Nawab E Bengal

 Background:

Nawab Alivardi Khan was ruling Bengal at the peak of Nawabi rule, expanding his strong empire. He had successfully suppressed the Marathas and had given a strong message to the British East India Company’s rising influence at Calcutta. Highly aware of the British Colonial policies across the globe, Nawab Alivardi Khan was strict with his policies and stronghold over Murshidabad, the then capital of Bengal (including present-day Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Orissa, and Bangladesh). 

He had two daughters and no sons. Amina Begum was the elder one followed by Ghasetti Begum.

Amina had three sons, with her husband and courtier, Ahmed Khan. The second son, Mirza Mohammad fondly called Shiraj-Ud-Daulah (light of the country)by his grandfather was born in 1733C.E. He was his grandfather’s favourite because he was born while he won over the Marathas. Alivardi Khan never let the “fortune child” of the family out of his sight. Shiraz grew up accompanying his grandfather, the Nawab, on all his expeditions including his favourite place at Rajmahal.

Personal Life:

On August 1746 A.D. thirteen-year-old Shiraj was married to Umdat-Un-Nisa, daughter of aristocrat Iraj Khan, in a wedding frenzy that lasted a month as recorded in Alivardi’s state affairs. Bahu Begum as she was fondly called refused to leave a mark on the young Shiraj’s mind and heart. She is believed to have died early and childless. The young Prince was spoilt beyond the extent by his grandfather who had lost no time in announcing him as the heir to the throne. His gambling activities and alcoholic ways were going out of hand.

It was then a norm in the house of the Nawabs to keep beautiful young girls as slaves to the princesses. One attendant of Amina Begum was the beautiful slave girl she fondly called RajKunwar. The young prince Shiraj was attracted to her beauty and wanted to marry her. It is said that since Raj Kanwar was Amina Begum’s favourite she immediately agreed to the union upon which the Hindu girl was renamed Luft-Un-Nisa Begum and married to Shiraj in around 1750 A.D. They had a daughter Zohra Begum, famously known as Qudisa Begum born to them in 1753 and was the only heiress to the Nawab.

Shiraz

Coronation:

Alivardi was now old and ill. He on his death bed had asked Shiraj for two things, one was to quit gambling and drinking and another never to give in to the British. Many historical folklores and popular beliefs suggest that his grandfather’s demise changed Shiraj to some extent.

During those times, Alivardi preferred a few trusted generals over others. They felt deprived when the incompetent Shiraj was chosen. So upon Alivardi Khan’s demise on 9^th April 1756, they immediately tried to gain the now heir Shiraj’s trust. Young, inexperienced and incompetent as he was coronated on 15^th April 1756 at Murshidabad.

First Mistake:

The Generals made him believe that his childless maternal Aunt Ghaseti Begum who was now living a widow’s life at MotiJhil Palace, once built by her husband, was jealous of Shiraj’s accession to the throne and was assembling troops at her place against him. She was also believed to have been hiding riches she had inherited from her father.

Believing such rumours, and putting a deaf ear to his mother’s pleas, he ordered his Aunt to give up her troops and treasure which she rightfully refused as they were provided to her by her father. Upon this refusal, Shiraj ordered his troops to put her under house arrest. This move of his turned many against him.

Ghaseti Begum, His Aunt

Shiraj vs British:

He was in a complete hurry to wipe off the British from Calcutta. Three months after his accession, he decided to march to Calcutta to capture the British East India Company factory at Qasimbazar in present-day Sealdah, in Kolkata. The ruins of the factory still remain lost in time.

On 4^th June 1756, Shiraj and his troops had taken a not-so-prepared British army by surprise and attacked the British East India Company factory and seized it. Around 50,000 of Nawab’s troops met a mere 100 men of the British who fought a day, before surrendering themselves. The English troop were taken aback by this blow and created the Black Hole controversy to gain public support against Shiraj.

The Black Hole Tragedy:

The British ridiculed the Nawab and claimed that Shiraj being his cruel reckless self had captured 146 British soldiers and shut them up in an 18x14m room where 123 of them died out of suffocation. He had then thrown them in a pitch the site of which was later destroyed in 1871, and a memorial built on it in 1902, still stands at the St. John’s Church Grounds. Governor Holwell’s claim of the Black hole tragedy was later dismissed by historians, stating that capturing so many soldiers in such a small space was impossible. It is seen as Holwell's attempt to show the loss of soldiers due to their lack of alertness through Nawab's cruelty. However, true or not, the Black Hole rumour did what the British wanted to do. Shiraj was seen as a reckless cruel and impulsive ruler by all, especially by the Delhi Emperor Alamgir II.

The place claimed for the Black Hole Tragedy

Seize of Calcutta:

These rumours did not stop Shiraj’s determination to stop the British. On 13^th June, his troop of now reduced 45000 marched to Fort Williams, which was the fortified part of British Calcutta. Shiraj as well as his ancestors were in strong opposition to the French and  British fortifying parts of Bengal. Shiraj also put an end to the Mughal Emperor Faruk Siyar’s firman for the British upon which they were granted duty-free trade rights in Bengal and permission to Mint coins in Calcutta. He was clueless about how his own people, Chief Mir Jafar, his son Miran and the eminent businessman Jagat Seth were now drifting to the British side for power and alliance. They knew that impulsive as he was, Shiraj wouldn't last long.

On 20^th June 1756, for the first and only time, Fort Williams was won over by an Indian troop from the British under acting Governor Drake. On knowing of this incident, Governor Holwell too had reached the fort and fought the army strength of the Nawab with his troop of 1000 men in vain. This incident goes down as the Seize of Calcutta.

Mint House in Kolkata

After capturing Calcutta and establishing a warning to the British Shiraj went back to his capital at Murshidabad. His mistake was to trust his own and believe that they were making sure that the British were under constant threat. He stopped British production in Calcutta and coins at the mint. He dismissed all free trade licenses as well.

The British Reply: The Treaty of Alinagar

Robert Clive Meanwhile, the British were preparing for a blow. Around 16^th August 1756 Colonel Robert Clive and Admiral Watson, set out from their Madras stronghold via the Bay of Bengal to recapture the lost land. About 900 British soldiers and 1500 natives were in Robert Clive’s foot army while Admiral Watson took the navy authority.

Around December 29^th 1756, Robert Clive executed a surprise attack on Nawab’s soldiers at Budge Budge via the Bhagirathi River, which was considered the gateway into Calcutta. They then marched ahead to ransack the town of Hoogly some 9kms away from the fort at Calcutta. The Nawab immediately led a troop of 30,000 to Calcutta from Murshidabad and reached Hoogly around 2^nd January 1757. 

Although Nawab’s army was huge, Colonel Croot and Major Kilpatrick decided to surprise attack them around midnight of the same day. Around 6am, amidst the firings, the Nawab lost around 60 of his trusted men and 300 soldiers. The firings continued until 9am when the Nawab decided to retreat. 

Calcutta and Fort Williams were recaptured by Robert Clive and the Nawab was made to sign the treaty of Alinagar, on 9^th February 1757 with the conditions which he would no longer restrain the British from the privileges previously imposed and also not attack any British strongholds. Many historians believed that while the Nawab was making merry at Murshidabad with his favourite wife Lutf-Un-Nisa Begam, it was Mir Jafar who suggested the British attack Calcutta at that hour. The Nawab now felt that there were traitors among his men and his lack of political sense and allegations turned the likes of Mir Jafar more against him.

After the treaty, Shiraj concentrated on his own administrative matters at Murshidabad while Robert Clive was trying to teach him a lesson. The motive of the British was clear. To show the other rulers of India, what will happen if they try to oppose British power. 

The Battle of Chandennagore

On 14^th March, Clive decided to attack Chandannagore, a French colony under the Nawab’s supremacy. By 23^rd March he and his troops reached Chandannagore and destroyed the French fortification and captured and ransacked the Nawab’s stronghold. The Battle of Chandannagore was fought between the French aided by the Nawab's soldiers and the British. This sudden attack angered Shiraj beyond tolerance. He was clear that without Mughal Emperor Alamgir’s permission, the British had no right to destroy his fortification and create their own without a battle.

