The British Conquest of India (1798-1806) I. Background & Grand Strategy

Why did Britain decide to conquer India? In this video (Part 1 of a 5-part series), we examine the situation in the subcontinent during the 1790s, as well as the policy debates in Britain over the purpose of Empire. While many wanted to keep to the status quo in India (including, ironically, the East India Company), they were ultimately no match for the ambition of Governor-General Richard Wellesley, who eventually got approval for expansion through a combination of political skill, luck, and rampant Francophobia.
SCRIPT: strategosstuff.blogspot.com/2...
All errors are my own.
▬ CHAPTERS ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬
0:00 - Start
2:14 - 1. India in the 1790s
9:10 - 2. Britain's India Policy: Mercantilists vs. Reformists
16:10 - 3. Mornington's Grand Strategy
▬ SOURCES ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬
Bowen H. The Business of Empire. Cambridge University Press 2006.
Chowdhury M. Empire and Gunpowder. Routledge 2023.
Cooper R. The Anglo-Maratha Campaigns and the Contest for India. Cambridge University Press 2007.
Roy K. War, Culture and Society in Early Modern South Asia. Routledge 2011.
Severn J. Architects of Empire. University of Oklahoma Press 2007.
Stewart G. The New Cambridge History of India. Cambridge University Press 2008.
Yazdani K. India, Modernity and the Great Divergence. Brill 2017.
Ahuja R; Christof-Füchsle M (eds). A Great War in South India. Walter de Gruyter 2020.
Bayly C. Empire and Information. Cambridge University Press 1999.
Habib I (ed). State and Diplomacy under Tipu Sultan. Tulika 2001.
Wink A. Land and Sovereignty in India. Cambridge University Press 1986.
Rosen D. Border Law. Harvard University Press 2015. (Re: US-Native relations BUT relevant)
▬ CREDITS ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬
Alex
▬ ATTRIBUTIONS ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬▬
Wikipedia (basic facts + dates)
Maps:
Google Maps
www.deviantart.com/cyowari/ar...
(India Topography)
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_R...
(Rann of Kutch)
www.deviantart.com/cyowari/ar...
(India 1700)
www.deviantart.com/cyowari/ar...
(India 1750)
www.deviantart.com/cyowari/ar...
(India 1794)
www.deviantart.com/cyowari/ar...
(India 1807)
upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...
(European Empires 1800)
wanderingdutchie.blogspot.com/...
(DEI 1800)
Made using Microsoft Office 2013, Remote Mouse, ShureMV7, Audacity, WavePad, VideoPad and Poe.

[@eternalsuffering7374]

The GOAT is back!

[@kenzo5096]

Who ? The British Empire ?

[@vercot7000]

@@kenzo5096 What kind of GOAT is an empire that got beaten by Egypt and had to bow before the Americans in '56?

[@dale6947]

In terms of land area and population, the British conquest of India has got to be up there with the most significant conquests in history, yet is so rarely focused on. It's usually handwaved as 'the British EIC was to technologically advanced for primative Indians to counter and so they simply steamrolled the subcontinent.' It will be interesting to see an in-depth series on the process.

[@phunkracy]

Mughals overextended and weakened, which was exploited by resurgent Persian Empire under military genius Nadir Shah. His and his succesors raids into Delhi and northern India broke the power of Mughals in 6 decades of almost uninterrupted invasions. The power vacuum and fragmentation led to further conflicts, the British, acting as power brokers filled the power vacuum as a benevolent outside power.

[@pax6833]

The funny thing is that India could have been a French or even Ottoman imperial possession, but both ventures failed while the British were able to succeed (something that contemporary historians would've called highly implausible given how vast the population and territory of India was compared to how tiny Britain was and how little Britain prioritized its army).

[@jupe2001]

@@phunkracy Marathas conquered Delhi in 1737, two years before Nadir Shah. Mughals were already long broken by the Mughal-Maratha war by that time.

[@jupe2001]

@@pax6833 French never had much political ambition in India like the Brits, nor did they have the military might to do so. Ottomans never really held any territory in India. Also, the EIC army was mostly Indian natives paid by Indian tax money, it was the largest European-style army in history, capable of taking over Europe if EIC willed.

