Memoirs of the Revolution in Bengal

Book excerpt: This work by William Watts (active 1737-58) is an account of the Battle of Plassey, which took place on June 23, 1757, near the village of Pâlāshir, some 150 kilometers north of Calcutta (present-day Kolkata). In this decisive encounter, the forces of the British East India Company, under Robert Clive, defeated Siraj Ud Daulah, the last independent Nawab of Bengal. The British victory and the treaty with the Moghul Empire that ensued brought the province of Bengal and its great wealth under the control of the company, thereby establishing the basis for the expansion of British control in the rest of India. The French East India Company (La Compagnie des Indes Orientales) supported the nawab, and his defeat hastened the elimination of French influence in India. The "Meer Jaffeir" referred to in the title is Mir Jafar, one of Siraj-ud-Daulah's military commanders, who betrayed his leader and helped to cause the defeat. The British East India Company later selected Mir Jafar as its puppet ruler in Bengal.