Indian National CONGRESS

The Background  

The politically conscious intellectuals and leaders of India were well aware of the need for an all India association. They wanted an association that would provide a platform to formulate programs for political activities for the entire country. The association would also broaden the base of the freedom struggle by providing political education to common people. The leaders of different regions had had already begun to plan the creation of such an organization. The All India National Conference in 1883 at Calcutta included the participation of representatives from all major towns and cities of India. This conference provided a model for the foundation of the Indian National Congress.

Foundation  

The idea of an all India association was given a concrete shape by A. O. Hume, a retired English civil service officer. Hume was very critical of the oppressive government policies. He strongly criticized the land revenue policies of the government. He criticized the administration of Lord Lytton for doing little for the welfare of Indians. The efforts of Hume had the desired result. The Indian National Congress (INC) was founded in 1885. Its formation marked the beginning of Indian national movement.

The first Session of the Indian National Congress was held on 28 December 1885 at Bombay under the president-ship of Womesh Chandra Bonnerjee. It was attended by 72 delegates, important among them were Dadabhai Naoroji, Ranade, Pherozeshah Mehta, K. T. Telang and Dinshaw Wancha.

Purpose  

The purpose of the formation of the Indian National Congress was to provide a common platform to formulate common program for political activity and also for broadening the base of the freedom struggle by political education of the common people.

Aim and Objective  

The aim of the foundation of the INC was fusion of different elements into one nation, the regeneration of the nation and the consolidation of the union between England and India. The objective of the INC was promotion of personal friendship among all workers of India for the development of the national unity. The other objective was to work for the eradication of the race, creed, or provincial prejudice.

Demands  

The main demands of the INC were to -

• inquire into the working of Indian administration
• abolition of the Indian council of the secretary of state for India
• creation of legislative councils for north-west provinces, Awadh and Punjab
• increase in the number of elected members in councils with greater rights
• reduction of military expenditures
• introduction of simultaneous public service examinations in England and India and the raising of the age of candidates

These demands remain the cornerstone of the Congress demands even in the future at least up to 1905. However, after 1905, these demands were further elaborated, structured and broadened progressively.

Sessions of the Congress  

The delegates of the Indian National Congress met every year in different part of the country. The second session was held in 1886 at Calcutta attended by over 450 delegates and presided over by  Dadabhai Naoroji.  The third session was held at Madras in 1887 with more than 600 delegates attending presided over by Badruddin Tayabji.

In the years following the foundation of the Indian National Congress, the national movement became wider including diverse groups of people. The Congress between the period 1885 and 1905 was dominated by the leaders who belonged to the politically conscious middle class consisting of professionals such as lawyers, doctors and teachers, who had studies abroad and had faith in the British sense of justice. They were called Moderates. Prominent among them were Dadabhai Naoroji, Badruddin Tayabji, M. G. Ranade, Pherozeshah Mehta, Surendranath Banerjee, etc.

These leaders believed putting restrained and moderate demands before the British government. The demands of the moderates were mostly limited to constitutional, economic, administrative and civil reforms.

Reaction of the British towards Congress  

Initially the British remained favourable to the Congress party and its activities. Even the British officials attended the Congress sessions. However the attitude of the British changed as the Congress led national movement started to gain momentum. They wanted Congress to remain confined to social issues and academic discussions. Soon the government turned hostile to the activities of the Congress party.

Radical Elements in the Congress  

In the end of the 19^th Century, many young Congress leaders like Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Bipin Chandra Pal, Lala Lajpat Rai and Aurobindo Ghosh were disappointed with the ideology and techniques of the moderates. They wanted the Congress to adopt aggressive methods against the British government. They were becoming aware of the exploitative policies of the British.

The growing discontent of the people of India coupled with several other factors like severe famine and partition of Bengal led to the rise of radicalism in the Congress. By 1907, the Congress was heading to a split. In Surat Session of the INC in 1907 the moderates and the radicals differed over the functioning of the Congress and the ultimate goal of the freedom struggle.

First Split in the Congress Part  

During the Surat Session in 1907 the radical nationalists wanted Tilak to be president, but the moderates were successful in nominating Rashbehari Ghosh as the president. Tilak was humiliated by not letting to speak. Violence erupted between both sides and the radicals were expelled from the party for nine years.

The Indian National Congress after the Surat split, remained more or less non active. For the next seven years the radical Congress spear-headed the Swadeshi Movements with little inputs from the moderate elements. In June 1914 the First World War started in Europe which had its repercussions in Asia including India. Congress supported Britain in the war, wanting political and constitutional reforms in return. The extremists Congress however wanted to utilize the War to overthrow the British from India.

Lucknow Pact  

One of the most significant achievements of the war period was the coming together of the Congress and the Muslim League. Both the parties signed a historic pact at Lucknow in 1916. The another remarkable event that happened during this period was coming together of the moderate and radical factions of the Congress with Tilak and his follower re-joining congress.

Both the Congress and the Muslim League jointly declared the Lucknow Pact demanding self governing rights for the Indians along with a number of other points like communal electorate, direct election, abolition of the Indian Council and reforms in the Legislative councils.

After the war was finished the British government brought the famous August Declaration basically based on two points – one that India will continue to remain an integral part of the British Empire and second the British government was willing to associate Indians in administration and also willing to develop local self governing bodies like Municipalities and District Boards.

Govt. of India Act, 1919   

The August Declaration finally resulted in the passing of the Government of India Act 1919 which provided the Indians some sort of self rule. The rule of Diarchy was introduced in the Provincial legislature with provisions for elected councilors. Also the Governor General’s Council was for the first time was to have three Indians in the team of eight members. Both Congress and the Muslim League rejected the Act saying it was too less reform and impractical.

Non Cooperation and Civil Disobedience Movement  

By the 1920s the Congress and the Indian national movement was lead by M. K. Gandhi. In 1920 Session of congress in Calcutta the Congress approved the launch of the Non-Cooperative and Civil Disobedience Movement under the leadership of M. K. Gandhi. It basically was boycott of British offices, court and law, schools and colleges run by British and all Britain made goods and refusal to pay taxes. Congress leadership believed this movement would cripple the British economy.

The British came heavily on the Indians. Congress leaders were arrested and press was censored. However, the movement was brought to an abrupt end due to Chauri Chaura incident in which the angry residents of Chauri Chaura village gathered in front of the police station and burnt it killing many police men inside. Gandhi wanted the movement to be peaceful and non-violent and was angered to see this. He withdrew the movement angering many in the congress. Gandhi was arrested and sent to the prison for 6 years. However, the movement made Congress a mass party.

Formation of Swaraj Party within Congress  

The arrest of Gandhi created a void among the nationalist ranks and a sense of disorganisation and disorientation among the leaders of the Congress was found to creep. The leaders like C. R. Das and Motilal Nehru wanted to fight the elections and enter the council but were opposed by Patel and C. Rajagopalacharya leading to their resignation from the Congress and formation of Swaraj Party.

Swaraj Party fought in the Council Elections in November 1923 and won 42 seats out of 101 in the Imperial Legislative Council. Also in the Provincial elections they did extremely well winning clear majority in Central Province, became largest party in Bengal and did well also in Bombay and United Province. The Swaraj Party joined the Council to use it as a platform to raise the demand of self-government. The Congress had almost become inactive during this period.

Simon Commission  

The next big event in the Congress calendar was the Simon Commission. The Simon Commission came to India on 3 February 1928 to constitute a commission after 10 years of the passing of the govt. of India Act, 1919 as was provided in the Act. The Commission was suppose to look into the progress of the reforms and give its recommendation for further constitutional reforms. The Congress at the Madras Session decided to reject the Commission along with the Muslim League and the Hindu Mahasabha.

It recommended scraping of Dyarchy and spoke of forming a federal union including both the British India and the princely states, also expansion of the Executive Council of the Viceroy. The main discord was that the Viceroy Executive Council would not be responsible to the elected legislature.

Nehru Report  

The Congress on the other hand came up with its own version of the Commission called Nehru Report under the Chairmanship of Motilal Nehru . The report agreed to the dominion status for India headed by the British Parliament appointed Governor General, creation of states based on linguistic ground, Parliament of India to have 500 members in the lower house directly elected by non communal electorate by universal adult franchise for 5 years, and 200 members in the Senate for 6 years elected indirectly. The Muslim League demanded the creation of 4 Muslim majority provinces and more reservations of seats for the Muslims.

The Congress was back on the national movement scene with the Viceroy Lord Irwin’s declaration of holding Round Table Conference and rejection of it by all on the ground that it will not yield much. The Congress prepared to launch a mass movement called Civil Disobedience Movement after the British Government rejected Gandhi’s Eleven Point Demands touching on the subjects of British Government’s expenditure policy and salt monopoly.

Civil Disobedience Movement and Dandi March  

The famous Dandi March on between 12 March and 6 April 1930 brought the Congress back on the political front and the British had to take notice of that. Gandhi, Nehru and many top Congress leaders were arrested, but the Civil Disobedience Movement continued with people refusing to pay taxes and making their own salt. The British government resorted to repressive measures to stop this movement.

First Round Table Conference  

Soon the government announced the First Round Table Conference to be held in London from 16 Nov 1930. The Congress did not participate and boycotted it. The Hindu Mahasabha and the Muslim League and several Princes of the Princely states participated. The outcome of the Conference was meaningless. It was clear to the British government that without the participation of the Congress, any such Conference would not yield any results and would be meaningless. They recognised Congress as a pan India organization and the true representative of all caste creed and religion of the subcontinent.

After the failure of the First Round Table Conference the government engaged with the Congress to bring it to the negotiating table. Gandhi and other leaders were released from the prison. Congress agreed to be a part of the Second Round Table Conference after signing Gandhi-Irwin Pact which led to the release of all political prisoners not involved in violence.

Second Round Table Conference  

The Second Round Table Conference was held in London between September 1931 and December 1931. Gandhi attended it as the sole representative of the Congress, also attended by Hindu Mahasabha and Muslim League leaders besides Princes. A deadlock happened on the issue of separate electorate for the minorities like Muslims, Anglo-Indians and Christians and also Depressed class Hindus. Gandhi tried hard to prevent leaders from being concerned only about securing seats and reservations for their community. The British government announced the formation of two Muslim majority states of North West Frontier Province and Sindh based on the demands made by the Muslim League.

Gandhi was dejected and returned empty handed. The very next day he gave a call to resume Civil Disobedience Movement. The government did not want another movement, so they quickly arrested Gandhi and all other Congress leaders and banned Congress and its activities, gagged the press, and issued a set of repressive ordinances.

Communal Award  

In August 1932, the British government announced the Communal award implementing separate electorate not only for the Muslims, but also for the Sikhs, Christians and the Depressed class of Hindus. Gandhi who was at Yeravada Jail at that time, was shocked and went on to indefinite fast. After some days the Depressed class representative B. R. Ambedkar discussed with Gandhi and came up with the Poona Pact rejecting the communal award for the depressed class in the interest of the Hindu unity.

Third Round Table Conference  

The British government in November 1932 decided to organize the Third round Table conference, which was again boycotted by the Congress but attended by the Muslim League and Hindu Mahasabha. After the Conference the government passed the Government of India Act, 1935 that reformed further the Council.

Government of India Act, 1935  

The three main features of the act was replacement of the diarchy at the provinces by the autonomous rule; formation of the bicameral legislature consisting of the Council of States and the Federal Assembly and direct elections to the Council of States and indirect elections for the Federal Assembly.

Though Congress rejected the proposal along with other political parties, it fought elections and won 716 seats out of 1161 it contested in the Council of States and won majority in all the provinces except Bengal, Assam, Sindh, NWFP and Punjab. The Congress formed Provincial ministry in Bombay, Madras, Central Provinces, Bihar, Assam, Orissa, United Provinces, and NWFP. Muslim League formed ministry in Bengal and in Punjab Akali Dal formed ministry in coalition with the Congress party.

Second World War  

During the Second World War, the Congress agreed to help the government in lieu of independence after the war was over. The British government assured Congress that after the war, a constituent assembly would be formed to determine the future political structure of India and some sort of responsible government at the centre would be formed as interim government before gaining full independence. The Congress was adamant on full freedom after the war which was rejected. This led to the withdrawal of the Congress support to the British war efforts. The Congress ministry from all provinces resigned.

The government however continued with their job. Meanwhile, the Muslim League extended their support for the British war efforts in return of the assurance of taking the views of the Muslims before finalizing any constitutional scheme.

The astounding success of Hitler in the war forced the British government to re-negotiate with the Congress as it needed a full fledged support of India in its war efforts. The Congress was still not in any mood to give concession to the government. The government brought August Offer, which was rejected by the Congress because it did not offer any thing new, but was welcomed by the Muslim League as it spoke about the minority rights.

Cripps Mission   

In March 1942 the British government sent Sir Stafford Cripps the leader of the House of the Commons in England to India with a set of proposals in order to seek its support for the war. This was Cripps Mission. It proposed setting up of an Indian Union with a dominion status. After the war it would constitute a Constituent Assembly to frame a Constitution and negotiation for transfer of power. The Congress rejected the proposal as it talked about the dominion status and Congress wanted full independence. The Muslim League rejected on the ground that it did not speak anything about the separate state for the Muslims Pakistan.

Quit India Movement  

The Congress under the leadership of Gandhi launched Quit India movement in 1942 for the sole aim of attaining independence. It was one of the most powerful national movements characterised by pan Indian appeal.

The offers made by Cripps Mission and its subsequent failure made it clear to the Congress leaders that the British government was not willing to offer any concrete settlement. It was rather more interested in forcing India to support its war efforts. Popular discontent against the British government due to shortage of foodstuff in the country and rising prices made the Congress leaders believed that the time was ripe for another movement.

The Congress Working Committee met at Wardah on 14 July 1942 and adopted the famous Quit India Resolution calling for immediate end of the British rule in India. Gandhi in his famous speech in Bombay gave the call ‘ Do or Die’. He asked the government servants not to resign but to openly endorse Congress policies and programs against the government. He asked the soldiers not to resign but to refuse opening fire on Indians. Peasants were asked to stop paying taxes to the Zamindars.

The government did not want another movement amidst the World War, so it arrested all top Congress leaders including Gandhi and Nehru on 9 August 1942 before the movement could start. As the news of the arrest of the Congress leaders spread people started to react violently. Police stations, post offices and courts were attacked; telegraph lines were cut, and railway lines were uprooted. A general strike was observed.

The government reacted by the use of force and severe repression. Almost 940 people died and another 1630 were grievously injured in the police firing. Soon the government crushed the movement completely.

As a result of the failure of the movement, the leaders were in jail leading to very little political activity inside the country till the end of the Second World War in 1945.

Wavell Plan   

During the course of the Second World War, the Indian struggle caught the eyes of the British allies especially the USA, who now started to put pressure on the British government to settle permanently the Indian independence issue. The threat of Japanese invasion also led the British to the negotiating table with the Congress. The Congress leaders arrested during the Quit India Movement were released.

Viceroy Wavell called a conference of the leaders of Congress and other political parties in Shimla in June 1945 and presented the Wavell Plan. The main features of the Plan was that the British government would start negotiations on the new constitution for India once the war was over and that the Viceroy’s Executive Council will have all Indian members except the Viceroy.

The Congress party rejected the Plan as it objected to be called Hindu Party and the Muslim League rejected because it wanted to be the sole representative of all Muslims in India.

Elections of 1945  

The elections to the central and legislative councils in India were announced in August 1945 by the British government which also declared that after the elections a constituent assembly would be convened and an interim government would be in power.

The Congress won 57 out of 102 seats in the Central Assembly and got a majority in the provincial assemblies of most of the provinces except Bengal, Sindh and Punjab. The Muslim League got 90% Muslim votes and won the thirty reserved seats in the central assembly and formed governments in the Sindh and Bengal Province. Akali Dal formed government in Punjab with the help of Congress coalition.

Cabinet Mission  

As promised the British government sent a Cabinet Mission under the leadership of the Secretary of State Pethick Lawrence in March 1946 to negotiate the transfer of power and formation of interim government.

The Cabinet Mission rejected the idea of Pakistan saying that the proposed state would also have a large number of Hindus and practical problems of dividing the army and the provinces of Punjab and Bengal. It offered to create a federal union comprised of the British Indian Provinces and the Princely states. The centre would control defence, communication and external affairs. It would have the power to raise money to carry out its activity. The provinces were grouped in three sections. It also proposed the formation of interim government on the sidelines of the Constituent Assembly.

