Indian History - Modern India

🟢 Lite — Quick Review (1h–1d)

Rapid summary for last-minute revision before your exam.

Modern India — MHC-CET (Law) Quick Recall

The modern period (c. 1757–1947) covers British rule, the freedom movement, and independence.

Key Phases:

• Plassey to Plassey (1757–1857): Rise of British East India Company; Anglo-Mysore, Anglo-Maratha, Anglo-Nepal wars
• Revolt of 1857: First war of independence; end of Company rule
• Indian National Movement (1885–1947): Congress, Muslim League; Gandhi’s methods; Partition

Must-Know Dates:

• Battle of Plassey: 1757
• Revolt of 1857: 1857
• Formation of Indian National Congress: 1885
• Partition of Bengal: 1905 (reversed 1911)
• Jallianwala Bagh: 1919
• Non-Cooperation Movement: 1920–1922
• Simon Commission: 1928
• Poorna Swaraj: 1929 (Lahore Session)
• Civil Disobedience Movement: 1930 (Dandi March)
• Quit India Movement: 1942
• Independence: 15 August 1947
• Partition: 14–15 August 1947

⚡ Exam Tip: Modern Indian History questions frequently ask about the nature of British exploitation (economic, administrative), differences between Congress and Muslim League, and Gandhi’s methods and philosophy.

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🟡 Standard — Regular Study (2d–2mo)

Standard content for students with a few days to months.

The British Conquest and Company Rule

Battle of Plassey (1757)

• Robert Clive (British East India Company) vs. Siraj-ud-Daulah (Nawab of Bengal)
• Mir Jafar — betrayed Siraj-ud-Daulah; bribed to switch sides
• British won; established control over Bengal (plunder: £2.3 million from treasury + ₹2.8 crore from Nawab’s treasury)
• Mir Jafar installed as Nawab (with pension); later replaced by Mir Qasim
• Significance: Company acquired Diwani rights (right to collect land revenue) in Bengal, Bihar, Orissa (1765 — Treaty of Allahabad with Shah Alam II)

Pitt’s India Act (1784)

• Created Board of Control (6 members) to supervise East India Company’s affairs
• Separated commercial and political functions of Company
• British government gained effective control over Company’s governance

Anglo-Mysore Wars (1767–1799)

• Four wars between British and Mysore under Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan
• First (1767–69): inconclusive; Treaty of Madras (1769) — mutual defence agreement
• Second (1780–84): Hyder Ali; Battle of Porto Novo (1781); Treaty of Mangalore (1784) — restored territories
• Third (1790–92): Cornwallis defeated Tipu; Treaty of Seringapatam (1792) — Tipu paid ₹3.3 crore; lost half his territories
• Fourth (1799): Lord Wellesley; Battle of Seringapatam (1799) — Tipu Sultan killed; Mysee annexed; Treaty of 1799 — Mysore restored to Wodeyar dynasty

Anglo-Maratha Wars (1772–1818)

• First (1772–73): inconclusive; Treaty of Surat (1775); Treaty of Purandar (1776) — rejected by Nana Fadnavis
• Second (1803–05): Wellesley defeated Marathas at Assaye (1803) (Arthur Wellesley — later Duke of Wellington); Laswari, Delhi; Treaty of Surji-Anjangaon (1803)
• Third (1817–18): Peshwa Baji Rao II defeated at Battle of Koregaon (1818); Treaty of Lingampalle (1818) — Peshwa became British pensioner; Maratha power ended

Anglo-Nepal War (1814–1816)

• Treaty of Sugauli (1816): Nepal became British protectorate; Nepal lost territories (Darjeeling, etc.); British established influence in Himalayas

Doctrine of Lapse

• Introduced by Lord Dalhousie (1848–1856)
• If a native state ruler died without a biological adopted son, his state would lapse to British (not recognized adoption)
• Applied to: Satara (1843), Jhansi (1854), Nagpur (1854), Awadh (1856)
• Major cause of 1857 Revolt

Revenue Systems

• Permanent Settlement (1793): Lord Cornwallis; fixed land revenue in perpetuity; Zamindars became landowners; created a class of permanent landlords (taluqdars); revenue demand permanent
• Mahalwari System (1833): Proposed by Holt Mackenzie; village-level; Zamindars and cultivators jointly responsible; revision every 30 years
• Ryotwari System (1820): Thomas Munro; direct settlement with Ryot (cultivator); individual responsibility; revenue demand fixed for 30 years; popular in Madras Presidency

