to have been in that country; for we find, from his correspondence, that
he had hardly sufficient uninvested cash in England to pay for his
annual supplies. He became anxious, however, after he attained great
wealth, to remit it home; but this, owing to various causes, was very
difficult. The public treasury was so rich from the successes in Bengal,
that, for a period, no bills were drawn upon the Directors; Clive,
therefore, had recourse to the Dutch Company, through whom he sent the
greater part of his fortune; he also transmitted a considerable sum in
diamonds[149] (a common mode at that time), and the rest in private
bills; and, latterly, two on the Company.[150]
I have carefully examined his letters to his agents, from the 21st of
August, 1755, when he advised them of his first remittance, till
January, 1759, when he made one of his last; and the amount of property
sent to England during that period is, as nearly as the difference of
exchange and the loss[151] on bills enable us to judge, 280,000_l._ Of
this I calculate that he received 210,000_l._ on the enthronement of
Meer Jaffier; and the remaining 70,000_l._ is made up by part of his
former fortune, his prize-money at Gheriah and Chandernagore, the
receipts from the high stations[152] he held, and the accumulation of
interest upon a considerable part of his property during the last five
years of his residence in India.
From what has been stated we may assume that Clive's fortune, before the
jaghire was settled upon him, did not amount to 300,000_l._ It appears
from documents before me that, previous to this grant, he had given
away, or vested for annuities, a sum not less than 50,000_l._[153] (more
than one sixth of his fortune), to render comfortable and independent
those for whom he cherished affection and gratitude.
Clive was, subsequently to these acts of generosity, enriched by the
grant of the jaghire, which he himself estimates at 27,000_l._ per
annum. With this addition, we may conclude he had an income of upwards
of 40,000_l._; a large amount, but far below what this Indian Crœsus
(for such he was deemed) was thought by his countrymen to possess.
FOOTNOTES: CHAPTER 11
Footnote 104:
Lord Northington.
Footnote 105:
23d of February, 1757.
Footnote 106:
In a letter from Mr. Richard Clive, dated 18th of April, 1755, we find
this subject mentioned. "I was glad," he writes to his son, "to hear
from you last post; and though you banter me about the election at
Dover, I think, as you are so near, and the electors so well disposed
to oppose the ministry, you have a fair opportunity to disappoint the
Duke of Newcastle; and after you are elected you can proceed on your
voyage."
Footnote 107:
Mr. Richard Clive, in a letter to his son on the 22d of December,
1756, expresses his sentiments on this subject with all the warmth and
partiality of a father. "Before I left London," he observes, "the Duke
of Newcastle repeated his promise to do for me; and the last time I
saw him, he told me it must be something in my own way.[a] I have
little expectation, especially at this time of life: but the great and
solid satisfaction I enjoy is to think I have a son, who is a
benefactor to the public, as well as his own private relations; and
though you may not have met with what might have been expected from
your countrymen, 't is no discredit to you, but a reflection on them
never to be erased."
Footnote a:
The law.
Footnote 108:
The transfer of the title-deeds of Styche is stated in his father's
letter of the 22d of July, 1756.
Footnote 109:
22d of December, 1756.
Footnote 110:
In a letter from his father, dated 22d of December, 1756, we find the
following curious account of the sale of Clive's establishment:—
"The coach £40 0 0
"Pair of horses 40 0 0
"A grey riding horse 12 12 0
"One horse broke his neck; another fell backwards; and one pair kept
to go in a chaise."
From this statement of property, we infer that Clive, while in
England, must have lived very expensively.
Footnote 111:
This is independent of the sum he had paid for Styche.
Footnote 112:
This appears, from Clive's letter to his agent, Mr. King, of 6th of
October, 1756.
Footnote 113:
29th of April, 1755.
Footnote 114:
Lord Powis.
Footnote 115:
Sir Edward Clive, a near relation, who always acted as one of Clive's
agents.
Footnote 116:
27th of December, 1757.
Footnote 117:
27th of December, 1756.
Footnote 118:
2d of November, 1757.
Footnote 119:
Extract of Mr. R. Clive's letter to his son, 1st of January, 1758.
Footnote 120:
6th of December, 1757.
