SSC GK Final - Text.marked

www.BankExamsToday.
com
SSC
History of India
By Ramandeep Singh
www.bankexamstoday.com
2
Modern History upto 1857
HISTORICAL EVENTS
B.C
2500-
1800
Indus valley civilization.
599 Birth of Mahavir; Nirvana in 523. B.C.
563 Birth of Gautam Buddha; Nirvana in 483 B.C.
327-26 Alexander's invasion of India and the opening of land route between India and Europe.
269-232 Ashoka's reign.
261 Battle of Kalinga.
57 Beginning of Vikrama era.
30 Satvahana dynasty in Deooan. Pandyan empire in for south.
326 Alexander defeated Poras in the Battle of Hydaspas
261 Ashoka defeated Kalinga in the Kalinga War
A.D
78 Beginning of Saka era.
320 Beginning of Gupta era.
360 Samudragupta conquers the whole of N. India and much of the Deccan.
380-413 Rule of Chandragupta Vikramaditya, age of Kalidasa, renewal of induism.
606-647 Rule of Harshavardhana.
629-645 Hieun Tsang's visit in India.
622 Beginning of Hijra era.
712 Arab invasion of Sind by Mohd. bin Qasim.
1001-27 Repeated attacks of Mehmud Ghazni.
1025 Sacking of Somnath temple by Mehmud.
1191 First battle of Tarain in which Prithviraj Chauhan defeated Mohd. Ghori.
1192 Second battle of Tarain in which Mohd. Ghori defeated Prithviraj Chauhan.
1206 Qutubuddin Aibak founded the Ilbari/Slave dynasty.
1290 Jalaluddin Firuz Khilji established Khilji dynasty.
1290 Marco Polo visited India.
1320 Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq founded the Tughlaq dynasty.
1333 Ibn Batuta arrived in India.
1336 Harihara and Bukka founded the Vijaynagar empire.
1347 Bahmani kingdom founded.
1398 Timur invades India.
1451 Lodi dynasty comes in power in Delhi Sultanate.
1469 Birth of Guru Nanak Dev.
3
1498 Vasco da Gama lands at Calicut.
1510 Portuguese capture Goa-Albuquerque Governor.
1526 First Battle of Panipat in which Babar defeated Ibrahim Lodhi and established the Mughal
dynasty.
1556 Second battle of Panipat in which Akbar defeated Hemu.
1565 Battle of Talikota in which Vijaynagar empire is defeated.
1571 Foundation of Fatehpur Sikri by Akbar.
1576 Battle of Haldighati in which Akbar defeated Maharana Pratap.
1582 Akbar started Din-i-llahi.
1600 English East India Company established.
1604 Compilation of Adi Granth.
1605 Death of Akbar.
1611 The English built a factory at Masulipatnam.
1627 Birth of Shivaji
1631 Death of Shah Jahan's wife Mumtaz Mahal. The building of Taj Mahal.
1658 Aurangzeb became Emperor of Delhi.
1666 Birth of Guru Gobind Singh.
1699 Guru Gobind Singh creates 'Khalsa'.
1707 Death of Aurangzeb, fall of Mughal empire begins.
1739 Nadir Shah invaded India; the peacock throne and the Kohinoor Diamond taken away
from India.
1757 Battle of Plassey in which the English defeated Siraj-ud- daula, Nawab of Bengal.
1760 Battle of Wandiwash, end of French power in India,
1761 Third Battle of Panipat in which Ahmed Shah Abdali defeated the Marathas.
1764 Battle of Buxar in which the English defeated the triple alliance of Nawab Mir Qasim of
Bengal, Nawab Shuja-ud-daula of Awadh and Mughal emperor Shah Alam.
1793 Permanent settlement in Bengal.
1799 Fourth Anglo Mysore War, death of Tipu Sultan, Ranjit Singh occupied Lahore and made
it his capital.
1817-19 Marathas finally crushed.
1828 Lord William Bentick becomes Governor General; Era of social reforms; Prohibition of
Sati (1829), Suppression of thugs (1830).
1835 Introduction of English as medium of instruction.
A.D
1853 First Indian railway from Bombay to Thane.
1857-58 First war of Indian Independence.
1858 British crown takes over the Indian Government; End of East India Company's rule.
1861 Birth of Rabindra Nath Tagore.
4
1869 Birth of M.K. Gandhi.
1885 Formation of Indian National Congress.
1905 Partition of Bengal by Lord Curzon.
1906 Formation of All India Muslim League.
1909 Minto-Morley Reforms.
1911 Delhi durbar held, partition of Bengal cancelled, capital shifted from Calcutta to Delhi.
1914 World War I started.
1918 End of World War I.
1919 Rowlatt Act, Jallianwala Bagh massacre, Montague- Chelmsford reforms.
1920 Non-cooperation Movement launched,
1921 Moplah rebellian in Malabar; visit of Prince of Wales.
1922 Chauri-Chaura incidence.
1923 Swaraj party formed.
1927 Simon Commission appointed.
1928 Visit of Simon Commission to India, death of Lala Lajpat Rai.
1929 Congress demanded'Poorna Swaraj'in Lahore session.
1930 January 26 celebrated as Independence Day throughout India, Dandi Salt Satyagraha, First
Round Table conference.
1931 Gandhi-lrvin Pact, Second Round Table Conference.
1932 Suppression of Congress Movement, Third Round Table Conference, Communal Award,
Poona Pact.
1935 Government of India Act.
1937 Inauguration of Provincial Autonomy. Congress ministries formed in 8 out of 11
provinces.
1939 Resignation of Congress ministries, beginning of World War II.
1942 Cripps Mission Plan, Quit India Movement, Formation of Indian National Army by S.C.
Bose.
1945 Simla conference held and the failure of Wavell Plan, INA trials at Red Fort, Delhi.
1946 Cabinet Mission Plan, Formation of Interim Government, Direct Action Resolution by
Muslim League.
1947 Mountbatten Plan of June 3 in which partition of India resolution is proposed, India
divided, Pakistan created, both achieve independence, Jawarhar Lai Nehru becomes the I
Prime Minister of India.
1948 Assassination of Mahatma Gandhi (Jan. 30).
1950 India became republic (Jan. 26).
1951 First Five Year Plan implemented.
1952 First General Elections held.
1953 Tenzing Norgay and Sir Edmund Hillary conquer Mt. Everest (May 29).
1954 Panchsheel agreement between India and China.
1956 Life insurance nationalized, State Reorganising Act comes into force.
1957 Second General Elections.
5
1958 Metric system of weights and measures introduced.
1959 Dalai Lama exiled; enters India.
1961 Liberation of Goa.
1962 Chinese attack on India. (Oct 20).
1964 Jawaharlal Nehru dies; Lai Bahadur Shastri becomes PM.
1965 Indo-Pak war.
1966 Tashkent Agreement reached, Death of Lai Bahadur Shastri, Indira Gandhi became PM.
1967 Dr. Zakir Hussain elected President.
1968 Hargovind Khurana shares the Nobel Prize for Medicine and Physiology.
1969 Death of. President Zakir Hussain (May 3). V. V. Giri elected President, Nationalization of
14 leading banks, Split in Indian National Congress.
1970 Former Indian ruler's privy purses abolished. Dr. C. V. Raman died (Nov. 2).
1971 Indo-Pak War over Bangladesh.
1972 Shimla Agreement signed.
1973 Manekshaw named India's first Field Marshal
1974 Nuclear explosion at Pokhran (May 18).
1975 Indian satellite 'Aryabhatta' launched, National emergency declared.
1976 The four Indian News agencies merged into a single News Agency known as 'Samachar',
life of Lok Sabha extended by an year.
1977 Defeat of Mrs. Indira Gandhi in the election, Morarji Desai takes over as PM, emergency
withdrawn.
1978 India launches world's biggest adult literacy plan (Oct. 2).
1979 Charan Singh became PM., Mother Teresa won the Nobel Peace Prize.
1980 Indira Gandhi returns to power at centre, India launches first satellite using its own satellite
launching vehicle (July. 18).
1981 India launched APPLE, Khalistan activists hijack Indian Airlines Boeing 737 to Lahore.
1982 Zail Singh sworn in as President, the 21-member Indian scientific expedition headed by Dr.
S. Z. Qasim lands on Antarctica (Jan. 9), INSAT1 A launched, Ninth Asian Games held in
New Delhi.
1983 The 7th Non Aligned Summit in New Delhi, Kalpakkam Atomic Energy plant goes critical
(July 2), INSAT-1 B launched (Aug. 30), Richard Attenborough's "Gandhi" wins 8 oscars.
1984 Rakesh Sharma becomes India's first spaceman (Apr. 5), Bachendri Pal become the first
Indian woman to scale Mt. Everest (May 23), Operation Blue Star, Assassination of Indira
Gandhi (Oct 31), Rajiv Gandhi becomes PM, Bhopal Gas tragedy (Dec. 3).
1985 Anti-defection Bill passed (Jan. 3), Azharuddin hits 3 centuries in 3 tests.
1986 The first wholly Indian test-tube baby bom at KEM Hospital, Bombay (Aug. 7).
1987 Sunil Gavaskar becomes the first batsman to score 10,000 runs in tests (Mar. 7), Goa
becomes the 25th state of India (May 30).
1988 India's first remote sensing satellite IRS 1 -A launched from Russia (Mar. 17), INSAT 1-C
launched from French Guyana (July 22).
1989 Successful test of Agni (May 22), laying of the foundation stone for the Ram Janmabhoomi
6
temple of Ayodhya (Nov 10). V.P. Singh becomes the PM.
1990 Successful launching of INSAT 1-D (June 12), Mandal
Commission recommendationimplemented (Aug. 7), V.P. Singh tenders resignation (Nov.
7), S. Chandrashekhar becomes PM. (Nov. 10).
1991 Rajiv Gandhi killed in a bomb blast (May 21), P. V. Narsimha Rao became PM. (June
21),Earthquake in Uttarkashi region (Oct. 20), Satyajit Ray got special Oscar award.
(Dec.16).
1992 Prithvi test fired (May 5), INSAT-2 A launched (July 10), Dr. Shanker Dayal Sharma
became President (July 25), the domes of Babri Masjid demolished (Dec 6).
1993 Panchayati Raj Act effective (Apr. 24), INSAT-2 B launched from French Guyana (July
23),Earthquake in Latur region (Sept. 30).
1994 First heart transplant in the country (Aug. 3), PSLV D-2 launched (Oct. 15).
1995 Punjab Chief Minister Beant Singh assassinated (Agu. 31), INSAT-2 C launched (Dec. 7)
1996 A.B. Vajpayee became PM. (May 16), H.D. Deve Gowda became PM. (June 1), India-
Bangladesh sign Ganga Water Pact (Dec. 12)
1997 I. K. Gujral became PM. (Apr. 21), K. R. Narayanan sworn in as President (July 25),
Mother Teresa passes away (Sept. 5), Arundhati Roy wins Booker Prize (Oct. 14), I. K.
Gujral resigns as PM. (Nov. 28)
1998 Konkan railway commissioned (Jan. 26), A. B. Vajpayee became PM. (Mar. 19), India
conducted total 5 nuclear tests (May 11 and May 13), Severe cyclone in Gujarat (June 9),
Amartya Sen won the Noble Prize in Economics (Oct. 14)
1999 P.M. Vajpayee arrived in Pakistan by Delhi-Lahore bus (Feb. 20), India successfully
launched its first commercial telecom satellite INSAT-2 E from Kourou (Apr. 3), Intense
fighting in Kargil (June-July), Devastating cyclone in Orissa and A. P. (Oct.)
2000 U. S. President Bill Clinton visited India (Mar.) INSAT-3 B launched from Kourou (Mar.
22), Successful test firing of 'Dhanush', the naval version of 'Prithvi' missile (Apr. 11),
Karnam Malleshwari wins a bronze at Olympics, Chattisgarh formed (Nov. 1), Uttaranchal
formed (Nov. 9), Jharkhand formed (Nov. 15)
2001 The pilotless target aircraft 'Lakshya' inducted into the Indian Air Force (Jan. 5),
Severeearthquake in Gujarat (Ja. 26), the newly-constructed Ennore port dedicated to the
nation (Feb. 1), India successfully launches GSLV D-1 from Sriharikota (Apr. 18), Indo-
Pak summit at Agra (July 15-16), Lok Pal Bill introduced in Lok Sabha (Aug. 14), Attack
on WTC, New York shakes the world (Sept. 11), Lok Sabha passes the bill on "Right to
Education till 14" (Nov. 30), Terrorist attack on Indian Parliament (Dec. 13)
2002 INSAT-3 C launched on Ariane rocket from Kourou in French Guyana (Jan. 24), ISRO
successfully tries the indegenious cryogenic engine (Feb. 5), POTO passed in the joint
session of the Parliament (Mar. 26), LCA test flown successfully (June 6), Cabinet clears
26% FDI in print media (June 25), Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam elected the President of India
(July 18), Bhairon Singh Shekhawat sworn in as Vice-President of India (Aug. 19), India
launches METSAT by using PSLV-C4 (Sept. 12), Draft of the Tenth Five-Year Plan
approved by the Planning Commission (Oct. 5), BSNL launches mobile phone service
(Oct. 15), Vajpayee and Putin sign Delhi declaration (Dec. 4), Kelkar submitted modified
report on tax reforms (Dec. 28)
2003 Kalpana Chawla killed in space shuttle Columbia burnup (Feb. 1); Large reserves of oil &
gas discovered in Barmer district of Rajasthan (Feb. 4); US launched attack on Iraq (Mar.
20); INSAT-3A launched from Kourou (Apr. 10); Indigenous Light Combat
Aircraft (LCA) renamed 'Tejas' (May 4); GSLVD-2 launched from Sriharikota (May 8);
First instance of power failure in modern USA (Aug. 15-16); Mars comes closest to Earth
7
(Aug. 27); Govt. approves the purchase of Advanced Jet Trainers, Hawk, from Britain
(Sept. 3); INSAT-3E launched from Kourou (Sept. 20); Pope John Paul-ll beautifies
Mother Teresa (Oct. 19); First Afro-Asian Games held in Hyderabad (Oct. 24-Nov. 1);
India & Pakistan agree to a formal cease-fire along the LOG (Nov. 25); 97th, 98th, 99th &
100th Constitutional Amendment Bills passed (Dec. 18-23)
2004 Sensex crosses the magical figure of 6000 (Jan. 2); India signs agreement with Russia for
obtaining Admiral Gorshkov (Jan. 20); Delhi High Court clears Rajiv Gandhi from the
Bofors deal (Feb. 4); 200 killed in Madrid train blast (Mar. 11); Nobel Medals of Rabindra
Nath Tagore gets stolen from Shantiniketan (Mar. 25); NDA conducts election before time,
but loses unexpectedly, UPA government comes in power, Dr. Manmohan Singh sworn-in
as the new PM (May 22); 87 children killed in a fire in school in Kumbhkonam, Tamil
Nadu (July 17); Olympics return to their homeland Athens, Rajyavardhan Rathode wins a
silver for India (Aug. 13-29); Hamid Karzai wins the Presidential vote in Afghanistan (Oct.
14); Sandalwood King Veerappan is dead (Oct. 18); George W. Bush re-elected (Nov. 3);
Kanchi Shankaracharya Jayendra Saraswati arrested on murder charges (Nov. 11); Yasser
Arafat is dead (Nov. 11); Parliament dismissses POTA (Dec. 9); Tsunami causes havoc in
South and South East Asia killing more than a lakh (Dec. 26)
India's History : Medieval India : Siraj-ud-daulah
captures Calcutta - 1756
The Battle of Plassey
As the East India Company grew in size so did its lust for power. The decline of the Mughal empire
and the rise of regional provinces like Bengal, presented the Company an opportunity for political
interference. In 1740, Nawab Alivardi Khan of Bengal became practically independent. In 1756, his
death led to a power struggle between his widow Ghasiti Begum and grandson Siraj Ud Daulah who
became the Nawab of Bengal.
The company's support for Ghasiti Begum earned it the wrath of Siraj. The Company also started
fortifying the Fort William without the Nawab's permission. On 20th June 1756, Siraj attacked and
took over Fort William. Many of the English prisoners, who were imprisoned in a tiny room, died.
This is often portrayed as the Black Hole of Calcutta. Many believe that the incident has been greatly
exaggerated to suit the purpose of the Company.
The Company Fights back
The company sent in relief troops from Fort St. George of the Madras headquarters. The troops led by
Robert Clive and Admiral Watson retook Calcutta on 2nd January, 1757. The treaty of Alinagar was
signed between the Nawab and the Company.
However Clive's military ambitions were on the ascendancy. His troops captured the French
settlement of Chandernagore. He tempted Siraj's uncle Mir Jafar to ally with him in exchange for the
Nawab's position. On 23rd June, 1757, the Company troops marched against Siraj. Betrayed by his
own men Siraj was defeated in the Battle of Plassey, which is said to have lasted only a few hours. He
was soon assassinated in his capital Murshidabad. From being traders, the Company turned
kingmakers in Bengal and Mir Jafar was installed as the new Nawab. Clive got his pound of flesh
from the Nawab in terms of 234,000 pounds and was awarded an annual salary of 30,000 pounds per
year. This made him one of the richest Britons in the world. The company also secure rights over a
large area south of Calcutta. Construction of a new Fort William was started and was completed in 16
years in 1773. These events led to the rise of Calcutta and the decline of Murshidabad.
8
The Battle of Wandiwash
India's History : Modern India : Battle of Wandiwash: The British defeat the French - 1760
French defeated in Battle of Wandiwash
English and French had their companies in India. Madras and Pondicherry were the chief trading
centres for the English whereas the French centre was on the Coromandel Coast. The relations
between both the companies were uncertain.
The Carnatic region was totally disturbed politically. The governor was so engrossed with Marathas
and Northern India that he hardly had any time for the Carnatic. Later the Marathas killed the
governor. The appointment of the new Nawab worsened the problems of the Carnatic region. But till
this time the English and French did not take active interest in Indian politics.
In 1740, England and France took opposite sides in the War of the Austrian Succession. This brought
the two companies in India technically in the state of war. French both by sea and land had besieged
Madras. So in June 1748 to avenge the capture of Madras, a large army was sent under Rear Admiral
Boscawen. But by October the War of Austrian Succession had been concluded and under the treaty
Madras was restored to English.
Then during the second Carnatic War, where Duplex, governor of Pondicherry, opened negotiations
with the English and the treaty was concluded. The English and the French have decided not to the
quarrels of the native princes and took possession of the territories, which are actually occupied by
them during the treaty.
In the third Carnatic war, the British East India Company defeated the French forces at the battle of
Wandiwash ending almost a century of conflict over supremacy in India. From 1744, the French and
English fought a series of battles for supremacy in the Carnatic region. This battle gave the British
trading company a far superior position in India compared to the other Europeans.
Third Battle of Panipat
India's History : Modern India : Third battle of Panipat: Ahmed Shah Abdali defeats the Marathas;
Accession of Madhava Rao Peshwa ; Rise of Hyder ali : 1761
TITLE
Prelude to Panipat
The Mughal Empire of north-western India had been in decline for some time after Ahmad Shah's
first attacks against them in 1749, eventually culminating in his sacking of Delhi in 1757. He left them
in nominial control however, which proved to be a fateful mistake when his son, Timur Shah, proved
to be utterly incapible of maintaining control of the Afgan troops. Soon the local Sikh population rose
in revolt and asked for the protection of the Marathas, who were soon in Lahore. Timur ran for the
hills of Afganistan.
Ahmad Shah could not allow this to go unchecked, and in 1759 rose an army from the Pashtun tribes
with help from the Baloch, and invaded India once again. By the end of the year they had reached
Lahore, but Marathas continued to pour into the conflict and by 1760 had formed a huge single army
of over 100,000 to block him.
Setting up defensive works in the excellent ground near Panipat, they blocked Ahmad's access back to
Afganistan. They then moved in almost 150 pieces of modern long-range rifled artillery from France.
With a range of several kilometres, these guns were some of the best in the world and a powerful
force that had previously made the Marathas invincible on the battlefield.
9
Siege
The Afgan forces arrived in late 1760 to find the Marathas in well-prepared works. Realizing a direct
attack was hopeless, they set up for a siege. The resulting face-off lasted two months. During this time
Ahmad continued to receive supplies from locals, but the Marathas own supply line was cut off.
Realizing the situation was not in their favour, the Marathas under Sadashiv Bhau decided to break
the siege. His plan was to pulverise the enemy formations with cannon fire and not to employ his
cavalry until the Muslims were throughly softened up. With the Afgans now broken, he would move
camp in a defensive formation towards Delhi, where they were assured supplies.
The line would be formed up some 12km across, with the artillery in front, protected by infantry,
pikemen, musketeers and bowmen. The cavalry was instructed to wait behind the artillery, ready to be
thrown in when control of battlefield had been established.
Behind this line was another ring of 30,000 young Maratha soldiers who were not battle tested, and
then the roughly 30,000 civilians entrained. Many were middle class men, women and children on
their piligrimage to the Hindu holy places and shrines, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see
Aryavarta (Aryan Land). The civilians were supremely confident in the Maratha army, regarding it as
one of the best in the world, and definitely one of the most powerful in Asia. Behind the civilians was
yet another protective infantry line, of young inexperienced soldiers.
Battle opens
Before dawn on January 14, 1761 the Maratha forces emerged from the trenches, pushing the artillery
into position on their pre-arranged lines, some 2km from the Afgans. Seeing that the battle was on,
Ahmad positioned his 60 smoothbore cannon and opened fire. However, because of the short range of
the weapons, the Maratha lines remained untouched. Ahmad then launched a cavalry attack to break
their lines.
The first defensive salvo of the Marathas went over the Afgan's heads and inflicted very little damage,
but the Afgan attack was nevertheless broken by Maratha bowmen and pikemen, along with some
musketeers stationed close to the artillery positions. The second and subsequent salvos were fired at
point blank range, and the resulting carnage sent the Afgans reeling back to their lines. The European-
style plan had worked just as envisioned.
The Marathas then started moving their formation forward, led by the artillery. The Afgans responded
with repeated cavalry attacks, all of which failed. About 17,000 Afgan cavalry and infantrymen lost
their lives in this opening stage of the battle. Gaping holes were opened in their ranks, and in some
places the Afgans and their Indian Muslim allies began to run away.
The Marathas cavalry charge
At this stage it looked as though Bhausaheb would clinch victory for the Marathas once again.
However, some of the Maratha lieutenants, jealous of the exploits of their artillery chiefs, decided to
exploit the gaps in the enemy lines despite strict instructions not to charge or engage Afgan cavalry.
They Maratha horsemen raced through their own artillery lines and charged towards the demoralised
Afgans, intending to cut the faltering army in two.
The over-enthausiasm of the charge saw many of the Maratha horses exhausted long before they had
traveled the two kilometres to the Afgan lines, some simple collasped. Making matters worse was the
suffocating odour of the rotting corpses of men and animals from the fighting of the previous months.
10
In response, the Afgan officers stiffened their troops resistance. Abdali called up his reserves and
cavalry of musketeers, who fired an extensive salvo at the Maratha cavalry, who were unable to
withstand the rifled muskets of the Afgans.
With their own men in the firing line, the Maratha artillery could not respond, and about 7,000
Maratha cavalry and infantry perished before the hand to hand fighting began at around 2PM. By
4PM the tired Maratha infantry began to succumb to the onslaught of attacks from fresh Afgan
reserves protected by their armoured leather jackets.
Attack from within
The Maratha Muslim logistics infantrymen (Rohillas), who had not been trusted to fight in the front
line because their loyalty was suspect or, rather, who were suspected of being loyal to the Koran or
fellow Muslims and not to their country now responded to the calls of the Afgan army for jihad and
revolted. This caused brought confusion and great consternation to loyal Maratha soldiers, who
thought that the enemy has attacked from behind.
Sadashivrao Bhau, seeing his forward lines dwindling and civilians behind, felt he had no choice but
to come down from his elephant and take a direct part in the battle on horseback at the head of his
troops. He left instructions with his bodyguards that, if the battle were lost, they must kill his wife
Parvati bai, as he could not abide the thought of her being dishonoured by Afgans.
Some Maratha soldiers, seeing that their general had disappeared from his elephant, panicked and
began to flee. Vishwasrao, the son of Prime Minister Nanasaheb, had already fallen to Afgan sniper
fire, shot in the head. Sadashivrao Bhau and his bodyguard fought to the end, the Maratha leader
having three horses shot out from under him.
Rout
The Afgans pursued the fleeing Maratha army and the civilians, while the Maratha front lines ramined
largely intact, with some of their artillery units fighting until sundown. Choosing not to launch a night
attack, made good their escape that night. Parvati bai escaped the armageddon with her bodyguards,
and eventually returned to Pune.
The Afgan cavalry and pikemen ran wild through the streets of Panipat, killing any Maratha soldiers
or civilians who offered and resistance. About 6,000 women and children sought shelter with Shuja
(allies of Abdali) whose Hindu officers persuaded him to protect them.
Afgan officers who had lost their kin in battle were permitted to carry out masscres the next day, also
in Panipat and the surrounding area. They arranged victory mounds of severed heads outside their
camps. About 10,000 Maratha civilians and soldiers alike were slain this way on 15th January 1761.
Many of the fleeing Maratha women jumped into the Panipat well rather than risk rape and dishonour.
Many others did their best to hide in the streets of Panipat when the North Indian Hindus of the town
refused to give them refuge.
Abdali's soldiers arrested about 10,000 women and another 10,000 young children and men brought
them to their camps. The women were raped, many committed suicide because of constant rapes
perpetrated on them. All of the prisoners were exchanged or sold as sex slaves to Afganistan or North
India, transported on carts, camels and elephants in bamboo cages.
A conservative estimate places Maratha losses at 35,000 on the Panipat battlefield itself, and another
10,000 or more in surrounding areas. The Afgans are thought to have lost some 30,000.
11
Following the battle
To save their kingdom, the Mughals once again changed sides and welcomed the Afgans to Delhi.
However the news soon rose that Marathas in the south had organised another 100,000 men to avenge
their loss and rescue the prisoners. He left Delhi two months after the battle, heading for Afganistan
with his loot of 500 elephants, 1500 camels, 50,000 horses and about 22,000 women and children.
The Mughals remained in nominal control over small areas of India, but were never a force again. The
empire officially ended in 1857 when its last emperor was accused of being involved in the Sepoy
Mutiny and exiled.
The Marathas expansion was stopped in the battle, and soon broke into infighting within their empire.
They never regained any unity, and were soon under increasing pressure from the British. Their
claims to empire were officially ended in 1818.
Meanwhile the Sihks, the original reason Ahmad invaded, were left largely untouched by the battle.
They soon re-took Lahore. When Ahmad returned in March 1764 he was forced to break off his siege
after only two weeks due to rebellion in Afganistan. He returned again in 1767, but was unable to win
any decisive battle. With his own troops arguing over a lack of pay, he eventually adbandoned the
district to the Sihks, who reamained in control until 1849.
The Battle of Buxar
India's History : Modern India : Battle of Buxar: The British defeat Mir Kasim - 1764
Battle of Buxar
The company sent in relief troops from Fort St. George of the Madras headquarters. The troops led by
Robert Clive and Admiral Watson retook Calcutta on 2nd January, 1757. The treaty of Alinagar was
signed between the Nawab and the Company.
However Clive's military ambitions were on the ascendancy. His troops captured the French
settlement of Chandernagore. He tempted Siraj's uncle Mir Jafar to ally with him in exchange for the
Nawab's position. On 23rd June, 1757, the Company troops marched against Siraj. Betrayed by his
own men Siraj was defeated in the Battle of Plassey, which is said to have lasted only a few hours. He
was soon assassinated in his capital Murshidabad. From being traders, the Company turned
kingmakers in Bengal and Mir Jafar was installed as the new Nawab. Clive got his pound of flesh
from the Nawab in terms of 234,000 pounds and was awarded an annual salary of 30,000 pounds per
year. This made him one of the richest Britons in the world. The company also secures rights over a
large area south of Calcutta. Construction of a new Fort William was started and was completed in 16
years in 1773. These events led to the rise of Calcutta and the decline of Murshidabad.
It is said that the origins of Calcutta's most famous public festival - the Durga Puja can be traced to
the victory of the British in Plassey. Raja Naba Kissen Deb, a financial backer of the Company, threw
a party in honor of Robert Clive during the occasion of Durga Puja.
In 1760, Mir Jafar was succeeded by his son-in-law Mir Kasim. He handed over the districts of
Chittagong, Midnapore and Burdwan to the Company. Robert Clive returned to England in the same
year. Mir Kasim (reign:1760 to 1763), made an attempt to recover Bengal from the hands of British.
In 1764, he enlisted the help of Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II and Nawab Shuja Ud Daulah of Oudh.
But their troops were defeated in the Battle of Buxar by the company troops led by Major Hector
Munro.
The armies of Mir Kasim and his allies Emperor Shah Alam II and Shuja-ud-daula, Nawab of Avadh,
out-matched the British in number. To Mir Kasim's force of 40,000 Robert Clive's army commanded
by Major Hector Munro had about 18,000 men. Early on, East India Company forces had to retreat
12
across the river. But they were allowed to get away; the forces retreat across the river. But they were
allowed to get away; the forces regrouped and through a naval force attacked through the river route.
Mir Jafar also had trained Afghan cavalry and modern cannon manned by European mercenaries and
led a charge on the Company's forces. However, the Company relied on its strength of sequenced
shooting-its musketeers put up volley of gunfire. This coordinated gun shooting became very much a
trademark of the British way of war over the next few decades. The sheer power of gunfire ensured
that attacking cavalry scattered. The establishment of British paramountcy along with the
diwani(revenue administration) of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa was the major significance of The battle
of Buxar.
Diwani Rights
India's History : Modern India : The British get Diwani Rights in Bengal, Bihar and Orissa ; Conquest
of Orissa : 1765
Battle of Buxar
Battle of Buxar, was a decisive battle fought between British and Indian forces at Buxar, a town on
the Ganges River. Mir Kasim, the nawab (governor) of Bengal, wanted to rid his territory of British
control. He formed an alliance with the Nawab of Oudh and Shah Alam II, the Mughal emperor. The
combined Indian armies invaded Bengal and clashed with British troops, led by Major Hector Munro,
in October 1764. A hotly contested battle resulted in victory for the British. As a result of this
triumph, in 1765, Robert Clive signed the Treaty of Allahabad with the Nawab of Oudh and Shah
Alam II. The treaty effectively legalized the British East India Company's control over the whole of
Bengal.
Diwani rights
Shuja was restored to Awadh, with a subsidiary force and guarantee of defence, the emperor Shah
Alam solaced with Allahabad and a tribute and the frontier drawn at the boundary of Bihar. In Bengal
itself he took a decisive step. In return for restoring Shah Alam to Allahabad he received the imperial
grant of the diwani or revenue authority in Bengal and Bihar to the Company. This had hitherto been
enjoyed by the nawab, so that now there was a double government, the nawab retaining judicial and
police functions, the Company exercising the revenue power. The Company was acclimatized, as it
were, into the Indian scene by becoming the Mughal revenue agent for Bengal and Bihar. There was
as yet no thought of direct administration, and the revenue was collected by a Company-appointed
deputy-nawab, one Muhammad Reza Khan.
But this arrangement made the Company the virtual ruler of Bengal since it already possessed
decisive military power. All that was left to the nawab was the control of the judicial administration.
But he was later persuaded to hand this over to the Company's deputy-nawab, so that its control was
virtually complete.
Inspite of all this the East India Company was again in the verge of bankruptcy which stirred them to
a fresh effort at reform. On the one hand Warren Hastings was appointed with a mandate for reform,
on the other an appeal was made to the State for a loan. The result was the beginnings of state control
of the Company and the thirteen-year governorship of Warren Hastings.
Hastings's first important work was that of an organizer. In the two and a half years before the
Regulating Act came into force he put in order the whole Bengal administration. The Indian deputies
who had collected the revenue on behalf of the Company were deposed and their places taken by a
Board of Revenue in Calcutta and English collectors in the districts. This was the real beginning of
British administration in India.
13
First Mysore War
India's History : Modern India : First Mysore War: The British conclude a humiliating peace pact with
Hyder Ali - 1767 -1769
The First Battle
The second half of the eighteenth century was a period of great confusion in Indian history which
witnessed the rise of a colonial power. The only state which offered stiff resistance to their expansion
was Mysore, which fought not one but four wars. Tipu participated in all those four Mysore wars, in
two of which he inflicted serious blows on the English. In fact Tipus rule starts in the midst of a war
against the English and ends in the midst of war against them. His short but stormy rule was eventful
for his several engagements with his neighbours, the Marathas and the Nizam, as well, whose
shortsighted policy prompted them to join the colonials against Mysore.
In the First Mysore war Tipu, a lad of 17 years, suddenly surprised the English when he appeared at
the gates of Madras in September 1767. He caused great consternation to the Governor of Madras, to
the Nawab of Carnatic, Muhammed Ali, and to almost all Councilors who very narrowly escaped
being taken in the country-house in the Company's garden. Happily for them a small vessel that by
accident was opposite the garden furnished them with the means of escaping. Thus, it was a
providential escape of the entire Madras government, which were about to be captured by Tipu, who
had been in independent command of a body of troops in the First Mysore war.
Warren Hastings
India's History : Modern India : Death of Madhava Rao Peshwa; Warren Hastings appointed as
Governor of Bengal : 1772
Warren Hastings
Hastings, Warren (1732-1818) Governor (1772-1774) and Governor General (1774-1785) of the fort
william in Bengal. Warren Hastings abandoned the policy of hesitation of his predecessors about the
question of establishing political dominance in India, and bringing about a series of reforms and
waging wars against the challengers to his expansionist plan and conquering new lands. He laid the
foundation of British power in India. But his contributions did not refrain parliament from impeaching
him under manifold charges including corruption, oppression and unauthorised wars. He was recalled
in 1785 and tried in parliament, but ultimately acquitted.
Warren Hastings was born at Churchill in Oxfordshire on 6 December 1732. His family was in
reduced circumstances so he was brought up by an uncle, who took him to London and in 1743 sent
him to school at Westminster, where he proved to be an excellent scholar. On leaving school he
obtained a junior appointment in the east india company's Bengal service. He arrived at Calcutta in
September 1750.
Hastings's first appointment was at kasimbazar, a major centre for procuring silk. He was at
Kasimbazar in 1756 when Nawab sirajuddaula was provoked to attack and storm Calcutta, rounding
up the British at Kasimbazar in the process. On his release Hastings joined the British refugees from
Calcutta. He married one of them, Mary, widow of an officer who had been killed at Calcutta. Neither
the first Mrs Hastings nor the two children that she bore her husband were to live long.
From 1758 Hastings served as the company's Resident at murshidabad with the new nawab, mir jafar,
in whose favour the British had intervened at Palashi. In 1760 a coup engineered by the British
brought down Mir Jafar and replaced him with another nawab, mir qasim. Shortly afterwards,
Hastings went down to Calcutta and succeeded to the council that managed the company's affairs
under a new governor, henry vansittart. Hastings allied with the governor in disputes that split the
council about the extent to which the nawab should be permitted to regulate the private trade of
14
British merchants. Hastings and Vansittart favoured conciliation. Tensions with the nawab, however,
erupted into armed conflict and Mir Qasim was driven out of Bengal. Vansittart resigned his
governorship and returned to Britain. In January 1765 Hastings followed him.
In Britain Hastings sought to influence future Indian policy and to secure his return with a prestigious
position. In 1768 he was appointed second in the council of the settlement at Fort St George, Madras.
Hastings spent two successful years at Madras. His management of the company's commercial
concerns was particularly commended. In 1771 the directors of the East India Company, looking for a
new governor of Bengal, chose Hastings. He returned to Calcutta on 17 February 1772.
Appointment as a Governer
Hastings saw himself in 1772 as governor of what he regarded as a province now fully part of the
British empire. He dismissed formal acknowledgements of Mughal authority over Bengal as harmful
fictions. He had orders to assert the company's direct authority over a government that had been
largely delegated to Indian officials. He complied with alacrity. He had no qualms about making
further incursions into areas of government allocated to the nawabs. He believed that sovereignty, a
concept that he frequently invoked, was vested in the 'British nation' and that there must be no
equivocation about that.
Hastings shared the view, universal among contemporary Europeans, that Bengal was a naturally rich
province with a highly productive agriculture and skilled manufacturers that had suffered from
misgovernment under its later Indian rulers and during the British take-over. It had been afflicted in
1770 by a very severe famine. The new regime's task was to enable recovery to take place. In the
years after 1772 Hastings developed a distinctive point of view on how this should be done. He
believed that Bengal must be governed in ways to which its people were presumed to be accustomed.
Indian methods of government and Indian law must be preserved. The British should aim 'to rule this
