Colonialism and Tribal Societies Chapter Notes | History Class 8 ICSE PDF Download

Introduction

The chapter "Colonialism and Tribal Societies" explores the lives of tribal communities in India, their unique cultures, and the significant changes they underwent during British colonial rule. It highlights the distinct lifestyles, customs, and occupations of various tribal groups, such as hunting, gathering, herding, and shifting cultivation. The chapter also examines the impact of British policies, including land revenue systems and forest laws, which disrupted traditional tribal practices and led to widespread discontent. This discontent sparked several tribal revolts against colonial exploitation and oppressive measures. Through these notes, we understand the resilience of tribal societies and their struggles to preserve their way of life under colonial dominance.

The Tribal Life

• Tribal groups in India, like Gonds, Santhals, Mundas, Khasis, Nagas, Baigas, Gaddis, Van Gujjars, and Bhils, have unique cultures and customs.
• They live in remote areas, isolated from mainstream society, and share kinship ties within their tribes.
• Unlike mainstream society, tribes lack sharp social divisions as prescribed by Brahmins, but they still have some social and economic differences.
• Tribal occupations include:
  • Hunting and gathering forest produce like fruits, roots, herbs, and shrubs for consumption or sale.
  • Herding and rearing animals, such as cattle by Van Gujjars and Labadis, sheep by Gaddis, and goats by Bakarwals.
  • Shifting cultivation (jhum or slash-and-burn), practiced by jhumias in hilly and forested regions of Central and Northeast India.
  • Settled cultivation, where some tribes, like the Mundas, permanently settled and cultivated land near their homes.
• In shifting cultivation, treetops are cut to allow sunlight, vegetation is burned to fertilize soil with ash, and seeds are scattered on unploughed land.
• Fields in shifting cultivation are left fallow for years to regain fertility, requiring free movement within forests.
• gSome tribes, like the Baigas, considered working for others undignified and preferred living off forest produce.
• Tribes often bartered forest goods or earned money through odd jobs like road building or assisting farmers.
• In some tribes, like the Mundas, land was owned collectively by the clan, with all members having equal rights as descendants of original settlers.
• Over time, some clan members gained more power and rented out land instead of cultivating it themselves.

Tribal Life under British Rule

• Before British rule, tribal chiefs had economic and administrative authority, managing land and forest rules in some areas.
• Under British rule, tribal chiefs lost most administrative powers and had to pay tribute to the British.
• The British enforced new laws, encouraging tribes to become settled cultivators for easier control and to ensure steady revenue.
• Settled tribes like Gonds and Santhals were seen as more civilized than hunter-gatherers or shifting cultivators.
• Land revenue settlements disrupted joint land ownership, turning some tribals into landlords and others into tenants.
• Moneylenders and zamindars took over tribal lands, increasing economic hardship.
• The Indian Forests Act of 1878 declared forests as state property, restricting tribal access to reserved forests for hunting, gathering, or jhum cultivation.
• These forest laws forced many jhum cultivators to migrate for work, disrupting their forest-dependent lives.
• The British later allowed jhum farmers small forest land patches for cultivation in exchange for labor in the Forest Department, ensuring cheap labor for tasks like cutting railway sleepers.
• Some tribes, like the Baigas, Hill Reddis, and Bison Horn Murias, defied forest laws by continuing their traditional practices.
• Traders and moneylenders entered tribal areas, buying forest produce cheaply, selling goods at high prices, and charging high interest on loans, trapping tribals in debt.
• Tribals were employed in Assam’s tea plantations and Jharkhand’s coal mines through contractors who paid low wages and restricted their return home.

Tribal Revolts

• The 19th and 20th centuries saw multiple tribal revolts due to colonial changes, new taxes, restrictions on traditional practices, and exploitation by traders and moneylenders.
• Major revolts included the Kol rebellion (1831-1832), Santhal rebellion (1855-1856), Munda rebellion (1895-1900), Bastar rebellion (1910), and Warli revolt (1940).

Santhal Rebellion

• The Santhal rebellion (1855-1856) took place in present-day Jharkhand, Bihar, and Bengal.
• The Permanent Settlement gave Santhal lands to non-Santhal zamindars and moneylenders, reducing Santhals to tenants who paid rent.
• Santhals were forced to relocate to Daman-i-Koh (between Bhagalpur and Rajmahal).
• The construction of a railway line in Santhal Pargana in 1853 disrupted their traditional lifestyle.
• Led by Kanhu and Sidhu, the Santhal hool (liberation movement) began in 1855 at Bhagnadihi village to expel outsiders (dikus).
• They attacked symbols of oppression, including zamindars’ houses, moneylenders, police stations, and post offices.
• The British launched a major military campaign, ruthlessly crushing the rebellion, killing many Santhals, capturing leaders, and destroying villages.
• The Santhal Pargana Act was introduced, recognizing the Santhal-inhabited areas as a separate administrative unit to preserve their tribal culture and identity.

Munda Rebellion

• The Mundas of Chota Nagpur, Jharkhand, followed the khuntkatti system of joint land ownership, considering themselves descendants of original settlers.
• Colonial rule replaced this system with zamindari, making Mundas tenants who paid rent and faced eviction or forced labor (bethbegari) for unpaid loans.
• The Munda rebellion, or Ulgulan (Great Tumult), was led by Birsa Munda, born in the 1870s in Ulihatu, Ranchi, to a poor sharecropper family.
• Influenced by Christian missionaries and Vaishnavism, Birsa aimed to restore the Mundas’ ancestral rights and reform tribal society by discouraging liquor, witchcraft, and sorcery.
• Seen as a Messiah, Birsa gained followers and aimed to establish a Munda Raj, expelling the British, missionaries, zamindars, and moneylenders.
• Birsa was arrested in 1895 for rioting but resumed organizing after his release in 1897.
• In 1899, Birsa proclaimed a rebellion, targeting churches, police stations, and symbols of colonial rule.
• The British defeated the Mundas, arrested Birsa, who died in jail, and the movement faded.
• The Chota Nagpur Tenancy Act of 1908 was enacted to protect tribal lands from being taken by outsiders and abolished bethbegari.

Revolts in Meghalaya

• The Khasis, living between Jaintia and Garo hills in Meghalaya, revolted in 1829 against a British plan to build a road through their hills, which would displace them.
• Led by U. Tirot Sing, the revolt lasted until 1833 but was defeated by the British.
• In the late 1860s, house and income taxes sparked the Jaintia revolt, led by U. Kiang Nongbah, who was captured and publicly hanged to deter others.
• In 1872, the Garo hills revolt, led by Pa Togan Sangma, opposed British attempts to establish control but was also suppressed.
• Tribal revolts used primitive weapons like bows, arrows, and spears, while the British used advanced guns, making confrontations unequal.
• Despite defeats, these revolts led to some reforms, such as laws protecting tribal lands and recognizing their cultural identity.

Points To Remember

• Tribes across various regions of the country engaged in activities like hunting, gathering, herding, and both shifting and settled farming. For many tribes, such as the Mundas, the land belonged to the entire community, giving all tribal members equal rights to it.
• The British established numerous land revenue settlements, disrupting the traditional system of collective land ownership.
• The British took control of all forests, declaring them state property, which forced many jhum cultivators to migrate elsewhere in search of work and sustenance.
• During the 19th century, tribal groups were employed in the tea plantations of Assam and the coal mines of Jharkhand.
• The 19th and 20th centuries witnessed several tribal uprisings across the country, primarily driven by the drastic changes imposed on their lives under colonial rule.
• The Santhals, led by Kanhu and Sidhu, revolted against the British and their agents (zamindars and moneylenders) in 1855.