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HISTORY
Chronology of Important Events in Indian History
ANCIENT INDIA

Year Event Importance

2 Million BC to Paleolithic Period Fire was discovered
10,00 BC Lower Paleolithic Tools made of limestones were used. They are
2 Million BC to Middle Paleolithic found in Chotanagpur plateau and Kurnool district
50,000 BC Upper Paleolithic
50,000 BC to
40,000 BC
40,000 BC to
10,000 BC
From 10,000 BC The Mesolithic Age Hunters and Herders
Microlith tools were used

7000 BC The Neolithic age Food producers

Use of polished tools
Pre-Harappan Chalcolithic Age Use of Copper – first metal
Phase – 3000 BC
2500 BC Harappan Phase Bronze age civilization, development of Urban
culture
1500 BC-1000 BC Early Vedic period Rig Veda period

1000BC-500BC Later Vedic period Growth of 2 Urban phase with the establishment of
nd

Mahajanapadhas
600 BC – 325 BC Mahajanapadhas 16 kingdoms with certain republics established

544 BC – 412 BC Haryanka Dynasty Bimbisara, Ajatshatru and Udayin

412 BC – 342 BC Shisunaga Dynasty Shisunaga and Kalashoka

344BC – 323 BC Nanda Dynasty Mahapadmananda

563 BC Birth of Gautama Buddhism established

Buddha
540 BC Birth of Mahavira 24 Tirthankara of Jainism
th

518 BC Persian Invasion Darius

483 BC 1 Buddhist council Rajgir

st

383 BC 2 Buddhist Council Vaishali

nd
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326 BC Macedonian Direct contact between Greek and India

Invasion
250 BC 3 Buddhist council
rd
Pataliputra
322 BC – 185 BC Mauryan Period Political unification of India, Dhamma policy of
322 BC – 298 BC Chandragupta Ashoka, the growth of art and architecture
298 BC – 273 BC Maurya
273 BC – 232 BC Bindusara
232 BC – 185 BC Ashoka
Later Mauryans
185 BC – 73 BC Sunga Dynasty Pushyamitra Sunga
73 BC – 28 BC Kanva dynasty Vasudeva founded the dynasty
60 BC – 225 AD Sathavahana Capital at Paithan, MH
dynasty
2 BC
nd
Indo-Greeks Menander(165-145AD)
1 BC – 4 AD
st th
The Shakas Rudradaman (130 AD – 150 AD)

1 BC – 1 AD
st st
The Parthians St Thomas arrived in India during the reign of
Gondophernes
1 AD -4 AD
st th
The Kushans Kanishka (78 AD – 101 AD)
72 AD 4 Buddhist Council
th
Kashmir
3 BC – 3 AD
rd rd
Sangam age Convene of Sangam Commune, Rule of Cheras,
Cholas and Pandyas
319 AD – 540 AD The Gupta Age 319 AD – Gupta Age
319 – 334 AD Chandragupta I The golden age of India
335 – 380 AD Samudragupta Development of numerous art and literature.
380 – 414 AD Chandragupta II Nagara style of Temple Building
415 – 455 AD Kumaragupta
455 – 467 AD Skandagupta

550 AD – 647 AD Vardhana Dynasty Harsha (606-647 AD)

Kannauj assembly and Prayag assembly held
Huan-Tsang visited Harsha’s assembly

543 – 755 AD Chalukyas of Vatapi Development of Vesera style

575 - 897 AD Pallavas of Kanchi Structural temples in Dravida style started to
develop
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MEDIEVAL INDIA
Early Medieval Period (650 – 1206 AD)

Year Event Importance

750 – 1150 Rule of the Palas Capital at Munger, Bihar

AD
752 – 973 AD The Rasthrakutas Capital at Malkhed
730 – 1036 The Pratiharas Ruled western India
AD
712 AD First Muslim Mahmud Bin Qasim invaded India
Invasion

850 – 1279 The Cholas Capital at Tanjore, epitome moment for Dravidian
AD Architecture

998 – 1030 First Turk invasion Mahmud of Ghazni

AD
1175 – 1206 Second Turk Mahmud of Ghori
AD invasion
1178 – 1192 Prithviraj Chauhan First battle of Tarain in 1191 between Prithviraj and
AD Mahmud of Ghori
1192, Second battle of Tarain

The Sultanate Period (1206 – 1526 AD)

The Slave Dynasty

Year Event Importance
1206 – 1210 Qutbuddin Aibak Known as Lal Bakhsh, began the construction of Qutb
AD Minar
1211 – 1236 Shamsuddin Real founder of Delhi sultanate
AD Iltumish
1236 – 1240 Razia Sultana First and only Muslim lady whoever ruled India
AD
1240 – 1266 Weak successors
AD
1266 – 1287 Ghiyasuddin Established Diwan-i-Arz
AD Balban
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The Khalji Dynasty

Year Events Importance
1290 – 1296 Jalaluddin Founder of Khalji dynasty
AD Khalji
1296 – 1316 Allaudin Khalji Did many administrative reforms, introduced the Dagh and
AD Chehra system

The Tuglaq dynasty

Year Events Importance
1320 – Ghiyasuddin Founder
1325 AD Tuglaq
1325 – Mohammed-Bin- Introduction of administrative reforms and certain ambitious
1351 AD Tuglaq projects

1351 – Firoz Shah Tuglaq Built great cities

1388 AD
1398 – Taimur Invasion Taimur, the descendant of Chengiz Khan, invaded during
1399 AD the reign of Muhammad Shah Tuglaq

The Sayyid dynasty 1414 – 1451 AD

The Lodhi Dynasty (1451 – 1526 AD)

Year Events Importance
1451 – 1488 AD Bahlol Lodhi Founder of Lodhi dynasty
1489 – 1517 AD Sikander Lodhi Founded the city of Agra
1517 – 1526 AD Ibrahim Lodhi Babur defeated Lodhi in the first battle of Panipat

Vijaynagar and Bahmani Kingdoms

Vijaynagar Kingdom
Year Events Importance
1336 – 1485 AD Sangama Dynasty Founded by Harihara and Bukka
1485 – 1505 AD Saluva Dynasty Saluva Narasimha
1505 – 1570 AD Tuluva Dynasty Veer Narashima
1509 – 1529 AD Krishna Deva Raya A gifted Scholar, contemporary of Babur
1570 – 1650 AD Aravidu Dynasty Founded by Tirumala

Bahmani Kingdom
Year Events Importance
1347 – 1358 AD Alaudin Hasan Bahman Shah Founded the Bahmani Kingdom at Gulbarga
1397 – 1422 AD Tajuddin Firoz Shah
1422 – 1435 AD Ahmad Shah Wali
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Mughal Empire

1526 – 1530 Babur Founder of Mughal empire after the 1 Battle of Panipat
st

AD
1530 – 1540 Humayun He was defeated by Sher Shah
AD
1555 – 1556
AD
1540 – 1555 Sur Empire Sher Shah defeated Humayun and ruled from 1540-45 AD
AD
1556 2 Battle
nd
of Akbar Vs. Hemu
Panipat
1556 – 1605 Akbar Established Din-i-illahi, expanded Mughal empire
AD
1605 – 1627 Jehangir Captain William Hawkins and Sir Thomas Roe visited the
AD Mughal court

1628 -1658 Shahjahan The pinnacle of Mughal empire and art and architecture
AD
1658 – 1707 Aurangazeb Beginning of the decline of the Mughal empire
AD
1707 – 1857 Later Mughals Decline and disintegration of the Mughal empire with gaining
AD strength of the British

Maratha State and Maratha Confederacy

Maratha state 1674 – 1720 AD

Year Events Importance
1674 – 1680 Shivaji Contemporary of Aurangazeb and the biggest challenge for
AD the Mughals in Deccan

1680 – 1689 Sambhaji

AD
1689 – 1700 Rajaram
AD
1700 – 1707 Tarabai
AD
1707 – 1749 Shahu The rise of Peshwas
AD
1713 – 1720 Balaji The first Peshwa
AD Vishwanath
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Maratha Confederacy 1720 – 1818 AD

1720 – 1740 AD Baji Rao I

1740 – 1761 AD Balaji Baji Rao
1761 AD Third battle of Panipat Defeat of Marathas by Ahmad Shah Abdali

1761 – 1818 AD Later successors

Anglo Maratha Wars

1775 – 1782 1 Anglo
st
Maratha British were defeated
AD War
1803 – 1806 2 Warnd
Marathas were defeated and they signed the Subsidiary
AD Alliance
1817 – 1818 3 Warrd
Marathas were decisively defeated
AD

MODERN INDIA

Bengal

Year Events Importance

1717 – 1727 AD Murshid Quli Khan Capital of Bengal transferred to Murshidabad

1727 – 1739 AD Shujauddin

1739 – 1740 AD Sarfaraj khan
1740 – 1756 AD Alivardi Khan
1756 – 1757 AD Sirajuddaulah Battle of Plassey
1757 – 1760 AD Mir Jafar
1760 – 1764 AD Mir Qasim Battle of Buxar

Mysore
Year Events Importance
1761 – 1782 AD Haider Ali Establishment of Modern Mysore state

1766 – 1769 AD 1 Anglo – Mysore war Haider Ali defeated the British
st

1780 – 1784 AD 2 Anglo – Mysore war Haider Ali was defeated by Sir Eyrecoot
nd

1782 – 1799 AD Tippu Sultan Continued the 2 war nd

1790 – 1792 AD 3 Anglo – Mysore war Tipu ceded half of his territory
rd

1799 4 Anglo – Mysore war Tipu Sultan died

th
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Punjab
1792 – 1839 AD Maharaja Ranjit Singh Founder of Sikh rule
1845 – 1846 AD 1 Anglo – Sikh war
st
Sikhs were defeated
1848 – 1849 AD 2 Anglo – Sikh war
nd
Dalhousie annexed Punjab

Advent of Europeans in India

1498 Portuguese East India company Headquarters at Cochin and Goa

1600 English East India company Madras, Calcutta and Bombay

1602 Dutch East India company Pulicat, Nagapattinam

1616 Danish East India company Serampore

1664 French East India company Pondicherry

Carnatic wars
1746-48 1 Anglo-French war
st
Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle
1749-54 2 Anglo-French war Treaty of Pondicherry
nd

1758-63 3 Anglo-French war Treaty of Paris

rd

Freedom Struggle
1857 First war of Indian independence
Revolt due to socio-religious and economic
causes
1885 Formation of Indian National A O Hume
Congress
1885 – Moderate phase Dominated by Dadabai Naoroji, Surendranath
1905 Banerjea
1905 – Extremists Phase Dominated by Lal-Bal-Pal and Aurobindo
1917 Ghosh
1905 Bengal Partition Curzon announced the partition
1905 – Swadeshi movement Boycott of foreign products
1908
1906 Muslim league formation
1906 Calcutta Session of INC Swaraj as the goal
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1907 Surat split Question on extending the movement to the

rest of India
1909 Morley – Minto reforms The separate electorate for Muslims
1915 – Home rule movement BG Tilak and Annie Besant
1916
1916 Lucknow Pact Pact between Congress and League
1916 Lucknow session Extremists admitted in Congress

Gandhian Era
Early life
1893 – Gandhi in South Africa Foundation of Natal Indian Congress,
1914 Sathyagraha and CDM against British
excesses
1915 – Gandhi in India
1948
1915 Arrived in Bombay. First two years to tour
India and not to participate in any political
movement
1917 Champaran Campaign Against the Indigo cultivators
1918 Ahmedabad First hunger strike
1918 Kheda First non-cooperation movement
1919 Rowlatt Sathyagraha Against the Rowlatt act and Jallianwala
massacre
1920- Non-cooperation and Khilafat movement
22
1924 Belgaum session Gandhi elected as Congress president
1930 - Civil disobedience movement Dandi March
34 Gandhi – Irwin Pact
2 Roundtable conference
nd

Resuming the Civil disobedience

movement
1940- Individual satyagraha
41
1942 Quit India movement Do or die

Important Events during this period

1919 Rowlatt act Gandhi gave a call for Rowlatt satyagraha

1919 Jallianwala Massacre

1920- Khilafat and Non-cooperation Hindu Muslim unity

22 movement
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1922 Chauri Chaura incident Gandhi called off NCM

1923 Congress Khilafat Swaraj Party Enter legislative councils

1927 Simon commission All white commission to review the 1919 act

1928 Nehru committee report To determine the principles of the constitution

1929 Jinnah’s 14 points

1929 Lahore session Purna Swaraj

1930 Civil disobedience movement Dandi March

1931 Gandhi Irwin Pact To ask Gandhi to participate in the 2 RTC

nd

1931 2 RTC held in London

nd

1932 Communal award

1932 Poona Pact

1935 Government of India act Provisional autonomy

1937 18 months rule of Congress

begins

1939- World War II begins

45
1939 Congress ministries resign

1940 August offer Linlithgow proposed to seek India’s cooperation

in the World War

1941 Individual Satyagraha

1942 Cripps mission

1942 Quit India movement

1943 Gandhi’s 21 days fast

1944 C R Formula
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1945 Wavell Plan and Shimla

Conference

1945 INA Trails

1946 RIN Ratings Mutiny

1946 Cabinet mission plan

1946 Formation of Interim

government

1946 Formation of the constituent

assembly
1947 Atlee’s announcement

1947 Mountbatten Plan

1947 Indian independence act, 1947

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INDUS VALLEY CIVILIZATION

John Marshall, the first scholar to use the term “Indus valley civilization”. The civilization
flourished between 2500 BC-1750 BC.
Geographical Extent of IVC
1. Extent: The Indus valley civilization extended from Sutkagandor (in Baluchistan) in the West
to Alamgirpur (Western UP) in the East; and from Mandu (Jammu) in the North to Daimabad

(Ahmednagar, Maharashtra) in the South.

Image source: NCERT
2. Important cities
City River Archaeological Importance
Harappa (Pakistan) Ravi A row of 6 Granaries, Mother goddess figurines

Mohenjodaro Indus Great Granary, Great bath, Image of Pashupati Mahadeva,

(Pakistan) Image of Bearded man and Bronze image of a woman
dancer

Lothal (Gujarat) Bhogava Port city, Double burial, Terracotta horse figurines.

