carrying on at Fort William, in confequence of the war now declared against France, and from the prosecution of which he repeatedly required the governor to defift. But his orders being neglected or evaded, he appeared fuddenly before Calcutta, in the month of June, with a large body of troops, and fummoned the fort and city to furrender. Mr. Holwell, who acted as governor, made a refolute defence, but was at length compelled to fubmit to superior force. The fubah, notwithstanding his affurances of protection from perfonal injury, instantly ordered the English garrifon, amounting to one hundred and forty-fix perfons, into confinement. And there being, at a small diftance, a ftrong ftone prifon, forming within the walls a cube of about eighteen feet, open only to the westward by two windows, ftrongly barred with iron, they were conveyed for immediate fecurity to this dungeon. Mr. Holwell, on entering the place, immediately conceived all the horrors which muft ensue, if they failed in obtaining a speedy release; and accosting the jemmautdaur or officer of the Indian guard, promised to gratify him with a thousand rupees if he would remove one half of them to a separate apartment. The jemmautdaur, allured by the profpect of this reward, affured him he would use his utmost endeavor to procure for them this indulgence, and retired for that purpose ; but returning in a short time, he told the governor that the subah, by whofe order alone such a step could be taken, was asleep, and no perfon durft difturb his repofe. Mr. Holwell, in his pathetic narration of this unexampled scene of distress, compares their fituation, in this dark and fultry cell, to that of fo many miserable animals in an exhausted receiverno circulation of fresh air fufficient to continue life, and not enough divefted of its vivifying particles to put a fpeedy period to it. A moft profufe perfpiration, accompanied with a raging thirst, foon took place, which, becoming each moment more infupportable, gradually changed into phrenfy and delirium. The prifon now re founded ** founded with the ravings of despair, and, nature being at length reduced to extremity, with the groans and broken accents of the dying. In the morning twenty-three only were found alive, and in these scarcely were there any perceptible remains of fenfation or fenfibility. Their sufferthe ings, however, appeared to make little impreffion upon ferocious and obduratę heart of the fubah, who visibly exulted in the fuccefs of his enterprise-not having the least conception that the English would return in force to Calcutta: and contemptuously declaring, "that he did not believe there were ten thousand fighting men in all Frenghiftan. The wretched remains of the factory were now embarked on board a few trading veffels lying at the mouth of the Ganges; and thefe the fubah did not offer to moleft. He even expreffed his wifhes that the English merchants would return to Calcutta, if they could be fatisfied to live under his government, without laws or fortifications of their own, and carry on their traffic like the Armenians and his own native fubjects. And happy for mankind affuredly would it have been, had Europe never extended her views farther than this in India. No fooner, however, was the intelligence of this calamity conveyed to Madras, than vigorous preparations were made by the English government to revenge the injury and obliterate the difgrace. A formidable armament under the command of admiral Watson and colonel Clive, to the great aftonishment of the subah, anchored in the Ganges in December; and immediately commencing their operations, Calcutta was invested and reduced in the month of January 1757, and alfo the city of Hughley on the Ganges, where the principal magazines of the fubah were depofited. Soon after which, the fubah himself, who had affembled a vaft army in order to repel the invaders, was attacked by colonel Clive, and obliged to retreat * i. c. The country of Franks--the appellation univerfally given to the Europeans throughout the Eaft. retreat in confufion, and with confiderable lofs. Intimidated by the fuccèffes of the English, he confented to fign articles of peace, February 9, 1757, by which it was ftipulated that the factories and poffeffions belonging to the English company should be restored, and full compenfation made for their loffes; and, in general, that whatever rights and privileges had been at any time granted to the company by virtue of the phirmaunds of the emperor should be confirmed and ratified. After the conclufion of this treaty, the English commanders proceeded to the attack of the French fortress and factory of Chandernagore; the reduction of which filled the nabob with new apprehenfions and alarms. And he remonstrated in ftrong terms to admiral Watson against these acts of violence: "It is," faid the fubah, "contrary to all rule and cuftom that you should bring your ani-: mofities and differences into my country: it has never been known fince the days of Timur that the Europeans made war upon one another within the emperor's dominions. If you are determined to besiege the French