Colonial Domination and Victorian Period: Analytical Essay

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Colonial Domination and Victorian Period: Analytical Essay

Introduction

The study of the Comparative Empire in the Victorian period by classically educated civil servants frequently invoked classical analogies. James Mill, whose writings were heavily influential in the conceptualization of imperialism, frequently drew examples from Roman civilization in his History of India, justifying imperial rule as a necessity due to the inferior, uncivilized nature of Indian culture. The likening of India`s position under control to that of Britain`s under Roman rule was a common, standard theme in the writings of other writers of the imperial century, such as Thomas Macaulay and Charles Grant. As stated by Sir Alfred Lyall, and later quoted by Lord Cromer, imperialists sought to invoke the classical past in imperialism by seeking the history of imperial Rome for any facts or commentaries gleaned from the ancient times which might be of service to the modern empire of which we are so justly proud of. The comparison here is obvious both imperial powers proclaimed it their divine purpose to govern, supposedly in the interests of their subjects. By extending their own laws and civilization over the territories they governed, both empires established widespread order and peace. By the time of the Roman Empire`s eventual decline, many of its inhabitants lamented its loss, showing the popularity of its rule. When comparing time periods, rule in India was fleeting compared to centuries of Roman dominion. However, the perception of the success of the Empire in emulating the Roman Empire, as compared to attempts by other imperial nations such as Spain and France, is evident from its praise by President Roosevelt in 1909, who commended Britain as the most colossal example in history, achieving a greater feat than was performed under the Roman Empire. This dissertation shall analyze the extent to which the Empire managed to create a similar sense of unity and loyalty among its subjects, or whether its disintegration and its colony’s subsequent independence was instead celebrated, by focusing on 19th century India, where key characteristics of the colonial state were consolidated, shaped significantly by the Indian Mutiny of 1857. I shall begin by exploring the political ideology of Victorian Britain to understand how the civilizing mission was conceptualized, and how classically educated imperial administrators frequently invoked the classical past to reaffirm the strength and permanence of rule in India. Following this, I shall analyze how the Roman example might even serve as an anti-model to Britain, especially in the aftermath of the Mutiny, where imperialists were forced to reframe imperialism in response to the Indian rebellion to paramountcy. Finally, I shall discuss how the imperial iconography of Queen Victoria was used to validate this new model of imperialism, then conclude by considering the modern implications of the rule in India.

Study of Comparative Empire

The interest in classics in the study of the Comparative Empire reveals the significant interplay between Victorian culture and power politics, and how the subject of the empire was easily analogized to the classical world. Social, cultural, and political forces such as the complex interplay between education, race, elitism, and nationhood prompted Englishmen to make natural and immediate comparisons to ancient Rome in connection with Empire. The understanding of how these comparisons were historically conditioned, constituted, and constructed by the contemporary circumstances of Victorian Britain, as will be explored in this dissertation, will allow us to understand how imperialists related to ideas of identity, imperialism, and the reception of classical antiquity. Although imperialist thought of the 19th century was often historically inaccurate, and at times ethnocentric, racist, or condescending, analyzing how and why such attitudes were constructed and sustained will allow us to understand how the classical tradition entitled those who studied it to obtain and retain their imperial power, and hence its popularity in imperialists conceptualization of imperialism.

Javed Majeed asserts that the method of comparative inquiry used in the Victorian period was inextricably tied to the practices and discourses surrounding colonialism and imperialism. As early as the 18th century, imperial administrators studied Indian cultural history from a comparativist point of view, with Sir William Jones comparing the linguistic similarities of Sanskrit with that of Persian, Latin, and Greek. Sir Henry Maine`s comparative writings of ancient and modern imperialism (such as Ancient Law (1861)) which in turn influenced other imperialist writings on law, culture, and history, illustrate the use of Classics by non-academics though many with a background in Classics such as James Bryce and John Seeley served in some sort of academic capacity alongside their imperial careers. The Victorian political culture thus saw an institutionalized study and use of antiquity to participate in colonial and imperial discourses and to establish and legitimize a unique connection between the Romans and Empires.

