British Colonial Rule and the Indian Independence Movement

The British East India Company established its first trading post in India at Surat in 1612.

Lord Dalhousie introduced the Doctrine of Lapse in 1848, which allowed the British to annex Indian princely states if the ruler died without a male heir.

The Sepoy Mutiny was a widespread rebellion against British rule in India in 1857. It began as a mutiny of sepoys (Indian soldiers) in the British army, but soon spread to other parts of the country.

Womesh Chunder Bonnerjee was the first President of the Indian National Congress, which was founded in 1885.

Muhammad Ali Jinnah founded the Muslim League in 1906 to protect the interests of Muslims in India.

The Bengal Partition Act of 1905 divided the province of Bengal into two parts, East Bengal and Assam and West Bengal. This led to widespread protests and agitation in India.

Bipin Chandra Pal was the leader of the Swadeshi movement in Bengal, which advocated the boycott of British goods and the use of Indian-made goods.

Lala Lajpat Rai was known as the 'Lion of Punjab' for his role in the Indian independence movement.

The Montagu-Chelmsford Reforms of 1919 introduced dyarchy in India, which divided the powers between the central government and the provincial governments.

Mahatma Gandhi led the Khilafat Movement in India, which was a protest against the British government's treatment of the Ottoman Empire after World War I.

The Government of India Act of 1935 introduced provincial autonomy in India, which gave the provinces more powers.

Mahatma Gandhi was the leader of the Indian National Congress during the Quit India Movement in 1942.

India gained independence from British rule on August 15, 1947.

Jawaharlal Nehru was the first Prime Minister of independent India.