“Armed struggle was not the most important factor in the achievement of independence.” Discuss with reference to India or Indochina.

Responses are expected to provide a considered and balanced review of the suggestion that colonial power was not as effective as it had once been, and that it was this – rather than armed struggle – that paved the way for the independence of either India or Indochina.

Indicative content

India
Armed Struggle:

• An early revolutionary movement in 1906 led by Tilak called for an armed uprising was short-lived and not decisive.
• The Indian National Army (INA) led by Subhas Chandra Bose fought in Burma against the British to try and gain independence. At the end of the war thousands of INA soldiers were put on trial for treason. There was the threat of mutiny in the Indian Army and Navy and widespread popular support for the INA prisoners. It may be argued that this had a marked effect on the timing of the British retreat from India that may not have taken place as early as 1947 if not for the legacy of the INA.

Other factors:

• Candidates may argue that Britain emerged from the First World War with a weakened economy and with greater awareness of the growth of nationalism within its empire.
  This arguably, helped the passage of the Government of India Acts in 1919 and 1935.
• After the First World War, the ideology of imperialism lost ground and the League of Nations, for example, called for progress towards decolonization.
• The Second World War led to the further weakening of Britain’s role as an imperial power and lessened its resistance to granting Indian independence.
• The civil disobedience, non-cooperation and Quit India campaigns, led by Gandhi, helped to mobilize the population of India and to turn the call for independence into a mass movement.
• The legal methods used by the Congress Party were also significant in achieving independence.

Indochina

Armed Struggle:

• There was nationalist resistance to the Japanese occupation of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia during the Second World War but, especially in Vietnam and Cambodia, this increased with the return of the French in 1946. Candidates may argue that armed struggle was of greater importance in Vietnam, for example, than Laos and Cambodia.
• In Laos, the Communist Pathet Lao were supported by the Vietminh and fought alongside them to achieve independence that was granted in 1953.
• In Cambodia, Prince Sihanouk declared independence and resisted the encroachment of the Vietminh. In 1953, France granted independence to Cambodia.
• In Vietnam, the Communist Vietminh, under the leadership of Ho Chi Minh, declared independence but had to fight to prevent the resumption of colonial government. This led to the French-Indochinese War. Candidates may argue that the defeat of France by 1954, was crucial to the achievement of independence.
• France’s war against the Communist Vietminh became, to some extent, a Cold War conflict with the US supporting France with arms and money. This was insufficient, however, to prevent the defeat of France.
• The cost of the war damaged the French economy to the extent that even the Marshall Aid received by France was less than a third of the cost of the war. This made the conflict uneconomic and French withdrawal more likely. Candidates may argue that the armed struggle was so decisive that it greatly weakened France as a colonial power and so the two factors are very closely intertwined.

Other factors:

• The defeat of France by Nazi Germany in 1940 had damaged France’s reputation and, despite France’s desire to remain a strong Empire, it had lost considerable prestige, especially in its colonies.
• The Brazzaville Conference of 1944 indicated that France was ready to allow greater autonomy within its African empire.
• Despite US support for a continued French presence in Indochina, after the establishment of the People’s Republic of China and the Korean War, France could no longer afford the cost of waging war.
• As with Britain, the post-war climate was critical of colonization and public opinion was less likely to support imperialism.

The above material is an indication of what candidates may elect to write about in their responses. However, it is not exhaustive and no set answer is required.

Examiners and moderators are reminded of the need to apply the markbands that provide the “best fit” to the responses given by candidates and to award credit wherever it is possible to do so.

[20 marks]