The East India Company: Corrupt Governance and Cruelty in India, 1806–1814 - Key Data

The first Earl of Minto, Sir Gilbert Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound, served as the Governor-General of India from 1807 to 1813. Containing over 130,000 images, this collection is drawn from his personal papers during his time as the premier of the East India Company (EIC). These documents contain extensive correspondence with fellow officials, records from the EIC’s political and secret departments, and files concerning the earl’s time as president of the Board of Control. 

The collection offers valuable insights into the upper echelons of the EIC during a period when it was consolidating its influence throughout the Indian subcontinent, having established governance of the wealthy region of Bengal during the late eighteenth century.

It has long been asserted that the EIC’s governance of India during the early nineteenth century was characterised by corruption, cruelty, and exploitation of the indigenous population. The EIC extracted revenue and its policies are deemed to have exacerbated poverty, famine, and instability, all of which helped spark the Indian Mutiny of 1857–1858. Following the suppression of this uprising, the EIC’s authority in India was seized by Westminster. 

This collection is a rich resource for students, educators, and researchers wishing to explore the development and influence of the once powerful EIC, as well as the formation of the British empire. It will also appeal to those interested in the broader histories of Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan.