Preview

British Rule

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
343 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
British Rule
The British rule over India changed the course of history in India. The British came to India at the start of the seventeenth century. This was the time when the British East India Company was established in India to break the Dutch monopoly over spice trade. With time the East India Company increased its powers and started to administer the country. However its policies were disliked by Indians and together they revolted against the company. This led to the downfall of the company and the administration of India went directly under the Queen. In the following lines, you shall find information regarding the period when India was under British rule. Read about the British colonialism in India.

The British annexed many princely states and formed laws and policies of their own. Slowly but rapidly the entire Indian sub continent came under the British rule. By mid nineteenth century, the British introduced the railways, telegraph and postal service in India. This was a move to establish their rule permanently in India. The first railway line was from Howrah in Calcutta to Raniganj in Bihar. The introduction of telegraph and postal services simplified communication all over the country.

The British passed many acts that were met with dissatisfaction and resentment by the Indians. As a result the Indians formed large groups and revolted against the British. Each movement was brutally crushed by the British forces. Leaders like Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Lala Rajpat Rai, Subhash Chandra Bose, etc. arose and openly condemned the British. They were people's leaders who inspired the masses not to be afraid of the forces.

Finally after 200 years of British rule, India gained independence from them on 15th August, 1947. Many innocent lives were sacrificed for this achievement and India was also separated from Pakistan. The partition of India and Pakistan spread incidents of brutality and horror in both the countries. But due to the effort of the leaders and

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    To begin with, British imperialism helped to revise the legal system in India. Several things needed to be changed therefore many reforms began to occur. The legal system changed to promote justice towards all Indians no matter their classes. They worked to put an end to the caste system and slavery once and for all. Much of the population was Hindu and followed the Hindu customs and traditions even those that were hurtful or not beneficial to society or the country of India. For example one of the Hindu customs referred to as “Sati” is a belief that a widow must join her husband in death therefore she is required to throw herself unto his funeral…

    • 432 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Although the British used their power for bad things like forcing their rule over India, the British had a positive political impact on India because of the power they possessed. This power allowed the British to set up a foundation that would later on…

    • 737 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The British East India company held India in its grasp until the Sepoy Rebellion in 1857 happened. Because of the rebellion England decided to take more control over the colony by having the actual government take root and complete control in 1857. With Britain having taken over India they turned it into a very efficient colony and maximizing its potential, while also putting controlling and racist laws to Indians and restricting them in most ways, by forcing them to farm non food crops, destroying whole industries and unneeded deaths from famines, to a massacre of peaceful protesters.…

    • 1058 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Crow Lake

    • 1404 Words
    • 6 Pages

    My first generation was at the time of my great, great grandfather. It was around at the 1600’s. At that time we had one country and that was Bharat; in other word it was India (It were mixture of Bangladesh, Pakistan, India and Marimba). My great , great grandfathers , “ Kamor Uddin Molla”, and “ Noor Miha Molla” were Bharati at that time.² British ruled in India from 1600-1947. They conquered our land, mainly because of two reasons. First Portugal was losing control of the East Indian Spice Trade; British got an opportunity to share the trade and they send many ships to India. However, Dutch had also controlled the spice trade, later they rebuffed any British efforts to take part in it. British then gained the right to set up trading posts along the coast of India.³…

    • 1404 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    British Imperialism was a large factor in the development of India both technologically and socially. The main reason that the British Imperialism has had such a large effect on the Indian way of life was because it lasted 190 years. Such a long direct and indirect rule impacted India's development immensely, with the occupation ranging from the oppressive company rule to the British monarchy. The imperialism of India had many negative effects on the nation. Indian culture was lost, people were repressed, and the social order was completely destroyed. However; there were also many good outcomes. This boost in resources allowed Britain colonies to contribute to fixing India as a whole and make their economy stronger. This also, eventually freed…

    • 912 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    By European principles in the political area being brought to India by the British, political and social reform in India was able to be achieved. The western education led to Indians coming across European principles (human rights, freedom of speech, liberalism, etc.) That was a contrast though to the imperialism practiced by the British in India. One third of the subcontinent was ruled by Indian princes, but under the supervision of the British. The rest were controlled by the Viceroy (administered by roughly one thousand members of the civil service). So the knowledge of principles such as autonomy and freedom led to many Indians wanting the same thing for their own nation since it appeared to them that the world's most powerful nations were those who were self-governing democracies which was obviously a successful system. Part of their desires also came from the Indians wanting their native religion and customs to be respected.…

