Chhattisgarh State Board Class 9 Social Science Chapter 10 Colonialism Exercise Multiple Choice, Fill in the Blanks, Questions and Answers here.
Chhattisgarh State Class 9 Social Science Chapter 10 Colonialism Solution
- How did the European countries conquer countries located thousands of kilometres away? Why did they want to establish their rule over these countries? What were the other countries in the world doing when the Europeans were conquering these countries? What impact did European rule have on the colonies? How did the colonies gain their freedom?
Ans: We all know, Europe was the first country to industrialize earliest. As a result, the military power possessed by them was way more superior and comparatively higher than other countries. Therefore, the European countries conquered countries located thousands of kilometres away.
The foremost reason for establishing their rule over these countries were to prove political and economic dominance and capitalizing new sources of wealth i.e. gold, silver, etc.
When the Europeans were conquering those countries, they were mainly focused on the internal trade and internal affairs within their countries. They didn’t resist the European colonization because they weren’t strong enough like Europe.
On a broader scale, the European countries exploited the raw materials of the colonies and people of the colonies by making them slaves, creating a huge impact on the colonies.
Later, during the late 19th and early 20th century, the colonies gained their freedom by continuous non-violent protests.
Here’s a list of the countries you provided along with the continents they are situated in and whether they were imperialist nations or colonies:
- Locate the countries listed below in the world map and write the names of the continents they are situated in. Which of these countries do you think were imperialist nations and which were colonies? Write your answer in the third column.
Ans:
| Country | Continent | Imperialist Nation or Colony |
| India | Asia | Colony |
| China | Asia | Imperialist Nation |
| Argentina | South America | Colony |
| Portugal | Europe | Imperialist Nation |
| Brazil | South America | Colony |
| Indonesia | Asia | Colony |
| France | Europe | Imperialist Nation |
| England | Europe | Imperialist Nation |
| Japan | Asia | Imperialist Nation |
| South Africa | Africa | Colony |
| Mexico | North America | Colony |
| Nigeria | Africa | Colony |
| Germany | Europe | Imperialist Nation |
| Laos | Asia | Colony |
| Vietnam | Asia | Colony |
| Chile | South America | Colony |
- What were the reasons for English traders’ coming to India? Compare their reasons to the reasons why the Spanish conquistadors went to America.
Ans: European sailors surveyed the whole eastern coast of the newly dubbed America within a few years following Columbus’ journey. The Spanish “conquistadors,” or professional warriors and explorers, desired to explore and conquer the “new world.” They want fame and money. They formed troops and obtained authorization from the King of Spain to go on missions to conquer the new globe. They desired to claim enormous territory in America in the name of the Spanish monarch in order to produce and breed cattle. At the time, Europe’s population was quickly increasing, and there was little available land for cultivation. America had an additional draw. Gold and silver were scarce in Europe at the time, and word spread that the new globe contained large gold vaults and numerous gold mines. The conquerors and their armies headed off for America in search of enormous riches.
- How did a handful of Spaniards overcome such large empires so swiftly and easily? What were the reasons for their success? Why do you think England could not defeat the Mughal emperors so easily in India?
Ans: Spaniards spears and arrows were no match for Spanish horses, guns and cannons. Also, most of the Aztecs were afflicted by European diseases like smallpox that were unknown in the country. So they couldn’t fight. Cortes declared the Aztec Empire as a Spanish province. The Aztec people were forcibly converted to Christianity and made to do forced labour.
The Mughal Empire in India was one of the strongest empires in India during that time as it had a powerful military, arms support, and an abundant portion of India under their control. These were the reasons why England could not defeat the Mughal emperors so easily in India.
- What complaints do you think the Creoles may have had with the colonial administration?
Ans: The Creoles had the complaint that they were not given high political positions in the colonial administration.
- Why were the African slaves and the native people given no place in the colonial administration? Can you think of a reason?
Ans: The African slaves and the native people given no place in the colonial administration because they were at the bottom of the social hierarchy were the African slaves. They had to do all kinds of hard physical labour and had no rights. Their owners treated them like chattel.
- Imagine you are a native tribal in colonial America. Imagine you are a Spanish rancher who rears animals to sell meat in the market. Imagine you are an African slave who works on the farm of a Spanish landowner. What complaints would you have against the Spanish administration in each of these three roles?
Ans: As a native tribal in colonial America, I would complain about how our lands which were in our ancestral names, were taken away from us, and that too without paying us any remuneration or whatsoever.
As a Spanish rancher who rears animals to sell meat in the market, I would complain about the heavy and large amounts of taxes imposed on our sellings due to which we cannot profit from the selling and are suffering miserably.
As a African slave who works on the farm of a Spanish landowner, I would complain about the brutal and toxic behaviour under which we are succumbed to. Also, about the physical torcher, abuse and mistreatment done to us, followed by injustice way of work conditions without even getting paid.
- Which leader of India’s freedom struggle would you compare with Simon Bolivar?
Ans: Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose was the leader of India’s freedom struggle compared with Simon Bolivar.
- What were the similarities and differences between the freedom struggles in Haiti and South America?
Ans: Haiti: The first successful insurrection in Latin America was in Haiti Island, a French colony, in 1791. Inspired by the French Revolution, about 100,000 African slaves rose in revolt. A former slave, Toussaint Louverture, led the successful rebel army. All the slaves were freed, thus eliminating the practice of slavery. But Napoleon’s military commanders arrested and imprisoned Louverture by deceit, deporting him to France, where he later died. The Haitians, however, continued their revolt, declaring independence in 1804. Independent Haiti was the world’s first successful slave insurrection.
South America: s. As you know, the Creoles were the least exploited social group in Latin America. Many of them were educated in European universities and were familiar with modern democratic ideas. The most prominent among the Creole revolutionaries were Simon Bolivar and José Martin. Bolivar assembled an army of Creoles, African slaves and small peasants to raise the banner of revolt against Spain in 1811. He faced many defeats but continued to wage war against Spanish rule. Eventually, in 1819, he gained independence for what is Colombia today. Two years later in 1821, he gained independence for present-day Venezuela. He then went south to Ecuador, where he joined forces with the other great Latin American revolutionary José Martin. Martin led the freedom struggle in the southern part of Latin America – what is called Argentina today. He gained independence for both Argentina and Chile. In 1824, the combined forces of Bolivar and Martin threw out the Spanish army from Peru. At the same time, the people of Brazil declared their independence from Portugal. In this way, the whole of Latin America was freed from Spanish rule. Bolivar is known as the revolutionary ‘liberator’ of all of South America. Wherever he achieved success, he first abolished slavery and forced labour, so the African slaves and Indian tribes joined him in his revolutionary campaign. He vowed to divide the haciendas into small holdings and distribute them among the small peasants but he could not fulfil his promise in the face of opposition from Creole landowners.
- You learnt about plantations in class VI. Try to recall what you learnt.
Ans: Plantation refers to a cultivation and agriculture of crops in farms and large agricultural lands to provide us with food and clean air.
- Are there any plantations like the Java plantations in your state?
Ans: No
- Which crops are grown in plantations in India today and in which states? Find out about them.
Ans:
Crops | State |
Coconut | Tamil Nadu |
Coffee | Karnataka |
Tea | Assam |
Rubber | Kerala |
Grape | Maharashtra |
- The European nations could not establish their rule in Asia in the 15th and 16th century. What do you think was the reason?
Ans: European traders travelled to Asia to purchase cotton, silks, spices, and other goods. Western European traders desired a maritime access to India. Vasco da Gama, a Portuguese navigator, eventually sailed around the point of Africa to reach India in 1498. This paved the path for marine travel to India and China. The European navigators who sailed to America encountered no significant armed opposition. However, there were numerous Asian countries that were greater and more formidable than any European country at the time. In a direct military clash, the European countries could not hope to overcome these formidable rulers.
- What did the Portuguese and Dutch do to establish their monopoly on the spice trade?
