Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
1857
The First War of Independence against the British. In the absence of a national leader, freedom fight-
ers coerce the Mughal king, Bahadur Shah Zafar, to proclaim himself emperor of India.
1858
British government assumes control over India - with power officially transferred from the East India
Company to the Crown - beginning the period known as the British Raj.
1869
The birth of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi in Porbandar (Gujarat) - the man who would later be-
come popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi and affectionately dubbed 'Father of the Nation'.
1869
Opening of the Suez Canal accelerates trade from Europe and makes Bombay India's first port of call;
journey from England goes from three months to three weeks. Bombay's economic importance
skyrockets.
1885
The Indian National Congress, India's first home-grown political organisation, is set up. It brings
educated Indians together and plays a key role in India's enduring freedom struggle.
1891
BR Ambedkar, activist, economist, lawyer and writer, is born to a poor outcaste family. He earns sev-
eral advanced degrees, becomes a Buddhist and advocates forcefully for Dalit rights.
1919
The massacre, on 13 April, of unarmed Indian protesters at Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar (Punjab).
Gandhi responds with his program of civil (nonviolent) disobedience against the British government.
1940
The Muslim League adopts its Lahore Resolution, which champions greater Muslim autonomy in In-
dia. Subsequent campaigns for the creation of a separate Islamic nation follow.
1942
Mahatma Gandhi launches the Quit India campaign, demanding that the British leave India without
delay and allow the country to get on with the business of self-governance.
