Gov 1255: Politics of India Lecture 2: The Historical Legacy
Procession in Bangalore for Mahatma Gandhi's Quit India Movement, a
call for independence of India from British rule, 1942 Prof Prerna
Singh
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Lecture 2: The Historical Legacy Why did the British colonize
India? Why did they leave?
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Why did the British colonize India? The East India Company
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The Boston Tea Party
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The Mughal Empire
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The Indus Valley Civilization 3300-1900 BC
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Medieval India
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The Taj Mahal Shah Jahan Mumtaz Mahal The Mughal Empire
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East India Company spreads its control
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Spread of control of East India Company
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Rebellion of 1857 Rani Laxmi Bai Mangal Pandey
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Queen Victoria, Empress of India
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The Jewel in the Crown of the British Empire
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Why did the British leave?
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Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi
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Gandhi returns to India
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World War I Over 1.5 million Indians served in the armed
services
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Post card depicting the Sikh Regiment liberating France in
World War I
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World War I Over 1.5 million Indians served in the armed
services India provided 146 million in revenue for the war. Severe
economic crisis rising taxes, inflation, famines.
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The Congress Party Moderate s Aim: ReformsMeans: Petitions
Extremists Aim: Overthrow of British rule Means: Attacks on Public
figures, Bombs
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Moderate s Aim: ReformsMeans: Petitions Extremists Aim:
Overthrow of British rule Means: Attacks on Public figures, Bombs
Gandhi
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Created a wholly new form of politics: Mass movement
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Gandhis Significance in World History Generations to come will
scarce believe that such a one as this ever in flesh and blood
walked upon this earth Albert Einstein
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Gandhis Significance in World History UNIQUE New spiritual
techniques into politics: Passive resistance, Mass Civil
Disobedience, Courting Arrests, Prayer Meetings, Fasts Political
success of spiritual techniques
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Gandhi & Thoreau Gandhi on Thoreaus Essay on Civil
Disobedience: It expresses the essence of my political philosophy,
not only as Indias struggle related to the British but as to my
views of the relations between citizens and governmentI took the
name of my movement from Thoreaus essay.
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Gandhis Significance in World History Who is the greatest man
in the world today? John Haynes Holmes, Pastor of the Community
Church of NY City, Sermon in the lyric theater of New York City in
1921 What we have under Gandhis leadership is a revolutionbut a
revolution different from any other that history has knowledge.
Gandhi is a citadel of modern power.
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Gandhis Significance in World History To know Gandhi is to
tantamount to knowing Christ
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Gandhis Significance in World History Martin Luther Kings radio
address on his last day in India: "Since being in India, I am more
convinced than ever before that the method of nonviolent resistance
is the most potent weapon available to oppressed people in their
struggle for justice and human dignity. In a real sense, Mahatma
Gandhi embodied in his life certain universal principles that are
inherent in the moral structure of the universe, and these
principles are as inescapable as the law of gravitation."
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Gandhis Significance in History of India Swaraj Swaraj or the
independence of India from foreign domination.
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Gandhis Significance in History of India Most powerful
political intervention against the British is small, non-violent
intervention into colonial economy : Movement towards economic
self- reliance
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Gandhis Significance in History of India Economic self-reliance
-Clothing -Food
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Gandhi spinning cloth on a charkha Movement for Home-spun
cloth
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Gandhis Salt March 1930 Not one of the marchers even raised an
arm to fend off the blows. They went down like ten-pins. From where
I stood I heard the sickening whacks of the clubs on unprotected
skulls. Those struck down fell sprawling, unconscious or writhing
in pain with fractured skulls or broken shoulders. In two or three
minutes the ground was quilted with bodies. Great patches of blood
widened on their white clothes. The survivors without breaking
ranks silently and doggedly marched on until struck down American
Correspondent Webb Miller
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Gandhis Significance in History of India Most powerful
political intervention against the British is small, non-violent
intervention into colonial economy: Movement towards economic self-
reliance Political Symbolism: Connection of body to body
politic
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Gandhi with British mill workers in Lancashire
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Gandhis Significance in History of India Most powerful
political intervention against the British is small, non-violent
intervention into colonial economy: Movement towards economic
self-reliance Political Symbolism: Connection of body to body
politic Mass Participation
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Gandhis Significance in History of India Young women march in
the Non-Cooperation Movement, 1930s
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Tensions around Gandhi Religion Caste
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Most fatal tensionfrom closest associate
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Next week Darkest period of modern Indian history: The
Partition of India