Development of Indian Nationalism and Independence

Focus on Role of Gandhi

Defining Nationalism and Causes of Nationalism in India

Nationalism – the loyalty to a group with whom one shares a common history, culture, and/or religion.

Nationalism is………………

[1]the desire to achieve political independence, especially by a country under foreign control or by a

people with a separate identity and culture but no state of their own; [2]proud loyalty and devotion to

a nation; [3]excessive or fanatical devotion to a nation and its interests, often associated with a belief that one country is superior to all others.

Causes of Indian Nationalism:

1. Discontent with British rule2. India unified3. Leadership4. Common language5. New print culture6. Nationalist orgs.

Political Nationalism

• Desire for political freedoms:– suffrage– Indians in government– independence

Cultural Nationalism

• Development of “Indian” cultural identity• Rewrite histories

– Hinduism– math/sciences– art

FACTORS ENABLING BRITAIN TO DOMINATE INDIA

• By 1763 Britain had driven its chief European rival, France, from India and Britain expanded .

• The British conquest was facilitated by India's backwardness and disunity.

1. Military Inferiority. • The Indians could not cope with the superior British military

knowledge, training, and equipment.2. Many Languages.

– The people of India were divided linguistically among more than a dozen main languages and over 200 dialects.

– Their many tongues reflected geographic and cultural separation.3. Religious Divisions.

– Majority religion was Hindu, 20% of the nation was Muslim– Hindu and Muslims constantly were fighting each other

FACTORS ENABLING BRITAIN TO DOMINATE INDIA

• 4 Economic Control. Britain profited greatly from India, called the "brightest jewel of the British Empire."

• - British manufacturers and workers depended upon India to purchase their textiles and machines.

• 5. Social Control. The British had little respect for the native Indian culture, particularly the barbaric practices of – slavery, – suttee or sati(the Hindu custom of burning the

widow on the funeral pyre of her deceased husband), and

– female infanticide (killing unwanted baby girls).

Beginnings of Indian Nationalism

• Nationalism in India began in the 1800s.• Indians did not like being under British

colonial rule because:– They were treated badly– British got the best jobs– British got the best education– Indian craftsmen were not allowed to run traditional businesses because they would compete with British businesses.

First Indian Nationalists

• Were upper class• Were English educated• Many of them from urban areas like Bombay,

Madras, and Calcutta• Some were trained in British law• Some were members of the civil service• Many preferred reform to revolution

Beginnings of Indian Nationalism

• The new Indian middle classes slowly grew tired of the injustice of British rule

• The new nationalists wrote in both English and their regional languages and turned to aspects of Indian tradition, especially Hinduism, as a rallying ground for national pride

– Ignored or overlooked Muslim leaders

Indian Nationalism

During the years of British rule, a class of western-educated Indians emerged who dreamed of ending imperial rule

In 1835, Thomas Macaulay articulated the goals of British colonial imperialism most succinctly: "We must do our best to form a class who may be interpreters between us and the millions whom we govern, a class of persons Indian in blood and colour, but English in taste, in opinions, words and intellect." 

Preserving Indian Culture

Acts to Preserve Indian Culture• Indian teachers, writers, and journalists wanted to

preserve their own culture.• In the early 1800s, when the British established a college

in Calcutta, a publishing house was opened too.• It published Western books, but also books on India’s

ancient language of Sanskrit and dictionaries and grammar books for many of the Indian languages.

• This spread to other regions of India and led to writers searching for the Indian identity in modern novels and poetry.

• Indians began writing historical romances and epics and usually in their own regional language.

Example of Preserving Culture: Tagore

Rabindranath Tagore• Most illustrious Indian author---great writer and poet• Was a social reformer, spiritual leader, educator,

philosopher, and international spokesperson on morality• His life’s mission was to promote pride in Indian culture in

the face of British domination• He wrote a widely popular novel in which he portrayed the

love-hate relationship of Indians towards Britain.• Reflected how Indian people struggled with defining their

identity as they admired and imitated the British, but lost some of their Indian traditions

• Wanted world peace and a union of the East and West

Tagore

• Strove to have a balance between Western influence and ancient customs

• He was respected and followed by both British colonizers and Indians for his work

• Friend of Gandhi• Preferred to stay out of politics

Rabindranath Tagore

• “It is my conviction that my countrymen will truly gain their India by fighting against the education that teaches them that a country is greater than the ideals of humanity.”

Tagore

• “Bigotry tries to keep truth safe in its hand with a grip that kills it.”

Preserving Indian Culture: Another Example ---Nationalist

Newspapers

Nationalist Newspapers• Printed in various regional Indian languages• Common medium used to arouse mass support for the

nationalist causes• The newspapers reached the lower middle class---tens of

thousands of Indians who did not know English• Examples:

– Kesari or The Lion Newspaper---journalist Tilak used innuendo to convey negative feelings about the British without writing anything directly disloyal

– Swadeshamitram or The Friend of Our Nation---editor organized literary meetings to discuss poetry and politics

Ram Mohun Roy and Indian Nationalism

Combined Western and Indian Ideas:

Ram Mohun Roy combined both views and because of his influence, he is often hailed as the founder of Indian nationalism

This statue of Raja Rammohun Roy stands outside Bristol Cathedral.

