British Empire: Nearly Losing an Empire: The British in India, 1829-1858

Niall Ferguson - How Britain made the modern world.

To what extent did the British control India in 1829?

• East India Trade company
  

• Established fortified trading posts in Bombay, Madal and Calcutta
  

• Traded with the Mughal, the established Power in the Subcontinent

• Mughal power declined and was challenged by the seeking Native Marathas, they were drawn into treaties and military activity to protect interests

• During late 18th and early 19th century, the British East India Company emerged of surprise
  winners in the battles between local power holders in India

• Company power increased and they were responsible for the civil and legal administration of many Indian territories and millions of native Indians

What were the causes and significance of the clash of cultures between the British and the Indians?

• •Anglicising

• Driven by racial Superiority perceptions, Company operators were becoming less tolerant of local customs and religions, and increasingly seeking to change the societies which they governed at a result of the Mughal's Empire end,
  

• Administrators were also governed

Immediate causes of the outbreak of rebellion in 1857 and why were the British able to retain control of India?

• Lord Dahlhouise

The power holders

Taj Mahal - Built in 1632 by the Mughal emperor, Shah Jahan (reigned 1628–1658), to house the tomb of his favourite wife, Mumtaz Mahal. 

• The Mughals were a Muslim dynasty who ruled the areas of the world that we call Afghanistan and Uzbekistan

• Under the leadership of Babur, they invaded mostly Hindu and Sikh India and eventually ruled an area as big as Europe

• They ruled from 1526 (Babur) until 1857 (Aurangzeb).

• The Mughal Empire became famous for covering so much land for so long and for its excellent organization and brilliant painting and architecture.

How did the British exploit unrest in Mughal India?

Both the British and French managed to exploit the internal problems that had weakened the Mughal Empire.

Internal groups fighting one another for supremacy often needed money or supplies, and the French and British were to supply both - in particular guns.

By the 1740s the rivalry between the British and the French was becoming acute. Private ambitions were also involved. Great personal rewards were promised to the European commanders who succeeded in placing their Indian clients on the thrones for which they were contending.

The East India Company was perfectly placed to take advantage of the turmoil and ran India as a business interest.

By 1707

‘The Mughal empire had disintegrated and was being replaced by a variety of regional states. This did not produce a situation of anarchy and chaos, as used once to be assumed. Some of the regional states maintained stable rule and there was no marked overall economic decline throughout India.’

Why was trade with India so important?

• Iron ore

• Copper

• Gold

• Silver

• Gemstones

• Tea

• Timber

• Spices

• Made trade with China easier

Source A – Why was the East India Company important to Britain?

1. The ships were built so they could fail across the world for trade

2. The East India Company built their own ships to gain control over Supply, ensure security and buying ships for their requirements would be expensive.

3. The ships were armed, possibly in case of pirates and other aggressive forces.

4. The ships would be carrying Spices, tea, Sugar and other items

Source B – profits made by the East India Trading Company

In 1620 the Company purchased 250,000 pounds (113,000 kg) of pepper with a value of £26,041 in the East Indies. It was sold in London for £208,041. 

 

And 150,000 pounds (68,000 kg) of cloves worth £5,126 had a selling price in London of £45,000. 

1. East India was able to sell products in London for so much more than they purchased them in Asia, since they had monopoly power and due to the high European demand
   

2. Eurore and mainly the East Indian Trading Company benefited from transactions
   

3. Asian traders were losing out

Source C – the ‘Company Presidencies’

• The administration of British India was divided into three Presidencies that had developed from the East India Company's factory bases. 

• During the 17th century the East India Company established a number of trading posts which were called Factories. The first of these on the Indian subcontinent was at Masulipatam on the Coromandel Coast in 1611. The second was Surat in 1615. The three major trading centres which developed were: 

- Fort St George on the Coromandel Coast (established 1640)

- Bombay on the northern Malabar Coast (given by King Charles II in 1668)

- Fort William at Calcutta in Bengal (established in 1690)

1. The Presidencies most valuable to the British were the ports that was were the Presidencies where
   

2. Each Presidency needed an army as they were distinct administrative

Source D – the expansion of the power of the East India Trading Company

The Company becomes a regional power in India

In 1757, as regional rivals fought for power, the East India Company used its army and effectively took control of Bengal.

The Company became responsible for 20 million inhabitants.  

1. Reasons the East India Company might of had seizing power in Bengal due to economic denination and to secure its commercial interests by being a ruling entity

Why did the Mughal Empire collapse?

India was divided into different provinces, each controlled by a Nawab (prince).

 

Aurangzeb (1658-1707) was a fanatical Muslim, and he persecuted other religions, this led to wars which could be exploited by Europeans. 

When Aurangzeb died it left a power vacuum which the French exploited.

By 1750 it appeared as though the French would become the dominant force in India.

What is the context behind the EIC?

• In the late 1500s, European explorers started sailing east for trading purposes. The Spanish and the Portuguese were originally dominant on these new sailing routes, but after the destruction of the Spanish Armada in 1588 the British and Dutch were able to take more of an active role in trade with the East Indies. The Dutch initially took a lead in this, focusing mainly on spices and in particular the trade of peppercorns.

• Concerned that the English were falling behind to the Dutch on these new trading routes, on the 31st December 1600 Queen Elizabeth I granted over 200 English merchants the right to trade in the East Indies. One of these groups of merchants called themselves Governor and Company of Merchants of London Trading into the East Indies, later to become simply The East India Company.

• The East India Trading Company set up three posts in Surat (1612), Madras (1638) and Bombay (1668). The East India Company had its own private army and navy and it used them against the regional princes to occupy more land. 

Three Company presidencies (trading posts) - Madras (1634), Bombay (1674) & Calcutta (1690)

Madras - 1784 act of Parliament made the EIC subordinate to the Crown in its political functions and a Board of Control was set up to achieve this (Board of Control = Chancellor of the Exchequer, Secretary of State for India and four privy councillors appointed by the king).

Bombay - 1786 Act enabled the governor general to override his councils, therefore executive power was controlled by the crown.

Calcutta - 1773 Regulating Act created a Council of 5 (2 Company men and 3 nominated by parliament). Governor Generals had to be approved by the council of 4 – nominated by the crown.

Company nabobs – Company employees who made their fortunes in India – led to corruption.

What is the context behind the EIC? - The Battle of Plassey, 1757

At the Battle of Plassey (1757), 3000 company troops (2200 of which were Indian) defeated an Indian army of over 40,000 which allowed the East India Company to take over Bengal, one of the richest parts of India. Bengal became the heart of company power and Calcutta was the capital of British India until 1911.

How did the role of the EIC change?

• Poor management and corruption led to the British government taking control of the Company’s structure.

• The Regulation Act of 1773 established a council of 5 in Calcutta, of which two were Company men and three were nominated by Parliament (ensuring a parliamentary majority).

• Governor Generals were made by a council of four (nominated by the Crown). Essentially the Governor General of Fort William (Calcutta - Bengal) was in control as the other Governor Generals could not make war or accept peace without his consent. 

• 1784 act of Parliament made the EIC subordinate to the Crown in its political functions and a Board of Control was set up to achieve this.

• 1786 act of Parliament enabled Governor Generals to override their council.

• In 1813 and 1833 the EIC’s trade monopolies were reduced and this, coupled with the amount of land controlled by the Company, drastically changed its function.

• This meant that British Representatives in India now saw themselves as ruling territories, rather than simply engaging in commercial interests.

The British in India - Timeline

• 1600 -  The East India Company (EIC) is formed, 1600.  

• 1661 -  The company acquires its first territory in Bombay.  

• 1748 -  Anglo-French War In India.  

• 1756-1763 – Seven Years War

• 1757 -  Battle of Plassey.  

• 1792 -  The EIC defeats the Marathas and Tippu Sultan of Mysore.  

• 1806 -  10 July: Mutiny at Vellore  

• 1857 -   Mutiny of the Indian Army at Barrackpore.  

• The Rebellion becomes a War of Independence    

• 1858 -  Bahadur Shah Zafar, the Last Mogul, is proclaimed as Emperor.  

• The Mutiny is crushed and the Last Mogul Emperor is deposed.  

• End of the EIC's rule in India.  

• End of Mogul rule in India.  

• British Crown takes over India, beginning of the Raj. 

How did the office of Governor General evolve?

The Governor-General of India (fully Governor-General and Viceroy of India) refers to the head of the British administration in India, and later, after Indian independence, the representative of the British Monarch. 

The British government created the office of Governor General in the 1773 Regulating Act with the title of Governor-General of the Presidency of Fort William (Bengal). The officer had direct control only over Fort William, but supervised other British East India Company officials in India.

 

The British Crown granted complete authority over all of British India in 1833, and the official receiving the title Governor-General of India.

The Charter Act, 1833 replaced the Governor-General and Council of Fort William with the Governor-General and Council of India. The Court of Directors retained the power to elect the Governor-General, but the choice became subject to the Sovereign's approval.

After the Indian Rebellion of 1857, the British government abolished the East India Company, putting India under the direct control of the Sovereign. The Government of India Act 1858 vested the power to appoint the Governor-General in the Sovereign. The Governor-General, in turn, had the power to appoint all lieutenant governors in India, subject to the Sovereign's approval.

Governor Generals of India - p 137-138

Warren Hastings 1773-1785

• Was accepting of Indian culture and tried to rebuild a link.
  

• Other presidents of EIC in Madras, Bombay and Bencoden, Couldn't make war or accept a peace from an Indian Prince without the appoval of the Governor in Fort William in Bengal.
  

• In 1784, Parliament passed another India Act Strengthening the executive Power of the governor and a supplementary Act passed in 1786 enabled Governors to override their council if they deemed it necessary.

Lord Cornwallis 1786-1793

• The first governor who increased these powers. Was also appointed as as Commander-in-chief of the military forces of India.
  

• 1784 Act also stipulated that other Presidencies couldn't make war or Peace unless directed by Bengal, giving Bengal's governor control of foreign policy

• As a result of the legislation passed between 1774-1784, government regulation and control was extended over the East India Company.
  

• During the same period, there was a centralisation of power within the 3 presidencies, giving the Bengali governor pre-eminence over these of the other two Company presidencies.

Lord William Bentinck (1828-1835)

• In 1833, due to Government of India Act, the governor general of Fort William became the concurrent governor general of India. The position continued to be filled by the Board of Directors of the EIC, but the appointment was subject to the approval of the Sovereign
  

• Bentinck was responsible of foreign policy of the territories and their administration, but was given legislative control overall the territory held by the company. Although the governor general of Bengal and his council were technically overseen by the Board of Control in London because of slow communications, in practise they exercised huge Powers and their level of autonomy was comparable to that of British Colonies who were appointed by Crown.
  
  

• From 1833 + power was given to the governor general of the Superin- tendence, direction and contred of the whole civil and military Government
  of the whole of British India.

Caste system in India

Who were the Company Army, and what is their significance?

The East India Company had three private armies. They were based in the three presidencies of the Company, one of which was Bengal.

Company armies:

• Protected the Company’s commercial interests

• Forced local rulers to sign treaties with the Company

• Were used against local rulers either to protect themselves or as an act of self-preservation

• Supported tax collection and administration

• Enabled the Company to expand and control British territory in India

Training:

• Officers were trained from 1809 at the Addiscombe Military Seminary in Surrey

• This was the sister college to Haileybury, which trained Company civil servants

Benefits of serving in the EIC army:

• Service in the presidency armies offered almost constant military engagement

• This was more attractive than the regular British army, which experienced a long period of calm after Waterloo (1815)

• Officers shared the same values and cultural superiority as Company civil servants

The British feared a Russian invasion:

• Either through Afghanistan

• Or if Russia expanded influence into Persia, through Sind

This fear led to:

• The First Afghan War (1838–1842), which was a disaster

• Heavy loss of life and money

• A determination afterward to secure Sind and the Punjab to protect India

Result of the annexation of Sind and the Punjab:

• Sind was formally annexed in 1843

• Punjab was fully brought under British control by 1849

• The British developed admiration for the Sikhs as warlike soldiers

• During the Indian Rebellion of 1857, Sikhs supported the British against rebellious sepoys

• This support helped ensure British survival in India

Bengal was the most important presidency because:

• Its governor was the Governor General of all Company territories after 1833

• It was the heart of Company power

• It had a strong administrative structure

• Calcutta was the capital of British India until 1911

• The Bengal army was twice the size of the other two Company armies

The Code of Regulations:

• Was laid down under Lord Cornwallis (1786–93)

• Created the framework of Indian government for nearly two centuries

• Divided land into districts under collectors

• Gave landholders rights to land in return for fixed tax payments

• Established courts, judges, magistrates, and a system of appeals

• Revenue was supervised by the Board of Revenue at Calcutta

The Bengali army:

• Was recruited mainly from the highest castes, especially Brahmins and Rajputs

• Was twice the size of the other Company armies

• Sepoys held special caste privileges

• Soldiers were extremely sensitive to caste pollution

• Recruits came mainly from neighbouring provinces such as Awadh, not locally

• This caste sensitivity later played a role in tensions leading up to 1857