A Different Roll of the Dice

[galileo-034]

I expect that during the peace negociations, France would have Canada back in exchange for Hannover, albeit they shall eventually renounce its claims over disputed areas of the Ohio country, but would they be returned Louisbourg like during previous wars.

Is there anything of importance happening in the gulf of Mexico, and the Carribean, or to happen next?

EDIT: For Silesia, I must say I'm surprised by the devil's luck of Prussians. While they seem on the verge of collapse, they still manage to put up a fight and even defeat both Russians and Austrians.
I'm also surprised that the Autrians look in so bad shape. They have larger ressources than Prussia and their homeland is not as much affected by the war as Prussia's, so I would have expected von Daun to replace his losses much more easily.
I hope Russia won't exit the war as IOTL, but I feel French successes in Hannover may make up for any eventual Russian withdrawal.

I wonder if you have plans to continue this TL beyond the war's conclusion as I must say it's the best I've ever read on this period.

 

[Canis Lupis]

Absolutely love how you have turned an inconsequential POD into a timeline that is quite different from our own. I don't know enough about events of this period to comment, short of those that occurred on the North American continent, but I love this so far.

When the Nine Year's War concludes, will you be posting a map showing the territorial gains of the victors/territorial losses of the defeated? Would love to get a visual on this.

 

[0100010]

I expect that during the peace negociations, France would have Canada back in exchange for Hannover, albeit they shall eventually renounce its claims over disputed areas of the Ohio country, but would they be returned Louisbourg like during previous wars.

Is there anything of importance happening in the gulf of Mexico, and the Carribean, or to happen next?

EDIT: For Silesia, I must say I'm surprised by the devil's luck of Prussians. While they seem on the verge of collapse, they still manage to put up a fight and even defeat both Russians and Austrians.
I'm also surprised that the Autrians look in so bad shape. They have larger ressources than Prussia and their homeland is not as much affected by the war as Prussia's, so I would have expected von Daun to replace his losses much more easily.
I hope Russia won't exit the war as IOTL, but I feel French successes in Hannover may make up for any eventual Russian withdrawal.

I wonder if you have plans to continue this TL beyond the war's conclusion as I must say it's the best I've ever read on this period.

The fortress of Louisbourg was destroyed like in OTL, If France gets it back it will be a pile of rocks.

Yes, there are things happening in the Caribbean this year. I try to focus on just one geographical region at a time for a given year. 1761 has been very...busy.

Yep the Prussian's rolling high. The Austrian army is less efficient and more expensive, most nations are are compared to Prussia's which is why, like in OTL, so many of them adopted the Prussia model afterwards. Northern Moravia and Prague has been hit by the war. Brandenburg proper has gotten off light so has eastern Pomerania except near Kolberg & Koslin. Middle and lower Silesia, and West Germany is what has been torn to shreds.

Hanover (the region) isn't fully conquered yet.

I do plan on continuing it past this war, though it might be a while. I'll probably have to adopt a shorter format.

Absolutely love how you have turned an inconsequential POD into a timeline that is quite different from our own. I don't know enough about events of this period to comment, short of those that occurred on the North American continent, but I love this so far.

When the Nine Year's War concludes, will you be posting a map showing the territorial gains of the victors/territorial losses of the defeated? Would love to get a visual on this.

Thank you, and yes, a post war map will be done, with a detailed breakdown of who traded what.

 

[Canis Lupis]

Looking forward to it. I'm mainly a historian of US politics, so I'm afraid I can't contribute too much to the military history of the European/Indian theaters, but I can't wait for the next update. Watching this one closely.

 

[0100010]

Indian Theatre Part II

Bussy’s victory over the British at Wandiwash and Pondicherry, and d’Ache arrival with the French East India fleet was a much needed relief to the French forces stationed in India. The British presently were holding back from any further offensives, momentarily content to stay in Bengal, and hold Madras and Masilpatum. With Lally dead, Bussy was firmly re-established as the acting commander of French forces in India. News of events in India returned to France with some company ships which departed in January, and arrived in Paris in April.

The French East India company factories, ports, or settlements that had been in India at the start of the war consisted of the following: Karaikal and Pondicherry in the south Carnatic coast region. French held Yanam was in the north Carnatic coast and had been lost to the British after their victory at the battle of Rajahmudry and Masilpatum. Chandernagar in Bengal had also been lost to the British. Factories in Surat, on the Marathan northwest coast, had been sacked and occupied by the British with little resistance. Mahe on the Mysore west coast was still held by the French. While Madras was briefly held by the French it was recaptured by the British. The only sustained French conquest was of Fort St. David and Cuddelore, which was taken from the British in 1758. [1] Plans to abandon the town were cancelled due to French victories in defending Wandiwash and Pondicherry from British attack. Bussy instead ordered the French presence at Cuddelore and Mahe to be strengthened and reinforced.

Fort Vijf Sennen and Nagapattinum and other Dutch East India company holdings on the south Carnatic coast, were largely left alone as a neutral party.

After his victories Bussy had spent considerable time engaging in diplomacy with the Nizam of Hyderabad: Salabat Jung (Mir Sa’id Muhammad Khan), and the Prince of Mysore: Hyder Ali. To this end Bussy was largely successful, establishing expanded alliances with both Mughal states and encouraging them to ally with each other in the face of British and Maratha aggression.

The main conflicting points Bussy had with Salabat Jung was his prior parley with the British in which he had recognized their conquest at Masulipatum and had granted the British East India company tracts of coastal land to operate from, which the areas that were once French rule or French influence. It would require a whole hearted defeat of the British in the north Carnatic in order to reverse that and Bussy did not think that such a task could presently be managed.

Jung however, was at least recalcitrant toward the British. The French had originally helped to bring him into power in Hyderabad, and he certainly had not approved of the initial British attacks and seizures of the northern French company assets in the preceding years, but was forced to reconcile with them after Clive’s victories.

After the death of the Nawab of the Carnatic, Anwarrudin Khan in 1749 the French had backed Chanda Shahib, while the British had backed Muhammad Ali Khan Wallajah. In the various battles this contest of power provoked, Shahib had died in battle in 1752, leaving the French without an immediate contender for the position. Wallajah had received a firman from the Mughal Emperor, Alamgir II, confirming his possession of the Carnatic and the title of Viceroy in 1751. However Jung had still not acknowledged this and after the emperor’s death in 1759 was even less likely to because of the rivalries between the Khan, Jung and Ali. Hyder Ali was especially incensed at Khan and the British because of Khan’s refusal to honor his promise of surrendering Tiruchirappalli to him in 1751.

To this end Bussy, Ali, and Jung proposed a partition of the southern and central Carnatic. The French East India Company, in exchange for their aid, would gain new factories, forts and collection rights from the conquered areas, and those previously taken by the British would be restored if they were recaptured.

Lally’s prior failed raids against Tanjore three years prior in order to gain revenue had not been entirely unsound as a strategy, and it did lead to the brief capture of Madras. The main difference was that Bussy recognized the need for greater allied support among the Indian princes, and did not treat them or their Sepoy forces so badly. [2]

The Hindu were in control of the Tanjore region, which was a nominal Maratha ally. Hyder Ali coveted that area, in addition to opposing the British backed Nawab of the Carnatic. Salabat Jung was also urged on by the French, to accept the proposition of Raja Shahib, the eldest son of Chanda Shahib as a contender against Wallajah, and a figure from which to rally his father’s supporters around.]

Battle of Tiruchirappalli

Bussy’s European forces in India had been reinforced by the arrival of troops, supplies, and monies with de Ache’s fleet the prior December. But in order to execute a sustained campaign, he needed to deliver on his promises of aid to Hyder Ali and Salabat Jung to maintain their continued support.

Hyder Ali wanted the return of Tiruchirappali from Wallajah, and chose to take it by force. On February 20th, 500 French India Company soldiers, led by Claude-François Depardieu [3] and several guns would joined 2,000 Mysore forces against the city. A company of about 120 British East Indian forces and around 1000 of Wallajah’s Carnatic forces met them in battle in an attempt to stop the invasion.

Battle Results:
French-Mysore Forces: ~200 Indian casualties
British-Carnatic (Wallajah faction) Forces: ~350 Indian, 0 British casualties. 120 British captured. Unknown number of Carnatic forces captured. All guns captured.

Clear French-Mysore Victory.

Sympathizers to Raja Shahib had aided in the approach of the French-Mysore forces and disrupted effective resistance in the city, which fell after a short battle between the Mysore and Wallajah’s Carnatic forces. The British force which had only been there mostly as a show of force and assistive administration soon surrender after being surrounded.

With the fall of Tiruchirappalli, the way was opened for Hyder Ali to campaign across the southern Carnatic pushing toward the coast by the end of spring. In exchange for the their support, Hyder Ali granted factories to the French East India Company in the city of Tiruchirappali, and the coastal villages of Vedaranyam and eventually Thoothukudi.

Battle of Vellore

While Depardieu and Hyder Ali took Tiruchirappalli, Bussy and Raja Shahib themselves along with additional Mysore Indian allies as well as the French East India Company Sepoys matched against Vellore from multiple directions. The Mysore came from the west and the French and Sepoy forces from the south. During this time, Pondicherry had been reinforced, and d’Ache sailed north to harass and blockade the British in Madras. Although the French did not pursue a formal siege, their presence made the British hesitate in sending much in the way of relief forces westward once they became aware of the French and Mysore actions.

Administrators in Vellore paid the French 15,000 rupees to avoid a major battle in the town, just like they had paid 30,000 to the British mere month ago to Coote before his loss at Wandiwash. A 150 strong British East Indian Company force which had been in the fort were not so willing to be bribed.

On February 22nd, a 6000 strong combined French-Mysore-Carnatic (Shahib faction) force surrounded the fort of Vellore, and engaged in a brief artillery dual with the British and some Indian defenders.

Battle Results:
French-Mysore-Carnatic (Shahib faction) Forces: 15 casualties.
British-Carnatic (Wallajah faction) Forces: 20 casualties, the remaining captured.

Clear French-Mysore-Carnatic (Shahib faction) victory.

The fast attack and unexpected assistance from the Mysore took the defenders by surprise. Though with also the town itself having effectively capitulated, there was little the defenders could do once a wall section had been breached and they surrendered after at least putting up some resistance.

For sparing the town the French also demanded the fort be turned over.

Siege of Arcot

After Coote’s loos at Wandiwash his forces retreated back to Arcot whom they had taken from the French the prior year only weeks before their defeat. Bussy had been unable to pursue and retake the city because of the British attacks on Pondicherry. By the time Pondicherry had been successfully defended, the British had reinforced and fortified Arcot, which was the administrative capitol of the Carnatic, and where the (de jure) Nawab of the Carnatic, Muhammad Ali Khan Wallajah was presently residing. The reinforcement of Arcot had (temporarily) placed it out of reach of recapture until the arrival of d’Ache in late December, but soon after that Bussy was occupied with critical negotiations with Ali and Jung.

Now with the British facing potential pressure from Pondicherry, the sea, as well as moves by Jung to the northwest of Madras, Bussy moved against Arcot swiftly after taking Vellore. The siege of Arcot began in full on February 23rd.

Battle of Ranipet

Clive could not ignore the renewed French advances on the Carnatic, and despite facing pressures in Bengal against the Mughal Prince Ali Gauhar, and in the Carnatic. Pocock’s fleet was in repair near Calcutta after their most recent defeat by d’Ache, and some of the ships had even sailed for England. While the French fleet blockaded Madras, the forces in Pondicherry had not mustered out to besiege the fort, so supplies and communications were still coming in by land to the north. Sending out too large of a force to lift the French siege of Arcot would risk and invasion by French forces in Pondicherry. However, losing Arcot and risking the capture of Wallajah was too much of a risk, so Clive went forth with 600 British forces and over a thousand Indian Sepoys to face Bussy in battle again. Clive’s forces arrived in Ranipet north of Arcot on March 6th, while picking up nearly 400 of Wallajah’s Carnatic forces along the way. There they engaged the French-Mysore-Carnatic forces led by Bussy.

