The British in India

LEQ:

• How did British rule cause India to make political, economic and social changes?

Early British Involvement in India

• By the late 1700s, the British needed to expand into Asia and Africa so that they could continue to stay economically competitive.– FACTORS• Technological advances• Weak empires in Asia

and North Africa

New Technology

• Steam-powered gun boats• Repeating rifles• Machine guns• Exploding shells

Weak Empires

• Mughal Empire declined in 1707• The Ottoman Empire fractured• The Qing dynasty is suffering internal

rebellions

The Many Faces of Imperialism

• Colony – a territory governed by a foreign power

• Protectorate – a territory that has its own government but is controlled by a foreign power

• Sphere of Influence – a territory in which a country claims exclusive political or economic rights

British East India Company

• Created to control trade between Britain, East Asia and India

• Ruled much of India by 1800• Created chaos among the Mughals and their

state leaders then swept in with its own armies

Changes in India• New educational

systems• English language• British laws were

introduced• Banned sati

Sati

The Sepoy Mutiny

• Sepoy – Indian soldier who fights in the British army– Muslim sepoys did not eat pork– Hindu sepoys did not eat beef

The Enfield Rifle• Cartridge had to be bitten off on one end.• The end was thought to be greased with pork or

beef fat.

Sepoys refused to use theseCartridges.

The Facts• Sepoys killed their British officers and British

women and children.• British captured sepoys and strapped them to

cannons and then shot them.• Villages were burned.• The rebellion lasted

two years.

The Raj

• A Hindi word meaning “rule”• Indian Civil Service – this group

ruled India yet most officials were British

• British lived in segregated neighborhoods

India’s Natural Resources

• Cotton• Tea• Indigo• Jute• Salt

Social Darwinism

• Darwinism applied to human society• A Sociological theory stating that

individuals or groups achieve advantage over others as the result of genetic or biological superiority.

• Many British commonly believed that they were destined to rule or lead over other people.

Darwin = natural selection

• Herbert Spencer = Social Darwinism

• EXAMPLE: The peppered moth

Swadeshi

• A movement which called for the boycott of British goods by the Indians.

• EXAMPLE: Only wear Indian made garments

Reasons for Swadeshi• British wanted to partition

Bengal• British felt that two

provinces would be easier to govern

• Indians felt that this was an attempt to break apart Bengal’s Hindu population.

Muslim League

• Sought to protect Indian Muslims• Main organization in the struggle for Indian

independence • Muslims feared that Hindus opposed the

partition because they wanted to preserve their own Hindu power.

Struggle for Independence

• The Indian National Congress and The Muslim League were the main organizations in the struggle for Indian Independence.

Create a chart like this in your notes and use it to summarize the effects of British rule on India. Place a star next to the effect that you think was the most significant.

Category Effects

Politics

Economics

Society