Indirect rule was a system of governance used by imperial powers to control parts of their empires . This was particularly used by colonial empires like the British Empire to control their possessions in Africa and Asia , which was done through pre-existing indigenous power structures. Indirect rule was used by various colonial rulers such as: the French in Algeria and Tunisia , the Dutch in the East Indies , the Portuguese in Angola and Mozambique and the Belgians in Rwanda and Burundi . These dependencies were often called " protectorates " or "trucial states".
69-616: Kapurthala State , was a kingdom and later Princely state of the Punjab Province of India . Ruled by Ahluwalia Sikh rulers, spread across 510 square miles (1,300 km). According to the 1901 census the state had a population of 314,341 and contained two towns and 167 villages. In 1930, Kapurthala became part of the Punjab States Agency and acceded to the Union of India in 1947. In colonial India, Kapurthala State
138-472: A subsidiary alliance and the suzerainty or paramountcy of the British crown . In 1920, Congress (party) under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi declared swaraj (self-rule) for Indians as its goal and asked the princes of India to establish responsible government. Jawaharlal Nehru played a major role in pushing Congress to confront the princely states and declared in 1929 that "only people who have
207-522: A chief can neither attack his neighbour nor fall out with a foreign nation, it follows that he needs no military establishment which is not required either for police purposes or personal display, or for cooperation with the Imperial Government. The treaty made with Gwalior in 1844, and the instrument of transfer given to Mysore in 1881, alike base the restriction of the forces of the State upon
276-456: A conservative outlook among the indigenous population and marginalised the young intelligentsia . Written laws, which replaced oral laws, were less flexible to the changing social nature, old customs of retribution and justice were removed or banned, as well as the removal of more violent punishments. Furthermore, leaders empowered by the governments of European powers were often not familiar with their new tasks, such as recruitment and tax. From
345-518: A few particular titles, such as Sardar , Mankari , Deshmukh , Sar Desai, Istamuradar, Saranjamdar , Raja Inamdar, etc. The most prestigious Hindu rulers usually had the prefix "maha-" ("great", compare for example " grand duke ") in their titles, as in Maharaja, Maharana, Maharao , etc. This was used in many princely states including Mewar , Travancore and Cochin . The state of Travancore also had queens regent styled Maharani , applied only to
414-766: A joint Roman - Khorasani army. His son Salibahan established the city of Sialkot , and started the Shak era after defeating the Shaks in 78 CE. After the Muslim conquest of Punjab, his descendants migrated to the Jaisalmer area, where they came to be known as Bhatti Rajput tribe. After Alauddin Khalji 's conquest of Jaisalmer, some of the Bhatti tribe people's migrated to Tarn Taran district , and got assimilated with Jats . In
483-671: A level of Maharaja was used. There were also compound titles, such as (Maha)rajadhiraj, Raj-i-rajgan, often relics from an elaborate system of hierarchical titles under the Mughal emperors . For example, the addition of the adjective Bahadur (from Persian, literally meaning "brave") raised the status of the titleholder one level. Furthermore, most dynasties used a variety of additional titles such as Varma in South India. This should not be confused with various titles and suffixes not specific to princes but used by entire (sub)castes. This
552-448: A population of over 16 million, while Jammu and Kashmir had a population of slightly over 4 million. At the other end of the scale, the non-salute principality of Lawa covered an area of 49 km (19 sq mi), with a population of just below 3,000. Some two hundred of the lesser states even had an area of less than 25 km (10 sq mi). The princely states at the time of Indian independence were mostly formed after
621-480: A result of their states' contributions to the war effort. It was also not unusual for members of princely houses to be appointed to various colonial offices, often far from their native state, or to enter the diplomatic corps. The gun salute system was used to set unambiguously the precedence of the major rulers in the area in which the British East India Company was active, or generally of
690-501: A rule the majority of gun-salute princes had at least nine, with numbers below that usually the prerogative of Arab Sheikhs of the Aden protectorate , also under British protection. There were many so-called non-salute states of lower prestige. Since the total of salute states was 117 and there were more than 500 princely states, most rulers were not entitled to any gun salute. Not all of these were minor rulers – Surguja State , for example,
759-578: A ruler to appoint his own heir. The doctrine of lapse was pursued most vigorously by the Governor-General Sir James Ramsay , 10th Earl (later 1st Marquess) of Dalhousie . Dalhousie annexed seven states, including Awadh (Oudh), whose Nawabs he had accused of misrule, and the Maratha states of Nagpur , Jhansi , Satara , Sambalpur , and Thanjavur . Resentment over the annexation of these states turned to indignation when
