, set out with his other

tlu^ee vessels,

and a

Predatory

240
A.D. 1003.

OF INDIA.

ni.STOIlY

Dutcli

Hilip

(Book

of about 200 tons, which had obtained permission to join him, on a

Such an expedition was certainly

privateering cruise to the Straits of Malacca.

in accordance with the purely mercantile spirit in

little

which the voyage had

been professedly undertaken, and goes far to justify the account given by

William Monson, who

ment was

says, in his

Naval

by violence

as well to take

Tracts,^ that Lancaster's

by

as to trade

was "unworthy the name of an honest

that this

merchants should not be stained or polluted with

taken.

Sii-

"employ-

;

sufferance "

and adds

for the

hands of

design,
theft,

for in such case

all

The English commander

people would have liberty to do the like upon them."
Portuguese

II.

^as uot restrained by any scruples of this natiu-e, and, when a large Portugues(i
ship made her appearance, somewxiat grotesquely expressed his thankfulness to
Providence for having thus fiu-nished him with the means of lading his ships,
and supplying

Though the

other wants.

all his

ship

and had above 600 persons on board, the capture was
a carraek, bound for Malacca, from

Coromandel

coast,

and

the vacant room in his
dise,

was puzzled how

lade as

many more

to Aclieen,

St.

was of 900 tons burden,

easily effected

vessels

after

occupying

had had them.

where he ingratiated himself

which would have

On

Arrival at

new

fleet

all

sufficed to

Ultimately he resolved to retur.!

still

farther with the king

by hberal

what he could not take with him,
from England

presents of the prize goods, and deposited

await the arrival of a

th'^

with caUcoes, pintados, and other merchan-

to dispose of the residue,

ships if he

proved

Thom^, a Portuguese factory on

so fully freighted that Lancaster,

own

It

leaving Acheen on the 9th of November, the Ascension, in which

to

all

Bantam.

the pepper, cinnamon, and cloves which had previously been purchased, were
loaded,

was despatched

England.

for

The Dragon and Hector continued

their

course in an opposite direction along the south coast of Sumatra to Priaman,

where the Susan was found taking in her

cargo.

sail

homewards

two

vessels through the Straits of Sunda, and,

as soon as

it

Leaving her with orders to

was completed, Lancaster proceeded with the other
on the

1

6th of December, arrived

in the road of Bantam, on the north-west extremity of the island of Java.

Here, after the dehvery of the queen's letter and a handsome present, his
reception

was

as favourable as

it

had been

at

Acheen

;

and he found no

diffi-

culty in disposing of his prize goods to such advantage, that he had soon sold

more than would pay
ruary

fidl

for the lading of both the ships.

cargoes of pepper were taken in

;

and on the

By

the

1

0th of Feb-

20th, after a regular

had been established at Bantam, and a pinnace despatched to the
Moluccas, for the purpose of attempting to seciu-e a trade which might be

factory

available to the next ships from England, he took his final departure.

The voyage home was very stormy and the Dragon,

The voyage

;

in particular, having

home.

lost

her rudder, became so unmanageable, that Lancaster privately gave orders
'

Churcliill's Voyages, vol.

iii.

p. 2.31.

—

Chap.

SECOND VOYAGE TO THE EAST.

I.]

him

211

which had hitherto kept by him, to continue her voyage and

to the Hector,

leave

;

to his fate.

confessed, that in taking this step he dis-

must be

It

At

played singular resolution and devotedness.

he believed to be his

a.d. leos.

the time

the captain of

final orders to

tlie

when he gave what

voyage

Hector, he hastily ad-

dressed a letter to his employers in the following terms:
"
I

Right Worshipful,

have

settled for

— What

hath passed in this voyage, and what trades

Company, and what other events have

tliis

shall

understand by the bearers hereof, to

must

refer you.

as

with

1 will strive

that are with me.

any pinnace

And

1

cannot

tell

1

(as occasion

take in

my ship and
venturing my own life,

where you should look

you

hath happened)

diligence to save

all

you may perceive by the com"se

whom

befallen us,

for me, if

to seek me, because I live at the devotion of the

I

her goods,

and those

you send out

winds and

seas.

God to send us a merry meeting in this world,
if it be his good will and plejvsure.
Your loving Friend,
"James Lancaster."
The captain of the Hector^ unwilling to leave his commander in de.sperate
circumstances, still managed to keep him in sight; and ultimately, after
redoubling the Cape of Good Hope during the storm without seeing it, both
thus fare you well

;

desiring

—

Three months

vessels readied St. Helena.

vessels

and

Both

;

and

on the 11th of September,

The Ascension and Susan had

1603, they cast anchor in the Downs.

viously an-ived

after,

though numbers of the crews had perished,

thus,

all

pre-

the

their cargoes returned safe.

experiment under the charter, and in a pecuniary view, the

as a first

successful
result

voyage was eminently
established

successful.

Two

factories at

important stations had been

imder the most favourable circumstances; and the clear

estimated at ninety-five per
adventured.

It

cent.,

profits,

were nearly as large as the whole capital

ought to be observed, however, that these

perly be considered mercantile, as a large portion of

profits

cannot pro-

them had been obtained,

not by legitimate trading, but in the course of a predatory

cruise.

Before Lancaster returned Queen Elizabeth had paid the debt of nature

but the deep interest which she took in the proceedings of the
previously been manifested
for

by a

letter,

in

Company had

which she remonstrated with them

having allowed a second year to pass without entering into a new subscrip-

tion

;

and plainly

the Dutch did,

hinted, that " in not following

it

seemed as

if

little

up the business

tiU the success of the firet

Strange to say, the remon-

and no preparations were made

was

for a second

commands were

different

voyage

actually ascertained.

In the second voyage the same vessels were employed as in the
the

manner

regard was entertained either for her

majesty's honour, or the lionom- of the country."
strance proved unavailing,

in the

—Captain

Henry Middleton

first,

sailing in the

Draf/on ns admiral, and Captjiin Sufflet in the Hector as vice-admiral.
subscription,
Vol.

I.

which appears

to

but

Red
The

have been mainly advanced by the same parties
31

secon.i

;

2i2
A..D. 1604.

HISTORY" OF INDIA.

[Book

as before, since botli voyages were afterwards entered in one account,

Of

to £60,450.

absorbed no

less

this sum, the repaii-, ec^uipraent,

may

amounted

tiie

vessels

than X48, 140, whereas the amount carried out in goods was

only £1142; the remainder was bullion.

goods

and provision of

II.

The very paltry sum allowed

perhaps be accounted for by the large quantity of Portugue.se

goods which Lancaster had

left for

future sale in the factories of

for

pi-ize

Acheen and

Bantam.

The

Gravesend on the 25th of March, 1G04; and by

vessels left

this early

departure avoiding the blunder by which they had formerly lost the proper

Bantam Road on the 20th

season, arrived safely in

Here they found
with
Attempt to
trade with

the Spice
Islands.

whom

At Bantam

of the castle of

sail for

In

the Portuguese.

this intercourse

remained undisturbed

their cargoes about the middle of

this

England.

having so for succeeded as to compel the surrender

Amboyna, the Dutch immediately

Amboyna. — Churchill's

there

good ground

is

;

but

not the proper parties to

it

altered their tone to the

Collection of Voyages.

and formally debarred them from trading

Dutch thus assumed

by a

to the Dutch,

The Red Dragon and Ascension prothe Moluccas, from which the Dutch were then endeavoming to expel

February, 1605, set

principles,

folio win f.

time a friendly intercourse was kept up, the Dutch admiral

for a

and the Hector and Susan having completed

English,

December

and three or four pinnaces belonging

six ships

dining aboard the Dragon.

ceeded for

of

On

to that island.

for disputing the exclusive title

seems impossible to deny that the

call it in question, as

which the

Company were

they were expressly prohibited,

clause in their charter, from attempting to establish a trade at

in the actual possession of

object to

it.

general

any

place

any friendly Christian power which should openly

But there were other

islands of the

Molucca group, to which, as

the Dutch could not pretend to be in possession of them, the objection could not

apply

Temate,
Tidore,
Uaiida.

;

and the English

vessels

were only exercising a right which undoubtedly

and

belonged to tliem,
Tidore,

and Banda.

when they endeavoured

to carry

on a

traffic

Circumstances, howevei", were unpropitious

;

with Ternate,

and the Dutch,

Chap.

SECOND VOYAGE TO THE EAST.

I.]

when they

213

did not dare to use force, scrupled not to avail themselves of intrigue

and misrepresentation, which were almost equally

a.d. 1604.

seeming the great

effectual in

object of their ambition

—a complete monopoly
of the spice trade.

^^^

The lied Dragon
and Ascension,

after

remaining

some

for

time in the Moluccas,

though not in company,

met again

in the road

of Bantam, from which

they sailed

for

Europe

— From Nietthof.'

Tern ATE

on the 6th of October,

The Susan, which had

1G05.

some time

sailed

but the other three vessels, the

Red Dragon,

was never heard

before,

of; Rcsiutsof

Hector, and Ascension, after

the second
voyage,

rendezvousing in Saldanha Bay, proceeded home in company, and cast anchor

Downs on

in the

the 6th of May, 1606.

Notwithstanding the

loss of the

Susan

the returns were favourable; and the two voyages, thrown, as already mentioned,
into one account, nearly doubled the capital

which had been adventured in them.

remember that a considerable portion of it was derived not from trade, but from privateering and
that the ninety-five per cent, said to have been returned was not realized in
one year, but after a series of years, partly occvipied with the voyages, and jiartly
It is still necessary, however, in calculating the profit, to

;

spun out in long credits allowed to purchasers.
In

James

60 1, shortly after the vessels had sailed on their second voyage, King

1

I.

Edward Michelborne, whose recommendation
emplo^nnent by the Company has been already mentioned,

granted a license to Sir

by Lord Burleigh

for

to trade to " Cathaia, China, Japan, Corea,
tries,

and Cambaya, &c."

These comi-

though the Company had not yet visited them, are within the limits of

and the

their charter,

conferred by
sented.

Sir

it.

It

license wjvs therefore

was

Edward was

not,

a

an interference with the rights

however, so indefensible

member

of the

to the full use of all the privileges

a,s

it

Company, and was

which they enjoyed.

is

usually repre-

therefore entitled

The

intention,

no

was that a joint' stock should have been established, but the attempt had
yet failed and the voyages hitherto made, though carried on in the name

doubt,
as

;

of the Company, were truly for the benefit only of individual adventm-ei-s.
these circumstances,

was not

In

might have been made a question whether every member

entitled to claim a similar privilege in his o^vn name,

own behoof
'

it

Even assuming

and

for his

that the aftirmative of this question could not be

GesancUchaf von der IloUandischc-Oalindischcn Campagnie an den Kaiser in China, 1655.

iie«"9e to
Sir Kdw;ird

,

Miciieibomo.

JIISTOKY OK INDIA.

S^-^

A.D.

iGi)8.

(Book

maintained, another important consideration remaias behind

renounced the right of granting a

pany; and before
violation of

tlie

it

can be

Company

it

ing,

if,

by Queen Elizabeth

The

refused to consent.
;

but,

was a
was

licease

might be withdrawn at any time

two

after

given,

probaVjility is that they

knowing that they had the power of

and were not afterwards

direct

London

to the

from prudential considerations, they refrained from exercising

foreclosed themselves,

Com-

of the

"

that "this license

must be shown not only that the

not considted on the subject

Tiie crowii only

without the coasent

said, witii Bruce,

exclusive privileges granted

East India Company,"
but that the

license "

entitled to complain.

years' notice

;

JI.

and

were

objectit,

they

Tiie cliarter

not to be

it is

presumed that the Company would have ventured, by withholding their consent,
to oppose
their

any of the wishes or even whims of the crown, and thereby imperilled

very existence.

However, the Company

may have

felt

they acted wi-sely
to

make

the most of his license.

trade,

his

Though he covered his design with the name of
whole conduct showed that his only object was to enrich himself by

priva-

in refraining from remonstrance,

teering.

In

and allowing Sir Edward Michelbome

this he so signally failed as to give the

Company

the best security

that no such licenses would again be gTanted.

The

'^'^^^^

third voyage
o
•'

voyage.

—undertaken

on a subscription of £53,500, of which

£28,560 was expended in equipping three

Dragon, the Hector, and

ships, the

the Consent; £7280 on goods, and £17,600 in bullion

command of Captain Keeling. The Consent, a
commanded by Captain David Middleton, was first

the

—

sailed in 1607,

sliip

imder

of 115 tons burden,

despatched, and

made

the

Weighing

voyage by herself without afterwards joining her companions.

Hope on the 12th of March, she made a prosperous
voyage to the Cape of Good Hope, which was doubled on the 30th of July,
and reached Bantam Road on the 14th of November. Having here landed
anchor from Tilbury

the iron and lead which formed the cargo, refitted the ship, and taken in

some goods

for barter.

Captain Middleton sailed for the Moluccas, which he

reached in the begimiing of January, 1608.

After experiencing considerable

obstruction from the Portuguese, who, as a condition of trading, insisted that

he should join them in their hostilities against the Dutch, he set

having obtained a cargo, but had the good fortune, while
Purchase of

Boutoug, near the south-east extremity of the Celebes, to

fall

sail %vithout

off the island of

in with a

Java

cloves.
_

junk laden with
whole cargo

cloves from

for sale,

Amboyna.

The master of the junk

and Middleton pm'chased

which was afterwards sold in England

for

for £36,287.

£2948,

The

15s.,

ofiered his

a quantity

object of his voyage

having been thus accomplished, he hastened back to the factory at Bantam,
landed the supercargoes
set sail for

who had accompanied

liim to the Moluccas,

and then

England, which he reached in December.

The Dragon and Hector, the one commanded by Captain Keeling as admiral,
and the other by Captain Hawkins, quitted the Do^VTls on the 1st of April,

THIRD VOYAGE TO THE EAST.

CiiAP. I.l

]

245

and encountering very tempestuous weather, during which many of the

607,

a.d. 1609.

crew became diseased, took shelter in Sierra Leone, doubtful whether to prose-

The bolder course was

cute the voyage or retrace their steps to England.

adopted

ultimately

and,

;

after doubling the Cape, the

voyage was continued north-

wards along the east coast
of Africa as far as the island

where

of Socotra,

24!00 lbs.

of aloes were purchased at
the rate of 5

The two

lbs. for

ships

a

dollar.

afterw.ards

separated.
Captain
i
I
'

Hawkins
'^

,
,
Java
Junk.

— Krom vNieuhof.r
,.

1

proceeding directly to Surat

with the Hector, which was thus the

of the

first vessel

Company that anchored
*^

'

in

tho

a port of the continent of India; while Captain Keeling, in the Dragon, pvu'sued
the track taken

and taking
road of
in

in

by

and

his predecessors,

some pepper, passed the

Bantam on

the 5th of October.

after calling at

Straits of Sunda,
It

^^'^^ ^'sit of

Priaman

in Sumatra,

and anchored in the

Com-

i)aiiy'8 siiipa

tineiitof
India.

had been resolved that the Dragon,

consequence of her unsatisfactory condition, should forthwith be despatched

England with the cargo which had been procured but before she sailed a
vessel hove in sight, and proved to be the Hector.
She had been rather unfor-

to

;

tunate, for the Portuguese

had attacked

her,

captmred eighteen of her crew,

including some of the factors, and seized her goods to the value of 9000 dollars.

Captain Hawkins, however, had found the prospect of opening a trade at
Surat so promising that he had preferred to remain ashore, and send forward
the vessel under the

command

oi his

first officer.

The arrangement

wtis so far

opportune that Captain Keeling, who, by the departure of the Dragon, might
liave

been

left

without a command, immediately assmned the

command

of the

Hector, and proceeded with her, on the 1st of January, 1609, for the Moluccas.

The Dutch were now carrying on

their trade

with great

spirit,

and made no

secret of their determination, as soon as they should establish their su})remacy
in

the

Spice Islands, to exclude

Keeling, in his single vessel, found
ceedings,

voyage.

it

Captain

impossible to resist their arbitrary pro-

and was obliged to carry on a precarious trade under a kind of

ignominious sufferance.
cloves,

others from trading to them.

all

He

succeeded, however, in obtaining a cargo of pepper,

and nutmegs, and, returning

to

Bantam, prepared

for the

homeward

Before departing, he placed the factory there upon a more regular

footing than before.

and even sordid

The

spirit in

Augustine Spalding, the
paid monthly, as follows:

salaries

allowed strikingly illustrate the economical

which the Company made their
factor, received

— Francis

£50

a-year.

fii-st

The other

Kelly, surgeon, £2, 5s.;

arrangementa
officials

were

John Parsons,

30s.;

Dutch
hostiutV.

;

insToRV

2^(j
,

AD.

1009.

Ro))ert O'Neal, 298.

or'

Augustine Adwell,

;

Driver, 208. each; VVillium

24«.

The Hector reached the Dovvas

two

vessels, the

vessel
Subsequent

Etlieldred Lainpre

;

II.

and William

Juan Seram and Adrian,

on the 9th of May,

fitted out.

Company, had a subscription

Ascension and the Union.

The

one,

J fj

Before she

1

which

lOs. each.

ranked as

Is

of £33, 000, and wa.s confined to

proved a total

It

loss,

the fonner

having been cast away in the Gulf of Cambay while attempting to make

fop Surat

'

'

Acheen and Priaman, having been wrecked as she was

success at

Bay

and trading
o with some

aiid the lattei-, after arriving
o in the Ea.st,

;

voyages.

the

in safety

two other voyages had been

the foui'th of the

[Book

Wilson, 228.; William Lamwell and Philip Ba/l-

nedg, 168. each; Francisco Domingo, 128.;

arrived,

INlJlA.

The other voyage, usually

of Biscay.

classed as the

fiftli

returninf; in

of the

Com-

pany, though properly only a branch of the third already described, was more
fortunate.

It consisted only of a single vessel, the Expedition, for

which the

was £13,700. It sailed on the 24th of April, 1609, under the command of Captain David Middleton, who had previously made the succe.s.sful
voyage in the Consent; and after reaching Bantam on the 7th of December,
subscription

continued onwards to the Moluccas, where, notwithstanding the opposition of
the Dutch, he managed, with considerable dexterity, to oljtain a valuable cargo,

and bring
with the

it

home

safely

This voyage, thrown into one account

to England.

third, yielded the largest return

which the Company had yet obtained,

the clear profit on both voyages being no less than 234 per cent.
Tlic result of tlicse expei'imental voyages

Obstacles to

moiintea.

made

it

impo.ssible to doubt, that

Under the Company's charter a most lucrative trade might be established. There
were, however, several formidable obstacles in the way.
islands the

Dutch were attempting

evidently meant to exclude

all

Among

to establish a supremacy,

the Eastern

under which they

other nations from any share in the spice trade

while the Portuguese, by their conduct at Surat, had shown that before the

English could hope to

traffic

with any port on the continent of India they must

be prepared to repel force by

Company

for the

to carry

vessels which, while

In future, therefore,

force.

it

on their operations on a larger

mainly adapted

for mercantile purposes,

would be necessary
and employ

scale,

might at the same

time be able to maintain their ground against any enemy that should presume
to attack them.

required

;

but

it

In order to accomplish

was doubtfid

duct of the monarch

left it

if

these

this,

additional subscriptions were

would be forthcoming

so long as the con-

doubtful whether he considered himself bound

charter which his predecessor

had granted.

His conduct

in giving a license to

Edward Michelborne justified suspicion; and it was therefore almost vain to
hope that new risks would be run until assurance was given that he was prepared to recognize the validity of the charter by adopting it as his own personal
deed.
Accordingly, in 1 609, when of course six years of the original fifteen
n
rr
t
Were still unexpired, the Company succeeded in obtaining from King James a
new charter so nearly identical in its terms with that of his predecessor that a
Sir

New

charter

by King
James.

by the

.

•

•

•

Chap.

NEW CHARTER BY KING

I.]

separate analysis of
notice

are,

it

number

amounted

of

to 218, in

247

The only points deserving of ad.

altogether superfluous.

is

that while the

Elizabeth's charter

JAMES.

leio.

members specially named in Queen
that of King James it is increased to

276; that the provisions against interlopers are rendered more stringent, by

an authority given to the Company

any

of contraband traders in
or

and

ministers, shall trade
tlie

whether within the

place.s,

"

dominions

Bi-itish

factors

and

letters-patents;"

and

Company,

by virtue of these our

traflic

and goods

confiscate the ships

their

duration of the privileges of the charter, instead of being restricted

to fifteen years,

and a conditional renewal

should have expired,
ai)parent importance
to the

and

provided they be places where the

not,

that

to seize

crown

is

made

This

perpetual.

by a subsequent

to recall the charter at

other fifteen after the former

for

clause loses

last

power

provision, in whicli full

any time "after three

much
is

of

its

reserved

years' warning."

In the preamble to this charter. King James declared that he had found

i""en«ed
subscription

"

by

Company and

certain experience, that the continuance of the said

not only be a very great honour to

and dominions, but
In

wealtli."

there

was

also in

many

trade will

umier new

our heirs and successors, and to our realm

us,

respects profitable unto us

and our common-

this declaration, as well as in the provisions of the charter itself,

certainly an additional security that the exclusive privileges of the

Company would not be

To

rashly infringed.

owing that the subscription

for the sixth

been made, amounting to £82,000.

this

may have been

it

partly

voyage was the largest that had yet

Three

ves.sels

were

fitted out,

one of them,

Trades Increase, of 1000 tons burden; and the command was given to Sir
Henry Middleton, who had made the second voyage. He set sail in the .spring

the

Bay on

of 1610, arrived in Saldanha

Cape, sailed northwards to
Sea,

and not

India,

island of Socotra.

tlie

was the

the 2-ith of July, and, after dou))ling the

oiiginal ilestination

It

for the

;

of continuing his course across the Indian Ocean,

second largest

c^f

his vessels, at

wa-s induced to believe a

left

to procure a pilot,

distance within

Babelmandeb without

came aboard, professing great

Red

the

commander, instead

the Pepper-Corn, the

ready market would be foimd for

Straits of

tiiat

Aden, and then steered for Mocha, where he

At Aden he had been unable
tlie

would seem

skill in navigation.

all his

merchandise.

and had ventured
one.

At

Having been

last

for

some

two Arabs

f Sir

intrusted with

the pilotage, they ran the Trade's Increase on a sandbank shortly after the

town of Mocha had been descried. The subsequent proceedings leave little
doubt that it was wilfully done.
Sir Henry Middleton seems to have been little qualified for his command.

When

the ship could not be got

off",

the most valuable part of her ciirgo

sent ashore with the view of liglitening her.

of his people without taking

Arabs had completed
in

their hands.

He

any precautions

afterwards landed with

was

many

for safety, and, as soon as the

their treacherous preparations, found hiuLself a prisoner

Ultimately, after losing

many

of his

rroceedings

men and remaining

a

Henry

'jiid.'Uetun.

248
A.D. iGii.

OF INDIA.

1IIST(JJIY

[liooK

considerable time in captivity, he obtained his release, reajvered his ships, and
sailed

Surat, the road of which

for

was

on the 26th of Septemh»er,

refiched

Here he found a Portuguese squadron,

1611.

cfjrLsLsting

of .seven

lying outside, and of thirteen smaller vessels inside the bar.
Arrogant
claima of
the Porta

IF.

of

liis

frigates

They had heard

though the English were not then at war

arrival in the lied !Sea, and,
_

witli Portugal,

now made him aware

that they disputed his right to trade

and would not even allow him to communicate with the Englishmen

at Surat,

who had been

left

there by Captain Hawkiu.s.

This arbitrary proceeding the

Portugue.se admiral justified on the ground that he

of captain-major, an ofiice which

was invested with the

made him guardian

office

of all the ports in the

north of India, and warranted him in seizing aU ve&sels which presumed to
trade with any of them without his carta or permit.
appears,

it is

not to be denied that the possession of

long been recognized even

by the native

major, whose income

chiefly derived

was

courts

;

if

they

coiild

from the

rather

by the

claim

Poi-tugue.se

fees

paid for these permits,

when he

them

to trade.

between Spain, Portugal, and England,

insisted that the

The peace

so far

existing

from weakening

strengthened the captain -major's claim, because the charter of

Company

expressly prohibited

possessed

by

them from encroaching on the

On

European powers.

friendly

had

not produce a letter jfrom the King of

Spain, or his viceroy at Goa, authorizing
at this time

it

tliis

and that therefore the captain-

had, if not justice, at least prescription on his side,

English vessels should retire

Arrogant as

the other hand,

it

the

rights actually

may

be argued

that the prohibitory clause in the charter applied only to the actual possession
of places, and never could have been
to its extreme,

nations from

meant

would have warranted the Portuguese

wonder that

therefore

determination not to recognize

Sii'

little

aU other

Such a right

better than waste paper; and

Henry Middleton

at once declared his

it.

In the correspondeucc which ensued he told the captain-major that he had

Reply to the
major.'

in excluding

with any part of the continent of India.

traffic

would have made the Company's charter

we cannot

to recognize a right which, pvLshed

been sent by the King of England with a

letter

and

rich present to the Great

Mogul, in order to establish the trade which his countrymen had already com-

menced

;

and

Mogul nor

that, as

his people

India was a country free to aU nations, and neither the

were under vassalage, he was determined to persevere, at

When he gave this
by force.
answer he was in the belief that an extensive and lucrative trade had been, or
was about to be established by the Company at Surat, but the information
which he shortly after received convinced him that, for the present, all idea of
all

Captain
Hawkin.s
court of the

Great
1,..),

'ni

hazards, and,

if

necessary, to repel force

establishing
" such a trade
It has

must be abandoned.

bccu ah-eady mentioned that Captain Hawkins, who commanded the

Hcctor in the Company's third voyage, had, on arriving at Sm-at, foimd the
prospect so flattering that he gave

up the command

to his first officer, and,

Chap.

HAWKINS AT THE MOGUL COURT.

I.]

249

ordering the vessel to proceed for Bantam, resolved to remain for the purpose of

He had

establishing a factory.

a.d. leoo.

brought a letter from the King of England to

Agra and
which he proceeded was somewhat

the Great Mogul, and believed he could not do better than proceed to
deliver

ambiguous

The character

in person.

it
;

though he speaks of himself as an ambassador, he does not seem

for

have been furnished with

to

sufficient

and

;

as one of

his powers.

his reception at court

was

The

leadiny; favourites

its

in

His

credentials,

however, were deemed

was soon regarded
this time was Selim,

so gracious that he

reijxninrj

Mo(;ul at

by

the eldest son of the great Akber, who.se latter days had been so embittered
his

mounting the throne
or

On

misconduct that he had made an ineffectual attempt to disinherit him.
in 1605,

Selim had assumed the pompous

Conqueror of the World, but did nothing

capricious tyrant, of low, dissolute habits,

the crown, not to
for his father's

any

to ju.stify

who owed

He

it.

of Jehangir,

title

was, in

fact,

a

his continued possession of

talent or virtue in himself, but to the re.spect entertained

memory, and the good order which, during

his long reign,

had

been established in every part of the empire.

Hawkins, who must have had some previous knowledge of the Mogul's

"''wkins
becomes

_

and could not have been long at court withoiit obtaining a thorough

cliaraeter,

insight into
liarity to

it,

ought to have been upon his guard

but, elated with the fami- Mogul

;

which he was admitted, he deluded himself with the idea that he was

about to make his fortune.

Not long

April, 1609, Jehangir, after

after his arrival,

promising to grant

nsi.ieut
at the

,

court.

which took place 16th

the privileges of trade which

all

he asked for the Company, proposed that he should remain permanently with

was to begin at £3200 and
increa.se yearly.
The bait was tempting, and Hawkins at once swallowed it.
His motives are best explained by himself in a letter addres.sed to his employers.
" I, trusting upon his promise, an«l seeing it Wivs beneficiall both to my nation

him, as the Englisii representative, at a salary which

and myselfe, being dispossessed of the benefit which

I

should have reaped,

gone to Bantam, and that after halfe a doozen of yeeres, your

if I

wor.sliij)s

had

would

I should feather

my

neast and do you service; and further, perceiving great injuries offered us,

by

send another

man

of sort in

my

reason the king

is

so farre

did not think

it

ami.ss to yield

I

When

lie

had thus

court favour.

many

place, in the

from the

meane time

which causes above

ports, for all

specified,

unto his request"

yielded, he

began to

feel

some of the inconveniences of

Being regarded as a mere upstart, his elevation gave umbrage to

of the nobility, while several Portuguese Jesuits,

who

pos.sessed consi-

derable influence at Agra, intrigued with the greatest zeal and perseverance
for the purpose of defeating the gi'eat object of his mi.ssion.

they were so unscrupulous that Hawkins thought he had
conspiracy to poison him.
Jehangir,

who

T.

still

me

1.

to take a white

.sufficient

proof of a

high in favour, he stated his fears to

proposed a rather curious remedy.

•1
very earnest witli
Vol.

Being

In these intrigues

1

mayden out

"The
r

^

•

of Ins

king," he says,

111
palace,

"was

••jii
promising that
32

.xcceptsa
^'^"^

from

the

MoguL

1

2>0
AD.

1009.

HISTORY OF INDIA.
would give her

lie "

Christian,"

them, and

tilings necessary,

all

and "by this meanes
I

.slaves,"

my meates and

tume

objected to the maiden pro-

was a Moore," but he added,

Christian found, I would accept

that " sliee should

II.

drinkes should be looked into by

Hawkias

should live without feare."

posed, " in regard she

with

[Book

" if so

bee there could bee a

Jehangir took him at his word, and pro-

it."

duced the orphan daughter of an Armenian Christian, a captain who had been
highly esteemed by Akber.

daughter could bee found

having passed

my

fore I tooke her

;

word
and

;"

"I

thought," says Hawkins,

little

but now,

" I

seeing she

to the king, could not

want of a

for

ryed her: the priest was

my man

was of

Chri.stians

so honest a descent,

my

withstand

"a

Where-

fortunes.

minister, before Christian witnesses I mar-

Nicholas,

which

I tliought

had beene

lawfull,

met with a preacher that came with Sir Heniy Middleton, and hee
shewing mee the error, I was newly manyed againe: so ever after I lived
content and without feare, shee being wilHng to goe where I went, and live as
I

till

I lived."
Ultimate
t rcti t

m6

Tliis marriage,

though entered into under unpromising circumstances, appears

11

of Hawkins,

to

have provcd happy.

If

was the only good thing which Captain Haw-

Instead of being able, as he had hoped, to feather his

kins obtained at Agra.
nest,

so, it

he ultimately found that he had only been building castles in the

salary promised

him was never paid

;

and

courtiers,

The

air.

bribed by the Portuguese,

having succeeded in convincing Jehangir that a breach with them would prove

more pernicious than a league with the English promised
fickle

and unprincipled monarch cancelled

made

the promises he had

all

ferring commercial privileges on the English,

to be beneficial, the

and

left

Hawkins

of con-

to find his

way

to the coast as he best could.
Return of
Middleton
to the

Red

Sea.

Sucli

was the information which made
If he

able to establish a factory at Surat.

Sii*

Henry Middleton despair

had continued

the subject, they would have been dissipated

to

of being

have any doubts on

by the natives themselves, who,

while they assured him of their anxiety to trade, confessed that so long as the

Portuguese retained their ascendency, they durst not venture to incur their
displeasure.

Their advice therefore was, that the English vessels should quit

Surat for the port of Gogo, in the Gulf of Cambay, where,

and

liis

left at

At

was

said,

the Por-

Henry Middleton had another
view; and, after succeeding in taking on board Captain Hawkins
wife, who had arrived from Agra, and the Englishmen who had been

tuguese would be less likely to interfere.

plan in

it

Sir

Surat, called a council for the purpose of determining their futm-e course.

this council, says Sir

Henry,

" I

propoimded whether

hence directly for Priaman, Bantam,

&c., or to

commodities

at their

fitting their countrie,

owne

doores,

nowhere

were best

returne to the

meete with such Indian shippes as should be bound

would not deale with us

it

tliither

;

Red
and

from

Sea, there to
for that

wee having come

else in

to goe

they

so far with

India vendable, I thought

we

should doe om^selves some right, and them no wrong, to cause them barter with

Chap.

US

PROCEEDINGS IN THE RED SEA.

I.]

—wee to

and they

2ol

take their indicoes and other goods of theirs as they were worth, ad.

The

to take ours in lieu thereof."

though carrying

latter proposal,

was unanimously preferred by the
of a Company, invested by the crown with exclusive

injustice

and spoliation on the very

council;

and the ships

face of

privileges for the purpose of carrying

it,

on a legitimate

icu.

violent
proceedings.

trade, deliberately set out

on a marauding expedition which virtually made every

man

connected with

it

a pirate.

While Sir Henry Middleton was thus detaining and
from India which were so unfortunate as to
vessels

—the Clove, Hector, and

Company,

sailed

Thomas

—

into his hands, other three

fall

fitted

rifling all the vessels

out under the auspices of the

from England on the 18th of April, 1611, under the command

of Captain

John

destination

was the Red

Like those which Sir Henry commanded, their

Saris.

Sea.

As a means

first

of securing a favourable reception at

the different ports with which trade might be attem})ted, a firman or pass had

been obtained from the sultan at Constantinople, by the intervention of the

In this document, addressed to

English ambassador there.
roys and beglerbegs

who

are on the

way

(both

by

sea

happy and imperial throne, to the confines of the East

and

all

the " great vice-

land),

from

my

Captain

witim
Turkish
firman.

most

Indies," they are strictly

enjoined " kindly and courteously to entertain and receive the merchants and
subjects of Great Britain,

coming or passing through or by any of our dominions,

with a view to trade to the territories of Yemen, Aden, and Mocha, and the parts
adjoining,

by

selves, their

assisting

men, and ships

humanity as

;"

and, in general,

things necessary for them-

all

by yielding unto them

"

such

offices

and

benevolence

of

and relieving them with

shall

be

-^^^ir.y^L-

meet and convenient
be

yielded unto

honest

men and stran-

to

gers

undertaking so

long

and

painful

a

voyage."
Foitified with this

recommendation Cap,

tain Saris

pated
in

had

little

antici-

difficulty

opening a

traffic

— « -iti _^;»-

^1^

with the subjects of
the sultan in the
Sea,

Red

Mocha, from the North.— From Capt.

C. F.

and was therefore mortified when, on arriving

Head's Eastern and Egyptian Scenery.

at the island of Socotra, he

by Sir Henry Middleton, acquainting him
Though his
proceedings and warning him against Turkish treachery.

niBdiBaii-

received a letter which had been left

^IT

with his

^g^,f

hopes of peaceful trade were

now

faint,

he determined to test the efficacy of his

l^^',*'
"^'

252
A.iJ. 1011.

illSTOHY OF INJJIA.
and with that y'mw

finnan,

directly for

sailed

[TiooK

Mocha.

rewiptioii

lli.s

II.

wa-s

encouraging; and, hy judicious management and the exercise of forbearance, pawt

and

jealousies

little sincerity

fears

might have been forgotten

on either side, and

;

but there seems to have been

on meeting with some obstructions,

Saris,

quitted the port and returned to the Straits of Babelmandeb.

Henry Middleton engaged

Sir

tempted to become a sharer in them.

ceedings, •w&s
Compact

for

the Indian

,,.....

agreed and sealed

it

is

as follows:

in writings interchangeable, that he should

what should be taken, paying

part of

for the

his pro-

Sir Henry's account of the

unwortliy compact for "roraaging the Indian ships"

" romagiiig

Here he found

and instead of repudiating

in pillaging,

liastily

same as

— "At

last

have one-third

I did, for the service of

his three ships in the action: leaving the disposing of the ships afterward

who had

we

tome,

sustayned the wrongs."

When, by means of these violent proceedings, flimsily disguised under the
name of barter, the depredators had possessed themselves of a sufficient quantity
of Surat cloths

and other Indian goods,

which a

for

read}'

in the Eastern Archipelago, they set sail in that direction.

market could be found

Hemy Middleton

Sir

was again unfortunate and after learning that the Trade's Incr&juse, wliich he
had ordered to follow while he went forward with the Pepper-Corn, had been
;

wrecked on a

Captain

Moluccas.
Voyage of
Japan.

coral reef, died broken-hearted at the isle of Macliian, one of the
Saris, after

for the islcs of Japan,

On

nth

the

where the Company had resolved to

of June, 1613, he

Dutch already

spending some time in the same

installed,

ca.st

anchor near Firando.

establish a factory.

Though he found the

and disposed, not only to watch, but to thwart

proceedings, a letter from the

King

of England,

and a valuable present

emperor, procured him a favourable reception, and he had

making arrangements

for

permanent

Henry Middleton, notwithstanding
121 per cent.

;

that

by Captain

Saris,

classed, as

are,

vessel,

218 per

cent.

But

it is e\'ident,

under the head of mercantile

title

Her

de-Galle,

whatever to

Saris set out on his voyage, a single

course, differing considerably

had hitherto been followed, deserves to be

traced.

command

After touching at the Point-

on the island of Ceylon, the Globe, instead of proceeding directly to

Coromandel

On

it

coast,

which was thus visited by a Company ship

line of the

for the first time,

had long before been frequented by both the Portuguese and Dutch.

arriving at

Pulicat,

authorities, sent

some of

trade

of

from that which

Bantam, turned northward into the Bay of Bengal, and followed the
though

from the

profits.

the Globe, had been despatched from England, under the

Captain Anthony Hippon.

Sir

the loss of the Trade's Increase, yielded

About the Same time when Captain

Voyage of

Hippon.

they usually

to the

The voyage commanded by

trade.

his

difficulty in

little

above account of their proceedings, that these returns have no
be

gi'oup, sailed

when

Captain Hippon, with the sanction of the native
his people ashore,

and was making aiTangements

for

the president of the Dutch factory, producing a dociunent said to

have been executed by the King of Golconda, and conferring the exclusive

;

Chap.

VOYAGE OF CAPTAIN

I.]

privilege of trade
torily ordered

253

IIIPPON.

on those who had received Prince Maurice's permit, peremj)- AD.

them

Ca})tain Hijtpon, though httle disposed to yield

to depart.

obedience to this arrogant mandate, was not in a condition to dis])ute

Point-de-Galle.

especially as he

He

was anxious

1612.

— From ChurchiU's Collection of

to take

it,

more

Voyages.

advantage of the approaching monsoon.

some of

therefore proceeded north as far as Masulipatam, leaving

as the nucleus of a factory at Petapoli, situated on the coast at

his ])eopIe

some

di.stance

south of that town, and then shaped his com-se for Bantam, which was reached

From Bantam

on the 26th of April, 1612.

the Globe proceeded

first to

Patany,

on the east coast of the peninsula of Malacca, and then to Siam, establishing
factories at both.

again visited.

was

On

homeward voyage Masuli})atam and

the

In this way, though in very humble beginnings, a foundation

laid for that intercourse

with

tlie

Bay

of Bengal which

be so largely developed, and to yield such magnificent

The

Pulicat were

efforts of the

was afterwards

to

results.

Companj", which had hitherto been of an experimental and

i-'m'ted

certainly done little to justify their title to a

majei-)

l)i'ogre.s»

very desultory character,
chai'ter

liad

which invested them with the exclusive privilege of trading in nearh^
In the Eastern

three (piarters of the globe.
resorted,

isles,

to

which they had at

first

they were completely overborne by the Dutch, and were Imrely able

to maintain a precarious existence; in the

Red

Sea, in wliich, without

any great

temptation, they had rather invidiou.sly endeavoured to carry off a share of the
traffic

which properly belonged to the Turkey Comjiany, they had not only

failed,

but recklessly damaged their mercantile character by exhilnting them-

selves as lawless depredators

;

and on the whole continent of India there was

not a single port at which they had obtained a permanent footing.
Elizabeth been spared to reign, the affairs of the
bility

have presented a very different

the charter, that the

Company would

and, before the result of the

we have

a)i]>earance.

first

Company would
She

Had Queen
in all jiroba-

iiad expected, in gi'anting

at least rival, if not outstrip the

voyage was known,

liad, in

Dutch

a letter from

which

already quoted, u])braided the directoi"s with their sluggishness in not

tia-

1

HISTORY OF INDIA.

25
A. IX 1012.

preparing for a second.
insisted that the

or resign

scale,

Suoli l)eiiig

Company

lier feelings,

Had

would have backed them with

native, she

would doubtless have

slie

should either carry on their operations on a grander

exclusive privileges.

tlieir

[B(jok U.

they chosen the forrner

alter-

the power of her government,

all

by

and they would have had no reason

to complain of unredressed

Dutch

was the conduct of King James, whose

Very

or Poituguese.

different

and

j)usillanimity only encouraged aggression,

To

battle with their formidable opponents.

left

injuries

Company unaided

the

mainly to

this cause, doubtless, is

be ascribed the unsatisfactory progress which the

Company had

to

In

yet maxle.

almost every port which they visited, they found European rivals prepared to

...

undermine them by
Voyage of
Captain
Best.

intrigue, or crush

The course which the Company

is

very obvious, though

it

them by open

ouffht to

violence.

have taken in such circumstances

was long before they summoned courage

to adopt

it.

Instead of sending out a few straggling vessels, which were unprovided with
the means of repelling insult and outrage, they should have fitted out a

fleet,

Some

such resolution appears

to have been adopted in preparing for the eighth voyage,

which consisted of the

and armed

it

fully

with

all

the munitions of war.

Dragon and Hoseander, or slander, afterwards joined by the Jaraes and
Solomon, and was commanded by Captain Thomas Best. The two first vessels
sailed

from Gravesend on the

1st of February, 1612,

or road of Surat in the beginning of September.

;

in the Svjcdly

Notwithstanding the

dis-

was found

in

and Mr. Kerridge, who appears

to

couraging account given by Captain Hawkins,

opening a communication with the town

and arrived

little

difficiilty

have been a factor in the Osiander, was soon able to put Captain Best in

As

possession of a sealed certificate giving the English authority to trade.

wanted some of the

some doubts were entertained of

and before these were solved the Portuguese again made

validity,

ance.

requisite formalities,

Besides an immense fleet of merchantmen, numbering 200

it

its

their appear-

sail,

and

gi^'ing

a striking idea of the extent of trade which the Portuguese must then have
carried on with the north coast of India, there

were four war

had come with the avowed determination of expelling the English.
His spirited

Bcst was Well prepared for them, and deeming

proceedings.

was

attacked, at once assumed the offensive.

On

it

which

galleons,

Captain

imnecessary to wait

till

the 29th of November, placing

himself in the Dragon, about two cables' length from the Portuguese
admiral, the depth of water not allowing
" to play

drove

success

'

The following day the

fight

by an houre we had

was renewed, and with

still

on ground on the sands thwai-t of the Barre

These having again been got

to repair their disgrace, but always

The

shot, that

on the part of the English, who again defeated the Portuguese, and

" three of their foure shippes

of Surat."

"s^ce-

to go nearer, " I began," he says,

upon him with both great and small

well peppered him.

more

him

he

success which the English

off",

the Portuguese attempted repeatedly

with the same

result.

had thus gained over a superior

force,

proved

Chap.

SUCCESS OF CAPTAIN BEST.

I.]

more

far

effectual

than their previous attempts at negotiation, and Jehangir, ad.

becoming as anxious to secure
ferent or averse to

their alliance as

he had previously been

The

entered into a treaty in i-egular form.

it,

clauses in this treaty were:
in his

255

—That the Enolish should have

indif-

principal

freedom of trade

full

icis.

dominions; that their persons, while ashore, should be protected from

^esfs treaty
Jiogui.

the Portuguese; that their imports should pay only 3^ per cent, as customs;
that in cases of death no fees should be demanded, and

deceased should be delivered up to the

quently an'ive

first

goods of the

tlie

English ships which miglit subse-

that in cases of wrong, redress should be speedily obtained; and

;

that an English ambiissador should be received, and permitted to reside at the

Mogul

much

This important treaty was finally delivered, with

court.

to Captain Best at Swally,

A great object had

formality,

on the 6th of February, 1613.

now been

The Portuguese claim to control the
trade had been expressly disowned by the Great Mogul himself, and a permanent
footing had been secured in several large commercial emporiums, where consigained.

derable sales of English goods could be

made on favourable

terms,

unlimited supply obtained of the goods best fitted both for the

and

for barter against the spices of the

Company

The

Indian Archipelago.

thus assumed a more promising appearance

and an

home market
affaire of the

than they had ever

presented before, and capital for future investments began to flow into their

mode

was

It

coffers.

scarcely possible that,

management
nation announced by
tures,

of

and trade

The

hitherto pursued could be continued

and

;

on a joint

and improved

stock,

we

see nothing

position.

resolution to trade in future on a joint stock, under the immediate riieCom-

voyages, which were to

two

in the determi-

more than a necessary

management of the Company, must have been favourably
of £429,000 was raised for the purpose, and apportioned
The

1616.

the desultory

the directors to abandon the system of separate adven-

in future

result of their altered

in these circumstances,

fleets

sail

received, as a

in fitting out four

successively in the years 1613,

1614,

were larger than had been previously employed

consisting of eight vessels each, the third of six,

The voyages themselves

sum

1615, and
:

the

first

and the fourth of seven.

possess little interest; but the results, though not so

extravagant as when they were swelled by the spoliation of native ships, were

on the whole

satisfactory, as the

The most important
voyages were

incidents which occuiTed during the performance of these

—a

January, 1615,
in person,

average return of profit was 87g per cent.

new encounter witli the Portuguese in
when a large fleet, under the command

the road of Swally, in
of the Viceroy of

Goa

having wantonly attacked the English, was signally defeated, with

the loss of 3.50

men; a

declaration of

war between the Portuguese and the

Great Mogul, and a consequent strengthening of the English alhance with the
latter

;

and the

arrival of Sir

Thomas Roe, invested with

ambassador from the King of England.

full

j)owers to act as

to trade

°"',ft°to^ij

2"i(J

AD

treaty above mentioned,

and was
Sir

of

Thomas

the interest of the

liarl

for its oVjject,

Sir Thoma.s

expen.se.

...

.

manner
is

Though

the end of 1618.

recognized chanicter, and the judicious

his

which he acted, gave him much more influence than HawkiiLS,

in

Company,

impossible to tead his journal without being satisfied that the

employing an ambassador at

which

court

was

;

all,

had committed a blunder.

into collision with the

and he gave

in

yield,

himself, or the higher

were apt to

members

of his

as his decided opinion, that as the object of his mission

it

onl}^ mercantile,

Mogul

it

Points of eti(|uette

ambassador would not allow him to

his position as

him

bring

Roe

Mogul wurt

arrived in the end of 1615, and continued to be a resident at the
till

II.

the

tlie sti[)ulatiorw in

Company mainly

maintained entirely at their

tlierefore

_

uoe.

[B^jok

This embassy, undcrtiikcn in accordance with one of

1015

Embassy

OF INDIA.

IILSTOllY

a native agent duly authorized, and maintained at an

expense of £100 a-year, would secure

better than ten ambassadors.

it

While thus candidly condemning the policy which had made him amba.ssa-

Thomas Roe

Sir

dor,

lost

no opportunity of furthering the

Company and on several occasions, by counterworking
;

intei'ests

intriguers,

of the

and obtaining

redress of grievances, undoubtedly contributed to place the English trade on a
stable

and prepare

footing,

received.

rendered,

Still,

was

it

The

for

the larger development which

must be confessed that the most valuable

it

service

at

last

which he

makes us intimately acquainted with
and contains a most graphic description of Jehangir and liLs

in writing a journal which

all his transactions,

court.

it

when mentioning

subject has been already alluded to

tures of Captain

Hawkins

;

the adven-

but the information of the journal, as well as that

derived from other sources, will justify some additional details.
Jehangir,

Character of

jjjQf^gyat.ion,

made

after succeeding his father in 160.5,

e angir.

but

liis

great professions of

bad habits soon resumed their ascendency and in the .second
;

year of his reign, on the suppression of a rebelUon, headed by his eldest son
Khosroo,

gave

full

who

claimed the throne as the nominee of his grandfather Akber, he

scope to his ferocity,

by ordering 700

of the captured rebels to be

impaled in a line leading from the gate of Lahore.
reign (1611), he contracted a maiTiage with

whose husband had perished in defending
trigues.

Nur
his

This event gave a colour to his future reign.

have been anticipated.

In early

life

vicious habit,

at his court,

that Ins daily routine

prayers being ended, foure or five

less

in-

Her ascendency over

unworthily than might

he had become excessively addicted to wine

and opium, and while Hawkins resided
this

Jehan, a celebrated beauty,

honour against Jehangir's

him was unbounded, and was employed by her

by

In the sixth year of his

soi-tes

is

was

so completely enslaved

described as follows:

of very well dressed

— "His

and roasted meats

are brought, him, of which, as he pleaseth, he eateth a bit to stay his stomacke,

drinking once of his strong drinke.

Then he cometh

forthe into a private

roome, where none can come but such as himself nominateth.

he drinketh other five

cupfiils,

which

is

In

this place

the portion that the physicians alot

Chap.

CHARACTER OF JEHANGIR.

I.]

him.

Tliis

done he eateth opium, and then he

him downe

of his drinke, he layeth

home; and

mouth by

others;

and

to sleep, every

and being

man

in the height

departing to his

not able to feed himselfe, but

is

this is

it is

A.D. 1627.

owne

two houres, they awake him and bring

after he hath slept

supper to him, at which time he
into his

ariseth,

257

his

thruste

about one of the clocke, and then he

sleepeth the rest of the night."

The government of such a disgusting drunkard could not be well conducted;
and though the administrative talents of his wife, Nur Jehan, and the military

nisordcrs

under tlie
government
of Jehaiigir

prowess of his

son,

known by

Prince Khurram, afterwards better

his title of

Shah Jehan, prevented the confusion which must otherwise have taken place,
the court was a scene of constant intrigue, and corruption was rampant in
Such was the

every branch of the public service.

state of matters

when

Sir

Thomas Roe arrived. On first landing at Surat, he found the governor enriching himself by seizing the goods of merchants, and insisting on their being sold
On advancing into the interior, he was
to him at prices of his own fixing.
everywliere struck with signs of devastation and neglect

;

and on

his reaching

the court, though he could not but be struck with the magnificence whicli

surrounded the monarch, as he sat on his throne
pearls,

and

i*ubies, his

all

covered with diamonds,

admission to the drinking parties above described, when,

and a few grave personages, scarcely an individual
soon convinced him how little dependence could be placed on any

witli the exception of himself

remained

sober,

made with one who was so little master of liimself
Sir Thomas Roe's residence, Jehangir's sons, con\'inced

aiTanofements that could be

Even

at the time of

Jehangir's
death.

that his drunken habits

must speedily terminate

his

life,

had begun

to intrigue

for the succession;

and

was

yet, such

the strength of his
that

constitution,

his reign

was

pro-

longed for other ten
years,

and did not

terminate

till

1627.

During part of

this

time,

indeed,

he

ciould

scarcely

be

said to possess the

throne, as his sons

were openly at war
either with

him or with each other

months a prisoner

in the

he set out on his annual

was

Tomb of Jehangir at Lahore.

I.

and the year before he

hands of one of his generals.
visit to

On

died,

he was some

regaining his liberty,

Cashmere, but had not long arrived before he

seized with a violent illness,

Vol.

;

— Hordinge's RecoIlectionR of India.

and died on the way back

to Lahore.
33

;

258

IIISTOKY UF INDIA.

CHAPTER

[Book

IT

II.

— New joint stock— Arrangement
— The council of defence — The massacre of Amboyna.

Progress of the Company's trade— Proceedings in the Persian Gulf

with the Dutch

Y

the treaty with the Great Mogul, the

gained

full access to

Company had

not only

the continent of India, but been enabled to

arrange a regular course of interchanges, from which a great
increase of mercantile profits

was

anticipated.

At

though

Sui-at,

the sales of English imports were limited, reasonable purchases
A.D. 1017

could be

made

Bantam and
Extension of

Company's
trade.

of the cloths and other goods which were in great

at

other stations established in the Indian Archipelago, and could, in

consequence, be advantageously exchanged against pepper and other spices,

which were at

regarded as the most important staples of the Eastern trade.

first

With the view

of extending these exchanges, other stations along the coast of

India were gradually adopted, and the vessels of the

and

coasts,

still

further north to the

The ample scope

Their

employment

raise

;

for all the capital

regularly

and the Coromandel

mouths of the Ganges.

was more than sufficient
which the Company had yet been

for trafiic thus afforded

dealings in

full

Company began

ports both on the Malabar

to frequent all the leading

Persia.

demand

to give

able to

but their ambition appears always to have been larger than their means,

and they resolved to turn

their attention to Persia.

An

important trade with

coimtry had long been carried on by the Levant Company, but war had

this

begrm to rage between the Tm'ks and
course being thus interrupted,

Persians,

was resolved

it

and the usual channel of

to take

inter-

advantage of the circum-

and endeavour permanently to transfer the trade from the Levant to

stance,

the Persian Gulf

The attempt thus

to interfere with the

monopoly of another

company was rather ungenerous; and it may have been
account that Sir Thomas Roe not only decidedly disapproved of

British cliartered

partly

on

it,

this

endeavoured, on his
effect.

The

and a

vessel

own

responsibility, to prevent it

but

from being carried into

flattering representations of the factors of Surat, however, prevailed

was despatched

to the port of Jask, situated a little east of the

entrance of the Persian Gulf, with a small

sum

of money, and a cargo of English

broadcloths, kerseys, lead, tin, iron, cutlery, fee, to be exchanged for Persian

The adventure proved

silks.

established
Collision

It

successfid

between the Persian

had been foreseen

;

and ultimately a

Gulf, Surat,

tliat this

regulai' trade

was

and Bantam.

trade could not be established without coming

with the
Portuguese,

into ficrcc collisiou with the Portuguese,
sive

monopoly but the
;

who had

signal successes wliich

long possessed

it

as

an exclu-

had been gained over them when

Chap.

PROGRESS OF THE COMPANY'S TRADE.

II.]

259

they attempted to prevent the establisliment of an Engli.sh factory at Sm-at,
appear to have satisfied the

was rather
prizes

their agents tliat Portuguese hostility

to be courted than feared, as, in all probability, a rich harvest of

would be made.
of rapid

endeavoured to

The event proved

as

The Portuguese, now

been anticipated.
state

Company and

a.d. 1617,

had

in a

made pretension.?, and
support them by hostilities, which
decline,

only led to their discomfiture, and tliey had the
mortification of seeing the English not only secured
in their trade, but in hiorh favour at the Persian
court,

and formally leagued with

an offensive and defensive

its

monarch

alliance.

The favourable aspect which the affairs
Company now bore had a visible effect in
up the

subscri})tion to a

in

new

of the
filling

India Company, cir. U>00
Fiom Minutf U^oksof the (on \>iki>y-

Arms of East

50.

joint stock, which

At this time the
number of proprietors of stock amounted to 954, and the number of shii)s
possessed by them is stated at thii-ty-six, of 100 to 1000 tons burden. The capital
subscribed was allotted to three voyages, the first con.sisting of nine, and each of
started in 1617-18, with the large capital of £1,600,000

two of eight

the other

a new

joint-

stock com-

pany

Before the last of these voyages was undertaken,

ships.

a remarkable change took place in the arrangements of the Company.

In the Eastern islands the Dutch not only claimed supremacy, but had

Company's
right of traffic, at least to a limited extent, and nutmegs, mace, and cloves
formed part of the usual returns imported from the East into England. The
actually established

larger scale

it.

They

had, however, tacitly acknowledged the

i^>itch.

on which the Company's operations were now about to be carried

on having afforded the Dutch a pretext

for interfering,

they plainly intimated

their determination to reserve the trade in the finer spices as

monopol}'.

OHwsition

They

rested tiieir claim on the fact that they

an exclusive

had conquered the

Spice Islands fi-om the Portuguese, and being in actual possession of them, had

a right recognized by the very charter of the London East India
debar

all

other parties from frequenting them.

So

satisfied

Company

to

were they with the

validity of this claim, that, instead of regarding them.selves as unlawful aggi-essors in the violent steps

which they had taken to exclude the English, they

assumed the character of complainers, and in 1618 presented a memorial to

King James,
prayed

in which, after stating

for redress of past,

what they

called their gi'ievances, they

and a prohibition of future encroachments.

The

Mutual
compl&mta.

London East India Company

told a very different tale

;

and

after

enumerating

the various forms of obstruction and op]iression to which they had been subjected in cixrrying on their trade at Bantiim, where their right of factory could

not be disputed, and in endeavouring to extend

Dutch could not pretend

to

it

to islands over

which the

have established any exclusive authority, they

260
A.D. 1019.

niSTORY OF INDIA.

besouglit the king to inteifere in

tiicir Ijchulf,

[Book

II.

und protect tliem against a violence

which, thougli unprovoked, had become intolerable.
Formal arrangomont
with

ti>c

^^g impossible that matters could remain

j^,
_

in accordance witli his usual policy,

but King
o Jamas,
only temporized by engaging in a course
as they were

;

./

Dutch.

of intricate and protracted negotiation.

was

Ultimately, a kind of understanding

by all parties, was formally
concluded at London on the 7th of July, 1619. The leading stipulations were,
that all excesses on either side should be forgiven that the ships and property
arrived

at,

and an agreement, acquiesced

in

;

which had been seized should be mutually restored
have the
capital

;

free privilege of trade to the East, witliout

that each nation should

any limitation

which might be employed that both companies should

as to the

strive to diminish

;

customs and other exactions, and regulate the market by purchasing at prices

by common agents;

previously arranged

purchases thus

that, in sharing the

made, the pepper should be equally divided between the companies, but only
a third of the finer spices should be apportioned to the English

that the

;

foi-ts

actually built should remain with their present possessor.s, but that all future

force should be possessed

made

at the

The council

and garrisoned

common expense

In order to give

in China.

years, a special

common

Moluccas or elsewhere by the

forts acquired in the

and that attempts should be

jointly;

new

to establish trade in

effect to this treaty,

common

industry or

places,

which was to

machinery was obviously required.

and especially

last for

twenty

Accordingly, a "Council of

of defence.

Defence "

and

to

Twenty

It consisted of eight

the equality

To

this council large

ships, furnished in equal portions

war

purposes,

members, four from each company;

more complete, the members of each company

still

preside alternately.

tained for
to be

instituted.

make

to

were

was

powers were committed.

by each company, were

and not permitted, except under

employed in the transport of merchandise.

to be main-

special circumstances,

These

ships,

and more

if

necessary, were to be placed under the immediate authority of the council of
defence,

which was empowered to distribute them at

different stations,

vide for the maintenance of the sailors and soldiers employed,

and pro-

by handing over

the proceeds of the dues and customs, particularly in the ]\Ioluccas, to the
treasurers of the companies.

When

storm or similar misfortune, the

loss

damage by
be borne by the company to which

the vessels employed sustained

was

to

they belonged; but when they suffered in the

common

cause,

as in war, a

and reparation was to be made at the common
expense.
To prevent the disputes which might thus arise, each ship, when
placed on the station, was to be valued, in order that, at any futui-e time, the
amount of deterioration produced during its emplo}Tnent on active service might
different rule

was

to be observed,

be easily ascertained.
settled

by the

All questions arising between the companies were to be

council of defence,

and

in

the event of their being equally

divided, the sovereigns of the companies were to act as ai-bitrators.

Had

this treaty

been honestly and candidly acted upon,

it

would not only

Chap.

QUARRELS WITH THE DUTCH.

II.l

261

have given the Dutch and English a complete su])remacy in the East, but pro- ad.
vided equitabl}'- for their separate interests.

Dutch could

allotted to the

The two-thirds of the

scarcely be considered

more than

rooting out the Spanish and Portuguese entitled

who saw

English,

have been

satisfied

how

it

finer spices

their exertions in

when they were

and the

to expect;

secured in a certain portion, which could

The management,
was

possible,

too,

was

fau'ly adjusted;

and

it is

not

under such a management, for one of the com-

Such, however, was the charge brought against

panies to oven-ule the other.

by the Enghsh, who complained that everything vague
was interpreted to their disadvantage, and that their funds were

their colleagues

in the

treaty

seized

and appropriated
seems to

to purposes in

them was

themselves of

which they had no

The truth

special interest.

though both companies professed to acquiesce in the treaty,

be, that

neither of

^'';"•

themselves in danger of being excluded altogether, might

not be diminished.
easy to see

them

1623.

satisfied

with

it;

and hence both, while eager to avail

the advantages which the treaty conferred, had no scruple in

all

endeavouring to evade the obligations which

The Dutch, who

imposed.

it

believed that they could easily have driven their rivals out of the Molucca
trade altogether, gnimbled at being compelled to cede a whole third of
the English,
single

who had never

voyage

at

any former period

for mercantile purposes,

found

trade, while the larger portion of their capital
for

war purposes

adverse,

it

is

only.

The

it

fitted

it

while

;

out ten vessels on a

impossible to carry on their

was required

to

fit

out vessels

interest of the parties being thus apparently

easy to imderstand

how

their former rivalry revived,

and

theii-

enmity, instead of being suppressed,

became more invete-

This fact was soon to

rate.

be demonstrated by a fearful
tragedy.

In the island of AmbojTia
the English, under the authority of the treaty,

lished a factory

had estab-

and several

The whole power,
however, was in the hands of
agencies.

The strong castle
Amboyna. which they

the Dutch.
of

Castle of Amboyna.

— Jlaps,

<fcc.,

in

Royal Librarj-, British .Museum.

possessed at the date of the treaty, remained imder their

own

entire control

m
.

throughout the island they far outnumbered

all

other Europeans, and

;

.

I

In such circumstances

was no external force from which they could seriously apprehend any
danger; and yet, on the ground that a conspu'acy had been formed for the

there

matt«n

at

its Amboyna.

harbours were ships of war as well as merchant vessels, on whose assistance

they could confidently calculate in any emergency.

state of

2^)2

A.D. 1623.

IIISTOItV

purpose of wresting the
the

name

from

i.slaiid

OF

tliem, the

of law and justice, but in

[Book

INlJlA.

Dutch

autliorities proceeded, in

and manifest

gro.s.s

II.

violation of Loth, Ut

perpetrate an atrocity whicli has left a stain on the national character.
A

own

According to their

massacre.

acccjunt,

part of their garri.son in the castle of

AniLoyna consisted of natives of Japan. One of these, having incurred susjjicion
hy the minuteness of his inquiries as to the state and defences of the place, was
apprehended, and on examination divulged a

plot, into

which other eight of

his

countrymen and the English in the service of the London East India Company
had entered, for the puipose of seizing the castle of Amhoyna, and thereby

making themselves masters of the island, The Jajtanese, whose names their
countrjTnan had mentioned while under torture, were first apprehended, and
being subjected to the same horrible process, not only confessed their own guilt,
but implicated the leading members of the English factory.
interval the English thus denounced

of being tortured,

;

On

confirmed the

it,

the evidence thus extorted, a conviction

and sentence of death was not only pronounced, but actually

by tortme.

and

to

this proceeding, the

Dutch dwell particularly on

made by the unhappy sufierers but they omit
the time when tortm-e was inflicted, the answers desired

Uniformity of the confession

mention

that, at

to be obtained
called

upon

tened with

;

were actually suggested, and the accused, instead of being simply

to state the truth,
it,

were charged

were asked, while wi-ithing in agony or threa-

whether they had not entered into the plot with which they

—whether

made

such and such proposals had not been

such and such plans had not been arranged
also

the

assistants.

j^ endcavouring to defend
tlic

inflicted

were Captain Gabriel Towerson, the English agent at Amboyna, and several

of his factors
Confession

was

Among

on nine natives of Japan, one Portuguese, and twelve Englishmen.
last

short-

and, partly under the terror

;

and partly under the actual application of

statements of the Japanese.
obtained

were seized

After a

named, had not been fixed

for carrying

— and

them

whether a

—whether

particiilar day,

In

into execution.

this

way,

not by fair interrogatories, but by a series of leading questions, the answers were

made

to

assume a degree of consistency well calculated to conceal or disguise

the monstrous absurdities which the whole charge carried on the face of
ousfht also to be borne in mind, that the confessions

it.

It

which had been extorted

were afterwards solemnly retracted in the interval between the sentence and
the execution, and that

all

Evcn admitting that

Iniquity of
the sentence.

the victims died protesting their innocence.

the suspicion of some kind of plot

groundless, the extreme measures

incapable of vindication.

was

discovered.

tiitai
adopted by the Dutch

The danger,

if it

^

was not
•

altogether
j.j.1

•

authorities are utterly

ever existed, vanished the

Where, then, was the necessity of hurrying on the

moment
trial

it

while

the accused remained without the means of providing a proper defence; or
of executing

it,

without allowing them the opportunity of bringing a sentence

whicli they held to be iniquitous under review

?

The Council of Defence,

to

;

Chap.

DIFFICULTIES OF THE COMPANY.

II.]

wliich

questions affecting the interests of the companies had been specially

all

referred,

263

was

have submitted the judgment to

Dutch have found
pei-petrated

the danger of a delay which would

Where was

in existence.

still

its revisal

These are questions which the

?

Amboyna,

impossible to answer; and the bloody deed of

it

^.d. luss.

on the 27th of February, 1623, therefore remains to

day justly

this

branded as a massacre.

When

tidinors of
C

inflamed to such a

and even King

indignation
the public
the massacre reached England,
^
^
°

pitqji

that

idea of amicable arrangement

all

Jame.s, forgetting his lethargic

He had

to talk operdy of war.

own

still

more

when

decisive,

and mean-spirited

was brought

fair

policy,

Kngland.

began

The Dutch

to a close.

dexterously availed themselves of the opportunities afforded

and managed

ill

was abandoned

hands, and seemed bent on mea.sures

his in<xlorious career

to protract negotiations,

iiKr.Kn.ition

letters of reprisal, authorizing the

even issued

injured parties to seek redress at their

was

to spin out a series

by a new reign
of years, making

promises of giving redress, but always evading the performance of them.

This crafty line of policy was only too successful, in consequence of the embarras.sments in wiiich Charles
liad

I.

The

was soon involved.

war

been thickly sown in England even during his father's lifetime; and

other questions became comparatively insigniflcant
bejijan

to be fixed

Engli.sh

when once

public attention

on the great contest which was to decide the

was pending, the

fate of the

affairs of the

Company were

often at a

Difficulties

In the Indian Archipelago, station after station was abandoned

comiiany.

this dispute

very low ebb.

order to escape from the oppression of the Dutch

quarters so
secute

all

monarchy.

While
in

seeds of a civil

many untoward

;

and

in various other

events occurred, that the Company, unable to pro-

any regular system of

were obliged to

trade,

rest satisfied

with shifting

expedients, sometimes successful, but oftener productive only of disappointment

Their stock in consequence, instead of commanding a premium, could with
difficulty

be sold at a considerable discount.

these discouragements,

trade

much perseverance was

was eagerly embraced.

unproductive, the

It cannot be denied that, amidst

When

Red Sea was again

displayed.

that with Persia threatened

resorted to

;

the opposite coast of the Indian peninsula.

become

had

its

seat at Masulipatani

intolerable, a

on the Coromandel
established at

able as the

time to

make

coa.st

locality

for

was obtained,

stations

were foimd on

some time the

in 1628, at

The advantage which
;

principal

Armegon, situated

The

substituted for that of Ma.sulipatam, and

a great emporium

to prove

but the extortions of the governor having

station on the continent of India

fortify.
it

Here

new

about seventy miles north of Madras.

Armegon was

first

permitted to

new

;

for

and when misunderstandings

with the Mogul endangered the factory at Sm-at,

factory

Every opening

it

thus

is

factory

remark-

which the Company were
pos.se.ssed

promised at one

but the situation proved inconvenient, and

the governor of Masulipatam, anxious to recover the revenue which he had lost

;

ULSTORY OF INUIA.

2C1>

A.n.

1031.

Ly the withdrawal

make

these transactions

tliat

tiio

port their principal station.

Dutch question continued open, and many

tlie

a^iBcuss.vms

with

II.

of the Company'.s trade, ofFered term.s so favourable, tliat

they were again induced to
I^i^i^'iiig

[Book

attempts were made, by commissioners appointed for that purpose, U) obtain

an equitable adjustment.

In proportion, however, as the domestic

of the king increased, the

Dutch were emboldened

Company,
direct

and the

to refase redress;

losing patience, took the remarkable step of placing them.selves in

communication with parliament.

creatm-es of the crown,

Hitherto they- had existed merely as

and on several occasions had been made

dependence was to be placed on

little

difficulties

its

to feel liow

King

countenance and support.

James, at the very commencement of his reign, virtually ignored Queen Eliza-

by which he empowered Sir Edward Michelbome
to trade within the prohibited limits and on a subsequent occasion, even after
he had made the charter his own by renewing and confirming it, he leagued
beth's charter, in the license

;

with

his worthless favourite, the

Duke

of Buckingham, in arresting the ships of

the Company, for the pui'pose of extorting a share in the prize

money which

when assisting the Persians against the
Ormuz. As yet. King Charles had not been
on the privileges or interests of the Company

they were alleged to have gained
Portuguese in the capture of
implicated in any overt attack

but the sluggish manner in which he urged their claim to redress for the injuries
Application
of

tlie

sustaiued from the Dutch

must have

satisfied

them

that, at the best,

he was a

Com-

pany to

very lukewarm

friend.

It

not

is

sui-prising, therefore,

that when, in 1628, the

great struggle between the king and the parliament assumed a definite shape

by

the presentation of the celebrated Petition of Right, the Company, impatient of

the interminable delays to which they had been subjected, took the bold step
of withdrawing their case from the exclusive cognizance of the crown

ing

it

directly

under the notice of the

legislatm^e.

by

bring-

Their memorial, prepared

with this view, besides enumerating the hardships under which they laboured,
founded their claims to public support on the benefits which they had, as a
com})any, conferred on the nation.
peculiar privileges

The question

as to the expediency of the

which their charter conferred was thus

would doubtless have been

fully discussed

fairly i-aised,

and

had not the parliament been sud-

denly dissolved before the memorial could be taken into consideration.
Prociamation

by the

crown.

The memorial, impljdng, as it obviously did, a censure on the dilatoriness
^
of the crowu, and amounting to what many regarded as an interference with
the royal prerogative, must have been very offensive to the king; but more
.

urgent concerns engrossed his attention, and he so far concealed his displeasure

Company unimpaired, but occafavom\ One of these proclamations,

as not only to leave the chartered rights of the

sionally to issue proclamations in their

dated 19th February, 1631, deals with an internal abase, and gives a striking
manifestation of the helpless, or at least desponding state into which the

pany must have

fallen before

they deemed

it

Com-

necessary to seek the protection

Chap.

CONTINUED DIFFICULTIES.

II.]

of the king against their

own

an interest in each voyage

common

own

soldiers

H

Under the cover

foot deep.

and

account in certain specified

of space allowed to each for this private trade

wide, and

originally adopted of giving

employed

to all the persons

abandoned, and accordingly even
mitted to trade on their

The plan

servants.

265

in it

had been per-

articles.

The quantity

feet long,

of this permission,

lesi.

had never been

sailors

was a chest 4

a.d.

it

1

^ foot

appears that

smuggling was carried on to such an extent as both to defraud the public
revenue and diminish the Company's legitimate
specially directed against this smuggling, "
affaii's

are of late

much

The proclamation

profits.

whereby the

said

Company's general

declined and decayed, and the adventm-ers therein

much

discouraged," intimates that in future greater vigilance will be exercised, and

upon

calls

all officers to

exert themselves to the utmost against those who, not

with the specified amount of licensed

satisfied

great wages which they (the

Company)

traffic,

and

are accustomed to

" the

pay

extraordinary

in their employ- Apparent

ments," were ungratefully and ungenerously imdermining their employers
"

Company

and

deal,

it

is

almost piteous to see them vii-tually confessing their incom-

Even without

detection almost impossible,

Company would be

course

was adopted

;

assist

the aid of government,

them

it

could not have been difficult to

and declaring that

paid

by

fixed salaries

license

which made

and wages.

by announcing that the

it,

its

in future all the servants of

The very opposite

and the proclamation, while denouncing the

very preposterously to increase

manage-

in their internal

by withdi'awing the

strike at the root of the evil

tlie

""'^'""^

themselves ought to have been fully prepared to

petency by calling in extraneous aid to
ment.

oftiio

The abuse thus denounced was surely

driving a secret underhand trade."

one with which the

by

proceeds

evil,

license to carry

on

being prohibited, would remain as before in the case

l)rivate trade, instead of

of the lower classes of servants, and in the case of the higher classes would be

many

extended, so as to give

them double the quantity of private tonnage

of

which had previously been allowed.
It

would have been strange

incompetency and sanctioning

if

the Company, while proclaiming their

gi*oss

under favourable circumstances

;

and unfortunately at
affiiirs

made good

gi-eatly

a formidable competition.

nary

profits of trade, the

Continued

mismanagement, could have prospered even

events took place which placed their
their footing at Surat,

own

and

this

very time a

in great jeopardy.

series of

The Dutch had

reduced the profits of the trade by

In the Persian Gulf, where, in addition to the ordi-

Company had

obtained a permanent grant of half the

customs levied at the port of Gomberoon, their position was endangered not only

by a new

by an attempt of the Portuguese to
In the Eastern Ai'chipelago the spice trade had been almost

succession to the throne, but

recapture Ormuz.

extinguished, and the factory of Bantam, which, as

long held precedence of

all

the other stations

was the earliest, had
of the Company, became so unimit

portant as to be reduced to an agency dependent on Surat, which alone was
Vol.

I.

34

•

HISTORY OF INDIA.

266
AD.

1C34

now governed by

a president and council

the trade of the

Company

wa.s

VVliile tlias Vjfcset

;

and

now thrown by
The

Perseverance

difficiutius.

is

tiliat

in

with

England by the

by a

II.

difficulties,

brought almost to a stand in India

devastation of a large portion of the country

a pestilence

[Book

}jy

the

famine, followed as usual by

state of ferment into

which

all

minds were

the approaching civil broils.

best tiling that Can be said for the

Company during

this

gloomy period

they never abandoned them.selves to despair, and even while losing

ground, were always on the alert to take advantage of any favourable opening

which might

occur.

In this

way

their success

covdd have ventured to anticipate.
issued firmans reinstating

them

was

often greater than they

The new Persian monarch. Shah

Sophi,

in all their former privileges, including the

grant of the customs of Gomberoon, which, in 1632, yielded as the Company's
share 550 tomands, a

sum

equal to

£1650

sterling.

General View of MASULiPATAM.—ChurchUl's

factory at Masulipatam,

tion

by

In the same year the

Collection of Voyages.

which had been abandoned in consequence of the extor-

and oppression of the governor, was re-established on favourable conditions

the express authority of the

belonged
acquired
tions.

;

while Armegon,

new

King

of Golconda, to

whom

the territory

though abandoned as a commercial emporium,

importance from the additional strength given to

A secure

its fortifica-

asylum was thus obtained within the Bay of Bengal, to which

Company was now more especially directed.
Thomas Roe's embassy to the Great Mogid Jehangir,

the attention of the
Foundation
with Bengal,

Duriug Sir

a firman

had been obtained, in general terms authorizing the English to trade in Bengal

The importance of the permission thus granted appears not to have been appreciated, and no use had been made of it when Jehangir's reign teiminated by his
death in 1627. During the reign of his son Shah Jehan, whose favour the
English generally enjoyed, the idea of a Bengal trade was revived; and in
1634) a firman

to the

was obtained, which threw the whole trade of the province open

Company, subject

to the restriction that their ships

to the port of Piply or Peipley.

were to resort only

This place, situated on the Soobunreka ten

Chap.

TKUCE WITH THE PORTUGUESE.

III.]

miles above

its

had a very

267

mouth, and within a short distance of the estuary of the Hooghly,

a.d. icas.

but possessed the important advantage of

indifferent luirbour,

giving immediate access to a country of ahnost inexhaustible resources, with

whom

an immense industrial population, from

an indefinite supply of the

fine

white cloths suited equally for the English, the Persian, and the south-eastern
markets, might at

all

times be obtained.

The prospect of a

seemed in consequence so promising, that new

efforts

revival of trade

were made

;

and Bantam,

with the view of being again made a central emporium between the Indian
peninsula and

tlie

Spice Islands, was once more restored to the dignity of a

In the midst of

presidency.

apparent success, an event took place by which

this

the very existence of the Com])any

was

tlu-eatened.

CHAPTER
Truce with the Portuguese— Establishment of a
the

:

;

:

company

— Settlement with

the

Dutch—

State of

Company under Cromwell.

;S the contests carried
;

rival

III.

on between the Company and the Portu-

Portuguese

guese had long been productive only of mischief to both, a

mutual desire

for

arrangement was

While they were wast-

felt.

ing their strength the Dutch were continuing their successful
career,

these circumstances

and threatening

little

difficulty

to involve

was found

them

in a

common

in opening a friendly

ruin.

commmii-

cation with the Viceroy of Goa, and forming a truce which, if approved
sovereigns,

might afterwards be converted into a permanent

this truce,

which gave each of the contracting parties

anticipated a large extension of

traffic,

treaty.

by their
Under

free access, for all

mercial purposes, to the ports and factories of the other, the

and had begun

to

Company
make the

In

com-

natm-ally

necessary

when they were startled by the information that
had granted license to a new body of mercantile adventurers, for

])reparations ^\^th that view,

King Charles

the special pui'pose of appropriating the advantages which the tnice

was

exjiected

to confer.

This extraordinary proceeding, Mhich took place in 1635, was probably the a

crown

licciiso

result of a variety of causes.

It

may

displeasure at the memorial which the

had never forgotten
first

it,

be that Charles, while he concealed his

Company presented

and was therefore not imwilling

opportunity which offered to take his revenge.

which the past conduct of the Company
dictiveness.

On

is

to parliament in 1628,
to avail himself of the

The very

bitter terms in

stigmatized, cei-tainly savours of vin-

different occasions his majesty

had borne strong and willing

granted to

"'*

™

*'''

268
AD.

1630.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

testimony to the lionour

the

Ix-neiit wlijcli

{iiul

[Book

Company had

conferred on

nation at large, wl)erea.s the e.stablishment of a rival association
expres.sly

on the ground

tliat " in all this time, since

II

is

th^-.

now jastified

the erection of the said East

India Company, notwithstanding the manifold privileges granted to them, they

had neither

so settled

and planted trade

cation or place of surety, as

in tho.se

we

neither had

;

benefit from thence (as other princes did),

fortifi-

by reason

in

received any annua)

of the said Company's

They "had merely intended and pursued their own
and advantage, without providing any safety or settledness for

ncglect in fortifying."
'

agaiiist the
_

Company:

any such

ma4^1e

might give assurance or encouragement to any,

future times, to adventure to trade there

Charges

nor

part.s,

present profit

establishing of trafiick in the said Indies for the good of posterity, or for longer

time than

it

should please the natives or inhabitants there to permit the con-

tinuance thereof"

The conduct of the Company

with that of the Portuguese and Dutch, who

"

in this respect

had planted and

and estabhshed a lasting and hopeful trade there,
and by advantage thereof had not only rendered our

is

contrasted

them-

fortified

good of

selves there,

for the

posterity;

subjects abiding

in those parts subject to their in.solencies

and apparent

we

manner, wrought them out of trade there, which

in a

but,

injuries,

found, not only

complaint of divers of the adventurers in that society, but principally
daily decrease of our customs for goods imported from thence, which

by
by

we

the
the

could

impute to nothing more than the said Company's supine neglect of discovery and
settling of trade in divers places in those parts

and

fair opportimities to

The charges thus

Not wholly

from place to

Red Sea

they could

have compassed and effected

lavishly brought against the

place,

it."

Company were

call their

own, and to which they could resort as a secure asyhun in aU

They thus

in this respect

existed merely

by

sufferance

was not

dictated

by motives

;

and when attacked, suc-

of poHcy.

had cautioned them against the erection of

forts, as

Sir

ten I would not accept one."

view, and

would gladly have

great difficulty

was

in the

it is

if

the emperor would

The

of funds, which at no time sufficed for

more

mercy both of native princes and European
were obliged either to overlook

it,

unavailing supplications for redress.

They were thus very much
rivals;

and when subjected to

at the
injus-

or to confine themselves to clamorous

much more

and

Claiming an exclusive right to the com-

merce of more than half the globe, they were bound to have achieved
them.selves a

tliis

they had possessed the means.

than to furnish the necessary investments.

tice,

Thomas Roe,

But the Company had never adopted

fortified if

want

Their conduct

incompatible with their

prosperity as a mercantile company, and declared that "

me

shifted about

wandering over the whole extent of the Indian Ocean, from

ceeded only in a few rare instances in maintaining their ground.

offer

not wholly

to the isle of Japan, without having secured a single .station Avhich

emergencies.

true,

plentiful stock,

They had commenced with experimental voyages, and

unfounded.

the

where they had a

dignified position.

for

Chap.

WILLIAM COURTEN'S ASSOCIATION.

SIR

III.]

Admitting that the Company were thus

2G9

far in fault, it does not follow that a.d.

They

Charles was justified in the method which he took to supplant them.

were

entitled, at all events, to a three years' notice,

i635.

and therefore ought not

to

have been threatened with violent extinction before even a single note of warning had been

unhappy

The truth

jjiven.

is,

that Charles had

now been brought

which he thought himself entitled

position from

means which promised

He was

ing to ride without a parliament

only means of obtaining

to seek relief

by any

however much they might be at variance

to be successful,

with honour and equity.

into that

engaged in the

experiment of attempt-

ftital

and having thus excluded himself from the

;

money by

legal taxation,

expedient for replenishing his treasury.

was ready

to snatch at

Tliere can be little

doubt that the

known by

license granted to the rival adventurers, afterwards

any

the

name

of

The truce recently conopen up new sources of wealth,

"Courten's Association," was one of those expedients.

eluded With Portugal was represented as about to

and the king, consulting only

means of a new body of adventurers, a

made

to his

own

He had

lent large

in the

sums both

however, from the

had more than an indirect

He

association.

-

and

new

his father,

—

may

terest in the success of Courten's

ffu^^^S)

'

^^^t voyage as having been partly

undertaken "at and by the charge \^;,J^f^^j and adventure of
trusty

and

faithful servant,

V

En-

^^

possibly have

language employed, that Charles

--.

/

speaks of the

and

name.

it its

loan, in return for the royal license.

<^^ ^^^\

in-

by

London merchant,

new company, and has hence given

to the king

J

dymion

us,

and of our

Porter, Esq., one of the

grooms of our bedchamber," and

authorizes the ships, 'as an ensign

that they were specially employ-

ed by

flag

which our own

service,

ships,

us," to carry the

and none but the ships employed

"union

in our particular

ought to bear."

Company, naturally alarmed at the special favour thus shown to the
new adventm-ers, and the open mfringement of the exclusive privileges guaran-

The

teed to

old

them by the

chartere of

earnest remonstrance

;

Queen Elizabeth and King James, presented an

but though they succeeded so far as to cause a

clamation to be issued, in whicli the right of
ciation

was

restricted to " such of those parts

the said East India

Company had not

traffic

new

conferred on the

proa.sso-

and places before named, where
and trade before the

settled factories

12th December, 1635," they were so far from gaining their main object, that
the license, originally granted only for a single voyage,
years,
it.

and declared

"any

to stand

good against

all

was extended

who might be

charters, lettei's-patents, grants of incorporations,

to five

disposed to challenge
or of

any

liberties,

powers, jurisdictions, privileges of trade or traffick. or any act of parliament,
•

association.

and permanent addition might be

large

cancelled part of the debt, or granted a
It is plain,

into the belief that,

Sir William Courten, a wealthy

revenue.

had the principal share

was deluded

his necessities,

Coui-teirs

Seal used by Sir William Courten's Association.

— MS. vol.

Peter Manday'a Travels, in Lib of E.

I.

House.

R<?mon.ngainst

it.

IIISTOKY OF TN'DTA.

270
A.D. 1035.

.statute,

J

proclamation, piovision or restriction, or other matter

ordinance,

thing whatsoever, to the contrary
passage

[Book

now quoted

iiereof, in

any wise notwithstanding,"

J.

oi-

Tlie

curious, not only as evincing the king's determination

is

new

strenuously to support the

which he was prepared to stretch

association,

his prerogative,

when they were

other powers of the state

but as displaying the extent to

and

nought

to set at

all

suj)posed to interfere with

the

any of

his favourite projects.

At

Depressed

the date of the second proclamation, the ships fitted out

state of the

Company,

.

^

.

voyage of the association were already at
the president and council,

who had

sea.

When

•

^

the

fcjr

they arrived at Surat,

not previously been informed of the license

which had been granted, were surprised above measure, and utterly at a

how

They had been preparing

to proceed.

first

o

i

to take

loss

advantage of the an-ange-

ment which had been made with the Portuguese, and had partly completed theiiinvestment with a view to it. Now, liowever, they found themselves forestalled,
and virtually excluded from

was the more severely

most hopeful market.

their

This disappointment

in consequence of the general .stagnation of trade,

felt

which had been produced by the recent famine and pestilence

;

and

also of a

very violent proceeding on the part of the Mogul emperor, Shah Jehan, wlio,

on learning that a vessel bearing

his flag

had been plundered by a

pirate under

English colours, had imprisoned the leading members of the Siu-at factory, and

them

refused to release

till

these circumstances, trade

thus overwhelmed

by

fine.

Under

for a time almost entirely suspended.

"While

they engaged to pay a very heavy

was

tion to learn that Courten's vessels
in

Company had the additional dissatisfachad made a prosperous voyage, and arrived

adversity, the

England with cargoes which would yield the adventurers a very

return.

In a

Company

thus express themselves

letter addressed to
:

profitable

their servants at Surat, the governor

—

"

Wee

and

could wish that wee could vindicate

the reputacion of our nation in these partes, and do oiu^elves right for the losse

and damage our

estate in those partes

have susteyned

;

but of

all

must beare the burthen, and with patience sitt still, untill we may
frowning tymes more auspicious to us and to our aflfayres."

wee

find these

For scvcral subsequent years the Company remained in a very depressed

Attempt to
joint stock,

these

At one time the

state.

rivalship of Courten's association, at another time the

encroachments of the Dutch

—who, no longer

satisfied

with their ascendency in

the Eastern islands, were ambitious enough to aim at the establishment of
in

all

the leading ports of India

—absorbed

all

their thoughts,

subject of various petitions, in which they implored the

it

and formed the

government to

inter-

and save them from impending destruction. Their importunity at last
obtained a favourable hearing; and the privy council recommended, as the

fere

most

eflfectual

remedy, that the hcense to Courten's association should be with-

drawn, on the understanding that a

scheme

sufficiently large

and

new

liberal to

joint stock should be formed, on a

promise a great extension of the trade.

—

Chap.

A NEW JOINT

xVTTEMPT TO FORM

III.J

STOCK.

271

In accordance with tins recommendation, the Company proceeded to take the
necessary steps, and issued a prospectus
1.

embodying the following proposals

a.d. i640.

:

That the subscription should be payable, by instalments, in four years; and

that

it

should be

manner, and by

whom

tion should be open to

May,

164)0.

3.

be levied, as a

the business should be managed.
all

That on

fine, till

2.

That the subscrip-

persons, as well foreigners as English,

all

past due instalments I4 per cent, per

payment.

4.

by an Englishman £500, and by a

foreigner £1000.

for his freedom.

6.

any

in

what was

time for bringing home

any more stock

their property, but be prohibited from sending

be,

and a foreigner

That the old Company, or adventurers

called the third joint stock, should be allowed sufficient

joUit stoct.

month should

That, in buying

5.

Attempt to

the 1st of

till

That the minimum subscription should

share after the books were closed, an Englishman sliould pay £20

£40

what

the majority of the subscribers to determine in

left to

on their

to India

former account.

The above terms

are fair

and reasonable, and, under ordinary circumstances,

could hardly fad to have been eagerly and generally accepted

times were at hand, and few
the risks which

When

it

who

;

but troublous

possessed capital were inclined to expo.se

would necessarily run during the struggles of a

the date fixed for closing the books arrived, the whole

't* faUure.

civil

it

to

war.

amount subscribed

was the paltry sum of £22,500.
complete

The proposed scheme having thus proved a
matters returned to their former state; and the Company

failure,

While thus engaged,

wei*e again left to fight their battle single - handed.

course
head,

was checkered by prosperity as well
a first place must be assigned to the

the Coromandel coast.

the most favom-able terms, the

own

to build a fort at his

as adversity.

the former

acqui.sition

locality

This locahty was the nucleus of

swell out into the presidency of Madras.
')iaik

The

Under
of a new
what was
was made

their

acquisition

on

destined to
in

1

640, on

or governor of the district volunteering

expense, at which the English might settle and carry

on their trade exempt from

all

of the factory of Masidipatam,

customs.

So

satisfied

who conducted

was Mr. Day, a member

the transaction with the naik,

of the value of the otter which had been made, tliat he immediately imdertook

the erection of the

fort,

which, in honour of the naik's father, received the

of Chenappa-])atan, or Clienna-patan,

Europeans from the

first

knew

it

still

ajiplied to it

only by the

name

importance of this station soon became a])parent
Mr.

Day

;

by the

natives,

if

though

of Fort St. George.

The

and the decisive step which

took in at once commencing operations was most fortunate, as

wards appeared that the Company,

name

it after-

they had been previously consulted, would

have withheld their sanction mider a belief that the state of their funds did

Another circumstance, which at

not justify the outlay.
able influence on the
rule in Portugal,

kingdom.

By

Company's

prospects,

event,

tiie

had a favour-

was the overthrow of the Spanish

which in con.sequence resumed
this

this time

its

friendly relations

position as an independent

ah-eady existing between

First settie-

Madras.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

272
A.D.

Ifill.

England and Portugal were drawn

any pretext
had

Company's
pepper by
tlie

king.

inflicted serious injuries

on the English

Company.

They
loss

per

of

8d. per

Is.

loss of

Portuguese

India trade.

were favouraLle to the

upon the singular device of buying

was 607,252
lb.,

this time

Uj with-

more than counterbalanced by the unfavourhome and abroad, and more especially by a heavj-

the Company's stores on credit, and selling

2s. Id.

Ea.st

again.st

on them by the king, who, in order

inflicted

necessities in 1641, fell

of pepper

were obhged

were, however,

able state of affairs both at

pecuniary

II.

Dutch, Laving no longer

though nominally directed only

whicli,

Such were the leading events which at

Purchase of

tiie

for continuing hostilities against the latter,

draw the blockades,
ports,

and

clo.scr;

[Book

bags,

and the

amounted to £63,283,

all

the pepjjer in

ready money.

The quantity

price agi'eed to be paid, at the rate of
lis.

Id.; but the sales,

made

at the rate

The king thus sustained an apparent

realized only £50,626.

lb.,

it for

relieve hit

tcj

above £12,000 by the speculation, but ultimately the Company were the

The bonds which they had received from the fanners of the
customs remained unpaid; and the only sum wliich they appear to have
received was £13,000, which they retained out of the ciistoms due by them.
sole sufferers.

Even

now

this

sum they were not allowed

to retain without question, as parliament,

at open hostilities with the king^ did not

admit that the bonds wliich had

been granted in payment of the pepper constituted an

burden on the

effectual

public revenue.

During the Civil war the transactions of the Company remain almost a

The

perfect blank.

money

collection of

for investments could not

be openly

announced without endangering their confiscation by one or other of the contending parties

;

and the

secrecy as if they

erected at

Balasore.

were

fitted

had been engaged in an

of importance which
Factory

vessels

may

out and despatched with as
illicit traffic.

to the west of Piply, which
it

;

the few facts

be gleaned from the history of this period, are the

erection of a factory at Balasore, situated within the

of

Among

had not

Mogul

territories a little

realized the hopes at one time entertained

and a considerable extension of the trade of Madras, which, though

subordinate to Bantam, was rapidly outstripping

it,

this prosperity

Madras was mainly indebted to

its fortifications,

only gave security to the servants of the factory, but induced
native merchants and artisans to settle in the

any attack by native

district,

the

George was £2294, and the estimate was, that
it

impregnable

forces.

Courten's association, of which the

worst thorn in their

of the

cost, for in 16-i5

not more than an additional £2000 would be necessary to render
to

many

in times of commotion.

All these advantages had been obtained at a very trifling
St.

coast.

which not

town and the adjoining

where they could always be sure of finding protection
whole sum expended on Fort

stiU

and had already supei'seded

Masulipatam as the principal factory of the Company on the Coromandel

For

much

sides,

after

Company had

long complained as the

a short course of prosperity had rapidly

Chap.

PROCEEDINGS OF COURTEN'S ASSOCIATION.

III.]

The same causes which depressed the Company must have affected
a similar manner, but their misfortunes seem to have been far more

declined.

them

in

owing

to their

own

s\ibjected

they resolved in 16-i6 to establish a colony at

The

island of Madagascar.
their means,

St.

them

In order to lelieve the embarrassments

failure.

mint, at which they coined counterfeit pagodas and
discovered,

and

so seriously

to severe reprisals,

was altogether beyond

which they were thus thrown they had recourse to

into

damaged

theii*

fraud,

Had

and amalgamate.

Not long

change had taken

})lace

up a

\Aas soon

after this

association should

the Com])any been their

they would never have entertained this propo.sal;

masters,

set

character that they afterwards found

was made that the Company and the

forget their (juarrels

and

The cheat

rials.

great difficulty in carrying on even a legitimate trade.
transaction, a proposal

icag.

Augustine's Bay, on the

project, injudicious in itself,

and proved a

ad.

After wandering about M'ithout any fixed

misconduct.

and committing depredations which

[)lan,

273

was dangerous

tumiwiny.

but a complete

of the kingdom, and, in

in tlie |)olitical state

own

p»^i'o^i »<>
amalganiatf
the ai^oda-

tlie

demur to any proThe king was now a
posal which had the sanction of the dominant party.
prisoner in the Isle of Wight, and the cause of the parliament was everywhere
trium])hant.
The Company, trembling for their charter, endeavoured to meet
the threatened storm by proposing a new subscription, in which they made a
general uncertainty Avhich prevailed,

it

In the prospectus

curious effort at conciliation.

were restricted to a certain day

rally

made

in favour of

members

of parliament, for

while the public gene-

i.ssued,

for filling

up the

whom

to

an exception was

lists,

the period of closing

was

prolonged that they might have an op])ortunity to consider the subject, and to

become

The device

subscribers.

obtained

so

much

council of state

said

to

have succeeded

and privileges of the Company.

— to which the

questions at

is.sue

— while

declining to give

device to
lavcmi of

"

"""*"

'

between the Compan}- and

Merchants," from their settlement on an island of that

been submitted

Accordingly,

which was now designated by the name of

Coiu"ten's association,

iiad

and the plan

;

commons, as to amount to a

of the approbation of the

virtual recognition of the rights
tlie

is

"

The

As.sada

name near Madagascar,

any formal

decision, strongly

recommended an amalgamation.
In accordance with this recommendation, vai'ious conferences were held

^'"'O"

between

between the managers of the two companies, and a union -was

The leading conditions were

—That

a stock of £300,000 should be subscribed

within two months, to be paid by instalments in four yeai*s
siiould

be taken of

in India

;

direct to

that the

all

;

.settlei's

that,

and America, but not to trade from port

this continent, a fortified station should
all

Indian goods,

.spices, &c.,

I.

to

be fixed on for

should be joint propert}';

that salaries, both in England and India, should be reduced;
Vol.

that a valuation

on the island of Assada should be allowed to trade

Asia, Africa,

on

both companies; that

;

the houses, shij)ping. and goods belonging to the CVunpany

any ports of

port in India

finally arranged,

and

that, in tlie
35

tlie

association

company,

HISTORY OF INDIA.

274
A.D. 1652.

management of

future

sary to give a vote.

was of importance

It

House of Commons.

worded

cautiously
carried

was immediately

the

privileges,
"

resolution,

hoped

to have

utmost

That the trade

on by one company, and with one joint

Company

j>resented to the

for a di.stinct confirma-

they could obtain was the
to the East Indies should be
stock, the

management

to be under such regulations as the parliament should think

East India

neces-

to obtain legislative sanction to this

effect

Company appear

exclusive

II.

taken into consideration on the 31st January,

It wa,s

1650; but though the
of their

£500 should be

the joint trade, a share of at least

arrangement, and a petition to that

tion

[Book

fit

thereof

and that the

;

made

should proceed upon the articles of agreement

between them and the Assada merchants on the 21st November, 1649,

till

further orders from the parliament."
Petition to

parliament
ag linst tlie
Dutch.

Whatever may have been the political predilections of individual membei-s
of the Company, they appear, as a body, to have been easily reconciled to the
constitutional changes

which followed the execution of the king

;

and, on the

14th of November, 1650, presented a petition, addressed, in the language and
spirit of the times, to " the

supreme authority of the nation, the high court of

The

the Parliament of England."

complaint of

ill

burden of the petition was the old

gi-eat

usage from the Dutch, from

whom

redress,

asked in vain " from the late king and his coimcil, was

At

pated."

this

time the

rupture with the Dutch

new government was

and hence, as the

;

petition

now

confidently antici-

evidently preparing for a

was opportune,

such a favoiirable reception, that on the very day on which

parliament adopted a resolution referring

away, the

Company endeavoured

by a

series of memorials.

after referring to their petition,

the

Dutch,

and drew up a

£1,681,996, 15s.
Second
memorial
presented

met with

was presented

to the consideration of the council

it

amount

to a larger

in June,

when

to

In the

first

of these, dated 9th May, 1651,

they renewed their grounds of complaint against
list

of their losses,

which they estimated at

This was exclusive of interest, which

sum than

the principal.

the probability of a

consisting of five

die

keep their case before the x-iew of the

it

was

alleged

would

In a second memorial, presented

Dutch war was stronger than

expressed their apprehensions for the safety of their

Third

it

it

That the impression already made might not be permitted to

of state.

council

though hitherto

ships laden with valuable cargoes,

ever,

homeward bound

they
fleet,

and particularly with

saltpetre for the use of

government; and prayed that ships of war might be

stationed off the Land's

End

into the

Downs.

for the purpose of conducting theii" fleet in safety

In a third memorial, foUomng

close

upon the

other,

they

memorial.

took the bolder step of praying that powers might be given, imder the great
seal of

on

all

England, to their presidents and councils in India, to enforce obedience

Englishmen within

to the laws of England.

their jm'isdiction,

On

and

to punish offenders conformably

the 29th of January, 1652, they again imi)ortuned

the council on the subject of their claims, because, knowing that ambassadors

Chap.

PEACE CONCLUDED WITH THE DUTCH.

III.]

275

from the States-general were then in England endeavouring

negotiate a

Co

treaty, they felt that if they lost the present opportunity of obtaining

sation they

might wait in vain

tion having failed,

and open

declared, their claims

At

the very time

for another.

hostilities

a.d. lew.

compen-

Ultimately, however, the negotia-

between the two countries having been

were again indefinitely postponed.

when

the Dutch

war broke

out, it

was apprehended that

European

the proceedings of Admiral Blake at Lisbon, where part of the English fleet „„«.

which had adhered to the Royalists had been attacked, might lead to a rupture
with Portugal.

The Company were thus

in the perilous predicament of being

attacked in India by two nations at once, while almost totally unprovided with
the

means of

resistance.

To add

to their difficulties, a fierce

war was raging

between the Kings of Bejapoor and Goleonda, to the great obstruction of their
trade on the Coromandel coast.

It is not to be

wondered

at,

that in the.se

circumstances the Company, yielding to a feeling of despondency, refused to
sanction an additional outlay on

tlie fortifications

of St. George, though

was

it

by the agents there that these formed the only security to the
inland trade, and the principal protection to the sliipping; and that, under
certain firmans which had been obtained from the Nabob of the Carnatic,
truly urged

authorizing them to purcluise cloths and other goods without re.striction in

all

parts of his government, the trade miglit be very largely extended.

which the war was prosecuted by CromweU, soon

Ascendency

threatened the Dutch commerce in Europe with total destruction; but in India,

in the East.

The vigour and

success with

where their maritime and commercial ascendency had been long established,
they completely swept the
appeared off Svvally with a

seas.

Shortly after the declaration of war, they

fleet of eight

large ships,

and might

easily

have

annihilated the English establisliment at Surat, had tliey not been afraid of

provoking the hostility of the Great Mogul by carrying war into any portion
of his dominions.
to

Contenting themselves, therefore, with offering large bribes

the governor and other

obstructing

them

officials,

to induce

them

to liarass the English

where they

in every way, they set sail for the Persian Gulf,

not only put a stop to the lucrative trade which the

Company had

on between Sm-at and Gomberoon, but captured three of their
a fourth on shore, where she was totally

lost.

These

disasters,

by

long carried

ships,

and drove

which might

liave

been expected to dispirit the Company, seemed rather to have roused their
courage, for they are found petitioning
frigates,

tlie

government to lend them

five or six

which they would man and equip at their own expense, and despatch to

the East Indies for the pmjiose of

making

reprisals.

This warlike

movement

appears not to have been encouraged, and in fact soon ceased to be necessary, as
the Dutch,

now

hostilities.

After a negotiation, during which the Dutch became sensible that

completely humbled, were eagerly suing for a termination of

they would be obliged to submit to any terms which Cromwell chose to
the peace concluded was ratified at Westminster, 5th April, 1654".

dictate,

Peace

—

HISTORY OF INDIA.

27(i

In

A.D. 1654

tliu

treaty

By

not forgotten.

Lords
Conipou-

tice

tlie

drawn up on

[Book

Company were

this occasion the claims of the

the twenty-seventli

article,

it

II.

was agreed:

"That the

States-general of the United Provinces shall take care that jas-

be done upon those

who were

partakers or accomplices in

tlie

massacre

sation

awarded
to the

Company.

Amboyna, as the republic of England is pleased to term that
fact; provided any of them be living."
By the thirtieth aiticle, four com mi.ssioners were to be named on both sides to meet at London, and "to examine
and distinguish all those losses and injurys, in the year 1611 and after to the
of the English at

18th of May, 1652, according to the English

well in the East Indies

style, as

as in Greenland, Muscovy, Brazil, or wherever else either party complains of

having received them from the other; and the particulars of

damages

shall

those injuiys and

all

be exhibited to the said commissioners so nominated before the

no new ones

aforesaid 18th of

May, with

after that day."

Should the commissioners not come to an agreement within

three

this restriction, that

be admitted

shall

months, the wliole case was to be submitted "to the judgment and

arbitration of the Swiss Cantons,"

who were

authorized for that puii^ose to

delegate commissioners, whose decision, given within six months, should " bind

both parties, and be well and truly performed."

At

the

commissioners, held on the 30th of August, 1654, the English

damages at £2,695,999,

their

15s.

.stated

series of accounts

;

3s. 6d.

Both statements

but the commissioners

.soon

became

dependence was to be placed upon them, and within the

satisfied that little

three

Company

Strange to say, the Dutch contrived to

exceed this amount, and stated theirs at £2,919,861,

were supported by a

meeting of the

first

months pronomiced an award, of which the

principal findings were that

the island of Polaroon should be restored to the English, and that the Dutch

Company the sum of £85,000, and to the
heirs or executors of the sufferers at Ambovna the sum of £3615.
It seems to be admitted that the award was fairly made and therefore,
when the comparatively paltry amount of the compensation is considered, it is
difficult to account for the loud outcry which the Company had continued
without interruption from the first years of their existence to make again.st

Company

Its insignifi-

cantamoiuit.

should pay to the London

;

the Dutch, as the main authors of
less

clamour might have

for losses wliich,

siifficed,

all

the calamities which befell them.

when

the object merely

proprietors of the

been

fitted out.

him

as

When

many
to the mode in which it was to be apportioned among the
different stocks by which the voyages of the Company had

A

the

sum was

paid,

protracted and ruinous litigation might have ensued, had

not Cromwell alarmed
danger,

to obtain redi^ess

spread over the course of nearly half a centmy, had only

reached the aggregate amount of £85,000.
questions arose as

was

Sm'ely

all

them as in a common
the meantime the money should remain ^ath

the claimants, and united

by proposing that in
a loan.
The Company pleaded the general

the deores.sed circumstances of

many

state of their

affaii's,

and

of the indi^^.dual claimants, as reasons

CHAr.

MADRAS RAISED TO A PRESIDENCY.

ITI.^

whole sum

for not lending the

to receive £35, QUO in hand, iind

und })roposed

;

by

The

instalments.

final

was

it

a

u

1054.

by lending him the remaining

to express their gratitude to tlie Protector

£50,000, on the understanding that

277

months

to be repaid in eighteen

apportionment of the sum among the claimants was

the decision of five arbitere specially appointed for that purpose.

left to

made

After the arrangement

Company

the

Courten's association,

witli

Privileges
ol.taimil

began to trade on what was called a united joint stock

many

with

difiiculties,

;

and while contendmg

made some arrangements which ccmtributed

Among

their ultimate prosperity.

may

others

ill

lici.gai.

greatly to

be mentioned, the oljtaining of

a firman which, in retm-n for a payment of 3000 i-upees (£300), gave them the
privilege of free trade in Bengal without

payment of customs.

favourable terms, which were obtained in 1651, thev
Gabriel Boughton, who,

]\Ir.

when English surgeon

owed

These very

to the influence of

to the factory at Surat, had

gained the fiivour of Shah Jehan by the cure of one of his daughters, and at a
later period resided in

Bengal as the medical attendant of the governor. Prince

While new

Hhuja, Sliah Jehan's son.
in Bengal, the

step

facilities for

trade were thus opened up

Coromandel coast was not overlooked, and

was taken of raising Fort

St.

in

1654 the important

George to the rank of a presidency.

In the

Madras
rai.seci

use of these and similar advantages, the
their disa.sters,

Company might

soon have re})aired

and attained a higher prosperity than they had enjoyed
Unhappily new obstacles arose from within.

former period.

Courten's association had never been cordial

;

at

all

to

.1

i.resiuency.

any

The imion with

and the members of the

latter,

accustomed to much more freedom of action than the more regular management

Company

of the

permitted, became loud in their complaints.

was formed, the mode of canying on the
arrangement.

On

tliis

subject, the

joint trade

views of the

open for future

Company and

of the A.s.sada

and convinced that they could not maintain them without a joint

any other

refused to carry on the trade on

contrary, while admitting that a
be,

left

the union

The Compaiiy, jealous of

merchants were almost diametrically opposed.
privileges,

was

When

stock,

The Assada merchants, on

footing.

company was

their

necessary, insisted that

it

the

should

not a joint stock, but a regulated company, in which the members should

have liberty individually
in such

way

as they

'•

to

employ

their

might conceive most

own

stocks, servants,

to their

own

raised,

end of 1654, ap})eared as petitioners before the comicil of

The Company,

in their petition, repeated all the

Portuguese and Dutch

ment

far

—the

—the

jn-ocure

both parties,

state.

arguments which they had

been accustomed to urge in lavour ot a joint stock: their
acquu-ed during a course of forty years

To

advantage."

an authoritative settlement of the im])ortant que.stion thus
in the

and shipping,

own

experience

formidable competition of the

failure of isolated voyages, the expenses of equip-

exceeding the means of individual adventurers

over which the trade extended, the factories of the

—the extent of

Company

territorv

l^eing actually

situated "in the dominion.s of not less than fourteen sovereigns"

—and, above

Arrange-

nnourcf
i_'omymi^'^

;

278
A.U. IGM.

OF INDIA.

lIISTOIiy

[Book

II.

engagements which the Company were under to the native powers to
make good any losses whicli their subjects might sustain by the depredation-s
all,

"tlie

of Englishmen," even though these should not belong to their service.

On

these grounds, they thought themselves entitled to ])ray that the Protector

would be pleased to renew

their charter, with such additional privileges as ha/1

been found necessary to enable them to carry on their trade
persons from sending out shipping to India

;

Were

their position in the Spice Islands.

and to

;

to prohibit private

assist thern in recovering

this prayer granted, they

had no

doubt of being able not only to procure a large subscription at present, but to
establish the East India trade

On

Arrange-

ments

on a secure and durable

basis.

the other hand, the Assada merchants alleged that

management by joint

in

favour of

a regiilateJ

company.

stocks had not been so profitable either to subscribers or to the public as that

of separate voyages

manner
under

in

would have been; and appealed

in proof to the successful

which the Turkey, Muscovy, and Eastland trades were carried on
Besides this appeal to experience, they argued the point

free companies.

at great length, insisting, in substance, that a free trade regulated would encour-

age industry and ingenuity, giving them

and scope

full latitude

for exercise

while each person, instead of standing idle and leaving others to act for him,
liis

own

that

by

had the ordering of
of his 0"wn talents

;

affairs,

and consequently opportunity

increasing the

by means of

the spirit of monopoly, and,

number

of traders,

in the

ment than a joint

;

the subscription

time,

and

would be

stock, it

own

far

more

interest

eflacient,

to invest

new

its

manage-

because the adventurers,

and the competition of

others, will in

trades;" and thus have some

advantage over the Dutch Company, who, ha\dng

make Holland

mode

convenient, not merely in ready money, but in

reason tiu-n every stone for discovering of

Cromwell's

own

as the only

and, finally, that besides being less expensive in

being whetted on by their

vants abroad,

of a joint stock required

list

at full liberty to choose their

mode which might be most

goods or shipping

"

them

it left

would destroy

that instead of restrict-

;

and to the payment of ready money

to be peremptorily closed,

of investment,

when

use

active competition, lower the price of

foreign commodities, to the great advantage of the public

ing adventurers to a set time

it

make

to

little

control over their ser-

the principal seat of their management.

While the subject of a joint stock or a regulated trade was thus keenly

decision.

agitated,

Cromwell at

maintained a

first

strict

neutrahty between the contend-

ing parties, granting authority to both to undertake voyages to India, and

conduct them on their
necessary

;

and

own

to obtain

state in a writing signed

October, 1656.

The

it,

principles.

An

authoritative decision, however,

was

the whole question was submitted to the comicil of

by

the Protector's

own

hand, and bearing date 20th

council refen-ed the matter to a select committee,

who were

what manner the East India trade might be best managed
for the public good and its own encouragement." On 18th December following,
the committee reported that, after taking means to obtain the fullest informadii'ected to report " in

—

Chap.
tion,

A NEW JOINT-STOCK COMPANY.

III.]

by

279

day

directing notices to be affixed to the Exchange, appointing a

persons concerned in the East India trade to attend, and fully considering

arguments urged orally or in ^vriting by both

come

any

to

parties,

positive determination, though their

Company and

of the

tlie

own

was that

private opinion

The

council having

the governor and committees

hearing on January 28, 1657, gave

full

Within a fortnight

all others."

his determination to act

was appointed

council

the

it

as their

"That the trade of East Indya be mannaged by a united

Protector,

joynt stock, exclusive of

announced

d. less.

the principal merchant adventurers to the East Indies to

attend them; and after a
advice to

summoned

all

.\

they had not ventured to

the trade ought to be conducted on an united joint stock.
the question thus returned upon them,

for all

Cromwell

thereafter,

on this advice; and a committee of the

to consider the terms of the charter to be granted to the

East India Company.

be presumed that the charter thus vu'tually promised was actually a

It is to

new

joint

stock coni*

granted

only evidence of

its

existence

is

it

has ever been discovered, and the

derived from a reference

made

to

from Fort

St.

George to the factory of Surat, in which

"

posted

letter

stated that a vessel

which arrived from England on the 12th of June in that

called the Blackmoore,

had

it is

in a

it

which the Company presented to Cromwell in 1658, and from a

petition

year,

no copy of

but, strange to say,

;

away with

all

haste after his highness the Lord Protector had

The Company were, of

signed the Company's charter."

course, greatly elated

with their success; and having again formed a coalition with the principal

members

of the merchant adventurers, succeeded in obtaining a subscription of

£786,000 to form a new joint

upon

it,

claims.
for

It

stock.

was

necessaiy, however, before acting

make an arrangement for the settlement of previously existing
Under the original agreement with Corn-ten's association, the trade had
to

some years been carried on by the funds of what was

The

Stock."

made up to the date of 1st September,
which the Company tlien occupied:

ACCOUNT-GENERAL OF THE UNITED JOINT STOCK,
of

tlio

mercliants remaining in India,

from 30th Nov.,
£"JOt56,

'2s.

8rf.

per

annum, to be paid
tlie like

4

esti-

mate,

Two

4,000

years' generall exjionces in Snratt,
.

Bantam, &c

Credit.

.

to

PoUaroone

1,051

5,000

Fort St. George, value, with all privileges of
saving of customs,

6,000

2,800

Customs of Gombroon

9,000

7,600

Salary of the merchants gone upon the Three
Brothers,
230
Gratuitys to the comniitteea, none liaving been
jiaid since this stock began,
Rests
156,317

...

1655.'

£82,053 12
Remaines in Suratt and subordinate factories, 32,829 5
At Madraspatnara and fiicturies on that coast, 22,671 11
At Bant.im and 8ulK)r(linates,
26,451 10

Voyage

from

....

30th Nov., 1654, to Nov., 1656,
Coast of Coromandell,

1655,

Ist Sept., 1655,

in India, £9,641 19

terms, per

on the Ist September,

Balance of estate in England, made up to the

Debii.

1650, to 30th Nov., 1C56, at

Mariners' wages, for

"United Joint

state of its affairs,

throws light on the position

Siil.irios

called the

.

—

£185, .5S9

Three lioiises in Agra, .MiniodatMul, and Lucknow, with the garden at Suratt,
Five hoitses at Bantam, Jajwirra, Macassar,
Jambee, attd Bangar-Masseen,
Ship Expedition

7

8

7

' This account is copied from Bruce's Annah
(i. 50T\ but
the two columns do not tally, as the credit side amounts to

—

1,932
3,600

600

Sea-horse,

250

Sloop Marline,

200

Pynnace Hope,

50
£l.S5,58 9

7

£1S6,58,S, 19«. Oii.
Tlie error, however, does not interfere
with the puri)ose for which the account is given.

i)anyfoi-iue.i

niSTOKY OF INDIA.

280
A.D

From

1C08.

this account,

1G58,
v.ii

nation of

when

new

the

amounted

joint stock

considerably reduced; but as
the terms on which,
to

what

called

is

sum

to the large

was formed,

much remained

this

as to

—That

make

and Persia should be made over
in bullion, prepared for the

new

stock

The

which lielonged

term.s,

apparently

in full right,

voyage of

],y

two
India

in

and the three ships and £14,000

this season, transferred at

prime cost of

that on the arrival of these ships at the Company's factfmfes,

;

6s.

it

and immunities

the goods, furniture, and stores were to be transferred to the
valuation of

necessary U> settle

it

"on the new stock paying £20,000,

instalments, to the imited stock, the forts, privileges,

In

7s. Sd.

balance must have Vjeen

dead stock was to be transfen-ed.

very favourable, were:

the

of £156,317,

not the whole, at least that portion of

if

II.

ap{)ears that at its date the balance of tiie credit

it

of the united joint stock

[Book

new

account, at the

new

6d. sterling per rial of eight; that the servants of the

stock

should assist those of the united stock in recovering their debts; and that the

united stock should be charged with the expenses of the settlements and trade
the arrival of the shipping of the

till

new

stock,

when

the agents of this stock

should take charge, and be entitled to receive the customs of Gomberoon after

Another arrangement of some importance was, that

the 1st October, 1658."

such persons as had served an apprenticeshij) to the members of the joint stock,

Company on paying

should be admitted freemen and members of the

a fine of

and that the persons who had been possessed of shares in the former trade,
and, on that account, had property in the Indies, were not to be deemed private
traders, but were required, after a specified time, to carry' the amount of such

£5

;

]iroperty to the account of the

Haviug amicably

Newar'^

Ibrolir"

and

stock.

settled these preliminaries,

make a new arrangement
presidencies

new

factories,

the

Company proceeded

of their establishments abroad.

In

and more

and trade in

especially the factories

were to be subordinate to the president and council of Surat
the presidency of Fort
a control over

all

St.

;

to

future, the other

at the

Persia,

same time,

George was not only to be maintained, but to have

the other factories on the Coromandel coast and in Bengal,

where the Company now had a principal factory at Hooghl}', together with
The insular factories
inferior agencies at Cossimbazar, Balasore, and Patna.

and agencies were

to be subordinate, as before, to the president

and council

The abuse of private trafiic by the Company's seiwants, which had
long been complained of, and had even, we have seen, been denounced in ro3-al
and tlie appropriate remedy was
proclamations, again attracted attention
of Bantam.

;

adopted by issuing an absolute prohibition of such
for the

withdrawal of

it

by

against the continuance of the abuse,
specified amounts, to

transmit certified

copies of

and compensating

increasing the salaries of the presidents

bers of council, and of the subordinate servants.

bonds to

trafiic,

keep

them

all officials

As an

and mem-

additional protection

were required to sign security

diaries of their proceedings,

to the coiu-t in England.

and annually
It

is

scarcely

CiiAi'.

REIGN OF SHAH JEHAN.

TV]

281

necessary to observe that these regulations for the suppression of private trade

proved unavailing

ad.

1627.

and that the abuse, instead of being suppressed, kept pace

;

with the progress, and, in not a few instances, seriously damaged the interests

and even brought a stigma on the character of the Company.
Scarcely had these arranorements
been completed
'
°
•^

when Cromwell was

called neathof
Cromwell.

,

This event, which took place in 1658, was attended with

to his final account.
so

many

important changes, that

all

great interests, commercial as well as

Having thus arrived at
what may be considered a new era in the history of the Company, it will be
proper, before continuing it, to bring up the history of the Mogul empire from
were more or

political,

less seriously affected

by

it.

the termination of the reign of Jehangu- in 1627.

CHAPTER
Reign of Sliah Jelian

lY.

— His deposition by Aurungzebe — Rise and progress of the ^lahrattas — Reign of
Aurungzebe.

EVERAL

years before the death of Jehangir, the succession to his

Competition

throne was keenly contested by different members of his family,

girs aucces-

Khosroo, the eldest son,

who had been the

favourite of his grand-

father Akber, failed in an attempt to seize the

SSS
hi.s

to

liic

died,

and was in consequence subjected during the remainder of

a rigorous imprisonment.

forward to the succession

when

for him,

crown when Akber

Parviz, the second son, naturally looked

and was confirmed

;

his father intrusted

in the belief that

it

was intended

him with the nominal command

Deccan, where a great contest for supremacy was waged between the

He

tans and Hindoos.

ultimately superseded
superior order,

in the

Mahome-

proved unequal to the task assigned him, and was

by

Khurram, whose

the third son,

were of a

abilities

and whose military fame had been established by a

successful

campaign in Mewar.

These alone would not have sufficed had he not also

enjoyed the favour of

Nur

Jehan,

who had

established a com])lete ascendency

Under

over her husband Jehangir, and virtually governed in his name.
influence Khurraui, invested with

which amounted

to a recognition of

Here the

Deccan.

ample

first

off allegiance to the

object

was

powei*s,

him

and bearing the

to recover those territories wliich

Vol.

I.

had throwTi

Mogul, and more especially the kingdom of Ahmednuggm-,

minister to the king.
it.

of king,

as heir api)arent, proceeded to the

which, owing to the gi'eat abilities of an Abyssinian,

subdue

title

this

Nizam Shah, had

Khurram was

again successful

named Mulhk Amber, prime

successfully resisted all attempts to
;

and, in return for his success,
86

was

282
A.D. 1628.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

made Viceroy

of Gujerat, in which capacity mention

journal of Sir

Thomas

Wliile Khurram's

Jeliaii's

intrigiieafor

Shehri it.

i.s

often

made

IT.

of liim in the

Roe.

way

the brink of a precipice.

Xur

[liOOK

to

tlie

Hi.s

throne wuh thas apparently

he Ktood on

clear,

brother Shehriar, the youngest son of Jehangir,

had become the son-in-law of Nur Jehan by marrying Shir Afgan, her daughter
by her first husband. In consequence of this affinity, Nur Jehan was bent on
securing the succession to Shehriar, and made no .secret of her intention.
She

had

little difficulty

mined not

from the great object of his ambition, rai.sed the
had married the daughter of Asof Khan, Nur Jehan's

He

and in him had

measures so
Deccan.

Khurram, deter-

to be excluded

standard of revolt.
brother,

in gaining the assent of Jehangir; but

skilfully,

a.

Nur Jehan

Khurram soon found himself a

that

Here he succeeded

Amber; but misfortune

powerful supporter; but

chose her

fugitive

the

in

in forming a league with his old opponent Mullik

attended him, and he was obliged to throw liimself
It would not have availed him
but a new revolt,

still

on his father's mercy.

;

produced by the imperiousness of

Nur

Jehan, drew off her thoufdits from the

vengeance which she was meditating, and he escaped.

In consequence of the

both Jehangir and his queen became for a time prisoners in the hands
of Mohabat Khan, a celebrated general, to whose military talents Khurram's
revolt,

previous discomfiture had mainly been owing.

Jehangir died shortly after

obtaining his liberty, leaving a will which appointed Shehriar his successor.

Jehan attempted

to give effect to

desti'oyed her influence

;

it,

Nur

but the death of her husband complete!}'

and though she survived

for

many

years, she

again

figured

public
riar,

never

life.

by

Sheh-

seizing the

roj-al treasure,

able

in

to

was

raise

armv and

fiofht

an
a

battle for the crown.

Khurram,however,

now

supported by

the leading parties
in the state, com-

defeated

pletely

him, and, with the
Gateway to thr Fort at Agra. —Oriental Drawing, East

India House.

usual
Accession of

of his race, put

him

to death, along

cruel

with two sons of another brother

pohcy

who had

Khurram,
iiTider
title

the

of

Sliah Jehan.

joined him.

All opposition

now

ceased

;

and Khui-ram, on

26th January, 1628, mounted the throne under the

Shah Jehan, overjoyed

title

at his accession after the

of

his arrival at Agra,

Shah Jehan.

many

misfortunes which

had befallen him, and which had made liim at one time despair of being able

EEIGN OF SHAH JEHAN.

Chap. IV.]
to secure

it,

making him

first testified

his vizier,

liis

and

to

283

gratitude to Asof Khan,

Khan by

Moliabat

by

father-in-law,

liis

a.d. i628.

appointing him his com-

mander-in-chief; and then began to indulge his natural taste for magnificence

by

In the latter of these he

works and splendid entertainments.

public

seemed determined

to outstrip all his predecessors

;

and on the

first

aimiversary

of his accession, not satisfied with the usual ceremony of distributing his

weight

most costly materials, caused

presents of the

in

waved round

jewels to be

means of averting

his

misfoi-tune,

vessels filled

own
with

head or pom'ed over his person as a .supposed

and scattered the contents among the bystanders.

In the valley of Ca.shmere, where the ceremony was performed, the value thus

expended was estimated at £1,600,000.

He was
Though

his

not allowed long to indulge in such lavish and ostentatious displays,
cruel policy

had extirpated

all

the

members

of his family

might have competed with him

for the

dominions the materials

were provided and ready to explode.

for revolt

crown, in several quarters of his

Usbeks, endeavouring to profit by the uncertainties of a
to Cabool and ravaged the surrounding country,

compelled them to

retire.

who

till

new

i^surrec-

various
'^"'*

'^"'

The

reign, laid siege

the approach of

Mohabat

In Bundelcund an insuiTection, headed by Nar.sing

Deo, the infamous murderer of Abulfazl, was not put

down without a

serious

was the great theatre of
war.
The conquest of it by Akber had never been firmly secured and even
after the Hindoos had been forced to yield, their place had been occupied by
Mahometan chiefs, who had established the three kingdoms of Ahmednuggur,
Bejapoor, and Golconda, which often refused to yield even a nominal supremacy
to the Mogul, and were always ready to embrace any opportunity which proBut, as in his father's reign, the Deccan

struggle.

;

mised to

by the

free

them

revolt of

entirely from the yoke.

Such an opportunity was

offered

an Afghan chief of the name of Khan Jehan Lody, who had

rendered important military services in the time of Jehangir; but, taking

umbrage at some proceedings
head of 2000 veteran

way

of

Shah Jehan, suddenly quitted Agra

troops, and, in the face of

numerous

obstacles,

at the

made

his

through Bundelcund and Gundwana to the court of Ahmednuggur, where

MuUik Amber.
The only chance which the Mahometan kings

he was welcomed by

of resisting the

uniting
aloof,

of the Deccan could have had

Mogul arms, would have been by forming a mutual league and

all their forces

against the

common

invader.

Instead of this they kept

under the influence of old jealousies and feuds, and allowed themselves

to be crushed in detail.

The King of Golconda appears

to have been

first

Nizam Shah. Kinsf of Ahmednufrirur.
so long as he was guided by the counsels of MuUik Amber, offered a strenuous
resistance but at last made choice of a new minister, who proved treacherous,
and made peace with the Mogul by botii nuudering the king and sacrificing
the independence of the kingdom.
The most valiant struggle was made by
intimidated, and volunteered tribute.

;

t).c kings

"

^

'^'

can ni.ide
tributanv

UISTORY OF INDIA.

281.

A.D. 1630.

Mahomed

who

Adil Shall,

[Book

J I.

Moliabat Khan, the ablest general

after obliging

of the Mogul, to raise the siege of Bejapoor, his capital, gained several other

decided advantages.
to

succumb

;

He

however, finding the contest uner^ual, was obliged

too,

and Shah Jehan, now acknowledged supreme over

metan kingdoms of the Deccan, returned

in

triumph to his

all

the Maho-

Luring

capital.

these campaigns the country suffered dreadfully from the ravages not merely

but of famine, which, caused by failures of rain during the two

of war,

successive years of 1629

calamities
Capture of
Portuguese
factory at

Hooghly.

which

it

and 1630, depopulated whole

During the campaigns

in the Deccan, di.sturbances

in other

;

place

and took refuge

own

sovereign, delivered

This important acquisition seems to

at Delhi.

Ruins of Old Delhi.

to

had broken out

They proved generally unimportant and the only event in connection with them deserving of notice, was a declaration of hostilities against the
Portuguese, whose fortified factory at Hooghly, in Bengal, was in consequence
attacked by the Mogul governor, and captured after a siege.
An event which
gave Shah Jehan more pleasure was the recovery of Kandahar from the
Persians, by the treachery of Ali Merdan Khan, the governor, who, dissatisfied
quarters.

up the

army

inflicted

took nearly half a century to repair.

with the treatment which he had received from his

Shah Jehan
sends an

and

districts,

— From Elliott's Views in the East.

have Stimulated the ambition of Shah Jehan, who immediately despatched an
t

i

i

i

•

i

army into Balkh and Budukslian, which were now
Mahomed, younger brother of Imam Kouli, whose

m
•

•

ride

of several yeais.

more

difficult

than had been anticipated

Shah Jehan despaired of

success.

;

-v^

rsazar

extended over

Moimt Imaus.

the territory beyond the Oxus, from the Caspian Sea to
enterprise proved

p

possession of

all

The

and, after a struggle

Not only

Ali

Merdan found

REIGN OF SHAH JEHAN.

Chap. IV.]
his efforts unavailing

;

but two of the emperor's sons, Murad and Aurungzebe, ad.

Even

sustained repeated discomfitm-es.

which

Nazar Mahomed

left

285

an arrangement had been made

after

in possession of

i648.

more than

his original territory,

Aurungzebe, attacked by the mountaineers of the Hindoo Koosh, made a most
disastrous retreat.

Shah Jehan, though much chagrined,

still

had some compensation

in the

siege of

Kaudalmr

Kandahar

acquisition of
1

head of a large army.

commence, made

it

was soon

this

the Persian monarch Shah Abbas

64:8

to

but even

;

made

II.

be wrested from him.

his appearance before

at the

almost impossible to march an army from India to
;

determined to attempt the recovery of
his batteries,

was obliged

was

by Saad

it

but, four

;

the siege.

to raise

A

had already

months

make a

He

fallen.

had opened

after he

second attempt, in which he

Dara Sheko, Shah

Ullah, the vizier, having also failed,

Jehan's eldest son, obtained permission to

its

and, after almost incredible

exertions, only arrived in time to learn that the place

assisted

it,

In

was about

chosen, for winter, which

The time was well

Aurungzebe, however, undertook the task

relief

to

His force was

third attack.

more numerous and better appointed than those which had previously been
employed, and he set out in

on both sides

;

as his brothers

full

confidence of success.

but, after several desperate assaults,

had been, and Kandahar was

left in

Great

efforts

were made

Dara Sheko was beaten

off,

the undisputed possession of

the Persians.

Shah Jehans warlike energy seemed now expended
two years
interfere

when

in tranquillity,

with the internal

more completely under

the Deccan, for the purpose of bringing

affairs of

his sway.

treaty which he

and he was

;

and he had passed

circumstances occurred which tempted him to

The Mogul government,

therefore,

He was

acquired great wealth

tis

had

entitled to expect that the conditions of the

had made would, on the part of that government

faithfully observed.

it

Abdallah Kutb Shah, King of Golconda, had

regularly paid the stipulated tribute.

no claim against him

;

be

also,

Mir Jumla, who had

soon taught the contrary.

a diamond merchant, and risen by his talents to be

Abdallah's prime minister, having lost favour through the misconduct of his
son,

Mahomed Amin,

in the Deccan,

entered into a correspondence with Aurungzebe, then

and lodged a formal complaint against

though tributary to the Moguls, was
internal

administration,

receiving a

Jumla

therefore both surprised

redress.

So

for

and offended on
to give

Mir

from complying, he sequestrated his property and placed

This was probably the very step which Shah Jehan wislied

him with a plausible pretext for further
were accordingly given to Aurungzebe to employ force,

to take, as it furnished

Ordei*s
still

wjis

perfectly independent in regard to his

mandate from Shall Jehan, haughtily ordering him

his son in prison.

him

and

still

Abdallah.

his master.

persisted in disobeying his mandate.

interference.
if

Acting at once on this

Aurungzebe. without any previous warning of

hostility,

Abdallah
autiiority,

set out ostensibly

on

Camixiigns
Deccan.

28G
AD.

1G57.

a

IlISTOKV OF INDIA.

visit to lieiigjil

and being Ijiought

;

[Book

in the course of his

II.

journey within a

short distance of Hyderabad, AljdaUah's capital, turned suddenly aside with a

body of troops and took

of the Doc-

possession of

with difficulty to the

surprise, escaped
Subjugation
of the kings

i'orcible

was under the

position dcsperate,
he
^

Aurungzebe chose

Golconda.

hill-fort of

Here, finding his

necessity
of submitting;
^
o to the tenris v/hich

Mir Jumla,

to dictate.

Abdaliah, taken completely by

it.

reward

in

was

for hLs treachery,

can.

taken into Aurungzebe's confidence, and became one of the main in.struments of

The subjugation of Golconda took

his ambitious designs.

place in 1656.

the same year Bejapoor was subjected to similar treatment.

had before
the

lost

Alimednuggui-

even the semblance of independence, and thus the authority of

Mogul seemed

as in

In

Mahometan portion

as firmly established in the

of the Deccan

any part of Hindoostan.

The conquests thus achieved gave great delight to Shah Jehan. Had he
known the use about to be made of them, his feelings would have been very
Aurungzebe, while professing the utmost

different.

steadily pursuing his

was eventually
struggle
shahjehan'3

Shall

own

to give

was

di.sinterestedness,

aggrandizement, and preparing for the struggle wliich

him the

throne, even before

now necessary to attend.
Jcliau, now far advanced in years, had

it

became vacant.

To

this

it is

four sons,

Dara Sheko, Shuja,

fciiuiiv.

They were

Aurungzebe, and Murad.
the period to which
forty-two, forty,

and

we now

refer,

all

of

full,

the respective ages of the

where he enjoyed the

capital,

in relieving

him from the

full

in Gvijerat.

advantage of the

cares, exercised the general

They were

political

all fired

powers of government.
seen, in the Deccan,

with ambition, and disposed to take

Dara was open and generous,

character.

but so impetuous and hasty as to set at nought the dictates of prudence
liberal, particularly in his religious opinions, as to

orthodox Mahometans.

resi-

changes which might be occasioned by their father s

much in temper and

death, but diflfered

three were

confidence of his father, and

Shuja ruled as viceroy in Bengal, Aurungzebe, as has been

and Murad

first

In 1657,

Dara, recognized as heir apparent, was

thirty-eight.

dent in the

or rather mature age.

Shuja possessed

talents,

;

and

so

be obnoxious to the more

but rendered them

\aseless

by

giving himself up to pleasure, and acquiring the habits of a confirmed diiinkard.

Am'ungzebe was a perfect adept
imposing on friends and

way

of his interest

deterred
success.

;

foes.

in dissimulation,

His

and was equally

principles, if he

and when he had an end

successful in

had any, never stood in the

to accomplish, he

was not

to be

by any amount of crime which might be necessary in order to insui-e
The only thing in which he could be said to be sincere was his religion,

in which he carried fanaticism to

its

worst extremes, and persecuted with

the zeal which distinguished the earliest propagators of Mahometanism.

all

Murad,

the youngest son, bore a considerable resemblance to Sluija in tastes and habits,

but was duller in

intellect, and, if possible, still grosser in his pleasures.

By

the mother of these sons Shah Jehan had also two daughters, wdio, witliin the

REIGN OF SHAH JEHAN.

Chap. IV.]

harem, exercised considerable

of the

recesses

Begum, the

eldei',

was her

fatlier's favourite,

287
Padshah

inlkience.

political

a.d. lesr.

herself to the utmost to

and exerted

Roushanara, the younger, though not possessed,

further the interests of Dara.

either in person or intellect, of the accomplishments of her sister, surj)assed her

and thus proved a powerful coadjutor

as a skilful intriguer,

whom

to Aurungzebe, to

she was strongly attached.

Such was the position of Shah Jehan's family in 1657, wlien he was seized
with a severe
be able to

illness,

make

destmed apparently to prove

fiT

ii'i*°

Dara, that he might

fatal.

Preparations
contest

the succes-

the necessary preparations to insure the succession, endeavoured

to stop all tlie avenues of

become acc^uainted with

communication through wliich

his father's state

but the

;

fact

his brothers

was

might

of too public

and

important a nature to admit of concealment, and a very short time elapsed

were made thoroughly acquainted with

before they

Immediately assuming

act.

tlie title

of king, he assembled a

began to march in the direction of the
the regal

Shuja was the

it.

capital.

first to

body of troops and

Murad, in like manner, assumed

but instead of quitting his province, endeavoiired to provide the

title,

sinews of war by seizing the district treasuries and laying siege to Surat, where

he expected to find a
tation,

and

them near

still

at first rested satisfied with collecting his forces
his

northern frontier.

Dara and Shuja engaged

now

laid

to the throne

them

For

was appointed,

of his days at Mecca.

and encamping with

satisfaction of seeing

which only wasted their strength.

He

to place his hostility to his eldest brother

himself, if he

aside,

less precipi-

with his usual dissimulation, endeavoured to

by pretending

disguise his real object

on religious grounds.

While here he had the

in hostilities,

at last declared against Dara, but,

he had

Aurungzebe acted with

richer deposit.

and was

had ever entertained ambitious thoughts,

desii'ous, as

soon as an orthodox successor

and spend the remainder

to retire from the world

Murad was stupid enough

be imposed upon by this

to

siiallow pretence,

and at once leagued his arms with those of Ain-ungzebe, in the

belief that, in the

event of their success, he was to be rewarded with the imperial

crown.

Dara was

tiius

exposed to two formidable attacks

—the one from Shuja,

advancing from Bengal, and the other from Aurungzebe and Murad, advancing

tered

him near Benares, and gave him a

his steps to Bengal.

Jeswant Sing.
Oojein, in

who

Against Shuja he sent his son Soliman Sheko,

from the Deccan.

Against his

defeat which compelled

otlier brothers lie

The encounter took

place on

tlie

him

encoun-

to retrace

sent the Rajpoot rajah

banks of the

Malwah, and ended in Jeswant's complete discomfiture.

Sipra, near

The gallantry

Murad had mainly decided the victory and Aurungzebe, not satisfied with
complimenting him upon it, hypocritically humbled him.self before him as in
token of the homage which he felt due to his future sovereign.
of

;

While

his sons

were thus warring with each other

for the succes.sion to the Aurungzebe

crown. Shah Jehan himself, contrary to expectation, liad nearly recovered his
usual health.

Dai'a at once resigned his power.

A

very difierent spirit ani-

vktorious.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

288

mated

A.D. 1658.

tlie otlior hrotliers, wlio,

They

refused.

iuid,

wlien ordered to lay

in fact, advanced too far to

mand

to Dara,

who

tlieir

recede,

but allowed himself to be dissuaded, and

arms, positively

and nothing now

left

the supreme cfmi-

soon saw himself at the head of an arniy which seemed

He

sufficient to crush all his enemies.

by waiting

down

II.

Shall Jehan wfis disposed to take the

remained but a further appeal to arms.
field in person,

[B^jok

for the arrival of

miglit liave added greatly to its strength

a large reinforcement, which his son Soliman was

bringing from Benares; but his natural impetuosity urged him forward, and,
contrary to the better advice of Shah Jehan, he risked an engagement,
all

was

The

lost.

battle

was fought

beginning of June, 1658.

both sides

Many

at Samaghar, one

which

march from Agra,

in the

individual acts of heroism were performed on

and victory hung suspended

;

Vjy

till

sequence of his elephant having become
soldiers that a general panic ensued.

the disappearance of Dara, in con-

unmanageable, so discouraged his

In the evening, when he reached Agi'a

army had perished
or been dispersed. Three days after, Aurungzebe and Murad made their appearance, and took immediate possession of the capital.
Dara was not in it, for,

in his flight, he could only muster 2000 men, all the rest of his

oppressed with grief and shame, he had hastily quitted for Delhi, but Shah

Jehan was

still

in his palace.

Aiu'ungzebe's coursc was already determined, but policy did not allow him

Annmgzebe

all at

his father,

oucc to tlirow off the mask, and he spent some days in sending humble

messages to his father, justifying his proceedings on the plea of necessity, and

endeavouring to obtain the sanction of them.
his father in

tions,

object, probably,

nominal possession of the throne, while he retained

of government in his
over.

His

own

hand.

Shah Jehan, however, was not

was

all

to leave

the powers

to be thus

won

Dara's misfortunes only gave him a stronger hold than ever on his affec-

and he refused to concur in any proposal

for disinheriting him.

Auinmg-

made aware that he could only possess the crovra as an usiu^er, did
not hesitate to make his father a prisoner and assiune the reins of government.
Murad, who had been dreaming; of the crown, soon found that he was onlv his
brother's dupe.
As soon as Aurungzebe had no further use for him, he invited
him to supper and, after feasting him till he was in a state of helpless intoxication, stripped him of his arms and placed him in confinement.
Shah Jehan was allowed to remain in his palace, where he continued to live
for SBvcu ycars.
Much outward respect was shovm him, but a strict watch was
kept on his movements, and he was entirely excluded from all share in the
government. The energy and talent which he had displayed dming the gi*eater
part of his reign appear to have entirely forsaken him, and he made no effoi-t
to regain his freedom.
It is remarkable that no attempt at rescue was made
zebe, thus

;

Character
jeiian's
'^*'^"

from without.
,

His reign had been long and prosperous, and his subjects had

enjoyed a degree of happiness to which they had previously been strangers.

His wars, carried on

for the

most

])art

on the outskirts of his dominions, had

REIGN OF SHAH JEHAN.

Chap. IV.]

brought few calamities on his

own

had been singularly moderate and

subjects, while his internal administration

equitable.

It

such a reign would terminate peacefully, or at

allowed to extinguish

and

it

by

lea.st

that no usurper would be

The

in every quarter.

fact

now ready

to submit to

any yoke

was otherwise,

indifferent to a

whicii

might be

In the interval between his dethronement and his death.

imposed on them.

Shah Jehan was almost

His

forgotten.

him, and prove him to have been,

who

ever held rule in India.

if

})ublic

not the

At times

works, however,

wi.sest,

still

speak for

the most magniticent prince

his expenditure

was not only

lavish but

childi.sh, fis in

the instance of the celebrated peacock throne, in the con.stniction

of which he

said to have spent above £6,000,000 sterling, chiefly in

is

and precious
better

displayed

the

in

Delhi,

and

the

new
noble

with wliich

structures

adorned

city

was

which he built at

city

he

diamonds

A

stones.

.splendour

both that

and Agra.

In the

latter stands conspicuous

above

all

Mahal,

the

of

his

queen Mumtaz

Mahal,

situated in the

the

Taje

mausoleum

midst of extensive gardens,

on a terrace over-

hanging the Jumna, and

composed

of

a

lofty

marble structure, richly
decorated with mosaicf?,

and so chaste

in desigjn,

and imposing

in effect,

as not to be surpassed
in these respects

Interior of Taje

Mahal at Agra.'— Oriental

Drawing, East India House.

by any

edifice in the world.

Notwithstanding his lavish expenditure, the revenues,

"The light to the central apartment is admitted
only through double screens of white marble trelliswork, of the most exquisite design; one on the outer,

otherwise would have been intolerable. A s it is, no
words can express the chastened beauty uf that central

and one on the inner face of the walls. In our climate
this would produce nearly complete darkness; but in
India, and in a building wholly composed of white
marble, this was required to temper the glare that

that reaches

'

Vol.

I.

iocs.

might have been sui)posed that

and may be regarded as a proof that the people had become
change of masters, and were

ad.

violence, without exciting universal indignation,

up hosts of adversaries

stirring

289

chamber seen

gloom of the subdued liglit
through the distant and half-closed
openings that surround it."— Fergu.sson's Hand-Book
" Tavernier saw this building begun
of Architecture.
and finished, and tells us it occupied 20,000 men for
in the soft

it

87

shahjehani
works,

290
AD.

i65».

llISTOItV

without being

oppre.s,sive,

OF INDIA.

[Book

were so ably and economically managed during

II.

SI. ah

Jehan's reign, that in addition to vast accumulations of plate and jewellery,

he

left

I

about

to the value of

twenty

millioas

sterling in coiiL

Aurungzebe was no
sooner

throne than

he

make

voured to

by

ceeded

Adventures

the Taje Mahal.' — Oriental Drawing,

army with

raising an

the

money obtained

E.

I.

Hou^e.

endea-

it

secure

Dara, after a short

halt at Delhi,

in

tlie

cni.shing his competi-

tors.

Tomb of Shah Jehan

on

seated

to

had proand

Lahore,

was busily employed

there from the royal treasury,

in

when

of Diira.

he leai-ned that Aurungzebe was already at his

Lahore at the head of 4000 men, and made

to encounter him, he quitted

way

Scinde by

of Mooltan.

Conscious of his inability

heels.

He was

for

saved from pursuit by the advance of his

brother Shuja from Bengal, at the head of a force so formidable that Aurungzebe

thought his presence was immediately required.
Dellai,

and, having

made the

these

accordingly returned to

necessary preparations, marched south-east past

The armies met

Etawah, in the direction of Allahabad.

midway between

He

at Cajwah, about

Shuja held a strong position which he was not

cities.

disposed to quit, and several days elapsed before the decisive struggle took
place.

It

was commenced by Shuja, who, advancing

at siinrise

on the 6th

The

of January, 1659, proceeded amidst a furious cannonade to close action.

was manfully maintained till Aiirimgzebe, who had repeatedly been
imminent danger, succeeded in forcing the enemy's centre. Shuja was in

contest
in

conse(i[uence completely defeated,

elephants.

Closely pursued

Jumla, he continued his
His

with the

by Mahomed

flight,

loss of 1

1

-t

cannon and a niunber of

Sultan, Aurungzebe's son,

and never halted

till

he reached Bengal.

Dara meanwhile had arrived in Scinde, where he found

cii.sasters

and Mir

his

ranks so

much

an<l tragical
fate

thinned by desertion, that, to escape capture by a detachment which had been
following on his track, he had crossed the desert to Cutch.

here he

entered Gujerat, and

by the

influence of

After a short stay

Shah Nawaz Khan,

its

governor, had become master of the whole province, including the important

towns of Surat and Baroach.

His prospects thus brightening, he opened a

communication with the princes of the Deccan, and
twenty-two years.

Tlie

ings that appertain to

mausoleum and

it

all

the build-

cost 3,17,48026 (three crore,

seventeen lacks, forty-eight thousand and twenty-si.x
rupees, or £3,174,802 sterling."

and

Recollections hy

an Indian

— Sleenian's Rambles

Official.

also

with Jeswant Sing,

'
On the queen's tombstone are passages from the
Koran, amidst -wreaths of flowers; on her husband's,
onlj- his name and date of death, and mosaic of flowers.
The tombs are witliiu a screen of trellis-work of white
marble, a chef-d'oeuvre of elegance in Indian art.

REIGN OF AURUNGZEBE.

Chap. IV.]

291

In the hitter he lioped to find an important coadjutor, ad.

the Rajah of Joodpoor.

but wa.s di.sappointed, as the rajah, alter Lalancing interests, was satisfied

lie

Dara, now at the
would gain more by giving
o
o
o his adhesion to Aurungzebe.
head of an army of 20,000 men, advanced into Ajmeer, and took uj) a com./

manding

He had

position.

not occupied

long before Aurungzebe

it

After a cannonade of three days a general assault took

appearance.

made

ics'j.

OarasdiBHstere aiid

tnigkai

his

and

])lace,

Dara saw himself once more defeated and compelled to become a fugitive. A
week of incessant toil and hardship brought him to the neighbourhood of

Ahmedabad

;

but

was

it

to

meet a

bitter disap[)ointment, for the gates

His only resource was a new

shut against him.

to pursue his

march

ruler,

Kandahar.

to

tory of Jun, on the east frontiers

who

Cutch, where he

flight to

His altered circiunstances produced

arrived with a mere handful of adherents.

a corresponding change in the

were

received

him

so coldly that he resolved

The route brought him to the small terriThe chief, who was under great
of Scinde.

him with much ap])arent kindness, but immegross treachery, and accomplished it by delivering

obligations to Dara, received

an act of

diately meditated

him up

to his enemies.

celebrated

it

by

Aurungzebe was

so delighted with the

news that he

Both Dara and a son Sepehr, who might

])ublic rejoicings.

have proved etpially dangerous, were his prisoners.

The son was

confined in the strong castle of Gwalior

was reserved

The form of a

barbarous treatment.

trial

;

the father

was given him

;

foi'thwith
for

more

but the charge was

not for any offence against the state, but for apostasy from Mahomet{\nism.

Absurd and monstrous
a court which held

show

liypocritical

it

as the charge was,

no

difficulty

was found

in constituting

proven, and pronounced sentence of death.

of reluctance,

After

a

Am'ungzebe confirmed the iniquitous sentence,

and Dara was executed.

During these transactions the war with Shuja was vigorouslv
prosecuted by
"
iVlir

Jumla,

who drove lum from

iT«»
the different

strong positions in which he had

posted himself, and com]ielled him, after a series of struggles, to seek an asylum
in

The

Aiacan.

One account

is

particulars of his subsequent history are not well

known.

that the ruler of the country, doubtless at the instigation of

Aurungzebe, was preparing to detain him as a prisoner, and that Shuja, made

aware of
this

his danger,

account

is

true,

endeavoured to avert

it

he probably

in

])erishe(l

by heading an

Aracan government; but the only thing certain

member

insuiTCction.

I

the attempt to overthrow the
i.s,

that neither Shuja nor any

was afterwards heard of

The only immediate descendants
of Shah Jehan who could now give Aurungzebe any alarm were Murad and liis
son, and Soliman Slieko and Sepehr Sheko, the two sons of Dara.
They were
of his family

already within his power, being
]>ut

to death for a

of Gujerat.
tleclared to

k

The

all

murder alleged

Murad was
him when Viceroy

prisoners in the fort of Gwalior.

to

have been committed

others quickly disappeared

b^-

by deaths which Aurungzebe

be natural, but which were universally believed to have been violent.

si'"j'>8

ineftectual

stmggie.

292
A.D.

—

JIISTOKY OF INDIA

The

supremacy was now firmly established

Auniii^'zelje'.s

In the Deccan, on the contrary, a

(loostan.

[Book

every part

in

new power had

about to commence, was destined not to tenninate

struggle,

Mahrattas

Mogul empire

in ruins.

tract of the Deccan,

A

had

till it

liin-

of"

aj^peared

II.

and a

;

laid the

race of native Hindoo.s, called Mahrattas, occujjied a

bounded on the noith by the mountain range which forms

Nerbudda and the Taptee, by the sea
and in other directioiLS by a line drawn

the water-shed between the basins of the

on the west, by the Wurda on the
obliquely from the vicinity of

east,

Goa through Beder

of the Concan,

Tlieir

this

narrow i-ugged

strip

known by

the

name

but sloping gradually towards the interior, so as to form a
This country, studded over with natural fortresses, and

table land.

lofty

Within

Chandah.

Western Ghauts, descending

tract the great physical feature is the range of the

precipitously to the sea through the

to

rendered almost inaccessible by forests and mountain.s, was admirably adapted

country.

Such the Mahrattas were, and had

abode of a nation of marauders.

to be the

been from time immemorial.

Strong, active,

and

daring, full of craft

of honour, they were ever on the alert to pursue their

own

and void

interest,

while

utterly regardless of the means.

Descending suddenly into the plains they

spread devastation on every

and before they could be overtaken were

side,

The

hastening back laden with booty to their mountain fastnesses.

name was thus widely

their

spread

;

and many of

teiTor of

their neighbours piirchased

The

exemption from their ravages by annual payments.

three

sovereigns of Alimednuggur, Bejapoor, and Golconda, being

by

Mahometan

their position

brought into frequent communication with the Mahrattas, naturally endea-

voured to turn their military qualities to good account by employing them as

In

soldiers.
offices

way not a few of them acquired distinction, and rose to
MuUik Amber, the celebrated prime minister and -s-irtual sove-

this

of trust.

reign of Ahmednuggur, in particular,
so well satisfied

made

great use of their

with them that not a few of his most distinguished

One

were Mahrattas.

of these, called

Jadu Rao, had attained

to a

named Malojee
only a few mounted retainers,

The

command

he brought into the

another Mahratta,

Bosla.

field

could not have been a person of

;

officers

Subordinate to him, and under his immediate protection, was

of 10,000 men.

sequence

and was

ser\'ices,

latter, as

much

but he was one of those bold and dexterous adventurers on

con-

whom

no opportunity of advancing his fortune was ever tlirown away.
Malojee, accompanied

attending a great Hindoo
giving
years
His
marriage

"

way
old,

What

his son Shahjee,

festival,

when Jadu,

a boy of five years of age, was
at

to the hilarity of the occasion, took

and placing her and Shahjee on

a fine couple

words passed

his lips

that Jadu's daughter
descent,

by

!

They ought

to be

whose house
up

it

was

his daughter, a

celebrated,

gii'l

of tliree

his knees, laughingly exclaimed,

man and

wife

!

"

No

sooner had the

than Malojee started up, and took the company to witness

was

affianced to his son.

was indignant that one

whom

Jadu,

who

boasted of a Rajpoot

he probably regarded as a mere under-

THE MAHRATTAS.

Chap. IV.]

293

ling should thus presume to place himself on a footing of equality with him,

and attempt

to

a

d. icsr

take advantage of a jocular expression for the purpose of

A quan-el

claiming affiance with his family.

ensued

;

but Malojee continued to

had been made, and ultimately made good

insist that the affiance

his point

by

obtaining advancement which placed him on an equality with Jadu, and thus

obviated the main objection to the marriage.

Shahjee, thus become the son-in-

law of Jadu, took a prominent part in the war which extinguished the indepen-

Mahometan kingdom

dence, or ratlier closed the existence of the

Ahmed-

of

Though on this occasion he belonged not to the winning but the losing
party, he managed so well for him.self as to become master of all tlie western
portion of that kingdom between its capital and the sea.
Nominally this teiritory now belonged to the King of Bejapoor, to whose share it fell when the
nuggur.

Moguls made a partition of the kingdom of Ahmednuggur.

was now in the King of Bejapoor's

service

to the south, greatly distinguished himself

of Mysore.

within

By

He was

its limits

and being sent on an expedition

;

by making conquests

in the territory

rewarded for this service with a large jaghire, including

the important towns of Sera

his marriage

Shahjee, therefore,

and Bangalore.

with Jadu's daughter, Shahjee had several

sons.

The

eldest

Sevajee.

accompanied him to Mysore, and died there; the second, born in May, 1627,

and named Sevajee, had been

left at

Poonah with a Brahmin, Dadajee Condu,

who, during Shahjee's absence, managed his Bejapoor jaghire.

which young Sevajee here received determined
at once a zealous Hindoo,
associates

his futui'e character.

and an expert and

were the horsemen retained in

his father's service,

Under

of being in league with
ents,

and perceived how

carelessly

parties.

or the

and was suspected

Having acquired a body

some of the

hill-forts

of adher-

belonging to Bejapoor

were guarded, he made himself master of one of considerable strength,
Torna, situated

among

moun-

the influence of such

off the authority of Dadajee,

marauding

He became

His principal

fearless warrior.

taineers inhabitinjj the neighbourinfj Ghauts.

companionship he soon shook

The training

the Ghauts, twenty miles south-west of Poonah.

called
It liad

previously been under the charge of the revenue officer of the district; and

when the government of Bejapoor complained, he succeeded by artifice and
money in obtaining a confirmation of his seizure. Shortly after, when, by the
erection of a new place of strength in the vicinity, a new alarm liad been excited, the government made their complaint to Shahjee, who immediately ordered his son to desist from encroachment.

Instead of complying, he threw off

and not only with-

the paternal authority, as he liad done that of his guardian,

held the revenue
witliin

now

it.

felt

of his father's jaghire, but seized upon

two

forts situated

Hitherto he had feigned submission to the King of Bejapoor, but he
strong enough to throw

oflf

the mask.

was the plunder of a convoy of royal treasure

His

fii-st

act of open hostility He

in the Concan.

Feeling himself

thus committed, he continued his aggi-essions, and ere long was in possession of

'*

conquere

°"'^"

294
A.D

1055.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

[Book XL

New

successes attended his arms,

five of the principal hill-forts in the Ghauts.

and the whole of the Nortliern Concan

The King

Other con-

fell

into

hi.s

hands.

of Bejapoor naturally suspected that Sevajee's conduct

was con-

quests of
Sevajee.

nived at by his father, and therefore endeavoured to strike at the root of the

by making Sliahjee prisoner. He asserted his innocence, but was notwithstanding thrown into a dungeon, and told that if his son did not submit witiiin
This threat, savage as it was,
a certain time, the entrance would be built up.
evil

would probably have been executed, had not Sevajee, who had hitherto kept on
friendly terms with

Shah Jehan, obtained

his interposition in his fatlier s behalf

Havinf; no lonj^er

any

fears

for

his

father, Sevajee

gave

scope

full

ambition

;

to

his

and not

being restrained by

any

scruples

honour and

of

justice,

procured theas.sassination of a Hindoo

and

rajah

upon

seized

his ten-itoiy,

which comprehended the whole of the
hilly country south

of
Sevajee on Horseback.

Poonah from the

Ghauts to the Up-

— Laugles,

Monumens

Aiiciens et

Modemt-s de I'Hindoustan.

per Kistna.
Aiirungzebe
arrives '°
tiie

Deccan.

he was thus extending
^

,

1655.

the

.

This cvcut,

first

authority,

liis

wliicli

Aurungzebe arrived in the Deccan
^

.

.

might have seemed

.

fatal to Sevajee s projects,

was

in

made subservient to them, as he had previously been
a commander of 5000 horse in the Mog\il service and on pre;

senting a submissive address to Aurungzebe was confirmed in
yet,

in

.

,

instance rather

recognized as

As

While

all his acquisitions.

however, he was by no means satisfied; and on seeing Aurungzebe

occupied in carrying on war with the King of Golconda, could not resist the

opportunity of tm-ning his absence to account.

he made an im'oad on the Mogul
expectations
ful

;

campaign,

territories.

For the

His success

and when Aurungzebe suddenly returned
it

required

weight of his vengeance.

all

first

time, therefore,

fell far

short of his

after a rapid

and

success-

Sevajee's address to save himself from the full

Very opportunely

for him.

Shah Jehan was

seized with

the sudden illness already mentioned, and Aurungzebe hastened off to prosecute
his

own ambitious

his attacks

schemes.

Sevajee thus relieved from apprehension, renewed

on Bejapoor, the throne of which was

now

occupied by a minor.

REIGN OF AURUNGZEBE.

Chap. IV.]

295

The Regent of Bejapoor, fully alive to the extent of the danger, raised a large
army, and gave the command of it to a Mahometan noble of the name of Afzul
Tlie selection was unwise, for Afzul Khan, full of Mussulman pride,
Kiian.
despised his enemy, and considered him.self sure of victory.

Sevajee, well aware

of the kind of opponent he had to deal with, took his measures accordingly,

a.d.

106-2.

sevajee

the Kenorai
"f Hejui„"or.

Pretending to be overawed by the very terror of his name, he sent a messenger
to say that he

had given up

idea of resistance, and

all

was only anxious

After some preliminaries,

to

was agreed that
Sevajee meanwhile showed great alarm
a personal interview should take place.
lest some undue advantage should be taken of him, and as the most effectual
arrange the terms of submission.

means of dissipating

spot with only a single attendant.
air,

Khan

his fears, induced Afzul

dressed in a cotton tunic.

to

it

meet him at a secluded

Sevajee advanced with a timid, hesitating

He was

apparently unarmed, but wore beneath

the tunic a coat of mail, together with a dagger concealed in

within his clenched
sharp hooks of

Khan,

Afzul

seized

steel,

known

thrown

humbly

Sevajee

com-

•^

,>^ \^
^^y^^'^i^^^^
"^

,^^^

which had shared in

stab-

'

W AONUCK,

„
OR TlOER 3
.

by Mahrattas lying

by the sword or sought safety in

by the name of "tiger's claws."
pletely

in

his

guard while

was

in a

off*

forgiveness,

*"*""

his over-

all sides

while

attached to his fingers, were

.,,

implored

by the claws and

time attacked on

and

fist,

its sleeve,

bed to the

heart.

confidence,

was

moment

His army,
•'

at the

ambuscade, and either perished

This atrocity was perpetrated in

flight.

same

1

659,

Shah Jehan had been dethroned; and owing to the condition
both of the Mogul empire, where a civil war of succession was raging, and of

the year after

kingdom of Bejapoor, which was threatened with dissolution from external
violence and internal dissension, was allowed to escape with impunity.
In
1662, when peace was concluded, Sevajee remained in possession of territory
the

stretching 250 miles along the coast between
tlie

Goa and Bombay,

whole of the Concan between these points, and

miles above the Ghauts, from

Within

tliis

territory,

of the surface, he

Aurungzebe
Deccan on

Poonah

also

so as to include

extending about 150

Meeruj near the banks of the Kistna.

to

notwithstanding the ruggedness and general

was able

to maintain an

army

after dethroning his father

his maternal uncle Shaista

residence at Aurungabad.

of 7000 horse and 50,000 foot.

had confen-ed the

Khan, who arrived

Hostilities

infertility

Shaista

Khan

in 1662.

and fixed

his

had commenced between the Mogids and

in consequence ]nit his forces in motion, and, dri\ing

the Mahrattas before him, gained possession of Poonah.

Sevajee had retired to

the hill-fort of Sin<xurh, about twelve miles to the south, and there lav watchinji
This weapon is said by Sir R. Meyrick to have
been invented by Sevajee. The instrument is concealed in the hand, the first and fourth fingers being
'

%

passed through the rings at the ends.
represented in our engraving is iu the

East India Company.

.M..guia .-md

Mahrattas.

viceroj'alty of the

Mahrattas, and Sevajee had carried his ravages into the very heart of the Mogul
province.

iiaituitie*

The specimen

museum

of the

;

296
AD.

1664.

HISTORY OF INDIA.
Being informed by spies of

his opportunity.

Khan had

learned that Shaista
jee's early

all

[Book

enemy's movements, he

hi.s

takf;n uj) his quarters in the house

days had been spent.

II.

Well aware of the Mahrattas'

where Sevathe Mogul

craft,

commander had taken every precaution against surj^rise and wa« living in su{'posed security, when a band of armed men, with Sevajee at their head, ru.shed
into his bed-chamber.
He escaped by leaping from a window, but not before
he had lost two of his fingers by a blow from a sword. The Mahratta part}had gained admission into the town by joining a marriage procession, and had
;

Shaista

Khan

sur

prised.

afterwards availed themselves of their thorough knowledge of the locality to
penetrate into the house
his attendants,

were cut

by a back

entrance.

to pieces

and

;

Shaista Khan's son, and mo.st of

any

in the confusion, before

steps could

be taken, Sevajee was again hastening back in triumph to his mountain

Though the

ness.

exploit failed in its

of important results.

mam

oVject, it

was

fast-

indirectly the cau.se

Shaista Khan, unwilling to admit that he had been com-

pletely outwitted, threw the blame on the rajah, Jeswant Sing; not he.sitating to

accuse

him

a strong reinforcement.

Mogul army were
Shaista

Khan

to the

was favourable

was now

crippled that

who

to Sevajee,

Aurungzebe interposed

Moazzim, assisted by the

did not

fail

to turn

and was not heard of before he made
It possessed

Dutch

oflf

Not long

it

after this

The change

rajah.

to account.

After an

Amungabad

at the head of 4000 horse,

his appearance at Surat, in the beginning

no means of defence, and, with the exception of

which

factories,

effectually resisted the attacks

upon them, was plundered without opposition diuing
Sevajee

and, removing

Having, by a number of feigned move-

ments, deceived the enemy, he suddenly darted

the English and

;

on Singurh, the Mogul araiy had returned to

Sevajee's turn to retaliate.

of January, 166-i.

him with

government of Bengal, devolved the command of the

his son. Prince

ineffectual attempt

assist

In the quarrel which ensued, the operations of the

much

so

Mahratta war on

It

had only recently arrived to

of treachery, though he

achievement Sevajee

made

six days.

lost his father, Shahjee,

who, at a

acquires

a

fleet.

very advanced age, was killed by a
siderable addition to his territories

coin

money

in his

own name.

;

He

fall in

hunting.

He

thus acquired a con-

and, assuming the title of rajah, began to
also

turned his attention to naval

affairs

manned with 4000 men, took
many Mogul ships, made descents upon the coast, and carried off much plunder
from the ports and maritime tracts belonging to the King of Bejapoor. AU
The rajah, Jei
these aggressions could not be permitted to pass unavenged.
Sing, who enjoyed as much of the confidence of Am-ungzebe as that emperor's
suspicious temper allowed him to give to any one, arrived in the Deccan at the
head of a large army. Sevajee made little resistance in the open field, and,
though his forts of Singurh and Poorundliur when besieged made an effectual
and collecting a

resistance,

became

fleet of

so

eighty-seven vessels,

desponding of success

terms, he at once offered to

make

that,

on being assured of favourable

his submission.

It is difficult to penetrate

REIGN OF AURUNGZEBE.

Chap. IV.]
his motives, l)ut his

conduct on

which he had been accustomed
Jei

much from

occasion certainly differs

which were

offered.

Of

rajah's

camp,

profes.sions of fidelity, readily accepted the

terms

all

the territory depending on

his other possessions

all

Mogul emperor.

a.d. i6M.

thirty-two forts which he possessed, he unconditionally

surrendered twenty, with

twelve and

that

Without any better security than

to pursue.

Sings promise, he arrived with only a few attendants in the

and then making- the humblest

the

tliis

297

In return for

them

the remaining

;

sevajee

he was contented to hold as a jaghire from

»ubmis«ion

more

^i^"""'*^

all

these sacrifices, he received nothing

than the rank of a commander of 5000

men

in the

Mogul

service, for his son,

Sambajee, a boy of five years of age, and a kind of percentage on the revenues
of
its

The

of Bejapoor.

tiie different districts

latter grant

indefiniteness, as it afterwards furnished the

making many unfounded

On

claims.

was valuable only

for

Mahrattas with a pretext for

the com])letion of this arrangement, Sevajee

army with 2000 horse and 8000 infantry, in an invasion of
Bejapoor.
The deference paid to him by Jei Sing, and two letters from Aurungzebe complimenting him on his services, made such an impression upon him, that
he set out with his son Sambajee on a visit to Delhi. His reception was mortifying in the extreme.
On approaching the capital, he was met only by an oflScer
joined the Mogul

of inferior rank,
place

and on entering the

among commanders

presence,

zebe intended by this treatment

Mahratta
burned

spirit

was thus

is

fell

to be tamed, he

lulled suspicion

He had
by asking

lumoticed to take his
feelings of

If he thought that the

was greatly mistaken.
it,

began with

all his

Sevajee only
usual craft to

brought an escort of 500 horse and 1000
leave to send

He

shame

What Aurung-

do^vn in a swoon.

not very obvious.

for revenge, and, preparatory to

plan an escape.

left

Overpowered by

of the third rank.

and indignation, he slunk behind, and

was

visits Delhi,

foot,

and

them home, on the ground that the

by gaining
over some of the Hindoo physicians who attended him, found means of comclimate did not agree with them.

next feigned sickness

and provisions

and,

Meanwhile he was constantlv making

municating with his friends without.
presents of sweetmeats

;

to fakirs

and other

devotees.

These were

conveyed in large baskets and hampers, which passed so frequently, that the
guards set over him ceased to inspect them.
easy.

One evening Sevajee was

is mortified

recei.tion
''''

gj",,,^'

Escape thus became comparatively

carried out in one of these hampers,

and

his

son in another, and as he had taken the precaution to leave a servant in his bed

him, some time elap.sed before the escape was discovered.

to counterfeit
strict search

was made

pass to his

own country were

in every quarter,

and

carefully

months of surprising adventures, he made
in the disguise of a
It

was not

Mogiils;

and

Hindoo

Deccan, he once more
Vol.

I.

the avenues

watched

;

by

whicli ho

might

but at length, after nine

his a]ipearance

among

his

own

people

religious mendicant.

Sevajee's policy to

therefore,

all

A

come at once

to a final nipture ^vith

the ue makes

availing himself of a change of commandei"s in the

made

his j^eace

through the mediation of Jeswant Sing,
38

siuons

HISTORY OF INDIA.

298
A.D. 1672.

obtained a formal recognition of

covery of a large portion of

He was

hire in Berar.

title

liis

of

[Book

rajali,

and, in addition U) the re-

new

old territory', obtained the grant of a

liis

II.

jag-

thas at liberty to turn his arms against Bejapoor and

Golconda, both of which, unwilling to risk a contest, submitted to the humilia-

An

tion of paying tribute.
it

to

interval of tranquillity followed,

good account, by introducing

izing,

with much

and

skill

many

success,

important internal

and Sevajee turned
and organ-

reform.s,

a regular form both of military and

civil

government.
Gameofcraft
between
Auruiigzebe
evajee.

The new arrangement made between Sevajee and the Moguls was not sinccrc ou either side.
Aurangzebe only pretended friendship that he might once
^^^^^ obtain possessiou of Sevajee's person, and thus save the necessity of the

war which must be carried on, in order to subdue him by force of
arms.
A game of craft was accordingly played for some time, but so little to
Aurungzebe's advantage, that he at last threw off the mask and declared open
protracted

Sevajee, so far from declining the contest, took the first active step

hostilities.

by attacking and re-capturing
with the

again plimdering
deish,

annexed

territories

where he

were

to them,

also recovered

he retired along the

Sxirat,

Other

his hill -fort of Singvu-h.

bank

left

and, in

;

and which amoxmted

for

to

no

1

670, after

of the Taptee into Can-

set the example, for the first time, of levying chout

permanent black-mail,

together

forts,

—a kind of

which the Mahrattas afterwards became notorious,
less

than one-fourth of the annual revenue.

and odious as the exaction was, many
which

in return for the exemption

it

districts readily

Hea\'y

submitted to pay

it,

gave them from the other forms of Mah-

ratta plunder.

Sevajec's rapid successes were greatly favoured

sevajees

by Aurungzebe's

suspicious

success.

temper and persecuting bigotry.

own

he had treated his

father,

command, without sharing
neutralize

on

it

Ever afraid that

might

treat liim as

he never intrusted them with any important

with some other

any treasonable attempts.

this principle,

his sons

oflicer

who might

be able to

His war in the Deccan was carried on

and hence Prince Moazzim was not only crippled in

his

move-

ments, but obliged to divide his forces so as to expose them to the danger of

being beaten in

cious spirit, left

Mohabat Khan

In 1671, Aurungzebe, under the influence of this suspi-

detail.

Moazzim without

reinforcements, but at the same time sent

to act independent of him, with

circumstanced, neither

commander was

an army of 40,000 men.

able to cope with the

enemy

;

Thus

and, after

a few unimportant operations, the rainy season coming on. obliged both to
retire into

quarters.

When

the season for resuming operations commenced,

Mohabat Khan, whUe eagerly prosecuting a
to the attack of a large
Firfit

tiie

^eat
Mah-

rattos.

army which Sevajee had
In this

queucc, Completely defeated.

Mahrattas were for the
in the open

field.

siege, left

first

battle,

20,000 of his

raised.

men

They were,

which was fought

in

time successful against the Moguls in

As may be

exposed

in conse1

672, the

fair conflict

supposed, the moral influence of the \actory

was

REIGN OF AURUNGZEBE.

TV]

Chap.

than

far greater

being as

much

actual gain

tlie

and

loss

299

of the combatants, the conquerors ad.

elated as the vanc^uished were disheartened.

While Am'ungzebe was sustaining these

losses in the Deccan, his attention

insurrections

was occupied by disturbances
always

restless

Amin Khan,

for

some tune been kept

in check

and

general

by the

son and successor of the celebrated Mir Jumla;

but in 1670 thej' defeated him in a pitched

war

The Afghans,

in the north-western provinces.

and troublesome, had

governor of Cabool,

riority.

i674.

and resumed

battle,

their supe-

After various attempts to subdue them, Aurungzebe undertook the

in person, but with very indifferent success,

and

after the lapse of three

To save his honour, he had concluded a very imperfect arrangement.
His return was opportune; for a formidable insurrection,
headed by Hindoo devotees, who possessed great influence among their countrymen, broke out in the vicinity of the capital.
Its importance was at first

years returned to Delhi.

underrated, and the idea gaining ground that the rebels were rendered invincible

by enchantment, the Mogul troops could scarcely be brought

to face

them

Ultimately, however, Aurungzebe succeeded in inspiring his Mussulmans with

a fanaticism equal to that of the devotees, and the insurgents sustained a signal
defeat.

The

I'eligious

form which the insurrection assumed, gave new force to

Aurungzebe's bigotry, and he commenced a long course of persecution, with the
revival of the odious jezia, or capitation tax on Hindoos.

tent in consequence prevailed
so

;

and

The utmost

discon-

in the capital in particular, the streets

were

crowded with clamorous suppliants, that one day, finding himself obstructed

in proceeding to the mosque, he

mob with

his horses

and

made way

by trampling down the

for himself

elephants.

In the provinces the results of this persecuting
system were soon manifested,
r
to
^
The Rajpoots entered into a league for mutual defence, and the whole of the
'

_

western part of Rajpootana rose in arms.

and raged fm'iously

for

many

years

;

An

exterminating war commenced,

but as Aurungzebe's resources far exceeded

those of the insurgents, he gradually gained ground, captured the remarkable

Rajpoot fortress of Chittoor
abruptly from

its base,

had

—situated

on a

lofty isolated rock, which, rising

for additional security

—and

been scarped

all

round to the

by the

teiTor of his devastations compelled an

external submission from

continued to hate him in their hearts.