Battle Results:
French-Mysore-Carnatic (Shahib faction) forces: ~500 casualties
British-Carnatic (Wallajah faction) forces: ~600 casualties, 400 captured. Arcot garrison surrendered.

Clear French-Mysore-Carnatic (Shahib faction) victory.

The 2000 strong British allied forces may have been a match for the 6000 strong French allied forces, but they were forced to divert and take on increasing casualties because Walljah, fearing execution if he were to be captured, sallied forth from the siege when Robert Clive arrived. While Wallajah succeeded in escaping, he did so at the cost of a losing Arcot, causing higher casualties and the capture of a few hundred British East Indian Company forces. Clive and Wallajah the retreated with the remaining forces back toward Madras. The siege of Arcot ended after the victory falling to French allied hands on March 6th.

Battle of Arrakonam

French forces in Pondicherry were indeed waiting for British forces to leave, but not to then besiege Madras, but to make excursions into the British supply lines running from Madras toward Arcot.

While Clive and Wallajah retreated with half the forces Clive had left with, he encountered French Company forces from Pondicherry in wait at Arrakonam, in the midst of raiding his own supply trains. Bussy was already in pursuit from the west after mopping up in Arcot. On March 8th, The British allied forces of just fewer than 1000 faced off against the French East India company forces and their Indian Sepoys of about 1200. With this French force poised to cut off his retreat to Madras, and the risked of getting caught between it and Bussy’s forces, Clive was forced to attack immediately.

Battle Results:
British-Carnatic (Wallajah faction) forces: ~200 casualties
French East Indian Company forces: ~350 casualties

British Victory.

When Bussy plan was indeed to trap Clive between himself and the excursion forces thing do not always go according to plan, and Clive was able to break through after a strong immediate attack against the French who had over relied on less trained freshly recruited Sepoy forces. The French forces fled and Clive and Wallajah made it back to Madras.

Battle of Markapur

While the French and the Mysore were campaigning in the south Carnatic against the British and the Nizam of Hyderabad, Salabat Jung executed his own campaigns against the central Carnatic region.

Jung sent a 5,000 strong force into the central Carnatic as part of the French and Mysore alliance terms, putting pressure on the Wallajah faction’s Carnatic forces, and to drive to the coast to cut off Madras from northern British holdings in the Circars by land. On March 2nd, Jung’s force met in battle against a 3500 strong force loyal to Wallajah near the city of Markapur.

Battle Results:
Nizam Forces: ~300 casualties
Carnatic (Wallajah faction) forces: ~500 casualties

Clear Nizam Victory

With a victory after the first strong resistance, Jung‘s commanders continue their southeastward push through the central Carnatic region.

Battle of Mahe

While much of the Fighting or proxy fighting between the British and the French occurred on the east coast of India, the British East India company had prepared plans for an attack on French East India Company possessions on the West coast as well. Taking Surat in the north had succeeded, but that left the French presence in Mahe toward the south. British forces set sail from Bombay in the early spring to attack and take Mahe, landing on April 7th.

Battle Results:
British allied Forces: ~100 casualties, 50 captured,
French-Mysore forces: ~60 casualties

Clear French-Mysore Victory

Unbeknownst to the British expeditionary force, during their transit at sea, Bussy’s reinforcement had arrived at Mahe. This made for a larger, tougher opposition than their intelligence had first determined when they arrived. With several hundred on each side however they were about evenly matched, and the British had went forward with the attack. The French called upon their Mysore allies while they held off the British. When the Mysore forces arrived the next day, the British realized they would not be able to succeed and retreated to their ships, while under fire, and sailed back to Bombay.

French-Mysore Invasion of Tanjore (Thanjavur)

Pratap Singh Bosole was the Hindu ruler of Tanjore and its surrounding district, in nominal alliance to the Maratha. He had supported the British with arms and supplies against the French only a few years earlier, and had defeated, captured and executed Chanda Shahib in 1752. He also helped defeat Lally incursion and raids toward Tanjore in 1758, after which a company of British East India forces were placed in the city to aid in its defense. These were reasons enough for Bussy to press for coordination with Mysore to take Tanjore.

After taking Tiruchirappalli Claude-François Depardieu led the French-Mysore army further into Tanjore to lay siege to the fortress there. Chanda Shahib’s former supporters had also gathered and recruited forces to supplement the French-Mysore army, swelling their ranks by several hudred to around 3000.

Battle of Alakudi

Bhonsle send a 6000 strong Tanjore army out to meet the French-Mysore threat, wher they did battle on February 26th near the village of Alakudi.

Battle Results:
French-Mysore forces: ~300 casualties
Tanjore Forces: ~1200 casualties

Despite being out numbered, the better trained French-Mysore forces ambushed the approaching Tanjore forces, assailing them with well placed artillery fire, and cutting off routes of retreat putting the Tanjore army into a rout. The way was now open to the siege of Tanjore itself.

Siege of Tanjore

The siege began a few days later on March 1st, against Tanjore and British forces number around 700. Likewise another thousand French forces had marched from Kariakal (this time with sufficient provisions) to take the countryside and approach form the east, reinforcing the French-Mysore Army, a few days after the siege began, and harassing and repulsing what few Tanjore forces Bosole had tried to send their way. D’Ache also had his fleet patrolling from Madras to the southern tip of the Coromandel Coast, preventing British relief and communication to the area. Word did finally reach Clive in Madras in late March, but he was in little position to help at the time. Though he sent word to Pocock and force in Bengal to move south as soon as possible and put an end the French Fleet.

Siege Results:
French-Mysore-Carnatic (Shahib faction) Forces: ~200 casualties
British-Tanjore Forces: ~100 Tanjore casualties, ~100 British forces captured, 500 Tanjore captured. Pratap Singh Bosole and the royal family of Tanjore captured.

French-Mysore Victory

The siege lasted a little over a month before the threat of starvation and desertion among the Tanjore forces resulted in a surrender on April 3rd.

After his capture, Pratap Singh Bhonsle would be sent north in chains to Arcot, where Raja Shahib would have him executed on May 31st, in revenge for ordering the execution of of his father. He had tried to arrange for his survival in exchange for his surrender, but only succeeded in obtain the promise of safety for his family. The Mysore and the French looted the region of much of its wealth to pay for the current and future expeditions.

