7.9 Shift in character of Peasant move post 1857
- peasants emerged as the main force in agrarian movements as against Princes, Chiefs and landlords.
- demands almost wholly on economic issues and against their immediate enemy.
- Colonialism not target.
- Territorial reach limited.
- Lacked continuity of struggle/ long term organisation
- instinctive and spontaneous response to its social condition marked by excessive exploitation and oppression.
- was moved by strong notions of legitimacy of what was justifiable and what was not
- developed a strong awareness of legal rights and asserted them in and outside the courts.
- great courage and a spirit of sacrifice, remarkable organizational abilities, solidarity cutting across religion and caste lines.
- considerable concession from the state. state contempt as uprising not against the rule itself.
- major weakness of the 19th century peasant movements was the lack of an adequate understanding of colonialism it was within the conformities of the old social order.
- They lacked a positive conception of an alternative society to unite the people against a common struggle.
- Greater awareness of colonial policies ex Pabna Agrarian Revolt
- middle class their spokesman
- Hindoo Patriot, Amrita Bazar Patrika took pro landlord stance
- Ranajit Guha - Peasant movt should not be looked as pre history of freedom mvt as they have history of their own
PYQs
- Identify the various forms of 'rural protest' in India in the second half of the nineteenth century. Were they expressions of anti-landlord or anti-foreign discontent? [1987, 60m]
- Civil Rebellion :
- Pabna Agrarian Crisis (1870s and 1880s) : 2."The peasant movements of the second half of the nineteenth century lacked a positive conception which would unite the people in a common struggle on a wide regional and allIndia plane and help develop long-term political developments." Critically evaluate. [2012, 10m]
- peasants emerged as the main force in agrarian movements as