people with ease and moderation according to their own ideas, manners, and prejudices'.
Revenue was the central issue of early British government in India. The British were uncertain as to
how much they could extract from the province without inflicting damage on it. In 1772 Hastings
decided that the best way of finding out what Bengal could afford to pay was to invite competition for
the right to collect revenue for a period of five years. Where the existing zamindars or hereditary
revenue managers, did not make adequate offers, higher bids would be accepted. This so-called
'farming' system was adjudged even by Hastings to have been a failure. For the rest of Hastings's
administration the company negotiated revenue assessments year by year, usually with the zamindars.
As diwan of Bengal after 1765, the company acquired responsibility for administering civil justice,
cases of property and inheritance being closely involved with the payment of revenue. Criminal
justice was the concern of the nawab, who enforced the Islamic criminal law. Hastings believed that
the British must intervene to restore a decayed system of indigenous justice. He created new
hierarchies of courts, both civil and criminal, under British supervision. The law administered by the
courts was to be the law already in force in Bengal. Hastings set about obtaining translations that
would make this law accessible to those Europeans who had to administer it.
As governor of Bengal, Hastings had not only to direct the internal administration of a huge province,
but he had to conduct complex diplomacy with Indian states and on occasions with other European
powers. By the 1770s it was impossible for the British in Bengal or in their other settlements at
Madras and Bombay to isolate themselves from the new order of states that was replacing the Mughal
empire. Hastings had no ambition to make new conquests, but he was strongly in favour of seeking
influence by alliances. His ideal of peaceful influence over allies bore little relation, however, to the
way events were to unfold. The company was to be repeatedly drawn into war, beginning with a war
against the Rohillas in 1774 fought to strengthen the company's major ally in northern India, the
nawab-wazir of Oudh in whose territory British troops were maintained.
15
In 1773 the national government in Britain intervened to impose reforms on the East India Company.
Authority in Bengal was to be concentrated in a governor general and a new Supreme Council of five.
A Supreme Court, staffed by royal judges, was also to be established in Calcutta. Hastings was chosen
as the first governor general, but three men, John Clavering, George Monson and philip francis, were
sent out to join the council directly from Britain.
The three new councillors from Britain began an unremitting opposition to Hastings immediately after
their arrival in Calcutta on 19 October 1774. Acting together, they constituted a majority. They
quickly professed to find corruption behind every policy of the old government and to believe that
Hastings was allowing the resources of Bengal to be plundered and wasted. Francis, an intellectual of
a calibre to match Hastings, was a particularly formidable opponent of the governor general.
The new councillors began by denouncing the war against the Rohillas. Hastings's revenue policy was
also condemned and Indians were encouraged to bring accusations of personal corruption against him.
The leading accuser was maharaja nanda kumar, who evidently calculated that he stood to gain ample
rewards were the new councillors to displace Hastings. His accusations of bribe-taking were probably
much exaggerated, but it is likely that Hastings had received some irregular payments. Before
anything could be proved, charges of forgery were brought against Nanda Kumar in the new Supreme
Court. He was found guilty, sentenced to death and executed on 5 August 1775. Critics of Hastings
from his own time onwards have drawn the not unreasonable inference that he promoted the
prosecution and may have influenced the verdict. What can be established is that the prosecution
against Nanda Kumar was promoted by his Indian enemies with the encouragement of Hastings's
friends.
Hastings recovered control over the government as two of his opponents, Monson and Clavering,
died, leaving Francis alone to carry on the opposition against Hastings. After fighting a duel against
Hastings on 17 August 1780, in which he was slightly wounded, Francis finally left India.
Hastings remained in office until 1785. War was the main source of the difficulties that he faced in his
last years. From 1778 the British were fighting the Marathas. In 1780 the formidable armies of
Mysore invaded the Carnatic territory which was under the protection of the British. In January 1781
the first French expeditionary force arrived in India to support Mysore.
Hastings took credit for the diplomacy that broke up the formidable Indian coalition opposing him and
for sending money, supplies and troops on a very large scale from Bengal to Madras, thus enabling
the Mysore forces to be pushed back and the French to be contained. With some justification,
Hastings saw himself as the saviour of the British empire in India. Nevertheless, the scale of the wars
did Hastings great damage with opinion in Britain. He was accused of being a warmonger with a lust
for conquest that had landed the company in ruinously expensive wars.
The needs of the war were the cause of some very contentious dealings by Hastings with the
company's dependants and allies in northern India. Chait Singh, the raja of Benares, was required to
pay an increased subsidy to the company. On the pretext that he was evading legitimate demands,
Hastings proposed to exact a large fine from him on a personal visit in 1781. The raja's retainers
resisted and forced Hastings to flee from the city.
Although British authority was quickly restored, the episode left a strong impression that Hastings had
acted tyrannically as well as subjecting himself to needless risks. From Benares Hastings went on to
try to raise extra funds from the company's ally the nawab of Oudh by forcing him to resume
alienation of land revenue and to confiscate a large hoard of treasure in the possession of his mother
and grandmother, the Begums of Oudh. Again, Hastings appeared to have acted with a ruthless high-
handedness.
16
Throughout his governorship, Hastings was a generous patron of the arts and of learning. He took a
particular pride in the translation of the Bhagavat Gita made by charles wilkins, for which he wrote a
memorable preface. His interests laid the foundations for the creation of the Bengal Asiatick Society
(now asiatic society) of 1784.
In February 1785, in failing health, Hastings resigned his office. He landed in England on 13 June
1785, after an absence of over sixteen years. He had not unreasonable expectations of acclaim and
honours on his return, but he was in fact to meet attacks that culminated with his being put on trial.
The trial began in 1788 and lasted until he was acquitted in 1795.
Unfortunately for Hastings, Edmund Burke, whose revulsion against what he saw as gross
misgovernment in British India had focused on Hastings, was not prepared to let him go. Burke had
undoubtedly fallen under the influence of Philip Francis after his return to Britain in 1780, but he had
formed his own views about India and he was driven by a passionate concern for justice. He believed
that the East India Company was laying India waste by rapacious policies within its own provinces,
by the exploitation of its allies and by its wars. He held Hastings to be responsible for all this. In 1786
Burke produced charges for an impeachment to be voted by the House of Commons and then to be
heard by the House of Lords. The first charge, which related to the Rohilla war, was thrown out by the
Commons, but the second, on Hastings's dealings with the raja of Benares, was passed, as were others
introduced in the 1787 session of Parliament. On 10 May 1787 Hastings was formally impeached.
Huge crowds attended the early sessions of the trial that was regarded as a great public spectacle. But
by 30 May 1791, when the prosecution closed their case, few could doubt that the tide was running in
Hastings's favour. In a new climate of opinion with a more assertive British nationalism in reaction to
the French Revolution, empire came increasingly to be seen as part of Britain's greatness rather than
as a cause of shame. Hastings's claims to have been the saviour of empire were therefore viewed
sympathetically. In 1795, when the Lords gave judgement, in every case a large majority voted 'not
guilty'.
The stark legal alternatives of 'guilty' or 'not guilty' are an inappropriate basis for any assessment of a
career as complex as Hastings's. It is impossible to endorse Burke's extravagantly vituperative abuse
of him. Few would now believe that he deserved impeachment let alone being found guilty. On the
other hand, the argument that he had no significant case to answer, beyond some minor blemishes
committed in a good cause and was the victim of Francis's envy and Burke's malice is not sustainable.
Strictly within the terms argued out in the impeachment, Hastings was vulnerable to accusations of
high-handedness in Benares and Oudh and he had accumulated a fortune by methods that the new
official morality of the late eighteenth century did not sanction.
Any assessment of him on terms that go beyond those of the Impeachment must recognise Hastings's
exceptional qualities of mind, he brought a creative intelligence of a very high order to Indian
government. He also showed an appreciation of Indian culture and a regard for individual Indian
people most unusual in any British official in high office at any time. Partly in reaction to him, future
British administration in India would be more closely bound by rules and more distant from Indians.
After his acquittal in 1795, Hastings lived for another 23 years. His life was that of a country
gentleman, engaged in local affairs and farming the ancestral family estate that he had been able to
recover. Public employment never came again, but at least in the last years of his life, he was treated
with much respect and received some public recognition. He died on 22 August 1818 in his 85th year.
Death of Madhava Rao Peshwa
1737 saw the death of the Peshwa brothers, Baji Rao and Chimaji.Baji Rao's son, Balaji Bajirao
(Nanasaheb) succeeded as the Peshwa. The three brothers Nanasaheb, Sadashivrao and Raghunathrao
continued the able rule of Peshwa for the next 25 years. The 1761 Panipat battle, between Marathas
and Ahmad Shah Abdalli, destroyed both Abdalli and Peshwas. Though Marathas won the war, they
17
had to face a hard blow when they lost Sadashivrao and Nanasaheb Peshwa's eldest son. Nanasaheb
died grief-striken in the same year. His second son Thorale Madhav Rao assumed the title. And his
uncle Raghunath Rao acted as his care taker.
Madhavrao Peshwa defeated Haider Ali of Mysore and Nizam of Hyderabad. In 1769, Marathas lead
by Mahadaji Shinde, headed the North India campaign. They defeated the Jats and took hold of Agra
and Mathura. They reinstated the Mughal Emperor on the throne, who was living on the East India
Company Pension.
After Madhav Rao Peshwa's death in 1772, Raghunathrao's attempts to be the Peshwa were foiled by
the ministers. Hurt, he joined the British. The state came under the rule of ministers headed by Nana
Phadnavis and Mahadaji Shinde.
The Regulating Act - 1773
India's History : Modern India : The Regulating Act passed by the British Parliament - 1773
Regulating Act
By 1773 the East India Company was in dire financial straits. The Company was important to Britain
because it was a monopoly trading company in India and in the east and many influential people were
shareholders. The Company paid 400,000 annually to the government to maintain the monopoly but
had been unable to meet its commitments because of the loss of tea sales to America since 1768.
About 85% of all the tea in America was smuggled Dutch tea. The East India Company owed money
to both the Bank of England and the government; it had 15 million lbs of tea rotting in British
warehouses and more en route from India.
Lord North decided to overhaul the management of the East India Company with the Regulating Act.
This was the first step along the road to government control of India. The Act set up a system
whereby it supervised (regulated) the work of the East India Company but did not take power for
itself.
The East India Company had taken over large areas of India for trading purposes but also had an army
to protect its interests. Company men were not trained to govern so North's government began moves
towards government control. India was of national importance and shareholders in the Company
opposed the Act. The East India Company was a very powerful lobby group in parliament in spite of
the financial problems of the Company.
The Act said that:
That, for the government of the presidency of fort William in Bengal, there shall be a Governor
General, and a Council consisting of four councillors with the democratic provision that the decision
of the majority in the Council shall be binding on the Governor General.
That Warren Hastings shall be the first Governor General and that Lt. General John Clavering, George
Monson, Richard Barwell and Philip Francis shall be four first Councillors.
That His Majesty shall establish a supreme court of judicature consisting of a Chief Justice and three
other judges at Fort William, and that the Court's jurisdiction shall extend to all British subjects
residing in Bengal and their native servants.
That the company shall pay out of its revenue salaries to the designated persons in the following rate:
to the Governor General 25000 sterling, to the Councillors 10,000 sterling, to the Chief Justice 8000
sterling and the Judges 6000 sterling a year.
18
That the Governor General, Councillors and Judges are prohibited from receiving any gifts, presents,
pecuniary advantages from the Indian princes, zamindars and other people.
That no person in the civil and military establishments can receive any gift, reward, present and any
pecuniary advantages from the Indians.
That it is unlawful for collectors and other district officials to receive any gift, present, reward or
pecuniary advantages from zamindars and other people.
The provisions of the Act clearly indicate that it was directed mainly to the malpractice and corruption
of the company officials. The Act, however, failed to stop corruption and it was practised rampantly
by all from the Governor General at the top to the lowest district officials. Major charges brought
against Hastings in his impeachment trial were those on corruption. Corruption divided the Council
into two mutually hostile factions- the Hastings group and Francis group. The issues of their fighting
were corruption charges against each other. Consequently, Pitt's India act, 1784 had to be enacted to
fight corruption and to do that an incorruptible person, lord Cornwallis, was appointed with specific
references to bring order in the corruption ridden polity established by the company.
Anglo-Maratha War
India's History : Modern India : The First Anglo-Maratha war - 1775 - 1782
The First Anglo-Maratha War
First Anglo-Maratha War, the result of the Bombay government's alliance with the would-be Maratha
peshwa, Raghoba. Hastings sent an expedition across the peninsula from Calcutta to Surat (1778,
arrived 1779) and broke the coalition between the Marathas, Haidar Ali, and the nizam. The company
had already showed its might by defeating the combined forces of Mughal Shah Alam and Bengal's
Nawab Siraj-ud-Daulah at the Battle of Plassey. Soon hostilities broke out between the Company and
the Marathas. The first Anglo-Maratha war took place between 1775-82 and resulted in a humiliating
defeat of the Company's forces, which in turn resulted in the treaty of Salbai. Soon the Maratha
Empire was in a position to regain its lost glory and it had found a genius in Madhaji Schindia. But his
death in 1794 dashed all hopes of Maratha revivalism. Soon they followed the Mughals into
dissolution. The Treaty of Salbai (1782) obtained for Bombay 20 years' peace with the Marathas and
the cession of Salsette and Elephanta.
Second Mysore War
India's History : Modern India : Second Mysore War : The British defeat Hyder Ali - 1780-1784
Second Mysore War - The British wins over Hyder Ali
Hyder Ali used to work as a general in the army of the King of Mysore before overthrowing him and
establishing his own kingdom, he is famous for his epic battles with the British. He is best known for
his invasions of the Malabar coast region between 1766 until his death and the historic defeat of the
British in the first Mysore war in 1767-69. Warren Hastings sent from Bengal Sir Eyre Coote, who,
though repulsed at Chidambaram, defeated Hyder thrice successively in the battles of Porto Novo,
Pollilur and Sholingarh, while Tippoo was forced to raise the siege of Wandiwash, and Vellore was
provisioned. On the arrival of Lord Macartney as governor of Madras, the British fleet captured
Negapatam, and forced Hyder Ali to confess that he could never ruin a power, which had command of
the sea. He had sent his son Tippoo to the west coast, to seek the assistance of the French fleet, when
his death took place suddenly at Chittur in December 1782. Tipu took over as ruler of Mysore after
the death of his father around 1782.
The Pitt's Act
India's History : Modern India : Pitt's India Act - 1784
19
The Pitt's Act
After the Regulating Act of 1773 to regulate the affairs of the Company in India, the second important
step taken by the British Parliament was the appointment of a Board of Control under Pitt's India Bill
of 1784. It provided for a joint government of the Company (represented by the Directors), and the
Crown (represented by the Board of Control).
A Board of six members was constituted with two members of the British Cabinet and four of the
Privy Council. One of who was the President and who soon became, in effect, the minister for the
affairs of the East India Company. The Board had all the powers and control over all the acts and
operations, which related to the civil, military and revenues of the Company.
The Council was reduced to three members and the Governor-General was empowered to overrule the
majority. The Governors of Bombay and Madras were also deprived of their independent powers.
Calcutta was given greater powers in matters of war, revenue, and diplomacy, thus becoming in effect
the capital of Company possessions in India.
By a supplementary the Bill passed in 1786, Lord Cornwallis was appointed as the first Governor-
General, and he then became the effective ruler of British India under the authority of the Board of
Control and the Court of Directors. The constitution set up by the Pitt's India Act did not undergo any
major changes during the existence of the Company's rule in India.
The Charter Act of 1813 abolished the trading activities of the Company and henceforth became
purely an administrative body under the Crown. Thereafter, with few exceptions, the Governor-
General and the Council could make all the laws and regulations for people (Indians and British).
The salient features relating to the governance of the kingdom of Bengal were:
