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Party Like it’s 2000 BCE. India’s Early History Tuesday, February 1, 2010 CCSC 8th Grade Humanities. Party like it’s 2000 BCE. Between 2000-BCE and 500 CE, peoples of ancient India developed: World ’ s first planned streets! Writing Sewage systems Spinning and weaving cotton
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Party Like it’s 2000 BCE India’s Early History Tuesday, February 1, 2010 CCSC 8th Grade Humanities
Party like it’s 2000 BCE • Between 2000-BCE and 500 CE, peoples of ancient India developed: • World’s first planned streets! • Writing • Sewage systems • Spinning and weaving cotton • Sanskrit language • Systems of taxes and justice • Astronomy • Math - the zero!
Based upon sacrifices to gods Gods represented natural forces Chief god: Indra, god of war and rainstorms Wrote verses about kings in India and the caste system Later developed into Hinduism Vedism
Enter Islam • 700s CE: Muhammad ibn Qasim • Jizya: tax on non-Muslims • Hindus and Buddhists allowed freedom of worship • 1000 CE: Mahmud of Ghazni raided 16 times, little territory • Motivated by promise of great wealth and religious belief
Mughal Empire: Akbar • Ruled 1556-1605 CE • Muslim ruler • 100 million people (compared to England’s 5 million) • Abolished jizya • Married Hindu princesses • Universal religious tolerance • Hindu population liked him, while Muslims thought he was a heretic
Mughal Empire: Aurangzeb • 1658-1707 • Devout Muslim • No gambling, drinking • No dancers, artists, or musicians in court • Restored jizya • Fought with Hindu rulers in southern India
Islam • Monotheistic • Begun by prophet Mohammed • Holy Text: Quran • Forbidden to draw an image of God or Mohammed • Equality of believers before God • No drinking of alcohol
Hinduism • Polytheistic • Evolved from Vedism • No single founder or beginning • Hindu text: Bhagavad Gita • Discusses caste distinctions • Nature and animals are worshipped • Cows are sacred • Many Hindus are vegetarians
Hinduism: moksha • Priests are called Brahmans (highest caste) • By following the rules of your caste, you can be reborn into a higher caste and eventually reach moksha • Moksha - soul’s final release
Brahma the Creator Vishnu the Preserver Hinduism: gods Shiva the Destroyer
Muslims disliked… Caste system Polytheism Idolatry Eating pigs Muslims liked… Reservoirs Science & Art Hindus disliked… Eating cows Hindus liked… Other religions Muslim leaders let them live in peace, since they were the majority Hindu/Muslim Reactions
British East India Company • Formed in 1600 by a group of English merchants • Created to capitalize on wealth of Indian natural resources • Granted a fort in India in 1696 by the Mughals, later Calcutta • Company nearly went bankrupt • 1773 British gov’t appointed a governor-general to supervise
British East India Company • Lord Wellesley, 5th governor-general, decided in 1790s to campaign in India and conquer land • Wellesley was recalled to England, but further governor-generals continued to control British India • Eventually, Great Britain controlled 1/3 of Indian territory and 1/4 of the population
“Mutiny” of 1857 • Laws passed that angered both Muslims and Hindus • Christian converts from Hinduism were given right to inherit ancestral property • Sati was made illegal • English was made official language over Persian, Arabic, and Sanskrit • British gov’t could take control when a ruler died without an heir or was deemed unfit to rule
“Mutiny” 1857 Enfield Rifle
How did the British react? • British troops murdered townspeople • Before being hanged, sepoys were made to swallow beef or pork • Some were strapped to a canon and blown apart • King Bahadur Shah II, to whom the sepoys claimed allegiance, was put on trial and exiled
Two Peoples - Two Standards • British believed themselves superior • Descended from Greek and Roman civilization • Practiced Christianity • British were outnumbered by Indian population and believed they couldn’t show weakness or permit defeat • British community always remained British, never Indian • Discrimination