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More than 5000 entries on the history, culture and life of Britain (published in 1993 by Macmillan, now out of print)
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Hudson's Bay Company
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The oldest chartered company still trading. It was established in 1670 with a charter from Charles II to 'the Governor and Company of Adventurers of England trading into Hudson's Bay'. The company's fur traders provided the first regular British presence in *Canada. Their rivals in this lucrative business were the French, until the ceding of French Canada to Britain in 1763. Later another English group, the North West Company of Montreal, became a serious threat; in the early 19C a virtual war broke out between employees of the two enterprises, ending only when the older company absorbed its opponent in a merger.
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On the Pacific coast the joint company established the colony of British Columbia, which in 1871 became part of the new Dominion of Canada. Since then the Hudson's Bay Company has continued to prosper as a trading concern, much enriched in the 20C by oil rights on its extensive properties. It remained British until 1970, when the headquarters were transferred to Canada.
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