NCERT Solutions for Class 8 History Chapter 2 - From Trade to Territory

NCERT TEXTBOOK QUESTIONS SOLVED
 

Q.1. Match the following: 

Ans.

Q.2. Fill in the blanks: 

(a) The British conquest of Bengal began with the Battle of ............. .
 (b) Haider Ali and Tipu Sultan were the rulers of ..............
 (c) Dalhousie implemented the Doctrine of ..............
 (d) Maratha kingdoms were located mainly in the ........ part of India.
 Ans. (a) Plassey (b) Mysore (c) Lapse (d) Western

Q.3. State whether true or false:
 (a) The Mughal empire became stronger in the eighteenth century.
 (b) The English East India Company was the only European company that traded with India.
 (c) Maharaja Ranjit Singh was the ruler of Punjab.
 (d) The British did not introduce administrative changes in the territories they conquered.
 Ans. (a) False (b) False (c) True (d) False

Q.4. What attracted European trading companies to India?
 Ans.(a) The fine qualities of cotton and silk produced in India.
(b) Indian spices such as pepper, cloves, cardamom and cinnamon.
 

Q.5. What were the areas of conflict between the Bengal Nawabs and the East India Company?
 Ans.(a) The Bengal nawabs asserted their power and autonomy and refused to grant the Company concessions,
(b) They demanded large tributes for the Company’s right to trade,
(c) They denied the Company any right to mint coins,
(d) They stopped the Company from extending its fortifications
(e) Accusing the Company of deceit, they claimed that the Company was depriving the Bengal government of huge amounts of revenue and undermining the authority of the nawab. It was refusing to pay taxes, writing disrespectful letters, and trying to humiliate the nawab and his officials.
These were the areas of conflict between the Bengal Nawabs and the East India Company.
 

Q.6. How did the assumption of Diwani benefit the East India Company?
 Ans. The Mughal emperor, in 1765, appointed the Company as the Diwan of the provinces of Bengal. The Diwani allowed the Company to exploit the vast revenue resources of Bengal. This solved a major problem that the company had earlier faced. Although its trade had expanded, it had to buy most of the goods in India with gold and silver imported from Britain. The overflow of gold from Britain stopped after the assumption of Diwani. Now revenue from India could finance Company expenses. These revenues they used to purchase cotton and silk textiles in India, maintain Company troops and meet the cost of building the Company fort and offices at Calcutta.
 

Q.7. Explain the system of ‘subsidiary alliance’.
 Ans. Under the system of ‘subsidiary alliance’, Indian rulers were not allowed to have their independent armed forces. They were to be protected by the Company, but had to pay for the ‘subsidiary forces’ that the Company was supposed to maintain for the purpose of this protection. If the Indian rulers failed to make the payment, the part of their territory was taken away as penalty. The states which had to lose their territories on this ground were Awadh and Hyderabad.
 

Q.8. In what way was the administration of the Company different from that of Indian rulers?
 Ans. The administration of the Company was different from that of the Indian rulers in the following ways:
(a) The Company divided its administrative units called Presidencies. There were three Presidencies— Bengal, Madras and Bombay. In India, districts were the main administrative units.
(b) Each presidency was ruled by a Governor. Districts were ruled by the Collectors.
(c) The supreme head of the administration of the Company was the Governor-General. But in India, the head of the administration was the king.
(d) The main job of the Governor-General was to introduce administrative reforms while the main job of the Collector was to collect revenue and taxes and maintain law and order in his district.
 

Q.9. Describe the changes that occurred in the composition of the Company’s army.
 Ans. Several changes occurred in the composition of the Company’s army:

(a) The Company began recruitment for its own army, which came to be known as the sepoy army.
(b) As the warfare technology changed from the 1820s, the cavalry recruitments of the Company’s army declined.
(c) The soldiers of the Company’s army had to keep pace with changing military requirements and its infantry regiments now became more important.
(d) In the early 19th century the Birtish began to develop a uniform military culture. Soldiers were increasingly subjected to European style training, drill and discipline that regulated their life for more than before.

Q.10.After the British conquest of Bengal, Calcutta grew from a small village to a big city. Find out about the culture, architecture and the life of Europeans and Indians of the city during the colonial period.
 Ans. Students are suggested to visit their school library and collect information about it.