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British India facts for kids

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British India was the area of India in South Asia which for hundreds of years was under the influence of the English (later the British). From the 1600s until 1858 these areas were run by the English East India Company. After 1858 until 1947 they became the British Raj. Some areas were under the direct rule of the Governor-General of India. He was appointed by the Government of the United Kingdom in London, and was a Viceroy, meaning, the deputy of Queen Victoria. In princely states where an agreement was reached, the traditional rule continued, but the British had an influence.

After 1876 when Queen Victoria become Empress of India, British India was part of the British Indian Empire, which also included hundreds of Indian princely states which had never been conquered by the British and still had control of their own affairs. These were each ruled by local rulers under the protection of the British. This empire is sometimes called the British Raj.

British India ruled from the east included the regions of the present-day of the People's Republic of Bangladesh, Republic of India, Burma and Pakistan (1858–13th August 1947).

Provinces

At independence in 1947, British India had seventeen provinces.

India was split into Union of India and Dominion of Pakistan. Twelve provinces (Ajmer-Merwara-Kekri, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Assam, Bihar, Bombay, Central Provinces and Berar, Coorg, Delhi, Madras, Panth-Piploda, Orissa, and the United Provinces) became provinces within India. Three (Baluchistan, North-West Frontier, and Sindh) were in Pakistan. Two (Bengal and Punjab) were shared between India and Pakistan.

In 1950, after the new Indian Constitution, the provinces in India were replaced by states and union territories. Pakistan kept its five provinces. East Bengal, which was renamed East Pakistan in 1956, became the independent nation of Bangladesh in 1971.

Images for kids

  • Fort William, Calcutta, 1735

    A mezzotint engraving of Fort William, Calcutta, the capital of the Bengal Presidency in British India 1735.

  • British Indian Empire 1909 Imperial Gazetteer of India

    A map of the British Indian Empire in 1909 during the partition of Bengal (1905–1911), showing British India in two shades of pink (coral and pale) and the princely states in yellow.

  • Joppen1907India1700a

    The Indian peninsula in 1700, showing the Mughal Empire and the European trading settlements.

  • India1760 1905

    The Indian peninsula in 1760, three years after the Battle of Plassey, showing the Maratha Empire and other prominent political states.

  • IGI1908MadrasTown2(1)

    The presidency town of Madras in a 1908 map. Madras was established as Fort St. George in 1640.

  • IGI1908IsleBombay2(1)

    The presidency town of Bombay (shown here in a 1908 map) was established in 1684.

  • IGI1908CalcuttaTown2

    The presidency town of Calcutta (shown here in a 1908 map) was established in 1690 as Fort William.

  • IGI1908India1765a

    Map of India in 1765.

  • Joppen1907India1795a

    Map of India in 1795.

  • Joppen1907India1805a

    Map of India in 1805.

  • Joppen1907India1823a

    Map of India in 1823.

  • IGI1908India1837a

    Map of India in 1837.

  • Joppen1907India1848a

    Map of India in 1848.

  • IGI1908India1857b-coloured

    Map of India in 1857.

  • Joppen1907BritishBengalBritishBurmaA

    Expansion of British Bengal and Burma.

  • Pope1880NorthWesternProv2

    North-Western Provinces, constituted in 1836 from erstwhile Ceded and Conquered Provinces.

  • Pope1880Panjab3

    Punjab annexed in 1849.

  • Pope1880Oudh2

    Oudh annexed in 1856.

  • Pope1880BritishIndia1

    British India in 1880: This map incorporates the Provinces of British India, the Princely States and the legally non-Indian Crown Colony of Ceylon.

  • IndiaPolitical1893ConstablesHandAtlas

    The Indian Empire in 1893 after the annexation of Upper Burma and incorporation of Baluchistan.

  • Jopen1907IndianEmpire1907a

    The Indian Empire in 1907 during the partition of Bengal (1905–1912).

  • IndianEmpireCeylon1915

    The Indian Empire in 1915 after the reunification of Bengal, the creation of the new province of Bihar and Orissa, and the re-establishment of Assam.

  • Pope1880MadrasPres2

    Madras Presidency shown in an 1880 map.

  • Pope1880BombayPres2

    Bombay Presidency in an 1880 map.

  • Pope1880BengalPres2

    Bengal Presidency in 1880.

  • Pope1880CentralProv2

    An 1880 map of Central Provinces. The province had been constituted in 1861.

  • IGI1908CPandBerar2

    1908 map of Central Provinces and Berar. Berar was included in 1903.

  • Pope1880Beluch2

    Beluchistan, shown as an independent kingdom along with Afghanistan and Turkestan, in an 1880 map.

  • IGI1908Beluchistan2

    Baluchistan in 1908: the Districts and Agencies of British Baluchistan are shown alongside the States, mostly: Kalat.

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Presidencias y provincias de la India británica para niños

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