7 - The strange world of black holes

Summary

THE BLACK HOLE IN HISTORY AND ASTRONOMY

The oldest mention of a black hole is found not in books of physics or astronomy but in books of history. In the summer of the year 1757, Nawab Siraj-Uddaula, the ruler of Bengal in eastern India, marched on Calcutta to settle a feud with the British East India Company. The small garrison stationed in Fort William at Calcutta was hardly a match for the Nawab's army of 50 000. In the four-day battle that ensued, the East India Company lost many lives, and a good many, including the company's governor, simply deserted. The survivors had to face the macabre incident now known as the Black Hole of Calcutta.

The infuriated Nawab, whose army had lost thousands of lives in the battle, ordered the survivors to be imprisoned in what came to be known as the Black Hole, a prison cell in Fort William. In a room 18 feet by 14 feet, normally used for housing three or four drunken soldiers, the 146 unfortunate survivors were imprisoned. The room had only two small windows (see Figure 7–1). During the 10 hours of imprisonment, from 8 p.m. on 20 June to 6 a.m. on 21 June in the hottest part of the year, 123 prisoners died. Only 22 men and 1 woman lived to tell the tale.

Apart from its macabre aspect, the Black Hole of Calcutta did bear some similarity to its astronomical counterpart, involving as it did a large concentration of matter in a small space from which there was no escape.