British Expansion and Consolidation (Spectrum Digest, Ch 2)

Conquest of Bengal: Plassey and Buxar

• Battle of Plassey, 1757-06-23: Robert Clive defeated Nawab Siraj-ud-Daulah of Bengal, helped decisively by the treachery of the commander Mir Jafar, the banker Jagat Seth and Omichand. Plassey was more a betrayal than a battle, but it gave the Company control of Bengal's wealth. Mir Jafar became puppet Nawab.
• Battle of Buxar, 1764: the Company under Hector Munro defeated the combined forces of Mir Qasim (Bengal), Shuja-ud-Daulah (Awadh) and the Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II. Buxar confirmed and consolidated what Plassey began, establishing the Company as a military power across the eastern Gangetic plain.
• Treaty of Allahabad (1765): Shah Alam II granted the Company the Diwani (the right to collect revenue) of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa, the legal foundation of British rule and of the Dual Government in Bengal (Company held revenue, the Nawab held nominal administration) that Warren Hastings ended in 1772.

Instruments of expansion

• Subsidiary Alliance (Lord Wellesley, from 1798): an Indian ruler accepted British troops stationed in his territory, paid for their upkeep, kept no other European in service, conducted foreign relations only through the British, and accepted a British Resident. Hyderabad was the first to accept (1798). It disarmed states without war and made them dependent. Awadh, the Peshwa, the Bhonsle and the Scindia signed on in various forms.
• Doctrine of Lapse (Lord Dalhousie, 1848 to 1856): if an Indian ruler died without a natural heir, his state "lapsed" to the Company and adopted heirs were not recognised. Annexations under it: Satara (1848), Jaitpur and Sambalpur (1849), Jhansi and Nagpur (1853), and others. Awadh was annexed in 1856 on the ground of misgovernance, not lapse. These annexations bred deep resentment and fed the Revolt of 1857.

The wars of conquest

• Anglo-Mysore Wars (four, 1767 to 1799) against Haidar Ali and his son Tipu Sultan ("the Tiger of Mysore"). Tipu fell defending Seringapatam in 1799 (Fourth war); Mysore was reduced and the old Wodeyar dynasty restored under British control.
• Anglo-Maratha Wars (three): the First (1775 to 1782, ended by the Treaty of Salbai 1782), the Second (1803 to 1805, under Wellesley), and the Third (1817 to 1818), which broke the Maratha confederacy and ended the Peshwa-ship; the bulk of Maratha territory was absorbed.
• Anglo-Sikh Wars (two): the First (1845 to 1846, Treaty of Lahore) and the Second (1848 to 1849), after which Dalhousie annexed Punjab in 1849. The Koh-i-Noor diamond passed to the British Crown.
• Anglo-Burmese Wars extended control to the east; the Treaty of Yandabo (1826) followed the first.

The map by 1856

By Dalhousie's departure (1856) the Company directly or indirectly controlled almost the whole subcontinent. The combination of aggressive annexation, the Subsidiary Alliance's humiliations, economic distress and social interference set the stage for the explosion of 1857. See 1857 revolt.

Common traps

• Plassey (1757) was won by treachery (Mir Jafar); Buxar (1764) was a genuine military victory that consolidated power.
• The Diwani (1765) of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa came from the Treaty of Allahabad with Shah Alam II.
• Subsidiary Alliance is associated with Wellesley; the Doctrine of Lapse with Dalhousie.
• Awadh (1856) was taken for "misgovernance", not under the Doctrine of Lapse.
• Tipu Sultan died at Seringapatam (1799), in the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War.

Authored practice

1. The Diwani of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa was granted to the Company by which treaty? (a) Salbai (b) Allahabad (c) Yandabo (d) Lahore. Answer: (b) Allahabad, 1765. Authored practice, not a verbatim PYQ.
2. The Doctrine of Lapse is most closely associated with which Governor-General? (Answer: Lord Dalhousie.) Authored practice, not a verbatim PYQ.