1. British in India

2. India Before British Arrival
Ruled by Mughal Empire
Trading companies begin to arrive in India to trade as the Mughal Empire begins to decline

3. India Before British Rule
At fist, Mughal rulers allowed the East India Company to use ports in India for trade
British traded gold and silver for cotton, silk, and tea
Textiles were the most important goods traded
At first, the Mughals looked down upon the British
The British did not have many valuable goods to give to the Indians, and the British benefited more from the trade relationship

4. India Before British Rule Imperialism Picture #1

5. India Before British Rule Imperialism Picture #2

6. What changed? Mughal Empire began to decline
Rival princes set up their own kingdoms to compete with each other
Europeans became richer from Industrial Revolution
British and French competed with each other for trade influence
Their fight spread into India
British eventually victorious in controlling trade rights with India

7. British East India Company
Created in 1600s
Main purpose was to trade and make money (not own land)
Eventually granted trade rights in Indian cities
Calcutta, Madras, and Bombay
British encouraged the rival Indian kings to fight
Forced different rulers to sign treaties
giving more power to Britain

8. Rule by the British East India Company
Mughal emperor gave the company rights to collect taxes
British set up a law code and court system within India
Rules both directly and indirectly throughout India as different rulers signed treaties with the company
Direct rule: leader of the area is a British official
Indirect rule: leader of the area is a local Indian prince, appointed by the British

9. Growing Discontent
Indians began to rebel against increasing British rule
Why?
British outlawed some Hindu practices (ex: Sati)
High taxes against Indians were seen as unfair
Disliked Christian missionaries trying to convert them
British rule threatened their whole way of life

10. Sepoy Rebellion The unrest eventually led to a revolt
Sepoys: Indian troops who served in the British army
Causes of the Rebellion
Rumors spread that the rifle cartridges given by British were greased with beef or pork fat
Why is this a problem?
To Hindus, cows are sacred
To Muslims, it is forbidden to touch pork
The Sepoys were also forced to fight for the British overseas, and they believed they would lose caste if they travelled overseas
The Sepoys and British fought for months, both sides committed savage acts against each other

11. Although initially the mutiny was spontaneous, it quickly became more organized and the sepoys even took over the cities of Delhi and Kanpur.

12. Effects of the Sepoy Rebellion
In 1858, Britain took control of India as a colony
British Queen Victoria becomes empress of India in 1876
Britain begins to rule most of India directly
Distrusted Indians after the rebellion
Princes had to sign treaties to give British control of their foreign and military affairs
British tried to create a class of British-educated Indians
Discontent between British and Indians
Indians disliked British trying to change their culture
British believed it was their duty to educate and fix Indian society
Examples: “The White Man’s Burden” by Rudyard Kipling

13. Changes British Made in India
Education stressed western values
Wanted to create Victorian gentlemen and women

14. India villages before British were self-contained & self-sufficient; land was owned by the village, not individuals – British wanted a village system to provide cash to their empire

15. Taxes did not exist before British rule
British assigned ownership land to the people working it
Zamindar system- taxing system imposed by British over Indian farmers
To pay taxes in a barter system, the villagers borrowed from moneylender & went into debt

16. Machines made products -- made village handicraft industry obsolete
Railroad network was built throughout the country
Jute & cotton were exported to Britain
Britain sent cloth & manufactured goods back to India

17. Britain was more interested in bolstering its own economic system at home than in modernizing India economic systems

18. Britain failed to understand Indian thinking or concerns

19. British felt superior to Indians – “White Man’s Burden”
“Take up the White Man's burden-- Send forth the best ye breed-- Go bind your sons to exile To serve your captives' need; To wait in heavy harness, On fluttered folk and wild-- Your new-caught, sullen peoples, Half-devil and half-child.”