india in the 1940's and quit india

Question 1

Federal State

Answer 1

a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing states or regions under a central (federal) government. In a federation, the self-governing status of the component states, as well as the division of power between them and the central government, are typically constitutionally entrenched and may not be altered by a unilateral decision of either party, the states or the federal political body.[

Question 2

Why was the 1940’s different?

Answer 2

nationalism is some ways degenerating into compromise

disappointment

wanted to improve things in office but how when not taken seriously

Question 3

what was different about satyagraha

Answer 3

Individual Satyagraha. Where gandhi selects individuals from villages. obscure individuals are selected to challenge the war effort and refuse to volunteer.

Question 4

second world war

Answer 4

Supporters of the British Raj argued that decolonisation was impossible in the middle of a great war. So, in 1939, the British Viceroy, Lord Linlithgow declared India’s entry into the War without consulting prominent Indian Congress leaders who were just elected in previous elections.[1]

Question 5

stephen cohen - quote - india and wwii

Answer 5

After the end of the World War, India emerged as the world’s fourth largest industrial power and its increased political, economic and military influence paved the way for its independence from the United Kingdom in 1947

Question 6

British indian army

Answer 6

In 1939 the Indian Army numbered 205,000 men. It took in volunteers and by 1945 was the largest all-volunteer force in history, rising to over 2.5 million men.[11] These forces included tank, artillery and airborne forces. Indian soldiers earned 30 Victoria Crosses during World War II.

Question 7

Congress early 40’s

Answer 7

Gandhi believed in 1940 that Congress not ready to launch another civil disobedience
There was a sense among the Congress leadership that if a national government was established at the centre they would not embarrass the British Government during the war

Question 8

Nehru statement in 1940 dominion and independence

Answer 8

This is the goal of India, a united free democratic country closely associated in world federation with other free nations. We want independence and not dominion or any other status . Every thinking person knows that the concept of dominion status belongs to the past, it has no future. It cannot survive the war, whatever the results of this war. But whether it survives or not we want none of it.

Question 9

Stafford Cripps

Answer 9

offer of dominion status in February 1942. Already rejected in 1940. Gandhi describes it as a post dated cheque on a crashing bank.

Dominions were semi-independent polities that were nominally under the Crown, constituting the British Empire and later the British Commonwealth, beginning in the later part of the 19th century.

Question 10

Cripps mission

Answer 10

The Cripps mission was an attempt in late March 1942 by the British government to secure full Indian cooperation and support for their efforts in World War II. The mission was headed by Sir Stafford Cripps, a senior left-wing politician and government minister in the War Cabinet of Prime Minister Winston Churchill. Cripps was sent to negotiate an agreement with the nationalist leaders, speaking for the majority Indians, and Muhammad Ali Jinnah, speaking for the minority Muslim population. Cripps worked to keep India loyal to the British war effort in exchange for a promise of full self-government after the war. Cripps promised to give dominion status after the war as well as elections to be held after the war. Cripps discussed the proposals with the Indian leaders and published them. Both the major parties, the Congress and the League rejected his proposals and the mission proved a failure. Cripps had designed the proposals himself, but they were too radical for Churchill and the Viceroy, and too conservative for the Indians; no middle way was found. Congress moved toward the Quit India movement whereby it refused to cooperate in the war effort, while the British imprisoned practically the entire Congress leadership for the duration of the war. Jinnah was pleased to see that the right to opt out of a future Union was included.

Question 11

The failure of the August offer

Answer 11

The British merely offered places on the Viceroy’s council and the war advisory committee to representative Indians.
Congress and Muslim League reject the offer. The latter on the basis that it does not grant Pakistan
Gandhi launches individual civil disobedience. Gandhi’s slogan ‘it is wrong to help the British war effort with men or money…the only worthy effort is to resist all war with non-violent resistance’

Question 12

The War in the Eastern Front

Answer 12

1942- Japanese advancing in the Indian Ocean at considerable speed
HongKong surrenders -December 1941
Borneo- 31st December 1931
Manila 3rd January 1942
Singapore 15th February 1942 (60,000 Indian soldiers captured)

Question 13

Fall of Singapore

Answer 13

• Heaviest blow was Fall of The Battle of Singapore, also known as the Fall of Singapore, was fought in the South-East Asian theatre of the Second World War when the Empire of Japan invaded the British stronghold of Singapore. Singapore was the major British military base in South-East Asia and nicknamed the “Gibraltar of the East”. The fighting in Singapore lasted from 8 to 15 February 1942.

Question 14

Why was the fall of Singapore important?

Answer 14

It resulted in the capture of Singapore by the Japanese and the largest surrender of British-led military personnel in history.[1] About 85,000 British, Indian and Australian troops became prisoners of war, joining 50,000 taken by the Japanese in the earlier Malayan Campaign. British Prime Minister Winston Churchill called the ignominious fall of Singapore to the Japanese the “worst disaster” and “largest capitulation” in British military history.

Shocked even hitler.

Japanese inferior and number but tactics are far superior. Resilient.

Question 15

June, 1942

Answer 15

By June 1942, Gandhi was calling for a mass movement. The failure of the Cripps offer was key to this.
‘ He Cripps should have known that the Congress would not look at Dominion Status even though it carried the right of secession the very moment it was taken. He also knew that the proposal contemplated the splitting up of India into three parts, each having different ideas of governance. It contemplated Pakistan yet not the Pakistan of the Muslim League’s conception. And last of all it gave no real control over defence to responsible ministers’.
Gandhi
The fear of Japanese attack. Japanese landings on the East coast seemed imminent. Nehru advocated armed resistance. Gandhi dissented.

Question 16

Gandhi and Quit India

Answer 16

Gandhi demanded British withdrawal from India and complete non-violent non-cooperation with the Japanese forces should they attack India. He disapproved of any scorched earth policy and called on the people to whole-heartedly take up the constructive work programme, banish communal strife and exorcise the demon of untouchability.

Question 17

Scorched earth

Answer 17

A scorched earth policy is a military strategy that involves destroying anything that might be useful to the enemy while advancing through or withdrawing from an area. Specifically, all of the assets that are used or can be used by the enemy are targeted, such as food sources, transportation, communications, industrial resources, and even the people[citation needed] in the area. The practice can be carried out by the military in enemy territory, or in its own home territory. It may overlap with, but is not the same as, punitive destruction of the enemy’s resources, which is done for purely strategic/political reasons rather than strategic/operational reasons.

Question 18

Japanese propaganda

Answer 18

Japanese propaganda was strong. Said Asiatic soldiers at front and white at back.. Also promised asiatic soldiers they would get shorts, singlets and rice.

Question 19

Japan propaganda does what

Answer 19

Gives an attraction to join Indian National Army created by Subhas Chandra Bose

Question 20

1939-1942

Answer 20

This is the background of ghandi calling for quit India – Britain is collapsing in the war on the eastern front. 1939-1942 no mass movement.

Question 21

Nehru v Gandhi on the Japanese

Answer 21

The fear of Japanese attack. Japanese landings on the East coast seemed imminent. Nehru advocated armed resistance. Gandhi dissented.

Question 22

Gandhi’s ultimatum

Answer 22

‘My firm opinion the British should leave India now in an orderly manner’
‘Britain cannot defend India, much less herself on Indian soil with any strength, the best thing she can do is to leave India to her fate’
Gandhi, April, 1942

Gandhi is testing the waters. Testing that the japoanese on Indias doorstep and maybe Japs wouldn’t attack india if british not there. Saying only way for india to survive is to get british out

Question 23

War and the Economy

Answer 23

• Declaration causes prices to rise and at a stroke ended the endemic price depression of the 1930s. By March 1941 the average price of coarse rice had increased by 13.2%
• Rice, wheat, mustard, sugar all increased
• Huge speculation and hoarding
• People most affected, poor peasants and agricultural labourers
• Dramatic increase in the crime rate

Question 24

Land requisition

Answer 24

Resentment in India due to this…

• In Bihar and Eastern U.P. proximity of the war zone added to the tension
• Land was requisitioned for aerodromes
• In Bengal 175,000 acres involving 2,700 villages were confiscated
In Bihar, 25,000 acres were annexed

Question 25

Quit India

Answer 25

In August , 1942 a mass movement of considerable dimensions broke out over large parts of North India. The stage for this was set by the arrest of the chief Congress leaders.
The movement is called after at the end of the war to propel Indian nationalism forward.
In Bihar there were widespread hartals and processions. The fanaticism of the mob was exemplified by one individual who bared his breast.

