BHARAT / INDIA
Part
2
Modern
India
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Introduction |
The Moghul Empire |
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Part 2 Modern India |
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From the
end of the 15th and the beginning of the 16th century European traders sailed
to the Indian peninsula in search for spices. In 1502 the Portuguese settled in Cochin and Cannanore
and in 1510 in Goa. In the 17th century they were
followed by the Dutch in Pulikat, Cannanore, Ceylon,
Negapatnam and Cochin. In 1620 the Danes settled in
Tranquebar and in 1674 the French in Pondicherry. All
these trade-companies have left their traces in India. |
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By a
charter of Queen Elizabeth I passed on 31 December 1600 a company for the trade
on the Est In dies was founded. In the beginning the Company was not very
succesful but when business offices were opened in Surat, Agra, Ahmedadbad
and Broach the trade bacame more lucrative. In 1661 Charles II gave Bombay,
formerly an Portuguese posession, which he had received as a dowry at his
wedding with Catherine of Bragança to the Company. In 1687 the city became
the capital of the Company in India.
In the mean time new offices were founded on the east coast. In 1698
another Company was founded, the English Company Trading to the East Indies.
After some struggle the two companies merged in 1708 into the United Company
of Merchants of England Trading to the East Indies, commonly styled the
Honourable East India Company, and abbreviated, HEIC. The next hundred and
fifty years this trade union acquired sovereign rights in many parts of the
Moghul Empire and the Indian Peninsula. Company rule in India, which
effectively began in 1757 after the Battle of Plassey, lasted until 1858,
when, following the events of the Indian Rebellion of 1857, and under the
Government of India Act 1858, the British Crown assumed direct administration
of India in the new British Raj. The Company itself was finally dissolved on
1 January 1874, as a result of the East India Stock Dividend Redemption Act. The
Companies were granted achievements in 1600 and
1698. |
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The Raj |
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In 1857
some units of the Companies army rebelled in the Indian Mutiny. The rebellion could be supressed
because none of the large princely states joined it. Bahadur Shah and his
adoptive son Nana Sahib were accused of complicity and banned and with their
departure the Moghul Empire came to an end. In
1858, the rule of the British East India Company was transferred to the Crown
in the person of Queen Victoria. In
India itself British direct rule was exercised by a viceroy, the office
instituted by India Councils Act, the first viceroy being Lord Canning who
held the office from 1 November 1858 until 21 March 1862. |
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The National Emblem |
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A quasi
national emblem was created when the Order of the Star of India was founded
by proclamation of Queen Victoria, dated 25 June 1861. The star of this
Order, worn only by Knights Grand Commanders and Knights Commanders,
consisted of a sunburst, with twenty-six large rays alternating with
twenty-six small rays. In the centre of the sunburst is a light blue strap
bearing the motto of the Order: HEAVEN’S LIGHT OUR
GUIDE. Within the
ribbon was a five-pointed star, decorated with diamonds for Knights Grand
Commanders. Apparently
the sunburst is inspired by the emblem of the former Mughal Empire, a star
and a motto being added. No information about the design-process of this
order could be obtained. |
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The Royal Arms |
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From
1858 until India became a Republic on 26 January 1950, the royal British arms
were the arms of the Queen and later the kings of Great Britain. This
consisted of a quarterly opf England Scotland and Ireland, crowned with the
royal crown and surrounded by the strap of the Order of the Garter. The
adoption of the imperial title in 1876 did not have consequences for the
royal arms. This
coat of arms however was hardly displayed in India, the image i.e. the bust
of the reigning queen or king being used instead. |
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The Viceregal emblem |
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From about
1870, when Lord Mayo was in office, the viceregal flag consisted of the union
jack charged in the middle with the Star of India, royally crowned. This
flag was not the Governor-General's personal flag; it was also used by
Governors, Lieutenant Governors, Chief Commissioners and other British
officers in India. When at sea, only the Governor-General flew the flag from
the mainmast, while other officials flew it from the foremast. From
1947 to 1950, the Governor-General of India used a dark blue flag bearing the
royal crest (a lion standing on a crown), beneath which was the word
