Operations
One of the most important of the part of East India Company’s business in India was the operations part. It included their places of business, places of forts, transports, infrastructure etc. Company’s officials had a long vision with respect to their businesses. So they acquired prime locations for their businesses. These places included ports, important business locations during pre-colonial era. For these operations following are the important activities taken by them.
Locations
1. By 1668 The Company had established factories in Goa, Chittagong, Bombay, Madras and three small villages in the east of India called Sutanati, Gobindapore and Kalikata which was renamed Calcutta in 1690. The major factories became the walled forts of Fort William in Calcutta, , which developed into the great Indian Cities of today. Of these forts Fort William remains active as the HQ of the Eastern Command of the Indian Army.
2. The company’s first “factory” was established in the town of Machilipatnam of the Coromandel Coast of The Bay of Bengal. The location was crucial to the British as this gave them access to spices that were not controlled by Dutch Traders.
3. Sir Thomas Roe arranged a treaty with Emperor Nurudin Salim Jahangir. Company got an exclusive rights to reside and build factories around Surat in exhcnage for rare commodities from Europe. This prime location helped them to fight war with Portugese and Dutch governments and merchants.
4. One more of the important location was the forts in India. By 1668, Goa, Chittagong, Bombay, Madras, Sutanati, Gobindapore and Kalikata were the cities having factories. These factories went on to become the forts of Fort William in Calcutta, Fort St George in Madras and Bombay castle.
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...st Indies') was formed in London in 1600. In 1698 a 'New' company, chartered in opposition ('The English Company Trading to the East Indies') was formed. The 'Old' and 'New' Companies merged to become 'The United East India Company' in 1709 or 'East India Company' (the name legalised in 1833). The Old and New Companies had similar executive structures, and the United Company adopted forms from its predecessors. The executive comprised a body of proprietors or stockholders and an elected executive or 'Court' of Directors (or 'Court of Committees' to 1699). It comprised 24 Directors elected from and by the stockholders (or 'Proprietors'). The Court of Directors held regular meetings to supervise the routine business of the Company. The Proprietors met at least four times a year as 'General Court.' to elect Directors, oversee their activities and debate Company policy.
The East India Company enjoyed the exclusive legal right – a privilege granted by the British government – to import products from the Far East into Britain. Chinese tea, which was said to be more valuable than gold, was the company’s most lucrative commodity, accounting for over 90 percent of its commercial profits.
Royally chartered companies monopolized international trade in the early days of the English empire. The monopolies were an effort to control the high economic risks of maritime shipping and multi-year voyages by restricting the supply of goods to maintain high prices and incentive the development of trade. Merchants banded together in joint stock companies to pool the risk and engage in capital intensive enterprises, such as the slave trade. Queen Elizabeth chartered the British East India Company (EIC) in 1600 to establish trade with Asia. Its charter granted the company a “monopoly on all English trade to the east of the Cape of the Good Hope,” a legally enforceable trade agreement that covered territory stretching from the east coast of Africa to the west coast of North America. The company’s first “factory” (trading station) in India was established at Masulipatnam in 1611. Charles II chartered The Royal African Company in 1672 to develop the English slave trade in Africa. He granted it a monopoly on the trade of slaves from Africa to the colonies and provided a robust legal framework with which to enforce
The rise of Imperialism in India began when the East India Company gained control of India after the decline of the Mughal Empire. East India Company was a joint-stock company that was established when Britain showed economic interest in India’s natural resources. Initially, the East India Company created trading posts in Surat, Madras, Bombay, and Calcutta mainly to increase trade. The East India Company traded in cotton, silk, tea, and opium. These East India Company trading posts were supported by British troops and private armies, also known as sepoys (Indian soldiers). The East India Company functioned as military authority in parts of India with an increase in administrative and political powers. The East India Company ruled India until 1858.
7. Holdich, Sir Thomas. The Gates of India. London: The MacMillan Company, 1910. [Document 9]
These centuries of imperialism ended in many issues in India, including economic instability, social inequity, crime, and political corruption. These factors drastically altered their culture, forever changing India's future potential, primarily for the worse. While the British carried out many modifications that seemed, at first, to aid the Indian populace, such changes were irreparably damaging and left the nation helpless and underdeveloped. By the late sixteenth century the British East India Company had established trade posts in Calcutta, Madras, and Bombay, dominating vast areas in India and southeast Asia. Although traders saw the potential for cheap labor and raw materials India held, they were restricted from colonization and excessive commerce because of the Mughal Dynasty who kept traders under close watch....
India had contributed notably to the British Industrial Revolution by supplying raw material and capital; which was collected as revenue from the colonies. It also portrayed as an unwilling, forced market where finished goods could be purchased at much higher cost. It may be noted that the primary aim of the industrial revolution in India, set by the British was to fuel the industrial revolution in Britain. The Indian economy was devastated in the process; effects of which may be seen in the so called Indian Industrial Revolution.
A primary justification for the European presence in the Indian Ocean was due to economic motivations. Highly sophisticated markets allowed for the discovery of other products such as ivory, spices, textiles and precious metals . Colonialism is evident in the Indian Ocean region as the Europeans exploited not only the land, but also the people subsequently the rebirth of a slave trade. Since the Portuguese did not have the manpower to gather their available exports, the reliance on slaves was vital in order to achieve their economic goals . European navigators also recognized the risk, but understood the reward of participating in the Indian Ocean trade network. The Dutch sent their first expedition in 1595 closely followed by the British. Soon after, yearly excursions and the establishment of the Dutch East India Company in 1602. The Europeans caused much conflict and disturbance amongst the Indian Ocean region; the initial harm against the local nations was all part of a larger plot to meet the overwhelming greed and demands of the European economies.
John Q is a emotional story about a family who is faced with an economical problem that many Americans struggle with. It is about a father whose son is dying from an enlarged heart. He needs a heart transplant in order to survive. This was a problem for the family because they did not have enough money for the hospital to proceed with the operation. John Quincy Archibald, the father, who goes by the alias John Q, tries everything in his power to save his son from dying. John performed actions that can be seen as both selfless and sacrificial and selfish.
India was where the riches of the world came from, the jewel in the crown of the British Empire. The British needed to dispel the threat of other Europeans in Africa to maintain control of India, and they did so efficiently. They quickly gained control of both the major sea routes to India and then turned their eyes to the rest of the continent. Whether the British were trying to foster public support or prevent another nation from becoming a threat, all British actions in Africa were directly or indirectly linked to India. The British were motivated by their desire to become powerful, and they skillfully combined enterprise and conquest to create a globe spanning empire centered around the wealth of India.
In the 1600's the English took advantage of the crumbling Mughals. In 1757, Robert Clive led an unquestionable victory against the Indian Forces at the Battle of Plassey. After that battle, the East India Company was the leading force in India. Eventually, the company governed directly or indirectly areas that included modern day Bangladesh, most of southern India and almost all of the land along the Ganges River in the north. Until the 19th century, the East India Company ruled with little to no interference from Britain. The company had even established their own army. The company staffed its army with British and Indian Soldiers, or Sepoy, with the Sepoys eventually out numbering the British soldiers ten to one. Mountstuart Elphinstone, the governor of Bombay referred to the Sepoy army as “a delicate and dangerous machine, which a little mismanagement may easily turn against us.” (British Imperialism in India.)
The British East India Tea Company was originally called “The Governor and Company of Merchants of London trading into the East Indies”. They meant to trade with, obviously, the East Indies but it traded with several other places including China and the Indian Subcontinent. They mostly trade common items like wool, silk, dye, and salts. However, they were most known for their tea trade. Almost anyone who has heard of the East India Company will think of the tea it traded. Another key point, the company received a royal charter, or a document that gives rights or powers, from Queen Elizabeth on December 31, 1600. This meant that the company was officially on the same team as Brittan. The company was also a joint-stock company which means that they sold shares of their company to other people. Also, the company used its private army to rule India. With this, The East India Company managed to start several wars.
Colonization for the British first began in 1591 when the merchant Sir James Lancaster had been commissioned to set sail by Commander Sir Francis Duke towards the East Indies. Sir James would continue to sail until in September 1592, he would land in Penang remaining there for two years pillaging any rival European ships that were to harbor there. Returning to Britain in 1594 and relaying the news of this newly found area, the British would not become a major participant in Penang’s history until 1786 with the Malay Sultanate of Kedah. During this time, the Burmese and the Siamese armies had increasingly threatened the Sultan of Penang forcing him to cut a deal with then Captain of the British Navy in the Southeast Asia region Francis Light.
According to Corporation Act 2001 s124(1), it illustrates that ‘’A company has the legal capacity and powers of an individual both in and outside the jurisdiction” . As it were, company as a legal individual must be freely with all its capital contribution shall embrace liability for its legal actions and obligations of the company’s shareholders is limited to its investment to the company. This ‘separate legal entity’ principle was established in the case of Salomon v Salomon & Co Ltd [1987] as company was held to have conducted the business as a legal person and separate from its members. It demonstrated that the debt of company is belonged to the company but not to the shareholders. Shareholders have only right to participate in managing but not in sharing the company property. Besides ,the Macaura v Northern Assurance Co Ltd [1925] demonstrates that the distinction between the shareholders and company assets. It means that even Mr Macaura owned almost all the shares in the company, he had no insurable interest in the company’s asset. The other recent case is the Lee v Lee’s Air Farming Ltd [1961] which illustrates that the distinct legal entities between employee ad director allows Mr.Lee function in dual capacities. It resulted that the corporation can contract with the controlling member of the corporation.
dominant power in India. The military campaigns of Robert Clive and the administrative enterprise of Warren
India was the first major Asian civilizations to fall victim to European predatory activities (Duiker 31). With conquering India, the British had various purposes behind it. Their main purpose was to achieve a monopolistic trading position (The Economic and Social Impact of Colonial Rule in India). The second purpose was the control of India; this was a key element in the world power structure, in terms of geography, logistics and military manpower (The Economic and Social Impact of Colonial Rule in India). When the East India Company continued to trade under the British, huge armies were created, largely composed of Indian sepoys (Marshall). The armies were used to defend the Company’s territories protect the Indian states (Marshall).