Class 10 History Chapter 8 Movement against British Colonialism in India

Chapter Notes

India was called a ‘golden bird’ as it was a prosperous country in the world, and its wealth always attracted invaders. Foreigners came here, attracted by its prosperity. The British were also among these foreigners. In 1600 AD, greedy merchants of Britain jointly formed a company (the East India Company) and started trade with India. By taking advantage of the political instability of India in the eighteenth century, these greedy merchants became political power. Even after becoming a political power, the greed of the company did not go down, but it increased day by day, and the company started exploiting villages and cities, rich and poor, landlords and farmers, kings and subjects, Hindus and Muslims, merchants and artisans equally. In whatever part of India that British imperialism reached, struggles, rebellions and agitations started against it. Forest dwellers, monks, rulers, subjects, artisans, farmers were all suffering from British rule and their exploitative policies. The propagation of Christianity by the British and unnecessary interference in Indian religion and culture also led to deep discontent against the British. As a result of this discontent, many mass movements against British rule arose among Indians, which are described as follows:

Struggle against Imperialism before 1857 AD

After winning the battles of Plassey in 1757 AD and Buxar in 1764-65 AD, the British became a political power from a commercial power. After this, there was continuous expansion of British imperialism, but there was not a single year and not a single region in India where there was no fierce opposition to British power and imperialism. There were about a hundred revolts between 1757 AD and 1857 AD. Between 1763-1800 AD, the Sannyasis fought against the British power while singing ‘Vande Mataram’. After this struggle, the tribals (Santhal, Kol, Khasi, Chuar, Ahom), weavers, artisans, farmers, native rulers fought a long and continuous battle against British imperialism to free their motherland from the invaders, which culminated in the great national struggle of 1857 AD.

Great Freedom Struggle of 1857 AD

The condition of the farmers has become pathetic due to the oppressive land-revenue policies of the British Company. At the same time, due to the decline of handicraft industries, craftsmen themselves came to the verge of destruction. Due to the imperialist policies of Wellesley, Hastings and Dalhousie, the princes and their subjects started to grow rebellious as the princely states were snatched away from the native rulers. The discrimination against the soldiers in the army aroused their anger. The Indian people were hurt by the propagation of Christianity and the ridiculing of Indian religion and culture. India became poor due to the drain of wealth. As a result of all this, the living and self-vibrating nation made an effort, and in 1857, people of all classes, religions, regions, colours, and castes organised together in a planned manner to get free from the shackles of British power and fought against British imperialism for a year. Although India did not get independence, yet this struggle shook the foundation of British rule in India, as a result of which the British adopted the new policy of divide and rule’ in India and maintained their rule and exploitation for the next 90 years. Indians also continued the national struggle by taking inspiration from the great revolutionaries of 1857 AD: Mangal Pandey, Rani Laxmibai, Tantya Tope, Nana Sahib, Rao Tularam, Kunwar Singh, Raja Nahar Singh and did not let the foreign rule breathe a sigh of relief

Struggle between 1857 AD and 1900 AD

Despite the failure of the Great National Revolution of 1857, the fight against British did not stop but it was shaped in a more vigorous manner. Even between 1857 AD to 1900 AD, forest dwellers, farmers, religious saints and craftsmen continued the struggle and many movements were organised. Among them, the Indigo protest of 1859 AD-1861 AD, the Kuka movement of 1869 AD-1872 AD, Birsa Munda’s protest of 1899 AD-1900 AD were prominent. All three can be described as follows:

a) Indigo uprising of 1859-60 AD: Indigo had a special demand in Europe, so greedy British merchants and landlords committed severe atrocities on farmers and their families in Bengal and forced them to cultivate indigo. The peasants got united and they sounded the trumpet of a vigorous struggle against the Nilho (English landlords) also known as the Indigo Rebellion. A German priest of that time wrote that the peasants of the village formed different groups such as the groups of saucer holders, the groups of stone pelters, the groups of brick holders, the groups of chain holders, the groups of spear holders, etc. They fought fiercely against the sticks of the landlords. These farmers did not have any leader, yet they fought together against the atrocities of the English landlords. There was a drum and a dugdugi (a small drum) outside every village. When the British Landlords’ Lathait (stick holders) came to the village, the villagers and the surrounding villages used to gather by playing these drums and dugadugi. The fierceness of the Indigo Rebellion can be gauged from the words of Lord Canning, ‘I was worried about the present rebellion of the Indigo farmers for almost a week, as much as the incident of Delhi (the Great Revolution of 1857) did not bother me even during the time of 1857. Ultimately the indigo revolt succeeded and indigo cultivation was stopped.

b) Kuka Movement (1869-72 AD): Efforts to establish ideal political rule like Guru Gobind Singh in Punjab in the second half of the nineteenth century took place under the leadership of Ram Singh Kuka, a disciple of Udasi fakir named Balak Singh. Ram Singh came from a simple family. The sect founded by him was called Kuka or Namdhari Sikh sect. The people of this sect used to sing loudly and hence they got the name Kuka. The number of his disciples increased rapidly. Ram Singh decided to uproot the British imperialism by reviving the Khalsa. He divided the whole of Punjab into 22 parts and appointed different officers. His disciples would get ready at night, gathered, wore simple clothes and straight turban, tied ropes around their necks and walked with sticks. He launched a tremendous campaign against cow slaughter. He played a major role in destroying the slaughterhouses around the pilgrimage sites of Punjab. The first conflict of the Kukas with the British took place in Firozpur in 1869. Its purpose was to overthrow the British power. In 1872 AD, the Kuka movement also spread to Malot, Patiala and Kotla. The task of suppressing it was given to Deputy Commissioner of Ludhiana, Kodan. There were sixty eight Kuka agitators arrested in which 65 were men, 2 women and a 12-year old boy, Kodan blew up 49 Kukas with a cannon and put the rest to death by trial in court. The tales of Bishan Singh, Baryam Singh are famous among the martyrs. Ram Singh was arrested and sent to Rangoon. There, he died in 1885 AD. The Kukas first used indigenous clothes, especially made of thick cotton or khaddar, trade of the indigenous goods and boycotted the foreign goods as a national weapon, which was later used by the nationalists to generate consciousness and awareness among the Indian public. Mahatma Gandhi used this weapon on a comprehensive level and connected the common man with the national movement.

c) Struggle of Birsa Munda : When British imperialism infiltrated the forest dwelling areas, the brave people of India faced them with their traditional weapons. The Munda rebellion was led by Birsa Munda. Birsa was a Munda of Chalkad, a small village in Ranchi district. Initially, he became a Christian and also took some education in the Christian missionary school, but dissatisfied with Christianity, he again became Munda. The Munda chieftains raised a trumpet of rebellion against the exploitation of British imperialism and the propagation of Christianity. The Mundas used to do collective farming, but this tradition was broken by the British rule, due to which there was discontent among the Munda forest dwellers. The Munda leader Birsa himself declared the incarnation of Koishwar in 1899 AD and became the trumpet blower of the struggle against British imperialism. This struggle soon spread to Ranchi and Singhbhum areas. The Mundas secretly practised arrows and bows on effigies of Queen Victoria, forming an anti-British anti-colonial movement in India and wanting to establish Mundaraj in place of the British Raj. They attacked many places, due to which the British government was shocked and started looking for Birsa. On February 3, 1900 AD, Birsa was arrested and kept in Ranchi Jail. Birsa and his 482 companions were tried. On June 9, 1900 AD, Birsa died in jail from cholera. Birsa Munda’s three companions were awarded a death sentence, 44 were sent to Cellular Jail, Andaman Nicobar Islands, and 47 were awarded imprisonment. In the trial, Birsa’s wife, Manki, was also sentenced to two years for assaulting the deputy commissioner. The struggle was crushed, but Birsa became immortal. Articles appeared in favour of Munda in many newspapers. Surendranath Banerjee wrote articles in support of Birsa Munda and his supporters in leading newspapers in Calcutta.

Struggles and Movements of Nationalists

In the nineteenth century, many social reform movements like Brahmo Samaj, Arya Samaj, Prarthana Samaj, Ramakrishn Mission, Bahishkrit Hitkarini Sabha, Singh Sabha etc. to eliminate the evils prevalent in Indian religion and society. These movements instilled in Indians the feelings of self-respect, self-esteem, honour and self-sacrifice, and a sense of pride for their nation, religion and culture were developed, due to which the anti-imperialist struggle became wider. As a result of this, nationalists like Lal, Bal, and Pal created a huge wave of nationalism, patriotism and self-rule in the whole of India. Lal, Bal, Pal and Aurobindo Ghosh played an important role in it. In the novel ‘Anandmath’ written by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee, the song ‘Vande Mataram’ was composed, which became an anthem of nationalism and self-rule among millions of Indians and sowed the seeds of revolutionary ideas and struggles in them. Maharishi Aurobindo Ghosh called India a living cultural and spiritual nation. The spirit of revolution in Bengal was born out of these efforts. The struggles and movements of the nationalists can be described as follows:

a) Bal Gangadhar Tilak: Bal Gangadhar Tilak was a fearless, courageous leader and journalist whose language was simple, clear and straight-forward. He started inculcating the feelings of nationalism and self-rule in the Indian public by starting the editing of newspapers named ‘Kesari’ in the Marathi language and ‘Maratha’ in the English language in 1881 AD. He used the Ganesh Utsav (1893 AD) and Shivaji Utsav (1896 AD) politically to propagate nationalism among the people through songs, speeches and other methods. In 1896, he started the extensive use of the weapon of the Kuka movement by boycotting foreign goods and burning a Holi of foreign goods. On June 27, 1898 AD, the Chapekar brothers killed the Plague Commissioner Rand of Poona. Tilak was accused for the conspiracy of killing Rand and Tilak’s speech in which he praised the killing of Afzal by Shivaji was said to be the motivation for the murder of Rand and he was subjected to treason. The court sentenced him to 18 months of imprisonment. Indian newspapers strongly criticised it and overnight, Tilak became popular all over India and was given the title of ‘Lokmanya’. He was sentenced for 6 years.

