the indian nationalist movement and gandhi 1900 - 1950
TRANSCRIPT
The Indian Nationalist Movement and Gandhi
1900 - 1950
Two Organizations Fought For Independence in India
Indian National Congress
• Comprised of Middle Class professionals and lawyers educated in England
• Majority of members Hindu
• Wanted greater self-government for Indians in India
Muslim League
• Comprised of Middle Class professionals and lawyers educated in England
• Members Muslim
• Wanted independence for India and creation of 2 countries: India and Pakistan
Muhammad Ali Jinnah
• Leader of the Muslim League who pushed for a separate country for Muslim Indians.
Mohandas Gandhi• Studied law in England,
practiced in South Africa• Joined the INC before
WWI• Became leader of the INC
because he was better able to relate to the problems of the common people
• Believed in the idea of non-violent resistance (Satyagraha)
Amritsar Massacre 1919
•Peaceful demonstration against British
•Resulted in over 300 deaths
•Convinced Gandhi that cooperation with the British was impossible
Site of massacre today
Alley that prevented the use of tanks
Jinnah and Gandhi c. 1940
Gandhi’s Influences•Hindu religion and “ahimsa”
•Christ’s teaching to love one’s enemy
•Henry David Thoreau’s philosophy of civil disobedience
Gandhi’s Ideas and Methods
• Satyagraha – protesting without using violence in order to win the enemy over
Civil Disobedience•Breaking unjust laws
•The Salt March 1930
Boycotts•Gandhi urged Indians to stop buying British products
•Making homespun cloth became the symbol of his movement
Equality for Caste and Women
• Gandhi fought to improve conditions for women and untouchables in India
Hindu-Muslim Unity
• “Indian first, Muslim or Hindu second”
• Gandhi often fasted to end Hindu-Muslim conflict
As Gandhi’s movement grew, British officials were forced to meet with him.
India Received Independence in 1947
• India’s government resembles Britain's
• India was Partitioned into 2 countries: India and Pakistan
• Mass migrations occurred and Hindu -Muslim conflicts exploded
• Gandhi was assassinated in 1948