"India" in gold majuscules. The same design is still used by many
other Governors-General. This last flag was the personal flag of the
Governor-General only. |
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The Royal Achievement |
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At the
same time the royal achievement was the official emblem of government in
India. It consisted of the royal arms crowned with the royal crown or crested
with the royal crown and the royal crest, surrounded by the strap of the
Order of the Garter, supported by a lion and a unicorn and with the motto DIEU ET MON DROIT. It was printed on official documents, displayed on a tympanon of
Government House in Calcutta, in the throne room in Delhi and on many other occasions. |
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European Heraldry in India |
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The
Durbar of Delhi, 1877 [1] Until
1858 most of the Indian princes had considered themselves the equals of the Company
which had ruled British India until then. As a consequence of the mutiny the
Indian Princes were confronted with direct British rule and british royal
authority. As a feaction the prices tried to be recognized as hereditary
rulers of the properties and, as a means to achieve this purpose, as Indian
Noble of the British Empire. In a sunnud, dated 11 March 1862 and signed by
Lord Canning, some hundred and fifty princes were recognized. Taking
into consideration the changed situation in India, Queen Victoria, on
instigation of Benjamin Disraeli, adopted the title of “Indiæ Imperatrix” on
28 April 1876. This was about to mean that the tradition of the Delhi
Sultanate and the Moghul Empire was continued. The proclamation of the Indian
Empire took place on 1 January 1877 on the durbar in Delhi in the presence of
one hundred recognized Indian princes. The
proclamation was mainly of symbolic significance because everything remained
as it was before. Nevertheless, the proclamation, read aloud by the Viceroy,
was an impressive happening, attended not only by Indian princes but also by
British Indian officials and army officers. On the
occasion of the 1877 durbar a coat of arms was designed for every recognized
attending prince by a member of the Bengal civil service, Robert Taylor. Robert
Taylor did not seem aware of the actual heraldic background of the princes. [2]) It was not that he regarded the ancient
Indian symbols as heraldic, but that he translated them into western heraldic styles with many
charges which were usually allusive to some fact, legend or myth in a
particular prince’s genealogy. The reigning houses of Mewar had the sun as their emblem. This was adapted
by Taylor in the form of a sun in splendour.i.e. with a human face as in
Western heraldry. The sun in spledour also appeared in some of the Mewar
shields as the main charge, as ij the arms of Idar. For Barwani, tyhe sun
charge was on a canton, the blazon of the arms devised by Taylor being: vairy
three barrulets gules, a chief wavy argent on a canton of the second, a sun
in splendour. There is a crest and there are supporters. The motto has been
translated as ‘Lord of the road, pass and mart’. The charges of the coat of
arms of this state of Barwani have
been explained as denoting, in the three barrulets, the road, pass and mart
in the state as the chief sources of revenue, while the vairy field signifies
the jungle of the country and the wavy chief, the river Nerbudda. This
explanation shows a coat very much in accord with the priciples on which many
English coats of arms have been prepared. e.g. the representation of the Thames in the
arms of the Westminster Bank, and six fountains denoting springs in the
shield of Lord Stourton. Robert
Taylor’s designs were emblazoned on banners which were presented by the
Viceroy to ruling chiefs entitled to salute at the Delhi Durbar in 1877. In
1902, a complete set of Taylor’s designs, together with his notes, were
obtained by the Indian Government and reproduced in a volume entitled The
Princely Arrmory. [3] It is stated that Taylor obtained
information from local political agents about the ruling families and based
his designs on these details. By the
time of the Delhi Durbar of 1911 for King George V, most of the Indian
princes were using arms. A book was compiled, it is understood, which showed
the arms of the princes as in 1911, but subsequently they were ‘regularized’
by registration in the College of Arms. At the Durbar of 1911, the
foundations of New Delhi were laid, and in the Chamber of Princes the arms of
the variuous princes were placed in alphabetical order on metal plaques. In the
time of the Raj European styled heraldry flourished among Indian royalty for
some time. After 1947 it disappeared almost entirely from public life because
the Indian princes lost their governing powers. In 1971, by the 26th amendment of the Constitution of India, the
Indian princes ceased to be recognized by the government. The new states
adopted seals and logo’s as their emblems. Only in a very few cases these
continue the heraldic traditions of the Raj.
As for
the military heraldry, or the heraldry in the stricter sense of the word, the
armed forces of the former independent Indian Princely states were
incorporated into the Indian Army. Its heraldry consisted of banners, uniforms and badges. |
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The National Emblem India
adopted the Sarnath lion-capital of Aśoka as her National Emblem on
January 26, 1950 the day she became a Republic. The Resolution describes its
exact features as follows: “The National
Emblem of India, which is the replica of the capital of the Aśoka pillar
at Sarnath, is formed of three lions, mounted on an abacus with the
dharmachakra carved in relief in the center:
a bull on the right and a horse on the left.”
In the Sarnath
lion-capital, which is a great master-piece of plastic art, there are four
lions mounted back to back, on a circular abacus. The frieze of the abacus is
adorned with sculptures in high relief of an elephant, a galloping horse, a
bull and a lion. These are separated by intervening chakras (wheels). The
wholes rests on a bell-shaped lotus. In the
National Emblem, only tree lions appear on the abacus, the fourth being
hidden from view. The frieze of the abacus shows one chakra in the center,
with a bull on the right and a horse on the left. Also visible partly are the
outlines of dharmachakras on edge to the extreme left and right. The
bell-shaped lotus at the bottom does not figure in the Emblem. Below the
abacus is inscribed, in Devanagiri script, the legend ‘Sayameva jayate’ which
means ‘Truth alone triumphs’. Significance .....It
is significant that our Emblem is associated with the name of Aśoka, one
of the magnificent names of India’s history and the world. In the words of
Jawaharlal Nehru “the Aśokan period was essentially an international
period of Indian history. It was not a narrowly national period. It was a
period when Indian ambassadors went abroad to far-off countries and went
abroad not in the way of emperors and imperialists but as ambassadors of
peace and culture and goodwill”. The
Emblem, more than anything else represents India’s past as well as her
aspirations for the future. This
outstanding sculpture represents the highest in Indian Symbolism, which has
been variously explained. The simplest explanation appears to be that, in the
original and complet form, the crowning dharmachakra represented the rotating
wheel of righteousness which was considered to be supreme. The four lions
facing the four directions symbolized kāma or passion as also the brute
force. The lotus below represented artha or wealth. The inference is that
dharma is above both kāma and artha and they are to hbe kept in constant
check by improving the force and weight of dharma. The symbolism of the four
animals on the frieze of the abacus has been explained at length by Prof.
Foucher as follows: “The
bull symbolizes the Zodiacal constellation at the time of the birth of
Siddharta, Vrishabha lagna; the elephant suggests Mayādevi’s dream of
her conception, the Bodhisattva entering her womb as a white elephant; the
horse suggests the Great Renunciation and the favourite steed Kanthaka on
which the Prince rode away from Kapilvatu giving up his empire; the lion
stands for Śākyasimha, the great roar of the lion heard when Buddha
turned the Wheel of Law to preach to the world the great wisdom that had
dawned on him under the Bodhi Tree.” The
dharmachakra on the frieze of the abacus contains 24 spokes. They stand for
the 24 modes of principal causal relations spoken of in Buddhisty philosophy.
As a whole, it represents the Wheel of Law which is considered the king of
kings and whose message of righteousness was binding even on the greatest
monarch. This wheel also appears in the centre of the National Flag. Another
interpretation is that the wheel signifies motion and progress, the four
lions gacing the four directions symbolise limitless sovereignty, the lion
itself representing the power of State. The lotus represents creative
activity.
