OPPapers.com

Cultures Of Jindia

Ancient India
India began as a small civilization, in the Indus Valley, on such sites as Mohenjo-Daro, Harappa, and Lothal (Keay 19). It was here that the early ancestors of Hinduism built their homes and civilization (Keay 19). Only later did Aryans arrive, signifying the change of period in India from Pre-vedic to Vedic (Keay 19). The first known invaders of India were Aryans (also mentioned sometimes as Indo-Aryans) (Keay 20). It is believed that the Aryans arrived in north India somewhere from Iran and southern Russia at around 1500 B. C. (Keay 20). It is during this Vedic Period that Hinduism takes hold as one of the major religions in this region (Keay 20). It is in the reign of the Mauryas that Hinduism took the shape that fundamentally informs the religion down to the present day (Keay 20). The most important and historically relevant section in Indian History is its long period of British Occupation which was finally lifted with the help of Mohandas Karamchand ('Mahatma') Gandhi (Keay 21). This allowed India to become today's largest Democratic government (Keay 21).
British Occupation
The British Empire's occupation of India began in the late 17th century (Keay 383). They began as merchant ventures and their holdings on the land were relatively small (Keay 383). Over the years they had expanded, creating forts for protection and larger trading stations (Keay 383). Eventually, to make certain that there would be stability and a successful trade business, Britain deployed many of its armed forces there and also raised forces of natives, thus becoming an active power in 18th Century India (Keay 384). Sometimes by their design but also sometimes by accident, the area of British control began to increase (Keay 384). Their expansion lasted until nearly the entire sub-continent was apart or effected by the empire by the year 1857 (Keay 384). It was in this year that the "great imperial war" or "Indian Mutiny" arose (Keay 384).
It began in May...