Before the British colonised India where did it's borders reach!? I assume all of modern day Pakistan obviously but what other modern countries/areas were part of India before divide and rule!?Www@QuestionHome@Com
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Position:Home>History> What were the boundaries of India before the British invasion?Question: What were the boundaries of India before the British invasion!? Before the British colonised India where did it's borders reach!? I assume all of modern day Pakistan obviously but what other modern countries/areas were part of India before divide and rule!?Www@QuestionHome@Com
Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: India was not and never had been a single state until the British Raj brought the whole sub continent under British rule!. There were states such as the Maharatta Confederacy, Assam, Bengal, Sikkim, various Neo Moghul States, a Sikh State, Nepal etc!. So the British did not really devide and rule as such, in fact they pulled together a huge subcontinent encompassing a myriad of different kingdoms and states, and populated by people of many different races, cultures, languages and religions into one state!. In fact many Hindus, ruled by Muslim minorities were very sympathetic to the British, and helped them overthrow their Islamic masters!. The British did not invade India and take it over in one go, but gradually picked off the many nations in the Sub Continent, either then ruling them directly or via native puppet rulers!. To a degree Tibet, Nepal and at Various times Afghanistan were ruled by proxy puppet rulers also!. also, Goa was left as a Poruguese enclave, as was Pondicherry left to France!. The British Raj could loosely be regarded as encompassing all of modern India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Burma, Nepal, and to some extent at least, Tibet and Bhutan also!. PS; It is also a misconception that Britain invaded and conquered a militarily backward and unsophisticated sub continent!. Many of the Indian Armies not just outnumbered, but outgunned British forces also!. Some having more Heavy Cannon(with expert gunners), Muskets, Cavalry than the British, and some weapons, such as the Tulwar, were vastly superior to the British cavalry sword in combat!.Www@QuestionHome@Com First divide and rule has nothing to do with the partition of India!. India was not 'invaded'!. It started as a commercial enterprise by the East India Company!. At the time the Indian sub-continent was ruled by Maharajahs governing their principalities - much like Germany and Italy!. Those areas of the sub-continent which came under British influence stretched from what is now Pakistan in the west to what is now Bangladesh in the east and from the foothills of the Himalayas in the north to the southern most tip and beyond (it included Sri Lanka)!.Www@QuestionHome@Com Sorry to be a pedant - but Britain did not invade!. Britain took over the business of India, and eventually the government - no invasion necessary!. See: http://en!.wikipedia!.org/wiki/British_Eas!.!.!. and http://en!.wikipedia!.org/wiki/British_Ind!.!.!. This includes a (fairly poor) map of India under the Mughals - but as Britain more or less took over the role of the Mughals the map in British India on Wikipedia is quite accurate http://en!.wikipedia!.org/wiki/Mughal_Empi!.!.!.Www@QuestionHome@Com India has always been a group of states that often did not get along, such as Bengali and Assam!. They had much more power individually until the British organized them and ruled from Delhi and later New Delhi!. The borders were similar to the pre-division India under colonial rule!.Www@QuestionHome@Com They stayed about the same the british just took control of the countryWww@QuestionHome@Com |