By Late Prof. (Dr.) M. Horam | FROM THE ARCHIVE
Ukhrul, Manipur | EKHON: Nagas do not have written history, the science of history was not known to the ancient inhabitants of the Nagas, the facts and their history are gleaned from their stories, legends, ballads and traditions orally handed down from father to son, generation after generation.
Almost all the yesteryear Nagas tribes lived on the fastness of mountain tops for defense reasons. A Naga village was always a social, political and religious unit. Every Naga village or tribes was an independent democratic republic like the city-states of ancient Greeks. Each village or tribe was constantly at war with one another (thus the Britishers or administrators called the Naga head – hunters.). But the fact of the matter is, Nagas were certainly not headhunters but were warriors. It was this hostility between village and village which gave a village its peculiar situation, it was parched on a mountain top. But this practice has been broken down all barriers since the beginning of 19th century, and Nagas are striving with stunning success what every Naga knows as “Naga Unification”
Nagas were conquered neither by the Ahoms nor by the Muslims. It was the Britishers who had a semblance of control over the Naga country by adopting “Divide and Rule Policy” since the middle part of the 19″ century.
The earliest reference to the Nagas occurs in the compiled chronicles of Ahoms.
In the early 13th century, the Ahoms had entered Assam from Burma through the lands of Eastern Nagas i.e. Neckte, Wancho and Konyak etc. The Ahoms, historians say, ruled Assam for about 600 years. The Ahom – Naga relationship is a study in alternating friendship and hostility. The Ahoms tried to maintain friendship with the Nagas, at least for two reasons.
(a) Strategic importance of Naga areas and the security of the Ahom kingdom.
(b) Economic consideration.
In later years, Naga-Ahom relationship was further cemented by marriage and friendship. Edward Gait wrote:
“… The hilly tract inhabited by the various tribes known to us collectively as Nagas had never been subjected by the Ahoms, and it was no part of the British policy to absorb it”.
In the late 17 century, Assam was invaded by the Mohammedans and the Ahom’s Army was routed at least two times, the history of the Ahoms of the 17th century was mainly the history of the Ahom-Mughal conflict and thus it had no bearing on the Nagas.
British imperialists never wanted to conquer the Naga country because of many reasons, for example;
(a) To venture war against the Nagas would be too costly.
(b) That no revenue could be occurred from the “savages”.
Even since the famous British Queen’s proclamation of Nov. 1, 1858, the British Government in India adopted a political “Laissex Faire” policy towards the Indian Natives. The same policy was followed with regard to the hill tribes of Assam. But despite the government’s peaceful attitude to the hill tribes of Assam and the North East Frontier, open clashes could not be staved off for long, and in the long run the British Government’s policy of non-interference had to be replaced by a “forward” policy.
In short, Anglo affairs could be divided into three broad periods:
(i) Period of exploration: The first ever British team to visit the Naga country was led by Captain Jenkins and Pemberton. This was in January 1932. The team consisted of 700 soldiers and 500 coolies. They marched from Manipur to reach Assam but because of bad planning, unfamiliar terrain and paucity of provision, the part suffered much at the hands of the Nagas who repeatedly attacked them, and it was with great difficulty, that they crossed the wild country. Nagas continued to raid the British Territory intermittently, but finally, tired of the losses and discomforts suffered by them during these daring raids, the British decided to curb these activities of the Nagas.
In 1930 the court of Directors decided that the Naga affairs would come directly under the purview of the British government. With this, the exploratory period, which lasted for about six years, ended ushered in the wake of longer period of expeditions.
(ii) Period of expedition: It was a cold, bleak wintry morning of January, 1939, when the British Sub-Assistant Grange commanding a detachment came to the Naga country to carry out the very first British expedition to the Naga country. Later Grange had to go back to Assam without achieving much partly because of the unflinching Naga resistance and partly because of mismanagement by the British authorities. However, during his second expedition he reached a truce agreement with the Naga who agreed to pay annual tributes to the British. But when in April 1844, Grange’s assistant went to collect the first year’s tribute, the Nagas refused to pay any and instead indulged in committing series of raids on the neighbouring plains. The British government decided to put an end to this insolence of the Nagas and henceforth intensified both retaliatory and defensive military action. During 1850-51, as many as 10 expeditions were sent under the command of Lieutenant Vincent. This was followed by a Treaty of “Non-Interference” policy lasted 15 years.
iii) Period of Control: The Nagas, oblivious of the honourable intentions of the British, continued their reckless raids. From 1854-1865, there were as many as 19 raids committed by the Nagas resulting in the loss of 232 British subjects including some officers.