In the Deccan, every

many who
Hindoo now

considering his religion

depth of nearly 100 feet

personally interested in the triumph of the ^lahrattas.

continued to prosper.

at

stake,

felt

Sevajee, consequently,

In 1674, when a disputed succession in Bejapoor made

conquest easy, he extended his sway over the whole of the Southern Concan,

with the exception of a few isolated points
his

1674,

the

and beyond the Ghauts pushed

Having now

boundary much farther eastward.

sovereignty, he resolved to complete

;

it

in

due fonn

;

all

the reality of a great

and on the 6th of June,

was crowned with a pomp which imperfectly but ostentatiously imitated

Mogid ceremonial on

similar occasions.

From

this period, regarding himself

capture of
Cliittoor.

300

HISTORY OF LNDIA.

A^ix^74^ as the founder of a

name

new

[Book

il.

national dynasty, he lived in regal state, changed the

of his officers from Persian to Sanscrit, and became strictly ol>ser^'ant
of

the

all

These

of Hindooism.

rites

proceedings

must

have

given mortal offence to Aurun*^-

"^

zebe; and, accordingly, wlien the

Mahrattas

were

engaged

in

making concjuests from Bejapoor,

•iiy

the

Moguls seized the oppor-

tunity to

make an

Sevajee deemed

their territory.
it

incursion into

too unimportant to require his

presence,

and contented himself

with retaliating by sending de-

tachments which plundered Candeish

and Berar and proceeding
;

beyond the Xerbudda,'which had
never before been crossed by a

Mahratta
tations

force, carried his devas-

as

far

as

Baroach,

For some

Gujerat.

time

in
his

thoughts had been fixed on the
Tower of Victory,

Chittoor.'

— Ferg>;sson's lliuiioo Architecture.

south.
his

Sevajee's

There the jaghire which

father

acquired in

Mysore

was held by a younger brother under the nominal supremacy of Bejapoor.

expedition
into the

It properly

formed part of Sevajee's patrimony, and he determined

Mysore.

either in virtue of his legal claim or

it

was too great

to allow

him

by compulsion.

to set out for

it

The

to obtain

distance, however,

without taking precautions.

The

King of Golconda partly intervened, and in order not to leave
his rear exposed it was necessary to come to an understanding with him.
This
was not difficult, as they agreed in regarding the King of Bejapoor and the
Mogul emperor as common enemies.
After making overtures, which were
favourably received, Sevajee set out at the head of 30,000 horse and 40,000 foot.
On the way he halted at Golconda, and concluded an alliance by which, in
territory of the

return for defence against a Mogul or Bejapoor invasion, a train of artillery,

and a subsidy in money, he agreed to share with the king
should conquer beyond his father's jaghire.

all

the territory he

Continuing his route, he crossed

the Toongabudra at Kurnool, proceeded south-east to Cuddapah, then passed
'

The Kheerut Khumb,

or

Tower

of Victory,

was

erected in 1439, to conimemorate a victory over the
coinbiued armies of Malwah and Gujerat by Rana

Khurubo, who reigned in Merwar, 1418-6S. It stands
on a terrace 42 ft. square it is 172 ft. iu height and
;

;

each of the four faces

is at the base 35 ft. in length.
There are nine stories, and on the summit is a cnjiola.
The whole is one mass of the most elaborate sculpture,
executed in white marble, and representing various
subjects of Hindoo mythology. Thornton,6'nz India.

—

;

Madras, and finally turning south-west, presented himself before the ad.

close to

strong fort of Gingee, belonging to Bejapoor.
force

;

but had previously made secure of

heavy part of

his

army

left beliind

it

He

could not have taken

by bribing

had taken

The

it

possession,

forcible

to his brother

alliance

lie

its

it

;

it

commander.

On

succeeded in capturing Vellore.

at his father's jaghire, his brother refused to resign

restored

301

AURUNGZEBE.

IIEIGN OF

Chap. TV.]

by-

Tlie

arriving

but ultimately, after he

entered into an arrangement by which he

on condition of receiving half the revenue.

with Golconda had been short-lived

;

for the king, shortly after

all

arranged with the Moguls, and consequently forfeited

departure,

claim to any share in the conquests which had been made.

inducement to abandon the alliance was an

inva.^ion of

rroceeaings
ill

_

Sevajee's

loso.

(iolcoiula

im.i Ueja-

Tlie inunediate

Golconda by the Moguls

under a celebrated leader of the name of Dilir Khan.

This

after his

chief,

attack on Golconda, entered the territory of Bejapoor, and, though his force

was

small, so dexterously availed himself of internal di.ssensions tliat

lie

was

In this extremity, the King of Bejapoor

able to lay siege to the capital itself

earnestly applied for assistance to Sevajee,

who was advancing

for this

purpose

wlien he was astonislied to learn that his son Sambajee had deserted to the

His father had imprisoned him in a

Moguls.

the youth having

made

his escape fled to Dilir,

Notwithstanding

arms.

this

with so much vigour that

was

As the

saved.

territory, all the

being ceded to

Amid
him

off

who

misconduct, and

received

him with open

domestic calamity, Sevajee continued his exertions

all

Dilir

Khan's

efforts

were

baftted,

and Bejapoor

price of this service, Sevajee obtained a large accession of

Bejapoor districts between the Toongabudiu and the Kistna

liiin.

these successes, Sevajee

all

hill-fort for gross

on the 5th of April, 1680.

was

In the

seized with

an

illness

coui-se of nature,

which carried

he might

had a considerable care6r to run, as he had only attained his

still

have
year

fifty-third

but he had lived long enough to produce great political changes, and become
the founder of an empire.

Originally

little

better than a marauding adventurer,

he displayed wonderful sagacity in profiting
itself;

and when brought face

East, not only

that presented

with the most powerful monarch of the

maintained an equal contest but often gained decided advantages.

When Aurungzebe
his

to face

by every opening

entered upon his ilahometan crusade, Sevajee met him on

own ground; and taking

a national ascendency.

Hiiidooism under his protection, gave

It is not to

it

once more

be denied, that in pursuing his objects he

was unscrupulous, and committed several atrocious crimes; but

it

may be

pleaded for liim in mitigation, that his enemies were in these respects

still

than himself, and that while their crimes were often the

mere

barism delighting in deeds of blood for their
cruel,

own

effect of

sake, he w<is never

worse
bar-

wantonly

and threw honoiir and humanity aside only when he imagined, of course

IeiToneouslv,

that sound policv required

it.

'^^'nth

of

;

302
A.u. 1080.

Sambajee

his

HISTORY
good

(jualities

and when by

finement, so

was

little

INDIA.

[Book

II.

While a mere youth he had become a com-

except courage.

plete debauchee;

OF'

misconduct he had subjected himself to con-

his

his patriotism that the first ase

He had

freedom was to desert to the enemy.

he made of his recovered

again returned to his country; but,

succeeds
Sevajee.

so far

from having recovered

of Panalla

when

As might

his father died.

some demur was made

stances,

good

his father s

graces,

liave

was a prisoner

in the fort

been expected in these circum-

to his accession,

though he was the eldest son

and a party was formed with the view of placing a second son, Rajah Ram, a
boy of ten years old, on the throne. This party endeavoured to conceal the

news of Sevajee's death

but Sambajee got immediate notice of

;

once acknowledged by the garrison of the

What had

fort.

it,

and was at

previously been a

was thus converted into a stronghold, where he remained secure till the
party opposed to him broke down and he entered Ryeghur, the capital, as
prison

;

undisputed sovereign.
His

His

vices.

jee's

first

acts justified the opposition

Ram

widow, the mother of

Sing,

which had been made

was put

to death.

Ram

Sing himself was

imprisoned, several Brahmins of his party were thrown into
of his enemies as belonged to other castes

chain.s,

The

were beheaded.

Seva-

to him.

and such

disaffection thas

produced was greatly increased by harsh treatment of his father's ministers,

name

while he gave himself up to the guidance of a worthless favourite of the
of Calusha,

The
of

hostilities in

first

The

tage.

who pandered

island of
Jinjeera.

which Sambajee engaged terminated to

his disadvan-

island of Jinjeera, situated on the west coast of India, a little south

Bombay, had long been possessed by the Hubsees

sinian origin,
His attempt
OH the

to his vices.

who

held

it

of Bejapoor

or Siddees, chiefs of

on the condition of maintaining a

Abys-

fleet for

the protection of commerce, and the safe conveyance of pilgrims to Mecca.
island

able

was strongly

when attacked

fortified

;

and the Siddees having the command at

to that power, as

it

would have made

it

were

The proximity of the

to ofier a very formidable resistance.

island to the Mahratta capital

sea,

The

a most desirable possession

contributes to form one of the best harbours on the Indian

coast;

and many were the attempts which Sevajee had made to become master

of

He was

it.

quarters,

always uns'uccessful

;

and while making large conquests in other

had the mortification of seeing

all

his

eflfbrts

baffled

whenever he

them against this little spot. Sambajee flattered himself that he would
be more fortunate, and no sooner felt firmly seated than he resolved to commence the siege of Jinjeera. One of his operations was to connect the island
with the mainland by a mound, and eflfect the capture by means similar to
directed

those which Alexander the Great used

proved no Alexander

;

and

when he took

after being compelled to raise the siege,

beyond measure on seeing the Siddees plundering
they had defeated his

the city of TjTe.

fleet at sea.

his villages,

He

was enraged

and learning that

In the midst of his wrath he would willingly

have fixed the blame on any but himself; and on the pretence that they had

REIGN OF AURUNGZEBE.

Chap. IV.]

made

assisted his enemies,

wai'

.'^03

on the Portuguese, and was with

difficulty

ad.

i687.

restrained from attacking the EnfjlLsh also.

A
full

more formidable enemy than

employment.

either immediatel}'^ appeared,

He had

and debauchery of

them by

his son.

increasing the land revenue spread general disaffection.

Aurungzebe, perfectly informed as to the change which had taken
no sooner

mui Mai.

vast treasures, but these were soon squandered, and the attempt

left

to replace

sovereign

which Sevajee had main-

strict discipline

tained rapidly disappeared through the idleness

warhetween
the Mogiil.s

,

new Mahratta

In the Deccan, the character of the

had soon become manifest; and the

and gave him

(fuelled the insuiTection of the

had

place,

Rajpoots than he began his march

southwards with the avowed purpose of making a

final

conquest of the Deccan.

His army was so numerous and well equip})ed that he never contemplated the
possibility of failure,

any

and therefore disdained

his first great fault; another,

ment of

which looks

by forming

This overweening confidence wa.s

with Bejapoor and Golconda.

alliance

to strengthen himself

like infatuation,

was the announce-

Even

his military talents

his determination rigidly to exact the jezia.

appear to have forsaken him, for he began the campaign without any properly

While making a long halt at Boorhanpoor, on the Taptee, he

concerted plan.

two

sent off

forts of the

large detachments

— one

imder Prince Azim to reduce some

Ghauts, and the other vmder Prince Moazzim to overrun the Concan

and penetrate

to the south of the

Azim was

Mahratta country.

though more by bribery than

cessful,

,.|...
arrived m the vicmity of Goa,
1%

if

it

,

was only

he had sustained a signal defeat.

y)erished

the

.

partially suc-

Moazzim threaded

pi'owess.

through the thickets of the Deccan without being opposed

than

hill-

;

/^i-i/>-

and

to find himself in a

Almost

all his

yet,

way
when he
his

worse condition

horses

and

cattle

PeriionB
position of

!••

the former,

had

under the hardships of the march and the want of forage, and even

men were beginning

was not

idle.

to suffer from scarcity.

Sambajee, in the meantime,

While he occupied the passes through the Ghauts,

were scouring the

sea,

and capturing the Mogul

ing to land provisions on the coasts.

With

vessels

his cruisers

which were endeavour-

the greatest difficulty

reached the country above the Ghauts with an

army almost

Moazzim

disorganized,

and

spent the rainy season near Meeruj, where his ranks were again dreadfully

thinned by an epidemic.

When

the

campaign was resumed, Aurungzebe advanced in person

to Aunmgzcbe

Ahmednuggur, while Azim and Moazzim were ordered to enter Bejapoor from
opposite directions.
Sambajee immediately saw his advantage, and, avssembling
a body of horse in the north of the Concan, placed himself suddenly in Aurungzebe's rear, sacked

and burned the

city of Boorhanpoor,

the Concan, leaving the whole country in a blaze.

was equally
to

I

and was again back

in

In Bejapoor the campaign

disastrous, neither of the roj-al princes possessing sufficient strength

make head

against the forces oppo.sed to

reinforcements, no advantage whatever

them

;

and, though both received

was gained, except the capture

of Sliola-

Deccan.

1

30
A.I)

1687

IIlSTOllY

To

poor.

OV INDIA.

this place Auruii<f/x'l)e ailvaiiced with his

nished Sambajee with the opportunity of

[Book

army.

'Jiiis

movement

making another plundering

TT

fur-

excursion,

during which he devastated part of Gujerat and plundered the city of Baroach.

About
was
Subjection

ami Beja'"""^

this

time he had entered into an alliance with the King of Golconda,

now

who

enemy of the Moguls, and his kingdom invaded
by Auruugzebe. The army, commanded by Prince Moazzim, made little progre.ss
till the commander-in-cliief, a fanatic Mussulman, who was ofiended at the influence possessed by a Brahmin, turned traitor and deserted, carrying the greater
part of his troops along with him. Resistance was now vain; and, while the king
therefore

regarded as an

took refuge in the fort of Golconda, Hyderabad, his

Having been reduced
him, the Moguls

left

to the necessity of accepting

him

effectually cri})j)led,

capital,

was seized and sacked.

whatever terms were offered

and next turned

their

arms

to

again.st

was immediately commenced by Aurungzebe
in person.
It was successful, and the Bejapoor monarchy ceased to exist.
The
splendour to which the capital had attained is still attested by its ruins. AurungBejapoor.

The

siege of the capital

zebe having thus succeeded probably beyond his expectations, appears to have*

repented of his leniency in having
of independence.

Little difficulty

the peace, and the whole territory

shut up in his
notorious,

fort,

shook

ofi'

left

the

King

of Golconda even a

shadow

was found in devi.sing a pretext for breaking
was speedily overrun. The king, Abul Hasan,

the effeminacy for which he had pre\'iously been

and defended himself

successfullv for seven months.

Treacherv

at

I

Tombs of Kings of Golconu.\.

last
Southern
limiti!

of

the Mogul

empire.

again did

its

— Grindlay's Scenery of Western India.

work, and the Golconda monarchy also was extinguished in

The Mogul empire now reached its utmost limits in the south. The
kingdoms of Ahmed nuggur, Bejapoor, and Golconda, were formally incorporated
with it, and even a considerable portion of the Mysore, and more especiall}' that
1687.

by military occupation.
Vencajee, whom Sevajee had left in possession of the jaghire, was obliged
to confine himself to Tanjore and any other Mahrattas who had made acquisitions in the same quarter, were di'iven from the open country and found no
part which had formed Shahjee's jaghire,

was held

;

safety

beyond the precincts of

their hill-forts.

at least

j

REIGN OF AURUNGZEBE.

Chap. IV.]

While Aurungzebe was thus pursuing

his victorious career,

Under the guidance

to be almost forgotten.

been pursuing a shameless

coui'se of

Sambajee seemed ad.

The

di'unkenness and debauchery.

to be

was

made on

the

forts,

when a

living in security at a favourite pleasure iiouse in the Concan,

when

Khan, the Mogul

is

at Kolapoor, acting

on a

wiiole

in consetjuence overrun,
still

which

i)]an

more

He was

important object was gained by the capture of Sambajee himself

officer

leso.

of the despicable Calusha, he had

of the open country belonging to the Mahrattas

and a systematic attempt was about

30

lokari-ab

snmbajee
sonei

ami

said to have

originated with Aurungzebe himself, set off with a small body of troops, crossed

the Ghauts, and, after a journey of nearly sixty

An alarm was

ance.

made

immediately spread, and escape was

Sambajee was in such a

was

mile.s,

it

still

state of intoxication as to be unable to

possible to use

him

sudden appear})racticable,

but

attempt

and

it,

Mogul head- quarters.

carried off in triumph, together with Calusha, to the

Aiu'ungzebe, deeming

his

as a tool, offered

him

his life

on

condition of turning Mussulman; but he rejected the offer with scorn, and spoke

barbarously
executed.

of

Mahometanism

deemed an

in such contemptuous terms that

an ordinary death was

punishment, and he was subjected to horrid barbarities

insufficient

bsfore being beheaded.

This execution, which took place in August, 1689, spread universal indigna-

among

tion

Sambajee's worthless character was overlooked,

the Mahrattas.

and the heroism with which he had courted death sooner than abjure

made him be regarded somewliat

The

in the light of a martyr.

his faith,

principal chiefs,

immediately on receiving tidings of his death, assembled at Ryeghur, and
al-knowledged his infant son, Saho, as rajah.

Rajah Ram, Sambajee's brother,

The task thus assigned him was extremely difficult,
A\n"ungzebe in person was at the head of an overwhelming force, and it seemed
as if the Mahrattas, more especiallv after the capital, and with it the yount;

was appointed

rajah himself,
selves

on the

regent.

fell

into his hand.s,

would have no alternative but

In this extremity Rajah

victor's mercy.

Ram

to

saho, his

ackuow^-f^^

'^^^-^

'^'U'l'i

Kam

throw them-

fled to the strong

fortress of Gingee, in the Caraatic, after putting the foists of the

Deccan in a

good state of defence, and ordering the troops to disperse in their villages and
wait for better times.
feited,

they
the

made no

still

first

The

The

scru])le of

leadino- chiefs, who.se lands

miuht have been

making a feigned submission

kept up an imdei-standing

^vith their

to the Mogul, while

countrymen, and watched for

opportunity of joining any rebellion which promised to be
of the Deccan being apparently

subjugatioTi

for-

succes.sful.

complete, Aunnigzebe

Rajah
Khan to reduce Gingee.
Ram. who had now begim to govern in his own name in conse([uence of the
captivity of his nejihew, prepai-ed for a vigorous defence
and Zulfikar Khan

despatched a general of the name of Zulfikar

;

had no sooner reconnoitred the place than he saw that success was hopeless
without strong reinforcement.s.

army
Vol.

into Tanjore
I.

While applying

and other southern co\mtries

_

for these,

he sent part of his

to levy contributions
39

They

Mabratta

HISTORY OF INDIA.

306
A.D?'i60i.

[Book

were tlms employed when they received an urgent

The Mahrattas, who

recall.

had never entirely desisted from their guerilla warfare,

II.

ha^l

become emboldened

by partial successes, and were mustering strong in various quarters. Scarcely
any district in the Deccan was secure from their incursions and whenever the
chout was withheld, nothing was to be seen but fire and devastation. Two Mah;

ratta leaders, Santajee Gorpara

By

themselves.

and Danajee Jadu, particularly
and attacking

intercepting convoy.s,

spread such general alarm that Aurungzebe

by
Siege of

felt

isolated detachments, they

the necessity of endeavouring,

decisive measures, to revive the spirit of his troops.

bcforc Gingee,

and unable

to

make any

Aurungzebe gave the chief command

ZuJfikar

Khan was

.still

progre.ss because the reinforcements

When

which he required had been withheld.

di.stinguished

they were at

to his son

last despatched,

Cambaksh, but at the same

time, adhering to his suspicious system, controlled his operations

by sending

along with him Assad Khan, Zulfikar Khan's father.
expected,

all parties

were

dissatisfied

with this

As might have been
arrangement.
Cambaksh com-

plained that, while he bore the responsibility, the authority which he possessed

was only nominal Assad Khan and

his son,

;

on the other hand, complained

equal reason that, while the burden of conducting the

fame which might be acquired was reserved
Its

war lay on them,

all

the

for another.

While the leaders were thus at variance, the combined operations

slow

%vith

nece.ssar}'

progress.

to insure success could not be adopted.

It

is

even said that Zulfikar Khan

carried his resentment so far as to enter into treasonable correspondence with

the enemy, and furnish
all

them with

the efforts of the besiegers.

was protracted

for yeajs.

above mentioned, were not

intelligence

No wonder

which enabled them

that, in

to frustrate

such circumstances, the siege

Meanwliile Santajee and Danajee, the two leaders
Their partizans were spread over the whole

idle.

country, and they could, on the shortest notice, gather thousands around their
standard.

Thus

feeling their strength, they resolved to

the relief of Gingee.

chosen horse.

It

The

make

force provided for this pui'pose

was commanded by

Santajee,

a gi'eat effort for

amounted

who came upon

suddenly that one of their divisions was completely surprised.

to 20,000

the besiegers so

An

attempt to

check his progress only led to a second overthrow, and the Moguls, cut

off

from their supplies and confined within their intrenchments, became, instead of
besiegers, besieged.

the circumstances,

They adopted the best course which remained to them
and made an arransrement which allowed them to retire

Wandivash, about twenty miles
Capture
of Gingee.

in

to

distant.

During
of the siege,
part
had remained in permanent
o the greater
a
o Aurungzebe
o
o
cantonments near Punderpoor, on the Beema, but on hearing of this disgi'ace,
advanced to Bejapoor.

While strongly condemning the conduct of

he inconsistently conferred the

who was

truly to blame.

sole

After a

command on

number

resumed, and again began to linger

till

his generals,

Zulfikar Khan, the only one

of desultory operations, the siege

was

Zulfikar Khan, aware that Aurungzebe's

REIGN OF AURUNGZEBE.

Chap. IV.]
suspicions were aroused,

Rajah

after allowing

saw the

Ram

necessity of no longer dallying.

to escape, he carried

soon made himself master of the

307
Accordingly,

ad.

noo.

on his operations in earnest, and

place.

This success was partly owing to internal dissensions which had broken out
*,
,

.

.

.

Mahmttji
disseiisiouB.

.

among the Mahrattas. Danajee and Santajee, after acting in concert, had given
way to feelings of mutual jealousy, and come to an open ruptm-e. Santajee, as
the stricter disciplinarian of the two,

was the

to maintain his position, found his party so

but

He was

flight.

less

popular

and, after an attempt

;

weakened that he had no

pursued, overtaken, and, notwithstanding

At

remorselessly put to death.

this

time Rajah

Ram had

all his services,

taken up his residence

where he had not only succeeded in again organizing the government,

in Sattarah,

but soon found himself so strong as to be able to take the
the largest

alternative

army which

the head of

Proceeding northward

the Mahrattas had ever raised.

he crossed the Godavery, levying the chout, and when

field at

it

was

devastation as far as Jaulna, forty miles east of Aurungabad.

refused, spreading

Here

hie progi'ess

was checked by a Mogul detachment, headed by his old opponent Zulfikar Khan,
who pressed closely upon his track, and inflicted upon him several defeats. These,
however, were soon repaired, and the Mahrattas only dispersed for the time, to

On

re-appear in another quarter as strong as ever.

Moguls, even
fruits of

it,

when they gained

the whole, therefore, the

a victory, were seldom permitted to reap the

and hence were gradually becoming more and more exhausted and

....

dispirited.

Aurungzebe
could not shut
®
though now

far

advanced in

which he made to improve

life,

his eyes to the difficulties of his position

:

and

Capture of
Sttttarali.

.

gave proof of indomitable energy in the

efforts

Quitting his cantonments on the Beema, he

it.

suddenly appeared before Sattarah, which was taken in April, 1700, after a
desperate defence, which protracted the siege for several months.
carried on. Rajah

Ram

had

died,

rattas

every

as,

in the coui'se of a

It is

success gained

was

not improbable that this event favoured

few years,

were wrested from them.

new

it

and been succeeded by a minor son under the

regency of his mother, Tara Bai.
the Moguls,

While

all

the principal forts of the

The war, however,

by Aurungzebe, seemed

still

Mah-

continued, and with

rather to enlarge

its sphere.

Under the Mahratta system of devastation, the whole Deccan was converted into
a desert, and districts which had previously escaped were thrown into consternation by their incursions.
Malwah was almost overrun, and no part of Gujerat
felt secure.
Even the forts, in the capture of wliich the Mogids had spent so
much time and treasure, and lost so many lives, cotdd not be retained, and
began to

fall,

one by one, into

tlie

hands of their former

To meet the dangers which thus environed him,
Aurungzebe possessed in the most vigorous period of his
sufficed,

and

this

energy was

now

of years he longed for repose, and

forsaking him.

possessoi-s.
all

the energy which

life

would scarcely have

Borne down by the weight

was not unwilling

to

have purchased

it

by

-Mmingcuitiea.

308
A.U. 1707.

HISTORY OF INDIA.
Rajah Salio at

setting the

percentage on the revenue of
;

that

all

Auniiig-

attempts at negotiation

was

disasters

became

He

escapes.

to

an annual

jniy

li.stened to his over-

demands

so exorbitant in their

and Aurungzelje, threatened on every

failed,

com})elled to retreat.

and naiTow personal

The Mahrattas

Deccan.

but, conscious of their advantages,

tures

side,

and even submitting

liherty,
tlie

[Book H.

reached

Here

Ahmednuggur

after a series of

gave way, and

his health

soon,

it

ZBbe's illness

and

deatli.

became apparent that
with the

last

imaginary

A

of his crimes seems to have

He

father.

by Prince Moazzim

suggestion

and

real

him with so much
that the same measure

filled

feared

had ceased to wear

it

"

That

and when a

;

permission to come to

to

into a wish to pluck the

was interpreted

he exclaimed,

face to face

be meted out to himself, and hence saw his worst enemies in his

to

sons.

future

None

dethronement of his

remoi'se as the

own

Thus brought

enemy, he cowered before him, and trembled under both

terrors.

was about

end was approaching.

his

crown from

for the

head before he

his

from Prince Azim was read, requesting

letter

Ahmednuggur because

is

make arrangements

his health

was

suffering at Gujerat,

exactly the pretext I used to Shah Jehan in his

illness.'

Nothing, indeed, could be more melancholy than Aurungzebe's death-bed.
letter dictated to
terror,

Farewell

youngest

Divinity.

.

.

punishments

!

moments gives utterance to his remorse and
"Come what may, I have launched my vessel on

in his last

and concludes thus:

the waves.
his

Azim

—

farewell

!

farewell

I

'
!

same spirit
have committed numerous

may

be

seized.

Another

— "Wherever

son, is in the
I

A

.

.

letter to Prince

I look I see

crimes,

and

not with what

come upon me

Tl e agonies of death
It

nothing but the

know

I

Cambaksh,

was

so

;

fast."

and on 2 1 st

February, 1707, Auningzebe

expired,

in

the

eighty-ninth year of his

ase and the

fiftieth of his

After his death

reign.

a document of the nature
of a will
liis

was found under

pillow,

giving

the

northern and eastern provinces of the empire, with

the
the

title

capital,

Moazzim
Adrungzebe's Bukial-pi.ace at Rozah.

— Elliotts View.s in the East,

of emperor, and
Dellii,

— the

to

south-

west, and south, including

the noi'them part of the

Deccan, with Agra as a capital, to

Bejapoor to Cambaksh.
out,

and the

results, will

The extent

to

—and the

kingdoms of Golconda and
which these arrangements were carried

Azim

afterwards be seen.

THE EAST INDIA COMPANY,

Chap. V.]

CHAPTER

309

Y.

— New general charter by Charles — Constitutional question raised by the Company's proceedings — Grant of the island of Bombay.

Resumption of the history of the East India Company

HE

reigns of

II.

Mogul emperors, Shah Jehan and Aurungzebe,

tlie

ad.

less.

together with the rise and progress of the Mahrattas, are so
closely

interwoven that

it

was necessary
In this

in a continuous narrative.
^•^i^p^rsp^r^rrTsn^

behind.

liistory of the

now

It will

London East India

to link

them together

way many years of
Company have been

left

be proper, therefore, to retrace our steps and return to

the period of Cromwell's death, which took place in 1658, the very
in

the

which Shah Jehan ceased to

Tlie effects, direct or indirect,

reign.

both events produced in regard to the

same year

Company must now be

After Cromwell, on the recommendation of his coimcil of

which

detailed.
state,

had decided

Effect of

domestic

that the trade to the East Indies should in future be carried on
stock, the

Company now

Persia,

joint

united with the body designated sometimes as Assada

Merchants, and sometimes as Merchant Adventurers,

and despatched

tion of £786,000,

by one

five ships, three of

and Bantam, one to Fort

St.

the large subscrip-

rai.sed

them consigned

to Surat,

George, or Madras, and one to Bengal.

war which the contending claims of the sons of Shah Jehan had
produced in India had a most injurious efiect on trade. At Surat in particular
The

civil

the

operations

of

the

Company were

almost entirely suspended,

president and council were greatly perplexed as

ought to pursue
dangerous to

;

to

the course which they

because, as they themselves expressed

solicit or to

accept of protection,

might ultimately be the Mogul."'

it

and the

it,

" it

was equally

being impossible to foresee

who

In England similar results were occasioned

by the uncertainty which prevailed while the protectorate, feebly and almost
reluctantly continued by Richard Cromwell, was gradually supplanted by the
re- establishment

of monarchical institutions under Charles

anxious interval the servants of the
to their

return,

own

discretion.

When

the

all

contingencies

by which the captains agreed to sail as a
a penalty of £6000 each to keep together
at St.

Helena, which had

During

this

Company abroad were left very much
homeward bound vessels were about to

the council of Surat. after consultation with

endeavoiu*ed to provide for

li.

now become

the different captains,

by entering

fleet,

into an an-angement

and bound themselves

as far as practicable.

On

undei-

an•i^^ng

the Company's principal intennediate

l)olitic8

the

on

Com-

pany's proceedijigB.

—
310
A.u

1658.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

station

between P]urope and India,

England, and in the event

of

its

tliey

[Book

II.

were to wait for intelligence from

not proving favourable, to direct their

course to Barbadoes, and tliere remain

assui-ed of

till

a safe return.
the

P'orrnerly

Company had been
averse

to

fortifica-

tions, or at least U)

expense which

the
it

would be necessary

to incur in erecting

and

maintaining

them

was

more and more

— From an original pictvire in East India House.

Helkna.

it

constantly becoming

-- yt-sA.,,^-^^^--

St.

but

;

ap-

parent from the poNecessityof

Htical state of India, as well as

that without fortifications,
possible to place the trade

from the preponderating influence of the Dutch,

and the absolute

control of them,

would be im-

it

on a secure and lasting foundation.

Accordingly

we

find the presidency of Surat, in accordance with instructions received from home,

examining the west coast of the Indian peninsula, in order to discover some

by nature, might be made still stronger by art, so as to afl!brd
asylum, and recommending for this purpose different stations which the

station which, strong

a secure

King

might be induced to

of Portugal

was Bombay, which was shortly

of these
British

crown

as part of the

dowry

mandel coast the same necessity

is

after to

become the property of the

was

by the near approach

Gomberoon

still

hostility that it

was

felt,

the Coro-

in consequence

of Sevajee to Madi'as

In the Persian Gulf, where

formed a valuable branch of the

Company's revenue, the Persian government had given
Proposed

On

of the Portuguese infanta.

to his southern conquests.

the share of the customs of

rather remarkable that one

for strong fortification

of the alarm which had been excited

when he was marching

It

cede.

so

many

indications of

seriously pi'oposed to negotiate the occupation of Muscat.

acquisition

of Jluscat.

It woiild almost

seem that in proposing

this occupation

questionable, if not piratical natm-e were contemplated

;

some objects of a very
for

among

ments mentioned by the Surat presidency are not merely the
it

might have on

their coast trade

on the west of India, but the

give " to seize in retaliation on the Malabar jmiks."

various acts of oppression

the induce-

beneficial effect
facility it

would

In Bengal, not\vithstanding

by the governor, the hopeful character of the trade

which seemed capable of being increased to any extent, and rendered

peculiarl}'

valuable on account of the fine (Qualities of the goods, particulaily saltpetre, raw
silk,

taffetas,

desirable
still

;

but

and other manufactures
it

—made

a fortified station particiJarly

could not be obtained voluntarily, and the Mogul government

seemed so strong that the idea of attempting to gain

it

by

force would.

NEW GENERAL

Chap. V.]
if

any had been bold enough

CHARTER.

to propose

Sll

have been scouted at once as ad.

it,

igco.

impracticable and monstrous.

The

restoration of Charles
,

.

/^

closer

by royal

aflinity

;

1

Company.

influence on the mterests of the

re-established with Spain

had at

in 1660,

II.,
1

f>

first
1

•

a decidedly favourable

Restoration.

Amicable relations were at once

the bonds of friendship with Portugal were

;

Effect of the

1

1

drawn

and the States-general, while congratulating the king

on his return, not only proposed a renewal of friendship, but gave a pledge of
their sincerity

by ordering the immediate

London East India Company.

the

cession of the island of Polaroon to

In regard to this cession

be added, that the Dutch governor of Batavia, to

postponed

it

for several years

whom

the spice trees, so as to render the possession worthless.
benefits

obeyed

issued,
it

only

Some

all

of the other

which the Company owed to the Restoration were of a more substantial

The

nature.

last

was

by previously destroying

in spirit

it

must, however,

the order

under various pretexts, and at

in the letter, while he grossly violated

it

first

of these to which

it is

necessary to attend

was a new crown

charter.

This deed, dated 3d April, proceeds upon the following preamble

:

—

"

Whereas

New charter
by Charles II.

our well-beloved subjects, the Governor and

Company

of Merchants trading

into the East Indies, have been of long time a corporation to the honour

and

and have enjoyed and do enjoy divers privileges and
of several letters-patent and charters heretofore granted to

profit of this nation,

immunities by force

them by our

late royal progenitors

memory: And whereas we

Queen Elizabeth and King James of

blessed

are given to understand that of late divers disorders

and inconveniences have been committed as well by our own subjects as

Company, and interruption of

foreigners, to the great prejudice of the said
trade,

whereupon they have humbly besought us

said charters, with

advancement of

some

alterations

and

their trade

any analysis of the contents of
additions, several of

As

it

would be superfluous

this charter, in so far as it
it is

and confirm

additions, tending to the benefit

trafiick."

confirms those previously gi-anted,

and

and

to grant

their
their

and

to give

merely repeats and

necessary only to attend to the alterations

which are very important.

In regard to duration no change
,

.

as before, a three years notice

,
;

is

made, the only hmit to perpetuity being,
^

•

but an alteration affecting the very constitution

Company is produced by a clause which, abolishing the right which every
member had hitherto enjoyed of giving one and no more than one vote, provides

of the

number of votes according to his
stock, that is to say, for every £500 by him subscribed or brought into the
present stock, one vote;" and that "any of those that have subscribed or
brought less than £500 may give their respective sums to make up £500, and
that in futm-e "every person shall have a

have one vote jointly for the same."

By

another series of

character of the

still

Company was

more important
revolutionized,

clauses the strictly mercantile

and

its leading

provisions.

/v

full

provision

made

for the

—

I

JIISTORV OF INMA.

•"^IS

A.D. iGoo.

[Book

large exercise of judicial and even political functions.
forts,

fortifications,

and trade

fiictories,

'all plantations,

Tliu.s

Company's

or colonies, wliere the said

II.

factoiies

be in the East Indies, shall be immediately and from

are, or shall

hencefoiih under the power and command of the said governor and Company,"
r m
i
i
ii-i
ill
witli " luU powcr and authoi'ity to appoint and establi.sh governors, and all

Judicial

•

rowers.

^

other officers to govern them."

explained by

and

•

•

^

The extent

being added, that in

its

his council "

may have power

of the authority thus conferred

eacli factory or place of trade

to

judge

all

the governor

persons belonging to the said

governor and Company, or that shall live under them, in

all

caases whether civil

judgment

or criminal, according to the laws of this kingdom, and to execute

As

accordingly."'

there might be factories where there were no governor and

council, the chief factor

any crime

or

with the

and

his council in such places
" to

misdemeanour was committed,

offence, to such other plantation,

governor and council, where justice

may

absolute these powers are, and

One

to abuse.

were empowered, when

transmit the party, together

where there

factory, or fort,

One can hardly

how very

been the invasion of the Company's exclusive
the complaining parties

rules of judicial procediu-e

—at

least

;

a

liable

help remarking

they must have been

of the most frec^uent forms of alleged misdemeanour

Company were

is

be executed, or into this kingdom of

England, as shall be thought most convenient."

how very

is

privileges.

In

all

must have

such

and hence, in violation of

all

cases, the

recognized

tmder governments not actually despotic

they were in fact constituted judges in their own cause.
Military

and

and

Tlic military

political pri\'ileges conferred are, if possible, still

more ample.

poll Lies.

powers.

They

include " free liberty and hcense for the said governor and

case they conceive

tion into

any

it

necessary to send either ships of war, men, or

their

and defence of the same

ammuni-

;

and

to choose

commanders and

over them, and to give them power and authority

common

seal or otherwise, to continue or

prince or people that are not Christians in

most

in

their factories, or other places of their trade in the said Ea.st

Indies, for the security
officers

Company,

for the

their trade

;

any

by commissions under
make peace or war with any

places of their trade, or shall be

advantage and benefit of the said governor and Company and of

and

also to right

and recompence themselves upon the goods,

estate,

by whom the said governor and Company may sustain
any injury, loss, or damage, or upon any other people whatsoever that shall any
ways interrupt, wi'ong, or injure them in their said trade within the said places,
or people of these parts,

territories,

and

limits."

Authority, moreover,

castles, fortifications, forts,

also elsewhere"

" to erect

given

gannsons, colonies or plantations at

within their limits and bounds of trade,

tions shall think
requisite to

is

fit

and

requisite

;

and

" as

and build such
St.

Helena, as

they in theu* discre-

for the supph-ing of such as shall be

keep and be in the same, to send out of

castles," &c., "all

kind of clothing, provision of

ments necessary

for such ])urpose,

this

victuals,

kingdom

to the said

ammunition, and imple-

without paying of any custom, subsidy,

oi-

;

313

SUPPRESSION OF UNLICENSED TRADING.

Chap. V.]

other duty for the same

and carry over such number of ad.

as also to transport

;

men, being willing thereunto, as they

The invasion of the exclusive

shall

think

fit."

by imlicensed traders
Company, and had too often been

privileges of the charter

had occupied too much of the attention of the

the subject of petition and cum})laint to the crown, to allow

it

English, or

any other our

Thus

it.

given "to seize upon the persons of

is

subjects in the said East Indies,

The suppr&smiiicensed

to be overlooked.

Several minute and stringent clauses are accordingly devoted to

power and lawful authority"

leeo.

which

" full

such

all

any

shall sail in

India or English vessel, or inhabit in those parts, without the leave and license"
of the

Company, "or that

The only

to England."

shall

it

a mockery

;

it

and send them

their orders,

enormous powers was

security against the abuse of these

an appeal, but the exercise of
have made

contemn or disobey

was attended with consequences which must

for the

moment an

Company

appeal was entered the

were empowered "to seize u])on" the person or persons convicted and sentenced,

"and

to carry

him

or

them home

traders were not the only persons of

As

prisoners into England."

whom

Company were

the

was provided that "for the better discovery of

injuries

milicensed

apprehensive,

and abuses

it

done

to be

unto the said governor and Company, or their successors, by any of their servants
I)y

them employed

in the said East Indies or

voyages thither,

it

shall

may

and

be lawful to and for the said governor and Company, and their respective
presidents, chief agent, or governor in the said East Indies, to

oath

factors,

all

fortifications,

masters,

pursers,

supercargoes,

examine upon

commanders of

castles,

forts,

plantations, or colonies, or other person, touching or concerning

any matter or thing as to which by law and usage an oath may be adminisIn spite of

tered."

all

these precautions,

it

was

or otherwise the exclusive privileges conferred

and
to

therefore, as

an additional

security,

still

possible that

by smuggling

by the charter might be invaded

custom-house

officers are

enjoined not

"permit any entries to be made of any goods or merchandizes of the growth,

production, or manufactiu'e of the ports or places aforesaid in Asia, Africa, and

America, above limited or appropriated to the trade of the said governor and

Company, other than such

as from time to time shall be allowed of

governor and Company, or their successors, under their

hand of the
purpose."

officer to

be by them appointed to

sit in

common

by the

said

or

seal,

tlie

the custom-house for that

Thus the Company who not many years before had been

threat-

ened with utter extinction, had obtained a charter in which the crown, for the
purpose of making their privileges as ann)le as possible, stretched

its

prero-

gative to the very utmost, and took every imaginable precaution for their

home and abroad.
very time when the Company seemed about

security both at

At

this

of prosperity, a severe shock
of their agent at Hooghly.
or countenanced
Vol.

I.

was given

Irritated

to enter on a

to their trade in

new

course

Bengal by the rashness m

beyond measure at the oppression practised

by the governor, he resolved

Threatened

to take the

remedy into
40

his

own

ueugai.

3U
A.D. 1662.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

(Book

hands, and seized a country junk in the (junge.s with
it

Mir Jurnla, the celebrated Mogul

as a security.

II

determination to hold

tiie

general, immediately threat-

ened to retaliate both on the inland agencies and on their factory at Hooghly.

The

agent,

now

terrified at the result of his

the president and council of Surat,
re-deliver the
sufficient, to

junk; and

in the

prepare for shipping

who

own

sought counsel from

boldnes.s,

directed

him

at once to repair and

event of this concession not being deemed
all

the Company's property and leaving the

place.

In sending these orders, the membei-s of the Surat council put the agent

on

guard against the wiles of the Mogul

his

Acquisition

" usually offered civilities at the

bytheciown.

recoursc to violencB

very

officers,

who, they assured him,

moment when they

intended to have

The dispute was ultimately arranged,

and depredation."

and the desperate measure of withdrawing entirely from Bengal wa«
of course abandoned.

While the Company were thus
threatened in the east of India, their
footing in the west

come

far firmer

before

was about

than

by an event

it

to

necessary to attend.

two months

ever had been

which

it is

now

In June, 1661,

after granting the

above

married the In-

charter, Charles II.

fanta

to be-

Catherine of

Portugal,

and

obtained, as part of her doAvry, "the

port and island

Bombay

Indies, together

with

profits, teiTitories,

in the East

all

the rights,

and appurtenances

The

thereof whatsoever."

Bombay, stretching

island of

eight miles from

north-east to south-west, with an

average breadth of three miles, has

an estimated area of

Httle

eighteen square miles.

more than
Its value,

however, must not be judged by
superficial extent.

By

its

land-locking

a deep bay in a central locality,

it

forms the very best harbour in India.

The use

of such a harbour

had long

was now secured in the be.st
possible form by becoming the property of the Briti.sh crown, and consequently
not liable to be interfered with on any pretext by the native powers.
been earnestly desired by the Company

;

and

it

In March, 1662, the English government de.spatched to the East Indies a

ACQUISITION OF BOMBAY.

Chap. V.]

815

On

of five men-of-war, under the conmiand of the Earl of AJarlboroimh.
o

fleet

boai'd the fleet

iooj.

were a viceroy from Portugal, authorized formally to complete

the cession of the island, and Sir

Abraham Shipman, with 500

and thereafter remain

as the first English governor.

possession

ad.

soldiers, to

No

take

opposition

Difficulties

but the Portuguese at Bombay, naturally

ixjssossion

in obtaining

appears to have been anticipated

unwilHng

;

be handed over to a foreign powei", took advantage of some

to

ambiguities in the treaty by which the island was ceded, and refused to dtdiver
it

The English were themselves partly

up.

sition,

to

blame

for the

unexpected oppo-

because instead of being satisfied with the "port and island Bombay,"

which was

that the treaty with Portugal expressly granted, they insisted

all

that this grant conferred with

and more

locality,

it

a right to

all

especially to the i.sland

Bombay by a naiTOw

channel.

The claim was

the Portuguese stations in that

of Salsette, only separated from
certainly extravagant, as Salsette,

thus represented as an accessory to Boml)ay, has an area of 150 square miles,

and

is

consequently eight times larger than the principal.

The whole business was grossly mismanaged

and ultimately the English,

;

Temporary
occupation

prohibited from landing, and unwilling or unable to effect

it

by

force,

were

obliged to look out for some other station where they might obtain refreshments,

and employ

])roper remedies to diminish the mortality which, in consequence

of })rotracted confinement in the ships,

emergency application was made

this

the

and

Red

to Sir

all

In

fearful ravages.

George Oxinden,

by the Company as president and chief director of

sent out
Sm'at,

was now making

who had been

all their aflTairs "

at

others their factories in the north parts of India from Zeilon to

Sea," for permission to land the troops at Surat, but even this could

not be granted for fear of offending the Mogul; and Sir

Abraham Shipman

was reduced to the necessity of landing the troops on the island of Anjedivah,
fifty

miles south-east from Goa, where numbei's of

of Marlborough had in the

meantime

left

them

them

The Earl

perished.

to their fate,

and

sailed for

England.

These untoward events seriously atFected the prospects of the Company. They
had hoped much from the presence of the ships of war, which they thought

would have the

effect of

procuring them more respect from the native ]iowers,

and of intimidating the Dutch, who were now openly aspiring at an ascendency
on the Indian coast as complete as that which they had established

in the

had even been expected that the king's ships might have
been made iustrumenttd in opening up new mercantile channels to the ComEastern islands.

It

pany by receiving on freight Portuguese investments from Goa, and thus
forming the commencement of a canying trade which might yield lucrative
returns.
tations,

The
and

failure of the expedition to

for

some time the Conij^anv appear

employ their servants
the hunting

Bombay

down

in giving eff'eot to the

of those

whom

disappointed

all

have done

little

to

new

these expec-

more

than,

clauses in their charter for

they stigmatized as interlopers.

Indirectly,

of Aiyo-

G

;

HISTORY OF INDIA.

31

A.D. 1664.

however, the failure of

Company,

to the

as

tlie

to

them of

all

Indeed, Sir

he undoubtedly exceeded his powers

this

tlie

transfer

;

it

tlie

rnen were wasting

liis

to the

Company.

and Sir George Oxinden,

At

approved, legal effect could not be given.

lo.ss

by

to

the offer was made, was too prudent to accept a grant to which, even

Company had

II.

which the

the rights in India conferred

Abraham Shipman, wliile
Anjedivah, made a voluntary offer of Bombay

marriage treaty.
at

expedition ])roved rather a gain than a

was doubtless one main cause of

it

crown afterwards made

away

Bombay

[Book

In

whom
if

the

the same time,

might have been foreseen that the acceptance was only postponed, and that

the crown, burdened with the expense which the possession of

not but

entail,

would

tlie

ere long require little inducement to part with

island could
it.

During scvcral subsequent years the transactions of the Company are veiy

Company
aUvetothe
of^Bei^gir^

imperfectly recorded.
tively insignificant.

The reason may have been because they were comparaThe same fleet which had brought Sir George Oxinden as

president to Surat, had carried Sir

Edward Winter

as agent to Fort St. George.

Besides that locality and the stations connected with
factories in

it,

all

the agencies and

Bengal were placed under his immediate superintendence

had exerted himself apparently with good
Mir Jumla.

Still,

traffic

was destined

with

entei-tained of the vast exto

assume in that quarter

and hence, while distant outposts were eagerly sought
monarch was importuned

and he

effect in adjusting the quarrel

no idea appears to have been

pansion which the Company's

;

after,

for letters to his roj^al brother of

and the English

Bantam, whenever

retrenchment became expedient, and a contraction of the sphere of operations

was proposed, Bengal is almost invariably brought forward
where the experiment might be made with the least risk of
quences.
In accordance with this view orders were given, in
tinue the factories which had been
Balasore, in order that all sales

as the quarter

injurious conse-

1663, to discon-

established at Patna, Cossimbazar,

and

and purchases on the Company's account

Bengal might in future be made only at Hooghly.

When

the

Company

in

are

seen thus voluntarily withdrawing from the province within w^hich the capital
of their Indian empire

from observing how
fact,

was afterwards

little

to be established, it is difficult to refrain

they are entitled to take credit for foresight.

In

they were not so much the architects as the unconscious instruments of

their future fortune.

The year

i^urat

pillaged
sevajee.

after the

Company had

thus begun, as

it

were, to turn their backs

by

ou Bengal, an event took place which produced general consternation.

The

Mahratta chieftain Sevajee, dexterously out-manoeu\T.-ing the troops of Aurungzebe in the manner which has already been described, had advanced within

mUes of Surat on the 5th of January, 1664-, before any tidings of his
movements had been obtained. The town was then surrounded, not as at
present by a brick, but by a mud wall and hence no effectual resistance could
be made when Sevajee entered it at the head of -1000 horse. The inhabitants
fifteen

;

'

SEVAJEE DEFIED AT SURAT.

Chap. V.]

.'^17

allowed themselves to be systematically plundered during six days
according to the account of one Smith, an Englishman,

and carried before him,
and hands

sitting outside the

to be chop})ed off in cases

While

cealing their wealth.

tlie

was displayed by the inmates

town

— Sevajee,

who was taken

a.d. leos.

prisoner

his tent ordering heads

in

where persons were supposed to be con-

natives were thus pusillanimous, a better spirit
of the

l)()th

factories.

The

Having put

their

Dutch and English

English, in particuhir, greatly distinguished

themselves.

factory in as good a state of defence as the shortness of the time allowed,

and

called in the aid of their ships' crews, tliey

threats with defiance

;

met

Sevajee's

demands and

and when a number of Mahrattas, witliout venturing on

The

iiaii

rattoa re-

al!

assault, forced their

dislodged them.

By

property, but that of
tion,

and

way

into

many

natives

whom

other nations, and also from

Company with

""

"^

**

himself,

who

granted

from a portion of the customs paid by

for ever

all transit

own

puuedby

they had taken under their protec-

of Aurungzebe

rose higli in the estimation

threatened the

was made which

sally

this valiant conduct the English saved not only their

them a firman exempting them

fii'st

an adjoining house, a

charges.

the loss of

General View of Surat.— Fnmi

The
all

visit of Sevajee,

which at

their property at Surat,

Churchill's Collection of Voyages.

estimated at LSO.OOO, was thus eventually the indirect means of procuring for

them important advantages.
In 1665, the politics of Europe again assumed a threatening ap])earance.

Dutch war was evidently nn]>ending.
event, the

The Company, well aware

Dutch would sweep the Indian

seas, scarcely

A

that, in that

ventured to prepare an

outward voyage, and contented themselves with instructing their agents

in

make all possible haste in com])leting their investments, and desjiatching the homeward bound ships.
Nor was a Dutch war the only source of their
anxiety, as new com]ietitors, who were afterwards to ])rove the most formidable
India to

of

all,

Indian

were about to enter the
traffic;

field.

The French had

lono-

and an exclusive company, sharing largely

and invested with imjwrtant

privileges,

had been formed

had an eve to the

in royal patronage,
Tliis

company had

Alarm

fmm

«ar, an.i

.i

in.iiaiom.
'""''

HISTORY OF INDIA.

•^'•'^

A.D. icco

[Book

II.

hitherto rested satisHed with j)r(>mi.sing gi-eat things without attempting to

perform them; but a
to act in earnest,

new

been infused into

spirit liaving

and on an extensive

On

scale.

the very

vessels well armed, so as to be equally prepared for

Made aware

been despatched.

London Company were

it,

it

was now

a}>out

voyage eight

first

war and commerce,

haxl

by imperfect rumours, the

of the fact only

at first apprehensive, from the

arming of the

vessels,

that piratical objects might be intended; and sent out instructions that the

Iiomeward

sliips

On

defence.

should

as a

sail

and be provided

fleet,

being better informed, they deemed

it

means

witli the

of

necessary only to inculcate

and guarding against misunderstandings which
between the two crowns. While giving the.se j udicious

the necessity of using caution,
miglit lead to discussions

counsels the court gave evident indications of uneasiness,

and used language

which miglit be interpreted into an instinctive foreboding of the great struggle

which the two nations were afterwards to wage
\ioient

Company now
.7
Their
was

In the desire which the

internal
dissensions

ovcrlookcd
foes,

and

might

it

arise

0116

danger.

felt for fortified stations,

to secure

object

and turn the

an asylum against external

instructions,

A

fortifications against their o"wn employers.

now

Edward Winter

Sir

occurred.

tioned, been appointed head of the

had, as already

had added considerably to the strength of Fort

was endeavouring

remark-

men-

Company's establishment at Madras, and,

His subsequent conduct had not given satisfaction
that he

they had

seems never to have occurred to them that foes of a different kind

able case of this kind

by their

supremacy in the East.

for

to enrich liimself

by

;

St.

George.

and, under the impression

private trade, the court had

superseded him, and sent out Mr. George Foxcroft as his successor.

gentleman's arrival in Jime, 1665, he was received with

all

due

On

respect,

that

and

took his place at the head of the coimcil, while his predecessor, agreeably to
his instructions, continued, in the interval previous to departure, to act as his

Sir

second.

Edward Winter, though

had been deeply offended at

term

his

his dismissal

for office

was nearly

and while continuing

;

expired,

to officiate in

the council, had been constantly on the alert to detect something in the conduct
or language of his successor on which he might found a charge against him.

While under the influence of

difficulty in

and accordingly, Mr. Foxcroft, three months

finding

what he wanted

arrival,

was attacked and violently

:

he probably had Uttle

siich feelings,

carried

off"

to prison,

after his

on the extraordinary

ground of having uttered seditious and treasonable expressions against the
king's government.

During the

Dawes, a member of the

scuffle

council, lost his

caused by the apprehension, a Mr.

life,

and Mr. Foxcroft

himself, together

with his son and Mr. Sambrooke, another member of councU, was wounded
Its

govern-

usurped by
Mir Ed wc rd
Winter.

After
to

tliis

outragcous proceeding. Sir

Edward Winter was

too far committed

bc deterred by any other irregularity, and he at once re-assimied the govern-

ment.

It seems that he

was not without

forming a council, including among

its

supporters, for he succeeded in

members

the lieutenant of the gamson.

CONVENTION RESPECTING BOMBAY.

Chap. V.J

319

was no small risk that the fort itself would be
lost to the Company.
The Dutch, now at war with England the Portuguese
viceroy at Goa, offended by the course of proceedings at Bombay and the King
of Golconda
were all anxious to obtain possession of it. The la.st liad even
During

this internal strife, there

a.d. iocs.

—
—

—

taken steps for that purpose, and was meditating an attack by one of his

when he was called away for still more urgent service.
Sir Edward Winter at first took credit for loyalty
disinterested zeal to
justify himself

and

to his sovereign

promote the interests of the Comj)any, and endeavoured to

by numerous

others, it is said, to the

addressed to infiuential (quarters

letters

was about

sanction of government, force

;

among

;

His conduct,

king and the Archbishop of Canterbury.

however, had been too gross to admit of apology

managed,

officers,

and on finding

that,

with the

employed against him, he

to be

after persisting several years in rebellion, to obtain a free pardon,

and

The leniency with which he was treated says little
the wisdom and vigour of the Company's management at this period, and

disappeared from the scene.
for

was doubtless an incentive

Abraham Shipman,

Sir

on subsequent occasions.

to similar acts of rebellion

making an

after

offer of

Bombay

to the

Company,

cnnventiou
the
Portuguese
witli

had continued with

as has been already mentioned,

his troops at Anjedivah,

At

enduring the misery of seeing them dying around him.
himself became one of the victim.s.

Mr. Cooke,

who had been

assumed the command; and, under the conviction that
saving the lives of the soldiers
the Viceroy of Goa,

Bombay, according

by which he agreed

Marlborough,

by an

for,

Bombay

resident in

])ayment of customs.

was the only chance

to accept of the port

to the treaty as interpreted

were even worse

his secretary,

of

sm'viving, entered into a convention with

still

respect the terms

it

in 1664, he HomTm"'^

last,

by the

and island of

Poi-tuguese.

In one

tiian those originally offered to tiie Earl of

additional article not then mentioned, the Portuguese

were, along with other liberties, to be exempted from the

When

the survivors on Anjedivah

left for

Bombay,

their

numbers did not much exceed 100; the expense incuiTcd by government

for

the pay and maintenance of the troops, from the date of their embarkation in

England, was above £13,000.
Mr. Cooke's convention with the Portuguese was no sooner knowTi in England than

it

was disavowed

;

the English had interpreted

Bombay.

and, with the view of caiTving out the cession as
it,

Sir Gervase Lucas

Before he sailed he drew up a report,

transmitted by Mr. Cooke, and gave
of the

gamson

amount

it

was appointed governor of
founded on the documents

as his opinion that the annual expense

necessary for the island would, Avithout including contingencies,

to at least

£7371, and

would be immediately required.

that,

moreover, a large outlay for

cost

As yet

stores

made government
Bombay as an immediate

This report appeal's to have

doubtful as to the propriety of continuing to retiiin
possession of the crown.

new

it

had yielded nothing, though

much, and was apparently about to cost more.

it

had already

The conclusion

therefore

disavowed

HISTORY OF

•*^-'>

A

I).

1000.

was,

ineantiiiic " it

tliiiL ill tiiu

upon

would

[Book

II.

improper to incur any great expen.se

and that the whole establishment should be placed on a very narrow

it,"

and economical

footiuir.

Sir Gervase Lucas arrived at

sirGeivase

Ijc

INlilA.

Bombay on

.5th

November, IGGG, and, on

lAxcas ap-

iK)inted

assummg

jioinbay.

bcfore leaving England had led

the government, found matters in a

when they saw
to fortify,

him

still

worse state than lus inquiries

The Mogul goverament,

to anticipate.

the English in possession of an island which they were preparing

and which, by

natural position, might control the trade of Surat,

its

and openly expressed

became extremely

jealous,

after learning that

an invitation had been given to the native merchants to

Bombay under

settle at

compensate himself
vajee,

some

for

to

an open rupture wlien Mr. Cooke, in order

loss sustained

to

during the piUage of Surat by Se-

took the unwarrantable step of seizing a Mogul junk which stress of

weather had forced to seek shelter in

who

the governor of Surat,
Sir George

factory.

This junk belonged to

Oxinden remonstrated with Mr. Cooke, who,

in consenting

and more independent position than one

the servant only of a company.

later period revived,

while condemning

harbour.

instantly tlu-eatened to retaliate on the English

as a king's servant, in a higher

who was

Bombay

took occasion to inform Sir George that he considered him-

to restore the junk,
self,

The misunderstanding thus com-

British protection.

menced was brought almost

their displeasure, especially

and led

many

The question thus

to considerable embarrassment.

was

a

at

Sir Gervase Lucas,

parts of Mr. Cooke's conduct, agreed with

The misunderstandings and

subject of precedence.

raised

him on the

jealousies w^hich in conse-

quence arose, were injurious to the interests both of the crown and the Company.

To

the latter, however, the ultimate result

was

favourable, as the difficulty of

procuring a cordial co-operation between the two services must have been an
additional inducement to the crown to shake itself free of all further responsibility in

was

regard to Bombay.

Before giving an account of the step

finally accomplished, it will

by which

this

be proper to refer to several incidents which

occurred about this time, and are of sufficient interest to deserve special notice.
Important

The

first

of tlieso

is

a celebrated lawsuit in which the Compan}' became

constitutiotiai

involved, in 1666,

unlicensed tradincj.
turers at Jambi,

by the zealous endeavours of

Frederick Skinner was agent for the merchant adven-

on the north-east coast of Sxunatra, and, on the union of the

companies, quitted the
united stock.

down

then- serv'ants to put

district, after

making over

his assets

and debts

to the

His brother, Thomas Skinner, who had apparently entered into

possession of Frederick's effects, continued to trade as a merchant on his

account.

A ship and merchandise

the servants of the

Jambi.

belonging to him ha\ang been discovered by

Company, was

The grounds of

seizure

forcibly seized,

by

were apparently of

the aid of the Sultan of

to

— the

tw^o kinds

the property in question belonged not to him, but to the

had been, or ought

own

Company,

to

one that

whom

it

have been given up by Frederick Skinner; the other

Chap

THE TliEATY UF BKEDA.

V.|

was trading without

that, as the vessel

pany's charter, both
charter, the

making

was

his appeal,

was

home

refused,

in one of the

and he was

was referred successively

left to

and Skinner, on

Company's ships

make

his

way

to England.

to plead.

against them, to the

amount

first

it

On

had

could,

to the government,

jurisdiction,

House of Commons and decided

in

judgment was given
raised a great

was keenly taken up by the

Two

Company's favour.

in the

tionai

and peremptorily

The Company's plea

constitutional ((uestion, which, on their petition,

impoitjiut

on the ground that the

their continued refusal

of £5000.

i667.

out,

and could only judge by appeal

jurisdiction,

ad.

how-

This,

Europe as he best

to

to answer, declined,

lords found that they

Company

ordered the

to review,

committee of the council, and to the House of

to a

House of Peers had no primtuy

The

In terms of the

His complaint, presented at

The Company, when ordered

the last resort.

forfeited.

entitled to insist that, for the purpose of carrying

by an overland jom-ney.
Peers.

were

in it

judgment thus pronounced was subject

he should be sent
ever,

license within the limits of the Corn-

and the goods found

it

c21

branches of

the legislature were thus diametrically opposed, and can-ied on the dispute with

When

more temper than judgment.
ment, the

this

bad

exami)le,

and imprisoned the governor,

Samuel Barnadiston, and three other members of the

with

this,

The

and sent him a piisoner to the Tower.

interfered

were not slow to follow

lords

Sir

commons

Skinner attempted to enforce the judg-

Company

they declared the petition of the

court.

to the

Not

satisfied

conmions to be

by resolving that any one
who should execute the judgment in Skinner's favour was a betrayer of the
rights and liberties of the commons of England.
The controversy threatened
false

and scandalous, and the commons

to be interminable,

times.

At

succeeded,

and was not

last the

settled

retaliated

till

parliament had been adjourned seven

king held a conference with both houses at Whitehall, and

by personal

from their journals.

them

persuasion, in inducing

In one sense this gave the

to erase all the proceedings

Company

the victory, as the

judgment against them was not enforced, and Skinner remained without

The next event of
})eace

redress.

this period deserving of particidar notice, is the general

concluded by the treaty of Breda,

Britain, France, Holland,

31st July,

and Denmark were
It

principle ado])ted in framing the treaty

was

The

parties.

merce in general derived from the cessation of

by the London Eaat India Company.

IGGT.

ut'i

com-

not but be

however, without

was that of

this treaty

benefit whicli

hostilities could

not,

To

alloy.

possidetis,

felt

The

which of

Coiuutions
of theti-eaty

course left the parties, in regard to possession, exactly as they stood at

its date,

In the case of the Company, the effect was that they finally lost the islands of

Polaroon and

Damm,

because, in the course of the war,

themselves of their naval superiority to capture them.

tlie

Dutch had availed

The

loss

seemed the

more grievous because the Company had been sanguine enough to expect
by the possession of them, they might be able
spice trade.
Vol.

I.

So intent were they on

that,

to secure a share in the envied

this object that,

even after these islands
41

of

Bmia.

'

322
A.D. 1609.

or

IIISTOFIY

were wrested from

tli(;ni,

INIflA.

fIV>OK

II

they continued to niaintain an unavailing Htruggle

against the ascendency which

tlie

Dutch had established

in the Indian Archi-

The only consolation which the Company received wan, that tinwhich they sustained by the Brerla treaty was not so serioas as they ajjpre-

pelago.
loss

hended when

made acquainted with

first

Edward Winter

Sir

was

them

Had

fort.

ht-

tlu-ee seats

in all probability

of the

have been

lost

for ever.

which

this period

fonu an

investment

<»f'

been completed, the rule

and thas one of the

it,

by the Company would

The Only other incident of

begins
I

had been received that

this act of treachery

would have covered

presidencies acquired

to

asurfjation

communication with the Dutch governor of Ceylon, and conteini)lating

in

of uti possidetis

Te

During the

tenns.

at Fort St. George, information

the delivery of the

to

its

it Is

necessary to notice

is

*•

Commercial nature, and

strictly

yet,

when

its

consequences are traced,

it

of a

will

l.-e

found to have had a far mightier influence, not merely on the fortunes of the

Company, but on society at large, than any
which occurred in the seventeenth century.
]

668,

single event, military' or political,

In a

letter

dated 24th January,

and sent out with the Company's ships which made the voyage of that

year, the agent at

Bantam

is

desired "to send

you can

of the best tey that

gett."

home by

these sliips 100

lbs.

waight

The language evidently implies that the

was already understood; and it is known that several yeai-s before, an
order had been given to obtain small quantities of tea as a present to his

article

majesty
is

;

but this

is

the

fu'st

instance of a public order,

presumed, for the purpose not of making presents of

but of ascertaining whether

mioht not become an

Within a century of the date of

ment.

Company approached

the

it

Company's monopoly,

it

3,000,000

granted to
the Company.

Qu

as a

mere

lbs.;

and in
lbs.,

it

cm-iosity,

article of lucrative invest-

1834:,

imported by

the last year of the

and paid duty to government

Since then the import into the United

to the

Bombay

it

this order, the quantity

exceeded 33,000,000

amount of £3,589,361.
has more than doubled.

and an order given,

Kingdom

the 27th of March, 1669, the grant of the port and island of Bomba\'.

,

which government had been

for

some time contemplating, was completed by

regular charter, issued as usual in the form of letters-patent addi'essed

king to

all

his subjects.

a

by the

After stating the nature and extent of the right

by the marriage treaty from the Portuguese, eulogizing the Company
for having managed the trade to the East Indies " to the lionom- and profit of
the nation," and expressing "an earnest desire that the said governor and
Company may, by all good and lawful ways and means, be encom'aged in their
acquired

difficult

and hazardous trade and

his majesty bestows the island

and ample a manner, to

now have and

enjoy, or

trafiick in those

and

its

appm^tenances upon them

all intents, constructions,

may

remote parts of the world,

and

pm-jDoses, as

King

we

ourselves

and

force

of Portugal," constituting

them

or ought to enjoy the same,

of the said gi-ant of our said brother the

" in as large

by

^irtue

'

'

BOMBAY GRANTED TO THE COMPANY.

Chap. V.j

"the true and absolute proprietors of

and every part and parcel thereof"

said,
•

the artillery, and

all

tlie

all

&C., "

all

which

manner

of merchandize,

shall be or

ad.

ibtss).

Along with the island were granted

stores,

and other provisions whatsoever; and

and

port and island, and premises afore-

and singular arms, armour, weapons, ordnance, munition,

powder, shot, victuals, magazines,

l)oats,

^^23

ammunition, and provisions of war,

and singular

all

and wares,

TemiBofthe

and

ships, junks, vessels,

cloathing, implements, beasts/'

remain upon within the premises, or any part of

thereof,

and belong unto us at the time when the said port and island and premises
be delivered up into the possession of the said governor and Company.

sliall

Power was, moreover, given them " to take into their
costs and charges, such and so many of our officers and

service, at their

own

soldiers as shall

then

be in or uj)on the said port or island, or within the territories and precincts

they shall think

thereof, as

them

either in the said port

The port and
inanoi- of Ea.st

and not in

fit,

and as

be contented or willing to serve

and island or elsewhere.

island thus granted

Greenwich,

shall

in the

common

county of Kent, in free and

our heirs and successors, at the custom-house, London, the rent or

pounds of lawful money of England,

The only

yearly, for ever."

Company

any

in gold,

restrictions

slioidd not " at

or otherwise di.spose of the said island
to

of

tlie

socage,

nor by kniglit's service, yielding and paying therefore to

cap'ite

were, that the

" as

were to be held of the crown

prince, potentate, or

.state,

on the

thirtieth

sum of

us,

ten

day of September

and reservations of any importance

any time hereafter

sell, alien,

transfer,

and premises, or any part or parts

Restiutions
tious.

thereof,

or other person or persons Avhatsoever, but

such as are or shall be the subjects and of the allegiance" of the British crown,

and that

om* liege people, and subject to

" the inhabitants of the said island, as

our imperial crown and dignity, jurisdiction and government, shall be permitted

remain there, and enjoy the

to

the same

manner

said brother the
for the exercise

and

sis

made by our

King of Portugal as aforesaid, and that such order be observed
and conservation thereof in all things according to the purport

the said inhabitants,

and treaty

in that behalf;

and other our subjects

and

them lawfully had

of the surrender of

further, also, that

in the said port or island, shall

peaceably and quietly have, hold, possess, and enjoy

respective properties, privileges,
of

Catholic religion in

they did at the time of the said gi'ant to us

effect of the said article

may

Roman

free exerci.se of the

and
and

all their .several

and advantages wliatsoever, which they or any

or enjoyed, or ought to have had or enjoyed, at the time
said port

tlie

and island

time

to us as aforesaid, or at an}'

since."

All the inhabitants of

....

wnthin

,

.

its

precincts

and

Bombay, together with

,.

limits,

privileges of British subjects
to

have

full

power

afterwards born in
.

were to have and enjoy

it,

Ti
all the liberties
11

•

1

or
1

Judicial
authoritv.

and

under the gcn'ernment of the Conmany, who were

to exercise judicial authority

and agents, to repel force by

all
,

.

force,

by sea and

by

them.selves, their ministers,

land, in case of

open

hostilities

J

1

82
A.D. 1600

IIISTOUY

with foreign enemies; and

offences against law, custom,

to all intents

of his office

might

The very

INDIA.

" in cases of lelx-llion,

to serve in wars, fleeing to the

manner

(JF

and

[Book

II

mutiny, or sedition, of refusing

enemy, forsaking colours or ensigns, or other
discipline military, in as large

and purposes whatsoever

as

and ample

a

any captain-general hy virtue

do."

liberal

terms on which Charles

II.

conferred

Bombay

on the Com-

pany, and the very ample powers with which he invested them for the purpose
of governing
I'lobabie in

tothegrant

j^g

it,

justify a suspicion that the act

hag bccn represented, and that the

Company had

they aftcrwards followed of smoothing the
distribution of

money

was not quite

already begun the practice

difficulties in their

in influential quarters.

They did

immediately followed the Revolution, and endeavoured to
it

way by

this to

the free

an enormoas

as will afterwards be seen, in the comparatively pure period

extent,

that

so disintere.sted

had- long been customary.

If

so, it is

ju.stify it

by

which

alleging

not uncharitable to presume that

Charles and his corrupt courtiers did not allow the custom to be forgotten in

But whether obtained by a

this instance.

free grant or a corrupt bargain, the

Bombay was unquestionably the most important acquisition
Company had yet made. Even in a pecuniary view its value was by

port and island of

which the

no means contemptible.

According to a statement transmitted to the British

government by the deputy-governor, Captain Gary, the year before the Comjiany entered into possession, the annual revenue, derived principally from rent,

produce,
this

and customs, amounted

amount might be

to £6490, 17s. 9d.

largely increased

Company had not only acquired a
by land and sea, but a revenue

;

It

was understood that

and consequently that in Bombay the

position which might be rendered impregnable

which, duly husbanded, might meet

outlay necessary for fortifications and other improvements.
prospect thus opened appears to have emboldened the

all

the

The brightening

Company

greatly to

extend their operations, and their investments became larger than at any foimer
period.

CHAPTER YL
Administration and progress of

Bombay

>MBAY was

— Difl&culties — State of the other settlements of the Company.

at first

Oxinden, though

still

made subordinate

was appointed governor and commander-in-chief of the former; but at the same time authorized
to send one of the members of Ids council, as deputy-governor,
With this view a series of
personally to administer the affairs of the island.
The fort or castle was
directions had been drawn up by the court in England.
i^

rejected

improve
ments at

Bombay.

Sir George

continuing to reside and hold his position

as president at the latter,

I

to Surat.

to

a town, so situated as to be under

be enlarged and strengthened;

was

protection,

duced to

to

be built on a regular plan

;

its

a

d. icoo

inhabitants were to be in-

by exemptions

settle

and while the

castoms;

f'.om

32o

PEOJECTED IMPROVEMENTS AT BOMBAY.

Chap. VI. J

English were to

be preferred,

others also were to be encoui-ao-ed

by the

free exercise of their re-

The improvement

ligion.

revenue,

so

new and

was not

taxes,

To

forgotten.

and

"V

bur-

to be

manufac-

foster

tures of cotton

^j^ft^no^li

as practicable,

far

without imposing

densome

of the

silk goods,
English Fokt, Bombay.— Churchill's Voyages.

looms were to be purchased for
the weavers

;

and

to give

new

facilities to

commerce, a liarbom- and docks were

made

in carrjHing out these arrangements,

to be constructed.

much

Before

progress could be

untoward events took

several

Bombay, endeavoured

to render

by taking advantage

it

as

it

to or

While an important branch of

the trade of Surat

Tanna

to impose

from Bombay

;

new

heavy

pos-

transit

the trade of which

Tanna, situated at the head of Bom-

in consequence greatly crippled, as

bay harbom', commanded the only proper
land.

reconciled to the ces.sion of

lucrative as possible to its

of their position at

duties on all goods passing through

was

little

arose from various

difficulties

The Portuguese, who had never been

(luarters.

sessors,

and new

place,

line of

traffic

communication with the main-

was thus

was again suspended by an

in a

manner

interdicted,

incursion of Sevajee.

Tmme-

diately after his former visit, a substantial wall of brick, flanked with bastions,
lijid

been commenced and was approaching completion, but as much

remained open as to make

town and resume
was now

also a

his

it

work

French

still

easy for Sevajee to penetrate into the heart of the
Besides the English and Dutch, there

of plunder.

factory.

The

last

showed no

fight,

but obtained an

ignominious exemption by giving the Mahrattas a free passage through their
factory,

and thus enabling them

Tjirtar prince

who had

to obtain a rich

returned by

way

booty by the plunder of a

of Surat from a jiilgrimage to Mecca.

The Dutch stood upon the defensive, and seemed so well prepared that they
were allowed to escape. The English, under President Aungier, who had succeeded on the death of Sir Georije Oxinden, distinmiished them.selves as before

On

this occasion,

however, they were not so

fortunate as to obtain the approbation of the Moguls.

Sevajee, before he retired,

by beating

off"

repeated attacks.

had opened a friendly negotiation with the

Englisii,

and several conferences had

been held with the view of arranging the re-establishment of the Company's
factory at Rajahpore.

ii,awb.ickg

Sevajee was anxious to secure the revenue which had

s„rat again
i;'"''8*'

''>

320
AD.

1673.

IIISTOliY 0|- IM^IA.

been

[Book

II

witlulrawal oi the factory, and the presidency at Surat were

lost liy the

disposed to consent, provided they could obtain compensation for past and

These conferences were not unobserved by

security against future injuries.

Mogul

and gave

authorities,

which the

rise to suspicioiLS, of

tlie

results afterwards

became apparent.

At the very time when the bonds

War with
and aiiiancu
rauce.

looscued,

tlic

poUtics of Europc had been undergoing a change which threat<jned

Company once more

^^ gxposc the

were in

ties

of amity with the Moguls were thua

to

an unequal contest with the Dutch.

fact declared; but, at the

same time, by the

with France, which had nov/ a considerable
the

Company were

fleet in

the

however, they endeavoured to

alliance of

Ea.st,

With a

better protected than formerly.

make themselves independent

vigorously pushed on the fortifications of Bombay.

Hostili-

England

the interests of
wi.se precaution,

and

of foreign aid,

They were thus engaged,

but the works were far from completed and very inadequately garri.soned, when,
in February,

made

his

1673, Rickloff

van Goen, the Dutch Governor-general of

appearance on the coast with a

fleet of

twenty- two

Bombay was evidently the object
had it been made on the instant but

regular troops on board.

have

scarcely

resisted

;

ships,

India,

having

of attack,

1

000

and could

the Dutch lost time

by endeavouring in vain to secure the co-operation of a land force under Sevajee, and when at last prepared for action, lo.st heart on seeing the kind of
reception which awaited them. Pi^esident Aungier, who fortunately happened to
be in
"

Bombay

Bombay

at the time, exerted himself, as

Orme

hyperbolically expresses

with the calmness of a philosopher and the courage of a centurion."

400 Em'opean
•ruese

lay

and

two

soldiers,

natives.

frigates,

he succeeded in mustering 1500

Nor was he

destitute of a

marine

Portu-

In the harbour

a Dutch prize fitted up as a ship of war, and three armed sloops

which had been lately built as a protection against the Malabar pirates
force a

Besides

militia, chiefly
force.

it,

to this

;

most important addition was opportunely made by the arrival of four

French

ships,

Rickloft^

which, on being informed of the danger, had hastened from Surat.

under these circumstances,

with reconnoitring, and

satisfied himself

then suddenly disappeared.

On

Madras

fears

the Coromaudel coast the Dutch had excited similar alarm, and great

were entertained

for the safety of

French again proved important
(^nly

auxiliaries,

St.

is

Here, however, the

and by means of a powerful

and took

St.

Thom^ by

storm.

The

fleet

not

latter capture, as the

situated only at a short distance from Madras, gave the

alarm than

satisfaction,

sion of the
concern.

Thome

King

On
fell

Company more

and they were therefore not displeased when,

short tenvire, the French were expelled and St.

St.

George.

kept the Dutch in check, but made themselves masters of Trincomalee, in

the island of Ceylon,
place

Fort

of Golconda.

Thome

returned to the posses-

Another success of the Dutch gave them deeper

the 22d of August, 1673, the Dutch fleet engaged in the
in

after a

with the Company's homeward bound

ships, ten in

.siege

of

number, and

J

I'EACE

VI.

Chai>.

A

richly laden.

running fight commenced
in the sinking of one

and issued

|);itam,

WITH HOLLAND.

vessels.

The others,

thouii'li

not with-

:i27

the coast to the south of Mixsuli*

oil"

a d.

i6T4

and the capture of two of the Company's

out sustaining con-

damage,

siderable

way

found their

Madras
dian

to

In the In-

Archipelago,
t^W'}

where the

Dutcli

superiority wasstill

more

was

decided,

it

impos.sible for

Company

tlie

traffic

Bird's-eye View of Trincomalee

—Cliurchill's Voyiiges

tt)

with any advantage, tiiuugh they were

carrying their trade

still

now

alive to the im})oi-tance of

and endeavouring

farther east,

to establish that direct

intercourse with China from which, in cour.se of time, their chief,

if

not their

only connnercial profits were derived.

The danger
®

which Bombay
from the Dutch ceased
J had been exiiosed
1

to

entirely in consequence of a

^

new

whirl in European

politics,

by which,

i''^"^--'

"'"'

Holland

^

in 167-i,

peace was concluded, and shortly after happily cemented by the marriage of the
Prince of Orange with Mary, daughter of the

Duke

of York.

Another danger,

The Moguls and the Mahrattas were con-

however, immediately succeeded.

and now that the English, by the possession of an

stantly at war;

island

belonging to neither, were gradually beginning to assume the dignity of an

independent Indian power, their alliance was naturally courted by both.
true policy of the
trality;

The

in the

meantime was

but the circmnstances were such as to

Mofful
^

Bombay

Company

fleet,

t(^

make

The

maintain a perfect neuthis almost impossible.

commanded by the Siddee, soujrht
shelter from a storm in
®
To refuse it was impossible, without provoking tlie Moguls;
•'

harbom*.

was equally

impossible, without giving

umbrage

to Sevajee.

In this

dilemma the Bombay government took the only course wiiich lay open

to them,

to grant it

by allowing the Siddee to remain

him

ti.o M«.gui
fleet in

bow-

_

to depart.

He

the storm blew over,

till

refused to obey

;

and

and then requesting

collecting his vessels in the channel

which separates the island from the mainland, landed a number of armed men

and Mazagong, and drove out the inhabitants, apjiarently
with the intention of gaining a permanent footing on the island. This was not
at the villages of Sion

to be tolerated;

and

after desultory hostilities to the disadvantage of the Siddee,

he purchased permission to prolong his stay by engaging that no more than 300
of his men,

armed only with

their swords, should be ashore at one time,

he would make no attack on the Corlahs
inof alono-

—a

fertile district

and that

of the Concan, stretch-

the eastern shore of Bomliav harbour, and belonfrinu to the Mahrattas.

i.ayi.iii..mr

HISTORY OF INDIA.

•^-8

A.D

Sevajee was luitmaily jcaloas

it574.

anxiety to see
Treaty with

Company's factoiy again

tlie

Rajahpore, he entered

e.staljlished at

into a formal treaty with them, binding himself to compen-sate
losses

which they had sustained by

was determined not

that he

Immediate

His

vicinity.

his depredation.s, it soon

them

By

the Portuguese,

for all the

became apparent

to tolerate the continuance of a hostile fleet in Lis

first

step

was

to send his general,

Moro Punt, down the

Ghauts with 10,000 men, to occupy Callianee or Kallian, opposite
of Salsette.

II.

arrangement, and though, from his

this

oi'

[Eook

to the i.sland

—

movement he accomplished two objects he levied chout on
who had greatly offended him by a fanatical attempt to force
this

the Mahrattas within their territories to become Chri.stians, and he overawed
the Siddee, who, afraid for his

made

fleet,

Bombay

haste to depart.

all

bour had, however, proved so convenient a station that the Siddee
short cruise, during which

Mahratta

coasts,

permitted

it

bour

;

devastating descents had been

to occupy its former station, Sevajee

fleet of

With

at all hazards.

it

boats within his

own

territory,

but finding the attack of the Siddee

bay
Sevajee

itself

quarter,

and Hcnery, situated

so as to

The natural strength

by Portuguese and English

upon

fortifications

manner

fleet in this

;

command

first collected

impracticable,

in finding access to

it,

islands, called

the southern entrance of

of this position

Bom-

had

hithei-to

Bombay

It

and began

was of no use

A

of Kennery, and,

Meanwhile the Moguls, informed of the
Mahrattas might

now have been

;

and

left

compelled the

still

kept possession

without much

skill

or effect.

expressed a desire to share

Bombay.

it,

meant

to

the two native powers to fight

The struggle was in consequence

plan,

The dislodgment

of the

but the English, having discovered that

the Siddee, if he succeeded in capturing

held their aid,

fii'ed

hostilities,

fleet to

easy

The

fi-igate present,

vessels,

The Mahrattas

flight.

mounting several cannon,

them, and sent a considerable

to erect

second attempt would have been disas-

had not the Revenge, the only English

seek safety by

but

encounter the advantage was

kept her ground, and, after sinking five of the enemy's
fleet of fifty to

it,

to attempt

and therefore action was immediately resolved upon.
first

har-

been overlooked both

islands,

the greatest alarm prevailed.

trous to the assailants

Kennery

and when Sevajee had not only discovered

rather in ftivour of Sevajee's party.

m

and

for permission to cross over

little difficulty

however, was very defective, and in the

whole

the

on the east side of Bombay har-

taken possession of Kennery, the larger of the two

negotiation,

incensed,

view he at

and dexterously availed himself of two small
.

bour.

made on

This permission being refused, he turned his attention to an opposite

occupies

Kenuerv.

which he anticipated

was greatly

this

he made application to the Portuguese at Tanna
to Salsette, from

after a

fleet,

The Bombay government having again

again retm-ned.

resolved to rid himself of

a large

many

har-

protracted,

keep
it

and was not

it

to liimself, with-

out as they best could.
finished

when

Sevajee

died in 1680.

Though war was thus raging

in its vicinity,

Bombay

continued to

make

J

PEOGRESS OF BOMBAY.

Chap. VI.

and the propriety of substituting

progress,

time.

ruption, and, as early as IGT-i,

mounted 100

son consisted of two companies, each of 200

been regularly organized

for

a series of years without inter-

pieces of cannon; its regular gan-i-

men

;

companies of militia had

tluree

and several well-manned

;

a.d. 1074.

to be regarded only as a question of

had been carried on

Its fortifications

as the seat of the western

it for Sura^i,

had become so obvious as now

presidency,

329

vessels

were permanently

The progress would have been still more rapid had
not a deficiency of funds induced the government to adopt rather questionable
means of replenishing their treasury. The inhabitants were burdened with new
stationed in

harbour.

its

taxation in the shape of excise duties, and both imports and exports were

charged witii customs equalling, and in some instances far exceeding those

which the Great Mogul,

own

in the plenitude of

On

subjects or from strangers.

was

2^ per cent,

of fortifications

;

articles of little

his power, levied either

and timber,

nuties levied

per cent, to defray the expen.se

anUexiwits.

imports, including corn, grain,

and

to be levied as custom,

1

from his

on exports the customs alone was fixed at 3^ per cent. Some
bulk but considerable value, as gold and silver, jewels, mu.sk

and amber, were the only exemptions, while Indian tobacco and Indian iron
imported, and,

more unaccountably, the whole produce of the

still

nuts, salt, fish, &c.) exported,

island (cocoa-

were saddled with a custom of 8 per

cent.

Some

of these impositions almost look as if the object had been not to encourage
trade,

but to extinguish

desire of the governor to

the island

was not

The only

it.

justification

show that the

overrated,

and that

must be sought

in the eager

original estimate of the revenue from

was able not only

it

to

pay

its

expenses,

but yield a surplus.

While the governor
was thus taxing
°
O

his ingenuity
J in tlie invention of
ts

new

som-ces of revenue. Captain Shaxton, his deputy, was, if not actively encouraging, at least

conniving at proceedings of a mutinous tendency.

grounds of complaint by the soldiers were, that their period of

was limited

to three years,

arms.

On

that they were, as Bruce in his

Annals commends

Aungier in granting the demands of the

and tr}4ng them, not by

expedient that, in having recourse to

it

but

for the

it

fii-st

and

it is

to

be presumed

not easy to see the justice

soldiers, it is

charter, it is true, authorized martial law,

for firmness in afterwards
civil,

but by martial law.

was surely both

right

and

time, the guilt should not

oidy have been of a very aggravated description, but that, even after

it

was

judgment should have been tempered with mercy. Nothing of this is
President Aungier's proceedings. The men were ])romised pay and then

proved,

seen in
refused

it;

insisted
Vol.

which

the prudence of President

same author bestows upon him

seizing the principal leaders

The

service,

these groimds they threatened to lay

If the complaints were well founded,

of the praise which the

principal

had expired, and that a month's pay, which had been

promised them, had been withheld.

down their

The

they had served the

on their discharge.

I.

full

period for wliich they had enlisted, and

If the justice of the complaint could not be denied,
42

Mutiny in
Bombay.

inSTOKY OF INDIA.

•i-^O

•^P-

^''""-

was not

the real fault

made

At

necessary.

it

who

in those

complained, hut in the government wlio

events, there

all

was nothing

so-called mutineers to justify the sentence

death,

This

October,

674<.

culprit, if there

charges, but

to

the wise of one of them

effect in

Captain Shaxton, the worst

and found guilty on several

tried,

conduct of the

law in name of the Company took place on

exercise of martial

1

in the

which condemned three of them

and which was actually carried into

first

[B^jok I!

was

his station,

21.>t

was next

one,

though

only

it

aggravated his offence, protected him, and he was sent to England to ht dealt

with as might there be deemed proper.

The most memorable event

Principle of

in the history of the

seuiority

estabusiied.

Company
i

in

1

676 was the

*'

_

_

_

formal adoption of the principle of seniority as the rule of succession to
of trust

and emolument.

mode

the

in

In the letter of the court to the presidency of Surat

which the principle was

advancement of our apprentices, we
first

five yeares,

to

be applied

thas stated:

is

direct that, after they

they shall have £10 per

annum

for the

have

two

— 'For

writers' sallary

;

and having served that

last yeares;

many

and

\\Titers,

yeare, to enter into the degi-ee

And knowing

of factors, which otherwise would have been ten yeares.
distinction of titles is in

the

serv^ed for the

having served these two yeares, to be entertayned, one yeare longer, as

and have

offices

we do

respects necessary,

that a

order, that

apprentices have served their times, they be styled vjriters; and

when

when

writer.^

have served their times, they be styled factors ; and factors ha\dng served their
times, to be styled

merchants ; and merchants having served their times, to be

By

styled senior merchants."

ment were

obviated,

in the extreme, because

it

mere matters of

saw the

routine,

;

when the most

but the
ordinary

sufficient

accomit of either ability or industry.

particular,

disputes as to advance-

amount of practice may suffice, is \'iciou.'i
removes all stimulus to exertion, and makes no

combined with a

this rule the court

many

and much discontent in consequence suppressed

principle of seniority, except in
qualifications

an-angement

this

It is rather singular that in lajdng

necessity of departing from

by holding out a kind

of

premium

it

in one

down

very important

to military talent, enjoining

their civil servants "to apply themselves to acquire a

all

knowledge of military

any sudden

attack, or of being found

better qualified for military than for civil duties,

they might receive com-

that, in the event, either of

discipline,

missions,

and have the pay of military

officers,

till

the pleasure of the court

should be known."

In the course of the war carried on between the Moguls and the Mahrattas,

Rival

Bombiiy°by
vn!i

sfvtjee

made himself master of Henery in the same way as Sevajee had
and thus by the negligent and irresolute conduct which the local

the Siddec had
^^

Kenucry

authorities

perity

was

;

had pursued, Bombay was exposed
seriously interrupted.

threatening aspect of

affairs,

The court

to a double danger,

and

its pros-

at home, gi-eatly perplexed at the

seem not to have been equal to the emergency, and

disregarding the dangei" of being ousted altogether, kept insisting on a

number

ATTEMPTS ON BOMBAY.

Chap. VI]

of petty deductions, which produced

much

331

among

discontent

their

own .servants, ad

loss.

and imposed various new burdens which were loudly complained of by the

At the same time temporizing expedients became the order
day; and both the Moguls and Mahrattas, emboldened by the pusillani-

other inhabitants.
of the

mous

spirit in

gance.

As

now only

if

which

encroachments were met, set no limits to their arro-

tlieir

Bombay had been

up

set

intent on deciding whether Siddee or Sevajee
,

party.

as a prize to be contended for, they

It

would almost seem that the

minds to some

sucii disastrous

was

to be the

and ignominious

stating that without additional expenditure
lost,

winning

!•
!•
111 makmg
Company were gradually
up their
result

for,

;

in the face of

strances from India, complaining of the reductions ah-eady made,

be

were

and

and reinforcements the

The
.'111(1

si.uiee
Sev.ijei

remon-

distinctly

island

would

the court intimated their final decision that the fortifications having been

the source of the heaviest expense, were to be continued in their present state

without further improvements
reduced to the lowest scale
frigate,

The

— that the manning of the batteries was to be
— and that, with the exception of one small

pos.sible

armed ships stationed

the

for

guarding the harbour were to be

letter of the court, after putting the island

concludes with

insultingly,

it,

maintain

strict discipline,

and

by these most
some would rather

in jeopardy

imj)rovident and niggardly injunctions, ludicrou.sly,

tfrm

sold.

or,

as

a recommendation to the governor to

liave the garrison

always prepared for a vigorous

defence.

The above

letter,

addressed in the beginning of 1679 to Surat, which, by the
.

way, was also to furnish

dency to the

made the

less

its

quota of reduction, by being degraded from a

expensive form of an agency, produced a remonstrance which

Surat accordingly resumed

obtained some slight addition to

rank as a presidency, and Bombay

its

The change of policy thus

gamson.

its

indi-

now at the head of
was known to have

cated unhappily proved evanescent; and though Samliajee,
the Mahrattas, in consequence of the death of his father,
aggressive

designs on

Bombay,

its

gamson,

in Januar^^

1683, could barely

uuister 100 European.s, clamouring for additional ])ay as absolutely necessary to

furnish

them with the means of

mint at

a former occa.sion,

by obtaining letters-patent from the cro^vn for the e.stablisliment of a
Bombay, a measure which, however useful in itself, only increjised the

quantity of coin without giving them any larger share of
occasion

was

tiie

conqilaints were similarly treated

chiefly occupied with

;

and the

Company's

limits extended,

unlicensed trading.
it

was not only

to

it.

letter

On

the present

from home in

1

68+

announcing the erection of a court of admiralty, the

judge of which, appointed by royal commission,
tile

when

were made, the only step taken was to tantalize the cora-

similar complaints
plainers

On

subsistence.

and employ

In this airangement

become the

seat of the

it

was

to

retrench-

presi- ment.

court pause before proceeding further in their reckless career of

retrenchment.

tnjuaicious

have jurisdiction as far as

specially for the suppression of

Bombay was thus far interested, that
new court, but to be regarded in future

332
A

D. 1683

HISTORY OF INDIA.

[Book

as an independent English settlement, and the seat of the

power and

II

tra/le of

the English nation in the East Indies.
Kiigwins

While the court at home were conferring

magniloquent

this

an event had taken place which threatened to render

it

title

on Bombay,

a mockery.

Captain

Richard Keigwin, the commander of the gan-ison, in concert with Ensign Thorn-

bum

and

suddenly, on the 27th Decemljer, 1683, seized Mr. Ward, the

others,

deputy -governor, and the membei"S of council who adhered to him, and issued a
proclamation annulling the authority of the Comj)any, and declaring the island

under the protection of the King of England.

to be immediately

Dissatisfaction

with the treatment which he had received from Sir Josiali Child, and his

John

Mr., afterwards Sir

one as governor of the

who had

Child,

Company and

brotlier,

obtained a complete ascendency, the

the other as president of Surat and governor

Bombay, had tempted him to turn rebel, while the general discontent produced by the paltry reductions and other impolitic proceedings already adverted
of

made

soon

to,

the rebellion completely successful.

With comparatively few

when

assembled, approved of his

exceptions the garrison and the inhabitants,
conduct, and recognized

thus

in his hands.

him

It

The whole power

as governor.

not easy to see on what grounds he could have

is

imagined that his usurpation would receive any countenance in England
as if he

had been acting with the sanction of the crown, and with a

to its interests, he required all the inhabitants to

proceeded to administer the government in

its

single

renew their allegiance to

ships from Surat,

measiu-es which

the frenzy
so far

was

it

was thought would prove

at its height

alarming

About a mouth

at this

new

ships,

In the meantime

lavish promises of pardon
it

thej'

broke out President Child arrived with

and on finding from the

both on the island and among his

to his proposals, but

the}' arrived

danger, were glad to

_

made

homeward

vessel.

after the insurrection

Company's

and

began openly to fraternize with

j)iogress

three other

it,

ships, catcliing the infection,

ships to continue their voyage.

remained on board a country
Its

revolt,

When

effectual.

and the crews of the

;

The commissioners, alarmed

by allowing the

view

having on board commissioners authorized to take

from assisting in suppressing the

the revolters.
avert

it

but

;

Immediately on hearing

name.

of the insurrection President Child despatched three of the Company's

bound

was

of the island

was only

own
and

crews, that force

,

was out of the
Keigwin

redress of grievances.

to reject

them

;

and

which prevailed,

spirit

after

question,
listened

two months spent

in unavailing conferences, the president despatched the ships to England,

and

with his commissioners returned crest-fallen to Surat, leaving the revolters

still

masters of the island.
him,

drew up a

of York.

Keigwin, aware that appearances were

justification,

entirel}' against

which he transmitted to the king and the Duke

His principal pleas were that by the misconduct of the parties

trusted with the

management

was on the point of being

of the Compan}- at
lost,

home and

abroad,

in-

Bombay

and nothing but the energetic measures

KEIGWIN'S MUTINY.

CHAr. VT.|

which he had taken could have secured

its

333

continuance as a dependency of the ad.

low.

British crown.

On

Bombay

receiving intelligence of the

Keigwin had made

revolt,

to justify his proceedings, the

and of the attempt which

Company appointed

a com-

mittee of secrecy to communicate du-ectly with the crown, and take whatever

tioii by a
committee

°

*""*^^

In a report specially addressed to the

other measures might seem expedient.

king, they asserted that so for from acting penuriously with their officers
soldiers, their

inveatiga

and

pay and encouragements were superior to those which the Dutch

granted to their troops; that their president and governor had given every
indulgence to the garrison "compatible with the duty of rendering the revenues
equal to the charges of the establishment;" and that, since they had entered

expended the sum of £300,000 on

to possession of the island, they had
cations,

fortifi-

In conclusion, they

an excellent harbour, and other improvements

returned to an old complaint by blaming the interlopers as the main instigators
to the revolt,

endeavoured to arouse the jealousy of the king by reminding him

that the revolters had attacked his prerogative

crown
ture,

by questioning the

right of the

to give exclusive privileges of trade without the authority of the legisla-

and hinted that the

was rather owing

their powers,

from being caused by any undue use of

revolt, so far

to a defect in the })owers themselves,

which did

not permit them to deal summarily and effectually with delinquents.

During these proceedings in England, Keigwin continued not only

whom

main-

from Sambjijee,

tain his position, but obtained a recognition of his authority

with

to

he negotiated a treaty giving the privilege of free trade within the

Mahratta dominions.
considerable

sum due

More than
to the

this,

Sambajee consented to the payment of a

Company. This treaty and payment, together with

the alleged fact that the island was

now

entirely supported

by

its

own

revenue,

furnished Keigwin with plausible grounds for maintaining that his proceedings

had advanced the interests both of the crown and the Company.
.sible,

however, that he coiUd be listened to

England, with a commission under the
councils at Surat

and Bombay, and

;

and other three

ringleaders.

sar3^ President Child

As

it

commander of the Company's

and

to the commandei-s of the Compan3''s ships,

was

In the event of a

to be proclaimed to all except

seemed probable that

Thomas Grantham

ships rear-admiral.

were contemplated by them.
fill'

from

gi'eat seal, directed to the president

immediate occasion of these appointments,

ments, so

ofl'

force

Keigwin

would be

neces-

was appointed captain-general and admiral of the Com-

pany's sea and land forces, Sir

objects

was impos-

and despatches were sent

to take the necessary steps for the recovery of the island.

peaceable delivery, a general pardon

It

as related to the revolt,

it

vice-admiral,

Though the

and the senior
revolt

was the

will soon be seen that ulterior

Indeed, the necessity of these appoint-

had ceased before the knowledge of them

had reached India, Keigwin having in the interval agreed to deliver up the
island to Sir

Thomas Grantham, on

receiving a free pardon for him.self and his

suppression

mutiny

'^''^

A.D

1084.

JIISTOHV OF INI>I\,
In terms of this arrangement,

associates.

on the 19th of November, 1684.

In

tlie

[Book

11.

formally 8un-en«]ere<l

tlie i.^lanU \va.s

beginning of the following year a new

commenced by the death of Charles on 6th tV-bniary, 1685, and the accesof James II.
A great change in the policy <A' the Company immediately

i-eign

.sion

took place; but before tracing

it

it,

be proper to attend U) the

will

which had in the meanwhile been taking place

cllange.'^

in the other settlements of tin-

Company.
Notwithstanding the numerous obstructions to which the trade of the Com-

A temiits to
ciiiiiii

trade,

pany was subjected

m

the Eastern islands,

it

was determined

and Bantam, as the most convenient intermediate
allotted to it consisted of eight vessels,
tons.

The

spice trade

was

still

point, continued to engross a

In the season

considerable share of the annual investments.

to persevere,

still

amounting

1

676-77, the share

new

the great inducement, Vjut a

interest

been created by the prospect of establishing a factory in China.
it

3180

in the aggregate to

In that

had
case.

was supposed that Bantam would become the entrepot between China and
This purpose

India.

Bantam was under

it

was already serving

was

to be attempted,

charge of a person of

In this season, however, a direct

by sending a small

known prudence and

frustrated

by an

atrocity.

Amoy

vessel to

intelligence.

From

the expediency of adopting further steps might be judged

ment was
a number

and the agent of

;

orders to send annually, on the Company's account, tea of

the best quality to the value of 100 dollars.
intercourse

some extent

to

under the

his information,

This hopeful experi-

In April, 1677, Mr. \Miite, the agent, and

of the principal servants of the agency, while sailing

up the

river of

Bantam in tlieir boats, were waylaid by the natives and barbaroiLsly massacred
The king and his sons were suspected of complicity, but denied it, and promised
Whether they
to make every exertion to discover and punish the perpetrators.
did so is very doubtful, but the promise was all that the few survivors could
obtain.
The effect was a temporary extinction of the agency. In the subse
quent season
judicious.

new appointments were made, but they appear not

to

have been

Instead of attending to their proper duties the pei'sons appointed

neglected them, and spent their time in squabbling with each other.

circumstances trade languished, and before

which had been anticipated at

Amoy was

it

closed

could be revived the opening

by a Chinese

these discouragements, the only favourable incident

selves

civil

war.

Amid

was an overture from the
In more prosperous

Viceroy of Canton offering to admit the English to trade.
times

In such

would have been eagerly embraced, but the Company contented themwith returning a respectful answer, and requesting to know what privi-

it

leges of trade

would be mven

if

an Enijlish factorv were established at that

port.
Tra.ie\vith

In the scasou 1679-80, the prospect at Bantam had again brightened; for
three ships, carrying 1600 tons

despatched to

it.

and a stock of £69,000,

The inducement does not

clearly appear

chiefly bullion,
;

but from

its

were
being

TllANSACTIONS WITH BANTAM.

Chap. VI.

mentioned in

Eantam and
Icing

instructions that

tlie

the Dutcli,

it

war was

may have

a{)preliended

33:

between the King of

been anticipated that in the event of the

proving victorious, the Company, in pushing

tlieir

trade in that quarter,

would no longer have to encounter their most formidable competitors.
succeednig seasons

,.
the mvestments

from incidental allusions

it

to Jiantam

may be gathered

to

Amoy was

that
it

again accessible, but

it

still

was not

so

much on

its inferiority^ as

As

scale,

Virw OF C'.tSTus.— Fmiii

and assure him

granted, large ships with rich cargoes

The threatened war

A^-ith

Nit-uliof.

in

the

sea.son

])resents

that, if proj)er privileges

would annually

the Kinjj of

account

the viceroy of the latter

continued to profess friendship, instructions were given

him on a moderate

15.lMt.lIll

but

a trading station

1681-82 not only to renew the communication with him, but to make
to

Tr.i.Je«iti,

,

afforded for forming connections

Canton had become more and more apparent.

Genkr.vi.

In the

......
retained their importance,

-,,

of that port itself as of the facilities which

with China.

^^^^^ss

N'isit

Bantam and

were

his jiort

the Dutch

was now

All emb;ia.iy

sent by

about to become a

reality.

It

was

])robably with a

view to

it,

and the hope of

securing a powerful })rotector, that the king took the extraordinary step of

sending ainbassjidoi-s to England.
the king and

tiie

Comi)any.

ships carried out for

They

an-ived,

The only recorded

him a present of 500

and had interviews both with
result

is

that the Company's

barrels of gunpowder.

Before

it

war had been both becrun and ended. The Dutch, witii their usual
sagacity, had made the victory easy ])y exciting an internal dissension, and
giving their support to the winning ])arty.
The king's own son had been
induced to take up amis against him, and in 1G82 eftected a revolution which
an-ived the

gave him the throne.
|)any's factory.

This,

One of his first steps was to take possession of the Comwe may ]>resume. was done either at the instigation of

the Dutch or to gratify them; but he had soon cause to see that while he sup-

posed himself indebted to them for a thmne, they had only been using him
as their tool.

The whole power

wa,s already in their hands,

elapsed before they had proelainu-d tlu'niselvt>s absolute

and scarcely a year

n\a,<ters.

The Company.

itt

king to
Kiiglauil.

y

336
A. D 1680.

as

JIISTOKV OF INDIA.

[Hook

on former occasions of a similar description, clamoured loudly

II.

for redress;

and negotiations with that view were (»pened between the English govenirnent

and the

These, after promising much, proved abortive, and

States- general.

Company's connection with Bantam was

tht-

had lasted eighty

finally closed.

It

in the Persian

Gulf was threatened

years.
Trade

Aboiit

in ttio

tliis

time

tlie

Company's trade

At a very

With Similar extinction.

early

penod

in their history they

acquired a permanent revenue, independent of the profits of trade,

Gomberoon

half of the customs of

expel the Portuguese from Ormuz.

had here

by a grant

of

as a reward for assisting the Persians to

For a

series of years

they drew large sums

and at the same time carried on an extensive trade,
making advantageous exchanges of English and Indian goods .against the raw
by virtue of

silks

this grant,

and other produce of

Every new reign

Persia.

in that country-, however,

endangered both their revenue and their trade; and they would often have

abandoned the
ceased to carry

became
in the

had they not been aware that the moment they

latter altogether
it

on the former

also

more precarious than the

stiU

would be
trade,

and

])any's

un-

certain posi-

it

At

la.st

the revenue

continued annually to figure

Company's books under the name of arrears of customs at Gomberoon.

Again and again communications passed on
The Com-

forfeited.

this subject

between the court

home and the presidency at Surat.
The gi'cat question was how the Persian trade could be most
rcvived, and payment of arrears obtained.
At one time negotiation,
_

_

.

seemed expedient and the Company hung, as

force,

;

it

.

effectualh'
'

.

at another

were, su.spended between

the two, leaning sometimes to the one and sometimes to the other.

season

at

In the

675—76, the warlike tendency had so far prevailed that two of the ships

1

consigned to Surat were armed for service in the Persian Gulf; but before the
final

plunge was taken misgivings arose, and the conclusion arrived at was that

could 3000 tomands, equivalent to £9000 sterling per annum, be obtained I

Gomberoon customs,

treaty in lieu of the

This was

undoubtedly a very judicious

it

would be

far better to negotiate.

conclusion.

Negotiation

appears

accordingly to have been attempted, but unfortunately without success

1677-78,

we

find the

Company

;

for in

again agitating the question of peace or war

was only

with Persia, and again giving the preference to the former, though

it

hoped that instead of 3000, 1000 tomands might be recovered.

During the

following season the subject appears to have been overlooked, and in that

1679-80

it

is

mentioned only to record the desponding

(

i"

resolution, that unless

Gomberoon should be more advantageous than it had proved for
The very next year the court must
years it was to be relinquished

the trade at
several

have been agreeably surprised to learn that the aiTears which they had thus

begun

to regard as a desperate debt

by which the King

of Persia

had become the subject of a

special firman,

had ordered the payment of 1000 tomands as

their share of the customs for the previous year,

and that

their agent

was

in

1

on —
60

PROGRESS OF THE COMPANY.

Chap. VI.]

1000 tomands

ex[)ectation of receiving another

for the current year.

It

might

a.d.

i67o.

have been supposed that negotiation, which had already produced such gratifying results, would henceforth have the preference, and yet, strange to say, the

language

the court in regard to Persia becomes

<ji"

more warlike than ever

anid

;

Gomberoon was informed of " their determination
measures," a remonstrance was presented to the King of

683, while their agent at

in

1

to

adopt more spirited

The purport of

Persia himself

An7ials,

is

this

document, as analyzed by Mr. Bruce in his

"The

singular enough to be worth quoting.

stating their claims to his justice, which

singtiUr
gtrance

court," he says, "after Kingof"

was proverbially held

in

Em'ope to be

''^™''

unalterable," proceeded to inform his majesty, "that contrary to this justice his

ministers or officers at the port at which the English factories were settled, or
to

which

their ships resorted,

solemn treaties between
ence they prayed for
if

two countries

relief, yet,

;

trade, in direct violation of

that though with respectful defer-

possessing a naval

power which was

such relief should be withheld by his ministers and

so great

and

officei"s,

unrivalled,

they trusted that

so just a prince would, instead of considering that naval force

which they employed
it

tiie

had obstructed their

for their ])rotection as disrespectful to his dignity,

view

only as a necessary expedient for re.storing the amicable relations between

Persia and England."

The high-flown compliment paid

however undeserved, may pass as an orientalism
ludicrous than the description of their naval

request that he

;

to the shah's justice,

but nothing can be more

power as "unrivalled," and

would consider the employment of

their

against liim as only a

it

"necessary expedient" for restoring "amicable relations."

For the unsatisfactory

state of matters at

Company had some compensation
at

Madras and

in Bengal.

m

Bantam and Gomberoon, the
I'll
which they continued to make
Dutch on Bombay had shown
•

tlie progi-ess

The attempt of the

1

1

the necessity of preparing for a similar attem})t on Fort St. George, and the

works had been so strengthened as to be capable of a vigorous

resistance.

The

expense was, as usual, a subject of complaint in the letter from the court;

1676 special instructions were given that no new buildings should be
])roceeded with, until ])lans and estimates were sent home and returned

and

in

approved.

This was undoubtedly the regular course, but the emergency justified

and subsequent events proved that the expenditure on fortifiSevajee, during an irruption into the Caniatic,
cations had been wisely made.

the neglect of

it,

had passed within a short distance of
tliat notliing

but

its

Madi-iis,

strength preserved

Sm-at had more than once experienced.
he had permanently fixed himself in

its

it

and there

so

by land

much

By

his capture of

vicinity

;

T.

Gingee and Vellore,

and nothing therefore could
it

exposed to an attack,

Indeed, in the verj' next season, the court had become

alive to the importance of Fort St.

their property
VoT.

or sea.

reason to presume

from treatment similar to that which

have been more imprudent than to leave any portion of
either

is

George as a place of security

for

and servants, that they virtually withdrew the censure they had
43

Progress of
*'"*

(^om-

pany at

HISTORY OK INDIA.

838
A.D.

107(J

[Book

II.

previously passed, and ordered the

commanders of

ships consigned to the Coro-

many

large stones at

Johanna (one of the Comoro

niandel coast, " to take in as

Isles; as

iLsed

they could stow, to be

f<jr

the

might be placed

fort, tiiat it

a

of

state

.sufficient

again.st

building of the
in

defence

any enerny."

Meanwhile the subject of
revenue was

uppermost

still

minds of the

the

court,

in

and

they never omitted an occasion
of inculcating the necessity of
increasing

and

it,

proposing

Among

plans for this purpose.

these the first which suggested
Fort of R.\je Giiur, Ginoee —Daniell's Oriental

itself

.'nnnal.

was a house

tax,

with a

view to which a siu-vey was to
Plans for

be made of

all

the houses at Madras, both in the Portuguese and black towns.

increasing

revenue.

In anticipation of the discontent which this tax, and a duty imposed on
of consumption,

who

"those

would produce, the authorities were instructed

must

lived under the English protection

by which that protection was maintained."

similar to the one

King

Bombay

;

the object of the

all

The inducement

£100,000.

Company was not merely

more than

to procure the

Progress of

the

Com-

pany in

so

to depositors

six per cent.

means

much

;

and

of purchasing

but to form a stock which would enable the agency

rates,

ing the very humble scale of the proposed bank,

how

mint at Madras,

dependencies to counterbalance the influence of the Dutch.

its

to

merely to receive deposits for a limited time,

of interest at the rate of not

goods at the cheapest

and

The one was

required.

of Golconda to establish a

an amoimt not exceeding in

was the payment

was

the other was to institute a bank, not, however,

in the full sense of the term, but
to

contriljute to the charges

which had already, by the authority of the English monarch,

been established at

and

to explain that

There were two other plans of

increasing the revenue, for which less apology

obtain authority from the

articles

should have been expected from

it is difficult

Consider-

to understand

it.

The progress of the Company's trade in Bengal was at this period considerThe principal factory was still Hooghly, to which several others Balaable.

—were subordinate.

Bengal.

sore,
1

Cossimbazar, Dacca, Malda, and Patna

674<-75 the whole

of India

amount of

was £202,000.

have been suspected that

would prove

were authorized to increase

ment purchased was

In the season

stock, principally bullion, sent to the eastern coast

Of this, £65,000 was destined
it

—

it

to consist

insufficient,

for Bengal.

It

seems to

and accordingly the

factors

The

invest-

by taking up £20,000 at interest.
chiefly of silks and taffetas of a

fine quality,

"

Chap. VI.

and

PROGRESS OF THE COMPANY.

339

1

salti)etre.

Should any

money

sui'plu.s

remain,

was

it

employed

to be

purchasing white sugar, cotton yarn, tm-meric, and bees'- wax, merely to
spare tonnage.

from

maximum,

its

in 1680-81

it

up

In the two following years the amount of the investment was

nearly the same; but in 1677-78
far

fill

in a.d mm.

and was

were permitted to increase

as the factors

amounted

rose to £100,000,

it

to £150,000,

considered

still

it

by borrowing

and in the following season

to £230,000,

distributed as follows:— £140,000 to Cossimbazar, £14,500 to Patna, £32,000
to Balasore,

£15,000 to Malda, and £12,000

Bengal had been subordinate to Fort

remain at HooMily.

George, but

St.

it

Hitherto

was now considered of

importance to constitute a distinct and independent agency.

sufficient

Hedges,

to

who had been

a meml^er of the

management

England, was sent out

in

with special powers to be agent and governor of the Company's

affairs in Bengal.

His establishment, however, appears to have been on a very humble
his guard, restricted to

twenty

and courage," were to peiform

soldiers

under

scale, as

a corporal of approved fidelit}-

duty of ]n-otecting the

in addition the double

Hooghly and acting against the

factory at

"

Mr.

interlojiers.

In consequence of the erection of Bengal into a separate agency, vessels

were despatched direct from England to the Ganges, and on a

shows that the importance of the trade in
ciated.

size of

Beiig,ii.

was now duly appre-

In 1682-83, one of the vessels carried thirty guns; another was of the

700

empowered

tons,

to

£350,000

;

and

borrow £200,000, which, with the unemployed stock and credit

was expected

hoyies

for

investment of

were held out that the stock of the ensuing season would

realized, serious difficulties

by the unexj^ected

sum

to yield a pre.sent

to £600,000, principally in bullion.

Company with

The agent was

which was rather unusual at this period.

of the former season,

amount

this quarter

which

scale

Extent of

failure

These hopes, however, were not

having arisen both at home and abroad

—at home

of .several large houses which used to sup])ly the

bullion for ex])ort

and abroad by the

;

loss of

one of the outward

bound ships with i.70,000 of bullion on board, the capture of Bantam
Dutch, and the imposition of

new and

liy

heavier customs in Bengal, together with

the discovery of irregularities in the Company's factories in that pro\nnce.

consequence of

all

the

In

these untoward events a panic began to prevail, and a run

took place on the Company's treasury- threatening

with insolvency.

Instead,

therefore, of providing foreign investments, the court resolved in the

meantime

to reserve all

it

the produce of their sales for the pajTuent of their debts, and

neither to send bullion to India nor
these debts were licjuidated.

With

dation, all the settlements abroad

make any dividend

to their ]>roprietoi-s

the view of facilitating this process of liqui-

were placed on the lowest possible

scale

Bengal, which had begun to act as an independent agency, wa-s again

subordinate to Madras.

was thus shorn of
great addition to

its
its

Somewhat

till

inconsistently, at the very thne

when

;

and

made

Benn-al

independence, the court were seriously contemplatino- a

importance by endeavouring to

actjuii-e

possession of an

state of

th..

LTi!"^*

340
A,i). io»6.

OF INDIA.

IILSTOJIV

island in the moutii of

tlie

Ganges.

cations were to be immediately

Could such an acquisition be made,

commenced.

the Company's establishments in Bengal

when Charles

with the Mogul

HE

Duke

of York,

— Disastrous

employ

A

favour.

and
Change in
the

it

all

II.

— Hostile

— War

preparations

results.

now James

shareholder in the Company, and
to

died

II.

Yll,

Company's policy on the accession of James

in the

fortifi-

Such was the dubious position of

OHAPTEK
Marked change

[Book H.

II.,

had been a considerable

was understood

to be willing

the power and influence of the crown in their

new

was hence

course of prosperity

anticipated,

soon became apparent that the moderation and caution

deemed

hitherto manifested were no longer

necessary.

The

interlopers

were

Com-

pany's
policy.

henceforth to be proceeded against with a rigour which, while admitted to be

most

desirable,

had previously been deemed

impolitic.

In England prosecutions

were immediately to be commenced in the Comi, of King's Bench against no

who were charged with
and several of whom, it was

Com-

fewer than forty-eight individuals,

violating the

pany's exclusive privileges,

supposed, would be

unable to

make any

effectual defence, because the statements contained in then-

petitions to the king

were to be

the judge- advocate established at

laid hold of as admissions of guilt.

Bombay was

law established in the British army, that
in trying the

commanders and

and council were

officers of

it

In India

furnished with the code of martial

might become the rule of

his conduct

the interloping ships and the president
;

specially enjoined not to perplex themselves

with questions as

to the legality of the proceedings, but to be careful in providing that the sen-

by the judge should be

tences pronounced

carried into execution.

The Company

must have been aware that the outcry which had been raised against them would
thus become more clamorous than ever

;

but they acted as

if

they had imbibed

the spirit of the last of the Stuarts, and were resolved, if they could not conciliate public opinion, to set it at defiance.

Company
claim to be
independent in
power.

In a similar

spii'it,

the native powers were no longer to be addressed in sub-

Company would henceforth
and when aggrieved would, if neces-

missive petitions, but given to understand that the
treat with
sary,

as

them

as

an independent power,

compel redress by force of arms.

much

as it expressed, the

Company

them

to appoint their president. Sir

of

their forces

all

by

sea

and

To show that

this

haughty tone meant

obtained the king's patent, authorizing

John

Child, " captain-general

and admiral

land, in the northern parts of India,

from Cape

WAELIKE SCHEMES.

Chap. VIT.l

341

To give effect to this appointment, he wa.s to
fix the seat of government at Bombay, while Surat was to be reduced to a simple
factory and he was to maintain a kind of state, by the attendance of a guaid
Comorin

to the Gulf of Persia."

ad.

icss.

;

of English grenadiers
It

under the command of an ensign with the rank of captain.

was presumed that the removal

to

Bombay would

government, but under the new policy

this

give umbrage to the Mogul

was a very secondary consideration,

Sambajee and the native princes generally, were to

as not only the Mogul, but

Company had now

be given to understand that the

Bombay an impregnable

in

from which they woidd be able to retaliate at sea for any exactions and

retreat,

This was no empty

depredations to which they might be subjected on shore.

menace, for the same vessel which carried out the above pubhc instructions,
carried others of a

more important

still

nature, tran.^mitted from a secret com-

mittee, with the approbation of the king,
till

the

moment

for acting

An armament
out had

.sailed

to seventy

on a

upon them had

far larger scale

from England.

and intended not

than the Company had ever before

It consisted of ten .ships,

guns each, and carrying as

ships,

a

fleet of

nineteen

north-east side of the

fying

it

On

was Bengal.

many

five per cent,

as,

mountnig from twelve
with those which were

make 1000

regular infantry.

was

Its

to effect a landing at Chittagong, on the

of Bengal, and take permanent possession of

mounting 200 cannons upon

in the best manner,

and levying

troops

fitted wariiko

arriving there, and forming, with the Company's

sail, it

Bay

made known

arrived.

ordered to join them on their arrival, would
destination

to be

customs on the inhabitant.s.

it,

The

it,

forti-

establishing a mint,

possibility of a failure

The instructions, accordingly, presuming a complete success, enter into a number of minute details for the purpose
of regulating future proceedings.
After Chittagong was captured and made
secure, and all Mogul ships of every description had been seized and declared

.seems never to

have been contemplated.

was

up the eastern branch of the Ganges
against Dacca.
Supposing, as a matter of course, that the nabob and his troops
would immediately save themselves by flight, peace was to be offered to him on
lawful prizes, the expedition

to proceed

the following conditions: that he should cede the city

gong

to the

and

Company, and pay the debts he owed them

;

teiritory of Chitta-

that

lie

the loipees coined at Chittagong to pass current in his district,
privileges according to ancient firmans.

ships

and property

respective losses

seized,

should allow

and

restore all

Should he claim restitution of the

he was to be told that the parties were to bear their

and expenses

diu'ing the

war

;

and

that,

while these were the

most favourable terms which the Company were disposed to concede, even these

would not be binding upon them, unless they were

ratified

and embodied

in a

regular treaty by the Great Mogul.

As if a
commence

war were not enouiih at one time, the armament was also
hostilities with the King of Siam, and seize his vessels by way
single

compensation for the

losses

which the Company had sustained

to siam

of

in his dominions.

t« bo

HISTOID' OF INDIA.

•JJ-S

AD

iiisu

Nor was
and
at

if

The Portuguese were

tliis all.

Bombay was

along with

not only to

them, but to employ the

refu.se

and other dependencies, which

and island of Bombay ought

it.

'^11

proved bv the

re.sult.

On

were prematurely commenced.

up a

have canied

to

itsell''

soldiers in the bazaar at

was

si£rnall\.
O

Hooghly, hos-

The nabob's troops were

a cannonade of the Company's

An

or submit their differences to arbitration.

impossible,

defeated,

and

Before this

fleet.

amicable settlement

and indeed was not desired by the Company, who had made

of claims exceeding in the aggregate £500,000 sterling,

list

was

Khan, the nabob, was disposed to compromise matters with the

event, Shaistah

was now

by

suffered severely

Company,

it

the 28th October, 1686, in consequence of a quarrel

between three English and some native

Hooghly

and military

fleet

Xlic extravagancc
of these schemes, sufficiently aT)T)arent in
°

tilities

:

they continued to exact customs at Tanna and Caranja, the president

asserted that the grant of the port

gance of
theschemes.

II.

to be dealt with aftei- a similar fashion

forces at his disposal in seizing Salsette

Kxtrava-

[Book

and were

indulging the hope that by their warlike succe.sses a considerable portion of

might be secured

for their treasury,

though they must have been aware that

many of the items charged were fictitious, or at least conjectural As
men the following may be mentioned
" For detaining ye agent with
:

at Cassumbuzar, 400,000 rupees'

—

rupees

'

'To demorage
"

(£200,000).

a speci-

ye silk

"For what extorted from us

(£40,000).

presents, &c., 200,000 rupees" (£20,000).
last years, 2,000,000

it

in

of shipping, the three

For charge of 1000 men and twenty

ships for ye war, also 2,000,000 rupees" (£200,000;.
Their failure.

Immediately

after the attack

on Hooghly, the Moguls, pretending

to be

intimidated, but merely with the view of gaining time, obtained a cessation of

during which the servants of the

hostilities,

Company removed with

their pro-

perty from that town, and on 20tli December, 1686, fixed on Chuttanuttee, or

How

Calcutta, as a safer station while negotiations were pending.
issue soon

seized

became apparent

;

for the nabob,

upon the English factory

at Patna,

Company now became

prospects of the

making no

these

would

secret of his intentions,

and imprisoned

all

the inmates.

sufficiently alarming.

The

The prematm-e

made the Moguls aware of what was intended the subsequent delay
had enabled them to complete their preparations; and it had become impos.sibIe
to disguise the fact, that the armament which had been pro^dded was inadequate
attack had

;

Chittagong could not be attacked with any probability of

to its object.

In pi'oportion

to the extravagance of the hopes

the despondency produced
first

took alarm.

by

failure.

the same
career,

fate.

What

;

^Ir. Gj'fford,

that of Golconda

then was to prevent

and advancing upon Madras?

tion to Bengal,

which had been entertained was
the president of Madras,

Aurungzebe's army was approaching.

quered the kingdom of Bejapoor

had been

left

Fort

St.

success.

it

It

had already con-

was on the point of sharing

from continuing

its

victorious

George, to reinforce the expedi-

almost entirelv without a garrison and without

"

NEW

Chap. VII.]

Thus unprovided with the means of

military stores.

no safety

for

343

PLANS.

except in negotiation.

it

cation with the Mogul,

With

this

defence, the president

saw

.v.d.

xm.

view he opened a communi-

and by means of various flimsy excuses

for the hostilities

U..^^

'WAS AWVVMS^.

Mi

Pat.sa.

'

— From Darnell's Views in India.

luimMy deprecated his dis})leasure, and prayed for a confirmation of
the privileges which Madras had so long enjoyed.
The court at home, never dreaming of the gloomy aspect which affairs had

rombay anu

assumed, continued to busy themselves with their schemes of aggrandizement,

foi-moa into

in Bengal,

and the various changes wliich might become necessary by the accomplishment
of them.
to the

In imitation of the Dutch at Batavia and Colombo, they raised

rank of a regency, and declared their wish that

and money could make

.strong as art

Child,

who

presided at

settlements in India.
raised to the

governor of the

The

was

to

As

should be fortified " as

the seat of government, Sir

have unlimited power over

all

John

the Company's

Madras, too, though subordinate to Bombay, wjis

al.so

rank of a regency, and at the same time (1687) received a charter

of incorporation.

council.

it,

it."

it

Bombay

Before this charter was granted the governor and deputy-

Company were commanded

subject of the intended charter

to attend his majesty at the cabinet

was then

only question whicli appears to have excited
charter should pass immediately

common

by the

much

largely debated, though the
interest

was

—whether the

king, under the great seal, or whether

One member of council
argued in favour of the former method, but the governor, when the king asked
his opinion, replied as follows:
"What his majesty thought best the Company

it

should pass under the

seal of the

Company.

—

woidd always think
opinion, he

so; but if his majesty expected the governor's

had ever been of opinion, that no person

by immediate commission from
prejudicial to

oiu' service

by

in India should be emploj-ed

his majesty, because if they

their arrogancy,

and

private

were they woiUd be

prejudicial

to themselves,

because the wind of extraordinary honour in their heads would probably

them

so

haughty and overbearing that we should be forced

to

make

remove them.

^^^^^'''^

344>

A.I), loss.

TliLs

view of the matter so

common

the

natives),

who were

fai-

])eriod

thi.s

when

silk

was

charter the coq)oration

t<»

and wear thin

gowas,

silk scarlet

gowns.

was granted, the population of the city of
George, and the villages within the Company s

St.

bounds was estimated at 300,000.
at a quit-rent of 1200 pagodas, or

and

;

to paas under

this charter

town of Fort

could not be disputed

was made

II.

Company's servants and seven

(tiiree

to be justices of the peace,

M;i(lriui.

Madi-as, the

Under

and ten aldermen

and of 1 20 burgesses with black

At the

fTV>0K

prevailed, that tlie charter

Company.

seal of the

consist of a niay(;r

Tenure of

or india.

IFls'I"()l;^

The whole was held of the King of
about £430.
The obligation to pay

Company under

yet, as if the

their

Golcond;i
this

sum

new policy had

considered themselves entitled to dispense with justice wherever force could
effect their object, tliey

future

payment

as not to
lease or

to

caused intimation to be

him would depend on

become an annoyance

to

Fort

farm to the Company, the

his

made

keeping

St.

Thom^

If he

George.

St.

king that

to the

in such a

would not

president, " as repre.senting

theii-

manner
on

let it

an independent

power, was not only to refuse pajonent of the quit-rent, but to declare the place
the property of the Company.

For the gross fraud and violence thus propo.sed

'

to

be perpetrated, the only justification attempted was that the King of Golconda's

sion

on

much

by the victories of the Mogul, and his expulfrom Masulipatam by the Dutch," and that "it was impracticable to can-y
"

power had been

decreased

maintain a seat of government without revenue."

trade, or

Such were the

Machiavellian principles shamelessly advocated by the court in their

lettei-s

to

Madras in the season 1687-88.

When

Continued

the failure of the expedition to Bengal was annoimced in England,

Wtir witli

the Mogul

the court, instead of attributing

it

to the tortuous policy

which they had begun

to pursue,

were ungenerous enough to throw the whole blame on their

in India.

The agency of Bengal were censured

with having

for their timid conduct, charged

own ends, regardless of the honour and
king and Company who had confided in them, and threatened

selfishly

interests of the

ser\'ants

pursued their

with expulsion from the service

war should not be

if,

by

accomplished.

willing to abandon; and therefore,

Defence, under the

command

their sinister schemes, the objects of the

These objects the Company were not

when

\'et

despatching a large ship, called the

of Captain Heath, and a small frigate, fully

armed, and carrying a reinforcement of

1

60

soldiers, to assist in

the war, the}'

intimated their determination that "imless a fortification and a district around
it

should be ceded, to be held as an independent sovereignty, the charges of the

armament

1

)e

defrayed,

and permission

to coin

and nabob's dominions, be

in the Mogul's

a peace, or send

any more stock or goods

money in

gi'anted,

Bengal, to pass cuiTent

they would not consent to

to the Ganges."

These boastings and

menaces become ludicrous when viewed in connection with the actual position
of

affairs,

whom

the

and only

]n-oclaim the ignorance, presumption,

home management

of the

Company was

and

foll}^

of those to

at this time intrusted

;

TORTUOUS POLICY.

VII.]

('.(AP.

345

Captain Heath arrived in Bengal in October, 1688, and, proceeding to act

a.d. ios9.

on instruction.s which had become altogether inappUcable to the circumstances,

embarked the Company's property at Calcutta, and then proceeded

to Balasore

rroceedings
in the

Roads.

The members of the

(Jai)tain

Heath, though he opened a negotiation with the governor, was too

had been seized and imprisoned; but

factory there

imi)atient to wait for the result of

Having

it.

effected a landing, he captured

By

a battery of thirty guns, and then plundered the town.
gained

who were

this proceeding he

and threw away the only chance of obtaining the English

little,

now amounting

fleet,

negotiation,

was

prisoners,

From

carried off into the interior to endure a hopeless Cciptivity.

Balasore he proceeded to Chittagong; but in.stead of attacking
ecpiipped

and then

to fifteen

sail,

set sail for Aracan.

it

with his well-

he spent some days in

It

The

ajiplication,

fruitless

was supposed that as the king

at enmity with the ]\logul, a locality for a fortified settlement

easily obtained.

Hay

of Bengal.

might be

however, was refu.sed; and Captain Heath,

an ineffectual attempt to secure his object by corn-ting the alliance of a

after

rebel chief, finally quitted the Bengal coast,

March,

689.

1

On

board the

fleet

was

all

and arrived at Madras on the 4th of
that

now remained

to the

Company

of the wreck of their once flourishing factories in Bengal.

On

the west coast of India the results were not

intimation of the warlike policy of the

committee in a

secret

marked

to be

more

satisfactory.

The

fii'st Tortuou.s
policy of

Company was commvuiicated by

letter to President Child,

the

intended for his eye alone, but

opened in his absence by Sir John Wyborae, deputy-governor of

The president was absent, and Sir John not onl}' opened the letter,
but imprudently communicated the contents to the council. The secret was of
a kind not likely to be kept, and great alarm was felt lest it should reach the
Bombay.

ears of the governor of Surat.

of the

This was altogether contrary to the intentions

Company, who were bent on canying out a

gi'eat

scheme of fraud by

making sudden war on the Mogul in one quarter of his dominions, when they
were delutling him with professions of friend.ship in another.
In Bengal his
territory

was

to be invaded,

and

his ships

and those of

lawful prizes, not only there, but in the eastern seas

and

his subjects seized as

in the Pei-sian Gulf

while on the west coast of India, and particularly at Surat, a

was

to be worn,

This nefarious

able.

John

Child,

who

hostilities

it,

mode

off so long as

of friendship

concealment might seem desir-

of warfare excited no scruples in the

at once entered into the spirit of

"a high
the Company," by

expresses
of

and not thrown

mask

it,

mind

and discovered, as Bnice

sense of duty, and a provident concern for the interests

resolving not only to keep

with the Mogul

till

up the deception and avoid

the result of the Bengal expedition should be

known, but even "should circumstances oblige him
take the responsibility on himself"

The meaning

to

commence

is,

that he

ho.stilities,

was

Vol.

I.

to

to act as a

and enable them, should the war prove unsuccessful, to
utter disregard of ti-uth and honour, that he had acted without their

screen to the Comj)any,
allege, in

of Sir

44

tlio

company,

346
A.D. 1C89.

JIJSTORY OF INDIA.
In the

authority.

apparently as

if

supposed, thei-efore, Sir

ca.se

[Book

John Child was

to

l;e

II.

treated

he had incurred the displeasuie of the Company, and they were

by negotiating with the Mogul
and trade, upon the same basLs as they

to follow out the wretched sy.stem of duplicity
" for the restoration of their privileges

were anterior
Came

At

of

tliis

apparently unwise proceedings."

to his

game

of deceit

was not easy

it

to overmatch the Mogul,

Company's experience ere long furnished a new
that "honesty

At

first

is

the best policy."

Sir

and the

illastration of the old a^lage,

John Child di-sjjlayed considerable dexterity.

he despatched two of the Company's ships to Mocha and Bu.ssorah, and

two others

to China,

they might

fall in

with secret orders to

seize all the

At the same time he

with.

Mogul

or Siamese vessels

de.spatched a ship to Surat to

mouth of the estuary, and endeavour if possible to bring off all the
members and property of the factory. The governor of Sm-at was too well
informed, and too much on the alert to be thus imposed upon.
Without prolie off

the

ceeding to acts of violence, he kept sucli a strict watch that the escape of the

agent and factors was impracticable.
Child tried the effect of
port of Bombay.

Craft being thus unavailing, Sir

and suddenly

force,

The governor,

affecting

John

seized all the Surat ships in the

an intimidation wliich he did not

him with a complimentary letter, in
which he expressed an anxious wish to come to an accommodation, and to know
what terms would satisfy the Company, and induce them to resume trade. The
sent one of the English factors to

feel,

factor returned to Surat with a statement of grievances, comprising thirty-five
articles, including,

inter alia, satisfaction for stoppage of goods at the custom-

house, for the obstruction of investments, for the demurrage of vessels detained,
for the refusal to deliver

from 2 to 3^ per

up

and

their ships, for the raising of customs

the refusal of permission to coin money, for the impo-

cent., for

sition of arbitrary taxes,

interlopers

and the

seizure of horses

and goods

for the Mogul's

use without paying for them.
Capture of

was retm'ned to these propositions. Captain Andrews,
commanding one of the ships which had been sent to the Persian Gulf, returned
to Bombay, bringing with liim an interloping ship and six Mogul vessels, which
Before any answer

were

sailing

under Dutch

These captures speedily becoming known,

colom^s.

put an end to the trick of concealing actual

any further attempt

and

therefore,

without

John Child despatched two large ships to
Mogul vessels that should be met with, and also
it should attempt to cross the bar with the view

at disguise, Sir

Surat, with orders to seize all
to attack the Siddee's fleet, if

of putting out to sea.
Svu-at,

hostilities,

During these proceedings a new governor arrived at

and professed such friendly

request of the agent,

made

feelings, that Sir

his appearance

John

off Sm-at,

Cliild, at

the urgent

and succeeded, as he

thought, in negotiating a provisional convention on the basis of his thirty-five
articles.

Though

the Compan}^,

these

now

fell far

short of

what had

alive to the difficulties in

at one time been anticipated,

which their fraud and

folly

had

I

—

DISAPPOINTMENTS.

Chap. VII.]

347

involved them, were so delighted at the prospect of a treaty with the Mogul,
that they voted the president a present of 1000 guineas, as a

mark

a.d. imo.

of approba-

wisdom of his pi'oceedings dm'ing the war, and for his general services.
The vote was afterwards discovered to have been premature. The
governor of Simit had merely begim to play his part in the game of deceit,
tion for the

and

in order to gain

time had professed a willingness to accept of terms which

he was determined to repudiate.
tlian

No

sooner, therefore,

was

his object secured,

he threw off the ma.sk of friendship, again imprisoned the members of the

factory, confiscated all the

the person of Sir

John

outwitted, returned to

Company's property, and

The

Child, alive or dead.

offered a large

reward

for

president, thus completely

Bombay, and found no other means of avenging himself

than by capturing forty vessels of a large

fleet of

Mogul merchantmen.

Though the prospect of an amicable termination had now become hopeless,
one effort more was made by sending a deputation to Aurungzebe himself, who
was then encamped witli his
army at Bejapoor.
Meanwhile, Sir John Child found

Di^vpointmciiU.

himself so completely powerthat he

less,

prevent

was unable

inakinof

upon the

from

Siddee

the

to

several

descents

island,

and even

threatening an attack upon
the castle of Bombay.

He

had no

the

to

spirit

face

r

gathering storm, and died

on
1

the

690.

of

•ith

Had

Street of the Fountains, Bi;jAroun

-V .^'v*.-'*.

'

— Kroin drawing in Esist India House.

Februar}-,

he lived a few weeks longer, he would have seen the

Company

in

a more humiliating position than he had ever contemplated as possible; for
shortly after, Aurungzebe's answer to the deputation which

him arrived

had been sent

to

in the form of a firman, couched in the following terms:

" All the English havino-

made a most humble, submissive

petition, that the ignominious
1*68 ulu.

crime they have done

make

may

be pardoned, and re(iuested another phirmaund, to

their being forgiven manifest,

palace, the

most

and sent

their hakkeels to the heavenly

illustrious in the world, to get the royal favour

;

and Ettimaund

Caun, the governor of Sm-att's petition to the famous court, equal to the

skie,

being arrived, that they would present the great king with a fine of 150,000
rupees, to his

most noble treasury, representing the

merchants' goods they had taken

away

to the

sun,

and would

restore the

owners of them, and would walk

by the ancient customs of the port, and behave themselves for the future no
in such a shameful manner; therefore his majestv, according to his duty

7"~^""

Lmore

"

'

HISTORY OF INDIA.

348

AD

1090.

II.

forgiven tliem, and out of his princely condescension agrees, that the present

put into the treasury of the port, the

and they follow

flourish,

their trade, as in fonner times

While the Company were

Effectsof the

bitter fruits

piof their

great patron

James

Revohition

11.

thus,

This order

by a kind

•

policy,

who

Child,

did

irreversible."

is

o

i

^

another calamity had befallen them.

Their

had been driven from the throne which he unwortiiily

ecclesiastical despotism,

Company

and Mr.

;

of jast retribution, reaping the

i

The Revolution, which saved the

occupied.

and

war

i

Ije

goods be returned, the t<jwn

inercliants'

he turned out and expelled.

tlie disgrace,

of 1088.

[Book

liberties of the nation

was no doubt eminently favourable

from

to trade

civil

but

;

They held a monopoly
which a powerful party were bent on wresting from them, and they had themthe

unfortunately stood in a false position.

much odium by

selves incurred

the rigorous and despotic mea.siu-es which they

had adopted

in maintaining their exclusive privileges.

wonderful

in these circumstances, while they

fied

if,

It

would not have been

were regarded as almost

with the dynasty which had just been expelled, they had

The Company, though
The

spirit of

.shared its fate.

fully alive to the danger, did not lose heart, but re.solved

no means untried that promised

to leave

identi-

to avert

it.

freedom evoked during the struggle with the

last of the Stuarts,

was naturally taken advantage of by the opponents of the Company and no
sooner had William and Mary been seated on the throne, than it was boldly
;

maintained that the crown had exceeded

its

powers in granting exclusive pnvi-

leges of trade, without the consent of the other branches of the legislature.

This

on the solution of which the very existence of the Company evidently

(question,

much longer delayed. It was not to be expected that,
while thus existing only by a kind of reprieve, they would venture on any large
expenditure in new and hazardous enterprises, or even continue their equip-

depended, could not be

ments on

their previous scale.

two

ships,

them destined

of

for

In the season

1

689-90, they sent out only three

Bombay, and one

same time, when they were thus curtailing
exertions to increase their revenue; and,

still

for

Fort

their trade, they

Aspirations

revenue

ing tcrms
trade

:

:

"tis

our trade:

"

The

object of our revenue

that must maintain our force
that

'tis

trade where nobody of power thinks
it

is

it

that the wise Dutch, in

seen, write ten
policy, warfare,

when twenty

by

Bombay

concerning trade."

in the foUow-

much

in India: "vvithout

may intennipt
that we are but

his majesty's royal charter,

their interest to prevent us
all their

;

to be established

partly explained

by the change

fit

only to

and upon

general ad\'ices w^hich
civil

this

we have

and military

their revenue, for one paragraph they wi-ite

This language, which certainly sounds strange in a

which professed

as cm-

accidents

paragraphs concerning their government, their

and the increase of

made strenuous

the subject of our care as

must make us a nation

as a great nation of interlopers, vmited

account

is

the

clinging to the idea of becoming an

independent Indian power, addressed the presidency of

—

At

George.

St.

Company

"on a purely mercantile bottom," may be

wdiich

had taken place

in Evu'opean politics.

"

The

NEW COMPANY.

PETITION FOR A

Chap. VII.]

3*9

wise Dutch," whose conduct, after having been so often the subject of ad.

bitter vituperation,

now

eulogized as a model, were

is

1093.

in close alliance with

England; while France, which had been rapidly acquiring power and influence

warwith
Franco.

in the East,

had become

their

common enemy.

was

issue of the hostilities, it

Wliatever might be the ultimate

scarcely possible, while they continued, to carry

Both in the East and in Europe, French privateers were

on a profitable trade.

on the watch to make prizes of the Company's

was

It

ships.

therefore easy to

represent the curtailed equipments as the result of prudential arrangements,

and

make revenue a primary

to justify the resolution to

The accom-

object.

plishment of this object, however, was attended with considerable

At Bombay taxation had already been
In Fort

insurrection.

St.

carried to an extent

difficulty.

which had produced

George a similar result was threatened

but the court,

;

listening only to their necessities, lield that the additional revenue actually

obtained was " by no means e(]ual to what might have been expected, or drawn

from a

fortified

that the

town which could

amount might be

and

afford protection to shipping

annum,

increased to £100,000 per

of taxation should be introduced with that which the

if

trade,

and

a similar system

Dutch had established

at

Batavia."

The opposition

to the

Company had now assumed

a definite shape, by the

])resentation of a petition to the

House of Commons, praying

sanction to the establishment of a

new company, formed on more

ciples.

From

on the 16th of January,
the East India trade,
this to

for legislative indiaCom-

the causes already mentioned, the petitioners found

and a committee was appointed who,

is

to have

it

liberal prin-

much

favour,

after fully hearing both parties, reported

way

16i)0, that, in their opinion, " the best

in a

new company and

be established by act of parliament; but that

a

to

new joint

till

this

exclusive trade shoidd remain with the present Company."

manage

stock,

and

was done, the

Parliament was

prorogued before this report could be taken into consideration, but in 1691 the
resolution of the committee

was

virtually sanctioned l)y an address

which the

House of Commons presented to the crowni. After this decided step, the Company became convinced that their privileges would never be secure until they
were confirmed by statute. To this object, accordingly, their domestic ])olicy
was henceforth more especially devoted. In a petition to parliament they set
forth their claims at full length,

and ultimately gained what they justly

consi-

dered a victory, because the adverse decision previously given against them was
not repeated

;

and the House of Commons, as

if satisfied

that they had hitherto

acted in the matter with some degree of precipitation, simply referred the whole
business to the king.

assured that even

if

This was just what the

argument shoidd

the favour of government
.

cious nature.

What

fail,

Company

they had

it

desired, for

in their

power

they

necessary only to mention the result

—

that,

;

felt

to conciliate

by the emplojTiient of other means of a more

these were will shortly appear

Petition for

eflica-

but in the meantime

it is

on the 7th of October, 1693, the

-""'^

HISTORY

3.:0

A.D.

16(18.

Company
it

o})tained a

new

TXHTA.

0T<^

charter from the crown.

[Book
Before considering

II.

its taniiH,

will be proper to glance at the state of affairs in India.

As

state of the

already mentioned, the

Company

sent out only three ships from England

Compaiiy'8
trade.

In the following season the same number only was

in the season 1689-90.

and not

so

much

purpose of carrying on trade at the great marts, which

for the

they enjoyed before their unhappy

any remains of

traffic

and

vessels

was sent

foitified

;

;

third, proceeding direct to

to Bencoolen in Sumatra, where,
accessible, a factory

had been

was

to

might be

possible to collect from

Bombay, was

to endeavour to obtain

it

a cargo by touching at the different stations on the Malabar

new start, and

uj>

not affected by these

the second vessel, destined for Fort St. George,

load with coast goods, including those which

Bengal and the

localities

Bantam, which was no longer

as a substitute for

established

with the Mogul, as of picking

hostilities

which might be found in

Thus one of the

hostilities.

sent,

In 1692-93

coast.

number of ships despatched amounted to eleven.
The main cause of the increase was the re-establishment of trade within the
Mogul territories, on terms which, though humiliating, the Company were too

trade took a

glad to accept

;

the

but something also

may have been due

to the better prospect

which they now had of obtaining a confirmation of their privileges from the

The

king.
season,

which

must have operated

still

more powerfully

in the ensuing

and accordingly the number of ships sent out amounted
sailed as

During the

Progresi5 of

and French,

latter cause

two

successive fleets in

hostilities

the blunders of the

the Indian market.

to thirteen,

January and March.

with the Mogul, the Dutch and French had turned

Company

to

good account, and, in a manner, monopolized

The advantages thus acquired by the Dutch were not

eventually of serious consequence, because the strict alliance into which they

were brought with England prevented them from using these advantages, at
least openly, for the purpose of injuring the

While the Company were

with the French.

advantage which

Company.

it

had

cost

factories at

case

different

of a century to secure, the

Surat on the Malabar

the mouth of the Ganges, but had acquired a

was

sacrificing all the substantial

them the better part

French had not only established

The

coast,

and

in

commanding settlement on the

Coromandel coast at Pondicherry, eighty-five miles south-south-west of Madras.

Even when France and England were

the

allies,

from expressing the jealousy and fear which they
the French

;

and now that the

alliance

felt at

had been broken

were once more open enemies, one of the

first

could not refrain

the rising prosperity of
up,

and the two nations

instructions sent out to the presi-

dency of Surat was to endeavour to secure the
trade

Company

safetj' of their

by wresting Pondicherry from the French.

presidency could ventiu-e to attempt with the feeble

was
means at

Tliis

settlements and

far

more than the

their disposal,

and

the struggle which was finally to decide the ascendency between the rival estab-

lishments was necessarily reserved to a future period.
far

Indeed, at this time, so

were the Company from being in a condition to undertake the siege of Pon-

NEW CROWN

Chap. VIII.]

they were unable to maintain their

(licherry, that
fleet of four

guns, which

CHARTERS.

ships,

mounting respectively

had made

351

own ground

sixty-six, sixty,

against a French ad.

forty,

1002.

and twenty

appearance on the west coast of India, and captured

its

one of the Company's ships within

fifty miles of

•

what counterbalanced by a gam on the
1

Bombay.

east coast,

This

loss

was some-

rii

1

•

1

where legnapatam, situated

settlement
^^ Kort St
Davia.

only about twelve miles south of Pondicherry, was acquired by purchase from a
native prince, and immediately converted into the strong and important settle-

ment

of Fort St. David.

we were then
their

It

at war, allowed the

immediate

Company

Dutch, our

vicinity, the

whom

rather curious, that while the French, with

is

quietly to fortify themselves in

allies,

manifested the utmost jealousy,

and refused to recognize the right which the Company claimed, in virtue of

their

and customs.

pm'chase, to levy harbom* dues

CHAPTEH YIIL
New

crown charters

— Hostile

|OTH
i[i

House of Commons — Wholesale bribery
—Rival Company established by act of parliament.

feeling of the

disclosures

the disgraceful termination of the

enemies,

^^^t

in which the

pany had engaged with the Mogul, and the

mind produced by
f-i^^^^*;?^

war

to the

who

Com-

state of the public

the Revolution, gave great advantages to their

endeavoured, by a petition which they presented

House of Commons,

Hshment of a new Company was able
entirely lost to the nation.

and scandalous

to prove that nothing but the estab-

to save the East India trade

-111
The question raised by the
ni

tant not to attract considerable attention
house, to take cognizance of

it,

•

•

;

•

from being
•

])etition

was too impor-

and a committee, appointed by the

began by requiring an exact

state of the

Com-

pany's accounts, an estimate of their stock, goods, cash, and debts, and a view
of the correspondence both at

home and

abroad.

The Company meanwhile met

the petition of their opponents with a counter-petition, and both sides having

been fully heard, resolutions were adopted, laying

down a

series of general pro-

on which the trade to the East Indies should in future
be carried on. The most important of the resolutions were " That a sum not
less than o(?l,500,000, and not exceeding i^2, 000,000, was a fund neces.sary to
positions as to the terms

—

carry on the East India trade in a joint stock
sess

any larger share than

of 5000,

contracts should be made, but

all

— that

no one person should pos-

nor have more than one vote

—that no

i)rivate

goods be sold at public sales by inch of candle,

except saltpetre for the use of the crown, and in lots each not exceeding at one

time the value of .i^oOO

— that

all

di\ndends be

made

in

monev, and no dividend

Parii.imen-

^^

resolu-

tiom

—

'

3o2
A

D. 1692.

IlLSTORY OF INL»IA.

be made without leaving a

— that no

ships, either

fund

.sufficient

t(j

pay

[Book
debts and carry on

all

If.

tlie tra^le

with permission or without, for the future be allowed to

go to the East Indies, except only such as should be of a company, or be estab-

by

lished

parliament
to continue
the monopoly.

the joint stock of a

company

to trade to

East Indies be for twenty-one years, and no longer."

tlie
Intention of

—and that

act of parliament

Thougli
mention was made of the existinj;
i
o iu tlicsc rcsolutious no express
o Company, it bccame evident, from other resolutions adopted immediately after, that

.„,.

.

,.

,.

,

the intention oi parliament was to continue

them

-/.i

mono-

in possession of their

poly; for after stipulating "that per-

sum

sons having above the

of i?5000

in the stock of the present East India

Company,
sons'

in their

own

or other per-

names, be obliged to

much
sum of

sell so

thereof as should exceed the

pounds
tlie

hundred

at the rate of one

J?oOOO,

every hundi'ed," and "that

for

members

East India

of the committee of the

Company be

obliged

give security, to be approved of
house, that the stock

now

had

should

.£749,000,

all

and

debts

estate they

paid,"

added, "that security being

an humble
majesty,
Old East India House,

addi'ess

to

by the

made

be

to

good
it

first

was

given,

be presented to his

incorporate

the

present

circa 10.00.

East India

Company by

charter, ac-

cording to the regulations agreed upon by the house, that the same might pass
into

dissolve the

act."

To somc of

Address to
the crown to

an

tlicsc

regulations as unnecessary or impolitic, valid objections

.,

.

might casuy have been made

pmpani.

^j^gj^

.

^^^ within a

mittees of the

deemed

;

but the

Company

apparently resolved to waive

week. Sir Thomas Cooke the governor, and two other com-

Company, produced

satisfactory,

their proposals of security.

and the house,

resolution, dated 11th February,

after a short delay,

This view is from an old print, copied from a
painting in the possession of Mr. Pulham, of the
India House. The inscription on It is, " Het Huis
'

van den Oost Indische Compagnie en London." A
brief notice of the houses used by the Company is at

From 1604

we

extract the following:

to 1621 the affairs of the

Company were

chiefly transacted at the house of the first governor,

Sir T. Smith, in Philpot Lane.

adopted the following

1692 — "That an humble address be

to his majesty to dissolve the present East India

foot of print, -whence

They were not

The regular establish-

ment

of the

presented

Company, according

Company

to the

was at Crosby House,
Lord NorIn 1638 the Company removed to the
in 1621

in Bishopsgate Street, then belonging to

thampton.
house of Sir Christopher Clitheroe, in Leadenhall
Street, at that time governor; and in 1648 removed
to the house represented above, adjoining to Sir
In 1726 a new front was made, and
Christopher's.
a new building was in progress, which remained till
1796, when the present structure was commenced.

A NEW COMPANY PROPOSED.

Chap. VIII.]

853

powers luserved in their charter, and to constitute another East India Company
for the better

a.d.

1002.

preserving of the East India trade to this kingdom, in sucli

manner as his majesty in his royal wisdom should think fit." To this address,
which was ordered to be presented by the whole house, his majesty replied,
" Tiiat it was a matter of very great importance to the trade of this kingdom,
and that

could not be expected he should give a present answer to

it

that he would take time to consider of

and

it,

in

The Company having reason

positive answer."

it,

but

a short time give them his

to believe that they

had more

legislature,

bound themselves by writing

to submit to such regulations as should be made.

Accordingly, the committee

to expect

from the king than from the

of the privy council, to

whom

the whole matter had been refen-ed, drew

up an

^'ew
proposed

elaborate paper, entitled, "Propositions for regulating the Ea.st India Comj)any.

The

propositions, thirty-two in

number, while retaining the

spirit of the resolu-

by the House of Commons, entered much more into detail, and
Instead of accepting
also made some very important alterations and additions.
them as they had formerly promised, the Company returned what they called

tions sanctioned

the "

Humble Answer

mittees of the East India

Company,

and

most part strenuously objected

for the

are very quaint

and

To the second

ciu-ious.

stock of the present

Company

amounting

i.^1,

to at least

rated at o£'744,000,

sum

if

to a Paper of Propositions for Regulation

In this answer the propositions were minutely

of the East India Company."'
criticized,

and Court of Com-

of the Governor, Deputy-governor,

proposition,

of the answers

objections

The

comirany.

wa«—

which

"

be part of the fund" (the proposed fund

to

500,000,

Some

to.

and not exceeding

they can give security that

it

<X^2,000,000),

shall effectually

"and

to be

produce that

much less, as tiiey will engage to make good after all debts
paid, and satisfaction made to the Mogul and his subjects, against whose pretensions the new stock to be indemnified by the like security:"
it was answered
" The Company, recommending their righteous Ciiuse to God and his majesty's
known and fjimous justice in the whole course of his happy life, say that the
or else at so

;

—

—

value of everything

is

what

it

will sell for

umnies and pei"secutions of their adversaries,
dred

;

and they know and can prove

current price

;

but they

of their estates at
all

any

know no law

less

own

estates.

They

their stock,

now currently sells for

to be intrinsically

or reason

why

hand.

is

the cal-

50 per Inni-

they should be dispossessed

valued in any part of the world.

know no

reason

affirm that they

which are changing
Altiiough the

i?l

all

more worth than that

why

owe not a penny

daily, like

They humbly

they should give security for their
to the Great

of his subjects, other than their running accounts with their
brokers,

under

value than they are really worth in ready money, by

the measures anything

say as to security, they

it

and

;

merchants running

Company owe nothing

to the

Mogul or any

own banyans and

csish in

a goldsmiths

Mogul, as aforesaid, yet

by a public act of his majesty, would be
invent demands upon the Company for transactions

the bare mentioning any such thing
enougji to persuade
Vol.

I.

him

to

45

—

354
AD.

1602.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

and pretences done
born

;

any of the

in age.s past, before

and therefore that part of the proposition

well as unjust, neither the

Mogul nor any of

plaint to his majesty of the

[Book

were

pre.sent adventurers

.seems manifestly impossible, as

his sulyects

Company's being

II.

having made any com-

him or them

in debt to

that

;

being only a suggestion of the interlopers and their adherents, not only now,

many

but for

become the

will not

—

—

As to that hypothcsi.s if they can give security
Company to say what they might of their own ability,

years past.

it

or

the ability or disability of their adversaries; they are, on both sides, well

known on
"'^.
,

answer to
tliB

address

the Exchange."

The other answers exhibiting a similar spirit, were regarded by tlie king as
a formal rejection by the Company of the charter which had been offered to
i-iv-r
i-i
tliem; and accordmgly, on the l4th JNovember, 1692, he returned the following
,

^

i

answer to the address which had been presented to him on the subject duiing
the previous session of parliament
"

:

The House of Commons having presented an address

solve the present East India
charter,

and

to constitute a

Company, according

new

to the

to the king to dis-

power reserved in

their

one, his majesty took into con.sideration the

proper methods of complying with their

desires,

and of securing

effectually this

advantageous trade to the nation.
"

But

his majesty,

and learned

upon

council,

tluree years'

Company must

upon examination of the

warning; and that during the

subsist,

to trade

till

not to grant any such

"Hereupon

and consulting

foimd that he could not legally dissolve the

and might continue

king might constitute a

company

charter,

new company,

;

and that although the

yet he could not

after tliree years, the

Company but

years after warning the

tlu-ee

to trade

his judges

empower such new

crown ha\'ing expressly covenanted

liberties.

was very apprehensive of the ill consequences of
the Company, because they would then be less solicitous of

his majesty

giving warning to

promoting the true interest and advantage of the trade, whereof they could not
long reap the
to

it

;

fruits,

and that no new company could be immediately admitted

so that this very beneficial trade,

might be in danger of being entirely
"

the

which

lost to

much

already so

is

impaired,

the nation.

His majesty, very desirous to prevent so great a mischief, and to

House of Commons

gi-atify

in the end, since he could not do it without great hazard

manner they proposed, required the East India Company to answer
directly whether they woidd submit to such regidations as his majesty should
judge proper, and most likely to advance the trade and the Company ha^^ng
in the

;

fully agreed to

it,

and declared

their resolution in wi-iting, his majesty com-

m.anded a committee of his privy council to prepare regulations

and offered them

to the

which they

Company; but the Company, not-withstanding

declaration of submission, rejected almost

"So

;

that his majesty, finding that

all

what

did.

their

the material particidara
possibly the

House

of

Commons

NEW CHARTERS GRANTED.

Chap. VIII.]

355

might have expected, and indeed was necessary to preserve
be perfected by his

own

this trade, could not

Company

authority alone, and that the

ad.

1393.

could not

be induced to consent to any such regulations as might have answered the

House of Commons, and that the concurrence of parliament

intentions of the

make a complete and

requisite to
all

useful settlement of this trade, has directed

may

establish this trade

advance

bill,

and recommends

to

an act of parliament,

a.s

them

the proceedings in this matter to be laid before

them the preparing of such a

is

in order to pass into

;

on such foundations as are most likely to preserve and

it."

House of Commons endeavoured

Tiie

that the opposition of the

Company

to act on this suggestion, but finding

continued, resolved, on the 25th Feb-

still

"That an humble address be presented to his majest}', that he
will dissolve the East India Company, upon three years' warning to the said
Company, according to the power reserved in their charter." The king answered,

ruary, 1693,

" I will

do always

your

sider

A

my

the good in

all

power

kingdom, and

for this

I will

con-

adch'ess."

crisis

was thus evidently approaching but the Company, though they had
;

been bold enough to provoke

and determined

to leave

it,

became

alive to the full extent of the danger,

no means untried that promised to prevent

tunately, however, at this very time, from

it.

Unfor-

The
f„i-ft.it ti.eir

charter.

mere inadvertency or some other

cause which has never been properly explained, they incurred a direct forfeiture
of their charter

a tax of

In

five

by

failing to

make payment

per cent, imposed upon their stock,

this act the stock

was valued

exigible under the firet quarterly

nonpayment

the

of a

sum

at .i^7-i4,000,

;

Mary,

c^nd

ment

made on

;

default in

ciiarged

.^POSOO.

It

is

obvious that

must have been owing

act, after

ordering the

first

quarterly pay-

treasurers of the said respective companies" (the East India

payment of the

said several sums, or

any of them

is

act,

the charter of such

hei'eby adjudged to be void,"

it

was

company

" shall

respectively,

on the stock of the said companies, at the days and times

and

to

the 2oth of March, 1693, ex])ressly declared, that "in case

according to the true intent of this
shall be,

1 5.

and consequently the whole sum

Company, the Royal African Company, and the Hudson's Bay Company)

make

c.

but the enemies of the Company were numerous,

and inveterate and as the

and

by Act 4 Wm.

payment was only

infiuential,

the governors

instalment of

first quartei-ly

so comparatively paltry

oversight and not to inabilit}'

to be

of the

aforesaid,

respectively

seriously proposed to exact

The Company being thus entirely at the mercy of government, abandoned all idea of resistance to any terms that might be offered them,
and counted themselves fortunate when they escaped annihilation by obtaining
the

fidl

new

penalty.

cro-wn charters, which provided that the forfeiture,

not take

The
" the

if really

incurred, should

effect.
first

of these charters, dated

governor and

Company

7tli

October, 1693, after premising that

of Merchants of

London trading

into the East

xewcimrtera
the cro»i.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

3-56

A.I)

1694.

Indies have been of long
ration,"

honour and

to the

tinK,-,

[Book

a wrf>o-

profit of the nation,

and that "some doubt or question hath of

late

II.

been made touching

the validity of the charters of the said Company, and whether the same be not,

by the not actual payment into the receij>t of our
exchequer of the first quarterly payment of the tax of £5 per cent, charged on
the general joint stock of the said Company," proceeds as follows: " Now know
ii
ye, that we, taking the premises into our royal coiLsideration, and well weiglung
what disorders and inconveniences would befall the said Company, and other
in strictness of law, void,

New

charto.

'

granted.

,

.

.

,

.

,

•

i

persons concerned and employed in their trade, especially in the remote
of the world,
be),

if

we

should take advantage of the forfeiture aforesaid

and we being willing that the

said governor

and Company, or

and Company of Merchants of London trading into the East
successors, shall

have and enjoy

all

and advantages, and immunities

;

[)arts

any

(if

governor

late

and

Indies,

•

their

such and the like lawful powers, privileges

and

ample manner, to

in as

purposes, as if the said first quarterly

and regularly made according

i

payment of the

all

said tax

and

intents

had been duly

to the said act; of our especial grace, cei-tain

knowledge, and mere motion," constitute and appoint Sir Thomas Cooke,
knight, and various other individuals named,

who were members
London trading

who have

"and

Company, or

of the said

into the East Indies,

all

and every other persons

Company

late

of Merchants of

on the 25th day of March, now

Company and all and
March last past, by buying

not since parted with their stocks in the said

every other person and persons who, since the

2-tth of

last past,

;

stock or otherwise, have come into, and remain in a capacity of being

members

of the said Company, be and shall be one body corporate and politick in deed

and in name," &c.

While thus generally confirming

Special proviso

ill

the

newcharter.

all

the rights

_

.

and
,

privileges previously en-

.

joycd by the Company, the new charter contains the following important proviso:

— "If the

said governor

into the East Indies,
time,

and

execution,

and

and Company of Merchants of London trading

their successors, do not accept

at all times hereafter, act according to,

and submit and conform in

additions, alterations, restrictions,

and

all

of,

and from time to

and put in due and

effectual

things unto such orders, directions,

qualifications, relating to the constitu-

tion, continuance, determination, rights, powers, or privileges of the said

pany, or the governnient thereof, or of the said governor and

Company

encouragement, management, regulation, or advancement of trade
present or future joint stock of the said
subscriptions, to be

made by way

Company;

or concerning

any such future subscriptions

;

or the

or of the

;

any future

of increase or addition to the joint stock

for ascertaining the true values of the said joint stock, at

of

;

Com-

;

or

and during the times

which, and as we, our heirs or successors, by

the advice of our or their privy council, shall from time to time, at any time
before the 29th day of September which shall be in the year 1694:, think

make,

insert,

limit,

direct,

appoint, or express in or

by any

fit

to

further or other

DISSATISFACTION WITH THE

Chap. VIIT.]

NEW

CHARTERS.

charter, letters-patents, or other writing or instniment,
seal of

may

under our or their great

England, then and in each and every of the cases aforesaid,

be lawful to and for

us,

The

was

object of this proviso evidently

of resolutions already referred to
after the date of the

make

void these

to bind the

resolutions

above charter,

were enforced.

In

accoi'dingly, in little

Effect given

to the accept-

Commons had embodied

effect wtis

this

in a series

proviso.

more than a month

given to the proviso by another

traffic

new

to the East Indies,

national, general,

dated llth November, 1693,

chartei',

and a preamble

after a repetition of the proviso,

ance of the

and

;

Company

with several not unimpoiiant modifications, the parliamentary

charter, in which,

more

and

and the grant hereby made."

ance of those contlitions which the House of

"

it shall

a.d. ig94.

our heirs and successors, by letters-patents, under

our or their great seal of England, to determine, revoke, and
pi-esents,

357

stating, inter alia, the impoi-t-

and the desirableness of rendering

and extensive than hitherto

it

hath been," the Com-

pany are taken bound

to accept

and agree

the most important are

—that

subjects of the British crown,

born, or " naturalized

all

and endenized,"

to a series of propositions, of

shall

it

which

whether natural

be entitled to become members of

Company; that i!'74!4,000 shall be added to the present general joint stock
" by the new subscriptions of such persons who shall be minded to adventure
any share; that no person shall subscribe or hold more than oP 10,000 of stock
in his own or any other name that the new subscriptions, if exceeding in the
the

;

aggregate i?7-i4,000, shall be individually reduced pro rata; that every „C1000

up to

i^^l

0,000 shall give a vote, thus allowing to the individual possessed of the

maximum

of stock ten votes in

all

;

that the qualification for a committee shall

be =i?1000, and for governor and deputy-governor i?-t000; that
be paid in

money

;

that no private trade shall be permitted

;

tion of saltpetre sold to the crown, all sales shall be public,

all

dividends shall

that with the excep-

by

inch of candle

that no single lot of goods, except jewels, shall exceed cI^oOO in value
British produce

and manufactures should be annually exported

to the

;

;

and that

amount

of

X' 100,000.

These

clauses,

prevented

many

though binding the Company to conditions which must have

of the abuses of which their previous

management was

accused,

what their avowed opponents had anticipated, but
failed to satisfy the public mind
and the (question having again been keenly
agitated, and brought specially before parliament by a petition praying for the
erection of a new East India Company, the House of Commons " examined the
charters of the old Company, the book of new subscriptions, the state of their
not only

fell

far short of

;

present stock, and the petition above mentioned; and after mature deliberation"
resolved,

on the 19th of January,

169-i,

"that

all

the subjects of England have

equal right to trade to the East Indies, unless prohibited by act of parliament."

The point thus summarily decided by one branch of the
perly a question of law

;

and several

Dissatisfac-

t'"" with

.

yeai-s before,

legislature

was

pro-

under very different circum-

the
'^

new

*"

'^'^^

AD.

1695.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

stances,

had undergone a lengthened discussion

[Book

in the

In the year 1683, when the crown was stretching

its

II.

Court of King's B«inch.

pren^gative to the utmost,

the East India Company, deeming the time favouraVjle for obtaining an authoritative decision in favour of the validity of their charter, determined to tiy the

question,

and with that view brought an action against Thomas Sandys

for

attempting to trade witliin the limits to which they had, by their chaiter, an

Sandys argued that the Company was a monopoly, and being

exclusive right.
Great case of

consequently struck at by the statute against monopolies, had usurped jjowers
which, however sanctioned by the crown, could not be legally maintained.
of which a

case,

report

full

is

given in the state

trials,

under the

title

The

of the

"Great Case of Monopolies," attracted much attention; and having been fully
argued by the ablest counsel at the bar, was not finally decided till 1685, when

James

had mounted the throne, and Jeffreys was lord chief -justice. The
decision, as might have been expected in the circumstances, was in favour of the
royal prerogative, and found that " the grant to the plaintiffs of the sole trade
II.

to the Indies, exclusive of others, is a

Company

thus gained was more apparent than

favour, but the

Hence,

of despotism.

ment

argument was

monopoly became

their

good grant."

clearly against

real.

when

made way

the Kevolution had

resolution of the

repeal of their monopoly, because

Endeavours
to obtain

paruament.

decision

was

in their

thtm; and the maintenance of

it

for the establish-

insecui-e,

and every new

them nearer

to the brink of

became

discussion of their privileges seemed only to bring

The

The

in consequence identified, in the public mind, with that

of constitutional freedom, their position

destruction.

The victory which the

House of Commons was indeed a

virtual

declared that nothing but an act of parlia-

ment could make it valid.
There was stiU, however, good gi'ound to hope that such an act of parliament
might yet be obtained. The king, by the charters which he had granted, had
gone as far as he could safely do in their favour and it was well understood,
that while many of the members of the legislature were sincerely attached to
;

their interests, because convinced that the trade to the East Indies could be best

carried

had

on by the present Company, there were others on whom,

failed,

after argiiment

another kind of influence might be brought to bear.

"What this

and how unscrupulously the managers of the Company had
soon became apparent.

influence was,

employed
Extensive
corruption,

it,

Several instances of bribery and corruption in the administration of public
officcs

having been detected, rumours began to prevail that the whole body

politic

was

corrupt.

Suspicion

fell

especiaUy upon the city of London and the

East India Company; and on the 7th of March, 1695, the House of
appointed a committee to inspect the books of these two bodies.
the former

was

easily established, as the chamberlain's

Commons

The

guilt of

books contained an entry

bearing that 1000 guineas had been paid to Sir John Trevor, speaker of the

House of Commons, on the 22d of June,

1

694. as a douceur for his pains about

I

;

BRIBERY AND CORRUPTION.

Chap. VIIL]

a

brought into parliament under the name of the

bill

Company was

of the

discovered to

called the

to

The

Bill."

guilt ad.

Company's books,

«P1 07,013, I2s. 7d.

"Com])any's special service."

appeared that

it

had been paid

in cash for

what

In 1693, when Sir Thomas Cooke

was governor and Francis Tyssen dejDuty-governor, the sum issued under
head was

i;\S7,402,

i695.

an enormoas extent must have been carried

abstract obtained from the

from 1688 to 1694 mclusive,

was

Orphans'

not so easily established, thoiigh enough was at once

show that bribery

From an

on.

"

359

12i\

On

3d

this

searching for the orders for this issue, the

Bribery,

committee discovered a minute of a court of committees, dated the 13th of
1693, and stating, inter alia, "'The governor this day acquainting the

April,

what proceedings had been made in their affairs towards granting a
new charter, and with what had been disburst by him in prosecution thereof,
the court approved of the said charges, and ordered a warrant to be made out

court with

for the

same

;

and returned him thanks

for his great care, pains,

and trouble

their service, desiring liim to proceed in the perfecting thereof

minutes to a similar

make payment

other

were found, together with one dated the 23d of

effect

November, 1693, in which "it
to time

Two

"

in

is

ordered that the cashier-general do from time

of such sums of

money

for carrying

on of the Company's

service as the governor shall direct, piu'suant to the sense of the present debate."

In regard to the disposal of the money, the committee reported that they

Empioynient of

been unable to obtain any further account than that

iiad

service,

and that a large part of

Firebrace.

On examining

it

ary,

1693 [1694], of Mr.

Company,

c£'90,000;

but on asking Mr. Portmans, the

— "Received,
Sir Thomas Cooke:
Edmond

which

I

on account of the

Efist

have disburst and paid

India

to the

;

which

I

stead produced

the 10th of Janu-

;

for oC99,197 stock,

in

promise to be accountable

Company and was by

No

the 24tli of November, 1693."

its

cashier, if

Portmans, for account of the Ea.st India

the East India Company, for their account
for

for s])ecial

had been put into the hands of Sir Basil

he had the same in cash, he answered that he had not, and in

by

was

the Company's cash-book, they found a balance at

their credit of 0^124,249, los. lOd.;

the following voucher

it

order of the

Company

such amount of stock had been transferred

Company's account; but the committee, on examining Sir Benjamin

Bathurst, one of the Company's court of committees, were told

by him, that
he had some

sum as ,£'30,000 charged for secret services,
warm discourse with Sir Thomas Cooke about it, to know how it was disburst
but he refused to give him any particulars, and told him he should remember
he was bound by his oath to the Company to keep their secrets." Sir Benjamin
added, that "about April, 1694, understanding they were in want of money,
he looked into the cash-book which casting up, he found a considerable sum
in cash
and taking some persons with him, discoureed Sir Thomas Cooke
thereof, who .said the ^90,000 he had received was to gratify some persons in
"finding so great a

;

;

case the bill shoidd

pa.ss."

secret ser-

HISTORY OF INDIA.

360

Beside the aljove suspicious

A.D. 1C95.

Singular

[Book

II.

committee disajvered a contract

|);iyraents, tlie

of a very singular description.

