Trivia Question 1: Who was forced by indian troops into the black hole of calcutta?

One of the most infamous events in Indian history is the Black Hole of Calcutta incident. This tragic event took place on June 20, 1756, when Indian troops under the command of Siraj ud-Daulah, the Nawab of Bengal, forced a group of British prisoners into a small, cramped dungeon known as the Black Hole.

The British prisoners were captured during the Siege of Calcutta, and Siraj ud-Daulah ordered them to be imprisoned in the Black Hole as punishment for their defiance. The dungeon was only 18 feet long and 14 feet wide, and it quickly became overcrowded with over 140 prisoners. The lack of space, extreme heat, and lack of ventilation led to many of the prisoners suffocating and dying within hours.

One of the most well-known figures forced into the Black Hole of Calcutta was John Zephaniah Holwell, a British surgeon and administrator who survived the ordeal and later wrote an account of the incident. Holwell described the horrific conditions inside the dungeon, with prisoners fighting over the limited space and water as they struggled to survive.

The Black Hole of Calcutta incident became a symbol of British oppression in India and fueled anti-British sentiment among the Indian population. The British East India Company used the incident as a pretext to launch a military campaign against Siraj ud-Daulah, eventually leading to the Battle of Plassey in 1757.

Today, the Black Hole of Calcutta incident is remembered as a dark chapter in Indian history, highlighting the brutality and inhumanity of colonial rule. It serves as a reminder of the atrocities committed in the name of empire building and the importance of remembering and learning from the past.

For more information on the Black Hole of Calcutta incident and its historical significance, you can visit History.com or Britannica.com.