Thuljali II, the eldest son of Pratap Singh, was allowed to remain as governer of the city in a much reduced region of Tanjore, subject to being a vassal of Raja Shahib. By the years end, Thuljali signed treaties which effectively ended the Tanjore dynasty, and made him subordinate to the French East India Company and the Carnatic region held by Raja Shahib (Which was in turn propped up by the French India, Mysore and Nizam states.)

Hyder Ali would annex the western parts of the Tanjore region, which included Tiruchirappalli. The French East India Company obtained factory rights in Tanjore and some additional coastal villages. Coiladdy, a trading post-fort taken by Bhonsle in 1758 was also returned to the French.

Polygar Revolts

Polygars were various governors in southern India who traditionally ruled with autonomy and had rights to collect taces of their subjects. South India was placed under the overlordship of the Nawab of the Carnatic which was the British backed Muhhamad Ali Khan Wallajah. His initial attempts to collect taxes from the region in the early 1750s frequently resulted in small wars with the local polygars, which resulted in his increasing dependence on the British East India Company for support. In 1755 Wallajah and the British sent a significant army to the region to force compliance. Significant destruction was wrought on the area by the British and Nawab’s force before the British were recalled from the area due to the outbreak of the war with France. In 1756 Muhhamad Yusef Khan was sent to the area again to collect revenue, but was unsuccessful and only resulted in stirring up significant additional rebellion and animosity with the polygars, until he too was recalled to Madras. He was killed by Lally’s forces during the Siege of Madras in 1758.

Puli Thevar, one of the leading polygars of the area, had formed a grand alliance among the polygars and declared effective Independence from the Nawab of the Carnatic in 1757. With the incursion of French-Mysore forces against Wallajah control and after their victories in Tiruchirappalli, Alakudi, and Tanjore; Puli Tuvar emerged further as a principal leader in the area, by taking further advantage of the war to evict Carnatic control. It was during the siege of Tanjore that communications were established between the French-Mysore forces and Puli Tuvar.

After the fall of Tanjore, emissaries from Hyder Ali and the French approached Puli Tuvar, who was know to be an enemy of Wallajah and opposed the British. He also wanted to thank the French for putting an end to Yusef Khan outside Madras. A tentative alliance was formed, in which the Polygars now backed by the Mysore and the French revolted in mass. By early summer, before the monsoons, they wrested all of Southern India south of Madras away from Carnatic control.

With numerous conditions of relative autonomy, the right to collect taxes themselves, and fair taxation levels, most of the polygars decided to accept over lordship from the Mysore instead of the Carnatic. The French Company thereupon also obtained their factory and coastal right in Thoothukudi.

Hyder Ali, had no strong objections to this arrangement, made formal by the end of the year, as he wanted to bring his forces back north to take advantage of Marathan weakness on his northern border using the plunder received from Tanjore. As part of the arrangement, Puli Tuvar would later be made direct administrator over the Madurai region and the areas to the south and west of it.

Additionally, Puli Tuvar, wanting to seek additional triumph against Wallajah and the British, accompanied the French-Mysore forces northwards, with a sizable contingent of his own forces.

[1] Fort St. David and Cuddelore was taken by the French from the British in 1758 as in OTL. I accidentally omitted this from my prior updates.
[2] The French East India Company failed to take Tanjore in OTL 1758. TTL the raid attempts were less extensive, and thus less of a failure but still a failure. This was another omission from prior updates.
[3] Claude-François Depardieu is a new name/personality for TTL.

 

[Hecatee]

It feels like almost all of the previous French defeats have been reverted and their new gains definitively tip the balance of power in their favor. Great update !

 

[0100010]

Indian Theater Part III

Siege of Ongole

Jung’s force had continued their march southeast to take control over the central Carnatic region, reaching the city of Ongole on March 5th. There Carnatic forces loyal to Walljah defended a fort in which the 4500 strong forces of the Nizam of Hyderabad, Salabat Jung then put under siege. Some 2000 forces consisting of the existing garrison and those survivors who had retreated from Markapur and regathered defended the city and fortress there.

Siege Results:
Nizam Forces: ~500 casualties
Carnatic (Wallajah faction) forces: ~700 casualties. ~1000 captured. Fortress surrendered.[/FONT]

Clear Nizam victory

After a siege of over two weeks, the defenders finally surrendered on March 21st, after besieging artillery had breached their walls.

Battle of Eluru

While Ongole first came under siege, requests for aid had come from Carnatic forces to the British in Masulipatnum. Though without direct word from Clive (who was soon to be trapped in Madras) the British didn’t act until Nizam forces had begun to gather north of the British held fort. When rumors began arriving of the Mysore-Nizam-French Carnatic invasion, a 1500 strong British force led by Lieutenant-Colonel Francis Forde went forth from Masulipatnum on March 13th, to engage over 3000 Nizam forces gathering in Eluru.

Battle Results:[/FONT]
British East Indian forces: ~150 casualties
Nizam forces: ~500 casualties

Clear British Victory
Despite being outnumber over two to one, Forde effectively routed the larger Nizam force, causing them to retreat back into the Deccan plateau. After ending the immediate threat to Masulipatnum, Forde turned southwest to respond to the calls for aid by their Carnatic allies.

Battle of Guntar

Forde, turning southwest to assist the British Carnatic allies, marched over the Krishna River to attack another gathering of Nizam forces in Guntar on March 17th. Forde’s 1400 strong force had been reinforces only marginally by retreating Carnatic forces, but was an closer match against the 2000 strong Nizam forces that were marching on Guntar.

Battle Results:
British East Indian forces: ~200 casualties
Nizam forces: ~400 casualites

Clear British Victory

Again a superior Nizam force was routed by the Briitsh and fled. Forde though was concerned about straying too far from their fortress at Masulipatnum. If he were defeated, it would leave Masulipatnum vulnerable. Forde continued south, but arrived too late to prevent the fall of Ongole. He learned of the further extent of the allaiance, and fearing a possible counter-attack against Masulipatnum, returned there and sent immideate requests for reinforcements from British held Bengal.

