Which megacorp could have become a nation-state?

Which company could have become like a country and survive to now?

  • British East India Company

    Votes: 73 65.2%
  • Dutch East India Company

    Votes: 17 15.2%
  • Hudson's Bay Company

    Votes: 16 14.3%
  • other corporation

    Votes: 6 5.4%

  • Total voters
    112

Typo

Banned
Depends on classification I guess. Is Brazil a nation state?
Yes, in the sense that there is clearly a Brazilian nation with a state, though in Latin America nation might not be synonymous with ethnic-nationalism due to the unique colonial history of those states. In India however, a much more conventional form of ethnic-nationalism is necessitated, unless the EIC somehow commits genocide against the Indians and then brings in enough White/African settlers on the same model as Latin America.
 
Yes, in the sense that there is clearly a Brazilian nation with a state, though in Latin America nation might not be synonymous with ethnic-nationalism due to the unique colonial history of those states. In India however, a much more conventional form of ethnic-nationalism is necessitated, unless the EIC somehow commits genocide against the Indians and then brings in enough White/African settlers on the same model as Latin America.

Places like Peru and Bolivia have indigenous majorities yet still have functioned as "nation" states by your definition. If the EIC leadership go back to breeding with the natives once they cut their ties with Britain, it's quite possible that could happen over time. Equally, look at Ireland - the Old English eventually became nativised. You would just get a slightly stronger version of what you currently have in India: a strong class system with more whiteness as you go up the scale.
 

birdboy2000

Banned
HBC didn't lose its territory OTL until the late 1860s and seemed to have a better relationship with the various peoples of Rupert's Land than their Canadian successors would. Maybe if you avert confederation or give them some more friends in parliament, they'd have a better chance?

OTOH, there's probably going to be significant anglo settlement in the territory, whether the government likes it or not. And that'll probably bring ethnic conflict and the introduction of a population less happy with corporate rule.
 

Typo

Banned
Places like Peru and Bolivia have indigenous majorities yet still have functioned as "nation" states by your definition. If the EIC leadership go back to breeding with the natives once they cut their ties with Britain, it's quite possible that could happen over time. Equally, look at Ireland - the Old English eventually became nativised. You would just get a slightly stronger version of what you currently have in India: a strong class system with more whiteness as you go up the scale.
The problem is that I feel to distort Indian nationalism like that you would need to inflict the same amount of damage (i.e destroy) on the native society as the Spanish did in Latin America, and replace it with something else. I don't see how or why the EIC would do something like that.
 
The problem is that I feel to distort Indian nationalism like that you would need to inflict the same amount of damage (i.e destroy) on the native society as the Spanish did in Latin America, and replace it with something else. I don't see how or why the EIC would do something like that.

I guess it all comes down to quite what counts as "nationalism". I think you could potentially get something like post-Mandela South African nationalism: "We're all Indians together, no matter what tribe you are or where your ancestors came from." If the upper administrative class is vocal enough about attacking Westerners and colonialism, I think it could happen. The upper, semi-Portuguese descent class in Angola might be a good example.
 
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