Chanhudaro (Pakistan) Indus The city without a citadel

Dholavira (Gujarat) Indus City divided into 3 parts.
Kalibangan (Rajasthan) Ghaggar Ploughed field
Banawali (Haryana) Ghaggar -
Rakhigarhi (Haryana) - -
Ropar (Haryana)
Mitathal (Haryana) - -
Bhagatrav (Gujarat) - -
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Rangpur (Gujarat) - -
Sutkagandor - -
(Pakistan)
Sukotada (Gujarat) - -
Kot Diji (Pakistan)
Town planning and Structure of IVC
• Grid system (Chess-board) of town planning
• Rectangular houses with brick-lined bathrooms and wells together with stairways are found
• Use of Burnt bricks
• Underground drainage system
• Fortified citadel
Agriculture of Indus Valley Civilisation
• Hindon – Cotton – Major trade good – earliest people to produce Cotton.
• Proofs of Rice husk found
• Wheat and Barley were majorly cultivated
• Use of wooden ploughshare. They had no idea about Iron implements.
Domestication of animals
• Ox, Buffalo, Goats, Sheep and Pigs were domesticated
• Asses and camels were used as Beasts of Burden
• Elephants and Rhino were known
• Remains of horse found in Surkotada and evidence of horse in Mohenjo-Daro and Lothal
are also found. But the civilization was not horse centered.
Technology and crafts
• Bronze (Copper + tin) tools widely used
• Stone implements were still in vogue
• Potter’s wheel was put to full use
• Bronzesmiths, Goldsmiths, Boat-Making, Bricklaying etc. were other occupations
commonly found
Trade of Indus Valley Civilisation
• Presence of granaries, weights and measures, seals and uniform script signifies the
importance of trade
• The barter system was widely prevalent
• Lothal, Sutkagendor were port cities used for conducting trade
• Trade destinations – Afghanistan, Iran and Central Asia. Contacts with Mesopotamia
civilization are also seen
The political organization of IVC
• Cultural homogeneity achieved through a strong central authority
• No temples or religious structures found. Harappa was possibly ruled by Merchants class.
• Weapons are rarely found.
Religious practices of IVC
• Terracotta figure of Mother Goddess.
• Phallu and Yoni worship.
• Pashupati Mahadev seal found with the elephant, tiger, rhino and a bull surrounding him
with two deer near his feet.
Tree and animal worship of IVC
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• Pipal tree worship was found.

• One-horned Unicorn recognized as Rhino and the humped bull was commonly worshipped.
• Use of Amulets to ward off ghosts and evil spirits.
• The lion was not known in Harappan culture.
The Harappan script
• Harappan script Pictographic in nature but not deciphered so far.
• They are recorded on seals and contains only a few words
• Harappan Script is the oldest script in Indian Sub-continent
Weights and Measures
• Use of standardized weights and measures to keep accounts of private property, to indulge
in trade and commerce etc.
• Weights are found in multiples of 16.
Harappan Pottery of IVC
• Well-developed Pottery techniques with elaborate designs of trees and circles.
• Redware pottery painted with black designs.
Seals of Indus Valley Civilisation
• Seals were used for the purpose of trade or worship. Images of animals such as Buffalo,
bull, tiger etc were found inscribed in the seals
Statue of IVC
• Discovery of Bronze statue of a naked woman and bearded man steatite statue
Terracotta figurines of IVC
• Terracotta – Fire baked earthen clay
• Used as toys or objects of worship
• Massive stone works were not found in Harappa which shows the poorly developed artistic
works made of stone
Origin, maturity and end of IVC
• Pre-Harappan Settlements – Lower Sindh, Baluchistan and Kalibangan.
• Mature Harappa – 1900BC – 2550BC.
• Causes for the Decline of Civilization.
• Decreasing fertility due to increasing salinity on the account of the expansion of the nearby
desert.
• Sudden subsidence of uplift of land causing floods.
• Earthquakes caused changes in the course of Indus.
• Harappan culture destroyed by invading Aryans.
Post-urban Phase (1900BC – 1200BC)
• Sub-Indus Culture
• Primarily chalcolithic
• Development of Ahar Culture, Malwa Culture and Jorwe Culture at various phases in post-
Harappan Civilization.
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Early Vedic Period (1500BC-1000BC)

1. Aryans appeared in India around 1500 BC and settled near Eastern Afghanistan, NWFP,
Punjab and fringes of western Uttar Pradesh. The whole region is called as the Land of
Seven Rivers.
2. The Aryans came into conflict with the indigenous inhabitants Dasyus and the Aryan chief
who overpowered them is called as Tarsadasu.
3. Sapta Sindhu mentioned in the Rig Veda. Sindu is the river of Par Excellence while The
Saraswati or Naditarana is the best of rivers in the Rig Veda

Rig Vedic name Modern Name

Sindu Indus
Vitasta Jhelum
Asikani Chenab
Parushni Ravi
Vipas Beas
Sutudri Sutlej

Later Vedic period (1000 BC - 500 BC)

The history of the later Vedic period is based mainly on the Vedic texts which were
compiled after the age of Rig Veda.
1. Later Vedic Texts
a. The Veda Samhitas
i. Sama Veda – The book of chants with hymns taken from Rig Veda. This Veda is important for
Indian Music.
ii. Yajur Veda – The book consists of sacrificial rituals and formulae.
iii. Atharva Veda – This book consists of charms and spells to ward of evils and diseases
b. The Brahmanas – Consists of the explanatory part of the Vedas. Sacrifices and rituals have
also been discussed in great detail.
i. Rig Veda – Aitreya and Kaushitiki Brahmana
• Consists of 1028 hymns divided into 10 mandalas (books).
• In IIIrd Mandala, Gayatri mantra is addressed to solar deity Savitri.
• X Mandala addressed to Purusha Sukta
ii. Yajur Veda – Shatapata and Taittariya
iii. Sama Veda – Panchvisha, Chandogya, Shadvinsh, and Jaiminaya
iv. Atharva Veda - Gopatha
c. The Aranyakas – Concluding portions of Brahmanas, also called as Forest texts are written
mainly for the hermits and students living in forests.
d. The Upanishads – Appearing at the end of the Vedic period, they criticized the rituals and laid
stress on right belief and Knowledge.
Note- Satyamev Jayate has been taken from Mundaka Upanishad.
2. Vedic literature –
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Following the Later Vedic age, a lot of Vedic Literature was developed, inspired by the Samhitas
which follow the Smriti – Literature which was written in comparison to Shruti – Word of Mouth
tradition. Important texts in Smriti tradition are further subdivided into
a. Vedangas
i. Shiksha - Phonetics
ii. KalpaSutras – Rituals
• Sulva Sutras
• Grihya Sutras
• Dharma Sutras
iii. Vyakarna - Grammar
iv. Nirukta - Etymology
v. Chhandha - metrics
vi. Jyotisha - Astronomy
b. Smriti
i. Manu Smriti
ii. Yajnavalkya Smriti
iii. Narada Smriti
iv. Parashara Smriti
v. Brihaspati Smriti
vi. Katyayana Smriti
c. Mahakavyas
i. The Ramayana
ii. The Mahabharata
d. The Puranas
i. 18 Maha Puranas – Dedicated to specific deities such as Brahma, Surya, Agni, Saiva and
Vaishnava. They include Bhagavata Purana, Matsya Purana, Garuda Purana etc
ii. 18 Upa Puranas – Lesser known texts
e. The Upvedas
i. Ayurveda - Medicine
ii. Gandharvaveda - Music
iii. Arthaveda - Vishwakarma
iv. Dhanurveda - Archery
f. Shad-Darshanas or Indian Philosophical Schools
i. Samkhya
ii. Yoga
iii. Nyaya
iv. Vaisheshika
v. Mimansa
vi. Vedanta
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Buddhism and Jainism

Causes of Origin
1. The Kshatriya reaction against the domination of the priestly class called Brahmanas.
Mahavira and Gautama Buddha, both belonged to the Kshatriya clan.
2. Indiscriminate killing of cattle for Vedic sacrifices and for food had led to the
destabilization of the new agricultural economy which was dependent on cattle for
ploughing the fields. Both Buddhism and Jainism stood against this killing.
3. The growth of cities with the increase in the circulation of Punch Marked coins and trade
and commerce had added to the importance of Vaishyas who looked for a new religion to
improve their position. Jainism and Buddhism facilitated their needs
4. The new forms of property created social inequalities and the common people wanted to
get back to their primitive form of life
5. Growing complexity and degeneration of Vedic religion.
Difference between Jainism and Buddhism and Vedic Religion
1. They did not attach any importance to the existing Varna system
2. They preached the Gospel of non-violence
3. They accepted Vaishyas, including the Moneylenders who were condemned by Brahmanas
4. They preferred simple, puritan and ascetic living
Buddhism
Gautama Buddha and Buddhism
Gautama Buddha was born in 563 BC in the Republican clan of Shakyas in Lumbini near
Kapilavastu. His mother was a princess from Kosalan dynasty.
Four Sights of Buddha’s life at the age of 29 had moved him to the path of renunciation. They are
• An old man
• A diseased person
• An ascetic
• A dead person

Important events in the life of Buddha

Events Places Symbols

Janma Lumbini Lotus and Bull
Mahabhinishkramana - Horse

Nirvana Bodh Gaya Bodhi Tree

Dharmachakra Pravartana Saranath Wheel
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Mahaparinirvana Kusinagar Stupa

Doctrines of Buddhism
• Four noble truths
1. Dukha – life is full of sorrow
2. Samyuda – there are causes for the sorrow
3. Nirodha – they can be stopped
4. Nirodha gamini Pratipada – Path leading towards the cessation of sorrow
• Ashtangika Marga
1. Right observation
2. Right determination
3. Right exercise
4. Right action
5. Right speech
6. Right memory
7. Right meditation
8. Right livelihood
• Madhya Marga – to avoid the excess of both luxury and austerity
• Triratna – Buddha, Dharma and Sangha
Special features of Buddhism and the causes of its spread
1. Buddhism does not recognize the existence of god and soul
2. Women were also admitted to the Sangha. Sangha was open to all, irrespective of caste and
sex
3. Pali language was used which helped in the spread of Buddhist doctrines among the
common people
4. Ashoka embraced Buddhism and spread it to Central Asia, West Asia and Srilanka
5. Buddhist Councils
First Council: The first council was held in the year 483 B.C at Saptaparni caves near
Rajgriha in Bihar under the patron of king Ajatshatru, during the first council two Buddhist
works of literature were compiled Vinaya and Sutta Pitaka by Upali
Second Council: The second council was held in the year 383 B.C at Vaishali under the
patron of king Kalashoka
Third Council: The third council was held in the year 250 B.C at Patliputra under the
patron of King Ashoka the Great, during the third council Abhidhamma Pitaka was added
and Buddhist holy book Tripitaka was compiled.
Fourth Council: The fourth council was held in the year 78 A.D at Kundalvan in Kashmir
under the patron of king Kanishka, during this council Hinayana and Mahayana were
divided.
Importance and influence of Buddhism
Literature
1. Tripitaka
1. Sutta Pitaka – Buddha’s sayings
2. Vinaya Pitaka – Monastic code
3. Abhidhamma Pitaka – religious discourses of Buddha
2. Milindapanho – a dialogue between Menander and Saint Nagasena
3. Dipavamsha and Mahavamsha – the great chronicles of Sri Lanka
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4. Buddhacharita by Ashvagosha
Sects
1. Hinayana (Lesser Wheel) - They believe in the real teachings of Gautam Buddha of
attaining Nirvana. They do not believe in idol worship and Pali language was used in the
Hinayana text
2. Mahayana (Greater Wheel) - They believe that Nirvana is attained by the grace of
Gautam Buddha and following Boddhisattvas and not by following his teachings. They
believe in idol worship and Sanskrit was used in Mahayana text
3. Vajrayana - They believe that Nirvana is attained by the help of magical tricks or black
magic.
Bodhisattvas
1. Vajrapani
2. Avalokitesvara or Padmapani
3. Manjushri
4. Maitreya (Future Buddha)
5. Kshitigriha
6. Amitabha/Amitayusha
Buddhist architectures
1. Places of Worship – Stupas containing the relics of Buddha or Bodhisattvas. Chaityas are
the prayer hall while Viharas are the place of residence of monks
2. Development of Cave architecture eg. Barabar caves in Gaya
3. Development of Idol worship and sculptures
4. The growth of universities of par excellence which attracted students from all over the
world
Jainism
• Jainism believes in 24 Tirthankaras with Rishabdev being the first and Mahavira,
contemporary of Buddha being the 24 Tirthankara.
th

• The 23rd Tirthankar Parshwanath (Emblem: Snake) was the son of King Ashvasena of
Banaras.
• The 24th and the last Tirthankar was Vardhman Mahavira (Emblem: Lion).
• He was born in Kundagram (Distt Muzaffarpur, Bihar) in 599 BC.
• His father Siddhartha was the head of Jnatrika clan. His mother was Trishla, sister of
Lichchavi Prince Chetak of Vaishali.
• Mahavira was contemporary to Bimbisara.
• Married to Yashoda, had a daughter named Priyadarsena, whose husband Jamali became
his first disciple.
• At 30, after the death of his parents, he became an ascetic.
• In the 13th year of his asceticism (on the 10th of Vaishakha), outside the town of
Jrimbhikgrama, he attained the supreme knowledge (Kaivalya).
• From now on he was called Jaina or Jitendriya and Mahavira, and his followers were named
Jains.
• He also got the title of Arihant, i.e., worthy. At the age of 72, he attained death at Pava,
near Patna, in 527 BC.
Five vows of Jainism
• Ahmisa – non-violence
• Satya – do not speak a lie
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• Asteya – do not steal

• Aparigraha – do not acquire property
• Brahmacharya – celibacy
Three main principles
• Ahimsa
• Anekantavada
• Aparigraha
Triratna of Jainism
• Right faith – Samayak Shradha
• Right Knowledge – Samayak Jnan
• Right Conduct – Samayak karma
Five types of knowledge
• Mati jnana
• Shruta jnana
• Avadhi jnana
• Manahparayaya Jnana
• Keval Jnana
Jain council
• 1 Council at Patliputra under the Patron of Chandragupta Maurya in 300 BC during which
st

the 12 Angas was compiled

• 2 Council at Vallabhi in 512 AD during which the final compilation of 12 Angas and 12
nd

