RAS question
Lord Wellesley introduced the Subsidiary Alliance System. Which was the first Indian state to accept it?
Correct answer: (C) Hyderabad (Nizam).
Hyderabad, ruled by the Nizam, was the first Indian state to accept Lord Wellesley's Subsidiary Alliance system in 1798.
Explanation
The Nizam of Hyderabad was the first Indian ruler to accept the Subsidiary Alliance in 1798. The cited eGyanKosh unit states that Hyderabad became the first subsidiary state of the Company in 1798, and that Awadh and the Marathas accepted the system afterwards. The arrangement made a ruler dependent on Company protection: the state had to maintain a British force at its own expense, pay the subsidy, and dissolve its own armed forces. A British Resident was also placed at the ruler's court. This is why Hyderabad, not Mysore or Awadh, is the key early example in questions on Wellesley's policy.
Why the other options are wrong
- (A) Mysore accepted the Subsidiary Alliance in 1799 after the fall of Tipu Sultan, so it came after Hyderabad's acceptance in 1798.
- (B) Awadh accepted the Subsidiary Alliance in 1801, which places it later than Hyderabad in the sequence.
- (D) Tanjore accepted the arrangement later than Hyderabad, so it was not the first Indian state to accept the system.
Concept
This tests British expansion under Lord Wellesley, especially the mechanics and chronology of the Subsidiary Alliance. RAS repeatedly asks such points because they link policy instruments with the political subordination of Indian states.