The Second Carnatic War was the second conflict in the series of Carnatic Wars. This fight was fought between the French and British EICs. The Mughal Empire was at its peak during the reign of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb.
To handle the administration of such a vast kingdom, the Mughals appointed governors in several regions. Suba were the lands that surrounded these provinces and were controlled by deputy governors who reported to the governor. When Aurangzeb died in 1707, the influence of the new Mughal emperor began to diminish, and Mughal politics began to crumble.
As the Mughal Empire declined, many rulers of Mughal Provinces declared themselves Ruler of Autonomous States, which became known as Successor States. Hyderabad was one such Successor state, with the governor, Asaf Jah I, crowning himself in 1724 and taking the title of Nizamun Mulk.
There were several Mughal provinces in the vicinity of Hyderabad that reported to Asaf Jah I. Carnatic was one of these subahs. At the time, Mohammed Sayyid was the administrator, and Asaf Jah I made him Nawab of Carnatic and granted him the title Saadatullah Khan I. As a result, a new dynasty, the Asaf Jah Dynasty, was established in Hyderabad, while the Nawayath Dynasty was established in Carnatic.
Saadatullah Khan I adopted Dost Ali, the son of his brother Ghulam Ali Khan, because he was childless. In 1734, Dost Ali was handed the throne of Carnatic while he was still a young man. Dost Ali’s son, Safdar Ali Khan, and Dost Ali’s son-in-law, Chanda Saheb, were both assassinated in 1743.
Safdar Ali Khan’s child was extremely young, and Chanda Saheb had been captured by Chhatrapati Sahu; nevertheless, Chanda Saheb could not be proclaimed Nawab, therefore there was a problem. At that juncture, Asaf Jah intervened and appointed Safdar Ali Khan’s younger son, Saadatullah Khan II, as Nawab. Saadatullah Khan II was assassinated in 1744, officially terminating the Nawayath dynasty of Carnatic, and Awaruddin was assigned as his agent until he reached the age of majority.
As a result of this, Asaf Jah I appointed Anwaruddin as Nawab of Carnataic. As we all know, the French army led by Dupleix successfully drove away the Anwaruddin force during the First Carnatic War in 1746; this war is also known as the Adhyar War or the St. Thom War. Anwaruddin’s eyes had been opened by the fighting, and he realised he couldn’t fight them alone.
Meanwhile, Chanda Saheb was freed from Marathas’ clutches. When he learnt that Anwaruddin is the Nawab of Carnatic, his mind was blown. He claimed to be the Nawayath family’s sole heir and wished to succeed Anwaruddin as Nawab. As a result, Chanda Saheb allied with the French EIC (emeny of Anwaruddin). There is a power struggle for the monarchy in Hyderabad. When Asaf Jah I died in June 1748, the Hyderabad kingdom was divided between two rivals: Nasir Jung and Muzaffar Jung. Asaf Jah I’s son was Nasir Jung, and Muzaffar Jung was his grandson.
By law, Nasir Jung was Asaf Jah I’s legitimate successor, but Nasir Jung had attempted to assassinate Asaf Jah I, so Asaf Jah I beat him and drove him away. That is why he chose Muzaffar Jung as his successor, which Nasir Jung did not agree with. Muzaffar Jung and Nasir Jung were facing each other, and Anwaruddin was on Nasir Jung’s side, so Nasir Jung and Anwaruddin were on one side, and Muzaffar Jung was on the other.
Taking stock of the situation, Chanda Saheb sided with Muzaffar Jung, and as we know, Chanda Saheb had already taken Duplex with him, so Muzaffar Jung, Chanda Saheb, and the French East India Company were all on the same side. Nasir Jung, Anwaruddin, and the British East India Company were all there on the other side since Anwaruddin took the British East India Company into his camp. As a result, the framework for the Second Carnatic War was established.