b) Bang-Bhang and Swadeshi and Boycott Movement: The main weapons of Swadeshi and boycott were first used in Indian politics by Ram Singh Kuka, but both these weapons were used on a large scale by Bal Gangadhar Tilak. The imperialist Governor-General Lord Curzon, adopting the policy of ‘divide and rule’, divided the territory of one-fourth of India’s population into two provinces, East and West Bengal on the basis of communalism, which was strongly opposed by the liberals and religious nationalists. Swadeshi and boycott movement started. In Bengal this movement was led by nationalist Vipin Chandra Pal and in Punjab it was led by Lala Lajpat Rai and Ajit Singh. The nationalists wanted to spread Swadeshi and boycott foreign goods throughout the whole country. They wanted to make it a political mass struggle. The demand for partition was now a small issue, now the goal was Swaraj. Tilak raised the slogan ‘Swaraj is my birthright, and I will have it. But the moderates were not ready for this, due to which there were deep differences between the moderates and the extremists and in 1907 AD there was a split in Surat. The extremists wanted to include the Swadeshi and boycott movement not only to boycott of foreign clothes but also the boycott of government schools, courts, jobs, titles and they wanted to replace national institutions with government institutions, English education with national education and wanted to bring government courts at the level of village panchayat. They gave the slogan of self-reliance and self-power Eventually, the British government bowed down and the partition was annulled, Fearing the fierceness of nationalism, the British decided to spread the poison of communalism, by establishing the Muslim League and the ‘Minto Marley Act.

c) Home Rule Movement: The struggling Lokmanya Tilak reached India in 1914 AD after serving a six-year sentence (Mandalay), when the First World War (1914-1918 AD) started. Tilak felt the Indian national movement was engulfed in despair. He resolved to fill it with enthusiasm and by forming the Home Rule League, he started the ‘Home Rule Movement’ in association with Annie Besant. Soon the ‘Home Rule Movement’ spread rapidly in Maharashtra, Karnataka, Central India, Madras, Bombay, North India. Many people were arrested. The Home Rule Movement mobilized the youth and the national movement expanded from big cities to small towns and even to villages. The biggest achievement of the Home Rule Movement was that it created a vast organisation of extremist warriors for the future national movement. By the end of the World War, a generation of freedom fighters was prepared which made the national struggle strong and fought in the future. Tilak was termed by V. Sharol as the ‘Father of Indian Unrest. In fact, Tilak made the Indian national movement broader and belligerent and strengthened the sense of self-respect and self-pride in the country.

Revolutionary Movement (1894 AD-1947 AD)

Influenced by the ideas of Vivekananda, Dayanand and inspired by Tilak and Aurobindo Ghosh, revolutionary movement was born in India and they believed in sacrificing their revolutionary lives to drive out the British from India, Self-sacrifice was in their veins. Their goal was to achieve the complete independence of India by terrorising the British through bombs, killings and firing. Revolutionary activities can be described in the next section.

1. Revolutionary activities by Chapekar brothers: In 1897 AD, plague spread in Poona. To deal with the plague, an Englishman named Rand was appointed as the plague commissioner. This Englishman created discontent among the general public by entering people’s homes and temples in Poona unabated. Two brothers, Damodar Chapekar and Balkrishn Chapekar shot Rand on June 22. Eyerst was also killed along with him. The revolutionaries were probably influenced by Tilak, both of whom were caught and sentenced to death. Tilak was also sentenced to 18 months for the offence of writing inflammatory speeches and articles.

2. Revolutionary Movement in Maharashtra : Vinayak Damodar Savarkar created institutions like Mitra Mela and Abhinav Bharat even before he went to Europe to organise the revolutionaries in Maharashtra. Many revolutionaries were born through these institutions. In 1909 AD-1910 AD, Abhinav Bharat carried out revolutionary incidents in Nashik, Ahmedabad, and Satara.

3. Revolutionary Movement in Bengal: Arvind Ghosh and Barindra Ghosh were the founders of the revolutionary movement in Bengal. The Ghosh brothers inspired various revolutionaries and an organisation named ‘Anushilan Samiti’ was formed here and the revolutionary movement was strengthened by magazines like Sandhya, Yugantar and books like Bhavani Mandir. In 1908 AD, Khudiram Bose and Prafulla Chaki threw a bomb on the buggy of Judge Kingsford of Muzaffarpur to kill him, resulting in the deaths of two women. Chaki committed suicide, Khudiram Bose was awarded death sentence. Arvind Ghosh and Barindra Ghosh were tried in the Alipur Conspiracy Case.

4. Shyamji Krishna Varma and Vinayak Damodar Savarkar: Shyamji Krishna Varma was a resident of Kathiawar in western India. He studied in the University of Cambridge and became a Barrister. In 1905, Shyamji formed the Bharat Swashasan Samiti’ which was often called India House. He started a newspaper ‘Indian Sociologist and also started six fellowships of 1000 rupees each for Indians, due to which India House soon became the centre of Indian revolutionaries. In 1906, taking advantage of this fellowship, a new graduate Vinayak Damodar Savarkar also reached London. In 1904, Veer Savarkar founded a secret organisation called ‘Abhinav Bharat’. Soon a web of secret institutions was spread all over Maharashtra. Apart from this, bomb making factories were established at places like Poona, Bombay, Nashik etc. Veer Savarkar’s elder brother Ganesh Savarkar was also a great patriot. Mr. Jackson, Deputy Collector of Nashik and Chief Adviser to the Secretary of India, Curzon Wylie, had the main role in getting him punished. So in July 1909, a young man from Amritsar ‘Madan Lal Dhingra’ shot Curzon Wylie. Later, Madanlal Dhingra was hanged on August 16, 1909.

5. Ghadar Movement: In the early nineteenth century, many Indians went to America, Burma, Singapore, Hong Kong, Canada etc. to earn money and find a means of livelihood. In America, Jwala Singh, Basaran Singh, Sohan Singh Bhakna, Kesar Singh etc. earned a lot of money, but being Indian, they were treated with disrespect in foreign countries as well Therefore, realising the pain of their countrymen, they decided that they would try to free India from the clutches of the British while staying abroad. So, they decided to start a revolutionary movement. For the first time in 1913 AD, by organising the Indians in America and Canada, a ‘Hindustani Association’ was formed which was called the ‘Ghadar Party’. Sohan Singh Bhakana became the first president of the Ghadar Party and Lala Hardayal became its secretary. The main objective of this party was the end of British rule from India by all possible efforts and activities. The headquarter of this party was at a place called Yugantar Ashram. Gradually, its branches opened in different parts. In November 1913 AD, a weekly newspaper named ‘Ghadar’ was brought out which started publishing in different languages like Hindi, Marathi, English, Urdu etc. In this newspaper, the real picture of British rule was presented to the Indians and along with it the youth were called to join revolutionary activities. In March 1914, Lala Hardayal was ordered to be arrested. So he left America and went to Switzerland. After that the leaders Bhagwan Singh, Kartar Singh Sarabha, Ramchandra etc. continued with their efforts in the Ghadar movement.

6. Kamagatamaru Incident: The members of the Ghadar Party sent the revolutionaries with German weapons to India in a ship called Tosamaru with the aim of bringing about an arms revolution in India, but this was already reported to the British Government in India, so on reaching India, all the people were taken prisoner. Severe death sentences were awarded. At the same time, the Canadian government had imposed many unreasonable restrictions on Indians, so for the cooperation of these Indians, Baba Gurudit Singh, a wealthy Indian from Singapore, took 350 Indians on the Kamagatamaru ship and left for Canada. On May 23, 1914, when this ship reached the Canadian port of Vancouver, the Canadian government did not allow them to land here. After that the ship left for India, but when the British government came to know about it, as soon as it reached Calcutta, the government tried to send these passengers to Punjab. When some passengers tried to enter Calcutta by force, the government opened fire on them. Due to the shooting of innocent people in Kamagatamaru, there was a lot of anger among the Indians against the British rule.

7. Kakori Incident: After the Jallianwala Bagh massacre of 1919 AD and the suspension of the non-cooperation movement, the revolutionaries of India started to organise. Their leaders were Ram Prasad Bismil, Yogesh Chandra Chatterjee, Shachindra Nath Sanyal, Chandrashekhar Azad and Suresh Chandra Bhattacharya. In October 1924 AD, a conference of these revolutionary youths was held in Kanpur and the “Hindustan Republican Association” was formed. Its objective was to overthrow the colonial power through armed revolution. Money was needed to struggle, campaign, mobilise the youth in their party, train and collect arms. For this purpose 10 persons of this organisation under the leadership of Pandit Ram Prasad Bismil looted the treasure by stopping the train in Kakori village near Lucknow on 9th August 1925 AD The government was very angry with this incident. A large number of youths were arrested. They were tried. Pandit Ram Prasad Bismil, Roshan Singh, Rajendra Lahiri and Ashfaq Ulla Khan were sentenced to death: Four were sent to Andaman with life imprisonment. 17 others were sentenced to long sentences.

8. Opposition of the Simon Commission: In 1928 AD, a commission consisting of seven members (all Englishmen) came to India, headed by Sir John Simon. This commission was opposed all over India, with the slogans of ‘Simon go back. The whole of India resonated. On October 30, 1928 AD, while opposing the Simon Commission in Lahore, Lala Lajpat Rai succumbed to a barbaric lathi-charge. Rajguru and Bhagat Singh shot Saunders and avenged the death of Lala Lajpat Rai.

9. Martyrdom of Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev : The case of Bhagat Singh’s involvement in the Saunders murder case started when Jai Gopal became an informer. This is called the ‘Lahore Conspiracy’ case. After this, he was presented in Lahore. A total of 16 revolutionaries were prosecuted. They became popular among the public. Those who used to criticise the revolutionaries till now have also started praising them.

