British+Imperialism+in+India


 * Background Terms:**

Sepoy: Soldiers drawn from the native population of India, employed by the British East India company, and later in the British India army.

"Jewel in the Crown": Refers to British colonial holdings in India. The subcontinent of India was the most profitable of the British colonies, and because of this valued most highly by the British. It was the prime piece of real estate in the British Empire.

Sepoy Mutiny: A revolt by discontented Indian sepoys beginning on May 10th, 1857. This mutiny against the British East India company eventually erupted into India's first war for Independence from the British Empire

Raj: The period of time from 1757-1947 where the British Empire dominated the subcontinent of India


 * Powerpoint:** This powerpoint is a quick rundown of British Imperialism in India. [[file:British Imperialism in India.pptx]]

Why would Britain want to occupy themselves with having to keep tabs on such a huge area of land? Natural resources. The land was perfect for growing Cotton and Tea, and British owned plantations sprung up all over the subcontinent. This is a picture of a Tea plantation. Tea was the drink of choice for all of Great Britian, and the tea trade was booming. Tea plantations like this one were a very profitiable venture.
 * Map:** The sucontinent of India is absolutley massive (Hence the term sub-continent). Therefore, I picked a very large map to display the country. The capital, New Delhi, is outlined in red along with the port of Bombay, the trading hub of British Imperialism.



Indian princes and holy men were also men of great wealth. The ultimate symbol of old Mughal power in India is the Taj Mahal. The Taj Mahal was a mosuleum constructed by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his favorite wife, Mumatz Mahal. Structures like this were a symbol of Indian and Mughal power, and the domination of this area by Britian was a testement to the power of the British. British Imperialism sought to empower Great Britian by dominating other powerful regions of the World, so India made an excellent choice



media type="youtube" key="Y5ojV1r1XHM" height="344" width="425" This is a picture of Mahatma Ghandi picking up salt. In British India, it was a crime for the Indians to take the fruits of their labor for themsleves. As an act of non-violent protest, Ghandi went to the seashore and took salt from the sand. His "Salt Marches", along with other forms of protest organized by the Indian National Congress, helped to bring about the end of the Raj and Indian Independence from Great Britian
 * Visual Aides:** This is a clip from the disney rendition of Rudyard Kipling's classic, __//The Jungle Book//__ the Elephants sybolize British Military presence in India. Notice how Colonel Hathi inspects each Elephant (soldier's) trunk (sybolic of their rifles-as shown by the quip about the dusty muzzle, and how the trunk might save their life in battle). Either way I couldn't help myself and found that I had to post it here.