The death of the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb in 1707 until the annexation of Maratha territories by the British East India Company in 1818 was a period of transition for the economy of India. This book focuses on these transitions, and shows how a study of this period of Indian history contributes to a deeper understanding of the long-run patterns of economic change in India. Momentous changes occurred in business and politics in India during the eighteenth century - the expansion of trade with Europe and the collapse of the Mughal Empire, resulting in the formation of a number of independent states. This book analyses how these two forces were interrelated, and how they went on to change livelihoods and material wellbeing in the region. Using detailed studies of markets, institutions, rural and urban livelihoods, and the standard of living, it develops a new perspective on the history of eighteenth century India, one that places business at the centre, rather than the transition to colonial rule. This book is the first systematic account of the economic history of early modern India, and an essential reference for students and scholars of Economics and South Asian History.

This new edition of An Economic History of Early Modern India extends the timespan of the analysis to incorporate further research. This allows for a more detailed discussion of the rise of the British Empire in South Asia and gives a fuller context for the historiography. In the years between the death of the emperor Aurangzeb (1707) and the Great Rebellion (1857), the Mughal Empire and the states that rose from its ashes declined in wealth and power, and a British Empire emerged in South Asia. This book asks three key questions about the transition. Why did it happen? What did it mean? How did it shape economic change? The book shows that during these years, a merchant-friendly regime among warlord-ruled states emerged and state structure transformed to allow taxes and military capacity to be held by one central power, the British East India Company. The author demonstrates that the fall of warlord-ruled states and the empowerment of the merchant, in consequence, shaped the course of Indian and world economic history. Reconstructing South Asia’s transition, starting with the Mughal Empire’s collapse and ending with the great rebellion of 1857, this book is the first systematic account of the economic history of early modern India. It is an essential reference for students and scholars of Economics and South Asian History.

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The concepts of "trade," "market," and "state" both divide historians, economists, and anthropologists, and provide a meeting point for discussion in these disciplines. These essays, originally published in the Indian Economic and Social History Review and available now for the first time in a single volume, provide a comprehensive look at the process of economic change in pre-industrial India; the ways in which markets functioned; the role of individuals merchants in the regional societies of India; the position of mercantile communities as agents and victims of change; and the complex relationships between political states and trading communities.

Much has been written on the Indian economy but this is the first major attempt to present India's economic history as a continuous process, and to place the development of agriculture, industry and currency in a political and historical context.

Much has been written on the Indian economy but this is the first major attempt to present India's economic history as a continuous process, and to place the development of agriculture, industry and currency in a political and historical context.

A unique examination of the development of the modern Indian economy over the past 150 years.