[@phunkracy]

@@jupe2001 it was one off vs like several decades of dunking on mughals by perso-afghan cavalry

[@noriyakigumble3011]

It’s absolutely wild that so little coverage is given to exactly how the EIC and Great Britain conquered India. Everyone talks about the impact of the British empire and it’s hegemony over a myriad of nations which changed the course of their histories, Bit nobody gives much consideration to the fact that the UKs colonialism was, in large part, fueled and shaped by their possession of India. India was the fulcrum around which the wheels of empire turned for Britain. Egypt ensured access to the Red Sea Aden was a good choke point to secure Indian shipping. The trucial system kept the Gulf secure for British interests in India South Africa was taken from the Dutch to better secure the route to India The great game. The Nigerian protectorates were were modeled in the image of the Indian Prince system, The fundamental difference being that Hausa rule of the Nigerian middle belt was unprecedented and arbitrary as opposed to the legitimacy of the Muslim princes ruling the Hindi population from the princely states in India. Indias importance to world history completely outweighs its coverage

[@onlyfacts4999]

You missed the most important factor: India was the source of the opium which was sold to China which was a massive source of revenue for Britain.

[@thegreatestdemon1288]

White morons are praisin' british, y'all can understand what did to india by the fact of the matter that life expectancy of indians degraded from 72 to 32 when british forced to left india, still white christians are sayin' tgat british benefited india, they don't understand that british didn't benefit india as white christians claims rather british did all sorta things to serve their interests not for to serve indigenous communities of non western countries like india , infact white christians in comment section arguin' that if british wouldn't have conquered india then india wouldn't have gotten the benefits that india achieved as per their claims, the fact of the matter is thst even if british wouldn't have conquered india , india would accomplished everythin' that western countries achieved, it's entirely fakse claims of white christians thst they bring prosperity, india used to contribute 33% of the world's gdp before rhe arrival of british to india , india was the richest country at that india even statistical & logistical data are in public domain which demolishes white christians opinions & claims 'bout that british occupation of india benefitted india , they tend to forget that the so called benefits that british gave to india & other non western countries attained at cost of massacres, rape of hindu women at large scale, destruction & loot of wealth, induction of famishion, british created wealth by lootin' 45 trillion dollars, UK is developed cuz they looted india despite insia is now 5th largest economy in the world , british achieved nothin' by their own, these facts that british christians overlook deliberately cuz it'll exposed their fallacious & stupid arguments, i recommend white christians to watch out " shashi tharoor" video on YT whether british benefited india or not 🤣

[@kilpatrickkirksimmons5016]

The British mythology is that it just sort of happened. "We seemed to have conquered the world in a fit of absent mindedness." That's obviously horseshit. Of course they didn't have a grand, step-by-step plan (no one ever does) but this video is a nice and rare peak behind the curtain.

[@ihl0700677525]

Well, the British/English ruling elites (i.e. the Normans) started their "colonization" effort in Normandy, then England, Wales, and Ireland. The administration, etc of the 13 colonies and India developed from their experience colonizing what we now consider as their own (adopted) "homeland", throughout the centuries. Of all those, I think Ireland was the actual basis/model for English style "world conquest", everything has its root in the colonization of Ireland. Like they were sending settlers, alongside soldiers and statesmen with the intention of "reshaping" the colony, instead of the ruling elites moving in to actually "rule" the land (which necessitate collaboration with existing local elites, and adopting local culture to legitimize their own rule). IMO British/English colonization effort were, in large part, fueled and shaped by their possession of England and Ireland. German and Scandinavian rednecks' (the Anglo-Saxons, and the Normans) importance to world history completely outweighs its coverage.

[@akhanddbangladesh8274]

"British Raj" not british india. .. there was no such thing called india ever existed till 1947.

[@atharvzemse6599]

The irony is Majority of Indians think British took over India from Mughals. This is what Indians have been taught since independence.

[@privatechannel875]

No. I have grown up in India and have read NCERT books throughout school. They never say what your comment says.

[@atharvzemse6599]

@@privatechannel875 Emphasis is given more to battle of Plassey and Buxar. After battle of Buxar they directly jumps into 1857 war of Independence where they say it was end of Mughal rule but the fact is de-facto Mughal rule ended way earlier. After Aurangzeb's death mughal didn't had any power their administration was limited to the city of delhi and were puppets afghans followed by the Marathas and at the British.

[@GregMcNeish]

Outstanding, my man! Thrilled to see you back in action. I love how you take your time making videos to ensure the information is top-notch. Terrific topic. Looking forward to the rest of the series. I'd love to see a future video on the VIC, and how the Dutch colonial approach was both similar and differed from that of the larger powers.

[@StrategyStuff]

Thanks for the comment! Unfortunately I really don’t know when I would get around to Dutch East India Co (tho they played a major part in my previous video on Taiwan). They played a role pre-1790s re: Mysore but it’s not substantive enough to be mentioned in the next vid.

[@zeddddd2846]

Welcome back; fantastic content as always. I thoroughly enjoy your deep dives on these subjects and all your work. Hope to see more of it in action, thank you!