    • 740 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Dbq Essay on Nationalism

    • 404 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Britain also had colonies in Africa. They also had colonies in India because of this the economy of Britain became bigger and became very powerful. The British restricted Indian trade and made free trade for British goods. In document 5 Britain was the major trading nation with India they claimed it was all for the good of India. The actions taking by the British caused revolts and disunity in India. The Indians never accepted being under British rule and always tried to revolt.…

    • 404 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Glt-1 Analysis

    • 1181 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The British introduced education, language, religion, democracy and trade to India. It is evident that the direct British changes created positive growth for the country with regards to education and technological advances but it created socioeconomic changes to the culture according to the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA).…

    • 1181 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    This enabled the carrying of goods at a faster rate. Events around the world caused a need for such crops, so both the railroad and the trade crops were a boon to the British. The British railroad was a boon to the Indian people as well. It helped develop their economy and united them. Modernization with railroads was coupled with telephone lines and other infrastructure like canals and dams. With infrastructure and a better education system, literacy and health improved. Trade crops, however, were strictly regulated and as such, reduced the amount of edible crops the farmers produced, leading to famine. Resentment of this control, the attempts to change their religion, and racism, the Indians rebelled. In 1857, the sepoy Indians heard a rumor that their new rifles were greased with pork and beef fat, and they had to bite the cartages of these rifles to replace them. Since eating beef and pork are forbidden in Hindu and Islamic religions, respectively, they sepoy’s refused the guns. The sepoys who refused were jailed, the other sepoy’s rebelled and captured the city of Delhi. It took a year for the British to regain control, and this time they were stricter. The Raj was British rule under Queen Victoria, where a London cabinet member was in charge of policy making and a governor-general, or viceroy after 1877, followed these…

    • 965 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    While the British were in India 10,000 miles of railways was laid, 136,000 bridges were built, roads, canals, mines, plantations and sewers were made (Lalvani). “Today Indian railways is the world’s largest employer, with a staggering 1.6 million workers on the payroll”. Even though the railroads created jobs for people the railroads did not benefit the Indians. The railways were used to transport the goods out of India, that the Indians made, and the manufactured goods, that put Indians out of their jobs, from Britain to India. The British made Cloth and tried to sell it to Indians but, but…

    • 778 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The British initially entered India in the 18th century with the East India Company with the sole thought of its trading and financial benefits. By the beginning of the 19th century, however, ulterior motives started to appear. The British were, technically, the ruling governors of India, but before then, had only been concerned with making money. Now, however, the British began trying to expand their territory and the idea of…

    • 439 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    British economic and political interest in India began in the 17th century, when the East India Company established trading posts there. Later on British took full control of Indian economic and political affairs. They were acting more as governors than traders on the sub-continent which had a huge effect on trading, culture and government affairs in India. Some of the…

    • 293 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Better Essays

    Imperialism

    • 1657 Words
    • 7 Pages

    In the 1800s China simultaneously experienced major internal strains and Western imperialist pressure, backed by military might which China cannot match. China’s position in the world and self-image was reversed in a mere 100 year period (c.a. 1840-1940) from leading civilization to subjected and torn "China and the West"). The British East India Company arrived in India in the early 1600s, struggling and nearly begging for the right to trade and do business. By the late 1700s the thriving firm of British merchants, backed by its own army, was essentially ruling India. In the 1800s English power expanded in India, as it would until the mutinies of 1857-58. After those very violent spasms things would change, yet Britain was still in control. And India was very much an outpost of the mighty British Empire (McNamara).…

    • 1657 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    British Empire

    • 473 Words
    • 2 Pages

    British Raj was the British rule in the Indian subcontinent between 1858 and 1947. The term can also refer to the period of dominion. The region under British control, commonly called India in contemporary usage, included areas directly administered by the United Kingdom as well as the princely states ruled by individual rulers under the paramountcy of the British Crown. The region was less commonly also called the Indian Empire. As India, it was a founding…

    • 473 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Partition of India 1947

    • 1020 Words
    • 5 Pages

    In 1600, the British East India Company was established, and in 1858, The India Act allowed for power to be transferred to the British government. The British Government never had complete control, but it certainly had power.…

    • 1020 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays