Liquor Diplomacy
By: Sandeep Nair
Tags: Military, India, History, Humour, Adventure

In the 1700s, three great empires fought bitterly over the resource-rich region known as Carnatic in South India. Carnatic stretched from East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh in the North, to the Maratha fort of Ranjanagad in the South and Coromandel coast in the East to Western Ghats in the West. Between 1690 and 1801, Nawabs of the Carnatic ruled over this region. These Nawabs were the vassals of the Nizam of Hyderabad. Their biggest threat was the Marathas to the North. The French, based out of Pondicherry, completed this triangle. Alliances shifted back and forth, but broadly, the Nawabs and the French were united against Marathas.

Spot the Carnatic region

After the death of the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb in 1707, there was a general decline of the famed Mughal Empire in India. The circle of control of the empire started diminishing and more and more outer states started asserting their independence. The British East India company saw an opportunity to expand their influence, but soon found themselves locked in a near constant power struggle with the French. Eight years after Aurangzeb’s death, a Frenchman named Joseph Francois Dupleix arrived in India. By 1742, he had risen to become the French East India Company’s governor. The French influence in India at that time was limited to a few trading posts, the chief one being Pondicherry. Immediately after arriving in India, Dupleix organised Indian soldiers under French officers for the very first time in India, and tried to expand French influence in India by engaging in political and military encounters with Indian rulers. This brought him into direct conflict with another young officer who was also trying to make a name for himself in India, an Englishman named Robert Clive. This was the same Robert Clive who would go on to be known by the infamous nickname ‘Clive of India’. His plunder and loot of Indian resources directly resulted in the terrible Bengal Famine of 1770 and increased poverty in Bengal. The historian William Dalrymple went so far as to call Clive an ‘unstable sociopath’.

However, in the 1740s, Clive had not yet gained enough power to cause wanton destruction. He had to contend himself with just political intrigue. The British East India company, which employed Clive, was very interested in interfering in the affairs of the Nawabs of Carnatic. So were the French. To this end, the English began secretly supporting a nobleman named Muhammad Ali, while the French supported Chanda Sahib, the son-in-law of the then Nawab Dost Ali Khan. Our story is not about Clive or Dupleix, but a relatively unknown French governor general named Dumas, who averted a major battle through an incredible stroke of diplomatic genius.

Act 1, Scene 1 — The Marathas seek their pound of flesh

In 1740, the Marathas decided enough was enough. For a long time, they had been harbouring a grudge against Dost Ali Khan, because of the long delayed payment of ‘chouth’, or one-fourth of Carnatic’s revenues. The Nawabs of Carnatic had promised this payment to the Marathas as ‘protection money’, to prevent further Maratha incursions into their territory. However, after the Marathas withdrew their forces, the Nawabs conveniently forgot to pay the ransom, and this led to the exchange of many angry letters between the two kingdoms. By 1740, the Marathas had lost patience. Under the command of a great general named Raghuji Bhonsle, they invaded the Carnatic. Raghuji Bhonsle was an astute man who knew how to pick his battles. He waited until Dost Ali Khan left for the North of India to settle some disputes in the territories there. Once he was sure Dost Ali Khan was separated from the kingdom and the bulk of his troops, Raghuji attacked with his army of 50,000 Marathas.

Dost Ali Khan, hearing the news of this rather dick move, rushed back. However, he could not reach his kingdom in time. At the battle of Damalcherry, a mountain pass near Arcot, he was killed by Raghuji’s forces. This upended the fortunes of the Nawabs of Carnatic. Without the protection of Dost Ali Khan, his son Safdar Ali and son-in-law Chanda Sahib had to flee. Fearing for their lives, they turned to the French governor general Pierre Benoît Dumas, stationed at Pondicherry. Here we have to remember that the French were secretly rooting for Chanda Sahib, and could not afford to give him up. In addition to that, Dumas was friendly with Safdar Ali, and agreed to protect their families. This is what happens when you befriend politically active celebrities. Sometimes they may turn up at your door seeking asylum, and there will be precious little you can do about it.

Act 1, Scene 2 — Raghuji seeks to tame the French

Raghuji Bhonsle had by now turned his sights on Safdar and Chanda. He needed to eliminate both of them to ensure Maratha control over Carnatic. He heard where both of his quarries had sought refuge and sent messengers to Pondicherry to demand their surrender. However, in a twist of fortune, Safdar managed to make peace with Raghuji, who in turn recognized him as the new Nawab of Carnatic in 1740. Chanda Sahib was not as fortunate and had to flee. Raghuji knew that Chanda Sahib’s wife and children were still under the protection of Dumas, and decided to get his hands on them, presumably to hold them to ransom.

Raghuji Bhonsle, seen here mentally calculating how much ransom he could reasonably ask for

As a first step, Raghuji sent Dumas a strongly worded letter, threatening to rain down fire and fury the likes of which Dumas had not seen before. However, Dumas was not unduly concerned and refused to give up Chanda Sahib’s family. At the same time, he wasn’t a complete idiot. He knew that the French army at Pondicherry was not strong enough to take on a 50,000 strong force. The diplomat in Dumas rose to the occasion. He wrote back to Raghuji that he was unable to comply, and as an appeasement, sent him thirty bottles of a French brandy from Nantes. This turned out to be a masterstroke. Raghuji Bhonsle’s wife was fond of the good life, and took an instant liking to the brandy. She polished off the thirty bottles in short order, and informed Raghuji in no uncertain terms that she would greatly appreciate more of the same.

Act 1, Scene 3 — All’s well that ends well

The hapless Raghuji had to suspend fierce negotiations with Dumas to send him a letter that pretty much amounted to, “Errm, this is embarrassing, but do you remember the brandy you sent with your letter pleading for mercy the last time? If it’s not an awful bother, could you send me thirty more of the same by return post?”

Dumas was only too happy to comply, on the condition that Chanda Sahib and his family were to be spared. Of course, Raghuji had to agree to the deal in order to maintain marital harmony. Thus it was that Dumas, in a moment of diplomatic brilliance only the French could have conjured up, averted a war with just thirty bottles of brandy.