A BRIEF HISTORY OF INDIA SECOND EDITION JUDITH E. WALSH State University of New York Old Westbury i-xviii_BH-India.indd i11/16/10 12:31 PM A Brief History of India, Second Edition Copyright 2011, 2006 by Judith E. Walsh All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage or retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the publisher. For information contact: Facts On File, Inc. An imprint of Infobase Publishing 132 West 31st Street New York NY 10001 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Walsh, Judith E. A brief history of India / Judith E. Walsh. 2nd ed. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-0-8160-8143-1 (hardcover) ISBN 978-1-4381-3392-8 (e-book) 1. IndiaHistory. I. Title. DS436.W34 2010 954dc22 2010026316 Facts On File books are available at special discounts when purchased in bulk quantities for businesses, associations, institutions, or sales promotions. Please call our Special Sales Department in New York at (212) 967-8800 or (800) 322-8755. You can find Facts On File on the World Wide Web at Excerpts included herewith have been reprinted by permission of the copyright holders; the author has made every effort to contact copyright holders. The publishers will be glad to rectify, in future editions, any errors or omissions brought to their notice. Text design by Joan M. McEvoy Composition by Mary Susan Ryan-Flynn Map design by Dale Williams Cover printed by Art Print, Taylor, Pa. Book printed and bound by Maple-Vail Book Manufacturing Group, York, Pa. Date printed: December 2010 Printed in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 This book is printed on acid-free paper. For Ainslie Embree i-xviii_BH-India.indd iii11/16/10 12:31 PM i-xviii_BH-India.indd iv11/16/10 12:31 PM Contents List of Illustrations vi List of Maps vii List of Tables viii Acknowledgments ix Note on Photos xi Introduction xii 1 Land, Climate, and Prehistory 1 2 Caste, Kings, and the Hindu World Order (1000 b.c.e.700 c.e.) 26 3 Turks, Afghans, and Mughals (6001800) 67 4 The Jewel in the Crown (17571885) 100 5 Becoming Modernthe Colonial Way (18001900) 137 6 Toward Freedom (18851920) 166 7 Gandhi and the Nationalist Movement (19201948) 192 8 Constructing the Nation (19501996) 223 9 Bollywood and Beyond (19472010) 263 10 India in the Twenty-first Century (19962010) 293 Appendixes 1 Basic Facts about India 335 2 Chronology 340 3 Bibliography 361 4 Suggested Reading 382 Index 399 vi List of Illustrations Zebu bull seal from Mohenjo-Daro 10 Front and back of unicorn seal from Mohenjo-Daro 13 “Priest-King” from Mohenjo-Daro 15 Mahabalipuram rock carving, ca. seventh century c.e., Pallava dynasty 27 The Horse Sacrifice, 1780s 31 The deer park at Sarnath 39 Ashokan pillar at Sarnath 46 Ajanta cave 49 Jagannatha temple at Puri, Orissa 57 Krishna instructs Arjuna, wall carving at the Birla Mandir, New Delhi 59 Hindu cosmogeny and gods 73 Portrait of Aged Akbar, 17th century 84 Jama Masjid, New Delhi 92 Taj Mahal, Agra 93 An 18th-century palki 103 Government House, Calcutta, ca. 1819 110 Mahadaji Scindia, ca. 1820 112 Sir Henry Lawrence 121 Two rajas from the Central Provinces 125 Bullock cart in Rajasthan 129 Chalk Farm at Meerut, 1883 131 St. Marys Church, Madras 133 Writers Building, Calcutta 139 Belvedere House, Calcutta 140 Jorasanko Thakurbari, Calcutta 142 Sadharan Brahmo Samaj temple, Calcutta 148 The Dance of the Emancipated Bengalee Lady, Gaganendranath Tagore, ca. 1921 153 Annie Wood Besant, 1926 163 Dadabhai Naoroji 169 The “science” of noses 171 Ganesh, Bhubaneswar, Orissa 177 vii Mohandas K. Gandhi in South Africa, 1903 188 Gandhi spinning cloth, 1931 197 Salt March crowds, 1930 207 Birla Mandir, New Delhi 212 Jinnah and Gandhi, 1944 217 Nehru, 1947 219 Buddhist conversions, New Delhi, 2001 229 Indira Gandhi distributes food, 1966 239 RSS daily rituals, 2000 247 Rajiv Gandhi reelection billboard, 1984 250 Campaign poster for Janata Dal candidate, 1989 254 Demolition of the Babri Masjid, 1992 261 Urban shack, ca. 1978 266 Ice cream parlor, south Delhi 271 Man on bicycle 273 Film posters, Victoria Station, Mumbai 277 Durga Puja pandal, New Delhi 288 Sarasvati Puja pandal, Calcutta 290 BJP campaign poster, 1996 294 Mayawati, 2007 299 Modis Pride Yatra, 2002 305 Congress election celebration, 2004 309 Young men filling water cans, New Delhi 319 Thums Up, New Delhi 321 Election celebration, 2009 328 List of Maps South Asia 2 Ancient River Valley Civilizations 8 Harappan Civilization Sites 12 Post-Harappan Cultures, 2000 b.c.e. 22 Mauryan Empire at Its Greatest Extent, ca. 269232 b.c.e. 48 Kingdoms and Dynasties, 300 b.c.e.550 c.e. 53 Gupta Empire at Its Greatest Extent, ca. 375415 c.e. 56 Dar al-Islam (The Abode of Islam), ca. 1500 69 viii Mughal Empire at the Death of Akbar (1605) and Auran