It is very useful for the students of BA LLB , BA Arts and for all those who have thirst of knowledge.

1. Rise of British Power & Decline of
Mughal Empire

2. Rise of East India Company.
Fort St. George at the Coromondal Coast

3. Introduction
• It has been said that the British Empire was picked up in a "fit of absence of
mind." Nowhere was this more true than in the case of India which gradually came
under British rule, not by the efforts of Britain's government, but by those of the British
East Indies Company, founded in 1599 by a group of merchants in search of nothing
more than "quiet trade."
• However, circumstances would thwart these peaceful intentions, and over the next 250
years the British would find themselves more and more in the role of conquerors and
governors than traders.
Advent of the Europeans
• Before the beginning of the formal rule of the British in India, there was a background
of Indo-European economic relationship.
• The commercial contacts between India and Europe were very old via the land route
either through the Oxus valley or Syria or Egypt.
• But, the new sea route via the Cape of Good Hope was discovered by Vasco da Gama in
1498 and thereafter, many trading companies came to India and established their
trading centres.
• The British East India Company was a Joint- Stock Company established in 1600, as the
Company of Merchants of London Trading into the East Indies.
• During this time, other trading companies, established by the Portuguese, Dutch,
French, and Danish were similarly expanding in the region.

4. • The British Company gained footing in India in 1612 after Mughal emperor Jahangir
granted the rights to establish a factory (a trading post) in Surat to Sir Thomas Roe, a
representative diplomat of Queen Elizabeth Ist of England.
• They entered India as traders at the outset but by the passage of time indulged in the
politics of India and finally established their colonies.
• The commercial rivalry among the European powers led to political rivalry. Ultimately,
the British succeeded in establishing their rule India.
East India Company
• The English East India Company (also known as the East India Trading Company, and,
after the Treaty of Union, the British East India Company) was formed by a group of
merchants known as ‘Merchant Adventures’ in 1599.
• The Company was granted an English Royal Charter, under the name Governor and
Company of Merchants of London Trading into the East Indies, by Elizabeth I on 31
December 1600, making it the oldest among several similarly formed European East
India Companies, the largest of which was the Dutch East India Company.
• In 1608, the company decided to open a factory (the name given to a trading depot) at
Surat.
• The English ambassador Captain Hawkins arrived at Jahangir’s Court to seek permission
for trade with India. But initially it was turned down due to Portuguese intrigue. This
convinced the English of the need to overcome Portuguese influence at the Mughal
Court if they were to obtain any concessions from the Imperial Government.

5. • The Company achieved a major victory over the Portuguese in the Battle of Swally
near Surat in 1612, where two English naval ships under Captain Best defeated a
Portuguese naval squadron.
• These victories led the Mughals to hope that in view of their naval weakness they
could use the English to counter the Portuguese on the sea. Moreover, the Indian
merchants would certainly benefit by competition among their foreign buyers.
• Captain Bust succeeded in getting a royal firman by Jahangir permitting the English to
build a factory in Surat, Cambaya, Ahmedabad and Goa in 1613.
• The English were not satisfied with this concession and in 1615 their ambassador Sir
Thomas Roe reached the Mughal Court. They also exerted pressure on the Mughal
authorities by taking advantage of India’s naval weakness and harassing Indian traders
and ship from the Red Sea and to Mecca.
• Thus, combining entreaties with threats, Roe succeeded in getting an Imperial farman
to trade establish factories in all parts of the Mughal Empire.
• Roe’s success further angered the Portuguese and a fierce naval battle between the
two countries began in 1620 which ended in English victory. Hostilities between the
two came to an end in 1630.
• In 1662 the Portuguese gave the Island of Bombay to King Charles II of England as
dowry for marrying a Portuguese Princess. Eventually, the Portuguese lost all their
possessions in India except Goa, Daman and Diu.

