Page:History of India Vol 8.djvu/17

 INTRODUCTION

The narrative of the acquisition of British India forms no more than an episode in the annals of the English nation. It is therefore not unnatural that historians, being mainly intent upon European affairs, should usually be satisfied with treating the foundation of a great Oriental empire by an English trading company as a marvellous and almost incomprehensible stroke of national good fortune. To those, however, who carefully follow the course and connection of events that led up to this magnificent result, and who bear in mind that foreign commerce is the life-blood of a maritime people, and that, for two centuries at least, the whole policy of England has been mainly directed toward the increase of her sea-power and the enlargement of her foreign commerce – insomuch that, as Sir H. Parnell has said, almost all our wars during the eighteenth century were virtually waged on behalf of that commerce – the fact that India has been the great prize of continuous success in naval war and trading adventure will not appear astonishing, and certainly not inexplicable. The object of this short