History lessons.....British Indian Empire.....

[Dem!god]

dear all,
I would like to create series of thread on history of india Ancient, medieval and Modern... we all know india is one of the greatest land with great civilization but also we know our land have been raided and looted many times...and one of the looters were British...they came here in name of trade and set up stocking centers(for goods storage) in port towns and from there they started to manipulate indians and then ruled over us..their best policy to rule was "divide and rule" in mughal time india was a unitary mass combined of Pakistan, India and Bangladesh and even parts of afghanistan...later it broke down in many but again british used many policies and tricks to bring the land together....
In this thread we will first discuss the Advent of British to india and then till the war or 1857...I will open a new thread later to cover the story from 1858 to 1947...
here we will discuss of the coming of british to the court of jahagir and getting of farman for ttrading rights for East India company... how they misused this right in their favor and how declining mughal empire played a major role in expanding and setup of british empire....rise and fall of Maratha empire, Anglo french rivalry, Annexation of Bengal and fall of suraj-u-daula . and then their annexation and other policies of british with other princely states... we will discuss about the rani of Jhasi( the only man among the woman) and many more...

please discuss the topic as it will enrich our knowledge and help us understand our past....members form all the tri nations are welcome namely INDIA, PAKISTAN, BANGLADESH... and any other international members who want to discuss the topic are welcome too.....

@FaujHistorian @scorpionx @Bang Galore @AugenBlick @levina @Sidak @Aeronaut @Afghan-India @That Guy @foxbat @Nihonjin1051 @vinod @Joe Shearer @sandy_3126 @thesolar65 @Indrani @Indischer @Ravi Nair @BDforever @cheekybird @mAsT bAbA @Akheilos and all other who want to debate and gain and share knowledge

 

[livingdead]

pretty sure you learn your history from RSS people.

 

[That Guy]

Sure, but you'd have to start this off.

 

[Dem!god]

 

[BDforever]

pretty sure you learn your history from RSS people.

^^^ british .. @Dem!god

 

[Aepsilons]

So what exactly do you want to talk about ? Start of the British east india company?

 

[Joe Shearer]

If this is going to be genuinely historical, I'm in.

If this is going to be a cover for RSS revisionism, I'm out.

From my previous experiences of @Dem!god posting, I'm pessimistic.

Paarkalam.

 

[Dem!god]

pretty sure you learn your history from RSS people.

keep trolling away.....

Sure, but you'd have to start this off.

sure sir I will start....

^^^ british .. @Dem!god

don't do that...don't waste this thread....

 

[BDforever]

So what exactly do you want to talk about ?

slavary , divide and rule policy etc

 

[Aepsilons]

slavary , divide and rule policy etc

Let's also talk about the Dutch presence in Sri Lanka too

 

[Dem!god]

So what exactly do you want to talk about ? Start of the British east india company?

how british empire established itself....
and how they mangaged to rule over this vast land...
to be precise about EAST INDIA COMPANY...

If this is going to be genuinely historical, I'm in.

If this is going to be a cover for RSS revisionism, I'm out.

From my previous experiences of @Dem!god posting, I'm pessimistic.

Paarkalam.

nope, u see I do favor RSS, but that has nothing to do with it...
this is pure history and knowledge sharing....
I thing we will enjoy this discussion....

so, it goes like this...

India’s history is quite complex but basically in 1707 almost all of the subcontinent was ruled by the Mughal [Mogul] Emperors. The Empire declined throughout the eighteenth century due to wars with Persia and internal unrest. Many ethnic groupings successfully rebelled such as the Marathas in the South, the Sikhs [more religious than ethnic], and the Afghans in the North.

There were four European trading companies [British Dutch, French and Portuguese] with bases in India and these used the turmoil to expand their commercial operations. By 1744 the French CdI was becoming dominant in local politics so forcing the British EIC to get more involved. There followed two wars in the Carnatic 1744-48 and 1749-54 which ended generally favourable to the French. Then Robert Clive turns up and everything changes.

By 1759 the Dutch are expelled, and the Portuguese influence restricted to Goa. By 1769 the French are no longer in control and the remaining period, until the formal establishment of British imperial rule, is one of gradual expansion by the British East India Company, followed by British colonial administration.

 

[FaujHistorian]

.....
here we will discuss of the coming of british to the court of jahagir and getting of farman for ttrading rights for East India company... how they misused this right in their favor and how declining mughal empire .....

