An Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Freedom Movement, 1747-1947

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The present work An Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Freedom Movement is the fifth publication under the ongoing series An Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Indian History and Culture and it aims at being a handy reference manual for understanding the saga of Indian freedom struggle. The story has epic dimensions and is liable for more than one interpretation.

Although India lost to the British at the battle of Plassey in 1757, it never gave up and continued to fight for its independence. The so-called Sepoy Mutiny of 1857 was the first war of independence. The years between 1876 and 1884 proved to be the seed time for Indian nationalism which took a definite shape with the formation of the Indian National Congress in 1885. By and large, the Congress party spearheaded the freedom movement, which culminated in partition of the country and independence in 1947.

The present study is divided into four sections dealing with historical perspectives, the proper dictionary of freedom movement containing more than four hundred self- contained compact entries arranged in an alphabetical order, chronology of major events and dates and an exhaustive bibliography of more than two hundred titles on the subject matter.

AN. Kapoor After obtaining MA.. D.Phil. in English from Allahabad University, Dr. Kapoor taught English at Agra and Delhi Universities for over four decades and has edited, compiled and authored more than hundred titles including reference books, encyclopaedias and language dictionaries. His dictionary of geographical terms published in 1955 was the first work of its kind in Hindi.

His comprehensive English-Hindi Dictionary stands as the crowning work of the four decade long effort. The lexicon is considered a work of tremendous relevance for the entire gamut of bilingual activity. being undertaken in the country as almost all levels of our social system, educational institutions and government departments.

V.P. Gupta: A former Professor at Delhi University, Chief Editor, Macmillan India and Deputy Director, Institute of Constitutional and Parliamentary Studies. V.P. Gupta is presently Secretary, Radha Kamal Mukerji Memorial Society. While he has been engaged in teaching, research and publishing activity for the last four decades, he has of late been concentrating on a study of Indian Freedom Movement, its ideas, events, personalities and forces which have laid the foundations of contemporary India along with all its triumphs and tragedies.

Mohini Gupta: A constant collaborator in the intellectual pursuits of her husband V.P. Gupta she is co-author in a number of his publications including an Encyclopaedia of History and Culture of Punjab, and biographical studies of Raja Rammohun Roy, Swami Dayanand Saraswati, Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Lala Lajpat Rai, Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel and Dr. B.R. Ambedkar. A two-volume study of India since independence critically examines the triumphs and tragedies of Indian people during the last fifty five years. These books brought out in both the languages-English and Hindi-have been widely acclaimed as the harbinger of awarmness about the ideals of our freedom struggle.

The present volume An Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Freedom Movement is the fifth publication under our ongoing series An Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Indian History and Culture. The preceding four volumes dealt with Mythology, Ancient India, Medieval India and Modern India.

An Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Freelom Movement aims at being a handy reference manual for understanding the saga of Indian freedom struggle. Although India lost to the British at the battle of Plassey in 1757, it never gave up and continued to fight for its independence. There were a number of uprisings against the foreign domination during the period 1757-1857. Shah Alam II, the fugitive Mughal emperor (1728-1806) conducted three expeditions against the English but was defeated each time. The two Nawabs of Bengal-Mir Jafar and Mir Kasim-were puppets of the East India Company but they were keen to throw off the yoke of the British. The Bengal zamindars, particularly the Raja of Birbhum and the Raja of Burdwan rose against the British in 1760. Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan were uncompromising opponents of the growth of the British power in India. Velu Tampi of Travancore entered into secret negotiations with the French authorities to expel the British. Chait Singh of Benares and Wazir Ali of Oudh fought the British to save their honour.

The so-called Sepoy Mutiny of 1857 was the first war of independence. It was a failure and was crushed in a ruthless and vindicative manner. The revolt had far-reaching constitutional implications. It put an end to the rule of the John Company and the administration of the country passed under the direct control of the British Crown. Queen Victoria announced that the British government did not have any desire to extend its territorial possessions.

Book's Contents and Sample Pages