They say india’s GDP was 25% of the world before british invasion, is it true?
ChatGPT said:
Yes, the claim that India accounted for about 25% of the world’s GDP before the British colonization is broadly true, though it requires some context and nuance.
Historical Evidence
According to estimates by economic historians like Angus Maddison, who specialized in long-term economic history:
- Around 1700 CE, just before British colonization began in earnest, India’s share of world GDP was about 24–25%.
- At that time, China and India were the two largest economies in the world, primarily due to their large populations, advanced agriculture, and flourishing handicraft and textile industries.
- India’s economy was vibrant with global trade, especially in textiles, spices, and metals.
Maddison’s Estimates:
| Year | India’s Share of World GDP | China’s Share | Western Europe |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 CE | ~33% | ~26% | <10% |
| 1000 CE | ~28% | ~23% | ~9% |
| 1700 CE | ~24% | ~23% | ~18% |
| 1820 CE | ~16% | ~33% (peak) | ~23% |
| 1870 CE | ~12% | ~17% | ~33% |
| 1950 CE | ~4% | ~5% | ~40% (USA-led) |
By the time India gained independence in 1947, its share had dropped to around 3–4% of global GDP.
Why Was India’s Share So High Before Colonization?
- Large population – A significant share of global population meant more production and consumption.
- Rich in resources – India produced valuable commodities like cotton, silk, spices, and precious stones.
- Advanced artisanal industries – Especially textiles (Bengal muslin, for example), metalwork, shipbuilding, etc.
- Thriving internal trade networks – Despite no industrial revolution, India had a robust agrarian and artisanal economy.
Impact of British Colonization
- The British deindustrialized India’s economy (notably the textile industry).
- Wealth was extracted through taxes, forced exports, and resource exploitation.
- Infrastructure built (like railways) was primarily for colonial extraction, not local development.
Economists like Utsa Patnaik, Shashi Tharoor, and others have estimated that Britain extracted trillions of dollars from India during colonization.
Conclusion
Yes, it’s historically accurate that India had about 25% of the world’s GDP before the British began their colonial rule. This reflects India’s relative economic power in a pre-industrial global economy, which was later drastically reduced during and after colonization.
You said:
How did the britishers loot india? Tell me everything
ChatGPT said:
The British looted India over nearly 200 years through a wide range of economic, political, and military mechanisms that led to the systematic extraction of wealth, deindustrialization, famines, and destruction of indigenous systems. Here is a comprehensive breakdown of how the British looted India:
🧾 1. Drain of Wealth
Initiated by: East India Company
Architect: Robert Clive and later British administrators
- Mechanism: Wealth produced in India was transferred to Britain without equivalent return (no trade benefit or investment back).
- How?
- Taxes collected from Indians used to buy Indian goods for export — meaning the British got the goods for free.
- No payment made to India for these exports.
- Surplus revenue sent back to Britain as “Home Charges”.
Key Example:
- After the Battle of Plassey (1757), Robert Clive took £2.5 million worth of wealth in gold and silver from Bengal.
💰 2. Excessive Taxation & Land Revenue Systems
Zamindari, Ryotwari, and Mahalwari systems
- Peasants forced to pay high taxes in cash, not kind, even during drought or crop failure.
- If they couldn’t pay, land was seized.
- Moneylenders thrived, peasants became landless.
Bengal Taxation:
- Land tax in Bengal increased from 10% of produce under Mughals to 50% under British.
Result:
- Mass starvation and poverty.
- British used tax revenues to fund wars in Europe and maintain colonial bureaucracy.
🏭 3. Deindustrialization of Indian Economy
Especially Textiles (Bengal, Dhaka, Surat)
- India’s handloom textile industry was globally famous.
- British imposed import duties on Indian textiles entering Britain (70–80% tax).
- Meanwhile, British factory-made textiles flooded Indian markets duty-free.
- Indian weavers could not compete and were forced into poverty.
Brutal Tactics:
- Thumbs of weavers were allegedly cut off (disputed but symbolic of extreme suppression).
- Dhaka muslin industry — totally destroyed.
🚢 4. Monopoly on Trade
- East India Company had exclusive rights to trade Indian goods.
- India was not allowed to trade with other countries freely.
- British made India a raw material supplier (cotton, indigo, opium) and consumer of British goods.
Notable Products:
- Cotton, jute, opium, salt, tea, spices
⚖️ 5. Monetary Manipulation & Currency Control
- British replaced indigenous currency systems with British-controlled currency.
