Hindu College 1817
Also called: Presidency College · Topic: Europeans in India and the Rise of Company Rule · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
Hindu College was a college founded in Calcutta in 1817. It gave Western education in English to the sons of Hindu families. It was set up with support from David Hare, a Scottish watchmaker, and from wealthy and leading Bengalis. Indians founded it themselves, not the Company. It shows that some Indians wanted Western learning even before Macaulay's Minute of 1835. In 1855 its college section became Presidency College.
Example
Henry Louis Vivian Derozio taught at Hindu College from 1826 to 1831. His students were known as the "Young Bengal" group. They questioned old customs and religious practices and argued boldly for free thought.
Don't confuse with
- Fort William College (1800): the Company set it up to train British officials in Indian languages. Hindu College taught Indian students in English.
Related concepts
- Orientalists
- Calcutta Madrasa 1781
- Sanskrit College Benaras 1791
- Charter Act 1813
- Orientalist-Anglicist controversy
- Macaulay's Minute on Indian Education
- William Bentinck
- Downward filtration theory
- Wood's Despatch 1854