British Raj.
 

AOA friends,
I would like to ask you what you feel were the advantages and disadvantages on the people of the Subcontinent during and prior to the reign of the British Empire.
Although this is just a discussion I would appreciate facts and figures as well as sources from anyone willing to include them.
Regards.

Impacts would be a more relevant term than the advantages and disadvantages as one man/ethnicity/religious group/cultural group's advantage was the disadvantage of many others and vice versa.

The british were way ahead of other colonial powers by the time they had a foothold in sub-continent in all aspects. Some of these are:

1- Technological advancements made their way to sub-continent e.g. the printing press

2- Militarily, the British naval fleet and offensive military equipment was much better than their indian counterparts which helped them establish their effective control on ports and then extend it inwards.

3- Religiously, Christian missionaries played an important role in the dissemination of Christianity and heavily influecned the culture of the port cities specially

4- The british influence on subcontinent's architecture, literature and arts is profound

5- The British rule carried out a major social upheaval by undermining the Muslim rule in subcontinent which is reflected in the decline of Mughal empire and by 1857 the social rout of Muslims was complete. This Muslim degeneration was complemented by the gradual rise of Hindus who ascended to fill the vacuum created by Muslims. The Maratha insurgency and the Sikh rule are the early examples of this phenomenon which culminated in the Hindus' rise to positions in administration in post 1857 era. In short, the british raj was a shot in the arm for Hindus culturally and socially.

6- The social decline of Muslims which was partly due to the Muslims' own shortcomings and partly hastened by the British raj, expedited a Muslim shift from military to education. It elicited a reformation process among Muslims which was carried out by the likes of Sheikh ahmed Sirhindi and Shah Waliullah. They stressed on religious reformation rather than military adventures. This was followed by religious (Nadva-tul-ulema, Deoband school) and modern-educational movements (Aligarh movement) in 19th century which can be termed as the Muslim renaissance in sub continent for the invaluable services rendered by these movements.

Source: KK Aziz, history of subcontinent

[QUOTE=rubraiz;581242]Impacts would be a more relevant term than the advantages and disadvantages as one man/ethnicity/religious group/cultural group's advantage was the disadvantage of many others and vice versa.

The british were way ahead of other colonial powers by the time they had a foothold in sub-continent in all aspects. Some of these are:

1- Technological advancements made their way to sub-continent e.g. the printing press

2- Militarily, the British naval fleet and offensive military equipment was much better than their indian counterparts which helped them establish their effective control on ports and then extend it inwards.

3- Religiously, Christian missionaries played an important role in the dissemination of Christianity and heavily influecned the culture of the port cities specially

4- The british influence on subcontinent's architecture, literature and arts is profound

5- The British rule carried out a major social upheaval by undermining the Muslim rule in subcontinent which is reflected in the decline of Mughal empire and by 1857 the social rout of Muslims was complete. This Muslim degeneration was complemented by the gradual rise of Hindus who ascended to fill the vacuum created by Muslims. The Maratha insurgency and the Sikh rule are the early examples of this phenomenon which culminated in the Hindus' rise to positions in administration in post 1857 era. In short, the british raj was a shot in the arm for Hindus culturally and socially.

6- The social decline of Muslims which was partly due to the Muslims' own shortcomings and partly hastened by the British raj, expedited a Muslim shift from military to education. It elicited a reformation process among Muslims which was carried out by the likes of Sheikh ahmed Sirhindi and Shah Waliullah. They stressed on religious reformation rather than military adventures. This was followed by religious (Nadva-tul-ulema, Deoband school) and modern-educational movements (Aligarh movement) in 19th century which can be termed as the Muslim renaissance in sub continent for the invaluable services rendered by these movements.

Source: KK Aziz, history of subcontinent[/QUOTE]
i want to add some more points like:.
a.the british have left great impact on our poliitcal, social and educational systems.
b.even pakistan,s constiution is the copy of british legislative work for subcontinent
c. british discovered many sea many sea routes that are being used and are playing vital role in fulfilling commercial needs.
e. the railway system was first introduced by the british in subcontinent and made the remote areas within the reach and access.