Changing political relationships, 1920-30 Flashcards
What happened at the 1929 Lahore congress (Congress reorganised) (2,7)
-To go to the London based conference would be political suicide, as they would be overwhelmed and leave unhapppy
-On the other hand, not going would lead to a resolution they were unhappy with
-Coming into 1929, there was beginning to be a moderate extremist split in congress
-On one hand, a campaign of mass civil disobedience could lead to more bitterness and bloodshed
-On the other hand, the young hooligans had considerable support, especially with younger people
-Congress had to unite on a way forwards, dominion or full independence
-Gandhi decided he would ally with the young hooligans
-Purna Swaraj was to be Congress’ new aim, starting with a series of satyagraha’s
-Gandhi could now control the CWC, and steer policy to this new purna swaraj
What was the Irwin declaration (British response) (2,2,2)
-In 1929, a labour government was elected to power in Britain
-The new prime minister, Ramsey Macdonald was more sympathetic to Indian demands
-The Irwin declaration was a reiteration of the Montague declaration, but adding on that the attainment of dominion status was a natural development
-Irwin invited Indians to London to a round table conference, to hammer out details of a new constitution
-Congress welcomed the declaration, and called for a measure of goodwill by declaring an amnesty for all Indian political prisoners (this did not happen)
-Congress knew to attend the conference would be political suicide
What were Jinnah’s 14 points (The Muslim league) (1,4,3)
-Jinnah’s 14 points were his final attempt at reconciling congress’ and the Muslim leagues relationship, sent over in march 1929
-There would be a federal constitution with provincial powers
-Muslim representation in the central legislatures would be no less than 1/3
-2 new Muslim majority states would be created
-There would be adequate safeguards of Muslim language and culture in an independent India, with full religious liberty for all provinces
-This offer was rejected by congress
-For many Muslims, this is when they stopped trying to cooperate with congress, and started thinking of an independent state
-Jinnah gave up, and moved back to England to be a barrister
What was agreed as a result of the Gandhi Irwin pact (British response) (4,4)
-The civil disobedience campaign would be suspended
-This benefitted the British, since it meant they could go back to ruling as normal
-Gandhi would attend a second round table conference
-This benefitted Irwin, since now he could hammer out the details of a new constitution
-19,000 Indian political prisoners would be released
-This benefitted congress, since many of their imprisoned supporters would now be free
-Any land confiscated during the civil disobedience would be returned
-This benefitted Indians, since they now got their land back
What was ‘back to basics’, and who were the young hooligans (Congress reorganised) (5,4)
-On his release in 1924, Gandhi went ‘back to basics’
-He set up the all India spinners association, to promote self sufficiency
-Gandhi believed the system should be dismantled
-Gandhi got congress to embark on campaigns of mass literacy and sanitation
-Congress were emerging as a responsible political party
-The young hooligans were Jawaharlal Nehru, S. Bose and
-They were young radicals, who wanted full independence from Britain
-They lobbied the All India Congress committee and the congress working committee
-They were nicknamed the young hooligans by Gandhi, due to their extreme socialist beliefs
What were the successes and failures of the first non-cooperation movement (Gandhi and his civil disobedience) (5,5)
-Many parts of the non-cooperation went well, campaigns in tax and administration brought the government to a halt
-People closed shops when the duke of Connaught visited in 1921
-200 lawyers stopped work
-large numbers boycotted the 1920 elections
-students boycotted exams
-Some elements, such as lawyers leaving well paid posts, unrealistic
-violence broke out
-53 died from looting and rioting when the prince of wales came
-Many didn’t understand satyagraha and what it meant
-The fragile Hindu-Muslim alliance was in jeopardy
What did the first non-cooperation movement entail, and why did it end? (Gandhi and his civil disobedience) (5,4)
-People would stop paying tax and refuse to buy imported goods
-People would boycott the upcoming 1920s elections and refuse to help in administrative structure
-People would leave any government jobs, such as lawyers
-All titles given by the Raj would be handed back
-Students would boycott exams, people would take their kids out of British schools
-In February 1922, rioters set a police station in Chauri Chaura on fire, killing 22 people
-Gandhi was outraged, and instantly called an end to the campaign
-Gandhi went off politics, and returned to helping small communities in their campaigns
-Gandhi was arrested and imprisoned for 6 years for inciting violence
How did Gandhi and Jinnah respond to the Khilafat movement (The Muslim league) (3,3)
-Gandhi gave his utmost support to the Muslim league
-With Gandhi came the other Hindu followers, who also supported the league