Ans: The trading companies from European nations like France, England and Holland joined the Portuguese in the highly profitable trade with countries of South-east Asia and the Far East. The Dutch succeeded in breaching the supremacy of the Portuguese in the Indian Ocean region, successfully establishing their colonies in South-east Asia. (The people living in Holland, also called the Netherlands, were known as the Dutch because they spoke the Dutch language.) The Dutch established the Dutch East India Company in 1602 to trade with Asia. The company had to wage many wars against the Portuguese to break their trade control. The Portuguese had their base in Malacca at the time. The Dutch eventually established their control over parts of the island of Java in Indonesia. Their company tried to take over the entire spice trade in Indonesia so that it could control prices in Europe and earn huge profits.
- The Portuguese established a sea empire. What do you think this means? How would it have affected theAsian traders?
Ans: The Portuguese established their naval and trade outposts in many Indian Ocean ports – such as Goa in India, Hormuz in West Asia and Malacca in South-east Asia. They used armed force to prey on trade ships plying across the Indian Ocean, forcing them to pay a protection tax. They were thus able to establish a vast sea empire. Their monopoly was broken only after merchants from Britain, Holland and France established their own trade and naval outposts in the Indian Ocean and challenged Portugal’s supremacy
- What impact did the Dutch agricultural policy have on the peasants of Indonesia between 1830 and1890?
Ans: i) By 1830, Dutch rule was established over the entire island of Java. The peasants were compelled to grow coffee, rubber and spices and sell the produce to the Dutch at low rates
- ii) The Dutch cleared thousands of acres of forests and grew mono-crops – rubber, coffee, tea, pepper and sugarcane – over vast tracts. Factories were set up on the plantations to process the produce.
iii) Hundreds of wage labourers worked day and night on these plantations, living there with their families.
- The equatorial forests of Indonesia were cleared on a large scale to develop plantations. What impact would this process have had on the lives of the local people?
Ans: On Indonesian islands, several plantations were created. The country quickly became the leading exporter of cocoa, tea, coffee, rubber, and other commodities. Although the plantation owners were largely Europeans, the labourers were either locals or recruited from China and India. As a result, Indonesia evolved a diverse civilization.
- Why was China not interested in trading with any other country?
Ans: The biggest problem the European companies faced in trading with China was that they had no goods they could sell in the country. This forced the traders to carry silver and gold to China to pay for the goods they bought. Hence, the trade balance was always in China’s favour.
- The European nations colonised other regions of the world, establishing their direct control over them. But in China they did not do this. Instead, they tried to establish their influence in different ways. Why do you think their approach differed in the case of China?
Ans: China had a very powerful central administration over their country, making it a very strong, independent and strong country. Secondly, European countries exported their main raw materials from China as, China was the only exporter of goods like tea, coffee, cotton, silk, etc. to Europe. Hence Europe didn’t want to risk their trade affairs with China.Therefore, Europe’s approach differed in the case of China
- What do you understand by an ‘open door’ policy? Why did America favour an open door policy with China?
Ans: Under the open door policy, all countries would be free to trade with China and no country could establish its defined sphere of influence. The United States of America had been trading with China for many years. It was worried that if the European countries divided China into their spheres of influence, American trade would be affected. So it opposed this division and announced an open door policy as an alternative. U
- Why were the European nations so keen to capture African territories?
Ans: Colonisation was seen as a symbol of national strength so the European nations felt a sense of national pride in expanding their colonies. They all believed they were superior to the black tribal people who were the natives of Africa, so they demanded and got some special privileges. They also tried to prevent intermingling of races and therefore adopted a policy of racial segregation. European nations also sought to develop a class of African people who spoke European languages, and adopted European culture, religion and ideologies. They established many universities and educational institutions with this objective in mind. The idea was that this class would help them to administer their colonies.
- Why was it so easy for them to establish their control over Africa?
Ans: The African continent was already well-known during the Middle Ages as the main source of slaves in Europe, West Asia and India. The tribes sold the prisoners they captured during their incessant inter-tribal battles as slaves to merchants. After 1500, the slave trade from Africa expanded rapidly as the demand for slave labour on the plantations of North and South America increased. Therefore, it was easy for them to establish their control over Africa.
