Establishment of British Rule in India till 1857

1. Shift in Trade Dynamics & Political Opportunity

During the 16th and 17th centuries, Indian goods (textiles, spices) were in far greater demand in Europe than European goods were in India, leading to a continuous drain of bullion from Europe to India. The British East India Company (founded in 1600 as "The Company of Merchants of London Trading into the East Indies") gained its foothold in 1612 after Mughal Emperor Jahangir granted factory rights in Surat to Sir Thomas Roe. By 1650, a new class of British merchants transformed the Company's objective from pure trade to building a network of colonial exchange relationships.

The decline of the Mughal Empire in the early 18th century led to the rise of regional powers (Bengal, Awadh, Hyderabad, Punjab, Marathas). However, these states lacked lasting political stability, creating a political vacuum that the English East India Company exploited to build a territorial empire.

2. Anglo-French Carnatic Wars in South India

By the early 18th century, only the British and French trading companies remained in intense competition. The rivalry culminated in three Carnatic Wars. As part of the global Seven Years' War (1756–1763), open hostilities erupted between English and French settlements in India:

1. Prelude & The Battle of Plassey (23 June 1757)

In 1717, Mughal Emperor Farrukhsiyar granted an Imperial Farman allowing the Company to carry on duty-free export/import trade in Bengal for an annual payment of Rs. 3,000. Company officials continuously abused this privilege using dastaks (trade permits) for their private coastal and inland trade, causing huge revenue losses to Bengal.

When Siraj-ud-Daula became Nawab in 1756, he opposed unauthorized British fortification of Fort William in Calcutta and the misuse of trade privileges. Siraj-ud-Daula attacked Calcutta. In response, Robert Clive hatched a conspiracy with the Nawab's officials: Commander-in-Chief Mir Jafar, Rai Durlabh, Jagat Seth, and Ami Chand. At the Battle of Plassey (23 June 1757), Mir Jafar betrayed the Nawab. Siraj-ud-Daula was defeated and killed.

Aftermath: Mir Jafar was installed as Nawab and paid Rs. 1.77 crore (17,700,000) in compensation and massive bribes to Clive and Company officials.

2. Elevation of Mir Qasim & The Battle of Buxar (22 October 1764)

In 1760, the Company replaced Mir Jafar with his son-in-law Mir Qasim to extract more wealth. Mir Qasim assigned the revenue of Burdwan, Midnapore, and Chittagong to the British. However, Mir Qasim attempted to reform Bengal's administration by:

• Shifting his capital from Murshidabad to Monghyr.
• Reorganizing his army on European lines.
• Abolishing all internal trade duties for both Indian and British merchants alike for two years to level the playing field.

In June 1763, the British under Major Adams declared war on Mir Qasim. Mir Qasim fled to Awadh and formed a triple alliance with Nawab Shuja-ud-Daula of Awadh and Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II. The confederate army met the British at the Battle of Buxar (22 October 1764). Major Hector Munro's disciplined army decisively routed the confederate forces, establishing absolute military supremacy over Northern India.

3. Treaty of Allahabad (1765)

Concluded by Lord Clive with Shuja-ud-Daula and Shah Alam II:

• Nawab of Awadh: Paid Rs. 50 lakhs as war indemnity; surrendered Kara and Allahabad to Shah Alam II; Awadh became a buffer state for the British.
• Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II: Granted the Diwani (right to collect revenue) of Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa to the East India Company in return for an annual payment of Rs. 26 lakhs and possession of Kara and Allahabad.

1. Military Conquests: Mysore, Marathas & Punjab

In South India, Haidar Ali (ruler from 1761) and his son Tipu Sultan resisted British expansion during four Anglo-Mysore Wars. Mysore fell in 1799 when Tipu Sultan was slain at Seringapatam. Three Anglo-Maratha Wars (1772–1818) broke the Maratha Confederacy. In Punjab, Maharaja Ranjit Singh built a powerful modernized army. After his death in 1839, two Anglo-Sikh Wars led to the final annexation of Punjab in 1849.

2. Subsidiary Alliance System (Lord Wellesley, 1798)

Devised by Lord Wellesley to expand British territory and eradicate French influence without spending Company funds. Under this system:

• The Indian ruler agreed to station a British military contingent and pay a cash subsidy or cede territory for its maintenance.
• The ruler could not enter into alliances or declare war without British consent.
• A British Resident was stationed at the court, who constantly interfered in internal state politics.
• All non-English foreigners were dismissed from court service.

First State to Accept: Nizam of Hyderabad (1798), followed by Mysore (1799), Tanjore (1799), Awadh (1801), Peshwa/Marathas (1802).

3. Doctrine of Lapse (Lord Dalhousie, 1848–1856)

An annexation policy stipulating that if a ruler of a vassal princely state created by or paramount to the British died without a natural male heir, his state would automatically "lapse" (be annexed to British India). The traditional Hindu custom of adopting an heir was disallowed without prior British permission.

States Annexed: Satara (1848), Jaitpur (1849), Sambalpur (1849), Baghat (1850), Udaipur (1852), Jhansi (1853), and Nagpur (1854). Awadh (1856) was annexed on grounds of "evil disposition and misgovernance" of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah.

1. Constitutional Acts of the British Parliament

2. Civil Services & Land Revenue Settlements

Civil Services: Lord Cornwallis (1786–1793) professionalized, Europeanized, and bureaucratized Company administration, outlawing private trade and raising salaries. From 1806, recruits were trained at Haileybury College near London. Indians were strictly excluded from high-level posts.

Land Revenue Settlements:

• Permanent Settlement (1793): Introduced by Lord Cornwallis in Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa. Granted legal ownership of land to Zamindars, who paid a permanently fixed revenue to the state by a specific date. Peasants were reduced to tenants on their own land.
• Ryotwari System: Introduced in Madras and Bombay Presidencies (by Thomas Munro/Reed). Revenue was paid annually directly by the Ryots (peasant cultivators) to the state.

3. Judicial Organization

Mayor's Courts established in 1727 in Madras, Bombay, and Calcutta. In 1772, Warren Hastings set up Adalat system (Civil & Criminal). Supreme Court established at Calcutta (1774). Lord Cornwallis separated executive and judicial duties at district level.

The British system introduced two core concepts: Rule of Law (law is supreme; no one above law) and Equality Before Law (all citizens subject to same law regardless of caste/class), alongside Habeas Corpus. In 1831, Lord William Bentinck abolished the four Provincial Courts of Circuit and transferred work to District Collectors and Commissioners.