It bore the date of the 26th of February, 1694-;

and bound the Company to pay

for

200 tons of

be brought home

saltpetre, to

in

contract.

the ship

Seymour from

sum

India, the

ton to the owners of the ship, besides

which

saltpetre, for

,X'2000

;

and

this

and not only

was

i?l 2,000

sum was

charges in England.

by the Company for that
granted bond under the Comj)any's

The

puq>ose,
seal for

which cost only

,£^2000,

the adventure of i?l 2,000

and mast consequently

and on the contrary, the

clear without disbursing or

.ship

result of the contract is thus accurately

by the committee: — "The Company runs

ship miscarry;

seems that this

actually advanced

should arrive in safety or not.
explained

It

freight per

remaining balance payable by a certain day, whether the

i,^10,000, as the

for that

all

£2b

to be paid, could be purchased in India for

but they also

so,

of X'l 2,000, together with

seller

lose dC12,000 if the

on the other hand gets

running the hazard of one penny

more, a certain loss of =P9000 or 0^10,000 will attend

it if

;

i?l 0,000

and what

is

yet

the ship arrive in

safety."
Parliarnentarj proceedings.

The report of the committee was made on the 12tli of March, 1695; and
on the 18th the House of Commons resolved, "that whosoever shall discover
any money

or other gratuity given to

any member of

transacted in this house relating to the orphans'

bill

pany, shall have the indemnity of this house for such
ordered, "that Sir

the house

how

the ,£'87,402, 12s.

When examined
the

same time a

to give

bill,

bill

opposed by the

gift."

of this house, do give

3d mentioned

was ordered

in the report

an account

was

So much were the house in earnest

When

Duke

it

was read there

it,

that, in little

was passed and

for the first

time

it

of Leeds, lord-president of the council,

to

distributed."

to be brought in for the purpose of obliging

though counsel was heard against

House of Lords.

ComOn the 26th it was

or the East India

he refused to answer, and was committed to the Tower.

an account.

week, the

Thomas Cooke, a member

this house for matters

At
him

more than a

carried to the

was vehementlv

who commenced

with a most solemn protestation of his cleanness and innocence, and lajdng his

hand upon

upon

his breast, declared

disinterested,

and had no part

better appear against

it."

and honoin

or concern in this matter,

Sir

the bar of the lords, declared

his faith

"

that he

was

perfectly

and therefore might the

Thomas Cooke, being brought from the Tower to
himself ready and very willing to make a full

discovery on obtaining an indemnifying vote

;

and as the reports of the period

"

bemoaned himself (weeping) that he was not indemnified at that
instant, so that he might just then make the discovery which was expected,
and which he was so desirous to make." On being asked what he wanted to
express

it,

be indemnified from, he answered, "All actions and
India Company,

whom,

utmost rigour."

He

if

suits,

except from the East

he had injured, he would be bound to undergo the

also desired,

he

said, to

be indemnified from scandaluins,

which he explained to mean the action of scandalwni magimtum.

The

THOMAS COOKE.

SIR

Chap. VIII.]

up from the commons, and ad.

lords sisted procedure with the bill sent

introduced a

of indemnity, which

bill

361

was ultimately

and leading enacting clause of the act are as follows: —

The preamble

passed.
"

1095.

Whereas

it a]>pears,

by

sir

Thomas

Cooke's

Thomas Cooke,

the books of the East India Company, that Sir

knight, in the

year 1693, being the governor of the said Company, did receive, out of the stock

and treasure belonging

And

sum of =£'77,258, and hath also received
said Company the further sum of <£^90,000:

whereas a true discovery of the distribution and application of the said

several

sums of money

will be of public use

and

service,

vindicating the justice and honour of the government

Cooke hath voluntarily

manner

nified in such

by

enacted,

offered to

as

is

make such

the king's most excellent majesty,

said Sir

to

what

how and

in

by and with

and commons,
if

be indemtherefore

it

the advice and con-

in this present parliament

the said Sir

what manner, and

particular uses, intents,

said siun of <i?90,000,

Thomas Cooke
full

discovery

Thomas Cooke

and purposes,

what jierson or persons,
and on what account, the
to

and the sum of ^^67,000, part of the said sum of

have been distributed,

any action or

may

Thomas

committee of the lords and commons, to be appointed by each

house for that purpose,

Sir

and the

necessary to the

on or before the 23d day of April, 1695, make a true and

oath, before a

and

is

and provided: Be

assembled, and by the authority of the same, that,
shall,

;

and

discovery, so as he

hereafter mentioned

sent of the lords spiritual and temporal,

on

'" ^'

to the same, the

out of the stock and treasure of the

paid, applied, disposed,

shall not,

by reason

or

and made use

means

of,

i;'77,258,

then the said

of such discovery, be liable to

suit of any person or persons whatsoever, other

than the said East

India Company, nor shall such discovery or confession be allowed or given in
evidence against him in or upon any action or
also shall be declared

suit,

pardoned and indemnified

for

other than as aforesaid

;

and

any crime he may be guilty

of in the distribution, payment, application, or disposal of the said money, to

any person other than

When examined

to himself"

before the committee of both houses appointed in terms of

Thomas Cooke produced a written statement, entitled,
discovery, upon oath, made by Sir Thomas Cooke, to the best

"

this act, Sir
full

ledge, &c.,

.

.

.

of parliament."

which discovery

is

in pursuance of

an act of

A

true and

of his

know-

this present session

This statement contained the names of the various parties to

whom ca.sh had been ]>aid to
from whom East India stock,

amount of ^67,031, IBs. 2(1., and of othei"s
to the amount of i^90,000, had been bought for
account of the East India Company. Among the cash items were oiMO,000
"delivered to Francis Tyssen, Esq., for the special service of the Company;"
^10,000 to Mr. Richard Acton, "to defray the expenses of him.self, and for his
friends' soliciting to prevent a new settlement of an East India Company, and to
the

endeavour the establishment of the old;"
recompense of

oPl 0,000 to Sir Basil Firebrace,

his trouble in prosecuting the

Company's

affairs,

ation of other losses he had su.stained 1>y neglecting his
VcL.

I.

own

and

"in

in consider-

business,
46

and by

bill

of iiidem-

uis

HISTORY OF INDIA.

362
A.U. 1C9S

down

set

on stock
Cooke's

An

not engaging liimself with the interloping ships."

was

1

as

On

account."

having been paid "to the said Sir

was obliged

him

to accept of

[Book

II.

additional surn of X'30,00()
for i^^oO per cent, loss

Ba.sil

on the Companys

at ,£'150 per cent,

being interrogated with reference to the above statement, Sir

disclosures.

Thomas Cooke

declared "that the

fir.st

sum

of X'l 0,000 alcove mentioned

Company

given in expectation to have the charter of the East India

and new regulations thereto made," and that
he could not say the king had
that he delivered

it

"it

was intended

was

confirmed,

for the king,

but

though "he believes Mr. Tyssen told him

it,"

He

to Sir Josiah Child, wlio delivered it to the king."

added that "it was a customary present, and that in King Charles's and other

With regard

former reigns, the like had been done for several years."
paid to Mr. Acton, he declared that he had given

of 10,000

of Sir Josiah Child,

"who recommended Acton

Company service, having great
others who had interest with them;"
to Sir Basil

was

as a person capable of doing

that "he could not particularize

to get

an act of parliament."

As the

stock of Sir Basil at iC'loO per cent.

the

who they

The sums paid

Firebrace were stated to be in implement of an agreement, by

which the Company became bound, in case the charter

cent.,

with the privity

acquaintance with parliament men, and

the

were, but the end aimed at

it

to the

Company lost

=£^30,000

by the

stock

transaction.

pa.ssed, to

take dPGO.OOO

was then only i^lOO per

By

another agreement of

a similar nature, they would have been bound to accept a transfer of £^40.000
stock on the same terms,

if

an act of parliament in favour of the Company had

been obtained.
In following up the inquiry, various other persons were examined.

Depositions
of parties

examined.

Child affected general ignorance of the matter, and said that "he never disposed
of

£10

of the

that " he did

Company's money to

his

recommend Mr. Acton

He

remembrance."

as being

admitted, however,

an honest man, and thought he

might do service to the Company in parliament, because of
Sir Josiah

Sir Josiah

He

also

recommended

"

that a present of i?50,000 should be

his acquaintances."

made

to the king,

CbUd.

if his

majesty would so far waive his prerogative that an act of parliament might

Company but Mr. Tyssen
matter."
He "knew nothing of

be passed for settling the
not meddle in that

;

told

him the king would

the i?'40,000 paid to Sir

was a kind of a company of twenty-five persons,
de die in diem, to destroy the Company, and he told Sir Thomas

Basil Firebrace, but there

that sat

Cooke that he thought
Sir Basil

Sir Basil Firebrace,

Sir Basil the fittest person to divide them."

when

Firebrace.

by

Sir

Thomas Cooke,

terms of contract.

viz,

—

first
<£*

Both sums

examined, admitted the payments as stated

10,000 as a gratuity for
"

were directly

losses,

for himself,

and

and £^30,000

in

for the use of

no

other person whatsoever; he paid no part of the same towards procuring a
charter or act of parliament, nor

new

charter."

to do so, but he

had

Thomas Cooke about using his endeavours to procure
Being asked " what particular services he did or was to do for

several discourses with Sir

a

made any promises

DEPOSITIONS TAKEN.

Chap. VIII]

new

procuring a

8G3

He said " that he wished he might answer that at some

chartei',''

other time, being not well, not having slept two or three nights, and being
indisposed as to his healtli
self,

was unwilling

that he

;

services."
" tiiat

On

in solicitation

the following day, having desired to be called

having had a treaty with Mr. Bates,

in passing the charter,

whom

much

in,

and other

he deposed,

he thought able to do service

and to have acquaintance with several persons of honour,"

he gave him two notes, the one for 3000 and the other for 2500 guineas,

The

able to Mr. Bates or bearer.

restoring the East India

Company

know how

passed

;

was paid

after the charter for

the other after the charter for regu-

In

they were to be disposed of"

Sir Basil several times to

some scruples

latter note

i)ay-

These notes were from Sir Thomas Cooke, who, he believed,

lation passed.
" did

tlie

Duke

fact,

Mr. Bates had introduced

of Leeds, the lord-president,

"who made

in point of law."

him to use
obtaining a charter to the East India Company:" that "he did
with the lord-president, who said he would do what service he

Mr. Bates deponed " that Sir Basil Firebrace did ajiply himself to
his interest for

use his interest

could

urged the same upon his lordship's acceptance, but he refused
however, that "in regard he could not

ask leave of
leave,

At

my

money very

his lordship's servant,

sequent examination he admitted that he had

for the

till

within the

last

it

money

not,

His lordship gave

to him,

and that

it

but on a sub-

had remained

few days, when Robert had brought

purpose of being given back to Sir Basil Firebrace.

paying back the guineas

wa.s " the noise that it

think he did not deserve them."

More

admitted,

M. Robert, "did receive the money."

Bates alleged that M. Robert paid over the

with Robert

He

well himself," he "did

lord that his servant might tell the money."

and accordingly

first

tell

it."

Mr. Bates.

and

that he received 5000 guineas, told the lord- president of the fact,

:

loos.

much upon him-

to take too

Company

but thought he did great service to the

a.d.

light

it

His reason

him

to

for thus

made, and that people might

was thrown on

this disclosm^e

by

when again examined, stated " that the East India Company's
charter being forfeited. Sir Thomas Cooke was apprehensive " that it stuck with
the Duke of Leeds," and told him that " some way must be found out to the
Sir Basil, who,

duke."

Sir Basil tliereupon applied to Mr. Bates, who, after a good deal of

higgling, agreed to accept of

5000 guineas

for his friend,

and 500 guineas to

Thomas Cooke sanctioned the asfreement, remarking that if "it
was insisted on it must be done." The agreement was that " if the duke did
act in favour of the Company, he shoidd liave 2000 and 3000 guineas, and Bates
himself

Sir

500 guineas

for liimself

"

Sir Basil added, "that from the time the notes

given, they.had free access to the lord-president,
to give

them

were

and found him easy and willing

his avssistance."

Mr. Tyssen deponed that " Sir

Thomas Cooke and

Sir Josiah Child gave

him

a note under their hamis for i.'50,000, which was intended to be presented to
his majesty if his majesty

would paas an

act of parliament as they should desire,

Mr. Tjsaca.

;

HISTORY OF INDIA.

364
A.D. 1685.

and

tliat

a present;

who

being asked

" if

sucli

On

he acquainted

tohl the

That bribery

to

Portland with the Company's intention to

IT.

make

deponent that the king would not meddle with

it."

he had offered the same to Lord Portland, he denied that

he had so done, saying,
Impoach-

my Lord

[Book

if

he had, he must never have seen his face more."

an enormous extent had been carried

on, there could

now be

inent of the

Duke of
Leeds.

no doubt, but the only case in

whicii, as yet, it

seemed capable of being proved,

was that of the Duke of Leeds, against whom, accordingly, the commons resolved
to proceed by imjjeachment.
On the
reading of the report of the committee

House of Lords, the duke

in the

in his place

and

said that "as he

rose

had

formerly protested himself to be free
in this matter, so he

denied,

upon

and honour, that he was

his faith

any such corruptions

of

guilty

still

as

were suggested against him, and that
the wdaole truth were laid open

if

would tend

to his

honour and advan-

His explanation was,

tage."

it

" that

Mr.

Bates introduced Sir Basil Firebrace
to him,

and that he had conferences

with Sir Basil upon the subject of the
East India Company, which Sir Basil
Thoma: OsBO'.NE, Duke of Leeds.— From print

after Sir

P

Lely.

n

,

was concerned
The duke's

^

that some time

to

have a sum of money

him one of

his servants, Mr. Bates

came and informed him that he was

after Mr. Bates

tor;

explanation

of Sir Basil, and desired his lordship to lend

keeping but a footman, to receive the money, and so he lent him M. Robert
that his lordship

him and

of the sum, but afterwards Mr. Bates came to

him he had received 5000 guineas, which he offered to him, telling
that he had been very obliging and kind to him, and that in acknow-

told

his lordship

ledgment of the

humbly

knew nothing

desired

many

him

favours he had received from his lordship's hands, he

to accept of them,

which he

earnestly to take one-half or a quarter, which he

not touch a penny of them
there

;

and

told

was no need of returning them

good luck with them."
fession,

him

him
he would

refusing, Mr. Bates pressed
still

since he

—they were

refused, declaring

had taken them, he thought

liis

While the duke was making

own, and he w^ished him

this apology, or rather con-

he got private notice that the commons were preparing to impeach him.

Startled at the
his desire to

news he hastened

be heard.

off,

and intimated, through one of the members,

Permission was given, and he

ently rambling speech, without

making any

peachment was immediately carried up
the substance of the whole,

was

favoui'able impression, for the im-

to the lords.

as follows:

—

made a long and appar-

The

first article,

" Tliat certain

containing

merchants trading to

IMPEACHMENT OF THE DUKE OF

Chap. VIII.]

365

LEEDS.

the East Indies, having either forfeited their clmrter, or being under an appre-

had

liension that they

forfeited the same,

and having made

their

humble

Duke

1095.

appli-

cation to their majesties in council for obtaining a cliarter of confirmation
said

a.d.

the

:

of Leeds, being then pi'esident of their majestie.s' most honom-able

privy council, and sworn to give their majesties true and faithful advice, did,
contrary to his oath,

and duty

office,

to then- majesties,

and

in breach of the

great trust reposed in him, by himself, his agents, or servants, coiTuptly and

ille-

gally treat, contract, and agree with the said merchants or their agents, for 5500
guineas, to procure the said charter of confirmation,

strange oversight the duke's servant, M. Robert,

shown

deposition had

to be a

and when the necessary steps
but

it

whom

the previous

suspicious

most important witness, had not been examined,

anceofau

for the

found that he had disappeared.
issued,

also a charter of regu-

endeavours to obtain the same."

lations, or to use his

By some

and

A

purpose were about to be taken,

it

was

""'".^IJ"'

tardy proclamaticin for securing him was

proved unavailing; and thus an essential link in the chain of evi-

The Duke of Leeds, now feeling confident that
the impeachment could not be made good, began to use the language of injured
innocence, and to com})lain of the hardship and injustice of having a charge
hanging over his head, while no attempt was made to prove, and no opportunity

dence could not be supplied.

was given him
stood,

and

to disprove

The

it.

state of matters was, however, well under-

his shufi^ling only served to confirm the conviction generally enter-

Meanwhile parliament seemed resolved

tained of his guilt.

to

do

its

duty and
;

as the leading witnesses were justly suspected of prevarication or concealment,

an act was passed

for imprisoning

Unfortunately, the zeal manifested by parliament was not

ating their estates.

At a very

seconded at court.

the royal assent to several

and gentlemen,
far advanced,

nestly

in a

and

tiie

recommend

few days."

was a strong

eai-ly

bills,

period of the inquiry, the king, after giving

addressed both houses as follows:

take this occasion to

I

most importance

them, and for restraining them from alien-

tell

— "My

you that the season of the year

for the public good, because I

From

this significant hint, it

must put an end to this session
was well understood that there
which the
;

the 3d of May, within a ft)rtnight after the

was

of grace

still

in at the

to

it

;

for,

this,

session

in fact,

on

;

but an act

with an exception, indeed, as to coiTuption;

was believed too many of
by a common consent, it was never revived."
let fall,

and

it

There cannot be a doubt that the Company suffered severely in
mation by the

parlia-

was given, and while the issue
was prorogued. According to

hang up the matter to another

end of

yet this whole discovery was

were concerned in

iiint

in suspense, ])arliament

was intended

came

so

you the speedy despatching such business as you think of

to

mentary inquiry into bribery and coiTuption threatened to lead and

Burnet, " It

is

circmnstances of affairs are so pressing, that I very ear-

feeling in high quarters against the exposure to

of the inquiry

lords

disclosure, so far as it

had gone.

A

distinction,

all sides

])ublic esti-

however, ought

Tiie

king*

i.arii,iineut.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

S6(i

A

I)

1000.

made between

to be
ally

the

Company and

monopolized by Sir Josiah

Cliild

[Book

the management.

and a few wealthy

undue advantage of the uidimited j)ower of purchasing
it,

had succeeded

in ousting

and su})planting them by
blame ought

to rest;

had been ^iulu-

individuals, who, taking

stock,

and of voting

upfjn

most of the independent members of committee,

their

more

Thi.s

II.

own

On

creatures.

them, therefore, the chief

especially as the general court of proprietors, even

before the parliamentary inquiry commenced, had been induced, in con.sequence

of the rumours which had begun to prevail, to appoint a committee "to inspect into the affairs of the general joint stock under the
coui't of

committees, and of the several tran.sactions that had been had

for the

satisfection of the adventurers."

Tlie report of the

appointed, had furnished most of the leading
fully
A

Scotch
East India

facts,

of the

tiierein,

committee thus

which were afterwards more

brought out by the parliamentary investigation.

While the Company
L
J were suffering
O severely in public estimation from these
.

Company

management

.

shamcful disclosures, an alarm arose from a different quarter.
England, though their crowns were

now worn by

Scotland and

a single monarch, were

and independent kingdoms, and there was therefore nothing

sejiarate

vent the former from having
Indeed, as early as 1617,

by granting

its

Company

East India

King James had given

still

to pre-

as well as the latter.

his sanction to such a

letters-patent under the great seal of Scotland, to Sir

company,

James Cun-

ningham, of Glengarnock, appointing him, his heirs and assignees, to be

its

governors and directors, with authority "to trade to and from the East Indies,

and the countries or parts of

Bona Sperantia
tories

Asia, Africa,

and America, beyond the Cape of

to the Straits of Magellan,

and

Levant Sea, and

to the

terri-

under the government of the Great Turk, and to and from the countries of

Greenland, and aU the countries and islands in the north, north-west, and northeast seas,

and

all

other parts of America and Muscovy."

been the original intention of

this grant, it ultimately

job for the benefit of the grantee,

who

sold

it,

and

Whatever may have

degenerated into a mere

all his

rights under

it,

for a

The purchasers were the London East India Company,
who thus escaped the danger of a competition, which in honest and skilful
hands might have proved formidable.
This abortive attempt to give Scotvaluable consideration.

land a trade to the East appears to have attracted
interests, of

a

still

more

little

notice

and other

;

mind

vital nature, so completely occupied the public

during the persecuting reigns of the Stuarts, that the better part of a centiu-y
elapsed before the subject

was again mooted.

with the Revolution brought

new

desires

and

The

better era which

commenced

aspirations along with

was felt by pati'iotic Scotsmen to give
commerce as it had already attained in Hberty,

it,

and a

general desire

their country as high a

place in

religion,

influence exerted with this

and

ai-ms.

The

view on the pubUc mind, was soon manifested

in

parliament, which, on the 14th June, 1693, passed an "Act for encouraging of

Forraigne Trade," in which "our soveraigne lord and ladye, the king and

A SCOTCH EAST INDIA COMPANY.

Chap. VIII.]

queen's majesties, considering
the wealth and wellfare of

more

efFectuall for the

how much

367

the improvement of trade concerns ad.

leos.

kingdom, and that nothing hath been found

tlie

improving and enlargeing thereof than the erecting and

may

encourageing of companies, whereby the same
takeings to the remotest parts, which

it

is

be carryed on by under-

not possible for single persons to

undergo, doe therefore, with advice and consent of the estates of parliament,

and

statute

that merchants more or fewer

declare,

and companies

into societies

for carrying

on of

may

trade, as to

contract and enter

any subject and

sort

of goodes and merchandice to whatsoever kingdoms, countreyes, or parts of the

world, not being in warr with their majesties, where trade

may be

followed,

and

particularly beside the

East and West Indies, to the

to the

upon the coast of
subsequent

in use to be, or

is

kingdoms and countreyes of Europe,

and trade of the Mediterranean, or

straits

By

or northern parts, or elsewhere, as above."

AfTrica,

caritai sub-

a

dated 26tii June, 1695, John, Lord Belhaven, and various indi-

act,

and foreign

viduals specially named, including beside Scottish, several Engli.sh

merchants, " together with such others as shall joyn with them within the space

moneths

of twelve

after the first

day of August next," were constituted

incorporation, with perpetual succession,

by the name

land tradeing to AfFrica and the Indies."

Half the

for

Scottish

men

within this kingdom;" but

residing abroad or forraigners to

£100 and the

gi'eatest

"impowered

to equip,

ships in such

manner

come

and

set out, fraught,

fitt,

as they shall think
"

capital

Company

was

to

was allowed

fitt,

be

to

a free

of Scot-

" allotted

"Scotsmen

sum being
company were

subscribe," the least

In canying on their trade the

£3000.

from the date hereof," and

in

it

of the

"

and navigate
and that

their

own

or hired

for the space of ten years

from any of the ports or places of this kingdom, or

from any other ports or places in amity, or not in hostility with his majesty,
in

warlike or other manner, to any lands, islands, countreyes, or places in Asia,

AfFrica, or

or

America, and there to plant collonies, build

cityes, touns, or forts,

on

upon the places not inhabited, or on or upon any other place by consent of the

natives or inhabitants thereof, and not possest
tate, prince, or state;"

selves

by

" force

sea or laud,

they were also fully authorized not only to defend them-

of arms," but " to seeke and take reparation of

and

princes, estates,

by an European sovereign poten-

to

make and

rulers,

damage done by

conclude treaties of peace with the soveraigns,

governors, or proprietoi-s of the foresaid lands, islands,

countreyes, or places in Asia, AfFrica, or America."

Beside these

extensive powei^s,

which were declared to be exclusive, no

subject of Scotland being permitted without the company's written permission
to trade within these limits, various extraordinary privileges

Among
in this

with

others

it

was declared that

company" were "to be

all

" all persons

were conferred.

concerned or to be concerned

free denizens of this

kingdom," and that "they

that shall settle to inhabit, or be born in any of the foresaid plantation.s,

collonies, cityes, touns,

factories,

and other

places, that shall

be purchast and

Si)wiai
''"^"'*''^'

HISTORY OF INDIA.

368
A.D,

KM. possesst by the said coinpuny,

sluill

l>e

repute

have the priviledges thereof;" and that
company's

manner

ships, goods,

and other

a,s

[Book

natives of

for the Hpace of

effects whatsover,

of restraints or prohibitioas,

and of all

tlii.s

II.

kingdom, and

twenty-one years, the

were to be "free of

castom.s, taxes, ceases, supplies,

other duties imposed or to be imposed hy act of [)arliament or otherwise

;"

all
oi-

with

the exception only of the duties on tobacco and sugar, not the growth of their

own

Special

This privilege

plantations.

made

is

broader by a subsequent

still

clau.se,

privileges.

which provides that

"

the said company, whole members,

servants, or

oflBcers,

others belonging thereto, shall be free, both in their persons, estates,

employed in the said stock and

trade,

from

all

manner

of taxes,

and

ce-sses,

good.s,

supplies,

excises, quartering of souldiers, tran.sient or local, or lea vying of souldiers, or other

impositions whatsoever;" and lest the power given to

tlie

company

to redress

themselves should prove inadequate, his majesty expressly promises,
'•'contrar to the said rights, liberties, privileges,

tliat

if

exemptions, grants, or agree-

ments, any of the ships, goods, merchandise, persons, or other effects whatsoever,

belonging to the said company, shall be stopped, detained, embazled, or away
taken, or in

any

sort prejudged or damnifyed," he will " interpose hLs authority

to have restitution, reparation,

and

satisfaction

made

for the

damnage

done, and

that upon the publick charge, which his majesty shall cause depurse and lay out
for that effect."

The

Popularity

company

in

which parliament had displayed in conferring such ample

liberality

by the country at large.
In a short time a
subscription list, such as Scotland had never before seen, was filled up.
The
amount was £400,000; and the list contained the names of 1219 shareholders,
among whom were most of the leading nobility, the public bodies, clerg}',
lawyers, merchants, and a large selection of individuals of all cla.sses, thus
priviiegcs

was

fully seconded

proving beyond a doubt that the formation of the company was the
great national movement.
large addition

whom

Liberal as the

home

subscription

was anticipated from other countries

;

lead,

a

Bank

of England,

despatched commissioners to London, Amsterdam, and Hamburg,

with authority to open new subscription

company on

had thus been,

and the managers, among

the celebrated William Paterson, the founder of the

took the

effect of a

all

lists,

who might be induced by

and confer the

pri\^leges of the

these representations to apply

foi-

them.

The English parliament, on being acquainted with

The English
takes aiaiTO.

diatcly took alarm;

and having

a petition of their

own Company,

present a

common

ceeds as follows:

these proceeding.s,

their attention specially called to the subject

by

proceeded, on the 13th December, 1695, to

address from both houses to the crown.

— "The

imme-

lords spiritual

This addi'ess pro-

and temporal and commons, in parliament

assembled, having taken into our consideration the state of the trade of this

kingdom, do find
lies

that, besides

many

other disadvantages and difficulties

it

now

under, an act of parliament that hath lately received yom- majesty's royal

—
;

A SCOTCH EAST INDIA COMPANY.

Chap. VIII.]

kingdom of

assent in your

the Indies,

is

Scotland, for erecting a

many

likely to bring

prejudices

subjects that are concerned in the wealth

company trading to

and mischiefs to
and trade of

quoting largely from the act in support of this allegation,
"

By

369

all

Africji

that

difficulties

lie

a.d. 1005.

your majesty's
After

this nation."

thus continues:

it

Com-

reason of which great advantages granted to the Scots East India

pany, and the duties antl

and

upon that trade

England, a

in

great part of the stock and shipping of this nation will be carried thither, and

by

this

means Scotland

will be

made a

free port for all

East India commodities

and consequently those several places which were supplied from England
furnished from thence

much cheaper than can be done by

will be

the English

and

;

therefore this nation will lose the benefit of supplying foreign parts with those

commodities, which hath always been a

oui-

Moreover, the said commodities will unavoidably be brought by

foreign trade.
the Scots into

England by

both by sea and land, to the vast prejudice

stealth,

of the English trade and navigation,
in

balance of

gi'eat article in the

and

to the great detriment of

your majesty

your customs."

The king was thus

He

very awkward i)redicament.

i)laced in a

1

•

could not Awkward

1

•

/>

i)Oisitioii

1

question the competency of parliament to grant the act complanied of without

of

the king.

attacking the national independence, and di.sappointing what had become one of
the national ho]ies of Scotland

;

nor could he continue to sanction the act without

placing himself in decided opposition to the legislature of England, and .some

most strongly cherished prejudices of the

of the

" 1

answered somewhat vaguely,

may

•some remedies

from this act

;"

have been

ill

Engli.sh people.

He

served in Scotland, but

be found to prevent the inconveniencies which

and shortly

showed that he was

after

therefore
I

may

hope
arise

really dissati.sfied with

management of his ministers in Scotland by dismissing most of them from
office.
The English })arliameut took still more decided steps and on receiving
the

;

the report of a committee which had been appointed to examine the methods

by which the act had been obtained, and the proceedings under

it,

the

commons

resolved, " that the directors of the

the Indies,

company of Scotland trading to Africa and
administering and taking here an oath de Jideli, and under colour

of a Scots act styling themselves a compan3% were guilty of a high crime and

misdemeanour, and that the Lord Belliaven, William Paterson (and other individuals named), be impeached of the same."

undoubtedly was in

its

nature,

and

This resolution, violent as

offensive in its terms, wtis not

competency of the English parliament

;

and

therefore,

formal complaint.

Another

The Scots company
burg,

111
and had

step,

furni.sh

must

matter for

Ham111all their

had, as already mentioned, sent a deputation to

"

every prospect

f

01

T

•

•

obtjumng a

the hostility will be best ex])lained
I.

it

however, was of a more objectionable nature.

Till-'

by

1

liberal subscription, wlien

hopes were frustrated by hostility from an imexpected quarter.

Vol.

beyond the

however much

have roused the indignation of the Scots, did not properly

it

The nature of

a memorial presented on the 7th of
47

Proceedings

atUauiburc.

370
A.I). 1007.

llLSTOliV

April, 16!J7,

and subscribed

OF

[Book

INI^TA.

Britannic majesty's envoy extraordinary ni

]jy his

the courts of Luneburg, and his resident in the city of Hamljurg.

document, addressed to the

In this

senjite of tliis city, the memorialists express

— "We, the

II.

them-

King of
Great Britain, have, upon the anival of commissioners from an Indian company
in Scotland, represented at two several times to your magnificences and lordselves as follows:

subscribers, ministers of his majesty the

ships from the king our master, that his majesty, understanding that the said
Memorial by
tlie

commissioners endeavoured to open to themselves a commerce and trade in

British

envoy.

these

pai-ts,

by making some convention

had com-

or treaty with this city,

manded us most expressly to notify to your magnificences and lordships, that if
you enter into such conventions with private men his subjects, who have neither
credential letters, nor are any other ways authorized by his majesty, that his
majesty would regard such proceedings as an affront to his royal authority, and
that he would not

fail

to resent

goodness to answer us thereto
into

Your magnificences and lordships had the
by your deputy that you would no way enter
it.

commerce vath the aforesaid commissioners, nor encourage them

in

any

sort.

Notwithstanding whereof, we, the subscribers, do see with displeasure

that,

without any regard to the remonstrances made by us in the name of

make

his majesty, the inhabitants of this city forbear not to

treaties

with the said commissioners,

by

receive subscriptions, as appears

who

conventioiLS

dare even erect a public

And

the annexed print.

it is

and

office to

not very

credible that strangers could so openly enterprise matters of such importance

without being supported by

this

government: wherefore

w^e

make our

just

complaints thereof to your magnificences and lordships, beseeching you, in the

name

of the king our master, to remedy in time that which

do

so

it

effectually as to prevent

any consequences

disturb the friendsliip and good correspondence which

tween England and the
lordships'
Answer

answer in

city of

Hamburg.

We

may

it

we

is

begun, and to

have, capable to

woiild cultivate be-

wait your magnificences' and

be transmitted to his majesty our master."

wi-iting, to

This memorial, which contains a

grc>ss

misrepresentation of the character of

by the
II

imburg

nierdiants.

the Scotch commissioners, and amounted in fact to a most unwarrantable interference with the independent rights both of Scotland

and Hambiirg, having

been transmitted by the senate to the Commercir, or general body of merchants, called forth the following answer:
thing, that the

trade with

King

whom we

— "We look upon

of Britain shovild hinder us,
please

from joining with his

own

;

who

subjects in Scotland, to

tionably placed the matter in

cautious to

its

tme

for considerable

if

are a free people, to

whom

light;

but the

he had lately given

This answer unques-

Hambm-g

merchants,

sums in the company's books, were too

and appended a condition making their
the company did not prociu'e some declaration from the

commit themselves

subscriptions void, "

as a very strange

but are amazed to think that he would hinder us

such large privileges by so solemn an act of parliament."

though they signed

it

finally,

;
;

A SCOTCH EAST INDIA COMPANY.

Chap. VIII.]

371

king that might secure them against the threatenings and other insinuations ad.

ico-

contained in the memorial"

was now the

It

first

company

business of the Scottish

endeavour to

to

subsequent
liroceeiUiigB.

obtain the declaration for which their subscribers in

and accordingly, on the 28th June, 1697,

Hamburg had

stipulated

their council-general presented

an

address to the king, in which, after enumerating their legsd rights, and the pre-

which they had sustained by the interference of individuals acting

judice

in his

majesty's name, they applied for the protection to which they were entitled
" natural right

and the

by

privilege of all merchants whatsoever, even though they

had wanted the sanction of so solemn laws, and more especially for such
declaration as in your royal

wisdom you

think

shall

Hamburg, and

inhabitants of the said city of

fit

others that are or

all

and

to render the senate

may

be

concerned, from the threatenings or other suggestions" which the memorial contained.

As

the king had evidently been brought into a false position, and

could not have justified the proceedings of the memorialists without tlirowing

Scotland into a flame, the Scotch secretaries, after the lapse of more than a

all

month, answered as follows:

you that as soon as
sideration

what you

—

"

We

are

empowered by the king
England he

his majesty shall return to
liave represented

to signify unto

will take into con-

imto him, and that in the meantime his

majesty will give order to his envoy at the courts of Liineburg and his resident
at

Hamburg

make

not to

use of his majesty's

name

or authority for obstructing

your company in the prosecution of yom- trade with the inhabitants of that
city.

This answer, though
actually performed
till

;

little

better than an evasion, promised

more than was

and new remonstrances by the company proved unavailing,

the general dissatisfaction which had begun to prevail, obliged the king to

reply that the promise of his secretaries had been

fulfilled,

abroad distinctly prohibited from fm-ther interference.
peared to be drawing to a

crisis,

when

and

his residents

Matters, however, ap-

the proceedings of the Scotch company

freed the king from his embarrassments,

and paved the way

for their

own

ulti-

They were expressly prohibited from attempting to settle on
any territory belonging to a power in amity with Britain. The site of the Isthmus
mate

extinction.

of Darien, situated between the Atlantic

tageous that
fitted

out

all

and the

other considerations were lost sight

by the company attempted

to settle

the territory, immediately remonstrated, and

seemed so advan-

and the

it.

first

expedition

Spain, wliieh claimed

King William appears

to have

The consequence was, that

Scots, instead of being permitted to establish a trade,

in a

of,

upon

been only too glad to second their remonstrance.

engaged single-handed

Pacific,

the

found themselves suddenly

war with the Spanish monarchy.

fought the battle manfully, but disaster followed disaster.

For a time they

Of

the 3000

men

Scotland had sent out to the isthmus, only a small remnant returned

Lwhom

r"'"^"'~"

'

""

ultimate
(,ftiieScotcu
''""'i*""^-

HISTORY OF IXDTA.

372
AD.

1098.

in the northern,

and

so

many

[Book

II.

Great Britain, cbamtd

fears in the southern j>art of

to exist.
Inducements
to fiirin a

The (liscussions to which the establisiiment of the Scotch East India Company had given rise, and the obloquy wiiich the London India Company haxl
•

i

i

new Kngiish

•

company.
jj^Q^j.j-gj ]^y

ment, had

i]^q

made

nefarious proceedings of those

who had asuq)ed

the English legislature fully aUve to the importance of placing

new and permanent

the trade to the East on a

the measm'e might have taken, had parliament been
wisest

i^lan,

its

(jii

choose the

left at liberty to

differed

;

but with a view to other purposes to which

account,

be made subservient.

The shape which

basis.

much from that which was adopted but
which rendered a new arrangement expedient, nf»t

would perhaps have

circumstances had occurred

only

manage-

its

The powerful

which King William had formed

coalition

frustrate the ambitious designs of the

might

it

King

of France required an enormoas

expenditure, and the necessity of obtaining the necessary funds to meet

seemed

for a

time to outweigh

all

to

other considerations.

it

had thas become

It

obvious that the question which had long been keenly debated between the
existing India

Company and

would be determined not

to them,

now leagued in opposition
much on its own merits as <m mere

the numerous party
so

The government was

pecuniary considerations.

want

in urgent

of money.

What amount of contribution were the candidates for its favour prepared to
furnish?
On this low and unworthy ground the question of continuing the old,
The
or of erecting a new company was now to be settled by act of parliament.
offer of the old

Company was

a loan of £700,000 at four per cent, interest:

their opponents offered £2,000,000, at eight per cent.,

and obtained the

prefer-

Considering the different rates of interest, the smaller loan was certainly

ence.

the more advantageous to the public, but the greater amount of present relief

which the larger loan

afforded,

was eagerly

Ostensibly, however, the preference given to

amount

of the loan, but

gi-asped at

it

was

by the terms on which

it

and carried the day.

justified,

was

not merely by the

The old Com-

offered.

pany

stipulated that the legislature should confirm their charter,

them

in possession of all their privileges as a joint stock.

and continue

Their rivals repudiated

the idea of a joint stock, and asked only to be incoi'porated, at least in the
instance, as a regulated
his

own name and on

first

company, which would allow every member to trade in
his

own

responsibility to the

amount

of his subscribed

This arrangement being in accordance with the more liberal ideas

capital.

which the Restoration had introduced, was supposed to possess
which, even

if

intrinsic merits,

other considerations had been equal, would have entitled

to be

it

pi'eferred.
Discussions

The

rcsolution in favour of a

new East

India

Company was adopted by

on the
subject.

House

of

Commous on

it.

Company being allowed

It

•

the
n

was brought in tor
was strenuously opposed in aU its stages,

4th May, 1698, and on the 26th a

the purpose of giving effect to
the old

^

_

to appear

by

bill

counsel against

it,

but ultimately

A NEW EAST INDIA COMPANY.

CiiAP. VIII.]

373

passed both houses by considerable majorities, and obtained the royal assent,

a.d. 1698.

Company, though powerfully supported, had lost favoui* with the
public by the acts of bribery which had been proved against them and even
durinf the discussion of the bill which doomed them to extinction, had sustained

The

old

;

new damage from

the report of a parliamentary committee which had been

appointed to examine their books
that

by a kind of juggle the value of

and large dividends had been

their stock

was £369,891,

1657,

1661, to April

much

on the adventm'ers

January

amounted

had

amount.

On

was retained, and held

of 25 per cent.

so

;

and

yet,

was made

on the 18th of

suddenly altered that the

was paid

in

call

was

Of

this

money, while the remaining

to be equivalent to a duplication of the

which was accordingly henceforth stated at double

this

the affiiirs
of tiieoia

from October,

this stock

a dividend of 150 per cent, was declared.

dividend, however, only 50 per cent,

original stock,

ReiJoHon

original stock of the Compan}-, in

1681, their funds were so low that a call

it,

Some
Com-

to 390^ per cent., or about 19| per cent, per

thereafter, circumstances

cent,

capital.

on the history of the

for the residue of their .subscriptions

revoked, and instead of

100 per

but out of

The aggregate dividends on

On 2d November,

annum.

light

gi*eatly exaggerated,

"'"'""'-^

The

to be quoted.

5s.

1681,

1,

had been

paid, not out of profit,

of the statements in this report throw so

pany that they deserve

was more than insinuated

for in this report it

;

its original

doubled stock dividends had been regularly paid at the rate

These dividends were always made on the arrival of ships on

general computations without the help of the books, or a minute statement of
the whole account

;

and hence, even at the time of making them, the Company

were hampered by a large debt, which in 1680 exceeded £500,000, and in 1698

amounted on bond alone

to £631,554',

an amount which could not be
ditions of the charter granted

and received under

tion,

this
viz.,

sum

it

specified.

them

£7-i4,000.

could have been applied

to raise the stock of the

lOs.,

exclusive of debts

in India to

In 1693, in fulfilment of the con-

in tliat year, they

opened a new subscrip-

The only legitimate purpose

was that expressly

Company

to

which

specified in the charter,

The parliamentary

to £1,500,000.

committee, after failing to obtain a distinct an.swer as to the manner in which
this

sum had been

disposed

of,

tained that a large portion of

it

consulted the Company's cash-book, and ascer-

had been squandered

in the

system of bribery

which has already been exposed, and that of the remainder no
£325,565,

Os. 4:d.

adventurei's.

had been repaid (on what ground

is

This report, given in at the very time

less

than

not explained) to the old

when

the

Company were

maintaining a desperate struggle for existence, must have told fearfully against
them.

The act which founded the new East India Company ranks as 9 Wm. III.
c. 44, and is entitled, "An act for raising a sum not exceeding £2,000,000, upon
a fund for papuent of annuities, after the rate of £8 per centum per annum, and
for settling the trade to the East Indies."

It

is

of great length, and

is

entirely

Actofi«rcsuHi'shing
"^"^
^J,'*"

•^'t

A.D.

ico'i

occupic'il

his

OF INDIA.

IIISTOIIY
its

ill

[Book

part with regulating the salt and starnj>

first

from wliieh

(]utie.s,

majesty was to derive the annual sum of £160,000, nece.ssary to pay the

terest or annuities exigible at the rate of eight per cent,

In regard to the loan

on the £2,000,000

the leading provisions are, that "

itself,

it

II.

in-

loan.

and may

shall

be lawful to and for his majesty, by commission under the great seal of England,
Act estab-

to take

and receive

all

such voluntary subscriptions as shall be

made on

or before

ne« com

the 29th day of Sej^tember, 1698, by or for any person or persons, natives or

'"'"

foreigners, bodies politick or corporate (the governor

any sum of money whatsoever, not

of England only excepted), of
for

and towards the

the said

sum

and company of the Bank

and paying into the said

raising

than £100,

receipt of the exchequer

The whole simi was subject

of £2,000,000.'

less

to redemption;

but

during the non-redemption his majesty might, by letters-patent, incorporate the

name

subscribers under the

of the General Society entitled to the advantages

given by this act of parliament.

Of the General Society thus incorporated, the
sum total of subscriptions was to form the principal stock, and every subscriber
to the amount of £500 and upwards was entitled to have one vote, and not more
than one, in the election of twenty-four trustees, each of them qualified by the
possession of not less than £2000 of the society's stock in his own right.
Tlie
subscribers, their executors, successors, or assigns, and the persons licensed by
them, were to have the privilege of trading to the East Indies, each to the extent
of his stock

;

or

if,

instead of thus acting individually, the whole or

manage

their share of the trade

might be incorporated

for this special purpose.

of them, or even corporations, should prefer to

company

as a

or joint stock, they

any number

In order "to maintain such ambassadors or other ministers" as the crown, at the
nomination of the
joint-stock

managers of the General Society, or of a

trustees, directors, or

company

established as aforesaid, should

"be pleased to send

to

any

emperor, prince, or state" within the specified limits, and to "defray any other

extraordinary or necessary expense in carrying on the said trade," a duty of five

per cent, was to be levied on

all

India goods imported, but should any surplus

remain after these purposes were served,
to

was

ever, to

1711,

were

The

to belong to the state, but

right of trading to the East

in future to belong exclusively to the General Society, subject,

two most important provisoes:

—

first,

and the repayment of the £2,000,000,
to cease

as before,

till

;

and, second, that the old

for the thrcc years' notice to

.

all

the rights granted by the act
still

continue to trade

This was meant to be an equivalent

which they were entitled under their

fell

far short of

it,

as the

charter,

/»ii
Tin
true meamng of the charter undoubtedly
.

yet

how-

that on three years' notice after

Company might

the 29th of September, 1701

to the old

compmy.

was not

be distributed among the shareliolders.

Indies

iNotice given

it

and

li.
was, tliat

while the three years were running, they were to enjoy the whole trade, instead
of being subjected, as they

now

were, to a formidable competition.

valent, however, imperfect as it was,

something like a stigma attached to

The

equi-

was not given without a grudge, and had
it

by a

clause in the act,

which expressly

;

A NEW EAST INDIA COMPANY.

Chap. VIII.]

stipulated that the present East India

Company should be bound

and should they make dividends

just debts;

dio

pay all their

to

after the 2-lth of June, 1698,

before their debts were discharged, not only would the estate of the

continue

and

Company

but the individual members receiving such dividends would

liable,

a.d. igps.

still

be held bound in proportion of their shares, and, moreover, be subjected to the
penalty of double

The

costs.

general suspicion which

stipulation thus inserted stiikingly indicates the

now attached

to the proceedings of the

London Company.

Indeed, the language of the legislature evidently implies a doubt, not merely of

There could not be any good

their ability, but of their willingness to pay.

gi'oimd for such a doubt

;

and yet

it is

impossible to deny that during the

years of their exclusive monopoly they had done too

The members of the General
subscrii)tions

to jujstify

it.

though they had originally offered their

xew joint

on condition of being established as a regulated, were soon found

lisiiment.

unanimous

to be almost

much

la.st

Society,

in favour of a joint-stock

company and

accordingly, on

;

the 5th of September, 1698, the crown, in accordance with the authority given
in the act of parliament, granted a charter, incorporating the vast majorit}' of

their

number

pany trading

as a

company

or joint stock, under the

The leading

to the East Indies.

identical with those

embodied

of the English

more than

refer to a

Com-

deed are almost

})rovisions of the

Company, and

in the charters of the old

therefore unnecessary here to do

Though the amount of

name

few of the

it

is

special clavises.

their subscriptions to the £2,000,000 loan

formed their

proper capital, they were to have an indefinite power of augmenting their stock

— one-tenth of their exports was

to consist of British produce

and manufactures

every shareholder to the amount of £500 was to have a vote, and none, however
large his share,
tion

was

have more than one

to

by inch of candle

;

and no

lot,

;

all sales

were to be by public auc-

except consisting of jewels, was to be of the

management was to be intrusted, as fonnerly, to
who were to form what was called, not as before, the

value of more than £1000; the

twenty-four individuals,

court of committees, but the " court of directors

be held annually.

by previous
for general

ship of 500 tons,

With regard

four general courts were to

Abroad, the same powers of judicature as had been confeired

charters were to be exercised,

and

;"

religious instruction,

and some provision was made both

by the maintenance of

and of schoolmasters and ministers

to ministers, in particular, it

a clia])lain in every

in all the principal factories.

was provided that they should be

obliged to learn the Portuguese, and "ap])ly themselves to leani the native lan-

guage of the country where they

shall reside, the better to enable

the Gentoos that shall be servants or .slaves of the same

them

Company,

to instruct

or of their

agents, in the Protestant religion."

The arrangements
play

for the establi.shment of

a

new East

India

Company

dis-

wisdom and foresight. The loan to government constituted the only
but this was alread}' absorbed, and the only fund on wliich the Company

little

capital

;

could rely for carrying on their trade, was the annual

sum

of £160,000, payable

imi-oiitio

menu.

—
UISTOltV OF l\I>fA.

n7()

AD.

iTuo.

to

them

Jis

This wa,s wholly iruulefiuate; nnd

interest.

began to

their pecuniary resources
filled up,

but as the instalments

the stock, which had at

Company

still

fell

due, the defaulters

field

with

how

the very outset,

had been rapidly
found purchaiiers

thus hampered, the

and

all

the advan-

on under

result of a competition carried

such circumstances could scarcely be doubtful

stand

difficulty

resources unimpaired,

its

The

tages arising from pre-occupation.

list

;

and

it is

J I.

became numerous, and

new Company was

Wiiile the

kept the

lience, at

Their subscription

fail.

brought a premium, with

first

at a considerable discount.
old

[Book

therefore ea«y to under-

the old Company, in addressing their agents abroad on the recent

changes, instead of using desponding terms, speak almost with exultation of the

approaching contest, expressing themselves as follows

"Two

Old Company still
confident.

:

East India Companies in England could no more

subsist,

without

destroying one y® other, than two kings at the same time regnant in the same

Now, a

kingdom.

pany

;

civil battle

to be fought

two or three years must end
Being veterans,

way.

was

doubt of the victory
to ruin each other,

if

if

;

between the old and new com-

this war, as the old or the

their servants abroad

would do

new must

give

their duty, they did not

the world laughed at the pains the two companies took

they could not help

it,

as they

were on good ground, and had

"'

a charter.
Groiuids of
confidence.

The confidence thus expressed was founded, not merely on the superior advantages which they possessed in a trade which had long been established, and for
the protection of which various fortified stations had been pro\'ided, but on the

important interest which they had secured in the stock of the General Society.

The

act of parliament left

become subscribers
the subscription

it

open for them, as

to the £2,000,000 loan,

list,

in the

name

and no

allowed them should expire, they would

still

t^)

than £315,000 stood

in

less

when

in 1701,

conse-

the three years of grace

There was, however, one

stood, their existence as a coi-poration

company would terminate

The

be entitled to trade annually to

India to the amount of the above subscription.

As the law

any other corporation,

of Mr. Dubois, for their behoof

quence was, that instead of being extinguished

difficulty.

for

gi*eat

and joint-stock

and they would thereafter be obliged

to trade,

not as an united body, but as individuals, each in proportion to the amount which

he had subscribed to the

In

The

first object, therefore,

by endeavouring

against this emergency

porate character.

loan.

this

to secure a prolongation of their cor-

they were completely

of 1700 a private act of parliament

was

now, was to pro\dde

successful, for in the

beginning

passed, "for continuing the governor

and Company of the merchants of London trading into the East Indies a corporation."

This

act, after referring to

to the £2,000,000 loan,

hath,

by the

direction,

the privileges confeired on the subscribers

and stating that

and

"

John Dubois,

in trust for the governor

and Company of merchants

trading into the East Indies, subscribed and paid the
of the said

sum

of London, merchant,

sum

of £315,000, as pai't

of £2,000,000, in order to entitle the said governor and

Company

;

'

TWO COMPANIES

Chap. VIIL]

ESTABLISHED.

377

to the several benefits of the said act," proceeds to dechire that they shall

by the name

tinue and be one body, corporate and politick,
nevertheless, to be determined

enactment

for the

are,

that the

upon redemption of the fund.

London Com})any, though

con-

•

a.d koo.

aforesaid, subject,

The reasons given

'

entitled to the ])enefits

confen-ed on the subscribers to the loan, would, notwithstanding, be dejuived of
"

them

" for

and

;"

should they cease to be a coqjoration

that several hundred

persons are interested in the said subscription of £315,000, they cannot

manage

the same, and the benefit of trade accruing thereby, but in a corporation."

Thus, by solenni acts of the legislature, two indeiiendent East India

Com-

panics were estal)lished, without any provision whatever to prevent the evils

which would necessarily
phical limits of the trade

been assigned a distinct

and

from their rivalship and

arise

were

field,

ample

sufficiently

within which

array,

and commenced a system of warfare which, while

derision

and extortion of the native

So early was

ruin.

rulei-s,

from the very

it

exposed them to the

could only terminate in their

this perceived, that the

face the difficulties which,

for

of this they were placed at once in hostile

capital

Iii-stead

indu

The geogra-

would have found ample scope

it

East

and each might have

for both,

all its

enterprise.

collision.

Tw., in.ie

new

or English

Company,

common
afraid to

began to gather around them,

first,

made overtures for a union. The London Company were not disposed to listen.
They had been forced into a struggle which they were most anxious to prevent
but, now that it had commenced, felt so confident of victor}', that when their
agents abroad expressed their alarm, they spoke slightingly of the danger, and
described
it

only a

it

"as a blustering storm, which was so

little

and grow the

shook the

firmer,

and

more vainglorious than

roots,

and made them thereby take the better

;

and when

tiie

violent feeling-s which at the com-

mencement of the struggle kept the companies

aloof had been giaduall\- mode-

The king

a general desire for union began to be entertained.

rated,

probably convinced that the legislature

itself

was

blame

to

for

fusion which had arisen, openly declared in favour of a union,

when, agreeably to a practice then usual in

London Company,

of the

hold,

The language thus em])loyed was

flourish the faster."

sincere

from tearing them up, that

f;u-

much
and

himself,

of the con-

in particular

pfvssing a private act, a deputation

and committees, and about

consisting of the governor

accompanied by the lord-mayor,

and ten of the

100

inoprietoi-s,

men

of London, obtained an audience of his majesty at Kensington on the 8th

sherifts,

of March, 1700, to re(piest that he would give the royal assent to the

alder-

bill

for

continuing them a corporation, he took the opportunity, while assuring them
of his favour and protection, to

recommend the union

to their serious coiLsideration, on the

ground

'•

that

it

of the

two companies

would he

mo.st for the

interest of the India trade.

Though
.,,.

Kmg
for

tiT-ii*

William,

it

VuL.

At
1.

was not
1*11
recommendation had a powerful

the union of the companies
1"
las

first,

indeed, the

f

t

effected during the reign of Toms
•

n

influence

London Company, instead

"1
m paving
•

the

way

which

on
tlie

.,.iiii..-»ni«>

of meeting its rival on ur^^***
48

—
HISTOUY OF INDIA.
A.D. 1700.

a footing of equality, endeavoured to get rid

ol' it

pay the whole of the £2,000,000

without a

gi-os.s

loan.

J I.

altogether by

to parliament to advance, at a reduced interest, as
to

[iiOOK

Thi.s offer

making an offer
much money as would suffice
could not have been accepted

breach of faith with the subscribers to that loan, and wa« there-

fore justly rejected.

It

was now

felt

that the union ajuld only be effected on

became daily more and more apparent,
the deputies of the two companies, abandoning all attempts to overreach each
equitable terms; and as the necessity for

began

other,

in

it

good earnest to arrange an amalgamation.

embodied in a deed dated the 2d of July,

702,

and

was

Indenture Tri-

between her majesty Queen Anne and the two East India Companies,

partite

The leading

for uniting the said Companies."

the companies in the very same position,
to

1

Tlie result

entitled "

government into two equal

the time of

its

portions,

object of this deed

was

to place

by dividing the whole sum advanced

and assigning one portion to

each.

At

execution, the subscription to the £2,000,000 loan stood as

follows:

.....
.....

English Company's subscription,
London Company's subscription,
Sejiarate traders' subscription,

;£l, 662,000

.315,000

23,000
.£2,000,000

Tenns on
wliicli

Leaving out of view the separate

who were

traders,

the

cumpanies
were amalgamated.

preferred to trade, to the
responsibility,

amount of

and not on a joint

companies was £1,977,000.

their subscription,

stock, the

The share

so called because they

on their own individual

whole sum subscribed by the two

allotted to each

company, under the

new arrangement, was the half of this sum, or £988,500; but as
Company had subscribed only £315,000, it was necessary for them
the difference

amount

by purchasing

called the

to

London

make up

Company,

to the

This arranged, the next object was to fix the value of

of £673,500.

what was

stock at par from the English

the

dead stock of the companies, or that portion of stock which,

consisting of forts, factories, buildings, &c., coiild not be tiu-ned into money, but

behoved to be reserved in common

whole of
to the

this

for the pm-pose of carrjdng

trade.

The

dead stock was valued at £400,000, of which £330,000 belonged

London, and only £70,000 to the English Company.

necessary, in order to maintain equality, that the latter

up the

on the

difference

by paying

to the former £130,000.

It

was

Company

therefore

should

Dm-ing seven

make

years, the

companies were to maintain their separate existence, but the trade was to be
carried on as

an united

trade, for the

common

benefit of both,

and under the

them chosen by each company.
At the end of the seven years the London was to be entirely merged in the English Company, which should, "from thenceforth, for ever, continue the same
direction of twenty-four managers, twelve of

corporation and body politick, with change of
called
to the

by the name
East

Indies.'

of
"

'

its

name, and be from thenceforth

The United Company of Merchants of England trading

FINANCIAL POSITION OF THE OLD COMPANY.

Chap. VIII.]

379

Of the same date as the indenture tripartite, another was executed under
the name of " Quinque-partite Indenture of Conveyance of tlie Dead Stock of
The inventory which it gives of this stock is
the two East India Companies."
of some interest, in so far at least as relates to the original Company, as it not

A

U. ITin

Position of
tlieoMCtini-

puny at the
time of

only furnishes the names, but also indicates the extent of the acc^uisitions which
it

had made

places

in the East during the

and subjects conveyed,

100 years of

Helena, with

Under

soever.

— "The ports and islands of Bombay and

their rights, profits, territories,

all

tiun.

in terms of the above agi'eement, at the valuation

of £'330,000, are enumerated as follows:
St.

The various

existence.

its

tlie

anialgania-

and a})pin-tenances what-

the pre-

sidency of the aforesaid

Bombay, the

island

fac-

tories of Surat, Swall}^,

and

Agra, and

Lucknow

which three

(in

last places

Company

liave only

and

houses

the

Amadavad,

factories of

the

and

Broach,

buildintjs

and some other conveniences remaining, but

G0MBR(K)N, OR BENDER ABBAZ. — Stnijs, Voyages
" "'"" "' '"*'

they have at present no
factors that

reside

there).

On

the coast of Malabar,

the

iloBcovie. Tartarie,

ell

forts of

Carwar,

Eiiumeratioii

Tellicherry,

and Anjengo, and the fectory of

Gombroon, Shiraz, and Ispahan, and the

Calicut.

yeai-ly rent, pension, or

tomands, amounting to the yearly sum of £3333,

by the Sophy of Persia

to the said governor

Choromandel, Chinghee and Orixa, Fort
tions,

of

St.

6s. 8(/.

houses,

St.

David (being a strong

fort

and Company.

On

the coast of

is built,

consisting

to the said

governor and Comjiany,

and

also all that fort called

dependencies

and

of 1000

George, with the castle and fortifica-

which are held of and pay rent
its

sum

English mone\', gi-anted

and territory thereto belonging, upon which a large city

together with the said city and

Fort

In Persia, the factories of

factory),

;

and about three miles compass

of the cu'cumjacent country, upon which several small towns or villages
erected;

the

Victories

of Cuddalore,

Porto-Novo,

Pettipolee,

Melchlepatam

On

(Masulipatam), and MadapoUam, and the fort and fiictory of Vizagapatam.
the island of Sumatra, the settlement of

York Fort

ai-e

at Bencoolen,

and the

fac-

tory there, with a territory of about five miles thereto belonging, and the factory
at Indrapore; also the factories of Tr^-aming

and

Sillebar,

out-pagars or factories dejiending on

tlio

China, the factoiy of Tonquin, in

kingdom of Bengal

tlu'

factory of Bencoolen.

and the fictory of Chuttanuttee, with a large
fiictories of Balasore.

Cossimbuzar,

Dacca,

and some other

;

In Cochin-

the Fort William

territory thereto belonging

;

the

Hooghly, Moulda. Rajahmaul, and

of

factories.

380
A.D. iron

IIISTOItV

Also the right and

Patna.
or

any

other'

and

profits,
Obstacles

It

title

settlements in

tiie

[Book

INI)IA.

of the said governor

South Seas; and

graunts,

all privileges,

OF

all

and phirrnaunds

must be admitted that the

and Company

Bantam,

to

rents, customs,

IF.

and other

in India."

sulyects above enumerated

were very mrxle-

to cordial
uiiiun.

rately valued,

and had not only

higher for an absolute

amalgamation, the London

though the
affairs,

The

sale.

effect certainly

was

to give

by con.senting

so urgent for

Sir Basil Firebrace,

it

first

when

.state

of their

the arrangement

large dividends regvdarly declared, they were

aversion

professed

as once

to liVjeral terms,

an unfavourable view of the
at the period

an amicable

effect

This would almost seem to have been their

though they had at

became

lost little

and countenance the allegation that

barely solvent.

but would have been rated far

however, being to

object,

Company

was made, notwithstanding the
for

cost more,

more

and purchase

it

own

the union, they at

to

to a«k in the aid of the

by the promise

impression,

now

la.st

notorious

of an enormoas reward.

As a compensation for his services, if they proved .successful, £150,000 of the
Company stock was to be transferred to him at £80. Assuming the .stock
to be at par, he was to make a gain of twenty per cent., or in other rewards
The arrangement- was not more extravagant
receive a douceur of £30,000.
than impolitic, because it led many of the English Company to imagine that
they had been outwitted in the bargain, and thus disposed them instead of
entering into

it cordially,

to

throw obstacles in the way of

its

completion.

This want of cordiality was especially manifested abroad, where the servants
of both companies,

disregarding the instructions which

they received from

home, seemed determined to carry on
a kind of internecine warfare.
after year thus passed

process

of winding

concerns of the

away, and the

up the separate

companies, prepara-

tory to the final amalgamation,

The

little progress.

Year

made

necessity of tak-

ing some more decisive step for this

purpose having become apparent,

was

it

at last resolved to have recourse

to a referee.

This important

undertaken

b}^

no

less

office

was

a personage

than Sidney, Earl of Godolphin, the
lord high-treasurer of Great Britain;
Sidney, Earl of Godolphin.— After Sir G. Kneller.

might be

and in order that fuU

effect

given to his award,

was previously

made binding on both companies by a

special

it

clause in an act of parlia-

ment.

This act of parliament (6th Anne, chap. 17), exa<;ted a

new loan

of £1,200,000

I

CAPITAL (W THE UNITED COMPANY.

Chap. VTIT.]

from

381

United Company, thus making the whole amount of the advance

tlie

government

No

£3,2()(),()()().

interest

was allowed on the

latter loan

;

to

but as the

cent., the effect was to accumulate both
former had borne interest at eight per
^
°
loans into one, bearing a connnon interest of five per cent. In return for Uie loan
^

thus exacted, certain
loan,

which

still

new

advantjiges were conferred.

a.d. ivns.

The portion of the

capitjiiof

the United

comitmy.

original

belonged to the separate traders of the General Society, had

been reduced to £7200, and

it

was now made optional

to the

United Company,

on giving three years' notice of their intention after 29th September, 1711, to

pay

off this

sum and

incorporate

it

own

with their

exclusive possession of the whole East India trade,

the siuidow of a competitor.

It

was

stock, so as to

put them in

and leave them without even

enacted that the existence of the

also

Company, instead of being terminable by three years' notice after 1711, on
repayment of the loan, should he prolonged under the same conditions till 1 726
;

and power was given them to borrow £1,500,000, which they might either
allow to remain as a bonded debt, or repay by means of calls on their share-

In this

liolders.

way

the

amount of

capital,

which would othenvise have

been absorbed by the additional loan, was more than replaced.

Lord Go-

award was pronounced on the 29th September, 1708; and the
arrangements consequent upon it being immediately completed, the amalgadolphin's

mation was

One Company

finally etlected.

only, bearing the

name

of "

The

nowNamooi
United Company of Merchants of En^dand trading
* to the East Indies,"
®
theUiiitt.l
and preparations were forthwith made for canying on the East cnixni}.
existed
.

.

.

;

India trade on a larger scale than
stances were propitious:

trade
it

was

it

had previously attained.

had obtained the

no longer be

direct sanction of the legislature

and animosities which at one time threatened
had

been suppressed

political

Company on which

the charter of the English

in future to be conducted could

— and

The circum-

called in question, as

—the internal

to bring ruin

the native governments,

dissensions

on both companies

in consequence of the

changes which followed the death of Am-ungzebe, had beeomc

able to practise extortion

and

oppression.

GAROOKrH OF THE PERSIAN GULT.

the

less

—

—

BOOK

III.

THE UNION OF THE COMPANIES TO THE ACQUISITION OF

FROxM

BENGAL, BEHAR, AND ORISSA.

CHAPTER
Actual position of the United Company
Aurunsjzebe

—

Political state of India

The Mahrattas and other native states

SiHILE parliament was
I
>l

I

"^^^^^^
xN-fe^r

I.

—The immediate succesaorB of

The invasion

of Nadir Shah.

discus.sing tlie best

mode

lisbing tbe trade to the East, the trade itself

almost suspended,

particularly on

the

of estab-

had been

west coast of

by an embargo wliich Am-ungzebe had laid on
all European ships in the harbour of Surat.
Yarioas
acts of piracy had been committed, and the Mogul.
India,

instead of endeavouring to discover the guilty parties, took the

more compendious method of throwing the responsibility on the
different

An

trade.

whom

Em^opean nations on

he had conferred

pri\'ileges of

imperial mandate accordingly was issued, obliging the English,

Dutch, and French not only to pay the damage which had been sastained,

but to give security for the payment of any similar damage which might
A.D. 170S.

be sustained in futm"e.
unavailing

;

and the

Remonstrances against

different

Difficulties

sity of saving their trade

with tlie
Mogul.

which boimd them to

this despotic proceeding

companies saw themselves reduced to the neces-

by submitting

Red

English along the Indian coast.

Under an aiTangement
the Dutch engaged for that

to injustice.

clear the seas of pirates,

pm'pose to cruise in the

proved

Sea, the French in the Persian Gulf,

and the

Tlie hardship thus inflicted entailed a serious

on the London Company, at a time when the threatening aspect of their

loss

home made retrenchment and rigid economy more than ever desirable.
much for their spirit and foresight, that in these untoward circumthey even ventured on a heavy outlay, in order to make a valuable

affairs at

It says

stances

acquisition in another part of India.
Acquisitions

This acquisition

is

described in the inventory above quoted as " the Foil;

of the

Company

William and the

in Bengal.

ing."

The

some years

factor}^ of

Chuttanuttee, with a large territory thereto belong-

factory of Chuttanuttee had,
before,

it

wiU be remembered, been estabHshed

when, after the humiliating result of the war rashly entered

into with the Mogul, an insulting permission

was given

to re-.ume the trade;

;

Chap.

CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED COMPANY.

I.]

now

but the territory

cac»j[uired

included

the three

383

entire towns,

or rather ad.

1708.

—thus giving the Company

and Calcutta

villages of Chuttanuttee, Govindpore,

a territorial footing in Bengal similar to that previously possessed at Madi'as

and Bombay.

Bengal was in conset^uence again raised to the rank of an inde-

pendent presidency, and Fort William, newly erected, and so called in honoiu"
of the reigning English monarch,

became

The United Company had thus
each governed by

own

its

at the very outset three distinct presidencies,

president and council,

Madnis was the

dently of the others.

its capital.

oldest,

and

Bombay

entitled to act indepen-

the strongest, and Bengal

commercially the most important, but no one possessed any recognized
riority

;

and the only controlling power which could give them unity of purpose

and action centred
obvious defects.

who met

in the court of directors,

This court, as constituted by the

•

sujie-

new

charter, laboured

members, twenty -four

Its

general court of proprietors, composed of

This amount gave one vote

no additional amount of

;

in Leadenhall Street.

all

number, were elected by the

in

who

under several very

£500 of stock.

possessed at least

but, contrary to the provisions of earlier charters,

.stock,

however

large,

The

gave more votes than one.

£500 and of £50,000 were placed on the very same footing, and,
constitutionally at least, exercised tlie same degree of influence in the general
proprietor of

management.

Tlie object of this provision apparently

was

to counteract the

tendency to monopoly, and prevent the recurrence of the abuse which had taken
place at an earlier period,

when

Child at their head, usurped a
object, the

a few overgrown proprietors, with Sir Josiah

selfish

and injurious ascendency.

means employed were not well

fairness required that

If this

calculated to accomplish

was the

Common

it.

some proportion should have been established between

the power of voting and the interest at stake

;

remedy

that the larger proprietors took the

and

therefore not sur})rising

it is

into their

own

hands, and had

recom-se to the obvious but not very creditable expedient of manufacturing

votes

by

up

splitting

confidential parties,

precaution

their stock into

who were bound

was taken against

£500

a single year

;

this practice, the evils

and hence, as each

impossible that the whole

While no

to vote at their dictation.

The

mitted to assume their most aggravated form.
for

and conveying them to

shares,

produced by

were per-

it

directors held office only

annujil election

came round,

it

was not

body of managers, and consequently the whole system

of manajrement, would be chanfjed.

The

electioneering carried on under such

circumstances was not onl}' unseemly but coiTupt, and the directors often

owed

their seats far less to their qualifications than to the superabundance of their

promises.

In proportion as the

Company extended

and valuable rights of patronage were acquired

might be obtained
cared

little

in retiu'n for votes, induced

for the dividends

interest of the

:

Company Mas

their operations, extensive

and the ajipointments which

many

to purchase stock

which might be realized from

it.

to such voters a matter of secondary

who

The true

moment

Coiistituticm

cunipim.v.

HLSTOUY OF INDIA.

384
A.

I).

1708.

and

employed not

their influence wa-s accordingly often

A

[Book

III.

promoting hut

in

in

court of directors elected on eiToneous principles, and con-

thwarting

it.

sisting of

members who had no

certainty of retaining office beyond a single

Company on any

year, could scarcely be expected to ccmduct the affairs of the

This serious defect was aggravated by the

regular and permanent system.
constitution of the court

itself.

Under the

was made

old chartei-s provision

for

the appointment of a governor and deputy-governor, who, by occupying the
chaii- for

a definite period, were able to arrange the basiness and give some

degree of uniformity to the proceedings

had been

and

lost sight of,

by a new

The obvious inconveniences of

new

charter this provision

whenever the

for several years,

occupation of the chair was determined
the moment.

but in the

;

election

directors met, the

made on the spur

arrangement were ultimately

this

The

obviated by a by-law, which re-established the original practice.

however, remained

defects,

serious attempt

fuinpan.v.

was made

Tlic liistory of the

K;iii.viii.stor.v

;

to

of

othei"

and more than half a century elapsed before any

remedy them.

United Company during the

first

The

fumislies few incidents deserving of special notice.

years of
rivals

its

existence

who had

ques-

tioned the legality of former charters with the view of securing a .share in the

East India trade, seeing themselves excluded by express acts of the

had been obliged

to

quit

All the

and encroachments on the exclusive

now deemed hopeless, were no longer
commercial transactions of the Company were henceforth

monopoly which had been
attempted.

the field;

seem-ed, being

on according to a regular routine

carried

;

and the record of them would only

present a dry detail of exports and imports, vaiying in
year, yet exhibiting on the
pi'ofit also

increased,

708,

when

af^iiire

cent.,

decline then took

it

and the rate

home and

effected, the

was eight per

and thereafter annually

place,

at

was

the complete union of the companies

nine per

increase.

to

The

though not always in the same proportion, the amount of

at the rate of only five per cent., in 1709

1711

amount from year

whole a permanent and important

dividend often fluctuating with the state of
1

legislature,

settled

till

down

abroad.

In

dividend was

cent., in

1723 ten per

1710 and
cent.

at eight per cent.

A
In

1712 the exclusive privileges of the Company, prexdouslj' terminable in 1726,

were prolonged by 10 Anne,

c.

28, to 1733.

By

years were added to this period; and finally,

trade was secured
Unsettled

Mogiu em'^"^

till

a subsequent prolongation, three

by 17 Geo.

II.

c.

17,

the exclusive

the expiration of three years' notice after 1780.

While the Company were thus secm'ed at home against any attempts which
might havc been made to deprive them of their

them from various other
alarming,
to be

was the

quarters.

state of

Of

privileges,

dangers threatened

these, the first in order, if not the

most

anarchy with wliich the whole country seemed about

overwhelmed, in consequence of the dismemberment of the Mogul empire.

After Aurungzebe's death in 1707, a kind of will was found under his pillow.

He had

foreseen the contest which

would be wag-ed

for his succession,

and endea-

C/iAr.

REIGN OF BAHADUR SHAH.

T]

voured to prevent

Moazzim, the

it

eldest,

by apportioning

dominions among his three

his

all

ad.

itos.

the provinces to the south and

kingdoms

south-west, including the Deccan, witli the exception of the conquered
of Bejapoor

To

sons.

he destined the northern ?ind eastern provinces, with the

of emperor; and to Azim, the second son,

title

080

and Golconda

Tliese he left to his third son, Cambaksii.

This

proposed partition, wliich would have been injudicious under any circumstances,

threw away the only chance which remained of once more consolidating the

Mogul power.

The Mahrattas had shaken

it

to its verj^ centre

Rajpoots had made themselves almost independent

—and many other

The

any regard

brothers, without paying

his death

than they flew to arms.

.advantage of his position, and

Amamgzebe s

will

tributaries

would have made

to that document,

who was

Azim,

it.

no sooner heard of

nearest to the capital, took

was immediately proclaimed sovereign of

Cambaksh, instead of questioning

leading

The confusion was,

were watching the opportunity to imitate their example.
iiowever, destined to be even worse than

— the

his title, formally

acknowledged

it,

India.

all

and was

suoce9.si,,i,

of

shau.

confirmed in possession of the kingdoms which his father had allotted him.

Moazzim, though the true
it

to

on favourable terms

any

;

heir,

was not indisposed

from Moultan, and the second from Bengal

the battle which ensued,

was taken
cession

sons,

prisoner.

were
It

Moazzim gained

—hastened

slain in the field,

and

might have been supposed that the struggle

an

infant,

for the suc-

so readily to his

of Bahadur Sliah,

title

necessary to march into the Deccan at the head of an army.

His good fortune again attended him, and
in February, 1708,

Cambaksh was not only

quitting the Deccan,

Khan, who had earned

the battle which decided his

an accommodation

in a battle fought near

defeated, but

fell

Hyderabad,

mortally wounded.

Bahadur Shah conferred the viceroyalty on Zulit

by an opportune

fate.

desertion of Azim, previous to

Zulfikar immediatel}' endeavoured to effect

witli the Mahrattas.

The circumstances were

favourable.

Saho, the legitimate rajah, after a long captivity, had been set at

lil>erty

by Tara

infant son.

Bai, the

widow

of his uncle. Rajah

Ram, wlio claimed

Both claimants were strongly supported; and

a negotiation with Saho.
repair to Delhi

;

He was

I.

for her

but his deputy, Daoud

Khan

taking

progi'ess in

obliged, however, before concluding

it,

to

Panni, following out his views,

procured exemption from Mahratta forays, by agreeing to
Vol.

it

Zulfikai-,

advantage of the disunion thus produced, had made considerable

by

He was

Azim, and had immediately laid claim to the Mahratta sovereignty.
resisted

In

Moazzim, therefore, had

no sooner mounted the throne in June, 1707. under the

On

—the

Azim, with his

his only other son,

;

it

his sons

to join him.

a complete victory.

second, rose in rebellion against his eldest brother.

fikar

two of

was now at an end but Cambaksh, who had submitted

than he found

listen

Moazzim accordingly advanced from

decision but that of the sword.

two grown-up

offered

but Azim, strong in actual possession, refused to

Cabool, where he had been residing as governor, while
eldest

and

to a compromise,

lev}-

the clunit by
43

DiMmion
Maumttas.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

y8()

A D

1712.

his

own

officials,

humiliating

and pay

arrantrement,

far declined that

Salio the proceeds.

hut

tiie

(Book

This was at

best a very

tlie

Mogul had already so

fortunes of the

any terms were deemed

III.

hazard of a

new

Deccan, Bahadur Shah was encountered by a

new

[jreferable to the

strui'tfle.

Rypo

In returning from

.t

tlie

lonfedenuv

confedera(;y of Rajpoots, headed

by the Rana of Odeypoor and the Rajahs of
Jeypoor and Marwar.
Be-

/#

fore he could crush

new

a

it,

alarm broke out which obliged

him

their

demands, and

with

comjjly

to

in

fact

make them independent
everything

but

in

name.

the

The alarm proceeded from the
Punjab, where the Sikh.s,
an

originally

religious sect,

insignificant

had

risen rapid-

and were

ly into importance,

now avenging

themselves on

their Mu.ssiilman pereecutors

by

devastations and

fearful

wholesale

insurrection

was deemed

midable enough to
EAJPOOT.S

—From

Buinouf, L'Inde Francaise

;

Sohyn, Les Hindous

;

and

the CmperOr's

Todd's Annals of RnjAsthan.

suppressed

As

Disputed

when he died suddenly

usual, the succession

for-

demand

perSOUal pre-

..

sence,

The

massacres.

^

and was only

i*

ll

partially

at Lahore, in Februarj^ 1712

was disputed by

his four sons.

Azim-u-Shan, the

succession
to tlie

Mogi J

throne.

second son, was the favourite both with the nobility and the

army

;

and,

by a

rapid march from his government of Bengal, where he had for several years been

much upon

providing himself with the sinews of war, gained so

his competitors

The other three brothers, seeing that
their only chance of success was to unite against him as a common enemy,
joined their forces, and, under the able guidance of ZuLfikar Khan, forced him
that resistance seemed all but hopeless.

to action
lie

lost

under circumstances so disadvantageous, that after a short struggle

both the battle and his

life.

The question of precedence among the

remaining brothers stiU remained to be determined
it

by a very summary

process.

;

but Zulfikar

Khan

settled

Moiz-u-din, who, as the eldest, had the best legal

seemed excluded by incapacity; but

was his strongest
recommendation.
He had determined to use him as a tool, and therefore,
espousing his cause, found little difficulty in seating him on the throne, under
the title of Jehandar Shah.
Zulfikar, almost as a matter of course, became

title,

to Zullikar this

1

Chai'.

KEIGN OF FAllOKSlllK.

1.

vizier,

and wielded

oS7

the power of the state, while the pageant emperor gave ad.

all

1:13

himself up to folly and licentiousness.

One

of the

acts of the

first

might have become

new

reign had been to seize and murder

Some

rival claimants to the throne.

all

who

of them, however, not-

R-'s" of
shai,

withstanding the remorselessness with which this barbarous policy was carried

Among them was

had escaped.

out,

Azim-u-Shan, who, when he

Faroksliir, son of the second l^'othei-,

contend for the succession, had

set out to

left

him

The incapacity of Jehandar Shah, and the

to govern Bengal as his deputy.

arrogance and tyranny of Zultikar Khan, having jn-oduced general discontent.

Farokshir saw his opportunity, and resolved to improve

Khan and Hosen

brothers, Abdallah

Prophet, were held in reverence

Supported by two

it.

who, as Seyeds, or descendants of the

Ali,

by the Mahometans, while

their po.ssession of

the respective governments of Allahabad and Behar ])laced a powerful force at

command, he

their

and advanced

to the vicinit}'

There Jehandar and Zulfikar encountered him at the head of 70,000

of Agi'a.

men.

raised the standard of revolt

was

Tiie battle

Ultimately the

so fiercely contested that the issue Wcis long doul)tful.

who had

troops,

ini])erial

little

good-will to the cause for which

they were fighting, gave way, and Jeliandar, fleeing in disguise to Delhi,
Zulfikar to follow with the remaining troops as he best could.

upon

^close

his heels,

and learned with

wait the tedious process of a

met him

fikar

This

hands.

new

Farokshir was

delight, that instead of being obliged to

siege, the capital

as he approached,

left

was already

in his power.

and delivered Jehandar a prisoner

act of perfidy did not save him.

and both he and

Zul-

into his

his

master

were immediately put to death.
Farokshir having thus mounted the Mogul throne on 4th February, 1713,
naturally conferred the highest offices of the state on the

made

the elder, was

lah,

recovered after being

left for

and Hosen

dead on the

who had

Ali,
field,

Abdal-

almost miraculoasly

became Ameer-ut-Omrah, or

Pluming themselves on the important

commander-in-chief

had rendered, the

vizier;

two Seyeds.

services

which they

were disposed to repeat the game which had been
played by Zulfikar Khan, by leaving Farokshir only the name of emperor, while
brothei>5

they really governed.

difficult

than they had antici-

Farokshir, though of a feeble and irresolute character, ha<l a high idea

pated.

of his

The task proved more

own

qualifications for reigning,

and was surrounded by worthless favour-

and ambition could not be satisfied while nothinjr but the
shadow of power was left him. The Seyeds, accordingly, soon found themselves
ites,

whose

thwarted

raiiacity

in their arbitrary proceedings

by

a strong court party, who, without

venturing to j)rovoke an open rupture, were unwearied in intrigue.

scheme was to get

rid of the presence of

required his presence.
ful

aged

in

it

by the court

faction,

fii-st

Hosen Ali by exciting a war which

In this there was no

Rajah of Marwar, was again in

The

difficulty, as Ajit Sing,

the power-

and was, moreover, actually encourwho gave him to undei-stand that obstinate
rebellion,

iteignof

b<SS

;.

u. i7i:i

llISTOliY

OF IMHA.

would please the emperor more than

resistance

[Took

rea/ly submission.

Tlie rajah,

however, was too acute to play the game of Farokshir's favourites
ing

Hosen willing

to grant

him

terras

by which

own

his

interests

III.

;

and, find-

were secured,

liastened to conclude a peace.

One

hnixrtant
Faioksiiii

to the

(laughter in marriage to the emperor.

Comis

was that the rajah should give

of the stipulations of this peace

What

the attractions of the lady were

not mentioned, but Faroksiiir seems to have

patience of a lover.
sipated course of

life

which he led had undermined Ms

Company had

very period the

him

health,

to marry.

Tlie di«^

and he was labour-

Fortunately, at this

sent a formal emba.s.sy to Delhi to complain of

the extortion and oppression practised

more

the ardour and im-

felt all

There was, however, a serioas obstacle in the way.

ing under a disease which did not permit

his

upon them at

their different factories,

and

They had been induced to take this step in consethe favour which Farokshir had shown them while holding the

especially in Bengal.

quence of

government of

this province,

and

their consequent

hope that he would

protec-t

them against the harsh treatment which they were receiving from Jafiier Khan,
his successor.
The embassy carried with them presents to the value of about
£30,000, intended partly for the emperor himself, and partly for the favourites

whom

he was surrounded.

It is not to

be doubted that at a com-t where intrigue

prevailed and all things had become venal, these presents

down many
them but

difficulties

to a cause

had been

calculated.

^Ir.

was removed, and

yield to native treatment,

Hamilton, the phy-

called to court to give his professional aid,

so well, that the disease of the emperor,

tiously delayed,

must have smoothed

but the idtimate success of the embassy was owing not to

on which they had not

sician to the embassy,

and succeeded

;

by

his marriage,

whicb had refused

to

which had been vexa-

was celebrated with unprecedented splendour.

consequence no limit to the favour which Mr. Hamilton enjoyed.

There was in

The emperor

by bestowing rich presents upon him in the presence of all his courtiers, and was afterwards easily induced to comply with the
petition which the embassy had presented, by issuing a firman which invested
Besides the three ^'illages
the Company with new and extensive priAoleges.
which they aheady possessed in the vicinity of Fort WiUiam, authority was
given them to acquire other thirty-seven on the same terms and in the same
publicly attested his gratitude

locality.

For a time, in consequence of the

was rendered inoperative

;

but at

hostility of Jafiier

last full effect

was given

to

Khan,
it,

this grant

and the Com-

pany, though not without serious misgivings of allowing themselves to be

"encumbered with much

territory," acquired right to a tract

ten miles along both sides of the Hooghly,
gation.

Among

extending nearly

and completely commanding

the other more important privileges confeiTed

its

by the

navi-

fii-man

were the conversion of the duties previously payable at Siuat into a fixed
annual sum, beyond whicli no charge of any kind was to be made
all,

;

and above

the removal of one of the greatest impediments which trade had experienced,

Chap.

THE SEYEDS'

I.]

by exempting

all

'S^'J

goods protected by the Company's dustid; or passport, from ad

stoppage or examination by the

At

liULE.

the very time

of the Bengal government.

officials

when Farokshir was making

these concessions to the

were hastening to a

While Hosen Ali was absent

Com-

vimua mie
()f

j)any his

own

affiiirs

with the army, the

had thrown

corn-tiers

by evincing a more undisguised

crisis.

off part of their

furnished

hostility,

it

is

probable they did not

feel,

the

the

seyedc.

former caution, and

him with a pretext

providing additional secmuties for his personal safety.

which

iru

for

Pretending an aliinu

two brothers

at first refused to

appear at court, and then began to prepare for open hostihties.

After a period

was threatened with anarchy,
submit, and consented to become virtually a

of general consternation, during which the capit<\l
Farok.shu' found

it

necessary to

by allowing the gates of the citadel, within
which his [)alace stood, to be occupied by their guards, while an attempt was
made to effect a reconcihation. After various abortive propo.sals it was at
last arranged that Mir Junda, the emperor's favourite and head of the court

prisoner in the hands of the Seyeds,

faction,

and Hosen

Ali,

should both quit Delhi, the former proceeding to his

government of Behar and the
Abdallah

Khan

on either

side,

shoidd

still

government of the Deccan, while

latter to his

retain his office of vizier.

and though the actual

There was no sincerity

was prevented, the course of

crisis

in-

trigue continued as before.

During the confusion caused by the dissensions at Delhi, the Sikhs,

had again become formidable.

sustaining a series of disasters,

Bandu, who had been made captive, had
his

mountain retreat renewed

now

the central government
.strongly felt, that

command

and suddenly

Their

chief,

i.ssuing

from

ravages in the level country.

Feeble

{\.s

was

so

was, the necessity of vigorous measm-es

xiie siwiis

uandii.

a powerful force was despatched into the Punjab under the

of a chief called

with consummate

his

e.scaped,

after

Abdusemed Khan, who conducted the campaign
After gaining repeated i-uccesses in the open

ability.

he hunted the Siklis out of their

fiistnesses,

and made many of

field,

their leaders

Bandu himself was again among the number, and expiated his
crimes on the scaffold at Delhi by a death in which all kinds of horrific torNumerous other executions followed, and the Sikh.s,
tures were accumulated.
pri.soners.

though

still

destined to play an important part in the history of India, were

so completely subdued,

that

many

years elap.sed before their existence as a

nation acjain became discernible.

In the Deccan the Mogul arms were
arrival in 1715, their emplojTiient

gated by the emperor himself

was

less successful.

Panni, who, as

to hold the

luis

on Hosen Alis

have been

insti-

been mentioned,

government of the Deccan as

his

was removed

on

deputy, and negotiated a peace with the Mahrattas,

in 1713

and was now governing the united provinces of
His immediate succes.sor in the Deccan was Chin Kilicli

the accession of Farokshir,

Gujerat and Candeish.

first,

in civil warfare, said to

Daoud Khan

was appointed by Zulfikar Khan

At

Piooewiing*
uoixiu.

—

HISTORY OF INDIA.

390
A u.

17I.V

Khan, afterwards well known as the founder of the Nizam dynasty, under
title

Proceedings
ill

[Book HI.

meaning

of Nizam-ul-Moolk,

make Way

Hosen

for

Ali,

" Regulator or

his

Governor of the State."

To

he was removed to the comparatively insignificant

the

Uecuaii

government of Moradabad.

by the

loss

of these chiefs considering themselves aggrieved

B(;tli

of their more important appointments, hated Hosen, and were

di.s-

posed to throw their weight into any confederacy that might he formed against

Daoud, naturally the more headstrong and impetuous of the two, was

liim.

worked upon and no sooner learned that Hosen's destruction would be
;

at Delhi as a deliverance, than he resolved to attempt

it,

first

hailed

not covertly, but

liy

With this view, having mustered the forces of his own governments, and increased them by le\aes from the Mahrattas and other Deccan chiefs
open

hostility.

among whom he had
\
\

any

influence,

once

made

he at

his appear-

ance in the

and

field,

that there might be

no doubt as

to

his

intentions, sent Ho.sen
his defiance.
(jf

The

trial

strength thas pro-

was

voked

speedily

Daoud,

decided.

act-

ing with his usual imj)etuosity,

the

commenced

battle

with

before whicli

charge,

those opposed to
M.\HRATTA.s.

From

Forbas, Oriental Memoirs;

when he

the day

fell,

pierced through the brain with a bullet.

was immediately

him

and Bumouf, L'lude Francaise.

were
struck,

a

reversed,

and Hosen saw

fleeing

panic-

The fortune

of

his threatened defeat con-

verted into a complete victory.
Progress

While Daoud Khan Panni and Nizam-ul-Moolk governed in the Deccan, the

of the

Mahrattas

Mahrattas, either distracted

by

internal dissensions, or satisfied with the advan-

tageous peace which they had extorted, gave

was now changed.
his enemies,

Hosen, offended at the assistance

and deeming himself strong enougli

force,

was not

chiefs

gave him good ground

was Dabari, by

at all dissatisfied

when

The aspect of affairs
which they had given to

little trouble.

to put

them down by main

the proceedings of one of their leading

for interfering.

This

chief,

whose family name

establishing a line of fortified villages in Candeish,

had become

the terror of caravans and travellers along the highroad leading from the Dec-

can to Surat.

A

little obsti'uction,

stroncj

detachment whicli Hosen sent against him met with

and marched on unconscious of danger

till it

became entangled

;

Chap.

The Mahiattas,

in ravines.

true to their

selves of every possible outlet,

by the sword or was made

was now

MAHOMED SHAH.

OF

IlEIGN

!.]•

mode

oJil

of warfare, had possessed them-

and almost every man of the detachment perished

The whole of

prisoner.

tlie

Mahratta confederacy

and Hosen, fearing that he might be involved in an

in motion,

when

minable and inglorious warfare, at the very time

in tiie possession of a larger extent of ten-itory

po.ssessed before,

inter-

was impera-

his presence

tively re(iuired at Delhi, hastily concluded a peace with Saho,

him

a.d. 1719.

which contirmed

than the Mahrattas had ever

and sanctioned the levying not only of the

cliout,

but of the

sirdesmuki, or an additional tenth of the whole remaining revenue throughout

The only return which Saho made

the Deccan.

for these concessions

agreement to guarantee the country from future depredations, to

was an

fin'nish

a con-

tingent of 15,000 for the maintenance of the public tranquillity, and to pay an

annual tribute of ten

lacs of rupees (£100,000j.

own

Farokshir, wliile aware that his

Hosen

manner compelled

intrigues had in a

to conclude this disgi-aceful treaty, refused to ratifv

which ensued hastened the
steadiness

Farokshir, had he possessed

crisis.

and energy, might

easily

iSiiig,

any degree of

rurckKiiir

ZyeZ.

have found in the chiefs who envied or hated

the Seyeds, a combination ])owerful enough to free

His father-in-law, Ajit

Tlie (piarrels

it.

rtvfcM nn.i

him from

their galling yoke.

Rajah of Marw.ar, Jei Sing, Rajah of Amber, Sirbu-

land Khan, governor of Behar, and Nizam-ul-Moolk, who, considering himself
exiled at Moradabad,

was pining

for higher

employment, were

Instead of taking proper measures to court

lent their aid.

them by the preference shown

to

unworthy

favourites;

it,

all

ready to have

he only alienated

and hence, wlien the

period for a decisive trial ari'ived, found himself almost totally abandoned.

Alarmed

at the dangers

by which he was

and endeavoured, by abject submission,

beset,

he

now

consulted only his fears,

Even

to obtain at least a respite.

this

by a few partisans who still
adhered to him in the capital, the Seyeds dragged him forth from his hidingplace in the seraglio, and caused him to be privately put to death in Feb. 1719.
was denied

;

and

after

some attempts at a

rescue,

Hosen Ali and Abdallah Khan, were now absolute mastei*s
of the government, and migiit at once have put an end for ever to the Mogul

The

ilyna.sty.

brothel's,

Tliis

have adopted

;

was probably
but

its

for themselves the safest course

which they could

boldness deten-ed them, and they set up

first

one young

prince of the blood and then another.

By

a singular fatality both died,

not by violence, but naturally, Avithin

.six

months.

robust constitution, and

A

mounted the throne with the

third

it is said,

was found of more

title <<f

Mahomed

Shah.

The Seyeds evidently contemplated a continuance of their arbitrary rule
but symptoms of opposition were soon manifested in various ((uarters, and were
leather encouraged than repressed by a timid and vacillating policy on the part
would indeed seem from the timid measures of the
brothers, that they were conscious of having fallen gi'eatly in public opinion,

of the government.

and

felt

It

the ground slipping from beneath their

feet.

With

.some of the earlier

M.ihome<i
'"
o„'"ti,e

^''"'°^-

HISTOllV OF INDIA.

3!»2

A. D. 1719.

1"

'beln

against

lie

difficulty in efTecting

little

was otherwise when Nizam- ul-Moolk began

It

pi'omise.

they found

tlieir autliority,

[Kook JU

to

a com-

bestir himself,

had been in communication with Farokshir's party; but, on seeing how

little

confidence could be placed in that fickle monarch, had given in his adhesion to

He

the Seyeds.

expected that they would have rewarded him with the govern-

ment of the Deecan, and was much dissatisfied on receiving only that of Malwah.
Even here the Seyeds deemed him too formidable, and they endeavoured to
remove him by pressing on his acceptance any one of the four governments of
Allahabad, Agra, Candeish, and Moultan.
He refused, and at the same tune,
considering

it

unnecessary any longer to dissemble, prepared to

ened attempt to oust him by

Moolk proceeded

force.

to execute a

An

a threat-

rasLst

open rupture ensued, and Nizam-ul-

scheme which he had long been meditating.

Instead of remaining in Malwah, he crossed the Nerbudda, gained posseasion by
force or bribery of several important places, signally defeated

were sent against him, obtained the adhesion of

many

chiefs,

two armies that

came

to

an under-

standing with the Mahrattas, and was soon virtually master of the whole Deecan.

His success had been greatly aided by a course of intrigue which had again

Niziim-ui-

tLe^De'ccaii

Commenced at the com-t of Delhi. Mahomed Shah, like his predecessor Farokshir, was bent on throwing off the yoke of the Seyeds.
The revolt of Xizam-ulMoolk seemed to promise the means, and that ambitious chief was according!}'
made aware that he could not do the emperor a gi'eater ser^•ice than b}' persisting in the course which he had so successfully begam.
The Seyeds, perfectly
aware of the dangerous position in which they
act,

and

lost

much

stood,

were perplexed how

The

precious time before they were able to decide.

resolution was, that Hosen, carrying the emperor

nobles along with him, should

make

to

final

and several of the suspected

the campaign of the Deecan against Nizam-

ul-Moolk, while Abdallali should overawe the disaffected

by

residing

and main-

taining a strong force in the capital.
Downfall

Ljeda.

Meantime a

conspiracy, to

formed.

Its object

however

atrocious.

was

At

was deep

by any means
conspiracy were Mahomed Ameer

to get rid of the Seyeds at

the head of this

Khan, a nobleman of Turki
peror's party,

which the emperor himself was privj^ had been

origin,

events,

who, while ostensibly opposed to the em-

in his confidence

;

and Saadut Khan, who,

merchant of Khorasan, rose to importance by

became the progenitor of the Kings of Oude.
tors proposed to effect their object

aU

liis

originalh* a

military talents, and ultimately

The mode by which the

was a barbarous

assassination.

conspira-

It

was not

As Hosen was proceeding
to the Deecan in his palanquin, a Calmuck, of the name of Meer Heider, ap])roached with a petition, and while Hosen was reading it, drew a dagger and
staljbed him to the heart.
The whole camp was immediately tlu'own into oommotion, and ultimately divided into two hostile bodies the one comj^osed of the
difficult to find

both an agent and an opportunity.

—

adherents of the Seyeds, and the other of the adherents of the conspirators.

Chap.

The

NIZAM-UL-MOOLK, VIZIER.

T.'

now

latter,

openly countenanced by the emperor,

393

who

placed himself at ad.

proved victorioas, and drove the former from the

their head,

who was only on

his

way

when

to Delhi

1722.

~"

Abdullah,

field.

the intelligence reached him, endea-

voured to maintain the struggle by setting up a new sovereign in the person of

Jhalledab.

'

— Adapted from Solvjn, Les Hindous.

one of the princes confined in the

capital,

and mustering a large army.

liowever, in a great measure undisciplined,
offered Uttle

])lace,

more than a show of

and when the

cious

Mahomed Shah

;

encounter took

final

Abdallah was taken

resistance.

soner; but, contrary to the usual practice on such occasions,

death

It was,

returned to Delhi, and, not at

all

pri-

was not put

to

abashed at the atro-

means which he had employed, made a pompous celebration of

his recovered

authority.

The
r
for

1

office

T

of vizier, conferred at

headmg

its affairs,

on Mahomed Ameer Khan, as a reward

still

in the Deccan,

and found so much emplo\anent

that nearly two years elapsed before he reached

Mahomed

January, 1722, he found everything in disorder.

ill

On

Deliii.

in settling

his

acquired such an ascendency over him, that
signet

and use

men whose

it

for her

own

purposes.

who

still

but his personal

ai)})earance

were held up

was not the man
Jballedar

to

is

who had

keep his private

His principal counsellors were young
liis

Not only were

and manners, so

different

all his

from those of the youthful

to ridicule for their master's special

to tolerate these rude

and insulting

a palanquin used by ri^ahs and wealthy persona.

It

is

reforms thwarted,^

amusement.

liberties,

and

it

I.

He

was not

covered with silk embroidered with

gold, &c.

Vol.

revels.

regained the austere habits acquired in the court of

Aurungzebe, soon became disgusted.

'

was allowed

only qualification was companionship with then* master in

Nizam-ul- Moolk,

courtiers,

slie

amval

Shah, occupied

only with his pleasures, acted at the dictation of a favourite mistress,

50

Nizam-uiMo..lk.

•

the conspiracy, was, on his sudden death, reserved for Nizam-ul-

He was

Moolk.

first

•

1

vizkr.

;

'

AT)

17:4.

INIdA.

IIISTOl;\- ol-

3iil-

long before

emperor

tlie

unci his vizier

[Book

were mutually desirous

to

III.

It is

j»ait.

needless to dwell on the plots and counterplots to which this feeling gave

rise.

Suffice it to say, that in October, 1723, the vizier sent in his resignation,

and

accepting

was no

Ostensibly there

set out for the Deccan.

(quarrel

the resignation, lavished on Nizam-ul-Moolk

which a subject could

;

for the

emperor, in

honours

the highest

It wa.s not long, however, before the enmity

receive.

rankling at his heart was fully ncianifested.

Mobariz Klian, the

of Hyderabad, proceeding

from Delhi, collected a poweiful

army

on

instructions

local

avowed purpose of extending his own authority over the whole
Nizam-ul-Moolk, whose skill as a diplomati.st was at least equal to his

for the

Deccan.

prowess as a

soldier,

had recourse to negotiation, and having protracted

were complete, defeated Mobariz in

his preparations

battle,

slew him, and

ing ignorance of the instigation which had been given from Delhi,
to the

it till

affect-

.sent liLs

head

emperor as a trophy.

When

Mahratta

governor

Nizam-ul-Moolk marched

govemments

off to the

Deccan, he was in po.ssession of

Malwah and Gujerat. He was formally removed from
revenge by encouraging incursions of the Mahratta.s, who,

of both

connived at

the

iii^-Mooik!

them, and took his

notwithstanding partial repulses, had, during the rajahship of Saho, continued
to

make

rapid progress.

two ministers
trict

—

first,

of the Concan,

and next,

The main instruments of

were the

rajah's

Balajee Wiswanat, who, originally the accountant of a dis-

became the founder of the Brahmin djmasty of Pei.shwas

his son Bajee Rao,

who, after Sevajee, ranks as the ablest leader

the Mahratta nation has produced.

obtained from

this success

Mahomed Shah

had not only consolidated the
quired, but introduced

them

;

had

Balajee, before his death in 1720,

a ratification of the treaty

Ali dm-ing the reign of Farokshir

whom

made

and Bajee Rao, following in

rights of chout

into provinces

witli

Hosen

his father's steps,

and sirdesmuki previously

ac-

where they had never before been

levied.

This extcnsiou of Mahratta power had, as already observed, been partly

Progress of

Mahratta
power.

owing

to Nizani-ul-Moolk, who, in revenge for his removal

Gujerat,
can,

had encouraged the Mahrattas to invade them.

which he now regarded as

his

from Malwah and

His policy in the Dec-

own independent kingdom, was

dictated

by

opposite motives, his great object here being to confine the Mahratta power and
influence within as

narrow

limits as possible.

With

this Anew, shortly after

liis

victory over Mobariz in 1724f, he dexterously availed himself of the disputed
succession

by which the Mahratta

counsels

had long been

distracted.

Saho,

under the able ministry of Bajee Rao, had established a complete ascendency
over his rival Samba, and confined him to a comparatively insignificant district
lying near the western coast to the south of Sattarah.

was equally with Saho himself recognized
sibility in the

to

as rajah

;

Still,

however, Samba

and there was

answer of Nizam-ul-Moolk, when, without denying

pay chout and sirdesmuki

for the Deccan,

at least plauhis obligation

he asked which of the two rajahs

Chap.

liiul

PROGRESS OF TilE MAHRATTA POWER.

1.

the legal right to

it,

and

called

upon them

395

to exhibit their respecti^'« claims.

A.D. 1724.

Saho, indignant at the very suggestion of a doubt on such a subject, disdained

any explanation, and sent Bajee Rao at the head of a nmnerous army
compensate himself by plmider for the more regular revenue which was

to give
to

Nizam -ul-

withheld.

Moolk had prepared for
this result, and along
with Samba,

who had

now openly joined
advanced to the

him,
relief

of Boorhanpoor, which

was threatened by Bajee.
Tlie first effect of this

advance was to send the
Mahrattfis into Gujerat.

After a short time spent
in

pillaging

again

it,

suddenly

they

BooRHANRWR

— From

Elliott's

Views in the East.

made

their appearance in the Deccan,

that ho was glad to

and ultimately reduced Nizam -ul-Moolk to

buy them

by humiliating concessions. His
experience of the kind of enemy he had to deal with, left him little inclination
to provoke a renewal of the contest; and though he did, on more than one
occasion, endeavour to weaken their power by sowing dissensions among
them, he came at last to a thorough understanding with Bajee, and entered
into a formal agreement, by which he undertook to protect Bajee's interests
in the Deccan, while the latter was ravaging Malwah and extending hi.s
such

straits,

oft'

authority
"^=

'

over

other

portions of the

Mogul

dominions.

Rao

Bajee

easily

found a pretext for this
invasion.

The

chout

Gujerat

in

gi'ant of

had

been revokeil, and Sir-

buland Khan, who had
consented

t<t

it,

wa.s

recalled from the govJoodpoor —From

ernment
Toild's

.Viiii:ils

to

make way

of Raj.isth.in

for a successor in

Sing, Rajah of Joodpoor.
iixvour of a rajah

The Mogul

court,

in

making

thi.s

Abhi

appointment

in

who, to other infamies, had recently added that of murdering

his father Ajit Sing,

was influenced

chiefly

by the expectation that

his

ovm

Subjugation
of Gujerat
by BajeiRao.

-

396
A.D. 1734.

HI.ST(JlfY

resources

from

would enable him

to

make head

but was at

last,

at

still

gained by the atrocity; for
that, not satisfied

it

all

He was

far

his efforts to expel him,

Nothing was

instigation, basely assassinated.

only exasperated the Mahrattas to such a pitch

with overrunning Gujerat, they carried their ravages to Jood-

and made the rajah glad to compound with the

poor,

III.

Pilajee Guicowar, ancestor of

ruling in Gujerat, resi.sted

Abhi Sing's

[Book

again.st the Mahratta.s.

The Mahratta

fulfilling this expectation.

the Guicowar family

OF INDIA.

Gujerat for the

loss of

safety of his hereditary state.

In Malwali, where the Mahrattas were headed by Bajee Rao in person, their

Successes of

Bajee Rao
in Malwali.

^

,

arms wcre equally triumphant; and the Mogul government, after several

inef-

fectual expedients, tacitly concurred in the surrender of the province to the

Peishwa in 1734.

This important concession, so far from satisfying his ambi-

made it more grasping and in proportion
adversaries was disclosed, he rose in his demands, and
only

tion,

;

levying the chout, but on holding, in

full right, as

weakness of

as the

insisted not

merely on

a jaghire, the province of

Malwah, and the whole country south of the Chumbul, together with the
of Muttra, Allahabad,

by

this

Mahomed

and Benares.

new demand, evaded

it

his

cities

Shah, alarmed above measure

a time by temporizing, and endeavoured to

for

by giving him a right to levy tribute on
the Rajpoots, and to increase the amount of that already exigible from the DecThis last grant cost the emperor nothing, and was regarded as a stroke
can.
induce the Mahratta to withdraw

of good policy, because

ul-Moolk at variance.

its

natural tendency

In

this respect it

Nizam- ul-Moolk's attention

much more

it

was not altogether a

him

Mahomed

new system

and convinced him that he had

Under the

influ-

of policy, and resuming friendly

Shah, midertook to employ

all

This engagement was not allowed to remain long as a dead
at the very time
capital.

drew

his

power

in

against the encroachments of the Mahrattas.

Delhi,

Mogul

and Nizam

failure, as it

to fear from the Mahrattas than from the Mogul.

communications with
He threatens

to set the Mahrattas

to his true position,

ence of this conviction, he adopted a

protecting

was

when

it

was entered

into,

letter.

In 1737,

Bajee Rao was advancing on the

The only check he sustained was

in the defeat,

by Saadut Khan,

governor of Oude, of Malliur Rao Holkar, the founder of the Holkar family,

who

with a marauding party was ravaging the country beyond the Jiunna.

Tliis

defeat elated the Moguls,

who

magnified

it

Mahratta army, which was represented as in

into a discomfiture of the whole
full retreat to

the Deccan.

When

Rao was informed of these vain boastings, he simply remarked that he
would soon show the emperor he was still in Hindoostan. He was as good as
his word.
Suddenly quitting the Jiunna, and leaving the Mogul army which
had been sent to oppose him inactive before Muttra, he hastened on by forced
Bajee

marches, and never halted

The

till

he presented himself before the gates of Delhi.

expedition, however, appears to have been undertaken rather in a spirit

of bravado than with any serious design of attempting the capture of the

city,

;

CnAP.

POLITICAL STATE OF PERSIA.

I.]

for after

'i!<7

a few days he disappeared and encamped at a considerable distance, ad.

itss.

Meanwhile, the consternation produced by his presence caused hasty messages
to be despatched to every quarter from

while the Vizier

;

and

Kamr-u-din Khan, who had formed a junction with Saadut

Khan, was advancing from
lia.stened

which reUef might be expected

his

encampment

at Muttra, Nizam-\il-Mo(»lk also

Bajee Rao, true to the Mahratta

from the Deccan.

avoided

tactics,

an encounter, and by a precipitate retreat soon placed the Nerbudda between
himself and his pursuers.

Nizam-ul-Moolk, notwithstanding Bajee's departure, continued his march to
Dellii,

where on

his arrival he

was invested with

full

powers to adopt whatever

measures might be necessary for the safety of the empire
Ghazi-u-din,

was appointed governor both

the Mogul resom'ces

now

fallen,

of

Malwah and

and

;

his eldest son,

So low had

Gujerat.

Niznm-ui-

deavonreto
jj"^.^ j,^^'''^

^™™-

army under

that after his \itmost efforts the

command did not exceed 34,000 men. With this army, and a reserve commanded by the nephew of Saadut Khan, he set out in search of the Mahrattas

his

and proceeding southward past Seronge, took up a position near the

fort of

Bhopaul, while Bajee Rao crossed the Nerbudda and advanced to meet him.

As Nizam-vd-Moolk was outnumbered by the Mahrattas, but
ful

artillery while

pos.sessed

they were almost entirely destitute of

it,

now

this

was

was only a

pay him £500,000

left

him but

to

series of disasters

by which he conceded

all

he had

blunder.

surrounding country, and cutting off his supplies.
that no alternative

it

The Mahrattas, keeping carefully beyond
commenced their usual system by laying waste the

was a decided

the reach of his artillery,

it

whom

might have been expedient, but with the enemy with

to deal it

posed,

he deemed

With an ordinary

advisable to retain his position and act on the defensive.

enemy

a power-

;

.so

effectually

As may be supto make a peace
Peishwa, and bo\md himself to

commence a retreat.
and he was obliged

the demands of the

sterling.

This they did

This humiliating peace, concluded in February,

was only the forerunner of a far more overwhelming calamity.
The Persian dyniisty of the Sophis or Safaris, after existing for two centuries, became so degenerate as to fall an ea.sy prey to the Afghans of Kandahar
1738,

in 1722,

when, on the capture of Ispahan, after a dreadful

the last Sophi,

with his
conqueror.

went

own hand
It

siege.

Shah Hosen,

forth with his principal courtiers in deep mourning,

placed the diadem on the head of

Mahmood,

had been worn by the new monarch only

he died raving mad, and was succeeded by his

and

his Khilji

two years when
nephew Ashref, who was no
for

sooner seated on the throne than he was called to struggle against both foreign
antl

the

internal foes.

The Turks and

kingdom and share

it

Russian.s, leagued together to

between them, advanced, the one from the west and

the other from the north, with powerful armies, while Tahma.sp,
his escape from Ispahan

dismember

when

his father

who had made

Shah Hosen was obliged

to surrender,

had nuistered a body of retainers, and annoimced his determination to make

p<>iiti.,ii

i>en.ia.

308
A.D.

i7:i7.

HISTORY OF INDIA

good

his claim

t(;

crown wiiich

tlic

various combatants,

it

acknowledge

his

had so

his unc;(;.stors

Of

worn.

lori;^

III

these

might have been supposed that the Turks and Russians,

from the superiority of their
proved otherwise.

[Book

would be the most

discipline,

fonni<lable.

It

Ashref compelled the Turks, after repeated defeats,
title

;

had measured

and, before he

his strength

with

t<;

the

Russians, had the satisfaction to learn that the- death of the czar had induced

them

...

disposed of
Rue of Nadir his

Tahmasp alone remained, and was not to be so easil\'
In himself he was not very foimidable, but fortune had drawn to

to withdraw.

standard one of the greatest warriors

Sliah,

was Nadir
last,

who began

Kouli,

after freeing his country

throne.

life

whom

Persia has ever produced.

as the head of a

band of

Tliis

and at

freebooters,

from a foreign yoke, became the usurper of

Victory scarcely ever failed to attend him

;

its

and by dexterously playing

the two leading Afghan tribes, the Khiljies and the Abdalees or Dooranees,
against each other, succeeded in crushing both.
to

be his ruling passion, and Tahmasp, as the legitimate monarch, ascended the

Persian throne

;

but patriotism was eventually supplanted by ambition, and

Nadir, unable to brook a superior,

took possession of
to
His invasion

Patriotism .seemed for a time

it

it

by the popular

Henceforth

in his

declared the throne vacant, and then

first

own name

in 1737, alleging that he

had been

called

voice.

known

as

Nadir Shah, he resolved to pursue his career of

of India.

victory;

of

and proceeding eastward,

an army of 80,000 men,
It originally

dahar.

at the head

laid siege to

belonged to the Persian
it,

and

in possession of the Khiljies.

It

monarchy, but had been wTested from

was now

was

valiantly

assaults before

defended,
it

made

and stood several

was taken.

Kandahar and conquest
tory

Kan-

The capture

of

of the adjoining teni-

Persia conterminous with India.

Nadir Shah, as he looked eastward into the
valley of the Indus,

and beheld a mighty

empire torn by intestine wars and tottering
to its
if

fall,

not to become

share in
Nadir Shah.

—From Fraser's Hist, of Nadir Sluih.

must have been strongly tempted,

ground

its

of

its

spoils.

quarrel

conqueror, to obtain a

He had
with

its

already some

government.

Diu-ing the siege of Kandahar, not only had

an application which he made for the delivery of some Afghans who had taken
refuge within its territory been treated with neglect, but even the validity of
his title to the Persian

crown had been

called in question.

Instead of wasting

time in unavailing remonstrance, he took a more effectual mode of expressing
The court of Delhi ought now to have
his resentment by seizing upon Cabool.

Chap.

been

NADIR

T.]

fully alive to the danger,

left to

but months passed away, during which Nadir was ad.

conquest and

settle his

make new

paign which, in

its

The

preparations.

seemed indeed to have become impossible, at

was approaching, and

399

SUAJl'S INVASION.

;

winter

for the

was never dreamed that he woiUd commence a cam-

it

very

first

operations,

would

mountainous country and the assaults of

its

then must have been the consternation

him

ex])Ose

to the rigours of a

How

warlike inhabitants.

when

was learned that

it

had been overcome, and that Nadir,

sui)])osed impossibilities

actual invasion

one season

least for

itss.

all

great
these

after crossing the

Indus by a bridge of boats in November, 1738, had advanced into the Punjab
at

head of a mighty army

tlie

Great as was the danger, so tardily were the means of defence provided,
that Nadir for the

time came in sight of the Indian army after he had

first

chief

Here, in the neighbourhood of Camoul, Nizam-ul-Moolk, to

command was

when Nadir was

intrusted,

Khan

were no match

levies,

the

arrived with a reinforcement from

The

Oude, and the battle immediately commenced.

most part of raw

whom

Just at the time

occupied a fortified camp.

ap})roaching, Saadut

Moguls

100 miles of the Mogul

reached the banks of the Jumna, and was within
capital.

Nauii shai.

Indians, consisting for the

for the Persian veterans,

and

after little

Mahomed Shah,
Nizam-ul-Moolk to make his sub-

more than a show of resistance were signally discomfited.
deeming

further resistance hopeless, sent

all

He was

mission,

and then

received,

but was not permitted to attempt negotiation, as Nadir Shah, conscious

repaii'ed in person to the Persian

had determined

of being complete master,

camp.

courteously

to dictate his terms within the walls

Thither therefore the two monarchs proceeded, the one as a miser-

of Delhi.

able captive, the other as a conqueror in triumphant procession at the head of
his victorious

army.

Tlie entrance took place in the beginning of March. 1739.

Nadir Shah took up

appears, from the careful
di.scipline

Mahomed Shah at the jialace, and
I'll
c
arrangements which he made for the mamtenance of

his residence

with

1/»1-

and the protection of the inhabitants,

to

have meditated no

severity than the levy of a very heavy contribution.

he had

it,

was

frustrated

day, hastily believing a
restraint, .and

i.ssued ordei-s for

a fearful retaliation.

given up to the fury of 20,000
in their

claims

was

most

still

remained to be

sti^rlinij-.

satisfied

weeks without

an important item
carried off in

soldiers,

in the spoils.

money,

of the Persians at their

The shah was

From

and

the very second

lust,

furious,

plate,

;

and

forth-

sunrise to sunset the citv
rapine,

was

and slaughter raged

This was only a deed of vengeance.

horrific forms.

carried on for

On

if

death, they broke through all

commenced an indiscriminate massacre

various isolated stations throughout the city.

with

This mild intention,

by the inhabitants themselves.

rumour of Nadir Shah's

gi-eater

Nadirs own

and the work of confiscation and plunder

interruption.

The "Peacock Throne

At the most moderate

and jewels, could not be

estimate, the
less

"

foi-med

amount

than £30,000.000

Deiiii

"'"'

taken

**"^1"^<'-

400
A

[Book

\S\)IA.

ill.

After possessing Dellii during fifty-eight days Nadir Shah departed, lejiving

U. 1711)

it
V;i<lir.Shah s

OF

IIIS'IOU^'

a scene of wretchedness and desolation.

into the provinces, the

The

terror of the capital ha/1 spread

government was paralyzed, and the people remained

ilijparture.

The Mahrattas might now have comjdeted their
but even they were overawed by the suddenness and extent of the

sunk in a kind of stupor.
conquests,

general calamity.

Bajee Kao, adverting to

domestic quarrels are
"

now

insignificant; there

Hindoos and Mussulmans

Tliese feelings of

it,

is

expressed himself thus

—the whole power of

At the

—

"

Our

but one enemy in Hindoostan."
the Deccan must assemble."

alarm soon began to subside, and

were again at work.

:

tlie

elements of disunion

court of Delhi old animosities resumed

all their

A

powerful faction, composed of Turki, or as they were

called Tooranee nobles,

and headed by the Vizier Kamr-u-din Khan and Nizam-

former bitterness.

ul-Moolk, endeavoured to absorb the leading

of the state,

offices

and even hold

the emperor himself in subjection to their wi.shes, while their enemies were

numerous and powerful enough
Rival

to

wage a constant

Feeble and discordant counsels were the necessary

struggle for ascendency.

result,

and no bond of union

factions at

DeUii.

among

existed

the numerous dependencies

Mogul empire.

In point of

fact,

still

belonging nominally to the

the Mahrattas were

now

the most powerful

nation on the Indian continent, and had the best prospect of becoming
ultimate masters.

Even

they, however,

were not

free

from

the nominal head of the government, had been deprived of

reduced to a mere cipher.
his authority,

who

Several of the chiefs

difficulties.

all real

its

Saho,

power, and

willingly acknowledged

were not disposed to yield the same submission to the usurpations

of the Peishwa, and stood ready to avail themselves of the

favourable

first

opportunity of either re-establishing the rajah or asserting their

own

indepen-

Bajee Rao, well aware of the precarious position in which he stood, was

dence.

obliged to regulate his policy accordingly, and often abandoned the coiu^e which
his

judgment approved

for that

which

his

own immediate

interest

seemed to

Before the Mogul government recovered from the shock given to

require.

it

by Nadir Shah, he might easily have established the complete ascendency of his
nation by mustering his forces and marching at once upon the capital
Instead
of this, he suddenly withdrew into the Deccan.
The only apparent inducement
was, that he might be able more effectually to watch the proceedings of his
countrymen, Ragojee Bosla and the Guicowar of Gujerat,

Of

overthrow.

account
like a
I
Death of

:

—

man

go at

" I

his feelings while thus

am

involved in

difficulty, in debt,

ready to swallow poison.

this time to Sattarali

be thankful

if I

employed he

liimself

plotting his

gave the following

and in disappointments, and

Near the rajah

are

they will put their feet

could meet death."

who were

my enemies, and
on my breast. I

should
should

This solemn event was nearer than he

Hajee Rao.

imagined, for he died shortly

after,

on the 28th of April, 1740, as he was

returning to Hindoostan.

Bajee Rao

left tliree sons,

the eldest of

whom,

Balajee Rao, succeeded linn

Chap.

THE MOGUL EMPIRE IN DANGER.

I.]

The

as Peishwa.

would

succession

401

been disputed; but fortunately

liave

him, Ragojee Bosk, his most formidable opponent, was absent with his
the Carnatic, on an expedition on which Bajee

for

army

hearinor of Bajee's death, he hastened

1747.

in

Rao had despatched him, mainly

On

him from plotting mischief nearer home.

for the pm-pose of preventing

AD.

back to Sattarah

but as he came without

;

army, and found the

his

Guicowar and the

or delegate of the

nicllii,

rajah,

^jr^/-

on whose co-operahad

tion he

calculated,

unprepared or indisposed
to second him,

obliged

at

abandon

to

thought

of

least

all

opposition,

a

till

favourable

should

he was

more

opportunity

The

arise.

Sattaaah.

— From Duff's History of the Mahrattas

deatli

of Bajee Rao, and the time necessary to enable Balajee to secure himself in

new

his

gave Mahomed Shah a short respite from actual warfare.

seat,

It

was

liiiiiemlinf?

dangers of
the Mogul
tiiipire.

only a respite

;

him, and indeed from so
it

was destined

Malwah,

another storm were again gathering thick around

for the clouds of

first

many

quarters, that

On

to come.

it

was

difficult to

say from which

hand Balajee Rao, advancing into
in terms of the treaty which had been

the one

insisted that this province should,

made with Nizam-ul-Moolk, but which had never received the imperial sanction,
be formally confirmed to him on the other hand the Rohillas, a recent Afghan
colony occupying the tract which from them still bears the name of Rohilcund,
had begun, under an able leader of the name of Ali Mahomed, to assume an
;

In themselves, indeed, the Rohillas were not so numerous

alarming appearance.
}is

to be verv formidable; but thev belonored to the warlike race

which had

repeatedly devastated the fairest provinces of India, and the danger apprehended
was, that in the event of a
their countrjnnen.

Ever since the

The

visit of

new

invasion from the west, they would league with

idea of such an invasion wfis

by no means

chimerical.

Nadir Shah, who on retiring declared the Indus to be

the eastern boundary of the Persian monarchy,

it

consequence of recent political changes in Persia

it

had been threatened, and

was beccmiing

Nadir Shah perished by the hands of assassins

in

in

a certainty.

June, 1747.

He

had

Dentil of
N'adir Shah.

latterly

become a

his cruelty as his

cruel tyrant,

and deserved

fonn of Mahometan

his fate;

faith that

though

provoked

it
it.

was not

so

He was

nmch

a Sun-

The repugnance between them
death was the work of Pei-sian conspirators.

nite,

while the Persians were zealous Shiites.

was

therefore invincible, and his

But the same cause which made the Persians abhor his rule was its sn-eatest
recommendation to the Afghans, who like him were Sunnites, and devotedly
Vol.

I.

51

402
A.D. 1748.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

attached to his service.
chief,

Ahmed Khan,

Accordingly

tlie

on hearing of the

[Book

by

Ahdalees, headed

111.

their liereditary

con.spiracy, ha/1 hastened U> tlie rescue;

way through the
hostile Persians, and succeeded in reaching their own country.
Ahrned Khan
immediately declared himself independent, changed the name of his tribe from
and, after finding that they were a day too late, fought their

Rise of Ah-

Shah

meil

Abilalee.

Abdalee to Dooranee, and before a year elapsed was crowned king at Kandahar
Ere long Balkh, Scinde, Cashmere, and other provinces, acknowledged

His ambition was not yet

The

to prefer the latter.

left

bank of the Indus was already

other temptations to cross this river and

was the

fact that a civil

capturing

many

fields of con-

in his

power

;

and

commence an Indian campaign,

in the

Little opposition

Punjab

in consequence of the

was made

and Alimed,

;

after

towns, including Lahore, the capital, arrived at the Sutlej.

the other side lay a

apparent,

war was raging

Mogul governor.

revolt of its

On

new

for

Both the west and east lay before him, but various reasons induced him

quest.

among

and he looked round

satisfied,

sway.

liis

Mogul army, commanded by Prince Alimed, the

and Kamr-u-din Khan, the

The Abdalee

vizier.

force,

heir

though not

mustering 12,000 men, crossed the river by selecting a spot which, from not
being fordable, was not watched; and, hastening on to Sirhind, made a rich
capture of stores and baggage.
that notwithstanding

theii'

This bold

movement

superiority in numbers, they stood on the defensive,

and even formed an entrenched camp.
timidity,

so intimidated the Moguls,

This

coiu-se,

dictated

by

excessive

was the wisest which they could have pursued. The Dooranees had no

alternative but to retreat, or hazard a battle under the most disadvantageous

They chose the

circumstances.

latter

and sustained a

but took advan-

defeat,

tage of the night to escape.

The Mogul

Death of

had

vizier

and the Mogul prince was prevented from

fallen,

Mahomed
Sliah.

following up

had opened

liis

to

victory,

by the

intelligence that the succession to the

him by the death of

period.

Prince Ahmed, henceforth

diately repaired to Delhi;

him by the name

of

and

his

Ahmed Shah

Inglorious

policy to

This concession

inglorious reign.

The

may
office

Dooranee, instead of continuing his retreat,
till

he had made

As he was

make a merit

Shah.

declined

it,

He

who had

tributary.

This,

by force,
and give him aU he

serve to characterize

Ahmed

of vizier,

to

first offered

and died almost immediately

Sufder Jung,

it

able to take

of necessity,

reign of Ah-

med

Ahmed Shah, immenow distinguished fi-om
of

title

Afghan namesake,

on a formal cession of the whole province.

asked.

the

most disastrous

After a short absence he returned, and insisted

however, did not satisfy him.

was deemed good

length, during a

its

known by

stopped short, and did not quit the Punjab

it

Mahomed Shah

his father in April, 1748.

thus ended a reign, remarkable only for

crown

after,

in

it

Shah's short and

Nizam -ul-Moolk, who
1748, was conferred on

succeeded his father, Saadut Khan, as governor of Oude.

soon gave proof of his unfitness, by undertaking an expedition against the

Rohillas,

and

so

mismanaging

it

as to allow

them

to penetrate to Allahabad,

Chap.

and

REIGN OF ALUMGEER

I.]

whole Mogul power at

set the

no better remedy than to

In this emergency he could devise ad

defiance.

the aid of the Mahrattas,

call in

out the Rohillas, but compensated themselves
the chout over

and crime, Sufder Jung was supplanted
of

Ahmed

the person of his sovereign,
prince of the blood,

—

Alumo^eer
*=

list

After a course of intrigue

in the royal favour

by Ghazi-u-din, one

or,

'

who assumed
as he

is

in July, 1754, in seizing

Shah, and raising to the throne a young

the title of Alumgeer.

often called,

Alumgeer

to distinguish

II.,

who

used the same

title

more than any

other, he

reins of govenmient.

For

documents

entitled to a brief notice.

R>^^'mi"f

Alumgeerll.

closes

in all regular

is

him from

— usually

.

Mogul sovereigns who actually held the

of

this reason,

was

establishing a right to levy

and ultimately succeeded by these means,

Aurungzebe,

who indeed drove

Like Sufder he employed the Mahrattas to extricate himself from

and murder.
difficulties,

i:

grandsons, an unprincipled youth familiar with perfdy

Nizam -ul-Moolk's

the

by

the territory that they conquered.

all

403

II.

When
On

he

his
Jung was still nominally vizier.
death, which happened soon after, he was succeeded by his son Shuja-u-Dowlah
in the government of Oude, but the viziership was immediately appro})riated by
Ghazi-u-din, under whose mismanagement nothing but additional confusion and

raised to the throne, Sufder

disaster could be anticipated.

the governor of the Punjab,

By

treacherously seizing the infant successor of

whom Ahmed Shah

})rovoked the vengeance of this formidable
did not halt

till

foe,

made himself master

he had

fated city a renewal of the calamities which

low had the authority of the sovereign now
besought

Ahmed

and

of Delhi,

it

inflicted

on this

ill-

had suffered from Nadii- Shah. So

fxllen,

that Alumgeer

not to leave him to the mercy of his

of the

army

to an able Rohilla chief of the

Ghazi-u-din only waited
set

who, having crossed the Indus,

vizier.

is

said to

have

Accordingly, on

he endeavoured to provide a kind of counterpoise by giving the

departing,

command

Dooranee had appointed, he

Najib aside, in order

name

of Najib-u-Dowlah.

Ahmed was out of India, and then endeavoured to
to make way for one of his own creatures. Meeting with
till

a resistance which he was unable to overcome, he again called in the aid of the
Mahrattas,

who advanced from Malwah under

Rao, entered Delhi, and after spending a
l>alace,

As
service.

usual, the Mahi-attas

in the siege of the fortified
all his

former authority.

took good care to be fully compensated for their

Feeling that no effectual resistance could be offered, they set no limits

of Hindoostan.
it

month

compelled Alumgeer to reinstate Ghazi-u-din in

to their ambition,

that

Ragolia, the second son of Bajee

and openly talked of extending their conquests over the whole

The Punjab first

attracted their attention,

and Ragoba, learning

was feebly governed by Timour, a son of Ahmed Shah Dooranee, marched

at once to Lahore, gained possession of

tiiumphant

in

May, 1758, and continuing

career, so intimidated the Dooranees, that

Indus without risking a

attempt to

it

his

they retired beyond the

The Mahrattas next engaged in a similar
subjugate Oude, but were met with spirit by Shuja-u-Dowlah. who,
battle.

Tiit- >riiirat-

I'.mjab.

un
A.D. 1759.

UISTORY OF INDIA.
with the

in league

and drove

a severe loss on an iwjlated detachment,

Roiiillas, inflicted

the main body, deemed

command

Datajee Scindia, the Maliratta in

across the Ganges.

it

[Book HI.

of

expedient to come to terms, and a kind of peace, not

it

intended to be long kept, was patched up.
New
med

One main inducement

iiiva-

Bion of

Ah-

Sliiih

Dooranee.

was

to the peace

tiie

rumoured

amved from

a])j>roach of

Ahmed

Shah Dooranee.

When

gaged

among the Beloochees. This delayed him till
when he commenced a new Indian campaign by cro.ssing

in

his son Tiraoui-

the Punjab, he was en-

suj)pressing a revolt

September,

1759,

the Indus at Pesliawer,

and continuing

tance beyond the

bank

Ghazi-u-din

left

his course to Saharunpoor, at

While he was

Jumna.

of the

thiLS

some

dis-

advancing,

—remembering how Alumgeer had formerly obtained the protection

—

Ahmed, and nearly succeeded in expelling him from his viziership was determined not again to run a similar risk, and followed the course which his cruel

of

by causing the unhappy monarch to be as.sassinated in November, 1759.
Shah Alum, the heir apparent, was then absent in
Bengal, and the new prince whom Ghazi-u-din seated on tlie throne was never
recognized.
There was tlius no ostensible sovereign at Delhi the Mogul empire
and perfidious

natui-e dictated,

;

had ceased
Prospect of

a Mahratta
empire.

When

to exist.

Mogul empire was extinguished, the general expectation was that
a Malu'atta empire would immediately arise on its ruins.
Originally confined
to a limited district in the Deccan, the Mahrattas had established their ascendency in every part of India, possessing immense tracts of territory in absolute
the

and levying heavy tribute from nearly the whole of the remainder.

right,

One

great obstacle to the establishment of a consolidated Mahratta empire had been

among

members composing its confederacy. Saho, its nominal
Latterly, indeed,
lead, had been deprived of aU real power by the Peishw^a.
he was unfit for government, and died in a state of imbecility, in 1749. This
disunion

the

I

event led to
chiefs

new

which were not arranged until many of the

had acquired a kind of independence and become the founders of

minor dynasties.
in

complications,

Gu.jerat,

Among

the more conspicuous of these were Petajee Guicowar

Mulhar Rao Holkar, and Datajee

Scindia, who,

by obtaining an

assignment to nearly the whole revenues of Malw^ah, secured the dominions wdiich
still

bear their

have not

left

name and

are possessed

by

their descendants.

chiefs

who

such permanent traces of their authority were equally powerful.

Ragojee Bosla and Ragoba have been already mentioned.

Rao Bhao,

Other

Another, Sedashao

or simply "the Bhao," a cousin of the Peishwa Balajee, possessed

great influence, but had been contented, while the other chiefs were pursu-

ing distant conquests, to remain in the Deccan as

mander-in-chief
his

campaign

He was

home

minister and com-

acting in this capacity \v4ien Ragolia retui-ned from

in the Punjab.

His

.success

had not been obtained without a

very heavy outlay, and the Bhao, on learning that, instead of bringing any

sum

into the treasury, he

had made

it liable

to a debt of nearly £1,000,000

:

Chap.

THE MAHRATTAS AND DOORANEES.

I.]

sterling, expressed his dissatisfaction so strongly, that

him he had

told

by some recent

10

Ragoba was piqued, and
The Bhao, elated

better conduct the next expedition himself.

which had somewhat increased the Mahratta

successes

and added largely to

revenue,

its

was not

territory,

disinclined to avail himself of an

opportunity of ac(iuiring

new

been a serious

he exchanged situations with him, and assumed the

propositi,

command

chief

The only
in the field.

Treating Ragoba's taunt as

distinction.

A.U. 1759.

if it

had

in Hindoostau.

formidaljle

enemy whom

the Mahrattas had

now

to encounter

was

Btnigiile be-

Ahmed Shah

Dooranee, after nearly annihilating two separate

Mahratta detachments, the one commanded by Holkar and the other by Scindia,

had taken up a

po.sition

Decisive

at Anopsheher,

situated on the

right

bank of

tlie

t«eeii tlie
Malinittiis

and

l»(Kir-

anees.

The Bhao, accom])anied by

Ganges, seventy-three miles south-east of Delhi.

Wiswas Rao, the youthful son and
and the leading

heir of the Peishwa,

Mahratta

chiefs,

advanced at the

head of a numerous host, without
encountering serious opposition, and

having

gained

possession

of

the

disgraced himself by rapacit3^

t-apital,

tombs,

Palaces,

and

.shrines

were

defaced for the sake of their rich

ornaments, and the silver ceiling of
the hall of audience torn

down was

coined into rupees, to the amount,
is said,

it

of seventeen lacs (£170,000).

Ahmed,

addition

in

to

his

own

Dooranees, was cordially joined by
the Rohillas,

and rather lukewarmly

Shuja-u-Dowlah, governor of

by

Oude,

who would

DuoHANtES.

willingly

have

— Fn.iii

Kliiliiimtoiie's

Cabool.

remained neutral, and afterwards made the most of the event by taking part
with the winning side.
As the contest, however, had a.ssumed a religious
aspect, the
lie

found

Hindoos being ranged on one

it

impossible to withhold his aid from

the representative of the

Ahmed,

He

as soon as the rains permitted

Ahmed, who was considered

him

to

move, hastened to the Jumna,

banks

to

which the Mahrattas had

arrived only in time to learn that
])a.'*sage

it

had

fallen,

Bhao encamped with an anny
of

whom

by swimming

off to Panijnit.

consisting of 70.000 cavalry

9000 were disciplined sepoya

laid

but showed such

of the river more

than fording, that his enemies were intimidated and drew

infjintry,

as

Their two
.imiiee.

its

desperate determination, by effecting a

the

other,

latter.

with the view of relieving a fort on
siege.

and Mahometans on the

side

Here

and 15,000

In addition to these were

HISTORY OF INDIA.

+'>f!

AD

17.W,

number

prediitoiy uiid other followers to the

[Book

of 200,000.

In

artillerj',

III

an ann

war which the Mahrattas had at la.st learned to piize, he was amply provided,
and was able, after suiTOunding his camp with a broad and deep ditch, to mount
200 guns for its defence. Ahmed's araiy consisted of about 40,000 Afghans and
Persians, and 50,000 Indians, of whom 1 3,000 were cavalry. The armies were thas
of

not unfairly matched.

In respect of available troops they were nearly

while at the same time each laboured under a great disadvantage

equal,

—the Bhao,

in

number of followers, who, without adding to his strength, hamjxired
movements and consumed his provisions; and Ahmed, in an artillery- .so

the excessive
his

defective that

it

barely mustered thirty pieces of various calibre, and, furni.shing

no proper means of

attack, compelled

him

to imitate the Bhao's example,

and

remain on the defensive.
The battle

Under such

circumstances, time rather than prowess

was

the

decide

to

of Paiiiput.

struggle

;

for neither leader felt disposed to force

obtain subsistence for his

army from

on an action so long as he could

At

the surrounding country^

this

mode

of

warfare the Mahrattas could not easily be surpassed, and their foraging parties at
first

found no

the Dooranees,

difficulty in bringing in

abundant

by the rapidity and boldness

Gradually, however,

supplies.

of their movements,

made foraging

so

dangerous, that the Bhao, threatened with famine, saw the peiil of his position,

and attempted to escape from
supplies

had

also

or risk a decisive

Ahmed, whose
by proposing negotiation.
begun to fail, was urged by his Indian allies to come to terms
action; but his constant answer was
"This is a matter of war
it

—

with which you are not acquainted

He was

leave this to me."

aware of the

I'educed; and, even after they

vigorous attacks upon his

In other

had begun

lines,

affairs

do as you please, but

straits to wdiich his

enemies were

kind of desperation to make

in a

seemed more inclined than ever to confine

He was

himself to skirmishing, in which he usually had the advantage.

aware of the

The Bhao's

crisis

which was approaching, and

supplies

fully prepared to profit

were completely exhausted and after a
;

well

by

it.

last efibrt at foraging

which proved utterly \mavailing, becoming convinced that he could no longer
maintain his position, he yielded to the urgency of his

soldiers, and,

prognostications of disaster, issued orders for a general attack.

with the utmost impetuosity, and so long as

and other Indian

of

allies

endeavoured to rally the

men

to advance.

Ahmed, seemed

fugitives,

was
it

many

was made

directed against the Rohillas

iiTesistible.

but finding

Tlie

Dooranee chief

impossible, ordered his

front, a di^dsion

the flank, and the whole Mahratta army, panic-struck

by

own

By a dexterous

This at once changed the fortune of the day.

movement, while the main body attacked in
Defeat of the

it

It

with

wheeled round

to

this double onset, ttmied

Mahrattas.

their backs

and

fled.

As no quarter was

given,

the slaughter

was

fearful.

About 200,000 are said to have fallen. Among the slain were the Peishwa's
son Wiswas Rao, the Bhao, recognized only by what was supposed to be his
headless trunk, and many other great Mahratta chiefs.
The dream of a Mali-

,

PROGRESS OF THE FRENXH IN INDIA.

ClIAP. II.]

rattii

made
sunk

The wreck of the army, abandoning the

empire had vanished
in Hindoostan, retired

up

self

beyond the Nerbudda the Pei.shwa,
;

in a temj)le near Poonah, died of a

in grief

and despondency, became as

Stranffe
-^
® to say,

-tOi

Ahmed

did not

])rofit

acqui.sition.s

.slnitting

broken heart; and the whole nation,
it

were paralyzed.

much by
*'

'

Mahometan

his victory, for the
.

confederacy which he had formed having broken up, he quitted India, and never
1

retm-ned to take any

shai-e

••/»••
in its anairs.

seemed capable of ^vielding the

mi
1

he only two powei's

The two most powerful nations

had long been contented to play a subordinate part in the
to

become

for the establishment of

struggle

now

is

a

new Indian

*.

.^ *^ >^,^

^^ y^r^

of Europe, after they
contest, resolved at last

rival candidates

liistory of this

memorable

in India

ROM

the

11.

— War between France and England — Naval and military operations
—The capture of Madras.

first

the French East India Company,

much more

influence of the
their funds;

crown was employed

state.

All the

brated Colbert, relates to

to obtain suliscribers to

and no unimportant part of the

otHcial correspon-

become

and

employed

for this purpose.

It

is

cele-

very

whether the prosperity of the company was much promoted by
but there cannot be a doubt that they were able in conse-

this state patronage,

outset,

solicitation"-*

to escape

many

of the dangers which might have beset

to start at once as a

them at the

body able not only to repel aggression but

The alarm which

aggressive.

to

their presence in the East excited in the

Dutch and English companies must not be ascribed exclusively to commercial
jealousy.

As mere

traders they could not appear very formidable rivals, but from

their close connection

with government their trade might easily be made subser-

vient to political purposes, and

native courts.
of Evu'ope

by

In this

the

become a dangerous instrument of intrigue at the

Louis XIV., not satisfied with disturbing the peace

his ambitious .scheme.s, miglit be

and by engaging in

Knowing

way

wai-s of conquest

make

tempted to extend them to India,

the operations of trade impo.ssible.

character of the French monarch,

it

tlio

Frenili

Rikst

dence of a commercial nature, during the ministry of the

it

nise and
progress of

than that of England, was the creature of the

([uence of

Britain aiid

France.

of conquest

J

([uestionable

tween Great

to engage our attention.

The progress of the French

*.

The

empire.

CHAPTER

*- -^

work

and France and Great Britain started as

principals,

I'll
whicli then

which had been wrested from the hands

sceptre,

of the Mogul, having thus been providentially removed, the
pa.ssed to other hands.

Aj.i.roaiiiing

Btniggie he-

.

1

17-12.

him-

•

1

ad.

was not uncharitable

to

India

Cciniiiany.

4-08

AD.

1712.

OF

IIISTOlfV

suspect

of

liiiii

company

It

iiitcntioiLs.

siicli

[Book

IM«I.\.

iiitist

}>e

III.

iiowever, that

confessed,

tlie

established undei' his auspices continued for the greater part of a

century to rest satisfied with commercial operation.s, and the erection of such
factories as

for conducting tliem with ease

seemed necessary

most important of the

and

The

safety.

on which they had thus fixed were those of

localities

Chandernagore, situated, like the Dutch factory of Chiasurah, near

tlie

town

of

Hooghly, on the river of that name in Bengal, and Pondicherry on the Coro-

mandel

The

coast.

was the

latter

become, by the regularity of

seat of goveniment,

buildings and the strength of

its

worthy of the honour thus assigned
places on the

same

to

it,

its fortifications,

though, like Madras and

laboured under- the

coast, it

and had gradually

gi'eat

all

other

disadvantage of having no

proper harbour.
Dupieix

In the year 1742 the

of governor of the French settlements in India

office

iippoiuteJ

govemoi.

was Conferred on Joseph Dupleix.

first

member

of a wealthy farmer -general

and

had at a comparatively early age obtained the

a director of the company, he

appointment of

The son

of council at Pondicherry.

made head

in this capacity, he was, in 1730,

After ten years' ser\4ce

of the factory of Chandernagore.

Here by engaging in private trade he accumulated a large fortune and at the
;

same time, by the

ability of his public

dence of his employers,

that

in

management, rose
as

174!2,

already mentioned,

him

governor.

new

station in the possession of very superior advantages.

Thus

so high in the confi-

recalled to Pondicherry, he entered

they made

on the duties of

To natural

his

talents

of a high order, he added a thorough acquaintance with the manners of the
inhabitants,

and with the

circumstances of the

political

These

country.

advantages both vanity and ambition disposed him to improve to the utmost,

and he was no sooner

installed in office

than he began to entertain schemes with

a view to the ultimate establishment of French ascendency in the East.

It

vain to expect this from the commercial operations of the company.
it

had been found impossible to compete

Dutch

;

but another

coui'se

its practicability fairly to
His iimbi

was

the

Its

and Dupleix was deteimined

of the

Mogul empire was now

parties thus

opposite scales, determine the result.

of Pondicherry began to

own

family.

to imitate the example.

Madame

and by giving easy

-

by throwing their weight into one of the
This was the plan on which the governor

In carrying

act.

it

out he found an able coadjutor in

Dupleix, though of European parentage, had been

born and brought up in India.
her,

manifest.

formed were often so equally balanced, that neutrals of compara

tively feeble resources could easily,

his

to put

soubahdars or governors were almost openly aspiring to independence, and

even their subordinate deputies, or nabobs, were disposed

The

and the

test.

The approaching
i i
o dismemberment

tiinis desigus.

In these

successfully with the British

open,

still

was

Many

of the native languages were familiar to

access to the natives enabled her to be the fittest

medium

of comnmnication between them and her husband in any course of intrigue.

EARLY CAREER OF LABOURDONNAIS.

f'HAr. II.]

In this

way

his measures for extending the influence

were earned on with equal secrecy and

in India

and

409

territory of the

French

1T44.

success.

While Dupleix was revolving plans of aggrandisement, and smoothing the

way

A.D

W.-ir

between

G resit

accomplishment of them, the relations between Great Britain and

for the

France had ceased to be friendly, and the war
succession
su])posed

was declared

it

in 1744.

known

as that of the Austrian

The companies on both

possible that warlike operations

sides of tlie

tain

Bri-

<tii(l

Fmnce.

Channel

might be excluded from the countries

lying within the limits of the Indian Ocean, and with this view endeavoiu-ed to
enter into airangements which would have left each as free as before to prosecute

Had

the Indian trade.

the respective governments sanctioned the arrangements,

two nations

the singular and not uninstructive spectacle might have been seen of

living peacefully with each other in one cpiarter of the globe while a fierce

was raging between them

in all other quarters.

But without such sanction the

projjosed an-angement, though seriously entertained,

ultimately to have been the conclusion of
at tlie very time

when

war

was a dream.

This seems

soon appeared that

all parties, for it

was under

the proposal of an Indian neutrality

the French government were secretly entertaining a project which

discussion,

was

to enable

them, as soon as war was actually declared, to bring an overwhelming force into
the East, and strike a blow

by which English

interests there

would be at once

annihilated.

The

Mahd de

Fran9ois
ally

was suggested

project referred to
la

to the

French ministry by Bernard

Bourdonnais, usu-

designated for brevity as Labour-

He was bom

donnais.

at

St.

Malo,

apparently of humble parentage, in T690,

and when only ten years of age began
as

life

a

to the Pacific.

made

in

by making a voyage
During a second voyage,

sailor,

1713, to the East Indies, he

emplo3'ed his leisure in stiulying matliematics, vmder a Jesuit

be on

bo.ard,

who

hajipened to

and kintUy undertook

to

give

him

{\ges,

one to the North and the other to

the

lessons.

Levant,

he

After other two vov

in

1710

service of the East

India

entered

Company

tlie
LiABOl'RDONNAIS.

— From

1

.

second lieutenant, and had become second captain in 1724,
in

an expedition

>

Vm.

Vangelisty, 1776.

as

when he took

part

of Ijal«i\ir

to the

Malabar coast

for the purjiose of relieving the settle-

ment of Mah^, which had for a considerable time been suttt'ring severely
from a blockade by the natives.
The success of the expedition was mainly
owing to his ability; but from some cause not explained, he shortly after
quitted the company's service and engaged in commerce,
VoL.

I.

Early carec.

making

several suc52

(lonnais

;

410
A D.

1735

HLSTOKV

INDIA.

(JF

[Book

from Pondicheriy to Bengal, and to Mocha in

cessful voyages,

Rod

tlie

III

Sea.

In the latter locality he ein})loyed his influence in reconciling a serious difference

which

liad

between the Arabs and the Portufnjese.

arisen

His conduct

matter was gratefully remembered by the viceroy at Goa, who, on a

this

which Labourdonnais paid
that he

was induced

made

that capital,

to

tempting

iiim such

The

to enter the service of Portugal.

in

viiiit

offers

object intended at

the time was an expedition to Mopibas, on the east coast of Africa

but

;

tliis

having been abandoned, he did not find the scope for his talents whicii he had
anticipated,

and returned

to France

m

1

The following year he obtained

733.

the important appointment of governor of the Mauritius, or the Isle of France,

and the

Isle of

gascar.

These

Bourbon, situated in the Indian Ocean to the east of Mada-

had early become known to the Portuguese, and were at a

isles

by the Dutch, who gave one of them

later period frequented

Mauritius in honour of Prince Maurice of Nassau

mediate stations for ships sailing to the
French,

who had

of

but their importance as inter-

had been

Eiist

regularly colonized them,

;

name

its

first

discerned

and placed them under a

by the
distinct

governor.
Labour-

When

Labourdonnais arrived at his government in 1735 he foim^d eveiy-

doDnais'

reforms at
the Isle of
France.

The two

thing in confusion.

islands

had separate

councils, which,

claiming

equal jurisdiction, were constantly disputing as to the extent of their powers

abuses of every kind prevailed, and the capabilities of the
totally

The new governor

undeveloped.

remained almost

once saw the greatness and

which lay before him, and immediately commenced

difficulty of the task

it

with

Ere long the face of matters was completely changed.

characteristic energy.

The kinds of

at

soil

cultivation best adapted for each island were rapidly extended

new towns and

villages arose, harbours capable not only of

;

supplpng the wants

of commerce, but of furnishing a rendezvous for ships of war, were constructed

and

fortified; and,

government no longer hampered by the

unseemly quarrels of those who administered

it,

selfish

became regular and

aims and
efiective.

In carrying on this work of refoim Labourdonnais often encountered an
opposition which obliged

him

occasionally to exceed them.
hostile to the

to stretch his

powers to the utmost, and pei'haps

Those who had profited by abuses were natm-aUy

many from mere natm-al
and sudden changes, even when they could

removal of them, while

indisposed to great
to be improvements.
to manifest itself

A spirit of

by murmur,

probably loudest in the

hostility

were not so

in France,

was, that wliile Labourdonnais

These, though

effective there as in France, where,

the facts being imperfectly known, were easily distorted.
His aim mis-

not deny them

was thus engendered, and continued

complaint, and misrepresentation.

islands,

indolence were

was labom-ing

-with the

The consequence

utmost zeal and dism-

was generally stigmatized among his coimHe appears not to
trjrmen as little better than a selfish and capricious tp'ant.
have been aware of the amount of prejudice which had been raised against
tcrcstedness for the public good, he

Chap.

him

LABOURDONNAIS' EXPEDITION TO THE EAST,

II.]

till

4.11

1740, when, having visited Europe in consequence of the death of his

ad.

i74'2.

he had ample proof of the bitterness and unscrupulousness with which he

wife,

was pursued by

his enemies.

Labourdonnais took immediate steps to set himself right with the ministry,

Laixmr-

the directors of the company, and the public at large, and succeeded so well that

project

new and important powers were com-

not only was his resignation refused, but

In the intei'views which

mitted to him.

members

other

lie

had with Cardinal Fleury and the

f<,r

""^'

pre„dr
"«<^«"''«'"y-

of the Fi'ench cabinet, he did not rest satisfied with exculpating

himself from absurd charges, but gave a

full exj:osition

of his views as to the

Assuming that France

course of i)olicy which ought to be pursued in the East.

and Great Britain were about to be at open war, he endeavoured to show that
the maintenance of peace
if

between the two

not impossible, and that no time should be

cruising in the Indian Ocean,

India Companies was impolitic

Ea.st

lust in

providing a

fleet,

which,

might be ready the moment war was declared

So

establish a complete supremacy.

was he of the valuable

satisfied

to

prizes

which might be made by preying on the Engli.sh company, that he offered to
form a private association, which would

own

fit

out a number of armed vessels at

expense, and be contented with the profits which might be realized

its

by

privateering.

The French government refused

to sanction the private scheme,

but resolved

His expedition to the

to effect the

same object by means of an expedition consisting of

ing partly to the

was given
His

fleet

navy and partly

to Laboiuxlonnais,

was neither

but he was

The command

Company.

set sail 5th April, IT+l, for the Isle of France.

numerous nor

so well equipped as he

had anticipated,

of resom'ces in himself, and po.ssessed such a knowledge of naval

full

and military

so

who

to the East India

vessels belong-

affiiirs

jis

enabled him to repair the defects of the ships and give

His object was to be ready as

the necessary training to the crews and soldiers.

soon as the declaration of war should reach him to strike the meditated blow.

In the meantime he hastened to Pondicherry, which was said to be threatened

by the Mahrattiis; and on learning that the danger had blown
to the

Malabar

coast, wliere

Mahd was once more indebted

from a formidable attack of the natives.
in 17-42,

ptist,

proceeded

him

for deliverance

On again arriving at the

Isle of France,

he met with a bitter disappointment.

The

to

directors of the French

Company had been somewhat cavalierly treated by the government, who had made all their arrangements with Labourdonnais ^vithout giving
East India

them any proper share

in their deliberations.

Their consent to his expedition

being therefore rather forced than voluntary, they were more disposed to frustrate

than to forward

it.

Accordingly,

still

dreaming of a possible neutrality between

the companies, they easily fomid a jtretext for is,suing peremptory orders for the

return of their vessels to France.

Labourdonnais did not venture to disobey,

and thus saw himself deprived of the main part of

when

the period for action

was

his fleet at the very time

to all ai)pearance about to airive.

His

fir.st

E;uit.

;

412
AD.

174(3.

HISTORY OF

feeling

was again

to tendei-

liis

French minister approving of

force

which might yet enable him to execute

Arrival of

when

Tlic British

the

war was openly

and pointing

and make new

induced him to remain at his

III

but a conununication from the

;

his past conduct,

tion,

emjiloyed
Ji

resignati<;n

post,

[Book

IXI>I.\,

to higher

efforts to

promo-

assemble a

He was

his original project.

tlius

declared.

government, well aware of what was intended by France,

liad

liritiali
.

scuiadrou.

make the necessary preparations. A British
manded by Commodore Barnet, and consisting of two .ships
not Omitted to

and a

fifty,

frigate of

twenty guns, appeared opportunely

.squadron,

com-

of sixty, one of

in the eastern seas

At fii'st it cruised in two divisions, in the Straits of Sunda and of Malacca, and
made several valuable French prizes. One of the vessels taken wa.s immediately
rendei'ed available by being converted into a forty-gun .ship, bearing the name
of tlie Medivays Prize.
The squadron having left the .straits, anived on the
Coromandel coast for the first time in July, 1745. At this time the French had
no

fleet

on the

coast,

and Pondicherry

had a gamson of only 486 Europeans.

state

an unfinished

witli its fortifications in
It

promised to be an easy captme,

but was saved by the dexterity of Dupleix, who, aware that force would not

had recourse to diplomacy.

avail him,

Pondicherr}-, though really independent,

belonged nominally to the nabobship of Arcot.
account

by

the French governor, who,

by

This fact was turned to good

flattering the pride of the nabol),

and

claiming his protection, induced him to intimate to the governor and council
of Madras, that

any attempt by land on the French settlements

be treated as an act of hostility against himself
i"eply,

the
or

that the

King

commander

of Great Britain,

was independent of the Company
distinction,

;

The time had not yet arrived

therefore,

to

him

in

but he could not.

and only answered, that

was disregarded he would hold the Company responsible

quences.

and

was represented

It

of the squadron, holding his commission directly from

would not understand the

tion

Arcot would

in

for treating such

intima-

if his

for the conse-

menaces

v/ith defiance

on an assm'ance from the nabob that he would deal impartially

between the companies, and

issue a similar prohibition to the French, in the

event of any meditated attack on the English settlements.
at the earnest entreaty of the

Commodore

government of Madras, abandoned

all

Barnet,

idea of land

making a few additional prizes in the Bay of Bengal,
during the monsoon to the island of Mergui on the eastern

operations, and, after

retired for shelter

In the beginning of 174G the squadron returned to the Coromandel

sliore.

coast,

and was reinforced from England by two ships of

twenty guns.

This,

however, did not

make much

strength, as one of the sixty-gun ships having

home, and along with
Relative
strength ^^
tiie

British

sauadrons.

it

fifty

and a

addition to

become

fi-igate

its

mifit for action

of

absolute

was

sent

the original frigate.

The English squadron, confined by the agi'eement which had been made with
the nabob to operations at sea, was unable to effect anythmg of consequence,
^

,

^'^^ ^^.s Continuing a cruise i-ewarded only

,

by a few

,

.

f,

i)altry prizes,

when

intelli-

CHAP.

NAVAL ENGAGEMENT.

II.J

fence arrived that Labourdonnais had at
India with a

At

fleet

415

and

efiected his object

Ui.st

which miglit be expected to put

sailed for a.d.

prowess to the

Briti.sh

1740.

test.

moment Commodore Barnet died at Fort St. David, and was
by Captain Peyton, who was his second in command, and very im-

this critical

succeeded

The

j)erfectly supplied his place.

the 25th of June,

when

came

fii'st

in sight of each other on

the Enjvlish were cruisin": on the Coromandel coast neai-

The French

Negai)atam.

squadi'ons

nine ships, the largest of which,

fleet consisted of

moimting seventy guns, of which sixty were eighteen-pounders, carried Labourdonnais'

The

flag.

and carried

metal,

as follows:

and

two, twenty-eight;

guns

—one, thirty-six;

.^mailer

size

almost

twelve and eight

all

were much larger than the number of their
utmost under

indicates, as Labourdonnais, after exerting himself to the

very unfavourable circumstances, had been unable to give them their

On

ment.

hand they

the other

Of

having on board 3300.

duty from

unfit for

carried

men

;

had

also fewer guns,

more than the

u.sual

The

full

comple-

complement of men,

these 700 were Africans or Lascai-s,

sickne.ss.

and Hghter

three, thirty-four; one, thirty;

twenty-six guns;

one,

The.se .ships, however,

])0unders.

were of much

rest of the ships

and about 300

had not above half the number of

Engli.sh

but, unlike the majority of the French, they

were well

di.sci[>lined

;

they

but more than made up for the deficiency by superior

weiglit.

had
..mdeed, was Labourdonnais.......

All things considered,

English squadron

tlie

So conscious,

tage.

of his inferiority in real naval

was

that his great object

strength,

and turn

((uarters,

come

to

his superiority in the

In this object

recourse to boarding.

lie

and succeeded

in frustrating all the efforts of

From

teracting these efforts, the fight did

Owing

to the distance maintained,

and lasted
separated,

till

it

nightfall

it

.siiuaUrons

men

to account

by having

whose

vessels,

had the advantao-e of the wind,

his,

Labourdonnais to deprive them of

by the one party

the long time spent

of

wjvs battled b}- the Engli.sh,

and manucievrin<T better than

Knoouuter
between tli'

as speedily as possible to close

number

])esides sailinjx

it.

thus decidedly the advan-

making and the other in counnot commence till four in the afternoon.
was almost entirely confined to the cjinnon,

without any decisive

in

When

results.

the combatants

was apparently with the intention of renewing the engagement on

the following day, but Peyton, after obtaining the sanction of a council of war,

deemed

it

prudent to sheer

having actually sustained

gun

vii-tualiv acknowledijinfj a defeat, Avithout

ma<le the best of his

a.ssigned

was the leaky

way

to Trincomalee in

con<lition

of the sixty-

ship.

Labourdonnais,
,

the

it,

The only reason

Ceylon.

and

off",

_

who was
1

mornmg dawned,

waitinor to

/^

to find that he

resume the

enemy having

was

had already gained the

not pursue, as the wind was against him
regret of the

fio;ht,

;

e.scaped him,

departure, inasmuch as his loss had been

and, in

was not

fact,

at

all

astoui.shed,

when

He

could

victor}-.

though he speaks with
disi)leased

more severe than

theirs,

with their

ami both the

f.^biess

between
uupieLx an.i
,',^i\T^

•^'•*

AD

1710.

HISTORY OF

state ofhi.s .ships

Thanking

retire.

and want of provisions must have compelled him speedily
his

good fortune, he steered directly

diately on his arrival, his reception
little to

[Book HI.

IXfJlA.

i/j

Imme-

for Pondicherry.

by the governor convinced him that he had

expect from his co-operation.

L>upleix, vv^hose vanity

and ambition were

greater than his talents, could not conceal his jealousy of Labourdonnais.

still

He saw

in

him the person who,

in the event of anything befalling himself,

was

destined to be his successor, and he was mortified to find that an expedition,
destined to act within the limits of

had been placed beyond

diction,

being to

what he conceived

to be his exclusive juris-

his control, the only instructions given

him

with his advice and second

it with his efforts.
The feelings
which rankled in his mind, scarcely disguised at the first, were soon openly-

assist it

manifested,

and led eventually

Labourdonnais and Dupleix,

which ruined both

to a course of proceedings

sacrificed the

French interests in India, and saved

those of Great Britain from impending destruction,

After a short and unsatisfactory consultation, in which the only point

^we back*
wartiiiessof
tlie

was, that Labourdonuais'

British
~r\

naval

com

t

-,

-i

-Cingiish

settle<l

endeavour must be to clear the coast of

first

tlie

-,

squadron, he set

sail

with that view, and had the satisfaction to leani

that the danger apprehended from

it

was groundless.

Judging by what the

English commander ought to have done, he naturally expected that he w^ould

soon reappear, and even though too cautious or cowardly to risk a general

would keep hovering on the

action,

make

it

most hazardous,

if

coast, so as to

keep up a constant alarm, and

not impossible, for the French to disembark their

making an attempt upon Madras. This was \dsibly
contemplation, and to prevent the execution of it the

troops for the purpose of

the great object

commander

now

in

of the British fleet ought to have devoted his utmost efibrts.

spending a month at Trincomalee he did

make

his appearance, but it

and save himself by

to repeat his former procedure,

flight,

was only

because he had dis-

covered or imagined, that while his force remained the same, that of the

tow""

°f*^*

Madias.

After

enemy

had been augmented by additional guns procured at Pondicherry.
Convinced that he had nothing to fear from the English squadron, Laboui'donnais returned to PondicheiTy, and began to prepare in earnest for the siege of
Madras.

It

was a

gained without

prize

much

worth fighting

for,

Within the

sti'uggle.

and

to all appeai'ance

territory belonging to

it,

might be

and form-

ing a tract which stretched about five miles along the coast and one mile
inland, a population of 250,000

consisted of natives,

Madras

by whom

itself consisted

it

had been gathered, but nearly the whole of

was known that no

of three divisions.

resistance

would be

it

offered.

Farthest north was an immense

assemblage of huts, huddled together without any order, and occupied entu'ely

by the lowest classes of natives immediately adjoining this suburb, on the south,
was what was called the Black Town, containing many good houses, which
;

belonged to Indian and Armenian merchants, and surrotmded by a wall of so
little

height and strength as to be almost useless for defence

;

south of this

la)-

»

CuAP.

tlie

MADRAS BESIEGED AND TAKEN.

II.]

town

proper, or Fort St. George.

formed a parallelogram about 400 yards

It

long from north to south, and 100 yards broad.
wall,

and defended by

bastions

foui'

41 o

and

It

was

inclosed

A.D.

ITJr,.

by a slender

batteries of defective construction.

aSE^--

FoBT

St.

George, Madras, 1754

were no outworks.

T^iere

— From a print

Within

tiie

l)y

Van

Ryiie,

inclosure

Royal

Librarj', British

were an

Enoli.sh

Catholic church, the factory and buildings connected with

good

house-s,

occupied

by

Few

of the

and a Roman

and about

fifty

English, or other Europeans under then- protection.

Their whole number did not exceed 300.
garrison.

it,

Museum.

Of

common men and

these 200 were the soldiers of the

only two or three of the

officers

had

ever seen service.

As

the danger which threatened the settlement must have been foreseen,
.

impo.ssible to exculpate the authorities

not providing better against

interfere for their protection, as he

made aware
him was

.

from the charge of gross negligence in

If they trusted to the promise of the

it.

it is Ma<haa be

.

.

had

for that of the French,

of the folly of leaning on such a broken reed.

nabob

siegeil anil

taken

to

they were soon

Their application to

disregarded, either because Dupleix had previously gained his ear, or

they were too parsimonious to

have rendered

it

effectual

;

make

a liberal use of the only means which could

and Labourdomiais,

after completing his preparations

without interruption, cast anchor on the l+th of September, about four leagues
south of Madras, with nine ships and two bomb- vessels.

European marinere and
artillery

and

soldiers,

stores nece&sary for tlie siege.

station as near

The

foi-t

Madras as

it

The

soldiei-s

fleet

all

the

being immediately

proceeded to take up

could safely approach.

alone being capable of any resistance, Labom'donnais naturally

directed his attack against

it,

and having erected a battery of nine mortars, on

an open space to the west, at the distance of 500
ment.

board were 2900

400 Africans, 400 Indian natives, and

landed began to advance along the shore, while the
its

On

j-ards,

Defence was never seriously contemplated

was delayed

in the hope that the English squadron

Its ap[)roach

was

at one time actually rumoun^d,

;

connnenced the bombardbut innuediate siuTender

might make

its

appearance.

and spread such consternation

The

f..rt

HISTORY OF

U()

A.D.

i74(i.

among

T\1)TA.

[Book

Unhappily

the French, that they were preparing to flecamp.

besieged

proved a

it

false alarm,

and Labourdonnais, only urged by

it

III

for tlje
U)

more

strenuous exertions, not only opened another battery to the south, but began to

cannonade from the

sea.

An

assault had

was sent from the town.

to avert its horrors, a flag of truce

accompanied

now become imminent, and

word

was completed by a

surrender.

of honour that the ransom

ment continued with
Terms of

gy

was

it

could only be after

his terms

were

Tliough the siege lasted and

interruptions from the

]

tlie

liis

accejited,

bombard-

8th to the 2oth of September, so

Frenchman was

that not one

it

Ultimately, after he had given

would be moderate,

and he entered the town in triumph.
bloodless

The deputies wlio

proposed a ransom, but Labourdonnais at once declared, that

it

though he was not unwilling to entertain such a proposal,
the capture

in order

killed,

and only

five

Englishmen.

the terms of capitulation the whole of the merchandise and the moveable

oiiiiitiUation.

property passed at once to the captors, and

the English became prisoners of

all

The important point of the ransom remained to be settled, but the
honourable and liberal spirit which characterized Labourdonnais' proceedings
war.

made

impossible to doubt that

it

it

woidd be

fairly, amicaVjly,

and generously

was whispered that a serious difficulty had arisen.
Dupleix, on the ground that Madras was locally within his government of
Suddenly

arranged.

it

India, claimed a right to dispose of

So confident was he of possessing

determined was he to

right, or at least so

letter

it.

upon

insist

it,

from the Nabob of Arcot, who had now, when too

interdict the

that on receiving a

endeavoured to

late,

French from laying siege to Madras, he had pacified him by pro-

mising that the town when taken would be delivered into his hands.
subsequent proceedings of Dupleix
filled this

this

It furnished

promise.

it is

plain that he never

meant

Fi'oni the

to have ful-

him, however, with a plausible pretext for

sending a letter to Labourdonnais, in wdiich he desired him not to consent to

any terms of ransom, and intimated
self entitled to
Dupleix

for the first

time that he Considered him-

speak authoritatively on the subject.

Before this letter arrived, the capitulation, including the ransom as one of

interferes.

its essential

conditions,

had taken

could not honourably recede.

Nor

place.

As a completed

did he wish

it

;

act,

for, so far

Labourdonnais

from acquiescing

in the alleged right of Dupleix to dictate the terms of the capitulation,

regarded

it

as

commissions.

proceeded to
passion,

an arrogant assumption, at

total variance

lie

with theu* respective

Instead of deviating from the course originally chalked out, he
fijc

the

amount

of the ransom.

and even endeavoured to gain

Dupleix

his object

now

listened only to his

by attempting

to seize the

person of Labourdonnais, and tampering with the soldiers under his command.

At Pondicherry,

also,

he entered on a course of intrigue, and endeavovu-ed to

gain a kind of sanction to his proceedings, by inducing the French inhabitants
to petition

and protest against the ransom as most injurious to French

interests.

Labourdonnais remained luimoved, and intimated his detei'mination not to quit

Chap.

Tllfi

II.]

Madras

RANSOM OF MADRAS.

until every stipulation to

-^17

which he had consented should be honourably AD.

Violence having thus proved unavailing, Dupleix saw the necessity

performed.

of changing his tactics, and while weaving
restoration of

new

pretexts for delaying the actual

to the English, solemnly

Madras

bound himself

to ciirry

it

into

soon as certain preliminary arrangements were comj)leted.

effect as

Dm-ing the heat of the quarrel between the two French governors, three
ships of war, one of seventy-two,

board, arrived at Pondicherry.

and two of forty guns, with 1366 men on

Added

which Labourdoimais

to the force

ready possessed, they gave him such an ascendency as placed

To

English settlements in India at his mercy.

now

Bombay and

save

(juarrel

Labomxlonnals, detained by

saved them.

seventy-gun

In

One

sea.

ship,

of

al-

This petty

The

by regular treaty, at eleven hies of
monsoon commenced with a furious hur-

them foundered; four of the

Madras Roads were

others, including the

were completely dismasted, and otherwise seriously injured.

the Frencli marine force in the East

fact,

stitti.a.

other

tlie

lost his opportunity.

wliich six ships of the French fleet lying in the

driven out to

of

appearance nothing could

all

it,

Amount

fixed,

pagodas, nearly £44!0,000 sterling, the

by

all

Calcutta from sharing the fate of Madras.

very day after the ransom had been

ricane,

17-10.

was

so completely crippled as to be

afterwards incapable of achieving anything of consequence.

Labourdonnais, trusting to the promise of Dupleix faithfully to perform
tlie

of

to

conditions of the capitulation, finally quitted Madras, committing the charge
to a

it

left

all LabounUm-

as

member

many

soldiers

3000 Europeans.

them

in

On

of the council of Pondicherry.

and

sailors

His whole

as,

fleet

with those previously there, amounted

now

consisted of only seven ships, four of

He

good and three in wretched condition.

October, intending to proceed for

arriving at this place, he

sailed

Acheen with the whole

;

on the 20th of

but,

when

at sea,

clianged his intention with regard to the three, on finding that even if capable
of reaching that port they
directly for the Mauritius.

would be unserviceable, and steered with them
He had (quitted that island at the head of a powerful

armament, with which he was confident of achieving glorious
mortifying must have been the contrast presented by his return
tunes, however,

all his

honours.

and nothing remained
Tlie

for

him but

cjipture

been obliged to part company with the other
Indies.

by

Europe shorn

After passing the

British cruisers ; and, having

sliips

of the

fleet,

arrived in the

war was not yet declared between France and Holland,
Dutch vessel which touched at Falmouth. Tlie officials

probably acting on information which had been given them, recognized

him, and he was carried to London as a prisoner of war.

him was equally

lionourable to himself and to those to

classes vied in testifying respect

Vol.

His misfor-

Here, as

he took passage in a
there,

to return to

voyage was singularly unfortunate.

Cape of Good Hope, he narrowly escaped

West

!

How

were not yet ended. During his absence he had been superseded

in his government,

of

results.

I.

and showing

kindnes.s,

The reception given

whom

he owed

it.

All

and when he expressed
63

india.

418
A.D.

174ti.

a

wi.sli

among

to return to France, he found, even

pany on wliom
Fute of La-

OF INDIA.

jns'l'OlJV

hi,s skill

and prowess had

[liOOK III.

the directors of the

heavy

inflicted such

losses,

a generous

him to the whole amount of IiIb
however, was scouted, and his jiai-ole was

individual ready to become security for

fortune.

The very idea of

security,

at once

declared sufficient.

The

boui'doiinaiB.

short period during which Labourdonnais

was the

prisoner than the guest of England
said to

last

have smiled upon him

He had

dungeon awaited him, and he was immured

Here he was

may

Instead of reward, only a

in the Bastile

on the 2d of March,
before he

was

mitted to communicate with the council, and though most of the charges
against

any

him

were proved to be

acquittal

What

was pronounced.

had already been committed; and,

The

death came to his relief

could

now avail him?

it

after a short struggle

inju.stice of

widow, the grant bearing on the face of
so

many

services, or

lation shamefully violated

of the English fleet under

It

with disease and poverty,

— An attempt of the nabob upon

it

repulsed

the time of Labourdonnais' departm-e, Dupleix stood pledged

Madras

had involved him

make him

a present of

duped, and on finding that

in a serious difficulty.

was not

;

tiation.

The

effect

irresistible.

only

had neutralized the

Nabob

of Arcot,

its

by

pro-

purpose at the

to be vokmtarily surrendered to him, sent

at the head of

an ai-my of 10,000 men,

only was to confirm Maphuze

Without

When

his

but the nabob was not to be thus

Dupleix was, or from policy pretended to be

force.

were

Maphuze Khan,

it

it

Meanwhile

in January, 1747.

This promise served

it.

and he had thought no more of

his son,

—The terms of capitu-

St.

of Arcot

time,

persecutions."

HI.

threatened opposition of Anwar-u-din,

to Madras.

many

for so

anticipating the capture of the town, he

lays claim

to his

— Unsuccessful attempts of the French upon Fort David — Proceedings
Admiral Boscavcen — Siege of Pondicheiry —The peace of Aix-la-ChapeUe.

duplicity

mising to

by a peasion

that he had died "without receiving

it

any compensation

to the restoration of

Nahob

The judicial murder

which he had been the victim was

CHAPTER
Proceedings of the French at Madras

made

gi-oundless, three years elapsed before his

afterwards formally though very inadequately recognized,

any reward for

per-

and the few which had

carried their refutation along with them,

plausibility

be

his native shore, her

away twenty-six months

pine

left to

the

le.ss

performed services wliich entitled him

to the highest honom's his country could bestow.

1748.

was

during which fortune

The moment he reached

persecutions again commenced.

Tlie

Com-

listening to the

to take

it

by

and proposed negothe belief that his arms

afraid,

Khan

in

two deputies who had been sent

to

THE NABOB OF AECOT ATTACKS xMADRAS.

Chap. II r.]
treat

419

with him, he imprisoned them, and proceeded to take up his position near

His subse(pient opera-

the spot where Labourdonnais had erected his batteries.
tions displayed considerable
side of the town,

at its

A shallow

skill.

stream which ran along- the west

and reached the sea about 700 yards below, was

mouth by a mound

of sand as to form a kind of

employed a great number of men

this obstruction, he

water by cutting through the

mound and
;

a.d. i746.

at the

wet

ditch.

make an

to

dammed up

so

To get

rid of

outlet for the

same time sent a strong party

three miles to the north to take possession of the only s})ring from which the

Thus threatened, Du})leix opened

inhabitants were supplied with good water.
fire

He had

from the walls on the 21st of October.

1.1..
mitting to the indignity of a siege,
n

a body of 400

men

to act

,,

.

on the

and

«

therefore,

on

no

however, of sub-

idea,

ij»iithe following

TheNaimi.
of Arcot re-

1

day, sent out

They had with them two

offensive.

his

field-pieces,

pui8e<i
'

*'

fwm

™*'

which they had concealed, and with which, when the enemy advanced with an
appearance of resolution, they opened a most destructive

had never seen

artillery so served before,

were confounded, especially at the

and

rapidity of the discharges, turned then- backs,

The French had not

tation.

make a stand

fled

with the utmost precipi-

a single man, and remained masters of the

Maphuze Khan seemed

whole tents and baggage.
scattered troops, to

lost

disposed, after collecting his

in the neighbourhood, but

on

French expected a reinforcement from Pondicheny, hastened

to the natives as Mailapur,

being the place where the apostle

owes

European name

its

Thomas

St.

suffered

attained great splendour under the Portuguese, though

comparative insignificance

known

to profit

by

cheny and Madras.
only to

it,

— Maphuze Khan

would have cut

advancing to attack him in

fjiiled.

rear.

that the

off to St.

Tliom^,

—which,

to a tradition of

martyrdom, and had

had again sunk into

it

occupied a position which, had he

off the

communication between Pondi-

This was obviously his intention, but he managed so

two

place himself between

attacked his

leaji'iiing

In this town

situated on the coast, about four miles to the south.

known

The Moguls, who

fire.

front,

fires,

The detachment airived

men from

the latter

so late that this part of the i)lau

persisted in their original intention,

after forcing a pjissage across a stream,

as

the reinforcement from the former

while a detachment of 400

The reinforcement, however,

ill

and

on the north side of which the enemy

were advantageoasly posted, drove them back at the point of the bayonet, and
ft)llowing close

upon

their heels into the town,

were impossible, made

fearful

who

escaped to the plain

on an

elepliant,

slaughter.

where both resistance and retreat

Conspicuous among the fugitives,

was ^Maphuze Khan, mounted
on which the great standard was displayed. These encounters
to

the westward,

with the native troops establislied a

new

era in Indian warfare.

The

infinite

was no longer doubtful and from the valour
displayed by some of the natives who had been exercised in it, and fought on
the French side, the important fact was discovered that a native anny might be
formed, and so trained as to become the most effectual instrument of European
superiority of

European

discipline

;

xatives

may

cffiden*
soldiers.

420
A

I).

i7i«.

is

uu(][uestionably

H'

L'''^'^^

due to Dupleix.

Wliile gaining these laurels, the governor of

of Madiiis
violated.

OF INDIA.

Tlie first great exemplification of this fact, if not the diHCOvery of

(lorniiiation,
it,

cai.ituiatiui,

IHSTCJJiY

^

.

.

.

Pondicheny

wa.s meditating

.

.

The hiw of nations, as well as solemn pledges given
to Labourdonnais, bound him to restore Madras in return for a ransom which
had been stipulated, and the amount of which had been fixed by regular agree-

au act of gross

iniquity.

In utter disregard of these obligations, he summoned a meeting of the

ment.

was drawn up

inhabitants on the 30th of October, and there, while the gairison
in arms,

caused a manifesto to be read, acquainting the English with the

injustice

which he had resolved to perpetrate, and of which they were forthwith

to be

made the

This infsxmous document annulled the treat}' of

victims.

ransom, confiscated

all

them personally

the property of the English, and offered

only the alternative of remaining on parole as prisoners of war
or of being arrested

and sent

disgraceful treatment,

to

Pondicheny.

till

exchanged,

Several of them, to e.scape this

disguised themselves and found their

way

to Fort St.

David; but the English governor and a number of the principal inhabitants

were actually carried under

Pondicheny, and ostentatiously paraded

escort to

In a similar

before 50,000 spectators.

executed with the utmost

spirit

the threatened confiscation was

and many private

rigoui',

families

were utterly

ruined.
E.xiiedition

Fort

David, the most important English settlement on the Coromandel

St.

against Fort
St.

David,

coast after Madras, became,

dency.

The

fort,

of Pondicherry,
able territory,

town, which

situated

f

latter,

•

the seat of the presi-

100 miles south of Madras, and fourteen south

was small but

strong,

including within

lies

f

i

on the capture of the

it

and formed the nucleus of a

the important

about a mile south of the

consider-

town of Cuddalore.

This

at the moutli of the Pennar,

fort,

by a wall flanked with bastions, and, though
nearly open to the sea, was separated from it by a narrow belt of sand thrown
up by the waves, and skirted on the north and east by a shallow stream.
The object of Dupleix being to banish the English entirely from the coast, his
was surrounded on three

sides

task seemed only half finished while Fort St. David remained in their possession.

No

time, therefore,

was

The command was intended

lost in fitting

for

out an expedition against

a Swiss of the

recalled for the purpose from Madras,

name

of Paradis,

it.

who was

where he had acted as governor under

Dupleix, and been the willing instrmnent of his infamous proceedings.

He

left

Madras in the beginning of December, with 300 Europeans, and had proceeded
south about twenty miles, encumbered with ill-gotten booty,

Khan, who was burning
at the

to revenge his disgrace,

head of 3000 horse and 2000

niunbers, Paradis kept the

enemy

foot.

at bay,

when Maphuze

suddenly made his appearance

Great as was the disproportion of

and arrived

at the

Dutch settlement

was attacked with the loss of
only twelve men, who were taken prisoners and paraded by Maphuze Khan as

of Sadi'as, ten miles south of the place, where he

ClIAI'.

THE FltENCH EEPULSEI) FROM CUUDALUKE.

ill.

A

proof of his having obtained a victory.
cherry enabled

The

tlie

force destined to act against Fort St.
field- pieces

out the

officers refused to serve

mutiny

to resign the

by right of

David consisted of 1700 men,

whom

to

Before

was considered

it

it

Attcmi.ton

set

to belong

9th of December, the Pennar, which

and a half north of the

fort,

was reached and

with no show of opposition

cro.ssed,

except from a few native soldiers,

who

cover from the surrounding thickets.
sistance

fui'ther interruption.

and as many mortars.

command to M. Bury,
seniority.
At daybreak on the

immediately

1746.

under Paradis, and compelled him by a kind of

into the sea about a mile

falls

reinforcement sent fiom PonJi- AD.

whole to arrive there without

mostly Europeans, with six

421

had been anticipated, as

it

fired

^Si:

under

A gi'eater re-

was understood

that the nabob had entered into close leasfue with
the English, and promised a large supply of troops.

Assuming that he had not

was not disposed

probability

fulfilled,

to

and

fulfil his

in all

promise,

the French resolved to leave the fort behind,

make a sudden dash
There seemed
fort

at the

little risk,

town

and

of Cuddalore.

as the garrison of the

mustered no more than 200 Europeans, and

100 topasses, or natives of Portuguese descent;

and the whole

force

without

"-^s-.;
it,

for the defence of

the territory, consisted of about 2000 peon^, or

Peons of Mysorf,
From Vincount

Valenlla's

TruvcU

In India.

native soldiers, not disciplined according to the

example which the French had already
scarcely 900 of

set,

and

imperfectly armed that

so

them had muskets.

A few of these

peons had been stationed in a garden situated about a quarter Fremh
repiilsed.

of a mile from the place where the French had forded the river.
to a

summer

residence of the governor of the fort,

It belonged

and was inclosed by

a

brick wall, which, together with the house and the com-t of buildings attached

might have furnished the means of a vigorous defence. The peons, however, were not capable of making it, and were no sooner attacked than they
abandoned the post. The French troops, having now no apprehension of danger,
to

it,

began to refresh themselves from the fatigues of their march, and were sleeping,
or cooking, or straggling about without their arms,
that

an enemy was approaching from the westward.

(iOOO horse

and SOOO

foot belonging to the nabob,

Maphuze Khan and Mahomed

Ali.

directly for the river, which,

on the part of their

assailants,

except that of their baggage.

It

a sudden cry arose

proved to be a body of

and led by

his

two

sons,

So great was the consternation of the

French, that instead of attempting to profit

and made

when

by

owing

their position, they rushed out

to the

want

of skill

and courage

they crossed without sustaining any serious

The garrison of the

loss

fort perceiving their flight

422
A.D. 1717.

HTSTOTtY OF TNr)[A.

thouglit prudent to attack them,

offered battle; but

and

l)rought to bay, faced about

III.

continued the pursuit for six miles.

sallied out, iuul, joining the nabob's troops,

The enemy,

[Book

and they were pennitted

to return

was not

it

unmolested

to Pondicherry.
Second
ciuMiiioie.

Dupleix, grievously disappointed at the failure of his attempt, determined
to

renew

in a different form,

it

and

instructions to proceed to Cuddalore,

and landing on the

river,

rated the

east side,

where

it

it

by

had no

surprise,

in Vjoats, with

by entering

He had

defences.

While the boats were passing through the

difficulties.

the soldiers could only save their lives
after

and take

men

500

secretly despatched

they had reached the

by throwing

aside their

surf,

arms

;

the

under-

many

of

and even

were so overwhelmed by a hard gale from the

river,

south, that they thought themselves fortunate in being able to secure their

own

safety

arms in a

by putting back

different direction,

to sea.

Again disappointed, Dupleix turned

his

and commenced a war of devastation within the

Mere passion may have suggested

nabob's territories adjoining Madras.

this

apparently wanton procedure, though subsequent events seem to prove that there

was deep design in
perfectly

His knowledge of the native character made him

it.

aware that the nabob would dissolve

moment he was convinced that

it

was not

little difficulty in

throw

his

succeeding.

given to him, and the
Retirement

It

now Seemed

to

new

maintain

This was

it.

to bring him.

He had

After a short negotiation, the nabob consented to

army from Fort St. David,
Pondicherry, where a most pompous reception was

weight into the French

and sent Maphuze Khan

his intei"est to

was now labouring

the conviction to which Dupleix

with the British the

his alliance

scale, recalled liis

alliance

was formally proclaimed.

as if the situation of the British

on the Coromandel coast was

of the
Frencii.

They had been abandoned by

dcspcratc.

and

their only ally,

vain for assistance from home, had almost ceased to hope for
capture of Madras the only relief which had reached them

after looking in

Ever

it.

was by a

since the

vessel

from

Ceylon, which, on the 19th of February, 171; 7, brought a supply of £60,000 in
silver for the
St.

David.

tunely, for

exhausted treasm-y, and twenty recruits for the garrison of Fort

This

relief,

On

it

was, could not have come more oppor-

on the 2d of March the French were again seen approaching.

were the same troops as
officers

paltry though

before,

but the former

failure

had

so far

They
humbled the

that they had been prevailed on to receive Paradis as their commander.

reaching the banks of the Pennar, they were somewhat surprised to find

The

that the passage was to be contested.
infused into

with three

it,

had marched boldly

field- pieces

out,

and a troop of

garrison, as if a

new

spirit

had been

and stood posted on the opposite bank,

horse,

composed

cannonade commenced, and was kept up with some

chiefly of volunteers.

spirit till the evening,

A

when

the French effected a passage at a point out of cannon-shot, and the garrison

deemed

it

prudent to

retire.

By

a singular coincidence the garden was again

occupied, only to be precipitately abandoned.

A

number

of ships were descried

Chap.

MAJOU LAWRENCE.

III.]

approaching the roads.

Tiie

were English and hastened

423

French only waited to satisfy themselves that they

off for Pondicherry.

It proved to be the long looked for British squadron.

m

inactive

Admiral

T->iiiiii
who had

arrived from England with

and the other of forty guns.

by troops brought with

it

from England and Bombay, Fort

and

it

was the turn

St.

jiartly

of

affiiirs

of M. Du})leix to feel alarm.
for

it.

Admiral

had remained

Amvai

of

British
oi
commandII'"

siiuaarou.

ships,
it

one of sixty
;

and partly

by subsequent reinforcements

David was garrisoned

The aspect

was not much cause

that there

two

There was no enemy to encounter

from Bengal, and

beyond the reach of danger.

It

11
under the

T

Bengal, but had at length ventm'ed out,

Griffin,

a.d. i748.

so strongly as to be

had now completely changed,
however,

It soon appeared,

Griffin

seemed

satisfied

with his

acknowledged supremacy at sea without attempting to derive any benefit from
it

and the whole season

;

for action passed

away with no more important

result

than the destruction of a fifty-gun ship which had belonged to Labourdonnais'
squadi'on,

and was lying

Madras.

On

in the roads of

the approach of the October

monsoon an attempt was made
on the

and

all

coast,

but

it

Wiis

to remain

found impossible,

the ships were ultimately obliged

to take shelter at Trincomalee.

In the beginning of 1748 the squadron returned to Fort

David, and at

St.

the same time Major Lawrence, a British
officer

of distinguished merit, arrived to

take the

command

forces in India.

of

moment

of

the Company's

all

For some months nothin<r

occun-ed.

In consequence of

a rumour that Dupleix was about to renew

Major-general

Stkini;i;u

Lawrence.

— From an

enKrnvini; by Houston, »fttr Sir
RrynolUi.
on Cuddalore, Major Lawrence
formed a camp between the garden already mentioned and the banks of the
Pennar.
Here he had remained for some time, when the alarming discovery
was made, that thougli not yet disposed to risk a new campaign, the French

his designs

J.

governor had, with characteristic cunning and duplicity, been endeavouring to
prepare for it by tampering with the fidelity of the native troops in British pay.

The commander

body of 400 sepoys sent from the English settlement at
Tellicherry had promised to desert with them to the French in the fii-st enfrat^ement that should happen and within the fort itself, an Indian, who had ticted
as interpreter and agent to the English governor of Madras, was
ascertained
of a

;

have long can-ied on a treaciierous con-espondence with the enemy, by
communicating with Madame Dupleix in the Malabar tongue. The interpreter
and an accomplice suffered death, and the commander of the Tellicherry sepoys,
together with ten of their other officei-s, were banished to St. Helena.

to

^'»J°'-

1^«-

mlmk^-in"-

iuat.'"

•i24

A

A.D. 171S

more honourable warfure than that

was now
Arrival of

OF INDIA.

Il[ST(JJiV

vessels,

A

anticipated.

which had

sailed

Frencli squadron

[Book

to wliich

Dupleix had thus stooped

seven large

of"

TIT.

shij)S

and two smaller

from the Mauritius in the end of April, were seen on

a French

squadron.

the 10th of June sailing in the direction of Fort

St.

in the roads consisted of three ships of sixty, three of

one of twenty guns, and could scarcely have

shore,

and

that the opportunity was

lost.

were on

had never intended to

fight,

main

better to disguise his

and

left

Admiral

three of forty, and

the

if

enemy had been

elapsed before the ships put to sea,

The French commander, aware of his

inferiority,

and had only assumed the appearance of
which was to land 400

object,

Having succeeded

in silver at Pondicherry.
coast,

much time

so

failed,

fifty,

fleet

Unfortunately the aflmiral and several of

brought to action, to gain a victory.
his officers

The English

David.

soldiers

it,

the

and £200,000

in this, he at once quitted the

a vain attempt to discover him, to reap the

Griffin, after

what he called his bad fortune, but many designated by a harsher
The latter was the view taken by a court-martial in England, and

fruits of

name.

he was suspended from the service.
New attempt

The English

fleet,

while engaged in

of the

search

fruitless

its

hostile

on Cuddalore re-

From

squadron, had arrived at Madras.

the state of wind, some days must neces-

pulsed.

sarily elapse before it could return to

on

effecting the capture in

Fort

David

St.

which he had been

;

and

so bent

was Dupleix

so often baffled, that he deter-

making another attack on Cuddalore.
The force employed consisted of 800 Europeans and 1000 sepoys, who, by pursuing a circuitous route from Pondicherry, airived in the morning of the 7th

mined

of

to avail himself of the interval in

June at the

of Bandapolam.

hills

and the plan was

to halt

till

Cuddalore was only three miles distant,

the night; and then come upon

by

it

surprise.

Major Lawrence, made aware of what was intended, determined to meet strata-

gem by

stratagem, and caused

into the

fort.

all

the cannon to be brought from Cuddalore

His object was to make the French believe that he had taken

this step because

he thought the place untenable, and meant to abandon

without a struggle.

The stratagem succeeded

;

it

and the French, advancing under

make an easy conquest, had actually
walls, when a fire of musketry from

the fidl belief that they were about to

applied their scaling-ladders to the
all

the ramparts, and four or five pieces of cannon loaded with gi'ape-shot,

The caimon, openly removed by

opened upon them.

replaced at nightfall, and the garrison

Of

off in
Arrival of a

powerful
BritiBh

axmameut.

headlong

The panic

had been

had at the same time been

these facts the French were of course ignorant,

was extreme.

day,

and hence

seized officers as well as men,

secretly

reinforced.

their consternation

and the whole rushed

flight.

The Indian struggle had hitherto attracted comparatively little notice in
England but at last both the government and the Company had awakened
;

to a full sense of its importance,

A

fleet consisting of

seven

shii)s

and resolved

to

make adequate

of the nav}^ with a bomb-ship

preparations.

and

tender,

and

'

Chap.

PONDICHERRY BESIEGED.

III.]

n

4:25

eleven ships of the Company, can-ying mihtary stores and 1400 regular troops,

ad.

ir^s.

November, under the command of Admiral Boscawen.
At the Cape of Good Hope it was joined by six ships of the Dutch East India
from England

sailed

Company, having 400

in

soldiers

on board, and

by

after a considerable detention

contrary winds, proceeded for the Mauritius, which was seen on the 23d of June.

was expected that both

It

but the

quests,

difficulties

this island

and that of Bourbon would

Ml

proved greater than had been anticipated

;

easy con-

and

after

a

series of attempts rendered futile by gross blunders, it was resolved by a council
of war that, as the capture, even if practicable, was only a secondary object, the

armament ought

Coromandel

to proceed forthwith to the

coast,

which was

its

David on the 29th of July, and
being joined by the squadron of Admiral Griffin, whose sei'vices had entitled
]n-imary destination.

him

It arrived at

Fort

St.

to nothing better than a court- martial, constituted the

force

most powerful naval

which had ever been brought to the East Indies by any European nation.

It consisted of thirty ships, thirteen of

them

ships of the line,

and none of them

of less than 500 tons burden.

The English

at Fort St.

David were elated above measure, and

felt full

confidence that they were not only about to recover Madras but to avenge

the injustice they had suffered,

by the capture of Pondicheny.

well have this confidence, for they were scarcely less poweiful

mustering in

sea,

all,

for service

might be sent by the Nabob of

again to change

sides,

had

csist

To

Ai'cot,

object of attack.

in the ships,

tinued

its

They might

these

was

to be added such a

To strike at once at
Pondicheny was made the very

in his lot with the British.

The heavy cannon and cumbrous

stores

were transported

which anchored two miles south of the town, while the army con-

course alonjj the shore.

pied a gentle declivity at the south-east extremity of a long
stretched, at the distance of about seventy yards

from the

flat

shore, rather

at this time one of the best built cities in India, and,

occu-

hill,

and

more than

a mile from north to south, and nearly three-quarters of a mile inland.

It

was

when viewed from

the

commanding appearance. For the latter
it was indebted to several conspicuous public edifices, and more especially to a
citadel, which, though of small dimensions, was of considerable strength.
It
stood within the town, and, along with it, was inclosed on the three sides toward
the land by a ditch, and a waU and ramjiart flanked with bastions.
Tlie
presented at once a pleasing and

eastern side, facing the sea,

was defended by

several batteries,

capable of mounting 100 cannons, and completely

At

commanded

which were

the roadstead.

the distance of a mile from the walls, a large hedge of aloes and other

thorny
Vol.

])lants,
I.

i>„mu.'^

'''"'"^'

by land than by

The town of Pondicheny, situated eighty-six miles S.S.W. of Madras,

sea,

,,'f

who, suspecting that fortune was

the centre of the French power and influence,
fiist

all

i'rep;u-iiti.

on shore, 3720 Europeans, 300 topasses, and

about 2000 imperfectly disciplined sepoys.
force as

of

intonniugled with cocoa-init and other palms, commenced on the
54

conditi..!.

chei'o"

42G
AD.

1748.

HISTOilY OF INDIA.

[Book

III.

north at the sea-shore, and was carried round, for above five miles, in a regular
curve,

by the west and

south,

till

reached in the latter direction the river of

it

This hedge, impenetrable to cavalry, and not easily to be paased

Ariancoopan.

even by infantry, fonned, with the

which

river,

half below, a complete line of defence.

attended

to,

So

had

carefully

made

that at each of the openings

and a

into the sea a mile

fell

object been

this

in the hedge for the four road«

which led from the town to the surrounding country, there was a redouhtt

mounted with cannon, and near the point where the hedge joined the
small fort bearing the same

Owing

to the time

name had been

which had been

river a

erected.

on the outward voyage, partly by

lost

contrary winds and partly by the injudicious attempt on the Mauritius, the
season was far advanced
day, therefore,

was

when

commenced

besiegers

tlie

Every

operations.

and not an hour ought to have

of the utmost consequence,

been spent, except upon some object which would contribute essentially to a sucDeiay bef,)ie
Fort Ariaucoopau.

-in

Unfortunatcly a very different principle of action was adopted,
t
and the troops, instead of proceeding at once to Pondicherry, stopped short at

ccssful rcsult.

^

From

the fort of Ariancoopan.

authorities of Fort St. David,

a very extraordinary neglect on the part of the

no means had been used, though the

had

fleet

long been expected, to obtain such accurate information as would be needed

when

Hence, when Ariancoopan was approached,

the siege should commence.

no person could be found to give any accurate description of

An

garrison.

make

works or

its

engineer sent to reconnoitre, was afraid to go near enough to

the necessary observations, and represented

it

as a place of

no strength,

though covered by an entrenchment, while a deserter reported that
defended only by 100 sepoys.

was a
active

and suiTOunded by a deep dry

and the garrison consisted of 100 Em'opeans and 300

European

immediate

officer.

disastrous results.

saw that

It

assault.

success

Admiral Boscawen, thus grossly

was

ditch, full of

sepoys, under

an

misled, ordered

an

was made with the greatest bravery, but with the most

The storming party
was

it

This information was inaccurate, for the fort

triangle, regularly fortified,

pitfalls,

its

impossible,

persisted,

and did not

from mere shame,

retire tiU

150 of

after

theii"

they

number

were struck down by musketry and gTape-shot, and Major Goodere, the most
experienced
Timewasted.

Tliis

officer of

the king's troops,

was mortally wounded.
was still more
possessed greater means of resist-

was an ominous commencement, but the next

reprehensible.

When

it

was seen that the

fort

step taken

ance than had been imagined, there was no necessity for remaining before

A small

detachment would have

that could have arisen from

its

sufficed to

being

left

the siege of Pondicheny was postponed
yield.

The French were too

by holding the

skilful

watch

behind.

till

it.

and prevent any danger
All this was overlooked, and
it,

this paltiy place could

be forced to

not to profit by the egi'egious blunder, and

fort as long as possible, gained the incalculable

stopping the entire progress of the besiegers

dmmg

eighteen days.

advantage of

Even

at last

Chap.
it

SIEGE OF PONDICHEIIRY RAISED.

III.]

was not

so

much taken

427

as abandoned, in consequence of the accidental explo-

ad.

1748.

sion of a large q\iantity of gunpowder.

The besieging army moved from Ariancoopan on the 2Gth of August, and
proceeded, after forcing the redoubt which guarded the opening in the hedge

commencing operations

leading to the north-west, to prepare for

In

the town.

sieges,

covered way, but so
tiieir profession,

that

at the distance of

on

1

Pm-

coiiime.;c«.i.

in that quarter,

To facilitate the commufleet and the camp, the ships were moved to the north of
the first pandlel is usually made within 800 yards of the
ignorant were the engineers of the commonest rules of
when they opened ground on the 30th of August, it was

the engineers having selected
nication between the

siegaof

dicherry

.

.

By

500 yards.

most

as the

it

eligible.

slow and laborious

steps,

they kept creeping

they reached the distance at which they ought to have begun, and then

till

only made the astounding discovery that they had begun the siege from a

wrong

Between

direction.

and the town lay a morass, which, by

their woi-ks

bi>ui«1'^^i>

of

besiegers.

means of a back water, had been flooded. What was now to be done ? September was already far spent, and the rainy season would soon commence.
To
commence anew wtis impossible, and the only alternative which remained was
to retire at once, or to persist in operations

The former part of the

of success.

which held out

was the

alternative

wiser,

mingled with other considerations to prevent the adoption of
exertions, during

which many

lives

were

two

lost,

or no promise

little

but shame

and by great

it,

batteries of eighteen

and

twenty-four pounders, the one of eight and the other of four pieces of cannon,

were constructed on the edge of the moniss

The

batteries.

duced

little

fire,

effect,

those of

cis

by two bomb-

and was, moreover, returned double by the
tiers conld

ships,

distance, probesiegers.

A

which began to batter the town,

not come nearer than 1000 yards, their

fire

never

According to the French account, the only person killed was an old Mala-

told.

woman

bar

two

these were followed

which would have been crushing at a shorter

kind of diversion was attempted by the
but

;

The

passing along the street.

final result

No

was now only too apparent.

impression had been

made

on the defences, sickness prevailed in the camp, and the rainy season had com-

The

menced.

upon

it

;

ships ran the risk of being driven

and the country would

removal of the cannon and heavy
impossible.

a council of

The

()th

in all probability
stores,

though

the coast, perha])S wrecked

become

still

so flooded, that the

practicable,

would soon be

To persist would therefore have been madnes.s, and the decision of
war was scarcely necessary to sanction the order which was issued

to raise the siege.

on the

off"

Five days were employed in the humiliating process, and

of October, the troops began their

mortality,

by casualty or

the Europeans, of

whom

of the whole, perished.
sible for the operations,

sickness,

march back

had been very

great, particularly

1065 out of the original 3720, or

The smvivors,
had not the

to Fort St. David.

at least those of

verj- nearly

among
a third

them who were respon-

satisfaction of thinking that they

had done

S'ege

n\^\.

428
AD.

1748.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

their duty;

200 of the former and about

displayed in sending bombastic letters to

lie

Mogul

including the

intimating

himself,

There cannot be a doubt

that,

by the

nation,

and that many years and signal
which they had

British the reputation

notwithstanding the

more powerful than

still

victories

restored.

m
•

object attempted,

by

was

•

i

p

for

an

PondicheiTy was beyond their

That

i

this

would be the next

Though captured fau'ly
fraud.
Of this Dupleix him-

itself sufficiently probable.

not but be conscious,

coiild

•

rr»

which had befallen them,

loss

and might therefore hope

their rivals,

Labovuxlonnais, the retention of

self

had trium[>hefi

were required to restore to the

and

di.sgrace

but Madras remained to be recovered.

rcacli,

gloriously he

lost.

early opportunity of regaining their laurels.
Madras

the native princes,

all

prowess rose in India far above that of any other European

for military

were

how

for the o.stentatioas

issue of this siege, the reputation of the

French

British,

only

lost

of the latter, and were therefore well entitled

fifty

Even Dupleix may be excused

Te Deunis.

to sing their

The

to last, exhibited nothing \mi a

first

French garrison, originally 1800 Europeans and 3000 sepoys,

Tlic

vanity

from

siege,

III.

monstrous blunders.

tissue of
Exuitationof

whole

lor tlie

[Book

was a gross
and hence it
it

how

easy to understand

is

unwilling he was, after incurring infamy in order to obtain the po.ssession of
it,

to incur the risk of

having

it

again wrested from him.

His anxiety to

retain thus equalling the eagerness of the original possessors to recover, he

exerted himself in strengthening

he had resolved to raze

it

this proceeding, he shortly after

town, and had rendered

when he had
was about
peacenf Aix- fities
la-Chapelle.

much more

and commenced the work

Very inconsistently with

in ashes.

capable than before of standing a siege,
all his

unransomed and improved to

^^

r-^^

•

i

Aix-la-Chapelle, and possession

the state in which
cult,

if

began to make improvements on the white

the mortification to learn that

to return

indeed, he acted as

labour was in vain, as Madi-as
its

former possessors.

Ho.sti-

between Great Britain and France had been terminated by the peace of

t

,.

it

first,

entirely to the gi'ound,

by laying the black town

of destruction

At

its defences.

and

j)anies

is

it

was

at the

was

1

T

commencement

not necessary, to decide

•

1

to be restored as nearly as

how

of the war.

It

far the interests of the

were

gainers.

The

British recovered

Madras

;

^

would be

diffi-

two

com-

were beneficially or injuriously affected by the treaty of peace.

respects both

^

might be to

rival

In some

the French escaped

from the disasters which were evidently im2:)ending over them, in consequence
of the maritime supremacy which their rivals had established.
Warlike ten-

Now

dencies of

that the sword had been sheathed, and there

/•!•
^it
for keeping up powerful and expensive
•

the Freiici.

prctcxt

com^'r^es.'^

for all parties

would have been

to

abandon

all

was neither

necessity nor

i;iji

armaments, the natural course

schemes of tenitorial aggi'andise-

ment, and confine themselves, in accordance Avith their original profession, to

On

the other hand, there were strong

temptations to deviate from this course.

The Mogul empire was only the

the peaceful pm-suits of commerce.

THE

Chap. IV.]

shadow of what

it liad

once been

;

429

CAIINATIC.

in all quarters chiefs

subordinate were aspiring to independence, and, to

who

a.d. i-is.

appearance, a general

all

Under such

scramble for territory was about to ensue.

formerly been

liad

circumstances, wh\'

should the two most powerful nations of Europe con.sent to have their hands
tied up,

and

remain inactive spectators of a struggle in which their

to

Why

perhaps their very existence was involved?
not principals, at least auxiliaries, and give

—

or,

and willing

and prowess

liberally?

Such thoughts had long been familiar

tion

should they not become,

not to mince the matter

their skill

to the party able

to

pay

to Dupleix,

name with

—

if

sell

for thi'ni mo.st

whose imagina-

was warmed, and ambition inflamed, while he contemplated the

of associating his

interests,

possibility

the establishment of a French Indian empire.

The

superiority of the forces which he could bring into the field could no longer be

With a mere handful

called in (question.
flight.

Haughty

his alliance,

chiefs,

who

men

of

he had already put armies to

formerly despised him, had crouchingly courted

and he had only to temper

force

with policy, in order to compel or

persuade them to acknowledge him as their master.

In the English Compan}'

no individual had yet appeared in a position which permitted him
or pointed

him out

to othei*s as destined to realize similar

views

;

to entertain,

but there can

be no doubt that, both at home and abroad, territorial aggrandisement in India

was by many contemplated
The

as practicable,

and longed

for as

most

desirable.

aggrandisement being thus virtually decided in the aflSrmative,

(juestion of

'""t***'

'•»

tweeii the

both by France and England, the contest for Indian supremacy did not

but only changed

form, in conseqiience of the peace

its

two nations, no longer permitted to turn
had recom-se to the expedient of doing it

To show

native quan-els.
results this

was done,

it

tion of Southern Iniha

British

and French was

in

will

first

arms directly against each

to

Carnatic— Its

political

S7X.'».'K]T:r!>;r.".;.'rr.-.;r.,-:.>.'.-^
^

I
J

other,

in.ua

i.

ana

l<,i,

*""""'

by taking opposite sides in
what extent, and with what

necessary to give some account of that por-

this species

of armed neutralit}' between the

exhibited.

CHAPTKR
Tlie

and the troops of the

rren.

indirectly,

what manner,

now be

where

their

;

cease,

lY.

state—Traasactions inTanjore— Early career of Clive— Siege of Tricliinopoly.

-

TIE Carnatic, anciently called Canara, properly denotes the tract
of countiy where the Canara language is spoken, but has long
since lost its original application,
ings,

and has two principal meanone more extensive, and the otlier more limited the for-

B..undarieK

l!!!il,^;i!«'!!j^''

^''^^^""'^^

;

mer, including luider

it

nearly

tlie

whole of the south-eastern

portion of the Indian peninsula, from the Kistna to Cape Comorin, and the

.

430
\.v. 1732.

HISTORY OF INDIA.
adopting the .same northern

latter

limit,

[Book

but not descending

III.

furtiier .%utli tiian

the country immediately north of the Coleroon, and at the same time so confining

it

on the west as not to leave

it

an average breadth of more than seventy-

In this latter sense the Carnatic

five miles.

is

nearly identical with the

teiri-

tory which, under the Mogul empire, formed one of the principal provinces of
the soubah or government of the Deccan, and was administered
bahdar's nabob or deputy, under the

nabobship taking
consists of
T)ie Ghauts,

guislied

two

its

name from

Nabob

of the

title

define<l

and

portions, differing greatly in their physical features,

distin-

from each other by the names of Balaghaut and Payeenghaut, or

portion of the Eastern Ghauts,

much

not so

sou-

of Arcot, the whole

The country thus

Arcot, the capital.

land above and the land beneath the mountain passes.

by a

by the

by continuous

traversed

elevated,

is

The Balaghaut, covered

and forms a kind of

ridges as broken

tlie

up by

table-land,

Isolated hills an<i

mountains, rising in precipitous masses, and not unfrequently separated from
each other
little

flat,

by deep

The Payeenghaut, on the

ravines.

elevated above sea level, and traversed

dming

streams, generally dry

the hot, but

filled to

contrary,

is

a maritime

by the beds of numerous

overflowing during the rainy

Immediately south of the nabobship of Arcot, and separated from

season.

it

by

a boimdary not well defined, were the two rajahships or Hindoo states of Trichinopoly and Tanjore, which, though governed by their
far

dependent on the Nabob of Arcot,

in his
The Nabob
saaatiuia.

own name, but

as the

"phc nabobsliip of Arcot
chicf,
office

of the

name

princes,

were

so

levied tribute from them, not indeed

deputy of the Mogul.

was held from 1710

of Sadatulla,

was not recognized

who

own

or,

more

as hereditary.

to

1

732 by an able and popular

Khan.

The

was held by commission from

Delhi,

properly, Saadut Oolla

It

but in the event of the Mogul not exercising, or dela;ying to exercise the right

was made by the Soubahdar of the
Deccan. Such was the regular mode of procedure when the Mogul empire was in
vigour but in the state of decay into which it had fallen, the imperial commisof nomination, a temporary appointment

;

sion

was regarded

as only a form,

and the right of appointment was

tacitly, if

not overtly contested between the soubahdar and the nabob, the one claiming
as his prerogative,

and the other striving to render

Saadut Oolla having no

issue,

it

hereditary in his family.

had adopted the two sons of

a will by which he destined the nabobship to Doast

his brother,

Ali, the elder,

subordinate government of Vellore to Boker Ali, the younger.

deed he conferred the
the

nephew

office

of

dewan

of his favourite wife.

seen, regarded himself as

owing

By

and

left

and the
the same

Gholam Hussein,

or prime minister on

Nizam-ul-Moolk, who, as has been already

independent sovereign of the Deccan, not having been

consulted in these appointments, regarded
rity, but,

it

them

as encroachments on

to other political entanglements at the time,

liis

autho-

was not

in a posi-

whom

the elder,

tion to give effect to his resentment.

Doast

Ali, at the

time of his succession, had two sons, of

POLITICAL STATE OF THE CARNATIC.

Chap. IV.]

431

whom

Sufder All, was arrived at man's estate, and several daughters, one of

was married

to

Mm-teza Khan, or Mortiz

Ali, his brother's son,

and another

to

a distant relation of the name of Chunda Sahib, whose daughter by a former

mamage was

the wife of the above

Gholam Hussein, Doast

All's

a.d. 1732.

DoastAU.

dewan. Chunda

Sahib, thus son-in-law to the nabob and father-in-law to his minister, naturally
])0ssessed great

enabled him to

His ambition tempted, and

influence at com-t.

make

the most of

it.

Ere long, under a pretext of assisting

father-in-law in administering the office of dewan, he had

Not

him.

satisfied

aspired to military

with the

power

civil

also,

his talents

power thus placed

and obtained

it

by

managed

his

to supplant

entirely in his hands, he

ingratiating himself with the

soldiers.

The Rajah of Trichinopoly had
him, also without

was claimed by a
in-chief,

of the

He had

issue.

collateral

destined the succession to his

male

heir,

Nabob

of Arcot.

It

but

first wife,

Ti.e R.ijai.

_

of Tricliiiio-

it

i)oiy.

who, by the support of the commander-

was readily granted

Sufder Ali and

Chunda

was

and an army entered the

to support the queen.

It

was commanded by

by a tenure

so precarious, that the admission of

a portion of the nabob's troops was deemed necessary to her safety.

weU aware

rajah-

Sahib, and gradually ap])roached the capital, where the

held possession, but

still

;

purpose of collecting the accustomed tribute, but with a

secret understanding that it

of the danger which she thus incurred,

be an effectual secm-ity against

to

like

pushed the ranee, or queen, to the desperate step of soliciting the aid

ship, ostensibly for the

(^ueen

Saadut Oolla, in 1732, and,

died, like

it,

by

She was

and took what she conceived

requiring

Chunda

Sahib,

who

con-

ducted the negotiation, to take an oath on the Koran, that the admitted troops
should be employed solely to re-establish her authority, and then be withdrawn.

He

took the oath, but having no intention to keep

wrapped up

it,

took

in the usual splendid covering of the Koran,

possession than he

made

it

only on a brick

and no sooner gained

the ranee prisoner, and hoisted the

Mahometan

flag.

Measures had been so effectually taken, not only in the fortress of Trichinopoly,
but at various other stations, that the whole country submitted without
resistance to this abominable treachery.

Sufder Ali retm'ned home, leaving Chunda Sahib as governor.
"of

dewan

The

office

of Ai'cot having thus

Sufder All's preceptor,

become vacant, was conferred on Meer Assud,
who, well aware of Chmida Sahibs ambitious character,

quickly perceived the serious blmider which had been committed in making

was more than probable that he would be
and then the tribute withheld would be the least part of the

liim ruler of Trichinopoly.

tempted to
loss,

revolt,

It

as the independence of the nabobship itself

representations had their

Doast

Ali,

full

effect

on Sufder

would be endangered.

Ali,

but were

lost

on his

These
father,

who, besides being of an indolent temper, was disposed to judge

Chunda Sahib more favom'ably, and refused to sjxnction an}' proceedings agaiiLst
him.
The fact, however, that such proceedings had been urged, was not lost on

Treacher>-

sauiu.

HISTORY

432
A.D.

17:1J.

Clmnda

INDIA.

f)F

who immediately took measures

Sahib,

[Book

lor his j>rotection,

III.

by putting

Trichinopoly in a complete state of defence, and intrusting tried friends with
his other
Mahrattas

most important

stations.

Sufder Ali and Meer Assud, unable to obtain the nabob's concurrence; in

lironght
into tlie
(/'arnatic.

their designs against

Chunda

them without

Sahib, determined to pursue

his

The plan was,

knowledge, and entered into a negotiation with the Mahrattas.

that the Mahrattas, under the pretext of levying the chout which the nabob had
withheld, should invade his territories, and then,

was anticipated he would, suddenly unite

his relief, as it

make a dash

der Ali, and
policy,

when Cliunda Sahib came

By

at Trichinopoly.

they overshot the mark.

Doast

Ali,

more

spirit

and tortuous

knowing nothing of underhand
were attacked,

territories

than might have been expected from his age and

men

took post with a handful of
ously, to

their forces with Suf-

this intricate

arrangements with the Mahrattas, saw only that his
and, with

in a pass

to

habits,

which was supposed, though eiTone-

be the only one through which the invaders could descend into the

He was

low country.

had misgivings as
hearing his

here encountered, defeated, and

to the course

father's

which the Mahrattas might pursue,

to Vellore,

fate,

Sufder

slain.

advancing into Arcot with an auxiliary

Ali, wdio

retired,

on

who had been
hastened back to secure his own

while Chunda Sahib,
force,

interests at Trichinopoly.
Their league
with Sufder
iUi,

Nabob

of Arcot.

The Mahrattas, aware of the advantage which they had gained, thought no
more of their engagements with Sufder Ali, and, as a means of forcing him to
any terms which they were pleased
of plunder

and devastation.

to dictate,

commenced

theii*

usual system

Sufder, anxious above all things to be immediately

confirmed in the succession which had opened to him

and purchased

plied with all their demands,

by

his father's death,

their departure

by

com-

agi-eeing to

them, by instalments, 10,000,000 rupees, equivalent to £1,000,000 sterling.

was the only part of the treaty made

public,

but there was another

pay
This

article,

kept secret for very obvious reasons, which handed over Chunda Sahib to their
mercy, and

them

left

conquer at their
Siege

:iii(l

On

the

own

free to appropriate as

much

of his territory as they could

expense.

news of the invasion of the Mahrattas, the

first

late nabob, as well

oaptiire of
Triciiino-

as Sufder Ali
cherry,

and Chunda Sahib, sent

their families

and treasure

which they justly regarded as far stronger and every

than any native

Chunda

fortress.

grain at Trichinopoly, which,

if it

this opinion

;

for

way more

could not be starved out, promised to with-

make

to take

it.

The Mahrattas

immediately on their treaty with Sufder

they turned their faces northwards, and commenced their journey, as

mined to
They had

lose

no time

in i-egaining their homes.

calculated that

really gone,

Chunda

would consider

secure

Sahib, moreover, laid in a large store of

stand any effort which the Mahrattas could

seemed to be of

to Pondi-

Sahib, as soon as

Ali,

if deter-

was a mere stratagem.
convinced that they were

It

his stores of grain unnecessary,

and turn them

into

NIZAM-UL-MOOLK.

Chap. TV.]

money.

It wa.s so

Tricliinopoly, they

blockading the
three months,

;

and though they had proceeded 250 miles north-west of

made

quest,

and

carried off

by hastening

and

;

after a siege of

on the 2Gth of March,

to surrender at discretion,

men, under Morari Row, to guard their con-

left 14-,0()0

Chunda

a.d. 1743.

back, and completely

Famine made defence impossible

was compelled

The Mahrattas

174-1.

sure of their prize

fortress.

it

433

Sahib,

whom

they confined in a strong fort in

the vicinity of Sattarah.

when reUeved from the alarm which Chunda Sahib had given,
saw him.self threatened by a still more formidable enemy. Nizam- ul-Moolk
had returned to the Deccan, and had given him to understand that, as an indisSufder

Ali,

pensable condition to his being confirmed as nabob, he must pay up
arrears of tribute
step,

on receiving

He had

Madras.

which had accrued since the death of Saadut

was

this intimation,

to I'emove his family

Oolln.

connection
"

cherry.

the

all

His

cimn.i.i

first

and treasures

to

formerly lodged them in Pondicherry, but circumstances had

him that an understanding existed between Chunda
Sahib and Dupleix, and that as his interest was decidedly opposite to that of
transpired to convince

the former, his true safety lay in courting an alliance with the only nation which

seemed capable to counteract the designs of the
Sufder
propitiate

Ali, after

latter.

he had seciu'ed his treasures in Madras, endeavoured to

The Mahrattas had impover-

Nizam-ul-Moolk by pleading poverty.

ished the country, both

had exacted; and

by

pillage

his finances

It

were in consequence

is

so dejn-essed, that he

to feel the

had

and .spending the remain-

not likely that Nizam-ul-Moolk would have

allowed himself to be defeated of his purpose

was not destined

withMadnw

and the immense contribution which they

serious thoughts of retiring from the world altogether,

der of his days at Mecca.

Sufder au-s

eflfects

by such

i)retences,

but Sufder Ali

of his resentment, for he perished .shortly

by the hands of an a.ssavssin. The crime was generally believed to have
been instigated by Mortiz Ali, who immediately caused himself to be proclaimed nabob but, imable to stand the storm of indignation which his atro-

after

;

cious conduct raised,

was obliged

an infant son of Sul'der

to sjive himself

by

flight.

Mahomed

Saaed,

was immediately brought forward liy the army, and,
was confirmed as his father's suece.ssor, by Nizam-ul-

Ali,

contrary to expectation,

made out his promi.sed, or rather threatened visit
to Arcot, by marching into it witli an army of 80,000 horse and 200,000 foot.
His presence wjis not \mnecessary, for the countiy was rapidly verging towards
Moolk, who, at

anarchy.

last, in

Ji,very

IT+S,

petty chief was affecting independence

fewer than eighteen individuals, bearing the
selves to do

homage

to Nizam-ul-Moolk,

title

;

and on one day no

of nabob, presented them-

who gave vent

to his surpri.se

and

by declaring that he always imagined there was only one nabob in
the Carnatic, and that he woidd whip anj" of his chobdars, or gold-stick.s-inindignation

waiting,

who announced an

individual under that

As Nizam-ul-Moolk was bent on
"Vol. I.

foundiiiix a

title.

new

dvna.stv in the Deccan, he
65

Nizam-mriv.a in u.^

Deccan.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

434
A.D. 1744.

probably judged

it

good policy

principle in appointing to
Nizam-uiMoolk'sar
ningemeuts
natic.

tlie

ovcrlook anv irrefjularities
.

to give

an exemplification of the hereditary

nabobsliip,

in the

[Book IIL

and was therefore

Mahomed

nomination of

At the

Saa^d.

.

.samc time, lie

made

infant nabob,

and administered the government by one of

little sacrifice,

as he retained poasession of the person of the
his

officei-s,

Kiiojah

After this arrangement, he marched vvith his whole army

Abdulla, as deputy.

to Trichinopoly to expel the Malirattas,

and succeeded, by presents and pro-

Having thus

mises, without being obliged to strike a blow.

his satisfaction, he

easily induced to

returned to Golconda.

panied him, remained in

command

of the

settled matters to

who had accomspring of 1744, when

Kliojah Abdulla,

army

till

the

he took formal leave, with the intention of resuming the government of Arcot.

The very next day he was found dead

in his bed, without \'isible marks, but

Assuming that he was poisoned,

certainly not without the suspicion of poison.

public opinion agi-eed in fixing the crime on the person
Anw,ir u
din,

Tlus was Auwap-u-din,

Nabob

of Aroot.

who

profited

...

who immediately

,

stepiied into the place

most by

which had

belonged to Khojah Abdulla, and lost no time in setting out for Arcot.

young nabob, however, still stood in his way.
it was not long, and that another assassination,

it.

The

almost needless to say that

It

is

to

which Anwar-u-din and the

infamous Mortiz Ali were believed to be the instigators, made the nabobship
once more vacant.

Anwar-u-din was forthwith confu-med in the

He

as deputy but as principal.

Mahomed Saaed

The

was, however, most impopular.

which was fixed on him as the supposed murderer or
could not be wiped

away by

no longer

office,

associate in the

murder of

protestations;

all his

and the

inhabitants of the nabobship could not be reconciled to one who, even
could be supposed innocent of the murder, did in fact

owe

his

stain

if

he

government to

the extinction of their favourite race of native princes.
HisvaciUat-

It has already

been seen how Anwar-u-din interfered in the

hostilities

ing conduct.

between the British and the French, and passed from the one

side to the other

according as he imagined that his interest might be affected.

Owing

to his

uncertain and vacillating conduct, Dupleix appears to have become satisfied that,

him as an ally, the true policy would be to cripple
him as an enemy, by giving him full employment at home. The most eflfectual
means for this purpose were easily discovered. Chunda Sahib was still a prisoner
with the Malirattas, but had so many powerful connections in Ai'cot, that could
he obtain his Hberty, and be set up as a claimant for the nabobship, he would
as he could never be useful to

probably carry the national feeling along with him.

In the event of his

success,

French interests might be greatly extended by express stipulations previously
entered into for that purpose

;

and even in the event of

his failure,

more oppor-

might occur of forming new and valuable connections with native
powers.
A scheme so much in accordance with the ambitious views which
tunities

Dupleix had long entertained was not to be delayed, and he therefore began at
once to give effect to

it

by employing some

of the

members

of Cliunda Sahib's

CHUNDA

Chap. IV.]
family,

medium

resident in Pondicherry, as the

still

435

SAHIB.

Chunda

of communication.

ad.

1748.

Sahib, as might be expected, gladly embraced a })ropo3al which promised at the

very outset to give him his freedom.

come

Mahrattas were equally inclined to

Tlie

So long as Sufder Ali lived they had a

to terms.

ing their prisoner, because

if

special interest in detain- somed

had altered;

for

The Mahrattas,

predecessor.

detaining

Chunda

to

Since his death the

the obligations midertaken

by

had no longer any interest

in

fultil

therefore,

by which Dupleix

Sahib, and readily struck the bargain

The sum

agreed to pay a very heavy ransom for him.
7()(),()()()

have been

said to

is

rupees (£70,000).

Chunda Sahib, attended by his son Aabid Sahib, a few friends who had clung
him in misfortune, and a small Mahratta force, left Sattarah in the beginning

of 1748, and proceeded south

an army around him.

rally

i.y

Anwar-u-din, thinking perhaps that he could set the

Mahrattjis at defiance, positively refused to
his

sa-

they allowed him to escape, the instalments to which

they were entitled under their treaty would not be paid.
case

chunda

by slow

On

steps,

reaching

tlie

;

and on the

of

24tli

March a

Kiatna.

hoping to be able gradually to

Kistna, the Rajahs of Chitteldroog

and of Bednore, then at open war, applied to him
the former

"jb proceedings on the

He

for aid.

battle took place at

liis

liberty,

it

to

Myaconda, in

slain.

He was

and saw

his for-

which he was defeated and taken prisoner, and his son was
carried in triumph to Bednore, but soon regained

gave

moment when they seemed
very day when the battle of Myaconda

tunes suddenly assume a promising appearance at the
to

On

have become desperate.

was fought, Nizam-ul-Moolk
time

when he

the

Anwar-u-din thus

died.

stood most in need of

assistance from a quarter to

him

lost his protector at the

and Chunda Sahib obtained powerful

;

which he had never looked

for

it.

It will be

necessary, however, before entering on the series of events occasioned

by the

death of the Nizam-ul-Moolk, to attend to a transaction which occurred about
the same time, and in which the English East India
to a course of policy at variance with that

Company became committed

which they had previously professed

to ])ursue.

Shortly after hostihties ceased between the British and French, a native

name of Saujohee
him on the throne of

prince of the

arrived at Fort St. David, and ai)plied for aid

to reinstate

Tanjore.

Seven years had elapsed since he

own

account, he wtxs not only the lawful

had
heir,

lost

it,

and

yet, according to his

but so powerfully supported that he had only to

a small force in order to insm-e success.

a favourable time.

ashamed of

appliciition

was

Peace luul been suddenly proclaimed,

their discomfiture at

opportunity of regaining their

and ready

His

aj)})ear at

the head of

certainly

when

made

the British,

Pondicheny, were earnestly longing

laurels.

for action; but, according to

A

large

till

at

for

an

body of troops was assembled

appearance, from the mere

want of

an enemy to fight with, they would be obliged to return to Europe without
having performed a single achievement.

It

is

not wonderful that under such

Tiie

com-

voivcdin
of xanjore.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

436
\.D. 1749.

[Book

II J.

circumstances the application of Saujohee was welcomed by many.

which influenced them, iiowever, were not such as

The motives
the governor and council of

the presidency could adopt, and their resolution to give a.ssistance was j^laced

on very

Besides endeavom-ing to secure the

different grounds.

by binding Saujohee

loss

if successful to

Company

against

bear the whole expense of the war,

they also stipulated for the cession of the fort of Devicotta, advantageously
situated at the

mouths of the Coleroon, and of the

such low grounds, and for such

selfish objects

the

district attached to

Company were made

for the first time in the very (questionable character of

out their troops for

hire,

and sending them

On

it.

to appear

mere mercenaries, lending

to spend their Ijlood in a native

quarrel with which they had no concern.

The kingdom

state of

of Tanjore,

in

which

campaign was to be

this injudicious

Taigore.

carried on, consisted of a tract extending from the Colei'oon soutliwards alon;; the
coast about seventy,

and inland about sixty

miles.

It

had

fallen into the

of the Mahrattas in the time of Sevajee, and was approjoriated

Venkajee,
all

them

of

last,

who

died after a reign of six years, leavuig tliree sons.

had

all left children,

his brother,
It passed to

But on the death of the

in succession in the order of their birth.

as the}^

by

hands

a number of rival claimants appeared, and a

war ensued, during which three irregular successions took place within seven
years.
The whole power of the government had been usm-ped by Seid, the
commander of the fort of Tanjore, who set up puppet kings at pleasure. In
this way Saujohee, after wearing the crown for several years, had been set aside
civil

to

make way

for

Pertaub Sing, his illegitimate brother.

It is ob\dous

from

account that the actual possessor of the throne of Tanjore at the time

Saujohee made his application at Fort

no

justification

embroil the

this

when

Da\dd was an usurper; but this affords
of the conduct of the governor and councU, who had no right to

Company

in a

war

for

St.

mercenary

objects,

and who had, moreover,

on several occasions not only recognized him as sovereign, but courted

his

alliance.
Expedition

under
Captain

to

it

was expected that Saujohee would recover the kingdom of Tanjore, consisted of 430 Europeans and 1000 sepoys, with fom" fieldThe

Cope.

pieces

force

by which

it

and four small mortars.

The

troops,

accompanied by Saujohee, and com-

manded by Captain Cope, set out in the end of March, 1749 the battering cannon
and provisions proceeded by sea in four ships, two of them of the line. Much time
appears to have been lost, for it was the 1 3th of April before the army encamped
on the banks of the Valaru, near its mouth at Portonovo, though the distance
Time, however, was not the
fi-om Fort St. David did not exceed twenty miles.
most serious loss. The wroncj season had been chosen. The cliange of monsoon
;

from north

to soutli

took place on the very evening of then*

arrival,

accompanied with a dreadful hm'ricane, which continued to rage
next morning, and with such fury, that

were

killed, the tents of the

many

camp were blown

till

and was

four o'clock

of the draught bullocks and horees
to rags,

and

all

the military stores

'

EXPEDITION AGAINST TANJOKM

Chap. IV.]

were much damaged.

At

437

sea the ravages of the storm were

still

The

greater.

a.d. 1749.

Pembroke, a sixty-gun ship belonging to the expedition, was wrecked, only six
of her crew escaping.

It

was

same storm that the Namur, of seventy-fom-

in the

Hag was

guns, on Avhich Admiral Boscawen's

hoi.sted,

and the

finest ship of

her size in the English navy, perished with 750 men.

by a march

After another delay, rendered necessary

to Poi-tonovo to repair

Diiat.ny pn.ceeiliiigs.

damage which had been sustained, Captain Cope reached the northern
branch of the Coleroon. Here he encamped and entrenched, because he was
tlie

afraid to advance

better informed of the kind of reception that might be

It

soon appeared that Saujohee's representations were not to be

No

persons of rank declared for him, and not a single scpiadron

anticipated.

confirmed.

till

down

joined his standard, while Perta\ib Sing's troops were seen moving up and

on the opposite bank as

if

imprudent to put them to the
reinforced from Fort St.

Captain Cope tliought

to dispute the passage.

and remained where he was,

test,

David with 100 Europeans and 500

till

scarcely

any resistance was

The

him.
galling

fire

line of

offered.

Difticulties,

it

he was

He now

sepoys.

ventured to proceed, and discovered that he might safely have done

it

before, as

however, soon multiplied upon

march was through a thick wood, which exposed them

from parties of the enemy concealed in

it,

to a

while the open plains were

covered with large bodies of horse and foot moving on their flanks and rear.

The

position

troops

was

who had

and seemed

still

more

so because the English

not before been brought face to face with an Indian army, natur-

ally oven-ated the

A general

really perilous,

advantage which

alarm was consequently

it

derived from vast superiority of numbers.

felt,

an alarm which might have grown to

a fatal panic, had not the steadiness of the artillery kept the enemy at bay while
a retreat to the river was

Here a council of war was

effected.

deliberatintr

whether to proceed or wait, when positive orders from Admiral Boscawen to
advance on Devicotta at
road,

in the

events, left

no

alternative.

Ha})pily, a line of

leading through a comparatively open country along the banks of the

river to the sea-coast,

suing

all

it

was

by some of the soldiers. Purafter a march of ten miles, halted

accidentally discovered

without much annoyance, the troops,

evening a mile east of the town.

The

ships

were anchored near the mouths of the

miles from the camp, and yet so imperfectly were the
vided, that they were not

aware of

not more than four

river,

means of

eacli other's presence.

intelligence pro-

The excuse

given was that the intervening ground was low and covered with

was now

to be done?

The battering cannon was on board

A

troops had only three days' provisions.

the walls were too high to be escaladed
night,

;

it

resolution

was too

rational for Captain

was adopted of trying

trees.

tlie ships,

What
and the

sudden assault could not succeed,

a.s

a proposjd to advance the field-pieces by

and gain an entrance by battering

because

aftei-wards

in the gates,

Cope

was

to approve of

to terrifj- the place

it

rejected, ]ierhaps
;

and the

childi.sh

into a sui-render b}-

Failure

..f

tion!"''*^

;

HISTORY OF INDIA.

•i3cS

A.D. 1749.

throwing

shells into

much more

In two nights of this foolish work

it.

expended, and nothing
difficulty

[Book

now remained but

and

loss

and harassing march, returned

retreat.

III.

the shells were

all

was accomplished with

It

than the advance; and the troops, after a long
to Fort St. David, witli nothing better to detail

than misfortunes and blunders.
New
expedition.

The presidency having imdertaken the cause of Saujohee, had still two, an<]
The one was to persevere in lii.s
only two, honourable courses before them.
name; the other was to abandon the contest altogether. Declining both these
courses,

they devised a

their object, left a stain

Saujohee, but

felt

A

it

enabled them ultimately to gain

They made no

on their reputation.

new

more prudence than

it

from

its rightful

owners, at

It

was

before.

It

deter-

whether by

all events,

expedition was accordingly fitted out, and with

of highest reputation in India,

much

was commanded by Major Lawrence, the officer
and escaped the fatigue and dangers of a land

march, by proceeding at once to the scene of action by

them

scruple of abandoning

a stronger longing than ever for Devicotta.

mined, therefore, to wrest
force or fear.

though

third, which,

sea.

Six

ships, three of

of the line, carried the Europeans, 800 in number, with the artillery and

baggage

;

1500 sepoys accompanied them in large boats used by the natives

wliile

Having aiTived and anchored in the mouth of the Coleroon. the
troops and stores proceeded in boats up the arm leading to Devicotta, and were
landed on the bank opposite to it. This position was chosen, both because the
ground on the other side was marshy, and the Tanjore army lay encamped

for coastinor.

imder the
The

The

siege of

brick

walls.

fort,

waU

about a mile in

circuit,

formed an irregular hexagon, inclosed by a

eighteen feet high, and flanked

by square

or circular towers.

The

was made on the eastern side by four twenty-four pounders, and in three
days the breach was pronounced practicable. The great difficulty now was to
attack

cross the stream,

which besides being dangerous from

its rapidity,

had wood}-

enemy were prepared to defend the passage. It was
by John Moor, a ship-carpenter, who not only contrived a raft

banks, from which the
ultimately effected

capable of carrying 400 men, but

swam

the river during a very dark night witli

a rope, which was attached without being seen to the root of a large tree on
the one side and to the raft on the other.

By this

contrivance the whole troops

were transported, and soon succeeded in clearing the

had not attempted

to repair the breach, but learning

The enemy

thickets.

from

it

the direction in

attempt would be made, endeavoured to counteract

it

by forming

an entrenchment, which stretched from the banks of the river across

this side of

which the

the

final

This entrenchment, though not finished

fort.

when

the troops crossed, pre-

sented a serious obstacle to further progress, the more especially that in front of
it

there

and

was a deep and miry

Clive,

who had

rivulet.

The

attack, however,

was

resolved

finally quitted the civil for the military ser\'ice,

the rank of lieutenant, voluiiteered

to conduct

it.

His

offer

upon

and attained

was

accepted,

EARLY LIFE OF

Chap. IV.]

and he advanced

had passed remained at the
side should join them.

who had

and

enemy

Tlie

party were cut

down only

one of them.

A

waiting

till

his handful of

saw

at once

,

;

about to meet

Europeans thus

escape of

cuve.

their advantage

;

rear

left their

and a party of

horseman had

aside.

lost

no time in advancing with

began to save themselves by

offered at the breach,

was

sword to strike him, but he escaped

carried,

and the

fort

when

all

the

Capture of

and the Tanjorines,

attempting in vain to repeat the manoeuvre which had proved so

Clive's little band,

saw

In an instant, twenty-six of the

it.

lifted his

Major Lawi'ence

this disaster,

platoon, before they

Clive, resei-ved for greater things,

four escaped.

by stepping nimbly

The

Narrow

companions from the other

their

Europeans in a compact bod3^ The trench was easily

ated.

diffi-

him, out the sepo}'s wlio

close

and were within a few yards of the

their danger, or could face

after

much

.\.d. 1740.

stood concealed on the south side between the projections of the

towers, rushed out

On

rivulet,

Clive

completely exposed.

the blow

crossed without

,,,.,,
by

The Europeans kept

remained unfinished.

liorse,

Europeans and 700

hastened on to take the entrenchment in flank at that part where

culty, Clive
it

to the rivulet witli a platoon of thirty-four

The Europeans and part of the sepoys having

sepoys.

439

CLIVE.

No

flight.

fatal to

resistance

was

entered was found completely evacu-

now accomplished,

real object of the expedition being

tlie

presidency

had no longer any taste for Tanjorine warfare, and only kept up a show of hostilities till

It

they should be able to secure their

was not necessary

liaving

new

to wait long, for the king,

been involved in

hostilities

conquest by regular treaty.

though

natui'ally indignant at

with a foreign power which he had done

On

nothing to provoke, had no inclination to continue them.

propo.sing terms

was surprised and delighted to learn that the claims of a
were not to be insisted on, and that if a pension of 4000

of accommodation he
rival to his cro"\vn

rupees was settled on Saujohee, for the sake of saving appearances, effectual
steps

would be taken

to prevent

him from giving any further trouble.

In short,

the presidency, instead of continuing to be his protectoi-s, would condescend
to act as his jailers.
all

In return for their generosity in thus sacrificing him,

they asked for themselves was Devicotta, together with as much of the

adjoining teiritory as would yield an annual revenue of 9000 pagodas (about
£350), and also the expenses of the war!
sidered,

was

utterly disgi-aceful to those

in a condition to resist, for events

This

who

last stipulation, all things con-

exacted

had just taken

it

})lace in

;

but the king was not
Arcot which made him

aware that he miglit soon be engaged in a deadly struggle with

still

more

formidable enemiea

As Clive was
campaign,

it

fii-st

brought prominently into notice during this Tanjore

will be proper in concluding

on wiiich he was now about to

enter,

it

to prepare for the

by giving some

remarkable career

details of his earlier

life.

Robert Clive, the eldest of a family of six sons and seven daughtei'S, was
born on the 29th of Sei)tember,

17-"). at

the mansion of a small estate called

Eariy

life

of

440
A.D. 1749.

niSTOIlY OF INDIA.

Styclie, situated in the parish of
shire,

His

father,

[Book HI.

Moreton-Say, near Market-Drayton, in Shrop-

Richard Olive, possessed the above

and a/lded to the

estate,

rather scanty income which he derived from

it

mother was Rebecca, daughter of Nathaniel

Gaskill, of Manchester.

city

by

practising as a lawyer; his

he spent his childhood in the family of Mr. Bayley,

In

tljis

who had married

mother's

his

According

sister.

to this gentleman he

was

in

his seventh year of a fierce

and imperious temper, and
"out of measure addicted"

From Manches-

to fighting.
ter

he was sent while yet

very young to a school at
Lostocke, in Cheshire, taught

by

Dr. Eaton,

who

is

have predicted, that
lived to be a

portunity

said to

'he

if

man, and op-

enabled him

exert his talents, few

to

names

would be greater than

his."

From Lostocke he removed,
at the age of eleven, to a
school at

Market -Dra}' ton,

where he took a lead among
his schoolfellows for mischief

Robert, Lord Olive.

and daring, and was one
morning seen seated on a

—From the picture by Dance, engraved in
Malcolm's Life of Clive.

stone spout near the top of

A

its lofty steeple.

in London.

His

he was in 1743,

few years

he attended the Merchant Tailors' School

later

was at Hemel-Hempstead, in Hertfordshire, where
when he was appointed a writer in the service of the East

last school

India Company.
Clive's ap-

pointment
as a writer.

His destination was Madras, which he reached

was

tedious,

The voyage

late in 1744.

but he appears to have turned his time to good account, for dm-ing

a nine months' detention of the ship at Brazil he made himself familiar with the

Portuguese language.

His

letters,

written to his friends at

he had entered on the duties of his
spirit,

and are

office,

so well expressed as to justify a

intervals,

ticular

when

very imperfectly educated.
I

think of

my

it

awav

his time at school,

To one he

to be for

manly

doubt of the accuracy of the

dear native England,

manner; however, knowing

shortly after

display a kindly, thoughtful,

statement which has been made, that he idled
in consequence

home

says, " I

it affects

my own

must

me

and was

confess, at

in a ver}' par-

welfare, I rest content

and

EAKLV

CLIVE'S

CHAi>. IV.J

heart more

fully,

and writes

as follows:

—

accrue to us here are greatly overbalanced
stitutions.

may

safely say,
I

am

in will

tlie sacrifices

we make

have not enjoyed one hapjiy day since

I

his

of our con-

I

left

my

native

not acquainted with any one family in the place, and have not

admit of any happiness,

Letters surely were

friend.s.

1749.

think the advantages which

assurance enough to introduce myself without being asked.

now

a.d.

have not been unacquainted with the fickleness of fortune, and

I

country.

here may, in

own age he opens

of his

" I really

by

me

ftither sent

To a cousin

be fuUy accomplished."

all respects,

my

wishing the views for which

patient,

4-H

Jll.STUliV.

first

must be when

it

I

If the state 1

am

am

my

\vTiting to

invented for the comfort of such solitary

wretches as myself."

These extracts have a tinge
° of the melancholy to which he was constitutionally subject, and which wius doubtless aggravated not merely by the loneli*'

_

<"J've'8con-

Ktitutional

naiunchoiy

by an employment to which he appears from
the very first to have had a decided avei"sion.
As yet the character of the
Company was almost entirely mercantile, and the wi-iter spent his time very
nuich as ordinary clerks do in large commercial establishments.
While thus
ness referred to in them, but also

employed

temper occasionally gave way, and the secretary imder

Olive's

was

writers wei"e placed on their first airival
said or done, that he complained of

him

the secretary's pardon, and complied

;

to the governor.

He was ordered

but shortly

when

with great kindness, wishing to bury the
he received the ungracious,

command me

governor did not
hazarding the

svn-ly,

something he had

so ofl!ended at

after,

him

to dinner,

and half vindictive answer, "No,

to dine with you."

loss of his situation, are

recorded

;

to ask

that gentleman

invited

pivst in oblivion,

whom

Other intemperate

and he

the

sir;

acts,

even said to liave

is

made an attempt on his own life. The account given is, that an acipiaintsmce
calling upon him was asked to take up a pLstol which was lying in the room,
and fire it out of the window. On seeing that it went oflf, Clive, who was
gloomy mood, started

sitting in a very

"Well,

own
it

I

am

That

reserved for something!

head."

The

last act of his life

cannot be considered

up, as if astonished,

makes

pistol I

and exclaimed,

have twice snapped at

this story not improbable,

my

and yet

perfectly authenticated.

j\s

want of congenial employment was one of the main causes of this wild "» '^*«ix'
after the
and reckless conduct, the remedy was at hand. Labourdonnais' attack on oai.tureof
If

*^

J

Madras

1

in

1

1

1

IT^G must,

Company within

it

for the time at least,

into a soldier.

Clive comjwrted himself, but

it

No

have converted every servant of the

record remains of the

manner

in

which

can scarcely be doubted that had defence been

attempted he would have been found among the foremost.

As

it

was, he onl}'

shared the fate of his fellows, and was

town

as a piisoner

of war,

when

from his
in

Dupleix,

parole,

any way he
VoL.

I.

and

by

left

pleased.

still

resident in the

gi'ossly violating the

him

On

terms of

caj)itulation, freed

him

at liberty to consult his convenience or safety

this occasion

he was one of those

who

escaped, dis56

442
A.D. 1749.

JlISTOr.V

OF INDIA.

[Book

guised as natives, and succeeded in reaching Foii
after his arrival,

David.

St.

III.

Here, shortly

he became involved in a transaction which gave him more

Two

notoriety than fame.

who had won money

officers,

at cards, were strongly

suspected of having played unfairly, but most of the losers were terrified into

payment.

Clive,

who was one

of them,

was not

to be so bullied,

The

ofiicer

whom

and holding the

up,

Clive having fired and missed

pistol to his head,

and was then told that he must

and when the

refused,

and be

The

It

cuve obtains
commission

writcr,

but

it

was only

him appear from

tained of

the presidency of Madras.

parties met,

his antagoni.st

;

to ask his

say so

at his

He

life.

head exclaimed,

and

still,

came

did

David Clive resumed

St.

He

" Fire,

was mad.

his occupation as a

He had

ensign's commission.

so,

never pay yoa"

I will

his pistol, saying that Clive

as a temporary expedient.

and in 1747 obtained an

tion,

I

;

threw away

probable that at Fort

is

him

was again placed

pistol

in astonishment,

oflEicer,

told

fairly

also retract his charge of unfair play.

you cheated

said

I

.

The

he thus accused challenged him.

without seconds.

it is said,

distinctly

money was not

declared that he would not pay, simply because the

won.

and

found his true

The hopes already

voca^-

enter-

the letter of the court of directors of this year to

After alluding to the capture

by Labourdonnais,

they say, " Be sure to encourage Ensign Clive in his martial pursuits, according
to his merit:

any improvement he

shall

make

therein shall be duly regarded

by us." His first recorded service after he obtained his commission was at the
mismanaged siege of Pondicherry, where he attracted much notice by activity
and gallantry. Strange to say, rumour at this very time charged him with
an act of cowardice. While posted at a battery the ammunition failed, and he
ran

to bring

oflf

it,

instead of sending a sergeant

maliciously insinuated that
Clive, the

it,

An

corporal.

officer

had made him

zeal but fear that

run.

of the insinuation, called upon the

and on receiving only an unsatisfactory explanation

chal-

While they were on the way to the place of meeting, some

lenged him.
irritating

was not

moment he was made aware

disavow

ofiicer to

it

or

words passed, and he was struck by

Their swords

his opponent.

were instantly drawn, but some persons present interfered and prevented them

from

fighting.

Their conduct was made the subject of a court of inquiry, and

as the falsehood

author of

it

and malignity of the insinuation were

was ordered

to ask Clive's

which they both belonged.
notice
due.

its

proved, the

pardon in front of the battalion to

Here the matter ought

had been taken of the blow, Clive

On

easily

to

have

but as no

rested,

insisted that satisfaction

was

still

being refused, he waved his cane over the head of his antagonist

and branded him as a coward.

It

would seem that he

was

really

so ; for he

submitted to the disgrace, and next day resig-ned his commission
Hispredoqiuuties.

The

details

now

given bring

down

the narrative of Clive's

life

to the date

of the sccoud Tanjore campaign, in which he has been seen volunteering to lead

the assault on Devicotta, and

making a hairbreadth escape with

his life

during

THE AFFAIRS OF TANJORE.

IV.J

CiiAi'.

him

us to regard

insight thus far obtained into his character disposes ad.

The

the act of daring.

man

as a

of a gloomy cast of mind,

and quick

jealous of his honour,

-ilS

to resent

and a

hot, irritable

an injury; bold even

1749.

temper

to foolhardiness,

yet collected in the midst of danger; never losing his presence of mind, but

always performing his part

As yet

fearlessly,

with indomitable energy and perseverance.

opportunity has been given for the display of these qualities, but

little

they will soon find a proper sphere, and

make

their possessor the hero of great

events.

In concluding the account of the Tanjore campaign,
,

.

.

,

.

.

it

•

was observed that the
1

1

•

1

kmgs

submission to the harsh and unjust terms imposed upon him was partly

owing

to the danger with

events in which this danger originated must

Moolk

At

six sons.

left

at the court of Delhi,

The

which he was threatened from another quarter.

now be

explained.

his death Ghazi-u-din, the eldest,

and

easily obtained

succession to

Nizam-ulMooikdis''^

Kizam-ul-

was high

in office

from the emperor, Alimed Shah, a

confiiTnation of his succession to the soubah of the Deccan.

Other engagements,

however, prevented him fi-om attempting immediately to take possession, and
rival claimants, takino-

On

sion.

advantage of his absence, bejjan to contest the succes-

the one side, Nazir Jung, as the second son of Nizam-ul-Moolk, pre-

tended to have become lawful heir by an alleged renunciation of his elder
brother

;

on the other

his title of

side,

Hedayet Mohy-u-din Khan, afterwards known by

Muzzuffer Jung (Victorious in War), though only the son of Nizam-ul-

Moolk 's daughter, claimed in virtue of an alleged

he had always been a special favourite,

by which his grandfather,
had left him the soubah of

the Deccan and the greatest part of his treasures.

Nazir Jung had the start

with

whom

of his competitor,

will,

and gaining possession of the

treasures, possessed the

most

means of securing the favour of the army. Muzzuffer Jung's cause
had in consequence become almost hopeless, when he was unexpectedly joined
by Chunda Sahib, who, encouraged by promises of aid from Dupleix, was pre-

effectual

paring to contest the right to the nabobship of Ai'cot with Anwar-u-din.

The

union between Muzzuffer Jiuig and Chunda Sahib was founded not only on

mutual

interests,

but also on similarity of fortunes, inasmuch as they were both

claiming on a female

The combined

title.

forces,

forming a respectable army, immediately advanced to

the frontiers of the Carnatic, and were there joined

Defeat and

by a powerful reinforcement Anwar-ufrom Pondicherry. It consisted of 400 Europeans and 2000 sepoys, under the t?i^^^
command of M. d'Auteuil, who had been allowed by the blundering of the
nabob to make their march across the low country without molestation. Seeing

by the French, Anwar-u-din's natural course would
strengthen himself by an alliance with the English but whether

the aid given to his enemies

have been to

was

;

so confident in his

own might

miserable expedition to Tanjore had

khe

to afford

I

it,

that he disdained to ask assistance, or the

made them

averse, or left

he advanced unaided to the encounter.

them too

feeble

His armv consisted of

1

44
AD.

mo

HISTORY OF INDIA.

12,000 cavalry and 8000 infantjy, with

[Book

III.

he took up a position with one

wliicli

flank resting on the hill-fort of Ainboor, about fifty miles west of Arcot, and
the other on a hill bounding one of the passes into the Caniatic. If he chose this

spot under the idea that

commanded

the only prac-

entrance

ticable

but

into

was

he

territories,

taken;

it

his

mis-

enemy,

the

though probably aware of
his blunder, did not

to profit

by

Their num-

it.

bers doubled

his,

and they

deemed

doubtless

attempt

more

it

creditable to force his posiHill-fort or Amboor.

tion than to evade or turn

— From Gold's Oriental Drawings.

it.

on their part
Death of
Anwar u
'Un.

fell

The brunt of the action

on the French troops, who gallantly carried the

position,

The contest was now hopeless, but
Anwar-u-din continued it with great bravery till he was slain. His two sons,
Maplmze Khan and Mahomed Ali, were both present. The former was taken
they had been twice repulsed.

after

prisoner; the latter tied

and took refuge in Trichinopoly, nearly 250 miles

distant from the scene of action.
Arcot,

and entered

it

The

army proceeded at once for
Muzzuffer Jung and Chunda Sahib

victorious

without opposition.

immediately assumed the dignities which they had claimed
title

of soubahdar

;

the one taking the

Much time which ought

and the other of nabob.

to

have

been employed in giving a finishing stroke to the war was consumed in childish
ceremonials;
that his

own

had not been enough, Dupleix thought it right
should be gratified, and the new soubahdar and nabob

but, as if this

vanity also

made a pompous entry

into Pondicherry,

where they spent some time vpng

with their entertainer in senseless extravagance.

French interests at the same

time were not forgotten, for Chunda Sahib made the company a grant in perpetual sovereignty of eighty-one villages in the neighbom-hood of their capital.
Chunda
Sahib's ex-

pedition to
'^°'^*'

The ccremonials
i

i

over, Dupleix, fully alive to the danger of further delay.
n

i

t

•

iu"ged the departure of his guests,

it

i

and laboured

•

to impress

•

i

i

them with the

neces-

They expressed complete
determined forthwith to carry them

sity of proceeding instantly against Trichinopoly.

acquiescence in
into effect.

No

all his

views,

and

sooner, however,

own

set out as if

were they beyond the reach of

his importunity,

They did proceed with their army for
the south, but suddenly changed the direction and turned from Trichinopoly to
make a campaign in Tanjore. Their motive was to replenish the treasury,
which was nearly exhausted. Tanjore seemed the far easier conquest of the two,
and they had no doubt that, at the very worst, the king would gladly buy them
than they followed their

course.

off

by a

MADliAS TKESIDENCY.

'IHK

Chap. IV.J

445

Being thus undecided as to the character which they

large contribution.

a.d.

i74».

ought to assume, they acted in the irresokite manner usually exhibited in such
circumstances, and allowed themselves to be entrapj^ed into a negotiation which

the king skilfully protracted

knew

he

till

Jung had

that Nazir

This was a contingency which, though most probable in

Arcot.

Indeed, their

once occupied their thoughts.

by a message from Dupleix.

had

It

the only course open to them,

by

all

first

arrived in

itself,

knowledge of

it

had never

was obtained

the effect of a surprise, and they took

retreating with precipitation towards Pondi-

cheny.

While the Frendi were

was

to determine the future fortunes of the Deccan, the English

The presidency

to act.

war

in Tanjore,

now seemed

to

had, on their

as gall

force

responsibility,

on the opposite

to

strange

how

not

the Ma.iriut

parties to a

their interference

to follow, but a beacon

The success which had attended the French arms
them and they would fain have employed all their
;

side, especially if

they had

sure that

felt

was very doubtful

This, however,

side.

knew

become

and

;

them not a precedent which they ought

and wormwood

winning

tiie

own

but the lesult had disappointed them

which they ought to avoid.

was

which

takinfj a decided part in the great struggle

and the

;

was

it

to prove

result of inter-

meddling, therefore, might be to subject themselves to the displeasure, and
ultimately call

and nabobship.

them

down

the vengeance of the successful competitors for the soubah

These, and similar considerations, might perhaps have justified

in resolving to

remain as mere spectators of the

contest,

but certainly

When

could not justify the very extraordinary course which they adopted.

Mahomed

who had

Ali,

shut himself up in Trichinopoly and assumed the

of nabob, earnestly implored their assistance, they at
afterward.s, as if in

mockery rather than in

By

merit of 120 Europeans.

they had sent him 1000.

and

yet,

tliis

They

act they

fii'st

earnest, sent

turned a deaf

him a paltry

reinforce-

liad chosen their side

and must maintain

if

it;

with monstrous and suicidal inconsistency, they at this very time

So absurd did the proceeding appear

his fleet for Europe.

some time they did not believe the departure

length,

and

ear,

committed themselves as much as

declined Admiral Boscawen's offer to remain, and allowed

for

title

when

satisfied that it

was a

reality,

to be

him

to depart with

to the French, that

more than a

feint

but at

;

could not refrain from openly mani-

festing their delight.

After the Briti.sh and French had taken their sides, both were naturally

anxious to show that they had made the right choice, and given their support to
those
little

who had

the best

purpose, for

easily be

two

title.

reasons:

shown that the

secondly, because

it

On

titles

was mere

this subject

first,

of

all

volumes were

because, were

it

wi-itten,

but to very

worth the while,

the claimants were absolutely bad

hj'pocrisy

on the part of the two companies

tend that they were fighting for legitimacy,
the justice of the war was a matter of perfect

when

could

it
;

and,

to pre-

was well understood that
indifference to them, and that their
it

nritisi. an.i

opixisite

natTve"

i"*™""-

•

HISTORY OF INDIA.

446
A.D. 1749.

[Book

III.

was that of mercenaries, intent only on the gain which they
stipulated, or might be able to extort, in return for their services.
Tlie most
favourable view that can be taken of the matter is, that the regular course of
true position

government had been completely broken

and

up,

that, in the general scramljle

which had ensued, the two companies were as well entitled as any other parties
to

make

the most of

more

it,

especially as it

was not impossible that

their

important commercial interests might be compromised.
Nazir Jung
at the head
of an im-

mense army

When
regarded

MuzzufFer Jung

it

as little

first

more than a

took the

his preparations accordingly.

at

any time be

to

view

£nirV.<li

After

in a very different light,

Appointing the celebrated

fort of

and

Gin gee.

JunZa

^o

coj

"'"^

"•''# ^

j^»

A, The Great Mountain of Gingee, on the top of which is a
small furt situated on an entire rock, and tenable with
ten men against any open force wliich may be broiight
against it
There is very fine water in a cleft of the
rock.

The

B, St. George's Mountain.

C,

D, The royal battery.

E, The pettah of Gingee.

situated

it

easily suppressed.

G E E

Gi:f^
;:oo

Nazir Jung .seems to have

youtliful outbreak, which, if it did not carry its

own punishment along with it, might
the battle of Amboor he saw reason
made

field,

Engli.sh

Mountain.

of the second wall \
of the third wall V leading to the Great Mountain.

d,

Gate
Gate
Gate
Gate

f,

Port-dn-I)iable, or Devil's gate.

a,

b,
c,

of the fourth wall

'

Poudicherry gate,
DevU's tank.
h h h h, Barracks and lodgings of the French garrison,
i, A pagoda for travelling Bralmiins.
leading to

Temamaley.

e,

g,

about thirty- five miles north-west of Pondicherry, as the general

place of rendezvous, he issued summonses, in his character of

the Deccan, to

all

its

with contingents from

various dependencies, and soon
all

quarters, to such

Among

was estimated

at 300,000.

furnished and

commanded by Mahomed

Soubahdar of

saw himself furnished

an amoimt that

his

whole ai-my

these were a contingent of 0000 horse,
Ali,

whose hopes of the nabobsliip

]

-^+7

SUCCESS OF NAZIR JUNG.

Chap. IV.

were bound up

Nazir Jung's establishment as soubalidar; and a contin-

-with

a. p. it jo.

Company and commanded by Major
Lawrence.
The presidency, having satisfied themselves that the man who
could muster an army of 300,000 men must be the real soubalidar, had got rid

gent of GOO Europeans, furnished by the

of

doubts and scruples on the subje-t of his

all their

and resolved mag-

title,

was thought jn-udent to
and Major Lawrence, together with Captain Dal ton, and a mem-

nanimously to share
feel his pulse,

who accompanied

ber of council

At the same time

his fortunes.

them, were

c<

it

mmissioned to act as a

and

trio,

Jung on the interests of the Company. He received them
paid them oriental compliments, and was liberal in his promises.

treat with Nazir

with politeness,

The French endeavoured to keep up the spirits of their allies, and along with
11
"NT
them took up an excellent position, from which all the mighty host oi J\azn•

•

1

1

•

x"

1

Jung would have been unable to dislodge them. Tl)e only part of the force
M. d'Auteuil
really formidable was the detachment under Major Lawrence.
endeavoured to bribe
major

it

into inactivity

by sending a messenger

though their troops were arrayed on opposite

that,

He

that no European blood should be spilled.
part of Nazu- Jung's

army

might come that way.

Xazir Jmig
intimidates
an.i ohtnins

sj.'.^.'^^Vmju-

^iitferjung.

to acquaint the

sides, it

therefore asked to

was

his wish

know

in

what

the English took post, in order tliat none of his shot

Major Lawrence, estimating

communication at

this

its

true worth, replied that the English colours were carried on the flag-gun of
their artillery,

and

that,

though he too was anxious to spare European blood, he

would certainly return any shot that might be sent him.

M. d'Auteuil,

in pro-

posing a kind of neutrality between the French and English, had not given the

officers

men were

His

true reason.

had thrown up

and no fewer than thirteen of

in mutiny,

their commissions in presence of the enem}^

his

This

unworthy proceeding was adopted to avenge themselves on the governor, with
whom they had had a bitter quarrel before leaving Pondicheny. The cause
need not be inquired
vinced that his

home without
his cause,

into,

men would

but the
not

fight,

and been attempting

to

moment was

to

thought that not a

who had

come
be

M. d'Auteuil, con-

ordered them to quit the

Muzzutt'or Jung,

delay.

was important.

effect

to

lost

;

field

and march

previously begun to despair of

an accommodation with his

uncle,

and on receiving a solemn assurance

that he would neither be imprisoned nor deprived of the government which he

had held during
pledge given
into

fettei-s,

his gi'andfathers lifetime, passed over to the

him was
and his

violated without scruple.

troops, attacked

Chunda Sahib behaved with more

and

spirit,

He was

dispersed,

and fared

enemy.

The

immediately thrown

were almost cut to

better.

pieces.

Accompanying the

French at the head of his cavalry, he repeatedly charged the Mahratta.^ who,
led by Morari Row, hung upon their flank and rear, and well nigh succeeded in
cutting

The
nation.

oflf

their retreat.

an-ival of the troops in AVTetched plight
D\ipleix,

threw Pondicheny into conster-

though he pretended to make light of

it,

.saw the full extent

Dupieix

hiu.

^"^c^

A.D. 1750.

448

HISTORY OF INDIA.

of the disaster, and, as asual

when

was known that there was
Several chiefs,

who had

force failed,

[Book

III.

had recourse to diplomacy.

It

considerable disaffection in Nazir Jung's camp.

pledged themselves for the honourable treatment of

Muzzuffer Jung, were indignant at his captivity, and

still

more at the evasive

answers given to themselves when they applied to be confirmed in their governments.

Dupleix, having obtained permission, after several rebuffs, to send an

embassy

to

Nazir Jung's camp for the purpose of negotiating a peace, employed

his deputies not only in ascertaining the extent of the defection,

ing

but in foment-

Their proposals were purposely so framed as to protract the negotiation,

it.

which, though

it

ostensibly failed, gained all that he sought

by

He

it.

had

secured a party who, from belonging ostensibly to Nazir Jung's camp, would

do better service than

m

vain warns

Nazir Jung.

they had been ranged under French banners.

Major Lawreucc, who had suspicions of the French deputies, endeavoured

Major Lawreiice

if

to

put Nazir Jung on his guard, and obtained a personal interview for this purpose

;

but as he could only communicate by an

intei-preter,

who

the true meaning of his words, the warning was given in vain.

feared to give

The major then

who accompanied him, to obtain a connear Madras, which Mahomed Ali, as nabob,

endeavoured, along with the deputies
firmation of a grant of territory

had made

much
camp

Company

to the

in return for the services of their troops.

prevarication compliance
to Arcot, to

was

he wovJd accom2)any the

which the soubahdar was eager to proceed, not

for

but to indulge his taste for licentioas pleasures.

tigetical purpose,

at all he saw. Major

Lawrence refused; and

returned with his troops to Fort

Leaving Nazir Jung^ to

Successes of

j^romised, provided

St.

After

after speaking his

any

stra-

Disgusted

mind

fi-eely,

David.

his deffradino^ pleasm-es at Ai-cot,

we must now

the Frencli.

follow the proceedings of the French, who, having recovered from their conster-

began

nation, not only

make new

conquests.

to regain theii* lost ground,

but were emboldened to

In order to avenge an attack which had been made by

Nazir Jung's orders on their factory at Masulipatam, situated at the mouths of
the Kistna, a detachment of 200 Europeans and 300 sepoys, with several pieces

embarked

of battering cannon, were

at Pondicherry, in

two large

sliips,

beginning of July, 1750, and landing in the night, took the city by

with almost no

loss.

It

was immediately put in a

in the

surpi'ise

position of defence, and

reserved to become the nucleus of other conquests which were ah-eady meditated
in the

more

to

same quarter.

Their next conquest,

redeem the credit of their arms.

About

David stood the town of Trivadi, with a pagoda
as its citadel.

proximity to

It

tiie

good account

in

seemed

to

whom

it

It

did

fifteen miles east of Fort St.

so strongly fortified as to serve

and as a station which might be turned

a southern campaign.
fifty

itself,

French a desirable possession, both from

to the

British territory,

and garrisoned with only

not so important in

if

was taken without

Europeans and 100 sepoys.

previously belonged, justly inferring that the capture

its

to

resistance,

Mahomed Ali,
had been made

SUCCESSES OF THE FRENCH.

Chap. IV.]

not for

itself

to regain

but for ulterior objects, took alarm and resolved to

With

it.

camp

bahdar's

view he raised an army, half of

this

and by engaging

at Ai'cot,

who was

Lawrence,

44-9

it

make an

effort

d.

ksj.

di-awn from the sou-

to defray all expenses, induced

Major

him

acting at Fort St. David as temporary governor, to send

His whole

a detachment of 400 Europeans and 1500 sepoys.

a

force

mustered

20,000 men, with whom, after encamping for a short time in the plain of Tri-

vandiparam, a

little

west of Fort

24-pounders and military

St.

David, from which he was to receive two

he marched along the south bank of the Pennar,

stores,

and found the French posted on the opposite bank, about eight miles east of

The French were entrenched; and Mahomed

Trivadi.

who commanded

urged by Captain Cope,
position which

would

force

though strongly

All,

the Briti.sh detachment, to take up a

an engagement, was too cowardly to comply, and
After some time

contented himself with skirmishes and a distant cannonade.

wasted in
Cajitain

way,

this

Mahomed

Manome.)
cowaniioe.

Ali proposed marching off to the west, but

Cope refused to accompany him

;

and on being refused payment of the

expenses which had been promised, was ordered by Major Lawrence to return

with his

Fort

troo})s to

and the French

lost

tering a force which

St.

not a

moment

amounted

in taking

there on the

in all to 1800 Europeans,

a complete victory without the
difficulty,

loss of

1

5th of August,

Mus-

advantage of their absence.

2500 sepoys, and 1000

by Chunda Sahib, they brought the enemy to

horse, levied

with

They amved

David.

action,

Mahomed

a single man.

and gained
Ali escaped

and reached Arcot with only two or three attendants.

Notwithstanding the consternation produced by this defeat, Nazir Jung

still Biu-sv cip
tiire.**

remained inactive
career,

;

and the French,

were emboldened

we have

left

at full liberty to pursue their victorious

This celebrated

to attack Gingee.

ab-eady seen the Mahrattas resisting, for

of the Mogul empire under Aurungzebe,

is

many

situated

fortress, in

years, the

among

which

whole power

the Eastern Ghauts,

about thirty-five miles north-west of Pondicheiry, and eighty-five miles south-

west of Madras.

It consisted of three steep

and craggy

hills,

with an inter-

'vening hollow, the whole suiTOunded by a lofty wall flanked with towers, and
inclosing an area nearly three miles in circuit.

the

in the hollow,

were both crowned on their summits, and along their

hills

forts

The town lay

and other works, rendering the whole place

declivities,

and

with

so strong, at least according to

deemed impregnable. How little it was really so wjis
soon made apparent. The main body of the French army was commanded by
M. d'Auteuil, but was preceded by a detachment of 250 EuropeaiLs and 200
Indian

ideas, as

to be

1

sepoys, with four field-pieces, under

M. Bussy, who wa^i rapidly

establi.shing the

reputation which he ultimately acquired of being the ablest French officer in
India.

His object probably

in sight of
walls.
ing,

He

it

wiis to take the place

I.

surprise

;

but on coming

he found 5000 of the fugitives from Trivadi encamped under the

waited, therefore,

till

drove off the enemy with

Vol.

by

the

main body came

little difficulty.

One

in sight,

and then attack-

of the gates of the outei67

foi-t

tlie

of

"'"^'*'

+50
AD.

i7iu.

IJISTOKY Of INDIA.

was next driven

Willi

o[)cn

and baggage were lodged

The

or four men.

jBooK

by a petanl, and the whole of the

troops, artillery,

in the

town

before night, witli the loss of only three

real contest

now

began: the enemy firing and throwing

rockets from their mountain heights, while the French answered
their

guns and mortars.

solely for

Europeans,

tlie

flying triumphantly on
.aioused too
1

ite

flow

If
•

i

tlic
i

who

for

an

in this

attacked the three

them

all

n

last

it is

aroused from his disgi-aceful stupor.

he had allowed

many

of the chiefs to return

own

sent back the greater part of his

It

camp

Nazir Jung

at Arcot.

In the excess of his confidence

home with

was now the turn of Dupleix

and had proposed them with

rejected,

only twenty men.

what was jastly con-

their contingents,

troops to Golconda.

limits to the extravagance of his terms.

flags

easy to conceive what dismay

he gave a striking proof of his fear by sending two

to negotiate.

at once in separate

loss of

Frencli were astonished at thus easily captvuing

i

g^^^ intelligence of the event produced in the

these,

hills

by daybreak, with the

sidered the strongest fortress of the Carnatic,

was at

was not

either side

This honour was reserved

assault.

upor.

^j^^

way by

them from

redoubt after redoubt, reached the summits, and had their

parties, carried

NazirJung

The mischief done

and preparations were made

great,

III.

Besides recalling

officers to

Pondicherry

and he

to be imperious,

He weU knew

and

set

no

that they would be

very view, for the party which he

this

had secured in the enemy's camp had organized a conspiracy, and Nazir Jungs

was hanging by a

life

thread.

Totally unconscious of

tlie

danger impending

over him, he ceased negotiating, and began his march towards Gingee late in

Though many

September, 1750.
return, his force

still

This vast and unwieldy body

spent in marching
further progress

now
of

the only prudent course, but

camp

anxious

Carnatic.

Jung,
it,

and 300

it

short of

little

were

so slowly that fifteen days

sixteen miles from Gingee

still

when

its

setting in of the rains.

Retreat was

and

after the lapse

was considered

impossible.

lay inclosed between

now

was

moved

was arrested by the sudden

sickness as usual followed,
i8

It

thii'ty miles.

two or three days became

the

failed to

consisted of 60,000 foot, 45,000 horse, 700 elephants,

Including camp followers, the whole army was

pieces of cannon.

300,000.

had

of the troops absent on leave

disgraceful,

The whole country was

two swollen

Provisions began to

rivers.

and the prospect was gloomy

as anxious to quit the Carnatic as he

flooded,

in the extreme.

and
fail,

Nazir

had been fond of remaining

in

again made overtures of peace, and expressed a willingness to submit to the

terms which lately he would not even entertain.

have two strings
conspirators.

made the
fice all

At

to his

the same time he found himself in a kind of dilemma.

whom

them they woidd do
adopted

it
;

bow, and began to negotiate without losing sight of his
If he

treaty he must abandon the conspiracy, and, in all probability, sacri-

the chiefs

mately

Dupleix was not unwilling to

their bloody deed,

it

;

if

he remained true to

and the treaty would be

useless.

Ulti-

which of the two methods of settlement would V e
at the very time he was pressing Nazir Jung's deputies to send

was a mere
for

he had tempted to join in

toss

back the treaty

he sent orders to M. de la Touclie,

ratified,

Gin^ee, to march out to attack the

camp whenever

intimate to him that they were ready.
the ratified treaty

was returned

The French

sealed.

field-pieces, arrived

miles, as

451

MUZZUFFER JUNG.

IV.

Chai'.

Tliis

at

A.D. 1750.

the conspirators should

intimation reached Gingee before

to Pondicherry,

force, consisting of

who commanded

and Nazir Jung's

fate

was

800 Europeans, 3000 sepoys, and ten

within sight of the enemy's camp.

every chief had a separate quarter.
to themselves,

Where

It

extended eighteen

the space occupied

would have been

was

no

at a loss to choose

enormous, the French,

left

their point of attack

but the conspirators had provided for this by sending a

Deatlj of
N.'Lzir

;

guide,

who conducted them

locality

immediately occupied by Nazir

He had

to the

ratified the treaty

only

the day before, and would not at

first

Jung.

had attacked

believe that the French

When

liim.

convinced of the

and asking how

was astonished
portion of his
less as

mere

moimted
ofiT

fact,

battle went, he

tlie

to learn that a large

army remained motion-

spectators.

Enraged, he

his elephant

and hastened

in the direction

The

troops he

first

Juuy

those of Kurpa,

where they

came up

stood.

to

were

and Nazir Jung think-

was not yet clear daylight,
that the nabob who was at their

ing, as it

head on his elephant did not recognize him, raised liimself

up

when two

his sjilutation,

Elephant with Howdah.— Major Luard's Views

in India.

to receive

shots, fired

from the nabob's howdah, pierced his heart,

and he instantly expired.
Muzzuffer Jung was immediately proclaimed as soubahdar, and, accompanied

Muzzuffer

Jung

by a

large portion of the

cessor, set

received

amiy which had

just belonged to his murdered })rede-

out in triumph for Pondicherry.

him

The governor and Chunda Sahib

without the gates, and a procession took place in wliich

in a tent

none of the usual accompaniments of oriental ostentation were wanting.
sooner Wcos he seated in the palace than the
to Dupleix,

made him aware

to experience

some of the

that,

demand was
remitted

;

teiTitories

it

soubahdar, opening his heart

along with the honoui"s, he had already began

perplexities of sovereignty.

whose treachery he was mainly indebted
he should pay for

new

liberall}'.

No

How

for his elevation,

to satisfy

The Patau

chiefs, to

were determined that

them was the

puzzle.

Tlieir

that three years' arreare of tribute, which they owed, should be

that in future no tribute should be exacted from tliem, either for the

which they

pos.sessed,

or the large

additions which they thought

iiri>-

clainieil miu-

luklutir by

the French.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

452
AD.

ivf.i.

[Book JIL

themselves entitled to expect; and that one-half of the contents of Nazir Jung's
treasury should be distributed

among them.

oxtensive

Duplcix undcrtook the
of mediator, and, after several days
...
discussion, concluded an arrangement, which was signed by
the

oiiiLix!

with which

Miizziiffer

.Iiuigconfers

"

spent in

office

parties,

all

them declared themselves

of

all

naturally succeeded

by

festivities,

lation of MuzzufFer

was

and Pondicherry assumed the appearance of a
His

as soubahdar.

first act, after it

say whether

future take precedence
ship of Arcot
it

and

its

;

at

;

From

the terms used

it

is

was meant that the soubahdar or Dupleix should in
but in the appointment of Chunda Sahib to the nabob-

dependencies,

it

was expressly

cherry, Carrical in Tanjore,

stated that he

was

to hold

To the French East India Company

superior.

immediate advantages were the acquisition of

the

tracts of territory near Pondi-

and Masulipatam, producing a revenue estimated

at £38,000, but probably not less than £50,000; the indirect

advantages were unlimited, inasmuch

under the

as,

titles

on their governor, they could make them anything they
taken from Nazir Jung was estimated at £2,000,000

worth at

jewels,

in the

it

under Dupleix, as his

by themselves

countries south of the

hand and no coin but what was coined

Pondicherry was to be current in the Camatic.
difficult to

instal-

was completed,

Mogul from these countries were,

All the revenues due to the

instance, to pass through his

was the

of the ceremonies

Mogul of all the

to declare Dupleix governor for the

Kistna.
first

Jung

Business was

perfectly satisfied.

The most gorgeous

gay and luxurious capital

and

Of the

least £500,000.

Patans, under the agreement

by the soubahdar,

subject,

;

the other

The

pleased.

treasure

sterling, exclusive of the

treasure, one-half belonged to the

half,

and the

jewels,

were appropriated

however, to a deduction of £50,000 paid to the com-

pany, as the expenses of the war, £50,000 to the
the battle of Gingee,

and powers confen-ed

and a present

officers

and troops which gained

to Dupleix, consisting, besides

many

precious

money fixed at the conjectural amount of £200,000.
Muzzuffer Jung left Pondicherry for Golconda on the 4th of January, 1751,
accompanied by his own troops, and also a French detachment, commanded by

jewels, of
Is slain.

M. Bussy, and consisting of 300 Europeans and 2000 sepoys.
territory of Kurpa, a quarrel ensued
3oldiers,

and three

villages

were

set

On

reaching the

between some of the inhabitants and the

on

fire.

The nabob,

professing great indig-

nation at the injury done to his subjects, retaliated by attacking that part of

Muzzuffer Jung's division where the
ideas, there

women were

could not be a grosser insult

;

placed.

According to oriental

and he was vowing

to take

summary

vengeance when M. Bussy interposed, and procured the nabob an opportunity
of explaining.
It

He

now appeared

never been

watch

did

but in such terms as only to aggi'avate the

that the whole affair was concerted.

satisfied

Tlie

Patau

insult.

chiefs

had

with the arrangement at Pondicherry, and had been on the

for a favourable

army was about

so,

opportunity to give effect to their resentment.

to pass to a defile,

and foimd

it

pre-occupied

by the

Patans,

The

who

—

MAHOMED ALL

Chap. V.]

had even planted the posts leading
forward several days before.
the French

with cannon, which had been brought

to it

which was decided by the

battle ensued,

but the victory cost Muzzuffer Jung his

ai-tillery,

the fugitives he

A

453

of

fire

In pursuing

life.

came up with the Nabob of Kuniool, who, finding escape imBoth instantly prepared

turned at bay with a handfid of troops.

possible,

a.d. n&i.

for a

personal encounter, and drove their elephants right in the face of each other.

Muzzuffer Jung had his sword uplifted to

and drove the point of

his javelin

111'

strike,

but the nabob anticipated him,

through his forehead, into his brain.

The French were returning with the acclamations of victory when
they had sustained a worse

learned, to their dismay, that

1

loss

than

1

the\' saiabuuimg
"

r»

defeat.

proclaimed
Boubahdar.

M. Bussy did the best that covdd be done in the circumstances, by urging

There was considerable room for

the immediate appointment of a successor.
choice, for, besides

an infant son of Muzzuffer Jimg, three of

brothers of Nazir Jung, were in the camp.
the infant,
brothers,
tion,

and the choice

had the next best

his uncles, the

Necessity dictated the exclusion of

on Salabut Jimg, who, as the eldest of the

fell

M. Bussy, who had a chief share in his

claim.

elec-

took care that the interests of his company were not forgotten, and

procured from him a confirmation of
predecessor,

and the promise of

all

made

the grants

to the

On

greater advantages.

still

French by his

these conditions

Dupleix recognized him as soubahdar, and placed M. Bussy 's detachment at his
sei-vice.

CHAPTER
Intrigues of

Mahomed

Ali

— Vacillating

V.

— Siege of Trichinopoly

conduct of the Madras government

Capture of Arcot.

ii|AHOMED ALI was

B
W
St

Wi
>

1

assassniated,

His prospects were
lish,

after sending

and

left

him

in

camp when Nazir Jung was

the

111/"
and fled for

1

the

11'
tlurd time

now gloomy

him

and

it

1

to

in the extreme.

assistance,

to his fate,

m-iTrichinopoly.

had withdrawn

was not

The Eugin disgust

likely that

Chunda

Sahib would allow him to escape, as before, by repeating the blunder into whicii
he

fell

when, instead of laying siege to Trichinopoly, he invaded Tanjore.

Dupleix could doubtless control his movements, and would

were conducted more

skilfully.

plexed, wjis incapable of

coming

Mahomed
to

Ali,

any manly

bent of his nature by weaving an intricate

they

while thus threatened and perdecision,

web

and followed the true

of policy.

every quarter from which any aid could be anticipated
Mysoreans, and the British presidency

tiike care that

—he entered

—

While applying to

to the Mahrattas, the

into secret communications

renjiexiii™
ofMiiliomed

au.

40
A.D. 1751.

HISTOJfY OF INDIA.

!•

with

was

tlie

French, and adjusted,

inferior

course,

appointment

III.

the terms of a treaty, by which he

said,

is

on the nabobship of Arcot, and content

to renounce his claims

some

it

[Hook

liimself with

Tlie surrender of Trichinopoly, of

in the Deccan.

formed a leading stipulation in such a treaty; and, wiien completed,

would have formed another most important link
aggrandisement, on which Dupleix was exerting

the scheme of French

in

all

his energies with every

prospect of success.
Wavering
]><)lirV

Madras presidency could not but be aware that the ultimate

Tlic

effect of

of tiie

Madras

the accomplishment of this scheme would be to drive the British and every

presi ency.

Europcau

^|.|^g^.

from the

rival

the destinies of India

;

but so

field,

little

and make the French absolute masters of

were they prepared

which

to take the course

even self-preservation should have dictated, that they voluntarily deprived
themselves of the ablest and most
allowing Major Lawrence to
their

sail for

by
When they had thus weakened

experienced

England.

their ser\4ce,

in

officer

hands they began to be alarmed at the consequences of their timorous

policy,

and wished that they had not

so

hastily

withdrawn

their aid

from

Mahomed Ali. The best reparation they could now make, was to send him a
new detachment, and endeavour if possible to dissuade him from the suicidal
step

which he was understood to be contemplating of making a surrender of

Trichinopoly.

The aid thus

offered consisted only of

sepoys; but he gladly accepted

it,

as his fortunes, in consequence of recent

were assuming a more favourable

events,

adherent of Nazir Jung, and

it

280 Europeans and 300

aspect.

was not um^easonable

He had

been a steady

to suppose that Salabut

Jung would rather confide in his brother's friend than in those who had been
the main instruments of his assassination.
At all events, as he had removed
with his army into the Deccan, it was not likely that he would soon return
Chunda Sahib would thus be left to fight his own battles,
to the Carnatic.
and there seemed no reason

any which he could bring
Kxpeiiitioti

veuy.

The

first

lenewed

to despair of being able to muster a force equal to

into the

field.

campaign in which Mahomed Ali was concerned,

his alliance

with the British, proved very disastrous.

Trichinopoly, he claimed authority over
Madui'a, lying immediately south,
dura,

and reaching

nominal than real

;

to

little

In addition

other, Tinnevelly, Ij'ing

to

one,

beyond Ma-

His power in these kingdoms was more

and with the view of establishing

out an expedition, and gave the

he had

two temtories or kingdoms; the

and the

Cape Comorin.

after

command

of

it

it

more

firmly, he fitted

to his brother,

who met

with

was paralyzed by a mutinous spirit
Their sympathies were with Chunda Sahib and had

opposition from the inhabitants, but

among

his

own

soldiers.

;

not strong measures of repression been used, they would have declared in his
favour.

In Madura a similar feeling prevailed

of fortune,

Chunda

who had

once been in the

sei'vice,

;

and being

and was

fostered

still

by a

soldier

in the interest of

Sahib, gained a complete ascendant in the garrison of the capital.

f

MADLIUA BESIEGED.

ClIAP. V.

As

by inteirupting the communication

the loss of Madiira,

from which

Mahomed

teered to recover

who commanded

ad.

1751.

He had

two coehorns

;

only one

and with these he

Failure of an

attempt on
Mjuium.

set out

50 Europeans and 600 native cavalry, to lay siege to a city

1

above two miles

the Company's detachment, volun-

His means were very inadequate.

it.

battering cannon, three tield-pieces, and
at the head of

witli Tinnevelly,

Ali expected a considerable revenue, greatly crippled his

Captain Cope,

resources,

45")

in circuit,

and

fortified

with a double wall and a

The

ditch.

deficiency of troops, so far at least as regarded niunbers, was, however, sufficiently
supplied, for on

nearly 5000
as before,

coming within sight of Madm-a he was joined by the army of

men which was

and

returning from Tinnevelly

the

artiller}'

continued

whole success depended on the breaching power of a large old

his

gvm which might at any moment burst
though little judgment had
native

seemed favoured by

in his hands.

The

enterprise,

""'^

^

been displayed in arranging
it,

;

for-

tune. Several large breaches

already existed in the outer
wall,

and

gun

the

fired

through one of them at the
inner wall for

two

successive

days made a breach which

was

deemed

with the aid of

practicable
fascines.

It

was now resolved to storm.
The reader naturally asks,

View

in

Fort of Madura.— From

Dauiell's Oriental Scenery.

Why

not continue the firing for another day, and enlarge the breach, so as to
make fiiscines unnecessary? The answer is, It was impossible: the old gun

had expended
resistance,

by a

trio

all

its

shot!

The storming party passed the

first

wall witiiout

but at the foot of the breach of the inner wall were enci)untered
of champions; "one of them," says Orme, "a very bulky man, in

complete armour,"

who

fought manfully and wounded several of the forlorn

hope before they were cut down.

Meanwhile,

bullets, aiTows,

and stones poured

thick from above.

Nothing daunted, the storming party gained the ])arapet,
but there saw a sight which might well have filled them with dismay. On
each side of the breach was a mound of earth, with trees laid horizontally \ipon
it,

yet leaving openings through which the enemy thrust their pikes, while at

the bottom of the rampai-t a strong entrenchment had been thrown up, and

from three to four tliousand men stood ready to defend it.
The assault, in
which it would have been madness to persist, was abandoned, and on the following day Captain Cope, after blowing his old gun to pieces, because he liad
not the means to carry it away, returned crest-fallen to Trichinopoly.
It

was indeed high time

to be

otf,

for the

bad

spirit of

the Tinnevelly

army

capt. o-ik'
returns to
Tricliino^'^•

HISTORY OF INDIA.

4oG
AD.

1751

could

110

[Book

III.

longer be restrained, and 2500 horse and 1000 infantry went over to

the enemy.
Insulting

proceedings

oiDupieix.

At the time when this reverse was sastained, news arrived that Chunda
m
ir
Mahomed
Sahib was preparing to march from Arcot to besiege Trichinoj)oly.
_

Ali's applications to the presidency for aid

•

•

i

i

•

i

became more urgent than

ever,

and

he endeavoured to give weight to them by promising not merely to pay
expenses, but to give

a grant to the

Tempting

adjoining Macbas.

would have succeeded had

new

his rivals,

These

acquisitions,

as the offer was, there

is

territory

reason to doubt

if it

not found a powerful advocate in a very unex-

though probably as much

had caused small white

flags

of a considerable

Dupleix, ostensibly for the purpose of marking the boundaries

pected quarter.
of his

it

Company

all

were seen from Fort

tantahzing

to be planted in almost every

flags

St.

for the purpose of

field.

David, which, ever since the capture of

Madras, had continued to be the seat of the presidency, and naturally excited

What was

mingled feelings of fear and indignation.

Company's trade with the

by a

rival

to

become of the English

interior if they allowed themselves to

company, whose boundary

would

line

be

hemmed

in

ere long be converted into an

impassable barrier by the imposition of heavy, perhaps prohibitive duties?
designs of Dupleix had hitherto

—the more impressive because of

mask and given them warning
of what they must be prepared to

the

—

The
been only surmised, but he had now thrown off"

longer.

safety

Their

was

own

It

would be madness

ruin was involved in that of

in supporting

him

considerations the presidency
still,

expect.

Mahomed

to the utmost of their power.

awoke from

their lethargy

Ali,

its

insolence

to hesitate

and

any

their only

Influenced

by

and resolved on

such

action,

however, not as principals but mider their old disguise of mercenaries

or auxiliaries.

In the beginning of April, 1751, a detachment was provided of 500 Em'o-

Kxi)edition

Voiconda.

pcans, fifty of them cavalry, 100 Africans,

and placed under the command of
St.

David the

arrival of

Mahomed

and 1000

sepoys, with eight field-pieces,

Gmgen, who was

C aptain

Ali's troops

to wait near Fort

from Trichinopoly.

After a delay

by only 600 horse and 1000 foot, and proceeded
Verdachelum, a large and strong pagoda, garrisoned by 300 of

of six weeks he was joined

south-west to

Chunda

Sahib's troops,

Shortly after the

who

surrendered after being tlireatened with an assault.

army was more than doubled by

the arrival of

1

00 Em'opeans,

by Captain Cope, and 2000 horse and 2000 foot, commanded by Mahomed
Ali's brother, and set out to encounter Chunda Sahib in pereon.
He was
encamped near Volconda, situated thirty-eight miles N.N.W. of Trichinopoly,
on the highway from that city to Ai'cot. Its principal defence was a rock 200
feet high, and about a mile in circuit at its base, which was washed by
the Valaru.
It was inclosed by three walls one at the bottom, mostly cut out
of the solid rock another near, and the third actually on the summit.
The
governor was summoned by both parties, but answered that he wished to see

sent

;

;

EXPEDITION AGAINST VOLUONDA.

Chap. V.]

the issue of a battle before he would yield

becoming impatient, determined

army

only by a

Chunda

a strong detachment to attempt the

mud

was

wall,

easily gained

seen, could not be assaulted

till

to either.

Captain Gingen,

and

after posting his

to force a surrender;

so as to intercept the approach of

interfere, sent

up

it

457

Sahib, should he attempt to

The town,

ca})ture.

inclosed

but the rock, as should have been

;

a.d. nai.

fore-

a breach was made, and the detachment returned

to the camp.

Captain Gingen, while thus assuming the offensive, seems to have been
ignorant or regardless of the

Chunda Sahib had an

that he

fact,

arm}'^ of

12,000

1

1

was opposed by

numbers.

far superior

l)esides

These at break of day next morning

suppoited by a strong battalion of French.

were seen approaching along the bed of the

1

and 5000 sepoys, and was

hoi"se

nisgnu^fiu
defeat

•

(»

river,

which was nearly

dry.

Instead

of attempting to intercept their progress, Captain Gingen and his officers were
deliberating in a council of

resolved to fight

war whether they should
The

late.

of war, had no hope of victory

when

Strange to say,

it

It

was

but meanwhile the French were near the foot of the rock, and

;

the resolution came too

toras of fear

fight or retreat.

;

troops,

aware of the hesitations of the council

and, seeing some of their officers betraying symj)-

the guns of the fort oi)ened on them, were seized with panic.

was

at

fii-st

begun and

own

for

some time confined to the Company's

—

now a lieutenant, among the
number endeavour to rally them, but Abdul Wahab Khan, Mahomed Ali's
brother, riding up to them, and pointing to his own men, who still kept their
battahon, for not only did their

officers

—

Clive,

ground, upbraided them for their cowardice.
wi\s lost.

Even

after the

It

was

all in vain,

danger was over, the fear was so unequivoc;dl}' declared,

that Captain Gingen, to free

them even from the

sight of the enemy,

his retreat at midnight, on the road leading to Trichinopoly,
to halt

till

he had reached the pass or straits of Ootatoor.

When

slowly by the same route.
place,
still

and the day

and even a regular

battle

commenced

and did not venture

Chunda

Saliib followed

he ajipeared in sight some skirmishing took

was talked

of,

but the

such that Captain Gingen was afraid to risk

it,

and

sj)irit

stole

of the troops

was

away with them

So eager were they to place themselves beyond the
that they marched eighteen hours without refreshment in the

in the silence of the night.

reach of pursuit,
hottest season.

Chunda Sahib

northern bank of the Coleroon, within sight

encampment was now

Mahomed
About

the

them encjvmped on the
of Trichinopoly.
The site of the

following leisurely found

only spot of ground beyond the Coleroon which

Ali could call his own.
five miles

north-west of Trichinopoly, the Cauvery, after a somewhat

circuitous south-easterly coui-se of

380 miles from

its

source in the Western

Ghauts, divides into two principal anns, the northern of which
Coleroon, while the southern retains
as far as the fort of Coilady, the

its

own name.

two anns nin nearly

For the

fii-st

I.

«itii it.

'"*^'*
is

called the

fifteen miles,

parallel to each other,

and

again approach so near that they are only prevented from uniting by means of
Vol.

Tiie ixian.i of

58

HISTORY OF INDIA.

t.">8

A.D. ivii.

an

artificial

arm.s form.s

mound.

what

The long and naiTOW

tlie

most famous

{)agodas, or

fll.

of land thas incloned between the

.slip

Near

called the island of Seringham.

i.s

where the fork begins, and at a short
of

[Book

its

western extremity,

from the Coleroon

di.stance

Hindoo temples,

in Hindoostan.

stood one

side,

It consisted of

seven squares, one within the other, each surrounded by a wall twenty- five feet
high and fom- thick, and entered by four lofty tun-eted gates, facing the cardinal

The wall of the outermo.st

points.

pagoda owed

its

s([uare

half a mile east of this pagoda,

also of large dimensions,
Kncampchinopoiy.

;

The

and the myriads of pilgrims flocking

one time to maintain -iO^OOO Brahmins in voluptuous

sufficed at

About

circuit.

celebrity to the supposed possession of the very image of

Vishnu which Brahma used to worship
it

about four miles in

is

and near the Cauvery

but with one

side,

to

idleness.

stood another,

inclo-siu-e only.

The encampment on the noiih bank of the Coleroon was inconvenient for
obtaining supplies, and for this reason, and also no doubt because it was deemed
safer to have a river between them and the enemy, Mahomed All's army crossed
The whole, including the English battalion,
over into the island of Seringham.
took up their quarters within the three

first inclosui-e.s,

and abstained at the

earnest solicitations of the })riests from approaching nearer to the sanctuary

The post was admirably adapted for defence, but a cowardly spirit
prevailed among the troops, and they would not believe themselves safe

of the idol.
still
till

they had taken the

last retrograde step

under the walls of Trichinopoly.
evacuated.

It

was

Chunda Sahib

not, however,

great prize for which he

now

possible,

and

place themselves

gladly occupied the island thus

with the intention of remaining in

was contending was now

full in his

it.

The

view, and leaving

only a garrison in Seringham, he crossed the Cauvery, and encamped on the east

The main body of Mahomed Ali's troops were stationed on
and the English battalion under Captain Gingen on the west.

of Trichinopoly.

the south side,

Captain Cope, with 100 Europeans, remained within the walls.
The

fortifica-

city.

bank of the
and west sides

TrichinoDolv, situated within half a mile of the south or right

tionsofthat

Cauvery,

.

,

.

is

in the form of a parallelogram, of

.

which the east

have each a length of 2000, and the north and south a breadth of 1200 yards.
It is inclosed
less copiously

by a

ditch,

feet wide,

and

1

2 deep, supplied with water

more or

according to the season, but never dry, and two walls flanked at

regular intervals

by round

5 thick, has neither
feet apart

30

towers.

The outer

wall, only 18 feet high,

rampart nor parapet; the inner waU, 30

from the other,

and a parapet both of

is

much

stone, the

and about

feet high,

and 25

stronger in every respect, having a rampart

former rising from a broad base by large

decreasing steps, so as to be only 10 feet broad at the top, and the latter about

7 feet high, loopholed for musketry.
the city

is

a lofty precipitous rock of

Within the walls in the north part of
sienite,

commanding an extensive view

of the surrounding country.

Such was the only place of strength now belonging

to

Mahomed

Ali;

and on

V

CUAP.

nUUHINOPOLY.

]

459

the issue of the siege about to be commenced, de[)euded not only his

which, from

tlie

t'ate,

worthlessness of his character, no great interest could be

in

.V

D. 1751.

felt,

but the decision of the momentous question, whether a French or a British

was

enipiie

to

be

established in India.

The presidency
Fort

St.

David,

now

committed

fully

at

to

the war, were gi'ievously

disappointed

at the series of dis-

graces and defeats

which had been sustained,

and

coulil

not look forward to
the siege of Tricliinopoly, witliout the

gloomiest

idea,

AND Temple of Trichinoihu.y, with
From

and decision of which,

showy

Temple

it

must be

confessed, they

had

previously- given few

Mr. Saunders, the governor, though devoid of the versatility and

Piei>;irati<)iia

and having now

fence of Tri-

talents of Dupleix, surpassed

no doubt as

to the course

him

in

more

solid qualities;

which the interests of the Company dictated, pursued

His means, however, were very

with judgment and perseverance.

and

Urahnuiiri ciinying water iiito the

pftinting in Ltbrary of East India House.

however, of abandoning the contest in despair, and began to display a firm-

examples.

it

Roc-K

They had no

ings.

ness

forebod-

his first reinforcement for Trichinopoly consisted of only eighty

and 300 sepoys, cumbered
such a body through a
especially, as

convoy of

'with a large

ho.stile

stores.

line of route,

Em'opeans

The conducting

country was a matter of no small

Verdachelum which lay in the

limited,

difficulty,

though

it

still

of

more
held

Cimnda Sahib, was at this very time besieged by a j)olyg(ir in his
interest.
The removal of this obstruction was therefore the first object to be
accomplished.
The charge of the reinforcement was given to Mr. Pigot, a mem-

out against

ber of council.
a

volunteer,

])osition sw

the army,

a

by

He

wsvs accompanied,

civil

servant of the Company, though

by holding

It

was

had resumed

his

closely connected with

in this capacity that he wjus present at Volconda

liaving been jiresent at the council of
fiight,

still

but rather as

the appointment of commissary for supi>lying the Eurojwan

the ignominious fiight took place

cause of that

ofticially,

Clive, who, after the cjipture of Devicotta,

troops with provisions.

when

would seem not

it

;

and hence, though he

war which

is

preceded, and

he did not share in the disgi-ace of

it,

mentioned as

was one main

but returned to Fort

St David,
Pigot and Clive, after reaching Verdachelum, niid relieving

it

by surprising

fill-

the de-

clunoiioly.

JIISTOKY OF INDIA.

l'('0

AD.

1751.

[Book

and defeating the troops of the polygar, sent the reinforcement forward
destination through the

kingdom

and were on

of Tanjore,

III.

to its

their return to P\jrt

David with twenty-four attendants, twelve of them sepoys, when they were
surrounded by the polygar's troops, and after losing the greater number ol"
St.

NaiTow

by the

their attendants, only escaped

(•live.

another reinforcement was despatched to Trichinopoly.

most unsatisfactory

in a

The

state.

country; and

it

Affairs there

after,

were

still

were quarrelling among

British officers

how they might

themselves instead of thinking

Not long

fleetness of their horses.

best sustain the honour of their

seemed absolutely necessary to make an example of several of

them by dismissing them at a time when their places could hardly be supplied.
To meet the difficulty in part, Clive returned to his true vocation, and set out

command

His expedi-

for Trichinopoly in

ihinopoiy.

territory of Tanjore, the

It proceeded through the

of the reinforcement.

king of which

still

professed neutrality, and received

from Devicotta a small accession under Captain Clarke, who, as senior

officer,

The whole united mustered only 100 Europeans and
fifty sepoys, with a field-piece.
The French, who were in possession of the fort
of Coilady, detached a body of thirty Europeans and 500 sepoys to intercept
assumed the command.

them.

A

skirmish ensued greatly to the disadvantage of the French, and the

The superiority of the enemy was
Chunda Sahib's troops were ten times more numerous than

detachment reached Trichinopoly in
very decided.

still

those of

Mahomed

Ali;

and while the French battalion mustered 900, the

English did not exceed 600 men.
decidedly the advantage.
or

ity,

was subject

Mahomed Ah's

tiires

Arcot

The whole country

and

either

also,

the

enemy had

acknowledged their author-

The only thing

revenues were dried up.

was the strength of the

after representing the fatal

to balance these advan-

place.

David in the beginning of August, 1751,
issue to which afiairs at Trichinopoly were

Captain Clive returned to Fort

attacks

and cap

In pecuniary resources,

to their exactions, while almost all the usual soiu'ces of

tages of the besiegers
He

safety.

St.

evidently tending, suggested as a last resource to attempt a diversion

attack on Arcot.

The bold proposal was

volunteered to undertake the execution of

and Madras

100

so as to leave only

men

and he was requested,

accepted,
it.

After stripping Fort

in the one

by an

and

fifty in

St.

or

David

the other, the

whole force that could be mustered for the expedition, amounted to 200 Europeans and 300 sepoys, with three

field-pieces.

were

six

had never seen

by

Clive's example, quitted the desk for the sword.

service,

the 2C)th of August,

arrived on the 29th,

men.

and of these

Of the

six four

officers,

eight in number,

civilians,

who, animated

Starting fi-om Madras on

they proceeded south-east to Conjeveram, where they

and learned that the

From Conjeveram they

from the northern bank of the

fort of

Arcot was garrisoned by 1100

continued their march nearly due west, not far

and on the 31st were within ten miles of
Arcot.
Their approach was made known by spies, who had seen the detachment
marching witli unconcern in a violent storm of thunder and rain. The garrison
Paliar,

'

THE SIEGE OF ARCOT.

Chap. V.]

on hearing this report

461

and under the combined influence of super-

lost all heart,

a.d. 1751.

and cowardice, abandoned the place a few hours before the detachment
The city being without walls or defences was immediately entered, and
arrived.
stition

Clive and his 500 men, marching in triumph under the gaze of 100,000 spectators,

took possession of the

was inhabited by 3000 or 4000

It

fort.

persons,

who

were permitted to remain, and contained goods which had been deposited in

The goods were judiciously and generously

value of £50,000.

for security to the

restored to the owners without

ransom

the artillery, consisting of eight pieces

;

of cannon, from four to eight pounders, and a large (quantity of lead

powder, were

all

of

and then,

made

his first business to provide the necessary

it

m order to strike new terror

them with the greatest part of

his

into the garrison, set out in quest

men and

four

found about six miles to the south-west, near the

drawn up

as if they

field-piece,

meant

to

managed by two

make a

shot of Timery.

They were posted

and having about

fifty

with a bank
the

enemy

this the

much

Clive again marched

in a grove inclosed

by a

ditch

from two

field-pieces,

where they were so well

let fly

and

sheltered, that they inflicted

fled,

and he had no alternative but

some

This he immediately

fort.

till

summoned

had no battering cannon,

Tliey were allowed to

two hours

I0.SS

Two
Matlras,

lull

man

of

refu.sed,

around

troop.s,

them was

new courage and began

fort

;

and

to talk of

themselves into security, and on the 14th

after midnight,

were surprised

in their sleep.

Prepamtion«
fence of

"*"**

Clive,

beat up their camp from end to end without

of a man, while they fled on

day broke, not a

to sur-

he reached Arcot.

with the gi-eater part of his
the

with-

They made

to retreat, the enemy's cavalry hovering

the enemy, increased to 3000 men, acquired

of September,

loss

Both gained the banks, and at

The next ten days were employed on necessary works within the
besieging.

hurried

gi'ove,

while Clive gained possession of the pettah or

render, but the garrison, discovering that he

distance

On

killed three Europeans.

a double volley among the crowds within.

under the walls of the

siife

and a bank,

Clive removed his troops behind some buildings, and sent

no attempt to retm-n, and

him at a

within gun-

As the detachment advanced,

detachment advanced rapidly, and the enemy, leaving the

same instant

village

for the hills before

off"

now increased to 2000,

out two platoons to attack two sides of the tank.
the

made

Two days after

higher than that of the grove.

out sustaining any.

^^

yards in front a large tank almost choked up and dry,

fired smai-tly

into the tank,

garriaon of

Timery, but though

fort of

or three Europeans, and

and, as before, found the enemy,

fort,

They were

field- pieces.

ciive pur-

stand, they only continued firing a single

they could be brought within musket-shot.
out of the

and gun-

that remained to the captors.

Clive anticipating a siege
stores,

it

all

sides

with

slu'ieks

and confusion.

When

to be seen.

eighteen- poimders with some military stores had been asked from

and were on the way escorted only by a few

intercepting them, a large detachment of the

sepoys.

enemy occupied

In hope of

the pagoda of

The

siege.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

4()i

A.D. 1761.

Conjeverain

;

Here

fort.

their

The convoy being thus endangered,

augmented.

III.

and, on being expelled by thirty liluropean.s and fifty sepoys from

withdrew to a neigldjouring

Arcot,

(li<JOK

numbers were continualh

Clive, reserving only thirty

Europeans and
sent out

all

fifty sepoys,

the rest of hiw

troops to insure

On

enemy with

the

this,

safety.

its

considerable dexterity

denly changed their

and hastening

.sud-

tactics,

to Arcot,

sui--

rounded the fort with their

whole force as soon as

A

(lark.

was

it

was

of musketry

fire

immediately

opened

upon the ramparts from the
adjacent buildings, while a
Pagoda at Conjeveram.— From Viscount Valentias Travels

large body, horse

and

foot

promiscuously, rushed towards the principal gates with loud outcries and the

A few hand-gi-enades

noise of martial music.

the horses, that they galloped
assault

made

in the

against the ramparts

off,

thrown into the ma&s so frightened

trampling the foot beneath them

within

It

is

it

was

still

kept up and continued

daybreak,

till

fort,

fire

when

the

the inhabitants

Some may

expressed no sympathy with their countrymen outside.

see in this nothing but Olive's

in allowing

The

detachment and con-

rathor singular, that during the attack on the

good fortune, but others with more justice

due reward of the kindness and generosity which he

see in it the

a second

same manner was repulsed by the same means.

assailants fled precipitately on seeing the approach of the

voy.

;

them both

to

will

h.ad displayed

occupy their dwellings and retain possession of then-

goods.
I'rooee

liii'js

during the

The capture of Arcot produced the effect which had been anticipated and
the pressure on Trichinopoly was considerably relieved by the withdi'awal of
4000 of Ohunda Sahib's troops. These, joined on their route by his son Rajah
;

Sahib, with

1

50 Eiu-opeans from Pondicheny, and the other troops pre\4ousl3-

collected in the neighbourhood, entered Arcot

unwilling to be cooped up within the

and try whether he could
altogether.

not,

fort,

on the 23d of September.

determined to take the

by a vigorous

effort, rid

running north

for

initiative,

himself of the

Facing the north-west gate of the fort was a

street,

Clive,

enemy

which, after

70 yards, turned east to the nabob's palace, where Rajah

Sahib had fixed his head- quarters.

and was continued along the east
by streets on the west, north, and
the south, fonned a squai-e

From

the palace another street ran south,

side of the fort.

The space thus bounded

and by the north wall of the fort on
With the
occupied by buildings and inclosures.
east,

;

THE SIEGE OF ARCOT.

Chap. V.J

intention of placing the

enemy between two

163

Clive sallied out from the

fires,

a.d. itsl

north-west gate with the greatest part of his troops and the fom- field-pieces,

and advanced along the

and east

street leading north

while Ensign Glass was

;

ordered to proceed from the east gate up the street leading north to the palace,

which

W518

thus the

common

On

would meet.

in their way,

removed the obstacles

two detachments,

point at which the

drawn up

the French troops, with four field-pieces,

turning

A

nonade commenced at the distance of only 30 yards.
tlie

street of the French,

while,

and obliged them to take lefuge

Rajah Sahib's troops occupying the

by them, kept up a
to capture

contiiuial

fire,

It

was

having an open front supported by

egi-ess,

way

Mean-

in the palace.

killed or

situated on one side of

and sheltered

men

sent

wounded.

To

good cover; and at the same time, giving

the guns were gradually

fij-e

free

street

and the whole

;

by

The platoon under Ensign Glass returned about the same
The whole attack was a decided

after encountering similar difficulties.

and gave Clive a lesson of caution which seems to have been, at
stage of his military experience,
lives of fifteen

Europeans,

by no means unnecessary.

who were

killed

who were

ssived his

commanding

time,

failure,

this early

him the

It cost

disabled.

Among

the

among the former
when he saw a sepoy

artillery officer;

was Lieutenant Trenwith, who, by pulling Clive aside
aiming at him,

it

on the spot or mortally wounded

and the services of sixteen more of his party,

was Lieutenant Revel, the only

and

In this

party wiiich had sallied from the north-west gate were able to return

latter

were

ingress

without much danger.

withdrawn into the north

and

street,

tlie

wliile its otlier three sides

pillars,

enabled the artillerymen to load and

into the fort.

Bieg«.

Clive took advantage of a large choultry or building

for the reception of travellers.

inclosed, afforded

all

Procoediiigs

few minutes cleared

liouses in the street,

and bring away the French guns were

escape this murderous

and a can-

with so good an aim that fourteen

fire,

saw

Clive

east,

at the palace,

they

if

officer's

life

and

lost his

own, as the

sepoy immediately changed the aim, and shot him through the body.
Tlie

day

Rajah Sahib was reinforced

after this affjiir

b}'

2000 men from

state of fortificiitiniis

Vellore,

commanded by Mortiz

occupying

all

the avenues leading to the

regarded, both

by

about a mile in

circuit,

places ruinous

;

was too narrow

besiegers

and

Its defence

fort.

and besieged, as

by

must have been

but impossible.

all

siege

several of the towers flanking them,

Its walls,

were in

many

by a low and slightly built parapet,
of artillery; and the ditch, choked up in

the rampart, surmounted

admit the

to

some places and dry

in othei-s,

shallow as to be fordable.
already mentioned

— were

firing

was

generally, even

The only two
large piles of

the walls, and the entrance to each of

broad ctiuseway.

and commenced the

Ali in person,

'i'his

large, decayed,

gates

— the

it

contained water, so

north-west and

masonry projecting 40

them

and

when

Avas not

n!i(l

beyond

by a drawbridge, but a

ill-constructed fort

garrison of otdy 120 Europeans and 200 sepoys:

feet

east,

had an

efficient

was besieged by an army

ofAwot.

464
A.D. 1761.

JIISIVJIIY

of above 10,000, composed as follows

OF INDIA.

[Book

— 150 Europeans, 2000 sepoys, 5000 peons
As

or undisciplined native infantry, and 3000 cavalry.
Small inun

for forty days, it

ber of de-

to send

away

all

raneous aqueduct, by which,

if it

As many

water.

would give great

knew

of a secret subter-

might have been drained of

of the houses of the town were within musket- shot, and

facilities

the besiegers, an attempt

to

It failed, because

several of them.

was provisioned only

had not been choked up in consequence of

his information, the only reservorr within the fort
its

it

the inhabitants except a few

one of them, a mason, who most fortunately

artificers,

fenders.

was necessary

III.

was made

to buiTi

they were almost entirely of stone

;

and

it

was resolved to get rid of the two which threatened to be mo.st annoying by
employing more destructive means. Accordingly, at midnight. Ensign Glass

down from the wall
They got into the houses without being dLscovered, but made the
unskilfully that the efiect intended was not produced.
Nor was

and ten men, with

by a

rope.

explosion so

several barrels of gunpowder,

this the only misfortune.

by
Activity

and the

unfitted

fall

For a fortnight the

and

stratagem
of the be-

it,

were

let

The rope broke while Ensign Glass was ascending
him for further duty.

besiegers, while waiting for the battering cannon,

kept

up a bombardment with four mortars, which did little damage. The fire of
musketry from the houses was more effective indeed, the aim was so sure that
;

man could scarcely show liis head above the parapet without being hit. In
this way three sergeants, accompanying Clive while he visited the works, were
a

picked

off,

and several other persons were

killed or

wounded.

Before the siege

began in earnest, Mortiz Ali was tempted to try a stratagem.
be

with Rajah Sahib, he withdrew with his troops to a different

dissatisfied

quarter of the

with

city,

and sent a

and assure him that

feelings,

Clive

all his force.

Ali with his

own

of the scheme

;

.\

On

practica-

secret

messenger to acquaint CHve with his

he would make a

if

was not

sally,

to be thus caught,

he would support liim

and cleverly

foiled

Mortiz

Instead of giving a refusal, he pretended to approve

weapons.

and by maintaining the correspondence

a large portion of the
last that

Pretending to

enemy

to remain inactive.

for several days, induced

Mortiz

Ali,

percei\'ing at

he was outwitted, returned to his former place in the camp.

the 24!th of October, two eighteen -pounders and seven smaller pieces

ble breach.

airived from Pondicherry.
west,

and served

it so

With

weU

these the French opened a battery to the north-

that the very

first

shot dismounted, and the second

entirely disabled one of the eighteen-pounders in the fort.

pounder there was
the

fire

also soon dismounted,

and removed

The other

eighteen-

to a spot not exposed to

from the battery, which, being thus scarcely answered at aU, succeeded

in six days in beating

down

all

the wall between two towers, and

making a

The ganison, meantime, spared no exertion. Immediately
under the rampart opposite t(i the breach two trenches were dug, leaving a
considerable space between them, which was covered with crows'- feet; and still
farther back, a house was pidled down to the height of a breastwork, from
practicable breach.

CuAK

THE SIEGE OF ARCOT.

V.J

465

which palisades were carried along the ends of the trenches up to the parapet, ad.

One

was placed on one of

field-piece

on the

flat

and two

the towers flanking the breach,

roof of a house opposite to

it.

prepared for them, did not yet venture to

ivsi.

The enemy, aware of the reception
storm, and proceeded to erect another

battery on the south-west.

The

garrison,

any important

of

anticipation

meantime, more in the

in the

ramparts, and crowned

result,

spirit

which commanded the palace, as

it

highest tower

thickened the

On

with a mo\md of earth.

it

of bravado than the Aneuomioiw
of

the

the top of this mound,

towered above the intervening houses, they

up an enormous gun, said to have been sent from Delhi by Aurungzebe,
and transported by 1000 yoke of oxen. The iron balls belonging to it weighed
seventy-two pounds. The very first of these, fired from it with a charge of
hoisted

went

thirty pounds of gunpowder,

and

terror of Riijah Sahib

The

four discharges burst.
filled

up the

fort,

intended

it

it

was

for

only once a-day, and after

fired

wishing to retaliate in similar

it

;

and

so high as to overlook every

The garrison
mounted, and then

two small cannon and musketry.

till

the cannon were actually

with their reserved eighteen-pounder, and with such good
it

style,

with earth well rammed down

mound, and raised

scjiuire

that in less than an liour

The

It

besiegers,

allowed the works to proceed

opened upon

stafl".

interior of a large house

having thus formed a
part of the

his

right through the palace, to the no small

tumbled down with the

effect,

men stationed upon it.
known at the presidency,

fifty

perilous position of the garrison being well

Att^mjitto
relieve

it

was resolved

and 200 sepoys
of the journey

and were only
fifteen miles

to reinforce it; and, with this view, a party of
left

Madras under Lieutenant Innes.

100 Europeans

After a considerable part

was accomplished, they were sm-rounded by 2000
able,

of the enemy,

after serious loss, to retreat to the fort of Ponamalee,

west of Madras.

Relief from the presidency having thus

apparently hopeless, Clive opened a communication with Morari

Mahratta chief of Gootee,

who had been encamped

for

men among

the moimtains, thirty miles west of Arcot.

hired ally of

Mahomed

state of his affairs.

charm along with

moment

in

it

coming

Ali,

name, however, was

now

to the assistance of such brave

whose behaviour had now

fight.

This intelligence alarmed Rajah Sahib,

the arrival of the Mahrattas

man

if

his offers

to the .sword.

He had come

as the

beginning to carry a

first

men

lose

not a

as the defenders of

convinced him that the Engli.sh could

by sending a

who endeavoured

to anticipate

flag of truce to the fort, offering

honoimible terms to the garrison, and a large sum of
threatening,

some time with GOOO

and Morari Row's answer was, that he would

Arcot, "
"

Row, the

but had remained inactive on seeing the desperate

Olive's
;

become

money

to Clive,

and

were not accepted, to storm immediately and put every

Olive oidy disdained his bribe, and laughed at his threats.

The reinforcement from Madras, .slightly increa.sed, and commanded by
Oaptain Kilpatrick, was again attempting to advance; and a detachment of
Vol.

I

I.

59

Arwt.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

466
AD.

1751.

Mahrattas had actually arrived

in the neiglihourhood,

had made a
The

assault,

The day

storm.

of

and encouraged by the

still

Mahometan

south-west

effect of his

During
is

understood to pass at once to paradise without enduring

Taking advantage of the

excites,

and heightening

Rajah Sahib, as soon as morning broke, gave the signal

was threatened

The

large

and the division

to sleep,

sat

down with

without a moment's inteiTuption,

and on being aroused found the
was

up

to the breach, filled

fire.

it.

A

it,

and had

It

on the roof of the house opposite the breach did
were forced to

ford-

great composure underneath the wall

The two cannons planted

those in front as fast as they could discharge them.

assault,

Clive, after

gates.

was most deadly, and continued
those behind supplpng loaded muskets to

even passed, before the defenders gave

•

Every part

for assault.

ditch in front of the north-west breach

to act as a reserve, while the rest hastened

renewed the

inebriating drugs,

allotted to this part of the attack rushed across

number immediately

assailants

by

and two against the

had gone

his arrangements,

garrison at their posts.

it

but the principal attack was made in four divisions,

;

directed against the breaches,

able,

greatest

every son of Moslem falling in battle

its celebration,

enthusiasm which such a period

making

which

commemorative of the murder of Hoasein, the chief

the delays and pains of intermediate purgatories.

two

batter}',

was the 14th of November, one of the

selected

against unbelievers,

of the fort

and captured a quantity

larger breach tlian that on the north-west, determined to

festivals,

of the Fatimites.

III

Rajah Sahib, now awake to the danger

of ammunition going to the besiegers.
of further delay,

[Book

fearful execution,

and the

Fresh bodies, however, again and again

retire.

but were driven off as before.

Meantime, those seated

under the wall were not forgotten, and a few bombs with short fusees thrown

from above obliged them to decamp.

was made

These embarked upon

on each

flank,

were nearly

it,

the south-west breach, the attack

The ditch under

in a different manner.

assailants brought forward a raft,

men.

At

not being fordable, the

which was large enough to carry seventy

and, though fired

across,

it

when

upon by two

Clive, observing the

field-pieces,

one

bad aim of the

management of one of the pieces, and in two or three discharges caused such confusion that the raft was overset, and those upon it who

gunners, took the

escaped drowning
Its failure.

The

assault

swam back

to the opposite side.

had lasted nearly an hour.

employed themselves

in carrying

off"

their

As soon as it ceased, the assailants
They might have been pei-dead.

mitted to discharge this duty of humanit}' undisturbed; but the
garrison

was not

slackened,

on the part of a native,

is

and they were obliged

to desist.

not unworthy of being recorded.

An

fire

act of heroism,

The

leader of the

sepoys at the north bridge, after greatly distinguishing himself, had

He was

greatly beloved

by

his

of the

men, and one of them crossed the ditch

fallen.

for his

Though the attempt exposed him to the fire of forty muskets, he had
The whole
the good fortune to escape unharmed with his honourable burden.

body.

THE SIEGE OF ARCOT.

Chap. V.]

of the

loss

enemy was computed

at -iOO men, almost all natives

as if unwilling to encounter the

Enghsh

killed,

The

by wounds

garrison were disabled

tlie

When

aloof,

engaged mustered only eighty Europeans,

officers

two

to four Europeans

many

the assault took place, so

or sickness,

a.d. itsi.

and been only spectators

amounted only

loss of the garrison

and two sepoys wounded.

for the French,

;

in the deadly breach while the

governments were actually at peace, had kept
of the assault.

467

number

that the whole

included,

of

and 120

sepoys.

These, during the attack, served five pieces of carmon, and expended 12,000

musket- cartridges.

Two

hours after their repulse, the enemy renewed their

cannon and musketry

own

request, a truce to

two in the following morning, when
dawned the garrison were overjoyed to
till

and the

;

ammunition, showing

have been.

it

bury their dead, maintained

how

learn the

sent from Trichinopoly.

was

it

the day

The enemy had
was finally raised.
and a large quan-

precipitate the depai-tm'e of the

enemy nmst

Clive, being

now

for the departure of all his

left

which he inclosed himself within strong intrench-

free to act, left

Captain Kilpatrick in

command

and proceeded with 200 Europeans, 700 sepoys, and three

south to Timery, which suirendered on the

first

summons.

of the

field -pieces,

His next move-

ments depended on the Mahrattjis, who had })romised to join him, but as usual

employed themselves in plundering the surrounding country.
his uncle,

Morari Row, had

himself so negligently
to

when

left in

command

to repair the loss

Bow,

Bjisin

of 1000 horse, conducted

in the vicinity of Vellore that he exposed himself

a night attack, and was obliged to leave his camp to the enemy.
he applied to Clive,

who

set out

Anxious

with him, and was thus

engaged when he learned that a party of Europeans from Pondicherr}- were
on the

way

to Arnee, a strong fort

on the road between Arcot and Gingee.

proposed to intercept them, and succeeded, after some

difficulty, in

He

obtaining

Row, whose objections were not overcome till he learned
that the French were carrying a large sum of money to Rajah Sahib.
Even
after he gave his consent, he was unable to muster more than GOO horse. These,
the consent of Basin

when added

siege

ciive

only with the troops which his father had ximenT
With these and the French he moved west to Vellore,

close to the eastern side of

whom

The

In the evening, Captain Kilpatrick arrived with his detachment.

auxiliary chiefs, and he

fort,

cause.

artillery, four mortars,

Rajah Sahib's repulse had been the signal

ments.

When

suddenly ceased.

siege, after lasting fifty days,

In the camp were found four pieces of
tity of

both with

and with the exception of two hours, dming which they

;

were allowed, at their

evacuated the town

fire

to Clive's original force, left

him

far inferior to the

enemy,

whom

he discovered after a forced march of twenty miles, preparing to cross the river

immediately to the north of Arnee with

:>()()

Europeans, 2000 horse, and 2500

sepoys.

The enemy, perceiving

their superiority, wheeled

round and determined to

HISTORY OF INDIA.

468
A.u.

17.11.

Clive on

give battle.

advantageous position
left,
ciive'8

Aiiiee.

liis

part did not decline

—the

[Book

and awaited the

it,

ITI.

attsick in an

Mahrattas occupying a grove of palm trees on the

the sepoys a village on the right, and the Europeans an open ground in the

leading through

them

swampy

In front were

centre between the two.

with a cau.seway

rice fields,

The French, with about

to the village.

1

500 of

theii-

sepoys and their artillery, advanced along the causeway, while the horse, with

moved forward on the grove.
Here a spirited action commenced, and the Mahrattas displayed much gallantry,
making five successive charges, though only to be repulsed. The division
advancing along the causeway were more successfully opposed, and were so
galled and enfiladed by the English field-pieces that all but the artillerymen
with the cannon quitted the causeway and made for the rice fields. Their
position was not thereby improved, and a general alarm spreading over their
whole ranks they commenced a retreat. Clive followed close in pursuit, but
night coming on they made their escape with comparatively little loss, crossed
tlie river and entered Arnee.
So much, however, were they dispirited that they
the remaining sepoys interspersed with them,

did not venture to remain, and quitted

who,

now

by the Mahrattas,

in disorder, followed

it

entirely in their element, overtook them,

and captured Rajah Sahib's

In consequence of

military chest, containing 100,000 nipees.

many

this defeat,

of the enemy's sepoys deserted and offered their ser\dces to Clive,

who

enlisted

600 of those who were best armed.
He

DuHng

captures

the sicge of Arcot, the French,

by occupying Conjeveram, had

rupted the communication with Madras, and captured a party of disabled

inter-

who were

Some

proceeding thither.

murdered in

of

them they

tioned, obtained quarter,

and were living

and summoned

are said to have atrociously

and Ensign

their litters, but Lieutenant Revel

men

Glass, ah'eady

as prisoners in

men-

Conjeveram when

The French commander so far forgot himself as to threaten that, if he were attacked, he would
expose these English officers on the walls. Clive paid no regard to this unworthy
Clive appeared before

menace

it

it

to surrender.

and on receiving two eighteen-poiuiders from Madras, began

;

in breach at the distance of 200 yards.

On

this occasion

we have

those remarkable hairbreadth escapes, of which
instances,

dead by

an

officer

his side.

who accompanied him

to batter

he made another of
already seen several

while i-econnoitring being shot

The breach would soon have been rendered

the French commander, dreading the resentment which he

practicable,

but

knew he must have

provoked, did not venture to stand an assault, and abandoned the place in the
night, leaving his

two

prisoners behind.

After ruining the defences of Conjeve-

ram, Clive sent 200 Eviropeans and 500 sepoys to Arcot, and returned with the
rest to tlie presidency, to give

Rajah

stratagem of

torarpHse
Arcot.

an account of

his

triumphant campaign.

Saliib's scattered troops, seeing the field

^^^

^.lie

British, re-assembled,

^-^^

^1^^

Company's

territory

again clear by the departure

and moving down toward the

around Madras and

coast,

ravaged part

in the vicinit}' of St.

Thom^.

FRENCH ATTEMPT TO SURPRISE ARCOT.

Chap. V.]

to Conjeveram, repaired the defences of the pagoda, garri-

They next returned
soned

it

ad.

1752

with 300 sepoys, and kept possession of the open country as far east as

The

Ponamalee.

ment

4G9

presidency,

for Tricliinopoly,

ling these dangerous

who had been employed

determined to employ

and troublesome

marched from Madras

it,

17")-,

in the first instance, in expelClive, appointed to this task,

intruders.

in February,

in preparing a reinforce-

when

with a detacinnent which,

augmented by a reinforcement from Arcot, consisted of 380 Europeans and
1300 sepoys, with six

The enemy, though mustering

field-pieces.

-iOO

Euro-

Attempt
to s\iri)risc

2000 sepoys, and 2500

peans,

hoi"se,

with a large train of

did not

aitillery,

Arwt.

venture to risk an encounter, and removed south to Vandaloor, where, as they

On

strongly intrenched themselves, they seemed determined on a stand.
appi'oach

looked as

it

if

their courage

had again

their camp, but dispei"sed as if

abandoned

It soon appeared, however, that they

When

out a dee})-laid scheme.

mined

make

its

to fall
it

it

difficult for

some sudden

terror

had struck them.
but following

feai"s,

again heard of they were united at Oonjeverani,

gairison to furnish

upon

them, for they had not only

were not obeying their

and preparing to move west on Arcot.
stripped of

failed

Aware

that

it

had been almost

to

advance to

entirel}'

had

the above reinforcement, they

deter-

away

suddenly, after they had tempted Olive so far

him

Olive's

as to

The stratagem nearly

its relief

suc-

ceeded, not merely in consequence of the feebleness of the garrison, but of

treachery within
to

Two

it.

have opened the

native sepoy officers had been gained over, and were

Fortunately the plot was discovered, and the enemy,

gates.

upon were not answered, went

finding that the signals agreed

off as

suddenly as

had appeared.

the)'

Notwithstanding intelligence of their departure, Olive continued his march

when

westward, and at sunset had come within sight of Ooverypauk,

advancing without suspicion, were

and the cannons were the French
in front.

pieces of c<annon at the

made

his

with a ditch and

aitillery posted in a gi-ove,

arrangements

in ambascade,

but with the greatest

hastily,

Ordering the infantry to take shelter in a water-course innnediately

coolness.

on the

Olive

upon from nine

The whole enemy were here lying

distance of only 250 yards.

bank

fired

the van,

and the baggage to be moved back half a

left,

mile,

under the guard of

a

platoon and one of the field-pieces, he sent a detachment, with two field-pieces,
to oppose

employed

Rajah Sahib's cavalry, who were spreading out on the
his other three

The French
abreast,

infjintry

remaining pieces to answer the

advanced along the water-coui-se

and were met by the English

up

for

and

two

houi-s

by moonlight.

failed in several attempts

was otherwise with the
French nine, and so

many

fire

same

So

six

men

order.

Neither

of musketry

was kept

also

far the fight

Olive's three pieces

and

fi-om the grove.

column of

The enemy's cavahy were

on the baggage.

artillery.

in a

inf\\ntry in the

ventured to come to the bayonet, and an indecisive

fire

plain,

kept at bay,

was

equal.

were no match

of his gunnei-s were killed or di.sabled, that he

It

for the

saw no

Aflfair

of

"^'^^

AP-

HISTORY OF INDIA.

alternative but to take the

1752.

ticable,

[Book

III.

enemy battery or to retreat. The former, if practhe more desirable, and was at once adopted, when a

was of course

'.s

who had been sent to reconnoitre, returned with the infoiTnation that
enemy had left the rear of the grove without any guard A strong detach-

sergeant,

the

ment was immediately despatched towards the enemy's
Clive himself accompanied

rear

by a long

half-way, and returned only in time to find the

it

troops he had left in the water-course on the point of giving way.

with some difficulty in rallying them, and had renewed the

completely successful.

who had crowded

fled

without firing another

Among

all

at

shot.

The panic was instantan-

Many

of the

Frenchmen
and

the immediate fruits of the victory were nine

coehorn mortars, and the surrender of the fort of Cover}'pauk.

Clive continued his march to Arcot, and
lore, in

when

into a choultry in the grove gladly accepted of quarter,

became prisoners of war.
field-pieces, three

fight,

succeeded

fire.

a general volley at the distance of only thirty yards.

and the enemy

He

The attack on the rear had been
The detachment reached the grove unperceived, and gave

once the enemy's artillery ceased to

eous,

circuit.

was next day on

his

way

to Vel-

the hopes of inducing Mortiz Ali to piy a contribution, or at least deliver

up the elephants and baggage which Rajah Saliib had deposited with him, when
he received an order to repair with
it

A

of Dupi^rx.^

Jung had

memorate the very detestable action
a city under the
its

name

David, from which

tice,

was

as well as sound policy,

to

by

his route lay tlirough a country

Mahomed

was

Ali,

offered.

who

mainly by Clive's
sixty miles long

whic'.i

pompous

centre a column, with a

obstruction

lost his life,

to com-

he heralded as a victory, had foimded

inscription in French, Persian,

have been

levelling the
still

erected.

Clive did an act of jus-

whole with the ground.

Though

Their spirits and their force were equally broken

exploits,

and

nominally in the hands of the enemy, no

lately did not possess

by

and where Dupleix,

of Dupleix- Fateabad, or the City of Dupleix's Victory.

several Indian languages,

^

St.

In marcliiug south across the country in obedience to this order, he

passed the spot where Nazir

In

Fort

was determined to despatch him, in command of a reinforcement, to Trichino-

poly.

memorial

all his force to

;

and

any spot north of the Coleroon, was,

put in virtual possession, as nabob, of a territory

thirty broad,

and yielding an annual revenue of £150,000.

Three days after Clive's arrival at Fort

St.

David, Major Lawrence returned

from England and again assumed the chief military command.

SIEGE OF TRICHINOPOLY.

Chap. VI.]

CHAPTER

471

VI.

—Anival of Major Lawrence with a reinforcement— Mahomed
— Discontent of his
— Attempts of the French to recover their
for England — Successes of Major Lawrence — New intrigues of Dupleix.

Continuation of the siege of Trichinopoly
All's tortuous proceedings

ground

—Clive

sails

lost

allies

^SSp^.^^S!vs^ ^^-^^ Clive was gaining
I,

'W 1^ !^||;
!

|a
SBpy

''
:

l^j^r^

i'
'

.^^W^^

'^

of the siege

fell

Chunda

successes in Arcot,

I^ahib continued to beleaguer Trichinopoly.

V ^f|' den

A,

:

his

The

chief bur-

upon the French, who, having obtained

train of battering artillery

from their settlement of Carrical,

!^?!^*?^y?^'^^ erected their principal battery at the distance of

1

200 yards

Their head-quai"ters were fixed at

fiuni the iiorLli-ea-st angle
of the fortress.
^

eastwiird, near the south

save the trouble of connecting

them by

bank of the Cauvery

;

and

sieg« »f

Trichino-

.

some distance

a.d. ivsi.

in order to

iK.iy

con

trenches, they converted the battery into

by inclosing the flanks and rear with a parapet and a ditch.
The battery was mounted with three eighteen-pounders and three mortai-s and
a regular redoubt

;

on a rock, afterwards

known

as the

French Rock, situated nearly due south of

two

the battery and about 2000 yards from the south-east angle of the fortress,

eighteen-pounders were placed.

Two

gims were also posted on the north bank

of the Cauvery, within the island of Seringham, opposite to the northern gate.

These arrangements indicated a great lack of engineering
both of the two gun-batteries were far too distant to

skill

and

make any

enter[)rise, as

impression on

Accordingly, after they had continued for several days wasting their

the walls.

ammunition to no purpose, the troops under Captain Gingen not only got
of their former fears, but ran to the opposite extreme,

alh)wing them to be foolhardy.

was now necessary

excessive,

and blamed him

All his caution, though
to

it

rid

for not

had formerly been

prevent them from exposing themselves to

disaster.

To meet

the enemy's attack the defenders raised up a glacis, leaving nothing
A

.

but the parapet of the wall

visible, ojiposite to

the principal battery, flung up

an entrenchment opposite to the French Rock, and mounted two guns

close to

the south bank of the Cauvery, to answer those on the opposite side in the
island of

any
Ali,

Senngham.

A

now kept up on both

sides

without

Mahomed

whose resources were much more limited than those of the

besiegers.

The time wasted, however, began

Besides maintaining his
troops.

k

constant firing was

to tell severely against

result.

own

troops he

was expected

to subsidize the

Company's

This he feared would soon become impossible, and the consequence

might be that these troops would withdraw and leave him
naturally, therefore, he looked about for

Nature
^^ the de-

•

new

allies,

to his fate.

and found one

Very

in My.sore,

fences.

172
AD,

1751.

lllSTOIiY

then the most powerful of the neighbouring

an

infant,

INDIA.

OF'^

Its sfjvereign

states.

and the whole power was concentrated

dalaway or

regent,

who

was at

hands of

in the

this time

his uncle, the

Mahomed Ali the more readily from the deep
Chunda Sahib. At the same time, while gratifying his

listened to

hatred which he bore to
hatred, he did not forget

very extravagant

[Book HI.

liis

He was

rate.

and

interest,

sold the promise of his assistance at a

not long, however, in beginning to

fulfil

In

it.

the beginning of October, 1751, a party of horsemen arrived from Seringapatam,

Their number was only seventy, but they brought with

the capital of Mysore.

them what was of more consequence,

in the .shape of a subsidy of 500, OOO

rupees (£50,000).
An

This was

auxiliary

force

from

Mysore.

•

<»

a foretastc of the aid about to be furnished by the dalaway,

oiily

i

i

for in the latter

i

about forty-five miles

own

troops, hired a

Row.

We

tit

-\t

r»

t

/'i

i

end of November he began to assemble an army at

W. N.W.

body

of Trichinopoly

;

Caro(jr,

and, not contented with his

command

of GOOO Mahrattas, under the

of Moraii

have already seen 1000 of these mercenaries, under Basin Row,

A

co-operating with Clive in Arcot.

pai-ty of

500 sent to Trichinopoly

guished themselves as soon as they arrived by their activity

;

distin-

and both by the

boldness of their charges, and their cunning devices in laying ambuscades, cut
off

a considerable number of the enemy.

were eager

for a general

Unduly

elated

by

tliis

success,

they

engagement, and on finding the English indisposed to
risk

it,

told them,

"they were not the same kind of

men they had seen fighting so gallantly at Arcot."
Mahomed Ali s prospects now began to brighten,
some frivolous

for after

consisting of 12,000

Mahrattas,
ariived

delays, the

of

horse,

Mysore army,

whom

4000 were

by Morari Row, and 8000 foot,
Trichinopoly.
The numbers appear

led

at

much more formidable on paper than they were
reality, for at this

in

time the Mysorean troops were

cowardly and undisciplined.

Independently, how-

ever, of their actual value,

they had indirectly a

powerful influence in inducing other neighbom'ing
states to join the

of Tanjore,

same

who had

side;

and hence the King

hitherto professed neutrality,

no sooner learned the arrival of the Mysorean army
than he declared in favour of
Polygar

'

— From Sir

S.

R. Meyrick's

Ancient Armour.

sent

him an

and 2000

Mahomed

Ali,

and

auxiliary force, consisting of 3000 horse

foot,

under the command of his general

The Polygar Tondeman, whose country is Tanjore and Madiu-a,
The army
espoused the same side, and sent a considerable reinforcement.

Monacjee.
also

'
"The Polygars derived their name from inhabiting the pollams or woods in the soutliern parts of

Hindoostan, and appear to have taken their rise from

municipal regulations relative to the destruction of
tigers and other ferocious beasts."— Meyrick's Illustrations of Ancient Arms and Armour.

SIEGE OF TRICHINOPOLY.

Chap. VI.]

of

Mahomed

Ali

now amounted

to 20,000 horse

Sahib, increased from diffei'ent quarters,

the

was

and 20,000

now

When

Chimda

So

cowardice.

1752.

cavalry.

much

was

difficulty in resisting

Eagemeasof
troops.

he announced his determination to wait for the rein-

forcement which was expected from the presidency, several of the native

and scrupled not

lost all patience,

ad.

had exactly

their other confederates for action

greatly increased, and Captain Gingen liad

their importunity.

foot; that of

little inferior, since it

same number of foot, and was only 5000 weaker in

The urgency of the Mahrattas and

473

officers

to stigmatize his so-called caution as

mere

was Nusheraj, the Mysorean commander, that

dissatisfied, indeed,

he was more than once on the point of returning home with his army, and was
only appeased

when

the revenues of

were made over to Mysore.
with

tlie

all

the districts recovered since his arrival

Morari Row, equally offended, said

characteristic duplicit}' of his coimtrymen,

but acted

less,

by entering

into a secret

correspondence with the enemy.

The reinforcement commanded by Major Lawrence, abh'' seconded by
Captain Clive, was now on its way. It consisted of 400 Europeans and 1100
sepoys, with eight

Both armies, aware of the

military stores.
operations,

and was cumbered with a large quantity of

field-pieces,

were equally on the

other to intercept

On

it.

effect

which

the 26th of March

it

might

iiave

on future

its safe arrival,

and the

arrived at a fort of the

King of

the one to secure

alert,

it

Tanjore, within twenty miles of Trichinopoly, and there deposited such of the
stores as

M. Law, the commander of the French

were most cumbersome.

battalion, acting not

merely on his own judgment, but by special

from Dupleix, was determined not to allow
to effect a capture.

was

The

first

struggle

in possession of the French,

it

to pass

commenced

who had

instruction.s

without a strenuous

effort

at the fort of Coilady.

It

here posted a strong body with artil-

Major Lawrence, anxious to avoid the danger, ordered his guides to look

lery.

out for another road.
error

was

Instead of doing so they led him to the very spot.

discovered

fii'st

by the

fire

The

of six pieces of cannon from the opposite

side of the Cauvery.

Great wjis the confusion, but both by good fortune and

good management the

loss sustained

left,

was soon beyond the enemy's

On advancing

was

reach.

small,

A

and the

more

line,

by diverging

to the

serious contest wiis at hand.

towards Ehmiserum, a rock cro"\vned with a

fortified

pagoda, five

miles south-east of Trichinopoly, Major La^vrence learned that the greater part
of the enemy's

army was drawn up

in battle array

between

it

and the French

Rock, while the remainder occupied the space between this rock and the village
of

ChukleypoUam, on the south bank of the Cauvery.

apparent.

Had

He

satisfaction of being

by 200 Europeans and 400 sepoys under Captain Dalton, and

part of

Mahomed
I.

was very

therefore passed to the soiith,

and had only proceeded a short way, when he had the

Vol.

object

the major attempted to pass to the north of Elimiserum he

could scarcely have escaped being sun-ounded.

joined

The

All's

the greater

army.
60

Reinforce-

ment under
Lawrence

HISTORY OF INDIA.

474
A

I),

Scarcely

I7r,2.

an

lialf

Ihjui-

when the scouts came in
army was advancing.
Attempt

to

[Book

had been spent by the troops

at full speed to

III.

taking refreshment

in

announce that the whole of the enemy's

Clive, sent out to reconnoitre, observed that

a large

choultry with some stone buildings in front of the French battalion remained

iMtei'CB])t

the

roiii-

unoccupied, and

was ordered forward

forcemuiit.

by the

artillery, supj)oi-ted

though aware of their

as fast as possible with the first diviwion of

grenadiers, to take

possession of

The enemy,

it.

object, did not attem])t to outstrip them, as

they might and

ought to have done, and contented themselves with oj)ening a cannonade.

It

was

the hottest that had yet taken place in India, the French filing from twenty-two
pieces,

and the

Engli.sh

The

from nine.

latter,

though much fewer, did more

execution, because the English not actually serving the guas were sheltered

the choultry and

while the French stood exposed in the open

its buildings,

This advantage soon told

plain.

back their

artillery,

by

;

and the enemy beginning

and then commenced a general

to waver, first

retreat.

Had

drew

the native

troops on the English side done their part a decided victory might have been

had remained almost

gained, but they
batants, but

mere

This

spectators.

is

had been not com-

inactive, as if they

said to have been owing, not to

any want

by Morari Row, whose intrigue with the
enemy was now so far advanced that he was unwilling to act against them
Though from this cause the enemy escaped with a comparatively small loss, an
of bravery, but to the bad example set

important object had been gained; for the reinforcement, no longer inteiTupted
in its progress, arrived in the course of

Major Lawrence, not to allow the enemy to recover from the terror

Activity of

Major

Law

reiice.

the evening at Trichinopoly.

by

immediate

their defeat, proposed

but met with so

many

obstructions

whose notions of fortunate and unfortunate days often induced

from

his allies,

them

to sacrifice their

something with his
surprise

action,

in.spu-ed

Chunda

most favourable opportunities, that he resolved

own

troops on his

own

to attempt

His object was to

responsibility.

Sahib's camp, which lay to the east of that of the French, and

had no enti'enchments.
400 men, with orders to

With
make

east side of the camp, beat

guides the expedition

failed,

it

this

view he despatched Captain Dalton with

a long circuit,

up,

and

and commence

set fire to

Owing

it.

but the mere fact of

its

liis

attack on the

to a blunder of the

having been attempted so

alarmed the French commander that nothing would satisfy him but a retreat to
Alarm of the

Chunda Sahib remonstrated, but M. Law

the island of Seringham.

French.

and with

point,

so

much

precipitation, that a part of the

magazines of provisions were

set

prevent the danger of capture.

By

retiring

up in an

island,

fire,

baggage and whole

to save the difficulty of transport or

The whole

beyond the Cauvery the

I'emain cooped
plies,

on

carried his

siege

pi'oceeding looks like infatuation

was truly

at

an end.

Why

then

with the certainty of being soon pressed for sup-

and the probability of being excluded from the possibiHty of

egress'?

The

only plausible account which has been given of the enemy's withdrawal to the
island

is,

that

"

they were afraid to

fight,

and ashamed

to retreat."

The

COMMAND OF

I'LIVE IN

Chap. VI.

Englisli Eiist India

Company, while naturally encoiiraged and

the favoiu-able tiu'n which affairs

seemed

fore

even at some risk of

justifiable,

elated

had taken, were suffering severely in

by the length and expensiveness of the war

mercantile interest

47")

A DIVISION.

failure, to

;

and

by

ad.

1752.

their

there-

it

adopt any plan which

CHveincomniand of a

l^romised to bring

it

plan Wits suggested

with the

by

least delay to

and adopted by Major Lawrence.

Olive,

Such a

a successful termination.
It

was

aiviBim.

to

form the army into two divisions; and while retaining the one south of the
Cauvery, to send the other to the north of the Coleroon.

Hazardous

it

certainly

was, for the defeat of one division almost necessarily involved the destruction of

A

To whom was the command of the northern
divisi(m to be intrusted?
Major Lawrence was anxious to appoint Clive, but
several of the officers as his seniors had a prior claim.
The Mahrattas and
Mysoreans removed the difficulty, by declaring that they would not allow any
both.

of their troops to

He was

remained.

difti(;ulty

accompany the expedition unless Clive had the command of

accordingly appointed, and after arranging to choose a central position

between the Coleroon and the

straits of Ootatoor, so as to

forced mcU"ch of Trichinopoly, set out

two battering cannon, and

of the Coleroon

on the 6th of

be always within a

April, 1752, with

400 Euro-

3000 Mahrattas commanded by Innis Khan, 1000 Tanjorine

peans, 700 sepoys,
horse,

it.

by

six field-pieces.

crossing the island of

Having reached the north bank

Seringham three miles east of the

pagoda of Jumbakistna, he marched north seven miles and took possession of the
village of

Samiaveram, with

its

two pagodas, one on each

side of the highroad

leading to Ootatoor.

army

Dupleix, alarmed at the critical position into which thuiula Sahib's

had been brought by M.

Laws

injudicious retreat into the island of Seringham,

sent M. d'Auteuil to supersede him.

500 sepoys, with four
Olive,

field-pieces,

He was

accompanied by 120 Europeans,

and a large convoy of provisions and

stores.

on learning his arrival at Ootatoor, and intention to avoid Samiaveram,

by making a large
to intercept him.

circuit to the west, set out

with

miavernm.
tiie

greater part of his force

M. d'Auteuil, informed of this movement, hastened back to

Ootatoor, and Clive retraced his steps to Samiaveram.
Olive's departure

and not of

M. Law, who knew of

his return, sent a party of eighty

Europeans and

700 sepoys to attack Samiaveram, and make an easy piize of the few troops

who had been

left in

it.

They arrived

in the vicinity at midnight,

and were

informed by a spy of the return of the force sent against M. d'Auteuil.

commanding

On

officer refused to believe

it,

and pushed forward with

his

The
men.

being challenged by the advanced guard of the English sepoys, an Irishman,

who was

in

command

of a

body of

deserters, stepped out

Major La^vrence had sent him with a reinforcement.

The

and told them that
sepoys, hearing

some

of the other deserters speaking English, were so fully satisfied, that they never

thought of asking the counter- word, and even sent one of their number to conduct them to head-quarter.s.

Affair of sa-

Thus guided, they passed without interruption

HISTORY OF INDIA.

476
A.D.

i:ry2.

through part of the Mahratta camp, and reached the lesser pagoda.

were challenged by the

was sleeping
his
cuTe'B nar-

row

[Book

own

sentinels,

and an.swered by

firing

a volley.

Here

tliey

Clive,

who

in a neighbouring choultry, started up, and, imagining that

sepoys

who were

III.

was

it

consequence of some alarm on the outskirts,

firing in

hastened off to the larger pagoda for a Vjody of Europeans, and returned with

escape.

200 of them to the choultry, when he was confirmed in his
finding a large body of sepoys

drawn up

might be supposed to have come, and

first

facing the south, from which

Never

random.

firing at

by

impre.ssion

any alarm

doul.»ting that

own men, he left his Europeans twenty yards in tlieir rear, and
went in among them, upbraiding them for their panic.
His voice betrayed
him to one of the sepoys, who instantly attacked him with his sword, and
wounded him in two places. Clive immediately encountered his assailant, who
they were his

took to his heels and ran off for the lesser pagoda.

Still

unconscious of his mis-

and enraged that he should thus have been attacked by one of

take,

men, he followed in pursuit, and

by

accosted

six

learned the real state of matters

first

With

Frenchmen.

own

his

by being

singular presence of mind, he at once

recovered from his surprise, and with gi-eat compo.sure told the Frenchmen he

had come to

how

see

offer

them

same time bidding them look round and

completely the pagoda was surrounded by his army.

Frenchmen went back
the offer of quarter

him

terms, at the

;

to the choultry,

into the

Three of the

pagoda to acquaint their coimtr^Tnen with

the other three actually gave up their arms and followed

where he took the necessary steps

to rid the

camp

of

intruders,
to^cii^^^"

The pagoda, desperately

de-

fended by the French and the English deserters, remained in their hands

till

Olive's personal dangers

daybreak.

were not yet

As the only chance

over.

of escape, a sally

Clive, anxious to save further bloodshed,

was attempted.

advanced to parley.

It failed

Weak

loss of

blood and fatigue, he was standing with his back towards

porch,

and leaning in a stooping posture on the shoulders of two

tlie

;

and

with the

wall of the

sergeants,

when

the Irish deserter, probably aware that whatever terais were made, he could

have no hope of mercy, insolently advanced, and telling Clive that he woxild
shoot him, fired his musket.
bodies of both the sergeants,

The

who

bullet missed him, but passed through the

fell

mortally wounded.

