India Flashcards
Who was Viceroy from 1910-1916?
Charles Harding
What was the Ghadar Movement?
The Ghadar Movement was a movement by a group of expatriate Indians to overthrow British rule in India.
The British were worried about the Ghadar movement - in 1915, 5000 arrested, 200 jailed and 46 hung.
What was the Indian response to the outbreak of WW1?
The outbreak of war was met with instant loyalty to the Raj and support from all sections of Indian society:
- Tilak supported the British war effort ‘our sense of loyalty is inherent and unswerving’
- 27 princely states immediately offered their troops to the Raj
- Hospital ship The Loyalty given by the princes
- Start WW1 - Indian army consisted of 161,000 trained soldiers
What were the main events for India during the War?
- December 1915 - two Indian infantry divisions were withdrawn from France and sent to the Middle East
- 1915 - Viceroy Lord Harding announed the Defence of India Act, an emergency measure which gave the government of India sweeping wartime powers of arrest and detention without trial.
- Religion became a problem after Turkey joined the war as the British Empire was at war with Muslims - increased rates of desertion by Muslim forces
How much did India contribute to WW1?
- November 1918 - 827,000 Indians had enlisted as combatants. 64,449 Indians died in WW1.
- December 1919 - 1.5 million Indians had contributed over £146 million to the Allied War Effort, half of which was made up from loans.
What were the after-effects of WW1 for India?
- Military expenditure had led to increased revenue demands by 16% in 1916-17, 14% by 1917-18 and 10% by 1918-19. Increased taxation therefore affected most people within India.
- Food grain prices rose by 93%, Indian-made goods prices rose by 60%, imported goods prices rose by 190%.
- This was made worse when the monsoon rains failed to arrive in 1918-1919 leading to food shortage and famine.
- Many Indian manufacturing industries e.g. cotton, iron and steel, sugar and chemicals expanded to produce goods which were previously imported.
How were ‘Home Rule Leagues’ established in India?
Two different Home-Rule Leagues - Home Rule ‘more paletable term than swaraj’
- Tilak’s Home-Rule League had 32,000 members and focused on the regions of Maharashtra and Karnataka.
- Annie Besant’s All-India Home Rule League had a smaller membership but covered all of India.
How did the British respond to the Home-Rule Leagues?
The British ordered the arrest of Home Rule League members in 1916:
- Tilak was arrested on charges of sedition and forced to pay 40,000 Rupees as a symbol of good behaviour
- Annie Besant was interned
When was the Lucknow Pact and what did it entail?
December 1916
The Lucknow Pact was an agreement between Congress and the Muslim League whereby it was agreed that Musilms would have a fixed proportion of seats in an Indian parliament and extra seats in areas where they were a minority.
Who served as Secretary of State for India between 1917-22?
Edwin Montagu
What protest action did Gandhi lead in 1917?
Gandhi intervened in North Bihar where peasants were being forced by white farmers to grow indigo on disadvantageous terms - Gandhi refused to leave the district.
Gandhi also intervened in Gujurat where cotton mill workers were earning a pittance. He fasted until the situation was resolved.
What declaration was given on 20th August 1917?
Montagu Declaration: Edwin Montagu (Secretary of State for India and a passionate liberal) gave the declaration.
The declaration ‘commited’ the British Empire to allowing Indians to govern themselves within the British Emipre. However, no timescale was given.
What did Edwin Montagu do between 1917 and 1918?
He travelled extensively in India, listening to all sorts of opinions. Montagu noted the ‘dead hand’ of British administration and its slow and complex bureaucracy.
Which report was written in July 1918?
The Montagu-Chelmsford Report (pulling on information from Montagu’s travels in India)
This was the precursor to the Government of India Act, 1919.
What were the Rowlatt Acts of 1919?
Mr SAT Rowlatt, a Scottish judge was appointed to ‘investigate revolutionary conspiracies’. Saw Bengal, Bombay and the Punjab as centres of revolutionary activity.
Kept wartime controls such as imprisonment without trial, trial without a jury, censorship and house arrest of suspects
Montagu sanctioned the Rowlatt Acts with reluctance. Viceroy Chelmsford pushed ahead with them.
What was organised on the 30th March 1919?
A series of hartals against the Rowlatt Acts was organised by Dr Pal and Dr Kitchlew.
What did Gandhi organise on the 6th April 1919?
Another series of hartals against the Rowlatt Acts.
What was organised on the 10th Apri 1919?
Riots were organised against the detained Dr Pal and Dr Kitchlew who had organised hartals against the Rowlatt Acts on the 30th March 1919.
Who was attacked on the 10th April 1919?
Marcia Sherwood was brutally beaten by Indian youths and only saved from certain death by Hindus who found her and treated her.
What happened on the 11th April 1919?
Over 100 terrified and exhausted European women and children took refuge in the Gobindgarh Fort.
What happened on the 12th April 1919?
Brigandier-General Rex Dyer commanded a force of around 1,000 soldiers into Amritsar, as well as two armoured cars with machine guns.
He sent 400 of these troops and the armoured cars through Amritsar - show of force was met with jeering crowds.
This, linked with news of similar rioting in the Punjab cities of Lahore and Kasur, convinced Dyer that a co-ordinated uprising was under way.
What were the events prior to the Amritsar Masssacre on the 13th April 1919?
Dyer ordered two proclamations to be read out in 19 different locations across the city, warning against the holding of ‘meetings and assemblies’ and establishing a curfew.
Baisakhi Day - religious festival in the Punjab. Pilgrims flocked to the Golden Temple despite the curfew and public gathering ban.
What were the events of the Amritsar Masssacre on the 13th April 1919?
Between 10,000 and 20,000 people gathered in the Jallianwala Bagh.
Without warning, Dyer and a posse of infantrymen appeared in the narrow entrance to the Bagh. Once inside, they organised and fired 1,650 rounds of live ammunition into the crown in 10-15 minutes, killing around 400 and wounding 1,500 more.
The troops then quickly dispersed leaving the wounded to fend for themselves.
What was the aftermath of the Amritsar Massacre?
- Dyer imposed martial law
- Salaam - any Indian who passed Dyer or any other European had to bow or be flogged.
- Transport system was comandeered by the British to restrict movement - this even included bicycles!
- 3rd class railway tickets were withdrawn meaning many Indians could not travel.
- No more than two Indians may walk side by side on the pavement in Amritsar
- Water and electricity supplies were cut off causing hardship
- Crawling Order - in Kucha Tawarian where Marcia Sherwood was assaulted, Indians were forced to crawl along the road. This horrified Edwin Montagu
- Dyer presided over a court in the Ram Bagh where he metered out floggings or punishments.
- Indian lawyers were forced to work as special constables and witness floggings,
What were the events of the Hunter Report?
Montagu pushed ahead with plans for an inquiry into the massacre.
On 11 November 1919, Lord Hunter and his colleagues arrived at Lahore to ask questions, listen to evidence and reach a conclusion about the events.
Witnesses were alternatingly booed and cheered by the crowd - censorship had been lifted and martial law ended.
The Hunter Report, after hearing Dyer’s statement, censured Dyer, and reprimanded O’Dwyer (Governor of the Punjab) for his part.
The Hunter Report was published in May 1920
What did Dyer admit during the Hunter Report?
- He would have used the armoured cars if he had gotten them through the door
- He had not issued a warning to the crowd before beginning to open fire
- He continued to fire until he had ran out of ammunition
- He wanted to use the massacre as an opportunity to punish the Punjabs
How did the Government of India Act 1919 affect the Viceroy?
- Viceroy was to be advised by a council of 6 civillians, three of whom would be Indians, and the commander-in-chief of the British Army in India.
- Viceroy could still enforce laws even if the legislative councils rejected them.
- The Viceroy could choose his own officials.
How did the Government of India Act 1919 affect the governing of India?
- Dyarchy
- Provincial and central legislative councils were enlarged
- Provincial councils were given control over Indian education, agriculture, healthcare, public works as well as local self-government.
- The British maintained control over military matters, foreign affairs, criminal law, communications and currency
How did the Government of India Act 1919 affect Franchise?
Franchise was extended but it was linked to tax paid:
In 1919, only 10% of the adult male population could vote. Former soldiers were automatically given the vote.
Provincial legislatures could give women the vote - less than 1% of the female population was enfranchised
How did the Government of India Act 1919 create reserved seats?
Reserved seats in the provincial legislatures wer allocated for different religions - Sikhs, Muslims etc. and special groups like landowners and university graduates.
What were the reactions towards the Government of India Act 1919?
Right Wing - criticised the GOI Act for being a step towards independence.
Left Wing - GOI had not gone far enough
The INC rejected the GOI and boycotted the first elections held
How did Gandhi emerge as leader of Congress?
- Gandhi captured the popular imaginiation through his style of campaigning - he mixed spiritual strength with political awareness.
- Congress was disunited and unable to create any opposition
- Experienced campaigner from his work to secure Indian minority rights before 1914
When was Gandhi’s campaign of non-cooperation agreed upon by Congress?
Nagpur Conference, Decemeber 1920.
- Gandhi dominated proceeedings; persuaded delegates to vote for his policy of non-cooperation with (against) the British Raj - suppported by a majority of 2 to 1
How did Gandhi change Congress?
- Congress membership had increased from 100,000 to 2 million by the end of 1921
- All-Indian Congressional Committee (AICC) membership increased from 161 to 350 and seats were re-allocated on a regional basis.
- Set up Congress Working Committee to formulate policy, similar to the Cabinet to Parliament
- Developed connections with Muslims and business interests, latter of whom helped to payroll his non-cooperation campaigns. Trade unions and female members - new target groups
What was the aim of non-cooperation and what did it entail?
Gandhi aimed to make the ungovernable with the hope that swaraj would follow. However, many of the practices were unrealistic as many Indians didn’t appreciate the morality of satyagraha and so it descended into violence.
Gandhi urged Indians to:
- Boycott law courts
- Withhold taxes
- Refuse to buy imported goods
- Leave all government positions
- Refuse invitations to government-created social events
- Remove children from government schools
- Hand back decorations awarded by the Raj
- Boycott the legislative assemblies
- Boycott student exams
What statistics / examples show successes of the non-cooperation campaign?
Qualified voters (up to 90% in some areas) stayed away from the 1920 elections
Around 200 lawyers topped work
1921 - Duke of Connaught visited Calcutta - shops were closed, boycott of ceremony
What was the Moplah rebellion of 1921 in Malaba?
Moplahs (Muslim descendants of Arab traders) declared a jihad (Muslim holy war)
- Forcible conversion of Hindus to Islam
- Many British people, as well as wealthy Hindu and Muslim landlords were killed
What happened on the 6th February 1922?
Supporters of Congress torched a police station and burnt the 22 Indian police inside alive.
After hearing the news, Gandhi retreated into his Ashram to meditate for a few days before returning to call off the campaign - his supporters were horrified
