Beginning of Colonial Rule in India Questions & Answers

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Beginning of Colonial Rule in India Questions & Answers

Question 1: Name the two courts introduced by the British in India under the new system of justice.

Answer: A criminal court (faujdari adalat) and a civil court (diwani adalat).

Question 2: Between who was the Battle of Buxar fought?

Answer: The Battle of Buxar was fought between the Company forces and the joint forces of Mir Qasim and his allies.

Question 3: Where did the Portuguese establish their trading settlements?

Answer: The Portuguese established their trading settlements at the rich port of Goa in 1510 and in a few places such as Diu, Daman, etc.

Question 4: Which act introduced the open competition for recruitment to services?

Answer: The Charter Act of 1853 introduced the open competition for recruitment to services.

Question 5: Why was the reason for sending Sir Thomas Roe to the Mughal court?

Answer: He was sent to the Mughal court to conclude a commercial treaty with the emperor.

Beginning of Colonial Rule in India Questions & Answers

Question 6: Discuss the important features of the Subsidiary Alliance.

Answer: The subsidiary Alliance was a political instrument introduced by Lord Wellesley, British Governor-General of India (1798-1805), to bring the Indian states under the power of the Company. It was an agreement signed between the ruler and the Company for which, the ruler would get protection from his enemies.

Under this alliance,

  • The Indian ruler had to disband his native armies. Instead, he was required to maintain a British army (a subsidiary force) within the state.
  • The ruler had to pay for the maintenance of the army. A part of his territory was surrendered to the British for this purpose.
  • The company official called the Resident was placed at his court.
  • The ruler would not employ officials of any other European power in his service except with the consent of the British.
  • The ruler would not negotiate or form an alliance with any other ruler without the permission of the British.

The Indian states virtually lost their independence by signing this alliance and in reality, Indian rulers became subservient to the English Resident who interfered in the internal affairs of Indian states and served the Company. Further, this alliance proved advantageous to the English as it enabled the company to maintain large forces at the expenses of the Indian states.

The Indian rulers who eventually accepted the subsidiary alliance was Nizam of Hyderabad, the ruler of Mysore, the Nawab of Awadh, the Peshwa Baji Rao II, and several other rulers came under the direct rule of the Company.

Question 7: Describe the Dual System of Government in Bengal.

Answer:

  • The English had neither the inclination nor the capacity to take over the responsibility of the administration of the province.
  • After assuming the office of Diwan, the Dual system of Government was introduced by Robert Clive in Bengal.
  • Under this system, the administration was divided into between the Nawab and the Company.
  • The Nawab had the responsibilities of law and order and the administration of criminal justice; on the other hand, the Diwan’s office being separate was responsible for the collection of the revenues and dealt with the administration of civil justice.
  • This system helped the company to remain free from real responsibility of the administration of Bengal and still they held their power safely in Bengal.
  • The Nawab had all the responsibilities but no resources to discharge it.
  • In consequence, Bengal suffered immensely and lapsed into a state of anarchy (A situation where there is no government in the country).
  • Finally, in 1772, Warren Hastings ended this Dual system of Government.

Question 8: Why did Siraj-ud-daulah attack the English factory at Cassimbazar?

Answer: Siraj-ud-daulah ordered the English to demolish their fortification at Calcutta but the British did not obey him. Siraj-ud-daulah repeated his orders and insisted on their immediate demolition. The refusal of the British to do so enraged him. Therefore, he attacked the English factory at Cassimbazar.

Beginning of Colonial Rule in India Questions & Answers

Question 9: Why is the Regulating Act of 1773 regarded as the most important act in the evolution of British administration?

Answer: The Regulating Act of 1773 was regarded as the most important act in the evolution of British administration in India. This Act introduced Parliamentary supervision over the actions of the directors of the Company. The British territories were broadly categorized into administrative units called Presidencies. There were three Presidencies namely, Bengal, Madras and Bombay, and each of these was administered by a Governor. The Regulating Act of 1773 unified these three Presidencies under the authority of the Governor of Bengal and the new authority was raised to the position of the Governor-General in order to create unified administration for India. He was the supreme head of the administration with a council of four members appointed to administer Bengal. He was to supervise the governors of Madras and Bombay. Warren Hastings was the first Governor-General appointed under this Act.

Question 10: The policy of Doctrine of Lapse helped the British to extend their influence India. Justify the statement.