-Although, it can be questioned how much Gandhi actually supported the movement, and how much he wanted to just mobilise it for his non-cooperation campaign
-Unlike Gandhi, Jinnah was not in support of the Khilafat movement, viewing it as causing divisions between Muslims
-Jinnah disliked the militant based approach of the movement, preferring more moderate terms
-Jinnah, alongside many Muslims’, felt uncomfortable with Gandhi’s involvement within it
What was the Simon commission (British response) (2,3,4)
-The 1919 Government of India act proposed a review in 10 years time of Indian self government
-However there was an upcoming election, which labour would win, so the conservatives decided to hold the commission earlier in 1927
-Lord Simon and his group of 7 men arrived in India in 1927
-Instantly the majority disliked the commission, greeted with booing and black flags
-None of the 7 men were Indian
-Wide range of Indian political opinion opposed to the commission
-Boycotted by congress, Muslim league and key Hindu leaders
-Minorities such as Muslims and untouchables cooperated, hoping for better conditions
-The commission eventually did little more than reassert the status quo
How did differences in belief and festivals lead to increasing separateness of Hindus and Muslims (The Muslim league) (3,4)
-Hindus did not eat beef, and Muslims did not eat pork
-Hindus prayed with loud gongs and music, Muslims prayed in silence
-Hindus believed in the caste system, Muslims didn’t
-In Bakr’ld, Muslims slaughtered cows as a sacrifice, obviously illegal in Hinduism
-In Holi, Hindus parties loudly, and drank a beverage most likely filled with alcohol and drugs
-Neither side were willing to cooperate in these festivals
-These festivals provided moments to increase discontent, and decrease faith that both could live amongst each other
How significant was the first non-cooperation movement (Gandhi and civil disobedience) (3,3,3)
Judith Brown
-The movement was of significance
-Showed Gandhi could no longer be ignored, and could rile up support
-Showed a shift in strategy to widespread non-violent direct action
Lawrence James
-The movement did little to threaten British rule, as the protests ran out of steam
-Ultimately Swaraj was not achieved, and the Rowlatt acts remained
-However, it did show Congress could gain significant political support
Shuter and Rees
-Many Indians became disillusioned with the Swaraj and Satyagraha concepts
-Gandhi concluded Indians were not ready for satyagraha yet
-Congress gained the ability to understand minorities’ needs
How did the British raj increase separateness between Hindus and Muslims (The Muslim league) (3)
-Protected rights for minorities by making provisions for separate elections
-These ensured minorities had a voice in local/national affairs
-Separate electorates emphasised the concept of separateness, ensuring Hindus and Muslims stayed in conflict
How did congress change whilst Gandhi was in jail (Congress reorganised) (4)
-Congress started appealing to more peasant communities
-Congress learnt how to exploit local grievances and link them to the broader goal of swaraj
-Congress became more moderate, going for positions in the Raj’s council
-The British raj returned from suppression to normal rule whilst giving out concessions
How did people react to the Nehru report (Congress reorganised) (5,2)
-Congress supported the notion, and demanded instant dominion with these terms
-Nehru JR and Bose, however, wanted more
-The young hooligans called for the British to completely leave India by 1930
-Congress supported both notions
-This shows the split in congress between moderates and radicals, and how they would have to make a choice
-Muslim league were unhappy with it
-They wanted their separate electorates guaranteed
What was the salt march, and the British response (Congress reorganised) (1,4,3)
-Salt was a commodity everyone, rich or poor, used in daily life, but one monopolised and taxed by the Raj
-Gandhi set out on March 12th, 1930, intending to walk the 240 miles from Ahmedabad to the Gujurati coast
-Originally with 78 followers, the crowd reached up to 75,000 followers
-The march took the form of a peaceful pilgrimage, as media broadcast the scenes
-Gandhi got to the sea (April 6th, 1930), picked up salt and urged everyone to do the same
-The British responded by arresting 20,000 Indians in the subsequent non-cooperation movement
-In May, Gandhi was arrested
-In June, the entire congress working committee was arrested
What were Gandhi’s aims and beliefs (Gandhi and civil disobedience) (5)
-Satyagraha was a concept based on ‘pure soul force’, the non-violent resistance to evil
-Gandhi believed in non-violent direct protest as a means of achieving swaraj, either with or without the British
-He believed the suppression of any socioeconomic/religious group was wrong
-Gandhi believed following Indian independence, the state should be dismantled and people should return to self-sufficient communities
-Gandhi believed Indians should rid themselves of western culture, and return to their roots
What was the Lucknow pact (The Muslim league) (3,4)
-There should be separate electorates for all communities unless they request a joint one
