7. Traded Opium on an Industrial Scale
The East India Company’s thirst for profit led them into the dark world of opium trading, sparking one of history’s most infamous episodes. To balance trade deficits with China, the company began exporting opium grown in India on a massive, industrial scale. This lucrative trade flooded Chinese markets, causing widespread addiction and social devastation. When China tried to halt the influx, the resulting tensions ignited the Opium Wars—conflicts that drastically reshaped East-West relations. The company’s aggressive pursuit of opium profits not only had catastrophic effects on millions of lives but also permanently altered geopolitical dynamics between Europe and Asia.
