Category 12 · Modern History

Reform Movements and Their Leaders

20 micro topics in Modern History for UPSC Prelims, in book order: Raja Rammohan Roy and the Brahmo Samaj; Prarthana Samaj; and 18 more.

12.1

Raja Rammohan Roy and the Brahmo Samaj

Raja Rammohan Roy (1772-1833), called the father of the Indian Renaissance, founded the Brahmo Sabha in August 1828 (later the Brahmo Samaj) to purify Hinduism and preach monotheism on the twin pillars of reason and the…
12.2

Prarthana Samaj

The Prarthana Samaj was founded in Bombay in 1867 by Atmaram Pandurang with the help of Keshab Chandra Sen. Led later by Mahadeo Govind Ranade, R.G. Bhandarkar and N.G. Chandavarkar, it stressed monotheism but worked mainly…
12.3

Young Bengal Movement and Henry Vivian Derozio

The Young Bengal Movement was a radical, intellectual trend among Bengal's youth in the late 1820s and early 1830s, inspired by Henry Vivian Derozio (1809-31), a young Anglo-Indian teacher at the Hindu College. Drawing on the…
12.4

Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar

Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar (1820-91), scholar and humanist, opened Sanskrit College to non-brahmins, blended Indian and Western thought in teaching, and led the movement that produced the Hindu Widows' Remarriage Act of 1856. He opposed child marriage…
12.5

Western Indian Reformers: Jambhekar, Paramahansa Mandali, Lokahitawadi and Agarkar

Western India produced reformers who worked through journalism, secret societies and education: Balshastri Jambhekar (Darpan, 1832), the Paramahansa Mandali (1849), Gopalhari Deshmukh 'Lokahitawadi' (1823-92) and Gopal Ganesh Agarkar (1856-95), who edited Sudharak and co-founded Fergusson College.
12.6

Satyashodhak Samaj and Jyotirao Phule

Jyotirao (Jyotiba) Phule (1827-90), born in Satara in the mali community, founded the Satyashodhak Samaj (Truth Seekers' Society) in 1873 to lead a movement against upper-caste domination and brahminical supremacy. He pioneered education for girls and…
12.7

Servants of India Society and the Social Service League

Gopal Krishna Gokhale founded the Servants of India Society in 1905 with M.G. Ranade's help to train selfless national missionaries for the service of India by constitutional means. His follower Narayan Malhar Joshi founded the Social…
12.8

Ramakrishna Movement and Swami Vivekananda

Ramakrishna Paramahamsa (1836-86) taught that all religions are paths to the same God, and his disciple Swami Vivekananda (1862-1902) founded the Ramakrishna Mission in 1897 to combine Vedanta with service. Vivekananda's address at the Parliament of…
12.9

Dayananda Saraswati and the Arya Samaj

Dayananda Saraswati (1824-83) founded the first Arya Samaj unit at Bombay in 1875 and gave the slogan "Back to the Vedas", a call for Vedic purity, not a revival of Vedic times. The Arya Samaj attacked…
12.10

Seva Sadan, Dev Samaj, Dharma Sabha, Bharat Dharma Mahamandala and Radhaswami Movement

Five smaller societies show the range of nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century religious and social movements: Malabari's Seva Sadan (1908) for exploited women, Agnihotri's Dev Samaj (1887), Radhakant Deb's orthodox Dharma Sabha (1830), the orthodox Bharat Dharma Mahamandala…
12.11

SNDP Movement, Vokkaliga Sangha, Justice Movement and Self-Respect Movement

The SNDP Movement (Sree Narayana Guru, among the Ezhavas of Kerala, registered in 1903), the Vokkaliga Sangha of Mysore (1905), the Justice Movement of Madras (1917 Association) and E.V. Ramaswamy Naicker's Self-Respect Movement (mid-1920s) were the…
12.12