The Congress accepted the proposal mainly because the proposal had rejected the idea of Pakistan and the Muslim League agreed because the grouping of the province was done according to its plan, Punjab, NWFP, Sindh, Bengal and Assam were grouped separately in two groups, not clubbed with other states.

The Interim Government  

Next year after the Cabinet Mission’s limited success, the British government decided to hold elections for the Constituent Assembly. The Congress managed to win 201 seats and the Muslim League 73 seats. The Congress formed the interim government under the leadership of Nehru, which made the League uncomfortable. The League was mainly offended because it wanted all Muslims in the interim government to be from its leaders. They did not agree to the appointment of any Muslims, even from the Congress quota.

From now onwards Muslim League started to crate troubles for the interim government and was non cooperative.  It accused the Viceroy and withdrew its acceptance of the Cabinet Mission. On August 16, 1946 the Muslim League gave a call for the ‘Direct Action’ to achieve Pakistan. The call was followed by horrible bloodshed and communal riots in Calcutta, Bombay and Noakhali leaving more than 5000 people dead within a couple of days.

At last, Lord Wavell persuaded the League to join the interim government by October 1946. The Muslim League joined the interim government and its leader Liakat Ali Khan got finance portfolio, but its intentions were not good since the beginning, as they had accepted the invite to join the interim government to secure foothold in the government to fight for Pakistan. Finally, the League recommended the dissolution of the Assembly and boycotted the interim government. It didn’t join any of its sitting and intensified its agitation. It brought down the Congress-Akali coalition government in Punjab.

Mountbatten plan  

Lord Mountbatten took charge as Viceroy in March 1947 with a sole objective of independence of India. As soon as he took charge he started to discuss with the leaders of Congress and the Muslim League for transfer of power.

By this time it was clear that the country was heading towards a partition, a Hindu majority India and a Muslim majority Pakistan. Congress leaders were resigned to fate, as they believed this was inevitable, and could save the country from civil war. Congress leaders decided that a stronger central authority without autonomous Pakistan was better than a bigger state with autonomous Pakistan and  a weak central government, as was suggested by some leaders (to have Pakistan work as autonomous body under the Indian Union).

A Bill, called the Indian Independence Act was passed in the British Parliament on 1 July, 1947 deciding that India would be partitioned into two dominions – India and Pakistan, to be created on 14 and 15 August 1947.

The Partition  

The British authority now decided to work out the details of the Mountbatten Plan. A Boundary Commission under the British lawyer Radcliff was formed to mark the boundary lines of the two states of India and Pakistan. The Provincial Assemblies of Bengal and Punjab were given the right to meet separately and as expected they voted for the partition of Punjab and Bengal. A plebiscite was done for Assam, which chose to be in India. There were lot of resentment from both Hindus and Muslims for loss of some parts. The Hindus resented the loss of Lahore, Khulna and Chittagong while the Muslims resented the loss of Gurdaspur, Murshidabad, Nadia and Calcutta.

Congress after Independence  

The problems that the Congress government of free India faced in its first year in office were rehabilitation of refugees, river water dispute with Pakistan, integration and reorganization of the states.

The partition was made so hastily that it created a great communal problem. Lakhs of people were forced to leave their ancestor’s land and migrate to a new country as refugee.

Equitable sharing of waters of the river Indus and its tributaries for irrigation purposes became an important issue between India and Pakistan.

The next important issue was the integration of princely states, that numbered 565 and were free to either join any of the two country India or Pakistan; or remain free. Integration of Hyderabad, Junagadh and Kashmir were very tricky.

Refugee Problems  

Between September 1947 and March 1948 a little more than one million people crossed over from the new state of Pakistan to East Punjab in India on foot, over one and a half million by rail, 364000 by motor transport and 28000 by air.

The worst sufferers were the refugees from East Bengal who crossed over to the Indian state of West Bengal. The exodus of the Hindus from East to West Bengal was massive, nearly one million. By contrast the number of Muslims who left West Bengal after partition was relatively very small. Between 1947 and 1967 six million Hindus crossed over to West Bengal.

The central government under the leadership of Jawahar Lal Nehru tried its best to solve this great problem of the homeless people with humanitarian and sympathetic attitude. A Director General of Rehabilitation was appointed for the distribution of lands providing shelters and jobs to refugees coming to India from Pakistan. The Central Government spent about 22 million rupees for the resettlement of the displaced population. Gradually the peasants and farmers were fairly rehabilitated. The central government planned some industrial townships in Faridabad and Nilokheri to accommodate the refugees.

River Water Dispute - to be continued

Pre-Congress Associations

Introduction 

The early half of the nineteenth century saw the formation of several political associations. Most of these associations were local in character. They mainly demanded certain administrative reforms and spread of education. However, the political associations of the later half of the 19^th century became wider in terms of their perspective and agendas.

Early Political Association 

The earliest known political association known was founded by Raja Ram Mohan Roy called The Bangabhasha Prakashika Sabha in 1836. In 1837 the Zamindari Association was formed to safeguard the interest of the landlords. In 1843 the Bengal British Indian Society was formed to collect and disseminate information regarding the actual living conditions of Indians.

Later in 1851 the Zamindari Association and the Bengal British Indian Society were merged to form the British Indian Association that demanded the separation of judiciary and executive, reduction of salaries of the high officers and abolition of salt and stamp duty.

East India Association was founded in 1866 by Dada Bhai Naoroji in London to raise India’s grievances and influence the public opinion of England.

In 1867 M. G. Ranade founded Poona Sarvajanik Sabha for imparting public education to the masses and to promote use of locally made things like Khadi.

Next was the formation of the Bombay Presidency Association in 1885 by Badruddin Tayyabji, Pherozeshah Mehta and K. T. Telang. The association took up the local issues and wrote regularly to the British government about their demands. They also demanded the reduction of the court fees and taxes on salt and sugar in a petition addressed to the British House of the Commons.

Indian Association 

The Indian Association of Calcutta was founded in 1876 by Surendranath Banerjee and Anand Mohan Bose. It was the most important pre-congress association. It had open membership and the leaders travelled across the country to find support and enlist members.

The main objectives of the Association were to form a strong public opinion on the political issues of the day and unify Indians on common political programmes. They asked the British Government to carry out reforms   in Civil Service Examination. The members of the associations organized agitations for the rights of peasants and plantation workers.

The members of the Indian Association organized an All India National Conference in 1883 in Calcutta. Several political leaders from across the country took parts in this conference. The conference was presided over by Anand Mohan Bose. This conference became the birth place of the Indian National Congress.

SEPOY MUTINY - The First War of Independence

Introduction 

In Indian history, the term ‘First War of Independence’ is used to refer to the Great Uprising of 1857. This was a great uprising against the oppressive foreign rule. There were many causes that led to the First War of Independence in 1857. The main causes were political, economic, social, religious and military.

During the span of 100 years from 1757 to 1857, the British had managed to expand their political power throughout the country. They dispossessed the native rulers; ruthlessly exploited the masses; used trade and commerce for their own benefit and drained wealth from India. All these caused widespread dissatisfaction and distrust among all sections of Indian society including native rulers, landlords and common people. All these led to the Uprising which initially started as a mutiny of sepoys (Indian soldiers) and later spread to the other sections of the society.

Causes of the Uprising 

Political – Due to the British policy of annexation there was distrust among the native rulers and discontent among the people of the annexed territories. The Subsidiary Alliance and the Doctrine of Lapse were used indiscriminately to annex many independent states leading to great discontentment among the rulers and subjects of states annexed. Jhansi was an example which was annexed after the death of the ruler on the pretext that the king had no legal heir, although the king had named his successor. Also the annexation of Awadh on ground of mis-governance created discontent among the people towards the British. Besides, the Mughal king was disrespected as Lord Dalhousie had ordered Bahadur Shah II to ask his successors to leave the Red Fort after his death. The title of Mughal Emperor was to be abolished after Bahadur Shah’s death. Common Indians who were part of one ruling class or the other found themselves without any power and prestige with the British excluding Indians from all high civil and military  posts.