There shall be a Board of Control consisting of maximum six parliamentarians headed by a senior
cabinet member to direct, superintend and control the affairs of the company's territorial possessions
in the East Indies.
The Court of Directors shall establish a Secret Committee to work as a link between the Board and the
Court.
The Governor General's council shall consist of three members one of whom shall be the commander-
in-chief of the King's army in India. In case the members present in a meeting of the council shall any
time be equally divided in opinion, the Governor General shall have two votes (one his own and
another casting vote).
The government must stop further experiments in the revenue administration and proceed to make a
permanent settlement with zamindars at moderate rate of revenue demand. The government must
establish permanent judicial and administrative systems for the governance of the new kingdom.
All civilians and military officers must provide the Court of Directors a full inventory of their
property in India and in Britain within two months of their joining their posts.
Severe punishment including confiscation of property, dismissal and jail, shall be inflicted on any
civilian or military officer found guilty of corruption.
Receiving gifts, rewards, presents in kind or cash from the rajas, zamindars and other Indians are
strictly prohibited and people found guilty of these offences shall be tried charged with corruption.
Parliament directly appointed Lord charles cornwallis to implement the Act. Immediately after his
joining as Governor General in 1786, Cornwallis embarked upon the responsibility of reform works
20
reposed on him by parliament. In 1793 he completed his mission. He introduced permanent
settlement, announced a judicial code, established administrative and police systems and then left for
home in the same year.
The Third Mysore War
India's History : Modern India : Third Mysore War between the British and Tipu - 1790-1792
The Two Rivals-Marathas & The Nizam
The Treaty of Mangalore carried the seeds of strife with the Marathas, because they were
disappointed in their expectation of acting as the mediators and of recovering their losses in the North
of Mysore. Tipu had emerged with enhanced prestige whom even the mighty English could not
humble. This excited the jealousy of both the Martha's and the Nizam who fought a war with him for
two years from 1785 to 1787. The Nizam was also not friendly towards Mysore ever since he had
come to power in 1761. He regarded himself as the overlord of the entire south, and expected Haidar
and Tipu to be his tributaries. As he was military imbecile he allied himself either with the Marathas
or the English to distress the Mysore rulers. There was always a pro-British party at Hyderabad which
dissuaded the Nizam from begin cordial to Tipu. In the war that followed Tipu had the upper hand
despite the alliance of his two neighbors. The war came to an end in April 1787 by the Treaty of
Gajendragadh by which he ceded Badami to the Marathas hoping to win their support against the
English or at least to prevent them from joining the English.
Tipu was disappointed in his expectations. Far from joining him to remove the English from India,
both of them, the Marathas and the Nizam joined the English in a powerful confederacy against Tipu
in the Third Mysore war.
The Defeat
The allies struggled hard for nearly two years from 1790 to 1792. Lord Cornwallis who had
surrendered to the Americans at Saratoga in the new world assumed the command, and with great
difficulty he was successful in a surprise night attack to enter into the island of Srirangapatna on 6th
Feb. 1792. Tipu was made to make peace by surrendering half of his kingdom, and paying three
crores has indemnity, apart from sending two of his sons as hostages to Madras. This was a serious
blow to Tipu.
Permanant Settlement of Bengal
India's History : Modern India : Permanent Settlement of Bengal - 1793
Permanant Settlement
Permanent Settlement Concluded by the Cornwallis administration in 1793, Permanent Settlement
was a grand contract between the east india company government and the Bengal landholders
21
(zamindars and independent talukdars of all denominations). Under the contract, the landholders or
zamindars were admitted into the colonial state system as the absolute proprietors of landed property.
Besides being turned into proprietors of land, the zamindars were endowed with the privilege of
holding their proprietary right at a rate which was to continue unchanged for ever. Under the contract
the government was barred from enhancing its revenue demand on the zamindars.
Objectives and effects of Permanent Settlement The conclusion of the permanent settlement with
zamindars had some immediate objectives in view. These may be classified as: placing revenue
paying on a definite footing and making revenue collection sure and certain; ensuring a minimum
revenue; relieving officials of revenue matter and engaging them to other spheres of administration;
and finally, forging an alliance between the zamindar class and the colonial rulers.
Though not entirely but largely, government succeeded in achieving these short-term goals. The
revenue-paying agency was put on a definite footing in the person of zamindar. The government now
knew how much was to be its annual inflow from land and the zamindars also knew for certain their
contractual obligation to government. Formerly, neither the government nor the revenue payers knew
exactly where did they stand as regards revenue collection and payment.
Tipu Sultan : Fourth Battle of Mysore
India's History : Modern India : Fourth Mysore War: The British defeat Tipu; Death of Tipu; Partition
of Mysore ; Tipu's history - 1799
Tipu Sultan
The second half of the eighteenth century was a period of great confusion in Indian history, which
witnessed the rise of a colonial power. The only state that offered stiff resistance to their expansion
was Mysore, which fought not one but four wars. Tipu participated in all those four Mysore wars, in
two of which he inflicted serious blows on the English. In fact Tipus rule starts in the midst of a war
against the English and ends in the midst of war against them. His short but stormy rule was eventful
for his several engagements with his neighbours, the Marathas and the Nizam, as well, whose
shortsighted policy prompted them to join the colonials against Mysore. Tipu remained fully involved
in warfare from his youth until his fall in the fourth Mysore war. From 1760 when Haidar Ali allied
himself with the French against the English to 1799 when Wellesly destroyed Tipu, Mysore had
become the terror of Leadenhall Street, the headquarters of the East India Company. These forty years
of Tipu both as a prince and a ruler witnessed continuous warfare.
Having learnt the western technique of warfare, Tipu was not slow in making use of it. He was
himself bold, dashing, and a person of undaunted adventurous spirit. Under his leadership Mysore
army proved a school of military science to Indian princes. The dread of an European army no longer
wrought any magic on him. Tipus infliction of serious blows on the English in the first and second
Mysore wars damaged their reputation as an invincible power. Grant wrote to Shelburne, An English
army much superior to one which under a Lawrence, or a Clive, five and twenty ago made
Hindoostan, nay some of the powers of Europe tremble at the bare recital of its victories, now for the
first time was retreating in the face of an Indian army. This was a reference to colonel Baileys capture
and general Munros flight in the second Mysore war. Alexander Dow wrote his history, We were
alarmed, as if his horses had wings to fly over our walls.
22
Tipu was a far-sighted ruler, who discerned the danger to the freedom of the land by the colonial
expansion, which necessitated continuous warfare. Apart from this he had his own agenda to assert his
own authority over the neighbours, the Marathas and the Nizam, who were not reconciled to the rise
and growth of Mysore as an independent powerful state. This weakness of the neighbours was fully
exploited by the English whose shrewd political sense involved them as allies against Mysore. In all
four Mysore wars the Marathas and the Nizam were willing to support the English rather than either
Haider or Tipu. In the third Mysore war all three formed a powerful confederacy against Tipu, and in
the fourth Mysore war the Nizam was an ally of the English. The third cause for the continuous
warfare was the need to suppress the far too many units of independent power, the feudatories and
small principalities, whose mutual rivalries and ambition had caused great confusion in Karnataka. It
was Tipus policy to establish a strong central authority which would serve the people better.
Thus the English, the Marathas, the Nizam and the feudatories were the principal causes for Tipus
wars. The most serious wars were against the English, who had never been confronted with a more
formidable foe. In the first Mysore War Tipu, a lad of 17 years, suddenly surprised the English when
he appeared at the gates of Madras in September 1767. He caused great consternation to the governor
of Madras, to the Nawab of Carnatic, Muhammad Ali, and to almost all the councillors who very
narrowly escaped being taken in the country house in the companys garden. Happily for them a small
vessel that by accident was opposite the garden furnished them with the means of escaping. Thus, it
was a providential escape of the entire Madras government, which were about to be captured by Tipu,
who had been placed in independent command of a body of troops in the first Mysore war.
Tipus training in the art of war started as early as 1763, when he was hardly 13 years old, in Haidars
attack on Malabar where Tipu displayed great dash and courage. That was his first experience of war.
He was present in Haidars negotiations with the Nizam in the first Mysore war when the tact and
resourcefulness of the young prince impressed the Nizam and won him over to Haidars side. It was
Tipu who obtained the ratification of the treaty of Alliance between the Nizam and Haidar in 1767.
Tipu had gone to the Nizams camp at the head of 6000 troops and successfully concluded the treaty.
This was the first diplomatic assignment of Tipu, who was well received by the Nizam, who conferred
on him the title of Nasib-ud-daula (fortune of the state) and also Fateh Ali Khan.
Tipu had taken great interest in the Mysore-Maratha war of 1769-72. After the death of Peshwa
Madhava Rao in 1772, he was sent to the northern part of the Mysore to recover the territories which
the Marathas had occupied. By the time of second Mysore war he had gained great experience both of
warfare and diplomacy. In September 1780 he inflicted a crushing defeat on Colonel Baillie near
Polilur. This was the first and the most serious blow the English had suffered in India. The whole
detachment was either cut or taken prisoners. Of the 86 European officers 36 were killed, and 3820
were taken prisoners of whom 508 were Europeans. The English had lost the flower of their army.
Baillie himself was taken prisoner. This defeat caused so much consternation in Madras that half of its
Black Town was deserted. Sir Hector Munroe, the hero of Buxar, who had defeated three rulers of
India (Mughal Emperor Shah Alam, Oudh Nawab Shuja-ud-daulah, and the Bengal Nawab Mir
Qasim) in a single battle, would not face Tipu. He ran for his life to Madras throwing all his cannons
in the tank of conjeevaram.
Likewise, Tipu inflicted a serious defeat on Colonel Braithwaite at Annagudi near Tanjore on 18
February 1782. This army consisted of 100 Europeans, 300 cavalry, 1400 sepoys and 10 field pieces.
Tipu seized all the guns and took the entire detachment prisoners. One should remember that the total
force of a few hundred Europeans was the standard size of the colonial armies that had caused havoc
in India prior to Haidar and Tipu. In December 1781 Tipu had successfully seized Chittur from British
hands. Thus Tipu had gained sufficient military experience by the time Haidar died in December
1782.
23
The second Mysore war came to an end by the treaty of Mangalore. It is an important document in the
history of India. It was the last occasion when an Indian power dictated terms to the English, who
were made to play the role of humble supplicants for peace. Warren Hastings called it a humiliating
pacification, and appealed to the king and parliament to punish the Madras government for the faith
and honour of the British nation have been equally violated. The English would not reconcile to this
humiliation, and worked hard from that day, 11 March 1784, to subvert Tipus power. The treaty
redounds great credit to the diplomatic skill of Tipu. He had honourably concluded a long-drawn war.
He frustrated the Maratha designs to seize his northern possessions. The great advantage was
psychological, the mode of conclusion was highly satisfactory to him. The march of the
commissioners all the way from Madras to Mangalore seeking peace made Munro remark that such
indignities were throughout poured upon the British, that united efforts seemed necessary to repudiate
the treaty at the earliest time. Such public opinion in the country highly gratified Tipu who felt it was
his great triumph over the English. That was the only bright spot in his contest with the English, the
only proud event which had humbled a mighty power.
The treaty of Mangalore carried the seeds of strife with the Marathas, because they were disappointed
in their expectation of acting as the mediators and of recovering their losses in the north of Mysore.
Tipu had emerged with enhanced prestige whom even the mighty English could not humble. This
excited the jealousy of both the Marathas and the Nizam who fought a war with him for two years
from 1785 to 1787. The Nizam was also not friendly towards Mysore ever since he had come to
power in 1761. He regarded himself as the overlord of the entire south, and expected Haidar and Tipu
to be his tributaries. As he was militarily imbecile he allied himself either with the Marathas or the
English to distress the Mysore rulers. There was always a pro-British party at Hyderabad which
dissuaded the Nizam from being cordial to Tipu. In the war that followed Tipu had the upper hand
despite the alliance of his two neighbours. The war came to an end in April 1787 by the treaty of
Gajendragadh by which he ceded Badami to the Marathas hoping to win their support against the
English or at least to prevent them from joining the English.
Tipu was disappointed in his expectations. Far from joining him to remove the English from India,
both of them, the Marathas and the Nizam, joined the English in a powerful confederacy against Tipu
in the third Mysore war. The allies struggled hard for nearly two years from 1790 to 1792. Lord
Cornwallis who had surrendered to the Americans at Saratoga in the new world assumed the
command and with great difficulty he was successful in a surprise night attack to enter into the island
of Srirangapatana on 6 February 1792. Tipu was made to make peace by surrendering half of his
24
kingdom, and paying three crores as indemnity, apart from sending two of his sons as hostages to
Madras. This was a serious blow to Tipu.
Very soon Tipu was able to build up his power again, paid the indemnity, and got his sons back. He
intensified his contacts with the French, the Turks and the Afghans. The Nizam was also made
friendly, who was made to recruit a contingent of 14000 troops under a French, Raymond, who was
friendly to Tipu. Napoleon was also on the way to India to help Tipu, who had invited Zaman Shah of
Afghanistan as well to help him remove the English from India. When all these plans were about to
mature, destiny willed otherwise. Napoleon was defeated at Accre in Syria and forced back to France.
Zaman Shah was made to beat a hasty retreat to Kabul because of British machinations that brought
about a rear action from Iran on Afghanistan. Wellesley forced the Nizam to disband Raymond and
accept a British detachment under subsidiary system. Having finished this task he declared war on
Tipu, sending the largest English army ever assembled in India. The fourth Mysore war was a short
affair. Keeping Tipu in false hopes, he suddenly surprised him by unacceptable demands. When Tipu
refused to accept them, the English breached the fort and in a bloody encounter, fighting against
heavy odds he was killed on 4 May 1799. The last hope for the freedom of the land was thus
extinguished. He died a soliders death for the defence of the cherished values of his land under a
spontaneous combustion of hostile forces.
Treaty of Bassein
India's History : Modern India : Treaty of Bassein - 1802
Treaty of Bassein
After being victorious over the Nizam at Kharda, Nana Phadnavis' influence in Poona was enhanced.
But soon the Marathas indulged in internal quarrels. Tired of Nana Phadnavis' dictatorship, Peshwa
Madhavrao Narayan committed suicide on October 25, 1795. After various plots and counter-plots on
December 4, 1796, Baji Rao II, son of Raghoba, became the Peshwa and Nana Phadnavis as his chief
minister. Taking advantage of the instable situation among the Marathas, the Nizam recovered the
territories which were taken by the Marathas after his defeat at Kharda.
Lord Wellesley
When Lord Wellesley arrived as a Governor-General on April 26, 1798, he engineered the policy of
Subsidiary Alliance. He was of the firm conviction that the best way of safeguarding the interest of
England was to reduce the whole country into a military dependence on the East India Company.
Though there was no conflict between the English and the Marathas, the English began to gain more
strength.
The English prospects were brightened after the death of Nana Phadnavis on March 13, 1800. Thus
the last chance of keeping the Marathas in order was wiped out. This has been nicely said in the words
25
of Colonel Palmer, the British resident at Poona: "With him departed all the wisdom and moderation
of the Maratha government." It was Nana who could forsee the danger of Subsidiary Alliance. Nana's
death meant the removal of the barrier that had checked to a great extent the disruptive activities of
the Maratha chiefs.
Both Daulat Rao Sindhia and Jaswant Rao Holkar entered into a fierce struggle with each other for
supremacy at Poona. The Peshwa favoured Sindhia and finally became a puppet in his hand. On April
12, 1800 Wellesley advised the Poona Residents to manage the secret treaty with Poona for turning
out Sindhia. But the Peshwa remained unmoved and the Resident suggested that only immediate
destruction will make the Peshwa bow.
Treaty of Bassein signed
Matters among the Marathas were becoming worse by the Peshwa's own intrigues. It worsened more
when the Peshwa murdered Vithuji Holkar, brother of Jaswant Rao Holkar in April 1801. This made
Holkar rise in rebellion with a huge army and on October 23, he defeated the combined armies of
Sindhias and the Peshwas at Poona and captured the city. Jaswant Rao Holkar made Amrit Rao's son
Vinayak Rao the Peshwa and on the other hand Baji Rao took refuge in Bassein. And in this helpless
situation, Baji Rao had no hesitation to accept the Subsidiary Alliance and signed with the East India
Company the Treaty of Bassein on December 31, 1802.
The treaty provided for an English force of 6,000 to be permanently stationed with the Peshwa, and
