SOCIAL SCIENCE

CLASS VIII
HISTORY
CHAPTER 1
THE MORDERN PERIOD

I. Fill in the blanks. (1 MARK EACH)

1. History is the study of our past.
2. The British colonized India.
3. The change from medieval to modern period occurred with the arrival
of British in India.
4. It is easier to define dates for events in political history.
5. For social, economic and cultural history, specific dates cannot be
assigned.

6. The modern period witnessed major movements and revolution all

over the world.
7. The sources of the modern period are found in abundance.
8. There are two kind of historical sources.
9. Archaeological sources include buildings such as India Gate.
10. Literary sources include original documents.
11. Dates in history are related to events.
12. The British began the practice of conducting surveys.
13. The British made a large number of topographic maps.
14. Mapping was an important part of surveys.
15. Census operations were begun by the British government.
16. People experience change in different ways and over different
time periods.
17. Modern period lasted from mid 18th century to the independence
of India.
18. Historians give greater importance to literary sources of modern
period.
19. All the literary sources are carefully preserved in archives and
museums.
20. Time is very important in history.
21. History is the study of changing patterns in the society.
22. By studying history, we try to know how things were in the past.
23. Things we see today have there roots in the past.
24. We divide history into periods on basis of something which had a
profound impact on the way we live.
25. There are some defining features of the modern era.
26. The changing trends of modern era were first visible in Europe.
27. History that was taught a few decades ago was all political history.
28. There are no straight answers to many questions in history.
29. Newspapers made people aware of the real intentions of the
British in India.
30. The proceedings of each British government department are
available.
II. Multiple Choice Questions. (1 MARK EACH)
1.Historians have divided history into ___ periods.
a) three b) four c) five d) two
2. This century is generally taken as the beginning of the modern period.
a) Sixteenth b) Seventeenth c) Eighteenth d) Nineteenth
3. The __ introduced the culture of recording everything.
a) British b) Mughals c) Delhi Sultans d) French
4. The newspaper Kesari was published in ___.
a) Marathi b) English c) Punjabi d) Hindi
5. Which among the following is a novel of Dadabhai Naoroji.
a) Indulekha b) Godaan c) Chokher Bali d)Poverty and Un-
British Rule in India
6. The British treated India as a ___.
a)Colony b) Territory c)Locality d)Principality
7. The __ conducted surveys.
a) Mughals b)British c)Dutch d)Portuguese
8.__ maps show physical features of a place.
a) Climatic b)Political c) Thematic d)Topographic
9. Administrative records are part of ___ sources.
a)literary b)archaeological c) oral d) pictorial
10.An example of archaeological source of modern period is___.
a)Diaries b)newspapers c)novels d) India Gate
 III. Write true or false. (1 MARK EACH)
1. Dates in history are not linked to events. False
2. Colonization and Urbanization are two of the many defining features
of the modern period. True
3. National Archives of India has many official records of modern
period. True
4. The British came as to India as traders. True
5. Official records are archaeological sources. False
6. Interpretations differ in history. True
7. The Irish people colonized India in eighteenth century. False
8. The British tried to suppress the press, when the national movement
was at its peak. True
9. The Modern Period began in the eighth century. False
10. Literary sources include original documents such as government
orders. True
IV. Match the following. (1 MARK EACH)
1. Census a) Rapid growth and expansion of industries.
2. Archives b) Official counting of population in a country.
3. Industrialization c) Rapid growth and expansion of towns and cities.
4. Urbanization d) Practice of capturing other countries by force.
5. Colonization e) A place where historical documents are kept.
ANSWERS: 1-(b); 2-(e);3-(a);4-(c);5-(d);
V. Very Short Question Answer. (2 MARK EACH)
Q1. What do you mean by the term ‘Nationalism’?
ANS. Nationalism means a strong sense of love and pride in one’s own
country.

Q2. Why was conducting census so important to the British?

ANS. Census was so important for British to know about the growth of
cities and population.

Q3. What are the literary sources for the modern period?
ANS. Literary sources include original documents like government
reports, administrative records, and official records of the British.

Q4.When did the Modern Period begin in India?

