Chapter 3

British Colonization in Kerala

3.1 Introduction
3.2 The Advent of the British East India Company
3.3 Impact of British Colonialism
3.3.1 Political Effects
3.3.2 Infrastructural Changes
3.3.3 Educational Changes
3.3.4 Impact on Society
3.3.5 Impact on Languages and Literature
3.3.6 Economic Impact
3.3.7 Agricultural Changes
3.4 Conclusion
 CHAPTER - 3
British Colonization in Kerala

3.1 Introduction
Modern Kerala comprising the three princely states of Travancore,

Cochin and British Malabar has had a long tradition of trade and commercial

relations with the outside world. If we agree with the contentions of the

classical and neo-classical economists that foreign trade could make an

impressive contribution to a country’s development and if not viewed

simply as a device for achieving productive efficiency, but as an “engine of

growth”1 Kerala possessed a rare advantage. Up to the fifteenth century Arab

traders enjoyed a virtual monopoly in the field of trade relations between

India and the outside world. From the accounts left by Megasthanese, the

great Ambassador to the court of Chandragupta Maurya and Pliny, a Roman

traveller, it is clear beyond doubt that Greece and Rome traded with the

western coastal regions of India. Pliny speaks of the great importance of

Muziris, the modern Crangannore, as main seaport in Malabar.2 After the

Greeks and the Romans came the Arabs, who concentrated their activities in

Malabar. The Arab travellers of the ninth and tenth centuries considered

Malabar ports as great centres of maritime trade. For a considerable length of

time from the eight century the Indian Ocean was in the hands of the Arabs.3

The capture of Constantinople by the Ottoman Turks and the consequent

closure of the land route to the East and compelled the European countries to

find a new sea route to India. In the field of maritime exploration and

geographical discoveries the Spanish and the Portuguese adventurers took

1. Adam Smith, An Enquiry into the Nature and causes of wealth of Nations, (London: Cambridge
University press, 1776), 422.
2. V. Nagam Aiya, The Travancore State Manual, vol. 1, (Trivandrum: Government Press, 1906), 237.
3. Donald. F. Lach, India in the Eyes of Europe, (Chicago: University of Chicago, 1968), 347

77
the lead. The Portuguese King Don Manual and his son Henry, known as 'the

Navigator', lavishly patronized the sailors. At last the Portuguese succeeded

in discovering a new sea route to India in the last decade of the 15th century.

3.2 The Advent of the British East Company

The disappearance of Dutch power from Malabar politics left for the

English East India Company as the only European power capable of

maintaining a hold on Malabar and the rest of India. It is reliably learned that

the first Englishman to come to India was Thomas Stevans, a Jesuit Priest. He

came to India in a Portuguese ship in 1583 and stayed in Goa for some time.4

The first Englishman who came to Kerala was perhaps Master Ralph Fitch. In

1583 he left England for the East in the company of some merchants and

landed in Cochin. Even before his arrival, in 1580 Robert Walsingham, the

Secretary of State, put forward a proposal to Queen Elizabeth I that Sir

Francis Drake be sent to Calicut, to try and establish trading agreements5

However this did not materialize. Ralph Fitch frequently traveled between

Calicut and Cochin.6 In 1615 Captain Kneeling arrived off the Calicut coast

with three ships, which brought Sir Thomas Roe to the court of Jahangir.

Kneeling visited Malabar in March 1616 and concluded a treaty with the

Zamorin. Thus the Zamorin became one of the earliest allies of the English in

India.7 As per the treaty signed with the Zamorin the British agreed to assist

Calicut in expelling the Portuguese from Cranganore and Cochin. In return

the Zamorin provided several trade facilities to the British. During the last

days of Portuguese power in Kerala, the English entered into an agreement

4. J. Saldhana, “First Englishman in India (Art)”, Journal of the Bombay Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society,
vol. xxii, 209.
5. W. Hunter, History of British India, vol.1, (New York: AMS Press, 1966), 231.
6. A. Sreedhara Menon, A Survey of Kerala History, (Madras: S. Viswanathan Publishers, 2000), 318.
7. W. Foster, Letters to the English East India Company, vol.4, 64 and Kerala History Association, Kerala,
Chaitram (Mal.), vol.1 (Ernakulam: 1973) 629.

78
with them, which gave the latter access to all Portuguese ports in Kerala.8

The British East India Company founded its first factory in the south in 1644

at Vizihinjam. In the same year the Zamorin gave them permission to build a

factory at Calicut, but as he was suspicious of the motives of all foreign

traders he was not inclined to give them further sites in his territory. In 1684

the British got permission from the Rani of Attingal to erect a factory at

Anjengo and along with this they built another at Kovalom. The East India

Company as a mere association of London merchants had at that time no

political aims whatsoever. It was concerned only with acquiring for itself a

monopoly of commercial activities. When, later they began to be supported

by a military force, this caused the first conflict between the politico-

economic coalition (the Rani and the Company) and the dominant castes of

the Pillais (Tamil Brahmins) and the Madambis (the Nair Officers). The

quarrel led to an attack in 1698 on the British fort at Angengo, by the local

Nayar army-which was speedily defeated by the military superiority of the

British troops.9 In March 1659, Robert Masters was sent to the newly started

factory at Calicut. Later two Englishmen, Charles Smeaton and Robert

Barbor were sent to establish another factory at Calicut on the invitation of

the Zamorin.

Towards the end of the 17th century the English East India

Company's choice for the location of its main factory on the Malabar Coast

fell on Tellicherry. This was chosen probably because of its proximity to five

pepper producing areas of Kottayam and Randattara. Cardamom was also

available in the area lying at the head of the Periah pass into Waynad, to

which Tellicherry was the nearest point of the coast. They obtained from the

8. K.V. Eapen, Church Missionary: Society and Education in Kerala, (Kottayam: Kollet Publications, 1985), 27.
9. Genevieve Lemercinier, Religion and Ideology in Kerala, (New Delhi: D. K. Agencies, 1984), 154.

79
ruler of Kolathunad, permission to set up a factory at Tellicherry. Travancore

was one of the earliest among the princely states to cultivate friendship with

the East India Company. The chief interest of the British in Travancore was

to establish their relations with that state “on a permanent basis of security

for all times to come”.10 As early as 1723, a treaty of friendship and alliance

was signed between Travancore and the East India Company. During the

reign of Marthanda Varma (1729-1758) that friendship was further

strengthened and consolidated on the basis of reciprocal assistance. The

Company helped Marthanda Varma with arms and ammunition, receiving

pepper in exchange. The friendship between the two continued unabated

throughout the reign of Marthanda Varma. The last injunction of Marthanda

Varma to his successor was to continue that friendship at any risk.11 Hence

Rama Varma, popularly known as Dharma Raja (1758-98) also maintained

friendly relations with the English.

The Mysorean invasion (1766-92) was a blessing in disguise for the

English to strengthen their power in Kerala. During the time of Tipu’s

invasion, the Malabar rulers sought the help of the English and their

Tellicherry factory gave asylum to a number of Malabar princes. Tipu

Sultan’s march towards Travancore forced the British to declare war against

the Sultan. After the Mysorean interlude the English concluded fresh treaties

with the rulers of Cochin and Travancore.12 A formal treaty was concluded

between Travancore and the English East India Company in 1795 according

to which the Raja accepted British supremacy and the Company agreed to

help the state in the event of external aggression. It was also decided that the

10. C.U. Aitchison, A Collection of Treaties, Engagements and Sanads Relating to India and Neighbouring
Countries, vol. v. (Calcutta: Superintendent Government Printing, 1909), 130 and M. Devaraj, The
Eclipse of Travancore (art) Aspects of South Indian History: A Felicitation in Honour of Prof K. Rajayyan,
(Nagercoil: Rajesh Publications, 2000), 93-95.
11. P. Shangoony Menon, A History of Travancore, (Madras: Higginbothom & Co., 1878), 175.
12. Op. cit. no. 8, 28-29.

80
British should be represented by a ‘resident at the court of Travancore and

Cochin.’13 During the period of Balarama Varma, a treaty was concluded

with the Company in 1805, which permitted the British to interfere in the

internal affairs of Travancore in the event of internal strife or rebellion. The

Raja also undertook to abide by whatever advice the British East India

Company might choose to give him in regard to internal administration of

the state. After the suppression of Velu Tampi rebellion the British could not

face any formidable rival from Travancore. The stage was now completely

set for their political interference in Travancore. As far as Malabar was

concerned, it fell into the hands of the British from Tipu Sultan as per the

provisions of the treaty of Seringapatam of 1792.

3.3 Impact of British Colonialism

3.3.1 Political Effects
The political climate in any state is determined by its internal affairs

as well as its external relationships. In Kerala at the close of the eighteenth

century the external relations were more decisive in determining the political

features of the state.14 Generally, the British in India had two main objectives,

in addition to their desire of prosperous trade activities - the domination of

Indian states and the spread of Christian religion. The policies they

propounded were calculated to make the Indian territories advantageous to

the development of a market economy. By the second part of the eighteenth

century, capitalist inroads had been made into a feudal social structure

which proved suitable for the rapid expansion of a mercantile economy.15 It

was their commercial and strategic motives that dominated British policies in

Kerala. The treaties of friendship arrived at between the British and the

13. W.S. Hunt, The Anglican Church in Travancore and Cochin, (Kottayam: C.M.S.Press, 1970), 65.
14. Op. cit. no. 8, 27.
15. George Mathew, Communal Road to Secular Kerala, (New Delhi: Concept Publishing House, 1989), 33.

