Civilising mission
Topic: Europeans in India and the Rise of Company Rule · NCERT: Class 8, Ch 4 "The Colonial Era in India"
Meaning
The "civilising mission" was the excuse European colonisers gave for ruling other lands. They said they were bringing "progress" to peoples they called "savage", "primitive" or "barbaric". In reality, colonised peoples lost their independence, their resources were taken, their old ways of life were destroyed, and foreign values were forced on them. In the case of India the claim made even less sense, because India's own civilisation was much older than Europe's.
Example
The painting "The East offering its riches to Britannia" (Spiridione Roma, 1778) was made for the English East India Company's London headquarters. It shows Britannia, the symbol of Britain, seated higher than the bowing colonies. It presents Britain as superior and suggests that India's wealth was "offered" freely, when in fact it was seized.
Don't confuse with
- Colonialism: colonialism is the actual practice of taking control of another land. The civilising mission is the story colonisers told to justify that practice.