The Early Expansion of English Trade in Suba Bengal

Abstract

The coming of the English East India Company to Bengal and their settlement over here was an important landmark in the history of Bengal and India as a whole. It was from the very early stage of the seventeenth century that we could see their efforts to establish their stronghold over Bengal which is known from the letters of Sir Thomas Roe. On the other hand the agents of the Dutch East India Company were also eager to establish their commercial relations with Bengal as is known from the letter of Van Berchem (the Director of the Dutch Factories of Coromandel). The English from their very early phase were interested in establishing a factory at Pipili in Orissa. However their hope did not materialised and they establish their first factory at Patna in Eastern India. Though, the hope of establishing a factory at Orissa by them was never stopped. The English sent two ships again at Pipili. Finally in AD 1633 the English factory established at Balasore which was at that time under the Bengal Suba (province). One of the main reasons behind the establishing of a factory at Balasore was the easy availability of Cotton cloth and above all the direct opening through sea.