6. • The Company, benefiting from the imperial patronage, soon expanded its commercial
trading operations, eclipsing the Portuguese Estado da India, which had established
bases in Goa, Chittagong and Bombay.
• The Company created trading posts in Surat (where a factory was built in 1612),
Madras (1639), Bombay (1668), and Calcutta (1690).
• By 1647, the Company had 23 factories, each under the command of a factor or
master merchant and governor if so chosen, and had 90 employees in India.
• The major factories became the walled forts of Fort William in Bengal, Fort St George
in Madras, and the Bombay Castle.
• In 1634, the Mughal emperor extended his hospitality to the English traders to the
region of Bengal, and in 1717 completely waived customs duties for the trade.
• The company’s mainstay businesses were by then in cotton, silk, indigo dye, saltpetre
and tea.
• By a series of five acts around 1670, King Charles II provisioned it with the rights to
autonomous territorial acquisitions, to mint money, to command fortresses and troops
and form alliances, to make war and peace, and to exercise both civil and criminal
jurisdiction over the acquired areas.

7. The Battles which established British power in India
• Battle of Plassey - On June 23rd, 1757 at Plassey, between Calcutta and
Murshidabad, the forces of the East India Company under Robert Clive met the army
of Siraj-ud-Doula, the Nawab of Bengal.
• Clive had 800 Europeans and 2200 Indians whereas Siraj-ud-doula in his entrenched
camp at Plassey was said to have about 50,000 men with a train of heavy artillery.
• The aspirant to the Nawab's throne, Mir Jafar, was induced to throw in his lot with
Clive, and by far the greater number of the Nawab's soldiers were bribed to throw
away their weapons, surrender prematurely, and even turn their arms against their
own army. Siraj-ud-Doula was defeated.
• Battle of Plassey marked the first major military success for British East India
Company.
• Battle of Wandiwash 1760: From 1744, the French and English fought a series
of battles for supremacy in the Carnatic region. In the third Carnatic war, the
British East India Company defeated the French forces at the battle of
Wandiwash ending almost a century of conflict over supremacy in India.
• This battle gave the British trading company a far superior position in India
compared to the other Europeans.

8. Battle of Buxar
Causes
• Misuse of firman and Dastak which challenge Mir Qasim authority as a sovereign
• The victory of British at the Battle of Buxar on October 22, 1764, is considered even
more important that their previous victory at the Battle of Plassey.
• In this battle, the combined forces of the Mughal empire, the Nawabs of Bengal, and
the Nawab of Awadh, were defeated by the British. Thus, the British East India
company became a dominant power in the region. This is considered the first step
toward the British imperialism policy to conquer entire India.
• The reasons why the battle of Buxar was an event of utmost importance in the
history of India, particularly Bengal, is mentioned below:
• Firstly, it proved once again the military superiority of the English and exposed
the inherent weakness of the native force
• Secondly, it was with the defeat of Mir Kasim that the rule of independent Nawab
finally came to an end.
• Lastly, it paved the way to the grant of Diwani to the East India Company by the
Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II.
• In the words of Sir James Stephen, “the Battle of Buxar deserves far more credit
than the battle of Plassey as the origin of the British power in India.”

9. • After winning the Battle of Buxar, the British had earned the right to collect land
revenue in Bengal, Bihar and Orissa. This development set the foundations of British
political rule in India.
• After the victory of the English in Buxar Robert Clive was appointed the governor and
commander in chief of the English army in Bengal in 1765. He is claimed as the founder
of the British political dominion in India. Robert Clive also brought reforms in the
administration of the company and the organization of the army.
• Warren Hastings was appointed the Governor of Bengal in 1772. Under the
Regulating Act of 1773 passed by British parliament, a Council of four members
was appointed, and Warren Hastings (Governor-General 1774-85) was empowered
to conduct the Company's affairs with the Council's advice.
• His task was to consolidate the Company's rule in Bengal. He brought about several
administrative and judicial changes. Warren Hasting faced an uphill task in dealing
with the Indian rulers. He faced stiff resistance from the Marathas in the north and
Hyder Ali in the south.
• In 1773 he concluded the treaty of Banaras with the Nawab of Avadh appeasing the
emperor and getting financial gains thus blocking alliances between the Marathas
and the Nawab of Avadh. Under Warren Hastings English army took part in the
Rohilla War in 1774 that brought Rohilkhand in the company's jurisdiction.

10. Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II granting Diwani Rights (Revenue Collection) to Lord Robert Clive

11. • After the Battles of Plassey (1757) and Buxar (1764), which established British
dominion over East India, the Anglo-Mysore Wars (1766–1799), the Anglo–Maratha
Wars (1775–1818), and finally the Anglo-Sikh Wars (1845–1849) consolidated the
British claim over South Asia, resulting in the British Empire in India., though
resistance among various groups such as the Afghans and the Burmese would last
well into the 1880s.
• The Anglo–Mysore Wars (1766–1799) were a series of wars fought in over the last
three decades of the 18th century between the Kingdom of Mysore on the one
hand, and the British East India Company (represented chiefly by the Madras
Presidency), and Maratha Confederacy and the Nizam of Hyderabad on the other.
• Hyder Ali and his successor Tipu Sultan fought a war on four fronts with the British
attacking from the west, south and east, while the Marathas and the Nizam's forces
attacked from the north.The fourth war resulted in the overthrow of the house of
Hyder Ali and Tipu (who was killed in the final war, in 1799), and the
dismantlement of Mysore to the benefit of the East India Company, which won and
took control of much of India
• The Anglo–Maratha Wars were three wars fought in the Indian sub-continent
between Maratha Empire and the British East India Company:
•First Anglo-Maratha War (1775–1782)
•Second Anglo-Maratha War (1803–1805)
•Third Anglo-Maratha War also known as the Pindari War (1816–1819)

12. • The Anglo-Sikh wars were a series of 1840s conflicts between the British East India
Trading Company and the Sikh Empire.
There were two Anglo–Sikh wars:
•The First Anglo-Sikh War (1845–46)
•The Second Anglo-Sikh War (1848–49)
•The Sikh Empire dissolved after defeat in 1849
• The year 1853 stands out to be a landmark year in modern Indian history as the
first Railway opened from Bombay to Thane and first Telegraph line from Calcutta
to Agra was started.
• This was one of the first major positive contributions that British made in India.
Although the initial purpose of these was to improve the mobility and
communication of the British troops but much later they became very useful for
common people.

14. 1857 great rebellion, war of independence or mutiny
• The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major, but ultimately unsuccessful, uprising in India in
1857–58 against the rule of the British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign
power on behalf of the British Crown.
• It is known by many names, including the Sepoy Mutiny, the Indian Mutiny, the Great
Rebellion, the Revolt of 1857, the Indian Insurrection, and India's First War of Independence
Causes for the Revolt of 1857
• Political Causes
• Social Causes
• Economic Causes
• Military Cause
Political Causes
 Subsidiary alliance
 Doctrine of lapse
 Disposition of Nawab of Awadh
Subsidiary alliance: It was introduced by Lord Wellesley A system of ruling a dominated nation.
The ruling British would enter into a contract with the local ruler.
Help of British forces in the war. Local rulers could pay money for it.
Appointment of British Employees.
Company would look after the state.

15. Doctrine of lapse
• It was introduced by Dalhousie. It is one of the annexation policy. Lapse means that which
goes. If an Indian ruler dies without a natural male heir, then his kingdom would lapse, it
becomes part of east India company.
• For Example: Jhansi, Nagpur, Jaipur
• The British deposed Nawab of Awadh on ground of misgovernance. He was very loyal to
British.
Social cause
 Discrimination
 Reforms introduced by
British
 Conversion
 Western education
 English as official language
For instances: Well educated Indians were not given high posts, Indians could not travel in first
class coaches in a train. The reforms introduced by British agitated the orthodox Indians
Ban of sati, Widow remarriage, women education, Women to own property and Conversion of
Hindus to Christians

16. Economic Policies
 High taxes were levied on the people
 Machine made goods from Britain were cheaper
 Decline in agriculture activities
 Indigenous industries resulted in poverty and starvation
Military cause
 British officers treated Sepoys very harshly
 Salaries were low
 General service enlistment act
 Every new recruit had to serve overseas.
In those times, crossing of the sea was in
violation of the religious sentiments of many
Indians
These are the various causes resulted in the revolt of 1857. The great uprising of 1857 was an
important landmark in the history of modern India. The revolt marked the end of the East India
Company’s rule in India. India now came under the direct rule of the British Crown. This was
announced by Lord Canning at a Durbar in Allahabad in aproclamation issued on 1 November
1858 in the name of the Queen. Thus, Indian administration was taken over by Queen Victoria,
which, in effect, meant the British Parliament. The Governor General’s office was replaced by
that of the Viceroy.

