As a schoolboy in the 1950s in the new Canadian province of Newfoundland my introduction to Robert Clive and the rise of the British Empire in India was by reading an exciting adventure story called 'With Clive in India" written by a prolific writer of adventure novels for boys, G. A. Henty. It was full of deering-do and detailed descriptions of famous battles. This book, and a couple of others by the same author, were prizes awarded to me by my school for having the highest marks in my class in "Divinity'! (in other words - religion!!) These and similar books kindled in me a life-long interest in British military and naval history - hence my watching and commenting on this video!
That’s so great to hear sir, I’m new to this genre, I just read ‘The Rise and Fall of the British Empire’ by Lawrence James. What a phenomenal book it is! I’ve been itching to find similar books that cover British Empire and its military history in a narrative style. I think I will start with G.A. Henty. Can you recommend any others as well sir? I’ll really appreciate it!
Great! I was one of those who asked you to do the story of Clive. Wow! True to your word, you did it just for us, and in record time! I wasn’t expecting it so soon! Thank you so much!
The surprise here is not that Clive exploited 'India', in ways I think were typical of the times on all sides in many places, but that Parliamentarians intervened against him (and later, Warren Hastings) driven in part by what we would today call 'human rights'.
In response to the British East India Company's bankruptcy of 1772, Parliament passed legislation requiring people living in Britain's North American colonies buy tea from the East India Company. This undercut local merchants, which lead to protests. A bunch of Boston residents dressed up as Native Americans and dumped East India Company tea into the harbor. This "Boston Tea Party" was an early stage in the conflict that resulted in Burgoyne's surrender at Saratoga.
The Boston tea party was because the government dropped the taxes on imported tea so it was cheaper than that being smuggled in and some people were going to lose a lot of money.
The oligarchs and masons of New Rome (Washington DC later) were backed by the Jesuits (anti-Reformationists) and their superpower (France) - and were just looking for an excuse to keep the profits and power of the colonies. They continue to this day. 1776 wasn’t about independence or tea tax - but about profit and power for the Oligarchic and Masonic (cultist). The East India Company became over time BlackRock and Vanguard. The Black Nobility’s gains were massive.
Rebellious American colonists had mixed feelings about the East India Company. The thirteen red and white stripes of the new American flag were copied from the East India Company flag. (It has an article in Wikipedia.)
Well once again, and this being the second update for this week following Tuesday's one about Spencer Percival, another very welcomed in-depth video about quite a character in the form of Robert Clive of India, who certainly can be described as both hero and villain in terms of a lotta things that happened to/with him during his military and political years, and once again YOU, our RU-vid British military history lessons giving superstar Chris old bean, have been the one to deliver it all. Seriously, I'm SO absolutely damn glad indeed I found you thanks to your Dad's Army video on Lance Corporal Jones last year, cos I've been able to learn TONNES of things, and STILL need to do if I can just give myself the time and chance to do more of your older videos FGS, ESPECIALLY ones on the Africa conflicts and Crimean War which I still don't know anything diddly squat about whatsoever, I've never known about even while I was in school, YOU are certainly the teacher I could need. But also, and I'm now actually preparing to have a look at her video right now thanks to the link you posted at the end of this one, WOW on that woman you mentioned Hannah Snell, whose video I see was erected last year and I clearly haven't seen it, the fact that she successfully hid herself in our own Army as a man until she was found out as her true gender self? That reminded me of a woman called Mollie Bean, a North Carolinian woman who, pretending to be a man, joined the 47th North Carolina Infantry, a regiment of the Confederate army, and successfully went undiscovered until her capture in 1865 by soldiers of her own soon to be extinct after only four years' existence nation outside of Richmond, Virginia. Now I'm TOTALLY gonna have a look at Hannah Snell's own video right now, see how SHE compares to Mollie Bean. So, I wonder what's NEXT from you then, Chris dear chap, perhaps some of the American Revolutionary War perhaps one day, as you mentioned of John Burgoyne, the failed British figure at Saratoga in 1777 thanks to the Americans winning said vital battle, a big factor in that being Benedict Arnold? Or, the Battle of Sedgemoor, cos come on, Chris boy, I want THAT so badly of course
Lovely video, sir. Thank you for this video. By the way, I did watch several other videos of yours, and really liked the video on Albert Ball VC, the first VC granted, Fashoda Incident, The story of Chinese Gordon, Nelson's exploits on the Nile and in Trafalgar and several others.
There were 4 Clives: The Enforcer. The Clerk.The Soldier. The Governor. I dare say the young Enforcer of protection rackets in England and the Clerk in India may well be one and the same, but it seems he finally found maturity in the Soldier. You don't end up in command of 1000 soldiers as a lieutenant if you're useless! The controversial Governor... how much of the Enforcer and the Clerk were in him still when he forced the Companies position onto Bengal rule? Clive wasn't the first to do this, nor the last.
So glad to have found your channel. Having suffered through innumerable channels that are narrated by a computer I can't tell you how refreshing it is to have a knowledgeable and well-spoken person actually reading their own copy.
Thank you Chris for the very sophisticated post about this notable man, he was for sure both, just a Englishman of the time the Empire was expending! All the best from Ludwig
Thank you Chris. I am continuously dismayed by people trying to apply current sensibilities to historical figures and their actions. I guess I shouldn't be.
You don’t need 21st century sensibilities to perceive Clive as a dubious character. In his own life he was heavily criticised for his conduct in India, and the consequences thereafter. And things haven’t changed that much, there are plenty of characters today who have amassed wealth and admiration despite their patent dishonesty and perfidy.
Thank you. Much like Jim Bowie, Clive seems to be a man who saw the system and made the most out of it. Clive's great failing was not ending up in someplace like the Satichaura Ghat or the Black Hole, As Bowie had at the Alamo. One has to wonder how many of his critics were actually jealous of a man who had brains and guts enough to make his fortune the way many of their forebears during the Crusades and other times (the French and Indian Wars were going on at this time and Britain obtained not only Canada, but great wealth in the Caribbean).
Thank you for making this video. You often get either those who love British history to the point their nationalism borders discrimination, or despise it to the point where people have genuine hatred for it. British history is fantastic and essential to learn but without needing to be offensive to other people/cultures. I thought your video and channel tells essential history in a moral, balanced and fair way… as it should be told.
Wonder if this is the reason why Spice Island is Portsmouth's name due to this person - it was where spices from India and elsewhere were landed and traded in the coffee and public houses in the small area. And being an area with so many people of wealth and having fun time due to their money the name got linked to being somewhat a place to go to have fun or have a spicy time!
Another fascinating character from our past Chris. I've been to Claremont and Powis Castle many times and stared up at the statue in Shrewsbury. It's great to hear his story. As always I think we make a mistake trying to judge historical figures by today's values and morals, but clearly Clive was an 'interesting ' character!
Thanks again for a great review of Clive's life! I see him as a gifted general, as you said, but I think he was made a scapegoat for a corrupt system. A very sad story!
"Heaven born", that's quite a description, and being very wealthy in his mid 30s is also quite a feat. It was so pitiful what happened to Clive and India later on. Burgoyne surrendered his army to Gates at Saratoga in 1777, AFTER Clive's death. It was sad he died in his middle years. It was amazing he pulled off the feats he did without any military training. Considering what Inia later went through, he didn't deserve any other statues than the one he got. Another nice episode, keep it up!
Another amazing video on another interesting character. Well done! If you are riding on this British Indian videos, how about the battle of Assaye, The Duke of Wellington’s finest battle.
Interesting tale... My family did all right in India. My great, great grandfather rose to the rank of IGIP - Inspector General, Imperial Police. His daughter married the man who was to become the royal court artist to the Maharajah of Mysore, and some of his paintings still adorn the walls of Mysore Palace.
Thank you. I intend to produce more. Maybe also some aside stories like French colonies that existed until after 1947 and also Operation Polo, the incorporation of Hydrebad into India in 1948.
@@TheHistoryChap Sir Please Make Videos On 1). Col Sleeman [Famous For Thugee Repression In India ] 2) James Tod [Famous For His Work on Rajasthan] 3) On How Modern Administration[Politics, Judiciary, Police & Bureaucracy & Armed Forces]Was Established in British India . 4) Jim Corbett. 5) William Jones All the Great Britishers who did so much for our India. All These will make a Great Series On Your "British India " Playlist . Coming Of British in India was Meeting Of Europe & Asia Bringing Together Western & Eastern Civilizations. Afterall India Was "Jewel In The Crown " For British Empire. Thank You Sir Will be Waiting For Videos On British India. Namaste 🙏.
Don't forget James Princep, the dude who decyphered the ancient Brahmi/ Dhamma script of India, due to which the history of ancient India and Emperor Ashoka could be known in detail.
Another excellent, well-researched contribution. You may be unaware of the 1935 movie, Clive of India, starring Ronald Colman and Loretta Young. Of course, very dated, not accurate, and rushed through the life of Clive. Ends happily for the couple when King George exonerates Clive soon after his censure by Parliament. No mention of Clive's suicide. Life is grand!!
Great video! The East India Company never fails to fascinate me in its functions and actions throughout history, for better or for worse. Clive was certainly a man of his time who took and expanded what opportunities were available to him. He made some questionable acts, as controversial then as now but then again, I've no doubt many people would have done the same (or done as little such as Clive did in the famine) if they were raised during that period and given a chance to do as such. Overall, I think it best to describe him as a man of his time who was by no means a saint and quite given to enriching himself but certainly made an excellent administrator and military commander whose prime thoughts were the forwarding of both his nation and himself.
Wrong era but right country, wld love to hear you do one on the “Pundits” (mentioned in Kiplings Kim). Part of the 19th C great game, travelled to and surveyed Tibet when closed to Europeans. Incredible travel story of unbelievable hardship and persistence we Britz failed properly to recognise. Surveyed Tibet with their feet and incredible memories. I recently was in Shimla , and Kim’s fictional Lurgan Sahib who trained the pundits there is modelled on A. M . Jacob, as is, perhaps, the spy Jacob in the Aubrey-Maturin series. He was a gem-seller in Simla, a British agent and polyglot who as a boy was sold as a slave to a rich Pasha who educated him, and after his master’s death, he traveled in the Middle East widely. And thanks for what you do!
My ancestors came to New Zealand via the East Indian Company. They came to New Zealand and settled at Blue Skin Bay Otago and part of the Great Gold Rush to Otago.
Interesting piece. For us Yanks, the British Raj -- a subject not covered in school -- has always been something of a mystery. Would love to see a piece on the connection between US slavery and the textile industry industrial revolution in Britain.
Interesting, as always. Had Clive, or Mrs Clive, some connection with Ireland? Or why was it necessary to make him an Irish peer in order for him to take a seat in the British House of Commons? Couldn't his pals, or his money, have secured a seat without such a convoluted maneuver? It does seem that Clive might have acquired and named the estate in Ireland called "Plassey" which became, in the late 20th century, the campus of the University of Limerick.
I haven't been able to find much on a connection to Ireland before him becoming an Irish peer. He didn't even own any land in Plassey. Which meant it was likely a ploy to have the benefits of a peerage whilst also being able to run for the Commons.
Would you do a lecture on the differences between the Foreign Office and the India Office? The powers, people, etc… I read in Manchester’s the Last Lion, some interesting distinctions but I have not been able to find more information about their operations and people during the age of empire. Thank you!
