CSS Pakistan Affairs Optional History Muslim Reawakening and the Aligarh Movement Syllabus

Muslim Reawakening and the Aligarh Movement syllabus — full chapter and topic list

Expand any chapter to see its topics and sub-topics. This is the whole examinable outline for Muslim Reawakening and the Aligarh Movement in CSS Pakistan Affairs Optional History, not a summary of it.

1. 1

   Post-1857 Muslim Condition

   2 topics

   • Political and Economic Decline of Muslims
   • British Distrust of Muslims
2. 2

   Sir Syed Ahmad Khan and the Aligarh Movement

   3 topics

   • Educational Reforms
   • Religious and Political Thought
   • Significance and Critique of the Aligarh Movement
3. 3

   Other Reform and Educational Movements

   3 topics

   • Deoband and Nadwa Movements
   • Anjuman-i-Himayat-i-Islam
   • Aligarh versus Deoband Approaches
4. 4

   Revival of Urdu and Muslim Press

   2 topics

   • Urdu-Hindi Controversy
   • Role of the Muslim Press and Journalism

Muslim Reawakening and the Aligarh Movement flashcards for CSS Pakistan Affairs Optional History

20 of 51 cards from the Muslim Reawakening and the Aligarh Movement deck — real questions with worked answers.

1. Which 1857 event marked the political turning point that triggered the Muslim political and economic decline in British India?

   The War of Independence of 1857 (the Revolt/Mutiny), after which the British dismantled Mughal authority and held Muslims primarily responsible.

2. What happened to the Mughal Empire formally after the 1857 War of Independence?

   It was abolished; the last emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar was deposed and exiled to Rangoon (1858), and India came under direct British Crown rule.

3. Name two key causes of the economic decline of Muslims after 1857.

   Confiscation of Muslim landed estates and jagirs, and exclusion of Muslims from government service, trade, and the new English-based economy.

4. Why did the Permanent Settlement and resumption of land grants particularly hurt Muslims?

   Many Muslim landholders lost their estates and rent-free religious/charitable grants (waqf and madad-i-maash), eroding the economic base of the Muslim elite and ulema.

5. How did the replacement of Persian with English affect Muslims?

   In 1837 Persian (the Muslim administrative language) was replaced by English and vernaculars, shutting Muslims out of administration and law since they lagged in English education.

6. Why did Hindus generally advance faster than Muslims under early British rule?

   Hindus adopted Western education and English earlier, dominated commerce and the professions, while Muslims, attached to traditional learning, boycotted English education.

7. What was the British attitude toward Muslims immediately after 1857, and why?

   Deep distrust and hostility; the British viewed Muslims as the chief instigators of the Revolt and the former ruling class seeking to regain power.

8. Which influential British official's writing reinforced the image of Muslims as disloyal, and what was his famous work?

   W. W. Hunter, in his book 'The Indian Musalmans' (1871), examined whether Muslims were bound to rebel against the British.

9. What was the central argument of W. W. Hunter's 'The Indian Musalmans' (1871)?

   It analyzed Muslim grievances and the Wahhabi movement, concluding Muslims were a backward, disaffected community, prompting debate on conciliating them.

10. How did Sir Syed Ahmad Khan respond to Hunter's book and the charge of Muslim disloyalty?

    He wrote 'Review on Dr. Hunter's Indian Musalmans,' arguing Muslims were not religiously bound to rebel and could be loyal subjects of the British.

11. What pamphlet did Sir Syed write to explain the real causes of the 1857 revolt to the British?

    'Asbab-i-Baghawat-i-Hind' (The Causes of the Indian Revolt, 1858), which blamed British policies and lack of Indian representation rather than Muslim conspiracy.

12. When and by whom was the Aligarh Movement founded, and around which institution did it center?

    By Sir Syed Ahmad Khan in the late 19th century, centered on the Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental (MAO) College at Aligarh.

13. When was the MAO College established, and what did it later become?

    The Muhammadan Anglo-Oriental College was established in 1875 (opened 1877) at Aligarh; it became Aligarh Muslim University in 1920.

14. What earlier school did Sir Syed found before the MAO College?

    He founded a school at Ghazipur (1864) and the Scientific Society (1864) to translate Western works into Urdu before establishing the MAO College.

15. What was the purpose of the Scientific Society founded by Sir Syed in 1864?

    To translate English works on science and the arts into Urdu so Muslims could access modern knowledge in their own language.

16. What was the main educational objective of the Aligarh Movement?

    To reconcile Muslims with modern Western education and the English language while preserving Islamic faith and identity, ending the boycott of English schooling.

17. Which English college inspired the model and ethos of Sir Syed's MAO College?

    The University of Cambridge (and Oxford); Sir Syed visited England in 1869-70 and modeled MAO College on the English residential college system.

18. What journal did Sir Syed launch to promote social and religious reform, and when?

    'Tahzib-ul-Akhlaq' (Mohammedan Social Reformer), launched in 1870, to reform Muslim manners, thought, and society.

19. Name the educational organization Sir Syed founded in 1886 to spread modern education among Muslims.

    The Muhammadan Educational Conference (All-India Muhammadan Educational Conference), founded in 1886.

20. What was Sir Syed's stance on Muslim participation in the Indian National Congress?

    He opposed it, advising Muslims to stay away from the Congress and active politics and instead focus on education and loyalty to the British.

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