Modern Indian History.1

MODERN INDIAN HISTORY
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CONTENTS
India under the English East India Company - 6
Lord Cornwallis (1786-1793) - 17
The Marquees of Wellesley (1798-1805) - 23
Lord Hastings (1813-1823) - 31
Lord William Bentinck (1828-1835) - 36
Lord Dalhousie (1848-1856) - 43
Revenue Administration and Economic Policy of the British - 50
Educational and Social Reforms - 56
The Great Revolt of 1857 - 63
British India after 1858 - 72
Socio-Religious Reform Movements - 82
Indian National Movement (1885-1905) - 91
Indian National Movement (1905-1916) - 97
The Indian National Movement (1917-1947) - 103
INDIA UNDER THE ENGLISH EAST INDIA
COMPANY
The English East India Company
The English East India Company was established on 31 December

1600 as per the Royal Charter issued by the Queen of England,
Elizabeth I.
 The Company had sent Captain Hawkins to the court of the

Mughal Emperor, Jahangir in 1608 to secure permission to
establish a “factory” (store house of goods) at Surat
 It was turned down initially
 However, in 1613, Jahangir issued the firman permitting the East
India Company to establish its first trading post at Surat.
 Accordingly, the English set up business centres at Agra,
Ahmedabad and Broach
 In 1639, Francis Day established the city of Madras and
constructed the Fort St. George.
 On the west coast, the Company obtained Bombay on lease from
their King, Charles II for a rent of 10 pounds per annum in 1668.
 By the year 1690, Job Charnock, the agent of the East India
Company purchased three villages namely, Sutanuti, Govindpur
and Kalikatta, which, in course of time, grew into the city of
Calcutta.
 After the Battle of Plassey in 1757and the Battle of Buxar in 1764,
the Company became a political power.
 India was under the East India Company’s rule till 1858 when it
came under the direct administration of the British Crown.
 Robert Clive was the first Governor of Fort William under the
Company’s rule.
WARREN HASTINGS (1772-1785)
In 1772, the Company appointed Warren Hastings as the

Governor of Fort William
Reforms of Warren Hastings
Abolition of the Dual System
 The East India Company decided to act as Diwan and to

undertake the collection of revenue by its own agents.
 Hence, the Dual System introduced by Robert Clive was abolished
 Warren Hastings reduced the Nawab’s allowance of 32 lakhs of
rupees to half that amount
 He also stopped the annual payment of 26 lakhs given to the
Mughal Emperor
 A Board of Revenue was established at Calcutta to supervise the
collection of revenue.
 English Collectors were appointed in each district.
 The treasury was removed from Murshidabad to Calcutta and an
Accountant General was appointed
 Calcutta thus became the capital of Bengal in 1772and shortly
after of British India
 The Board of Revenue farmed out the lands by auction for a period
of five years instead of one year in order to find out their real
value.
 Yet, the system was a failure. Many zamindars defaulted and the
arrears of revenue accumulated.
Reorganisation of the Judicial System
 The judicial system at the time of Warren Hastings’ ascendancy

was a store-house of abuses.
 The Nawab who was hitherto the chief administrator of justice,
misused his powers.
 The zamindars who acted as judges at lower levels within their
own areas were highly corrupt and prejudiced
 Each district was provided with a civil court Under the Collector A
criminal court under an Indian Judge
 To hear appeals from the district courts two appellate courts, one
for civil cases and another for criminal cases, were established at
Calcutta
 The highest civil court of appeal was called Sadar Diwani Adalat,
 Which was to be presided over by the Governor and two judges
recruited from among the members of his council.
 Similarly, the highest appellate criminal court was known as
Sadar Nizamat Adalat
 Which was to function under an Indian judge appointed by the
Governor-in-Council
 Experts in Hindu and Muslim laws were provided to assist the
judges.
 An English translation of it – Code of Hindu Laws – was prepared
by Halhed.
Trade Regulations and other Reforms
 Warren Hastings abolished the system of dastaks, or free passes

and regulated the internal trade.
 He reduced the number of custom houses and enforced a uniform
tariff of 2.5 percent for Indian and non-Indian goods
 He reduced the number of custom houses and enforced a uniform
tariff of 2.5 percent for Indian and non-Indian goods
 Weavers were given better treatment and facilities were made to
improve their condition.
 He also introduced a uniform system of pre-paid postage system.
 A bank was started in Calcutta.
The Regulating Act of 1773 (Background)
 The Regulating Act of 1773 opened a new chapter in the

constitutional history of the Company.
 Previously, the Home government in England consisted of the
Court of Directors and the Court of Proprietors.
 The Court of Directors were elected annually and practically
managed the affairs of the Company
 In India, each of the three presidencies was independent and
responsible only to the Home Government.
 The government of the presidency was conducted by a Governor
and a Council
 The following conditions invited the Parliamentary intervention in
the Company’s affairs.
 The English East India Company became a territorial power when
it acquired a wide dominion in India and also the Diwani rights.
 The disastrous famine which broke out in Bengal in 1770 affected
the agriculturists. As a result, the revenue collection was poor
 In short, the Company was on the brink of bankruptcy. In 1773,
the Company approached the British government for an
immediate loan.
 Under these circumstances that the Parliament of England
resolved to regulate the affairs of the Company.
 Lord North, the Prime Minister of England, appointed a select
committee to inquire into the affairs of the Company.
 The report submitted by the Committee paved the way for the
enactment of the Regulating Act.
Provisions of the Act
 The term of office of the members of the Court of Directors was

extended from one year to four years. One-fourth of them were to
retire every year and the retiring Directors were not eligible for re-
election.
 The Governor of Bengal was styled the Governor-General of Fort
William whose tenure of office was for a period of five years.
 The Governor-General in Council was made supreme over the
other Presidencies in matters of war and peace
 Provision was made in the Act for the establishment of a Supreme
Court at Calcutta consisting of a Chief Justice and three junior
judges. It was to be independent of the Governor-general in
Council.
 In 1774, the Supreme Court was established by a Royal Charter
 This Act prevented the servants of the Company including the
Governor-General, members of his council and the judges of the
Supreme Court from receiving directly or indirectly any gifts in
kind or cash.
 The significance of the Regulating Act is that it brought the affairs
of the Company under the control of the Parliament.
 The greatest merit of this Act is that it put an end to the arbitrary
rule of the Company
 Provided a framework for all future enactments relating to the
governing of India.
 The main defect of the Act was that the Governor-General was
made powerless
 Because the council which was given supreme power often created
deadlocks by over-ruling his decision
 However, many of these defects were rectified by the Pitt’s India
Act of 1784.
Expansionist Policy of Warren Hastings
 Warren Hastings was known for his expansionist policy. His

administration witnessed the Rohilla War,
 The First Anglo-Maratha War and the Second Anglo-Mysore War.
The Rohilla War (1774)
 Rohilkand was a small kingdom situated in between Oudh and the

Marathas.
 Its ruler was Hafiz Rahmat Khan.
 He concluded a defensive treaty in 1772 with the Nawab of Oudh
fearing an attack by the Marathas.
 But no such attack took place. But, the Nawab demanded money.
 When Rahmat Khan evaded, the Nawab with the help of the
British invaded Rohilkand
 Warren Hastings, who sent the British troops against Rohilkand
was severely criticised for his policy on Rohilla affair
First Anglo-Maratha War (1775-82)
 The Marathas were largely remained disunited since the Third

Battle of Panipat (1761).
 The internal conflict among the Marathas was best utilized by the
British in their expansionist policy.
 In 1775, there was a dispute for the post of Peshwa between
Madhav Rao and his uncle Raghunatha Rao.
 The British authorities in Bombay concluded the Treaty of Surat
with Raghunatha Rao in March 1775.
 Raghunatha Rao promised to cede Bassein and Salsette to the
British but later when he was unwilling to fulfil his promise, the
British captured them.
 This action of the Bombay Government was not approved by
Warren Hastings. In 1776, Warren Hastings sent Colonel Upton to
settle the issue
 He cancelled the Treaty of Surat and concluded the Treaty of
Purander with Nana Fadnavis, another Maratha leader
 According to this treaty Madhava Rao II was accepted as the new
Peshwa and the British retained Salsette along with a heavy war
indemnity
 However, the Home authorities rejected the Treaty of Purander.
Warren Hastings also considered the Treaty of Purandar as a
‘scrap of paper’
 In 1781, Warren Hastings dispatched British troops under the
command of Captain Popham. He defeated the Maratha chief,
Mahadaji Scindia, in a number of small battles and captured
Gwalior.
 Later in May 1782, the Treaty of Salbai was signed between
Warren Hastings and Mahadaji Scindia
 Accordingly, Salsette and Bassein were given to the British.
 Raghunath Rao was pensioned off and Madhav Rao II was
accepted as the Peshwa.
 The Treaty of Salbai established the British influence in Indian
politics.
 It provided the British twenty years of peace with the Marathas
 The Treaty also enabled the British to exert pressure on Mysore
with the help of the Marathas in recovering their territories from
Haider Ali.
 Thus, the British, on the one hand, saved themselves from the
combined opposition of Indian powers and on the other, succeeded
in dividing the Indian powers.
The Second Anglo-Mysore War (1780-84)
 The first Anglo-Mysore War took place in 1767-69.

 Haider Ali emerged victorious against the British and at the end
of the War a defensive treaty was concluded between Haider Ali
and the British.
 After eleven years, the Second Mysore War broke out
The main causes for the second Anglo-Mysore War were:
 The British failed to fulfil the terms of the defensive treaty with
Haider when he was attacked by the Marathas in 1771
 There was an outbreak of hostilities between the English and the
French (an ally of Haider) during the American War of
Independence
 The British captured Mahe, a French settlement within Haider’s
territories
 Haider Ali formed a grand alliance with the Nizam of Hyderabad
and the Marathas against the British in 1779.
 The War began when the British led their forces through
 Haider’s territory without his permission to capture Guntur in the
Northern Sarkars.
 Haider Ali defeated Colonel Baillie and captured Arcot in 1780.
 In the next year, Warren Hastings, by a clever stroke of
diplomacy, divided the Confederacy.
 He made peace with the Nizam, won the friendship of Bhonsle and
came to an understanding with the Scindia (both Marathas)
 Consequently, Haider was isolated without any alliance.
 He was defeated by Sir Eyre Coote at Porto Novo in March 1781.
 In December 1782, Haider died of cancer at the age of sixty and
his death was kept secret till his son Tipu Sultan assumed power.
 The Second Mysore War came to an end by the Treaty of
Mangalore in 1783.
Pitt’s India Act, 1784
 The Regulating Act proved to be an unsatisfactory document as it

failed in its objective
 In January 1784, Pitt the Younger (who became Prime Minister of
England after the General Elections) introduced the India Bill in
the British Parliament.
 It received royal assent in August 1784. This was the famous Pitt’s
India Act of 1784.
Main Provisions
 A Board of Control consisting of six members was created. They

were appointed by the Crown
 The Court of Directors was retained without any alteration in its
composition.
 The Act also introduced significant changes in the Indian
administration. It reduced the number of the members of the
Governor-General’s Council from four to three including the
Commander-in-Chief.
 The Court of Directors controlled its commercial functions,
whereas the Board of Control maintained its political affairs.
 In fact, the Board represented the King, and the Directors
symbolised the Company.
The Impeachment of Warren Hastings
 The Pitt’s India Act of 1784 was a rude shock and bitter
disappointment for Warren Hastings.
 His image and reputation were tarnished in England. Therefore,
he resigned and left India in June 1785
 In 1787, Warren Hastings was impeached in the Parliament by
Edmund Burke and the Whigs for his administrative excess.
 Burke brought forward 22 charges against him
 He received pension from the Company and lived till 1818.
Estimate of Warren Hastings
 He was a gifted personality endowed with ‘strong will, great

energy and resourcefulness’.
 Since he considered Indian culture as a basis for sound Indian
administration, he patronised the learning of Indian languages
and arts.
LORD CORNWALLIS (1786-1793)
INTRODUCTION
 Lord Cornwallis, a warrior-statesman, succeeded Warren Hastings

as Governor-General in 1786.
 He was also a close friend of Prime Minister Pitt and of Dundas,
the most influential member of the Board of Control.
 It amended Pitt’s India Act in 1786 so as enable him to overrule
the decision of the majority of his council, if necessary.
 A new tradition of choosing a person from an aristocratic family
for the post of Governor-General was initiated.
Tipu Sultan and the Third Mysore War (1790-92)
 The Treaty of Mangalore (1784) exhibited the military strength of

Mysore, exposed English weaknesses and increased Tipu’s
strength
 His other designs were to wreak vengeance on the Nizam and on
the Marathas as they had betrayed his father during the hour of
need
The chief causes for the Third Mysore War were
 Tipu Sultan strengthened his position by undertaking various

internal reforms. This created worries to the British, the Nizam of
Hyderabad and the Marathas
 Moreover, Tipu made attempts to seek the help of France and
Turkey by sending envoys to those countries.
 He also expanded his territories at the cost of his neighbours,
particularly the Raja of Travancore, who was an ally of the
British.
 In 1789, the British concluded a tripartite alliance with the Nizam
and the Marathas against Tipu
 War broke out in May 1790 between the English and Tipu.
 It was fought in three phases
 English troops and inflicted heavy losses
 Cornwallis himself assumed command in December 1790. This
was the beginning of the second phase of the war.
 Tipu’s brilliant strategies prolonged the war and Cornwallis was
forced to retreat
 The third phase of the war began when timely aid from the
Marathas with plenty of provisions
 Helped him to resume his campaign and marched against
Srirangapattinam again.
 The English forces occupied the hill forts near Srirangapattinam
and seized it in February 1792.
Treaty of Srirangapattinam
Terms of the treaty were as follows
 Tipu had to give up half his dominions

 He had to pay a war indemnity of three crore rupees and
surrender two of his sons as hostages to the English
 Both sides agreed to release the prisoners of war
 The Treaty of Srirangapattinam is a significant event in the
history of South India.
 The British secured a large territory on the Malabar Coast
 Tipu had been defeated but not destroyed
Reforms
The internal reforms of Cornwallis can be studied under three main

heads.
 Administrative reforms
 Revenue reforms or Permanent Settlement
 Judicial and other reforms
Administrative Reforms
 Purification of the civil service by the employment of capable and

honest public servants.
 Abolished the vicious system of paying small salaries and allowing
enormous perquisites.
 Persuaded the Directors of the Company to pay handsome salaries
to the Company servants
 They might free themselves from commercial and corrupting
activities.
 Cornwallis inaugurated the policy of making appointments mainly
on the basis of merit
 Laying the foundation of the Indian Civil Service.
 Abolished a number of surplus posts
 The separation of the three branches of service, namely
commercial, judicial and revenue.
 The collectors, the king-pins of the administrative system were
deprived of their judicial powers
 Their work became merely the collection of revenue.
Judicial Reforms
 At the top of the judicial system, the highest civil and criminal
courts of appeal, namely Sadar Diwani Adalat and Sadar Nizamat
Adalat were functioning at Calcutta. Both of them were presided
over by the Governor-General and his Council.
 There were four provincial courts of appeal at Calcutta, Dacca,
Murshidabad and Patna, each under three European judges
assisted by Indian advisers.
 District and City courts functioned each under a European judge.
Every district was provided with a court.
 District Judges were appointed.
 Indian judges or Munsiffs were appointed to all the courts at the
bottom of the judicial system.
 In criminal cases, Muslim law was improved and followed.
 In civil cases, Hindu and Muslim laws were followed according to
the religion of the litigants
 In suits between Hindus and Muslims, the judge was the deciding
authority.
 Cornwallis was better known as a law giver than as an
administrator.
 Cornwallis prepared a comprehensive code, covering the whole
field of administration’, judicial, police, commercial and fiscal.
Based upon the principle of Montesquieu
 The Separation of Powers”, which was popular in the West in 18th
century.
 In order to curb undue exercise of authority Cornwallis made all
officials answerable to the courts
Police Reforms
 The effective implementation of judicial reforms required the

reorganisation of police administration.
 The District Judge controlled the police.
 Each district was divided into thanas or police circles each of
which was about 20 square miles
 It was placed under an Indian officer called the daroga who was
ably assisted by many constables.
Other Reforms
 Cornwallis reformed the Board of Trade which managed the

commercial investments of the Company.
 With the aid of Charles Grant, he eradicated numerous abuses
and corrupt practices.
 Fair treatment was given to weavers and Indian workers.
 He increased the remuneration for honest service.
Estimate of Cornwallis
 Cornwallis, a blue-blooded aristocrat, was an ardent patriot.

