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Modern History : Miscellaneous Notes with PDF

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Administration & Governance

Key Administrators and Their Reforms

  • Lord Cornwallis:
    • First Governor-General to establish a regular police force on the British pattern.
    • Abolished the policing duties of Zamindars in 1793.
  • Lord William Bentinck:
    • Passed the Sati Prevention Act (Bengal Sati Regulation) in 1829.
  • Sir Thomas Munro:
    • Associated with ‘Paternalism in Governance’.
    • Introduced the Ryotwari system in Madras (1820).
  • Lord Hastings:
    • Suppressed the Pindaris (1813-1818).
  • Lord Wellesley:
    • Introduced the Subsidiary Alliance system (1798).
  • Lord Ripon:
    • Introduced the Ilbert Bill (1883).
  • Lord Dalhousie:
    • Associated with the Doctrine of Lapse.
  • Lord Curzon:
    • Passed the Ancient Monuments Preservation Act (1904).
  • Lord Linlithgow:
    • Associated with the August Offer (1940).
  • Lord Wavell:
    • Associated with the Wavell Plan / Shimla Conference (1945).
  • Lord Mountbatten:
    • Held Muhammad Ali Jinnah most responsible for the partition of India.

Judicial and Administrative Acts

  • Regulating Act of 1773: Established the Supreme Court at Calcutta.
  • Pitt’s India Act (1784): Passed during Warren Hastings’ tenure.
  • Charter Act of 1813: Ended the East India Company’s monopoly in India, opening trade to British civilians.
  • Charter Act of 1833: Ended the Company’s trade monopoly entirely.
  • Indian Penal Code (IPC): Came into effect in 1860, drafted by the first law commission (chaired by Lord Macaulay).
  • Dramatic Performances Act: Passed in 1876.
  • Vernacular Press Act: Passed in 1878.
  • Bengal Tenancy Act: Passed in 1885.
  • Indian Council Act, 1909 (Morley-Minto Reforms): Introduced separate electorates for Muslims.
  • Government of India Act, 1919 (Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms): Introduced Dyarchy in provinces.
  • Government of India Act, 1935: Provided for Provincial Autonomy.
  • Indian Independence Act, 1947: Based on the Mountbatten Plan.

Local Governance

  • First Municipal Corporation: Established in Madras in 1688.
  • Police Reforms:
    • The post of Daroga was created in 1793.
    • The Police Commission was formed in 1902-03 under Andrew Frazer.

Wars, Treaties, and Integration

Anglo-Maratha Wars

  • First Anglo-Maratha War (1775-1782).

Anglo-Mysore Wars

  • Second Anglo-Mysore War (1780-1784).
  • Third Anglo-Mysore War (1790-1792).

Anglo-Burmese Wars

  • First Anglo-Burmese War (1824-1826): British gained control of Assam, Manipur, etc.

Anglo-Afghan Wars

  • First Anglo-Afghan War (1838-1842).
  • Second Anglo-Afghan War (1878-1880).

Anglo-Sikh Wars

  • First Anglo-Sikh War (1845-1846).
  • Second Anglo-Sikh War (1848-1849).

Anglo-French Rivalry (Carnatic Wars)

  • Second Anglo-French War (1750-1754).
  • Capture of Madras by La Bourdonnais (1746).
  • Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748).
  • Dismissal of Dupleix (1754).

Other Key Treaties & Integration

  • Treaty of Allahabad (1765).
  • Integration of Princely States:
    • Operation Polo (1948): Integration of Hyderabad.
    • Rulers agreed to join India in 1949; privy purses abolished by the 26th Amendment (1971).
  • Goa’s Liberation: Annexed in 1961 (Operation Vijay); became a full state in 1987.

Social Reforms and Movements

Key Reformers and Actions

  • Raja Rammohan Roy: Initiated the Bengal Renaissance; campaigned against Sati.
  • Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar: Pioneer of Widow Remarriage; advocated for education of lower castes and women; associated with Bethune Female School (1850).
  • Mahadev Govind Ranade: Founded the Social Conference Movement; campaigned against child marriage.
  • William Sleeman: Suppressed the practice of Thuggee.
  • Jyotiba Phule: Founded Satyashodhak Samaj (1873).
  • E.V. Ramaswami Naicker (Periyar): Founded the Self-Respect Movement (1920s-30s).
  • Swami Dayananda Saraswati: Founded Arya Samaj (1875).
  • Swami Vivekananda: Advocated for ‘Practical Vedanta’.

Legislation

  • Sati Prevention Act (1829).
  • Age of Consent Act (1891).
  • Sharda Act (1929): Regulated child marriage.

Women’s Participation & Organizations

  • Movements first brought urban middle-class women out during the Swadeshi Movement.
  • All India Women’s Conference was founded in 1927.
  • Indian National Social Conference first organized in 1887.

Land Reforms (Post-Independence)

  • Aim: Provide agricultural land to the landless; abolish Zamindari; impose land ceilings; redistribute surplus land.

Economic History

Famines and Commissions

  • Famine in Western U.P. (1860-61).
  • Orissa Famine (1866-67): Led to the Famine Code.
  • Indian Famine Code: Prepared in 1883 by the Strachey Commission (formed in 1878).
  • Famine Commission (1901): Headed by Antony MacDonell.
  • Famine in Bengal (1943).

Infrastructure & Institutions

  • Imperial Bank of India: Renamed ‘State Bank of India’ in July 1955.
  • First Cotton Textile Mill: Established in Bombay in 1854 by Cawasji Dabar.
  • Commissions:
    • Irrigation Commission (1901): Headed by Colin Scott Moncrieff.
    • Railway Commission (1901): Headed by Thomas Robertson.
    • Whitley Commission: On labour conditions.

Indian Independence Movement & Key Figures

Leaders of the 1857 Revolt

  • Kunwar Singh: Bihar.
  • Khan Bahadur Khan: Ruhelkhand.
  • Tatya Tope: Kanpur.
  • Maulavi Ahmed Ullah: Faizabad.

Political Parties & Groups

  • Indian National Congress (INC): Founded 1885.
    • Surat Split (1907): Moderates vs. Extremists.
    • Described by Rajni Palme Dutt as an organization that “both fought and collaborated with imperialism.”
  • Ghadar Party: Founded 1913 in the USA by Har Dayal and Sohan Singh Bhakna; original name: Pacific Coast Hindustan Association; newspaper: ‘Ghadar’.
  • All India Muslim League: Founded 1906.
  • Swaraj Party (1923): Founded by C.R. Das and Motilal Nehru.
  • All India Kisan Sabha (1936): Founded by Swami Sahajanand Saraswati.
  • Communist Party of India (CPI): Founded 1925; first General Secretary: P.C. Joshi.
  • Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS): Founded 1925.
  • Forward Bloc: Founded by Subhash Chandra Bose.

Chronology of Major Movements & Events

  • Partition of Bengal (1905) → Swadeshi Movement (1905)
  • Home Rule Movement (1916) → Lucknow Pact (1916)
  • Champaran Satyagraha (1917) – Gandhi’s first satyagraha in India.
  • Rowlatt Act (Mar 1919) → Jallianwala Bagh Massacre (Apr 13, 1919)
  • Non-Cooperation Movement (1920-1922) → Chauri-Chaura Incident (Feb 4, 1922)
  • Swaraj Party formed (1923)
  • Simon Commission announced (1927), boycotted.
  • Lahore Session of INC (1929): Purna Swaraj (Complete Independence) declared.
  • Civil Disobedience Movement (1930) → Dandi March (Mar 12, 1930)
  • Gandhi-Irwin Pact (Mar 5, 1931)
  • Communal Award (Aug 16, 1932) → Poona Pact (Sep 24, 1932)
  • Government of India Act (1935)
  • August Offer (1940) → Individual Satyagraha (1940)
  • Cripps Mission (1942)
  • Quit India Movement (Aug 1942) – Slogan “Do or Die”.
  • Cabinet Mission (Mar 1946)
  • Direct Action Day by Muslim League (Aug 16, 1946)
  • Indian Independence (Aug 15, 1947)