The
Motto The
motto Satyameva jayate has been taken
from the Mundaka Upanishad. Satyameva jayate is the opening phase of a longer
verse from this Upanishad - Satyam eva jayate nānritam, satyena pantha
vi tato devayānah yenakramanty rishayo hy āptakāmā yatra
tat satyasya paramam nidhānam. “Truth alone conquers, not untruth. By
truth is laid out the path leading to the gods by which the sages who have
their desires fulfilled travel to where is that supreme abode of truth.”[4] As the
motto is included in the State Emblem, it should not be used privately. It
can only appear below the Aśoka capital crest where the crest itself is
permitted to be used. - It
will be observed also that some states of the Indian Union have adopted
separate crests of their own and some of these crests incorporate, as a part
thereof, the National Emblem. The National Emblem itself cannot be and has
not been modified in any way. [5] See
illustration in the head of this essay. Presidential Flag
The actual
presidential flag is the successor of the flag of the Governor General. It
is: Flag:
Quarterly Blue and Red, in the first the Asoka capital, in the second an
elephant, in the third a balance and in the fourth a lotus vase, all in
yellow rendering. In this flag
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Central Bureau of Investigation |
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The Central
Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is the premier
investigating agency of India. Operating under the jurisdiction of the Ministry
of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, the CBI is headed by the
Director. Originally set up to investigate bribery and governmental
corruption, in 1965 it received expanded jurisdiction to investigate breaches
of central laws enforceable by the Government of India, multi-state organised
crime, multi-agency or international cases. The agency has been known to
investigate several economic crimes, special crimes, cases of corruption and
other high-profile cases. CBI is exempted from the provisions of
the Right to Information Act. CBI is India's officially
designated single point of contact for liaison with
the Interpol. |
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Imperial Police The first hundred
years of British rule in India saw a number of remarkable changes in the
system of criminal justice administration. With the East India Company’s
interference in the country’s administration, laws were revised to suit the
imperial needs. Warren Hastings suggested the first major amendments in 1772,
when he prepared a detailed note indicating the remedial measures necessary
to maintain law and order in Bengal. His report was later amended from time
to time but the basic features are still discernible. Report of The
First Police Commission, appointed on 17th August, 1860, contained detailed
guidelines for the desired system of police in India. The Second Police
Commission (1902-1903) went into details of the organisational structure of
police at the district level, functioning of the railway police and the river
police, recruitment, training and pay structure of different subordinate
ranks of police. The British
contribution was to put the system of policing on a professional footing and
to bring about a large measure of uniformity in its laws, procedures and
practices.The Present Policing System in the country is based on the Police
Act of 1861.
Iimperial Police badge Prior to
Independence, superior police officers belonged to the Indian (Imperial) Police
appointed by the Secretary of State on the basis of competitive examination.
The first open competition for the service was held in England in June, 1893
and the top ten candidates were appointed as probationers of the Indian
Police.It is not possible to pinpoint a date on which it could positively be
claimed that the Indian Police came into being. However, in 1907 the
Secretary of State’s officers were directed to wear the letters
"IP" on their epaulettes to distinguish them from the other
officers not recruited by the Secretary of State. In this sense, 1907 could
be regarded as the starting point for the Indian Police. In 1948, a year
after India gained independence from Britain, the Imperial Police (IP) was
replaced by the Indian Police Service (IPS). The Indian
Police Service (IPS) (Bhāratīya Polīce Sevā),
simply known as Indian Police or IPS, is one of the three All
India Services of the Government of India.
