In the 1700s much of India was divided into individual principalities and different empires. Following the British victory at the Battle of Plassey, some Indian princes were removed from their positions of power by the East India Company’s private army. This army was largely made up of Indian soldiers called sepoys.

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However, other Indian princes kept their positions if they promised to support the East India Company and favour British interests.

Some ordinary Indians turned British control to their financial advantage, such as shipbuilder Jamsetjee Bomanjee Wadia. He became wealthy by building ships for the British East India Company.

However, for many Indians, life under the control of the East India Company meant poverty and violence from British merchants. Indian workers were forced to sell their goods to the British at very low prices and were then made to buy British products at much higher prices.

High levels of poverty and high taxes left Indians particularly vulnerable when famines hit the region, as they struggled to afford food.

Bengal famine

Between 1769 and 1770 a famine hit the Bengal region. Due to bad weather the harvest had failed to produce enough crops. Many farmers had no reserves of food because they had had to sell their food to afford the high taxes demanded by the East India Company.

The East India Company did not put a relief plan in place, and up to 10 million people died of starvation and illness. This was the first of several famines to hit India during British rule throughout the 1700s and 1800s.