Indian Princely States
The Indian Princely states (aka Native States or Princely India) were those in the Indian subcontinent the British did not conquer but were typically bound by the treaty first to the East India Company and then to the British Crown. Many Indian princes consequently received 'protected' status, but this involved regular payments of tribute and/or concessions of territory.
The princely states varied greatly in size and at one time numbered up to 700 depending on the classification used. At first enjoying lucrative arrangements with Portuguese, French, and British traders (amongst others), many independent Indian rulers came to hold an ambiguous relationship with the ultimately dominant British East India Company (EIC). The EIC, and its successor from 1858, the British Crown, extracted wealth in return for military assistance and imposed its inspectors and foreign policy on native rulers. Many princes were left to rule as they always had done so that interference in internal affairs was often minimal. The princely states were merged into independent India or Pakistan after 1947, and their rulers were eventually pensioned off.
A Myriad of Principalities
The Mughal Empire had controlled much of India for centuries, but it went into decline in the 18th century. The power vacuum left by the Mughals in various parts of India was filled by the British East India Company (EIC) – an armed trading company – or rising powers like the Marathas in central India and the Sikhs in northern India. Amongst these larger powers were several hundred princely states, which ranged in size from a large farm to an area covering the size of Britain
TYPICALLY RULING THEIR STATE USING A FEUDAL STRUCTURE, INDIAN RULERS COULD BE IMMENSELY WEALTHY.
The precise number of princely states in any given period varies depending on the criteria administrators and historians have used to classify them. A broad range is from around 550 to around 700, depending on the period. In all, the princely states came to be inhabited by some 180 million people in 1857 (compared to 123 million in British-controlled India). The British were keen to call these rulers 'princes', not 'kings', and their territories 'princely states', not 'kingdoms', as a constant reminder that the British monarch was supreme. To further distinguish the latter, from 1877, the reigning British monarch was called the Emperor or Empress of India.
The British Raj c. 1930
Some hereditary rulers in the princely states traced their lineage so far back that there were no written records, only myths regarding their origins. Other ruling dynasties had established themselves in the Middle Ages, still, others were more recent and had acted as vassals of the Mughal Empire. Most rulers were autocratic (although very often revered by their people). The majority were male, but some women were governing these states, for example, Bhopal in north-central India had three female rulers (Begums) between 1844 and 1926, Manipur in the extreme northeast of India had occasional queens, and the ruling family of Cochin on the southwest coast inherited power through the matrilineal line.
Several smaller states might be grouped under the overlordship of a raja (Sanskrit for "king," "chief," or "ruler"). Several confederacies might join and be nominally ruled by a maharaja (a "great king"). Typically ruling their state using a structure of feudalism, rulers could be immensely wealthy from the natural resources in their state (anything from salt to diamonds), trade, and tribute from less powerful states. Several, like Cochin, had a long history of international contact, as reflected by their architecture such as Jewish synagogues, Christian churches, mosques, temples, and private mansions of English, Dutch, French, and Portuguese traders. Most states, though, remained insular and highly traditional in their political outlook and social and religious customs.
The most important Indian princely states included:
- Bahawalpur
- Baroda
- Bastar
- Bhopal
- Bikaner
- Cochin
- Cutch
- Gujarat
- Gwalior
- Hyderabad
- Indore
- Jaipur
- Jaisalmer
- Jammu & Kashmir
- Jodhpur
- Kalat
- Kengtung
- Kharan
- Las Bela
- Manipur
- Mysore
- Oudh
- Patiala
- Rewah
- Sikkim
- Travancore
- Udaipur
In modern usage, as many of the above names continue to be used today for cities and regions, they are often followed by the word 'state' or preceded by 'kingdom of' to denote a reference to the now defunct princely state, for example, 'Jaipur State' or 'Kingdom of Mysore'. Collectively, the states are sometimes called 'Princely India'. Additionally, not all the states were located in the area covered by today's modern state of India, some were located in what is today Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Myanmar, countries all formed after the British removed themselves from India in 1947.
The Expansion of the East India Company
From the mid-18th century, the EIC steadily took more and more control of the subcontinent, but it faced competition from other European trading companies. Sometimes Indian states would join forces with Britain's enemies. An example is Haidar Ali of Mysore who fought alongside the French and the Marathas to try and increase his control of southern India at the expense of the EIC. Ali's policies were continued by his son Tipu Sultan (1750-1799). Sometimes, as with Mysore's aggressive expansion, these wars brought the British new allies eager to defend their own boundaries, in this case, Travancore.
The final years of the 18th century saw a new policy direction for the EIC: 'Subsidiary Alliances' where princely states were persuaded or cajoled into accepting British protection, typically in the form of out-and-out conquest, battles, or sieges, or through the imposition of EIC garrisons paid for by the state either directly or in exchange for territory. While many states would have preferred the old status quo, some princes were enthusiastic to become protectorates since EIC troops helped them maintain their own positions of privilege and guard against
invasion and internal rebellion. The first protectorate under this system was Hyderabad in 1798. The Nizam of Hyderabad requested EIC troops in return for an annual fee. Mysore signed a treaty with the EIC in 1799. The Governor-General Lord Wellesley (in office 1798-1805) went on to sign around 100 treaties over the next seven years. Ever keen for greater wealth, more treaties and more EIC expansion followed under Wellesley's successors, notably in the region around Bombay (Mumbai) in the west and in northeast India and in what is today Nepal (1816) and Burma (1826).
