HOW WHEN AND WHERE (NOTES)
How Important are Dates?
Historians were fascinated with dates. History is about changes that occur over time, finding out how things were in the past and how things have changed. History was an account of battles and big events. It was about rulers and their policies. Historians wrote about the year a king was crowned, the year he married, the year he had a child, the year he fought a particular war, the year he died, and the year the next ruler succeeded to the throne. For events such as these, specific dates can be determined.
Which dates?
The dates we select and compose our story of the past are not important. They become vital because we focus on a particular set of events as significant. The chronology of different personalities’ lives marked the different chapters of the history of British India. It is to give each chapter some coherence. It is to tell a story in a way that makes some sense and can be followed.
How do we periodise?
In 1817, James Mill, published a massive three-volume work, A History of British India. In his book, he divided Indian history into three periods – Hindu, Muslim and British. Mill thought that all Asian societies were at a lower level of civilisation than Europe. According to his telling of history, before the British came to India, Hindu and Muslim despots ruled the country. Religious intolerance, caste taboos and superstitious practices dominated social life. According to him, British rule could civilise India. In this idea of history, British rule represented all the forces of progress and civilisation. Historians had divided Indian history into ‘ancient’, ‘medieval’ and ‘modern’.
What is colonial?
By reading this chapter you will understand how the British came to conquer the country and establish their rule, subjugating local nawabs and rajas. How they established control over the economy and society, collected revenue to meet all their expenses, bought the goods they wanted at low prices, produced crops they needed for export, and you will understand the changes that came about as a consequence. You will get to learn about the changes British rule brought about in values and tastes, customs and practices. When the subjugation of one country by another leads to these kinds of political, economic, social and cultural changes,it is referred to as colonisation.
How do We Know?
Administration produces records
British believed in the act of writing which produced an administrative culture of memos, notings and reports. They also carefully preserved important documents and letters. Important records are preserved in all administrative institutions. In the early years of the nineteenth century, these documents were carefully copied out and beautifully written by calligraphists – by those who specialised in the art of beautiful writing. By the middle of the nineteenth century, with the spread of printing, multiple copies of these records were printed as proceedings of each government department.
Surveys become important
Under the colonial administration, the practice of surveying became common. By the early nineteenth century, detailed surveys were being carried out to map the entire country. In the villages, revenue surveys were conducted to know the topography, the soil quality, the flora, the fauna, the local histories, and the cropping pattern. From the end of the nineteenth century, Census operations were held every ten years which prepared detailed records of the number of people in all the provinces of India, noting information on castes, religions and occupation. There were many other surveys – botanical surveys, zoological surveys, archaeological surveys, anthropological surveys, forest surveys.
What official records do not tell
Official records will not help us to understand what other people in the country felt, and what lay behind their actions. Records like diaries of people, accounts of pilgrims and travellers, autobiographies of important personalities, and popular booklets are found other than official records. Printing was introduced and newspapers were published and issues were debated in public. Leaders and reformers wrote to spread their ideas, poets and novelists wrote to express their feelings. But, from these sources, history cannot be explained and how the tribals and the peasants, the workers in the mines or the poor on the streets, lived their lives.
NCERT SOLUTIONS
1. State whether true or false:
a) James Mill divided Indian History into three periods- Hindu, Muslim, and Christian
Ans. False
Explanation: James Mill divided the Indian history into three periods-Hindu, Muslim and British.
b) Official documents help us to understand what the people of the country think.
Ans. False
Explanation: Official records tell us what the officials thought, what they were interested in and what they wished to preserve for prosperity.
c) The British thought surveys were important for effective administration.
Ans. True
Explanation: The British believed that a country had to be properly known before it could be effectively administered.
2. What is the problem with the periodisation of Indian History that James Mill offers?
Ans. James Mill divided his book into three period, namely: Hindu Muslims and British. According to his prejudiced version of Indian history, the British rule represents all the forces of progress and civilisation, while the period before British rule represents darkness, ignorance, despotism, religious intolerance, caste taboos, superstitious practices, etc.
The view of Mill has several problems which is not acceptable due to reasons:
- A variety of faiths existed simultaneously in these periods.
- All rulers in ancient India did not share the same faith. So naturally, there wouldn’t be religious tolerance. This will be a hindrance to the progress, enlightenment, and happiness of the nation.
- So we cannot characterise an age only through the religion of the rulers of the time.
Thus the problem with the periodisation of Indian history that James Mill offers is that the subjective account of a historian distorts the facts.
3. Why did the British preserve official documents?
Ans. The British preserved the important official documents and letters because these served as records of what the officials thought, what they were interested in and what they wished for. According to the British, writing was more important than speaking as the documents in archives and museums could be utilized for reference at a much later period whenever required for studying or debating. These can also serve as an information or proof of any decision or action taken earlier on some matter.
4. How will the information historians get from old newspapers be different from that found in police reports?
Ans. Information is essential for writing history of a time which can be gathered from various sources. Apart from official documents in the archives, historians gather information also from old newspapers, diaries of people, accounts of pilgrims, autobiographies of important personalities and booklets etc.
Newspapers provide accounts of the movements in different parts of the country. Information found in newspapers is varied, based on incidents that have happened across the country. They may be showcasing incidents based on the views and thinking of the correspondents, news editors etc.
Whereas, the police reports are true, pragmatic, limited and localized. Because of this fact, sometimes the information historians get from the old newspapers, are not as useful as it is from that found in police reports. However, for any incidence, the newspaper may not quote all the reasons behind it and it would be biased as per the thinking of reporter while in police records we could find some evidences for an incident and unbiased reports.