India 1857-90 (SECTION 1)

Question 1

How had India previously been ruled before 1858? What did this ruler do? How were they granted rulership of India?

Answer 1

1) Colonial expansion and development in India had originally been overseen by the British East India Company.
2) Under its control, millions of subjects had been added to the Empire through conquest and annexation.
3) The EIC had been granted monopoly over English trade with Asia. After Robert Clive defeated France at the Battle of Plassey in 1757, the company ruled India until 1858, a year after the Mutiny of 1857.

Question 2

What were the terms of the Government of India Act? When was it signed?

Answer 2

1) Signed on the 2nd of August 1858, the territories of the EIC were passed to the Monarch and the company ceased to exist.
2) A position of Secretary of State for India was created, who was in control of the Indian Civil Service. They received powers and duties formerly exercised by the directors of the EIC.
3) An Indian Council of 15 members, with experience of Indian affairs was appointed to assist the Secretary of State and act as an advisory body for Indian affairs.
4) The Crown appointed a Viceroy to replace the EIC’s Governor General.

Question 3

How was India administered from 1858?

Answer 3

1) The Viceroy of India ruled with a legislative council of 5 people became responsible for law, the army, economy and home affairs.
2) Provincial governments represented the Viceroy in the provinces that had their own legislative council.
3) On a day to day basis, district officers oversaw local councils and reported on practical issues.
4) The running of India also depended on the co-operation of sections of the Indian population. The Viceroy relied on Indian rulers in charge of the 565 Indian Princely States.

Question 4

How many British Civil Servants were employed as a member of the Indian Civil Service?

Answer 4

1) Approx 1,000 British Civil Servants were employed as a member of the Indian Civil Service. Senior posts were filled by white people.

Question 5

What were the basic administrative function tasks of the Civil Service?

Answer 5

1) Collection of taxes, maintenance of law and order and the running of courts. (English law prevailed)

Question 6

What did the British do in order to improve relations with India after the Mutiny?

Answer 6

1) Greater respect was shown towards traditional Indian practices and customs.
2) The Queen assured that there would be no further meddling with traditional Indian religious culture.

Question 7

When did Queen Victoria become Empress of India?

Answer 7

1) January 1877

Question 8

In what way did the British rely on the cooperation and collaboration of the native populations?

Answer 8

1) The Viceroy relied on the rulers of the 565 princely states.
2) Until 1858, a ‘doctrine of laps’ had ensured that the princely states fell under British rule when their ruler’s line of descent ended.
3) The removal of the ‘doctrine of laps’ helped ensure the prince’ loyalty and although they all accepted the ultimate sovereignty of the British crown, an elaborate hierarchy of status bolstered the Princes’ prestige.
4) The British community was forced to rely on increasing numbers of India bureaucracies, part of a growing middle class that demanded a greater say in the administration of the country. British refusal drove them towards nationalism and support for the India National Congress (est in 1885) became a vehicle for Indian independence.
5) Within the service, bilingual Indians were recruited as low-level clerks to act as intermediaries between the British elite and the bulk of the population.

Question 9

How did Britain change how India was defended after 1858?

Answer 9

1) The EIC armies were brought under the control of the Crown and the proportion of British to Indian troops was raised to a ration of roughly 1:2.
2) Regiments of native Indian troops were cut off from one another to prevent any sense of unity. They also deliberately mixed different casts and religions.
3) The army enlisted a larger number of Gurkhas and Sikhs, who had stayed loyal to the British throughout the Mutiny.
4) All field artillery was placed in British hands.
5) Indians were denied officer rankings although the British were ordered to show greater respect for their beliefs and traditions.
6) In every major city, a garrison was built so soldiers could emerge at a moment notice to quell any challenge to British rule.
7) Viceroy Canning set up the Imperial Police Force as an extra layer of security to avoid reliance on the army.

Question 10

How did the growth of railways assist Britain’s defence of India?

Answer 10

1) 3000 miles of track was added between 1858-1868, exaggerating British presence and enabling swifter deployment of troops in the event of trouble.

Question 11

Why did the Indian Mutiny begin?

Answer 11

1) it began among sepoys serving in the Bengal Army in 1857.
2) The traditional explanation for the outbreak was that the cartridges in the new Enfield rifles were greased with animal fat which was religiously unacceptable for Hindus and Muslims.
3) However, the real trigger was more political and to do with anger felt by the landlords and nobles who had been deprived of their land by Governor General Dalhousie.

Question 12

Where did the Indian Mutiny begin? What happened?

Answer 12

1) The trouble began at the headquarters of the Bengal Army in Meerut. Discipline was notoriously slack. Among the concerns of the sepoys was rumours about the regiments being sent across the sea to Burma which offended caste laws about crossing water.
2) The British didn’t understand the sepoy’s conflict of loyalty and they announced that any disobedience would be severely punished.
3) The sepoys turned on their officers and a mob was set upon local Europeans.

Question 13

Where did the Sepoy’s gain control of and what did they attempt to do?