Battle of Nellore

After their victory at Ongole, Jung was preparing to confront Forde, but after Forde retreated north again, Salabut Jung led a contigent south to meet up with Shahib faction Carnatic forces near Nellore north of Madras along the Penna River. They were accompanied by a two French artillery teams and a few French officers. On March 29th, a Nizam-Carnatic (Shahib) force of 3500 against a 3000 strong Carnatic (Wallajah) force led by Muhhamad Ali Khan Wallajah himself, some British guns and two (low-ranking) British officers.

Battle Results:
French-Nizam-Carnatic (Shahib) forces: ~200 casualties. (0 French)
Carnatic (Wallajah) forces: ~600 casualties, 200 captured. (1 British officer captured)

Clear French-Nizam-Carnatic victory.

Despite their victory, Muhhamad Ali Khan again escaped fleeing back to Madras. This loss effectively ruined his hold on the Carnatic, and his support began to wither away as French allied forces as Bussy prepared for his final objective of once again taking Madras.

Third Siege of Madras

Even thugh Bussy very much wanted to bring a siege to Madras as soon as possible, even after securing Mysore and Nizam as allies, his primary limiting factor was funds to pay for what he knew would be a long-term siege. This was the purpose of the expedition across the Carnatic and in Tanjore, to acquire funds, even though with his agreements more than half of the revenue gained would go to his allies. It was enough, so long as Clive stayed trapped in Madras. So far that had been successful but d’Ache increasingly complaining about keeping his fleet in once place for so long.

Bussy could not make a direct move against Madras until all his and his allies’ forces had returned. It took until April 20th, even with the help of the French fleet in transport, for the southern forces led by Depardieu to return to Pondicherry with their plunder. They also brought a new ally Puli Tuvar, and a few hundred soldiers sworn to him. Significant funds for supplies were need also because the siege would persist through ther Monsoon season, when normally there was a significant lull in fighting. Even if the French fleet had to retreat in the face of approaching storms, the British Fleet would also face the same weather hazards.

Khan’s remaining Carnatic forces had fallen back to Madras. The rest of the Carnatic was falling to Mysore, Shahib and Nizam forces as per the general division agreements made before the campaign back in January. While Khan’s forces bolstered the Madras defense, they would also eat up more of their supplies, and were dwarfed by the combined, French, Mysore, Nizam, Shahib, and Polygar forces which numbered just over 20,000 arrayed against about 6,000 Madras defenders. The Third Siege of Madras began in full on May 4th.

Battle of Kattupalli Island

On May 28th, word finally reached Calcutta of Clive’s request for aid. Word from Forde had also arrived earlier and the Bengal forces were already preparing the Fleet for departure and reinforcement. Additiuonal forces had to be pulled form the western Bengal front in order to allow a counter-attack from Masulipatnum to attempt to lift the siege as well as offset the losses in Marine Pocock’s fleet had suffered in the failed attempt to take Pondicherry the prior December.

Pocock’s fleet would sail forth and meet d’Ache’s fleet yet again off Kattupalli Island, while Madras was under siege. By the time they arrived on June 20th (after dropping off reinforcement at Masulipatnum), the coming Monsoon storm clouds could be seen on the horizon.

French Admiral Anne Antoine Comte de’Ache commanded the French fleet consisting of the, Centuare (70), Comte-de-Provence (68), Fortune (58), Conde (44), Duc d’Berry (44), Revenge (28) (ex-british), Queenborough (24) (ex-british), Vigilant (20), Elephant (20), and several support ships of less than 20 guns.

Admiral Pocock commanded the British fleet consisting of HMS Weymouth (60), Medway (60), Hampshire (50), Salisbury (50), Newcastle (50), Mary Galley (44), Alborough (20), Deal Castle (20), and some smaller support ships of less than 20 guns.

Battle Results:
French Forces: Duc d’Berry (44) sunk, Revenge (28) (ex-british) sunk, 3 support ships lost, moderate to significant damage to remaining fleet.
British Forces: HMS Deal Castle (20) sunk, moderate damage to remaining fleet.

British Victory

While d’Ache put up a strong fight, he saw two of his frigates go to the bottom, the British didn’t even try to capture, while his forces had only managed to sink one small British frigate. He might have pressed the attack on, but a lucky cannon shot took off his head. His second in command wasn’t as eager to stick around, and called a retreat.

The reason the British didn’t try to capture is that they were short of marines, had the French engaged close they might have fared better. Once the French were in retreat Pocock stayed long enough only to resupply Madras then pursued the French fleet toward Pondicherry. Pocock could not offer any reinforcements of significance to Clive or help to lift the siege, but advised him that forces from Masulipatnum were marching south. Clive in return gave instruction to Pocock, the French alliance with the Mysore and Nizam needed to be broken or weakened. At the minimum, their attention needed to be drawn away, even if it meant proposing alliance with the Maratha.

Pocock sent one ship back to Masulipatnum and Calcutta to bring word of events. Muhammad Ali Khan Wallajah, demanded to be placed on it with a contingent of his guard, promising he could muster reinforcements in the north. Since his arrival at Madras (and again after he retreated form losing at Nellore) Clive had found him to be unpredictable, duplicitous, and annoying. Yet the man owed the Company a great deal of money from numerous loans. A dead man could not pay anything back, so he relented and put Khan on the ships bound for Masulipatnum and Calcutta, along with all their wounded and non-combatants. That made for fewer mouths to feed as well. Behind the French ships, and coming out of partial hiding in the Sangarabarani River mouth, were several fresh undamaged ships that had not been part of the prior battle moved out to intercept. With southwest monsoon winds coming at their backs, by the time Pocock had turned around it was too late to avoid a battle.

Battle of Kottakuppam

Admiral Pock had pursued the French fleet to Pondicherry. He arrived in a few days, on June 23rd, and found them sheltering under the protection of the forts guns, attempting repairs. Pocock knowing his ships where in better shape and that he now outnumbered the French moved in. As he got close though he realized he had made an error in judgement.

