Again the Nizam shouted and blustered, until Arthur sharply held up a hand to silence him. The Nizam shrank back from the sudden gesture before recovering his poise, folding his arms and glaring back defiantly. His guests, the dancers and the musicians watched in silence, hardly daring to move.

‘Tell him that he must do as I say, and that I speak on the direct authority of the Governor General. If he refuses, then the treaty with England is forfeit . . .’

As Kirkpatrick translated the Nizam stared at Arthur, his lips compressed into a thin line.Then there was silence and at last the Nizam’s gaze faltered. He swung round to his followers and shouted an instruction, clapping his hands to send them away as speedily as possible.The guests scrambled up from their cushions and joined the dancers and the musicians as they stumbled through the trees towards the entrance to the Nizam’s garden. As the last sounds of their departure faded away Arthur gestured towards the couches closest to the Nizam dais.

‘Ask him if we might sit at his side.’

The civility of the sudden request caught the Nizam off guard and he nodded and indicated that they should sit with a graceful sweep of his hand. Then, gathering up his robe, he sat on his couch and poised himself for a private audience with the two Englishmen. The chamberlain remained where he lay, crouched and quite still, trying his hardest to be forgotten. Arthur took a deep breath and began.

‘I have heard that the Nizam is considering going back on his agreement. Regardless of all previous treaties he may have made with representatives of the Company and England, he should be aware that the new Governor General is a man of his word. Which means he will do his utmost to guarantee the safety of the Nizam, whatever the cost to England in men, money or prestige. In return, the Governor General expects the Nizam to honour his side of the treaty with equal diligence.’ Arthur waited for this to be translated and fully digested before he continued. ‘Therefore, the Nizam will understand my frustration, as representative of the Governor General, when I learned that he had decided not to disarm the French battalions by the time specified in the treaty.’

The Nizam burst into a torrent of explanation which Kirkpatrick struggled to keep up with.