ICSE Class 10 History: Rise of Nationalism — Complete Notes 2026

Rise of Indian Nationalism

• Congress founded 1885; initially moderate: petitions, prayers, protests; demanded reforms not independence
• Bal Gangadhar Tilak: 'Swaraj is my birthright'; use of mass agitation, Ganesh festivals, Shivaji festivals
• Swadeshi Movement (1905): partition of Bengal under Curzon triggered mass boycott of British goods

Mahatma Gandhi and Mass Movements

• Non-Cooperation Movement 1920–22: boycott of schools, councils, courts; Chauri Chaura incident → Gandhi suspended movement
• Civil Disobedience Movement 1930: Dandi March (March 12–April 6, 1930); salt satyagraha
• Quit India Movement 1942: 'Do or Die'; mass arrests; underground resistance

Indian National Congress Evolution

• Moderate phase (1885–1905): Dadabhai Naoroji, Gopal Krishna Gokhale; economic critique of British rule
• Extremist phase (1905–1919): Tilak, Lajpat Rai, Bipin Chandra Pal (Lal-Bal-Pal)
• Gandhi era (1920 onwards): mass politics; inclusion of peasants, women, and lower castes

Partition and Independence

• Muslim League founded 1906; Jinnah's Two-Nation Theory; demand for Pakistan from 1940 Lahore Resolution
• Cabinet Mission Plan 1946 rejected; Direct Action Day August 16, 1946; communal violence
• Mountbatten Plan June 1947; Indian Independence Act; Independence August 15, partition creates India and Pakistan

Role of Women in Freedom Struggle

• Women participated in Non-Cooperation, Salt March, Quit India; many arrested
• Sarojini Naidu: first woman INC president (1925); Kasturba Gandhi; Aruna Asaf Ali (Quit India leader)
• Women's organizations: All India Women's Conference (1927) supported national movement

Revolutionary Nationalism

• Bhagat Singh, Sukhdev, Rajguru: revolutionary path; Lahore Conspiracy Case; hanged March 1931
• Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose: Indian National Army (INA); Azad Hind government 1943
• INA trials 1945: created popular sympathy; weakened British position in India

ICSE Exam Strategy

• History ICSE: answer must include dates, leaders, events — avoid vague generalities
• 10-mark essay questions on nationalism: use timeline structure (1885 → 1947)
• Short answer questions: define Swaraj, Non-Cooperation, Civil Disobedience in 2–3 precise sentences