What made the British to record every aspect of their administration in India ?? Do you think they were answerable to somebody ?? Give reasons to support your argument.
Answers
The British East India Company, sometimes referred to as "John Company," was a joint-stock company which was granted an English Royal Charter by Elizabeth I on December 31, 1600, with the intention of favoring trade privileges in India. The Royal Charter effectively gave the newly created The Honourable Company of Merchants of London Trading into the East Indies (HEIC) a 15 year monopoly on all trade in the East Indies. The Company transformed from a commercial trading venture to one which virtually ruled India as it acquired auxiliary governmental and military functions, until its dissolution in 1858. Increasingly, the company had been compelled to promote the material and moral progress of its Indian subjects, as, while trade remained the main goal of Empire, the British started to justify imperialism by speaking of a duty to “civilize” and “educate.” Servants of the company, though, could make vast amounts of money and were highly paid while their counterparts at home received modest salaries. The Utilitarian philosopher, John Stuart Mill, who worked for the company, defended its record and argued that it ought to continue to govern India, since it was above party-politics and completely devoted to Indian affairs while London was too distant from India to administer it properly.