Quick Review Flashcards - Click to flip and test your knowledge!
Question
In which period of the 19th century did a strong feeling of nationalism and national political consciousness emerge in India?
Answer
The second half of the 19th century.
Question
What was identified as the most important factor in arousing Indian opposition to British rule?
Answer
Economic exploitation.
Question
According to the source, what was the general aim of British economic policies in India?
Answer
To promote British interests at the cost of the welfare of Indians.
Question
How did exorbitant land revenue and taxes affect Indian peasants under colonial rule?
Answer
They were driven into the clutches of landlords and moneylenders.
Question
How did the English East India Company impact Indian handicrafts and industry?
Answer
It used political power to destroy them to benefit British industries.
Question
Under British policy, what role did India serve for the industries of Britain?
Answer
A source of raw materials and a market for finished products.
Question
Who generally owned the modern industries in India that exploited the new social 'working class'?
Answer
Englishmen.
Question
Why were the prospects for educated Indians in government service described as 'bleak'?
Answer
Competition was high and the chances of promotion were very limited.
Question
What was the common realization among different sections of Indian society regarding their 'economic salvation'?
Answer
It lay in freeing themselves from British rule.
Question
How did British repressive policies serve the needs of Britain?
Answer
By making India economically, socially, and politically subservient.
Question
Which Viceroy of India from 1876 to 1880 followed particularly repressive policies that catalyzed the nationalist movement?
Answer
Lord Lytton.
Question
What event was organised in 1877 to proclaim Queen Victoria as the Empress of India?
Answer
The Grand Delhi Durbar.
Question
Why was the 1877 Grand Delhi Durbar controversial among Indians?
Answer
Millions of rupees were spent on it while Indians were suffering from a famine.
Question
What was the restriction imposed by the Vernacular Press Act of 1878?
Answer
It forbade vernacular papers from publishing material inciting dissatisfaction against the British Government.
Question
In what way was the Vernacular Press Act of 1878 discriminatory?
Answer
It applied only to vernacular papers and not to English newspapers.
Question
What act of 1878 made it a criminal offence for Indians to carry weapons without a licence?
Answer
The Indian Arms Act.
Question
How did Lord Lytton change the Indian Civil Service examination requirements to disadvantage Indians?
Answer
The maximum age limit was reduced from 21 to 19 years.
Question
Why did Lord Lytton remove import duties on British cotton textiles?
Answer
To benefit the British cloth industry at the expense of the nascent Indian textile industry.
Question
What was the primary objective of the Ilbert Bill introduced in 1883?
Answer
To provide for the trial of British or European persons by Indian judges.
Question
What was the name of the organization formed by the British to oppose the Ilbert Bill?
Answer
The Defence Association.
Question
How did the withdrawal of the Ilbert Bill affect the political outlook of educated Indians?
Answer
It highlighted British racism and showed that justice could not be expected where European interests were involved.
Question
What impact did Western education have on the outlook of 19th-century educated Indians?
Answer
It led to a rational, humanitarian, and scientific approach to life.
Question
List three social evils that 19th-century socio-religious reform movements worked to abolish.
Answer
Caste system, child marriage, and sati.
Question
Name the organisation founded by Raja Rammohan Roy.
Answer
Brahmo Samaj.
Question
In which book did Raja Rammohan Roy put forward his views against belief in many Gods?
Answer
Gift to Monotheists.
Question
Which language did Raja Rammohan Roy use to write 'Gift to Monotheists'?
Answer
Persian.
Question
Which social reformer described the caste system as an 'epitome of slavery' in his book 'Gulamgiri'?
Answer
Jyotiba Phule.
Question
What was the name of the society founded by Jyotiba Phule in 1873?
Answer
Satya Shodhak Samaj (Society of Truth Seekers).
Question
Who was the founder of the Arya Samaj?
Answer
Swami Dayanand Saraswati.
Question
What was the famous motto of Swami Dayanand Saraswati regarding ancient scriptures?
Answer
"Go Back to the Vedas".
