History Medieval India - MCQs – Set 3

Q.1. Malik Kafur was the lieutenant of which Delhi Sultanate ruler?

(a) Muhammad Bin Tughlaq 

(b) Alauddin Khilji 

(c) Firoz Shah Tughlaq 

(d) Jalaluddin Khilji

Q.2. Which of the following Mughal emperors was a proficient Veena player?

(a) Akbar

(b) Jahangir

(c) Shahjahan

(d) Aurangzeb

Q.3. Thomas Roe was sent to the court of Mughal emperor Jahangir as an official ambassador of which British monarch?

(a) James I

(b) King George V

(c) Queen Mary

(d) Queen Elizabeth 

Q.4. Who of the following reigned the longest?

(a) Akbar

(b) Babur

(c) Shah Jahan

(d) Jehangir

Q.5. The Mansabdari system introduced by Akbar was borrowed from where?

(a) Afghanistan

(b) Turkey

(c) Persia

(d) Mongolia

Q.6. Which of following Sultans of Slave (Mamluk) dynasty was the first to issue regular currency and declare Delhi as the capital of Delhi Sultanate? 

(a) Iltutmish

(b) Balban

(c) Aram shah

(d) Nasiruddin mahmud

Q.7. Which of the following rulers of Delhi Sultanate was the first to introduce the practice of Sajda (Sijdah) and Paibos (kissing feet) befor the Sultan? 

(a) Iltutmish

(b) Balban

(c) Jalauddin Khilji

(d) Muhammad Tughlaq

Q.8. In which year did Shah Jahan, the sixth Mughal emperor, ascend to the throne?

(a) 1627

(b) 1628

(c) 1629

(d) 1639

Q.9. During the rule of which Delhi Sultanate ruler did Ibn Batuta (Battutah) visit India?

(a) Firoz Shah Tughlaq

(b) Alauddin Khilji

 (c) Muhammad bid Tughluq 

 (d) Ghiasuddin Tughlaq

Q.10. Who was the last ruler of the Delhi Sultanate?

(a) Ibrahim Lodi

(b) Bahlul Khan Lodi

(c) Barbak Shah Lodi

(d) Sikandar Lodi

Answers

Q.1. - (b)

Malik Kafur was Alauddin’s lieutenant and Man Friday. He successfully executed his master’s expeditions to the South India and brought immense wealth from the South Indian kingdoms after demolishing many temples.

 Q.2. - (d)

The 6th Mughal emperor Aurangzeb had banned music in the tenth year of his reign, i.e. 1668, even though he personally enjoyed it.

Q.3. - (a) 

Sir Thomas Roe stayed at Jahangir's court from the end of 1615 till the end of 1618.

Q.4. - (a) 

Akbar reigned from 1556 to 1605 

Q.5. - (d) 

Mansabdari system, a unique feature of the administrative system of the Mughal empire, was introduced by Akbar with a view to organizing his nobility as well as army. It was borrowed from Mangolia. 

Mansabdar (holder of a rank, or an officer) is a title derived from the word Mansab which is of Arabic origin and means a rank or a position.  

Q.6. - (a) 

Iltutmish was the first Sultan of Delhi who issued regular currency and declared Delhi as the capital of his empire.

Q.7. - (b) 

Those who attended the court of Mamluk (Slave) Sultan were supposed to observe sizda (prostration before the sultan) and paibod (kissing his feet). These practices were considered un-Islamic. Balban was also the first Indian ruler to introduce the celebration of the Persian new year (Nao-roz or Navroz) in India.

Q.8. - (b) 

Shah Jahan ascended the Mughal throne at Agra in February 1628. 

Q.9. - (c) 

A native of Morocco, Ibn Battutah was an Arab traveller who arrived at Multan in 1333 during the rule of second Tughlaq ruler Muhammad bid Tughluq. After serving for eight years as the Qazi (judge) of Delhi, he was dismissed from the post by the Tughlaq Sultan.

Q.10. - (a) 

Ibrahim Lodi, the last of the Lodi rulers of the Delhi Sultanate, is a famous personality in the Indian history whose defeat by Babur, the founder of the Mughal empire, in the first Battle of Panipat in 1526 led to the foundation of a new dynasty, named the Mughal empire, in India which lasted till 1857.

History Medieval India - MCQs – Set 2

Q.1. Which of the following Delhi Sultanate rulers had prohibited Muslim women from worshipping the graves of saints?

(a) Alauddin Khilji

(b) Muhammad Bin Tughlaq

(c) Firoz Shah Tughlaq

(d) Sikander Lodhi

Q.2. Which of the following Delhi Sultanate rulers had earned the sobriquet of ‘Lakh Baksh’? 

