Analyze the phases of British imperial history, including debates on accidental vs. intentional conquest, and understand their impact on India's colonial narrative.
The British Imperial History: Phases and Expansion
Phases of the British Empire: Atlantic to Asia and Africa
The entire imperial history of Britain can be periodized into two key phases:
The ‘first British empire’ stretching across the Atlantic towards America and the West Indies.
The ‘second British empire’ beginning around 1783 (Peace of Paris) and swinging towards Asia and Africa.
Imperial Ideology of Britain: The Civilizing Mission
The imperial history of Britain began with the conquest of Ireland in the sixteenth century.
The English presented themselves as the ‘new Romans’, tasked with civilizing so-called backward races worldwide.
Post-Enlightenment intellectuals in Britain, and Europe, positioned themselves as civilized compared to the Oriental peoples and others.
The nature of imperial ideology evolved over time, but its core remained largely unchanged.
Was the British Conquest of India Accidental or Intentional?
Historians debate whether the British conquest of India was accidental or intentional.
John Seeley argued, “The British conquest of India was made blindly, unintentionally, and accidentally, in a ‘fit of absent-mindedness’.”
Some historians believe the British came to India for trade, not territorial expansion, and were reluctantly drawn into political turmoil.
Another viewpoint suggests that the British deliberately aimed to build a powerful empire, with territorial acquisition happening gradually over time.
They argue that claims of peaceful intent by the English East India Company were mere propaganda.
Views on the British Conquest of India: Intentions and Motives
John Seeley said, "Our acquisition of India was made blindly. Nothing significant that has ever been done by an Englishman was done so unintentionally and so accidentally, as the conquest of India."
Judith Brown noted that the reasons for the Company’s acquisition of vast territories are complex, with British interests evolving in different parts of India at different times.
Expansion and Consolidation of British Power in India
The enormous profits from trade, particularly with India, attracted British traders (the Company) and other Europeans.
A combination of desire for profits, personal ambition, avarice, and European political developments drove the British to increase their political influence in India.
The British waged wars to protect commercial interests, and at times, to defend Indian allies from rival powers.
Lord Wellesley applied the subsidiary alliance system aggressively to extend British control in India as a countermeasure against the imperialistic designs of France and Russia.
From 1798 to 1818, British motives were explicitly imperialistic.
Lord Hastings carried on Wellesley’s policies, treating India as a conquered nation.
Subsequently, the British worked towards a systematic conquest of India and surrounding regions.
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