Answer: Conceived by Lord Dalhousie, the Governor-General from 1848–1856, the Doctrine was an annexation policy. According to this doctrine, if an Indian ruler, under the direct influence of the English East India Company, died without a male heir, his kingdom would ‘lapse’, meaning it would become a part of the British dominion. According to the Hindu law, an individual or a ruler could adopt a male child in the absence of a natural heir. However, it was asserted that such adoptions would have to seek the prior approval of the British. In reality they refused adoptions and on this pretext annexed several kingdoms such as those in Satara, Sambalpur, Udaipur, Nagpur and Jhansi.

Question 11: How did the Charter Act of 1813 influence the East India Company?

Answer: The Charter Act of 1813 opened Indian trade to all Englishmen subject to a few conditions and abolished the Company’s monopoly in Indian trade except trade with China.

Question 12: During the eighteen and nineteen century, important changes were made in the Indian judicial system by the British. Support the statement with suitable examples.

Or

Discuss any five reforms introduced in the Indian judicial system during the period of Warren Hastings and Lord Cornwallis.

Answer:

  • According to the new system of justice, two courts, namely, a criminal court (faujdari adalat) and a civil court (diwani adalat) were established in each district.
  • In addition to these, the Sadar Diwani Adalat (a court of appeal in civil cases) and Sadar Nizamat Adalat (a court of appeal in criminal cases) for revising and confirming sentences were established in Calcutta.
  • The criminal courts remained in the hands of a qazi and a mufti who were supervised by the collector.
  • The civil courts were presided over by the collector.
  • The main job of the collector was to collect taxes and maintain law and order in his district for which he could take the help of judges, police officers and darogas.
  • In 1774, the Supreme Court was established in Calcutta under the Regulating Act of 1773.
  • The foundation of the two notable developments in the field of judicial administration – the codification of laws and the establishment of the High Court was laid during the administration of the Company.
  • A Law Commission was constituted to codify all the Indian laws, thus the principle of the Rule of Law was introduced for the entire country irrespective of caste and creed thereby established the concept of equality before the law.
  • The Indian High Courts Act of 1861 authorized establishment of High Courts in Calcutta, Madras and Bombay by amalgamating the Supreme and Sadar Courts.

Beginning of Colonial Rule in India Questions & Answers

Question 13: Discuss the nature of the Third Anglo-Maratha war.

Or

The Third Anglo-Maratha war ended the Maratha rule. Give reasons.

Answer: The Third Anglo-Maratha War was a final and a decisive war fought between the Marathas and the British leaving the Marathas defeated. The British destroyed the confederacy. The Peshwa was removed and sent to Bithur near Kanpur on a pension of eight lakh a year and all his territories came under the British control. With this war, the Company had complete control over all of present-day India, South of the Sutlej River.

Question 14: Write the events that led to the establishment of Portuguese settlements in India.

Answer: The events that led to the establishment of Portuguese settlements in India are:

  • In 1498, the discovery of a new sea route to India by Vasco da Gama paved the way for the Europeans to trade with India.
  • They were the first European traders who established their control in the western coast of India.
  • Alfonso de Albuquerque was appointed the Governor of Portuguese affairs in India.
  • He captured the rich port of Goa in 1510 and established the Portuguese trading settlement.
  • Trading settlements were also set up in a few places such as Diu, Daman, etc.

Question 15: How did the British establish their supremacy over Punjab?

Answer: The death of Maharaja Ranjit Singh was followed by a period of instability and a struggle for power. The British grabbed the opportunity and two prolonged Anglo-Sikh Wars decided the fate of Punjab. The Sikhs could no longer preserve their independence and finally, in 1849 Lord Dalhousie annexed the kingdom of Punjab.

Question 16: Write the important features of the three Acts mentioned below:

(a) The Regulating Act of 1773

Answer:

  • This act introduced Parliamentary supervision over the actions of the directors of the Company.
  • It unified the three Presidencies under the authority of the Governor of Bengal and the new authority was raised to the position of the Governor-General.
  • Warren Hastings was the first Governor-General appointed under this Act.

(b) The Pitt’s India Act, 1784

Answer:

  • The Act was introduced to rectify the defects of the Regulating Act of 1773.
  • A Board of Control was established comprising of six members.
  • The Act fully empowered the Board which had all the powers and control over the civil, military and revenue affairs of the Company.

(c) The Act of 1786

  • The Act gave the power to Governor-General to overrule his Council in certain situations.
  • Governor-General was also made Commander-in-Chief of the British forces in India.

So, these were Beginning of Colonial Rule in India Questions & Answers.

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