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The effects of the British empire in India
Positive impacts of british rule in india
An essay on British imperialism
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Vonnegut Haring Imperialism in India The East India company took over India after the Mughals collapsed. They created an army of Indian soldiers called sepoys and used them to control India. Although the sepoys were useful, they were dangerous. As the British governor of Bombay stated that they were “a delicate and dangerous machine, which a little mismanagement may easily turn against us.” India was also being eyed by the British government not just for its profit but for its potential. Later, India was referred to as the “brightest jewel in the crown.” The British laid down the foundation of a modern country for India introducing police, employing many Indians and educating Indians in British schools. On the other hand the British took complete control of India, took most of the natural resources and left the majority of India uneducated. …show more content…
The British established the framework for India’s army, police and justice system (Lalvani). The police however, massacred 400 Indian civilians at Amritsar (Gandhi). This shows that the police were not there to protect but to control the Indian people. Lalvani says that the respect between the British and the Indians allowed a peaceful transition from British rule to Indian independence. But there wasn’t a peaceful transition (Gandhi). In fact it was especially bloody with over 1 million estimated deaths between the civil war with Hindus and Muslims (Gandhi). This was because the British had caused tension between the two for more control and eventually they snapped having brutal battles (Gandhi). Because the British had been so desperate for control, they killed thousands of
One country that had imperialism was India. By the mid-1880s, the British East India Company controlled three fifths of India. The cause of British domination was that the land was very diverse and the people could not unite and that the British either paid local princes or used weapons to get control. Positive effects of imperialistic rule in India were that the British set up a stronger economy and more powerful industries. They built roads and railroads. British rule brought peace and order to the countryside. They revised the legal system to promote justice for the Indians regardless of class. Indian landowners and princes, who still owned territory grew rich from exporting cash crops such as cotton and jute. The British introduced the telegraph and the postal system as a means of communication. These improvements and benefits from British rule eventually lead to Indian nationalism. The exposure to European ideas caused an Indian nationalist movement, the people dreamed of ending Imperial ...
Not only did the inequality and separation of the Indian society frustrate the citizens of India, but the imperialism Britain had upon them as well. In the early 20th century, Indian nationalists wanted to take a stand against the British rule and make India independent. The British created unfair laws that created a nationalist movement in India to regain their freedom. He believed that there should not be a Caste System because of one’s birth.
The British considered Indian civilization to be inferior and implemented their western ways, overriding ancient Indian customs. Nevertheless, it cannot be denied that British imperialism in India resulted in both positive as well as negative reforms in political, economic and social aspects of its new colony. To begin with, one can observe that the British colonizers did indeed improve Indian civilization by developing means of communication and transport. They built a great number of bridges, over 40,000 miles of railway and paving an astounding 70,000 miles of road (Doc. 4. The adage of the adage.
Although imperialism helped the colonized people by improving the economy and the lives of the people, for the most part imperialism hurt the colonized people because the people were forced to grow cash crops which led to death by starvation.
The Negative Force of American Expansionism and Imperialism Many people believe that American Expansionism and Imperialism was a positive force, that it did more good than bad. However, many people disagree with this popular notion. Many good things do come out of it, but the bad ultimately trumps the good. There were several problems between whites and Natives and because of the problems countless people died. To start off, American Expansionism and Imperialism brought isolation to America.
In India the British colonization had more positive affects than negative. For Instance, When the British colonized India they built 40,000 miles of railroad and 70,000 miles of paved roadway. As a result the British made it much easier to travel across India. Another good affect that the British had on India was the jump in agriculture, through large scale irrigation works. About 30 million acres were put into cultivation. Industrialization had also begun. Because of all these reasons almost no famine existed in British colonial India. The English also built many institutions in India and setup a productive government. "They have framed wise laws and have established courts of justice"(The Economic History Of India Under Early British Rule). In addition to all these positive affects, Britain also linked India to the modern world through modern science and modern thought.
James, Lawrence. Raj: The Making and Unmaking of British India. New York: St. Martin's, 1998. Print.
There is no doubt that British imperialism had a large impact on India. India, having previously been an group of independent and semi-independent princedoms and territories, underwent great change under British administration. Originally intended to consolidate their hold on India by establishing a population that spoke the same language as their rulers, the British decision in the 1830s to educate Indians in a Western fashion, with English as the language of instruction, was the beginning of a chain of events, including a rise in Indian nationalism, that led to Indian resentment of British imperialism and ultimately to the loss of British control over India.
" India was where the riches of the world came from, the jewel in the crown of the British Empire. The British needed to dispel the threat of other Europeans in Africa to maintain control of India, and they did so efficiently. They quickly gained control of both the major sea routes to India and then turned their eyes to the rest of the continent. Whether the British were trying to foster public support or prevent another nation from becoming a threat, all British actions in Africa were directly or indirectly linked to India. The British were motivated by their desire to become powerful, and they skillfully combined enterprise and conquest to create a globe spanning empire centered around the wealth of India.
Throughout the 1700s, the relationship between Britain and their colonies became more tension filled. The new generations of colonists felt more entitled to certain rights and liberties that had been considered privileges to their ancestors. Over the years Britain had been becoming progressively worse at keeping their colonies happy. Eventually, colonists did not even feel incorporated in their mother country, Britain. The deterioration of British colonial relations in the late 1700s was caused by a lack of representation and care from Britain.
In 1857 the British had invaded the nation of Hindustan (India). Many feel that if it were not for the British Empire, India would still be an under developed country. The British established a government system that before did not exist. It was a three level system including the imperial government located in London, the central government located in Calcutta, and later on provincial governments scattered throughout the regions of what was known as the British Raj1. Alt...
There is no doubt that British imperialism had a large impact on India. From positive affects to negative affects, British colonized India. It all started around the 1600’s when the British East India Company entered India only as traders, they entered what was known the Mughal Empire. Around the 1757 Battle of Plassey the Mughal empire fell (Carrick) and it was only a matter of time until the British Raj took their once in a lifetime chance. Economically, Britain imposed very high tariffs even though they provided modern technology and increased the production of goods. Britain created famine in India, although because of Britain education was brought to a higher level. Politically, Britain had most of the control in the Indian government, although they created a much more stronger one than the one that was in use before the British came.
For the past sixty-seven years, the citizens of India have embraced their country’s independence all the while seeking to regain their past. Prior to this renewed sense of freedom, India had belonged to the British Empire. From 1858 to 1947, the British government claimed India and its inhabitants as a colonial possession. Before the British Empire laid claim to the vastness of India, the British East India Company helped to oversee the transfer of the Kohinoor Diamond from the Sikh Empire to their motherland in 1851.
The decision to grant independence to India was not the logical culmination of errors in policy, neither was it as a consequence of a mass revolution forcing the British out of India, but rather, the decision was undertaken voluntarily. Patrick French argues that: “The British left India because they lost control over crucial areas of the administration, and lacked the will and the financial or military ability to recover that control”.
With major control over India, the British used a combination of firepower & guile to consolidate their power over the country by expanding from their base areas along the coast into the interior (Duiker 31). Some territories were also taken over the privately run East India Company, which at the time was given authority to administer Asian territories under British occupation, while others were ruled by local maharajas (Duiker 31). British governance brought order and stability to a society that had recently been wrecked by the wars from the different empires (Duiker 31).