Synopsis The British Raj is an informal term for the period of British rule of most of the Indian subcontinent, or present-day India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka (previously known as Ceylon). British Raj or British India, officially the British Indian Empire, and internationally and contemporaneously, India , is the term used synonymously for the region, the rule, and the period, from 1858 to 1947, of the British Empire on the Indian subcontinent. The British Raj extended over all regions of present-day India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. After the First War of Indian Independence (known as the mutiny) the British government assumed direct responsibility for ruling its Indian territories. A policy of expansion followed that brought the whole of India within the Empire.