The Colonial Experience

   At first, the British were merely trading partners and did not treat the Indian people harshly. Yet, once they gained more power, Britain limited many aspects of the Indian daily life. The British viewed their own lifestyles as “superior” and sent British women to Indian homes in an attempt to change their living styles [B]. Various British people also took this as an opportunity to make Indian people their servants and slaves – going as far as trading Indians as slaves to other British colonies [B, A].

   Sadly, it did not stop there. The British used their textile mills to forcefully put the Indian fabric industry out of power. They forced the Indian citizens to buy the more expensive British products and imports. This led to an incline in unemployment and poverty throughout India making the citizens unhappy. Britain also tore apart many families by taking Indian men to train for their own army. This treatment led to a series of nasty revolts from the working class in 1857 [A].

   However, their attempts at freedom were futile, and this treatment continued for decades. Nearly 50 years later, people throughout India began another act of opposition against Britain called the Swadeshi Movement. Many people throughout India refused to buy anything not produced within their own country. They held meetings all over India and made huge bonfires – burning all the British imports. The British did not take well to this and often punished those caught in the act harshly [A, C].

   In 1919, the British passed the Rowlatt Act as a response to World War I. This act allowed British officials to try citizens without a judge or solid evidence and put them in jail. Many were against it, including Gandhi, who believed that the act made people lose trust in the government [C].

   Also in 1919, Michael O' Dwyer was involved in the Jallianwallah Bagh tragedy that killed many innocent Indian people. The British had previously banned the Indian people from gathering, but many people gathered in the park to celebrate a traditional Indian festival on that specific day. Dwyer marched his group of soldiers into the park and killed many innocent people (including children) [C].

Sometimes it came with benefits...

   Although the initial conditions were rough, the British conquest benefited India in the long run. In order to benefit their own trade, Britain introduced modern technology to India and built many railroads throughout the country. They created schools, universities, and factories to introduce western and democratic ideas. Since at the time this was done for Britain’s own benefit, all the expenses for these modifications were done on Britain’s own money [A].