(a) Qutb-ud-din Aibak

(b) Balban

(c) Jalaluddin Khilji

(d) Ghiasuddin Tughlaq

Q.3. Zain-ul-Abidin who forbade cow slaughter in his Sultanate was a ruler of 

(a) Bengal

(b) Kashmir

(c) Khandesh

(d) Madurai

Q.4. Which battle was declared by Babur a Jihad (holy war)?

(a) First Battle of Panipat

(b) Battle of Chanderi

(c) Battle of Khanwa 

(d) Battle of Ghagra

Q.5. The architectural raw material most widely used in Akbar's period was_________

(a) Redstone

(b) Marble

(c) Brick

(d) Limestone

Q.6. Abdur Razzaq was sent to the court of Vijayanagar ruler Dev Raya II as an ambassador of 

(a) Sultan Shah Rukh of Persia

(b) Sultan Bahzad of Turkey

(c) Sultan Alauddin of Iraq

(d) Sultan Bahaman of Egypt

Q.7. Who was the first ruler of Delhi Sultanate who paid his soldiers in cash?

(a) Iltutmish 

(b) Allauddin Khilji

(c) Muhammad Bin Tughlaq

(d) Firoz Shah Tughlaq

Q.8. Which of the following monuments has Alai Darwaja as its gateway?

(a) Adhai Din Ka Jhonpra 

(b) Quwwat-ul-Islam mosque

(c) Zamat Khana Masjid 

(d) Firoz Shah's tomb 

Q.9. Who was the only converted Muslim ruler to ascend the throne of Delhi Sultanate? 

(a) Kaiqubad

(b) Khusrav Khan

(c) Kayumars

(d) Ala-ud-din Masud Shah

Q.10. This Delhi Sultanate ruler was told by his theologian Qazi Mughisuddin that his acts were violation of the Shariat. Yet the Sultan went out of his way to defy the shariat. Who was he?

(a) Alauddin Khalji

(b) Muhammad bin Tughlaq

(c) Ghiyasuddin Balban 

(d) Sikandar Lodi

Answers

Q. 1. - (c) 

Firoz Shah Tughlaq was a religious bigot. He had prohibited Muslim women from worshipping the graves of saints?

Q. 2. - (a) 

According to the contemporary Muslim historians, Qutub-ud-din Aibak was famous for his generosity and was known as ‘lakh-baksh’ (giver of lakhs).      

Q. 3. - (b) 

Zain-ul-Abidin is known to be the greatest Kashmiri Muslim ruler. He was given the title of Budshah (the Great king)

Q. 4. – (c) 

The Battle of Khanwa was fought between Babur and Rana Sanga of Mewar in 1527. 

Q. 5. – (a)

Redstone was the most widely used architectural raw material in Akbar's times. 

Q. 6. – (a)

Abdur Razzaq was a Persian who was sent by Timur's son and successor Shah Rukh as ambassador to the Zamorin of Calicut. In April 1443, Abdur Razzaq also visited Vijayanagar during the reign of Devaraya II.

Q. 7. – (b)

Alauddin Khilji was the first Delhi Sultan to pay his soldiers in cash.

Q. 8. – (b)

Alai Darwaza (Gateway of Alauddin) was built in 1311 by Alauddin Khalji, the second ruler of the Khilji dynasty. It is the southern gateway to the Quwwat-ul-Islam mosque in Delhi. 

The material used in the construction of Alai Darwaza  is red sandstone and white marble, with inlays of black marble and blue schist.

Q. 9. – (b)

Khusrav Khan was a low-caste (Hindu) Baradu convert from Gujarat who was made the wazir, malik naib and Commander in Chief of the Khilji dynasty by the Khilji Sultan Mubarak Shah against the advice of his nobles.

In April 1320, Mubarak Shah was murdered by Khusrav Khan bringing the Khilji dynasty to an end. Khusrav Khan ascended the throne of Delhi under the title of Nasir-ud-din Khusrav Shah and tried to strike a veritable reign of terror by murdering the relatives, friends and those loyal to the Khilji Sultan.

Q. 10. – (a)

“I decree what I think is in the best interest of the state; I do not care whether it conforms to the shariat or not”, said Alauddin Khalji in a conversation to Qazi Mughisuddin.

