User:Dweller/India House

Text as at 13:25, 19 August 2008 (UTC)

Nationalism in India

The growth of the Indian middle class during the 18th century, amidst competition among regional powers and the ascendancy of the British East India Company, led to a growing sense of Indian identity. The refinement of this perspective fed a rising tide of nationalism in India in the last decades of the 1800s. Its speed was abetted by the creation of the Indian National Congress in India in 1885 by A.O. Hume. The Congress developed into a major platform for the demands of political liberalisation, increased autonomy and social reform. The nationalist movement became particularly strong, radical and violent in Bengal and Punjab, though notable, if smaller, movements also appeared in Maharashtra, Madras and other areas in the South. Within this growing unrest, the controversial 1905 partition of Bengal had a widespread political impact: it stimulated radical nationalist sentiments and became a driving force for Indian revolutionaries.

Indian nationalism in Britain

From its earliest days, the Congress sought to inform public opinion in Britain, seeking its support for Indian political autonomy. The British Committee of Congress published a periodical titled India, which provided a platform for moderate (or loyalist) opinion and demands, while informing the British public about the Indian situation. The British arm of the Congress also established an Indian parliamentary committee in the British Parliament with a view to influencing policy directly. Although the British Committee of Congress was successful in bringing the issue of civil liberties in India to British attention, it was otherwise largely unsuccessful especially in the influencing the British parliament,prompting socialists including Henry Hyndman to advocate more radical approaches. Moreover the committee was seen as disconnected from the emerging Indo-centric movement and matters of self-governance in India. The committee drew criticisms for its cautious approach,from nationalist leaders in India (including Bipin Chandra Pal) and most prominently from Indian students in Britain. It was at this time, and around the time of political upheaval caused by the 1905 partition of Bengal, that a nationalist Indian lawyer named Shyamji Krishnavarma founded India House in London.

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Indian Nationalism

Main article: Indian Nationalism

Indian Nationalism, which emerged in the 18th century, became a rising tide in the last decades of the 1800s. The Indian National Congress was founded in 1885 and developed the demands for political liberalisation, increased autonomy and social reform. The controversial 1905 partition of Bengal stimulated radical nationalist sentiments and became a driving force for Indian revolutionaries.

From its earliest days, the Congress sought to inform public opinion in Britain, seeking its support for Indian political autonomy. The British Committee of Congress published a periodical titled India, which provided a platform for moderate (or loyalist) opinion and demands, while informing the British public about the Indian situation. The British arm of the Congress also established an Indian parliamentary committee in the British Parliament with a view to influencing policy directly. Although the British Committee of Congress was successful in bringing the issue of civil liberties in India to British attention, it was otherwise largely unsuccessful, especially in the influencing the British parliament, prompting socialists including Henry Hyndman to advocate more radical approaches. Moreover, the committee was seen as disconnected from the emerging Indo-centric movement and matters of self-governance in India. The committee drew criticisms for its cautious approach,from nationalist leaders in India (including Bipin Chandra Pal) and from Indian students in Britain. It was at this time, and around the time of political upheaval caused by the 1905 partition of Bengal, that a nationalist Indian lawyer named Shyamji Krishnavarma founded India House in London.