Expulsion of Danes from Balasore

The Expulsion of Danes from Balasore (Udvisningen af danskerene fra Balasore) was a violent expulsion and ousting of the Danish East India Company from the Mughal habour and trading hub of Balasore in 1643 or 1644 by the local Mughal governor, Malik Beg.

Background
In 1620, Danish India was established at Tranquebar. One year later, Roland Crappé became Governor of Tranquebar, establishing a far-flung string of Danish factories from Malabar to Sulawesi. One of these factories was established at Balasore in Bengal, where the Danes sat up an office and staff.

Expulsion
Balasore remained as a Danish trading post and factory until 1643 or 1644, when Malik Beg, the Mughal governor of Balasore, came in a quarrel with the Danish factors. It is said that Malik Beg poisoned the Danish inhabitants, which were about 40 people, and seized their goods, which they had acquired from the area. As a result, Malik Beg demolished the Danish factory at Balasore, and the Danes who lived there were either poised or expelled.

Aftermath
As a result of this and other incidents, the governor of the Danish East India Company, Bernt Pessart, declared war on the Mughal Empire, which would last until 1698. The Danes would reestablish their factory at Balasore in 1674 when 2 Danish vessels captured 5 Bengali ships, in which the Mughal governor, Malik Kasim, promised to give them the same trading privileges as the English.