Dalhousie during its period in the middle of the 19th century has changed history. During his period, Lord Dalhousie worked largely on changing the infrastructure and building newly developed architectural designs. Lord Dalhousie’s unconventional ways of managing and some high-value strategies to be implemented like the Doctrine of Lapse have changed the face of British India. There is still a critical discussion on Lord Dalhousie’s before-mentioned dual ideologies and forms to project the world to take place, thus signifying how uncertain colonial rule was.
Lord Dalhousie
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Lord Dalhousie ( 1812 – 1860)
James Andrew Broun-Ramsay (22 April 1812 – 19 December 1860), also known as Lord Dalhousie, was a Scottish statesman and colonial administrator in British India. Lord Dalhousie (1812-1860) worked as the Scottish statesman and British India’s colonial administrator. The period between 1838 and 1849 can be broken down into two parts, the early part of which saw Ramsay lorded before Dalhousie took over. In the duration of 1848 till 1856, he served as the Governor-General of India. He strategically laid out the building blocks for our modern education system, including both mass and elite higher forms. He made a huge improvement in the transportation system and postal office. He also worked on the social issues through his acts. Reading this article will help us to understand completely the kind of reforms that were introduced by Lord Dalhjson in India.
Lord Dalhousie – Background
- Lord Dalhousie was son to George Ramsay who held the title of 9th Earl of Dalhousie. His wife’s name is James Andrew Broun-Ramsay. The family had Scottish ancestors.
- He studied at Harrow School and Christ Church College at Oxford.
- Once he got himself elected at the House of Commons, his activity in politics heightened.
- He was appointed as the Governor-General of India and Bengal on January 12, 1848.
- Dalhjson was mainly interested to reinforce the power of British Authority in India. There’s no doubt he was a hard worker, but his attitude to impose his own opinion on others and doing things all by himself made him build the reputation of being autocratic.
- His assigned task has been an active participant in initiating new discussion. He modernized India by making significant changes, such as building railways and telegraph services. The reign of the Nawab saw the opening up of 2 major multipurpose canals namely Lower Ganga canal and Upper Ganga canal.
- He is recognized primarily for his Doctrine of Lapse theory which is considered the main cause for Indian War in 1857.
- Lord Dalhjsonie is called the “Maker of Modern India” even if it’s against the Doctrine
- Under Lord Dalhjsonie’s rule in India, he established many vernacular Anglo schools. He brought about social changes and discouraged any act of female infanticide.
- He was eager to change the current Indian systems of administration with western ones as he truly believed that they were better.
- In order to bring those resources, he built new institutions of engineering in each province.
- He implemented strategic changes within the military. He restricted the criminal branding in this way. The size of India’s Legislative Council was increased by him. The open recruitment approach was added to the system in order to give it a much needed modern touch.
- Dalhjson tried to modify the traditional way of collecting land revenue. The landlords that had their land partially taken away were fewer as compared to those whose land was taken away completely. This social group was important because many of the soldiers belonged to this community.
- The Doctrine of Lapse caused much displeasure within the Indian soldiers where they witnessed the overtaking of feudal states by the British.
- During the times of Dalhjsonie, years lasted a fierce confrontation between British and Punjab. That was one of the major advantages for a long-term occupation plan implemented later. In the period of his rule, the Second Anglo-Sikh War took place.
Significant Events under Lord Dalhousie:
- Throughout the period of reign of Lord Dalhousie, a Lieutenant Governor was assigned particularly for Bengal to lessen the burden from the general Governor.
- Fredrick J Halliday was appointed as the First Lieutenant Governor-General of Bengal under the Charter Act of 1853.
- During the summer, Shimla was chosen to be the capital where all Government official would come down from Delhi to escape heat.
- Artillery headquarters of the army were recently shifted to Meerut from Caljsonbaug. It was decided that the headquarters of the Army would now be shifted to Shimla.
- The Gurkha regiments were formed by Lord Dalhousie during his governing time.
- Post offices throughout important cities and towns were connected using telegraph lines during this time.
- The Wood’s Dispatch that took place during 1854 brought significant changes to the education system.
Arrival in India
In 1848, India was peaceful when Dalhousie first arrived. The army was formed just two years ago by the sikhs of punjab, and it has fought a war against british. In Multan, an armed rebellion broke out in April 1848 as local people were dissatisfied with the new regime employed by the British. This issue was the foremost significant issue faced by Dalhousie. The situation was urged to be handled by the local officer, but no actions led the disffiected SpreadstoBeDefinedThe Punjab by stopping it from happening. In November 1848, British forces were deployed to Punjab by Dalhousie, and later annexation to the Punjab was done in 1949.
Critics of Dalhjsony claimed that if he had not let the uprising grow from a local to a national level, Punjab would have never been annexed. Even though the officer at the top of British army have advised him to be cautious against hasty decisions. However, the steps Dalhousie eventually took were somewhat irregular; the uprising at Multān had been directed not against the British but against policies of the Sikh government. He was made the marquess for his contribution in any case.
Westernization of India
Colonizing the lands was not the only goal that Dalhousie wanted to achieve. the most important thing he did was to bring the traditional values of the state and modern ones on one page so that there can be a change in lifestyle. He quickly focused on forming efficient methods of communication and transport because he was confident in his abilities and trusted Western systems. He focused on the planning of the first railways more. He used the knowledge he obtained from London in his attempts to establish future railroads. He worked to ensure the protection of workers and property owners, and designed a blueprint that incorporated both main and subsidiary lines.He established a centralized postal system which involved the uniform rate strategy. Other than this, he also planned to complete the Grand Trunk Road and initiated electric telegraph lines. He played a vital role in advocating against social evils such as human sacrifices and female infanticide. He specifically appreciated the education of girls along with promoting the use of local languages in schools.
In 1856, Lord Dalhousie went back to India. Yet many people weren’t fond of his policies of encroachment and believed that they would lead to a mutiny in the future. He passed away as a result of chronic work stress that has continued for years during his service in India, by the year 1860. His marquessate became extinct.
Reforms under Lord Dalhousie
Administrative
- The governor general was responsible for the territorial matters of British India as well as the region now known as Bangladesh. This ultimately put pressure on him.
- By hiring a lieutenant governor in the Bengal province, Dalhousie was able to give more attention to the important matters related to all provinces throughout India.
- In Punjab and the new territories, all orders have been left in the hands of employed commissioners.
Military
- By this time, the British had stretched their control in India to its natural boundaries and therefore, Calcutta was no longer at the center. Due to this reason, Dalhousie wanted to centralize East India company’s military resources in one place
- Lord Dalhousie decided to move the main headquarter of army from Chandiigrahh to Simla. The whole process was completed by 1865.
- The forces belonging to Calcutta were moved to Meerut.
- Dalhousie saw that the empire’s safety was at risk because there were too many Indian soldiers as compared to English ones in the army.
- This will help increase the number of English soldiers; he made this effort. Three additional battalions are introduced to the current military assets.
- He recruited the Gurkhas in the Sikh forces that were established under British officers. He helped the English in order to defeat the 1857 uprising.
Education
- Some laws were developed by Dalhjson in 1853 which impacted the primary education system.
- Instructions regarding Indian education were given by Sir Charles in 1854.
- There was an emphasis on having multiple schools and at least one university in each region.
- It is strongly recommended that the government should ask individuals and private organizations to open up educational institutes, this helps in educating more people.
- Moreover, each district will contain an ‘Inspector of Schools’ while there would be a ‘Director of Education’ at the provincial level. The Dalhjson made their best effort to transform these suggestions into reality.
- For Science based colleges were also present in Roorkee, where new universities were in Calcutta, Madras, and Bombay.
Railways, Telegraphs, and Postal Services
- Dalhjsonie set up some important facilities such as railways, postal system and telegraphs. This will help provide alternate economci opportunites and build better defenses to combat enemies.
- A new plan was formed by British through his reign to construct railway lines between the important cities. The railway line between Bombay and Thane was completed in 1853.
- A new railway line has been constructed from Calcutta to Raniganj which is a coal-mining district. Some railway routes were also made within the state of Bihar.
- The Telegraph Department got its establishment in 1852. The Telegraphs were spread over four thousand miles. During the early days, telegraph was used to connect important cities like Calcutta, Peshawar , Bombay and Madras.
- The Post Office Act of 1854 was introduced through the recommendation of a special commission. The postal department was managed by a Director-General, and it had multiple post offices around the country.