Economic – The British utilised their political power for exploiting the economic resources of the country. Within a few decades after the establishment of political power in Bengal, the British drained out its resources to the extent that its people were not even left with bare minimum for existence. Next, they adopted several policies that resulted in the destruction of the cottage and handicraft industries of India. Also the British Government introduced new land revenue systems in India solely based on the aim of extracting as much as possible from the peasantry. The British planters forced peasants to produce cash crops like indigo instead of food crops leading to food shortage and famines. Also the indigo cultivators were treated inhumanly. India was reduced to an agrarian colony of England. Besides the Inam Commission appointed by the British to look into proprietary rights confiscated the properties of more than twenty one thousand zamindars making them landless over night. Also the British policy of annexation of Indians states rendered many native soldiers, civil officers and religious teachers jobless.

Social and Religious – A serious apprehension among all the classes of Indians was that the British were attempting to convert them all to Christianity. The banning of Sati, passing of Widow Remarriage Act and Religious Disability Act (law against depriving the religious converts of his hereditary property)  also created distrust among the people. The spread of western education that rendered the religious teachers jobless was also seen with suspicion. Even the replacement of Persian by English as court language was not liked by the people.

Military – The Indian soldiers in the British army were unhappy with many rules and regulations. The Sikh and Muslims rulers resented when they were asked to cut their beard, those who disobeyed were dismissed. Also the poor salary and no prospect made the Sepoys unhappy. They were also dissatisfied because they were asked to go to distant places to fight without any extra remuneration. Also sea voyages were a concern among the Brahmin soldiers.  But the immediate cause was the introduction of Enfield rifles whose cartridges were believed to be greased with cow and pig fats.

Spread of the Revolt 

The Uprising actually started at Barrackpore on 29 March 1857 when Mangal Pandey a soldier of the 34^th Regiment fired at his Major after refusing to use the greased cartridges and instigated other soldiers to revolt. He was executed. Next in Meerut on 6^th May 1857, 85 soldiers of the 3^rd Cavalry Regiment refused to use the greased cartridges. The soldiers were punished and arrested leading to the storming of the prison and killing of the resident British officers. The soldiers after killing all British officers in Meerut marched to Delhi and declared the Mughal King Bahadur Shah II as Emperor of India. Soon the whole of north India was under the uprising. Many civilian English men and British officers were killed. The war was led by Nana Saheb in Kanpur, Begum Hazrat Mahal in Lucknow and Laxmi Bai in central India (Jhansi).

Suppression of the Revolt 

Lord Canning, the Governor General took immediate steps to suppress the uprising and regained lost territories soon. He collected the forces of Madras, Bombay, Sri Lanka and Burma and with the loyal Sikh armies proceeded to Delhi and soon overthrew the Mughal king, killed his two sons, arrested and deported him to Rangoon. Next was Allahabad and Kanpur followed by Lucknow, Gwalior, Jhansi and central India.

Failure of the First War of Independence 

The First War of Independence seriously crippled the British government initially. Still they succeeded in suppressing the revolt for many reasons. The primary reasons being – the uprising was limited to only central and north India, lack of unity and planning of the leaders of the war, no unified leadership, better resources of the British, no support of the native rulers and educated Indians. Large parts of south Indian, Punjab and west India had no uprising. There was no concept of nationalism, as every party was fighting for its own revival and regional interests. Also native rulers remained unsympathetic to the revolt and in many cases supported the British.

Consequences of the First War of Independence 

The Uprising saw the end of the rule of the East India Company in India. The British Parliament passed The Government of India Act which transferred all East India Company territories to the British Crown. India was started to be ruled in the name of the British Queen, after Queen Victoria made a Proclamation regarding transfer of power from the Company to the British crown on November 01, 1858 in Allahabad.  Lord Canning was made the first Viceroy of the British territories. 

The Queen in her Proclamation declared that the British government would not discriminate against Indians nor would undertake any type of expansion activities and the rights, dignity and honour of native rulers would be respected.

The MARATHA Imperialism

Background 

The states that arose in India during the phase of Mughal decline and the following century varied in terms of resources, longevity, and characters. In particular many of the post Mughal states were based on ethnic or sectarian groupings – the Maraths, Jats and the Sikhs and Hyderabad Nizams. 

Each of the contenders in the regions, in proportion to its strengths, looked for and seized opportunities to establish its dominance over the others in the neighbourhood. They all needed a kind of legitimacy which was so conveniently available in the long accepted authority of the Mughal Emperor. They had no fear in collectively accepting the symbolic hegemony of the Mughal centre, which had come to co-exist with their ambitions.

So, the gradual weakening of the central authority of the Mughals set in motion new types of provincial kingdoms. The Wazir Chin Qilich Khan himself showed the passage. Having failed to reform the administration of the central Mughal authority, he relinquished office in 1723 and next year marched to establish the first independent kingdom belonging to the erstwhile Mughal territory, the Hyderabad. 

At this stage, the main concern for the Mughal king was to ensure the flow of necessary revenue from the provinces, so the independence of Hyderabad was not given any importance. Rather it was accepted as an act of maintenance of at least the semblance of imperial unity.

Seizing upon the disintegration of the Empire, the Marathas now began their northward expansion and overran Malwa, Gujarat and Bundelkhand.

The Maratha Imperials 

There is no doubt that the single most important power that emerged in the long twilight of the Mughal dynasty was the Marathas. The most important Maratha warrior clan was of the Bhonsles, Sivaji Bhonsle, emerged as the most powerful figure in the southern politics.

However, the good fortune of Sivaji did not fall on his sons and successors, Sambhaji and Rajaran. For a time it appeared that the Maratha power was on the decline. But a recovery was affected in the early eighteenth century. A particularly important phase in this respect is the reign of Sahu, successor of Rajaram. He ruled for the next 40 years and changed the fortunes of the Maratha imperialism.

His reign was marked by the ascendancy of a lineage of Chitpavan Brahmin ministers, who virtually came to control central authority in the Maratha state. The Bhonsles or the Chatrapti (Kings) were reduced to only figureheads. In theory the office of the Pratinidhi was higher than that of the Peshwa, but by virtue of superior talents and abilities Balaji Vishvanath made the Peshwa the real head of the Maratha Empire.

Peshwa 

Holdiing the title of Peshwa (chief minster), the first truly prominent figure of this line is Balaji Visvanath, who had helped Sahu to rise in power. Viswanath and his successor, Baj Rao I (peshwa between 1720 and 1740) managed to bureaucratize the Maratha state to a far greater extent than had been the case under the early Bhonsles.

The Marathas did not fail to utilize the distractions of the tottering Mughal Empire to their advantage. Balaji Viswanath obtained important concessions on Deccan polity from the titular Mughals. 

A treaty was signed between the Mughals and the Marathas in 1714 which was very remarkable and a landmark in the history of the Marathas, as by it the Marathas were recognized as co-partners in the revenues of the Mughal Imperial provinces. It also gave them back all the territories that were once belonged to Sivaji, but had been conquered by the Mughals. Not only this they also got some new provinces of Berar, Khandesh, Gondowana, and some districts in Karnataka and Hyderabad. Also the revenue of the 6 Mughal provinces of the Deccan were assigned to the Marathas.

After the death of Balaji Viswanath in 1720, his son and successor Baji Rao I formulated the policy of Maratha imperialism by launching a policy of expansion beyond the Narmada with a view to striking at the center of the crumbling Mughal imperialism. He invaded Gujarat and Malwa and reached up to Delhi but did not enter the city in order to give some sort of legitimacy to the Mughal king which he thought would help him in legitimising his imperialist power.

Then in 1739 came the great invasion of Nadir Shah, the Persian ruler. This made all warring powers in India come to an understanding and presented a combined front. But suddenly Baji Rao I died in 1740 and was succeeded by Balaji Baji Rao II or Nana Saheb.

Balaji Baji Rao was determined to further the cause of Maratha imperialism; but he unwisely departed from the policy of his father in two respects – the army was changed in character, many foreign mercenaries were introduced, and the process of uniting all Hindu chief and making Hindu sentiments the main factor of Maratha imperialism and expansion was abandoned.

The Third Battle of Panipat proved to be disastrous for the Marathas imperialism. It terribly damaged the position of the Peshwas.

Maratha Polity 

The rise of the Maratha power was a significant phenomenon in the history of the Deccan. The administrative system of the Marathas was very much influenced by the administrative system of the Mughals and the Deccan states. The Maratha polity did not have unified civilian cum military rank. Under the Marathas performance based Brahmin elites manned the central bureaucracy and the local administration. They enjoyed vast power of tax assessment and collection.

