MODERN HISTORY
Portuguese
1) Discovery of the
New Sea Route The Cape route, was discovered from Europe to India by Vasco da
Gama. He reached the port of Calicut on the May 17. 1498, and was received by
the Hindu ruler of Calicut (known by the title of Zamorin). This led to the
establishment of trading stations at Calicut, Cochin and Cannanore. Cochin was
the early capital of the Portuguese in India.Later Goa replaced it.
2) Alfonso d' Albuquerque arrived in India in 1503 as the
governor of the Portuguese in India in 1509 (The first governor being Francisco
de Almeida between (1503-09). He captured Goa from the ruler of Bijapur in
1510.
Other Governors Nino da Cunha (1529-38)—transferred his
capital from Cochin to Goa (1530) and acquired Diu and Bassein (1534) from
Bahadur Shah of Gujarat. Martin Alfonso de Souza (1542-45)—the famous Jesuit
saint Francisco Xavier arrive in India with him. The Portuguese rule began to
decline afterwards & in the end they left only with GOA, DAMAN & DIU
which they retained till 1961.
Dutch
1)Formation of the Company in March. 1602, by a charter of
the Dutch parliament the Dutch East India Company.was formed with powers to
make wars, conclude treaties, acquire territories and build for tresses.Establishment
of Factories
2)The Dutch set up factories at Masulipatam (1605). Pulicat
(1610)-. Surat (1616), etc Bimilipatam ( 1641), K.arikal( 1645), Chinsura
(1653). Kasimbuzar.Baranagore, Patna.Balasore.Negapatam (all in 1658) and
Cochin (1663).
3)The Dutch replaced the Portuguese as the most dominant
power in European trade with the East, including India.
4)Pulicat was their main centre in India till 1690, after
which Negapatam replaced it.
5)The Dutch conceded to English after their defeat in the
Battle of Bedera in 1759.
English
Before the East India Company established trade in the
India.,
1) John Mildenhall a merchant adventurer, was the first
Englishman who arrived in India in 1599 by the landroute, for the purpose of
trade with Indian merchants.
2) Popularly known as the‗English East India Company‘. It was
formed by a group of merchants known as the ―Merchant Adventures‘ in 1599 &
in 1600 the company was given rights to trade in the entire east by QUEEN
ELIZABETH I.
Decision to open a factory at Surat
3) Following the decision of the East India Company to open a
factory at Surat (1608). Captain Hawkins arrived at Jahangir‘s court (1609) to
seek permission. A farman was issued by Jahangir permitting the English to
build a factory at Surat (1613).
4) Sir Thomas Roe came to India as ambassador of James I to
Jahangir‘s court in 1615 to obtain the permission to trade and establish
factories in different parts of the empire. Danish
1. The Danes formed an East India Company and arrived in
India in 1616. They established settlements at Tranquebar (in Tamil Nadu) in
1620 and at Serampore (Bengal) in 1676. Serampore was their headquarters in
India.
2. They were forced to sell all their settlements in India to
the British in 1854
French
1) The French East India Company was formed by Colbert in
1664.
2) The first French factory was established at Surat by
Francois Caron in 1664. A factory at Masulipatam was set up in 1669.
3) The French powerin India was revived under Lenoir and
Dumas (governors) between 1720 and 1742. They occupied Mahe in the Malabar,
Yanam in Coromandal and Karikal in Tamil Nadu (1739).
4) The arrival of Dupleix as French governor in India in 1742
saw the beginning of Anglo-French conflict (Carnatic wars) resulting in their
final defeat in India.
EAST
INDIA COMPANY
1. The East India Company acquired Bombay from Charles II on
lease. Gerald Aungier was its first governor from 1669 to 1677. The first
factory was built atSurat in (1605). Later, Surat was replaced by Bombay as the
headquarters of the Company on the west coast in 1687.
2.In 1639 Francis Day obtained the site of Madras from the
Raja of Chandragiri with permission to build a fortified factory, which was
named Fort St. George. Madras soon replaced Masulipatam as the headquarters of
the English on the Coromandal coast.
3.In 1690 Job Charnock established a factory at Sutanuti and
the zamindari of the three villages of Sutanuti, Kalikata and Govindpur was
acquired by the British (1698). These villages later grew into the city of
Calcutta. The factory at Sutanuti was fortified in 1696 and this new fortified
settlement was named fort William‘ in 1700.
4.In 1694 the British Parliament passed a resolution
givingequal rights to all Englishmen to trade in the East. A new rivalcompany,
known as the‗English Company of Merchants Trading to the East Indies‘ (1698)
was formed The final amalgamation of the company came in 1708 under the title
of ‘The United Company of Merchants of England Trading to the East Indies‘.
This new company continued its existence till 1858.
IMPORTANT BATTLES
First Anglo-Sikh War (1845-1846)
The first battle between the Sikhs and the English was fought
at Mudki on December 18, 1845.The Sikhs were defeated. The English again won
the battle at Firozpur onDecember 21.The Sikhs under Ranjit Singh Majithia
however defeated the English at Buddwal in 1846.But the Sikhs were again
defeated at Aliwal. The decisive battle was fought at Sobraon in 1846 and Sikhs
were routed. The English then crossed the Sutlej andcaptured the capital of Lahore.
