Topic

Expansion of British Power - Part 1 - Topic Guide and MCQs

Part of General Knowledge > Modern History - 25 questions, about 12.5 min, with an explanation after every answer.

25
Question count
about 12.5 min
Estimated time
Mixed
Difficulty
03 Oct 2026
Last updated
Quick answer

Expansion of British Power - Part 1 is a topic inside General Knowledge (Modern History). It runs 25 MCQs at 30 seconds each - roughly 12.5 min - and every question explains its answer the moment you submit it.

Topic introduction

What Expansion of British Power - Part 1 covers

The shape of the set before you start it.

Expansion of British Power - Part 1 sits inside General Knowledge, under the Modern History lane, and the portal keeps it as one self-contained set: 25 questions, four options each, 30 seconds on the clock and a written explanation behind every answer.

Attempt it untimed first to find the gaps, read why each distractor is wrong, then repeat the same set against the clock. The questions you miss twice are the ones worth writing down.

Question bank

Expansion of British Power - Part 1: all 25 questions

Read the question, pick an option, then open the answer.

  1. On which date was the Battle of Plassey fought?

    1. 23 June 1757
    2. 22 October 1764
    3. 23 June 1764
    4. 22 October 1757
    Show answer

    Answer: (A) 23 June 1757

    Explanation: The Battle of Plassey was fought on 23 June 1757 between Nawab Siraj-ud-Daulah and the English East India Company. It is taken as the beginning of British rule in India.

  2. Who led the English army in the Battle of Plassey?

    1. Major Hector Munro
    2. Warren Hastings
    3. Robert Clive
    4. Sir Eyre Coote
    Show answer

    Answer: (C) Robert Clive

    Explanation: Robert Clive led the English at Plassey (1757). Hector Munro led them at Buxar (1764), and Eyre Coote defeated Haidar Ali at Porto Novo.

  3. Which commander of the Nawab's army secretly joined Robert Clive and later became the Nawab of Bengal?

    1. Rai Durlabh
    2. Mir Jafar
    3. Mir Kasim
    4. Jagat Seth
    Show answer

    Answer: (B) Mir Jafar

    Explanation: Mir Jafar, commander of Siraj-ud-Daulah's army, sided with Clive at Plassey and was made Nawab with British support. Jagat Seth was a banker; Mir Kasim was his son-in-law.

  4. Siraj-ud-Daulah succeeded which Nawab of Bengal in 1756?

    1. Murshid Quli Khan
    2. Sarfaraz Khan
    3. Mir Jafar
    4. Alivardi Khan
    Show answer

    Answer: (D) Alivardi Khan

    Explanation: Alivardi Khan, who had defeated Sarfaraz Khan in 1741, died in April 1756 and was succeeded by his grandson Siraj-ud-Daulah.

  5. The 'Black Hole' incident of 1756 is linked with Siraj-ud-Daulah's capture of which place?

    1. Calcutta
    2. Murshidabad
    3. Patna
    4. Dhaka
    Show answer

    Answer: (A) Calcutta

    Explanation: After Siraj-ud-Daulah captured the English fort at Calcutta, English prisoners were reportedly locked in a small room where many died. The English used the incident as a reason to attack him.

  6. In which year was the Battle of Buxar fought?

    1. 1757
    2. 1761
    3. 1764
    4. 1765
    Show answer

    Answer: (C) 1764

    Explanation: The Battle of Buxar was fought on 22 October 1764. It gave the English real political power in North India.

  7. Who commanded the English army in the Battle of Buxar?

    1. Robert Clive
    2. Major Hector Munro
    3. Lord Cornwallis
    4. Warren Hastings
    Show answer

    Answer: (B) Major Hector Munro

    Explanation: Major Hector Munro led the English at Buxar in 1764. Robert Clive led them at Plassey in 1757.

  8. Which of the following did NOT fight against the English in the Battle of Buxar?

    1. Mir Kasim
    2. Shuja-ud-Daulah
    3. Shah Alam II
    4. Mir Jafar
    Show answer

    Answer: (D) Mir Jafar

    Explanation: At Buxar the English defeated the combined army of Mir Kasim (Bengal), Shuja-ud-Daulah (Awadh) and Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II. Mir Jafar was on the British side and became Nawab again.