Footnote 121:
Mr. King, who highly disapproved of this attempt, informs Clive that
the motion was made by a Proprietor at the suggestion of his father,
but withdrawn on seeing it was not relished by the Directors.
Footnote 122:
Letter to Mr. Belchier, 21st of August, 1757.
Footnote 123:
9th of August, 1757.
Footnote 124:
In Clive's letter to his agents, of the 21st of August, 1757, he
directs 2000_l._ to be paid to each of his five sisters, Rebecca,
Sarah, Judith, Frances, and Anne: this amount to be given for their
use for ever.
Footnote 125:
The Reverend Mr. Clive, his cousin.
Footnote 126:
This order is repeated as one some time before given in a letter to
Sir Edward Clive, Bart., and his other agents, dated 9th of November,
1758.
Footnote 127:
25th of December, 1757.
Footnote 128:
I have not been able to ascertain the exact amount Clive gave Captain
Maskelyne, but judge it must have been considerable from a passage in
one of his letters.
Footnote 129:
29th of December, 1758.
Footnote 130:
23d of March, 1758.
Footnote 131:
23d of December, 1758.
Footnote 132:
29th of July, 1759.
Footnote 133:
Miss Sarah Clive.
Footnote 134:
26th of December, 1758.
Footnote 135:
Letter to Clive, 24th of December, 1759.
Footnote 136:
Lady Markham is still alive, and, although upwards of ninety, in the
enjoyment of all her faculties.
Footnote 137:
23d of February, 1757.
Footnote 138:
What these objections were, or the cause of their termination, is not
explained; but Mr. Clive's letter proves that the first part of the
history was written before 1755.
Footnote 139:
14th of September, 1759.
Footnote 140:
24th of August, 1759.
Footnote 141:
Captain Coote commanded the troops detached to take Hooghley, and he
was, before the battle of Plassey, sent with the advance to attack
Kutwa.
Footnote 142:
Though Clive held the King's commission as Lieutenant-Colonel, he was
always considered as a Company's officer.
Footnote 143:
5th of August, 1757.
Footnote 144:
1st of August, 1757.
Footnote 145:
A corge is twenty pair.
Footnote 146:
This anecdote of his father was communicated by Lord Powis.
Footnote 147:
It is added that he was sent to school in a wig; but, as may be
supposed, was soon quizzed out of it by his play-fellows.
Footnote 148:
11th of March, 1758.
Footnote 149:
Clive sent sixteen thousand gold mohurs to his agents at Madras,
Messrs. Orme and Vansittart, with directions to purchase diamonds as a
remittance.
Footnote 150:
One of the bills on the Company was for 8000_l._, and the other for
32,881_l._ 12_s._ 2_d._ He advises his agents of these bills on the
9th of November and 23d of December, 1758.
Footnote 151:
Clive expected the bills on Holland to produce 183,000_l._, but, after
a vexatious delay, they were paid with great deduction. His father
states the loss upon this transaction as amounting to 10,000_l._
Footnote 152:
I consider the statement of the Committee of the House of Commons, of
Clive's receipts at Moorshedabad, to be exaggerated; but we shall have
occasion to notice this statement hereafter, particularly the note
annexed to it, in which it is asserted, in direct opposition to truth,
that Clive's jaghire was obtained at the same period as the donation
from Meer Jaffier. Mr. Mill copies the statement and note without
remark. (Vol. iii. p. 326.)
Footnote 153:
The following sums appear to have been given or settled upon his
relations and friends:—
Present to his sisters £10,000
Present to Captain Maskelyne and others 10,000
Money vested to produce an annuity for his father, of £500
Ditto, his aunts 150
Ditto, Colonel Lawrence 500
To keep a coach for his parents 300
———
Yearly amount of annuities £1450
Sum vested to produce the above 30,000
———
Total £50,000
------------------------------------------------------------------------
CHAP. XII.
Clive remained in his native country between three and four years; and
it will be proper briefly to narrate the events of his private life
during this period, to notice the part he took in the political
transactions of the times, and the connections he formed with persons of
power and influence, whether in the direction of Indian affairs, or of
the more general interests of the British empire. The knowledge of such
facts, connected as they became with his future career, is quite
essential to our subject.