for its maintenance the districts yielding twenty six lakh rupees were to be given to the Company. It
also stated that the Peshwa could not enter into any treaty or declare war without consulting the
Company and that the Peshwa's claim upon the Nizam and Gaekwar would be subject to the
arbitration of the Company. The Peshwa also renounced his claim over Surat.
On May 13, 1803 Baji Rao II was restored to Peshwarship under the protection of the East India
Company. This treaty of Bassein was an important landmark in the history of British supremacy in
India. This led to expansion of the sway and influence of the East India Company over the Indian
subcontinent. However, the treaty was not acceptable to both the Marathas chieftains - the Shindes nd
Bhosales. This directly resulted in the Second Anglo-Maratha war in 1803.
The Second Anglo Maratha War
India's History : Modern India : The Second Anglo-Maratha war: The British defeat the Marathas at
Assaye: Treaty of Amritsar : 1803 - 1805
The Second Battle
Although the defeat of Tipu left the Marathas as the chief rivals to Britain, the Second Maratha War
arose initially from internal conflict within the Maratha Confederacy. The Peshwa, Baji Rao II, was
still the offiicial head of the Marathas, but the most powerful were Doulut Rao Sindhia of Gwalior,
and Jaswant Rao Holkar of Indore; lesser powers were the Gaekwar of Baroda and Ragogee Bhonsla,
Raja of Berar. Marquess Wellesley's attempts to bring these states into his `subsidiary' system were
unsuccessful, and civil war among the Marathas resulted in the utter defeat of the Peshwa's forces by
Holkar at the battle of Poona (25 October 1802). Baji Rao II fled to British protection, and by the
Treaty of Bassein formed an alliance with the British, ceding territory for the maintenance of a
subsidiary force, and agreeing to treat with no other power. This considerably extended British
influence in western India, but Wellesley was still concerned over possible French interference, given
the French influence in the Maratha forces, notably from Perron.
Marquess Wellesley determined to support the Peshwa, and Arthur Wellesley led a force, which re-
installed Baji Rao in Poona, without opposition, on 13 May 1803. By early August, negotiations with
Sindhia having failed, the governor-general moved against the two principal Maratha forces: a
combined army of Sindhia and the Raja of Berar in the Deccan, about 50,000 strong, including 10,500
26
regular infantry; and further north, Sindhia's main army, about 35,000 strong, commanded by Perron.
Marquess Wellesley formed two armies, the northern under General Gerard Lake, and the southern
under Arthur Wellesley. Collaborating with the latter was the Hyderabad Contingent, some 9,400
strong, and in addition to Wellesley's own army, more than 11,000 strong were some 5,000-allied
Mysore and Maratha light horse.
The British defeats the Marathas
On 6 August 1803 Arthur Wellesley received news of the failure of negotiations, and marched
immediately upon the fortification of Ahmednagar. On 8 August he stormed and took the city, laid
siege to Ahmednagar fort, and accepted its surrender on 12 August. This success had a profound
effect upon the Maratha chieftain Gokhale, one of the Peshwa's supporters whose forces were present
with Wellesley; he wrote that `These English are a strange people and their General a wonderful man.
They came here in the morning, looked at the pettah-wall, walked over it, killed all the garrison, and
returned to breakfast.'
Wellesley encountered the army of Sindhia and Ragojee Bhonsla at Assaye on 23 September. The
latter numbered between 40,000 and 50,000 men, including three brigades of regular infantry, the
largest under the command of the ex-Hanoverian sergeant, Pohlmann. Despite the numbers, Wellesley
determined to attack; as Colonel Stevenson's Hyderabad force was not within range of support,
Wellesley had only some 7,000 men, of whom perhaps 500 had to guard his baggage, and of the
remainder, he had only three European regiments (l9th Light Dragoons, 74th Foot and 78th Foot). The
Mysore and Maratha light horse, some believed to be of dubious loyalty, could not be used in the
main action. Despite sustaining heavy casualties in their frontal attack, the small British and Company
force won a considerable victory; it was Wellesley's first major success, and one which he always
held in the highest estimation, even when compared to his later triumphant career. His losses,
however, were severe, numbering nearly 650 Europeans and more than 900 Indian troops; from a
strength of about 500 rank and file, the 74th lost ten officers and one volunteer killed and seven
wounded, and 124 other ranks killed and 270 wounded, a casualty-rate of about three-quarters of
those engaged. Having sustained such casualties, and having fought the battle after a 24-mile march,
Wellesley was unable immediately to pursue his defeated enemy, who had left 98 guns on the field,
which they had bravely attempted to defend.
Wellesley pressed on in due course, until the Raja of Berar's army, with large numbers of Sindhia's
cavalry made a stand at Argaum on 29 November 1803. They numbered probably between 30,000 and
40,000, Wellesley's army about 10-11,000, the European part being only the remains of those who
had fought at Assaye, plus the 94th Scotch Brigade from Stevenson's force. The European infantry
outpaced the rest as Wellesley ordered a frontal attack; the Marathas broke, abandoning 38 guns and
Wellesley's cavalry did severe execution in the pursuit. Wellesley suffered barely 360 casualties in all.
On 15 December 1803 a ferocious British assault captured the fortress of Gawilghur; the Raja of
Berar sued for peace next day, and on 17 December ceded the province of Cuttack to the Company,
and other territory to its allies.
Treaty of Amritsar
After the Treaty of Amritsar with British which simply stated that the International boundry of line
between the Sarkar Khalsa and British India is Satluj. Ranjit singh was virtually made master of all
the territory to the west of Satluj. But.. there was several small kingdoms, like Peshawar, Rawalpindi,
Kashmir, Multan, Sialkote which were ruled by Afghani or local chiefs.
Thus, Ranjit singh first turned towards North towards Kangra valley which was taken over from Raja
Sansar Chand by Gurkhas. Ranjit Singh's forces fought with Gurkhas in Kangra Valley in the end the
Gurkha leader Amar Singh thapa fled leaving the field to the Sikhs. Ranjit singh entered the fort of
Kangra and held a royal Darbar which was attended by the hill chiefs of Chamba, nurpur, Kotla,
Shahpur, Guler, Kahlur, Mandi, Suket and Kulu. Desa Singh Majithia was appointed governor of
Kangra.
27
Then Ranjit singh sent a force under the command of Hukma Singh Chimmi to Jammu and himself
marched on to Khushab. The fort of Khushab was held by Jaffar Khan, a Baluch chief. He gave up the
city and defended the fort stoutly. Ranjit singh invited him to vacate the fort and accept a jagir. In few
months, Jaffar Khan accepted Ranjit singh's terms and gave up the fort. He was given a jagir and
allowed to remain in Khushab with his family.
Anglo-Gurkha War, Anglo-French struggles
India's History : Modern India : The Anglo-Gurkha war ; Anglo-French struggles - 1814-1816
In 1768, the Gurkhas - a tribe of the Western Himalayas, conquered the Nepal valley. Slowly they
built up a powerful State with considerable military strength and desire to expand. On the northern
side they were checked by the Chinese Empire and on the southern side the Gurkhas extended their
dominion as far as River Tista on the east and Sutlej on the west. The Gurkhas got in possessions the
whole of strong country which skirts the northern frontier of Hindustan.
Gurkha-English Conflicts
In 1801, the East India Company occupied the Gorakpur district with which the Gurkhas in Tarai
became conterminous with the uncertain and ill-defined northern frontier of the British dominions. At
the times of Lord Minto, the Gurkhas conquered Bhutwal lying north. However the Company again
regained Bhutwal. Thus the conflicting interest between the Gurkhas and the English continued
sowing the seeds of the war.
In May 1814, the Gurkhas attacked the three police stations in Bhutwal. Then in October, Governor-
General Lord Hastings declared a war against the Gurkhas. Lord Hastings himself took the charge of
the war and decided to attack the Gurkhas at the four points along the entire line of Sutlej to the Kosi.
The British even tried to bribe the Nepalese Government. But to vanquish the Nepalese was not an
easy task for Lord Hastings. Again it was very difficult for the British soldiers to go through the
mountainous region.
Treaty of Sagauli - 1815
In 1814-1815, the British had to accept defeats. Major-Generals Marley and John Wood, who were to
advance towards Nepal capital, retreated after some unsuccessful attempts. General Gillespie lost his
life in Kalanga. Major-General Martindell was defeated at Jaitak. However all these defeats were
again retrieved when in April 1815, Colonel Nicolls and Gardener captured Almora in Kumaon and
on May 15, 1815, General Ochterlony compelled the Gurkha leader Amar Singh Thapa, to surrender
the fort of Malaon. And finally on November 28 1815, the Gurkhas signed a treaty of Sagauli. The
Nepal Government hesitated to ratify the treaty and the hostilities began again. General Ochterlony
advanced towards the Nepal capital and defeated the Nepalese at Makwanpur on February 28, 1816.
This compelled the Nepal Government to ratify the treaty. As per the treaty the Nepalese gave up their
claims to places in the lowlands along the southern frontier, gave away Garhwal and Kumaon on the
west of Nepal to the British and also withdrew from Sikkim. They also agreed to receive a British
Resident at Katmandu. The Nepal Government ever since remained true to its alliance with the
English.
Third Anglo-Maratha Battle: Pindari
28
India's History : Modern India : The Pindari war - 1817-1818
Pindari
Of uncertain origin, the term `Pindari' described a type of irregular light horse-cum-bandit which
flourished in central India in the late l8th and early l9th centuries, originating with the break-up of the
Mogul armies. Of no one race, tribe or religion, they included any to whom the prospect of
lawlessness appealed, including Marathas, Afghans and Jats; generally organised in loose bands led
by chieftains, they sometimes served the Maratha states, receiving no wage but even paying for the
prospect of loot and plunder. They congregated in Malwa, with the tacit approval of Sindhia and
Holkar, from where they set out, usually in November, to plunder throughout Hindustan, into British
territory and even to the Coromandel coast. The most powerful chieftain, Amir Khan, had regularly
organised regiments, estimated at 12,000 light horse, 10,000 infantry and an estimated artillery train
of between 80 and 200 guns; to which other Pindari bands added a further 15,000 cavalry, 1,500
infantry and 20 guns.
By 1817 the ravages of these bandits had become intolerable, so the Governor General (and
Commander in-Chief), the Earl of Moira (later Marquess HASTINGS) determined to crush them; but
the renewed hostility of the Maratha powers turned what began as a drive against freebooters into a
war against the peshwa, Indore, and the Bhonsla raja of Nagpore. (Jaswant Rao Holkar of Indore had
died in 1811, and in the minority of his successor, his favourite mistress became regent; she was
murdered by the Indore military commanders in 1817 who committed their forces to the peshwa when
hostilities began). To combat this menace, the Governor General formed two armies, taking personal
command of the Grand Army which assembled at Cawnpore in four divisions, each of two infantry
and a cavalry brigade; and General Sir Thomas Hislop's Army of the Deccan, seven divisions strong.
Troops from all three presidencies were involved.
Two of the possible foes provided little opposition; Sindhia was pressured into neutrality, and by
signing the Treaty of Gwalior agreed to take action against the Pindaris, whom he had been
protecting; and the Pindaris themselves did not pose the predicted threat. Amir Khan accepted
conditions imposed by the British and disbanded his forces, in return for a territorial settlement which
became the state of Tonk in Rajputana; the remaining Pindari forces were attacked and dispersed, one
of their principal leaders, Karim, surrenderirig, and another, Chitu, fled to the jungles where he was
killed by a tiger.
Marathas finally crushed
More serious was the reaction of the other Marathas, whose simmering discontent turned into open
war in November 1817. As Peshwa Baji Rao II assembled his forces, the commander of the British
units at Poona, Colonel C. B. BURR, withdrew from the cantonments with the Resident, and
concentrated on a ridge at Kirkee. The residency at Poona was burned, and on 5 November 1817 the
Peshwa's army moved to attack the position at Kirkee; their strength was estimated as up to 18,000
cavalry, 8,000 infantry and fourteen guns, against which Burr had five Bombay sepoy battalions and
an auxiliary battalion, about 2,000 strong, and 800 Europeans (Bombay Europeans and a detachment
of 65th Foot). Burr attacked immediately and the Marathas bolted, the Peshwa's entire force being
routed for the loss of nineteen dead and 67 wounded, only two of these casualties falling upon
BURR's European troops. General Lionel SMITH arrived to reinforce BURR on the l3th, and on 17
November another action was fought at Poona, which completed the defeat of the Peshwa's army.
At Nagpore the Bhonsla mustered his forces, ostensibly for a drive against the Pindaris, but turned
against the British when news was received of the Peshwa's revolt. The British force at Nagpore was
only about 1,300 strong, comprising three troops of 6th Bengal Cavalry, the 1/20th and 1/24th Madras
Native Infantry, and some auxiliaries, commanded by Lieutenant-Colonel H. S. SCOTT. Like BURR,
Scott withdrew from the cantonments to a defensible position; at Seetabuldee on 26 November 18,000
men of the Nagpore army, including some 3,000 Arabs employed by the Bhonsla, attacked him. After
29
a fight of some eighteen hours the Nagpore army withdrew, Scott's force having sustained 367
casualties, testimony to the determination with which sepoy units could fight, even without European
support. On 12 December relief arrived in the form of Brigadier-General J. DOVETON's 2nd
Division of the Army of the Deccan, which assaulted Nagpore on 16 December. After several hours'
fighting the 21,000-strong Nagpore army was routed, some thousands withdrawing into the city,
where they capitulated on 24 December after several days of bombardment.
Despite the defeat at Poona, the Peshwa's army was still in being and, about 28,000 strong on New
Years Day 1818 fell upon a British detachment at Coiygaum. Commanded by Captain STAUNTON
of the 21st Bombay Native Infantry, this comprised only about 600 of his own battalion, two Madras
Artillery 6pdrs and 300 auxiliary horse. Staunton occupied that part of Corygaum village not held by
the enemy, and a house-to-house fight raged from noon until 9 p.m. This remarkable defence, in
which only Staunton and two other officers remained unscathed, resisted all efforts of the Peshwa's
army, which retired and broke up upon news of the approach of General Lionel Smith. Concerning the
exertions of the British officers (even two assistant-surgeons, one of whom was killed, had led
bayonet-charges throughout the day), Smith described their efforts as `almost unparalleled ... in such a
struggle the presence of a single European was of the utmost consequence, and seemed to inspire the
native soldiers with the usual confidence of success'; but this action, coming at the end of a 28-mile
march, reflected equal credit upon the sepoys as upon their leaders.
After vainly attempting to negotiate to prevent the state becoming hostile, Sir Thomas HISLOP
engaged the army of Indore at Mahidpore on 23 December 1817. The Indore forces mustered some
30,000 light horse, 5,000 infantry and 100 guns; Hislop's 5,500-strong 1st and 3rd Divisions of the
Army of the Deccan included few Europeans, only the flank companies of the lst Foot and Madras
Europeans. Because of the disparity in numbers, Hislop attacked immediately; the Maratha horse fled,
but the infantry and gunners (trained in European style) made a gallant stand until they were
overthrown. Hislop lost 174 killed, 614 wounded and three missing. Mahidpore virtually ended the
war, as peace was concluded with Indore shortly after. Following a chase, Baji Rao II surrendered to
Sir John MALCOLM in May 1818, and was sent as a state pensioner to Bithur, near Cawnpore,
devoid of power or influence; his heir, Nana Sahib, would become infamous forty years later. An
infant was recognised as raja of Nagpore, under British guardianship, and when the Bhonsla died
without direct heirs in 1853, his territory was annexed. The war finally ended the power of the
Maratha states, although Gwalior was still not completely negated as an opponent.
Modern India : The First Burmese War
India's History : Modern India : The First Burmese War - 1824-1826
Burmese War
On September 23, 1823 an armed party of Burmese attacked a British guard on Shapura, an island
close to the Chittagong side, killing and wounding six of the guard. Two Burmese armies, one from
Mariipur and another from Assam, also entered Cachar, which was under British protection, in
January 1824. War with Burma was formally declared on the March 5, 1824. On May 17 a Burmese
force invaded Chittagong and drove a mixed sepoy and police detachment from its position at Ramu,
but did not follow up its success.
The British rulers in India, however, had resolved to carry the war into the enemys country; an
armament, under Commodore Charles Grant and Sir Archibald Campbell, entered the Rangoon river,
and anchored off the town on May 10, 1824. After a feeble resistance the place, then little more than a
large stockaded village, was surrendered, and the troops were landed. The place was entirely deserted
by its inhabitants, the provisions were carried off or destroyed, and the invading force took possession
of a complete solitude. On May 28 Sir A. Campbell ordered an attack on some of the nearest posts,
which were all carried after a steadily weakening defence. Another attack was made on the June 10 on
the stockades at the village of Kemmendine. Some of these were battered by artillery from the war
30
vessels in the river, and the shot and shells had such effect on the Burmese that they evacuated them,
after a very unequal resistance.
It soon, however, became apparent that the expedition had been undertaken with very imperfect
knowledge of the country, and without adequate provision. The devastation of the country, which was
part of the defensive system of the Burmese, was carried out with unrelenting rigour, and the invaders
were soon reduced to great difficulties. The health of the men declined, and their ranks were fearfully
thinned. The monarch of Ava sent large reinforcements to his dispirited and beaten army; and early in
June an attack was commenced on the British line, but proved unsuccessful. On June 8 the British
assaulted. The enemy were beaten at all points; and their strongest stockaded works, battered to pieces
