"<span>The British hoped to tighten control over the empire" would be the best option, but the main reason beyond this was that they wanted to discourage trade with other nations, in order to increase profits. </span>
He was theFounder of Vaseline
In an explanatory essay, or any essay, the introductory paragraph introduces (hence it's name) the main idea, or what you are going to explain. The body paragraphs go into extreme detail of what the introductory paragraphs mentioned.
Allies and aides I think those are good