Very on-point video! Would be very interested which sources you used for this video :) If I may add some more points: 1. During his time in India, Clive made it his own personal mission to modernize and professionalize the Companys military forces. That is not to say he should be regarded as the 'father' of the Companys army, but he certainly contributed to it. 2. His voyage to India in 1743 took nearly a year. Due to what you could essentially call bad weather, he and his ship found themselves accidentally spending some time at the coast of Brazil, where Clive learned to speak portuguese, before he contonued his journey and arrived in India in 1744. 3. Mir Qasim (or Kassim) didnt immediately revolt against the Company, but his anti-British alliance was the result of him getting shafted from his position as nawab in 1763. Ironically, he was replaced by none other than THE Mir Jafar - though the latter would not retain his new/old position for long, as he died in 1765. 4. With his newly-found wealth, which he had received as a most generous gift from Jafars treasury, Clive embarked on a practice called 'stock splitting': The Companys 'General Court', the general assembly of shareholders, was the EICs version of Parliament. They met once a year and discussed and decided upon all important matters. During these assemblies, they also elected their leadership, the 24-head Court of Directors. However, one would need to hold a certain amount of shares to be entitled to a vote in the General Court. The amount necessary varied over the decades and centuries, somewhere between 200-1000 pounds. Having more shares allowed one to have more votes (up to a certain maximum), and likewise people with insufficient resources could pool their money for a shared vote. Anyway, Clive tried to influence elections in his favour by splitting his own stock and sharing his shares/wealth with friends and supporters, so these could gain their own votes, and thus would vote in his favour. With the Regulating Act of 1773, British Parliament enacted some regulations that aimed to mitigate this practice, if not dismantling it altogether. For instance, one was henceforth only allowed to vote in the General Court, if he had held his shares in the Company for at least 6 months (or was it a year?) prior to the election. In similar fashion, the maximum amount of votes attainable by one individual was decreased. 5. Clives very profitable exploits 'inspired' a tremendous amount of corruption from Company Servants in India after the battle of Plassey. Often this would manifest by local Agents encouraging and taking gifts and bribes from Indian rulers. Interestingly, Clive didnt think much of this. In his opinion, such gratuities should only be given as a reward for 'real services' - such as his for his contributions. 6. You rightly mentioned the Officer Mutiny in Bengal during the 1760s: Since the presidencies of Bengal, Madras and Bombay were separate entitites, they not only had their own administration (Governor+Council), but also separate armies and salaries. One form of these salaries was the 'batta', something along the lines of a 'compensation for expenses'. While the officers in Madras and Bombay were earning one or half a batta, the ones in Bengal enjoyed two batta, and the Directors decision to cut this pay in half was met with revolt. Around 175 Officers joined this mutiny, which Clive had put down by arresting the ringleaders (sent back to England for Court-martial) and having Sepoys marched up with planted bayonets (ironic, ey?). 7. Last but not least - the Parliamentary inquiry: The investigation into the allegations and accusations against Clive and the public campaign against him can be suspected to have numerous sources. Since the Government was hell-bent to pass the Regulating Act (of 1773), it needed a Scapegoat to point at in order to legitimize its plans. Equally important, the 'diwani', which amounted to several hundred thousand if not several million pounds in annual revenue, was the Companys own property, not the State's. Since the latter found itself with an ever-rising debt in the second half of the 18th century (same can be said for the EIC), it tried to tap into the wealth of Indian tax revenue, and had already done so with the Dividend Bill in 1767. Further - I believe the historian John Keay did so - it can be speculated that some of the accusations may have been raised out of malice and revenge by some of the resentful officers of the Mutiny of the 1760s.
I think the Anglo Mysore wars would be a great topic to discuss. While lot has been spoken about the uprising of 1857, the Anglo Mysore wars were significant in Indian history.
A thoroughly despicable person in my opinion. But ultimately just one man out of many who were opportunistic vultures. Thank you for telling the story.
Suggestion: Indian based.... More on the European regiments of the EIC, please! Recruitment-where did they come from, training, typical careers, terms of service, comparison with the British regiments, interaction with native Indians, what typically happen on discharge, did some stay on with Indian wives and form the Anglo-Indian community etc etc
Well done, amigo 👏 👍 Clive definitely remains a controversial figure in the history of the British Empire. It will be debated by historians who shadow remains darkened in the blood of the innocents. 😢My deepest condolences for the victims of this terrible tragedy that suffered by the horrors of starvation. I think you captured the complete picture of Clive leaving it to the viewer to draw their own conclusions.
