The first English factory in Bengal was set up on the banks of the river Hugli in _______.
- A.1641 CE
- B.1651 CE
- C.1671 CE
- D.1661 CE
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is B, 1651 CE. The English East India Company opened its first factory in Bengal at Hugli in 1651, after Mughal permission to trade in the province in return for a yearly payment. A factory in this sense was a walled warehouse with living quarters for the Company's agents, not a place of manufacture. From Hugli the English spread to Kasimbazar, Patna and Dacca, and in 1690 Job Charnock settled at Sutanuti, the village that grew into Calcutta and was guarded by Fort William. Their earlier factories were at Masulipatnam in 1611 and Surat in 1613, both far from Bengal. Option A is wrong because in 1641 the Company was still working out of the Coromandel and Gujarat coasts. Option C is wrong because by 1671 the Hugli factory was twenty years old. Option D is wrong because 1661 is the year Bombay came to the English crown as part of Catherine of Braganza's dowry. Exam tip: Masulipatnam 1611, Surat 1613, Hugli 1651, Calcutta 1690.
Practice Questions
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Show answer
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