My Complete Notes for UPSC Civil Service Examination

Hi, My name is Sayooj P.R, I got Rank #1 in UPSC civil service examination 2020. This blog contain my entire notes, hope it helps you.



by ·

Arrival of British


 Mind Map
  • Plassey
  • Buxar
  • Dual system
  • Changes: Constitutional, Revenue, Government, Civil Service, Police
  • General British Policy
Arrival of British
  • 1600 Charter from Queen Elizabath as Merchant Company
  • 1608: Captain Hawkins arrived on the Indian shores at Surat and went to the court of Jahangir to obtain some trade concessions; later on due to factionalism in mughal court these concessions were withdrawn
  • 1615: Thomas Roe went to the court of Jahangir, and was again able to get some trade concession despite opposition from court
    • Reason for opposition: British were second last to arrive + already several europeans and they started to lobby/bribe the court members and princess even the king also.
  • 1639: first base estd in Madrass @ Fort St. George.
  • 1668: factory @ bomaby
    • initially under the portuguese control
    • British helped Portuguese in the war b/w Spain and Portugal in Europe + Marital alliance -> hence Bombay Island given to British Government
    • EIC bought Bombay Island from british.
  • 1688: factory @ Calcutta in Fort William (Sutinati, Govindpur and Kalikata villages)
    • 1651: they already estd base in Hoogly -> fought against Nawab Shaista Khan->  (Since @ Aurengazeb's time) Britishers was defeated easily -> beg pardon to Mughal ruler and Nawab -> granted permission again
  • 1717: EIC got Royal Ferman from Farrukhsiar, which stated that
    1. duty free trade for company in bengal in lieu of Rs. 3000 per annum and sum of Rs. 10000 as one time settlement
    2. duty free trade in Hyderabad
    3. Permission to use their own currency minted at bombay
  • till 1756: Murshid Khulikhan and Alivardi Khan ruled bangal
    • efficient rulers + iron hand -> British never intercepted
  • 1756: Siraj Ud Daulah became Nawab
    • Young and inexperienced ruler
    • British violated Royal farman by
      • Dastak Misused by British (Tax on internal trade by Company officials)
      • Imposing tax on local merchants by company
    • Nawab lead military retalliation and British retreated
Battle of Plassey 1757
  • After the coming to power of Siraj Ud Daulah the britishers openly challenged the rule of Nawab, which included misuse of 1717 farman by company's servents for their private trade
  • on being confronted, the company started levying taxes on Indian merchants as well 
  • The scene was set for a confrontation and after initial skirmish the British were thrown out of bengal.
  • the britishers regrouped and planned a conspiracy by bringing commandering chief Mir Jafar and chief treasury Rai Durlabh on their side
  • in 1757 two sides met at plassey and without any actual fighting the Nawab was defeated and killed
  • due to plassey battle Britishers got control over the resource rich bengal, which help them in defeating their other european rivals like French, Dutch etc. From a commercial body it established EIC as Political power as well.
Note
No battle was actually fought, what happened was treachery and diplomacy
  • Mir Jafar: commander in chief don't join when battle fought (British promised that he will be made Nawabh if he do so)
    • doesn't know that it became crown of thorns.
  • Raja Durlabh : also bribed by British
Carnatic War
  • 1st and 2nd French emerged victorious, but 1757 after plassey EIC got access to enormous resources and which helped them to defeat French in Battle of Wandiwash (3rd, 1760)which made french power in India worn out.
Mir Jafar
  • merely acted as Puppet in british hand after he got nawabh.
  • hence known as ruler who given away his political independence
Battle of Buxar 1764
  • after Mir Jafar, Mir Qasim came to power and he also experienced the suffocation under the british rule, hence went over to the Nawab of Oudh for seeking support to dislodge the Britishers
    • EIC was taxing even the border area of oudh
    • NoA felt, that once the british were dislodged, he can take over the resource rich area of Bengal.
