"Mir Jafar must have been irate with Nawab Siraj ud-Daula. He took revenge. This guy was so arrogant and difficult to deal with. The relationship was very bad."

British Take Control

The Facade

What British Did:

Made Mir Jafar the new Nawab
For namesake only
To keep people in the dark about what was happening

The Reality:

"Real power rested with the British. They started getting all the political controls, the power controls. Mir Jafar was the facade."

The Transformation:

So far: merchants (buying, selling)
Now: Getting political control
Mir Jafar knew he had no real control over Bengal
British were really going to rule by keeping him in front

Peshwa Loses Bengal

Before He Could Move

What Happened:

Peshwa in Pune was keeping an eye on Bengal
Wanted to get power in Bengal
But before he could move and do anything
British already in power in Bengal

How:

Mir Jafar and Raja Durlabh
Facilitated British takeover
Of the entire province of Bengal
Huge province
Very prosperous (revenue from taxes)

The Advantage:

Britishers had a disciplined army

The Surprise:

"This happened suddenly without Peshwa understanding what is going on there. How bad the situation in Bengal was."

The Victory Parade

Robert Clive's Realization

What Happened:

Battle of Plassey was famous battle of 1757
First time Britishers fought a battle in India
Before that: never had done any battling
And they won it

The Parade:

Had barely 5,000 troops under Robert Clive
To commemorate victory
Took out a victory parade through town of Plassey
Plassey was very small town (10,000-15,000 people)

The Scene:

British soldiers going through village
With musical things (drums, etc.)
In line, in very disciplined fashion
Middle of the road
On both sides: people of Plassey village watching
Robert Clive in the lead
Some soldiers dead, some injured
Those in good shape went through in victory parade

Clive's Question

Why Are They So Peaceful?

What He Was Thinking:

Thousands of villagers on both sides watching
He wondered: Why are these people watching in very peaceful manner?

His Reasoning:

"I am a total foreigner, so are my soldiers. We don't share their looks, skin color, religion, language, nothing, culture. And yet they are very peaceful and they are allowing us to take out this victory parade."

The Realization:

Literally thousands of villagers
Could easily attack them
Why are they so peaceful and tolerating all this?

The Research

What Clive Discovered

What He Did:

Kept doing research of what is going on in Bengal
Later wrote it in his memoirs

What He Found:

"People of Bengal were so sick and tired of Nawab Siraj ud-Daula and his governance, administration, the way he collected taxes and he ruled on his whims without any regard to what was good for his people, that they were extremely angry, upset, incensed."

Their Outlook:

"We want anybody but Siraj ud-Daula."

That is the extreme to which they were driven.

The Stone Metaphor

Why They Didn't Resist

Clive's Thought:

"Even if every villager picks up one stone and throws it at our contingent marching through the village streets, we'll all be dead. There are thousands upon thousands of people watching."

But:

None of them wanted to resist
Even though British = total foreigners
Don't follow their religion, language, skin color, nothing
Yet they're happy, they look happy

Why:

"All this was possible because the governance was so terribly bad. They just said, 'Okay, fine, maybe this guy is better and we'll have some better days.' So they tolerated all that."

The Shivaji Comparison

Understanding the Magic

On That Background:

"Now you can understand the Shivaji magic. Shivaji was exactly opposite."

Why Shivaji Was Successful:

His governance was top notch
Always considered welfare of his citizens to be number one priority

The Difference:

Was unusual for the time
He was loved by his people
Wherever he ruled
Didn't matter where
Wanted to provide best governance
Administration
Tax collection apparatus
Do justice to the people

His Priority:

Extremely quick in providing justice
Making sure people didn't get bothered by:
- National calamity
- Wars
- Battles
- Things like that

The Historian's View

What Can and Cannot Be Questioned

The Assessment:

"There is one historian who has said: You can question whether Shivaji was the greatest general who waged battles and conquered new areas and stuff like that - but that you can question. But you can never question his administrative apparatus and skills."

The Verdict:

One of the best administrators
Provided the best governance

The Eight Ministers

Where the Money Went

When Shivaji Was Anointed as King (Chhatrapati):

Had eight ministers

The Highest Salary:

Given to the home minister
Who was supposed to provide:
- Administration
- Conveniences
- Those kinds of things to the citizenry

NOT the Top General:

Guy who waged wars
Conquered new areas
His salary was NOT the maximum

Why:

"The guy who provided governance, his salary was the maximum. Shivaji valued that more than anything else."

