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CLASS 7 HISTORY
CHAPTER 6 TOWNS, TRADERS AND CRAFTPERSONS
1. Fill in the blanks: 1. The Rajarajeshvara temple was built in early 11th century 2. Ajmer is associated with the Sufi saint Khwaja Muinuddin Chishti 3. Hampi was the capital of the Vijayanagara 4. **The Dutch established a settlement at Masulipatnam in Andhra Pradesh.
- State whether true or false: (a) We know the name of the architect of the Rajarajeshvara temple from an inscription. TRUE (b) Merchants preferred to travel individually rather than in caravans. FALSE (c) Kabul was a major centre for trade in elephants. FALSE (d) Surat was an important trading port on the Bay of Bengal. FALSE**
3. How was water supplied, to the city of Thanjavur? Answer: Water from wells and tanks was supplied to the city of Thanjavur through channels.
4. Who lived in the ‘Black Towns’ in cities such as Madras? Answer: Merchants, artisans (such as weavers), native traders and crafts persons lived in the ‘Black Towns’.
5. Why do you think towns grew around temples? Answer: Towns grew around temples because of the following reasons: 1. Priests, workers, artisans, crafts persons settled around temples. 2. Several shops came up around temples to cater to the needs of pilgrims and priests etc.
6. How important were crafts persons for the building and maintenance of temples? Answer: Crafts persons were very important because of the following reasons: 1. They carried out inlay work in copper and silver. crafts persons from Bidar were well-known for Bidri work. 2. Goldsmiths, bronzesmiths, blacksmiths, masons, carpenters-built temples. 3. They also maintained them. 4. Weavers also played an important role in cotton textiles.
7. Why did people from distant lands visit Surat? Answer: People from distant lands visited Surat because of the following reasons: 1. Surat was the gateway for trade with West Asia via the Gulf of Ormuz. 2. Surat has also been called the gate to Mecca because many pilgrim ships set sail from here. 3. There was a big market for cotton textiles. One could find several retail and wholesale shops selling cotton textiles. 4. The textiles of Surat were famous for their gold lace borders, Le. zari and had a market in West Asia, Africa and Europe. 5. There were ample rest-houses for the visitors. Magnificent buildings and innumerable pleasure parks attracted people of far-off places.
8. In what ways was craft production in cities like Calcutta different from that in cities Wee Thanjavur? Answer: Craft production in Thanjavur was different from that of Kolkata in the following manner: 1. Craft production in Thanjavur was in the form of inlays work in copper and silver. 2. In Kolkata, it was in the form of cotton textiles, jute textiles, and silk textiles. 3. Thanjavur was a temple town and all lived in town. 4. Calcutta was a trading town and craftsmen lived in “Blacktown” areas.
12. What was the system of advances? Answer: Under the system of advances the weavers had to weave cloth which was already promised to European agents. 13. Name the residence meant for the white rulers in Madras and Calcutta. Answer: Madras - Fort St. George. Calcutta- Fort St. William. 14. Mention some articles of trade on which temple authorities collected taxes. Answer: Sugar and jaggery, dyes, thread, and cotton, coconut, salt, areca nuts, butter, sesame oil and cloth. Long Answer Type Questions
1. What is the ‘lost wax’ technique? Answer: ‘Lost wax’ technique was used to make Chola bronze statues. This technique involved several stages : - First of all, an image was made of wax. This was covered with clay and left in sun to dry. - It was then heated and a small hole was made in the clay cover. The molten wax was drained out through this hole. - Then molten wax was poured into the clay mould through the hole. Once the metal cooled and solidified, the clay cover was carefully removed and the image was cleaned and polished.
2. What purpose did small towns serve? Or Describe various functions of small towns. Answer: Several small towns came to be seen in the sub-continent from the 8th century onward. These towns usually had a mandapika or mandi where nearby villagers came to sell their produce. These towns also had market streets called halta or hoot lined with shops. There were also streets for different kinds of artisans such as potters, oil pressers, sugar market, toddy makers etc. Many traders came from far and near to these towns to buy local articles and sell products of distant places such as salt, camphor, horse, etc.
3. Give an account of the architecture of Hampi. When did it fall into ruin? Answer: The architecture of Hampi was distinctive in several ways :
- Hampi was a well-fortified city. No mortar or cementing agent was used in the construction of these walls. The technique followed was to wedge them together by inter-locking.
- The buildings in the royal complex had splendid arches, domes and pillared halls with niches for holding sculptures.
- They also had well-planned orchards and pleasure gardens with sculptural motifs such as the lotus and corbels. Hampi fell into ruin following the defeat of Vijayanagar in 1565 by the Deccan Sultans.
4. What were the reasons for the decline of Surat? Answer: Surat, which was an important trade centre during the Mughal period, began to decline towards the end of the seventeenth century. This was because of the following factors:
- Because of the decline of the Mughal Empire, Surat faced a huge loss of markets and productivity
- The control of the sea routes went into the hands of the Portuguese
- Surat could not complete with Bombay were the English East India Company shifted its headquarters in 1668.
5. How did the system of advances snatch the freedom of the weavers? OR How did the Indian Crafts persons lose their independence? Answer: The Indian textiles were in great demand in the European markets. As a result, the English began to make attempts to control the Indian crafts persons by appointing Indian traders as their agents. They introduced the system of advances under which the weavers had to weave cloth which was already promised to European agents. Weavers no longer had the liberty of selling their cloth or weaving their patterns. Instead, they had to reproduce the designs supplied to them by the company agents. This system snatched the freedom of the Indian weavers. They began to be guided by someone else.
DO THE MAP WORK GIVEN ON PAGE NUMBER 75 OF THE TEXTBOOK.