  • The two sides met in 1764 in Buxar (Mir Qasim, Shuja Ud Daulah, French -> British)
  • it was a close fought battle, but British emerged victorious in end. (Buxar, in Bihar, Estd EIC not only as a political power but also as a major military power)
  • after the war EIC didn't annex Oudh
    • it wanted Buffer b/w Abdhali invasion and Marathas
    • EIC didn't had personal for direct administration of Oudh
  • Dual system estd in 1765
Note
Mir Qasim was supported by Nawabh of Audh
  • because NoA felt that he might be next target of British
  • and if British defeated, then he can defeat Jafar also easily and occupy Bengal.
the alliance was initially supported by French also
  • French - Britain Rivalry
British Emerged Victorious
  • Difference from Plassey Victory: this was a military victory 
  • unless and untill you are a military power you cannot protect your territory.
  • if plassey won through diplomacy and treachery buxar won through military might.
Why British didn't annex Audh
  • if done that, British will be put in lime light and other regional powers will see them as common enemy
  • there was several European powers also there, hence there is chance that they also unite against britain.
  • since NoA was defeated and given the power back, they can rule it indirectly as well as make it buffer state to protect Bengal from further west.
    • when they annex Audh, they applied same logic with Maharaja Ranjit Singh (ie, punjab as buffer state.)
Robert Clive
  • 1750-1773: all major developments under him
  • succeeded by Warren hastings
Hence Annexing Policy of British was done along with making buffer states.
Dual System
  • In Bengal, Bihar, Odisha
  • 2 prime Administerial functions are there->Britishers: Revenue collecion (Diwani), Nawab: Law and Order (Nizamat)
Why Dual System
  • to avoid unifaction of other princely state/ Europeans against them
  • Maximum Authority Minimal Responsibility => can focus mor on money/ profit more
  • don't have to take care of people grievances => no discontentment from people
  • Nawab get illusion that he is supreme
  • British Parliament BP approval is needed for getting administration powers. (even if granted, they soon take over functions of EIC)
    • this happened in 1773, when several person got jealousy against Robert Clive.
    • Regulating Act 1773 happened.
Effects of Dual System
Constitutional Developments
Regulating Act 1773
  • Governor General GG + 4 members : established in calcutta; similar GG council in Bombay and Madrass which were subordinated to Calcutta GGC.
  • Court of Directors CoD established in London to communicate all activities of EIC to BP
  • Private trade for company official prohibited
  • SC estd @ Calcutta in 1774
Note
  • Warren Hasting: first GG of Bengal, 1773
  • William Bentick: first GGI in 1833
Pitts India Act 1784
  • Board of Control estblished:
    • 2 members from British Cabinet
    • 4 members from Privy council (council of ministers)
    • continued till 1858
  • GG + 3 member GGC + GG has veto power
Charter Act of 1813
  • Trade monopoly is abolished except 
    • Tea trade with India
    • trade with China.
    • Hence: more british players can trade India => was extremely bad for India, now India began to be exploited more -> lead to exporter of raw material instead of finished product. (made more worser after 1833)
  • Rs. 1 lakh for promoting education& will promote Indian literature
  • Christian Missionaries allowed 
Charter Act of 1833
  • GGB become GGI (William Bentick)
  • complete abolition of trade monopoly
    • 1839 Opium war with china was result of it (China was dominating in trade and british need to pay them in gold, to avoid this began to pay back in opium, Chinese ruler against and fired opium trucks and resulted in war, which lead to failure of chinese empire.=>European foot in China + Cutting of Watermelon by European => senkaku lsland disputes)
  • the act provided for creating a unified and codified system of law in India.
  • Proposed open competition system of civil service.
