The British East India Company's China trade monopoly ends

Background. The East India Company, originally chartered in 1600 for trade with the East Indies, rose to account for half of the world's trade in commodities like tea and opium. Its monopoly on trade with India was abolished in 1813. The Government of India Act 1833, also known as the Charter Act 1833, extended the Company's charter for twenty years and restructured the governance of British India.

Legislative Changes. The Saint Helena Act 1833 ended the commercial activities of the British East India Company, rendering its activities purely administrative. Specifically, the Company lost its monopoly on trade with China and other parts of the Far East.

Administrative Transition. The Company divested its commercial trading assets in India in favour of the UK government in 1833, with the latter assuming the debts and obligations. The Company remained in existence in vestigial form, continuing to manage the tea trade on behalf of the British Government until 1874.