Before the English East India Company
established trade in India, John Mildenhall, a merchant adventurer, was the
first English man who arrived in India in 1599 by the overland route,
ostensibly for the purpose of trade with Indian merchants.
‘The Governor and Company of Merchants of London
Trading into the East Indies’, popularly known as the English East India
company , was formed in 1600.
Captain William Hawkins arrived at Jahangir’s
court (1609) to seek permission to open a factory at Surat. A Farman was issued
by Jahangir permitting the English to build a factory at Surat (1613).
Sir Thomas Roe came to India as ambassador of
James I to Jahangir’s court in 1615 to obtain the permission to trade and erect
factories in different parts of the empire.
The English east India Company acquired Bombay
from Charles II on lease. Gerald Aungier was its first governor from 1669 to
1677.
In 1690, Job Charnock established a factory at
Sutanati and the zamindari of the three villages of Sutanati, Kalikata and
Gobindpur was acquired by the British (1698). These villages later grew into
the city of Calcutta. The factory at Sutanati was fortified in 1696 and this
new fortified settlement was named Fort William in 1700.
In 1694, the British parliament passed a
resolution giving equal rights to all Englishmen to trade in the East. A new
rival company, known as ‘the English Company of Merchants Trading to the East
Indies’ was formed (1698).
The final amalgamation of the company came in
1708 under the title of ‘The united company of Merchants of England Trading to
the East Indies’. This new company continued its existence till 1858.