Lord Dalhousie (a.d. 1848-a.d. 1855)

This was introduced mainly to extend the British Empire. According to the Doctrine of lapse, if a ruler of a dependent state in India died and did not have a male successor, his adopted son would not be his true successor. In this case, the state would pass back to the British. The adopted son would be the heir only of the inherited personal property of the deceased ruler. This was greatly opposed by the Indians and was one of the major causes of sepoy mutiny in 1857. On this basis, British had annexed states of Jaipur, Satara, Sambhalpur, Udaipur, Jhansi and Nagpur.

Oudh was annexed by Lord Dalhousie due to misgovernment. Wajid Ali Shah was the Nawab of Oudh who was deposed of his throne in 1852.

Lord Dalhousie encouraged widow remarriages. He had introduced this Act due to the same concern.

The first railway line was laid between Bombay and Thane. It was laid under the leadership of Lord Dalhousie in 1853.

Lord Dalhousie become the Governor General of India in 1848. He had adopted three principles for the expansion of the British empire. They were- Doctrine of lapse, through wars and by the use of misgovernment.

Satara was the first kingdom to be annexed by the British under the Doctrine of Lapse. The Doctrine of lapse stated that if any ruler des without any son, the state would not be passed to his adopted son, if any, and would be passed to the British. The adopted son would not be the owner of the state nor any pension. He would only be the heir to his personal property.

Ganga canal was constructed during the reign of Dalhousie. This was set up under the Public Works Department established by Lord Dalhousie.

1. First railway line - 1853. It was set up between Bombay and Thane by Lord Dalhousie

2. Woods Despatch - 1854 During the period of Lord Dalhousie, Sir Charles Wood Despatch introduced many educational reforms in India.

3. Nana Sahib - Adopted son of Baji Rao II

4. Wajid Ali Shah - Nawab of Oudh. He was deposed of his throne in 1852 on account of misgovernment. Pudh was then annexed to the Britishers.

The second Anglo-Sikh war fought in 1848. It continued till 1849.

In the First Anglo Sikh war, although the Sikhs were defeated they were not destroyed completely. The Sikhs had a part of Multan under them. With the leadership of Mulraj, they revolted against the British. Lord Dalhousie declared this war against the Sikhs in 1848. The Sikhs lost this war. Lord Dalhousie annexed Punjab in 1849.

The public department was set up by Lord Dalhousie. Many canals, bridges, roads etc were built. The Grand Trunk Road between Calcutta and Peshawar was renovated. Ganga canal was also dug during this period.

The universities set up during the period of Dalhousie were the University of Bombay, the University of Madras and the University of Calcutta.

● The doctrine of Lapse was a policy introduced by Lord Dalhousie. This was introduced mainly to extend the British Empire.

● According to the Doctrine of lapse, if a ruler of a dependent state in India died and did not have a male successor, his adopted son would not be his true successor.

● In this case, the state would pass back to the British.

● The adopted son would be the heir only of the inherited personal property of the deceased ruler.

● This was greatly opposed by the Indians and was one of the major causes of sepoy mutiny in 1857.

● On this basis, British had annexed states of Jaipur, Satara, Sambhalpur, Udaipur, Jhansi and Nagpur.

Dalhousie had adopted three principles to expand the British empire in India. They were:

a) Doctrine of Lapse

b) Through wars

c) On the ground of misgovernment

The doctrine of Lapse was a policy introduced by Lord Dalhousie. This was introduced mainly to extend the British Empire. On this basis, British had annexed states of Jaipur, Satara, Sambhalpur, Udaipur, Jhansi and Nagpur.

Dalhousie was called the ‘ Father of Indian Railways ‘ due to the following reasons:

● He had introduced railways in India

● The first railway line was between Bombay and Thane in 1853.

● In 1854, a railway line was set up between Howrah and Ranikanj

● In 1856, a railway was started from Madras to Arakonam.

● It helped in increasing the volume of trade.

● It became easier for the British government to transfer goods, troops and raw materials from one place to another.

Lord Dalhousie was the Governor General of India from 1848 to 1855. He had introduced many reforms for the welfare of the state and the people.

A. Administrative reforms:

● He appointed a Lieutenant Governor to look after the matters in Bengal.

● The provinces were divided into districts and each of them had a deputy commissioner.

● Shimla was the winter capital

● Calcutta was the summer capital

● A uniform administration system was introduced in Madras, Bombay and Calcutta.