The war came to an end by the treaty of Lahore which was signed in 1846.This
treaty left the Sikhs with no capacity for resisting the English. Another
treaty was made with Sikhs in 1846 this treaty is known as Second treaty of
Lahore or the treaty of Bhairowal.
Second
Anglo-Sikh War (1848-1849)
The Sikhs considered
their defeat in the first Sikh War a great humiliation. They had been
accustomed to victories in the time of Ranjit Singh and this defeat gave a rude
shock totheir pride. The Sikhs wanted to restore the fallen fortunes of their
kingdom. Lord Gough the British Commander in Chief reached Lahore with the
grand army of Punjab. Multan surrendered in 1849 and the Sikhs suffered a
defeat at Chillianwala a few weeks later. The final and decisive battle was won
by the English at Gujarat and the whole of Punjab surrendered. The war resulted
in the annexation of Punjab in 1849 by Lord Dalhousie and Dalip Singh was
pensioned off and sent to England along with his mother Rani Jindan.The
administration of the Punjab was entrusted to a Board of Commissioners. The
annexation of Punjab extended the British territories in India up to the
natural frontiers of India towards the north-west. Beside after the destruction
of Sikh powerthere remained no active power which could pose a threat to the
security of the English in India.
The
First Anglo-Mysore War (1767-69)
The main causes of
this war were Haider's ambition to drive the British away from the Carnatic and
finally from India and the British realization of the threat posed to them by
Haider. A tripartite alliance was formed against Haider by the British, the
Nizam and the Marathas. Haider's success in breaking the alliance and
declaration of war on the British. The war ended with the defeat of British.
The panicstricken Madras government concluded the humiliating Treaty of Madras
in 1769 on the basis of mutual restitution of each other's territories and a
defensive alliance between the two parties committing the English to help Hyder
Ali in case he was attacked by another power. Treaty of Madras It was signed by
Haider Ali and the allies consisting of the Company, the Raja of Tanjore, and
the Malabar ruler. It provided that Mutual restitution of conquests takes place
except forKarur and its districts which were to be retained by the Mysore
ruler. In case either of the parties was attacked the other would rally to its
assistance. All the captured employees of the Madras government were to be
released by Haider Ali The trade privileges.
The
Second Anglo-Mysore War (1780-1784)
The treaty of 1769
between Hyder Ali and the English company proved more in the nature of a truce
and Hyder Ali accused the company of not observing the terms of the defensive
treaty by refusing to help him when the Marathas attacked Mysore in 1771.
Haider found the French more helpful than the English. Further in 1778 English
in India seized the French settlements including Mahe a port which was very
crucial for Haider Ali for the entry of supplies. Haider Ali tried to take Mahe
port but in vain. He arranged a joint front with the Nizam and the Marathas
against the common enemy-the English East India Company. The war lasted from
1780-1784. But he died in 1782 and was succeeded by his son Tipu Sultan.
Tipucontinued the war for another year but absolute success eluded both the
sides. Tired of war the two sides concluded peace Treaty of Mangalore. By this
Treaty it was decided that English would return Srirangapatnam to Tipu and Tipu
would handover Fort of Badnur to English.
The
Fourth Anglo-Mysore War (1799)
With his defeat in the
third Anglo-Mysore war, Tipu was burning with revenge. He wanted to get back
his territory and to achieve that objective he carried on negotiations with the
French and Zaman Shah of Kabul. Tipu wanted his allies to expel the English.
Lord Wellesley after making Subsidiary Alliance with the Nizam asked Tipu
Sultan to accept the same but he refused. Mysore was attacked from two sides.
The main army under General Harris supported by Nizam's subsidiary force under
Arthur Wellesley attacked Mysore from the east while another army advanced from
Bombay. Tipu was at first defeated by the Bombay army and was later on defeated
by the General Harris at Mallavalli. Tipu died fighting bravely. The members of
his family were interned at Vellore. A boy of the earlier Mysore royal family
was installed on the Gaddi of Mysore and a Subsidiary Alliance was imposed.
Thus the fourth Mysore War destroyed the state of Mysore which was ruled by
Haider Ali33 years back.
First
Anglo Maratha War (1775-82)
The internal problems of the Marathas and the growing
ambition of the English brought the beginning of the AngloMaratha struggle. The
primary cause of the first Maratha war was the interference of the English
government at Bombay in the internal affairs of the Marathas.Peshwa Madhav Rao
died in 1772 and was succeeded by his younger brother Narain Rao.His uncle
Raghoba wanted to become the Peshwa and got him murdered. The Maratha chiefs
took up the cause of Madhav Rao Narain the son of Narain Rao.Ragobha approached
British for help and signed the treaty of Surat hopping to gain the coveted
Gaddi with the help of English subsidiary troops. By this treaty he also
promised to cede Salsette and Bassein and refrain from entering into alliance
with the enemies of the company. In the war that followed nobody gained any
success and two parties realized the futility of the struggle by concluding the
Treaty of Salbai (1782). By the Treaty of Salbai, status quo was maintained
which gave the British 20 years of peace with the Marathas. The treaty also
enabled the British to exert pressure on Mysore with the help of the Marathas
in recovering their territories from Haider Ali.