History Quiz - 1

 Q. 1. Which Mughal Emperor had conferred the title of 'Raja' on Ram Mohan Roy?

(a) Shah Alam II 

(b) Akbar II

(c) Shah Jahan III 

(d) Bahadur Shah Zafar

Q. 2. Which organization was founded by Ram Mohan Roy and Debendranath Tagore in 1828?

(a) Brahmo Sabha

(b) Tattwabodhini Sabha

(c) Prarthna Samaj

(d) None of these

Q. 3. Who had called Raja Ram Mohan Roy the Father of Modern India?

(a) Gopal Krishna Gokhale

(b) Mahatma Ghandhi

(c) Bal Gangadhar Tilak

(d) Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose

Q. 4.  Who was the ruler of Delhi Sultanate when Guru Nanak was born?

(a) Khizr Khan

(b) Mubarak Shah

(c) Bahlol Lodhi 

(d) Sikandar Lodhi 

Q. 5. What was the capital of Mahajanapada of Anga?

(a) Ujjayini

(b) Champa

(c) Suktimati 

(d) Ayodhya

Q. 6. Who is the author of Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri?

(a) Muhammad Saleh 

(b) Nizam-ud-din Ahmad

(c) Mirza Muhammad Kazim

(d) Jahangir

Q. 7. Which Delhi Sultanate ruler introduced the system of auditing the accounts?

(a) Muhammad bin Tughlaq 

(b) Sikandar Lodhi

(c) Alau-ud-din Khiliji

(d) Balban

Q. 8. Which Delhi Sultanate ruler was a Sunni Muslim and ordered the idol at the Jwalamukhi temple at Nagarkot to be?  

(a) Sikandar Lodhi

(b) Firuz Shah Tughlaq

(c) Alau-ud-din Khiliji

(d) Qutab- d-din Aibak

Q. 9. Who was the founder of Lodhi Dynasty?

(a) Sikandar Lodhi 

(b) Bahlol Lodhi

(c) Ibrahim Lodhi

(d) Daulat Khan Lodhi

Q. 10. Which Delhi sultanate ruler transferred his capital from Delhi to Agra?

(a) Sikandar Lodhi

(b) Bahlol Lodhi

(c) Ibrahim Lodi

(d) Mubarak Khilji

Answers

Q-1-(b)

In 1830 Raja Ram Mohan Roy went to England as an envoy of the penultimate Mughal Emperor, Akbar II, to the court of King William IV. It was Akbar II, also known as Akbar Shah II, who gave him the title of Raja. 

Q-2-(a)

The Brahmo Samaj was founded on 20 August, 1828 in Kolkata by Rammohan Roy and Debendranath Tagore

Q-3-(a)

Gopal Krishna Gokhale called Roy the ‘Father of Modern India’. 

Q-4-(c)

Nanak was born on 15 April 1469 at Talwandi, near Lahore, then ruled by Lodi dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate. At that time Lodi dynasty was ruled by its founder Buhlul Lodi who was its ruler from 1451 to 1489. 

Q-5-(b)

Situated in Bhagalpur district of Bihar, Champa was the capital of Anga, one of the 16 Mahajanapadas in the sixth century BC. It was of great commercial importance.

Q-6-(d)

Written in Persian, Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri (or Jahangirnama) is the autobiographical account of fourth Mughal Emperor Jahangir who ruled from 1605 to 1627. 

Q-7- (b)

Sikandar Lodhi introduced the system of auditing of accounts and tightened the espionage system.

Q- 8- (a)

Firuz Shah Tughlaq  

Q-9- (b)  

Bahlul (also written as Buhlol, Bahlol and Buhlul) Khan Lodi was the founder of the Lodi dynasty, the last of the five dynasties, the combination of which is known as Delhi sultanate.

Q- 10- (a) 

Sikandar Lodi, the second ruler of the Lodi dynasty, transferred his capital from Delhi to Agra.

History MCQs – Set 6 - Modern India

Q. 1. Who planted the 'Tree of Liberty' at Srirangapatnam?

(a) Tipu Sultan

(b) Hyder Ali

(c) Chikka Krishnaraja

(d) Devraj

Q. 2. Which battle put an end to the French challenge to British supremacy in India? 

(a) The Battle of Plassey

(b) The Battle of Buxar

(c) The Battle of Wandiwash

(d) The Battle of Seringapatam

Q. 3. Who among the following had introduced the revenue collection method Ryotwari System in India? 

(a) Thomas Munro 

(b) Lord Cornwallis

(c) Holt Mackenzie

(d) None of these

Q. 4. Where did Moplah Uprising break out in 1921?  

(a) Andhra Pradesh

(b) Kerala

(c) Karnataka

(d) Tamil Nadu

Q. 5. Who among the following was/were associated with the organization “Servants of India Society”?

(a) Gopal Krishna Gokhle

(b) Amritlal Vithaldas Thakkar

(c) Both a and b 

(d) None of these

Q. 6. Who has authored the book 'The Light of Asia' ?

(a) Charles Wilkins

(b) Sir Edwin Arnold 

(c) Edwin Lester Arnold

(d) None of these

 

Q. 7. Who among the following leaders attended the inaugural meeting of Indian National Congress?

(a) Dadabhai Naoroji

(b) Kashinath Trimbak Telang

(c) Pherozeshah Mehta

(d) All of the above

Q. 8. Who had taken potshots at Indian National Congress as representing only microscopic minority of the people?

(a) Lord Dufferin

(b) Lord Elgin

(c) Lord Curzon

(d) Lord Hardinge

Q. 9. “(The Indian National) Congress is tottering to its fall, and one of my greatest ambitions while in India is to assist it to a peaceful demise.” To whom is this statement attributed?