81
Kerala kings placed at their disposal a permanent army capable of putting

down any possible revolt (as in the case of the Velu Tampi rebellion) and at

the same time the said army was maintained at the expense of the state

revenue. All possible steps were taken to preserve the social, economic and

political interests of the British although socio-economic and political

transformation came as by-products.16

In the princely states of Travancore and Cochin the foundations of a

modern administrative system was laid by Colonel Munro (1770-1856), who

was the British Resident for the states of Travancore and Cochin from 1810-

1819.17 In Travancore he also functioned as Dewan.18 Munro realized how the

weakness of the local administrative machinery since all powers–civil,

military and judicial–were concentrated in the hands of officials called

Kariakars. He curtailed their powers, re-designated them as tahasildars and

reduced them to the position of revenue collectors 19 He introduced a regular

system of civil service through the creation of a staff selection board and the

officials were paid salaries and pensions. Administrative rules called

16. Recently there exist a lot of controversies regarding the issue of British impact on India. The easier
assumptions have been questioned with the publication of volumes of literature on Indo-centric
idea, which undermined the glorification of western impact. The British had their own motives,
intentions and aims in picturising their role in transforming India society either to justify their
responsibility of uplifting the little brown brother or it may be due to their commercial motives.
Here in this study a balanced approach is adopted regarding the impact of British policies in
Kerala.
17. Col. Munro was born in Scotland and came to India in 1791. He entered in the Madras state as a
captain of the British army. He rose to the position of Quarter Marshell. In 1810 he was appointed
as the Resident of Travancore. Kerala Society Papers 2, Series 7, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala
Society 1930; 1. George Mathew, Col. Munroe (art), (Kottayam: Malayala Manorama Diamond
Jubilee Souvenir (Mal), 1950), 343-45.
18. Munroe became the Travancore resident on October 1810. The Travancore King Balarama Varma
died on 7 November 1810 and Rani Lakshmi Bai became the Regent Queen. On 10 December 1810
she wrote a letter to Munroe to dismiss the corrupted Dewan Ummini Thampi and assume himself
as Dewan. Thus he became the Dewan of Travancore in June 1811; N.K. Jose, Dewan Munroe (Mal)
(Vaikom: Hobby Publications, 1983),7-11.
19. T.K. Velu Pillai, Travancore State Manual, vol 2, (Thiruvananthapuram: Government Press, 1940),
630; Col.Munroe after assuming the charge of the Dewan entrusted himself with the arduous task
of thoroughly restricting the administrating Travancore. The primary object of Munroe’s
administration was the removal of evils like corruption, maladministration and turbulence. See
R. N.Yesudas, Col. John Munroe in Travancore.

82
Chattavariyolas were introduced and a separate army for Travancore was

constituted. As early as in 1811 the Devaswoms were placed under

governmental control.20 Gouri Lakshmi Bai introduced the secretariat system

in Travancore because of the instigation of Munroe. The very first matter that

engaged the attention of Munroe was to thoroughly overhaul the machinery

of the administration, which was still being, maintained on a quasi-feudal

basis. The Huzur Cutcherry was thoroughly reorganized. The post of

superintendents and deputy superintendents were created. He organized

two battalions of Nayar sepoys and one Company of cavalry as “body

guards” and escort to royalty and appointed European officers to be in

command of the force. The police duties, which had till then been discharged

by the military, were entrusted to a separate police corps, independent of

both the judiciary and Revenue Department. The British unified the small

kingdoms of Kerala, which were in constant conflict with each other. As per

the provisions of the treaties signed with the rulers of Travancore and

Cochin, they were authorised to maintain their own garrisons on two

conditions; that these were never to be used for aggression, and that no

member of the Nayar caste (in the case of Travancore) was to form part of

them. The British wanted to ensure effective themselves of control over the

administration of the native states. The position of the “Resident” was

created for this purpose. Although the administrative power remained in the

hands of the local rulers and other agents, decisions were subject to the

previous approval of the Resident. On the political level of the of the two

kingdoms- Travancore and Cochin, the alteration in the function of the East

India Company gave rise to a peculiar kind of structure, due to the dual

sources of power. There was first of all British authority - which had no

20. During the period of Velu Thampi 30 Devaswoms were placed under government al control. Col.
Munroe placed 348 Major Devaswoms under Government; George Mathew, Op.cit; no.15, 345

83
direct power to legislate, but possessing the power of veto, secondly the

Rajah, now became Head of state, but a state which possessed only a weak

administrative system because of the strongly autonomous character of the

social units at the base and which had in addition lost the major element on

which its power had depended; the Nayar army.

The British contact with the native states in Kerala contributed largely

to the development of political consciousness. Perhaps English education

was a major factor in articulating political consciousness and nationalism.

The new generation had facilities to be able to obtain a modern English

education and had therefore, gradually developed into a group of

professionals, serving as the backbone of the middle class.21 However, the

growth of nationalism was a slow process in Malabar. The anti-British

nationalism and the emphasis given to native culture had not received much

attention in South India in general and in Kerala in particular.22 The reforms

introduced in Kerala were pointed in two directions. They are 1) the

modernization of the state administrative structure, and 2) the creation of a

more efficient and comprehensive revenue system, enlarging the revenue

base with efficiently organized tax collection, which would overcome the

problem of paying tributes to colonial powers. Meanwhile, the introduction

of measures enabling the private purchase of land (1865) and the abolition of

state monopolies promoted an economic climate that favoured direct colonial

investment. The East India Company had been investing in spice plantations

21. K. K. Kurup, Nationalism and Social Change, The Role of Malayalam Literature, (Trissur: Kerala Sahitya
Academy, 1988), 39.
22. When the British influence came, there emerged a dominant group with a grouping desire for a
return to everything Indian, Whether Hindu or Muslim. Europeanisation was ridiculed, the
ancient Sanskrit classics were emphasized and religious rites and ceremonies went on as before.
Effect to synthesis western science and efficiency. English forms of law and administration, with
traditional Indian custom and concepts were inevitable. However in literature, education, industry,
law and social reforms the “Pax Britanica” left its impress upon Indian society for a long time to
come.

84
in North Malabar since 1798. The British crown introduced laws facilitating

grants of land to Europeans in India, while in the 1840s coffee production

regions were created in Waynad, Nilgiris, Coorg and Travancore.23 Several

social reforms were promoted from the mid 19th century onwards by colonial

powers and missionaries in the form of promotion of education, abolition of

slavery, promulgation of laws excluding low-caste converts from un-

touchability rules and a progressive curtailment of the powers of the

traditional landed upper-caste aristocracy. These must all be seen in the

context of the progressive commercialization of Travancore’s economy in

particular against the development of European- owned plantations and the

need for cheap, docile, mobile labour. In the political sphere westernization

gave birth not only to nationalism but also revivalism, communalism,

casteism and heightened linguistic consciousness and regionalism.24

3.3.2 Infrastructural Changes

In Kerala, political disintegration set in with the disappearance of the

Kulasekharas as an imperial power by the end of the eleventh century.

Innumerable petty states sprang up on the ruins of the Kulasekhara Empire.

It was only under the British rule that unity was restored. In Travancore and

Cochin the foundation of the modern administrative system was laid by

Colonel Munroe. He gave a thorough overhaul to the entire administrative

machine, bringing everything into line with the system prevailing in British

India. In these states the indigenous system had given rise to corruption,

inefficiency and mismanagement.25 No wonder ideas and institutions

prevalent in British India gradually found their way into Kerala, western

institutions like banking, public administration, military organization,

23. Fillippo Osella and Caroline Osella, Social Mobility in Kerala: Modernity and Identity in Comfort,
(London: Pluto Press, 2000), 49.
24. M. N. Srinivas, Social Change in Modern India, (New Delhi: Orient Longman, 1972), 58.
25. Ramanatha Aiyer, Progressive Travancore, (Thiruvananthapuram: Anantha Rama Varma, 1923), 112.

85
modern medicine, law etc. were all introduced. The hierarchy of political

values was restructured. The introduction of modern means of

communication such as the railways, bus travel, postal service, air and sea

travel, press and radio favourably affected people’s lives in many ways.

Western education broadened the outlook of the people, who started talking

of their rights and freedoms.26 The introduction of new values, the rational

and secular spirit and the ideologies of individualism, equality and justice

assumed great importance.

The British administration introduced sweeping reforms in the fields

of justice and law. For instance, Colonel John Munroe abolished cruel,

inhumane and cruel punishments and introduced modern progressive

methods. In Travancore, he established Zilla courts at five different centres

namely Padmanabhapuram, Thiruvananthapuram, Mavelikara, Vaikom and

Aluvaye.27 He also set up a court of appeal at Thiruvananthapuram, the

capital of Travancore. He introduced the British court of civil and criminal

procedures in 1861 in Travancore with the same modifications. A number of

local courts were also set up in different parts of the state. Munroe

established a Public Service Commission and dealt severely with corrupt

government officials. For trying these officials a Huzur Court was

constituted.28 After the suppression of the Velu Tampi rebellion the British

introduced several administrative reforms in Travancore. They disbanded

the Nayar militia and organized a new state force. Cutcheries and judicial

organizations were introduced in various parts of the state. Officials were

redesignated in line with the new reforms. For instance Dalwa became Dewan

26. Ram Ahuja, Society in India, Concepts, Theories and Changing Trends, (New Delhi: Rawat Publications,
1999), 18.
27. T. K. Velupillai, Travancore State Manual, vol. 2, (Thiruvananthapuram: Government Press, 1940), 515.
28. C. Kesavan, “Munroe Sayippau” (art) Kaumadi Thirunal Special Issue (Mal), November 1939, 9.

