The British didn’t realize they were conquering India itself as they battled the French, because they weren’t out to rule India. Their interests remained strictly commercial. The British government had no officials on this soil. The British presence on the subcontinent was still limited to the East India Company, which was technically a private venture, even though it had the full endorsement of the British government and served as an agent of British interests. The company was just striving to maximize its market share, which happened to coincide with the interests of the British state.
