Anglo-french Rivalry
Though the British and the French came to India for trading purposes, they were ultimately drawn into the politics of India. Both had visions of establishing political power over the region. The Anglo-French rivalry in India reflected the traditional rivalry of England and France throughout their histories; it began with the outbreak of the Austrian War of Succession and ended with the conclusion of the Seven Years War. Specifically in India, the rivalry, in the form of three Carnatic wars (Carnatic was the name given by the Europeans to the Coromandel Coast and its hinterland), decided once for all that the English and not the French were to become masters of India.
> The First Carnatic War was an extension of the Anglo-French War in Europe which was caused by the Austrian War of Succession.
> The First Carnatic War ended in 1748 when the Treaty of Aix-La Chappelle was signed bringing the Austrian War of Succession to a conclusion. Under the terms of this treaty, Madras was handed back to the English, and the French, in turn, got their territories in North America.
> The First Carnatic War is remembered for the Battle of St. Thome (in Madras) fought between the French forces and the forces of Anwarud- din, the Nawab of Carnatic, to whom the English appealed for help. A small French army defeated the strong Indian army at St. Thome on the banks of the River Adyar.
> The background for the Second Carnatic War was provided by rivalry in India. The death of Nizam-ul-Mulk, the founder of the independent kingdom of Hyderabad, in 1748, provided an opportunity to both French and British to meddle with the internal affairs and strengthen their hold thus leading to Second Carnatic War.
> Although inconclusive, it undermined the French power in South India vis-àvis the English.
- Third Carnatic War (1758-63)
> It was an echo of the Anglo-French struggle in Europe. In Europe, when Austria wanted to recover Silesia in 1756, the Seven Years War (1756-63) started. Britain and France were once again on opposite sides.
> It was a decisive war known for the Battle of Wandiwash which was won by the British in 1760.
> Although the Treaty of Peace of Paris (1763) restored to the French their factories in India, the French political influence disappeared after the war. Thereafter, the French, like their Portuguese and Dutch counterparts in India, confined themselves to their small enclaves and to commerce.