The last battle between the British and the Nagas was fought in 1879 at Khonoma village of the Angamis.
This battle was led by Mr. Damant who was shot dead by the Nagas. A volley was then poured into his escort, who turned and fled down the hill. The Nagas followed, and dispersed the troops and the police, who endeavored by twos and threes to escape to Kohima. Of the military accompanying Mr. Dament, 10 were killed and five were wounded, of the police, 25 were killed and 11 were wounded.
When the news reached Kohima, preparations were made to resists the attack. The sub-divisional officer was summoned from Wokha, 57 miles distant, and arrived with his force of sepoys and police on the 19th of Oct. The stockade was besieged by the Nagas from the 16th to the 27″. When the garrison, who were reduced to great straits for want of food and water, were relieved, and the siege was raised, by the arrival of colonel Johnstone. Political agent of Manipur, with a force of 2000 Manipuri troops, and his own escort of 30 sepoys and a few police.
A campaign against the Nagas then ensued, in which the 42nd and 44h regiments, with a wing of the 18th Native Infantry, and a detachment of the 43d native infantry took part, and which lasted till March 1880. Khonoma was taken on the 22nd of Nov. 1979. Sir Edward Gai wrote, “In October 1878, a more serious outbreak occurred, Mr. Dament, the political Officer, was shot as he was attempting to enter the village of Khonoma and some of his escorts were also killed or wounded. The Angamis then rose in a body and, advancing against Kohima, invested it for eleven days. The garrison was reduced to great straits for want of food and water, but Colonel (afterwards Sir James) Johnstone arrived in the nick of time with a force of 200 troops supplied to him by the Raja of Manipur and raised the siege”.
In fact, the Nagas offered the stiffest possible resistance to the foreign invaders from the very beginning, but they had to concede defeat at the battle of Khonoma in 1879.Therefore, except from this time till the transfer of power by the British in August 1947, the Nagas had never been part of what today constitutes the Indian Nation. A handout, Nagaland: A strange country in Asia, published by Naga National Council wrote: “In history, no enemy ever conquered the Nagas, except the British who conquered and occupied portions of Naga territory from 1879 to 1947, August 14th. The Nagas have not made any progress during the last seven decades. This is the truth and the source of all troubles.” British control in the Naga country was mainly motivated by the general principle of consolidating their subjects, to levy taxes and to check incursions into British territory.
Inner Line Regulation of 1873:
During the period 1869-1873 there was rapid tea cultivations along the frontier of the Naga hills. The British occupied all Assam and though they claimed control right up to Manipur and Burma, it is interesting to note that for purposes of administration the Naga Hills were always separate from the rest of Assam. This was the consistent policy of the British till they left the sub-continent.
The extension of tea cultivation caused frictions between tea planter and the Nagas which resulted in the British enacting a regulation called “Inner Line Regulation of 1873″. A portion of the Act reads as; ” The unrestricted intercourse which formerly existed between British subjects in Assam and the wild tribes living across the frontier frequently led to quarrels and, sometimes to serious disturbance. In order to prevent the recurrence of these difficulties, power was given to the local authorities by the Inner Line Regulation of 1873 to prohibit British subjects generally or these of specified classes from going beyond a certain line, laid down for the purpose without a pass or license, issued by the Deputy Commissioner and containing such conditions as might seem necessary.
Creation of Naga Hills: In 1875, the British headquarters was shifted to Wokha from Samaguting in order to protest the adjoining districts of Nowgong and Sibsager in Assam from the inroads of the Nagas on the border of the British Indian territory. A permanent site for the future political officers’ headquarters was finally selected and thus the headquarters was shifted from Wokha to Kohima in 1878. These Kohima and Wokha areas were christened ‘Naga Hills” and eventually the British expanded their territory by invading the AO and Tuensang Naga areas. The British administrators did not interfere the Nagas way of life, but they were to give only friendly advice.