 He discharged his duties fearlessly, and his life was an
embodiment of ‘duty and sacrifice’.
 He perceived the danger of Tipu’s growing power and curtailed it
by boldly discarding the policy of non-intervention.
 As an administrator, he consolidated the Company’s position in
India and started the tradition of efficient and pure
administration.
 His administrative and judicial reforms were solid achievements
He may be regarded the parent of the Indian Administrative
Service and founder of an efficient and clean system of
administration.
 Sir John Shore (1793-98) succeeded Cornwallis as Governor
General and his administration was uneventful.
THE MARQUESS OF WELLESLEY (1798-1805)
 He was a great imperialist and called himself ‘a Bengal tiger’
 Wellesley came to India with a determination to launch a forward
policy in order to make ‘the British Empire in India’ into ‘the
British Empire of India’
 The system that he adopted to achieve his object is known as the
‘Subsidiary Alliance’
Political Condition of India at the time of Wellesley’s Arrival
 In the north-western India, the danger of Zaman Shah’s

aggression posed a serious threat to the British power in India.
 In the north and central India, the Marathas remained a
formidable political power.
 The Nizam of Hyderabad employed the Frenchmen to train his
 The political unrest in the Karnataka region continued and Tipu
Sultan had remained the uncompromising enemy of the British
 The policy of neutrality adopted by Sir John Shore, the successor
of Cornwallis, created a kind of political unrest in India and
greatly affected the prestige of the English.
 His non-intervention policy contributed much to the growth of
anti-British feelings
 Further, Napoleon’s move for an Eastern invasion created a fear
among English statesmen.
 Preservation of British prestige and removal of French danger
from India were Wellesley’s twin aims
 He was also thoroughly convinced that only a strong British power
in India could reduce and control the existing tyranny and
corruption in Indian states
The Subsidiary System
 The predecessors of Wellesley concluded alliances with Indian

princes like the Nawab of Oudh and the Nizam of Hyderabad
 They received subsidies from the Indian rulers for the
maintenance of British troops
 Which were used for the protection of respective Indian states
Main Features of Subsidiary Alliance
 Any Indian ruler who entered into the subsidiary alliance with the
British had to maintain a contingent of British troops in his
territory.
 It was commanded by a British officer. The Indian state was called
‘the protected state’ and the British hereinafter were referred to as
‘the paramount power’.
 Help its ruler maintain internal peace.
 The protected state should give some money or give part of its
territory to the British to support the subsidiary force.
 The protected state should cut off its connection with European
powers other than the English and with the French in particular.
 The state was also forbidden to have any political contact even
with other Indian powers without the permission of the British.
 The ruler of the protected state should keep a British Resident at
his court and disband his own army.
 He should not employ Europeans in his service without the
sanction of the paramount power.
 The paramount power should not interfere in the internal affairs
of the protected state.
Benefits to the British
 Wellesley’s Subsidiary System is regarded as one of the

masterstrokes of British imperialism.
 It increased the military strength of the Company in India at the
expense of the protected states.
 The territories of the Company were free from the ravages of war
thereby establishing the stability of the British power in India
 Under the system, expansion of British power became easy. Thus
Wellesley’s diplomacy made the British the paramount power in
India.
Defects of the Subsidiary System
 Introduction of anarchy because of the unemployment of

thousands of soldiers sent away by the Indian princes.
 The freebooting activities of disbanded soldiers were felt much in
central India where the menace of Pindaris affected the people.
 Further, the subsidiary system had a demoralizing effect on the
princes of the protected states.
 Safeguarded against external danger and internal revolt, they
neglected their administrative responsibilities.
 They preferred to lead easy-going and pleasure seeking lives.
 As a result misgovernment followed. In course of time, the
anarchy and misrule in several states had resulted in their
annexation by the British.
 Thus, the subsidiary system proved to be a preparation for
annexation.
Enforcement of the Subsidiary System
Hyderabad:
 Hyderabad was the first state which was brought under

Wellesley’s Subsidiary System in 1798.
 It fixed the amount to be paid annually at Rs.24 lakhs for the
subsidiary force.
 In accordance with the treaty, all the French troops in Hyderabad
were disbanded and replaced by a subsidiary British force.
 A new treaty was concluded in 1800 by which the Nizam ceded
large territories to the Company and this constitutes the famous
Ceded Districts
Oudh
 The threat of invasion by Zaman Shah of Afghanistan was the

pretext for Wellesley to force the Nawab of Oudh to enter into a
subsidiary treaty
 The Nawab gave the British the rich lands of Rohilkhand, the
lower Doab and Gorakhpur for the maintenance of an increased
army which the British stationed in the capital of Oudh.
 The strength of Nawab’s own army was reduced. For the
maintenance of law and order the British were authorised to
frame rules and regulations
 By this, the British acquired the right to interfere in the internal
matters of Oudh.
 Highhanded action of Wellesley was severely criticized
Tanjore, Surat and the Karnataka
 Wellesley assumed the administration of Tanjore, Surat and the

Karnataka by concluding treaties with the respective rulers of
these states.
 The Maratha state of Tanjore witnessed a succession dispute
 In 1799, Wellesley concluded a treaty with Serfoji
 In accordance with this treaty the British took over the
administration of the state and allowed Serfoji to retain the title of
Raja with a pension of 4 lakhs of rupees.
 The principality of Surat came under British protection as early as
1759.
 The Nawab of this historic city died in 1799 and his brother
succeeded him.
 The change of succession provided Wellesley an opportunity to
take over the administration of Surat.
 The Nawab was allowed to retain the title and given a pension of
one lakh of rupees.
 The people of Karnataka had been suffering for a long time by the
double government.
 The Nawab, Umadat-ul-Umara was an incompetent ruler noted
for his extravagance and misrule.
 He died in the middle of 1801 and his son, Ali Hussain became the
Nawab. Wellesley asked him to retire He refused
 The entire military and civil administration of the Karnataka
came under the British
The Fourth Anglo-Mysore War (1799)
The circumstances which led to the Fourth Mysore War
 Tipu Sultan wanted to avenge

 He also aimed at making Mysore a strong state.
 He took efforts to seek the help of the France, Arabia, Kabul and
Turkey.
 He corresponded with the Revolutionary French Government in
July 1798.
 At Srirangapattinam, a Jacobian Club was started and the flag of
the French Republic was hoisted
 When Napoleon came to power, Tipu received a friendly letter
from Napoleon (who was in Egypt at that time).
 Wellesley tried to revive the Triple Alliance of 1790 with the
Marathas.
 Not accepted by the Marathas, they promised to remain neutral.
 Subsidiary Alliance with the Nizam was concluded by the British
and as a consequence, the French force at Hyderabad was
disbanded.
 Wellesley set out to persuade Tipu to accept a pact of subsidiary
alliance and wrote letters requesting the Tipu to dismiss the
French,
 Tipu paid scant attention to Wellesley’s letters and thus the
Fourth Anglo-Mysore war started
 Although severely wounded, he fought till his capital
Srirangapattinam was captured and he himself was shot dead
Mysore after the War
 With the fall of Tipu Sultan the kingdom of Mysore fell at the feet
of Wellesley.
 He restored Hindu rule at the central part
 A five year old boy, Krishnaraja III, a descendant of the dethroned
Hindu Raja, was enthroned at Mysore, which became the capital
almost after two hundred years.
Wellesley and the Marathas
 Nana Fadnavis provided the leadership to the Marathas

 His death in 1800 removed the last great Maratha leader.
 Peshwa Baji Rao II, despite his stately appearance and immense
learning, lacked political wisdom.
 The infighting among the Maratha leaders proved to be self-
destructive.
 Peshwa Baji Rao II was in great danger, so he fled to Bassein
where he signed the Treaty of Bassein with the British in 180
 It was a subsidiary treaty and the Peshwa was recognized as the
head of the Maratha kingdom.
 The British troops marched under the command of Arthur
Wellesley towards Poona and restored the Peshwa to his position.
The Second Maratha War (1803-1805)
 Daulat Rao Scindia and Raghoji Bhonsle took the Treaty of

Bassein as an insult to the national honour of the Marathas.
 Arthur Wellesley captured Ahmadnagar in August 1803 and
defeated the combined forces of Scindia and Bhonsle at Assaye
near Aurangabad.
 The Treaty of Deogaon was signed between Bhonsle and
Wellesley.
 The former signed the subsidiary treaty which forced him to give
up the province of Cuttack in Orissa
 Scindia signed a subsidiary treaty with the British. It is known as
the Treaty of Surji –Arjungaon.
Estimate of Wellesley
 An unscrupulous annexationist and an advocate of forward policy,

 Wellesley was one of the greatest empire-builders that England
had ever produced.
 Wellesley converted the British Empire in India to the British
Empire of India
 He located the weak spots of the Indian powers and applied his
political technique (namely Subsidiary Alliance).
 He rightly deserves to be called the maker of the erstwhile Madras
Presidency and the creator of the Province of Agra.
 Sir George Barlow was the next Governor-General for two years
(1805-07)
 The Vellore Mutiny of 1806 took place during his administration.
 He was succeeded by Lord Minto (1807-13) who concluded the
Treaty of Amritsar with Ranjit Singh of Punjab in 1809.
 The Charter Act of 1813 was passed during this period.
LORD HASTINGS (1813-1823)
 Lord Hastings became Governor-general in 1813.
 He adopted a vigorous forward policy and waged wars extensively
 Conditions in India when he assumed power posed a serious
threat to the British administration
 There was anarchy in central India.
 The Pindaris plundered the whole region and the Marathas could
not control them
 The Peshwa was secretly plotting against the British
War against the Ghurkhas (1814-16)
 Nepal emerged as a powerful Ghurkha state in 1768.

 In 1801, the British acquired the districts of Gorakhpur and Basti
from the Nawab of Oudh.
 This move brought the boundary of Nepal to touch the British
frontier.
 The aggressions of the Ghurkhas into the British territories
culminated in a war.
 Amar Singh Thapa, the able General of Nepal Army was forced to
surrender
 In March 1816, the Treaty of Sagauliwas concluded.
 The Ghurkhas gave up their claim over the Tarai region and ceded
the areas of Kumaon and Garhwal to the British.
 The British now secured the area around Shimla and their north-
western borders touched the Himalayas.
 The Ghurkhas had to withdraw from Sikkim and they also agreed
to keep a British Resident at Katmandu.
 It was also agreed that the kingdom of Nepal would not employ
any other foreigner in its services other than the English.
 The British had also obtained the sites of hill stations like Shimla,
Mussoori, Nainital, Ranikhet and developed them as tourist and
health resorts
 . After this victory in the Ghurkha War Hastings was honoured
with English peerage and he became Marquis of Hastings
Suppression of the Pindaris
 The first reference about them is during the Mughal invasion of

Maharashtra.
 They did not belong to any particular caste or creed.
 During the time of Baji Rao I, they were irregular horsemen
attached to the Maratha army.
 They were mostly active in the areas of Rajputana and the Central
Provinces and subsisted on plunder.
 Their leaders belonged to both the Hindu as well as the Muslim
communities
 Chief amongst them were Wasil Muhammad, Chitu and Karim
Khan.
 In 1812, the Pindaris plundered the districts of Mirzapur and
Shahabad and in 1815 they raided the Nizam’s dominions. In
1816,
 By 1818, the Pindaris were completely suppressed and all their
bands disintegrated
 Karim Khan was given a small estate in the Gorakhpur district of
the United Provinces.
 By 1824, the menace of the Pindaris came to an end
Downfall of the Maratha Confederacy
 In reality, the Maratha power had weakened considerably after

the Third Battle of Panipat (1761)
 The Maratha chiefs fought amongst themselves and their
successors were invariably weak and incapable
 Peshwa Baji Rao II wanted to become the head of the Maratha
Confederacy
 Wanted freedom from the British control
 His Chief Minister Tirimbakji encouraged him.
 On the advice of the Company, the Gaekwar sent his Prime
Minister Gangadhar Shastri to negotiate with the Peshwa.
 Gangadhar Shastri, was murdered at Nasik in July 1815, at the
instance of Triambakji.
 This caused a lot of anger not only among the Marathas but also
among the British
 The latter asked the Peshwa to handover Triambakji to them.
 Peshwa handed over his Minister to the British, who lodged him
in Thana jail from where he escaped
 Consequently, on 13 June 1817, the British Resident Elphinstone
forced the Peshwa to sign the Treaty of Poona
 Baji Rao gave up his desire to become the supreme head of the
Marathas
Third Maratha War (1817-1819)
 But soon the Peshwa undid this treaty with the British and on 5
November 1817 attacked the British Residency
 The Bhonsle chief, Appa Sahib also refused to abide by the Treaty
of Nagpur, which he had signed with the British on 17 May 1816.
 He fought with the British in the Battle of Sitabaldiin November
1817, but was defeated
 The Peshwa now turned to Holkar for help, but Holkar too was
defeated by the British on 21 December 1817 at Baroda.
 The Peshwa now turned to Holkar for help, but Holkar too was
defeated by the British on 21 December 1817 at Baroda.
Causes of the Defeat of the Marathas
 The main reasons were

 Lack of capable leadership
 Military weakness of the Marathas.
 The major drawback of the Maratha power was mutual bitterness
and lack of cooperation amongst themselves
 The Marathas hardly left any positive impact on the conquered
territories.
 The Marathas did not have cordial relations with other princes
and Nawabs of India.
 The Marathas failed to estimate correctly the political and
diplomatic strength of the British
Reforms of Hastings
 He approved the Ryotwari system of land revenue

 Madras Presidency by Sir Thomas Munroe.
 In the sphere of judiciary, the Cornwallis Code was improved.
 The Police system of Bengal was extended to other regions.
 The importance of Indian Munsiffs had increased during his
administration.
 The separation of judicial and revenue departments was not
rigidly followed. Instead, the District Collector acted as
Magistrate.
 Hastings had also encouraged the foundation of vernacular schools
by missionaries and others
 In 1817, the Hindu College was established at Calcutta by the
public for the teaching of English and western science.
 Hastings was the Patron of this college. He encouraged the
freedom of the Press and abolished the censorship introduced in
1799.
 The Bengali Weekly, Samachar Darpanwas started in 1818 by
Marshman, a Serampore missionary.
Estimate
 Lord Hastings was an able soldier and a brilliant administrator.

