Annexation of Awadh - February 11th 1856: UPSC Exam Preparation
The Annexation of Awadh on 11th February, 1856, was an important event in modern Indian history. In this article, you can read about the events leading to the annexation of Awadh by the East India Company and its aftermath for the IAS exam.
Background about the Kingdom of Awadh
The Awadh, (called Awadh by the British) State was a princely state in the Awadh region of North India.
As the Mughal Empire declined and decentralized, local governors in Awadh began asserting greater autonomy, and eventually Awadh matured into an independent polity governing the fertile lands of the Central and Lower Doab. With the British East India Company entering Bengal and decisively defeating Awadh at the Battle of Buxar in 1764. After this battle Awadh came under the British sphere of influence.
The capital of Awadh was Faisalabad British Agents, officially known as "residents' ', had their seat in Lucknow. The Nawab of Awadh was considered among one of the richest princes, paid for and erected a Residency in Lucknow as a part of a wider programme of civic improvements.
● After the Battle of Buxar, in which the combined armies of the Nawab of Awadh (Shuja-ud-daulah), the Nawab of Bengal and the Mughal Emperor was defeated by the British, the British established themselves as the chief power throughout the region. ● In 1765, the Treaty of Allahabad was signed in lieu of which the company was to receive Rs.50 lakh from Awadh, get possession of Allahabad district, and be allowed to trade freely in Awadh. In return, both the parties were to help each other in case of war with any other power. ● In May 1816 the Kingdom of Awadh became a British protectorate. ● Wajid Ali Shah was the Nawab of Awadh from 1822. He was the tenth Nawab and was to be the final one. ● He was an accomplished poet and playwright and a patron of the fine arts. He was not a bad administrator but the British resident at Awadh gave a damning report of his administration. The British were hoping to annex the kingdom on some pretext or the other. As per Dalhousie’s Doctrine of Lapse, the British would annex a kingdom if there was misrule also. ● Accordingly, the Kingdom of Awadh was annexed without bloodshed in February 1856. Wajid Ali Shah was exiled to Calcutta where he lived the remainder of his life. ● Awadh played an important part in the Indian Rebellion of 1857. Wajid Ali Shah’s son joined hands with the rebels. The British lost control of the kingdom for a brief while but regained in 18 months. ● After that, the region was merged with the North Western Frontier Province and called the North Western Frontier Province and Awadh. ● It was renamed United Provinces of Agra and Awadh in 1902. In 1904, it was renamed the Agra Province in the United Provinces.
Aftermath of the Annexation
The loss of Awadh only added to the existing tensions between the British and the local populace. The simmering resentment would only boil over as the revolt of 1857, with Awadh being as one of the many focal points of the rebellion
Between 5 July 1857 and 3 March 1858 there was an upheaval by the son of the deposed king joining the Indian Rebellion of 1857. At the time of the rebellion, the British lost control of the territory; they reestablished their rule over the next eighteen months, during which time there were massacres such as those that had occurred in the course of the Siege of Kanpur
After Awadh’s territory was merged with the North Western Provinces, it formed the larger province of North Western Provinces and Awadh. In 1902, the latter province was renamed the United Provinces of Agra and Awadh, and in 1904 the region within the new United Provinces, corresponding to the former North Western Provinces and Awadh, was renamed the Agra Province