The king was at the helm of the affairs. The administration was divided into eight departments headed by ministers who were called Ashta Pradhan. The eight minsters were – Peshwa or the chief minister who looked after the general administration and finance; Sar-i-Naubat, the Senapati in charge of the military; Majumdar in charge of the accounts; Waqai Navis, who looked after the intelligence; Sarnavis who looked after the official correspondence; Dabir who looked after foreign affairs; Nyayadhish who looked after the justice; and Pandit Rao, the religious leader who looked after the stars and fixed timings for occasions. All of these except the Pandit Rao had existed during the rules of Deccan Sultans, and were incorporated into Shivaji’s administration and continued after him also.

The provincial administration was also organized on the Deccani and Mughal system. All the provincial units already existed under the Deccani rulers. Shivaji reorganized and in certain cases renamed them. The provinces were known as Prant under the charge of Subedar. Each Prant was subdivided into Tarfs each under Havaldar. Mauzas or the villages were the lowest unit of administration. At the village level, Kulkarni used to keep accounts and maintained records while Patil had legal and policing power. At the level of Tarf, Deshpande used to keep account and maintain records while Deshmukh had legal and policing powers. The police officer in rural area was called Fauzdar and in the urban area was called Kotwal.

The Marathas systematized the practice of tribute gathering from Mughal territories, under the heads Sardeshmukhi and Chauth. They seemed to have consolidated methods of assessment and collection of land revenue and other taxes on the lines of the Mughals. There was a great continuity between Mughal and Maratha revenue practices. The period saw the development of sophisticated networks of trade, banking and finance.

The MUGHALS

Introduction 

After the disintegration of the Delhi Sultanate, Babur was able to establish the Mughal Empire in India in 1526. He traced his linage from Timur the great conqueror of Central Asia and also a descendant of Mongols. He was ruler of Farghana, a small principality in Transoxiana in about 1495.The situation in central Asia was not stable and Babur had to face a lot of troubles. He almost lost his small kingdom to Uzbegs; leading him to look for some eastern states. 

Finally in 1517 he started to move towards Hindustan. The unstable political situation in India after Sikandar Lodhi’s death convinced him of political discontentment and disorder in the empire.  It was both the circumstances in central Asia and in India which played a major role in the foundation of the Mughal Empire.

The Foundation 

Before Babur laid the foundation of the Mughal Empire, he had to fight many wars with local ruling kingdoms. Ultimately he defeated Ibrahim Lodhi, in the First Battle of Panipat in 1526 and decisively founded an empire in a foreign land where his descendants ruled for the next 350 years. Next year in 1527, he defeated one of the biggest forces in north India Rana Sangha and consolidated the empire. After a brief illness Babur died in 1530 and was succeeded by his son Humayun.

In the early years of Humayun’s rule, while he was busy at Gujarat, Sher Shah, an Afghan ruler of Bihar started consolidating himself in Bengal and Bihar and marched to Agra. He defeated Humayun in the battle at Kannauj in 1540 and was successful to establish the Afghan Empire in north India for the second time. But this empire lasted for only 15 years, as Sher Shah’s descendant was weak and Humayun easily defeated him and acquired Delhi and Agra and re-established the Mughal Empire in 1555. But soon Humayun died leaving the Empire in the hands of his teenage son Akbar.

The Consolidation 

Akbar ascended the throne at the age of 13 and was helped by the close aid of his father Bairam Khan. Soon Akbar had to fight the Second Battle of Panipat to defeat Hemu to claim the lost part of his empire around Delhi. Akbar followed a policy of expansion after consolidating his hold on throne. He won over the Rajput kingdoms either by matrimonial alliances or by invading the territories. He also brought Gujarat, whole of Rajasthan, Punjab, whole of north west frontier, Bihar, Bengal and Ahmednagar, Burhanpur, Berar in the Deccan. He is known for his tolerance, patronization and great administration besides his conquest.

Jahangir, Shah Jahan and Aurangzeb 

Akbar was succeeded by his son Jahangir who furthered the expansionist policies of his father in Deccan. But he could not get much success here, rather ended up losing some territories. The internal troubles given by the court nobles and his crown prince Khurram kept him busy. 

He was succeded by his son Shah Jahan (Khurram) who continued with the policy of annexing kingdoms in the Deccan. Ahmednagar, Bijapur and Golconda were subdued and made to sign treaty to pay tribute to the Mughal. Marathas were also dealt with. Later in 1656-57 Shah Jahan annexed Bijapur and Golconda. Shah Jahan is mostly remembered for the grandeur and prosperity of the Mughal Empire. In his rule the Mughal Empire reached its golden period. A number of famous architectural projects like the Peacock Throne, the Taj Mahal, etc were constructed during his time.

Shah Jahan  was succeeded by his son Aurangzeb, who revolted against his father and even imprisoned him. He killed his other three brothers and ultimately wiped any resistance he could have faced. Under Aurangzeb, the Mughal Empire reached its greatest territorial limits and it covered the whole of present day India. 

But his reign was marred by popular revolts of Jats, Satnamis, Afghans, Sikhs and Marathas. He also alienated Rajputs, who were earlier given much importance under Akbar, Jahangir and Shah Jahan.  

The Marathas posed a real challenge for Aurangzeb and the King had to spend almost half of his tenure to quell one revolt after another in the Deccan. There was a break up of association with regional forces like the Rajputs and the Marathas during Aurangzeb’s time that ultimately led to the breaking up of the empire in the near future. Aurangzeb died in 1707 and was succeeded by Bahadur Shah I.

Later Mughals 

Though Mughals ruled for another almost 150 years until 1857, when the last Mughal king Bahadur Shah II was deposed off by the British power, but in reality they were a pale shadow of their earlier pasts. None of the later Mughals commanded any real power. They ruled as puppets of the colonial power. Shah Alam II had to grant tax collecting rights of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa to the East India Company in lieu of safety from the Afghan attacks of Nadir shah and Marathas earlier.  During the last Mughal king’s regime, the Mughal Empire had shrunk to the suburbs of Delhi in and around the walled city.

Polity and administration 

With the establishment of the Delhi Sultanate, a new class of rulers emerged in India. They introduced a new administrative systems and new institutions. With the coming of the Mughals some of these underwent changes and some new were founded. The new institutions had their roots in Arab and central Asia.

The Emperor was the supreme head of the administration and controlled all military and judicial powers. The King was assisted in his work by some officers in his court like Wazir, the Prime Minister, Diwan-i-Kul, the chief Diwan responsible for revenue and finances, Mir Bakshi, the military administrator, Sadr-us-Sudur, the chief priest and Mir Saman, the in-charge of the Royal Karkhanas, for all manufacturing and storage for the royal household.

The Mughal empire was divided into 12 provinces or Subas (20 in the times of Aurangzeb). During Akbar’s time the provinces were Allahabad, Agra, Awadh, Ajmer, Ahmedabad, Delhi, Bihar, Bengal, Kabul, Lahore, Malwa, Multan. Each Subah was under a governor, called Subahdar appointed by the King from among the royal nobility. He was assisted by three important officers, Diwan, the head revenue collector, the Bakshi for internal policing and mansabdari, and the Sadr, responsible for religious functions and welfare of the people. All of these were directly appointed by the King.

The provinces were sub-divided into Sarkars and Sarkars into Parganas, the districts, each comprising some villages. Village was the unit of administration. The Sarkars were ruled by Fauzdar, the policing officer and Amalguzars the revenue collecting officers, both appointed by the King in consultation with the provincial government.

Mansabdari and Jagirdari systems were the two most important institutions of the Mughals. Under the Mansab system ranks were expressed in numerical terms. It was the basis of civil and military administrations under the Mughals. The system was formulated to streamline rank of the nobles, fix their salary and specify the number of cavalry to be maintained by them. It also fixed the number of armed retainer the holder of mansab was to maintain.

The system of assignment of revenue of a particular territory to the nobles for their services to the state continued under the Mughals also. Under the Mughals, the areas assigned were generally called Jagirs and its holders Jagirdars. 

