British Conquest of India

Imagine India in the early 18th century. The Mughal Empire, which had once stretched across almost the entire subcontinent, was now a giant in decline. Aurangzeb’s death in 1707 marked the turning point. With his passing, the central authority weakened, and like cracks in a great fortress wall, provinces began breaking away, forming small independent states — Hyderabad, Bengal, Awadh, Mysore, Maratha Confederacy, Punjab, and many others.

At the same time, the world beyond India was changing. The Age of Exploration had brought European trading companies to Indian shores. By the late 17th century, the British had already defeated two of their earliest European rivals — the Portuguese and the Dutch. But a new, formidable competitor now appeared on the scene: France.

The English–French Rivalry

The French and the English both realized something important: India was no longer under a strong, central Mughal authority, and the rise of regional states had created a political vacuum. For the trading companies, this was an opportunity to transform themselves from merchants into rulers.

Their rivalry began in the 1740s. Initially, it was about trade — securing ports, negotiating with rulers, and outbidding the other side for commercial dominance. But soon, it escalated into direct military and political confrontation.

The English victory in this Anglo–French rivalry was decisive. It not only ended France’s dream of building a territorial empire in India but also opened the door for British political dominance. The first major step in this conquest was the Battle of Plassey in 1757, in Bengal — a turning point in Indian history.

Two Main Roads to Power (1757–1857)

Once the British East India Company (EIC) secured Bengal, its expansion over the next hundred years followed two main strategies:

1. Annexation through war – Direct military defeat of Indian states.
2. Annexation through diplomacy – Political agreements and alliances that slowly eroded the sovereignty of Indian rulers.

Interestingly, the EIC rarely began with a direct attack on an unknown or distant territory. Instead, they followed a step-by-step approach — first weakening a kingdom politically and economically, then taking over when it was vulnerable.

Key Political–Diplomatic Strategies

The British perfected certain policies to expand without always fighting costly wars:

1. Warren Hastings’ Ring-Fence Policy – A defensive approach to protect British territories by surrounding them with buffer states under indirect British influence.
2. Lord Hastings’ Policy of Paramountcy – The idea that the British were the supreme authority in India, and all Indian states had to acknowledge this supremacy.
3. Wellesley’s Subsidiary Alliance – Indian rulers were forced to accept British troops in their territory (at their own expense) and follow British guidance in foreign affairs, effectively losing independence.
4. Lord Dalhousie’s Doctrine of Lapse – If a ruler died without a natural heir, the British annexed the state, denying the right of adoption as succession.

From Regional Powers to British Supremacy

By the mid-18th century, the stage was set. Regional states were powerful but divided. The British had removed foreign competition — first the Portuguese and Dutch, then the French.

From the late 18th century to the early 19th century, the contest for political supremacy in India was essentially a duel between Indian regional powers and the British East India Company. The outcome was inevitable: through war, diplomacy, and calculated policy, the Company transformed from a trading enterprise into the paramount power in India. How? Let’s explore in detail next section onwards.