How the Traders became Rulers?

They used the 'Divide and Rule' policy by making Maratha chiefs fight among themselves

Step 1: The Marathas were a powerful confederacy that was difficult to defeat as a united force. Step 2: After Nana Fadnavis died, there was no strong unifying leader among the Marathas. Step 3: The British cleverly used the 'Divide and Rule' policy — encouraging internal quarrels and conflicts among different Maratha chiefs. Step 4: When the Maratha chiefs fought each other, they became weak one by one, and the British forced each to accept the Subsidiary Alliance separately. Step 5: This is similar to the story of the two cats and the monkey mentioned at the start of the chapter — the third

7 years

Step 1: The chapter specifically mentions the time span of Wellesley's expansion. Step 2: Starting with the Nizam of Hyderabad, then Mysore, then the Marathas, and then other states like Ayodhya, Gorakhpur, Tanjore, etc. Step 3: All of these were brought under British supremacy through the Subsidiary Alliance. Step 4: The chapter clearly states: 'within a span of 7 years, Wellesley expanded the Company rule and made the British the supreme power in India.' Step 5: This shows how rapid and effective the Subsidiary Alliance was as a tool of expansion. 7 years is the correct answer.

Ranjit Singh had a strong army trained by European officers and was a powerful ruler

Step 1: The chapter states that the British had an 'ambition to capture the Sikh kingdom which was a very powerful kingdom.' Step 2: However, Maharaja Ranjit Singh was a 'strong ruler of that time' who had 'set up a strong army with the help of European officers.' Step 3: He had already won victories over many nearby states, proving his military strength. Step 4: The British realized that a direct military confrontation with such a powerful ruler would be very costly or impossible to win. Step 5: So they maintained 'friendly relations' with Ranjit Singh as a strategic choice — waiting for an o

Sir Henry Hardinge

Step 1: After Ranjit Singh's death, Punjab fell into a state of anarchy (chaos and disorder). Step 2: The British had been waiting for this opportunity. Step 3: The chapter specifically names 'Governor General Sir Henry Hardinge' who came to India at this time. Step 4: He used a 'policy of interference and annexation' to bring the Sikh rule completely under British control. Step 5: Lord Dalhousie is famous for the Doctrine of Lapse/Policy of Annexation of other states, not specifically for Punjab. Lord Wellesley was earlier and used the Subsidiary Alliance. Sir Henry Hardinge is the correct an