#British Colonialism

[kropotkindersurprise]

March 11, 1845 - Māori warriors led by Hōne Heke and Te Ruki Kawiti made a bold stand against British occupation forces and settler colonialists in the Battle of Kororāreka (now Russell). Their victory saw the triumphant raising of the Māori United Tribes' flag—a powerful symbol of unity and resistance.

The defeat forced many settlers to flee Aotearoa and sell their land, marking a significant moment in the fight for Māori sovereignty. [link]

[violottie]

"Happy Saint Paddy’s Day weekend ☘️🎻here’s what the Irish 🇮🇪 struggle against British colonialism can teach us about the fight for a free Palestine 🇵🇸 no wonder the Irish stand with Palestine ✊" from Omnia Hegazy, 15/Mar/2024:

[one-time-i-dreamt]

I was playing Gandalf the Grey in an impromptu interactive theater production set in a replica of Bag End in the woods reading off a script given out by the guide but instead of a canon lines for Gandalf to say I read a speech about the evils of British colonialism.

I was as confused as anyone in the room.

[sleepdeprivedartboi]

ANDOR SPOILERS AHEAD.

I dunno how many people know this, but the Ghorman Massacre is very very much like another event that occured in Indian history, the Jalianwala Bagh Massacre. I knew exactly what was about to happen the moment they said they are moving the barricades.

For anyone who doesn't know the incident, There was a peaceful unarmed civillians gathering at a place called Jalianwala Bagh. It was a walled park like area with only one entrance and exit . Some sources say this was a religious gathering, others say it was a unarmed and peaceful protest. Reality was there was a buncho innocent civilians with kids and old peeps gathered.

But the British, said they were in violation of laws and curfews or whatever and then just set up a firing line at the entrance and mowed down the civillians.

Source : Am indian.

The first time you see the empire you think "Damn, these guys are unrealistically evil" and then you look at irl and go "Oh dear they are actually tame" lmao

[enigma-the-mysterious]

Obviously, I won't wish cancer on my worst enemy, but I also can't give a single flying fuck about Charles or Kate or anyone from the British Royal Family as long as they continue to benefit from the wealth they plundered from my country for 200 long years, and their lifestyles and expensive treatments are paid with the blood and impoverishment of my ancestors and countrymen.

[uran-tashtari]

Grave of Asaf-ud-Daula under a canopy inside his Imambara, Lucknow, 18th century.

A contemporary view of the same place

[irish-dress-history]

I just stumbled across the following story in the 'Irish News' section of the 1741 issue of The Gentleman's and London Magazine; or Monthly Chronologer:

It's a darkly funny story until you realize that this happened during Bliain an Áir (English: the Year of Slaughter), one of the worst famines in Irish history. The fact that a brogue-maker ended up in debtor's prison suggests most of the Irish were too poor to afford shoes. This is horrifying when you consider the fact that the 1740-1741 famine was caused abnormally cold weather. Temperatures as low as 0º F (-18º C) were recorded in Ireland in 1740. Image trying survive that without shoes.

[hussyknee]

KJ Charles has breathtaking range. And it's all so organically diverse and vivid and excellently paced and clever.

Doomsday books -- Smugglers of Romney Marsh in 1810–20s in the wake of the Napoleonic Wars.

Society of Gentlemen -- Clash between the royalist establishment and radical republicans in the last years of Regency.

Sins of the Cities -- Small businesses and trade of the Industrial Revolution in London's immigrant quarter (taxidermy of all things!), Victorian spiritualists and musical hall artists in the 1870s.

Lillywhite Boys -- London criminal underworld, bluestocking feminists, private detectives, colonial gem trade, the rise of industrialists in the 1890s, and pre-Victorian folk Christmas traditions.

Charm of Magpies -- Shanghai traders and Chinese immigrant communities of London in the late 1800s.

England World -- Nascent British intelligence agencies and new technology in the shadow of the Boer War in the 1890s + integration of Indian nobles from its last kingdoms with elite British society + classism and xenophobia in British antisemitism

Will Darling Adventures -- The reverberating social, political and economic changes from the aftermath of WWI and further development of intelligence organisations during the 1920s.

Just finished Band Sinister, which touched on Hellfire Clubs, the emergence of new medicine, atheism, and challenge Creationism from the fields of natural science, and Black British life before abolition. Currently reading Unfit to Print, which seems to be about London's underground pornography trade with character focus on the shared plight of Black and Indian immigrants from the colonies and their mixed race offspring. Charles's body of work really brings home that the 19th century was a full hundred years long and the distinct character of every decade. And that the real and authentic history of Britain had people of every race, religion, colour, disability, neurodiversity, gender and sexuality who have been deliberately erased by the same power structures that kept them disenfranchised and ghettoed back then.

