1880 to First World War: Anti- Imperialism and Pan-Asian Feeling

After 1878, the British undertook a number of expansionist expeditions which were opposed by the nationalists. These expeditions included—

● the Second Afghan War (1878-80);

● the dispatch of troops by England in 1882, to suppress the nationalist uprising by Col. Arabi in Egypt;

● annexation of Burma in 1885;

● invasion of Tibet under Curzon in 1903; and

● a number of annexations during the 1890s in the north-west to stop the Russian advance. The nationalists supported the tribal resistance to these adventures by the British.

In place of an aggressive imperialism, the nationalists advocated a policy of peace. C. Sankaran Nair, the Congress president in 1897, said, “Our true policy is a peaceful policy.” So, the emerging themes during 1880-1914 were—

1. solidarity with other colonies fighting for freedom, such as Russia, Ireland, Egypt, Turkey, Ethiopia, Sudan, Burma and Afghanistan;

2. pan-Asian feeling reflected in—

● condemnation of annexation of Burma in 1885,

● inspiration from Japan as an example of industrial development,

● condemnation of the participation of Japan in the international suppression of the I-Ho-Tuan uprising (1895),

● condemnation of the imperialist efforts to divide China,

● defeat of the Czarist Russia by Japan which exploded the myth of European superiority,

● Congress support for Burma’s freedom.