ABSTRACT
Just before the outbreak of the French Revolutionary Wars in 1792, Britain claimed authority over twenty-six separate areas of land which were considered to be colonies. Britain's informal relationship with Argentina casts useful light on one feature of the 'imperial empire'. The number of territories acquired in south-east Asia between the 1780s and the 1850 is indicative of the growing importance of the region. The East saw a number of instances of the 'informal empire' at work. The treaty signed in 1826 by the King of Siam and the 'British envoy' Capt Henry Burney, an agent of the East India Company, stated that the two nations had established 'a sincere friendship'. British governments evinced satisfaction and relief that the opium trade from India to China had become so profitable under the East India Company's monopolistic control. Marquis Wellesley, Governor General of India from 1798 to 1805, initiated military campaigns against the Indian princes who remained hostile to British occupation.
