The social history of a Bengal town, 1872-1947

Abstract

There are two themes in this thesis. The first centres around the response of Burdwan, a small inland town in Bengal to the changes wrought by colonial rule. Urbanisation in Bengal was marked by two sharply contrasting patterns. On the one hand there was the growth of certain urban centres; this growth was facilitated by the commerce and industry of Hooghlyside, by Dacca's jute trade and (generally) by the well - being of the east, with the addition of the coal-mining at the edge of the Chhota Nagpur plateau. On the other hand there was a marked decline of towns as Burdwan which was chiefly due to the decay in agriculture and health that was inadvertently brought about by certain colonial policies. The second theme is the effect of colonial rule on the indigenous social structure. In pre-colonial times Burdwan had served as the head- quarters of a wealthy and powerful zamindan family. With the establishment of British paramountcy it was co-opted into the colonial administrative system by being designated as the district headquarters. In the process the Burdwan Raj family was divested of the formal judicial and administrative authority it had formerly enjoyed. In Chapters II, III and IV we examine the degree to which the three components of colonialism - administration, commerce and evangelism - contributed in varying degrees to bringing about limited changes in the physical and social structure of the town. The stress is on the word limited. The new economic and administrative system set up by the colonial rulers did allow for the rise of new men who were able to acquire wealth and influence in the town. At the same time colonial policies also tended to strengthen indigenous structures of power and authority. The most striking example of this is the Burdwan Raj family itself. Chapters IV, V and VI examine the degree to which the Burdwan Maharajas were able to preserve their position as premier patrons in the town, a position they did not lose even with the widening of political parameters brought about by both colonial and indigenous agencies. Show more