Why the British came, Company trade and the conquest of Bengal

Why the British came

The British first came to India as traders. After the Industrial Revolution, factories in Britain needed raw materials such as cotton. They also needed markets to sell their machine-made goods. India could supply both. In the 18th century the Mughal empire was declining, and Indian rulers fought one another. This gave the British their chance. Step by step they turned trade into rule, through wars, forced treaties, alliances and annexations. Later, their land revenue, trade and education policies helped them hold on to that power.

From trading company to rulers of Bengal

One event per line, in order. Learn the years: Section A often asks them.

1. 1600
   The East India Company is set up in England to trade with the East.
2. 1613
   The Company opens its first factory (a trading post with warehouses) at Surat.
3. 1615
   Sir Thomas Roe reaches Emperor Jahangir's court and wins permission for more factories at Agra, Ahmedabad and Broach.
4. 1639
   The Company gets land at Madras and builds Fort St George, the first piece of Indian soil it owns.
5. 1690s
   Three villages in Bengal grow into Calcutta, guarded by Fort William.
6. 1757★
   Battle of Plassey: Robert Clive defeats Nawab Siraj-ud-daula. Mir Jafar becomes Nawab and gives the British a huge sum and the 24 Parganas.
7. 1760
   Mir Jafar cannot keep paying, so the British make Mir Qasim Nawab. He proves strong and refuses their demands, so they remove him and bring back Mir Jafar.
8. 1764★
   Battle of Buxar (22 October): Mir Qasim, Shuja-ud-daula of Awadh and Mughal emperor Shah Alam II fight together and lose. The defeat is decisive.
9. 1765
   Shah Alam II grants the Company the diwani (the right to collect land revenue) of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa.

★ key step

Plassey and Buxar: keep them apart

Your lesson prints the Awadh Nawab's name as 'Shiraj-ud-daula'. The Nawab of Awadh at Buxar was Shuja-ud-daula. Siraj-ud-daula was the Nawab of Bengal at Plassey.

Why Indian states fell one by one

• India had many big and small states, each with its own ruler, army, language and culture.
• They were often at war with one another, so they did not unite against the Company.
• The Company had trained troops, money from trade and the support of the British government.
• It had already pushed out its European rivals, such as the Portuguese, the Dutch and the French.
• It began to interfere in the politics of Indian rulers, backing one against another.

On the map

• Surat: port in south Gujarat on the west coast, near the mouth of the Tapi on the Gulf of Khambhat; first English factory (1613).
• Madras (Chennai): on the east coast of Tamil Nadu, facing the Bay of Bengal; Fort St George.
• Calcutta (Kolkata): on the Hooghly river in West Bengal, near the Bay of Bengal; Fort William.
• Plassey (Palashi): in West Bengal, on the Bhagirathi river, north of Kolkata; battle of 1757.
• Buxar: in western Bihar on the Ganga, close to the Uttar Pradesh border; battle of 1764.
• Agra, Ahmedabad and Broach (Bharuch): where Roe won the right to open factories. Agra is on the Yamuna in Uttar Pradesh; Ahmedabad and Bharuch are in Gujarat.