Maharaja Holkar of Indore
The Doctrine of Lapse was abandoned, and princes were once again permitted to choose their own heirs, adopted or otherwise. Despite the British expansion, the independent Indian princely states still made up around two-fifths of Indian territory. As protectorates or enforced allies, most were allowed to conduct their own internal affairs independently, but their foreign policy was decided by the British. As the Viceroy Lord Curzon once stated, official British policy was to regard princes "not as relics, but as rulers, not as puppets, but as living factors in the administration" (James, 333).
A strict hierarchy of states was scrupulously maintained, as exemplified by the number of guns fired in official salutes, an honour greatly appreciated by rulers who themselves set great store in protocol and hierarchy. A state like Gwalior received the full 21-gun salute while others received 17, 11, or none at all. There were some material benefits to closer ties with Britain such as the construction of railways and the spread of telegraph wires. Princes were strongly encouraged to improve the infrastructures of their states such as sanitation, roads, schools, and hospitals. The results of this encouragement were patchy. Baroda in northwest India was a notable example of an Indian princely state with a much higher than average level of education, administration, and network of trains. Even if institutional and private racism were rife in the British Raj, there were attempts at what we today would call 'soft power'. Cricket was used as a means to bring East and West a little closer and was so widely adopted it ultimately became the national sport. In the other direction, the princely states offered the British elite an exotic world of jewels, galas, tiger-hunting expeditions, and polo matches.
The British tried to Anglicise the princes, continuing to impose a permanent Resident and encouraging their education or that of their children through the use of British tutors or even periods of study in England. Special colleges were established around India so that future rulers and administrators would be better integrated into the British Raj. Prominent princes like the maharajas were encouraged to visit Britain where they "were lionised by high society in London and on the continent. Regardless of their local means and status, they were universally regarded as exotic, powerful, and fabulously rich, fancies which they did nothing to dispel" (James, 324).
Aside from the more obvious colonial presence of soldiers and revenue collectors, the British displayed their power in more subtle ways, too, such as the use of British India postage stamps showing British monarchs but overprinted with the princely state's name. There was another, even more, public display of the British sway over the princes. The rulers of the princely states paid public homage to the British Crown at events like the durbar, which involved military processions and extravagant elements of shows such as parading elephants. The 1877 durbar to honour Queen Victoria's becoming Empress of India was attended by over 400 princes.
The 1903 Delhi durbar saw princes pay homage to the new king Edward VII (r. 1901-1910) represented by the Viceroy Lord Curzon. The 1911 durbar was even more spectacular since King George V (r. 1910-1936) attended in person. Both of these durbars were filmed, and the reels were later shown in cinemas back in Britain, convincing the public that the British Raj was a rule through consent and mutual esteem. This was not true, of course, but neither were all the princes fiercely anti-British. The Raj was, for many, a means to perpetuate their own autocratic rule.
India's Independence
Several princely states contributed troops to the war effort during Britain's involvement in the First World War (1914-18). With the increasing success of anti-British political parties like the Indian National Congress and All Muslim League, a few rulers were enticed to also become more politically active, but there was little collaboration between the princes and the 'home rule' movement. The Indian National Congress, although being anti-monarchy (British and Indian), did try and encourage (but not directly intervene in) some princely states to adopt more democratic structures, but these efforts met with little success. The recognised leader of the free India movement was Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948), and he was dismissive of the princes as nothing more than pawns nurtured by the British for their own ruthless game of empire. Indeed, some princes, like the Maharaja of Kashmir and Maharaja of Gwalior, forbade National Congress meetings in their territory.
In response to the changing times, the British formed the Chamber of Princes in 1921. The Chamber was composed of 120 princes and, presided over by the viceroy. it was designed only as an advisory and consulting body, but, nevertheless, an important bridge of contact was established between the princes and the British Raj. Unfortunately, little use was made of this bridge due to mutual suspicions, significant absences such as Hyderabad and Mysore, and a lack of clear purpose from the British on what exactly to do with these states in the face of growing calls for India's independence. Many of the princely states again helped the British during World War II (1939-45), contributing troops and money for gunboats, planes, and ambulances.
Many princely states retained some sort of independence until the end of the British Raj and full Indian independence in 1947, a negotiated process that the princes were not directly involved. The 584 remaining princely states signed an agreement on 15 August 1947 to come under the supervision of the new Indian government in New Delhi. Although some large states like Hyderabad had considered going fully independent, in the end, and either peacefully or by invasion (actual or the threat of), all the states were absorbed into the new political reality which followed the immediate partition of the subcontinent into India and Pakistan. Some princely states, notably Kashmir, remained disputed territory between India and Pakistan. In the 1950s, princes were effectively retired and given generous state pensions, a situation that continued until the early 1970s. The princely states might have disappeared, but one of their great legacies is the magnificent royal palaces dotted around the subcontinent, testimony to the power and wealth their owners once enjoyed