CHAP. III.
Clive's health was completely broken by the fatigues he had undergone; and, as there appeared no prospect of immediate service, he determined to visit England, where the fame of his military achievements had preceded him. His father, Mr. Richard Clive, in a letter dated December 15. 1752, observes, "I was at Sir Philip Chetwood's, our neighbour in the country, when I received your welcome letter, which gave me joy not to be expressed. Since then, now I am come to London, the pleasure is repeated by the applause every one gives to your gallant actions and behaviour, and the success that hath attended you; and you are compared to no less than some of those brave generals who are gone, but left their names upon record to their glory and honour. The directors of the Company you have so faithfully served, I hear, at a public entertainment drank your health by the name of General Clive, and are pleased to say they are under great obligations to you. I waited on the three principal directors last week, in order to find out, if I could, what they proposed for you, but perceive they are desirous to have the account the next ships bring, before they give me any positive answer, other than a general one, that they are very desirous to do you any service in their power. Your friends, among which is one of the principal directors, and my intimate acquaintance, advise that you should not leave Madras before you know how the directors propose to reward you: but this will be for your own determination, who can best judge, in the situation we are in, what is most proper to be done. You may be sure your mother and myself shall think the time long till we see you."
From his mother, Clive received at the same time one of those letters which are so precious to him who unites a disposition to cherish family ties with a devotion to his country. It would be injustice to this high-minded lady to omit a word of the sentiments she expressed on this occasion, and which showed her to be every way worthy of her son. I therefore transcribe the whole letter:—
"Dear Son,
"I cannot express the joy yours to your father gave to me. Your brave conduct, and success which Providence has blessed you with, is the talk and wonder of the public, the great joy and satisfaction of your friends; but more particularly so to me, as it gives me hopes of seeing you much sooner than I could possibly have expected. I find some of your friends wish your longer stay in India; but I earnestly entreat you will let no motive induce you, except your honour and the peace of the country require it. Your relations are all well: four of your sisters are with me; the youngest and your two brothers are at school: your cousin Ben has no employ; he is only on half-pay as a lieutenant, lives with his father, and, I believe, wishes himself with you. We are removed to a large house in Swithin's Lane, near the post house, and hope to see you in it. May a kind Providence attend and bless you, and bring you safe to your native country, is the most sincere wish and prayer of
"Your ever affectionate mother,
(Signed) "Reb. Clive.""London, 16th Dec., 1752."
The state of Clive's health having compelled him to return to England, he embarked at Madras in February, 1753, immediately after his marriage to Miss Margaret Maskelyne; a marriage to which he owed much of the comfort and happiness of his future life. This lady, the daughter of Edmund Maskelyne, Esq., of Purton in Wiltshire, and sister of his friend Edmund Maskelyne, and of the celebrated Dr. Nevil Maskelyne, afterwards Astronomer Royal, was possessed of both beauty and accomplishments. His attachment to her appears from many letters to have been very great. She continued throughout his life to enjoy his affection and regard, and survived him many years.
In the course of the same year he landed in England, after an absence of about ten years. His reception was most flattering. He was warmly welcomed by his parents and many near relations: the Court of Directors voted him a sword set with diamonds of the value of five hundred pounds, "as a token of their esteem, and of their sense of his singular services to the Company on the coast of Coromandel[69];" and in society he was honoured with those elevating marks of regard, which always attend a fortunate soldier. Though but a short time in his native country, he appears to have imbibed, or rather renewed, an attachment to it, and to have formed friendships and connections, which left him without any tie in India, but the fulfilment of the public duties he had to perform in that country, and the acquirement of sufficient fortune to maintain himself and family.
He had not enjoyed himself two years in England, when the state of affairs in India made the Court of Directors anxious for his presence in that country. He was appointed Governor of Fort St. David, with a provisional commission to succeed to the government of Madras; and the appointment was accompanied with the expression of their anxious desire that he should return as soon as possible to a country in which they deemed his services of the greatest importance. To obviate the quarrels about rank between the King's and Company's officers, which had often been attended with much obstruction to the service, the Directors applied to His Majesty's government, and obtained for him the commission of Lieutenant-Colonel in the British army; a very honourable distinction, as he was then but a young man, and only a Captain in their service.
He left England in 1755; but, instead of sailing direct to his new government, he proceeded to Bombay, where he landed on the 27th of November, with three companies of Royal Artillery and three hundred infantry, destined to form, in conjunction with the Mahrattas, part of a force for the attack of the French and their allies in the Deckan. When the project was first formed, it had been intended that he should command this force; and he was at the time the only man in the service from whose knowledge and experience success in such a scheme could reasonably have been anticipated. But we have on this occasion an early instance of the character of that interference of the King's government, which, when dictated by narrow considerations of patronage, must defeat every measure it proposes to promote. Colonel Scott, who had sailed for India the preceding year, in the quality of Engineer-General, was, at the powerful recommendation of the Duke of Cumberland, nominated to the command of this expedition. Nevertheless, the Directors wished Clive to proceed to Bombay, in the hope that some event might occur to defeat an appointment in which they had found themselves compelled to concur. It so happened, that Colonel Scott died before the troops arrived: but a provisional treaty had been entered into[70] between Mr. Saunders, the Governor of Madras, and Mr. Godeheu, the Governor of Pondicherry, by which, among other articles, it had been agreed, that neither the French nor English companies should take part in any differences arising between the princes of the country. In consequence of this convention, the government of Bombay refused to adopt any proceeding that could disturb the general peace of India; so that Clive lost the opportunity of opposing the celebrated Bussy on the plains of the Deckan.
Admiral Watson was lying at Bombay when Clive arrived; and the opportunity was thought excellent for employing the means which accident had left disposable, to punish the pirate Angria by the attack of Gheriah[71], one of his strongholds, which lies a little more than two degrees south of Bombay, and which derived its strength from the reputed courage of its defenders, and from its site upon a rocky promontory almost surrounded by the sea.