The constitution of Clive had never been robust. He had been, for the
last two years in Bengal, freer than usual from the attacks of a
spasmodic complaint, to which he appears to have been more or less
subject from his earliest years. In 1759 he had a very violent attack of
rheumatism, and feared, at one time, that it might settle into gout; but
this apprehension vanished; and when he embarked at Calcutta he
describes himself as in excellent health.
When Clive reached England, he was received with distinction by his
Sovereign and the members of the administration; and, notwithstanding
the deep offence taken at his last public despatch, the Court of
Directors, and particularly their Chairman, Mr. Sulivan, welcomed him as
one to whom the Company were deeply indebted. The enjoyment, however, of
those flattering attentions was early interrupted by a violent and
dangerous illness, which for many months threatened to terminate his
existence.
Clive was not, for some time after his arrival, honoured by any public
mark of royal favour. This seems to have arisen from two causes: one,
his very long and serious illness; the other, his desire to obtain more
than the ministers were willing to grant. He, probably, at first
expected to enter the British House of Peers, and to have a red riband;
but, after a considerable delay, he received only an Irish peerage.
In writing[154] to his friend Major Carnac upon this subject, he
observes; "If health had not deserted me on my first arrival in England,
in all probability I had been an English peer, instead of an Irish one,
with the promise of a red riband. I know I could have bought the title
(which is usual), but that I was above, and the honours I have obtained
are free and voluntary. My wishes may hereafter be accomplished."
Clive had assumed a scale of expenditure suited to his income. He
engaged in elections to aid his friends in the administration, and to
give him the influence he desired in the prosecution of his plans for
his own advancement, and the furtherance of those which he thought
essential to the prosperity and security of the Indian empire. The
expenses into which he was early led, combined with his liberality to
his family, amounted to a very large sum[155]; and we can easily
conceive the alarm with which he received, while yet on a sick bed, an
intimation from Mr. Sulivan, that the Directors showed an inclination to
question his title to his jaghire.
He strongly and feelingly expresses his sentiments upon this subject in
a letter to Mr. Amyatt; "My arrival in England," he observes[156], "was
attended with every mark of respect that I could wish, and my interest
in Leadenhall Street might have been of as much consequence as I could
have desired, for the advantage of my friends; but a most severe fit of
sickness overset all. For twelve months it was difficult to pronounce
whether I was to live or die. In so dreadful a situation, I could not
think much of India, or indeed of any thing else but death. It is very
natural to think, the interest of a dying man could not be very great.
Under these circumstances, I had hints given me that either some
attempts would be made upon my jaghire, or some proposal made for giving
it up to the Company after a certain time, on a supposition, perhaps,
that I had not long to live. Accordingly I was given to understand by
Sulivan, that the gentlemen of the Secret Committee would wait upon me
on this subject. But health returning, this proposal was dropt, and I
have heard nothing more of it since. Although I have such an interest at
Court and in Parliament, that I should not be afraid of an attack from
the whole Court of Directors united, yet all my friends advise me I
should do nothing to exasperate them, if they are silent as to my
jaghire. Indeed it is an object of such importance, that I should be
inexcusable if I did not make every other consideration give way to it;
and this is one of the reasons why I cannot join openly with the Bengal
gentlemen in their resentments. It depends upon you, my friend, to make
me a free man, by getting this grant confirmed from Delhi, and getting
such acknowledgment from under the hands of the old Nabob, and the
present Nabob, as may enable me to put all our enemies at defiance. In
this, I am sure, you will be assisted by Vansittart."
The account of the deposition of Meer Jaffier, and the election of
Cossim Ali Khan, which had been planned by Mr. Holwell immediately after
Clive left Calcutta, will occupy the next chapter. I only so far notice
this revolution at present, as to state its effect on Clive's private
feelings; as it divided and rendered irreconcilable enemies the friends
in India whom he most valued. Though he deplored the revolution, and
anticipated its bad consequences to the reputation of the English
Government, he believed Mr. Vansittart to have been both disinterested
and conscientious in the part he took; and with this impression, while
he admitted the manly sincerity and honourable principles which dictated
the violent opposition of his friend Major Carnac, he decidedly blamed
the warmth and want of respect with which he had addressed his superiors
on this subject. Mr. Amyatt was much respected by Clive both for his
talents and integrity. He wished him to succeed Mr. Vansittart in the
Government, and was unwilling that his services should be lost by his
continued opposition, grounded on a measure which, as Clive truly
stated, however much to be regretted, was now past and could not be
recalled.
