British Imperialism in India

• British economic interest in India began in the 1600s, when the British East India Company set up trading posts at Bombay, Madras and Calcutta.

• At first, the Mughal Dynasty kept European traders under control, but by 1707 the Mughal Empire was collapsing.

Britain Steps into India• After some time of fighting, in 1858, the

East India Company was the leading power in India.

• India had a number of natural resources that the Europeans could wait to get their hands on.

• India was also a great location for trade.

• Britain did not want to pass up the opportunity.

East India Company Dominates

• The British government regulated the East India Company’s efforts both in London and in India.

• Until the beginning of the 19th century, the company ruled India with little interference from the British government.

• The company even had its own army, led by British officers and staffed by sepoys (Indian soldiers).

Britain's “Jewel in the Crown”

• At first, Britain treasured India more for its potential than its actual profit.

• The Industrial Revolution had turned Britain into the world’s workshop, and India was a major supplier of raw materials for that workshop.

• The British considered India that brightest “jewel in the crown”, the most valuable of all of Britain’s colonies.

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Positive Effects• There were some positive effects that British

Imperialism had on India.

– Provided better sanitation

– Schools were built

– Better protection from thieves

– Hospitals were built

– Roads and Railroads were built

Negative Effects

• A lot of times the British were racists to the Indian people.

• There was famine in the land due to cash-crops.

• Britain held the majority of the political power along with the economic power.

• Revolts are going to occur.

Sepoy Mutiny• As economic problems increased for

the Indians, so did their feelings of resentment and nationalism.

• The Indian army contained Muslims along with Hindus.

• They caught world that the cartridges that were used to grease the guns were pork and cow fat.

• The soldiers that refused the cartridges were jailed and because of this the Sepoy Rebellion started.

• The British ended the rebellion and took direct control over India.

• The Sepoy Mutiny marked a turning point in Indian History.

Nationalism Surfaces in India

• In the early 1800s, some Indians began demanding more modernization and a greater role in governing themselves.

• Besides modernization and Westernization, nationalist feelings started to surface in India.

• Indians hated a system that made them second-class citizens in their own country.

• They were barred from top posts in the Indian Civil Service.

• Those who managed to get middle-level jobs were paid less than Europeans.

• A British engineer on the East India Railway made nearly 20 times as much money as an Indian engineer.

Nationalist Groups Form

• This growing nationalism led to the founding of two nationalist groups, the Indian National Congress in 1885 and the Muslim League in 1906.

• At first, such groups concentrated on specific concerns for Indians.

• By the early 1900s, they were calling for self-government.

• The nationalists were further inflamed in 1905 by the partition of Bengal.

• The province was too large for administrative purposes, so the British divided it into a Hindu section and a Muslim section.

• Keeping the two religious groups apart made it difficult for them to unite calling for independence.

• In 1911, the British took back the order and divided the province in a different way.

• Conflict over control of India continued to develop between the Indians and the British in the following years.