Before the Plassey:

Shiraj's Bengal attacked by Clive

Shiraj was under constant threat of attack by the Marathas on the Orissa border, and the Afghans on the Bihar border, hence he could not employ all his forces to the British need. The French allied with him against the British. William Watts, a company representative at Murshidabad informed Robert Clive of the conspirators against the young Nawab who was willing to help the British. Mir Jafar, Jagat Seth, and Rai Durlabh along with Omichand and Yaar Lutuf Khan were brought to the company’s contract with the promise of power and wealth around 1^st May 1757. 

Mir Jafar and his son Miran

On 2^nd May Clive broke his army, keeping one half at Chandannagore the rest were sent back to Calcutta. He refused to go back to Madras despite the orders of his seniors. On 10^th May 1757, a treaty was signed in secret by Mir Jafar and others with Robert Clive.

Battle preparations:

12^th June 1757: Robert Clive ordered Colonel Kilpatrick and his troop of 613 men, 2000 sepoys and 200 navy men to move into Murshidabad.

13^th June: They had set out for Murshidabad and sent a confirmation to Mir Jafar. Robert Clive sends another letter, to the Nawab sighting a meeting for the reordering of the clauses of the treaty of Alinagar. A suspicious Shiraj declined the offer.

14^th June: Robert Clive now openly declared war reaching the grounds of Paltee, 12 km from the fort of Katwa.

15^th June: Shiraj ordered a surprise ransack at Mir Jafar’s house, as he suspected foul play. This resulted in Mir Jafar promising Shiraj his full support and not changing sides mid-battle.

19^th June: The British troops approached Katwa through the river Aji and captured it. Robert Clive suffered a setback as Mir Jafar send a message to inform him to withhold their treaty till the time is favourable as Shiraj now openly suspected him.

21^st June: Shiraj’s army reached Plassey, about 30 km from the city of Murshidabad. Robert Clive held a council meeting upon which was decided that they would not turn around.

22^nd June: The British troops crossed the Bhagirathi into the territories of Murshidabad. The troop reached around 1pm, the mangrove garden near the field of Plassey known as the Lakhabagh.

23^rd June: At daybreak, the troops of the Nawab started advancing toward the British soldiers. The strength of the British troops was nearly 4000 while Nawab’s troops were nearly 50,000 in total.

The position of the army

Battle of Plassey/Palashi:

The battle began at 8 am with the French cannon attack and by the next thirty minutes, the British were heavily injured. Three hours after, people like Mir Jafar and Rai Durlabh prevented the Nawab from entering the battlefield saying it was a victorious position for them, however, the news of the death of his most trusted general Mir Madan Khan made Shiraj want to fight while the rainstorm played it’s defying role.

While the British protected their weapons and gunpowder with tarpaulin, Mir Jafar in his tricks stopped the use of one on Shiraj’s gunpowder store resulting in the damping of the gunpowder. It is also said that Robert Clive planned if the Battle remained indecisive till the end of the day, they would kill the Nawab at his camp at midnight.

However, the battle resumed around 2pm when the Nawab’s troops discovered that their gunpowder was damp. Upon hearing this, Mir Jafar freighted fear and told the Nawab to retreat. The plead of Mohan Lal not to retreat but fight and die, like the Rajput he was, went on deaf ears as the Nawab ordered his soldiers to return. This was a blunder as the French soldiers were left alone to fight the British who pushed forward as Mir Jafar’s troops openly joined theirs now. The Battle turned its course as soon as the Nawab left. By 5pm the British had won the battle and Mir Jafar requested Robert Clive’s meeting after the battle.