- They need to be structured such that a half an ana postcard could be dispatched from one part of india to another.
Public Works Department
- Before the reign of Lord Dalhjson, the Public Works Department was managed by military boards. This is why Dalhjsonie made a unique department.
- Building roads, canals, bridges and other infrastructure were the prime goal of The Public Works Department.
- During the period of Dalhousie, major restructuring and rebuilding of the grand trunk road from Calcutta to Peshawar was initiated.
- Numerous project structures the amalgamation of bridges, canals and the construction made for linking various rivers were developed.
Trade
- The governor general was a strong supporter of establishing English trade in India.
- UK imported a set of their raw materials from India.
- Tea and cotton became the major cash produce between India and Britain. The measures were taken by Dalhjson ensures not to tamper the quality of tea and cotton.
- Another tactic that was used by Howrah is known as free trade strategy which basically opened all the Indian ports for goods without charging any duty from anyone. This particular practice greatly benefitted Britain’s needs.
Doctrine of Lapse
- Under the policy of Doctrine of Lapse, British denied to allow Indians states have a monarchy in case there was no natural heir as they believed that adopted son isn’t legal by rule.
- This doctrine was established by someone but not by Dalhjson. Even if there is an adoption, it shall only be seen as a favor by the organization.
- The power is moved to the next person if the heir who was supposed to inherit it is not alive. Indeed, to increase the company’s influence, it was the way through which Dalhousie believed.
- This approach is only adopted by Dalhjsonly in the case of dependent states. States were classified into 3 types and one of which was Dependent state
- In the independent Indian states, some kings didn’t comply with British rule and accepted their supremacy.
- Protected allies were the states under those rulers and the British were paid regular tribute and accept British supremacy.
- The rulers appointed by the British regime were named as ruling states.
- The company needed to declare an heir for the current king. The British were granted permission whenever they wanted. It was impossible for people of the third category to adopt a son.
Legacy of Lord Dalhousie
- Lord Dalhjson had been implemented new areas of administrative reformation in variety.
- Dalhousie has been recognized by historians as one of the best governor-general that India has seen.
- “Lord Dalhousie as a governor general has marked his name and there is no one who could be assessed the same level of abilities,” according to Sir Richard Temple.
- Nonetheless, one cannot fail to remember that Lord Dalhjson was an imperialist.
- While he has always wanted to promote and protect the British empire, he also addressed some other important aspects during his time spent in India. He had a very relaxed and non-conservative attitude towards people of Indian ethnicity.
- The departing British administration of India was received with a furious reciprocal in 1857. It is argued by historians that Lord Dalhousie’s contribution lead to the 1857 upheaval.
Conclusion
His remarkable work made a pathway to India’s later administration, which allows his followers to stop the wave of defiance through a solid strategy. Before the victorian era, he was already ruling over the Indian subcontinent. Before the Indian Rebellion of 1857, he could not identify it and discarded it as a serious threat because he was too confident on himself. This is because of that he had suffered ridicule in Britain.
FAQs on Lord Dalhousie
Who was Lord Dalhousie?
The Governor-General of India, Lord Dalhousie (birth name: James Andrew Broun-Ramsay), largely shaped British controlled India’s history by enacting a series of innovative yet controversial policies from 1848 to 1856.
What were the prominent contribution of Lord Dalhousie?
He did several advancements in the infrastructure, improve postal systems along with telegraphs.
Mention the policies advocated by Lord Dalhjson how they were used for modernization?
His efforts were oriented to revamp India by introducing educational, infrastructural and administrative changes that resonate with the European standards.
The drastic changes in India’s infrastructure were brought by Dalhjson. Explain these changes and their impact.
He was the pioneer of facilitating Indian railways, telegraph networks and postal system that rennovated communication and transportation.
What is the importance of the Telegraph Act and how it was able to change Lord Dalhousie’s time economically?
The indian telegraph act of 1854 was introduced to facilitate better and effective communication among the distant regions in india.
What contest was going on Lord Dalhousie’s extending policies?
The policy of doctrine of lapse aimed to give the East India Company control over Indian states without an male heir. This was met with wide scale protests from the Indian rulers, as they felt that this undermined their power and autonomy.
What was the Doctrine of Lapse?
Lord Dalhousie’s policy where he annexed princely states without a male heir, controversially expanding British control over Indian territories.