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

The Class 8 Social Studies chapter titled "Weavers, Iron Smelters, and Factory Owners" sheds light on India's crafts and industries during British rule, with a specific focus on textiles and iron and steel. These two industries played a pivotal role in driving the industrial revolution that transformed the modern world. Let's see the Short & Long Answer Questions of this chapter.

Very Short Answer Type Questions

Q1: What were two factors contributing to the global renown of Indian textiles?
Ans: Indian textiles gained worldwide recognition due to their exceptional quality and exquisite craftsmanship.

Q2: What were the reasons behind the popularity of printed Indian cotton textiles in England?
Ans: Printed Indian cotton textiles gained popularity in England due to their intricate floral designs, superior texture, and affordability.

Q3: During which era was patola weaving particularly renowned?
Ans: Patola weaving reached its peak of fame during the mid-19th century.

Patola WeaveQ4: What is the etymology of the term "calico"?
Ans: The term "calico" originated from the city of Calicut.

Q5: Which were the significant hubs for jamdani weaving?
Ans: The important centers for jamdani weaving were Dacca in Bengal and Lucknow in the United Provinces (U.P.).

Q6: Name two locations where Chintz production thrived in the mid-19th century.
Ans: The production of chintz flourished in Masulipatnam and Andhra Pradesh during the mid-19th century.

Q7: How did European trading companies purchase cotton and silk textiles in India?
Ans: European trading companies purchased cotton and silk textiles in India by importing silver.

Q8: Name the household spinning instrument.
Ans: Charkha and Takli.

Q9: What did Mahatma Gandhi urge people during the national movement?
Ans: During the national movement Mahatma Gandhi urged people to boycott imported textiles and use hand-spun and hand-woven cloth.

Q10: What became a symbol of nationalism?
Ans: Khadi became a symbol of nationalism.

Q11: How did the growth of cotton mills in the country prove to be a boon for the poor peasants, artisans, and agricultural laborers?
Ans: They got work in the mills.

Q12: How did Indian cotton factories prove to be helpful during the First World War?
Ans: They began to produce cloth for military supplies.

Q13: Why was Tipu’s sword so special?
Ans: Tipu’s sword was made of Wootz steel. Wootz steel when made into swords produced a very sharp edge that could easily rip through the opponent’s armour.

Tipu's Sultan SwordQ14: Why was the Wootz steel-making process completely lost by the mid-19th century?
Ans: There are two reasons for it:
(a) The sword and armor-making industry died with the conquest of India by the British.
(b) Imports of iron and steel from England displaced the iron and steel produced by craftsmen in India.

Q15: What were the furnaces made of?
Ans: The furnaces were made of clay and sun-dried bricks.

Q16: Why were bellows used?
Ans: Bellows were used to keep the charcoal burning.

Q17: What were piece goods?
Ans: Piece goods were usually woven cloth pieces that were 20 yards long and 1 yard wide.

Short Answer Type Questions

Q1: How were Indian textiles viewed in the world market?
Ans: India was the largest producer of cotton textiles in the world before the British conquered Bengal around 1750. Indian textiles had long been renowned both for their fine quality and exquisite craftsmanship. They were extensively traded in Southeast Asia (Java, Sumatra, and Penang) and West and Central Asia. From the 16th century European trading companies began buying Indian textiles for sale in Europe.

Q2: How did the inventions of the Spinning Jenny and Steam Engine revolutionize cotton textile weaving in England?
Ans: Textile industries had just emerged in England in the early 18th century.
So, it was difficult for the English producers to compete with Indian textiles. This competition with Indian textiles led to a search for technological innovation in England. In 1764, the Spinning Jenny was invented by John Kaye which increased the productivity of the traditional spindles.
Then came the steam engine. It was invented by Richard Arkwright in 1786. These two inventions revolutionized cotton textile weaving in England. Cloth could now be woven in immense quantities and cheaply too.

Spinning JennyQ3: Give a description of the four regions where textile production was concen¬trated in the early 19th century.
Ans: Textile production was concentrated in the following four regions in the early 19th century:
(a) Bengal was one of the most important centers. Located along the numerous rivers in the delta, the production centers in Bengal could easily transport goods to distant places.
(b) Dacca in Eastern Bengal, present-day Bangladesh, was the foremost textile center in the 18th century. It was famous for its mulmul and jamdani weaving.
(c) Textile production was concentrated along the Coromandal coast stretching from Madras to northern Andhra Pradesh.
(d) On the western coast there were important weaving centres in Gujarat.

