Posted on: 27 July 2010

The British in India

The textile trade :
The British East India Company - named to distinguish it from British trade in the West Indies - was founded in 1599 mainly to counter Portuguese domination of the spice trade. As soon as the British set up trading settlements in India, however, they were impressed by the quality of the textiles they found there. These had normally been used as goods for barter with the spice producers of Indonesia.

The painted and printed cottons, known as chintzes, were especially admired, as they had fast, bright colours superior to anything produced in Europe at that time. It was textiles, therefore, rather than spices which soon came to dominate trade between India and Britain.

The local designs on the painted cottons were considered unsuitable for British tastes, and specifications came from England as to how they should be modified. The result was a hybrid 'exotic' style, usually based on flowering tree patterns, which was used on wall-hangings, bedspreads and clothing throughout the eighteenth century.

The growth of Company power :
Rivalry for trading privileges between the East India Companies of Britain and other countries, especially France, was so strong that the Companies set up their own armies to defend their interests. Conflict between Britain and France during the Seven Years' War in Europe (1756-63) led to hostilities in India too, and the two countries began to wage war for control of southern India.

Robert Clive - now known as Clive of India - led the British armies to victory and effectively ended French influence in South India, while offering protection to the local rulers who had supported him. Clive also overcame both the French and local rulers to take power in Bengal in eastern India.

The Company grew immensely wealthy, and created great cities at Calcutta, Madras and, later, Bombay. During the eighteenth century, British merchants and administrators commanded luxurious households, and elegant furniture was made by Indian craftsmen to European taste.

Local materials such as ivory, ebony and rosewood were used to great effect and beautifully crafted desks and chairs were produced, especially in Bengal and Vizagapatam on the east coast.

Tipu Sultan :
By no means did all the local rulers comply with British administration. One of the most vigorously opposed to British rule was Tipu, Sultan of Mysore. His father, Haidar Ali, had already started challenging British supremacy in southern India in 1769, and four Mysore Wars were fought up to 1799. Tipu was killed in the decisive battle of Seringapatam in that year, fulfilling to the last his motto that 'it is better to die as a tiger than to live as a sheep.'

The decline of the Company :
By the mid-nineteenth century, Britain had annexed huge areas of India. British administrators imposed stringent taxes and laws and damaged the livelihood of Indian craftsmen by importing cheap mill-made cloth from Lancashire. Widespread discontent erupted among Indian troops in 1857, and the Company's troops lost control of much of northern and central India. In the wake of the revolt, the East India Company was abolished by the British Government, who took over direct responsibility for governing India. The last vestiges of the Mughal empire were also abolished, and in 1876 Queen Victoria was named Empress of India.

India became a key part of the British Empire, and Victorian influence on the Indian way of life, architecture and craftsmanship was very strong. Objects in the ornate Victorian taste were made for export to Britain, or for local rulers emulating the Victorian style in their palaces. Indian skills drew widespread admiration at the great international exhibitions that took place during the nineteenth century. The apparent placidity of the British Raj - a Sanskrit word meaning rule - was short-lived, however. The Indian National Congress, founded in 1885, pressed for independence from Britain, which was eventually achieved in 1947.

With independence came renewed pride and interest in traditional crafts which, in many cases, had almost died out through lack of patronage. The textile arts in particular came to symbolise national self-sufficiency as European imports were rejected, and a new Indian middle class evolved to take the place of the Mughal and British patrons of the arts.

Image :
Dress made of Chintz, around 1770-1780
Caraco (Jacket) and petticoat
Designer unknown Around 1770-1780
Cotton, painted and dyed
Coromandel Coast, India (fabric), England (tailored)
Museum no. 229&A-1927

The fabric for this dress came from southeast India, and was made up in England in the eighteenth century. Chintz became so popular it was eventually banned in England and France because it was threatening local textile industries.

Source : V&A Museum, London


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I just enjoy this "stuff" so much Subbiah ! Really great synopsis of Brit History in India in this preamble .I always think of my great x3 grandfather arriving in the midst of this era in 1792 aged sixteen ...imagine !Joined the HEIC army Wonder if he ever wrote any memoirs of his experiences not recorded for posterity .His last will and testament is at this family website .In it he leaves a lump sum amount from"the Company" to a relative while he provisions for the care of seven offspring and his native wife .I think his demise is in 1840 ; he had become a prosperous carriage maker in Girgaum Bay, Bombay .I feel glad that he was not involved in the mutiny of 1857 .Really ! Genealogical Collett Family History In India created by cousin Valmay Young in Surrey UK [see FB ...also administers FIBIS at FB ] bears great testament to the waning years of Raj in the subcontinent .Wonderful portrait of sausage-curled coiffure in an overstuffed Victorian portrait is to be found here of Mary Regina Collett ;second spousefrom 1812 , of my great x3 grandfather Lewis Andrew Collett http://valmayukuk.tripod.com We should be mindful of that and leave behind us small personal histories relevant to the times we live in with photo journals . some future descendant is going to enjoy the connection to our memories I hope nobody objects to this entirely personal intrusion here .I feel so connected to this history of India ; land of my birth .I revel in the beauty in the treasure trove of memorable material down thru the centuries presented by RBSI .SO glad Subbiah Yadalam took on this labour of love

hi where can i find more books/articles on textile/fashion history which is related to migration?i find this particular article very interesting!thanx a lot for this!

Thank you Yvonne...your comments are always so genuine and interesting !

Chintz......pretty,flowery,beautiful.....and so very versatile! Is it the same as 'chheent' in Bangla,i wonder??

@Word "chintzy' has derogatory connotations too ...as in "cheap" cottons

@Sheersha ...an encyclopaedia at your fingertips ... http://search.yahoo.com/search?p=india+textile+museums+

beautiful!

beautifully dress!!!!

well they were not just impressed by the quality of the textiles, sir! they were impressed by everything they saw! including textiles.....

wonderful!

Monica's probably right about chintz coming from chheent, though I've also heard that it comes from Chinsurah. It was never cheap, even compared to silk as a furnishing fabric, but when the British Parliament banned its import into England, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chintz, it probably acquired derogatory associations there!

the brits banned everything that they felt would harm their industry and took away everything beautiful, which they had no way of creating !!!!

I'm reading Will Durant's 'The Case for India' and wish it were available online, if only for it's shattering (and myth shattering) synopsis of the harm done to the Indian economy. It was banned by the British Government of India at the time of its publication in 1930 (Simon & Schuster), but has been republished recently by Strand Book Stall in Mumbai.

Chintz - glazed and unglazed A term which has been modified over time due the confusion of its finish and designs and linkage with cretonne and calico. The word is said to be derived from the Hindu cheita or Sanskrit citra meaning spotted, v...ariegated or coloured or Asian Indian chint [plural chintes] meaning fabric and given to a kind of stained or painted calico produced in India. If I am not mistaken the word CHINTZ is locally known Cheent (meaning stain / splash of water or colour or any stain that leaves a mark) This was available in local markets and used by poor people as the fabric was of poor quality and prints too bright to be worn by upper class. Recently it was promoted by Fab India.