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The Revolt of 1857

Causes

1. Political: Doctrine of Lapse; annexation of Awadh (1856); end of Mughal emperor’s pension
2. Economic: Heavy taxation; high revenue demands; destruction of artisan industries; deindustrialisation
3. Administrative: Racial discrimination; promotion only for Europeans; service conditions; military reorganisation ( greased cartridges — cow and pig fat)
4. Social: Spread of Western education; Christian missionaries; social reforms (Sati Prohibition Act, 1829; Widow Remarriage Act, 1856) — perceived as threats to religion
5. Immediate trigger: Greased cartridge controversy (February 1857) — soldiers (both Hindu and Muslim) refused to use cartridges rumored to be greased with cow and pig fat

Key Events

• Mangal Pandey (March 1857) — sepoy in Barrackpore (Bengal); fired at British officers; executed
• Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar proclaimed at Delhi (May 1857) — restored as leader of uprising
• Meerut (May 1857) — first major outbreak; 85th Bengal Native Infantry refused; mutinied
• Cawnpore — Nana Sahib (Dhondo Pant) led rebellion; captured British residents; some escaped; later betrayed by treaty; British recaptured
• Lucknow — siege of Residency (May–November 1857); Sir Henry Havelock; relief by Outram
• Delhi — captured by British in September 1857; Bahadur Shah Zafar captured
• Jhansi — Rani Lakshmibai (Rani of Jhansi) — prominent woman warrior; fought from fort; escaped in male attire; died at Gwalior (June 1858)

Suppression and Aftermath

• Queensberry and Canning suppressed revolt with brutality
• Queen’s Proclamation (1858): Queen Victoria proclaimed sovereignty over India (November 1, 1858); end of East India Company rule
• Indian Administration transferred from Company to Crown
• Queen Victoria’s assurance: No further annexation; promised not to interfere in religion; equal opportunities for Indians
• 1858: New administrative structure — Viceroy + Crown; Secretary of State for India in Britain

Significance

• First organized, widespread resistance against British
• End of Mughal Empire — last Mughal emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar exiled to Rangoon (Myanmar)
• End of Maratha power — completely subjugated
• British changed policies — less aggressive expansion; more consultative

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Indian National Movement (1885–1947)

Formation of Indian National Congress (1885)

• Allan Octavian Hume (British civil servant) + Womesh Chandra Bonnerjee (first President)
• First session at Bombay (December 28, 1885); 72 delegates
• Moderate Phase (1885–1905): Demanded: (1) Greater voice for Indians in administration; (2) Legislative councils; (3) Civil service reforms; (4) Reduction of land revenue
• Leaders: Dadabhai Naoroji (known as “Grand Old Man of India”), Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Dinshaw Wacha, Womesh Chandra Bonnerjee

Partition of Bengal (1905)

• Viceroy Lord Curzon (1905) — partition Bengal into Bengal (with Assam) and Eastern Bengal & Assam
• Rationale given: Administrative convenience; actual motive: Divide Bengal along religious/cultural lines
• Swadeshi Movement (1905): Boycott of British goods; promotion of Indian-made goods; Aurobindo Ghosh and Bipin Chandra Pal in Bengal; Bal Gangadhar Tilak in Maharashtra; Lala Lajpat Rai, Ajay Singh in Punjab
• Moderate vs. Assertive nationalists: Gopal Krishna Gokhale vs. Bal Gangadhar Tilak (“Swaraj is my birthright and I will have it”)
• Bengal Partition reversed in 1911 by King George V at Delhi Durbar (when he announced shifting of capital from Calcutta to Delhi)

Muslim League (1906)

• Dacca (Dhaka) Conference, 1906 — founded by Aga Khan III, Nawab Salimullah
• Initial demand: Separate electorates for Muslims (as per Minto-Morley Reforms, 1909)
• Later: Two-Nation Theory (Vinh) by Muhammad Ali Jauhar; Lahore Resolution (1940) — demand for separate Pakistan
• Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah — from secular nationalist to leader of Muslim League (1916 onwards)

The Gandhi Era (1915–1947)

Mahatma Gandhi’s Early Movements:

Champaran Satyagraha (1917): First in India; indigo plantation workers in Champaran (Bihar) forced to grow indigo and pay excessive rent; Gandhi organized peasant movement; indigo farmers freed; Champaran Bill passed

Kheda Satyagraha (1918): Peasants in Kheda district (Gujarat) suffered crop failure; Gandhi supported demand for suspension of revenue; Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel (then young lawyer) was key organizer; Government suspended revenue collection