by a powerful artillery, were in general abandoned.
With the exception of an attack by the prince of Tharrawaddy in the end of August, the enemy
allowed the British to remain unmolested during the months of July and August. This interval was
employed by Sir A. Campbell in subduing the Burmese provinces of Tavoy and Mergui, and the
whole coast of Tenasserim. This was an important conquest, as the country was salubrious and
afforded convalescent stations to the sick, who were now so numerous in the British army that there
were scarcely 3,000 soldiers fit for duty. An expedition was about this time sent against the old
Portuguese fort and factory of Syriam, at the mouth of the Pegu river, which was taken; and in
October the province of Martaban was reduced under the authority of the British.
The rainy season terminated about the end of October; and the court of Ava, alarmed by the
discomfiture of its armies, recalled the veteran legions which were employed in Arakan, under their
renowned leader Maha Bandula. Bandula hastened by forced marches to the defence of his country;
and by the end of November an army of 60,000 men had surrounded the British position at Rangoon
and Kemmendine, for the defence of which Sir Archibald Campbell had only 5,000 efficient troops.
The enemy in great force made repeated attacks on Kemmendine without success, and on December
7, Bandula was defeated in a counter attack made by Sir A. Campbell. The fugitives retired to a strong
position on the river, which they again entrenched; and here they were attacked by the British on the
15th, and driven in complete confusion from the field.
Sir Archibald Campbell now resolved to advance on Prome; about 100 m. higher up the Irrawaddy
river. He moved with his force on February 13, 1825 in two divisions, one proceeding by land, and
the other, under General Willoughby Cotton, destined for the reduction of Danubyu, being embarked
on the flotilla. Taking the command of the land force, he continued his advance till March 11, when
intelligence reached him of the failure of the attack upon Danubyu. He instantly commenced a
retrograde march; on the 27th he effected a junction with General Cottons force, and on April 2
entered the entrenchments at Danubyu without resistance, Bandula having been killed by the
explosion of a bomb. The English general entered Prome on the 25th, and remained there during the
rainy season. On September 17, an armistice was concluded for one month. In the course of the
summer General Joseph Morrison had conquered the province of Arakan; in the north the Burmese
were expelled from Assam; and the British had made some progress in Cachar, though their advance
was finally impeded by the thick forests and jungle.
The armistice having expired on November 3, the army of Ava, amounting to 60,000 men, advanced
in three divisions against the British position at Prome, which was defended by 3,000 Europeans and
2,000 native troops. But the British still triumphed, and after several actions, in which the Burmese
were the assailants and were partially successful, Sir A. Campbell, on December 1, attacked the
different divisions of their army, and successively drove them from all their positions, and dispersed
them in every direction. The Burmese retired on Malun, along the course of the Irrawaddy, where they
occupied, with 10,000 or 12,000 men, a series of strongly fortified heights and a formidable stockade.
On the 26th they sent a flag of truce to the British camp; and negotiations having commenced, peace
was proposed to them on the following conditions:
31
The cession of Arakan, together with the provinces of Mergui, Tavoy and Ye the renunciation by the
Burmese sovereign of all claims upon Assam and the contiguous petty states the Company to be paid
a crore of rupees as an indemnification for the expenses of the war residents from each court to be
allowed, with an escort of fifty men it was also stipulated that British ships should no longer be
obliged to unship their rudders and land their guns as formerly in the Burmese ports
This treaty was agreed to and signed, but the ratification of the king was still wanting; and it was soon
apparent that the Burmese had no intention to sign it, but were preparing to renew the contest. On
January 19, accordingly, Sir A. Campbell attacked and carried the enemys position at Malun. Another
offer of peace was here made by the Burmese, but it was found to be insincere; and the fugitive army
made at the ancient city of Pagan a final stand in defence of the capital. They were attacked and
overthrown on February 9, 1826; and the invading force being now within four days march of Ava, Dr
Price, an American missionary, who with other Europeans had been thrown into prison when the war
commenced, was sent to the British camp with the treaty (known as the treaty of Yandaboo) ratified,
the prisoners of war released, and an instalment of 25 lakhs of rupees. The war was thus brought to a
successful termination, and the British army evacuated the country.
Abolition of Sati
India's History : Modern India : Prohibition of Sati - 1829
Sati Stigma
Within the Indian culture, the highest ideal for a woman are virtue, purity, and allegiance to her
husband. From this tradition stems the custom in which a wife immolates herself on the funeral pyre
of her deceased husband as proof of her loyalty. This custom in which a woman burns herself either
32
on the funeral pyre of her deceased husband or by herself with a momento after his death is now
referred to as sati or, in England, as suttee. In the original meaning, "Sati" was defined as a woman
who was "true to her ideals". A pious and virtuous woman would receive the title of "Sati." Sati was
derived from the ancient Indic language term, sat, which means truth. Sati has come to signify both
the act of immolation of a widow and the victim herself, rather than its original meaning of "a
virtuous woman".
The term"sati" is associated with the Hindu goddess Sati. In the Hindu mythology, Sati who was the
wife of Lord Shiva, consumed herself in a holy pyre. She did this in response to her father's refusal to
invite Shiva to the assembly of the Gods. She was so mortified that she invoked a yogic fire and was
reduced to ashes. Self-sacrifice, like that of the original Sati, became a "divine example of wifely
devotion". The act of Sati propagated the belief that if a widow gives up her life for her husband, she
will be honored. Socially, the act of sati played a major role in determining the true nature of a
woman. Self-sacrifice is considered the best measure of judging the woman's virtue as well as her
loyalty to her husband. The following applies to the ideal wife: "if her husband is happy, she should
be happy; if he is sad, she should be sad, and if he is dead, she should also die. Such a wife is called a
Patrivrata". The upbringing of many Indian girls emphasized the concept of Patrivrata as the only way
for a woman to merit heaven.
This concept of meriting heaven through self-sacrifice became embedded within the minds of many as
the only assurance for a female to gain salvation. A female's life must be lived in full devotion to her
husband; otherwise she will be doomed for eternity and will live a cruel existence as a widow.
According to Ananda Coomaraswamy: "Women were socially dead after the death of their husbands
and were thought to be polluting". Only a woman who is sexually and legally possessed by a husband
is respected within the Indian society.
By sacrificing herself a widow saves herself from the cruel existence of widowhood and ends the
threat she possesses for society. She is considered a member of society who has unrestrained sexual
vigor, and thus may harm society with immoral acts. A widow was seen as having irrepressible sexual
powers and could be a danger to her society. Remarriage in India was not favored. A widow was not
allowed to remarry, nor was she able to turn to religious learning, and hence lived a bleak and barren
life. The pain that a sati endures on the pyre was less painful of an experience than the torture she
must endure physically and emotionally as a widow. If a widow decided not to join her husband, she
was separated from the social world of the living and considered to be a "cold sati". She was only
allowed to wear rags and was treated by her family and members of society as an impure, polluted
being. The prohibition, in which she is unable to adorn herself, was considered justifiable, done for
the widow's "own interest".
The British government in 1829 prohibited the custom of sati. British India declared the practice of
sati as illegal and punishable by criminal courts. Such a law revealed much about the British thought
and opinion of India and its customs.
East India Company takes over the Administration
India's History : Modern India : Raja of Mysore deposed and its administration taken over by East
India Company : 1831
Mysore
The old province of Mysore comprised the areas of Mysore, Talakad, Kodagu and Srirangapatnam.
The Wodeyar dynasty, which was founded by Yaduraya in 1399 AD, has dominated most of Mysore
history. Chikkadevara Wodeyar was the man who expanded the Mysore Empire while Kantareeva
Narasimha Raja Wodeyar recaptured Mysore from the Dalavayis. The interim period saw the rise to
power of two of India's most famous personalities-Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan. Tipu Sultan was the
first to build an army on scientific lines and took on the might of the British. Known as the Tiger of
33
Mysore, his acts of courage, bravery are renowned. This brave heart died at Srirangapatna fighting till
the last.
The modern phase of Mysore began from 1800 with the ascent to the throne of Krishnaraja Wodeyar
III. Governor William Bentick took over Mysore in 1831 and in 1881 restored it back to Chamaraja
Wodeyar.
Company's Charter renewed
India's History : Modern India : Renewal of Company's Charter; Abolition of company's trading rights
: 1833
Renewal of Charter
After the separation of the Companys commercial and political financial accounts, tracking charges to
Indian territorial revenues became somewhat easier. Company accounts distinguished a class of
territorial expenses incurred in Britain that were chargeable to the Indian revenues. After the 1833
Charter Renewal that abolished the Companys commercial operations, calculating what were called
Home Charges become straightforward anything spent by the Company in Britain was an expense for
the Indian treasury. Whether all these charges represented a transfer of wealth from India as a drain or
tribute or whether some or all should be considered payments for services rendered is a difficult
question and one that this paper cannot really answer. However, the impact of the Home Charges
upon Indian budgets between 1815 and 1859 is clear.
It was only after passage of the Charter Act of 1833 had closed India Company trading operations that
a shift occurred. After that date, the regime began a systematic policy of building and improving
public works. For example, the regime invested 2.2 million sterling in improving three grand trunk
roads: Peshawar-Delhi-Calcutta; Calcutta to Bombay; and Bombay to Agra. In the 1850s the state
began work for the first time on new irrigation projects. The Ganges Canal that tapped into the
perennial water flow of the Himalayan river sources, finished in 1854, cost 1.4 million sterling. The
Kaveri, Godavari and Krishna river systems in the south were also completed.
These long-term East India Company fiscal data reveal several characteristic features of the
Companys fiscal approach: First, decision-makers at home and in India were bent on creating a usable
revenue surplus each year suitable for commercial investment (until 1833) and paying dividends to
the holders of East India Company stock. To do so, they raised their revenue demands in each
territory acquired to levels equal to the highest assessments made by previous Indian regimes. Second,
those surpluses produced were never adequate to meet the combined administrative, military and
commercial expenses of the Company. Third, the Company resorted to borrowing on interest-bearing
bonds in India and at home in steadily rising amounts to meet its obligations. Fourth, the escalating
cost of the East India Company armies and of incessant warfare formed the greatest single fiscal
burden for the new regime. Finally, the Company allocated negligible funds for public works, for
cultural patronage, for charitable relief, or for any form of education. The Company confined its
generosity to paying extremely high salaries to its civil servants and military officers. Otherwise
parsimony ruled. These characteristics marked the East India Company fiscal system from its
inception to its demise in 1859.
Abolition of Slavery
India's History : Modern India : Abolition of Slavery throughout the British Empire - 1833
Slavery Act
34
The common law of England did not recognize anyone as a slave (although in Scotland, which does
not have the common law, bondage still existed until the late eighteenth century, when it was
abolished by legislation). Slavery, however, existed in a number of British colonies, principally in the
West Indies.
The Slavery Abolition Bill 1833 was passed by the House of Commons and by the House of Lords.
It received the Royal Assent (which means it became law) on 29 August 1833 and came into force on
1 August 1834. On that date slavery was abolished throughout the vast British Empire.
The Act automatically applied as new possessions (principally in Africa) subsequently became part of
the British Empire.
There were a number of exceptions.
First, its application to the Colony of the Cape of Good Hope (now the Cape Province of the Republic
of South Africa) was delayed for 4 months and its application to the Colony of Mauritius (now the
Republic of Mauritius) was delayed for 6 months.
Secondly, section 64 excluded Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), St Helena and the territories in the possession
of The Honourable East India Company, namely in British India, but the section was subsequently
repealed. The Honourable East India Company, in theory, administered large parts of India as an
agent for the Mogul Emperor in Delhi.
Subsequently, section 1 of 5 & 6 Vict c 101 was enacted which prohibited certain officers of The
Honourable East India Company from being involved in the purchase of slaves, but it did not actually
abolish slavery in India. It was the provisions of the Indian Penal Code 1860 which effectively
abolished slavery in India by making the enslavement of human beings a criminal offence.
Purposes of the Act
The purposes of the Slavery Abolition Act 1833 were described in the preamble to the Bill as:
the abolition of slavery throughout the British colonies;
for promoting the industry of the manumitted slaves; and
for compensating the persons hitherto entitled to the services of such slaves.
The second purpose was achieved by providing for a period of apprenticeship.
The third purpose was achieved by appropriating 20 million a huge sum in those days to compensate
slave owners.
Tripartite Treaty
India's History : Modern India : Tripartite treaty between Shah Shuja, Ranjit Singh and the British :
1838
The Treaty
The debacle of the Afghan civil war left a vacuum in the Hindu Kush area that concerned the British,
who were well aware of the many times in history it had been employed as the invasion route to India.
In the early decades of the nineteenth century, it became clear to the British that the major threat
totheir interests in India would not come from the fragmented Afghan empire, the Iranians, or the
French, but from the Russians, who had already begun a steady advance southward from the
Caucasus.
At the same time, the Russians feared permanent British occupation in Central Asia as the British
encroached northward, taking the Punjab, Sindh, and Kashmir. The British viewed Russia's absorption
35
of the Caucasus, the Kirghiz and Turkmenlands, and the Khanates of Khiva and Bukhara with equal
suspicion as a threat to their interests in the Indian subcontinent.
In addition to this rivalry between Britain and Russia, there were two specific reasons for British
concern over Russia's intentions. First was the Russian influence at the Iranian court, which prompted
the Russians to support Iran in its attempt to take Herat, historically the western gateway to
Afghanistan and northern India. In 1837 Iran advanced on Herat with the support and advice of
Russian officers. The second immediate reason was the presence in Kabul in 1837 of a Russian agent,
Captain P. Vitkevich, who was ostensibly there, as was the British agent Alexander Burnes, for
commercial discussions.
The British demanded that Dost Mohammad sever all contact with the Iranians and Russians, remove
Vitkevich from Kabul, and surrender all claims to Peshawar, and respect Peshawar's independence as
well as that of Qandahar, which was under the control of his brothers at the time. In return, the British
government intimated that it would ask Ranjit Singh to reconcile with the Afghans. When Auckland
refused to put the agreement in writing, Dost Mohammad turned his back on the British and began
negotiations with Vitkevich.
In 1838 Auckland, Ranjit Singh, and Shuja signed an agreement stating that Shuja would regain
control of Kabul and Qandahar with the help of the British and Sikhs; he would accept Sikh rule of
the former Afghan provinces already controlled by Ranjit Singh, and that Herat would remain
independent. In practice, the plan replaced Dost Mohammad with a British figurehead whose
autonomy would be as limited as that of other Indian princes.
It soon became apparent to the British that Sikh participationadvancing toward Kabul through the
Khyber Pass while Shuja and the British advanced through Qandahar--would not be forthcoming.
Auckland's plan in the spring of1838 was for the Sikhs--with British support--to place Shuja on the
Afghan throne. By summer's end, however, the plan had changed; now the British alone would
impose the pliant Shuja.
The First Afghan War, 1839-1842
India's History : Modern India : The First Afghan War : 1839 - 1842
First Afghan War
With the failure of the Burnes mission (1837), the governor general of India, Lord Auckland, ordered
an invasion of Afghanistan, with the object of restoring shah Shuja (also Shoja), who had ruled
Afghanistan from 1803 to 1809. From the point of the view of the British, the First Anglo-Afghan
War (often called "Auckland's Folly") was an unmitigated disaster. The war demonstrated the ease of
overrunning Afghanistan and the difficulty of holding it.
36
An army of British and Indian troops set out from the Punjab in December 1838 and by late March
1839 had reached Quetta. By the end of April the British had taken Qandahar without a battle. In July,
after a two-month delay in Qandahar, the British attacked the fortress of Ghazni, overlooking a plain
that leads to India, and achieved a decisive victory over the troops of Dost Mohammad, which were
led by one of his sons. The Afghans were amazed at the taking of fortified Ghazni, and Dost
Mohammad found his support melting away. The Afghan ruler took his few loyal followers and fled
across the passes to Bamian, and ultimately to Bukhara, where he was arrested, and in August 1839
Shuja was enthroned again in Kabul after a hiatus of almost 30 years. Some British troops returned to