Joseph de Bauffremont, had arrived in India from France that morning in command of a small fleet that had broken out of the medditerrenean after the Battle of Gibraltar Bay in March. He had make execellent time, arriving at Pondicherry on June 23rd. He had gotten debriefed on recent events, and was preparing to sail toward Madras to assist Bussy and d’Ache in their siege when d’Ache’s fleet (sans d’Ache) came into view. After getting a report on the most recent events, he took command of d’Ache’s fled and hid his ships in the river mouth waiting for Pocock to arrive. He then ventured his and d’Ache’s former fleet forth to engange in battle.

French Admiral Joseph de Bauffremont commanded the French fleet consisting of the Minotaure (74), Bertin (64), Centuare (70)*, Comte-de-Provence (68)*, Fortune (58)*, Favorite (44), Conde (44)*, Bouffonne (32), Queenborough (24)* (ex-british), Vigilant (20)*, Elephant (20), and some support ships of less than 20 guns.

Admiral Pocock commanded the British fleet consisting of HMS Weymouth (60)*, Medway (60)*, Hampshire (50)*, Salisbury (50)*, Newcastle (50), Mary Galley (44)*, Alborough (20), and some smaller support ships of less than 20 guns.

*Ships with pre-existing damage.

Battle Results:
French Forces: Conde (44) comdemn for damage, Queenborough (24) foundered, 2 support ships lost. 2/3rd of other ships suffered additional damage.
British Forces: HMS Salisbury (50) captured, Hampshire (50) grounded and burnt to avoid capture, 2 support ships lost, 1 captured. All other ships incurred significant to moderate damage.

French Victory

Pocock this time was forced to retreat, unable to risk further close combat and boarding actions with the French ships. He sent one small fast support ship to Madras with word, and made for Calcutta.

The French Fleet did not pursue beyond Madras, while the ships with significant damage remained in Pondicherry, those fit enough resumed the siege at Madras, arriving only two days later. However their stay was short as the monsoon storms and rain moved in, forcing them to return to shelter in Pondicherry.

While morale for the Madras forces had gone up after their resupply and when the French fleet had been chased off, it sank again upon the returning sight of French ships off the coast, once again blockading the city. Clive held out hope though that Forde and the forces from Masulipatnum could make a difference.

For Bussy word had come from France. He had been made commander of all French forces beyond the Horn of Africa. News also brought word that Spain had entered the war as allies of France, and that France was now also at war with Portugal. Bussy under his new authority, appointed Bauffremont as acting commander of the French Indian ocean fleet to replace the loss of d’Ache.

Battle of Sangam

Lieutenant-Colonel Francis Forde marched a British-Sepoy-Carnatic force of over 7000 though the central Carnatic in the hopes of relieving the siege of Madras. They had set off on June 7th, but due to torrential rains from the monsoons, and skirmishes with Nizam forces along the way, they made very slow progress. As they neared Nellore in late June, Forde saw that Penna River was swollen, and had to go upstream for a better place to cross. Bussy, based on both rumors and interrogation of the captured sailors from the HMS Salisbury and Hampshire, expected the coming march and went forth with nearly half his besieging force, near 10,000 in total to find and stop Forde. The Penna River proved just as much of an obstacle to Bussy, but time was on his side.

Finally on July 5th Forde found a place he could try to cross at Sangam. Bussy was waiting for him, but failed to ambush Forde as he had hoped. Attempts at artillery fire from both sides proved difficult as the torrential rains had gotten the powder stores of both sides wet to varying degrees. Cannon and musket fire was only sporadically successful, and the clashes soon erupted into a series of bloody bayonet charges, and hand to hand fighting.

Battle Results:
French allied forces: ~1100 casualties.
British allied forces: ~700 casualties, 12 men captured, 3 guns captured.

French allied victory

After making two failed assaults and repulsing one from Bussy, Forde withdrew his forces back across the river, and was forced to abandon some cannon and wagons which got stuck in the mud. He surmised he would not win a battle of attrition against his foe, who could also stay on the defensive and wait him out. Reports of skirmish attacks on his long supply line also forced his hand to return to Masulipatnum in failure. Bussy returned to Madras to resume the siege.

Third Siege of Madras concluded

The Third Siege of Madras had begun on May 4th. The 6000 or so defenders had managed to get resupplied on June 19th. Bussy returned from his victory over Forde on July 20th, but even after trading a British prisoner to Clive to bring word of Forde’s defeat, he refused to surrender yet ‘until he had resisted all he could’. Artillery exchanges between the defenders and the besiegers had reached a lull during the heavy rains. Clive continued to defy Bussy into September until the monsoon rains had stopped, and the French fleet returned from Pondicherry. Clive knew though, that he was only delaying the inevitable, hoping for a British fleet arrival from England if Pocock was unable to further assist. After Clive’s latest refusal, Bussy pounded Madras with artillery fire from both sea and land for three days once the rains had stopped. Clive finally listened to and made a counter proposal to the terms offered.

Bussy, while determine in his efforts, saw the money and provision of maintaining such a large besieging force for so long begin to dwindle. Over the late summer, Salabat Jung pulled at first a thousand, and then another thousand off the siege and back to Hyderabad because of Maratha incursions on his northern border. Hyder Ali likewise did the same. Puli Tuvar, while he was happy to assist in the battle of Sangam, did not feel like sitting around for a siege, and returned south with his meager force. Madras also still held numerous French prisoners whom he didn’t want to starve to death.

Furthermore significant news had reached Bussy and his allies in very late August. The Mughal Prince Ali Gauhar (and brief unacknowledged Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II) had perished in battle agains the Maratha on June 10th. This resulted in the refusal of Hyder Ali and Salabat Jung to recognize Shuja-ud-Daula of Oudh, regency to the throne and declaring themselves independent kings. Raja Shahib also declared himself King of the Carnatic, (but was still de facto subservient as a sort of buffer state to counter-balance the ambitions of the two ‘new’ kings), and heavily supported by the French. Thusly forces of Raja Shahib remained by Bussy’s side.

Clive’s counter proposal was the surrender of Madras to the French for their release to Masulipatnum, and a six month truce from now till March of the following year. If Bussy did not accept, then he would stop feeding what scraps he could to the French prisoners, continue his defiance and make any assault on Madras a very costly one. Bussy wanted verification of the numbers and health of the French prisoners, and an unarmed volunteer was allowed entry to account for their totals. When the volunteer returned, he also reported to Bussy that Clive showed him he possessed perhaps at least several more weeks’ worth of provisions, but that there could be more not shown to him. With rationing and refusing to feed the prisoners as Clive threated, that could be stretched out to a few months.