Initial requests of the Congress to British were modest, such as more positions for Indians in the ICS, and better representation on government councils.

• Groups in India found British rule deeply disturbing• Indian elites and middle classes lacked opportunities • Indians had little power to influence decisions at higher levels of

government

• Nationalist movement did not take off until Indians saw themselves as having same rights as Europeans

• Idea first expressed by reformer Ram Mohun Roy, 1820s

• Felt British violating Indian’s rights, including free speech, religion

Nationalist Movement

The Rise of Indian Nationalism

• Roy wrote texts, opened schools to spread nationalist ideas

• Despite his efforts, took several decades for movement to activate

• 1885, Indian National Congress, first nationalist group, founded by English-speaking Indians

Activating Movement

• Calls for Reforms– In 1800s, Ram Mohun

Roy leads modernization movement

– Many Indians adopt western ways and call for social reforms

– Indians resent being second-class citizens in their own country.

Nationalism Surfaces in India

Raja Ram Mohan Roy• Sought to counter the criticisms of Hinduism

made by the British missionaries

• Founded the Brahmo Samaj in 1828 as a new religion with Christian-style services.

• Encouraged Indians to be egalitarians----to move away from the caste system and accept that all people are equal

• Encouraged Indians to do more social services for the poor and to reject the belief that their suffering was okay due to karma and dharma

Ram Mohun Roy (1772-1833)• well-educated Indian

who began a campaign to modernize India

• he was opposed to India’s caste system (social class system that ties a person to the social class they are into for life: based on Hindu beliefs)

• opposed to child marriages and widow suicides

• believed these practices needed to be changed if India wanted to be free from rule by outsiders

Ram Mohun Roy (1772-1833)• other Indian writers picked

up on Roy’s ideas and called for changes

• Indian resented being second-class citizens in their own country

• Indians were paid 20 times less than British

• Indians could not hold top jobs in government

Impact of Ram Roy: Independence Organizations Formed

Indian National Congress• Comprised of Middle

Class professionals and lawyers educated in England

• Majority of members Hindu

• Wanted greater self-government for Indians in India

Muslim League• Comprised of Middle

Class professionals and lawyers educated in England

• Members Muslim• Wanted independence for

India and creation of 2 countries: India and Pakistan

Indian National Congress

Indian National Congress (INC)

• Due to the slow pace of British reform in India, many of the nationalists became convinced that relying on British good will was a lost cause

• 1885---a small group of Indians met in Bombay and formed the Indian National Congress

• It did not immediately call for independence, but for a share in the governing process

Indian National Congress

• Had problems due to religious differences between Muslims and Hindus members

• INC sought independence for all Indians regardless of class or religions

• But its leaders were Hindus and not Muslims

• INC reflected more Hindu concerns

Indian National Congress 1885• Made up of Hindus; called

for self-government• upset that Britain segregated

Bengal (Indian city) into Muslim section and Hindu section in 1905

• INC led acts of violence against British in Bengal

• 1911 Britain changed the order of segregation

The Indian National CongressThe Indian National Congress

1885 1885 The Indian National The Indian National CongressCongress was founded in Bombay. was founded in Bombay.

swarajswaraj “independence.” “independence.” ** the goal of the movement. the goal of the movement.

Indian National Congress

• Goals: Democracy, Local Self-Rule, Prevent mass peasant uprising (like China) by keeping power centered on middle class leaders.

Example for Indian National Congress: Gandhi and

Jawaharlal Nehru

Mohandas Gandhi• Studied law in England,

practiced in South Africa• Joined the INC before

WWI• Became leader of the

INC because he was better able to relate to the problems of the common people

• Believed in the idea of non-violent resistance (Satyagraha)

Nehru

• Joined the INC in 1930s• New kind of Indian

politician---upper class and intellectual

• Differed from Gandhi who was more religious and traditional, while Nehru was secular, Western, and modern

Nehru

Jawaharlal Nehru. Also a high-caste Hindu educated in Britain, •- Nehru was a practical political leader with socialist leanings. •-  He accepted Gandhi's ideas of passive resistance and aiding untouchables, but he rejected Gandhi's proposal for hand production. •-  Instead, Nehru urged industrialization to develop India's economy and raise living standards.

Muslim League

The Muslim LeagueThe Muslim League 1905 1905 partition of Bengal partition of Bengal based onbased on religions and languages. religions and languages.

1906 1906 creation of the Muslim creation of the Muslim League. League.

