Author : Basudev Chatterji
Publisher : Oxford University Press, USA
Page : 544 pages
File Size : 52,8 Mb
Release : 1992
Category : Business & Economics
ISBN : STANFORD:36105002253230
Trade, Tariffs, and Empire by Basudev Chatterji Pdf
The period between the end of the First World War and the outbreak of the Second was one of major disturbances in the international economy. These resulted in important changes in Britain and India, and in their relationship. This book analyses the extent and quality of changes within the economic aspects of British imperialism in India, and explores the calculations and compulsions that went into the making of economic policy in London and Delhi between 1919 and 1939. The main focus is on the Lancashire textile industry, the decline of whose India trade during this period was of both absolute and symbolic significance in the history of Indo-British relations. The affairs of Lancashire are studied within the broader context of the decline and eventual collapse of the pre-1914 international economic order; the influence of British industrial and financial interests; and the imperatives arising out of massive unemployment in Britain. At the same time, policy-making in India is examined in the context of nationalism; the threats posed to the Raj by growing political activity; the economic interests and political attitudes of businessmen; and the priorities of the Government of India. Situated within this comprehensive context, the story of Lancashire provides a useful medium of analysis for the larger themes of economic and political change, and their relative importance in the reshaping of Britain's imperial system. Drawing on a wealth of private and official sources, this book provides fresh insights into the purposes and strategies of the Raj in its penultimate phase. It criticizes and complements current historiography on British imperialism in India, as well as on the process of decolonization.
