British in India

India Before British Arrival

Ruled by Mughal Empire

Trading companies begin to arrive in India to trade as the Mughal Empire begins to decline

India Before British Rule

At fist, Mughal rulers allowed the East India Company to use ports in India for trade

British traded gold and silver for cotton, silk, and teaTextiles were the most important goods traded

At first, the Mughals looked down upon the BritishThe British did not have many valuable goods to give

to the Indians, and the British benefited more from the trade relationship

India Before British RuleImperialism Picture #1

India Before British RuleImperialism Picture #2

What changed?

Mughal Empire began to declineRival princes set up their own kingdoms to compete

with each other

Europeans became richer from Industrial Revolution

British and French competed with each other for trade influenceTheir fight spread into India

British eventually victorious in controlling trade rights with India

British East India Company

Created in 1600s

Main purpose was to trade and make money (not own land)

Eventually granted trade rights in Indian cities Calcutta, Madras, and Bombay

British encouraged the rival Indian kings to fightForced different rulers to sign treaties

giving more power to Britain

Rule by the British East India Company

Mughal emperor gave the company rights to collect taxes

British set up a law code and court system within India

Rules both directly and indirectly throughout India as different rulers signed treaties with the companyDirect rule: leader of the area is a British official Indirect rule: leader of the area is a local Indian

prince, appointed by the British

Growing Discontent

Indians began to rebel against increasing British rule

Why?British outlawed some Hindu practices (ex: Sati)High taxes against Indians were seen as unfairDisliked Christian missionaries trying to convert

themBritish rule threatened their whole way of life

Sepoy RebellionThe unrest eventually led to a revolt

Sepoys: Indian troops who served in the British army

Causes of the RebellionRumors spread that the rifle cartridges given by British

were greased with beef or pork fat Why is this a problem?

To Hindus, cows are sacred To Muslims, it is forbidden to touch pork

The Sepoys were also forced to fight for the British overseas, and they believed they would lose caste if they travelled overseas

The Sepoys and British fought for months, both sides committed savage acts against each other

Although initially the mutiny was spontaneous, it quickly became more organized and the sepoys even took over the cities of Delhi and Kanpur.

Effects of the Sepoy RebellionIn 1858, Britain took control of India as a colony

British Queen Victoria becomes empress of India in 1876

Britain begins to rule most of India directly Distrusted Indians after the rebellion Princes had to sign treaties to give British control of their

foreign and military affairs

British tried to create a class of British-educated Indians

Discontent between British and Indians Indians disliked British trying to change their culture British believed it was their duty to educate and fix Indian

society Examples: “The White Man’s Burden” by Rudyard Kipling

Changes British Made in India

Education stressed western values

Wanted to create Victorian gentlemen and women

India villages before British were self-contained & self-sufficient; land was owned by the village, not individuals – British wanted a village system to provide cash to their empire

Taxes did not exist before British rule

British assigned ownership land to the people working it

Zamindar system- taxing system imposed by British over Indian farmers

To pay taxes in a barter system, the villagers borrowed from moneylender & went into debt

Machines made products -- made village handicraft industry obsolete

Railroad network was built throughout the country

Jute & cotton were exported to BritainBritain sent cloth & manufactured goods back to India

Britain was more interested in bolstering its own economic system at home than in modernizing India economic systems

Britain failed to understand Indian thinking or concerns

British felt superior to Indians – “White Man’s Burden”

“Take up the White Man's burden--Send forth the best ye breed--Go bind your sons to exileTo serve your captives' need;To wait in heavy harness,On fluttered folk and wild--Your new-caught, sullen peoples,Half-devil and half-child.”