Smart Notes on Modern Indian History Part - 11

INDIAN NATIONAL MOVEMENT (1885-1905)

Factors Promoting the Growth of Nationalism in India

1. Political Unity

·         For the first time, most of the regions in India were united politically and administratively under a single power (the British rule).

·         It introduced a uniform system of law and government.

2. Development of Communication and Transport

·         The introduction of railways, telegraphs and postal services and the construction of roads and canals facilitated communication among the people.

·         All these brought Indians nearer to each other and provided the facility to organise the national movement on an all India basis.

3. English Language and Western Education

·         The English language played an important role in the growth of nationalism in the country.

·         The English educated Indians, who led the national movement, developed Indian nationalism and organised it.

·         Western education facilitated the spread of the concepts of liberty, equality, freedom and nationalism and sowed the seeds of nationalism

4. The Role of the Press

·         The Indian Press, both English and vernacular, had also aroused the national consciousness

5. Social and Religious Movements of the Nineteenth Century

·         Organisations like the Brahmo Samaj, Ramakrishna Mission, Arya Samaj, and Theosophical Society generated a feeling of regard for and pride in the motherland.

6. Economic Exploitation by the British

·         A good deal of anti-British feeling was created by the economic policy pursued by the British government in India.

·         The English systematically ruined the Indian trade and native industries.

7. Racial Discrimination

·         The Revolt of 1857 created a kind of permanent bitterness and suspicion between the British and the Indians

8. Administration of Lytton

·         Lord Lytton arranged the Delhi Durbar at a time when the larger part of India was in the grip of famine.

·         He passed the Vernacular Press Act which curbed the liberty of the Indian Press.

9. The Ilbert Bill controversy

·         The Bill tried to remove racial inequality between Indian and European judges in courts.

·         Ultimately the Bill was modified

The Indian National Congress (1885)

1.       Allan Octavian Hume, a retired civil servant in the British Government took the initiative to form an all-India organization.

2.       Thus, the Indian National Congress was founded and its first session was held at Bombay in 1885.

3.       W.C. Banerjee was its first president.

4.       The second session was held in Calcutta in 1886 and the third in Madras in 1887

5.       The history of the Indian National Movement can be studied in three important phases:

6.       The phase of moderate nationalism (1885-1905) when the Congress continued to be loyal to the British crown.

7.       The years 1906-1916 witnessed- Swadeshi Movement, rise of militant nationalism and the Home Rule Movement.

8.       The period from 1917 to1947 is known as the Gandhian era.

Moderate Nationalism

The leading figures during the first phase of the National Movement were

 A.O. Hume, W.C. Banerjee

Surendra Nath Banerjee, Dadabhai Naoroji

Feroze Shah Mehta, Gopalakrishna Gokhale

Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya, Badruddin Tyabji

Justice Ranade and G.Subramanya Aiyar

Surendranath Banerjee was called the Indian Burke

·         He firmly opposed the Partition of Bengal.

·         He founded the Indian Association (1876) to agitate for political reforms.

·         He had convened the Indian National Conference (1883) which merged with the Indian National Congress in l886

G. Subramanya Aiyar preached nationalism through the Madras Mahajana Sabha

·         He also founded the Hindu and Swadesamitran.

 Dadabhai Naoroji was known as the Grand Old Man of India.

·         He is regarded as India’s unofficial Ambassador in England.

·         He was the first Indian to become a Member of the British House of Commons.

·         Gopal Krishna Gokhale was regarded as the political guru of Gandhi

·         In 1905, he founded the Servants of India Society to train Indians to dedicate their lives to the cause of the country

Between 1885 and 1905, the Congress leaders were moderates.

·         The Moderates had faith in the British justice and goodwill.

Main Demands of Moderates

1.       Expansion and reform of legislative councils.

2.       Greater opportunities for Indians in higher posts by holding the ICS examination simultaneously in England and in India.

3.       Separation of the judiciary from the executive

4.       More powers for the local bodies

5.       Reduction of land revenue and protection of peasants from unjust landlords.

6.       Abolition of salt tax and sugar duty.

7.       Reduction of spending on army.

8.       Freedom of speech and expression and freedom to form associations

Methods of Moderates

1.       They were loyal to the British. They looked to England for inspiration and guidance.

2.       The Moderates used petitions, resolutions, meetings, leaflets and pamphlets, memorandum and delegations to present their demands.

3.       They confined their political activities to the educated classes only.

4.       Their aim was to attain political rights and self-government stage by stage.

5.       In 1886, Governor General Lord Dufferin gave a tea garden party for the Congress members in Calcutta.

6.       With the increase in Congress demands, the government became unfriendly.

7.       It encouraged the Muslims to stay away from the Congress.

8.       The only demand of the Congress granted by the British was the expansion of the legislative councils by the Indian Councils Act of 1892.

Achievements of Moderates

1.       The Moderates were able to create a wide national awakening among the people.

2.       They popularized the ideas of democracy, civil liberties and representative institutions

3.       They explained how the British were exploiting Indians.

4.       Particularly, Dadabhai Naoroji in his famous book Poverty and UnBritish Rule in India wrote his Drain Theory.

5.       He showed how India’s wealth was going away to England in the form of:

·         Salaries

·         Savings

·         Pensions

·         Payments to British troops in India

·         Profits of the British companies

6.       In fact, the British Government was forced to appoint the Welly Commission, with Dadabhai as the first Indian as its member, to enquire into the matter.

7.       Some Moderates like Ranade and Gokhale favoured social reforms

8.       They protested against child marriage and widowhood

9.       The Moderates had succeeded in getting the expansion of the legislative councils by the Indian Councils Act of 1892

MODEL QUESTIONS

Choose the correct answer.

The Indian National Congress was founded by

(a) W.C. Banerjee

(b) A.O. Hume

(c) Mahatma Gandhi

(d) Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose

Who among the following was the political Guru of Gandhiji?

 Surendra Nath Banerjee

Gopala Krishna Gokhale

Bala Gangadhar Tilak

Bipin Chandra Pal

 Match the following.

1. Delhi Durbar                                a. S.N. Banerjee

2. Ilbert Bill Controversy                b. Gokhale

3. Indian Association                      c. Lord Lytton

4. Servants of India Society           d. Dadabhai Naoroji

5. Drain Theory                                e. Lord Ripon

Previous 
Next 

To serve you better
Please feedback us