British India
The territories of the Indian subcontinent under direct British governance or rule, typically spanning the period of Company rule (until 1857) and subsequent Crown rule, as distinct from the princely states. It denotes the region as a formal part of the British Empire administered by Britain, and is used in claims about Britainās strategic interests, missionary activity, and political administration there.
Claims that use this term
- Mehmed Ali mistakenly believed his expansion could shield British India from Russia
- The view of this inherent, ultimate conflict persisted into the twentieth century (and longer), especially in British India where missionaries from throughout the Anglo-American world labored. The Canadian Presbyterian missionary Wilson believed āThere is ground for the opinion that the final struggle for the religious conquest of Eastern nations will be between Christianity and Islam.ā
- Commercial self-interest initially tempered Anglican missionary zeal in British India
- British India was ruled by a commercial company, not a state, until 1857
- Britain opposed Mehmed Ali because his expansion threatened British India and Istanbul influence
- British India feared pan-Islamism later than America did