The Last Resting Place of Clive of India.
Styche Hall in the market town of Market Drayton had used to be the family home of the Clive family for many generations. On the 29th of September 1725 Robert Clive was born and his life was tumultuous to say the least and he would become famous the world over as “Clive of India”.
Clive’s early life was unsettled and he went to live with his aunt and this may have resulted in his bad behaviour, he was always fighting getting up to no good, he had started extorting money out of local shop keepers. After having been placed in numerous schools and due to his poor marks and confrontational attitude, his parents found him a job as a clerk at the East India Company. So in 1743 Clive set sail for Madras to start his new life, however after a while he became lonely and isolated this resulted in him trying to end his life, whereupon the gun that he tried to commit suicide with misfired twice, whereupon he decided that his life must have some sort of purpose and that divine intervention had intervened.
While in Madras Clive was taken prisoner by Joseph Francois Dupleix’s forces, however Clive managed to escape with another prisoner named Edmund Maskelyne, heavily disguised both men managed to make it to Fort David, whereupon Clive was given a commission as an ensign under Admiral Boscawen. According to history books during the siege of Pondicherry Clive fought bravely when he and his fellow soldiers forced the attacking troops back.
A couple of years later during the long siege of Trichinipoli, Clive using his own tactics and a small force of men managed to create a diversion in capturing Arcot thus ending the siege, however this was not the end of the war, in capturing Arcot Clive and five hundred men then had to defend it against recapture, they held out for fifty days against an attacking army of ten thousand soldiers. It was these actions that put paid to France’s ambitions of creating an Indian empire.
Clive although now a well known figure was forced to return to England due to failing health, however he was once again called upon to return to India when the new Nawab of Bengal, Surajah Dowlah seized Calcutta from the English, he went on to create what became known as “The Black Hole of Calcutta”, where 146 people where placed into a hot confined room and only 23 survived. In 1757 Clive with just 8 guns and 3000 men took on 40,000 infantry, 15,000 cavalry and over 50 guns, using his tactics he won the day thereby establishing British rule in India.
For his success on the battlefield Clive went on to become Governor of Bengal, he also accepted gifts of £200,000 and lands worth £30,000 per year in rent. Clive returned to England in 1767 and although now Baron Clive of Plassey he faced many enemies in Parliament who accused him of corruption, his health slowly started to decline and it is believed he took an overdose of opium and ended his life in November 1774 in his house in London. So from starting life as a troubled teenager he went on to help establish the British Empire in India, and although not a hero as portrayed by say Lawrence of Arabia, he did manage to shape history along the way and also made many enemies due to his abrasive personality.
ludchurch 