 His liberal views on education and Press are commendable
 He suppressed the Pindaris, defeated the Marathas and curbed
the power of the Ghurkhas.
 He was considered the maker of the Bombay Presidency.
 The completed and consolidated the work of Wellesley.
 Lord Hastings was succeeded by Lord Amherst (1823-28) who
fought the First Anglo-Mysore War (1824-26)
LORD WILLIAM BENTINCK (1828-1835)
 Lord William Bentinck assumed the office of the Governor-general
in 1828
 He was appointed the Governor of Madras in 1803
 The first Governor-general of British India
 Who acted on the dictum that “the welfare of the subject peoples
was a main, perhaps the primary, duty of the British in India”
Policy towards Indian States
 William Bentinck adopted a policy of non-intervention and non-

aggression with Indian states
Mysore
 In Mysore, Hindu rule under Krishnaraja III was restored by

Wellesley.
 Later, when the young raja assumed full control of the government
he proved incompetent.
 The peasantry of the state suffered from many grievances.
 The British authorities took over the administration of Mysore
State and placed it under the control of a commissioner.
 Sir Mark Cubbon was commissioner from 1834 to 1861 and his
administration was beneficial to the people of Mysore.
 Even today, the famous Cubbon Park in Bangalore city has been
named after him to remind his services to Mysore
Cachar and Jaintia
 The principality of Cachar lying in the North East Frontier came

under the protection of the British in accordance with the Treaty
of Yandaboo concluded at the end of the first Burmese War.
 The Raja of this small state was assassinated in 1832 but there
was no heir to succeed him.
 Bentinck annexed this state at the wish of the people
Coorg
 Vira Raja was a ruthless ruler of Coorg who treated his people
with savage barbarity and killed all his male relatives.
 Lord William Bentinck decided to deal with him effectively
 The Raja was deposed in 1834 and the state was annexed
Relations with Ranjit Singh
 Lord William Bentinck was the first Governor-General to visualise

a Russian threat to India.
 Hence, he was eager to negotiate friendly relations both with the
ruler of Punjab, Maharajah Ranjit Singh and also with the Amirs
of Sind.
 His earnest desire was that Afghanistan should be made a buffer
state between India and any possible invader.
 The meeting of Bentinck and Ranjit Singh on 25 October, 1831 at
Rupar on the bank of the river Sutlej amidst show and splendor.
 The Governor-General was successful in winning the friendship of
Ranjit Singh and the Indus Navigation Treaty was concluded
between them.
Charter Act of 1833
 The Regulating Act of 1773 made it compulsory to renew the

Company’s Charter after twenty years.
 Hence, the Charter Act of 1793 was passed by the Parliament.
 The Charter Act of 1813 provided one lakh of rupees annually for
the promotion of Indian education.
 It also extended the Company’s charter for another twenty years.
 The Charter Act of 1833 was a significant constitutional
instrument defining the scope and authority of the East India
Company
 The liberal and utilitarian philosophy of Bentham was made
popular by the provisions of this Act
Following were the important provisions:
 The English East India Company ceased to be a commercial

agency in India.
 It would function hereafter as the political agent for the Crown
 The Governor-General of Fort William was hereafter called ‘the
Governor- General of India’.
 Bentinck was the first Governor-General of India’
 Law Member was appointed to the Governor-General’s Council.
 T. B. Macaulay was the first Law Member of the Governor-
general-in-Council
 The Act categorically stated ‘that no native of India, nor any
natural born subject of His Majesty,
 Should be disabled from holding any place, office, or employment,
by reason of his religion, place of birth, descent or colour”
 It was this enactment which laid the foundation for the
Indenisation of public services
 After twenty years, the Charter Act of 1853 was passed and it was
the last in the series of Charter Acts
Reforms of Lord William Bentinck
 Covered only a short span of seven years, it saw a period of

enduring reforms
 They may be classified as financial, administrative, social and
educational.
Financial Reforms
 When Bentinck assumed the Governor-General ship in 1828, the

financial position of the Company was poor.
 He reduced the salaries and allowances of all officers and
additional staff were removed
 In the military department, he abolished the system of double
batta.
 By these financial reforms at the time of his departure, he left the
treasury with a surplus of Rs.1.5 million
Administrative Reforms
 Bentinck’s administrative reforms speak of his political maturity

and wisdom.
 In the judicial department he abolished the provincial courts of
appeal established by Cornwallis.
 Introduction of local languages in the lower courts and English in
the higher courts in the place of Persian.
Social Reforms
 The social reforms of William Bentinck made his name immortal

in the history of British India.
 These include the abolition of Sati, the suppression of Thugs and
the prevention of female infanticide.
Abolition of Sati
 The practice of sati, the age old custom of burning of widows alive
on the funeral pyre of their husbands
 This inhuman social custom was very common in northern India
more particularly in Bengal
 Bentinck was greatly distressed when he received a report of 800
cases of sati in a single year and that from Bengal.
 He determined to abolish this practice which he considered an
offence against natural justice.
 Promulgated his Regulation XVII on 4 December 1829 prohibiting
the practice of sati.
 Those who practiced sati were made liable for punishment by law
courts as accessories to the crime
 The Regulation was extended to the Madras and Bombay
Presidencies in 1830.
 The Regulation was extended to the Madras and Bombay
Presidencies in 1830.
Suppression of Thugs
 They were hereditary robbers. They went about in small groups of
fifty to hundred posing as commercial gangs or pilgrims
‘strangling and robbing peaceful travellers’.
 They increased in number in central and northern India during
the 18th century
 A campaign was systematically organised by Colonel Sleeman
from 1830 against the thugs
 During the course of five years nearly 2000 of them were captured.
 For his role in the suppression of thugs, Sir William Sleeman was
known as “Thugee Sleeman”.
Female Infanticide
 Female infanticide was one of the horrible and heartless deeds

committed even by civilized people.
 This practice killing female infants was very much prevalent in
places like Rajputana, Punjab, Malwa and Cutch.
 He not only prohibited female infanticide but declared them as
punishable crime.
Introduction of English Education
 He appointed a committee headed by Lord Macaulay to make

recommendations for the promotion of education.
 In his report, Macaulay emphasized the promotion of European
literature and science through English medium to the people of
India.
 This recommendation was wholeheartedly accepted by William
Bentinck.
 The Government Resolution in 1835 made English the official and
literary language of India.
 In the same year, William Bentinck laid foundation of the
Calcutta Medical College.
Estimate of William Bentinck
 Bentinck was a “straightforward, honest, upright, benevolent,

sensible man”
 His social reforms such as abolition of sati and prevention of child
sacrifice eradicated age old evils from Hindu society
 It is gratifying to note that “Bentinck acted where others had
talked”.
 After William Bentinck, Lord Auckland (1836-42) became
Governor-General.
 The First Afghan War (1836-42) was fought during his
administration
 Due to his failure in Afghanistan he was recalled in 1842.
 Lord Ellenborough succeeded him and ended the Afghan War.
 He also annexed the Sindh
 His successor, Lord Hardinge (1844-48) fought the first Anglo-Sikh
War (1845-46) and concluded the Treaty of Lahore.
LORD DALHOUSIE (1848-1856)

 Lord Dalhousie was the youngest Governor-General of India when
he assumed charge at the age of 36 in 1848.
 He studied in Christ Church, Oxford
 He became Member of Parliament and enjoyed the confidence of
Sir Robert Peel, the Prime Minister of England.
 In 1847, he was offered the Governor-General ship of India which
he accepted and arrived at Calcutta in January 1848.
Policy of Annexation
 Although he used different reasons for annexation, his main

objective was to end misrule in the annexed states, as in the case
of the annexation of Oudh.
 He aimed at providing the beneficent administration to the people
of the annexed states
 His great annexations include the Punjab, Lower Burma, most of
the Central Provinces and Oudh
Annexation of Punjab
 At the end of the second Anglo-Sikh War in 1849, Punjab was

annexed by Dalhousie.
 The province was divided into small districts under the control of
District Officers who were called Deputy Commissioners
 These commissioners with the help of their assistants came into
close contact with people.
 . Revenue and judicial departments were combined to secure
concentration of power and responsibility
 The laws and procedure were simplified in accordance with the
custom of the people.
 In 1859, Sir John Lawrence became the Lieutenant Governor of
Punjab
Second Burmese War and the Annexation of Lower Burma
 In 1852, commercial disputes in Rangoon prompted new hostilities

between the British and the Burmese
 After the end of the second Burmese War (1852), Dalhousie
annexed Lower Burmawith its capital at Pegu.
 Annexation of Lower Burma proved beneficial to Britain.
 Rangoon, Britain’s most valuable acquisition from the war became
one of the biggest ports in Asia
Doctrine of Lapse
 According to the Hindu Law, one can adopt a son in case of no

male heir to inherit the property.
 The question arose whether a Hindu ruler, holding his state
subordinate to the paramount power, could adopt a son to succeed
his kingdom.
 It was customary for a ruler without a natural heir to ask the
British Government whether he could adopt a son to succeed him
 According to Dalhousie, if such permission was refused by the
British, the state would “lapse” and thereby become part of the
British India
 Dalhousie maintained that there was a difference in principle
between the right to inherit private property and the right to
govern.
 This principle was called the Doctrine of Lapse.
 The Doctrine of Lapse was applied by Dalhousie to Satara and it
was annexed in 1848.
 Jhansi and Nagpur were annexed in 1854
 As a result of these annexations, a large part of the Central
Provinces came under the British rule.
 Although the Doctrine of Lapse cannot be regarded as illegal, its
application by Dalhousie was disliked by Indian princes.
 After the Mutiny of 1857, the doctrine of lapse was withdrawn.
Annexation of Oudh
 The British relations with the state of Oudh go back to the Treaty
of Allahabad in 1765
 Right from Warren Hastings, many Governor-Generals advised
the Nawab of Oudh to improve the administration.
 . After surveying the situation in Oudh, Dalhousie annexed it in
1856
 Nawab Wajid Ali was granted a pension of 12 lakhs of rupees per
year.
 The annexed territory came under the control of a Chief
Commissioner
 Dalhousie’s annexation of Oudh, the last one among his
annexations, created great political danger.
 The annexation offended the Muslim elite
 More dangerous was the effect on the British army’s Indian troops,
many of whom came from Oudh
 They had occupied a privileged position before its annexation.
 Under the British Government they were treated as equals with
the rest of the population
 This is a loss of prestige for them. In these various ways, the
annexation of Oudh contributed to the Mutiny of 1857.
Domestic Reforms of Dalhousie
 The appointment of a Lieutenant-Governor to Bengal enabled

Dalhousie concentrate on administration.
 His greatest achievement was the moulding of the new provinces
into a modern centralized state.
 For the newly acquired territories, he introduced the centralized
control called “Non-Regulation System”.
 Under this system a Commissioner
 Was appointed for a newly acquired territory.
 Under military reforms Dalhousie shifted the headquarters of
Bengal Artillery from Calcutta to Meerut.
 Shimla was made the permanent headquarters of the army.
Railway
 The introduction railways in India inaugurated a new economic

era
 Three major reasons for the British to take interest in its quick
development
 The first reason was commercial.
 The second main reason was administrative.
 The third reason was defence
 At the time of revolt and disturbance, movement of the forces was
much easier through railways.
 In 1853, he penned his Railway Minute formulating the future
policy of railways in India.
 He started the “guarantee system” by which the railway
companies were guaranteed a minimum interest of five percent on
their investment
 The government retained the right of buying the railway at the
end of the period of contract.
 The first railway line connecting Bombay with Thane was opened
in 1853.
 Railway lines connecting from Calcutta to the Raniganj coal-fields
was opened in 1854
 From Madras to Arakkonam in 1856
 His first railway in the world was opened in 1825 in England.
Telegraph
 Similarly, the use of Telegraph brought marvellous changes in

communication system.
 . In 1852, O’Shaughnessy was appointed the Superintendent of
Telegraph Department
 Main cities of the country viz., Calcutta, Peshawar, Bombay and
Madras were telegraphically connected.
 About 4000 miles long Telegraph lines were laid before the
departure of Dalhousie.
 During the 1857 Revolt, the system of telegraphic communication
proved a boon for the English and the military value of Dalhousie’s
creation was much realized at that time.
Postal Reform
 The foundation of modern postal system was laid down by Lord

