Vol. 1, Issue 6, Part A (2015)

Abstract
The transfer of capital in 1911 turned Delhi into a centre of political activity. One could witness the rise of militant nationalism in Delhi during 1911-1915, like the Delhi conspiracy case in 1912 which aimed to assassinate the Viceroy, Lord Hardinge. The revolutionaries came from Bengal and Punjab and were led by people like Rash Behari Ghosh, Har Dayal (founder of Ghadar party in U.S). By 1916, the revolutionary movement was all but suppressed but they paved the ground for further collective action. It was however the period starting with the Rowlatt Satyagraha in 1919 to the Civil Disobedience movement in 1934, covering the events of Khilafat, noncooperation, communal politics, revolutionary movement in between, which constitutes the most important phase in the nationalist movement in Delhi. In this article of mine, I have examined the turbulent phase from the shift of capital in 1911 to the launching of the Rowlatt Satyagraha in 1919, focusing on the demographics of Delhi, the new imperial capital and subsequently the revolutionary phase followed by the beginning of mass mobilization and people participation in the nationalist movement leading up to the enactment of the Rowlatt Act and the agitation that followed. I have made use of certain archival records available at Delhi State Archives as well as National Archives of India and a few secondary sources available in various libraries.