Advanced History of Modern India - Essay Example

Instruction: Task: India. History plays a major role in guiding the direction that a society takes. Through historical evaluations and analyses, we are able to have a sense of where the society is coming from, and this gives a good perspective of where it is headed. There are various inferences that can be drawn from ancient civilisations, and this is important since the contemporary society can learn from the way that ancient civilisations were managed, and consequently modify and implement these gains for the benefit of all. To this end, India has a rich history that holds various lessons for the different facets of the present world. From the Indus Valley civilisation, the Mughal Empire, arrival of the British in India, and the subsequent rise and fall of the British Empire. Consequently, analysing and evaluating all these occurrences can facilitate a deeper understanding of how the Indian civilisation transformed over time. The Indus Valley civilisation was one of the most vibrant during its time. However, it later on started to decline quite fast, and eventually disappeared altogether. One of the major reasons attributed to its decline is the sudden and abrupt change in climate leading to difficulties in carrying out economic activities that pushed the existence of the civilisation (Dick 15). Climate change led to a difficult life in the civilisation, and most people opted out of the area. Over time, the area became more and more desolate, which made it unsuitable for the kind of life that the locals were used to. Eventually, the mass migration affected the civilisation such that it eventually had to collapse. It is worth noting that one of the most important economic activities of the locals was farming and agricultural activities. With severe climate change, this turned out to be quite difficult, thereby forcing the people out. Consequently, this led to the collapse of the Indus Valley civilisation. Moreover, the poor climate meant that the locals did not have the ability to take part in trade activities and other economic relations with their trade partners such as Egypt and Mesopotamia (Dick 22). With a reduction in ability to trade, the society was rendered unable to sustain itself, meaning that it gradually had to disappear. Trade and other economic relations with neighbours and trade partners was one of the most significant elements that defined the existence of the Indus Valley civilisation. With the inability to trade, they were not only unable to sustain their own lives, but were also not of any significance to their neighbours and trade partners. Therefore, this led to a natural collapse of the Indus Valley civilisation. Another factor that influenced Indian Society was the Mughal Empire. One way that it did this was by improving the stability of the Indian society during the time that they interacted. The Mughal Empire was relatively mighty, and this made it a challenge for enemies to attack Indian Society for the period that it related with the Mughal Empire. This stability facilitated the development of various facets of the Indian society such as improved economy and trade relations (Schimmel 99). Stability and security meant that the Indian society could focus on the major aspects of economic growth such as trade, subsequently, leading to an improvement in the economy. Another contribution was the way that the Mughal Empire influenced the cultural elements particularly through art and architecture. The leaders of the Mughal Empire built monuments in their honour, and this influenced the way that the Indian Society viewed art and architecture. Additionally, this art influenced the way that the Hindi language developed and contributed to the overall development of the Indian Society in terms of facilitating improved relations. Despite the relative success of the Mughal Empire, it gradually lost its verve and fell due to various reasons. One of the main reasons is that the central authorities lost their command, and this means that the subordinate and lower ranking staff started carrying out their own deals and jeopardizing the sovereignty of the state (Schimmel 176). Eventually, this led to a series of political unrests that resulted in the Empire becoming unstable, consequently collapsing altogether. Additionally, its collapse can be attributed to the relative vastness that characterised it. There reached a time that it became too vast that it could not be governed from one central location. The administration failed to decentralize leadership, and this was the onset of the succession wars that culminated in the fall of the empire. With increased instability and succession wars, the army became relatively weak and failed to protect the empire from invasions. In the end, the empire could not stand, and disappeared altogether. Indian history was also greatly influenced by the arrival of the British. The arrival of the British in the Indian Territory was basically as a result of trade relations and the need for the British to expand their trading activities. Therefore, the very first British presence was based on trading interests and the business prospects that existed between India and Britain. This was at a time when the British were in dire need of trading partners, and it also happened to be at a time when the India society was doing quite well due to their relations with the Mughal Empire (Schimmel 221). In fact, the first official communication between the British and the India society was in the form of the British Emperor sending and envoy to the Mughal Emperor asking for the realization of a trading relationship that was to be of mutual benefit to both parties. Over time, the British established effective business relations with India, and these interest only expanded by each year that British presence was in India. This was characterised by a series of battles and conquests for the control of the Indian empire. While this was still in the interest of realizing the best position for trade, it gradually evolved into a larger interest in having political interests in the region. With the increased mandate of controlling trade relations with India, British were able to have the ability to have political rights of collecting revenue and being able to assume political interests in India (Mehta 298). This increased British presence in India even further, making it more and more involved in the Indian political activities. This rapid state of rise was attributed to the fall of the Moghul Empire that largely facilitated Indian stability. This is because the British realized a great deal of success at the same time that the Moghul Empire was experiencing increased governmental woes. Notwithstanding the success that the British had in India, their rule eventually had to end over time, particularly due to a change in conditions that forced them to give up their control. This started off with the era of constant conflicts and wars that exploited British control in India to an extent that social unrests and movements could not be contained (Mehta 344). This was made worse by the first and second world wars that increased the tensions between the British and states such as Russia and Japan. After World War II, the British embarked on decolonization of its territories starting with India due to the various social movements that Gandhi initiated in line with sensitizing locals on colonization (Levine 187). By this point, the British had no point but to give up their rule and grant India its independence. Consequently, this led to the fall of British control in India. The history of India is quite intriguing as highlighted by the various events from the rise and fall of the Indus Valley Civilisation, the Mughal Empire, and finally the entry and exit of the British. Nonetheless, the evaluative scrutiny highlights the major events, therefore forming and informed basis from which India can be viewed in the context of the contemporary society. Works Cited. Dick, Rhona. The Indus Valley Civilisation. New Jersey, NJ: Evans Brothers, 2005. Print. Schimmel, Annemarie. The Empire of the Great Mughals: History, Art, and Culture. New York, NY: Reaktion Books, 2004. Print. Levine, Philippa. The British Empire: Sunrise to Sunset. Mason, OH: Routledge, 2013. Print. Mehta, Jaswant. Advanced Study in the history of Modern India. Texas, TX: Sterling Publishers Pvt. Ltd, 2005. Print. Read More