Dalhousie.
 A new Post Office Act was passed in 1854
 Irrespective of the distance over which the letter was sent, a
uniform rate of half an anna per post card was charged throughout
India.
 Postage stamps were introduced for the first time.
Education
 The educational Despatch of Sir Charles Wood (1854) was

considered the “Intellectual Charter of India”.
 It provided an outline for the comprehensive scheme of education
at primary, secondary and collegiate levels.
 Departments of Public Instructions were organized.
 The Universities of Calcutta, Bombay and Madras were founded in
1857
Public Works Department
 Before the period of Dalhousie, the job of the Public Works
Department was done by the Military Board.
 Dalhousie created a separate Public Works Department and
allotted more funds for cutting canals and roads
 The Upper Ganges Canal was completed in 1854
 Many bridges were constructed. By modernizing the Public Works
 Department he laid the foundations of the engineering service in
India.
Estimate of Dalhousie
 Dalhousie left India in 1856. The outbreak of Mutiny in the

following year led to a severe criticism of his policy of annexation.
 He fell ill and died in 1860.
 There is no doubt that Dalhousie was an able administrator and
visionary
 He was the father of Railways and Telegraphs.
 He introduced the process of modernization of India. Hence, he is
hailed as “the maker of modern India”
REVENUE ADMINISTRATION AND ECONOMIC POLICY OF

THE BRITISH
British Agrarian Policy
 Till the 18th century, there was a strong relation between

agriculture and cottage industries in India.
 The British destroyed handicraft industry
 The British policies revolved around getting maximum income
from land without caring much about Indian interests of the
cultivators.
 After their advent, the British principally adopted three types of
land tenures.
 Roughly 19 per cent of the total area under the British rule, i.e.,
Bengal, Bihar, Banaras, division of the Northern Western
Provinces and northern Karnatak, were brought under the
Zamindari System or the Permanent Settlement
 The second revenue system, called the Mahalwari Settlement, was
introduced in about 30 per cent of the total area under British rule
i.e., in major parts of the North Western Provinces, Central
Provinces and the Punjab with some variations
 The Ryotwari System covered about 51 per cent of the area under
British rule comprising part of the Bombay and Madras
Presidencies, Assam and certain other parts of British India.
The Permanent Settlement
 Lord Cornwallis’ most conspicuous administrative measure was

the Permanent Land Revenue Settlement of Bengal
 Which was extended to the provinces of Bihar and Orissa.
 Warren Hastings introduced the annual lease system of auctioning
the land to the highest bidder.
 Cornwallis at the time of his appointment was instructed by the
Directors
 Find a satisfactory and permanent solution to the problems of the
land revenue system in order to protect the interests of both the
Company and the cultivators.
 He decided to abolish the annual lease system
 Introduce a decennial (Ten years) settlement which was
subsequently declared to be continuous
 The main features of the Permanent Settlement were as follows
 His zamindars of Bengal were recognised as the owners of land as
long as they paid the revenue to the East India Company regularly
 The amount of revenue that the zamindars had to pay to the
Company was firmly fixed and would not be raised under any
circumstances. In other words the Government of the East India
Company got 89% leaving the rest to the zamindars
 The ryots became tenants since they were considered the tillers of
the soil
 This settlement took away the administrative and judicial
functions of the zamindars
 The flagrant defect of this arrangement was that no attempt was
made ever either to survey the lands or to assess their value
 . The effects of this system both on the zamindars and ryots were
disastrous.
 Many zamindars defaulted on payments.
 Their property was seized and distress sales were conducted
leading to their ruin.
 The rich zamindars who led luxurious lives left their villages and
migrated into towns.
 They entrusted their rent collection to agents who exacted all
kinds of illegal taxes besides the legal ones from the ryots
 This had resulted in a great deal of misery amongst the peasants
and farmers
 Therefore Lord Cornwallis’ idea of building a system of benevolent
land-lordism failed.
 Nevertheless, this system proved to be a great boon to the
zamindars and to the government of Bengal.
 It formed a regular income and stabilised the government of the
Company.
 The zamindars prospered at the cost of the welfare of the tenants
Ryotwari Settlement
 The Ryotwari settlement was introduced mainly in Madras, Berar,

Bombay and Assam.
 Sir Thomas Munro introduced this system in the Madras
Presidency
 Under this settlement, the peasant was recognised as the
proprietor of land.
 There was no intermediary like a Zamindar between the peasant
and the government
 So long as he paid the revenue in time, the peasant was not
evicted from the land
 Besides, the land revenue was fixed for a period from 20 to 40
years at a time
 Every peasant was held personally responsible for direct payment
of land revenue to the government.
 This system also failed.
 Under this settlement it was certainly not possible to collect
revenue in a systematic manner.
Mahalwari Settlement
 In 1833, the Mahalwari settlement was introduced in the Punjab,

the Central Provinces and parts of North Western Provinces.
 The basic unit of revenue settlement was the village or the Mahal.
 As the village lands belonged jointly to the village community, the
responsibility of paying the revenue rested with the entire Mahal
or the village community.
 So the entire land of the village was measured at the time of fixing
the revenue.
 Yet its benefit was largely enjoyed by the government.
British Policy towards Indian Handicrafts
 The European companies began arriving on the Indian soil from

16th century.
 As far as the traditional handicraft industry and the production of
objects of art were concerned,
 India was already far ahead of other countries in the world.
 The textiles were the most important among the Indian industries.
 Its cotton, silk and woollen products were sought after all over the
world.
 Particularly, the muslin of Dacca, carpets of Lahore, shawls of
Kashmir, and the embroidery works of Banaras were very famous.
 Ivory goods, wood works and jewellery were other widely sought
after Indian commodities.
 Dhotis and dupattas of Ahmedabad
 Chikan of Lucknow, and silk borders of Nagpur had earned a
worldwide fame.
 For their silk products some small towns of Bengal besides, Malda
and Murshidabad were very famous.
 Similarly, Kashmir, Punjab and western Rajasthan were famous
for their woollen garments.
 Besides textiles, India was also known widely for its shipping,
leather and metal industries.
 Indian fame as an industrial economy rested on cutting and
polishing of marble and other precious stones and carving of ivory
and sandalwood.
 Moradabad and Banaras were famous for brass, copper, bronze
utensils.
 Nasik, Poona, Hyderabad and Tanjore were famous for other
metal works
 Kutch, Sind and Punjab were known for manufacturing arms.
 Kolhapur, Satara, Gorakhpur, Agra, Chittor and Palaghat had
likewise earned a reputation for their glass industries.
 The Indian handicraft industry had begun to decline by the
beginning of the 18th century
 There were many reasons for it.
 First, the policies followed by the English East India Company
proved to be highly detrimental to the Indian handicrafts
industry.
 The Indian market was flooded with the cheap finished goods from
Britain.
 It resulted in a steep decline in the sale of Indian products both
within and outside of the country.
 The Company encouraged the cultivation of raw silk in Bengal
while imposing service restrictions on the sale of its finished
products.
 So, with the disappearance of the traditional dynasties, their
nobility also passed into oblivion.
 This led to a sharp decline in the demand for traditional luxury
goods.
 Besides, the Industrial revolution led to the invention of new
machinery in Europe.
 Power looms replaced handlooms
 Finally, the new communication and transport facilities brought
about a revolution in public life.
 But now conditions were changed with the introduction of
railways and steamer services.
 Concrete roads were laid to connect the country’s agricultural
hinterland.
EDUCATIONAL AND SOCIAL REFORMS

Language and Education Policy
 Although the British had captured Bengal in 1757, yet the

responsibility of imparting education remained only in Indian
hands.
 The study of ancient texts written in Arabic, Persian and Sanskrit
still continued.
 In 1781, Warren Hastings established a Madrasa in Calcutta to
encourage the study of Muslim laws along with Arabic and
Persian languages.
 A decade later in 1791 due to the sincere efforts of the British
resident, Jonathan Duncan, a Sanskrit College was established to
promote the study of Hindu laws and philosophy in Banaras
 It is apparent from the government and Church records that
 There were about 80,000 traditional institutions of learning in
Bengal alone
 Which means that there was at least one institution for every four
hundred people in that province
 Different educational surveys of Madras, Bombay and Punjab also
demonstrate similar facts
 There was at least one school in every village of India at that time
 The East India Company began to adopt a dual policy in the
sphere of education.
 It discouraged the prevalent system of oriental education and gave
importance to western education and English language.
 The Charter Act of 1813 adopted a provision to spend one lakh
rupees per annum for the spread of education in India
 Consequently, not even a single penny out of the allocated funds
could be spent on education.
 The contemporary British scholars were divided into two groups
on the issue of development of education in India.
 One group, called the Orientalists, advocated the promotion of
oriental subjects through Indian languages.
 The other group, called the Anglicists, argued the cause of western
sciences and literature in the medium of English language.
 In 1829, after assuming the office of the Governor-General of
India, Lord William Bentinck, emphasized on the medium of
English language in Indian education.
 In the beginning of 1835, the 10 members of the General
Committee of Public Instruction were clearly divided into two
equal groups
 Five members including the Chairman of the committee Lord
Macaulay were in favour of adopting English
 Other five were in favour of oriental languages
 The stalemate continued till 2 February 1835 when the Chairman
of the committee, Lord Macaulay announced his famous Minute
advocating the Anglicists point of view.
 Bentinck got the resolution passed on 7 March 1835 which
declared that henceforth
 Government funds would be utilized for the promotion of western
literature and science through the medium of English language
 In 1854, Sir Charles Wood sent a comprehensive dispatch as a
grand plan on education.
 The establishment of departments of public instructions in five
provinces
 Introduction of the pattern of grants in aid to encourage private
participation in the field of education were recommended.
 The dispatch also laid emphasis on the establishment of schools
for technical education, teacher and women education.
 The dispatch recommended the establishment of one University
each in Calcutta, Bombay and Madras,
 On the model of the London University
 Consequently, within the next few years, the Indian education
became rapidly westernized.
Social Policies and Legislation
 In the beginning, the British interest was limited to trade and

earning profits from economic exploitation.
 They were apprehensive of interfering with the social and
religious customs and institutions of the Indian
 Thus, they adopted the policy of extreme precaution and
indifference towards social issues in India.
 Reason why they indulged in criticizing the customs and traditions
of India
 Was to generate a feeling of inferiority complex among the
Indians.
 However, in the mid-19th century the social and religious
movements, launched in India
 Attracted the attention of the Company’s administration towards
the country’s social evils.
 The propaganda carried out by the Christian missionaries also
stirred the minds of the educated Indians.
 There were primarily two areas in which laws were enacted, laws
pertaining to women emancipation and the caste system.
Social Laws Concerning Women
 The condition of women, by the time the British established their

rule, was not encouraging.
 Several evil practices such as the practice of Sati, the Purdah
system, child marriage, female infanticide, bride price and
polygamy had made their life quite miserable.
 There was no social and economic equality between a man and
woman.
 A Hindu woman was not entitled to inherit any property.
 Female Infanticide
 It was particularly in vogue in Rajputana, Punjab and the North
Western Provinces.
 Factors such as family pride
 The fear of not finding a suitable match for the girl child
 The hesitation to bend before the prospective in-laws
 Therefore, immediately after birth, the female infants were being
killed either by feeding them with opium
 By strangulating or by purposely neglecting them.
 Some laws were enacted against this practice in 1795, 1802 and
1804 and then in 1870.
 This evil practice came to be done away through education and
public opinion.
Widow Remarriage
 There are many historical evidences to suggest that widow

remarriage enjoyed social sanction during ancient period in India.
 In course of time the practice ceased to prevail increasing the
number of widows to lakhs during the 19th century.
 Prominent among these reformers were Raja Rammohan Roy and
Iswar Chandra Vidyasagar.
 They carried out large scale campaigns in this regard mainly
through books, pamphlets and petitions with scores of signatures.
 In July 1856, J.P. Grant, a member of the Governor-General’s
Council finally tabled a bill in support of the widow remarriage,
 Which was passed on 13 July 1856 and came to be called the
Widow Remarriage Act, 1856.
Child Marriage
 In November 1870, the Indian Reforms Association was started
with the efforts of Kasha Chandra Sen.
 A journal called Mahapap Bal Vivah (Child marriage: The
Cardinal Sin) was also launched with the efforts of B.M. Malabari
to fight against child marriage.
 In 1846, the minimum marriageable age for a girl was only 10
years
 In 1891, through the enactment of the Age of Consent Act, this
was raised to 12 years.
 In 1930, through the Sharda Act, the minimum age was raised to
14 years
 After independence, the limit was raised to 18 years in 1978
Purdah System
 Similarly, voices were raised against the practice of Purdah during

the 19th and 20th century
 The condition of women among the peasantry was relatively better
in this respect.
 Purdah was not so much prevalent in Southern India.
 Through the large scale participation of women in the national
freedom movement
 The system disappeared without any specific legislative measure
taken against it
Struggle against the Caste System and the related Legislation
 Next to the issue of women emancipation, the caste system became

the second most important issue of social reforms.
 The Shudras were subjected to all kinds of social discrimination.
 In the beginning of the 19th century the castes of India had been
split into innumerable sub castes on the basis of birth.
 In the meantime, a new social consciousness also dawned among
the Indians.
 Mahatma Gandhi made the removal of untouchability a part of his
constructive programme.
 He brought out a paper, The Harijan, and also organised the
Harijan Sevak Sangh.
 Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar dedicated his entire life for the welfare of
the downtrodden
 In Bombay, he formed a Bahiskrit Hitkarini Sabha in July 1924
for this purpose.
 Later, he also organised the Akhil Bharatiya Dalit Varg Sabha to
fight against caste oppression.
 Jyotirao Phulein Western India and Shri Narayana Guru in
Kerala respectively established the Satya Sadhak Samaj
 Shri Narayana Dharma Partipalana Yogam to include self-esteem
among the downtrodden.
 In the Madras Presidency also the beginning of 20th century
witnessed the rise of Self-respect Movement of Periyar E.V.R.
 These movements were directed mainly in removing the
disabilities suffered by Harijans in regard to drawing of water
from public wells
 Getting entry into temples and admission into schools.
THE GREAT REVOLT OF 1857

 The 1857 Revolt sowed the seeds of Indian nationalism, which lay
dormant in the subconscious of the Indian people
 It started the movement which was a continuous struggle against
the British rule till 1947
Nature of the Revolt
 The historical writings of the British scholars underplayed the

character of the Revolt of 1857.
 Sir John Lawrence was of the opinion that the Revolt was purely a
military outbreak, and not a conspiracy to overthrow British rule
 On the other hand the Revolt of 1857 is hailed by the Indian
scholars, especially by Vir Savarkar as the First War of Indian
Independence.
 Two distinguished Indian historians, R.C. Majumdar and S.N.
Sen, have analysed the Revolt of 1857 in depth.
 S.N. Sen believes that the 1857 Revolt was part of the struggle for
Indian independence
 R.C. Majumdar maintains that the outbreaks before 1857,
whether civil or military
 Were “a series of isolated incidents” ultimately culminated in the
Great Revolt of 1857.
Causes of the Revolt
Political Causes
 On the contrary, the British rule was disliked by the people at

large in any region when it was newly introduced.
 Anti-British feelings were particularly strong in those regions like
Burma, Assam, Coorg, Sind, and the Punjab which were unjustly
annexed to the British Empire.
 The Doctrine of Lapse, particularly its practical application by
Lord Dalhousie, produced grave discontent and alarm among the
native princes,
Economic Causes
 The huge drain of wealth, the destruction of its industry and

increasing land revenue had become the common features of the
latter half of the eighteenth century.
 The East India Company, after attaining political power, used it to
fund the growth of British trade and commerce at the cost of
Indians.
 In England the ruin of the old handloom weavers was
accompanied by the growth of the machine industry
 But in India the ruin of the millions of artisans and craftsmen was
not accompanied by any alternative growth of new industrial
forms
 A new plantation system introduced in the year 1833 resulted in
incalculable misery for the Indian peasants.
 The hard hit were the peasants on the indigo plantations in
Bengal and Bihar
Social Causes
 The Englishmen showed an arrogant attitude towards the Indians.

Indiscriminate assaults on Indians by Englishmen became quite
common.
 Also, a general alarm was raised among the Hindus and Muslims
by the activities of the Christian missionaries.
 The educational institutions established by the missionaries
inculcated western education and culture in the place of oriental
learning.
 The native population felt that were losing their social identity
Military causes
 Discontent against the British Raj was widely prevalent among

the Indian soldiers in the British army.
 The Indian sepoys in the British Indian army nursed a sense of
strong resentment at their low salary and poor prospects of
promotion.
 The British military officers at times showed least respect to the
social values and religious sentiments of Indian sepoys in the
army.
 Thus, although generally faithful to their masters, the sepoys were
provoked to revolt.
 The Vellore mutiny of 1806, a precursor to the 1857 Great Revolt,
was the outcome of such tendencies on the part of the military
authorities.
 Another important cause of the sepoy’s dissatisfaction was the
order that abolished the foreign allowance or batta when they
served in foreign territories.
 Thus the discontent was widespread and there was an
undercurrent before the volcanic situation of 1857.
The Beginning of the Revolt
 The 1857 Revolt was sparked off by the episode of the greased
cartridges
 The new Enfield rifle had been introduced for the first time in the
Indian army
 Its cartridges had a greased paper cover
 Whose end had to be bitten off before the cartridge was loaded into
the rifle.
 The grease was composed of fat taken from beef and pig
 The religious feelings of the Hindu and Muslim sepoys were
terribly wounded.
 The sepoys believed that the government was deliberately trying
to destroy their religious and cultural identity.
 Hence they raised the banner of revolt.
 The events that led to the Revolt began on 29 March 1857 at
Barrackpore.
 Mangal Pandey (a sepoy) refused to use the greased cartridges and
single-handedly attacked and killed his officer.
 Mangal Pandey was hanged.
 The regiment to which he belonged was disbanded and sepoys
guilty of rebellion punished.
 The British instead of diffusing the explosive situation, paved the
way for a mighty crisis by the above act.
 At Meerut in May 1857, 85 sepoys of the 3rd Cavalry regiment
were sentenced to long terms of imprisonment for refusing to use
the greased catridges
 Therefore, on 10 May the sepoys broke out in open rebellion, shot
their officers, released their fellow sepoys and headed towards
Delhi.
 General Hewitt, the officer commanding at Meerut was helpless to
prevent the army’s march.
 The city of Delhi fell into the hands of the rebellious soldiers on 12
May 1857.
 Lieutenant Willtashby, the officer in charge of Delhi could not
prevent the mutineers
 Soon, the mutineers proclaimed the aged nominal king, Bahadur
Shah II of the Mughal dynasty as the Emperor of India.
 Very soon the rebellion spread throughout northern and central
India at Lucknow, Allahabad, Kanpur, Banares, in parts of Bihar,
Jhansi and other places
Delhi
 The leadership at Delhi was nominally in the hands of Bahadur

Shah, but the real control was exercised by General Bakht Khan
 In Delhi, Emperor Bahadur Shah II was arrested and deported to
Rangoon
 Where he remained in exile till he died in 1862
Kanpur
 At Kanpur the revolt was led by Nana Saheb,

 The adopted son of Baji Rao II
 The last Peshwa.
 Nana Saheb expelled the English from Kanpur with the help of
the sepoys and proclaimed himself the Peshwa
 Nana Saheb in his efforts against the British was ably supported
by two of his lieutenants.
 One was Tantia Tope, the other was Azimullah.
 Sir Hugh Wheeler the commander of the British garrison at
Kanpur surrendered on the 27 June 1857.
 But, soon Kanpur was recaptured by the British commander Sir
Colin Campbell.
Lucknow
 The principal person responsible for the revolt in Lucknow was the
Begum of Oudh.
 With the assistance of the sepoys, the zamindars and peasants
 The Begum organised
 An all-out attack on the British
 Henry Lawrence, the chief commissioner tried to defend the
British
 Lawrence was killed in a bomb blast during the fight.
 The final relief for the British forces in Lucknow came in the form
of Sir Colin Campbell, who suppressed the revolt
Jhansi
 Rani Lakshmi Bai of Jhansi, the widowed queen of Gangadhar

Rao played a heroic role in this revolt.
 Rani Lakshmi Bai was affected by Dalhousie’s Doctrine of Lapse
 The combined efforts of Rani and Tantia Tope saw the capture of
Gwalior.
 Meanwhile, Sir Hugh Rose defeated Tantia Tope and stormed
Jhansi on 3 April 1858.
 He then captured Gwalior.
 The Rani of Jhansi died a soldier’s death on 17 June 1858.
 Tantia Tope was captured and hanged on charges of rebellion and
murder in the massacre of Kanpur
Bihar
 Kunwar Singh, a ruined and discontented zamindar of Jagdishpur

near Oudh
 Was the chief organiser of the revolt in Bihar
 He fought the British in Bihar
 Kunwar Singh sustained a fatal wound in the battle and died on
27 April 1858 at Jagdishpur.
 Ultimately the 1857 Revolt came to an end with the victory of the
British.
 Viceroy Canning proclaimed peace throughout India.
Causes for the Failure of the Revolt
 Foremost cause was that the Revolt failed to embrace the whole of
India. Different sections of society such as moneylenders,
merchants and modern educated Indians were actually against the
Revolt.
 The resources of the British Empire were far superior to those of
the rebels.
 The insurgents lacked a carefully concerted general plan or a
strong central organisation to plan the movements of the army
and oversee their strategy.
 In addition, the British were aided by new scientific inventions
such as the telegraph system and postal communications.
Significance and Effects of the Mutiny
 The Revolt of 1857 though completely suppressed had shaken the

very foundations of British rule in India,
 It brought together the disgruntled sections of society to rise
against the British rule
 However, this civilian revolt was not universal but sporadic and
inconsistent
 Another significant aspect of the 1857 Revolt was the Hindu-
Muslim unity
 It brought about fundamental changes in the character of Indian
administration
 Which was transferred from the East India Company to the Crown
by the Queen’s Proclamation of 1 November, 1858
 At the same time the Governor-General received the new title of
Viceroy.
 Lord Canning had the unique opportunity to become the
Governor-General as well as the first Viceroy according to the Act
of 1858.
 Lord Canning proclaimed the new Government at Allahabad on 1
November 1858 in accordance with the Queen’s Proclamation.
 The latter has been called the Magna Carta of the Indian people;
 It disclaimed any extension of territory, promised religious
toleration
 Guaranteed the rights of Indian princes and pledged equal
treatment to her subjects, Indians and Europeans
 The year 1857 is a great divide between the two landmarks in
Indian history.
 One was that of British paramountcy in the first half
 Other is that of the growth of Indian nationalism in the second
half of the nineteenth century.
BRITISH INDIA AFTER 1858: LORD LYTTON
(1876-1880), LORD RIPON (1880-1884) AND
LORD CURZON (1899-1905)
 After the 1857 Revolt, the responsibility of ruling India was
directly assumed by the British Crown.
 Lord Canning became the first Viceroy of India in 1858.
 The Queen’s Proclamation remained the basis of the British policy
in India for more than 60 years
 The administrations of Lord Lytton, Lord Ripon and Lord Curzon
were important during this period.
Lord Lytton (1876-1880)
 Lord Lytton was an experienced diplomat and a man of striking

ability and brilliance.
 The British Prime Minister, Disraeli appointed him as the Viceroy
of India.
Famine Policy
 The famine of 1876-78 had resulted from the failure of two

monsoons
 It covered an area of two lakh fifty thousand square miles and
affected fifty eight million people.
 The worst affected areas were Madras, Mysore, Hyderabad,
Bombay, Central India and the Punjab
 It took a toll of five million lives in a single year.
 The outbreak of cholera and fever added to the misery of the
suffering population
 Lytton’s Government failed miserably to tackle the situation.
 The government’s relief measures seemed to be inadequate.
 The first Famine Commission (1878-80) under Sir Richard
Strachey was appointed and it made many commendable
recommendations.
 The Famine Code came into existence in 1883.
The Vernacular Press Act and the Arms Act (1878)
 In 1878, the Vernacular Press Act was passed

 This Act empowered a Magistrate to secure an undertaking from
the editor
 Publisher and printer of a vernacular newspaper that nothing
would be published against the English Government.
 The equipment of the press could be seized if the offence was
committed.
 This Act crushed the freedom of the Indian press.
 In the same year, the Arms Act was passed.
 This Act prevented the Indians to keep arms without appropriate
license.
Other Reforms
 Lord Lytton introduced uniform salt tax throughout British India.

 Abolished many import duties and supported the Free Trade
policy
 The system of decentralisation of finance that had begun in the
time of Lord Mayo was continued during the time of Lord Lytton.
 The provincial governments were empowered with some control
over the expenditure of all provincial matters like land-revenue,
excise, stamps, law and justice.
 Lytton wanted to encourage the provinces in collecting the
revenue and thereby strengthen the financial power and position
of the provinces.
 In 1878, the Statutory Civil Service was established exclusively for
Indians but this was abolished later
Lytton and the Second Afghan War (1878-80)
 The Afghan policy of the British was based on the assumed threat
of Russian invasion of India
 The first Afghan War (1838-42) proved to be a disastrous one for
the British in India.
 He was instructed by the home government to follow a forward
policy.
 The Russian attempt to send a mission to Afghanistan was the
main cause of the Second Afghan War.
 Soon after the outbreak of the war in 1878, the British troops
captured the territory between Kabul and Kandahar
 The ruler of Afghanistan, Sher Ali fled from his country and died
in 1879. His son Yakub Khan became the ruler and the British
concluded the Treaty of Gandamak with him.
 A British Resident was sent to Kabul but soon he was murdered
along with other British officers by the Afghan rebels.
 Although the British troops were able to recapture Kabul, the
difficulties in holding it increased due to the activities of the
rebels.
 Suddenly in 1780, Lytton was forced to resign by the new
government in England
 Lytton’s Afghan policy was severely criticised because he was
responsible for the murder of the British officers including the
Resident in Kabul.
 During his administration, millions died due to famine. The
Vernacular Press Act undermined his credit.
Lord Ripon (1880-84)
 Lord Ripon was a staunch Liberal democrat with faith in self-

government.
 He was appointed as the Viceroy of India by Gladstone, the
Liberal Party Prime Minister of England
 Ripon was instructed to reverse the Afghan policy of Lytton
 He was also responsible for the rendition of Mysore to its Hindu
ruler
 Moreover, he repealed the Vernacular Press Act and earned much
popularity among Indians.
 Then, he devoted himself to task of liberalising the Indian
administration
 Introduction of Local Self-Government (1882)
 Ripon believed that self-government is the highest and noblest
principles of politics.
 Ripon helped the growth of local bodies like the Municipal
Committees in towns and the local boards in taluks and villages.
 The powers of municipalities were increased.
 Their chairmen were to be non-officials
 They were entrusted the care of local amenities, sanitation,
drainage and water-supply and also primary education.
 District and taluk boards were created. It was insisted that the
majority of the members of these boards should be elected non-
officials.
 The local bodies were given executive powers with financial
resources of their own
 It was perhaps the desire of Ripon that power in India should be
gradually transferred to the educated Indians.
 He also insisted on the election of local bodies as against selection
by the government.
Educational Reforms
 Lord Ripon was a champion of education of the Indians.

 Ripon wanted to review the working of the educational system on
the basis of the recommendations of the Wood’s Despatch
 For further improvement of the system Ripon appointed a
Commission in 1882 under the chairmanship of Sir William
Hunter
 The Commission came to be known as the Hunter Commission.
 The Commission recommended for the expansion and
improvement of the elementary education of the masses
 The Commission suggested two channels for the secondary
education
 -One was literary education leading up to the Entrance
Examination of the university
 The other preparing the students for a vocational career.
 The Commission noted the poor status of women education.
 It encouraged the local bodies in the villages and towns to manage
the elementary education.
First Factory Act (1881)
 Lord Ripon introduced the Factory Act of 1881 to improve the

service condition of the factory workers in India.
 The Act banned the appointment of children below the age of
seven in factories.
 It reduced the working hours for children.
Ilbert Bill Agitation (1884)
 Lord Ripon wanted to remove two kinds of law that had been
prevalent in India
 According to the system of law, a European could be tried only by
a European Judge or a European Magistrate.
 The disqualification was unjust and it was sought to cast a
needless discredit and dishonour upon the Indian-born members of
the judiciary.
 C.P. Ilbert, Law Member, introduced a bill in 1883 to abolish this
discrimination in judiciary
 Europeans opposed this Bill strongly
 They even raised a fund of one lakh fifty thousand rupees and
established an organisation called the Defence Association.
 They also suggested that it was better to end the English rule in
India than to allow the English to be subjected to the Indian
Judges and Magistrates
 The press in England joined the issue. Hence, Ripon amended the
bill to satisfy the English in India and England
 The Ilbert Bill controversy helped the cause of Indian nationalism
 The Ilbert Bill Controversy is a high watermark in the history of
Indian National Movement.
 Ripon was totally disillusioned and heartbroken and he tendered
his resignation and left for England.
 The immediate result of this awakening of India was the birth of
the Indian National Congress in 1885, the very next year of
Ripon’s departure.
Estimate of Lord Ripon
 Lord Ripon was the most popular Viceroy that England ever sent
to India.
 The Indians by and large hailed him as “Ripon the Good”, because
he was the only Viceroy who handled the Indian problems with
compassion and sympathy
 His attempt to remove racial distinction in the judiciary, the
repeal of the Vernacular Press Act, the rendition of Mysore and
the introduction of the Local-Self Government increased his
popularity among Indians.
Lord Curzon (1899-1905)
 Lord Curzon occupies a high place among the rulers of British