86
and below the Dewan the post of a Dewan Perishkar was constituted.29 Census

and ethnological studies were started to serve the interest of the British, but

indirectly it helped the natives in various ways. As a consequence of the

British rule the transport communication, railways, postal and telegraphic

facilities etc. developed and western medicine was introduced. Before

colonization by the British there were petty Kingdoms and chiefs who were

fighting each other. But the British brought them under their control and

tried to unify the administration.30 The British not only reorganized but also

expanded the administrative system. New departments such as revenue,

agriculture and education, engineering, health, etc. were created. As a result

the old system of non- paid hereditary officers who enjoyed certain

privileges came to an end. Its place was taken over by a new type of

employment, paid and transferable jobs, which were linked to educational

qualifications.31 In the words of K.P Padmanabha Menon, “the administrative

machinery established by the company was therefore altogether new and

based on a system of an official hierarchy in which the people as a body had

no place or voice. The village in whose hands much of the local

administration remained and which had continued faithfully to do its work

centuries,, was completely ignored and eventually ceased to exist.”32 The

people of Kerala regarded the British not simply as traders but as rulers and

29. K. N. Ganesh, Kerala Samuha Patanangal (Mal), (Pathanamthitta: Prasakathi Publications, 2002), 36.
30. P. K. Gopala Pillai, British Adhipathyam Kondu Indiakku Siddichitulla Gunangal, (Thiruvananthapuram:
Keralodayam, 1916), 26.
31. K. Saradamony, Emergence of a Slave Caste: Pulayas of Kerala, (New Delhi: People’s Publishing House,
1980), 120.
32. K.P. Padmanabha Menon, History of Kerala, Vol. 1 (Thiruvananthapuram:, Government Press,
1925), 268. Col. Munroe aptly puts it, “The strict gradation of authority established among the
Kariagars and the entire commend they possessed over the services of the people contributed to
perpetuate Military feelings in the country and to facilitate the means of communication. They
were in fact, at once military and civil Governors exercised by the Karrigars were peculiarly liable
to abuse in their capacity as revenue servants. Their constant interaction with the people gave them
an influence which can be utilized for purposes of corruption. Here Munroe felt that it is necessary
for the purity of deprive them of their magisterial powers. Ulloor .S. Parameswara Iyer,
“Col.Munroe”, Kerala Society Papers, Vol.2, Service 7, 48.

87
administrators. For getting higher education several persons visited England

and other foreign countries and became acquainted with foreign

governmental systems. They saw with their own eyes the working of

democracy .A spirit of revolt developed among them and they thought that it

was their bounden duty to strive for their freedom with no sacrifice to great

to achieve this.. British rule was responsible for the development of a

'middle class' in India. . The wonderful opportunities of trade and exchange

brought by the British were instrumental in evolving this class. The ideas of

democracy and people representation quickly developed. They began to

agitate against the monopolisation of offices by the savarnas in Travancore.

The growth and development of community-oriented politics in Kerala was

in a sense the after effects of British rule.

It was a fact that until the advent of the British, the Keralites were

socially very backward. Until 1850 they did not have proper road network

and people had very little contact with people outside their own villages. For

legal decisions the authorities mainly depended on smriti works. But from

their contacts with the missionaries, a feeling of confidence and self-esteem

developed among the downtrodden classes. Through heir acquaintance with

people from the west they began to consider the government officials not as

their masters but as their servants. They started thinking that a responsible

government should function for the welfare of the whole people and not for

a selected few.33 The people started conducting meetings and conferences for

getting more enlightened, following the western model after their contacts

with the British.

33. C. O. Madhavan, “Paschatya Vidyabhysavum Pourasthyarum (Art)”, Dakshinadeepam (Mal)

Magazine, Chertalai, (1915).

88
3.3.3 Educational Changes
The British authorities and the Christian missionaries were largely

responsible for the spread of education in Kerala. Even though Kerala had a

rich tradition of education, language and literature, before the arrival of the

British, there were no formal educational institutions other than village

schools known as pial schools, providing instruction to pupils. In most cases

teaching was a labour of love and no fee was collected from the pupils.34

Even these educational facilities were not easily accessible to all; different

educational opportunities were, in those days, determined by the pattern of

land ownership based on the caste system. The system of education existing

in pre-British Kerala, was that each village had a ‘Patasala’ and an

‘Ezuthachan’ or ‘Asan ‘used to teach the children. All the children, belonging

to different age groups were taught by a single teacher. This practice was

obviously unscientific, as it could not provide the most minimal of mental,

moral or intellectual development. Because of early marriages and social

custom very few girls remained in school to the end of the course. Namdudiris

had special schools for teaching Sanskrit, Vedas and Sastras. Caste Hindu

girls were taught music and poetry at home.35 Muslims had their madrasas.

The Christians had their own church schools. The traditional patasalas were

run by individual initiative with no aid from the state. Caste wise

distribution of students according to the survey of 1822 conducted by James

Munroe is shown in the following table (3.1).36

34. Op. cit. no. 27, 691.

35. K.M. Bahauddin, Kerala Muslims; The Long Struggle, (Kottayam: SPCS, 1992), 134.
36. Economic and Political Weekly, 10 November 1984

89
 Table 3.1
Caste-wise Distribution of students in indigenous schools -1822
No of Students
Caste
Male Female
Brahmins 2230 5
Vaizyas 84 15
Sudras 3697 707
Muslims 3196 1122
Other Castes 2760 343
Total 11963 2192
Grand Total 14155
Source: Economic and Political Weekly, November 1984

In Kerala, in theory, education was the monopoly of the Brahmins.37 In

practice it was, however, within the reach of almost all the socially privileged

sections of the population.38 With the assumption of power by the British, the age-

old social equilibrium began to get disturbed. It produced far-reaching

consequences in the states of Travancore and Cochin. Malabar, which came

directly under the British rule, was the least affected so far as social and economic

improvements were concerned. The Protestant missionaries were the pioneers of

English education in Travancore and Cochin. The beginnings of a western type of

education were laid in Travancore by the British during the second decade of the

nineteenth century when Protestant missionaries were invited from England to

come to the state and start a process of establishing English schools with a view to

converting people to Christianity. The British decided to concentrate their initial

efforts in Travancore.39 It was the London Missionary Society (L.M.S) that laid the

foundation of western education in Southern Travancore. The credit for

introducing English education in central and North Travancore and Cochin goes

to the Church Missionary Society (C.M.S).40 The missionaries received from the

37. William Logan, Malabar Manual, (Madras: Government Press, 1931), 109.
38. Op. cit. no. 2, 445.
39. C. M Agur, Church History of India, (Madras: S P C S Press, 1903), 82.
40. M.A. Shering, The History of Protestant Missions in India from their Commencement in 1706 to 1871,
(London: Tru bner, 1875), 312.

90
government large amounts of money, vast tracts of land, building materials for

the construction of churches and educational institutions.41

Thomas Norton, with his headquarters at Alleppey was the first

C.M.S missionary to propagate the idea of primary education in Travancore. He

set up a school at Alleppey for the natives.42 He also started an orphanage and

girls school.43 In his new schools, the majority of the teachers were Hindu.44 In

1834 the first English school was opened at Thiruvananthapuram. It was

converted into the Raja’s free school on 18 December 1836.45 The first English

school for girls in Travancore was opened in 1859. Because of the

compulsions of the Christian missionaries and the social necessity, the

Travancore kings opened special schools for avarnas and admitted them in

government schools in course of time.

The following tables (3.2 and 3.3) compare the non-representation and

representation of avarnas in schools.

Table 3.2
Caste –wise student strength in English schools of Travancore, 1862.46

Community No. of Students Representation

Tamil Sudras 517 32.75
Malayali Sudras (Nairs) 424 28.85
Christian (All Division) 315 19.95
Tamil Brahmins 266 16.85
Muslims 37 2.34
Namboodiris 1 0.06
Others 19 1.20
Total 1579 100.00
Source: Travancore Administration Report

41. Op. cit. no. 39, 85.

42. Rev. James Hough, The History of Christianity in India from the Commencement of the Christian Era,
vol..v (London: Adamant Media Corporation, 1875), 399.
43. Op. cit. no. 13, 38-39.
44. Dalton Eire, Fellow Workers with God, (Kottayam: C.M.S Press, 1963), 9-10.
45. This was the first English School in South India But the backward castes were benefited from these
schools; K. Saradamony, Op.cit, no.31, 119.
46. Travancore Administration Report, 1863-1864, 21

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 Table 3.3
Number of pupils classified according to caste represented in
schools 1897-98.47
Community Boys Girls Total
Malayalam Brahmin 478 117 595
Tamil Brahmin 4158 1475 595
Malayalam Sudra 42189 16075 58264
Ezhavas 14207 2486 16687
Parayas 1509 317 1836
Pulayans 2236 174 2410
Mohamamadans 5079 1152 6210
Source: Travancore Administration Report

The kings of Kerala patronized the education of the Brahmins as “a

duty enshrined in the Dharma Sastras” and his patronage attracted a large

number of Brahmins from Tamil district.48 As to the education of girls, they

were educated together with boys in the native schools. The number seems

to have been large. In most of these schools, there were from 20 to 30 or more

boys and from 2 to 4 or 5 Sudra and Ezava girls.49 Until 1860 missionary

institutions dominated in the area of education in Kerala. In 1865-66, in

Travancore, for example the government schools had only 1067 pupils, while

the L. M. S had 8081 and the C. M. S 2209 students and in addition the

Catholics and the Syrians had 5917 pupils.50

The government of Travancore started several schools to give an

English education to its people in the first half of the 19th century. But this

was conducted under the strong influence of and with the direct help of the

missionaries. This step was taken by the British as part of an attempt to

create ultimately an India in British image. The missionaries received from

the government large amounts of money, vast tracts of land, buildings and

47. Ibid; 1897- 98, 135

48. Op. cit. no. 2, 444-45
49. Samual Mateer, The Land of Charity: A Descriptive Account of Travancore and Its People, with Especial
Reference to Missionary Labour, vol. ii, (London: J Snow & Co., 1871), 154.
50. Travancore Administration Report, 1865-66, 59.

92
building materials for the construction of churches and educational

institutions.51 The contribution that the missionaries made to the cause of

education in the state was, however, significant, not purely in terms of the

numbers that they turned out, but in terms of the awareness that their efforts

instilled in the minds of the depressed classes about their social rights and in

the minds of the elite in society about the dangers to their social power

inherent in giving a free hand to the missionaries in the field of education.

