Our ideal is that of Swaraj or absolute autonomy free from foreign control. We claim the right of every nation to live its own life by its own energies according to its own nature and ideals.
📚 What's in This Chapter?
After 1857 — British Crown Rule
⬆️ A procession of women in Bombay during the 1942 Quit India Movement — women led India's freedom struggle too!
👑 1858 — British Crown Takes Over
- After the Great Uprising of 1857, the East India Company was dissolved
- British Crown (Queen Victoria) directly took control of India
- India governed by Secretary of State for India (London) + Viceroy (India)
- "Royal Proclamation" promised respect for princes & no forced Christianity — NOT respected in practice!
😤 How Indians Were Treated
- Lesser pay than British in same government posts
- Cannot carry arms (Arms Act 1878) — but British could
- Indian-language press censored (Vernacular Press Act 1878)
- Separate clubs, trains, public spaces — Indians excluded
- Heavy land taxes → severe famines → widespread discontent
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Reform Movements
📚 Social Reformers of India
| Reformer | Movement/Contribution |
|---|---|
| Raja Ram Mohan Roy | Brahmo Samaj; fought sati, child marriage; promoted widow remarriage |
| Swami Dayananda Saraswati | Arya Samaj; "Back to the Vedas"; fought caste discrimination |
| Jyotirao Phule | Satyashodhak Samaj; championed Dalit & women's rights |
| Sir Syed Ahmed Khan | Founded AMU (Aligarh); modernised Muslim education |
| Swami Vivekananda | Ramakrishna Mission; revived pride in Indian culture; 1893 Chicago speech |
🎵 Cultural Nationalism
- Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay composed Vande Mataram (1875) — became the battle cry of freedom fighters!
- The song personified India as a mother goddess — stirred enormous nationalist feeling
- Literature, music & art became weapons of the freedom struggle
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Early Nationalism & the Congress
🧠 Timeline — Early Nationalism
📅 1885 — First session of Indian National Congress (Bombay)
📅 1897 — First prosecution of Bal Gangadhar Tilak for sedition
📅 1902 — Anushilan Samiti founded (revolutionary group)
📅 1905 — Partition of Bengal → Swadeshi & Boycott movements erupt!
📅 1906 — Congress endorses Swaraj, Swadeshi, Boycott; Muslim League founded
📅 1908 — Alipore Bomb Case; Khudiram Bose executed; Tilak imprisoned
📅 1911 — Partition of Bengal annulled; capital shifted Calcutta→Delhi
📅 1897 — First prosecution of Bal Gangadhar Tilak for sedition
📅 1902 — Anushilan Samiti founded (revolutionary group)
📅 1905 — Partition of Bengal → Swadeshi & Boycott movements erupt!
📅 1906 — Congress endorses Swaraj, Swadeshi, Boycott; Muslim League founded
📅 1908 — Alipore Bomb Case; Khudiram Bose executed; Tilak imprisoned
📅 1911 — Partition of Bengal annulled; capital shifted Calcutta→Delhi
✂️ Partition of Bengal (1905) — Turning Point!
British divided Bengal (largest province) along religious lines — claiming administrative reasons, but actually to divide Hindus & Muslims. The response was massive: Swadeshi movement (use Indian goods) & Boycott movement (reject British goods) — transformed into a nationwide mass movement!
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Moderates vs Nationalists
| 🕊️ Moderates | 🔥 Nationalists (Lal-Bal-Pal) |
|---|---|
| Gradual reform through petition & dialogue | Immediate Swaraj (self-rule) by any means |
| Believed in British sense of justice | Rejected dependence on British goodwill |
| Leaders: Dadabhai Naoroji, Gopal Krishna Gokhale | Leaders: Lala Lajpat Rai, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Bipin Chandra Pal |
| Constitutional methods | Mass agitation, Swadeshi, Boycott |
📌
1907 Surat Split: Congress split at Surat between Moderates and Nationalists — showed the growing divide in approach to achieving independence.
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Gandhi & Mass Movements
🌟 Gandhi Returns to India (1915)
Gandhi had developed Satyagraha (truth-force) in South Africa (1907–14) fighting racial discrimination. Back in India, he transformed the independence movement into a true mass movement — involving all sections of society.
🤝 Non-Cooperation (1920–22)
- Boycott British schools, courts, titles
- Massive nationwide response!
