In 1743 he joined the East India Company in Madras, becoming governor of Fort St David in 1755. Following the Black Hole of Calcutta incident, he commanded the forces that recaptured Calcutta from Siraj-ud-Dawlah (c.1729–57), nawab of Bengal, in 1757. Clive’s victory at Plassey later that year made him virtual ruler of Bengal, helping the British to gain an important foothold in India. After a period in Britain 1760–65, he served as governor of Bengal until 1767, restructuring the administration of the colony and restoring discipline to the East India Company, whose reputation had been called into question. Clive was subsequently implicated in the company’s corruption scandals; although officially exonerated, he committed suicide.