SO ' II IN DO 
cotta, forty miles foutli of Tinivelly. The aflault was 
made with great refolution ; and the troops gained poflel- 
fion of the parapet, witliout being repulfed. On this the 
garrifon called out for quarter, but it was barbaroufly re- 
fufed ; a general maffacre of men, women, and children, 
enfued ; only fix perlbns out of four hundred being luf- 
fered to efcape with life, and that for the lake of a great 
ranfom! 
The next expedition of this commander was againft 
the fort of Volfynatam. The people here were highly in- 
cenfed at the plundering of Coilgoody, and particularly 
at the lofs of their facred images, which the rapacious 
conquerors had carried off. In confequence of this, they 
v had already llaughtered a party of fepoys, whom the com¬ 
manding officer at Madura had fent out to collect cattle. 
In their march the Englilh army had to go through the 
defile of Natam, one of the moll dangerous in the penin- 
liila. In the middle of this narrow pafs, the army was 
attacked by the Hindoos ; and the whole mult certainly 
have been cut to pieces, had it not been for the courage 
and policy of captain Smith, who had the command ; and 
who requelled a parley, and agreed to rellore to the furious 
Hindoos their Itolen gods; which, certainly were not 
worth the carrying away, being only made of brafs, and 
of a diminutive fize. Colonel Heron was tried by a court- 
martial for mifconduft in this affair; and, being found 
guilty, was declared incapable of ferving the company 
any longer; foon after which he returned to Europe, and 
died in Holland. 
While the Englifh were thus engaged in conducting 
the affairs of the nabob Mohammed Ali Khan in the Car¬ 
natic, M. Bully had quarrelled with the foubahdah Sula- 
but Jung, and was difgracefully ordered to leave the court 
of Golconda. M. Bully took his leave without any marks 
of dilgult, having under his command about fix hundred 
Europeans, with five thoufand fepoys, and a fine-train of 
artillery. His enemies, however, had no mind to allow 
them to depart in lafety ; and therefore fent orders to all 
the Polygars to oppole their pafiage, fending fix thoufand 
Mahrattas after them to harafs their march. But, not- 
withftanding this oppofition, M. Bully reached Hydrabad 
with very little lofs. Here he took poffelTion of a garden, 
formerly belonging to the kings of Golconda; where he 
refolved to keep his poll, until l'uccours lhould arrive 
from Pondicherry and Mafulipatam. At this place Sula- 
but Jung propofed to attack him and, the better to at¬ 
tain his purpole, applied to the Englilh prefidency at Ma¬ 
dras for a body of troops to alfift him in this fervice. No¬ 
thing could be more agreeable to thofe who had the power 
at that place, than luch an invitation ; and a detachment 
of four hundred Europeans and fifteen hundred fepoys 
was on the point of being ordered to the affiltance of Su- 
labut Jung, when exprefles from Bengal informed them 
of the greatelt danger that had ever threatened the Britilh 
fettlements in Hindooltan. 
This danger arofe from the difpleafure of Surajah ul 
Dowlah, the nabob of Bengal. His grandfather, Aliverdi 
Khan, having died in May 1756, Surajah lucceeded to 
the naboblhip of Bengal, Bahar, and Orill'a. He was con¬ 
gratulated on his acceffion by Mr. Drake, the Englilh pre- 
fident at Calcutta, who foiicited his protection in behalf 
of his countrymen. This was readily promifed, even to 
a greater degree than what had been lhown by his grand¬ 
father ; bu.t in a Ihort time his refentment was incurred 
by the imprifonment, as it is faid, of Omichund, an emi¬ 
nent Gentoo merchant, who had lived feveral years under 
the protection of the.Englilh government at Calcutta. 
Of this, however, Surajah ul Dowlah did not complain ; 
but founded his pretence of war upon the conduct of the 
Englilh in repairing the fortifications of Calcutta. On 
this account the nabob fignified his difpleafure, and threat¬ 
ened an attack, if the works were not demoliihed. With 
this requifition the prefident and council pretended to 
comply ; but neverthelefs went on with their works, ap¬ 
plying firft to the French, and then to the Dutch, for al- 
iktance ; but A as neither of thefe nations thought proper 
O S T A N. 
