These were organizations given exclusive rights by European governments to conduct trade in specific regions during the Age of Exploration.
Imagine if your school gave only one student the right to sell snacks at lunchtime. That student would have a monopoly on snack sales - similar to how these chartered companies had monopolies on trade in certain areas.
East India Company: An English company formed for the exploitation of trade with East and Southeast Asia and India, incorporated by royal charter on December 31, 1600.
Mercantilism: An economic theory that advocates government regulation of international trade to generate wealth and strengthen national power.
Colonialism: The policy or practice of acquiring full or partial political control over another country, occupying it with settlers, and exploiting it economically.
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