On July 10, 1929 AD, the trial of the murder of Saunders took place. Twenty-four revolutionaries were prosecuted. 6 were absconding, 3 were released, 7 became public witnesses, and the remaining 8 were tried. The case was shifted from the magistrate to a tribunal of three judges. On October 7, 1930 AD, the Special Tribunal sentenced Bhagat Singh and his associates to death. Demonstrations were held across the country to stop the death penalty. On March 23, 1931 AD, all three were hanged at 7:00 pm. Fearing public opposition, they were cremated on the banks of the Sutlej. Chandrashekhar Azad continued his revolutionary activities. The police caught his companions but their fight against the British Empire continued. Later, he also attained martyrdom while fighting in Allahabad’s Alfred Park.

10. Azad Hind Fauj: In 1938 AD, Subhash Chandra Bose was elected the President of the Congress. In 1939 AD, he was elected as the Congress President against Gandhiji’s candi date. He later left the country to reach Berlin via Peshawar. In Moscow, he was greeted by Ribbentrop, Hitler’s right hand. Subhash Chandra Bose reconstituted ‘Azad Hind Fauj with Ras Behari Bose. He uttered the slogan ‘Delhi Chalo’. The army fought at Arakan, Kohima, Imphal, during which a major incident occurred. On August 18, 1945 AD, Subhash Chandra Bose is believed to have died in an air plane crash, although his death has not been confirmed yet.

Azad Hind Fauj was a unique organization. The extraordinary work of Subhash Chandra Bose and his Azad Hind Fauj had a very deep impact on the Indian people. When the British government announced the prosecution of some officers of the Azad Hind Fauj on charges of betrayal, then the wave of protest spread throughout the country. There were huge demonstrations all over the country. There was constant demand for the release of the officers. When Sardar Gurbaksh Singh Dhillon, Prem Sehgal and Shahnawaz were prosecuted by the British government for treason, movements erupted in the entire nation. The court martial trial was conducted at the Red Fort. Their release was strongly voiced by almost all parties. The slogan Delhi Chalo’, ‘Jai Hind’ along with ‘National Anthem’ became popular all over the country. The British government had realised that if an attempt was made to repress India with an armed force, the Indian soldiers would revolt.

11. Struggle of the Royal Navy: The movement of the Azad Hind Fauj had an impact on the national movement and also on the army. In 1946 AD, the unrest in the army and the struggle of the Royal Navy were very important events, which shook the foundation of British rule. In January 1946 AD, the airforce soldiers went on strike in Mumbai. Their demand was that discrimination between British and Indians in the Air Force should be removed. Awareness had dawned among Indians and they were demanding equality in every field. This was followed by a naval conflict. Before the Second World War, the Royal Indian Navy was formed by separating the warships guarding the Indian coast from the British Navy. Its sailors were petty Indian officers but most of the senior officers were British. The Indian soldiers of the Navy were not given the military facilities which were given to the British Marines. In February 1946 AD, soldiers agitated on a ship named ‘Talvar”. Their slogans were ‘Jai Hind”.

Inquilab Zindabad’, ‘Hindu-Muslim Ek Ho’, ‘British Imperialism Murdabad’. The British Empire was no longer safe. In this way the movement of Azad Hind Fauj and Navy played an important role in the independence of the country.

Non-Violence Movement

Taking over the reins of the country’s national movement by Gandhiji was an important event which had far-reaching consequences. He returned from South Africa in 1915 AD and soon became active in Indian politics. Gandhiji led the non-violence movement in India till 1947 AD After the First World War, Gandhi started the non-cooperation movement in circumstances like the Rowlatt Act, Jallianwala Bagh massacre etc. He returned all the medals and awards of the Government of India which he had received for helping the government in the First World War. He also returned the title of Kesar-e-Hind given by the government. Following his instance, hundreds of patriots gave up their titles. Lawyers like Lala Lajpat Rai, C.R. Das, Nehru, Vallabhbhai Patel and Rajendra Prasad gave up their practice. Many students dropped out of government schools and were admitted to national schools. According to the program, foreign clothes were boycotted, Khadi was adopted in place of foreign clothes, and the use of charkha increased. The government resorted to repression to suppress this movement. Big leaders were taken prisoner. Various atrocities were committed on the people. Within a few months the number of imprisoned people exceeded thirty thousand. The more the government suppressed this movement, the more this movement continued to gain momentum. On February 5, 1922 AD, an agitated crowd set a police post on fire at the place called Chauri Chaura in Gorakhpur district of Uttar Pradesh, in which a police station incharge and 21 constables were burnt to death. Mahatma Gandhi, saddened by this incident, suspended the non-cooperation movement, but this movement created awareness among Indians.

In 1929, in a historic session on the bank of the river Ravi, Gandhiji proposed complete independence and to achieve this objective, it was decided to launch a ‘Civil Disobedience Movement’. He said that if the government accepted these demands, then they would withdraw the decision to start the movement. But the Viceroy Lord Irwin did not concede to these demands. Therefore, on March 12, 1930 AD, Gandhiji started the historic civil disobedience movement with the Dandi Yatra. Initially, 78 followers participated with Gandhiji, but gradually hundreds of people gave their support along the way. After 24 days, on April 6, 1930 AD, Gandhiji reached Dandi and started the Civil Disobedience Movement by preparing salt from sea water. This movement soon spread all over the country. The public showed great enthusiasm towards it. Salt was made at every possible place and other laws were violated. The British government was forced to enter into the ‘Gandhi Irwin Pact on March 5, 1931 AD. According to the agreement, Gandhiji went to London to participate in the Second Round Table Conference and in despair announced the resumption of the movement. The government declared the Congress an ‘illegal institution’ by arresting the Congress leaders. To weaken the national movement, British Prime Minister Ramsay Macdonald announced the ‘Communal Decision’ on August 16, 1932 AD, whose main objective was to separate Harijans and the rest of the Hindus. The decision was criticised in every part of the country. Gandhiji thwarted this by fasting unto death.

Tired of the behaviour of the British government, the Congress passed the resolution of the Quit India Movement in the Bombay session on August 8, 1942 AD. The very next day after the resolution of the Quit India Movement was passed, the main leaders of Congress like Gandhiji, Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Patel, Abul Kalam Azad, Rajendra Prasad, Pattabhi Sitaramaiya etc. were taken prisoner. Lawyers, teachers, businessmen, doctors, journalists, workers, students and women also participated enthusiastically in this nationwide movement. Meetings were held and processions were taken out in different towns. There was a complete shutdown of work for almost a week. Congress was once again declared an illegal institution.

The British government resorted to the policy of repression to crush the movement. The government opened fire on peaceful processions and resorted to lathi-charge. According to government sources, police opened fire on unarmed people on 538 occasions. More than one lakh men and women were taken captive. Heavy fines were imposed on the protesters, chaos and unrest spread all over the country. People responded to violence with violence. Many government buildings and police stations were burnt, wire lines were cut. Although this movement failed to expel foreigners from India and to make the country independent, yet this movement which is known as ‘August Kranti’ was a great event. Never in the history of the British Government in India has there been such an upheaval as it has happened in the last three years.

Thus, it is clear that the imperialists in India were not as welcome as in other parts of the world, but their opposition started with the establishment of their power. In the beginning, the forest dwellers, farmers, landowners, craftsmen, native kings fought against them, later educated Indians also strongly opposed British imperialism and colonialism, economic exploitation and their cultural interference in both violent and non-violent ways. The main role in this protest was played by the revolutionaries who helped in getting India’s independence through self-sacrifice.

Peasants and Civil Movements before 1857

Movement  Name of the Leader  Year        Region
Kaul             Buddho Bahgat          1831           Jharkhand
Kuka            Bhagat Jawahar Mal  1860           Punjab
Khonda        Chakra Bisoi              1837           Odisha
Munda         Birsa Munda               1899-1900 Jharkhand
Sannyasi      Giri Sect                     1770           Bengal
Polygar        Kattavaman                1801           Tamilnadu
Bhil             Dashrath                      1820-1825 Rajasthan
Pagalpanthi Karam Shah and Tipu 1840-1850 Tamilnadu
Ahom          Gomdhar Kinwar        1828          Assam
Khasi           Raja Tirth Singh         1828-1833 Assam


An Introduction to 1857

Centre                Leader
Delhi                   Bahadur Shah, Bakht Khan
Lucknow            Begum Hazrat Mahal
Allahbad            Liyakat Ali
Jhansi, Gwalior Rani Lakshmi Bai
Knapur              Nana Saheb
Rewari               Rao Tularam
Kasan Village    Albel Singh, Jiaram
Jhajjar                Nawab Abdul Rahman Khan
Ballabhgarh       Raja Nahar Singh
Patna                  Pir Ali
Jagdishpur         Kunwar Singh, Amar Singh
Aara                   Bande Ali

Question Answer

Let’s Learn Again :

Question 1. What were the movements before 1857 AD?
Answer – Before 1857 AD, the following movements took place in India :-

In 1770 AD, the Sannyasi movement took place in Bengal.
In 1820 AD, the Bhil movement took place in Rajasthan.
In 1828 AD, movements named Ahom and Khasi took place in Assam.
In 1831 AD, the Kaul movement took place in Jharkhand.
In 1837, the Khonda movement took place in Orissa.

Question 2. What were the reasons for the revolution of 1857 AD?
Answer – The following were the reasons for the revolution of 1857 AD –

• The British ruined the Indian farmers, handicraft industries and the princely states.
• People were troubled by his repressive policies.
• Indian soldiers were discriminated against in the army.
• The Indian people were very sad due to the propagation of Christianity and ridicule of Indian religion and culture.
• Due to sending more money to England, there was a shortage of money in the country.

Question 3. What were the main centers of activity of the revolutionaries?
Answer – The main centers of activities of the revolutionaries were Delhi, Lucknow, Allahabad, Jhansi, Gwalior, Kanpur, Rewari, Jhajjar, Ballabgarh, Patna etc.

