The Life of Robert, Lord Clive, Vol. 3 (of 3): Collected from the Family Papers Communicated by the Earl of PowisMalcolm, John
History
The Life of Robert, Lord Clive, Vol. 3 (of 3): Collected from the Family Papers Communicated by the Earl of Powis
Malcolm, John
Clive, Robert Clive, Baron, 1725-1774; India -- History -- British occupation, 1765-1947
own use, and I find great difficulty in procuring any other than what
has been adulterated, I depend on your judgment in purchasing some
that is perfectly good and genuine." When he first went to France, we
have seen that he had been able in some measure to reduce the quantity
which he had been in the habit of using during his previous illness.
In November, 1774, when in Berkeley Square, he had a violent return
of his complaint. On the 21st and 22d he endured extreme agony, and
had recourse, for relief, to powerful doses of laudanum. Though he
had perfect command of his faculties, he testified much impatience
under his sufferings. It is probable that the excessive acuteness
of the paroxysms of pain, arising from the gall-stones, combined
with the effects of the medicine which he had used, acting on his
feverish irritability, led to the melancholy event which ensued. The
feelings of disappointed hope, and wounded dignity, which had long
haunted his haughty soul, were but little calculated to soothe him at
such a moment. He expired on the 22d of November, soon after he had
completed his forty-ninth year, and was buried in his native parish of
Moreton-Say.
Lord Clive was one of those extraordinary men who give a character to
the period and country in which they live. His name cannot be erased
from the history of India, nor from that of Britain. Born in the rank
of a private gentleman, and launched out early in life into the wide
sea of Indian adventure, he soon far outstript all his competitors in
the race of fortune and fame. He was trained in the best of schools,
a state of danger, of suffering, and activity. He could not be said
to have any master in the art of war; he was, to adopt the language
of the great Chatham, "a heaven-born general;" and it was by the
boldness and novelty of his measures, the impetuosity of his onset,
and the imperturbable obstinacy of his defence, that he confounded
his enemies, and changed the hesitating troops under his command into
a band of heroes. He left nothing to chance: he foresaw and provided
for every thing. Victory seemed to attend him wherever he turned,
and no enterprise was too arduous where he was the leader. The same
success and the same renown which distinguished him in the Carnatic,
attended him in Bengal. From the date of the battle of Plassey, his
reputation in that country was established; and all his negotiations
with the native princes were from that day forward concluded more by
the influence of his great name, than by the energy of his determined
character.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account