With such sentiments, Clive endeavoured to reconcile his friends to each
other. His efforts were not successful: but it is a remarkable testimony
to his personal character, that, during this period of violent collision
between the parties in Bengal, every individual engaged in the contest
referred to him, as to one on whose honour and judgment they had
implicit reliance; and his more particular friends, though opposed on
all other points, appear to have united whenever his interests were
concerned.
To understand the motives which induced Clive to take an active part in
the affairs of the India House, it is necessary to explain the actual
condition of the different parties who at this period took a share in
the management of the Company's concerns.
The legislature had not as yet directly interfered in the administration
of our Eastern possessions; but ministers and men of high rank and
influence had, nevertheless, great power and weight, both in the Court
of Directors and in the Court of Proprietors. This, however, appears to
have been seldom if ever exerted but to serve individuals, and to have
been more maintained to promote parliamentary influence, and as a means
of rewarding and attaching friends, than with any view to the benefit of
the public interests of either the Indian or the British empire.
Mr. Sulivan, as has been mentioned before, had attained an ascendency in
the direction, of which he was in complete possession when Clive came to
England. But though he had a majority of the Directors with him, he had
many and virulent opponents among the Proprietors. The most prominent of
these were gentlemen who had been in Bengal, who considered themselves
injured by the frequent supersession of the servants of that presidency
by those of Madras and Bombay, to which they considered Mr. Sulivan more
attached, and particularly to the latter.
Though Mr. Sulivan, as has been shown, professed great admiration of
Clive, and was much indebted to him for the station he had attained in
the direction, he appears to have early regarded him as a dangerous
rival. It is certainly to be concluded from what subsequently took
place, that the intimation regarding his jaghire was meant to repress
the ambition of Clive, as connected with Indian affairs; and for a
period it had the desired effect. This we learn from several of his
private letters. In one, to Mr. Pybus at Madras, he makes the following
observations on this subject[157]:—
"The Court of Directors seem to be much in the same situation as when
you left England. Sulivan is the reigning director, and he follows the
same plan of keeping every one out of the direction who is endowed with
more knowledge, or would be likely to have more weight and influence,
than himself. This kind of political behaviour has exasperated most of
the gentlemen who are lately come from India, particularly those from
Bengal. They are surprised I do not join in their resentments; and I
should think it very surprising if I did, considering I have such an
immense stake in India. My future power, my future grandeur, all depend
upon the receipt of the jaghire money. I should be a madman to set at
defiance those who at present show no inclination to hurt me. I have so
far fallen into their way of thinking, as to preside at a general
meeting of a club of East Indians once a fortnight; and this has all the
effect I could wish, of keeping Sulivan in awe, and of convincing him,
that, though I do not mean to hurt him, I can do such a thing if he
attempts to hurt me. Indeed I am so strongly supported by the Government
and by Parliament, that I should not be afraid of an attack from the
whole body united; but there is no necessity of wantonly exciting them
to attempts against my interest."
Clive, soon after he recovered from his illness, appears to have
established himself in great favour at Court; and the Queen stood
godmother to one of his children. These marks of royal favour, and his
connection with the administration, combined with his known opinion that
the British legislature ought to take a share in the management of the
national interests in India, tended much to increase Mr. Sulivan's
jealousy, and to alarm his ambition. His feelings, indeed, for some time
remained dormant; but from the first day of Clive's landing in England
there existed no cordiality between them. That no rupture ensued during
this period, is, in some degree, to be attributed to Mr. Sulivan being
in 1762 out of the direction by rotation. Before next general election,
circumstances occurred which decided Clive in the determination to
combine his interests with those of the great majority of Indians[158],
to oppose this autocrat of the India House.
We find, in one of Clive's letters[159] to Mr. Vansittart, what I
believe to be an honest statement of his feelings at the period at which
it was written; and it sufficiently indicates the part he afterwards
took to prevent the re-election of Mr. Sulivan.
