Why did the armies of the British East India Company – mostly comprising of Indian soldiers – win consistently against the more numerous and better equipped armies of the then Indian rulers? Give reasons.

The British East India Company (EIC) defeated larger Indian armies through military and political superiority. Despite comprising mostly Indian sepoys, the EIC armies triumphed due to advanced tactics, discipline and leadership.

Reasons behind the victory of East India Company:

• Unified Command: EIC had Unified, centralised and highly organised command over their armies. 
• Latest Technology: EIC had the latest technology weapons. They even used the best naval forces across Indian coastal princely states.
• Single Objective: British EIC had single objective to control the trade and economic interest. 
• External support and good leadership: British parliament and Crown supported the war efforts of EIC. Leaders like Robert Clive, Warren Hasting, Cornwallis also helped.
• British policies: Subsidiary alliance or Ring of Fence helped the British to ouster Indian rulers.
• Permanent nature of armies: EIC had permanent army while soldiers of Indian rulers worked in farms during peace time.

Other reasons which helped the British included in-fighting amongst the Indian rulers, good network of espionage by the EIC and betrayal of Indian rulers by locals (e.g. Ghasiti Begum or Omi Chand in Battle of Plassey).