- Manipulated exchange rates to benefit British exports and imports.
- India paid in sterling even for its own exports — increasing the drain of bullion.
📦 6. ‘Home Charges’ System
- India had to pay for:
- Salaries and pensions of British officials in India.
- Interest on loans taken by British.
- Military expenses for British wars (even outside India).
- Royal visits and infrastructure benefiting only the British.
₹40 crore+ per year (by late 19th century) left India without any exchange of goods.
🌾 7. Man-made Famines
35+ million Indians died due to British policies.
- Grain exports continued during famines to maintain British profit margins.
- Local grain hoarding was encouraged, and poor relief was withheld.
- Great Bengal Famine (1943): Winston Churchill diverted food to Europe; ~3 million died.
🔫 8. Military Exploitation
- Indian soldiers (sepoys) were used in British wars globally: Africa, China, Europe.
- India paid the bills for these wars.
- Indian resources (horses, tents, food, gunpowder) sent abroad.
🎓 9. Destruction of Indigenous Education and Knowledge Systems
- Thousands of gurukuls and madrasas shut down.
- British system promoted clerks over creators, aiming to produce obedient workers.
- Macauley’s Minute (1835) openly stated goal was to create “a class of persons Indian in blood and colour, but English in taste and intellect.”
🏗️ 10. Infrastructure Built for Loot
Railways, Telegraphs, Ports
- Not for Indian development — built to extract raw materials from interior to ports.
- Railways built by British companies, paid by Indian taxes, profits sent to Britain.
- Indian railways were the costliest in the world per mile (in 19th century) due to rigged contracts.
💸 11. Opium Trade and Drug Profits
- India was used to grow opium under British force.
- Exported to China to force addiction and gain trade advantage.
- Profits from opium trade funded British military and administration.
📉 Final Impact
By 1947:
- India’s share of world GDP fell from ~24% (1700) to ~3%.
- 90%+ of population lived in poverty.
- Massive illiteracy, malnourishment, and economic backwardness.
- British stole an estimated $45 trillion (according to economist Utsa Patnaik, 2018).
🔚 Conclusion
British rule in India was not development or civilization—it was a systematic plunder of one of the richest civilizations on earth. It drained India’s economic power, destroyed its industries, impoverished its people, and left behind a shattered country that had to start almost from scratch after independence.
If you’d like, I can provide specific case studies (like Bengal’s destruction, Indian textile collapse, or Churchill’s famine orders) too.
You said:
Yes please, continue
ChatGPT said:
Great. Let’s dive deeper into specific case studies that show how British colonial policies directly led to destruction, exploitation, and death in India.
📍 1. The Plunder of Bengal (1757–1765)
🔹 Background:
- In 1757, the East India Company defeated the Nawab of Bengal at the Battle of Plassey.
- This marked the beginning of British political rule in India.
🔹 What happened:
- Robert Clive took £2.5 million in gold, silver, and jewels from the Bengal treasury (roughly $400 million in today’s terms).
- British officers enriched themselves personally by looting Bengali noble estates.
- After Battle of Buxar (1764), the Company got Diwani rights — the right to collect land revenue — from the Mughal emperor for Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa.
🔹 Impact:
- British became tax collectors without responsibility.
- Wealth was transferred to Britain, not invested in Bengal.
- Bengal’s economy collapsed — artisans fled, agriculture declined, and poverty skyrocketed.
🌾 2. The Great Bengal Famine (1770)
🔹 Cause:
- A terrible famine struck Bengal, but it was exacerbated by British greed.
- The East India Company increased land taxes even during the famine.
- Grain continued to be exported, and hoarding was allowed to raise market prices.
🔹 Result:
- Estimated 10 million people died — 1 in 3 Bengalis.
- No major relief effort was launched.
- Company’s revenue income remained unaffected, because taxes were enforced regardless of human loss.
👕 3. Destruction of Indian Textile Industry
🔹 India’s Textiles Before Colonization:
- Cities like Dhaka, Murshidabad, Surat, and Kanchipuram were global centers of high-quality cloth (e.g. muslin, chintz, calico, silk).
- India was the world’s leading exporter of textiles until the 18th century.
🔹 British Strategy:
- Imposed heavy import tariffs (70–80%) on Indian cloth entering Britain.
- Simultaneously, British machine-made textiles were allowed into India duty-free.
- Indigenous weavers could not compete.
🔹 Dhaka Muslin:
- Famed for its delicacy — said to pass through a ring.
