Tag Archives: British

Black Hole of Calcutta

20 June 2024 By in History, Uncategorized Tags: , , , , Leave a comment

Victorious in a battle against the British on the evening of 20 June 1756 Indian Siraj-ud-Daulah, the ruler of Bengal, imprisoned 146 British troops, and British loyal Indian infantryman and civilians into a 14-by-18-foot Fort William of Calcutta jail cell at 8:00 at night. The prisoners were given no food or water. At 6:00 the following morning the prison cell was opened to find that only 23 of the prisoners remained alive, the rest having perished from suffocation or heat exhaustion.

The prison ever after has been known as the Black Hole of Calcutta.

John Holwell, the prisoner whose account the deaths of 123 persons is based on, acquitted Siraj-ud-Daulah of any guilt “and ascribed it to the malice of certain inferior officers.” Others suggest that the total number imprisoned in the cell equaled about 64 with 21 surviving; either way the number of incarcerated was far beyond the humane limits of the cell.

Source: Itihaas to History. Black Hole of Calcutta by Bruce Heydt, British Heritage, 2024. Wikipedia. Graphic: Artist conception of the Black of Hole of Calcutta, The Granger Collection NY.

Paul Revere Rides

18 April 2024 By in History, Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

On the evening of the 18th of April 1775 Paul Revere galloped through the countryside of Massachusetts to warn the populace that British were coming by water: one if by land, two if by water.

The next day the British, after crossing the Charles River from the Boston side, marched on Concord to try and capture colonial military supplies that had been stored there. The patriots knew of the British plans and moved most of their military equipment elsewhere.

The British had to pass through Lexington as they marched their way to Concord. The first shots between the British and Americans were fired at sunrise at Lexington, signaling the beginning of the Revolutionary War. After a minor skirmish in Lexington the British continued on their way to Concord.

The British marched to Concord with 700 troops and the Americans were eventually able to muster about 3500 militiamen although they only had about 77 at Lexington. During the Battles of Lexington and Concord on that day the British suffered 273 losses and the Americans 95.

Source: History.com and “The Many Rides of Paul Revere” by James Giblin published 2007. Photo of a painting showing Paul Rever’s Midnight Ride by Office of War Information http://www.archives.gov.