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#1732773101226828-581: A semi-promotion. The states of all these rulers (about 120) were known as salute states . After Indian Independence , the Maharana of Udaipur displaced the Nizam of Hyderabad as the most senior prince in India, because Hyderabad State had not acceded to the new Dominion of India , and the style Highness was extended to all rulers entitled to 9-gun salutes. When the princely states had been integrated into
897-543: A very practical problem (referred to as 'The Native Question' by Mahmood Mamdani in his work Citizen and Subject ) of control by a tiny group of foreigners of huge populations is laid out in Lugard's influential work, The Dual Mandate in British Tropical Africa . Lugard copied the numerous empires before his time who had created and developed the indirect rule system. According to Lugard, Indirect Rule
966-699: Is almost analogous to Singh title in North India. The actual importance of a princely state could not be read from the title of its ruler, which was usually granted (or at least recognized) as a favor, often in recognition for loyalty and services rendered to the British Raj . Although some titles were raised once or even repeatedly, there was no automatic updating when a state gained or lost real power. In fact, princely titles were even awarded to holders of domains (mainly jagirs ) and even taluqdars and zamindars , which were not states at all. Most of
1035-483: Is organised for the defence not merely of British India , but of all the possessions under the suzerainty of the King-Emperor. In addition, other restrictions were imposed: The treaties with most of the larger States are clear on this point. Posts in the interior must not be fortified, factories for the production of guns and ammunition must not be constructed, nor may the subject of other States be enlisted in
1104-678: The Ahluwalia misl . The Ahluwalia misl rose to prominence under Jassa Singh Ahluwalia , who was the first person to use the name "Ahluwalia". Originally known as Jassa Singh Kalal, he styled himself as Ahluwalia after his ancestral village of Ahlu and belonged to the Kalal community. He is regarded as the founder of the Kapurthala State. In 1774, Jassa Singh Kalal conquered Kapurthala from Rai Ibrahim Bhatti. Even after other misls lost their territories to Ranjit Singh 's Sikh Empire ,
1173-714: The Colonial Office in London , while others were ruled indirectly through local rulers who are supervised behind the scenes by British advisors. In 1890 Zanzibar became a protectorate (not a colony) of Britain. British Prime Minister Salisbury explained his position: The Princely states of India were also ruled indirectly, with the Indian territories ruled indirectly experiencing similar effects to those in Africa that experienced indirect rule. The same went for many of
1242-685: The Eastern States Agency , Punjab States Agency , Baluchistan Agency , Deccan States Agency , Madras States Agency and the Northwest Frontier States Agency . The Baroda Residency was combined with the princely states of northern Bombay Presidency into the Baroda, Western India and Gujarat States Agency . Gwalior was separated from the Central India Agency and given its own Resident, and
1311-544: The King-Emperor to provide a forum in which the rulers could voice their needs and aspirations to the government. It survived until the end of the British Raj in 1947. By the early 1930s, most of the princely states whose agencies were under the authority of India's provinces were organised into new Agencies, answerable directly to the governor-general, on the model of the Central India and Rajputana agencies:
1380-520: The Maharaja of Patiala and the Maharaja of Travancore – were entitled to 19-gun salutes. The most senior princely ruler was the Nizam of Hyderabad , who was entitled to the unique style Exalted Highness and 21-gun salute . Other princely rulers entitled to salutes of 11 guns (soon 9 guns too) or more were entitled to the style Highness . No special style was used by rulers entitled to lesser gun salutes. As paramount ruler , and successor to
1449-900: The Most Exalted Order of the Star of India and the Most Eminent Order of the Indian Empire . Women could be appointed as "Knights" (instead of Dames) of these orders. Rulers entitled to 21-gun and 19-gun salutes were normally appointed to the highest rank, Knight Grand Commander of the Order of the Star of India. Many Indian princes served in the British Army , the Indian Army , or in local guard or police forces, often rising to high ranks; some even served while on
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#17327731012261518-637: The Nizams , Mysore , Pudukkottai and Travancore in the South, Jammu and Kashmir , and Indore in Central India. The most prominent among those – roughly a quarter of the total – had the status of a salute state , one whose ruler was entitled to a set number of gun salutes on ceremonial occasions. The princely states varied greatly in status, size, and wealth; the premier 21-gun salute states of Hyderabad and Jammu and Kashmir were each over 200,000 km (77,000 sq mi) in size. In 1941, Hyderabad had
