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The commander John Zephaniah Holwell wrote an account of the incident in which he claims of 146 prisoners, 123 suffocated. His story was widely accepted at the time in Britain and used for anti-Indian propaganda.
Modern research indicates that less than two dozen soldiers died.
The following account from a 1911 encyclopedia shows how long-lived his story was.
"The dungeon was a strongly barred room and was not intended for the confinement of more than two or three men at a time. There were only two windows, and a projecting veranda outside and thick iron bars within impeded the ventilation, while fires raging in different parts of the fort suggested an atmosphere of further oppressiveness. The prisoners were packed so tightly that the door was difficult to close."
"One of the soldiers stationed in the veranda was offered 1,000 rupees to have them removed to a larger room. He went away, but returned saying it was impossible. The bribe was then doubled, and he made a second attempt with a like result; the nawab was asleep, and no one dared wake him."
"By nine o'clock several had died. and many more were delirious. A frantic cry for water now became general, and one of the guards, more compassionate than his fellows, caused some to be brought to the bars, where Mr. Holwell and two or three others received it in their hats, and passed it on to the men behind. In their impatience to secure it nearly all was spilt, and the little they drank seemed only to increase their thirst. Self-control was soon lost; those in remote parts of the room struggled to reach the window, and a fearful tumult ensued, in which the weakest were trampled or pressed to death. They raved, fought, prayed, blasphemed, and many then fell exhausted on the floor, where suffocation put an end to their torments. The British prisoners resorted to cannibalism to quench their hunger and thirst in the ensuing pandemonium."
"About 11 o'clock the prisoners began to drop off fast. At length, at six in the morning, Siraj-ud-Dowla awoke, and ordered the door to be opened. Of the 146 only 23, including Mr. Holwell (from whose narrative, published in the Annual RegisterThe Annual Register (originally subtitled "A View of the History, Politicks and Literature of the Year. is a chronicle of British and world history published annually since 1758. It was founded by Edmund Burke (who was its editor for many years) and Rober for 1758Events June 12 French and Indian War: Siege of Louisbourg James Wolfe's attack at Louisbourg, Nova Scotia commences. June 23 Seven Years War: Battle of Krefeld British forces defeat French troops at Krefeld in Germany. July 8 French and Indian War: French, this account is partly derived), remained alive, and they were either stupefied or raving. Fresh air soon revived them, and the commander was then taken before the nawab, who expressed no regret for what had occurred, and gave no other sign of sympathy than ordering the Englishman a chair and a glass of water. Notwithstanding this indifference, Mr. Holwell and some others acquit him of any intention of causing the catastrophe, and ascribe it to the malice of certain inferior officers, but many think this opinion unfounded."
Holwell and three others were sent as prisoners to MurshidabadMurshidabad town located in the northern part of present day state of West Bengal, India. Murshidabad (also locally known as Ingrez Bazaar served as the capital of the last independent Bengali speaking muslim princes of Afghan and Turkish descent before t; the rest of the survivors obtained their liberty, and the corpses were thrown into a ditch. The Black Hole was later used as a warehouse, and an obelisk, 50 feet high, was erected in memory of the supposed victims.
This entire story is testimony to the fertile imaginative mindset of the Colonial historians who would have twisted any subaltern text and historicity underlying an actually nondescript event. As Chairman of the Calcutta Municipal Corporation in the early 1930's , Subhas Chandra Bose , categorically proved how the British used signs and symbols to justify their stranglehold over the native population, and lay the foundation underlying the British rule in India.
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