Gandhi during the Salt March, March-April 1930

Topics on the Page

• Indian Independence 

• Seven Blunders of the World

• Doctrine of Nonviolence and Civil Disobedience

• Muslims in the 19th Century 

A timeline of Indian independence.

Short video on the Indian independence movement

See The Indian Independence Struggle: 1930-1931

The Salt March and the Indian Struggle for Independence

In 1885, the Indian National Congress was established as an attempt at giving Indian people a voice. It was initially met with some sympathy from British representatives, but they quickly grew hostile.

Mohandas Gandhi, often referred to as Mahatma, is widely considered the most important and influential character of the Indian independence movement.

• Gandhi first gained fame in South Africa, where he represented the Indian population as a civil rights lawyer. He united the Muslims and Hindus who, as ethnic Indians, experienced racial discrimination from the British colonizers.

• While in South Africa, Gandhi developed his principles of non-violent protest and civil disobedience. Upon his return to India in 1915, he gained notoriety as a leader and organizer for Indian nationalism.

• He joined the Indian National Congress and led a number of non-violent movements, including the famous Salt March which protested a British tax on salt. These campaigns were successful at disturbing British control and reducing dependence on the British Raj.

• Gandhi's intense leadership was able to bring the idea of independence to the Indian people, particularly the Hindus.

A learning plan on women's role in the Salt March

A few profiles on women who were active in the Independence movement.

An excerpt from a speech given in 1907 in the Indian National Congress, promoting a boycott of British goods.


Support for the independence movement grew over time as Indians became more and more tired of exploitative British governance.

• During this time, the Muslim and Hindu populations began to splinter, despite Gandhi's attempts to keep the two religious groups united. 

• Muslim representatives began to fear what a strong Hindu government would mean for them as minorities and formed The Muslim League. 

• There were many violent attacks throughout this period on the British Raj by groups who tried to force independence out of the British by any means necessary, even through collaboration with Axis forces in World War II. 

• Though these attacks and attempts at revolution were also a major part of India’s independence, Gandhi’s peaceful contributions are seen as the driving force in the movement, and even the reason why many of those fighting were aware of independence.

• Indian nationalism and in-fighting between Muslims and Hindus continued while the British Empire suffered great losses during World War II, loosening their grip on colonial power.

On August 15, 1947 India was granted independence

• It was partitioned into two autonomous nations, the Union of India and Dominion of Pakistan, with Hindus controlling India and Muslims controlling Pakistan.

Video of a newsflash talking about Indian Independence. It gives a basic overview of the key events leading to it.

Partition of India and Pakistan

Seven Blunders of the World

Gandhi's Seven Blunders of the World is a list which Mahatma gave to his grandson shortly before his assassination. The list details seven mistakes which lead to violence.

• Wealth without work
• Pleasure without conscience
• Knowledge without character
• Worship without sacrifice
• Commerce without morality
• Science without humanity
• Politics without principle

See video of Gandhi and hear audio of the Indian leader discussing non-violent protest and change.

A great Prezi presentation on Gandhi

A collection of speeches by Gandhi, from the Gandhi Research Foundation


Click here for an interactive map on Indian independence

E. Doctrine of Nonviolence

• Mahatma Gandhi was one of the most famous proponents for nonviolent protest. He believed violence was a clumsy weapon which created far more problems than it solved.

• The central philosophy behind Gandhi's nonviolent movement was that by refusing to rebel violently against British oppression, natives would expose the colonists as the real savages who were waging warfare against a peaceable and innocent community.

More primary sources and background information of Gandhi's "satyagraha" or civil disobedience

For Gandhi's motives behind nonviolent resistance, see Gandhi's Philosophy of Nonviolence 

Go here for background on Ahimsa (harmlessness)

Civil Disobedience Defined, Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

D. Additional Information on Gandhi

"Like the millions of Indians who pressed around his funeral cortege seeking darshan--contact with his sanctity--millions more have sought freedom and justice under the Mahatma's guiding light. He shines as a conscience for the world. The saint and the politician go hand in hand, proclaiming the power of love, peace and freedom." --Johanna McGeary, in an article for Time Magazine, reflecting on Gandhi's influence [5]

Gandhi's legend grew In the latter years of his life, and his non-violent tactics including hunger strikes led many to see him as a prophet of sorts. Gandhi continued campaigning for an end to British rule, and was jailed without trial twice. Shortly after the end of British rule, he was assassinated by an extremist who claimed that Gandhi was too sympathetic to the Muslims.

Primary Source Document about Gandhi and The Women's Movement - By Lyn Norvell