During Akbar’s period all land in the territory was divided into two – Khalisa and Jagir. The revenue from Khalisa went to the imperial treasury and the Jagir revenue to the Jagirdars in lieu of their cash salary. The ratio between the Khalisa or imperial land and the Jagir kept on fluctuating, because the Emperor used to shift Jagirs to avoid any Jagir becoming permanent. The Jagirdars were allowed to collect only authorized revenue in accordance with the imperial regulations. The Jagirdars employed their own officials like Amins and Faujdars. The Imperial office kept strict watch on the Jagirdars.

Economy 

The people in Mughal India pursued diverse range of economic activities to earn their basic livelihood. The sphere of their works varied from agricultural to artisan production, trade and commerce, associated commercial and financial services. The state mobilized its resources through collection of different types of taxes for its survival and expansion.

Farmers grew food crops like rice, wheat, barley, millet and pulses; cash crops like sugarcane, cotton, indigo, opium; fruits and vegetables and spices like turmeric, saffron, clove, cardamom and pepper.

Two types of revenue assessment were in vogue during the Mughal period. The most simple and basic method was crop sharing or Batai. The state fixed a certain ratio of produce as state’s share and collected as tax. The other method was Kankut, where the land was first measured and the productivity was estimated to fix the revenue demand per unit of measured land. The first method was during the early period of Mughal rule, as filtered from the Delhi Sultanate residual taxation method. Akbar changed this to Kankut, rather Sher Shah was the first to levy tax in this method, followed by Akbar and later Mughals. The revenue was fixed for ten years according to the law called Ain-i-Dahshala.

Each cultivator was given a putta (title deed) which gave all details of the land and the rate of revenue payable. A deed agreement called Qubuliat was received from the cultivator in which the undertaking was given by the farmer to pay the state the tax according to his putta.

Apart from the state officials various categories of intermediaries existed between the peasants and the state, like rais, ranans, rawats, ect who played an important part in land revenue realization. They were actually zamindars having hereditary rights over the land produce. They were supposed to be collectors of revenue in the name of the state and after deducting their share were supposed to deposit the rest to the royal treasure.

Apart from cultivation people were engaged in craftsmanship like textile, pottery making, dyeing, sugar making, metal works, paper making, wood work, arms an d armour manufacturing, ship building and chemical works. Mineral extraction was another major industry. Salt, saltpetre, alum, mica, diamond, gold, silver and precious rocks were mined.

Royal workshop was another industry, called Karkhanas. They produced crafts and were part of the royal establishment. Generally, expensive and luxury items were produced here for the consumption of the royal household.

In the field of commerce, India had trade links with contemporary Central Asia, China, South-east Asia, and Europe. The European trading companies influenced Indian commerce. Expansion of trade and commerce along with new commercial practices like brokerage, hundis (bills of exchange) helped commercial activities.

The silver and copper coin was manly in circulation for cash transactions. The rupaya of silver and copper dam came to be used as the basic coin for transactions.  The coins were minted at the royal mints spread in all parts of the kingdom.

Society and Culture 

The Mughal Indian culture represents the synthesis of Indian and Persian philosophy, literature, art and architecture. In religious sphere Sufism and Bhakti tradition influenced each other. They provided an opportunity for understanding religious traditions of Hindus and Muslims at people’s level.

 This period thus represent an important era of dramatic change in the world of religion and art in south Asia. The growing popularity of Sufism played an important role in the popular acceptability of Islam and in the course establishing unique Islamic tradition in the sub-continent. The Bhakti movement played a similar role in the development of Hinduism. On one hand it challenged the existing religious and social hierarchies and on the other it revived concepts like monotheism in mainstream Hindu tradition. Both the Sufi and the Bhakti movements questioned the authority of the established clergy and the relevance of the established religious rituals.

Another important development during this period was the growth of vernaculars and Urdu language. The mergence of Urdu as a new language is the best example of interaction and synthesis. The growth in regional languages like Gujarati, Bengali, Marathi and Telegu was a very significant development.

In the realm of art we witness the development of new styles of painting associated with the patronage of the Mughals and the Rajput styles. The large numbers of forts, palaces, temples and mosques that can be dated to this period are the examples of the new styles. The use of decorative motifs and the adaptation of the dome are examples of the architectural traditions of this period.

The Tughluqs

Introduction 

The dynasty of Ghazi Mallik, called the Tughluq Dynasty, may be regarded as indigeneous one. His father came to Hindustan in the times of Balban and married a Jat girl of Punjab.  From a humble position Ghazi Malik rose to the highest position in the Empire due to his merit alone. He ably guarded the frontiers of Delhi Sultanate against Mongol invasions till providence or careful planning of the future placed him on the Delhi Sultanate throne at an advanced age in 1320. The choice of Ghazi Malik as Delhi Sultan was justified as it helped the Delhi Sultanate to save itself from disintegration after the chaos caused due to the decay of the Khalji dynasty after the death of Allaudin Khalji.

He assumed the title of Ghiyasuddin Tughluq, and acted with wisdom and moderation. Soon after his succession he set himself the task of restoring administrative order by removing the abuses of the preceding regime. The extravagances of Mubarak and Khusrav had brought the finances of the state to a deplorable condition. Ghiyasuddin therefore ordered a strict enquiry to be made into all claims and jagirs. Unlawful grants were all confiscated to the state. The little unpopularity that he had to face was soon removed by his wise and beneficial measures of his subjects. He brought down the taxes to one-tenth and ordered digging of canals and developed agriculture. He developed irrigational facilities, built gardens and forts. The Sultan devised a system of poor relief and patronized religious institutions and literary men.

He appointed upright governors in the provinces and kept a check on them. Ghiyasuddin was not unmindful of assering the authority of the Sultanate over its different provinces. He pursued the Khalji policy of military domination and imperialism. He sent his elder son and crown prince Juna Khan to suppress the Deccan kingdoms after they refused to pay the tributes. In second attempt Juna Khan was successful and the whole of Warangal was annexed directly under the Delhi Sultanate. He also subjugated Bengal ,Bihar and Orissa.

Muhammad bin Tughluq 

In 1325 after the sudden death of Ghiyasuddin Tughluq, his son Mohammad Bin Tughluq ascended the throne and continued his father’s expedition. He annexed the whole Telengana, and brought a large part of Bengal under his rule. In contrast to Allaudinn Khalji’s policy the Tughluq Sultans annexed the Deccan.

The Mongol invasions from the north-west region were rocking the Sultanate on regular intervals. In AD 1326-27 a big Mongol assault under Tarmashirin Khan took place. Muhammad bin Tughluq, decided to secure the frontier. The region from Lahore to Kalanur including Peshawar was conquered and a new administrative control was established.

Controversial Measures of Muhammad bin Tughluq

One of the most controversial measures of Muhammad bin Tughluq was the transfer of the capital from Delhi to Deogir (Daulatabad) saying that the new capital would be at a safer distance from the north-western frontiers and thus was safe from the Mongols. In fact he wanted to control the north-west from this region. The entire population along with their belongings started to shift to the new capital, but many perished because of heat and rigorous travelling. After sometime, due to growing discontent and the fact that north could not be controlled from south, Muhammad bin Tughluq abandoned the new capital and returned to Delhi.

 

Another controversial project undertaken by the Sultan was the introduction of ‘token currency’. The Sultan introduced a copper coin (Jittal) in place of the silver coin (tanka), when the silver reserves of the Sultanate depleted, and ordered that it should be accepted as equivalent to the tanka. The state did not take precautions to check the imitation of the coins issued by the mints. Government could not prevent people to forge the new coins and soon the new forged coins flooded the market. This led to big problems, as traders and merchants started to mint copper coins in their homes and passed them off as coins issued by the royal treasury. The common man could not make out the differences and were duped easily. Soon the Sultan was forced to withdraw the token currency.

Muhammad bin Tughluq was very innovative in adopting new policies. Some of his measures worked wonderfully, but some failed miserably. Among the worth mentioning successful policies was the introduction of Diwn-i-Kohi, the agriculture department that gave loans to farmers in case of crop failure and also distributed seeds.

Later Tughluq Sultans  

Muhammad bin Tughluq was succeeded by his cousin Firoz Shah Tughluq, who barely managed to keep the sultanate intact. But soon after his demise, under the later Tughluq Sultans, the Delhi Sultanate fell. The invasion of Timur in AD 1398 finished off the Sultanate. The provinces declared independence and thus the pomp and splendour of the Delhi Sultanate died a natural death in 1412. This period was succeeded by Sayyids first and then Lodhis after until 1526 when Babar defeated Lodhis to found the Mughal Empire that ruled the sub continent for little more than 300 years.