Bussy was prepared to reluctantly agree, he had few means to house and feed any British prisoners taken anyway. Bussy though also added the conditions that the British East India Company withdraw their support and claims for Muhhamed Ali Khan Wallajah as Nawab of the Carnatic and recognize Raja Shahib instead, as well as the Mysore, Nizam and Carnatic independence, in light of the late Prince’s death. Clive stated that unofficially he would do so, once verified, though the British prisoners taken from the Battle of Sangam claimed that they had heard such. Bussy countered that unofficially he would honor the truce, unless orders form the King of France made him do otherwise. Clive responded in kind.

Bussy and Clive accepted the terms and the Krishna River west of Masulipatnum was chosen as the respective border between the British and French areas of influence for the duration of the truce. Clive surrendered Madras to the French on September 7th. Full prisoner exchanges were also included in the terms.

Siege Results:
British forces: ~300 casualties.
French allied forces: ~200 casualties

French Victory

It took just over a month for Clive and his forces to be escorted back to Masulipatnum. When he arrived he had learned his instructions to Calcutta had borne fruit. Emissaries from the British East India Company had approached Dattaji Sindhia of the Maratha and obtained an alliance. Company forces would aid in his conquests and defense, in exchange for trading factory rights along the Orissa coast, proving stepping stones to link British controlled Bengal to British holdings in the northern Circars. While Clive would honor the truce he made with Bussy, he would still fight the French by proxy to weaken their allies.

Mysore Invasion of Keladi

With plunder obtained from the Tanjore conquest to help fund a campaign and promised French support, Hyder Ali had been setting his sights on the remains of the Keladi Kingdom, a Maratha ally on his northern border. After the monsoons abated, Hyder Ali invaded in September, and preparation for this was one of the reasons he had pulled much of his forces away from Madras in the summer. The Kaladi Kingdom would fall to Mysore conquest over the next few months from September to December.

Bussy supported the invasion with French advisors, artillery teams and the French India Fleet off the western coast in the latter months. This was in exchange for the previously granted trading locales given by Hyder Ali, and Mysore support in the French conquest of Portuguese Goa.

Siege of Goa

While Bussy was technically in truce with the British, said truce made no mention of the Portuguese, nor had Bussy mentioned that Spain was now a French ally and that France was now at war with the Portuguese to Clive during his negotiations. Bussy was not sure if Clive knew that or not, he suspected not (at the time), as he believed Pocock’s ships had already been in India for a while and would thus not have been aware of developments in Iberia the preceding march. As soon as Clive and his soldiers were escorted north Bussy planned a campaign to conquest Goa.

The Siege began on October 12th. The French fleet led by Bauffremont blockade and shelled Goa’s coastal defenses, and Claude-François Depardieu led a 5,000 strong French-Mysore army in besieging the city from land. The siege lasted more than two months before Portuguese authorizes finally surrender to Depardieu when given an ultimatum about surrendering to a fellow Catholic power or letting the Mysore take control of the city. Goa surrendered on December 20th.

Siege results:
Portuguese Forces: ~500 casualties
French-Mysore Forces: ~250 casualties.

French-Mysore Victory.

In Oudh and Bengal

Muhammaed Ali Khan opted to sail onwards with the British to Calcutta, in order to make his appeal to the Mughal Prince Ali Gauhar for assistance. The British ship arrived in Calcutta on June 24th. Word had not yet reached Calcutta of the Prince’s demise at the time, so Khan set out toward Oudh. He only learned along the way, after already obtaining escort from soldiers from Oudh, of the events that had befallen north India in June.

Khan arrived in Faizabad on August 9th and now found himself a ‘guest’ of the Nawab of Oudh, Shuja-ud-Daula, while he regaled his tale to the self-declared regent of the Empire. The Nawab however took his tale to imply the British had become weak. With Clive trapped in Madras, and possible now a prisoner of the French, and withdrawing forces away from the north in an attempt to relieve the siege, he had an opportunity to strike.

The Nawab kept Khan and the family and guards that had travelled with him as guests until he acknowledge him as the regent to the Mughal Empire, which Khan would eventually relent to in the false hope of obtaining support in the reconquest of the Carnatic.

Shuja-ud-Daula, relying on the peace he had obtained with the Maratha, organized his armies to march against the Nawab of Bengal as the former Emperor Prince had tried to do before.

Battle of Dhanbad

Shuja-ud-Daula marched an army of ~30,000 into Bengal arriving near Dhanbad on October 2nd before meeting his first real resistance. The Nawab of Bengal had organized a force of ~20,000 supplemented by a few hundred of the Bengal European Regiment forces led by Major Carnac

Battle Results:
Bengal-British forces: ~2200 casualties.
Oudh forces: ~1500 casualties

Oudh Victory

The Bengal-British forces retreated before Oudhs greater numbers, but did so as a delaying tactic. Shuja-ud-Daula march toward Calcutta would slow immensely with many skirmishes and difficulty in foraging on the march.

Battle of Jamalpur, West Bengal

By October 18th, Shuja-ud-Daula had reached Jamalpur in West Bengal, a mere 50 miles from Calcutta, pursuing the Nawab of Bengal eastwards. The Nawab turned his forces to face Shuja-ud-Daula again, but this time he had obtained the full measure the the British East India Company forces. While it had taken just over a month for Clive and his forces to reach Masulipatnum, the majority of them were able to board ships to Calcutta there. Clive arrived in time with a sizable force to meed Shuja-ud-Daula in the field, and bolstering the Nawab of Bengals forces by a few thousand up to ~22,000 against Shuja-ud-Daula’s ~28,000.

Battle Results:
Oudh forces: ~4000 casualties, 1000 captured. Several guns captured.
British-Bengal forces: ~1600 casualties.

Clive routed the Oudh army and put Shuja-ud-Daula into a general retreat. While the Nawab of Oudh would recover later, the hastiness of Clive organizing the defense in light of his recent arrival presented an intimidate effective pursuit. Shuja-ud-Daula was able to escape back to Oudh with most of his army, while Clive reorganized British EIC forces in light of all the recent developments. A retaliatory offensive campaign against Oudh would wait until the New Year.