- British policies and competition killed the industry.
- A popular legend says British agents cut off weavers’ thumbs — while not conclusively proven, it reflects the cruelty and deliberate economic sabotage.
☠️ 4. The Great Famine of 1876–78
🔹 Affected areas:
- Madras Presidency, Mysore, Hyderabad, Bombay, and parts of Northern India.
🔹 Death toll:
- 5.5 to 10 million Indians died.
🔹 British role:
- Even as people starved, grain was exported to Britain.
- Viceroy Lord Lytton (also a poet) organized lavish banquets while millions died.
- Relief work was deliberately limited — to not “encourage laziness”.
🔹 Outcome:
- Death toll might have been cut by half or more if relief was offered.
- British administrators followed “laissez-faire” economics — prioritizing free markets over human life.
🏗️ 5. Indian Railways – A Tool of Extraction
🔹 Popular myth:
- British built railways to develop India.
🔹 Reality:
- Railways were designed to move raw materials (cotton, coal, grain) from interior India to ports for export.
- Built by British private companies, paid in gold with guaranteed 5% profits, funded by Indian taxes.
- No investment in Indian-owned industry or connectivity for local benefit.
🔹 Result:
- By 1920, India had one of the world’s largest rail networks, but it served only colonial economic interests, not people’s mobility or industrialization.
📦 6. The Opium Trade with China
🔹 British Plan:
- British had huge trade deficit with China (because they wanted Chinese tea, silk, etc.).
- Solution? Grow opium in India (Bihar, UP), sell it to China, and pay for Chinese goods using drug money.
🔹 Role of India:
- Indian farmers were forced to grow opium, often replacing food crops.
- Opium revenue became a major source of British wealth.
- Resulted in two Opium Wars between Britain and China (1839–42, 1856–60).
🍽️ 7. Bengal Famine of 1943 (Churchill’s Famine)
🔹 What happened:
- WWII was on. British diverted Indian food and ships for the war effort.
- Even as Bengal was starving, rice and wheat were exported.
🔹 Churchill’s Role:
- Rejected pleas for food aid.
- Blamed Indians for “breeding like rabbits”.
- When asked to release grain from Australian stockpiles, he said it was needed for “strategic reserves”.
🔹 Result:
- Over 3 million people died.
- Corpses lined the streets of Calcutta.
- One of the worst crimes of the 20th century, directly tied to imperial policy.
📉 8. Aftermath: India in 1947
When India became independent:
- Literacy rate: 12%
- Life expectancy: 32 years
- Poverty: 90%+
- Share in world GDP: 3% (down from 24%)
📚 Final Thought
The British colonization of India was not a civilizing mission — it was an economic conquest, executed through violence, deception, and policy manipulation. The so-called “development” (railways, English education) was built on foundations of famine, forced labor, and cultural destruction.
India’s wealth — built over millennia — was bled out to fuel Britain’s Industrial Revolution, wars, and empire-building.
Would you like visuals (charts, maps), sources for citations, or a PDF of this summary for study/sharing?
You said:
Give me where the $45 trillion dollar they stole is now on the basis of countries?
ChatGPT said:
Thought for 34 seconds
Here’s what we currently understand about the ~$45 trillion that British colonial rule looted from India (adjusted in today’s dollars, per Utsa Patnaik):
🌍 1. Majority Went to Britain (and its Imperial Economy)
- The bulk of this wealth was transferred to Britain, underpinning:
- The Industrial Revolution — capital for factories, coal mines, and ironworks.
- Massive investments in British infrastructure, including railways, roads, canals, public housing, social services.
- Payment of interest on debts, pensions, and civil-military expenses for colonial governance.
🧑💼 2. British Elites & Financiers
- A sizable chunk enriched:
- East India Company shareholders
- Officers and civil servants — personal fortunes, pensions, property, and estates in Britain.
- Banks and financiers in London financing Indian debt and colonial operations.
🏛️ 3. Imperial Military & Colonial Administration
- Funds financed:
- British military campaigns and wars across the Empire — in Africa, Europe, Asia.
- Administration costs, diplomatic expenses, and colonial governance — all logged in British government budgets.
🌐 4. Reinvestment Across the Empire & Allied Economies
- Some wealth was recycled into:
- Other British colonies — infrastructure, plantations.
- Allied markets — building naval fleets, diplomatic posts, trade ties.
- European banks and firms tied to Empire finance networks.
📈 5. Modern Legacy
- Profits fueled the rise of London’s financial institutions, global trade dominance, and empire-era cultural development (universities, museums).
- Provided a massive capital base for reinvestment in the 19th and early 20th centuries — infrastructure, education, pensions across Britain and its global interests.
⚠️ Important Caveats
- No detailed breakdown exists by modern countries; the money flowed largely through British channels, not tracked to individual nations.
- Some wealth may have ended up in European banks, Swiss vaults, or investments for prominent Britons, but those are extensions of Britain’s imperial economy, not separate recipients.
- Only a portion may have entered global markets, but tracking is effectively impossible given private investments over centuries.
🗂️ Summary Table
| Recipient | Purpose / Destination |
|---|---|
| Britain (State & Public) | Factories, railways, public services, national debt repayment |
| British Elites | Private estates, company dividends, bank investments |
| Military & Administration | Colonial defense, wars, salaries, diplomatic efforts |
| British Empire & Allies | Funding other colonies, navies, empire infrastructure |
| Financial Institutions | London banks, early global stock markets, international reinvestments |
✅ Conclusion
The vast wealth extracted from India predominantly enriched Britain—its government, infrastructure, elite citizens, banks, and empire-building projects. There isn’t a precise country-by-country breakdown because almost all the flows went through British imperial financial systems, not direct transfers to other modern nations.
If you’re interested, I can dive into how that capital shaped Victorian Britain’s industrial boom, or where some of it might still reside today (e.g., in historic estates, university endowments, or museums). Let me know!
You said:
Give me timelines and location on how they spread across india
ChatGPT said:
Here’s a detailed timeline and geographic expansion of how the British East India Company and later the British Crown systematically expanded and colonized India, region by region:
🇬🇧 PHASE 1: Trade to Rule (1600–1757)
Key Focus: Coastal trading ports
| Year | Event | Region | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1600 | East India Company founded | London | Given royal charter by Queen Elizabeth I |
| 1611–1640 | Trading posts established | Surat (Gujarat), Madras (TN), Bombay (MH) | Forts set up with Mughal permissions |
| 1690 | Calcutta founded | Bengal | Fort William constructed |
| 1717 | Mughal farman granted trade rights | Across Mughal territory | East India Company exempt from internal customs |
⚔️ PHASE 2: Military Takeover Begins (1757–1803)
Key Focus: Bengal, Awadh, Mysore, Marathas
| Year | Event | Region | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1757 | Battle of Plassey | Bengal | Clive defeats Nawab Siraj-ud-Daulah; Company takes over Bengal’s treasury |
| 1764 | Battle of Buxar | Bihar/Eastern UP | Company gets Diwani rights (tax collection) over Bengal, Bihar, Orissa |
| 1770 | Bengal famine | Bengal | 10 million die due to exploitative taxation |
| 1782–1799 | Anglo-Mysore Wars | Mysore (Karnataka) | Tipu Sultan defeated; territory taken |
| 1803 | Capture of Delhi | Delhi | British defeat Marathas and control the Mughal emperor |
🛡️ PHASE 3: Pan-Indian Expansion (1803–1857)
Key Focus: Consolidating control over India
| Year | Event | Region | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1818 | Defeat of Marathas | Maharashtra | End of Maratha Empire |
| 1824–1852 | Anglo-Burmese Wars | Northeast India & Burma | Assam annexed; border control |
| 1839–1842 | First Afghan War | Northwest Frontier (Now Pakistan-Afghanistan) | Failed campaign but strategic priority |
| 1845–49 | Anglo-Sikh Wars | Punjab | Annexation of Punjab after defeat of Ranjit Singh’s successors |
| 1853 | Railways introduced | Bombay–Thane | First railway line in India, used for resource transport |
🔥 PHASE 4: Rebellion and Crown Rule (1857–1885)
Key Focus: Crown takes direct control after 1857 Revolt
| Year | Event | Region | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1857 | Revolt of 1857 | UP, Delhi, Bihar, MP | Massive uprising suppressed brutally |
| 1858 | End of Company rule | All India | British Crown formally takes control |
| 1861–1885 | Crown administration | All India | Viceroy system, Civil Services, divide-and-rule strategy begins |
