Book Note from Introduction:
[see also
Veerapandiya Kattabomman and the early challenges to British
Rule]
"Despite the size, wealth, historical contribution and
contemporary importance of Tamil Nadu, its colonial history
remains relatively unexplored. There are few substantial works
on Tamil Nadu's social, economic and political history in the
British period. While some pioneering studies of Tamil Nadu have
been contributed by scholars from abroad, few researchers have
chosen to tread the path of the history of nationalist politics;
consequently, large tracts of nationalist history in Tamil Nadu
are yet to be written..... Our understanding of the evolution of
nationalism in Tamil Nadu has been further complicated by the
emergence there of social and political movements, at times
overlapping, which questioned aspects of nationalist politics
and goals. With the emergence of the Justice Party in the second
decade of the twentieth century, polemics would enter the
discussion of Tamil Nadu's nationalist traditions, and perhaps
serve to obscure the past.
Whatever the reasons, historians have generally bypassed the
history of the nationalist movement in Tamil Nadu during the
crucial years 1905-1914. Yet it was this period which saw the
emergence of such major political figures as G. Subramania Iyer,
V.O.
Chidambaram Pillai and
Subramania Bharati. (Even today, Bharati continues to be a
favourite for his captivating nationalistic writings and social
radicalism.)...
...A basic premise of this study is that the nationalist
movement in Tamil Nadu, a movement of richness and historical
depth, merits as close attention as have nationalist movements
in other parts of India. Its starting point is the late
eighteenth century. Chapter 1 traces early manifestations of
anti-colonial feeling in Tamil Nadu:
the rebellions led by the poligars of Tirunelveli and
Shivagana, and the sepoy revolt at Vellore in 1806. The factors
behind the uprisings are analysed and their fallout discussed.
Attention then turns to the nineteenth century social reform
movement, which in Tamil Nadu, as elsewhere in India, preceded
the establishment of provincial political associations. As will
be seen, issues of social reform would generate tensions and
divisions within the political associations as they took shape
in the last decades of the nineteenth century...."
