Plassey gives the Company leverage over Bengal
Robert Clive’s force defeated Siraj al-Dawlah at Plassey with decisive support from defectors inside the nawab’s coalition. The battle did not instantly conquer India, but it gave the Company extraordinary influence over Bengal’s government and revenue.
Financial networks, court rivalries and private agreements mattered as much as battlefield strength. Treating Plassey as a purely military triumph hides the collaboration and coercion that made Company power possible.