Summary of Class 9 SEBA History Chapter – 1: Advent of the Europeans into India

Summary of Class 9 SEBA History Chapter – 1: Advent of the Europeans into India

🔹 1.1 Advent of the English into India

Ancient Trade with Europe:

• India had trade relations with European countries like Greece and Rome through the Red Sea, Persia, and Afghanistan.
• By the 7th century, Arabs controlled much of this trade.
• In 1453, the Turks captured Constantinople, closing the overland route to India.

Discovery of the Sea Route to India:

• The Portuguese were the first to find a new sea route to India.
• In 1487, Portuguese sailor Bartolomeu Diaz reached the Cape of Good Hope.
• In 1498, Vasco-da-Gama arrived at Calicut port in India, opening a new sea route for trade between India and Europe.

Arrival of the English in India:

• In 1580, Francis Drake circumnavigated the globe.
• In 1599, John Mildenhall came to India with a letter from Queen Elizabeth and got trade privileges from Mughal Emperor Akbar.
• In 1600, the East India Company was formed to trade in Asia.

English Trade Efforts:

• In 1608, Captain William Hawkins came with a letter from the English King James I to Emperor Jahangir, but his request for trade rights was rejected.
• In 1615, Sir Thomas Roe got permission from Emperor Jahangir to set up factories in Surat.
• In 1715, John Surman and William Hamilton (who cured Emperor Farukhsiyar) secured duty-free trade rights in Bengal for the East India Company.

Establishment of English Trade Centers:

• 1611: The Company set up a trade center at Masulipatam.

• 1636: A trade center was established at Armagaon, later moved to Madras (Fort St. George) in 1639.

• In 1661, the English King Charles II got Bombay as dowry from Portugal and gave it to the East India Company.

• In 1690, Job Charnock started a trade center in Calcutta (now Kolkata) by joining three villages: Sutanuti, Kalikata, and Gobindapur.

Beginning of British Rule:

• The Company took advantage of the weak Indian rulers and increased its political power.
• In 1757, after defeating Siraj-ud-Daulah in the Battle of Plassey, the British laid the foundation of their empire in India.
• British Rule in Two Phases:
• First Phase (till 1857): The Company dethroned Indian rulers and unified regions under its control.
• Second Phase (1858–1947): The British Crown ruled, made reforms and faced the Indian freedom struggle, which led to independence.

🔹 1.2 Company’s Rule (1765–1857)

Robert Clive’s Dual Government (1765):

• After the Treaty of Allahabad (1765), Mughal Emperor Shah Alam granted the East India Company (EIC) the Diwani rights (tax collection) in Bengal, Bihar, and Orissa.
• The Nawab of Bengal kept only military power (Nizamat), while the EIC controlled revenue and administration.

Warren Hastings (1774-85):

• Made Calcutta, Bombay, and Madras into Presidencies (main administrative units).
• Declared himself equal to the Mughal Emperor

🔹 1.3 Beginning of the Sepoy Mutiny (1857)

Mangal Pandey, a soldier, shot at British officers at Barrackpore, starting the Sepoy Mutiny on 29 March 1857. It quickly spread across North India.

Causes:

Political, social, and economic dissatisfaction under British rule.

• Mughal name removed from coins (1835).
• English replaced Persian in administration.
• Dalhousie’s harsh policies created anger (e.g., Doctrine of Lapse).
• Indians were frustrated and rebelled, but the revolt failed.

🔹 1.4 Results of the Sepoy Mutiny

(a) Constitutional Changes:

The Government of India Act, 1858:

• Ended the East India Company’s rule.
• Gave full control to the British Crown.
• Created the post of Secretary of State for India with a 15-member council.
• The Governor General was now called the Viceroy (first: Lord Canning).

Allahabad Durbar (1858):

A Durbar was held at Allahabad in November 1, 1858, where Canning announced Queen Victoria’s Proclamation:

• He promised religious tolerance, economic equality, and an end to the Doctrine of Lapse.
• Loyal Indian rulers were rewarded.

(b) Social Changes:

• Many Indians, even conservatives, started thinking about modern ideas.
• Educated Indians learned from the failure of the revolt and understood the need for unity.
• Indians began to develop a national identity.
• In response, British started a “Divide and Rule” policy to keep Indians separated by caste, religion, and region.