-The number of Muslims in provincial legislatures should be laid out state by state
-‘Cooperation should be the guiding principle’
-With this pact, the Muslim league felt they had been given adequate reassurances by congress
-Congress felt it had healed the rift between itself, its own members and the Muslim league
-However, this agreement was not for all Muslims and congress
-the Muslim league at this point only had about 600 members
Why was/wasn’t the salt march a success (Congress reorganised) (5,5)
-A national wide civil disobedience campaign broke out following the march
-In Bengal, initial salt satyagraha’s turned into riots and tax refusals
-Mass defiance of government salt as congress produced its own
-Increasing involvement of students and women
-Media picked up on the British overreaction as a propaganda win
-By 1932, the movement had lost steam and the British had regained control
-Congress was unwilling to coordinate/finance long term once anger let out
-20,000 Indians arrested
-In May 1930, Gandhi was arrested, and the CWC was arrested the following month
-Muslims didn’t cooperate, and bought their own salt
What were some clauses of the Nehru report (Congress reorganised) (7)
-India’s constitutional status will be the same of other British dominions
-Freedom of conscience and freedom of religion guaranteed to every individual
-There should be freedom of expression of opinion, and the right to assemble peacefully
-There shall be a parliament which contains the king
-There will be a governor-general, appointed by the king
-There should be no reservation of seats in the house of representatives except Muslims in Muslim-minority states and non-Muslims in Muslim majority states
-There should be joint mixed electorates
What was the Khilafat movement, and why did it collapse (The Muslim league) (4,4)
-The Khilafat movement was a Muslim nationalist movement set up in 1919
-The movement aimed to protect the caliphate based in turkey following the breakup of the ottoman empire
-The movement repudiated British rule in India
-The movement legitimised Muslim nationalist participation
-However by 1923, the movement had all but collapsed
-Turkey had rejected the Caliph and gone secular, so the movement had no-one to protect
-Many felt uncomfortable with Gandhi’s participation
-Many western oriented politicians felt alienated, such as Jinnah
What were Gandhi’s actions from 1917-1920 (Gandhi and Civil disobedience) (3,1,4,3)
1917
-Forged relations with many leaders, such as Jawaharlal Nehru
-Campaigned in many local situations
-For example, he fasted in Gujarat in response to mill workers being paid little
1918
-Made many speeches in support of British involvement
1919
-Called for a satyagraha in response to the Rowlatt acts
-These failed, as they descended into violence
-Amritsar massacre changed his perspective on nationalism
-Gandhi realised India needed independence (swaraj)
1920
-By 1920, Gandhi was the leading Indian nationalist
-Gandhi had relations with many groups others didn’t, such as businessmen, the poor and muslims
-As a result, congress had little alternative but to ally with him
How did organisations lead to increasing separateness between Hindus and Muslims (The Muslim league) (4,3)
-The Hindu organisation Aryasam aimed to convert non-Hindus to Hindus, and create a Hindu India
-They wanted to change the administrative language to Hindi
-The cow protection society aimed to ban the sale of beef, harming Muslim butchers
-In 1906 the Mahasabha was created, a militant Hindu nationalist group which fought all non-Hindus
-The Muslims had organisations Tanzeem and Tabligh, who aimed to promote Islam and convert non-believers
-They wanted a mosque in every town, to educate people on Islam
-They wanted an Anjuman-Tabligh-Ul-islam in every town
How did the membership and organisation of congress develop between 1922-29 (Congress reorganised) (5,5)
-Membership grew from about 100,000 to 2million by 1922
-Congress started appealing to areas they previously hadn’t done
-New supporters widely came from peasants
-More conservative elements objected the transformation
-Many Muslims left, feeling their needs not adequately represented
-The structure of the party was revitalised in 1920
-About 100 extra provincial committees were created, as cooperation with the Raj ended
-Gandhi intended congress to develop an alternative administrative structure to the British
-When Gandhi came out of prison in 1924, he created the congress working committee
-The CWC would formulate policy, similar to a cabinet
What was the background to the Lucknow pack (1914-20) (Growth of Nationalism) (3,4)
-Although congress claimed to be an umbrella organisation, Muslims were not adequately represented (1905 Lahore = 5/243 Muslims)
-This led to Muslims creating the Muslim league in 1906, to campaign for their rights
-The 1909 Indian councils act created separate electorates
-In 1915, both Congress and the AIML made self-rule their aim
-The following year, both sides sought an agreement
-Jinnah worked tirelessly to reach a compromise, being a member of both
-The Muslim league, following the declaration of war on the ottomans, believed the Raj were no longer sympathetic with Muslims, and therefore were willing to cooperate with Hindus