The expedition against Gheriah was undertaken in concert with the Mahrattas; but suspicions being entertained that the latter were in communication with Angria, operations were precipitated so as to preclude them from all share in the enterprise. The Admiral having attacked and burnt the fleet of the pirate, Clive interposed his force on the land side between the fort and the Mahratta general, who had hastened to co-operate. The place soon fell[72], and the booty (about ten lacs of rupees) was divided by the British forces, without admitting their allies to any participation. This had been settled before the expedition left Bombay, as well as the respective shares of prize-money to the officers and men. It is remarkable what attention was given at this time in India, even before operations were commenced, to adjust the relative claims to eventual booty. Councils of war were held, at which very junior officers aided, and arguments were entered into by the respective parties. The causes of this were various. Besides that spirit of plunder, and that passion for the rapid accumulation of wealth, which actuated all ranks, the undefined relations of the King's and Company's officers made such previous arrangements indispensable, to prevent those disputes, which, but for such precautions, must subsequently have occurred.
It is pleasing on this occasion to record the conduct of both the naval and military commanders. The naval officers, who formed the majority, had decreed that Lieutenant-Colonel Clive, though he commanded the land force, should only share in his army rank with a post-captain in the navy. The officers of the troops claimed for their commander an equal share with Rear-Admiral Pocock, the second in command in the navy. This pretension was stated by Clive to Admiral Watson. The latter, as jealous a defender of what he deemed the rights of the service to which he belonged, as he was careless of his own personal interest, rejected the claim, but told Clive he would make up from his own share the difference between the colonel's and that of Admiral Pocock. Nor was this mere profession. When the prize-money was paid, he sent the difference he had promised, but it was declined. Clive said his sole object had been to satisfy the troops that he had supported the rights of their commander: they had been pleased with the admiral's conduct, and he would "never enrich himself with money taken from Mr. Watson's personal share of the capture."[73]
As nothing further remained to be done on the western coast, Clive proceeded to Fort St. David[74], of which he took charge on the 20th June, 1756, the very day, by a remarkable coincidence, on which the Nabob of Bengal took Calcutta. Intelligence of that event was not received at Madras till the 16th of August; and on the 18th a despatch was sent to require the presence of Colonel Clive, it being in contemplation, in consequence of the state of General Lawrence's health, that he should proceed in command of the expedition destined to recover Calcutta, and re-establish the Company's affairs in Bengal.
Accordingly, having been relieved at Fort St. David by Mr. A. Wynch, Colonel Clive proceeded to Madras, which he reached on the 24th of August, and assumed the command of the land forces of the expedition, the strength of which was seriously diminished by the unseasonable pretensions of Colonel Adlercron, who commanded one of His Majesty's regiments at Madras, but who was not employed on this occasion, from being deemed inexperienced in Indian warfare, and from having refused to engage to return to Madras when requested, or to surrender, for the reimbursement of the Company's losses, any part of the booty which the force under him might take. Adlercron, irritated at the appointment of Clive, stated, in reply to the requisition of the government for men, that they should have whatever number of His Majesty's troops they chose sent aboard the fleet: but added[75], "As I cannot answer to the King my master, nor to my own character, to remain cooped up in a garrison in a state of inaction, while any part of the forces under my command are upon actual service, I think it my duty to go along with them; and should I be of a contrary opinion, my Lieutenant-Colonel would have just cause of complaint against me, were I not to make him the first offer. The detachment of His Majesty's artillery is particularly allotted to attend my regiment, and I cannot consent to their being employed any where but with a part thereof; unless, therefore, we are to have the honour of assisting in this expedition, I do hereby, in the name of the King my master, demand that His Majesty's artillery, with all the stores thereto belonging, be immediately disembarked. I am sorry, gentlemen, to be obliged to observe, that I think it very extraordinary, that, after writing to me two letters, requesting me to undertake this service with the whole of His Majesty's troops, and pressing me to give the necessary orders accordingly, you should now be for putting me off upon such slight pretences."
The resolutions taken in council on the receipt of this letter were as follow:—
"Colonel Adlercron's avowal, in his letter of the 20th instant, that he could not engage to return hither upon our request, and that the Company should not have any part of the plunder that may be taken, towards the reimbursement of the immense loss they have sustained, appear to us to be reasons of the greatest importance against his going on the command; and we flatter ourselves that His Majesty will not be of opinion with Colonel Adlercron, that they are slight pretences, or that it will reflect dishonour on Colonel Adlercron to stay for the defence of a colony of so much consequence as Madras, where, besides, by much the largest force will remain, and above two thirds of his own regiment.
"The committee are entirely of opinion, that it is necessary, for the good of the Company, that the command should be vested in an officer of the Company's, subject to our orders, and do therefore abide by the resolution of the council, that Colonel Clive proceed in that quality; but, as it will cause some delay to land His Majesty's train of artillery, which is already embarked, it is agreed to write again to Colonel Adlercron, to represent to him the bad consequences of such delay: resolving, nevertheless, that it will be disembarked if he continues to insist on it, but to protest against him for all the damage which may be caused to the Company by such delay."
The reasonings of the governor and his council were not convincing to the mind of Colonel Adlercron. He wrote a long letter in reply, mentioning all his grievances and opinions, and positively refusing to permit the train, or any part of His Majesty's forces, to proceed on the expedition.
"The dangerous situation," he observes, "in which you represent things to be here, rather confirms me in my resolution not to part with His Majesty's train; but I have already given a full answer in the letter I wrote this morning to the general council, to which I beg leave to refer you, as you have offered nothing which can induce me to alter my sentiments. Surely, gentlemen, you are not so unreasonable as to expect that I will send away part of His Majesty's train or regiment (who are so immediately under my direction), and leave to you the nomination of the person who shall command them."
In consequence of this letter, not only the royal artillery, but His Majesty's guns and stores were disembarked; and the expedition, deprived of this strength, consisted of about two thousand four hundred men. Reinforcements, however, were promised both from Madras and Bombay.
These proceedings are not recorded with any desire to reflect on the memory of the actors in the scenes here described. A relation of such facts, however, is indispensable, to convey an idea of the difficulties which were to be overcome, and of the firmness and temper required in the situation in which Clive was now placed: but he was animated to exertion by the obstacles which presented themselves in the way of his success; and the sanguine hopes he entertained of being the instrument to avenge the cruel wrongs which his countrymen had sustained, and to redeem the state he served from the disgrace and ruin brought upon it by a barbarous enemy, are strongly expressed in the following letter to the Court of Directors, written before he sailed from Madras:—
"Honourable Gentlemen,
"From many hands you will hear of the capture of Calcutta by the Moors, and the chain of misfortunes and losses which have happened to the Company in particular, and to the nation in general: every breast here seems filled with grief, horror, and resentment: indeed, it is too sad a tale to unfold, and I must beg leave to refer you to the general letters, consultations, and committees, which will give you a full account of this catastrophe.
"Upon this melancholy occasion, the Governor and council thought proper to summon me to this place. As soon as an expedition was resolved upon, I offered my service, which was at last accepted, and I am now upon the point of embarking on board His Majesty's squadron, with a fine body of Europeans, full of spirit and resentment for the insults and barbarities inflicted on so many British subjects.
"I flatter myself that this expedition will not end with the taking of Calcutta only; and that the Company's estate in those parts will be settled in a better and more lasting condition than ever. There is less reason to apprehend a check from the Nabob's forces, than from the nature of the climate and country. The news of a war[76] may likewise interfere with the success of this expedition: however, should that happen, and hostilities be committed in India, I hope we shall be able to dispossess the French of Chandernagore, and leave Calcutta in a state of defence.
"I have a true sense of my duty to my country and the Company; and I beg leave to assure you, that nothing shall be wanting, on my part, to answer the ends of an undertaking on which so very much depends. Success on this occasion will fill the measure of my joy, as it will fix me in the esteem of those to whom I have the honour to subscribe myself, with great respect,
(Signed) "R. Clive."
"Fort St. George, 11th Oct., 1756."
In several private communications from Clive to his friends in England, we find the same sentiments expressed, in language which denotes the calm and determined spirit with which he went to the performance of his duty on this important occasion. Writing to Mr. Mabbot, he observes, "Providence, who is the disposer of all events, has thought proper to inflict the greatest calamity that ever happened to the English nation in these parts; I mean the loss of Calcutta, attended with the greatest mortifications to the Company, and the most barbarous and cruel circumstances to the poor inhabitants. This unhappy news has called me to the presidency; and the gentlemen thereof have thought proper to put me at the head of the expedition for the recovery of Calcutta, the Company's losses, rights, and privileges. I have that sense of duty to my country, and of my obligations to the Company (be the event what it will), there is no hardship or risk, consistent with common prudence, I will not undergo to obtain the wished-for success. I am not so apprehensive of the Nabob of Bengal's forces, as of being recalled by the news of a war, or checked in our progress by the woods and swampiness of the country, which is represented as being almost impassable for a train of artillery."
In a letter to Mr. Roger Drake, a gentleman then high in the Court of Directors, Clive writes, "A few weeks ago I was happily seated at St. David's, pleased with the thoughts of obtaining your confidence and esteem, by my application to the civil branch of the Company's affairs, and of improving and increasing the investment; but the fatal blow given to the Company's estate at Bengal has superseded all other considerations, and I am now at this presidency upon the point of embarking on board His Majesty's squadron, with a very considerable body of troops, to attempt the recovery of Calcutta, and to gain satisfaction from the Nabob for the losses which the Company have sustained in those parts. The re-capture of Calcutta appears no very difficult task, but our further progress for reducing the Nabob to such terms as the gentlemen of Calcutta may think satisfactory, is precarious and doubtful, from the prospect of a war, which may not allow time for such an undertaking. You may be assured I never will turn my back upon Bengal, if not ordered from thence, without trying my utmost efforts toward obtaining the desired success."
Before proceeding to the narration of the important events which took place after Clive's arrival in Bengal, it will be useful to take a short view of the situation of the affairs of the Company at this period.
By the terms of the truce between the French and English, proclaimed on the 11th of October, and followed by a provisional treaty of peace between the two Companies, signed on the 26th and 31st of December, 1754, the English gained on the coast of Coromandel all for which they had so long contended; for, by the agreement of both parties to withdraw from any further interference with the native princes, Mahommed Ali, whom they had supported through so many vicissitudes, became the reigning[77] sovereign of the Carnatic.
The territorial acquisitions, and the influence established by the valour and talent of Bussy, which were deemed so valuable by Dupleix, the former Governor of Pondicherry, appear to have been only viewed by his successor Godeheu as obstacles to that peace which it was the chief object of his appointment to establish; and he discouraged all further progress to power in the Deckan.
The peace, or rather truce, obtained by such sacrifices, did not last a twelvemonth. Hostilities between the two nations were carried on as before, under the pretext of supporting the native chiefs and princes with whom the two companies were respectively allied, but with whose quarrels they had agreed not to interfere. To add to the embarrassment which this state of affairs produced, accounts were received at Madras, on the 12th of November, 1756, that war had broken out between France and England; and Clive had not sailed above a month, when a letter from the Governor and Council of Fort St. George, after suggesting an attack on the French settlement of Chandernagore, entreated his early return, with as many of his troops as could be spared, to protect them from the dangers likely to result from the expected arrival of a French armament from Europe.
The history of the events which brought ruin on the settlement of Calcutta is short and disgraceful. The kingdom of Bengal, which, with Orissa, had been, for fifteen years, subject to the able and active rule of Aliverdi Khan, was now[78] governed by his grand nephew Suraj-u-Dowlah, a youth, who, to all the effeminacy and luxurious habits of an eastern prince, added the greatest violence of temper, and an unrestrained indulgence of his passions. The commercial settlement of Calcutta, which had been protected by his predecessor, became an early object of his attack. Whether he was tempted by its known weakness and reputed wealth, or by a desire to expel the English from Bengal, is a matter of little moment. The pretexts on which his aggressions were grounded are too slight to merit consideration. He first accused the English of an intention to fortify Calcutta. This was disproved. Then they were charged with giving protection to one of his subjects[79] who had fled with great treasure. The person of this subject, he was informed, should be reserved for his pleasure; and proof was offered, that the treasure he was said to have fled with had no existence. But the young and rapacious tyrant was only to be satisfied by the plunder of the English merchants, and all that belonged to them. This was shown by his conduct at Cossimbazar. Having prevailed upon the chief, Mr. Watts, to visit him, he made him prisoner, and afterwards attacked and gained possession of that fortified factory. But the great object of his ambition was the capture of Calcutta. When he approached that city[80], a feeble effort was made at defence; after which it was decided that it would be expedient to retreat; but no orders were issued to render this measure regular or effective to its object of saving the persons and property of the European part of the population, by embarking them on board the vessels lying near the town. The consequence was, that when embarkation commenced, every one tried to secure his own personal safety by getting on board how and when he could. The alarm created by this confusion spread to the ships, and they began to drop down the river. This was no sooner perceived, than every boat was filled; and among those who fled to join the ships on this memorable occasion, were some who were bound to remain by every call of public duty. Signals were made from the fort to the ships to return, but they were not heeded; and, though two days elapsed before the capture, not a boat came to save the few who, either from a sense of duty, or from not possessing the means of escape, had remained in the fort. It is difficult to believe that amongst so many Englishmen, none were found disposed to adventure for the safety of their countrymen. "Never, perhaps," says Orme, "was such an opportunity of performing an heroic action so ignominiously neglected; for a single sloop, with fifteen brave men on board, might, in spite of all the efforts of the enemy, have come up, and, anchoring under the fort, have carried away all who suffered in the dungeon."[81]
As the Governor[82] and commandant[83] of the troops were among the fugitives, those who were left behind chose Mr. Holwell as their chief. Soon finding that resistance was impossible, he desired to surrender; but, before he could obtain an answer, the enemy stormed and made themselves master of the fort. Suraj-u-Dowlah, when Mr. Holwell was carried into his presence with his hands bound, directed them to be untied, and spoke to him in a manner calculated to give him hopes of protection: nothing, at least, indicated the fate that awaited this gentleman and his unfortunate companions; and indeed, as the Nabob had no reason for desiring their death, we cannot suppose that it was by his command they were, on the night of the day they were made prisoners, thrust into that prison emphatically called the Black Hole, from which, of a hundred and forty-six persons, only twenty-three came out alive.
"Some of our company," says Mr. Cooke[84], "expired very soon after being put in: others grew mad, and having lost their senses, died in a high delirium. All we could urge to the guard set over us, could not prevail upon them either to set us at liberty, or separate us into different prisons; which we desired, and offered money to obtain; but to no purpose: and when we were released at eight o'clock the next morning, only twenty-three came out alive."
The indignation excited against Suraj-u-Dowlah in the breast of every Englishman, on account of the murder of these persons, was just; even though he never intended[85] to perpetrate so cruel an action.
Wrapt in proud indifference as to what befel those unfortunate beings, whom fortune had thrown into his power, the tyrant was not to be approached with the tale of their unexampled sufferings, at the moment when they might have been alleviated; and he never showed any sense of remorse when the dreadful catastrophe was narrated to him, nor evinced any resentment against those who had not only driven their captives into the dark and narrow place of destruction, but had turned a deaf ear to the earnest prayers and the dying groans of the unhappy sufferers.
Two fitter instruments than Watson and Clive could not have been chosen to avenge their country, and to re-establish the interests of the Company in Bengal; and their efforts were warmly seconded by Mr. Pigot, Governor of Madras, who gave them all the assistance he could, to promote the success of a service of vital importance to the prosperity, and indeed to the very existence, of the Company in India.
The expedition sailed from Madras the 16th of October, and consisted of five of His Majesty's ships and five of the Company's, having on board nine hundred European infantry, and fifteen hundred sepoys. Five hundred more sepoys were expected from Bombay. (A. D. 1756.) All the fleet, with the exception of two vessels, the "Cumberland"[86] and "Marlborough[87]," on board of which were a considerable proportion of the troops, had reached Fulta[88] by the 22d of December, where they found the fugitives from Calcutta.
Major Kilpatrick, also an officer of high reputation, was at that place. He had, it appears from his letter to Clive of the 5th of August, arrived some weeks after the capture of Calcutta; but did not think it advisable (as he states in the same letter), until supported from Madras, to attempt the recovery of the settlement, having "only a handful" of men, four pieces of artillery, and a very small quantity of ammunition.
Clive appears, from letters to Major Kilpatrick, dated the 23d of December, to have been so unwell as to have committed to that officer the charge of preparations for immediate advance upon the small fort of Budge-Budge[89], the road to which was through a low swampy country, covered with jungle and underwood.
Though two hundred and fifty of his small European force, and four hundred and thirty sepoys, with almost all the artillery, military stores, &c., were on board the two missing ships, Clive nevertheless determined to advance: but it appears from his private letter to Mr. Pigot (dated the 8th of January, 1757), that the march of the small body of troops by land was against his opinion. "You will find," he observes in this letter, "by the return, that our loss in the skirmish near Budge-Budge was greater than could well be spared, if such skirmishes were to be often repeated. You must know, our march from Moidapoor to the northward of Budge-Budge was much against my inclinations. I applied to the Admiral for boats to land us, at the place we arrived at, after sixteen hours' march by land. The men suffered hardships not to be described: it was four in the afternoon when we decamped from Moidapoor, and we did not arrive off Budge-Budge till past eight next morning: at nine, the grenadier company and all the sepoys were despatched to the fort, where I heard Captain Coote[90] was landed with the King's troops. At ten, Monichund, the Governor of Calcutta, attacked us with between two and three thousand horse and foot, and was worsted.[91] The people of the country raise fabulous reports about the killed and wounded; but there is reason to believe, from the smartness of the fire, and the nearness of the enemy, some of whom were within twenty yards, one hundred and fifty might be killed and wounded, and with them four of the principal jemmadars and an elephant. Monichund himself received a shot in his turban. Our two field pieces were of little or no service to us, having neither tubes nor portfires, and wrong carriages sent with them from Fort St. David; indeed we still labour under every disadvantage in the world, for want of the Marlborough. It seems the enemy were encamped within two miles of us, and we ignorant of the matter: so much for the intelligence of the country.
"I cannot take upon me to give my sentiments about our future success against the Nabob in the open field: the little affair above mentioned was attended with every disadvantage on our side: a number of houses, jungles, bushes, &c. served as a cover for the enemy—all our sepoys and the choice of our Europeans absent—our cannon in a manner useless. Indeed I fear we shall labour under many of these disadvantages when attacked by the Nabob, and I take it for granted that he will be down before the Cumberland and Marlborough can arrive. As yet, there appears but little probability of getting draught bullocks, without which we cannot move."