Question 26

Quit india speech

Answer 26

The Quit India speech is a speech made by Mahatma Gandhi on 8 August 1942, on the eve of the Quit India movement. He called for determined, but passive resistance that signified the certitude that Gandhi foresaw for the movement is best described by his call to Do or Die. His speech was issued at the Gowalia Tank Maidan in Bombay (now Mumbai), since renamed August Kranti Maidan (August Revolution Ground). However, almost the entire Congress leadership, and not merely at the national level, was put into confinement less than twenty-four hours after Gandhi’s speech, and the greater number of the Congress leaders were to spend the rest of the war in jail. Gandhi made this speech to help India gain Independence.

Question 27

gandhi and british violence

Answer 27

Gandhi says that the violence will be the British fault. He says that by arresting gandhi and congress will cause violence and india will break to utter violence. Quit India very violent.

Question 28

British reaction to Quit India Speech

Answer 28

Almost the entire leadership of the INC was imprisoned without trial within hours of Gandhi’s speech. Most spent the rest of the war in prison and out of contact with the masses. The British had the support of the Viceroy’s Council (which had a majority of Indians), of the All India Muslim League, the Communist Party, the princely states, the Indian Imperial Police, the British Indian Army and the Indian Civil Service. Many Indian businessmen profiting from heavy wartime spending did not support Quit India. Many students paid more attention to Subhas Chandra Bose, who was in exile and supporting the Axis Powers. The only outside support came from the Americans, as President Franklin D. Roosevelt pressured Prime Minister Winston Churchill to give in to some of the Indian demands. The Quit India campaign was effectively crushed.[2] The British refused to grant immediate independence, saying it could happen only after the war against the Axis powers had ended.

Question 29

Muslim League and quit india

Answer 29

Muslim League[edit]
The Muslim League opposed the Quit India Movement as it was of the view that if the British left India in its current state, Muslims as a minority would be oppressed by the Hindu majority. Muhammad Ali Jinnah’s opposition to Gandhi’s call led to large numbers of Muslims cooperating with the British, and enlisting in the army.[6] The Muslim League gained large numbers of new members. Congress members heeding Gandhi’s call resigned from provincial legislatures, enabling the Muslim League, in alliance with the Hindu Mahasabha, to take control in Sindh, Bengal and Northwest Frontier.[7][8]

Question 30

Communist party and quit india

Answer 30

Communist Party of India[edit]
The Communist Party of India was banned at that time by the British government. In order to get the ban lifted, as well as to assist the Soviet Union in its war against Nazi Germany, it supported the British war effort, despite support for Quit India by many industrial workers. In response the British lifted the ban on the party.[19]

Question 31

Churchill and reaction to quit india speech

Answer 31

This shocks Churchill – must be sent to exile. How dare he humiliate the British etc. etc. Instinctive response to Gandhi’s arrest becomes incredibly violent by the quit India movement.

Question 32

Way in which quit india became violent

Answer 32

• First orderly protests but when British reacted, turned nasty. Propels Indian nationalism. Widespread strikes. Pulling up railway lines, killing unarmed white men, burning buildings
• A lot of resentment in India. Land requisition, rising prices of food look at earlier part.
• In August, 1942 a mass movement of considerable dimensions broke out over large parts of North India. The stage for this was set by the arrest of the chief Congress leaders.
• The movement is called after at the end of the war to propel Indian nationalism forward.

Question 33

Bihar and Patna

Answer 33

• In Bihar there were widespread hartals and processions. The fanaticism of the mob was exemplified by one individual who bared his breast. The nature of the rioting – lawlessness. A month of protest.
• The urban rioting in Patna was to provide the spark that ignited the flames of anti- British protest all over Bihar in the following weeks. Already weakened by the war the colonial state faced the onslaught of a widespread upheaval.
Report of Superintendent of police
‘There has not been any place affected by this deadly unlawful movement…attendance of rural police has gone very low due to threats by the villagers.’