Muslim League• Strongest support came from Muslims who were

frightened of Hindu domination• But many Muslims were also members of the

Indian National Congress too• Initially the Muslim League focused on protesting

Muslim rights and promoting understanding between the different religious groups

• There was no notion of creating a separate state for Muslims until the 1920s when the religious differences developed

Muslim League 1906• Made up of Muslims • also called for self-

government

• also upset about segregation of Bengal in1905

• also participated in acts of violence against British in India

The Muslim League Forms

Goals: • Protect the interests,

liberties and rights of Muslims

• Promote an understanding between the Muslim community and other Indians - discourage violence.

• Educating the Muslim and Indian community at large on the actions of the government

Indian Nationalism Grows• Indian National Congress (Hindus)/Muslim

League (Muslims) Found Common Ground

• Both worked together towards Indian Independence

Example: Mohammed Ali Jinnah and Muslim League

Muhammad Ali Jinnah

            

             

• Leader of the Muslim League who pushed for a separate country for Muslim Indians.

Muhammad Ali Jinnah

A. Middle Class lawyer educated in Britain

B. First supported Hindu-Muslim Unity – called “Ambassador of Hindu-Muslim Unity”

C. Proposed Lucknow Pact

Muhammad Ali JinnahD. Disagreement with Gandhi led to

Muslim- Congress splitE. Jinnah began to fear Hindu

domination of Congress – A “Hindu Raj”

F. Began to support the idea for an independent Muslim homeland, Pakistan or “land of the pure”.

Mohammed Ali Jinnah

• was an Indian politician who successfully campaigned for an independent Pakistan and became its first leader.

• He is known as 'Quaid-I Azam' or 'Great Leader• He joined the Indian National Congress, but left to fight for an

independent Pakistan for the newly formed Muslim League. • Jinnah had always believed that Hindu-Muslim unity was

possible, but reluctantly came to the view that partition was necessary to safeguard the rights of Indian Muslims.

• Jinnah became the first governor general of Pakistan, but died of tuberculosis on 11 September 1948

• .

Muhammed Ali Jinnah• Became leader of the Muslim League• Put forward his 14 Points in 1929 to try to make a

compromise with the INC• Some of the points were:

– Muslim representation should not be less than 1/3 in the legislative branch

– Representation of minorities should have separate electorates

– The Constitution should provide safeguards– Protect the Muslim culture

• But the INC rejected these points and pushed for his exile

Impact of the Government of India Act

• Widened the gulf between the INC and the Muslim League

• In 1938, Jinnah met with Gandhi, Nehru, and other leaders of the INC and insisted that the INC recognize the Muslim League as the sole party of India’s Muslims

• Gandhi and the INC refused and the split between the two groups became permanent

Jinnah

Role of Gandhi

This political cartoon shows Gandhi putting all of his focus on India while creating chaos in India.

• According to Gandhi, what are his three goals to win independence

from Great Britain?

Message to the Masses

3. Must defy the British – Not through violence

1. Hindu-Muslim Unity

2. Must end “untouchability”

Influences on Gandhi

GANDHI’S DOCTRINE (BELIEFS)

• ______________: nonviolence; reverence for all life

• CIVIL DISOBEDIENCE: refusal to obey unjust laws

Gandhi’s Influences•Hindu religion and Jainism “ahimsa”

•Christ’s teaching to love one’s enemy

•Henry David Thoreau’s philosophy of civil disobedience

Fusion of Hindu Traditions and Western Thought

• Followed Hindu religious practices (no meat) and beliefs (Polytheistic)

• Wore traditional Hinduclothes: ________

Fusion of Hindu Traditions and Western Thought

• _______________ & _______________:

• Fought for = rights for untouchables

• Fought for women’s rights

Satyagraha

Mahatma Gandhi• His strategy to gain India’s freedom was

SATYAGRAHA or “truth force”---the application of righteous and moral force in politics

• What we now call Civil Disobedience• It required non-violence based on Hindu principles and

the belief in the ultimate goodness of the soul• Requires a core group of self-sacrificing and

disciplined activists • To be successful, it must have widespread publicity

that generates national concern and international pressure for change

Gandhi’s Ideas and Methods

• Satyagraha – protesting without using violence in order to win the enemy over

Satyagraha• As part of Satyagraha, a Sanskrit term translated as

“insistence upon truth,” Gandhi promoted civil disobedience campaigns and organized a strike among Indian miners.

• The term "satyagraha" was coined and developed by Mahatma Gandhi.

• He deployed satyagraha in the Indian independence movement and also during his earlier struggles in South Africa for Indian rights.

• Satyagraha theory influenced Nelson Mandela's struggle in South Africa under apartheid, Martin Luther King, Jr.'s campaigns during the civil rights movement in the United States, and many other social justice and similar movements.

• Someone who practices satyagraha is a satyagrahi.

Gandhi and Nonviolence• Gandhi named this

power satyagraha (“reality force” or “holding onto truth”).

• Gandhi made use of every nonviolent technique imaginable.

• These techniques included marches, hunger strikes, and demonstrations.

Mohandas Gandhi (1869-1948)• Gandhi preached/practiced

Civil Disobedience• deliberate and public refusal

to obey any unjust law• rebellion without violence

• 1920 Indian National Congress officially adopts Gandhi’s policy as a means to push for independence

Gandhi

• “Nonviolence is the first article of my faith. It is also the last article of my creed.”

