The Colonial Era in India - Vocabulary Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards covering key terms, historical figures, battles, policies, and uprisings from the lecture on the Colonial Era in India.

Colonialism

The practice where one country takes control of another region, establishing settlements there, and imposing its political, economic, and cultural systems.

Cartaz

A naval permit system implemented by the Portuguese requiring all ships navigating the Arabian Sea to purchase licenses or face seizure.

Goa Inquisition

A tribunal established by the Roman Catholic Church in Goa in $1560$ that severely persecuted Hindus, Muslims, Jews, and Christian converts suspected of practicing their original faith.

Rani Abbakka I

The ruler of Ullal who formed strategic alliances to thwart repeated Portuguese attempts to conquer her port town in the latter half of the $16\text{th century}$.

Battle of Colachel

A $1741$ naval and land battle in which the forces of Travancore under King Marthanda Varma decisively defeated the Dutch colonial forces.

Sepoys

Disciplined Indian infantry soldiers trained in European military techniques, a practice pioneered in India by French Governor-General Dupleix.

Carnatic Wars

A series of conflicts between Britain and France from $1746$ to $1763$ that ultimately checked French colonial ambitions in India.

Battle of Plassey

A $1757$ battle where British forces led by Robert Clive defeated Siraj-ud-daulah, the Nawab of Bengal, following a conspiracy with military commander Mir Jafar.

Doctrine of Lapse

An annexation policy introduced by the East India Company stating that any princely state whose ruler died without a natural male heir would be annexed by the British.

Subsidiary Alliance

A system where Indian rulers accepted a British Resident and maintained British troops at their own expense in exchange for protection, transferring real power to the British.

Princely State

A region in India governed by an Indian prince, maharaja, or nawab that accepted British protection and guidance while maintaining internal autonomy.

Bengal Famine of 1770–1772

A catastrophic famine in Bengal caused by crop failures compounded by harsh East India Company tax collections, killing an estimated $10\text{ million}$ people.

Dadabhai Naoroji

A respected political figure and the first Indian elected to the British House of Commons, who authored Poverty and Un-British Rule in India ($1901$) detailing the economic drain of India.

Minute on Indian Education

An $1835$ policy proposal by Thomas B. Macaulay advocating for British education to create a class of Indians who were Indian in blood and colour, but English in taste, opinions, morals, and intellect.

Sannyasi-Fakir Rebellion

An early organized resistance movement in Bengal following the $1770$ famine, led by Hindu and Muslim ascetics who attacked British treasuries and tax collectors.

Kol Uprising

An $1831\text{--}1832$ tribal uprising in Chota Nagpur triggered by British land policies that favored non-tribal outsiders over original inhabitants.

Santhal Rebellion

A widespread tribal uprising from $1855$ to $1856$ led by brothers Sidhu and Kanhu Murmu against oppressive moneylenders and landlords backed by the British.

Indigo Revolt

An $1859\text{--}1862$ uprising in northern Bengal where peasants refused to be forced by European planters to grow indigo dye crops instead of food crops.

Great Rebellion of 1857

A major widespread uprising against East India Company rule across northern and central India, triggered by sepoy discontent and greased cartridges, leading to direct British Crown rule in $1858$.

Rani Lakshmibai

The ruler of Jhansi who fought British annexation during the Great Rebellion of $1857$, captured the Gwalior fort, and was killed on the battlefield in June $1858$.

Begum Hazrat Mahal

The ruler of Awadh who led resistance during the $1857$ uprising, defended Lucknow, and issued a counter-proclamation warning Indians not to trust Queen Victoria's assurances.