Colonialism and Empire in India and China

By:- Arnaut, CristinaHussain, NaziaPant, SuryanshPivovarova, DarimaPopa, VladZhang, MengyuanZhang, Xiang

Battle of Diu (1509)

Trade In Spices Portuguese Indian Coin 1799

Flag and Coat of Arms

Portugal

Vasco da Gama

Settlements

Henry IV

Settlements

French East India Company 1664

Flag and Coat of Arms

France

Fishing Boats on Coast

Gold Coins for Trade

Queen Elizabeth I

Cotton Indigo Salt

OpiumTeaSilkSaltpetre

Boats arriving in Calcutta

Flag and Star of India

British East India Company

Racism

"You're superior to them, anyway. Don't forget that. You're superior to everyone in India except one or two of the Ranis, and they're on an equality.“

Company rule in India

• Battle of Plassey- 1757– French were no longer a significant

force in Bengal.– Expanding English Empire in Asia.– Nawabs became puppet rulers.• Battle of Buxar-1764– Diwani rights

(collect and manage the revenues of almost 400,000 km2 of real estate)

–  Rule of the East India Company in one-eighth of India

Anglo-Mysore Wars (1766-1799)– defeat of Tipu Sultan – Indirect control of Myssore

Anglo-Maratha Wars (1775-1818)

control of the majority of present-day India south of the Sutley River

Anglo-Sikh Wars (1845-1849)– subjugation of the Sikh Empire– Annexation of Punjab

“Com

pany

Col

onia

lism

”Global Economic

System (Specialization)

Technological upgrade

Trade flows

Company Rule in India (1757-1857)

• Mughal system: collection of taxes on land crops. Diwani was collected from peasants and zamindars on behalf of the Mughal emperor.

• East Indian Company was the one to claim the taxes after the Battle of Buxar.

Technology

• After 1837, post offices were established in main towns under the rule of British Indian Company.

• 1851 – first telegraph line laid in India, reaching by 1857 almost 7500 km.

• Railway construction began only in 1849.• Bombay, Madras and Calcutta sheltered most

of the “East Indiamen”.

Trade• Between 1760-1860, India became from

an exporter of processed goods to an exporter of raw materials and an importer of manufactured goods.

• U.S. played an important role in the demand for cloth from India!

• India became the main exporter of opium that would later be sent to China.

Rebellion1857

British system of governance in India 1858

Colonial government tried to expand their influence through the legal modernization

Economy

Economy grew with 1 % each year, but population also grew with 1 % each year -> no long-term change in per-capita income

Conclusion

• The evidence of the influence of the British Raj is still present in India. English remains one of the main official languages. Moreover, India is one of the largest English-speaking countries in the world. The positive aspect is that the colonial era gave rise to the aspirations towards democracy that are now integral to the life of the subcontinent's population.

References Bentley, J. (2006). Traditions Encounters. A Global Perspective On The Past.

McGraw Hill: New York. Darwin, J. (2008). After Tamerlane. The Global History of Empire since 1405. New

York: Bloomsbury Press. Metcalf, Barbara Daly; Metcalf, Thomas R. (2006). A concise history of modern

India. Cambridge University Press Peers, Douglas M. (2006). India under colonial rule: 1700-1885. Pearson Education Robb, Peter (2004). A History of India (Palgrave Essential Histories),. Houndmills,

Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan. Pp. xiv, 344 Mill, James; Wilson, Horace (1845). The History of British India Bulliet R., Crossley P. (2000) The Earth and Its People’s: A Global History. Houghton

Mifflin Company. Boston, NY. Roberts, J. (1993) History of the World, Oxford University Press. NY.

Discussion Questions

• What tactics did the British Empire use to colonize India?