History

🟢 Lite — Quick Review (1h–1d)

Rapid summary for last-minute revision before your exam.

History — Key Facts for CUET (Indian and World History) Indus Valley Civilization: 3300–1300 BCE; cities Mohenjo-Daro, Harappa, Lothal, Dholavira; artefacts: dancing girl, priest-king, steatite seals Maurya Empire: Chandragupta (322 BCE), Ashoka (268 BCE); Kalinga War (261 BCE); pillar edicts; spread of Buddhism Gupta Empire: Golden Age; Chandragupta I, Samudragupta, Chandragupta II; Kalidasa, Aryabhata; Nalanda university Delhi Sultanate: 1206–1526; slave dynasty (Qutb-ud-din Aibak), Khilji (Ala-ud-din Khilji — market reforms), Tughlaq, Sayyid, Lodi dynasties Mughal Empire: 1526–1857; Babur, Humayun, Sher Shah Suri, Akbar, Jahangir, Shah Jahan, Aurangzeb; Taj Mahal (1653) British India: 1857 (First War of Independence) → 1947 (Independence) ⚡ Exam tip: For dynasties, remember the chronological order and ONE major achievement/reform per ruler

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🟡 Standard — Regular Study (2d–2mo)

Standard content for students with a few days to months.

History — CUET General Test Study Guide

Indian history spans thousands of years and is broadly divided into Ancient (up to 1206 CE), Medieval (1206–1707 CE), and Modern (1707–1947 CE). CUET tests your knowledge of major events, rulers, movements, and cultural achievements.

Ancient India — Key Periods:

Indus Valley Civilization (Harappan Civilization):

• Mature Phase: 2600–1900 BCE
• Towns: Mohenjo-Daro (Sindh, Pakistan), Harappa (Punjab, Pakistan), Lothal (Gujarat, India), Dholavira (Gujarat, India)
• Town planning: Grid pattern, sophisticated drainage, granaries, standardised brick sizes
• Economy: Agriculture (wheat, barley), trade (Mesopotamia), craft production
• Script: Undeciphered; over 400 symbols; mostly found on seals
• Notable artefacts: Dancing Girl (Mohenjo-Daro), Priest-King (Mohenjo-Daro), Bronze Bull, Pashupati Seal
• Decline theories: Climate change, Aryan invasion (controversial), river course changes

Vedic Period (1500–500 BCE):

• Rigveda (earliest) composed during this period; Contains 1028 hymns
• Society organised into four varnas: Brahmin (priests), Kshatriya (warriors), Vaishya (traders), Shudra (labourers)
• Later Vedic period saw emergence of Janapadas (territorial states)
• Rise of Mahajanapadas (16 powerful states); some were republics (Vajji, Malla)

Maurya Empire (322–185 BCE):

• Founded by Chandragupta Maurya with Chanakya (Kautilya) as advisor; Arthashastra written by Chanakya
• Ashoka (grandson of Chandragupta): Kalinga War (261 BCE); converted to Buddhism; inscribed edicts on pillars and rocks throughout empire
• Administration: Divided into provinces (Janapadas); officials (Mahamatras); Spies (Pratisas)
• Decline: Pushyamitra Sung dynasty (185 BCE) ended Maurya rule

Gupta Empire (320–550 CE) — Golden Age:

• Chandragupta I (married daughter of Licchavi kingdom, started Samrat title); Samudragupta (conquered vast territories, musician, poet); Chandragupta II (Vikramaditya — court of Ujjain, Kalidasa)
• Cultural achievements: Kalidasa (poet, dramatist — Shakuntala, Meghaduta), Aryabhata (astronomy — Earth rotates on axis, π = 62832/20000), Varahamihira, Dhanvantari
• Nalanda University: World’s oldest university; attracted students from China, Tibet, Persia

Medieval India — Sultanate and Mughal Periods:

Delhi Sultanate (1206–1526):

• First Muslim kingdom in India
• Slave Dynasty: Qutb-ud-din Aibak; Iltutmish (consolidated, introduced IQTA system); Razia Sultan (first woman ruler of Delhi, 1236–1240)
• Khilji Dynasty: Ala-ud-din Khilji (1296–1316); captured Gujarat, Ranthambore; market reforms (price control, maximum wages); Mongol invasions repelled
• Tughlaq Dynasty: Muhammad-bin-Tughlaq (1325–1351) — capital to Daulatabad, token currency, catastrophic campaigns; Firoz Shah Tughlaq — built Firoz Shah Kotla, irrigation projects
• Sayyid and Lodi Dynasties: Decline leading to Mughal conquest

Mughal Empire (1526–1857):

• Babur (1526–1530): Defeated Ibrahim Lodi at Panipat (1526); Timur’s descendant; founder of Mughal Empire
• Humayun (1530–1540, 1555–1556): Defeated by Sher Shah Suri; fled to Persia; regained throne after Sher Shah’s death
• Sher Shah Suri (1540–1545): Afghan; introduced the DAUGHTER (postal system), gold and silver coins, Grand Trunk Road (from Bengal to Afghanistan)
• Akbar (1556–1605): Expanded empire; married Rajput princess (Jodha Bai); abolished Jizya; Din-i-Ilahi; Lahore Treaty with Humayun’s sons; Fatehpur Sikri (capital, built for Sufi saint Sheikh Salim Chishti)
• Jahangir (1605–1627): Nur Jahan (wife); Tumair Tomb; tolerant policies
• Shah Jahan (1628–1658): Built Taj Mahal for Mumtaz Mahal; Red Fort, Jama Masjid in Delhi; Peacock Throne
• Aurangzeb (1658–1707): Strict Sharia; war with Marathas; Jizya reimposed; Deccan campaigns; financial strain