The following table (3.4) shows the educational status of the population in

1899.52

Table 3.4
The educational status of the population in Kerala in 1899
Community/Religion Males (%) Females (%)
I. Hindus
a. Brahmin 51.7 7.2
b. Nairs 37.5 6.9
II. Backward Communities
d. Ezhava 12.1 0.1
e. Channar 5.1 0.4
III. Depressed Classes
a. Kurava 0.0 0.0
b. Paraya 2.9 0.3
c. Pulaya 0.4 0.0
IV. Christians 21.3 3.3
V Muslims 11.4 1.7
Source: Census of Travancore 1891

The educational system of the L. M. S in Travancore was principally

composed of three main parts. The seminary at Nagarcoil as the highest

institution, the boarding schools and Anglo –Vernacular schools as

secondary schools and the village schools as primary schools. The following

table (3.5) gives details about the L. M. S schools.

51. Op. cit. no. 39, 85.

52. Census of Travancore, 1891.

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 Table 3.5
Educational Institutions of the L. M. S53
Institutions Boys Girls Total
Nagarcoil Seminary 147 -- 147
Boarding Schools 67 200 264
Anglo Vernacular
Day Schools 352 ----- 352
Village Schools 5425 1290 6715
Night Schools 358 17 375
Total 6346 1507 7853
Source: Census of Travancore 1891
The L. M. S institutions accepted Hindu students also without any

hesitation. In 1861, L. M. S had 141 village schools for boys and 31 for girls.

The first C. M. S missionary to be sent out to Cochin was the Rev.

Thomas Damon. He opened an English school at Mattancherry in 1871 and

another one at Cranganore.54 During this period, in response to the appeal

made by the Jews of Cochin, the C.M.S established a school there. Boys as

well as girls attended it and before long it came to have 96 pupils.55 A

missionary by name Henry Baker established a large number of primary

schools in different parts of Kottayam. The Christian missionaries also

started secondary schools and grammar schools in different places of the

state. It was under the direction of Col. John Munroe that the C. M. S

established in first college in Kerala, the C. M. S College at Kottayam.

Although the main purpose of the college was the better instruction of Syrian

priests, the school also produced a number of officials belonging to different

strata of the society. The Travancore government also welcomed the move

and in 1818 Rani-Lakshmi Bhai donated Rs. 20,000 to the C. M. S College.56

53. Ibid, 1866-1867.

54. Op. cit. no. 13, 153.
55. Op. cit. no. 42, 404.
56. W. S. Hunt, The Anglican Church in Travancore and Cochin, vol. i, (Kottayam: C.M.S. Press, 1920), 85;
V. Nagam Aiya, Travancore State Manual, vol. ii (Thiruvananthapuram: Government Press, 1906),
447; Koji Kawashima, Missionaries and a Hindu State: Travancore 1858-1936, (New Delhi: Oxford
University Press, 1998), 85.

94
For secondary education, C. M. S created the Grammar school at Kottayam.

These schools were an exact copy of grammar schools in Britain. In this

school English, Malayalam and Sanskrit were taught to the pupils. In

addition to this school C. M. S established seminaries at Alleppey, Cochin

and Trichur to impart secondary education. The Travancore education code

of 1910 and the Cochin education code of 1911 created severe problems to the

C. M.S.57

The C.M.S. Missionaries also gave due importance to female

secondary education and established two schools i.e. the Baker Memorial

Girl’s High school at Kottayam (the first of this kind in Kerala) and the

Buchanan Girl’s High school at Pallom. The wives of the missionaries were

the first to establish girl’s schools. There was some opposition at the

beginning, but that was overcome by propaganda. In the course of time

many girl schools were opened in different mission centres and female

education spread throughout the country. Mrs. Anne Norton did much in

imparting education to the girls at Alleppey. In 1881 the C.M.S mission

started the girl’s church school to impart primary education to girls. In 1840 a

female missionary, Mrs. Chapman started a school at Kottayam. Mrs. Bishop

at Kottayam first began schools for the education of Hindu girls in 1872. At

Cochin, Mrs. Ridsdale started a girl’s school in 1826. In Trichur girl schools

were started by the C.M.S. in 1841. The C.M.S. also started vocational

educational institutions. In Alleppey such a school was started in 1842. An

industrial school was started at Kottayam by C.M.S. in 1893. While in 1883

such a school was started at Trichur, a third one was started at Tiruvalla in

1910. During the period from 1819 to 1822 the missionaries established a few

boarding schools in which training in knitting, spinning and needlework was

57. C. Achutha Menon, The Cochin State Manual, (Ernakulam: Cochin Government Press, 1911), 292.

95
taught. In quantitative terms, the achievements made by the missionaries in

the area of women’s education were negligible. But the impact of their efforts

on the attitude of the society towards women’s education was important and

far-reaching.

Malabar had, in common with Travancore and Cochin, a strong

tradition of education. The indigenous system continued to exist among the

different higher castes of Hinduism, the Christians and the Muslims.

However, since Christians were a minority and the missionary activities were

quite limited (confined mostly to the activities of the Basel Mission) the growth

of the western system of education was much more delayed in Malabar than in

the other two regions.

The impact of western education was greatly felt by various

communities in Kerala. The higher castes, the custodians of religion and dharma,

gradually realized the need for change and were forced to adjust themselves to

the new socio- economic situation. The modern ideas of democracy and

responsible government, the very centre of western education and culture,

opened a new vision of political thought in Kerala, along with the realization of

a new sense of personality, self-respect and vitality. To the socially suppressed

classes this foreign influence proved to be a great blessing. It opened a new era

of social freedom based on the rule of law.58 To the upper castes and especially

the Nayars, who lost some of their old privileges, the new type of education

became a key to jobs, which offered them security without affecting their status

and rank. Their caste domination acquired a new form as they established a

monopoly in the administrative service in the early years. On the other hand a

civic consciousness developed among the avarna class as a result of the British

58. M. J. Koshi, The History of the Legislative of Travancore and Cochin up to 1956, Unpublished Ph D
thesis, (Thiruvananthapuram: University of Kerala, 197), 6.

96
reforms and educational advancements. A new spirit of enquiry and criticism

developed among the low castes.59

The hierarchy as exhibited by the Hindu society was challenged by

the development of this new education system. The concept of social

responsibility emerged, domestic ideas developed and people became more

and more conscious of their rights. Towards the close of the 19th century the

new elite of all the communities wanted to look forward instead of

backwards and embrace the elements of modernization. It widened the

contradictions between the savarna and avarna communities. For the higher

castes educational advancement was a means by which they could hope to

secure a just share of political power and representation. For the avarnas

education meant much more than this; it was the door to a new world. It was

the instrument of emancipation from the social and economic subjection,

which the caste system had imposed upon them. It was a way to escape from

hard and exhausting toil and degrading labour. In subsequent periods the

avarna community leaders never hesitated to proclaim their loyalty and

indebtedness to the British contributions. For instance in Travancore, in 1909

the S.N.D.P leader C. Krishnan proclaimed his community’s extreme loyalty

to the British Government.60 Vivekodayam, the official mouthpiece of S.N.D.P.

Yogam argued, ‘the peace and freedom that we enjoy now has not been

experienced by us under any other dispensation. Education drives away the

darkness hidden in the nook and corners of our country and transforms

59. M. N. Srinivas, writes, “The lower castes wanted a share in the new opportunities and they were
also stirred by new equalitarian winds blowing across India. The movement assumed a particularly.
Vigorous form in peninsular India where the Non-Brahmin Castes succeeded in obtaining for
themselves concessions and privileges; Op. cit. no. 24, 73.
60. He said “our most important duty is to declare the indebtedness and allegiance to the British
Government .It is under them that we were enjoying this freedom that their protection that we raised
our position to this much level; Presidential address given by C. Krishnan in the 6th S N D P. Annual
meeting held at Ernakulam on 15 May 1909; N. K. Damodaran (comp) S N D P Yogathile
Adhyakshaprasangangal (Mal), (Thiruvananthapuram: Maryland Publishers, 1982), 54.

97
millions who were forced to live like animals into human beings. The

administrative policy of the British has granted us the freedom, which was

beyond our reach within the framework of sublime religion. It has abolished

the monstrous practices and corruption and extirpated the fangs of the

venomous serpent of the inhuman caste system.”61 The contact with the

outside world especially through educational and commercial relations

opened a world of new experiences to the indigenous people. Before these

contacts the people were living like frogs in a well, believing that the sky and

surrounding were little wider. But after these contacts people began to look

towards different places and periods.62 C. Krishnan the editor of Mitavadi

wrote, “There is at present a restlessness agitating our whole community. Go

anywhere you will find a spirit of discontent with the existing state of things,

a craving for a better and loftier ideal.”63 In the words of M. J. Koshi, “It

should not however, lead us to suppose that the genesis of political

consciousness in Travancore and Cochin was the natural sequel to the kind

of tempered monarchy that might have generally prevailed in these states

from the days of recorded history. Apart from the above background, the

states became sufficiently mature to imbibe the liberal and democratic

traditions of western culture which channeled its way through English

education, and the British Indian institutions of the 19th and early 20th

centuries.”

One of the most important effects of modern colonialism was the

wide popularity attained in the field of women’s education. Kerala

Chinthamani, a Malayalam magazine stated, ‘within a short span of time

English education got wide popularity among the people and womenfolk

61. Vivekodayam, vol.v., nos. 7 & 8, 1909, 3.

62. Deepam, “All Illustrated Journal”, vol.1, no. 6, Ernakulam, 1930, 217.
63. N. K. Damodaran, (comp) S N D P Yogathile Adhyakshaprasangangal (Mal), (Thiruvananthapuram:
Maryland Publishers, 1982), 56.

