Indian Rebellion of 1857

 

Miniature Paintings of India

 

ANDHRULA SAMKSHIPTA CHARITRA

Andhra Pradesh General Knowledge-History Districts Geography

History of Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh region was ruled by many great rulers of Satavahana Empire, Simuka, Satakarni, Ikshvakus, Pallavas, Vijayanagara Empire. The Nizam wanted Hyderabad state to be independent from India, but the people of the region opposed the decision. With the help of Operation Polo in 1948 the state of Hyderabad was forcibly joined to the Republic of India. Potti Sreeramulu fasted until death in 1952 for independent state based on linguistic differences and to protect the interests of the Telugu-speaking people. Andhra State was formed from Madras State on 1 October 1953, with Kurnool as its capital city. Andhra Pradesh was formed by merging Andhra State and Telugu-speaking areas of Hyderabad State, and Hyderabad was made the new capital city. After the formation of Telangana state from Andhra Pradesh, in 2nd June 2014, Hyderabad was made the common capital for 10 years.

Geography of Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh is located on the southern part of India. It shares its borders with Telangana, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh, Odisha and Bay of Bengal. A small enclave of 30 sq kms of Yanam, a district of Puducherry, lies in the Godavari delta to the northeast of the state. With a coastline of 974 km, it has the second longest coastline in India. State is spread in 160205 sq kms, making it the eight largest state in the country.

Government and Administration of Andhra Pradesh
For administration purpose Bihar is divided into two divisions and 13 districts. The major political parties of the state are Telugu Desam Party and YSR Congress Party. Andhra Pradesh legislative assembly consists of 175 seats. Andhra Pradesh contributes 25 members to the Indian Assembly. 

Language and Culture of Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh is famous for doll making, which are made from mud, dry grass, wood and lightweight metal alloys. Andhra Pradesh has different classical dance forms like Kuchipudi, Veeranatyam, Andhra Natyam, Bhamakalapam and folk dances like Tappeta Gullu, Lambadi, Butta bommalu, Dhimsa, and Chindu. Harikathaa Kalakshepam also known as Harikatha is narration of a story, with various songs relating to the story is originated here. Pickles and chutneys are famous here, people here eat lot of spicy food. Telugu is widely spoken in the state followed by Urdu, Hindi, Banjara, English Tamil, Kannada, Marathi and Oriya.

Education Status in Andhra Pradesh
Andhra Pradesh has a literacy rate of almost 91% which is one of the highest compared to other states. Indian Institute of Management (IIM) at Visakhapatnam is sanctioned and it will be functioning from the academic year 2015-16. Andhra Pradesh also houses Indian Space Research Organization which is a satellite launching station. Important universities in the state are Andhra University, Dr. N.T.R. University of Health Sciences, Sri Venkateswara University. National Institute of Technology and Indian Institute of Technology are announced by announced by Government of India. 

Economy of Andhra Pradesh
The gross state domestic product (GSDP) of Andhra Pradesh was 2359.3 billion in 2012–13. Economy of Andhra Pradesh mainly depends on services followed by agriculture and industry. Rice is the major food crop and staple food of the state and also known as “Rice bowl of India”. Other than rice, jowar, bajra, wheat, maize, minor millet, coarse grains are the cash crops. Livestock and poultry is also another profitable business. Pharmacy, Automobile, Textiles are the important industrial sector in the state. 

Tourism in Andhra PradeshSince state has the second highest coastline in the country it has many beaches throughout the coast line. Borra Caves in the Ananthagiri Hills near Vishakhapatnam are famous for million-year-old stalactite and stalagmite formations. Belum Caves in Kurnool district are the second largest natural caves on the Indian subcontinent. They are many hills and valleys like Araku valley, Horsley Hills, Papi Hills, etc. Sri Venkateswara Temple in Tirumala, one of the richest temples in the world is housed in Andhra Pradesh. Apart from this they are many religious destinations like Simhachalam Temple, Srisailam temple, Kanaka Durga Temple etc. 

Festivals: Celebrated in Andhra Pradesh
Ugadi is known as Telugu New Year. On this day, 'Ugadi Pacchadi' preparation comprising of six tastes is made. The ingredients of this preparation, though of different tastes when mixed in definite proportions result in a delicious dish. The Rayalaseema food and dance Festival celebrated in the month of October to exhibit the art and cuisine of the region. Tirumala Brahmotsavam is a Hindu festival celebrated for nine days at Tirumala Venkateswara Temple at Tirupati. Apart from these all the major festivals of the country are celebrated in the state. 

Battles and Wars in India

Battle of Hydaspes—In 326 B.C. when Alexander, the great had to turn back from Hydaspes (Beas) when his troops refused to march into India against the Nanda Empire.

Battle of Kalinga—It was fought in 361 B.C. between Ashoka, the great and the king of Kalinga. The war resulted in considerable loss of life and brought misery and suffering to the people. Its impression on Ashoka was so great that he not only turned a Buddhist, but renounced war and violence.

1st Battle of Tarain (1191 A.D.)—Prithvi Raj defeated Mohd. Gauri.

2nd Battle of Tarain (1192 A.D.)—Mohd. Gauri defeated Prithvi Raj and paved the way for Muslim rule in India.

First Battle of Panipat (1526)—Babur defeated Ibrahim Lodi. This laid the foundation of Mughal rule in India.

