Decolonization: Part 2

Question 1

note

Answer 1

• British never assimilated into Indian society

- India was bound together by railroads, telegraph lines, newspapers, schools, English language, etc.

Question 2

Indian National Congress

Answer 2

• 1885
• association of English educated Indians
• western educations, lawyers, business men
• difficulty gained mass followings among peasants
• initial goal was to gain greater inclusion within political and military life of British controlled India

Question 3

WWI

Answer 3

• WWI - the British had promised the Indians more self-governing institutions if they helped in WWI
• British attacks on Ottoman Empire in WWI upset India’s many Muslims
• flu epidemic hit India after WWI millions of Indians died
• repressive actions by British rulers
• ex: about 400 Indians killed who defied a ban on public meetings

Question 4

mahatma gandhi

Answer 4

• 1893 = accepted a job with an Indian law firm in South Africa
• witnessed overt racial segregation for the first time
• organized Indians (mostly Muslims) in south Africa to protest these policies of racial segregation
• developed a concept o a free India that included Hindus and Muslims alike
• developed political philosophy called satygraha (truth force) = confrontational, though nonviolent, approach to political action
• 1941 = Gandhi returned to India and became leader in the INC
• Gandhi’s simple and unpretentious lifestyle, support of Muslims, frequent reference to Hindu themes, and nonviolent approach drew support form a wide range of Indians:
• • peasants and the urban poor
• • intellectuals and artisans
• • capitalists and socialists
• • hindus and muslims
• the INC became a mass organization

Question 5

Jawaharlal Nehru

Answer 5

• not everyone embraced nonviolence existence of Hindu militant groups
• not everyone wanted an “inclusive” India some Hindu groups expressed hatred of Muslims and wanted India to be a Hindu nation
• many believed focus on the position of women and untouchables distracted from the main goal of independence from Britain
• some favored participation in British-sponsored legislative bodies without complete independence

Question 6

formation of the All-India Muslim league

Answer 6

• feared domination by the Hindu majority
• Muslim league argued that the parts of India that had a Muslim majority should have a separate political status
• wanted to call it Pakistan = “land of the pure”

Question 7

1947

Answer 7

• colonial India became independent as two separate nations
• Hindu India
• Muslim Pakistan (divided into West and East Pakistan)

Question 8

note

Answer 8

• partition of India, millions died
• 12 million refugees moved form one country to another
• 1948, Ghandi was assassinated by a Hindu extremist

Question 9

Mahatma Ghandi had a job with ________

Answer 9

• an Indian law firm

Question 10

why did the Indian National Congress have difficulty gaining a mass following among peasants

Answer 10

• they passed unfair laws

Question 11

british colonial rulers _______

Answer 11

• never assimilated into Indian society

Question 12

________ bound India together like never before

Answer 12

• technology

Question 13

who were members of the Indian National Congress

Answer 13

• English educated Indians

Question 14

Indian regions and people were bound together by _________

Answer 14

• newspapers
• railroads
• the English language