In the last post, we have read that Mir Zafar got exhausted by fulfilling the demands of the East India Company. So, when Mir Zafar became useless to East India Company, officials of East India Company replaced Mir Zafar by Mir Qasim. The officials of the company were expecting that Mir Qasim will work according to their instructions. But on the other side, Mir Qasim was the man of master morality. So, he himself started doing good deeds for his subjects.
Mir Qasim
Firstly, he transferred the capital from Murshidabad to Monghyr. Monghyr was near to the Oudh state. After this, he went for revenue reforms. Mir Qasim increased all taxes by 2.5% and started recollection of Khajrijama (Emergency Tax).
In administrative reforms, he gave high emphasis on the law and order. All these reforms of Mir Qasim though irritated officials of East India Company. But when Mir Qasim established the Canon factory in Monghyr, then it laid the foundation of conflict between East India Company and Nawab of Bengal.
Actually, instead of being a puppet Mir Qasim started behaving like an independent ruler. In the scenario, an Armenian Salt Peter merchant visited Monghyr Fort. So, this created suspicion in East India Company that Nawab is trying to purchase Salt Peter from the second party. This step irritated the officials of EIC (East India Company).
EIC Raid on Monghyr Fort
In the suspicion, Ellis, the EIC’s agent in Patna raided Monghyr Fort without the permission or informing Nawab. This was the attack on the respect, dignity, and sovereignty of Nawab. So, Mir Qasim had seen the results of the Battle of Plassey.
So, he was very much aware of the strength of the company. Mir Qasim wrote a letter to Vansittart, Governor of Fort William, and requested him to control the officer of the company. This led to the Monghyr Convention of 1760, between Nawab and Vansittart.
Monghyr Convention
The important decisions of the convention were,
- Nawab will be the sole authority to decide all the disputes between the company and the Nawab.
- The EIC will pay 9% duty on its entire trade and commerce.
- Nawab will have the right to issue Dastak.
The Monghyr Convention went in vain as Calcutta Council rejected the agreement between Nawab and Fort William Governor. Actually, the Calcutta Council was the head office of the Bengal Presidency of EIC. So, in reaction to this, Mir Qasim ended Inland duties on his own people.
This step was also opposed by the Calcutta Council. So, this started the clash between Bengal Nawab and EIC. And as Mir Qasim failed to control the situation, he escaped and took shelter with Shuja-ud-Daula, the Nawab of Oudh. Here, the triple alliance was formed.
Triple Alliance
Shuja-ud-Daula had already given shelter to Mughal Emperor Shah Alam. So, this led to the formation of the triple alliance among Shuja-ud-Daula, Mir Qasim, and Shah Alam. This triple alliance stood against the most rational force of the world of that time. This led to the Battle of Buxar.
Battle of Buxar, 1764
In this battle, the triple alliance fought with the British Army. So, they also met with the same fate met in the Battle of Plassey in 1757. Battle of Plassey laid down the foundation of British rule in India. Whereas, Battle of Buxar gave the confirmation to British rule in India.
After the victory in the Battle of Buxar, Calcutta Council was of the opinion to recall Robert Clive. Because he was the person, who started the story of imperialism in India. So, this led to the second term of Robert Clive in India from 1765-1767. Battle of Buxar was concluded with the Treaty of Allahabad. The signatory of this treaty was Robert Clive from the side of EIC and Shuja-ud-Daula of Oudh.
Treaty of Allahabad
The Treaty of Allahabad, 1765 with Shah Alam, Shuja-ud-Daula, and Nazm-ud-Daula was the masterstroke of Robert Clive. Because of this treaty, Robert Clive took the Diwani rights of Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa (Odisha now) from Shah Alam. Shah Alam turned as a pensioner of EIC.
Shuja-ud-Daula became friends cum dependent. Because Shuja-ud-Daula accepted for the presence of the Company’s forces in Oudh. Shuja-ud-Daula also promised to help the company in case of need. This was all about the aftermath of the Battle of Buxar. From here, the economic exploitation of Indian people started.
In the upcoming post, we will dwell in more details.
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