The British Raj in India Flashcards
What was important in the development of empires?
19th century Nationalism
What was the British Raj?
Period of British rule on the Indian subcontinent
What was the period covered by the British Raj?
1757 to 1947
Who was the imperial ruling organisation over much of Asia?
The East India Trading Company
Why was there much distrust of the East India Trading Company by the native people?
They felt it was corrupt and only sought to better the British empire (causing mutiny)
What was EIC?
East India Company
What did the size of EIC allow for?
Was so large it had its own army bigger then the British army at the time
How many soldiers were in the EIC army?
260,000
What did the EIC act as?
Acted as sovereign power on behalf of the British crown
What did the power of EIC allow it to do?
To take control of India and its surrounding nations
What meant that the EIC eventually lost power?
Rebellion of the Indian people in 1857
What did many Indian civilians believe was happening to their traditions due to presence of the British?
Traditions were being eroded and that the teaching in British schools in India was exposing children to moral danger
What were some Indian soldiers convinced the EIC were masterminding?
The mass conversions of Hindus and Muslims to Christianity
What reason involving the Enfield rifle lead to the Sepoy Mutiny?
Sepoys were required to bite the cartridge open to release the powder the grease on the cartridges was rumoured to be tallow from beef (offensive to Hindus) and lard from pork (offensive to Muslims)
What did the British government do with the EIC and India?
Took possession of the companies assets and imposed direct rule
