British ousted from Calcutta by Mogul forces

Historical Context Note

Litencyc Editors (Independent Scholar - Europe)
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The new Nawab of Bengal, Siraj-ud-Daula, decided to reduce East India Company influence and, using a dispute about British fortification of the city, he ousted them. He then imprisoned 146 Europeans in a small cell and 123 died from heat exhaustion. The episode, which was probably the result of accident or simple incompetence by lower ranks, became known as “the Black Hole of Calcutta” and became a symbol of æoriental barbarism’.

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Citation: Editors, Litencyc. "British ousted from Calcutta by Mogul forces". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 01 February 2010 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=4182, accessed 19 March 2024.]

4182 British ousted from Calcutta by Mogul forces 2 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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