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.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Discontent with British rule
India unified
Leadership
Common language
New print culture
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.
The Rise of Indian Nationalism
• 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
Activating Movement
• 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
• 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
Initial requests of the Congress to British were modest, such as more positions
for Indians in the ICS, and better representation on government councils.
Nationalism Surfaces in India
• 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.
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 secondclass 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 selfgovernment 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 Congress
 1885  The Indian National Congress
was founded in Bombay.
 swaraj  “independence.”
* 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 League
 1905  partition of Bengal based on
religions and languages.
 1906  creation of the Muslim
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 selfgovernment
•
•
also participated in acts of
violence against British in India
also upset about
segregation of Bengal
in1905
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 HinduMuslim Unity – called
“Ambassador of HinduMuslim Unity”
C. Proposed Lucknow
Pact
Muhammad Ali Jinnah
D. Disagreement with Gandhi led to
Muslim- Congress split
E. 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.
Message to the
Masses
• According to
Gandhi, what are
his three goals to
win independence
from Great
Britain?
1. Hindu-Muslim Unity
2. Must end “untouchability”
3. Must defy the British – Not through violence
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 Hindu
clothes: ________
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 Campaign
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
Negotiation and arbitration
Preparation of the group for direct action
Agitation
Issuing an ultimatum
Economic boycott and forms of strike
Non-cooperation
Civil Disobedience
Usurping the functions of the government
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 factories
out 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, selfdiscipline, 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.
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
84
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
Buddha
Nehru
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
•
• Many British businesses went
out of business in India
1922 Indian rioters
attacked a police station
and set officers on fire!
•
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 uponand 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
1920
Gandhi 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.
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.
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.
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, 1930
Making
Salt
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
British arrested 60,000 peaceful
protestors (including Gandhi)
•
Protestors refused to defend
themselves: marching peacefully
•
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 21day 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!!!
1946-1947
This time period was filled with violence between the
Hindus and the Muslims. The result: 20 000 people either
dead or wounded.
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
August 15,
1947
Gandhi realized his long soughtafter 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: Muslimbased Pakistan and Hindu-based
India. He thoroughly opposed
this partition. Gandhi did not take
part in the celebration of India's
independence.
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
Jinnah
Nehru
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
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.
Gandhi’s reaction to the
independence and partition of 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 assassinated
by a disgruntled Hindu
upset 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.
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.
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.
He was executed in November 1949.
Mahatma 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 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.
• 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?
India Grieves
• 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
Rise of Indian Nationalism
• 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
•Gandhi organized peaceful marches and
“An eye for
public refusal to obey unfair British laws
an eye
makes the
whole
world
blind”
“Victory attained
by violence is
actually defeat”
The Indian Independence movement, 1905-1947
The Land and the People
 Classes and Languages – growth created pressures, less land
 Peasants (majority) – over taxed, Maharajahs (ruling princes) – protected
 English = common language of western educated
 Religion – Hindu center with Muslim sides
British Rule and Indian Nationalism
 Viceroy & Indian Civil Service
 Indian National Congress – founded in 1885
 1905 – British divide Bengal Province in two, putting Hindu at disadvantage in east
 1906 – All-India Muslim League – Muhammad Ali Jinnah
 1911 – Brits moved capital – Calcutta to Delhi (Mughal capital) = wake-up call
 Indian Steel Industry – symbolic hope for independence
 WWI left promises of self-rule, upon return, outbreaks of violence
 1919 – Rowlatt Act = denial of habeas corpus, no public protests allowed
 1919 – 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, 1905-1947…continued
Mahatma Gandhi and Militant Nonviolence
 Mahatma = Great Soul, western educated lawyer, cut his teeth in South Africa
 Ahimsa (nonviolence) + Satyagraha (search for the truth) = nonviolent civil disobedience
 Wore homespun, brought independence ideas to the peasant (majority)
 Salt March to protest British tax on salt
 When jailed = protested via fasting. Every arrest made him more popular.
India moves toward independence
 Jawaharlal Nehru – Indian National Congress, working toward creating industrial India
 Viceroy of India declares war (WWII) without consulting Indians
 WWII a dividing time amongst Indians, who to support, who to protest
Partition and Independence (post WWII)
 Muhammad Ali Jinnah – demands separate state of Pakistan (E&W) for Muslims
 1947 – two states established, mass relocation causes riots and deaths
 Kashmir – Hindu maharajah, Muslim people – still a hotspot today