Trade and finance in colonial India, 1750-1860

Trade and finance in colonial India, 1750-1860

by Asiya Siddiqi

Part of Oxford in India readings.

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About
This volume comprises twelve of the most important pieces on the nature of India's trade and financial dealings in the early colonial period, during the years of imperial expansion. Several of the pieces included here are inaccessible or have long been out of print. Foreign trade, in particular the commercial transaction between India and Great Britain, is the topic which dominates the essays. The volume editor's introduction ties together the various strands which link the essays. Professor Siddiqi traces how the East India Company made the transition from a trading organization to a governing power. She shows how trading capital, markets, credit systems, and the intricacies of bullion flows formed the basis of an increasingly complex network of controls which resulted in commercial as well as political dominance by Britain over India.

Discussion questions for Trade and finance in colonial India, 1750-1860

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  1. 1

    Professor Siddiqi highlights the East India Company's transition from a trading organization to a governing power. What specific financial or trade mechanisms detailed in the essays do you think were most crucial in enabling this shift, and why?

  2. 2

    The description mentions a "complex network of controls" leading to commercial and political dominance. How does this phrase broaden or challenge your understanding of imperial power beyond direct military conquest, and what modern parallels, if any, come to mind in global economic relations?

  3. 3

    The book delves into seemingly abstract concepts like bullion flows, credit systems, and trading capital. Which of these "invisible" financial mechanisms surprised you most in its capacity to shape concrete political and social realities, and why?

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