'The Colonising Corporation'
Volume 1 | Issue 3 - Colonialism
Article by Antony Lowe. Edited by Duncan Robinson. Additional Research by Michelle Brien.
When you speak of British colonialism, most people will think of colonisation at the end of a bayonet, or long lines of bright red British soldiers marching forward to subdue natives. Yet one of the most crucial factors in the colonisation of India is the role of the East India Company in establishing administrative, legal and military footholds.
The Company came to exercise de facto administrative, military and tax collection power over several areas of India. Trade expansion and the need for a military presence due to European pirates made the Company a massive force on the Indian subcontinent, contributing greatly to the British imperial mission through the annexation of several key geographical entities. You only have to think of the role the Company plays in the film Pirates of the Caribbean. A fictional variation of the Company, exercised blatant administrative and legal control over Port Royal and had the jurisdiction to offer Captain Jack Sparrow a legal pardon.
The Company was formed in 1600 by Royal Charter as Governor and Company of Merchants of London Trading into the East Indies after sailors petitioned the queen for permission to trade and sail in the Indian Ocean. The main rival to the Company in the Indies were the Dutch, who had held an effective monopoly of trade to the region throughout much of the preceding century. Particularly troublesome was the area around the Dutch East Indies. In 1623, for example, during the Amboina massacre the Dutch executed English, Japanese and French sailors.
The turning point in the Company’s history came after several years of sustained engagement with the competitors in the Indian Ocean. Although maintaining an excellent military presence – defeating the Portuguese at the battle of Swally in 1612, for instance – the confrontations forced the need for a permanent foothold on the Indian subcontinent, as the defence of shipping had become extremely expensive.
The Company set up numerous factories on the Indian mainland. Most important of these were the settlements of Calcutta, Bombay and Madras. These factories, however, evolved quickly into major settlements, with the East India Company exercising major administrative control over the population. Furthermore King James I gave permission in 1615 for Sir Thomas Roe to approach the Mughal emperor in India to negotiate the necessity for a permanent Company presence in the region. The emperor agreed, and received in return European goods. The Company thus gained an effective monopoly on the area by negotiating a treaty that gave them the sole right to both trade and reside in the area. This was the first major example of an imperial foothold in India. But despite having major influence over the settlements the region was as of yet not under East India Company jurisdiction.
The Company started to fall victim to increased hostility in the region from both natives and the French East India Company. Furthermore, the Mughal Empire had disintegrated into differing and often hostile states. In some cases the British and French allied with different factions. The English East India Company exploited the situation to further expansion. After the settlement at Calcutta had been taken over by the new ruler of Bengal (who had decided to ignore the treaty the Company had with the old establishment) the Company responded with military force. At the battle of Plassey in 1757 Robert Clive won a decisive victory despite being heavily outnumbered. His defeat of the Bengali forces and men from the French East India Company effectively placed the region in Clive’s – and by extension the Company’s -hands. This one victory therefore led to the establishment of British control over the whole region, which was formally recognised in 1765 when the area was fully conceded to Clive by the now effectively defunct Mughal emperor.
The Company henceforth had legal, administrative and military control over the region. Another example of the Company establishing control is seen in 1764 at the battle of Buxar in which the Company won effective control over tax collection in Bengal, Orissa and Bihar. These actions began the Company’s rule in India. They essentially took over the old forms of Indian governance, allowing the Indian populace major positions within the bureaucracy. The Company maintained primary tax collection control and administrative function, however. A situation clearly reminiscent of the later official British rule in India. The Company thus established the first examples of British colonial adventure in India, forming what we can term a new colonial Company empire in India with Calcutta as its capital.
The Company’s role in establishing British rule in India is also seen in its attempts to create a trade monopoly, ensuring British dominance. Scholars like Mia Carter reference the companies more – let’s say – colourful, antics. They effectively led a violent campaign to eradicate competitors in the Indian trading market, securing British dominance. Carter suggests ‘the Company’s history is characterized by intrigue, national and personal ambition, personal double dealings and even kidnapping and hostage taking as means of insuring successful treaty negotiations’.1 To protect their ‘investment’ the Company frequently reverted to barbarism. In 1701 the Company executed Captain Kidd for piracy – or rather because he was a successful competitor. This is similarly seen in the arrest, fining and incorporation into the Company of Thomas Pitt who had sought, won and acted upon privately gained trading rights in India. Furthermore after the battle of Plassey had effectively routed French influence in the region, the Company began to illegally export opium to China in order to fund their military presence. The Company’s aggressive campaigns ensured a virtual monopoly of Indian trade, consolidating the early footholds of British colonial power in India.
The Company’s rule in India ended around 1858 after the Indian rebellion of 1857 and the passing of the Government of India Act 1858. After, the British government assumed direct control over India. The Company, however, was crucial to the development of the British colonial mission in the Indian subcontinent. Without the Company there would have been very little or no military or administrative foothold in India for the British government to take over, and even if they had other footholds one can argue that the Company put in place an effective administrative system and established a de facto military and legal presence in the area. The Company’s activities became the responsibilities for the British raj. Without the Company establishing footholds in India, it would have been incredibly difficult for the British government to set up successful colonial systems in India, the Jewel in Britain’s crown.