In 1600, which English Queen granted a charter to the East India Company, giving it exclusive trading rights with the East?
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: D
Explanation
Correct Answer:
Option 4 (Queen Elizabeth I)
Explanation:
On December 31, 1600, Queen Elizabeth I granted a royal charter to 'The Governor and Company of Merchants of London Trading in the East Indies' (East India Company). This charter granted the company the exclusive right to trade with the countries of the East (east of the Cape of Good Hope and west of the Strait of Magellan) for 15 years.
Additional Facts:
Captain Hawkins: In 1608, the company's representative, Captain William Hawkins, visited the court of the Mughal Emperor Jahangir to seek permission to open a trading post in Surat.
Queen Victoria: This refers to the 1858 Act, when India's rule came directly under the British Crown.
End of Monopoly: The Charter Act of 1813 ended the company's trading monopoly, except for trade in tea and with China.
Possible questions for the upcoming exam:
Who was the Mughal ruler of India at the time of the East India Company's founding? (Answer: Akbar)
Which Charter Act completely abolished the Company's trading rights? (Answer: Charter Act of 1833)
Where did the British establish their first permanent factory? (Answer: Surat, in 1613)