If I am not mistaken, British were not the first European company to seek trading rights. there were others like Portuguese perhaps.


you should also ask if current day Microsoft or Intel or google are somewhat similar when they came to modern day Delhi gov to seek to setup "trading houses" for their "outsourcing".

 

[Dem!god]

**************************************************************************************************
Mogul Decline in the 18th Century
British control of India was largely brought about by the fall of the

Mogul Empire and the subsequent division of India. Babar (1482-1530), a Turkish-Mongol prince from Afghanistan and the founder of the Mogul Empire, invaded India in 1526. His grandson Jelaleddin Mahmomet Akbar (1542-1605) was the greatest of the Mogul emperors and under his 49 years reign, conquered all of Northern India and Afghanistan, extending his rule as far south as the Godvari River. The Moguls were Muslims who ruled over a Hindu majority. Akbar maintained his rule by his religious tolerance and Mogul military might, much like the British later. But after his death, the empire began to decline. This decline continued with the rule of

Aurangzeb (1658-1707), who became emperor in 1658. Mogul control in south India came under more pressures with the increase of strong attacks by the Hindu Maratha princes. To worsen matters, Aurangzeb, who lacked Akbar's religious tolerance, imposed special taxes on Hindus, destroying their temples and forced them to convert to Islam. Soon after Aurangzeb's death, the empire began breaking up, enabling the British to step into the void.

The new emperor, Bahadur Shah I (1707-12), thought more tolerant, was unable to prevent Mogul decline. He never abolished jizya, but his effort to collect the tax became ineffectual. Bahadur Shah I tried to impose greater control over the Rajput states of Amber and Jodhpur, but was unsuccessful. His policies toward the Hindu Marathas were also half-hearted conciliatory as they were never defeated by the Moguls and resistance to Mogul rule persisted in the south.

Political and Economic Decentralization During the Mogul Decline
With the decline of Mogul central authority, the period between 1707 and 1761 witnessed the rise of the provinces against Delhi. This resurgence of regional identity accentuated both political and economic decentralization as Mogul military powers ebbed. The provinces became increasing independent from the central authority both economically and politically. Aided by intra-regional as well as inter-regional trade in local raw produce and artifacts, these provinces became virtual kingdoms. Bengal, Bihar, and Avadh in Northern India were among the new independent regions where these developments were most apparent. Their rulers became almost independent warlords recognizing the Mogul Emperor in name only. These provinces laid the foundations for the princely states under the Raj.

[paste:font size="4"]The Rise of Princely StatesBritish India. More often than not, narrow and selfish goals prevented these rebels from consolidating their interests into an effective challenge to the empire. These princes relied on the support from their relatives, lesser nobility, and peasants. Their rule was very personalized with followers swearing allegiance to the ruler alone and not to the state. As such, with the death of a prince, allegiance was reshuffled and loyalty divided. Next, the selfish motives of each princely state, made cooperation impossible. Each local group stroved to maximize its share of the spoils at the expense of the others. The princes were thus never strong enough to dominate any sizeable territories and the Mogul Empire, shrank thought it was lasted till 1858.

The Mogul rulers were not replaced by the princes. Their presence was necessary to act as a balance and arbitrator between the powerful princes, each having his own agenda. The princes in the regions, were always alert for opportunities to establish their dominance over the others in the neighborhood, yet at the same time feared and resisted similar attempts by the others. As such, they all needed for their vices a kind of legitimacy, which was conveniently available in the long-accepted authority of the Mogul Emperor. With Mogul authority so weak, the princes had no fear in collectively accepting the Mogul Emperor as the titular head-of-state.

India before the British

If I am not mistaken, British were not the first European company to seek trading rights. there were others like Portuguese perhaps.


you should also ask if current day Microsoft or Intel or google are somewhat similar when they came to modern day Delhi gov to seek to setup "trading houses" for their "outsourcing".

yes... u are correct..Portuguese and dutch came before british ....and obtained their trading rights....

 

[Joe Shearer]

Let me ask a question from all of you aspiring history analysts: why were people from Calcutta known as Ditchers?

 

[Levina]

how british empire established itself....
and how they mangaged to rule over this vast land...
to be precise about EAST INDIA COMPANY...

Aaahh thats easy ,they entered India following the footsteps of Portuguese (who made their way in through kerala) .....and then the divide and rule policy was used extensively.Rest they say is history.

I wish you had started a thread on great Indian dynasties instead of british empire ,which actually reminds me of our slavery days.

@FaujHistorian welcome back!!!
FYI: @scorpionx