Key Personalities & Statements

  • Mahatma Gandhi:
    • Believed British presence exacerbated communal differences.
    • Associated with “Partyless Democracy” (along with Jayaprakash Narayan).
  • Bal Gangadhar Tilak: First leader to travel across India for mass mobilization.
  • Rabindranath Tagore (Gurudev):
    • First Asian Nobel Laureate (1913) for ‘Gitanjali’.
    • Founded Viswa-Bharati; composed national anthems of India and Bangladesh.
    • Started painting at age 70; first Indian artist to display paintings in Europe/USA (1930).
  • Lala Lajpat Rai: Prolific writer; wrote biographies of Mazzini, Garibaldi, etc.
  • Dr. B. R. Ambedkar:
    • Chief architect of the Indian Constitution; founded Siddharth College, ‘Mook Nayak’ journal (1920).
    • Died Dec 6, 1956; awarded Bharat Ratna (1990).
  • Jawaharlal Nehru:
    • Key architect of Non-Alignment; co-founded NAM (1961).
    • Stated, “Everything else can wait, but not agriculture.”
  • Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel: Criticized separate electorates; warned against Muslim League violence (1946).
  • Subhas Chandra Bose:
    • Political guru: Chittaranjan Das.
    • In ‘Indian Struggle’, expressed that India’s salvation would not be under Gandhi.
  • Maulana Hasrat Mohani: First to demand ‘Complete Independence’ (1921).
  • Dadabhai Naoroji: First Indian elected to British House of Commons (1892).
  • Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan (Frontier Gandhi): Started ‘Red Shirt’ movement (Khudai Khidmatgar), 1929.
  • Aruna Asaf Ali: Key leader in Quit India Movement.
  • Slogans:
    • ‘Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan’: Lal Bahadur Shastri (1965).
    • ‘Quit India’: Coined by Yusuf Meher Ali (also coined “Simon Go Back”).

Post-Independence India

Political Milestones

  • First Prime Minister: Jawaharlal Nehru (served 1947-1964).
  • First Non-Congress Government: 1977, under Morarji Desai.
  • First Communist Government: Formed in Kerala in April 1957; first CM: E.M.S. Namboodiripad.

Constitution & Governance

  • First Speaker of Lok Sabha: G. V. Mavlankar (discarded the wig).
  • Constituent Assembly:
    • Dr. Rajendra Prasad was President.
    • National Flag adopted on July 22, 1947.
    • National Anthem (Jana Gana Mana) adopted on January 24, 1950.

Economic Policy

  • First Industrial Policy: Announced on April 6, 1948 (Mixed Economy).
  • Hind Mazdoor Sabha: Founded in 1948.

Foreign Policy & Events

  • Liberation of Goa (1961).
  • Shimla Agreement (1972): Signed after the 1971 war.
  • Kargil War (1999): Operation Vijay.

Culture, Communication & Education

Press & Publications

  • Printing Press: Introduced by Portuguese in 1550; installed at St. Paul’s College, Goa (1556).
  • First Newspaper: ‘Bengal Gazette’ (Hickey’s, 1780).
  • Other Newspapers:
    • ‘Kesari’: Bal Gangadhar Tilak (1881).
    • ‘Al Hilal’: Maulana Abul Kalam Azad (1912).
    • ‘Bombay Chronicle’: Ferozeshah Mehta.

Education Policies

  • Wood’s Despatch (1854): Important education policy.
  • Hunter Commission (1882): Primary education.
  • Sadler Commission (1917): Calcutta University.
  • Sargeant Plan (1944): Recommended UGC.

Indian Cinema

  • First Film Screening: July 7, 1896, at Watson’s Hotel, Bombay by Lumiere Brothers.

Regional Histories & Rebellions

  • Bundela Rebellion (1842): In Sagar-Narmada region against British.
  • British entered Jharkhand from Palamu in 1772.
  • Tripura: Freedom movement reached in early 20th century via Bengali revolutionaries.
  • Presidency College, Calcutta: Established by Raja Ram Mohan Roy (1817).
  • Caste Dynamics in Pre-Independent Bihar: Dominant castes were Bhumihar, Rajputs, Kayasthas.

Global Context & World History

  • The Great Game (19th Century): British fear of Russian expansion towards India.
  • World War II: Began Sep 1, 1939; US entered after Pearl Harbor (Dec 7, 1941).
  • Cold War: Germany reunified on Oct 3, 1990.
  • Dissolution of USSR: Dec 26, 1991.
  • Tibet: China took control in 1959.
  • Bangladesh: Liberation War (Mar-Dec 1971); independent Dec 16, 1971.
  • First Female PM: Sirimavo Bandaranaike (Sri Lanka, 1960).

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