A very well-balanced video, Chris, as usual. Clive hero or villain? I dont know his figure sufficently for answer but certainly he was very important in a crucial phase of history of British Empire, the transformation from a commercial empire to a territorial empire ( North America is another story ). Undobetably he was a natural military commander, as you underline, a quite able politician and perhaps not a great administrator.He also hugely enriched himself but this was not necessarly in contrast with the interest of East India Company. But enrichment was the only aim of the Company after the conquest of Bengal? This question, in different terms, concerned all the British Empire ( and perhaps all the empires) and was alredy evident in XVIII century but, at least in my opinion, didn' t recive a definitive answer. Finally, Clive didn't seem a man capable to commit suicide .... but perhaps every man is a mistey. Thanks and stay well!
In my 50s I am going through a reanalysis of the British Empire which I grew up thinking of as a malevolent force in world history. I wonder, how many would have perished with the failure of the monsoon if the EIC has not been administrating Bengal. Should we look at the EIC in terms of what it could have done to provide relief from the factory, or in terms of the difference in the severity of the 1770 famine between a hypothetical response by Nawab Shuja-ud-Daula? I'm talking with my children about tye British Empire I try to talk about the positive and negative aspects of the Empire.
It's interesting that Britain was critical of the wrongdoings of Robert Clive as early as the 18th century when I assumed that people just didn't care. Though, in all fairness, those things weren't exclusively his fault, but also a systemic problem, it's just easier to put a face to the blame.
Great video, well worth waiting for. Hero or villain? I'd say a bit of both.... but he was inexperienced and dropped in the deap end... I wonder how any of us wouldve handled the situation if we were in his shoes?
A great channel…but important context to the famine of 1770 (and this whole story) were the 5 Maratha invasions of Bengal from 1742-51 and the consequent Chauth imposed (where Bengal had to give 1/4 of their entire revenue annually in tribute. The chief of the Dutch VoC estimated 400k Bengali people died in these conflicts…and it was those regions that were invaded that also suffered the most from the famine.
@@TheHistoryChap Happy to help with engagement for the algorithm. Also for perspective…According to Tirthankar Roy’s “How British Rule Changed India’s Economy” the EIC in the 1760s was taking 13% of Bengali revenue - much of which was used to pay for administration there. Compare this to the 25% of Bengali revenue demanded in tribute by the Marathas (who did not spend any of it in Bengal)
Company was near bankruptcy when it asked British government's help. It means that British government wasn't gaining much from company's profits. This story also refutes the claim of Indian historians that Britain built its economy just on its exploits in India. Bloodshed and plunder is part of every invasion but Britain's entry into far off lands wasn't just a one-way traffic. It brought lots of new things to colonised lands. Let's take the example of Australia. Indigenous people had been living on that island for centuries. They had observed big sink-holes in Limestone coast region. But they had no idea how so many craters appeared in a specific area. Redcoats came and told them the actual reason ( Shallowness of Limestones Coast). Such god-gifted ability to understand complexities of nature differentiates Redcoats from other invaders. Redcoats' history is not just the history of invasions and exploits. It is a history of upgradation and transformation of backward societies.
the thumbnail title should be ( Clive of British East India Company ) ---- do you know at Market Drayton grammar School has Robert Clive intials carved into the School desk -----
Chris, Your supporters website will still not allow me to pay in $US. No matter what I do, it stays stuck on GBP. Keep up the fine work. I'm still looking to see if my grandfather, Captain Dr. David Ford had a connection to Dr. Noel Chavasse, VC.
The ever inventive British Armed Forces gave the military world the fully automatic, rapid firing, one pounder Pom Pom gun. In India they preferred the Poppadom.
Clive made his way, like many great men did at the time. Many find it easy to judge prople by today's mores, but it is not really fair to do so. If he was really in the wrong, why didn't they strip him of his wealth and charge him? Also, why did the people vilifying him not do more to save the people of India?
Bit of both hero and villain. I think he was part instigator at the start ,but the corruption carried on without his input, and he became a product of it .