Second
Anglo-Maratha War (1803-1806)
Second
Anglo-Maratha War (1803-1806)
The second Maratha war was fought at the time of Lord
Wellesley who wanted the Marathas to accept his Subsidiary Alliance system. The
Marathas refused to accept it but were tricked by Wellesley due to their own
internal differences. The Treaty of Bassein made conflict with the Marathas
inevitable. The main provisions of the treated were the recognition of Peshwa's
claim in Poona acceptance of Subsidiary Alliance by Baji Rao II and
relinquishing of all rights of Surat by Baji Rao to the British. For Marathas
Treaty of Bassein was loss of national honor.Holkar and Scindia stopped
fighting .Scindia and Bhonsle combined but Holkar and Gaikwad remained
aloof.Scindia and Bhonsle were asked by the English to withdraw their troopsto
the north of the Narmada River but they refused and it led to war. Both Scindia
and Peshwar had accepted the sovereignty of the English. British turned their
attention towards Holkar but Yashwant Rao Holkar proved more than a match for
the British. Wellesley was recalled from India and the Company made peace with
the Holkar in January 1806 by the Treaty of Rajghat giving back to the latter
the greater part of the territories.
Third Anglo-Maratha War (1817-1818)
Maratha made a desperate last attempt to regain their
independence and prestige in 1817.This led in organizing a united front of the
Maratha Chiefs and was taken over by the Peshwa who was uneasy under the rigid
control exercised by the British Resident. However once again the Marathas
failed to evolve any plan of action. The Peshwa attacked the British Residency
at Poona in 1817, Appa Saheb of Nagpur attacked the Residency at Nagpur and
Madhav Rao Holkar made preparations for war. The Maratha confederacy was
altogether destroyed so many territories were taken from its various members
that they were rendered powerless to do anything against the British. Thus the
work was accomplished by Lord Hastings in 1818.Now the British Government
became the supreme and paramount authority in India
The
Revolt of 1857
The Revolt of 1857 is an important landmark in the history of
India. As per the British historians it was the―Sepoy Mu ny‖, it was the―First
war of independence‖. Causes of the Revolt Political—The problem created during
the reign of Lord Dalhausie. He annexed various states and Doctrine of Lapse
became the most powerful instrument in annexation of Indian states. According
to Doctrine of Lapse, an Indian state was annexed by British if the ruler had
no natural heir. Economic--The economic policy of the British Raj destroyed the
Indian economy on all fronts. The high tax rates from the cultivators,
introduction of new land revenue arrangements in India without proper
understanding of the ground realities, forcibly evictions and cruel methods to
extract the land revenue resulted in breakdown of traditional agrarian economy.
Socio-religious--The racial discrimination by British against Indians, forceful
conversion to Christianity and social reforms like abolition of sati, 1829;
legalization of widow remarriage, 1856 etc. offended the orthodox elements of
Indian society. Military--British discriminated againstthe Indian soldiers and
adopted the policy of exclusion in the service conditions and promotion by
which the high and key posts were reserved only for the Europeans. Immediate
cause:The introduction of Enfield greased rifles whose cartridges were said
tohave a greased cover made of beef and pork sparked off the revolt. It
agitated both Hindu and Muslim soldiers and resulted in immediate launch of
movement.
The course of events
• On March 29, 1857, an Indian sepoy of 34 Native Infantry,
Mangal Pandey, killed two British officersHugeson and Baugh-on parade at
Barrackpore (near Calcutta).
• The mutiny really started at Merrut on 10th May 1857. The
3rd Native Infantry revolted. The occasion was the punishment of some sepoys
for their refusal to use the greased cartridges. The soldiers alongwith other
groups of civilians, went on a rampage shouting‗Maro Firangi ko‘. They broke
open jails, murdered Europeans, burnt their houses and marched to Delhi after
sunset.
• The appearance of the marching soldiers next morning (i.e.
11th May) in Delhi was a signal to the local soldiers, who in turn revolted,
seized the city and proclaimed the 82-year old Bahadur Shah‗Zafar‘ , as
Shahenshah-i-Hindustan (i.e. Emperor of India). • The British allies during the
revolt were Sindhia, the Nizam of Hyderabad and the Begum of Bhopal.
Impact of the Revoltof 1857
1. The major impact of the revolt was the end of East India
Company‘s rule in India. By the Government of India Act 1858, the British
government took over the ruleof India in its own hand. A minister of the
British government, called the Secretary of state for India was made
responsible for the governance of India.
2. The British Governor-General of India was now also given
the title of Viceroy.
