Great Britain Looted $45 Trillion by Peter Preskar

Source: https://medium.com/history-of-yesterday/great-britain-looted-45-trillion-from-india-3abd4ab2a10a =========== London is one of the greatest cities on Earth. The city center is full of old buildings, enormous statues, and beautiful gardens. But the British built all that with the blood and sweat of people from India and other colonies. The British drained India of $45 trillion between 1765 and 1940. In comparison, the US annual budget is $4 trillion. History of the colonial exploitation of India In 1600, the British established one of the first corporations — the notorious East India Company (EIC). Most of the British trade with India went through the EIC. Mughal India was at the height of its power in the 17th century and the British had to pay for the Indian products with silver. Everything changed with the Treaty of Allahabad in 1765. The British EIC got the rights to collect taxes in India. The EIC established a monopoly on the Indian trade, even having a private army and minting its own money. The Mughal Emperors became mere puppets in the hands of the British. The last Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah II died in a British prison in 1862. The British East India Company tripled their profits through taxation. They used tax income to buy cotton textiles and rice from their Indian subjects. The EIC sold the Indian goods to the rest of Europe for the price they chose due to their monopoly. It was a win-win scenario, but both wins were British. The looting of India coincides with the Industrial Revolution in Great Britain (1760–1840). The money from India bought raw materials for the factories in England which propelled an explosion of economic power throughout the British Empire. The Indian Rebellion between 1857 and 1858 terminated the EIC’s control. Afterward, the Indians could trade with everyone. Still, the rulers of India had another deceitful trick in their sleeves. The British were printing the money used for the trade. After 1858, the only way to buy Indian goods was to use Council bills which were specially issued by the British government. Merchants bought them in London with gold and silver and Indian workers and farmers received the Council bills in exchange for their goods. The Indians then exchanged the bills for Indian rupees to buy food and other necessities. The British got these rupees by collecting taxes from their Indian subjects. Again, the British paid the Indians with their own money. All the gold and silver ended up in London. Between 1900 and 1930, India was the second-largest exporter of manufactured goods in the world and was creating value. Yet, India had to borrow money from Britain to import goods. The life expectancy in India fell by 20% during British rule. In 1911 it corresponded to only 22 years. The average Indian income halved in the 19th century. The annual consumption of food grains per capita went down from 200 kg in 1900 to 157 kg in 1940. Yet, the Western world flourished. Britain used the free money from India to finance the Industrial revolution, wars, and building projects. Huge taxes, reduction of welfare, and cultivation of cash crops contributed to the poverty of India. A combination of droughts and the British policies generated famines. Over ten million Indians died during each of the famines listed here: Great Bengal famine (1769–70) Chalisa Famine (1783–84) Skull Famine (1791–92) Great Famine (1876–78) Indian Famine (1896–97) Indian Famine (1899–1900) Conclusion Most likely, India would be a global powerhouse if the money had stayed in the country. We don’t know that for sure, but we can see the wealth in the Western world. The British were one of the many Western powers which benefitted from the colonization era. Even Belgium got rich from the colonization of Congo. With India, it is obvious the economic system masked the stealing to such a great extent that the Indians could not see it. Once they revolted, their rulers introduced another system that was even more complex and deceitful.