Introduction to imperialism civilizing mission on both sides of the debate

In seeking a classical Roman past in imperialism, we must be wary of how the experiences of modern imperialism influence how Roman history is interpreted by scholars. Earlier in the imperial century, had expanded into territories such as Australia and Canada for the purposes of settlement and trade. Later in the 19th century, their focus shifted to acquiring territories that would be strategically beneficial to the securing of their empire. Similarly, while the Romans justified their territorial wars as strictly defensive, the period of expansion within which the Roman Empire came to be the dominant force in the world was motivated by more than just security objectives of protecting against outside forces. Roman imperialism can be traced back to three motives that Thucydides claimed for Athenian imperialism as well fear, profit, and honor. Not simply for trading benefits, the profits desired by the Romans came about through the direct exploitation of the conquered peoples the collection of war booty, and more significantly, tribute paid. Furthermore, the Romans and both came to believe it was their destiny by providence to conquer the world. Frequent classical quotations during parliamentary debates show the more or less explicit analogies between both empires, with Disraeli validating imperialism with the use of his phrase imperium et Libertas. The term imperialism itself was only introduced into the context of politics in the 1870s by Liberal leader Gladstone to denounce Disraeli`s imperial policies, which he denounced as ostentatious and aggressive. The term was then reappropriated in support of imperialism, by figures such as Joseph Chamberlain, designating a policy of philanthropy and idealism in the Empire`s colonial pursuits.

While the study of imperialism has expanded to contain its economic, cultural, systemic, and temporal aspects, this dissertation shall focus on the moral side of imperialism in India, focusing on how the classics aided in the justification of presence in India during the imperial century. Classical analogies were used to illustrate the imperial duty of administrators to promote and protect the native people’s human rights, uplifting them from the slough of traditionalism and cruelties such as the Hindi suttee custom, and the remarrying of child widows. This notion of benevolence which took root in the imperial century became known as the civilizing mission, with the moral prescriptions of idealists such as Edmund Burke leading to the expansion of Christian missionary work and the promotion of civilized values that would improve economic productivity and raise the living standards of the Indian people. Reformers such as Macaulay, influenced by Burke`s emphasis on moral rule, advocated for the transformation of the Indian education system to be more in line with the mother country to allow for the upward progression of its society, showing how imperial policies were heavily guided by their supposed moral purpose. However, the Indian Mutiny of 1857 resulted in a reassessment of the Victorian’s liberal imperialist ideology, and the belief of good governance as allowing for the reform of the native, uncivilized India. On one hand, some challenged the rhetoric of a civilizing mission, and the belief that Indian society could progress with imperial aid was replaced with a conviction that India should be ruled with a heavy hand. However, others maintained the conviction that the imperialist remained steadfast in their commitment to fulfill their moral duty and establish ordered liberty in India, both for the benefit of their subjects and to achieve their own greatness as an imperial power. Much of this debate took place back in Britain, such as in parliament, with the continued emphasis on the civilizing mission serving to strengthen imperial support among the public, bolstering the imperialists’ moral authority, and justifying their rule over India.