19. Decline of Mughal Empire:
• The Mughal Empire, which had reached its zenith during the rule of Shah Jahan and his
son, began to decline after the rule of Aurangzeb. In fact, the decline began during the
last days of Aurangzeb. There were many causes for the downfall of this great dynasty.
Let us view the causes that hastened the fall of the Mughal Empire after Aurangzeb.
• Aurangzeb’s death was followed by a war of succession among his three sons. It ended
in the victory of the eldest brother, Prince Muazzam. The sixty five-year-old prince
ascended the throne under the name of Bahadur Shah.
Bahadur Shah (1707 A.D.-1712 A.D.):
• Bahadur Shah followed a policy of compromise and conciliation and tried to conciliate
the Rajputs, the Marathas, the Bundelas, the Jats and the Sikhs. During his reign the
Marathas and the Sikhs became more powerful. He had also to face revolt from the
Sikhs. Bahadur Shah died in 1712.
• Wars of Succession, which had been a regular feature among the Mughals, had become
more acute after the death of Bahadur Shah. This was specially so because the nobles
had become very powerful. Different factions of nobles supported rival claimants to the
throne in order to occupy high posts.
Jahandar Shah (1712 A.D.-1713 A.D.):
• Jahandar Shah who succeeded Bahadur Shah was weak and incompetent. He was
controlled by nobles and could manage to rule only for one year.

20. Farrukhsiyar (1713 A.D.-1719 A.D.):
• Farrukhsiyar ascended the throne with the help of the Sayyid brothers who were
popularly called the ‘king makers’. He was controlled by the Sayyid brothers who were
the real authority behind Mughal power. When he tried to free himself from their
control, he was killed by them,
Mohammad Shah (1719 A.D.-1748 A.D.):
• The Sayyids helped Mohammad Shah, ascend the 18-year-old grandson of
Bahadur Shah, to the throne. Taking advantage of the weak rule of Mohammad
Shah and the constant rivalry among the various factions of the nobility, some
powerful and ambitious nobles established virtually independent states.
Hyderabad, Bengal, Awadh and Rohilkhand offered but nominal loyalty to the
Mughal Emperor. The Mughal Empire practically broke up.
• Mohammad Shah’s long reign of nearly 30 years (1719-1748 A.D.) was the last
chance of saving the empire. When his reign began, Mughal prestige among the
people was still an important political force. A strong ruler could have saved the
dynasty. But Mohammad Shah was not equal to the task. He neglected the affairs
of the state and never gave full support to able wazirs.
Nadir Shah’s Invasion:
• The condition of India with its incompetent rulers, weak administration and poor
military strength attracted foreign invaders. Nadir Shah, the ruler of Persia,
attacked Punjab in 1739. Mohammad Shah was easily defeated and imprisoned.
Nadir Shah marched towards Delhi. Nadir Shah was a ferocious invader.

21. • He massacred thousands of people in Delhi. Delhi looked deserted for days.
Mohammad Shah, however, was reinstated on the throne. Nadir Shah carried with him
the Kohinoor diamond and the Peacock throne of Shah Jahan. By plundering a big city
like Delhi, he got enormous wealth.
• Nadir Shah’s invasion gave a crushing blow to the already tottering Mughal Empire
and hastened the process of its disintegration. Mohammad Shah’s kingdom was
practically confined to Delhi and its neighbourhood. He died in 1748.
• Mohammad Shah was succeeded by a number of inefficient rulers Ahmad Shah
(1748-1754), Alamgir II (1754-1759), Shah Alam II (1759-1806), Akbar II (1806-
1837) and Bahadur Shah II (1837-1857).
• During the rule of Alamgir II, the East India Company fought the Battle of Plassey
in 1757 and defeated Siraj-ud-Daulah, the Nawab of Bengal. They thus got a
foothold in Bengal.
• In 1761, during the reign of Shah Alam II, Ahmad Shah Abdali, the independent
ruler of Afghanistan, invaded India. He conquered Punjab and marched towards
Delhi. By this time, the Marathas had extended their influence up to Delhi. Hence
a war between the Marathas and Ahmad Shah Abdali was inevitable.
• In the Third Battle of Panipat the Marathas were completely defeated. They lost
thousands of soldiers along with their very good generals. They were forced to
retreat to the Deccan. Ahmad Shah Abdali’s invasion further weakened the
Mughal Empire.

