SPI History · Free notes
Modern India: SPI History
Modern India has 38 questions in the SPI bank, twelve from a practice paper and 26 from the LWS mock tests, and none from the 2022 paper. Half are EASY and half MODERATE, and not one is HARD: every question asks for a name, a place, a year or a reason that the NCERT Class 8 and Class 10 History books state plainly. So the pages are tables to learn in time order, from the Company's wars to the Poona Pact, with the traps where two answers sound alike.
The handout has every subtopic, worked example, formula and trap with answers shown. The formula sheet is the chapter’s formulas and traps alone, on one page.
Subtopic notes
Company Rule and the Revolt of 1857
6 questionsHow the East India Company took power from the Nawabs, Rajas and the Mughal emperor, and how the revolt of 1857 spread from Meerut before the British crushed it.
Social Reform and the Fight Against Caste
8 questionsThe reform societies of the 19th century, each with its founder, city and year, and the leaders who fought caste and untouchability into the 1930s.
Gandhi and the Non-Cooperation Movement
12 questionsFrom Gandhiji's return in 1915 to the end of Non-Cooperation in 1922: his first satyagrahas, the war years, Jallianwala Bagh, Khilafat, and how the movement spread and was called off.
From the Swaraj Party to the Poona Pact
12 questionsThe national movement from 1923 to 1932: the Swaraj Party, the Simon Commission, Purna Swaraj, the Salt March and Civil Disobedience, the Gandhi-Irwin Pact and the Poona Pact, with the books and songs of the movement.
Formula & revision sheet
0 formulas · 10 reference tables · 20 gotchas across all subtopics — the exam-eve cheat-sheet
Formula & revision sheet
0 formulas · 10 reference tables · 20 gotchas across all subtopics — the exam-eve cheat-sheet
Company Rule and the Revolt of 1857
Reference tables (2)
The Company, the Nawabs and the last Mughal9 rows
| Event | Year | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| Battle of Plassey | 1757 | Robert Clive defeated Sirajuddaulah, Nawab of Bengal |
| Battle of Buxar | 1764 | The Company defeated Mir Qasim of Bengal, the Nawab of Awadh and the Mughal emperor together |
| Diwani of Bengal | 1765 | The Mughal emperor gave the Company the right to collect revenue in Bengal |
| Subsidiary alliance | 1798 | Lord Wellesley: allies disbanded their armies and paid for Company troops |
| Doctrine of lapse | 1848 to 1856 | Lord Dalhousie: a kingdom with no male heir passed to the Company |
| Annexation of Awadh | 1856 | Taken over on the charge of misgovernment |
| Zafar's family to leave the Red Fort | 1849 | Dalhousie's announcement, for after Bahadur Shah Zafar's death |
| Zafar to be the last Mughal king | 1856 | Lord Canning's decision |
| Zafar's death | 1862 | Died in the Rangoon jail, in exile |
The revolt of 1857: where it began and who led it8 rows
| Centre | Leader |
|---|---|
| Barrackpore | Mangal Pandey, hanged before the Meerut rising |
| Meerut | The sepoys rose first, on 10 May 1857 |
| Delhi | Bahadur Shah Zafar, proclaimed leader; Bakht Khan led the soldiers |
| Kanpur | Nana Saheb, adopted son of the last Peshwa Baji Rao II |
| Lucknow | Begum Hazrat Mahal |
| Jhansi | Rani Lakshmibai |
| Arrah, Bihar | Kunwar Singh |
| Central India | Tantia Tope, Nana Saheb's general |
The years to keep apart: 1857 the outbreak, 1858 the Crown takes over, 1859 the British regain control.