India like Lord Wellesley and Lord Dalhousie
 He was a thorough imperialist
 In order to make the administration efficient, Lord Curzon
overhauled the entire administrative machinery.
Educational Reforms
 Curzon took a serious view of the fall in the standard of education

and discipline in the educational institutions.
 In his view the universities had degenerated into factories for
producing political revolutionaries.
 To set the educational system in order, he instituted in 1902, a
Universities Commission to go into the entire question of
university education in the country
 Curzon brought in the Indian Universities Act of 1904, which
brought all the universities in India under the control of the
government
Police and Military Reforms
 He instituted a Police Commission in 1902 under the

chairmanship of Sir Andrew Frazer.
 He set up training schools for both the officers and the constables
and introduced provincial police service.
Calcutta Corporation Act (1899)
 The Viceroy brought in a new legislative measure namely the

Calcutta Corporation Act in 1899
 The strength of the elected members was reduced and that of the
official members increased.
 Curzon gave more representations to the English people as
against the Indians in the Calcutta Corporation.
 There was strong resentment by the Indian members against
Curzon’s anti-people measures.
Preservation of Archaeological objects
 Curzon had a passion for preserving the ancient monuments of

historical importance in India.
 No Viceroy in India before or after him took such a keen interest
in archaeological objects.
 He passed a, law called the Ancient Monuments Act, 1904
 Which made it obligatory on the part of the government and local
authorities to preserve the monuments of archaeological
importance and their destruction an offence
Partition of Bengal, 1905
 The Partition of Bengal into two provinces was effected on 4 July

1905
 The new province of Eastern Bengal and Assam included the
whole of Assam and the Dacca, Rajshahi and Chittagong divisions
of Bengal with headquarters at Dacca.
 Though Curzon justified his action on administrative lines,
partition divided the Hindus and Muslims in Bengal.
 This led to the anti-partition agitation all over the country. This
had also intensified the National Movement.
Estimate of Lord Curzon
 Lord Curzon assumed his office, when he was forty years old
 All his reform measures were preceded by an expert Commission
and its recommendations.
 He made a serious study of the Indian problems in all their
aspects.
 He lost the popularity by the act of Partition of Bengal
SOCIO-RELIGIOUS REFORM MOVEMENTS
 In the history of modern India, the socio-religious reforms occupy a

significant place
 The spread of liberal ideas of the west provided further stimulus
for the emergence of reform movements.
Raja Rammohan Roy and the Brahmo Samaj
 Raja Rammohan Roy established the Brahmo Samajat Calcutta in

1828 in order to purify Hinduism and to preach monotheism.
 He is considered as the first ‘modern man of India’.
 Born in 1772 in the Hooghly district of Bengal
 He studied the Bible as well as Hindu and Muslim religious texts
 He had excellent command over many languages including
English, Sanskrit, Persian, Arabic, French, Latin, Greek and
Hebrew.
 In 1815, he established the Atmiya Sabha.
 Later, it was developed into the Brahmo Sabha in August 1828.
 He preached that there is only one God.
 He combined the teachings of the Upanishads, the Bible and the
Koran in developing unity among the people of different religions.
 The work of the Atmiya Sabha was carried on by Maharishi
Debendranath Tagore (father of Rabindranath Tagore),
 Who renamed it as Brahmo Samaj
 Raj Rammohan Roy is most remembered for helping Lord William
Bentinck to declare the practice of Sati a punishable offence in
1829.
 He also protested against the child marriage and female
infanticide.
 He felt that the caste system was the greatest hurdle to Indian
unity.
 He favoured inter-caste marriages.
 He himself adopted a Muslim boy
 In 1817, he founded the Hindu College (now Presidency College,
Calcutta) along with David Hare, a missionary.
 Rammohan Roy started the first Bengali weekly Samvad Kaumudi
 Edited a Persian weekly Mirat-ul-akhbar.
 He stood for the freedom of the press
 Rammohan died in Bristol in England in 1833
Henry Vivian Derozio and the Young Bengal Movement
 Henry Vivian Derozio was the founder of the Young Bengal

Movement.
 He was born in Calcutta in 1809 and taught in the Hindu College,
Calcutta.
 He died of cholera in 1833.
 His followers were known as the Derozians and their movement
the Young Bengal Movement.
 They attacked old traditions and decadent customs.
 They also advocated women’s rights and their education.
 They founded associations and organized debates against idol
worship, casteism and superstitions
Swami Dayanand Saraswathi and the Arya Samaj
 The Arya Samaj was founded by Swami Dayanand Saraswathi at

Bombay in 1875.
 Born in Kathiawar in Gujarat, Swami Dayanand (1824-83) was a
scholar, a patriot, a social reformer and a revivalist.
 He believed the Vedas were the source of true knowledge.
 His motto was “Back to the Vedas”.
 He was against idol worship, Child marriage and caste system
based on birth.
 He encouraged intercaste marriages and widow remarriage
 He started the Suddhi movement to bring back those Hindus who
had converted to other religions to its fold.
 He wrote the book Satyartha Prakash which contains his ideas.
 The Arya Samaj, though founded in Bombay, became very
powerful in Punjab and spread its influence to other parts of India.
 The first Dayanand Anglo-Vedic (DAV) School was founded in
1886 at Lahore.
Prarthana Samaj
 The Prarthana Samaj was founded in 1867 in Bombay by Dr.

Atmaram Pandurang
 It was an off-shoot of Brahmo Samaj
 It was a reform movement within Hinduism and concentrated on
social reforms like inter-dining, inter-marriage, widow remarriage
and uplift of women and depressed classes.
 Justice M.G. Ranade and R.G. Bhandarkar joined it in 1870 and
infused new strength to it.
 Justice Ranade promoted the Deccan Education Society.
Swami Vivekananda and Ramakrishna Mission
 The original name of Swami Vivekanandawas Narendranath

Dutta (1863-1902)
 He became the most famous disciple of Shri Ramakrishna
Paramahamsa.
 He was born in a prosperous Bengali family of Calcutta and
educated in Scottish Church College.
 In 1886 Narendranath took the vow of Sanyasa and was given the
name, Vivekananda.
 He preached Vedantic Philosophy
 Swami Vivekananda participated at the Parliament of Religions
held in Chicago (USA) in September 1893 and raised the prestige
of India and Hinduism very high.
 Vivekananda preached the message of strength and self-reliance.
 He asked the people to improve the lives of the poor and depressed
classes.
 He founded the Ramakrishna Mission at Belur in Howrah in 1897.
 It is a social service and charitable society.
 The objectives of this Mission are providing humanitarian relief
and social work through the establishment of schools, colleges,
hospitals and orphanages.
Theosophical Society
 The Theosophical Society was founded in New York (USA) in 1875

by Madam H.P. Blavatsky, a Russian lady, and Henry Steel
Olcott, an American colonel
 Their main objectives were to form a universal brotherhood of man
without any distinction of race, colour or creed and to promote the
study of ancient religions and philosophies.
 They arrived in India and established their headquarters at Adyar
in Madras in 1882.
 Later in 1893, Mrs Annie Besant arrived in India and took over
the leadership of the Society after the death of Olcott.
 Mrs Annie Besant founded the Central Hindu School along with
Madan Mohan Malaviya at Benaras which later developed into the
Banaras Hindu University.
Pandit Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar
 Pandit Ishwar Chandra was a great educator, humanist and social

reformer
 He was born in 1820 in a village in Midnapur, Bengal.
 He rose to be the Head Pandit of the Bengali Department of Fort
William College.
 Vidyasagar founded many schools for girls
 He helped J.D. Bethune to establish the Bethune School.
 He founded the Metropolitan Institution in Calcutta
 He protested against child marriage and favoured widow
 Remarriage which was legalised by the Widow Remarriage Act
(1856).
 It was due to his great support for the spread of education that he was given the
title of Vidyasagar.
Jyotiba Phule
 Jyotiba Phule belonged to a low caste family in Maharashtra

 He waged a life-long struggle against upper caste domination and
Brahmanical supremacy.
 In 1873 he founded the Satyashodak Samaj to fight against the
caste system.
 He pioneered the widow remarriage movement in Maharashtra
and worked for the education for women.
 Jyotiba Phule and his wife established the first girls’ school at
Poona in 1851
Muslim Reform Movements
 The Muslim reform movements started a little later because they

had avoided western education in the beginning.
 The first effort was in 1863 when the Muhammad Literary Society
was set up in Calcutta
Aligarh Movement
 The Aligarh Movement was started by Sir Syed Ahmad Khan

(1817-98) for the social and educational advancement of the
Muslims in India
 In 1866, he started the Mohammadan Educational Conference as
a general forum for spreading liberal ideas among the Muslims.
 In 1875, he founded a modern school at Aligarh to promote
English education among the Muslims.
 This had later grown into the Mohammadan Anglo Oriental
College and then into the Aligarh Muslim University.
The Deoband School
 The orthodox section among the Muslim ulema organised the

Deoband Movement.
 It was a revivalist movement whose twin objectives were
 To propagate among the Muslims the pure teachings of the Koran
and the Hadi
 To keep alive the spirit of jihad against the foreign rulers.
 The new Deoband leader Mahmud-ul-Hasan (1851-1920) sought to
impart a political and intellectual content to the religious ideas of
the school.
Sikh Reform Movement
 Baba Dayal Das founded the Nirankari Movement

 He insisted the worship of God as nirankar (formless).
 The Namdhari Movement was founded by Baba Ram Singh.
 His followers wore white clothes and gave up meat eating.
 The Singh Sabhas started in Lahore and Amritsar in 1870 were
aimed at reforming the Sikh society.
 They helped to set up the Khalsa College at Amritsar in 1892.
 They also encouraged Gurmukhi and Punjabi literature.
 In 1920, the Akalis started a movement to remove the corrupt
Mahants (priests) from the Sikh gurudwaras
 Later, the Akalis organised themselves into a political party
Parsi Reform Movement
 The Parsi Religious Reform Association was founded at Bombay

by Furdunji Naoroji and S.S. Bengalee in 1851.
 The Parsi Religious Reform Association was founded at Bombay
by Furdunji Naoroji and S.S. Bengalee in 1851.
 Naoroji published a monthly journal, Jagat Mithra
Saint Ramalinga
 Saint Ramalinga was one of the foremost saints of Tamil Nadu in

the nineteenth century.
 His divine powers came to be recognised at the early age of eleven.
 In 1865 he founded the Samarasa Suddha Sanmargha Sanghafor
the promotion of his ideals of establishing a casteless society.
 He composed Tiru Arutpa
 In 1870 he moved to Mettukuppam, a place three miles away from
Vadalur.
 There he started constructing the Satya Gnana Sabaiin 1872.
 He introduced the principle that God could be worshipped in the
form of Light
Self-Respect Movement and Periyar E.V.R.
 Periyar E.V. Ramaswamy was a great social reformer. In 1921,

during the anti-liquor campaign he cut down 1000 coconut trees in
his own farm.
 In 1924, he took an active part in the Vaikam Satyagraha
 The objective of the Satyagraha was to secure for untouchables the
right to use a road near a temple at Vaikom in Kerala.
 He started the “Self-Respect Movement”. The aims of the ‘Self -
Respect Movement’ were to uplift the Dravidians and to expose the
Brahminical tyrany and deceptive methods by which they
controlled all spheres of Hindu life
 He denounced the caste system, child marriage and enforced
widowhood
 He himself conducted many marriages without any rituals
 Such a marriage was known as “SelfRespect Marriage.
 He attacked the laws of Manu, which he called the basis of the
entire Hindu social fabric of caste
 He founded the Tamil journals Kudiarasu, Puratchi and
Viduthalai to propagate his ideals
 On 27th June 1970 by the UNESCO organisation praised and
adorned with the title “Socrates of South Asia”
INDIAN NATIONAL MOVEMENT (1885-1905)
Factors Promoting the Growth of Nationalism in

India
Political Unity
 For the first time, most of the regions in India were united
politically and administratively under a single power (the British
rule).
 It introduced a uniform system of law and government.
Development of Communication and Transport
 The introduction of railways, telegraphs and postal services and
the construction of roads and canals facilitated communication
among the people.
 All these brought Indians nearer to each other and provided the
facility to organise the national movement on an all India basis.
English Language and Western Education
 The English language played an important role in the growth of

nationalism in the country.
 The English educated Indians, who led the national movement,
developed Indian nationalism and organised it.
 Western education facilitated the spread of the concepts of liberty,
equality, freedom and nationalism and sowed the seeds of
nationalism
The Role of the Press
 The Indian Press, both English and vernacular, had also aroused
the national consciousness
Social and Religious Movements of the Nineteenth Century
 Organisations like the Brahmo Samaj, Ramakrishna Mission,

Arya Samaj, and Theosophical Society generated a feeling of
regard for and pride in the motherland.
Economic Exploitation by the British
 A good deal of anti-British feeling was created by the economic

policy pursued by the British government in India.
 The English systematically ruined the Indian trade and native
industries.
Racial Discrimination
 The Revolt of 1857 created a kind of permanent bitterness and

suspicion between the British and the Indians
Administration of Lytton
 Lord Lytton arranged the Delhi Durbar at a time when the larger
part of India was in the grip of famine.
 He passed the Vernacular Press Act which curbed the liberty of
the Indian Press.
The Ilbert Bill controversy
 The Bill tried to remove racial inequality between Indian and

European judges in courts.
 Ultimately the Bill was modified
The Indian National Congress (1885)
 Allan Octavian Hume, a retired civil servant in the British

Government took the initiative to form an all-India organization.
 Thus, the Indian National Congress was founded and its first
session was held at Bombay in 1885.
 W.C. Banerjee was its first president.
 The second session was held in Calcutta in 1886 and the third in
Madras in 1887
 The history of the Indian National Movement can be studied in
three important phases:
 The phase of moderate nationalism (1885-1905) when the
Congress continued to be loyal to the British crown.
 The years 1906-1916 witnessed- Swadeshi Movement, rise of
militant nationalism and the Home Rule Movement.
 The period from 1917 to1947 is known as the Gandhian era.
Moderate Nationalism
The leading figures during the first phase of the National Movement
were
A.O. Hume, W.C. Banerjee
Surendra Nath Banerjee, Dadabhai Naoroji
Feroze Shah Mehta, Gopalakrishna Gokhale
Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya, Badruddin Tyabji
Justice Ranade and G.Subramanya Aiyar
Surendranath Banerjee was called the Indian Burke
 He firmly opposed the Partition of Bengal.

 He founded the Indian Association (1876) to agitate for political
reforms.
 He had convened the Indian National Conference (1883) which
merged with the Indian National Congress in l886
 G. Subramanya Aiyar preached nationalism through the Madras
Mahajana Sabha
 He also founded the Hindu and Swadesamitran.
 Dadabhai Naoroji was known as the Grand Old Man of India.
 He is regarded as India’s unofficial Ambassador in England.
 He was the first Indian to become a Member of the British House
of Commons.
 Gopal Krishna Gokhale was regarded as the political guru of
Gandhi
 In 1905, he founded the Servants of India Society to train Indians
to dedicate their lives to the cause of the country
Between 1885 and 1905, the Congress leaders were moderates.
 The Moderates had faith in the British justice and goodwill.
Main Demands of Moderates
 Expansion and reform of legislative councils.

 Greater opportunities for Indians in higher posts by holding the
ICS examination simultaneously in England and in India.
 Separation of the judiciary from the executive
 More powers for the local bodies
 Reduction of land revenue and protection of peasants from unjust
landlords.
 Abolition of salt tax and sugar duty.
 Reduction of spending on army.
 Freedom of speech and expression and freedom to form
associations
Methods of Moderates
 They were loyal to the British. They looked to England for

inspiration and guidance.
 The Moderates used petitions, resolutions, meetings, leaflets and
pamphlets, memorandum and delegations to present their
demands.
 They confined their political activities to the educated classes only.
 Their aim was to attain political rights and self-government stage
by stage.
 In 1886, Governor General Lord Dufferin gave a tea garden party
for the Congress members in Calcutta.
 With the increase in Congress demands, the government became
unfriendly.
 It encouraged the Muslims to stay away from the Congress.
 The only demand of the Congress granted by the British was the
expansion of the legislative councils by the Indian Councils Act of
1892.
Achievements of Moderates
 The Moderates were able to create a wide national awakening

among the people.
 They popularized the ideas of democracy, civil liberties and
representative institutions
 They explained how the British were exploiting Indians.
 Particularly, Dadabhai Naoroji in his famous book Poverty and
UnBritish Rule in India wrote his Drain Theory.
 He showed how India’s wealth was going away to England in the
form of:
 Salaries
 Savings
 Pensions
 Payments to British troops in India
 Profits of the British companies
 In fact, the British Government was forced to appoint the Welly
Commission, with Dadabhai as the first Indian as its member, to
enquire into the matter.
 Some Moderates like Ranade and Gokhale favoured social reforms
 They protested against child marriage and widowhood
 The Moderates had succeeded in getting the expansion of the
legislative councils by the Indian Councils Act of 1892
INDIAN NATIONAL MOVEMENT (1905-1916)
 The period from 1905 was known as the era of extremism in the
Indian National Movement.
 The extremists or the aggressive nationalists believed that success
could be achieved through bold means
 The important extremist leaders were Lala Lajpat Rai, Bal
Gangadhar Tilak, Bipin Chandra Pal and Aurobindo Ghosh.
Causes for the Rise of Extremism
 The failure of the Moderates to win any notable success other than
the expansion of the legislative councils by the Indian Councils Act
(1892)
 The famine and plague of 1896-97 which affected the whole
country and the suffering of the masses
 The economic conditions of the people became worse.
 The ill-treatment of Indians in South Africa on the basis of colour
of skin
 The Russo-Japanese war of 1904-5 in which Japan defeated the
European power Russia.
 This encouraged Indians to fight against the European nation,
Britain
 The immediate cause for the rise of extremism was the reactionary
rule of Lord Curzon:
 He passed the Calcutta Corporation Act, (1899) reducing the
Indian control of this local body.
 The Universities Act (1904) reduced the elected members in the
University bodies. It also reduced the autonomy of the universities
and made them government departments.
 The Sedition Act and the Official Secrets Act reduced the freedoms
of all people.
 His worst measure was the Partition of Bengal (1905).
 Their main objective was to attain Swaraj or complete
independence and not just self-government.
The methods used by the extremists were:
 Not cooperating with the British Government by boycotting

government courts, schools and colleges.
 Promotion of Swadeshi and boycott of foreign goods
 Introduction and promotion of national education.
Leaders of the Extremists
 The extremists were led by Bala Gangadhar Tilak, Lala Lajpat

Rai, Bipinchandra Pal and Aurobindo Ghosh
 Bal Gangadhar Tilak is regarded as the real founder of the
popular anti-British movement in India.
 He was known as ‘Lokamanya’. He attacked the British through
his weeklies The Mahratta and the Kesari.
 He was jailed twice by the British for his nationalist activities and
in 1908 deported to Mandalay for six years.
 He set up the Home Rule League in 1916 at Poona and declared
“Swaraj is my birth-right and I will have it.”
 Lala Lajpat Rai is popularly known as the ‘Lion of Punjab’.
 He played an important role in the Swadeshi Movement.
 He founded the Indian Home Rule League in the US in 1916
 He was deported to Mandalay on the ground of sedition
 He received fatal injuries while leading a procession against the
Simon Commission and died on November 17, 1928.
 Bipin Chandra Pal began his career as a moderate and turned an
extremist.
 Aurobindo Ghosh was another extremist leader and he actively
participated in the Swadeshi Movement.
 He was also imprisoned. After his release he settled in the French
territory of Pondicherry and concentrated on spiritual activities
Partition of Bengal and the Rise of Extremism
 The partition of Bengal in 1905 provided a spark for the rise of

extremism in the Indian National Movement
Curzon’s real motives were:
 To break the growing strength of Bengali nationalism since

Bengal was the base of Indian nationalism.
 To divide the Hindus and Muslims in Bengal.
 To show the enormous power of the British Government in doing
whatever it liked.
The partition came into effect, 16 October 1905
 The people of Bengal organised protest meetings and observed a

day of mourning.
 The whole political life of Bengal underwent a change.
 Gandhi wrote that the real awakening in India took place only
after the Partition of Bengal.
 The anti-partition movement culminated into the Swadeshi
Movement and spread to other parts of India
 The aggressive nationalists forced Dadabhai Naoroji to speak of
Swaraj (which was not a Moderate demand) in the Calcutta
Session of Congress in 1906.
 They adopted the resolutions of Boycott and Swadeshi.
 The differences led to a split in the Congress at the Surat session
in 1907.
 This is popularly known as the famous Surat Split.
Swadeshi Movement
 The Swadeshi Movement involved programmes like the boycott of

government service, courts, schools and colleges and of foreign
goods,
 Promotion of Swadeshi goods, Promotion of National Education
through the establishment of national schools and colleges.
 It was both a political and economic movement
 In Bengal, even the landlords joined the movement
 The women and students took to picketing. Students refused using
books made of foreign paper.
Achievements of Extremists
 They were the first to demand Swaraj as a matter of birth right

 They involved the masses in the freedom struggle and broadened
the social base of the National Movement.
 They were the first to organize an all-India political movement,
viz. the Swadeshi Movement.
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Formation of the Muslim League (1906)
 In December 1906, Muslim delegates from all over India met at

Dacca for the Muslim Educational Conference
 Taking advantage of this occasion, Nawab Salimullah of Dacca
proposed the setting up of an organisation to look after the Muslim
interests.
 The All-India Muslim League was finally set up on December 30,
1906.
The Lucknow Pact (1916)
 The divided Congress became united

 An understanding for joint action against the British was reached
between the Congress and the Muslim League and it was called
the Lucknow Pact.
 Marked an important step in the Hindu-Muslim unity.
The Home Rule Movement (1916
 Two Home Rule Leagues were established, one by B.G. Tilak at

Poona in April 1916
 Other by Mrs Annie Besant at Madras in September 1916.
 The aim of the Movement was to get self-government for India
within the British Empire.
 It believed freedom was the natural right of all nations.
 The leaders of the Home Movement thought that India’s resources
were not being used for her needs.
 The Home Rule Movement had brought a new life in the national
movement.
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 There was a revival of Swadeshi. Women joined in larger numbers
 On 20 August 1917, Montague, the Secretary of State in England,
made a declaration in the Parliament of England on British
Government’s policy towards future political reforms in India
 This August Declaration led to the end of the Home Rule
Movement.
Revolutionary Movements
 In the first half of the 20th century, revolutionary groups sprang

up mainly in Bengal, Maharashtra, Punjab and Madras.
 The revolutionaries were not satisfied with the methods of both
the moderates and extremists.
 In Bengal Anusilan Samiti and Jugantar were established.
 In Maharashtra Savarkar brothers had set up Abhinava Bharat
 In the Madras Presidency, Bharathmatha Association was started
by Nilakanta Bramachari
 In Punjab Ajit Singh set up a secret society to spread
revolutionary ideas among the youth.
 In London, at India House, Shyamji Krishna Verma gathered
young Indian nationalists like
 Madan Lal Dhingra, Savarkar, V.V.S. Iyer and T.S.S.Rajan.
 Lala Hardyal set up the ‘Ghadar Party ‘in USA to organise
revolutionary activities from outside India
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THE INDIAN NATIONAL MOVEMENT (1917-
1947)
 The third and final phase of the Nationalist Movement [1917-
1947] is known as the Gandhian era.
 During this period Mahatma Gandhi became the undisputed
leader of the National Movement.
 His principles of nonviolence and Satyagraha were employed
against the British Government
 Gandhi made the nationalist movement a mass movement
 Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi was born at Porbandar in Gujarat
on 2 October 1869
 In April 1893 he went to South Africa and involved himself in the
struggle against apartheid (Racial discrimination against the
Blacks) for twenty years.
 Finally, he came to India in 1915. Thereafter, he fully involved
himself in the Indian National Movement.
 Mahatma Gandhi began his experiments with Satyagraha against
the oppressive European indigo planters at Champaran in Bihar
in 1917.
 In the next year he launched another Satyagraha at Kheda in
Gujarat in support of the peasants who were not able to pay the
land tax due to failure of crops.
 In 1918, Gandhi undertook a fast unto death for the cause of
Ahmedabad Mill Workers and finally the mill owners conceded the
just demands of the workers.
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 On the whole, the local movements at Champaran, Kheda and
Ahmedabad brought Mahatma Gandhi closer to the life of the
people and their problems at the grass roots level.
Rowlatt Act (1919)
 In 1917, a committee was set up under the president ship of Sir

Sydney Rowlatt to look into the militant Nationalist activities
 Rowlatt Act was passed in March 1919 by the Central Legislative
Council
 As per this Act, any person could be arrested on the basis of
suspicion.
 No appeal or petition could be filed against such arrests.
 This Act was called the Black Act and it was widely opposed.
 An all-India hartal was organized on 6 April 1919.
 Meetings were held all over the country.
 Mahatma Gandhi was arrested near Delhi.
 Two prominent leaders of Punjab, Dr Satya Pal and Dr. Saifuddin
Kitchlew, were arrested in Amritsar.
Jallianwala Bagh Massacre (13 April, 1919)
 The Jallianwala Bagh Massacre took place on 13 April 1919 and it

remained a turning point in the history of India’s freedom
movement
 In Punjab, there was an unprecedented support to the Rowlatt
Satyagraha
 Facing a violent situation, the Government of Punjab handed over
the administration to the military authorities under General Dyer.
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 He banned all public meetings and detained the political leaders
 On 13 th April, the Baisakhi day (harvest festival), a public
meeting was organized at the Jallianwala Bagh (garden)
 Dyer marched in and without any warning opened fire on the
crowd
 The firing continued for about 10 to 15 minutes and it stopped
only after the ammunition exhausted
 According to official report 379 people were killed and 1137
wounded in the incident.
 Rabindranath Tagore renounced his knighthood as a protest
 The Jallianwala Bagh massacre gave a tremendous impetus to the
freedom struggle.
Khilafat Movement
 The chief cause of the Khilafat Movement was the defeat of

Turkey in the First World War.
 The harsh terms of the Treaty of Sevres (1920) was felt by the
Muslims as a great insult to them.
 The whole movement was based on the Muslim belief that the
Caliph (the Sultan of Turkey) was the religious head of the
Muslims all over the world
 Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, M.A. Ansari, Saifuddin Kitchlew and
the Ali brothers were the prominent leaders of this movement.
 Mahatma Gandhi was particularly interested in bringing the
Hindus and the Muslims together to achieve the country’s
independence.
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 The Khilafat Movement merged with the Non-Cooperation
Movement launched by Mahatma Gandhi in 1920.
Non-Cooperation Movement (1920-1922)
 It was approved by the Indian National Congress at the Nagpur

session in December, 1920.
 The programmes of the Non-Cooperation Movement were:
 Surrender of titles and honorary positions
 Resignation of membership from the local bodies.
 Boycott of elections held under the provisions of the 1919 Act
 Boycott of government functions.
 Boycott of courts, government schools and colleges.
 Boycott of foreign goods
 Establishment of national schools, colleges and private panchayat
courts.
 Popularizing Swadeshi goods and khadi
 National schools such as the Kashi Vidyapeeth, the Bihar
Vidyapeeth and the Jamia Millia Islamia were set up.
 No leader of the Congress came forward to contest the elections for
the Legislatures
 In 1921, mass demonstrations were held against the Prince of
Wales during his tour of India.
 Most of the households took to weaving cloths with the help of
charkhas.
 But the whole movement was abruptly called off on 11th February
1922 by Gandhi following the Churi Chaura incident
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 In the Gorakhpur district of U.P. Earlier on 5 th February an
angry mob set fire to the police station at Churi Chaura and
twenty two police men were burnt to death
Significance of the Non-Cooperation Movement
 It was the real mass movement with the participation of different

sections of Indian society such as peasants, workers, students,
teachers and women.
 It witnessed the spread of nationalism to the remote corners of
India.
 It also marked the height of Hindu-Muslim unity as a result of the
merger of Khilafat movement.
 It demonstrated the willingness and ability of the masses to
endure hardships and make sacrifices.
Swaraj Party
 The suspension of the Non-Cooperation Movement led to a split

within Congress in the Gaya session of the Congress in December
1922.
 Leaders like Motilal Nehru and Chittranjan Das formed a
separate group within the Congress known as the Swaraj Party on
1 January 1923.
 The Swarajists wanted to contest the council elections and wreck
the government from within
 The Swaraj Party gained impressive successes.
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 In the Central Legislative Council Motilal Nehru became the
leader of the party whereas in Bengal the party was headed by
C.R. Das.
 It demanded the setting up of responsible government in India
 With the necessary changes in the Government of India Act of
1919.
 The party could pass important resolutions against the repressive
laws of the government.
 After the passing away of C.R. Das in June 1925, the Swarj Party
started weakening.
Simon Commission (1927)
 The Act of 1919 included a provision for its review after a lapse of
ten years.
 The review commission was appointed
 By the British Government two years earlier of its schedule in
1927. It came to be known as Simon Commission after the name of
its chairman, Sir John Simon.
 All its seven members were Englishmen. As there was no Indian
member in it
 Almost all the political parties including the Congress decided to
oppose the Commission.
 On the fateful day of 3 February 1928 when the Commission
reached Bombay, a general hartal was observed all over the
country.
 Everywhere it was greeted with black flags and the cries of ‘Simon
go back’
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 At Lahore, the students took out a large anti-Simon Commission
demonstration on 30 October 1928 under the leadership of Lala
Lajpat Rai
 In this demonstration, Lala Lajpat Rai was seriously injured in
the police lathi charge and he passed away after one month.
 The report of the Simon Commission was published in May 1930
 It was stated that the constitutional experiment with Diarchy was
unsuccessful
 In its place the report recommended the establishment of
autonomous government.
 Simon Commission’s Report became the basis for enacting the
Government of India Act of 1935.
Nehru Report (1928)
 In the meanwhile, the Secretary of State, Lord Birkenhead,

challenged the Indians to produce a Constitution
 In the meanwhile, the Secretary of State, Lord Birkenhead,
challenged the Indians to produce a Constitution
 The challenge was accepted by the Congress, which convened an
all-party meeting on 28 February 1928
 A committee consisting of eight was constituted to draw up a
blueprint for the future Constitution of India.
 It was headed by Motilal Nehru
 The Report published by this Committee came to be known as the
Nehru Report.
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The Report favoured:
 Dominion Status as the next immediate step

 Full responsible government at the centre.
 Autonomy to the provinces
 Clear cut division of power between the centre and the provinces.
 A bicameral legislature at the centre.
 Mohammad Ali Jinnah regarded it as detrimental to the interests
of the Muslims
 Jinnah convened an All India Conference of the Muslims where he
drew up a list of Fourteen Points as Muslim League demand.
Civil Disobedience Movement (1930-1934)
 In the prevailing atmosphere of restlessness, the annual session of

the Congress was held at Lahore in December 1929.
 During this session presided over by Jawaharlal Nehru the
Congress passed the Poorna Swaraj resolution
 Moreover, as the government failed to accept the Nehru Report,
the Congress gave a call to launch the Civil Disobedience
Movement.
 The Congress had also observed January 26, 1930 as the Day of
Independence.
 The same date later became the Republic Day when the Indian
Constitution was enforced in 1950.
The Dandi March
 On 12th March 1930, Gandhi began his famous March to Dandi

with his chosen 79 followers to break the salt laws.
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 He reached the coast of Dandi on 5 April 1930 after marching a
distance of 200 miles
 On 6 April formally launched the Civil Disobedience Movement by
breaking the salt laws.
 On 9 April, Mahatma Gandhi laid out the programme of the
movement which included making of salt in every village in
violation of the existing salt laws;
 Picketing by women before the shops selling liquor, opium and
foreign clothes;
 Spinning clothes by using charkha fighting untouchability;
 Boycotting of schools and colleges by students and resigning from
government jobs by the people
 Soon, the movement spread to all parts of the country. Students,
workers, farmers and women, all participated in this movement
with great enthusiasm.
Round Table Conference
The first Round Table Conference
 Held in November 1930 at London and it was boycotted it by the

Congress.
 In January 1931 in order to create a conducive atmosphere for
talks,
 The government lifted the ban on the Congress Party and released
its leaders from prison.
 On 8 March 1931 the Gandhi-Irwin Pact was signed.
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 As per this pact, Mahatma Gandhi agreed to suspend the Civil-
Disobedience Movement and participate in the Second Round
Table Conference.
In September 1931, the Second Round Table Conference was

held at London
 Mahatma Gandhi participated in the Conference but returned to

India disappointed
 As no agreement could be reached on the demand of complete
independence and on the communal question.
 In January 1932, the Civil-Disobedience Movement was resumed
 The government responded to it by arresting Mahatma
 Gandhi and Sardar Patel and by reposing the ban on the Congress
party
Poona Pact (1932)
 By 1930, Dr Ambedkar had become a leader of national stature

championing the cause of the depressed people of the country.
 While presenting a real picture of the condition of these people in
the First Round Table Conference,
 He had demanded separate electorates for them
 On 16 August 1932 the British Prime Minister Ramsay
MacDonald made an announcement, which came to be as the
Communal Award.
 According to this award, the depressed classes were considered as
a separate community and as such provisions were made for
separate electorates for them.
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 Mahatma Gandhi protested against the Communal Award and
went on a fast unto death in the Yeravada jail on 20 September
1932.
 Finally, an agreement was reached between Dr Ambedkar and
Gandhi
 This agreement came to be called as the Poona Pact. The British
Government also approved of it.
 Accordingly, 148 seats in different Provincial Legislatures were
reserved for the Depressed Classes in place of 71 as provided in
the Communal Award.
The third Round Table Conference came to an end in 1932
 The Congress once more did not take part in it

 Nonetheless, in March 1933, the British Government issued a
White Paper
 Which became the basis for the enactment of the Government of
India Act, 1935.
The Second World War and National Movement
 In 1937 elections were held under the provisions of the

Government of India Act of 1935
 Congress Ministries were formed in seven states of India.
 On 1 September 1939 the Second World War broke out.
 The British Government without consulting the people of India
involved the country in the war.
 As a mark of protest the Congress Ministries in the Provinces
resigned on 12 December 1939
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 The Muslim League celebrated that day as the Deliverance Day
 In March 1940 the Muslim League demanded the creation of
Pakistan.
Individual Satyagraha
 In order to secure the cooperation of the Indians, the British

Government made an announcement on 8 August 1940,
 The August Offer envisaged that after the War a representative
body of Indians would be set up to frame the new Constitution.
 Gandhi was not satisfied with is offer and decided to launch
Individual Satyagraha.
 Individual Satyagraha was limited, symbolic and non-violent in
nature
 It was left to Mahatma Gandhi to choose the Satyagrahis
 Acharya Vinoba Bhave was the first to offer Satyagraha and he
was sentenced to three months imprisonment
 Jawaharlal Nehru was the second Satyagrahi and imprisoned for
four months.
 The individual Satyagraha continued for nearly 15 months.
Cripps Mission (1942)
 In the midst of worsening wartime international situation, the

British Government in its continued effort to secure Indian
cooperation
 Sent Sir Stafford Cripps to India on 23 March 1942. This is known
as Cripps Mission
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The main recommendations of Cripps were:
 The promise of Dominion Status to India

 Protection of minorities
 Setting up of a Constituent Assembly in which there would be
representatives from the Princely States along with those of the
British Provinces
 There would be provision for any Province of British India not
prepared to accept this Constitution,
 Either to retain its present constitutional position or frame a
constitution of its own.
Gandhi called Cripp’s proposals as a “Post-dated Cheque”.
 The Muslim League was also dissatisfied as its demand for

Pakistan had not been conceded in the proposal
Quit India Movement (1942-1944)
 The failure of the Cripps Mission and the fear of an impending

Japanese invasion of India led Mahatma Gandhi to begin his
campaign for the British to quit India
 Mahatma Gandhi believed that an interim government could be
formed only after the British left India and the Hindu-Muslim
problem sorted out.
 The All India Congress Committee met at Bombay on 8 August
1942 and passed the famous Quit India Resolution.
 On the same day, Gandhi gave his call of ‘do or die’
 On 8th and 9th August 1942, the government arrested all the
prominent leaders of the Congress.
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 Mahatma Gandhi was kept in prison at Poona
 Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Abul Kalam Azad, and other leaders
were imprisoned in the Ahmednagar Fort
 At this time, leadership was provided by Ram Manohar Lohia,
Achyuta and S.M. Joshi.
 The role of Jayaprakash Narain in this movement was important.
 Large number of students also left their schools and colleges to
join the movement.
 The youth of the nation also participated in this movement with
patriotism
 In 1944 Mahatma Gandhi was released from jail.
 Quit India Movement was the final attempt for country’s freedom.
 The British Government ordered for 538 rounds of firing. Nearly
60,229 persons were jailed.
 At least 7,000 people were killed.
 This movement paved the way for India’s freedom. It aroused
among Indians the feelings of bravery, enthusiasm and total
sacrifice.
Indian National Army
 During the course of the Second World War, armed revolutionary

activities continued to take place.
 The role of Subhas Chandra Bose towards such activities is
incomparable.
 On 2 July 1943, Subhas Chandra Bose reached Singapore and
gave the rousing war cry of ‘Dilli Chalo’
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 He was made the President of Indian Independence League and
soon became the supreme commander of the Indian National
Army.
 The names of the INA’s three Brigades were the Subhas Brigade,
Gandhi Brigade and Nehru Brigade
 The women’s wing of the army was named after Rani Lamiae
 The Indian National Army marched towards Imphal after
registering its victory over Kohima.
 After Japan’s surrender in 1945
 The INA failed in its efforts. Under such circumstances, Subhas
went to Taiwan.
 Then on his way to Tokyo he died on 18 August 1945 in a plane
crash
 The trial of the soldiers of INA was held at Red Fort in Delhi
 Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Bhulabhai Desai and Tej Bahadur
Sapru fought the case on behalf of the soldiers
Cabinet Mission (1946)
 After the Second World War, Lord Atlee became the Prime
Minister of England
 On 15 March, 1946 Lord Atlee made a historic announcement in
which the right to self-determination and the framing of a
Constitution for India were conceded.
 Consequently, three members of the British Cabinet - Pathick
Lawrence, Sir Stafford Cripps and A. V. Alexander - were sent to
India. This is known as the Cabinet Mission.
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 The Cabinet Mission put forward a plan for solution of the
constitutional problem.
 Provision was made for three groups of provinces to possess their
separate constitutions
 The Cabinet Mission also proposed the formation of a Union of
India, comprising both the British India and the Princely States.
 The Union would remain in charge of only foreign affairs, defence
and communications leaving the residuary powers to be vested in
the provinces
 Till a new government was elected
 Both the Muslim League and the Congress accepted the plan
 Consequently, elections were held in July 1946 for the formation of
a Constituent Assembly.
 The Congress secured 205 out of 214 General seats.
 The Muslim League got 73 out of 78 Muslim seats.
 An Interim Government was formed under the leadership of
Jawaharlal Nehru on 2 September 1946
Mountbatten Plan (1947)
 On 20 February l947, Prime Minister Atlee announced in the

House of Commons the definite intention of the British
Government to transfer power to responsible Indian hands
 Thus, to effect the transference of that power Atlee decided to send
Lord Mountbatten as Viceroy to India.
 Lord Mountbatten armed with vast powers became India’s Viceroy
on 24 March 1947.
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 The partition of India and the creation of Pakistan appeared
inevitable to him.
 After extensive consultation Lord Mountbatten put forth the plan
of partition of India on 3 June 1947.
 The Congress and the Muslim League ultimately approved the
Mountbatten Plan.
Indian Independence Act 1947
 The British Government accorded formal approval to the

Mountbatten Plan by enacting the Indian Independence Act on 18
July 1947
 The partition of the country into India and Pakistan would come
into effect from 15 August 1947.
 The British Government would transfer all powers to these two
Dominions.
 A Boundary Commission would demarcate the boundaries of the
provinces of the Punjab and Bengal
 The Act provided for the transfer of power to the Constituent
Assemblies of the two Dominions,
 Which will have full authority to frame their respective
Constitutions.
 The Radcliff Boundary Commission drew the boundary line
separating India and Pakistan
 On 15th August 1947 India, and on the 14th August Pakistan
came into existence as two independent states.
 Lord Mountbatten was made the first Governor General of
Independent India
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 Whereas Mohammad Ali Jinnah became the first Governor
General of Pakistan
 The most tragic incident occurred on 30 January 1948, when
Mahatma Gandhi - the father of the nation on his way to a prayer
meeting was assassinated by Nathuram Godse.
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MODERN INDIAN HISTORY

MODERN INDIAN HISTORY

Lord Cornwallis (1786-1793) - 17

The Marquees of Wellesley (1798-1805) - 23

Lord Hastings (1813-1823) - 31

Lord William Bentinck (1828-1835) - 36

Lord Dalhousie (1848-1856) - 43

Revenue Administration and Economic Policy of the British - 50

Educational and Social Reforms - 56

The Great Revolt of 1857 - 63

British India after 1858 - 72

Socio-Religious Reform Movements - 82

Indian National Movement (1885-1905) - 91

Indian National Movement (1905-1916) - 97

The Indian National Movement (1917-1947) - 103

The English East India Company

The English East India Company was established on 31 December

 The Company had sent Captain Hawkins to the court of the

WARREN HASTINGS (1772-1785)

In 1772, the Company appointed Warren Hastings as the

Reforms of Warren Hastings

Abolition of the Dual System

 The East India Company decided to act as Diwan and to

Reorganisation of the Judicial System

 The judicial system at the time of Warren Hastings’ ascendancy

 Warren Hastings abolished the system of dastaks, or free passes

The Regulating Act of 1773 (Background)

 The Regulating Act of 1773 opened a new chapter in the

Provisions of the Act

 The term of office of the members of the Court of Directors was

Expansionist Policy of Warren Hastings

 Warren Hastings was known for his expansionist policy. His

The Rohilla War (1774)

 Rohilkand was a small kingdom situated in between Oudh and the

First Anglo-Maratha War (1775-82)

 The Marathas were largely remained disunited since the Third

The Second Anglo-Mysore War (1780-84)

 The first Anglo-Mysore War took place in 1767-69.

The main causes for the second Anglo-Mysore War were:

 The Regulating Act proved to be an unsatisfactory document as it

 A Board of Control consisting of six members was created. They

The Impeachment of Warren Hastings

Estimate of Warren Hastings

 He was a gifted personality endowed with ‘strong will, great

 Lord Cornwallis, a warrior-statesman, succeeded Warren Hastings

Tipu Sultan and the Third Mysore War (1790-92)

 The Treaty of Mangalore (1784) exhibited the military strength of

The chief causes for the Third Mysore War were

 Tipu Sultan strengthened his position by undertaking various

Terms of the treaty were as follows

 Tipu had to give up half his dominions

The internal reforms of Cornwallis can be studied under three main

 Purification of the civil service by the employment of capable and

 The effective implementation of judicial reforms required the

 Cornwallis reformed the Board of Trade which managed the

 Cornwallis, a blue-blooded aristocrat, was an ardent patriot.

Political Condition of India at the time of Wellesley’s Arrival

 In the north-western India, the danger of Zaman Shah’s

The Subsidiary System

 The predecessors of Wellesley concluded alliances with Indian