  9. Who signed the two Treaties of Allahabad in 1765 for the East India Company?

    1. Robert Clive
    2. Warren Hastings
    3. Lord Wellesley
    4. Major Hector Munro
    Show answer

    Answer: (A) Robert Clive

    Explanation: In August 1765 Robert Clive signed two Treaties of Allahabad - one with the Nawab of Awadh and one with Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II.

  10. The Dual Government in Bengal was abolished in 1772 by

    1. Robert Clive
    2. Lord Cornwallis
    3. Warren Hastings
    4. Lord Wellesley
    Show answer

    Answer: (C) Warren Hastings

    Explanation: Robert Clive introduced the Dual Government in 1765; Warren Hastings abolished it in 1772 and the Company took full control of Bengal.

  11. Under the Dual Government, who was appointed Deputy Diwan of Bihar?

    1. Mohammad Reza Khan
    2. Raja Sitab Roy
    3. Jagat Seth
    4. Rai Durlabh
    Show answer

    Answer: (B) Raja Sitab Roy

    Explanation: Mohammad Reza Khan was Deputy Diwan of Bengal and Raja Sitab Roy was Deputy Diwan of Bihar.

  12. Haidar Ali set up a modern arsenal with French help while serving as Faujdar of

    1. Mangalore
    2. Bangalore
    3. Seringapatam
    4. Dindigul
    Show answer

    Answer: (D) Dindigul

    Explanation: Haidar Ali began as a soldier in Mysore, became Faujdar of Dindigul and built a modern arsenal there with French help. In 1761 he became the real ruler of Mysore.

  13. Which treaty ended the First Anglo-Mysore War (1766-69)?

    1. Treaty of Madras
    2. Treaty of Mangalore
    3. Treaty of Seringapatam
    4. Treaty of Salbai
    Show answer

    Answer: (A) Treaty of Madras

    Explanation: The First Anglo-Mysore War, in which Haidar Ali defeated the British, ended with the Treaty of Madras (1769).

  14. The Second Anglo-Mysore War (1780-84) ended with the

    1. Treaty of Madras
    2. Treaty of Mangalore
    3. Treaty of Seringapatam
    4. Treaty of Bassein
    Show answer

    Answer: (B) Treaty of Mangalore

    Explanation: The Second Anglo-Mysore War ended with the Treaty of Mangalore (1784) between Tipu Sultan and the Company. Memory trick: Madras - 1st, Mangalore - 2nd, Seringapatam - 3rd.

  15. Haidar Ali was defeated at Porto Novo (1781) by

    1. Lord Cornwallis
    2. Robert Clive
    3. Sir Eyre Coote
    4. Arthur Wellesley
    Show answer

    Answer: (C) Sir Eyre Coote

    Explanation: During the Second Anglo-Mysore War, Sir Eyre Coote defeated Haidar Ali at Porto Novo. Haidar Ali died during the same war and Tipu Sultan succeeded him.

  16. Under which treaty did Tipu Sultan have to give up about half of his territory?

    1. Treaty of Madras
    2. Treaty of Mangalore
    3. Treaty of Salbai
    4. Treaty of Seringapatam
    Show answer

    Answer: (D) Treaty of Seringapatam

    Explanation: The Third Anglo-Mysore War (1790-92), in which Lord Cornwallis captured Bangalore, ended with the Treaty of Seringapatam (1792). Tipu ceded half of his kingdom.

  17. Who was the Governor-General when Tipu Sultan was killed in the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War (1799)?

    1. Lord Wellesley
    2. Lord Cornwallis
    3. Warren Hastings
    4. Lord Dalhousie
    Show answer

    Answer: (A) Lord Wellesley

    Explanation: Lord Wellesley attacked Seringapatam in 1799; Tipu Sultan died defending his capital. The Wodeyar dynasty was restored under a Subsidiary Alliance.