Watch out for (5)
- Awadh was not taken by the doctrine of lapse→ The Company, the Nawabs and the last Mughal
- In 1849 Zafar was alive→ The Company, the Nawabs and the last Mughal
- Barrackpore is not where the revolt began→ The revolt of 1857: where it began and who led it
- Three years, three events→ The revolt of 1857: where it began and who led it
- Nana Saheb at Kanpur, the Begum at Lucknow→ The revolt of 1857: where it began and who led it
Social Reform and the Fight Against Caste
Reference tables (2)
Reform societies: founder, city and year9 rows
| Society | Founded | Founder or idea |
|---|---|---|
| Brahmo Sabha (Brahmo Samaj) | Calcutta, 1828 | Raja Rammohun Roy; drew on the Upanishads |
| Paramhans Mandali | Bombay, 1840 | Worked for the abolition of caste |
| Veda Samaj | Madras, 1864 | Inspired by the Brahmo Samaj; against caste, for widow remarriage |
| Prarthana Samaj | Bombay, 1867 | Followed the Bhakti tradition of spiritual equality of castes |
| Singh Sabha | Amritsar, 1873 | Sikh reform; a second Sabha at Lahore in 1879 |
| Satyashodhak Samaj | 1873 | Jyotirao Phule, for caste equality |
| Arya Samaj | 1875 | Swami Dayanand Saraswati; drew on the Vedas |
| Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental College | Aligarh, 1875 | Sayyid Ahmed Khan, modern education for Muslims |
| Ramakrishna Mission | 1897 | Swami Vivekananda, named after his guru Ramakrishna |
Leaders against caste and untouchability6 rows
| Leader or group | Known for |
|---|---|
| Jyotirao Phule | Book Gulamgiri (1873); Satyashodhak Samaj |
| Sree Narayana Guru | Kerala; "one caste, one religion, one god for humankind" |
| Periyar (E.V. Ramaswamy Naicker) | Self Respect Movement, 1925 |
| Dr B.R. Ambedkar | Temple entry movement (1927); Depressed Classes Association (1930) |
| Gandhiji | Called the untouchables Harijans, children of God |
| Sanatanis | Orthodox high-caste Hindus |
Watch out for (4)
- Prarthana Samaj and Paramhans Mandali are both from Bombay→ Reform societies: founder, city and year
- Veda Samaj, not Arya Samaj→ Reform societies: founder, city and year
- Sanatanis were the high castes→ Leaders against caste and untouchability
- Ambedkar's association, not Gandhi's→ Leaders against caste and untouchability
Gandhi and the Non-Cooperation Movement
Reference tables (3)
Gandhi's return, the first satyagrahas and the war years7 rows
| Year | Event | Place or detail |
|---|---|---|
| 1915 | Gandhiji returns from South Africa | January 1915 |
| 1917 | Champaran Satyagraha | Bihar, indigo planters |
| 1917 | Kheda Satyagraha | Gujarat, peasants who could not pay revenue |
| 1918 | Ahmedabad Satyagraha | Cotton mill workers |
| 1914 to 1918 | First World War | War loans, higher taxes, income tax brought in |
| 1919 | Rowlatt Act | Detention without trial for two years |
| 13 April 1919 | Jallianwala Bagh massacre | Amritsar, General Dyer |
Khilafat and the launch of Non-Cooperation5 rows
| Fact | Answer |
|---|---|
| Leaders of the Khilafat Movement | The Ali brothers, Muhammad Ali and Shaukat Ali |
| Khilafat Committee formed | Bombay, March 1919 |
| Non-Cooperation proposed | Calcutta session, September 1920 |
| Non-Cooperation adopted | Nagpur session, December 1920 |
| Party that did not boycott the 1921 council elections | The Justice Party of Madras |
How the movement spread and why it was called off5 rows
| Group | What they did |
|---|---|
| Students, teachers, lawyers | Left government schools, resigned, gave up practice |
| Peasants of Awadh | Led by Baba Ramchandra against landlords |
| Tribals of the Gudem Hills | Militant guerrilla movement under Alluri Sitaram Raju |
| Crowd at Chauri Chaura | Burnt a police station, February 1922 |
| Gandhiji | Withdrew the movement because it was turning violent |
Watch out for (6)
- Champaran is Bihar, Kheda is Gujarat→ Gandhi's return, the first satyagrahas and the war years
- The war meant was the First, not the Second→ Gandhi's return, the first satyagrahas and the war years