Indian Police Service
Badge (1948) |
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TRI-Servive coat of
arms |
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Army |
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Army Emblem
Army Flag
Ceremonial Army
Flag
Field Marshal of
the Indian Army Showing
the commander’s baton [Sam
Manekshaw 1973-2008]
Flag of the
Indian Field marshal |
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Navy |
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Navy coat of arms adopted 15 August 2001 The Naval
Crest consists of the Ashoka emblem, a foul anchor and a shield, and its navy
blue colour. Below the crest is the motto of the Service- 'Shano Varuna' -
meaning 'May the Lord of the Oceans be Auspicious Unto Us'. The
Indian Naval White Ensign has evolved from the White Ensign of the Royal
Navy, which itself developed over the centuries. The red St George's Cross
became an emblem of the Royal Navy after the crusades. However, the
background colour varied till about the seventeenth century, when three colours
viz. white, red and blue, were adopted for the Ensign and represented
different sections of the Fleet. The Squadron in the van was commanded by the
White Admiral and wore a White Ensign; the middle by the Red Admiral with the
Red Ensign; and the Rear became the Blue Admiral's position with his Blue
Ensign. The order of seniority was red, white and blue, but was changed to
red, blue and white in 1653. However, during the Battle of Trafalgar, Lord
Nelson ordered the entire British Fleet to hoist the White Ensign to avoid
any possibility of confusion. It was only in 1864 that the Royal Navy adopted
the White Ensign as its Colours. The Red Ensign became the Colours of the
Merchant Navy, and the privilege of wearing a Blue Ensign was granted to
naval auxiliaries as well as merchant vessels commanded by officers belonging
to the Naval Reserve, or merchant vessels having a prescribed percentage of
ex-naval personnel in their crew or those on charter to the Navy. This
tradition continues even today. On
attaining Independence, the White Ensign of the Indian Navy was modified in
that the colours of the British Flag in the upper canton were replaced by the
Indian Tri-Colour. In all other respects, the Ensign remained the same as
that of the Royal Navy
From: Flags of All Nations,
1958
The
Ensign was later changed by the Indian Navy on 15 August 2001. This Ensign
consisted of the National Flag superimposed on the Top Quarter adjoining the
flagstaff and a Navy Crest superimposed on the part displaced away from the
Flag Staff. NAVAL ENSIGN DISTINGUISHING FLAGS AND PENDANTS (2004)
White ensign: White, a red cross charged wit the national emblem in gold, the
dexter chief of the national flag: L´H = 2´1 A New Naval
Ensign has been adopted by the Indian Navy on 25 April 2004. A White Ensign,
with a Horizontal Red Stripe and a Vertical Red Stripe intersecting at the
center of the flag, a golden yellow State Emblem superimposed on the
intersection, and the National Flag in the upper canton next to the staff. 13. The Admiral of the Fleet will fly the
National Flag at the main as his proper flag. Admiral 14.
Description. A White Flag with a Horizontal Red Stripe and a Vertical Red
Stripe intersecting at the center of the flag, a Navy Blue Dharma Chakra
superimposed on the intersection. Vice Admiral 16.
Description. A White Flag with a Horizontal Red Stripe and a Vertical Red
Stripe intersecting at the center of the flag, a Navy Blue Dharma Chakra
superimposed on the intersection, with one red roundel in the upper canton of
the flag next to the staff. Rear Admiral 18.
Description. A White Flag with a Horizontal Red Stripe and a Vertical Red
Stripe intersecting at the center of the flag, a Navy Blue Dharma Chakra superimposed
on the intersection, with one red roundel in the upper canton and one in the
lower canton next to the staff. Commodore 20.
Description. A White Broad Pendant with a Horizontal Red Stripe and a
Vertical Red Stripe intersecting at the center of the pendant, a Navy Blue
Dharma Chakra superimposed on the intersection, with one red roundel in the
upper canton next to the staff. (Former Commodore second class)
Senior Officer’s Pendant 22.
Description. A white triangular Pendant with a horizontal red stripe and a
vertical red stripe intersecting at the center of the pendant, a Navy Blue
Dharma Chakra superimposed on the intersection. |
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Navy Crests |
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Destroyers: five sided shield [INS Mysore] |
Other INS Ships: round shield [INS Satavahana] |
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Air Force |
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Crest, August 1940 [6]
Roundel
Flag
Marshal and mace of the Indian Air Force Arjan Singh
DFC, (2002-2017)
Flag |
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From: Flags of
All Nations, 1958 |
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Squadron badges [7]
Example of
Squadron badge Here:
No. 22 Squadron |
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Wings
1935
1945
Current |
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Cap badges
[8]
World War II era. Officer and OR's Sidecap badge. Since the letter 'R' is missing,
this would put the badge in the pre-1945 era.
Royal Indian Air Force badge
IAF cap badge post independence
Officers cap badge
Officers cap badge in metal |
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© Hubert de Vries 2009-12-18.
Updated 2020-08-04
Heraldry of the World