India, but it soon became clear that Shuja's rule could only be maintained by the presence of British
forces. Garrisons were established in Jalalabad, Ghazni, Kalat-iGhilzai (Qalat), Qandahar, and at the
passes to Bamian.
Omens of disaster for the British abounded. Opposition to the British-imposed rule of Shuja began as
soon as he assumed the throne, and the power of his government did not extend beyond the areas
controlled by the force of British arms.
Dost Mohammad escaped from prison in Bukhara and returned to Afghanistan to lead his followers
against the British and their Afghan protege. In a battle at Parwan on November 2, 1840, Dost
Mohammad had the upper hand, but the next day he surrendered to the British in Kabul. He was
deported to India with the greater part of his family. Sir William Macnaghten, one of the principal
architects of the British invasion, wrote to Auckland two months later, urging good treatment for the
deposed Afghan leader.
Shuja did not succeed in garnering the support of the Afghan chiefs on his own, and the British could
not or would not sustain their subsidies. When the cash payments to tribal chiefs were curtailed in
1841, there was a major revolt by the Ghilzai.
By October 1841 disaffected Afghan tribes were flocking to the support of Dost Mohammad's son,
Muhammad Akbar, in Bamian. Barnes was murdered in November 1841, and a few days later the
commissariat fell into the hands of the Afghans. Macnaghten, having tried first to bribe and then to
negotiate with the tribal leaders, was killed at a meeting with the tribal chiefs in December. On
January 1, 1842, the British in Kabul and a number of Afghan chiefs reached an agreement that
provided for the safe exodus of the entire British garrison and its dependents from Afghanistan.
Unfortunately, the British would not wait for an Afghan escort to be assembled, and the Ghilzai and
allied tribes had not been among the 18 chiefs who had signed the agreement. On January 6 the
precipitate retreat by some 4,500 British and Indian troops with 12,000 camp followers began and, as
they struggled through the snowbound passes, Ghilzai warriors attacked the British. Although a Dr.
W. Brydon is usually cited as the only survivor of the march to Jalalabad (out of more than 15,000
who undertook the retreat), in fact a few more survived as prisoners and hostages. Shuja remained in
power only a few months and was assassinated in April 1842.
37
The destruction of the British garrison prompted brutal retaliation by the British against the Afghans
and touched off yet another power struggle among potential rulers of Afghanistan. In the fall of 1842
British forces from Qandahar and Peshawar entered Kabul long enough to rescue the British prisoners
and burn the great bazaar. All that remained of the British occupation of Afghanistan was a ruined
market and thousands of dead (one estimate puts the total killed at 20,000). Although the foreign
invasion did give the Afghan tribes a temporary sense of unity they had lacked before, the
accompanying loss of life (one estimate puts the total killed at 25,000) and property was followed by
a bitterness and resentment of foreign influence that lasted well into the twentieth century and may
have accounted for much of the backlash against the modernization attempts of later Afghan
monarchs.
The Gwalior War
India's History : Modern India : The Gwalior War - 1843
The Gwalior War
Years of turbulence and intrigue in Gwailor culminated in 1843 in the adoption of the child-heir
Jayavi Rao Sinhia to the vacant throne. With the country's geographical position so strategically
significant to British interests, especially regarding the Punjab and Sind, and the fact that Gwailor
possessed significant military forces, the British naturally wanted certain re-assurances from the
Gwailor council of regency. The council refused even to discuss the situation with Lord Ellenborough
and, in 1843, war was declared.
The British formed two armies: one at Agra under Sir Hugh Gough; and one at Jansi under Major-
General John Grey. Opposing them was an army, which included European-trained "regulars" and a
formidable force of artillery.
On 29th December 1843, Gough's force of two cavalry and three infantry brigades encountered about
17,000 Marathas in a strong position at Maharajpore. Naturally Gough attacked immediately and,
despite strong resistance, the Mahrathas were routed and 56 guns captured. Gough suffered almost
800 casualties.
On the same day, Grey's column encountered a second Maratha force some 12,000 strong at Punniar,
about 20 miles away from Gough. Again the British attacked, and again the Marathas were routed and
their artillery captured.
Under these twin blows, the Gwalior regency capitulated and on 31st December 1843 a treaty was
signed that effectively gave control of the country to the British.
First Anglo-Sikh War
India's History : Modern India : First Anglo-Sikh war - 1845-1846
Anglo-Sikh War
ANGLO-SIKH WAR 1, 1845-46, resulting in partial subjugation of the Sikh kingdom, as the outcome
of British expansionism. It was near-anarchical conditions that overtook the Lahore court after the
death of Maharaja Ranjit Singh in June 1839. The English, by then firmly installed in Firozpur the
Sikh frontier, about 70 km from Lahore, the Sikh capital, were watching the happenings across the
border with more than neighbour's interest The disorder that revealed there promised them a good
opportunity for direct intervention.
Up to 1838, the British troops on the Sikh frontier had amounted to one regiment at Sabathu in the
hills and two at Ludhiana with six pieces of artillery, equaling in all about 2,500 men. The total rose
to 8,000 during the time of Lord Auckland (1836 42) who increased the number of troops at Ludhiana
and created a new military post at Firozpur, which was actually Past of Sikh kingdom's dominion
38
south of the Sutlej. British preparations for a war with the Sikhs began seriously in 1843 when the
new governor-general, Lord Ellenborough (1842-44), discussed with the Home government the
possibilities of a military occupation of the Punjab. English and Indian infantry reinforcement began
arriving at each of the frontier posts of Firozpur and Ludhiana. Cavalry and artillery regiments moved
up to Ambala and Kasauli. Works were in the process of erection around the magazine at Firozpur,
and the fort at Ludhiana began to he fortified. Plans for the construction of bridges over the rivers
Markanda and Ghaggar were prepared, and a new road link to join Meerut and Ambala was taken in
hand. Exclusive of the newly constructed cantonments of Kasauli and Shimla, Ellenborough had been
able to collect a force of 11,639 men and 48 guns at Ambala, Ludhiana and Firozpur. Everywhere,"
wrote Lord Ellenborough, we are trying to get things in order and especially to strengthen and equip
the artillery with which the fight will be."
Seventy boats of thirty-five tons each, with the necessary equipments to bridge the Sutlej at any point,
were under construction; fifty-six pontoons were on their way from Bombay for use in Sindh, and two
steamers were being constructed to ply on the River Sutlej. in November 1845," he informed the Duke
of Wellington, "the army will be equal to any operation. I should be sorry to have it called to the field
sooner." In July 1844, Lord Ellenborough was replaced by Lord Hardinge (1844-48), a Peninsula
veteran, as governor-general of India. Hardinge further accelerated the process of strengthening the
Sutlej frontier for a war with the Sikhs. The abrasive and belligerent Major George Broadfoot as the
political agent on the Punjab frontier replaced the affable Colonel Richmond. Lord Cough, the
commander-in-chief, established his headquarters at Ambala. In October 1844, the British military
force on the frontier was 17,000 infantry and 60 guns. Another 10,000 troops were to be ready by the
end of November. Firozpur's garrison strength under the command of Sir John Littler was raised to
7,000; by January 1845, the total British force amounted to 20,000 men and 60 guns. We can collect,"
Hardinge reported to the Home government, 33,000 infantry, 6,000 cavalry and 100 guns in six
weeks." In March additional British and Indian regiments were quietly moved to Flrozpur, Ludhiana
and Ambala. Field batteries of 9 pounders with horses or bullocks to draw them, and 24 additional
pieces of heavy ordnance were on their way to the frontier. In addition, 600 elephants to draw the
battering train of 24-pounder batteries had reached Agra, and 7,000 camels between Kanpur and the
Sutlej were to move up in the summer to Firozpur, which was to be the concentration point for a
forward offensive movement.
Lord Hardinge, blamed unnecessarily by the Home government for inadequate military preparations
for the first Sikh war, had, during the seventeen months between Ellen borough's departure and the
commencement of hostilities with the Sikhs, increased the garrison strength at Ferozpur from 4,596
men and 12 guns to 10,472 men and 24 guns; at Ambala from 4,113 men and 24 guns to 12, 972 men
and 32 guns; at Ludhiana from 3,030 men and 12 guns to 7,235 men and 12 guns, and at Meerut from
5,573 men and 18 guns to 9,844 men and 24 guns. The relevant strength of the advanced armies,
including those at the hill stations of Sabathu and Kasauli, was raised from 24,000 men and 66 guns to
45,500 men and 98 guns. These figures are based on official British papers, particularly Hardinge's
private correspondence on Punjab affairs with his predecessor, Lord Ellenborough. Thus Total
number of British troops around Punjab was 86,023 men and 116 guns. In addition to the
concentration of troops on the border, an elaborate supply depot was set up by the British at Basslan,
near Raikot, in Ludhiana district. The Lahore Darbar's vamps or representatives and news writers in
the cis-Sutlej region sent alarming reports of these large-scale British military movements across the
border. The Sikhs were deeply wrought upon by these war preparations, especially by Broad foots
acts of hostility. The rapid march in November 1845 of the governor-general towards the frontier and
a report of Sir Charles Napier's speech in the Delhi Gazette saying that the British were going to war
with the Sikhs filled Lahore with rumors of invasion. The Sikh ranks, alerted to the danger of a British
offensive, started their own preparations. Yet the army pinches or regimental representatives, who had
taken over the affairs of the Lahore forces into their own hands after the death of Wazir Jawahar
Singh, were at this time maintaining, according to George Campbell, a British civilian employed in
the cis-Sutlej territory, Memoirs of My Indian Career , "Wonderful order at Lahore.. and almost
puritanical discipline in the military republic."
39
However, the emergence of the army Panchayats as a new centre of power greatly perturbed the
British authority that termed it as "unholy alliance between the republican army and the Darbar." In
this process Sikh army had indeed been transformed. It had now assumed the role of the Khalsa. It
worked through elected regimental committees declaring that Guru Gobind Singh's ideal of the Sikh
commonwealth had been revived, with the Sarbatt Khalsa or the Sikh as a whole assuming all
executive, military and civil authority in the State. The British decried this as "the dangerous military
democracy of the panchayat system," in which soldiers were in a state of success mutiny. " When the
British agent made a reference the Lahore Darbar about military preparations in the Punjab, it replied
that there only defensive measures to counter the signs of the British. The Darbar, on other hand,
asked for the return of the estimated at over seventeen lakh of the Lahore grandee Suchet Singh had
left buried in Firozpur, the restoration of the village of Mauran granted by Maharaja Ranjit Singh to
one of his generals Hukam Singh Malvai, but subsequently resumed by the ruler of Nabha with the
active connivance of the British, and free passage of Punjabi armed constabulary a right that had been
acknowledged by the British on paper but more often than not in practice. The British government
rejected the Darbar's claims and severed diplomatic relations with it. The armies under Hugh Gough
and Lord Hardinge began proceeding towards Firozpur. To forestall their joining those at Firozpur,
the Sikh army began to cross the Sutlej on 11 December near Harike Pattan into its own territory on
the other side of the river. The crossing over the Sutlej by Sikhs was made a pretext by the British for
opening hostilities and on 13 December Governor-General Lord Hardinge issued a proclamation
announcing war on the Sikhs. The declaration charged the State of Lahore with violation of the treaty
of friendship of 1809 and justified British preparations as merely precautionary measures for the
protection of the Sutlej frontier. The British simultaneously declared Sikh possessions on the left bank
of the Sutlej forfeit.
Hesitation and indecision marred Sikh military operations. Having crossed the Sutlej with five
divisions, each 8,000 - 12,000 strong, an obvious strategy for them would have been to move forward.
They did in a bold sweeping movement first encircle Firozpur, then held by Sir John Littler with only
7,000 men, but withdrew without driving the advantage home and dispersed their armies in a wide
semicircle from Harike to Mudki and thence to Ferozeshah, 16 km southeast of Firozpur. The
abandonment of Firozpur as a first target was the result of the treachery of the Sikh Prime Minister,
Lal Singh, who was in treasonable communication with Captain Peter Nicholson, the assistant
political agent of the British. He asked the latter's advice and was told not to attack Firozpur. This
instruction he followed seducing the Sikhs with an ingenious excuse that, instead of falling upon an
easy prey, the Khalsa should exalt their fame by captivity or the death of the Lat Sahib (the governor
general) himself A division precipitately moved towards Ludhiana also remained inactive long
enough to lose the benefit of the initiative The Khalsa army had crossed the Sutlej borne on a wave of
popular enthusiasm, it was equally matched (60000 Sikh soldiers vs. 86,000 British soldiers) if not
superior to the British force. Its soldiers had the will and determination to fight or die, but not its
commanders. There was no unique among them, and each of them seemed to act as he thought best.
Drift was the policy deliberately adopted by them. On 18 December, the Sikhs came in touch with
British army, which arrived under Sir Hugh Gough, the commander-in-chief, from Ludhiana. A battle
took place at Mudki, 32 km from Flrozpur. Lal Singh, who headed the Sikh attack, deserted his army
and fled the field when the Sikhs stood firm in their order, fighting in a resolute and determined
manner. The leaderless Sikhs fought a grim hand-to-hand battle against the more numerous enemy led
by the most experienced commanders in the world. The battle continued with unabated fury till
midnight (and came thereafter to be known as "Midnight Mudki"). The Sikhs retired with a loss of 17
guns while the British suffered heavy causalities amounting to 872 killed and wounded, including
Quartermaster-General Sir Robert Sale, Sir John McCaskill and Brigadier Boulton. Reinforcements
were sent for from Ambala, Meerut and Delhi. Lord Hardinge, unmindful of his superior position of
governor-general, offered to become second-in-command to his commander-in-chief.
The second action was fought three days later, on 21 December at Ferozeshah, 16 km both from
Mudki and Firozpur. The governor-general and the commander-in-chief, assisted by reinforcements
led by General Littler from Firozpur, made an attack upon the Sikhs who were awaiting them behind
strong entrenchments. The British 16,700 men and 69 gunstried to overrun the Sikhs in one massive
40
cavalry, infantry and artillery onslaught, but the assault was stubbornly resisted. Sikhs' batteries fired
with rapidity and precision. There was confusion in the ranks of the English and their position became
increasingly critical. The growing darkness of the frosty winter night reduced them to sore straits. The
battle of Ferozeshah is regarded as one of the most fiercely contested battles fought by the British in
India. During that "night of horrors," the commander-in-chief acknowledged, "We were in a critical
and perilous state." Counsels of retreat and surrender were raised and despair struck the British camp.
In the words of General Sir ISope Grant, Sir Henry Hardinge thought it was all up and gave his
sworda present from the Duke of Wellington and which once belonged to Napoleonand his Star of the
ISath to his son, with directions to proceed to Firozpur, remarking that "if the day were lost, he must
fall. "
Lal Singh and Tej Singh again came to the rescue of the English. The former suddenly deserted the
Khalsa army during the night and the latter the next morning (22 December), which enabled the
British to turn defeat into victory. The British loss was again heavy, 1,560 killed and 1,721 wounded.
The number of causalities among officers was comparatively higller. The Sikhs lost about 2,000 men
and 73 pieces of artillery.
A temporary cessation of hostilities followed the battle of Ferozeshah. The English were not in a
position to assume the offensive and waited for heavy guns and reinforcements to arrive from Delhi.
Lal Singh and Tej Singh allowed them the much-needed respite in as much as they kept the Sikhs
from recrossing the Sutlej. To induce desertions, Lord Hardinge issued a proclamation on the
Christmas day inviting all natives of Hindustan to quit the service of the Sikh State on pain of
forfeiting their property and to claim protection from the British government. The deserters were also
offered liberal rewards and pensions.
A Sikh sardar, Ranjodh Singh Majlthia, crossed the Sutlej in force and was joined by Ajit Singh, of
Ladva, from the other side of the river. They marched towards Ludhiana and burnt a portion of the
cantonment. Sir Harry Smith (afterwards Governor of Cape Colony), who was sent to relieve
Ludhlana, marched eastwards from Firozpur, keeping a few miles away from the Sutlej. Ranjodh
Singh Majithia harried Smith's column and, when Smith tried to make a detour at Baddoval, attacked
his rear with great vigor and captured his baggage train and stores (21 January). But Harry Smith
retrieved his position a week later by inflicting a defeat on Ranjodh Singh Majithia and Ajlt Singh, of
Ladva, (28January).
The last battle of the campaign took place on 10 February. To check the enemy advance on Lahore, a
large portion of the Sikh army was entrenched in a horseshoe curve on the Sutlej near the village of
Sabhraon, under the command of Tej Singh while the cavalry battalions and the dreaded ghorcharas
under Lal Singh were a little higher up the river. Entrenchments at Sabhraon were on the left bank of
the Sutlej with a pontoon bridge connecting them with their base camp. Their big guns were placed
behind high embankments and consequently immobilized for offensive action. The infantry was also
posted behind earthworks and could not, therefore, be deployed to harass the opponents.
Early in February, the British received ample stores of ammunition from Delhi. Lal Singh had already
passed on to the English officers the required clues for an effective assault. Gough and Hardinge now