1587-600: The Songhai and Ashanti Empires. In the lands of the Sokoto Caliphate , conquered by the British at the turn of the century, Lugard instituted a system whereby external, military, and tax control was operated by the British. While every other aspect of life was left to local pre-conquest indigenous aristocracies who may have sided with the British during or after their conquest. The theory behind this solution to
1656-483: The zamindars who held princely titles were in fact erstwhile princely and royal states reduced to becoming zamindars by the British East India Company. Various sources give significantly different numbers of states and domains of the various types. Even in general, the definition of titles and domains are clearly not well-established. In addition to their titles, all princely rulers were eligible to be appointed to certain British orders of chivalry associated with India,
1725-521: The 17th century, they joined Guru Hargobind 's army. Ganda Singh of this family raided Lahore , whose governor Dilawar Khan persuaded him to join the Lahore army, and assigned him the fief of Ahlu and some other villages. Ganda Singh's son Sadhu (or Sadho) Singh lived in Ahlu, because of which the family came to be known as Ahluwalia. Sadhu Singh and his four sons married into Kalal families, because of which
1794-548: The 20th century for a distinct French style of rule that was centralized, uniform, and aimed at assimilating colonial subjects into the French polity. French rule, sometimes labeled Jacobin , was said in these writings to be based on the twin ideologies of the centralized unitary French government of the Metropole , with the French colonial ideology of Assimilation . Colonial Assimilation argued that French law and citizenship
1863-514: The British and Indian Armed Forces. Those ranks were conferred based on several factors, including their heritage, lineage, gun-salute (or lack of one) as well as personal character or martial traditions. After the First and Second World Wars, the princely rulers of several of the major states, including Gwalior , Patiala , Nabha , Faridkort , Bikaner , Jaipur , Jodhpur , Jammu and Kashmir and Hyderabad, were given honorary general officer ranks as
1932-522: The British could control the emirs and the emirs in turn could control their people. In the mid-1920s, the British implemented the system of indirect rule in Tanzania. Indirect rule was cheaper and easier for the European powers and, in particular, it required fewer administrators, but had a number of problems. In many cases, European authorities empowered local traditional leaders, as in the case of
2001-576: The British have enough resources to finance it. This economic question coupled with the shortage of or lack of European personnel in Africa at the time, convinced the British that it would be cheaper to use the traditional institutions to achieve the same objective. The nature and operation of indirect rule in Northern Nigeria, amply confirm these contentions. When Lugard and his men conquered the Sokoto Caliphate of Northern Nigeria, in
2070-484: The Governor-General of India or through any governor or other officer subordinate to the Governor-General of India. (5.) The expression "India" shall mean British India together with any territories of any native prince or chief under the suzerainty of Her Majesty exercised through the Governor-General of India, or through any governor or other officer subordinate to the Governor-General of India. In general
2139-652: The Indian Union their rulers were promised continued privileges and an income (known as the Privy Purse ) for their upkeep. Subsequently, when the Indian government abolished the Privy Purse in 1971, the whole princely order ceased to be recognised under Indian law, although many families continue to retain their social prestige informally; some descendants of the rulers are still prominent in regional or national politics, diplomacy, business and high society. At
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2208-590: The Mughals, the British King-Emperor of India, for whom the style of Majesty was reserved, was entitled to an 'imperial' 101-gun salute—in the European tradition also the number of guns fired to announce the birth of an heir (male) to the throne. There was no strict correlation between the levels of the titles and the classes of gun salutes, the real measure of precedence, but merely a growing percentage of higher titles in classes with more guns. As
2277-458: The Nawab of Oudh . There were also certain estates of British India which were rendered as political saranjams , having equal princely status. Though none of these princes were awarded gun salutes, princely titles in this category were recognised as a form of vassals of salute states, and were not even in direct relation with the paramount power. A controversial aspect of East India Company rule
2346-741: The West African holdings of the British and French empires. The ideological underpinnings, as well as the practical application, of 'indirect rule' in Uganda and Nigeria is traced back to the work of Frederick Lugard , the High Commissioner of the Protectorate of Northern Nigeria from 1899 to 1906. Indirect rule was by no means a new idea at the time, since it had been in use in ruling empires throughout history. For instance, in addition to India and Uganda, it had been practiced in
