Political Autonomy

The government introduced their way of ruling and decision making, and soon enough, the Indian government was introduced to human rights, freedom of speech, liberalism, and more. The British governed 60% of India directly, and about 40% indirectly. British also wanted to abolish the caste system, which was a social hierarchy that divided people in India into classes. One such class was the Untouchables, which were basically crippled and disabled people. They were so far down on the caste system that they weren't even part of it. The caste system was evetually abolished as well, but still, one social hierarchy remained, as the Indians remained below the British. Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev Thapar, Shivram Rajguru protested against British imperialism. They were three of the many people that protested against British imperialism, and eventually were found and hanged for their efforts. 

Economic Well Being

During the British imperialism in India the country turned around. The creation of East India Company opened up many new opportunities for British and Indian traders. Because more transportation sources were needed to transport all the goods, the British built many roadways and railways which are still in use. As the British slowly moved in and started taking control of different parts of the country, many benefited, but many suffered too. Also, British set taxes that caused many farms to become impoverished.

Culture and Language

The British had their motives clear. They set out to expand their way of thinking and living across the horizon with God, Gold, and Glory in mind. Because of their Eurocentric thinking they tried to impose their culture on whoever they came across. Any culture other than their own seemed uncivilized to them, therefore they tried to refine it. Because God was a great part of their lives they spent countless hours trying to convert Indians to Christianity. In present day India, Christianity is the third largest religion with approximately 24 million followers making up 2.3% of the population. An example of something they changed is the banning of sati. Sati is a Hindu practice of a widow immolating (kill by burning oneself) herself on her husbands pyre. When the British came across this they were shocked. They thought it was something completely bizarre therefore they thought the need to ban it. Many words were adopted by both sides. Some Hindi words were altered according to the English equivalent, and some English words were influenced by Hindi words. Though the British have left, English is still one of the official languages used for official work around the country.

Land and Resources

Some positives regarding land and resources were that the British modernized India. They did this by building railways that connected growing regions in the interior to the growing regions along the coast. This helped the 30 million acres that were recently put into cultivation by allowing farmers to trade their goods and increase profit. They also set up telephone lines, damns, irrigation canals and approximately 70, 000 miles of paved roadways. All of these were real improvements to India's agriculture and quality of life in general.

Unfortunately, there were some negatives when it came to the imperialism of India. During the British raj/reign, many Indian farmers and villages were forced to grow cash crops, which were basically crops they grew to pay off the heavy taxes the British imposed. This destroyed their cottage industries, giving them the inability to feed themselves. Other native Indian farmers could not compete with the changing agriculture industry.

 

Population

Once the British arrived, the bubonic plague was introduced to India. Approximately 200,000 people died because of this disease.  Eventually, the British turned Muslims and Hindus against each other, and so the Muslims moved up north and formed their own country, which is now called Pakistan, which drastically decreased the population of India. Also upon the British arrival, they introduced different farming techniques, and soon most famines started to dissipate; therefore the population started to increase.

Bubonic Plague in India

Timeline

Map of India

British imperialism in India extended over a long time period, and the following is a timeline of events that occurred before, during and after the British Raj (Reign) in India. The British and Indians contact began in the 1600's and ended, finally, in 1947. The British East India Company that was established in India was basically made up of a British army in India, therefore, the reason they had so much control over India for so long. The British began trading with India in about the 1600's, but did not begin to actually take over large parts of land until 1757.

Battle of Plassey

 1757: The Battle of Plassey (Palashi): This battle had 3000 British East India company soldiers against a 5000 men strong army of the young Nawab, of Bengal, Siraj ud Daulah, and the allies from the French East India Company. However, on the day of battle, which was June23rd, 1957, heavy rains spoiled Nawab's cannon powder, while the British had cleverly covered theirs, therefore they won. The British also managed to take around 5 million dollars from the Bengali treasure, which funded continued expansion.

East India Trading Company Logo

1770: The East Indian Company and India: The British East India company heavily taxed Bengali farmers and common workers in India, and other policies too had made them very poor indeed. While the British became wealthy and healthy, the Indigenous people of Bengal were starved. This was not favourable in the eyes of the Indian, but the British believed it to be a great step toward really expanding and improving upon their empire. Many described the British Empire in India to be "the jewel in the British crown."

1857: The Indians Rebel: By 1857, the British Empire in India had expanded substantially. The Indians, unfortunately for the British, were sick of paying the ridiculous taxes and such, so they attempted rebellion. "Many Indians were distressed by the rapid 

Indians Fight Back

culture changes imposed by the British. They were worried that Hindu and Muslim India would be 'Christianized.'" (Szczepanski, 2012). Finally, on May 10th of 1857, the revolt started when a large handful determined Bengali soldiers made their way to New Delhi to pledge their allegiance to the Mughal Emperor and not the East India Trading Company. The rebellion took a long time due to both sides moving fairly slowly with their own reactions to the rebellion itself, and the Bengali soldiers finally surrendered their plight on June 20th, 1858. To the Indians, it was a largely unsuccessful rebellion. The British, however, saw this as an opportunity to strengthen their hold on the resources and land in India.

Queen Victoria - New System of Governance

1858: A New System of Governance: After the rebellion that lasted over a year in India, without much success, the East India Company handed their powers to the British monarch who at that time was Queen Victoria. She promised to “better the Indian subjects”(Szczepanski, 2012), but that could mean anything from giving them a better quality of life to making them more ‘civilized’ and like the British. According to Szczepanski, the British practiced a military strategy of divide and conquer in India and as a result, the Muslims and the Hindus were pitted against each other. The British rule continued until people began to demand their independence, and although many movements including Gandhi’s were sprung on the British, the army always managed to defeat them…Until 1947, that is.

1947: Independence for India:  Due to World Wars I and II, the British had now become short on finances, and a lot of their war efforts had been supported by the wealth they found in India. During that time, the feud between the Muslims and Hindus grew to a dangerous war and therefore, the Muslims fled north and created what is now known as Pakistan. The majority of Hindus stayed in India, and finally gained their independence once the British realized they were more or less powerless. This was due to their lack of money, and the rising strength of the Indian population. Finally, on August 15^th, 1947, India was declared an independent country, the day after Pakistan was declared a whole separate country.