Decolonization in Asia: India

India: Decolonization

• British colony since the 1760s.
• Ruled by a Viceroy and Council.
• Characterized by grinding poverty.
• Late 19th Century:
  • Growth of an educated Indian middle-class.
  • Commitment to nationalism.
• 1885: Indian National Congress forms.
  • Led by Hindu intellectuals and reformers.
  • Advocated for self-rule and democratic reforms.
• Muslim League:
  • Formed in 1906.
  • Aimed to advance the political causes of the Muslim minority.
  • Eventually called for a separate Muslim state.
• Challenge: How to unite an independent India given its diverse population and interests?

World War I as Catalyst

• Indians fought for the British during WWI.
• Massive casualties and injury to the Indian economy due to inflation.
• Stokes resentment because self-determination was denied after the war.
• British promised gradual self-rule in response.
• Amritsar Massacre: April 1919.
  • Peaceful protest of 10,000 Indians.
  • British army opened fire, resulting in 376 deaths and thousands wounded.
• Galvanized Indian resistance to British rule.

A Leader Emerges

• Mohandas Gandhi:
  • Born in 1869, English educated.
  • Led civil rights efforts in South Africa.
  • Emerged as a leader after the Amritsar Massacre.
• Advocated for non-violence and civil disobedience.
  • Refusal to pay taxes, vote, and obey unjust laws.
• Employed fasts to demonstrate sacrifice and suffering for a good end.
• Mass appeal due to his humble, simple, and modest nature.
• Shifted the revolution from being elite-led to a mass movement.
• Focus on religion worried Muslims.

Changes in WWII Era

• British remained intransigent on granting immediate independence.
• Constitution of 1935:
  • Established an elected legislature to "assist" the Governor.
  • However, the Governor retained great power.
• Gandhi accepted this compromise, but Jawaharlal Nehru refused it.
• Indian National Congress now demanded full independence and boycotted World War II.
• Muslim League continued to advocate for a separate Muslim state.
• 1945: Labour Party gained control of the British government and decided to grant independence.
• Britain's decision was influenced by:
  • Being weakened by the war.
  • The drain on resources to maintain the colony.
  • A lack of will to continue colonial rule.

Independence at Last!

• 1947: British withdrew from India, leading to its partition.
• India was divided into:
  • Hindu India.
  • Muslim Pakistan.
• Population transfer: 12 million people migrated across the borders.
  • Hundreds of thousands died during the process due to violence and chaos.
  • There was no comprehensive plan in place to manage the transfer.
• India achieved independence and democracy, but faced challenges such as:
  • Poverty.
  • Illiteracy.
  • A huge, heterogeneous population.

Decolonization In Asia: Comparing China and India

• Similarities:
  • Both had huge populations.
  • Both were poor, peasant societies.
  • Both experienced foreign control.
  • Both aimed for nationalism and modernization, influenced by foreign ideas.
• Differences:
  • India: religious and liberal leaders, religious divisions, non-violent movement, democratic result.
  • China: radical vs. liberals, war and violent revolution, communist dictatorship.