Short Answer Questions
Q1: What was the “Cartaz” system?
Answer: A naval pass system introduced by the Portuguese. Any ship trading in the Indian Ocean had to buy a pass from the Portuguese; otherwise, it would be confiscated or sunk. This established their monopoly on the sea.
Q2: Why is 1858 a significant year in Indian history?
Answer: It marks the end of the East India Company’s rule and the beginning of the British Raj (direct rule by the Crown). Queen Victoria issued a proclamation promising rights (which were largely not kept).
Q3: How did the “Indigo Revolt” differ from the “1857 Rebellion”?
Answer:
- 1857: Was a military and political uprising involving sepoys and princes aiming to overthrow British rule.
- Indigo Revolt (1859): Was a specific peasant movement against European planters regarding forced cultivation of a cash crop. It was supported by the Bengali intelligentsia and legal means, rather than just armed conflict.
Diagrammatic Analysis
The Cycle of Drain
How wealth flowed out of India: