NCERT Solutions for Class 8 Social Science History Chapter 2 From Trade to Territory

The first English factory was set up on the banks of the river Hugli in 1651. This was known at that time as “factors”, operated. The factory had a warehouse where goods for export were stored and it had offices where Company officials sat. As trade expanded, the Company persuaded merchants and traders to come and settle near the factory.
By 1696 it began building a fort around the settlement. Two years later it bribed Mughal officials into giving the Company zamindari rights over three villages. One of these was Kalikata, which later grew into the city of Calcutta or Kolkata as it is known today. It also persuaded the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb to issue a farman granting the Company the right to trade duty free.

After the death of Aurangzeb, the Bengal nawabs asserted their power and autonomy, as other regional powers were doing at that time. Murshid Quli Khan was followed by Alivardi Khan and then Sirajuddaulah as the Nawab of Bengal. They refused to grant the Company concessions, demanded large tributes for the Company’s right to trade, denied it any right to mint coins and stopped it from extending its fortifications. It was refusing to pay taxes, writing disrespectful letters, and trying to humiliate the nawab and his officials. The Company on its part declared that the unjust demands of the local officials were ruining the trade of the Company and trade could flourish only if the duties were removed. It was also convinced that to expand trade it had to enlarge its settlements, buy up villages, and rebuild its forts.

The British conquest of Bengal began with the Battle of Plassey.

The Mughal empire became stronger in the eighteenth century. False

Indian cotton and silk was in great demand in Europe. Indian spices were also in great demand. Goods could be bought at cheaper rates from India and could be sold at higher rates in Europe. This prospect attracted the European trading companies to India.

The Bengal nawabs wanted tributes from the Company in lieu of granting the right to trade. The Company was forbidden from minting its own coins and from expanding fortifications. The Company wanted to expand its settlement and wanted special privileges.

This was a major breakthrough for the Company because Diwani allowed it to use the vast revenue resources of Bengal. The Company could use the revenue to finance its trade and other expenses. It could also use the revenue to strengthen its military power.

According to this alliance, Indian rulers were not allowed to have their independent armed forces. The Company army was to protect the Indian state but the ruler had to pay for the “subsidiary forces”. If an Indian ruler failed to make the payment, then part of his territory was taken away as penalty. For example; Awadh and Hyderabad were forced to cede territories on this ground.

The Company made a proper system of administration. The Indian rulers did not have a proper system of administration. The Company took suggestions from pundits and maulvis before making new laws for criminal and civil cases. The Indian rulers seldom thought about respecting local sensibilities before making any rule.

The infantry regiment became more important. In the early nineteenth century the British began to develop a uniform military culture. Soldiers were increasingly subjected to European-style training. Now, drill and discipline that regulated their life far more than before.

The main features of Calcutta city during the colonial period were as follows: Due to planning of different Governor Generals, Civil Lines area were developed. The Lottery Committee (1817) also planned the work of town. Densely built up areas were seen as insanitary since they obstructed directly sunlight and circulation or air.