The Black Hole of Calcutta: Myth, Memory, and Empire

In 1756, Siraj-ud-Daulah, the young Nawab of Bengal, captured Calcutta from the East India Company. In the chaos, 146 British prisoners were locked overnight in a tiny guardroom — the 'Black Hole of Calcutta.' Only 23 survived. Or did they? This episode unpacks the controversy around the Black Hole, from the sole account by John Zephaniah Holwell to the skepticism of modern historians who question whether the event ever happened as described. We explore the political context: Siraj's grievances, the Company's fortifications, the flight of Governor Roger Drake. And we examine how the Black Hole became a rallying cry for imperial revenge, used to justify Clive's victory at Plassey the following year. Was it a tragedy, a fabrication, or propaganda? Lucas and Luna sift through the evidence, the exaggerations, and the legacy of one of British India's most enduring stories.

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