2415-547: The administrators of India's provinces. The agents of five princely states were then under the authority of Madras , 354 under Bombay , 26 of Bengal , two under Assam , 34 under Punjab , fifteen under the Central Provinces and Berar and two under the United Provinces . The Chamber of Princes ( Narender Mandal or Narendra Mandal ) was an institution established in 1920 by a royal proclamation of
2484-407: The army of independent India. At the time of the British withdrawal, 565 princely states were officially recognized in the Indian subcontinent, apart from thousands of zamindari estates and jagirs . In 1947, princely states covered 40% of the area of pre-independence India and constituted 23% of its population. The most important states had their own British political residencies: Hyderabad of
2553-461: The beginning of the 20th century, relations between the British and the four largest states – Hyderabad , Mysore , Jammu and Kashmir, and Baroda – were directly under the control of the governor-general of India , in the person of a British resident . Two agencies, for Rajputana and Central India , oversaw twenty and 148 princely states respectively. The remaining princely states had their own British political officers, or Agents, who answered to
2622-508: The broad ground of protection. The former explained in detail that unnecessary armies were embarrassing to the State itself and the cause of disquietude to others: a few months later a striking proof of this was afforded by the army of the Sikh kingdom of Lahore. The British Government has undertaken to protect the dominions of the Native princes from invasion and even from rebellion within: its army
2691-488: The coat of arms of Kapurthala State. 31°23′N 75°23′E / 31.383°N 75.383°E / 31.383; 75.383 Princely state A princely state (also called native state or Indian state ) was a nominally sovereign entity of the British Indian Empire that was not directly governed by the British, but rather by an Indian ruler under a form of indirect rule , subject to
2760-435: The complete list of princely states in 1947, see lists of princely states of India . Central India Agency , Gwalior Residency , Baluchistan Agency , Rajputana Agency , Eastern States Agency Gwalior Residency (two states) Other states under provincial governments Madras (5 states) Bombay (354 states) Central Provinces (15 states) Punjab (45 states) Assam (26 states) The armies of
2829-507: The courts of the princely states existed under the authority of the respective rulers of those states. The Indian rulers bore various titles including Maharaja or Raja ("king"), Sultan , Nawab , Emir , Raje , Nizam , Wadiyar (used only by the Maharajas of Mysore , meaning "lord"), Agniraj Maharaj for the rulers of Bhaddaiyan Raj, Chogyal , Nawab ("governor"), Nayak , Wāli , Inamdar , Saranjamdar and many others. Whatever
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2898-562: The disintegration of the Mughal empire. Many Princely states had a foreign origin due to the long period of external migration to India. Some of these were the rulers of Hyderabad ( Turks ), Bhopal ( Afghans ) and Janjira ( Abyssinian ). Among the Hindu kingdoms, most of the rulers were Kshatriya . Only the Rajput states and a scattering of South Indian kingdoms could trace their lineage to
2967-475: The doctrine, it was discontinued with the end of Company rule and the British Parliament 's assumption of direct power over India. By treaty, the British controlled the external affairs of the princely states absolutely. As the states were not British possessions, they retained control over their own internal affairs, subject to a degree of British influence which in many states was substantial. By
3036-455: The early 20th century, French and British writers helped establish a dichotomy between British indirect rule, exemplified by the Indian princely states and by Lugard's writings on the administration of northern Nigeria, and French colonial direct rule . As with British theorists, French colonial officials like Félix Eboué or Robert Delavignette wrote and argued throughout the first half of
3105-471: The early 20th century, his limited resources in terms of men and money, made rule of the vast territory highly impracticable. Fortunately for him, however, the Sokoto Caliphate already possessed a highly developed and efficient system of administration headed by emirs, with the Sultan of Sokoto as the supreme head. The hierarchical nature of the political structure was ideal for the system of indirect rule because
3174-575: The emperor permitted the descendants of Jassa Singh to retain their estates. After the British took over the Sikh territories in 1846, Jassa Singh's descendants became the ruling family of the Kapurthala State. Religion in Kapurthala Princely State(1941) (Birth–Death) The Royal House of Kapurthala awards three orders of chivalry ; these knighthoods include: The decoration of the Nishan-i-Iftikhar includes
