 |
Class VIII |
 |
| HISTORY |
Chapter 2
From Trade to Territory
1. What attracted European trading companies to India?
Ans:
- Cheap and fine quality of silk and cotton.
- For spices like pepper, cloves, cardamom and cinnamon etc..
2.What were the areas of conflict between the Bengal Nawabs and the East India Company?
Ans.
- They demanded large tributes for the Company’s right to trade,
- They denied the Company any right to mint coins,
- They stopped the Company from extending its fortifications.
3.How did the assumption of Diwani benefit the East India Company?
Ans: The Mughal emperor, in 1765, appointed the Company’s the Diwan of the provinces of Bengal. The Diwani allowed the Company to exploit the vast revenue resources of Bengal.
This solved a major problem that the company had earlier faced. Although its trade had expanded, it had to buy most of the goods in India with gold and silver imported from Britain.
4.Explain the system of ‘subsidiary alliance’.
Ans:
Subsidiary Alliance System
- The Britishers as a supreme power: Whichever state wanted to sign this treaty, had to accept the English as a supreme authority. The East India Company behaved as a guardian of that state.
- Appointment of resident: The state kept an English Resident in their court,
to check the activities of the king. - Keeping of an English army: Indian rulers were not allowed to have their army to protect the state from external and internal invasion. The state had to keep an English army. The state had to bear financial burden of the army.
5.In what way was the administration of the Company different from that of Indian rulers?
Ans :The administration of the Company was different from that of the Indian rulers in the following ways:
- The Company divided its administrative units called Presidencies. There were three Presidencies – Bengal, Madras and Bombay. In India, districts were the main administrative units.
- Each presidency was ruled by a Governor. Districts were ruled by the Collectors.
6.Describe the changes that occurred in the composition of the Company’s army.
Ans:
- East India Company adopted its own method when it began recruitment for the army.
- The soldiers had to keep pace with changing military requirements.
- Its infantry regiments now became more important.
- In the early 19th century the British began to develop a uniform military culture.
- Soldiers were given European-style training drills and discipline.
- They regulated their life far more than before.
- Often this created problems since caste and community feelings were ignored in building a force of professional soldiers.
Chapter 3
Ruling the Countryside
1. Describe the main features of the Permanent Settlement.
Ans.
The main features of the Permanent Settlement system are:
- a. The amount paid by the zamindars to the company was fixed permanently
- b. The Rajas were made the zamindars
- c. Zamindars lost their right over the lands whenever they fail to make payments to the company
- d. Exorbitant prices of land which zamindars had to pay to the company (which they failed.)
2. How was the mahalwari system different from the Permanent Settlement?
Ans.
Differences between Mahalwari System and Permanent Settlement are given below:
Mahalwari System
1.Holt Mackenzie devised it, and it came into effect in 1822.
2.The epicentre of the system was a village.
3.Villages were called ‘Mahal’
4.The revenue was to be revised periodically
Permanent Settlement
1.Permanent Settlement was brought by Lord Cornwallis in 1793
2.There was no such epicenter.
3.Revenue was fixed.
3. Give two problems which arose with the new Munro system of fixing revenue.
Ans.
The new Munro system of fixing revenue posed two problems:
a. The revenue demand was fixed way too high for peasants to pay
b. Peasants were unable to pay the rent which culminated into villages getting deserted.
4. Why were ryots reluctant to grow indigo?
Ans.
a. They were paid very low-prices for it
b. The ryots never saw any profit accruing from the indigo plantation
5. What were the circumstances which led to the eventual collapse of indigo production in Bengal?
Ans.
The collapse of indigo production in Bengal was caused by the following circumstances:
a. Ryots’ denied producing the indigo anymore
b. Protests started taking place by the peasants/ ryots supported by the zamindars.
Chapter 4
Tribals, Dikus and the Vision of a Golden Age
1. What problems did shifting cultivators face under British rule?
Ans.
- British always had problems with shifting cultivators, as they were always moving for pasture lands.
- The British wanted the shifting cultivators to become peasant cultivators.
- The British thought it was easier to control and administer peasant cultivators than shifting cultivators.
2. How did the powers of tribal chiefs change under colonial rule?
Ans.
Under British rule, the functions and powers of the tribal chiefs changed considerably. They were allowed to keep their land titles over a cluster of villages and rent outlands, but they lost much of their administrative power and were forced to follow laws made by the British officials in India.
3. What accounts for the anger of the tribals against the dikus?
Ans.
- Tribals were not happy with dikus who were considered as ‘outsiders’ by them.
- Tribals wanted to be shifting cultivators and not be peasant cultivators.
- The dikus were settling in at the tribals’ lands, wanting the latter to sell their lands or rent their lands at very high-interest rates.
4. What was Birsa’s vision of a golden age? Why do you think such a vision appealed to the people of the region?
Ans.
- Birsa’s vision of golden age was to have their land free of dikus.
- He considered that age to be the ‘age of truth’. According to Birsa, in the golden age.
- His golden age vision was to have an age with no vices like liquor, witchcraft, sorcery and uncleanliness.
- He did not want any role of outsider participants like missionaries, Hindu landlords, moneylenders, traders and Europeans.
Chapter 5
When People Rebel – 1857 and After
1. What was the demand of Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi that was refused by the British?
Ans.
- Rani Lakshmibai was the queen of Jhansi.
- She had adopted a son. Hence, she wanted her son to be the ruler of Jhansi.
- However, according to Lord Dalhousie’s Doctrine of Lapse policy, an adopted heir would not be allowed to acquire the kingdom once the father dies and the same would be annexed by the British.
- Hence, Rani Lakshmibai’s demand for recognizing her adopted son as the male heir of the kingdom was refused by the British.
2. What objections did the sepoys have to the new cartridges that they were asked to use?
Ans.
- The new cartridges were unacceptable to the Indian sepoys, as they held the belief that these had been coated by the fat of cow and pigs.
- The sepoys had to bite the cartridges to load them. But their religion did not allow them to even touch these cartridges. Hence, they denied using the new cartridges.
3. How did the last Mughal emperor live the last years of his life?
Ans.
The last Mughal emperor was Bahadur Shah Zafar.
His title as the Mughal emperor was a symbolic one. After the death of Aurangzeb, the Mughal rulers had lost their power and held only a symbolic stature.
Zafar was also the symbolic head of the 1857 revolt. However, once the revolt was crushed, Bahadur Shah Zafar was tried in court.
4. What could be the reasons for the confidence of the British rulers about their position in India before May 1857?
Ans.
The British became confident about their position in India because of the following reasons:
a. The Mughal rulers, after the death of Aurangzeb, were not strong and powerful. Hence, it was easier for the British to annex states.
b. The disunity among nawabs and the Mughal rulers helped the British have a firm stronghold over Indian society, starting from Bengal.
c. The policies, like Subsidiary Alliance, helped British annex territories one after another, without the use of any military power.
5. In what ways did the British change their policies as a result of the rebellion of 1857?
Ans.
The following changes were made:
a. Doctrine of Lapse policy was abolished
b. The number of Indian sepoys was reduced in the army, so that in future they would not be able to rebel against the British
c. Zamindars’ and landowners’ rights were further enhanced
d. The Crown promised that it would not interfere with the religion of the people.