Capture of Fort William

Capture of Fort William
Part of Seven Years' War and Siege of Calcutta
Date 18 June 1756 Location Calcutta, Bengal Subah Result Bengal Subah victory Territorial changes Nawab of Bengal captures Fort William
Belligerents
Bengal Subah	East India Company
Commanders and leaders
Siraj-ud-Daula	Omichund (POW) John Zephaniah Holwell
Strength
30,000 men	120 men
Casualties and losses
Low	43 killed 145 taken prisoner

On June 18, 1756, Siraj attacked Fort William, which is located in Calcutta. After a fierce battle that lasted for 2 days, Siraj took over the fortress, thus resulting in a key loss of the British possessions in the area.

Background

For years, there had been increasing tension between the East India Company and the Nawab of Bengal over trade privileges and othed financial matters such as the misuse of their privileges by the East India Company that had been granted to them by the Mughal Empire decades ago.

The Nawab also accused them of harboring enemies of the state such as Krishna Das which the East India Company denied. All of these disagreements made both sides distrustful of the other which meant conflict would ineveitably occur.

During the Seven Years' War, when The East India Company began further enhancement of military strength at Fort William in Calcutta, Siraj ud-Daulah ordered them to stop. The company did not heed his directives. Consequently, Siraj retaliated and captured Calcutta from the British in 1756 on June 20 and took the British soldiers as prisoners. He took Omichund and Krishnovollov as prisoners for their crimes.

Siege

During the siege, the British set fire to their own headquarters in a desperate attempt to deter the Nawab's forces. Despite this, the Nawab's troops breached the defenses, leading to the capture of the fort. Governor Drake abandoned the fort on June 19, leaving approximately 120 soldiers under the command of John Zephaniah Holwell. After a brief resistance, they were overwhelmed, and over 145 British men were taken prisoner.

Bengali and Indian forces surrounded Fort William, and then assaulted the south wall. The gunners had no time to bring their guns up, and the Indians swarmed in. They then attacked the fort and its protectors. In a short time, the fort was captured. Siraj ud-Daulah held the British prisoners of war inside a guard room. It is said that the British and Anglo-Indian soldiers and civilians were held overnight in conditions so cramped that many died from suffocation and heat exhaustion.

Aftermath

After British surrendered Fort William to the forces of the Nawab of Bengal, the British prisoners were held in a small dungeon, known as the "Black Hole". Many died from suffocation and dehydration. The British used this incident as justification for revenge and conquest. This would soon lead to the Battle of Plassey which would see the end of the Nawab and the Bengal Subah as an independent state.