The Subcontinent And The British Raj
Chronology:
- 1599: The East
India Company is founded by a group of London merchants.
- 1612: Surat
(now within Gujarat state), becomes the site of the first East India
Company-owned factory.
- 1662: Bombay is ceded by the Portuguese to
Charles II as a dowry when he marries Catherine of Braganza.
- 1668: Bombay comes
into the possession of the East India Company.
- 1739: Malwa is
conquered by the Marathas, a Hindu people challenging Moghul
pre-eminence.
- 1756: Sir-ud-Daula,
Nawab of Bengal and ally to the French, takes Calcutta and 146 of his
British prisoners die in the Black Hole.
- 1757: Clive
defeats the army of the Nawab of Bengal at Plassey.
- 1773: In an attempt to
give unity and cohesion to the East India Company's activities the British
Government appoints Warren Hastings, a company agent, as Govenor-General to
India.
- 1799: After nearly
forty years of sporadic conflict between Mysore and the British, Tipu Sahib
is defeated and Mysore accepts a subsidiary alliance and cedes Coimbatore to
Britain.
- 1805: Governor-General
Wellesley is recalled to Britain after the siege of Bharatpur.
- 1829: Britain begins
to stamp out the practice of Suttee in Bengal and takes steps against
fraternity of the Thugee, professional assassins who had taken vows to the
goddess Kali.
- 1833: Renewal of the
East Inida Company's charter includes amendments placing more power in the
hands of the British Government.
- 1839: Fear of a
Russian advance to India's north-west frontier leads to a pre-emptive
British invasion of Afghanistan.
- 1849: Following
clashes with the Sikhs of northern India in 1845 and 1848, the Punjab is
annexed.
- 1857: The Indian
Mutiny breaks out on May 10th, at Meerut as mutineers from Bengali regiments
march on Delhi proclaiming Bahadur Shah as emperor.
- 1858: The India Act,
designed as a post-Mutiny resettlement of government, annuls the power of
the East India Company and transfers all administrative authority to the
Crown.
- 1860: The Indian
Coucils Act stipulates that the Viceroy will be assissted by a council which
will include Indian as well as British members.
- 1869: M.K. (Mahatma)
Gandhi is born.
- 1877: Victoria
proclaimed Empress of India.
- 1878: A rebellion
against the British-backed ruler of Afghanistan sparks the second Afghan War
as General Roberts occupies Kabul.
- 1885: The Indian
National Congress is founded.
- 1891: The Brahmin
teacher and nationalist, Bal Bangadhar Tilak, begins extremist agitation for
Indian Home Rule.
- 1900: The
strategically important border territory between India and Afghanistan is
designated as the North-West Frontier Province.
- 1906: Muslim League
formed.
- 1911: At his
coronation Durbar in Delhi, George V announces the restoration of Bengal as
a single unit following its unpopular partition and the transfer of the seat
of government from Calcutta to New Delhi, thus associating the Raj with the
Moghul imperial capital.
- 1915: Gandhi returns
to India after spending 21 years in South Africa.
- 1919: Following a
nation-wide strike called by the Indian National Congress, civil disturbance
in the Punjab leads to the Amritsar Massacre as Brigadier-General Dyer gives
the order to fire on a prohibited political demonstration.
- 1920: Elections are
held for a reformed Imperial Legislature which will include an assembly of
100 elected members.
- 1922: Gandhi is
imprisoned for civil disobedience.
- 1930-31: Gandhi steps
up his campaign with the Dandi Salt March. The Round Table Conferences, a
series of meetings held to discuss the future of India, take place in London
and are attended by Indian Princely rulers. Although Gandhi attends, the
Indian National Congress refuses to participate.
- 1935: The Government
of India Act proposes a federal India composed of political provinces with
elected local governments governed by a diarchy where the British Viceroy
retains control over foreign policy and defence.
- 1936: Jawaharlal Nehru
is elected President of the Indian National Congress.
- 1937: The Indian
National Congress is successful in elections, gaining office in six
provinces.
- 1940: At a Muslim
Congress, Jinnah pledges support for the British war effort, and calls for
the eventual establishment of a separate Pakistan in an independent and
partitioned India.
- 1942: Gandhi is
imprisioned for obstructing the war effort with his support for the 'Quit
India' campaign.
- 1945: Clement Attlee
states that the Empire and Commonwealth is strategically indefensible. His
new Labour Government begins to prepare for Indian Independence.
- 1947: The Indian
Independence Act is passed with extraordinary speed confirming the partition
of India and the dominion status of both India and Pakistan.
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