Modern India British Rule Freedom Movement Questions for CTET PAPER II

British Conquest and Early Administration

The British East India Company came to India for trade but gradually became a political power. After the Battle of Plassey (1757) and Battle of Buxar (1764), they established real control. The Regulating Act of 1773 was the first step to bring Company under British Parliament control. Pitt's India Act 1784 set up dual control. After 1857, Crown took over directly from the Company.

• Battle of Plassey 1757: Clive defeated Siraj-ud-Daulah, Company got Bengal revenues
• Battle of Buxar 1764: stronger victory, gave Diwani rights over Bengal, Bihar, Orissa
• Regulating Act 1773: first Parliamentary control, created post of Governor-General
• Pitt's India Act 1784: Board of Control set up, dual government
• Charter Act 1833: Governor-General of Bengal became Governor-General of India; Company lost trade monopoly
• Government of India Act 1858: Crown rule begins, Viceroy replaces Governor-General

Key Governor-Generals and Viceroys

CTET frequently asks which reform or event happened under which Governor-General. Use the mnemonic WHAT DLC to remember key ones. Each is associated with a signature policy or event.

• Warren Hastings: first Governor-General, Regulating Act, dual government
• Lord Cornwallis: Permanent Settlement 1793, civil services reform
• Lord Wellesley: Subsidiary Alliance system to expand British territory
• Lord Dalhousie: Doctrine of Lapse, Railways, Telegraph, widow remarriage support
• Lord Canning: first Viceroy after 1857, handled revolt aftermath
• Lord Ripon: Local Self Government, Ilbert Bill controversy
• Lord Curzon: Partition of Bengal 1905, sparked Swadeshi Movement

British Economic Impact

British policies systematically drained India's wealth. The Drain of Wealth theory was given by Dadabhai Naoroji in his book Poverty and Un-British Rule in India. Land revenue systems destroyed traditional farming. India became a supplier of raw materials and a market for British goods, destroying Indian industry especially textiles.

• Permanent Settlement 1793: zamindars fixed as landowners, peasants exploited
• Ryotwari System: direct settlement with peasants, common in Madras and Bombay
• Mahalwari System: village community responsible for revenue, common in North India
• Drain of Wealth: Dadabhai Naoroji calculated India's economic exploitation
• De-industrialisation: Indian weavers and artisans lost livelihood due to cheap British goods
• Railways built to serve British economic interests, not Indian development

Revolt of 1857

Called the First War of Independence by V.D. Savarkar and a Sepoy Mutiny by British historians. Immediate cause was the greased cartridge issue (cow and pig fat). Deeper causes included Doctrine of Lapse, economic exploitation, and social interference. It failed due to lack of unity, no all-India leadership, and superior British resources.

• Immediate cause: Enfield rifle cartridges greased with animal fat
• Started at Meerut on 10 May 1857
• Major centres: Delhi (Bahadur Shah Zafar), Kanpur (Nana Sahib), Lucknow (Begum Hazrat Mahal), Jhansi (Rani Lakshmibai)
• Result: Company rule ended, Crown took direct control via Act of 1858
• Bahadur Shah Zafar was exiled to Rangoon
• Called First War of Independence by Savarkar, 1909

Rise of Nationalism and Early Congress

Indian National Congress was founded in 1885 by A.O. Hume, Dadabhai Naoroji, and Dinshaw Wacha. Early Congress (Moderates) believed in petitions and prayers. Extremists like Bal Gangadhar Tilak demanded Swaraj. The Partition of Bengal 1905 by Curzon triggered the Swadeshi Movement and split between Moderates and Extremists at Surat Split 1907.

• INC founded 1885, first session in Bombay, W.C. Bonnerjee as first president
• Moderates: Gokhale, Naoroji, method was petitions and constitutional demands
• Extremists (Lal-Bal-Pal): Lala Lajpat Rai, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Bipin Chandra Pal
• Tilak's slogan: Swaraj is my birthright and I shall have it
• Surat Split 1907: Congress divided into Moderates and Extremists
• Swadeshi Movement 1905: boycott of British goods, use of Indian products

Gandhian Era and Major Movements

Gandhi returned to India in 1915 and changed the nature of the freedom struggle by making it a mass movement. He used Satyagraha (truth-force) and non-violent non-cooperation. Each movement had a specific cause and outcome. CTET loves to ask about the year, cause, and outcome of each movement.

• Champaran Satyagraha 1917: indigo farmers issue, Gandhi's first in India
• Kheda Satyagraha 1918: farmers demanded revenue relief during famine
• Rowlatt Act 1919: allowed detention without trial, sparked protests, Jallianwala Bagh massacre April 1919
• Non-Cooperation Movement 1920-22: boycott of schools, courts, foreign goods; ended after Chauri Chaura violence Feb 1922
• Civil Disobedience Movement 1930: Dandi March March 12 1930, broke salt law
• Quit India Movement 1942: Do or Die slogan, August 8 1942, Bombay

Important Acts and Constitutional Developments

British gradually transferred limited power to Indians through a series of acts. CTET asks about the provisions and significance of these acts. Remember them in order as steps toward self-governance.

• Morley-Minto Reforms 1909: introduced separate electorates for Muslims, communal politics begins
• Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms 1919: dyarchy introduced in provinces, bicameral legislature at centre
• Simon Commission 1927: all-British commission, boycotted with Simon Go Back
• Government of India Act 1935: provincial autonomy, federal structure, separate electorates continued
• Cabinet Mission Plan 1946: three-tier federation proposal
• Indian Independence Act 1947: partition into India and Pakistan, 15 August 1947

Revolutionary and Socio-Religious Movements

Alongside Gandhi, revolutionary nationalists like Bhagat Singh, Chandrashekhar Azad, and Subhas Chandra Bose chose different paths. Socio-religious reform movements prepared society for modern thinking and supported nationalism indirectly.

• Bhagat Singh: Lahore Conspiracy Case, hanged 23 March 1931
• INA (Indian National Army): Subhas Chandra Bose, Azad Hind Fauj, slogan Jai Hind
• Brahmo Samaj: Ram Mohan Roy, against sati and child marriage
• Arya Samaj: Dayanand Saraswati, Vedas as authority, social reform
• Aligarh Movement: Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, modernise Muslim education
• Ramakrishna Mission: Vivekananda, service to humanity is service to God

• Confusing Morley-Minto Reforms (1909) with Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms (1919): Morley-Minto gave separate electorates, Montagu-Chelmsford gave dyarchy
• Mixing up land revenue systems: Permanent Settlement is zamindars in Bengal, Ryotwari is direct with peasants in Madras and Bombay, Mahalwari is village-based in North India
• Thinking the Non-Cooperation Movement was withdrawn because of Jallianwala Bagh: it was actually withdrawn after Chauri Chaura incident in 1922
• Confusing the first Governor-General of Bengal (Warren Hastings) with the first Governor-General of India (Lord William Bentinck, 1833)
• Attributing the Quit India resolution incorrectly: it was passed on August 8 1942 at Gowalia Tank Maidan, Bombay, not Delhi

• Lal-Bal-Pal for Extremist trio: Lala Lajpat Rai, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Bipin Chandra Pal
• 3 Cs for Gandhi movements: Champaran (indigo), Civil Disobedience (salt), Chauri Chaura (end of NCM) — the C-chain tells the Gandhian story
• DRUM for Acts in order: Dual control (Pitt 1784), Regulating (1773), Undertaking transfer (1858 Crown), Morley-Minto (1909)
• For land systems remember RMP: Ryotwari in Madras, Mahalwari in North, Permanent in Bengal

• CTET Paper II Social Science section typically has 3-5 direct questions on Freedom Movement and 2-3 on British policies. Total 6-8 questions expected from this chapter alone.
• Questions are mostly one-liners: Who gave Drain of Wealth theory, When was Dandi March, Which act introduced dyarchy. Factual accuracy with years matters.
• Occasionally CTET asks pedagogy-linked questions like how to teach the Freedom Movement using primary sources or timelines. Know both content and teaching method.
• Surat Split 1907, Chauri Chaura 1922, and Morley-Minto Reforms 1909 are recurring PYQ traps. Review these specifically.
• In recent CTET papers (2021 onwards), socio-religious reform movements have appeared more. Link reformers to their organisations and methods for quick recall.