• The Subsidiary Alliance System was used by Lord Wellesley to bring the Indian states within the boundary of the British political power.
• Under this system, Indian rulers accepted the stationing of British troops within their states. They surrendered control of their foreign affairs to the British.
• In return, the East India Company would protect them from the attacks of their rivals.
Impact of the Subsidiary Alliance System
• The Subsidiary Alliance System was one of the significant tactical policies of the British in India.
- It shattered the Indian states completely and established the foundation of the political authority of the British in India.
- The Subsidiary Alliance System deprived the Indian princes from taking any measure or forming any confederacy against the British authority in India.
• The posting of the Company's army in the capital of the Indian territories enabled the English to control the strategic positions in India.
• The Subsidiary Alliance System also helped the Company to effectively counteract any possible French moves in India.
• The Company won the power of becoming an arbiter in the inter-state disputes.
• All avenues of direct contact of the Indian states and the foreign powers were shattered.
• However, the immediate effect of the Subsidiary Alliance System was that the Company became the sovereign authority and the native princes acted merely as a cipher to the British.
• According to the terms and conditions of the Subsidiary Alliance, the Indian princes accepting the Treaty had to surrender their sovereignty.
• The Indian princes, in this way, lost their independence virtually.