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Mahatma Gandhi's contributions towards India's independence
Mahatma Gandhi's contributions towards India's independence
Mahatma Gandhi's contributions towards India's independence
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India in 1757 was colonized by the Great Britain after the Nawab of Bengal and his French allies lost the Battle of Plassey in 1757 to Britain. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, seeing India becoming exhausted from the interwar years of 1919-1939, led an independence movement against British imperialism in India. Unlike most major reforms at the time Gandhi used non-violent disobedience to not only deter bloodshed but to also encourage others to join his cause. India, a large but depleted nation, was time and time again exploited throughout history for its people or natural resources. One such exploitation of India Gandhi thought as cruel was the British-imposed salt tax. This led to the now famous Dandi salt march in 1930 where Gandhi was imprisoned
British Imperialism in India and China Imperialism is the domination of a weaker country by a stronger country. For instance, Britain dominated India and China in the mid 1880s to the beginning of the 20th century. Imperialism has had both a positive and negative effect on the countries involved. Britain was imperialistic for many reasons, it could dominate because it had the technology and power to do so.
Under British rule in India, the British were harshly oppressive and only interested in exploiting products from India for their own use, causing many Indians to become extremely poor. They became so oppressed they were on the verge of violent civil disobedience, when Gandhi appeared to negotiate with the British threw non-violent tactics such as sit-ins and hunger strikes. The people were supportive on Gandhi and were set to become violent if anything happened to him. Things were resolved without violence.
In the 1757 , the British East India Company began to gain control of India, but through the use of civil disobedience, independence was able to be obtained. Civil disobedience is the refusal to obey laws that are considered to be unjust. Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, better known as Mahatma Gandhi, is known for his use of non-violent resistance. In the 1600s, 80 English merchants joined together to form the British East India Company, after being inspired by a Dutch company gaining enormous profits by spice trades. The British East India Company imported and exported many spices, and soon amassed in wealth.
Followed by the first age of Imperialism in the 1600s when the spanish conquistadors sailed the Atlantic Ocean, the second age of imperialism occurred. Imperialism is when a more powerful country takes over a less powerful country. In the 1800s right after the Industrial Revolution, the Europeans were colonizing the African territory. As a result of the Industrial Revolution, Britain, France and the Netherlands had grown more powerful. However, they did not have raw minerals so they needed the resources from Africa. Now that they had control of Africa and its natural resources, they felt that it was okay to take anything they wanted. This is why they believed that imperialism brought stability to the country but in reality imperialism affected
In contrast to the Europeans, Gandhi's perspective on the modern concept of civilization is not of one of endearment, but rather he believes in the presence of a negative correlation between the progression of society, and the preservation of moral and cultural values. For instance, he starts by explaining that the primary purpose behind civilization is to further promote "bodily welfare [as] the object of life" (Gandhi 1). This description is hinting at the transformation that has occurred in society going from a people-centered community to a materialistic one. In addition, Gandhi continues by noting how members in upper-class parts of society exploit the poorer working class for the sake of monetary gain.
The British Raj attempted to colonize India in an organized fashion while utilizing its luxury, wealth and pleasure. However, that wasn’t always the case. A majority of the time, the British Raj faced political confusion, revolts, and extreme racism towards both British and Indian people. These conflicts were hidden by the common stereotype that India was a realm of spice, wealth, and glory. Suggesting the British Raj was beneficial to the Indian subcontinent would be an indistinct opposition.
In an effort to help free India from the British rule, Mahatma Gandhi once again contributed to a protest against salt taxes, known as the Salt March. This protest advocated Gandhi’s theory of satyagraha or nonviolent disobedience as the nation came together on March 12, 1930 to walk the 241 miles long journey to the shores of Dandi to attain salt. Although some Indians criticized Gandhi for not achieving direct independence from the Raj or British rule, Gandhi’s execution of the Salt March helped to create a stronger nation for the Indians to live in. Gandhi motivated the Indians to act robustly against the injustices of the salt taxes through nonviolent means. This caused Gandhi to create a temporary compromising pact between Gandhi and the British viceroy over the turmoil created by the salt taxes. In addition, Gandhi drew a plan known as the “Quit India” resolution, whose immediate effect brought India closer to obtaining independence than before.
The main purpose was because of the industrial revolution where by Britain needed more raw materials for its factories and also a location where they could sell all their valuable goods. A struggle of power occurred in India in the 18th century. The Mughal Empire was declining in forces, which gave the British the precise advantage to take over the Indian colony. The colonization of India by the British was more towards economic benefit land imposed taxes from agriculture, shifts in social classes, and textile industries.
Imperialism in India British imperialism in India had many positive and negative effects on both the mother country, Britain and the colony, India. Many people would argue which effects were more prominent in these countries, and some would agree that they were equal. But in both cases, there were actually both. In India, the British colonization had more positive effects than negative. For instance, when the British colonized India they built 40,000 miles of railroad and 70,000 miles of paved roadway.
"All the leadership had spent their early years in England. They were influenced by British thought, British ideas, that is why our leaders were always telling the British "How can you do these things? They're against your own basic values.". We had no hatred, in fact it was the other way round - it was their values that made us revolt." -Aruna Asaf Ali, a leader of the Indian National Congress. (Masani, quoted in Wood, 32, 1989)
In another scene, Gandhi is in jail, and some of his followers are peacefully gathered in a square. The police lock up the square and kill almost everyone, over 1,500 people. Gandhi is disgusted and discouraged. He continues to preach non-violence, but the Indians do have occasional conflict with the police. Gandhi’s counter to the popular phrase “an eye for an eye” says that after that, “everyone will be blind.” Gandhi leads several organized protests against British rule. In one, all Indians stopped doing their work, and the major cities in the country were disabled. Another time, he led a 165-mile walk to the sea to protest the British monopoly on salt. The Indians made their own salt out of the sea.
“The strongest physical force bends before moral force when used in the defense of truth.” - Mahatma Gandhi (Bondurant). Mahatma Gandhi was the main leader in helping India become independent through the principles of non violence, self-rule, and the unity of Hindus and Muslims. His full name was Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, but he was given the name Mahatma later on in his life. He wanted to see an united India without the rule of the British Empire. He accomplished this with passive resistance or resistance by non violence because he wanted to show that violence is not always the best answer.
Gandhi became a leader in a complex struggle, the Indian campaign for home rule. Following World War I, in which he played an active part in recruiting campaigns, Gandhi, again advocating Satyagraha, launched his movement of non-violent resistance to Great Britain. When, in 1919, Parliament passed the Rowlatt Acts, giving the Indian colonial authorities emergency powers to deal with so-called revolutionary activities, Satyagraha spread throughout India, gaining millions of followers. A demonstration against the Rowlatt Acts resulted in a massacre of Indians at Amritsar by British soldiers; in 1920, when the British government failed to make amends, Gandhi proclaimed an organized campaign of non-cooperation.
The British invasion formed into a historical development of British colonialism in India. Despite India under the British rule, Mahatma Gandhi played an important role in gaining Independence. He not only changed India but also strongly fought for India's independence, using various strategies. The British Empire ruled as long as they could to reform India both politically and socially.
Mahatma Gandhi's Influence and Ideas Mahatma Gandhi was a man of faith and great conviction. He was born into an average Hindu family in India. Like most teenagers he had a rebellious stage when he smoked, spent time with girls and ate meat (forbidden to strict Hindus). The young Gandhi changed as a person while earning a living as a lawyer in South Africa. He came in contact with the apartheid and the future Mahatma began to emerge, one who championed the truth through non-violent resistance.