The East India Company

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The East India company - there has never been an enterprise like it. It ruled over nearly one-fifth of the world's population; possessed its own army and navy, its own civil service, even its own church; became the most powerful military force in Asia, and had a revenue greater than that of Britain. It was in Brian Gardener's words, "a government owned by businessmen, the shares in which were daily bought and sold."--Book Jacket (inside flap)