    • but introduced in 1853
1853 Charter Act
  • differentiation b/w executive and legislative function done for the first time, where by
    • GG + 4 + 6 (6 new members: Calcutta, Bombay, Madrass, NWFP provinces + CJ of SC + 1 judge from SC)
  • Recruitment to civil services through open written competition
Main Practice Question
Though Battle of plassey estd the britishers as a major political power, it was the battle of buxar which truly estd them as major military power. Explain.
  • Initially trading company -> trade concession from farrukshiyar
  • misuse of farman -> plassey war 1757
  • battle won through diplomacy and treachery as Mir Jafar and Rai Durlabh bribed + no major war + got resource rich bengal got => become major political power
  • successor to mirjafar, mir kasim went over to nawab of oudh to get help to dislodge british
  • NoA was also being taxed in his bordering areas by britishers also he wanted bengal himself after disloding british
  • Mir Qasim, Shuja ud Daulah and french in 1864 against Britih in Buxar , but British remain victorious
  • Buxar was a military victory compared to plassey which was a political victory. The britishers now estd as major economic and military power, vis a vis other princely state after buxar
  • thus though battle of plassey was important event in history but buxar holds more importance in shaping indian history.
Land Revenue System
  • Britishers want more revenue and constant revenue + they don't want to confiscate land as it will results in revenue loss-> if not done -> confiscated land 
  • Warren hastings Introduced a farming system where by land was given to european cultivators under maximum bidding approach -> entry of speculators -> more confiscation -> not served British purpose
Permanent Land Revenue system 1793:


  • Fixed LR -> 10/11 for Govt + 1/11 for Zamindars
  • Zamindars are considered land owners
  • Ryots are cultivators only (Britishers thought extra crop will goes to ryots, which make them happy)
    • but Zamindars are not regulated by any one
    • Rack Renting (Ryots are also chain one) was prevalent ; hence those who are actively cultivating left with nothing.
  • Britishers thought a stable income will be bear for company, burden of collection of zamindar, help in creating a loyal group for british.
  • No rules were placed on the zamindars, who resorted to exorbitant rents which resulted in Rack Renting. Peasants were denied of their property rights and were left at the mersy of Zamindars
Ryotwari System 1820
  • Southern areas
  • negotiate directly with ryot.
    • as Zamindari system was not practiced there
    • Ryots are owners of land
  • LR duration is fixed for 10 yrs; (here revenue is revised without consulting ryots)
  • Areas such as Coimbatore, Malabar, Madurai. Later extended to MH and Coorg.
  • the land revenue was fixed even at time of famine and there was no famine relief carried out by the britishers, in place of many zamindar under the PLRS, in Ryotwari, 1 big zamindar was placed in the form of Britishers
Mahalwari System 1833
  • in Western Areas and NWFP like Punjab and central parts of India.
  • Revenue settlement done by combining 4-5 villages and revenue collection was made the responsibility of village elders
  • Ryots are owners. + Revision of land revenue in 10 yrs
  • under the system LR raise to 60-70% of total produce. Through many generation, land got further divided which further reduced the productivity and increased the indebtness of the farmers
Note
  • the LR system is not based on efficiency or pragmatism; it is due to situational demand only.
Qn: Various Land Revenue system introduced by the British varied in their design but were in fact was directed towards 1 single purpose- Optimum and stable Land revenue. Analyse.

Factor
PLRS
Ryot
Mahalwari
Area
Zamindari jurisdiction
the area ryot have
3-4 villages together
Time
forever
for 10 yrs
for 10 yrs
Ownership
Zamindar
Ryot
Ryot
Collector 
"
Govt appointed person
Village elders
  • Provide criticism
Communication System
  • Britishers still claim that they taught us to live in civilised manner; whatever our policy today is the legacy of them.
  • Postal, 1837
  • Telegraph, 1855
  • Raillway, 1853
  • Canal system, 1854
    • Irrigation + transport
  • Delhousie is regarded as maker of modern India.
Why (Purely Colonial and Economical motive)
  • Strong gripped administration
  • Trade
  • Mobilization of Army empowerment 
    • fast crush of rebellion.
