Brief aspects of british rule

1. British Social and Cultural Policy
• Influencing Factors in England
– Industrial Revolution
– Intellectual Revolution
– French Revolution
• Characteristics of New Thought
– Rationalism
– Humanism
– Progress
• Schools of Thought
– Conservatives
– Paternalistic Imperialists
– Radicals
• Colonial Modernisation

2. Civil Services
• Lord Cornwallis – “ Father of Modern Civil Sevice and Police in India”
• Cornwallis Code (1793)
• Wellesley Set up Fort William College for Training of Civil Servants in India (1800)
– Closed down in 1806
– East India College set up at Haileybury in England
• Charter Act of 1853 ended Company’s patronage System and provided for
recruitment of Civil Servants through an open Examination
• Satyendranath Tagore – First Indian to qualify in ICS Exam
• Changes by Lytton
– Introduction of Statutory Civil Service
– Reduced the Maximum age from 21 to 19
• Aitchinson Committee on Public Services (1886)
– Dropping of terms Covenated and Uncovenated
– Classification of Civil service into Imperial, Provincial and Subordinate Civil
Services
– Raise the age limit to 23
• Lee Commission (1924)
– 50: 50 parity between Europeans and Indians to be reached in 15 years
– Public Service Commission to be set up

3. Peasant Movements 1857 - 1947
• Problems of the Peasants
– High Rents
– Illegal Levies
– Arbitrary Evictions
– Bonded labour
– High Interest rate on the loans taken from Moneylenders
• Nature of Peasant Movements :
– Movements directed against their immediate oppressors- Zamindars, Foreign
Planters and Moneylenders
– Limited territorial reach
– Strong awareness of their legal rights
• Indigo Revolt (1859-60)
– Led by Digambar Bishwas and Bishnu Bishwas
– Against forced Cultivation of Indigo on their Farm
– Neel Darpan – Bengali Play written by Deenbandhu Mitra based on struggle of
Indigo Planters
• Pabna Agrarian League
• Deccan Riots

4. Continued…
• Kisan Sabha Movement
– UP Kisan Sabha set up by Gauri Shankar Mishra and Indra Narayan Dwivedi
• Eka Movement ( Led by Madari Pasi)
• Ramosi Peasant Force – Vasudev Balwant Phadke
• Bijolia Movement – Vijay Singh Pathik and Manik lal Verma
• Rampa Revolt – Alluri Sitaram Raju
• Bardoli Satyagraha
– Kunwarji Mehta and Kalyanji Mehta organised Patidar Yuvak Mandal
– Vallbhai bhai Patel – led the Movement and was given the title of “Sardar”
• Mappila/ Malabar Revolt
– Revolt of Muslim Peasants against Hindu landlords
– Started with the arrest of Ali Musaliar

5. Continued…
• All India Kisan Congress
– Swami Sahajanand Sarawati (President) and N G Ranga ( General Secretary)
• Tebhaga Movement (1946)
– Movement of the Share Croppers for 2/3 share of the crops instead of ½.
• Telangana Movement

6. Tribal Uprisings
• Sanyasi Revolt (1770)
– Restrictions imposed on visit to Holy Places
• Chaur Uprising against enhanced land revenue
• Ho Uprising ( Led by Raja Parhat)
• Kol Mutiny (1831)
– Large Scale transfer of Land from Kols to outsiders such as Sikhs and Muslims
– Led by Buddho Bhagat
• Kondh Uprising (1837-56)
– Against British policy to end Human Sacrifice
– Led by Chakra Bisoi
• Santhal Uprising ( Led by Sido and Kanhu)
• Ahom Revolt in Assam ( Led by Gomdhar Konwar)
• Khasi Upsings ( Led by Maharaja Tirath Singh)
• Pagal Panthis in Northern Bengal
– Against the oppression of Zamindars
– Founded by Karam Shah
– Taken Forward by his Son, Tipu
• Faraizi Revolt in Eastern bengal
– Founded by Haji Shariat Allah
– Succeded by his Son Dadu Mian

7. Continued…
• Munda Revolt in Chotanagpur
– Led by Birsa Munda
• Movements in Western India
– Bhils Uprising in Maharashtra ( Leader – Sewaram)
– Kutch Rebellion in Gujrat
• Against Company’s Interference in the Internal Matters of Kutch
• Forced king Bharamal to give up his throne
– Koli Uprisings in Maharashtra
– Ramosi Upsings in Maharashtra ( leader – Chittur Singh )
• Movements in South India
– Poligars Revolt in TN ( Leaders – Subramaniam Pillai and Kottabamman
Nayak)
– Diwan Velu Tampi’s Revolt in Travancore
• Against the Subsidiary Alliance
– Revolt of Raja of Vizianagaram
• Against the acquisition of Territories
– Rampa Revolt in Andhra ( Leader – Alluri Sitaram Raju)

8. Continued…
• Movements in North India
– Wahabi Movement
• Revivalist Islamic Movement started by Shah Ahmed of Rai Bareilley
• Against Western Influences in Islam
• Conversion of Dar-ul- Harb ( Land of kafirs) into Dar-ul-Islam (the land of
Islam)
– Kuka Movement
• Founded by Bhagat Jawahar Mal
• Religious purification movement of Sikhs

9. The Indian States
• Struggle for Equality with Indian States from a position of Subordination (1740-
1765)
– Battle of Plassey (1757)
– Battle of Buxar ( 1764)
• Policy of Ring Fence (1765-1813)
– Create Buffer Zones for the British against powerful Marathas and Mysore
– Subsidiary Alliance by Wellesley
• Policy of Subordinate Isolation (1813 - 1857)
– Appointment of British Residents
– Doctrine of Lapse :
• Policy of Subordinate Union (1857- 1935)
– States to accept paramount power of British
– Queen adopted the title of “ Kaiser-i- Hind” (Queen Empress of India)
– States not to be annexed by British
• Policy of Equal Federation (1935- 1947)
– Federal Structure
• Integration and Merger