Modern India — Freedom Struggle:

First War of Independence (1857):

• Also called Sepoy Mutiny, Indian Rebellion of 1857
• Causes: greased cartridges (cow/pig fat), annexation of princely states, economic exploitation, social reforms
• Key figures: Mangal Pandey (shot a British officer), Bahadur Shah Zafar (last Mughal emperor, declared emperor of Hindustan at Delhi), Rani Lakshmibai (Jhansi), Tantia Tope, Begum Hazrat Mahal
• Result: Failed; 1858 Government of India Act — Crown took over from East India Company

Indian National Congress (INC):

• Founded 1885 by A.O. Hume and W.C. Banerjee
• Early phase: Moderates (Dadabhai Naoroji — drain theory, Gopal Krishna Gokhale) vs Extremists (Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Lala Lajpat Rai, Bipin Chandra Pal)
• Partition of Bengal (1905) by Lord Curzon → Swadeshi movement

Mahatma Gandhi:

• Returned from South Africa 1915; Champaran Satyagraha (1917) — peasant rights; Jallianwala Bagh (1919); Non-Cooperation Movement (1920) — boycotted British goods, schools; Civil Disobedience (1930) — Salt March (Dandi), 78 marchers from Sabarmati to Dandi; Quit India Movement (1942) — “Do or Die”
• Other leaders: Jawaharlal Nehru (socialist, first PM), Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel (unified India after independence), Subhas Chandra Bose (left INC, formed Indian National Army with Japanese support), Dr. B.R. Ambedkar (drafted Constitution, championed Dalit rights)

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🔴 Extended — Deep Study (3mo+)

Comprehensive coverage for students on a longer study timeline.

History — Comprehensive CUET General Test Notes

Important Treaties and Events:

• Treaty of Paris (1763): Ended Seven Years’ War; France lost most Indian possessions to Britain
• Treaty of Allahabad (1765): Shah Alam II granted Diwani rights (collection of land revenue) to British East India Company in Bengal, Bihar, Odisha
• Treaty of Subsidiary Alliance (1798): British guaranteed protection to princely state; state had to maintain British troops and pay subsidies; Lord Wellesley pioneered this
• Treaty of Subsidiary Alliance consequences: Awadh annexed (1856); Nawab Wajid Ali Shah deposed

Social and Religious Reform Movements:

• Brahmo Samaj (1828): Raja Ram Mohan Roy; monotheism, opposed Sati, supported widow remarriage
• Arya Samaj (1875): Dayananda Saraswati; Vedas as ultimate authority; cow protection
• Ramakrishna Mission (1897): Swami Vivekananda; spiritual + social service
• Theosophical Society (1875): Helena Blavatsky, Annie Besant; revival of Hindu philosophy
• Aligarh Movement (1875): Sir Syed Ahmed Khan; modern education for Muslims; founded Aligarh Muslim University (1875)
• Prarthana Samaj (1867): Atmaram Pandurang; reform within Hinduism

Famines in British India:

• Great Bengal Famine (1770): Warren Hastings’ policy; ~10 million died
• Famine of 1899–1900: Viceroy Curzon’s policies; ~4.5 million died
• Bengal Famine (1943): Churchill’s policy; ~3 million died; worsened by British war-time grain exports

Important Commissions and Acts:

• Charter Act (1813): First step toward establishing British educational policy in India
• 1858 Act: Queen Victoria proclaimed Empress of India; Governor-General became Viceroy
• Indian Council Act (1909/Minto-Morley Reforms): Separate electorates for Muslims (Lord Minto); led to Communal Award
• Government of India Act (1919/Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms): Dyarchy in provinces; Simon Commission (1927)
• Government of India Act (1935): Federal structure; provincial autonomy
• Indian Independence Act (1947): Mountbatten Plan; partition of British India into India and Pakistan; princely states given choice

Governor-Generals of British India:

• Warren Hastings (1773–1785): Founded Asiatic Society, Calcutta High Court
• Lord Cornwallis (1786–1793): Permanent Settlement (1793) — Zamindari system in Bengal
• Lord Wellesley (1798–1805): Subsidiary Alliance system
• Lord Dalhousie (1848–1856): Doctrine of Lapse, annexation of Punjab, Burma, Satara, Jhansi

First War of Independence (1857) — Details:

• Mangal Pandey incident: March 1857, Barrackpore (Bengal)
• Meerut: 3rd Cavalry officers Mangal Pandey supported, soldiers shot British officer
• Delhi captured; Bahadur Shah Zafar declared emperor
• Kanpur: Nana Sahib (declares himself Peshwa); Rani Lakshmibai (Jhansi)
• Lucknow: Begum Hazrat Mahal -最终 British suppressed rebellion with Persian and French help; Bahadur Shah Zafar tried and exiled to Rangoon; last Mughal emperor died 1862

CUET Exam Patterns (2022–2024):

• Dynasties and rulers (what they built, their major policies) are most frequently tested
• Chronological order of dynasties and empires appears every year
• Reform movements and social reformers are commonly tested
• Dates — focus on major events (1857, 1947, 1858) and their significance
• Cultural achievements (literature, architecture, astronomy) are frequently asked
• Common mistakes: confusing different Sultanate dynasties; not remembering which empire a particular ruler belonged to; mixing up reform movements with their founders

⚡ Key insight: For history, create a timeline mentally. Start with Indus Valley → Vedic → Mahajanapadas → Maurya → Gupta → Medieval → Modern. For each period, remember: who ruled, what they built, one major social/economic feature, and a cultural achievement. When answering questions about dynasties, identify the time period first — this narrows down options significantly.

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