98
also became its beneficiaries. In earlier times women spent their time mostly

in kitchen and having no outside contacts, but now we can see women

dressed decently going to the educational institutions with books in hand

and engaging in health exercises’64 Due to their contact with the new culture,

the people learnt a new lesson that the primary duty of a state was to work

for the welfare of all the subjects and not for the happiness of a few. The

karanavans or family elders propagated a false belief that if people were

educated along western lines they would give up their caste and religion and

disobey the elders.65 The missionary schools were instrumental in

destabilizing the caste and class structure in Kerala. The lower castes that

were once neglected were educated in the mission schools. A civic

consciousness developed among the avarna sections mainly due to the

missionary policy of accommodating all sections of people in their

educational institutions. It was from the Hindu avarna castes that most of the

people converted to Christianity. The number of converts from the Hindu

savarnas was negligible. The avarna classes began to demand equal

opportunities irrespective of castes and classes due to the exhortations of the

missionaries. In a letter written by King Uthradom Thirunal of Travancore to

the Madras Governor Lord Harrison on 21 April 1856, it has been pointed

out, “Due to the popularity of the missionary activities, conflicts arouse on

caste, local customs and manners. It began to weaken the traditional

controlling power of the state over the Hindu subjects.”66

3.3.4 Impact on Society

Generally the British policy was non-interference in the social issues

of the States. Their policy in Kerala was guided mainly by commercial

64. Kerala Chintamony (Mal),Book 7, vol .8, Trissur, 1913, 210

65. Op. cit. no. 33, 59.
66. J. Reghu, “Keraleeya Navodhana Pithavu Narayana Guruvalla Dr. Palapuvanu” (art), Sameeksha (Mal)
Magazine, Kerala Birthday Special, (Thiruvananthapuram: 1999), 26.

99
considerations. The British were ready to allow the existence of the

individual kingdoms as long as they were willing to accept their over

lordship. It is interesting that the customary caste rules and practices were

never interfered with by the British administrators, for it was a fixed

principle of Government that it should not interfere with social laws and

native customs unless there was a general and unequivocal demand for

reforms on the part of the people themselves.67 But as part of their

commercial and material considerations they were forced to introduce some

drastic changes in society. Their general liberal outlook and the need for the

facilities to be provided for the propagation of Christianity compelled them

to think otherwise. Thus even though there was no direct administrative

interference with caste procedure, there was an informal, un-structured sort

of action against some of the more barbarous aspects of caste which both the

western missionary and the administrator found repugnant to their notions

of human dignity.68 When the British administrators realized that they could

find a large number of people from the Hindu avarna communities to convert

to their faith, they acted immediately. For instance in 1871 J. I. Minchin, the

acting Resident of the Travancore and Cochin states asked the Dewans of the

state to enquire and report on discrimination faced by the low castes. The

Dewans duly reported especially on the prohibitions imposed on them over

the use of public roads and exclusion from public offices.69

The British were always concerned about the outdated and

unscientific customs practised in Kerala and persuaded the authorities to

rationalize or abolish these practices as soon as possible. The British Resident

67. P. N. Chopra, T.K. Ravindran, and N. Subrahmanian, History of South India, vol. iii, (New Delhi: S.
Chand and Company, 1979), 210.
68. A. Ayyappan, Social Revolution in a Kerala Village; A Study in Culture and Change, (Bombay: Asia
Publishing House, 1965), 9.
69. Archives News Letter, Vol1 No.4 September 1975, “Kerala State Archives” Nalanda,
Thiruvananthapuram

100
Nevil wrote two letters addressing the Dewan of Travancore on 18 December

1868 to reduce the expenses that the Government was spending for

conducting Murajapam70 ceremonies. In these letters the Resident reiterated

that such ceremonies were wasteful and would not serve the purpose of

promoting the welfare of the people. The expenditure was larger than

receipts and money had been lavishly spent to promote the idleness of a

section of the people (Brahmin).71 This single incident itself was enough to

appreciate the modern progressive outlook of a foreign power looking for

the welfare of a large community even though commercial considerations too

forced them to act accordingly. Again in 1871 the Madras government stated

that the cost of the Dewaswoms and Uttupuras was “an unnecessarily heavy

charge on the state” and ordered the Resident to advise the Travancore

Government to conduct a careful scrutiny of their expenditure with a view to

reducing it. They also advised the Maharaja to reduce palace expenses so as

to release funds for more useful purposes such as public works and

education.72

The timely interference of the Christian missionaries and the British

authorities helped the low caste people of Kerala to free themselves from the

clutches of many social evils. In 1865 Oozhiyam73 was abolished while

70. Murajapam Ceremony consisted of chanting of Vedic Mantras, which lasted for 56 days. This long
ceremony included Sahasrnamajapam, Mantrajapam, Murajapam and Jalajapam. The worst thing
associated with this ceremony was that for satisfying the Brahmins the state machinery spent lakhs
of rupees from the Treasury; Naduvettam Gopalakrishnan, Kerala Charitradharakal (Mal)
(Thiruvananthapuram: Malabar Publications, 2003), 158; V. Krishnan Nambudiri, “Murajapa
Mahamaham: Udbhavaum Chadangukalum” (art) Mathrubumi Weekly (Mal) Calicut, 3 February 1936,
29-34; Rasika Renjini (mal) Magazine, vol. iv.no.5, 1905, 284-293; “Murajaphinte Ulpathi” (art),
Navajeevan (mal) Magazine, vol .17, no. vi, 1942, 12; Mitavadi (Mal), Book 6, vol.12, January 1918,
9-10; “Kerala Navodhanam: Kandathil Varghese Mappilayude Mugaprasangangal”, (Kottayam, Malayala
Manorama, I997), 278-280.
71. Cover File, No 294, “Kerala State Archives”, Nalanda, Thiruvananthapuram
72. Koji Kawashima, Missionaries and a Hindu State: Travancore 1858-1936, (New Delhi: Oxford
University Press, 1998), 26.
73. It was a sort of personal gratuitous service and forced labour for the government. It was of two
kinds namely compulsory manual lab our and supply of vegetables and provisions for the
requirement of the palace and other institutions and to render service for repair of public buildings.

101
Viruthi74 was abolished in 1894 in Travancore. The Pandarapattom

proclamation of 1865 granted the possession of the land with the right of

devolution and sale to all tenants. The Jenmi Kudian proclamation of 1867

defined the relation between the Jenmies and the tenants by which a

considerable measure of relief was accorded to the tenants, The British

introduced census in India since it was necessary for them to understand the

people and culture of the land. The census also created division among the

people. The identification of caste and religion with specific economic

interest suggested by the census touches the heart of the communal problem.

Apart from that, modern methods of counting and classification have

affected the formation of new subjective identities.75 In 1931 the Travancore

census observed, “the most satisfactory method of dividing the people into

groups of social, political and economic purpose seems to be the one based

on religion combined with race or caste.”76 The census reports supplied

necessary data to the avarnas and neglected communities encouraging them

to react against oppression. The census revealed many harsh realities

especially affecting the low caste people who realized how minority sections

of the population controlled the vast resources of the state. They raised their

demands for new opportunities by quoting census figures. The census

reports were instrumental in creating communal and caste consciousness in

Kerala.77 Thus the most important stimulus towards caste-cluster

consciousness realized by the British presence was neither their advanced

74. Viruthi was feudal in nature. The Viruthi holder had to render manual service and supply
provisions to the Government in lieu of lands enjoyed by him. If the Viruthi holder was not
enthusiastic enough to render adequate services, the lands were liable to be resumed by the
Government and assigned to some body else P.S. Velayudhan, Kerala (art), S. P. Sen (ed.) Historical
writings on the National Movement, (Calcutta: Institute of Historical Studies, 1977), 205.
75. Dick Kooiman, Communalism and Indian Princely States; Travancore, Baroda and Hyderabad in the
1930,s, (New Delhi: Manohar Publications, 2002), 40.
76. The Census of Travancore, 1931, 329.
77. For details on caste and census see Satish Despande and Nandini Sundar, “Caste and Census:
Implications for Society and Science”, Economics and Political Weekly, No, 33, (1998): 2157-59

102
technology nor their military powers and administrative skill, but rather the

growth of caste cluster consciousness, which was an unintended but direct

consequence of the fact that the foreigners engaged in a continuous attempt

to describe, define, interpret and categorize the social complexity that India

presented to them-a society so puzzlingly different from their own.”78

The British contact with Kerala accompanied by colonial conquest and

capitalist penetration led to the restructuring of the society. Colonialism

profoundly altered the spatial and material organization of the society. It

liberated the society from the stagnation of traditionalism and started an

enduring growth process in living standards and general intellectual

development. The changes in the material basis of society affected the social

institutions, customs and attitudes of the people. The internal social

institutions such as the caste system and joint family, social mores, habits,

beliefs, attitudes, values and traditions had to adapt themselves to the new

colonial environment.79 The authority of the dominant castes in social

matters was weakened by colonial rule. The Brahmin landlords who had the

right to exercise judicial power over the members of the low castes, living

and working on their land, were deprived of this privilege by new, secular

laws, which were based on the principle of equality for all the people.80 From

the 1850’s the balance of the political and social system was increasingly

disturbed as new resources became available for which all men, regardless of

caste or religion, could compete on fairly equal terms. The commercial or

menial occupations of many Christians and low caste Hindus and their

association with European missionaries gave them advantages in their

78. Lucy Karrol, “Colonial Perceptions of-Indian Society and the Emergence of Caste (s) Association (art)”,
Journal of Asian Studies, vol. xxxvii, no.2 February, (1978): 233.
79. Ramachandran Nair, Social Consequences of Agrarian Change, (Jaipur: Printwell, 1991), 157-58.
80. Ibid. 158.

103
competition, which the castes like the Nayars did not share.81 As far as the

lower castes were concerned westernization became doubly desirable, it

subsumed not only things valuable in themselves but something, which the

high castes had, and they did not. To catch up with the high castes mere

sanskritisation was not enough. Thus they became more determined to obtain

western education and the fruits that only it could yield. High caste

dominance in education and in the new occupations thus provided the

reason for the backward class movement.82 As a consequence of the western

contact, several traditional beliefs and practices unhelpful to society were

discarded and many new customs, institutions and social practices were

adopted.

It is certainly true that prior to the advent of the missionary activities,

Kerala society was as a whole very backward. The caste system and obnoxious

practices like un-touchability, un-approachability and un-see ability were used

as weapons to subjugate the Avarnas. Even the customs, dress, language and

occupations were based on the caste prescriptions. Christian missionaries

gave a rude shock to the primitive and outdated social abuses through their

fearless efforts. They worked among the Avarnas and the untouchables. A

feeling of confidence and self–esteem developed among the downtrodden as

a consequence of their works. The Shanar revolt and the struggle started by

the Ezhava women for covering the upper part of their body were not mere

commercial riots, but the result of the development of a socio-political

consciousness developed among the Avarnas as a consequence of the

missionary initiative. The British introduced factories and other industrial

establishments. By the early 20th century about 50 factories were opened in

81. Op. cit. no. 24, 97.

82. Op. cit. no. 67, 213.

104
Travancore alone. This produced not only capitalist and middle class, but

also workers in large numbers. Most of these workers hailed from Avarna

castes. As a consequence of the new development, Kerala at the end of the

19th century was very different from what it was at the dawn of the new

century. The powerful economic forces set in motion by the land and

revenue policies of the British, as well as the other measures they introduced

shook Kerala society to its core and resulted in new ferment, which gathered

tremendous momentum in the next century. But in the highly stratified

society that existed in Kerala at that time, the impact of these measures did

not fall evenly on all sections of society. Different communities and castes felt

the benefits and hardships of the new measures differently and in varying

degrees of intensity. The British government had granted the untouchables

equal rights to enter public service, attend public educational institutions,

walk along highways, and make use of public offices such as courts and post

offices. Equality in regard to the enjoyment of these rights by these weaker

sections remained a far-away dream, as it was difficult for them to avail it

practice.83

One of the far-reaching consequences of the British rule was the

impact it had on the life of the women folk. One undisputedly significant

development in the late nineteenth century Kerala was the emergence of an

English educated class that began to review the existing social order, ideas

and institutions in sharply critical terms.84 Several women’s organizations

gradually began to take shape, which bear the name Streesamajams. Equally

83. J. Devika, Imagining Women’s Social Space in Early Modern Keralam (art), C.D.S Working papers,
(Thiruvananthapuram: Centre for Development Studies, April 2002; Puthuppally Raghavan, Kerala
Pathra Prasthana Charithram (Mal), (Thrissur: Sahithya Academy, 1985); G. Priyadarshan, Kerala
Pathrapravarthanam; Suvarna Adhyangal, (Thrissur: Current Books, 1999).
84. A. Marrier Walter, For Better not for Worse: A Manual of Christian Matrimony, (St. Louis: Concordia
Publications, 1935), 24-27.

105
important was the appearance of several women’s magazines. The earliest of

women’s magazines in Malayalam, the Keraleeya Sugunabodini, started

publication in 1892. Emancipating women through education and social

legislation was one of the most important achievements of British rule.

British officials and Christian missionaries launched an intensive campaign

against child marriage, the ban on widow remarriage, polygamy and temple

prostitution known as the Dewadasi system. In Kerala the Christian

missionaries were the pioneers in the field of female education. Contact with

the west created in the women of Kerala a new sense of their own

importance as individuals and made them aware of their rights in society.

Thus the British produced a valuable contribution in the transformation of

Kerala society from change resistant nervous outlook to one of confidence

and hope for the future

Contact with westerners had far reaching consequences in the

everyday life of the people of Kerala. It impacted on culture, etiquette,

manners, behaviour patterns, dress, life style, house building, matrimonial

relations and so on. It is an accepted fact that the improvement in the status

of women, the abolition of Sati, the amelioration of the sufferings of the low

castes and outcastes, were all achieved consequent on the strong advocacy of

the Christian ethic. It should also be pointed out that the advent of modern

forms of transportation and communication had much to do with the

abolishing of the grosser manifestations of untouchability and the lowering

of barriers between the castes. For the guidance of the Christian converts the

marriage code, embodying twelve basic truths based on the Christian

scriptures was also formulated. A summary is as follows:

1) God established marriage as a divine institution and blessed sex,

marriage, and family life. Although dishonoured and polluted by

106
 human perversions it is not a social evolution or a heritage from any

brute ancestry.

2) When marriage is considered a blessed ordinance and its privileges

are used in accord with divine requirements, it brings blessed results

to individuals and nations.

3) The marriage relation is ultimately the normal state. Unqualified

abstinence because of selfish ambition is wrong and invites

retributions.

4) Christian marriage is an unalterable monogamous union of one man

and one woman.

5) It is established by mutual and unconstrained consent. Young people

will consult their parents and respect their wishes where ever

possible.

6) The union is “lifelong”. “Termination, except by death, always

involves a transgression of the divine law for either husband or wife.

Divorce is permitted only in the case of marital unfaithfulness.”

7) “Common devotion to the one Lord and Saviour” should be a

decision factor rating above “wealth physical attraction intelligence

and social position.” Compatibility of age and culture is normally

essential for mutual understanding and co-operative effort.

8) The husband is head the Christian house the wife is the helping

companion.

9) As the purpose of Christian matrimony is the procreation of children,

obviating is purpose obstinately and deliberately means the

sacrificing of the full blessing and happiness of marriage.

107
 10) Having a family altar in which Jesus Christ as savior is

acknowledged and his sprit invoked, “is effective insurance against

broken hearts and shattered promises.”

11) In Christian marriage there must be an intensity of pure, self-

sacrificing love and no frigid aloofness.

12) The future helpmate should be carefully and prayerfully selected.85

The comparatively high apparent adjustment among married couples

among the Christian converts may be credited to a common religious faith

and a mutual desire and willingness to work out they personal problems of

adaptation in the light of the faith. The contact with the west produced the

influenced in the fields of food, clothing, cultural adaptations, transportation,

recreations, health conditions etc.

The British rule was largely responsible for the introduction and

diffusion of a western style of education in Kerala, which penetrated into and

transformed all the communities. The one community, which most

profoundly benefited out of this new educational system, was the Nayar

community. With the advent of education Marumakkathayam became

hopelessly unworkable. It offended against every principle of political

economy and of healthy family life. Towards the end of the 19th century the

Nayars began to question the existing social institutions. They considered

Marumakkathayam a primitive way of life. The advance of English education

among the Nayars and the free contact they had with the developed

communities made them look down upon the primitiveness of their family

institutions and clamour for a change. The western style of education, which

85. A. Sreedhara Menon, Kerala District Gazetteers, (Thiruvananthapuram: Superintendent of Govt.

Presses, 1962), 651.

108
was increasingly propagated and demanded in Travancore, tended to

devalue ritual sanctity.86 The convenience and comfort of a man living with

his mother and sisters and his wife and children in the peace and quiet of a

separate home has to be preferred to the primitive habit of living and

messing together in the uncongenial surroundings of an overgrown

Tharavad.87 Because of the constant demands of the progressive Nairs the

Nayar Regulation was passed which abolished Marumakkathayam system.

Similar legislation was passed for the benefits of the Christian and Ezhava

communities.

3.3.5 Impact on Language and Literature

The contact with westerners produced exceptional consequences in

the field of Malayalam language and literature. The Christian missionaries

lavishly contributed for the growth of Malayalam language and literature.

They were credited with the formulation of several lexicons, books and

grammatical works. To the Christian missionaries goes the abiding honor of

having taken the first tangible step towards the introduction and diffusion of

western knowledge.88 Nineteenth century Kerala witnessed the growth of

journalism, which made possible the communication of ideas. In this field

also the Christian missionaries were the pioneers. It was the Jesuit

missionaries who brought the press to India. They started the first press at

Goa in 1556.89 The Portuguese missionaries started the printing presses for

the first time in Quilon and Vipinkotta in the 16th century. English education

and journalism spread out in Kerala after the emergence of L. M. S and C. M.

S missionaries. For propagating Christianity these missionaries started

86. Robin Jeffrey, The Decline of Nair Dominance: Society and Politics in Travancore (1847-1908), (New
Delhi: Vikas Publishing House, 1994), 106.
87. T. K. Velu Pillai, Speeches in Travancore Legislative Council, (Thiruvananthapuram: 1924), 24-25.
88. Vedopadesam was published from the press started at Goa; M. N. Achuthan, Swathanthrya
Samaravum Malayala Sahithiyavum (Mal), (Trissur: Kerala Sahitya Academy, 2003), 63.
89. Ibid. 64.

109
printing press in various parts of Kerala and later the indigenous people also

followed the suit. The 19th century witnessed the emergence of such printing

presses as C.M.S Press Kottayam (1821), Litho Press, Tellicherry (1845),

Vidya Vilasam Press, Calicut (1861), Kerala Mitram press, Cochin (1881)

Vidya Ratna Prabha Press, Kunnamkulam (1880), Kerala Kalpadrumam

Press, Trissur (1880), etc90 The Basel mission of Tellicherry headed by Dr.

Herman Gundert, published the first paper ‘Rajya Samacharam’ in Malayalam

in 1847. ‘Rajya Samacharam” means News of the Kingdom. It continued its

publication till November 1850 and till then 42 issues come out. In 1848

another magazine was started by the C.M.S. at Kottayam known as Jnana

Nikshepam or Treasury of knowledge. The persons behind this magazine

were Arch Deacon Koshy and Rev. George Mathen. Jnana Nikshepam was the

first Malayalam journal from Travancore.91 An English periodical Western

Star and its Malayalam edition Paschima Tharaka started in 1864 constituted a

great milestone in the field of journalism. Devji Bhimji started it. Charles

Lawson was its first editor. T. J. Pylee and Kaloor Oomman edited Paschima

Tharaka. Later the press was shifted from Cochin to Thiruvananthapuram

and the work continued by C. J. Kurien. The Catholic missionaries started a

newspaper Sathyananda Kahalam from Kunnamavu in 1876. In 1881 Devji

Bhimji started Kerala Mitram from Cochin and Varghese Mappilai was its

editor. In 1881 another magazine Vidya Vilasini started publication from

Thiruvananthapuram. Later under the same name two other publications

came- one from Varnaprakasham Press, Mayyanadu, and Kollam in 1897 and

90. N. Sam, Keralathile Samuhika Navodhanavum Sahityavum (Mal), (Kottayam: National Book Stall,
1988), 165; Murkottu Kunhoppa, Malayala Manorama Samskarika Tharangini (Mal), (Kottayam:
Malayala Manorama Publishing House, 1973), 107; K.C. Mamman Mappilai, Malayalathile
Varthamanapathrangal (art), S.N.D.P.)Golden Jubilee Souvenir (Mal), (Kollam: S.N.D.P. Yogam, 1953),
73; P. K. Parameswaran Nair, Malayala Pathrapravarthanathinte Praramba Gattangal (art) Malayali
Special Supplement (Mal) (Thiruvananthapuram: Modern Press, 1952), 3.
91. Chummar Chandran, Malayala Patra Charithram, (Mal), (Cochin: Kerala Times, 1997), 183.

110
another from Manimohanam press, Kollam in 1899. Vidya Vinodini was a

magazine started from Trissur.

Not only did the Christian missionaries learn the Malayalam

language but they did everything in their power to popularize its study

along scientific lines by providing the necessary study aids in the form of

lexicons and books on grammar. The Doctrina Christiana, which contained the

teaching of St. Francis Xavier, was the first book to be printed in Kerala. It

was in Tamil and was published on 20th October 1578 from Divya Rakshaka’s

Kalalayam in Kollam.92 It is an astonishing fact that Malayalam types were

first used outside India in printing the famous Hortus Malabaricus which

contained the names of plants in four languages, namely Latin, Arabic,

Sanskrit and Malayalam. But the first book, which used Malayalam types

exclusively, was Samkshepa Vedantam of Father Clement. Dr. Cladius

Buchanan was the first English missionary who took the initiative to get a

Malayalam book printed in India. Up to 1839 the Travancore government did

not have its own printing press; all the printing needed for the government

was done at the Kottayam C. M. S press.93 In 1807 Claudius Buchanan

translated the four Gospels from Syriac to Malayalam. He also took steps for

the translation of Bible into Malayalam.

One of the most important problems faced by the Christian

missionaries in Kerala was the unavailability of standard books or

dictionaries in Malayalam. When the Protestant missionaries came to Kerala

at the beginning of the 19th century they had to face the difficult problem of

learning a new language in order to establish close contact with the natives.

Naturally they turned their attention to the task of compiling dictionaries

92. Ulloor S. Parameswaran Iyer, Kerala Sahitya Charithram (Mal), vol. 1v, Kozhikode, 1974, 143.
93. K.M. George, Western Influence on Malayalam Language and Literature, (New Delhi: Sahitya
Academy, 1972), 35-36.

111
and grammar books.94 Two dictionaries were prepared by Benjamin Bailey

one Malayalam-English and the other English-Malayalam. His main aim was

to help the Europeans who wanted to study the Malayalam language.

Another missionary Richard Collins made valuable contribution to the

development of Malayalam lexicography. With the help of native scholars

like Raman Varier and Subrahmanian Potti he compiled a Malayalam

dictionary. The valuable contributions rendered by Herman Gundert deserve

special mention. He wrote the famous Malayala Bhasa Vyakaranam in 1868.

In the field of Malayalam prose writing also the Christian

missionaries rendered valuable contributions. The Varthamana Pusthakam, of

18th century travelogue by Paramakkal Thoma Kathanar, a Catholic priest

was the first of its kind in this respect.95 Henry Baker translated “The

Scripture History” written by Watt into Malayalam. He worked strenuously

for the development of Malayalam prose by writing many hymns and tracts.

The work written by Aimanam P. John India Charitram served as a useful tool

for the foreigner to understand the culture and society of Kerala. Thus for the

development of Malayalam language and literature, the service rendered by

the British especially the Christian missionaries was praiseworthy.

3.3.6 Economic Impact

The economic changes triggered off by our British relations were

more than pronounced than those in any other fields. The policies carried out

by the British administrators in their directly administered territories of

Malabar and the reforms promoted by them in the princely states of

Travancore and Cochin were calculated to advance their commercial

interests. With this fixed aim in mind they introduced reforms in agriculture

94. A. Sreedhara Menon, Social and Cultural History of Kerala, (New Delhi: Sterling, 1979), 358.
95. Op. cit. no. 94, 39.

112
and industry, joint stock companies, commercial banks and several other

public works. The first joint stock company floated in Travancore was

Punalur Paper Mills, started in 1889 by Cameron Chism, a European

company based in Kollam. Plantations and factories in Alleppey and Kollam,

public works and trade with the British, helped the creation of a thriving

economy. The first factory set up at Alleppey in 1859 by Dara, a European.96

As early as 1793 the British assigned the ownership of lands to Jenmis as part

of their economic objectives. However, in Travancore a series of

developments strengthening the position of the tenants viz a viz the Jenmis,

culminated in 1865 in the granting of full ownership rights to tenants on

Sirkar lands, and in 1896 in conferring irredeemable tenancy rights on Kanam

tenants on private lands.97 It was the Europeans who introduced the

plantation crops like cashew, tea coffee, rubber, etc. to Kerala. The plantation

agriculture became an important form of exploitation of resources in the

colonies, initiated by European capital and enterprise. Coffee was introduced

firstly in Waynad in 1840. But the systematic cultivation of coffee started in

Travancore in the 1860s. The missionaries showed a serious interest in coffee

cultivation. In 1870s the L. M. S missionaries themselves started coffee

planting in an area of 50 acres to finance their operations.98 Although tea has

a very long history, tea plantations were introduced in south India on a

commercial scale around late 1840’s. The tea industry was primarily an

export industry when it was first introduced in Kerala. The role played by

96. P. K. Michael Tharakan, Intra- regional Difference in Agrarian System and Internal Migrations; A Case
Study of the Farmers from Travancore to Malabar, 1930-1950 (art). C.D.S. Working Papers, No. 194,
(Thiruvananthapuram Centre for Development Studies, 1984); T.C. Varghese, Agrarian Change and
Economic Consequences; Land Tenures in Kerala, 1850-1960, (Bombay: Allied Publishers, 1970), 124; see
also V Nagam Aiya, The Travancore State Manual, (Thiruvananthapuram: Travancore Government
Press, 1906); William Logan, Malabar Manual, (Madras: Kerala Gazetteers, 1906).
97. P. K. Michael Tharakan, Coffee, Tea or Pepper Factors Effecting Choice by Agro-Entrepreneurs in the 19th
Century South West India (art) C.D.S. Working Papers, 291 (Thiruvananthapuram: Centre for
Development Studies, 1998), 13.
98. Op. cit. no. 35, 136.

113
British managing agencies in this process of change needs special attention.

The institution called the managing agency system became active in Kerala

to provide various services to the plantation enterprises viz. the processing

and storage of coffee, shipping insurance and the procurement of estate

supplies etc. Towards the end of the 19th century when British companies

extended the plantation activities, the managing agencies expanded their

activities to include budgetary control, cultivation and manufacturing

advice, exchange control and handling and staff recruitment at the higher

level .By the end of the 19th century the cultivation of rubber was started on

an experimental basis in Malabar areas and by the beginning of the 20th

century the cultivation was on a commercial footing.

Trade in spices and hill produce increased the wealth of the people.

Plantation companies flourished, job opportunities increased in private trade

and in plantation companies. A survey conducted in Cochin showed in 1850

the cost of living rose by 103 percent.99 To give a boost to the growing trade

and commerce, the state was forced to introduce many public works. Large

funds were earmarked for this purpose. Roads, waterways, canals, ports,

harbours and irrigation structures were built. Moreover, there was

reclamation of backwaters for rice cultivation, introduction of telegraph,

spinning, weaving, manufacture of coir products, tile industry, overseas

trade etc developed at about the same time. The native administrators were

forced to proclaim new reforms. In Travancore the period of Dewan

Madhava Rao (1858-1872) was noted for the introduction of many public

works on a European model to modernise the state and to check the ever-

increasing conversion of the low castes to Christianity. He set out to remodel

99. George. K. Tharian, The Crisis of the South Indian Tea Industry; Legacy of the Control by British Tea
Multi-nationals (art), C.D.S. Working Papers, No.191, (Thiruvananthapuram: Centre for
Development Studies, 1984), 8.

114
the administration and won a good name with the British Government for

himself and the Travancore Sirkar.100 His modernization process included

such reforms as the establishment of public works Department, construction

of roads, waterways canals, ports and harbours, introduction of European

plantations, starting postal and telegraphic facilities and the promulgation of

commerce and industry. He introduced British currency for commercial

transactions. Branches of Madras bank were established at Trivandrum and

Alleppey and police department was reorganized on the lines of the police in

British India. The British introduced factories and other industrial

establishments. By the early 20th century about 50 factories were opened in

Travancore alone. But one of the baneful consequences of Kerala’s British

was that it ruined prosperous village cottage industries sending thousands of

skilled craftsmen out of employment and means of livelihood.

3.3.7 Agricultural Changes

Ever since plantation agriculture, initiated by European capital and

enterprise, became an important form of exploitation of resources in the

colonies, small holding and small holders in the plantation sector were

considered a separate category. There were a number of European proprietary

planters among the pioneers. They got phased out with the vertical integration

of production, distribution and marketing. Another group of small holders

were the indigenous farmers who took up cultivation of plantation crops. In

the central Travancore region, there were farmers belonging to the Syrian

Christian community who were deeply involved in “cash crop” cultivation

particularly in pepper. Subsequently they are found to be active in another

plantation crop i.e., natural rubber. In southern Travancore area, though there

was a vigorous presence of small holders, they could not withstand the

100. Op. cit. no. 86, 70.

115
onslaught of the blight; along with big sized holders of coffee. In the

neighboring Central Travancore region, the proprietary planters who were

active in early planting of coffee also disappeared with the onset of blight.