ANS. The modern period in India began from mid 18th century to the
independence of India.
Q5.List some features of the Modern Period?
ANS. Some of the features of modern era are scientific progress,
industrialization, colonization and urbanization.
Q6. Name some archaeological sources of the Modern Period.
ANS. Archaeological sources include buildings such as the Parliament
House, Rashtrapati Bhawan, India Gate, Red Fort, and Gateway of India.
Q7.Give two examples of newspapers printed to make people aware
of the real intentions of the British.
ANS. Newspapers such as Kesari in Marathi and Mahratta in English
made people aware of the real intentions of the British.
Q8. Name the periods into which history can be divided.
ANS. History can be divided into three periods-Ancient, Medieval and
Modern.
Q9.What are the sources of modern history?
ANS. The sources of the modern history are divided into archaeological
and literary sources.
Q10.Write the names of different surveys conducted by the British.
ANS. Population surveys, revenue surveys, land surveys and many other
surveys were conducted by the British.
VI. Short Answer Questions.
Q1. How do diaries, books, novels give us information about the
Modern Period?
ANS.(1) Diaries, books, novels reflect the feelings of the Indians under
the British rule.
(2)They provide information about the social, economic and political
conditions of the period.
(3)Some of these literary sources help to understand the prevailing
situation from a personal point of view.
Q2. Why can we not put an exact date to some events? Explain with
example.
ANS. (1) Dates in history are related to events. For example for battles
specific dates can be assigned. But for some events that take place ever a
long period of time no such dates can be fixed.
(2)We know that British colonized India. But we cannot put an exact
date to it. We can assign centuries in such conditions.
Q3.Write a short note on surveys conducted by the British?
ANS. (1) The British conducted surveys. Mapping was an important
part of these surveys.
(2)Population surveys, Revenue surveys, Land surveys and many types
of surveys were conducted.
(3)A large number of topographic maps were also made.
Q4. Do you think the Modern Period is really modern? Discuss
ANS. (1)The British came to India as traders. After Battle of Plassey, the
English became the masters in Bengal and eventually of the whole India.
(2) The East India Company transformed from a trading company into a
political power.
(3) The British treated India as a colony. So it can be hardly described as
‘modern’. Indian historians call this the colonial period.
Q5. Explain in detail the sources of modern history.
ANS. The sources of modern history are divided into archaeological and
literary sources.
(1) Archaeological sources include buildings such as India Gate, Red
Fort built during this period. They give insight to the art and architecture
of the modern period.
(2)Literary sources for the period are many and varied. They not only
throw light on various perspectives of society but also reflect the
feelings of Indians under British.
Q6. What do you understand by the term ‘Colonization’?
ANS. (1) The practice of capturing other countries by force by a
powerful country is called colonization.
(2) When a country becomes the colony of another country, it leads to
many political, economic, social and cultural changes in the colony.
Q7.How have historical buildings proved useful as a source of history of
modern India?
ANS. (1)The historical buildings proved useful source of history of
modern India as they not only tell us much about the near past but also
throw a good deal of light on different aspects of the architectural
achievements of India.
(2) These buildings are our national wealth and must be preserved.
Q8.What are the other records which help us to depict the modern
period? What do they reflect?
ANS. (1) Diaries, accounts of pilgrims and travellers, newspapers,
books, novels and leaflets reflect the feelings of the Indians under the
British rule.
(2) People wrote in English and in vernaculars.
Q9.How have the preserved official records of the British government
proved useful?
ANS. (1) In the British government, every administrative decision was
recorded and preserved.
(2) They have helped us in knowing the true nature of the British
imperialists and their economic exploitation of our country.
Q10.Where have been the official records of modern period preserved?
ANS. (1) The official records of modern period have been preserved in
the National Archives of India.
(2)It has many preserved books, magazines, periodicals which helped
the scholars greatly in writing history.
VII. Long Answer Questions.
Q1.What is History? How has the study of history evolved over
time?
ANS. (1) History is the study of our past. It helps us to know about the
people, their culture, traditions, political, economic and social
developments in the field of art and architecture.
(2) The changes that occur over time constititute the essence of history.
(3)By studying history, we try to know how things were in the past and
how they have changed over the years.
(4) Things we see today have their roots in the past.
Q2. What do you understand by periodization in history?
ANS. (1) The division of history on the basis of time to distinguish
major changes or events that have occurred in different times is called
periodization.
(2) These broad divisions mark how society, economy, culture and
politics of one period differed from that of the preceding or succeeding
periods.
(3)Historians have divided history into three periods as ancient,
medieval and modern.
(4) For example, the change from medieval to modern occurred with the
arrival of the British in India.
Q3. Explain the importance of the official records as a historical
source.
ANS. In the British government, every executive, legislative and judicial
body had record rooms in which even the smallest records were kept,
well catalogued.
(2) The proceedings of each government department are available.
(3)This has helped historians immensely in their study of the period.
(4) The official records of this period are preserved in the National
Archives of India.
Q4.What is the importance of dates in history? Explain
ANS.(1)Dates are important in history as nobody can write about any
nation without dates.
(2)Historians wrote about the year a king was crowned, the year the next
ruler succeeded to the throne etc. For these events, specific dates can be
determined.
(3)History that was taught a few decades ago was all political history.
(4) It is easier to define dates for events in political history.
Q5. Why is the eighteenth century taken as the starting point of the
modern period?
ANS. (1) The eighteenth century is generally taken as the starting point
of the modern period because this was the century when European
powers began to acquire political powers in India.
(2)The modern period brought about significant impact on Indians.
(3)With this, the earlier Mughal period of Indian history came to an end.
(4) In Europe the modern period began in sixteenth century but in India
it began in the 18th century.
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