Calcutta, which offered no resistance, was taken possession of on the 2d of January, 1757, by Admiral Watson, who, on the 3d, delivered it over to the Company's representatives. That jealous claim to superiority on the part of His Majesty's commanders by sea and land, which created difficulty in every conjunct operation, was evinced on this occasion in a manner that excited an indignation in the mind of Clive which he could not conceal.
"Between friends," he observes, in the letter to Mr. Pigot above quoted, "I cannot help regretting that ever I undertook this expedition. The mortifications I 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 to them. The morning the enemy quitted Calcutta, a party of our sepoys entered the fort at the same time with a detachment from the ships, and were ignominiously thrust out: upon coming near the fort myself, I was informed that there were orders that none of the Company's officers or troops should have entrance. This, I own, enraged me to such a degree, that I was resolved to enter if possible, which I did, though not in the manner maliciously reported, by forcing the sentries; for they suffered us to pass very patiently upon being informed who I was. At my entrance, Captain Coote presented me with a commission from Admiral Watson, appointing him Governor of Fort William, which I knew not a syllable of before: and it seems this dirty underhand contrivance was carried on in the most secret manner, under a pretence that I intended the same thing, which, I declare, never entered my thoughts. This affair was compromised, by the Admiral consenting that I should be Governor, and that the Company's troops should remain in the fort. The next day the Admiral delivered up the fort to the Company's representatives in the King's name."
According to Mr. Ives[92], who must be supposed to have given a faithful record of Admiral Watson's actions, as he was surgeon to the flag ship, and honoured with his commander's confidence, Captain King was sent, the moment Calcutta surrendered, to take possession of that fort in His Majesty's name; and in a few minutes afterwards it was garrisoned by a party of King's troops serving on board the flag-ship, under the command of Captain Coote, to whom specific instructions were given, not to deliver up his command till further orders. Clive, who had invested the fort on the land face, immediately entered it, and claimed the command on the ground of his commission as Lieutenant-Colonel in His Majesty's service, and as senior officer on shore. Captain Coote refused to recognise his authority, as he considered himself acting under the specific orders of Admiral Watson. Clive persisted; and, to prevent extremities, a message was sent to Admiral Watson, who, after hearing Clive's pretensions, sent Captain Speke to inform him, that if he did not evacuate the fort immediately, he would fire upon him. Clive said he would not answer for the consequences, but would not give up the command. Reflection, however, seems to have altered this resolution, for I find a note from Captain Speke, stating that he had communicated to the Admiral Clive's offer of evacuating the fort, providing he had assurances of having afterwards the command. This was acceded to; the fort remained, during the day on which it was captured, under the Admiral, and was next day, as has been before mentioned, made over to the Company.
Clive, in the letter before quoted to the Governor of Madras, notices the feelings of dissatisfaction which his independent powers had produced in the minds of the gentlemen belonging to the settlement of Calcutta, whom he describes as callous to every feeling but that of their losses. His sentiments upon this occasion are stated with that severity and careless boldness, which made him so many enemies, but which, nevertheless, continued through life to mark all his communications on points where he considered that private feelings and interests had interfered with the performance of public duties.
"The gentlemen here," he states, "seem much dissatisfied at the authority I am vested with. It would be contradicting my own sentiments, if I was not to acknowledge that I still preserve the opinion that the gentlemen of Madras could not have taken a step more prudent, or more consistent with the Company's interests: for I am sorry to say, the loss of private property, and the means of recovering it, seem to be the only objects which take up the attention of the Bengal gentlemen. As an instance, I shall only mention the expeditions to Dacca, which you may remember to have heard of a little before we sailed. It was settled that the Company should defray the expenses, and that what was taken should be divided among the sufferers of Calcutta in proportion to their losses; the sufferers repaying the Company what might be advanced on that account. I would have you guard against every thing these gentlemen can say; for, believe me, they are bad subjects and rotten at heart, and will stick at nothing to prejudice you and the gentlemen of the committee; indeed, how should they do otherwise, when they have not spared one another? I shall only add, their conduct at Calcutta finds no excuse, even among themselves; and that the riches of Peru and Mexico should not induce me to dwell among them."
The correspondence which has been noticed between Admiral Watson and Clive, and between the latter and the select committee at Calcutta, is of consequence, as it exhibits the obstacles with which Clive had to struggle at this critical period of his life, and of the interests of his country in India. It is, however, to be observed, that notwithstanding the pertinacity and violence on points of professional claims, which Admiral Watson exhibited, there was a redeeming honesty and zeal in that gallant seaman, which gave ample pledge that the public service would always be preferred by him to every other consideration; and though Clive showed occasional fits of spleen at the conduct of the Admiral, the whole course of his correspondence, public and private, proves that he entertained the highest respect and admiration for his character.
The situation of Clive was at this period most difficult. He found it more easy to deal with the pretensions and prejudices of Admiral Watson, than with the weak and disunited select committee of Bengal. In answer[93] to a letter from the latter, demanding that he should surrender the power with which he was vested, and place himself under them, he observed, "I do not intend to make use of my power for acting separately from you, without you reduce me to the necessity of so doing; but as far as concerns the means of executing these powers, you will excuse me, gentlemen, if I refuse to give them up: I cannot do it without forfeiting the trust reposed in me by the Select Committee of Fort St. George.
"It does not become me, as an individual, to give my opinion, whether the conduct of the gentlemen of Fort St. George has been faulty or not; that point must be determined by our superiors."
