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History Optional PYQ Master Pack · Model answer

Examine the essential principles of the Subsidiary Alliance system. How far did it contribute in making the British Company the supreme sovereign authority in India?

  • UPSC 2005
  • British Expansion in India

The Subsidiary Alliance system, most fully developed by Lord Wellesley (1798–1805), converted the Company from one power among several into the arbiter of virtually every major Indian state without requiring outright annexation in most cases.

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What the full answer covers

  • Essential Principles of the System
  • How the System Built Company Supremacy

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