In the first quarter of seventeenth century, in which of the following was/were the factory/factories of the English East India Company located? 1. Broach 2. Chicacole 3. Trichinopoly Select the correct answer using the code given below.

The correct answer is Option 1 (1 only).

During the first quarter of the seventeenth century (1601–1625), the English East India Company focused on establishing trading posts along the western coast of India. Following the success of Thomas Roe’s mission to the Mughal court, factories were established at Surat, Broach (Bharuch), Ahmedabad, Agra, and Burhanpur by 1619. Broach was a vital center for the export of calicoes and cotton textiles.

• Chicacole (Srikakulam): Located in the Northern Circars, English influence here developed much later, primarily in the late 17th and 18th centuries as they expanded along the Coromandel Coast.
• Trichinopoly (Tiruchirappalli): This region was under the internal rule of the Nayaks and later the Carnatic Nawabs; it did not host an English factory during the initial 1600-1625 period.

Since only Broach aligns with the early 17th-century timeline of English expansion, Statement 1 is the only correct choice.