[@metatendies4966]

Great to see you back! This was awesome! Looking forward to more videos!

[@davidbrunner7772]

I'm always excited when your videos come out. Love the in-detail layout of everything, easily one of the best channels on military strategy

[@goldenseer3688]

Always love seeing a new upload from you! VERY excited for the rest of the series!

[@milanvondelft268]

So excited to have you back!! And with a bang too - great topic choice.

[@Datdoodtedumz]

"This is part 1 of a 5 part series" 😍😍😍

[@dreadwanderer]

I discovered your content recently and instantly subscribed. Great to see a new video!

[@NateRowand-jo2rf]

Yet another banger from Strategy Stuff. I love the detail and style of your content, first giving a high-level view and then getting into the weeds, and I also love how you cover less-popular, but still extremely important, eras // events. Truly one of the best geopolitics/history channels on youtube, you deserve far more follows. Thanks for all your amazing work, looking forward to the rest of the series.

[@TheJazzax]

Great to see you back, I rewatch your videos from time to time because of your style of presenting the material you cover. Top class stuff. Please by all means, keep it coming!

[@kpep588]

Amazing content, waiting for the next part!

[@kevinelruler]

Happy to see you posting videos again!!

[@LillianKoi]

Oooo this topic is really interesting! Welcome back!!

[@IllIl]

Absolutely fascinating, thank you!

[@Bram06]

This is absolutely outstanding. One of the finest videos made on the subject of the colonization of India

[@steft6093]

I love how unique the periods this channel examines compared to more other information sources

[@NoiaTeixeira-fe3ou]

Holy crap what a hell of a channel, thank you so much for your stuff, love the work!

[@Anton2046gfkn]

Im glad to see you being active. :)

[@josww2]

Great vid, love your channel!

[@devs.4254]

I'm excited for this series!

[@TimZandbergen]

Happy that you are back!

[@gregorybrennan8539]

This channel IS great. Thank you for your obvious hard work. Thank you

[@ra8784]

Great to see you back!!

[@quentinpuyjalinet1468]

Your channel is way underrated men. Excellent content, simple and yet efficient maps and images. Very interesting !

[@lucasvanderhoeven3760]

Great that you are back man!

[@antonperederii5640]

Great video! Looking forward to the next one.

[@abdullahdaniyal114]

Glad to have you back.

[@kacper7508]

Great Video can't wait for more

[@neilritson7445]

This is brilliant! I have dabbled in strategy as a manager, management consultant and as a University educator - so I hope I know quality in strategic analysis when is see it! Congratulations - I've subscribed and shared it.

[@micahistory]

so glad you are back

[@namelessentitywatchingyou8439]

So happy to see you back in action after a long time

[@uwanttono4012]

You came into my YT Feed and I'm glad you did as I found this to be a very enjoyable and educational podcast indeed!! A splendid little production that I can clearly see was well researched and produced. A new subscriber here. Well done!!

[@HeyImLucious]

Hell yeah, channel not dead. I love these videos

[@tiscotisa9731]

I'm glad you're back, I hope you can get assistants to help you make more videos

[@andrewwhelan9664]

A new upload always puts a smile on my face :D

[@juulianstudios]

Great to have you back man!

[@aliakbarsafdari4084]

This was excellent! Can't wait for the next one..

[@MohitPJoshi]

Oh yeah! The video I needed 🙏🙏

[@lucasnadamas9317]

Another goddam banger, actually the only legitimately informational history channel out there

[@spinningweb749]

Welcome back. ❤

[@dunnowy123]

Yes!!! This is the video I've been waiting for

[@michaelkirk4173]

Your channel is about to explode in popularity. Keep at it bud.

[@DensetsuVII]

Strategy Stuff is back yay!! We've been waiting so long! "This is part 1 of a 5 part series" Strategy Stuff is back eyyy we'll be waiting so longgg T_T Just love this stuff though man, keep it up

[@micahistory]

this is a super interesting video, you videos never fail to impress me

[@malkomalkavian]

Extremely interesting, thank you :)

[@conovan5081]

My favorite channel strikes again 🙏

[@llkdk]

Just when I thought the channel was out, it pulled me back in.

[@uros3701]

Why have I not found this channel earlier? I usually find interesting niche channels like this one much earlier. Can't wait to watch all of their videos!

[@Volition1001]

Please keep the uploads up

[@sebastianjuara]

love your content

[@michaelthayer5351]

It's always strange how one person can influence events to such a degree. Great Man Theory is probably not right as it ignores environmental factors, but nevertheless individual actions and decisions do matter sometimes as much as centuries long economic, trade, or demographic trends.