22. • Shah Alam II granted the Dewani of Bengal, Bihar and Orissa to the East India Company
in 1765. This allowed the Company to collect revenue from these areas. It also showed
that Mughal authority was recognized by the Indian rulers.
• Mughal rule formally came to an end when Bahadur Shah was deposed and deported
to Rangoon by the East India Company (1857).
• Other reasons
• Aurangzeb’s policies
 Aurangzeb was largely responsible for the downfall of the empire. His predecessors did a lot
to win over the loyalties of their subjects, particularly the Rajputs and the Hindus. But
Aurangzeb could not won the heart of non-Muslims.
 He imposed jazia and forbade the celebration of Hindu festivals. He thus lost the friendship
and loyality of the Rajputs.
 His execution of the Sikh guru and his enmity with the Marathas forced them to raise arms
against him.
 His excessive obsession with the Deccan also destroyed the Mughal army, the treasury and
also adversely affected his health.
 He laid too much stress on simplicity and was against singing, dancing and drinking which
were common habits of the Muslim nobles.
 They did not like a king who was so much against their ways. Aurangzeb, thus “himself gave a
green signal to the forces of decay” and so after his death the mighty empire disintegrated
into smaller states.

23. • Weak Successors:
The successors of Aurangzeb were both weak and incompetent. The later Mughals spent more
time in their harems and in pleasure and soon lost control of the states.
• No Definite Law of Succession:
The Mughals did not follow any definite law of succession. After the death of every emperor,
there ensued a bloody war of succession amongst his sons. Each one, used nobles and members
of the royal family to get the throne thereby dividing the nobles who fought for their self-
interest only. This created anarchy. Nobles resorted to conspiracies and made the Mughal power
weak and vulnerable.
• Poor Economy:
The economic stability of the empire was ruined because of the constant wars. Some of the wars
did not add even an inch to the Mughal Empire. Besides this, the Mughal rulers spent lavishly on
buildings and monuments. Finally, the foreign invasions completely shattered the economy.
• Moral Degradation of the Soldiers:
An excess of wealth and luxury made the Mughal army lazy, corrupt and inefficient. The soldiers
and the generals became pleasure loving and easygoing. Often they proved to be disloyal. Now
they could not even go to the battlefield without their train of attendants and women.
Sometimes they only fought for money and easily succumbed to bribes.
• Rise of New Powers:
New powers such as the Sikhs, Jats and Marathas came onto the scene. Gradually they broke off
from the Mughal domination and established their own independent states.

24. • Coming of the Europeans
The Europeans, especially the British, played an important role in putting an end to the Mughal
Empire. They first obtained a freeman to trade with India, but gradually began interfering in
Indian politics and gradually set up a British empire in India that lasted for 200 years.
• Foreign Invasions:
The invasions of Nadir Shah and Ahmad Shah Abdali proved fatal for the Mughal Empire. Not
only were the Indians defeated but their weakness was exposed and India became as easy prey
to other foreign powers too.
• Punjab:
Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh guru, had organized the Sikhs into a military force. After his
death, his disciple Banda Bahadur carried on his his struggle against the Mughals. However,
Banda was finally captured and put to death in 1715 during the reign of Farukh Siyar. But the
invasions of Nadir Shah and Ahmad Shah Abdali gave the Sikhs a fresh opportunity to once again
challenge the authority of the Mughals. They organized themselves into small groups known as
misls (sovereign states of the Sikh Confederacy). These misls were twelve in number and each
one had a leader. Although these misls could not unite for a long time, they carried on their
struggle with each other’s cooperation. By the end of the eighteenth century, Ranjii Singh,
however, brought them together and founded a Sikh kingdom. He brought the entire area to the
west of the Sutlej under his control. Under Ranjit Singh, the Sikhs power reached the zenith of
its glory, but his death was followed by an internal struggle for power.
Nadir Shah Attacking Delhi