Opium Inc.: How A Global Drug Trade Founded The British Empire

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Buy Opium Inc.: How A Global Drug Trade Founded The British Empire Used Books Online India, Authored by thomas manuel in hardcover binding from Used Book Store.

Uncover the gripping narrative of history’s largest drug deal, orchestrated by the British East India Company in the nineteenth century. This vast global network connected India, China, and Britain through a complex trade triangle. Opium flowed from India to China, while tea traveled from China to Britain, and the machinery of empire returned from Britain to India. This system, fueled by cheap Indian land and labor, generated immense profits. The British faced two significant challenges: China’s demand for silver in exchange for its coveted tea, and the escalating costs of maintaining their expanding Indian colony. Their solution lay in opium, a substance that became the financial cornerstone of their empire. For over a century, the British continued this trade, fully aware of the drug’s detrimental effects. The lingering impact of opium on India, from the poverty of Bihar to the prosperity of Bombay, remains largely unrecognized. Echoing many colonial systems, the story of opium is a tale of profound suffering for the many and significant privilege for a select few.

About the Author

Thomas Manuel is a journalist and award-winning playwright. His words can be found in Lapham’s Quarterly, Nib, Wire, The Hindu, among other publications. In 2016, he won The Hindu Playwright Award for his play Hamlet and Angad. He currently works at India Ink, a public history project where he makes videos about how the past continues to affect us today. Website: thomasmanuel.com.

9789354229275 ISBN
History