Viceroy (governor) and 5,000 administration officials
- Indian Civil Service of junior officers
“Princely States” → 500 signed treaties with British
- 300 mil Indians controlled by British

Colonialism’s Economic Impact

Peasant taxes funded British gov. purchases of EIC shares
- also funded colonial administration and railway and other capital investment
India de-industrialized by the Raj
- raw materials exported to Britain - cotton, jute, indigo, rice, and tea.
- manufactured goods and food imported from Britain and the empire
Human capital drained from India
- Indian soldiers - Sepoys and indentured servants used in China, East Africa, Middle East, and West Indies.
  - Indentured servitude ended in 1920

Race in the Raj

“The idea of the master race is inherent in imperialism” - Jawaharlal Nehru, 1946
“White Man’s Burden” - Redyard Kipling on white supremacy

Religion in the Raj

“Fearing the unity of the Indian people to which their own rule had contributed… Followed the classic imperial policy of divide and rule” - B. Chandra, M. Mukherjee, and A. Mukherjee

Indian Demographics

70% Hindu
22% Muslim
1.5% Christian
1% Buddhist
1% Sikh
1% Jain, Jewish, Zoroastrianism

The Indian National Congress

Founded 1885

Represented mostly wealthy middle class

self-described “liaisons”
limited radical nationalist group development
used gov. petitions to achieve conservative goals
- Indian representation in the empire, easier access to Indian Civil Service (ICS) and less expenditure on the army

Religious Pluralism

Courted Muslim members and made caste distinctions secondary
Muslim League founded in 1906

Bengali Partition 1905

Plan to create 2 administration districts

Eastern Muslim majority and Western Bihari/Oriya-speaking Hindu Majority

Divided Hindu Majority (80 mil) seen as attempt to limit influence

Congress organized petitions, protests in press, boycotts, and rallies - NOT indirect non-violence

Imports dropped 25% and Indian industry in Bombay grew in response
Indians support of Bengali cause spread

Bal Gangadhar Tilak’s address to the Indian National Congress in 1907

Significant Indian writer
calling for swaraj, or self-rule

The New Party

led by Tilak
Radical members of Congress
strong in Calcutta, Poona, and Lahore
called for swaraj
Tilak imprisoned in 1908 -1914
targeted Hindus to unite but inevitably isolated Muslims, Muslims concerned by Hindu rhetoric used by protests - LINK to Ireland
- Muslim League formed for distinct Muslim representation

Protests continued to grow → mass arrests unsuccessful at quelling dissent

Morley Reforms, 1909 → John Morley, Secretary of State of the Raj

limited representation in the new central and provincial legislative councils in 1910
separate electorates and seats for Muslims
New Indian powers to question colonial officials and debate budget
Bengal reunited
Raj capital moved to Delhi to please Muslims
cooled conflict and restored moderate leadership in Congress

WW1 and its effects

Most supported British, including Tilak
dissatisfaction grew as war lengthened
- heavy taxation and military recruitment
- Muslims torn between British and Ottoman support
Heightened Indian nationalism and support for independence
- returning soldiers told of better European living conditions
- demonstrated British reliance on Indian soldiers and resources
- limited gov. reforms rejected by Congress and Muslim League
- 12 mil died from influenza epidemic

What is Indian Nationalism?

Racial/Ethnic Identity
Religious Identity
Territorial Identity

Amritsar Massacre 1919

Nationwide hartal (strike) and marches
- WW1 era repression and lack of real reforms
5,000 gathered for public meeting
General Reginald Dyer called for troops to fire into the crowd
- 379 unarmed civilians killed; more than 1,000 inured in 10 minutes
- soldiers blocked exits
- Dyer forced to resign but hailed as hero in England
Support for Congress and calls for independence grew
- Mohandas Gandhi rose to dominance

Mohandas Gandhi 1869-1948

Born in Gujarat to wealthy Hindu Family
- trained as a lawyer in London
- moved to South Africa in 1893
- returned to India in 1915
- leadership in congress in 1921
  - mass nationalist movement
Satyagraha (soul-force)
- non-violent civil disobedience through non-cooperation
- Hartal of schools, universities, law courts, and British goods
- armed resistance impractical
Rejected western values
- traditional peasant dress and lifestyle
- established ashram (community) committed to ideal of self-sufficiency
crossed class, ethnic, and religious lines
- supported the Khalifat (Caliphate) movement during WW to support Ottoman Empire
  - led by Mohammed and Shaukat Ali
- supported Sikhs and Dalits (untouchables)