(a) Lord Dufferin

(b) Lord Elgin

(c) Lord Curzon

(d) Lord Hardinge

Q. 10. Who had called Indian National Congress a 'begging institute'?

(a) Aurobindo Ghosh

(b) Bipin Chandra Pal

(c) Chittaranjan Das

(d) Madan Mohan Malviya 

Answers

Q. 1 – (a) 

Tipu Sultan had planted the 'Tree of Liberty' at Srirangapatnam. 

Q. 2 – (c)

The Battle of Wandiwash was a battle in India between the French and the British in 1760. 

Q. 3 – (a) 

The Ryotwari system was introduced in 1820 by Thomas Munro when he was governor of Madras. It was introduced in Madras (Chennai), Bombay, parts of Assam and Coorg provinces of British India.

Q. 4 – (b) 

Mappila or Moplah Rebellion took place in the southern taluks of Malabar in Kerala in 1921. It as an armed uprising against British authority and Hindu landlords, called  janmis , in Malabar, Kerala in 1921. The leader of the Moplah Rebellion was Variamkunnath Ahmad Haji. Moplah rioters were severely dealt with by the British authorities. 

Variamkunnath Ahmad Haji was shot dead on January 20, 1922. 

Q. 5- (a) 

Gopal Krishna Gokhle had founded Servants of India Society in 1905. Amritlal Vithaldas Thakkar

was a devout member of the Servants of India Society 

Q. 6- (b) 

Sir Edwin Arnold is the author of the book 'The Light of Asia' . 

Q. 7- (d) 

During the viceroyalty of Lord Dufferin the Indian National Congress (INC) was founded by A. O. Hume and S. N. Banerjee  in 1885.

Q. 8- (a)

Lord Dufferin was the Viceroy and Governor-General of India from 1884 to 1888. 

Q. 9- (c)

In 1900 in a letter to the British Secretary of State, Lord Curzon wrote, “(The Indian National) Congress is tottering to its fall, and one of my greatest ambitions while in India is to assist it to a peaceful demise.” Curzon was the youngest Viceroy of India from 1899 to 1905. 

Q. 10- (a)

Aurobindo Ghosh was defended in the Alipur Bomb Conspiracy case by Cittaranjan Das who had founded the Swaraj Party. 

History MCQs – Set 5 - Modern India

Q.1. In which year did the Deccan Riots take place?

(a) 1875

(b) 1880

(c) 1885

(d) 1890

Q.2. Who was the leader of the Munda Rebellion of 1899?

(a) Jaipal Singh Munda

(b) Ram Dayal Munda 

(c) Birsa Munda

(d) Sidhu Murmu 

Q.3. Who put forward the Drain of Wealth theory in his book ‘Poverty and Un-British Rule in India’?

(a) Pherozeshah Mehta

(b) Dadabhai Naoroji 

(c) Surendranath Banerjea

(d) Badruddin Tyabji

Q.4. During the tenure of which Governor General were the railways introduced in India?

(a) Lord Dalhousie

(b) Warren Hastings

(c) Lord William Bentinck 

(d) Lord Cornwallis

Q.5. Who was the first President of the Asiatic Society of Bengal?

(a) Sir William Jones 

(b) Sir John Shore 

(c) Sir Charles Wilkins

(d) Sir John Anstruther

Q.6. Who established the Arya Samaj in 1875?

(a) Dayananda Sarasvati

(b) Ram Mohan Roy

(c) Gopal Krishna Gokhale

(d) Swami Vivekanand

Q.7. In which battle was the Bengal Nawab Mir Qasim finally defeated by the English East India Company?

(a) Battle of Buxar

(b) Battle of Plassey

(c) Battle of Sarangpur

(d) Battle of Khajwah

Q.8. Which Sikh ruler signed the Treaty of Amritsar in 1809 with the British East India Company?

(a) Gulab Singh

(b) Ranjit Singh

(c) Kharak Singh

(d) Dalip Singh

Q.9. In the eighteenth century Jagat Seth (Banker of the world) used to control the economy of which province? 

(a) Rajashtan

(b) Deccan

(c) Bengal

(d) Gujarat

Q.10. Ghasiti Begum, Shaukat Jung, Rajballabh and Yar Latif Khan count among the sworn enemies of

(a) Shuja-ud-Daula

(b) Alivardi Khan

(c) Murshid Quli Khan

(d) Siraj-ud-daulah 

Answers

Q. 1 - (a)

The farmers’ agitations that started in the Pune-Ahmednagar region of Maharashtra in 1875 were known as Deccan Riots. The uprising began due to usurious interest rates charged by the money lenders. 

On May 12, 1875, the uprising began in the village of Supa in Poona district. The farmers attacked houses and shops of the money lenders.