[@josephk.4200]

I think Mornington and Wellesley were products of their time and place. No doubt if it wasn’t them, it would have been other names. What was important was their training, inclinations, and power.

[@michaelthayer5351]

@@josephk.4200 Most certainly they were, Just like Alexander the Great, Genghis Khan and Napoleon were. Yet without them history would be radically different.

[@StrategyStuff]

There’s no denying that Mornington had influence on events and that replacing him with X would have changed or at least delayed the course of British imperialism. At the same time, M’s influence was “structured” in the sense that it was tolerated by the UK Govt: M needed a lot of latitude in his decisionmaking bc of distance, and the costs of making a bad decision (esp in terms of European treasure/lives) was fairly low as far as the colonialists were concerned. These “structures” were ultimately influenced by broader organizational/tech trends: no G-G would enjoy that much freedom after steamship post and esp telegraph (tho late 19C FRA would see its share of “rogue” colonialists bc of 3rd Republic political weakness). So GMT and longer-duration factors are not necessarily opposed to each other, especially beyond a philosophical/fundamental level.

[@michaelthayer5351]

@@StrategyStuff That reminds me a lot of that Shakespearean line: "There is a tide in the affairs of men, Which taken at the flood, leads on to fortune.". The world may make the tide, but the man still needs to recognize it and decide when to embark.

[@LOL-zu1zr]

@@michaelthayer5351Genghis Khan and Napoleon would have been just great generals of their time rather than what they are irl if they didn’t have the military reformations that occurred before them. For Mongolia it was centuries of tribal warfare for the French it was centralization and organization.

[@rob2540]

Amazing vid

[@angrybudgies]

Another excellent video

[@matejurkovic7967]

Great video

[@jdamsel8212]

It's hard to say how much I appreciate this video... thanks a lot.

[@TyranyFighterPatriot]

Welcome back brother. It's been too long, but we're still with you.

[@hiddenhist]

Always enjoy these.

[@shafaitahir4728]

Amazing breakdown

[@adityam6007]

Welcome back

[@waltervetri2476]

Great video .

[@ZZValiant]

HOLY HE'S BACK YESSS

[@tijojose7966]

I’ve waited years for these videos to return.

[@booksung007]

He is back boys!🎉

[@bigsarge2085]

Fascinating.

[@micahistory]

I love seeing these historical events analysed from a startegic POV

[@sunnysuryani5674]

Eyy he's back

[@bharethkachroo8895]

Fantastic - this is some of the most insightful and concise historical analysis you'll see anywhere. If anyone has recommendations on books with a similar approach (a clear strategic analysis that doesn't take 1000s of pages) for any other places and times, please share!

[@hassanminbaghdad]

excellent explanation

[@wheresmyeyebrow1608]

The master as returned

[@johnchao2422]

DUDE YES WE MISSED YOU

[@jtgd]

Thank you. I’ve wanted to learn in detail about the British colonization of India, but there aren’t many “video documentaries” that go into nitty gritty details and concepts

[@fidanras]

you mean the British invasion of india? Colonization...

[@jacobringenwald]

Honey wake up, a new Strategy Stuff video dropped!

[@TheTacoBandit1]

Welcome back.

[@metarus208]

welcome back

[@ClamTheClammy]

OMG He's back!

[@oldrabbit8290]

i remember one of your earliest video long ago about the geopolitics of the Mughal Empire, glad to see how it play out in this series.

[@TheMap1997]

He's back

[@Gamenetreviews]

Very good

[@dubsy1026]

Brilliant

[@abhishekojha8678]

Great Video.... You way of approach makes history a very interesting subject. Hope you'll cover British policies after 1857 till 1947,the international events that affected british policies etc. Thanks for such good content. ❤ from 🇮🇳

[@bm8985]

The mic improvement is outstanding

[@AjitSharma-km6ev]

Excellent and revealing. When can we see the subsequent parts?

[@StrategyStuff]

I plan to release 1 every 2 weeks, so the next vid is on thurs

[@syedaamirhussain6111]

Great to watch. I am Pakistan Studies teacher since 1990. I really appreciate your work ❤

[@Taipei_103]

I see a Strategy Stuff video, I instantly click.

[@selvoselvo1]

Very good material, sheds some new light, on how even the empire has different pro-war and pro-peace factions and it is not a foregone conclusion that it will use its power even if it can.

[@Dragons_Armory]

Love these, keep them coming. I'd also love it if you covered how local polities dealt with and countered British encroachment. It might be a gradual process but would love to see the patterns.