- Make a comparative analysis of Figure 10.8 and Figure 10.11
Ans: In the figure 10.8 it says – A cartoon is depicting the division of China by the Europeans and the Japanese. Broadly speaking, the defeat in the Opium War exposed the weaknesses of the Chinese military to the world. Other European powers also tried to gain a foothold in China. In 1844, China signed treaties similar to the Nanking treaty with France and America, which gave both many trade concessions. Similar unequal treaties were signed with other European countries like Germany, Russia, etc. As a result, different countries established their spheres of influence along the Chinese coast.
In the figure 10.11 it says A cartoon of the division of Africa under the chairmanship of German chancellor Bismarck. In other words, After 1850, the newly industrialised nations of Europe aggressively pursued a policy of establishing their control in Africa. In a very short time, many of them succeeded in capturing control in different parts of the continent. But the fear now was that they would begin fighting among themselves. To eliminate the possibility of war, they called a conference to mutually divide the continent among themselves. Fourteen European nations attended the conference that was held in the German capital of Berlin. There was not a single representative of the African people.
- Take a close look at the boundaries of the different countries in the political map of Africa. In many places, the boundary appears to be a straight line. Can you suggest a reason why the boundaries are straight lines?
Ans: The straight line boundaries signify the mark of Scramble for Africa in the 19th century, that is, those boundaries were actually made by the colonies of European countries who took control over Africa.
- We read in this chapter that Africa did not have nation states in 1850. But we see the continent divided into many different countries in 1913. How did so many countries come into existence in a span of only 60 years?
Ans: After 1500, the African slave trade flourished significantly as demand for slave work on North and South American plantations rose dramatically.
Numerous European nations engaged this profitable people trafficking and made huge profits while supplying thousands of Africans. This commerce lasted more than 300 years, eventually dying out between 1800 and 1900. Ironically, the biggest slave dealers, the European nations, suddenly claimed that they needed to control Africa to put a stop to the slave trade. The ‘Scramble for Africa’ was born. After 1850, Europe’s newly industrialised countries launched an aggressive agenda of establishing their influence in Africa. Many of them were successful in seizing control of various regions of the continent in a relatively short period of time. The concern now was that they might start fighting amongst themselves. To remove the threat of violence, they convened a convention to split the continent among themselves. The summit in Berlin, Germany, was attended by fourteen European countries. There was not a single African representative present.
The convention resolved that any European country that sought to colonise any territory of Africa must first notify the other countries. In this fashion, within 30 years, the whole African continent was conquered by one or more European nations. Each country wanted to maximise the value of its colony.
With that many countries come into existence in a span of only 60 years.
- What is the ideology of racism? Today, the whole world thinks racial discrimination is morally wrong. What do you think is wrong with the theory of racism?
Ans: The ideology that one race is superior to the other is called racism. Racists believe that the superior race has a natural right to rule over and exploit the inferior race.
Racism is a social injustice suffered by people because of their race. People cannot control which race they’re from and hence the assumption of superiority crates social distancing and many times victims are denied of their basic human rights.
- Why did the Maji Maji uprising fail? Why were the Ethiopian people successful in their rebellion?
Ans: The tribal warriors attacked the German troops with their spears, 75,000 of them were mowed down by the German machine guns. Twice that number later died in the famine that ravaged the land because of the severe food-grain shortage caused by cultivating cotton instead of cereals.
Ethiopia was the only African country that successful resisted against European colonial rule. Menelik II was the Ethiopian ruler in 1889. After the Berlin Conference, the British, French and Italians tried to extend their spheres of influence in Ethiopia. Menelik cleverly used one European nation against the other. During this time, he made big purchases of guns and ammunition from Russia and France.
- Do you think it was right or wrong for the European nations to divide Africa among themselves? Give reasons for your answer.
Ans: It was wrong for the European nations to divide Africa among themselves, as they:
- i) Misused their superior military ammunitions on proving social dominance.
- ii) Breached and violated the sovereignty of the African country.
iii) Divided the country and made permanent borders on the African map without any consent.
- Did Italy’s defeat at the hands of the Ethiopians have any impact on European supremacy?
Ans: Yes, Italy’s defeat at the hands of the Ethiopians have any impact on European supremacy, giving rise to the thought of anti-colonial movements and providing an array of hope to everyone that, the Europeans are not undefeatable.
- What impact would commercial agriculture and high revenue demand have had on the life of the common people?
