Indian History: Mysore Wars & Constitutional Developments

Mysore Wars

The state of Mysore rose to prominence in the politics of South India under the leadership of Haider Ali. In 1761 he became the de facto ruler of Mysore though the Hindu ruler remained as the nominal sovereign who was shown to the public once a year. The war of successions in Karnataka and Hyderabad, the conflict of the English and the French in the South and the defeat of the Marathas in the Third battle of Panipat (1761) helped him in attending and consolidating the territory of Mysore.

Madhav Rao in 1764 and forced to sign a treaty in 1765. He surrendered him a part of his territory and also agreed to pay rupees twenty eight lakhs per annum. The Nizam of Hyderabad did not act alone but preferred to act in league with the English which resulted in the first Anglo-Mysore War.

1. The First Anglo-Mysore War (1767-69)
2. Treaty of Madras
3. The Second Anglo-Mysore War (1780-1784)
4. Treaty of Mangalore
5. The Third Anglo-Mysore War (1789-1792)
6. Treaty of Seringapatam
7. The Fourth Anglo-Mysore War (1799)

Annexation of Punjab

1. First Anglo- Sikh War (1845-1846)
2. Second Anglo-Sikh War (1848-1849)

The first regular contact between Ranjit Singh and the British seems to have been made in 1800.The occasion was when India was threatened by an invasion of Zaman Shah, the Afghan ruler who had been invited by Tipu Sultan a bitter enemy of the British. As a precautionary measure, the British sent Munshi Yusuf Ali to the court of Ranjit Singh with rich presents to win the Maharaja over the British side. Soon however he learnt that the danger of Zaman Shah’s invasion receded and Yusuf Ali was recalled.

The contact was made in 1805 when the Maratha chief Holkar entered Punj ab for help him from Ranjit Singh. But he refused Holkar to help him against the British. In 1806 Ranjit Singh signed a treaty of friendship with General Lake agreeing to force Jaswant Rao Holkar to leave Amritsar. General Lake in turn promised that the English would never form any plans for the seizure of Ranjit Singh’s Possessions and property.As the danger of French invasion on India became remote the English adopted a stern policy towards Ranjit Singh. He was given a note of the Governor-General by Metcalfe.Ranjit Singh was asked to restore all the places, he has taken possession since 1806 to the former possessors which will confine his army right to the bank of Sutlej.Ranjit Singh was not ready to accept the demand. However he withdrew his troops from Ambala and Saniwal but continued to retain Faridkot.Ranjit Singh fortified the fort to Govindgarh.But in the last stage Ranjit Singh changed his mind and agreed to sign the Treaty of Amritsar in 1809.

One of the effects of the treaty of Amritsar was that the British government was able to take the Sutlej states under its protection.Ranjit Singh’s advance in the east was checked but he was given a carte blanche so far as the region to the west of the Sutlej was concerned. The death of Maharaja Ranjit Singh in June 1839 was followed by political instability and rapid changes of government in Punjab. Ultimately power fell into the hands of the brave and patriotic but utterly in disciplined army. This led to British to look across the Sutlej upon the land even though they had signed a treaty in 1809.

Constitutional Developments:

• Pitt’s India Act (1784)
• Importance of Pitt’s India Act
• The Act of 1786
• Charter Act of 1793
• Charter Act of 1813
• Charter Act of 1853
• Some Important Acts and year of Formation

When the officials of the East India Company acquired control over Bengal in 1765 they had little intention of making any innovations in its administration. They only desired to carry on profitable trade and to collect taxes for remission to England .From 1762 to 1772 Indian officials were allowed to function as before but under the overall control of the British governor and British officials. In 1772 the company ended the dual government and undertook to administer Bengal directly through its own set of officials. The East India Company was at this time a commercial body designed to trade with the East. But during the period that elapsed between the Pitt’s India Act (1784) and the Charter Act of 1833 the company was gradually relieved of its long held trading privileges in the east.

Simultaneously it grew to be the paramount power in India responsible for the government of a very large population spread over an immense area. The English realized that if the country was to supply regular revenue it had to be properly governed. The Regulating Act of 1773 was a first step in this direction. Warren Hastings the first governor-general under the provisions of the Act tried to maintain as much of the structure of the Mughal administration as possible. The machinery of government went on as before; the British were left free to concentrate on revenue collection and trade. Hastings successor Lord Cornwallis changed all this. He scrapped the old system replacing the new in which the British openly ruled Bengal.