After occupying Calcutta, the British commanders, to take advantage, as Clive states[94], of the consternation caused by their rapid progress, sent a naval and military force to attack Hooghley. I transcribe from Orme[95] the following account of this operation:—
"Mr. Drake, notwithstanding his adversities, had retained some correspondents, and the Company's money some spies, from whom he received intelligence, as soon as he arrived at Calcutta, that the town of Hooghley was in great consternation, and that it would be some time before the Nabob's army would reach from Moorshedabad; upon which the Committee agreed to attack Hooghley without delay. The twenty-gun ship, the sloop of war, and three other vessels, were appointed for this service; and on board of them were embarked one hundred and fifty Europeans, being those of Adlercron's regiment, with two hundred sepoys.[96] They sailed on the 4th of January, and hoped to reach Hooghley in one tide; but the twenty-gun ship struck upon a sand-bank, which stopped their progress for five days. On the 10th, they arrived at Hooghley. This town lieth about twenty miles above Calcutta, adjoining to the north part of the Dutch settlement of Chinsurah, from whence it extends three miles on the bank of the river. At the northern extremity of the town is a fort, which was at this time garrisoned by two hundred men: three thousand more had been sent from Moorshedabad; but these retreated as soon as the English troops landed, remaining, however, within a few miles. The vessels battered the fort until night; and although the breach was scarcely practicable, it was determined to storm it before break of day. A false attack was made at the main gate; whilst Captain Coote, with the other division, accompanied by some sailors, mounted the breach before they were discovered by the garrison; who no sooner saw the English on the ramparts, than all of them quitted their posts, and fled out at the lesser gate. Three Europeans and ten sepoys were killed in the attack. On the 12th, Captain Coote, with fifty Europeans and one hundred sepoys, marched to Baudel, a large village three miles north of the fort, where they destroyed several granaries of rice; and in their turn were surrounded in the village by the fugitive garrison, and the troops which had been sent from Moorshedabad, from whom they disengaged themselves without losing a man. On the 16th, a party proceeded in boats some miles to the northward, and destroyed several more granaries on each side of the river; and on the 19th, the Europeans with the smaller vessels returned to Calcutta."
The account of the expedition against Hooghley is confirmed by every contemporary writer. The booty taken was estimated by Clive at a lac and a half of rupees (15,000l.). The reduction of this important fort, the destruction and capture of the enemy's property, and the discomfiture of their troops, whilst they avenged the wrongs which Suraj-u-Dowlah had inflicted upon the English, were calculated to impress that prince with a just sense of their power, and of their determination to use it, for the purpose of compelling him to make reparation for his unprovoked aggressions. They concluded (and his character and conduct justified the conclusion) that it was not by conciliating, but by alarming him, that they could obtain future exemption from his attacks. What had occurred gave good grounds for the belief they entertained. Subsequent events proved its correctness.[97]
Clive's letters in January communicate to the Madras government information of the capture of Hooghley, and of the completion of the works to strengthen Calcutta. He also informs them, that the Select Committee of Bengal had confided to him and Admiral Watson all correspondence with the Nabob, who was advancing towards Calcutta, making professions of an amicable disposition, and offering to make restitution of property, provided Mr. Drake were removed from the management of the Company's affairs in Bengal.
Clive, at this period, cherished sanguine hopes of an early settlement; and it appears, both from his public and private letters, that he was most solicitous to obey the instructions of the Madras Government, by returning to that Presidency the moment he could do so without the most imminent hazard to the public interests.
"Mr. Watson," he observes[99], "has not yet come to any resolution about his departure; and I fear it will be difficult for me to leave this place without his concurrence and assistance: however, nothing but the prospect of a speedy and honourable peace will induce him to stay much longer; and you may be assured I shall accompany him, unless something of the like nature happens, so as to give hopes of a peace being soon concluded, greatly to the honour and advantage of the Company. Be assured, gentlemen, I shall follow your instructions, and not draw out the war to length, on any consideration whatever."
In his private letter of the 25th of January, to Mr. Pigot, he says, "I need not represent to you the immense consequence of Bengal to the Company; and, while there is a prospect of concluding matters, either by a treaty, or by a general battle, which, I think, cannot be far off, I am persuaded you would not approve of my leaving every thing unfinished, in a sudden and abrupt manner.
"If we cannot conclude every thing by the end of March, I will give it up, and content myself with leaving Calcutta in a defensible state. By the return you will see, exclusive of the King's troops and artillery, I have not above three hundred European rank and file fit for duty; so that, if the Bombay troops don't arrive, I cannot possibly bring with me more than the grenadier company, and fifty of the train, exclusive of the King's. The sepoys must be left, of which you have no want on the coast. Fort William cannot be left with a less garrison than three hundred military and train fit for duty."
In the postscript to the same letter, he observes, "The Admiral has not wanted a number of people to advise him to pay no manner of attention to any representations, but what come from the gentlemen here; and that the gentlemen of the coast cannot be judges of what is fit for the interest of the Company in these parts. He is very desirous of getting away by the latter end of next month, but has been persuaded that he is so much concerned in honour to see matters concluded, that he swears he will stay till September, if it be necessary. You will easily conclude how difficult it will be for me to get from hence without his consent and assistance. I do assure you I believe the Nabob desires peace most earnestly; and I have told the gentlemen very plainly, that if he will give such terms as are consistent with the interest of the Company, and no other, all private satisfaction must be laid aside."
The desire which Clive, at this period, entertained to return to Madras, and the causes by which he was detained, are strongly expressed in his letter[100] to the Secret Committee of the Court of Directors.
"The gentlemen of the Committee of Fort Saint George, on advice of the war with France, immediately despatched letters to me directing my return to the coast, as early as possible, with what troops could be spared; which, considering the reinforcement from Bombay, they hoped would be nearly as many as I brought with me. Further advices from them, dated 2d and 11th December, mention Monsieur Bussy's having set out from Hyderabad on the 16th November, and advanced towards the sea-coast with about one thousand men, having left one hundred with Salabut Jung. They conclude his destination is for Pondicherry, there to join other troops expected from the Islands, and make up a formidable force for action in the Carnatic; therefore urging my return with as many troops as possible, both of the Madras and Bombay detachments: for that all schemes of action in Bengal must be dropped for the present, and our whole force bent against the collected strength of the French on the coast.
"I have no accounts myself from the Chief of Vizagapatam: but, by Mr. Pocock's letter to Mr. Watson, and the information of Lieut. Rumbold, arrived from thence, I understand that Monsieur Bussy gave out that he was coming to settle the affairs of this province; but that, by the direction of his march, he seemed to have a design upon Vizagapatam, and the English settlements in that neighbourhood. That when he was within about six days' march of Vizagapatam, and heard of the Cumberland's arrival there, he detached Monsieur Law with about three hundred Europeans to Masulipatam, to defend it against any attempts from that ship, as it is supposed; and he himself halted with the rest of his army, consisting, it is thought, of about four or five hundred Europeans, and a very large black force, both foot and horse. The accident, therefore, of the Cumberland's falling in with Vizagapatam has saved your northern settlements for the present; which, I fear, on her coming away, must fall a sacrifice to the superiority of the French forces in that quarter.