factories I fhall be neceffitated, in honor and duty to my fovereign, to affist them with my troops." But admiral Watfon, regardlefs of his remonftrances, and jealous of his designs, declared to him, "that, if he protected the king's enemies, he would light up a flame in his country that all the waters of the Ganges would not be able to extinguish." Such, indeed, was the capricious and tyrannic conduct of SouRajah-Dowla, that those who were originally most attached to his interests began to be weary of his government. Amongst other men of high rank in the fubahdary of whom he entertained juft, fufpicion, was Meer-Jaffier-Ali-Khan, nearly allied to the fubah by his marriage with the fifter of Ali-Verdi-Khan, In the vehemence of his paffion he had been heard to declare that he would have the head of MeerJaffier, and Meer-Jaffier, fenfible of the imminent dangers of his fituation, made fecret propofals to the Englith refident at the court of Moorfhedabad the capital of: Bengal, which were eagerly embraced by the English council and commandants at Calcutta, for the deposition of Sou-Rajah-Dowla, and the advancement of Meer-Jaffier to the Mufnud. The jealoufies of the fubah continuing to increase, Meer-Jaffier retired from court to his refidence in the country; from whence he tranfmitted difpatches to colonel Clive, urging him to begin his march to Moorfhedabad. The colonel feeing that the die was caft, and that they had already gone much too far unless they proceeded still farther, immediately put the whole army in motion, and with a juft, though daring reliance on his own talents, and the valor of his troops, croffing the Ganges, he advanced to Plaffey, within one day's march of the capital, where he found the subah encamped with a force of seventy thousand men, in all the "pomp, pride, and circumstance" of oriental magnificence. The number of elephants with their scarlet houfings, the rich variegated embroidery of their tents and ftandards, and the martial fplendor of the cavalry parading over the field with their drawn swords glittering in the fun, made a grand and striking appearance. The fubah, feeble of mind and infirm of purpose, on the first intelligence of the march of the English army, had eagerly courted the support and affistance of Meer-Jaffier, whom he had, beyond all poffibility of forgiveness, previously offended. A full and free pardon was granted to Meer-Jaffier, who, being introduced into the presence of the fubah, took a folemn oath upon the Koran that he would be his faithful foldier; and in return, the subah fwore that he would never attempt the life of Meer-Jaffier. Though the army of the fubah was advantageously posted-upon an eminence, colonel Clive advanced at the head of his troops, confifting of little more than three thoufand men, with great intrepidity to the attack. Such, on the other hand, was the diftruft and fecret defpondency prevailing throughout the Afiatic army, that refistance feemed to be scarcely attempted. With the trifling lofs of about about seventy men a most decifive victory was gained-the artillery, and stores of the enemy falling into the hands of the victors. Doubtful, perhaps, of the final event, and perplexed in the mazes of his own policy, Meer-Jaffier, who commanded the left wing of the fubah's army, took no part whatever in the action. But the English commander, far from difcovering any impolitic fymptoms of refentment at his ambiguity of conduct, faluted him, with apparent complacency, fubah of the three provinces, and exhorted him to pursue his march to Moorfhedabad at the head of his troops-engaging, without delay, to follow and support him with his whole force. Sou-Rajah-Dowla, who had fled with the foremost from the field of action, abandoned himself to defpair; and on his arrival at Moorshedabad, after fome tumultuous confultations and inconfiftent refolutions, he disguised himself in the habit of a faquier, and left his palace in the dead of night, in order to feek for fafety in obfcurity. Meer-Jaffier, all obftacles to his advancement being now furmounted, was feated, with all the accustomed ceremonies of ftate, upon the Mufnud; and acknowledged as fubah of Bengal by all the rajahs and omrahs of the kingdom: and the unhappy Sou-Rajah-Dowla, being discovered in his flight, was put to death, imploring in vain for mercy, after a reign of fifteen months, by the exprefs command of the fon of the new fubah. In conformity to the treaty previously concluded with the English, this prince paid into the treafury of the company a crore of rupees, as an indemnification for their loffes at Calcutta, and ceded to them a confiderable territory in the vicinity of that city. And thus was a revolution accomplished very marvellous in the eyes of the inhabitants of Bengal, who could not comprehend * 2 F 2 A crore is an hundred lacks of rupees, confiderably exceeding one million fterling. Upon the whole, and on various pretences, not less than 1,800,000l. fterling, exclufive of presents to individuals to an immenfe amount, was exacted from the new subah on this occafion. A lack of r pees is estimated at about 11, fool, |