[rosalinesurvived]

I am user27499272368473 and user27499272368473 is I.

[hadleysmis]

Malaysia's Independence

What does 'Les Misérables' mean to you?

The clips shown below is of the declaration of independence in 1957, marked with the nation's final blaring of 'God Save the Queen' as the British flag is lowered. Merdeka ('independence') is called out seven times. British Malaya has ended.

The later clips show the anniversary of the celebration of the initial year of independence after a long, long history of colonisations.

After the ethnic divide the British enforced in order to maintain order and power, Malaysia unites its citizens; and thus the ending quote, 'There's no Chinese, no Malay, No Indian... Just Malaysians.' appears.

To celebrate the independence day, the themes of ethnic unity is emphasised. Through unity, they achieved independence and liberation away from several hundreds of years (446 years, 1511-1957) of colonisation from multiple global powers.

Under British colonial rule (1786-1941), Malaya was not merely a colony but a key part of the British Empire's economic engine, with the British exploiting the country’s natural resources, particularly tin and rubber, and using its strategic location for global trade.

The British officials made sure that the traditional class divisions should be maintained. "Hence, most economic development was left to Chinese and Indian immigrants, as long as it served long-term colonial interests."

The British introduced a divide-and-rule strategy that entrenched ethnic divisions, particularly between the Malays, Chinese, and Indians, creating a fragmented society that served British interests, and of which was constructed on race and occupation.

The British colonial administration’s reluctance to address the needs and aspirations of the local population, preferred instead to maintain control through appointed elites and limited self-rule.

If we remember from the British rule of India, the class divisions they encouraged and maintained was based on religion. This later invited social and economic division, and ultimately created India and Pakistan to become two countries from the year of their independence.

The British had the habit of ruling like that. Malaysia got lucky, and they didn't go through this type of partition.

Immediately after WWII, Malaysians were fighting off the Japanese in the British backed the Chinese-Malysians with weapons, in which the communists also turned their backs and pointed the weapons at the British during this period.

The Malayan Emergency (1948–1960), a brutal conflict primarily with the Malayan Communist Party (MCP), was a direct consequence of British mismanagement and their failure to grant the right of to freely determine their own political status and pursue their economic, social, and cultural development without interference from foreign powers or colonial rulers.

The British response to the communist insurgency, which included mass incarcerations, punitive actions, and the establishment of a system that disenfranchised much of the local population, only heightened the desire for self-rule.

Despite the difficult path to independence, marked by years of struggle and frustration, the establishment of the Alliance Party (comprising UMNO, MCA, and MIC) in 1951 was a pivotal moment, showing the potential for cooperation across ethnic lines.

The Tunku Abdul Rahman-led Alliance successfully pressured the British to concede political power, yet equality was still out of reach.

The British, while eventually agreeing to grant independence in 1957, had no real intention of relinquishing control easily, and the agreements made were more about preserving British interests and maintaining influence.

The final negotiations in London in 1956, which led to the London Agreement, were not entirely driven by the aspirations of the local population, but rather by the pragmatic need for the British to stabilise the region amidst the larger decolonisation movements taking place around the world; as anti-colonial rebellious sentiments were being quickened as the news of Ghandi were spreading.

Ultimately, the independence celebrations of 31 August 1957 marked the end of formal colonial rule.

The Merdeka Day celebrations focuses on unity and democratic freedom which had been forced on them whilst the colonial power tried to manipulate its citizens to fight against one another.

This period of time is characterised by the complex negotiations between a colonial power and a fragmented, yet resilient, population seeking liberation, unity, and equality.

[b4lluna]

loving the flags

[enigma-the-mysterious]

Genuine question for the upper caste people in desiblr. Why do you think "caste is in the past"? Everytime I have seen someone confidently proclaiming that caste is a problem of a bygone era it is always a UC. You guys don't live our reality. You guys don't know the first thing about what it is like from our side. So why do you feel comfortable speaking for us? Would you like it if a British person were to proclaim that colonialism wasn't actually so bad? No? Then why is it different for us?

[w-r-pitt]

Flags of the British Empire in Asia, the Americas, Africa, Oceania, Antarctica and Europe.

[not-your-asian-fantasy]

[uran-tashtari]

A natch in the palace of Amir of Sindh

[iknowshitaboutfashion]