CBSE Class 8 Social Science From Trade To Territory Notes

CBSE Class 8 Civics - From Trade to Territory. Learning the important concepts is very important for every student to get better marks in examinations. The concepts should be clear which will help in faster learning. The attached concepts made as per NCERT and CBSE pattern will help the student to understand the chapter and score better marks in the examinations. 

Class-8 

From Trade To Territory

Ques1) Define the following terms:-

Ans) (a) Mercantile: - A business enterprise that makes profit primarily through trade, buying goods cheap and selling them of higher prices.

(b) Factors: - The trades of the East India Company were known as factors.

(c) Farman: - It is a royal edict or a royal order.

Ques2) What attracted European trading companies to India?

Ans) The fine qualities of cotton and silk produced in India had a big market in Europe. Pepper, cloves, cardamom and cinnamon too were in great demand.

Ques3) What led to battles between trading company?

Ans)· The problem was that all the companies were interested in buying the same things.

* The fine qualities of cotton and silk produced in India had a big market in Europe. Pepper, cloves, cardamom and cinnamon too were in great demand.

* Competition amongst the European companies inevitably pushed up the prices at which these goods could be purchased, and this reduced the profits that could be earned.

* The only way the trading companies could flourish was by eliminating rival competitors.

* The urge to secure markets therefore led to fierce battles between the trading companies.

Ques4) How were battles fought between the trading companies?

Ans) 1. They regularly sank each other’s ships, blockaded routes.

2. Prevented rival ships from moving with supplies of goods.

3. Trade was carried on with arms and trading posts were protected through fortification.

Ques5)What were the areas of conflict between the Bengal nawabs and the East India Company?

Ans) · Sirajuddaulah as the Nawaz of Bengal one of the strong rulers, refused to grant the company concessions demanded large tributes for the company’s right to trade, denied it nay right to mint coins, and stopped it from extending its fortification.

* Accusing the company of deceit, they claimed that the company was depriving the Bengal government of huge amounts of revenue and undermining the authority of the Nawaz. · It was refusing to pay taxes, writing disrespectful letters, and trying to humiliate the Nawaz and his officials.

* The company on its part declared that the unjust demands of the local officials were running the trade of the company, and trade could flourish only if the duties were removed.

* It was also convinced that to expand trade it had to enlarge its settlements buy up villages, and rebuild its forts. The conflicts led to confrontations and finally culminated in the famous battle of Plassey.

Ques6) How did the assumption of Diwani benefit the East India Company?

* The Diwani allowed the Company to use the vast revenue resources of Bengal. This solved a major problem that the Company had earlier faced.

* But it had to buy most of the goods in India with gold and silver imported from Britain. This was because at this time Britain had no goods to sell in India.

* The outflow of gold from Britain slowed after the Battle of Plassey, and entirely stopped after the assumption of Diwani. Now revenues from India could finance Company expenses.

* These revenues could be used to purchase cotton and silk textiles in India, maintain Company troops, and meet the cost of building the Company fort and offices at Calcutta.

Ques7) Write a short note on the charter of 1600.

* In 1600, the East India Company required a charter from the ruler of England, Queen Elizabeth I, granting it the sole right to trade with the East.

* This meant that no other trading group in England could complete with the East India Company.

* With this charter the company could venture across the oceans, looking for new lands from which it could buy goods at a cheap price, and carry them back to Europe to sell at higher prices.

* The company did not have to fear competition from the other English trading companies.

Ques8) Explain the conditions that led to the establishment of the East India Company.

* After Aurangzeb’s death in 1707, many Mughal governor’s (Subadars) and big zanindars began asserting their authority.

* As powerful regional kingdoms emerged in various parts of India, Delhi could no longer work as an effective centre.

* The quest for wealth and power brought Englishmen to Indian shore. The ruler of England, Queen Elizabeth I granted the company a charter to trade in east. They started trading as Mughals allowed them the right to trade. The Company was building on a sophisticated Indian economy.

Ques10) How did the East India Company begins trade in Bengal? What demands were put by them to the rulers?

⇒ The first English factory was set up on the banks of the river Hugli in 1651. This was the base from which the Company traders, known at that time as “factors”, operated.

⇒ The factory had a warehouse where goods for export were stored, and it had offices where company officials sat. As trade expanded, the company persuaded merchants and traders to come and settle near the factory.

⇒ By 1696 it began building a fort around the settlement.

⇒ Two years later it bribed Mughal officials into giving the company zamindari rights over three villages.

⇒ One of these was kalikata, which later grew into the city of Calcutta or kolkata as it is known today.

⇒ It also persuaded the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb to issue a farman granting the company the right to trade duty free.

Ques11) Explain the Battle of Plassey describing its causes, events and consequences?

Ans) Causes:

* Sirajuddaulah refused to grant the Company concessions, demanded large tributes for the Company’s right to trade, denied it any right to mint coins, and stopped it from extending its fortifications.

* Accusing the Company of deceit, they claimed that the Company was depriving the Bengal government of huge amounts of revenue and undermining the authority of the nawab.

* It was refusing to pay taxes, writing disrespectful letters, and trying to humiliate the nawab and his officials.

Events:

* After negotiations failed, the Nawab marched with 30,000 soldiers to the English factory at Kassimbazar, captured the Company officials, locked the warehouse, disarmed all Englishmen, and blockaded English ships.

* Then he marched to Calcutta to establish control over the Company’s fort there. On hearing the news of the fall of Calcutta, Company officials in Madras sent forces under the command of Robert Clive, reinforced by naval fleets.

* Prolonged negotiations with the Nawab followed. Finally, in 1757, Robert Clive led the Company’s army against Sirajuddaulah at Plassey.

* One of the main reasons for the defeat of the Nawab was that the forces led by Mir Jafar, one of Sirajuddaulah’s commanders, never fought the battle. Clive had managed to secure his support by promising to make him nawab after crushing Sirajuddaulah.

Consequences:

* The Battle of Plassey became famous because it was the first major victory the Company won in India.

* After the defeat at Plassey, Sirajuddaulah was assassinated and Mir Jafar made the nawab. The Company was still unwilling to take over the responsibility of administration. Its prime objective was the expansion of trade.

Ques12) What impact did the battle of Buxor have on India?

* After the Battle of Buxar (1764), the Company appointed Residents in Indian states. They were political or commercial agents and their job was to serve and further the interests of the Company.

* Through the Residents, the Company officials began interfering in the internal affairs of Indian states. They tried to decide who was to be the successor to the throne, and who was to be appointed in administrative posts.

* Mir Jafar was reinstalled. The Nawab had to pay Rs 500,000 every month but the Company wanted more money to finance its wars, and meet the demands of trade and its other expenses.

Ques13) Explain the system of “subsidiary alliance”.

(a) According to the term of “subsidiary alliance,” Indian rulers were not allowed to have their independent armed forces.

(b) They were to be protected by the company, but had to pay for the “subsidiary forces” that the company was supposed to maintain for the purpose of this protection.

(c) If the Indian rulers failed to make the payment, then part of their territory was taken away as penalty.

For example, when Richard Wellesley was Governor – General (1798 -1805), the Nawab of Awadh was forced to give over half of his territory to the company in 1801, as he failed to pay for the “subsidiary forces”. Hyderabad was also forced to code territories on similar grounds.

Ques14) What do you understand by the term “Nabobs”?

* Those who managed to return with wealth led flashy lives and flaunted their riches.

* They were called “nabobs” – an anglicised version of the Indian word nawab.

* They were often seen as upstarts and social climbers in British society and were ridiculed or made fun of in plays and cartoons.

Ques15) Explain the system of Doctrine of Lapse with an example.

* The final wave of annexations occurred under Lord Dalhousie who was the Governor- General from 1848 to 1856. He devised a policy that came to be known as the Doctrine of Lapse.