Upangas was done

Sects
• Shwetambars – Sthulabhadra – People who put on white robes. Those who stayed back in
the North during the times of famine
• Digambar – Bhadrabahu – Exodus of monks to Deccan and South during the times of
Magadhan famine. They have a naked attire
Jain Literature
Jain literature used Prakrit, which is a common language of people than using Sanskrit. In this
way, Jainism reached far and wide through people. The important literary works are
• 12 Angas
• 12 Upangas
• 10 Parikramas
• 6 Chhedsutras
• 4 Mulasutras
• 2 Sutra Granthas
• Part of Sangam literature is also attributed to Jain scholars.
Mahajanapadas, Haryanka Dynasty, Shishunaga Dynasty, Nanda Dynasty
• Magadha (Patna, Gaya and Nalanda districts) – The first capital was Rajagriha and the
later capital was Pataliputra.
• Anga and Vanga (Munger and Bhagalpur) – The capital was Champa. It was a
prosperous business centre.
• Malla (Deoria, Basti, Gorakhpur region) – The capital was Kushinagar. It was the seat
of many other smaller kingdoms. Their main religion was Buddhism.
• Vatsa (Allahabad and Mirzapur) – The capital was Kaushambi. The most important
ruler of this kingdom was King Udayan.
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• Kashi (Benaras) – The capital was Varanasi. Though many battles were fought against
the Kosala kingdom, eventually Kashi was merged with the Kosala kingdom.
• Kosala (Ayodhya) – Though its capital was Shravasti which is identical with Sahet-Mahet
but Ayodhya was an important town in Kosala. Kosala also included the tribal Republican
territory of Sakyas of Kapilvastu.
• Vajji (Muzaffarpur and Vaishali) – Vajji was the seat of a united republic of eight
smaller kingdoms of which Lichchavis, Janatriks and Videhas were also members.
• Kuru (Thaneswar, Meerut and present-day Delhi) – The capital city was Indraprastha.
• Panchala (Western Uttar Pradesh) – Its capital was at Kampila. Earlier a monarch state,
it later became an independent republic. Kannauj was an important town in this kingdom.
• Matsya kingdom (Alwar, Bharatpur and Jaipur) – Its capital was Viratanagar.
• Ashmaka (Between Narmada and Godavari) – Its capital was at Pertaii and Brahamdatta
was its most important ruler.
• Gandhara (Peshawar and Rawalpindi) – Its capital Taxila was important as a trade and
education centre (Ancient Taxila university) during the later Vedic age.
• Kamboj (Hazara dist of Pakistan, North-east Kashmir) – Its capital was Rajapur.
Hazara was an important trade and commerce centre of this kingdom.
• Avanti (Malwa) – Avanti was divided into two parts north and south. The northern part
had its capital at Ujjain and the southern part had its capital at Mahismati.
• Chedi (Bundelkhand) – Shaktimati was the capital of Chedi. Chedi kingdom was spread
between Yamuna and Narmada rivers. One of the families from this kingdom later merged
into the Kalinga kingdom from this royal family.
• Shurasena (Brajmandal) – Its capital was at Mathura and its most famous ruler was
Avantiputra.
Sources of Sixteen Mahajanapadas
• Anguttara Nikaya, Mahavastu (Buddhist Literature)
• Bhagavati Sutta (Jain Literature)
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Dynasties
Haryanka Dynasty
(1) Bimbisara (544BC-492BC)
1. Haryanka is the name of a new dynasty founded in Magadha by Bimbisara. He was also
called Seniya who was the first Indian to have a regular and standing army
2. Bimbisara was a contemporary of Buddha.
3. Pataliputra and Rajagriha were the capitals of the Magadha kingdom. Magadha falls in the
Patna region of Bihar.
(2) Ajatashatru (492BC-460BC)
1. He followed a more aggressive policy. Gained control of Kashi and Vajji. Built the fort of
Rajgir.
2. He convened the 1 Buddhist council
st

(3) Udayin (460BC-440BC)

1. He laid the foundation of Pataliputra and shifted the capital from Rajgir to Pataliputra
Shishunaga Dynasty (412BC-344BC)
• People elected Shishunga over Nagadasaka (last Haryanka ruler) thereby ending the
Haryanka dynasty
• Shishunga was succeeded by Kalashoka who convened the 2 Buddhist council
nd

Nanda Dynasty (344BCC-323BC)

• Mahapadma Nanda was the founder and the first king of the Nanda dynasty.
• He overthrew the Magadha dynasty and established the new Empire. He was known as
Sarvakshatrantak and Ugrasena
• Mahapadma was known as Ekrat – the sole monarch
• Initially, the Nanda Dynasty inherited a large kingdom of Magadha and subsequently, the
boundaries of the Nanda Dynasty were expanded in all directions by its rulers.
• Dhana Nanda was the last ruler of the Nanda Dynasty. During his rule, Alexander invaded
North-West India by 326 BC
Mauryan Empire
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Bindusara (298-273 BC)

He was known to Greeks as Amitrochates and he patronized the Ajivika sect.

Ashoka
1. Ashoka ascended the throne in 273BC and ruled up to 232 BC. He was known as
‘Devanampriya Priyadarsi’ the beautiful one who was the beloved of Gods.
2. Ashoka fought the Kalinga war in 261 BC. Kalinga is in modern Orissa.
3. Ashokan inscriptions were deciphered by James Princep.
4. After the battle of Kalinga, Ashoka became a Buddhist, being shocked by the horrors of
the war, he replaced Bherighosha by Dhammaghosha
5. Ashoka was initiated to Buddhism by Upagupta or Nigrodha, a disciple of Buddha
6. For the propagation of Buddhism Ashoka started the institution of Dharmamahamatras.
Ashokan Inscriptions
1. Ashokan inscriptions carried royal orders through which he was able to speak directly to
the people. There were rock edicts and pillar edicts which were again divided into major
and minor.
2. The 14 Major Rock Edicts of Ashoka tell about the principles of Dharma
3. The Kalinga rock edict explains the principles of administration after Kalinga war. In his
Kalinga edict, he mentions ‘‘All men are my children’’
4. The Major Rock Edict XII of Ashoka deals with the conquest of Kalinga.
5. The term ‘Ashoka’ was mentioned only in the Maski Minor rock edict.

Foreign Invasions in India

Iranian Invasion – 518 BC
Iranian rules Darius penetrated into NW India in 516 BC and annexed Punjab, West of Indus and
Sindh. This was 20 province of Iran and contributed 1/3 of the total revenue of Iran due to fertile
th rd

lands. Xerxes, the successor of Darius, employed a large number of Indians in the war against
Greeks.
Alexander’s Invasion
He defeated the last king of the line of Darius, Xerxes in 333 BC and 331 BC. After occupying the
realm of the Persian king, Alexander crossed the Hindukush mountains in eastern Afghanistan in
327 BC.
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After annexing Iran, Alexander moved into India through Khyber Pass. Ambhi, the ruler of Taxila
readily submitted. He met Porus at Jhelum where he defeated him in the Battle of Hydaphes but
later restored his kingdom to him. Alexander marched till the Beas river but his army refused to
accompany him. He remained in India from 326-325 B.C after which he was forced to retreat.

Central Asian contacts and their results

The Indo-Greeks
The series of invasions began in 200 BC by the Bactrian Greeks who were pushed by the Scythian
tribes.
• Menander (165-145 BC) was the most famous ruler who was converted to Buddhism
by Nagasena. The questions of Menander were compiled as Milindapanho.
• Indo-Greeks were the first to issue Gold coins in India and they were also the first to issue
coins which could be definitely attributed to Kings.
• They introduced the features of Hellenistic Art through which Gandhara style had
developed.
The Shakas (1 BC – 4 AD)
st th

• The Shakas or Scythians replaced Indo-Greeks. There were five branches of Shakas and
they controlled a much larger territory.
• Vikrama Samvat started in 57 BC when a king called as Vikramaditya in Ujjain defeated
the Shakas.
• Rudradaman I (AD 130-150) was a famous king who ruled over western India. He repaired
the Sudarshana lake in Kathiawar.
The Parthians
• They originally belonged to Iran and they replaced the Shakas in the NW India.
• During the times of Gondophernes, St.Thomas is said to have come to India for the
propagation of Christianity.
The Kushans
• They were nomadic people of Central Asia who ruled from the Oxus to the Ganges.
• The Kadaphises I and II ruled for 28 years from 50 AD. They were replaced by
the Kanishka.
• Peshawar was their first capital and Mathura the second.
• Kanishka started the Shaka era in 78 AD.
• Kanishka patronized Buddhism by holding a Buddhist council in Kashmir where the
doctrines of the Mahayana form of Buddhism was finalized.
Impact of the Central Asian Contacts
• Advances in building activities and pottery
• They had a better cavalry
• They identified themselves as an integral part of India
• Satrapy system of Government developed
• They appointed military governors called Strategos
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• Mahayana style of Buddhism developed with Gandhara and Mathura schools of Art
supporting the Buddhism.
Kushans Empire
Background of Kushans
• Kushans succeeded the Parthian rulers.
• Yue-chi tribe was divided into five clans and they were one among them, also called as
Tocharans.
• They were from steppes in north Central Asia and were nomadic.
• First, they occupy Bactria or north Afghanistan. Sakas were displaced there by them.
• Moving southwards gradually, they crossed the Hindu Kush and occupied Gandhara, and
replaced Parthians and Greeks in those areas.
• The empire was vastly extending from Oxus and Khorasan in Central Asia to Ganga and
Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh.
• Kushanas unified several parts of Central Asia, Iran, Entire Pak, and most part of Northern
India bringing under one ruler.
Dynasties of Kushanas
There are 2 dynasties of the Kushan tribe that ruled India.
First:
• Founded by Kadphises, House of chiefs.
• Term: 28 years starting from 50 AD
• Two rulers Kadphises I (Kujul Kadphises) and II (Vema Kadphises), ruled under this
dynasty.
• They both issued a large number of Coins. Kadphises I, minted a large number of copper
coins in sync with Roman coins. Kadphises II issued gold money and also expanded the
kingdom to the far east.
Second:
• Kanishka succeeded the House of Kadphises. Kanishka kings further expanded the
kingdom over lower Indus basin and upper India. The authority was much higher over the
Gangetic basin.
• The large number and purer gold coins were issued by them, found mainly in the west of
Indus.
• Kanishka continued to rule the northwestern part until 230 AD. Several of his successor
intermingled completely into India, and also acquired Indian names. Vasudeva was the last
ruler of the dynasty.
The Rise and Growth of the Gupta Empire

1. Chandragupta I (319-334 AD)

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• He was the first great ruler of the Gupta Dynasty. He assumed the title
Maharajadhiraja. Married Licchhavi princess

• Started the Gupta Era by 319-20 AD

• The original type of Gold coins Dinaras was issued.
2. Samudragupta (335-380 AD)
• He followed a policy of violence and conquest which led to the enlargement of the
Gupta empire
• Harisena, his court poet, vividly mentions his military exploits in Allahabad
inscriptions
• He reached Kanchi in the south which was ruled by Pallavas
• Meghavarman, the ruler of Srilanka, sent a missionary for permission to build a
Buddhist temple at Gaya
• Samudragupta is called as Napoleon of India
3. Chandragupta II (380-412 AD)
• He adopted the title Vikramaditya
• He conquered Malwa and Gujarat which provided him access to the sea which
enabled trade and commerce. Ujjain was made as the second capital
• His court was adorned by the Navaratnas including Kalidasa and Amarasimha.
• His exploits are glorified in Iron Pillar at Qutub Minar
• Chinese pilgrim Fa-Hsien (399-414AD) visited India during his period.
1. Art
• Gupta period is called the Golden age of ancient India. Art was mostly inspired by
Religions.
• Rock cut caves – Ajanta, Ellora and Bagh caves
• Structural temples – Dashavatar temple of Deogarh, Laxman temple of Sirpur, Vishnu
temple and Varah temple of Eran. The growth of Nagara style also enabled the
development of temple architecture in India
• Stupas – Dhammek stupa of Sarnath, Ratnagiri stupa of Orissa, Mirpur Khas in Sindh
developed in this period.
• Paintings – Ajanta paintings and Bagh caves paintings
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• Sculpture – the Bronze image of Buddha near Sultanganj, Sarnath and Mathura school
flourished during this period which supports the growth of Mahayana Buddhism and Idol
worship.
• Images of Vishnu, Shiva and some other Hindu gods were also found.
1. Literature
• Religious
Ramayana, Mahabharata, Vayu Purana etc were re-written. Dignaga and
Buddhagosha were certain Buddhist literature written in this period
• Secular
a. Mudrarakshasha by Vishakadatta
b. Malavikagnimitra, Vikramorvashiyam, AbhijanaShakuntalam –
Dramas by Kalidasa
c. Ritusamhar, Megadoot, Raghuvamsam, Kumarasambhavam –
Poetries by Kalidasa
d. Mricchakatika by Sudraka
e. Kamasutra by Vatsyayana
f. Panchatantra by Vishnu Sharma
• Scientific
. Aryabhatiya and Surya Siddhanta by Aryabhatta
a. Romaka Siddhanta
b. Mahabhaskarya and Laghubhaskarya by Bhaskara
c. Pancha Siddhanta, Vrihat Jataka, Vrihat Samhita by Vrahamihira
The Rajput States
Rajputana
There was an expansion of aggressive and expansionist Turk tribesmen in the North-western India
whose main mode of warfare was rapid advance and retreat. The disintegration of Gurjara-
Pratiharas in North-Western India led to a time of political uncertainty.
The Ghaznavids
• Mahmud (998-1030) ascended the throne of Ghazni
• Firdausi was a court-poet of Ghazni. His famous work “Shah Namah” was a watershed in
Iranian renaissance
• Mahmud was a plunderer and destroyer of temples. In 1025, he raided and plundered the
Somnath temple in Gujarat. He undertook 17 raids in India and constantly fought against
the Hindushahi rulers
• Seljuk Empire was established with the death of Mahmud
The Rajput States
• The break-up of the Pratiharas empire led to the formation of Rajputana states.
• Few important of these were-
(a) Gahadavalas of Kannauj
(b) Paramaras of Malva
(c) Chauhans of Ajmer
• Few other significant states were Kalachuris near Jabalpur, Chandellas in Bundelkhand,
Chalukyas of Gujarat, Tomars of Delhi etc.
• Rajputs patronized Hinduism and Jainism to a certain extent.
• They also upheld the Varna system and the Privileges of Brahmanas
Turkish Conquests
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• The Seljuk empire was replaced by Khwarizmi empire in Iran and Ghurid empire in Ghur.
• Muizzudin Muhammed ascended the throne at Ghazni while Chauhan’s powers were also
constantly rising. With the capture of Delhi, the Chauhans and Ghurids were in the direct
contest.
• 1 Battle of Tarain (1191) Muhammed Ghori Vs. Prithviraj Chauhan – Ghurids lost the
st

