Compared to the struggle, the misery and the violence other countries in Africa, Middle East, Latin America, Europe and the Far East have gone through or are going through, we definitely got our independence cheaply. We have to thank Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi and other freedom fighters for it. Had it not been for his unique and novel strategy of non-violence, the Brits would never have given up this jewel in their crown. The best part was that he frustrated them and set the sun on the British Empire; it was the partition which caused more misery and violence. Even after independence we enjoyed a good relationship with the Brits.
This letter was written by a British imperialist advocating the continued rule of India. The letter was written some time in the late 1890s and only sections are legible.
I present below those legible sections:
Why does India need Independence ?
Dearest cousin…
….These Indians are incapable of ruling themselves…first they were ruled by the Moghul rulers and then they are now ruled by our own great country – Great Britain… Indeed, Alexander the Great would have easily conquered India if his soldiers had had more discipline…and India then would have been a nation of conquered peoples throughout almost all their recorded history…Such people have no right to independence…It is a privilege to be ruled by Great Britain...these primitive Indians should be grateful for this ennobling rule by our enlightened nation…
India is not even a nation – it has never been a nation…We brought order and unity to it and now these primitive savages want freedom? That is ridiculous… what a ridiculous idea - half-naked barbarians ruling themselves?
This country is barbaric, I tell you…We are here to teach them logic and to teach them what true religion is…They get married to dogs, did you know? They burn widows! Do such a people deserve to rule themselves…?
My dear cousin….just during the last decade, I have noticed how appreciably the standard of living of the Indians has improved…its rich now enjoy tea and biscuits and all the comforts that British nobility can give it…and this will in time, with our glorious British rule over India…will filter to all sections of the population…That is vastly superior to what India has ever had and will ever have…let India be a British colony forever, and these simpletons will rise to the very heights of civilization that Great Britain has reached…We the British have improved the communications vastly in many chaotic parts of India. And linked to all our other colonies, India will go global at this rate…
And these fools speak of Independence . They just can’t appreciate what they are enjoying…
Since India is so closely bound with the British Empire , why not let it be and leave it to be so?
Most fervently in the British rule of India
Lord William D. Montgomery
To deal with the second question - there is no doubt that the best working democracy in the world today is the Indian; we are really and truly free people, you can say and do (of course within the law for the common man) anything in this country. With a population of around 1.2 billion, in 2004 if you lived in a city and earned Rs 540 and more you would be considered living above the poverty line; the percentage of Indians below the poverty line in 2004 was 26%. The all India crime rate is 14% per lakh of the population, only 61 % of the population is literate and there are volumes one can write on the religious violence. Even after 60 years J&K and certain north eastern states want to separate from the union. To talk about corruption: the most disquieting aspect of the widespread corruption in India is the fact that it is no longer confined to politicians or the government machinery alone. It is prevalent amongst almost every section of the society at every level. Today, if one would say that any particular Indian is honest to the core, it could only be a case of an exception rather than a rule. It’s amazing, only god knows how the country is run. We have miles to go and only hope that either a religious bigot or a crazy politician does not take the reigns of a dictator.
A brief history of India :
Aryan tribes from the northwest infiltrated onto the Indian subcontinent about 1500 B.C.; their merger with the earlier Dravidian inhabitants created the classical Indian culture. The Maurya Empire of the 4th and 3rd centuries B.C. - which reached its zenith under ASHOKA - united much of South Asia. The Golden Age ushered in by the Gupta dynasty (4th to 6th centuries A.D.) saw a flowering of Indian science, art, and culture. Arab incursions starting in the 8th century and Turkic in the 12th were followed by those of European traders, beginning in the late 15th century. By the 19th century, Britain had assumed political control of virtually all Indian lands. Indian armed forces in the British army played a vital role in both World Wars.
This letter was written by a British imperialist advocating the continued rule of India. The letter was written some time in the late 1890s and only sections are legible.
I present below those legible sections:
Why does India need Independence ?
Dearest cousin…
….These Indians are incapable of ruling themselves…first they were ruled by the Moghul rulers and then they are now ruled by our own great country – Great Britain… Indeed, Alexander the Great would have easily conquered India if his soldiers had had more discipline…and India then would have been a nation of conquered peoples throughout almost all their recorded history…Such people have no right to independence…It is a privilege to be ruled by Great Britain...these primitive Indians should be grateful for this ennobling rule by our enlightened nation…
India is not even a nation – it has never been a nation…We brought order and unity to it and now these primitive savages want freedom? That is ridiculous… what a ridiculous idea - half-naked barbarians ruling themselves?
This country is barbaric, I tell you…We are here to teach them logic and to teach them what true religion is…They get married to dogs, did you know? They burn widows! Do such a people deserve to rule themselves…?
My dear cousin….just during the last decade, I have noticed how appreciably the standard of living of the Indians has improved…its rich now enjoy tea and biscuits and all the comforts that British nobility can give it…and this will in time, with our glorious British rule over India…will filter to all sections of the population…That is vastly superior to what India has ever had and will ever have…let India be a British colony forever, and these simpletons will rise to the very heights of civilization that Great Britain has reached…We the British have improved the communications vastly in many chaotic parts of India. And linked to all our other colonies, India will go global at this rate…
And these fools speak of Independence . They just can’t appreciate what they are enjoying…
Since India is so closely bound with the British Empire , why not let it be and leave it to be so?
Most fervently in the British rule of India
Lord William D. Montgomery
To deal with the second question - there is no doubt that the best working democracy in the world today is the Indian; we are really and truly free people, you can say and do (of course within the law for the common man) anything in this country. With a population of around 1.2 billion, in 2004 if you lived in a city and earned Rs 540 and more you would be considered living above the poverty line; the percentage of Indians below the poverty line in 2004 was 26%. The all India crime rate is 14% per lakh of the population, only 61 % of the population is literate and there are volumes one can write on the religious violence. Even after 60 years J&K and certain north eastern states want to separate from the union. To talk about corruption: the most disquieting aspect of the widespread corruption in India is the fact that it is no longer confined to politicians or the government machinery alone. It is prevalent amongst almost every section of the society at every level. Today, if one would say that any particular Indian is honest to the core, it could only be a case of an exception rather than a rule. It’s amazing, only god knows how the country is run. We have miles to go and only hope that either a religious bigot or a crazy politician does not take the reigns of a dictator.
A brief history of India :
Aryan tribes from the northwest infiltrated onto the Indian subcontinent about 1500 B.C.; their merger with the earlier Dravidian inhabitants created the classical Indian culture. The Maurya Empire of the 4th and 3rd centuries B.C. - which reached its zenith under ASHOKA - united much of South Asia. The Golden Age ushered in by the Gupta dynasty (4th to 6th centuries A.D.) saw a flowering of Indian science, art, and culture. Arab incursions starting in the 8th century and Turkic in the 12th were followed by those of European traders, beginning in the late 15th century. By the 19th century, Britain had assumed political control of virtually all Indian lands. Indian armed forces in the British army played a vital role in both World Wars.