- Calcutta proposed, Nagpur adopted→ Khilafat and the launch of Non-Cooperation
- The Justice Party took part→ Khilafat and the launch of Non-Cooperation
- Raju's movement was not non-violent→ How the movement spread and why it was called off
- Called off for violence, not for lack of support→ How the movement spread and why it was called off
From the Swaraj Party to the Poona Pact
Reference tables (3)
The Swaraj Party, the Simon Commission and Purna Swaraj6 rows
| Event | Year | Key fact |
|---|---|---|
| Swaraj Party formed | 1923 | C.R. Das and Motilal Nehru, within the Congress |
| Simon Commission reaches India | 1928 | No Indian member; "Go back Simon" |
| Lahore Congress | December 1929 | Purna Swaraj resolution; president Jawaharlal Nehru |
| First Independence Day | 26 January 1930 | Celebrated after the Lahore resolution |
| Muslim League president | 1930 | Sir Muhammad Iqbal |
| Karachi Congress | 1931 | Resolution on Fundamental Rights |
Civil Disobedience, the Gandhi-Irwin Pact and the Poona Pact6 rows
| Event | Date | What happened |
|---|---|---|
| Salt March | 12 March to 6 April 1930 | Sabarmati to Dandi; Gandhiji broke the salt law |
| Civil Disobedience | From 1930 | Large-scale participation of women |
| Gandhi-Irwin Pact | 5 March 1931 | Movement called off; political prisoners released; Gandhiji to attend the Round Table Conference |
| Second Round Table Conference | London, 1931 | Gandhiji attended; talks broke down |
| Gandhiji's fast unto death | 1932 | Against separate electorates for Dalits |
| Poona Pact | September 1932 | Reserved seats for the Depressed Classes, general electorate |
Books, songs and images of the movement6 rows
| Work | Kind | By |
|---|---|---|
| Vande Mataram | National song (in the novel Anandamath) | Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay |
| Jana Gana Mana | National anthem | Rabindranath Tagore |
| Bharat Mata | Painting | Abanindranath Tagore |
| Hind Swaraj (1909) | Book | Mahatma Gandhi |
| The Discovery of India | Book | Jawaharlal Nehru |
| Gulamgiri (1873) | Book | Jyotirao Phule |
Watch out for (5)
- Motilal, not Jawaharlal→ The Swaraj Party, the Simon Commission and Purna Swaraj
- Lahore for Purna Swaraj, Karachi for Fundamental Rights→ The Swaraj Party, the Simon Commission and Purna Swaraj
- The salt law was not abolished→ Civil Disobedience, the Gandhi-Irwin Pact and the Poona Pact
- The 1932 fast was about electorates→ Civil Disobedience, the Gandhi-Irwin Pact and the Poona Pact
- Two Tagores, two works→ Books, songs and images of the movement
Question weightage by concept
10 concepts · 38 questions — where the marks actually sit, so you know what to drill first
Question weightage by concept
10 concepts · 38 questions — where the marks actually sit, so you know what to drill first
Company Rule and the Revolt of 18576 questions · 16%
| Concept | Qs | Share |
|---|---|---|
| The Company, the Nawabs and the last Mughal | 3 | 8% |
| The revolt of 1857: where it began and who led it | 3 | 8% |
Social Reform and the Fight Against Caste8 questions · 21%
| Concept | Qs | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Reform societies: founder, city and year | 4 | 11% |
| Leaders against caste and untouchability | 4 | 11% |
Gandhi and the Non-Cooperation Movement12 questions · 32%
| Concept | Qs | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Khilafat and the launch of Non-Cooperation | 5 | 13% |
| Gandhi's return, the first satyagrahas and the war years | 4 | 11% |
| How the movement spread and why it was called off | 3 | 8% |
From the Swaraj Party to the Poona Pact12 questions · 32%
| Concept | Qs | Share |
|---|---|---|
| The Swaraj Party, the Simon Commission and Purna Swaraj | 6 | 16% |
| Civil Disobedience, the Gandhi-Irwin Pact and the Poona Pact | 4 | 11% |
| Books, songs and images of the movement | 2 | 5% |
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