The Non-cooperation campaign 1920-22

The 1919 Government of India Act
- Indian provincial legislature given control of agriculture, education, and health.
- 10% of males could vote
- British still controlled police, laws, and courts
Congress adopted Gandhi’s swaraj
- success led to British arrests of 20,000 protestors
- increased violence led Gandhi to call off movement
- arrested and sentences to 6 years; served 2
- absent from political activity until 1924 as he worked for rights of Harijans (children of God)
Muhammed Ali Jinnah resigned from Congress as response in 1920 (Pakistan Leader)

Communal Tensions in the 1920s

Hindutwa Movement grew
- Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) in 1925
- anti-Muslim messaging
- RSS member assassinated Gandhi in 1948
- informs Modi’s Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) today
Muslim League grew under Mohammed Ali Jinnah in response
- Muslim workers for Hindu landowners exacerbated differences
- sought Muslim protections via the Lucknow Pact of 1916
  - promised separate representation for Muslims
1927 Simon Commission produced no reform
- no Indians on commission pushed nationalist calls for self-rule
Lack of unity in Congress
- Motilal Nehru called for Dominion status
- Gandhi, Subhas Chandra Bose (extremest), and Jawaharlal Nehru (1st PM) called for independence
- Jinnah now calling for full separate Muslim representation (late 1920s)
Great Depression reduced exports
- increased peasant debt led to eviction and unemployment
- furthered civil unrest in 1930s

Salt March 1930

Second Gandhiyan Satyagraha Campaign
- salt heavily taxed and a state monopoly
Marched 250 miles to coast
- symbolically picked up natural salt
- called for mass civil disobedience against law
Gandhi and 100,00 others arrested in responses to strikes and illegal salt production
Gandhi briefly released for failed Round Table discussions with Vicetory Irwin

Increased Political Tension

Gandhi and 80,000 others arrested again in 1932

promoted boycotts and non-payment of taxes by peasants

Fasted in prison to protest Communal Award

separate electorates for religious minorities and “depressed castes”
Dr. B.R Ambedkar abandoned support for the law

Muslim League actively called for separate Muslim state with independence

Pakistan - “land of the pure” in Urdu
Punjab, Afghan frontier, Kashmir & Sind

1935 Government of India Act

Increased provincial control to elected offices

British maintained “emergency powers”
only 35 million had the right to vote
- property owners, included women

Congress and Muslim League both protested

Nehru called it a “charter of slavery”
Both still participated in 1937 elections
Congress won 70% of the votes
Muslim League only won 5% of Muslim votes

Congress rebuked Jinnah’s offer to cooperate

Barbara and Thomas Metcalf see this as Congress’s arrogance
- pushed Muslim League further away
Jinnah responded with “Islam in danger” slogan to rally supports

Congress divided

Bose and Nehru’s left-wing grew impatient with Gandhi’s tactics
INC Presidents in the late 1930s
Bose left party to form Forward Bloc Party in 1930s

WW2 1939-1945

Support required without input from Indian legislature
- emphasized Indian subservience
Atlantic Charter 1941 promoted democracy - world should have self-sovereignty
- Churchill argued it didn’t apply to India
- continued small concessions to placate Congress and Muslim League
Japan invaded to Indian border
- took British Malayan peninsula and Burma
- demonstrated British weakness
Stafford Cripps sent to negotiate with Indians
- promised independence after the war
- Congress rejected and pushed for immediate independence
- Muslim League cooperated for two-state solution
Quit India movement
- adopted August 1942
- non-cooperation and non-support for the British
- British banned Congress and arrested Gandhi, Nehru, and 60,000 others.
Bose formed Indian National Army
- fought with Japanese against British to liberate India
Jamshedpur steel complex largest steel supplier in the empire
- helped switch India’s role from debtor to creditor for Great Britain
Bombay became manufacturing hub for pharmaceuticals and chemicals
Bengal Famine of 1943
- 2 mil dead, caused by food diversion to military and lack of rice imports from Japanese-occupied Burma

Move to Independence 1945-47

Trials for Indian National Army made them national heroes
- mass protests and mutinies on 20 naval bases and 74 ships by Royal Indian Navy sailors
- forced British to reduce punishments and suspend sentences
Congress and Muslim League at odds
Jinnah called for Direct Action Pay Aug. 16th 1946
rioting in Calcutta led to communal violence
Great Calcutta Killing with 4,000 dead and thousands wounded
thousands more killed around the country
British saw as proof of irreconcilable differences

Independence and Partition

Communal violence pushed Congress to agree to separate states
Lord Louis Mountbatten, last Viceroy, sent to India Feb. 1947
- British wanted exit quickly
- original date for power transfer June 1948
- moved up to Aug. 15th 1947
Issues to address
- How many states?
- Where would the border be?
- What would happen to the princely states?
Punjab and Bengal most complex regions
Sikh’s demand for own state is ignored
Borders officially announces 2 days after independence
15 mil refugees across borders
- 5.4 mil Hindus and Sikhs and 6.6 mil Muslims across West Pakistan’s border
- 3.3 mil Hindus and 1 mil Muslims across East Pakistan’s border (Bangladesh)
- 40 mil Muslims stayed in India; several million Hindus stayed in Pakistan
At least 1 mil killed in communal violence
- most violence at the Indian-West Pakistani border

Challenges and Responses after Independence

Timeline

August 15, 1947 - Independence

November 1947 - Junagadh annexed by force

December 1947-January 1949 - 1st Indo-Pakistani War

January 30 1948 - Gandhi assassinated

September 1948 - Hyderabad annexed by force

January 26 1950 - 1st Constitution

1954 - French Pondicherry transferred to India

1955 - Akali Dal mass demonstrations

1956 - Andhra Pradesh created

1961 - Portuguese Goa transferred to India

1964 - PM Nehru dies

1965 - Punjab split into 2 states

Constitution of January 1950

Secular gov. and school system
equality and freedom to all religions
English and Hindi official languages
- recognized 14 major languages
- English originally planned for phase outs by 1965
Some states created for different languages
- Andhra Pradesh created 1956 from Tamil Nadu

Political and Separatist Issues

550 princely states (40%) after Independence
- all but 3 joined India or Pakistan
Hyderabad and Junagadh annexed by force
- Muslim rulers over Hindu-majority populations
Kashmir source of Indo-Pakistani Wars
- Hindu prince over Muslim-majority populations
Wars : 1947-49, 1965, 1999
Sikh separatism in Punjab
- 1/3 population in 1951 census
Akali Dal called for mass demonstrations in 1955
- Indian gov. raid of Golden Temple exacerbated issue
1965 split of Punjab (Sikh majority) and Haryana (Hindu majority)
- Response to Sikh leader Fateh Sing’s threats to fast to death
Unresolved issues led to Sikh assassination of PM Indira Gandhi in 1984
- She had allowed operation Blue Star Invasion of Golden Temple

Political Elections

Congress won 75% pf 1952 election
- National dominance until 1989
Bhartiya Jana Sangh (BJS) won 3% → Hindu Nationalist Party
- “One country, one culture, one nation”
- Nathuram Godse’s murder of Gandhi in 1948
Succeeded by BJP in 1980s
- involved with 1992 Ayodhya mosque destruction and deaths of 3,000 people
- 1998 coalition gov.
- 2014 election and Narendra Modi

Social Challenges

16% literacy rate at Independence
- Universities and technology grew with industrialism
- Universal education still not achieved (74% today)
Women given rights to inheritance, property ownership, marriage, and divorce
- less successful in literacy or conservative areas
Abolished “untouchable” caste division
- allowed equal access to land, housing, healthcare, education, and legal aid
- social disadvantage, discrimination, and oppression still continues especially in rural areas
Life expectancy - 32 in 1950 to 67 in 2022

Economic Challenges during Independence

Poverty, unemployment, landlessness, and unequal resource distribution
Five year plans to promote economic growth
- offset by population growth
- limited outside investment to avoid neo-colonialism
  - high tariffs and gov. control of key industries
Green Revolution
- high-yield seed varieties, irrigation schemes and chemical fertilizers
- intensified regional inequality and social division
  - wealth farmers benefitted the most
Economy liberalized in 1980s eventually led to growth in the 21st century