"All circumstances concur to make me wish a speedy accommodation in this province, both with the Nabob and French; and it is my ardent desire to be able to embark for the coast this month, with some of the troops; but it is hardly to be expected that matters will be sufficiently settled to admit of it. The Admiral declares he is ready to stay till September if your affairs require it; and it will be impossible for me to return without the squadron. Indeed, I am myself so sensible of the consequence which the trade of this province is of to the Company, that I think I ought not, on any account, to draw off part of the troops, while a fair prospect remains of a speedy and advantageous conclusion of affairs, either by force of arms or a treaty. Whenever we return, I will endeavour to prevail on the Admiral to call at Vizagapatam, to know the state of the coast, and whether our services will be necessary in that neighbourhood."
How little Clive contemplated any schemes of wealth, or personal aggrandizement, as likely to result from the scene in which he was engaged, may be judged from a letter to his father written at this period:—"I wrote you last," he observes, "by the Chesterfield, and acquainted you with my being just ready to set out upon the expedition to Bengal. I have now the pleasure to inform you, that all are safely arrived, and that success has hitherto attended our arms by sea and land. Calcutta is retaken, and fortified; and, some time ago, the second city in this province (Hooghley) was taken by storm and plundered.
"We are encamped with our little army; and the Nabob is at the head of forty thousand men to give us battle. I am in hopes every thing will be concluded to the Company's advantage, though not in so glorious a manner as I could wish. For more particulars I must refer you to Mr. Mabbot.
"It is not possible to describe the distresses of the inhabitants of this once opulent and populous town. It must be many years before it is restored to its former grandeur. It is computed the private losses amount to upwards of two millions sterling.
"I enjoy my health better than could be expected, and think my nervous complaint decreases. Mrs. Clive was well when I last heard from her, which was the 4th of last month.
"Colonel Lawrence is Governor of St. David's during my absence. I believe it would be no difficult matter to get appointed from home Governor of this place; but it would be neither agreeable to me, nor to my advantage. I heartily wish, in these perilous and uncertain times, all my money was in England; for I do not think it safe here: no one knows what the event of war may be in these parts. My loss by the capture of Calcutta is not less than 2500l.; so that hitherto I am money out of pocket by my second trip to India. I hope the end will crown all."
The arrival of the Nabob, with a large army, in the immediate vicinity of Calcutta, put an end, for the moment, to all considerations but that of a speedy settlement with him. He continued to profess friendship; but the delays and evasions of his ministers, and the position he occupied, not only led to doubts of his sincerity, but threatened the safety of Clive's small force, and with it the city of Calcutta. Clive persevered, however, in his efforts to effect an amicable settlement; and, in concert with his second in command, Major Kilpatrick, publicly stated his opinion, that, while the Committee endeavoured to obtain better terms, they should not hazard a renewal of hostilities by rejecting those with which the Nabob appeared ready to comply. The sentiments they gave upon this occasion are too remarkable and too honourable to the individuals to be omitted.
"Upon the whole," they stated, "we think the conditions highly honourable and advantageous to the Company. It would give us great pleasure, as being considerable sufferers ourselves, if terms advantageous to private persons could be obtained likewise; but our present insignificant strength, the situation of affairs upon the coast, the absolute recall of Col. Clive with the greatest part of the forces, oblige us to give it as our opinion, that, by insisting upon terms still more advantageous, we expose the Company to the risk of losing those already granted them, having neither time nor the means of making the Nabob comply, should he retreat. We were the more confirmed in that way of thinking, as Runjut Roy the Seit's[101] Vakeel, who has through the whole course of this negotiation undertaken the Company's affairs, in his last letters to Col. Clive, declares that, if the last articles signed by the Nabob are not satisfactory, he will interfere no more in the Company's business, but let war take its course."
The hopes indulged of an amicable disposition on the part of Suraj-u-Dowlah were soon dispelled by the military movements of that prince. He had, however, to deal with an opponent not to be deceived. The moment Clive found that, from part of the Nabob's army having entered the city, and the remainder shutting up all the avenues of its approach, his own followers were deserting, and he was likely to be cut off from all supplies, he determined to bring matters to a crisis. On the 4th of February, two gentlemen were deputed to the Nabob, to request, if his intentions were friendly, that he would withdraw. The haughty manner in which his envoys were received, and the refusal to comply with his request, made Clive instantly determine on an attack.
"As I now plainly perceived," he observes in his letter to the Secret Committee, dated 22d February, 1757, "that he only meant to amuse us, and that the little opposition he had received served rather to elate his hopes than incline him to moderate measures, I determined to attack him the next morning before daybreak, while two thirds of his army were still encamped without the Mahratta ditch; for when they had once passed and got into the streets of the town, it would be too late to attempt it. Another pressing reason for the immediate execution of this enterprise, notwithstanding the smallness of my force, was the sudden distress we found ourselves in, upon the approach of the Nabob's army, by a general desertion of our workmen, coolies, and servants, the breaking up of our market, and no provisions to be had but what were supplied from the fort by water; in which condition we could not have continued long, but must have retreated into the fort with disgrace. I therefore desired Admiral Watson to assist me with five or six hundred seamen, principally for drawing the artillery and carrying ammunition, which he readily complied with; and, about three o'clock in the morning, I marched out with nearly my whole force, leaving only a few Europeans, with two hundred new-raised bucksarees, to guard our camp. About six, we entered the enemy's camp in a thick fog, and crossed it in about two hours, with considerable execution. Had the fog cleared up, as it usually does, about eight o'clock, when we were entire masters of the camp without the ditch, the action must have been decisive; instead of which it thickened, and occasioned our mistaking the way. I avoid troubling you with the particulars of this undertaking, as they are fully set down in my journal of military occurrences."