Ahmedabad Textile Strike (1918): Mill workers struck for wage increase; Gandhi intervened as mediator; wage increase granted; Gandhi developed concept of Satyagraha (“truth force” or “insistence on truth”)

Jallianwala Bagh Massacre (1919)

• General Dyer (British army officer) fired on unarmed Indian civilians at Jallianwala Bagh (Amritsar, Punjab) on April 13, 1919
• Hundreds killed (government claimed 379; Indian estimate: 1,500+); peaceful gathering
• Repression: Martial law; public flogging; crawling order (people forced to crawl on street where a British woman was attacked)
• Rabindranath Tagore renounced his knighthood
• Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms (1919): Introduced dyarchy in provinces; limited self-government

Non-Cooperation Movement (1920–1922)

• National Movement at Nagpur (1920): INC adopted Non-Cooperation resolution after Khilafat Movement (protest against Turkey’s Khalifa’s treatment by Allied powers)
• Gandhi’s leadership formally accepted
• Charkha (spinning wheel) — symbol of Swadeshi and self-reliance
• Boycott of schools, colleges, law courts, legislative councils
• Picketing of foreign liquor shops
• Ali Brothers (Muhammad Ali, Shaukat Ali) — Hindu-Muslim unity (though fragile)
• Movement withdrawn after Chauri Chaura incident (1922) — police firing; mob burned 22 police officers alive in Chauri Chaura (Uttar Pradesh); Gandhi called off movement

Simon Commission (1927)

• British Commission to review Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms; all-white (no Indian members)
• “Simon, Go Back” — nationwide protest
• Led by Sir John Simon; boycotted by all Indian parties
• Result: Government of India Act, 1935

Poorna Swaraj (1929)

• Lahore Congress Session (1929): Under Jawaharlal Nehru’s presidency; declared Poorna Swaraj (Complete Independence) as goal
• January 26, 1930: Indian National Congress observed as Independence Day (first time; later reverted after independence)

Civil Disobedience Movement (1930)

• Dandi March (March 12 – April 6, 1930): Gandhi + 78 volunteers marched from Sabarmati Ashram (Ahmedabad) to Dandi (Gujarat coast); deliberately broke salt law (manufacturing salt from sea water)
• Salt Satyagraha — mass movement; thousands joined
• Dharasana Satyagraha (May 1930): Teht Fyte — MBA volunteers led by Vijay Kumar; attacked by police; world press covered brutality
• Round Table Conferences (1930–32): Three conferences in London; Gandhi attended second (1931) as sole representative of INC; Ramsay MacDonald (British PM) attended
• Gandhi-Irwin Pact (1931): Gandhi agreed to attend Round Table; Irwin released political prisoners; agreed to salt tax abolition

Communal Award and Poona Pact (1932)

• Communal Award (1932): Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald awarded separate electorates for: Depressed Classes (Dalits), Muslims, Sikhs, Europeans, etc.
• Mahatma Gandhi strongly opposed; went on fast unto death in Yerwada Jail (Poona)
• Poona Pact (September 1932): Dr. B.R. Ambedkar agreed to joint electorates for Depressed Classes in exchange for reserved seats (instead of separate electorates); Gandhi’s fast succeeded; Ambedkar accepted
• Result: Depressed Classes got reserved seats but within general electorate (not separate)

Government of India Act, 1935

• Introduced provincial autonomy; dyarchy abolished at provincial level
• Federal structure (province + centre); limited franchise (based on property)
• Provinces: Council of Ministers responsible to Legislative Assembly
• Bombay Presidency and others became autonomous provinces
• Failed at centre — Viceroy retained control; Muslim League opposed (didn’t get parity with Congress)

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🔴 Extended — Deep Study (3mo+)

Comprehensive coverage for students on a longer study timeline.

The Quit India Movement and Independence (1942–1947)

Quit India Movement (1942)

• August 8, 1942: Mumbai (then Bombay) — Gandhi gave “Do or Die” speech; called for “Quit India”
• All India Congress Committee (AICC) passed resolution demanding end of British rule
• Mass arrests: Gandhi, Nehru, Patel, and entire Congress Working Committee arrested on August 9, 1942
• Violent uprisings: In parts of India (Bengal, Bihar, UP, Maharashtra); British suppressed brutally
• INATO: Indian National Army (under Subhas Chandra Bose + Rash Behari Bose) — Japan-supported; Bose escaped (1941) to Germany, then to Japan via submarine; led INA from 1943; fought British in Burma; raised tricolour at Imphal; died in plane crash (1945)