Instructions to Satyagrahis

• Harbor no anger, but suffer the anger of the opponent. Do not return assaults

• Do not submit to an order given in anger• Refrain from insults and swearing• Protect the opponents from insult or attack,

even at the risk of life• If taken prisoner, behave in an exemplary

manner• Obey the orders of the satyagraha leaders

Steps in a Satyagraha Campaign1. Negotiation and arbitration2. Preparation of the group for direct action3. Agitation4. Issuing an ultimatum5. Economic boycott and forms of strike6. Non-cooperation7. Civil Disobedience8. Usurping the functions of the government9. Parallel Government

Civil Disobedience• “Passive resistance is a method of securing rights by

personal suffering; it is the reverse of resistance by arms….For instance, the Government of the day has passed a law which is applicable to me. I do not like it. If by using violence I force the Government to repeal the law, I am employing what may be termed body-force. If I do not obey the law and accept the penalty for its breach, I use soul-force. It involves sacrifice of self.”

Mohandas Gandhi (1869-1948)• Gandhi’s Plan for Civil Disobedience:• Refuse to buy British goods

• Refuse to attend British schools

• Refuse to pay British taxes

• Refuse to vote in elections

• Indians weave their own cloth (to put British textile factoriesout of business)

Impact of Rowlatt Acts and Amritsar Massacre on Gandhi

Growing Unrest from the British Empire

- Indian nationalists demand freedom in 1919, hoping their cooperation from WWI would grant them freedom

- G.B. responded by limiting their freedom of press, furthermore General Dyer banned their rights to public gatherings after 5 British officials were killed

Unrest continued• April 13th, 1919: the Amritsar Massacre• 10,000 Indians gather for protest in northwestern

India, General Dyer and his troops open fire• 379 dead, 1100 wounded• The incident increased violence from both sides

and led to the distrust of G.B.

Amritsar Massacre 1919

•Peaceful demonstration against British

•Resulted in over 300 deaths

•Convinced Gandhi that cooperation with the British was impossible

Mohandas Gandhi (1869-1948) • Amritsar Massacre

set the stage for Mohandas Gandhi to become leader of the Indian Independence Movement

Other Issues Gandhi Fought For

Gandhi’s Appeal to Masses• He gained appeal by drawing on the rich heritage of India• He gave up western ways and encouraged traditional Indian

industries such as spinning cotton• Gandhi dressed simply in white garments much like the

India’s poor people• He stressed morals and ways of life such as virtue, self-

discipline, fasting, and being a vegetarian; which are all values of devout Hindus

• Mahatma or “Great Soul” became his name• The Mahatma wanted reforms for the lower castes and

political power for Muslims

Equality for Caste and Women

• Gandhi fought to improve conditions for women and untouchables in India

Equality for Women• At this time, ideas on women’s participation in the nationalist

movement grew out of commonly held cultural beliefs on the nature of Indian women as essentially self-sacrificing and thus ideally suited to non-violent protest.

• Emphasizing these feminine qualities and their role as mothers, specifically as mothers of the nation, empowered women to find places in the public arena of protest.

• Gandhi and other nationalist leaders believed women were specifically well-suited to spread a message of non-violence and to bear the hardships of protest.

• The emphasis on the essential nature of the Indian woman created a new place for women in public life, a new self-view, where women could become agents of change in public spaces.

84

Hindu Women as Freedom Fighters

• Sarojini Naidu, the ‘Nightingale of India’

• Broke social taboos, had an intercaste marriage

• Gifted poetess and author, wrote a 4000 line Persian play when she was 14 yrs

• Injected humor in India’s freedom movement (called Gandhiji a ‘mickey mouse’ and Nehru a ‘handsome prince’)

• Many other Hindu women fought for freedom, eg. Sucheta Kriplani, Kasturba Gandhi

Gandhi on Roles of Women

• I have suggested...that woman is the incarnation of ahimsa. Ahimsa means infinite love, which again means infinite capacity for suffering. Who but woman, the mother of man, shows this capacity in the largest measure? She shows it as she carries the infant and feeds it during nine months and derives joy in the suffering involved...Let her transfer that love to the whole of humanity...And she will occupy her proud position by the side of man as his mother, maker and silent leader. It is given her to teach the art of peace to the warring world thirsting for that nectar. She can become the leader in satyagraha which does not require the stout heart that comes from suffering and faith.

Gandhi and Ending Caste System

Gandhi and Ending the Caste System

• Mohandas (Mahatma) Gandhi

• Mahatma was from the Vaishya varna.

• Published magazines and advocated for the Untouchables.

• Other leaders that tried to end the caste system are

BuddhaNehru

1934-Collecting money for Harijan Fund at Bhavnagar

1934 - With Harijan Children

1940 - At a Harijan Marriage in Sevagram

1944 - Collecting Money for Harijan Fund in Pune

In 1933 Gandhi went on a fast for 21 days to draw attention to the treatment of the very poorest people in India, who he called ‘The Children of God’.