The escape looks

like

commencement of the
The very first volley
alarm, he had had another escape scarcely less wonderful.
which started him from his sleep, shattered a box under his feet, and killed a

a miracle.

servant

It

was

who was

afterwai-ds discovered that, at the very

lying close to him.

Three hairbreadth escapes in a single day

desperado's deadly
—the midnight voUey—the sepoy's sword—and the
aim —make
Providence was watching over
impossible to doubt that a
Irish

it

special

him and reserving him for great events. The 700 sepoys who had entered the
camp, managed to quit it again during the confusion, and were hastening back
to the Coleroon, when the Mahrattas were obsei'ved in full pursuit.
They

J

;;

FRENCH REVERSES.

Chai>. VI.

down

attempted to escape by throwing
vain

every

;

The

man

of

them

position of the

477

arms and

their

dispersing.

was

It

in

ad

1752,

perished.

two armies was now

The

reversed.

besiegers

saw them-

f»<^i'c1i

rovereea.

and in danger of being starved

selves besieged

M. d'Auteuil; but

this

hope soon

Their great hope was in

out.

failed them,

for that officer, despairing not

only of reaching Seringham, but of maintaining his position at Ootatoor,

a rapid retreat to Volconda, after sacrificing a large quantity of his

and the dangers which threatened on every

loss,

officers to

side,

made
This

stores.

determined Chunda Sahib's

execute a design which they had for some time contemplated.

proaching him in a body, they announced their determination to quit

Apser-

liis

Instead of upbraiding them, he told them that they had only antici})ated

vice.

He was

a similar proposal from himself

unable to pay their

ari'ears,

but assm*ed

them that they would not be forgotten should better fortune again attend him
and gave the best proof of his sincerity by making over to them at a valuation
the greater part of his elephants, camels, horses, and other military

Some

of the troops thus set free returned

Very few went over

Mysoreans.

home

Mahomed

to

with only 2000 horse and 3000

The French

ham.

As

who were

;

but Clive, at Samiaveram,

Chunda Sahib was

sepoys.

with 2000 sepoys, shut themselves up in the pagoda

their only hope, they

still

to defend themselves to the last

kept then- eyes tm'ned towards M.

d'Auteuil, who, on his part, so far from being able to bring

own

entu'ely occupied with his

left

lodged in the pagoda of Sering-

and gave out that they meant

of Jumbakistna,

extremity.

battalion,

foot,

others took service with the

;

Ali

was joined by 2000 of the best horse and 1500

effects.

difficulties.

them

was

succour,

After various movements, which

only entangled him more and more, he was cooped up by Clive in the fort of
Volconda, and obliged to come to

fact,

100,

;

but

its

importance

who had

have been any occasion

when we

perceived

deserters should

sun-euder of

for

learn the astounding

deserted.

of M. d'Auteuil left the French in

least prospect of relief

Preparatory to a

that an attempt should be

was aware that

in the

into the

to secure the escape of

to

power of Mahomed

Ali,

who was
was

him a passage through their
Mahrattas, but they would sell him

liaries to

allow

soreans, but they

was thought

Chunda

desirable

Sahib.

M.

Law

be turned to good account

have been sincerely desirous not to

of escape which seemed practicable

— the

still

jillow

him

to

known to be thmsting for
now watched, that the on!}-

well

So completely, however, was the island

life.

mode

made

Seringham without the

cai)itxilation, it

hands of Dupleix he might

and he appears, moreover,

of

is

was that

number of Europeans under M. d'Auteuil was only
no fewer than thirty-five, more than one-third of the whole, were English

The surrender

his

of these

that though the whole

soldiers

fall

One

It seems strange that there should

be pardoned.
such a clause

term.s.

to bribe

some of the native auxi-

quarters.

Several were thought

to the highest bidder

would employ him as a hostage

—the

My-

to obtain the performance of

a.iuuu

.sa

tateiiesuiiw.

iya
A.D. 1752.

IlLSTOltY

[Book

which Maliomed Ali had made to them

promises

the

OF INDIA.

—and

the TanjorineH,

but they bore him an old grudge, and would be willing to take an
of avenging

was known, however,

It

it.

tiiat Monjicjee,

III.

oj)[)ortunity

the Tanjorine com-

mander, was at variance with the [)rime minister, and might in consequence be

To

induced to piu-sue a separate interest.

He

made.

liim,

therefore, the overture

wuh

gave his consent readily, and received a large sum of money in

much

hand, with the promise of

more, and almost any advantage for which he

The bargain was thus concluded, and nothing remained but
the time of Chunda Sahib's departure, when, on the 31st of May, on the

chose to stipulate.
to fix

cannon from Devicotta, Major Lawrence summoned M.

arrival of battering

Law

tage of the

now

Monacjee,

to surrender.

summons

to urge

pretending zealous friendship, took advan-

Chunda Sahib

come over that very

to

night,

and

him that every hour's delay added greatly to his risk. Some saspicion
of treachery was felt, and Monacjee was asked for a considerable hostage.
He
answered with great calmness, that if treachery was meant, no hostage could

assm-ed

prevent

it,

and

that,

moreover, the mere giving of a hostage would be equiva-

lent to a divulging of the

whole

He boimd

secret.

on his sword and poniard, the most sacred of
to send off

Chunda Sahib

of horse to Carrical.

by an oath

obligations to an Indian soldier,

all

came

as soon as he

himself, however,

an

into his quarters, with

escort

All this had taken place at an interview with M. Law,

by a Tanjorine officer who told him
he was to command the escort, and showed him the palanquin and other preparations for the journey.
Chunda Sahib, who was waiting to hear the result
of the interview, immediately placed himself in the power of Monacjee, whose
first use of it was to put him in irons.

whose suspicions were

further lulled

M. Law, after concludiuff the arrangement

Surrender vi
the French
force at

still

.

.

arms, had no alternative for himself

for his unfortunate colleague in

He was

absolutely at the mercy of his

and had no hope except in the moderation of Major Lawrence.

antagonists,

The French, he said, were not at war with the English and now that Chunda
Sahib was a prisoner, and his army dispersed, he expected to be treated not as
an enemy, but as the representative of a friendly power, and assisted to return
;

in safety with his

army

to the

Major Lawrence replied

French settlements.

that he acted only as the interpreter of the intentions of
justified the

Mahomed

Ali,

and

terms which he proposed to exact by producing a letter in which

Dupleix declared that he would never cease to pui-sue him while a Frenchman

remained in India.
tion

;

hoiu",

The

first

summons

Law was

to surrender at discre-

a second, in more peremptory terms, demanded a decisive answer by a fixed

and added

that, if the batteries once

pagoda should be put to the sword.
M.

to M.

Law

resigned himself to his

The whole

force

under

his

fate,

began to

Ultimately,

all

play, every

man

in the

evasions proving vain,

and made an unconditional

suri'ender.

command, and which thus became prisoners of war,

consisted of a battalion of 820 Europeans

and 2000

sepoys.

Their artillery were

CiiAP. A'

MAHOMED ALL

1.1

479

eleven battering cannon, mostly eighteen -pounder-s, twenty field - pieces, four

and two petards; they had

thirteen-inch mortars,

ammunition,

stores,

and

carriages of all descriptions

within the pagoda of Ser-

were

inghani

allowed

also a

a.d. 1752

quantity of

large

The native horse and

foot

^

to

depart without molestation

They

embraced the

all

except

1 ()()()

offer

Rajpoots, who,

having vowed to defend the
sanctity of the pagoda, kejit
their

station,

and threat-

ened death to any one
should dare

penetrate

to

beyond the third
It

to

who

inclosure.

was deemed unnecessary
disturb them.
The onh-

point

still

to be decided

Chunda

the fate of

He was

still

^ii.—

Oatkwav ok

was

.

A-*'---:

—

From FergTisson's
rA(;oi>A Ai StiuiNCiHAM.
Ancient Architecture of Uindootttnn,

Sahib.

who

the prisoner of Monacjee,

to part with him.

t

held him as his prize and refused cmeifateof

Major La\vi'ence proposed

his safe custody in one of the aawb.

English settlements; but the confederates were unanimous in rejecting this
])roposal.

They were, however,

far

from being agreed as to any

and

othei',

Monacjee began to suspect that his prisoner would eventually give him more
trouble than profit.

were

all

The Dalaway of Mysore, Mahomed

equally bent on securing possession of his person

;

Ali,

and Morari

and

it

to gratify one of tiiem without offending the other two.

was impossible

In these circum-

stances Monacjee took the com"se which his savage nature dictated,

himself of further importunity on the subject of
to death.

Mahomed

Ali,

in reality as well as in

No

now

in future

and

rid

Chunda Sahib by putting him

freed from a rival in the Carnatic,

name, and will

Row

became nabob

be mentioned under that

title.

sooner was the surrender of the French completed than Major Lawrence

urged the nabob to lose no time in proceeding into the Carnatic at the head of
the confederate army.

The soundness of

his advice

was

readily admitted

the nabob lingered and betrayed a mysterious backwardness to move.

Lawi'ence had no idea of the cause,

;

still

Major

by refusing
to move until Trichinopoly and its dependencies were yielded up to him as the
stipulated recompense of his services.
The secret had been well kept; but now,

when

the Mysorean explained

till

dissimulation could no longer avail, the nabob,

subject, readily

admitted that he had promised

This ought to have settled the question

;

when questioned on

which the Mysorean

the

jisked.

and be the consequences what they

might, the only honest coui-se was to

fulfil

was farther from the nabob's

and

intention,

all

it

the promise.
it

was easy

Nothing, however,

to devise plausible pre-

Miihomed
ous poUcy.

IILSTOHY OF INDIA.

4-80

A. D. 1752.

Trichinopoly wa« not his;

texts for evading the obligation.

Great Mogul

[Book
it

belonged

he was only viceroy, and might be recalled at pleasure

;

sorean,

when he took advantage

known

that

was not

it

in his

of his distres-s to extort the promi.se,

power

to perform

it

;

the

t^j

the

;

III.

My-

must have

to give up Trichinf>poly to

an Indian king would only be to involve himself and the British as his

allies in

a war with the whole Mogul empire.
Mahomed

j^

would be

which ensued, and

uselcss to explain the negotiations

pctodby

cunning tricks which the parties employed to outwit each

the Com-

.

,,aiiy.

important point

detail the

The most

other.

.

.

that the Company, while recommending mutual concession,

is

agreed to stand by the nabob, and so far to .support him in his injustice by

mating to the Mysorean, that

The

effect

By

keep.

inti-

he had recourse to force they would repel

it.

up a hollow agreement, which neither party meant

to

if

was

to patch

this

agreement the dalaway was put in

posse-ssion of the

revenues of

the island of Seringham and some other districts, and promised the possession

two months

of Trichinopoly in
all liis force in

;

in return he engaged to assist the

agreement, the Mysorean was asked to march, he

no doubt as to

as left

his intentions.

them, Captain Dalton was

left in

made

As the most

many

so

effectual

in terms of this

frivolous excuses

means

of frustrating

Trichinopoly with 200 Europeans and 1500

This measure was doubtless necessary, since the Mysoreans and Mah-

sepoys.
rattas

When,

the complete reduction of the nabobship.

nabob with

still

encampment

retained their old

in the vicinity

;

but

it

greatly reduced

the strength of the expedition intended for the Camatic, reducing the
pany's battahon to 500

men and 2500

sepoys, while the

accompany them with more than 2000

horse.

number would

scarcely

have

sufficed.

The

nabob was unable

to

Such was the whole army which

on the 28th of June, to accomplish objects

set out

Com-

first

for

which ten times their

place of importance which they

reached was Volconda, the governor of which, though he refused to deliver up
Proceeding's

uatic.

the

fort,

took

tlic

oath of allegiance to

paying 80,000 rupees as
revenue in future.

Khan, with 1000

arrears,

Mahomed

gave security

From Volconda

Ali, as

nabob, and, besides

for the regular

payment

of the

the nabob sent his brother,

Abdul Wahab

him deputy-governor

of the districts

horse, to Arcot, appointing

north of the Paliar, and proceeded with the rest of the troops to Trivadi, about

To thie settlement, now no longer the
of government, which had been again removed to Madras, Major Lawrence

seventeen miles west of Fort
seat

St.

David

repaired for the recovery of his health, leaving the

The

reverses sustained

tion at Pondicherry.

new

to Captain Gingen.

the French in the south produced great consterna-

These, however, were

of M. Bussy in the north.

the

by

command

somewhat balanced by the

successes

After the death of MuzzufFer Jung, Salabut Jung,

soubahdar, appointed by Bussy's influence, proceeded with him for

Jung had fallen, and barbarously revenged the act by massacring a large number of the inhabitants,
storming the fort, and putting the gan-ison to the sword. They then crossed
Karnool,

by the hand

of whose chief Muzzuffer

TRANSACTIONS IN THE DECCAN.

Chap. VI.]

the ICistna, and continued their

But a

was

serious obstruction

march northward

to be

in the direction of Golconda.

removed before they could

the eldest son of Nizam-ul-iloolk, had never, as

u-din,

renounced his claim to the soubahship, and was
secure

With

it.

view he had formed an

this

Vil

now

reacli

was

falsely alleged,

taking active steps to

alliance with the Peisliwa Balajee

stood ready with 25,000 Mahrattas to dispute Salabut Jung's

further progress.

Negotiation was attempted, and the Peishwa, aware that his

])resence

The

was urgently

rec^uired at Sattarah,

made no

Tlie

now

claimant.

scruple of changing sides.

obstacle being thus removed, Salabut Jung, accompanied

as his protector than his protdg^,

1752,

Gliazi-

it.

who

Bajee Rao,

a.d

by Bussy, more

made a triumpliant entrance

into Golconda.

Ghazi-u-din had, in the meantime, set out from Delhi, and an-ived at Aurun-

now

gabad, which
it

in importance,

vied with

and was

re-

garded as the capital of the
Deccan.

As

negotiation could

not here avail, another device
equally

wa.s

characteristic

adopted, and Ghazi-u-din was
cut off

by

poison.

The

deatli

of the chief was, as usual,

fol

lowed by the dispersion of

hi.s

mnv

army, and Salabut Jung,
left

without a rivd, took his

seat

on the iiiusnud at Au.\i'KUS(iAB.\i>.

rungabad,

amid general

joicings.

At such a

— Krom Grinillay's Scenery,

&c., of India.

re-

season Bussy could obtain anything he chose to ask;

The French
influence

and, besides

receiving

large

pecuniary presents to himself and his

officers,

an-anged for the future payment of his troops at a very extravagant

but Jung.

rate.

Dupleix also displayed the extent of his authority by disposing of the nabobship of Arcot, as if

it

had been

own

his

absolute property.

claimed himself nabob, next he laid aside the
Sahib,

Chunda

Sahib's son

supplied, he set aside this
it

for

money

two atrocious

sum

;

and when

appointment

to Mortiz Ali.

title

and conferred

on Reza

exhausted treasury required to be

also,

and made an attempt to dispose of

This man,

was formally

it

his

who had

already sealed his infamy by

miu-ders, grasped eagerly at the honour,

of about £80,000,

he pro-

First,

and

after

installed at Pondicherry.

advancing a

While

there,

however, having become acquainted ^\^th the views which Dupleix had upon
his treasures, he repented of his bargain, and.

without explaining his intentions,

made a precipitate return to his fortress at Vellore.
Though greatly hampered by the state of his pecuniary resom'ces, Dupleix
contended manfully with fortune, and was soon able to throw serious obstacles
In this he was greatly aided by the misconduct of
in Mahomed All's way.
Vol.

1.

61

witli Sala-

482
AD.

1752.

HISTORY OK INDIA.

at-

tempt

to

capture

III.

the nabob himself, whose dislionesty witli regard to the cession of Trichinopoly

had begun
A rash

[Book

While the larger part of

to tell strongly against him.

his force

was

detained there to counteract the intrigues of the Mysoreans and Mahrattas,
_

_

_

scarccly a chief in the

circumstances

it

Camatic voluntarily declared

In these

in his favour.

seemed desirable to strike some decisive blow which might at

once raise the sinking spirits of his followers and intimidate his enemies.

scheme

it,

and paid a

visit to

Madras

dency from entertaining the proposal
it

Major Lawrence strongly disap-

wfis to effect the capture of Gingee.

proved of

Hia

for the purpose of dissuading the presi-

His influence, however, proved

less

than

ought to have been; and on the 23d of July, 1752, the nabob's application

assistance

was complied with, by sending, under Major Kinneir, who had

for

lately

arrived from England, a detachment of 200 Europeans and 1500 sepoys, accom-

panied by GOO native cavalry, on this formidable enterprise.

was

easily traversed,

but on reaching the mountains

For ten miles round, Gingee

selves at every step.

and

accessible only

by a few strong

passes.

When

is

presented them-

whole march hitherto had been labour in vain.

it

David, had not been waited

alert,

and the whole

soon appeared that the

The governor, when summoned,

means of compelling him,

unaccountable blunder, two pieces of battering cannon, on the
St.

by mountains,

encircled

for this purpose,

Gingee was reached,

refused to surrender, and there were no

difficulties

These the invading force ought to

have secured, but no troops could be spared
continued to advance.

The low country

for,

by a very

way from

Fort

Meanwhile Dupleix, who had been on the

for.

no sooner learned that the expedition had passed the mountains than he

detached 300 Europeans and 500 sepoys, with seven

field-pieces,

who took up

a

strong position at Vicravandi, near the pass through which Major Kinneir had
led his troops.

was

No

longer dreaming of the capture of Gingee, his object

to disentangle himself

He had

now

the good fortune to succeed, and having

not only got clear of the mountains, but been reinforced by above 1000 of the

He had

nabob's horse, determined to give battle.
cost,

and sustained a defeat in which the

loss

not properly counted the

was not

so great as the disgrace,

way under panic.
who, now mustering

the whole troops, not excepting the Europeans, having given

Elated by this success, Dupleix reinforced the victors,

Dupleix captures a com-

pany of
iss

450 Europeans, 1500 sepoys, and 500

mer-

cenanes.

^^

^j^^

territory of Fort St. David.

Trivadi, retired

still

further,

horse,

encamped near the north boundary

The Company's

troops, after retreating to

and took up a position at a redoubt in the boiuid

Here they remained inactive, waiting
the arrival of two companies of Swiss of 100 men each, who had just arrived at
Madras from England. To avoid delay, one of the companies was embarked in

hedge, about three miles west of the

fort.

the light boats of the country, and were proceeding for Fort St. David
It

had been assumed that on that element Dupleix would not venture to

by

sea.

violate

The mistake was discovered when too late, for as soon as
they were seen from Pondicherry, a ship set out and made them all prisoners.
English colours.

DUPLEIX DEFEATED AT BAHOOR.

Chap. VI.J

483

The capture was loudly complained of, as a violation of the peace subsisting
between Great Britain and France, but Dupleix thought he had a sufficient

a.d. 1752.

precedent in the capture of French troops at Seringham.

To avoid a repetition of the loss. Major Lawrence embarked with the other
company of Swiss in one of the Company's ships, and brought them safely to
Fort St. David, on the 16th of August. The next day he took command of the
whole

force, consisting

of 400 Europeans,

1

700 sepoys, and 4000 of the nabob's

The enemy immediately drew back

troops.

to Bahoor,

and when

encamped between the bound hedge of Pondicherry and
became

their

advanced

post.

From

they were soon

this

Battle of

still

Villenore,

pursued,

which thus

but here the

di'iven,

pursuit ended, because Major Lawrence, under instructions from the presidency,

which, amidst overt acts of war,

from passing the bound hedge.

them

attem])t to bring

had

clumsy though

it

In this state of matters he determined, as a

to action, to pretend a precij)itate retreat

become

in his retm'n

clung to a semblance of peace, refrained

still

hastened back to Bahoor.

afraid,

and, as

;

last

if

he

The stratagem,

was, succeeded; and Dupleix, only afraid that his enemies

should escape, insisted on pursuit, against the remonstrances of M. Kirkjean, his

nephew, who commanded the French.

They accordingly advanced within two
miles of Bahoor.
Major Lawrence lost no time in preparing for action, and at
three next morning was in motion with his whole force.
The action commenced with the sepoys on either side, and did not become decisive till the
British and French battalions met at the point of the bayonet.
After a short
struggle, two platoons of British grenadiers broke the enemy's centre, and his
whole

line

Had

immediately gave way.

the nabob's cavalry done their duty,

instead of galloping off to plunder, few of the
as it was, their loss

was

victory

still

was

serious in

men,

more important in

its

artillery,

to join them,

ammunition, and

Even
This

stores.

Morari

Row

had

and a detachment of 3000 Mahrattas

when they

Nothini; more was wanting; to

Bahoor.

could have escaped.

indirect consequences.

actually been gained over to the French,

was on the way

enemy

received intelligence of the affair of

make them change

their route

;

and

they made then' appearance in the nabob's camp, complimenting him on his
victory,

and lamenting

sufficient

their misfortune in not

time to share the honour of

having been able to join him in

.to

it.

Major Lawrence having advanced to Trivadi, prepared to devote the remainder of the season, before the rains should set

in,

country northward from Pondicherry to the Paliar.

to the reduction of all the
It

was

at the

same time

determined by the presidency, at the urgent request of the nabob, to attempt
the reduction of the forts of Chingleput and Covelong, situated north of that
river.

Being of great strength, they connnanded a considerable tract of country,

and often sent out detachments, which plundered within the tenitory of the
nabob and the Company. The only force which could be saved for the task of
subduing them, consisted of 200 raw recruits just anived from England, and

rreparations
besiege

ciungiepiit

io,,g.

^8^
AD.

17.^.2.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

mand
the
French first

gaiiiedcovc-

III.

apparently the very refuse of London, and oOO sepoys, as ignorant of service as

The only hope of success was, that Clive had volunteered

the recruits.

How

(Book

U> <x>m-

them.

Heading these troops
with four twenty-four
pounders, Clive set out on tlie
'
J
^
10th of September for Covelong.
It stands on the sea-shore, about twenty-five
'

l

^

miles south of Madi-as, and consisted of a fort inclcsed

with towers and mounted with thirty pieces
fifty

f)f

by a strong

cannon.

wall, flanked

had a garrison of

It

Europeans and 300 sepoys, and was in possession of the French, who

seized

in 1750,

it

making

by a very

disgraceful stratagem.

A

hail

ship anchored in the

The natives going on board, were told that
most of the crew had died of scui'vy, and that the survivors, still suffering from
the same disease, and unable to navigate the vessel, must perish if not allowed

road,

to go on

sig-nals

of distress.

They were

sliore.

allowed, and repaid the

The Fi'enchmen,

selves masters of the place.

counterfeiting disease,

humanity by making them-

thirty in number, landed, only

and having concealed arms under

their clothes, rose in the

dead of the night and overpowered their benefactors.
Olive's diffi-

The troops arrived

in the evening at a height

two miles

to the westward.

CllltilGS

before Cove-

Half of tlicm remained, and the other half proceeded, duiing the night, in

Ion*".

charge of Lieutenant Cooper, to occupy a garden 600 yards south of the

At break

fort.

of day, a party from the gan'ison, advancing to the garden, fired sud-

denly through some crevices of the gate.

Cooper by a

This alarm, and the

fall

of Lieutenant

shot, so frightened the recruits in the garden, that

they immedi-

ately took to their heels,

and were numing

as fast as their legs could cai-ry

when they were met by Clive, advancing with the other half of the
troops, and compelled by him, though not without difficulty, to retui-n.
The
next day he summoned the governor of the fort, and receiving a very bliLstering
them,

answer, began Mdthout loss of time to erect a battery at the distance of 300

yards from the waUs.

An

adjoining rock.

teen

men with

He

at the

same time placed a strong guard on an

unlucky shot having struck

the splinters,

all

it,

the rest hastened

not be persuaded again to expose themselves

;

and kiUed or wounded
oflf,

and

for

foiur-

some time could

indeed, several hours after, one of

was found hiding at the bottom of a well.
Clivc tried to shame them into courage by constantly exposing himself to
the hottest of the fire, and at last succeeded in giving them some degi'ee of firm-

the advanced sentries
Capture of

ness.

It

was

liigh time, for a reinforcement

The very name of

Clive, however,

was on the way with half
and preparing

mounted on the

to

seems to have

sufficed, for

his troops to give battle, it fled

The blustering governor was
finished

was approaching from Chingleput.

fii'e,

on hearing that he
with

precipitation.

as easily cowed, and, just as the battery

surrendered at discretion.

walls, fifty of large calibre

was

Besides the cannon

were found within the

fort.

The}-

proved to be paii of those captured by Labom-donnais when he took Madras.

The day

after the surrender a large

body of troops were observed

at

daybreak

CLIVE CAPTURES CHINGLEPUT.

VI.]

CiiAr.

They proved

crossing a stream about a mile west of the fort.

stronger reinforcement sent
effort for the relief of

485

by the governor of Chingleput

to

to be a

new and

make a

vigorous

.\

D. 1752.

Tln-y had no idea of the surrender, and were

Covelong.

advancing in secur-

when, from an

ity,

ambuscade
had

been

which
for

laid

them, a sudden

was opened.

In a

100

minutes

few

men

fire

were

struck

down, and more than
half of the rest stood
as

if

rivetted to the

spot,

Fort of CuiNiiLEi-LT.— From Watl.en's Voyage

to Madrat^

.iiid t'liina.

they were

till

The few who escaped

taken prisoners.

back their consternation to

carried

Chingleput.

This

situated about

fort,

twenty miles south-west of the

other, near the

Clive's siege

and capture

northern or

Allowing

bank of the

left

some

for

Paliar,

irregularities, it

was much stronger both by nature and
was nearly

art.

put.

in the form of a parallelogram,

about 400 yards long from north to south, and 320 broad from east to west,

and was nearly

on three

inaccessible

west and north-west, and by
It

sides,

swampy

was natm-ally weak only on the

being surroimded by a lake on the

on the east and north-east.

rice-fields

south,

where higher ground commanded

it;

but to compensate for this defect, the fortifications were much stronger here

than elsewhere

for while the parts wsished

;

by the lake were

inclosed only

by

a slender wall, and those opposite to the rice-fields were but feebly defended,
the south side had
1

first

a deep ditch faced with stone, and then a stone wall

8 feet high, flanked with towers.

parallel to them,
fifteen pieces,

Clive

made

placed at

was

in

Within these works another

formed a second similar inclosure.

bj'

at the distance of 500.

remained to be done, and a

command had no

.stout

and afterwards of only 200 yards, a breach

His

and the

defence might

still

interior walls.

Much

have been made, but the

heart to continue a resistance which he

the honours of war.

of his career.

the defeat at

was

satisfied

and sun-endered on condition of being permitted to march

nuist be ineffectual,

away with

by

means of a battery of four twenty-four pounders,

four days eflected in both the outer

oflicer in

The cannon mounted were

his aj)pearance before the consternation caused

first

wall, continued

and the garrison consisted of forty Eiu-opeans and 500 sepoys.

Covelong had subsided, and

liealth

With

these services Clive closed the

had suffered severely, and made a

visit to

first

part

England

absolutely necessary.

The nabob's

affairs,

of Cliiiigle-

while thus flouri.shing in the north, were becoming more

;

486
A

D. no.i.

HLSTOICV OF J.NDIA.

and more entangled

As

at Triehinopoly.

honest course would have been the most
State of

King

to the

of Mysore, he

[Book HI.

almost invarialjly the

is

By

{)olitic.

might not only

ca.se,

the

performing his promises

liave secured a powerful ally, but

atl'aira iit

Tridiiii

opoly.

been able to make his whole force available

by attempting a
retaliation.

when

and

course of fraud

He would

not keep

The

Camatic

he at once provoked and justified

trickery,

and therefore only received

faith,

was not kept with him.

it

for the reduction of the

effect of his

his deserts

double-dealing has already

been seen in the attempt of Nunjeraj, the Mysore general, to take advantage of

The

his depart m-e.

formed

vigilance of Captain Dal ton frustrated several conspiracies

for the purpose of seizing the city

aside,

and both Nunjeraj and Morari

pleix,

who had

all

but at

;

Row

was thrown

last all disguise

entered into open alliance with

Du-

along been active in fomenting their quarrel with the nabob.

Open war being thus

declared, a series of desultory affairs took place.

In some

of these Captain Dalton's troops suffered severely, but the means of resistance

which he

still

possessed convinced the Mysorean that

taken, his surest

For a time

the sources of supply.

more

He

means was famine.

Trichinopoly were to be

accordingly endeavoured to cut

apprehension was

little

especially as Kheir-u-din, the nabob's brother-in-law,

his representative., assiu-ed Captain

were

sufficient to last four

to be

more

months.

it

oflf all

by the garrison,
who had been left as
felt

Dalton that the pro^dsions in the magazines

At

last,

and provisions were

effective,

Captain Dalton thought

by a

if

however,

when

the blockade began

sold in the city at

an enormous

price,

necessary to ascertain the actual state of provisions

Then

personal inspection of the magazines.

time he learned

for the first

own

that Kheir-u-din had been selling the provisions for his

profit,

and that the

quantity in store was equal to a consumption of only fifteen days.
Major

Law

Appalled at this discovery, he immediately communicated

rence ad-

vances to
its relief.

who was then encamped

rence,

him, that, withdrawing

all

500 sepoys, he was on his
troops.

it

to

Major Law-

So urgent did the case appear to

at Trivadi.

the troops, except a garrison of 150 Europeans and

way

the very next morning with

After a short halt at Fort

St.

all

the rest of the

David, to procure the necessary

stores,

he proceeded, accompanied by the nabob, through the territories of the King of
Tanjore,
after,

and reached Trichinopoly on the

6tli

of

a detachment of 200 Europeans and 500

by Dupleix, arrived at Seringham, under M.
reans.
The whole force which Major Lawrence
sent

May, 1753.

The very day

with four

sepoj^s,

Astruc,

field-pieces,

and joined the Myso-

could muster, inclusive of aU

the troops that could be spared fi-om the gaiTison, amounted only to 500 Euro-

and 3000 of the nabobs

peans, 2000 sepoys,

the horse refusing to

move because

their

With the

horse.

pay was in

arrear,

he passed over into

the island on the 10th of May, and was immediately attacked
of the Mysoreans.

Their infantry was easily repulsed

;

infantry only,

by great numbers

then- cavalry, gallantly

headed by that of the Mahrattas, gave more trouble, but were ultimately
obliged to yield

;

the brunt of the battle

was then borne by the French, who

;

SIEGE OF TRICHINOPOLY.

Chap. VI.]

maintained their post and kept up a cannonade

deemed

rence

till

487

when Major Law-

evening,

tlie

Cauvery.

M. Law, and that instead of attempting to dislodge the enemy from the

most important business was to replenish the magazines of the
This task was attended with the greatest

provisions.

1:53.

The operations of the day had
that M. Astruc would prove a more formidable opponent than
prudent to repass

it

convinced liim

his

ad.

island,

city

with

and kept him

difficulty,

inactive for five weeks.

In the meantime Dupleix,

fully alive to the

important struggle about to be

waged, kept his eye fixed on Seringham, and continiied to urge forward reinforcements,

the whole

till

army within

the island

1500 sepoys, 3500 Mahrattas, 8000 Mysore

amounted

horse,

to 450 Europeans,

French
inforce.! at

^""'^^

and above 10,000 Mysore

To this anny Major
500 Em-opeans and 2000 sepoys.

infantry of an heterogeneous and worthless description.

Lawrence had nothing to oppose but

Even

his

of the latter 700 were constantly employed in escoiting provisions.

enemy, confident in superiority of numbers, was
island,

now emboldened

to quit the

and began to form a chain of positions with the view of cutting

communications of the city with the smTOunding country.
so successful that provisions again

began to

fail,

dency, Major Lawrence

was

off"

the

In this they were

and even the most sanguine

To add

ceased to hope that the city could be saved.

Tiie

to the general despon-

suffering from a severe illness,

which tln-eatened to

withdraw him entirely from duty.
While the enemy were steadily pursuing
•

-»

r

•

T

their plan of gaining their object

T

•

1

by starvation, Major Lawrence was most reluctant to quit any commanding
position

which

it

seemed possible to maintain, and kept a guard of 200 sepoys

camp and

posted on a rock about a mile south-west from his
that of the enemy.

was soon

contested.

Being thus equidistant from both, the possession of the rock
M. Astruc, determined to have

body, and supported them at a distance
first

north-east from

by

his

it,

whole

attacked

it

with a

select

Major Lawi'ence at

force.

endeavoured to support the sepoy guard by a platoon of only forty Euro-

peans, but, on percei\nng all the

army

of the

enemy

in motion,

resolution of leaving only 100 Europeans to guard the cam^i,

general action with the remainder of his troops, amounting in
peans, eighty artillerymen, with eight field-pieces,

now

took the bold

and risking a

all to

and 500 sepoys.

300 Em*o-

The great

was, which of the

two armies should first reach the rock. M.
Astruc was successful, and carried it by a vigorous effort when Major Lawi-ence
was only half way. What was now to be done ? Advance and retreat seemed
contention

equally desperate.

The order

to

In such circumstances the boldest course

is

usually the safest.

advance was received by the soldiers with three cheers, and while

the grenadiers attacked the rock with fixed b.aj-onets, the rest wheeled roimd
to engage the French battalion.

with some sepoys

who had

The grenadiers earned aU

followed in their track,

it

before them, and,

commenced a

deadl}'

fii'e

from the top of the rock upon the French drawn up below within pistol-shot

Briuiant
I'ffair with
the French,

488
AD.

17.W.

or INDIA.

IIISTOllY

[Book

other troops behaved with e<juul galhintry, and re.serving their

tlie

within twenty yards of

enemy's

tiie

poured in such a volley that

line,

Though the victory had been

the day, were severely handled.

and

in

till

French

tlie

endeavouring to cover the retreat of the French, and even to regain

rattas, in

struggle

fire

The Mah-

cannon behind them.

fled in consternation, leaving three pieces of

III,

gained,

tlie

was not yet ended. The victors were a mile distant from their camp,
order to reach it must pass over an intervening plain in the face of

who

nearly 12,000 cavalry,
retrograde

stood ready to pounce upon

movement should

Nothing but the utmost

begin.

and courage could have saved them.

them the moment

their

coolness,

skill,

Fortunately the heroic band possessed

made

these qualities in an eminent degree, and

all

the cavalry pay so dearly for

attempting to charge them, that they were at last allowed to proceed without
interruption.
Mahomed
Ali in 'lan-

serfiomiu?

The enemy, ashamed and dispirited by
mutual rccrimination. The sepoys employed

much time in
forwarding supplies made dili-

their defeat,
in

lost

gent use of the interval, and succeeded in bringing in a stock of provisions

suffi-

The danger of famine being thus removed, Major
Lawrence determined to march into the Tanjore country, with the double object
of meeting a reinforcement which he expected from the presidency, and inducing
the king to throw aside the neutrality he had jigain professedly a&sumed, and

cient to last for fifty days.

was veiy much wanted.
negotiation the presence of the nabob was thought desirable

To

furnish a contingent of cavalry, which
tliis

prepared to set out, an unexpected difficulty occurred.
for their arrears of pay, declared

he should not qxni the city

This he could not or would not do

fied.

His

;

;

facilitate

but when

lie

troops, clamouring
till

they were

satis-

and the singular spectacle was seen

of 200 Europeans, with fixed bayonets, escorting the nabob, in whose cause the

Company had
troops,

much blood and

ovm

treasure, because his

from escorting him, were bent on committing outrage on

so far

person.

already expended

A few days

after his departure the

body to Captain Dalton, and intimated

whole of these troops repaired

their intention to join the enemy.

his
in a

This

intimation they accompanied with the singular request that he would not

fire

upon them while they were marching off. Glad to be quit of them on any tenu.s
he granted their request, and they walked off unmolested at noon-day.

The euemv

stiata-eiii

./

aud counterstratagem
at Trichinoi)oiy.

beinff
o

now

possession of the whole country around
in complete
i
i.

^

Trichiuopoly,
i

,

.

tliB city itself
,

,

was the only

object

t

.

now

i

both parties made their arrangements accordingly.
stern necessity, reserved

own

use,

and the

all

mi

to be contended

and

li_

c
of

Ihe garrison, as a matter

the provisions which bad been stored up for their

inhabitants, threatened with absolute starvation,

native but to quit their habitations.

had no

The whole population, estimated

400,000, disappeared in less than a month, and nothing remained to

blank but a garrison, which, including soldiers and
did not exceed 2000 men.

for,

•

Of

artificers of

aU

alter-

at nearly

fill

up the

descriptions,

these nearly one-half were native peons or undis-

RTEGE OF TIIICHINOPOLV

ClIAP. VI.]

4-89

ciplined infantiy, who, being of no use except to give

between the two walls

interval

;

whom

the whole bm'den of the

who were

stationed at intervals on

the others, on

defence lay, consisted of about 600 sepoys,

the ramparts, and 200 Europeans, of

whom

alarm, occupied the

;in

a.d. 175:

part kept the gates, while the rest

THE ENVtRONS Or

TRIG

II

IN OP

OLY

to jllusU'iti; Uic lUililJiy Opci'alioii:^

of 1751,53

''ff

A, Seringli;im Pagoda.
15,

5.

Juniliaki.stna Pagoila.

C, Chuckloypollam.
1),

6,

Dalaway's Choiiltry.

Covered way, thi-own up against tlie
French grand batterj-, 17!)\, 1752.
The French .and I'hunda Saliib's
camp from August 17.01, to .\pril,
1752.

1,
2,

3,

English post of two guns, 17.31,
French post of two guns, 1751,

17.')2.

9, Tlie

1751, 17u2.

1751. 1752.

The

now began

besiegers,

Septeniber,

tliat in

H.'i.'t.

Mahrattas, in Sept.

175;i.

announcement of

first

who had been contented with maintaining

opinion,

support

December, 1752.

English camp in He\>t. 175:5, whilst
waiting for the reinforcement.
A small tjitrcncliinent for tlie security of the left flank of tlie caroi).

ber, 1752.

to think that they

was of the same

])arty to

ultry,

I

English advanced guard, Sept. 1753.
14, French advanced guard, Sept. HS."?.
15, Camp of the French, Mysoreans, and

lay on their arms every night, ready to start on the

danger.

Clii

.Cot

v"

13,

Great Choultry, wliere the Engparty Wiis cut off in Decem-

lish

French grand battery,

11,

12,

S Mysore camp, December, 1752.

Covering
the

English post opposite the French
Rock, 1751, 1752.

17j'2.

French post of two guns to enfilade
the English post at the river side,

4,

10,

^f

the blockade,

might venture on more decisive measures.

Dupleix

and was constantly importuning M. Brenier, who had

To procure the
infonnation which was preN-iously desirable, he suggested tlie employment of a
French officer of the name of De Cattans, who was to be sent into the town as

succeeded M. Astruc in the command, to attempt an escalade.

had

if lie

deserted,

degrading and

and then act as a

jierilous office,

enemy

It

Brenier,

was

the city
Vol.

I.

;

it

susjiicions

which

against themselves, and induced

De

Major La^\Tence,

at a particular spot

Cattans,

by the

to write a letter to

which he pointed

out.

did not appear so externally, the strongest point in

and any attempt

ihespj
detected.

recommending an escalade

in fact, though

Cattans readily undertook the

Captaui Dalton seized the opportunity to turn

])romise of interceding for his pardon wnth
]VI.

De

but by overacting his part excited

ultimately led to his detection.
the devices of the

H\ty.

to escalade it

must have resulted

in the repulse

62

and

t^O

A.D. 1763.

IIISTOKV OK INDIA.

destruction of the party engaged in

and only escaped

into the snare,

it.

it

M.

(Book HI,

however, would liave

lirenier,

in consequence of being obliged to

fallen

employ

his troops elsewhere.

Major Lawrence's approach, which had
luttieofthe
Golden
luxk.

now

He had

certain.

for

some time

Ijeen

rumoured, was

received a reinforcement from Fort 8t. David of 170

Europeans and 300 sepoys, and was moreover accompanied by a Tanjorine anny

command

of 3000 horse and 2000 matchlock-men, under the

of Monacjee.

On

the 7th of August he arrived at a place called Dalaway's Choultry, situated on

bank of the Cauvery, about five miles east of Trichinopoly. Tlie intervening plain was so much flooded by the rains that it was deemed necessar}- to
the south

strike to the south-west, along

with a convoy of nearly 4000 bullocks, under-

stood to be laden with provisions, though

afterwards turned out that only

it

one-tenth of them were thus laden, while the nabob and his
appropriated

all

officers

the rest for the transport of baggage and trumpery.

had

selfi.shly

On

arriving

within a mile of the Sugar-loaf Rock, situated two and a half miles south-east of
the

city.

Major Lawrence found

it

occupied

by the main body

of the

enemy;

while the Golden Rock, about one and a quarter mile due west from the Sugarloaf,

was

in possession of a strong detachment.

Instead of endeavoiiring to force

the enemy's posts, he resolved to keep on the outside of them.

he caused the convoy to make a considerable

With

tliis

view

circuit to the south-west, intend-

by the Golden Rock. This, however, was not possible while that strong position was held by the enemy's detachment.
It was
necessary to drive them from it, and this was the great difficulty.
In fact, had
ing himself to march round

M. Brenier supported the detachment as he ought,

it

would have been impos-

by withdrawing the

greater part

of the detachment to assist in meeting a feigned attack on his

main body.

sible.

Instead of supporting he weakened

Having thus allowed himself
tiU it was too late to repair

it,

to be outwitted,
it.

The Golden Rock had been canied by the

English grenadiers and a party of 800 sepoys,
ing forward to relieve

it

he did not discover his blunder

when

had reached only half way.

up the advantage he had thus gained with signal
off"

the French infantiy hasten-

enemy

the whole body of the

ability,

Had

in confusion.

Major Lawrence followed

and tJtimately drove

the Tanjorine horse pur-

sued as they ought to have done, instead of remaining mere spectators of the
flight,

a decisive victory would have been gained.

The enemy,
Both armies

after their defeat,

two milcs wcst of the

city
j

reiu forced.

tactics against

;
'

encamped

in a strong position at

and Maio or Lawi-ence endeavoured

Weycondah,

to turn their

own

themselves by occupying the Five Rocks, situated about three

enemy and the open counHe had friglitened them away from
try from which they drew their supplies.
Weycondah to Mootachellinoor, on the south bank of the Cauvery, over against
the south-west extremity of the island of Seringham, and was preparing to act

miles farther south, and thus interposed between the

more decidedly when

all

offensive

movements on

his part

were suddenly aiTested

SIEGE OF TRICHINOPOLY.

Chap. VI.]

enemy had

Tlie

witli

received a reinforcement equal in strength to the whole English

It consisted of

force.

3000 Mahratta

under the

command

a.d. 1753.

400 Europeans and 2000 sepoys, with six guns, together

and a great number of peons or native

horse,

of Morari Row.

had arrived at Pondiclierry
to

491

in June.

The Europeans of

Had

this

infantry,

reinforcement

they been immediately forwarded

Trichinopoly they would have given the French such an ascendency as

must have been

Most fortunately Dupleix detained

decisive of the campaign.

them nearly two months

in the Carnatic for

and thus

gratification of his vanity,

lost

some purpose connected with the

a most favourable opportunity for

decisive action.

The Madras presidency on
pleix's reinforcement,

their part

were not

idle

and on hearing of Du-

;

determined to strengthen Major Lawrence with every

that could be spared for the

Having succeeded

field.

man

in mustering 237 Euro-

peans and 300 sepoys, they sent them under Captains Ridge and Calliaud by

Major Lawrence moved eastward to meet them, and

sea to Devicotta.

a sharp action, in whicli
happily effected.

after

French were decidedly worsted, the junction was

tlie

Both parties having now received

all

the reinforcements they

expected, were anxious for a trial of strength.

On

army in
city.
The

the 20th of September, 1753, Major Lawi-ence di-ew up his

order of battle at the Fakir's Tope, a mile and a half S.S.W. of the

enemy, encamped between the Sugar-loaf Rock and the Golden Rock, ami
covering a considerable space behind, showed no inclination to accept the chal-

Major Lawi'ence determined to attack them next day, but concealed

lenge.

intention

by ordering

his tents, which, in expectation of battle,

he had sent

At night

the city, to be brought back and pitched in their fonner place.

and the whole array rested on

tents were again sent back,

to be in readiness at four o'clock the

began to move in profound silence

;

Rock

first

division

before they were discovered.

which they had loaded with grape, undischarged.

thus caused in the

camp could

advancing, with reserved

fii-e

Ije

this

hour the army

re|)aired,

amved

within

Their sudden

concerted those in charge of the rock, that they hurried
pieces,

the

and by a sudden obscuration of the moon,

which had before been shining brightly, the
shot of the Golden

to

their arms, with orders

At

next morning.

his

off",

fire

pistol-

so dis-

leaving two field-

Before the confusion

the British in three divisions kept

and fixed bayonets, on the

left

tiank of the French

battalion stationed at the Sugar-loaf Rock, while the sepoys attached to the
divisions kept

who were

up a constant

fii'e

fleeing in all directions.

on swarms of Mysorean and other

The whole of the

fugitives,

British battalion, consist-

ing of 600 men, arrived in an unbroken line within twenty yards of their French
antagonists.

The

latter

were commanded by M. Astruc, who did the utmost

to

bring them into order, and even prevailed upon them to receive the English
fii-e

first

before they gave theirs.
division of English,

fell

In this encounter Captain Kilpatrick,
desperately wounded.

who

led the

His place was taken by

mttieoftiie
Rock.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

1^2

A D.

17.W.

Captain Calliaud, who,

[Book

dexterou.sly wheeling ioun<l hikI gaining the left

l^y

flank of an entrenchment, behind which the French battalion
in

a close

The grenadiers

fire.

again prevented

it

prisoners

;

withproviSIOIV

victory

when they ought

officers.

On

to have been pursuing the fugitives.

Tlie

the British side not more than forty Europeans were

wounded.

The cnemy, though

I'riciiinopoiy

well-levelled di.scharge from the

enemy in Europeans amounted to 100 killed and nearly 200 taken
among the latter was M. Astruc, regarded as undoubtedly the best of

the French
killed or

A

v as now gained; but the Tanjorines
complete as it might have been, by remaining

The

from being so

to plunder the camp,

of the

posted, poured

of the British Vjattalion in front completed the confasion, anrl

left

the rout became irremediable.

loss

was

at the siime time pushing on witii their bayonets,

drove them crowding upon their centre.
centre and

III.

mustering about 30,000 infantry of

still

all .sorts,

and

1G,000 horse, were so dispirited that they did not venture beyond Seringham,

and allowed provisions of

all

was

that a six months' supply

deemed

kinds to be poured into the city in such abundance,
easily provided at a

advisable, however, in order not to encroach

rainy season, which was

now

moderate

on

rate.

this supply

It

during the

at hand, that tl.e troops should quit the city

With

be carried into cantonments.

this

view Major Lawrence,

was
and

after reinforcing

make it strong enough with ordinary vigilance for any
might be made against it, removed to Coilady on the fi-ontiei-s

the garrison, so as to

attempt that

of Tanjore, from

which abundant supplies coxdd be obtained, without the neces-

sity of escorting convoys.

The Tanjorines were

permitteel to return home, but

not without great reluctance on the part of Major LawTence,
as

it

who

suspected,

and

afterwards appeared on too good grounds, that the king would .scarcely be

of

them back when the campaign should be resumed
The enemy remained in the island of Seringham as inactive as if a ce.s.sation
hostilities had taken place
and, so far from endeavouring to take advantage

of

Major Lawrence's absence, allowed the market of Trichinopoly to be regularly

ineluced to send
Treacheiy of

;

supplied in abunelance from the surrounding coimtry.

November they

In the beginning of

received a reinforcement of 300 Europeans, 200 topa.sses or

natives, chiefly of Portuguese origin,

and 1000

sepoys.

Even

this did not

make

them more adventurous, and they remained as if determined to attempt nothing
till Major Lawrence should again appear and challenge them to encounter him
It hael
This apparent indolence was part of a scheme.
in a new campaign.
been conceived possible to take Trichinopoly by

was

to lull the garrison into a false security.

favourable.

surprise,

and the

ject

now

The circumstances were not un-

Captain Dalton, whose vigilance and experience were successful in

detecting and frustrating several plots, had sailed for England;
Kilpatrick, on
his

ol

whom

the

command had

devolved,

was

still

and Captain

confined to bed with

wounds.

The point

selecteel for assault

was Dalton's

battery, the

same recommende<l

—

SIEGE OF TRICHINOPOLY.

Cn.AP. VI.]

De

in the letter of

who, after obtaining what was equivalent to a pro- ad.

Ciittans,

pardon, had been unjustifiably hung

raise of

4!)3

by

]\lajor

Lawrence.

ated on the west side, near the north-west angle of the walls,

formed part of a gateway.

This part, so far as

which

ferred the battery as the

diately in front of

mode

it

would be necessary

most

must

of entrance, and

tluis

its

tlie

round the

walls,

November the
'J'he

level

pre-

still

accessible point of attack, because the ditch

27th

crossed over from the island.

have been aware

to sui mount, but they

was almost choked up by a rock on a

it

the night of

in parties

the remainder retained

led

deserters, the exact

of the difficulties

On

;

by zigzag passages inclosed between terraces to a gate in
The enemy had learned, both from the letter of De Cattans

and

the inner wall.

and from

was situand had once
It

jutted beyond the wall, had

it

been converted into a solid battery with embrasures
original form,

1753.

imme-

with the water.

aimy

greater part of the enemy's

Assault se-

Mysoreans and Mahrattas were distributed

ana tom-

and making other

p,*i^j''*

and by approaching the

ditch

demonstrations, were to divert the attention of the garrison while the French
battalion

were carrying out the

At three

o'clock in the

which was planned as follows:

morning GOO of the battalion were

and the remaining

lade,

real attack,

body of

200, together with a large

at the outside of the ditch,

to

commence the

sepoys,

esca-

were to wait

ready to cross as soon as the escaladers should have

gained an entrance into the town.

and some European gunners.

Tiie battery

was guarded by

fift}"

sepoys

when

All these were present and on the alert

the

roimds passed at midnight, and yet the event proved that, three hours

after,

had absented themselves, and the few who remained had

fallen

the greater part
fast asleep.

Owing

to this gross breach of duty, the

party were able to cross the ditch and

mount the battery without causing the

Tlie sleepers being at once despatched

least alarm.

ants began to

move

forward, intending not to

This intention was fnistrated by an accident.
slight wall inclosing it at the back,

whole of the escalading

was a

with the bayonet, the

in motion.

the

off.

This was alarm

Within the battery,

pit thirty feet deep.

sufficient,

and

all

It

close to a

was not ob-

in the batterj-,

and

some

it,

the garrison were instantly

The French, aware that concealment was now

two gims which they found

•

they Avere fired upon.

fire till

served in the dark, and as several of the party screamed in tumbling into
shots were let

assail-

fired

impossible, turned

them

into the town,

together with a volley of firearms, at the same time endeavouring to strike
terror
still

by beating

their

drums and shouting Vive

le

Roi

unable to leave his bed, gave his instructions with

cision to Lieutenant Harrison, the

!

Captain Kilpatrick,

gi'eat coolness

and

next in command, who not only executed

them but improved upon them, and by the precaution of keeping up an
sant

fire

pre-

inces-

on the passage leading to the gate in the inner wall, killed the two

who were hastening forward to burst it open with a petard.
The attack had now become almost desperate. From the ramparts and terraces commanding the battery the garrison assembled at their posts Qommenced

persons

serious iws

+04
A.

II.

1753.

illSTOIlY

a murderous

who had

fire,

OF INDIA.

[booK

wliich the assailants vainly endeavoured

got into the passages between the two walls,

battery with the view of effecting

plunge

this desperate

clainV.»ered

ditcii,

or on the roc

but the

;

rest,

k on

deteired

a level with
b}'-

back

but the want of

by leaping down a perpendicular height

this impossible, except

into the water of the

tiieir escai>e,

what

int<.>

the

made

ladder-s

of eighteen feet

About

it.

Those

an.swer.

i/j

III.

1

00 ma^le

these suffered, crept

int<j

the embrasures or any comer that gave some kind of shelter, and as soon an

The number who thus surrenthe nvimber of those found killed within the works was sixty-

daylight appeared, asked and obtained quarter.

dered was 3G0

;

who took

seven; and of the 100

the frightful leap, few escaped without being

With the exception then of the 200 who had remained outthe whole French battalia n was in a manner annihilated by this
The noise of the firing was heard at Coilady. On being in-

killed or disabled.
side the ditch,
fatal assault.

formed of the cause Major Lawrence reinforced the garrison, and shortly

after

followed with his whole force.
Vacillation

of the Uajah
of Tanjore,

The

Rajali of Tanjore, on the return of his troops, justified the fears which

.

Major Lawrcuce had entertained, by not only refusing to send them back, but
giving unequivocal manifestations of hostile designs.

by working

alternately

upon

his hopes

from his alliance with the nabob
openly,

when

Trichinopoly

;

and

pause.

to try the effect of force,

had completely alienated him

fears,

and he was on the point of declaring himself

the serious reverse sustained

made him

Dupleix and Nunjeraj,

by

new

his

allies in their

attempt on

Irritated at his vacillation, Dupleix determined

and engaged a body of 1200 Mahrattas

to ravage his

The rajah, who had dismissed his old general Monacjee, becaiise he
suspected him of being too friendly to the English, sent a new and incapable
general of the name of Ganderow, who made his an'angements so unskilfully,
that the Mahrattas easily eluded him, and continued their devastations with
little interruption.
In this way the whole of the eastern part of Tanjore was

territories.

converted into a waste.
Defeat of the
"\l

1

The rajah applied

for assistance to

Major Lavrrence, who, in promising

it,

ill"! tt 'IQ

byMouacjte.

complaiued of Ganderow's
Monacjee.

inefficiency,

and suggested the re-appointment

of

After considerable demur this suggestion was adopted, and Monacjee.

shortly after resuming the

command, obtained a

signal success.

Proceeding at

the head of 3000 horse, he found that the Mahrattas, from ignorance of the
country,

had got entangled between two branches of the Cauvery, which

sudden flood had swelled so much as to leave no means of

encamped

at the point

of the waters,

met them

which he knew would

and before the Mahrattas deemed

face to face.

With

endeavoured to cut their
pulsed.

fii'st

Ultimately, 800 of

reserved for a worse

fate.

Monacjee

become fordable on the
it possible,

their usual gallantry,

way

egress.

falling

crossed over and

augmented by

despair, they

through the Tanjorines, but were repeatedly

them lay dead on the

field.

a

The

sur\'ivors

re-

were

In the spiiit of a savage, Monacjee caused them to

SIEGE OF TIUCHINOPOLY.

Chap. VI.)

-liiJ

be impaled alive, and even extended his barbarism to the dead

by ordering

their ad.

bodies to be suspended on the sm-rounding trees.

This success did not produce

the effect which might have been anticipated from

it.

The

1754.

rajah, satisfied that

command with

the immediate danger

was

a few compliments;

and instead of reinforcing Major Lawrence

passed, dismissed Monacjee from his

had

as he

promised, disbanded his troops as no longer necessary.

While the nabob's anny thus received no

accession,

and was on the contraiy

diminished by the necessity of increasing the garrison of Trichinopoly, in consequence of the great number of French prisoners detained in

means of reinforcements, was able

to

the enemy, by

it,

muster GOO Europeans, 400

toi)asses,

The enemy
rior in

"""" "'^

GOOO

and nearly 30,000 Mysoreans and Mahrattas. To meet these Major
Lawrence w<is unable to bring into the field more than GOO Europeans and 1 800
sepoys,

Notwithstanding

sepoys.

this

by their repeated
south bank of the Cauvery.
dispii'ited

enormous inequality of

defeats, that

the

force,

enemy were

so

they did not venture to cross to the

Trichinopoly had so long been the seat of war that there was not a tree

left Devastation
around Tri-

standing in the plain around

it,

and the British could only procure firewood by
Their provisions

sending out detachments to a distance of five or six miles.

were obtained with

still

chiuoiwiy.

These from what was called Tonde-

greater difficulty.

man's Country were brought no farther than the skirts of the woods, distant
about seven miles; while those from Tanjore were not brought nearer than
eighteen miles, the merchants depositing them at Trictapolly, a fort situated at
that distance eastward on the banks of the Cauvery.

from these distances were seldom

in escorting the provisions

peans and 500 sepoys.
sufficient, for

less

than 150 Euro-

Experience seemed to have proved that this force was

from the beginning of January to the middle of February, 1754,

The next convoy

seven convoys had been safely escorted.
larger than

The detachments employed

any of

and required no

was

It consisted of military stores as well as provisions,

these.

less

in readiness

than 3000 bullocks.

The

escort

was strengthened

in pro-

company of 100 men, eighty other Europeans, 800 sepoys, and four pieces of cannon.
As not much less than a half of
the whole army was thus required, the more prudent plan undoubtedly would
portion,

and composed of the

have been not to divide

it,

gi*enadier

but to employ

blunder was committed in intrusting the
experience and

The

escort,

as

an

escort.

command

of

it

it all

to

an

A more serious
officer

little

less ability.

which

left

Trictapolly on the

morning of the 13th of February,

reached Killycottah, about eight miles fjirther west, in the evening.

morning

of

The

follow-

was journeying on in the same direction, without any apprehension of danger, and had proceeded two miles beyond Killycottah, along the
skirts of

on
Iing

it

Tondeman's Wood.s, when several bodies of cavalry were seen moving

all sides

among

the thickets and underwood.

convoy had adopted the worst

pos.siblo

The

commanding the
he had no more than a

officer

arrangement, for

senousdistaiued

w

**'" ^"'^'*''

r

IIISTOKV OK INDIA.

4^f)

.\.u.

Kw

single platoon in

lii.s

front

and

rear,

while the rest of the

in small bodies along the line of IjuUocks

arrangement was, he made no attempt to
Disaster

8118-

taiiioil l>v

the

uritisii

[Book

and

alter

and

left his

111

troops exposed bj

•

-»

I

distinguished themselves, and, with the other eighty Europeans, were selling

when

as deai'ly as pos.sible,

credit, obliged

the French amved, and

the Mahrattas to grant quarter.

the British had yet sustained dm-ing the war.

were either

killed, or

wounded and taken

have been severely

£7000

in

money

to their

loss wdiich

The whole of these Europeans

The

prisoners.

loss of the

convoy

and yet must

Besides the whole of the provisions and militarj- stores,

felt.

fell

much

This was the severest

scarcely deserves to be mentioned along with that of the troops,

it.

thi.s

commanded by Moran Row and Yoonas Khan, and the former by an
ofticer of the name of Heiri Sing, and another, destined to future celebrity under
the name of Hyder All. These cavalry formed only part of a detachment which
had been lying in wait for the convoy, and was composed, in addition to the
cavalry, of 400 Europeans and GOOO sepoys, with seven pieces of cannon.
The
issue was not for a moment doubtful.
The sepoys at once flung down their arms
and fled. The gi'enadiers, who had gained so many laurels in previous fights,
latter

tlieir lives

repair

as

the sudden and impetuous onset of 12,000 Mysorean and Mahratta horse, the

still

Attempts to

distriljuted

Most imprudent

carts.
it,

were

trooj).s

ill

into the enemj'-'s hands.

The presidency of Madras, on hearing of the disaster, made an exertion to
repair it, and sent a detachment of 1 80 men by sea to Devicotta.
Tliere, how^.

ever,

the

they were obliged to remain

camp

to 400,

draw

kept his position in the

supplies from Tanjore, both

rajah, again disposed to league

plain.

It

his

Europeans had been reduced

was now

on account of the

impossible, however, to

distance,

with the enemy, discouraged

Tondeman's Country being thus the only

furnishing them.

were detached to
miles distant.

an opportunity should be foimd of joining

Major La\vrence, though

in safety.

still

till

them

collect

The want

at Killanore, a village in the

and because the

his

merchants fi'om

resource,

woods about twelve

body of horse was now severely

of a

400 sepoys

felt,

and the

presidency, on the suggestion of Major Lawrence, sent a deputy to the Rajah

of Tanjore, for the purpose of inducing
irresolute

and

crafty to

comply

;

him

to send a contingent.

and without declaring

for

any

He was

party,

too

resumed

game of neutrality. While the nabob and British were thus left \vithout
an ally, a new danger w^as discovered. Treachery was at work in the city and
the camp.
Though it was frustrated, the details are not unworthy of being

his old

recorded,
ji

iiiomed

Mahomed

Issoof,

who had

enlisted into the British ser\ace under Clive, ex-

Issoof.

celled alike in valom-

the chief
vice to

command

of

and stratagem, and gradually raised himself
all

Major Lawrence..

the sepoys.

Not

In

onl}^ did

this position

bj'

merit to

he rendered essential

ser-

he possess a perfect knowledge of the

country, and constantly procure intelligence of the enemy's movements, but he

planned

all

the marches of the convoys, choosing his times and his routes with so

SIEGE OF TItlCHINOroLV.

CiiAP.

VI.]

much

dexterity, that duiing three

41)7

months not one of the convoys of provisions

a.d. 1754.

coming from Tondeman's Woods was intercepted. The enemy were most anxious
Major Lawrence of his

to dei)rive

but having no hope of corrupting his

services,

by a bribe, endeavoured to effect
Brahmin, named Poniapa, acting as Indian
integrity

pos-sessed

much

by a very base

then* object

A

plot.

interpreter to the British, necessarily

of their confidence, and became privy to

most

tiieir

secret de-

This confidence, of which he was altogether miworthy, he shamefully

signs.

betrayed by entering into a secret coiTespondence with the enemy, and

mately engaging to act entirely in their

was resolved by

intercourse

it

he was too

much on

his

all

means

In the course of

interest.

Mahomed

to get rid of

—A

letter,

officer to

it

it,

carried

in their presence.

meet according

this guilty

Issoof

addressed by the Mysorean

Nunjeraj, was purposely placed so as to be intercepted.

interpret

jiahoiuea

but, as

;

guard to be cut off by any kind of assassination, the

following scheme was adopted:

obtaining possession of

ulti-

unseattemi-t

it

to

Captain Kilpatrick, on

Major Lawrence, who caused Poniapa

It desired

to promise

commander

Mahomed

to

Issoof and another sepoy

with some persons deputed by Kunjeraj, to

mode of betraying Trichinopoly, promising him, if the plot
Mahomed
succeeded, an immense sum in money, and various other advantages.
issoof and the other sepoy named in the letter were at once imprisoned, but a
the time and

adju-st

short investigation established their innocence,

and they were

now fell upon the proper party, and Poniapa,
make any confession of his guilt, was blown from

Sus-

released.

picion

thougli refusing to the last

to

a gun.

The

first

symiitom of a favourable turn in the

affiiirs

nabob and

of the

his

^\i'"'niiig
jKj.sitioii

British allies appeared about this time,

of the

wai",

demands

for

when Morari Row, who had become

picked a quarrel with Nunjeraj, by making some exorbitant

money, and, on being refused, withdrawing to an encampment on

the north l)ank of the Coleroon.

very disastrous

results,

Another

incident,

two

which at

On

terminated triumphantly.

of 120 Europeans and 500 sepoys, with

mand

the

1

field-pieces, set

first

2th of

threatened

May

out under the com-

miles south of the Sugar-loaf Rock, for a convoy of provisions which

ordered to advance from Tondeman's Woods.
old water-tank, nearly

They had nearly

retxched

it

by several

it

others.

when Mahomed

now

certain.

ously
right

place where they

Issoof,

two

had been

meant

to halt

mound was nearly entire.
who was riding in front, was

its

by the neighing of

his horse

advancing to reconnoitre, he was

and the answer

fired at

from the

The presence of the enemy
which the party had determined to wait for the convoy was

other side of the eminence
in the very tank in

On

The

choked up, though

surprised on ascending an eminence,
of

a pai'ty

of Captain Calliaud, at four in the moniing, intending to wait about

was an

tired

by

several French troopers.

Captain Calliaud immediately prepared for attack, and by dexter-

moving the sepoys on the left, while the Europeans wheeled round to the
flank, placed the enemy between two fires, and obliged them to abandon

the tank with precipitation.
Vol.

I.

The

da\'

was only dawning when the action began.
63

of

the British

498
A.u. 1754.

OF INDIA.

illSTOliy

but there was

now

[Book

sufficient light to perceive that the

Europeans, with four

field-piece.s,

enemy

III.

conaisted of 250

1000 sepoys, and 4000 Mysore

A

horse.

smart

cannonade immediately commenced, and both armies, attnicted by the sound,
immediately prepared to take part in the engagement.

manding
A

brilliant

in the absence of Major Lawrence,

into the city, hastened forward with

his

all

'

achievement.

,

the

enemy s army

sickness had obliged to retire

remaining troops, while the rest of

r

/»

i

whom

Captain Poher, com-

crossed over from Seringham.

When

the two armies were

On

thus pitched against each other, the inequality was seen to be enormoas.
the one side stood the British battalion, mastering only 3G0 men, 1500

and eleven troopers on the other
;

side

700 Europeans,

fifty troopers,

.sepoy.s,

5000 sepoys,

and 10,000 horse; fortunately, from the cause already mentioned, none of them
Mahrattas.
With such odds a decisive victory was scarcely possible and the
;

utmost, therefore, which Captain Polier proposed,

the camp.

The

was

to fight his

English, defiling from the tank into the plain,

way back

to

marched onward

in column, while the sepoys followed in a line at right angles with the rear of

the battalion, and extending beyond

it

both on the right and

they proceeded, galled by the enemy's .seven
their musketry,

which kept too

far

off"

to

field-pieces,

Captain

Polier,

who had

In

this

but suffering

manner

little

from

do much mischief, and without halting

reached a second tank about a mile nearer the
post,

left.

city.

Just as they reached this

previously been struck, received another wound,

which so disabled him that he was obliged to resign the command to Captain
Calliaud.

The

fight being

rence, although very
gates,
fate.

sides

ill,

now

visible

from the walls of the

ordered himself to be

ca,rried to

city.

Major Law-

the top of one of the

army was hemmed in, trembled for its
While the enemy's sepoys and cavalry were drawn up opposite to three
As the latter
of the tank, the fourth side was menaced by the French.
and there beholding how

his little

advanced, the three British field-pieces, brass six-pounders, capable of carrpng a
large quantity of grape-shot,

and admirably

few minutes nearly 100 of the French battalion were struck down.

dismayed at the havoc, showed signs of

faltering.

favourable moment, and sallying out with

In a

served, did fearful execution.

all

The

rest,

Captain Calliaud seized the

the Europeans, gave a volley so

well levelled that an indiscriminate flight immediately ensued, and continued

the fugitives were fairly out of cannon-shot.

The

rest of the

enemy were not

slow to follow the example, and the whole hastened back for Seringham
British, satisfied

with their victory, did not attempt pm-suit.

the convoy reached the

camp

in safety.

More depended upon

till

;

the

In the evening
its

arrival than

enemy seemed to have been aware of Had they succeeded in preventing
mere want of provisions would have obliged the victors to decamp for Tanjore

the
it,

the very next day.
Barbarous
proceeiliugs

of the
gugtiiv

...

.

The enemy, ashamed and enraged at their disgraceful defeat, sought to wreak
their vengeance in any quarter where it coidd be done without much danger,
and fixed upon Tondeman's Country, from which Trichinopoly had dra\yn the

greater part of

its

supplies after Tanjore

on the very second night
with

all his

all

hor.se,

The

had caused

invaders, in

gratify their impotent malice

a.d. 1754

suddenly entering that

his people to

remove with

their

was imposconsequence, could do nothing more than

their effects into the depth of the forests, whither

sible to follow them.

j'-,

The Polygar Tondeman, who

species of ravage.

their approach,

According!

to send them.

M, Maissin, the French commander,

after their defeat,

commit every

had some warning of
and

had ceased

Europeans, 3000 sepoys, and 2000

country, began to

cattle

499

SIEGE OF TRICHINOPOLY.

Chap. VI.]

by burning empty

it

Disappointed of the

villages.

plunder which they had anticipated, they carried their depredations into Tanjore.

Major Lawrence,
attacked,

in expectation that the rajah,

would apply

to

him

for assistance, set out

on seeing his country thus

'^1'^''^'!*^'"'

with his anny in order that

ante from

shomd be

ofTaujore

he might be at hand to comply with the application as soon as

it

made, and thus bind the rajah by interest to an alliance of a more durable nature
He, at the same time, ordered

than any he had yet been able to form with him.

the reinforcement at Devicotta to effect a junction with as

The very next day

sible.

after his arrival, a

little

delay as pos-

message from the rajah amved,

urging him to hasten his approach. The cause of this urgency was soon explained.

The

invaders, not contented with pillaging the country,

atrocious proceeding, which threatened to
barrenness.

It has

doom a

had been guilty of an

large portion of

to perpetual

it

been already mentioned that at Coilady the Coleroon and

Cauvery woiJd again unite were the junction not prevented by an
mound.

At

this point the level of the Colei'oon is

artificial

about twenty feet lower

mound is to prevent the whole
when it would run waste to the sea,

than that of the Cauvery, and the object of the

from being precipitated into the Coleroon,

and preserve the Cauvery

as a separate

and independent stream, which, employed

in irrigating the plains of Tanjore, renders

them almost fabulously

invaders had cut across this moimd, and afterwards cannonaded the
sent to repair

The

fertile.

workmen

it.

This attempt to starve a whole population in order to compel their sovereign
to adopt a certain political com-se, proved as impohtic as

it

was imqmtous

the only effect was to inspire the rajah with a deep hatred of those

employed such abominable means

to effect his ruin,

who had

and convince him that

only security against the repetition of such malice was a close and cordial
ance with the British presidency.
time, formed

for

;

his
alli-

Another event, which took place at the same

an additional inducement

to this alliance.

On

the invasion of

Tanjore the rajah despatched Ganderow, with 1500 horse, to Tricatopoly.

Morari

Row, who, after quan-elling with Nunjeraj, had fixed himself at Pitchandah, on
the north bank of the Coleroon, watching for any change of circumstances which
he might be able to turn to account, no sooner heard of the approach of Gan-

derow than he resolved
defeat,

to encounter him.

one of two objects would be gained.

If he succeeded in giving

The

him a

rajah, already frightened

the French and Mysorean invasion, would be glad to pay a large

sum

by

as the

imiwUcy
of

tiie

imi

JeeOiugs'^
^^^ French,

oUO
A.D. 17M.

.Miijori,aw-

lence in

Tanjore.

IlISTOJiV
of his retreat; or

})urcliast'

were

this

il"

OF INDIA.

Hi.

[i;«.oK

refused, the destruction of

Gariderows

detachment would avenge the slaughter of the Mahrattas, and the barbarities
practised on those of them who had been taken prisoners during a former cam,

,

Thus Stimulated both by

paign.

by

the Coleroon and Cauvery

_

interest

and revenge, Morari Row, crossin"

night, with .SOOO of

liis

best troops, surprised

Ganderow

at

day-

break, and so com-

defeated him

}»letely
tliat

only .300 of his

whole force escaped.

Major Lawrence
rived

ar-

Tanjore

at

only two days after

and was

this defeat,

consequently able to

with the

neirotiate

rajah under the most
The Great Pagoda, Tanjore.

The

stances.

was that Monacjee was not only reinstated

who had

prime minister in room of Succojee,
to a

his return,

_

of 1200 men, some of

them

topasses,

to enable

sufficient
•

The Company's

/•

the nabobship

and 3000 sepoys, with fourteen

As

tlie legal

heir of

was better than that of Mahomed

in the action in

t

i

force consisted of a battalion
field-

Maphuze

considerable reinforcement had also been expected under

Khan, the nabob's elder brother.

new

Vjut aj)pointed

were added 2500 Tanjorines and 3000 infantry, under Mon-

pieces; to these

A

an army

_

to copc with the enemy.

acjee.

command,

hitherto been the great obstacle

in possession of

,

him

in his

result

alliance.

Major Lawrence was again

Attempt to
intercept

permanent British

circum-

favouralile

— From Daniell's Views in India.

which

his father

was

slain,

Anwar- u- din,

his right to

but as he was taken

;

prisonei-

he was entirely overlooked in the

aiTangements, and on obtaining his liberty found

it

necessary, after con-

siderable hesitation, to recog-nize the validity of his brother's

title.

He

had, in

consequence, been placed at the head of a body of troops nominally belonging to
the nabob, but
so

many

him.

made them

entirely subservient to

own

pur^joses,

and found

army was at last obliged to set out without
by the nabob, therefore, were only his own

pretexts for delay that the

The whole troops furnished

guard of

liis

fifty horse.

On

entering the plains of Trichinopoly, encumbered with a

considerable convoy, Major Lawrence found that the enemy,
fixed their

camp

at the Five Rocks,

dispute his further progress.

had quitted

previously

and advanced eastward,

Both armies di'ew up in order of battle

the apparent resolution with which the French

engagement was expected.

it

who had

moved

;

to

and from

to the attack, a decisive

Suddenly, however, after enduring a destructive

—

SALABUT JUNG AND BUSSY.

Chap. VII.J

501

cannonade with great steadiness, they wheeled round before coming within ad.

musket

shot,

and began

Lawrence was preparing

to retreat

with some aj)pearance of confusion.

to [)ursue

when he

it.vj

Major

ascertained that the retreat of the

i^^fwitofa
btratagom.

French infantry was only a

an attack

feint to cover

The

u[)on the convoy.

plan was, that while the British battalion were engaged with the imagined pur-

Hyder, at the head of the Mysore horse, should wheel round and

suit,

the rear, where the baggage

and eagerness

osity

and provisions were

fall

upon

Hyders impetuBy making his attack

deposited.

for plunder frustrated the stratagem.

prematurely, he succeeded in carrying off only thirty-five carts, laden partly

with arms and ammunition, and partly with baggage belonging to the British

The

This loss was more than compensated by the result of the action.

officers.

French, besides sustaining a virtual defeat, had 100 of their battalion killed or

woimded, while

onl}' eight of the British

After proceeding to Trichinopoly

fell.

without further inteiTuption, and lodging the stores of provision in
zines.

its

maga-

Major Lawrence made several attempts to bring the enemy to a general

engagement.

Instead of accepting his challenges they retired as he advanced,

anrl finally quitted the plains

on the south side of the Cauvery, to establish

The commencement of the
and before a new campaign could

themselves once more in the island of Seringham.
rains prevented further military operations

;

be undertaken, a great change in French East India politics was effected.
various occurrences which preceded
sary

now

and contributed

To

to this change, it is neces-

to attend.

CHAPTER YIL
Proceedings of Salabut
tiation

Jung and Eussy

— Great accession of territory to the French — Attempts at nego-

— Dupleix superseded returns to France — New
— Destruction of pirates at Gheriah.

arrangements

— Arrival

of a British fleet

Keturn of Clive

ALABUT JUNG,

indebted for his appointment of Soubahdar of

the Deccan to French influence, naturally clung to Bussy, through

whom

the absolute disposer of his fortunes.
possessed talents which enabled
position, bui

him

made him almost
The French commander

that influence had been exercised, and

him

to take full

advantage of his

ioimd a strong party at Salabut Jung's court di.sposed to thwart

in all his proceedings.

At

the liead of this party

was Seid Laskar Khan,

though he hated Bussy in his heart, was such an adept in cunning that he
not only persuaded him of his sincere friendship, but had been invested with the

Lwho,

office

of

dewan by

liis

special

recommendation.

firmly seated in this office than he threw off the

I

No

sooner, however,

mask and took open

was he

part wnth

French
iiiflucnco in

the Ueccan.

JIISTORV OV INDIA.

502
A.D. 1752.

who were

those

jealous of Salabut Jung's French

[BiooK III.

take any steps that miglit seem necessary to counteract them.

on the watch
Attempt

to

an

for

ojiportunity, Bas.sy,

and departed, by the advice of

sick,

tageof

,.
ithtibusmess at Masulii)atam,

aiTeucl

territory, entirely a

take ajvaii-

and made

alert,

whom

it

Bussy had

now

French

and disposed

j>}irtialitie.s,

While they were

worn out by anxiety and

fatigue, fell

his physicians, to sequester liim.self

i

i

become, along

-iii
with a large

n

from
>

tract oi the adjoining

His enemies were immediately on the

posses.sion.

their first basiness to get rid of tlie

French troops and sepoys

behind, under the pretext that they were the best .security

left

deficient in personal courage

the troops

;

would have

and

sagacity,

tlius

foe.s,

under-

Salabut Jung,

difficult.

was unwilling

to part with

and the troops themselves, consisting of an European battalion and

5000 sepoys,

therefore,

The task

for the purpose of controlling his measures.

taken by the dewan and his associates was delicate and

who was

all

•

^

of Salabut Jung's person and autliority agaiast both foreign and intestine

but really

to

by

paid

all

resisted

Bus.sy himself

any overt attempt

were resorted

First,

to.

and acting entirely under

to disband them.

liis

orders,

Underhand measures,

the pay which had been furnished at certain

was withheld; and when the troops complained, the reason

regular periods

assigned was, that several of the provinces at a distance from Hyderabad, where

the soubahdar was then holding his court, had failed to replenish the treasury

by

the usual

payment of revenue. As the most

efiectual

remedy,

that the troops should be sent to enforce the collection of

was suggested

it

it.

By

thLs device

they allowed themselves to be scattered over the country in detached
Bussy-s
return.

parties.

One important difficulty being thus overcome, the dewan next persuaded
Salabut Jung that his presence was imperatively required at Aunmgabad.
Here the mere distance from the French settlements tended greatly to diminish
French

influence, while the absence of the greater part of the battalion

sepoys removed

all

appreliension of danger from

might have been disposed to

ofi'er

secret orders

prevail,

.

given orders to

difficulty

credit

because thwarted

little progress,

all

it,

Bussy, informed of the state of

made

his appearance in

by

him

He had
there,

previously

and hence on

head of 500 Europeans and 4000 sepoys.

having appeased their discontent, and

by money obtained

and the causes

afiairs,

Hyderabad.

the scattered detachments to meet

his arrival found himself at the

wants,

made

Disappointment, clamom*, and desertion had consequently

when

which had produced

some

Meantime the

from the dewan himself, and their pay in consequence became more

irregular than ever.

begun to

any opposition which they

to the removal of the court.

troops sent to collect the revenue

and

satisfied their

"With

most pressing

partly from the treasmy and partly on his

own

with native bankers, he took the bold resolution of marching uncalled

with his whole force to Aurungabad, a distance of 300 miles.

What had now

occm-red might be repeated, and he was determined that in future the pay of

would be drawn from some source over which the French Companj'
and undivided control.

his troops

had

full

LARGE ACQUISITIONS BY THE FRENCH.

Chap. VII.]

503

After a considerable delay, caused by the rainy season, he commenced his

Khan and

Seid Laskar

march.

his adlierents

were in consternation, but many

reasons inclined Bussy to act with moderation.
to

Instead of advancing directly

Aurungabad, he halted at some distance, to give an opportunity
n

011T
i-n retained
balabut Jung, who

•>•

for the

still

his

French

was ready at once to concede whatever might be asked of him and
dewan, who had at one time bethought himself of taking refuge in the

partialities,

the

^'«" <"
raiigementa.

•

adoption of conciliatory measures,

a.d. iros.

;

Dow-

strong fortress of
letabad,

was delighted

to

discover that his peace

could be

which

made on terms

personally

Bussy had

liim nothing.
still

cost

more reason

satisfied,

for the

to be

object

of his journey had been
fully accom})lished.

payment of

The

troops

his

had formerly depended
on sources which misfht
off

by

acci-

dent or design;

it

was

be cut

easily

now
fered

DowLETABAD.-^From

Elliott's

Views in the East.

by the allotment of a permanent revenue, not liable to be interwith by native officials, but i)laced under the absolute control of the

secured

French East India Company.

This revenue was derived from a tract of

country called the Northern Circars, which, along with Masulipatam and the
adjoining district previously ceded, made the French absolute masters of a line Great accesof torT
ot coast extending about GOO miles along the Bay of Bengal, from the n too- to the
81(111

.

mouths of the Kistna to the Temple of Juggernaut, near
rate

estimate

sterling.

tlie

revenue of the whole could not be

This immense gi-ant having been

maintenance of the French troops, was
these troops should be

would

when

suffice to

employed?

made with a

strictly

it

At a mode-

than £500,000

less

special

\dew to the

speaking revocable the

withdrawn from Salabut Jung's

tingency was then contemplated, and
stood that,

^'^"'''

lat. 20°.

sei-vice;

moment

but no such con-

appears to have been perfectly under-

the French were established in possession, nothing but force

deprive them of

it.

But how could such

force

be successfully

The chain of movmtains bounding the Circars on the west formed

an almost impassable barrier to any invasion from the Deccan, while
line of coast

made

easy, if attacked, to

it

French settlements in their defence.

Cii-cars

all

long

the resources of the other

This consideration had not escaped the

who endeavoured without success to tempt Bus.sy to
for an inland territory of much greater extent and value.

notice of the dewan,

exchange the

employ

theii-

IirsTORV

5()i

A,

I)

Tlie ambitious

IV.'.I.

OF-^

INDIA.

[Book HI

schemes which Dupleix had long meditated, and which

ainif.'d

at nothing less than the estahhshment of French ancendency throughout the

now in a

Decean, seemed
Negotiationa

war

fair

way of

being accomplished.

had been a serious

in the Carnatic

obstacle.

Hitherto, however, the

fonned a constant drain on

It

botweoii

the two

Company; and what was worse, did not compeasjite
by any adequate return. Beyond the Coleroon the p<jsition of affairs

the resources of the French

coinpaiiius

for the cost

was

more unfavoui-able

still

;

and, after

all

the exertions which had been made,

the superiority remained decidedly with the

come

some arrangement with these formidable

to

induced to quit the

rally follow

from

his employers
it

;

field,

a host of

difficulties

Could

rivals?

it

be

po.ssible Uj

If they could be

would at once disappear.

The

some such arrangement, and the advantages that would natu-

practicability of

deemed

Briti.sh.

it,

had been repeatedly urged upon the attention of Dupleix

and though he was

little

V>y

disposed to adopt a peaceful policy, he

expedient so far to defer to their wi.shes as to

make

formal proposals

of negotiation to the Madi'as presidency in the beginning of 17-)+.

The English Company, whose
were

still

more desirous

finances

had

suffered severely during the war,

to terminate hostilities,

presidency to embrace the

fu-st

and had repeatedly urged the

opportunity of securing so desirable a

result.

making the preliminary an-angements foi* a
conference.
The place selected for this purpose was the Dutch settlement of
Sadrass, situated on the road between Madras and Pondicherrv.
Here the
There was thus

little difficulty

deputies appointed
Contradictory

in

by the two companies met on the 3d

of January,

and opened

the business by mutually producing their proposed basis of negotiation.

It

was

jiro-

posals.

at once perceived that their views were totally iiTeconcilable.

pany

insisted that

Mahomed Ali should

be acknowledged

Tlie English

Nabob

Com-

of the Carnatic,

and the French that Salabut Jimg should be acknowledged Soubahdar of the
Decean in other words, each
;

had been

insisted that the other should jaeld the

at issue in the contest.

As matters

stood, Salabut

whole that

Jung and Mahomed

Ali were merely representatives of the two rival companies, and the recognition
of either without

any modification

of their powers, or

any

effectual

check on the

abuse of these, would have been to place the one company entirely at the others
This was too obvious not to be seen, and yet the negotiation was

mercy.

allowed to proceed, though there was no
start.

common

point from which

it

could

In the course of the discussions which followed, the French produced

seven patents, two from Muzzuffer Jung, four fi-om Salabut Jung, and one from
the Great Mogul.

Those from Muzzuffer Jung and Salabut Jung, inter

alia,

appointed Dupleix commander from the Kistna to Cape Comoiin, and gave him
the whole territories of Arcot and Trichinopol}' after

Chunda

Sahib's death

The patent from the Great Mogul was in the form of a letter confirming all the
grants which Salabut Jmig had made in favour of Dupleix and his allies.
The
English

Company

also professed to

Ghazi-u-din, and the Great

be in possession of patents from Nazir Jung,

Mogul giving and confirming

the nabobship of the

.

A BRITISH SQUADRON

CiiAP. VIT.]

Carnatic to

Mahomed

505

Though the patents thus founded upon were

Ali.

dictory and neutralized each other,

been genuine

EQUIPPED.

may

not impossible that they

it is

for at this period of political confusion in India, thei'e

;

contra- ad.

all

have

was

little

any kind of document that might be wished, provided a
sum of money was paid for it. Several suspicious circumstances, how-

1754.

difficulty in obtaining
sufficient

made

ever,

the genuineness of the patent from the Great Mogul, which the

French had produced, more than questionable.
of a former reign

and when attention was

;

The

seal

his possession at Trichinopoly

fruitless.

to be that

called to the circumstance, Dupleix,

instead of courting examination, suddenly withdrew

it

Mahomed AH

ments, on the ground that those which

was proved

Negotiations

and

other docu-

all liis

wjis alleged to

had been only promised, not

have in

As the

]iroduced.

production certainly ought to have been mutual, the objectit n was so far well

founded; the absurdity, shared alike by both parties, was in liypocritically endea-

vom-ing to give a semblance of legality and equity to acquisitions which had
originally been

made

in defiance of both,

and were

still

only maintained by the

After a large amount of quibbling and tergiversation, the whole nego-

sword.

Much

ended in smoke.

tiation

recrimination followed, and the only result was,

more exasperated than

to leave both sides

ever.

Company were placed
on their own resources,

In carrying on the war in India the English
disadvantage in being

left to

depend entirely

French Company were directly countenanced and supported by

They had

ment.

therefore good reason for the remonstrance

at a great

British gov-

while the

interferes.

tlieir

govern-

which they pre-

sented to the British ministry, calling vipon them to take the necessary steps
either to terminate the war, or to fm-nish the resources

The former

carried on.
in the East

alternative

was adopted, and the

to be

position of matters

After various conferences in London, between the Earl of Hol-

derness, principal secretary of state,

and two deputies sent over from

British ministry, dissatisfied with the little progress

made towards a

Paris, the

settlement,

by equipping a squadron of men-of-war for the
The French ministry, made aware by this decisive step that pro-

began to prepare

crastination

was

it

became the subject of an earnest correspondence between the two

governments.

East Indies.

by which

for the worst,

would no longer

avail,

began to act in

earnest,

and entered into an

arrangement by wliich the disputes of the companies were to be settled on a
footing of equality.

In

oi'der to carry

out this arrangement,

ally

have

fallen

on Dupleix

which he had

to that

all

;

was necessary

Had

that commissaries should be appointed to adjust the terms.

experience only been required, the choice of the French

it

talent

Company would

and

natur-

but the poUcy about to be adopted was so opposed

along pursued, that some degree of suspicion justly

attached to him, and he was considered ineligible.

But

if ineligible

to

be

appointed a commissary, to adjust the terms of a settlement, he was obviously
unfit to
to hold

Vol.

I.

be employed in giving

effect to

it,

the government of Pondicherry.

and could no longer be permitted

He was

therefore

superseded by
64

50G
A.D. 1754.

IIISTOIiV

M. Godeheu, a director of

tlie

INDIA.

(»[••

French Company, who arrived on the 2d of Augu.st,

1754, invested with absolute authority over
Duploix su-

East Indies.

(JcKloheu.

how Ijitterly Dupleix mast have felt when
Even when deprived of the substance of power lie

thus compelled to resign.

clung to

its

the French settlements in the

all

It is easy to conceive

by

|H!i-si)cle(l

[htJOK III.

shadow, and was permitted during the two montlw which elapsed

before he took his final departure for Eui'ope, to gratify his vanity

the dress and parading the streets with

the insignia belonging to him in his

all

imaginary capacity of Nabob of the Carnatic.

by such an
character,

Yet

and makes

his fate

him

exhibition proves

was

it

The

fact of his

much

interest in his future fortunes.

not only spent his

life,

but embarked his whole

From them,

fortune in the service of the French East India Company.

he was entitled to generous treatment.

fore,

even do him
still

twi)

pending when he

Immediately on

.X'P'eement
l)B;.ween

and he was obliged

justice,

died, ruined

his arrival,

being gratified

have been devoid of true dignity of

impossible to take

He had

hard.

to

by wearing

So

to seek

far
it

from

this,

by a law

there-

they would not

process,

which was

and broken-hearted.

M. Godeheu entered into communication Mnth

the

com-

Mr. Saunders, governor of Madras, and gave proof of his good faith and anxiety

pviiies.

by

for a settlement

releasing the

company of Swiss

who had been

soldiei*s

tured while proceeding in country boats for Fort

St.

A

David.

cap-

favourable

answer was returned, but meanwhile both parties continued their wai-like opera-

The French received a reinforcement of

tions.

1

200 men, of

whom

000 were

command of Fitscher, a partisan of some reputation a still
larger accession of force was made to the British, by the arrival of the squadron
above mentioned. It was commanded by Admiral Watson, and consisted of
hussars under the

;

three ships, of sixty,
several

Company's

command

ships,

and twenty guns

;

together A\dth a sloop of

was decidedly with the
inducing M. Godeheu to propose terms

effect in

once acceded
October,

superiority

British,

Its duration

1754.

was

Company

re-

and probably had some

so reasonable that they

so far as to justify a suspension of hostilities,

to,

war and

having on board the 49th regiment of 700 men, under

of Colonel Adlercron, forty royal artillerymen, and 200

The

cruits.

fifty,

fixed at three months;

were

at

on the 11th of

but before these

on the approbation of the two com-

expired, the terms of a treaty, conditional

panies in Europe, were adjusted, and became the basis of an eighteen months'
Its terms.

The leading

truce.

principle of the ti'eaty

was, that on the east coast of

India the two companies should be placed on a footing of peifect equality. With
this

view

it

was

government and
restore to

made

them

all

retain Devicotta,
;

that they should for ever renounce aU

dignity, never interfere in quaiTels

definitive,

to each

stipulated

places

George and Fort

and the French

St.

native princes, and

and possessions except those which the

should expressly reserve

that on the

among

Carrical,

;

Moorish

treaty,

when

that in Tanjore the English should

with the

districts at present attached

Coromandel coast the English should retain Fort St

David with

their present districts,

and the French Pondi-

I

AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE COMPANIES.

Chap. VI I]

cherry, with either

an additional

patam and the Gundlacama,

to

district or

new

a

507

settlement between Nizam-

a.d. i:m.

compensate for the deficiency of the settlement

and Fort

of Carrical compared with those of Devicotta

St.

David that

Masu-

at

;

lipatam a district should be formed equal in extent to the island of Divy in
the same vicinity, and then a partition should be

made by

miitual agi-eement,

giving the district to the one company and the island to the other

northward of Masulipatam, and within the Northern

;

that to the

company

Circars, each

should have four or five subordinate factories, merely as places of trade, without

any

them, and so situated as not to interfere with each other.

district attached to

Till the ti'eaty

was made

by

definitive

session should be retained

by both companies

of uti possidetis, but during the truce no

bound

the allies should either be

new

in conformity with the principle

acquisitions should be made,

to act in accordance with

the troops of both companies in the event of their

In this treaty the Fi'ench

Europe, existing pos-

its ratification in

Company

it,

or be repelled

making an attack upon

aj)parently

made

and

the larger

by

either.

sacrifice. AmWgnitica

Their revenues within the territorial limits over which the treaty extended had

been augmented dming the war to at least

by the English Company

accpiired

ing of
for

of
ills

its

between these two smns.

Such at

leading stipulations, and yet

Bussy's connection with Salabut
it

and, as

;

if in

made over

to

£U)(),()()0.

By

tho.se

consenting to an

it

least

seems to be the plain mean-

must have been understood

Jung underwent no change

dift'erently,

in consequence

direct defiance of the very first article, he continued to fight

battles as before.

otherwise, as

short of

fell

per annum, while

they renounced an income nearly equal to the whole

eciuality of possession,

difierence

£70().(1()()

treaty,

may

It

be alleged that

it

was impossible

for

him

to do

was the condition on which the Northern Circars had been
him.
The moment the troops were withdrawn, the Circars would

tliis

iiave reverted to the niler of the Deccjin,

and thus the

princi})le of uti possidetis,

which, according to another stipulation, was to be maintained so long as the
treaty remained only conditional,

damage of the French Company.
tilities

was only

woidd have been
In point of

violated, to the manifest

fact, then,

the suspension of hos-

and while the English Company were

partial;

specially excluded

from attempting anything in the Carnatic, there was nothing to prevent the
French

Company from

entleavoining, through the intervention of Buss}-, to

extend their infiuence, and pave the

ascendency in the Deccan.

Haw

in the treaty.

s\ilted,

wake

The

It

allies

way

for the establishment of a complete

soon appeared that this was not the only serious

had been made parties to

it

without being con-

and could not understand why they should be obliged

of foreign mercenaries, and

jeraj, in particular,

he would never
Trichinopoly.

make

to follow in the

peace and war at their dictation.

Nun-

continued to linger in Seringham, and openl}^ declared that

(jult it

excepting for the purpose of making himself master of

The nabob on

fear of the ^Ivsorean.

now

his part

was equally warlike and having
;

little

that the French were under an obliiration not to

other

508
A.I). 1755.

IlISTOKY OF INDIA.

assist him,

began to meditate an expedition

Strange to say, the Madras presidency, as
as a dead letter,

if

[Book

again.st

Madura and

Tinnevelly.

they had already regarded the treaty

were no sooner applied to than they agreed to furnish

Eur-opeans and 2000 sepoys for this expedition.
against this proceeding as a violation of the truce

example in the Deccan,

setting a similar

III.

The French

thern.selves

was paid

attention

little

rernonstrat<5d

hut as they were

;

'>()()

to tlieir

remonstrance.

The nabob and

Hostilities

Maphuze Khan, who was now acting

his brother,

as his repre-

vosumed.

sentative in the countries south of the Coleroon, joined the expedition with

1000 horse; but the detachment was commanded by Lieutenant-colonel Heron,

an

officer lately

Madras

anived from England.

witli the

rank of lieutenant-colonel in the king's service

which, so far from rewarding
sate for the

superior

marked

officer,

Major Lawrence had previously

him according

—an

left for

honour

even compen-

to his merit, did not

which he received when Colonel Adlercron, as

slight

superseded him in the chief

command

his

of the Briti.sh forces in

The expedition set out in the beginning of February, 1755, and, after
some detention and loss among the Colleries, one of whose polygars made a
India.

vigorous resistance, gained undisputed possession of Madura.

no

resistance,

It

was soon

and

all

Tinnevelly

the surrounding country professed submission to the nal^ob.

found, however, that the submission

was only nominal.

The

bute promised was not paid, and the whole amount of revenue realized

In consequence of

short of the expenses of the expedition.

most unsatisfactory

result,

this

tri-

fell

far

unexpected and

a rigid inquiry was instituted, and Colonel Hunter,

by

convicted of having increased his private fortune
sacrifice of his public duties,
Mysore

made

was dismissed the

presents obtained at the

sei'vice.

During these transactions the Mysoreans, who had continued to linger at

threatened.

Seringham, in the hope that force or intrigue might yet put them in possession

marched

of Trichinopoly, suddenly

threatening their

own

off"

to

Balajee

territory.

with his devastating Mahrattas, and at the
cing at the head of an

army

army

meet a double danger which was

Rao had appeared on the frontiers
same time Salabut Jung was advan-

consisted of the French battalion headed

found himself in a very awkward position.

by Bussy, who

By the

how could

he, as

him to
the avowed servant of the French Company,

take part in an expedition against the Mysoreans, with

been and stiU were in alliance ?
dexterous diplomacy.

By

From

from

his

this

whom

pleased

they had long

dilemma Bussy relieved himself by

Jung

as a protector against the threatened

Balajee Rao, thus intimidated,

intended invasion

it

acting as a mediator between the parties he induced

the Mysoreans to accept Salabut

Mahratta invasion.

in consequence

terms of his service he could

not refuse to follow Salabut Jiuig on any expedition wliich
undertake; and yet

Pai-t of this

to exact alleged arrears of tribute.

;

and Salabut Jung,

after

was

easily bribed to desist

encamping under the walls

of Sei'ingapatam, consented to an aiTangement which gave

him a

large

sum

in

THE ANGRIA PIKATES.

Chap. VII.]

payment of past

509
in the futm'e pajTnent of ad.

and a promise of punctuality

airears,

1713.

tribute.

The

squadron under Admiral Watson, having? no prospect of active

Britisli

employment on the Coromandel

coast while the treaty

November

panics subsisted, retm'ned in the beginning of
considerable

number

between the two comto

Bombay.

Arrival of

Bombay,

Here a

of troops had recently arrived from England, for the pur-

pose of acting in concert with Balajee
to undertake against

Rao

in

an expedition which he had

Aurungabad, the capital of the Deccan.

agi-eed

was hoped

It

that Salabut Jung, tlius attacked, would be frightened into a compromise, and

induced to break off his connection with Bussy, as the only effectual means of
securing his

own

This expedition had been planned in England before

safety.

was known, and the presidency of Bombay, taking the change of circumstances into consideration, resolved to abandon
the conditional treaty with the French

who had

Clive,

it.

arrived with the troops with the rank of colonel in the

and the appointment of governor of Fort

king's service,

that the expedition would not

amount

the

;

more

and

to a violation of the treaty,

that no time should be lost in carrying

was overruled

David, was of opinion

St.

it

His opinion, however,

into effect.

easily, perhaps, that

ui-ged

the original

command

of the ex-

was unquestionably best
entitled to it, but to a Colonel Scott, on whom ministerial influence more than
merit had conferred it. By Scott's death, indeed, Clive had actually succeeded to
the command, but the presidency were not to be moved from the view they had
pedition had been destined, not to him, though he

at first
force

taken

then at

;

and

it

was determined

Bombay on

to

employ the whole naval and military

another expedition, as to the justice and expediency

of wliich no doubt could be entertained in

The west

coast of India

preyed indiscriminately on
carried

qviarter.

had long been infested by a body of
tlie vessels

on their depredations

have become in

any

of

all

so boldly, systematically,

fact a formidable naval power.

first

fleet,

and in

this capacity held the

and

Kanhojee

acquired importance, was at one time

they

and

nations, native

pirates,

who

foreign,

and

successfully, as to

Angi'ia,

commander

under

whom

of the Mahratta

government of Sevemdroog, a strong

fort

situated on a small rocky island close to the coast, about seventy-eight miles

south from Bomba}'.

In course of time, finding himself strong enough, he

{\spired to independence,

and having gained over a large portion of the

his old masters at defiance.

to the Mahrattas,

who were not

tered on shore, that they at
for

A war ensued,
last,

a promise of allegiance and

and sixteen places of
be supposed that
dations, he

when he had

would forthwith

sea,

but so vigorously encoun-

1713, consented to a peace which, in return

tribute, left

less strength,

Kanhojee in possession of ten

with their dependent

villages.

thus succeeded in reaping the

desist

set

but the residis were so unfavourable

only worsted at

m

fleet,

from them.

On

fi-uits

It is not to

of his depre-

the contrary, he

emboldened to extend them, and continued to levy what he called

forts

liis

was only
chout by

The Augria

.-,10

A.D.i72o^

JnSTOJiY OF l.\DL\.

the indiscriminate

whole
The Angria
pirates.

i)lun(lei-

of

all

[Hook HI.

came within

ships that

Along the

his reacli.

from the vicinity of Bombay southwards to that of Goa, his vessels,
protected by forts, and sheltered within creeks and the mouths of the numen,uK
coast,

small streams which descend from the Western Ghauts, lay ready to j>ounce «,n
any hapless vessel that might chance to heave in sight. In carrying on tlieir

depredations the pirates derived great

from the nature of

facilities

tlie

naviga-

The sea and land breezes blow alteiTiately in the twenty-four hours,
dividing the day between them.
The land breezes, liowever, do not reach more

tion.

than forty miles out to
Their modo
of wai-fiire.

sea,

and hence

keep witliin that distance from the

vessels, in order to profit

by them, must

They were thus oblicred to run into
the very danger which they were anxious to avoid, and fell a frequent and eas}coast.

prey to Kanhojee's
•and gallivats.

fleet of

The.se

two

grubh

classes

of vessels, which, for mercantile
are

purposes,

still

in

common

use on the Malabar coast, were

admirably adapted for predator}'

The

warfare.

grab.s, varj-ing in

burden from 300 to 1 50 tons, and

made broad

in

proportion

to

their length, for the purpose of

drawing
A Grab i-From

little

water, canied a

Solyyn, Les Hindous.

number of gUnS, twO of them
from nine to twelve pounders, placed on the main deck so as to fire through portholes over the prow, and the rest, usually six to nine pounders, fitted to give a
broadside.
The gallivats, which never exceeded seventy tons burden, comldned
the double advantage of sailing and
sail,

they were provided with forty to

act as tugs to the grabs,

an

row

horn'.

Thus attacked,

Her enemies keeping

and
it

pull

was

Besides a very large triangular

boats.

fifty stout oars,

them even

which enabled them

to

in a calm at the rate of foiu* miles

scarcety possible for a merchant vessel to escape.

at first at a safe distance, plied her with shot

till

they had

dismasted her or thoroughly damaged her rigging, and then, as she lay helpless
in the water, either compelled her to stiike, or boarded her

by sending forward

a number of gallivats, each with from 200 to 300 men.
F.iiiureof

xiie East India

negotiations

with them.

Company
i

tried both force

./

with Kanhojee.
and negotiation
o
.'

After an ineffectual attempt to coerce him in 1717, Mr. Charles Boone, then

governor of Bombay, tried the
ber, 1720, received

'

This

is

effect of

a written remonstrance, and in Novem-

a long and rambling, but

a ship with three masts, a pointed prow,

and a bowsprit. Its crew consists of a nicodar or
captain, and a few clashics or Moorisli sailors.
The
grabs are built at Bombay, where it appears that
navigation was brought to some degree of perfection

verj''

characteristic answer, in

which

The pointed prow which
Hindoo connot met with in any other countri*.

at a very early period.

distinguishes the grab belongs to the

and is
The Portuguese have imitated

struction,

ships.

— Solvyn,

Lcs Mindous.

it

in their Indian

Kariliojee, instead of

"As

acted, says:

God

for

;

seeking to disguise or palliate the principles on which he

touching

desire of possessing

tiie

what

give to another.

way

of the

gives nothing immediately from himself, but takes from one to

Whether

and

this

am

behoves the merchants, I
lence, insults,

this is the

a.d. 1755.

do not

another's, I

is

merchants exempt from this sort of ambition, for

find the

world

511

THE ANGRIA PIRATES.

Chap. VII.J

piracies,

is

right or no,

who

is

able to determine

say our government

is

forasmuch as Maharaja (which

is

sure, to

war against four kings, founded and established
introduction and beginning, and whether or no

by

supported by vio-

making
This was our

Sevajee),

kingdom.

his

It little

?

government

these waj^s this

hath proved durable, your excellency well know.s so likewise did your prede-

and the former three ships of the

forces,

an attack on the strong

power

latter furnishing the land

In 1722 the British and Portuguese, the

cessors."^

under Commodore Matthews, made

line

different

against

Kolabah, at that time the chief seat of Kanhojee's

fort of

but his usual good fortune, or the cowardice of the Portuguese, saved

;

him; in 1724 the Dutch, with seven

made an

troops,

ships,

two bomb- vessels, and a body of
These

equally imsuccessful attempt on Viziadroog or Gheriah.

ignominious failures strengthening a prevalent belief that the forts attacked

were really impregnable, the reduction of them was abandoned as hopeless and
;

as the only other alternative, the

Company were reduced

to the necessity of

giving convoy to their merchant ships by means of a naval force, which was

The expense of

maintained at an annual expense of £50,000.

was not the worst part of

it.

Humiliating as

it

was,

it

this expedient

proved unavailing

;

and

Kanhojee, only emboldened by the ineffectual resistance opposed to his ravages,

continued them with more daring, and on a more extended

At

scale.

end of 1728, he was possessed of immense wealth, a powerful

in the

territory stretching 100 miles along the coast,

Kanhojee Angria

left

were recognized as his

two legitimate and three

successoi-s,

and fixed their

and the other at Severndroog.

by domestic

partly

and backward

dissensions

It

Kolabah

Ultimately, after various changes, produced

and partly by foreign

troops under Colonel Clive were

influence, the succession

who made Gheriah

now about

W'at.son

his

and the

His depredations

to be employed.

not bearing his passport had been severely

all ships

and a

The former

residence, the one at

was against him that the squadron under Admiral

committed on

fleet,

to the mountains.

illegitimate sons.

passed to one of the illegitimate sons, called Toolajee,
capital.

his death,

felt,

as well

by the Mahrattas as by the Bombay presidency; and both as early as 1751 had
come

to a

steps,

however, were not taken

given
siiips

mutual determination

new
of

the last

till

him down

1755.

as a

common enemy.

The very year

Actual

before, the pirates

had

proof of their formidable power, by attacking at once three Dutch

fifty, thirty-six,
;

to put

and

it

was

and eighteen guns, burning the two

tii-st,

and capturing

resolved, at the earnest entreaty of Balajee Bajee Rao, the

Peishwa, to attack Toolajee Angria both by land and
'

Duff's History of the Mahrattas, vol.

i.

sea.

p. 459.

At

this time neither

Successful

tmaei
jam^!'""^''

512
AD.

1755.

IIJSTORV OF INDIA.

[Book

Admiral Watson's squadron nor the troops from England had
land forces were accordingly furnished entirely

arrived.

by the Mahratta«, who

111.

1'he

of course

retained the

command

under

marine

the Protector, of forty-four giins, with a ketch of sixteen gurw, and

James.

two bomb-vesscLs, and a Mahratta

snccesHfui

force,

placed under the sole

sufficiency,

its

them

command

the ships, consisting of the Company's

Init

;

fleet

of the

of seven grabs and sixty gallivats, were

Company's chief naval

This great armament mitst have

James.
of

of

made

officer.

Commodore

almost impossible to doubt

it

and yet such was the exaggerated idea entertained of the

strength of Angria's

forts,

that the presidency instructed the

commodore

by attack-

tent himself with blockade, instead of risking the safety of his vessels

ing them.

were the

If such

Mahrattas for being

still

fears of the presidency,

more timorous.

On

to con-

we can hardly blame

the

anchoring fifteen miles north of

Severndroog, and disembarking the troops, in number 10,000, to proceed the rest

way by

of the

land,

Commodore James

learned that the enemy's fleet

securely at anchor within the harbour of Severndroog,

upon

it

sible.

and might, by stealing

make

during the night, be so effectually blockaded, as to

He made his arrangements

accordingly

;

was lying

escape impos-

but the Mahratta admiral, after

promising liberally to second him, soon found that he had promised more than

he was able to perform.
as

much perhaps from

His

officers

refused to stir before morning

Commodore James,

ooote.

and

thus,

treachery as from cowardice, appeared in sight only in

time to alarm the enemy, and enable them to put to sea with
Capture of
L^ 6 V G nidxo o ff
it fruitlcss,
and Ban-

;

after a chase, continued

retumcd to Severndroog.

all

their ships.

made

the approach of night

till

Beside the fort of this

name on

the island,

there were three other forts on the mainland, within point blank distance of
These, though originally built for the purpose of keeping

wards

fallen into Angria's hands,

it

in check,

and now formed part of

its

had

engaged in laying siege to the land

forts.

Such

at least

after-

defences.

returning dispirited from the chase, the commodore foimd the Mahratta

it.

On
army

was the name which

they gave to their operations but there could not be a more ludicrous misnomer,
;

for

they were firing only from a single gun, a four-pounder, at the distance of two

miles.

To keep up a blockade

have been worse than

futile;

for the purpose of assisting such besiegers

and

it

was therefore evident

would

that, if the instructions

which the excessive caution of the Bombay presidency had dictated were

literally

observed, this expedition against the Angria pirates would necessarily prove,
like the others

which had preceded

it,

a complete

failure.

Rather than expose

Commodore James determined to
The resiJt
the effect of a bombardment.

himself and his employers to such disgrace.
act on his

own

soon justified

responsibility,

Ms

decision.

and try

In the course of a single day Severndroog, wliich

imaginary fears had magnified into an impregnable
truce,

and the land

forts

brilliant exploit the fleet
fortified island of

fortress,

hung out a

almost immediately followed the example.

and army proceeded north

six miles,

flag of

After this

and attacked the

Bancoote, which yielded almost without a show of resistance.

THE ANURIA PIKATES.

Chap. VII.]

The Mahratta commander was

so elated

by a

513

success

which

far

exceeded his ad.

utmost hopes, that he endeavoured to tempt the commodore by an
200, 000 rupees to continue his career of victory,

and complete

offer of

by the

it

1-55.

captiu-e

of Dabul, another of Angria's strongholds, situated on the coast about eight

The commodore's own wish would have been

miles farther south.

to

comply

with this proposal, but having already exceeded his instructions he did not ventiure

In the hope of obtaining

to act without express sanction.

Protector to Bombay.

off in the

it,

he hastened

Here, however, notwith.standing his unex-

pected achievements, the presidency were

still

haunted by doubts and

fears,

and

he was reluctantly compelled to desist from further operations.

Such was the

state of matters

when

the

Bombay

presider:cy,

by

the arrival

Tooiajee

Angria's

of

Admiral Watson and Colonel

Clive,

found themselves

in

possession of a

stronghold.

powerful force, for which, from their determination not to employ the troops in
the Deccan, as originally intended, they had no immediate

(

ccasion.

In these

work which Commodore James had so ably begvm, naturally
and it was determined to strike at the root of Tooiajee Angria's

circumstances, the

suggested

itself,

by attacking Viziadroog or Gheriah. This place, situated about 170
south of Bombay, was very imperfectly known by Euiopeans, and figured

j)Ower

miles

in their

and

imaginations as a fortress

at least equal to

it

actuall}^

on an inaccessible rock,

So prevalent was

in strength.

deemed prudent, before

With

built, like Gibraltar,

th.e idea,

that

it

was

undertaking the expedition, to reconnoitre.

view Commodore James proceeded with the Protector and two other

tliis

ships, and,

undeterred by the

fleet

which lay crowding

sufficiently near to the fort to obtain a full

Gheriah, though undoubtedly strong,

survey of

was very

far

harbour, advanced

tiie

His report was, that

it.

from being impregnable.

Its

was a rocky promontory, connected with the mainland by a narrow belt
of sand, and stretching south-west about a mile in length by a quarter of a mile
in breadth.
The face of the promontory all roimd, where washed by the sea,
site

formed a continuous precipice about
cations,

fifty feet high.

Above

this rose the fortifi-

The sandy isthmus

consisting of a double wall flanked with towers.

contained the docks where the grabs were built and repaired

;

and immediately

beyond, on the north, was the harbour. i)artly formed by the mouth of a stream

which descended from the Ghauts.

Commodore James returned from

his survey in the

end of December, 1755;

Prcimrations

but nearly six weeks were afterwards spent in making preliminary aiTangements Man united

Some

of these related to the terms

were to co-operate, and
to obtain

Bancoote and

should belong to the
the spoil which

it

on which the Company and the Mahrattas

was expressly

five adjoining villages in perjietuity, Gheriah, if taken,

latter.

Another an-angement related

was expected

VoL.

I.

this an-angement, the

to the distribution of

to fall to the actual captors.

governments could not well interfere

making

were

stipulated, that while the former

;

but

undoubted

it is difticult

title

to

With

this the

two

understand how, in

of the Mahrattas to a fair ])ropor65

.

'^"
^^^^^f,^^
atta

force.

'

5

A.D

175C

1

HISTORY or INhTA.

1-

tion

was

Without j)aying

altogetlior overlooked

mittee of ten

I

tlie

least regard

Hook

J

11.

a com-

t/j it,

representing the British naval and military forces about Uj

officers,

be employed, met at Bomljay, and made a distribution among themselves of the
Dispute regarding the
Uistrilmtion
<>f

whole anticipated prize-money.

In thus excluding their

whicii they manifested, that the
to the principle of division

to the

two

services

adopted

the British were

So mercenary, indeed, was the

guilty of an act of premeditated injustice.

juize-

allies

were on the point of

Olive's

(quarrelling as

rank as colonel entitled him only

same share of prize-money as a naval captain

;

but

was contended on

it

the part of the ai-my, that his position as their commander-in-chief entitled
least to share equally

mand

make up

the difference claimed out of his

doubtless, generosity in the sacrifice thus offered

when

rosity also in the conduct of Clive, who,
to £1000,

at

would have

neither service would give way, the quarrel

proved serious had not Admiral Watson succeeded in terminating
teering to

him

with Rear-admiral Pococke, who was only second in com-

As

in the navy.

spirit

was afterwards tendered

own

volun-

it Ijy

There was,

pocket.

by Admiral Watson, and gene-

the actual deficiency, amounting

to him, refused to accept

it

but

;

it

would have

been more creditable to them.selves individually, and to the ser\aces over whicii
they presided, had they in the
allies,

first

instance recognized the just claims of

theii-

and afterwards, instead of countenancing steridy rebuked the higgling

and rapacious

whole transaction,

On

manifested by their subordinates.

spirit

it is difiicult

to agree

a review of the

with Sir John Malcolm,

who

thinks

it

"pleasing on this occasion to record the conduct of both the naval and the mili-

tary commanders," though at the same time he cannot refrain fi'om censuring

"that

spirit of plunder,

which actuated
Ex])e(iition

ag

liiist

Glieriali.

all

and that passion

for the rapid accumulation of wealth

ranks."

The expedition, consisting of four ships of the line, and other vessels,
amounting in all to fourteen, having on board a battalion of 800 Eiu-opeans and
1000 sepoys,

sailed in the

The Mahratta army,

beginning of February, 1756.

under Ramajee Punt, had previously advanced from Choul, a town and seaport
twenty- three miles south of Bombay.

On

the appearance of the

Angi'ia, in alarm, left the defence of the fort to his brother,

Mahratta camp, where he endeavoui'ed to avert his
accommodation.

Had

fleet,

Toolajee

and repau-ed

fate, b}'

to the

proposing teims of

he succeeded, the Mahrattas, on gaining possession, would

amply compensated themselves for the meditated injustice of
The British, conxdnced that this
excluding them from a share of the plunder.
doubtless have

was

their intention,

good a justification
their arrival.

and perhaps conscious that their own conduct afibrded too
The morning afteiof it, saw that no time was to be lost.

Admiral Watson having summoned the

answer, gave orders to prepare for action.
divisions

only

The

fleet,

fort

without recei\-ing any

drawn up

on the north side of the promontory, opened on the

fifty yards,

with

1

The Life of Robert, Lord

Clive, vol.

i.

]>.

1.35.

two

parallel

fort at the distance of

50 pieces of cannon and the mortars of
'

in

five

bomb-ketches

;

Chap.

CAPTURE OF GIIERIAH.

VI I]

olo

Within ten minutes, one of the grabs which crowded the harbour was set on

by a

shell,

and the whole of the

the terror of the Malabar coast,

piratical tieet,

was

which

the enemy's

in,

ad.

itso.

had been

for tifty years

Before night set

in flames.

fire

f^heriaii
attacketl.

fire

was

silenced,

but no surrender was

would be obliged

fort

to succumb,

There was

offered.

doubt

little

and the great question now was how

the

tiiat

to secure

According to the report of a deseiter the iMahrattas were to be put in

the spoil.

[)Ossession of the place

Wiiat would then become of the

on the following day.

prize-money, about the distribution of which the two services had been prematurely quarrelling at
vestige of

and

it

Bombay?

Once

accessible to such dexterous pillagers, every

This was to be prevented at

would speedily disappear.

therefore, as if the capture of the fort

as if the Mahrattas, to

whom

all

had been only a secondary

the delivery of

guaranteed by treaty, had no right to take

it

hazards
object, or

in the event of its capture

landed his troops,

pos.session, Clive

and took up a position commanding the only approach

was

by

to the fort

The

land.

Mahratta commander, finding himself outwitted by this manceuvi'e, made secret
overtures to Captain Buchanan, the officer on picket, and offered

Bombay

for

80,()()()

The

people to pass.

rupees (£8000)
bribe,

if

on

which would have rendered the receiver infamous,
is

a circumstance worthy

of notice as elucidating the character of the times, tliat the

common honesty

bill

he would permit him and a few of his

was indignantly rejected; but, as Duff remarks,^ "it
thought

him a

so rare, as to present Ca})tain

Bombay government

Buchanan with a gold

medal in consideration of his extraordinary good ])ehaviour."

The Mahrattas having been excluded

access to the fort the

bombardment

was renewed, and at length, on the afternoon of the second day, on an intimation

by the garrison

to the

advanced guard of the troops on

shore, that they

were ready to surrender, Clive marched up and took possession.

had reason to congratulate themselves on their good

foi'tune.

nonade had

still

works, the rock

destro}'e(l the artificial

wark, against which,

if it

in

Within the

money and

fort

were found 200

and military

amount of £1 20,000.
Bombay. The Mahrattas got

sum was divided as originally arranged at
nothing, and when they complained were told that whatever

claim they might

have had was forfeited by the treacherous attempt to bribe a British
obtain possession for themselves.
it is

want of good

It

stores

other effects to the

This

of the case,

can-

formed a natimil bul-

pieces of cannon, six brass mortal's, a great quantity of naval

and value

Though the

had been valiantly defended, nothing could have

availed but regular approaches on the land side.

of aU kinds,

The captors

may

be so

;

officer

and

but, in considering the justice

remember that those who now accused them of
had been the first to set them an example. It has been

necessary to

fsvith

already mentioned, that in terms of a treaty

made between

the Conq)any and

the Mahrattas, the former obtained possession of Bancoote, with some dependencies,

and the

latter were, in the
'

flintor;/

event of

its

of the 3fahratias, vol.

capture, to obtain pos.se.ssion
ii.

p. Ot'l.

<

f

Giieri!.ii

5lfi

A.D.

17.Mi.

Ill.STUltV

Strange to say, the

Gheriah.
tiieir

part of the agreement.

by the Mahrattas, Mr.
gation on

Breiuli of

endeavoured to eva^le the

pleas so frivolous as to be disgraceful.

When

was indignantly

this

fulfil

was thought, would be a iiujst valuahl<
and therefore, when delivery was ajsked

Bourciiier, the governor,

and Bancoote was

great reluctance to

it

]>residency;

attem})ted,

[liooK III

Company now showed

Gheriali,

Bombay

acquisition to the

I.NDIA.

Ul-

At

first

obli-

a comjjromise was

offered to the Mahrattas in exchange for Gheriah.

refused, a list of grievances

was

concocted,

and the

faith to tlif

MaiirattuM.

Mahrattas were told tliat they

had

—they had not properly fixed the
delivered

the other

two were

all,

had nothing

frivolous

—and the

The

goods from the Dutch.

regarded as the worst of

—they had not

limits of the Bancoote cession

up the person of Toolajee Angria

for a supply of

perfomiing their part of the treaty

failed in

to

la.st

Peishwa had contracted

grievance, though evidently

do with the point in question, and

pretexts which scarcely deserved

examination.

Mr. Bourchier himself ultimately seemed ashamed of them, and the Mahratta-s

were put in possession of Gheriah.

and troops remained

Pendiiig the dispute the Eriti-sh .squadron

to influence the issue,

the beginning of April.

Shortly

reached on the 12th of May.

after,

and did not return

to

Olive's ultimate destination

June, 1756, the very day on wliich Calcutta

Dowlah, Nabob of Bengal.

was Fort

it

was

followed,

CHAPTER
Slate of Bengal

fell

St.

David.

office

on the

into the hands of Surajah

This event, with the causes which led to

momentous consequences by which

—Administration of

JaflSer

till

they sailed for Madras, which was

where, by a singular coincidence, he entered on the duties of his
20tli of

Bombay

must now be

it,

and the

traced.

YIII.

Khan, Shujah-u-din Khan, Serferaz Khan, and

Ali Verdy Khan.

ENGAL,

united as

it

usually

so important a branch of the

of

it

was with Behar and

Orissa,

formed

Mogul empire, that the government

became an object of ambition

to the leading

members

of the

imperial famil}", and the aspirants to the throne of Delhi were

more than once indebted
State of

furnished

by

its

revenues.

for their success to the sinews of

war

In the war of succession which was waged on the

Beiigiil.

death of Am*ungzebe, Bahadur Shah, who, as the
possessed the best

title,

would

in all probability

eldest

have found

son,
it

undoubtedly

unavailing, had

he not been opportunely furnished with the means of carrying on the contest by
the arrival of his son, Azim-u-Shan, with the treasures which he had amassed
as Viceroy of Bengal.

At

a later period, when, on the death of Bahadui- Shah,

j

HISTORY OF JAFFIEK KHAN.

Chap. VIII.

Azim-u-Shan made an

who

of his elder brother,

attempt to seize

ineffectual

succeeded,

and reigned

for

tlie

517

throne, to the prejudice

a short period mider the

ad

itot.

title

of Jehandar Shah, Faroksiiir, Azim-u-Shan's son, found an asylum in Bengal,

stJit«of

Buugal.

where he had

he remained secure
victorious,

till

least,

held the

Vast

approaching

which Delhi may be said

political

when

office

of viceroy,

and where

he was able to issue at the head of a force which proved

and placed him on the imperial throne.

last instances in

Bengal.

nominally at

for a time,

to

These, however, were the

have received

its

emperors froin

changes were in progress, and the time was evidently

the authority of the Great Mogul, though

might

it

still

con-

tiime to be formally recognized, even in distant provinces, would cease to have

any

The

real existence.

causes tending to this result in Bengal were not so

visibly manifested as in the Deccan, but they

had long been at work, and had

made its governors virtually independent.
As early as the time of Aurungzebe, a governor of Bengal, who afterwards JaffierKiiaii.
acquired celebrity under the name of Jaffier Khan, had begun to cherish ambitious designs.
He was the .son of a poor Brahmin, and spent the early part of
his life at Ispahan, in the service of a Persian merchant,

as a slave,

and educated him as a Mahometan with

his

who had purchased iiim
own children. On the

death of the merchant he obtained his freedom, and returned to India, where he

by the Dewan of Berar. His expertness
in accounts and general business habits brought him under the notice of Am-ungThe latter
zebe, who made him dewan successively of Hyderabad and Bengal.
])osition gave him full scope for the display of his talents
and by the introduction of various improvements he added greatly to the amount of the revenue.
but at the same time incurred
He thus rose high in the favour of Aurunjjzebe,
o
was employed

in a subordinate situation

;

"•» ''^ij

>

.

.

the hatred of the viceroy, Azim-u-Siian,

who was

so offended

by

his interference

in all pecuniary transactions that he sanctioned a plot against his

much by

good fortune he escaped the daggers of the

his courage as his

and afterwards proceeding boldly

most

effectual

liis

As

Jissassins,

to Azim-u-Shan's j)alace, upbraided

him

as

The viceroy cowered before him, and made solemn

the author of the crime.
protestation of

life.

innocence

but the dewan was not to be duped, and took the

;

measures both to manifest his suspicions and guard against a
Besides transmitting an authenticated statement of

repetition of the attempt.

the whole circumstances to Aurungzebe, he quitted Dacca, where the viceroy
resided,

and removed, with

all

the

officei-s

in consequence ultimately supplanted
for the

dangers he had run

of the dewany, to Moorshedabad, which

Dacca as the

new honours were

capital of Bengal.

confeired upon

In return

him and
;

at

tiie

time of Aurungzebe's death he was not only dewan of the three pro\4nces of
Bengal, Behar, and

Ori.ssa.

but also invested with a large share of military

authority.

I

Fortunately for Jaffier

Khan

the contest for the succession to the throne

"history.

—

HISTORY OP INDIA.

.318

.\.p^i7i:i.

from

whom

lie

had most to

(Rook

Farokshir, indeed, was

fear.

;

left to

111.

act an liw father's

deputy, })ut his authority, never confinned at Delhi, was easily set at nought;
jatHtr

government,

and

Jaffier

Khan, bearing, among other lofty

which Aurungzebe had confened upon him, that of naivah, or nabob, continued to extend and con.s(4idate
his power.
All important and confidential situations were filled by his own
titles

and dependants; and though he had many enen.ies at court, he was
render all their machinations powerless, by the regularity with which

relations

able to

he transmitted the revenue, increased by his exertions from £1,000,000 to
£1,500,000 sterling. To a court so needy as that of Delhi, there could not be a
greater recommendation of the merit of a provincial governor than the punctual
arrival of long trains of bullock-carts laden with boxes of treasure.

more

Still

to conciliate favour, the strong military escort

which accompanied each train

>)rought with them, as presents to the emperor

and

elephants,

horses, antelopes,

his mini.ster.s,

numbers of

hawks, shields made of rliinoceros hides, swordblades,

Dacca
bazar

mats,

Silhet

mu.slins, Cos.simsilks,

articles

and various

by

imported

European.s.^

The nabob,

well aware

how much

his favour at court de-

pended on these transmissions,

Hackery or Billock-cart.^— From

was

careful to

make them as widely
known as possible, and

Solvyn, Les Hindovis.

gave them aU the appearance of great public events.
principal officers, accompanied the

besides intimating its approach

He

liimself,

by

accordingly, attended

convoy some miles from Moorshedabad

by regular despatches

be recorded and published in the royal gazettes.

;

to the vizier, caused

By

his

and
it

to

this publication he not

only relieved himself from responsibility in the event of the convoy not reaching

its

destination, but

line of route,

and

left

gave the necessary information to the governors on the

them without excuse

if

they failed to pro^dde for

its safe

transport through their territories.
Jaffier

dered,

Khan, presuming on the importance of the

service

which he thus ren-

and being by nature strongly inclined to arbitrary measures, often stretched

his authority to the utmost,

both natives and foreigners.

and was guilty of many

The

Stewart's History of Bengal, p. 380.
The hackery is a cart consi.sting merely of an iron
ax.le, traversed by two large bamboos, and is used for
'

whole is made of wood
They are common in many

tlie

towards

desire to increase the revenue furnished

-

conveying merchandise ;
without any piece of iron.

acts of oppression

him

of the towns >i Hindoostan. The Hindoo carters are
without mercy for the oxen yoked in the hackeries
they sit on the pole, and twist the tails of the poor
oxen in the most cruel manner, goading them at t):8
same time with sticks pointed with iron. Solvyn.

He was

with a pretext for numei'ous exactions.
ceive

how much

commerce contributed

foreign

Arabian merchants,

Europeans, on the contrary,

lie

u

itjo

Mahometan

the rancour of

all

why

it

he expected them.

fees.

The

He

them

hated them with

all

to be politically dangerous:

the English in ])articular should be exempted

Under the

others were obliged to pay.

he soon made them aware that

or compensate for

from demand-

and the regulated

altogethei-.

bigotry; he believed

and he could not understand
from duties which

cent,

officers

regarded with the utmost jealousy, and would

have expelled them from the country

feelings,

.\

to the general i)rosperity of the

custom-house

strictly prohibiting the

more than the prescribed duties of 2^ per

fain

too clear-sighted not to per-

he was therefore disposed to deal liberally with Mogul and

country, and

ing

519

JAFFIER KUAN'S GOVERNxMENT.'

Chap. VIII. ]

muSt

the}'

by presents renewed

influence of such

either forego this privilege,

as often as he chose to intimate that

The system thus pursued proved

so capricious

and oppres-

itntioii
i'<^i'"t''ti
OIll

sive,

that the East India

of the emperor,

Company

resolved to bring their case under the notice

by sending a deputation

embassy to Delhi.

or

The

I'any to

result of this

embassy, which took place during the reign of Farok.shir, has been already men-

That monarch

tioned.

— influenced, partly by the magnificence of the

presents

which the ambassadors brought with them, partly by the grudge which he bore
the nabob for having not only treated

him

superciliously wiien he

Viceroy of Bengal, but also openly set him at defiance
supplanted him in his government

;

and, above

all,

had

failed

—granted the demands of the Company

point of fact, however, their success

was only

when he would have

by gratitude

of the embassy for effecting a cure on his person after

all

was nominal

to the surgeon

the native physicians

utmost extent.

to their

Tiie nabol), without ven-

pai-tial.

turing to question the authority which conferred the i)rivileges, put his

upon them, and was thereby able

interpretation
Still

tive.

nian, Mogul,

and Hindoo merchants, fixing

to enj(\y the protection of the English flag,

and

its

to render

a very decided advantage had been gained

In

;

own

some of them inopera-

and

Pt)rtuguese, Ai'me-

their residence in Calcutta, in order

added rapidly both to

its

population

wealth.

During the troubles which preceded and immediately followed the deposition

intrigues

had been an unconcerned

Kiian at

and death of Farokshir, he quietly looked
spectator

resumed

and

;

but as soon as
found no

This, however,

Mahomed Shah seemed

diflieulty in obtaining

was now of comparatively

he was far advanced in years.
of the

government

An

his

consequence to him personally, as

object nearer his heart

no

son,

was the continuance

and wished

to give the suc-

Khan, his grandson by an only daughter.

husband, Shujah-u-din Khan, was

government than

a confirmation of Ins government.

little

He had

in his family.

cession to Serferaz or SuffVaze

to the

firmly seated on the throne, he

with Delhi, and by sending his usual escort of revenue

his intercourse

presents,

on, as if he

still alive,

own son, who

was derived from the fondness of a

(h^tinsf

and thought himself better

indeed had no claim to
grandfather.

Ho

it

Her

entitled

except what

therefore intriirued

520
AD.

1725.

lUSTtJltY 01' INDIA.

at Delhi,

and

successfully thwarted the designs of Jafficr

obtain the government for his favourite, did

him on

delivering to

his

and appointing him by
shujahKimn
Nabob of

who appear

intentions,

came

session of the

all

he

death-Led the key of

co\i]<l

all liis

Khan, who, unahle
to

compensate

Jaffier

Khan,

The

an understanding.

government

liim l>y

and valuables,

treasures

in 1725,

Shujah Khan and his

previously to have kept each other in the dark
to

to

both his public and his private successor.

will

Immediately on the death of
son,

[liooK HI.

and the

;

a-s t^>

their real

foi-mer accordingly took quiet pos-

latter consented to

wait

the succession,

till

now assumed to be hereditary, should open tfj him by course of nature. At
the time when Shujah Khan thus seated himself on the mu.snud of Bengal,
he was and had long been deputy-governor of Orissa.

Shortly after he had

fixed his residence at Cuttack, the capital of this government, a person

Mirza Mahomed, related to him by marriage, arrived with his two

— the

named

son.s,

and

named Haji
Ahmed the younger Mirza Mahomed Ali, but better known by the name of
Ali Verdy Khan
were men of talent and education, and made them.selves so
useful to Shujah Khan, that they obtained a complete ascendency over him. As
a matter of course they accompanied him to Bengal, and became influential
members of his government. Serferaz Khan, in implement of the agreement
made with his father, became Dewan of Bengal but all the real power centred
in a council consisting of the above two brothers, and two Hindoo.s
the one, Roy
Alum Chund, who, under the name of comptroller of the household, perfonned
all the duties pertaining to the office of dewan, while Serferaz Khan only
were

all

admitted into his

—

The two sons

service.

elder

—

;

—

nominally held

it

—and the other the imperial banker, Juggut

Seat.

For a time the mildness and equity of Shujah Khan's government contrasted

His wise

favourably with the severity and injustice which had too often characterized
the measiu-es of Jaffier Khan.

All his council were

men

and without

of talents,

having recourse to the oppressive exactions of his predecessor, the revenues were
.so

well managed, that he was able even to increase the customary

Delhi.

many

He

sum

sent to

thus stood high in favour at that court, and not only obtained, with

honourable

titles,

a confirmation of the government of Bengal and Orissa,

but a re-annexation of the province of Behar, which had been dissevered fi'om

it.

This apparent increase of power ultimately proved the ruin of his family.

The government of Behar
take of conferring
Trea-sonaiik

Verily

vacant, and the nabob committed the fatal mis-

on Ali Verd}^ Khan.

it

This crafty and talented favourite

procccded forthwith to Patna, the capital, and at the very outset assumed

ilusigns of
.\ii

fell

.

almost Tcgal

state,

Kliaii.

state of the country

early peiiod he

^

.

being accompanied by an escort of 5000 troops.

was the pretext

;

The troubled

but there cannot be a doubt that at this

was meditating the designs which he afterward

carried into

execution.

Shortly after his aiTival at Patna, he took a body of Afghans into

his service.

These, far superior in native courage and discipHne to the ordinary

Indian troops, put him in possession of a power which could hardly

fail

to give

Chap. Vlll

RULE OF SERFERAZ KHAN.

]

521

him the victory when the struggle which he contemplated should come

Khan

Meanwhile, Shujah

decided.

government, and exchanged

its

governor only in name, and

into each others hands,

left all

had already

set

He was

and luxury.

affairs to

brotliers

thus

be managed chiefly by

were thus enabled to play

necessary an-angements for an emergency

all

arise.

his son, however, their feelings

were very

difftrent,

fast

pos-

and they

on foot a course of intrigue, by which they hoped to gain over

the coui-t of Delhi to their interest, and set the claims of Serferaz aside.
their schemes

were matured, Delhi

itself

and Shujah Khan

queror, Nadir Shah,

was

died.

Before

in the hands of tlie Persian con-

Verdy Khan

Ali

liad previously Death

secured his nomination to the government of Behar, free from any dependence

on Bengal
secured,

;

but

and Serferaz Khan took undisputed possession of the government
fathei''s

to act in all affairs of

Chund, and Juggut Seat.
condition, could not

Ahmed was

Haji

will,

which, while

moment by
Serferaz,

have been

it

ajipointed

the advice of Haji

him

in

Ahmed, Roy Alum
this

he had already become aware that

sincere, for

leagued with his brother Ali Verdy in plotting his over-

So

that he

was bent on destroying him, and only waited

was he from intending

far, tlierefore,

to take

him

for

into his council,

an opportunity.

It

The person of Haji might
Moorshedabad but Ali Verdy being

necessary, however, to proceed witli caution.

easily

have been

seized, as

he resided in

at Patna, could not be reached,

;

and would certainly break out in open revolt

moment any hostile proceedings were adopted against his brother. Had
Serfei'az Khan possessed common prudence and discretion, he would have
secured himself against the designs of the brothers, by com^ting the esteem and

the

attachment of the other two members of his council.
whicli

good feeling as well as sound policy

verted them into implacable enemies.

Instead of this course,

and con-

dictated, he insulted both,

When Alum

Chund,

after obtaining a

private interview, ventured to use the freedom of an ancient counsellor, and to

remonstrate with his
life,

Khan.

bound

heir,

though he promised comj'liance with

throw.

was

of

higher objects to which his ambition pointed had not been

tlie

accordance with his

him

1739

the early promise of his

They saw that Shujah Khan's life was
and they deemed it unnecessary to disturb him in his

close,

Towards

session.

important

The two

and make

which was expected soon to

drawing to a

fulfil

cares for indolence

Ahmed.

the influence of Haji

ceased to

to be a.d

and

new master on

the notorious licentiousness of his private

his total neglect of all serious public business, his counsel

was

scorned,

and he only called forth a volley of ignominious abuse and invective.
treatment of Juggut Seat was
exquisite beauty,
curiosity,

and he

whom

was not
Vol.

I,

more outrageous.

insisted

on seeing
;

her.

of a lady of

excited the nabob's

According to oriental ideas there

but Serferaz Khan, accustomed to listen only to his

which had been indulged to such an extent as
to be dissuaded,

The fame

the banker's son had married,

could not be a grosser insult
passions,

still

The

and the

lady, after

to impair his intellect,

Juggut Seat had implored
66

in vain

HiBsncces-

Khau.

;

IllSTOKV or IM)IA.

522
A.D. 1741.

honour of

for the

was

fiunily,

lils

[Book

J 1

No

carried to the palace in the evening.

violence wa.s offered her; but even rnurnentary exposure to the rude gaze of

nabob was dishonour which

licentious

From

avenjjed.

and those who,
shield

this

Serferaz

for his fathers sake,

be

Khan was

efi'aced,

left

and could only

were once disposed to have

object of the conspiracy wtis to

make

tlte
l^e

without a sincere friend

around him, entered eagerly into a conspiracy to

The primary

Conspiracy

moment

wtis not to

1.

stoo<l like a

effect his ruin.

Verdy Khan Nabob

Ali

•against
Sci-feraz

of Bengal.

To give some

Khan.

colour to the proceeding, application

Mahomed

reigning emperor,

make way

aside to

one who, while he far

for

to enrich the Delhi treasury

several millions more,

him

tion thus obtained a kind of legal sanction,

who probably would have
form of conspiracy and

stood aloof

rebellion.

remained to be surmounted.

if it

set

him

in talents, promised

of £1,000,000 sterling, the

—valued

and the future delivery of the revenue with
Jaffier

and

usuryier,

property and effects

confiscated

which had been observed by

tuality

surj>{issed

by the present payment

transmission of Serferaz Khan's

to the

who, having never confirmed Serferaz Klian

iShah,

government, was easily induced to regard him as an

in his

was made

the punc-

all

The contemplated

Khan.

at

^e^'olu-

and secured the support of many
had continued to wear

now

prepared, one obstacle

was

still

Everything being

Haji, with his famih-,

its original

at Moorshedabad,

and completely at the mercy of Serferaz Khan, who. the moment the conspiracy

was unfolded, would certainly make them the first victims of his rage and vengeance.
By means of a series of dexterous and unscrupulous manoeu\Tes, the
nabob

w^as deluded into the belief that Haji's absence

security,

now

and he allowed him

free to act, at once

would prove

to depart with his family for Patna.

commenced

operations,

his best

Ali Verdy,

and advanced with such rapidity

movements were not known at Moorshedabad till he had surmounted
the difficult passes of Terriagully and Sicklygully, among the Rajamahal Hills,
where his progress might have been arrested, and about to penetrate into the
that his

very heart of Bengal.

Serferaz Khan, confounded at the intelligence, looked

about in vain for the counsel and aid of which he had deprived himself by his
gross misconduct.
negotiation, he

deemed

At

last,

however, after wasting some time in unavailing

began to display an energy of which he had not previously been

capable,

and

hastily collected

an army of 30,000 men, with which he

encamped on a plain near Comra, about twenty-two miles north of

Though

who

speedily decided the fortune of the day.

Khan

fei'az

match

superior in numbers, his troops were no

refused to join the fugitives,

On

and

his capital

for Ali Verdy's Afghans,

seeing that

all

was

lost,

Ser-

iiished into the thickest of the

enemy, when, after he had nearly expended his whole quiver of arrows, he
fell
Ali Verdy

becomes
nabob.

pierced through the forehead

Ali Verdy, following
tion,

up

by a

musket-ball.

his victory, entered

and seated himself on the musnud.

cessor

made

Moorshedabad without opposi-

The odious government of

the change generally acceptable, and

all

his prede-

ranks hastened to congra-

HE VOLT IN

Chap. VIII.]

tulate

and do homage

to the

new

523

OlilSSA.

He

nabo)).

proved not unworthy of

Contrary to the usual practice of eastern conquei'ors,
blood,

and not only spared Serferaz Khan's

sons,

lie

it.

a.d. 1741

displayed no thirst for

but pensioned them, and sent

Govenimeiit
of All Verdj.

them
the

some degree of

to reside with

state at Dacca.

new government met with open

hostility

was

The only quarter

it

was intended

which

Here Moorshad

in Orissa.

Cooly Khan, a brother-in-law of the late nabob, was governor.

aware that

in

Being well

make

to dispossess him, he at first endeavoured to

was

terms, but the utmost he could obtain

to quit the province

with his pro-

As he was not

perty and ftimily, without being subjected to molestation.

of a

warlike temperament, he would probably have submitted, had not a bolder
course been almost foi'ced

upon him by

his wife

and the

ading members of

It

Having determined on resistance, he at once rai.'-ed the standard of
The example might soon have
revolt, and sent Ali Verdy a letter of defiance.
spread, and therefore Ali Verdy, without losing a moment, left his brother
his court.

Haji in charge of the government of Bengal, and hastened forward at the head
of his troops to

commence

the campaign.

The ultimate

doubtful, though the struggle proved longer

been anticipated.

result could hardly be

and more fcnnidable than had

Instead of waiting to be besieged ia Cuttack, his capital,

Cl'TTACK, .IuMM.\ MusjfD.

— From a drawing in East India House.

Moorshad Cooly moved northwards to Balasore, and a
a position where his camp, besides being

was rendered almost

inaccessible

same wisdom been displayed

away both by famine and

river

beyond

it

occupied

and defended by 300 cannon,

and suiToxmding

forests.

Had

in maintaining this position as in selecting

Verdy would have gained no
governor, refused to furnish

by a

fortified

little

laurels.

him with

desertion.

The

it,

population, attached to their

supplies,

and

his

anny began

the
Ali

own

to melt

The impatience and rashness of Mirza

Boker Khan, the enemy's general, brought on a battle at the very time when
he ought to have avoided

it,

and the nabob gained a victory

so complete that

Revolt of

governor of
Orissa

HISTORY or

524
AD.

1742

Moorshad Cooly, finding no safety within the province, was
asylum

syod

Ahmed

govoriK.rof

[Book

\Sl)L\.

III.

an

gla/1 to seek

in Masulipatam.

Ali Verdy, Ijelieving that

mcnt of
He was

Orissa to

tlie

Syed Ahmed,

was

at

an end, gave the govem-

and

his brother's second son,

was now

as a warrior

and made him

out,

Delighted not more at

The fame

mere presence
its

give no further trouble.

In

of the troops he had brought with

him

by

of the nabob

in Ori.ssa sufficed

was no longer

to

was expected

to

Verdy disbanded the greater part

and, escorted only

;

it

officer of experience,

this belief, Ali

vinflic-

suppression than at the reco-

very of his nephew, he again settled the province, which, as
be governed by Syed Ahmed, but by an

him

iiLsurrection, heaxled

prisoner.

so widely spread that his

to dissipate the revolt.

left

Syed Ahmed, by profligacy and

step.s.

had rendered himself so obnoxious that a new

Boker Khan, had broken

set out for Bengal.

anived which

scarcely seated in the capital wli<n intelligence

no alternative but to retrace his
tiveness,

insurrection

by about 5000

proceeded by slow stages for Bengal, amusing himself on the

way with

horse,

hunting.

After passing the frontiers of Orissa, he had entered the district of Midnapore,

and was encamped near

its

when he was

capital,

startled

by the

intelligence

that Bosker Punt, in the service of Ragojee Bhonsla, a Maliratta chief,
established himself in possession of Berar,

who had

had arrived in Bengal, at the head

of a formidable army, with the professed object of levjdng the chout, but
Mahratta

The nabob had not
ii*
would be made
but expected that

probably witli the hope of making a permanent conquest.

invasion of

Bengal.

more

been unaware

/>!•
oi the intended
i

t

•

•

invasion,

t

it

from the north-west through Behar, and at so

late

ample time to reach Moorshedabad and provide

He was

therefore taken completely

entered

by

Orissa,

by

close

sufficient

when he

surprise

and were following

a period as would give him

upon

means

of defence.

learned that they had

He

his track.

immediately

hastened northward to Burdwan, expecting that he might be able there to
deposit his

heavy baggage in

He had

safety.

only reached

it

when

the arrival

was announced by smoking villages and the helpless inhabiterror before them.
The Mahratta commander, with the u.sual

of the Mahrattas

tants fl.eeing in

policy of his nation, avoided a general action, and after several skirmishes

endeavoured to induce the nabob to buy him
the payment of a heavy contribution.
capital, Ali
effort to

Verdy refused

to

continue his retreat.

Still

off

by

offering to

withdraw on

hoping to be able to reach his

submit to the humiliating terms, and made an

With

this

view he gave orders that the heavy

baggage and camp-followers should remain at Burdwan, but the terror had now

become

so general that the orders

inextricable.

were disobeyed, and the confusion became

The greater part of the baggage,

artillery,

and tents

fell

into the

hands of the enemy.

The nabob would now gladly have escaped by paj^g the contribution first
demanded. It was no longer in his option. Bosker Punt, who would have
been satisfied at one time with ten lacs of rupees (£100,000), was too weU

THE MAHRATTAS INVADE BENGAL.

CuAP. VIII.]

52.)

aware of the advantage he had gained, and refused to take
(£1,000,000), together with
risk

was better than

which new

this

all

and

;

than a crore ad.

after a «ti"uggle of four days, during

and hardships were endured, the nabob succeeded in placing
the Bhagaruttee between him and his pursuers.
Here Nuazish Mahomed, the
losses

eldest son of his brotiier Haji, joined

and he found

little difficulty

him with a considerable reinforcement,

in obtaining sufficient supplies.

whole country was becoming inundated.

would have departed had not a bolder

by

Cooly governed
to

name

origin, of the

abandon

it,

his old

of

It

was now Bos-

The rainy season had commenced, and the

ker Punt's turn to take alarm.

It

spirit

seemed madness
than his

own

to remain,

interfered.

and he

An Arab

Meer Hubbeeb, was Dewan of Orissa when Moorshad

and made no

scruple,

when

satisfied as to the

master and take service under Ali Verdy.

winning

His only

side,

object,

however, was to serve, himself; and having been taken, or rather, perhaps,
allowed himself to be taken prisoner

by the Mahrattas, he

with their commander, and was soon the most
the ablest of his advisers.

From

his

ingratiated himself

influential, as

he was certainly

thorough knowledge of the country he was

able to turn every circumstance to advantage,

and when Bosker Punt spoke of

pointed to the defenceless state of Moorshedabad.

retreat,

hesitated, he volunteered to surprise

it,

Punt

\\'hen Bosker

and was provided with a detachment

The nabob obtaining intelligence of his departure, tried to
outstrip him.
He was a day too late. Meer Hubbeeb had already plundered
the suburbs, and extorted from the banker, Juggut Seat, a sum which has been

for that purpose.

The

estimated at £2,500,000 sterling.

Punt

to

success of this expedition induced Bosker

abandon the intention of returning to Berar, and he encamped

for the

rainy season at Cutwah, on the Hooghly.

tas

Though the season made operations on a large scale
made repeated incursions, and were at last masters

west of the Ganges, except Moorshedabad and

its

impossible, the Mahrat-

of the whole of Bengal

environs.

The nabob, con-

tented in the meantime with the possession of his capital, continued strength-

ening

works and making preparations

its

resources

on the east of the Ganges were

for
still

His

a decisive campaign.

unimpaired, and his troops,

placed in cantonments and abundantly supplied with provisions, suffiired few
privations.

the enemy.

was otherwise with the inhabitants of the districts ovennin by
Plundered of their property, and pursued by fii-e and sword, multi-

It

tudes fled across the river, carrying their teiTors along with them, and sought

Even here the alarm became general and
an entrenchment, afterwards known by the name of the Mahrattii Ditch, was
commenced. It was intended to carry it romid the territory, and form an
shelter

and protection

in Calcutta.

inclosure seven miles in extent

;

1742.

Desperate as the case was, any

the elephants.

ignominy

less

;

but as the jMahrattas did not attempt to cross

the river, and were believed not to possess the necessary means, the

abandoned when scarcely half the distance was completed.

At

work was

the same time

^laiiratta

ueugai.

HLSTUltV OF I.M>JA.

526
A.D. 1742.

when

[Book

III

the ditch was begun, penni.ssioii was obtained from the nabob to fortify

the Coni|)any'fs factory- at Cossinibaziir, by suiTOUuding

it

with a briok wall

flanked with ba-stioas at the angles
All Venly
iissuiiies tliu

offensive,

ami

is

vic-

turious.

As soon as the dry season commenced, Aii Verdy boldly assumed the offf.Misive by crossing the Bhagaruttee on a bridge of boats.
Another stream, whicli
it was still necessary to cross in order to come to close quarters with the enemy,
was bridged in the same manner and though a serious loss was sustained by the
sinking of a boat near the centre, when scarcely a half of the troo[>s had pa-ssed,
;

the Mahrattas were so intimidated on seeing them.sdves about to be attacked,
that they fled with the utmost precipitation, seeking to gain the passes which

The

led through the forests of Pachete into Behar.

having frustrated

this intention,

rapidity of the pursuit

they suddenly douljjed upon their track, passed

eastward through the forests of Bishenpore, and gained the open country'.

From some

nabob, thus out-manoeuvred, retraced his steps.
explained, Bosker

advanced to

Punt changed

his tactics,

who

in the complete defeat of the Mahrattas,

made

the best of their

way back

Yerdy returned

Ali

not easily

and instead of continuing

The encounter took

offer battle.

cau.se

place at Midnapore,

The

his flight,

and resulted
and

at once evacuated Bengal,

to Berar.

in triumph to his capital, but not to enjoy a long repose

Kagojee Bhonsla, disappointed and enraged at the defeat of his general, deter-

mined

to take the field in person.

time divided into two powerful

were at

this

was the

office

was

Fortunately for the nabob the Mahrattas
factions.

head of the Mahratta confederacy.

The

ants were Ragojee Bhonsla and Balajee Rao.
Mahratta
disunion.

oVjject

had leen reduced

of Peishwa, who, as the rajah

to all intents the real

The

latter

of contention

to a

The

proved

mere

cipher,

rival claim-

successful, Init

was not ended, and Ragojee no sooner entered Bengal in one direction
than Balajee made his appearance in another. Ali Verdy 's course of policy was
plain, and he lost no time in purchasing the alliance of Balajee, who at once
took the burden of the war upon himself, and drove his rival countr^nnan
the strife

before

him without being obliged

standing this second

failure,

to strike a blow.

Ragojee Bhonsla, notwith-

clung tenaciousl}^ to his purpose, and the very next

year after he had been ignominioasly chased from Bengal, sent Bosker Punt
once more into

it

at the

He had

somewhat lowered.
be

satisfied

head of 20,000 cavahy.

with money.

Bosker was accordingly instructed to

Verdy had hitherto been contented

to

was

meet

as defeat after defeat appeared to

have no

at all events, though

by means

should be

of the mercenary spirit which

offer

his enemies in the

effect,

open

now

peace in

suj^posed to have received.
field,

Ali

but

he resolved to get rid of them

of an atrocity.

Taking advantage

had been so unequivocally displayed, he professed

and sent two of his
the IMahratta camp, with instructions to tempt Bo.sker Punt

to be extremely anxious for a termination of hostilities,
principal officers to

v.ere

once been sanguine of conquest, but he would

return for such a contribution as Balajee

it

His aims, however,

'

TllEACHERY OF ALI VEEDY.

Chap. VIILj

to

527

an interview, by promising to concede whatever he should

when he demanded heavy
nabob a

the

was

contributions, he

a.d. 1742.

had only to pay

told that he

His avarice blinded him to the

in order to obtain them.

visit

Accordingly,

ask.

and on a fixed day, moving out with the greater part of his army from
Cutwah, where it had been encamped, he drew it up in order of battle, and
advanced with his principal officers and attendants to the tent where the nabob
flanker,

was

waitinj; to <nve

them

The

audience.

A

rest is soon told.

had been concealed within the screens around the

tent,

band of

assassins

and only waited a

sig-

commence their horrid butchery. When the Mahratta officers entered,
Verdy eagerly sisked which was Bosker Punt, and on his being pointed out,

nal to

Aii

cried aloud,

"Cut down

Verdy put himself at the head of
charged the Mahratta
Ali

line,

Verdy gained

little

most of

ilebted for

despatched.

To complete the

'"'

atrocity. All

and without any note of warning,

his troops,

which immediately gave way and

fled in confusion.

As a
whom he was in-

but infamy by this abominable treachery.

retribution, his principal

ju.st

"tol'keT"

In an instant Bosker and nineteen chiefs

the infidel!"

who had accompanied him were

Treacherous

Mustapha Khan,

general,

arms against

his victories, rose in

to

liim

;

his brother Haji,

offended at being refused an unreasonable request, retired in disgust to Patna,
to waste the residue of

whom

grandson,
gence,
it

by

a long

he had destined for his

becoming too impatient

Nor were

force.

and

in sensual indulgences;

life

lieir,

his favourite

and spoiled by excessive

to wait for the succession,

indul^-

endeavoured to seize

the Mahrattas slow to avenge their

murdered country-

Exasperation of the

men.

Year

Bengal, and

after year

when he

Ragojee Bhonsla headed an invasion of some part of

died, his son

and

with the same indomitable energy.

worn out by years and

Maiirattas

successor, Janojee, continued the warfare

The ultimate

incessjint fatigue,

result was, that Ali Verdy,

and broken

in health,

was obliged

to

i-ompound with his relentless enemies by ceding to them the whole province of
Urissa,

and

was truly

agi'eeing,

moreover, to pay twelve lacs of rupees annually.

a recognition of the claim to levy chout in

nabob's dignity, that obnoxious term was not used in
declared tliat the

payment was

to be

made

"

Bengal
tiie

fixed,

it

wa.s

but to save the

treaty,

which simply

on condition that the Mahrattas

That there might be no

should not again set foot in his highness's territories."

doubt as to the limit thus

;

This

added that

"

the river Soonamooky,

which runs by Bahisore, should be considered as the boimdary between the two
dominions

;

and that the Mahrattas should never

cro.ss

that river, nor even set

a foot in its waters."

Before the nabob consented to this treaty, he had been rendered almost

broken-hearted by the tragical deaths of his brother Haji and his
nepliew,

Zyn Addeen.

in disgust,

The

fjivourite AiiVenivs

one, as already mentioned, liad retired to

and the other was residing

in

nabob, having discovered that two Afghan

it

as governor of Behar,

chiefs,

Patna

when

the

Shumsheer Khan and Serdar

Khan, were intriguing with the Mahrattas, dismissed them and their

XiMgicai

followei"S

n^hew.""

•5-«

AD

1756.

JlISTOJiV (JF INDIA.

from

his service.

nity of Patna.
Tra-i-ai

numbering about 8000 men, arrived

Tlie whole,

to get rid of

scheme

them

some

Ijy

mean.s,

Aii ver.iy s

to liavc proposed a

nephow.

thougli the youngest of the nabob's nephews,
it

for assassinating the leaders,

good policy to conciliate

all

have preferred assassination as the

safer policy,

who

submission, he authorized

fair.

Haii

wdH
said

is

but Zyn Addeen, who.

The nabob

rival claimants.

but at

last,

to receive

it.

The new

is

said to

overcome by the

represented that they were anxious to

him

it

was expecting to succeed hirn,
the Afghans, whose military prowess would

give him a decided superiority over

urgency of his nephew,

or

fcjul

III.

in the vici

Their presence could not be viewed without alarm, and

dcemcd necessary

thought

[Book

make

terais of service

their

having

been adjusted, Zyn Addeen, anxious to give the chiefs a proof of his confidence,

and obviate any

fears

they might have of treachery, received their

visits of

ceremony, on being restored to favour, in the absence of his guards and presence
of only a few household

The

officers.

first

day, given to Serdar Khan, pas.sed off

The second day was allotted to Shumsheer Khan. HLs approach was
announced by the arrival of nearly 1000 Afghan infontry, who arranged themquietly.

Immediately after the

selves in the square of the palace.

hall of audience

was

named Morad Sheer Khan, and a crowd of officers, who
pressed forward to present their offerings.
While Zyn Addeen was intent on
the ceremony, one of the Afghans aimed a blow at him with his dagger.
It
missed, but Morad Sheer Khan immediately followed it up with his sabre, and
entered

by a

the governor

chief

fell

but was not permitted to die so
vast wealth

;

but,

when dragged

easily.

before

Every kind of torture and ignominy
last, after

On

Haji was the next victim,

dead on the pillow of his musnud.

He was known

to

have accumulated

Shumsheer Khan, refused

failed to

to discover

it.

overcome his firmness, and at

seventeen days of indescribable sufteriBg, death came to his relief

searching his house, seventy lacs of rupees (£700,000), besides jewels and

other valuables to a great amount, were found buried.

ing around them

all

The insurgents gather-

the discontented spirits of Behar, gained possession of the

by leaguing with the Mahrattas, to threaten
Bengal.
The nabob, however, roused by the strongest of all motives, displayed
even more than his wonted ability and intrepidity, and gained two victories
in a single day, in the one avenging his murdered kindred by defeating and
slaying Shumsheer Khan, and in the other, not so much defeating as terrientire province,

and were even

able,

fying the Mahrattas, who, after they had di-awn up for the encoimter, fled in
confusion, without venturing to risk

it.

After the treaty concluded with the Mahrattas in 1751, Ali Yerdy enjoyed

Death of
Ali Verdy.

some
and

respite

disease,

from the

toils

of war.

and died of dropsy in

Death at such a period of life can scarcely be said
adventitious cause, and yet

it is

•

rr>

i

He was sufiermg, however, both from age
He had attained his eightieth year.
1756.
to

have been hastened by any

thought that he might have lived longer had

he not been visited anew by domestic calamities.

His own family consisted

SURAJAH DOWLAH, NABOB OF BENGAL.

VI 1 1. J

Chap.

only of three daughters,

whom

529

The

he married to his three nephews.

death of the youngest at Patna lias already been recorded.

The

eldest,

tragical

second,

many

by good conduct he recovered

by

the character which he had lost

Syed Ahmed, who

government of

his disastrous

\:m.

Nuazish

Mahomed, who was governor of Dacca, and the
years had been governor of Pui'neah, where

ad.

for

Orissa, died of

within a few months of each other, just before their uncle was seized with

fever,

his eldest

The only sm'viving members of the nabob's family were
daughter, Gheseety Begum, the widow of Nuazish Mahomed, and two

grandsons

:

i

his last fatal illness.

he succeeded

government of Pumeah, and the other Sm'aj-ad-Dowlah,

in the

usually called, Siirajah Dowlah, the son of

the nabobship.

who

This youth,

Zyn Addeen, and

assassinations

were known

was no kind of

was not ignorant of

to

as he is

the successor to

many

surajah

apiwinua
^

other crimes.

Several

guc^jeslo-!

have been perpetrated at his instigation; and

vice with

which he had not grown

his real character,

when, on being asked by some of his
his successor,

or,

has already been seen ungratefully taking up

arms against his gi'andfather, was stained with

there

whom

the one Shokut Jung, the son of Syed Alimed,

familiar.

and truly described

women

to

it

on

his death-bed,

recommend them

he answered with a ghastly smile, that

" if

AH Verdy

to the care of

he should for three days

behave dutifidly to his grandmother, then they might entertain hopes of his
tenderness."

The

irrational

youth was
in the
is

partiality

his gi*eatest folly,

which Ali Verdy entertained

for this worthless

and the iniquity of appointing him

government, while aware

how

incapable he

one of the blackest stains on his memory.

to succeed

was of discharging

The inhabitants

him

its duties,

of Bengal, though

shocked at the crimes which the nabob committed in usurping the government,

and

in ridding himself of his

him,

when they

that on the whole he had ruled

felt

cerely attached to him.

at the

enemies

It

tlum wisely and

was a poor retiun

mercy of an ignorant, rapacious,

threatened to bg too strong for

for their

and were

justly,

heartless profligate.

pany had not much reason to complain.

by the

.sensions

and Mahratta incursions; but

sin-

attachment to place them

Dui'ing the sixteen yeara of Ali Verdy's government, the Ejist India

suffered

Like the inhabitants

unsettled state in which the country

generally',

was kept by

their pri\aleges

Com-

state of the

they

presidency

intestine dis-

were respected, and the

few irregular contributions exacted from them amounted to so smaU a percentage on their investments, as not seriously to affect the profits.
that during the general alarm produced

We

have seen

by the Mahrattas, Ali Verdy allowed

dug and the factory of Cossimbazar to be put in some
He was not disposed, however, to permit any encroachment

the Mahratta Ditch to be
state of defence.

on
at

and peremptorily prohibited the British and French, when
war, from carrying on any hostiUties within his dominions.
It would even
his prerogative,

seem that he eyed the progress of the European companies with a
suspicion,

Vol

I.

«

degi-ee of

and had a presentiment of the ascendency which they were destined
67

verdy.

—

;

5:iO

A

D.

On

me. to establish.

one occasion he

tifvola"^

many

and on another
most influential

counsellor, "to expel the English

gave no answer

till

but

parts of Hindoostan;"

is

Mustapha had

and then observed

retired,

ini(!iuitous proposal, "

to one of

My

hi.>

Masta-

child,

a soldier, and wishes us to be constantly in need of his service

how came you

to join in

me, that 1 should use them

liis

his, for

What have

request?

now

It is

ill?

but should the sea be in flames
advice as

wa.s then his

from Calcutta and seize their wealth," he

nephews, who had seconded Mustapha's

pha Khan

III

death the Euro-

when urged by Mustapha Khan, who

occasion,

[Book

said, "lie feared that after his

peans would become masters of

•

OF INDIA.

JliSrOJJV

who

the English done against

difficult to

extinguish

can put them out?

the result would probably be

Never

on land:

fire

listen to such

This distinct alTusion to

fatal."

naval warfare shows that he had foi-med a just conception of the main arm of
British power, and deprecated collision with it as at once unjastifiable and
perilous.

It

would have been well

Surajah Dowlah had he entered into the

for

enlarged views which dictated this advice, and acted upon them.

CHAPTER
Surajah Dowlah,

Nabob

of Bengal

IX.

—His early career— First acts of

His expedition against Purneah

— His

his

government

—A

suspicion and hatred of the East India

factory of Cossimbazar seized and plundered

— Calcutta

besieged and taken

'rival

claimant

Company

—The

— The

horrors of the

Black Hole.

T

when

the time

Ali

Verdy was appointed

Behar, one of his daughters,

to the

who was married

government of

to his vounsfest

The event seemed so auspicious
that he declared his intention to adopt the boy and make him
his heir.
Mirza Mahmood, as he was originally called before he
nephew, gave birth to a

assumed the
character of

Dowlah.

title

son.

of Surajah Dowlah, received the kind of training which

considcred suital)le to his prospects.
overlooked, and he never

knew what

All his wishes were gratified, aU his faults
it

was

to be refused or contradicted.

natural cruelty of his temper appeared in the amusements of his childhood.
bird or animal within his reach

was

pated, his vices ripened with his years,
Dxi

the brate creation

w^s

feeling he seems to have

infamous profligates, with
bad,''and

safe

from

torture.

As might be

The

Ko

antici-

and the cruelty which he had practised

transferred to his o^-n species.

been an utter stranger.

whom

was

To every

virtuous

His only companions were

he used to patrole the streets of Moorsheda-

commit every form of indecency and

outrage.

With

his other \'ices he

possessed a certain degree of low cunning, which he employed in concealing

some of the worst parts of

his conduct from his grandfather, who, it

is

chari-

SURAJAH DOWLAH, NABOB OF BENGAL.

Chap. IX.]

table to suppo.se, though his general character

have been ignorant of his worst

musnud, and required

From

cessor.

all

villanies,

was well known

when, in 1753, he

and

the courtiers

531

officers to

to him,

.V.D. 17.00.

him on the

jjlaced

him

recognize

mast

as his suc-

that time Ali Verdy, without ceasing to hold the reins of govern-

ment, threw a large share of Ins authority into the hands of Surajah Dowlah,

who

of course perverted

it

to the worst of purposes.

Nuazish Mahomed, as the eldest nephew, naturally thought himself best

Dissatisfact

entitled to the succession,
li;ul

for

Dacca,

some

its

to conceal his dissatisfaction.

He

though resident at Moorshedabad, jield the government of

years,

and from

and took no pains

revenues acquired enormous wealth, which enabled iiim to

keep a large body of armed

men

In himself, as he was possessed of

in his pay.

ion of

Niuizish

Mahomed
at authority
possi'siied 'ly

.^urajah

Oowlah.

very moderate talents, and had nothing warlike in his disposition, he was not

His two leading

dangerous.

one named Hossein Cooly

and

capacity,

it

ministei-s,

Khan and

other Hossein Addeen, were

tiie

was deemed necessary

Moorshedabad with

however, an uncle and a nephew, the

to

his mjister, the nepliew

Najar Nuttoo

Sino's

Muook,

in:.,

The uncle

remove them.
iit

men

of

resided at

Dacca, where he act,ed as deputy-

Dacca.— From Tanorama

.if

Djwc

i

•

Ali W'rdy wished to act warily in the ilismissal of these

governor.

he feared that Nuazish,

if

alarmed by any hasty

Dacca and assert his independence.
rizing,

fears

and having no scruples as to the

by taking the nearest

Hossein

Khan

Khan was
and
ship,

Surajali

road.

step,

would

idea of tempo-

determined to rid himself of

His hired assassins enteiing

in the

dead of the night; and a few days

ass<xssinated in

after,

Hossein Cooly

Syed Ahmed, who,

as they

civil

Nuazish

were both aspiring to the nabobother,

now saw

the necessity of

uniting their mterests, and leaguing against Surajah Dowlah, as their

already told.

stabbed

Dacc<a,

open day in the streets of Moorshedabad.

had hitherto acted independently of each

A

all

^

his brother

enemy.

as

at once retire to

Dowlah had no

atrocity,

officers,

war was imminent, when they both died suddenly,

common

as has been

Monierof
Hossein

cooiyKhan.

532

AD

Deaths wiiich happened so opportunely

1750.

have been attributed

uncliaritablt'iiess,

regarding tiiem as natural.
Tw,) rival

claimants
t.. throno
""'*''

oy JM>iA.

Jll.s'](jJtv

of

Their

to

agency, but

was

to allow

the arrangements which Ali Verdy had

all

.

,

.

appeared, however, that his

,

made

J

II.

Dowlah might, without

for Surajuh
hi.s

effect

,liooK

all

him

writers agi-ee in

to take the benefit

in his favour.

It soon

the nahobshij) wa« not to remain unchal-

title to

Gheseety Begum, Ali Verdy's daughter, had succeeded to the wealth

lenged.

of her late husband Nuazisli, and

saw no means of saving

it

from the rapacity

new nabob, excej^t by placing herself at the head of a powerful party.
Her sex made it impossible for her to claim the government in her own name,
of the

and she therefore
old,

set

up a competitor

in.

the person of an

the son of a deceased brother of Surajah Dowlah.

infant

two years

Another competitor

appeared in the person of his cousin, Shokut Jung, governor of Pumeah.

Could

he have succeeded, the inhabitants of Bengal would not have gained much by
the change, as

it

would have been

choose between them, so closely

difficult to

did they resemble each other in ignorance and profligacy.

The

title

of the

by Gheseety Begum was evidently bad, as the father of the
infant was only a younger brother.
Not only, therefore, had Surajah Dowlah
justice on his side when he resisted the Begum's attempt, but he was also furnished with a plausible pretext for the measures he adopted against her.
As
his owTi aunt and Ali Verdy's daughter, she was certainly entitled to be treated
with all the leniency consistent with safety, but it is not easy to condemn him
claimant set up

for dispossessing her of a palace,

where

the discontented spirits of the capital

all

would have rallied around her, and depriving her of treasures which had been,
and would in all probability continue to be employed in secretly undermining
or openly assailing his government.
Origin of

quarrel be-

^

who had become dewan
Hossein Coolv Khan, and made common

Hindoo, of the name of Raibiillub,
"

tween Sura- after the assassiuatlon of
jah Dowlah
and Bengal liis widow, bciug perfectly

......

presi ency.

^,^^^y^

*'

to XuazisL

cause with

aware of the treatment which awaited him from Su-

Dowlah, had rcsolved, even before Ali Verdy's death, to provide against the

danger by removing his famjly and treasures.

where they would be beyond the nabob's
the plan he adopted was to send

The

reach.

them away

difficulty

was

to find a place

They were then

in Dacca,

and

in the charge of his son Kissendass,

under pretence of making a pilgrimage to the celebrated Temple of Juggernaut,

on the coast of

Orissa.

In prosecuting

proceeded with several loaded boats
of Bengal

by one

of

its

this intended pilgrimage, Kissenda.ss

down

the Ganges, as

if to

enter the Ba}'

mouths, but stopped short, and sailed upwards

he

till

reached the Jellinghee, by which the Ganges communicates with the Hooghly.

He was

thus enabled to enter

tlie latter river.

certed scheme, for his real destination
father

Tliis

was

in fact the precon-

was not Juggernaut, but

Calcutta.

HLs

had prevailed with Mr. Watts, the chief of the Company's factory

Cossimbazar, to apply to the presidency for permission to Kissendass and
family to halt for some days in Calcutta.

at
liis

It does not appear very distinctly

J

SURAJAll DUWLAH.

Chap. IX.

533

whether Mr. Watts was duped by Rajbullub into the belief that nothing more

a.d. i756.

than a halt was intended, or whether he was aware that the real object was to

Be this as it may, Mr. Watts' application
in behalf of Kissendass was successful, and he arrived in Calcutta, where he
was hospitably received by Omichund, an extensive Hindoo merchant, who had
large connections at Moorshedabad, and was naturally inclined to conciliate the
secure

permanent British

protection.

good- will of so influential a person as Rajbullub.

The

arrival of Kissendass,

presidency, filled Surajah

and the reception given

Dowlah with

to

him

Not only had

at the British

''^"rajah

large treasures, on

rage at tue

the confiscation of wliich he had confidently calculated, escaped, but the very

KitsBn,iL!

rage.

body of foreign merchants, whose settlement

idea that a

whom

only by sufferance, should protect any party
victim,

was

He

galling to his pride.

in the country existed

he had marked out as a

immediately proceeded to the palace, and

gave utterance to his disappointment and indignation, exclaiming, that the
suspicions

which he had long entertained of the English were now confirmed,

and that they were evidently in league with the faction which meant to contest

now on his death-bed, turned to
surgeon of the factory of Cossimbazar, who was attending him proand put a variety of searching questions to him, asking, How many
Ali Verdy,

his succession to the nabobship.

Mr. Forth,
fessionally,

soldiers
it

were in the factory at Cossimbazar? Where the English fleet was

would come

answers

to Bengal

satisfied

him that the

already sufficient

iiad

—and

with what object

it

had come

British, in the expectation of a

work upon

their hands,

—whether
The

to India?

war with France,

and were in no condition to

pro-

voke the hostility or even risk the displeasure of the Bengal government
Surajah Dowlah was silenced, but not

satisfied,

and was

ceal his feelings, that his determination to sack Calcutta

so little careful to con-

and expel the English

was openly talked of
This ominous circxmistance and the previous conversation with Mr. Forth,
is

said not to have been

communicated to the presidency; but

was given them when a

was

received,

letter,

sufficient

warning

dated two days after the death of Ali Verdy,

demanding the delivery of Kissendass and

his treasures.

The

letter

purported to come from Surajah Dowlah, and seems to have borne sufficient
evidence of

its

the bearer of

genuineness.

The governor and

council,

however, learning that

a brother of Ramramsing, the head of the

it,

spies,

had come

small boat, landed in the disguise of a pedler, and proceeded in the
to the house of

Omichund, chose

crafty Hindoo, who, having

first

instance

was an invention

to conclude that this

in a

of this

by some recent changes in the mercantile arrangesome of his importance, had devised this cui'ious

ment of the Company, lost
method of endeavouring to regain it.
This extraordinary conclusion once
formed, it was gravel}' resolved that both the messenger and the letter were too
suspicious to be received,
boat,

and turned

off"

and Ramramsing's brother

with insolence and derision.