 

[0100010]

India for 1761 is complete. Some follow up events in North America and the Caribbean are all that is left for 1761, before posting the summary.

Some feedback would be appreciated.

 

[galileo-034]

As Hecatee did say, it looks like French defeats have been reversed. But I suspect that war would have ended before Bussy could take over Bengal.

EDIT: I've been somewhat surprised that the British navy performs so poorly, even if I've understood there were some losses at Pondichérry.

 

[DracoLazarus]

As Hecatee did say, it looks like French defeats have been reversed. But I suspect that war would have ended before Bussy could take over Bengal.

My guess is if war ended now, the French and English would trade back Hannover and Madras for Québec and France getting the Austrian Netherlands.

 

[galileo-034]

My guess is if war ended now, the French and English would trade back Hannover and Madras for Québec and France getting the Austrian Netherlands.

And Louisbourg ?

 

[DracoLazarus]

And Louisbourg ?

Where is this ? In India ? If it is, then the French will probably have it back.

 

[0100010]

Where is this ? In India ? If it is, then the French will probably have it back.

It is on Ilse Royal, the northern island of Nova Scotia, which I have already stated that the British destroyed the fortress after capturing it. It was destroyed precisely to prevent recapture and re-use by the French. (The British did this OTL too)

 

[galileo-034]

During the previous war, it was returned to France in exchange for Madras the French had conquered. And the fortress can still be rebuilt.

 

[galileo-034]

If you ever post finished parts of the TL (one post per year maybe) on the Finished TL forum, you could include the forgotten passages about India you mentioned in the previous update here, or you can post an addendum in this thread.

Your TL is one of the rare TLs where the absence of pictures goes unnoticed, the updates being so enjoyable and clear to read.
The only problem is about locations. If I can more or less situate the region of a battle, it's harder to follow the moves; if you could post some map to illustrate a campaign, that would help much.

Keep on, I'm impatient to see what happens in the Carribean.
Given how the French are performing in Hanover and India, another string of victories would give them a clear position of strength, regardless of the loss of New France (minus Louisiana). I already said that the British conquest of Canada put London in position of effectively claiming the Ohio country in a post war settlement, regardless of Canada restitution to France, but events in India make me wondering if France can also take the Ohio country, maybe by offering a bargain of the same kind the British did IOTL to France : keep Ohio country and we keep your so much richer colony of XXX, or we exchange them.

 

[DracoLazarus]

If you ever post finished parts of the TL (one post per year maybe) on the Finished TL forum, you could include the forgotten passages about India you mentioned in the previous update here, or you can post an addendum in this thread.

Your TL is one of the rare TLs where the absence of pictures goes unnoticed, the updates being so enjoyable and clear to read.
The only problem is about locations. If I can more or less situate the region of a battle, it's harder to follow the moves; if you could post some map to illustrate a campaign, that would help much.

Keep on, I'm impatient to see what happens in the Carribean.
Given how the French are performing in Hanover and India, another string of victories would give them a clear position of strength, regardless of the loss of New France (minus Louisiana). I already said that the British conquest of Canada put London in position of effectively claiming the Ohio country in a post war settlement, regardless of Canada restitution to France, but events in India make me wondering if France can also take the Ohio country, maybe by offering a bargain of the same kind the British did IOTL to France : keep Ohio country and we keep your so much richer colony of XXX, or we exchange them.

Indeed. Also, what is happening in the Carribean? It's the place where the richest colonies are, so it must be an important battlefield…

As for maps, I would enjoy seeing some too. One or two per year, a bit like I did in my War of theBurgundian Inheritance in Land of Wine and Beer, could prove incredibly useful.

 

[0100010]

I do plan on doing maps at some point but they are time consuming and the post updates themselves are already taking way longer than I planned for. As for locations, all of the place names Every single place name I have mentioned can be found on googlemaps, [though some might be using more modern names if I could not find an older name] I've also been having to time marching and sailing distances about who arrives where when or gets news about what when. (plus major contributing factors such as possible resistance or weather)

Next post will have some events in the Caribbean, but with the British focused on blockading the French and Atlantic coasts and operating in North America, neither side has had the resources to focus there (until now that is) The Caribbean will receive a much broader focus in 1762+.

 

[galileo-034]

You don't have to make the maps, just to post some that give an overview of the region.

 

[galileo-034]

Reviewing the TL from the beginning, I've just noticed there wasn't mentions of actions in the Carribean theater since 1757 and the Leeward Islands campaign. I find it a bit too peaceful.
Do you plan to include 1758 to 1760 actions in the next update?

 

[0100010]

Reviewing the TL from the beginning, I've just noticed there wasn't mentions of actions in the Carribean theater since 1757 and the Leeward Islands campaign. I find it a bit too peaceful.
Do you plan to include 1758 to 1760 actions in the next update?

OTL operations in the west indies were also in the latter parts of the war

The major ones being:

British expedition in November 58 - May 59 against Martinique and Guadalupe. (most of the action in 59) The attempt against Martinique failed, but against Guadalupe succeeded (only for disease to do a number n the British victors)

There were some Naval battle in 1760 but little else.

Dominica (not a rich/economic island) fell to the British in 1761.

A second campaign against Martinique and Cuba was in 62 and that's it.

First a significant factor in allowing those campaigns in 58-59 and 60 was the fall of Quebec City (and later Montreal). In TTL that was delayed by about a year. Consequently other things depending on that manpower and those ships also got delayed.

Second, the Fleet balance in the Caribbean after the the British retook St. Kitts and the French failed to take Antigua, went back to about even, giving neither side a real chance to go on the offensive with territory as the goal.

I believe I did mention though that there were trading seizures going on by both sides, but I am only bothering to track larger warship losses or captures.

Third, since the British are doing a bit less well at sea, and the French a bit better, the British ability to pursue offensive actions is diminished by the same amount.

So no, I don't think I am going to list anything of note prior to January 61 for the Caribbean theater. (though that doesn't mean preparations had not already been well underway in those preceding years)