Second Battle of Panipat (1556)—Akbar defeated Hemu. It ended the Afgan Rule and the way was cleared for Mughal rule.

Battle of Talikota (1565)—The united alliance of Bijapur, Bidar, Ahmednagar and Golkunda under Hussain Nizam Shah defeated Ram Raja of Vijaynagar. It sealed the fate of the Hindu Kingdom of Vijaynagar.

Battle of Haldighati (1576)—Akbar defeated Rana Pratap. The latter had to take refuge in remote fortresses.

Battle of Plassey (1757)—The British under Lord Clive defeated Sirajuddaulah. It laid foundation of the British Rule in India.

Third Battle of Panipat (1761)—Ahmed Shah Abdali defeated the Marahattas. The Marahatta power suffered an irreparable loss.

Battle of Buxer (1764)—The British under Sir Hector Munro defeated the Muslim army under three Mohammadan leaders : Mir Qasim, Shuja-ud-daulha and Shah Alam II. The battle made the British Supreme in India.

The First Sikh War (1845)—The Sikh Army crossed Sutlej in 1845 at which the East India Company declared war. British occupied Lahore and forced the Sikhs to accept humiliating terms of peace.

The Second Sikh War (1849)—A drawn battle was fought between the English and the Sikhs at Chelianwala in which the English appeared to have suffered heavy losses.

Indo-Pak War (1965)—An indecisive war between India and Pakistan. It led to ‘Taskent Pact’ between the two countries.

Indo-Pak War (1971)—Indian forces in joint command with Bangladesh Army accepted the surrender of the Pak Army in Bangladesh. War in the western sector came to an end as a result of cease-fire on Dec. 17. Bangladesh was liberated.

Kargil War (1999)—Indian forces scored grand victory over Pakistani army and Pak supported mercenaries in a conflict in the Kargil sector of Jammu & Kashmir. The operation was named ‘Operation Vijaya.’ The Indian forces cleared Kargil of all Pakistani elements.

Viceroys of India

Lord Canning (1858–1862)—After the transfer of Government of India to the British Crown. Lord Canning was appointed the first Viceroy of India. He reorganized the whole administration and made it efficient and responsible. Indian Councils Act 1861 was passed during his time.

Lord Ripon (1880–1884)—He had to soft corner for the Indian people. He was responsible for the repeal of Vernacular Press Act. He got enacted the Factory Act to protect the town labourers. He organised the local government on more democratic lines.

Lord Curzon (1899–1905)—The first partition of Bengal in 1905 was the chief event of his time. During his time Punjab Land Alienation Act was passed. By the Indian Universities Act (1904), he officialised the universities. He was the architect of the new North-West Frontier Policy whereby the relations with the N.W. Frontier Tribes and Afghanistan were sought to be improved. The British Government came to have a say in the Tibetan foreign policy.

Lord Minto (1905–1910)—During his time Minto-Morley Act of 1909 was passed, which conceded separate electorates to the Muslims in the Legislatures.

Lord Hardinge (1910–1916)—The partition of Bengal was revoked; the capital was transferred from Calcutta to Delhi.

Lord Chelmsford (1916–1920)—The chief events of his time were, Government of India Act 1919 (which introduced dyarchy in the provinces), Rowlatt Act, Martial Law; Non-cooperation movement launched under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi; and the tragedy of Jalianwala Bagh.

Lord Irwin (1926–1931)—The chief events of his time were : Simon Commission’s visit to India which was boycotted by the Indians, Indian National Congress passed resolution for complete independence–1929; Civil Disobedience Movement started; Gandhi’s historic Dandi March; Round Table Conference in London in 1930; Gandhi-Irwin Pact in 1931.

Lord Willingdon (1931–1936)—The main events of his time were : Second Round Table Conference in 1931; Communal Award 1932; Signing of Poona Pact; Third Round Table Conference in 1932; Government of India Act 1935 passed.

Lord Linlithgow (1936–1942)—In the period of Linlithgow Government of India Act 1935 was enforced in provinces in 1937; Cripps Mission of India. (1942) and Quit India Movement.

Lord Wavell (1942–1947)—The chief events of his time were : Cabinet Mission Plan; Wavell Plan; end of World War II.

Lord Mountbatten—Partition of India recommended; Indian Independence Act, 1947 and India was divided into two Dominions of India and Pakistan.

HISTORY OF AMARAVATHI

History Snippets

The policy of Blood and Iron was followed by	Bismark
What is the name given to the army commanded by Garibaldi?	Redshirts
Communist manifesto was written by	Karl Marx
'Das kapital' was written by	Karl Marx
Napoleon was defeated finally in which war?	Waterloo
Mazzini founded a revolutionary society called	Young Italy
Congo was discovered by	Cameroon
The highest stage of capitalism is	Imperialism
Which continent was regarded as 'Dark Continent'?	Africa
Which was the first country to fall prey to the Europeans	India
Who were the first to develop trade with India	Portuguese
Russian parliament is called as	Duma
"War is to a nation what maternity is to women" was the principle advocated by	Mussolini
The author of "Mein Kampf" was	Hitler
Robert Mugabe became the first president of	Zimbabwe
Who was the founder of Nazi Party	Hitler
The founder of Fascist Party was	Mussolini
Excavation work of Indus valley civilization was first carried out by	Sir John Marshall
Temples at Mahabalipuram were built by	Narasimhavarman / Pallavas
The immediate Cause of the sepoy mutiny was the use of	Enfield Rifles
The British who succeeded in abolishing the practice of Sati in India was	William Bentinck
The European country which held monopoly over India trade during 16th century was	Portugal
Ramakrishna mission was founded by	Swami Vivekananda
Red Fort located in Delhi was built by	Shahjahan
Great master of Indian medical science was	Charaka
The 1857 Revolt began at	Meerut
The sculpture that existed during Kanishka's period was called	Gandhara Sculpture / Greco-Buddhist Art
The construction of Qutub Minar was completed by	Iltutmish
Hiuen Tsang, the Chinese pilgrim visited India during the reign of	Harsha
The earliest of the Vedas is	Rigveda
Ajanta caves are near	Aurangabad (Maharashtra)
Brihadeshwara Temple was built at	Tanjavur
The builder of Buland Darwaza was	Akbar
The great astronomer of Ancient India	Varahamihira / Aryabhatta
The philosophy advocated by Shankara-charya is known as	Advaita
Founder of Mughal Empire	Babur
What was a striking example of city culture at Mohenjo Daro?	Great Bath
Who produced Vedic literature	Aryans
Tanjavur Brihadeshwara temple built by	Raja Raja Chola
The biggest Nataraja image in the country is at	Chidambaram
Who laid foundation of Indo-Persian school of painting?	Akbar
Indo-Persian architecture was patronized by	Shahjahan
Who gave patronage to Mughul miniature painting?	Jahangir
Which is regarded as very ancient native Indian language?	Sanskrit
Ganapati festival, Shivaji festival were started by	Bala Gangadhar Tilak
The 1857 revolt was called as	First war of Indian Independence
In Chandragupta Vikramaditya's court there were the poets called	Navaratnas
Whose court was adorned by Ashtadiggajas?	Sri Krishna Devaraya
Who were responsible for the rise of Bakthi movement?	Sufi saints
Ramanuja was a worshipper of Vishnu and preached	Vaishnavism
Who popularized the Advaita philosophy?	Shankaracharya
Who founded the Dvaita philosophy?	Madhvacharya
Who founded the Sikh sect?	Guru Nanak
The slogan "Give me blood, I shall give you freedom given by	Subhash Chandra Bose
Who said "Satyameva Jayathe" (Truth alone will win)?	Madan Mohan Malaviya
Who said "Swaraj is my birthright and I shall have it"?	Bal Gangadhar Tilak
Who said -Go back to the Vedas?	Swami Dayanand Saraswati
Who said -Inquilab Zindabad?	Bhagat Singh
Who said 'Do or die'?	Gandhi
The book 'Tughluq Namah' was written by?	Amir Khusrau
The book 'Akbar Namah' was written by?	Abul Fazl
The Rajaraja Temple at Thanjur was built by?	Rajendra Chola 1
Gopuram is an important feature of	Dravidian construction
Tripitakas are sacred books of	Buddhists
The theory of economic drain of India during British imperialism was propounded by	Jawaharlal Nehru
The Vijayanagara ruler, Sri Kirshnadeva Raya's work Amuktamalyada, was in	Telugu
Two of the great Mughals wrote their own memories are	Babur and Jahangir
To which king belongs the Lion capitol at Sarnath?	Ashoka
The language of discourses of Gautama Buddha was	Pali
To whom of the Republic of Buddha belong?	Sakyas
Tipu sultan was the ruler of	Mysore
'The Vedas contain all the truth' was interpreted by	Swami Dayananda
To meet the educational needs of the people, the Madarasa-I Nasiri was built in the regin of	Iltutmish
The Vedic deity Indra was the Goddess of	Rain and Thunder
Pulakesin II was the most famous ruler of	Chalukyas
Under whose leadership was the All India Muslim League set up?	Aga Khan
The Upanishads are	A source of Hindu Philosophy
Who was the first Buddhist pilgrim of China to visit India during the reign of Chandragupta Vikramaditya	Fa-Hien
Who found the Servants of India Society?	Gopala Krishna Gokhale
Who wrote famous epic ‘Shahnama’?	Firdausi
The Salt Satyagraha was held at	Dandi, Gujarat
The leader of the Indian National Army was	Subash Chandra Bose
Minto-Marley reforms were introduced in	1905
Annie Besant belonged to	Ireland
The Home Rule Movement was started by	Annie Besant/Tilak
The leader of moderates was	Gopala Krishna Gokhale
First President of Indian National Congress	W.C. Bonerjee
Muslim league was formed in	1906
Indian National Congress first session was held at	Mumbai
The main objective of the extremist was the attainment of	Swaraj
The partition of Bengal was made in 1905 by	Lord Curzon
Which movement was launched in response to the Partition of Bengal?	Vande Mataram
The hymn of Vande Mataram was written by	Bankim Chandra Chatterjee
Gandhi fought against ____ system at champaran	Tinkathia
Who was responsible for Jallianwala Bagh massacre?	General Dyer
Gandhi took very serious view of the ____ incident and called off the non-cooperation movement	Chauri Chaura
In 1930, the First Round Table Conference held at	London
Gandhi-Irwin pact was signed in	1931
For which award Gandhiji protested against MacDonald	Communal
Gandhi and Ambedkar signed	Poona Pact
Atlee, the Prime Minister of England sent a Cabinet mission to India in	1946
According to ____ plan (1947) the partition of India was happened.	Mountbatten
Who were the first Europeans to come to India and last to leave India?	Portuguese

Indian National Movement Date Wise Snippets

1885	Indian National Congress was formed.
1905	Partition of Bengal by Curzon.
1906	All India Muslim league was formed.
1911	1911 - Annulment of the partition of Bengal.
1917	Champaran movement
1919	Rowlatt Act passed - The act curbed the fundamental rights such as freedom of expression and strengthened the police powers.
1919	Jallianwalabagh Massacre. In protest Tagore renounced his knighthood.
1920	Khilafat movement. Gandhi took it as an opportunity for Muslim-Hindu unity and supported the movement.
1920	Non Cooperation movement. British titles were surrendered. Import of foreign cloth fell drastically between 1920 and 1922.
1920	Gandhi called off the Non Cooperation movement.
1922	Chauri chaura incident - killing 22 policemen.
1927	Simon Commission: the Commission was to recommend further constitutional reforms. It was headed by Sir John Simon. It contained all white members. When the Simon came to Indian he was greeted with black flags as a mark of protest by the Indians with raised slogans stating - "Simon Go Back".
1928	Nehru Report: It demanded responsible government advocated dominion states. It was not for complete independence. It demanded universal suffrage. It rejected separated communal elections.
1929	Irwin Offer: It proposed a vague offer of 'dominion status' for India in an unspecified future and a Round Table Conference to discuss a future constitution after publication of the Simon Report.
1929	Lahore Session of Congress: The president was Jawahar Lal Nehru. It took the decision boycotting Round Table Conference. "Purna Swaraj" was adopted as the main aim of the Congress under the presidentship of J.L.Nehru. It launched a programme of civil disobedience. On Dec 31, 1929, Tricolor was hoisted at the Shore of Ravi.
1930	Civil Disobedience Movement started with the Dandi March on 12th March 1930 to break the salt law under the leadership of Gandhi. 26th January, 1930 - observed as "Independence day" all over the country.
1930	First Round Table Conference: It was the first ever conference arranged between British and Indians as equal. Congress boycotted it. However Motilal Nehru, Liberals and princes attended it.
1931	Second Round Table Conference: Gandhi attended only one round table conference and that is the second roundtable conference.
1931	Gandhi-Irwin pact: It offered that all political prisoners would be released except Bhagat singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev. Right to make salt was accepted. Gandhi agreed to suspend the Civil Disobedience Movement and participate in the second session of Round Table Conference.
1932	Third Round Table Conference: Majority leaders of INC did not participate. The outcome of the conference was published on a "White paper" based on which the British government passed Government of India Act of 1935.
1932	Ramsay MacDonald proposed separate electorate for minority community including Dalits. The proposal was supported by B.R.Ambedkar but it was fully opposed by Gandhi.
1932	Poona Pact: Gandhi felt that separate electorate would disintegrate the society on caste lines and would lead to permanent division in the society. To avoid such a situation Gandhi went on for hunger strike for 21 days in Yerrawada central jail. The issue was finally resolved between B.R.Ambedkar and Gandhi by signing the historic Poona Pact. Gandhi devoted himself to the Harijan Cause, for which he started a newspaper called "Harijan".
1935	Government of India act 1935 prescribed provincial autonomy and the government announced elections to the provincial legislatures in 1937. Congress formed government in 6 out of 11 provinces.
1942	Cripps Missions: The British government wanted India to fully co-operate to it during World War-II and made few proposals to League and Congress and promised them of independence after the war. But the proposals were rejected by both the parties and hence the Cripps Mission was a failure.
1942	Gandhi called for Quit India movement DO or DIE to fight the British. Communication and symbols of the state authority were attacked all over the country.
1945	Wavell Plan: which suggested that all portfolios except Defence would be held by the Indian members. The Plan also suggested the reconstitution of the Viceroy's Executive Council and the political parties have to nominate few candidates from their party out of whom the viceroy would select candidate of his choice for the Executive Council.
1945	Shimla Conference: To discuss these proposals and for a better future India, Wavell called all the political parties for their opinion to Shimla and this conference is popularly called as Shimla conference. Differences arose between Congress and League about the representation of Muslim community. The conference was a failure.
1946	Cabinet Mission: The mission consisted of Lord Pethick-Lawrence, the Secretary of State for India, Sir Stafford Cripps, President of the Board of Trade and A. V. Alexander, the First Lord of the Admiralty. The mission suggested that India should remain united and constitute itself as a loose federation with some autonomy for Muslim majority areas. Both Congress and League did not agree to specific details of the proposal.
1946	Direct Action Day - Muslim League announced 16th august 1946 as Direct action day. On this day riots broke in Calcutta lasting for several days. By March 1947 violence spread to different parts of northern India.
1947	Indian Independence Act 1947: It was the Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and it received the royal assent on 18 July 1947. According to this act the British India was to be divided into two states namely India and Pakistan.
On 15th August 1947	India became independent.

Important Facts of Indian HistoryHistory of Modern India

● Muazzam occupied the Mughal throne as Bahadur Shah after his success in the war of succession.
● Muazzam, the son of Aurangzeb was called as the ‘Shah Bekhabar’.
● The Mughal King Farrukh Siyar gratned concession to the English men to trade in Bengal, Gujarat and Hyderabad.
● In 1759 Ali Mohar, the son of Alamgir sat upon the Mughal throne as Shah Alam II.
● After the death of Maratha ruler Shahu, the real power of the State came in the hands of Peshwas.
● Nawab Murshid Quli Khan of Bengal transferred his capital to Murshidabad from Dacca.
● Nawab Mir Qasim of Bengal transferred his capital to Moongher from Murshidabad.
● In the middle of the 18th century, the nominal ruler of Mysore was Chika Krishnaraj. The real power of the State lied with the two brothers—Nand Raj and Dev Raj.
● In 1761 Hyder Ali captured Nandraj and became the master of Mysore.
● In the first Anglo-Mysore war, Hyder Ali badly defeated the English army.
● In 1781 Hyder Ali conqurered Arcot but in 1781 at Porn Novo Sir Eyerkoot defeated him.
● Ali Muhammad Khan established the State of Rohilkhand.
● The early capital of Rohilkhand was ‘Awala’ which later shifted to Rampur.
● Guru Har Gobind Singh constructed the Akaal Takht at Amritsar.
● Guru Gobind Singh converted the Sikhs into a warring and military group.
● In 1721, the two sects of Sikhism ‘Bandai’ and ‘Tatkhalsa’ merged in one sect ‘Khalsa’. This sect became a headache for the Mughals.
● The Sikhs were organized in 12 unions or misls which grew in political significance. Later Ranjeet Singh conquered these misls and organized them into Punjab State.
● The ruler of the Afghanistan conferred the title of Raja upon Ranjeet Singh and appointed him the Subedar of Lahore.
● The treaty of Amritsar was signed between the English and Ranjeet Singh in 1809. As a result the English checked the expansion of Ranjeet Singh towards the region of Sutluj.
● According to the treaty of Amritsar, the English accepted Ranjeet Singh as an independent ruler.
● During first Anglo-Sikh war, the Governor-General of India was Lord Hardinge.
● Punjab was ruled by Maharaja Dalip Singh when the Lahore Treaty was signed in 1846 between the Sikhs and the English after the defeat of Sikhs in the first Anglo Sikh war.
● During Sirajudaulla’s time, the English settlement at Calcutta became a resort for the enemies of Nawab and the traitors.
● On 4th June, 1756 Sirajudaulla invaded and captured the Qasim Bazar factory of English near Murshidabad.
● The Black hole tragedy as it is known in history, came to light through the letter of Holvell. Some of the historians consider it imaginery.
● In the contemporary historical works like Sher-a-Mutkherin and Royas-us-Salatin, there is no reference to the Black hole tragedy.
● On 9th February, 1757, the Ali Nagar Treaty was signed between the English and the Nawab.
● After the war of Plassey, when Sirajudaulla was running away from Murshidabad towards Patna he was captured and killed.
● On 28 June, 1757, the English declared Mir Jafar as the Nawab of Bengal.
● After victory in Plassey war, the English Company obtained concessions to trade in Bengal, Bihar and Orissa.
● On 25 November, 1759, the Bedara war was fought between the English and the Dutch and the Dutch were defeated. The victory helped the English in consolidating their hold on Bengal.
● Mir Qasim planned friendship with Vansittart to become the Nawab of Bengal.
● Mir Qasim gave to East India Company, the districts of Vardhman, Midnapur and Chittgaon for the expenditure of the English army.
● In 1764 the joint army of Mir Qasim, Shujauddaulla and Shah Alam fought with the English—the war of Buxar, the English were victorious in this war.
● After the Buxar War, the Allahabad treaty was signed between English and the Mughal King Shah Alam in 1765 AD.
● According to Allahabad Treaty, the districts of Kara and Allahabad were taken away from the Nawab of Oudh and given to Mughal King. The East India Company agreed to pay to the king a pension of Rs. 26 lacs. In lieu the English got Diwani rights in Bengal.
● After the death of Mir Jafar, his son Nizamuddaula was enthroned as Nawab of Bengal.
● K. M. Panikkar holds that from 1765 to 1772, the rule of East India Company in Bengal was the ‘rule of dacoits’.
● During Warren Hastings period, the Treasury was transferred by the East India Company to Calcutta from Murshidabad and Calcutta was made the capital.
● During the Governorship of Warren Hastings, in every district of subjugated India one Civil and one Criminal Court was opened.
● The cases upto to Rs. 500 were referred to the Civil Court and alone it, the appeal could be made to the Sadar Diwani Adalat.
● The District Criminal Court was put in charge of an Indian Officer.
● The Regulating Act of 1773 established a Supreme Court at Calcutta.
● The Permanent settlement introduced by Cornwallis brought changes in the land system. Most of the land came in the hands of commercial and rich classes of Calcutta.
● The Permanent settlement ensured the income of the Government. Besides the cooperation of the new Zamindars was obtained.
● In the Mahalwari system, land revenues was fixed either through the local Zamindars or their hereditary tax collectors or the Zamindars of the Mahal. Mahal was the collection of villages. The Mahalwari system was known in Punjab as the village system.
● The Raiyyatwari system was introduced during early 19th century in some regions of Madras and Bombay. The Govt. directly obtained a fixed amount from the peasants.
● In the Raiyyatwari system, the revenue rate was fixed 45% to 50% of the total produce separately.
● The Raiyyatwari system had many defects which the Govt. official accepted at the time of a parliamentary inspection for the renewal of the Company’s Charter.
● In the Fifth and Sixth decades of 19 century, the English invested in large amount to control Indian economy.
● The English invested their capital on roads and communications, Railway, Post and Telegraph, Banks and tea gardens.
● In 1830 the Ahoms again rebelled against the English. This time, the English Company adopted a peaceful policy and granted north Assam and some other region to King Purandar Singh.
● Raja Teerath Singh of Nanakkalo rebelled against the English with the help of Garo, Khampati and Sinhopo tribes. Soon it took the shape of a mass-movement. In 1833, the English could crust it with superior military force.
● In 1825, the Assam Rifles rebelled against the English.
● In 1838, the Indian troops stationed at Sholapur rebelled due to non-payment of the full allowances.
● In 1850 the Gobind Garh regiment rebelled.
● On 1 January, 1857, the use of British made Enfield Rifles was started in India. In the cartridges of this Rifle, the fat of cows and pigs were used.
● In March 1857, the soldiers of Bairakpur Cantt refused to use the fat cartridges.
● On 2 May, 1857, the Oudh Regiment of Lucknow too refused to use these cartridges. As a result, the Oudh regiment was disbanded.
● To the soldiers of Meerut who had refused to use the fat cartridges, an English military officer—Carr Michael Smith issued the jail punishment of 5 years.
● On 10 May, 1857, a section of the infantry and cavalry of Merrut rebelled at about 5 P.M.
● The rebels marched to Delhi, captured the city and declared Bahadurshah the emperor of India. Bahadurshah assumed the leadership of revolt in Delhi.
● During this rebellion, Nana Saheb established his suzeranity over Kanpur and declared himself the Peshwa.
● In Bundelkhand Rani Lakshmi Bai of Jhansi assumed the leadership of the revolt.
● In Bihar, the zamindar of Jagdishpur, named Kunwar Singh led the revolt.
● On 28 May, 1857, the soldiers of Nasirabad Cantt in Rajasthan, rebelled.
● Kota and Adva were the main centres of revolt in Rajasthan.
● The Central India, Tantya Tope led the revolt.
● In U.P. the importnat centres of revolution were Jhansi, Kanpur, Bareilly, Meerut, Lucknow, Aligarh, Mathura and Agra.
● The Bareilly rebellion was led by Batakhs Khan.
● The Commissioner of Oudh, Henry Laurrence died of a blast on 4th July, 1857.
● While suppressing the revolt, the English officer Neil buried the dead Brahmans and burnt the dead Muslims.
● In March 1858, under the leadership of Kunwar Singh, the rebels captured Azamgarh.
● While marching towards Benaras from Azamgarh, there was an encounter between Kunwar Singh and the English officer Lord Mark in which Lord Mark had to run away to save his life.
● Kunwar Singh of Jagdishpur was the only leader to have died under the banner of freedom.
● On 14 December, 1857, the English army blasted Kashmiri Gate of Delhi.
● In November 1857 the rebels defeated the English General Windaham near Kanpur.
● Vinayak Damodar Saverker was the first to name the rebellion of 1857 as the first war of Indian independence.
● According to Sir Seeley, the rebellion of 1857 was fully a national revolt conducted by selfish soldiers.
● Sir John Lawrence, P. E. Roberts and V. A. Smith have called it a Sepoy Mutiny.
● According to V. A. Smith, the rebellion of 1857 was purely a sepoy mutiny which fully reflected the indiscipline of Indian soldiers and the foolishness of English military officers.
● According to Sir James Outtram, the revolt of 1857 was the result of a conspiracy of the Muslims who desired to fulfill their self-interest on the strength of the Hindus.
● Ashok Mehta in his book, ‘The Great Revolt’, has attempted to prove that it was a national revolt.
● Pattabhi Sita Ramaiyya takes it to be the first war of Indian independence.
● After crushing the revolt of 1857, they constituted an India Council and abolished the Board of Directors. There were 15 members in the India Council and a Secretary of State for India.
● After the revolt, Lord Canning announced the Declaration of the Queen at a Durbar held at Allahabad. He called it, ‘the Magna Carta of Indian people’.
● In the Declaration of the Queen, the policy of expansion of the political limits came to an end.
● The rebels responsible for the murder of Englishmen were punished. All others were pardoned.
● The objective of Brahmo Samaj, Arya Samaj, Ramkirshna Mission and the Theosophical society etc. was to herald a renaissance in India.
● Brahmo Samaj was founded in Calcutta by Raja Ram Mohan Roy on 20 August, 1828.
● Raja Ram Mohan Roy always advocated the appointment of Indians on high govt. posts. He played a major role in the abolition of Sati system.
● After the death of Raja Ram Mohan Roy on 20 August, 1833, Devendara Nath Tagore assumed the leadership of the Brahmo Samaj.
● Aadi Brahmo Samaj was established by Devendra Nath Thakur.
● Bhartiya Brahmo Samaj was founded by Keshav Chandra Sen.
● The principles of Brahmo Samaj helped immensely in the birth and Spread Indian nationalism.
● Raja Ram Mohan Roy established Vedant College, English School and Hindu College at Calcutta.
● Raja Ram Mohan Roy was the advocate of English Education and he thought English to be the vehicle of progress.
● It was due to the effort of Raja Ram Mohan Roy, that the restriction upon the newspapers were lifted.
● In 1819, at Maharashtra, Prarthna Sabha was founded. It came to an end due to its limited scope.
● In 1867 Atma Ram Pandurang established Prarthna Samaj. M. G. Ranade, R. G. Bhandarkar and Narayan Chandrawarkar were the prominent members of this Samaj.
● Dayanand Saraswati left his house at the age of 21. As a Brahmachari Sadhu, he travelled to different places in India.
● Dayanand Saraswati started the propagation of his religion from Agra.
● In 1874, he wrote his famous book Satyarth Prakash.
● On 10 April, 1875 he founded Arya Samaj at Bombay.
● Totapuri, a Vedantic sadhu taught Vedant Sadhna to Dayananda.
● Ramkrishna Paramhans was born in 1836 in a poor Brahman family of Hoogly district of Bengal.
● Swami Vivekanand was the most devoted disciple of Swami Ramkrishna Paramhans.
● Ramkrishna Pramhans did not establish any Ashram or sect.
● In 1893 in the All Religion Conference at Chicago Vivekanand impressed everyone, and started a Vedant Samaj there.
● In 1896 Vivekanand established Ramkrishna Mission.
● In the last years of the third decade of the 19th century, the young Bengal movement was led by an Englishman named Henry William Derozio.
● On 7 September, 1875 in New York, U.S.A. Madame H.P. Blatavesky (Russian) and Col. H. S. Alcott (American) founded the Theosophical Society.
● Mrs. Annie Besant, an Irish lady was a very active member of Theosophical Society in India.
● Due to the efforts of Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, in 1856, the Widow Remarriage Act was legislated.
● The slogan of ‘Inkalab Zindabad’ was given by Mohammad Iqbal.
● Sir Saiyyad Ahmad Khan founded the Anglo Oriental College at Aligarh in 1877 which later became known as Aligarh Muslim University.
● Haji Shariatullah was the initiator of Faryaz movement.
● In Maharashtra the Bharat Sewak Samaj was started by Gopal Krishna Gokhale.
● In 1922 Amrit Lal Viththal Das established the Bheel Sewa Mandal.
● Jyoti Ba Phule was the champion of widowremarriage in Maharashtra.
● In 1911 Narayan Maltar Joshi organised the Social Service League, a society to solve the social problems. He was assisted by some educated Indians.
● Avanindra Nath Thakur founded the society known as—The Indian Society of Oriental Art.
● In the 19th century, the famous Bengali author Bankim Chandra Chatterjee composed the song— Vande Matram.
● In 1875, Sisir Kumar Ghose founded the India League.
● The Indian Association founded by Surendra Nath Banerjee was replaced by the Indian League in 1876.
● The credit for founding the Indian National Congress in 1885 goes to an English officer, Allen Octavian Hume.
● The first Conference of the Indian National Congress was held at Gokuldas Tejpal Sanskrit College, Bombay under the chairmanship of W. C. Banerjee.
● Bal Gangadhar Tilak started Ganesh Mahotsav in 1893 and Shivaji Samaroh in 1895.
● Pandit Jugal Kishore published the first newspaper of India—Udant Martand. It was a paper which gave top priority to Indian interests.
● During Lord Curzon’s time in 1905, Bengal was divided.
● In 1911, in Lord Hardinge’s time, the partition of Bengal was cancelled.
● Lala Lajpat Rai and Ajeet Singh were exiled to Burma in 1907.
● In 1911 the capital of India was shifted to Delhi from Calcutta.
● On Nov. 1913, the Ghadar Party was founded at Sanfransisco city of America by the great revolutionary of Punjab named Lala Hardayal.
● Kashi Ram and Hardayal were the active members of the Ghadar Party.
● In 1906, Agha Khan founded the All India Muslim League.
● In 1916, a pact was signed between Muslim League and Congress which is known in history as the Lucknow Pact.
● In 1916 Bal Gangadhar Tilak established the Home Rule League of India.
● After Lucknow Pact, Congress and League presented the plan of political reforms based on separate electoral regions. This pact led to an increase in communalism.
● In 1914 Annie Besant brought out a newspaper in English named ‘New India’.
● Gandhiji established the Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad.
● On 30 March, 1919, Satyagraha Day was observed in whole of India. The Satyagraha was peaceful at all places except Punjab and Delhi.
● Dr. Satyapal and Dr. Saifuddin, the leaders of the Punjab Satyagraha were imprisoned. In protest, a meeting was organized at Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar . The people who assembled here were gunned down. This is known as ‘Jalhianwalla bagh Massacre’ of April 1919.
● After the world war I, the Indian Muslims were excited due to the treatment meted out to Caliph by the British in Turkey. In 1919 they started the Khilafat movement under the leadership of Maulana Shaukat Ali and Muhammad Ali.
● The Congress joined the Muslims in Khilafat movement. On 31 August, 1919, the Khilafat Day was observed.
● Mahatma Gandhi launched the Non-cooperation Mass Movement in 1920-21. But violence broke out at Chauri Chaura then in Gorakhpur district which saddened Gandhiji. In February 1922 he announced the closure of the movement.
● In March 1922 Motilal Nehru and Deshbandhu Chitranjan Das established the Swaraj Party.
● In the elections of 1923 the Swaraj Party scored 40 seats out of 148.
● In 1927 the Bardoli Satyagraha was conducted by Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel.
● In 1928 under the chairmanship of Sir John Simon a Commission came to India to inspect the administrative work. The Indians boycotted it as no Indian was a member of the Commission. In March 1928 the Commission went back.
● In the 1929 Lahore Congress session held under the chairmanship of Jawaharlal Nehru, the meaning of Swaraj was declared as total independence.
● In 1930 Gandhiji broke the Salt laws by his Dandi March and he started the Civil Disobedience movement.
● In 1930, the Congress boycotted the first Round Table Conference.