B.Introduction of railways:

● Lord Dalhousie is called the Father of Indian Railways.

● The first railway line was between Bombay and Thane in 1853.

● In 1854, a railway line was set up between Howrah and Ranikanj

● In 1856, a railway was started from Madras to Arakonam.

● It helped in increasing the volume of trade.

● It became easier for the British government to transfer goods, troops and raw materials from one place to another.

C. Post and Telegraph:

● Post and telegraph offices were set up in every district.

● A Director Governor was appointed to keep a check on the postal offices in each district.

● He had introduced postal stamps,half anna postal , a uniform postage system and telegraph lines

D. Commercial reforms:

● He introduced free trade.

● The harbour of Bombay, Madras and Calcutta were improved and lighthouses were also set up.

● They were also equipped with modern facilities.

E. Social reforms:

● He abolished Sati and suppression of thugs.

● He encouraged widow remarriage and introduced the Widow Remarriage Act in 1856.

● He allowed the inheritance of ancestral property, even if he changed his religion

F. Educational reforms:

● A department of public instruction was set up in every province.

● Many educational institutions were set up from primary to university levels.

● Teacher training institutions were also set up.

● An engineering college was set up in Roorkee.

G. Military reforms:

● The army headquarter was shifted from Calcutta to Shimla

● The Bengal artillery headquarter was shifted from Calcutta to Meerut.

● Gurkhas were encouraged to join the Indian army.

If I was an adopted child of Nawab, I would be negatively affected by the Doctrine of Lapse introduced by the British.

According to the Doctrine of Lapse, if a ruler dies and he does not have any son, his state would now be a property of the British. The adopted son would only be the heir of his personal property. This step is only undertaken to ensure the British’s empire is expanded. It takes away all my rights to make a ruler and has made me further dependent on the Britishers. I also do not have any right on the state or any pension.

LORD DALHOUSIE: THE MAKER OF MODERN INDIA

Lord Dalhousie was the Governor General of India from 1848 to 1856. He was called the maker of modern India due to the reasons:

● He introduced the railways in India. The first railway was set up between Bombay and Thane in 1853.

● In 1854, the first telegraph was opened from Calcutta to Agra.

● In 1854, he passed the Post Office act. postal stamps were issued for the first time

● He delegated the important powers to the District magistrate such as justice, police and land revenue.

● Earlier, the military had focused on the public work. They always favoured military work above the civilian work. Lord Dalhousie set up the public work department.

● under this department, many canals, bridges, road were set up.

● The Ganga canal was dug up.

● The G.T Road between Calcutta and Peshawar was renovated.

● He abolished female infanticide

● He introduced the Widow remarriage Act in 1855 and encouraged the remarriage of widows.

● He set up an education department in each province.

● He started Anglo-vernacular schools were both English and a local language was taught.

● He also started the private institutions aided by government.

The Britishers had greatly helped in improving the transport and communications. A few points to support this are mentioned below:

1. In 1853, Marx had predicted that railways would be the forerunner of the modern industry. Railways were set up for two main reasons - transfer of goods from one place to another, and for military purpose. Prior to this, transportation in India was very costly, unreliable and costly. the British power and the Government of India realised that it is important to set up railways to have a cheaper and easier transfer of goods and people. The first railway line was from Bombay to Thane in 1853.

2. Before the Britishers, the road network was in a terrible condition. The East India Company preferred the development of railways as compared to the roads, as it was felt that the former is more profitable. After the First World war, it was realised that developing roads is important. But this was mainly due to the military transfer from one place to another. After the Second World War, serious efforts were put into this matter. Roads were constructed in four basis- national highway, state highway, major district roads and village roads.

3. The Electrical telegraph system was introduced in India in 1852. The first telegraph system line was set up between Calcutta to Agra in 1854. It covered a distance of 1800 miles. People could easily transfer messages from one place to another.

4. In 1854, a new Post office Act was introduced. A postal department was set up in every state. It helped the government to earn revenues.

5. Public Work Department : A public work department was set up. It has set up many bridges, canals, road etc. Many roads were renovated and the new one was constructed. Many skilled engineers were brought from England to supervise this work.

6. The Harbours of Bombay, Madras and Calcutta were set up along with many lighthouses.

Thus, the Britishers had greatly helped in uniting India by bringing everyone closer to each other with the help of transport and communication development.