Question 34

HISTORIOGRAPHY- Max Harcourt

Answer 34

The faces in the crowd

• According to Max Harcourt it was the middle peasants most active in the movement.

Question 35

HISTORIOGRAPHY - HENNINGHAM

Answer 35

According to Stephen Henningham there are two parallel movements, one of the rich peasants and landlords and the other or poor peasants

Question 36

Case studies of Fatwa and Pasraha

Answer 36

COMPLETE BREAKDOWN OF AUTHORITY. Most severe kind of attacked on the colonial state. Unarmed white men attacked which represented physical presence of colonial authority.  August 13th express train stopped at fatwa nr patna. The train was stopped near a warning signal by a crowd of people throwing sticks and stones. Two british officers were in first class apartment. One officer panicked and shot out. The train was taken back to the station and an attack on window was launched by a number of men in the surrounding countryside armed with sharp weapons like sticks etc. Officers wounded whilst inside compartment and one came out into the compartment to try and calm the crowd, they hold their hands up and speared to death. They were then dragged along platform. They were then thrown into a cart and paraded around town before being thrown into the river, the crowd was made up of Dalit’s. The main people who encouraged attack were upper caste. Both upper caste and lower caste active. Vinita damodara

Question 37

Monghyr case

Answer 37

In Monghyr, the crews of two R.A.F.
planes that crashed at Pasraha on 18 August and Rulhar on 30
August were killed by villagers. Particularly important centres of
resistance in this phase were Azamgarh, Ballia and Gorakhpur in
East U.P. and Gaya, Bhagalpur, Saran, Purnea, Shahabad,
Muzaffarpur and Champaran in Bihar.
Pasraha – Canadian bomber crashed. 2 Europeans survived crash. Helped ashore. Conspiracy afoot among people. Before long 5/6 people beat pilots – they ran to escape but were killed. Killing of unarmed white men.

Gandhi had called off non cooperation in 1921 because of the burning pf policeman.
British kept accusing him of the violence. He said you are because you kept arresting leaders.
These points are important as they are against colonial rule/hegemony. No longer feared and they could be challenged and humiliated. Both upper and lower caste participated in this attack.

Question 38

The faces in the crowd

Answer 38

are v important when you look at legitimacy ways action takes place. When was the last violent attack on the British? 1857 mutiny. Still celebrated. Suppression of the mutiny is in Whitehall. After 1857 1942 attack. The British presence was thin but heavily militarised. India didn’t dare protest for fear of suppression. British prepared for 1857 but to face another nearly 100 yrs. later this non Ghanaian movement was a surprise?

Question 39

Historiography - Henningham thoughts on two strands in a movement.

Answer 39

Henningham talks about looting and attacks on shops conducted by poor peasants who were hungry and upper caste had a violent reaction and were fuelled by nationalism. Can we talk about two strands? One fuelled by ideology and the other by an empty stomach? A duel movement? Is this possible? But does this patronise the poor as it takes away that they can’t think for themselves politically and are driven by hunger.

Question 40

rebellion 1857

Answer 40

The Indian Rebellion of 1857 refers to a rebellion in India against the rule of the British East India Company, that ran from May 1857 to June 1858. The rebellion began as a mutiny of sepoys of the East India Company’s army on 10 May 1857, in the cantonment of the town of Meerut, and soon escalated into other mutinies and civilian rebellions largely in the upper Gangetic plain and central India, with the major hostilities confined to present-day Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, northern Madhya Pradesh, and the Delhi region.[2] The rebellion posed a considerable threat to East India Company power in that region,[3] and was contained only with the fall of Gwalior on 20 June 1858.[2] The rebellion is also known as India’s First War of Independence, the Great Rebellion, the Indian Rebellion, the Indian Mutiny, the Revolt of 1857, the Rebellion of 1857, the Uprising of 1857, the Sepoy Rebellion, the Indian Insurrection and the Sepoy Mutiny.

Question 41

1940’s as a decade

Answer 41

Morale of British at lowest. Hegemony at its lowest. advancing japanese and because india are prepared to do or die. Language of no violence muted. Nobody bothered with gandhi in jail. Even Gandhi expected it. Could you argue that he changed?