Q. 2 - (c)

Munda Rebellion was led by Birsa Munda in the region south of Ranchi in 1899-1900.

Q. 3 - (b)

A critic of British economic policy in India, Dadabhai Naoroji was known for his enunciations of the Drain Theory in his paper, Poverty and Un-British Rule in India.

Q. 4 - (a)

The first railway line connecting Bombay and Thane in 1853 was started during the governor generalship of Lord Dalhousie who is known as the "Father of Indian Railways". 

Q. 5 - (a) 

Sir William Jones is the first president of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, founded in 1784. In 1789, William Jones translated Kalidasa’s Sakuntala. He followed it by translating Gita Govinda and the law-book of Manu which was published posthumously in 1794 under the title Institutes of Hindoo law.

Q. 6 - (a)

Original name of Dayananda Sarasvati was Mula Sankara. He was the founder of the Arya Samaj in 1875. 

Q. 7 - (a)

Battle of Buxar was fought on 22nd October in 1764 between the English and the combined armies of Mir Qasim ( the nawab of Bengal), Shuja-ud-Daula ( the nawab of Awadh) and the Mughal emperor Shah Alam II. The battle resulted in the defeat of the allied forces.

Q. 8 - (b)

The Treaty of Amritsar was signed in 1809 between the Sikh Empire founder Ranjit Singh and Charles T. Metcalfe, representing the British East India Company. 

Q. 9 - (c)

In the eighteenth century Jagat Seth (Banker of the world) used to control the economy of the province of Bengal. 

Q. 10 - (d)

Ghasiti Begum was the eldest sister of the mother of Siraj-ud-daulah while Shaukat Jung was his cousin. 

History MCQs – Set 4 - Modern India

Q. 1. Who was the leader of the Revolt of 1857 in Assam?

(a) Maniram Dewan

(b) Dev Kanta Baruah 

(c) Lachit Barphukan

(d) Kushal Konwar

Q. 2. Who among the following tribal leaders was called Father of the World and regarded as an incarnation of God?

(a) Birsa Munda

(b) Sidhu Murmu 

(c) Kanhu Murmu 

(d) Nanak Bhil

Q. 3. Which Indian historian had said about the Revolt of 1857: “On the whole, it is difficult to avoid the conclusion that so-called First National War of Independence is neither First, nor National, nor a war of independence.”

(a) Jadunath Sarkar

(b) D. N. Jha

(c) Ram Sharan Sharma

(d) R.C. Majumadar

Q. 4. Who led the Revolt of 1857 in Bihar?

(a) Kunwar Singh

(b) Mangal Pandey

(c) Tantiya Tope

(d) Nana Saheb

Q. 5. Which among the following was the first to sign the Subsidiary Alliance Treaty with the British? 

(a) Tanjore

(b) Hyderabad 

(c) Berar 

(d) Awadh

Q. 6. Which British Governor- General applied the policy of Subsidiary Alliance to expand the power and influence of the East India Company?

(a) Lord Dalhousie

(b) Warren Hastings

(c) Lord Wellesley  

(d) Lord Cornwallis

Q. 7. Who was the leader of the Narkelberia Uprising in Barasat in Bengal?

(a) Syed Mir Nisar Ali or Titu Mir

(b) Haji Shariatullah

(c) Dudu Miyan

(d) None of the above

Q. 8. Name the system of land revenue settlement introduced in Bengal in 1793?

(a) Permanent Settlement

(b) Ryotwari system 

(c) Zabti or Bandobast system

(d) Mahalwari system

Q. 9. Who wrote the play Neeldarpan which describes the oppression of the indigo planters on the indigo cultivators? 

(a) Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay

(b) Dinabandhu Mitra

(c) C. F. Andrews 

(d) Bankim Chandra Chatterjee

Q. 10. The newspaper edited by Harish Chandra Mukherjee used to publish the demands to reform indigo cultivation. What was the name of the newspaper?

(a) Indian Mirror

(b) Samvad Kaumudi

(c) Bengal Journal

(d) Hindu Patriot

Answers

Q. 1- (a) 

Maniram Dutta Baruah, famously known as Maniram Dewan (17 April 1806 – 26 February 1858), along with Piyali Barua, was publicly hanged at Jorhat jail for waging war against the British during the revolt of 1857. He comes lauded as India’s first tea planter.  

Q. 2- (a) 

Contribution of Birsa Munda to Indian freedom struggle is immense. Known as ‘Dharti Abba’ or 'Father of the Earth', he was born on November 15, 1875 in the Ulihatu village of Kunti district in Jharkhand. This tribal leader died in Ranchi Jail on June 9, 1900, at the age of 24. 

Q. 3- (d) 

 “On the whole, it is difficult to avoid the conclusion that so-called First National War of Independence is neither First, nor National, nor a war of independence.” This statement was made by R.C. Majumadar In his book The Sepoy Mutiny and the Revolt of 1857.