battle
• 2 Battle of Tarain(1192) Muhammed Ghori Vs. Prithviraj Chauhan – Prithviraj Chauhan
nd

lost the battle. This led to Delhi and Eastern Rajasthan passing under the Turkish rule.
• Muhammad Ghori entrusted the positions under Qutbuddin Aibak, who later found the
Slave dynasty and led to the foundations of Delhi Sultanate. Bakthiyar Khalji has entrusted
the positions east of Benares.
The Chauhans of Ajmer
• The Chauhans were the feudatories of Gurjara-Pratiharas
• Ajayaraj Chauhan, king of Sakhambari established a city called Ajayameru which was later
known as Ajmer
• His successor Vigraharaj captured Dhillika from Tomar Kings
• After the defeat of Prithviraj Chauhan, the dynasty was weakened.
• Qutbuddin Aibak dealt the final blow by defeating the dynasty in 1197 AD.
The Tomars of Delhi
• The Tomars were the feudatories of the Pratiharas.
• They founded the city of Delhi in 736 A.D. During 9th-12th century, the Tomars of Delhi
ruled parts of the present-day Delhi and Haryana.
• Mahipala Tomar captured Thaneshwar, Hansi and Nagarkot in 1043 A.D.
• Chauhans captured Delhi in middle of the 12th century and the Tomars became their
feudatories.
Mewar
• Mewar is a region of south-central Rajasthan state in western India.
• It includes the present-day districts of Bhilwara, Chittorgarh, Rajsamand, Udaipur, Pirawa
Tehsil of Jhalawar District of Rajasthan, Neemuch and Mandsaur of Madhya Pradesh and
some parts of Gujarat.
• The region was a part of the Rajput-ruled Mewar Kingdom or the Udaipur Kingdom. In
1568, Akbar captured Chittorgarh, the capital of Mewar.
Maha Rana Sanga (1508 - 1528)
• Rana Sanga of Mewar belonged to the Sisodiya clan who was a contemporary to Ibrahim
Lodhi and Babur.
• The Battle of Khanwa, 1527 took place between Babur and Rana Sanga in which Babur
won and established the Mughal’s rule firmly in North India.
Maha Rana Pratap (1572 - 1597)
• Rana Pratap of Mewar belonged to the Sisodiya Rajputs as was Rana Sanga.
• He was a contemporary of Akbar.
• When Akbar sent a number of envoys in making Rana Pratap as a vassal and submitting to
Akbar, Rana refused and the Battle of Haldighati was fought on 1576 between Raja Man
Singh I of Amber and Maha Rana Pratap in which Maha Rana Pratap was defeated by the
Mughals.
Marwar
• In 1194, Mahmud of Ghori defeated Jaichand of Kannauj.
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• His descendant, Sheoji, established themselves at Mandore city in Marwar.

• The Jodhpur state was founded in the 13th century by the Rathore clan of Rajputs, who
claim descent from the Gahadvala kings of Kannauj.
• The Rathore rulers of the Indian princely state of Jodhpur were of an ancient dynasty
established in the 8th century.
• However, the dynasty's fortunes were made by Rao Jodha, first of the rulers of the Rathore
dynasty in Jodhpur in 1459.
The Chandelas of Bundelkhand
• Established them in the 9th century. Harshadeva was the founder of this dynasty.
• Bundelkhand was also known as Jejakabhukti
• Mahoba was the capital of Chandela during the period of Chief Yasovarman
• Kalinjar was their important fort.
• The Chandelas built the most famous Kandariya Mahadeva Temple in 1050 A.D. and a
number of beautiful temples at Khajuraho. Vidyadhara is noted for having commissioned
the Kandariya Mahadeva Temple.
• Paramal the last Chandela ruler was defeated by Qutb-ud-din Aibak in 1203 A.D.
The Paramaras of Malwa
• They were a part of Agnivanshi Rajput dynasty. Established in 9-10 Century, they were
th

vassals of Rashtrakutas
• They made Dhar as their capital. Bhoja was an important ruler in their period.
• The later Paramara rulers moved their capital to Mandu after Dhar was sacked multiple
times by their enemies.
• Mahalakadeva, the last known Paramara king, was defeated and killed by the forces of
Alauddin Khalji of Delhi in 1305 CE
The Chalukyas of Gujarat
• The Chalukya dynasty ruled parts of what is now Gujarat and Rajasthan in north-western
India, between c. 940 CE and c. 1244 CE. Their capital was located at Anahilavada
(modern Patan).
• Mularaja was the founder of the dynasty. During the rule of Bhima, I, Mahmud of Ghazni
plundered Somnath temple.
• Mularaja is said to have built Mulavasatika temple for Digambara Jains and the Mulanatha-
Jinadeva temple for the Svetambara Jains.
• The Dilwara Temples and the Modhera Sun Temple have constructed during the reign of
Bhima I.
• Rani-ki-Vav was commissioned by Queen Udayamati
The Kalachuris of Tripuri
• The Kalachuris of Chedi, ruled parts of central India during 7th to 13th centuries from their
capital Tripuri near Jabalpur.
• The kingdom reached its zenith during the reign of Lakshmikarna, who assumed the
title Chakravartin after military campaigns against several neighbouring kingdoms
• The Karan temple at Amarkantak was built by Lakshmikarna (1041 – 1173 CE)
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Dynasties of Delhi Sultanate

Dynasty Period of Prominent rulers

Rule

Mamluk or Slave 1206 – 1290 Qutubuddin Aibek, Iltutmish, Razia Sultan,

dynasty Ghiyasuddin Balban

Khilji dynasty 1290 – 1320 Alauddin Khilji

Tughlaq dynasty 1321 – 1413 Muhammad Bin Tughlaq, Firoz Shah Tughlaq

Sayyid dynasty 1414 – 1450 Khizr Khan

Lodhi dynasty 1451 – 1526 Ibrahim Lodhi

Slave Dynasty (1206-1290)

Year Ruler Important Facts
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1206 - Qutbuddin 1) Most trusted slave of Muhammed of Ghori

1210 Aibak 2) Died in 1210 while playing Chaughan (Polo)
3) He was granted the title Lakh Bakhsh
4) He constructed the Quwat-ul-Islam mosque in Delhi and Adhai
din ka jhonpra at Ajmer
5) He also started the construction of Qutb Minar in the honour of
Sufi saint Khwaja Qutbuddin Bakthiyar Kaki

1210 – Illtutmish 1) The real consolidator of Turkish conquests

1236 2) He saved the Delhi Sultanate from the invasion of the
Mongol, Chengiz Khan
3) He introduced the currency system of Tanka and Jittal
4) He organized Iqta System – land grant to soldiers and nobility
5) He set up the Chahalgani system – nobility of 40 members
6) He completed the construction of Qutb Minar
1236 – Razia 1) The first and the only Muslim lady who ever ruled India
1240 Sultana 2) Though a popular ruler, she was disliked by the Chahalgani who
wanted to put a puppet ruler at the throne
3) She was defeated and killed by Bandits while in a fight

1240- An era of After the death of Raziya, weak rulers ascended the throne, who were
1266 weak rulers supported by the Nobles. Bahram Shah, Masud shah and Nasiruddin
Muhammad were the successors.
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1266 – An era of 1) A strong and centralized government was established

1287 Balban 2) He acted as a champion of Turkish Nobility
3) He broke the strength of Chahalgani to restore the powers of the
Monarchy
4) He established Diwan-i-arz, military department towards a
strong army
5) He adopted a policy of blood and iron to restore the law and
order problems
6) He insisted on the ceremony of Sijada and Paibos
7) He took up the title Zil-i-illahi

1218 - Changez 1) The Mongol leader who prided in being called the Scourge of
1227 Khan God
2) They attacked the Khwarizmi empire and sacked the flourishing
cities
3) Delhi Sultanate became the only important Islam state of this
period
4) Illtutmish, in 1221, refused an asylum request of Jallaudin, who
was defeated by Changez Khan. Changez Khan did not cross River
Indus, which saved the weak sultanate from loot and plunder.

The Khaljis (1290- 1320)

Year Rulers Important Facts

1290 – Jalaluddin 1) He checked the monopoly of Turkish nobility and followed a

1296 Khalji policy of tolerance
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1296 – Allauddin 1) He separated religion from politics and proclaimed, ‘Kingship

1316 Khalji knows no kinship’
2) He followed an imperialist and annexation policy. He annexed
Gujarat, Ranthambore, Malwa, Mewar etc
Administrative reforms
1) By series of 4 Ordinances, Allaudin took steps to avoid the
problems caused by the nobles
2) He introduced the Dagh – branding of horse and Chehra – a
descriptive roll of soldier’s system.
3) By setting up markets, Allauddin fixed the cost of all
commodities
4) He constructed the Alai fort and Alai Darwaza – entrance of
Qutb Minar
5) He also built the palace of thousand pillars called Hazar Sutun
6) Amir Khusrau was the court poet of Allaudin

1316 – Mubarak
1320 Khan
1320 Khusrau Ghazi Malik deposed Khusrau Khan in a rebellion.
Khan

Tughlaq dynasty (1320-1412)

Emperor Period
Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq 1320-24
Muhammad Tughlaq 1324-51
Firoz Shah Tughlaq 1351-88
Mohammad Khan 1388
Ghiyassuddin Tughlaq Shah II 1388
Abu Baqr 1389-90
Nasiruddin Muhammad 1390-94
Humayun 1394-95
Nasiruddin Mahmud 1395-1412

Ruler Period Important facts

of Rule
Ghiyasuddin 1320- 1. Khusrau Khan, the last king of the Khilji dynasty was killed by
Tughlaq 1325 Ghazni Malik, and Ghazni Malik ascended the throne assuming
the title Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq.
2. He died in an accident and his son Jauna (Ulugh Khan)
succeeded him under the title Mohammad-bin-Tughlaq.
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Mohammad- 1325- 1. Prince Jauna, Son of Ghiyasuddin Tughlaq ascended the throne
bin Tughlaq 1351 in 1325
2. He tried to introduce many administrative reforms. He had 5
ambitious projects for which he has become particularly
debatable.
Taxation in the Doab (1326)
Transfer of Capital (1327)
Introduction of Token Currency (1329)
Proposed Khurasan Expedition (1329)
Qarachil Expedition (1330)
3. His five projects have led to revolts all around his empire. His
last days were spent in checking the revolts
1335 -- Madurai became independent (Jalaluddin Ahsan Shah)
1336 -- Foundation of Vijayanagar (Harihar & Bukka), Warangal
became independent (Kanhaiya)
1341-47 -- Revolts of Sada Amirs & Foundation of Bahamani in
1347 (Hasan Gangu)
He died in Thatta while campaigning in Sindh against Taghi, a
Turkish slave.

Firoz Shah 1351- 1. He was a cousin of Mohammad-bin-Tughlaq. After his death,

Tughlaq 1388 the nobles and the theologians of the court selected Firoz Shah as
the next Sultan.
2. Established of Diwan-i-Khairat (department for poor and needy
people) and Diwan-l-Bundagan (department of slaves)
4. Making Iqtadari system hereditary.
5. Construction of canals for irrigation from the Yamuna to the
city of Hissar
6. From the Sutlej to the Ghaggar. From the Ghaggar to Firozabad
7. From Mandvi and Sirmour Hills to Hansi in Haryana.
8. Establishment of four new towns, Firozabad, Fatehabad,
Jaunpur and Hissar.
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After Firoz 1388- 1. The Tughlaq dynasty would not survive much after Firoz Shah's
Shah Tughlaq 1414 death. The Malwa, Gujarat and Sharqi (Jaunpur) Kingdoms broke
away from the Sultanate.
2. Timur Invasion: (1398-99) Timur, a Turk, invaded India in
1398 during the reign of Muhammad Shah Tughlaq, the last ruler
of the Tughlaq dynasty. His army mercilessly sacked and
plundered Delhi.
3. Timur returned to Central Asia, leaving a nominee to rule to
Punjab which ended the Tughlaq dynasty.

Sayyid dynasty (1414 – 1450)

Emperor Period
Khizr Khan 1414-21
Mubarak Shah 1421-33
Muhammad Shah 1421-43
Alauddin Alam Shah 1443-51

Ruler Period of Important facts

Rule

Khizr Khan 1414- 1. Timur's nominee captured Delhi and was proclaimed the new
1421 Sultan and the first of the Sayyid Dynasty.
2. They ruled over Delhi and surrounding districts.

Mubarak 1421- 1. He succeeded Khizr at the throne after his successful expeditions
Shah 1434 against Mewatis, Katehars and the Gangetic Doab area.
2. He was killed by the nobles in his own court.
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Muhammad 1434- 1. The nobles put Muhammad Shah on the throne, but could not
Shah 1443 survive the in-fighting among the nobles in the court.
2. He was authorized to rule a meagre area of around 30 miles and
rest of the Sultanate was ruled by the nobles.

Alam Shah 1443- The last Sayyid king descended in favour of Bahlol Lodhi and he
1451 retired. Thus began the Lodhi dynasty, which confined to Delhi and
a few surrounding areas.

The Lodhi Dynasty (1451-1526 AD)

Ruler Period Important facts
of Rule

Bahlol 1451-88 1. Bahlol Lodhi was one of the Afghan sardars who established himself
Lodhi in Punjab after the invasion of Timur
2. He founded the Lodhi dynasty. He founded the rule of the Lodhi
dynasty by usurping the throne from the last of the Sayyid rulers.
3. He was a strong and brave ruler. He tried to restore the glory of Delhi
by conquering territories around Delhi and after the continuous war for
26 years, he succeeded in extending his authority over Jaunpur, Rewail,
Itawah, Mewar, Sambhal, Gwalior etc.
4. He was a kind and generous ruler. He was always prepared to help
his subjects.
5. Though he was himself illiterate, he extended his patronage to art and
learning. He died in 1488.
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Sikandar 1489- 1. Sikandar Lodhi was the son of Bahlol Lodhi who conquered Bihar
Lodhi 1517 and Western Bengal.
2. He shifted his capital from Delhi to Agra, a city founded by him.
3. Sikandar was a fanatical Muslim and he broke the sacred images of
the Jwalamukhi 4. Temple at Naga Kot and ordered the temples of
Mathura to be destroyed.
5. He took a keen interest in the development of agriculture. He
introduced the Gaz-i-Sikandari (Sikandar's yard) of 32 digits for
measuring cultivated fields.
6. He was a staunch Sunni and a Muslim fanatic. He lacked religious
tolerance. In the name of religion, he perpetuated untold cruelties on the
Hindus.

Ibrahim 1517-26 1. He was the last king of Lodhi dynasty and the last Sultan of Delhi
Lodhi 2. He was the son of Sikandar Lodhi
3. The Afghan nobility was brave and freedom-loving people but it was
because of its fissiparous and individualistic tendencies that the Afghan
monarchy was weakened. Moreover, Ibrahim Lodhi asserted the
absolute power of the Sultan.
4. At last Daulat Khan Lodhi, the governor of Punjab invited Babur to
overthrow Ibrahim Lodhi; Babur accepted the offer and inflicted a
crushing defeat on Ibrahim Lodhi in the first battle of Panipat in 1526.
5. No Sultan of India except Sultan Ibrahim had been killed on the
battlefield.

Important Central Departments

Department Function

Diwan-i-Risalat (Foreign Minister) Department of appeals

Diwan-i-Ariz Military department

Diwan-i-Bandagan Department of slaves

Diwan-i-Qaza-i-Mamalik Department of justice

Diwan-i-Isthiaq Department of pensions

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Diwan-i-Mustakhraj Department of arrears

Diwan-i-Khairat Department of charity

Diwan-i-Kohi Department of agriculture

Diwan-i-Insha Department of correspondence

Important Central Officials

Post Role
Wazir The Chief Minister of the State in Charge of revenue and finances, controlled
by other departments.

Ariz-i-Mamlik Head of Military department

Qazi Legal Officer(dispensed civil law based on Muslim law Shariat)

Wakil-i-dar Controller of the royal households.

Barid-i- Head of the state news agency
mumalik
Amir-i-majlis Officer-in-charge of royal feasts, conference and festivals.

Majlis-i-am Council of friends and officers consulted on important affairs of the state.

Dahir-i- Head of the royal correspondence.

mumalik
Sadr-us-sudur Dealt with religious matters and endowments.

Sadr-i-Jahan Officers-in-charge of the religious and charitable endowment.

Amir-i-dad Public prosecutors

Naib wazir Deputy Minister
Mushrif-i- Accountant general
mumalik
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Mughal Empire
Mughal Empire
1526 – 1530 Babur Founder of Mughal empire after the 1 Battle of Panipat
st

AD

1530 – 1540 Humayun He was defeated by Sher Shah

AD
1555 – 1556
AD
1540 – 1555 Sur Empire Sher Shah defeated Humayun and ruled from 1540-45 AD
AD

1556 2 Battle
nd
of Akbar Vs. Hemu
Panipat
1556 – 1605 Akbar Established Din-i-illahi, expanded Mughal empire
AD

1605 – 1627 Jehangir Captain William Hawkins and Sir Thomas Roe visited the
AD Mughal court
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1628 -1658 Shahjahan The pinnacle of Mughal empire and art and architecture
AD
1658 – 1707 Aurangazeb Beginning of the decline of Mughal empire
AD

1707 – 1857 Later Mughals Decline and disintegration of the Mughal empire with gaining
AD strength of the British

Babur (1526 - 1530)

• Babur, the founder of Mughal Empire in India, traced his ancestry to the Timurid dynasty.
• In 1517 Ibrahim Lodhi succeeded Sikander Lodhi.
• Embassies from Daulat Khan and Rana Sanga inviting Babur to displace Ibrahim Lodhi
led to the 1 Battle of Panipat in 1526.
st

• Babur used an Ottoman (Rumi) device in this war.

• Babur also heavily used Gunpowder in this war, though it was known in India in earlier
times.
• The Battle of Khanwa (1527) was fought between Rana Sanga and Babur. With the defeat
of Sanga, Babur’s position got strengthened in the Gangetic plains.
• He declared the war as a Jihad and assumed the title Ghazi after his victory.
• Babur composed Tuzuk-i-Baburi, a Masnavi and the Turkish translation of a well-known
Sufi work. Tuzuk-i-Baburi was translated into Persian as Baburnama by Abdur Rahim
Khankhana
• He built two mosques, one at Kabulibagh, Panipat and another in Sambhal, Rohilkhand
Humayun (1530 – 1540 and 1555 - 1556)
• Humayun became the Mughal Emperor on 29 December 1530 at the age of 23.
• In the Battle of Chausa, 1539, Humayun was defeated for the first time by Shershah Suri.
• In the next year (1540) Shershah completely defeated Humayun in the Battle of Kanauj and
founded the Sur dynasty.
• After the lapse of 15 years, Humayun re-captured the Empire by defeating the last Sur ruler
Sikandar Shah Suri in the Battle of Sirhindh, 1555, after which he ruled only for 6 months.
• The period from 1540 to 1555 is known as the period of the temporary eclipse of the
Mughal.
• Humayun died by an accidental fall from the staircase of his Library ‘Shermandal’ at the
Puranakwila in Delhi on 24 January 1556.
• Humayun was an accomplished mathematician and astronomer. He earned the title Insan-
i-Kamil (Perfect Man), among the Mughals
• Humayun’s biography Humayun Namah was written by Humayun’s sister Gulbadan
Begum. The language used to write this biography was a mixture of Turkish and Persian.
Architecture during Humayun’s Period
• The Purnakwila was constructed by Humayun but its construction was completed by
Shershah.
• Humayun’s tomb is situated in Delhi (the first building in India having double domes)
which was built by Haji Begum
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• In 1533 Humayun built the city of Dinpanah (world refuge) in Delhi.

Sher Shah Suri (Sur Empire)
• Shershah’s original name was Farid.
• His family came to India from Afghanistan.
• In the Battle of Chausa, 1539, Sherkhan defeated Humayun for the first time and assumed
the name Shershah.
• Later in 1540 he completely defeated Humayun in the Battle of Kanauj and founded the
Sur dynasty.
Architecture:
• Shershah constructed the Grand Trunk Road from Sohargaon to Attock (Calcutta to
Amritsar) He introduced the National Highway concept for the first time in India. Now the
Grand Trunk Road is known as Shershah Suri Marg. Its part from Delhi to Amritsar is
known as National Highway -1.
• He also built roads from Agra to Jodhpur and Chittoor and Lahore to Multan. He built
Sarais at a distance of every two Kos. These sarais later developed into Market towns,
Qasbas. They were also used as stages for news-services, Dak-Chowkis.
• He built the Purana Qila in Delhi (its Construction was started by Humayun) and his own
Mausoleum (Tomb) at Sasaram in Bihar.
• He also constructed the Khooni Darwaza (blood-stained gate) the gateway of Firozshah
Kotla in Delhi.
Economy and Administration
• He was the first ruler to introduce Silver Rupiya (one rupiya was equal to 64 dams) and
gold coin Ashrafi.
• Administrative divisions:
1. Iqta – Province under Haqim or Amin
2. Sarkar – District under Shiqdar-i-Shiqadaran or Munsif-i-Munsifan
3. Pargana – Taluk under Shiqdar or Munsif
4. Gram – Village under Muqqadam or Amil
• He made local Muqaddams/Zamindars responsible for local crimes
• Hindi poet Malik Muhammed Jayasi completed his Padmavat, during his reign.

Mughal Emperors
Akbar (1556 - 1605)

Year Significance

1556 Akbar ascends the throne at the age of 14

1556 2 Battle of Panipat between Hemu and Bairam Khan(khan-i-khannan). Hemu gets
nd

defeated in the battle

1560 Akbar becomes independent at the age of 18 and dismisses Bairam Khan

1564 Abolition of Jizyah tax

1571 Foundation of Fatehpur Sikri, near Agra, was laid

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1574 Mansabdari system introduced

1575 Ibadatkhana was built

1576 Battle of Haldihatti fought between Rana Pratap and the Mughal army led by Raja Man
Singh
1580 Dahsala Bandobast system introduced

1582 Din-i-illahi – a new religion was propounded by Akbar which was s synthesis of values
taken from several religions like Hinduism, Islam, Jainism etc. It was a move against
religious orthodoxy and bigotry. He followed the policy of Sulh-kul or peace to all.

• Akbar was an illiterate person, but he was a patron of men of eminence. He maintained a
Scholastic Assembly (Navratnas) in his court. They included the following personalities.
• Abul Fazal: Akbar’s court historian who wrote Akbar’s biographical works Ain-i-Akbari
and Akbar Namah.
• Abul Faizi: Persian poet and brother of Abul Fazal. He translated Mahabharata into Persian
in name ‘Razam Namah’ and Bhaskaracharya’s mathematical work Leelavati into Persian.
• Mian Tansen: His original name was Ram Thanu Pande. He was the court Musician of
Akbar. He composed a Raga, Rajdarbari in honour of Akbar.
• Birbal: His real name was Mahesh Das. He was the court jester of Akbar.
• Raja Todarmal: Raja Todarmal was Akbar’s finance or revenue minister. He formulated
Akbar’s revenue system Zabti and Dashala systems. Raja Todermal also translated
Bhagavatapurana into Persian.
• Maharaja Man Singh: Akbar’s military commander.
• Bhagawandas: Son of Bharmal
• Abdur Rahim Khankhana: Hindi Poet
• Mulla Do Pyaja
Administration
Land revenue
• Akbar started the Annual assessment system where land was assessed by Qanungos or
hereditary holders of land and tax collected by Karoris.
• In 1580, a new system Dahsala (prices over the last 10 years) were calculated. The land
was measured using the Zabti system which was an improvement over the Dahsala system.
It was also known as Todarmal’s Bandobast
• In Batai system, the production was divided in fixed proportions.
• In Nasaq system, rough calculation of Peasant’s payments over the past years was
calculated and the empire’s share was fixed.
• Types of Cultivable Lands
1. Polaj – land under cultivation every year
2. Paratti – fallow land
3. Chanchar – land fallow for 2-3 years
4. Banjar – land fallow more than 2-3 years
• Taccavi – loans to the peasants
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• Land divisions for the purpose of revenue

1. Khalisa – lands kept separately to meet the expenses of the emperor
2. Jagir – land was given to nobles or mansabdars to meet their expenses
3. Inam – land was given to religious persons
Mansabdari System: This was introduced to maintain a huge army. Ranks (Mansabs) were
awarded to nobles. They were divided into Zat (Personal status) and Sawar (Cavalryman required
to maintain). Along with this, Dagh and Chehra system were also followed. Mansabdars were
assigned Jagirs which they used to pay the salary of soldiers
Important Posts:
• Wazir/Diwan – Head of Revenue department
• Subedar – Governor of a province
• Mir Bakshi – head of Military who was also the head of nobility
• Barids – Intelligence officers
• Waqia-navis – news reporters
• Mir Saman – in charge of imperial households and royal workshops (Karkhanas)
• Chief Qazi – head of Judicial departments
• Chief Sadr – responsible for charitable and religious endowments
• Diwan-i-am – open durbar
• Ghusal Khana – private consultation chamber
Architecture during Akbar’s period
• He built Agra Fort, Lahore Fort, Allahabad Fort, Humayun’s tomb and Fatehpur Sikri near
Agra.
• At Fatehpur Sikri, Akbar built Ibadat Khana or Hall of Prayer in which he called selected
theologians and mystics with whom he discussed religious and spiritual topics.
• Akbar built Buland Darwaza at Fatehpur Sikri in 1601 to commemorate
his victory over Gujarat.
• He opened Ibadat Khana to people of all religions and took liberal views in discussing
religions.
Jahangir (1605 - 1627)
• Jahangir came to the throne in 1605. He issued 12 ordinances. He established Zanjir-il-
Adal – Chain of Justice in Agra Fort and was known for his strict administration of Justice.
• He married Mehrunnisa, an Afghan widow in 1611 and Later he gave her the titles Noor
Mahal (light of the palace), Noor Jahan (light of the world) and Padshah Begum.
• In 1606 Jahangir executed fifth Sikh Guru, Guru Arjun Dev because he helped Jahangir’s
son Prince Khusru to rebel against him.
• In 1609, Jahangir received William Hawkins, an envoy of King James I of England, who
reached India to obtain trade concession.
• In 1615, Sir Thomas Roe reached the court of Jahangir as the first ambassador of James I
of England in the court of Jahangir. As a result of his efforts, the first English factory was
established at Surat in Gujarat.
• Period of Jahangir is considered as the Golden Age of Mughal Painting. Jahangir himself
was a painter. Ustad Mansur and Abul Hassan and Bishan das were famous painters in the
court of Jahangir.
• Jahangir wrote his autobiography Tuzukh-i-Jahangiri in the Persian language.
• Jahangir died in 1627 and was cremated at Shahdara in Lahore.
Architecture
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1. Jahangir built Shalimar and Nishant Gardens in Srinagar.