Ans: Lakhs of weavers were rendered jobless. They turned to farming in the absence of any alternative livelihood. This increased the pressure on land. More people now had to earn a living from the same amount of land. This process of people shifting from industry to agriculture is known as the ‘de-industrialisation’ of India. It put the country in the ranks of the world’s poor nations
- How did the local people participate in the colonial system of governance? Explain in the context of South America and Africa.
Ans: Not all the time local people participated in the colonial system of governance, as it clearly depended on a particular period of time and also it depended on special and excluded colonies.
South America was based on the idea of indirect rule, hence the local people got the opportunity to participate in the government, but not until the Spanish established their autonomy over the country.
African local people didn’t get the opportunity participate in the colonial system of governance as the European rulers didn’t believe in indirect rule and completely segregated the thought of local people participating in the colonial system of governance by establishing complete dominance and authority over them.
- How did the European nations behave with the local population? Explain in the context of the Congo, Spanish Mexico and Indonesia.
Ans: Fearing murder or severed hands, Leopold ordered Congolese living in the forests to sell forest commodities to King’s agents. Concessionaires were engaged to collect the product, adding to the annals of human depravity. This massacre murdered over 100 lakh Congolese. When the Belgian parliament acquired control of the Congo in 1908, the concessionaire system was abolished.
In general, the Spanish colonial administration in Mexico was more accepting of cultural diversity unlike the Belgian government in the Republic of Congo. The Spanish, on the other hand, abused the native inhabitants via enslaving them and taxes. The Spanish also brought illnesses like smallpox to Mexico, decimating the native population.
The Dutch removed thousands of acres of forest and planted mono-crops such as rubber, coffee, tea, pepper, and sugarcane over enormous swaths of land in Indonesia. On the plantations, factories were built to process the output. Hundreds of wage workers laboured on these plantations day and night, living there with their families. On Indonesian islands, several plantations were created. The nation quickly became the leading exporter of cocoa, tea, coffee, rubber, and other commodities. Although the plantation owners were largely Europeans, the labourers were either locals or recruited from China and India. As a result, Indonesia evolved a diverse civilization.
- How were natural resources and human labour exploited in the colonial process? Explain in the context of mining in South America and Africa.
Ans: South America- The Spanish Empire was controlled by a Council in Spain that advised the Spanish monarch. The Council sent high-ranking officers belonging to the elite class to administer the American colonies. They came on short tenures, so their sole interest was to make as much money as they could while they were posted in the colonies. In the social hierarchy, native tribes had no position in the administration, had their own lands but also had to do forced labour on the farms of big landowners and in mines and pay heavy taxes to the government.
At the bottom of the social hierarchy were the African slaves. They had to do all kinds of hard physical labour and had no rights. Their owners treated them like chattel. In America, peasants and landowners planted economic crops such as sugarcane. The Council required them to sell their products solely to licenced Spanish merchants at a predetermined, low price. As a result, they only made a tiny profit. They never had enough money to invest on their crops. As a consequence, agriculture in the area has been unable to modernise. The produce of the American mines – gold, silver, and minerals – was held by the Spanish king. They were sent to Spain, where the minerals were utilised in Spanish manufacturers. As a result, no industry were permitted to establish in the colonies.
Africa – When European countries seized control of Africa, they started to restructure the continent to suit their own interests. These developments had a profound influence on the lives of Africans. Prior to colonial domination, the Masai people had a pastoral existence, raising cattle in the wide savannah grasslands. During the colonial process, Britain and Germany established an international border to split Masai land into two areas. The two countries started supporting cultivation in the savannah. As a consequence, the Masai were prohibited from travelling. They graze their livestock on around 60% of their traditional pastoral territory. They were gradually driven into shrub-lands with little vegetation and little rainfall. Once upon a time, much more rich than Farmers and pastoral Masai were now reduced to poverty as a result of their new circumstances. Other African civilizations were also experiencing similar negative developments. Diamond mining required a large number of people.
Until then, most native Africans were pastoralists or farmers who did not work for a livelihood. To compel them to work as miners, the colonial authority imposed a hut tax. It took at least three months for an adult to earn enough money to pay the tax. As a consequence, a considerable portion of the local people was compelled to abandon their farms and meadows in order to work in the mines.
Miners started to settle around gold and diamond mines. Many Europeans working in administration and sales began to live in these communities, which expanded into towns. Johannesburg, one of the villages surrounding the gold mines, grew to become South Africa’s biggest metropolis. Europeans and Africans established separate communities in the cities. They were subject to separate regulations. This seclusion aided the state’s discriminatory apartheid practises.
- What changes occurred in the methods of colonial exploitation before and after the Industrial Revolution? Explain in the context of South America and India.
Ans: Before the Industrial revolution, the colonial powers who ruled over South America and India, exploited the raw materials like spice, and minerals. They even practiced forced labour and intensive malpractices to extract the raw materials like spice, and minerals.
After the Industrial revolution, the colonial powers who ruled over South America and India, didn’t stop exploiting South America and India for spices and minerals, but also started to sell those items to the European countries in order to increase profits and increase the economy of he both countries.
In South America, before industrial revolution, there were forced labour and labourers died in the intensive malpractices of mining and farming by the Colonial powers. Later, after industrial revolution, South America started to trade Guano, a fertilizer which was only found in South America, with Europe and other countries which helped the country to grow their own economy.
In India, before industrial revolution, were also under submission of the British. Even though they were one of the important exporter of raw materials like spices to the world, but after the industrial revolution, India found its gold in the form of cotton. The cotton was farmed by the farmers in large quantities. Soon, India became the only exporter of cotton. They exported their cotton to Britain and slowly started to gain their economic power.
EXERCISES
1.) List the following events according to their timeline: the destruction of the Aztec Empire; Columbus reaches the West Indies; the Haiti uprising; the destruction of the Inca Empire.
Ans: Columbus reaches the West Indies: 1492
Destruction of the Aztec Empire by Hernan Cortes: 1519-1521
Destruction of the Inca Empire by Francisco Pizarro: 1532-1533
Haiti uprising led by Toussaint Louverture: 1791-1804
2.) Match the following:
Hernando Cortes Conquest of the Aztec Empire
Toussaint Louverture The Congo genocide
Leopold II The Haiti uprising
Macaulay Independence of Columbia and Venezuela
Francis Pizzaro Conquest of the Inca Empire
José Martin India’s education policy
Simon Bolivar Argentina’s independence
Ans: Hernando Cortes: Conquest of the Aztec Empire
Toussaint Louverture: The Haiti uprising
Leopold II: The Congo genocide
Francis Pizarro: Conquest of the Inca Empire
José Martin: India’s education policy
Simon Bolivar: Argentina’s independence
3.) What kind of social system developed after the Spanish conquest of Latin America?
Ans: A Council in Spain advised the Spanish king and was in charge of the Spanish Empire. The Council sent high-ranking officials from the ruling class to govern the American colonies.
They arrived on short-term contracts, thus their only goal was to earn as much money as possible while stationed in the colonies. They paid little attention to the issues of the Spanish, African, and indigenous people that lived there. As a result, the public were dissatisfied with these authorities.
The majority of the colonial society was made up of individuals of Spanish heritage, the majority of whom were born in Latin America. Landowners and other social groupings were featured in this section. They were known as Creoles. They mostly pursued activities like as farming, livestock breeding, trading, artisanal crafts, industry, and so forth. In the colonial government, they were not granted important political posts. The Mestizos were socially inferior to them. They were the child of Europeans and indigenous tribes. The Mulattos, who were the blended progeny of Europeans and African slaves, were ranked below them. They were mostly workers.
In the social structure, the native tribes came next. They had no place in the administration, had their own fields, but were also required to work on the farms of large landowners and in mines, as well as pay enormous taxes to the government.
African slaves were at the bottom of the social order. They were forced to undertake severe physical tasks and had no rights. Their owners treated them as though they were property.The Creoles were the most educated and rich of the colonial inhabitants, and they led the colonial society.
4.) How did the French Revolution influence the freedom struggles in Latin America?
Ans: Many revolts and conflicts against Spanish control occurred, mainly among local tribes and African slaves, but all were unsuccessful. Every segment of colonial society was dissatisfied with the Spanish government. Europeans were acquainted with democratic and nationalist ideologies. Latin American nations were also inspired by the American Revolution in 1776 and the French Revolution in 1789. As a result, they increased their attempts to achieve independence.