Key Players

Name	Role	Status
Siraj ud-Daula	Bengal Subedar	Terrible governor, hated by people, killed
Colonel Robert Clive	British commander	Won Battle of Plassey with 2-3k troops
Mir Jafar	Siraj's commander	Betrayed him, took British bribes, became puppet Nawab
Raja Durlabh	Siraj's commander	Also betrayed him for British money
Nana Saheb Peshwa	Peshwa in Pune	Lost Bengal before he could move
Shivaji	Founder of Maratha Empire	Example of good governance (contrast)

Timeline

Date	Event
~1657	British arrive as merchants (~100 years before)
1757	Situation in Bengal ripe for picking
June 23, 1757	Battle of Plassey
June 1757	Mir Jafar & Raja Durlabh betray Siraj, stay neutral
June 1757	British defeat much larger army
June 1757	Siraj flees battlefield
July 2, 1757	Siraj captured and killed by Mir Jafar's son
1757	Victory parade through Plassey village
1757	Mir Jafar made puppet Nawab
1757	British take political control of Bengal

Geographic Context

Bengal:

Extreme east of India
Most prosperous Mughal province
Large population
High tax revenue

Kolkata:

British capital
Warehouse (vakhar) location
Power base

Plassey:

Small village (10-15k people)
Site of famous battle
Where victory parade happened

Key Themes

1. The Opportune Moment

British waited 100 years
Knew they couldn't succeed under Aurangzeb
Waited for weakness
Pounced when time was right

2. Battle of Attrition

Marathas vs Afghans fighting
Both becoming weaker
British = big beneficiary
Classic third-party winner

3. The Worst Governance

Siraj ud-Daula so bad
People wanted anybody but him
Even foreign invaders looked better
Governance matters MORE than identity

4. The Betrayal

Mir Jafar's treachery
British bribed commanders
Much larger army defeated
Because commanders didn't fight

5. The Facade Strategy

Made Mir Jafar puppet Nawab
Keep people in the dark
Real power with British
Smart political move

6. Peshwa Lost It

Was keeping eye on Bengal
But before he could move
British already there
Too slow

7. The Victory Parade Lesson

Thousands could have killed them
None resisted
Because governance was so bad
They hoped British would be better

8. The Shivaji Contrast

Opposite of Siraj
Best governance
Citizen welfare #1 priority
That's why he was loved

Critical Insights

Why the British Won

Not Military Superiority:

Had smaller army (2-3k vs much larger)
Should have lost

The Real Reasons:

Internal betrayal - commanders bribed
Popular hatred - people wanted Siraj gone
Disciplined army - better trained
Strategic timing - moment of weakness
Political savvy - puppet Nawab strategy

The Governance Lesson

Siraj ud-Daula:

Terrible governance
Ruled on whims
No regard for people
Collected taxes harshly
Bad administration

Result:

"People so angry, they'd rather have foreign invaders than their own Nawab."

Shivaji:

Best governance
Citizen welfare first
Quick justice
Protected from calamities
Home minister paid most

Result:

"Loved by his people. Can't question his administrative skills."

The Lesson:

Governance matters more than ethnicity
People will accept foreigners if they govern better
Bad governance = invitation to conquerors

The Stone Metaphor

Clive's Realization:

"If every villager threw one stone, we'd all be dead."

But They Didn't:

Because they hated Siraj more
Than they feared foreigners

What This Means:

When governance is that bad
People will accept anyone
Even those who share nothing with them
No common language, religion, culture
Doesn't matter if governance is better

The British Long Game

100 Years:

Came as merchants
Built infrastructure
Built relationships
Built disciplined army
Waited patiently

The Moment:

Mughal power weak
Marathas busy with Afghans
Bengal in anarchy
Perfect vacuum

The Move:

First military battle
First political control
Foothold established
From here: expand across India

Foreshadowing

What This Means Going Forward

For British:

Foothold in India established
Bengal = prosperous province
Can expand from here
Marathas and Afghans busy fighting each other
British get stronger while they get weaker

For Marathas:

Lost Bengal before they could act
Most prosperous province gone
Now have to deal with three powers:
1. Afghans (north)
2. Nizam (south)
3. British (east)

For Peshwa:

Needed Bengal for money (to pay loans)
Can't get it now
British took it right under his nose
Too slow to act
Now what?

The Pattern:

While two powers fight each other
Third power takes advantage
British playing smartest game

1757: The year everything changed. While Marathas and Afghans drew first blood in Punjab, the British made their move in Bengal. Siraj ud-Daula was so hated—governed so badly, taxed so harshly, ruled so whimsically—that people wanted anybody but him. Robert Clive came with barely 2-3 thousand troops. Bribed Siraj's commanders Mir Jafar and Raja Durlabh. They stayed neutral or fled. The much larger army defeated. Siraj fled, captured, killed. British made Mir Jafar puppet Nawab. Real power: British. For namesake only: Mir Jafar. Victory parade through Plassey. Clive realized: thousands of villagers watching. Could kill us all if each threw one stone. But they didn't. Why? Because they hated Siraj more than they feared foreigners. When governance is that bad, people accept anyone. Peshwa wanted Bengal. Too slow. British got there first. While Marathas and Afghans exhaust each other in battle of attrition, British establish foothold in most prosperous province. Disciplined army, political savvy, puppet strategy, perfect timing. The contrast: Siraj—worst governance, hated by his people. Shivaji—best governance, loved by his people, paid home minister more than top general because citizen welfare came first. The lesson: governance matters more than identity. The reality: British now have Bengal. Marathas lost it before they could move. The future: British get stronger while Marathas and Afghans fight. The beginning of the end started in a small village called Plassey.