The KHALJIs

Introduction

Khalji’s were originally of Turkish origin but had acquired Afghan character during their long residence in Afghanistan. However, there was no love lost between them and the Turks. They took advantage of the political disorders of the time to establish their power.

Jalaluddin Firuz Khalji, the founder of the Khalji Empire, an old man of seventy years, mild and tender,  was not liked by the nobles and the populace of Delhi and had to make Kilokhri the seat of his government. However, the excellence of his character, his justice, generosity and devotion, gradually removed the aversion of the people, and hope of grants of land made the nobles come to terms to the new Sultan. Although Jalaluddin retained the earlier nobility in the administration, but the rise of Khaliji’s to power ended the monopoly of nobility of slaves to high offices.

Jalaluddin ruled only for a short span of six years and tried to mitigate some of the harsh aspects of Balban’s rule. He was the first ruler of the Delhi Sultanate to clearly put forward the view that the state should be based on the willing support of the governed, and that since the large majority of the people in India were Hindus, the state in India could never be a truly Islamic state.

Jalaluddin tried to win the goodwill of the nobility by a policy of tolerance. He avoided harsh punishments, leading to nobles believing him to be weak.

Allaudin Khalji

He was succeeded by his nephew and son-in-law Allauddin Khalji, who killed the king to ascend the throne. He  reversed Jalaluddin’s policy and gave drastic punishments to all those who oppose him. He revived Balban’s policies of ruthless governance. He decided to curb the powers of the nobles and interference of the Ulemas in the matter of the state. 

He also faced a few rebellions in succession during the early years of his reign. In order to prevent the re-occurrence he formulated certain regulation and implemented them like the families of the nobles that had been enjoying free land to support themselves should pay tax for their land holdings, leading to the curb of the excess wealth of the nobles. He reorganized the spy system and prohibited the use of liquor and other intoxicants. He also ordered the nobles not to organize social gathering or inter-marry without his permission.

Allauddin established a huge permanent, standing army to satisfy his ambition of conquest and to protect the country from the Mongol invasion. Under him, the territorial expansion of the Delhi Sultunate beyond north India took place. 

He began his territorial conquest with a successful campaign against Gujarat and then annexed Rathambore, Chittor, Malwa, Ujjain, Mandu, Dhar and Chanderi. After annexing the whole Rajputana, he planned fresh campaign in Deccan and occupied Warangal in Telegana, D’war Samudra and Ma’bar in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu respectively.

Following the death of Allaudin Khalji in AD 1316, the Delhi Sultunate was plunged into confusion. Malik Kafur, the trusted aide of the dead Sultan ascended the throne for a brief period of 35 days, and was soon deposed off and murdered by Qutubuddin Mubarak Shah, who was himself murdered by Khusrau. Khusrau was soon defeated by Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq and was killed thus ending the Khaliji dynasty within four years of the death of Allaudin Khalji and founding the Tughluq Dynasty.

India Between 750 CE and 1200 CE

Background 

The period between CE 750 and CE 1200 is referred to as early medieval period of Indian history. Some historians treated this period as a ‘Dark Phase’ because during this time the whole country was divided into numerous regional states which were busy fighting each other.  

But recent studies have indicated that though politically divided into numerous regional states, India witnessed a growth of new and rich cultural activities in the fields of art, literature and language. 

In fact, some best specimens of temple architecture and Indian literature belong to this period. Thus far from being ‘dark’ it may be treated as a bright and vibrant phase of Indian history.

Political Development 

The political development of this period can be better understood if we divide this period into 2 parts – 750 CE to 1000 CE and 1000 CE to 1200 CE.

The first phase was marked by the growth of three important political powers in India – Palas in eastern India, Gurjara Pratiharas in northern India, and RashtraKutas in south India.  These three powers were constantly fighting with each other with an aim to set up their control on Gangetic region in northern India. This armed conflict among these three powers is known as Tripartite Struggle.

In the second phase we notice the break up of these three powers. It resulted in the rise of many smaller kingdoms all over the country. For example, in the northern India, the disintegration of the Pratiharas brought to the forefront various Rajput states under the control of different Rajput  dynasties such as Chauhans, Chandellas, Paramaras, etc. These were the states that fought and resisted the Turkish attacks from north-west India led by Mahmud Ghaznavi and Mohammad Ghori in the 11^th and 12^th century CE.

Tripartite Struggle 

The Gurjara Pratihara dyunasty was founded by Nagabhatta I, a Rajput,  in the Malwa region in the eight century CE.  Later one of his successor Vatsaraja extended his rule over almost whole of north India and made KAnnauj his capital. Vatsaraja’s policy of expansion brought him in conflict with Dharmapala, the Pala king of eastern India. Soon the Rashtrakuta king Dhruva from south India jumped into the fight and thus begin the Tripartite Struggle, i.e. struggle for supremacy among the three powers. It continued for about the next 150 years under various succeeding kings. The Gurjara Pratiharas however, could maintain its hold over most of the north  India for long as well as continued with Kannauj as capital.

The Imperial Cholas 

In south India, the Cholas Kings founded a mighty empire during CE 1000 and1200. They came to power after overthrowing the Pallavas. The empire was founded by Vijaylaya but ht ereal architects were Rajaraja I (985-1014 CE) and his son Rajendra I (1014 – 1044 CE). Their empire extended from River Tungabhadra in north to Kanyakumari in south. The Cholas made successful use of their nave and conquered not only Maldives, Lakjshadweep Islands, Sri Lanka but also Malaya, Java and Sumutra.

Both Rajaraja I and his successor son Rajendra I were both patrons of learning and architecture. The Rajarajeshwara Temple dedicated to Shiva at Tanjore was made by Rajaraja I and many more. Rajendra I made a new capital city Gangaikondacholapuram to mark his win over the Pala king Mahipala. The last important Chola king was Kullotunga (1070 – 1122 CE). Under him the Chola empire started integrating and shrunk to much smaller area.

Nature of Polity 

The state structure in this period has often been described as ‘decentralized’ political system,  a system in which there is a king at the top, who shares his rule with other small chiefs called feudatories or the ‘Samantas’. These ‘Samantas’ were actually the defeated kings who were restored to their former kingdom but under the King. They were given some sort of administrative freedom and in return were supposed to pay the king annual tribute in cash and kind, and also supply the military assistance at time of war. But these chiefs were a constant threat to the king. So whenever a weak king succeeded the empire, some of these strongest Samantas used to arise in rebellion. This exactly happened during the last days of the PRatihara empire that led to the disintegration of the empire.

Another aspect the decentralized polity was characterized was the practice of making land grants to Brahmanas and others. The practice was initiated by Satavahana kings, but after the Guptas it had become a normal practice all over the country. Not only the Brahmanas, but also the officials of the empire were given land grants. Since these land grants were too many and were tax free, so there was a time when the whole country had many pockets of these free land run by the one who was gifted without any imperial controls.

Economy 

Economically the first phase 750 – 1000 CE was of decline evident from the absence of coins for exchange and the decayed condition of towns in northern India. But in the second phase after 1000 CE we notice a revival of trade activities. There seems to be two reasons for this. One, there was increase in agricultural activities on account of land grants in fresh areas, leading to production of surplus for exchange. And second the Arab traders had emerged on the coastal areas of India as important players in international sea trade.

Cultural Developments 

The new regional kingdoms led to the emergence of new regional cultural zones such as Bengal and Orissa in the north, Gujarat and Maharashtra in central India, as well as Andhra, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu in the south. The various art forms, languages, literature, etc. that form an important part of our regional cultures today, took their shape around this period. Most the modern Indian languages like Bengali, Assamese, Oriya, Marath I etc developed in this time period, removing the monopoly of Sanskrit. However, Sanskrit continued and retained the place of importance among the elites as a language of learning.

Another activity that received royal patronage was that of temple building. The three types of temple architecture which evolved during the period are known as Nagara, Dravida and Vesar styles during this period.

The Imperial GUPTAS

Introduction 

After the decline of the Kushanas, north India witnessed the rise of another imperial dynasty that ruled India, especially north from AD 300 to AD 550. They were the imperial Guptas, founded by Srigupta who probably belonged to Vaisya caste and hailed from either Magadha or Pragaya (Allahabad). The rulers of this dynasty were able to establish a vast empire that included almost the entire north India. The Guptas had certain material advantages that helped thme to carve an empire. They operated from eastern UP and Bihar which was very fertile. Also they could exploit iron ores of central India and Bihar to their advantage. Their period was marked by great progress in art, architecture and literature.