  • Source of Investment
    • Railway: get 3 times profit for steel makers their investment
      • Hence economic critics at that time referred "Railways are engine of colonialism not engine of development"
  • Access to resources and labour
  • Newer market
Impact on Indian Population
  • Spread of Information (not knowledge; huge difference b/w information of knowledge)
  • Administrative Unity
  • Rise of Employment 
  • Rise of National consciousness. 
Civil Services
  • in 1771, the office of district collector estd under hastings.
  • Cornwallis is regarded as the founder of Indian Civil services, as he laid down
    • a code of conduct,
    • rules of promotion
    • and also increased the salaries of civil servants to avoid any temptations for corruption.
  • but here also Indians were excluded from higher civil services as
    • they were believed to be incompetent, (Cornwallis of opinion that Indians are inherently corrupt)
    • britishers could only safeguard british interest,
    • and already high competition for this post among britishers
  • in 1800 Civil services training college estd at Fort William in Calcutta, which was later on move to London in 1806 as Hailey Bury College
Police
  • in 1791 Cornwallis estd a regular system of thanoes headed by Daroga (equalent to modern day SHO), an SP to head the district, thus relieving the Zamindars of their law and order duties
  • Bentick (1828) abolished the office of SP and police functions were placed in the hands of district magistrate, this placed a heavy burden in the office of Magistrate.
British General Policy
  • 1608-1757: Traders
  • 1757-1818:  Policy of Alliances and Expansion (struggle with Princely state) => Subsidiary Alliance of Wellesley.
    • 1818: important because 3rd Maratha War, the last Single powers that left for Britishers to put down.
  • 1818-1857: Domination Phase
    • Doctrine of Lapse: Succession by Adoption Not allowed + Satara, Jhansi.
  • 1857-1935: Alliances
  • 1935-1947: Tries to make local leaders to challenge the rising INC
    • i.e the sole reason for proposal of federation. => inherent plan of Balkanisation
Britishers played divide and rule on Multiple levels 
  • Religion (Hindu, Muslim),
  • Language (Bengal),
  • Caste (communal award),
  • Region (Proposal of federation),
  • Ideology (Moderate, Extremist, Revolutionary)
Subsidiary Alliance
  • Nepolean has not only tried to unite Europe, he had also an eye on priced British colonies
  • Hence Wellesley, GGB then, adopted this to stop Nepolean from influencing them.
  • Basic features
    • British Resident (proposed as a helper in making policy decisions to surrounding king, but actually was a spy who will update things to GGB)
    • Standing Army (Proposed so that highly trained and obidient British army will protect the country in time of need, actually to avoid revolting against british)
    • Foreign Policy Making must be done only after consulting Company (=> most important feature, as it made them dependent on british while dealing with foreigners)
      • note: Sardar Vallabhai patel during Union creation asked state to give powers like Communication, Defence, Foreign Policy powers to Union, even though they didn't enjoyed it earlier also
Main Practice Question
  • After Becoming a major Political and Military Power, the Britishers Ushered in a lot of changes in Political, Administrative, and Socio-relegious spheres which had a prefound effect on the Indian Population. Comment?
The British Policy vis-a-vis Indian princely states Changed as per the changing scenario, and as per the changing British needs. Elucidate
  • Introduction: British needs dictated the changing policy which were directed towards establishing their rule in India and extracting the maximum possible revenue.
  • Heading in Boxes and explains Changing scenario, then in paragraph : needs & how it implemented
  • Tables can also be used.
Foreign Policy
Objectives
  • annex those which provide Strategic location, resources
  • rule indirectly, subsidiary alliance system.
