What did the British believe their role was in 19th century India?

The British believed they had several roles in India during the 19th century and these roles also changed with time. At the start of the 19th century, India was still under the control of the East India Company and their interests were primarily commercial. As a result, much of their efforts were concentrated on making trade easier, both for Indians and the British; one such example was building a railway to link more remote areas of India to colonial port cities and to link cities to each other. The Company did not do much to prepare India for independence or for self government; only after the Indian Mutiny in 1857 and power was transferred to the Crown was there more effort concentrated on modernizing and "Westernizing" India. Though this was in part a response to the disorder caused by the rebellion, it was also a way of grooming India to fit into the British Empire to ensure its longevity, and to glorify Britain as liberators of India from stagnation and despotic rule. This may be because, in comparison to the Company, the Crown was more interested in consolidating its power to ensure the longevity of British rule.