The system of Government developed by the European Nations after they had established their authority over Asia and many other countries of Africa is called Colonialism. Colonialism is established to protect and extend the interests of the foreign rulers. Its purpose is to establish authority over other countries and utilize the resources in the interest of the dominant nation. The European nations considered these countries a market for the consumption of their products and did not pay any attention to the development of these countries. As a result, the condition of the common man was worsened.
After the arrival of Vasco da Gama In the Sub-continent, the European traders began to arrive. As there was no unity among local rulers in the 16th century and their military force was also much weak, they could not face the machinations of the Portuguese. The Portuguese occupied Goa and the coastal areas around it. They inflicted many atrocities on the inhabitants of these areas. They fortified themselves and made much money by unfair means.
Pursuing the Portuguese, many other nations of Europe started to trade with Subcontinent. Among them, the French and the English are worth-mentioning. Like the English, the French began to settle on the coastal areas of Pandi Chari (India). They along with trade began to establish their authority in the Sub-continent. They fortified themselves and occupied various areas. Moreover, the French could not succeed against the British. The English drove the French out of Sub-continent and began to expand their authority rapidly.
The British East India Company got formal permission from Mughal Emperor Jehangir and Shah jehan to trade in the Sub-continent. East India Company established an outpost at Surat (India). After this, they established more outposts on the coast of Chennai.
During the eighteenth and nineteenth century, the British availed of the disunion and weaknesses of the local rulers and occupied most of the areas of the Subcontinent insidiously and collusively. A rapid expansion in the colonial rule of the English was seen after the Palasi War 1757 when they defeated the ruler of Bengal, Nawab siraj-ud-Doula by the support of Mir Jafar. In 1764, Mughal ruler Shah Alam Saani and Mir Qasim were defeated in the Battle of Buxar, and Bengal and Oadh were occupied by the British.
Hyder Ali, the ruler of Myrose, a powerful Muslim state, resisted against the increasing force of the British manfully. After the death of Hyder Ali, his son Sultan Fateh Ali Khan Tipu continued Jihad against the British. The British allied with the Nizam of Hyderabad and Marhattas in 1799. And martyred Sultan Tipu in the Battle of Myrose. With the death of Sultan Tipu, not only Myrose was occupied by the British, but their authority began to expand other areas also by the mid of nineteenth century, the British had reached to the west of the Sub-continent i.e. Punjab and NWFP (KPK)
The inhabitants of Sub-continent tried to restore their freedom and independence by terminating the British Government but they had to face failure because of poor planning, lack of organization and limited resources. Thus, the colonial rule of the British was established hand and foot in the Sub-continent. The East India Company finally came to an end in 1858 and the Sub-Continent was given under the direct control of the British Crown. The colonial rule of the British Government continued till 1947. This rule came to an end on 14th August, 1947. Thus, Pakistan and India came into existence as free and independent countries.
The strategy of the British:
To provide raw materials to feed the various manufacturing industries of Britain
To strengthen the British Economy to get its economic power acknowledged by the world
To use the Sub-continent as a market for British manufactures.
To get Britain acknowledged as a major military power in the world and to introduce the English as a superior nation.
To prolong the rule under the formula of “Divide and Rule” by exaggerating differences between the Muslims and the Hindus.