The First War of Independence

Question 1

Write a short note on the British expansion by outright wars

Answer 1

1. To expand their territorial power in India and to safeguard their political and economic interests the British waged many wars.
2. The Battle of Buxar established the British as masters of Bengal, Biha and Odisha.
3. As a result of their success in the Anglo-Mysore Wars, the East India Compan annexed most of the territories of the Mysore State.
4. After the Third Anglo-Maratha war, the Peshwa’s entire dominions and all Maratha territory north and south of the Narmada river were acquired by the British.
5. Punjab was annexed after the Sikhs were defeated in the Second Anglo-Sikh War.
6. The British also extended their empire by conquering Sindh, territories of Assam, Arakan, and Tenasserim and Pegu in Myanmar.

Question 2

What were the problems with rebellions prior to 1857?

Answer 2

The rebellions were local, scattered and isolated. They did not pose a serious threat to the British. Nonetheless, the revolts established a local tradition of struggle against the foreign rule.

Question 3

Who introduced Subsidiary Alliance?

Answer 3

Lord Wellesley

Question 4

What was Subsidiary Alliance?

Answer 4

Subsidiary Alliance was an agreement between the British East India Company and the Indian Princely States by virtue of which these states lost their sovereignty ( the power of a ruler to rule independently without any outside interference ) to the British.

Question 5

State 5 features of the Subsidiary Alliance

Answer 5

Under the Subsidiary Alliance, Indian rulers:

1. accepted the British as the supreme power
2. surrendered their foreign relations to the East India Company and agreed that they would not enter into any alliance with any other power and would not wage wars.
3. accepted a British Resident at their headquarters and agreed not to employ any European in their service without consulting the Company.
4. agreed to maintain British troops at their own cost.
5. virtually lost their independence.

Question 6

Name some rulers who signed the Subsidiary treaty

Answer 6

1. The earliest Subsidiary treaty negotiated by the East India Company was with the Nawab of Awadh by which the company undertook to defend the frontiers of Awadh on the condition that the Nawab of Awadh would pay for the expenses of such defence.
2. The other rulers which accepted the Subsidiary alliance were the Nizam of Hyderabad, the ruler of Mysore, the Raja of Tanjore, the Sindhia and the Rajput States of Jodhpur, Jaipur, Macheri, Bundi and the ruler of Bharatpur.

Question 7

Who introduced the Doctrine of Lapse?

Answer 7

Lord Dalhousie

Question 8

What was the Doctrine of Lapse?

Answer 8

The Doctrine of Lapse was a doctrine according to which if an Indian ruler died without a male heir his kingdom would ‘lapse’, that is, it would come under the Company’s territory in India.

Question 9

Explain the annexation of Jhansi by the Doctrine of Lapse

Answer 9

When the ruler of Jhansi died, leaving no natural heir, the widowed Rani was pensioned and their adopted son, Anand Rao, was not recognised as the lawful successor to the throne due to the Doctrine of Lapse.

Question 10

Name some prominent States annexed by Doctrine of Lapse.

Answer 10

Satara, Jaitpur, Sambalpur, Udaipur, Nagpur

Question 11

Whose regal titles were taken away by the Doctrine of Lapse?

Answer 11

The regal titles of the Nawabs of Carnatic and Tanjore were taken away.

Question 12

What did the Indian rulers believe about the Doctrine of Lapse?

Answer 12

The Indiana rulers believed that their States were not annexed by the application of the Doctrine of Lapse but by the ‘lapse of all morals’ on the part of the British

Question 13

Who was the first to annex a state based on alleged misrule? What state was annexed?

Answer 13

Lord Dalhousie was the first to annex a state on the pretext of alleged misrule. He annexed Awadh.

Question 14

List 4 hardships faced by the annexed people of Awadh.

Answer 14

1. They had to pay higher land revenue and additional taxes on foods, houses and ferries.
2. The dissolution of the Nawab of Awadh’s army and administration threw thousands of nobles, officials and soldiers out of jobs.
3. The British confiscated the estates of the taluqdars or zamindars. The dispossessed taluqdars became opponents of the British rule.
4. The company’s sepoys, of whom 75000 were from Awadh, were the worst affected. These soldiers helped the British conquer the rest of India. They resented the fact that their homelands had come under foreign rule. The annexation of Awadh also affected the soldier’s financial position. They had to pay higher taxes on the land their families held in Awadh.

Question 15

Why did the people of Awadh join the first war of independence?

Answer 15

Enraged by the humiliating way in which the Nawab of Awadh was deposed, the people of Awadh joined the first war of independence.

Question 16

How was Bahadur Shah disrespected?

Answer 16

1. The name of the Mughal king was removed from all coins minted by the Company.
2. The successors of Bahadur Shah Zafar could not use the Red Fort as their palace. They were required to shift to a place near the Qutub Minar.
3. Lord Canning announced that, after the death of Bahadur Shah, his successors could not use the imperial titles with their names and would be known as mere princes.

Question 17

Why did Zeenat Mahal plot against the British?

