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| Lord Robert Clive of British India.,1764. en.wikipedia.org |
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| ld image. Clive Hostel, Tiruchirappalli, TN. .madrasmusings.com |
Robert Clive, 1st Baron Clive, Major General, KB MP., FRS
(September 1725 – November 1774), who started out as an assistant shopkeeper in June, 1744 in a small settlement at Fort St. George near the village of Madraspatnam (now Chennai city) gradually grew in stature through intelligence and hard work and played a key role in the establishment of military and political supremacy of the East India Company in Bengal, He along with Warren Hastings, an equally competent and shrewd officer, firmly laid the basic foundation of the British empire. His first major achievement was securing of the Bengal province and complete control over its vast resources. This was a major turning point for England whose economy then was in doldrums. The huge revenue from Bengal boosted the economy of England to an unexpected level. For the British Crown and its manipulative officials, in the following centuries, India was more than a hen laying golden egg - simply El Dorado.
(September 1725 – November 1774), who started out as an assistant shopkeeper in June, 1744 in a small settlement at Fort St. George near the village of Madraspatnam (now Chennai city) gradually grew in stature through intelligence and hard work and played a key role in the establishment of military and political supremacy of the East India Company in Bengal, He along with Warren Hastings, an equally competent and shrewd officer, firmly laid the basic foundation of the British empire. His first major achievement was securing of the Bengal province and complete control over its vast resources. This was a major turning point for England whose economy then was in doldrums. The huge revenue from Bengal boosted the economy of England to an unexpected level. For the British Crown and its manipulative officials, in the following centuries, India was more than a hen laying golden egg - simply El Dorado.
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| Clive Hostel, Tiruchirappalli. alamy.com |
Above image: A view of Clive Hostel from the bazaar road, inside the Main Guard Gate (fort area), Tiruchirapalli, Tamil Nadu. Clive's Hostel was once quarters which housed the English Soldiers and their Commander Robert Clive. The Fort at Tiruchirappalli was built during the Nayak rule and the ruler was Viswvanatha Nayak.of Madurai Dynasty. After 1975, it ceased to be a students hostel and presently it is a house for the Jesuits students, studying at St. Joseph’s College, who are aspiring to become Priests in the Society of Jesus......................
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| Clive Hostel. Tiruchirappalli.dreamstime.com |
Above image:: Clive Hostel, Tiruchirappalli city, Teppakulam Road leading to the Nandi Kovil street. Shabby looking colonial building with shops. Note the gothic-styled arches on the upper floor..............
When Clive had begun his career in Madras the political scenario was different. After the death of the Emperor Aurangzeb in 1707, the Mogul power had gradually slipped into the hands of his provincial viceroys or subedars who acted as defacto rulers. As for southern India, the main rulers on the Coromandel Coast (East coast) were the Nizam of Hyderabad, Asaf Jah I, and the Nawob of the Carnatic, Anwaruddin Muhammed Khan who owed his allegiance to the Nizam. Both the British and French establishment at Pondicherry were in the Nawob's territory.
The competition among the European countries to secure India's vast resources became so acute that there were several military confrontations among them. French East India Company under Governor-General Dupleix became a major source to reckon with. Major hostilities in India began with a British naval attack on a French fleet in 1745, which led the French Governor-General Dupleix to request additional forces. The recurring clashes between the French and English East India company to consolidate their control and dominance in the subcontinent brought him back to active military service.
First Carnatic War: The French forces, led by La Bourdonnais. retaliated by attacking Madras on 4 September, 1746 and after several days of bombardment, the British surrendered and the French entered the city. British military officers along with Clive were taken to Pondicherry as prisoners. French Governor-General Dupleix was very keen to annex Madras and there was no room for a truce. In the mean time Clive and other British prisoners escaped from the prison on foot travelling during the night in the guise of natives. They headed to Ft. David (British post at Cuddalore, Tamil Nadu) where he joined the British army for the first time and made a name for himself when he successfully defended the British Fort and later under Major Stringer Lawrence during the siege of Pondicherry in 1748. Subsequently his successful military expedition to Tanjore, Tamil Nadu gave him further opportunity to prove his military leadership and skill.
Nasir Jung, upon the death of his father the Nizam of Hyderabad Asaf Jah, who made his grand son Muzaffar Jung, the ruler of Bijapur his legal heir, seized the throne of Hyderabad. Muzaffar fled and joined Chanda Sahib, who was an alley of the French. In the Battle of Ambur in August, 1749 these forces fought against the Arcot Nawob Anwaruddin's son, Muhammed Ali Khan Wallajah who fled to Trichinopoly sought the help of the British forces.
In 1751 the senior British military officers offered Clive to lead an expedition to relieve Trichinopoly (Tiruchirappalli), where Mohamed Ali, the British candidate for Nawob, or ruler, was tactically besieged by Chanda Sahib, the French candidate.
Subsequently with only 200 European and 300 Indian troops, plus three field pieces, Clive, using various superior strategic moves, seized Arcot, Chanda Sahib's capital, there by diverting 10,000 of Chanda Sahib's men from Trichinopoly. He successfully withstood a 50-day long tough siege at Arcot in (north Tamil Nadu) and, when reinforcements arrived, he began guerrilla warfare against the French and French-supported troops. The siege of Trichinopoly was finally lifted, and a truce in 1754 recognized Mohamed Ali as the Nawob of the Carnatic. The Treaty of Paris in 1763 confirmed this, and in 1765 the Emperor at Delhi admitted British hegemony in southern India. Clive's brilliant military leadership, timely strategy and tactical moves at Arcot gave him an immense reputation back in England. During the initial testing time Clive briefly spent his time in Trichinopoly.
After running unsuccessfully for Parliament, Clive returned to India in 1755 as the Governor of Fort St. David, Cuddalore and as lieutenant colonel in the Royal Army.
Clive's legacy in Tiruchirappalli:
St. Joseph College, established in 1844 by the Fathers of Society of Jesus (The Jesuits), is one of the oldest institutes in the World and is one of the well-known colleges in India. When this institution was was moved over to Trichinopoly from Nagapatnam (now Tamil Nadu) in the 1880s, "Clive House " became the hostel for the students from other places. Clive Hostel, at the foot of the Rock Fort, facing the Nayak- built temple tank (Teppakulam in local parlance) is a famous landmark in Tiruchirappalli city.
After running unsuccessfully for Parliament, Clive returned to India in 1755 as the Governor of Fort St. David, Cuddalore and as lieutenant colonel in the Royal Army.
Clive's legacy in Tiruchirappalli:
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| old image.View of St. Joseph's College, High School, Lawley Hall and Digby Hall. www.reocities.com |
St. Joseph College, established in 1844 by the Fathers of Society of Jesus (The Jesuits), is one of the oldest institutes in the World and is one of the well-known colleges in India. When this institution was was moved over to Trichinopoly from Nagapatnam (now Tamil Nadu) in the 1880s, "Clive House " became the hostel for the students from other places. Clive Hostel, at the foot of the Rock Fort, facing the Nayak- built temple tank (Teppakulam in local parlance) is a famous landmark in Tiruchirappalli city.
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| St. Lourd's Church (St. Joseph College), Thiruchirapalli, TN,India..tripfactory.com |
Robert Clive lived here for about a year in 1752. It is believed that Clive, when he temporarily moved over to this city as a military commander, must have taken over a Muslim nobleman’s residence for his stay as well as his soldiers here. The ground floor in the building has a series of arches in Islamic style, whereas the upper story, which was built later, has features of Gothic structure with pointed arches, windows and and unique decorations. The central passage takes us to the open open court yard. Atop the structure there is a sort of room called ''Naubat Khana''. It is said on the festive occasions it was used to beat the drums. Clive House was bought in 1875 by Father de Noircourt and it comprised two or even three distinct sections - first a terraced, storied house, of which the ground-floor, as is evident from its vaulted, dark, massive structure, must have been intended for godowns; the upper story would have been used as residential quarters. This famous hostel is still the sole property of St. Joseph’s College whose church dominates the skyline on the other side of the tank. A marble plaque, similar to the one at Mangammal’s palace, says that Clive, lived here in 1752.
Clive, the British bandit in the making, had a brief sojourn in the heartland of Tamil Nadu and had begun his career, that established him as one of the greatest looters of India's vast resources on one hand and a top class military strategist with Machiavellian skill on the other hand. His contribution was immense in the establishment of the British Empire. One of the greatest British politicians, ever cigar smoking Winston Churchill (former PM of the U.K.) is just a dwarf before Clive in terms of military warfare skills and political acumen. Churchill was neither a good military man nor a noble soul. He was a hard-core racist and a well-known India baiter. Name was thrust upon him for his aristocratic family background.
Ref:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Clive
Faught, C. Brad (2013). Clive: Founder of British India. (Washington, D.C.: Potomac Books, Inc.).
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