ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

East India Company

The East India Company was a company founded in 1600 by European traders. It made money by trading goods like tea, spices, and silk from India, China, and other countries in the East. The company was so powerful that it even had its own army, and controlled large parts of India for many years. Eventually, the British government took control of the company and stopped it from trading.