M'as lim-ried

back to his

Treatmentof

ofuamram""^^

;

534
A.D.

lilSTOltY

The

IT&O,

to pacify
Siirajali

[iJOOK IJl.

presidency, after they liad thas committed tliemselves, appear not to

have been perfectly
Attempts

OF INDIA.

with the propriety of their proceeding, and

sati.siied

structed Mr. Watts to give explanations which might prevent

He was

quences.

thought to have .succeeded

;

for,

when

any

in-

evil conse-

his vaqueil or agent

appeared at the durbar, and stated the grounds on which Kamrantsing's brother
had been treated as an impostor, Sui-ajah Dowlali gave no sign of emotion or

He

displeasure.

made no

mind, and

had

acted, indeed, as if the matter

entirely from his

pa.s.sed

further communication to Mr. Watts or the presidency

respecting Kissendass and his trea-sures.

At

this

very time

letters arrived

from England stating a rupture with

France was inevitable, and ordering the .settlement to be put in a

The work was immediately commenced but

defence.

a.s

;

dilapidated state as to
considerable

number

make

it

the fort

was

.state

in such a

neces.sary rather to rebuild than repair

of labourers were employed, in the

first instance,

of

it,

a

to repair

a line of guns which were placed atong the brink of the river opposite to the

west side of the

fort.

When

proceeding at the head of an

these repaii-s were begun, Surajah

army

of 50,000

and expel them, enough
in

and a

letter arrived

It

remained to carry tidings to him of the operations

still

Their nature and extent were of course exag-

which they were engaged.

gerated,

Purneah, to encounter his

for

was known that he had a number
and though the presidency had used every effort to discover

cousin and rival claimant, Shokut Jung.
of spies in Calcutta,

men

Dowlah was

from the nabob, in which, after stating that he had

been informed that the English were building a wall and digging a large ditch

around the town of Calcutta, he peremptorily ordered them to
the fortifications to the state in which they were before.
Tlie gover-

more candour than good

desist,

and

restore

Mr. Drake, the gover-

nor,

answered this

full

extent to which the operations had been canied, and. the motives which,

letter \\'ith

policy

;

he explained the

nor's letter

of explanation.

as they originally dictated their

commencement, rendered

it

expedient to continue

"The nabob," he said, "had been misinformed by those
who had represented to him that the English were building a wall round the
town they had dug no ditch since the invasion of the Mahrattas, at which time
such a work was executed with the knowledge and approbation of Ali Verdy
in the late war between England and France, the French had attacked and
taken the town of Madras, contrary to the neutrality which it was expected
and complete them.

;

would have been preserved in the Mogul's dominions

;

and that there being

at

war between the two nations, the English
were under apprehensions that the French would act in the same manner in
Bengal to prevent which they were repairing their line of guns on the bank of

present great appearance of another

;

the river."
Its effect

on

Tliis

answer was received by the nabob on the

17tli of

May,

at Rajamahal,

the nabob.

and threw him into a transport of
attendants

who were most

rage,

which astonished even those of

familiar with the violence of his temper.

his

It is not

I

SURA J AH DOWLAH.

IX. 1

ClIAP.

easy to see

why

it

should have had such an

OOO

His dignity may have been AD.

effect.

offended at the very suppo.sition that Europeans should presume to

within his territories witliout his sanction
that if they did

;

and

still

more

1756.

make war

at the assumption,

the

so,

party attacked would be
obliged to trust to their

own

resom-ces, instead of

leaving

and

it

him

to

to repel

punisli the aggi-essor.

Beyond

was

there

this,

%M

nothing in the answer to

provoke an outburst of
passion

even

])roudest

and most

sen-

The

of tyrants.

sitives

rage,

the

in

real,

if

and

not

merely assumed to give

RflNS OF THK Ha.IAU'3 rALACE, UaJAMAHAI,
From

nil oriictnHl ilrawiiiK

by Cuplain Smith, forty- foiirth Regiment.

a coloui' to further pro-

was

by perceiving that a plan whicli he had long
been meditating, and. a revenge which was rankling in his mfnd, were in

ceedings,

probabl}' provojced

Were

danger of being frustrated.
as

would enable

it

Calcutta put into such a state of defence

to resist the attacks of tlie French,

operations had been rendered famous throughout India,
tresses previously

master of

it,

up within
if

and

its

deemed

ritle it

precincts

imj)regnable,

how

Npw,

therefore,

skill in siege

by the capture

of for-

make

himself

could he be able to

of the fabulous wealth which
?

whose

was the

was believed

decisive

to be treasured

moment.

Calcutta,

not forthwith attacked, would set him at defiance, and both the fam^ whiiih

he anticipated as

would be

lost to

its

him

conqueror, and the plunder on which his heart

was

set,

for ever.

by some such m6tives as. these, the expedition to Punieah was The factory
of Cossini
immeaiately postponed, and the anny began its march back to Moorshedabad. bazar attack
anil
Its movements were too slow for the nabob's impatience, and a detachment of jiillageU
8000 men was pushed foi-ward to invest the Company's fi^ctory at Cossimbazar.
Though the garrison consisted only of twenty -two Europeans and twenty
Instigated

t'd

topasses,

no attempt was made

ment were contented
ing

it

to carry

it

by a sudden

onset,

and the

.detach-

to remain for nine days after their arrival, merely watch-

so as to preclude either egress or ingi'ess.

On

the 1st of June, the nabob came up with the main body of the

The idea of

resistance seems not to

have been entertained, as the

anny

fortifications,

undeserving of the name, consisted only of a brick wall, three feet thick, with
small bastions at the angles, but without ditch or paUsade.

formed the outer wall of a

series of

Part of the curtain

chambers looking inward, and affording,

b}'

'

JJJSTOl'tV

o.'K)

A.D

17.16.

or INDIA.

their roofs, a terrace resembling ramparts.

Tliese,

overlooked from without by Vjuildings at the
Mr Watts
by

tiio

cannoii were

still

di.starice

sufficient for^only

immediately on arriving, sent a mes.sage for
obtaining assurance of personal protection.
invectives,

and ordered

Mi-.

up

the revenue might have lost

No

honey-

-ing

Tlie nab^jb,
oVjeyed,

after

received with insfjlena;

new works they had

their protection,

raised,

and refund whatever
pas.sports of trade

Mr. Watts, alarmed for his

and the two other members of the council being sent

example.
•

who

by the granting of dustuks or

to parties not entitled to them.

paper,

GOO charges.

W'^atts,

Tlie

yanJfl.

to sign a j)aper, importing that the pr&sidency of

government tenants under

all

of only 100

He was

Calcutta should, within fifteen days, level any
deliver

III.

however, were complett^ly

more defective than the works, most of them b

combed, and the ammunition was

and

fHooK

life,

signed the

imitated his

for,

terms of capitulation were made, and a party of the nabob's

troops took possession of the place without opposition.
seal

up what

The

soldiers in the factory, after

effects

they found

command
Moorshedabad. One

;

but they disobeyed, and

of

at

of the

were to

stole the greater, part.

enduring three days of such contumely, that

them went mad and

the ensign in

Tlieir orders

members of

shot himself, were imprisoned

council,

and the junior servants of

the factory, were allowed to retire to the Dutch and French factories; but

^d

Mr. Watts

the other member, instead of being sent, as they expected, to

communicate the nabob's resolves

to the presidency,

were detained in the camp,

and told that they were to accompany the nabob himself to Calcutta.
was the first intimation they received of his determination to attack it.
Dilatory
preparatioiisofthe

This

The extreme violence and injustice
exhibited by the nabob at the very outset
o
must havc made it almost palpable to the minds of the presidency that nothing
%i

less

than the complete destruction of the settlement was aimed at

the vafei hope of deprecating his wrath, before the final step

was

;

and

yet, in

taken, letters

were daily despatched to Mr. Watts, instructing him to express their readiness
to demolish everything that could be considered a recent addition to their fortifications.

The

letters

reached Mr. Watts

;

were probably intercepted by the nabob, as they never

but the presidency, while writing them, could not well act

at variance with the offer they contained,

and thus nearly three weeks passed

away without any preparation against the coming danger. Had a proper use
been made of this intervening period, by applying for reinforcements to the other
presidencies, and making the most of the means of defence at their disposal, the
governor and council might have set the nabob at defiance, and given the

first

example of what a mere handful of our countrjTnen can achieve, when true
heroism inspires them, against mjTiads of native Indians.

Unfortunately

neither the Eiu"opean soldiers nor civilians in Bengal were, at that period, ani-

mated by that

spirit wliich in

our

own

times has been so illustriously displaced.

Wlien, at length, the struggle arrived they were far less di.sposed to face
to flee

y

from

it.

it

than

SUEAJAH DOWLAH.

CiiAr. IX.]

The

letter

which

filled

the nabob with so

much

537

and whs the

rage,

ostensible

was received by him

cause of his abandoning the expedition to Purneah,

a.d. 1756.

at

Rajamahal on the 17th of May, and though his intention then announced was
never revoked, and he from that day continued his march southwards, evidently
fiist

note of alarm was

sea, as

the south monsoon

bent on mischief, the 7th of June arrived before the

The passage by

despatched to Madras and Bombay.

was then blowing, was
in less

impossible,

than thirty days.

could be received

It

was

Dutch and
'^'"'

'

and an overland message could not be carijed

any answer

therefore evident that long before

nabob would have ample time to do

tlie

Applications

Conscious

his worst.

of the desperate predicament in which they were thus placed, the presidency

applied to the Dutch at Chinsurah, and

.

•

French at Chandernagore, and

tlie

endeavoured to persuade them that they ought to unite their forces as in a com-

mon

The former simply refused

danger.

What

their protection.

the fact that the

nabob

number

of Indian matchlock-men

garrison consisted of 2G4 men,
to 250,

be infeiTed from

by a present

pi opitiated

(

erected, provisions

was augmented

were

laid in,

and

The regular

to 1500.

as militia

amounted

forming an aggi-egate of 51 -i, but of these two-thirds were topasses,

remaining

third,

With such
c

mustering in

whom

all

no reliance could be placed, and of the

174, not

more than ten had seen

feeble resources a successful defence
c

•

^

•

was more than

of escape.

On

1

(»

therefore the attention of the presidency was, first of

service.

doubtful,

and

•

directed to the

all,

means

the opposite side of the river Hooghly, about five miles below

Calcutta, the native fort of Tanna,

narrowest part of the channel.
free outlet to the sea,

was only advancing,
it.

may

and the inhabitants enrolled

Armenians, and Portuguese, on

^

activity.

would admit, were

under

ith their effects

now tin own entirely on their
Works f defence, such as the

presidency,

began to display some

shortness of the time

the

Chandernagore was

The

of 200 barrels of gunpowder.
resources,

a\

that protection would have been
in passing

mockery, proposed

latter, as if in

abandon Calcutta, and place themselves

that they should

own

—the

seemed
to

The

mounting thirteen guns, commanded the
necessity of secuinng this fort, so as to give a

so in-gent, that

it

was determined, while the nabob

assume the offensive and endeavour to gain possession of

Accordingly, on the morning of the 13th of June, two vessels of 300 tons, and

two brigantines anchored before

it,

and opened a

fire

which at once dislodged

the garrison, consisting of not more than fifty men.
landed, spiked

some of the guns, and threw the

intended to retain the

fort,

A

rest into the river.

for the

If

it

was

the true plan would have been not to destroy the

guns but point them so as to repel any attack on the land

was soon apparent,

party immediately

side.

The mistake

very next day a detachment of the enemy, 2000 strong,

arrived from Hooghly, drove the few Europeans and lascars within the fort id
their boats,

and

resisting

any attempt

to dislodge

them by

a cannonade, obliged

the ships to weigh anclior and return to Calcutta.

The same day when the
Vol.

I.

ships sailed against

Tanna a

letter

was

intercepted,
68

The fort of
Tanna
tivkcn .md

538
AD,

1756.

Jll.S'JOl'.V

This confirmuig

of danger.
S\ir:ijali

Ly the

afldressed to Ortiicliund,

was immediately put under

OF

hetid 8py,

tlie

strict

[Book

JNlJJA

and

.suspicion

advi.sing liiin to put

liis

effects out

Oniiehund

])reviouHly entertained,

confinement in the

Kissendass

fort.

III.

wa.s, in

Dciwlah's
•iilvance

uDon

lik« manner, confined; but

when an attempt was made toappreliend (^michundw

Cal-

cutta.

brother-in-law, a serious fray took place.

apartments, and not only did

all

the peons and armed domestics in

head, a native of high caste, to save the

exposed to strangers, rushed
stabbed himself

expedition that

many

himself in the female

Omichunds

a forcible entrance into them, but the person at their

seiB/ice resolutely resist

tlien

He had concealed

in,

women from

the dishonour of being

slew thirteen of them with Ids

Meanwhile the nabob was

own

hand, and

ha.stening forward with such

of his troops died of fatigue and .sun-stroke.

On

the

1

otii

June he reached Hooghly, and immediately after transported his army to the
The militia and rnilitai-}Calcutta side, by means of an immense fleet of boats.
of

n-a.

T

e

n

t

s

^°^^'

A ^

THE TEPPtTORr

CALCUTTA

a

A

IN

immediately repaired to their

posts,

and

all

1757

the natives took to flight, with the

exception of about 2000 Portuguese, whose claim as Christians was so far recognized as to procm'e them admission into the
fiis first

operations.

fort.

At noon of the 16th the nabob was seen approaching from the north. His
first movement showed that he had not taken any means to acquaint himself
with the

Had

locality.

he turned eastward he would have arrived 'where the

Mahratta Ditch had not been completed, and met with no
this

he came directly in front of a deep

and formed of

itself so strono-

There was indeed a bridge over

had recently been
'ship

where

ri^Tilet,

obstacle.

it

Instead of

enters the Hooghly,

a defence as to render the ditch unnece.ssarv.
it,

but this was defended by a redoubt, which

and the approach to it was, moreover, flanked by a
When
of eighteen guns, which had been stationed there for that purpose.
erected,

the point of attack

men were
rations

was perceived the greater part

posted near the banks of the

was

riviilet.

to send forward a detachment of

of the

The

Company's matchlock-

first

of the nabob's

oj^e

4000 men, with four pieces of

1

'

"

SURAJAH DOWLAH.

IX.

(iiAr.

539

•

Here, from

cannon, into the adjoining thickets.

an incessant

(lark,

iiiglit all

was

fire

was kept up by both

in the afternoon

tliree

sides without

any

till

a.d. irse.

At mid-

result.

and Ensign Pischard, whq commanded the redoubt, suspecting

still,

from what he had learned on the Coromandel coast of the Indian mode of warfare,

that the

seized

enemy were buried

and spiked

in sleep, crossed the rivulet with his party,

and returned without

their four guns, cleared the thickets,

the loss of a man.

On

Omidiund's chief peon

the following day the nabob chanfjed his tactics.

'had not stabbedjiimself piortally; and,

had caused himself to be carried

to.

breathing indignation and revenge,

still

By his

the enemy's camp.

advice the attack

on the north was abandoned, and an entrance was easily effected from the

through various passages where there were no defenders.
thus in the hands of the enemy,
session of the quarter

An

chants.
to the

who

made

1

y the

and took pos-

principal Indian mer-

to dislodge them,

and the space

defenders became gi'adually morfe and more contracted.

Had

efforts

made them more
and

it,

and

Fort William,

efficient.

however, like that of Cossimbazar, scarcely deserved the name.
the river, about half-way between the north

left

the fort

been considered tenable they would probably have at once retired into

by thus concentrating their

east,

The suburbs were

set fire to the great bazaar,

which had been inhabited

unavailing attempt 'was

state of Fort

It stood near

Com-

i-outh extremities of the

pany's territory, and formed nearly h parallelogram, of which the longest sides,

and west, were each 200 yards; the breadth on the south side was 130,
and on the north only 100 yards. The walls, not more than four feet thick,
formed the outer side of chambers, and were in several places pierced with
the east

windows; the terraced

The four

bastions, one at each angle,

two on the south

side

chambers supplied the place of ramparts.

roofs of these

were

e.ach

mounted with ten guns, but the

were rendered useless to each other by a

The

houses which had been built contimious to the wall.
were, however, strong

mounted on them.
mounted

enough to bear the

The

line of

ware-

roofs of the warehouses

firing of three-pounders,

which were

east gateway, forming a considerable projection,

witii five guns, three in front

which formed the proper works of the

and one on each
fort,

was

Besides these,

flank.

a line of heavy cannon, mounted in

embrasures of solid masonry, was placed outside, on the brink of the

river,

under

the west wall.
It is plain

employed

from this description

how

in the construction of the fort.

very

little

engineering

skill

had been

In addition to other disadvantages

it defectiM

was overlooked by the English Church, opposite to the north-east bastion, and
several other houses belonginff to the English town,

part of spacious detached inclosures,

which consisted

and occupied the gi'ound 000

the east and half-a-mile to the north and south of the
things into consideration,

it is

fort.

for the

j-ards

Taking

most

towards
all

these

easy to understand the reluctance of the defenders

to allow themselves to be cooped u]> within the fort,

and

work.sof

their consequent anxiety

lO

AD,

irso.

IllS'IOKY

to dispute every inch of

or INDIA.

ground an they were

ingly erected three batteries, each mounting

one at the

field-pieces,

mand

di.stance of

[Book

300 yards from the east gate, so as

yards to the south of the

was bridged over

sides bordering

at a point

fort,

on the

Uj c<5ni-

Mahratta Ditch; the

to the

it

second in a street commencing about 200 yards north of the
its

accord-

two eighteen-poiinders and two

the i)rincipal avenue leading due east from

in that direction with one of

They

oljliged to recede.

111

fort,

river;

and continuing

and the third 300

where a road leading north and south

to give passage to a rivulet.

The

principal approaches being

thus secured, breast-works with palisades were erected in the smaller

and

inlets,

trenches were dug in the more open gi'ounds.
The enemy's

appeared that the defence of these outworks required a far greater

It soon

progress.

than the garrison could

force

afford.

many points remained by which
selves of the houses

The

the walls.

and

the

Even had they been sufficiently defended,
enemy could penetrate and, availing them;

inclosures, advance,

without once

became too unequal

contest thus

lo.sing shelter,

to be long succe.ssfully main-

Post after post was necessarily abandoned, and the whole

tained.

were taken the very

first

near to

day they were attacked.

tlu-ee batteries

This result spread general

consternation, and, with the exception of the comparatively few Europeans,

all

The enemy were of com'se proportionably emboldened, and not only kept up an incessant firing, but made attempts to escalade.
On one of these attempts, made at midnight, the governor ordered the drums to

were stupified with

fear.

beat the general alarm, but the summons, though thrice repeated, did not
bring forward a single

was impossible

man

except those on 'duty.

and most sanguine not

for the bravest

could not be long delayed.

In such a state of matters

It

was some

it

to feel that a fatal Lssue

consolation, however, to

know

the worst should happen, the means of escape had been provided

that, if

A ship,

and

who plied them,
European women were

seven smaller vessels, and numerous boats, with the natives

were lying before the

embarked

and

;

except the

at

two

common

As night approached

fort.

in the

council broke

morning a council of war,

to

which

all

the British,

immediately or be deferred to the following night.

up without any formal

abandonment was not

the

were admitted, met, to deliberate whether escape

soldiers,

to the ships should take place

The

all

resolution; but, as the

carried, the natural conclusion

immediate

was that the other

alter-

native had been adopted.
General con
stemation.

In the morning, when

it

was intended

to

embark the Portuguese women and

children, a scene of inextricable confusion arose.

in the night,

The enemy
hoiises

and

Many of the boats had deserted

and not a few of those which remained were upset by overcrowding.

in the

meantime were not

inclosures

idle.

on the banks of the

Having gained
river,

and endeavoured to bm'n the ship and other

arrows.

In the panic which

their

own personal

safety than on

to prevail

any united

all

the

they shot down the helpless

fugitives

now began

possession of

vessels

by means

many became more

of

fire-

intent on

effort for the general benefit.

Two

j

SUKAJAII DOWLAH.

CiiAP. IX.

541

by several of the militia, in superintending the
embarkation of the'European women, had accompanied them to the ship, and forNor was this the worst. The ship suddenly
gotten or been unable to return.
members

of council, attended

weighed anchor, and the other

following in her wake, sailed

vessels,

Many of the

Govindpore, about three miles below.

militia, believing

Not long

abandoned, rushed to the boats and quitted the shore.

down

ad.

irse.

to

themselves

^''s''* "^ '•'«

after Mr. Drake, "»J

'«"'

niamlaiit.

the governor, seeing only two boats remaining at the wharf,

and several of

his

acquaintance preparing to escape in them, followed the disgraceful example.

He was

indeed only a

and might have some shadow of excuse when he

civilian,

momentary

entirely forgot himself under the influence of

but what can

terror;

own

be said for Captain Minchin, the military commander, who, valuing his

more than honour and duty,

precious person

Can we wonder

the governor?

sailed off in the

same boat with

that for a time those thus foully and mercilessly

abandoned could do nothing but vent execrations against the fugitives ?

The

and

soldiers

militia within the fort

now numbered

On

only 190.

re-

covering in some degree from their astonishment and indignation, they pro-

Then- position, though

ceeded to deliberate.
desperate,
to

and

it

Their

eldest

member

was not yet altogether

might therefore be possible by acting with piiidence and energy

keep the enemy at bay

of escape.

fearful,

first

step

till

the}' could provide

was

to appoint a

of council present,

was

new

themselves with some means
Mr. Pearkes, as the

governor.

entitled to the

office,

but he waived his

i"'"-'

g""'*""

lef'
flit.:

and Mr. Holwell was appointed.

right,

The task which thus devolved upon him

the extreme, and he appears to have performed

was

difficult in

On

the return of two or tliree boats to the wharf he took the precaution of

it

with judgment.

locking the western gate, in order to prevent any more desertions.

At

the same

time he ordered the ship, which was originally stationed opposite to the northern
redoubt,

and

still

remained

there, to

come down immediately

preparations for continuing a vigorous defence
get on board of her.

was

there

was not

when

crew at once abandoned
another resource.

still

to be

her.

The

and leave no means untried

ea^sily

was

civil

were

volunteei-ed

at Govindpore,

and

it

would not recover from

to bring off their

their

unmanly

abandoned companions.

required, for the ship, once again before the fort, could

from

to prevent the gan-ison

was strange that the anticij)ated relief from Govindpore was not
and still stranger that it w;xs not in a manner extorted by all the

It
;

signals of flags

With

still

and military authorities on board

have repelled any attempt of the enemy

embarking.

out.

effijrt

This was a fearful disappointment, but

ves.sels

imagined that the highest

Indeed no great

should become possible to

she struck on a sandbank, and stuck so

of them, after feeling themselves secure,
panic,

it

and made

The ship immediately weighed anchor, and all were buoj^ed

with the hope of a speedy rescue
fast that the

till

to the fort,

by

day,

and

fires

by

night,

which the garrison

continuall}-

threw

a cowardice and heartlessness almost unexampled, the ships at Go\and-

pore beheld the signals unmoved, and the ganison were abandoned to their

fate.

t..

theii

51--

AD.

lll.STOUY

The

1756.

[Book

III.

on which the shameful desertions from the ^jiniw»n took place the

(Icay

enemy warmly attacked
Atioiiiptsto

INDIA.

()!•

the

fort,

but were so vigorously met that they desisted

about noon, and contented themselves during the

rest of the

day and the suc-

ceedmg niglit witli setting fire to all the adjacent houses, except those which
gave them a command of the ramparts. On the following morning their efforts
became more determined than ever, while the mejms of resistiince were raj^idly
becoming feebler and

While some of the defenders were

feebler.'

resisting with

the courage of despair, others were entreating or clamouring for a capitulatioiL

To calm the

latter class Mr.

Holwell caused Omicl.und,

in the fort, to write a letter to

commanding a

considerable

who

wa.s

a prisoner

still

Monichund, the g(A'ernor of Hooghly, who was

body of the besieging army, and threw

over the

it

This letter requested him to intercede with the nabob for a ces.sation of

wall.

hostilities, as

the garrison were ready to submit, and were onl}' resisting in order

to preserve their lives

The only

and honour.

determined attempt to escalade,

It

.

was

an.-.wer the letter received

repulsed, but at a fearful

was a
In the

los.s.

course of a few hours. twenty- five of the garrison were kiUed or desperately

wounded, and seventy more had received slighter

The common

hurts.

moreover, had intoxicated themselves by breaking into the arrack

no longc r under

Tiie foit

,

.

addressed to RoyduUub, and threw

it

forced open the western gate.

rushed

A

parley ensued, and

tlie

was not

finished

endeavouring to escape, had

soldiers,

Part of

man was

entmy when

the}-

saw

it

opening

while others gained admission by tscalading the wall where, by a

in,

most absurd arrangement,
resistance

answer to one with which a

The drunken

the fort was taken.

.

,

over the north-east bastion, and at the

flag of truce, in

advancing on the part of the enemy.

when

and were

store,

Mr. Holwell prepared anothei- letter of similar import,

control.

captured.

same time hung out a

soldiers,

was

impossible,

it

formed the abutment of warehouses.

and the garrison surrendering

their

Fm-thei

arms were made

prisoners.
siirajah

Dowlah
the fort.

in

The capturc being
® thus

effected

*•

on the

21.st of

June, the nabob, at five in the

afternoon, entered Fort William, and seating himself in state, surroimded
his general,

Meer

Jaffier,

and

his principal officers, received their congi-atulations

on the great achievement which he had peiformed.
on being presented to
sent

liim,

were received with

manifested in even daring to defend the

ciAolity.

fort,

been searched, and, to the nabob's

had been found

of the countless

rapacity

Ki.ssenda.ss,

Mr. Holwell was then

?

in

it.

The treasury had already
only 50,000 rupees

infinite disappointment,

Could

this

be

sums which had inflamed

all

had been

was told to divulge the place

where the wealth of the Company was concealed.

(£.5000)

Omichund and

and, after a severe reprimand for the presumption which

for,

by

which he was to

his imagination

In two other conferences whicli he had with

receive, instead

and provoked

^Ir.

his

Holwell before

seven o'clock he returned to the same subject, and then dismissed him with
repeated assurances of personal safety.

Mr. Holwell, from whose narrative the

.

SURAJAH DOWLAH.

Chap. IX.]

account of«the subsequent catastrophe

mean

not
"

to violate his word,

is

543

derived/ believes that the nabob did

and only gave a general order that the

ad

i:

j)risonei-s

should for that nidit be secured."
Mr. Hoi well on returning found his fellow-prisoneis surrounded bv a strong

Fort Wili.i.\m.— From a

jirint

by Van Ryue,

*

1754.

«

guard,

down

who

as soon as

it

was dark ordered them

to collect themselves

and

sit

quietly under a verandah, or piazza of arched masonry, which extended

on each side of the eastern gate, in front of the chambers already described as
abutting on the wall.

were

in flames,

and

At

this

in

both to the right and

factories,

were seen moving about with

parties

the prisoners imagined that
iires.

time the

it

was intended

'to

torches,

suffocate

and some of

them between two

This was a mistake, for the torch-bearers were only searching for a

which to

confiije

During

them.

this search

left,

})lace

they were ordered into that paii

of the verandah wliich fronted the baiTacks, along wliich

was a

large

wooden

The prisoners readily obeyed this .order,
for it now seemed that the worst which was to happen to them was to spend a
night on the platform, at a season when all the air which could reach them
through the openings of the piazza was required to temper the excessive heat.
])latform for tlie soldiers* to sleep on.

No sooner,

however, were they within the space in front of the barracks than the

guard advancing, some with pointed muskets,
tars,

forced

them back

prison; or, as

it

into a

room

othei*s

with chibs and

at the southern extremity.

was generally tenned,

the Black Hole.

cubical space of only eighteen feet, completel}' inclosed

•

It

ch*a\\ni

was the

scimi-

soldiers

The whole formed

by dead walls on

a

all sides,

except the west, where two windows, strongly barred with iron, furnished the

only supplies of

air,

but gave no ventilation, as at this time no breezes blew

except fcom the south and

east.

'

Few were aware

of the nature of the horrid

Holwell's Tracts, page 387, et seq.

'"''«

'"'»=''

HISTOIiy OF INJ>1A.

5it

AP

place

they found themselves crammed within

till

Horril)le

was about eight

It

wm

Their whole number

behind them.

1

when they

o'clock

[Book

III.

and had th& door shut

it

1-6.

entered,

and

in a

very few minutes

KulferingB.

Attempts were

the dreadful consequences began to appear.
the door, but

who had

opened inwards and could not

it

bt-

made

first

ma/le to force
Mr. Hoi well,

to yield

secured a place at one of the windows, seeing an old officer "

who

seemed to carry some compassion in his countenjince," offered him 1000 rupees

them separated

to get

saying

it

was

was
its

woik.

offer

was increased

awake him.

diu-st

First, profuse perspiration,

off,

Mernwhile

then

ragii

g

but soon returned

to 2000 rupees, but the

whose orders

Tlie nabob, without

and no man

asleep,

The

impossible.

answer was the same.

He went

two apartments.

into

it

could not be done,

suffocation

and

thirst,

lastly, in

few instances, raving madness followed, before death relieved the

was

general cry

— Water

water

!

!

and

was doing
not a

The

sufferer.

by

several .'kins of it were furnished

the natives outside, some apparently from compassion, but others from brutal

merriment, holding up torches to the windows to enjoy the desperate struggles

which l^ok place among the unhappy prisoners as each supply was handed

From

nine to eleven this dreadful scene continued.

had already
freely.

At

was

fallen victims

six in the

easily executed,

so great that the sui-vivors

morning an order arrived

for so

many dead

twenty minutes elapsed before

Of the 146 who had been
and these more dead than

After this the number

it

in.

who

began to breath more

to open the prison.

It

was not

bodies were lying behind the door that

could be forced back so as to leave a passage.

thrust into the dungeon only twenty-three

came

out,

Strange to say, one of these was a woman, a

alive.

native of India though of English parentage, and of such personal attractions

that

Jaffier carried her off as

of the

nabob.

a trophy to his harem.

Surajah Dowlah must have been well aware of the barbarity perpetrated,

Heartlessiiess

Meer

by

at least in his name, if not

any

signs of

stand,

was

humanity and

carried

new

to be kept a prisoner

others of the survivors
treasures; the rest

contrition, that

before him,

treasures, threatened

him

his authority,

when Mr.

so far fi'om

Holwell, stiU unable to

injuries if he refused to disclose them,
;

showing

he rudely interrogated him as to concealed

he was accordingly put in

who were supposed

were

and yet was

to

fetters,

know something

and ordered

along with two

of the imaginary

Most of them, unwilling to remain

set at liberty.

within the nabob's reach, proceeded to Govindpore,

b\it

found guards stationed

any communication between the shore and the Company's vessels still
lying there.
Two or three, however, managed to get on board, and brought

to prevent

tidings

which must have wrung the hearts of those who had been instrumental

in bringing such a catastrophe

by

deserting them,

perhaps," as Mr.
'

on their comrades by a double cowardice

and then leaving them

Orme justly remarks,^

"

to perish unsuccovu-ed.

—

first,

"Never,

was such an opportunitj" of performing

History of MilUanj Transactions in Hindoostan, vol.

ii.

page 78.

'

I

Chap.

a.

SURAJAH DOWLAH.

IX]

54-;5

heroic action so ignominiously neglected; for a single sloop, with fifteen brave

men on

board, might, in spite of

anchoring under the

all

the efforts of the enemy, liave

have carried away

fort,

The plunder of Calcutta

all

who

come

ksc

up, and,

suffered in the dungeon."

far short of the nabob's expectations.

fell

ad

No

were foi-thcoming except those of Omichund, who, in consequence of
the hard measure dealt out to him
treasures

by the presidency, had not been
permitted to remove them, and
said to have

*^_-,.^

is

been pillaged of £4(),()()0

many

money, besides

in

.—

valual)les.

Even the quantity and value

of the

Company's merchandise were

less

than might have been anticipated.

The capture had been made at the
wrong season.
The investments
provided had been shipped off before

when

the previous April,

soon

made navigation

the

mon-

impossible;

the imports of the

past year had

been mostly disposed

of,

and no new

to those wlio penshea in the Black Hole, Calcutta—
WriUrj Buildings in the background. i—Danielli Oriental Scenerj

monument
the

cargoes had yet anived from England.

Owing
°

was estimated at not
goods
D
^
of this only a small portion escaped the hands of

to these causes the

more than £200,000.

Even

Companv's
i
^

the soldiers, or the embezzlement of the
for it to the treasury.

The nabob

loss in

officials,

therefore

who

tI'o nai.oi) s
disapi«>iiit

ment.

should have accounted

had made, on the whole, only

a

barren conquest, and consoled himself for the disappointment in the maunei-

by pompously changing the name of Calcutta to
Alinagore, or the Port of God, in commemoration of his victor}^ and by maltreating Mr. Hoi well and his two companions, who were sent as prisonei"s ti
Moorehedabad, and subjected to nuich hardship and indignity.
The nabolj,

suitable to his character,

flattering himself that the British

would never dare

to

show themselves again

command of Calcutta, with a gamson of 3000 men,
and proceeded homewards to cany out the expedition against Punieah, which
he had so suddenly abandoned. After crossing the Hooghly Avith his army he
determined to make the Dutch and French factories feel the weigiit of his disin Bengal, left

pleasure.

Monichund

in

In passing southward he had imperiously ordered them to join

standard with

all

their forces.

They

declined;

his

and he now sent a message

them with extirpation if they did not forthwith send him a large
contribution by way of fine.
Ultimately the Dutch compounded for £45,000,
threatening

This obelisk was erected by Governor Holwell,
It is not undeserving of notice, that Mr.
Holwell himself survived the catastrophe more than
ferry years, and died in 1798, aged eighty-seven. The
'

in 1756.

Vol.

I.

Writers' Buildings were so called from being the
residence of the junior officers of the East India Company.
Immediately beyond this edifice is the old

court-house ; the road leads on to the Lall Bazaar.

69

"'*

'*"!'"''

ture

llLSTOliY

r)l()

AD.

1750.

piiHiiiaiii-

and the French

made in
The

INIHA.

(Ho(,K III

Tlie difference in favour of tlie latter

for £85, 000.

consideration of the present
vessels at

(>]•

<A'

was prohahly

gunpowder already mentioned-

Govindpore had not remained there with the intention

of

inity of the

Bhipsat

On

rendering any assistance to the Calcutta garrison.
only to their

fears,

ingly have quitted

them

friglitened

When

they had continued to
it

altogether,

so that they

sfiil

down

the contrary, yielding

the river, and would will-

had they not encountered a new danger, which

were glad to return to their former anchorage.

they were endeavouring to pass the fort of Tanna the cannon, with

which

had again been mounted, opened upon them, and drove two of the

it

smaller vessels ashore.

This sufficed to spread a panic through the whole

fleet.

That the danger was magnified by excessive timidity was proved a few days
after,

when two

Bombay came up

ships from

of the fort without injury.

Thvus

the river and sustained the

fire

reassured the fleet again weighed anchor,

passed Tanna without any loss of the least consequence, and reached the town
of Fulta, the station of all the
at least

the

till

Not long

Dutch shipping. Here

it

was determined

to remain,

monsoon should change, provided the nabob did not

after their arrival

they were joined by several other

agents from the subordinate factories of Dacca, Balasore, &c.,

inteifere.

ships,

who

and the

naturally

anticipated a similar fate to that which had befallen Cossimbazar and Calcutta.

In this opinion they were not mistaken, for the nabob had no sooner reached

Moorshedabad than he issued orders

for the confiscation of all the English pro-

perty within his dominions.

Thougli the uabob did not molest the fugitives at Fulta their sufierings were

Sufferings of

at Fuita°

Ever dreading that they might be attacked they did not venture

not over.
sleep

on

shore,

and crowded the

vessels,

where they

lay,

to

most of them on the

decks, without shelter, exposed to the inclemencies of one of the worst climates

in the world, dm-ing its unhealthiest season.

Numbers were

in consequence

by malignant fever, which infected the whole fleet. The evils thus
produced by natiu-al, were greatly aggravated by moral causes. Many, conscious

carried off

of the light in which their conduct would generally be viewed, and unable to
reflect

on

it

without shame and remorse, endeavoiu-ed to excidpate themselves

at the expense of their neighbours.
in

Much time was

thus spent to no purpose

mutual recrimination, and no course of united action was

possible.

At

last,

however, after a course of wrangling, the authority of the governor and the
other

members of

a military

council

officer, set

necessary assistance.

was acknowledged, and one of

out for Madi'as, to represent

theii'

their number, with

condition and solicit the

—

DELIBERATIONS AT MADRAS.

Chap. X.]

CHAPTER

-3+7

X.

for Bengal — Recapture of Calcutta — Naval and military
Madras — Armament
—Treaty of peace with the nabob — Capture of the French factory at Chandernagore
Recommencement of hostilities — Conspiracy to depose the nabob —The battle of Plassey.

Deliberations at

sails

operations

~~'

"^

''

HE

first

danger impending over the Com-

intelligence of the

.\.d.

nse.

pany's settlements in Bengal reached Madras on the loth of
July.

It

was not sent

as to

till

after the capture of the factory

and consequently

at Cossimbazar,

^

off

what might have happened

left

room only

for conjecture

subsec^uently to that event.

Judging by what had happened on other occasions, the Madras presidency did
not view the matter in a very serious

Native governors had repeatedly

liglit.

cjt«te of

Madras.

threatened as much, and even done more violence, and yet allowed themselves

by a sum of money before proceeding to extremities.
Why might not the same thing be repeated now ? These and similar considerations had the more weight at Madi'as, because that settlement had then full
employment for the force at its command. An application had been made l)y
bought

to be

at last

oft'

Salabut Jmig for assistance to throw

had been resolved
table,

and

it

to gi-ant

A

it.

oft"

his connection with the French,

war with France was

was known that the French government

maintain

its

also regarded as inevi-

in the prospect of

it

were

would

scarcely be able

when

united to

ground, and therefore nothing but the direst necessity would justify

the despatch of

any portion of

land

was

force.

it

In such an event Admiral Wat-

preparing a ]iowerful armament for the East.
son's squadron, then lying in the roads,

and

.

It

it

The same argument applied

to Bengal.

impossible, however, after the intelligence which

to the

had

l)een

and a detachment of 230 men, mostly Europeans,

received, to ignore

it

was despatched

Bengal in the Company's ship Delaware, which had recently

for

entirely,

arrived from England.

It sailed

on the 20th of July, and arriving

in the

Hooghly on the 2d of August, found the fugitives pining away at Fulta.
Sickly and dispirited as they were no co-operation was to be expected from
them, and the detachment, far too feeble to venture unaided on offensive operations,

had no alternative but

to

sM-amps soon made fearful havoc

I

On
known

encamp

in the vicinity of Fulta,

among them.

the 5th of Aug-ust the full extent of the Bengal
at Madras.

been bought

off",

as

whose deadly

There was

now no room

many had

too readily

for conjecture.

before.

became

The nabob had not

and com})lacently assumed, but had,

under circumstances of ineffable barbarity, inflicted on the

blow than had ever been sustained

cata.stro})iie

The most

Company a

flourishing

heavier

and productive

An

exjwdi

gai re»->ive.i
"'*""

o\H
A

D. 1766.

or INJMA.

lllS'JOIiV

[lUxiK

of all the presidencies wa,s, in fact, anniiiilated, an<l notliing but

could save

Company from

tlie

members

before them,

of

It is latlier strange tliat,

ruin.

Mudraa council were found

tiie

the

with

recovery
fact

tliis

to argue that the

Jung

claims of Salabut

have

itH

lil.

preference,

sliouhl

and

chums of Bengal would be

still

that

the

satisfied

by

sending a fifty-gun ship, and deputies
to treat with the nabol*.

absurd as

now

it

Tliis view,

appears, would iiave

mem-

been adopted had not one of the
bers,

possessed of sounder judgment

and more enlarged experience, put the
)

natter in its true light, and succeeded,

war

after a long

of words, in bringing

over the whole council to his opinion.
Tlie resolution ultimately adopted,

by Admiral Watson,

assented to
Hudiion.

of war,

having on board an adequate land
Previous

Before the armament could

force,

sail

([Uestions to

be solved,

Who

decided.

should

command

was that the whole squadron,

should proceed to Bengal.

remained to be
several periDlexing
o points
i
i
i

the land forces

What

?

and council of Calcutta?

The

them, or to act independent of them?

The members of the

considered.

late

and deemed

necessary for their

it

the grossest misconduct.

own

Was

he to be subject to

last of these questions

Calcutta

wrangling at Fulta, had each sent separate

should be the extent

In what relation ought he

of his authority both in acting and in negotiation?
to stand to the late governor

after

obtaining the sanction of a council

— From print after T

Admiral Watson.

and

lettei's

was

first

council,

not satisfied with

to the

Madras presidency,

exculpation to charge each other Mith

Taking the matter as they represented

it,

they had

proved unworthy of the authority with which they had been invested, or were
so divided

right

by mutual animosities

as to be incapable of exercising

had the Madras presidency

sidencies

to sit in

judgment on them

were co-ordinate, and accoimtable only

long, therefore, as the

Still,

it.

what

The three

pre-

to the court of directors.

So

(

appointment of the Calcutta council remained uncancelled

their jurisdiction within tlieiv presidenc}', notwithstanding the ^•iolence

had deprived them of

it,

was unquestionable.

Mr. Pigott, the

which

governor of

Madras, proposed to solve the difficulty by proceeding in jjerson to Bengal with
the united powers of commander-in-chief, and general representative of the

Company

in all other affairs.

council invest

him with such powers? and

mander was he
had of

his

This was mere extravagance.

own

likely to prove,
sufficiency?

when

if

How

could his

he had them, what kind of a com-

his only qualification

This proposal havinsr

fivllen

was

tlie

opinion he

to the ground, a kind

—

EXPEDITION FROM MADUAS TO BENGAL.

Chap. X.]

549

was adopted by acknowledging Mr. Drake and his council as a
with full powers in civil and commercial atlairs, and reserving to

of middle course

presidency,

themselves, or the officer

whom

they might appoint, independent power in

ad.

nco.

all

things military.

The next point was the choice
j)0wer

on

was

whom

whom

There were only three pereons

to be intrusted.

this choice could

commander, to

of the

Colonel Adlercron, as the

fall.

He had

as a king's officer, not

first

in his

Life of Clive

requested

(vol.

i.

mind afterward took

Sir

John Malcohn

had at one time

with the whole of his majesty's

place,

and they

justified it

A

bursement of the immense

they have

loss

mainly on the ground that

may

be taken, towards reimColonel Lawrence had

.sustained."

the Indian experience which Adlercron wanted, and had, as

his exploits in the Carnatic,

change

upon our request, and that the Company

to return hither

not have any part of the plunder that

shoiild

by

letter, inserted

this service

him,

deference to

little

137, 138), that the presidency

him "to imdertake

"he could not engage

all

p.

To

it.

and pressed him "to give the necessary orders accordingly."

troops,"

of

from his

had the

in rank,

never seen service in India, and

dependent on the Company, showed

It seems, however,

their agents.

choicoofa

in the presidency

most legitimate claim, and was by no means disposed to forego
however, there were strong objections.

independent

tliis

we have

seen

by

He

proved both an able and a successful warrior.

deserved the utmost confidence, and had he obtained the appointment would

undoubtedly have added to his

It

laurels.

may have been

fortunately

unceremonious manner in which he appears to have been set

afi'ected,

that

recpiisite to

it

but the

aside, required a

"The climate of Bengal
an asthmatic disorder with which Colonel Lawrence was

stronger justification than

was so adverse to

Orme

;

adduces, wlien he says,

was thought he would be disabled from

incessant activity

tliat

the .success of this expedition, of which the tennination

was

limited

to a time."

After Adlercron and Lawi'ence were rejected, Clive,
of Fort St. David,

was the only

He had

consideration.

them imder the

the very

turned to him as

The following

letter,

175G, after his appointment

first

notice of the presidency,
tlie

most

arrival at Madras, gives so

com-

on the expedition which was destined

set out

crown

the British Indian emph'e, that

quoted entire

eligible

good an account of

his feelings

his

ciive ap-

written to the com-t of directors, October 11 th,

and

when preparing to
own fame and found

installed as governor

whose claims were worthy of a moment's

officer

early brought

who had probably from
uiander.

now

it

to

deserves to be

:

—

Honourable Gentlemen, From many hands you will hear of the captiu-e
of Calcutta by the Moors, and the chain of misfortunes and losses which have
happened to the Company in particidar, and to the nation in general every
"

;

breast here seems filled with grief, horror
a tale to unfold,

and

1

must beg leave

and resentment

to refer

you

;

indeed,

it

is

too sad

to the general letters, con-

ush leciingK

^^^'

AD

17SC.

HISTORY

sultation.s,

Upon

''*'"""^*-'"

my

you a

will give

[Book

full

J

II.

account of this catnAtroj^he.

melancholy occasion the governor and council thought projjer to

this

*in^"amr'
viow*.

and connnittees, which

IMJiA.

i)y

"^^ ^^

^^"'"^

As soon

P^^^ce.

which was at

service,

a.s

an expedition was resolved upon,

last accepted,

and

1

am now

barking on board his majesty's squadron, with a

offered

I

upon the point of em-

body of Europeans,

fine

of spirit and resentment for the insults and barbarities inflicted on so
Biitish subjects.

I

myself that this expedition will not end

flatter

full

many

witii the

taking of Calcutta only, and that the Company's estate in those parts will be

and more

settled in a better

lasting condition than ever.

There

reason to

Is less

ai)prehend a check from the nabob's forces than from the nature of the climate

and country.
expedition

The news of a war may likewise

however, should that happen, and

;

we

India, I hope

country and the

my

wanting on

me

Company

;

and

I

be commenced in

have a true sense of

my

duty

beg leave to assure you that notiiing

I

Success on this occasion will

in the esteem of those to

whom

great respect.

In another

ho.stilities

this

my

to

be

shall

part to answer the ends of an undei'taking on which so very

depends.

will fix

with the success of

be able to dispossess the French of Chandemagore, and

shall

leave Calcutta in a state of defence.

much

interfere

letter to a director

I

fill

my

the measure of

joy, as

it

have the honour to subscribe, with

— "A few weeks

he says

R. Clive."

ago

I

was happily

seated at St. David's, pleased with the thoughts of obtaining your confidence

and esteem, by
of improving

Company's

now

my

application to the civil branch of the Company's affairs, and

and increasing the investment but the
;

estate at

Bengal has superseded

at this presidency

squadr-on,

Calcutta,

and

difficult task,

from the nabob for the

to gain satisfaction

You may be

his majesty's

may

think satisfactory,

may

assured I will never turn

Two months

which the Com-

my

utmost

is

precarious

and doubtful,

not allow time for such an undertaking.

my

back to Bengal,

efforts towai'ds

if

not oidered from

obtaining the desired

succes.s."

did not sail
havins:
in debate, the expedition
ir
I
o been spent

The squadi-on

the 16th of Octobcr.

Admiral Watson's

flag

;

fire-ship

;

till

consisted of the Kent, of sixty- four, bearing

the Cumberland, of seventy, bearing Admii-al Pococke

flag; the Tiger, of sixty; the Salisbury, of fifty; the

and a

losses

The recapture of Calcutta appears no ver}'
but om- further progress for reducing the nabob to such terms as

thence, without trying

guns,

am

in those parts.

from the prospect of a war which

force,

other considerations, and I

upon the point of embarking on board

the gentlemen of Calcutta

land

blow given to the

with a very considerable body of troops, to attempt the recovery of

pany have sustained

n.e squa
.iron and

all

fatal

s

Bridgewater, of twenty

together with three Company's ships, and

two smaller

vessels as transports.

of 900

Europeans, 250 of

sepoys.

The

instructions

refused redress,

The land force, under Colonel Clive, consisted
them belonging to Adlercron's regiment, and 1500

recommended the attack of Moorshedabad itself, if the nabob
and the capture of Chandemagore if war with France should

I

ARRIVAL OF THE EXPEDITION IN THE HOOGHLY.

Chap. X.]

proved

Tlie lateness of the season nearly

be declared

northern monsoon was setting
strong that during the

first

in,

was necessary

it

As

Bay

of Bengal,

felt,

recro.ss

The

making

behind; and the

for Balasore Roads, struck

miles from

continue her course,

Tiie

voyage

when

fire-ship,

;

on a sandliank, which stretches out several

Both got

Point Palmyras.

was

away to Ceylon the MarlCumberland and Salisbury, in

unable to stem the violence of the monsoon, bore
fell

it

and then ])roceeding

and thus gain the entrance to the Hooghly.

borough, sailing heavily,

a.d. itsh.

were so

the only ])racticable

north along the eastern coast, where the currents are less
opposite to Balasore,

nortli

twelve days, instead of making progress,

to cross the

The

fatal to the fleet.

and the currents from the

canied six degrees of latitude to the south of Madras.
passage

5^1

was driven south

off,

but the Cumberland, unable to

to Vizagapatam.

Ultimately, on the

20th of December, more than two months after leaving Madras, and exactly
half a year from the

day when Calcutta was taken, Fulta was reached by the

whole squadron, except the Cumberland and Marlborough.

was a

250 of the European troops were on board the one, and

serious loss, as

most of the heavy
their strength

artillery

was obtained

had been shipped in the

other.

Some

for duty.

from the court of

more than thirty were

degree of order, however, had been restored by a despatch

directors,

appointing Mr. Drake and three other members of

council a select committee for the conduct of all political
M.ajor Kilpatrick, previously associated with them,

Colonel Clive

now

Little addition to

at Fulta, for half of the detachment imder Major

Kilpatrick were dead, and the remainder so sickly that not
fit

Their absence

added, increased the whole

Letters had been procured at

affairs.

and Admiral Watson, and

number

Madras from Mr.

and military

to seven.

Pigott, the governor,

Mahomed

Nabob of Arcot, and Salabut Jung, Soubahdar of the Deccan, exhorting
Surajah Dowlah to give recb*ess for the wrongs he had inflicted; and these,
along with others, written by Admiral Watson and Colonel Clive, were sent
Ali,

On

open to Monichund, governor of Calcutta.

receiving for his answer that he

durst not forward to his master letters couched in such menacing terms,
resolved to

commence

Accordingly the whole

hostilities forthwith.

ing the vessels previously at Fulta, quitted

day anchored ten miles below the
a

commanding point on the same

fort of

it

fleet,

it

was

includ-

on the 27th December, and next

Budge Budge.

This

side of the river as Calcutta,

fort,

situated on

and only twelve

by land, though double that distance by water, was the
first object of attack.
It was not expected to oflfer any resistance, and the only
anxiety felt was to make prisoners of the garrison while they were making their
escape.
With this view an ambuscade was devised. At sunset Clive landed
miles south-west from

with 500

men

it

of the battalion, and

all

the sepoys, and proceeded, under the

direction of Indian guides, across a country full of

numerous deep
this

rivulets.

swamps, and intersected by

The mere march must have been

was greatly increased by the neglect

to provide

full

of hardship, but

any bullocks

for

draught

oiwr.itions

""""'""^

'>32

A.

It.

i7Mi.

ULSKjUY

Their place was necoasaiily

or })unlen.

had to drag along two
lih.i.iierH
j^i^

fi^m-

ijj

Ol'

^]jg

field-pieces

They set out
vicinity of Budge Budge till eight

and a timlird of ammunition.
tlie

next moniing.

The whole march by land looks

so characterized

by Clive

himself,

was much against

tliat it

boats to land

them

at the very place

more

still

who

and that he applied

the rainy season, as

it

to the admiral for

arrived, after suffering " liard-

where they

This blunder, therefore, was not his; but there was

serious nature from

which he cannot be

The place occupied on arriving was a

pated.

like a Ijlunder; and, indeed, is

says, in a private letter to Mr. Pigott,

his inclination,

ships not to be described."^

another of a

[liooK 111

by the men themselves, who

sujijditMl

and did not reach

afternoon,

INDIA.

was ten

and a half north-east of the

feet

below the

large hollow, probably a lake in

level of the plain.

It

was a mile

a mile from the river, and half-a-mile east of a

fort,

The eastern and

highroad leading to Calcutta.

so easily excul-

part;

of the southern banks of

hollow were skirted by a village, which seemed to have been recently aban-

tlie

The two

doned.

field-pieces

were placed on the north

plan of the ambuscade was as follows

:

— The

The

side of this ^illage.

grenadiers and 300 sepoys were

detached to take possession of a village on the bank of the river adjoining the
wall of the

The company of volunteers were posted

fort.

nv.

It

on the

Clive with the rest of the troops continued in the hol-

west side of the road.
1

in a thicket

was expected that when the garrison

in the fort discovered the troops in

possession of the village adjoining the north wall, they

would mistake them

for

the whole of the attacking force, and vmder that impression endeavoured to

by making

escape

for the highroad.

volunteers, opening

While they were hastening along

upon them from the

hollow, whei-e their slaughter or captiu-e
Asui-prise.

the

thicket,

easily effected.

The idea of

dano-er to themselves seems never to have entered the

commander

or his soldiers.

make

their rest

more easy were allowed

all

to quit

the

would drive them towards the

would be

They were

it

mind

of

worn out with fatigue, and to
their arms.
Even the ordinary

precaution of .stationing sentinels was neglected, and in a few minutes they

were

Not

all asleep.

from Calcutta with

them within a

1

so the

The previous day Monichund had anived

500 horse and 2000

distance of

acquainted with

enemy.

two

all Clive's

turn them against himself.
the village, had not lain

miles,

He was now encamped

foot.

and having by means of .spies made himself

arrangements, was only watching the oppoi-tunity to

The

troops,

huddled in the hollow or scattered

down above an hour when

of the village suddenly broke their slumbers.

The

ensued

;

fire

been ordered a

in

a volley from the east side
soldiers rushed in

Had

that part of the hollow where their arms were grounded.

the reach of the enemy's

with

alarm to

a retreat out of

would probably have

fatal panic

but Clive, whose presence of mind never forsook him, made his men

way into the ^^llage at
artillerymen, who on the firet

stand firm, and detached two platoons which forced their
the point of the bayonet.
'

This gave time to the

Malcolm's Memoirs of Lord

Clive, vol.

i.

page 153.

.

(HAP.

X

ADVA^X'E UPON CALCUTTA.

•

had rushed into

tilarm

tlie

hollow, to regain their guns

which that of the enemy soon slackened.

was a coward, and on receiving a

upon the

to fire

village,

concluded on the very

who

Malcolm,

and open a

it is

through the turban was so frightened
"

had the cavalry advanced

not improbable that the war would have been

first trial

This

of hostilities."'

is

questioned by Sir John

"had no means

says that, owing to the thick jungle, cavalry

where they must have been

seen,

mitted to be the more competent authority of the two; but, in
defend the honour of his hero, forgets the time and

of the surprise.

by men who were

could they have been seen in the dark, and

was undoubtedly committed

could be done to repair

was due

zeal to

liis

If,

were openings through which cavalry might have penetrated,

as he admits, there

gross mistake

manner

and the

must be ad-

Sir John, from his profession,

possibility of surprise defeated."

A

a.d. ivse.

hollow at the same time that the infantry began

tlie

of advancing, except through openings

how

under

fire,

Fortunately for Clive, Monichund

According to Orme,

that he thought only of flight.

and charged the troops in

hall

553

far less to

it,

;

and though Clive did

cannot be denied that his

it

fast asleep?

.success

on

that

all

this occasion

conduct than to good fortune.

Immediately on Monichund's retreat the whole of the troops were marched

BudgeBudge
taken.

to the village adjoining their fort,

and there found the Kent, which had outsailed

the other vessels, anchored in front of

and to

assist in it

up

straggled

250

sailors

it,

assault

One

were landed.

to the ditch, crossed

sentinels, hallooed to the

The

it.

was deferred

till

who had

of these,

got drunk,

scrambled over the rampart, and seeing no

advanced guard that he had taken the

indeed evacuated by the enemy,

next day,

who had

only waited

till

it

It

fort.

was

was dark enough

to conceal their retreat.

The impression produced by the affair at Budge Budge was somewhat
singular.
The British, astonished at the resolution displayed in venturing to
attack them, began to think that they had underrated the Bengal troops, and
even Olive was dispirited.
says,

You

"

will find

In the

letter to

by the return that our

Budge was greater than could well be
often repeated," he afterward adds,

" I

Mr. Pigott, already referred
loss in the skirmi.sh

.

.

he

near Budge

If such .skirmishes were to be

spared.

cannot take upon

ments about our future success against the nabob
afi'air

to,

me

my

to give

open

senti-

the

little

above mentioned was attended with every disadvantage on our

side.

.

.

Indeed,

I

fear

we

shall labour

under

in the

many

field

;

of these disadvantages

when attacked by the nabob; and I take it for granted he will be down
On the other hand,
before the Cumberland and Marlborough can aiTive."
Monichund, who had formed rather a contemptible opinion of the British, from
the facility with which Calcutta
in order to palliate his

quitted

it,

leaving only
'

had been taken, now magnified

own defeat; and no sooner reached Calcutta than lie
500 men in the fort, and proceeded northward to com-

Omie's Militarii Transactions,. vol.
•

Vol.

I.

their prowess

ii.

page
F b 124.

^^

Results of

the captun

HISTOKY OF INDIA.

554
A.D. 1756.

niunicate his terror,

first

[Book

and afterwards

at Hoo^lily,

nabob

to the

III.

hiiiLself at

Moorshedabad.
Calcutta
recovered

To prevent the fleet from coming up the river, Monichund ha^l prepared a
number of ships, laden with bricks, intending to sink tiiem in the narrowest
The appearance of tlie sloop-of-war frustrated
part of the channel, near Tanna.
the execution of this scheme

;

and the

rest of the fleet, leavin;^ Budj^e Budrje

the 30th of December, anchored on New-year's

was abandoned without

firing

a shot.

Tlie

Day

on

opposite to Tanna, which

next morning Clive, with the

greater part of the troops, landed at Aligur, a fort opposite to Tanna, and

Admiral Watson, with the Kent and

advanced by the highroad on Calcutta.

him

Thjer, an'ived before

nonade compelled the enemy, in

A

the fort and the town.

by the force of their canmore than two hours, to evacuate both

opposite Fort William, and
little

detachment sent ashore, under command of Captain

When

Coote, immediately took possession.

Clive anived he naturally expected

and was mortified above

to be recognized as military governor of Calcutta,

measure when Coote showed a commission from Admiral Watson, by which he

was himself appointed governor, and
place

further orders.

till

arising

This was another of the

At

ofiicers.

first,

as neither party

command

upon him.

of

wdiile the

it,

his majesty's

would give way, the

admiral threatened

if

up the

instances of collision

aff'air

Clive, admitted into the fort, insisted

a very threatening appearance.

fire

many

from jealousies and misunderstandings between

Company's
ing the

specially instructed not to dehver

and the
assumed

on retain-

he did not evacuate to

Before such extremities were resorted to explanations took place,

and a compromise was

effected,

on the assurance that

it

by which

Clive waived his claim to the

would afterwards be given him.

command

In accordance wnth

arrangement Admiral W^atson remained in possession, and the next day

this

up the

delivered

fort to the

Company's representatives

in the king's name.

This last proceeding throws some light upon the quarrel, and shows that

Misunderstandinga

more was involved in it than at first sight appears. From the very first, before
it was known what view the court of directors would take, Mr. Drake and his
colleagues insisted that, notwithstanding the loss of Calcutta, tlieir authority

and hence Mr. Manningham, the member of council

remained

entire,

had sent

as their

stronger now, for a

new commission had

military affairs of the presidency.

independent of

had been aware of
it,

and

therefore

it

all

it

was

still

the political and

It is not to be supposed that if the governthis

commission they would have made Clive

was not unreasonable
office,

to expect that

when

he would either resign

independent powers, or at least keep them in abeyance.

view, but

case

arrived from England expressly em-

he arrived and found them regularly installed in
his

The

this presidency.

powering Mr. Drake and three of the council to conduct

of IMadras

the}'

deputy to Madras, formally protested against the independent

powers with which Clive was invested by

ment

whom

Such was not

seems to have been Admii-al Watson's; and hence

his

theii* quarrel.

m

(

ATTACK UN HOOGIILY.

X.|

HAi'.

which had nothing personal in

it,

555

originated in a determination on the part of ad.

1757.

the one to uphold the authority of the Calcutta coniniittee, and on the part of
the other to give effect to the instructions which he

How

bitterly Clive felt at the treatment he

1

friends,"

IIf
ever imdertook this expedition.
•

cannot help regrettmg that

I

at Madras.

had received appears from several

— "Between
Pigott:

passages in a private letter to Mr.
.

had received

he says, "IciivesinUignation.

mi

The mortifications

have received from Mr. Watson and the gentlemen of the squadron in point

of prerogative, are such that nothing but the good of the service could induce

me to submit

he characterizes
secret

Speaking of the commission granted to Captain Coote,

to tliem."

as a " dirty

it

underhand contrivance, carried on in the most

manner, under a pretence that

never entered

my

intended the same thing, which,

I

Again, referring to the true cause of

thoughts."

"

understandings and heartburnings, he observes,

much

dissatisfied at the authority I

my own

sentiments, if

I

was not

am

property,

Company's

vested with.

It

to .acknowledge that 1

interests

and the means of recovering

;

it,

would be contradicting
still

still

possess the opinion

more prudent,

or

more

sorry to say, the loss of private

seem to be the only objects which take

up the attention of the Bengal gentlemen."
the same opinion in

am

for, I

the mis-

all

The gentlemen here seem

that the gentlemen of Madras could not have taken a step
consistent witli the

I declare,

Farther on he gives utterance to

harsher and even rancorous terms

you guard against everything these gentlemen can say

for,

;

—"

I

would have

believe me, they are

bad subjects and rotten at heart, and will stick at nothing to prejudice you and
tlie

gentlemen of the committee

;

they have not spared one another?

I shall

no excuse, even among themselves

finds

should not induce

me

to dwell

opinion without acting upon

it

;

how

indeed,

;

should they do otherwise

only add, their conduct at Calcutta

and that the

among them."
and

when

therefore,

riches of

Peru and Mexico

Clive could not entertain an

when

the committee sent

him a

demanding that he should place himself under them, he answered, "I do
not intend to make use of ray power for acting separately from you, without

letter,

you reduce me to the necessity of so doing

;

but, as

fai*

as concerns the

executing these powers, you will excuse me, gentlemen,

up;

I

cannot do

it

if I

without forfeiting the trust reposed in

means of

refuse to give these

me by

the select com-

mittee of Fort St. George."
Intelligence havinor been received that the recapture of Calcutta

had thrown

Attack
14

the

enemy

into

great consternation, and that the nabob's army would not be

ready for some time to march from Moorshedabad,

it

was determined

to take

advantage of the interval by assuming the aggi-essive and attacking Hooghly.
This place, situated on the right bank of the river, twenty-seven miles above
Calcutta,
titious

was regarded

as the royal port of Bengal,

importance in addition to that which

population.

As the

object

possible, the capture of it

now was
was good

it

to bring the

and had thus an adven-

derived from

nabob

its

wealth and

to terms as speedily as

strategy, as nothing

seemed better calcu-

1

<
1

•

UlSTOKY OF INDIA.

o.3(i

A.D. 1757.

[Book- III

lated to convince liim of the disasters which he mi^^ht bring upon

The town, though

continuing obstinate.

open,

was guarded by 3000

moreover, defended by a fort with a garrison of 2000 men.

hy

hinis<:;lf

rnen, and,

Considering the

importance of the meaiLS of defence, the force employed in the attack seems

very inadequate.

three other vessels, having on board

command
Hoogldy

twenty-gun

It consisted of only a

of Major Kilpatrick

1

Such, however,

was

town only saw the
The

encounter.

The intended

to reach

divisions

British troops landed,

foii

to prepare their

and then made

was battered by the

3000 men

vessels

in the

without risking an

night,

and then attacked

till

off

one of them by feint on the main gate, while the other, con-

;

and

The o
garrison, seeing
o

breach.

Hooglily.

was thus a failure,
means of resistance.

sui-prise

their pusillanimity or dismay, that the

sisting of a party of troops
c ipture of

was expected

It

tlie

in one tide, but a delay of five days took place in coasequence of the

and the enemy, forewarned, had ample time

two

and

50 Europeans and 200 sepoys, under

and Captain Coote.

ship having struck upon a sandbank.

in

ship, a sloop of war,

sailors,

111

under Captain Coote, stormed at the

their assailants

on the ramparts,

fled out precipi-

These easy successes made the British over-confident,

tately at the lesser gate.

and Captain Coote, who had proceeded three miles

to the north with only fifty

Europeans and 100 sepoys, and destroyed several granaries of

rice,

narrowly

escaped as he was returning, from being ovei^whelmed by the fugitive troops,

who, unknown to him, were lying in the neighbourhood watching his movements.

By

the loss of a single man.

any

as Mr. Mill gratuitously asserts, without adducing

If,

authority, the capture of

]>lunder,"^ the result

Hooghly was undertaken

must have been disappointment,

was obtained was estimated only

DuHng

vvarbetweeii
tain

and

and dexterity he disengaged himself without

singular good fortune

the cxpcditiou

to

'"

solely

with a \'iew

t<j

as the value of all that

at £15,000.

Hooghly,

arrived

intelligence

that

the long

expccted War between Great Britain and France was actually declared.

Fr.ince.

m Bengal
•

state 01 matters

-n

l

thus assumed an ominous appearance.

had 300 Europeans and a train of
that they

artillery at C handernagore,

would at once join the nabob.

])robability

be overmatched.

enable them to keep the

Tlie
rm
-n
Tlie French

•

i

l

field,

The whole
and

and

In that case the British would in
force then in

to all appearance the larger part of

dii'ected Clive to return as early as possible

spared.

A

all

Bengal would scarcely

about to be withdi'awn, as the Madras presidency, alarmed for their

had

was feared

it

own

it

was

safety,

with what troops could be

vigorous and successful prosecution of the war against the nabob

being, in consequence,

deemed

hopeless, the tone of the

Bengal

select

committee

was immediately lowered, and they resolved to lose no time in endeavouring to
negotiate a peace.
With this view they opened a communication with the

him

banker, Juggut Seat, and condescended to request
behalf

The nabob's

fears
'

had formerly inclined him

Mill's Bi-itish India, vol.

iii.

to

page 175.

to mediate in their

come

to terms,

but the

[|

ATTEMPTED NEGOTIATIONS WITH THE NABOB.

Chap. X.)

Hooghly made him

attack on
to

march southward and avenge

tiation

had

whom

those

passed,

and

and

furious,

Juggut

it.

his

army was immediately ordered ad
aware that the time

Seat,

afraid to imphcate himself

the nabob had again

doomed

o.37

by interceding

for nego-

in behalf of

no further

to destruction, ventured

its:

-^"«n'i'< *"

«ith the

than to instruct Runjeet Roy, his ablest agent, to accomjjany the army, and at

Omichund was

the same time correspond with Olive.

also in the nabob's train.

During the nabobship of Ali Verdy Khan, he obtained the

far largest share of

by which the Company provided their shipments.
employment he had lost, because the Company, imputing a

This lucra-

the contracts
tive

in the quality of the

goods to his avarice, had determined, instead of em})loving

contractors, to deal at first

hand with the producers themselves.

His ottence

at

change was the main ground of the suspicion by which the presidency

this

thought themselves
his

deterioration

goods from Calcutta,

(luence

smy,

when

it

was

His fortunes had in conse-

attacked.

been shattered, for besides the large sum of money found

his loss

in his trea-

by the destruction of houses and other property was immense.

His whole thoughts and

For

imprisoning him, and ]>reventing the removal of

ju.stified in

were

efforts

this purpo.se the ftivour of the

necessary to him.

now employed

in obtaining compensation.

nabob and of the Company were equal 1}'

The former he had secured by

ingTatiating himself with

Mohun Loll, the principal favourite at the court of Moorshedabad the latter
he now hoped to recover by aiding their endeavours to procure a peace.
The
Company has thus two influential agents in the nabob's canq\ For the time,
;

however, they seemed to have

failed,

and the nabob continued

to advance.

In the eagerness to negotiate, the necessity of providing against the onl\-

Hetoini-.i
izes.

alternative

had not been overlooked.

About a mile

and half that distance from the bank of the

The spot was well

river, a

to the north of Calcutta,

camp had been

chosen, for having the river on the west,

fortified.

and a large lake and

two miles beyond the Mahratta Ditch on the east, an
enemy from the north could not enter the Company's territory without coming
in sight of it.
The artillery, which had hitherto been the great want, iiad at

extensive marshes about

by the arrival
January the nabob's anny began to
length been supplied

Hooghly.

away an

Yevy fortmiately

it

On

the 30th of

cross the river, about ten

miles above

of the Mdvlborough.

had not been joined by the French, who threv

excellent opportunity of crip])ling, if not crushing their rivals,

by

reviving the chimerical idea of neutrality between the two companies, while

war

Avas raging

auxiliaries, the

between their respective nations.

nabob seemed

to cross, proposals of peace
gi'eat

so formidable that

were forwarded to

Even without the French as
even after his anny had began
him.
He received them with

apparent cordiality, and at the same time continued his march.

2d of February he propo.sed a conference with deputies, but
promise of sending them passports.
arm}'

was seen advancing

at full

failed to

On

keep his

The very next morning the van of

march from the

north-ea.st.

From

the

his

the nature

ami

continues

HISTOKY OF

558
AD.

1767.

INl^IA.

[Book

III.

of the ground tlieir progi-ess might eawily have been 8t<")pped; Vjut Clive, unwill-

ing either to divide

force or to conirnence hostilities while the lea«t lioj)e

liis

of accommodation remained, allowed

them

ground outside the

ditch,

selves along the

with

Company's

clubs, entered the

Most of them

tf) pa«.s.

Redoubt

sallied out

them-

but a predatory horde, anned only

teiritory,

and were engaged

houses of the natives in the north part of the town,
at Perring's

sprea^l

when

a detachment posted

New

and expelled them.

in pillaging the

bodies of the

enemy

continued to arrive, and coolly began to entrench themselves in a large garden

midway between

the head of the lake and the ditch, and about a mile and a

half from the British camp.

punishment which

it

This

in.sult

provoked was an

was not

to be borne,

and yet the only

ineffective cannonade.

to the

Next momiug the main body of the enemy appeared, following the direction
of the van, but so eagerly was the hope of a possible accommodation still clung

deputies,

^o,

The uaiK.bs

that ou

north,

tlic

nabob again proposing a conference at a

two deputies were

sent.

On

village six miles to the

arriving they found, as might have been

They followed on
his track, and found him seated in quarters which he had taken up in Omichund's
garden, in the north-east part of the Company's territory, within the ditch.
It is difficult to account for the inertness manifested b}' Clive on this occanabob had started some hours

anticipated, that the

sion.

All the advantages derived from his fortified

before.

camp were apparently

lost

without any attempt to turn them to account, and at least part of the

enemy had without molestation
deputies might

now have

interposed between

him and

Calcutta.

considered their business at an end.

Tlie

The

nabob by

hastening on with his army, without waiting for them, had given the most
significant intimation of his designs.

be balked of an interview,

They were determined, however, not

and succeeded in obtaining

it.

to

P.oydullub, the

dewan, on their introduction to him by Runjeet Roy, deemed their application
for

an interview, under the circumstances,

so strange, that he suspected

being assassins, and insisted on having their swords.
insulted,

and were conducted to the durbar or

his principal officers,

many

coimcil.

They refused

them

to be so

Besides the nabolj and

others of inferior degree were present.

These had

apparently been selected for the largeness of their stature, and the ferocity
their coimtenances.

To give them a

cb'essed in thick stuffed dresses,

the deputies, as

if

lating with the

nabob

with

for entering the

them and

before,

terrific

appearance they were

they only waited the signal to miu"der them.

deputies, on leaving,

Alanned

more

ot

with enormous turbans, and kept scowHng at

offers of peace, the deputies

after reading

still

of

Company's

limits,

After expostu-

while amusing them

produced a paper of proposals.

The nabob,

refen-ing to the dewan, dismissed the assembly.

The

were whispered by Omichund to take care of themselves.

they

now

set

no limits to their

fears,

and, ordering then-

attendants to extinguish the lights, that the path they took might not be seen,

hastened off without waiting to confer with the dewan.

I
ATTACK ON THE NABOB'S CAMP.

Chap. X.]

The report of the deputies

left

no room

o5I»

for further negotiation,

determined to attack the nabob's camp in the morning.

and Clive

His force consisted of

650 men, forming the European battaUon, 100 artillerymen with six

800 sepoys, and GOO

pieces,

armed with

Ihe enemy mustered about 40,000 men, most of them

firelocks.

encamped between the ditch and the
general,

Meer

Jaftier,

Oinichund's garden.

morning,

but a considerable part with the

The attack was made, but proved

summary account of the matter: — "About three

my

whole

force,

entered the enemy's camp, in a thick fog, and crossed

Had

doing considerable execution.
eight o'clock,

must

when we were

liave

;

The

instead of which
loss

on

his part

Europeans, 100 sepoys, and two field-pieces;

but blamed the attack as

opinion,

which

and says that "the men ought

is

marched

to

it

usuall}' does

about

thickened,
severe,

and

his troo})s

Orme

we

six

the ditch, the

and occasioned

amounting

is

to

120

were not only

decidedly of this

have assembled at Perring's Redoubt,

not half a mile from Omichund's garden, to which they might have
in a spacious road, capable of admitting twelve or fifteen

This seems plausible, but an obvious objection
facility of attack

is,

that,

men

abreast."

by that an-angement,

would have been purchased by leaving the nabob an easy

main body of

his army,

main body, and proceeding

gi-jidually

outlet to join the

the

o'clock in the

horn's,

was

ill-concerted.

committee at

About

camp without
it

than

about two

in

it

the fog cleared up, as

entire masters of the

been decisive

our mistaking the way."

dispirited,

..iiw/s
*^'""'*

leaving only a few Euro-

200 new raised bucksarees, to guard our camp.

peans, with

action

far less successful

Clive, in a letter addressed to the secret

marched out with nearly

I

lake,

Attack t.y
clive on tlie

within the ditch, to protect the nabob in his quarters in

had been anticipated.
home, gives this

tield-

wlio had been landed at midnight, and

sailors,

a.d. ns;.

took the best means to

and thus

escape.

By

beginning with

towards the nabob's head-quarters, he

secui-e his person,

and, to

all

appearance, would have

succeeded but for a natural event of unusual occurrence, and therefore not
anticipated.

The moral

effect,

however, was as

gi'eat as if

the success had

The nabob, having received a practical specimen of the kind
of enemy he had to deal with, was much more disposed to be pacific.
The very next day after the attack he employed Runjeet Roy to write a
..
p
r
letter contaming proposals oi peace, and under the pretext oi proving his
been complete.

111

^

sincerity,

•

though probably more with a view to his own personal

1

'

Here, after various measages of negotiati(ni brought and cairied

ing terms were

treaty

by Runjeet

was concluded on the 9th of Febniary.

—that the nabob should

restore the

Its lead-

Company's factories, but with

only such of the plundered eflects as had been regularly brought to account
the books of his government

should think expedient
or

custom

—and

—permit them

— exempt

confirm

all

all

to fortify Calcutta in

any wa}'

in

the}'

merchandise with their dustuks from fee

the ])rivileges granted to

them

luib-.i..

iutiiiii(late<l,

concludes a
'**"^^

safety, retired

with his whole army, and encamped about three miles north-east of the lake.

Roy and Omichmid, a

The

since tlieir

fii-st

—
HISTORY OF INDIA.

•J(JO

AD.

1757.

amval

The naboh, now

the country.

in

[Hook

as anxiou.s for friendship as

Jil.

had

lie

previously been bent on hostile measures, thougiit the treaty did not go far

enough, and, only three days after concluding

and the new

an alliance

propo.sed

offen-

Chve wislie<l,
brought by Oinichund, was returned by him ratified the

and defensive against

sive

it,

article,

This was exactly what

enemies.

all

same day.
Defects in

meet the views of

file treaty did not

all T)arties

While

at Calcutta.

it

was

treaty with

the

n;iix)b.

undcr Consideration, Admiral Watson, with characteristic
Clive against trusting to the nabob's promises.
sir,

reached by his

politics,

with the terms, and expressed

been provided for the

is

Let

u.s,

therefore, not

well thra.shed, don't,

be over-

Many, moreover, were

losses of private sufferers,

by the

di.ssati.sfied

disappointment that no compensation had

tlieir

it .specially

not a few of

whom

had been

Their case had not been over-

pillaging of Calcutta.

and Clive had brought

looked,

he

but make use of our arms, wliich will be much more

prevalent than any treaties or negotiations."

absolutely ruined

" Till

he will be inclined to peace.

flatter yourself

cautioned

bluntne.ss,

under the nabob's

On

notice.

finding,

however, that he gave only promises, but refused to come under any fonnal
obligation on the subject, he could not permit the claims of individuals to stand
in the

way

what he believed

of

to be "the interest of the

Company."

In a

private letter to the chairman of the court of directors, he states the grounds on
aivesju^
"fit

which he acted with great
interest

force

and reputation of a

have been suspended.

I

and

soldier,

tlie

the conclusion of this peace might easily

know, at the same time, there are many who think

have been too precipitate in the conclusion of

knew

'If I had only consulted

clearness:

it;

but surely those

who

I

are of

two might have ruined the
Company's affairs, by the junction of the French with the nabob, which was on
tlie point of being carried into execution.
They never con.sidered the situation
this opinion

never

that the delay of a day or

of affairs

on the

to I'eturn

with the major part of the forces at

that,

positive orders sent
all

me by

the gentlemen there,

events; they never considered

with a war upon the coast and in the province of Bengal at the same time,

a trading

ment

and the

coast,

;

company could not

and, last of

the whole course of
fifty lacs to

all,

it

from the govern-

they never considered that a long war, attended tlurough

with

the Company."

was a statesman

subsist without a great assistance

success,

ended at

last

with the expense of more than

These views are well expressed, and prove that Clive

They

as well as a warrior.

obvious objection to the treaty.

It provided

fail,

however, to meet one very

no guarantee of any kind

observance, and thus left the nabob at full liberty to disregard

might think he could do so with impunity.

and what

this

It

was

when he

whose

fidelity is

says:

tells

us in the same

— "It cannot be expected that the princes of

always to be suspected,

engagements from principle

only.

It

is,

Avill

whenever he

therefore merely a promise,

was worth from such a quarter Clive himself

letter,

it

for its

tliis

country,

remain firm to then- promises and

therefore,

become absolutely necessary

ATTACK ON CHANDERNAGOKE.

"HAP. X.]

t

)

keep up a respectable force in

an obvious inference

561

province for the future.'

tliis

If

so, it

follows

a.d. 1757.

with such princes, obligations written
or verbal are in themselves worthless, and that, to give them any value, they
as

that, in treating

ought always to be accompanied with a material guarantee, which would operate
as a penalty in the

event of their being violated.

saw

a later period of his career both

Next

to peace

this necessity

be seen that Clive at

and acted upon

and defensive

seemed to follow from the terms

It

day when the

alliance

was

ratified,

Clive told

;

and

therefore,

Omichund

rrei)ai-ation..

ciianuer

nabob could

alliance against all enemies, that the

no longer continue to give any countenance to the French
the very

it.

with the nabob, the object nearest Clives heart was the

destruction of the French interest in Bengal.
of the offensive

It will

to

on

sound iiim

on the subject, and endeavour to obtain his consent to an attack on Chander-

He

nagore.

detested the very idea, and with good reason, for not only did the

revenue gain considerably by the French trade, but good policy dictated that

companies might be employed as mutual checks on each other, and

the rival

prevent the danger to which the native government might be exposed,
of

them were allowed

to gain

an entire ascendency.

The nabob

if

therefore

no secret of his unwillingness to withdraw his protection from the French
as

one

made
;

but

he only temporized, and did not expressly prohibit the attack, Clive deter-

mined

to carry it into effect.

With

•Tossed the river with his troops, a

this view,

on the 18th of February, he

The French had

few miles above Calcutta.

no difficulty in penetrating his design, and immediately claimed the nabob's

Their messengers found him on his return homewards at Auga-

protection.

deep, about forty miles south of

Moorshedabad

;

and having succeeded

vincing him that their destruction would endanger his
to write

a

letter,

peremptorily forbidding the attack.

interfering in their behalf, he

orders to Nimcomar,
prohibition

Meer

Jaffier,

made them

now governor

own

safety,

Not

in con-

induced him

satisfied

with thus

a pre.sent of 100,000 rupees, gave

of Hooghlj', directly to assist

was disregarded, and even made preparations

them

for sending

with half his army, to encamp at Chandernagore.

On

if his

back

seeing the

nabob thus decided, Clive made a merit of necessity, and, in conjunction with
Admiral Watson, gave both verbal and wi'itten assurances that the nabob's
wishes in the matter would be strictly attended

to,

and that the attack would

made without his sanction. As it thus appeared that the French were
not to be crushed by violence, the next best thing was to secure their neutrality;
and with this view, not only were negotiations resumed, but a treaty was
actually drawn up, and only waited to be signed when at the last moment a
demur took place. The French commissioners, when the question was put to
them, admitted that they were acting only in their own name, and could not
bind the government of Pondicherry. Though it must be admitted that a treaty
made under such circumstances would have been futile, the conduct of the
British was not ingenuous.
It is difficult to believe that they were not from
not be

I

Vol.

I.

71

''

562
A.D. 17^7.

the

JIISTOKV OF IN1>L\.
first

aware of the defect of powers which

they were employing

wiiile

negotiate

leluctancc to

now

French.

performed by Mr. Watis,

III.

pretended to have
tlie

French,

kinds of influence U) overcome the nabob's

all

proposed attack.

tlic

tliey

had ever intended to do more than amase

discovered, or that they
r.itii.,

(Rkjk

In this intrigue the principal parts were

who had become

the Company's representative at Moor-

shedabad, and Omichund, who, having succeeded in effacing the suspicions under

which he suffered so severely at Calcutta, was now become one of the Company's
most active and confidential agents. So zealous was Omichund, that when the

nabob

—suspecting

an intention of attacking Chandemagore, notwithstanding

his express prohibition

—indignantly asked him

to

answer

stric-tly

whether

tljey

intended to maintain or to break the treaty, he answered, that the English were

famous throughout the world

for their

good

England who on any occasion

told a lie

was

admitted to the

socid:.y

faith,

insomuch, " that a

man

utterly disgraced, and never after

of his former friends and acquaintance."

rather apocryphal declaration, he called in a Brahmin, and took

After this

what was

garded as a most solemn oath, by putting his hand imder the Brahmin's
Admiral
letters to

in

re-

foot,

and swearing that the English would never break the treaty.
Xhc prcssure brought to bear upon the nabob by intrigues with his ministers
and favourites was much increased by an alarm which reached him from a
different quarter.
Ahmed Shah Abdalee, haA-ing again invaded Hindoostan.
had entered Delhi, and was understood
eastern pro^dnces.

The nabob was,

an incursion into the

to contemplate

in consequence,

more anxious than ever

to

secure the British alliance, from which he anticipated important aid, in the

event of an Afghan invasion, and became
to sanction the attack of the

ask our assistance.

Can we, with

and leave our enemies behind us?
and we shall be unable to defend
situation.

I see

but one way.

less

French settlements.

Admiral Watson thus addressed him

feeling,

and

less

:

—

"

decided in his refusals

Taking advantage of

this

are going to Patna.

You

You

the least degree of prudence, march with you

You

will then be too far off to support us,

ourselves.

Think what can be done

Let us take Chandemagore and secm-e ourselves

from any apprehensions from that quarter, and then we will
every

man

in oui- power,

in this

and go with you even

to Delhi, if

you

assist

you with

will.

Have we

not sworn reciprocally that the friends and enemies of the one should be

And

regarded as such by the other?
pimish us

if

we do

not

fulfil

will not God, the avenger of perjurj',

What can

our oaths?

I say

more?

Let

me request

The answer was not speedy; and proof
having been obtained that the nabob was intriguing with the French, the
admiral assumed a harsher tone, and sent a letter concluding with the following
the favour of yom- speedy answer."

menace:

— "I now acquaint you that the remainder of the

have been here long ago, and which

win be

at Calcutta in a

vessel for

few days

;

which should

hear the colonel told you he expected,

I

that in a few days

more ships and more troops

troops,

;

and that

more

I will

I shall

despatch a

kindle such a flame in

—

ATTACK ON CHANDERNAGOEE.
your country as

all

the water in the Ganges shall not be able to extinguish.

Remember that he who promises you
with you or with any man whatsoever."
Farewell

5C3

this

!

This was rather strange language to address to an

.\.i).

itst.

never yet broke his word

ally,

an independent

prince,

i'i'«

"

-^^'^

evoKivo

whom

with

a treaty offensive and defensive had been concluded only a few

answer,

weeks before. The nabob, however, was a cowai'd at heart; and, thougli foaming
with rage, sent two letters in reply.

In the one, quietly pocketing the menace,

he contented himself witli excusing the delay which had taken place in the

payment

of the compensation due under the treaty

;

in the other, rather evading

than facing the subject of Chandernagore, he used the following expression:
"

You have understanding and

heart claims your protection,

you

generosity
will give

him

well satisfied of the innocence of his intentions

This expression, which

right that do."

more enigmatical

still

enemy comes

to

be spared; but,

At

occasion."

in the

work

your enemy with an upright

if

;

may

his life

;

if not,

;

but then you must be
whatsoever you think

be variously interpreted, becomes

of Mr. Orme,

who

gives

it

thus:

— "If an

you and implores yom' mercy, with a clean heart, his life should
if you mistrust his sincerity, act according to the time and

this

time Clive considered himself and the admiral so completely

bound not to attack Chandernagore "contrary to the expressed order of the
nabob," that he says they could not do
faith

;"

and

yet,

without being 'guilty of a breach of

it

with no better authority than they managed to extract from

the above dubious expression, they felt relieved of

might at

own

a case of so

least, in

much

Tliey refrained,

explanation.

all

They

their scruples.

dubiety, have asked the nabob to give his

and

it

must have been purposely,

when

for

they were proceeding with their preparations the explanation arrived unasked,

and amounted

to

an expressed retractation of any assumed previous

however, from giving

far,

nity."'

effect to the prohibition,

they treated

it

assent.

as

Perhaps the best explanation of the resolution to proceed at

maybe found

in the fact that three ships

"an
all

So

indig-

hazards

had just arrived from Bombay, having

on board three companies of infantry, and one of

artillery,

...

and that the Cinn-

berland, which parted from the squadi'on on the voyage from Aladras, had at

length reached Balasore Roads.
Tlie capture
of
^
cvdty.

The

Chandernagore was an enterprise not unattended with

settlement, situated on the right

of the toA^Ti of Hooghly, extended
lialf

inland.

The

fort,

bank

diffi- i^efences

of the river, and a little south

two miles along the bank, and a mile and a

standing about thirty yards from the water, and nearly

equidistant from the south and north extremities of the settlement, formed a

square of about 130 yards, inclosed by a wall and rampart, with a bastion at
each angle mounting ten gims.
parts,

Several more gvms were mounted on the ram-

and eight on a raveUn on the banks of the

gateway.

Beside these cannon, which were
'

Memoirs of Lord

Clive, vol.

all

i.

river opposite to the western

from twenty- four to thirty-

p. ]91.

f
.

Cliandernagore.

ULSTOHV OF INDIA.

5G4

A.I). irr.T.

two pounders,

six of leas calibre stood

Defences of

we have

th*- fort.

its wali.s.

seen,

hy proposing a

on the terrace of a church within

III.

The French, on learning the declaration of war, ha/1.
endeavoured to ward off the danger to which it exposed them,

and overlooking
as

[Book

much more

neutrality, hut, with

wi.sdora

and

foresight than had

C'liaudei-

been exhibited at Calcutta, continued in the meanwhile to make the best ase of

nagore.

the time in strengthening their defences.

100 yards of the

They demolished

walls, using the materials to

fonn a

measm-e supplied by batteries without the verge of the

commanding the

and approaches by

principal streets

water had not been overlooked,

150 yards south of the

t^)

dig a

foi-t,

to

whom

vicinity

;

Clive,

The

land.

command
it.

the narrowe.st part of

The

in positions

aj)proach by

tlie

channel, but

mustered GOO Europeans,

garri.son

only a half were regular troops, and 300 sepoys.

also expected

and

glacis,

not only had a battery been erected about

for

a number of vessels had been sunk in

Clive

and began

glaci.s,

Neither of these works was completed, but their defects were in some

ditch.

of

the buildings within

Some

assistance

was

from Nuncomar, who was encamped with a body of troops in the

but Omichund had succeeded in bribing him not to

interfere.

having been joined by the Bombay reinforcement, commenced

ho.stilitie.-

advances
against

it.

To avoid

on the 14th of March.

made

four batteries facing the south, he

approach from the west, along a road leading to the north face of the

fort.

French made the most of their position and, by means of detachments
;

the thickets, continued skirmishing

till

three in the afternoon,

into a battery under the protection of the north bastion.
in consequence

tenable,

of a

fire

houses, they sj^iked the cannon,

The

i)laced in

when they retired
This pro^^ng un-

of musketry kept up from some adjoining

and

The abandonment

retired into the fort.

this battery necessaiily involved that of those to the southward, as

now be

his

ol

they might

Their defenders were therefore recalled next morning.

attacked in rear.

All the batteries without the works had thus been rendered useless except the

one on the brink of the

ment near the southern

The 15th was employed

river.

esplanade,

by taking

in effecting a lodg-

possession of the adjoining houses,

under the shelter of which the besiegers suffered little from the

fire

of the garrison.

The 1 6th was employed in bringing up the artillery and stores, and the 1 7th
and 18th were chiefly occupied by the besiegers in keeping up a fire of musketr}'
from the tops of houses, shelling the
coehorns.

Kent,

No

On

decided progress, however, was made.

and Salisbury

Tiger,

fort fi-om a thirteen-inch

arrived, after

a very

mortar and some

the 19th, the ships

difficult

navigation,

and

mUe below the fort. The narrow channel in which the ships
had been sunk was now the main obstacle, as the ships so long as they remained
anchored about a

outside of

it

could not act with

effect.

Fortunately

it

was ascertained by

dili-

gent soundings, and the information of a deserter, that a practicable passage
still

remained.

by the

It

was therefore determined that the

ships should be forthwith tried.

the greatest danger

;

for the nabob,

effect of

Indeed, every delay

a bombardment,

was attended with

on finding that remonstrances had jH-oved

CAPTURE OF CHANDERNAGORE.

CnAr. X.]

was no longer

unavailing,
ji

with sending tln-eatening messages, but had

forward part of his army, as

;tually sent

common

satisfied

565

had at

if lie

RoyduUub, the dewan, advanced with

cause with the French.

1757.

make

resolved to

L'ust

a.d

this

(L;tachment within twenty miles of Hooghly, and would have been in time to

had not Nuncomar treacherously assured

jittempt the relief of Chandernagore

him of the

contrary.

Tiie attack

was

fixed for the 24!th.

At

sunrise on that

which had been completed on shore opened their

and

vigorously,

time established a decided

for a

when the ships were first brought into
The Tiger, in passing to the north-east
where she

finally

The

fire.

su])eriority.

action, a

bastion,

day two

batteries

-^ttsok ai.j

fort returned it

capture of
cinindei-

At seven

o'clock,

marked change took place.
wliich was her station, and

anchored at the distance of only

fifty yards, fired

her

first

i)roadvside at

the ravelin with such effect that that defence was immediately

abandoned.

The Kent was

before the middle of the curtain

such a deadly

fire,

Her

less fortunate.
;

allotted station

was the

ravelin

but in proceeding to occupy she encountered

that some degree of confusion ensued, during which the cable,

The consequence was,
tliat the ship fell back so far that she lay just beyond the south-east, and at the
same time exposed to a flank of the south-west bastion.
It was too late to
make a change, and the Salisbury, to which this ver}' position had been
assigned, was entirely thrown out of the action, the whole brunt of which was
instead of being stopped,

was allowed

borne by the Tiger and the Kent.
of the besiegers

was

to run to its end.

Notwithstanding these disadvantages the

hung out a flag of truce
was concluded. Though the defence

so telling that at nine o'clock the fort

At three in the afternoon the capitulation
was of short duration, its efficiency, while
which
liull

:

it left

She had received

the Kent.

it lasted, is

proved by the state in

six shot in her masts,

and 142

Among

who were both

the latter were the commander, Cai)tain Speke, and his

struck

recovered, bixt his son died.
ally attended

down by a single shot.
Ives, who was surgeon

Tlie captain ultimately

of the Kent, profession-

both of them, and gives such an interesting account of the heroism

displayed by the son, a youth of onl}' sixteen years of age, that

unpardonable to omit

When
tlie

in her

her casualties also were severe, amounting to nineteen killed and seventy-

two wounded.
son,

fire

down

into the after-hold his leg

was hanging only by

Great as his suffering must have been, he was thinking (mly of his

On

whose wound he feared had been mortal.

trary he

would be

it.'

he was carried

skin.

father,

it

became calm but when
;

earnestly asked the surgeon

if

it

was proposed

he had

to

l)eing assured of the con-

examine

dressed his father, " for

had been taken care of"

his

own wound, he

he could not think

of being touched

till

was already done,

" then," replied the generous youth, pointing to a fellow-sufferer

"pray,

sir,

his father

look to and dress this poor man,
'

Ives, .4

Voyage from England

to

who
India,

is

Being told that

this

groaning so sadly beside

p. 132-1.^4.

Heroism of
gpeke

—
5()6

J.

i-.'.7

'

OF

IIlriTOIiV

me.

He,

"

had been dressed already

too,

himself to the surgeon, observed, "Sir,

'it'

joiiiif:

spekc.

and the poor youth, on submitting
fear you mast amputate above the

;

I

solemnly and fervently ejaculated, " Good God, do thou enable

my

IIJ.

Ives replying "I must," he clasped his hands, and, looking upward,

joint."
HeriMHin

[Book

INJ>»IA.

my

present circumstances worthy of

was

told the surgeon that he

me

After

father's son."

behave

to

in

prayer he

tliis

and bore the operation ^ampu-

all submi-ssion,

tation above the knee-joint) without speaking a word, or uttering a groan that

The next day he was removed

could be heard at a yard distant.
pital at Calcutta.

A

able.

For the

change then took

first

eight or nine days the .s^nnptoms were favour-

and he died on the thirteenth day

place,

His father having been removed, not to the

operation.

house of a friend, the noble-hearted boy,
following note, written

by himself

very day on which he died:

must be
father

is

in,

when he

is

told

to the hos-

still

hospital,

after the

but to the

suspecting the worst, sent the

two o'clock in the morning of the
"If Mr. Ives wiU consider the disorder a son
he is dying, and yet is in doubt whether hi.s
in pencil at

not in as good a state of health.

If

JVIr.

Ives

is

not too busy to honour

which nothing but the greatest uneasiness could draw from me.
boy waits an answer." It is scarcely necessary to account for the verbal
this chitt,

curacies of the note

by mentioning

place;

is

he dead?"

danger, I assure you: he
tell

me

so?

word he
affectin

me

am now

at so early

valuable

narrative, that
self

It

satisfied

a place

No; nor

is

he in any

"Thank God! Then why did they
and ready to die." "At this time," says Mr.
in great distress; but I understood every

He

begged

my

pardon for having disturbed

;

for

who can

doubt, after reading the above

had William Speke been spared he woiJd have earned

among

for him-

the greatest and best of the naval heroes of his country.

ought to be added that Captain Speke was not unworthy of being the

father of such a son.

did

His heart was bound up in the

when taken below was

to teU

how

The

friend,

do you think

my

Billy

sui'geon answered, "If he lived

there

first

thing he

rejoice

was obliged by his silence
the tenth day he for the first time put a

my

and the

him by hopes of a recovery, but
and looks to prepare him for the worst. On

at last

long,

bo}'';

dangerously his poor Billy was wounded.

For some days the surgeon was able to

boy?"

direct question

may remain

on the

subject.

•

How

in a state of imcertainty ?

from the fifteenth day of the operation

would be the greatest hopes of

looking steadfastly in the surgeon's

my

"

sir."

an hour; and before the day was ended surrendered up a
Valuable, indeed

life."

the following dialogue took

almost well."

so inarticulately uttered.

deatlL

when

"My father,

"Who?"

"he had a locked jaw, and was

Ives,

HJ8

I

is

inac-

that the heroic sufferer had become delirious.

Mr. Ives immediately hastened to his bedside,

— "And

The

face,

On

his recovery."

he

said, "

Well

Receiving no answer, he could not but

the sixteenth day,

Ives,

know

crying bitterly, he asked to be left alone for half an hour, and

how

fares it with

the cause.

when

After

at the end

of tliat time Mr. Ives returned, " he appeared, as he ever after did. perfectly

I

DUPLICITY OF SURAJAH DOWLATT.

Chap. X.]

567

Captain Speke never perfectly recovered from his wound,

calm and serene."

and died at the early age of

He

forty-three.

a.d. 1757.

lived long enough, however, to

by

distinguish himself in the naval victory gained

Edward Hawke

Sir

off

In that action he commanded the Resolution of seventy, and obliged

Belleisle.

the Formidable, though

much

10

superior in force, to strike to him.

Though
the nabob had not disguised
*=

his displeasure at the expedition against

Tiie

iiai..,i),

Chandernagore, rumours of the approach of the Afghans were so prevalent, that

alarmclat
an Afghan

in his anxiety to secure the assistance of the British troops, he not only refrained

temporiizes.

.

nvaaion,

from expressing any indignation at

manders on their

success,

its

and made an

capture, but congi-atulated the com-

offer of the

pany on the same terms on which the French had held
more than questionable

;

for

he

still

retained a large

mediate spot between Hooghly and his

capital,

favourable opportunity of resuming hostilities

ComHis sincerity was

whole temtory
it.

to the

body of men

at

an

inter-

apparently to embrace any

and, so far from withdrawing his

;

protection from the other French factories in Bengal, gave an asylum in Cossim-

bazar to a body of their troops, consisting partly of some

Chandernagore before
prisoners of war,

was

it

had broken

fully established

by

and partly of others who,

fell,

their parole.

There can be

letters afterwards discovered

in correspondence witli Bussy,

who had

escaped from

little

doubt

—indeed

—that he was at

and in hopes that that distinguished

appear in Bengal at the head of a formidable

had become

after they

force.

In one

this

officer

it

time

would

letter to him,

written before Chandernagore was taken, the nabob says, " These disturbers

my

and Colonel Clive (Sabut Jung'), whom bad
fortune attend! without any reason whatever are warring against Zubal-ul-

of

country, the admu-al

Toojar'-'

(M. Renault), the governor of Chandernagore.

from his

letter.

I,

who

in all things seek the

every respect, and have sent him the best of

them and
[

fight the English

;

and

if it

This you will learn

good of mankind,

my

troops, that he

become necessary

assist

may

I will join

him

in

join with

him myself

hope in God these English will be punished for the disturbances they have

Be confident; look on my forces as your own. I wrote you before
for 2000 soldiers and musketeers, under the command of two trusty chiefs.
1
persuade myself you have already sent them as I desired; should you not,
I desire you will do me the pleasure to send them immediately."
In another
letter, written the week after Chandernagore was taken, he says, " I am advised
that you have arrived at Echapore.
This news gives me pleasure.
The sooner
you come here, the greater pleasure 1 shall have in meeting with you. What

raised.

can

I

They have without ground picked a
with M. Kenault, and taken by force his factory. They want now to

write of the perfidy of the English i

quai-rel

quarrel with M.

Law, your chief at Cossimbazar; but

oppose and overthrow
'

'

all their

proceedings.

Or " The Daring iu War," the title by which
Or "The Essence of Merchants."

Clivc

I

When you come
is still

known among

will take care to

to Balasore I will

the Datives in India-

HlSTOltY OF IN MA.

•"jG^

A.D. 1767.

assured of
Mutufti .lbsiiuulatii

Law

then send M.

These

my

your

to

assistance, unless

you

[Book Hi.

forVji<l

his setting out.

liest

good-will towards you and your company."

letters,

..,,.,,.,

written after the treaty offensive and defensive with the British

ri.

had been concluded, were undoubtedly a gross violation of

it

;

and as their sub-

though not their actual contents was known to Clive, he must now liave

stance,

been convinced that he had been somewhat precipitate in signing the treaty,
as it

had already become in

fact a

dead

Neither

letter.

however, was

7)arty,

yet prepared to proceed to extremities, and some time was spent by them in

The

endeavouring to outwit each other.
for saying that

with most of
the

he had not

its articles,

Company had

no pretext

naboVj, in order to leave

part of the treaty, complied liberally

ful tilled his

paying a large sum to account of the damage which

sustained

and then

:

with some show of reason, that

insisted,

army and navy, should forthwith return to
carrying with them the plvmder of Chanderaa-

the whole of the British forces,

The

Calcutta.

ships departed,

gore, valued at considerably

encamped on a plain

more than £100,000.

to the north of Hooghly.

Clive refused to move, and

This

.step,

while

it

could not

be regarded by the nabob in any other light than a direct menace, amounted
to a

violation of the orders which he had received from his employers at

One of tlieir main reasons for not giving the command to Colonel
Adlercron was because he would not promise to return whenever they should
require.
Clive had given this promise, and on the faith of it had been intrusted with powers which made him independent of the Bengal presidency.
Madras.

Up

to

a very recent period

determination to return

his letters to

Madras had contained assurances of

but their tone had recently

;

altered,

and

it

his

now

appeared that though the promise had never been recalled, a change of circum-

had occurred of such importance as

stances

What
iiie

nabob

pretends *"
iiismiss

the

this

change was must

now

The uabob, constantly urged
,^

to justify

him

it.

be explained.
to sm'render or dismiss the

French assembled

.

at Cossimbazar, pretended to adopt the latter alternative,

Had

remove westward into Behar.
would have sent them to join
Clive, so far

mode

in disregarding

of

from being

and even threatened

it,

sending a detachment in pursuit.
insufficient

to

he really intended to part with them he

their countrj-men in the

satisfied

and ordered them
Deccan;

and hence

with the dismissal, remonstrated against the

own

hands,

by

While thus condemned, on the one hand,

for

to take the

remedy

into his

compliance with the wishes of the British, the nabob was solemnly

warned by the French, on the

by dismissing them he was depriving

other, that

himself of the only soldiers on whose fidelity and prowess he could safely calculate.

M. Law, who was at their head, even pointed out distinctly the source

from which danger would
disaffected,

Many

and they were only waiting

his destruction.

of its truth,

arise.

of the nabob's principal officers were
to

combine with the English

to effect

This information was correct; but the nabob, though convinced

was too

irresolute to act

upon

it,

and, in dismissing M. Law, simply

X]

Ohap.

conspiracy AGAINST THE NABOB.

observed, that "if anything

"Be

assured,"

my

remember

was the
words

A conspiracy had

new

—we

is

indeed been formed

;

we

the last time

never meet again

shall

Company were not merely

the

should happen, he would send for him again."

"that this

reply,

569

and

;

it is

shall see each other;

nearly impossible."

it is

and

painful to add that Clive

had engaged

implicated, but

a.d. usr.

to take a leading

Con8i»'-a«y

against
iiabo

part in the execution of
despicable tyrant,

must

Ufe,

Admitting the

it.

and the con-sequent probability that

by

ere long have been terminated

had courted his

fact that Surajah

his

government,

what

violence,

Dowhih was a

right

if

not his

had those who

by it, to league with his subjects for the purpose of dethroning him? Even had the treaty never been concluded, or had open hostilities been again formally declared, it would have been
impossible to reconcile such a proceeding with any of the recognized rules of
alliance,

What

honourable warfare.

selves of the influence

it,

and

profited

then must be thought of

which they derived from

nabob into a

lulling the

obtained

fatal security,

who,

allies,

this character,

availing:;

them-

employed

it in

while measiu-es were being concocted for

effecting his ruin?

According to the accoimt of Clive himself the nabob "per-

formed almost every

article of the treaty, paid

delivered up Cossimbazar
tlierein taken.

wanting."

the other factories, with the

all

gentlemen write from thence that

Tlie

later

deliver

up the French

;

it

true

is

No

in his pay,

and has certainly

One day he

to his assistance.

army

orders his

march

to

;

in short, he

pany with none but

by the great men.

diff'erent

he has ordered them out of his

;

wi'itten to Deleyrit

tears

my

his

is

letters,

Twice

This induces

me

is

to acquaint

but he has retained

and Bussy

to send

vakeel,

men
and

sends for the vakeel, and

it,

a- week

he threatens to impale

a compound of everything that

menial servants, and

;

and turns out our

he next countermands

begs his pardon for what he has done.
Mr. Watts

is

consideration could induce

dominions, and they are at some distance from the capital

them

or nothing

yet from the tyranny, cowardice, and suspicion of

;

the nabob, no dependence can be had upon him.
to

little

he says, in a letter to Mr. Pigott, "The most of the articles

of peace are complied with

him

money and goods

he soon found reason to write in a very

Tt is true that

A month

spirit.

and

Mr. Watts the three lacs of rupees,

is

bad

univer.sally hated

you there

is

keeps com-

;

and despised

a conspiracy going

The very mention of such a thing might have awakened
sense of honour, and reminded him that it must necessarily be a nefarious

on against him."
Clive's

transaction, with

which

kind, however, occurs to
assistance,

mittee

For

it

would be pollution to intermeddle.

him

;

and he simply adds,

" I

No

have been applied to

and every advantage promised the Company can wish.

are of opinion

my own

part, I

am

it

idea of this

should be given as soon as the nabob

for

The comis

secured.

persuaded there can be neither peace nor security while

such a monster reigns."

From

the concluding part of this extract

pany were not yet prepared
Vol.

I.

for the

kind

it

may

be inferred that the Com-

of co-operation which Clive
72

was

<

ti.e

—
.

HISTORY OF

•'>70

A.

1).

1757,

evidently contemplating.

nabob

is

comediica

*^^

tli"

had no objections to countenance
Such appears

to

and take advantag*i

it,

have been their

first

view

but any scruples they had were afterwards overcome, and in their letter to the

parties to

thecou-

liooK ill.

Tiiey were for giving assistance only "as soon a«

^^ ^^'® event of its success.

^^

|

la other words, they were not disposed to act as principals

secured."

in the conspiracy, ]>ut
Irii^bT

INI HA.

.

committee at home they advocate direct co-operation, arguing that from

secret

si'iracj.

Dowlah was
the confederacy, must

detestation in which Surajah

^j^g

rather choose to call

it,

held, the conspiracy, or, as the\

succeed; but that

if

they with-

held their aid they could expect no advantages from such success; whereas,

they took a prominent part, they might look for remuneration for past

and

full

security against

any future misfortune,

weakness had before exposed them.
Olive's wish,

The

picions

tirst

similar to that to which the!:-

to prepare for

with

it

all

his charac-

thing deemed necessary was to dissipate any sas-

which the nabob had

felt,

the British as sincere and faithful

was greatly aided by a

losse.-.

The "prominent part" had always been

and he immediately began

teristic energy.

letter

and convince him that he might
In playing

allies.

which he received about

calculate on

game,

this deceitful
this

Clivv^

time from the Peishwa

Bajee Rao, who, after expressing indignation at the treatment the English
received from Surajah Dowlah,

posed to invade Bengal.

if

On

and

offering

to

haii

avenge their wrongs, pro-

condition of Chve's co-operation with his

troop.*-

he would repay double the amount of the losses that had been sustained, ana
vest the
I'roposai

Irom the
Mahrattas.

commerce of the Ganges exclusively

in the

East India Company

knew

the character of the Mahrattas too well to invite them into Bengal,
^
and the Only use which he made of the Peishwa's letter was to send it to tlitClive

nabob.

If

it

was

spurious, as

some

suspected,

and had been written

at the

suggestion of the nabob himself, as a means of sounding the Company, and
ascertaining

far

they were actuated by ambitious

would be equivalent to taking him in

letter

how

how

his

the return of the

snare

if it

own

^'iews,
;

was genuine,

could there be a greater proof of good faith than in preferring his alliance

to the tempting offers of the

"The

Mahratta?

letter,"

says Sir

and the nabob expressed himself much

gratified

John Malcolm,

by the conduc'
of Clive, who, on this occasion and others, endeavom'ed to remove the suspicions
One of
that Surajah Dowlah entertained of the designs of the confederates."
the other methods which Clive took of removing the nabob's suspicious, or.
as his biographer calls it, 'of luUing him into security," was as foUows:
"

was genuine

;

Having sent back the Company's troops
his

own independent

to Calcutta,

and ordered those undev

control into garrison, he observed in a letter to the nabob,

"that while the armies continued in the

field their

enemies would be endeavour-

harmony and friendship which subsisted between
he had therefore put his army into quarters and though he had

ing to interrupt that perfect

them

;

tliat

no reason to doubt his excellency's
with

all

;

strict

adherence

to,

and

full

compliance

the articles of the treaty, yet, nevertheless, he wished he could dis-

I

CONSPIRACY AGAINST THE NABOB.

C;:ap. X.j

o71

by withdrawing

appoint those hopes their mutual enemies entertained,

his

army

ad.

itst.

trom Plassey."

While Clive was thus endeavouring to impose upon the credulity of the

harmony and friendship wldch subsisted
between them," he was apparently by the same messenger who carried the
letter to the nabob sending letters to Mr. Watts with such passages as the fol"The nabob is a villain, and cannot be trusted; he must be overset,
lowing:
" As for any gratuity the new nabob may bestow on the
or we must fall."
nabob, and telling him of " that perfect

I'rogros* o»

racy iigainft

uowiaii.

—

it is left

troop.s,

to his generosity

and to your and Omichund's management."

"1 have wrote the nabob a soothing

accompanies another of the

Mohuu Loll (the nabob's chief favourite)
"To take away all suspicion 1 have ordered aU the

same kind, and one
your

letter; this

desire."

to

engage to be at Nusary in twelve hours after

will

which place
to fear

nothing

;

that I will join

backs; and that

if

him out

country.

of the

assistance,

he

a

him,

fails seizing

Assure him

and stand by him as Jong as

number

ministers

some

I

we
I

service,

Dowlah

Meer

Jaffier

march night and day

will

have a

man

and

at all events;

the

pay of the

engaged to defend, even against the nabob himself

to his

The

This

was

object

most

to

influential

however, there was

first,

who was to be the new
Khan, who commanded 2000
in

di'ive

we have now brought

determining

was Yar Luttief
but was at the same time

their

left."

in this his

At

and

ready,

be strong enough to

shall

and subjects were ready to concur.

difficulty in

aspirant

" Tell

of important preliminaries had been arranged.

get quit of Surajah

am

him with 5000 men who never turned

Before the conspiracy reached the point to which
it,

artillery

receive your letter,

I

to be the rendezvous of the whole army."

is

j]

" I

tumbrils to be embarked in boats and sent to Calcutta," but

and

agreeable to

The

nabob.

earlie-st tho ciaiM-

horse in the nabob's
Seats,

officer

whom

he was

ii.e

nabob-

^"^'

having requested

by him to Omichund, to whom
he stated that the overthrow of the nabob would be easy, in consequence of
a secret conference with Mr. Watts,

was

the general detestation in which he

referred

was held

;

and that

if

the English,

whom

he had sworn to extirpate, would take advantage of his absence on an intended
expedition to Patna against the Afghans, to seize upon Moor.shedabad, they

by proclaiming him as tlie new nabob, obtain any advantages for which
they might stipulate.
The scheme was approved by Mr. Watts, and forthwith
sanctioned by Clive.
Yar Luttief Khan was probably put forward by the
might,

Seats merely for the jnu-pose of sounding the views of the English commander,
for the

came

to Mr.

that the

Watts with similar proposals from Meer

Dewan

Roydullub, the Seats, and several

army had engaged

nabob

^

\.

very next day after the conference, an Aimenian of the name of Petrus
Jaffier,

who

he w^s in danger of assassination every time he went to

the

||j

—requested that

to join,
if

if

officers

—

declaring that

tlie

of the

dm-bar, and
fii-st

rank in

the English would assist in dethroning the

the scheme were accepted

tlie

terms should be

.settled

Ij

HISTORY OK INDIA.

o7:
A.u

1767.

III,

without delay, and that Colonel Clive would immediately Vjreak up hi« {;amp,

and soothe the nabob with every apfjearance of
.should
Meur

[Hook

commence.

Meer

JalTiur

pacific intentioas until hostilities

a far more important personage than

Jaffier, l)eing

Yar Luttief Khan,

))refcrre<l.

had no
late

He was

difficulty in obtaining the preference.

brother-in-law of the

nabob, Ali Verdy Khan, and held both under him and Surajah Dowlah

the office of paymaster-general, which necessarily gave

him

the army, and has caused
Ali

chief

command

Verdy made a

him great

influence witli

to be sometimes described as its commander-in-

trial of his

military talents,

by appointing him

of a large detachment, intended to expel the united Mahrattas and

Afghans from

His incapacity was, however, soon proved

Orissa.

;

and

enemy to gain decided
Meer Jaffier .showed his

indolence and pusillanimity had enabled the
Ali

Verdy was obliged

and endeavoured
laction,

Uj the

to supersede him.

by leaguing

to gratify his revenge

after his

advantages.
resentment,

secretly with a treasonable

and though, more from fear of the danger than a sense of returning

duty, he abandoned the league, he had gone too far to be forgiven, and

deprived of
B:s.intece

all his

He

employments.

period, as he figures

among

accession, dismissed

from

seems to have been reinstated at a

wa."-

the principal persons

whom

late-

Surajah Dowlah, on his

dt'Utis.

Meer

in order to

make way

Jaffier expressed his resentment, as before,

to assert his claim to the

shake himself free of

The

musnud.
all

it

;

who

favourites.

liimself at the

head

attempt had induced him

and he had insinuated himself
and

is

the only officer of dis-

stands chargeable with a direct participation in the atrocities of

the Black Hole.

The English woman, wdio sm'vived the horrors of that

was carried

triumph to Meer

off in

Such was the

His agree-

ment witli
tlie Com-

own

he was present in his capacity of buckshee

for

or paymaster-general at the capture of Calcutta,

tinction

by placing

failure of that

connection with

good graces of the nabob,

into the

for his

and encom'aging Shokut Jung, governor of Pumeah,

of a treasonable intrigue,

to

office,

man

Jaffier's

night,

harem.

who, again plotting for the overthrow of his master, was

His character must have been too well known to

selected to usurp his place.

pany.

invite confidence in his professions,

and care was therefore taken

to insert all

the obligations exacted from him, in formal written docimients, to which, not

with much propriety, the names of a public and a private treaty have been given.

The public
in

Meer

treaty, wi'itten in Persian,

Jaffier's o\yii

by the terms

commenced with the following

sentence,

hand: — "I swear by God, and the Prophet of God,

of this treaty whilst I have

life."

It is entitled,

"

to abide

Treaty made

with the Admiral and Colonel Clive" (Sabut Jung Behauder), and consists of
twelve

articles,

and a

thirteenth, called

an additional

article.

The

first article

simply agrees to comply with " whatever articles were agreed upon in the time
of peace" with the

Nabob Surajah Dowlah.

mies of the English are
Ai-ticle III. confiscates to

my

The second

article

is,

"The

ene-

enemies, whether they be Indians or Europeans."

the English

all

the effects and factories of the French

;

I

k

AGREEMENT WITH MEER

OnAP. X.]

ill

Bengal, Behar, and Orissa, and engages never

to settle in the three provinces."

tion as follows:

of rupees

Calcutta,

(£70,000).
ratta.

twenty

(£200,000)

lacs

them any more

Armenian

Company

Article VIII. gives to the

forces,

one

fifty lacs Agreemint

MeeiJumei

inhabitants, seven lacs compl^y.

the land within the

all

a.d. it&7.

and VII. give compensa-

Mussulmans, and other subjects of

to the

;

to "allow

English inhabitants in Calcutta,

Gentoos,

the

to

(£500,000);

573

and the maintenance of

for losses,

to the

;

more

Ai'ticles IV., V., VI.,

—To the Company

crore of rupees (£1,000,000)

JAFFIER.

Mah-

Ditch belonging to zemindars, and also 600 yards without the ditch.

Article IX. convei-ts all the land to the south of Calcutta, as far as Culpee, into

a zemindary, and gives

it

to the

manner

of revenue, in the same

Company,

however, to the payment

subject,

Article X. engages to

as other zemindars.

for the

maintenance of any English troops whose assistance

Article

XL, not

and

any new

to erect

Ai'ticle XII., to

fortifications,

may

pay

be demanded

below Hooghly, near the Ganges;

pay the aforesaid stipulated sums on being established

in

the government of the three provinces.

The

thirteenth, or additional article,

is

the counter-obligation, in which, "on

Tiie

com-

pany's

condition that
oath,

Meer

and execute

all

Jafiier

we wiU

Beliauder shall solemnly ratify, confirm

assist

Company,

Meer

declare on the holy Gospels,

Khan

Jaffier

we

will assist

as he caUs

upon us

him

to the

for that

utmost against

end

;

all his

article, as

by Admiral Watson, Mr. Drake, governor

to

them that

it

in

any other

in engaging to

fui-ther,

enemies whatevef, as soon

well as the treaty,

employ

was signed

of Calcutta, Colonel Clive, Mr. Watts,

Major Kilpatrick, and Mr. Becher, one of the membei"s of
been no objection to

and

;

respect, it is strange

council.

how

it

Had

to

wage open war against him.

the treaty, on the face of

it,

there

never occurred

all their force to obtain the soubahship for

a creature of their own, they were usm-ping the sovereign rights of the

emperor, and pledging them.selves,

to

provided that he, on his coming to be nabob,
This

shall fulfil the aforesaid articles."

and before

Beliauder, with all our force,

obtain the soubahship of the province of Bengal, Behar, and Orissa
that

by

the above articles, we, the underwi-itteu, do, on behalf of

the Honourable East India

God, that

Khan

if

Mogul

he resisted or resented their interference,

This ovei"sight

is

the more remarkable, becaase

Meer

recognizes the emperor's su])remacy.

Jaffier

King Alumgeer," and the date of the deed is
"the foui-th year of the reign." What right then had Meer Jaffier to rule over
provinces to which, even if he had been the next heir, instead of being a
designates him.self "servant of

stranger in blood, his title

would not have been valid

until confirmed at Delhi

?

and what right could the representatives of a body of English merchants have,
not only to sanction his usui-pation, but solemnly pledge themselves " to

him

to the utmost against all his enemies whatever?"

that will bear a moment's examination

;

but

it is

No

needless,

answer can be given

when

extravagant nature was done, to dwell on a matter which, in the
condition of the

assi.st

Mogul empire, may possibly have been regarded

as

so

much

of an

now degraded
mere

pmictilio.

comiter*^''*^'"®"

574
A.D

UISTOllV OF INDIA.

The private

1767.

treaty,

probably regarded

V)y

though

[Pm>ok III.

appears to have been an after-thought, was

it

some of the

parties as the

more important of the two.
"

In a passage, quoted above, Clive mentions, in a letter to Mr. Watts, that
>nvate

^ny gratuity the new nabob may bestow on the troops, it
generosity."
A more mercenary spirit was aftei'wards developed
^q

MeerJaffier,

to the

army and navy only had been

first

proposed

;

but,

when

is left

A

to

as

hi.s

gratuity

was

the matter

discussed in the select committee, Mr. Becher, one of the members, suggested

was reasonable and f»roper that
they should be considered." The hint was sufficient and it was resolved, as
Clive describes it in a letter to Mr. Watts, that, instead of tru.sting to Meer
that,

"as they had set the machine in motion,

it

;

Jaffier's generosity, his

make them

(the committee, in

lacs of rupees,

what

is

which you are included;, a present of twelve

and a present of forty

lacs to the

stipulated in the agi-eement.

the private treaty, and
to be

"private engagement should be obtained in writing to

misnamed

by means

presents,

of

it

army and navy, over and above

This engagement formed the sulyect of

'

enormous sums, while they

were regularly constituted

as the narrative proceeds, that there

was a

still

continued

It will be seen,

as debts.

third treaty of a very .singular

description.
(.live sets

out to per-

form his
part

ill

The ti'eaties, signed by Meer Jaffier, arrived in Calcutta on the 10th of Jime,
and two days after, the troops stationed there, together with 150 .sailors from

the

conspiracy.

the squadron, were proceeding

uji

the river, in a fleet of 200 boats, to join the

The danger of delay was

main body under Clive at Chandernagore.

A

plot to

soldiers,

many were

which so

The
openly; and Omi-

privy could not be effectually concealed.

both at Calcutta and Chandernagore, began to talk of

it

who from

chund,
*

manifest.

iKSsasSt^

.r

the

had a leading

first

share in

its

managre-

ment, had threatened
to divulge

it

the

to

nabob, unless his
lence
at

was purchased

an enormous

The nabob's own
picions

and

was
Ghavt at M00BSHEDAB.U). —From

a drawing by Captain Smith, 44th Regiment.

si-

cost.

sus-

were aroused,

his first impulse

to

palace,

attack

the

and thus ob-

tain possession of the

person of Meer
fate

Jaftier.

Had

he acted on

impending over him; but he hesitated,

and was

it

he might possibly have escaped the

after putting

Meer Jaffier on his guard,

overwhelmed with astonishment and ten-or, when the sudden flight of
Mr. Watts from Moorshedabad revealed the fulJ macmitude of the danger, that he
so

;
1

OLIVE'S

Crap. X.j

descended from menace to entreaty, and

To

Meer

this

swore upon

made

during a

Jaffier assented, and,

'"Co

overtures for an accommodation,

visit

but Meer Jaffier had no

when anything

assistance to the

scioiples,

could be gained

and was ready

by

to

commit any amount of perjury

The nabob

it.

so secure after this recon-

felt

with his paymaster-general, that on the loth he sent a letter to Clive,

whom

inveighing bitterly against the treachery manifested by Mr. Watts,
scious guilt alone

had forced to

at Plassey;

As soon

ordered the whole of his

ment

him

but God and the Prophet would puuisli

violated."

at Plassey,

and

con-

"Suspicion," he said, "that some trick wa.s

flee.

intended, liad been the real cause which induced

was

1757.

which the nabob paid to him,

Koran that he would neither join nor give

tlie

ad

This was of course in direct contradiction to the oath of the treaty

English.

ciliation

MARCH

army

to keep his

tho.se

by

whom

so long

the treaty

as he had thus committed him.self to hostilities, he

army

also

to assemble forthwith at their former

encamp-

wrote M. Law, who had proceeded with his soldiers

no farther than Rajamahal, to join him with the utmost expedition.

The nabob's message of defiance must have passed another which

on

Clive,

ciive',.stiie.

nient of

commencing

his march,

grievances, real

had addressed

and imaginary,

to

him.

After enumerating

the

all

grieT.ame*.

which the English had been subjected by the

to

nabob's caprice, violence, and perfidy, he announced that he had determined,

with the approbation of

all

who

are charged with the

Company's

1

affairs,

proceed immediately to Cossimbazar, and submit their disputes to the arbitration of

Jaffier,

RoyduUub, Juggut

Seat,

further claims; but that

then

demand

if it

his great

appeared his excellenc}- had broken

satisfaction for all the losses sustained

charges of their

army and navy.

being so near, and

it

requiring

He

men;

that

only 100 sailors to garrison

left

many days

whom

800 were Europeans.

and a howitzer.

and

it,

The

by the

it,

English,

he should

and

all

thf

added, in conclusion, "that the rains

necessary to wait upon him immediately."

of

and others of

should appear he (Clive) deviated from the treaty, he then swore to give up

if it
all

Meer

-to

receive

an answer, he found

Clive, in quitting

set out at the

it

Chandemagore,

head of about 3000 men,

artillery consisted of eight six-pounder?

Bold as he was, he would not have ventured to commence

uismaroh
fn>ni

operations with this force had he not trusted to the promise of

Jaffier

Chan-

.iema.;..re

With great anxiety, therefore, he continued his march day by
while Meer Jaffier, not only did not make his appearance, but returned

to join

day,

Meer

him.

no answer to repeated messages which were sent to him.

was not until the
17th, when the army had advanced far on its way, and, by means of a detachment sent forward under Captain Coote, had captured the towTi and fort of
It

Cutwali, situated at the confluence of the Hadjee with the Bhagaruttee, that
the
for,

first letter

from Meer

Jaffier arrived.

Its content^

were very unsatisfactory,

instead of announcing his approach to form the promised junction,

in rather

ambiguous terms of the

reconciliation with the nabob,

by which he had bound himself not to take part against him.

it

s[)oke

and the oath

Meer

Jaffier

t

HISTORY OF INDIA.

576
AD.

1767.

S lupifiiouR
(

[Book

by

of course declared that the whole was, on his part, a trick,

nabob more

arrived, in

which he gave only the vague intelligence that

easily

t<^

wliich he lioped

but when, on the 19th, another

to lure the

his ruin;

ill.

lett<ir

tent would be

hi.s

oiiduct of

.MeurJiiflitr.

and excased himself

either on the left or the right of the army,

more

explicit,

messages,

meant

because guards were stationed on
suspicions

Olive's

to deceive him, or

was

further advance

the roads

all

had miscalculated

On

his strength.

not being

intercept

t^)

Meer

were thoroughly roased.

for

Jaffier

all

either

either supposition

perilous in the extreme.

which matters now appeared to Olive is evidenced by a letter
written to the secret committee, on the same day on which that of Meer Jaffier
was received: " The party I sent has taken Outwah town and fort. Both are

The

light in

—

Notwithstanding which,

strong.

from Meer

ligence I receive
or

want of

effort,

anxiety at the

I feel the greatest

and

Jaffier;

if

he

is

not treacherou.s, his so/ag froid,

strength, will, I fear, overset the expedition.

by means

upon him

of a Brahmin, to prevail

little intel-

am

I

trying a last

to m.arch out

and join us

have appointed Plassey

1

the place of rendezvous,

and

have told him at the .same
time, unless he gives this or

some other

proof

sufficient

of the sincerity of his intenI will

tions,

not cross the

river; this, I hope, will

meet

with yo\ir approbation.
shall act

1

with such caution

as not to risk the loss of our
Uhait at Cutwah, uu me Ganges.— From LieuteaautColonel

forces

Forrest's

Tour ou thu GangtB.

them,
it

in our

They say

power
there

is

a considerable quantity of grain in and about this place.

we may maintain

the rains, which will greatly distress the nabob

may

Clive holds

a council

war.

'if

;

and

how you

think

I

should

act, if

I desire

Meer

you

Jaffier

If

we

our situation diu-ing

either reduce

him

to terms

be depended upon, or give us time to bring in the Beer

Rajah, Mahrattas, or Ghazi-u-din.
freely,

we may always have

to bring about a revolution, should the present not succeed.

can collect eight or ten thousand maimds,

which

and whUst we have

;

will give

Bhoom

your sentiments

can give us no assistance."

The dubiety and indecision thus expressed, were not produced by a momentary fit of despondency, for on the 21st of June, two days after despjatching
the above letter, Olive, unable to satisfy himself as to the course which it was
expedient to pursue, or decide
war, and submitted to
situation,

it

it

on his own

the following

responsibilit}-,

without assistance, and on om* own bottom,

attack the nabob

;

or,

held a coimcil of

— "Whether,
question:

whether we should wait

tUl

in our present

woidd be prudent to
joined by some coimtry
it

CLIVE HOLDS A COUNCIL OF

Chap. X.]

power?"

Tlie council consisted of sixteen

members, of

whom

The former was thus

and seven the negative.

iitfirmative,

U

\VA1{.

i

nine voted the

carried,

A.D. 1757.

Clive not

only vothig with the majority, but lending
liis

influence to secure

ordinary
opinion

by

violating the

and giving

routine,

own

his

instead of beginning with the

first,

youngest

it

Eyre Coote, who had

officer.

already given proofs of the military genius

which

made him famous

afterwards

in

Indian warfare, stood at the head of the

To

minority.

Dowlah was now

Surajah

appearance,

all

safe,

at least from the

conspiracy which was to have discardeil him,
in

order to

make way for Meer

and

Jaffier,

Bengal was not to be revolutionized
one of

its

own

till

petty rajahs could usm-p the

government or one of the most worthless

Sir

Eyre Coote. — From

a print after H. Morlaiid.

;

viziers

who had

in the plot

;

ever held

or the

office at

Company,

the covu't of Lelhi could be bribed to mingle

in despair of accomplishing their object

by other

means, should resort to the miserable alternative of leao-uing with the Mahrattas.

But though the majority of the council of war had voted as Clive had in a

Olive

litfter-

miiies to

by anticipating instead of waiting to receive tiieir opinion, he
was not himself satisfied. The arguments of Coote had not been lost upon
him, and within an hour after the council broke uj), the army received orders

manner

dictated,

to be in readiness to start
said,

by Orme,

next morning.

to have been }>roduced after

meditation in an adjoining grove.

moment

;

for,

This change of opinion in Clive

It

is

an interval of deep and solitary

must, indeed, have been an anxious

even after the absurdity of stopping where he was had become

apparent, he could not act in opposition to his
viction

praceeil.

own

and the decision of the council of war, without

previousl}' declared con-

feeling

how immensely

he had added to his responsibility.

The hazards which the army was now about to run were of the most
formidable description.
It was occupjdng the town of Cutwah, and could not
reach the nabob's army without passing into a large flat which, from being
nearly inclosed by two arms of the Ganges, was known by the name of the
island of Cossimbazai".

the passage of which,

Between

loss.

indefinitely increased

and the army ran a

had the enemy known how

have been successfully disputed,
without serious

it

or,

to use his advantages,

river,

might

This obstacle overcome, the peril of the position wa.s
Retreat was impossible.

18,000 cavalry, in a position where,
I.

and rapid

at all events, could not have been effected

3000 was about to encounter an army of not
Vol.

deej)

if

a reverse

A

body of troops not exceeding

less

was

than 50.000 infantry and
sustained, not a

man would
73

Fonniiliible
ilirtiiultie.s.

;

'

578
AD.

17.17.

HISTOllV OF iNJjlA.

escape to

the

tell

The

tale.

after a letter arrived

and suggesting the

river

from Mcer

was crossed witliout

Jafiier,

iii;u-ehe8

to

and shortly

him by

but, in other respects,

sur|)rise;

immediately sent back the messenger

-i

who

with the answer "that he .should march to Pla-ssey witliout delay,
i
and would the next morning advance six miles turther to the village of Daudbrought

I'lLssey.

oppo.sition,

III

giving notice of the nabob's movements,

possibility of taking

so far from satisfactory, that Clive
ciive

[Eook

it,

iiii

pore

;

but

nabob."

Meer

if

••i/'i

him there he would make peace with the
Meer Jaffier s information, the nabob had airived at

Jaffier did not join

According to

Muncarra, a village six miles south of Co.ssimbazar, intending there to entrench
himself and wait the event.

This information proved false; for

when

Clive

arrived at Plassey, at one in the morning, after a fatiguing march of fifteen
miles, the continual

sound of drums,

l)any the night watches of

clarions,

and cymbals, which alwa3-s accom-

an Indian camp, told him that the nabob's army was

The intention to encamp at Mimcarra had been formed in
the belief that Clive would advance immediately after the capture of Cutwah
but from circum.stances already explained, his movements not having been .so
rapid as was expected, the nabob quickened liis own pace and arrived at Plassey
not a mile distant.

Naturally of a cowardly disposition, and surrounded by treachery,

before him.

of which the evidences could not have escaped his notice, the nabob became

more and more desponding
arrival, his

attendants had gone out, one

the time of

he was not aware that they had

man who had

In the immediate

hostile

Plassey.

in regular rows,

was

inclosed

left

him

one, to say their usual prayers, at

alone,

he exclaimed

—

till

own gloomy

"

reflections,

looking up he perceived a
Starting up, and

Surely they see

mango

me

dead.

trees,

and extending about 800 yards, with a breadth of

by a

its

west side along the bank of the

and

short distance north of the grove

RoyduUub, while encamped

planted
300.

It

and a ditch nearly choked up with weeds and

slight bank,

distant at the southern extremity 200 yards,

At a

in his

Plassey was a grove of

\'icinity of

brambles, and slanted with

fifty.

the evening of his

secretly entered the tent, probably to steal.

calling loudly for his attendants,
The

by

Being at the time absorbed

.sunset.

On

as the danger approached.

here,

had tlirown

river,

which was

at the north not

more than

was an entrenchment, which

up.

It stretched for about 200

yards from the bank of the river, in a line nearly parallel to the north side of
the grove, and then diverging to the north-east,
for

was continued

in that direction

The nabob's army was encamped within

about three miles.

this entrench-

ment, and began at daybreak, on the 23d of June, to issue from various openings

and advance towards the grove.

His

artillery consisted of forty to fifty

pieces of caimon, mostly of the largest calibre.

Several of them were mounted

on a redoubt constructed in the entrenchment, in the angle formed by the
change in

its

direction

;

four of

them on the bank of a

large tank about 900

yards south of the redoubt, under forty Frenchmen, headed by one Sinfray

two on a

line

with the tank, and

close to the river.

The

;

and

rest of the artillery,

•

THE BATTLE OF PLASSEY.

CiiAP. X.]

reserved to

accompany the army

in its

579

movements, was placed on machines,

a.d. 1757.

each forming a kind of stage, about six feet high, and large enough to contain
a cannon, with

its

ammunition, and the gunners required to manage

machine was dragged along by forty to
size,

til'ty

yoke of white oxen of the

and attended, moreover, by an elephant trained

by shoving with

to assist at difficult tugs

Meer Mudden, the son of Mohun

river,

with 5000 horse and 7000

largest

Behind the posts occupied by Sinfray, and the

his forehead.

two cannon near the

Every

it.

The

foot.

rest of the

L(^ll,

was stationed

army, consisting of separate

compact masses, foraied an immense curve which commenced at a hillock of
situated without the entrenchment, about 300 yards east of the redoubt,

trees,

'^

•"'''""t

cauuonade.

The

and terminated about half a mile east of the southern angle of the grove.

two, three, and four pieces together, were stationed at the different

artillery,

openings between the columns in the curve.

Clive had fixed his head-quarters

on the

at a hunting-house of the nabob, situated a little north of the grove,

bank of the

having ascended to the

river, and,

surveyed the vast host in

roof,

hemming him in on every side, except that towards the river.
At first, to show the enemy how unable they were to intimidate him, he abandoned the shelter of the grove, and drew up his little army in front of it in a
The battalion occupied the centre, while the sepoys in
line facing the tank.
s|)lendid array

two equal divisions formed the wings.
the right,

and three on the

left

Three of the field-pieces were placed on

of the battahon

;

the other two field-pieces and

the howitzers were advanced about 200 yards in front of the left wing.

eight o'clock the
ke})t

up

for

some

first

shot

time.

was

It

fired

now, advancing nearer,
for the

by the enemy, and a distant cannonade was

produced no

fired

result,

with great vivacity, though to very

troops remained quietly seated

among

in line of battle he

He knew

his

purpose,

little

the trees, while the artillery,

Though Clive had drawn

sheltered behind the bank, continued the cannonade.

up

men
enemy, who

and Clive again placed

This apparent retreat elated the

under the shelter of the grove.

At

had no intention of bringing on a general engagement.

the advantages which night

with his original design,

it

would give him and hence,

was resolved

;

in accordance

at eleven o'clock, after consulting his

cannonade during the day, and attack the camp at mid-

officers,

to continue the

nlght.

After this resolution his pei"sonal presence was less necessary, and he

caimoiwde
to be cou-

retired into his quarters to snatch
is

said to have been fast asleep,

an interval of

when Major

rest.

He had

lain

down, and

Kilpatrick sent to inform

him that

he had a good opportunity of seizing the tank which Sinfray occupied, and was

about to advance for that purpose with two companies of the battalion and two
field-pieces.

Clive started up, and running to the detachment stopped

same time reprimanding the major

for acting

without orders.

He

it,

at the

soon perceived,

however, that the j)roposed attack ought to be executed, and placing himself at
the head of the detachment, found little difficulty in driving out Sinfi-n}'

Frenchmen, and obliging them to

retire into the redoubt.

and

his

tinuci

.lur-

580
AD.

A

17.07

which CHve had not ventured to

upon

to be forced
cngagfiaent
brought on.

A

the cannonade.

day

liim before the

exposed on the machines,
still

of

and

it

when

mo.st faithful of his officers,

enemy, and the

ilurint:

n

i

the ammunition

when a heavy

at noon,

it

The

u.seless.

from

fire

tiie

nabobs only misfortune.

this the

was brought

wa« about

were repeatedly
^ heard

powder

Nor was

III.

the enemy's ammunition lay

serious misfoiiune befell

machines immediately .slackened.
For, about the very time

As

closed.

i)artial
exijlosions
'
'

more

tlie

anticijjate before nndnight.

of rain rendered a great part of the

fall

[Book

JMjJ.A.

great change had taken place in the condition of

victory,

AKBiiciai

OF

lll.STUKY

failed,

Meer Mudden, the best

into his tent moi-tally

wounded

Vjy

a cannon-ball, and died in his presence, after uttering a few words expressive of
his

own

loyalty

and the want of

The nabob had

in others.

it

beyond the reach of danger, alternately yielding to

in his tent,

buoyed up with assurances of

He now

victory.

imder the influence of terror and despair sent
arrived, the nabob,

of Ali

throwing

his

for

lost all

remained

hitherto;

self-command, and

As soon as he
implored him in the name

Meer

tm*ban on the gi-ound,

Jaffier.

Verdy Khan, the brother-in-law of the one and grandfather of the

other,

and honour. Meer

Jaffier

to forgive the past,

readily promised

and become the defender of

all

that

plete his treachery, first

had oassed, and

uro-ing

was asked of

liim,

his life

and immediately proceeded

by sending a message to
him either to an instant

camp; and secondly, by urging the nabob

Clive, informing

was not

delivered, as the messenger

cannonade

was

to

him of what

army within the entrenchday.
The mes.sage to Clive

to recall his

afraid to proceed with it during the

but the treacherous advice, backed by the influence of Roydullub,

;

another of the leading conspirators, was, after some demur, adopted, and the

was

com-

or a nocturnal attack on the

ments, and renew the engagement on the following

order

and

his fears

Mohun

issued to retire within the camp.

Loll,

who was

fatal

probably

aware of the motives which dictated the advice, and foresaw the inevitable consequences, at

first

refused to obey, and showed that the very attempt to retire

would spread an universal

and

panic,

army

the whole

tlii-ow

into confu-sion.

His remonstrances, however, were unavailing

;

and the preparations

for retiring

were immediately perceived in the almost

total cessation of the

cannonade

on the part of the enemy, the j^oking of the trains of oxen to the unwieldy
at

'While the detachment was driving Sinfray from the tank, the portion

ot

this stage that Clive
Tiie victory

movement

was

machines, and a gradual retrograde

of the whole army.

had been aroused by Kilpatrick

It

message.

s

of Plassey.

the nabob's

behind th§

was

army

rest,

stationed farthest to the south-east

and even advance in the direction of the

at first misunderstood,

was done before

troops acting so suspiciously were those of
off"

Meer

the ma.sk, and openly declared himself

been any longer
doubtful.
O"

gi"ove.

to linger

The movement

and Clive ha\ang sent a detachment to oppose

further progress, some execution

thrown

was observed

Jaffier's

it

their

was ascertained that

Jaffier,

Had

who had now

the

at last

the issue of the battle

conduct would have decided

it.

Clive,

when

I

THE VICTORY OF PLASSEY.

CiiAv. X.]

once certain that he could calculate on the neutrality
a large

part of

tlie

army opposed

carried at once both the redoubt to wliich Sinfray

manding

immediately to the east of

hillock

By

it.

not the co-operation

if

to him, determined

581

on a vigorous

had

made acquainted with Meer

mounted a camel, and

With

horsemen.

tied at its

seeing the baggage of a whole

camp lying
The

advance with acclamation.

miles,

brought them in the evening to Daudpore.

killed

and wounded was only seventy-two
is

effort,

re-

who had gained

it,

continued for about six

pursuit,

;

The

on the

other,

was

won

The victory

oOO.

unexpectedly, almost without

most important that had been

landed on

first

pursuit,

that of the vanquished was also

in its results the

gained in India since Europeans

The

loss of the victors in

computed by Clive himself at not more than

thus feebly contested on the one hand, and

im

and nothing

unplundered, but on being promised a donative, received the

it

to

and

soldiers

2()()()

before them, were naturally reluc-

order

trifling,

The nabob, on

accompanied by about

The

fruits of the victory.

and

effoi-t,

and the British advance,

his departiu^e all idea of resistance ceased,

mained but to reap the

tant to leave

i)ace,

itot.

five o'clock the British force

Jaffier's de.sertion

utmost

ad.

and the com-

retired,

was within the entrenchment, and in possession of the camp.
being

of

shores.

its

It

founded the

British empii'e in the East.

On

the evening of the battle

Meer

Jatfier,

who had remained encamped

in cuveKUutes

him on

his success,

and on the following day met hini by appointment at Daudi)ore.

Conscious

how

free

the neighbourhood, .sent a mes.sage to Clive, congratulating

was not

dilatory and even suspicious his conduct had been, he

misgivings as to the manner in which he would be received, and hence,
(

>n

his

destruction.

Clive, seeing his alann, soon reassured

it

to

the capital

and

idle

him by hastening forward

This dastardly prince was

in his palace,

still

he sent

off"

But

it

flight.

was

On

and had

plain, liow-

the morning

the inmates of his seraglio with fifty loaded ele-

and was only lingering behind

his escape.

It

last.

from his conduct, that he was only meditating

after the battle

Oi'issa.

ceremony, and Meer Jaffier after a short delay proceeded

given out that he intended to defend himself to the

])hants,

when

complete the \nctory by the capture of Surajah Dowlah

to

his trea.sures.

ever,

from

be a signal for his

embrace him, and salute him Nabob of Bengal, Behar, and

was no time for
to

naixii..

approach the guard drew up and rested their arms to pay him the usual

honours, he mistook the com})liment, and suppo.sed

to

;',s

till

the darkness of night should favour

His preparations were not completed when the news of Meer

Jaffier s arrival told

dress of a menial,

him he had not a moment

and canying a casket of

out at a window, accompanied only

by

liis

to lose.

Hastily assmning the

most valuable jewels, he slipped

his favourite concubine

and an eunuch.

At the palace wharf he entered a boat which had been previously prepared, and
was carried up the river at a ra])id rate.
^Feer Jatfier

was not informed

of the nabob's flight

till

midnight, and imme'3

ll

582

AD

1767.

Being

tlias fnxstrated in liin

the person of his kte master, he

made

sur.j

Moor^<^.ea;l

111.

denign of seizing

of the next most important object,

The whole value found

possession of his treasury.

I

[liooK

diately .sent parties in pursuit.

by taking
st;iteoftim

OF IMjIA.

llLSTO);\

in

arnount<'d

it

only to 150 lacs of rupees, or £1,500,000 sterling, thougli Mr. Watts had with
slugular extravagance estimated
city
his

meanwhile remained

at twenty-four crores, or £24', 000,000

it

in confusion

army prevented any attempt

escorted

by 200

of the battalion

but the gi-adual apjiroach of Clive with

;

make

and 300

his entrance

sepoys,

a palace spacious enough to accommodate
Mr. Watts and Mr. WaLsh, with

00

1

.sepoys,

make arrangements

to the

till

the

and established

2fJth.

He was

his quarters in

had been sent forward on the 25th,
state of the treasury,

and endea-

payments of the sums which Meer

Jaffier

was now very apparent he had not then the means
By the public and private treaties he had incurred obligations

had promised, but which
of discharging.

for

arrived within a short

the troops that came with him

all

and had spent the interval in ascertaining the
vouring to

He

at insun-ection.

distance on the 25th, but did not

The

it

amount of £2,750,000, whereas

his treasury, if drained of its last rupee,

would yield only £1,500,000. Nor was
sums, immense presents were expected.

this

all.

Of

In addition to the stipulated

these no less than £100,000 were

destined for Clive, £80,000 for Mr. Watts, £50,000 for Mr. W^alsh, £30,000 for

Major Kilpatrick, and £20,000
sents under the circumstances,

name than

for Mr. Scrafton.

and

The acceptance of such

after the state of the treasury

pre-

was known.

name might be used
for it afterwards appeared that Meer JaflBer in making them was under the
impression that he had purchased an influence which might enable him to escape
deserves no better

Even

extortion.

a worse

from the obligations he had contracted to the Compan}' and to other
cuve

seats

on the mils

nuJ

parties,

CUve, immediately after his entrance, proceeded to the nabob's palace, where

Mcer Jaffier and all the great
The musnud or throne stood
Jaffier, after

the

desirous to avoid

officers of

it.

and placed him upon

retii-ed to

Clive perceiving
it.

hall of audience

in the

first salutation,

the city were waiting to receive him.

this,

This done, he

usual forms, and ha\'ing presented

a different part of the

made

him with a

obeisance to

and

all

as

him

as

if
it,

nabob in the

plate of gold rupees, addressed the

them on the good fortune

which had given them so excellent a prince in exchange
sufficient,

hall,

took him by the hand, led him to

great officers through an interpreter, congratulating

The hint was

unoccupied, for Meer

for a despicable tATant.

the persons present imitated Clive's example, by

The following morning the nabob retm'ned
Clive's visit, and at once opened the subject which he knew to be nearest the
hearts of both of them the obligations he had undertaken, and his present
inability to pay them.
It was agreed to refer the matter to the Seats, to whose
doing homage and presenting gold.

—

house they forthwith proceeded, attended by Watts, Scrafton, Meerun,
nabob's son, and Roydullub.

the

Omichund, who was attending, followed, under

the impression that he stood high in Clive's estimation, in consequence of the

OMICHUND'S CASE.

Chap. X.J

583

A

important part which he had played in the revolution.

invited to the carpet at the conference
place for himself in the

.vd. itot.

mind when, instead of beingwith the Seats, he was left to find a
The cause of this treatment
the hall.

was wrong must have passed through

thing

suspicion that some-

outward part of

his

must now be explained.

While the conspiracy

for the

overthrow of Surajah Dowlah was in progress,

Omichund naturally expected an ample compensation
heavy

suffered

loss

Company, who had imprisoned him on

servants of the

He had

for his services.

from the plunder of Calcutta, and great

from the

injustice

sus])icions,

which

groundless were never substantiated, and yet he had voluntarily taken

reward
is

is

used in

its

When

life.

ordinary moral sense, to designate what

\ip his

the term

due to merit,

is

it

Conspiracy, whatever be the

impossible to say that he deserved anything.

and the conspiracy in which Omichund took
active a part was carried out with a very large amount of treachery and per-

form which
so

been discovered, would have cost him his

it

not

if

and bect)me the most active agent in a conspiracy,

residence at Moorshedabad,

which, had

omicimnds

jury,

and

it

assumes,

for the

is

a crime

;

most part from mercenary motives.

Still

Omichund was no

worse than his fellow-conspirators; and therefore, while the fugitive governor
of Calcutta

and the other members of the

select

committee were putting

claims for tens of thousands, on the ground, as one of

"they had set the machine in motion,"
instrumental in keeping

going

it

setting an extravagant value

mission of five per cent, on

When

till

the

why

should he,

finished,

He

to

is .said

the sums found in Sm'ajah

it,

that

who had been

work was

on his services?
all

them expressed

in

so

be blamed for

have iisked a com-

Dowlahs

treasury.

he made this claim, he gave a significant hint, or rather uttered a

direct menace,

that

if it

were not granted he would compensate himself by
It is doubtful if

divulging the conspiracy.
serious sense in

he ever made the menace in the

which Mr. Watts interpreted

would ever have given

effect to

it,

as he

it,

and most improbable that he

was too acute not

Surajah

Dowlahs overthrow was

effect of

breaking with the conspirators would be his

inevitable,

to perceive that

and that therefore the ultimate

own

ruin.

Be

this as it

may, when Mr. Watts returned the public treaty, as finally revised, and containing an article stipidating a
the select committee

payment of

thirty lacs (£300,000) to

Omichund,

could scarcely find therms strong enough to express their

abhorrence of his rapacity, and their virtuous indignation at his threatened
treachery.
case

It

was dangerous

to

expunge the

Omichund might be tempted

to

article

altogether, as in that

do his worst; and

it

appeal's to

have

been suggested, that as a kind of compromise the sum should be reduced from
thirty to

twenty

Uics.

It

was reserved

expedients, to suggest a plan which

the conspiracy,

and punish him

for the

mind

of Clive, ever fertile in

would at once keep Omichund

faithful to

for his real or fancied treachery.

Besides the public and private treaties above explained, there was, as

luis

tik st.puiat-

;

HLSTOliN

584-

A.D. 1757.

UK INDIA

been already hinted, a third treaty, of a very
fact,

[Book
It was,

.singular description.

this dupliciite

omiuiiun.i.

Omichund,

had

all

the aj)[)earance of an original, and

to satisfv liim that his intere.sts

was written on red

paper, but

all

To

knew was

only to be used for the

effect as the

pui-Y)0se of

name

his

but having gone so far they were not

;

obstacles,

and the admiral's signature was

The deception

Tiie

t(^

|»re-

distinguish

genuine treaty,

to a

document which

it

now

made

Iih

The honour-

peq^etrating a fraud.

able feelings which dictated this refusal mijjht have

pause

such

the signatures were genuine, with a single

Admiral Watson refased to put

exception.

a-s

had not been neglected.

from the other, which alone was to receive

It

Externally

was sliown

paration of this duplicate was the plan which Clive had devised.
it

in

a duplicate of the public treaty, with one very important difierencc

contained an article giving twenty la&s of rupees U> Omiciiund.

Deception

III.

the select committee

by ordinary

to be deteired

forged.

Omichund by the substitution of a false for a
genuine treaty was completely successful. Though him.self full of wiles, he wa->
so firm a believer in English honour, that we have .seen him vouching for it
How, then, could he suspect that
to Surajah Dowlah with a solemn oath.
the representatives of the Company had combined to cheat a Hindoo Vjy pahning
upon him a document which they knew to be tainted both with fraud and forgery? He went accordingly to the Seats in the full belief tliat no individual
had a more direct interest than himself in the an-angemenis about to be made
for the payment of the sums stipulated in the treaty.
While seated aloof he
was probably too distant to catch the purport of the proceedings. After the
treaties

were

practised on

and acknowledged, a long discussion took

read, examined,

place,

the result of which was, that only one-half of the stipulated sums should be

paid immediately
at a valuation;

—two- thirds in

Orme:

'

"

The conclusion cannot be better

who Avas waiting in
fortune; when Clive said,
Scrafton said to

Its effects,

;

plate, jewels,

and

effects,

in three years,

by equal

told than in the

words of

The conference being ended, Clive and Scrafton went towards Omi-

chund,

trick

and a third in

and that the other half should be paid

annual instalments.

—

coin,

you are

him
to

full

assurance of hearing the glad tidings of his good

It is

'

notv time to undeceive Omichund;' on wdiioh

in the Indostan language,

have nothing.'

sulphur; he sank back, fainting,

of his attendants caught

him

which they conveyed him to

'

OmichiCnd, the red paper

who

and would have

in his arms,

his house,

fallen to the gi'ound

and carried him

I'eturned insane, his

after to a

make

houi"s in stupid

Some days

famous one near Maulda.

and, contrary to the usual manners of old age in Indostan,
Oniie's Military Transactions, vol.

ii.

after

a pilgrimage to some pagoda,

mind every day more and more approaching

'

had not one

to his palanquin, in

where he remained many

ad\dsed him to

which he accordingly did soon

a

These words oveq^owered him like a blast of

melancholy, and began to show some s^miptoms of insanity.

he visited Colonel Clive.

is

page 182.

still

He went

and

to idiotism

more

to the

-

OMICHUND'S CASE.

CHAP. X.J

5S5

loimer excellence of his understanding, he delighted in being continuall}- dressed ad.
the richest garments, ornamented with the most costly jewels.

ill

of imbecility, he died

Orme

right

is

when

—admitting

would have betrayed the conspiracy,

will be disjiosed to

"'

to fear

—he

"

a-s

it

to be imcertain

whether Omichund

says, " as his tales

and

lieiieving the representations of his

was

part of his fortune

and he had the utmost venoreance of

of the English,

ai-tifices

Jaftier

and

his confederates

prevented Surajah Dowlali from

most trusty servants, who early suspected,

them

in oblivion

tlie

it

either morally or politically,

(

again a hundred times.

doing

in

man

his

if

threat in
Mr.

it

warrantable in such a case, and would do

it

same evidence, seems

to

Olive, in the course of the

own

justification that

"he had no

that "he thought art and policy warrantable in defeating the

In judging Olive's conduct on this occasion,

villain."'

in the woi'st possible light,

it

—

demands had not been apparently conceded, he would have put his
This was certainly Olive's belief; for immediately after
execution.
" I

have your

last letter, including the articles of

lonfess the tenor of tliem sui^irised

me much.

I

is

the greatest villain upon earth

strongest light,

to be, a villain in grain.

in the

How-

and at the smne time to give him no room

the one real, to be strictly kept

concluded,

ac([uaint

Meer

Omichund

Jaffier w^ith.

'

us.

the other fictitious.

be treated as he deserves.

will

On

by

to

employed to

fru.strate his intentions

lii.s

I.

.short,

this

This you will

Omichund deserved
returns, Do the means

Sir

— were they

warped

to the necessity of that

good

in accord-

John Malcolm undertakes

elaborate argument only shows

zeal for the reputation of his hero liad

moment

still

admit of justification?

ance with honoui-. eqiuty. and sound policy?

prove the affirmative; but

In

the as.sumption, then, that

the worst epithets here aii])lied to him, the question

Vol.

and gentlemen agree that

our intentions, inclosed you vnW receive two forms of agreement

su.spect

the

must

I

and that now he appears

what he was always suspected

ever, to counterplot the scoundrel,

artair

;

agreement.

in

immediately repaired to Oal-

<utta; and, at a committee held, both the ailmirals

Omichund

is

and assume

Watts had acquainted him with the demand and the menace, he wrote

answer:

for

interested motive

witli a design of disappointing the expectations of a

view Omichimd's conduct

fair to

that

;"

of such a

l)ur|)oses
'lut

and did

it,

rapacious

"

in

and would have ajiproved the declaration of

it "

sufficient for his

it

one word in reprobation

examination by the committee of the House of

his

said, in

'(Mumons, that he thought

consider

.say

His language rather implies that he saw nothing wrong

trick itself

-if

when he

left

and contempt."

Orme, while he thus expresses himself, does not

(.'live

Jaffier,

rupees he expected should have been paid to him, and he

2,()00,0()()

to enjoy

power

in the

and at length were convinced, that the English were confederated with
tlie

On

few

reading the account of the fatal effect of dive's
fleny that

In this state

about a year after the shock of his disappointment."
" trick,"

itst.

his

faith

how

to

comjiletely

judgment, and blinded him

which he

him.self inviolably
74

Futile atjustify the

"'"^''"""•

JlLST(JJiV

01-'

fbniied one of

tlie

.58(i

A.D.

i;.'.!.

maiutiiiiied,

and

wliicli

He

guished career.

INDIA.

admits that the concoction of the
tho.se

compelled by duty to have recourse to such an
*"
(lecoptioii of

J

II.

own

distin-

fictitious treaty

"must

l^riglitest features in IiIk

have been repugnant to the feelings even of

^"tT ''**i

[Hook

who deemed

artifice,

thems<.'lv<,'S

and that the

"

affect-

^"o termination of Omichund's life "must make an impression upon every wellconstituted mind;" but still insists that, "while we give a tear to weak and

Omichund.

we mast do

suffering humanity,
])elled

themselves com-

by circumstances, and by the situation in which they were

repress all private feeling,
tlieir

who deemed

justice to those

The

public duty."

and even

to incur oVjloquy, in the perfonuance of

committee are thus represented, by a

select

placed, to

very- extra-

ordinary flight of imagination, as actuated by the highest and purest motives,

and submitting with rare disinterestedness

to a kind of

Was

secure a great public benefit not otherwise attainable.

the transaction

is

bared of

colm has encumbered

Twenty

of money.
satisfied

saine effect

;

it will

lacs of rupees

promised by an

to his fellow-consjjirators.

would of course have had

of £200,000 to the treasmy of the

Company and

commit fraud and forgery?

When

article in the fictitious treats-

and therefore the only question to be answered

tatives of the

really so?

be seen that the only thing at stake was a sum

inserted in the genuine treaty

sum

it

in order to

the extraneous matter with which Sir John Mal-

Omichund, and induced him to remain true

The same sum
to save a

it,

all

martyrdom,

Nabob

tlie

very

Whether, in order

is,

of Bengal, the represen-

of British honour in India were compelled

It

would be an

t^j

insult to the understanding of the

reader to argue such a question, instead of leaving

him

to follow the natuial

own mind by answering it in the negative.
We must now follow Surajah Dowlali in his flight. His women,

impulse of his
siir.ijah

"with the

laden elephants, were captured the very day after their departure, at Bog-

flight'and

fifty

capture.

wangola, a town on the right bank of the Ganges, about twelve miles northeast of Moorshedabf.d.

Pursuers were also upon the track of the nabob, but his

swift boat had enabled lim to out-distance them, and, but for a strange fatality

movements and defeated his plans, he seemed about to escape.
Before setting out to encounter Clive he had sent a pressing in\-itation to M.
Law, who had immediately set out with his body of Frenchmen, and was within
a few hours' march of Rajamahal, when, hearing of the disaster at Plasse}', he

which attended

his

deemed it prudent to stop, and wait for fiu-ther intelligence. Had he proceeded
he would almost to a certainty have joined the nabob and saved him, as there
would have been little difficult}^ in defeating fm*ther pursuit, and reaching
Patna.

This was Surajah Dowlah's original intention, as he Imd reason to

believe that the governor of

Behar residing there remained

general defection, and would give
his flight in this

dii'ection,

him an asylum.

He had

faithful

accordingly shaped

and arrived without interniption

Here the boatmen, worn out with

their excessive exertions,

pass the night in the boat, while the nabob

and

liis

amid the

at Rajamahal.

were pei'mitted

to

two attendants sought

SURAJAH DOWLAH'S CAPTLTRE AND DEATH.

Chap. X.]

that he was here acci-

shelter ashore in a deserted garden.

Orme's account

dentally recognized at break of day,

by a person who had

remember him, from having been deprived of
months

before,

stopped

short

when
on

ad

it.-.

too good reason to

his ears Ity his orders, thirteen

at this place he

the

expedition

to

steps

to

and retraced

Purneah,

is

:,b7

his

•M*-

execute the fatal resolution of expelling
the Eneflish from Ben'ral.

The native

that the person

who had been

account

is,

thus maltreated
fakir,

was

either a dervise or

and that by a singular coincidence

the place

where the nabob sought shelter

was the

cell

He

of this very devotee.

was received with much apparent
but his

pitality;

hos-

host, stimulated at

once

by revenge and the hope of reward, took
the earliest opportunity of communicat-

ing

important discovery to Meer

his

Meer

Cossim,

Jaffier's

who was then
mahal.

brother-in-law,

commander

of Raja-

His capture being thus

effected,

the

Dowlah

Surajah

Gateway

.at

Rajamahal.— From Lieutenant

Uiicon's

First Impressions of India

was hurried

back,

suffering every kind of indignity consistent wnth the preservation of his

life.

At midnight he was brought as a felon before Meer Jaffier, in the pjilace which
so lately was his own, and, throwing himself on the ground, earnestly asked
Meer Jaftier was or affected to be moved, and a consultation
only for life.
ensued, during which the question of

life

formal decision was given

Jaffier

of

what was

to follow,

await his

off to

was

freely discussed.

must have been

perfectly

No
aware

bed leaving the unhappy prisoner

Meerun, a worthless 3'outh of seventeen, who, having

given his opinion for murder, was not slow in bribing a wretch

first

to perpetrate

but Meer

when he went

in the charge of his son

from the

;

or death

it.

fate.

Surajah Dowlah had been removed to a distant chamber to

He was

As soon

not kept long in suspense.

as the murderer

entered he saw his purpose in his looks, and begged a few moments" respite to

perform

liis

Even

ablutions and say his prayers.

speedily despatched

by the blows

of a poignai'd.

was denied, and he was
In the morning his mangled

this

remains, after being exposed through the city on an elephant, were carried
to the

tomb

of Ali

Verdy Khan,

the twentieth year of his

age,

his maternal gi\indfather.

and the

Worthless though he was. his tragical
the question
influence

at

fifteenth

fjite

month

He was

only in

of his government.

excited general commiseration, and

must often have been asked. Why did not the English, whose
the court was paramount, not interfere to prevent it
Clive,
?

Death of
'u"™|!|jl

'

588
AD.

1757.

when

iII.ST(M{V

he urged

new

tlie

naljr^h to ])re.ss

to secure the person of SuniJMh

mast not
dictate,

toucli his

life.

committee of

This precaution, which mere liumanity .seemed

t>>

may have been from

it

said,
visit,

He was

for that

and brought

immediately cut

to

at last taken in

Moorshedabad on the 2d

in.stant

by the nabob's son. and, as it
Next morning the nabob paid me
off

i.«.

n

necessary to palliate the matter on motives of policv

and occasioned some commotions among

many

of the jemidar.>

tho.se in his favour."

M. Law, after losing the opportunity of .saving Surajah Dowlah, and hearing

a party of
Frdiich to

after-

Surajah Dowlah was

was

Surajah Dowlah had wrote letters on the road to

of the army,
Attemi>ts of

it

"

after his flight; iiowevei", he

without the father's knowledge.

and thought

When

oversiglit.

he contents himself with sajnng.

the neighbourhood of Kajamahal,
late at night.

forward to Moorshedahad and endeavour
\u'

some days

till

III.

fB*^>oK

subject, in a long letter wliich he addre.s.sed to tiie secret

director.s,

not discovered

INDIA

Dowlah, niight have made him aware that

he omitted to use;

wards referring to the

Ol-

.

of his capture, immediately marched back with his

body of troops into Behar,

excite a

counterrovolntion.

intending to ofier their services to Kamnarain, the governor, who, as he had
formerly promised to support Surajali Dowlah, would now,
be disinclined to assume independence.

forming alliances with neighbouring
the

new nabob

tiie

very heart of Bengal.

at defiance, but to

By

it

was

suppo.sed, not

accepting of French assistance and

might be possible not only to

chiefs, it

assume the

and cany the war

offensive,

This danger seemed so formidable to Meer

that he immediately called Olive's attention to

it,

.set

into

Jaftiei-

and urged the expediency

of

endeavouring to make prisoners of the French before they could reach Patna.

The natural course would liave been
purpose. As yet, however, though he
by the ])opular voice, he did not feel

to

have employed his own

soldiei-s for this

professed to have been called to the throne
so secure as to be able to part

with any of

the troops on whose fidelity he could calculate, while, for very obvious reasons,
it

would have been madness

saw the dilemma

to

employ those

whom

he suspected.

mind

Clive easily

by undertaking to send a detachment of his own troops in pursuit of the French. The
detachment, consisting of 230 Europeans, 300 sepoys, fifty lascars, and two fieldThe baggage and
pieces, was placed under the command of Major Coote.
stores

in

which he was

were laden in forty

were not ready

to start

placed,

and

set his

boats, which, besides being

at ease

very imperfectly equipped

from Moorshedabad before the Gth of July.

By

this

time the French had got half-way to Patna, and were almost beyond the reach
of captm-e.

The

expedition,

howevei',

deserves

notice

courage and perseverance displayed by those employed in
Coote's
expeiUtiuii

against

tUem.

for

the remarkable

it.

The troops arrived at Rajamahal on the 10th, and the boats on the 1 1th of
Meer Cossim was expected to give all necessary assistance, but sent onl\July.
120 horsemen,

who

therefore left behind.
'

refused to proceed without

two months' pay, and were

Major Coote, thus thrown on

Letter dated 26th Jul^.

Memoirs of

his

Cliie, vol.

i.

p.

own
2<j:i.

resources, set out

MAJOR

Chap. X.]

589

COOTE'S EXi'KlJlTION.

again on the 13th, and in five days reached Bhaugulpore, a distance of sixty-five ad.
miles.

Here

five miles in
fied in

it

was ascertained that the French had passed Patna, which
~

abandoning the pursuit as hopeless

deterred

by ordinary

is fifty-

Major Coote might now have been

advance, four days before.

justi-

^'^*^
ailrniices to

but he was of a character not to be

;

1:57.

Mongiiir

and by the 21st accomplished twenty-five miles

obstacles,

more, which brought

him

Monghir

to

The detachment had
expected to find a
resting-place within

—a

place

its

fort

of

considerable

strength, situated

a

on

precipitous rock,

washed by the Ganges; butthegaiTison,

instead of admitting

them,
walls,

manned

the

lighted their

The Fort of Monohib.— From

Bacon's Oriental Portfolio.

matches, and gave

such unequivocal proofs of hostile intentions, that
circuit

and continue the march

still

Europeans became mutinous.

only remained to

make a

now

so near

Coote was

farther westward.

Patna that he was determined to reach

onward when he encountered an

it

it

obstacle

at

hazards,

all

and was

on which he had not

still

pressing-

calculated.

It required all Coote's enei'gy to

The

maintain them

uisiwidproi-eeilings

As they mui'mm*ed at their hardships and fatigues, he endeashame them into their duty by putting them into the boats, while he

in discipline.

voured to

himself continued to marc'i at the head of the sepoys.
to

Futwa

rain,

or Futtooha,

which

is

though perfectly aware of

letters

within ten miles of Patna.

his approach,

it

to the

want

of timely notice.

way he

it,

It thus

appeared that, however

he was not yet prepared to

Ramnarain's intentions miglit

them.

The boldness of Coote's march, with a mere handful of men.

200 miles through a country
him.

On

known

but two

for the escape of the French,

hostile

be,

proceeded

Hitherto Ramna-

had taken no notice of

were now received from him apologizing

and ascribing

In this

to be unfriendly,

for

avow
above

had perhap.s overawed

the 2Gth the whole of the detachment, as well as the boats, reached

Patna, and took up their station at the Company's factory, a spacious building,
situated on the
city.

bank

of the Ganijes. outside but close to the western wall of the

Ramnarain having made himself acquainted with

tiie

exact strength of

the detachment, and probably also with the mutinous spirit which part of them

had manifested, was now

less

disposed to profess friendshi]), and, on frivolous

pretexts, declined to receive the visit

which Coote had proposed to pay him

J

5U0
A.D.

17.-.7.

HISTOIiY OF INDIA.

Matters, consecjuently, assumed a very ominous appearance.

overheard talking of a design to
time,
lootes

[Book

tlie

men were

'I'wo

the detachment, and, at the

ma.ssiicre

III.

same

con(hict of the Europeans

alternative but to

became so diwjrderly that CVjte had no
biing thirty of them to a court- martial, which sentenced

lirnmess.

them

The

to be flogged.

infliction of

a rare example of firmness and decision
the detachroent,

such a punishment at
;

but

it

must

trying a time

.so

neceasarily have

and consequently added to the impending danger.

is

weakened

Coote wa«,

notwithstanding, determined to persevere in the original design of the ex{>edition,

and made preparations

The camp attendants and

to continue the pursuit.

boatmen now took alarm and deserted

many

of the

l)laces

were supplied and the detachment, after reaching Dinapore and crossing

By

great exertions their

;

the Sone at

its

bank of the

latter river,

confluence with the Gange.s, proceeded

Company had a

till

up the right

they arrived opposite to Chuprah.

factory for the collection of saltpetre, which

or .southern

In this place the
is

made

in large

was therefore deemed expedient to
cross over, but from the want of boats and other assistance, three days were
consumed in the operation. At Chuprah Coote learned that Law's party had
quantities in the surrounding districts.

It

reached Benares, and been favourably received by the rajah,

who was dependent

on Sujah Dowlah, Nabob of Oude.

To have proceeded would have been to ri.sk
collision with this formidable enemy, and it was therefore determined to wait for
further orders.
On the 1 2th of August a letter was received from Clive, ordering the return of the detachment to Patna, there to concert with

Khan, Meer

Jaftier's brother,

Mahmood Amy

a scheme for wresting the government of Behar

Not a moment was lost and the very next day the troops,
carried swiftly down the stream by the current, landed at Patna, and resumed
tlieir quarters in the factory.
Coote saw that the only chance of overthrowing
Ramnarain was to assault the citadel, then ganisoned by 2000 men, and make
him prisoner. The attempt was not only daring, but must have seemed almost
desperate; and j^et Coote would have made it, had not Mahmood counselled
Before
delay, in order to give him an opportunity of seducing the garrison.
the result was ascertained, Meer Jafiier, who had suggested the depo.sition of
from Ramnarain.

;

Ramnarain, became suspicious of the designs of
HfliBrecaUed.

his

own

in consequence, recalled,

and arrived with the detachment

the 7th of September.

The expedition thus

results,

mander displayed

di'ew all eyes

upon him

Coote was,

at Mooi-shedabad, on

failed of its object.

The indomitable

however, were important.

brother.

resolution

Its indirect

which

its

com-

as one of the destined hei'oes of

Indian warfare; and, at the same time, made a powerful imjiression on the

minds of the natives, convincing them how hopeless would be any attempt to
arrest the progress of a nation, a

mere handful of whose

wander hundreds of miles througli their country, as
without meeting an enemy bold enough to attempt

The very same day on which Coote

set out

on

if

soldiers could thus

defying attack, and yet

it.

his

remarkable expedition, an

"ciiAi-

THE NAROIW

X.|

'J'REASURES

ARRIVK

IN CALCUTTA.

The

extraordinary scene was exhibited in Calcutta.

spoils of

o[)l

Meer

Jaffier's

rupees, in coined silver,

were

received,

packed in 700

and despatched

chests,

down the nver in 100 boats. At Nuddea these were joined by all the boats of
the squadron, and many others, the whole "proceeding with banners displayed,
and music sounding, as a triumphal procession, to contrast that in which the

Dowlah returning the year

inhabitants of the Ganges had seen Surajah

Never

from the destruction of Calcutta.

prize in solid

is

for it

;

amounted

(in

mint would scarcely be

the coined silver

was not the regular

treiisun.* at

CalcutU.

the

one time, obtain such a

The

the mint) to £800,000 sterling."

intelligible

Arrival of

before

whom

Oime, from

before," says

" did the English nation, at

made,

money

refierence to the

its;

After a variety of discussions and equivocations, 7,271,0GG

treasury arrived.

whole quotation

ad.

without the explanation that

ciu"rency of the country, but collections of

which had been hoarded up in the treasury of Moor-

coins of various countries,

shedabad by successive nabobs.

The

arrival of so

much money, and

the distribution cf

it

}»artly

among

those Gmerai
(lifftision

whom

the pillage of Calcutta had ruined, naturally diffused universal joy.

Almost every femily found

itself

suddenly raised to affluence, commerce revived,

and the whole settlement gave signs of rapid and unexampled
however, were not without

benefits,

engendered, and, at a time

own

had not forgotten his

which cannot easily be
unite in deploring, as
bittered his

life,

terminated.

It

where

his

when unusual
interests,

justified,

it

A

alloy.

