Afro/ Creole Mercenary Soldiers

A British commercial business once had an army that was bigger than that of most nation states?

At the height of its power in the early 19th century, the East India Company’s army was 250,000 strong.

Only about 15,000 of these soldiers were European. But the offer of good pay, status, security and honour meant that the Company could always recruit sepoys (Indian soldiers) to make up the bulk of its force.

The West India Regiments were initially recruited from Creole slaves and newly imported Africans?

Because many European soldiers in the Caribbean fell victim to tropical diseases, the British Army was forced to look elsewhere for recruits. From 1795 to 1807 it is estimated that the British purchased 13,400 slaves for its West India Regiments. The reliance on the slave trade to staff the force was a factor in prolonging that trade to 1807.