. to interfere, the. Englilh were obliged to Hand alone in 
the quarrel. 
Surajah ul Dowlah took the field on the 30th of May 
1756, with an army of forty thoufand foot, thirty-thou¬ 
fand horfe, and four hundred elephants ; and on the ad of 
June detached twenty thoufand men to invell the Englilh 
fort at Caifumbazar, a large town, fituated on an illand, 
formed by the weltern branch of the Ganges. The fort 
was regularly built, mounted with frxty cannon, and de¬ 
fended by three hundred men, principally fepoys. The 
nabob pretending a defire to treat, Mr. Watts, the chief 
of the factory, was perfuaded to put himfelf in Iris power 5 
which he had no fooner done, than he was made a clofe 
priloner, with Mr. Batfon, a furgeon, who accompanied 
him ; and the faCtory furrendered at diferetion. But they 
were not only deprived of every thing they polfeffed, but 
jftripped almoit naked, and fent to Hoogly, where they 
were clofely confined. The nabob then marched direClly to 
Calcutta ,which he invelted on the 15th. Though he now 
threatened to drive tl\e Englilh entirely out of his domi¬ 
nions, yet he propofed an accommodation with Mr. Drake, 
provided he would pay him his duty upon the trade for 
fifteen years, defray the expences of his army, and deliver 
up the Indian merchants who were in the fort. This be¬ 
ing refufed, a liege commenced, and the place was taken in 
three days through the treachery of the Dutch guard who 
had the charge of a gate. The nabob promifed that no 
harm lhould be done the Englilh; neverthelefs they were 
Ihut up in a prilon lb dole, that out of one hundred and 
forty fix every' foul perilhed, except twenty-two. For 
particulars of this fatal cataltrophe, fee the article Cal¬ 
cutta, vol. iii. p 610. 
The news of this dilalter put an end to the expedition 
projected againlt M. Bully; and Clive (now advanced to 
the rank of colonel) was inltantly difpatched to Bengal, 
with four hundred Europeans and one thoufand fepoys, 
on-board the fleet commanded by admiral Watfon. Thev 
did not arrive till the 15th of December, at a village called 
Fulta, fituated on a branch of the Ganges, where the in¬ 
habitants of Calcutta had taken refuge after their misfoiv 
tune. Their firlt operations were againlt the forts Buf- 
budgia, Tanna, Fort William, and Calcutta, all of which 
had fallen into the hands of the enemy ; but were retaken 
almoit as loon as they could approach them. An expedi¬ 
tion was then propofed againft Hoogly, about iixty miles 
above Calcutta, the place of rendezvous for all nations 
who traded to Bengal; its warehoufes and fliops being 
always filled with the richeft merchandife of the country. 
This was likewile reduced ; and the city deftroyed, with 
the granaries and ftore-houfes of l'alt, on each fide the ri¬ 
ver ; which proved very detrimental to the nabob, by de¬ 
priving him of the means of fubfiftence for his army. Su¬ 
rajah ul Dowlah, enraged at this fuccefs of the Englilh, 
determined to crulh them at once by a general engage¬ 
ment. From this, however, lie was intimidated by a iuc- 
celsful attack on his camp, which foon induced him to 
conclude a treaty. This took place on the 9 th of February 
1757, on the following conditions. 1. That the privileges 
and immunities granted to the Englilh, by the Mogul em¬ 
perors, lhould not be dilbuted. That all goods with 
Englilh orders lhould pals, by land or water, free of any 
tax, fee, or impofition. 3. All the company’s factories 
which had been feized by the nabob lhould be rellored ; 
and the goods, money, and eft’eits, which had been plun¬ 
dered, lhould be accounted for. 4. That the Englilh 
lhould have permiffion to fortify Calcutta as they thought 
proper. 5. They lhould alfo have liberty to coin their own 
imports of bullion and gold. 
Intelligence being about this time received of a war 
having broken out between France and England, the firft 
objeft that naturally occurred, after the conclufion of this 
treaty, was the reduction of the .French power in Hin¬ 
dooltan ; in confequence of which it was reprefented to. 
admiral Watfon, by a committee of the council of Ben¬ 
gal, that this was the only opportunity he, perhaps, might 
ever have of acting qffenfively againlt them. Ah attack 
would 
