Intro

My mom is constantly discovering new podcasts. She gets intrigued by many things, but was so exuberant about the Empire podcast that I gave it a listen and quickly became captivated.

To better remember some of the extraordinary stories and lessons from the podcast, I’ve written up a few notes on the episodes I’ve listened to so far.

Notes

The East India Company

  • The Dutch originally had a stronghold on the spice trade in India
    • Because Indian trade was enourmously profitable, the British saw an opportunity to carve out their own fortune
  • The East India Company (EIC) was a private company that traded primarily textiles in India.
    • EIC was a joint stock company, which was a new concept at the time. This meant that the company was owned by shareholders, and the company’s profits were distributed to the shareholders.
    • Before joint stock companies existed, only people who worked in the industry helped fund a company.
    • Beginnings of contemporary stock market. Idea of joint stock company most importantly allowed the extreme growth of companies that was not possible before.
  • EIC had support from the British government.

Company Rule in India

  • How was the EITC able to establish a stronghold in India
    • Robert Clive was a brilliant soldier and employed guerilla warfare in a time where this was uncommon. He terrified his enemies and interestingly began to turn upon other EITC groups, creating a faction.
    • At this point, the Mogul empire is broken, and India is divided into disjoint political groups & tribes.
    • Even though the EITC has vastly less manpower (interestingly, the head group only numbered 35 for the first century of company rule), they were able to pit different Indian groups against each other for two primary reasons: historical distrust between tribes and better monetary incentives for Indians to join EITC troops.
  • Height of EITC rule
    • Many young British men came to India to oversee regional operations. The EITC only employed people under the age of 16. The death rate was around 75% due primarily to disease. However, the promise of great fortune was alluring to many.
    • Indian textile workers were essentially forced to work in facilities with terrible conditions and grueling conditions. There is an account of Bengali weavers cutting off their own thumbs so they were unable to weave.
  • The famine
    • Poppies used for opium production were able to grow in rougher terrain than other crops. When they were discovered to be a hugely profitable crop, they were planted in place of food.
    • A monsoon season with little rain followed by a season with no rain at all resulted in a terrible famine. An estimated 3-5 million people died from starvation. The EITC was clear in their intentions — they were a company to make profit, so unlike other rulers, who, in times of famine waived taxes and held soup kitchens, in regions where the EITC ruled, there was no relief efforts.
      • In an ironic and repugnant meeting, the shareholders were given the “fortuitous” news that the EITC had despite the famine been able to collect more taxes than before and thus opted to increase their dividend.
      • However, not hypocritical as other rulers. Under no guise but to be profitable.
    • Eventually, news of the absolute travesty traveled back to England where public opinion of the EITC fell.
      • News also reached the Americas (around 1770s). Discontent of British rule had been building steadily and fear of rule such as the EITC had in India was present in the Americas
      • The Boston Tea Party threw out EITC tea after the tea tax, originally intended to help bail out the EITC in the aftermath of the famine

Mutiny, Uprising, and Rebellion

  • Relationship between British Government and EITC
    • The EITC was vastly powerful and controlled all trade to India
    • Means of corruption
      • Many members of parliament were shareholders of EITC stock
      • EITC essentially invented the concept of lobbying
      • Also employed undisguised bribery
    • British retaliation
  • Changing power in EITC
    • Clive and his successor as leaders of the EITC were both tried in parliament and both got off.
    • His successor was more sympathetic and interested in Indian culture, but the rule of the EITC remained rapacious
    • His successor and another had a duel, where both were untrained in how to fire a pistol
    • Hilarious encounter where one of them taught the other how to shoot a pistol mid-duel