Grade VIII

Lesson [Link], When and Where

Objective Type Questions (1 Mark each)

I. Multiple choice questions

1. ___________________ is certainly about changes that occur over time.

a. History b. Geography c. Civics d. Economics

2. “A History of British India” was written by

a. Huge Mill b. David Mill c. James Mill d. Johnes Mill

3. ___________________rule represented all the forces of progress and civilisation.

a. Indian b. British c. Muslim d. Afghan

4. Many ___________________ refer to the British period as colonical.

a. Historians b. Scholar c. Doctors d. Engineers

5. One important source is the ___________________ of the British administration.

a. Social records b. Business records c. Food records d. Official records

6. Popular booklets were sold in the ___________________.

a. Markets b. Local bazaars c. Roads d. Malls

7. History was experienced and lived by the ________________and _______________.

a. Tribals and Peasants b. Rich and Poor

c. Hindus and Muslims d. British and troops

8. Historians use sources in writing about the last _______________ years of Indian history.

a. 220 b. 230 c. 240 d. 250

1. a 2. c 3. b 4. a 5. d 6. b 7. a 8. d

II. Multiple choice questions

1. The first Governor-General of India was

a. Lord Dalhousie b. Lord Mountbatten

c. Lord William Bentinck d. Warren Hastings

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2. The National Archives of India came up in the year

a. 1920s b. 1930s c. 1940s d. 1950s

3. The word ‘Calligrapher’ means

a. One who is specialised in the art of painting.

b. One who is specialised in the art of music.

c. One who is specialised in the art of beautiful writing.

d. One who is specialised in the art of public speaking

4. Census operations are held

a. Every fiver years b. Every seven years

c. Every ten years d. every twelve years

1. d 2. a 3. c 4. c

III. Multiple choice questions

1. Who was the last Viceroy of India?

a. Lord Canning b. Lord Mountbatten c. Ripon d. Lord Wellesley

2. Medieval period was

a. The old period of history

b. The period associated with the growth of all the forces of modernity

c. Effective administration

d. None of the above

4. The British preserve official documents because

a. The preserved documents reveal the progress made by country in the past

b. One can study notes and reports which were prepared in the past

c. Their copies may be made and use in modern times

d. All of the above

5. Which one of the source do historians use in writing about the last 250 years of Indian

history?

a. Official records of the French administration

b. Official records of the British administration

c. Official records of the Church administration

d. None of the above

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6. Which of the following is NOT the period of division of Indian History by James Mill?

a. Hindu b. Muslim c. Christians d. Sikhs

7. Which is NOT the source of describing history?

a. Diaries of people b. Conversation between two people

c. Accounts of pilgrims and travellers d. Autobiographies of important personalities

1. b 2. c 3. c 4. d 5. b 6. d 7. b

IV. Multiple choice questions

1. Who was asked by Robert Clive to produce maps of Hindustan?

a. Danulle b. James Rennet c. James Mill d. William Durant

2. Some historians have divided Indian history into:

a. Medieval, Modern, Colonial b. Ancient, Medieval, Colonial

c. Ancient, Medieval, Modern d. Ancient, Modern, Colonial

3. Colonisation means:

a. Conquest of one country by another b. Subjugation of one country by another country

c. Subjugation of one country by another, leading to political, social and economic changes

4. Autobiographies are account of people written by

a. Historians b. Calligraphists c. By other people d. Themselves

5. Historians at present do not write about

a. How people earned their livelihood b. What was produced

c. How markets came up d. Kings and battles

6. Many historians refer to British period in India as:

a. Modern b. Colonial

c. Political subjugation d. Economic exploitation

7. Census means

a. Official enumeration of the population after every 10 years.

b. Official enumeration of the population after every 12 years.

c. Official enumeration of the population after every 14 years.

d. Official enumeration of the population after every 15 years.

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8. Which of the following were not the sources of information of the British administration?

a. Memos b. Reports c. Notes d. Diaries of Indians.

1. b 2. c 3. c 4. d 5. c 6. b 7. a 8. d

I. Fill in the blanks

1. ____________________ helps us understand what people of the country through their

customs, languages, cultures and religious beliefs think.

2. The ___________________ believed surveys were important for effective administration.

3. In ____________________ the colonial government in India was trying to put down a

mutiny that broke out on the ships of Royal Indian Navy.

4. James Mill divided the Indian history into ____________________ parts.

5. ____________________ mutineers were under arrest in Karachi.

6. ____________________ suggested the British should conquer all the territories in India.

1. History 2. British 3. 1949 4. Three 5. 301 6. James Mill

II. Fill in the blanks

1. The colonial government gave much importance to the practice of ____________________.

2. Historians have usually divided Indian history into ancient, ____________________ and

____________________.

3. A History of British India is a massive ____________________ work.

4. Mill thought that all Asian societies were at a ____________________ level of civilisation

than Europe.

5. The British established specialised institutions like ____________________ and

____________________ to preserve important documents.

1. Surveying 2. Medieval; modern 3. Three-volume

4. Lower 5. Archives; museums

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 III. Fill in the blanks

1. The last Viceroy of British India was ____________________.

2. James Rennel prepared the ____________________ in 1782.

3. James Mill divides ____________________ into three periods.

4. The British preserved all important __________________ and _________________.

5. In Mill’s idea of history, the period before British rules was one of _________________.

1. Lord Mountbatten 2. First Map 3. Indian History

4. Letters, Documents 5. Darkness

IV. Fill in the blanks

1. In the earlier years of the nineteenth century, the documents were carefully ___________

and beautifully written by the ______________.

2. In 1946, the colonial ________________ in India was trying to put down the mutiny broken

out on the ship of ________________.

3. The colonial government gave much importance to the practice of ________________.

4. Many historians refer the British period as ________________.

5. In the villages, ________________surveys were conducted.

6. The Britishers believed that the act of ________________ was important.

7. Old ________________ help us understand how markets for new products were created.

8. James Mill divided Indian history into three periods_________________,

_________________ and _________________.

1. copied out, 2. government, Royal 3. Surveying 4. Colonial

calligraphists Indian Navy

5. Revenue 6. Writing 7. Advertisements 8. Hindu, Muslim,

British

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 I. Match the following.

Column A Column B

1. James Mill a. Governor-General

2. Official documents b. Botanical Garden

3. Warren Hastings c. A History of British India

4. Custard Apple d. Preserved

1. c 2. d 3. a 4. b

II. Match the following.

Column A Column B

1. A place where historical documents or a. Museum

records of a government, etc. are kept.

2. A building in which objects of historical or scientific b. Colonisation

interest are kept to show them to the public.

3. An important taste of the British administration c. Archives

4. Subjugation of one country by another d. Carrying out surveys

1. c 2. a 3. iii 4. b

III. Match the following.

1. James Mill a. The first Governor General of India

2. Warren Hastings b. Scholars who write histories

3. Calligraphists c. A Scottish economist and political leader

4. Historians d. The earlier period of the history

5. Ancient e. Expert in writing documents with beautiful hand writing.

1. c 2. a 3. e 4. b 5. d

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 IV. Match the following.

Column A Column B

1. A history of British India a. Lord Mountbatten

2. First Governor General of India b. Colonial

3. Last Viceroy of India c. New Delhi

4. Survey after every ten years d. James Mill

5. British Period e. Calligraphy

6. The symbol of British power f. Hasting

7. National Archives g. Village

8. Art of beautiful writing h. Census

9. Important of effective administration i. Britannia

10. Revenue survey was conducted j. Surveys

1. d 2. f 3. a 4. h 5. b 6. i 7. c 8. e 9. j 10. g

I. True or False

1. James Mill divided Indian history into three periods – Hindu, Muslim, Christian.

2. Official documents help us understand what the people of the country think.

3. The British thought surveys were important for effective administration.

4. Newspapers provide accounts of the movements in different parts of the country.

5. In 1922, Lipton Tea was advertised.

6. Dates do not have importance to know our history.

1. False 2. False 3. True 4. True 5. True 6. False

II. True or False

1. The British were very particular about preserving official documents.

2. Printing began to spread by the middle of the 20th century.

3. The periodisation of Indian history offered by James Mill was not at all accepted.
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4. The British carried out detailed surveys by the early 19th century in order to map the entire

country.