  18. Tipu Sultan planted the 'Tree of Liberty' at his capital and became a member of which club of France?

    1. Royal Club
    2. Jacobin Club
    3. Liberty Club
    4. Paris Club
    Show answer

    Answer: (B) Jacobin Club

    Explanation: Tipu Sultan, inspired by the French Revolution, planted the Tree of Liberty at Seringapatam and joined the Jacobin Club. He also sent embassies to France, Turkey, Iran and Pegu.

  19. In 1831, who took direct control of Mysore on the ground of misgovernment?

    1. Lord Wellesley
    2. Lord Dalhousie
    3. Lord William Bentinck
    4. Lord Hastings
    Show answer

    Answer: (C) Lord William Bentinck

    Explanation: Lord William Bentinck took over the administration of Mysore in 1831 on the ground of misgovernment.

  20. Who was the head of the Maratha Confederacy?

    1. Sindhia
    2. Holkar
    3. Bhonsle
    4. Peshwa
    Show answer

    Answer: (D) Peshwa

    Explanation: The Peshwa headed the Maratha Confederacy; Sindhia, Holkar and Bhonsle were its powerful chiefs. Their internal conflicts helped the British.

  21. In which treaty did the British have to surrender during the First Anglo-Maratha War?

    1. Treaty of Wadgaon
    2. Treaty of Salbai
    3. Treaty of Bassein
    4. Treaty of Poona
    Show answer

    Answer: (A) Treaty of Wadgaon

    Explanation: Near Pune the English army surrendered and signed the Treaty of Wadgaon (1779). Warren Hastings rejected it and the war continued.

  22. The First Anglo-Maratha War (1775-82) ended with the

    1. Treaty of Wadgaon
    2. Treaty of Salbai
    3. Treaty of Bassein
    4. Treaty of Madras
    Show answer

    Answer: (B) Treaty of Salbai

    Explanation: The Treaty of Salbai (1782), negotiated with Sindhia's help, ended the First Anglo-Maratha War and kept peace for about 20 years.

  23. Peshwa Bajirao II accepted the Subsidiary Alliance by signing the

    1. Treaty of Salbai
    2. Treaty of Wadgaon
    3. Treaty of Bassein
    4. Treaty of Gwalior
    Show answer

    Answer: (C) Treaty of Bassein

    Explanation: After being defeated by Jaswantrao Holkar, Bajirao II fled to Bassein and signed the Treaty of Bassein (1802), accepting the Subsidiary Alliance. This led to the Second Anglo-Maratha War.

  24. Who was the Governor-General during the Third Anglo-Maratha War, which began with action against the Pindaris?

    1. Lord Wellesley
    2. Lord Cornwallis
    3. Warren Hastings
    4. Lord Hastings
    Show answer

    Answer: (D) Lord Hastings

    Explanation: Lord Hastings (Marquess of Hastings) moved against the Pindaris; the Third Anglo-Maratha War (1817-19) followed. Do not confuse him with Warren Hastings.

  25. In which year was the office of the Peshwa abolished after Bajirao II surrendered?

    1. 1805
    2. 1818
    3. 1799
    4. 1849
    Show answer

    Answer: (B) 1818

    Explanation: After defeats at Khirki, Sitabuldi and Mahidpur, Bajirao II surrendered in 1818. The Peshwaship was abolished and the Maratha Confederacy came to an end.

Why it matters

Why Expansion of British Power - Part 1 is worth the hours

Where the marks actually come from.

Expansion of British Power - Part 1 is factual rather than analytical: you either recall it in seconds or you lose the mark to somebody who did. That makes it one of the cheapest sections to convert - a handful of short sittings usually settles the whole cluster.

Exam relevance

Exams where Expansion of British Power - Part 1 matters

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Expected questions

Expected questions from Expansion of British Power - Part 1

What an examiner usually reaches for in this cluster.

Expect one-line recall questions - definitions, stand-for expansions, identifiers and the ordering of things. Practise the wording as well as the concept: these papers test terminology, and the set above uses the same four-option shape they do.

Daily habit

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How long is the Expansion of British Power - Part 1 quiz?

Expansion of British Power - Part 1 runs 25 questions - about 12.5 min at 30 seconds each. The set clears at 40% and you can retake it as often as you like.

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The set answers that: each question carries four options and a full explanation, so you learn the wording an examiner uses, not just the fact behind it.

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