Question

why did indian rulers encourage foreign trade

Answer 1

Indian rulers encouraged foreign companies to trade in their kingdoms because of the following reasons.

1. Trading brought into India a variety of goods that were not locally available. For example, Arab traders used to supply high quality horses that were not available in India.

2. Indian rulers could obtain revenue by imposing taxes on the foreign traders. This way, they could increase the wealth available in their treasuries.

3. Indian rulers also hoped to use the soldiers and armies that accompanied the foreign traders to settle local disputes with other neighbouring kingdoms.

Answer 2

Hey friend,

1. For new products - There were some things which were not available in India or were not discovered yet... so Indians were dependent on the foreign goods for some goods

2. Taxes - Indian rulers thought that trading was a good way to increase the wealth of India by imposing heavy duties on the goods.

3. Relations - Indian rulers ought to make good relations with foreign rulers as they saw it as a benefit to their kingdom 

4. Status - By trading, even the Indian goods became of great importance in the world (example, spices of India) and thus the Indian market became prosperous

Hope it helps!