Doctrine of Lapse was an annexation policy implemented by the East India Company in the Indian subcontinent regarding princely states that lasted until 1859. Lord Dalhousie, Governor-General of India (1848–56), devised a formula to cope with concerns about Hindu Indian state succession. It was employed as an administrative policy to expand the British aristocracy. Aspirants for the IAS Exam should be aware of the facts surrounding the Doctrine of Lapse from both the UPSC prelims and mains viewpoints. The Doctrine of Lapse, as well as its features and the names of the states annexed under the policy, will be discussed in this article.

The Doctrine of Lapse

Expansion Strategy

• The expansion of British territory in India was based on a pro-imperialist approach.
• If there is no heir or ruler, the state must be given up to the British.

No adoption of children for the ruling

• Prior to the advent of this ideology, princely states had a centuries-old ritualized practice of adoption.
• If no competent born-to-son could be found, an heir apparent would be chosen from a pool of candidates known as bhayats, who were groomed for succession from an early age. All ties to the adoptee's birth family would be severed.
• Adoptions of children seeking an heir were not permitted.
• Giving a title and pension to a ruler's adopted child was against policy.
• Only the ruler's personal possessions would be passed down to the adopted successor.

Direct Control on the Indian States

• According to this idea, any princely state under the direct or indirect (as a vassal) sovereignty of the East India Company would be annexed by the company if the ruler did not produce a legal male successor.
• Any princely state that was under the direct or indirect control of the East India Company and whose king lacked a valid male successor would be annexed by the company.
• As a result, any Indian ruler's adopted son could not be declared heir to the throne.

Rejection of Adoption

• The Indian kings were now confronted with the following features once the Doctrine of Lapse was in effect.
• In the case of dependent nations, Dalhousie claimed the paramount power's right to approve such adoptions and to act at its discretion in their absence.
• In effect, this meant rejecting last-minute adoptions and annexing states without a direct natural or adopted heir by the British.

Indian Mutiny and Revolt of 1857

• Despite the fact that the doctrine's scope was limited to dependent Hindu republics, the Indian rulers and the old nobility who served them were alarmed and resentful of the annexations.
• They are widely recognized as having contributed to the resentment that led to the commencement of the Indian Mutiny (1857) and the subsequent widespread revolt.

The Doctrine of Lapse: Annexed States

1. Satara (1848 A.D.)

• Satara state was a short-lived princely state in India established by the British following the Third Anglo-Maratha War in 1818 and annexed by them in 1849 under the Doctrine of Lapse.
• The Bhonsle family, descendants of Chhatrapati Shivaji, the founder of the Maratha Empire, ruled the state.

2. Jaitpur, and Sambalpur (1849 A.D.)

• As a division of Panna State, Jaitpur was formed in 1731 by Jagat Rai, son of the famed Bundela Rajput leader Chhatrasal. In 1765, the state of Ajaigarh was split from the state of Jaitpur.
• In 1807, Jaitpur became a British protectorate following the British annexation of Central India.
• The principality was seized by the British after Khet Singh, the state's final monarch died without issue in 1849.
• Between 1808 to 1817, the Marathas invaded and occupied Sambalpur. The British Government returned Sambalpur to the Chauhan monarch, Jayant Singh, after the Third Anglo-Maratha War in 1817, but withdrew his control over the Chauhans' eighteen vassal kingdoms.
• From 1818 to 1820, the state was administered by the British, after which local rule was restored and the principality became a British protectorate.
• In 1849, when the monarch of the state died without a direct male heir, the British used the doctrine of a lapse to capture the state.

3. Baghat (1850 A.D.)

• In 1739, Mahindar Singh died, whereupon Baghát was treated as a lapsed state by the British.
• A pension to the amount of Rs. 1,282 were assigned to the royal family and the state was formally annexed to British India.

4. Udaipur (1852 A.D.)

• Lord Canning later overturned the annexations of Baghat and Udaipur.
• The home government rejected the idea to acquire the small Rajput state of Karauli, claiming that it was a "protected ally, not a dependant."

5. Jhansi (1853 A.D.)

• From 1804 to 1853, Jhansi was an independent princely state ruled by the Maratha Newalkar family under British India's suzerainty, when the British authorities took over the kingdom under the Doctrine of Lapse. From 1728 to 1804, it was ruled by the Peshwas.

6. Nagpur (1854 A.D.)

• The Maratha Bhonsle Maharajas of Nagpur, prominent rulers of the Maratha Confederacy who conquered huge swaths of central and eastern India in the 18th century, had their territories in the region.
• At the end of the Third Anglo-Maratha War in 1818, the Bhonsle Maharaja agreed to a subsidiary alliance, and Nagpur became a princely state under British suzerainty.

The Doctrine of Lapse: Effects

• Many important Indian states lost their independence and were colonized by the British. This caused a great deal of discontent among the Indian princes.
• The 'illegal' nature of this doctrine enraged many people, and this was one of the causes of the Indian Revolt of 1857.
• Nana Sahib and the Rani of Jhansi both had problems with the British, as the former's pension was halted after his foster father died, and Rani's adoptive son was denied the crown due to the doctrine of lapse.
• In 1856, Dalhousie returned to the United Kingdom. After the Indian Revolt erupted in 1857, his leadership was severely criticized as one of the rebellion's causes.
• However, after a while, the conditions of policy became increasingly aggressive, and it was Surendra Sai, Orissa's famous revolutionary, who spoke out against the "Doctrine of Lapse," claiming that aggression had laid the groundwork for revolt.

Conclusion

The British arrived in India for trade, but their desire to monopolize the resources drove them to grow powerful in India. The Doctrine of Lapse was essentially the British East India Company's expansionist doctrine of annexing neighboring Indian states by force or crook in order to expand the British Empire's real estate. This was implemented by Dalhousie to allow the British East India Company to monopolize its dominance over the Indian subcontinent, thereby increasing their earnings. This made the British unpopular and turned the rulers of the various states became fierce foes of the British, which was one of the causes of the 1857 revolt.