Question 4. What was the role of Azad Hind Fauj in the movements for independence?
Answer – The movement of the Azad Hind Fauj had an impact on the national movement and also on the Indian Army. Due to which there was unrest in the army. The Indian soldiers of the Navy were not given the military facilities which were given to the British Marines. In February 1946 AD, soldiers agitated on a ship named ‘Talvar”. They raised slogans of ‘Jai Hind’, ‘Inquilab Zindabad’, ‘Hindu Muslim Ek Ho’, ‘British Imperialism Murdabad’. The wave of Azad Hind Fauj spread all over the country. Due to which the Indian people started opposing the British.

Question 5. Describe the movements led by Mahatma Gandhi?
Answer –

• After the First World War, Gandhi started the non-cooperation movement in situations like Rowlatt Act, Jallianwala Bagh Massacre.
• In 1929, in a historic session on the bank of the river Ravi, Gandhiji proposed complete independence and to achieve this objective, it was decided to launch a ‘Civil Disobedience Movement’.
• Tired of the behaviour of the British government, the Congress passed the resolution of the Quit India Movement in the Bombay session on August 8, 1942 AD.

let’s consider :

Question 1. What were the reasons for the Vanvasi movement under the leadership of Birsa Munda?
Answer – The Vanvasi movement under the leadership of Birsa Munda happened due to the following reasons –

• British imperialism infiltrated the forest dwelling areas.
• The Mundas used to do collective farming, but this tradition was broken by the British rule, which led to discontent among the Munda forest dwellers.
• The Munda people were opposed to the propagation of Christianity.
• The British Empire started exploiting the forest dwellers.

Question 2. What was the contribution of Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev in the freedom movement?
Answer – On October 30, 1928 AD, while opposing the Simon Commission in Lahore, Lala Lajpat Rai succumbed to a barbaric lathi-charge. Rajguru and Bhagat Singh shot Saunders and avenged the death of Lala Lajpat Rai. They became popular among the public. Those who used to criticise the revolutionaries till now have also started praising them. The British government prosecuted him on the charge of murder and sentenced Bhagat Singh and his associates to death. Demonstrations were held across the country to stop the death penalty. Fearing public opposition, they were cremated on the banks of the Sutlej. These great patriots also sacrificed their lives to protect their country.

Question 3. Why did the Kamagatamaru incident happen?
Answer– The members of the Ghadar Party sent the revolutionaries with German weapons to India in a ship called Tosamaru with the aim of bringing about an arms revolution in India, but this was already reported to the British Government in India, so on reaching India, all the people were taken prisoner. Severe death sentences were awarded. At the same time, the Canadian government had imposed many unreasonable restrictions on Indians, so for the cooperation of these Indians, Baba Gurudit Singh, a wealthy Indian from Singapore, took 350 Indians on the Kamagatamaru ship and left for Canada. On May 23, 1914, when this ship reached the Canadian port of Vancouver, the Canadian government did not allow them to land here. After that the ship left for India, but when the British government came to know about it, as soon as it reached Calcutta, the government tried to send these passengers to Punjab. When some passengers tried to enter Calcutta by force, the government opened fire on them. Due to the shooting of innocent people in Kamagatamaru, there was a lot of anger among the Indians against the British rule.

Question 4. Why were Swadeshi and Boycott important in the freedom movement?
Answer – The British government was exploiting the Indians. Due to the industrial revolution, all the money was going to England because the cloth coming from England was sold in India. That is why the Swadeshi cloth was adopted in the freedom movement so that the money of the country would remain in the country. Along with this, foreign cloth was boycotted and the trend of cloth like Khadi increased. This step also proved very beneficial to weaken the economic condition of the British.

Let’s Try to do :

Question 1. List the activities of the revolutionaries.
Answer – Indian revolutionaries wanted to overthrow the British government. For which he wanted the support of the people. He continued to actively agitate for the independence of the country. Without caring about their lives, they used to oppose the British.

Question 2. Collect the pictures of Subhash Chandra Bose and make a collage.
Answer – Students can make collages by collecting photos of Subhash Chandra Bose from their surroundings or from the internet.

Important Question Answer

Question 1. What were the reasons for the revolution of 1857 AD?
OR
What were the reasons of the Revolt of 1857 ? (HBSE 2023)
Answer – The following were the reasons for the revolution of 1857 AD –

• The British ruined the Indian farmers, handicraft industries and the princely states.
• People were troubled by his repressive policies.
• Indian soldiers were discriminated against in the army.
• The Indian people were very sad due to the propagation of Christianity and ridicule of Indian religion and culture.
• Due to sending more money to England, there was a shortage of money in the country.

Question 2. Why were Swadeshi and Boycott important in the freedom movement? (HBSE 2023)
Answer – The British government was exploiting the Indians. Due to the industrial revolution, all the money was going to England because the cloth coming from England was sold in India. That is why the Swadeshi cloth was adopted in the freedom movement so that the money of the country would remain in the country. Along with this, foreign cloth was boycotted and the trend of cloth like Khadi increased. This step also proved very beneficial to weaken the economic condition of the British.

Question 3. What was the role of Azad Hind Fauj in the movements for independence?
Answer – The movement of the Azad Hind Fauj had an impact on the national movement and also on the Indian Army. Due to which there was unrest in the army. The Indian soldiers of the Navy were not given the military facilities which were given to the British Marines. In February 1946 AD, soldiers agitated on a ship named ‘Talvar”. They raised slogans of ‘Jai Hind’, ‘Inquilab Zindabad’, ‘Hindu Muslim Ek Ho’, ‘British Imperialism Murdabad’. The wave of Azad Hind Fauj spread all over the country. Due to which the Indian people started opposing the British.

Question 4. Why did Indian peasants started Indigo Movement? 
Answer – Indigo had a special demand in Europe, so greedy British merchants and landlords forced the farmers to cultivate indigo in Bengal, due to which the farmers of Bengal villages united and they revolted against Nilho (English landlords).  

Question 5. Why did the Kamagatamaru incident happen?
Answer– The members of the Ghadar Party sent the revolutionaries with German weapons to India in a ship called Tosamaru with the aim of bringing about an arms revolution in India, but this was already reported to the British Government in India, so on reaching India, all the people were taken prisoner. Severe death sentences were awarded. At the same time, the Canadian government had imposed many unreasonable restrictions on Indians, so for the cooperation of these Indians, Baba Gurudit Singh, a wealthy Indian from Singapore, took 350 Indians on the Kamagatamaru ship and left for Canada. On May 23, 1914, when this ship reached the Canadian port of Vancouver, the Canadian government did not allow them to land here. After that the ship left for India, but when the British government came to know about it, as soon as it reached Calcutta, the government tried to send these passengers to Punjab. When some passengers tried to enter Calcutta by force, the government opened fire on them. Due to the shooting of innocent people in Kamagatamaru, there was a lot of anger among the Indians against the British rule.

Question 6. Describe the non-cooperation movement in your own words.
Answer – After the First World War, Gandhi started the non-cooperation movement in circumstances like Rowlatt Act, Jallianwala Bagh Massacre. He returned all the medals and awards of the Government of India. He also returned the title of Kesar-e-Hind given by the government. Following them, hundreds of patriots gave up their titles and titles. Many students dropped out of government schools and were admitted to national schools. According to the program, foreign clothes were boycotted, Khadi was adopted in place of foreign cloth and the charkha became popular. The government resorted to repression-cycle to suppress this movement. Big leaders were taken prisoner. Various atrocities were committed on the people. Within a few months the number of imprisoned people exceeded thirty thousand. The more the government suppressed this movement, the more this movement went on gaining momentum. On 5th February 1922 AD, at the place of Chauri-Chaura in Gorakhpur district of Uttar Pradesh, an agitated mob of people set a police post on fire, in which a Thanedar and 21 constables were burnt to death. Saddened by this incident, Mahatma Gandhi suspended the non-cooperation movement. 

Question 7. What was the August Revolution?
Answer – On the very next day after the resolution of Quit India Movement was passed, the main leaders of Congress were taken prisoner. Lawyers, teachers, businessmen, doctors, journalists, workers, students and women also participated enthusiastically in this nationwide movement. Meetings were held and processions were taken out in different cities. There was a complete shutdown of work for almost a week. The British government resorted to the policy of repression to crush the movement. The government opened fire on peaceful processions and resorted to lathi-charge. More than one lakh men and women were taken captive. Heavy fines were imposed on the protesters, Anarchy and unrest spread all over the country. People answered violence with violence. Several government buildings and police stations were burnt, wire lines were cut. this movement is Known as ‘ August Revolution’.

Question 8. Why is the Revolt of 1857 called the great struggle for Independence? (HBSE 2023)
Answer – The condition of the farmers has become pathetic due to the oppressive land-revenue policies of the British Company. At the same time, due to the decline of handicraft industries, craftsmen themselves came to the verge of destruction. Due to the imperialist policies of Wellesley, Hastings and Dalhousie, the princes and their subjects started to grow rebellious as the princely states were snatched away from the native rulers. The discrimination against the soldiers in the army aroused their anger. The Indian people were hurt by the propagation of Christianity and the ridiculing of Indian religion and culture. India became poor due to the drain of wealth. As a result of all this, the living and self-vibrating nation made an effort, and in 1857, people of all classes, religions, regions, colours, and castes organised together in a planned manner to get free from the shackles of British power and fought against British imperialism for a year. For this reason Revolt of 1857 is called the great struggle for independence.

Question 9. Write a short note on Simon Commission’s boycott. (HBSE 2023)
Answer – In 1928 AD, a commission consisting of seven members (all Englishmen) came to India, headed by Sir John Simon. This commission was opposed all over India, with the slogans of ‘Simon go back’. The whole of India resonated. On October 30, 1928 AD, while opposing the Simon Commission in Lahore, Lala Lajpat Rai succumbed to a barbaric lathi-charge. Rajguru and Bhagat Singh shot Saunders and avenged the death of Lala Lajpat Rai.

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