🔹 1.5 Rule of Queen of England and Viceroy Canning (1858–62)

Lord Canning:

• First Viceroy under the Crown.
• Rebuilt the economy after the revolt.
• Imposed income tax and import duties.
• Passed Bengal Rent Act (1859) to help farmers.
• Formed a mixed army with Indians from different regions and religions.
• Improved education by implementing Wood’s Despatch.

Indian Councils Act, 1861

Central Administration:

• This Act created Legislative Councils at the center and states.
• The Viceroy’s Central Legislative Council had 6–12 nominated members, half non-officials (including Indians like Raja Dinkar Rao).
• The Council could suggest laws on revenue, defense, and finance, but the Viceroy could override them.
• An Executive Council of five members was also formed, with portfolios assigned, introducing a cabinet-like system.

Provincial Administration:

• The Act allowed Bombay and Madras to form Legislative Councils with 4–8 members.
• Bengal got its council in 1862, and Punjab in 1898.
• Provincial councils had limited powers, as the Governor General held supreme authority, including issuing ordinances.

Significance: The Act marked the start of Indian participation in British administration, though representatives were mostly elite landlords. It laid the foundation for representative government in India.

🔹  1.6 Local Self-Government

Lord Mayo’s Resolution (1870):

• Marked the beginning of financial decentralization in India.
• Provinces were made responsible for local departments like education, health, and police.
• Provinces had to raise funds through local taxes to manage these.

Lord Ripon’s Reforms (1882):

• Known as the Father of Local Self-Government in India.
• He created Local Boards in each sub-division, with Primary Boards in rural areas if needed.
• Most members were to be elected, allowing Indians to manage their own affairs.
• In urban areas, Town Committees and Municipal Boards were formed, with 75% of members elected. Chairmen could also be elected in some cases.
• In Assam, local boards were formed at sub-divisional level.

Challenges:

The British government rejected Ripon’s ideas to increase elected members and allow non-officials as chairmen.

 Instead, District Commissioners led the Local Boards (Act of 1885).

Significance:

Despite resistance, Ripon’s reforms laid the foundation for democratic self-governance in India, though partially implemented.

🔹 1.7 Indianisation of Civil Services

Charter Act of 1793:

• This Act reserved high posts for British “covenanted” servants, who promised not to engage in trade or accept gifts.
• Lord Cornwallis argued Indians were unfit for modern administration, but liberal thinkers like Thomas Monroe disagreed.

Charter Act, 1833:

• This  Act allowed Indians in high posts, creating roles like Deputy Magistrate (1833) and Deputy Collector (1843) for Indians.
• However, opposition from Company directors delayed progress.

Act of 1853:

It introduced competitive exams for the Civil Services, open to Indians, but the exams were held in England, making it hard for Indians to participate.

Queen’s Proclamation (1858):

Promised Indian recruitment in the Civil Services. A committee suggested holding exams in India, but the Civil Service Act of 1862 reserved only to the covenanted English persons

Age Limit Changes:

• The exam age limit was 22 (until 1865), then 21 (1866).
• Lord Lytton (1876–1880) reduced it to 19, limiting Indian participation. Surendranath Banerji protested, and the limit was raised back to 22 after advocacy by Lal Mohan Ghose.

First Indian Successes:

• Satyendranath Tagore (1864): First Indian to join ICS.
• Anundoram Borooah (1872): First Assamese ICS officer.
• Satyendranath Tagore (1864) was the first Indian in the Civil Service. In 1871, Surendranath Banerji, Romesh Chunder Dutt, and Biharilal Gupta succeeded. In 1872, Anundoram Barooah (first from Assam) and Sripad Babaji Thakur passed.

Lord Lytton’s Law:

1/6 of Civil Service posts were to be filled by nominated Indians from noble families, but it failed to attract high-class Indians.

Efforts for Reform:

Aitchison Commission (1886):

• Recommended three-tier services—Imperial, Provincial, Subordinate Civil Services
• It suggested recruiting the English man for the first one and the Indians for the other two.
• The English Government did not accept the recommendations.

Montague-Chelmsford Reforms (1919):

• Civil Service exams to be held in India and England.
• One-third of posts to be filled by Indians; 1.5% increase annually.
• The Government of India Act (1919) supported this.

Lee Commission (1923):

• Proposed a Civil Service Commission in India.
• Proposed 50% Indians in Civil Services within 15 years.

Government of India Act, 1935:

• Created Federal and Provincial Civil Service Commissions and elected provincial governments, but Indians and the National Congress felt it didn’t go far enough.

Post-Independence:

India introduced open competitive exams through UPSC and State PSCs, ensuring merit-based and fair recruitment.