Colonialism and the City Class 8 Notes

Do you know that Delhi has been the capital of India for more than 1,000 years. Just like Rome, Delhi was not built in a day. It took almost 20 years and still many areas are living under poor conditions. There is not just one factor that has affected the development of Delhi but various other aspects. Let’s explore all the reasons and how old Delhi ruled by Mughals captured turned into New Delhi. In this blog, we have summarised Colonialism and the City Class 8 notes for you.

What Happened to Cities Under Colonial Rule?

When the change began in India, few cities emerged as of great importance while some were declined. Calcutta, Bombay, and Madras emerged as s Presidency cities in the late 18th century and new centers. In some parts of India de urbanization began Old trading centers and ports when trade moved to new centers. Due to deurbanization, only 11% of Indians remained in new centers in the early 20th century.

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How many ‘Delhis’ before New Delhi?

The capital of India, New Delhi has been the capital for thousand-year including some gap years. In a small area of about 60 square miles on the bank of the river Jamuna, 14 capital cities were founded.  Shah Jahan. Shahjahanabad’s capital was started in 1639 that included Lal Qila, Walled City with 14 gates in the streets of Chandni Chowk and  Faiz Bazaar. Also consisted of several dargahs, the largest mosque Jama Masjid, Khanqahs, and Idgahs.

The Making of New Delhi

After defeating the Marathas in 1803, Britishers gained control over Delhi. However, at that point the capital for British India was Calcutta. The Mughal emperor was allowed to rule and stay in Red Fort. The development of modern Delhi began only after it became the capital of British India. 

Before moving on to the next topic, Here is an interesting read on the first war of Independence: Revolt of 1857!

Demolishing a Past

The phase after the year 1857 brought a major change in Delhi before that development in Delhi was different from other colonial states. In the 19th century in Delhi,  the British lived in the walled city along with the wealthier Indians. The period from 1830 to 1857 is famously known as the period of  Delhi renaissance and Delhi college was also established in 1792 promoting education in the Urdu language. Delhi remained unchanged during the revolt of 1857. After the revolt came to an end and Britishers recaptured Delhi they were focused on revenge and plunder and wanted people to forget the Mughal era completely.  Bahadur Shah, the last Mughal emperor was sentenced to life imprisonment and development by the Mughals such as the area around the Red Fort was completely cleared of gardens, pavilions, and mosques. The western walls of Shahjahanabad were demolished in the 1870s to establish the railway and to allow the city to expand beyond the walls. The Britishers started living in the Civil lines.

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Planning a New Capital

After the revolt of 1857, Delhi witnessed many events including darbar for Queen Victoria as the Empress of India in 1877 organized by Viceroy Lytton. To celebrate the crowing of King George V in England a darbar was organized in Delhi and at the darbar celebration, it was announced that the capital will be changed from Calcutta to Delhi. Edward Lutyens and Herbert Baker were the two architects called to design new Delhi and its buildings. New Delhi was built 20 years. The new Delhi was built in contrast to the Shahjahanabad with no mohallas, crowded places. New Delhi was designed in a way that it will be broad, straight streets lined with sprawling mansions set in the middle of large compounds. The Britishers emphasized healthy and clean Delhi because old Delhi had crowded places that were unhygienic and breeding ground for various diseases. 

Life in the Time of Partition

India was free from British rule and became an independent nation in 1947 but the other battle that just started after independence was partition. India Partition led to the transfer of people between Pakistan and India. Many were killed, lotted their homes burned down during the partition. A large number of Muslims left Delhi for Pakistan and their houses were taken by refugees from Pakistan. Many Muslims were even forced to vacate or sell their properties in Delhi for Hindu and Sikh refugees from Pakistan. The partition did not change the geographical location but the lives and occupations of people also changed. Sikh and Hindu refugees changed the social background in terms of food, dress, and the arts.

Checkout all the Revolutions in India!

Inside the Old City

In the 19th century, the system of water supply and drainage was neglected. The system of wells and channels to remove household waste was damaged when the population was increasing rapidly. To tackle this problem, a new system of open surface drains and the old Shahjahani drains were closed but soon the new drainage system was also overburdened. The Delhi municipal corporation ignored this and spent millions of rupees on the drainage system of New Delhi.

The Decline of Havelis

Mughals aristocracy in Delhi used to live in Havelis. Many of them were unable to maintain those Havelis under British rule and the Havelis were subdivided for selling and the streets in front turned into shops and warehouses.

The Municipality begins to Plan

The walled city was heavily crowded and there were  90 persons per acre living on the other hand in New Delhi it was 3 persons per acres. The expanding population did not stop considering the poor conditions. Lahore Gate Improvement Scheme was planned in 1888  by Robert Clarke for the Walled City residents. The idea of this scheme was to draw residents away from the Old City to a new type of market square, around which shops would be built. In 1936,  Delhi Improvement Trust was set up for the purpose of building for wealthy Indians. Darya Ganj was one of the areas that were built. 

Colonialism and the City Class 8 NCERT PDF

Questions Based on Colonialism and the City Class 8 Notes

Now that you are through with the colonialism and the city class 8 notes, test your knowledge with these questions:

Fill in the blanks:

1. The first structure to successfully use the dome was called the _____________. 
2. The two architects who designed New Delhi and Shahjahanabad were _____________ and _____________.
3. The British saw overcrowded spaces as _____________. 
4. In 1888 an extension scheme called the _____________ was devised.

Answers 1) Jama Masjid 2) Edward Lutyens and Herbert Baker 3) unhygienic and unhealthy, the source of disease 4)the Lahore Gate Improvement Scheme

State True or False:

1. In the Western world, modern cities grew with industrialization.
2. Surat and Machlipatnam developed in the nineteenth century. 
3. In the twentieth century, the majority of Indians lived in cities.
4. After 1857 no worship was allowed in the Jama Masjid for five years.
5. More money was spent on cleaning Old Delhi than New Delhi

Answers
1)True
2)False
3)False
4)True
5)False

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