These two regions subsequently shifted to tea.

The habit of drinking coffee and of cultivating coffee beans was

known in Kerala well before the arrival of the European planters.

Nevertheless it was one of the crops around which the plantation system of

agriculture evolved in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. As British

planters found Travancore to be a peculiarly well adapted for spice and

coffee cultivation, successive Residents took interest to promote these

plantation crops.101 In 1824 by a proclamation the Travancore government

expressed interest in promoting the cultivation of coffee. For this purpose

people were exhorted to develop gardens on the banks of big rivers. Such

lands were to be granted free from tax for four years and even then onwards,

to be taxed only at the lowest possible tax rate. In almost all the policy

measures issued to promote plantations, there obviously was a bias in favour

of European interests.102 In the early years of planting few indigenous

persons had shown interest in developing plantations. But the real interest in

plantation agriculture developed among the indigenous population only

with the emergence of rubber cultivation. Dewan T. Madhava Rao took

special interest in introducing plantation industries including coffee.

The missionaries had special interests in popularizing the plantation

agriculture throughout Kerala. There were even coffee missions of the

London Missionary Society (L. M. S) in Travancore. In 1870s L.M.S

missionaries themselves started coffee planting in an area of 50 acres to

101. Huzur Central Vernacular Records, No.784, dated 10th Edavam 1013 (1838), vol.v, 443.
102. The Travancore Land Revenue Manuel, vol.v, p.432

116
finance their operations. In southern Travancore there were eight plantations

owned by missionaries with an area of 863 acres covering 4.1 percent of total

coffee area and an average acreage of 107 per holding.103 The missionaries

served as a channel through which converts to Christianity found their way

to Ceylon. Even though the missionaries wanted the converts to engage

completely in mission work, they could not deny them the benefits accruing

from participation in coffee cultivation. Many of them were able to contribute

substantially to the building up of self-sufficient congregations. This led the

missionaries to actively promote participation by converts in coffee planting.

With the added incentive of missionary encouragement a good number of

local converts were likely to have moved into coffee cultivation.104

In the course of time the small and big coffee holdings practically got

wiped out with the vagaries of a plant disease, depression and competition

from Brazil. Most of the coffee land was used for the cultivation of other

crops. Nearly 90 percent of Indian coffee was for export. Hardly any home

market had developed. But even though from 1896, the area under coffee

cultivation in south India declined, it did not show up in export figures. The

fact that exports did not decline in spite of the shrinking area under

cultivation should be indicative of increased productivity. It was clear that

the European planting interests in Kerala shifted to tea along with the

proprietary planters being forced to sell or mortgage their coffee interests to

tea companies. The following table (3.6) indicates the state of plantation

companies in Travancore.

103. Dick Kooiman, Conversion and Social Equality, The London Missionary Society in South Travancore in
the 19th Century, (New Delhi: Manohar Publications, 1989), 126.
104. Op. cit. no. 97, 25.

117
 Table 3.6
Increase in the number of plantation companies in Travancore
1905-1945)105

Number of companies Number of companies

Year incorporated and operating in incorporated elsewhere and
Travancore operating in Travancore
1905 3 _
1915 10 _
1925 37 17
1935 38 23
1945 9 19
Source: Land Tenures in Kerala 1850-1960

In Travancore a series of developments strengthened the position of

the tenants viz-a-viz the Jenmies, which culminated in 1865 in the granting of

full ownership, rights to tenants to sirkar lands and in 1896 in conferring

permanent tenancy rights on Kanam tenants on private lands.106 In direct

contrast to this in Malabar, the security enjoyed by the tenants in a traditional

society was lost in the course of the 19th century. From 1920 onwards a large

number of people began the cultivation of rubber. One community, which

made good use of the opportunities provided by these developments, were

the Syrian Christians from central and eastern Travancore. In fact the

pioneering British planters in Travancore were Christian missionaries

operating from Kottayam. They also helped the Syrian Christians in getting a

foothold in the plantation sector.

Pepper, the native crop of Malabar had been attracting the foreigners

to Malabar from very early times. The power struggles waged by the

Portuguese, the Dutch and the English in the region had the primary

105. T.C. Varghese, Agrarian Change and Economic Consequences, Land Tenures in Kerala 1850-1960,
(Bombay: Allied Publishers, 1970), 117.
106. Ibid. 124, See also V. Nagam Aiya, The Travancore State Manual, Thiruvananthapuram, 1906;

William Logan, Malabar Manual, Madras, 1906; S. Vellu Pillai, The Travancore Jenmi and Kudiyan
Regulation V of 1071 of Travancore with an Introduction and Commentaries, (Madras: Law Printing
House, 1912).

118
objective of monopolizing pepper trade. By the beginning of the nineteenth

century pepper was the single largest export earner of Malabar accounting

for 45 percent of the total value of exports. However the colonial policy of

extracting the largest share of agricultural produce as land tax had adversely

affected the cultivation. Besides, the policy of importing large quantities of

pieces of goods and other consumer goods discouraged the domestic cottage

industries. The earliest relations between the British and Travancore state

were established on the basis of pepper contract. Due to the importance of

the crops, government treated pepper, cardamom and other spices as state

monopolies and the cultivators were forced to sell their products to the

government. As early as in 1793 a pepper contract was signed between the

English East India Company and the Raja of Travancore. Later it was

renewed on 26th July 1803.As per the new contract the Raja was bound to

deliver all the surplus pepper to the company at the rate of Rs.125.107

Tobacco was another important state monopoly. The major portion of

tobacco consumed in Travancore was imported from Ceylon. The

Clandestine dealings of the Europeans living under British patronage,

adversely affected the revenue of the state. The Travancore Raja made

repeated representations before the East India Company for the control of the

fraudulent dealings in tobacco, but they fell into deaf ears. Timber was made

a state monopoly. The Raja of Travancore was the sole proprietor of all the

timber grown in the state forests. He divided the timber producing areas and

distributed them among the farmers on a contract basis. The state derived

considerable income from this monopoly. On 28 January 1803 the Bombay

government concluded a timber contract with the Raja of Travancore. By this

contract he was bound to supply a large quantity of teak, timber and plank of

107. Angengo Diary, Vol. 1290, 158

119
different sizes to the company for the construction of gun ships and a frigate

for the service of His Majesty. A penalty of Rs. 20000 was fixed for both

parties in case of any default.108

On the whole, except for the encouragement given to coffee, the

policy measures of the colonial government were not at all favourable to

agricultural development. The policy measures such as a revision of land tax

in 1805 and subsequent reduction in the share of produce from the

cultivating tenant, the total neglect of irrigation and infrastructural works

like roads, inland waterways, the import of mill made cotton yarn, cloth and

other products and the taxation of skilled workers, produced a decline in

agricultural production. Moreover, regarding Jenmy as the absolute owner of

land in 1818 and treating cultivable wasteland and forestland as private

property of Jenmies by colonial government discouraged land transfers and

land leasing to cultivating tenants for reclamation and expansion of

cultivation.

The 19th century saw the coming of new economic enterprises in

Kerala. Starting schools on modern lines itself was an entrepreneurial

activity because their ownership often brought prestige, economic power and

social influence. Perhaps the first capitalist development in Kerala was the

setting up of plantations on a large scale. The new economic environment

provided opportunities for various vocational professions and occupations.

The following table (3.7) provides data regarding the emergence of various

occupations in Travancore economy.

108. Ibid. 19.

120
 Table 3.7
Emergence of various occupations in the Travancore economy and the
number of persons engaged in them109
% of Total
No. Class Numbers
Population
1 Government Service 51,121 2.00
2 Pasture & Agriculture 10,58548 41.39
3 Personal Services 80278 3.14
4 Preparation & Supply of Material
80278 3.14
substances
5 Commerce and Transport of
persons, good, messages and 1,63967 6.42
storage of goods
6 Professionals, learned, artistic and
43,96 1.72
minor
7 Indefinite occupations and means of
821 0.03
subsistence
Source: Census of Travancore, 1894

It is obvious from the studies that the British colonization brought

drastic reforms in the agricultural and economic sectors of the society. It

should be acknowledged that they promoted plantations like tea, coffee,

spices and rubber etc. and this created employment opportunities for

indigenous communities. This fitted in neatly with colonial interests and they

directly invested in plantation agriculture enthralled by the fertile soil and

climatic condition. By the second half of the 19th century, there were greater

opportunities for the colonial capital to derive further benefits from the so-

called free trade. There was consolidation and integration of capital, not only

in plantation areas but also in other sectors, realized through the managing

agency system and the coastal trading firms. The traditional trade pattern

consisting of export of manufactured goods had ceased to exist. In its place,

this region like other parts of the colonial empire had become a food

producing and raw material producing appendage of the British economy.

109. V. Nagam Aiya, Report on the Census of Travancore, 1894, p. 559

121
3.4 Conclusion
Social scientists and academics have different opinions about the

colonial occupation by the British in Kerala and its impact on social, cultural,

political and economic areas of the society. In a sense, colonialism proved

beneficial to indigenous society as it promoted social, economic and political

equality in the area. The British rule, which lasted for more than two

centuries, produced radical and lasting changes in the society. ‘The

foreigners had brought with them new technology, new institutions, new

knowledge, new beliefs and new values. It was this new technology and a

revolution in communications that probably enabled the British to integrate

they had never done before.’110

110. Raghuvir Sinha, Social Change in Indian Society, Progress Publishers, Bhopal, 1975, p, 76.

122
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