Clive, as

displayed.

and had shared

and which

was

spirit

we have

in the spoil to

seen,

an extent

most unqualified admirere must

his

led to

the act by which

must be admitted, however, that
in

most mercenary

gave his enemies a handle for the charges which em-

and probably

comrades

The

pro.sperity.

generosity might have been expected,

was unblushingly

the meanest selfishness

wealth

arms or colleagues

it

was prematurely

in all pecuniary arrangements

in council

were concerned, Clive's

conduct was characterized by a nice sense of honour and great disinterested
ness,

and

The

select

in

this respect often contrasts

committee, while providing for themselves a most liberal com})en-

sation in the event of Clive's success,
in the

honourably with their rapaciousness.

were not willing

to incur responsibility

event of failure; and hence, after giving their express sanction to

vious proceedings,

and taking

credit to themselves for " setting the

all

pre-

machine

in

motion," addi-essed a letter to him, which could only be interpreted as a mere

attempt to reap the profit without incurring any of the hazard.

was written before the
b.attle,

says:

and

Clive,

answering

— "I cannot help thinking that had the expedition

it

after the

miscarried, you

To another letter from the comwritten the very day when the battle was fouMit, he thus reiilies:
" I

would have
mittee,

battle of Plassey,

This letter

laid the

whole blame on me."

—

have received your letter of the 23d instant, the contents of which are so
indefinite

and contradictory that

an intent to clear yourself at

I

my

can put no other construction on

it

expense, had the expedition miscarried.

than
It

'^""^
results

of

—
692
AD.

1767.

put

me

in inind of tlie

^((cide,

te,

OK

JILSTOltV

Romanos

INJJlA.

famous answer of the

The

vincere posae.'"

;

iJc.'ljjliiu

IJook III.

Aio

oracle to Pyirlius

triumj>harit result of the expedition

saved the committee frf)m the imf^enerous course which they appear to have

contemplated; but when the division of the

of the select committee, was virtually
their

all

entitled to share in the

money

consequence of the active part which

in

and on

allotted to that body.

saw

its

by signing the
of the

certainly was;

and

a proof of the utter emptiness of

Meicenary
military,

it is

all

more than
after,

pro})able that he him.self

he received in his

much

somc of the better and more prominent

army and navy,

was

]^)erson

as to

services

in the victory,

it

to maintain that
.sailoi's,

by

it

since

between them,

made through

Clive to the

squadi'on could not a.scend

could not be denied that this present

belonged exclusively to the troops engaged.

understood, and that the

of his character, re-

ought to share

As the

troops who, under him, had gained the victory.

enough

pai-ts

it .served

which there could not be any misunderstanding,

meaning was that the two

and take part

vexation, while

Besides the nabob's so-called donation to

another and the largest present appears to have been

selfish

own

lo.ss

earthly possessions, and died of fever, after

lated to the division of prize-money.

the river

It

illness.

to bring out

the obvious

to

by

the example,

.set

to follow his example.

selfi.sh

Auotlier pccunlary di.spute, which gave Clive

the

and exeiled himself

he was compensated in reputation for the

same opinion, when, not many days

a few days'

without admitting

admiral had refased to damage his character

that, as the

fictitious treaty,

He

of money.

Clive,

reasonableness,

deducting his part, most of the others were too

was perhaps thought

ground thought himself

this

though he offered at once to

effectual; but,

it

so,

])roceedings.

the strict ju.stice of the claim,

make

discussed disputes of a

Admiral Watson, though not fonnally a member

disgraceful character arose.

he had taken in

money was

All this

was

clear,

but some were

the term "troops" only .soldiers .should be

who

actually sei'ved in the expedition,

had no

To obtain an equitable settlement of this and various other points, CHve
assembled a council of war, which was attended by officers deputed from ever}'
branch of the troops. After much discussion, and in the face even of a strong
claim.

]irotest

made by

Clive, the majority

claim of the sailors
Officers

who came with

came

to the shameful decision that the

the expedition should not be recognized.

who had committed themselves

thus far

had no

scniples in going

further, and, in order to prevent the possibility of appeal against their meditated
injustice,

proceeded to vote that the division

In vain did Clive represent that

into effect.
till it

was

shroffed,

injustice.'

They

and the agents of both

still

the council of war.

persisted,

till

"

.shoiild

the

be immediately earned

money

could not be divided

parties present, without the gi-eatest

Clive overruled their votes, and broke up

So bent, however, were they on can-ying their

ihey sent him what they called a "remon.strance and protest."
its

contents

may

point, that

The nature

of

be learned from Clive's admirable answer, the principal part

MERC'ENAKY SPIRIT OF THE MiLiTAUY.

CiiAiv X.]

was

of which

as follows:

— "Gentlemen, —

Had you

trance and protest.

commanding

You

say

3'-ou

a

sum

money from

of

the nabob, entirely negotiated

So very

!

money

return to the nabob the

;

In

Had

I

rosit}^

to receive

owing

entirely

is

not interfered gi'eatly in

find

it,

you had been

the greatest disrespect and ingratitude
in the face of

my

;

it

and,

left to

sufficiently

which

what

your

interest.

the Company's gene-

rewarded in

receiv-

have been treated with

I

is still

worse, you have flown

authority for overruling an opinion, which,

own

to his option

remind you, that

to

to the care I took of

in return for

;

me

pains

it

who, perhaps, would have thought you

ing a pi'esent of six months' pay

it

in the plains of Plassey, after

it

gentlemen,

short,

in re-

preBsiug

You have stormed no town and

not.

you

neither did

the defeat of the nabob.

it,

a promise of

by me, can be deemed a
it is now in my power to

already advanced, and leave

whether he will perform his promise or
found the money there

from

far

tliat

it

cuve's fimiiies-s

.

.

how comes

Pray, gentlemen,

matter of light and property

what you are

as officers, could never have

were assembled at a council to give your opinion

about a matter of property.

a.d. 1757.

own reason, those
am persuaded such

officer, 1

own honour

highly injurious to your

esca])ed you.

have received both j'our remons-

I

consulted the dictates of your

of justice, or the respect due to your
a paper, so

59.3

if pa,ssed,

would

,

and been of the worst conThis answer, and
sequences to the cause of the nation and the Company."
the decisive step of ])lacing the officers who brought the paper in arrest, and
have been highly injurious to your

sending a captain,

who had

reputation,

to Calcutta, opened the

Either brought back to a sense of duty, or alarmed

eyes of the remonstrants.

much they were

at finding that in selfishly grasping at too
all,

down

acted as ringleader,

risking the loss of

they made their submission and were forgiven.
This dispute, and various others, which, though of a

less glaring,

were of a

very disagreeable nature, leave no room to doubt that the sudden influx of
11
wealth,

I'll
obtained by

1

nearly emptying the

mercenary and rapacious

On

•

1

sjiirit

among

-11'

nabobs

iiT/i'i
had dinused

treasury,

all classes, civil

a

and military, in Calcutta.

much money

allowing so

much

to

be exacted by others,

they had done enough to deserve
feeling,

that,

directors,

it.

who

could not like

It was, perhaps,

in his very long letter to the secret

and

for himself,

him plead that

owing

some such

to

committee of the court of

dated a month after he entered Moorshedabad, while giving very

full details as to

the

money which Meer

the insufficiency of the treasury to pay

had bound himself

Jaffier
it,

to pay,

and

he makes no allusion to the private

treaty in which the select committee, in stipulating for a donative to the

army

and navy, had inserted an exorbitant donation to themselves, nor to the
enormous sums which, without being
of presents.

ttional.

The omission could

it is difficult

to account for

stii>ulated,

scarcely be a
it

had been received

mere

ovei-sight:

in the

name

was

inten-

if it

on anv other supposition than that

it

on

iiis

accession.

seeing this result Clive must have had some misgivings as to the propriety

of the course he had pursued, in accepting so

Sumsi«i.ii..v

was

HlSTOilY OF INDIA.

o94i

A.D.

1757.

a delicate subject, which
it

to justify.
stij^ulation

navy, but exclusive of that to the Comjtany, amounted
the rate of exchange which

member

the time

The whole sum
Uj the army and

—taking

the rupee at

Of

to £1,238,575.

this Clive

of the select committee and commander-

and in the form of an unstipulated gratuitous donation, £234,000.

in-chief,

Company.

bcjre at

it

received in his capacities as

Advantages
gained by

IJI.

wfjuld be imprxident to mention incidentally, and

it

was then judged premature U> attempt
paid by Meer Jaffier to individuals, including the
which

[booK

It is not easy to overrate the

advantages which

tlie

revolution in Beiigal

secured to the Company.

The money mast have been

them

All the land within the Mahratta Ditch, and for a

for all their losses.

circuit of

600 yards without

have been, from

it,

granted them in absolute property, must

of great

its position,

sufficient to compen.saUj

and increasing

value,

and the zeminflary,

very vaguely described as including the countiy lying south of Calcutta, be-

tween the lake and the

as far as Culpee, must,

river,

notwithstanding the

reservation of the customary payments, have added largely to their revenue, and
still

more largely

secured
river,

by the

of navigation was, moreover,

stipulation that no forts should be erected on the

from Hooghly downwards

exactions and annoyances
passports

The freedom

to their power.

;

banks of the

while the internal tiade was set free from

by the

would no longer be Hable

certainty that the

Company's dustuks

to question, at least

on frivolous

all

or

ground.s.

Instead of existing merely on tolerance as traders, the victory of Plassey had

made them a
another

won

for

;

great political power.

They had unmade one nabob and made

and imless they were voluntarily

to recede

from the high position thus

them, the three great provinces of Bengal, Behar, and Orissa must

henceforth acknowledge

them

as,

to all intents, their lords paramount.

proceeding to trace the further progress of this gi'eat revolution,
necessary to return to the Carnatic, which

was likewise about

to

Before

it

will be

become the

theatre of important events.

CHAPTER

XI.

— Desultory warfare— Arrival of a French squadron —Lally, com— Naval action — Siege and capture of Fort David — Siege
Tanjore — Siege of Madras — French reverses — Forde
the Northern Circars — Battle of Wandiwash
—Siege and capture of Pondicherry—Destruction of French interests the Deccan.

Position of affairs in the Carnatic

mander-in-chief of French forces

St.

o!

in

in

HE

presidency of Madi-as,

when they

fitted out the expedition

to Bengal, anticipated its return before the

impending rupture

between Great Britain and France should be actually
or at least in time to enable

them

to

ward

off the

declared,

dangers with

which they would in consequence be threatened.

In

this

Affairs in the

Carnatic.

expectation,

owing

to the course of events in Bengal, they

were disappointed.

J

I

AFFAIRS IN TRt. CARNATIC.

Chap. XI.
Clive,

convinced that he could not serve the

595

Company

interests of the

so a

u. 1757.

by overthrowing Surajah Dowlah, retained all the troops which
lie had taken with him, and ventured, on his own responsibility, to disregard
Thus weakened by the absence of a
the orders repeatedly sent him to retui'n.
large part of their forces, the presidency of Madras remained on the defensive.
effectually as

The French,

in the meantime,

were not disposed to avail themselves of any

They expected the arrival of a powerful
imprudent, while they had the prospect of striking

superiority which they possessed.

armament, and deemed
a final blow at

all

it

the British settlements in India, to risk

A

in partial operations.

almost seemed as

it

if

...

.

the declaration of hostilities between

-Veiitraiitv

between the
companies,

governments had only made them desirous of remaining at

their respective

being only a temporizing expedient, the

This neutrality, however,

peace.

by engaging

loss,

kind of neutrality had hence been established between
,

the companies, and

any

result not of choice

but of accidental circumstances, was necessarily of short

was soon found that neither party could safely remain on the
defensive.
The Nabob of Arcot, though now nominally in possession of almost
the whole territory which he claimed under that title, was unable to derive any
regular revenue from it and his British allies, who had obtained large tracts of
duration.

It

;

land in assignment of the debts which they had incuiTcd in his behalf, were

unable to
in the

make them

effectual for

payment.

of the nabob's brothers, one

north and another in the south, were in open revolt; and numerous

tributaries, influenced

by

their example, plainly intimated their determination

The

not to pay unless under compulsion.
thus

Two

made

officer at

apparent,

the presidency

necessity of an immediate effort being

ordered Captain

Trichinopoly, to proceed southward with

effect the

subjugation and settlement of

detachment northward to NeUore.

Calliaud,

all his

Madura and

commanding

disposable troops, to

Tinnevelly, and sent a

Neither expedition proved successful.

In

an attempt to storm NeUore a serious repulse was received; and the siege
of

Madura was suddenly abandoned,

in order to

Trichinopoly, against which the French,
state in

lected

which

it

had been

left,

had

provide for the safety of

when made aware

secretly sent

of the defenceless

an overpowering

force, col-

on the spur of the moment by emptying Pondicherry and other places

The measure was dexterously planned, but very

of their ganisons.

ferently executed,
his

way

to

it

and Trichinopoly was saved by

into the city after the

impossible,

enemy supposed

Calliaud, who,

carried on

by both

tliemselves

and

sides,

infinite

its

immediate objects had

as if in

by making

that they had rendered access

performed the only memorable achievement in

tory warfare, which, after

indif-

failed,

desul-

this

continued to be

mere wantonness, with no advantage to

misery to the inhabitants.

The

result was,

on the

whole, unfavourable to the presidency, who, while their sources of revenue

were dried up by the devastation of the country w^iich ought

to

have

furnished them, were constrained to purchase the departure of the Mahrattas,

Deauit..ry

3

A.D,

I7r,8.

msTOlCY OF

lit)

who

made an

liad

IN 1)1 A.

incursion into the Caraatic,

LBooK in

and demanded a large sum aa

tlie

arrears of chout.

On

2Hh

the

of February,

who had

Admiral Pococke,

1758,

Bucceeded

Admiral Watson, arrived at Madras, with the ships of war from Bengal
Admiral Stevens, exactly a month
Arrival of a

;

and

with four ships of the line from Bom-

after,

This formidable squadron sailed on the 17th of April to the southward,

bay.

Kreiich force

under Lilly
ii»

wneral.

had raised were suddenly damped on the 28th, when a
of twelve sail, evidently French, was descried making for the road of

but the hopes which

guvcnior-

s(i[uadron

Fort

David.

St.

It

it

was commanded by Count d'Ache, and had on board Count
an

Lally,

officer

of

descent, who,

Iri.sh

having ac-

quired distinction in European campaigns, had been
sent out with the most extensive powers as governor-

French settlements in India.

general

of all

He was

accompanied by the regiment of

the

which mustered 1080
royal artillery, and

strong,

liLs

name,

a small nimiber of

many officers of distinction

This

armament, which had long been expected, had been

by the French government, with a strong

sent out

unhesitating conviction that, with the other troops
Thomas Arthur, Comte de Lally.
From a French

already collected at Pondicheny,

it

wa.s destined

print.

to achieve a series of triumphs.

conviction stronger than in Lally himself,

who was

In none was this

commence

so impatient to

operations, that leaving the rest of his ships to anchor in the vicinity of the Fort, he

hastened off to Pondicherry to proclaim his commission, and tu'ge the immediate
departure of the troops there, with
the siege.

all

This precipitancy displayed far more energy than wisdom, and raised

up a host of obstacles which might
Preparations

the necessary requisites for carrj-ing on

more calmness and

easily

He had

deliberation.

have been avoided by acting with

no doubt a right to expect that the

for the siege

of Fort St.

most essential preparations had been already made, and that at

David.

difficulty

fore

was

would be found in procuring the means of
his surprise

be provided.
lution

events no

Great there-

transport.

and indignation on learning that everything remained

In these circumstances prudence coimselled delay

had been formed, and

difficulties,

furnish an opportunity of acquiring

new

so far

were on the march from Pondicherry

command of Count dEstaing.

It

from changing

;

but his
it,

to

reso-

would only

by surmoimting them. On
of them Europeans and half

distinction

the very evening of his arrival 2000 men, half
sepoys,

all

for

Fort

St.

David, under the

had not even been deemed necessary to obtain

exact knowledge of the roads or furnish provisions.

The consequence was,

that

they went astray, and, after a niglit of hardship and fatigue, arrived in the

The following day, when other
troops were despatched, and with them artillery, stores, and baggage, blunders
still more serious were committed.
Without paying the least regard to the

morning in a

state bordering

on

staivation.

CAPTURE OF

Chap. XI. j
feelings

and prejudices of the

Ji^V

natives, Lally Issued a general order, compelling

without distinction of rank or

all,

FOirr ST. DAVID.

caste, to

a.d. irss.

supply the want of bullocks and

by becoming themselves drawers and carriers. When
the governor and council, aware of the general ferment

other beasts of burden,
this order

was

which

would produce, endeavoured to prevent the execution, but Lally,
their fears, and even impugning their motives, persisted in his own

it

lidiciding
reckless

issued,

He was

coiu".se.

who took

population,

consequently regarded with abhorrence by the native

by deserting on every opportunity, and

their revenge

rendering no service which they could possibly avoid.

own

Lally was thus blundering and raising up obstacles to his

VVliile

the fate of his whole

armament was hanging

success,

indecisive

The

gagemeut

a trembling balance.

in

British squadron, after reaching the north extremity of Ceylon, steered again

of India,

for the coast

and arrived

Negapatam on the very day when the

oif

French squacbon was entering the road of Fort
course northward along the shore,

it

no

Admiral Pococke threw out the signal

thrown out

the challenge thus
the 29th,

was

to

him

came

.sooner

Continuing

Da\ad.

enemy than

in .sight of the

and when come up with, about noon of
His .squadron, diminished

waiting, with his ships in line of battle.

by a ship and a frigate which had gone with Lally to Pondicherry,

amoimted

to nine

sail.

engagement proved
French sheered

off,

The

British squadron consisted of only seven

After

indecisive.

apparently not for

had

it

la.sted

an hour and a half

The

increased, one of their ships, the

The

of nuitual consent.

Bien Aime, of

six days after the action before

it

having run

total wreck.

Count d'Ach(^ reached Pondicherry.

The troops he had with him were immediately landed and marched

As the

David.

sent

by

sea,

difHculty of land ti-ansport

and improvident proceedings, the

Lally's rash

for the siege, operations

artillery

The garrison

effective,

when
and

It

2.50

topasses.

its

Such a

first

made

its

by the

whom

280 were

which had been run ashore

appearance, and of

1

GOO

-sepoy-s, lascars,

force placed within a fortification which,

so complete that

only serious defect, should have been able to
so.

of May,

and were continued with con-

frigates

and improvements, had been rendered

was not

Everything being

consisted of 619 Europeans, of

seamen taken from two

the French squadron

additions

was

and

Fort

and ammunition were

commenced on the 14th

erection of a battery in the vicinity of Cuddalore,

siderable vigour.

off to

had been greatly increased by

and put ashore near the mouth of the Penaar.

now provided

loss of the

was considei'ably

fifty- eight gims,

and become a

ashore, in consequence of cutting her cable,

St.

tlie

very much damaged

British,

French during the action was the more severe, and afterwards

was

The

sail.

were unable and perhaps had no great inclination to follow.

The combatants thus parted by a kind

It

still

but to reassemble their ships, which

flight,

had become scattered, and resume the action.
in their rigging,

its

Count d'Ach^ did not decline

for chase.
;

St.

make a

by means of

want of space

protracted defence.

Instead of acting on a kind of regular plan, the

commander

of

siege

and

tortst.
David.

;

5i)H

A.I)

17r,8

JJISTOllY

expresses

it,

"to lavish away their

saw, h(!ard, or suspected."
inflicted, for

St.

Fort

[FJOOK III.

the fort seems to have contented himself with allowing

Orme

.Siego <if

OF INDIA.

"twenty of the

Uavid.

little

By

interruption.

within 200 yards of the
thirteen mortars kept

The

they sustained more injury than they

glacis,

disabled and the

proceed

to

and from twenty-one pieces of cannon and

up an incessant

with a constantly increasing supen-

fire,

who were now beginning

no good purpose could be gained by

Of

not speedily relieved.
his

own guns were

were thus permitted

besiegers

the ammunition of which they had been so

Pococke with

Mr

as

the 3()th they had advanced their trenches io

ority over that of the defenders,

fall if

ganwm,

night and day on everything they

carriages of their

works themselves shaken."
with

way

In this

fire

tlie

squadron was

want of
the commencement, when

lavi.sh at

to feel the

was now evident that the
there was still some hope.

It

it.

this

known

to be

must

place

Admli-al

on the coast; and as he had
already gained some advantage

Itardcn

Iw

it

was natur-

ally expected that he

would not

over his opponent,

allow Fort

David

St.

without a strenuous
save

He

it.

effort

to

make

did indeed

northward

Sadrass,

fall

and after ha\-ing been

this effort;

driven

to

as

had worked

back, but with so

as

far

way

his

much

diffi-

culty, that

he only gained four

leagues in

two

On

days.

28th he descried the French

the
fleet

lying in the road to Pondicherry

but Count

d' Ache's

courage had

cooled after his pre%'ious encoun-

rORT S^DAYID

ter,

and instead of accepting the

1756

challenge to fight, he resolved,

of Yards

with the sanction of

and the governor and

council, to

keep his ships moored near the shore under the protection of the

batteries.

Lally, hearing of this resolution

and ashamed of

it,

hastened firom the

bringing with him a detachment of 400 Europeans and as
Count
d'Achc
declines the

lie

tendered to Count d'Ache to serve on board the

consequence of the great number of sick

cliallenge of
tlie Britisli
fleet.

his captains

Ijeen the only excuse for not risking

now removed by
doned.

Lallj'^'s

offer,

fleet.

who were on

many

sepoys,

siege,

whom

The want of men,

in

shore in the hospital, had

an engagement, and as

this obstacle

was

the previous pusillanimous resolution was aban-

Count d'Ach^, however, though thus compelled

to quit the protection

of the shore, had no intention to eng^age if he could possibly avoid

it

;

and

IK

SURRENDER OF FORT

XL]

Chap.

therefore,

while

being

taking advantage of the wind,

Admind Pococke had
One
able to pursue.

ST.

DAVID.

saw Count

d' Ache's

lation, in sucli

to

a

d. i75«.

was obliged

to give

and the whole squadron,

way and return northward

the garrison, after being buoyed with the hope of

squadron enter the road, they at once abandoned
flag of truce.

relief,

all

idea of

The

capitu-

terms as the victors chose to dictate, was soon arranged, and the

French took possession of the

was

David,

of his ships, the Cumberland, sailed so badly that

and on the 2d of June hung out a

further resistance,

St.

him depart without

the mortification of only seeing

losing instead of gaining ground,

When

Fort

steereji directly for

she operated as a continual drag upon the others;

to Alumj)arva.

oi)i)

place.

The

made

use they

first

of their conquest

Their strength was far greater

raze the fortifications to the ground.

than they had imagined, and they had good reason to congi'atulate themselves

on their good fortune in having met with defenders so unskilful and pusillanimous, that

all

their lavish firing killed oidy

The

twenty men.

of Fort St.

fall

David was immediately followed by that of Devicotta, which was abandoned
by

its

garrison the

Lally,
elated
•^'

moment

the

enemy were

above measure with these

celebrate a Te Deura,
ject there should

and

fix

seen approaching

successes, set off for
'

upon the scene of

have been no room

it.

his

for doubt.

Pondicherry to

next conquest.

He had

"^

On

this sub-

Exultation
of Lally
hi*

.it

succem

spared no means to

increase his force, having for that purpose bared all the forts of their garrisons,
recalled the

detachment which had so long kept Trichinopoly in a state of siege

by occupying the

island of Seringham,

and in

spite of remonstrance voluntarily

by peremptorily withdrawing him and all his troops from the Deccan, at the very time when French
ascendency tliere, after being well nigh overthrown, had again been triumphrelinquished

all

the advantages which Bussy had gained,

antly established.

Nothing could justify Lally

in the adoption of such measures

but the determination to strike one great and decisive blow at British interests
in the Carnatic,

and hence the universal

be to capture Madras.

belief

was that

That presidency was, of

busily engaged in preparing against a siege

cheering intelligence arrived that Lally and his

in great alarm,

course,

deemed

next attempt would

his

and

but certain, when the

all

army had

set out in

an opposite

direction.

After celebrating his triumph in Pondicherry, Lallv turned his attention to
the state of the finances, and learned that the treasury
fact

was almost empty.

The

not only disappointed him, but aroused his indignation, for he strongly sus-

pected that the greater part of the

officials

were engaged

in systematic embezzle-

To a man of his
and he was unsparing

ment, enriching themselves by plundering their employei's.

warm temperament

suspicion

in his sarcasms against the

much time was wasted

to proof;

governor and council.

in unprofitable bickering.

only became more pressing.

I

was equivalent

An

open quan-el ensued, and

Meanwhile the want of money

The troops were clamoiu-ing

for their arrears of

his pecum
ties,

and

to relieve

them.

HISTOliV OK JNIJIA.

W)l)

A.D. 1758.

ance be undertaken with an exhausted treasury?
dient which

In 1751

it

tlie

raising

money.

thouglit might

King of

})re.sent relief
'schfue for

was

Tanjore,

meet the

when attacked hy Cliunda

by granting him a bond

available?

Tiie

liooK HI.

In this perjjlexity an

necessities of tlje ease

Why

was suggested

Tliis

bond was

in

make

it

not attempt to

same kind of pressure
which had extorted
^

exj>e-

had pinx-hased

Saliil*,

for 5,G()(),()0() rupees.

of the government of Pondicherry.

P'^'^session

I

from the kin^,
"^

it

^

might be successfully employed

Not only were

peculiarly favoural)le.

payment.

to extort

upon

effectually

whom

the British, to

could look for assistance, unable to furnish
prisoner had been found

Tlie circum.stances

it,

but in the

alone the king

David a

fort of St.

whose presence with the araiy might be made to work
This prisoner was Gatica, the imcle of a claimant to

his fears.

the Tanjore throne, whose pretensions the Madras presidency, tempted

and other advantages, rashly undertook

offer of Devicotta,

The proceedings, which were
detailed

finding

;

it

and

it is

were

by the

to support in 1749

disgraceful to the presidency, have already been

therefore sufficient here to mention, as the result, that on

impossible to succeed

by

force,

they suddenly changed

sides,

and made

a sordid bargain, by which, in return for the cession of De^ncotta

by

the

reigning sovereign, they not only ceased to be the protectors, but engaged to

become the

A timely warning

jailers of the claimant.

enabled him to escape

;

but his uncle,

who managed

what was intended
him, and was tlie more

for

of

This was the hapless

formidable rival of the two, was imprisoned in his stead.
individual

who was now

to be a tool in the hands of the French to extort

money, in the same manner as his nephew had been used by the British to
extort the cession of a

A

tally's

fort.

roving expedition to Tanjore was thus, under the influence of pecuniary

expedition
against
fiLU i o rG

'.
_

_

embarrassiuent, preferred to the siege of Madi'as; and Lally, lea^dng 600

own

men

of his

camp of observation between Alumparva and Pondicheriy, commenced his march southward with the remainder of
the army. The improvidence manifest jd on his former expedition was repeated,
regiment, with 200 sepoys, to form a

as if the lesson of a dear-bought experience
troops,

had been

lost

upon

liim

;

and the

not only unprovided with the means of transport, but destitute even

of necessary

food,

were subjected to every species of privation, in passing

through a country of singular

Before reaching Carrical, to which, as

difficulty.

the place of rendezvous, the heavy artillery and cumbrous stores had been sent

by

sea,

they had crossed no fewer than sixteen

only after wading through extensive

flats

of

them accessible
They were thus

rivers, several of

mud and

sand.

employed during seven days, and in the whole seven had not once received
a regular meal.
his country,

among

his

had

own

other quarters.

Tiie
little

King

now

that the

enemy had amved

in

army which he had collected, not only
but by means of reinforcements drawn from various

confidence in the

subjects,

The

of Tanjore,

British,

who

should have been his principal resource,

rather tantalized than assisted him,

by sending him

a

detachment of 500

Chap. XT.
sepoys,

EXPEDITION AGAINST TANJORE.

1

with ten European artillerymen, and 300

drawn from the neighbouring polygars.

enemy

unable to cope with his

But

open

in the

or native peons,

Colleries,

King

the

if

field,

601

of Tanjore

have the

effect of

the city of Tanjore,

its issue,

would

Lally was within six miles of

procuring a respite.

when he

was

he was at least his equal in

diplomacy, and opened a negotiation, which, whatever might be
at least

a.d. itss.

received a message from the king, proposing that

a conference should be held with a

view

to arrange the

terms of accommo-

Delusive
negotiation.

dation.

Nothing was more anxiously desired by the French commander, who

probably had begun to

feel that

of very doubtful policy,

other enterprises

the enterprise in which he

inasmuch as

it

was only delaying the execution

of far more importance.

moment might be

was engaged was
of

In order, therefore, that not a

he halted his army, and sent forward two deputies, a

lost,

demand was payment of the principal and interest of tlie bond granted to Chunda Sahib. The
king made an offer so paltry that it might at once have been rejected. The
deputies, however, deemed it necessary to report ^it to Lally, who sent them
hack with a demand strangely modified. Instead of the whole sum due under

captain and a Jesuit, with full powers to treat.

the bond, he

and 10,000

Their

first

would accept 1,000,000 rupees in money, 600 draught

lbs.

weight of gimpowder.

As

the latter part of the

bullocks,

demand would

have acquainted the king with the fact that in the hurry of the expedition, this
essential

element of warfare had been very inadequately provided, the deputies,

The king
refused the bullocks, on the plausible pretext that his religion did not allow him
to supply them
but seemed willing to increase the amount of his money offer.
Ijally, when made aware that the gunpowder had not been mentioned, disapproved of the prudential considerations which had influenced the deputies, and
sent them back, not only to mention it, but to insist upon it as an indispensable
part of the airangement.
Tiie result was as had been anticipated.
Monacjee,
who was still the king's general, scouted the proposal as an insult, and tlie negomore prudent than

their principal,

had the good sense to suppress

it.

il

;

tiation terminated abruptly.

Lally,

now anxious

to recover the time he

had

lost,

immediately moved his

Re8"mi>tiou
of hostilities

camp, and took possession without opposition of the pettah or suburbs, on the
east side of the city wall.

attempting a

Only a few

siege.

and those shipped

for Carrical

cannon were brought
liis

As

yet,

pieces of ordnance

had not

forw^ard, the

sincere desire for peace,

however, he was totally miprepared for

arrived.

had accompanied the army,

At

when some heavy

last,

king became once more alarmed, and to prove

made a payment

of 50,000 rupees to account, on

receiving the Jesuit and a lieutenant-colonel as hostages for

advance in the event of

hostilities

being renewed.

On

repayment of

this

this footinjj negotiations

were renewed, and seemed approaching to a successful

result,

when

Lally,

thinking he had obtained proof of the king's insincerity, sent Dubois, the commissary of his army, to reproach him witli his insincerity.
Vol I.

At

the .same time
76

602
A.D. 1758

lilSTOIlY

OF

INJ^IA.

[Bo<>K

li

summoned a council of war, and having obtained from it a confirmation of
his own opinion, that no reliance couM l^e placed on professions of peace, and that
he

the siege ought fortiiwith to be commenced, and prosecuted with the utmost

town and

vigour, wrote a letter denouncing vengeance on both

even threatening to caiTy

his detei'mi nation to defend himself to the last extremity.

Calliaud, who, though repeatedly applied to for assistance,
as negotiations with the

and

king and his whole family an slaves to the

This threat fixed the wavering resolution of the king,

Mauritius.

nounced

off the

c^juntrj',

now

French were pending,

who

an-

Captain

had hesitated so long

sent from Trichinojjoly a

reinforcement consisting of 500 of his best sepoys, with two excellent sergeants,

and seventeen cannoneers.
Siege of

After determining on the siege, Lally pushed on the necessary operations with

Tiiujore.

great activity

and two breaching

;

batteries,

one of three and the other of two

The

guns, were opened, on the 2d of August, within 400 yards of the south wall.

what had been expected.

effect fell far short of

Five days' firing produced a

breach of only six feet wide, and yet exhausted so

much

of the imperfect supply

of ammunition, that only 150 charges for the cannon were
troops

was

man.

Nor was

troops,

were excellent

still

more
this

The supply of the

amounting to no more than twenty cartridges a

deficient,

The Tanjorines, though

all.

left.

skinnishei-s,

and had

verj^ ineffective as regidar

much

so

increased the difficulty of

obtaining provisions, that not more than two days' consumption remained.

Rumours,
began to

too, of

a naval engagement, in which Count d'Ach^ had been worsted,

and the whole prospect looked

prevail,

a council of war, and submitted to them, as the

with or raise the

Of

siege.

advocated the bolder course
Its failure.

it.

;

it,

the

French camp.

after the retreat

commenced,

fiture,

was not

and

serious

rest,

and

;

He was
to follow
Lally,

and

his

operations,

Admiral Pococke,
to prevent its

Monacjee, on being

forces,

made

and well nigh succeeded

repulsed with difficulty, and continued,

with clouds of cavalry.

The damage

cannon and

lieav}-

his discom-

baggage, had reason

army on an almost miraculous

escape

when they

Their anxiety, however, was not at

which met them was the English squadi'on riding

anchor in the mouth of the
Ineffectual

secret.

though burning with shame at

at length succeeded in reaching Carrical.
for the first sight

two

with LaU}- at their head, decided against

at the loss of all his battering

to congratulate himself

an end,

onl}- alternative, to assault forth-

immediately collected aU his

in surprising the

inflicted

gloomy that Lally summoned

the twelve officers fomiing the council only

This decision could not long remain a

acquainted with

so

after

at

river.

endeavouring in vain to reach Fort

premature surrender, retraced his

steps,

St.

David in time

and anchored in the Road

Here eight weeks were spent in making repairs and in obtaining
necessary supplies, and the 25th of July arrived before the squadron was again
of Madras.

ready to put to

on the 27th,

Having sailed on that day it came
and beheld Count d'Achd's squadron at
sea.

in sight of Pondicheirv
anchor.

Before night

I

'

NAVAL ENGAGEMENT.

Chap. XI.l

both squadrons were out

another

at

sea,

and seemed equally determined

make ad

to

The weather, however, proved

strength and prowess.

trial of their

603
irss.

so

unfavourable that they were tossed about, occasionally losing sight of each

and were not able to meet, front

other,

2d of August.

The

was fought not

battle

discomfiture of the French,

tained serious damage.

to front,

who drew

far

and form

from

their lines,

till

and ended

Carrical,

saved them from pursuit.

Tlieir usual tactics

in the

had

off after several of their ships

the

sus-

Wiiile

the British aimed chiefly at the hulls of the vessels, they aimed chiefly at the

masts and rigging, and thus crippled their opponents so effectually that thougli

Admiral Pococke threw out the signal
In

fruitless.

less

a general chase

for

proved utterly

it

than ten minutes Count d'Ach^ and his ships were nearly
This distance was rapidly increased, and within four liours

out of cannon-shot.

hindmost French was

after the action ceased the

five miles in

advance of the
I!

As it was hopeless to continue such a chase Admiral
Pococke returned, and was anchored, as has been stated, in the mouth of the
river, about three miles oflf Carrical, when Lally amved from his ill-fated
foremost British ship.

attempt on Tanjore.

Count d'Ach^, now

satisfied of the inability
of his
"^

squadron to encounter

/

COIKl.l.t

Road of Pondicherry, as close to the
shore as the depth of water would allow.
He was haunted with the idea that
Admiral Pococke was remaining to windward solely with the view of seizing the
Having this conviction, he felt
first available opportunity to attack him.
that of the British, again anchored in the

insecure even under the protection of the batteries of Pondicherry,

dismay of

make

its

inhabitants announced his determination to

way

the best of his

to the Mauritius.

i>.i«t.iriiiv

Lally, startled

cpiit

by

and

tin-

l.f

Kmith

to the

the coast, and

this intelligence,

;

j

hastened to Pondicherry, and backed by the authority of a mixed council which
he had
])artly

summoned to discuss the matter, endeavoured, partly In' persuasion and
by menace, to induce Count d"Ach^ either to encounter the Englisli

squadron once more, or at least to defer his departure so long as

on the

coast.

He

captains, declared

with

much

set sail

'

all his

admiral, sui)ported

continued

by

i

all his

impossible either to fight or remain, and after consenting,

it

reluctance, to leave

with

The French

did not succeed.

it

ships

500 of his

and turned

his

sailors

to serve

on

shore,

back on India.

under his recent

Lally, while smarting

and marines

failure at Tanjore,

was not disposed

'•«">
re«si)lvts

_

_

to

allow the whole, or even the larger portion of the blame to rest on his

shoulders,
their

and found

httle difliculty in satisfying himself that if all

duty as well as he did

thus attempting his

own

own officei-s
up a new host

Charges of misconduct were
tification to

know

tiiat

mi

the siege

had done

the result would have been veiy different.

1

u

made rash and intemperate charges
and the leading members of the government. He
of enemies who fought him with his own weapon.

vindication, he

both against his
thus stirred

his,

own

fi'eely

bandied to and fro; and Lally had the mor-

throughout the settlement, and

in its highest ofiiiial

:

I'

lllSTOUY

(JO-t

A.D. 1758

circles,

more
was

he was denounced as

(jr

inconiijcttiit, and, wliat

insulting, stigmatized as a coward.

to

wipe

INL>1A.

he must have

Tiie true

Tanjore by some

off the disgrace of

[Book

way

to

Ijrilliant

III.

felt to l^e still

answer

his accusers

achievement, and his

thoughts turned at once to Madras, the capture of which would at once recover
all

the fame which he ha<l

He was

could render to his country.
]>rise

was by no means

and he the most important

lost,

service

perfectly aware, however, that the enter-

During the time which he had

hopeful.

which he

lost in

Tanjore

the British presidency had been busily employed in improving their meaiLs of

defence and the departure of Count d'Achd leaving Admiral Pococke in complete
;

possession of the sea, not only
supplies,

made

it

easy for liim to pour in

but would expose the besiegers to

by the sudden landing of troops
before, the treasury was exhausted

tlie

all

necessary

danger of attacks and

suq^rises,

at their most vulnerable points.
;

and

it

was again

Then, as

necessary, at the expense

of considerable delay, to engage in subordinate operations merely for the pur-

pose of endeavouring to replenish
derations that Lally speaks in his

So discouraging were

it.

own Afemoire

and expected

possibility of a successful siege,

to

all

these consi-

as if he never contemplated the

do nothing more than bombard

the place, pillage the Black Town, and devastate the surrounding countiy.
Subordinate

Bcforc Setting out for Madras Lally had judged

operations.

,.,.

.

.

.^..
it

expedient, for reasons

already mentioned, to engage in several military operations of minor importance.
Saubinet, an officer

whom

he had despatched with a detachment to the west,

captured Trinomalee on the 10th of September, and Carangoly a few days

The Chevalier de

with another detachment, had recovered Trivatore.

Crillon,

made a

Lally himself, in the meantime,

tour of inspection, visiting Alumparva,

Gingee, and Chittapet, on the

way

the place of rendezvous for

the separate detachments.

by Bussy, who,
but with a

He had

full

all

to

Wandiwash, which he had appointed

in obedience to the peremptory orders

Here he was joined

which he had received,

brought his troops with him as far as Nellore, and then hastened

for-

attendants, in the hopes that from his representations he

might be permitted to return before the

dulity,

as

conviction of the pernicious consequences, had quitted the Deccan.

ward with a few
realized.

after.

evils

which he foresaw were actually

and

Lally, however, received his statements with indifference

and attached Bussy permanently to

seen that the French thus lost

all

his

own

ai-my.

incre-

It will shoiily be

the ascendency which they had established at

the court of the Deccan, and exposed themselves to an attack which ultimately

deprived them of the large and valuable temtory which had been pennanently
ceded to them in the Northern Ci rears.

While at Wandiwash, Lally sent Count
It proved unnecessary

d'Estaing with a detachment against Arcot.
Sahib, the late

Chunda

invested with the

title

Sahib's eldest son,

of nabob,

Lally,

whom

elated, considered the surrender of Ai'cot so

for

Rajah

the French had recentl}'

had already succeeded by bribeiy

the governor of his so-called capital.

now

whom

;

in corrupting

even the semblance of success

important an event that he set

'

PREPARATIONS FOR THE SIEGE OF MADRAS.

XL]

Chap.

out to receive

the discharge of
it

After making his entry in a triumphal form, under

in person.

it

all

605

by causing

the cannon, he endeavoured to magnify the event

to be proclaimed, with

much

and

ostentation, in Pondicherry

all

the other

ffratifyinfj his vanity
French garrisons.
While thus o
J he overlooked a captui'e
1
J
a
^
which would have been of much more consequence. The fort of Chingieput,

situated thirty-six miles south-west of Madras,

was justly regarded

The

possession of

it

had neglected

might
it

by

Strange to say, both French and

the latter fm'nishing

have been overpowered

easily

escalade,

awoke

Lally

it,

by open

it

force,

Briti.sli

who might have carried
secure it.
At length, when

to

to a sense of its importance, he found that the presidency

had

The

cap-

however,

whole

to

wliile the foimer,

;

anticipated him, and added greatly to the strength of the garrison.
ture,

still

seeming

po.ssible,

he resolved to march against

it

I!

with his

and made application to the government of Pondicherry to

him with the funds necessary

i»it.

only with a handful of troops, which

made no attempt

day,

ofChingle

and other

would therefore have contributed greatly

the success of the meditated siege.

inMiortancc

key

as the

of the country on which that city depended for supplies of provisions
necessaries.

a.d. i768.

fui-nish

The old answer was returned.

to put it in motion.

The treasury was empty, and all the money which could be immediately sent
amounted only to 10,000 rupees (£1000). The roving expeditions in the Carhad not paid

natic

their

own

expenses, the

and Lally saw no alternative but

to

power of borrowing was exhausted,

abandon

his design, place his troops in can-

tonments, and return to Pondicherry, where, as usual, he vented his indignation
in sarcasms against its officials.

The

Madras being now regarded as a

siege of

ceitainty, the presidency con-

Pieparations
for tlie siege

tinned to increase their means of defence.
all

They

the Europeans in garrison at Trichinopoly

was anchored

monsoon

in the road, foimd it necessary

on the approach of the northern

Bombay, obtained from him 100 men, forming the marines of
They had previously received a reinforcement by the Company's

ship Pitt, of fifty guns, which

two ships of the

line,

had

left

England with

six others

intended to join the admiral's squadron.

was a regiment of the king's

troops,

On

board these

but of these the Pitt brought only

Pococke had sailed on the 11th October with the

till

felt

confident that no

movement

full

of importance

good the defence

till

00

Admiral

sanction of the presidency,

all

events be able to

make

the expected reinforcement of troops should arrive, or the

change of monsoon should enable the squadi'on to return.
its

1

would be made by the enemy

the rains should cease, and that they would at

Only a week

departure, an unexpected arnval of treasure from the Mauritius,

100,000 rupees brought by M. Moracin,
detachment, inspired Lally with

new

who had been

hopes.

left

\\

under convoy of

men, with their commanders, Colonel Draper and Major Brereton.

who

of Madra.s

and when Admmil Pococke, who

to sail for

the squadron.

ships

;

recalled Captain Calliaud with

after

and

of

in charge of Bassy's

Accordingly, as the arrival of the

rainy season was unusually delayed, he put his troops in motion.

Chingieput

I

'

'

606
A

D

1768

OF INDIA.

illSTOltV

was suppo.sed

to be his object;

and as both

H(/OK

were now

parties

III.

fully alive to its

im[)ortance, the presidency, alarmetl for the safety of a supply of provisions

which

wa.s then

on the

way

and on

to

the

arrival

which
to

it,

ful

ability

its

make

a

of

succe.ss-

defence would

greatly depend, re.solved

immediate-

ly to take the field,

1200 Euro-

with
peans
sepoys

by
Mount

St.

Thome, near Madras.— From Hunter's

and

1

800

— forming

far tlie larger

part of the ^Iadra.s

Picturestjue Scenery of Mysore.

garrison. One-half
of these troo})«,

under Colonel Draper, advanced to Yandaloor, about half-w^ay

between Madras and Chingleput; the other
Lawrence, halted at

St.

half,

under command of Colonel

Tiiom^, in a position which both covered Madras and

These movements defeated the

kept open a communication with Draper.

enemy's design on the convoy of provisions, and the safety of Chingleput was
effectually secured.

Lally

s

disappointment was great.

The danger of leaving

such a place in his rear was sufficiently obvious, but he detennined to run
the risk, as he had only a choice of

difficulties,

and might,

in attempting to

take Chingleput, lose the only opportunity which he might have to lay siege to

Madras.

Qn

Lally ap-

the 7th of December, Lally,

now advancing wdth

his whole army, halted

pears before
.Madras.

at Vaudaloor.

All the British troops which had taken the field were

tioned at St. Thomd, under Colonel Lawrence.

still sta-

This able and cautious

officer

had no intention to risk a general action; and therefore, on penetrating the
object of a feint

which Lally employed with some

dexterity, in the hope of

placing himself between the city and the camp, he struck his tents and

moved

with his whole force to the Choultry Plain, lying about a mile and a half south-

west of Fort
1

2th,

St.

George.

Lally halted at

when he again moved and continued

was meanwhile kept up by both
object in

sides

;

St.

Thome

till

his approach.

the morning of the

A

smart cannonade

but as Colonel Lawrence had no other

removing without the walls than

to gain time,

approached, and marched with his main body into the

he retired as the enemy
fort,

leaving only some

detachments of Europeans and sepoys to guard the passes of the Black Town.

As soon

as the fort

was thus occupied, the

and committed the defence of the siege

covmcil of the presidency assembled

to the governor, Mr. Pigott,

with a recom-

'

Chap.

THE SIEGE OF MADRAS.

XL]

607

inendation to take the advice of Colonel Lawrence on
the outposts were called

amounted

whom

to

little

in the fort

in,

1758 Europeans and 2220 sepoys.

the

cavalry, excellently

encampment

at St.

The

mounted and

number which had

arrack, in

irss.

Thom^ was abandoned.
Of

troops.

The

refuge

besiegers

the former, 300 were

Orme,

disciplined, and, according to

"

the

The Black To^vn not admitthe French gained easy possession of it, and immedi-

which the common

of some spies, most of

.\.d

hitherto appeared together in India.

Among

ately began to pillage.

Tiie siege,

other things they discovered a large quantity of

soldiers indulged so freely, that, according to the

them were

This report suggested to

unfit for duty.

Colonel Draper the probable success of a
it,

who took

details of the siege possess little interest.

ting of effectual defence,

i-eport

all

Besides these, 300 horse, on

dependence could be placed, accompanied the nabob,

when

After

the whole force available for the defence of Madras

numbered 2700 Europeans and 4000 native
greatest

occasions.

all

He was

sally.

authorized to attempt

and about midnight marched out of the western ravelin at the head of 500

picked men.

Black

Town

So

careless

were the enemy, that they reached a main street of the

without being discovered, and would probably have gained a decided

advantage had not the driunmers of the detachment, who were mostly black
boys, suddenly, of tlieir

own

accord, beat the gi-enadiers' march,

by a general huzza from the whole

Thus put upon

line.

their guard, the

succeeded, after a short struggle, in repairing the effects of the

nearly cut off the retreat of the attacking party.

the whole

and

was

to give the besiegers

discipline of the gan-ison

of the

and very

sides,

but the result on

Daoieli's Oriental Scenery.

an unfavourable impression of the courage

—an impression, indeed, so unfavom-able, that one

most experienced of the French

officers

proposed a general assault, and

The

volunteered to lead the principal attack himself

was probably more bravado than
tion of batteries

sui-i)rise,

enemy

Several blunders, perhaps

unavoidable in the darkness, were committed on both

Black Town, Madras. —From

II

and been followed

seriousness,

was not

was immediately commenced.

A

propo.sal, in

entertained,

which there

and the

erec-

few days' experience within

Mit.uii

r
I*

cos
.\.D

1759.

IILSTOKY OF INDIA.

the fort satisfied the nabob, and he
relief of the garrison,

lying in the

road.s,

was

at

Ills

[Book

own

request,

and greatly

III.

to the

shipped with his family on board a Dutch vessel which was

and engaged

to land

him

at Negapatam,

whence he might

easily proceed to Trichinopoly.
Deaiutory

Xlic opcratioas of the besiegers

own

rcsult of their

bjsiegers.

were much retarded by

For some time

improvidence.

obstacles, partly the

they had invested the

after

the greater part of their artillery, which had Ijeen sliipped at Alumparva,

fort,

was at sea detained by contrary winds, and they were unable to open

Meanwhile they were kept constantly on the

before the 2d of January. 1759.

both by

alert

sallies

by Mahmood

from the garrison and by detached

Issoof,

their fire

parties,

an excellent sepoy commander of

headed

chiefly

Olive's training,

who

intercepted several of their convoys, and devastated the country from which

When

they derived their principal supplies.
It proceeded only

tive.
fort,

from two

batteries,

the

fire

did open

was very

it

ineffec-

and was more than answered by the

the works of which remained uninjured, though the shells did considerable

damage

to the

satisfied

with their

most conspicuous public

before they ventured to resume
effect

it.

By

thrown up

little

were the besiegers

time the number of their guns had

this

Not a few of
which had been commenced

produced was proportionably greater.

the guns of the fort were disabled, and the trenches
at a breastwork

So

that they desisted, and allowed several days to elapse

first fire

been increased, and the

buildings.

close to the sea,

580 yards from the covered way, had

been gradually advanced by zigzags to the distance of

On

fifty yards.

the 23d

The cause proved to be
a want of ammunition, and they were waiting for a supply by a brigantine which
had sailed from Pondicherry on the 14th, when intelligence was received which
of January, the fire of the besiegers began to slacken.

Admiral Pococke

completely changed the prospects of besiegers and besieged.

had arrived at Bombay on the 10th of December, where he had been joined by
the

Rumours

two

ships of the line from

ships,

having on board GOO

sailed

under convoy of two

Lally was

of

now aware

England

men

;

and on the

31st, six of the

Company's

belonging to Colonel Draper's regiment, had

frigates,

and were on

that the assault,

if it

their

was

way

to be

to Madras.

made

at

all,

could not

ail assault.

be

much

longer delayed.

place on the very night

Indeed, a general rumour prevailed that

when

the intelligence

was received, and

whole garrison remained at their posts under arms

was groundless

;

and another fortnight was

any appearance of being

till

it

to take

in this belief the

morning.

The rmnour

to elapse before a breach

practicable could be efiected.

was

which had

Meanwhile the

siege

continued, though the hopes of the besiegers were becoming fainter and fainter.

On

She proved to be the
Company's ship Shaftesbury, and was one of those expected from Bombay. As
the worst sailer among them, she had been made the hospital ship, and left
the 30th, a vessel

was descried

to the southward.

both

behind on the 7th of the month off the south of Ceylon.

Shortly

wind and current began to favour

reach the destined

her,

and she was the

first to

after,

J

TUE SIEGE RAISED.

Chap. XI.

She added nothing

[)ort

to the strengtli of the garrison, for the only soldiers

board were thirty-six men,

tary stores.

sick

all

;

on

a.d.

1759.

but she brought what was become even more

—thirty-seven chests of

men
On the

necessary than

G0<)

silver,

and a

large quantity of mili-

7th of February a breach was made, which

Lall}-,

who was

a breach

and had become very impatient, thought practicable. His
engineers and artillery officers on being consulted, were not only of a different
naturally sanguine

opinion, but volunteered, though unasked, to add, that the continuance of the

seemed to them only a

siege

sacrifice of the lives of

men without any

proba-

this

desponding view with much

vivacity, could hardly avoid perceiving that there

was only too great a proba-

bility of success.

though he combated

Lally,

proving

bility of its eventually

During the

correct.

weeks of the

first

pay had been stopped

soldiers

had received only

gether

and while the native troops were gradually thinning away by

tlie

;

half- pay; latterly, their

and the bomb-shells wholly expended, and

difficulty that a precarious

procured.

enougli to

Amid all
make a

reinforcement.

it

the

alto-

desertion,

The gunpowder was

Europeans were threatening to become mutinous.

nearly,

siege,

was only with the utmost

and very inadequate supply of provisions could be

these discouraging circumstances, the garrison, already strong

was

successful defence,

in daily expectation of a powerful

Nothing more was necessary than

its

an instant

arrival to compel

by contrary winds and currents, which had obliged them to make their voyage by proceeding along the
east coast of the Bay of Bengal, at length, on the 1 Gth of February, made their

abandonment of the

The

siege.

long detained

ships,

appearance in the north-east, steering directly for the road.
Lally,

tion

"are adequate to describe the

was

at once taken,

effect

but as a cloak to

it,

"No

which they produced.'

he kept up his

fire

words," says Amvaior

His

resolu-

with more vivacity

was about

to be made,

and the garrison were once more kept a whole night under arms.

This ap})a-

than before.

The rumour again spread that the

rent activity and resolution
besiegers

were seen in

feint

was unable

compelled to raise the

siege,

Town

;

which he had

to ashes, in the event of being

and besides leaving cannon amounting

fifty-two pieces, he did not even attempt to transport his sick

was not an oversight

So hurried was

Plain.

to execute the resolution

to reduce the Black

first

and when morning dawned the

;

march towards the Choultry

full

their departure, that Lally

formed from the

was only a

assault

for in the hospital

in all to

and wounded.

where forty-two Europeans were

needless to say that no such recommendation

The whole

the performance of a simple act of humanity.
rison during the siege, including those

amounted

to 579

accurately known, but
that

it

Vol.

it

in order to secure

loss of

men by

the gar-

;

the loss of the besiegers

in

is

not

Europeans alone to at

tiic siege
raised.

•

has been inferred from an intercepted letter of

must have amounted
I.

/»

It

deserted or were taken prisoners,

Europeans and 7G2 sepoys
.

^L

who

was required

It

lying,

a letter was found, in which he recommended them to the governor's care.
is

fleet.

letist

700.

Lall}-,

Considering

77

/
lllSTUUY OF

610
A.D. i7&r.

111.

the casualties were fewer than iniglit have been expected; Vjut both besiegers

and besieged, while displaying abundance of
to

skill

and courage, were cautious not

expose themselves unnecessarily, and avoided serious loss

most part under
interruption,

and turn

Lally v/as permitted to continue his retreat with

cover.

and

retired

Vjy fighting for

upon Arcot.

to another quarter

There

we must

the

little

for the present leave him,

which had become the scene of important events.

Shortly after Bussy had, by withdrawing with his troops from the Deccan,

state of

the Deccan.

[Book

\S\)IA.

relinquished the fruit of

all his

distinguished achievements, the intrigues which

had long been carried on at the court of Salabut Jung, and

liad repeatedly

threatened to overthrow the French ascendency, broke out afresh, and even

The soubahdar, who was a man

proceeded to open violence.

of a feeble and

indolent character, became a mere pageant in the hands of his brother

Nizam

Ali and Basalut Jung, who, though pm-suing .separate and opposite schemes of

deemed

ambition,

annoimced
serious;

it politic for

a time to combine their

his determination to depart, Salabut

and when he went

When

interests.

Jung could

scarcely' believe

Bussy the guardian angel of

him he would

his life

was bent on

reached

it

ship,

by

and

fortune,

and

He

called

distinctly intimated that

own unliappy fate as sealed. He liad
Nizam Ali, at first contented to use him as

consider his

good cause for his forebodings,
his tool,

him

to take his leave, the timorous old soubahdar, throwing

aside all restraint, expressed himself in terms bordering on de.spair.

the day he lost

Bussy

for

seizing his throne.

In the course of nature he would have

without a crime, as he had been recognized as his heir to the soubah-

but he was too impatient to wait, and secured the object of his ambition

first

imprisoning and then murdering his brother.

These, however, were

only the ultimate results of Bussy's recall; the more immediate results were

manifested in the Northern

known

where the French had

The importance of

as absolute masters.

too well

Cii'cars,

some time ruled

their possessions in this quarter

be overlooked even by Lally, with

to

for

was

rashness; and

all his

by wliich Bussy was recalled, he enjoined him to leave,
imder an officer of the name of Conflans, as many troops as might be deemed
necessary to insure their safety. Under ordinary circiunstances the nmnber left
would have sufficed, but a danger not apprehended was at hand, and Conflans,
whose military talents were of the lowest possible order, was totally unfit to

therefore, in the letter

contend against
state of

Northern

it.

Bussy, in answer to

an earnest application from Surajah Dowlah, had

determined to lead a force into Bengal by

had marched north

to the sea-port

town

way

of Orissa,

and with that view

of Ganjam, where he

was deterred

from proceeding farther by intelligence of the capture of Chandemagore.

In

retracing his steps he

was bent on retaliating the injuiy which French commerce

had thus

and led

factories

sustained,

his troops against Yizagapatam,

which the English Company possessed within the

They were devoid

of

any means of

effectual resistance,

and the other

limits of the Circars.

and were

all

captm'ed

I

I

XI

Chap.

THE NORTHERN CIRCARS.

J

towards the end of 1757.
to the

Tlie loss to the

Gl

Company was

serious, for in addition

AD.

1758.

goods and other property pillaged from them, they were forcibly excluded

from a profitable branch of trade, those of the factories situated on arms of the

Godavery
been

having

accustomed

annually to provide

700 bales of excel-

'WSfc-

i

lent cloths at a cheap

home

rate for the

The

market.

re-

covery of the facto-

from

wrested

ries

them was of course
earnestly desired

the

by

Company; and a

rajah of the

name of

Anunderauz, whose

Peer Misjid and Hill nkak the Dolphins, Vizagapatam.
From

the Mdckcnzie Dra»'ings. £u»t India Uou^e.

territory lay in the

Rajahmundry and

provinces of

Cicacole, doubtless

aware of

this desire, offered

Anuni1erati7
seizes

them

his assistance.

Deeply offended at some arrangements which Bussy had

upon

Vizajja

putani.

made, he no sooner heard of his

made himself master

dash

French from

all

The attempt was

the provinces which had been ceded to them.

by himself single-handed, and he

therefore

overtures to the presidency of Madi-as, offering to reinstate

them in
When,

Vizagapatam
in

His ambition now was to expel the

of Vizagapatam.

too formidable to be undertaken

made

than he took up arms, and by a sudden

recall

as the first pledge of his sincere desire for their alliance.

consequence of the threatening aspect of

affairs in

the Carnatic, his offers

Offers

the

were declined, he made the same

propo.sal to the presidency of Bengal.

voted delusive and chimerical by

independent of
to

its

other merits,

all

the

had the

it

members except

special

him

He must

but some compensation might

a diversion in their favour.

vinces in danger,

whom,

have

regi'etted

which had only been temporarily intrusted to

for the expedition to Bengal,

by creating

to

was

recommendation of promising

do good service to his former emi)loyers at Madras.

his inability to return the troops

Clive,

It

would be obliged

The French, seeing

be given

their ceded

\n'o-

either to submit to the loss of them, or to

succom* them by weakening themselves in the Carnatic.

important object would be gained.

now

A

In either case a most

delay of some months, however, was

The proposal of Anunderauz was made in July, 1758, and no action
could be taken upon it till the change of the monsoon in September or October.
necessary.

In the interval the question was naturally asked,
spared for an expedition to the

Madras,

when

Circai-s,

— Wh}',

if

troops could be

should thev not be sent at once to

the certainty of an approaching siege would enable them to give

it

to

Britisli.

A.D. 1758.

OF INDIA.

illSTOlJY

(il'^

The question did not admit of a

answer

was

and there

;

is

dictated, not so

emergency render
authorities there

much by a

conviction of

of an ingenuous

being the

its

On

tlicse

whereas,

neces.sary;

it

be sul>

still

might imitate the example which Clive

•

them

th«;

and

liimself haxl set,

to return.
to the Circars

i

i

Anunderauz having been determined, the command of

to act in conccrt with

to Colonel Forde.

regiment in the king's
presidency to take the
It will

they were sent to Madras,

if

and similar prudential considerations, an expedition

.

was given

This

service,

command

originally attached to Adlercron's

officer,

had quitted
of their

it

it

on the invitation of the Bengal

army

in the event of Clive's departure.

be seen that the wisdom of this choice was fully justified by the event.

2000 sepoys, and 100

expedition, consisting of 500 Europeans,

with six brass six-pounders as

field-pieces, six

a howitzer, and an eight-inch mortar,

Anunderauz,

October.

cotah, about

the river in the end of September,

left

from Calcutta

Forde's

mohurs

to

tcrms ou whicli

had been supplied with rupees and gold

military chest

speedily exhausted, and
tlic rajali's

promise by

but at the same time decUned to furnish any

an aggregate amount of about £14,000.

sum would be

fulfilled his

Company, who had been sent

to a servant of the

for that piupose,

the 20tli of

till

his troops at the fort of Cossim-

had already

to the westward,

up Vizagapatam

delivering

money.

who was encamped with

twenty miles

lascars,

twenty-four pounders for battery,

but owing to tempestuous weather did not reach Vizagapatam

Treaty with

being

best, as of its

In the Circars the troops would

easily find pretexts for refusing to allow

The

lea.st

the authority of the Bengal presidency, and might be recalled should any

ject to

the Circars.

or at

ground to suspect that the preference given to the Circars

the safest and most politic course.

peilition to

full,

III.

make

the direct aid so urgently n!(iuired, instead of being employed merely to

a diversion?

Forde's ex-

[Kook

It

was evident that

some time was spent

and Company's

forces

this

in adjusting the

At

were to co-operate.

length

Anunderauz.

a regular treaty was drawn up, stipulating that

plunder should be equally

all

—that the countries conquered should belong

divided

and towns at the mouths of

rivers,

to the rajah, the sea-ports

with the revenues of the

to them, being, however, reserved to the

alienation or restitution of the territory

without the consent of both parties

—that

Company

annexed

districts

no proposal

for the

and towns acquired should be entertained

—and that the rajah should furnish 50,000

month for the expenses of the army. Before this treaty was concluded,
the united army moved so slowly that nearly a month was spent in advancing
thirty miles beyond Cossimcotah.
At length, however, the march was commenced in earnest, and on the 3d of December Conflans, who had collected the
French troops from all parts, was seen strongly posted about forty miles from
rupees a

Rajahmundry, on the highroad leading to
consisted of 500 Europeans, with

a large

number

it

more cannon than they could use

of native troops, including 500 horse

original force gained

much

in

numbers but

His

from Vizagapatam.

little

and 6000

force

at once,

and

sepoys.

Forde's

in efiective strength

from his

EXPEDITION TO THE NORTHERN CIRCARS.

Chap. XI.]

junction with the

5000

foot,

army

wliose wliole

he had

and ad.

consisted of 500 paltry horse

most of them armed with pikes and bows.

which he furnished were four

of value

whom

rajaii,

()13

In

the only things

fact,

managed by

field-pieces,

forty Europeans

collected.

Forde, having advanced to within four miles of the French camp, endea.

,

.

,

1

At

communication with Rajahmundry.

off their

last,

Foniedefeats
the French

1^

•

1

1

voured to bring them to action by threatenmg to place himself in their

and thus cut

1759.

by a

rear,

series of
]

manoeuvres, he succeeded in convincing Conflans that he was afraid of him, and

was preparing
petent

commander

forming his

line,

to forego all

left

the advantages of his position.

either side

all

their guns.

in which

Forde a decided advantage.

to rally ordered a charge,

After a

which resulted in the capture

After the flight had become general, a stand might

been made at the camp, but those within
threatened,

order.

which broke the French ranks, he drove them back in disorder,

and before they had time
of

little

The confused manner

almost entirely to the European.s.

fire

Suddenly

were quickly routed, and the decision of the

Conflans had formed his line gave

murderous

to induce this incom-

he advanced to the attack in much haste and

The native troops on
day was

Nothing more was necessary

to retreat.

and then

liasteiied off in the

it

only waited

who

liave

an assault was

Among

utmost confusion.

none was more conspicuous than Conflans,

till

still

the fugitives

i

rode with such speed that he

measured the distance of forty miles before midnight, and sought refuge in

Rajahmundry.

Here he was joined by the wrecks of

his

army, but his fears

pursued him, and Forde, on arriving next day, found the place evacuated.
the fort a large quantity of ammunition and militaiy stores

was

still

In

found.

This victory was gained on the 9th of December, and, had Anunderauz been
less

"'•'

further

t

tardy in his movements, might have been immediately followed by more

He

brilliant successes.

did not

then only employed himself

make

'

his appearance

till

the IGth, and even

endeavouring to evade the payments to which he

in

|

had bound himself by express
modified to the effect that
as a loan,

and that

all

all

To meet his wishes the treaty was
money furnished by him should be considered

stipulation.

the

•

I

the countries which might be conquered beyond the
|

Godavery, with the exception of those belonging to the French, should be
equally divided between
his shuffling conduct,

plish all the objects

motion
first

till

him and the

British.

In the altercations caused by

more time was wasted than might have sufficed to accomThe army could not be again put in
of the expedition.

the 28th of January, 1750.

Its destination

was Masulipatam.

town of impoi-tance on the road was Yalore, or more

';

ij

1

The

properl}' Ellore, the
I

capital of a province of the

same name, one of the four ceded

to the French.
j

The

British reached

it

on the 0th of February; Anunderauz,

contributions on the right and

and
be

after his arrival

made

wove

so

left,

many

before the 1st of March.

did not

make

who had been

his appearance

pretexts for delay that a

Colonel Forde had

new

now more

till

levying

the 18th,

start could
cau.se

not

than ever
j

Git
A.D. 1750.

which he had heen

to regret the iiitermiiialjle delays to

new enemy was

arrived that a
Appoariiiice
i)t

[Book

lILSTUitV «jr INJJIA.

III.

subject, for intelHgence

al>out to enter the fiehi

Coniians, after his defeat, had sent letters to Salaljut

Jung

earnest!}- uiging

Hjilal)iit

J lint; witli

him

to

march with

army from

his

Il^deraba^J to Masulipatam.

There,

Vjy

an iirmv

uniting their forces, they miglit Ijoth destroy the British troops and punisli

Anunderauz

reap the

1:)egun to

When

for his revolt.

the souhalidar received

he had

tlie.se letters,

of Bassy's departure, and, indolent as he was,

Ijitter fruits

would gladly have made any exertion that might have the effect of inducing
him to return. Such an event would have been most distasteful to Nizam Aii
and

who were

intrijTuers

tlio

leajjued with him.

At

the .same time, they were

anxious to take advantage of any change which

might facihtate their

re-

covery of the ceded pro-

and hence,

vinces;

after

wavering as to the course
to

be

became

pursued,

con%anced that

Salabut

Jung might be allowed
to march with his army
to Ma.sulipatam.

Basalut

Jung, entertainincr view.^

which made the Mendship of the French desirable,
Ba.stions

and Defences.

a,

Francois,

b,

Dutch, ...

c,

St. John's,

d,
e,
f,

g,

.

.

8 guns.
5

.18
Cameleon, .10

Small gate,
Churchyard,
Great gate.

foot.

h. Ravelin,

Pettah,

i,

„

k,

,,

1,

.,

m,

5 guns.

...

6

„

8

,,

p, 2

.

8

,,

q.

Michael,

8

.4

Engodour,
Saline,
St.

.

.

,,

n, Watergate,

8

,,

o,

.8

,,

8

English batteries, 4 guns.

„

18

,,

2

„

24

,,

and

Battery on other side
of the water to flank

r,

2

troops from his govern-

The Attack.
guns 12-pounders.

-^

brought a bodv of

ment

of Adoni.

After

„

joining, near the Kistna,

2 mortars,

the united force mu.stered

guns 18-pounders,
2 guns 24 poimdera.

and

15,000 hoi-se and 20,000

Forde had thus the alarming prospect of encomiteriiig, instead of

three armies.

A

soldier of less nerve

one,

would have paused before committing
His courage and

himself to a contest with such fearful odds.

decision,

on the

and he determined to proceed. On the 6tli of
of Masulipatam, and on the same day received the

contrary, rose with the danger,

March, he came in sight

gratifying intelligence that Lally had been compelled to raise the siege of Madi-as.
Miisidi-

Masxilipatam consisted of a town and a

The town, a

fort.

place of great

patam and
its fort.

extent, occupied a rising

the sea

by a narrow

ground between two morasses, and was separated from

belt of sandliills.

town, and communicating with

way 2000

3'ards in length,

fi'om north to south,

it

The

fort,

situated south-east of the

across one of the morasses

by a broad

cause-

formed an in'egular parallelogram 800 yards long

and about 600 yards broad.

On

the west, north, and east

5

("HAP

it

OPEKATIONS AGAINST MASULIPATAM.

XI.]

was

inclosed

the discharge of

61.

by the morass, and on the south by a sound partly formed by ad
an arm of the Kistna. The only hard ground within a mile of

the fort, on the north

its .

and west, was formed by a few patches of sand which rose

above the morass, but on the east the belt of sandhills was only about 800
yards distant.
Conflans with his troops was encamped in the town, and might easily,

throwing up an entrenchment on the hard ground between

way

placed an insuperable barrier in the

he only waited

way

into the

till

the invading force appeared,

fort.

to the north-east, while

his station

The defences

though modernized by the French after they took possession of
not be considered strong.

mud

The south

position in the sovmd.

causeway,

1

;

whom

he

of the fort,

in 1751, could

and the

walls,

com-

faced with brick, were on the west, north, and east flanked with

eleven bastions.
its

There was a ditch but no glacis

it

cause-

on the sands

Anunderauz and the Zemindar of Narsipore,

had induced to join him, took possession of the town.

posed of

Instead of this

and then retreated by the

Thus unobstructed, Forde took up

^"^t" "^

morasses, have

tlie

of Fordes approach.

by

side

was considered

to be sufficiently defended

The gateway was at the north-west

by

angle, facing the

20 yards of which was converted into a oaponiere, terminating in a

strong ravelin.

The
fort,

number

besiegers were far too few in

and determined

to attack it

to

make

regular approaches to the

by batteries erected on the sands on the

east,

This position, besides being the nearest to the walls, had the advantage of
giving ready access to the shore, on which the battering artillery which had

been brought by sea was to be landed.
in

consisted of fom* twenty-four, four eigliteen,

the attack

pounders,
trenches.

Ultimately the whole artillery emplo3'ed

and two twelve-

mounted on three detached batteries, without the communication of
It was certainly a very bold, not to say a rash attempt, to take such

Not only should the fire of the fort have been
able to overpower that which was brought against it, but the garrison outnumConflans, however, was too ignorant and timid to
bered the attacking force.
turn his advantage to account, and remained cooped up within the walls, employing his means of defence so im])erfectly, that dm-ing the eighteen days
employed by the besiegers in erecting their batteries, the incessant fire from the
While thus favoured by the pusillanimity of the
fort killed only five men.
garrison, Forde was beset with dangers.
On the 19th of ^larch, six days before

a place

by such

feeble means.

the batteries were completed, the whole of his Europeans broke out in

and threatened to march away

money already

due,

if

mutiny

they were not immediately paid the prize

and assured that

if

they took Masuliiiatam the whole of the

The former demand could not be comwas empty, and the latter was in direct oppo-

booty would be delivered up to them.
plied witli as the military chest
sition to the

Company's

the captors.

No

regulations,

which gave only the half of the booty to

sooner was this disgraceful mutin}- overcome

by good temper

'

<"'i^' '*=-

besiege

Ma-

I

;

/
UIG
A.D. i7ao.

lilriTOKV ut

and

fiininess,

and the

i:sUL\.

[B^iOK

news airived that Basalut Juu^
Anunderauz and the zemindaj>>

batteries opened, than

with his army was only forty miles distant.

with him were so alanned, that in the course of the night, without a
warning, they marched off with their whole
return

it

till

was made

rushing to destruction instead of escaping from

The

Tlie assault

and capture
of Masuli-

On the

pa tarn.

for

batteries

had kept up a hot

fire

was now

to be done?

was absolutely cut
as disgraceful,

wall,

March

of

2.'3th

to the 0th April

could only be continued

it

Salabut Jung, and a body of French troops

An

off.

escape

and determined

by

now

sea

was

With

to storm.

possible,

still

this

sufficiently ruined to

fire

was main-

effect,

that three

view the

much

As

admit of mounting.

by land

but Forde rejected

one near the centre, and the other two at the extremities of

were

What

who had been

so near that the retreat

tained with double vivacity on the 7th, and with so
bastions,

were only

by that time the ammunition would be expended.

as

Uj

it.

from the

scouring the surrounding country, were

it

their flight they

evening of this day the engineers reported that

two days more,

not<; of

and could not be induced

forces,

them that by

palpaljle to

J 1 1.

tlie

eastern

the attack might thus

be made from more places than one, the attention of the garrison was distracted

and hence, while two

feints

of the north-east angle

were practised, the

met with comparatively

mitted to the Eiu'opean battalion, mustering in

ing party.

little
all,

made

at the bastion

obstruction.

with the

Rardwicke, 346 rank and

thirty sailors taken from the

The storm-

real attack

It

was com-

ailillerjTnen,

file,

and 1400

sepoys.

One would willingly tell of the heroism of the assailants, but unfortunately very
little was displayed, and success was not so much extorted by them as yielded
by their opponents. When the storming party was about to move. Captain
Callendar, appointed to lead them, was nowhere to be found.
He aftei-wards
appeared when the assault was understood to have succeeded, and met from a
stray shot the death which he had in vain endeavomred to escape by cowardice.
Even after the breach was mounted, and an advance made along the rampart,
the cry of "A mine!" produced such a panic, that Captain Yorke, who was gallantly heading the storming party, found himself suddenly left with only

drummers

;

and on hastening back to the breach, found

some even proposing

to

make

their escape.

persuasion, having induced a small

courage,
Conflans

and

trouble.

band

and the captm-e was achieved.
Seated in his

own

all his

men

two

in confu.sion,

Partly by threats, and partly by

to follow, the otliers regained their

Conflans, indeed, gave little fm'ther

house, he continued recei\Tjig

and sending contra-

surrenders.

dictory messages, and

To

his disgrace it

was no sooner summoned than he hastened

must be added, that when the prisoners were counted they

considerably outnumbered the captors.

Within the

fort

were found

and much valuable plunder.
the pi'incipal cause of
siege as a

mockery

to surrender.

;

its

1

Among them were

500 Em-opeans.

20 pieces of cannon, abundance of militar}-

The improbability of the
success.

assault is said to

The garrison had from the

first

stores,

have been

treated the

and being in expectation of a reinforcement from Pondi-

7

TREATY WITH SALABUT JUNG.

XL]

Chap.

cherry were only waiting

CI

arrival to sally out, and, in concert with the native ad.

its

1759

army now at hand, inflict signal punishment on the British for their presumpThe overweening confidence of the French was better deserving of punishtion.
ment, and received

it.

to the Northern Circars produced more brilliant results than
••
!!•
1
T
Salabut Jung and his advisers,
sanguine could have anticipated.

The expedition
the most

if^ii

•

Results of

capture of
Masiuipa-

though surprised and vexed at the capture of Masulipatam, were not without
hopes of being able to recover

tiie

it.

With

this

view they advanced within

nine miles, in hopes of meeting with the expected Pondicherry reinforcement.

away without landing
the troops, on finding that the place had fallen. After this new disappointment
Salabut Jung's politics underwent a sudden change.
Nizam Ali was openlyIt did arrive

;

but the ships which brought

plotting his overthrow;

and

seemed now unable to

assist him,

as the French,

hastened

it

on

whom

he had previously leaned,

he became anxious to provide for his

own

by exchanging the French for a British alliance. A negotiation opened
with this view was speedily followed by a regular treaty, by which Salabut Jung
ceded to the Company, in absolute property, Musulipatam and other districts

safety

in the

Northern

Circars,

forming a continuous tract of territory which extended

eighty miles along the coast, and twenty miles inland, and yielded an annual

revenue of 400,000 rupees.

He

engaged, moreover, not to allow the French to

have either troops or factories north of the Kistna, nor to seek or accept of
assistance

from them.

In return for these important concessions the

Company

only promised not to assist or give protection to any of the soubahdar's enemies.

He

appears, however, to have expected

assistance

was

to be given

more

;

him against Nizam

and on finding that no
Ali,

marched

ofi"

direct

in great dis-

pleasure.

Reverse after reverse had thus followed the French arms, and the Indian
empire, which they at one time seemed on the point of establishing,

ing like a dream.

in

which

still

little

who had

After raising the siege of Madras, Lally,

upon Arcot, endeavoured to maintain

his

retired

ground by a kind of desultory warfare,

advantage was gained by either

under his command might have

was vanish

side.

The number of troops

justified active operations

on a larger

scale;

but their spirit was bad, and his funds being again exhausted, ho abinptly con-

by withdrawing from the field, and disposing his army in
different cantonments.
The main body, consisting of 11 00 Europeans, accompanied him to Pondicherry, where he determined to wait till a long expected

cluded the campaign

The Madras presidency were also
though the season would have allowed the

reinforcement and squadron should arrive.
^expecting reinforcements, and hence,

[campaign to be protracted a
[the interval of repose

little

which

longer, thoy willingly availed themselves of

Lall}'

had offered; and imitated

[distributing their troops in a series of forts, which,
)ut,

his

example by

commencing with Chingle-

near the Paliar, continued northwards, so as to form a kind of

Vol.

I.

78

cui've.

Active
interrupted

(51

A.D. 1750.

JIlSTOkV OF IM^IA.

y

having Madras

for its centre.

the only activity displayed

was

While
in

^)<>i\\

sending out small

ceeded in driving off about 0000 head of

leiiifoice-

were thus
i>arties to

ill.

in cuntoninent«,

make

piedatory

In these the Corn[)any's troops were particularly expert, and suc-

incursions.

iiiiiisUfKet

arrnies

[Bo.,K

cattle.

On the 28th of April, 17o9, Admiral Pococke arrived with his squadron from
Bombay but, in order to keep to the windward of Pondicherry, and watch tiie
;

in,;iits.

expected squadron of the French, did not come farther north than NegHjiatarn.
In the end of June, three of the Company's usual ships arrived from England

They brought 200 recruits, and the promise of a much more important reinforcement by other ships. This was the 84th regiment of 1000 men, commanded by
Coote,

mand

who was now

its lieutenant-colonel,

and had been appointed

to the com-

of the Company's troops in Bengal, with the option, however, of remain-

ing with his regiment in the Carnatic, should his presence there seem more

While general joy was diffused throughout the settlement by

necessary,

intelligence, the

governor and council were in possession of a secret which

them with gloomy forebodings.

The court of directors, dazzled

b}'

prospects wlncn had been opened in Bengal, imagined that from
ficient

funds might be obtained to supply the wants of

and under that

Thus at the

im})ression

ver}^

had resolved

to

all

the
it

this

filled

bi-illiant

alone suf-

the presidencies;

send no more treasure

1700.

till

time when everything announced an approaching campaign,

from which the most decisive results were anticipated, the presidency, alread}almost overwhelmed with debt, were to be

and incalculable demand on
Naval

left to strucjcjle

unaided

ac^ainst

a

new

their resources.

Admiral Pococke, misled by a Danish

vessel

which reported that a French

operations.

fleet

of twelve sail

had arrived

that port, and reached

French

having the

on the 3d of July without obtaining any tidings of

In returning, he cruised

ships.

of the island,

it

at Trincomalee in Ceylon, immediately sailed for

and had the good fortune

first

for a short time off the north extremity

to

meet with four of the Company's

ships

division of Coote's regiment on board, as well as provisions and

stores for the use of his

own

squadron.

He

therefore proceeded with the newly

an-ived ships to Negapatam, and after tran.shipping the supplies, allowed them
to continue their

voyage to Madras, wliere the troops were landed and detained

for the use of the presidency.

On

the 20th of August he again sailed for Trin-

comalee, and on the 2d of September descried the French

manded, as

fleet.

It

was com-

by Count d'Achd, and, having obtained a large reinforcement
both of ships and men, numbered eleven sail of the line and tliree frigates. The
British squadron consisted of nine sail of the line, a frigate, two Company ships,
and a fire-ship. Both fleets immediately prepared for action but their relative
before,

;

positions

and the

state of the

weather did not allow them to come to

close

when au engagement commenced which lasted two hours
without producing any decisive result. The French, by retiring as they had
quarters

till

the lOth,

done on the previous occasions, acknowledged themselves defeated, but

sailed so

'

AimiliAL POCOCKE AND COUNT D'ACHE.

Chap. XI. J

much
(liiy

bli)

better than the British as to liave no difficulty in eluding pursuit.

way

best of his

position of

a.d kop.

Admiral Pococke returned to JNegapatam, and Count d'Ach^

after the battle

made the

The

His

to Pondicherry.

arrival did little to

improve the

The whole troops

affiiirs.

him were no
more than 180 men; and the money,
had brought

lie

witii

though doubled by the capture of an
English East Indiaman, amounted in

How

to only £33,000.

all

was such

a reinforcement to supply the serious
loss

men sustained by
and how was such a

of

verses?
to

recent repaltry

sum

meet either past arrears of pay or

current expenses?

Count d'Ach^,

in-

stead of troubling himself with such
questions,

had anxieties of a

difierent

kind which he thought sufficient to

occupy
that

his attention.

He had

heard

Admiral Pococke's squadron was

Admiral Sir George Pococke.— From a

portrait

engraved by Aligmet.

about to be reinforced by four men-

and

of-war,

what coidd he expect but
a new encoiuiter? So determined, therefore,

was already too strong

as it

destruction if he should be forced to

for him,

was he to depart that he refused to go ashore, and gave orders to prepare
sailing in the course of twenty-four hours.

with universal alarm and indignation.

Tinnanv

of

aiimirTr

for

This annoiuicement was received

and military

All the civil

authorities,

together with the principal inhabitants, assembled at the governor's, and assuming the character of a national council, imanimously resolved that the precipitate

departure of the squadron woidd be ruinous to the public interests.

remaining

d'Acht?

inflexible,

a protest was drawn

departed he wovdd be held responsible for the

uj),

loss

Count

declaring that if he

of the settlement,

compelled to answer for his conduct to the king and the ministry.

He

and
had

and was some leagues out at sea when one of the ships which
had been accidentally detained reached him and delivered the protest, together

actually departed,

with a copy for each of his captains.
ately

summoned

of Pondicherry.
after,
it,

a council, and, after a short delay, anchored again in the road

The hopes thus

raised

when he had an opportunity

and

finally

as a kind

Staggered at this proceeding, he immedi-

to

were soon disappointed

engage the

Briti.sh

;

for a

few days

squadron, he declined

departed on the 30th of September, leaving behind him, however,

of compromise. 000 men, of

whom

500 were Eiu'opean

sailors

or

marines.

When
arrival

the campaign again opened, the presidency, in expectation of the

..

,...

n

^

•

•

of Colonel Coote with the reniainnig division of his regiment, were

Bntisu

r--

^erse before
w.m.iiw.ish.

C20
A.D.

1709.

JliSTORY OF IM>JA.

averse to undertake any operation
contrary, Iiaving only an interim

[Bijok III.

Major Brereton, on the

of importance.

command of

was anxious

the troops,

to signalize

himself before he should be superseded, and by great urgency obtained] a wjnsent
to

attempt the capture of Wandivviwli.

fantry and 800 horse,

1

500 of the

His whole

fc^niier

and

1

00 of the

latter

j,^

^lie

viciuity of
''

successfiil at

wamiiwabh.

little

interruption

The French having
o obtained

Waudiwasli on the 28th.

in-

European, marched

from Conjeveram on the 2Gth of Septemljer, and arrived with
Breretonun

4080

force, consisting of

intelli-

gence of his motions, had considerably augmented their force; but he was not

aware of the

and

fact,

in the belief that they

received reinforcements, thought

with the least possible delay.

it

were only expecting, and had not

good generalship to ad^ance to the attack

Their Europeans he believed to be only 900,

whereas they were in fact 1300.

Confident in his supposed superiority, he

deemed caution unnecessary, and the very next day
attack the

enemy

position within the forts

and

these circumstances failure

enemy magnified

upon Conjeveram.
the French

numbers

who

greater,

and under the protec-

inevitable,

till

was

and a severe

repul.se,

besides native troops, advanced to

to

In

which

ilajor Brereton main-

sustained,

the ith of October, and then retired

arrived the day after and took the

now amounting

but their

more formidable than he imagined.

was almost

Wandiwash

Bussy,

force.s,

far

into a great victory,

tained his position at

their

inclosures of a large town,

was

tion of the guns of the fort,

the

Not only were

at midnight.

after his arrival prepared to

command

1500 European foot and 300

Conjeveram

to offer battle,

of

cavalr\-,

but Brereton,

now as dispirited as he had previously been confident, had no inclination to risk
a new disaster.
Eussy, thus unopposed, sent back the main body of the arm\'
to

Wandiwash, and proceeded with an European detachment of 400 horse and

150 foot to Arcot.
Basalut Juug, Salabut Jung's brother,

Fiench
negotiations

with Basa"°^'

,

,

.

who

held the government of Adoni,

,

had amved on the northern

and made overtm-es which
the French deemed so hopeful, that Bussy was on the way to join him and
concert an alliance.
With this view he had proceeded to Arcot, and continuing
his

journey had

left it

frontier of the Caruatic,

a day's march behind him,

when his fui-ther progress
Wandiwash had broken out

army at
in open mutiny.
More than a year's pay was due to them, and they had a
belief, well or ill founded, that much money which ought to have been employed
The mutiny,
in discharging their arrears had been intercepted and embezzled.

was arrested by the

at

first

only

pait-ial,

intelligence that the

increased

by the

discipline

employed

to suppress it

;

and the

marched out and encamped on the
The
height which Major Brereton occupied before he made his ill-fated attack.

whole

troops, leaving their ofiicers behind,

soldiers eventually carried their point,

and did not return

to

duty

till

they

received half a year's pay in hand, a promise of the rest in a month, and a

general pardon.

Bussy,

by

halting

till

the mutiny

precious time, and, on reaching Basalut Jung,

was

suppres.sed, lost

had the mortification

some

to discover

NEGOTIATIONS WITH BASALUT JUNG.

Chap. XI.]

that he

his views

had changed

and

risen in his demands.

621

The

fact of the

a.d. 1750.

mutiny had not been lost upon him and he became doubtful whether he might
not by an alliance with the French be only involving himself in a falling cause.
;

His proposals

that the French were no longer in
—obviously dictated by a
refuse anything— were: — That on receiving a present sum of four
belief

a condition to

of rupees for the pay of his troops, he would return with Bussy to Arcot,

lacs

forthwith recognized as nabob of the province, and of

provided he were
Trichinopoly and

dependencies;

its

— as

the

first

step in this agreement, the

the countries of which they

French should at once surrender to his authority

all

had actual possession, he drawing the revenues by

his o^vn

to

them

for a third of the

amount

;

— other countries which might be conquered

by their united armies were to be his
deduction of a third

;

absolutely'',

— ultimately, when

the British, or reducing

them

dewan, but accomiting

to terms,

without being subject to the

made by conquering

peace should be

should become absolute lord of the

lie

whole Carnatic according to ancient usages, and the French cease to have any
claim whatever to any part of the revenues.
others in which Basalut
sulted,

Jung s

and future advantage was alone con-

were too extravagant to be seriously entertained, and Bussy began to

He had

retrace his steps.

been obliged to proceed as

ftir

as Kurpa, to

which

Jung liad retreated and had thus, without securing any advantage of
least moment, performed a march of 100 miles in a direct line, and of not
than 300 miles by road, much of it over barren tracts and through the

Basalut
the
less

;

windings of mountain
his

pi'esent

These proposals, accompanied with

valleys.

new

Before he returned

disasters

had befallen

countrymen.
greatest difhculty

Lally's

had

all

along been the want of funds.

The

La"? ««"dicioiuly

revenues obtained from the lands ceded to them, or in their possession, had

never sufficed in the days of their gi-eatest prosperity to meet the expenses in
the field

;

and,

would be able
rent found
fore,

now
to

that a series of reverses had

made

it

doubtful whether they

maintain their ground, the zemindars and other parties

many

in opening a

plausible excuses for withholding

new

campaign, to

make

it.

It

was

liable in

necessary, there-

.some decided effort to procure funds.

After various projects had been discussed, Lally became satisfied that the south

The country beyond Ootatoor had for some time
suffered little from the ravages of war, and the island of Seringham in particular,
which was still in French possession, woidd shortly reap a harvest, of which the
was the most hopeful quarter.

share belonging to the government of Pondicherry
rupees.
for;

and

was estimated

at GOO, 000

Situated as Lally was, this seemed to him an object well worth fighting
in order to secure

of dividing his army.

He

it,

he determined to hazard the very dangerous step

accordingly despatched M. Crillon to the south witli

a force consisting of 900 Europeans and

1

'200

native troops, with ten pieces of

cannon, and concentrated the remainder of the araiy in the vicinity of Arcot,

from which

it

might be moved on any place that was threatened.

divides
**'

iiis

:

622
A.D. 17.W.

lIl.ST(Jlt^'

The Madras

[Book

to lose

no time

II

vohiiiUirily

commencing the «im-

in

This they were able to do under the most favourable auspices.

pai<^n.

blunder.

INJJlA,

were no sooner made aware how LalJy had

[)resi(lency

weakened himself than they resolved
Ooote profitB

Ol

Colonel

remainder of his rej'iment, had anived at Madras on the 27th

(Joote, witli the

of October, and, in the exercise of the discretionary

power with which he had

been intrusted, decided to remain in the Canaatic.

On

the 21st of Novembei-

he set out for Conjeveram, where the larger pait of the troops of the presidency

were in cantonment

;

a council of war, at which
forces,

was decided

it

that, in the di\nded state of Lally's

To

an attempt should be made to capture Wandiwash.

intention,

about to

conceal this

and leave the enemy in doubt as to the place on which the blow was

fall,

Coote sent Captain Preston

M-ith a

and Major Brereton with another

gleput,

moved with
there,

command, assembled

and, immediately after assuming the

the

mam

He

body on Arcot.

and learned with

detachment to remain at Chin-

to attack Trivatore, while he himself

enemy encamped

exjjected to find the

surprise that they

had removed
future

¥AKJ)I¥ASH

His

to Chittapet.

coui-se

had not been

when an

detemiined,

express

N 1759

arrived from Major Brereton

with

tlie

gratif3'ing

intelli-

gence that, besides taking Trihe had

vatore,

mai'ched on

Wandiwash, and made himself

master of

suburbs.

its

Coote at once determined to
follow up this succe.ss
forced march.

On

by

he

an'i\dn<;

found that Brereton had

most completed a battery

for

the south-west angle of the
Captiu'e of

two eighteen-pounders, erected

fort.

a

al-

so as to bear on

In the course of the night another

batter}- to

bear on the same angle was commenced.

On

the following day, the 29tli of

November, both batteries opened their

fire,

and before noon had made a

Wandiwash.

The

practicable breach.

500 horsemen and foot

body of French
garrison

French
other

by

troops, consisting of

was summoned

officer,

was commanded by a native officer, who had
under him, but he had accepted the assistance of a
fort

who

68 Europeans and 100 sepoys.

to surrender,

two answers were retunied

given him.

who

the

last,

the

specified hour.

on the wall and

Company

in

but required an answer

Shortly after the expiry of the time, the French appeared

called out that they

mir.d on their part

districts,

by
and

what teims would be

Coote promised to continue liim as a dependant of the

the government of the fort and the rent of the

by a

sent to ask

the

—one

declared his determination to hold out to the

the native governor or killedar,

When

were ready to surrender

This change of

was doubtless produced by the known intention

of the

MOVEMENTS OF COOTE AND LALLY.

Chap. XI.j

killedar to accept the terms whicli

had been

It

oflered.

o23

is

admitted, indeed,

a.

a

1759.

that he had signed his acceptance just as the British troops entered the fort,

and

on the pretext that he was too

yet,

He was

were shamefully violated.

related to the family of

long been connected with the French,

mveterate an enemy

made with him
Chunda Sahib, liad

the stipulations

late, all

and was held by Mahomed Ali

to be so

he set more value on the possession of him as a

tliat

On

prisoner than the reduction of the fort.

such irrelevant and miworthy

grounds the Madras presidency became parties to an act of gross treachery, and
the killedar, after refusing to disclose his treasures, or
for his

pay ten

ransom, was confined in a fort on one of the highest

Lally

now

discovered,

when

lacs of rupees

hills of Velloi'e.

too late, that he had committed a fatal error in

oti' er
auvceiites.

Not only was he imable

dividing his army.

to relieve Wandiwjisli, but he could

not conceal from himself that other forts were destined to share the same

fate.

Carangoly, a large fort situated twenty- five miles E.N.E. of Wandiwash, was

next attacked, and

fell

like

it,

and obtaining better terms.
sidered as
as

tlie

thougli not without

capital of the nabobshi]), the possession of it

Preparatory to the siege of the

move from Coverypauk and take
opposition

was next

Coote's attention

an object of primary moment, though

portant.

making a

—the garrison of the

in itself

called to Arcot.

Con-

was naturally regarded

was comparatively unim-

Coote ordered a detachment to

fort,

post in the city.

fort,

it

better defence

Tliis

was accomplished without

which was only half a mile

distant, looking

on as unconcerned spectators, while possession was taken of the nabobs palace

and the adjoining

streets.

It

was

not,

allow the capital to be wrested from

saw

it

however, to be supposed that Lally would

him without a

seriously threatened, he sent a peremptory order recalling Crillon with

his force

from Seringham.

fruitless visit to

Bassy, too, arrived most opportunely from his long and

him not only

Basalut Jung, bringing with

taken away, but a considerable body of good horse
him.

The moment he

struggle.

The aspect of

affairs

whom

all

he had induced to join

The

was thus somewhat changed.

ment, after they had collected

fa.scines

and other

British detach-

and even commenced

materials,

the ei'ection of a battery, were obliged suddenly to

the troops he liad

decamp

;

and

Bus.sy's horse

taking advantage of his departure for Pondiclierry, spread themselves over the
country, and committed every species of devastation.
of Mahrattas,

who had been hovering on

descend into the low country to

sell

sum

the same time a body

the western frontiers, prepared to

themselves to the highest

Madras presidency deeming their terms too high,
agent gave a

At

of 20, 000 rupees in hand,

horse who, without joining their camp,

made

tried to lower

l)idder.

them

;

The

the Frencli

and thus obtained a body of 1000
their appeai-ance

between

Ai'cot

and Conjeveram.
Coote

witli his
1

army

next evenmg took up
troops

quitted

••
a position

when moving towards

Wandiwash on

the 13th of December, and

Tillwhich enabled him
I'l

each other, whetlier from

•

1

to intercept the
.Vi'cot

Motimi
inoveiiiente

enemy s

or from Chittapet.

ofc.«.toani

^'"^'

^2^
A.D.1760.

On

IILSTOIIY
the IGth

lio

advanced

OF INDIA.

[Book

six miles nearer the former town.

III

Meantime Busnys

horse and the Malirattas continued their course of plunder to Huch an extent,

that the inhabitants took refuge in the forts and woods, and ceased

any

supplies of provisions to the British camp, whicli

ened with starvation.

To

was

tfj

Ijinng in

in consequence threat-

increase their difficulties, the rain began to

As the be.st alternative that now remained, Coote quitted liis
and placed his army in cantonments in Coverypauk and the adjacent
torrents.

Shortly after Coote's retirement, Lally,

who had

in

fall

position
villages.

Ijeen exerting him.self to the

utmost, quitted Chittapet with a largely augmented force, and advanced to
Arcot.

This

movement compelled Coote again

to take the Held,

and he took up

a strong position at a point nearly equidistant from Arcot and CoverjT:»auk

Here, with a large tank in front, a morass on each flank, and a rear accessible

only along a causeway, he remained on the defensive, both becaase the

enemy

was

far superior to

negotia-

tion

by

liLs side.

whicli it

him in cavalry, and he was waiting the result of a
was hoped that the Mahrattas might be gained over to

Lally, too, waiting for the return of the reinforcement
late to save

Masulipatam, and mistrusting the

had good reasons

after their late mutiny,

for not

which had arrived too

spirit of his

assuming the

European troops
Both

offensive.

armies consequently remained within their encampments.
^^"y
conjeTeram

In the beginning of January, 1760, the negotiation with the Mahrattas again
terminated in favour of the French.
rupees, but proposed to

in ready money,

The Madras

pay in conditional

and were of course

bills

;

prefeiTcd.

pre.sidency offered 00,000

the French sent the same

On

sum

the 8th of January, Innis

Khan, Morari Row's general, joined their camp with a new body of 3000 moiuited,

and a greater number of

foot plunderers.

Lally's star

seemed once more

in the

ascendant, and he quitted his

encampment to commence active operations. Coote
suspected that the recovery of Wandiwash was his object, and sent orders to the
officer whom he had left in command to defend it to the last extremity.
At
the same time, sending off his baggage to Cover^q^auk, he began to move eastward
along the north bank of the Paliar.
Lally kept moving at some distance from
the southern bank at a very slow pace.
He had an object in view, and was preparing to gain it by a stratagem.
He had been told that the British army
derived

its

supplies of rice from large magazines of

this belief

he executed a

as soon as

it

body of 300

was dark

series of

set out,

it

stored at Conjeveram.

In

dexterous manoeuvres to cover his design, and

taking nearly

all

the cavalry of his

army and

sepoys, with the utmost expedition crossed the Paliar,

and

a

after

town at eight o'clock in the
morning.
He had no difficulty in entering it, but it was only to meet disappointment.
His information had been false. The stores of rice were imaginary,
and the plunder found within the town was almost wortliless. The pagoda,
indeed, contained a stock of military stores but it was a place of some strength,
occupied by two companies of sepoys under an English Heutenant and as he had
a march of fifteen miles, pounced suddenly upon that

;

;

XL

CiiAi'.

I

no means of forcing

LALLY BEFOllE WANDIWASR.

625

make

a hasty retreat, after

it

it,

only remained for him to

levenging- himself on the inoffensive inhabitants
Lally, after this disapjwintment,

by

A.D. 1760.

setting fire to their houses.

was more anxious than ever

to perform

some

l-all.V

ra^^olves to

which might revive the

exploit,

He

troops.

spirits

know

could not but

and

him

raise

in tiie estimation of his attempt

that the failure of most of his recent measures

the
capture of
Wandiwiisli.

had suggested grave doubts of his capacity; and that the re])utation of Bussy, of

wiiom he had always entertained an unworthy jealousy, had risen

own had

as his

in ])ro])ortion

These facts galled him to the quick, and made him so

sunk.

impatient that he was almost ready for any attempt, however rash.

exerted himself to check this wild

.spirit;

and,

when it was proposed

Bussy

forthwith to

attempt the capture of Wandiwash, suggested a far more judicious course.
English, he said,

would not

lose

Wandiwash without

The

risking a battle to save

it.

That battle the French
would
fight

be

obliged

under great

vantage.

A

of

force

their

the

di.sad-

large part

necessarily be
in

to

siege,

would

employed

and the

main body thus weakened, being

obliged

to

lemain where they could
cover the siege, would
hjive

no choice of

posi-

tion.

The better

plan,

CoNJEVERAM. near to the Great Pagoda. —From the
Mackpntle Drawings. East India Home.

therefore,

to engjvge

would be not
in operations

which might make

it

neces.sary to

risk

a general

Coote's

counter

action,

but to keep together on the banks of the Paliar, and employ the Mahrattas

ravaging the country and cutting off

in
tiie

enemy no

all

alternative but either to fight

sources of supply, so

when he would

or be foi-ced to seek subsistence under the walls of Madras.
Lally

would not have relished from any

one,

was most

who, he was uncharitable enough to think, liad given

His determination, therefore, was to
hazards.
])ected

Coote,

who had

attack upon

it,

left

it

a.s

to leave

rather decline

it,

This advice, which

imi)alatal)le

from Bussy,

from unworthy motives.

attenijit the siege of

Wandiwash

at

all

hastened off to Conjeveram on hearing of the unexit

on the 14th of January, and having crossed the

—

encamped on the l7th near Outramaloor a position which, besides being
equidistant from Trivatore, where Bussy iiad been left with the main body of
Paliar,

tlie

French army, and Wandiwa.sh, at which Lally had now arrived

\\'ith

in person

a considerable detachment, had the additional advantacfe of securing the

communication with Chingle[)ut, and through

it

with

jMadra-s.

Lally, after

taking possession of the subiu'bs of Wandiwash, threw entrenchments across
Vol.

I.

79

luoveitiLiit.

626
A.D. 17C0.

the openings of the streets leading to
erected near the

the

OF INDIA.

IIISTOIIY

tlie fort,

same spot wliich Coote had

same angle which he succeeded

selected,

must

when

arrive,

to fire

upon

shortly after joined

Coote, though suffering from

watching his opportunity, which he knew

enemy prepared

the

was intended

He waa

in breaching.

provisions, kept his position,

III.

and commenced a battery which,

by Bussy from Trivatore with the main body.

want of

[Book

to as.sault,

a.s

he would then have an

option of attacking the besiegers, or the division encamped in the plain to cover
Bussy, thus confirmed in the view he had taken of Coote's probable

them.

tactics, reiterated

the siege
advice,
of

was now

Coote,

.-\Vproach

a better opportunity

till

army together by

the advice to keep the whole
;

than ever to

less inclined

who had

but Laily,

listen to

desisting from

formerly rejected the

it.

on learning that the battery had opened

and breached the

its fire,

the two

armies.

main rampart, quitted

encampment

his

at Outramaloor,

bourg, within seven miles of Wandiwash.
tain of

same name

and advanced

to Tirim-

In the vicinity of the latter a moun-

stretches above a league from north-east to south-west.

French army was encamped opposite to the eastern end of

two miles from the

On

fort.

Tiie

mountain, aVjout

this

the 22d of January Coote hastened forward at the

head of two troops of European and 1000 native cavalry, together with two

He was

companies of sepoys.

first

descried

by the Mahrattas, who were lying

with their plunder along the north-east foot of the mountain

he took possession of

whole plain clear up to their camp.

necessity, while the

Shortly

about

after, observing,

lialf

ground beyond was well adapted

it,

and went back

intention to lead

them on

received with acclamations

to the line of infantry, to

to a general encracrement.

by the whole

troops

;

a mile

for .shelter

whom
Tlie

him

announcement was

and he led them on

in battle

Here they

stood in full view of the French camp, without perceiving any motion in

Coote outmaiiiEuvres
Lallv.

The day began

to wear,

foot so covered with stones

till

it,

or

fort.

and Coote proceeded with

towards the south side of the mountain,

to

he announced his

array to the ground which the cavalry were already occupjTng.

even hearing the sound of firing against the

and

for the display

action of the whole army, he ordered the division he had brought with

form upon

skir-

It

some gardens and other inclosures which might be used

to the right,

on

and some

was on the whole to his advantage,
the ground which the enemy quitted, and saw the

mishing took place between the cavalry.
for

;

his army, stiU

drawn

he reached a tract of ground at

and fragments of

its

which the

rocks, that cavalry, in

enemy's main superiority consisted, could not act upon

up,

Here he halted

it.

opposite to the French camp, at the distance of about a mile and a half, expect-

ing that the defiance which he thus threw out would be accepted.
time, perceiving that the
to skirt the
as to

give

have

mountain

it

him one

on the

till

enemy

still

remained

quiet,

he again moved, intending

he should arrive opposite to the

right.

The

effect of this

of the strongest possible positions.

After some

fort,

and then turn

movement would have been
While the

tract of

so

to

mountain

—

XI

CiiAP.

THE CONTENDING FORCES.

I

debris secured his left flank, he not only

on

of the fort

his right,

sally of the garrison,

their batteries in the town,

when

advisable.

He might

had thi'own up

d. itoo.

Tiie

Kreucu

any

enemy from

all

entrenchments and other defences

tlie

iu front of their position entirely useless.

than he penetrated the object of
it,

a

and attack them with the whole army, either on the

though he had failed to anticipate this movement, no sooner saw

venting

it

tire

then, if necessary,

reinforced, drive the

sufticiently

flank or iu the rear, thus rendering
whicli they

would have the protection of the

but could not be prevented from throwing into

number of troops that might be deemed
by a

()^7

it

and, as the only effectual

;

it

commenced

means of now

The camp,

determined no longer to delay the encounter.

Lally,

as if

it

pre-

had

been suddenly aroused from a state of lethargy, beat to arms, and the troops

were seen issuing forth to occupy the ground in

marked out

front,

which had previously been

as a battle-field.

whole French force di*awn out consisted of 2250 Europeans, of

Tlie

whom

force.

Besides these, 150 Europeans

300 were cavalry and 1300 sepoys.

sepoys continued at the batteries against the

3000 horse

service to guard their

own camp, and remain on
The

of pillaging the British baggage.

On

The Mahrattas numbered

fort.

but instead of taking part in the action, they considered

;

the right the European cavalry

and 300

it

sufficient

the watch for an o])portunity

was

Frencii order of battle

as follows:

next, the regiment of Lorraine, musteiing

;

400

men next

again, the Indian battalion,

400,

whose

were under a tank, which had been retrenched, and in which

;

left

700

;

were posted 300 men, chiefly miu-ines from Count

who had

and

lastly, Lally's

d' Ache's

regiment,

squadron, or soldiers

returned after failing to relieve Masulipatam. Another tank, in the rear

of the retrenched one,

from Kurpa.

was occupied by 400

Tlie rest of the se])oys,

sepoys,

whom

Bussy had brought

900 in number, were ranged behind a

At each extremity of this ridge
Europeans.
Of the artillery, in all six-

ridge which ran along the front of the camp.

was a

retrenclnnent, guarded

by

fifty

teen field-pieces, fom* were placed in the retrenched tank, and the remainder in
sections of three each

The

British

between the

army

different bodies of troops forming the line.

consisted of

1

900 Europeans, including eighty cavalry,

1250 black horse, and 2100 sepoys, and was ranged in three distinct
the

first

centre,

On

were Coote's regiment on the

right, the

and Draper's regiment on the

left

;

all

Company's two battalions

all

In

iu the

these without their grenadiers.

the flanks of this line were 1800 sepoys, 900 on each.

were

lines.

In the second line

the grenadiers of the anny, amounting to 300, and having on each

flank 100 sepoys.

The

third line

peans occupying the centre.
field-pieces, a little in

was formed by the

Two

cavalry, the eight}' Euro-

companies of sepoys stood apart, with two

advance of the

left

of the

first line.

The

artillery consisted

of twenty-six field-pieces.

The action was commenced by Lally

in pei-son.

While the British were

marcliing up, and before they were within cannon-shot, he put himself at the

^he

Brit:»ii

G28
A

D. iTio

I

of india.

ni.sTon\

|ii.K,K

head of the European cavalry, and, after a large sweep of the

As soon

(lash at the third line.

plain,

two guns, were ordered

to fall back at an

angle which woidd enable them to take the attacking cavalry in flank

Wiiii.iiw.ij^i.

made a

as his intention "was perceived, the sepr>ys of

the separate detachmerit, with their

L;iiij'8

iii.

At the same time the black
made a show of wheeling round

a.s

they

were approaching

horse, thus tiireatened to

attacked in

to face the enemy, but only,

rear,

and apparently of

be

threw themselves into confusion that they might

set pur]r)Ose,

The eighty Europeans, thus left alone, prepared notwithstanding to receive the charge.
Fortunately for them it was unnece.ssary.
The two guns of the sepoys, admirably managed by Captain Barkei*, opened

have a pretext for

flight.

with

on the attacking

svich

effect

they galloped

that

party,

having accomplished or even attempted anything.
no choice but to follow the

fugitives.

A

them impatient under the

The regiment of
their assailants

effect

and

Lally,

they were sustaining

The engagement was soon

line.

Lorraine, formed in a column twelve in front, advanced

were within

fifty

both on the front and flanks.

who by his
yards, when they

orders reserved their
fired

The colmnn though staggered did not

way and

by a shot exploded,

tank immediately abandoned

killed.

•

i

it.

With the whole of Draper's regiment and
it

sepoy.s.

Coote ordered Major Brereton to advance

i

just carried

wounding eighty men.
number of those posted in the

Their example was followed by the 400

this confusion,

in

killing or

Such was the consternation produced, that a large

To take advantage of

conflict at the

About the same time a tumbril

fled in disorder.

the retrenched tank struck

Brereton

stop,

It did not last long, for the column, unable to sustain

point of the bayonet.

Major

fire

a volley with deadly

and in an instant the two reiriments were minted in dreadful
the shock, gave

on returning

Their impatience was seconded by his

almost at a run against Coote's regiment,
till

;

loss wliich

impetuosity, and he gave the order to advance.

general along the whole

had

cannonade had in the meantime com-

without being brought to close quarters.

own

without

Lally, thus left alone,

menced. The sui)enority was decidedly with the British
to his infantry, found

ofl'

.seize

with great gallantry when he

fell

the retrenched tank.

He had

The

mortally wounded.

posses-

sion of the tank exposed the left flank of Lallys regiment, which, as soon as

two

field-pieces

now

all

it,

but

lost to

was taken

little

were brought

upon

it,

began to waver.

making a

the French, and Bussy, in

prisoner.

resistance,

to play

gallant effort to retrieve

The other wing and centre of the enemy's

and the sepoys who were posted behind the

ordered to advance, refused to obey.

Lally,

now

ance was useless, abandoned his camp, which the

without opposition.

Had

army must have been

The day was

ridge,

on being

convinced that further
victoi-s

resist-

immediately entered

Coote's black horse been worth an3^thing the French

utterly dispersed

cautiously aloof, overawed

fine offered

by the steady

;

but instead of charging they kept
front of the

anxious to redeem the disgrace of their early

flight,

European cavalry, who

enabled Lally to effect the

J

FURTHER SUCCESSES OF COOTE.

Chap. XI.

On

retreat in tolerable order.

whole

Tiie

[)uted at

loss

foi-t

and ha.stened

in charge of the batteries,

left

passing the

629

he was joined by the party ad,

off in the direction of Chittapet.

was coniamounted

of the French, in killed, wounded, and prisoners,

The

GOO Europeans.

killed

koo.

and wounded of the

British

only to 190.
Lallv,
•^
(.'hittapet

^°^^
continuing
1
o captures
® his retreat, committed the seiious blunder of quitting
without reinforcing it and Coote, on whom no advantage was ever chittai.et.
;

thrown away, determined

commanded

;

it.

In

was ordered

at Coverypauk,

invest the fort of Arcot
the country

to capture

and

1

tlie

meantime Captain Wood, who,

advance with his garrison and

to

000 of the black

iiorse

between Alumparva and Pondicherry,

were sent south

to ravage

in retaliation for the previous

devastations committed by the French and their Mahratta allies in the districts
of the English
in

Company.

Both expeditions were

successful.

though they had proved wortldess on the

particular,

excellent marauders,

eighty-four villages.

and returned with 8000 head of

The black horse
of battle, were

field

cattle, after

having burned

In giving such details one naturally thinks of the fearful

amoimt of misery which must have been endured by the native peasantry,
while thus involuntarily made parties to a war in the issue of which they had
no
1

interest.

700,

Chittapet was invested by a detachment on the 2(jth of January,

and made only a show of

resistance.

On

when

the 29th,

the whole

army

encamped within cannon-shot, a battery of two eigh teen-pounders was com-

menced and completed
the

by

fire

At

in the course of the night.

five the

opened, and proved so efiective that the breach

eleven.

The

garrison, consisting of only fifty-six

had no idea of standing an

assault,

next morning

was nearly

practicable

Europeans and 300

and surrendered at

sepoj's,

The same

discretion.

day Innis Khan, deterred at the com'se of events, quitted the Carnatic with

all

Ins ^iahrattas.

On
defence

the 1st of February Coote arrived before Arcot.

by Clive the works

of the fort had been

much

Since the celebrated
imj)roved.

The

mostly in the solid rock, had been dug to an unifonn de])th of six feet

and covered way had been carried entirely round

;

;

ditch,

a glacis

and from the middle of the

communicating with the fort by a gate with a drawbridge, projected.
The siege immediately commenced, and the fire of three batteries was opened on the 5th. Owing
to a want both of artillery and ammunition not much progi-ess was made.
The
north side of the covered way, a strong ravelin, mounting six guns and

by the 9th not only had the sap
but two breaches had been made to within six

approaches, however, were pushed on, and

reached very near the glacis,
feet of the

much remained to be done and the
unexhausted, when Coote was greatly but agreeably

bottom of the rampart.

means of defence were

still

Still

surprised at receiving a voluntary offer of sin-render.

an-anged, and the gi'enadiers of the
possession of the gates.

The

;

The terms were soon

army were allowed next morning

garrison, consisting of 247 Europeans,

to take

and nearly

•^''^"^

illSTOUV

6'*J<>

A.P. 1T60

as

many

IxNDIA.

i)l-

sepoys, had not lost three men,

LJ>>oK Jll

and might

liave held out for ten

days

longer before the assault could have been risked

The

resources were almost exhausted,
coote rejects

from Mortiz

treasury did

t,he

betwecu

tlic civil

tlie fruits

army

now gloomy

prospects of the French were

little

of his victory.

bitter (luarrels

Ali,,

had, after the capture of Arcot,

encamped

he might be called to account for the suspicious,

reap

Bi-itish

in that direction, feared that
if

not hostile course which he

for

levy tribute.
of

t<j

some time pursued, and sent Coote a sum of 30,000 rupees. He refased
stating that he was not authorized either by the nabob or the presidency to

had
it,

and recriminations

on iiearing that the

in Vellore,

Their

for replenishing

Coote meanwhile continued

autiiorities.

Mortiz

the extreme.

and the schemes suggested

more than revive

and military

in

homage

Mortiz Ali replying that

to a great

was a present

it

commander, according

to the

to himself, as a

custom of the

mark

country-, the

money was accepted, but only to be added to the general stock of the prizemoney of the army The honom-able contrast which Coote's conduct on this
occasion presents to that of the civil and military authorities in Bengal, when
similarly tempted, will not be overlooked.

Coote marched from Chittapet on the

His continueJ suei

ceases.

29tli at

m-

Tindvvanum, a place of

large resort, situated at the junction of several

roads leading to Pondicheiry, from whicli

The

object of this

February, and arrived on the

26tli of

it is

only twent3''-five miles distant.

march could not be misunderstood

;

and the French, who had

commenced the war in the full confidence of establishing an imdisputed supremacy, became aware that their next struggle must be for existence. To prepare
for the worst, they endeavoured to obtain possession of all the commanding posts
in the vicinity.
One of the most important of these was the fort of Pennacoil,
situated about eighteen miles north-west of PondicheiTj^
its

position

and

its

strength of protecting the intervening

previously been in a great measure overlooked
at

and capable both from

;

and induced the

it,

native governor to admit a party of French with some cannon into

and

Ai'cot,

had

but immediately after the defeat

Wandiwash, Lally saw the use which might be made of

the capture of Chittapet

It

territory".

it.

After

suspecting that he had committed himself

to the losing party, he wrote Coote, pretending that the

French had gained

him in ousting them. It seemed
worth while to put his sincerity to the test and hence, when the rest of the army
was on the way to Tindyvanum, Coote had preceded them with most of the
admittance by surprise, and offering to

assist
;

cavalry,

and two companies of sepoys, and advanced as

consisted, as usual, of a pettali or town,

mud

walls,

and the

latter

the height of 300 feet at

the other.

for a siege.

little

avail

fort

;

the former

PermacoiL

its

narrow end, and
all

had the

to

gi-adually lowering to 200 feet at

the assistance he had promised

garrison,

It

smTOunded with

crowning the summit of a precipitous rock, rising

The governor gave

have been of

and a

far as

;

but

it

would

though smaU, been properly provided

Shortly after the attack began their

fire

slackened from want of

COOTE'S CONTINUED SUCCESSES.

Chap. XI.]

ammunition.

Still,

derable loss of

life

631

however, they maintained the defence manfully at a consi-

to the besiegers,

many

Lally on this, as on

and

a.d. itoo.

days elapsed before they surrendered.

six

other occasions,

was only a

little

A

too late.

large

detachment was actually on the way to throw
reinforcement of

a considerable
the

into

stores

when

fort,

men and
of

intelligence

Coote's approacii frustrated the design.

The reduction of the

still

in pos-

French might now be considered

session of the

as

places

merely a work of time, and the British
attack

to

j)roceeded

MJmost unvarying success.
hideed,

by

Lally, that

fort

after

fort

It

with

affirmed,

is

had they, instead of

directing their attention to subordinate objects,

marched

might

liave

du'eet

upon Pondicherry, they

made themselves masters

On

eight days.

of

it

in

such a subject he ought to

be a good authority; but as he makes this

statement

when

was

his object

to

show how

shamefully the authorities had acted in not
providing better for

defence, it

its

may

he

Sepoys,

Bengal Army. — From

Solvyn,

L«s Htndouf.

presumed that there was some exaggeration

...

differently, and therefore acted more cautiou.sly bv not
Coote thought
°
"
attempting to take Pondicheny till it was rendered in a manner defencein

it.

•'

by the capture of all the places from which it might have drawn assistThough the French squadron had long been withdrawn from the coast,
ance.
less,

and that of the British been reinforced to a strength which
before possessed,
or

some more

it

was not impossible

enteqiri.sing

that, as

naval commander,

a

last resource,

might make

it

liad

never

Count d'Ache,
his

appearance

from the Mam-itius, or directly from France, and by throwing in supplies
enable Pondicherry to maintain a protracted defence.
fore,

that

all

It

desirable, there-

These places on the Coromandel

were now only two: Alumparva to the north of PondicheiTV, and Carrical
Coote,

to the south.

still

suffering from a

Permacoil, intrusted the siege of

Alumparva

wound which
to

built of stone,

third day.

made

same time

and inclosed by a wet

he had received at

Major Monson.

on the 10th of March, and though a place of some strength.

tions

was

the places where sucli ships could rendezvous, and enjoy even a

temporary protection, should be reduced.
coa.st

It

was invested

liaN-ing a fort solidly

ditch, surrendered at discretion

on the

more consequence, the preparawere on a greater scale. As it was intended at the

Carrical being considered a place of
for besieging

to

an army as possible near Pondicherry, in order
supplies from tlie suiTOunding country, some difficulty was

maintam

to intercept all

it

as large

^'^v*-^""
(if

places

.

aronn.i ron-

Ill

A.D. 1760.

OF INDIA.

IIISTOltY

(;;3'2

found in j)rocuring

hucIi

a force as was judged ade<juate.

ciency 300 marines were obtained from the
artillerymen, 1000 sepoys,

and

fleet,

six field-pieces

and the King of 1 anjore was
Captuiv of

[Look

J

To

III.

Buj^ply tlie defi-

00 European

firelock.s,

were l^rought from

foity

^'ricliinf^ixdy,

and eveiy kind of
Major Monson, who was again to c<^;mmand, having emljarked with

assistance.

refpiested to .send his army,

Ciirrioal

a party of troops from Alumparva, anchored in the road of Can-ical on the 28th
of March, and

was

which had sailed from Madras with the
appointment was

same evening, by a squadron

joined, in the course of the

stores.

Considerable

di.s-

was discovered that the King of Tanjore had paid
no attention to the request made to him, and that none of the expected reinforcements had yet arrived.
It was determined, notwithstanding, to effect a
felt

when

and

artillery

and commence the

landing,

it

nece.s.sary

of defence had been greatly oveiTated.

was

regularly constructed, but

foii in
its

was

works.

The

It sopn

in the form of a parallelogram,

fort,

of such limit'ed dimen.sions as to be rather a

miniature than one for actual service.

breadth only 50 yards.

appeared that the means

This, indeed,

Its

whole length was 100, and

was exclusive of the

each angle, but these admitted only three guns in their
this defect each of the four curtains

guns.

On

had been

To compensate

faces.

was covered by a

one at

bastion.s,

mounting

ravelin

six

the 5th of April, ten days after the landing, a considerable breach

effected

;

and though much remained

could be obtained, the governor was

to be done before acce-ss to

summoned

expectation he expressed his readiness to do

so,

it

Contraiy to

to suirender.

provided he were allowed to

was refused he made no furtlier
The besiegers
objection, and resigned the place without firing another shot.
Only three men had been killed in the
could scarcely credit their success.
"When

march out with the honours of war.

attack,

and

"Never, perhaps," says Orme, "was

five in the defence.

an armament prepared

this

to succeed

with so

little

lo.s.s,

excepting

.so

great

when De La-

bourdonnais took Madi'as in 1746."
French
treaty witii

Hyder

Aii.

Tlic Capture
of these
'

maritime places was followed by that of Yaldore and
^

^

others, SO that

places of

Pondicherry was in a manner

any consequence, not in

]iossession,

its

hemmed

immediate

in on eveiy

;

menced

in earnest.

blow to French power

Lally on his part was not

every quarter from which

it

in India,

idle,

if

Hyder

French

accomplished

was now

and turned

to be com-

his attention to

seemed possible that aid could be drawn.

other quarters, he thought of Mysore.

and no

These, however, could not

be any obstacle to the siege of Poudicheny and this task, which
finishing

;

vicinity, I'emained in the

except the forts of Gingee and Thiagur.

would give the

.side

AJi, destined to

make an

Among
impor-

tant figure in Indian warfare, had succeeded in u.snrping the whole power of the

With him Lally opened a communication through the intervenof a Portuguese monk, who bore the title of Bishop of Halicarnassus, and

government.
tion

was not unwillmg

to

employ the influence which he acquired in

cliaracter for political purposes.

Through him the bargain which

his religious

enlisted the

FRENCH TREATY WITH HYDER ALL

XL]

Chap.

Mahrattas in the French service had been concluded, and

633

was

it

therefore not

a.d. itgo.

unlikely that he would be able to conclude a similar bargain with the Mysoreans.

Hyder
was

Ali,

though virtual ruler of Mysore, did not

therefore anxious to possess

some place of strength on the

frontiers, in whicli

Thiagur was

he might always be certain of finding an impregnable asylum.
just such a place

which he agreed
asore, which,

and he was therefore

;

'•

by

easily induced to enter into a treaty

that, in return for the cession of the forts of

with their dependencies,

and

feel perfectly secure,

Thiagur and Elvan-

were to remain the property of the My-

soreans in perpetuity, as long as the flag of France existed in India," he wouhl

immediately furnish a body of 2000 horse and 3000 sepoys, to be employed in
the French service,

and paid at the rate of 100,000 rupees a month.

delivery of Thiagur he

was

to supply

an additional 1000 horse and 2000 sepoys.

All these forces, united with those of the French,

clearing the Carnatic,

After the

and afterwards

were to be

in conquering

first

employed

Madura and Tinnevelly.

These countries when conquered were to belong absolutely to Hyder
was, moreover, to receive nearly a half of

The

secret of this negotiation
®

all

in

who

Ali,

the Caniatic conquests.

had been

that the
so well kept,
'

Madras

pre^

^Tivai
of Mysore

_

sidency heard of

it

time on the 24th of May, while they were busy

for the first

with the preparations for the complete blockade of Pondicherry.
believed to be an idle rumour, which Lally had set afloat for

purpose; but
first

all

doubt on the subject was

set at rest

Pondicheny

small parties had passed undiscovered from

In this

way 200 Europeans

accompanying the M3^soreans in

first it

was

some concealed

actual arrival of the

Meanwhile

Mysore troops at Thiagiu- on the 4th of June.

division of the

to Thiagur.

by the

At

troops

to Gingee,

and thence

been assembled for the purjiose of

liad

march

their future

to Pondicherry.

Attempts

were made to interrupt their progress, but they dexterously avoided an encounter

by changing

their course,

and on the 23d of Jiuie an-ived

They had been cumbered with an immense convoy of
bringing 2000 head as far as Trivadi.
of

them were here

left

safely at Ariancoopan.

cattle,

and succeeded

in

In order to hasten on, the greater pait

behind, and idtimately not more than 300 airived at

Pondicheny.

The Mysoreans who had arrived were onlv 1 ')00 cavalry, and had been sent
forward by Hyder Ali, not so much in fulfilment of the treaty, as to obtain a
formal ratification of
sibility

;

Lally had carried on the negotiation on his

it.

but as a rumour of his

recall

the

all

members

of council.

to the

Lally,

own

They

mean subterfuge
by drawing up a

signatm*e,

Vol.

it.

I.

responinsisted

by him, but by Deleyrit the governor,

This placed them in a kind of dilemma.

professed to disapprove of the terms of the treaty,
lose the benefit of

own

had become prevalent, Hyder Ali

that the treaty should be signed not only

and

*'

*

*'

therefore signed

;

They

and yet were unwilling

to

but at the .same time had recourse

of endeavouring to throw the whole responsibility on
secret document, in

and embodied

all

which they protested against their

their objections.

As soon

as the treaty
80

was

-^

°"*''''"

force
<iefeafe<i

I

6.3 i

A.D. 1700.

llItiTOKy Ol' INDIA.

[B«^oK Hi,

Mysoreans went away, {promising a Hpeedy return with their

signed, all the

whole force and abundance of provisions.

word;

for

They were even better than
but gained a victory by the way. Their

they not only arrived,

consisting of 1000 horse,

French army,

had arrived within sight of Trivadi,

when they were encountered by Major Moore, who had gone
European infantry, 50

The manifest

sepoys.

before risking a battle

;

f«.>rce,

1000 sepoys, and 200 Europeans or topasses of the

witii eight pieces of cannon,

at the head of 180

tlieir

inferiority of

to intercept

huasars, 1000 black hoi-se,

them

and 1100

numbers should have made Moore paase

but either because he was not in a condition to refase

or from over- confidence, he attempted to stand

liis

it,

ground, and owing to some

unexplained mischance or misconduct, sustained a disgraceful and total defeat

The Mysoreans were afterwards allowed
their arrival at Pondicherry

deserved
less

it

;

were received with a long

and on

They

salute of cannon.

what was

besides the troops, they brought,

for,

justly

deemed

ntjt

important, 3000 l^uUocks, carrying their baggage and drawing their artillery,

and 3000 more laden with
Ci>ote

to proceed without inten-uption,

When Moore met with

rice

and other

provisions.

the above disaster, Coote

was encamped with

his

army

captures
Villenore.

at the foot of the hill of Perimbd, preparing for the siege of Villenore, a fort

about

W.S.W. of Pondicherry, and now the only

five miles

the complete investment of
arrived,

would make every

serious obstacle to

Believing that Lally, as soon as the Mysoreans

it.

effort to

save this

fort,

he proceeded, with that happ}'

union of enterprise and caution which charactei'ized

all

his

movements,

to

strengthen his position by a redoubt and several retrenchments judiciously
selected, so as

both to protect his army in the event of an attack by superior

numbers, and furnish a basis for offensive operations.
not unnecessary

for after the

;

His precautions were

Mysoreans arrived, Lally, detennined to

lose

no

time in relieving Villenore, set out for that purpose at the head of the whole

he could muster.

forces

His numbers were

far superior to the British,

and he

had every prospect of compelling Coote either to raise the siege of the fort, or
risk an action under vmfavourable circumstances in order to maintain it.
Lally s
bad fortune

still

attended him.

The

garrison,

though few in numbers, and

moment "with assault, might easily have stood out for two days.
The commandant thought otherwise, and hung out a flag of truce, which was

threatened every

instantly followed
prise,

by

surrender.

but of course produced very different sensations.

very moment when he
Lilly's

The event took both armies equally by

of his career he

least

expected

had never been

it,

sur-

Coote, successful at the

declared that during the whole course

who had

arrived within

so fortunate.

Lally,

when he saw

the British flag flying on the

disappointv.iant.

cannon-shot,

was

horror-sti-uck

ramparts, and hastened back to seek the protection of the guns of Aiiancoopan.
Coote, shortly after the capture of Villenore, having been reinforced

by 700

of the

nabob's force, and 500 of his cavalry, marched up to the bound hedge with almost
all his

native troops, but without any Europeans.

His object was to

tr}"

the

J

COOTE BEFORE PONDICHEEKY.

Chap. XI.

635

temper and courage of the Mysoreans by defying them to an encounter with ad.
tlieir

own countrymen.

irco.

Previous events had discouraged them, and they decHned

the challenge.

The junction of the Mysoreans with the French was not

so formidable in its

^'.vw.reaiiB

finally quit

direct as in its indirect consequences.

marauding

lected in the face of

parties,

The nabob's revenues could not be coland yet there was no other source fi-om

Pomudierr)'

which the funds necessary to cairy on the war could be obtained, as the directors at

home had intimated

presidency, instead of being able, as the directors imagined, to

had been obliged to borrow largely

the other presidencies,

Pecuniary emban'as.sments, however, was
for

now

meet the wants

for its

own

of

necessities.

the only danger to be feared,

reinforcements were arriving from different quarters, and in particular,

towards the beginning of August, six

000

and the Bengal

their resolution not to supply them,

men

Company

drafted from regiments in England.

rapidly becoming weakened.

ships

amved, having on board

The French, on the

The Mysoreans, increased

contrary, were

about 10,000, were

to

unable to render any service ecpial to the monthly pay for which they had
stipulated

;

and, notwithstanding their dexterity as marauders,

want

felt

No

own consumption.

[)rovisions sufficient for their

thin their ranks.

The

among

wiien they should

deem

at last,

horse, possessing better
it

when they found

narrowed, the greatest

expedient, remained

of the whole

from the glacis of Pondicheny.

.

from British detachments before
those

who had

alliance.

Desertions in

the sepoys, as greatly to
of regaining their

homes

steadily at their posts, but

communications with the open country gradually

their

})art

means
more

bring in

sooner was the pressure of

than they began to repent of their French

consequence became so numerous, particulai-ly

ftiiled to

body suddenly decamped

They were hotly
they made their

moved

off,

and

one night

much

pursued, and suffei-cd

A

escape.

remained, as well as a division of oOO

steps in order to elude pursuit,

in

few nights

who had

in a short time not

after,

retraced their

one M3'sorean

remained.

The time seemed now arrived

for establishing a oomi^lete

blockade of Pondi-

Prcimratioiis
for besieging

_

cherry both

by

sea

bound hedge, with

and

its

land.

It

was

necessar}'

for

this purpose that the

redoubts, should be in possession of the British army, and

that the squadron should remain on the coast even during the approaching

mon.soon.

Coote thought

should be captured.

Europeans;

but

it

The

it.

moreover, necessary that the fort of Ariancoopan

force necessary for this purpose

was estimated

at

SOO

seemed doubtful whether such a number could be safely

witiidrawn from the camp, which mustered in

all,

inclusive of garrison

detachments, only 2000 European and GOOO native troops.

It

was

and

therefore

army from being too much weakened, to
squadron on shore. They amounted in all to 422

determined, in order to prevent the

employ the marines of the

Europeans, and were landed at Cuddalore on the 27tii of August.
seasonable reinforcement

II

Another

was obtained on the 2d of September, by the

arrival

it.

G30

AD

1760.

OK INDIA.

IIISTOllV

of several

Company

[B^JOK III,

having on board part of a Highland regiment

ships,

were under convoy of three ships of war, two of them of sixty guns
joined to the other

increased the whole stjuadron

shi])s

under the command of Admiral Stevens, to seventeen

The joy caused by the

Cooto super

now

sail

They
These

each.

before Pondicherry,

of the

line.

and troops was much damped

arrival of tliese ships

xeduii in
conniiaiiil

l)y

the commissions which they brought from the

by Coldiifl
Muiisou.

and Monson

Jirereton

very moment

The

triumph.

appointing Majors

Office,

lieutenant-colonels, with prior date to the commission of

This distinguished

Colonel Coote.

War

when he was

officer

was thus

preparing to crown

virtually superseded at the

done him was, however, rather accidental than premedi-

injustice

been issued under the belief that he was actually serving, or at
serve there, as the

new

colonels

met a

soldier's

Major Brereton had, as we have

coa.st.

death at Wandiwash.

Monson was

have done himself honour by continuing

to serve

at his post,

still

under Coote as

temporary obscuration of rank, however, was too great a
utmost which he could bring himself to propose was to
could not be listened

and Coote, immediately

to,

least aVjout to

were expressly ordered not to assert their com-

missions while he remained on the

when

the presidency alleged that

declared that on

He may

its

have made

it

command

this declaration the

forces for

an expiring

secrecy, that Coote,

unaware

till

in

many

spies in

On

the attack actually commenced.

horse,

and 900

troops,

amounting

sepoys, ha'sdng

Monson even
would be raised
Being per-

surprise.

siege,

he mustered

to

the 4th of September the

1400 Eiu-opean infantrj^ 100

camp

in four divisions, to take

had been previously assigned them.

in the rear of the camp, did not an'ive in time to

the concerted signal was given;
the expected diversion was not

a partial success, to
Monson

and the other

made

own

in the

plans.

His

all,

divisions,

in their favour,

as

it

attack

disappointed

were obliged,

after

retire.

the objections of Monson,
his

By some

commence the

The intended attempt on Ariancoopan had been abandoned

woundeil

much

so

Pondicherry, was totally

mistake, the division which ought to have been the most effective of

when
when

all his

marched out of the town, and passed

the boundary hedge, approached the British
possession of the post which

beliind,

it

was concerted with some skiU and

though he had

whole of Lally's disposable

European

It

to

more readily in consequence of a bold

no condition to stand a

effort.

of the

could not be wanted, and

departure the blockade of Pondicherr}-

aware that he was

This

meant

of course he

attempt which LaUy made to take the British camp by
fectly

and the

retire to Madras.

As a matter

to him, prepared to sail for Bengal.

This

before.

sacrifice,

g'i\^ng over the

seen,

and might

take his regiment along with him, but generously consented to leave

was

final

Coote had been originally appointed to Bengal, and the commi.ssions had

tated.

army

by a

his exploits

all

first

who was now
object

was

able to caiTy on

tjie

to seize the four redoubts

openings of the bound hedge, and

commanded

in deference to

siege according to

which were placed

the leading avenues to

I

OPERATIONS AGAINST PONDIUIIERRY.

XL]

Chap.

the town.

With

his failure.

The

637

view a night attack was resolved, and would have com- ad.
pletely succeeded but for a blunder similar to that to which Lally had owed
this

rear of one of the leading divisions becoming separated

management from the

van, caused so

much delay

first

The

fire.

shot from a twenty-fom* pomider, double loaded with langi-age, killed

men and wounded

eleven

by mis-

that daylight began to ap})ear,

and enabled the defenders of one of the redoubts to open a murderous
very

Among

twenty-six.

the latter

was Colonel Monson

struck with a piece of iron which broke both the bones of his

himself,

ireo

Notwithstanding
& this disaster two of the redoubts were

leg.

carried.

wound might have been followed by fatal results to the
»
The officer next in command was a Major Rolert Gordon, who had

Colonel Monson's
.

•

1

i)esiegers.

more than once absented himself from
in other respects

incompetent.

C'>ote
rtstmiies

the

commauii.

hoir of danger, and was

his post in the

Fortunately Coote had not yet sailed for Bengal,

and readily consented, at the request both of Monson and the presidency, to
resume the command, and
arrived only in time.
of the redoubts,

by

General discontent

finish the

work which he had

so well begun.

He

Gordon, as obstinate as ignorant, had risked the recapture

refusing to take the advice of a Miser officer than himself
also,

produced by a deficient supply of provisions and sick-

Under Coote's skill and vigorous command the
Of the two remaining redoubts in the bound
gathering clouds disappeared.
hedge one was volmitarily abandoned by the enemy without a struggle, and the
In consequence
other forced, though not without some loss to the assailants.
ness,

had begun

to prevail.

of these successes the whole of the

bound hedge was

in possession of the be-

who were thus enabled to convert one of the main defences of the town
into a new means of annoyance.
October had now arrived, and active operations were necessarily postponed in

siegers,

the prospect of the approaching monsoon.

\^

^11

This temporary cessation of hostilities,

liowever, afibrded no real relief to Pondicherry

Provisions had begun to

fail,

Ponaioiierry
blocka.led.

.

Its

worst eneni}' was within.

and unless new supplies could be obtained, famine

must soon compel a sun-ender.

To diminish the consumption, Lally proposed the

immediate expulsion of the black inhabitants, but the general coimcil which be
assembled to consider the subject did not see the necessity of the case so strongly
as he did,

and broke up without a

decision.

Many

of the Eiu'opean families,

liowever, obtained Coote's permission to pass without interruption to the

or

Dutch settlements on the

cocost.

The attempts made by Lally
resoui'ce

(lingee,
liearts

to obtain provisions general!}- failed.

he entered into a negotiation with the Mahrattas,

their appearance, in the

Wiis offered

who had

As
.

again

hope of turning the course of events to their own

which had once belonged

were

Danish

to them,

was the great

a last

the aid of

made
profit,

object on which their

and Balajee Rao must have been strongly tempted when he
500,000 rupees in hand the moment he should appear with his anny.
set,

and the cession of Gingee as soon as the siege of Pondicherry' should be

Laii.v «eek»

raised.

theMnh

638
AD.

1700.

Tlie Maliiiitta

was

eliiel'

too cautions

protracted the negotiation

Preparations were

cniei treat-

OF INDIA.

IIISTOIIY

and wily

to

c(jJuiiiit liinisfclf

the oj)poi'tunity was

till

now made

tf>

[Book

!li.

at once,

aii<l

lost,

convert the hlockade of Pondicherry into a

iiient of tlie

natives.

November a

regular siege, and on the IGth of

sary stores arrived from Madras.

vessel laden

with

seeing these preparations, could no

Lally,

made more

longer consent to postpone the execution of the proposal he had

than a month before, and turned out of the gates

tlie

whole of the natives, with

number

the exception of a few retained as domestics, to the
sexes and all ages.

They made

their

would be permitted

to pass, but

it

than that of their expulsion.

less

way

was

refused,

400, of both

glaci.s,

them back

ruth-

and

;

When

imploring re-admi.ssion.

some attempted to clamber over into the covered way, and were

upon and

fired

1

meet with treatment more

British outposts drove

they gathered in despair at the foot of the
it

to

of

boundary hedge, hoj>ing they

to the

was only
The

the neces-

all

Seven days the wi-etched

killed.

between the town and the British

.survivors

and with no food

posts without shelter,

The

except the roots of grass which they picked up.

kept wandering

guilt of this

honid inhu-

manity was shared both by besiegers and besieged, but by no means in an equal
Lally could plead necessity for what he had done

degree.

Coote could plead

;

nothing but the advantage which he might gain by an act of horrid inhumanit}'.
Foiu" ricoclict battcrles, intended only to hai'ass the garrison

Adisastniis

by a

cro.ss fire

of ricochet shot along the streets and ramparts, were opened near midnight ot

the

of December, and continued their

8tli

ammunition expended upon
tlie

it,

though

when very

fatigue of the garrison

on an allowance of a pound of

certainly

it

little

rice a day,

scarcely

had the

able to bear

with a

the six

intervals durins:

and was

It did very little execution,

following days.

at

fire

worth the

effect of increasing

They had been put
meat at intervals but

it.

little

;

even this limited consumption so much exceeded some casual supplies by
that

by the end

more than three

of

all

At

days.

unexpected quarter.
squadron, in

December the public

On

twelve

store did not contain provision for

this time, however,

were riding

in

from an

760, while the British

Pondicheny Koad, a sudden hurricane

1000 Europeans belonging to them perished.
to the sea.
;

The

disasters

were not confined

camp were blown to
was destroj'ed and the

All the tents and temporary caserns of the

the ammunition brought out for immediate

sea breaking over the beach,

boundary hedge, ruined
Gloomy

1

relief

Six of the vessels foundered, or were driven ashore, and no fewer than

arose.

pieces

they derived some

the very last day of the year

sail,

sea,

all

u.se

;

and ovei"flowing the whole

tract as far as the

the batteries and redoubts w^hich the

The inhabitants of Pondicherry, when the sun

army had

rose clear the next

raised

morning

prosjiects at
roii.iicherry.

and sliowcd them the general devastation, regarded
Heaven.

Had

only 300

men been

they would not have found
however, was impossible.

1

able to

it

as a deliverance from

march out three hours

00 of the besiegers together to

Though the

garrison

after daylight,

resist

had suffered

them.

little,

This,

they could

639

SURRENDER OF PONDICHERRV.

XL]

Chap.

not caiTy their ammunition dry, nor drag the artillery over inundated
could, therefore, do little

They

ships expected with supplies

was dispersed

^s([uadron

newed

eleven

i:gi.

from Madagascar might arrive while the British

Even

or driven from the coast.

these wishes soon failed

re-

PONDICHKRRY
«N0
SVIROMS
ITS

'^_

I

road

their

by

blockaded

again

A.D.

more than give utterance to earnest wishes that

despondency

saw

they

of the line,

sail

consisting
tliose

with

and

them,

fields.

of

chiefly

which had wea-

thered the storm, and
others

which

e.scaped

it

had

by being

at the time at sea be-

yond

The

reach.

its

damaged works

of the

besiegers also were repaired, while the gar-

rison
I)}'"

were

want

they

Scidc

so pressed

7 f.^->..y>»

that,

when

had by a well

a a

a, Fii-st

b b

dd

d,

c c c,

encampment. July 17.
Hodoubts erected, July 18.

b.

Second encampment. Sept.
Third encampment, Oct.

10.

conceived and executed attack carried a redoubt and taken a consideraljle

number of prisoners, Lally, to save the additional drain on his store of provisions, was obliged to make an open confession of approaching famine by sending
them back on

On

their parole.

the 10th of January a battery often guns and three mortal's opened

its Siege and
surrender of

fire,

and trenches were begun on the north

Blancherie, or Bleaching
after a battery

side, just

Town, the houses of w Inch afforded good cover shortly
;

was completed within 450 yards

postpone

to

have thought

it.

it

It

proved unnecessiiry.

Durre,

superior of the Jesuits,

an interpreter.

commandant

They were the

On

the 15th, as the sun

both in

its

It

style

council.

and substance.

which he asserted that the

had

1

or to

50 yards

was

setting,

artillery.

Father Lavaur,
council,

with

two memorials, one signed by Lally,
The one by Lally wsis very charac-

As

if

he had been about to dictate

terms, not to receive them, he set out with a long
" Engli.sh

off"

preceded a deputation, consist-

of the royal

bearei-s of

it

be commenced about

and Moracin and Courtin, membei"S of the

and the other by the governor and
teristic,

their approaching fate,

to

a flag was seen approaching from the town.
ing of Colonel

The garrison

attempt either to ward

useless to

Another battery was about

nearer the walls.

of the walLs.

They saw

scarcely attempted to interrupt these works.

and seem

within the skirt of the

t^iken

and irrelevant preamble,

Chandernagore against the

in

faitii

Poi.dicherry

;

IIISTOKY UF INDIA.

(iM)

AD.

[Book

III.

of the treaties of neutrality wliicli had always suljsisted between the Eiirojx-an

1761.

nations in Bengal, and especially between the English and French;" and that
"

the government of Madras had refused to

eluded between the two crowns."

s.irroniier of

Owing to

the conditions of a cartel con-

fulfil

this conduct it

was "out of his power,

rondiiharry.

as responsible to the court of France, to propo.se

Pondicherry
for

want

;"

any capitulation

for the city of

but "the troops of the king and company surrender themselves,

of provisions, prisoners of

war

to his Britannic majesty, conformably

In consequence of this surrender

to the terms of the cartel."

"

Mr. Coote rnay

to-morrow morning at eight o'clock take possession of the Villenore gate

;

and

on the same hour the next day of the gates of the citadel; and, as he

may

lias

may

the force in his

own

think proper."

This, strictly .speaking, finished Lally's part in the surrender

hands, he

but he continued as follows:
I

demand

that the mother

asylum wheresoever they

dictate such further conditions as he

— "From a

and

shall

principle of ju.stice

sisters of

Rajah

and humanity

alone,

Saliib be permitted to seek

an

think proper, or that they remain prisoners with

the English, and be not delivered into the hands of

Mahomed

Ali Khan,

still

tinged with the blood of the father and husband, which he shed, to the shame

indeed of those

who

delivered

up Chunda Sahib

to him, but to the .shame like-

wise of the commander of the Engli,sh army,

who ought

a barbarity to be committed in his camp."

Lally's

not to have suffered such

memorial concluded with his

consent "that the members of the council of PondicheiTy
sentations on

what may more immediately concern

...

make

their

own

repre-

their particular interests,

and

those of the colony."

The govcmor and council seem

Terms of
capitulation.

obtain

The

all

they wished

it

have determined that

and the

was

own

with everything belonging to them

French

;

"

and that

be destroyed

till

"

and

" their effects

;

;

it.

and mer-

Roman

the churches, the houses of the ecclesias-

whether within or without the

and receive under the English

to ask for

disposal;" that "in their favour the

to be maintained

religious orders,

they did not

were of the following purport:

of the inhabitants be preserved,

cantile goods left to their

Catholic religion

if

would not be because they had omitted

requisitions of their memorial, accordingly,

—That the houses
tics,

to

city,

be preserved,

the missionaries be free to go and come,

ilag the

no buildings or

same protection as they had under the
and no

-part of

the fortifications

the decision of their respective sovereigns."

Coote returned

edifices,

a written answer to Lally's memoi-ial, declining discussion on the subject of

Chandernagore as
ject of dispute,

irrelevant, or to be

bound by a

cartel

which was

still

the sub-

but offering to accept of the surrender at the time stated

;

the

troops becoming prisoners of war, "to be treated at his discretion, which should

not be without humanity.'"

As

to the

mother and

sisters of

Rajah Sahib, they

"should be escoi-ted to Madras, wdiere proper care should be taken for their safety,

and they should not on any account be delivered into the hands of the Nabob

Mahomed

Ali."

THE BRITISH ENTER PONDICHERRY.

(HAP. XI.]

On

()+l

the IGth of January the gi'enadiers of Coote's regiment took possession a.d

who was

Villenore gate; and in the evening Lally,

of the

by delivering up the

tumult, anticipated the period fixed

apprehensive of

On

citadel.

the

fol-

lowing morning the British flag was hoisted, and saluted by a thousand pieces
_

_

U"i>oi>"i»
rity of Ijilly

_

of cannon, being those of every ship in the road, of all the posts
of the field artillery,

itc.i

and

batteries,

and of the ramparts and defences of Pondicherry.

in

Pondi

There

cannot be a doubt that the surrender was inevitable, as the provisions would
not have sufficed for

No

two days more.

fault could therefore

M. Lally for not protracting an impossible defence,
that the inhabitants generally regarded

him

and yet

be found with

was

it

too evident

as the prime cause of their disaster,

On

and would willingly have wreaked their vengeance upon him.

the third day

when he was about to depart for Madras, about 100 persons, mostly officers, and also two members of council, assembled at the gate,
and the moment he came out in his palanquin, assailed him with hisses, threats,
after the surrender,

and opprobrious

was attacked

after,

that he

by a
It

epithets.

in the

Dubois, the king's commissary, on coming out an hour

same way. Stung at

was ready to answer any

man

of the

name

was a barbarous

The rash challenge was

one.

who

of Defer,

this reception, he stopped

Dubois was an old

assassination, for

instantly accei)ted

him dead at

at the second pass laid

and said

man and

his feet.

short-sighted;

and yet such was the feeling of the bystanders that his death was regarded as a

them would

meritorious act, and not one of

There

detected in the leading

tion

alnises

and meant

officials,

That the knowledge of

this fact

may, without any want of

registrar,

to

and

had something

charity, be inferred

who, the moment the old

man

of

the civil inhabitants were 381

;

;

were in equal abundance.

of this

most imj)ortant capture

mar

;

to

which he had

do with his assassina-

from the conduct of the

came forward and

fell,

the artillery

fit

in

the

seized his papers.

town amounted

for service

to

were 500 pieces

The arms, ammunition, and military

cannon and 100 mortars and howitzers.

stores

irregularities

submit them to the home govern-

They were never heard of afterwards.
The total number of European military taken
2072

Dubois was known

the result not merely of personal hatred.

it,

have taken formal protests against the

ment.

burying him.

reason to believe that this inhumanity was, at least in some of those

is

who manifested
to

assist his servants in

Great were the rejoicings at Madras on account

but amid

all

these rejoicings a delicate question

harmony between the civil and the militjuy
authorities.
To whom did Pondicherry belong ? It was surrendered by Lally
to his Britannic majesty, and so accepted by Coote.
Mr. Pigott understood the

arose,

and threatened

matter differently

;

to

the

and on the fourth day

after the surrender

demanded that

Pondicherry should be delivered over to the Macb-as presidency, as having

become the property of the English

Eiist

India Company.

Coote demurred, and

submitted the demand to a council of war, composed of the leading

army and navy engaged
Vol.

I.

in the capture.

officers

Their opinion was that the

of the

demand

81

Dispute beaii.ithe

presiaoucy.

;

()^2

A.D. 1761.

OK INDIA.

IIISTOJIY

when he found argument

could not be maintained; but Mr. Pigott,
cut the matter

hy intimating

sliort,

[Book

tliat if

III

unavailing,

Pondicheiry were not delivered

tin-

money for the pay of the king's tnxjps, or the .subsistence of the French prisoners.
As there was no other source from which the
necessary funds could be drawn, the council of war had no alternative but i/j
presidency would not funii.sh

yield the point under prote.st.
The

The war which the

fortifi-

British

and French carried on

India had from the

in

cationa of

Pondicheny first

been truly a war of extermination.

demolished.

The existence

powers was deemed

as independent rival

that one or other must perish.

impo.ssible,

when

Accordingly,

two nations there

of the

and both therefore saw

Lally sailed fnnn France at

the head of an expedition which anticipated nothing but a series of triumpiis, he

by

his

government to destroy any British maritime

India that should

fall

into his hands.

was

insti-ucted

po.sse.ssion in

These instructions were intercepted, and

furnished a plausible ground for retaliating the barbarous policy which they

The presidency of Madras,

enjoined.

Pondicherry was

therefore, as .soon as

delivered over to them, is.sued orders for the demolition of

They were

speedily obeyed, and the citadel

and

all

fortifications.

its

the other defences were

converted into heaps of ruins.

With

Annihila-

the

fiiU

of Pondicherry the French

power

in India

was

to all intents

tion of

French

annihilated

ascendency

— the

in India.

;

but three places of some importance

settlement of Mah^, on the Malabar coast,

and Thiagur in the

and the

of Gingee

forts

Telli-

mouth of a stream which descends from

the

Two

of them,

on the south bank of the stream, were crowned with small

forts, Vjut

Western Ghauts.
like itself

remained to be reduced

Mahe, situated seven miles south-east of

Carnatic.

cherry, occupied a height at the

its

still

chief defence

In

immediate vicinity are several

its

was Fort

St.

George, occupying a larger

hills.

hill

on the other bank.

The only dependencies of Mahd were five small forts situated at some distance
to the north, and a factory at Calicut.
In the beginning of Januar}', 1701,
several vessels from England had landed troops at TellicheiTy, to be employed
in the reduction of

dency,

it

Mahe

was necessary

;

but as

it lies

within the limits of the

to have their authorit}'' before

chiefs.

employed by the governor in forming

alliances

The

presi-

and

this

interval

was

attacking

authority did not arrive before the beginning of February.
diligently

Bombay
it,

with the neighbouring

Their assistance was absolutely necessary, for the whole Em'opean mili-

tary available for defence did not exceed 100, while theu* assailants, under Major

Hector Monro, amounted to 900 European and 700 native
chiefs

had promised

liberally,

when

the push

came not a

troops.

single

Though

man

the

appeared

and the governor counted himself fortunate when, instead of being obliged
surrender at discretion, he

efl'ected

a capitulation, which in addition to other

advantages secured to the garrison the
at British expense to the Isle of

viously invested

to

full

Bourbon

honom-s of war, and their conveyance
or to Europe.

by Captain Stephen Smith with

Gingee had been pre-

eight companies of sepoys.

It

was commanded by one

of Lally's officers of the

being summoned, answered, that even

GOO sepoys, and 1000

if

name

of Macgregor, who, on

men

besieged by 100,000

forts

Colleries, or natives of the adjoining hills;

but he

'^

_

_

believed the mountains

would not have been

and one of

|)enalty,

This, however,
out,

tlie

to

even

if

they were really

He

so.

impregnable forts was scaled and taken by

his

was only a

_

be impregnable, and displayed a security Avhich

justifiable

a.d. i:ci.

His gamson consisted only of 150 Euro-

could not be reduced in three years.
l^eans.
'

643

THE FATE OF LALLY.

Chap. XI.]

})artial success, for

the two strongest forts

Capture of
(;iii(,'ee and
Tiiiagur.

paid the
sur])rise.
still

held

in the deadly nature of the climate, under

and had a powerful auxiliary

which the sepoys, though 1000 had been added to their number, were rapidly
melting away.

Macgregor, however, after

The

nffered to capitulate.

terms, though

all

his blustering, lost heart,

somewhat extravagant, were

conceded, and on the 5th of April he marched out with

all

and

readily

the honours of war.

Thiagur, which had returned to the French after their alliance with the Mysoreans

was broken

ment

of sixty five days by Major Preston.

reducing
visions

it

shared the same

w[),

ftite,

and bombard-

after a blockade

Though

there

was

little

prospect of

except by famine, the governor capitulated, with two months' proin store

still

;

and as

unconscious of the advantages of his position,

if

only asked to receive the same treatment as the troo])S taken in Pondicherry.

The

fate of Lally deserves to

preceded his arrival in France

;

His unpopularity in India

be recorded.

though with the consciousness of injured

«and

innocence he took the initiative, and brought formal accusations against the
leadinfj officials to
in

which

his

whose

command had

had raised up a host of
brought

all sorts

his

ears.

The

which had been entertained, had
indignation
it

;

from their

the victim,

whom we
cherry,

and

ministei"s

own

to

shoulders.

and Lally was confined

had returned

I documents, the one a

the public

language

tongues, and

sanguine hopes

mind with astonishment and

behoved either to bear the responsibility or transfer

some other

liave seen

loss of India, after all the

filled

his

own

These were received by the

of railing accusations against him.

government with willing

di.sasters

terminated, he soon found himself i)ut upon his

manner and the intemperance of
enemies, wiio a.s.sailed him with venomous

The arrogance of

<lefence.

and misconduct he attributed the

nejjliy-ence

There was no

in the Bastile.

difficulty in selecting

Father Lavaur, the Jesuit,

forming part of a de})utation at the .surrender of Pondito

France and died.

Among

liis

^lapers

were found two

fulsome panegyric, the other a defamatory

libel

on Lally.

Considered as evidence, the documents could only neutralize each other; but
there were circumstances in Lavaur's conduct which ought to have thro^vn the

balance in Lally s favoiu*.

but also an unscrupulous

iS'ot
liar.

had petitioned the government

only was the Jesuit

As

if

known

to be a bitter hater,

ruined by the capture of Pondicherry, he

for a small pension as a

means of

subsistence,

and yet he had died worth £00,000, in gold, diamonds, and bills of exchange.
The evidence of such a man was worthless; and yet it was shamelessly paraded

T'-e cite of

G44
A.D. 1761

IlISTOllY

OF INDIA.

[liooK

before the pu})lic, doubtless with the view of exciting antipathy if

After lying eighti^en months in the

estaltlish guilt.

Ba.stile,

couM not

it

Lally was confronted

with his accasers, but betrayed his old haughty and intractable
Trial of

III.

spirit

t/j

such

a degree as not only to exasperate the witnesses, but to prejudice the judge

Lally.

appointed to report on the

Under such circumstances the result could not
trial in despotic France, when political end.s were
was a mere mockery. After the lapse of other

case.

be doubtful.

Then, as now, a

to be gained

by a

conviction,

eighteen months, the case was ripe for decision, and the parliament of Paiis

were subservient enough to do what the court expected of them.
His con

They found

the accused guilty of having betrayed the interests of the king, the state, an<l

<luiiiiiation.

the East India

Company, and condemned him

made known he was taken

Before the sentence was

from

common

which was now

criminal

hands to heaven, and

and then removed, not

coiLsidered too honourable a place for him, but to

When

jail.

and beheaded

before the court, de<n"aded

his military rank, stripped of his military (jrders,

to the Bastile,

the

to be attainted

the sentence was read to

exclaimed, " Is this the

reward of

him he threw up

forty-five years' ser\-ice!"

and snatching up a pair of compasses which lay with some maps on a

made an attempt
He

is

He

liis

taljle, lie

and was doomed to drink the
That veiy afternoon he was taken out of prison with a

to pierce his heart.

failed,

bitter

cup to the

di'egs.

large

gag

mouth, to prevent him from addressing the spectators, carried

in his

.

beheaded.

in a

common

sixty-fifth year of his age.

—had thus been

Lally

men

Three

judicially

it

of note

He was

— Labom-donnais,

Dupleix, and

ofiicials

of the French East India

Company.

be doubted that an institution which called for such monstrous

more than deserved

all

the calamities which

had

fallen

upon

In following out the com'se of events in the Camatic,

from the not
in Bengal,

less

saciifices

it?

we have been

led awa}-

important events which, during the same period, had occuired

and were beginning,

after the

fii'st

excitement was over, to unfold

their true character.

Masula Boat,
IJaeiJ

in the

murdered in order to divert the public hatred

from the incompetent and corrupt

Can

and there beheaded.

cart to the Place de Greve,

OD the coast of Coromandel, more especially at Mudras and Pondicherr>-. for traDsporting light goods and passengers
across ilie Dars and through the surf.

CiiAP.

NABOBSHIP OF MEER

XIL]

645

JAFFIEl?.

i

CHAPTER

XII.

and Clive governor of Bengal — Attempt upon
by the Mogul's son — Hostilities
— Departure of Clive — His successors, Hohvell and Vansittart — Meer Jaffier deposed,
and Meer Cossim appointed nabob — Meer Cossim deposed, and Meer Jaffier reinstated — Nugumud-Dowlah titular nabob — Clive's second government — Dewannee of Bengal, Behar, and Orissa

Meer

Jaffier nabob,

it

with the Dutch

granted to the Company.

LIVE had
Dowlah
him

found

to flight

there,

it

a comparatively easy task to put Surajali

and induce him

was a task of greater
indifferent

nabob, but

still

more

To

and phiee Meer Jaffier on the musnud.
to

1:57.

keej)

govern witli wisdom and vigom*,
This was })artly owing to the

difficulty.

new

character and very moderate abilities of the

to tiie circumstances in

a.d

which he was

placed.

His fellow-

NaiwUship

conspirators naturally expected to share largely in the fruits of his success, and jamer

took offence

when

the rewards which they received

value which they attached to their services.

The

fell

short of the extravagant

sums of

distribution of large

money had been anticipated but in the very first days of the government, the
greater part of what had been found in Surajali Dowlahs treasury had been
;

required to meet the

first

instalments due to the Company, and pay the enor-

mous sums granted

or extorted imder the

Thus, at the outset,

when nothing but

name

of presents to their

sei'\'anis.

a liberality approaching to lavishness

could have gratified the selfishness of the nabob's courtiers,

good-will of the population generally, he

was compelled

and

conciliated the

either to practise a

made him contemptible, or to have recourse to measures of
extoi'tion which made iiim detested.
When pursuing the object of his ambition,
Meer Jaffier liad readily promised everything that was asked of him.
The
performance was then both distant and conditional, and many things might
niggardliness which

occur before

it

could either be asked or enforced

;

and he had imagined,

cxpressl}' states,' that " his liberalities to individuals,

who were

as Oraie

the heads of the

English nation, would relax their strictness in the public terms."

In plainer

words, he thought that the large sums which he had given as presents would

have operated as bribes, and disposed the recipients to overlook defalcations

where the

interests of the Com]-tany only

his disappointment,

sternly insisting

were concerned.

not unmingled with indignation,

"on the payments of the treaty monies

Great, therefore,

when he found
as they

was

Clive

became due."

There was another kind of interference which touched the nabob more nearly,

and
a

is

said to

have been regarded by him with abomination.

nabob within

his

own

province was absolute, and Meer
'

Military Transactions, vol.

ii.

page 195.

The authority of

Jaffier,

when

seated

G46
A.D. 1767.

HISTOKY OF INDIA.

on the musnud, was not disposed

tf^

been exercised by his predecessors.
not choose that commands
Meer

.lafiier

jealous of
IJritish

infiuence.

in the

[Book HI.

any of the powers which had
He had partiahties and hatreds, and did
relinquish

army, or the administration of the govem-

ment, sliould bc intrustcd to any but liis own favourites.
He accordingly
T
1
meditated many changes but when he would have carried them inU> effect, he
;

was mortified above measure

Some

necessary.

and even sworn

of these changes

would have been

violations

them would have been contrary

to; others of

and on these and similar grounds Clive did not hesitate to
he would not permit them.

nabob put

Who

then

is

cipate himself from British ascendenc3^

which could excite the

He

least suspicion of a

tell

to .sound policy;

him bluntly that

was the question which the
resolution was taken to eman-

ma.ster?

and from that moment

to himself;

own was
of promises made

to find that another consent beside his

his

w^as careful, however, to do nothing

change in his feelings

;

and

tlierefore,

while Clive continued at Moorshedabad, nothing could exceed the deference paid
to all his wishes

and

opinions,

on terms of intimacy and

On

His scheme

and both the nabob and

his

son lived with him

familiarity.

the 14th of September, 1757, Clive having set out for Calcutta, leaving

for dimiiijshiii" it.

Watts, Manningham, and Serafton at Moorshedabad, to transact the Company's
affairs,

Meer

The leading agents
Hindoos.

no time in endeavom-ing to carry out his own views.

Jaffier lost

in the conspiracy

Through them

other servants of the

which overthrew Surajah Dowlah were

chiefly the previous negotiation

Company had been

carried on;

with Clive and the

and

it

was

therefore

probable that through them also their futm-e influence in the goverament would

Reasoning thus, the nabob's

be exercised.

possible, extinguish the

Roydullub the dewan.

first

object

was

to cm-tail, and, if

At the head
was proposed to

power of the Hindoos.

With him,

therefore, it

of

them stood

begin, but with

the greatest caution, for Roydullub, aware of the feeling with wliich he

was

regarded at court, not only stood upon his guard, but had obtained from Clive

a guarantee of personal safety.

and was important only

as

The

first

step taken against

an indication of what might be expected

Ramramsing, who, besides being head of the

summoned

to

him was

Moorshedabad to

spies,

indirect,

to follow.

was Rajah of Midnapore. was

settle the accounts of his distiict.

Being

consi-

derably in arrear, and suspicious of what was intended, he did not go in person,

but sent his brother and nephew,
Roydullub, wdth

who were immediately thrown

whom Ramramsing had always

that this violent proceeding

been closely connected, believed

was the precursor of a

and established connections in

into prison.

similar requisition to himself,

different quarters, determined, if necessary', to

by force. He was even suspected of ha^4ng stirred up two rebellions
one by Ramramsing, who, on hearing how his brother and nephew had been
treated, assembled 2000 horse and 5000 foot, with which he threatened to retu'e
into the jungles with which his country abounded; and the other by Ogul

repel force

—

-

Sing,

whom

Surajah Dowdah had appointed governor of Purneah.

DISTURBED STATE OF BENGAL.

Chap. XII.]

These

647

both headed by Hindoos, and presumed to liave been

revolts,

insti-

AD.

1757.

gated by RoyduUub, drove Meer Jatiier from his course of dissimuhition, and

made him avow

his determination to treat

Roydullub as a

rebel.

A

kind of

MeerJaffier'.s

quaiTelwitli

open

hostilities

were accordingly declared and the dewan, while
;

still

continuing-

HoyiluUuli.

to hold his office, not only refused to visit the nabob, but assembled a force of 1000

men

to set

him

was

ciliation

at defiance.

effected,

Through the influence of Clive an apparent recon-

and an interview took

place, at

which the nabob and

his

dewan swore "oblivion of former distrusts and future friendship." Nothing
could be more false and hollow and Roydullub, while he evinced suspicion b};

keeping his house under pretence of sickness, gave a decided proof of hostility

by refusing

to allow the troops under his

own control

to take part in the expe-

dition to Purneah.

While peace was

tiius

maintained with

difficulty in the

very centre of Ben-

Conspiracy
ofAuinianet"

gal,

the frontiers were assuming a threatening aspect.

to seize the fort

Dacca, the

was headed by Ammanee Khan,

Cuouk and

lIu*ji:iNi.i:

Uh.aitn.'

— From Sir C.

In Dacca a conspiracy

a son of Serferaz

Khan, the

UOyley's Antinuities of Dacci.

nabob who preceded Ali Verdy and though prematurely discovered, was not put
;

down without

the aid of troops furnished by the Company.

direction, in Behar,

In the opposite

a formidable rebellion seemed so imminent that Clive

left

Calcutta and put himself at the head of his troops to marcli directly for Patna.

The rumour which prevailed was that Ramnarain, to whom a strong suspicion
of disaffection still attached, had formed an alliance with Sujaii Dowlah, the

Nabob

of Oude, and that they were preparing to unite their forces with the

view of marching into Bengal.

Meer
'

Jaffier to the

The chouk

of the city

is

known

Another rumom* was,

musnud was disapproved

very ancient, situated in the part
as the Old Nekaus; it is a square

of about 200 yards in extent; and fruit, vegetables,

at Delhi,

and
mosque was

sweets,

toj-s

tliat

and that an intrigue was
are e.xposeJ for sale in

built in 1C76.

quUics of Dacca.

the elevation of

— Sir

it.

The

C. D'Oyley's AtUi-

Khan.

J

HISTOUY OF INDIA.

648
A.D. 1767.

on foot to proclaim Mirza Mundee, the

11

son of Surajali Dowlah's brother, as

infjint

This latter rumour was traced to Meerun, Meer

nabob.
Atrocious

[Book

with what wicked intention soon appeared;

for

Jafiier's eldest son,

and

on the morning of the 10th

conduct of
Meenin, tiie

November, 1/57, Moorshedabad was thrown mto con.stemation by the announce-

"on"'**

ment

1

tliat

a band of

ruffians, hired

by Meerun, had broken

Ali Verdy's widow, where the infant

widow

•

1

was

into the palace of

living under the charge of his grand-

Ahmed, and murdered liim. It was added that
both the widows had shared the same fate.
They had only been seized and
sent off in boats to Dacca, the rumour of their murder having been circulated,
and even their fictitious funeral perfbirned, to prevent any attempt that might
mother, the

of Zaindee

have been made for their rescue, had

it

The one murder, however, was barbarity
his son generally detested,

tioned

it

nor

declaration,

it

knew
was

of

known that they were still alive.
enough to make both the nabob and

been

though the former declared that he neither sanc-

it till

was

it

was given

If credit

perpetrated.

to this

surely a dismal reflection for the inhabitants of Bengal that

they were already under a government which cormived at such crimes, and

ha«l

the prospect of being, sooner or later, subjected to the government of the ver\'

who

wretch

was never
Rebellion of

On

Happily, however, as will be seen, this prospect

perpetrated them.

realized.

the 25th of November, 1757, Clive arrived with

liis

troops at Moor-

Ogul Sing
suppressed,

shedabad, and on the 30th set out at the head of 550 Europeans and 1500

sepoys to join the nabob's army, wliich had advanced on the expedition to Purneah, as far as Raj amah al.

In

rebellion.

and

all

less

Clives presence alone sufficed to put

down

the

than a week after his arrival Ogul Sing was taken prisoner,

the chiefs in league with

threatened rebellion in Behar

still

him submitted
remained

;

or fled the country.

and the nabob, who was bent on

removing Ramnarain, urged an immediate advance on Patna.
advantage, and refused to

move

until all the pecuniary claims

of the treaty should be satisfactorily arranged.

the assistance of RoyduUub, through whose

patents behoved to pass.

The

and

saw

liis

stipulations

This was impossible without

office as

The nabob was thus

Clive

dewan

all

in a dilemma.

money

He

bills

and

mu.st either

RoyduUub under
such conditions as would not allow him afterwards to recede.
The latter course,
which was indeed the only rational one, was strongly advocated by Clive.
Through his mediation, and with the security of his guarantee, RoyduUub, who
forego the expedition to Patna, or effect a reconciliation with

had previously refused to quit Moorshedabad, arrived in the camp, and the
nabob and dewan once more made a solemn renunciation of their suspicions and
animosities.

treaty

still

The preliminary

obstacle being thus removed, the parts of the

remaining unfulfilled were easily aiTanged.

The payment

of twenty-

by order on the treasmy
Moorshedabad for one-half of the amount, and by tuncaws or orders, payable
the revenues should be realized, by the Phousdar of Hooghly and the Rajahs

three lacs of rupees, actually due,

was provided

for

at
as

of

CLIVE'S EXPEDITION TO PATNA.

Chap. XII. j

Burdwan and
executed,

the

to

take

possession

(if

the ceded lands

south

lacs,

payable in ad.

1757

Patents were also

districts.

M

empower-

Company

ing

Other nineteen

Kislmugiu", for the other half

were secured by other tuncaws on the same

April,

649

Calcutta,

of

with the authority
of

but

zemindary,

subject to a reserved

annual payment to
the nabob of 222, 958
rupees.

The revenue

of these lands, like

that of

many

others
Part op the City of Moorshedabad.

in the province,

—From Col.

Forrest's

Views on the Ganges.

was

allowed by the Mogul government to the actual nabob as jaghire, or a pension

We

for his expenses.

Clive

shall hear of it again.

was now ready

to

accompany the naboli

to Patna,

naturally cuves

l)ut

required to be informed, before starting, as to the precise object of the expedition.

The nabob, seeing
narain,

it

useless to dissemble,

and give the government

The nabob,

to

some one of

in forming this resolution,

might be anticipated
pointing out

tiie

that

more immediate dependants.

his

had overlooked the

was more discerning

raise

it

made under a

This suggestion must have been

design of giving the government of Behar to his
to

influence.

strengthen, whereas he

An

was now

it

own

conciliate

conviction

to

him

;

but

both interfered with his
brother,

and would con-

intent on diminishinjx. British

opinion of Clive, distinctly stated and enforced b}' sound argu-

ment, could not, however, be lightly set aside; and

much

;

would be better to

Ramnarain did not entertain the treasonable designs imputed

tribute

which

which Ramnarain might form, and then

Clive

nothing could be more distasteful to the nabob, as

after

difficulties

after

it.

the standard of independence, suggested that
thiin to oiist him.

Ram-

and

in executing

possible alliances

avowed

his intention to remove

irresolution

it

was

therefore arranged,

and tergiversation on the part of the nabob and

counsellors, that Clive should write a letter to

and assuring him of safety and favour.

his

Ramnarain, inviting an inter^^ew

Meantime the army continued

its

march

on Patna in three divisions, Clive with his troops leading the van, Roydullub

men following, and the nabob with the main bod}By the way letters arrived from Delhi, advising that

with his force of 10,000
bringing up the rear.
patents, confirming

Meer

Jaffier in the nabobship,

had been made

out.

They

had been delayed merely because the exhausted treasury at Mooi-shedabad could
not furnish the
Vol.

I.

money expected

at the

Mogul

court,

where

all

things had become
82

)>tiliu.lf

inter

of

Uiimuaraiu.

/

HISTORY UF INDIA.

^'•'^0

In go-anting

venal.