The INA and Royal Indian Navy Mutiny (1946)

• Royal Indian Navy Mutiny (February 1946): Ratings in Bombay refused orders; struck; slogan “Jai Hind”; Gandhi called it “nationalist”; British suppressed but INA impact was visible
• Post-WWII: British economy exhausted; Labour government in Britain (Clement Attlee) decided to leave India

Cabinet Mission Plan (1946)

• Cripps Mission (1942) failed earlier — suggested partition but rejected by both Congress and League
• Cabinet Mission (1946): Lord Pethick-Lawrence (Secretary of State), Sir Stafford Cripps, A.V. Alexander
• Proposals: Three-tier confederation; centre limited to defence, communications, external affairs; provinces grouped (A: Hindu-majority, B: Muslim-majority NW, C: Muslim-majority E); no partition immediately
• League accepted (but later withdrew under Jinnah’s pressure when Congress rejected grouping); Congress rejected the grouping as it effectively partitioned India without partition

Direct Action Day (August 16, 1946)

• Muslim League called for Direct Action Day; Great Calcutta Killings (August 16–17, 1946) — nearly 4,000 killed in Hindu-Muslim riots in Calcutta
• Escalated communal tensions leading to partition

Partition and Independence (1947)

• Mountbatten Plan (June 3, 1947): Lord Mountbatten (last Viceroy); date fixed: August 15, 1947
• Radcliffe Line (drawn by Sir Cyril Radcliffe); Punjab and Bengal partitioned; published after independence
• Mass migrations: 14 million people displaced; 1–2 million killed in communal violence
• Mahatma Gandhi opposed partition but accepted it; wanted to stay in India; went to Noakhali (Bengal) for peace mission; last fast at Delhi (January 1948)
• Assassinated on January 30, 1948 by Nathuram Godse (Hindu nationalist; member of Mahasabha)
• Pakistan: August 14, 1947; India: August 15, 1947

Key Leaders of the Freedom Movement

Leader	Role	Key Contribution
Mahatma Gandhi	Congress leader	Champaran, Kheda, Non-Cooperation, Civil Disobedience, Quit India
Jawaharlal Nehru	Congress President	Socialist policies; foreign policy; independence
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel	Congress leader	integration of princely states; Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel as Iron Man
Dr. B.R. Ambedkar	Leader of Depressed Classes	Chairman of Drafting Committee; Poona Pact; Constitution architect
Subhas Chandra Bose	Congress leader	INA; “Jai Hind”; escaped to Germany and Japan
Bal Gangadhar Tilak	Early nationalist	”Swaraj is my birthright”; assertive nationalism
Gopal Krishna Gokhale	Moderate leader	Mentor to Gandhi; constitutional politics
Bhagat Singh	Revolutionary	Hanging (1931); Lahore Conspiracy Case
Rash Behari Bose	Revolutionary	Led Ghadar Party; INA
Dr. Rajendra Prasad	Congress President	First President of India
Maulana Abul Kalam Azad	Congress leader	First Education Minister of India

Important Acts and Reforms

Act/Reform	Year	Key Feature
Pitt’s India Act	1784	Board of Control over Company
Charter Act	1813	Company’s monopoly ended (except China)
Charter Act	1833	Governor-General of India; law member
Charter Act	1853	Open competition for civil service
Government of India Act	1858	Crown rule; Viceroy appointed
Indian Councils Act	1861	Legislative councils expanded
Ilbert Bill	1883	Indian judges could try British criminals (withdrawn after British opposition)
Government of India Act	1892	扩大 legislative councils
Government of India Act	1909	Minto-Morley Reforms; separate electorates for Muslims
Government of India Act	1919	Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms; dyarchy in provinces
Government of India Act	1935	Provincial autonomy; federal structure
Indian Independence Act	1947	Partition; end of British rule

Exam Strategy

1. Timeline of National Movement: Know the major movements in chronological order and their leaders.
2. Gandhi’s methods: Non-violence (Ahimsa), Satyagraha, Khadi, Charkha — understand the philosophical basis.
3. Moderate vs. Assertive nationalists: Know the differences and key leaders.
4. Communal politics: Muslim League’s demand for separate state; Congress’s initial secular approach; how partition became inevitable.
5. Dr. B.R. Ambedkar’s role: Not just Dalit leader — Chairman of Drafting Committee; architect of Constitution; his critique of Congress.
6. Mountbatten Plan: Date of independence (August 15), partition mechanism, Radcliffe Line.

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