Clive had wished to avoid hostilities, from a desire not to hazard the advantages which had been obtained, and from the great disparity of numbers. While his force consisted of one thousand three hundred and fifty Europeans and eight hundred sepoys, that of the enemy exceeded forty thousand men; but, in the situation in which he found himself placed, he had no option betwixt the attack he made and a disgraceful termination of the enterprise. His was not a mind to hesitate under such circumstances. He instantly formed his plan to surprise the Nabob's camp, by marching at three o'clock in the morning to make his first effort against a train of heavy artillery, and, after spiking them, to push for the head-quarters of the prince: but his little army, after penetrating through the multitude of its opponents, became, at daybreak, so enveloped in thick fog, that the road was missed; and when the fog cleared, Clive, who found himself at a distance from the point of his intended attack, had to sustain a very sharp action with a part of the Nabob's army, in which he lost, besides two field pieces, one hundred and twenty Europeans and one hundred sepoys, a great proportion of his small force. Though the success of this attack, owing to the accident of the fog, was not so complete as it otherwise would have been, all the effects upon which Clive had calculated were produced. The alarmed Nabob left the town next day, and encamped on a plain within sight of the English troops. Preparations were making for another attack; but Suraj-u-Dowlah made overtures for peace, and Clive was too anxious for that object not to attend to them, though advised to the contrary by Admiral Watson; who, in a private note, written in the strong language and with the characteristic bluntness of a British seaman, expressed serious doubts of the Nabob's sincerity, and recommended another attack. "I am now fully convinced," the Admiral observes, "the Nabob's letter was only to amuse us, in order to cover his retreat and gain time till he is reinforced, which may be attended with very fatal consequences. For my own part, I was of opinion, that attacking his rear when he was marching off, and forcing him to abandon his cannon, was a most necessary piece of service to bring him to an accommodation; for till he is well thrashed, don't, Sir, flatter yourself he will be inclined to peace. Let us, therefore, not be overreached by his politics, but make use of our arms, which will be much more prevalent than any treaties or negotiations. In order to this, I have sent Captain Speke to talk with you on this subject. I think, too, it might not be amiss, were you to consult some of your own officers on the same occasion. You will pardon the liberty I take on this particular, when I assure you, I will do the utmost of my endeavours to assist you."
Clive was not induced by this advice to depart from the course he had determined to pursue. He anticipated that what had passed would dispose the Nabob to peace; and he dreaded that, by driving him to despair, he might hurry him into an alliance with the French at Chandernagore, whose European force was nearly equal to the English, and who had just heard of the breaking out of war between the two nations in Europe. The events proved he was not mistaken in his conclusion as to the probable conduct of Suraj-u-Dowlah. That prince no longer hesitated to sign a treaty, by which he restored the English at Calcutta to all the privileges they had formerly enjoyed under the imperial firman, or mandate, gave up the villages he had seized, permitted their merchandise to pass custom-free, agreed to their fortifying Calcutta, allowed them to establish a mint, and engaged that all goods taken from their factories should be restored, and that money compensation should be given for such as were damaged, plundered, or lost.
This treaty was concluded on the 9th of February, and three days afterwards the Nabob entered into another agreement with Clive, by which the English engaged to look upon the Nabob's enemies as their own, and to grant him any aid in their power.
Various opinions were formed of the policy of this peace. Clive, in a private letter to Mr. Payne, Chairman of the Court of Directors, points out, with great force, the grounds on which he acted.
"If I had only consulted the interest and reputation of a soldier, the conclusion of this peace might easily have been suspended. I know, at the same time, there are many who think I have been too precipitate in the conclusion of it; but surely those who are of this opinion never knew, that the delay of a day or two might have ruined the Company's affairs, by the junction of the French with the Nabob, which was on the point of being carried into execution. They never considered the situation of affairs on the coast, and the positive orders sent me by the gentlemen there, to return with the major part of the forces at all events; they never considered that, with a war upon the coast, and in the province of Bengal at the same time, a trading company could not subsist without a great assistance from the government; and, last of all, they never considered, that a long war, attended through the whole course of it with success, and many great actions, ended at last with the expense of more than fifty lacs of rupees to the Company.
"Believe me, Sir, I have constantly had this consideration in view, and my conduct has been always regulated agreeably to it. I can further say, I never undertook an expedition attended with half so many disagreeable circumstances as this: the natural jealousy subsisting between sea and land service has given me much uneasiness; I have suffered many mortifications; the independent power given me by the gentlemen of the committee at Madras has created me many enemies; and, lastly, that attention which, by my public station, I owe to the interest of the Company, in preference to that of private individuals, has not passed by unreflected upon. I am a very considerable sufferer myself; and I can affirm with great truth and sincerity, that I have left no means untried with the Nabob, when the Company's interest was not immediately concerned, to induce him to consider the unhappy people at Calcutta, and he has often promised to do it.
"Nothing harsh, ungenerous, or uncharitable shall fall from my pen; at the same time, in justice to the Company, I cannot avoid expressing my concern at the future prospect of their affairs, after the obtainment of such honourable and advantageous conditions. Do but reflect, Sir, that most of the gentlemen in power are become bankrupts by the unfortunate loss of Calcutta. This consideration, I must confess, added to their apprehensions of being dismissed the service, has often induced me to wish the gentlemen of Madras had taken the entire management of affairs into their hands, till the Company's pleasure was known.
"It cannot be expected that the princes of this country, whose fidelity is always to be suspected, will remain firm to their promises and engagements from principle only. It is, therefore, become absolutely necessary to keep up a respectable force in this province for the future. How far this is agreeable to the Company's circumstances, you, Sir, are the best judge. I shall only add, there never was such attention paid to the advice of military men at Calcutta as was consistent with the safety of the place when in danger—a total ignorance of which was the real cause of the loss of Fort William.
"Our design upon Chandernagore is uncertain. I cannot yet fathom the Nabob's sentiments; the French having in a manner refused a neutrality this day offered it. As the expedition has so far advanced, I have given it my opinion to proceed and invest the place; and, if it should happen, at last, that the Nabob is really against taking it, to accept the neutrality, and make merit of doing it at his request and in obedience to his order, by which means he will be convinced of our friendship and power at the same time.
"I shall conclude this letter with submitting my conduct to your opinion. It would have required greater abilities than I am master of to reconcile and satisfy so many different interests. If I have erred, it has not been with design; whenever that can be made to appear, I shall very deservedly forfeit the good opinion and favour of the Court of Directors, to whom I owe every thing."