Indian History

Indus River Valley Civilization (3000 – 1500 BCE)

• a.k.a. Harappan Civilization • Achievements:– Paved, brick streets– Large multistoried buildings

• We know very little about them because we haven’t deciphered their writing system

Aryan Invasion (1500 BCE)

• Education system to make theirs a dominant culture

• Sanskrit (writing system) – we have not fully translated yet

• Caste System• Their religion (Brahmanism) mixed with the

ancient religion to make Hinduism

Mogul Empire (1526-1857 CE)

• Brought Islam to India• Akbar the Great– Forged alliances with Hindu kingdoms

• Shah Jahan– “Golden Age” of Mogul architecture• Taj Mahal

• Aurangzeb– Expanded the empire to 1.25 million square miles,

150 million subjects (1/4 of world population)

British Colony(1858-1947 CE)

• British East India Company attracted by wealth of Mogul India (spices, cotton, silk, indigo, salt, tea, and opium)

• Royal Charter in 1600 – allowed access to ports by Mogul emperors

• 1858 – British Crown assumed direct control (“The British Raj”)

Independence (1947)

• 1885 – Indian National Congress founded– Leaders educated in England– Eventually gained 15 million

members and 70 million participants

• Mohandas Gandhi– Leader of Indian nationalism– Lawyer educated in London– Non-violent civil disobedience

Hindu-Muslim Relations

• Muslim minority worried about how they would be treated in an independent India

• Muhammad Ali Jinnah and the Muslim League demanded an independent Muslim state

Partition (1947)

• Two states: India and Pakistan (East & West)• 12.5 million people displaced• 500,000 – 1 million people dead (estimates)• Problems:– Independence was declared prior to partition so

the new states had to maintain order– No plans for large population movements– Breakdown of law and order; riots, massacres and

death from the journey

India-Pakistan Conflicts

• Competition for strategically located states (ex: Kashmir)– Autonomous under British; chose to remain autonomous

after independence– 70% Muslim but the Maharaja of Kashmir was Hindu– 1947, 1965, 1971 wars for Kashmir – Status has not changed – split between India, Pakistan, and

China– Water

• India buildup of military/nuclear power– Himalayas no longer provide protection (Who does India

need protection from?)