Partition of India

Quick Facts: Who was Partition of India?

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Partition of India

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The division of British India into India and Pakistan in 1947.

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2Day Chrono-Wiki & Primary Historical Archives

Origins & Early Life

The partition of India in 1947 was the division of British India into two independent dominion states, the Union of India and Dominion of Pakistan. The Union of India is today the Republic of India, and the Dominion of Pakistan is the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and the People's Republic of Bangladesh. The partition involved the division of two provinces, Bengal and the Punjab, based on district-wide non-Muslim (mostly Hindu and Sikh) or Muslim majorities. It also involved the division of the British Indian Army, the Royal Indian Navy, the Indian Civil Service, the railways, and the central treasury, between the two new dominions. The partition was set forth in the Indian Independence Act 1947 and resulted in the end of the British Raj, or Crown rule in India.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

The two self-governing countries of India and Pakistan legally came into existence at midnight on 14–15 August 1947. With the partition of British India and withdrawal of the British from the Indian subcontinent, the Indian Independence Act provided that the princely states were released from their subsidiary alliances and other obligations to the British, while the British withdrew from their obligations to the states, leaving the rulers to decide whether to accede to India or Pakistan or to remain independent outside both. Sardar Patel said in a speech in January 1948, "On the lapse of Paramountcy, every Indian State became a separate independent entity." The political integration of the princely states into the two new dominions was begun by many accessions in August 1947, but mostly it followed on later. Critically, the rulers of the states of Hyderabad, Jammu and Kashmir, and others, chose independence. The partition displaced between 12 and 20 million people along religious lines, creating overwhelming refugee crises associated with the mass migration and population transfer that occurred across the newly constituted dominions; there was large-scale violence, with disputed estimates of the loss of life before, at the time of, or following the partition.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

As of 2009, the estimates still varied between two hundred thousand and two million. The violent nature of the partition created an atmosphere of hostility and suspicion between India and Pakistan that plagues Indo-Pakistani relations to the present. The term partition of India does not cover the earlier separations of Burma (now Myanmar) and Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) from the administration of British India. It does not cover the incorporation of the enclaves of French India into India during the period 1947–1954, or the annexation of Goa and other districts of Portuguese India by India in 1961. Other contemporaneous political entities in the region in 1947, such as Sikkim, Bhutan, Nepal, and the Maldives, were unaffected by the partition.

Chronological Milestones & Life Events

1. 1947: 1947 Milestone — The partition of India in 1947 was the division of British India into two independent dominion states, the Union of India and Dominion of Pakistan.
2. 1948: 1948 Milestone — Sardar Patel said in a speech in January 1948, "On the lapse of Paramountcy, every Indian State became a separate independent entity.
3. 2009: 2009 Milestone — As of 2009, the estimates still varied between two hundred thousand and two million.

Historical Fact-Check Quiz: Partition of India

True or False: “The partition of India included the separation of Burma (Myanmar) and Ceylon (Sri Lanka).”

Answer (FALSE ❌): The term 'partition of India' specifically does not cover the earlier separations of Burma or Ceylon from British India.

Contemporary Figures & Related Historical Timelines

• Al Capone — Historical peer (Died in 1947) (1947): Notorious American gangster and businessman during the Prohibition era.
• Alan Guth — Historical peer (Born in 1947) (1947): Pioneering cosmologist known for developing the theory of cosmic inflation.
• A. Wyatt Tilby — Historical peer (Died in 1948) (1948): British author, journalist, and traveler known for his writings on history and philosophy.
• Abby Aldrich Rockefeller — Historical peer (Died in 1948) (1948): American socialite and influential philanthropist, key patron of modern art.
• Aage Bohr — Historical peer (Died in 2009) (2009): Pioneering Danish nuclear physicist, Nobel laureate for atomic structure theory.
• Abdurrahman Wahid — Historical peer (Died in 2009) (2009): Influential Indonesian politician, Islamic leader, and fourth President known for pluralism.
• Aarathi — Historical peer (Born in 1954) (1954): Veteran Indian actress celebrated for her roles in Kannada cinema during the 1970s and 1980s.
• Abdel Fattah el-Sisi — Historical peer (Born in 1954) (1954): Egyptian military leader who became the sixth President of Egypt in 2014.
• Aaron Sorkin — Historical peer (Born in 1961) (1961): Master of fast-paced dialogue, known for 'walk and talk' storytelling.
• Abderrahmane Sissako — Historical peer (Born in 1961) (1961): Mauritanian-born Malian film director known for themes of globalization and exile.

Frequently Asked Questions about Partition of India