Test: India and her Neighbor's - 2 - UPSC MCQ

British merchants and industrialists were attracted by the possibility of trade with China through Burma, which led to a commercial treaty being signed in 1862.

The immediate cause of the Third Anglo-Burmese War was the dispute between the Burmese Government and the Bombay-Burma Trading Corporation over teak extraction. The British Government seized this opportunity and put forward demands on the Burmese Government, leading to an invasion in 1885.

The British were intensely jealous of the growing French influence in Burma as they feared it might enable the king of Upper Burma to escape British tutelage or even lead to the founding of a French dominion in Burma, endangering the safety of their Indian Empire.

The British invasion of Upper Burma in the Third Anglo-Burmese War began on 13 November 1885, following the rejection of their demands by the Burmese Government.

The Burmese nationalist movement gained momentum after the First World War through a wide campaign of boycotting British goods and administration, and by joining hands with the Indian National Congress.

The British Indian Government fought two wars with Afghanistan before its relations with the Government of Afghanistan were stabilized.

The British rulers of India feared that Russia would launch an attack on India through Afghanistan and the North Western frontier of India. They wanted to keep Russia at a safe distance from the Indian frontier, which made Afghanistan crucial from a geopolitical perspective.

Dost Muhammad Khan was the ruler of Afghanistan during the 19th century when British policy towards Afghanistan entered an active phase under the Whigs and Lord Palmerston as Foreign Secretary.

Dost Muhammad Khan wanted to be an ally of the British Indian Government on the basis of complete equality and not as one of its puppets or subsidiary allies.

Burma won its independence on 4 January 1948, after a long struggle led by nationalist leaders such as U Aung San during the Second World War.

The treaty at Lahore was signed by the Indian Government, Maharaja Ranjit Singh, and Shah Shuja, promising to help Shah Shuja capture power in Afghanistan and, in return, Shah Shuja promised not to enter into negotiations with any foreign state without the consent of the British and the Punjab Governments.

Kabul fell to the British forces on 7 August 1839, and Shah Shuja was immediately placed on the throne.

Auckland decided to replace Dost Mohammed with Shah Shuja, who had been deposed from the Afghan throne in 1809 and had since been living at Ludhiana as a British pensioner

On 11 December 1841, the British were compelled to sign a treaty with the Afghan chiefs by which they agreed to evacuate Afghanistan and restore Dost Mohammed.

As the British forces withdrew, they were attacked by the Afghans all along the way. Out of 16,000 men, only one reached the frontier alive, while a few others survived as prisoners.

A new period of Anglo-Afghan friendship was inaugurated in 1855 with the signing of a treaty of friendship between Dost Mohammed and the Government of India.

After 1964, the policy of non-interference was vigorously pursued by Lord Lawrence and his two successors to maintain friendly relations with Afghanistan and prevent the Amir from aligning himself with Russia.

The British statesmen thought of bringing Afghanistan under direct political control so that it could serve as a base for British expansion in Central Asia.

The Indian Government demanded the unilateral right to keep a British mission at Kabul and to exercise control over Afghanistan's foreign relations.

 Lord Ripon, the new Viceroy, rapidly reversed Lytton's aggressive policy and went back to the policy of non-interference in the internal affairs of a strong and friendly Afghanistan.