Battle of Plassey and Buxar: BPSC Prelims Notes
BPSC Prelims Demand
Prepare dates, places, commanders, Indian sides, immediate results, Treaty of Allahabad and the 1765 Diwani. For BPSC, Buxar is especially important because it is in Bihar and gave the Company a decisive strategic advantage in the Ganga valley.
Chronology
Plassey vs Buxar
| Point | Plassey | Buxar |
|---|---|---|
| Year | 1757 | 1764 |
| Location | Plassey/Palashi, Bengal | Buxar, Bihar, on the Ganga |
| Company commander | Robert Clive | Hector Munro |
| Main Indian side | Siraj-ud-Daulah; Mir Jafar did not effectively support him. | Mir Qasim, Shuja-ud-Daula and Shah Alam II. |
| Immediate effect | Mir Jafar installed as Nawab; Company influence rose sharply. | Decisive Company victory; led to 1765 Allahabad arrangements and Diwani. |
Battle of Plassey, 1757
Plassey was fought between the East India Company under Robert Clive and the Nawab of Bengal, Siraj-ud-Daulah. Court intrigue and the defection/non-participation of important figures, especially Mir Jafar, weakened Siraj-ud-Daulah’s side. After the victory, the Company installed Mir Jafar as Nawab and extracted land and money. The best answer is not “the whole of India became British in 1757”; rather, Plassey opened a major route to Company dominance in Bengal.
Battle of Buxar, 1764
At Buxar in Bihar, Company forces under Hector Munro defeated the combined armies of Mir Qasim, Shuja-ud-Daula of Awadh and Mughal emperor Shah Alam II. The Ministry of Culture describes it as a decisive Company victory. The subsequent 1765 Allahabad settlement brought major political and financial changes: the Company obtained the Diwani of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa, while Company influence deepened in Awadh and over Shah Alam II.
Consequences: Use Precise Language
| After Plassey | After Buxar |
|---|---|
| Company could shape the Nawabship of Bengal. | Company defeated a broader alliance of Bengal, Awadh and Mughal interests. |
| Company officials received large grants and payments. | Company became the Diwan for Bengal, Bihar and Orissa in 1765. |
| Political intervention increased. | Revenue resources strengthened territorial expansion. |
Prelims Traps
- Plassey: Robert Clive; Buxar: Hector Munro.
- Plassey: Siraj-ud-Daulah; Buxar: Mir Qasim, Shuja-ud-Daula and Shah Alam II.
- Mir Jafar was installed after Plassey; Mir Qasim later shifted his capital to Munger.
- Buxar occurred before the Diwani grant, not after it.
- Diwani covered Bengal, Bihar and Orissa—not Awadh.
- Buxar is in Bihar; Plassey is in Bengal.