Answer 17

1. Lord Canning announced that after the death of Bahadur Shah Zafar, his successors could not use the imperial titles with their names and would be known as mere princes.
2. As a result, Zeenat Mahal, the wife of Bahadur Shah, began plotting against the British.

Question 18

Who was Nana Saheb?

Answer 18

Nana Saheb was the adopted son of Baji Rao II.

Question 19

How was Nana Saheb disrespected?

Answer 19

1. The British refused to grant Nana Saheb the pension they were paying to Baji Rao II.
2. Nana Saheb was forced to live at Kanpur, far away from his family seat at Poona.

Question 20

How did Nana Saheb respond to his disrespecting?

Answer 20

1. Nana Saheb had inherited wealth from the former Peshwa. He used this wealth to send emissaries to different parts of India for generating awareness among the Indians about the British policies.
2. Nana Saheb also traveled between Delhi and Lucknow to gather support for the movement.

Question 21

What was Absentee Sovereignty?

Answer 21

Absentee Sovereignity means that India was being ruled by the British government from England, at a distance of thousands of miles.

Question 22

Why did Indians resent Absentee Sovereignty?

Answer 22

1. The earlier rulers like the Mughals, who had conquered India, had in course of time, settled in India. The revenues they collected from Indians were spent in India only.
2. In the case of Britain, the Indians felt they were being ruled from England and India’s wealth was being drained to England and not utilised for their welfare.

Question 23

Mention 4 socioreligious causes.

Answer 23

1. Corruption in the administration
2. Oppression of the poor
3. Policy of racial discrimination
4. Interference with social customs

Question 24

Write a brief note on interference with social customs.

Answer 24

1. Some of the social reforms introduced by the British in India were aimed at improving the conditions of the people.
2. However, while introducing such reforms, the feelings of the people were not taken into consideration.
3. The result was that reforms like the abolition of Sati, the introduction of Widow Remarriage Act and the opening of Western education to girls were not welcomed by the masses.

Question 25

Write a short note on Apprehensions about Modern Innovations

Answer 25

1. People suspected introduction of modern innovations like railways and telegraph.
2. There were rumours that telegraph poles were erected to hang those who were against the British rule.
3. Similarly, orthodox Indians noted that in the railway compartments, the higher castes and the lower castes were made to sit side by side.
4. They believed the British had introduced such practices to defy their caste and religion.

Question 26

Write a short note on the British Policy of Racial Discrimination

Answer 26

1. The British officers were rude and arrogant towards the Indians.
2. They believed they were superior to Indians and followed a policy of contempt towards the Indians.
3. They dubbed the Muslims as cruel and unfaithful.
4. Some European officers ill-treated and insulted Indians.
5. Such acts of unjust discrimination alienated the British from the Indian masses.

Question 27

Write a short note on Corruption in the Administration

Answer 27

1. The police and petty officials were corupt.

2. The rich got away with crime but the common man was looted, oppressed and tortured.

Question 28

Write a short note on the oppression of the poor

Answer 28

1. The complex judicial system enabled the rich to oppress the poor.
2. Flogging, torture and imprisonment of cultivators for their inability to pay arrears of rent, land revenue and interest on debt were quite common.
3. Thus, the growing poverty made the poor desperate and led them to join a general uprising in hope of improving their lot.

Question 29

Write a short note on Activities of Missionaries

Answer 29

1. The British differed from Indians in race, religion and sentiments.
2. In the 18th century, the British showed a friendly attitude towards Indian religions. They had no particular zeal for their own religion and the Company even acted as a trustee of some Hindu temples.
3. However, in the 19th century, this attitude underwent a change. The British interfered with the local religious and social customs. They denounced idol worship and dubbed local beliefs as ignorance.
4. After 1813, there was an increase in both the numbers and activities of Christian missionaries. The Indians thought the Government was supporting missionaries who would convert them to Christianity.

Question 30

Write a quick note on Fears Regarding Western Education

Answer 30

1. The Western system of education was introduced in several schools.
2. The Bengal Government established an English class in the Calcutta madrasa, which was a Muslim institution.
3. Later, English classes were introduced in the Benaras Sanskrit College.
4. The shift of emphasis from oriental learning to Western education was not received well by the people, especially the Pandits and Maulvis. They saw in it an attempt to discourage traditional Islamic and Hindu studies.
5. People started suspecting that the aim of Western education was not to promote literature and sciences but to encourage their children to become Christians.

Question 31

Write a short note on Taxing religious places.

Answer 31

1. Religious sentiments of the Indians were hurt by the official policy of taxing lands belonging to temples and mosques.
2. Such lands had been exempted from taxation by previous Indian rulers.
3. The families dependent on these lands propagated the idea that the British were trying to undermine the religions of India.

Question 32

Write a short note on the Law of Property

Answer 32

1. The religious disabilities act of 1850 changed the Hindu law of property.
2. It enabled a convert from Hinduism to other religions to inherit the property of their father.
3. The Hindus regarded this as an incentive to give up one’s religious faith.