Sample 4: British Expansion Beyond Indian Frontiers

UPSC Sample Notes [English]

B.3. British Expansion Beyond Indian Frontiers

i. Reasons for British Expansion Beyond Indian Frontiers

By 1818, with the defeat ofthe Marathas and the pensioning of the Peshwa, the British supremacy in India was complete. The British had conquered almost the whole of India except Sind and Punjab and their annexation now was only a matter of time.
The British followed a two-fold policy for the consolidation of the Raj – the introduction of a suitable administrative system and securing the newly conquered territories. In the process of securing British frontiers in India, several states were brought under direct or indirect control to serve as outposts against external threat.
Further, the East India Company also used India as a base to expand its control over lands of South and South-East Asia. During the period 1757 to 1857, English control was established from Nepal in the north to Sri Lanka in the south, Afghanistan in the north-west, Mauritius in the south-west to Andaman and Nicobar, Burma, Malaya and Philippines in the south-east.
- Only mainland Asia—China, Siam, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam—was left relatively untouched.

Important Reasons	Details
Shifting Financial Base of East India Company (from Trade to Land Revenue)	The province of Bengal was the first substantial area in the Asian mainland to pass under direct control of the English Company. Until now, the Company’s primary source of income was trade, which soon began to face multifarious challenges. By 1770s, Bengal had been milked dry and its economy was in shambles. This not only affected Company’s profits but also jeopardised its extremely lucrative trade with China, as the Chinese at that time sold their goods only in exchange for silver which had been mostly provided from Bengal treasury. Further, the industrial revolution in England had gained strength and the industrial interests were demanding an end to the Company’s trade monopoly in the East. The Company itself was getting involved in costly military conflicts in India with the country powers. In this context, with declining income from trade and increasing expenditure on armed conflict, the Company’s financial base began to shift from trade and commerce to land revenue, from business of trade to business of government. This naturally pushed the Company to go ahead with continuous territorial expansion.
Need to Obtain Spices from South-East Asia for Trade	For several years, the Company had been carrying out profitable trade with China, especially in silks, nankeens (yellowish cotton cloth) and tea. But the Chinese traded mostly in exchange for silver, which had been provided by the Bengal treasury since 1757. With the depletion of Bengal’s wealth, the Company sought to pay for Chinas trade, first, by replacing the silver with opium from Malwa region of Central India, and second, by obtaining costly spices (like clove and nutmeg) from South-East Asia for sale in China and Europe. This impelled the Company to expand itself into South-East Asia.
Need for New Markets and Supplies	The English Company’s interest in expansion outside India was also fuelled by the need to find new markets for goods procured in India and also to procure supplies either for cross trade or for use by the Company’s military forces.
Need to Safeguard Indian Empire	The Company also needed to safeguard its Indian empire and the trade routes to China and India. Hence, the Company’s expansion outside India was also strategically driven.