Aftermath:

Clive meeting Mir Jafar as Nawab of Bengal

The news of the traitors was now reaching the Nawab who immediately ordered his family to retreat to Murshidabad where from they would escape to Dhaka, the Present capital of Bangladesh. Everyone except his beloved wife Lutf-Un-Nisa left as she refused to leave him in his time of need. That night, at the darkest hour, a chariot was taking Shiraj, his wife and his three-year-old daughter away from Murshidabad, driven by a eunuch. Mir Jafar’s troops were alerted by the movement and on the morning of 24^th June 1757, he ordered his troops to find and kill Shiraj. The British sighed a treaty with Mir Jafar, thereupon naming him the Nawab of Bengal, under British rule, thus ending the rule of independent Nawabs in Bengal.

Death:

Namak Haram Deori

After a lot of hide-and-seek, Shiraj was finally captured from Patna around 30^th June 1757. He was taken back to Murshidabad and executed at what is now called “Namak Haram Deorhi” or the gate of the traitor that is the premises of Mir Jafar’s palace. Brutal as it was, Mir Jafar’s son Miran ordered him to be butchered under public eyes, by Md. Ali Beg on 2^nd July 1757, and his body was kept open to the public much to the horror of the people. 

On 3^rd July his body was marched on an elephant across the town, as a warning not to go against the Raj. It is said that while the carcass passed the house of his mother, Amina Begum wanted the elephant to walk over her, while the common people stopped their once beloved daughter from the sin of suicide. It is said that none dared to touch his body, bath it or bury it in fear of Mir Jafar’s wrath. Mirza Zain, however, took up the charge, thus losing his life. He took the body across the Bhagirathi, bathed it and buried him alongside his grandfather Alivardi Khan at the Khushbagh where later, a tomb was built for him.

The Board

Wife and Daughter:

Luft-Un-Nisa managed to escape with her daughter to Dhaka, as planned by her husband, under the eyes of some still faithful generals. She stayed there at Jinjira Palace and brought up her daughter away from the public glare. However, Mir Jafar, the then Nawab found her whereabouts and send her a proposal in marriage to be his begum which she declined. This was followed by a wedding proposal from his son Miran, which was again declined by her. The repeated proposals and persuasions, made her marry her daughter off early in fear of danger. She kept declining the proposals until one day in a very famous letter to Mir Jafar, she replied “ Having ridden an elephant before, I cannot now ride an ass.” which stopped him from further persuasion. Her woes were not over as her daughter became a widow with four daughters and also passed away in 1777, leaving behind the grandchildren at her disposal. It is then that she decided to return to Murshidabad among her own kins and stayed there, attending to the grave of her own at Khushbagh, before she died in 1790, to be put to rest alongside her husband there as his “Favourite.”

Some folklores suggest they were kept under house arrest in Dhaka and were later brought back to Murshidabad, which doesn't justify Zohra Begum's normal married life at all if confined to imprisonment by Mir Jafar.

Zinzira Palace, Bangladesh

My take:

In his fifteen months short rule, Shiraj was the setting sun of the Independent Nawab rule in Bengal. He had however left his mark, not only for the wrong reasons. At 23, he had made many mistakes, probably because he was impulsive, under false influences of lust for power and not trained well enough by his grandfather for his position. He lacked political insight and skills and made the mistake of relying too much on his generals. At 24, he died a horrible death, still, we remember him as the one who dared to fight and conquer the British. He sewed a seed of will of Independence amongst the future freedom fighters of Bengal and was an inspiration for his siege of Calcutta. The British however proved battles can be won by brains and politics, if not by manpower.

As for his favourite queen, I admire her struggle, for dignity and life, first as a slave girl in the zenana then later as a wife and after he died the widow of the late Nawab. Her determination to raise the daughter and granddaughters well and also her will to maintain the graves of the family, which are still a site at Khushbagh.

At the border of Nadia and Murshidabad district in West Bengal today, a memorial stands forgotten in a lonely crop field among mango gardens, that says the war happened there. A few unnamed tombs can also be found nearby in a terrible state. 

For Further reads:

The Era of Darkness By Shashi Tharoor

Anarchy By William Dalrymple

Plassey by Sudeep Chakraborty

The History of Bengal By R.C. Majumder

Nawabs of Bengal by Jadunath Sircar

For pictures and travelogue: My Instagram @ajourneytodiscoverlife