How Was India Administered and Defended?

  1. Who ran India before 1857?
  • India was formerly run by the East India Company. They’d gained a monopoly over India and oversaw expansion of British influence.
  1. Why did this change in 1857?
  • The East India Company became aggressively expansionist, provoking the Indian Mutiny, where sepoys in the East Indian Army revolted.
  • Thousands were killed and after the Mutiny, government decided to cease the company and hand over all rule to the Queen.
  1. What was the Government of India Act 1858?
  • The act established British rule in India through:
    • Passing territories of EIC → Queen (who became known as Empress of India in 1876)
    • Creating a position of Secretary of State for India, who received powers and duties formerly administered by the company’s directors.
    • Establishing council of 15 members who assisted the Secretary of State. Acted as an advisory body. The members were white British.
    • Crown appointed a Viceroy to replace Governor-General.
    • The Indian Civil Service was placed under control of Secretary of State.
      • Anybody could apply to work in the Indian Civil Service however only chose white men chosen. British also used Indian Civil Service in ‘divide-and-rule’, choosing Sikh > Indians due to loyalty in the Indian Mutiny.
  1. How was India administered?
  • The British had established clear hierarchy of rule. British prevailed.
    • Viceroy ruled India with a Legislative Council of 5 who held responsibility for finance, law, the army, economy and home affairs.
    • In provinces, Viceroy was represented by provincial governors with own Legislative Councils. On a day-to-day basis, district officers oversaw local councils and reported on practical issues.
    • Princely states, which Britain did not control under the EIC, relied on native rulers.
      • The 565 nominally independent Princely states formerly passed onto the British after the line of descent had ended. This was stopped and helped ensure loyalty from PS to the Empire.
      • 40% of India made up of Princely states and British installed ‘residents’ to maintain the interests of the Viceroy.
    • In years after the Mutiny, British gradually began respecting Indians and also helped develop India.
      • Traditional Indian practices and customs were respected, particularly in regards to marriage and family law.
      • Christian missionaries were actively discouraged but the government accepted responsibility for the promotion of education and did so.
      • The British helped build a vast railway network. 288 miles in 1876 → 20,000 miles in 1890.
  1. What was the caste system?
  • Caste system is a traditional Indian custom whereby people are divided at birth into particular social classes.
  • There is a hierarchy of castes:
    • Lowest ranks are the Dalits or Untouchables who historically suffered from much discrimination, while the Brahmin are the highly or ‘priestly’ class.
    • Some historians believe caste system was intensified by British imperial rule as it institutionalised the treatment of different castes as part of the system of government.
  1. How was India defended?
  • From 1858, efforts were made to strengthen the British presence in Indian Army which, at outbreak of Mutiny, numbered fewer than 40,000 British troops.
    • East India Company’s armies brought under control of the Crown and proportion of British to Indian troops raised to a ratio of roughly 1:2. There was an army of 70,000 British troops/125,000 native troops by the late 1880s.
    • Native troops trained and stationed in own districts, cut off from one another to prevent sense of unity. Deliberately mixed by caste and religion.
    • Army enlisted a greater number of Gurkhas and Sikhs, who had been loyal to Britain during Mutiny, replacing Bengali troops who hadn’t.
      • 62/74 Bengali regiments and high-class Brahmin regiments, which had acted independently disappeared.
      • Many Hindu families took Sikh names to maximise career chances.
    • British officers increased and field artillery was handled by British. Indians also placed under British commanders and denied officer ranking.
  • Growth of railways helped India’s defence with 3000 miles of track built in the decade following Mutiny. Exaggerated British presence and enabled swifter deployment of troops in the event of trouble.

An armoured gun train introduced for mobile enforcement purpose and first Viceroy Lord Canning set up Imperial Police Force as extra layer of security. Avoided over-reliance on the army.