How were urban centres transformed during the eighteenth century?

In the 18th century, many old towns went into decline. They were replaced by new towns which soon emerged and developed. As there was a gradual erosion in the power of the Mughals, it caused an eclipse of various cities associated with their rule. Delhi and Agra, which were the capitals during the Mughal rule, lost their political authority and grandeur.

(i) Emergence of New Regional Powers: During the 18th century, many new regional capitals emerged. They soon gained importance. Such powers were Lucknow, Hyderabad, Seringapatam, Poona, Nagpur, Baroda and Thanjavur. Those traders, artisans and administrators who earlier lived in the Mughal centres of power now left these places and migrated to new capitals in search of work and patronage.

(ii) Creation of new urban settlements:

Many official and local nobles lived in the Mughal cities. They created their new urban settlements such as the ‘Qasbah’ and ‘Ganj’. However there was an uneven growth of cities. Some places flourished because of their economic activities. But some places faced economic decline due to war, plunder and political instability.

(iii) Growth of trading centres : The emergence of ruban centres brought many changes in the network of trade. For example, the Portuguese settled in Panaji in 1510 and the Dutch in Masulipatnam in 1605. The British came in Madras in 1639. The French took hold of Pondicherry in 1673. It led to an expansion of economic and commercial activity. So many towns grew around these trading centres. By the end of the eighteenth century, the land-based empires in Asia were replaced by the powerful sea-based European empires. It ushered in International trade, mercantilism and capitalism in the society

(iv) Emergence of colonial port cities : In the mid-eighteenth century, the commercial centres like Dhaka and Masulipatnam lost their importance. With the British becoming more powerful after the Battle of Plassey in 1757, the trade shifted to cities like Madras, Calcutta and Bombay which had emerged as new economic capitals due to the trade activities of East India Company. So these cities also became centres of colonial, political and administrative power. By the end of 1800, Madras, Calcutta and Bombay had become the biggest cities in India.

The Indians found the new colonial cities as bewildering. They were amazed at the new transport factilities such as horse-drawn carriages, trams and buses. These transport facilities enabled the people to live at a distance from the city centre. They lived at some other place and served at some other place.

Emergence of new public places : The new colonial cities saw the creation of new public places like the theatres, cinema-halls, gardens and public parks. Besides there were clubs and Garden Houses.

Functions : These public places were very exciting. They were an important source of entertainment. They also increased social interaction. The people were able to express their opinions on society and government. They could also question the practice of social customs.

After the Revolt of 1857, the British nurtured various concerns and worries regarding town-planning which is evident from the following points:

Constant Fear of Rebellion : Having faced the Revolt of 1857, the whitemen in India had a constant fear of rebellion from Indians. So they wanted to live in more secure and segregated enclaves. To ensure their defence, they wanted to live away from the native people from whom they faced the threat of rebellion. So, they cleared many agricultural fields and pasture land and set up urban spaces called the Civil Lines. The Englishmen lived in these Civil Lines. They also set up cantonment areas for the stationing of the armed forces.

Development of White Towns : The British were also concerned about epidemics like cholera and plague which often spread in India, killing thousands of people. So they demarcated both Black and White areas. The black areas symbolised only chaos and anarchy. They stood for filth and disease. The British always feared that disease would spread from the Black to the White areas. So they developed White Towns for themselves. These towns signified hygiene and cleanliness. The British took stringent administrative measures to ensure sanitation of these areas. They also regulated the building activity. They also made arrangements for the underground piped water supply. They cared a lot for sewerage and drainage systems. In fact, they kept an utmost sanitary vigilance.

Major rivers and hill ranges of India:

Rivers : Indus, Jhelum, Ravi, Satluj, Gangs, Yamuna, Beas, Kosi, Narmada, Godavari, Krishna, Kaveri.

Hill Ranges : The Himalayas, Aravali, Vindhyachal, Satpura, Karakoram.

(i) There was remarkable transformation in social relations in the new colonial cities developed during the British rule in India. The process of urbanisation in colonial India explore the distinguishing characteristics of colonial cities and track social changes within them. The people of different nook and corner, culture, languages, civilisation, classes, occupations, services, taste settled in Madras, Calcutta, Bombay, Panji, Pondicherry, etc.

For the Indian population, the new cities were bewildering places where life seemed always in a flux. There was a dramatic contrast between extreme wealth and poverty.

(ii) New transport facilities such as horse-drawn carriages and, subsequently, trams and buses meant that people could live at a distance from the city centre. Over time there was a gradual separation of the place of work from the place of residence. Travelling from home to office or the factory was a competely new kind of experience.

(iii) A new class within the cities was the labouring poor or the working class. Paupers from rural areas flocked to the cities in the hope of employment. Some saw cities as places of opportunity; others were attracted by the allure of a different way of life, by the desire to see things they had never seen before.

(iv) As far as three biggest colonial cities are concern these were originally fishing and weaving villages. The life of fishermen and women as well as weavers were very hard. As these villages became important centres of trade due to economic activities of the English East India Company, their life was disturbed. They had to live nearby port area outside of the fortified area. They had experience of colour and racial discrimination at the hands of Europeans. The rich Indian merchants use to play as agents of weavers and fishermen.

(v) As modem industries, factories, mills and new institutions, public services, infrastructure develop people from far away small town and village come in new cities in search of work and employment. The rich merchants of Surat, Masulipatnam, Dacca etc. also started coming to new cities to start their new business and extend their activities.

(vi) From the early years colonial government became keen in preparing map of the new cities. They collected datas. These data were use to know exact number of blacks, whom the Europeans generally hated and misbehave.

(vii) The introduction of railways in 1853 meant a change in the fortunes of towns. Economic activities gradually shifted away from traditional towns which were located along old routes and rivers.

(viii) Colonial cities reflected the mercantile culture of the new rulers. Political power and patronage shifted from Indian rulers to the merchants of the East India Company. The rich Indian agents and middlemen built large traditional courtyard houses in the Black Town in the vicinity of the bazaars.

(ix) In the new colonial city the sense of coherence and familiarity of the old towns was no longer there, the creation of public places– for example, public parks, theatres and from the twentieth century, cinema halls–provided exciting new forms of entertainment and social interaction.