Carnatic Wars

The Carnatic wars were a series of conflicts fought between British East India company and French East India Company in India during the 18th century in Carnatic region of South India. The wars were the extension of the conflict of Britain and France in the Austrian war of succession in Europe. Both the British and French wanted to acquire more territories in India to became the superior power here. Three wars were fought in the Carnatic region. The first carnatic war fought between 1740-48. It ended with the Treaty of Aix-La Chapelle and status quo was restored. The Second carnatic war was fought between 1749-54 in which the British won. The Third carnatic war was the 7 years war fought between 1756-63. It ended with the Treaty of Peace of Paris which restored French their territories in India but the political influence of France in India disappeared after the war. The British came out as a supreme European power in India after the Carnatic wars.

The primary reason behind the carnatic wars was the rivalry of British and French due to their desire to be the supreme power over the Indian region. Initially both the European countries came to India for trading purposes but later ultimately they got involved in the politics of the region. The Anglo-French rivalry can be traced back to the European history of outbreak of the Austrian war of Succession and ended with the conclusion of the Seven years war. This rivalry extended to their rivalry in India leading to Carnatic wars (Carnatic was the name given to the Coromandel coast and its hinterland.)

The Carnatic wars were a series of conflicts fought during the 18th century in the Carnatic region of South India. The wars were the result of the competition between two major European colonial powers: the British East India Company and the French East India Company to expand their territorial control and influence in South India, which was rich in resources and strategically important for trade. The carnatic wars ended with Britain emerging as the dominant colonial power in India.

The War of the Austrian Succession was primarily caused by the lack of a clear male heir to Charles VI. He issued the pragmatic sanction to make his daughter Maria Theresa his heir. This pragmatic sanction was opposed by other European powers, leading to a succession crisis. The war was fought between Austria, led by Maria Theresa supported by the British and Dutch Republic and the European powers Prussia, France, Spain, and Bavaria which opposed the succession of Maria. Maria Theresa faced several setbacks, including the loss of Silesia to Prussia and the invasion of Bavaria by the French. But the support of the British and Danes finally turned war in the favour of Austria. The war in Europe also had its effect in India in the form of Carnatic wars between the two rivals in Europe - Britain and France.

• Cause of the war : The first carnatic war was an extension of the Britain and France war in Europe due to Austrian war of succession. To provoke France, the British navy led by Barnet seized some French ships. In response, French army under Dupleix seized Madras in 1746 with the help of the French governor of Mauritius. This started the first Carnatic war.
• Course of the war :
  • Battle of Madras : The Battle of Madras started in 1746 when French forces captured Madras which was a key location for the British in Southern India. The English forces under Robert Clive failed to defend the capture of the city.
  • Battle of St. Thomas : British took the help of Anwar-ud-din against the French army.The Anwar-ud-din army led by his son Mahfuz Khan was defeated by a small French army under Captain Paradise on the banks of Adyar river at St. Thome.
• Outcome of the war : The war ended with the Aix-La Chapelle treaty signed in 1748 which also concluded the Austrian war of succession. Under this treaty Madras was restored to the British and French got back their territories in North America.