Victorian Context to Studying Roman Empire

Particularly in the Age of Enlightenment, rapid social change created a heightened awareness of the modernity of the imperial century as compared to the medieval period, conceptualizing the 19th century as an age of social and technological advancement. Social theorists of the Victorian period, such as Darwin, Marx, and Freud, aimed to reframe the past to explain the present, such as by using evolutionary ideas of society, species, race, and of the person, to understand and justify present imperial goals. In this regard, we see historical consciousness taking a new shape in the imperial century, with Victorians looking to classical antiquity to frame current political discourses. Historical writings referencing the classical past, such as Macaulay`s History of, became sources of power and authority, framing public discourse in Victorian Britain. Just as Virgil, Livy, and Varro wrote of Augustus and his Roman Empire, intellectual leaders such as Macaulay justified the rise of the Empire by mirroring it to Augustus’ own rule, in order to create a unique political identity and ideological past for the Victorians. Other Victorian writers such as Bryce and Cromer referred to Virgil as an imperialist and late Victorian writings found congeniality in Theodor Mommsen`s assertion of Augustus as sharing power with the Senate, rather than having absolute command of the Empire In contemporary discourses surrounding imperialism, the benevolence of the imperial project necessitated the consideration of local involvement in the government, and the classics were thus significant in framing this as graciousness, rather than a concession to the orientalism of the native Indians. In the context of the Enlightenment, Gibbon`s The History of the Decline and Fall of the Romans frames empire-building figures of antiquity and presents as gloriously searching for virtue and truth, asserting that any potential prejudice or superstition can be absolved by the purifying rationalism of philosophy. This shows how contemporary ideals were expressed in imperial ambitions alongside classical Roman ideals. The Victorians looked to Virgil`s Aeneid to frame the relationship between the imperial mission and national destiny, noting Jupiter`s prophecy of an imperium without end, with no limits in time and space. With this definition of empire, Rome`s eventual fall does not pose as a deterrent to its usefulness in the contemporary period but instead allows the Victorians to use Rome as a historical framework within which could claim its authority as an imperial power for themselves. This is known as a translation imperii (transfer of rule) the view of history as a linear succession of transfers of an imperium, where the supreme power is invested in a singular ruler or emperor, in this case, the imperial administrators of Empire, represented by the monarch. Britain`s position as a global imperial power is validated by the establishment of a political kinship with Rome. Referencing antiquity in imperial ideology served to present Empire as Rome`s successor. The imperial mission is thus seen as promising a global, expanding empire, with this hope manifested with the phrase Greater Britain used to indicate the permanence and superiority of the Empire.

In presenting Empire as superior to its ancient Roman precedent, the Victorians constructed an image of Rome as a corrupt empire, with this portrayal persisting today and shaping current stereotypes (topoi or cliches) of the Roman Empire. The reiterations of certain ideas as the standard of the Roman Empire, for instance, the cruelty of emperors, can be credited to the profusion of Victorian works about the Romans. Their reappropriations or recognition of the classical past contributed to the articulation and circulation of modern stereotypes of classical antiquity. As such, when looking at the reception history of Victorian works, one must take into account the fine boundaries between popular and elite learning, and whether history was approached in an intellectual or common capacity. Even when focusing on the formal study of the Roman Empire, one must be cautious of the circumstances in which such viewpoints are constructed, as they shape how classical antiquity is received, and how the Victorian legacy of the Roman world frames our understanding of the classical tradition.

Looking at the study of classical reception in India from a postcolonial lens, this dissertation shall analyze how knowledge of and claims to the Roman imperial past defined imperial power, and how they aided in the construction of structures of domination in India. Rather than simply referring to historiography in the period after formal independence from colonial rule, postcolonialism connotates a way of questioning, rather than rejecting, the laws surrounding classical representations of imperial power in India. Edward Said`s Orientalism puts Foucauldian discourse analysis on the power relationships in society, expressed through language and practices, into its colonial context. Rather than simply criticizing how misrepresented native Indian society as inferior to their own, one should examine the norms and values that defined those modes of representation in other words, how and why the Roman imperial past was significant to imperialists in defining their relationship with their Indian subjects. The cultural representations constructed and imposed by conceptions of power had implications on the structures of knowledge that shaped the thinking of both the colonized and colonizer, even after decolonization.

Said`s postcolonial perspective disavows the need to hypothesize a more accurate representation of imperial power, free from colonial prejudice. Rather than simply a perpetuation of the binary oppositions between an Indian race, with references to Rome`s relationship with the provinces, Bhabha asserts that the stereotype of the colonized Indians as uncivilized to justify the civilizing mission was unfixed, with a varied depiction of Indian subjects as static and helpless, on one hand, and anarchic and capable of progress on the other hand. imperialists sought the advancement of Indian society which could only be achieved through colonial domination, through the insistence on dissociating between the superior and inferior Indian races. The insecure nature of imperial authority is thus highlighted by analyzing how constantly reinforced their authority through repeated classical references so that they could claim Roman imperial power for themselves. Simultaneously, classical references also served to reject the negative characteristics of Roman imperialism, so as to construct, present, and legitimize a unique, superior ideology of imperialism.

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