Course Description:History of India – VI (1750-1857) covers the period of Indian history after the decline of the Mughal Empire, and before the establishment of the British Rule. The period saw a fragmented political system dominated by various Indian and European rulers and ruling groups such as different Nawabs, Nizams and Rajas, the Marathas, the Sikhs, the French and the English East India Company. However, does this imply that other aspects of life in India such as culture, economy and society were also fragmented? What were the reasons behind the rise of European political powers in India? In this course, we shall try to find answers to such questions and discover the finer aspects of Indian political, social, cultural and economic life in the period. The course is more than being simply a part of the series of chronologically determined courses. It offers students an opportunity to learn about a variety of historical phenomena, political and social theories, and philosophical questions. The course begins with descriptions of society and politics in pre-colonial India but ends when the colonial conquest of India is complete. How was precolonial society and polity different from the colonial society and polity? Was this transition difficult or easy? What is the opinion of different schools of history on this issue? How do they quantify and qualify their understanding? Answers to these questions would be found at the pan-Indian and at the regional levels. Different sectors of Indian life would reveal different answers. Equally we ask whether ‘colonial vs pre-colonial’, ‘coloniser vs colonised’, and ‘modern vs traditional’ were the primary questions to be asked from the history of this period. These questions have long dominated the study of eighteenth and nineteenth centuries in India history. However, the common people of India did not see this to be the primary axis of their lives. So, we also ask questions such as ‘how did social groups and communities within India relate with each other during the colonial period?’, and ‘to what extent were the relations between various communities of India managed by the colonial regime?’. The course will also familiarise students with the research output of various historians, and with historical data from different regions of India.
Overview
Syllabus
SCHEDULE
WEEK 1 UNIT I: The Eighteenth Century in India: Political History
1.Overview of Eighteenth-century India I
2.Overview of Eighteenth-century India II
3.Regional Variations in Politics: Bengal
4.Regional Variations in Politics: Awadh
WEEK 2UNIT I: The Eighteenth Century in India: Political History
5.Regional Variations in Politics: The Marathas
6.Regional Variations in Politics: Mysore & Hyderabad - I
7.Regional Variations in Politics: Mysore & Hyderabad - II
8.Regional Variations in Politics: The Punjab
WEEK 3UNIT II: The Eighteenth Century in India: Economy, Culture and Other Themes
9.Historiography of the Eighteenth Century
10.Cultural Aspects of the Eighteenth Century
11.Economic Aspects of the Eighteenth Century
12.Evolution of the East India Company
13.Administration of the East India Company
WEEK 4UNIT III: Trade, Commerce and Industry
14.Commercialisation of Agriculture
15.Drain of Wealth
16.Deindustrialisation of India under Colonial Rule
17.British Trade Policies particularly Mercantilism
18.Industrial development of India under the East India Company
WEEK 5UNIT IV: Evolution of Agricultural and Rural Economy
19.Land Revenue Systems under the British
20.Mahalwari Settlement
21.Permanent Settlement
22.Rural Indebtedness.
WEEK 6UNIT IV: Evolution of Agricultural and Rural Economy
23.Ryotwari Settlement
UNIT V: Ideologies of Company Rule
24.Britain's Views of the World
25.The Concept of Oriental Despotism
26.Law, Property & Improvement
WEEK 7UNIT V: Ideologies of Company Rule
27.William Jones as a Linguist and Administrator
28.William Jones as a Historian
29.James Mill and the Utilitarians I
30.James Mill and the Utilitarians II
WEEK 8UNIT VI: Administration, Law, Education and Media
31.Development of Western Education and Modern ideas
32.Administration Under The East India Company Module
33.Constitutional Development under the East India Company
34.Judicial Reform Under the East India Company
WEEK 9UNIT VI: Administration, Law, Education and Media
35.Growth of Press
UNIT VII: Social Reform Movement
36.Reform Movts: Bengal & Western India
37.Northern & Southern India; Nature of the Reform Movt
38.Nature and Limitations of the Reform Movt
WEEK 10UNIT VII: Social Reform Movement
39.Social Discrimination & Disprivileged Groups
40.Historiography of the Social Reform Movt
UNIT VIII: Tribal and Peasant Movements
41.Tribal and Peasant Movements: Thematic Overview
42.Tribal and Peasant Movements: Western India
WEEK 11UNIT VIII: Tribal and Peasant Movements
43.Tribal and Peasant Movements: Bengal
44.Tribal and Peasant Movements: Eastern India
45.Tribal and Peasant Movements: Southern India
UNIT IX: The Events of 1857
46.Early Resistance to the British
WEEK 12UNIT VIII: Tribal and Peasant Movements
47.Causes of the Revolt of 1857
48.Nature of the Revolt of 1857
49.Course of the Revolt of 1857
50.Causes of the Failure of the Revolt of 1857About the Course Coordinator
VikasRatheeis an Assistant Professor at, the Department of History, Central University of Punjab. He has received his Ph.D. from the University of Arizona, and his M.Phil. from Jawaharlal Nehru University. He has also been a research fellow at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. He has taught courses on medieval and modern Indian history, World History and Historical Methods to the Bachelors and Masters students; and, has taught and delivered lectures at institutions in Punjab, India, Europe and North America. He has written for reputed magazines and journals such asEconomic & Political Weekly,Encyclopedia of Islam 3, Outlook India, Scrolland others. His research is based on sources in English, Braj, Marwari, Persian, Urdu and Punjabi languages.