Hindu-Muslim Unity and Gandhi

Hindu-Muslim Unity

• “Indian first, Muslim or Hindu second”

• Gandhi often fasted to end Hindu-Muslim conflict

“No country has ever risen without being purified through the fire of suffering. Mother suffers so her child may live. The condition of wheat-growing is that the grain shall perish. Life comes out of death. Will India rise out of her slavery without fulfilling this eternal law of purification?”

--Mahatma Gandhi

1920-1922 First Satyagraha in India

Gandhi’s First Satyagraha• 1919, Amritsar Massacre• 1920, Gandhi’s first satyagraha.

Designed to make the British rule in India non-functional through a complete non-violent boycott

• Many were jailed by the British• Cancelled due to violence

Civil Disobedience• 1922 Indian rioters

attacked a police station and set officers on fire!

• Many British businesses went out of business in India

• British arrested Indians who protested and boycotted

British Reaction 1922• As time passed they realized the threat that Gandhi posed.• In March 1922 Gandhi was arrested and charged with sedition

( encouraging others to disobey the law).• The case against Gandhi was clear cut. He himself had written

about non-co-operation and the law.• Non-co-operation aims at the overthrow of the government and is

legally seditious (Gandhi, Young India 1922 )• Gandhi pleaded guilty. The trial gave Gandhi the opportunity to

publicize his views.• In sentencing Gandhi, the judge admitted that he was a special

case. • Nevertheless, Gandhi was sentenced to six years prison! He did

not serve the whole sentence. • After two years he fell ill with appendicitis – was operated upon-

and was later released. • The British did not wish Gandhi to die while he was in prison.

Boycotts

Homespun Movement• One of India’s most famous boycotts was Gandhi’s

“homespun” movement. – British plantations used Indian people and land to

grow cotton but then made clothes in England – They Brought the clothes back to sell to Indians at

inflated prices– It was illegal for Indian companies to manufacture and

sell clothing that was not made from British cloth!– Gandhi called for a boycott of all British made cloth!

Boycotts•Gandhi urged Indians to stop buying British products

•Making homespun cloth became the symbol of his movement

1920Gandhi became President of the All-India Home Rule League (AIHRL), which worked towards independence from the British Empire. Soon the AIHRL begins to boycott British-made cloth, spinning their own cloth instead.

Gandhi started a boycott of machine made European clothing, as it caused large scale unemployment in India. He started making hand-made cloth called Khadi that was inexpensive and suitable for poor Indians. Most importantly, it showed Indians how to be self-reliant.  Gandhi worked on his spinning wheel till his last days.

Gandhi thought “Why should we have to buy back our own cotton cloth? Let’s spin it ourselves!” So he learned how to spin and weave cotton into cloth. He and his followers taught this old fashioned way of spinning and weaving to thousands of others.

The British would have cotton grown in India, then have it picked by Indians, put on ships, shipped to England, where it would be spun into thread, woven into cloth, shipped back to India and sold to the Indian people for a higher price. In fact, Britain had laws that forced the Indians to buy only this cloth.

This made big news all over the world. People around the world soon began to think that this wasn’t fair either. Even the workers in the cloth factories back in England thought this was not fair. These were the people whose jobs were being lost because of Gandhi and his supporters making their own cloth. Finally the laws about the cloth were changed and Indians were permitted by the British to make their own cloth.

Soon the British weren’t making money off the Indians buying their cloth anymore. The English said they had to buy the English cloth. But Gandhi and his followers refused. Gandhi and hundreds of others were thrown in jail. He would be let out of jail but he would keep spinning and weaving and keep breaking the law and get thrown in jail again and again.

Salt March

Salt Acts 1930

• These laws required that Indians buy salt only from the British government (without refrigeration, salt was crucial to keeping food from spoiling)

• Required Indians to pay a sales tax to British on salt as well

Salt March 1930• The Raj imposed strict controls on salt production

and a stiff tax on its sale• Indians were arrested for making or selling salt• This tax on a basic necessity of life was really hard

on the poor.• To Gandhi, the salt tax was a symbol of the tyranny

of the British rule---like the tea tax on the American colonists

• To oppose the British salt tax that was strangling the Indian economy, he organized the Salt March

Salt March, 1930Salt March, 1930

MakingMakingSaltSalt

The 1930 Salt March• According to law, the British had a monopoly

on the manufacture and sale of salt.• Indians were arrested if they tried to make

salt.• Gandhi directly defied British law and

marched to the ocean to collect salt.

Salt March• Began on March 12, 1930• Tens of thousands of people cheered as Gandhi walked 390

km from his ashram to Dandi Beach• After morning prayers, Gandhi collected salt on the seashore

and proclaimed: “With this, I am shaking the foundations of the British Empire.”