5. James Mill glorified India and it culture in his book A History of British India.

1. True 2. False 3. False 4. True 5. False

III. True or False

1. Lawrence was a prominent Viceroy of India.

2. Curzon was a Governor General of India.

3. James Mill published a newspaper in 1817.

4. We need to divide history into different periods.

5. The British came to India to know about its great culture.

6. History deals with changes that occur over time.

1. True 2. True 3. False 4. True 5. False 6. True

IV. True or False

1. The British were very particular about preserving official documents.

1. True

Very Short Answer Type Questions

1. How important are dates?

Dates tell about the events, kings and their policies and battles which occurred at a

particular time.

2. What is history?

History is a record of people, places and changes that occur over time.

3. What is the importance of history?

The study of history is very important to us. It tells about the past of the present.

4. Who was the first Governor-General of India?

The first Governor-General of India was Warren Hastings.

The last Governor-General of India was Lord Mountbattern.

6. Who was James Mill?

James Mill published a massive – three volume work, i.e., A History of British India.

7. Write the name of the book which was published by James Mill?

James Mill published a massive – three volume work, i.e., A History of British India.

8. What do you mean by colonisation?

When the subjugation of one country by another leads to political economic, social and

cultural changes, that is known as colonisation.

9. How did historians divide Indian history?

The historians divided Indian history into ‘ancient’, ‘medieval’ and ‘modern’.

10. Name the types of surveys.

The types of surveys were: botanical surveys, zoological surveys, archaeological surveys,

anthropological surveys and forest surveys.

Short Answer Type Questions

1. Why did the British preserve official documents? (NCERT)

i. The British preserved official documents because they believed that the act of writing

was important.

ii. Every document had to be clearly written up which could be property studied and

debated.

iii. Specialised institutions like archives and museums were established to preserve

important records.

2. How will the information historians get from old newspapers be different from that

found in police reports? (NCERT)

The information that historians get from old newspapers were published in large number

that served as the voice of the common man but what historians find in police reports are

usually different and realistic.

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 Long Answer Type Questions

1. What is the problem with the periodisation of Indian history that James Mill offers?

(NCERT)

i. James Mill, a Scottish economist divided the Indian history into three periods – Hindu,

Muslim and British.

ii. This division had its own problem. Before the British came to India, Hindu and Muslim

despots ruled the country. It is difficult to refer to any period of history as ‘Hindu’ or ‘Muslim’

because a variety of faiths existed simultaneously in these periods.

iii. An age can’t be characterised only through the religion of the rulers of the time and

to do so is to suggest that the lives and practices of the others do not really matter.

iv. We should remember that even rulers in ancient India did not all share the same

faith.

2. Why are official records important for British administration?

i. The official records are important for the British administration as they believed that

the act of writing was important.

ii. Every instruction, plant, policy decision, agreement, investigation was clearly written

up.

iii. They produced an administrative culture of memos, notings and reports.

iv. The British felt that all important documents and letters needed to be carefully

preserved.

v. For that, specialised institutions like archives and museums besides records rooms

were established.

3. Why is British period in India referred to as ‘Colonial’?

i. During this period British came to conquer the country and establish their rule,

subjugating local nawabs and rajas.

ii. They established control over the economy and society, collected revenue to meet all

their expenses.

iii. British brought goods they wanted at low prices, produced crops they needed for

export.

iv. They also brought about changes in values and tasks, customs and practices.

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 v. When the subjugation of one powerful country over a weaker country leads to political,

economics, social and cultural changes, we refer to this process as ‘colonisation’.

4. Why did the practice of surveying become common under British Administration?

i. The British believed that a country had to be property known before it could be

effectively administered.

ii. Detailed surveys were carried to map the entire country.

iii. In the villages surveys were conducted.

iv. The effort was to know the topography, the soil quality, the flora, the fauna, the local

histories and the cropping pattern to administer the region.

v. Even census operations were held every ten years.

vi. There were many other surveys like botanical surveys, zoological surveys,

archaeological surveys, anthropological surveys and forest surveys.

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