- Withdrawn after Chauri Chaura violence (1922)
🧂 Salt March (1930)
- Gandhi walked 386 km to Dandi
- Made salt from seawater → broke unjust salt law
- Started Civil Disobedience Movement
- Worldwide media attention!
🚪 Quit India (1942)
- "Do or Die" — Gandhi's call
- Mass arrests & repression by British
- Underground resistance continued
- Proved India's determination for freedom
⬆️ Gandhi's Salt March 1930 (left) • Non-cooperation movement (right)
Jallianwala Bagh Massacre (1919)
British General Dyer ordered troops to fire on unarmed civilians (including women & children) gathered at Jallianwala Bagh, Amritsar. Hundreds killed, thousands wounded. This atrocity shocked the entire nation and galvanised the freedom movement.
British General Dyer ordered troops to fire on unarmed civilians (including women & children) gathered at Jallianwala Bagh, Amritsar. Hundreds killed, thousands wounded. This atrocity shocked the entire nation and galvanised the freedom movement.
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Revolutionaries
⚡ "Freedom by Any Means" — The Revolutionary Path
Many freedom fighters believed armed resistance was necessary. They were not afraid to give their lives. The 14,000-name Dictionary of Martyrs captures only a fraction of those who sacrificed everything!
🧠 Key Revolutionaries
🔥 Bal Gangadhar Tilak — "Swaraj is my birthright!"; imprisoned multiple times; inspired millions
💣 Khudiram Bose — youngest martyr; executed age 18 (1908) in Alipore Bomb Case
🌟 Bhagat Singh, Rajguru & Sukhdev — executed 1931; became eternal symbols of sacrifice
✈️ Subhas Chandra Bose — formed Indian National Army (INA); "Give me blood, I'll give you freedom!"
💪 Lala Lajpat Rai — died after police lathi charge during Simon Commission boycott (1927)
💣 Khudiram Bose — youngest martyr; executed age 18 (1908) in Alipore Bomb Case
🌟 Bhagat Singh, Rajguru & Sukhdev — executed 1931; became eternal symbols of sacrifice
✈️ Subhas Chandra Bose — formed Indian National Army (INA); "Give me blood, I'll give you freedom!"
💪 Lala Lajpat Rai — died after police lathi charge during Simon Commission boycott (1927)
⬆️ Bhagat Singh, Rajguru & Sukhdev — executed 1931, became icons of the freedom movement (left) • Subhas Chandra Bose with INA soldiers (right)
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Final Push to Independence
⚡ Events That Broke British Authority (1945–47)
- 1943–44: Subhas Chandra Bose reorganised INA; proclaimed Azad Hind government; campaigns in northeast India
- 1946: INA Trials — British prosecuted INA soldiers → public outrage across India!
- 1946: Royal Indian Navy Mutiny — Indian sailors revolted in Bombay
- 1946: Cabinet Mission Plan — British acknowledged they must leave
- 1946: "Direct Action Day" by Jinnah → communal violence; partition became inevitable
- 15 August 1947 — India gained Independence! 🇮🇳
- But partition created Pakistan → millions displaced, tragic communal violence
⬆️ The dawn of independence — 15 August 1947
Key Debates Among Freedom Fighters
Petition vs Agitation vs Armed revolt • Dominion status vs Complete independence (Purna Swaraj) • United India vs Pakistan • Role of religion in politics • How to include all communities in the struggle
Petition vs Agitation vs Armed revolt • Dominion status vs Complete independence (Purna Swaraj) • United India vs Pakistan • Role of religion in politics • How to include all communities in the struggle
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Quick Summary
⭐ Key Points to Remember
- 1858: British Crown takes over India after 1857 uprising — racial discrimination & economic exploitation continue
- Reform movements: Brahmo Samaj, Arya Samaj, Satyashodhak Samaj — social reform + cultural pride
- 1885: Indian National Congress founded — platform for unified political voice
- 1905: Partition of Bengal → Swadeshi & Boycott — mass nationalism awakens
- Gandhi: Satyagraha, Non-cooperation (1920), Salt March (1930), Quit India (1942)
- Revolutionaries: Tilak, Bhagat Singh, Subhas Bose — armed & radical approach
- 15 August 1947 — Independence & Partition