The East India Company is perhaps the best known British joint-stock business from the 17-18th century. Given its royal charter on 31 January 1600, its merchants set out to explore potential trade routes with India, the company would go on to govern India and was a major force in the subcontinent until 1858 when it was dissolved. A lot of work has been produced on the company’s history in India, but what many do not realise is the East India’s operations extended beyond South Asia. “The East India Company in Persia provides a much needed intervention into an under-explored topic and will act a…