Srigupta was succeeded by his son Ghatokacha, who carried the title Maharaja. He appears to be a small king and his reign was almost event-less. Not much is written about him. He was succeeded by his son Chandragupta I who the first in the line of great Gupta kings and the real founder of the dynasty.

Chandragupta I (AD 319 – AD 334) 

The real founder of the Gupta Dynasty was Chandragupta I. The year of his accession in 319 AD marks the beginning of the Gupta era. He assumed the title maharajadhiraja, the king of kings. His kingdom included Saket (modern Ayodhya), Magadha (Bihar), and Pragaya (modern Allahabad) with his capital at Pataliputra (modern Patna). Like the great Bimbisara he strengthened his position by a matrimonial alliance with the powerful family of Lachchhavis, then ruling over Napal and north Bihar. He married Kumaradevi and brought with her strength, power and prestige besides lot of wealth.

It is believed that the Gupta era commencing from AD 320 originated with the accession of Chandragupta I to the throne. Prince Samudragupta, his son was nominated as his successor to the imperial throne at the assembly of Councillors and members of the royal family convened by the king himself.

Samudragupta (AD 335 – AD 375) 

Chandragupta I was succeeded by his son Samudragupta in AD 335. He followed a policy of conquest and enormously enlarged his kingdom. However, he adopted a different policy of conquest in different regions.

In the Ganga-Yamuna doab region, he followed a policy of annexation. He defeated nine Naga kings and annexed their kingdom into the Gupta empire. He then proceeded to conquer the forest kingdoms of central India, where he defeated the tribal kings and forced them into servitude. This area had a strategic value as it had the route to south India. It enabled Samudragupta to proceed to the south along the eastern coast conquering twelve kings  on the way and reached as far as Kanchi near modern day Chennai in the Tamil area. Samudragupta, instead of annexing their kingdoms liberated and reinstated these kings on the thrones. He adopted this policy of reconciliation for south India because he knew that it was difficult to keep them under control and subservience once he returned to his capital in north. It was enough for him that these kings recognized his suzerainty and paid him rich tributes.

According to the Allahabad inscription, neighbouring five frontier kingdoms and nine republican states of Punjab and western India were forced to pay tribute in lieu of promise of no conquest from Samudragupta.

It is generally believed that though he had spread his influence over a vast region, Samudragupta exercised direct administrative control mainly over Indo-Gangetic basin only. He celebrated his achievements by sacrificing horses called Ashwamedha Yagana.

Samudragupta was not only a conqueror but also a poet, a musician and a patron of learning. His court was full of intellects from the field of music, literature, poetry. His love for music is attested by his coins that represent him as playing on a vina (lute). It was his intense military and intellectual activity that brought about the political unification of Aryavarta and highest stage of development of the old Indian culture in all its varied aspects – religious, poetic and artistic.

Chandragupta II (AD 375 – AD 414) 

Samudragupta was succeeded by his son Chandragupta II also called  Chandragupta Vikramaditya. He not only extended his father’s empire but also consolidated his position through matrimonial alliances, with other royal dynasties of the period. He married Kuvernaga, a Naga princess. He also gave his daughter Prabhavati in marriage to Rudrasena  II of the Vakataka dynasty, and acquired a position of security from his enemies around him.

His greatest military achievement was his victory over the Shaka king who were ruling the western India for the last 300 years. The conquest made the Gupta empire reach up to the western coast.

Chandragupta II is also remembered for his patronage of art and literature. He is credited with maintaining nine luminaries (navaratna) in his court. The greatest Sanskrit poet Kalidasa was the most notable among them. The Chinese Buddhist pilgrim Fa Hien (AD 404 – AD 411) visited India during his reign. He has left an account of the life of people in India in the fifth century AD.

Later Guptas and the Decline 

 Chandragupta II was succeeded by his son Kumaragupta (AD 415- AD 455) who was able to maintain the empire built up by his father but during the later part of his reign there was a threat from the Hunas of central Asia. His son Skandagupta, who later succeeded him, defeated the Hunas but repeated Hun invasion DESTROYED THE Gupta empire.

Besides the Huna invasion there was also a gradual decline in economic prosperity of the empire. In the time of later Guptas, there was shortage of gold coins and so the kings had to pay in land grants. This led to the shrinking of the crown land and less of taxation, adversely affecting the empire.

The decline of the Gupta empire resulted in the emergence of numerous ruling dynasties in different parts of northern India. The prominent among them were the Pushyabhutis of Thanesar, Maukhsries of Kannauj, and Maitrakas of Valabhi.

Gupta Polity 

The Gupta Empire was a decentralized administration. The local feudatories or the chiefs ruled a large part of the empire in their own areas. The kingship was normally hereditary. The king was the focus of administration. Princes, ministers and advisors assisted the king in running the kingdom.

The whole kingdom was divided into provinces called Desha, with their ruling heads Aparika. The provinces were sub-divided into a number of districts called pradesha, under Vishayapati, the head administrator. The districts were further subdivided into villages, each village headed by the village headman called Gramadhyaksha. The artisans and merchants took an active part in the town administration. The Gupta bureaucracy was less elaborate as compared to that of the Mauryas. The high level central officers under the Guptas were called the Kumaramatyas. Important functionaries’ like mantra, senapati etc. were all recruited from that cadre. Administrative posts were also hereditary.

During the Gupta period land taxes increased considerably. The land tax called Bali varied from 1/4^th to 1/6^th of the produce. Two new agricultural taxes that was forced in Gupta times were Uparikara and Udranga. Their exact nature is not known.

The judicial system was far more developed under the Gupta rulers. For the first time civil and criminal laws were clearly demarcated. Disputed connected with various types of property was considered in civil law. Elaborate laws were laid down for inheritance. Theft and adultery fell under criminal law. The guild of merchants and artisans were governed by their separate laws.

Gupta Society 

The structure of the society during the Guptas was undergoing a change with the increasing supremacy of the Brahmans who along with the king exploited the common people. Caste proliferation also happened in this time. With the extension of Brahmanical culture in distant and different areas, a large number of tribals were assimilated in the brahmanical social structure of varna system fold, as were some foreigners like the Hunas. While the foreigners and the tribal heads were included as Kshatriyas, the ordinary tribals were given the status of shudras.

The position of the Shudras however improved somewhat in this period. They were allowed o listen to the epics and the puranas. They could also perform some domestic rituals in their homes. A distinction was made between the shudras and the untouchables. The untouchables were referred to as Chandals. They lived outside the village and dealt in unclean jobs like scavenging or butchery.

The staus of women continued to slide down in the Gupta period. The main reason for this was their complete dependence on men for their livelihood. The women were not entitled to inherit property.

Economy in the Gupta Period 

The Gupta period witnessed a comparative decline in country’s trade and commerce. Agriculture was the main stay of the empire, but the peasants continued to suffer tremendous tax burden. Till 550 AD India continued to have some sort of trade with the eastern Roman Empire to which it exported mainly silk and spices.

Art and Literature 

The Gupta Period is considered as the Golden Age of Art and Literature. A huge body of religious and secular literature was compiled in this period. The two great epics, Ramayana and Mahabharata were finally completed in the fourth century. Both Rama and Krishna came to be considered the incarnation of Lord Vishnu. This period also marked the beginning of the writing of the literature called Puranas. These texts refer to the stories about the Hindu gods and mention the ways to please them throughfasts and pilgrimages. The major Puranas written in this period are the Vishnu Purana, Vayu Purana and Matsya Purana.

The literatuee in Gupta period was witten in Sanskrit. The greatest of all the works were Meghadutam, Abhijana Shakuntalam, Raghuvamsha, uKumarasambhava and Ritusmahara, all written by Kalidasa, the celebrated poet.

Architecture   

Ancient Indian art was mainly inspired by religion.  The finest example of Buddhist art during Gupta Period are the paintings of Ajanta Caves. Depicting the life of Buddha and the Jataka stories, these paintings with lustrous colours have not faded even after fourteen centuries. A life size image of Buddha in copper were made in Mathura and Sarnath. The Gupta coins were also pieces of art.