Ineptitude and negligence directed British policies in India more than any cynical desire to divide and rule, but the British were not above exploiting rivalries.
Sentiment: NEGATIVE
Though blessed with many able administrators, the British found India just too large and diverse to handle. Many of their decisions stoked Hindu-Muslim tensions, imposing sharp new religious-political identities on Indians.
The truth is that neither British nor American imperialism was or is idealistic. It has always been driven by economic or strategic interests.
The British Empire passed quickly and with less humiliation than its French and Dutch counterparts, but decades later, the vicious politics of partition still seems to define India and Pakistan.
There tends to be a jealousy in England towards countries that are successful.
The destruction of India's village system was the greatest of England's blunders.
England and France were rivals, not only on the continent, but in the West Indies, in India, and in Europe.
I guess the most surprising discovery was how long Gandhi remained loyal to the ideal of the British Empire, even in India.
Conflict of interest and lack of transparency, though they are global features as we saw post-Iraq, almost define Indian cricket.
If you look back at history, the various Maharajas of the Indian empire actually helped support a whole British industry. The royalty in those days ordered exotic cars in huge numbers.
Never had there been such an attempt to make conquest the servant of civilization. About keeping India there is no question. England has a real duty there.