• Hearing this, people all across India freely collected and sold salt

• Ten of thousands of Indians were brutally arrested by the British police, including 18,000 Indian women

• The march was closely covered by the international press making Gandhi famous in Europe and America

Salt March 1930• In protest Gandhi and his

followers walked 240 miles to the coast to make their own salt

• demonstrators marched to a British salt processing plant to protest

• made salt by evaporating sea water

Salt March 1930• British police attacked

protestors with steel clubs• Protestors refused to defend

themselves: marching peacefully

• British arrested 60,000 peaceful protestors (including Gandhi)

• International newspapers covered the event: won worldwide support for Gandhi’s movement

Salt March Monument

Gandhi picks up a grain of salt in defiance of British law.

On the beach at Dandi, the end of the Salt March

Impact of the Salt March• Six weeks later, hundreds of marchers attempted to take

over the Dharasana Salt Works outside of Bombay• The international press reported on the clash• “Police charged the marchers, swinging their clubs and

belaboring the raiders on all sides. The volunteers made no resistance. As the police swung hastily with their sticks, the natives simply dropped in their tracks. Less than 100 yards away I could hear the dull impact of clubs against bodies. The watching crowds gasped, or sometimes cheered, as the volunteers crumpled before the police without even raising their arms to ward off the blows.”

Impact of the Salt March

• Professor Richard Johnson wrote, “It is widely believed that the Salt Campaign turned the tide in India. All the violence was committed by the British and their Indian soldiers. The legitimacy of the Raj was never reestablished for the majority of Indians and an ever increasing number of British subjects.”

• The independence struggle had become a mass movement

Quit India Campaign

Quit India Campaign• Quit India Movement - The Quit India Movement was a

civil disobedience movement launched in India in August 1942 in response to Gandhi’s call for immediate independence.

• The All India Congress Committee proclaimed a mass protest demanding what Gandhi called "an orderly British withdrawal" from India.

• The call for determined, but passive resistance appears in his call to Do or Die, issued on 9th August at the Gowalia Tank Maidan in Mumbai in the year 1942.

• Hubli - Hubli, also called Hubballi, is a major city in the state of Karnataka, India.

• The name Hubballi literally means "flowering creeper" in Kannada.

• The twin cities of Hubli and Dharwad, collectively referred to as "Hubli-Dharwad", is the second-largest in Karnataka after Bengaluru.

• The city of Hubli, situated about 20 km south-east of Dharwad, is the commercial centre and business hub of the North Karnataka region.

“Quit India” Campaign• At the end of WWII, Britain saw that it could still control

India, but only by force.• In response, Gandhi began another satyagraha campaign.• He said there must be mass civil disobedience across India

in order to push the British out• Gandhi announced the “Quit India” Campaign in August

1942• He said: “ I want freedom immediately, this very night,

before dawn, if it can be had. Congress must win freedom or be wiped out in the effort. We shall either free India or die in the attempt.”

Quit India Campaign

• Indians were boiling with rage against the British rule and the tyranny of the British and the Quit India movement fuelled those feelings very strongly.

• The entire city of Hubli was filled with people participating in the Quit India movement and placards, posters could be seen everywhere depicting this.

• Thousands of people had gathered in Durgadbail, the city square echoing the call of Quit India.

Quit India Campaign

• On 7 to 8 August 1942, the All India Congress Committee met in Bombay and ratified the 'Quit India' resolution. Gandhi called for 'Do or Die'.

• The next day, on 9 August 1942, Gandhi, members of the Congress Working Committee and other Congress leaders were arrested by the British Government under the Defence of India Rules.

Quit India Campaign• The Working Committee, the All India Congress

Committee and the four Provincial Congress Committees were declared unlawful associations under the Criminal Law Amendment Act of 1908.

• The assembly of public meetings were prohibited under rule 56 of the Defence of India Rules.

• The arrest of Gandhi and the Congress leaders led to mass demonstrations throughout India. Thousands were killed and injured in the wake of the 'Quit India' movement.

Quit India Campaign• Strikes were called in many places. • The British swiftly suppressed many of these

demonstrations by mass detentions; more than 100,000 people were imprisoned.

• The 'Quit India' movement, more than anything, united the Indian people against British rule. Although most demonstrations had been suppressed by 1944, upon his release in 1944 Gandhi continued his resistance and went on a 21-day fast.

Impact of the “Quit India” Campaign

• The next day, Gandhi, Nehru, and other top leaders of the INC were placed in jail and most held until 1944

• The INC was declared illegal and all its funds were frozen.

• The INC offices were raided and documents seized.

• These actions caused uproar and there were demonstrations all over India.

Impact of the “Quit India” Campaign

• The demonstrations turned into riots and violence ensued.

• Key targets were police offices, government buildings, railway lines, and communication posts

• The disruptions slowed down the supplies reaching the British army fighting the Japanese in Burma

• More than 1000 were killed and 3000 injured in the riots

Impact of the “Quit India” Campaign

• To restore order, the British had to divert 35,000 troops to support the police

• Because the British did this, the campaign began to die off by November, and by the end of the year, it was clear that it had failed

• By the end of the Second World War, Britain's place in the world had changed dramatically and the demand for independence could no longer be ignored.

