Class 8 History Chapter 1 Question Answers - Our Pasts III (Part - I)

Q1: Why were the powers of the East India Company transferred to the British crown?
Ans: The British Parliament passed a new Act in 1858 and transferred the powers of the East India Company to the British Crown in order to ensure a more responsible management of Indian affairs.

Q2: How Tantia Tope died?
Ans: Tantia Tope escaped to the jungles of central India and continued to fight a guerrilla war with the support of many tribal and peasant leaders. He was captured, tried and killed in April 1859.

Q3: How did the revolt of 1857 affect the position of the East India Company?
Ans: The British Parliament passed a new Act in 1858 and transferred the powers of the East India Company to the British Crown in order to ensure a more responsible management of Indian affairs.

Q4: What was the new law passed in 1856 by the East India Company regarding the employment in the Company’s army?
Ans: In 1856 the Company passed a new law which stated that every new person who took up employment in the Company’s army had to agree to serve overseas if required.

Q5: On what condition the ruling chiefs could pass on their kingdoms to their heirs?
Ans: All ruling chiefs of the country were assured that their territory would never be annexed in future. They were allowed to pass on their kingdoms to their heirs, including adopted sons. However, they were made to acknowledge the British Queen as their Sovereign Paramount.

Q6: Name some new leaders that came to the forefront during the revolt of 1857.
Ans: Bakht Khan, a soldier from Bareilly, took charge of a large force of fighters who came to Delhi. Ahmadullah Shah, a maulvi from Faizabad raised a huge force of supporters and came to Lucknow to fight the British.

Q7: How did the last Mughal emperor live the last years of his life?
Ans: Delhi was recaptured from the rebel forces in September 1857. The last Mughal emperor, Bahadur Shah Zafar was tried in court and sentenced to life imprisonment. His sons were shot dead before his eyes. He and his wife Begum Zinat Mahal were sent to prison in Rangoon in October 1858. Bahadur Shah Zafar died in the Rangoon jail in November 1862.

Q8: What happened to the Nawabs when the British established political power in India?
Ans: When British established political power in India:

• The Nawabs and Rajas lost their authority and honour.
• British Residents were stationed in all the courts, the freedom of the rulers reduced, their armed forces disbanded and territories taken away by stages.

Q9: What was the immediate cause of the Sepoy mutiny and why?
Ans: Use of greased cartridges in the army was the immediate cause. They were coated with the fat of pig and cow and offended the religious sensibilities of the sepoys.

Q10: How Muslims were treated by the British and why?
Ans: The land and property of Muslims was confiscated on a large scale and they were treated with suspicion and hostility. The British believed that they were responsible for the rebellion in a big way.

Q11: What was the demand of Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi that was refused by the British?
Ans: Lakshmibai of Jhansi wanted the Company to recognize her adopted son as the heir to the kingdom after the death of her husband. But the British turned down her plea.

Q12: What did the British do to protect the interests of those who converted to Christianity?
Ans: In 1850, a new law was passed to make conversion to Christianity easier. This law allowed an Indian who had converted to Christianity to inherit the property of his ancestors.

Q13: Name the governor general who announced to shift Bahadur Shah Zafar’s family from Red Fort
Ans: In 1849, Governor-General Dalhousie announced that after the death of Bahadur Shah Zafar, the family of the king would be shifted out of the Red Fort and given another place in Delhi to reside in.

Q14: What was Taiping Rebellion?
Ans: It had started in 1850 and could be suppressed only by the mid-1860s. Thousands of labouring, poor people were led by Hong Xiuquan to fight for the establishment of the Heavenly Kingdom of Great Peace. This was known as the Taiping Rebellion.

Q15: What were the religious causes of the revolt?
Ans: The Company allowed Christian missionaries to function freely in its domain and even own land and property. In 1850, a new law was passed to make conversion to Christianity easier. Many Indians felt that the British were destroying their religion; thus, revolted against the British rule.

Q16: What were the social causes of the revolt?
Ans: The British believed that Indian society had to be reformed. Laws were passed to stop the practice of sati and to encourage the remarriage of widows. English-language education was actively promoted. Many Indians believed that the British were meddling in their social customs and their traditional way of life; thus, revolted against the British rule.