Answer 13

1) They seized control of the most northern cities such as Lucknow and Cawnpore
2) There was also a short lived attempt to resurrect the old Mughal emperor- who was considered the legal ruler of India.
3) The British were traitors.

Question 14

What types of people were rebels?

Answer 14

1) Some rebels were discontented landowners, others peasants who resented taxation or joined to get back at feuding neighbours. They came from both rural and urban backgrounds

Question 15

How were hopes of the restoration of the Mughal dynasty dashed?

Answer 15

1) The Emperor’s sons were executed so the hopes of restoring the Mughal dynasty was dashed.

Question 16

Which cities suffered a lot of damage due to the Mutiny?

Answer 16

1) Delhi and Lucknow were devastated. Villages were burn, mutineers tortured and British officers and their families murdered.

Question 17

How long did it take for the British to restore the Raj? (How long did the Mutiny last)

Answer 17

1) It took 18 months, until June 1858, following the final battle at Gwaliar.

Question 18

What impact did the Indian Mutiny have?

Answer 18

1) In 1858, India passed into direct rule of the British Crown and the internal wars which had been a constant feature during the East India Company’s rule came to an end. There was now a single centralised government.
2) Reforms were thrust upon Indians regardless of whether they needed or wanted them.
3) Many Britons believed that their rule of India was a genuinely liberating experience for the Indians.

Question 19

What did reports in Britain suggest about the Mutiny?

Answer 19

1) The reporting in Britain had emphasises the savagery of the Indians- ignoring that of the British which contributed to the souring relationship between ruler and ruled.
2) The British public demanded Indian blood, the Manchester Guardian said ‘outrageous fouler than our pens can describe’

Question 20

What notion was the Raj administrated under?

Answer 20

1) The Raj was administrated under British notions of ‘fairness’. Queen Victoria promised that her government would treat all its subjects equally, uphold the rights of the princes and respect the religious beliefs of India.
2) However the legal system favoured the white man and it was far too complex and expensive to help the poor, particularly in matters of land tenure.

Question 21

What did ‘equality of opportunity’ do for Indians?

Answer 21

1) The supposed ‘equality of opportunity’ offered by the British rule provided more educational opportunities for wealthier Indians in the new professional classes but it did little for peasants.
2) Even those with education were rarely prompted past the lowest ranks of the bureaucracy.

Question 22

What did Viceroy Canning do to re-kindle positivity to British rule in India?

Answer 22

1) He set on an exhaustive tour of India designed to win back those who had been dispossessed or felt alienated by British rule.

Question 23

What were the Star of India medals?

Answer 23

1) An order of chivalry with 3 classes, founded by Victoria in 1861.

Question 24

Where were universities established in India? What other educational facilities were opened?

Answer 24

1) Universities were established in Bombay, Madras and Calcutta in 1857.
2) Elite schools such as Rajkumer College, Mayo College and Bombay’s Cathedral School were set up to produce ‘westernised oriental gentlemen’

Question 25

How many Indians entered universities in the following 30 years after 1857?

Answer 25

1) 60,000 Indians entered university

Question 26

Who was Mary Carpenter? What did she do in India? Where did she set up schools?

Answer 26

1) She was a social reformer who visited India 4 times between 1866 and 1875. She was primarily concerned with the state of girls’ education and women prisons in India.
2) She set up the National India Association in 1870 in order to promote reforms in British India.
3) She helped to establish a corps of British teachers for India.
4) She set up schools in Bombay and Ahmedabad and opened a college to train Indian teachers.

Question 27

What were some of the economic changes in India under the Raj? (Give 5)

Answer 27

1) There was a growth in investment, particularly in railways which helped to stimulate trade and economic growth. They developed at some 2 miles a day after the mutiny.
2) Some European style factories were built, however, there was no heavy industry because the bulk of manufactured goods came from Britain.
3) Subsistence farming prevailed.
4) The number of tea plantations increased from 1 in 1851 to 295 by 1871.
5) There was also an increase in the production and export of raw cotton in the 1880s and 1890s.

Question 28

What were some of the military changes under the Raj? (8 examples)

Answer 28

1) Proportion of British to Indian troops was ruled by a ration of 1:2
2) Native troops were trained and stations in other districts to prevent unity.
3) Gurkhas and Sikhs recruited to replace the unloyal Bengali troops.
4) 62/74 of bengali regiments were disbanded because they had not been loyal.
5) Number of white British officers increased.
6) Field artillery placed in the hands of the British.
7) Indian troops deployed over seas more.
8) Indian’s were denied officer rankings

Question 29

What were some of the benefits and drawbacks of the British Raj? (6 examples)

Answer 29

1) The British built railways, but they were manufactured in order to control trade and commerce. Most villages lacked roads.
2) The British offered markers for Indian agricultural produce. India became dependent on food imports due to lower value grains going down in consumption.
3) The British developed schemes for irrigation and land improvements, but it only affected 6% of the land.
4) Britain provided India with cheap manufactured goods, but India was unable to develop viable industries of its own. Economy was skewed.
5) British provided jobs on railways, in the army, police and civil service. These jobs were only for a minority of Indians however.
6) Poverty continued. Death rates from famine were high.