Q. 4- (a) 

A Rajput zamindar, Kunwar Singh was a leader during the Indian Rebellion of 1857.  Born at Jagdishpur village in Bihar in 1777, he died on 26 April, 1858 of the wounds he sustained during the fight with the British forces. 

Q. 5- (b) 

The Indian states and rulers who entered into Lord Wellesley’s Subsidiary Alliance System were Mysore, Hyderabad, Tanjore, Berar, Awadh, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Bharatpur, Macheri, Bundi, and the Peshwa. Of them, the Nizam of Hyderabad was the first Indian ruler to sign the Subsidiary Alliance Treaty with the British in 1798.

Q. 6- (c)

The British Governor- General Lord Wellesley had applied the policy of Subsidiary Alliance to expand the power and influence of the East India Company. 

Q. 7- (a)

Syed Mir Nisar Ali or Titu Mir had led the Narkelberia Uprising in 1831.  

Q. 8- (a)

Zamindari System was introduced by Lord Cornwallis in 1793 through the Permanent Settlement Act. 

Q. 9- (b)

Dinabandhu Mitra is known for his novel Nil Darpan (The Mirror of Indigo) which describes the oppression of the indigo cultivators at the hands of indigo planters, leading to the Indigo Revolt in Bengal in 1859. 

Q. 10- (d)

Harish Chandra Mukherjee was the founding editor of the Hindu Patriot through which he exposed the atrocities on the indigo planters.

History MCQs – Set 3 - Modern India

 Q.1. In which city was Mahatma Gandhi assassinated on 30 January, 1948?

(a) Delhi

(b) Bombay

(c) Kolkata

(d) Allahabad

Q.2. Who was the Prime Minister of Britain when India became independent? 

(a) Clement Attlee

(b) Winston Churchill

(c) Neville Chamberlain

(d) Ramsay MacDonald

Q.3. In which year did Burma (Myanmar) cease to be a part of India?

(a) 1924

(b) 1935

(c) 1936

(d) 1937

Q.4. How many volunteers had accompanied Mahatma Gandhi on the famed Dandi March or Salt Satyagraha starting on March 12, 1930?

(a) 76

(b) 77

(c) 78

(d) 79

Q.5. Name the city where Satyagraha Sabha was formed by Gandhi in 1919 to protest against the Rowlatt Act.  

(a) Bombay

(b) Lahore

(c) Calcutta

(d) Ahmedabad

Q.6. Who among the following was a source of inspiration to Gandhi?

(a) Tolstoy

(b) Lenin

(c) Karl Marx

(d) None of the above

Q.7. Who among the following was the Governor-General of India during the Sepoy Mutiny, also known as Indian Mutiny by the British?

(a) Lord Dalhousie

(b) Lord Ellenborough

(c) Lord Canning

(d) Lord Auckland

Q.8. Who was the commander-in-chief of the army of Bahadur Shah Zafar during the Revolt of 1857?

(a) General Bakht Khan

(b) Khan Bahadur Khan Rohilla

(c) Azimullah Khan 

(d) Ahmadullah Shah

Q.9. Who declared eleven year old Birjis Qadr the Nawab of Oudh after the exile of Wajid Ali Shah to Calcutta during the Revolt of 1857?

(a) Begum Hazrat Mahal 

(b) Begum Zeenat Mahal

(c) Sultana Chand Bibi 

(d) Abadi Bano Begum

Q.10. Where did Kuka movement take place with a view to overthrowing the British rule?

(a) Odisha

(b) Bihar

(c) Travancore 

(d) Punjab

Answers:

Q. 1- (a)

Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated by Nathuram Vinayak Godse on 30 January 1948 in the compound of Birla House in New Delhi.

Q. 2- (a)

Clement Attlee was the Prime Minister of Britain when India became independent. He belonged to the Labour Party. 

Q. 3- (d)

Britain had separated Burma province  from India in 1837 and made it a crown colony.

Q. 4- (c)

78 volunteers had accompanied Mahatma Gandhi on the famed 24-day Dandi March which lasted from 12 March 1930 to 6 April 1930. This march on foot covered 240 miles (390 km). It is also called Salt Satyagraha.  

Q. 5- (a)

Gandhiji founded Satyagraha Sabha in 1919 at Bombay to protest against the Rowlatt Act. 

Q. 6 - (a)

The Kingdom of God is Within You written by Leo Tolstoy greatly influenced Gandhi. 

Q. 7 - (c)

Lord Canning was the Governor-General of India during the Sepoy Mutiny. Under the Government of India Act 1858 the position of Governor General of India was changed to that of Viceroy of India. The first Viceroy of India was Lord Canni

Q. 8 - (a)

General Bakht Khan was the commander-in-chief of the army of Bahadur Shah Zafar during the Revolt of 1857.