Q4: Who were the weavers? Name some communities famous for weaving.
Ans: Weavers often belonged to communities that specialised in weaving. Their skills were passed on from one generation to the next.
List of some communities famous for weaving includes:
(a) The tanti weavers of Bengal.
(b) The julahas or momin weavers of north India.
(c) Sale and kaikollar and devangs of South India.

Q5: Describe the process of cloth making.
Ans: The process of cloth making consists of two stages:
• The first stage of production was spinning, Le. work done mostly by women. The charkha and the takli were household spinning instruments. The thread was spun on the charkha and rolled on the takli
• When the spinning was over the thread was woven into cloth by the weaver.
In most communities weaving was a task done by men. For coloured textiles, the thread was dyed by the dyer, called rangrez. For painted cloth, the weavers needed the help of specialist block printers called chhipigars.

Q6: Handloomproduction did not completely die in India. Why?
Ans: This was because some types of clothes could not be supplied by machines. Just take the examples of saris with intricate borders and clothes with traditional woven patterns. Machines could not produce them. These had a wide demand not only amongst the rich but also among the middle classes. Moreover, the textile manufacturers in Britain could not produce the very coarse cloths used by the poor people in India.
In the late 19th century, Sholapur and Madurai grew as important new centers of weaving. During the national movement, Gandhiji urged people to use hand-spun and handwoven cloth Khadi which gradually became a symbol of nationalism.

Q7: Give a brief description of the growth of cotton mills in India.
Ans: The first cotton mill in India was set up as a spinning mill in Bombay in 1854. By 1900, over 84 mills started operating in Bombay.
Mills were set up in other cities too. The first mill in Ahmedabad was started in 1861. A year later a mill was established in Kanpur, in the United Provinces. The growth of cotton mills led to a demand for labor. As a result, thousands of poor peasants, artisans, and agricultural laborers moved to cities to work in the mills.

Cotton MillsQ8: Who are the Agarias? Why did they leave their village?
Ans: The Agarias are a community of iron smelters. They are specialized in the craft of iron smelting.
In the late 19th century a series of famines devastated the dry tracts of India. In central India, many of the Agaria iron smelters stopped work, deserted their villages, and migrated, looking for some other work to survive the hard times. A large number of them never worked their furnaces again.

Long Answer Type Questions

(a) Patola weave 

(b) Jamdani weave 

(c) Chintz

Ans: (a) Patola weave- It came into existence in the mid-19th century. It was woven in Surat, Ahmedabad, and Patan. It was highly valued in Indonesia. It became a part of the local weaving tradition there.

(b) Jamdani weave- It grew in the early 20th century. Jamdani is a fine muslin on which decorative motifs are woven on the loom, typically in grey and white. Often a mixture of cotton and gold thread was used. The most important centers of jamdani weaving were Dacca in Bengal and Lucknow in the United Provinces.

(c) Chintz- The term chintz is derived from the Hindi word chhint, a cloth with small and colorful flowery designs. It was produced in Masulipatnam and Andhra Pradesh in the mid-19th century. It was in great demand in England and Europe.

Q2: How did Iron and Steel factories come up in India?
Ans: Jamsetji Tata had decided to spend a large part of his fortune to build a big iron and steel industry in India. But this could not be done without identifying the sources of fine-quality iron ore. For this reason, his son, Dorabji Tata along with Charles Weld, an American geologist, began traveling in Chhattisgarh in search of iron ore deposits. It was the year 1904. One day, after traveling for many hours in the forests, Weld and Dorabji came upon a small village where they met the Agarias, who were carrying basket loads of iron ore. When asked where they had found the iron ore, the Agarias pointed to hill in the distance, Weld and Dorabji rushed to the hill. On exploring the hill the geologist declared that they had at last found what they had been looking for.
But there was a problem. The region was dry and the Tatas had to search for a more suitable place to set up their factory.
A few years later a large area of forest was cleared on the banks of the river Subarnarekha to set up the factory and an industrial township, i.e. Jamshedpur. Here, there was water near iron ore deposits. The Tata Iron and Steel Company, popularly known as TISCO began producing steel in 1912.