British Colonization of India

The British Colonization of India

By Meher and Alexis

Background

India lost its independence to a British company called the British East India Company. This company took control of India for its wealth and resources. They began taxing its people and extracting their resources. Britain stole so much money from India that they destroyed the once-prosperous country, leaving it very poor.

Perpetrators/Bystanders

The Jallianwala Bagh Massacre

Perpetrators/bystanders

One of the major leaders driving the injustice forward was Commander Reginald Edward Harry Dyer. One major incident that he was involved in was The Massacre of Jallianwala Bagh.The Massacre of Jallianwala Bagh, also known as The Massacre of Amritsar, happened on April 13 1919 when British troops began firing on an unarmed crowd of people in Jallianwala Bagh.

Several hundred people were killed and many more were wounded at what should have been a peaceful gathering.

All of this happened because during World War I the British Government of India began becoming more and more controlling. despite being recommended to allow a limited local self-government they passed what became known as the Rowlatt Acts,

These acts extended the wartime measures and caused lots of anger among the Indians. This anger was especially prominent in Punjab, which prompted Gandhi to start a one-day general strike. This led to prominent Indian leaders being arrested which sparked violent protests on April 10. Soldiers fired, buildings were burned, and angry mobs killed several foreign nationals.

After this, a ban was made on public gatherings by Commander Reginald Edward Harry Dyer. Despite the ban, a crowd of at least 10,000 people gathered in Jallianwala Bagh on April 13.

It isn’t clear how many of the people were protestors defying the ban and how many were just there to celebrate Baisakhi, a spring festival. Dyer and his soldiers arrived, sealed off the only exit, and started firing. People began frantically trying to save themselves, some even jumping into wells and drowning to escape the bullets.

1650 rounds were Fired

At least 350 people died and more were injured.

Victims

The Salt March

The Salt March

Salt used to be a major ingredient in the diet of Indians until the Government passed Britain's Salt Act of 1882. This act stopped Indians from collecting or selling salt so they were forced to buy it from their British rulers who had also imposed a very heavy salt tax.

All Indians required salt and many of the poorer citizens suffered. This act affected every one of the Indian people and it only became worse when the salt march began.

Gandhi led tens of thousands of people with him on a 240 mile journey to a coastal town called Dandi on the Arabian Sea. The were going to make their own salt from seawater as a form of protest.

Gandhi had planned to work on the salt flats on the beach which were encrusted with crystallized sea salt at every high tide, but the police crushed the salt deposits into the mud.

This act of civil disobedience showed just how many of the indian citizens had been affected by the British. However, despite their efforts to stop him, Gandhi picked up a lump of salty mud and said, "with this, I am shaking the foundations of the British Empire."

Upstanders

There were many protesters, such as Mohandas Gandhi, who fought, were jailed, and gave up their lives for Indian independence. They protested (like in the salt march) and Gandhi even fasted for several days in protest against the British.

Propaganda

Propaganda

This peice of propaganda features a group of baby lions which represent countries colonized by Britain following one adult lion which represents Britiain. The main message of this propaganda is that Britain is aiding these countries and helping them follow in its footsteps rather than draining these countries resources and money at the cost of their people. One of the colonizers would see this as a symbol of them helping the countries depicted in the picture whereas a citizen of one of these countries would see it as Britain controlling them.

Conclusion

India gained its independence on August 15, 1947 after the protests and many other factors involving World War Two eventually made Britain leave India.The injustice has ended now that India has gained independence, however there are still some problems that India has been left to deal with such as who owns Kashmir. The biggest consequence of the injustice is that now India is a very poor country since it has been drained of its resources.

Annotated Bibliography

The End