🗂️ PHASE 5: Administrative Divide and Exploit (1885–1919)
Key Focus: Divide & rule, economic extraction
| Year | Event | Region | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1885 | Indian National Congress founded | Bombay | First voice for political rights |
| 1905 | Bengal Partition | Bengal | Religious divide introduced by British (Hindu-Muslim) |
| 1911 | Capital shifted to Delhi | From Calcutta to Delhi | Symbolic assertion of power over India |
🔚 PHASE 6: Final Years of Rule (1919–1947)
Key Focus: Suppression of dissent, exit strategies
| Year | Event | Region | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1919 | Jallianwala Bagh Massacre | Amritsar, Punjab | Hundreds killed during peaceful protest |
| 1930–32 | Civil Disobedience | All India | Gandhi leads Salt March, boycotts |
| 1943 | Bengal Famine | Bengal | 3 million die due to British hoarding policies |
| 1947 | Independence and Partition | All India | India and Pakistan formed, over 1 million killed in violence |
🗺️ Visual Map of Expansion (By Regions)
| Region | Year of British Control | Key Events |
|---|---|---|
| Bengal | 1757 | Plassey, Buxar |
| Bihar / UP | 1764–1803 | Buxar, Oudh annexed |
| Tamil Nadu | 1639–1801 | Fort St. George, defeat of Nawab of Arcot |
| Maharashtra | 1803–1818 | Anglo-Maratha Wars |
| Karnataka | 1799 | Defeat of Tipu Sultan |
| Punjab | 1849 | Anglo-Sikh Wars |
| Assam / NE | 1826 | Treaty of Yandabo |
| Delhi | 1803 / 1857 | Captured, Mughal emperor exiled |
| Sindh (Now Pakistan) | 1843 | Annexed after war |
| Burma (Now Myanmar) | 1886 | Fully annexed after three wars |
Would you like a visual timeline graphic or a downloadable PDF/map summarizing this?
You said:
Give me a timeline moneywise , meaning how much money left india
ChatGPT said:
Thought for a few seconds
Here’s a money-wise timeline of how much wealth was drained from India by the British, based on historical estimates:
💷 1. 1765–1938: £9.2 trillion (~$45 trillion)
Source: Economist Utsa Patnaik calculated the value of India’s export surplus (1765–1938), compounded at 5% to 2016 – arriving at a staggering £9.2 trillion, roughly $45 trillion en.wikipedia.org+11livemint.com+11studyiq.com+11.
💰 2. 1787–1829: £15 billion
Source: Dadabhai Naoroji estimated that between 1787 and 1829, some £15 billion was drained .
📈 3. Late 19th Century (1870–1900): £17 million/year
- Modern historians estimate the annual drain averaged £17 million per year in this period en.wikipedia.org+5edurev.in+5transcend.org+5.
- William Digby estimated total transfers from 1870–1900 around £900 million en.wikipedia.org.
📊 4. Home Charges Increase (1856–1902)
- In 1856, “home charges” (costs India paid to Britain) were £5 million/year;
- By 1901–02, they rose to over £17 million/year economicsdiscussion.net+8pragyata.com+8worldfinancialreview.com+8.
🌍 5. Updated Oxfam estimate: $64.8 trillion (1765–1900)
Oxfam’s 2025 report updated figures including post-1900 flows, totaling $64.82 trillion drained between 1765–1900, citing Patnaik’s research .
📅 Summarized Cash Flow Timeline
| Period | Estimated Drain | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1765–1938 | £9.2 trillion (~$45 trillion) | Based on Patnaik’s compounded export surplus en.wikipedia.org+7livemint.com+7reddit.com+7 |
| 1787–1829 | £15 billion | Est. by Dadabhai Naoroji |
| 1870–1900 (annual) | £17 million/year | Historian estimates |
| 1870–1900 (total) | £900 million | William Digby’s figure |
| 1856–1902 | £5 → >£17 million/year (home charges) | Rising annual direct outflow |
| 1765–1900 | $64.82 trillion | Oxfam’s latest combined estimate |
🔍 Interpretation & Limitations
- Figures vary widely depending on methods, timeframes, and compounding assumptions.
- Patnaik’s £9.2 trillion uses compounded export surplus, but relies on assumptions about interest rates and reinvestment transcend.org+2monthlyreview.org+2edurev.in+2researchersclub.wordpress.com+7livemint.com+7reddit.com+7.
- Dadabhai Naoroji, an early critic, highlighted hundreds of millions per year taken directly as revenue.
- Home charges include pensions, debt interest, and military/admin costs borne by Indians.
- Oxfam’s $64.8 trillion includes flows beyond 1900 and uses Patnaik’s methodology edurev.in+1worldfinancialreview.com+1economicsdiscussion.net+3worldfinancialreview.com+3en.wikipedia.org+3thetimes.co.uk.