The first successful insurgency in Latin America occurred in 1791 on Haiti Island, a French territory. Around 100,000 African slaves rose up in insurrection, inspired by the French Revolution. Toussaint Louverture, a former slave, commanded the victorious rebel army. All slaves were released, thereby ending the practise of slavery. But, by deception, Napoleon’s military officers seized and imprisoned Louverture before deporting him to France, where he died. The Haitians, on the other hand, persisted in their uprising, proclaiming independence in 1804. The world’s first successful slave insurgency occurred in independent Haiti.
5.) Three categories of people lived in Spanish-ruled America – the people of Spanish descent, including administrative officials and common peasants; the native population; and the African slaves. Did these three categories have different rights under colonial rule? What were the differences?
Ans: The people of Spanish descent, most of them born in Latin America, formed the largest component of the colonial society. This section included landowners and other social groups. They were called Creoles. The Creoles were the most educated and wealthy among the colonial people and provided leadership to the colonial society.
They mostly followed occupations such as farming, cattle rearing, trade, artisanal crafts, industry, etc. They were not given high political positions in the colonial administration.
Below them in the social ranking were the Mestizos. They were the mixed offspring of Europeans and the native tribals. Below them in the ranking were the Mulattos, who were the mixed offspring of the Europeans and African slaves. They were mostly labourers.
The native tribes came next in the social hierarchy. They had no position in the administration, had their own lands but also had to do forced labour on the farms of big landowners and in mines and pay heavy taxes to the government.
At the bottom of the social hierarchy were the African slaves. They had to do all kinds of hard physical labour and had no rights. Their owners treated them like chattel.
6.) What is commercialisation of agriculture? What were the reasons for commercialising agriculture in India?
Ans: In simple terms, commercialisation of agriculture means a system where farmers grow crops not just for themselves, but also to sell it to other people and earn profits from it. This system of earning by selling crops grew by them is called commercialisation of agriculture.
In India, British industrialisation required raw materials such as indigo, cotton and jute while the demand for agricultural produce like cereals, tea and sugar also increased. The colonial government wanted Indian farmers to produce these cheaply and supply to England at low costs. It placed the land revenue demand at a very high and this forced the Indian farmers to change the cropping pattern. In order to pay the high revenue they began growing more commercial crops which were being bought by traders for England. The government launched many irrigation projects to supply water to the peasants so they could grow commercial crops. It also laid new railway lines to connect the major agricultural regions to the seaports. The British industrialists supplied most of the material needed to expand the railways. This benefited the British steel industry. In this way, Indian agriculture began serving the needs of England’s industrialisation. The production of cash crops grew, taking the place of textiles in the export market.
7.) How did trade monopoly affect the weavers in India?
Ans: Lakhs of weavers were rendered jobless. They turned to farming in the absence of any alternative livelihood. This increased the pressure on land. More people now had to earn a living from the same amount of land.
8.) Concepts like freedom, equality and democracy became popular in Europe. At the same time, the Europeans behaved barbarically with the people living in their colonies. How was this contradiction possible and what do you think of it?
Ans: Concepts like freedom, equality and democracy became popular in Europe. At the same time, the Europeans behaved barbarically with the people living in their colonies. Here are some reasons for it:
i) Britain was blinded with the goal of becoming the most imperialist country, and holding the dominance over other countries. This resulted in foreshadowing the concept of freedom and equality, and as a result they looked down upon the colonies and sought them as a source of profit by generating raw materials from it as well as cheap labour.
ii) The European countries believed in the concept of racism, where they had the misconception of having a superior caste than the people living in colonies. This resulted in extensive labour faced by the peope living in colonies as they were believed to be of lower caste and the social status of proving dominance over the lower caste by the superior caste.
iii) As racism was at its peak in the colonies, the people of the colonies were also discriminated in their right to vote for the government. They were subjected to many malpractices and illegal labour. They couldn’t form a government as the Europeans believed that only the British were allowed to create government. As a result, democracy was shattered in the colonies.