Q. 9. - (a)

Begum Hazrat Mahal was one of the important leaders of the Revolt of 1857. She was the wife of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah, the ruler of Oudh, who was deposed by the British in 1856 and sent to exile in Calcutta. She led the revolt at Allahabad in Uttar Pradesh.

Acting as a regent of her eleven year old son Brijis Qadr, she ruled Awadh and under her tutelage the administration was reorganized. 

Q. 10. - (d)

Initially started as a religious movement with a view to reforming the Sikh religion by purging it of the degenerate features, Kuka movement, founded in 1840 in the Western Punjab, turned into a political struggle against the British. The founder of Kuka movement was Bhagat Jawahar Mal.  

Faraizi Movement

Starting as a religious (communal) movement, Faraizi Movement in course of time became a struggle against the landlords (who were mostly Hindus) who oppressed the common people and farmers and British colonists. Founded by Haji Shariatullah, the movement began with a call to the Muslims to perform their obligatory duties (Fard) enjoined by Allah with a view to purging the religion of the un-Islamic rites which he considered were contrary to the teachings of the Qu’ran. 

Haji Shariatullah was born in Faridpur (now in Bangladesh) in 1781. 

After Haji Shariatullah’s death in 1840, the mantle of leadership was passed on to his son Muhsinuddin Ahmed, more popularly known as Dudu Miyan. Under Dudu Miyan, the movement became agrarian in character. After his death in 1862, the movement began to lose steam and ultimately died down. 

Kushinagar: Where the Buddha Breathed his last

Located in the state of Uttar Pradesh, Kushinagar is one of the world's most sacred sites of Buddhism. Kushinagar’s claim to fame lies in being the place where Buddha breathed his last, the event known in the Buddhist tradition as paranibbana (Mahaparinirvana) which is considered to have taken place in 483 BC. 

Kushinagar has an antiquity of centuries. Buddha himself declared Kushinagar as one of the four most sacred places. However, unlike Sravasti, Champa, Rajagraha, Saketa, Kausambi and Varanasi, Kusinagar was not an important city during Buddha’s time. This can be ascertained form Buddha’s disciple Ananda’s regret that his master chose to die in so small town as Kusinagar.

Kusinagar was visited by the Buddha several times before his death. 

Buddha’s Mahaparinirvana came at the age of eighty. After spending the last rainy season of life near the city of Vaishali, he and his followers reached the town of Pava where he took a meal at the house of his lay disciple, Cunda. Soon after he was attacked by blood dysentery but he continued his journey till he reached the outskirts of Kushinagar town where he laid himself down under a sal tree and that night he attained Mahaparinirvana (Final Blowing- out). His last words were: “All composite things decay. Strive diligently!”  

After paying homage to the remains of the Buddha, his sorrowing followers cremated his body. His relics were distributed among various claimants including the Magadhan ruler Ajatashatru.

Ananda was with the Buddha at the time of latter's death.     

Places to see in Kushinagar

                                        Mahaparinirvana Temple / Wikimedia Commons  

Mahaparinirvana Temple

The Mahaparinirvana Temple is home to a 6.10 meter long fifth century AD statue of the reclining Buddha. The idol is made of the sandstone of Chunar, about 25 miles south-west of Varanasi. 

Nirvana Stupa

Discovered by Carlyl in 1876, the huge brickwork Nirvana Stupa stands behind the Mahaparinirvana Temple at a height of 2.74 meters. A copper vessel bearing an inscription in Brahmi script states that Buddha's relics had been placed here.

Ramabhar Stupa

1.5 km away from Mahaparinirvana Temple, the Ramabhar Stupa marks the spot where the Buddha was cremated. Rising to a height of 15 meters, the Stupa is referred to as 'Mukut-Bandhan Chaitya' in ancient Buddhist texts. 

Other places of attractions in and around Kushinagar are Japanese Temple, Chinese Temple, Kushawati Temple and Kushinagar Museum.

How to Reach Kushinagar

Air: Nearest major airport to Kushinagar is at Varanasi which is connected by flights from major cities in India. Varanasi is 260 km away from Kushinagar. Other airports close to Kushinagar are at Gorakhpur and Lucknow which are 53 km and 252 km away respectively from Kushinagar. 

Rail: Kushinagar does not have a Railway Station. The nearest railheads are at Deoria and Gorakhpur which are 35 km and 53 km away from Kushinagar. Gorakhpur railway station is well connected by rail with all the major railway stations in India. 

Road: Situated on National Highway No. 28, Kushinagar is well connected with important places in Uttar Pradesh by frequent bus services. 