Question
In which book did Swami Dayanand Saraswati outline the philosophy and teachings of the Arya Samaj?
Answer
Satyarth Prakash.
Question
What was the purpose of the 'Shuddhi Movement' started by the Arya Samaj?
Answer
To bring back to Hinduism those who had converted to other religions.
Question
What does the abbreviation D.A.V. stand for in the context of schools founded by the Arya Samaj?
Answer
Dayanand Anglo-Vedic.
Question
Who was the first Indian reformer to use the word 'Swaraj'?
Answer
Swami Dayanand Saraswati.
Question
Identify one basic difference between the educational views of Raja Rammohan Roy and Swami Dayanand Saraswati.
Answer
Roy believed more in Western education, while Dayanand had faith in the infallibility of the Vedas.
Question
How did the reform movements contribute to Indian nationalism regarding the role of women?
Answer
They taught that women were important and could participate in the national movement.
Question
Name three prominent newspapers started in the later half of the 19th century that helped develop national sentiment.
Answer
Amrit Bazar Patrika, The Bengali, and The Hindu.
Question
How did the press facilitate political agitation among different social groups?
Answer
It made possible the exchange of views between groups from different parts of the country.
Question
What was the first political association to be started in India, and in what year?
Answer
The Landholders’ Society in 1838.
Question
Who founded the East India Association in London in 1866?
Answer
Dadabhai Naoroji.
Question
What was the primary goal of Dadabhai Naoroji's East India Association?
Answer
To provide information on Indian subjects to British citizens and Members of Parliament to resolve Indian problems.
Question
Which political leader is associated with the founding of the Indian Association?
Answer
Surendranath Banerjee.
Question
On what date was the first session of the Indian National Congress held?
Answer
December 28, 1885.
Question
Where was the first session of the Indian National Congress held?
Answer
Gokuldas Tejpal Sanskrit College, Mumbai.
Question
Who presided over the first session of the Indian National Congress?
Answer
Womesh Chandra Bonnerjee (W.C. Bonnerjee).
Question
How many delegates attended the first session of the Indian National Congress?
Answer
72 delegates.
Question
What was the name of the organisation that preceded the Indian National Congress and was later renamed at its first meeting?
Answer
The Indian National Union.
Question
According to the 'safety-valve' theory, why did Lord Dufferin favour the formation of the Congress?
Answer
To act as an outlet for popular discontent, thereby safeguarding British interests.
Question
What was one of the aims of the Indian National Congress regarding the training of citizens?
Answer
To train and organise public opinion in the country.
Question
Who was the President of the second session of the Congress held in Kolkata in 1886?
Answer
Dadabhai Naoroji.
Question
What significant event occurred during the 1907 Surat Session of the Congress?
Answer
A split occurred between the Early Nationalists and the Assertive Nationalists.
Question
In which session of the Congress was 'Jana Gana Mana' sung for the first time?
Answer
The 26th Session in Kolkata, 1911.
Question
What was the significance of the 1916 Lucknow Session of the Congress?
Answer
The signing of the Lucknow Pact and the joint session with the Muslim League.
Question
Which session of the Congress was presided over by Mahatma Gandhi?
Answer
The 39th Session in Belgaum, 1924.
Question
In which session did the Congress declare 'Poorna Swaraj' (Complete Independence)?
Answer
The 44th Session in Lahore, 1929.
Question
Who was elected President at the 51st Haripura Session in 1938?
Answer
Subhas Chandra Bose.
Question
How did the 1883 Ilbert Bill controversy illustrate the British attitude toward Indians?
Answer
It highlighted a racist attitude and a refusal to grant judicial equality.
Question
Which specific group was excluded from the Congress for nearly a decade following the 1907 split?
Answer
The Assertive group.
Question
What was the primary reason for the industrial stagnation in India during British rule?
Answer
The use of political power to destroy Indian handicrafts and turn India into a market for British goods.
Question
Which social reformer is credited with starting the Ramakrishna Mission?
Answer
Swami Vivekananda.