CH1. Sources for the History of Modern India

Introduction

The records of the East India Company provide a detailed account of trading conditions during the period 1600-1857. When the British crown took over the administration, it also kept a large variety and volume of official records.

• These records help historians to trace every important development stage-by-stage and follow the processes of decision–making and the psychology of the policy-makers.
• The records of the other European East India companies (the Portuguese, Dutch and French) are also useful for constructing the history of the 17th and 18th centuries.

Archival Materials

1. Central Government Archives

The National Archives of India, located in New Delhi, contains most of the archives of the Government of India. These provide authentic and reliable source materials on varied aspects of modern Indian history.

• The records with the National Archives come under various groups, representing different branches of the secretariat at different stages of its development. This happened as the work of the East India Company was distributed among various branches—public or general, revenue, political, military, secret, commercial, judicial, education, etc.—and a separate set of records was kept for each of these branches or departments.
  
• With the appointment of James Rennell as the first Surveyor-General of Bengal in 1767, the Survey of India began to scientifically map the unknown regions of the country and its bordering lands.

2. Archives of the State Governments

The source material in the state archives comprises the records of:

(i) The former British Indian provinces.
(ii) The erstwhile princely states which were incorporated in the Indian Union after 1947
(iii) The foreign administrations other than those of the British.

3. Archives of Three Presidencies

• The early records of Fort Williams (Bengal Presidency) were lost during the sack of Calcutta in 1756, but the archives of the Bengal presidency after the British victory at Plassey have survived more or less in a complete series, which are partly available in the National Archives of India and partly in the State Archives of West Bengal. 
• The records of the Madras Presidency begin from AD 1670 and include records of the Governor and Council of Fort St. George.

4. Archives of Other European Powers

• The archives related to the Portuguese preserved in Goa, mainly belonging to the period from 1700 to 1900, are valuable for the history of Portuguese possessions in India.
• The Dutch records of Cochin and Malabar are in the Madras Record Office and those of Chinsura in the state archives of West Bengal.
• The French archives of Chandernagore and Pondicherry (now Puducherry) were taken to Paris by the French authorities before they relinquished these settlements.
• The remaining Danish records, mainly relating to Tranquebar (1777-1845), are now housed in the Madras Record Office. 

5. Judicial Records

• Housed in the Madras Record Office, the archives of the Mayor’s Court at Fort St. George, beginning from AD 1689, are the earliest available judicial archives.
• The pre-Plassey records of the Mayor’s Court at Fort Williams have been lost, but those for the years 1757-73 are kept in the record room of the Calcutta High Court, along with the archives of the Supreme Court of Bengal 1774-1861. 

6. Published Archives

• The most significant archival publications are the Parliamentary Papers which include many excerpts from the records of the East India Company and the Government of India under the Crown.

7. Private Archives

• Private archives comprise papers and documents of individuals and families of note, who played a significant role in the development of modern India.

8. Foreign Repositories

• In England, the India Office Records, London and the records kept in the British Museum are very valuable.
  The India Office Records possesses various important documents:
  The minutes of the Courts of Directors and the General Court of the East India Company and various committees constituted from time to time, the minutes and correspondence of the Board of Control or the Board of Commissioners for the Affairs of India, and the records of the Secretary of State and the India Council.
• The British Museum possesses collections of papers of British viceroys, secretaries of states and other high ranked civil and military officials who were posted in India. The archives of the missionary societies, for instance, of the Church Missionary Society of London, provide insight into the educational and social development in pre-independent India.

9. Biographies, Memoirs and Travel Accounts

• Many travellers, traders, missionaries and civil servants who came to India, have left accounts of their experiences and their impressions of various parts of India. An important group among these writers was that of the missionaries who wrote to encourage their respective societies to send more missionaries to India for the purpose of evangelising its inhabitants.
• In this genre, Bishop Heber’s Journal and Abbe Dubois’s Hindu Manners and Customs, provide useful information on the socio-economic life of India during the period of decline of the Indian powers and the rise of the British. 