* The doctrine declared that if an Indian ruler died without a male heir his kingdom would “lapse”, that is, become part of Company territory. One kingdom after another was annexed simply by applying this doctrine: Satara (1848), Sambalpur (1850), Udaipur (1852), Nagpur (1853) and Jhansi (1854).

Ques16) How did the EIC expand its rule in India?

Ans) The EIC used a plenty of political, economic, and diplomatic methods to expand their rule in India:-

1. Direct annexation:- At times british fought direct wars. Eg: State of Punjab was annexed after the death of their king Maharaja Ranjit Singh.

2. Appointment of residents:- EIC residents began interfering in internal affairs deciding as to which person has to be appointed to political or administration posts.

3. Doctrine of lapse:- It is a policy by lord Dalhousie. The doctrine declared that if an Indian ruler died without a male heir his kingdom would ‘lapse’, that is become a part of company. Eg Udaipur, Jhansi.

4. Introduction of ‘Subsidiary Alliance’ :- According to the term of “subsidiary alliance,” Indian rulers were not allowed to have their independent armed forces. They were to be protected by the company, but had to pay for the “subsidiary forces” that the company was supposed to maintain for the purpose of this protection. If the Indian rulers failed to make the payment, then part of their territory was taken away as penalty.

Ques17) Write in brief about the three Anglo – Maratha War?

Ques18) Describe the changes that occurred in the composition of the Company’s army.

* A change occurred in the eighteenth century when Mughal successor states like Awadh and Banaras started recruiting peasants into their armies and training them as professional soldiers. The East India Company adopted the same method when it began recruitment for its own army, which came to be known as the sepoy army (from the Indian word sipahi, meaning soldier).

* As warfare technology changed from the 1820s, the cavalry requirements of the Company’s army declined. This is because the British Empire was fighting in Burma, Afghanistan and Egypt where soldiers were armed with muskets and matchlocks.

* The soldiers of the Company’s army had to keep pace with changing military requirements and its infantry regiments now became more important. In the early nineteenth century the British began to develop a uniform military culture.

Ques19) Explain the new policy of paramountry inherited by Lord Warren Hastings. What challenges did this policy face?

Ans. Under Lord Hastings a new policy of “paramountry” was initiated.

⇒ Now the company claimed that its authority was paramount or supreme, hence, its power was greater then that of Indian states.

⇒ In order to protect its interests it was justified in annexing or threatening to annex any Indian kingdom. This view continued to guide later British policies as well.

For example, when the British tried to annex the small state of kitoor (in Karnataka today), Rani Channamma took to arms and led an anti –British resistance movement. She was arrested in 1824 and died in prison in 1829. But Rayanna, a poor chowkider of sangoli in kitoor, carried on the resistance. With popular support he destroyed many British camps and records. He was caught and hanged by the British in 1830.

Q20. In what way was the administration of the Company different from that of Indian rulers?

1. Before the Britishers came into the seen the Indian territories were divided into kingdoms, ruled by different rulers. They had their own administrative policies. The whole country was not under single blanket of administration.

2. While British territories were broadly divided into administrative units called Presidencies. There were three presidencies. Bengal, Madras and Bombay.

3. Each was ruled by a Governor. The supreme head of the administration was the Governor – General.

4. From 1772 a new system of justice was established. Each district was to have two courts – a criminal court (foujdare adalat) was a civil court (diwani adalat).

5. Maulvis and Hindu pandits interpreted Indian laws for the European district collectors who presided over civil courts. The criminal courts were still under a quazi and a mufti but under the supervision of the collectors.

6. The principal figure in an Indian district was the collector. As the title suggests his main job was to collect revenues and taxes and maintain law and order in his district with the help of judges, police officers and darogas.

ASSIGNMENT:-

Q1) When and between whom was the Battle of Plassey fought? Why is it considered an important landmark in the history of India?

Q2) Discuss the growth of British influence with special reference to Mysore.

Q3) How did Lord Dalhousie expand the British territories in India?

Q4) When and where was the first English factory set up?

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