✅ Conclusion
- Conservative drain (Patnaik): £9.2 trillion (~$45 trillion) from 1765–1938.
- Oxfam’s broader estimate: $64.8 trillion, 1765–1900.
- Annual figures fluctuate: tens of millions/year to over £17 million/year by 1900.
Would you like a breakdown by decade, comparisons to British investments, or context on how this vast capital shaped Britain’s economy?
Sources
You said:
Like India’s $45 Trillion, give me estimates of each country like china, indonesia etc . Money taken by imperials
ChatGPT said:
Thought for 4 seconds
Here’s what historians estimate about the monetary extraction from major colonized countries—similar to how economists have calculated around $45 trillion‑$65 trillion taken from India.
🇮🇳 India (British Raj)
- £9.2 trillion (~$45 trillion) drained between 1765–1938, per Utsa Patnaik, compounded to 2016 dollars thejakartapost.com+11thetimes.co.uk+11link.springer.com+11.
- $64.8 trillion by Oxfam (1765–1900), updating earlier estimates using similar methodology thetimes.co.uk.
🇮🇩 Indonesia (Dutch East Indies)
- Cultivation System (1830–1870):
- ₹840 million guilders (~€8 billion in 2018) extracted between 1830–1870; this comprised roughly 30–50% of the Dutch state’s revenue reddit.com+15en.wikipedia.org+15en.wikipedia.org+15.
- Net Dutch government profit was about 4% of Dutch GDP, and nearly 1 billion guilders yearly over decades annelothoek.com+3en.wikipedia.org+3en.wikipedia.org+3.
- From 1840–1859, total plant-export revenue topped ~300 million guilders (~40–60 million p.a. in that era) annelothoek.com+5marxist.com+5academia.edu+5.
- Between 1840–1860, Indonesia exported
178 million guilders (€4.4 billion today), representing 20–52% of Dutch annual tax revenue academic.oup.com.
- Private sector + plantation era (post‑1870):
- Foreign-held assets reached
750 million guilders ($300 million) by 1900 en.wikipedia.orgen.wikipedia.org+1en.wikipedia.org+1. - From 1878–1939, around 24 billion guilders (~$156 billion in 2010 Dollars) in net colonial surplus were repatriated link.springer.com+1academia.edu+1.
- Foreign-held assets reached
🇨🇳 China
- Detailed “colonial loot” figures aren’t available, but several large-scale extractions occurred:
- Opium trade profits, paid in silver from Chinese buyers to British merchants.
- Indemnities after the Opium Wars (e.g., Treaty of Nanking, 1842), totaling hundreds of millions of silver dollars.
- Foreign concessions in treaty ports generated massive rents for France, Britain, Germany, Russia, Japan—but no aggregated headline estimate like India or Indonesia.
🌍 Other Colonies
- French Indochina: occasional net wealth transfers, but smaller scale; major extraction happened elsewhere (e.g., Africa).
- British Africa and Belgian Congo: exploited for minerals, labor, land—but quantified estimates similar to India are lacking.
- Philippines (US & Spain): often subsidized rather than looted.
📊 Comparative Overview
| Country | Period | Estimated Wealth Taken (modern value) |
|---|---|---|
| India | 1765–1938 | £9.2 trillion (~$45 trillion) reddit.com+2thetimes.co.uk+2link.springer.com+2monthlyreview.org+1thejakartapost.com+1reddit.com |
| 1765–1900 (Oxfam) | $64.8 trillion | |
| Indonesia | 1830–1870 | €8 billion (~840 million guilders) |
| 1840–1860 | ~€4.4 billion (~178 million guilders per decade) | |
| 1840–1859 (exports) | 300 million guilders (~40–60 million p.a.) | |
| 1878–1939 | 24 billion guilders (~$156 billion) | |
| China | 1800s–1910s | Opium war indemnities = hundreds of millions in silver; no full aggregate available |
✅ Takeaways
- India remains the largest quantified modern estimate, with $45–65 trillion drained.
- Indonesia, rich in quantified mid-19th century data, saw €billions transferred; scaling to modern equivalents suggests hundreds of billions to low trillions in extraction.
- China: significant looting (opium, concessions, indemnities), but lacks comprehensive global-scale monetized totals.
Would you like me to explore colonial wealth transfers from Africa or French/Belgian colonies, or show how these extracted funds were utilized by imperial powers (e.g., banks, infrastructure)?