10. Newspapers and Journals

• Newspapers and journals of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, published in English as well as in the different vernacular languages, form an important and authentic source of information for the construction of the history of modern India. The first attempts to publish newspapers in India were made by the disgruntled employees of the English East India Company who sought to expose the malpractices of private trade.
• In 1780, James Augustus Hickey published the first newspaper in India entitled The Bengal Gazette or Calcutta General Advertiser. Hickey’s press was seized within two years, owing to his outspoken criticism of government officials. Afterwards, many publications appeared such as The Calcutta Gazette (1784), The Madras Courier (1788) and The Bombay Herald (1789).
• From the second half of the 19th century, some of their publications were: The Hindu and Swadesamitran under the editorship of G. Subramaniya Iyer, Kesari and Mahratta under Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Bengalee under Surendranath Banerjea. 

11. Oral Evidence

• Oral history refers to the construction of history with the help of non-written sources, for instance, personal reminiscence.

12. Creative Literature

• The most significant outcome of the Indo-European contact was the novel which emerged in the latter half of the 19th century. The first important writer of that period was the famous Bengali novelist, Bankim Chandra Chatterji (1838 – 94). His novels are mostly historical, the best known among them being Anand Math (1882), especially for its powerful lyric ‘Vandemataranr and depiction of the Sanyasi Revolt (1760s).
• G.V. Krishna Raos Kilubommalu (The Puppets, 1956) in Telugu was concerned with the moral aspects and behavior of the rural people.
• Vaikom Muhammad Basheer (19-10-1994) was one of the eminent writers in Malayalam whose famous novel Balyakala Sakhi (The Childhood Friends, 1944) was a tragic tale of love.

13. Painting

• Some information on the socio-economic, political and cultural life during the colonial period can be obtained from the paintings of that period.
• The Company Paintings, also referred as ‘Patna Kalam‘ emerged under the patronage of the East India Company. They picturise the people and scenes as they existed at the time. Trades, festivals, dances and the attire of people were visible in these works.
• Another painting of this period, In Memoriam by Joseph Noel Paton, recorded in painting two years of the revolt of 1857. One can see English women and children huddled in a circle, looking helpless and innocent, seemingly waiting for the inevitable—dishonour, violence and death.

CH2. Major Approaches to the History of Modern India

Introduction

• Historiography (the study of historical interpretation) is essential for recognizing the intellectual context of history beyond mere event narration.
• Modern Indian history can be broadly understood through four main approaches: (i) Colonial (Imperialist)
  (ii) Nationalist
  (iii) Marxist, and
  (iv) Subaltern.
• Additional approaches such as Communalist, Cambridge, Liberal, Neo-liberal, and Feminist interpretations have also influenced historical writing on modern India.
• The frequency of producing histories of India has increased, necessitating explanations.
• This trend is driven by changes in the Indian landscape requiring a reevaluation of facts and shifts in historians’ perspectives on key elements of Indian history.

Colonial Approach/Historiography

• During the 19th century, the Colonial School held a prominent position in India.
• The term ‘colonial approach’ is used in two ways:
  (i) One concerning the history of colonial nations.
  (ii) The other regarding works influenced by colonial ideologies of dominance.
• Most present-day historians discuss colonial historiography in the latter sense, emphasizing the writing influenced by colonial ideology.
• Historical works by colonial officials often aimed to justify and assert colonial rule, leading to criticism of indigenous societies and cultures.
• These works also praised Western culture, values, and the individuals who built colonial empires.
• Examples like the histories of India by James Mill, Mountstuart Elphinstone, Vincent Smith typify the colonial historiographical trend.
• Common characteristics in the works of these historians include:
  1. Representation of India as ‘Orientalist.’
  2. Belief that the British brought unity to India.
  3. Embracing Social Darwinism, where the English saw themselves as superior and most fit to govern.
  4. Viewing India as a stagnant society requiring British guidance (White Man’s burden).
  5. Establishing Pax Britannica for law, order, and peace in what was seen as a discordant society.