decided to make a frontal attack on Sabhraon and destroy the Darbar army at one blow. A heavy mist
hung over the battlefield, enveloping both contending armies. As the sun broke through the mist, the
Sikhs found themselves encircled between two horseshoes: facing them were the British and behind
them was the Sutlej, now in spate. After a preliminary artillery duel, British cavalry made a feint to
check on the exact location of the Sikh guns. The cannonade was resumed, and in two hours British
guns put the Darbar artillery out of action. Then the British charged Sikh entrenchments from three
sides. Tej Singh fled across the pontoon bridge as soon as the contest started and had it destroyed
making reinforcement or return of Sikh soldiers impossible. Gulab Singh Dogra stopped sending
supplies and rations from Lahore. Lal Singh's ghorcharas did not put in their appearance at Sabhraon.
In the midst of these treacheries, a Sikh warrior, Sham Singh Attarivala, symbolizing the unflinching
will of the Khalsa, vowed to fight unto the last and fall in battle rather than retire in defeat. He rallied
41
the ranks depleted by desertions. His courage inspired the Sikhs to make a determined bid to save the
day, but the odds were against them. Sham Singh fell fighting in the foremost ranks along with his
dauntless comrades. The British casualties at Sabhraon were 2,403 killed; the Sikhs lost 3,125 men in
the action and all their guns were either captured or abandoned in the river. Captain J.D. Cunningham,
who was present as an additional aide-de-camp to the governor-general, describes the last scene of the
battle vividly in his A History of the Sikhs: "...although assailed on either side by squadrons of horse
and battalions of foot, no Sikh offered to submit, and no disciple of Guru Gobind Singh asked for
quarter. They everywhere showed a front to the victors, and stalked slowly and sullenly away, while
many rushed singly forth to meet assured death by contending with a multitude. The victors looked
with stolid wonderment upon the indomitable courage of the vanquished.... "
Lord Hugh Gough, the British commander-in-chief, under whose leadership the two Anglo-Sikh wars
were fought, described Sabhraon as the Waterloo of India. Paying tribute to the gallantry of the Sikhs,
he said: "Policy precluded me publicly recording my sentiments on the splendid gallantry of our fallen
foe, or to record the acts of heroism displayed, not only individually, but almost collectively, by the
Sikh sardars and the army; and I declare were it not from a deep conviction that my country's good
required the sacrifice, I could have wept to have witnessed the fearful slaughter of so devoted a body
of men."
Lord Hardinge, who saw the action, wrote: " Few escaped; none, it may be said, surrendered. The
Sikhs met their fate with the resignation, which distinguishes their race.
Two days after their victory at Sabhraon, British forces crossed the Sutlej and occupied Kasur. The
Lahore Darbar empowered Gulab Singh Dogra, who had earlier come down to Lahore with regiments
of hillmen, to negotiate a treaty of peace. The wily Gulab Singh first obtained assurances from the
army Parishes that they would agree to the terms he made and then tendered the submission of the
darbar to Lord Hardinge. The governor-general, realizing that the Sikhs were far from vanquished,
forbore from immediate occupation of the country. By the terms imposed by the victorious British
through the peace treaty of 9 March, the Lahore Darbar was compelled to give up Jalandhar Doab,
pay a war indemnity amounting to a million and a half sterling, reduce its army to 20,000 infantry and
12,000 cavalry, hand over all the guns used in the war and relinquish control of both banks of the
Sutlej to the British. A further condition was added two days later on 11 March: the posting of a
British unit in Lahore till the end of the year on payment of expenses. The Darbar was unable to pay
the full war indemnity and ceded in lieu thereof the hill territories between the Beas and the Indus.
Kashmir was sold to Gulab Singh Dogra for 75 lakh rupees. A week later, on 16 March, another treaty
was signed at Amritsar recognizing him as Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir, affirming the suspicion
that Gulab Singh Dogra indeed was involved in sedition against Khalsa Sarkar. Although Maharani
Jind Kaur continued to act as the regent and Raja Lal Singh as water of the minor Maharaja Duleep
Singh, effective power had passed into the hands of the British resident, Colonel Henry Lawrence.
And thus end the First Anglo-Sikh war..
Lord Dalhousie
India's History : Modern India : Lord Dalhousie becomes the Governor-General - 1848
Lord Dalhousie
42
Lord Dalhousie was born in 1812 in Scotland Castle. His original name was James Andrew Broun
Ramsay. Lord Dalhousie was educated at Christ Church and Harrow, Oxford. Lord Dalhousie was the
start behind the city derivative its name.
At the age of 25 elected in the British parliament. Lord Dalhousie was a View Councilor and
president for the Board of Trade. On 12th January 1848, Lord Dalhousie was appointed as Governor
General of India. He ruled India about eight years from 1848 to 1856 and it was one of the greatest
periods for British rule. His rule to different reform was brought to develop the situations of India.
The annexation policy was a deadly weapon for conquest which increased the East India Company
rule to the elevation of glory. The annexation policy was known as the Doctrine of Lapse. The
Doctrine of Lapse was based on the forfeiture for the right rule in the non-appearance for a natural
successor. By Doctrine Lapse policy the province of Satara was annexed in 1848, the state of
Sambhalpur in 1849, the state of Jhansi in 1853 and the state of Nagpur in 1954 was also annexed.
Additional system of annexation brought victory. The state of Punjab was annexed in 1849 after the
Second Anglo Sikh war. The state of Burma also known as Pegu in 1852 was annexed. In 1853, the
territory of Berar and in 1856, Oudh was also annexed.
Lord Dalhousie was one of the major personalities. Because of the Mutiny of 1857 took place.
Although beginning by the Sepoys for the Indian Army. It gave a chance for the discontent Indian
rulers to express their dissatisfied. The Sepoy mutiny, the mutiny for peons was dismissed by Lord
Dalhousie and the British. Lord Dalhousie was also known as a successful administrator. In India,
many places have been named after Dalhousie to mark his great achievements.
In 1857, the revolt was followed with many changes to include the shift of Indian administration as of
East India Company to the dignity, honor, crown and territorial control of the local princes. In 1857,
many revolts preceded reflecting the Indian opposition to the British domination. Include the chuar
and Ho rebellion of Midnapur in 1768, 1820-22, 1831 and the Sanyasi revolt of 1770. Rajmahal hills
of the Santhals rebelled in 1855.
Lord Dalhousie proved in the administration matters with the demarcation of different sections for the
administrative machinery and appointment for Lieutenant Governor of Bengal. Lord Dalhousie was
introduced the non-regulation system. The non-regulation states were under a Chief Commissioner
responsible to the Governor General in council. Oudh, Punjab, Burma was non-regulating states.
Lord Dalhousie was one of the founded Telegraph and Postal systems. He was developed railway and
roads services. He was contributed to the unity and modernization of India. He was great achievement
for the creation of central, modernized states. Lord Dalhousie changes law, legalized re-marriage and
abolished the disability for a transfer to Christianity to inherit paternal property.
43
The field of educational, Lord Dalhousie improves such as the vernacular education system was
appreciated worthy. Lord Dalhousie was established Anglo Vernacular Schools. The free trade policy
was started with announcing free ports. By now Indian trade was dominated with the English. The
reforms of military Lord Dalhousie included the transfer of the Bengal Artillery as of Calcutta to
Meerut.
Lord Dalhousie retired on 29th February 1856 and died during 1860 at Scotland for misery for 4 years
as of physical distress and pain. A hill station Chamba District for Himachal Pradesh has been named
behind Lord Dalhousie.
The Second Anglo-Sikh War
India's History : Modern India : Second Anglo-Sikh war : (Rise of Sikh Power) British annex Punjab
as Sikhs are defeated : 1848-1849
The Second Anglo-Sikh War
ANGLO-SIKH WAR II, 1848-49, which resulted in the abrogation of the Sikh kingdom of the
Punjab, was virtually a campaign by the victors of the first Anglo-Sikh war (1945-46) and since then
the de facto rulers of the State finally to overcome the resistance of some of the sardars who chafed at
the defeat in the earlier war which, they believed, had been lost owing to the treachery on the part of
the commanders at the top and not to any lack of fighting strength of the Sikh army. It marked also the
fulfillment of the imperialist ambition of the new governor-general, Lord Dalhousie (184856), to carry
forward the British flag up to the natural boundary of India on the northwest. According to the peace
settlement of March 1846, at the end of Anglo-Sikh war I, the British force in Lahore was to be
withdrawn at the end of the year, but a severer treaty was imposed on the Sikhs before the expiry of
that date.
Sir Henry Hardinge, the then governor-general, had his Agent, Frederick Currie, persuade the Lahore
Darbar to request the British for the continuance of the troops in Lahore. According to the treaty,
which was consequently signed at Bharoval on 16 December 1846, Henry Lawrence was appointed
Resident with "full authority to direct and control all matters in every department of the State." The
Council of Regency, consisting of the nominees of the Resident and headed by Tej Singh, was
appointed. The power to make changes in its personnel vested in the resident. Under another clause
the British could maintain as many troops in the Punjab as they thought necessary for the preservation
of peace and order. This treaty was to remain in operation until the minor Maharaja Duleep Singh
attained the age of 16. By a proclamation issued in July 1847, the governor-general further enhanced
the powers of the Resident. On 23 October 1847, Sir Henry Hardinge wrote to Henry Lawrence: "In
all our measures taken during the minority we must bear in mind that by the treaty of Lahore, March
1846, the Punjab never was intended to be an independent State. By the clause I added the chief of the
State could neither make war or peace, or exchange or sell an acre of territory or admit a European
officer, or refuse us a thoroughfare through his territories, or, in fact, perform any act without our
permission. In fact the native Prince is in fetters, and under our protection and must do our bidding."
In the words of British historian John Clark Marshman, "an officer of the Company's artillery became,
in fact, the successor to Ranjit Singh." The Sikhs resented this gradual liquidation of their authority in
the Punjab. The new government at Lahore became totally unpopular. The abolition of tigers in the
Jalandhar Doab and changes introduced in the system of land revenue and its collection angered the
landed classes. Maharani Jind Kaur, who was described by Lord Dalhousie as the only woman it the
Punjab with manly understanding and in whom the British Resident foresaw a rallying point for the
well-wishers of the Sikh dynasty, was kept under close surveillance. Henry Lawrence laid down that
she could not receive in audience more than five or six sardars in a month and that she remains in
purdah like the ladies of the royal families of Nepal, Jodhpur and Jaipur.
In January 1848, Henry Lawrence took leave of absence and traveled back home with Lord Hardinge,
who had completed his term in India. The former was replaced by Frederick Currie and the latter by
44
the Earl of Dalhousie. The new regime confronted a rebellion in the Sikh province of Multan, which it
utilized as an excuse for the annexation of the Punjab. The British Resident at Lahore increased the
levy payable by the Multan governor, Diwan Mul Raj , who, finding himself unable to comply,
resigned his office. Frederick Currie appointed General Kahn Singh Man in his place and sent him to
Multan along with two British officers P.A. Vans Agnew and William Anderson, to take charge from
Mul Raj The party arrived at Multan on 18 April 1848, and the Diwan vacated the Fort and made over
the keys to the representatives of the Lahore Darbar But his soldiers rebelled and the British officers
were set upon in their camp and killed This was the beginning of the Multan outbreak.
Some soldiers of the Lahore escort deserted their officers and joined Mul Raj's army. Currie received
the news at Lahore on 21 April, but delayed action Lord Dalhousie allowed the Multan rebellion to
spread for five months. The interval was utilized by the British further to provoke Sikh opinion. The
Resident did his best to fan the flames of rebellion. Maharani Jind Kaur, then under detention in the
Fort of Sheikupura, was exiled from the Punjab She was taken to Firozpur and thence to Banaras, in
the British dominions. Her annual allowance, which according to the treaty of Bharoval had been
fixed at one and a half lakh of rupees, was reduced to twelve thousand. Her jewellery worth fifty
thousand of rupees was forfeited; so was her cash amounting to a lakh and a half. The humiliating
treatment of the Maharani caused deep resentment among the people of the Punjab Even the Muslim
ruler of Afghanistan, Amir Dost Muhammad, protested to the British, saying that such treatment is
objectionable to all creeds."
Modern India : The Second Anglo-Burmese War
India's History : Modern India : Second Anglo-Burmese war - 1852
The Second Anglo-Burmese War
Causes of the Second Anglo-Burmese War
After the treaty of Yandaboo 1826 (After first Anglo-Burmese War), a large number of British
merchants had settled on the southern coast of Burma and Rangoon. Tharrawady, the new king of
Burma (1837-1845), refused to consider the treaty of Yandaboo, binding on him. The British
Residents also did not get proper treatment at the court and so finally the Residency had to be
withdrawn in 1840.
The British merchants often complained of ill treatment at the hands of the Governor of Rangoon.
They sent a petition to Lord Dalhousie. Dalhousie was determined to maintained British prestige and
dignity at all the costs and so deputed Commodore Lambert to Rangoon to negotiate the redress of
grievances and demand compensation.
Declaration of War
At first the King of Burma was inclined to avoid war and so removed the old Governor and appointed
the new one. But when a deputation of some naval officers was refused admission, Lambert adopted a
45
very provocative line of action. He captured one of the Burmese King's ships. With this incident, the
Burmese did not resist and the war was declared.
On April 1, 1852, British forces reached Rangoon. The famous Pagoda of Rangoon was stormed on
April 14, 1852. A month later Bassein, situated at Irrawaddy Delta was captured. Prome was occupied
in October and Pegu in November. Dalhousie wanted the Burmese king to recognise the conquest of
the Lower Burma. On the refusal of the king to conclude the treaty, Dalhousie annexed Pegu by
issuing a proclamation on December 20, 1852.
End of the War
By the annexation of Pegu the eastern frontier of the British Indian Empire was extended upto the
banks of Salween. Major Arthur Phayre was appointed Commissioner of the newly acquired British
province extending as far as Myede.
Introduction of Railways and Telegraph System
India's History : Modern India : Railway opened from Bombay to Thane; Telegraph line from
Calcutta to Agra : 1853
Anglo-Indians
In 1833 the Charter of the East India Company was renewed. Influenced no doubt somewhat by the
Anglo-Indians' petition, Section 87 of the said Act stated that -`No native of the said territories, nor
any natural born subject of His Majesty resident therein, shall, by reason of his religion, place of birth,
descent, colour, or any of them, be disabled from holding any place, office, or employment under the
said Company. In theory all posts were thrown open to people of any race in India, but in practice
only the subordinate trades were bestowed upon Indians and Anglo-Indians, since higher services
could be filled only by recruitment in England. Fortunately for Anglo-Indians, about this same time
(1833), English took the place of Persian as the official language of the Courts and Government
offices. In future English was to be the only medium of correspondence in commercial houses.
English being their mother-tongue, the Anglo-Indians had an advantage in this direction and very
soon many of the community found employment under Government and in commercial firms as
clerks, though in subordinate positions. This advantage, however, was only temporary because Lord
Bentinck, who was Governor-General from 1828 to 1836, with the cooperation of Lord Macaulay
who drew up his famous Minute on Education in 1835, determined that `The linguistic disadvantage
of Indians should be removed, and accordingly instruction in English was ordered to be imparted in
Indian schools. Very soon the graduates from Indian Universities and educated young men from the
Government High Schools were rapidly elbowing Anglo-Indians out of the clerical posts which they
had filled efficiently.
Fortune once again came to the rescue of Anglo-Indians for soon new avenues of employment were
opening up for them. In 1825 the first railway had run in England. In 1845 the East India Railway was
46
projected in India. Simultaneously railway schemes were set on foot in Madras and Bombay. The first
train in India ran from Bombay to Thana in 1853. In 1851 the Telegraph system was inaugurated.
During the latter half of the 19th century (1850-1900) Anglo-Indians found ample employment on the
railways, and in the telegraph and custom services. These departments needed men of adventurous
stock who were willing to endure the hardships, risks, and perils of pioneers. The Anglo-Indians had
in them the spirit of their forefathers and so the community furnished - `The Navigation Companies
with captains, second officers, engineers and mechanics. From them were recruited telegraph
operators, artisans and electricians. They supplied the railways with station staffs, engine-drivers,
permanent way-inspectors, guards, auditors - in fact every higher grade of railway servant. The
Mutiny of 1857 too had proved beyond doubt the absolute loyalty of the Anglo-Indians and removed
the suspicion which had been responsible for the repressive measures of the latter part of the 18th
century and the first half of the 19th century. The latter part of the 19th century and the first decade of
the 20th century were once again a period of prosperity and contentment for Anglo-Indians.

SSC GK Final - Text.marked

Încărcat de

Informații document

Titlu original

Drepturi de autor

Formate disponibile

Partajați acest document

Partajați sau inserați document

Opțiuni de partajare

Vi se pare util acest document?

Este necorespunzător acest conținut?

Drepturi de autor:

Formate disponibile

SSC GK Final - Text.marked

Încărcat de

Drepturi de autor:

Formate disponibile

www.BankExamsToday.

S-ar putea să vă placă și