3243-570: The family came to be known as Ahluwalia. The descendants of Sadhu Singh son Gopal Singh (who was the grandfather of Jassa Singh) established the royal family of Kapurthala. The British administrator Lepel Griffin (1873) dismissed this account as spurious. The Sikh author Gian Singh, in his Twarikh Raj Khalsa (1894), wrote that the Ahluwalia family adopted the Kalal caste identity much before Sadhu Singh. The ruling dynasty of Kapurthala originated in
3312-567: The hands of traditional rulers, who gained prestige and the stability and protection afforded by the Pax Britannica (in the case of British territories). Consequentially done at the cost of losing control of their external affairs, and often of taxation, communications, and other matters. It was usually carried out with a small number of European "advisors" effectively overseeing the government of large numbers of people spread over extensive areas. Some British colonies were ruled directly by
3381-461: The heirlooms of the Maharajas of Nagpur were auctioned off in Calcutta. Dalhousie's actions contributed to the rising discontent amongst the upper castes which played a large part in the outbreak of the Indian mutiny of 1857 . The last Mughal badshah (emperor), whom many of the mutineers saw as a figurehead to rally around, was deposed following its suppression. In response to the unpopularity of
3450-588: The literal meaning and traditional prestige of the ruler's actual title, the British government translated them all as "prince", to avoid the implication that the native rulers could be "kings" with status equal to that of the British monarch. More prestigious Hindu rulers (mostly existing before the Mughal Empire, or having split from such old states) often used the title " Raja ", or a variant such as Raje, Rai , Rana , Babu , Rao , Rawat, or Rawal . Also in this 'class' were several Thakurs or Thai ores and
3519-498: The local forces. ... They must allow the forces that defend them to obtain local supplies, to occupy cantonments or positions, and to arrest deserters; and in addition to these services they must recognise the Imperial control of the railways, telegraphs, and postal communications as essential not only to the common welfare but to the common defence. The Imperial Service Troops were routinely inspected by British army officers and had
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#17327731012263588-656: The monarchy of Uganda , but if no suitable leader could be found (in the traditional Western sense of the term), the Europeans would simply choose local rulers to suit them. This was the case in Kenya and Southern Nigeria , and the new leaders, often called "warrant chiefs", were not always supported by the local population. The European ruling classes also often chose local leaders with similar traits to their own, despite these traits not being suited to native leadership. Many were conservative elders, and thus indirect rule fostered
3657-560: The pre-Mughal period. India under the British Raj (the "Indian Empire") consisted of two types of territory: British India and the native states or princely states . In its Interpretation Act 1889 , the British Parliament adopted the following definitions: (4.) The expression "British India" shall mean all territories and places within Her Majesty's dominions which are for the time being governed by Her Majesty through
3726-478: The princely states were bound by many restrictions that were imposed by subsidiary alliances . They existed mainly for ceremonial use and for internal policing, although certain units designated as Imperial Service Troops, were available for service alongside the regular Indian Army upon request by the British government. According to the Imperial Gazetteer of India vol. IV 1907 , p. 85, Since
3795-501: The provincial governments of British India under a governor, lieutenant-governor, or chief commissioner. A clear distinction between "dominion" and "suzerainty" was supplied by the jurisdiction of the courts of law: the law of British India rested upon the legislation enacted by the British Parliament, and the legislative powers those laws vested in the various governments of British India, both central and local; in contrast,
3864-640: The right to determine the future of the States must be the people of these States". In 1937, the Congress won in most parts of British India (not including the princely states) in the provincial elections , and started to intervene in the affairs of the states. In the same year, Gandhi played a major role in proposing a federation involving a union between British India and the princely states, with an Indian central government. In 1946, Jawaharlal Nehru observed that no princely state could prevail militarily against
3933-430: The same equipment as soldiers in the British Indian Army . Although their numbers were relatively small, the Imperial Service Troops were employed in China and British Somaliland in the first decade of the 20th century, and later saw action in the First World War and Second World War . Indirect rule Through this system, the day-to-day government and administration of both small and large areas were left in
4002-598: The sister of the ruler in Kerala . Muslim rulers almost all used the title " Nawab " (the Arabic honorific of naib , "deputy") originally used by Mughal governors, who became de facto autonomous with the decline of the Mughal Empire, with the prominent exceptions of the Nizam of Hyderabad & Berar , the Wali / Khan of Kalat and the Wali of Swat . Other less usual titles included Darbar Sahib , Dewan , Jam , Mehtar (unique to Chitral ) and Mir (from Emir ). The Sikh princes concentrated at Punjab usually adopted titles when attaining princely rank. A title at