2. He completed the tomb of Akbar at Sikandara
3. Jahangir introduced the vigorous use of Marble instead of red sandstone and use of Pietra
dura for decorative purposes. Nurjahan built Itimad-ud-daula/Mirza Ghiyas Beg’s Marble
tomb at Agra
4. He built Moti Masjid at Lahore and his own mausoleum at Shahdara
Shah Jahan (1628 - 1658)
• Shah Jahan was born on 5th January 1592 at Lahore. His childhood name was Khurram.
He ascended the throne in 1628.
• He married Arjumand Benu Begum, daughter of Asaf Khan, brother of Noor Jahan. She
later came to be known as Mumtaz Mahal which means beloved of the Palace.
• Shahjahan destroyed the Portuguese settlements at Hoogly in 1631-32.
• The Gateway of Red Fort is the Lahore Gate. It is here at the Lahore Gate that the Prime
Minister of India hoists the National Flag and addresses the nation on the Independence
Day.
• In 1656 Shahjahan constructed the Jama Masjid in Delhi. It is the biggest masjid in India.
The first masjid in India was constructed at Kodungallur in Kerala (Cheraman Palli) in 644
AD by Malik Ibn Dinar.
• Shah Jahan’s period is known as the Golden Age of Mughal Empire.
• The Portuguese introduced European painting in India during the reign of Shah Jahan
• In 1658 Shah Jahan was imprisoned by his son Aurangzeb and he died in 1666, after eight
years. His daughter Jahan Ara was also kept in prison along with him at the Agra Fort.
• Shah Jahan’s son Dara Shikoh was a famous scholar. He translated Bhagavat Gita and
Sixty Upanishads into Persian. He also wrote a book titled Mujm-ul-Behrain (Mingling of
the Oceans) He also translated Atharva Veda into Persian.
• Shah Jahan was a famous lyricist who wrote in Hindi. The famous Peacock Throne was
built by Shah Jahan. It was abducted from here by Nadir Shah in 1739 during his Indian
invasion (Persian conqueror). Now it is kept at the London Tower Museum, Britain.
• French travellers Bernier and Tavernier, Italian travellers Nicoli Manucci, Peter Mundi
visited India during Shah Jahan’s period.
Architecture
• Shah Jahan’s period is considered as the Golden Age of Mughal Architecture and Shah
Jahan is known as the Prince of Builders.
• In 1631, he started the construction of Taj Mahal in memory of his wife and completed in
1653. Ustad Iza, a Turkish/ Persian was its architect. British administrator Furguson called
it ‘a love in marble’
• In 1638 Shah Jahan built his new capital Shahjahanabad in Delhi and shifted the capital
from Agra to there. He also built Takht-i-Taus or Peacock throne.
• In 1639, he started the construction of Red Fort in Delhi on the model of Agra fort built
by Akbar. The Diwan-i- Aam, Diwan-i-Khas and the Moti Masjid are situated inside the
Red Fort. The Moti Masjid in Agra was constructed by Shah Jahan.
Aurangzeb (1658 - 1707)
• Aurangzeb imprisoned his father and made himself the Padshah in 1658. But his actual
coronation was conducted in 1659. He defeated Dara and crowned himself under the title
“Alamgir”. He was the last great Mughal Emperor after which the disintegration had
started.
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• Aurangzeb is known as ‘Zinda Pir’ or living saint because of his simple life.
• He was a staunch and orthodox Muslim who banned singing and dancing in the Royal
court. He reintroduced Jizyah and Pilgrimage tax.
• In 1675, he executed 9th Sikh Guru, Guru Teg Bahadur because of his reluctance to accept
Islam. Guru Gobind Singh, the last Sikh Guru, organized his followers under Khalsa to
fight the tyranny of Aurangzeb. He was assassinated in 1708.
• Aurangzeb’s son built Bibi ka Makbara in 1679 AD in memory of his mother Rabia-
Durrani.
• The only building by Aurangzeb in Red Fort is Moti Masjid. He also built the Badshahi
Masjid in Lahore.
Later Mughals
Year Ruler Significance
1707 – Bahadur Shah I Original name – Muazzam
12
1712 – Jahandar Shah Ascended the throne with the help of Zulfikar Khan
13
1713 – Farrukh Siyar Sayyid brothers helped him in ascending the throne
19

1719 – Muhammad Nadir Shah raided India. Weak successor

48 Shah
1748 – Ahmad Shah Ahmad Shah Abdali raided India. Mughals ceded Punjab and
54 Multan

1754 – Alamgir II Delhi was occupied by Ahmad Shah Abdali and later plundered
59

1759 – Shah Alam II Lived outside Delhi

06
1806 – Akbar II Pensioner of East India Company conferred the title Raja on Raja
37 Ram Mohan Roy

1837 – Bahadur Shah II 1857 Revolt took place under his nominal leadership. Was
57 deported to Burma

Arrival of English
• The English East India Company was formed in 1599 under a charter granted by Queen
Elizabeth in 1600. Jahangir granted a Farman to Captain William Hawkins permitting the
English to erect a factory at Surat (1613).
• In 1615, Sir Thomas Roe succeeded in getting an imperial Farman to trade and establish
a factory in all parts of the Mughal Empire by ruler Jahangir.
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• In 1690, a factory was established at Suttanati by Jab Charnock. In 1698, following the
acquisition of zamindari of three villages of Suttanati, Kalikata and Govindpur, the city
of Calcutta was founded. Fort William was set-up in 1700.
• In 1717, John Surman obtained a Farman from Farrukhsiyar, which gave large concessions
to the company. This Farman has been called the Magna Carta of the Company.
• Battle of Plassey (1757) English defeated Sirajuddaula, the Nawab of Bengal.
• Battle of Buxar (1764) Captain Munro defeated joint forces of Mir Qasim (Bengal),
Shujauddaula (Awadh) and Shah Alam II (Mughal).

The Revolt of 1857

The Revolt of 1857 is of steppingstone and is regarded as the primary outburst of resentment of
simmering anger due to the prevailing discontent against the Britishers. Many revolts took place
later such as battles of Plassey and Buxar, which are regarded as the landmark and decisive battles
in shaping the modern historical regime.
The genesis of the revolt:
• The revolt was started by the soldiers and later spread across the country by peasants,
artisans, and so on. The soldiers had worked for the East India Company and sacrificed
their lives for the sake of others.
• People of different religions of India came together and fought united for one cause in this
revolt.
Nature of the revolt
• Revolt of 1857 began as a revolt of the sepoys but eventually secured the participation of
the masses.
• V.D. Savarkar called 1857 revolt as the First War of Indian Independence.
• Dr S.N. Sen describes it as "having begun as a fight for religion but ended as a war of
independence."
• Dr R.C. Majumdar considers it as neither the first, nor national, nor a war of independence.
• As per some British historians, it was just a peasant sepoy mutiny.
Important facts of the Revolt
• Meerut incident
- 19th Berhampur Native Infantry refused to use the newly introduced Enfield rifle and m
utiny broke out in February 1857, later dissolved in Mar' 1857.
• The 34th Native Infantry's young sepoy, Mangal Pandey, fired at his unit's sergeant major
at Barrackpore.
• The 7 Awadh Regiment was also disbanded
th

• Meerut rose to revolt May 10, they released their imprisoned comrades, killed their officers
and moved to Delhi after sunset.
• Delhi- Centre of the Great Revolt
Leaders of the revolt
• At Delhi, the symbolic leadership was to the Mughal emperor, Bahadur Shah, but the real
command was led by General Bakht Khan.
• Kanpur rose under Nana Saheb, Tantia Tope, AZimullah Khan. Sir Hugh Wheeler,
commanding the station, surrendered. Nana Saheb declared himself the Peshwa and
Bahadhur Shah as Emperor of India
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• Begum Hazrat Mahal took over the reign of Lucknow and Birjis Qadir, her son, was
declared Nawab. Henry Lawrence, the British resident, was killed. The remaining
Europeans were evacuated by Sir Colin Campbell, the new commander - in - chief.
• At Bareilly, Khan Bahadur, in Bihar, Kunwar Singh, Zamindar of Jagdishpur
and Maulvi Ahmadullah of Faizabad led the revolt at their respective places.
• Rani Laxmibai, the most outstanding leader of the revolt, was driven out of Jhansi with
the application of Lapse's Doctrine as Lord Dalhousie, the Governor-General refused to
allow her adopted son to succeed to the throne.

INDIAN NATIONAL MOVEMENT

EMERGENCE OF INDIAN NATIONAL CONGRESS (1885)
• Allan Octavian Hume, a retired civil servant in the British Government took the initiative
to form an all-India organization.
• Thus, the Indian National Congress was founded and its first session was held at Bombay
in 1885.
• The history of the Indian National Movement can be studied in three important phases:
• The phase of moderate nationalism (1885-1905) when Congress continued to be
loyal to the British crown.
• The years 1906-1916 witnessed- Swadeshi Movement, the rise of militant
nationalism and the Home Rule Movement. The repressive measures of the British
gave rise to extremists within Congress like Bipin Chandra Pal, Bal Gangadhar
Tilak and Lala Lajpat Rai (Lai, Bal, Pal), along with Aurobindo Ghosh
• The period from 1917 to1947 is known as the Gandhian era.
Important Sessions of Indian National Congress
Year Venue President
1885 Bombay W.C.Bannerji
1886 Calcutta Dadabhai Naoroji
1893 Lahore "
1906 Calcutta "
1887 Madras Badruddin Tyyabji (first Muslim President)

1888 Allahabad George Yule (first English President)

1889 Bombay Sir William Wedderburn

1890 Calcutta Sir Feroze S.Mehta

1895, Poona, Ahmedabad S.N.Banerjee
1902
1905 Banaras G.K.Gokhale
1907, Surat, Madras Rasbehari Ghosh
1908
1909 Lahore M.M.Malviya
1916 Lucknow A.C.Majumdar (Reunion of the Congress)
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1917 Calcutta Annie Besant (first woman President)

1919 Amritsar Motilal Nehru

1920 Calcutta (sp.session) Lala Lajpat Rai

1921,1922 Ahmedabad, Gaya C.R.Das

1923 Delhi (sp.session) Abdul Kalam Azad (youngest President)

1924 Belgaon M.K.Gandhi

1925 Kanpur Sarojini Naidu (first Indian woman President)

1928 Calcutta Motilal Nehru (first All India Youth Congress Formed)

1929 Lahore J.L.Nehru (Poorna Swaraj resolution was passed)

1931 Karachi Vallabhbhai Patel (Here, resolution on Fundamental rights

and the National Economic Program was passed)

1932, Delhi, Calcutta (Session Banned)

1933
1934 Bombay Rajendra Prasad
1936 Lucknow J.L.Nehru
1937 Faizpur J.L.Nehru (first session in a village)

1938 Haripura S.C.Bose (a National Planning Committed set-up

underJ.L.Nehru).

1939 Tripuri S.C.Bose was re-elected but had to resign due to protest by
Gandhiji (as Gandhiji supported Dr.Pattabhi Sitaramayya).
Rajendra Prasad was appointed in his place.

1940 Ramgarh Abdul Kalam Azad

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1946 Meerut Acharya J.B.Kriplani

1948 Jaipur Dr.Pattabhi Sitaramayya.

Moderate Nationalism
• Surendranath Banerjee: was called the Indian Burke. He firmly opposed the Partition of
Bengal. He founded the Indian Association (1876) to agitate for political reforms. He had
convened the Indian National Conference (1883) which merged with the Indian National
Congress in l886.
• Subramanya Aiyar preached nationalism through the Madras Mahajana Sabha. He also
founded the Hindu and Swadesamitran.
• Dadabhai Naoroji was known as the Grand Old Man of India. He is regarded as India’s
unofficial Ambassador in England. He was the first Indian to become a Member of the
British House of Commons.
• Gopal Krishna Gokhale was regarded as the political guru of Gandhi. In 1905, he founded
the Servants of India Society to train Indians to dedicate their lives to the cause of the
country.
Indian National Movement (1905-1917)
• The period from 1905 was known as the era of extremism in the Indian National
Movement.
• The extremists or aggressive nationalists believed that success could be achieved through
bold means.
• The important extremist leaders were Lala Lajpat Rai, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Bipin Chandra
Pal and Aurobindo Ghosh.
Leaders of the Extremists
• The extremists were led by Bala Gangadhar Tilak, Lala Lajpat Rai, Bipin Chandra Pal and
Aurobindo Ghosh
• Bal Gangadhar Tilak is regarded as the real founder of the popular anti-British movement
in India. He was known as ‘Lokamanya’. He attacked the British through his weeklies The
Maratha and the Kesari. He was jailed twice by the British for his nationalist activities and
in 1908 deported to Mandoli for six years. He set up the Home Rule League in 1916 at
Poona and declared “Swaraj is my birth-right and I will have it.”
• Lala Lajpat Rai is popularly known as the ‘Lion of Punjab’. He played an important role
in the Swadeshi Movement. He founded the Indian Home Rule League in the US in 1916.
He was deported to Mandalay on the ground of sedition. He received fatal injuries while
leading a procession against the Simon Commission and died on November 17, 1928.
• Bipin Chandra Pal began his career as a moderate and turned an extremist.
• Aurobindo Ghosh was another extremist leader and he actively participated in the
Swadeshi Movement.
• He was also imprisoned. After his release, he settled in the French territory of Pondicherry
and concentrated on spiritual activities
PARTITION OF BENGAL (1905)
• Curzon announced the partition of Bengal.
• The reason for partition was given as an attempt to improve administration.
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• But the real aim was to ‘Divide and Rule’. The partition was done in order to create a
separate State for Muslims and so introduce the poison of communalism in the country.
Swadeshi Movement
• The Swadeshi Movement involved programmes like the boycott of government service,
courts, schools and colleges and of foreign goods, Promotion of Swadeshi goods,
Promotion of National Education through the establishment of national schools and
colleges.
• It was both a political and economic movement
• In Bengal, even the landlords joined the movement
• The women and students took to picketing. Students refused using books made of foreign
paper.
• It was Bal Gangadhar Tilak who realized the importance of boycott as a weapon that could
be used to paralyze the whole British administrative machinery in India.
• The boycott and Swadeshi movements were instrumental in the establishment of swadeshi
enterprises - textile mills, banks, hosiery, tanneries, chemical works and insurance
companies. Swadeshi stores were opened.
• This made the British reverse the partition of Bengal and unite it in 1911.
Hind Swaraj
• When the movement against the partition of Bengal was at its height the annual session of
the Congress was held at Calcutta in 1906 under the president ship of Dadabhai Naoroji.
• This session is very important because of the conciliation between the Moderates and
Extremist
• The Congress condemned the Partition of Bengal. In the words of DadaBhai Naoroji, it is
a bad blunder of England.
• Promotion of education was declared as the aim of Congress.
• The Swadeshi and the Boycott were accorded full support by the Congress. For the first
time Boycott was authorised to be used as a political weapon.
Formation of Muslim League (1906)
• In December 1906, during the Muhammadan Educational conference in Dacca, Nawab
Salim Ullah Khan raised the idea of establishing a Central Muhammadan Association to
take care of Muslim interests.
• Accordingly, on 30th December 1906, the All India Muslim League was founded. Another
prominent person, Aga Khan was chosen as its president.
Surat Session (1907)
• The INC split into two groups -The extremists and The moderates, at the Surat session in
1907.
• Extremists were led by Bal, Pal, Lai while the moderates by G.K. Gokhale.
• Controversy arose over the elected president, Ras Bihari Ghosh, as extremists didn’t accept
him.
• Extremists wanted Lala Lajpat Rai to be chosen.
• The government after this launched a massive attack on extremists by suppressing their
newspapers and arresting their leaders.
MORLEY-MINTO REFORMS (1909)
• The Council Act of 1909 was an extension of the 1892 reforms, also known as the Morley-
Minto Reforms after the names of the then Secretary of State (Lord Morley) and the then
Viceroy (Lord Minto).
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• It increased the members of the Legislative Assembly from sixteen to sixty.

