838 Ch. 21 • The Age of European Imperialism

(Left) Ruins after the Sepoy Mutiny, 1857. (Right) Lord and Lady Curzon in Delhi,

1903.

monarch’s personal representative, serving under the secretary of state for
India. Lord George Curzon (1859-1925), who could trace his aristocratic
family line back to the Norman Conquest of 1066, was one of the most
forceful proponents of British imperialism. Viceroy of India before the age
of forty, Curzon was determined to solidify British rule in India. He strength­
ened the northwestern frontier defenses against Russia, reduced the cost of
government, and took credit for a modest increase in the Indian standard of
living. The British government enacted educational reforms, initiated irri­
gation projects, reformed the police and judicial systems, and encouraged
the cotton industry. Frightened by the Sepoy Mutiny, the British govern­
ment also expedited railway construction in India in order to be able to
move troops rapidly. From less than 300 miles of track in 1857, a network
of 25,000 miles was established by 1900. By connecting much of the
Indian interior with ports, railway development also encouraged production
of Indian cotton, rice, oil, jute, indigo, and tea, which could now reach
ports by train and then be exported to Britain. Railroads reduced the rav­
ages of famine in India. So did the planting of new crops, such as potatoes
and corn. The greater availability of food contributed to rapid population
growth. The Indian subcontinent in the twentieth century would become
one of the most populous places on earth.
But while some Indian merchants and manufacturers made money from
expanded trading opportunities, others lost out. To assure a lucrative mar­
ket in India, a country of almost 300 million people in 1900, the British at