4071-518: The states and their dynasties. As heads of a state, certain princely rulers were entitled to be saluted by the firing of an odd number of guns between three and 21, with a greater number of guns indicating greater prestige. Generally, the number of guns remained the same for all successive rulers of a particular state, but individual princes were sometimes granted additional guns on a personal basis. Furthermore, rulers were sometimes granted additional gun salutes within their own territories only, constituting
4140-420: The states of Rampur and Benares , formerly with Agents under the authority of the United Provinces, were placed under the Gwalior Residency in 1936. The princely states of Sandur and Banganapalle in Mysore Presidency were transferred to the agency of the Mysore Resident in 1939. The native states in 1947 included five large states that were in "direct political relations" with the Government of India. For
4209-453: The term " British India " had been used (and is still used) also to refer to the regions under the rule of the East India Company in India from 1774 to 1858. The British Crown 's suzerainty over 175 princely states, generally the largest and most important, was exercised in the name of the British Crown by the central government of British India under the Viceroy; the remaining approximately 400 states were influenced by Agents answerable to
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#17327731012264278-449: The throne. Many of these were appointed as an aide-de-camp , either to the ruling prince of their own house (in the case of relatives of such rulers) or to British monarchs. Many saw active service , both on the subcontinent and on other fronts, during both World Wars. Apart from those members of the princely houses who entered military service and who distinguished themselves, a good number of princes received honorary ranks as officers in
4347-414: The time of Indian independence, only five rulers – the Nizam of Hyderabad , the Maharaja of Mysore , the Maharaja of Jammu and Kashmir state , the Maharaja Gaekwad of Baroda and the Maharaja Scindia of Gwalior – were entitled to a 21-gun salute. Six more – the Nawab of Bhopal , the Maharaja Holkar of Indore , the Maharaja of Bharatpur , the Maharana of Udaipur , the Maharaja of Kolhapur ,
4416-424: Was a political doctrine which held that the Europeans and Africans were culturally different to this extent. Which he interpreted it to mean that Africans had to be ruled through the Africans own institution. Whereby, to achieve this objective: It has been pointed out that the British were not prepared to pay for colonial administration, though interested in economically benefiting from their new colonies; neither did
4485-480: Was based on universal values that came from the French Revolution . Mirroring French domestic citizenship law, French colonial law allowed for anyone who could prove themselves culturally French (the " Évolués ") to become equal French citizens. In French West Africa , only parts of the Senegalese " Four Communes " ever extended French citizenship outside a few educated African elite. While making more subtle distinctions, this model of direct versus indirect rule
4554-439: Was both larger and more populous than Karauli State , but the Maharaja of Karauli was entitled to a 17-gun salute and the Maharaja of Surguja was not entitled to any gun salute at all. A number of princes, in the broadest sense of the term, were not even acknowledged as such. On the other hand, the dynasties of certain defunct states were allowed to keep their princely status – they were known as political pensioners , such as
4623-527: Was dominant in academia from the 1930s until the 1970s. Academics since the 1970s have problematised the Direct versus Indirect Rule dichotomy, arguing the systems were in practice intermingled in both British and French colonial governance, and that the perception of indirect rule was sometimes promoted to justify quite direct rule structures. Mahmood Mamdani and other academics have discussed extensively how both direct and indirect rule were attempts to implement identical goals of foreign rule, but how
4692-408: Was known for its communal harmony , with its Sikh ruler Jagatjit Singh building the Moorish Mosque for his Muslim subjects. At the time of the Indian independence movement , the ruler of the Kapurthala State opposed the partition of India and advocated for a united, secular country. According to mythology, Krishna's descendant Gaj built the fort of Gajni , and lost his life in a battle against
4761-399: Was the doctrine of lapse , a policy under which lands whose feudal ruler died (or otherwise became unfit to rule) without a male biological heir (as opposed to an adopted son) would become directly controlled by the company and an adopted son would not become the ruler of the princely state. This policy went counter to Indian tradition where, unlike Europe, it was far more the accepted norm for
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