"There is," he observes, "a terrible storm brewing against the next
general election. Sulivan, who is out of the direction this year, is
strongly opposed by Rous and his party, and by part, if not all, of the
East Indians (particularly the Bengalees), and matters are carried to
such lengths, that either Sulivan or Rous must give way. * * * * * * I
must acknowledge that in my heart I am a well-wisher for the cause of
Rous, although, considering the great stake I have in India, it is
probable I shall remain neuter. Sulivan might have attached me to his
interest if he had pleased, but he could never forgive the Bengal
letter[160], and never has reposed that confidence in me which my
services to the East India Company entitled me to. The consequence has
been, that we have all along behaved to one another like shy cocks, at
times outwardly expressing great regard and friendship for each other."
The appearance even of friendship could not long continue between
individuals actuated by such different interests and feelings. Lord
Clive was the first to avow openly his real sentiments; but, according
to his own statement, he had the completest proof that Mr. Sulivan was
the secret abetter of those who sought to ruin him both in fortune and
fame; and he ascribed to the encouragement of that gentleman the
numerous articles which appeared in the newspapers and other ephemeral
publications, traducing his character. This belief was confirmed by a
knowledge that the personal efforts of the ex-chairman were
unremittingly applied to exalt the name of Coote to a rivalry with that
of Clive. But what appears to have exasperated him in the highest degree
was the production of a letter[161] which Mr. Sulivan had written to his
friend Colonel Coote, in March, 1761, in which, when remarking upon some
disputes that the Colonel had with the government at Madras, he
observes; "The behaviour of the then Bengal gentlemen to you being
similar to their treatment of their masters, it puts an end to all
reasoning. Still your detention at Madras verifies that reflection of
Pope upon human foresight, 'Whatever is, is best;' and how much are we
indebted to Providence for this disobedience to our orders. Your country
and your friend share the honour of your masterly and prosperous
conduct."
In the same letter, when referring more immediately to Colonel Coote's
quarrel[162] with the gentlemen of Fort St. George, Mr. Sulivan adds:—
"Our people at Madras, we find, are hot-headed, but they are able,
generous, and open. I can smother their rebukes; but the ungrateful
wretches, late of Bengal, have hurt my temper. I pray keep up a friendly
correspondence with General Lawrence,—he is great and good. I adore him
for his distinguished and noble spirit."
The allusions in the latter paragraph of this letter were too plainly
directed against Clive to be mistaken; and considering that, at the
period when it was written, Mr. Sulivan was on professed good terms with
him, he deemed the expression of such sentiments unpardonable. But, on
the other hand, it might have been urged by Mr. Sulivan's friends, that
these sentiments, though brought to light by some breach of confidence,
were meant only for a private friend, and that there could be no breach
of friendship where none existed; that Lord Clive and Mr. Sulivan
belonged to different parties in politics; that their personal
connections and views, particularly as connected with the Indian
administration in England, were opposed to each other; and that, if Mr.
Sulivan had been led by considerations of interest to preserve outward
terms of cordiality with Lord Clive, his Lordship had been alone
restrained from attacking him by similar prudential considerations.
Amid the causes which tended to hasten a rupture between these
individuals, we must not omit the irritation produced by their
difference of opinion as to the merits and claims of the Company's
servants in India. Clive was the bold and persevering advocate of all
those who had gained and merited his friendship by the aid they gave him
in the performance of their public duties. Several of his
recommendations to Mr. Sulivan met with attention; but others were
treated with slight or delay. I have already mentioned Clive's feeling
respecting Colonel Forde. However great the claims of that officer, the
more recent successes of his rival, Colonel Coote, had fully justified
those who furthered his promotion in England; but Major Carnac had
distinguished himself in Bengal by the defeat of the Shah-Zada, the
surrender of that prince, and the capture of M. Law and the French who
were attached to him. These services, Clive thought, gave him a claim to
a superior commission. He was also very anxious to obtain a majority for
Captain Knox, who, independent of his services under him, had, on
several late occasions[163], established a reputation for skill and
gallantry, superior to any one of his standing in India.