[@StrategyStuff]

I have tried, but unfortunately that’s an underresearched area and the many records that exist on the Indian side haven’t really been accessed (at least in a form where I myself can easily access them).

[@Dragons_Armory]

@@StrategyStuff darn 😥

[@TheMajorActual]

I'm a simple guy - I see a new Strategy Stuff drop, I click. On the video, I suppose that I've always known this at some level, but India in c.1790 really reminds me of Renaissance Italy during the _condottieri_ period...and the buying-off of the French mercs without a shot being fired by offering them shares in the EIC actually got a real "LOL" moment.

[@StrategyStuff]

It’s not related to this video, but I remember a passage in a Mughal history book where the Emperor (Aurangzeb?) arrived at a siege and the first thing he did was liberally distribute mansab (land grants) to friend and foe alike, kind of like an Oprah situation (“you get a village!… you get a village!”)

[@TheMajorActual]

@@StrategyStuff LOLOLOLOLOL

[@expatexpat6531]

Excellent. Mornington somehow reminds me of the attitude of some Roman governors who milked their province for everything they could get before heading back to Rome to pursue their political career.

[@baratmalli6413]

Wow!! .. great insights even India’s own history books don’t have this wholistic view, explaining both sides of the history.

[@Maplelust]

of course they don't..

[@Medleri]

And UK's history books have absolutely nothing on British colonialism. Don't blame them though.

[@vercot7000]

@@Maplelust UK's history classes are somehow even worse than Indian history classes in teaching accurate info

[@Benji567891]

@@Medleri That's not true at all, just so far from the truth, Britains past is at the forefront of everything in the UK nowdays, not just school.

[@Medleri]

@@Benji567891 It may be everywhere just not in the school curriculum. Nobody knew about the death of 3 million Bengali deaths during WW 2, thanks to the famine caused by the diversion of food grains, till a historian wrote about it a few years ago. Many Brits today still believe that colonialism was an act of benevolence.

[@oscargrove2107]

Great video! Colonial conquests are so often overlooked. Will you end up covering the chinese revolution?

[@StrategyStuff]

Yes I will. This was originally a 1 video project that blew up the more I looked into it. The work on this series is largely done and as I post 1 new vid every 2 weeks, I’ll be working on Mao

[@CutieZalbu]

Somebody’s channel came back to life 😅😂❤

[@Kalki276]

Befitting work shows that, British took over India from Hindu Maratha and NOT Mughals as is commonly taught.

[@M3ganwillslay]

​@@BritishRajNationalistDelhi was never indian capital .it was Kolkata and Madras . Administrative and mercantile .

[@bee-fs3vb]

I just found your channel. I hope you also mention the anglo nepalese war.

[@sidvyas8549]

Ngl that thumbnail map got me triggered lmfao Like, India has historically (until about 70 odd years ago) extended from Sindh and the border of modern day Persia to the eastern most borders of Bangladesh ie Burma/Myanmar, and from Kashmir bordering Afghanistan and Tibet to Tamil Nadu bordering Sri Lanka through the Palk Strait

[@sidvyas8549]

@BritishRajNationalist “British Raj Nationalist” Doesn’t know the extent of the Empire of India 🤡🤡 Dunce 🤣

[@digitalcommunist6335]

Yes! Long live our Empress Victoria ! Jai Hind!

[@internethardcase]

Please do a ww2 Germany grand strategy video. I would love more details on that.

[@MekanicalKing]

I would've liked to hear about Portuguese, Netherland and later French expansion prior to the British hegemony.

[@shryggur]

Yeah, it'd be great to have something like an addendum to the series

[@StrategyStuff]

Thanks for your comment! I think that will have to wait for another video after this series. Imho the British conquest (specifically during this period) is qualitatively different from the more “mercantilist” wars that cane before and was a harbinger of the pattern of European expansion in 19C.

[@jupe2001]

Portuguese were defeated by every major and minor local power, the Dutch and the French never really had the political and military might for a large conquest in India.

[@miguelsilva1446]

​@@jupe2001what are you smoking? The Portuguese were for a long time the strongest european power in India and a major power in the subcontinent

[@thelakeman2538]

​@@miguelsilva1446Portuguese got kicked out by Dutch VOC and their allied native rulers in all of their major forts and trading hubs along the Malabar in the seventeenth century. Even their position in Goa was threatened by the Dutch, the pressure was enough that they had to sign a treaty with their long standing enemies the Adil Shahis of Bijapur. This is not to mention all the epidemics that decimated Portuguese Goa's population. So by the time period of this video (late 18th century) they had ceased to be a player a century ago.