● In 1931, after Gandhi-Irwin pact Gandhiji went to attend the second Round Table Conference along with the members of Muslim League.
● In the third Round table conference in 1932, Congress did not send any representative. Only 46 members went to participate under different categories.
● The meeting of the Executive of Congress held on 1 January, 1932 decided to again start the Civil Disobedience Movement due to the completely negative attitude of the Government.
● The British Prime Minister Ramsay Macdonald declared the communal award on 16 August, 1932.
● On 25 September, 1932, the Poona Pact was signed. Common agreement was made on two conditions for preparing the electoral regions. The representative of the Depressed classes was B.R. Ambedkar.
● In 1932 Gandhiji founded the Harijan Sewak Sangh for the uplift of the Harijans.
● On 8 May, 1933 Gandhiji declared the programme of 21 days fast for his self-purification.
● Gandhiji began ‘Individual Satyagraha and Civil Disobedience on 1 August, 1933.
● The Government of India Act of 1935 had 312 articles and 19 enclosures.
● In 1935, the British provinces were 11 e.g., Madras, Bombay, Bengal, Bihar, Punjab, Orissa, Central Provinces, Assam, North West Frontier Provinces, United Provinces and Sindh.
● The Government of India Act of 1935, the subjects were divided into three departments—Federal, Provincial and Concurrent.
● This Act divided the British provinces of India in two categories. 11 were the provinces under the Governor and 5 provinces were under Lieutenant Commissioners.
● The Govt. of India Act, 1935, proposed Federal system and Provincial autonomy. The plan of Federal system could not be implemented. The elections for the Provincial legislative Councils were held in the January-February of 1937.
● The Congress won majority in 5 provinces—Madras, United Provinces, Central Provinces, Bihar and Orissa in the general election of 1937.
● In Punjab, the Unionist Party and Muslim League jointly formed the Government. This Government worked without any obstruction till 1947.
● In Bengal the Krishak Praja Party and the Muslim League jointly formed the Government. Its Cabinet worked till 14 August, 1947. Sikandar Hayaat Khan was the head of this Government.
● The Congress Cabinets worked from 1937 to 1939.
● In 1934, the members of Congress Executive, Acharya Narendra Dev, Jai Prakash and Achyut Patvardhan organized the Congress Socialist Party.
● In the Haripura session of the Congress (1938), S. C. Bose was unanimously elected the President.
● Subhash Chandra Bose organized a National Planning Committee.
● In 1939 Bose was relected Congress President defeating Gandhi’s candidate P. Sitaramayya.
● In April 1939, Subhash Chandra Bose resigned from the post of the President and started a militant party known as Forward Block.
● In 1939, Jawaharlal Nehru became the President of the Tribal Conference of Indian States.
● In 1933, a Muslim student named Choudhary Rahmat Ali studying in England proposed the formation of a separate Muslim State and called it Pakistan.
● On 24th March, 1940, in the Lahore Conference of the Muslim League, the Pakistan proposal was passed.
● Lord Linlithgo presented the August proposal before the Congress on 8 August, 1940 for getting cooperation during the war.
● The Individual Satyagraha was started from 17 October, 1940. Acharya Vinoba Bhave was the first Satyagrahi. Gandhiji postponed it on 17 December, 1940.
● It was restarted on 5 January, 1941. During this period more than 20 thousand people were arrested.
● Cripps Mission visited India in 1942. It was onemember Commission and only Sir Strafford Cripps was the member.
● The Congress and the League, both rejected the Cripps Proposals.
● The Quit India movement resolution was passed on 14 July, 1942 in the Executive of the Congress Session held at Wardha. It was reaffirmed on 8 August, 1942.
● The interim government of free India was organized on 21 October, 1943 by Subhash Chandra Bose in Singapore.
● 21 Indian political leaders were invited to attend a Conference at Simla in June 1945. It ended in failure.
● In December 1945, the General Elections were held in India. The Congress received the majority in 6 provinces.
● On 18 February, 1946, the non Commissioned officers and Naval soldiers of the Royal Indian Navy who were called Rattings, began a militant revolt at Bombay.
● In order to remove the Constitutional crisis the British Government sent the Cabinet Mission to India.
● It came on 29 March, 1946 to New Delhi and it declared its proposals.
● Muslim League observed the Direct Action Day on 16 August 1946.
● The Interim Government of India was organized under the leadership of Jawaharlal Nehru. The Cabinet took oath on 2nd September, 1946.
● The Constituent Assembly first met under the chairmanship of Dr. Rajendra Prasad on 6th December, 1946.
● Atlee declared on 20 February, 1947 that the English would leave India after transferring the power to responsible people before June 1948.
● The Mountbatten Plan of 3 June, 1947 was mainly the Plan of partition. It was agreed upon by the Executive of the Indian National Congress on 14-15 June in a meeting at Delhi.
● In July 1947, the Indian Independence Act was passed by the British Parliament.
● India became independent on 15 August, 1947.
● On 26 January, 1950, the state of Hyderabad merged in the Indian Federation.
● On 20 April 1954, the Panchsheel Pact was signed between India and China.
● On 20 October, 1962 China invaded upon India. Soon it occupied Assam Valley and Laddakh. On 21 November, 1962, China declared one sided ceasefire.