• Reporter: “Mr. Gandhi, what do you think of Western civilization?”

• Gandhi: “I think it would be a very good idea.”

As Gandhi’s movement grew, British officials were forced to meet with

him.

Hindus versus Muslims: Partition

____________ = (Christians, Buddhists, etc.)

____________ = 255 Million

____________ = 95 Million

PROBLEM

INDEPENDENT INDIA CANNOT BE RULED BY ALL HINDUS!!!

This time period was filled with violence between the Hindus and the Muslims. The result: 20 000 people either dead or wounded.

1946-1947

Mahatma Gandhi• “Gandhi believed so much in loving tolerance that he

hoped it could keep a newly independent India free of religious battles”(Molloy, 112).

• Unfortunately, fear and tension are quite common between religious faiths.

• Muslim leaders feared oppression from the Hindu majority. • Worked to create the new separate Muslim state of

Pakistan. • As a result of this, some Hindu militants wished for

revenge.

Hindu- Muslim Conflict• Hindus and Muslims had cooperated in the nationalist

movement• G.B. encouraged their divisions to weaken their grip over the

region• The Muslim League, led by Muhammad Ali Jinnah, asked for a

separate Muslim state• Religious differences caused a clash between the Muslims and

Hindus• Also, some Muslims feared for their rights to be dominated by

a Hindu majority• Gandhi thought the groups could live together, if they

respected each other and treated each other as family• Hindus distrusted the Muslims and looked at them as foreign

conquerors• Economic and political differences also increased the tension

Gandhi realized his long sought-after goal, which was the independence of India from Great Britain. It was a bittersweet victory for Gandhi because along with India's independence came the partitioning of the country into two separate states: Muslim-based Pakistan and Hindu-based India. He thoroughly opposed this partition. Gandhi did not take part in the celebration of India's independence.

August 15, 1947

The Subcontinent Divided• 1946: Rioting breaks out between Hindus and

Muslims• 1947: the British Parliament tried to prevent civil

war by passing the Indian Independence Act• This act partitioned the Indian subcontinent into

two independent nations• Pakistan- Muslim ruled by Governor General Jinnah• India – Hindu ruled by Prime Minister Nehru

JinnahNehru

One Slight Problem…►As people move to their new homes,

violence erupts

Partition• The division led to increased violence• Both governments on each side stressed a policy of religious

toleration, however distrust was deeply rooted• 500,000 people would die as a result• To escape death on both sides, roughly 15 million people

migrated to their religious majority country• Gandhi refused to celebrate the independence and in prayer

services he recited from the Koran, the Bible, and the Bhagavad-Gita

• A Hindu extremist assassinated Gandhi because he believed he betrayed his own people

Gandhi’s reaction to the independence and partition of India

Although independence from Britain was a joyous occasion, it was marred by violence. Widespread rioting between Hindus and Muslims detracted from what should have been a celebration for India.

The majority of Muslims moved to the newly formed Pakistan and most Hindus stayed in India, creating an ever-widening cultural gap. Gandhi began another fast until peace is made between India's Muslims and Hindus.

Gandhi’s Assassination

► Hunger strike “unto death”…or until peace resumes

► January 30, 1948: Gandhi is assassinatedby a disgruntled Hinduupset about the partition of India

Gandhi's assassin, Nathuram Godse, was described as a nationalist and right-wing Hindu who blamed Gandhi for the partitioning of India.

He was executed in November 1949.

After pumping three bullets into Gandhi at a range of a few feet, he fired a fourth shot in an attempt at suicide, but the bullet merely creased his scalp.

The assassin had been standing beside the garden path, his hands folded, palms together, before him in the Hindu gesture of greeting. But between his palms he had concealed a small-calibre pistol.

Mahatma Gandhi’s DeathMahatma Gandhi’s Death

• The assassination took place on January 30th 1948.• In point blank range, Nathuram Godse shot and killed Mahatma

Gandhi as he was walking to his prayer meeting. • Many people were unhappy of the division of India and Pakistan

including Mahatma Gandhi but some blamed Gandhi for the division.

• In the movie, it shows that there was a group of Hindu extremists who did not like Mahatma Gandhi because Nathuram Godse was a Hindu fanatic and believed that Gandhi was more lenient to the Muslims then Jinnah, the leader of the Muslim League, was to the Hindus.

Nathuram’s Views of GandhiNathuram’s Views of Gandhi

Nathuram Godse did not like Gandhi’s philosophy of unity among all religions, especially not with the Muslims. Jinnah wanted all Hindus to leave Pakistan, whereas, Gandhi welcomed the Muslims to stay in India. Nathuram Godse said that Gandhi was a “political and ethical impostor”, and the “curse of India, a force of evil”. Nathuram Godse tried to rationalize his wrong doing because he was against Gandhi’s belief that Muslims and Hindus should be united and that there should be an end to the caste system.