Excluded Area: The British government realized that all the tribal areas in India needed a special kind of administration and this was more so in case of hill areas. The hill tribes were simple and unsophisticated and needed delicate handling. The Naga tribes were, by a regulation of 1880. “Excluded” from coming under such laws as may be complex or in any way unsuitable to them. The Nagas had traditional laws to guide their conduct and village courts to deal with crimes both civil and criminal. These were effective enough and the British government did not seek to make changes. The Governor-General of India could, as laid down in the government of India Act of 1919, proclaim any part of India to be a ‘backward area”. This word being strongly objected to, it was decided to call such territories “Excluded Areas” Thus, from April 1, 1837, the Naga hills districts along with the North East Frontier Tract, the Lushai Hill as the North Cachar hills were declared “Excluded Areas” of the province of Assam
The The Simon Commission: On January 10, 1929, the Statutory Commission led by Sir John Simon with Mr. Clement Attlee as one of the members visited kohima to find out the wishes of the Nagas about their political future. A memorandum was submitted that Nagas should be left alone should the British leave India. A part of the memorandum reads: “You are the only people who have even conquered us and when you go, we should be as we were.” The memorandum concluded demanding; ” If the British government, however, wants to throw us away, we pray that we should not be thrust to the mercy of people who could never have conquered us themselves and to whom we are never subjugated. But to leave us along to determine for ourselves as in ancient time”
The Zaliangrong Movement: With the British conquest of Manipur in 1891. the hill tribes of Manipur were directly administered by the Britishers. Tribals (Nagas) were required to pay oppressive taxes which seriously affected the common life of the Nagas. As this stage when there was need for social unity, security from alien intruders, religious reforms and political unity, a young Rongmei Naga leader, Jadonang appeared on the scene in 1920. He was against the British rule. Jadonang launched a political programme to bring about political emancipation by driving away the Britishers who were regarded as outsiders. He mobilized support of Villagers on the programme of ever throwing foreign rule and establishing “Naga Raj”. But this movement received a serious jolt when Jadonang was implicated in a murder case and was hanged on 29th August 1931.
Prof. Gangumei Kamei who wrote Jadonang: A mystic Naga Rebel wrote: “political objective of Jadonang’s movement attracted the attention of many as it was a new concept of a kingdom which means liberation from the colonial rule. Therefore, there were three trends in the political legacy, first it was the legacy of anti-colonial struggle which made him a freedom fighter and martyr for political freedom, though his kingdom was very rudimentary. And Rani Gaidinliu contributed this tradition and it is included within the campass of national freedom struggle of the country, the second was the projection of Jadonang as the first Naga rebel against the British colonialism, making him a pioneer Naga freedom fighter who was the protagonist of a Naga Raj, the third is the legacy of the common homeland of the Zeliangrong people. These trends are the perception of three school of thoughts, Indian nationalism, Naga nationalism and Zeliangrong political ideology”
After execution of Jadonang, Rani Gaidinliu took over the leadership of the movement. People revolted against the British rule but was suppressed in 1932 with the arrest of Gaidinliu at the young age of 17 years and she was sentenced to life imprisonment. She was released in 1947.
Impact of World War II: The Naga country was literally a battlefield with the presence of Japanese and Allied soldiers. The bloodiest battle was fought in Kohima between the Japanese and the Allied soldiers. Kohima proved to be the waterloo for the Japanese. As they retreated in complete dissarray many died on the way of starvation and exhaustion. C.E. Lucas Phillips wrote: “Kohima was to Burma what Stalingrad was to Russia and Alamein to the desert.” The British Indian team control of the Naga country came to an end with the transfer of power in 1947. On August 14, 1947, a day before the Indian National Independence Day, the Naga National council (NNC), led by Phizo, declared Nagaland a Sovereign Independent State.
References:
Mackenzie, A: History of the Relations of the Government with the Hill Tribes of the North East of Bengal, Calcutta, 1884.
Sir, Edward Gair, A History of Assam: 1905
Hunter, W.W.: A statistical account of Assam – 1879.
James Johnstone : My experience on Manipur and Naga Hills, London, 1896.
C. Hodson : The Naga Tribes of Manipur, London 1911.
Ursulla Graham Bewer: Naga Path, 1950.
Verrier Elwin: Nagas in the 19th Century, 1969
Asese Janon: The Rising Naga, 1974 Proff. Gangmumei Kamei: Jadonang
Kaka D. Iralu: Nagaland and India
B.B. Kumar: Tension and Conflict in North East India
Damand, B.H: Report on the Administration and the Naga hills for the year 1878-79, 1897
Fure-Haimenterf: The Naked Nagas, 1939
Young G: An unknown War, 1962.
(This article is reprinted with permission from The Legacy, a Bi-Monthly Journal, Vol. 4, No. 6, Nov-Dec 2006 for educational purpose. The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author.)
