SocietySouth Asia
The British East India Company
A trading company conquers a subcontinent
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The battle of Plassey in 1757 gave the company the right to tax Bengal, and thus the revenue to finance further conquest — a self-reinforcing loop. The Bengal famine of 1770, in which perhaps ten million died, coincided with the company maintaining its revenue collection. The British state took over government only after the rebellion of 1857.
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The company began by buying spices and textiles, but ended up governing much of India with an army of over two hundred thousand — twice the size of Britain's own. A private company ruled over millions.
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Part of Terra Saga — the story of Earth on a timeline. terrasaga.org