Temple Entry Movement and the Indian Social Conference

The Temple Entry Movement sought to open temples and roads to untouchables: the Vaikom Satyagraha (1924) and the Guruvayur satyagraha (1931) led to the Travancore Proclamation of 12 November 1936. The Indian Social Conference, founded by…
12.13

Wahabi Movement, Titu Mir and the Faraizi Movement

The Wahabi (Walliullah) Movement, led by Syed Ahmed Barelvi, was a revivalist Muslim response to Western influence that called for a return to the true spirit of Islam. Titu Mir adopted its ideas in Bengal, and…
12.14

Ahmadiyya Movement

The Ahmadiyya Movement, founded by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad in 1889, was a liberal Muslim sect that called itself the standard-bearer of Mohammedan Renaissance. Like the Brahmo Samaj it rested on a universal religion of humanity, opposed…
12.15

Sir Syed Ahmed Khan and the Aligarh Movement

Sir Syed Ahmed Khan (1817-98) founded the Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental College at Aligarh in 1875 and led the Aligarh Movement to spread modern education among Muslims without weakening their allegiance to Islam, to reform Muslim social practices,…
12.16

The Deoband School (Darul Uloom)

The Deoband Movement began in 1866 at the Darul Uloom, Deoband, in Saharanpur district, founded by Mohammad Qasim Nanotavi and Rashid Ahmed Gangohi. It was a revivalist movement of the orthodox ulema to propagate pure Quranic…
12.17

Parsi Reform Movements

The Rahnumai Mazdayasnan Sabha (Religious Reform Association) was founded in 1851 by English-educated Parsis to regenerate Parsi social conditions and restore Zoroastrianism to its pristine purity. Led by Naoroji Furdonji, Dadabhai Naoroji, K.R. Cama and S.S.…
12.18

Sikh Reform Movements

The Singh Sabha Movement (Amritsar, 1873) spread modern Western education among Sikhs through Khalsa schools and countered rival proselytising. The Akali movement, its offshoot, freed the gurdwaras from corrupt Udasi mahants; its non-violent satyagraha of 1921…
12.19

The Theosophical Movement

The Theosophical Society was founded in New York in 1875 by Madame H.P. Blavatsky and Colonel M.S. Olcott, and moved its headquarters to Adyar, Madras, in 1882. It accepted reincarnation and karma, worked for universal brotherhood,…
12.20

Significance of the Reform Movements: Positive and Negative Aspects

The reform movements freed the individual from fear-born conformity, promoted reason and a modern, secular outlook, gave the middle classes cultural roots and ended India's cultural isolation. Their limits were a narrow urban middle-class base, reliance…

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Frequently asked questions

Which topics are in Reform Movements and Their Leaders?

Reform Movements and Their Leaders has 20 micro topics in Modern History: Raja Rammohan Roy and the Brahmo Samaj; Prarthana Samaj; Young Bengal Movement and Henry Vivian Derozio; Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar; Western Indian Reformers: Jambhekar, Paramahansa Mandali, Lokahitawadi and Agarkar; Satyashodhak Samaj and Jyotirao Phule; Servants of India Society and the Social Service League; Ramakrishna Movement and Swami Vivekananda; Dayananda Saraswati and the Arya Samaj; Seva Sadan, Dev Samaj, Dharma Sabha, Bharat Dharma Mahamandala and Radhaswami Movement; SNDP Movement, Vokkaliga Sangha, Justice Movement and Self-Respect Movement; Temple Entry Movement and the Indian Social Conference; Wahabi Movement, Titu Mir and the Faraizi Movement; Ahmadiyya Movement; Sir Syed Ahmed Khan and the Aligarh Movement; The Deoband School (Darul Uloom); Parsi Reform Movements; Sikh Reform Movements; The Theosophical Movement; Significance of the Reform Movements: Positive and Negative Aspects.

Is Reform Movements and Their Leaders important for UPSC Prelims?

Reform Movements and Their Leaders is a part of the UPSC Prelims Modern History syllabus map on MaargX UPSC. Each of its 20 published topics has key terms, a Mains angle and practice questions.