 

Chini ka Rauza

                                    Chini-ka-Rauza /Image Source

Located in Agra in Uttar Pradesh, Chini-ka-Rauza is the mausoleum Afzal Khan Aalmi who was the diwan-I kull of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan. During Shah Jahan’s times vizir (Prime Minister) of the Mughal empire was called diwan-I kull. A learned man, Afzal Khan Aalmi was the elder brother of Amanat Khan who is known for designing the calligraphy of world renowned monument Taj Mahal.  

Both of the brothers came to India from Shiraz in Iran. 

Afzal Khan Aalmi died in 1639 in Lahore from where he was brought to Agra where he built a rauza (tomb) for himself and buried in Chini-ka-Rauza. The monument is so named because of the coloured glazed tiles (Chini) that adorn the tomb.

Bibi ka Maqbara of Aurangabad

 

Image source

Located in Aurangabad, Bibi-ka-Maqbara is the mausoleum of 6th Mughal emperor Aurangzeb’s wife Dilras Banu Begum who was posthumously called Rabia-ud-Daurani. The monument was commissioned by Aurangzeb in 1660. 

With its four minarets flanking a central onion-domed tomb, the monument is built on a high square platform, which is approached by a flight of steps from the three sides. 

Bearing a striking resemblance to the world acclaimed Taj Mahal at Agra, Bibi Ka Maqbara is also known as the “Taj of the Deccan”. 

Khudiram Bose Death Anniversary

Today is the death anniversary of Khudiram Bose [1889-1908], a revolutionary born in the Midnapore district of West Bengal. 

One of India’s earliest revolutionaries to die on the gallows on August 11, 1908, Khudiram Bose was a member of the revolutionary society Anushilan Samiti. He along with Prufulla Chaki threw a bomb at the carriage of Kingsford, an English Judge at Muzaffarpur in Bihar. He was arrested in the Muzaffarpur Conspiracy case and sentenced to death at the young age of 18.

Deva Raya I's Love's Labour's Lost

In 1406 one of the many battles between the Vijayanagar kingdom and the Bahmani sultanate took place. If the medieval Persian historian Ferishta is to believed, the casus belli of the fight was a fascination of Vijayanagar ruler Deva Raya I for a goldsmith’s beautiful daughter living in Mudgal in the Raichur Doab , the region between the Tungabhadra and Krishna rivers. Thanks to its being a fertile land, Raichur Doab was a bone of contention between the rulers of the Vijayanagar and the Bahmanis as none of them wanted to forsake their claim on the region. 

Since the girl in question was averse to the idea of marrying Deva Raya I, this infuriated the latter who laid waste some villages in the neighbourhood of Mudgal. This antagonized the Bahmani Sultan Firuz Shah who considered the aggression as an encroachment on the Bahmani territory. In retaliation, he attacked Vijayanagar. Though the war initially went well for Vijayanagar, in the end Deva Raya I was forced to make peace with the Bahmani Sultan who forced the Viajaynagar ruler to give out the hands of his daughter in marriage to him. Besides, Deva Raya I had to surrender the strategic fort of Bankapur as her dowry. 

Firuz Shah Bahmani secured his son Hasan Khan the goldsmith’s daughter whose beauty was responsible for the battle. Apart from pearls, 50 elephants, 2000 boys and girls skilled in song and dance, he extracted a heavy cash indemnity from Deva Raya I.

The marriage of Firuz Shah Bahmani with the daughter of Deva Raya I was celebrated with great pomp and show. 

Tarikh-i-Alfi

The Tarikh-i-Alfi (History of a Thousand Years) is a historical work chronicling the first thousand years of Islamic world history. Commissioned by Mughal emperor Akbar, the chronicle was written by a board of compilers headed by a Shia theologian Mulla Ahmad of Thatta. Mulla Ahmad had written a large part of the text. 

Due to the animosity between Shias and Sunnis, Mulla Ahmad was murdered in 1588 in the street of Lahore by a Sunni nobleman, Mirza Fawlad, who lured him out of his house on the pretext that the emperor had asked for his presence in the court. 

Mirza Fawlad was condemned to death causing resentment among the Sunnis who exhumed Mulla Ahmad's body and burnt it. After the death of Mulla Ahmad, Asaf Khan Jafar Beg completed the rest of the work around 1592.  

Badauni was selected by Akbar to revise the manuscript and compare it with other histories.

 

 

Pagal Panthi Uprising

Pagal Panthi was a socio-religious sect whose members were mainly drawn from the Garo and Hajong tribes living in the Mymensingh and Sherpur districts of Bangladesh. The sect started as a resistance against local zamindars and with the passage of time established itself as bulwark against the British colonial rule. 

Pagal Panthi was founded by Karim Shah, a darvesh or mendicant. After his death in 1813 the reins of the movement passed on to his son Tipu Shah or Tipu Pagal who in 1825 led a band of armed followers in plundering the houses of the zamindars of Sherpur. He organized peasant rebellions.

After Tipu Shah's death in 1852, though the movement lingered on, it began to lose momentum and was finally put down by the British.