A.D. 1758.

was informed
visitofriatn

on the occasion Clive had not been forgotten,

titles

III.

for he

tlirough the Seits that he had been created a muvJivJjddr of 0000

under several pompous names.

lior.se,

Tiarain to

[Book

Ramnarain, as the army
j advanced, con'

_

tinued taking mea.sures for

Clive.

but as soon as he received

Ganges to pay Clive a

its

invitation,

He

visit.

liaxl

he gave proof of the

it

by complying with

inspired

Clive s letter

defence.

liis

not yet reached him
confidence which

full

and embarking

in his boats

arrived on the 25th of January,

;

it

on the

and the next

day proceeded, in company with Mr. Watts, to wait upon the nabob, who
received him with all the honours due to his rank, yet not refraining from
certain .slights indicative of his real feelings.

So equivocal, indeed, was

conduct, that Clive's su.spicions were roused, and

who had
Meer

jaffier

Ramnarain and Roydullub,

make common cause.
when startlincr
o intelligence
o

previously been at variance, resolved to

Matters Were in this unsatisfactory state
•'

alarmed.

his

The Nabob of Oude,

it

was

said,

had resumed

his aggres.sive designs,

arrived.

and was

about to advance from Lucknow, accompanied by a large body of Mahratta horse,

Law who had

and the European troops of M.

Meer

Allahabad.

chief arrived to

;

filled

and in order

his protection at

with alarm, more especially after a Mahratta

demand twenty-four

He was now

from Bengal.
be insolent

was

Jaffier

been living under

lacs of rupees as the arrears of tribute

had

as submissive as he

to conciliate Clive,

whose

previou.sly

due

been disposed to

had again become

ser\'ices

indispensable to him, he fulfilled the obligations which he had imdertaken in

regard to Ramnarain, by formally confirming him in Ids
of Behar.

Clive

for the

great reluctance.
petre

to take advantage of the nabob's altered feelings,

Company a monopoly of all the saltpetre made witliin his
The nabob made many objections, and ultimately consented with

and requested
dominions.

was not slow

of deputy-governor

office

Tlie terms offered

were indeed the highest at which the

salt-

monopoly had ever been farmed, but he knew that the stipulated rent was

the utmost he could receive from the
renter,

Company whereas
;

in the case of a native

he had an unlimited power of exaction in the shape of presents.

On

obtaining this rather questionable monopoly, Clive proceeded to enforce another
claim, the justice of

which could not be denied.

was a

his troops in the nabob's service

lac a

The

stipulated

The demand of the

lacs

had been

both under this head and others which

arrears,

had accumulated, in consequence of the
tuncaws, was not arranged without

ot

month, and though nearly four

months had already been consumed in the campaign, only two
received.

monthly pay

anything from the

difficulty of realizing

difficulty,

because the alarms fi'om Oude and

the Mahrattas having died away, the nabob had returned to his tortuous pohcy,

and was again intriguing

Ramnarain
allowed to

for the

.

firmncss disconccrtcd his schemes, and

retain his

govemmen
•

jjgj^j^y^

wlule the wholc

Clive's opinion of
first

Chve's sagacity and

removal of Ramnarain.

^

,

.

•

Ramnarain remained in possession

•

p l
ot his

army returned by slow marches towards Moorshedabad.

Meer

Jaffier

had undergone considerable modification.

His

communications with him when the conspiracy was planned, had impressed

him favourably, and he speaks of him

When

MEER

CLIVE'S OPINION OF

Chap. XII.]

in

051

JAFFIER.

one of his

man

letters as a

a

d. itos.

he placed him on the musnud, he congratulated the com'tiers present on

good fortune in having received so excellent a sovereign.

their

of sense,

was now

In a

different.

His language

committee of directors he says:

letter to the select

—

cuve-s

upiuiou of
'
'

I

am

concerned to mention that the present nabob

and not at

all

in the space of a

few months, and miglit have proved of

known attachment

were on foot at one time."
is still

significant:

and you may be

;

No

to him.

— "The nabob's conduct

he has been wanting to

make

in our

You cannot imagine

march

to this place

who

his brother,

of Behar, in prejudice of Ramnarain,

is

and

;

come down and pay

him

Not one of

or treat with him, without

He had no

ance from me."
'•

we took

Before

would come

the

field,"

he

my joining

the

him, he

lias

payment of ten more."

hopeful terms.
districts,

was with the

observes, " it

A

adds

:

—

"

money

"

now

government, as to be

to maintain himself quietly in

sing,

it.

For

able,

in

still

more

be solicited on

is

Nothing but a

;

On

expedition, without blood.shed, has been

total revolu-

He

afterwards

and the nabob seems

oureelves,

we have been

so fortiuiate

most considerable persons

in the

successively supported Rainrani-

to acquire the general confidence

all sides.

now become

with a small degree of prudence,

by the constancy with which we

RoyduUub, and Ramnarain,

friendshii>

is

for

become absolutely necessary, as

is

happily ended

in these transactions, as to attach to us the

and,

and

and given security

the discharge of the debt

are greater than he can answer.

All domestic troubles are

;

to Patna.

greatest difficulty the

government can well interrupt your payment.s."

so well fixed in his

kingdom

of a.ssur-

Referring to the tuncaws or assignments on the revenues of certain

independent of the nabob, which precaution

tion in the

march

subsequent letter to the directors

he says, that through them

his calls for

lacs,

he

his respects.

to issue out of his treasury 10,000 rupees;

already paid twenty -five

since

whom

lettei*s

reason, however, to repent of his

nabob could be prevailed upon
since

to,

the

a Gentoo, universally

desired to write to him, to engage
his rajahs

in

a greater fool than

beloved and respected, and that in breach of his promises to me,
to

weak

is

whenever we are wanting

assured,

had these three weeks past

Nabob

himself,

consequence to

fatal

than three rebellions

less

a force to overawe and protect him, ruin will ensue.

his anival,

his

In a letter to Mr. Pigott, written from Patna, his

and more

plainer

l>eyond conception

trouble I have

jieer Jaffier.

His mismanagement threw the country into great confusion

but for our

language

capacity,

little

and confidence of

blessed with the talent of gaining the love

principal officers.

himself,

a prince of

is

the whole

we may

crowned with

all

and make our

pronounce, that this
the advantages that

could be expected or wished to the nabob and the Company."

On

the

march from Patna, the nabob halted

to

amuse himself

witl' hunting, ciiveretuma
to Mixirelie

and pay a pilgrimage

to a celebrated

tomb

in the vicinity of Rajamahal.

Clive

Jabiui.

t

continuing to proceed, accom})anied by Roydullub, reached Moorshedabad on
the 15th of May, 1758.

The

state of the city astonished him.

The markets

i

652
AT).

17:^8.

HISTORY (W INDIA.

were deserted, the shops

away

to send
Complaint

On

shut,

many

of the princiiud families were preparing

and signs of trepidation were everywhere apparent.

their effects,

who

he learned that Meernn,

in(|uiry,

[Book HI.

w?i.s

still

more impatient than

his

of Olive
againiit

Ramnarain and Roydulluh, had no

father for the removal of

.sooner learned

Meenin.

was accompanying Clive

that the latter

quitted

in his return Uj the capital,

than he

with great precipitation, giving out that he had reason to saspect

it

own

designs against his

life,

and had therefore resolved

conduct struck terror into the inhabitants,

and bloodshed of a new

the devastation

who

His

to join his father.

them but

.saw nothing before

Clive might well be angry,

revolution.

for the

charge of treasonable designs was levelled at him

and he

therefore wrote the nabob, complaining in the sharpest terms of Meerun's

conduct,

a.s

and declaring that he would no longer remain

in Bengal .sacrificing

This decided course broujjht both the nabob and

zeal to distrust.

and they both apologized

their senses,

well as Roydullub,

in the

too

still

much

to

The nabob,

most submissive terms.

even abandoning his sports and intended pilgrimage, hastened home

Meemn

but Clive,

;

offended to desire an interview, had preA^ously set out for Cal-

cutta, ordering

2000 of the sepoys to

and the

follow,

rest,

together with

the

all

Europeans, to remain at Cossimbazar.
New

On

foiin of

government
tor Bengal
presidency.

Hardwicke arrived from Engthe arrangements wliich the directors had made in

the 20th of June, the Company's ship

land, bringing accounts of

consequence of the

loss

By

of Calcutta.

their

first

arrangement,

made

August, 1757, they committed the government to a select committee of
of

whom

Clive was to be pi-e.sident;

in

five,

but in the following November, they

appointed a council of ten, in which the four senior members were to preside
alternately each for three months.

Calcutta for the

first

Intelligence of both aiTangements reached

time by the Hardivicke, another

vessel,

though prexdously

despatched with the August arrangement, not ha^^ng yet arrived
tors

had been

legislating in the dark,

ment would have been, under any
revolution which had recently taken
cognizant,

made

council, Clive

it

had no

place.

It has

to

to Madras.

far

direc-

A rotatory govern-

from wisely.

circumstances, a clumsy device, and the
place,

wholly impracticable.

the directors had assumed, on wdiat

had returned

and

The

but of which the directors were not

In this new and strangely constituted

been said that no slight was intended, as

must have appeared good

It would, however,

have been at

groiuids, that

least

he

more courteous

have acted on the supposition that cu-cumstances might have occurred to pre-

vent his departure, and to have assigned him the place to which his past
vices entitled him.

being

still

The appointment might have been made

in Bengal;

and hence, even

rendered the appointment ineffectual,
public testimony to his merit.

and made no
If Clive

secret of

it

if his

would

ser-

conditionally, on his

previous departure should have
stiU

It is certain that

have been gratifying as a

CHve himself

felt

aggrieved,

it.

was indignant, the new members of

council were above measure

I

perplexed.

attempt to

ArPOINTED COVEr.XOR.

('LIVE

Chap. XII.]

()53

They were naturally proud of their new dignity, but felt that any
conduct the government without him would be woi-se than futile.

They were aware that nothing but fear could induce the nabob to remain
and that the moment he was set
faithful to the obligations he had undertaken
free from the commancUng influence which Olive alone had over him, the large
;

sums of money
all its

a.d. itss.

^y ^^^
menibere of

^"''•'^

<<>"i'cii

to

remaining due under the treaty never would be paid, and

still

other stipulations would either be violated or indirectly evaded.

liiHu-

enced by such considerations, they took the only course which seemed open to
them, and addressed a letter to Clive, in which, after stating the objections to

and

the rotatory governorship,

waive

all

readiness 'at this juncture of affairs to

their

personal honours and advantages," they

president of the Company's affairs in Bengal,

He had

Honourable Company."

name

Watts, whose
not to accept.

stood

He was

first

a person

"

an

in the rotation,

appointed by the

is

when he

spiteful feelings,

said:

by Mr.

his determination

and declared

above being influenced by

being

offer of

previously been sounded on the subject

strong reasons for his intended refusal,

my

till

made him

and gave

— "Both the public and

private advices, I think, i)lainly discover that the presidency of Bengal

by no means intended

for

me by

and a tem[)orary

the court of directors;

may

acceptance can only expose me, upon the further alterations which

from Europe, to circumstances of disgrace in the eyes of
ment, which,
to the

I believe, it is

Company's

affiiirs."

resolved to exclude
able

;

unnecessary for

me

tlie

to remark,

was

arrive

country govern-

might be prejudicial

If the directors had, as he here supposes, deliberately

him from the

office

of president, this objection

was unanswer-

but further consideration, and especially the very friendly tenor of a letter

from Mr. Payne, their chairman, convinced him that their omission of his name

might be explained without construing
accepted the offer in a
to

be

dissatisfied

letter, in

it

which he says: —

by the noble example of public
all

Though

Jissigned, after

liead of the general conunittee in the letter of the

waive

"

with the court of directors, for laying

form of government, without any reason

to

an intended

into

spirit

think

I

me

have

I

last, yet,

set me, I

private considerations, where the general good

cjiuse

aside in their

is

as

animated

have determined
concerned

;

and

as there is

no doubt but the government of a single person, involved as we are

now with

the country powers,

must have

infinite

advantage over that compli-

cated form of government established from home, I shall, from

(though both

my

health and private concerns strongly require

Europe), accept the offer you have done

me

the honour to

my

tradicting, to

have only anticipated the

it

tiiat

motive He aceepu
it.

returning to

make me,

time as our employers have appointed a president in the usual form.
a manly as well as fortunate decision, for

'

till

such

This was

eventually proved, instead of con-

final

wishes of the directors,

who no

sooner heard of the victory of Plassey, than they abandoned their new-fangled
rotatory scheme,

and

II

new

me

having named

3d of August

which you have

and he

slight;

formall}* aj (pointed Clive governor of Bengal.

'

Got
A.D. 1758.

viHitof

Meor

OF INDIA.

lILSTOliY

The Company's
Olive's wisdom and

affairs

coast could not

concealed from the naljob, and

were certainly

The

energy.

]je

in a critical

state,

in.

and required aU

successes of the French on the Coroniandel

Jaffier

to Calcutta,

[b<j<jK

tlie

natural consequence

.

was

to

make him

hopeful that he miglit yet be

favourite schemes, though

The

it

had

sary to slacken the rein which

In these circum.stances, Clive

his

felt it neces-

he had hitherto held on the nabob's move-

things which, at a

have peremptorily interdicted.
will,

all

also suffered a serious diminution Ijy the

expedition to the Nortliern Circars.

many

to carrj' out

should be in defiance of Clive and the Company.

British troops in Bengal

ments, and overlook

arjle

As an

he invited him to Calcutta.

Feal Chaeba, or Elephant's-head State-boat

additional

His

an appropriate occasion; and Meer

own

Jaffier,

lO)

more favourable

;

time, he

means of conciliating

instalment as governor

with

Moor Puskee,

all

would

his goodfuiiii.shed

his train, descending the

or Peacocks-head Pleasiire-boat

(6).

Flora 8olvyii, Le« U'.ndous.

Hooglily in a splendid

pomp and
Moorsheda-

pleasure, thousrli

...
oiily inducement to pay this visit.
_

bad

in his

capital

was entertained

for several

days with

festivity.

xhc mere love of

intrigiie.s at

fleet of boats,

dming

certain changes

the responsibility of which he

always

stronor in

He deemed

Meer

Jaffier,

was not

his

.

it

prudent to be absent from his

which he was most anxious to accomplish, but

was unwilling

maintained in his place as dewan, contrary to

to incur.

liis

Roydullub had been

avowed determination

to eject

Meerun had suggested a means of getting rid of him, and the father, well
aware of the savage nature of his son, left him to accomplish bis object in his
own way. In this he obtained important aid from Nuncomar, a Hindoo, who.
him.

Feal Charra means Elephant's Head, and takes
The one represented was
50 feet long by 4 feet wide; some old Hindoos say
tliey have been made lOl) feet long by 6 feet wide.
They have oars and sails, and are richly ornamented
within and without, and move with a number of oars.
Tlie master or most distinguished person is seated
before the rowers. The feal charras are very scarce;
rajahs and rich people only use them.
'

its

name from the prow.

Moor Punkee means

Peacock's Head. The rowers
with their faces to the prow. The
prince or leading persoQ smokes his hookah under a
particular canopy in front, and the grandees and servants of his retinue sit under another.
At the
head of the rowers is a jemidar, who regulates the
measure like the leader of an orchestra little bells
use paddles, and

sit

;

are fastened to the paddles.

long oar with which to steer.

The maaee

or pilot has a

—Solvyn, Les Hindous.

PLOTS OF MEEK JAFFIER AND MEEKUN.

Chap. XII.]
after

Ii55

having long been in the confidence of Roydulhib, had conceived the idea au

upon

of elevating himself

When the tuncaws

his ruin.

Nuncomar

of the treaty monies proved unproductive,

the fault lay with Roydullub

and volunteered, that

;

gi-anted for the

itgo.

pajment

artfully insiniiated that

if full

authority were given

ConBpiracy
against

The

make the amount forthcoming.
and Nuncomar thus became an

him, he woiild
to be accepted,

.

was too welcome not

offer

ostensible agent of the

RojUiaiub

Company,

while Roydullub lost his interest with them, and could no longer calculate on

This change of feeling was soon

their protection.

and

his son,

who

lost

no time in turning

made known

Roydullub, aware of the

to account.

it

nabob

to the

extent of his danger, requested leave to retire with his family and effects to Cal-

Even this was refused him, unless he previously
payment of the troops, who were clamouring for their

cutta.

were in
after

this state, the

nabob

on

set out

furnished
arrears.

money

for the

Wliile matters

Only two days

his Calcutta visit.

he was gone, Meerun surrounded Roydullub's house with a body of troops,

and was preparing
rescue, just in

to seize his person,

time to save his

life,

when

by sending him

off to Calcutta

Meerun, enraged at the escape of his principal victim, vented his

members of

his family,

and detained them as

came

to the

under

escort.

s])ite

on the

the Company's agents

prisoners,

till

Warren Hastings, who

had succeeded Scrafton as the Company's resident at Moorshedabad, was able to
send them also to Calcutta.

It

would be

useless to detail the series of intrigues

which followed, and in which the nabob and his
tion of Roydullub,

Alumgeer

from the west.

II.,

Shah Alum, the

and then better known by the

as heir apparent to the throne,
at the

for

them

to

employ

it.

The nabob, while thus occupied with despicable
intelligence

bent on the destruc-

showed that there were no means too base

accompUsh

in order to

son, still

had arrived

head of an army of 8000 men.

the hands of the vizier Ghazi-u-din,

thraldom by suddenly quitting Delhi.
with the sanction of his fother,

eldest son of the
title

Mogul emperor,

of Shazada, belonging to

him

at Benares in the beginning of 1759,

His father was virtually a prisoner

and he himself had only escaped

in

similar

This step appears to have been taken

who had

government of Bengal, Behar, and

intrigues, received startling Theahazmia

Orissa.

avowed, and hence the shazada appeared

previously conferred upon him the

This sanction, however, was not

in a

double character.

one view, he was his father's representative, and carried

all

According to

the weight wliich,

notwithstanding the low condition to which the empire had

fallen,

was

still

name of the ]\Iogul.
According to another view, he was a
who had quitted his father's court without permission, and was

attached to the
rebellious son,

engaged in treasonable designs.

This double character put

the different governors to ado])t the view which

it

in the

power of

was most accordant with

their

and hence many stood aloof while others flocked to
The most powerful chief who had openly espoused his cause

inclination or their interest,
his standard.

was Mahomed Cooly Khan, the governor of Allahabad

;

but

it

was underi^tood

uTnlres!

HLSTOilY OF ISI>IA.

G;jG

AD.

[Book

that Sujah Dowlali, Nal)ob of Oude, tliougli he kept artfully in

1759.

was disposed

to join hira as soon as he

would bring with him an important

The

Designs of
oIiyeiTgTi.

back«:^-ound,

proljability of success,

and

Lmw

\\'ith

auxiliary, in the person of M.

French party.

his

"^

saw any

tlie

III,

objcct of the siiazada

was not

Bengal, Behar. and Ori.ssa

concealed.

belonged to him as viceroy, and he was coming to claim his

Meer

apjieared tliat

Jaffier

was about

to

be treated as an

It thus

rights.

iisurj>er,

and could

only maintain po.ssession by defying the heir apparent of the Mogul empire.

How

durst he engage in such a warfare, which appeared to

legious?

How could

he hoj^e to succeed in

mutinying, and would in

enemy than they would
upon

Clive,

all

it

him?

who immediately saw

with his accustomed ardour and

with troops which were con.stantly

In this emergency, everything depended

the part he had to

and entered into

act,

his people give

of the shazada's motions, as there

me much more

would be

— "The

from the

little fear

it,

had thoughts of purchasing the shazada's

wrote as

follows: — "I have just heard

can scarce give credit to
of

money

it is,

;

to the king's son.

If

latter,

a piece of intelligence

which

I

sum

have Sujah Dowlah, the

you out of money

more, come from
till

this,

you

all parts

will

going to

offer a

to the confines of your countr\-,

you have none

should pursue this method,

with the means to

Clive, hear-

you do

who

excellenc}'^

The nabob,

is

many

your

retreat.

did the

that your excellency

Mahrattas, and
will bully

dis.sen.sions

concern than the news

former take the proper measures to secure his being well served."

ing of

it

In a letter to Hastings, directing him

decision.

to give confidence to the com-t of Moorshedabad, he says:

in his perplexity,

.sacri-

probability be no sooner brought in sight of the

desert to

between the nabob and

him almost

left in

your treasury.

wiU be furnishing the

it

raise forces, which, indeed,

If

king's son

ma}- endanger the loss of yom"

What will be said if the gi'eat Jaffier Ali Khan, soubah of this prowho commands an army of 60,000 men, should offer money to a boy who

country.
vince,

has scarcely a soldier with him?
of the English,
His letter to
CUve.

I

beg your excellency wiU rely on the fidehty

and of those troops which are attached

to you."

was well aware that lie
The
might have made most advantageous terms with the opposite party.
"
offers
shazada sent agents to him, who made him, to use his own language,
Clivc, wliilc

of provinces

him a

til US

pledging himself to Meer

upon provinces, with whatever

letter

Jaffier,

my heart could

from their master, who addressed him as

and delivered
The Most High and

desire:"

"

Mighty, Protector of the Great, Colonel Sabut Jung* Bahadm-," and concluded
thus:

— "In

this

happy

Bengal, I have erected
tion to bestow favour

'

The

known
was

my

making the tour of Patna and

standard of glory at this place.

his defence of Arcot.

right to grant

had

it

titles,

my pure

It is

upon you, the high and mighty, and

"Sabut Jung," by which Clive ia still
means "firm or daring in war," and
given him by Mahomed Ali, in allusion to

title

in India,

first

time, -with a ^'iew of

all faithful

inten-

servants,

Though Mahomed Ali had no
Clive was pleased with

engraved on his Persian

seal.

it,

and

LETTER OF THE SIIAZADA.

Xn.]

f'HAP.

agreeable to their conduct.

with weeds and thorns.

Tliis

and make

it

is

like a

garden of tlowers, interspersed

may

rest in peace

and

me

your business to pay your respects to

it

which will be great and happy

you should be earnest

It is proper

for you.

they

did,

as follows

me

ti.o

my

in

Know

favour.

must be done."
Clive dismissed the agents with a warning not to

if

Letter of

like a faithful servant,

doing thus, when, by the blessing of God, you stand high in
this

Know you, who
this my firman,

(piietness.

proper you should pay a due obedience to

is

a.d. irss.

shall therefore root out the bad, that the faithful

I

and good ryots ^God willing)
are great, that

world

657

:

come near him

The

he would "take their heads for their pains."

—

"I

have had the honour to receive your

again, for

he answered

letter

It gives

highnes.s's firman.

great concern to find that this country must become a scene of troubles.

beg leave to inform you, that

me

emperor, appointing

which constitutes

me

a servant of his; and as

pay that due regard

do.

must further beg leave

I

acquainting

vizier,

Cxinnot

to

your highness's

I

me

of your coming

and

down

orders,
here, I

would otherwise wish

ordei-s I

to inform you, that

horse,

')()()()

have not received any

I

am

mider the

engagements with the present soubahdar of these provinces to
times,

I

have been favoured with a sunnud from the

I

a mimsubdar of the rank of GOOO foot and

emperor or

either from the

ciive*

assist

to

strictest

him

at all

not the custom of the English nation to be guilty of insincerity."

it is

In declining the interview which the shazada's letter obviously invited, on the
gi'ound that he

had not "received any orders" from the court of Delhi, Clive

took stronger ground than he was probably aware of at the time, as afterwards

when Meer

appeared
It

was

in the following

Some

favour.

Mahomed

Ali

terms: —

Gohur

secure the person of

Know

(the shazada),

who

my

are

which he had received.

that you are under the .shadow of

have turned the brain of

my

my

beloved son,

and are carrying him to the eastern part

my servant,

to

my country.

to proceed immediately to Patna,

son and keep him there.

his attendants, that other people

my

"

edict

must be the cause of much trouble and ruin

therefore order you,

will gain

him an imperial

ill-designing people

of the empire, which
I

Jaffier sent

may take warning

You

and

are likewise to punish

thereby.

In doing this you

favour and have a good name."

Though Clive spoke and wrote slightingly of the shazada and his invasion,
Ramnarain, the governor of Behar, was susthere was gi'ave cause for alarm.
pected of being in league with the enemy, whose forces had rapidly increased to
30,000 or 40,000, while the whole force which the presidency could muster

amounted only to about 450 Europeans and 2500 sepoys. At tiie head of these
Clive set out, and after a short halt at Moorshedabad where he lectured the

—

nabob on
subjects,

his misconduct, which,

by

forfeiting the confidence of all chvsses of his

had the natural consequence of inviting foreign invasion, and at the

same time

"

complied with the nabob's solicitation to ride on the same elephant

with him, and adopted any measure that covdd support him in his administraVoL.

I.

83

critical state

ULSTUKY OF INDIA.

058
A.D. 1759.

tion"

—he hastened on

for Patna, wliich

nent danger of being taken,

llaninarain at

both parties, and actually paid a
Theshazalia'a attempt
on Patna.

was now

actually besieged

and

in

ill.

immi-

endeavoured to make friends of

first

visit to the

[Book

shazadas camp, apparently for the

puroose of asccrtaininf; what terms he could obtain from him.

Uitimattjly,

.

liowcvcr. On ascertaining that Clive

he would prove

victor,

suspicions raised

by

valiant,

he had no doubt that

field,

and therefore bestirred himself

his previous

and repeated

had taken the

assaults

away with

to do

tampering with the enemy.

His defence was

were successfully repulsed, though two

The

however, was

the

l^astions

when the
appearance of a detachment which Clive had sent forward under Ensign Matthews

were at one time

carried.

result,

still

doubtful,

threw the besiegers into despair, and they abandoned the siege with the utmost

The confederates who had joined the shazada had been using him
merely as an in.strument to accomplish their own ends. The Nabob of Oude, in
})articular, though he had been the chief instigator to the invasion, only turned
it to account by seizing upon Allahabad while the governor was ab.sent, and then,

precipitation.

to shake himself free of

all

responsibility,

seek an asylum in his territories.
his followers, proposed to

would not even allow the shazada

The unhappy

throw himself on

saw how dangerous a guest he might
act of humanity, however, he sent

prince, thus almo.st deserted

Briti.sh

protection

;

by

but Clive, who

prove, refused to receive him.

him a sum of money

to

As a mere

to relieve his present

necessities.

The nabob's joy

ciive's

was great in proportion to his fears, and
Clive by a grant which was equal in value to all

at this deliverance

he manifested his obligation to

that he had previously bestowed upon him, and which was destined to become

the subject of

much unpleasant

discussion.

from Delhi, he wrote to Juggut

dignities

Shortly after Clive obtained his

Seit, to

say " that the nabob had

made

him an omrah of the empire without a jaghire." The answer was, that 'the
nabob never granted jaghires in Bengal; that Orissa was too poor, but that he
might have one in Behar."
matter

till

Nothing more appears

the expulsion of the shazada,

Clive's application or

when

having been reminded of

it,

to

have been done in the

the nabob, either recollecting
declared his intention to use

every means in his power to obtain an order from Dellii for a jaghire, because,
as Mr. Hastings expresses

it

in a letter to CUve, he

was

"

ashamed that you should

do so much for him without the prospect of reaping any advantage to j'ourself

by

On

it."

a subsequent occasion,

when

Mr. Sykes was acting temporarily for

Mr. Hastings at Moorshedabad, the nabob returned to the subject, and, after

observing that "he had frequently had
seriously

upon

obviating

all

it till

to the

difficulties

by giving

Company to

inteifere the least with his

Company's

in his thoughts but never entered

now," stated that Juggut Seit had fallen upon a method of

the lands ceded to the

"would

it

affairs."

for the jaghire " the quit-rent arising from

the southward of Calcutta."

This, he thought,

government, and stood the clearest in relation

\

('LIYE'8 .IA(JH1I{K.

Chap. XII. J
It

is

([uit-rent

fact

impossible to doubt that the nabob

was the jaghire which woidJ

Juggut

Seit,

wlien he suggested

was

tioi)

right

when he

said that the

In

with his government.

least interfere

must have had a shrewd suspicion that

it,

no part of the ciuit-rent would ever be brought into the Moorshedabad treasury.

The nabob was already owing the Company
and
it

therefore,

a.d. iiyj

had he retained the right

to

far
it,

more than he was able

it

tiong
<^''je<=«'"

to pay;

would only have been

to

jagiure.

.see

mentioned as a sum which the Company had retained in their own hands as a

reduction p7'0 taiito of their debt.

To him,

therefore, it

was utterly worthless as

a source of revenue, and he lost nothing by parting with

The

it.

case of the

Company was so very different, that it is difficult to understand what the nabob
meant when he said that it was the jaghire which " stood the clearest in relation
to the

Company's

affairs.'

On

the contrary,

transference of the quit-rent to one of

which they could always make available

But the moment
the pa^Muent of

was

it

it

On

entii'ely lost.

show that the
fai-

worse

It

was

for the

of the nature of a security,

repayment of their advances.

validly transferred to Clive, or

any other British

subject,

covdd be enforced in the British courts of law like any other

was thus

Its character

debt.

to

servants placed them in a

as a set-ofF against him.

it

would be easy

So long as the quit-rent was payable to the nabob, they

position than before.

could always use

tiieir

it

this

entirely changed,

and

its

value as a security was

ground alone the Company miglit

version of the quit-rent into

what was

Avell

object to the con-

called Clive's jaghire.

But there were

other con.siderations which, without affecting the legality of the jaghire, showed
it

The Company might, without
dignity, consent to hold their ceded lands under the Nabob of Bengal,
fair or becoming to set a new landlord over their heads, and make

to be at the least unseemly

any

loss of

but was

it

and inexpedient.

them the tenants of one of their own servants? It ought always to have been
recollected, that however great Clive's services might have been, they were really
the services of those

was

who had employed

him, and that therefore,

in a ))osition to renounce the quit-rent, the renunciation

made
when

in the

Company's

One

be observed, that at

tiie

was already

the country which

them?

what decency or

Was

In that case the

it

effectual if necessary

all

ap-

not more than probable that ere long

by the Company would be actually
With
(piit-i-ent would necessarily fall.

virtually ruled

justice, then, could

transition to bind

it

time

con.sidered

great revolution had already taken place, and others to

pearance could not be distant.

ti'aiisferred to

It deserves also to

the nabob

ought to have been

was granted the government of Bengal could not be

the jaghire

as settled.

favour.

if

any one attempt during

this

interval of

down upon them as a permanent burden, to be made
by a decree of the Court of Chancery? The estimated

value of
the jagliiro.

annual value of the jaghire was about £30,000.

£300,000

;

and

had received,

thus, for the services of less
in

Tiiis,

at ten years' purchase,

is

than three years in Bengal, Clive

addition to his ordinary pay and emoluments, considerably

more than £500,000

sterling.

\

IIISTOKY OF INDIA.

0(50

A.u.

[Book

when an

Tlie invasion of the sliazada liad scarcely been defeated,

i75!i.

III.

an

ahtrni of

unexpected, thougli not less threatening description arose from a very difien-nt
nutcii ann;i

to Bengal

(quarter.

The Dutch had beheld
The French

ap])reliension.
tiiat theirs

successes in Bengal with

tiie iJritish

might share a similar

Was

had been annihilated.

factories

It

fate?

is

JJutch were at peace, this could hardly happen

it

envy and

not [Kjssible

true that while the British and

by open

violence

;

but the .same

The danger

thing might be accomplished by underhand means.

to which an

important branch of the Dutch trade had recently been expo.sed by the establish-

ment

monopoly

of a saltpetre

case in

Others of a similar nature might be expected to follow, and therefore

j)oint.

the true policy

was

on a footing which would command

to place their settlement

respect, or if necessary enforce
Its objects,

Company, was a

in favour of the English

by which the Dutch are

said to

There

it.

some inconsistency in the motives

is

According to one account,

have been actuated.

they had refused to recognize the revolution which had given the naboVj.ship of

Bengal to Meer

Jaffier, and, fearing his

which would enable them to defy

come

to

According to another account, they had

it.

an understanding with Meer

armament which, arriving

at a time

vengeance, determined to prepare a force

Jaffier,

when

and with

his sanction fitted out

an

the English Company's troops had been

diminished by the expedition to the Northern Circars, would enable him to shake

yoke which they had imposed upon him.

iiimself free of the

It is impossible to

decide between the conflicting motives thus attributed to the Dutch.

The only

important question for Clive, was to decide on the course which ought to be

when the armament should make its appearance. He had early made
up his mind to repel it at all hazards, though he was well aware how difficult it
would be to justify the proceeding. When remonstrated with by some of his
friends on the responsibility he would incur by opposing the passage of the
armament of a friendly power up the Ganges, he answered that " a public man
pursued

may

occasionally be called

principle he

was prepared

upon

to act with a halter

to act, but he

was

any precaution which might, ostensibly at
Dutch
ciiveapre

careful at the
least, place

it.

Tlic nabob,

even

not prepared to

if

avow
" to

from him an order

and hence,

him

in the right

to omit

and the

he had given his sanction to the Dutch armament, was

own name, but

and Clive therefore had

.

~,

little difficulty

m
.

.

procuring

oppose and prevent any foreign troops being brought into

made with the nabob bound him to obey;
Dutch, he could now assert that he w^as acting, not

it

in that of the

had the

which they desired

effect of

to appear,

Bengal government.

This was an important

depriving the Dutch of the character of

and exhibiting them

allies,

in that of aggressors.

body of troops arrived, they were
pretend that Negapatam was her destined port, and that having been

Accordingly,
obliged to

.

it,

in opposing the

point gained, for
in

same time not

this

This order the treaty

his country.'

in his

On

his neck."

in the wrong.

paratioiis to

opiwsB

round

driven from

when

it

by

their first ship carrying a

stress of weather, she

would again leave the Hooghlj-

as soon

J

;

ARRIVAL OF THE DUTCH ARMAMENT.

CiiAP. XII.

as she liad obtained a supply of

credit to this pretence,

water and

{)rovisions.

CIi\' e

661

refused to give any

Tanna and the

tives of the

was acting

all

boats and vessels pjvssing up the

proceeding called forth strong remonstrances from the re])resenta-

Tliis

river.

with orders to search

it,

Dutch company

at Chinsurah, but Clive persisted, asserting that he

in obedience to the nabob's orders,

which he was solemnly bound by

and

in fulfilment of obligations to

ti'eaty.

In October, 1759, the Dutch armament, consisting of six or seven capital

crowded with

sliips

received,

Meer

soldiers,

was

Jaffier

arrived at Fulta.

appeared a few days

after,

when

How

it

from the very

fact,

his previous orders,

testo,

when

and troops

by them that

or had been convinced

first,

fulfil

chastise

this boast

as soon as the setison
for their departure

nabob either had had an undei'standinir with the Dutch

was thus once more

Hence,

but he made

joined to other suspicious circumstances,

would be best promoted by allowing them
Clive

;

and that "they had

The season could never be more favom*able

certain that the

in a

he was

dilemma

still

;

to bring

up

his

own

tortuous policy

their troops if they could.

but as the nabob had not withdrawn

able to assert that he

was acting under them.

the Dutch, deeming themselves ripe for action, sent a kind of mani- a

•11I-111-

f.ii
in whicli tliey recapitulated

tlieir

he answered in

name

of the

colours, or attacked or

1

alleged grievances, and

and reprisals if their boats were searched and

their passage

vowed vengeance

up the river

Company, that "we had given no

to preserve the peace

that their boats had been stopped and searched,

and

obstructed,

insult to their
;

that
it

tranquillity of his country

and the advance of

their troo])s

opposed by orders from the viceroy, and under the emperor his master's colours,
his troops

;

that they

ready to interpose our friendly
tliis

must

oftices to

After giving

be thought, as he himself
lost

which he had resolved to

however, were not very adequate.
river to oppose the

may

somewhat of audacity," he

to follow out the decisive course

and that we were

mitigate his resentment."

answer, which under the circumstances

admits, to have " savoured

in

therefore apply to him,

no time

in preparing

ado]>t.

His means,

There were only three British ships in the

Dutch squadron of seven.

The

troops, also,

were

far

fewer

number, and instead of being concentrated, were obliged to be airanged

two separate detachments

— the

an.i

ciives

answer to

touched their proj^erty, or infringed their privileges

was incumbent on him

nutch

manifesto.

1

with respect to their bringing troops into Bengal, the nabob knew best how far

and by

MeerjaHier.

His evident con-

he meant to

in their trade,

(Higaged to leave the river with their ships

than at that very time, and this

was

a letter was received from him stating that he

had granted the Dutch some indulgence

would permit."

intelligence

had been playing a deceitful part

and disobedience of the Dutch.

the insolence

the

and on leaving Calcutta boasted that he would soon

light of the matter,

suspiti..u«

conduct of

When

living in Calcutta as CUve's guest.

fusion left little doubt that he

made

1759.

and a detachment, composed partly of the nabob's and

partly of the Company's troops, took possession of the fort of

battery opposite to

ad.

larger one being stationed under Captain

in

Knox

it.

G62
AD.

1759.

iilSTOKV

at Tanna,

INDIA.

(JF

[Hook

where the passage of the river could ha best disputed

under Colonel Forde,
intercept the

Dutch

now

troop.s

;

J

II

wliile the other,

returned from the Circars, proceeded northward to
should any attempt be

made

march thern

to

U) Chin-

surah by land.
Hostilities

conimencerl

Amid these preparations, what (Jive's feelings were will he Vjest explaine*!
" We found our sentiments a good deal embarrassed, doubtin his own words.
ing whether we should stand justified to our country and employers in commencing

hostilities against

an

ally of England, supposing

they should persist

in

In this situation, we

passing the batteries below with their ships and troops.

the next hour would bring us news of a declaration of

anxiously wished

war with Holland; which we had indeed some reason to expect by our last
advices from England."' Fortunately, the Dutch themselves removed all .scruples

commence

Having .seized a number of the
grain boats and other vessels belonging to the Company, they tore down their
colours, transferred the stores to their own ships, and treated their crews a.s

by being the

prisoners.

to

first

hostilities.

up the

Hostilities being thus openly declared, they proceeded

while

three

the

river,

Britisii

under command of

vessels,

Commodore

Wilson,

fol-

lowed at a short distance
in their

given

commodore
pass the Dutch and

to

were to

The orders

wake.
the

anchor above the batteries.
Before he had time to exeWoLACKS, Grain Boats of Calcutta.

changed the position of

demand immediate
sink, burn,

affairs

restitution of our ships, subjects,

this order

about 800 native troops
'I'lic

Dutcli

order,

and

after

ment

;

of

was

sent, the

order, " to

and property, or to

their refusal."

had

hostilities

and caused the transmission of a new

and destroy the Dutch ships on

November, when

cute them, the commence-

— From Soh-yn's Les llindous.

On

fight,

the 23d of

Dutch landed 700 European and

the very next day

Commodore Wilson

an engagement of two hours gained a complete

obe3'ed the

victory.

All

defeated.

the vessels of the Dutcli squadron struck their flag except one, which endea-

voured to escape, and was also taken.

Dutch
it,

hearing of the landing of the

detachment stationed at Tanna under Captain Knox quitted

troops, the

and marched

On

to reinforce that

repulsed an attack

made upon him

under Colonel Forde, who had
at Chandernagore,

and pursued the

with some slaughter to the very barriers of Chinsurah.
Captain Knox, he was preparing to invest

it,

previou.sly

when he

fugitives

Having been joined by
learned that the Dutch

troops which had been landed from the ships had arrived on the plain of Bedarra,

and been there joined by part of the Chinsurah

garrison,

which had eluded

his

THE DUTCH HUMBLEIX

ClIAP. XII.]

It

\'igilance.

said that he

is

6G3

had not then received authority

to fight, but seeing

the advantage of his position, wrote a note, stating that " if he
council, he could attack the

received

Clive

Dutch with a

fair prospect of

had the order

A.D. 1769.

in

destroying them."

the

note while })laying
at cards, and, with-

the

quitting

out

answered

table,

])encil, "

in

Dear Forde,

them immedi-

fight
ate! v.

will send

I

you

order

the

of

council to-morrow."

He
jis

obeyed, and was
successful

as he
CUINiJl

had

liu

-I iwlii

I

iuH'9

ill

India.

anticipated.

His

and about 800 sepoys,

consisting of only 3:30 Europeans

force,

after a

enemy consisting of 700
The Dutch, now comtroops.

short and bloody engagement, put to total rout an
['Europeans,

and a

still

larger

number

of native

and on acknowledging themselves

pletely humbled, asked submissively for terms,

the aggressors

and agreeing

to

pay

costs

and damages, obtained the

restitution

of their ships.

The

affair,

however, was not yet over.

Meerun, the nabob's son, arrived in

CoinlitioMs
dictatcil to

the neighbourhood of Chinsurah at the head of about 7000 horse.
suspicions

which attached

to his father

and

himself, as

Aware

of the

connived at the Dutch expedition, he would have endeavoured to wijie

them

off

to in the
for the
wjir,

his proceedings,

had not

most supplicating terms, interposed

Dutch on the following conditions

:

Clive, after being written

his mediation,

— That

Dutch.

having instigated, or at

least

by the severity of

tlie

and obtained peace

they should never negotiate

introduce or enlist troops, or raise fortifications in the country

that they

;

should be allowed to keep 125 Em-opean soldiers, and no more, for the service
of their factories of Cliinsurah, Cossimbazar,

forthwith send

away

all their

and Patna

;

and that they shouM

other troops with the ships which had brought

them.

The defeat of the Dutch armament was the

last service of

importance which

cuvere
golres to

He

Clive rendered before he took his dei)arture for England.

been preparing for this event, but when he announced
in

Bengal concurred in regarding

it

real difficulty

object.

He was

for

some time depm (or

as detennined,

as a public calamit}'.

winced under his reproofs, and deeply resented
thwarted in some favourite

it

had

Meer

Jaffier

all clas.ses

had often

his interference as often as lie wa.s

aware, however, that in cases of

he could calculate on receiving effectual assistance from him, and

he was therefore

filled Avith

alarm when he thoutrht of the

difficulties to

which

HISTORY OF IM>IA.

0()t

A D. 17.W

he might be reduced after he was

left to his

own

[Kook

and the

resources,

III.

urK;ertairi

support of the individual wiio might be called to occupy without being able
riivoro.iei)artfor

The shazada was again on the frontier meditating a new inwould he be able to repel it? Nor was this all. The a.scendeiicy

Olive's place.

fill

solves to

t/j

.

How

vasion.

which the Company had acquired had opened a door to innumeraV>le abases; and
the revenues of the government, as well as the general prosperity of the popula-

had been

tion,

by the preposterous exemptions claimed and

seriously diminished

the gross oppression often practised

on

and giving pennits

trade,

vidual

by the

officials

on

to others to carry

Company

in carrying

own

trade, for their

shown a willingness

All such abuses Clive had ever

profit.

of the

to

indi-

keep

Would his successor be similarly disposed? and if lie were, would
the task? Under the influence of such considerations, Meer Jaffier

within bounds.

he be equal to

would gladly have purchased

Clive's continued residence in

Bengal at almost

The leading civil servants of the Company were equally urgent in
pressing him to postpone his departure.
Warren Hastings, in paiticular, ad-

any

price.

dressed to

him a long

was "both by
Attempts

interest

and

which, while expressing his belief that the nabob

inclination heartily attached to the English," he

argued that the people about him would use every possible means to alienate

todis-suaJo

him.

letter, in

.

.

his affections,

and that as he was " but of an

would be impossible

and unsettled temper,

irresolute

for him, after Clive's absence

emboldened them

many

the mask, to hold out against the united influence of so

Next he reminded him

of " the dangers

we

us,

and in which

mentioning a

it is

very probable the nabob

not be

difficult to

is

it

would be

be doubled

will stand neuter."

inclinable to the French

persuade him that

off

evil counsellors.'

service, will

fact confirmatory of this view, he adds, " I

an argument that the nabob

throw

are threatened with from our natural

enemies the French, which, by your resignation of the

upon

to

it

;

After

do not advance this as
but

I

think

it

would

for his interest to suffer the

French to come into this country again, both for the increase of his revenues
(a

very prevailing argument) and to balance the power of the English."

last

argument

not,"

he says,

drawn from the state of matters at the Mogul court.
know
" in what light you may regard the proposal lately made from

is

Delhi, or whether the consideration of the further advantasres that

from a nearer connection with that court

(in

is

my

mav

result

which your intervention appears of

indispensable necessity) deserve to be thrown into the scale
it

The

" I

opinion that nothing can contribute so

much

;

though

I

must own

to establish the

power of

the English in this country on the most soHd and lasting foundation as an interest properly estabhshed at that court."
His

letter to

tlieEarlof
ciiathiini

had sufficient weio-ht to chansre Clive's resolution.
Nouc of thesc argumcnts
°
?
Some of them, indeed, rather tended to confirm it, as they satisfied him that some
of the most important objects pointed at might be
his presence in

England than by

more

effectually f^ecured

his continued residence in Bengal.

by

In the

beginning of 1759 he addressed a letter to the celebrated British minister

I

William

Pitt,

afterwards Earl of Chatham, in which

"

he goes on to say,

effected,

665

unfolded his views as to a d

lie

Much more may

yet in time be done

if

Com-

the

themselves in the manner the importance of their present pos-

will exert

and future prospects

deserves.

have represented

I

strongest terms the expediency of sending out, and keeping

them

a force as will enable

embrace the

to

first

them

to

up

cuve's viewi
as to the

.

sessions

ivo9

After referring to the great revolution which had been

the futm-e of India.

pany

LETTER TO LORD CHATHAM.

CLIVE'S

Chap. XIl.l

the

ni

constantly, such

future gov-

]"^^l^i

opportunity of further aggran-

dizing themselves; and I dare pronounce, from a thorough knowledge of this

and of the genius of the

coimtry's government,

people, acquired

and experience, that such an opportunity

application

reigning soubahdar, he adds,

us,

by

with the succession.

So

any apprehensions from

.small

it

little

Moreover,

young

fellow,

"

he

and

will be almost unsafe trusting

rejoice in so

so

him

Company to

and, in case of their daring

;

take the sovereignty upon themselve.s."

In taking this step there would be no opposition on the part of the people,

"would

is

a body as 2000 Europeans will secure us against

either the one or the other

be troublesome, enable the

and probably

his interest to break with

so cruel, worthle&s a

apparently an enem}^ to the English, that

to

it

the obligations he owes us would prove no restraint."
is

The

but Mussulmans are so

;

gratitude, that should he ever think

advanced in years, and his son

years'

will soon offer."

"retains his attachment to us,

still

while he has no other support will continue to do so
influenced

by two

happy an exchange

who

as that of a mild for a despotic govern-

ment;" nor on the part of the Mogul, whose sanction might easily be obtained
"

provided

viz., fifty

we agreed

to

pay him the stipulated allotment out of the revenues,

Indeed, adds Clive, "application has been

lacs yearly."

made

to

me

from the court of Delhi to take charge of collecting this payment, the person
intrusted with which

is

styled the king's dewan, and

dignity and power to the subah.
decline for the present, as I

of the subah

with a

;

the next person both in

this high office I

have been obliged to

unwilling to occasion an\- jealousy on the part

especially as I see

no likelihood of the Company's providing us

sufficient force to support properly so considerable

would open a way

An

am

But

is

an employ, and which

for our securing the subahship to ourselves."

obvious objection to the accomplishment of these views could not escape

"So large a sovereignty
a mercantile comjmny and it is to

the notice of Clive, and he therefore continues thus:

may

possibly be an object too extensive for

;

be feared they are not of themselves able, without the nation's assistance, to

maintain so wide a dominion.
matter to you, and submit
design, that

may

have therefore ])resumed,

to 3'our consideration,

hereafter be carried to

government's taking

you that there

it

I

will

in hand.

it

be

little

still

I flatter

VoL.

I.

less

than a

fifth

to represent this

whether the execution of a

greater lengths, be worthy of the

myself

I

have made

it

pretty clear to

or no difficulty in obtaining the absolute possession

of these rich kingdoms; and that with the Mogul's

paying him

sir,

own

of the revenues thereof"

consent, on condition of

Dwelling on this argu84

nis e«timat«
p.»eiiem

LrevemiM

"

G66
AD,

iroo.

which ho justly

meiit,
"

OF

J11,ST(JJ(V

Now

1

you

leave

Ijelieved to

IS

fJiooK

A.

1)1

be the most potent of

all,

he continues thus:

upwards of

to judge, whether an income yearly of

J 1 1.

£2,000.0()()

sterhng, with the possession of three provinces abounding in the most valuable

productions of nature and

whether

art,

be an object deserving the public attention; and

be wortli the nation's while to take the proper measures to secure

it

such an acquisition

—an acquisition which, under the management of

disinterested a minister,

would prove a source of immense wealth

so aljle

and

to the king-

dom, and might in time be api)ropriated in part as a fund towards diminishin'^

we

the heavy load of debt under which

at present labour.

who had been

This letter was delivered by Mr. Walsh,

C'liatliam's

Clive's secretary,

and

answer to
Clive's
letter.

was mentioned in

it

as one

who was "a thorough master

whole design, and the

to explain the

facility

with which

it

may

be executed."

After some delay he was admitted to an interview with the ministei-,
of the matter darkly, acknowledging that the affair
at the

the

same time,

" of

interview did not reach Clive

any information as to the

was

"

to

left

effect of his letter

may

but the immediate occasion of

duced by a

directors.

from the

The absence

of

have been one of the reasons

for hastening his departure,
letter

spoke

very practicable," but,

he had sailed for England.

till

who

him with the impression that
do what they pleased. The account of tliis

a very nice nature," and

Company would be allowed

and "able

of the subject,"

it

was the

di.sgust pro-

In answer to an address from the Euro-

pean inhabitants of Calcutta, he did not scruple to say that the ill-treatment
received in that letter had fully determined
and, in

common with
it "

as

it

in the plainest

most unworth}^ yourselves and

sidered, either as masters to servants, or

have been
post,

home

able,

felt

in whatever relation con-

He would

gentlemen to gentlemen."

convinced that he might be more usefully employed at

awakening the Company

ence to control

us,

terms, characterizing the

however, to overcome this passing disgust and remain at his

had he not
in

the service,

HolweU, Play dell, Sumner, and M'Guire, members

commented upon

of council, he
diction of

Messrs.

him "in throwing up

tlie

to their true interests,

and exerting

violent factions into which the court of directors

his influ-

was

at this

time divided.
Clive quits

Clive sailed from India on the 25th of February,

1

760.

Before leaving he

India.

had secured the appointment of Mr. Vansittart

as his successor in the govern-

ment, and of Colonel Calliaud as commander of the army.

ment took

effect

The

latter appoint-

immediately; but the former, as Mr. Vansittart had been

previously attached to the presidency of Madi'as, was deferred for a time,

and Mr. Holwell, by virtue of
his short tenure of office Mr.

seniority,

became temporary governor.

Holwell laboured hard, and was successful in con-

vincing his colleagues that another revolution in Bengal was necessary.

when Mr.

During
Hence,

Vansittart airived in July to assume the government, the whole

scheme was laid before him.

Meer

Jaftier

was

to be persuaded, or if necessary

forced into a resignation of all executive authority, and to rest satisfied with a

REAPPEARANCE OF THE SHAZADA.

Chap. XII.J

667

merely nominal sovereignty, while the reality was to be exei'cised by Meer CosMr. Vansittart, as a stranger, was naturally disposed to be

sim, his son-in-law.

gxiided

by the

more than

his

and on

local experience of his council,

own independent

its

nature and

some important military

to turn for a little to

their representations,

much

convictions, concurred in the proposed revolu-

Before proceeding to explain

tion.

results, it will

be necessary

operations.

Calliaud had arrived from Madras with a reinforcement of troops, toward

As the reappearance

the end of November, 17o9.
tier

a.d. neo.

had spread general alarm, he

set out for

withtitieof

Moorshedabad with 350 Europeans,

He was

1000 sepoys, and six pieces of cannon.

of the shazada on the fron-

Theshazada

there joined by 15,000 horse

and twenty-five pieces of cannon, under the command of Meerun, and proceeded
in

During the march,

the direction of Patna.

Emperor Alumgeer
the shazada
title

was

to resist

had become the

His former

legal possessor of the imperial throne.

him on the same grounds
from his

invasion of the

and consequentl}^ that

his vizier, Ghazi-u-din,

therefore exchanged for that of

as a fugitive

new

during the confusion produced by a

11.,

had been murdered by

Abdallees,

intelligence arrived that the

Shah Alum, and

He

as formerly.

was now

it

could no longer be regarded

but as invested with

father's court,

impo.ssible

the rights of the

all

The empire, however, was completely dismembered, and the

Mogul.

nabobs and governors, though

still

different

some degree overawed by the name, con-

to

tinued to pursue any course which seemed most conducive to their own. interest,

by the change

as if totally unaffected
Tiie only

new emperor was
cause.

was

He

little

did

Nabob

the

least to

and soon found

benefited,

He was

able,

liis

with some

been invested with the

make some show

difficulty, to

make

who had warned
an'ive,

marched

ful defeat.

zeal, and,

liiiii

Patna

itself

an engagement

town

his appearance once

now

Meer

Jaftier

to be animated

till

he himself siiould

woidd probably have

fallen

had not Calliaud hastened

The emperor

hastened back as
aid of boats,

behind, no sooner became aware of his movements, than he

fa.st

as the perverse delays of

which carried

horse followed by land,

his

Meerun would allow and by the

infantry rapidly

;

down

mountainous

the Ganges, while the

came up with the enemy on the 7th of March.

emperor, thus brought to bay, dexterously avoided
tract; and, after

many

.an

hardships,

The

engagement by striking

made

His oiwrn-

in his flight reached patnafms

of Behar, and thei-e took the bold step of marching directly into Bengal.

Calliaud, thus left

into a

Alum

hope of gaining glorv. and only su.stained a disgrace-

forward, and completely repaired the disaster.
the

that Shah

contrary to the express injunctions of Calliaud,

ajjainst risking

out, in the

of espousing his

fidelity to

had been suspected during the previous attack, seemed
with a superabundant

office of

resources totally inadequate to any

Ramnarain, the governor, whose

more before Patna.

place.

espoused the cause of the

much lukewarmness,

however, with so

it,

great enterprise.

He had

of Oude.

and behoved at

vizier of the empire,

who

of political importance

individual

which had taken

in succession

his appearance

on

["'iHami'

HISTORY OF INDIA.

6(i8

AD.

1700,

Alum

vaiicea to

same boldness with which he had conceived

tlie

succcssful dasli at the capital,

he lingered

till

Calliaud,

Putua.

and even taken Meer

who had been

Thus frustrated

reach of him.

cavalry,

and retraced

was again within

by the obstructions

nabob to furnish him with

two

in

assaults,

was preparing

This

officer,

arrived unseen

who had made

a flying march, remarkable for

by the enemy, took them by

for a

the arrival of a detachment

forward by Calliaud, under Captain Knox, proved the death-blow to
hopes.

But

Here he was joined by M. Law, with

when

successful,

jilan

Jaffier himself prisoner.

refusal of the

his steps to Patna.

which promised to be

III

he might have made a

following on his track,

French party; and though repulsed

third,

it,

he executed his

in his object, he profited

which Calliaud experienced from the

his

Had

plains only thirty miles west of Moorshedabad.

tlie

with
si.ah

[Book

surprise,

its

.sent

all

his

rapidity,

and compelled them

pre-

cipitately to raise the siege.

The only
governor of

who now remained zealous in Shah Alum's service was the
Purneah, who had collected an army and was on the march to join
chief

by Meerun,

Calliaud, accompanied as before

him.

give him battle

fought and

and while oh the march received

;

won by Captain Knox.

This gallant

from Rajamahal to

set out

intelligence that
officer

it

been

liad

having been ordered to

harass the enemy's rear, crossed from Patna to the other side of the Ganges

with only 200 Eiu-opeans, a battalion of sepoys, and about 300

He had

horse.

determined to surprise the enemy's camp during the night, but mis.sed his way.

and when morning dawned, found himself

in presence of a force of 12,000.

nearly surrounded, he could scarcely have

made

With

it.

his

mere handful of

his escape.

Being

Nor did he attempt

troops, he boldly risked the encounter,

and

after

The governor of Purneah, thus unable
cope with a small detachment, had no inclination to face the main army under

a conflict of six hours proved victorious.
t(3

him and

cap-

In the hope of gaining the large

trea-

Calliaud and Meerun; who, following up the pursuit, overtook

tured his heavy baggage and artillery.
Death of
Meer Jaf

sures

which he was reported

son,

rains

had

fiei's

Meerun.

After

it

have with him, he was

with unusual violence.

set in

had continued four days,

July, 17G0.

awful end,

left

They

his tent

pursued, though the

was struck by lightning on the 2d

Meerun,

all perished.

none to regret him

still

This pu.'suit proved fatal to Meerun.

It contained, beside himself, a story-teller,

in patting his feet.
this

to

;

of

and a servant employed

who by his

crimes had merited

but to prevent the confusion and

])ro-

bable disbanding of his army, the fatality was concealed for several days, and
Calliaud succeeded in reaching Patna in safety.
K vents on

When

Meerun's death became

known

at Moorshedabad, the troops broke

Meerun's
death.

out in mutiny, and surrounding the palace threatened the nabob with instant
death,

if

he did not immediately satisfy their arrears of pay.

His treasury was

empty, and peace was only restored by the interposition of Meer Cossim, the
nabob's son-in-law,

became security

who advanced a

for the

payment

present

sum

of three lacs of rupees, and

of the rest of the aiTears within a specified

SCHEME TO DEPOSE MEEK JAFFIER.

("HAP. XII.]

Meer Cossim,

time.

had stipulated that he

in granting this assistance,

At

he regarded as the next in succession to the nabobsliip.

was aspiring
;:(>uuded

on

by Mr.

subject

which ouglit to have

His proposal was

countenance.

;

manner

gentleman how unworthy he was of the

to seat himself

a

d. kuo.

and when

Holwell, had signified his readiness in a

satisfied that

sliould

very time he

this

without waiting for succession

to the possession of it

tlie

G()!)

least

on the musnud, by causing

his

Scheme

jaBiermici
cls'lui^'""^

Mr. Holvvell says that "'he expressed much

father-in-law to be assassinated.

astonishment and abhorrence at the overture," and distinctly told Meer Cossim
" that unless he

dropped

all

mention, as well as every intention and attempt of

the measure he had intimated, the conference

Meer Cossim,

there."

from being abashed, could not even understand Mr. Holwell's

so far

which only made him fear that he

and expected."
still

must end

was not

"

much

so

Strange to say, the negotiation with this would-be

continued, and issued in a formal treaty,

name

stripped of everything but the

by which Meer

of sovereign, and

it

stipulated that the

sum due

to

Jaffier

was

On

maintenance of a

them should be

sufficient force in Bengal,

and that

was

to be
forth-

the part of the
paid, that the

Burdwan, Midnapore, and Chittagong should be assigned

districts of

for the

was

assa.ssin

Meer Cossim was

with to be invested with the whole executive authority.

Company,

scruples,

he lioped

his friend as

to

them

five lacs of rupees

should be given as a present for the war in the Carnatic.

The pretexts for this treaty were the contempt and detestation which Meer
Jaffier had provoked by his misgovernment, his inability to contend with the
with which he was surrounded, and the state of the Company's

difficulties

finances,

which made

absolutely necessary that their existing claims on the

it

government should be

and those which could not

satisfied,

fail

to arise in future

by some material guarantee. When all these things are
injustice and im]-)olicy of the new revolution are still mani-

be secured beforehand

admitted, the gross
fest.

Whatever the demerits of Meer

Jaffier

might

be,

they could scarcely be

man who, though bound to him by the closest affinity,
way to the throne by assassinating him. The pecuniar}be diminished by the substitution of a new nabob, who

greater than those of the

would have carved a
difficulties

could not

brought no

new

own, nor could the general confusion of the

resoui'ces of his

government be diminished by abrupt revolutionary changes.

pany stood bound by solemn

ti'eaty to

Besides, the

Com-

maintain Meer Jaffier on the throne, and

there could not be a greater breach of faith than the arbitrary determination to

depose him.

But

it is

imnecessary to examine the ostensible pretexts for this

dishonourable and iniquitous proceeding, since the real motive, though carefully
concealed at the time, was soon disclosed, and proved that the leaders in the

new

revolution, while pleading public principle, liad only been consulting their

avarice.

On

the very night

he made a tender of twenty
mittee.

They were not

when

lacs of rupees to

refused

;

Meer Cossim was signed,
the members of the select com-

the agi-eement with

but

it

was deemed decent

to decline acceptance

t->

Corrupt
pioyo.i

L

<>70

AD.

JIISTOIIY C>F INI>IA.
the affairs of the country were settled, and

till

1760.

They might have waited long
Mucr

Jaffier

jjq

clepoaedand

they
'J

Imrry to renew his

offer,

"^

_

Qf

i.en»ioneii

tlie

mouey

refresherl

liis

;

finances

th(;

surmounted

were

III.

flourishing^.

and as Meer Cossim seemwl

in

memory,
J' and demanded rmymcnt
J
I

thus shamefully extorted, £30,000 went into the pocket of Mr.

demand

Mr. Vansittart, after refusing to concur in the

Holwell.

his scruples,

and accepted £58,000 as

of payment,

his share.

had been made without the knowledge of Meer

All these arrangements
Jaffier,

for sucii a peri(jd

[Book

who became acquainted with them

for the first

time when a deputation

of the council of Calcutta waited upon him, for the purpo.se of conferring with

him generally upon matters of government.

who headed

Mr. Vansittart,

the

deputation, laboured to impress the nabob with the abuses of his administration,

and having thus wrung from him an expression of

by the advice of
one among

"

his willingness to

his English friends, suggested the propiiety of

thus gradually led to confess that old age and grief for

tions

had

all

that
it

seemed

for struggling

with

and that none of

difficulties,

Meer Cossim of giving him

so capable as

along been cunningly aimed

Meer Cossim should be sent

at,

was urged, aroused the nabob's

was now gained

;

suspicions,

his rela-

The point which

aid.

and

This proposal, and the

for.

employing some

The old nabob was
the death of Meerun

the nabob's children" to set affairs in order.

had incapacitated him

be guided

it

was proposed

ha.ste

with which

and he withdrew, complaining of

was expected that the business would be resumed next day; but as
the nabob made no communication, the deputies threw off the mask, and .sent
fatigue.

It

a letter acquainting

him that

Calliaud was ready to execute

threw him into a transport of
of

thirsty character he

him, and took
Impolicy

and

up

them

rage,

which he had been the dupe.

sovereignty, or to trust his

measures were taken, and that Colonel

all their

life

necessary

if

by

and he complained

The information

force.

bitterly of the treachery

Ultimately disdaining to accept of a nominal
in the

hands of a son-in-law, of whose blood-

was too well aware, he accepted of the pension

offered to

his residence in Calcutta.

was impossiblc that a transaction marked by so much duplicity and
The inhabitants, indeed, looked on with comparative
could prosper.

It

bitter

fruitsoftiiis
'

tice

ference to a change of masters which,

if it

promised

little

injusiiidif-

amelioration of their

condition, could scarcely

make

bitter fruits

were

reaped in Calcutta

where the council became divided into two parties

—the

itself,

it

worse than

it

The

was.

ffi'st

one cordially approving, and the other decidedly condemning the revolution

which had been

effected.

To the

former, of course, belonged those

niary circumstances had been greatly improved

by

it

;

whose pecu-

while the other consisted,

not indeed exclusively, but mainly of those who, not having been members of
the select committee, did not share in the extorted money, and could conse-

quently boast of being actuated by pure and disinterested motives.

Even had

Mr. Vansittart not furnished too good a handle for the vituperation of this
party, there

were circumstances

in his

nomination which made

it

anything but

DISSENSIONS IN THE COUNCIL

Ohai>. XII.

He

acceptable.

liad

Leen brought from a

G7I

diti'erent presidency,

and was thus

.VI). 1701.

viewed by several members of the council as an intruder, who, without any

had broken

better qualification than the recommendation of Olive,

in

upon the

DisseiiBioiiH

in the lieu

rotation which nmst, sooner or later, have put
object of tiieir ambition.

Meer

Jaffier's

at the very time

government was held a

chamber of Calcutta was

council

sufficient

when

the unsettled state of

i'ov

by the

first

dethroning him, the

had a bare majority, and

dismissal of his })rincipal supportei's.

They had signed the remonstrance which Clive drew up

before he sailed, and in

which he complained in no measured terms of the language employed
general letter of the directors.
the remonstrance,
subscribers

still

They

and vindicated

gal cuuiK'il.

the scene of acrimonious discussions and

itself

ere long left in a minority

in possession of the highest

grouml

The governor from the very

violent dissensions.

was

Tims

them

in their turn

their dignity

in the

were equally offended with

by ordering

that any one of the

in their service should forthwith

be dismissed, and not only dismissed, but sent

home

to England.

way some

In this

of the most

members of comicil were lost to it, at
the time when they could least be spared, and were
supplied in some instances by men equally devoid

experienced

of experience and temper.

The kind of

Meer Cossim, now
to pursue,

installed as nabob,

remained

was about

time uncertain.

for a short

Shah Alvun was again hovering on the
and

Avas necessary,

it

which

administration

internal

frontier,

home

before settling the

government, to be relieved from the expense and
alarm of a foreign war. Accordingly, Major Carnac,

who had assumed

the

command of

the Briti.sh

in India, fixed his head-quai-ters at

army

Patna in the

beginning of January, 1701, and as soon as the
rains

ceased,

commenced

the campaign.

Shah

Shah Alvm. — Froraa

Uinil>H> miniature,

copied in FrmcckUa't Lif« of Siiah Alum.

Alum was

only at a short distance to the west, and

being overtaken before he could muster an adequate

Law had
we

were rather to

liave already seen,

neo^otiate

than

fiirht.

An

easily defeated.

advisable to decline

it,

ofier of the

Caniac's

dewannee had,

might soon

arrive.

when

it

would no longer be

But, even apart from this considera-

seemed important to form such a connection with the emperor as would

secure the sanction of his
necessar}"^ to adopt.

solicited

name

to

whatever measm-es

NegDtiatiiiii:

with Shah

been made to Clive; and Mr. Yansittart, following

out his views, was disposed to think that the time

tion, it

was

joined him with his Frenchmen, and was taken prisoner.

instructions
as

force,

it

mifjht be thoujrht

Carnac accordingly, instead of following up his victory,

an interview, and after some demur was permitted

to visit

Shah Alum

.'Mum.

;

672
A.u. 1701

IllSTOllY

A

in his camp.

new

with
siiahAiuin

I

il:itioii

•

i

i

Alum

Icdge Shall

[Book

easily formed,

and

I

J

I.

returned

tliey

Here, Meer Cossim, after betraying great jealoasy of the

Company had

connection which the
f>,,

was

friendly understanding

together to Patna.
\c(ommo-

OF INDIA.

as emperor,

provinces of Bengal, Beliar,

thus formed, was induced to acknow-

and received formal investiture from him of the
and Orissa, on an engagement to pay an annual

Shah Alum shortly

revenue of twenty- four lacs of rupees.

took his

after

departure for the west, intending to endeavour to obtain possession of his capital.

Carnac escorted him to the confines of Behar, and, on parting, received a new
offer of the

for the

Mccr Cossim being thus

Severity of
Sim's gov-

dewannee

was able

to give his

Company.

relieved from all apprehension of a foreign invader,

undivided attention to domestic

affairs,

and displayed abun-

The

dance of vigour, though of a more than questionable description.
difficulty of his predecessor

had been an empty

treasury.

was

It

greatest

this

which

kept his army constantly in a state of mutiny, and furnished the council of Cal-

Meer Cossim's

cutta with the only plausible ground for deposing him.
object therefore

was

and supply funds

money, both to meet present demands

to supply himself with

With

for future emergencies.

first

this

view he was

rigid in calling

When

the collectors and farmers of the pubhc revenue to account.

balances

were due, he was undoubtedly entitled to exact them, but the mere wealth of
the parties was often held to be sufficient evidence of their guilt, and large

sums were extorted by cruelty and

terror.

none was supposed to have accumulated
narain; and Meer Cossim,

was determined
It

was

who hated him

so

Of all the .subordinate governors
much wealth as the Hindoo Ram

as cordially as

Meer

Jaffier

had done,

by destroying him.
Ramnarain had obtained

at once to gratify his hatred and his avarice

necessary, however, to proceed with caution.

a guarantee of his personal safety from Clive, and had subsequently rendered

important service by resisting the attempts of Shah

permanent footing

to obtain a

protection of the
violence.
so,

Still

He was

Company, and seemed consequently

he was liable to account.

and was met by delays and

and he had

in the province.

little

difficulty in

evasions.

How

his confederates

thus under the special

secure from direct personal

Meer Cossim called upon him to do
This was just as he had anticipated

making out a

governor and council of Calcutta.

Alum and

plausible case of complaint to the

could he carry on the government, and

how, moreover, could he discharge the obligations he had imdertaken to the

Company,

if,

through their interference, one of the largest

revenue was emboldened to withhold pajonent, and even

Unfortunately the
Qnaiieiasto ject.
Ramnarain.

civil

set

collectors

him

of the

at defiance?

and military authorities took opposite views on the sub-

Major Camac and Colonel Coote, who had superseded him on

from Madras, believed that Meer

Co.ssim, in calling for accounts,

employing a subterfuge to further his designs on Ramnarain's

life.

his an-ival

was merely

They had

too good grounds for this belief; for they were not only aware of the nabob's

anxiety to get the Hindoo into his power, but had been offeied large bribes to

XI I.J

Chap.

connive at

BUSES OF THE COMPANY'S SERVANTS.

.^

Mr. Vansittart, on the otlier hand, seeing nothing but what was

it.

Meer Cossim's demand, insisted that every facility should be
Coote and Carnac still refusing to abandon the course which they

reasonable

\

073
a.d. irei.

in

given him.

had taken, and which they held to be the only one consistent with honoin* and
equity, a violent quarrel ensued

Pe'-fiJ'"'!*

-f

lumim-

and Mr. Vansittart, with the sanction of a

;

majority of his council, took the extraordinary step of recalling both these

The remainder

officers to Calcutta.

narain, deprived of the protection

seized

by

of the plot

was

which had been solemnly pledged to him, was

enemy, pillaged, and thrown into

his remorseless

Rani-

easily cairied out.

prison.

If Mr. Vansittart's object in thus shamefully sacrificing

Ramnarain, was to

hind Meer Cossim to British interests, the result must have miserably disap-

A

pointed him

a violent

Ellis,

conciliate,
its

first

much more

serious nature immediately arose.

day he entered upon

office,

as

if

his object

His

but to exasperate the native government.

proper fruits

disgraced

a

Mr.

i.e-

cotsim ana
i^uiy.

and arrogant man, had been appointed head-factor at Patna, and

from the

acted,

(piarrel of

Q'lairti

him

;

and Meer Cossim, stung

in the

folly

to

soon produced
insults

which

eyes of his subjects, began to meditate revenge.

The

name

abuses practised under the

Meer

bitter complaint.

had been not

Jaffier

to the quick

of private trade

by repeated

had long been a subject of

had not been a month on the musnud when he

remonstrated against the loss sustained by the public revenue by claims of

exemption from custom on the part of Em-opean
natives professing to be authorized

by them.

officials

of the

Company, or

The trade of the Company was

By

wholly foreign, and was consequently confined to imports and exports.
express treaty, neither of these were liable to customs or transit duties.

exemption was perfectly understood, and couUl not be challenged.

This

But besides

the foreign trade there was a most important inland trade, for which no such

The Company,

exemption could be claimed.

in fact,

had no concern with

Their servants, however, very indifferently paid by fixed
to

engage in

in itself

it,

and derived from

it

salaries,

were allowed

injustice.

Not

with being placed on a footing with native traders, the European
only

•111
availed themselves
1

This was

the better part of their incomes.

a great abuse, and ultimately became a crying

I'lii
the dustuks

oi

or pa.s.sports

r»i'
of their

it.

sati-sfied

officials

not

employers,

smuggle goods which they were never designed to cover, but boldly

to oftuecomjwny
'*

a.sserted

own behoof duty free.
excluded from their own markets, since

that they were entitled to carry on private trade for their

The native
it

traders

was impossible

who

were thus virtually

for them, while

burdened with

They were hence reduced

paid none.

commercial agents to the British

officials,

duties, to

or of paying large

the privilege of being permitted to trade in their name.
public revenue
of the abuse,

was

and

mined no longer
Vol.

I.

compete with those

to the alternative of either

sums

to

becoming

them

for

In either case the

Meer Cossim had previously complained
of Mr. Ellis had exa.sperated him, was deter-

grossly defrauded.

after the insults

to tolerate

it.

Monstrous
pretensions

1

There cannot be a doubt that in this he had
85

8 ser-

auts.

HLSTOltY OF INDIA.

674.

AD.

iroj.

on Ids

justice

side,

and did not draw an exaggeiated picture when,

"From

addressed to the governor, in March, 1702, he said,
Compiaints

cuttii

to Cossiinbazar,

Patna, and Dacca,

of Meor

Cossim.

_

gomastaks,

officers,

lectors, renters,

no power to
in every

and agents

all

_

And

officers.

di.strict,

the English chiefs,

is

'a grievance which

calls

and other servants

month

in oil, fish,

and other things; and every man with

fully borne out

Mr. Vansittart, dated only a

colours, allow

on a trade

village, carry

a Company's dustuk in his hand regards himself as not
This statement

with their

_

besides this, the gomastaks

market and

in every

in a letter

the factory of Cal-

and magistrates, and setting up the Company's

my

IIJ.

in every district of the government, act as col-

straw, bamboos, rice, paddy, betel -nut,

pany."

[Book

.

than the Com-

less

by Mr. Hastings, who,

later, describes

in a letter to

the evil complained of as

loudly for redress; and will, unless duly attended

to,

render ineffectual any endeavours to create a firm and lasting harmony between
the nabob and the Company."
Selfish

and

The coursc which ought

to

have been pursued

is

obvious.

The

private trade

impolitic

views of

of the Company's servants ought to have been absolutely interdicted, or at

couucii."

events subjected to such regulations as would at once protect the revenue and

But by

the native trader.

members of

council

whom

in Calcutta

were these regulations to be made

were themselves the worst

offenders,

having the power of legislation in their hands, were determined

what might, they would never allow
their emoluments.

enough

to lay the

it

?

that,

all

The
and

happen

to be used for the purpose of curtailing

Mr. Vansittart, feeling himself powerless, was not bold

axe to the root of the

evil,

and proposed,

as a compromise,

that the trade should be open to the Company's servants as before, but subject
to the

thought he had obtained,
ment.

much keen debate, he obtained, or
powers from the council to make an amicable settle-

payment of the regidar

With

this

full

duties.

After

view he had an interview with the nabob, and obtained

his

by which, to prevent the inconvenience of
the Company's servants engaged in private

reluctant consent to an arrangement

repeated stoppages, the goods of

trade were to pay a duty of nine per cent, on the prime cost in one slump sum.

This was far less than was exacted from the native traders, and Mr. Vansittart
returned, in the belief that if he

had erred

in

any part of the bargain,

it

only in having exacted too favourable terms for the Company's servants.

must hence have been with some

surprise

and indignation

were divulged, he found them bitterly assailed by

all

that,

the

when

was
It

the terms

members of

his

At a full meeting of council, specially called to
members voted that the private trade of the Company's

council except Mr. Hastings.

consider the subject, ten

servants
article

was

like tb.e public trade of their masters,

duty

free,

and that the only

on which they ought to pay anything, and that more from com-tesy

than legal obligation, was a duty of 2^ per cent, on salt. Not satisfied with
passing the disgi-aceful resolution, they caused it to be forthwith notified to the
nabob.

EUPTUliE WITH MEEU COSSIM.

Chap. XII.]
It is

probable that the nabob, though he expressed disappointment at this ad.

notification,

of

G7o

was not

wliolly dissatisfied with

which he comphiined could not be

He saw

it.

that the grievances

remedied by the arrangement

effectually

i762.

^^^''

cowim

decUirua the

concluded with Mr. Vansittart, and he was thei'efore not unwilling that the

He was

whole question should once more be thrown open.
take the course which seemed to

him most expedient.

iniai.dtiudo

thus at liberty to

As the

servants of the

Company, backed by the council at Calcutta, insisted on trading free, he would
no longer offer any opposition, but on the contrary would extend the privilege
to all classes of the population,

by announcing

would be levied on the inland
this step,

but

it

was

He had

repeatedly threatened to take

so obviously destructive of one of the

public revenue, that

it

was taken

main sources of the

would never carry

for granted he

it

into

Great then was the disappointment and consternation at Calcutta when

effect.
it

trade.

that in future no duties whatever

was known that the private trade monopoly under which

so

many

had been made, and so much extortion practised, was cut up by the

showed on

council

this occasion that there

No

employers would be injuriously affected, recorded

nabob was bound to exact duties from
pany's servants
resisting this

his

own

it

interests of their

as their opinion that the

subjects

and leave the Com-

Vansittart and Mr. Hastings again stood alone in

Mi-.

free.

The

fewer than eight of the

and hypocritical pretext that the

false

roots.

was no amount of extravagance and

iniquity which they were not prepared to commit.

members, under the

fortunes

monstrous decision.

After adopting

it,

they actually sent a

deputation to the nabob in the hope of being able to persuade or terrify him
into acquiescence.

sword could decide

But the quarrel was now

irreconcilable,

and nothing but the

it.

While the deputies, Messrs. Amyatt and Hay, were vainh* endeavouring
.

.

.

.

.

.

to accomplish the object of their extraordinary mission,

arms

for the British

deputies

demanded

troops at Patna were stopped

their instant release, but the

Mr. Ellis was removed from his

was

still

more

told that he

servants

decided.

must remain

office as head-factor, or

When
as

by native

The

the troops of which in

This step was followed by

the deputies proposed to depart, Mr.

an hostage

who had been imprisoned

officers.

nabob positively refused unless

that capacity he had the control were withdrawn.

another

some boats loaded with

for the safety of

at Calcutta.

It

Hay

some of the nabob's

was vain

to

dream any

longer of amicable accommodation, and both sides began to prepare for open
war.

The rashness of Mr.

Ellis precipitated the event.

been alarming the presidency

witii accounts of the

ceived himself to be surrounded, and urging

them

granted,

for

some time

dangers with which he con-

him with discretionon any emergency without

to invest

ary powers, in order that he might be able to act

waiting for specific instructions from Calcutta.

He had

His request wsvs unfortunately

and he no sooner learned the reception which the deputies had met

with, than regarding

it

as an open declaration of war, he ordered out the

An open
rupture.

676

AD

I76:i.

lli.STUKY

and by a sudden onset

troops,

however, stood out; and

citadel,
Hostilities
witli

Meer

t'ossim.

uuidf;

having returned, regained

was now the turn of the
their factory for

town

as easily as they

After a short

The

same time; and

all

who had been taken

which ensued
He

As soon

is

lost his

He

it.

It

retired to

they found their

factory of Cossimbazar

to detain him.

lost

up the Ganges

attacked them, and

district

was taken and

at both places

When
resisted,

were

Mr. Ellis attacked

A party

Patna Mr. Amyatt had only begun to journey homeward.

him by the nabob endeavoured

had

to boats, hastened

sent off prisoners to the strong fort of Monghir.

'J'hi-

first surjjrise,

and they

i-esistance,

Here the commander of the

they were obliged to surrender.

of Patna.

on the

tied

British to act on the defensive,

and betaking themselves

towards Chuprah.

])lundered at the

who had

town almost

tiie

[B«joK in.

himself master of the

tlie troops,

that j)urpose.

position untenable,

OF INDIA.

sent after

and in the

scuffle

life.

as hostilities

were thus commenced, the presidency, as

if

they were

deposeil.

absolute lords of the country,

i,s.sued

a proclamation on the 7th of July, 1763,

deposing Meer Cossim, and replacing Meer Jafiier on the musnud.

The

old

nabob had continued to reside in Calcutta, and thouoh now more unfitted
than ever for government, by age and
to

As a matter

it.

had ambition enough

to aspire

of course he accepted whatever conditions were proposed

and imdertook

to him,

disease,

in particular to re-establish the

monopoly of private

trade in favour of the Company's servants, by allowing their goods to pass duty
free,

while those of the natives were heavily burdened.

l)laced

Mr. Vansittart in a very

nature to

all

awkward

These proceedings

predicament, but he attached his sig-

the documents, subject, however, to the salvo, that he did

it

without

The Company's army, consisting of 750 Europeans, together with a considerable number of sepoys and native
cavalry, had previously started, under the command of Major Adams, fi'om the
neighbourhood of Chandernagore, and proceeded northward to Augadeep, not
far from Cutwah, wheie they were joined by Meer Jafiier, now on the way
to lesiime possession of the capital.
Meer Cossim, determined not to jaeld it
without a struggle, had thrown up entrenchments, and occupied them with an
prejudice to his former declarations and opinions.

army, formidable not only from
able

number

its

numbers, but fr(^m containing a consider-

of sepoys, regularly trained

m European discipline, and commanded

by an European adventurer of the name of Suniroo, who was of Swiss origin,
and had been a sergeant in the French army. After a short but decisive
His

defeat.

Meer Cossim's entrenchments were stormed,
and Moorshedabad was entered without opposition. The Adctors, after a short
action, fought

on the

24?th of July,

delay, continued their

march up the banks of the Hooghly, and on reaching

enemy encamped on the plain of Gheriah,
was much more keenly contested than before,

Sooty, on the 2d of August, found the

and prepared

to offer battle.

It

but, after a conflict of four hours, at one time with doubtful issue, British valoiu'

again prevailed, and gained a complete victoiy.

MASSACRE AT PATNA.

Chap. XII.]

Meer Cossim, while
danger within the

his troops

fort of

were thus

677

had kept aloof from ad.

fighting,

Monghir, venting his rage and gratifying his savage

nature by several atrocious murders.

Among

his victims

were Ramnarain, who

had never been released from the prison to which he was consigned when Mr.

two members of the famous banking
these murders had inspired him with courage, he

Vansittart shamefully abandoned him, and

As

family of the Seits.

made

OudanuUa

or

Oondwah

have had 00,000

men
The

pieces of cannon.

now taken up

Meer Cossim

is

to

British barely mustered in

fort,

and

all

3000, and yet with these

of

when he

some time been meditating a

residing at Patna

when advancing

vipon that fort,

an ominous allusion

the success which

you

it

learned that Monghir had fallen.

lioriid

had received a

to his prisoners,

you have gained, merely by

what manner

this shall

massacre
letter

;

for

Major Adams,

from him, in which,

he concluded thus: "Exult not upon
treacher}'

or three places, over a few jemidars sent

shall see in

British pm-sued, invested

Meer Cossim had previously placed himself beyond the reach

He had

two

After

it

was

in

said

has been alleged, bribed

danger, and
for

The

after a short siege compelled, or, as

to surrender.

after

a

Meer Cossim's temporary courage forsook him, and he hastened back

Monghir, followed by the wreck of his army.

the

cossim.

within the entrenchment, which was defended by 100

succeeded in both capturing the fort and storming the entrenchment.
this defeat

Defeat of

Nullah, a strong fort situated near the

bank of the Ganges, eight miles south of Rajamahal.

right
t(^

if

bold to quit his fort and joined his army, which had

.strong position at

irea.

and night

By

by me.

assaults,

the will of

God

The only

be revenged and retaliated."

answer that could be returned was to denounce his brutality, and threaten
it

with signal vengeance.

him
It

He

for the fall of

cared not,

and he issued the inhuman order

desperate,

at once executed to the very letter

was

and that of
Fullarton,

made

to butcher all the prisoners.

by Suraroo, who, by

his

own hand

his emissaries, slaughtered every one of the prisoners except Dr.

whose professional services had caused Meer Cossim to except him.

The number of Englishmen thus murdered
them were Mr.
council,

Moncrhir had

in cold blood

exceeded 200.

Among

who almost merited his fate, and Mr. Hay, a member of
fellow - deputy of Mr. Amyatt on the absurd mission about

Ellis,

and the

jirivate trade.

Meer Cossim, aware that he had placed himself beyond the pale of mercy,
(lid

not await the arrival of the British at Patna, but hastened to cross the

Caramnassa, which formed part of the boundary between Behar and the
tories

of the

The garrison he left made a spirited but
and the town was taken by stown on tiie Hth of November.

Nabob

unavailing defence,

Thouo-h there was

terri-

of Oude.

now

little

hope of overtaking the blood-stained

fugitive, the

was continued and the British army, early in December, encamped on
the banks of the Caramnassa in order to watch the motions of Meer Cossim, who
had assumed a more formidable appearance than ever in consequence of having

pursuit

;

Massncre.it

;

HISTORY OF INDIA.

078
AD.

17C4.

[Book

formed a junction with the Emperor Shah Ahjm and Sujali Dowlah, the Nabob
of Oude, who, as has been already mentioned, had been appointed

lunctionof

When

sim with

expedition against Bundelcund.

peroTmi.i

Nabob

of

III.

''i^

Ijis

he crossed the river they were both at AUahaVjad preparing
Tliey received liim with

all

vizier.

for

an

the respect due to

rank as nabob, and promised him their assistance to recover the provinces

fj-oni

which

was not undeserving of

their assistance, he volunteered to

own

against Bundelcund with his
confederates

To show

represented himself as most unjustly expelled.

lie

and was

troops,

that he

head the expedition

so successful that his

were impressed with a favourable opinion of

his

cause,

new
and

declared their determination to unite as soon as the season would admit in a

common

invasion of Bengal.

The presidency, notwithstanding the

successes

which had attended

their

by no means free from apprehension. Meer Jaffier's name carried
no weight with it, and they found themselves involved in a war which mere
distance made difficult and expensive, and which, if permitted to spread, might
They were therefore
soon extend over the greater part of Northern India.
arms, were

extremely urgent that Major Carnac,

command, should

at once

who had

assume the aggressive, or at

advanced position which had been taken
impracticable to do either.
Mutinous

Smpany's^
''™^'

their previous services

again been appointed to the chief

up.

way

seemed to him

They thought that
rewarded, and had been worked

sufficiently

in convincing not a

of bettering their circumstances

Desertion, accordingly,

masters.

it

disaffected.

upou by cmissarics of the enemy, who succeeded
the most effectual

events maintain the

Unfortunately,

His troops were

had not been

all

few that

would be by changing

became alarmingly frequent; and when the

enemy began to advance, Carnac, afraid to risk the encounter, retired upon
Patna.
The enemy followed, in hope of interposing between him and the toAvn
and when they failed, came up boldly in front of the walls under which he was
encamped, and offered him battle. However unwilling he might be, it was
scarcely in his

power

to decline

it.

On

the morning of the 13th of May, the

enemy commenced with a cannonade, and under cover of it made a general attack,
wlilch was kept up with great spirit, and was not finally repulsed till evening
began to close. The British, thus far victorious, were unable to derive any advantage from their victory

;

while the enemj', instead of retiring, kept hovering about,

watching an opportunity to repeat their attack.
Durino- the continuance of this unsatisfactory state of matters, negotiations

were repeatedly attempted.
of
Attempted

Meer Cossim and Sumroo.

^^^^^^gj^g

tiating
this

vizier

and yet the semblance of negoThe only thing gained was time, and

vicws, there could be no agreement,

was kept up

for several weeks.

was of considerable importance,

ing an

/

The

ccssion of the whole province of Behar.

nego la ions,

demanded the delivery
not only refused, but demanded the
Between parties entertaining such

Carnac. as a preliminary,

army

in the field

for in the interval the difficulty of maintain-

had greatly increased

;

and the emperor and

his vizier

MUTINY OF SEPOYS SUPPRESSED.

XI I]

CiiAr

becoming suspicious of each

good

other's

faith,

betrayed a willingness to treat

The emperor, in particular, offered to enter
with the Company. It became unnecessary to make a Unal
separately.

overtures before the confederacy Wiis broken up,
the vizier, who, alarmed for the safety of his
sti-ong

679

own

a.u. 1:04

into regular alliance

choice between these

by the sudden departure
territories,

of

threatened by a

detachment which Carnac had sent across the Ganges, hastened

off"

to

defend them.

Major Carnac was succeeded by Major Hector Monro, wlio arrived with a

by

reinforcement which he brought
spirit wiiich

had crippled

sea from

Bombay.

his predecessor's operations

very day of his arrival, a whole battalion of sepoys set

accoutrements to join the enemy.

them while

A

prisoners.

found the mutinous
the

cannu: n»
inulBf"'""^

with their arms and

off"

in pursuit,

It

On

prevalent.

.still

body of troops sent

and brought them back as

asleep,

He

Monro

came

was absolutely

u[)on

neces-

make an example, and Monro was determined that it .should be of a kind
sufficient to strike terror.
Having picked out twenty-four who were understood
sary to

most criminal of the mutineers, he brought them before a com't-martial

to be the

of native

who found them

officers,

guilty,

death the commander should appoint.

them should be blown away from guns.
pose, four gi-enadiers

and sentenced them

to

He immediately ordered
When they were tied up

who had been condemned,

any kind of
that four of

for this pur-

stepped forward and requested

that, as

they had always had the post of honour, they should be the

suffer.

This extraordinary precedence was allowed them.

suff'ered,

the sepoys intimated tlirough their European officers that they would

not allow any more to be executed.

Monro was not to be thus deterred.
and ])lacing them at intervals m the

p]uropeans, he ordered the sepoys to

symptom

to

After they had

.

loading the field-pieces with grape,

first

ground their arms, intimating

After

ITline of

that,

/«

nis firmne««
'" quelling

mutiny.

on the

They
were completely overawed, and looked on without a murmur, while sixteen more
were blown from the guns. Four remained, but with no intention to respite

least

of

he would order the artillery to

refiLsal,

them, for they were immediately sent
the frequency of desertion from

it,

it

off"

fire

upon them.

to another cantonment, where,

from

appeared that the example of an execution

was particularly required.

The mutinous

spirit

being thus quelled, Monro brought the troops out of

cantonments as soon as the cessation of the rains permitted, and on the

September commenced

his

field-pieces.

5th of

march westward at the head of an army consisting of n^ victi.r>-

857 Europeans, 5297 sepoys, and 918 native cavalry.

twenty

1

111

all

/0/2 men, with

After encountering some resistance at the passage of the

Sone, where some breastworks had been thrown up, and suff'ering considerable

annoj'ance from cavalry which
of October at the

town and

hung on

fort of

his line of march, he arrived on the

22d

Buxar, situated on the right bank of the

Ganges, nearly equidistant between Patna and Benares.

Here the Vizier Sujah

Dovvlah and Meer Co.ssim were occupying an entrenched camp, with an army

G80

OF INDIA

llLSTUliV

[Book

III.

//

AD.

iMi.

estimated variously from 10,000 to 00,000 men.

Ganges on

left

and Buxar

numbers they disdained

Monro's
victory

tlie

to act

in the rear,

was

"Their

having the

po.sitioii,

strong, but wnfident in their

on the defensive, and on the morning of the

2.Sd

cat

Huxar.

Monro's intention to surprise the camj)

were seen advancing to the attack.

during the previous niglit had been frustrated by

tlie failure

whom
had now no

of the spies

he had sent out to return with the necessary information, and he

enemy had

option but to fight in open day on ground which the
battle lasted three hours,
after the

and appears

enemy saw themselves

The

to have been stoutly contested, for even

defeated they retired slowly in.stead of breaking

into a tumultuous flight.

Their greatest

stream, over which there

was a bridge of

loss

in close pursuit ordered the bridge to be

troops thus left behind were

chosen.

drowned or

was sustained
The

boats.

at the crossing of a

vizier seeing the British

About 2000

broken down.

of his

This order to destroy the bridge

slain.

was, in the opinion of Major Monro, the best piece of generalship which Sujah

Dowlah showed that day. But for it, he said, " I would either have taken or
drowned his whole army in the Caramnassa, and come up with his treasure and
jewels, and Cossim Ali Khan's jewels, which, I was informed, amounted to between £2,000,000 and £3,000,000." Besides the 2000 who perished at the bridge,

enemy lost other 2000 in the
cannon.
The British loss was also

the

847, or rather
Submission
of the

emperor.

more than a ninth of

field of battle,

severe,

their

together with 130 pieces of

amounting in

whole

killed

and wounded

to

force.

The victory of Buxar was immediately followed by overtures of peace both
from the emperor and Sujah Dowlah. The former, indeed, was so far reduced
in his fortunes that he scarcely ventured to

assume the character of an inde-

pendent prince, and offered to submit to any terms that might be dictated to

The only return he asked was protection against his own vizier, who, he
complained, was treating him as a state prisoner.
The British commander
him.

having no authority to

treat,

wrote to Calcutta for instructions, but so deter-

mined was the emperor to escape from the thraldom in wdiich he was
in the interval before the instmctions arrived he

and every night encamped

for safety as near

kept

them

held, that

army,

close to the British

as he could.

At

last,

when

a favourable answer arrived from Calcutta, the protection which he had previously enjoyed on mere sufferance was regularly granted, and he
as

treat.

ally of the

Company.

Sujah Dowlah was equally anxious for the cessation of

The Nabob
of Oude
offers to

no longer the enemy but the

to purchase it

by paying twenty-five

was recognized

hostilities,

To

this

Sujah Dowlah

his refusal

time,

still

wanting

still

—the delivery of Meer

refused his assent.

by a feehng of honour, and yet

Meer Cossim,

so far

offered

lacs of rupees as the expenses of the war,

twenty-five lacs to the army, and eight lacs to the commander.
pensable requisite was

and

He

One

indis-

Cossim and Sumroo.

seemed to be influenced

in

this could hardly be, for at this very

from being treated with the hospitality due to a

was suffering the greatest indignity, and had almost been reduced

to

guest,

beggary

ATTEMPT ON CHUNAR.

CUAV. XII.]

by

681

extortion and the violent seizure of his treasures.

were not even pretended.

scruples of honour

him was, that being

delivering

own

and would

make him a

to

his The negountions with

The true

prisoner.

Sumroo, on finding that Meer Cossim was no longer able

reason was different.
to be his paymaster,

any attempt

was

.

.

resist

had abandoned him, and was now with

He

in the vizier's service.

him was

sujah
broke'u'ofl.

his sepoys enlisted

At

was, therefore, unwilling to part with him.

length, however, on finding that the delivery of

i764.

reason assigned for not

Tlie

at the head of the battalions of sepox's he

_

master,

In regard to Sumroo, ad.

still

insisted

on as an

indispensable pi'eliminary to the conclusion of a treaty, he endeavoured to effect

by proposing that, instead of being delivered up, he
The plan was to give an entertainment, and murder
should be assassinated.
him in the midst of its festivities. To make sure of the right man, deputies
from the English camp who knew Sumroo's person were to be present and
a singular compromise

witness the death.

It

almost unnecessaiy to say that the proposed compro-

is

mise was at once rejected, and the negotiation was broken off

At the commencement

On

Benares.

At

of the necrotiation,
the British aiiny had advanced to
°
"^

_

termination

its

it

resumed

the same time a strong detachment was

and succeeded
ing

Lucknow, the

in the direction of Allahabad,

.sent into

the territories of Oude proper,

in effect-

capture

the

march

its

of

capital.

Anotiier enterprise un-

dertaken by the main

anny was less successThe strong fort
ful.
of Chunar, or Chunar-

^awe'

ghur, situated on the

bank

right

of

the

Ganges, lay so near the
of

line

march that

it

Fort ok Chin akohuk— Fmm an

original drawing, by Capt. U. Smith, )4th Regt.

was deemed imprudent
to leave

it

behind in the enemy's possession.

rising abruptly

ascend

till

it

Its site

from the river to the height of

reached the height of

UG

feet.

was a sandstone

104; feet,

and continuing

The whole

a rampart, measured 750 yards in length by 300 in breadth.
that,

notwithstanding the

strength of

might be carried by a night
the place

A

still

was subsequently

more important

which, though strongly

attack.

carried

success
fortified,

its

position

and

rock,

its

area,

It

to

inclose.l 1)y

was supposed

fortifications,

it

The attempt was made and failed but
after a regular breach had been effected.
;

was obtained by the capture of Allahabad,
made only a feeble resistance. The emjieror,

excluded from Delhi, immediately took up his residence in Allahabad,
which, with a considerable tract of surrounding country, had been guaranteed

still

Vol.

I.

86

Fa>i""of
attempt ou
cinmar.

IILSTORV OK INDIA.

(5^2

A

i>.

17G5.

Territories

IFI

by a treaty wliicli the presidency had concluded with hirn in name of
Tiii« was only a first instalment of a much more extensive
the Company.
guarantee, for he was ultimately to be put in posse.ssion of the whole territo

granted to
ti.eeraperor

[Book

hiiri

,

torics of Sujali Dovvlal),

The

liis

latc vizier,

with

whom

he was

now

openly at war.

presidency, however, had, in giving this guarantee, undertaken

their superiors

more than

would allow them to perform, and the part of the treaty relating

to the other territories

was

become a dead

destined, as will be seen, to

letter.

During these transactions, another event, fraught with more important consequences,

had taken

Meer

place.

Jaffier, after his restoration to

the musnud_

had accompanied the army, and remained the reluctant spectator of a war which
he would willingly have terminated by a cession of territory or any other

His treasury was as empty as

fice.

rate of five lacs a month, he
discharge, but
Death of
Meer Jaffier.

ever,

and

in addition to

had not only heavy arrears

was pestered by

their servants

war

sacri-

expen.ses at the

to the

Company

to

with indefinite demands of com-

In his eagerness
to resume a throne which it would have
°
been his wisdom to decline, he had agi'eed to this so-called compensation, which

pensation for

losses.

"^

_

_

consisted for the

most part of imaginary claims of damage

but continued mounting up,

lacs,

when he agreed

This compensation,

private trade.

at last it

till

for the stoppage of

was estimated at ten
exceeded more than five times
to

it,

the original estimate.

In the hope of more readily obtaining pa^Tnent, the

council brought the old

nabob down

in

where the constant

to Calcutta,

which he was kept brought on a serious

It

illness.

proved

fatal

irritation
;

for, after

languishing a few weeks, he was with difficulty removed to Moorshedabad, and
died there in the beginning of February, 1765.

The question of

succession remained to be settled, and

taken up by the presidency, who, having the power

saw many reasons

in their hands,
Appoint-

ment

-jij^Q

only individuals
"^

of Ins

saccessor.

legal

title.

could be

nomination completely

without delay to exercise

Both of them were

Had

according to the

regarded
as rival claimants were Meer
"^

illegitimate,

and therefore without any valid

they been legitimate, the better

Mahometan

title

was in Nujum-ud-Dowlah

Nujum-ud-Dowlah was

was only a boy

preferable.

He was

of about six years of age.

In another

Company.

i-espect

about twenty, while Meerun's son

This difference, indeed, was of

consequence, as the nabob was in future to be a mere puppet, while
to centre in the

by

law, which, in.stead of continuing the succession

representation, always prefers a surviving son to a grandson.

was

it. .<

Surviving son, Nujum-ud-Dowlah, and a gTandson by bis eldest

Jafficr's cldcst

son Meerun.

who

for proceeding

of

was immediately

Such being the

real object,

all

little

power

something might

have been gained by appointing a nabob who was incapable of acting from
nonage.
infant

may

This, however,

was counterbalanced by a

serious disadvantage.

nabob could hardly be supposed capable of making

presents,

An

and yet

it

be affirmed, without any breach of charity, that on these presents the

nabob-makers of Calcutta were

far

more intent than on the

interests of their

\
OLIVE'S RECEPTION IN ENGLAND.

Chap. XII.]

The

employers.
liad

fact is

G83

when

undeniable for at the very time
;

succeeded Mr. Vartsittart as governor, and his council shared

so-called presents to the

the musnud,

amount of £139,357

new covenants

by the court

unexecuted on the council

table.

new nabob was

expressly taken

bound

was

manner

in like

powers of government,

civil

and

military,

sordid oon
"comi.;uiy'»

'^''*"^-

but

;

on

old

its

Company not running

counter to those of their servants were more carefullj' attended
v^hole

itoj

and the

defied,

to leave the private trade

In the other arrangements, the interests of the

footing.

re-

and were l}ing

Private trade also had been interdicted

in regard to it the authority of the directors

to

Company from

of directors,

ad.

among them

Nujum-ud-Dowluh

for raising

interdicting the servants of the

ceiving presents had been sent out

who

Mr. Spencer,

were transferred

were to undertake the whole defence of the country, employing

and the

to,

They

to them.

for that

purpose

the revenues of the assigned districts of Burdwan, Midnapore, and Chittagong,

together with five lacs of inipees to be paid monthly
sources

;

by the nabob from other

and were to have a complete control over the whole

by means of a deputy nabob, or naib-subah,

whom

administration

civil

bound himself

the nabob

appoint by their advice, and not to dismiss without their sanction.
invested with the whole

executive

Nujum-ud-Dowlah, aware of
a Hindoo,

whom we

series of intrigues.

this,

authority,

was

possessed

iiis

to appoint

employ

Nuncomar,

patron Roydullub by

and abused the confidence of Meer

whom

and acquired an unbounded influence over Nujum-ud-Dowlah,
to

This deputy,

the real nabob.

fact

was extremely anxious

have already seen supplanting

He had

in

as the instniment of his villainy

;

to

i\

Jaffier,

he hoped

but the presidency, thoroughly

acquainted with his character, refused to ratify his appointment, and succeeded
in securing it for

entitled to

Mahomed Reza Khan, who was

it.

The leading events which took
been traced,

it

will

now

place after Clive's departure from India having

be necessary to follow him to England, and attend to

the transactions in which he

was there taking a prominent

was most opportune for
following the British arms, and India
of his arrival

pride could find

any

gratification.

his fame.

part.

The time

Disaster had everywhere been

wjis the only quai-ter in

which the national

His achievements there were consequently

magnified even beyond their deserts, and

He was

in every respect far better

all classes

vied in doing

him honour.

not indisposed to turn this tide of favour to account, but an attack of

illness so severe
difficult to

that " for twelve months," to use his

pronounce whether he was to live or

own

language, "

die," frustrated

many

it

was

of his

and even deprived him of a part of the reward which he thought due
merit.
In a letter to Major Carnac he says, " If health had not deserted

intentions,
to his

me on my first

arrival in England, in all probability I

had been an

instead of an Irish one, with the promise of a red riband.

bought the

title

(which

is usual),

obtained are free and voluntary.

but that

My

I

I

know

was above, and the

wishes

may

Englisii peer,
I

could have

honoui-s

I

have

hereafter be accomplished."

ciive'g re

EugUnd.

1
684

Ill.SJOltV

INDIA.

<Jf

[ho(,K III.

f
A.D. 1763.

His ambition,

thus appears, was not satisfied; and

it

wliom

see the ministry through
DiBsatisfac-

ouve.

He was

iie

which he had riedulously laboured

his interest at court

to establisii, failed

he was confidently calculating upon

had the mortification

it

to defeat

him

and

dissatisfied,

secret

an attack which had been darkly
his jaghire

had

India,

the

in

much

suffering under gi'eat pecuniary embarrassment, felt

and Mr. Sullivan, the chairman, gave him

wouM

committee

when

at the very time

been regularly paid by the Bengal presidency to his agents

who were

parhament,

in

Though the proceeds of

threatened by the court of directors.

directors,

to

anticipated higher advancement dispkiced.

more disconcerted because

the

lie

to understand that the

communicate with him on the

He

subject.

himself

seems not to have been without misgivings, and for some time pursued a course
which displayed none of his characteristic

to

me

do nothing to exasperate them (the

to

my jaghire.

cusable

if I

Indeed,

did not

resentments.

an object of

make every

why

one of the reasons

it is

I

"

My

friends

they are silent as

importance that

.such

other consideration give

way

I

should be inex-

to it

and

;

this

is

cannot join openly with the Bengal gentlemen in their

depends upon you,

It

directors), if

more

in fact

In a letter to Mr. Amyatt he says,

prudential than chivalrous.

advise

and was

fearlessness,

my

friend, to

make me a

free

man, by

getting this grant confirmed from Dellii, and getting such an acknowledgment

may

from under the hands of the old nabob and the new nabob, as
to
His anxiety
jaghire.

put
It

all

himsclf,

me

our enemies at defiance."

painful to see such a

is

enable

man

as Clive reduced to the necessity of gagging

and confessing that he could not act as a "free man," because he was

afraid of giving offence

The worst of

it is, tliat

which might prove injurious

to his pecuniary interests.

he seems unconscious of the degradation which he was

thus voluntarily imposing upon himself, and hence again and again brings

under

tiie

notice of his correspondents as if

not the least cause to be ashamed.

In a

it

it

were a matter of which he had

letter to Mr.

Pybus, of Madras, after

describing Sullivan as " the reigning director," and as " keeping every one out of

the direction

who

more weight and
political

is

endowed with more knowledge,

who

behaviour has exasperated most of the gentlemen

their resentments

;

and

I

should think

have such an immense stake in India.

it

They

My

at defiance those

according to his
sordid motive.

who at present show no
own confession, acting

likely to

have

"This kind of
are lately

come

are surprised I do not join in

very surprising

if I did,

future power,

depend upon the receipt of the jaghire money.

ingly,

would be

influence than himself," he continues thus:

from India, particularly those from Bengal

all

or

I

my

considering

I

future gi-andeur,

madman to set
me." He was thu.s,

should be a

inclination to hurt

in a public matter from a selfish and

Peace on such terms was at best a hollow truce

;

and accord-

no sooner was Clive convinced that the dominant party in the court of

directors

might be turned

to influence the election of

out,

than he declared open war against

it.

In order

17G3 he manufactured an enormous number of

votes.

OPPOSITION TO CLIVE.

Chap. Xll.J

The

t585

was then £500, and he employed £100,000 in this very (lisThe other party, backed by the Bute ministry, to which
manoeuvre.

(qualification

creditable

Clive

was opposed, were equally unscrupulous, and scenes

At

nature were exhibited.

had

Clive's party

He had

the meetings ot

of the most scandalous cuveand

general courts oi proprietors

tlie

a. d. ires,

a minority

so decided a majority that he considered the victory as gained. ^t"india

supported by

Sullivan,

entirely miscalculated.

government, and by the great body of proprietors,

the influence of

all

who had

"°"**

established an influ-

ence with the existing directors, and were eagerly waiting for the fulfilment of

made

promises which had been

to them, carried

his

by

list

a triumphant

majority.
Clive, being thus defeated in a contest in

engaged, was not

meant

long in doubt as to the course which his opi)onents

left

One

to pursue.

which he ought never to have

of the

first

uses which they

transmit orders to the Bengal presidency to

made

stop

of their victory

further payments

all

account of Lord Clive's jaghire, and furnish an account of
viously made.

ceeding

else

was

restrained

by any ordinary

Clive

scruples?

measure dealt out

at the harsh

to

first

him by the

which

shown that they were not

felt,

on

this pro- His

to be expected from the victors in a contest in

the combatants on both sides had from the

taken out of court by a compromise.

The

directors,

and immediately took the

all

it

was impossible

the petty squabblings

among

there, so

tion with
his

which

own terms;

it

As he had founded

man

was threatened.

it

was

and of the commencement
sudden end to

the directors, and was followed

he was regarded as the only

and

intelligence of the massacre at Patna,

to foretell the issue, put a

general call for Clive's return to India.

It

not neces-

it is

judicially investigated,

of the violent dissensions in the council at Calcutta,
of a war, of which

,iiBi)ute.i.

or affected to feel astonishment

would be painful to dwell on the proceedings, and fortunately

were never

rigi.t t4)

to be

only remedy which seemed open to him, by instituting a suit in Chancery.

sary, as the merits of the case

to

the payments pre-

all

There was much indecent haste and vindictiveness in

but what

;

was

capable of saving

Clive had

it

now

by

a loud and

the British empire
it

from the destruc-

in his

power

and, tiiough he cannot be charged with taking an

to

make

undue ad-

vantage of his position, he certainly showed his determination not to yield a

which he deemed of importance.

single point

The

first

question which called for settlement

was that of

general court of proprietors would at once have set
entirely in his favour; but he thought
(piestion of

it

it

tlie

The

by deciding

at rest,

unbecoming

jaghire.

it

to dispose of a grave

law by a resolution proposed and carried in a moment of excitement,

and he therefore begged

might be able

which

Discu-ssiun

he trusted would lead to an amicable adjustment.

The question of appointment

reaj,poii,t

was not

contest.

delay, that he

settled without a

keen and even doubtful

general courts were held on the subject.
pied with preliminary matters.

At

The two

to

submit a

first

the third the subject

No

propo.sal

fewer tlian four

were principally occu-

was brought formally

'i"X*"

ULSTUIIY UF ISbLV

(J.SG

A.D. 1761.

[Book HI.

under discussion by a motion that the nomination of Mr. Spencer as governor
of Bengal should be referred back to the court of directors for their re-consider-

The

ation.

object of the motion, of coui-se,

way

thus prepare the

Clive
reappoiutetl.

it

was

Lord

for

by a majority

lost

new

pared for a

struggle

was

Olive's appointment.

warm

But, after a

The Clive

of 184; to 141.

and

to cancel the nomination,

debate,

party, thus defeated, pre-

by a wholesale manufacture of votes

and at a subse-

;

quent meeting, held on the 12th of March, 1701, carried the following resolu-

to

— "That

was the desire of the general court that Lord Clive be requested
take upon him the station of president of Bengal and the command of the

tion:

it

Company's military

The

upon

forces,

his arrival at that presidency."

having no alternative but to make an appointment which they

directors

would most willingly have

contented themselves with instructing their

resisted,

secretary to send Clive a letter inclosing a copy of the above resolution, and

informing him of their readiness to provide for his passage in the manner that
Want

of

cordiality

between
Clive

and the
lUrectors.

might be most convenient

for him.

His answer was equally

" I

laconic.

have

received your letter inclosing copy of the last resolution of the general court.

must

you

desire

will return the directors

every convenience for
ration

my

passage."

was impossible; and

my thanks

While such

therefore Clive

I

for their offers of preparing

feelings existed, cordial co-ope-

was right when, at a subsequent

general court, held on the 21st of March, he declined to declare his acceptance
of the appointment

He made

known.

till

the issue of the approaching election of directors

no secret of his motives.

would be

in vain for

was

Company

not again to enter the service of the
chair, for "it

It

him

his positive determination

while Mr. Sullivan

filled

the

to exert himself as he ought in the office

of governor and commander-in-chief of their forces,

if his

measures were to be

thwarted and condemned at home, as they probably would
directors,

was

be,

by a

court of

under the influence of a chairman, whose conduct upon man}' occasions

had evinced

his ignorance of

East India

be his personal and inveterate enemy."

affairs,

The

and who was

election

his friends

;

and Sullivan was run

known

which was thus

to

to decide

Both the chau-man

the whole matter proved fiivourable to Clive's supporter.s.

and deputy were

also

so closely, that he cari'ied his

by only a single vote. All obstacles were now removed,
acceptance was immediately declared.
The lawsuit as to the jag-

seat in the direction

and

Clive's

hire

was

also

arranged in terms of a compromise which Clive himself proposed,

and by which the Company engaged
Agreement

during his

life, if

to

pay him the quit-rent

he should not live so long.

What was

for ten yeai-s, or

become of

to

it after-

as to the
jaghire.

wards does not appear to have been openly declared, but the understanding
was, that the Company, who had previously farmed out the lands included imder
the jaghire at £100,000, while their quit-rent

fell

short of £30,000, were, in the

event of Clive's death, to be absolute proprietors.

At
have

the time of Clive's reappointment,

fallen into such disorder, that it

afftiirs

in Bengal

would be necessary

were understood to

to

make

his

powers

'

J

PKIVATE TllADINCi INTKRDKTKI).

Chap. XII.

His own suggestion was, that he should be intrusted with

almost absolute.

dispensing power in the civil and political affairs," that
it,

"

GST

that whensoever I

myself, that resolution

may

The

was almost equivalent

to

it,

;

but they did

by making him the head of a select committee,

so far independent of the council, as to be

they judged proper without consulting
mittee, Mes.srs.

rowers

directors did not confer these oucuve.

consisting, besides himself, of four individuals, appointed

and made

itim.

as he him.self explains

absolute powers, at least in the form in which he asked them
wliat

a ad.

think proper to take any resolution entirely upon

to take place."

is

is,

"

Two

it.

Sumner and Sykes, accompanied

on

his recommendation,

empowered

to act

members

of the

Clive fi"om England

Among

General Carnac and Mr. Verelst, were already in India.

whenever

of the com-

the others,

;

other arrange-

ments to which an understanding was come, the most important related to the
private trade,

and

old directors were

posed of
letter to

it

still

in

office,

greatly to their credit,

and

difficulties,

iTG-i,

while the

they had taken up the former subject and

—
the Bengal presidency:

standings,

In February,

to the receiving of presents.

"

by the following passage in their general
One grand source of the disputes, misunder-

which have occurred with the country government,

appears evidently to have taken

its rise

from the unwarrantable and licentious

manner of carrying on the private trade by the Company's
and the revenues justly due

from his natural

subjects,

to

respect,

him; the diverting and taking

the trade in the inland part of the country, to

which neither we, nor any other persons whatsoever dependent upon
under our protection, have any manner of
these disorders,

all

we do hereby
and

receipt of this letter, a final

trade in

salt,

and consumed

betel-nut,

in the country."

right.

and

u.s,

or

In order, therefore, to renied}'

positively order
effectual

tobacco,

proved by Clive, who, in a

their

servants,

gomastaks, agents, and others, to the prejudice of the subah, both with
to his authority

dis-

and

direct, that,

from the

end be forthwith put to the inland
other articles whatsoever, produced

all

This interdict on private trade was fully ap-

letter

addressed to the directors, 27th April, \7Gi,

— "Strict and impartial justice should ever be observed;
thus expressed himself:
but

let

that justice

come from

ourselves.

The

tobacco having been one cause of the present disputes,
will be restored to the nabob,

I

hope these

and your servants absolutely forbid

This will be striking at the root of the

them.

and

trade, therefore, of salt, betel,

evil."

articles

to trade in

Unfortunately, these

enlightened and disinterested views did not find favour with the general court
of proprietors, who, in a meeting held 18th
lution:

— "That

it

May, adopted the following

reso-

be recommended to the court of directors to reconsider the

orders sent to Bengal, I'elative to the trade of the
articles of salt, betel,

Company's servants

in the

and tobacco, and that they do give such directions

for

Company and the subah, as
by settling here at home the restric-

regulating the same, agreeable to the interests of the
to

them may appear most prudent,

tions

under which

this trade

either

ought to be carried

on, or

by

referring

it

to the

Privaietra.i

.lictedton...

^r^uTta"

//

bys
A.U. 1765.

ilLSTOJiY Oh' INDIA.

tradint;

may

prevent

all

further disputes between the subaii and the

Com-

pany."

In consequence of this recommendation, the previous orders of the

directors

were modified, and

rcginliiig

private

JIJ.

governor and council of Fort William, to regulate this important point in sudi
a manner as

Rflj;nl.'ition9

[Book

and "

presents.

it

was

and

to the governor

left

after

council,

consulting the nabob, to form a jn-oper and equitable plan for carrying on

On

the inland trade."

the subject of presents the orders of the

were

directiji-s

more peremptory, and new covenants, dated May, 1704, were sent out to be
executed by all servants, civil and military, of the Company, binding tiiem to
pay

to the

Company

presents received from natives,

all

if

amount exceeded

the

4000 rupees, and not to accept of any present exceeding 1000 rupees in value
without the consent of the presidency.
Clive sailed from England on the 4th of June, 1704, and had so tedious a

Olive's

outward
voyage.

passage that he did not reach Madras
learned, for the first time, that the
sion,

it

was

In the same

in our power."

had been brought

so completely in the

"scarcely hyperbole to say,

on

fact,

this subject I cannot

though he knew of Meer

if

To-morrow the whole Mogul empire

written privately to Mr. Rous, chairman

letter,

"We must become

not in name, perhaps totally so without

be certain tiU
Jaffier's death,

my

the value of

much

its stock,

as could be

this time,

so satisfied thai the

Company

on a new course of prosperity, which would greatly advance
that he wrote on the same day to his agent in London,

desiring that whatever
as

but

he was not aware of the steps which

;

to enter

di.sguise,

At

arrival in Bengal."

had been taken to appoint a successor but he was

was about

to a conclu-

power of the Com-

of the court, seven days after his arrival at Madras, he added,

nabobs ourselves in

Here he

the 10th of April, 1765.

in Bengal

and that the terms of peace were

pany, that
is

war

till

money he had

borrowed

in his

in the public funds, or

anywhere

name, should be, " without

loss of

else,

and

a minute,

invested in East India stock."
His

Clive arrived in Calcutta on the 3d of May, and lost no time in

fir.st

proceedings
at Calcutta.

the exercise of his extraordinary powers.
conscious of the

awkward

position in

Some

which they

of the
stood,

commencing

members

of council,

were disposed

to take

advantage of some ambiguous expressions which occurred in the commission to
the select committee, and to put their

own

interpretation

Clive denied their right even to inquire, and gave

would be

full

time to give their opinion

necessary to ask
his opponents,

it.

By

when

them

upon them

;

but

to understand that

it

the select committee judged

it

taking this high ground he intimidated the boldest of

though he at the same time provoked a hostility which afterwards

followed him to England, and subjected him to imputations and insults which
his

proud

spirit

proved unable to endure.

deterring him, only stimulated

afterwards expressed

it,

" to

do

him

my

the odium of the whole settlement.

Difiiculties,

to exertion.

duty to the

" I

however, so far from

was determined,"

public,

though

I

as he

should incur

The welfore of the Company required

vigorous exertion, and I took the resolution of cleansing the

Augean

a

stable."

Chap. XII.]

PROHIBITION OF PRESENTS.

This opprobrious epithet

is

Company's
ciple

servants,

by no means inappropriate

any regard

class

of the

how much

and

in the

form

It is impo.ssible,

how-

to decency,

most insulting and oppressive to the native population.
ever, to forget

every

for in

a.d. ives.

from the highest to the lowest, the great actuating prin-

avarice, manifested without

was

;

68i)

of the corruption might have been traced to the bad

example which Clive himself had

set,

and there

is

comiiaions
t„,„','!ai.y«

"*"""**

therefore something painfully

incongruous in the high-flown style which he sometimes employs.

Thus, in

a letter written to General Carnac, three days after he had entered upon

office,

when I make no doubt of discoverThe council," he adds,
ing such a scene as will bo shocking to human nature.
" have all received immense sums for this new appointment (of a nabob), and are
so shameless as to own it publicly.
Hence we can account for the motive of
paying so little respect to me and the committee ;" and then, warming as he
"Ala.s! how is the
proceeds, breaks out into the following exclamation:
English name sunk
I could not avoid pajdng the tribute of a few tears to the
To-morrow we

he says, "

sit in

committee,

—

'

and

leparted

<

I

lost

fame of the

Briti.sh

nation (irrecoverably

do declare, by that Great Being who

the searcher of

is

we must be accountable, if there must be an
a mind superior to all corruption, and that
great and growing

I fear).

all hearts,

hereafter, that I
T

am

or perish in the attempt.'

evils,

so,

However,

and

am come

to

whom

out with

determined to destroy those

The cutting

retort to

which

he laid himself open in using this language seems never to have occurred to him.

The covenants which

interdicted all the servants of the

Company from

accepting presents had arrived in the previous January, some weeks before the

death of Meer

Jaffier,

and consequently were

in possession of the council

when

they set them at defiance, by taking presents on the succession of Nujum-ud-

They had endeavoured

Dowlah.

to evade the obligation

Himsy device of allowing the covenants

to

by the very bold but

When

remain unexecuted.

ques-

tioned on the subject, they hypocritically pretended that their a]>parent contempt
of authority was, in fact, an act of deference to

nants was a matter of so

anything

final

much consequence

about them

till

Lord

miijht no longer avail, one of the

that " the

it,

that they could not think of settling

Clive's arrival.

first

for the signing of the cove-

That

this ludicrous excuse

resolutions of the select committee

covenants be executed innnediately."

When

this

resolution

was
was

read to the council they argued strenuously for delay, and only yielded on

being told that the only alternative was to sign or be suspended the service.
It is

not unworthy of notice that

army for
and a member of the
mitted to the

grounds.

He had

of Benares.
as he

Vol.

so
I.

the covenants were afterwtirds trans-

signature, General Carnac, though commander-in-chief,
select committee, refused.

It was, however,

on special

received a present of 80,000 rupees from Bulwant Sing, Rajah

The covenants bore

was not aware of

altered,

when

a date antecedent to that of the present

their existence, he refused to sign

as not to lay

him open

to the

till

;

but,

the date was

charge of having violated them.
87

Attempt

to

covenauts
.'IgHiMft
l)rc8eiits.

///

690
A.D, 1765.

111ST(JRY

[Book

III.

Another present to a much larger amount, given him by Shah Alum, who.se
necessitous circumstances

Presents

OF INDIA.

after

must have made

it

verv inconvenient, was bestowed

The sum was two

he had received notice of the covenants.

lacs of rupees,

received by

General
Carnac.

equal, according to the rate of

exchange at the time, to £23,333; making,

with the previous present from Bulwant Sing, a
present

was

so clearly illegal that

the directors,

Carnac accepted

and in the meantime lodged

To sanction such a

it

The

total of £32,000,
it,

latter

subject to the approval of

in the treasury of the presidency

present, at the very time

when

the signature of the cove-

nants was enforced under the penalty of suspension from the service, was to
establish a very extraordinary precedent

;

and

yet, in such different lights does

by

the same thing appear, according as personal predilections are affected
Clive strenuously supported the present in

—
the following terms
:

it,

" I shall

that

only

say that Carnac has acted with such moderation and honour in the service of
the Company, and with such good deference and attention towards his majesty

the Great Mogul, that the directors must be the most ungrateful of men,

do not by the return of

this ship, or the first conveyance, order

with a due encomium on his

services, disinterestedness,

him

if

they

this mone}',

and modesty."

Truly,

Carnac, after pocketing one present, whicli was only saved from illegality

if

an

and hankering

accident,

after another

which was clearly

illegal,

by

and which

the directors could not sanction without stultifying themselves, deserved such

an encomium, Clive should not have boasted much of
In regard to the private trade,

stable."

means such

as

regulations adopted were

At that time he

considered the abolition of

he did not actually originate a scheme by which the present trade,

instead of being thrown open to

all

the inhabitants on equal teims,

verted, at least in three of its leading articles, into a rigorous

of the Company's servants.
in consequence of a

The scheme

have

this

is

said to

it is

was

con-

monopoly in favour

have been rendered expedient

most important change which took place at

circumstances of the Company, and

Treaty with
the emperor

by no

necessary in order "to strike at the root of the evil," whereas he fully sanc-

tioned, if

to

Aucjean

might have been anticipated from the views which Clive had

expressed before leaving .England.
it

tlie

" cleansinor the

this

time in the

therefore only fair before judging of

it

change fully in view.

The Empcror Shah Alum had, as we have seen, thrown himself on British
projection, and entered into a treaty, in which the most important stipulations
in his favour

and

assisted in conquering all the territories

Oude.
to

were that he should immediately be put in possession of Allahabad,

which belonged

to the

Nabob

of

This was a very serious undertaking, though there seemed httle reason

doubt that the army which had already achieved so

able to accomplish

it.

many

successes

The nabob, however, was determined not

would be

to yield with-

out a struggle, and endeavoured to repair the disaster at Buxar, by forming
alliances

with Ghazi-u-din, the vizier (who, after murdering Alumgeer, usurped

possession of the districts around Deliii), with certain of the Rohilla chiefs, and

THE NABOB OF BENGAL PENSIONED.

Chai'. XII.]

This confederacy was far more formidable in appear- a

with a body of Mahratt<as.

The members, pursuing

ance than in reality.

and rendered

interest,

sions.

At last,

As a

last resource

ends,

made with

and so feebly that the

he recurred to negotiation,

The impolicy of

the emperor had become apparent, and

to modify, or if necessary set aside its

after long hesitation, it

had been resolved

of the three provinces of Bengal, Behar,

and

Orissa,

d. ncs.

had no common

to find that he could obtain liberal terms.

the treaty which had been

was determined

se[)ai-ate

their promised aid so tardily

nabob's affairs became desperate.

and was delighted

0!)1

riie

Nabob

l,„,'".iioa

^"'"'^"tiate-

it

most important provi-

to accept of the

dewannee

and thus by transferring the

collection of the revenues as well as the military defence of the country to the

Company, put an end

to the possibility of future collision with the nabob.

The accomplishment of

this

who

important work was reserved for Clive,

wa.s The xaimb

to suggest

it,

and had repeatedly explained the grounds on which he

was convinced that

it

must sooner or

the

first

later

become absolutely

necessary.

On

the 24!th of June Clive left Calcutta on this important mission, and proceeded
to Moorshedabad,

first

where he obtained the consent of Nujum-ud-Dowlah to

several important modifications in the treaty

He would

musnud.

to the

Nuncomar, and was greatly
forced

upon him

as

fain

made with him when he was

raised

have placed himself under the guidance of

dissatisfied that

deputy or naib-soubah.

Mahomed Reza Khan had been

Without yielding

to his complaints,

advantage was taken of them to limit the exorbitant power of Reza Khan, by
jissociating

Juggut
all

with him as colleagues the old dewan Roydullub, and

Seat,

the three,

tiie

banker

and at the same time exercising a vigilant superintendence over

by means of a

British resident.

This, however,

was only

prelimi-

Under the treaty the military defence of the
country was undertaken by the Company, who obtained for that purpose a permanent assignment of the districts of Burdwan, Midnapore, and Chittagong.
With this im})ortant exception, all the other revenues belonged to the nabob,
who levied them in his own name, and for his own behoof, under deduction of
By the new arrangement tlie nabob
the annual tribute payable to the Mogul.
nary to a

still

was converted

greater change.

into a

mere pensionary, and, instead of drawing an

revenue, was restricted to an annual pension of fifty lacs of rupees.

was

this

directly

to be his only interest in the revenue,

from the

collectors,

and he was

In future

to receive it not

but at second hand from the Company,

sequence became his paymasters.

indefinite

who

in con-

There cannot be a doul)t that the nabob would

gladly have escaped from the degrading conditions thus imposed upon
Resistance, however,

was out of the

his only alternative.
ters,

question,

and unreserved compliance was

The transaction which made the Company

of the three provinces of Bengal, Behar. and Oris.sawas

a ratification was

Low

still

deemed

as the fortunes of the

and continued

liini.

now

ab.solute

mas-

completed, but

necessary.

Mogul had

fallen he

was

still

nominally supreme,

to be appealed to as the valid disposer of kingdoms, long after he

converts
into II more
ptiiisiouary.

G92
A

D. 1765.

HISTORY OF IM>IA.

had ceased to
that the

Olive's

Company,

any

real authority within tiiern.

as he

had voluntarily

It wa.s desirable, therefore,

civil

when he threw himself on

offered,

comply with any terms which they might be pleased to
ingly after accomplishing

(jliject

liis

JJI

and military power of the
In this there was little difficulty,

whole

in apjjropriating the

three provinces, should obtain his sanction.

vi»it to

Allahabad.

liave

[Book

at Moorshedabad,

their

protection, to

dictate.

Clive accord-

by reducing the nabob

to the condition of a pensioner, pursued his tour in the direction of Allahaljad,

Tbe Palace, Allahabad.' — From

Daiiiell's

Views in India

that he might there, in conjunction with General Carnac, obtain from

Alum

a formal sanction of the

It is not to be denied
Uib

;in-

new

revolution which he had just accomplished

Shah Alum had good cause

that

Shah

When

treatment he received on this occasion.

to complain of the

he entered on possession of

iiounceraeiil
t.u

Sliuh

Alum.

Allahabad and the adjoining
the ultimate possession of

Instead of this he was

districts, it

all

was under a treaty which promised him

the territories which belonged to Sujah Dowlah.

now informed

that he must rest satisfied with the small

upon him, and with the annual payment
of twenty-six lacs of rupees from Bengal.
Besides this tribute he had right
to a jaghire in that country which yielded several lacs, and to a lai'ge amount
extent of territory already

of arrears, but

confei'i'ed

when he claimed them, was simply

past arrangements as cancelled.

In future

than a mere pensioner of the Company.
in the double character

'

cut

away

whatever

could

not

be

conveniently

up with plaster and
whitewash, and hid by stands for arms and deal
fittings.
Still its plan can be made out
a square
is

he, too,

There

is

was

must look on

to be nothing

carefully covered

;

all

more

something almost ludicrous

which Shah Alum was thus made to assume.

This palace "is now the arsenal; a brick wall
has been run up between its outer colonnades, with
windows of English architecture, and its curious
pavilions and other accompaniments removed; and
internally,

told that he

In the

by eight rows of columns, eight in
each row, thus making in all sixty-four, surrounded
by a deep verandah of double columns with groups
of four at the angles, all surmounted by bracket
hall supported

most elegant and richest design, and
altogether as fine in style and as rich in ornament
capitals of tlie

as anything in India."

Architecture, vol.

i.

— Fergusson's

Handbook

of

TREATMENT OF SUJAU DOWLAH.

CiiAP. XIT.

one he

seen higgling with the representatives of the

is

G9o

Company, and

endeavom-ing to increase the amount which they had allotted
ance

in the other, he assumes all the airs of

;

for his

vainl}-

A D

mainten-

an absolute sovereign, and gives

TreiUmentof
S)iali

away

by a mere stroke of the pen. It is not untime when the grant of the dewannee of the three

vast and populous i)rovinces

worthy of notice

that, at the

17C6

l.y

Alum

the

C'oIU]KlllJ.

provinces, yielding a revenue estimated at from £3, 000, ()()() to £4,000,()()0 sterling,

was obtained,

Olive's jaghire

have enjoyed

it for

was not

ten years, or on his death,

expressly bestowed on the

Company.

was previously included

to observe,

forgotten, the reversion of

only thing gained by granting

if it

This reversion,

speciaUy,

was

after he should

should sooner happen, being

in the grant of the

it

it

it is

almost unnecessary

dewannee, and hence the

to give

legal effect to the

arrangement respecting the jaghire, which had previously been made between
Clive and the directors.

The only person who had reason to congratulate himself on the liberal treatment which he received was Sujah Dowlali. He had been the mo.st formidable
and inveterate enemy of the Company, and had not only taken Meer Cossim
and Sunn'oo under
sacres

his protection,

which they had

though perfectly cognizant of the horrid masbut had placed himself at the head of a con-

i)erpetrated,

federacy avowedly leagued for the purpose of expelling the British altogether

There would, there-

from the country.
fore,

have been no injustice in carrjdng

out the treaty which engaged to deprive

him altogether of
transfer

them

was not

justice,

the more

his

Shah Alum.

to

and

territories,

Indeed,

it

but policy, that dictated

terms which

favourable

he

received after a series of disastrous defeats

had compelled him to throw himself unconditionally on

the

mercy of

his con

The Company had never been

querors.

ambitious of territorial aggrandizement;

and

dewannee of the three
last

declining

repeatedly

after

accepted

it,

provinces,

the

had at

more from necessity than

bfJAH DowLAH. - Kiom a drnwing

in iKKMcssioii of ilw

Bojral AtlKlic Socittjr.

choice.

So long as the revenues were

payable to the nabob, his interests were at variance with those of the Com-

pany and

The

occurring.
effectual

their agents,

and misunderstandings and

accejitance of the

collisions

were constantly

dewannee by the Company seemed the only

remedv, and on this oround alone

it

was recommended b\ the

select

committee, and at last sanctioned with some degree of reluctance by the court

The great

object

now was

tion of such a frontier as

to

make

possession safe

and permanent by the fonna-

would give the best security against foreign invasion,

I.'lier.ll

tumis
],;niiite«l

to

tlio X:tlxib

of Ou.lo.

HISTORY OF INDIA.

()94

AD.

1765.

and afford the necessary
provements.

The only

leisure for the introduction of important internal im-

In the treaty with Shah Alum,

own

had been overlooked.

this object

putting him in possession of the territories of Sujah Dowlah

effect of

would have been to protract
his

[Bo(jk 117.

Too

hostilities indefinitely.

feeble to provide for

made head

defence within the country, he never could have

the Afghans and Mahrattas,

who were watching an

against

oppoitunity to extend their

conquests.
Reiisons
for

It

was

to such considerations as these that Sujah

the

liberality

which was shown him.

He was

Dowlah owed the favour

the hereditary prince, and both from his posi-

to Siijah
Uowlali.

tion

and

his talents

was supposed most capable of

interpo.sing

an

effectual barrier

between the possessions of the Company and the foreign invaders who had
long been intent on gaining a footing in them.
To fit him for the part thiLS
assigned him,

it

was necessary not only

to leave his strength unimpaired, but to

convince him, by generous treatment, that he could not advance his interest more

than by linking his

effectually

own

fortunes with those of the

entering into close alliance with them.

Accordingly,

when

Company, and

Clive set out to con-

clude the treaty with Sujah Dowlah, the select committee, doubtless echoing
his

own

say, "
is

sentiments, furnished

him with a paper of

instructions, in

which they

Experience having shown that an influence maintained by force of arms,

we ought to promote, ruinous to
we earnestly recommend to your

destructive of that commercial spirit which

the Company, and oppressive to the country,

you will exert your utmost endeavours to conciliate the aflfections
of the country powers, to remove any jealousy they may entertain of our unbounded ambition, and to convince them we aim not at conquest and dominion,
lordship, that

but security in carrying on a free trade equally beneficial to them and to

With

this

view policy requires that our demands be moderate and

and that we avoid every appearance of an

us.

equitable,

inclination to enlarge our territorial

The sacrifice of conquests, which we must hold on a very precarious tenure, and at an expense more than equivalent to their revenues, is of little
consequence to us yet will such restitutions impress them with a high opinion
of our generosity and justice. For these reasons we think Sujah Dowlah should
possessions.

;

be reinstated in the

dominions, with such limitations

full possession of all his

only as he must see are evidently calculated for om' mutual benefit.
decline insisting

upon any terms that must prove irksome

to his high

We

would

spii'it,

and

imply a suspicion of his sincerity."

A

Terras of

treaty in which the party able to dictate terms

the treaty

generously was easily arranged, and Sujah
fifty lacs

his

whole

felt

disposed to act so

Dowlah gladly consented

to

pay

of rupees as the expense of the war, in return for the restitution of
territories,

except the districts of Korah and Allahabad previously

ceded to Shah Alum, and for a mutual alliance by which the contracting parties

became bound to
in

assist

each other against

all

foreign invaders.

regard to Meer Cossim and Sumroo no longer existed.

The

difficulty

The former had taken

.

«f
treaty with SUJAH DOWLAII.

xti.)

Chai'.

ief'ui>"e

Sujah Dowlah did
Cfive
o

had entered the

aiuono- the Roliillas, the latter
all

ventui'ed to

The only
J point
1

either.

and ad.

as to

and therefore objected

so strongly that the point

was not

DuwJaiian.i

i«uiy.

original

its

and

pressed,

it

liberty to trade duty free.

This liberty, however, was scarcely regarded as a boon, for at this time
three provinces were supposed to be the proper limits both of trade

settlements at so vast a distance

;

tlie

and of con-

In regard to the former, the presidency could foresee no benefit

Company from maintaining

to

In this he probably suspected a repe-

was merely stipulated that the Company should have

quest.

to
tweenSujali

same process by which Bengal had been wrested from

tition of the

ires.

heTre.itybe-

which

demur was a proposal that the Company should be empowered

establish factories within his territories.

rulers,

service of the Jats,

when he engaged never

that could be required of him,

to
any
J countenance or protection
I

695

to the

while in regard to

the latter, even Clive declared in a letter to the directors, shortly after conclud"

ing the treaty,

My

resolution was,

and

my

hopes will always be to confine our

assistance,

our conquest, and our possessions to Bengal, Behar, and Orissa.

go further

is,

in

my

opinion, a scheme so extravagantly ambitioas

that no governor and council in their senses can ever adopt

scheme of the Company's interest be

When

entirely

new

and absurd,

unless the whole

it,

modelled."

Clive returned to Calcutta in September, a series of irksome duties

lay before him.

He had

presents, but as large

and were

first

To

therefore,

enforced the signature of the covenants interdicting

sums had been received

after the covenants

though unexecuted, legally binding,

to institute a strict inquiry in

regard to them.

it

had

irksome uxk
cuve.

arrived,

was judged necessary

This inquiry was, indeed,

unavoidable, for Nujum-ud-Dowlah, dissatisfied with the arrangement which had
forced

Mahomed Reza Khan upon him

arrival than he hastened to Calcutta,

as naib-soubah,

and made

it

no sooner heard of

a foraial complaint

tliat

away twenty lacs of rupees
Mahomed Reza Khan's defence was

naib had emptied his treasury by paying
sents to the

members of

council.

Clive's

the

in pre-

that he

was not a voluntary agent, but on receiving intimation of the sums which the

members

of council expected had no option but to

The

pay them.

recipients of

This was

the so-called presents denied that they had used either force or terror.

perhaps true, but the in(]uiry proved that they had intimated their expectations
in a

way which made

was not

unjust, which,

it

impossible to refuse them, and the sentence therefore

on the ground of

the governor, and nine other leading

The question of
seen,

private trade

officials

still

from the Company's

remained.

endeavoured to strike at the root of the

the 8th of February,

engaging in
quence of

it.

tlie

17()4',

still

The

evil,

by sending out an

prohibiting the servants

of the

interference of the general court of proprietors

same ship

in

which Clive

service.

directors had, as

This judicious order they had been obliged to

in a letter sent out in the

they

this misconduct, dismissed Mr. Sj)encer,

sailed

;

we have

Arrange
nieut

order,

on

Company from
recall, in

conse-

and accorthngly,

from England, while

expressed their conviction that the existing regidations as to the pri-

ii8

j,rivat«
'"*'''

to

—
;

lllSTUKY UF INDIA.

696
A.D. 1765.

[Book

111.

vate inland trade were "so injurious to the nabob and the natives that they

could not, in the very nature of them, tend to anything but the producing
general heartburning and dissatisfactions," and rec^uired that their order of the 8th

.\rrangeiiient as

to

private
trade.

of February slmuld in the

consult the nabob as to the

upon

to

same

to

meantime be

manner

enforced, they told the committee "to

of cairying on the inland trade, and there-

form a proper and erjuitable plan for that

by such

the directors, accompanied

purj^jo.se,

and transmit the

remarks, as might enable them to give their sentiments and directions
upon, in a

full

it

explicit manner."

which Clive and the

instructions

and

and

was

select

spirit at least, if

be carefully observed.

committee had received on the subject

s;ilt,

betel,

and tobacco

any arrangement subse-

not the letter of these instructions would

This, however,

was not the

scheme was framed by which the three leading
Monoijoly of salt,

tliere-

This letter contained the only special

therefore to have been expected that in

quently adopted, the

and

explanation.s, observations,

—were converted into a

On

case.

the contrary', a

articles of the inland trade

strict

monopoly for the exclusive

betel,

ami tobacco

behoof of the servants of the Company.

This scheme, which was diametrically

secured by
servants of

opposed

the Company.

change of circumstances which had taken

to the instructions

of the directors, could only be justified

they understood that the nabob was

still

When

place.

the directors wrote,

in actual possession of the revenues,

and consequently had a

special interest in suppressing the abuses

amount had been

seriously diminished.

By

altered.

so

by the great

The

case

by which

their

was now completely

the grant of the dewannee, the whole revenues of the country had

been transferred to the Compan}^ and the nabob was only to receive a pension
of a definite amount.

how

position to

lacs.

So

far

was the

nite pleasiu-e

;"

sum

of

money

for himself

says:

—

"

He

pay any regard

dancing

to tlie

and household at

girls as I please."

his will

with

infi-

Thank God,

I

There was thus no occasion

nabob in the new arrangement,

now

to

received the pro-

and, on retiring from the interview, exclaimed, "

now have as many

him
payment

any consequence

existing nabob from feeling the degrading

which he was thus reduced, that Clive

posal of having a

to

therefore no longer of

the revenues were managed, so long as he was sure of receiving

of his fifty

shall

was

It

all

modes

of carrying

The only interests
to be protected were those of the Company and of the natives, and Clive thought
that the plan which the select committee had devised would at once secure this
The salaries of
protection and accomplish another object of vital importance.

on the inland trade being

to

him equally

indifferent.

the Company's servants were totally inadequate, and the private inland trade

was the

cliief soiurce

from which they had been accustomed to make fortunes or

to obtain maintenance.
torily cut

off",

to beggary.

Now

therefore,

when

this source

was at once peremp-

they saw nothing before them but a sudden descent from affluence

The

salary of a

member

of council

was only £350, and

it

was

perfectly notorious that the establishment which his position in society rendered

necessary could not be kept up at less than £3000.

The

directors, in abolishing

CiiAP.

tlie

XII

MONOPOLY OF PRIVATE TRADE.

I

G97

inland trade, ought to have given due weight to this consideration, and

a.d. itcs

been prepared when they suppressed an obnoxious source of income to provide
This they entirely failed to do; and hence Clive considered himself

another.

entitled to supply the omission
Tlie plan

by

adopted was as follows:

the trade in

The partners consisted of the Company's

bacco.

and the stock was divided among them

classes,

were allotted

first class
,

mean^ at his disposal.
partnership was formed, and

objectionable

—A society or

cany on

vested with the exclusive right to

.shares

tiie least

;

members of

To the second

class

to eighteen persons

—the governor,

five

the second in council,

;

colonels,

two shares

each.

or two-thirds of a share each

—namely, one chaplain, three lieutenant-colonels, and fourteen
To

senior merchants.

the third class were allotted nine shares, being one-third

of a share each to twenty-seven persons
at the presidency,

vatu trauo

o7iIl^'|^'*

and two

shai-es,

to-

To the

in certain definite shares.

council

were allotted twelve

and

iKutnureiup

thirty-five shares, distributed thus

the other ten

betel-nut,

servants, arranged in three

the general or commander-in-chief, three shares

three shares

salt,

The mono

two

first

—namely, four majors, four

first

surgeons

surgeons at the army, one secretary in council, one

sub-accountant, one Persian translator, and one suVj-export-warehouse keeper.

To compensate the Compan}^ who in their new position as dewan were entitled
to draw a considerable revenue from the monopolized articles, an ad valorem
duty of 35 per cent., estimated to produce £100,000 per annum, was paid, and us
a security to the natives some precautions were taken to prevent the enhanced
Though nothing can be more objecprice naturally produced by a monopoly.
tionable in principle than the
pol}' of the articles

saries of

life,

which, next to

annum.

of public officers

all

who had

was that from the

This being the

£3500 and hence, the
;

income of £17,500.

mono-

profit of a

sums

realized

were

the privilege of sharing in

])artner.ship a

])rofit

by the

formed in Bengal the principal neces-

rice,

there cannot be a doubt that the

furnish ample .salaries to
calculation

payment

sufficient to

Clive's

it.

would draw £7000 per

colonel

on two shares, each share must have yielded

must have given an
determination not to derive any

five reserved to himself as governor,

As he had

declared his

pecuniary advantage from his re-appointment, he appropriated the whole of
profits thus received to the

members

of his household,

brother-in-law, his secretary, and his surgeon,

from England.

The court of

directors,

all

of

and more especially

whom had

to his

accompanied him

on being made acquainted with the

,

tlie

plan,
.

,

adhered to their former views, and in their general letter to the select commit-

— "Much has been urged by our servants at different times
tee wrote as follows:
in favour of the right to this trade,

The words

absurd claim

Company
own

mean by

I.

these words, a

subjects, is such

trying to refute

Vol

phirmaund

shall bring or carry, cOc, are

Delhi could
their

of the

which we have always treated as a most

it.

are,

Whatever goods the English

duty free.' To suppose that the court of

monopoly of the

an absurdity that we

With respect

'

to the

shall

Company,

it

necessaries of

not
is

lose

life

over

time or words in

neither consistent with
88

ri.m dis
approved by
.lirectore.

;

HISTORY OF INDIA.

698
A.I). iTc-,.

honour nor their dignity

their

more immediately our
Tiie director.s

and

to give

interest

them no occasion

of the

a sentiment

monopoly,

therefore,

we think

to

promote such an exclusive

and duty

to look

to protect

disobeyed

;

entire abolition."

We

us, for

trading in

salt,

cannot.

any shape whatever, and do hereby confirm
These orders were too explicit to be directly

but the execution of them was suspended on the ground, that before

therefore impossible, "without ruin to individuals

an

and

betel-nut,

they were received the contract for the second year had been formed, and

to fix

now

is

it

cherish the inhahitanis,

such a monopoly would necessarily suggest.

tobacco, or admit of this trade in
its

and

trade, as

III.

on every Engli.shrnan as their national enemy,

approve the plan you have sent

our orders for

[Book

earlier date for the abolition

and

it

was

confu.sion to the puljlic.

than the 1st of September, 1767

Even

was extended to enable the society to collect their debts and realize
their capital, and their operations did not ceasa till September, 1768.
Another arrangement which Clive made at this time was deserving of more
praise, thougli it subjected him to a larger amount of obloquy.
Owing to tlie
this date

cuve

applies

to the

Madias

pre-

....

.

thesuppiyof

resignations, voluntary or compulsory,

thrcomcii"

Calcutta,

and the bad

spirit

which had taken place in the council of

manifested by some of those

came necessary in supplying vacancies

to deviate

who

remained,

be-

it

from the ordinary routine and

appoint those only who, from character and experience, might be both able and
willing to carry out the reforms which had already been introduced or were

contemplated.

seemed vain to look

It

The most

sidency.

eligible

for such persons witliin the

had perished

in the

Bengal pre-

Patna massacre, and the

committee did not hesitate to declare that the whole

still

select

of junior merchants

list

within the presidency, did not contain the names of more than three or four
individuals

They

whom

therefore,

they "could possibly recommend to higher stations at present."

on their own responsibility, subject of course to the approval of

the directors, applied to the Madras presidency for four of their ablest civil

and on

servants,

their arrival gave

them

seats in the council.

It

was not

to

be expected that a measure which not only broke in upon the established rule of
seniority,

but virtually charged those

who would have

succeeded under that rule

with incompetency, would escape severe animadversion and violent opposition.

The whole settlement was thrown

into a ferment,

and the individuals who con-

ceived their interests to be inj uriously affected, not contented with subscribing a

formal memorial of complaint, took the
eflfect

their object

by means

less justifiable step of

attempting to

of private associations, wliicli Clive denounced as

"destructive of that subordination without which no government can stand."

Failing to obtain their
Discontent

of petty

main

object, the

and insulting annoyances.

No

members engaged
visits

to persist in a series

were to be paid to the president

qX tins

proceeding,

no invitatious from him or any other member of the
be accepted; and the
glect

and contempt.

highest

officials.

new

counsellors from

select

committee were to

Madras were to be treated with ne-

In pursuing this course they were abetted by some of the

Two members of council

signed their memorial "in testimony

THKEATENED MUTINY.

CiiAr. XII.j

699

of their sense of the injustice done to the younger servants," and the secretary ad.

was deprived

of the council took such a prominent part in the association that he

much difficulty in
dealing with the insubordination of the civil servants, but a much more serious
The greater part of the European officers in the army
task was awaiting him.
of his

and suspended from the

oflfice

Clive had not

service.

itcs.

inJignation
ciive.

had become disaffected and were on the point of mutinying.
According to a plan framed by Clive the army had been formed into three

European

brigades, each conczsting of a regiment of
lery, six battalions

infantry, a

of sepoys, and a troop of native cavalry.

under Colonel Sir Robert

Fletchei*, \vas stationed at

Colonel Smith, at Allahabad

;

and the

third,

Monghir

;

company of artilThe first brigade,
the second, under

under Colonel Sir Robert Barker,

From

at Bankipore, about four miles west of Patna.

the earliest time the

serving in India had, while on active service, received in addition to

officers

their ordinary

of Plassey,

pay an allowance known by the name of

Meer

this allowance,

Jaffier,

on

whom

the

hcitta.

After the battle

payment of the troops devolved, doubled

and from that period accordingly doable Ixdta had been

paid.

So long as the nabob drew the revenues and paid the army out of them, the

Company

did not .share the burden.

were assigned

districts

for

payment

The

case

was

of the troops,

and

pany obtained the grant of the whole dewannee.

when certain
more when the Com-

altered finst
still

Thereafter, the maintenance

Tiie directo™

was borne entirely by the Company, and every deduction that toaMwh
Influenced by this consi- '^^^^
could be made was so much added to tlieir income.

of the troops

deration and the financial difficulties with which they were struggling, the
directors

were desirous to enforce economy wherever

practicable,

At the time

other measures resolved to aboli.sh the allowance of double batta.

when

it

was

first

granted, Clive had distinctly

warned the army

and among

to regard

it Jis

an indulgence which they owed entirely to the personal feelings of the nabob,

and which the Company would not be
accordingly no sooner

felt

dispo.sed to continue.

was received with

so

directors
it,

and

The very

pro-

the burden than they began to com})lain of

sent out positive orders that double batta .should be abolished.
posal

The

much

indignation,

strances from the officers, that the governor

and

called forth such strong

remon-

and council were intimidated, and

chose rather to disobey the orders than incur the obloquy and risk the danger
of carrying

The

them

directors,

into execution.

determined not to be thus defeated, called Clive's attention

particularly to the subject,

on

and

in the instructions

which he took out with him

his re-appointment, repeated their orders for the abolition of double batta

in the

most peremptory form.

He was

detennined to execute them

;

and had

no sooner brought the war to a termination by the treaties concluded with Shah

Alum and Sujah Dowlah, than an

intimation was given by the select com-

mittee that double batta should cease on the 1st of January, 170G.
tion

was made

in

favour of the second brigade, both because

its

An

excep-

station at Alia-

en vo carries
into effect,

HISTORY OF INDIA.

700
A.D.

1766,

habad was beyond the

limits of the

Company's

[Book

territory,

and

sidered while watching the threatened invasion of a large
Abolition

to be actually in the

On

field.

returning into cantonrnents

of double
batta.

no batta at

The

might be con-

it

body of Mahrattajs

it

was

to be reduced

and Monghir were to draw half

to single batta, while the brigades at Bankipore

Within the presidency, except during marching or actual

batta only.

III.

service,

was allowed.

all

abolition took place at the time appointed,

escence of the

who appeared

officers,

they had often threatened.

abandoned the opposition which

to have

Clive, delighted

and with the supposed acqui-

with the

Calcutta in the

result, left

end of March, 1766, and proceeded northward with General Carnac,

He was

pose of regulating the collections of revenue for the ensuing year.

employed at Moorshedabad, when he was startled by a

letter

for the pur-

thus

from the council

at Calcutta, dated 19th April, inclosing a remonstrance against the reduction of

by nine

batta, signed

captains, twelve lieutenants,

we have

third brigade, stationed, as

Patna.

This was alarming

the 28th of April,
Tlie officers

army
mutiny in

of the

consequence

mand

of the

when a

j&rst

:

and twenty ensigns of the

seen, at Bankipore, in the

neighbourhood of

but the extent of the danger was not suspected

letter

was received from

Sir Robert Fletcher, in com-

brigade, stationed at Monghir.

seemed determined to make another attempt

till

He

stated that the officers

for the recovery of batta,

and had

intimated their intention to resign their commissions at the end of the month,

though they would continue to serve in

May as

volunteers.

This letter inclosed

another from Sir Robert Barker, which mentioned in more explicit terms his

was reason

discovery of a serious combination, which there

own

not confined to his

On further

brigade.

inquiry,

it

to apprehend

was

appeared that the com-

bination extended to the whole army, and had originated at Monghir, as early
as December, 17G5.

belonging to

it

martial might

lives,

condemn

the

life

of any one of their associates

whom

batta was restored.
nification of those

conspirators

additional security, a fund

who might be

was formed

it till

for the

double

indem-

cashiered, or the purchase of commissions for

To this fund civilians were said to have subscribed
At first the second brigade, stationed at Allahabad,
to the amount of £16,000.
refused to join in the plot.
As they were actually in the field, an exception had
been made in their favour, and the reduction of batta was not to take place in
them

gagements
between the

As an

a court-

Each, moreover, engaged under a penalty of

to death.

£500, not only to resign his commission, but not again to accept of

Jlutual en-

officers

took an oath binding them to secrecy, and to preserve, at the

own

hazard of their

The

It was, in fact, a regularly organized plot.

in the king's service.

their case

till

they should be placed in cantonments.

On this ground they stood

aloof for a time, but ultimately the influence of the officers in the other brigades
prevailed,

and they made common cause with them. The number of commissions

collected for resignation

Clive

was

just the

amounted

man

to nearly 200.

to deal with such a

crisis.

The only

case in which

he appears to have ever thought of concession v/as in that of the second brigade.

;

i

A large

701

CLIVE SUPPRESSES MUTINY.

Chap. XII. J

body of

tlie

was

Mahratta.s

and a

in motion,

battle

was

daily expected,

a.d. ree.

In these circumstances Colonel Smitli was instructed, in the event of being

make

reduced to the utmost extremity, to

regard to the other brigades the most decisive steps were taken.

forward

all

the officers in

to be written to

whom

In

peace with the malcontents.

Besides sending

he could confide, Clive caused urgent letters

Madras, requesting that

all

officers

spared should be forthwith despatched for Bengal.

who

could

i)0ssibly

cuve-g
suppresHii.t:

'""""^

be

Tiie free merchants at

Calcutta were also urged to accept of commissions, temporarily or permanently,

while

all

the officers

who resigned were

be there tried by court-martial.
malcontents.

They had

down

to Calcutta to

These measures completely disconcerted the

rtiade sure of victory

and no sooner saw the probability of

failure

without providing against defeat,

than

all their

confidence forsook

Either because they feared to take so bold a step or deemed

them.
sary,

ordered to be sent

common

they had not attempted to enlist the sympathies of the

and when the struggle came found that
their resignations they

it

unnecessoldiers

By

had grossly miscalculated.

tiiey

had simply excluded themselves from the

service,

and

made way for others who were ready to suj)ply their place. On the 15th of
May, when Clive arrived at Monghir, the confederacy was already broken up.
Two days before, when the officei's who had resigned were ordered to quit the
garrison, the European soldiers got under arms intending to follow them.
The
sepoy battahon was immediately called out, and order was without much diffiIt seemed, indeed, that the

culty restored.

They had imagined

misapprehension.

of the malcontents, and were astonished

them instead of putting himself
at once returned to their duty.

European

soldiers

were acting under

that Sir Robert Fletcher

when they found him taking part against

at their head.
It soon

On

being thus undeceived they

appeared that the opinion which they

had formed of their commander was not unfounded.
arrival Sir Robert Fletcher acknowledofed that he

The very day of dive's

had known of the combination

of the officers since January, though he had not mentioned

communication

late

till

in April.

was himself one

it

in

any

official

His excuse was, that he had seemed to

approve of the scheme in order that nothing might be done without his knowThis was too flimsy to be received, and further inquiry having

ledge.

room

to

doubt that he was an abettor,

if

left little

not the actual originator of the mutiny,

he was at a later period brought to a court-martial and dismis.sed the service.

From Monorhir

Clive proceeded without loss of time to Bankipore, where he

arrived on the 20th of May.

Though

mo.st of the officers of the third brigade mutmeep*.

stationed here had resigned their connnissions, only a few had insisted on their

immediate acceptance, and been accordingly sent

off for Calcutta.

only resigned prospectively against a given day, and were
duty.

The moment Clive

and they were glad

arrived, all idea of further

still

The

rest

had

continuing to do

contumacy was abandoned,

to be permitted to retract their resignations

what humiliating condition

Treatment

under the some-

of engaging to serve for three years,

and not to

702
A.D. 1766

JllSTOiiY 01' I-NDIA.

1-esign at

any time without giving a

[booK

III.

Tiie second brigade, tliough

year's notice.

the last to join the combination, ap[)ears to have been the most reluctant to
('iiiiduct

(if

al)andon

The greater pait

it.

of the troops

composmg

it

been marched

iiad

the officers.

above lOO miles beyond Allahabad, and were watching the movements of 00,000
Mahrattas who had arrived at Calpee, under the command of Balajee Rao. Tiic

enemy being thus

in siglit, the British officers

to have reserved their grievances.

were bound

for the time at leasi

Instead of this honourable course, tliey took,

advantage of their position, and sought to extort a compliance with theiidemands, by tendering their resignations in a body with only two exceptions.
Those who resigned immediately were sent

off to Calcutta

who

the others

;

resigned prospectively were glad before the arrival of the period which they had
fixed to be permitted to retrace their steps.

ment

were not

in garrison at Allahabad

Fort of Allahabad. — From

till
!

officers of

the European regi-

so easily intimidated,

and did not vield

Hod-'e's Select Views In India.

a battalion of sepoys arrived from the camp, having performed a march of

04 miles in

fifty-four hours.

The mutiny was now suppressed mainly through the indomitable firmness

Ijeiiiency

of

The

tlie

sentences.

which Clive manifested

in

own

liis

who acted immediately under

person,
It only

him.

and was able
remained

to transfuse into al

to inffict

1

punishment on

those who, from their rank or their violence, were regarded as the most criminal.

From

the very

first

Clive had declared that the law must take

would

that the ringleaders at least

Only

prevailed.

of

mutiny no

six officers

were

capital sentence

thus very imperfectly satisfied
act for the

were

Company's

legally valid,

mercy.

On

this

service,

and

it

was

and though they were

was pronounced.
;

all

it

found guilty

Clive's sense of discipline

but a defect had been discovered

making

doubtful

if

m

the

was

mutiny

the proceedings under

it

therefore wisely resolved to lean to the side of

ground the mildness of the sentences pronounced by the

martial can be easily justified.

and

Lenient measures, however,

suffer death.

tried,

its course,

It is

more

difficult to justify

court-

the conduct of the

703

"OLIVE'S FUND.'

Chap. XII.]

directors in refusing, ni .several instances, to give effect

and more

especially in reinstating Sir Robert lletcher,

installed as commander-in-chiet* at Madras,

even to

tliese sentences,

whom we

d. itso

shall again see

and taking a jjrominent part
had been

transaction only less discreditable than that for which he

a

in a

previousl}'

cashiered.

At the very time wlien Olive was thus called to maintain the discipline of Tiiee«tabI'slinient of
f
ay
ii'i
tne army agamst the great body oi its otncers, he had announced his determi- "ciiv««

•1

nation to confer upon

it

111

•

A

^

the very liberal donation which, largely augmented

by the nabob and afterwards by the Company,
Ijy

the

name

•

Meer

of "dive's Fmid."

what

constitutes

known

had expressed a

Jather, on his death -bed,

wish to leave Olive a legacy of five lacs of rupees.

is still

first

been insinuated that

It has

sum was a legac}^ only in name, and was in fact a ])resont by which the
members of Meer Jaffier's family not only wished to manifest their gratitude
for the elevation which they owed to the victor of Pl.issey, but hoped to conciliate his future favour
If it was only a present, it was evidently struck at by
the new covenants, and notiiing could have been more preposterous than that the
this

governor specially appointed to enforce these covenants should set an example
of violating them-,
still

if it

legacy, the propriety of acce])ting

it

was

because, although not contrary to the letter,

it

was

was tridy a

moi'e than doubtful,

i'vidently at variance Avith the

method
felt

sj)irit

of perpetuating the abuses

of the covenants,

and furnished an easy

which they were meant to

supj)ress.

Olive

the difficulty, and was conscious that, whatever became of the money.,

could not appropriate

it

to himself

lie

without incurring the obnoxious charge of

breaking the promise he had repeatedly made, not to derive any pecuniary
lienefit

from

his re-appointment.

us the abolition of double batta
a graceful

In these circumstances

was about

and appropriate compensation

to

it

occurred to him that

to be enforced, it

would be at once

employ the legacy in establishing a

by wounds, disease, or
length of service, but also their widows might be pensioned.
The announcement of this determination set at rest the questions which tlie bequest would
fund out of which not only

naturally have raised

any opinion

;

officers

and the

and

coui-t

soldiers disabled

of directors, wisely abstaining from giving

as to it^ true character or legal validity,

"his loidshi'p be en)i)owered to accept of the

Siiid

unanimously resolved, that

legacy or donation, and they

do highly ap[)rove of his lordship's generosity in bestowing the said legacy of
five lacs in so useful

a charity

;

and they hereby consent and

agi'ee to accept of

the trust of the said fund, and will give directions that the same be can-ied into

execution in legal and proper form."

The

five lacs of rupees produced, accord-

ing to the rate of exchange at the time, £02,833,
tlie

brotiier

and successor

To

this Syf-ul-Dowlah, n*

of xNujum-ud-Dowlah, wlio died at Mooi'shedabad, in

May, a few days after Olive
rupees, equivalent to £37,000.
lishing the fund

6s. Hd.

set out to quell the

On

the

Gtli

mutiny, added three

lacs of

when

estal)-

of April, 1770,

was formallv executed, the accumulated

the deed

interest

amounted

to

'""oiuit.

1

;

HISTORY OF INDIA.

70
AD.

1766.

The whole

£24,128.

and at 8 per

cent.,

amounted

capital of the fund thu.s

the rate of interest which the

[Book

III.

to £123,001, 6«.

8cZ.,

Company

agreed to pay, pro-

duced an annual income of £9912, to be expended in pensioas.
^^/""against the

contemputed.

After suppressing the mutiny Clive proceeded

a kind of congress was held.

Cliuprali, wliere

Shah Alum's

minister,

It

excluded from Delhi, was bent on gaining possession of

it,

which might throw the whole empire into confusion.

now

danger was

whom

to be apprehended, he

of Oude, the Jat,

in resisting the

himself,

and a warfare

Instead of an alliance

he regarded as the only enemies from

was

and the Rohilla

demands and

whom

serious

desirous of forming a confederacy

against them, and laid the foundations of a treaty

Nabob

and had engaged the

Clive at once declared against

which he saw only ruin to Shah Alum

with the Mahrattas,

Shah Alum, hitherto

by assuring them that the Com-

pany's troops would form part of the expedition.
this proposal, in

chiefs,

by which the Company, the

were mutually to

assist

each other

repelling the incursions of the Mahrattas.

the terms were finally arranged, Clive, attaching

ance to be derived from such distant

The

Calcutta on the 30th of July.

allies,

to

was attended by Sujah Dowlah,

and deputies from the Mahrattas.

assistance of the Mahrattas for that purpose,

Camac

with General

little

Before

importance to the

assist-

took his departure and arrived at

disagreeable service in which he had been

engaged, the exertion he had been obliged to make, and a clima,te to which his
constitution

was

ill

He had previously

adapted, had seriously aifected his health.

intimated his determination to return to Europe, and in answer to a letter from
the directors earnestly requesting
cuve's
health
seriously
affected.

year, replied^ "It

is

now a month

him

to continue in the

since I

government

have been in so deplorable a state of

health as to be wholly unable to attend to business, and

it is

gaunot survivc the malignity of this climate another year."
urging their request, had

"When we

said,

for another

past a doubt I

The

directors, in

consider the penetration with which

your lordship at once discerned our true interest in every branch, the rapidity
with which you restored peace, order, and tranquillity, and the unbiassed integgoverned aU your

rity that has

actions,

we must

congratulate your lordship on

being the happy instrument of such extensive blessings to those countries

you have our

sincerest

;

and

thanks for the great and important advantages thereby

Nor did they

obtained for the Company."

confine themselves to thanks.

After

arguing that "another years experience and peaceful enjoyment of our acquisitions

might

them on a

fix

basis that

might give great hopes they may be

lasting as they are great," they continued
sacrifice

we

ask your lordship to

make

thus — "We

as

are very sensible of the

in desiring your continuance another

year in Bengal, after the great service you have rendered the Company, and the
difficulties

you have passed through

in which your

own example

in accomplishing them,

has been the principal means of restraining the

general rapaciousness and corruption which had brought
of ruin.

These

services,

under circumstances

my lord,

oiu:"

affairs to the

brink

deserve more than verbal acknowledgments

CLIVE FINALLY QUITS INDIA.

Chap. XII.

70.5

and we have no doubt that the proprietors will concur with us in opinion, that
some solid and permanent retribution, adequate to your great merits, should
crown your

was not

Clive

and

lordship's labours

success."

encomium pronounced on

insensible to the high

his sei'vices, cuve

nor indifferent to the reward, which, though only vaguely descriljed as "some
solid

and permanent

retribution,"

a.d. kot.

was understood

qiutiuaia

to be nothing less than a grant

of his jaghire in perpetuity; but the state of his health admitted of no answer,

and he was moreover convinced that every material object contemplated

in his

re-appointment having been accomplished, the evils apprehended from his

dejjar-

ture were in a great measure imaginary.

was more than a match

subordination,

tempted

to

provoke

hostilities

;

for

The army, again brought into due
any foreign power which might be

the double batta and other expenses which bore

most heavily on the treasmy had been subjected to due retrenchment; Mr.Verelst,
for

whom

were

the governorship was destined, as well as the select committee,

to continue in office,

was disposed

to give full effect to the

which had been introduced and the Company, now

dent revenue, which the least sanguine estimated at not
sterling,

improvements

in possession of

;

an indepen-

than

less

who

£1,()()0,()0()

seemed about to enter on a career of unprecedented prosperity.

CUve

sat in the select committee for the last time

on the

1

Gth of January,

ins -lopar-

17G7, and on the 29th finally quitted Bengal for England in the Britannia.

His measures had encountered much opposition, and excited in

who

many

of those

by them a vindictive
The general
spirit, which they afterwards took an opportunity of gratif^'ing.
feeling of the presidency was, however, decidedly in his favour, and was not
considered their interests to be injuriously affected

inaccurately expressed

by the

select

tors shortly after his departure.

and as he

and

left

licentious

it,

they observed,

committee in a

Comparing the

"We

letter addressed to the direc-

state of

Bengal as he found

it

beheld a presidency divided, headstrong,

a government without nerves; a treasury without money; and

;

a service without subordination, discipline, or public

spirit.

We may

add, that

amidst a general stagnation of useful industry and of licensed commerce, individuals were accumulating immense riches, which they had ravished from the

msulted prince and his helpless people,
of discontent, poverty,

and oppression.

dency and these provinces.

who groaned under

Such was the condition of

Your present

liberal supplies to China, the state of

the imited pressure
this presi-

situation need not be described.

The

your treasury, of your investment, of the

and of the whole country, declare it to be the strongest contrast to what
was flattering. In other quarters of the
was."
His reception
in Emjland
'^
^

service,
it

world disaster had generally attended the Briti-sh arms.

Their triumphs in

India thus presented a striking contrast, which brought Clive more prominently
into view,

and

obliofed

keep a prudent

The

silence.

proprietors of the

Vol.

I.

even those who would have detracted from his merits to

Nor was applause

the only reward which he received.

Company, instead of requiring

to be

prompted by the
89

nurecepfJon.
in Ens'ar.

*

HISTORY OF INDIA.

TUG
A.D. 17G7.

directors,

took the initiative

in

[Book

IIJ.

recommending that the possession of the jaghire

should be extended to him and his representatives ten years beyond the period
Clive's

which had been previously

tenure of
tlie j;ighire

by the unanimous vote

carried

extended.

fixed,

and a resolution

to this effect

was ultimately

of a general court.

It is necessary to add, that this magnificent grant

was accompanied with

cumstances which diminished the gratification derived from

it.

Clive had

cir-

left

India in miserable health, and had very imperfectly recovered on the homeward
voyage.

While he was thus

indifferent to him,

or

fame and emolument were comparatively

suffering,

and he appears

to

have been more offended at the

lukewarmness of some on whose friendship he had

at the universal recognition of his merit.

extravagant hopes in the proprietors,
for a largely increased

actual position of the

Company's

affairs,

calculated, than delighted

The grant of the dewannee had

who had begun

The

dividend.

acquainted with the

were anxious

for delay.

ally

it for

some time

to

directors being thus opposed to the wishes of the proprietors, natur-

endeavoured to justify their opposition by giving an unfavourable view of

Some

their finances.
Power and

The additional

and extraordinary

realized,

expenses had been incurred which would more than absorb

The

rai.sed

in consequence to clamour

directors, better

revenue confidently predicted had not yet been

come.

hostility

what disparagingly

of

them

of their

even, in order to justify this view, .spoke some-

new

and objected

territorial acqui.sitions,

to the

activity of
his

enemies

extended grant of the jaghire as extravagant.

Clive

felt

indignant, and hesi-

tated not to say that the directors in thus acting were endeavouring to gain

own ends at
porter.s, and made
their

upon him.

to

of India stock.
after

it

more easy

Not a few

had returned

This misunderstanding cooled some of his sup-

his expense.

of those

England with

The

influence

for his enemies to

mature their meditated attack

whose malversations he had punished

their ill-gotten gains,

which they acquired

and become

in this

in

Bengal

large pm'chasers

way was

so great, that

an action had been raised for the pm'pose of obliging some of the greatest

delinquents to disgorge the sums which they had illegally received in the
of presents, they succeeded in inducing the general court to

name

recommend the with-

drawal of the action, and guarantee them from future proceedings by a vote of
indemnity.

The sympathy with notorious delinquency manifested by

was ominous, and

Clive, shattered in health

and depressed in

this vote

spirits, retired

into

the country, not without a strong presentiment of the harsh scrutiny to which,

through the relentlessness of enemies and the lukewarmness of friends, his whole
public
Important

life

was soon

to be subjected.

In consequence of the revolution effected by Clive's achievements in Bengal,

results of

Clive's

a

new

era in the history of India commenced.

On

their original character of

achieve-

ments.

merchants the Company had engrafted that of conquerors, and were henceforth
to rule

of

with absolute sway over myriads

them only

as traders.

who had

previously

known

or heard

Hitherto, while the relation with the natives

was of

a less intimate and more precarious nature, they have occupied a very subordi-

iiate

SOCIAL HISTORY OF INDIA.

XII.]

Chai'

])lace in tlie narrative,

and any reference made

toms has only been incidental.

A

now be
,,

though

tlieirs,

the
l)e

policy ot

manner

in

to their

manners and

eus-

has ciianged

it

tlie

Till
acloi)ted by

IT

Maiinenmnd

government depends on

customs of
tiicUmdoos

rulers

which their interests are affected by them.

still

But how can

No

this

people

Their peculiarities, including even their

can be governed on abstract principles.

most irrational prejudices, must be considted, since the very same laws under

which one nation would be prosperous and happy might produce universal
content and wretchedness in another.

who

rule

rulers,

should

leading features of the population.

under which society pre.sents
it is

indispensable,

itself

is

first

of

all

both

acquaint themselves with the

In the case of India the remarkable forms

make

the knowledge of

and the temporary suspension

compensated by the insertion of a
of whatever

It is absolutely necessary, therefore,

dis-

and those who confine them.selves to the humbler task of

reviewing the policy of

detail, as

them

as interesting as

of the narrative will be fully

ample as our limited space

will allow,

most singular in the opinions and practices of Hindoos.

accordingly, the next

ito:.

remains

its

understood without a previous knowledge of their social position?

that tliose

ad.

more intimate acquaintance with them must

The country
iii'/'i
measures
and the
formed.

707

book of our history

will be devoted.

4^^'- ^

Patilf, employ tnl for transiporting the pi-oducts of Imjer Bonsai
down the GanK^s.

To

this,

OLASGOW
W.

G.

BLACKIE AND

:

CO., PRT>fTEKS,

VILLAFIELD.

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