Nationalist Historiography/Approach

• Focuses on fostering nationalist sentiments and unity.
• Aims to unify people across religious, caste, linguistic, and class differences.
• Views the national movement as a response to colonial exploitation.
• Emergence post-1947; earlier focus on ancient and medieval history.
• Economic critique of colonialism by early nationalists like Dadabhai Naoroji.
• Key nationalist leaders contributing to historical narratives.
• Noted modern Indian nationalist historians were R.C. Majumdar and Tara Chand.

Marxist Historiography

• Marxist approach in India initiated by Rajni Palme Dutt’s “India Today” and A.R. Desai’s “Social Background of Indian Nationalism”
• “India Today” first published in 1940 in England, later in India in 1947.
• “Social Background of Indian Nationalism” first published in 1948.
• Marxist historians contrast with imperialist/colonial approach by emphasizing primary contradiction between colonial masters and subject people.
• They acknowledge nation-building process and inner contradictions within Indian society.
• Rajni Palme Dutt sometimes prioritized class struggle over anti-imperialist struggle.
• Sumit Sarkar critiques Dutt’s approach as simplistic Marxian class perspective.
• A.R. Desai identifies national movement growth in five phases based on supporting social classes.

Subaltern Approach/Historiography

• Originated in the early 1980s under Ranajit Guha’s editorship.
• Critique of existing historiography for disregarding the voices of the people.
• Believes Indian historiography had an elitist bias.
• Identified basic societal contradiction in colonial India between elites and subaltern groups.
• Doesn’t align with Marxist theory on nationalist movement exploitation.
• Views nationalism as exploitative along caste, gender, religious, and creed lines.
• Asserts Indian people weren’t unified in anti-imperialist struggle.
• States no singular Indian national movement existed.
• Distinguishes between the subalterns’ anti-imperialist movement and the elite-led national movement.
• Considers elite-led movements, like Indian National Congress, as power struggles among the elite.

Communalist Approach

• Historians from this school heavily relied on colonial historiography and colonial era textbooks regarding medieval India.
• They perceived Hindus and Muslims as perpetually hostile groups with conflicting and antagonistic interests.
• This perspective, evident in historical writings, escalated in the rhetoric of communal political leaders.
• According to this viewpoint, medieval India’s history was predominantly characterized by Hindu-Muslim conflicts.
• Consequently, it was argued that 19th- and 20th-century Muslims nostalgically cherished their historical rule, while Hindus lamented their subjugated past.
• This narrative fueled mutual animosity, leading to frequent communal violence and ultimately culminating in the partition of India.

Cambridge School

• The fundamental contradiction under colonial rule was not between imperialism and the Indian people.
• It was among the Indians themselves.
• Indian nationalism was not a result of the Indian people’s struggle against colonial exploitation.
• It arose from conflicts among Indians seeking benefits from British rulers.
• Leaders of the national movement were driven by a quest for power and material gains.
• This perspective has been criticized for devaluing the role of ideals in human behavior and reducing nationalism to ‘animal politics’.

Liberal and Neo-Liberal Interpretations

• According to this interpretation, the economic exploitation of the colonies was not beneficial to the British people as a whole.
• The availability of markets for British industrial goods in the colonial world and capital investment in overseas markets (like laying of railways in India) might have actually discouraged domestic investment and delayed the development of the ‘new’ industries in Britain.
• The proponents of this school of thought are Patrick O’Brian, Hopkins, and Cain.

Feminist Historiography

• The shift in the writing of women’s history began with the women’s movement of the 1970s.
• This movement provided the context and impetus for the emergence of women’s studies in India.
• Women’s history evolved into gender history, taking a more complex shape.
• Initially, the focus was on supplementing mainstream history with women’s history.
• Efforts were made to research and compile an archive of women’s writing.
• An important research area involved analyzing how colonial structures, such as legal systems, impacted women’s lives.
• Studies highlighted women’s vulnerability due to the lack of ownership of productive resources.
• Progressive laws’ influence on gender relations was examined.
• During the colonial period, works like “The High Caste Hindu Woman” (1887) by Pandita Ramabai and “Mother India” (1927) by Katherine Mayo gained international attention.However, there are other approaches — Communalist, Cambridge, Liberal and Neo–liberal, and Feminist interpretations — which have also influenced historical writing on modern India.