Legacy of Gandhi

Influences of Gandhi

• Mahatma Gandhi’s devotion to truth and nonviolence had influenced leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Nelson Mandela.

• The great scientist Albert Einstein said of Gandhi: “Generations to come will scarcely believe that such a one as this walked the earth in flesh and blood.”

• Gandhi’s beliefs continue to be studied and analyzed today.

The Legacy

• The legacy of Gandhi lives on.

• He has influenced such leaders as Martin Luther King, Jr. and Nelson Mandela.

• Both of these leaders have used his principles of civil disobedience as a way to enact change.

India Grieves• Jawaharlal Nehru radio address:• “Friends and comrades, the light

has gone out of our lives, and there is darkness everywhere, and I do not quite know what to tell you or how to say it. Our beloved leader, Bapu as we called him, the father of the nation, is no more. Perhaps I am wrong to say that; nevertheless, we will not see him again, as we have seen him for these many years, we will not run to him for advice or seek solace from him, and that is a terrible blow, not only for me, but for millions and millions in this country.”

• Why was Gandhi's death a terrible blow to India?

• Commenting on ongoing conflicts between Pakistan and India

• Commenting on terrorist actions by religious extremists in India

Gandhi Quotes

The things that will destroy us are: Politics without principle;

pleasure without conscience; wealth without work;

knowledge without character; business without morality; science without humanity;

and worship without sacrifice”. - Mahatma Gandhi

There is more to life than just increasing its speed.

You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty.

You must be the change you wish to see in the world.

In a gentle way you can shake the world.

First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.

Whenever you are confronted with an opponent, conquer him with love.

Nonviolence is a weapon of the strong.

You can chain me, you can torture me, you can even destroy this body, but you will never imprison my mind.

• “Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will.”

For the rest on Gandhi:

• We will be watching an Biography on Gandhi.• You will add to the provided teacher notes

with additional notes and thoughts on the movie on the left side.

Review

• Despite helping Britain in WWI, Indians were once again treated as 2nd class citizens after the war

• Groups like the Indian National Congress (Hindu) and Muslim League (Islam) began a campaign for Indian independence

• Many Indian radicals began to violently protest British rule

• 1919: British pass the Rowlatt bills, which jailed people w/o a trial•Mohandas Gandhi protests unfair laws

• Gandhi believed in an approach called non-violent resistance & non-cooperation

“An eye for an eye

makes the whole world blind”

“Victory attained by violence is

actually defeat”

Rise of Indian Nationalism

•Gandhi organized peaceful marches and public refusal to obey unfair British laws

The Indian Independence movement, 1905-1947The Indian Independence movement, 1905-1947The Land and the PeopleClasses and Languages – growth created pressures, less landPeasants (majority) – over taxed, Maharajahs (ruling princes) – protectedEnglish = common language of western educatedReligion – Hindu center with Muslim sidesBritish Rule and Indian NationalismViceroy & Indian Civil ServiceIndian National Congress – founded in 18851905 – British divide Bengal Province in two, putting Hindu at disadvantage in east1906 – All-India Muslim League – Muhammad Ali Jinnah1911 – Brits moved capital – Calcutta to Delhi (Mughal capital) = wake-up callIndian Steel Industry – symbolic hope for independenceWWI left promises of self-rule, upon return, outbreaks of violence1919 – Rowlatt Act = denial of habeas corpus, no public protests allowed1919 – Amritsar Massacre – Brits open fire on peaceful protestors killing 1,200

• However, Rowlatt Bills ban public gatherings

• 4/13/1919: Hindu & Muslim Indians gather in Amritsar to protest

• A British Commander felt Indians were openly defying the ban and ordered his troops to open fire on the crowd

• 400 people were killed and 1,200 wounded in the Amritsar Massacre

•Despite British violence, Gandhi urges followers to continue nonviolence

•Gandhi begins to organize a boycott of British goods & taxes

•The boycott on cloth is successful & British are losing money!

•Gandhi organizes the Salt March 1930

•Police officers beat the marchers. American media reports the event

•Independence is gained in 1947 but British partition country based on religion (India, East & West Pakistan)

The Indian Independence movement, 1905-1947The Indian Independence movement, 1905-1947…continuedMahatma Gandhi and Militant NonviolenceMahatma = Great Soul, western educated lawyer, cut his teeth in South AfricaAhimsa (nonviolence) + Satyagraha (search for the truth) = nonviolent civil disobedienceWore homespun, brought independence ideas to the peasant (majority)Salt March to protest British tax on saltWhen jailed = protested via fasting. Every arrest made him more popular.India moves toward independenceJawaharlal Nehru – Indian National Congress, working toward creating industrial IndiaViceroy of India declares war (WWII) without consulting IndiansWWII a dividing time amongst Indians, who to support, who to protestPartition and Independence (post WWII)Muhammad Ali Jinnah – demands separate state of Pakistan (E&W) for Muslims1947 – two states established, mass relocation causes riots and deathsKashmir – Hindu maharajah, Muslim people – still a hotspot today