• Cause of the war :
  • After the success of the first Carnatic war Dupleix (French) sought to increase his power in India. In 1748, the founder of independent Hyderabad, Nizam-ul-Mulk passed away. After his death, his son Nasir Jang became the king of Hyderabad which was opposed by his grandson Muzaffar Zang. Muzzafar Jang laid claim to the throne saying that had been appointed as the governor of the Carnatic by the Mughal emperor.
  • Chanda Sahib, son in law of nawab of Carnatic Dost Ali was a claimant to the throne of the Carnatic. He initially took support from the Marathas in his bid for power but he was imprisoned by Marathas after a series of conflicts. He was released by Marathas during the 2nd Carnatic war. Anwar-ud-din Khan had been appointed as the next Nawab of Carnatic. His appointment as nawab was opposed by Chanda Sahib and then he forged support from French to realise his ambition to become the Nawab of Carnatic.
  • French supported Muzaffar Jang and Chanda Sahib in Hyderabad and Carnatic respectively while the British supported Nasir Jang and Anwar-ud-din.
• Course of the war :
  • Battle of Anwar : The combined armies of French, Chanda Sahib and Muzaffar Jang fought with combined armies of British, Nasir Jang and Anwar-ud din. French side won in the war and Anwar-ud -din was killed. Muzaffar Jang then became the Subadar of Hyderabad and Dupleix was appointed as the governor of all the Mughal territories which were to the South of the Krishna river. At Hyderabad, a french army under Bussy was stationed. Areas around Pondicherry and also areas near Odisha including Masulipatnam were also ceded to the French.
  • British attacked Arcot : In August 1751, British forces under Robert Clive attacked and captured Arcot.
  • Chanda Sahib attack Trichnopoly fort : Chanda Sahib with 4,000 men sieged the fort for 53 days from 23rd September to 14th November. Mysore, Tanjore and Maratha chiefs came in support of the Trichonopoly and Robert Clive. Trichinopoly was relieved of its seize. In June 1752, they were forced to surrender when Muhammad Ali executed Chanda Sahib.
• Outcome of the war
  • After the 2nd Carnatic war, the French suffered high financial losses due to the policies of Dupleix which is why he was recalled in 1754 and Godeheu was appointed as the next French governor-general in India.
  • Godeheu adopted a policy of negotiations with the British. The British and French signed the Treaty of Pondicherry agreeing not to interfere in the disputes of native empires.

• Cause of the war : In 1756, Austria wanted to recover Silesia in Europe and as a result the war was started in Europe and British and France were on opposite sides. The war went on for 7 years (1756-1763)
• Course of the war :
  • In 1758, French army under Count de Lally attacked the St. David and Vizianagaram forts in 1758 which were under the control of the British. In response, the British inflicted heavy losses on the French under Admiral D’Ache at Masulipatnam.
  • Battle of Wandiwash : The war was fought between French army and British army at Wandiwash in Tamilnadu. In this war, British army under General Eyre Coote defeated the French army under Count Thomas Arthur de Lally on 22nd January 1760. Lally defended Pondicherry for 8 months before he finally surrendered on 16th January,1761. Lally was taken as a prisoner at London and later he was returned to France where he was imprisoned and executed in 1766.
• Outcome of the war :
  • Treaty of Peace of Paris : The treaty signed between France and Britain after the long war of 7 years in 1763. Under this treaty, the factories of French in India before the war were restored.
  • After the war, the French political influence in India disappeared and the French company confined itself to small areas, mirroring the fate of other European colonial powers like Portuguese and Dutch. The British became the supreme European power in India after the Carnatic wars.

1. Regulation : The French Company was under the control and regulation of the French government which led to delays in their decision-making while the British East India Company was a private enterprise and under less governmental control and hence they could take their decisions quickly without any government approval.
2. Superior navy: The British navy was superior to the naval army of France. The vital sea link between France and French territories in India was cut off by the English navy which helped them in the wars.
3. Important territories : Before the war, the East India Company had three important regions in India as their territories- Calcutta, Bombay and Madras while Pondicherry was the only major territory under French possession. As, British had their territories on every side of the Indian subcontinent, they had an upper hand in the war.
4. Funds : As the French company was less financially successful than the British East India company, it was always short of funds which created difficulties for them to fight the war for so long.
5. Leaders : British had many superior commanders like Sir Eyre Coote, Major Stringer Lawrence, Robert Clive and many others while the French side only had one reliable commander Dupleix. This helped the English win the conflict.

The Carnatic Wars were a series of conflicts fought in southern India during the 18th century between the British East India Company and the French East India Company, as well as various Indian powers. The wars were primarily driven by the ambitions of both sides to become supreme powers in India. The three wars ended with the British emerging as the dominant European colonial power in India and France confined to just a small enclave in India like the other European powers (Dutch and Portuguese).