Page 62 - Social Science.docx

The Fall of the Raj:
The British Withdrawal from India
James Haskett
The Indian subcontinent has a rich history of empires rising and falling dating back hundreds of years before the British arrived. For centuries many different kingdoms, sultanates, and confederations ruled over the subcontinent in waning periods of prosperity. When the British East India Company finally gained a foothold on the subcontinent the predominant empire that ruled over the majority of the subcontinent was the Muhgal Empire which hailed from the Northwest (modern day Afghanistan/Pakistan). Through strongman politics, unfair diplomatic concessions, and a technologically superior force the East India Company managed to create a large portion of India for themselves. After wresting control of the Indian heartlands from the Mughals and driving them back to the northwest the British established an oppressive colonial system eventually encompassing the entirety of modern day India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Myanmar. Eventually the British crown would directly take control of the colony and establish the British Raj would further oppress the native population under the visage of “increased autonomy.”
Throughout the twentieth century there were numerous attempts at gaining representation
through open rebellion and demonstration, all of which failed at gaining any real political power
for the native population. The Raj government would last until the end of the second world war
______________________________
James Haskett ’21, will study the social sciences at Loyola Marymount University.
58