February 22, 2019 ▸ Corporation, History

Episode 369: East India Company: Worst Corporation Ever

On this episode of the world famous Sofa King Podcast, we travel back in time to the 1600s and look at the birth, rise, and crazy corruption and power of the British East India Company. Initially, it was a small corporation which was one of 200 that were granted a charter by Queen Elizabeth I to trade with the other countries in “The Orient.” It started as a small group of investors and led to them scoring a 500 ton shipment of pepper that made them rich and gave them bigger contracts. Almost immediately after that, they started to break the law and push the boundaries of what a corporation could (or should) get away with.

The East India Company started to trade for tea in China, but there was a problem. China only accepted silver, and England used gold. So, how did they meet in the middle? Why, by illegally selling opium to buy the tea. This made them even more rich and allowed them start building a private army which eventually grew to an estimated 250,000 men—almost twice that of the British Empire’s army!

With this army in place, the East India Company pretty much took control of India. After several bloody battles, this small corporation ended up being the legal body to collect taxes and govern most of India for well over a century. Meanwhile, they were also up to no good in the fledgling country of America. In fact, the infamous Tea Act of 1773 is the final straw that lead to the American Revolution. Through this law, the East India Company became the only company that could legally trade and sell tea in the Americas, and this was a problem because it was a monopoly that could fix prices against colonists, and it was the end of many prominent businessmen. So, people dressed like Indians and dumped all the tea in Boston Harbor. Like you do…

How did the East India Company gain so much power unchecked? What types of atrocities did they commit against the Indian people? How many people ran this secretive cabal? What was their connection to the Rothschilds and Rockefellers? How did their actions lead to several wars? What finally brought them down? Listen, laugh, learn.

Crazy Detailed History: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/mar/04/east-india-company-original-corporate-raiders