• A few non-elected members were also added.
• Though the members of the Legislative Council were increased, they had no real powers.
They remained mainly advisory in character.
• They could not stop any bills from being passed. Nor did they have any power over the
budget.
• The British made another calculated move to sow the seed of communalism in Indian
politics by introducing separate electorates for the Muslims.
• This meant that from the constituencies dominated by Muslims only Muslim candidates
could be elected.
• Hindus could only vote for Hindus, and Muslims could only vote for Muslims.
• Many leaders protested against this communal electorate policy of the British to ‘Divide
and Rule’.
Annulment of Bengal Partition
• It was decided to annul the partition of Bengal in 1911 mainly to curb the menace of
revolutionary terrorism.
• The annulment came as a rude shock to the Muslim political elite.
• It was also decided to shift the capital to Delhi as a sop to the Muslims, as it was associated
with Muslim glory, but the Muslims were not pleased.
• Bihar and Orissa were taken out of Bengal and Assam were made a separate province.
Ghadar Party (1913)
• Formed by Lala Hardayal, Taraknath Das and Sohan Singh Bhakna.
• The name was taken from a weekly paper, Ghadar, which had been started on November
1, 1913 to commemorate the 1857 revolt.
• HQ was at San Francisco.
• The outbreak of the First World War provided the Ghadarites with an opportunity to free
India from a Government which was indifferent to their cause.
• They began to return to India in thousands for a coordinated revolt in collaboration with
the Bengal revolutionaries. Their plan was foiled at the last moment due to treachery.
Komagata Maru Incident
• The importance of this event lies in the fact that it created an explosive situation in Punjab.
• Komagata Maru was the name of a ship which was carrying 370 passengers, mainly Sikh
and Punjabi Muslim would-be immigrants, from Singapore to Vancouver.
• They were turned back by Canadian authorities after two months of privation &
uncertainty.
• It was generally believed that the Canadian authorities were influenced by the British
Government.
• The ship finally anchored at Calcutta in September 1914 but the inmates refused to board
the Punjab-bound train.
• In the ensuing with the police near Calcutta, 22 persons died.
• Inflamed by this and with the outbreak of the War, the Ghadr leaders decided to launch a
violent attack on British rule in India.
• They urged fighters to go to India. Bengal revolutionaries were contacted; Political
dacoities were committed to raising funds mainly in Punjab.
• Thus, an explosive situation was created in Punjab.
NATIONAL MOVEMENT DURING THE FIRST WORLD WAR
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• The First World War started in the year 1914.

• This War was fought among the nations of Europe to get the colonial monopoly. During
wartime, the British Government made an appeal to the Indian leaders to join hands with
them in their time of crisis.
• Indian leaders agreed but they put their own terms and conditions i.e. after the war was
over, the British government would give Constitutional (legislative and administrative)
powers to the Indian People.
• Unfortunately, the steps taken by the British government during World War I created unrest
among the Indian people. This was because the British government had taken a huge loan
during wartime which they had to repay.
• They increased the rent from the land, i.e. lagan. They forcefully recruited Indians in the
British Army.
• They increased the price of necessary goods and imposed taxes on personal and
professional income.
• As a result, they had to face protest from Indian society.
• Farmers and workers of Champaran, Bardoli, Kheda and Ahmedabad actively protested
against the exploitative policies of the British government.
• Lakhs of students left schools and colleges. Hundreds of lawyers gave up their practice.
Women also significantly contributed to this movement and their participation became
wider with the emergence of Gandhi.
• The boycott of foreign cloth became a mass movement, with thousands of bonfires of
foreign cloth lighting the Indian sky.
Lucknow Session (1916)
• The 31st Session of the Congress was held at Lucknow in 1916.
• It was presided over by the Ambica charan Majumdar who was a prominent lawyer and
was actively associated with the Congress since its birth.
Home Rule League Movement 1916
• By early 1915, Annie Besant had launched a campaign to demand self-government for
India after the war on the lines of white colonies
• She campaigned through her newspapers, New India & Commonweal, and through public
meetings and conferences
• Two Home Rule Leagues were established, one by BG Tilak at Poona in April 1916 and
the other by Mrs Annie Besant at Madras in September 1916
• Tilak’s Movement concentrated on Maharashtra (excluding Bombay), Karnataka, Central
Provinces and Berar
• Annie Besant’s Movement covered the rest of India (including Bombay)

Complete List of Newspapers and Journals during British India

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Name of the Paper/Journal Year and Place Name of the Founder/Editor

from which
Published

Bengal Gazette 1780, Calcutta James Augustus Hickey

Sambad Kaumudi (weekly in 1821 Raja Ram Mohan Roy

Bengali)

Mirat-ul Akbar (First journal in 1822, Calcutta Raja Ram Mohan Roy
Persian)

Banga-Duta ( A weekly in four 1822, Calcutta Raja Ram Mohan Roy and
languages- English, Bengali, Persian, Dwarkanath Tagore
Hindi)

Bombay Times (from 1861 onwards, 1838, Bombay Robert Knight and Thomas
The Times of India) Bennett

Rast Goftar (A Gujarati fortnightly) 1851 Dadabhai Naoroji

Hindu Patriot 1853, Calcutta Girishchandra Ghosh

Somprakasha 1858, Calcutta Dwarkanath Vidyabhushan

Indian Mirror 1862, Calcutta Devendranath Tagore and NN

Sen

Bengalee (this and Amrita Bazar 1862, Calcutta Girishchandra Ghosh (taken
Patrika- the first vernacular papers) over by SN Banerjea in 1879)
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National Paper 1865, Calcutta Devendra Nath Tagore

Amrita Bazar Patrika (Bengali in the 1868, Jessore Sisirkumar Ghosh and Motilal
beginning and later on English Daily) District Ghosh

Bangadarshana 1873, Calcutta BankimChandra Chatterjee

The Statesman 1875, Calcutta Robert Knight

The Hindu 1878, Madras GS Aiyar, Viraraghavchari and

Subba Rao Pandit

The Tribune 1881, Lahore Dayal Singh Majeetia

Sudharak Gopal Ganesh Agarkar

Hindustani and Advocate GP Verma

Kesari (Marathi daily) and Maharatta 1881, Bombay Tilak, Chiplunkar, Agarkar
(English Weekly)

Swadeshamitran Madras GS Aiyar

Paridasak (Weekly) Bipin Chandra Pal

Yugantar 1906, Bengal Barindra Kumar Ghosh and

Bhupendranath Dutta

Sandhya 1906, Bengal Brhamanabandab Upadhay

Indian Sociologist London Syamji Krishna Verma

Bande Matram Parish Madam Bhikaji Cama

Free Hindustan Vancouver Taraknath Das

Ghadr San Francisco Ghadar Party

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Talwar Berlin Virendrnath Chattopadhay

Bombay Chronical (a daily) 1913, Bombay Pherozshahs Mehta, BG

Horniman

The Hindustan Times 1920, Delhi KM Pannikkar as a part of Akali

Dal Movement

Leader (in English) Madan Mohan Malviya

Bahishkrit Bharat 1927 BR Ambedkar

Kudi Arasu (Tamil) 1910 E.V. Ramaswamy Naicker

(Periyar), SS MIrajkar, KN
Joglekar

Bandi Jivan Bengal Sachindranath Sanyal

National Herald 1938, Delhi Jawaharlal Nehru

Tagzin-ul-Akhlaq (journal) 1871 Sir Syed Ahmed Khan

Kesari (Marathi Daily Newspaper) 1881 Bal Gangadhar Tilak

Comrade (Weekly English 1911 Maulana Mohammad Ali

Newspaper)

Al- Balagh and Al-Hilal (Both urdu 1912 Abul Kalam Azad
weekly newspaper)

Pratap (Hindi Newspaper) 1913 Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi

Independent (Newspaper) 1919 Motilal Nehru

Moon Nayak (Marathi Weekly) 1920 BR Ambedkar

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Young India (Weekly Journal) 1919 M K Gandhi

Nav Jeevan (Weekly Newspaper) 1929 M K Gandhi

Harijan (Weekly Journal) 1931 M K Gandhi

Hindustan Dainik 1936 Madan Mohan Malviya

Indian National Movement (1917-1947)

Champaran Satyagraha (1917)
• The first civil disobedience movement by Gandhi in the freedom struggle.
• Persuaded by Rajkumar Shukla, an indigo cultivator, Gandhi went to Champaran in Bihar
to investigate the conditions of the farmers there.
• Champaran struggle is called the first experiment on Satyagraha by Gandhi.
• It was during this time that Gandhi was given the names ‘Bapu’ and ‘Mahatma’ by the
people.
Ahmedabad Mill Strike (Feb-March 1918)
• The next scene of Gandhiji's activity was in 1918 at Ahmedabad where an agitation had
been going on between the labourers and the owners of a cotton textile mill for an increase
of pay.
• While Gandhiji was negotiating with the mill owners, he advised the workers to go on
strike and to demand a 35% increase in wages.
• The strike was withdrawn and retrieval later awarded the 35% increase that the workers
had demanded.
• Ambalal Sarabhai's sister, Anasuya Behn, was one of the main lieutenants of Gandhiji in
this struggle in which her brother and Gandhiji's friend was one of the main advisories.
Kheda Satyagraha (March 1918)
• 1918 was a year of failed crops in the Kheda district of Gujarat due to droughts.
• As per law, the farmers were entitled to remission if the produce was less than a quarter of
the normal output.
• Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, under Gandhi’s guidance, led the farmers in protest against the
collection of taxes in the wake of the famine.
Rowlatt Act (1919)
• In 1917, a committee was set up under the presidentship of Sir Sydney Rowlatt to look into
the militant Nationalist activities
• Rowlatt Act was passed in March 1919 by the Central Legislative Council
• As per this Act, any person could be arrested on the basis of suspicion.
• No appeal or petition could be filed against such arrests.
• This Act was called the Black Act and it was widely opposed.
• An all-India hartal was organized on 6 April 1919.
• Meetings were held all over the country.
• Mahatma Gandhi was arrested near Delhi.
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• Two prominent leaders of Punjab, Dr Satya Pal and Dr Saifuddin Kitchlew, were arrested
in Amritsar.
Jallianwala Bagh Massacre (13 April 1919)
• The Jallianwala Bagh Massacre took place on 13 April 1919 and it remained a turning point
in the history of India’s freedom movement
• In Punjab, there was unprecedented support to the Rowlatt Satyagraha
• On 13 th April, the Baisakhi day (harvest festival), a public meeting was organized at the
Jallianwala Bagh (garden)
• Dyer marched in and without any warning opened fire on the crowd
• According to the official report, 379 people were killed and 1137 wounded in the incident.
• Rabindranath Tagore renounced his knighthood as a protest
Khilafat Movement (1920)
• The chief cause of the Khilafat Movement was the defeat of Turkey in the First World War.
• The harsh terms of the Treaty of Sevres (1920) were felt by the Muslims as a great insult
to them.
• The whole movement was based on the Muslim belief that the Caliph (the Sultan of
Turkey) was the religious head of the Muslims all over the world
• Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, M.A. Ansari, Saifuddin Kitchlew and the Ali brothers were
the prominent leaders of this movement.
• Mahatma Gandhi was particularly interested in bringing the Hindus and the Muslims
together to achieve the country’s independence.
• The Khilafat Movement merged with the Non-Cooperation Movement launched by
Mahatma Gandhi in 1920:
Non-Cooperation Movement (1920-1922)
• It was approved by the INC at the Nagpur session in December 1920.
• The programmes of the Non-Cooperation Movement were:
• Surrender of titles and honorary positions
• Resignation of membership from the local bodies.
• Boycott of elections held under the provisions of the 1919 Act
• Boycott of government functions.
• Boycott of courts, government schools and colleges.
• Boycott of foreign goods
• Establishment of national schools, colleges and private panchayat courts.
• Popularizing Swadeshi goods and khadi.
• National schools such as the Kashi Vidyapeeth, the Bihar Vidyapeeth and the Jamia Millia
Islamia were set up.
• No leader of the Congress came forward to contest the elections for the Legislatures
• In 1921, mass demonstrations were held against the Prince of Wales during his tour of
India.
• Most of the households took to weaving cloths with the help of charkhas.
• But the whole movement was abruptly called off on 11th February 1922 by Gandhi
following the Churi Chaura incident
• In the Gorakhpur district of U.P. Earlier on 5 th February an angry mob set fire to the police
station at Churi Chaura and twenty-two policemen were burnt to death
Swaraj Party
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• Leaders like Motilal Nehru and Chittaranjan Das formed a separate group within the
Congress known as the Swaraj Party on 1 January 1923.
• In the Central Legislative Council Motilal Nehru became the leader of the party whereas
in Bengal the party was headed by C.R. Das.
• After the passing away of C.R. Das in June 1925, the Swaraj Party started weakening.
Simon Commission
• In November 1927 the British Government appointed the Simon Commission to look into
the working of the Government of India Act of 1919 and to suggest changes.
• The Commission consisted of Englishmen without a single Indian representative
• The Commission arrived in India in Feb 1928 and was met with countrywide protests.
• Peaceful demonstrators were beaten by the police in many places. Lala Lajpat Rai was
assaulted and soon after died.
Nehru Report (1928)
• In the meanwhile, the Secretary of State, Lord Birkenhead, challenged the Indians to
produce a Constitution
• The challenge was accepted by the Congress, which convened an all-party meeting on 28
February 1928
• A committee consisting of eight was constituted to draw up a blueprint for the future
Constitution of India.
• It was headed by Motilal Nehru

Civil Disobedience Movement (1930-1934)

• In the prevailing atmosphere of restlessness, the annual session of the Congress was held
at Lahore in December 1929.
• During this session presided over by Jawaharlal Nehru the Congress passed the Poorna
Swaraj resolution
• Moreover, as the government failed to accept the Nehru Report, Congress gave a call to
launch the Civil Disobedience Movement.
• The Congress had also observed January 26, 1930, as the Day of Independence.
• The same date later became the Republic Day when the Indian Constitution was enforced
in 1950.
Dandi March
• On 12th March 1930, Gandhi began his famous March to Dandi with his chosen 79
followers to break the salt laws.
• He reached the coast of Dandi on 5 April 1930 after marching a distance of 200 miles
• On 6 April formally launched the Civil Disobedience Movement by breaking the salt laws.
• On 9 April, Mahatma Gandhi laid out the programme of the movement which included
making of salt in every village in violation of the existing salt laws;
Round Table Conferences
First Round Table Conference
• Held in November 1930 at London and it was boycotted it by the Congress.
• In January 1931 in order to create a conducive atmosphere for talks.
• The government lifted the ban on the Congress Party and released its leaders from prison.
• On 8 March 1931, the Gandhi-Irwin Pact was signed.
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• As per this pact, Mahatma Gandhi agreed to suspend the Civil-Disobedience Movement
and participate in the Second Round Table Conference.
• In September 1931, the Second Round Table Conference was held at London
• Mahatma Gandhi participated in the Conference but returned to India disappointed as no
agreement could be reached on the demand for complete independence and on the
communal question.
• In January 1932, the Civil-Disobedience Movement was resumed.
• The government responded to it by arresting Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Patel and by
reposting the ban on the Congress party
Communal Awards
• The Communal Award was announced by the British Prime Minister, Ramsay MacDonald,
in August 1932.
Poona Pact (1932)
• On 16 August 1932, the British Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald made an
announcement, which came to be as the Communal Award.
• Mahatma Gandhi protested against the Communal Award and went on a fast unto death in
the Yeravada jail on 20 September 1932.
• Finally, an agreement was reached between Dr Ambedkar and Gandhi.
• This agreement came to be called the Poona Pact. The British Government also approved
of it.
• Accordingly, 148 seats in different Provincial Legislatures were reserved for the Depressed
Classes in place of 71 as provided in the Communal Award.
Third Round Table Conference (1932)
• Congress again did not take part in it.
• Nonetheless, in March 1933, the British Government issued a White Paper.
• Which became the basis for the enactment of the Government of India Act, 1935.

Government of India Act, 1935

Main features of this act were -
• Provision for the establishment of an All India Federation at the Centre, consisting of the
Provinces of British India and the Princely States
• It did not come into existence since the Princely States refused to give their consent for the
union
• Division of powers into three lists viz. Federal, Provincial and Concurrent.
• Introduction of Diarchy at the Centre
• The Governor-General and his council administered the “Reserved subjects”
• The Council of Ministers were responsible for the “Transferred” subjects
• Abolition of Diarchy and the introduction of Provincial Autonomy in the provinces.
• The Governor was made the head of the Provincial Executive but he was expected (not
bound) to run the administration on the advice of the Council of ministers.
• Provincial Legislatures of Bengal, Madras, Bombay, United Provinces, Bihar and Assam
were made bicameral.
• Extension of the principle of Separate Electorates to Sikhs, Europeans, Indian Christians
and Anglo Indians
• Establishment of a Federal Court at Delhi with a Chief Justice and 6 judges.
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Second World War & National Movement

• In 1937 elections were held under the provisions of the Government of India Act of 1935
• Congress Ministries were formed in seven states of India.
• On 1 September 1939, the Second World War broke out.
• The British Government without consulting the people of India involved the country in the
war.
• As a mark of protest the Congress Ministries in the Provinces resigned on 12 December
1939
• The Muslim League celebrated that day as the Deliverance Day
• In March 1940 the Muslim League demanded the creation of Pakistan.

August offer
During the course of the 2 World War, in order to secure the cooperation of the Indians, the British
nd

Government made an announcement on 8 August 1940, which came to be known as the ‘August
Offer’, which proposed –
• Dominion status as the objective for India.
• Expansion of viceroy’s executive council & setting up of a constituent assembly after the
war consisting of Indians to decide their constitution according to their social, economic
and political conceptions subject to fulfilment of the obligation of the Government
regarding defence, minority rights, treaties with states & all India services
• No future constitution to be adopted without the consent of minorities.

Individual Satyagraha
• In order to secure the cooperation of the Indians, the British Government made an
announcement on 8 August 1940,
• The August Offer envisaged that after the War a representative body of Indians would be
set up to frame the new Constitution.
• Acharya Vinoba Bhave was the first to offer Satyagraha and he was sentenced to three
months imprisonment.
• Jawaharlal Nehru was the second Satyagrahi and imprisoned for four months.
• The individual Satyagraha continued for nearly 15 months.

Cripps Mission (1942)

• In the midst of worsening wartime international situation, the British Government in its
continued effort to secure Indian cooperation seent Sir Stafford Cripps to India on 23
March 1942. This is known as Cripps Mission.

Quit India Movement (1942-1944)

• The failure of the Cripps Mission and the fear of an impending Japanese invasion of India
led Mahatma Gandhi to begin his campaign for the British to quit India.
• Mahatma Gandhi believed that an interim government could be formed only after the
British left India and the Hindu-Muslim problem sorted out.
• The All India Congress Committee met at Bombay on 8 August 1942 and passed the
famous Quit India Resolution.
• On the same day, Gandhi gave his call of ‘do or die’
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• On 8th and 9th August 1942, the government arrested all the prominent leaders of the
Congress.
• Mahatma Gandhi was kept in prison at Poona.
• Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Abul Kalam Azad, and other leaders were imprisoned in the
Ahmednagar Fort.
• At this time, leadership was provided by Ram Manohar Lohia, Achyuta and S.M. Joshi.
• The role of Jayaprakash Narain in this movement was important.
• A large number of students also left their schools and colleges to join the movement.
• The youth of the nation also participated in this movement with patriotism.
• In 1944 Mahatma Gandhi was released from jail.
• Quit India Movement was the final attempt for the country’s freedom.
• The British Government ordered for 538 rounds of firing. Nearly 60,229 persons were
jailed.
• At least 7,000 people were killed.
• This movement paved the way for India’s freedom. It aroused among Indians the feelings
of bravery, enthusiasm and total sacrifice.

Rajgopalachari Formula
• Rajagopalachari, the veteran Congress leader, prepared a formula for Congress-League
cooperation, accepted to Gandhi.
• It was a tacit acceptance of the League’s demand for Pakistan.
• Hindu leaders led by Vir Savarkar condemned the CR Plan.

Desai-Liaqat Pact
• Bhulabhai Desai, leader of the Congress with Liaqat Ali Khan, leader of the Muslim drafted
a proposal for the formation of an interim government at the centre, consisting of —
• an equal number of persons nominated by the Congress & League in the central
legislature
• 20% reserved seats for minorities
• No settlement could be reached between the Congress and the League on these lines
• But the fact that a sort of parity between the Congress and the League was decided upon,
which had far-reaching

Wavell Plan
• A conference was convened by the viceroy, Lord Wavell; at Shimla in June 1945
• Aimed to reconstruct the governor general’s executive council pending the preparation of
a new constitution.

Indian National Army=-

• On 2 July 1943, Subhas Chandra Bose reached Singapore and gave the rousing war cry of
‘Dilli Chalo’
• He was made the President of Indian Independence League and soon became the supreme
commander of the Indian National Army.
• The names of the INA’s three Brigades were the Subhas Brigade, Gandhi Brigade and
Nehru Brigade
• The women’s wing of the army was named after Rani Lamiae
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• The Indian National Army marched towards Imphal after registering its victory over
Kohima.
• After Japan’s surrender in 1945
• The INA failed in its efforts. Under such circumstances, Subhas went to Taiwan.
• Then on his way to Tokyo, he died on 18 August 1945 in a plane crash
• The trial of the soldiers of INA was held at Red Fort in Delhi
• Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Bhulabhai Desai and Tej Bahadur Sapru fought the case on behalf
of the soldiers

Cabinet Mission (1946)

• After the Second World War, Lord Atlee became the Prime Minister of England.
• On 15 March 1946 Lord Atlee made a historic announcement in which the right to self-
determination and the framing of a Constitution for India were conceded.
• Consequently, three members of the British Cabinet - Pethick Lawrence, Sir Stafford
Cripps and A. V. Alexander - were sent to India. This is known as the Cabinet Mission.
• The Cabinet Mission put forward a plan for the solution of the constitutional problem.
• Provision was made for three groups of provinces to possess their separate constitutions.
• The Cabinet Mission also proposed the formation of a Union of India, comprising both
British India and the Princely States.
• The Union would remain in charge of only foreign affairs, defence and communications.
leaving the residuary powers to be vested in the provinces till a new government was
elected.
• Both the Muslim League and the Congress accepted the plan.
• Consequently, elections were held in July 1946 for the formation of a Constituent
Assembly.
• The Congress secured 205 out of 214 General seats.
• The Muslim League got 73 out of 78 Muslim seats.
• An Interim Government was formed under the leadership of Jawaharlal Nehru on 2
September 1946.

Mountbatten Plan (1947)

• On 20 February l947, Prime Minister Atlee announced in the House of Commons the
definite intention of the British Government to transfer power to responsible Indian hands.
• Thus, to effect the transference of that power Atlee decided to send Lord Mountbatten as
Viceroy to India.
• Lord Mountbatten armed with vast powers became India’s Viceroy on 24 March 1947.
• The partition of India and the creation of Pakistan appeared inevitable to him.
• After extensive consultation, Lord Mountbatten put forth the plan of partition of India on
3 June 1947.
• The Congress and the Muslim League ultimately approved the Mountbatten Plan. Indian
Independence Act, 1947.
• The British Government accorded formal approval to the Mountbatten Plan by enacting
the Indian Independence Act on 18 July 1947.
• The partition of the country into India and Pakistan would come into effect from 15 August
1947.
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Revolutionary movements
Chapekar brothers (1897)
• This was the first political assassination of British officer post-1857.
• Damodar, Balkrishna and Vasudev Chapekar shot at WC Rand, Chairman of the Special
Plague Committee.
• The Chapekar brothers were hanged.
Alipore Bomb Conspiracy (1908)
• Douglas Kingsford was a British Chief Magistrate who was the target of the bomb thrown
at Muzaffarpur.
• Instead, two women died in the attack.
• Prafulla Chakki and Khudiram Bose, who threw the bomb. Prafulla Chakki committed
suicide while Bose (18 years) caught and sentenced to death.
• Aurobindo Ghosh, Barin Ghosh, Kanailal Dutt and 30 other members of Anushilan
Samiti were also tried in this case.
Curzon Wyllie’s assassination (1909)
• He was assassinated in London by Madan Lal Dhingra in the evening of 1 July 1909.
• Madan Lal Dhingra had close ties with the Indian House.
Howrah Gang Case (1910)
• Arrest and trials of 47 Bengali Indian Nationalist of Anushilan Samiti because of the
murder of Inspector Shamsul Alam in Calcutta.
• He uncovered the revolutionary network of Anushilan Samiti that linked the murder and
other robberies.
Delhi Lahore Conspiracy Case (1912)
• Assassination attempted on Lord Hardinge, the then Viceroy of India.
• On the occasion of the transfer of British capital from Calcutta to Delhi, a bomb was thrown
into the viceroy’s carriage. Lord Hardinge was injured and an Indian attendant was killed.
• it was led by Rash Bihari Bose and Sachin Chandra Sanyal.
The Ghadar Movement (1913)
• 1907 Lala Hardayal started a weekly called Ghadar.
• His association with more leaders led to the formation of the Ghadar party in 1913 in North
America. This movement was planned to temper the loyalty of Indian troops, form secret
societies and assassinate British officials etc.
• This movement was intensified because of the Komagata Maru incident.
Kakori Conspiracy (1925)
• Case of a train robbery near Kakori in Uttar Pradesh.
• It was led by the youth of Hindustan Republican Association including Ram Prasad
Bismil, Chandrashekhar Azad, Thakur Roshan Singh, Ashfaqulla Khan and others.
• In 1924 Hindustan Republican Army was founded at Kanpur by Sachin Sanyal and Jogesh
Chandra Chatterjee with an aim to organise armed revolution to overthrow colonial
government.
• In September 1928 many of the major revolutionaries gathered at Firoz Shah Kotla, set up
a new association by adding ‘socialist’ into their names.

Chittagong Armoury Raid (1930)

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• It was led by Surya Sen and others were Loknath Bal, Kalpana Dutta, Ambika Chakraborty
Subodh Roy etc. They were not able to raid arms but able to cut the telephones and
telegraph wires.

Central Assembly Bomb Case (1929) and the Lahore Conspiracy Case (1931)
• Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev, Azad and Rajguru avenged the death of Lala Lajpat Rai by killing
General Saunders in 1928.
• Batukeshwar Dutt and Bhagat Singh threw a bomb in the central assembly against the
passage of public safety bill and trade dispute bill. The intention was to popularise the
activities and philosophy.
• Bhagat Singh was arrested for the case of the killing of General Saunders; this was known
as Lahore conspiracy case.
• After the trial, Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev and Rajguru executed by hanging in March 1931
and
• Chandrashekhar Azad also died the same year in February in the gun battle with the police
in Allahabad.

Important Revolutionary Organizations

Name of Organisation Year of Affected Area Founders/Associated members
Formation

Anushilan Samiti 1902 Bengal region Promodha Mitter, Jatindranath

Banerjee, Barindra Kumar
Ghosh and others.

Jugantar Party Active during Bengal region Aurobindo Ghosh, Barin Ghosh
the first World and Jatindranath Mukherjee or
War Bagha Jatin

Mitra Mela 1899 Nasik, Savarkar and his brother

Bombay and
Poona region
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Abhinav Bharat/ Young 1904 Nasik, Savarkar and his brother

India Society (Mitra mela Bombay and
merged into this) Poona region

Swadesh Bandhab Samiti 1905 Bengal region Ashwini Kumar Dutta

Hindustan Republican 1924 Kanpur Sachindra Nath Sanyal,

Association (HRA) Narendra Mohan Sen, Pratul
Ganguly

Hindustan Socialist 1928 New Delhi Chandrasekhar Azad, Bhagat

Republican Association Singh, Sukhdev Thapar
Army (HSRA)

Bharat Naujawan Sabha 1926 Lahore Bhagat Singh

Indian Home Rule 1905 London Shyamji Krishna Varma

Society

Gadar Party 1913 USA & Lala Hardayal

Canada (North
America)

Indian Independence 1907 California Taraknath Das

League (USA)
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Berlin Committee for 1915 Berlin Virendranath Chattopadhyay,

Indian Independence Bhupendra Nath Dutta, Lala
Hardayal and others with the
help
of the German foreign office