Overview
  • Nepal -> buffer
  • Burma -> Expansion
  • Afghan -> buffer and scientific frontier
  • Tibet -> Buffer
Nepal
  • 1814 british desire to establish a scientific frontier on the nothern side leads to a skirmish with Nepal, which leads to a British resident in Nepal
  • Nepal withdraws from sikkim
  • Nepal cedes district of Garhwal and Kumaon (hill stations like Nainital, Mussoorie, Shimla)
  • Gorkhas (fierce warriors) inducted into british force
  • Why didn't British Annex Nepal? => same reason that it should kept as buffer.
Note
  • territories all where are disputed, don't know which one was our, which one was their => Hence the only solution is status quo.
Burma
  • in 1824 Burmese expansion towards the west, brings them into confrontation with the british in Assam and Brahmaputra Valley
  • after a short battle, Burma recognises independence of Manipur and British occuppy Arakkan Coastline
  • 1852 : British Merchants Want the timber rich area in Upper Burma, which leads to another skirmish and Victory for Britishers
  • 1885: King Thibaw negotiates some commercial treaties with france, germany and Italy
    • Germany, Italy unified in 1871 => late in imperial race
  • Britishers fearing growing European pressure annex Burma in 1885
  • in 1935 Burma is separated from India, due to growing ties b/w Burmese and Indian nationalists
  • 1948: independence given to Burma.
Note
  • Kaladan Multimodel project through Arakkan coast: to connect NE and develop alternate route rather than Silguri Corridor (Chicken Neck)
  • Kaladan is river in Myanmar
Afghanistan
  • Growing relations b/w Afghan and Russia, alarms the britishers. in 1836 Afghan rulers Dost Muhammed ask British support to gain territories back from Maharaja Ranjit Singh, which the Britishers refuse.
    • 1809: Treaty of Amritsar => North of Sutlej become area of Ranjit and South of Sutlej become area of British
  • 1838: Tripartite Treaty signed b/w British, Sikh, Shah Shuja (Deposed ruler of Afghan by Dost) to establish Shah on Afghan throne and in return favourable policy to British.
    • why Sikhs supported: to have a friendly neighbour
  • 1838: first Anglo-Afghan War takes place where by Shah Shuja is established as ruler in Kabul, but he is unacceptable to Afghan people
  • 1842: Rebellion rises against Shah Shuja (get killed) and the British forces are thrown out of Kabul. Later on negotiation takes place and Dost Muhammed re-established as ruler and British forces are withdrawn
  • 1876: with the coming of Lytton, there is again a need to establish a scientific frontier with afghanistan
  • in 1878, Sher Ali refuses British Envoy and accepted Russian Envoy in Afghan Court. Lead to the second Anglo Afghan War, where by Britishers emerge victorious and favourable alliance is established
  • Soon another unrest emerges in Afghanistan and Rippon abandones any forward policy and advocated Status Quo
Note
  • Afghan Spirit for freedom is unparelleled , there is no power which gone to afghan and enslave them permanently.
Tibet
  • Ruled by Buddhist Theocracy under the nominal authority of China, growing Russian influence, in 1904 an expedition lead by Military Commander Young Husband leads to British victory
  • 75 lakh rupees as war damages, Chumbi Valley (b/w Sikkim and Bhutan) under British control 
  • 1907: Anglo Russian Convension provides for Tibetan neutrality and any negotiation with tibet to be done through china.
Note
  • Iran is still theocracy
  • theocracy means rule by relegious persons
Impacts of British Policy
  • Made exporter of raw material and importer of finished goods
  • Rise of Nationalism and Rise of Middle class
  • Socio-Religious Reforms
  • Administrative Unity
  • Land Revenue system
    • Ruin and Exploitation to Peasents
  • Modern Judiciary
    • Oppressed common man
    • Justice become expensive and inaccessible to common man
  • Modern Police,
    • Harrassment of Indians
    • They were for britishers and not for common Indians
  • Modern CS
    • Corruption
  • Constitutional Changes
    • No Indian Involvement
  • Princely States annexed
    • Patronisers of craftsman + collapsed + Agriculture only solution + over crowding.
  • Famines

1 comment: