India: colonial rule and the national movement

India was a British colony governed by a colonial administration headed by a viceroy. Under colonial rule railways, mines, and textile and jute mills appeared, but industry stood mostly near port cities and was geared to exporting raw materials; farming specialised in single crops (jute in Bengal, tea in Assam, wheat in the Punjab). Peasants were in debt to landlords and moneylenders; in the late 19th century several famines killed millions. In 1885 the Indian National Congress was founded in Bombay; at first it made moderate demands (local councils, Indian participation in government). In the 1890s a radical wing formed under B. G. Tilak, who promoted the slogans “swaraj” and “swadeshi” and the boycott of British goods. The 1905 partition of Bengal caused a wave of protest; the Muslim League was founded in 1906. At the end of 1907, at the Surat session, the Congress split into moderate and radical wings. The 1909 law introduced elections by religious community; in 1911 Bengal was reunited and the transfer of the capital to Delhi was announced.