• On February 2, 1835, British historian and politician Thomas Babington Macaulay delivered his ''Minute on Indian Education,'' which sought to establish the need for Indian ''natives'' to receive an English education. Lord Macaulay''s Minute of 1835 marked a pivotal moment in India''s colonial history, advocating for the promotion of English education and shaping the trajectory of the country''s educational landscape.
• Lord Macaulay wished to cultivate a group of Indians who could support and uphold British interests. This group would be “Indian by blood and colour, but English by likes, beliefs, morality, and intellect.” He believed that "Indian learning was inferior to European learning," which was correct in terms of physical and social sciences at the time.

Macaulay’s Minute - Historical Background

• British education policy in colonial India was almost non-existent at first because their sole goal was to make a profit through trade and other means.
• Gradually, the value of education was recognized, and the company began to construct a few institutes of higher learning.
• These learning centers provided instruction in Indian subjects in languages such as Sanskrit, Arabic, and Persian. Persian was also the court language.
• The Charter Act of 1813 was the country''s first concrete step toward modern education. This act allotted an annual sum of Rs.1 lakh for the purpose of educating the subjects.''
• By the time missionaries were already present in the country and were involved in this field. However, they primarily provided religious education, with the primary goal of Christianizing the ''heathen'' natives.
• Following the Charter Act, there was a schism (division) among the British over the mode of education to be provided to Indians betwwen Anglicists & Orientalists.
• Lord Macaulay arrived in India as President of the General Committee of Public Instruction in June 1834. (GCPI).
• Orientalists believed that Indians should be educated in their native languages and taught their own scriptures and texts, Anglicists believed that English education was the best type to be given.
• The famous Lord Macaulay''s Minute settled the dispute in favor of Anglicists—the limited government resources were to be devoted solely to the teaching of Western sciences and literature in English.

Macaulay’s Minute - Features

• Lord Macaulay arrived in India on June 10, 1834, as a law member of the Governor General''s Executive Council and was appointed President of the Committee of Public Instruction.
• In 1835, he was tasked with settling a dispute between orientalists and Anglicists.
• He presented his famous minutes to the council in February 1835, which Lord Bentik approved, and a resolution was passed in March 1835.
• The following points were emphasized by him:
• The main goal of the British government should be to promote European literature and science among Indians, and that "all funds appropriated for the purpose of education would be best spent on English education alone."
• All existing professors and students at all institutions under the committee''s supervision shall continue to receive stipends, but no stipend shall be given to any students who may subsequently enter any of these institutions.
• No funds from the government were to be spent on the printing of oriental works.
• All funds available to the government would be spent in the future on imparting knowledge of English literature and science to Indians.

Macaulay’s Minute - Objectives

• Spending Only on Western Education: Macaulay wanted the government to spend money only on western education, not oriental education.
• Closure of Colleges: He advocated for the closure of all colleges that taught only eastern philosophy and subjects.
• Downward Filtration Theory: He also advocated for the government to educate only a few Indians, who would then educate the rest of the population. This is referred to as the downward filtration'' policy.
• Indian by Blood & British by Taste: He wished to create a pool of Indians capable of serving British interests and remaining loyal to them. This group would be "Indian by blood and color, but English by tastes, opinions, morals, and intellect."

Lord Macaulay

• Thomas Babington Macaulay (25 October 1800 – 28 December 1859) was a Whig politician and historian from the United Kingdom. He is widely regarded as the primary architect of India''s transition to a Western-style education system.
• As an essayist, on contemporary and historical socio-political subjects, and as a reviewer, Macaulay wrote extensively.
• The History of England was a seminal and paradigmatic example of Whig history, and its literary style has remained a source of praise since its publication, even after widespread condemnation of its historical contentions became popular in the twentieth century.
• Throughout his political and scholarly career, Macaulay consistently emphasized Western culture''s supposed superiority.
• Macaulay wrote in his February 1835 Minute on Indian Education that "a single shelf of a good European library was worth the whole native literature of India and Arabia when we pass from works of imagination to works in which facts are recorded, and general principles investigated, the superiority of the Europeans becomes absolutely immeasurable."
• Macaulay was devoted to the concept of progress, particularly in terms of liberal liberties. He was an outspoken opponent of radicalism while idealizing historical European culture and traditions.

Downward Filtration Theory

• Downward Filtration Theory is a theory proposed by Lord Macaulay in his famous Macaulay''s Minutes of 1835, which were submitted to the then Governor General of British India.
• According to the theory, the British thought to educate a few upper-class Indians (to educate a small group of people who would then disseminate the knowledge to the general public). These Indians would then disseminate education to the general populace. It was thought that education would trickle down through this system.

Macaulay’s Minute- Merits

• Role of English in India’s Freedom Struggle: The first advantage of Macaulay''s Minutes for Indians was that it contributed to the expansion of the English language in India. It cannot be denied that English later played a significant influence in India''s freedom movements.
• Foundation for Modern Education in India: The second advantage that Macaulay''s Minutes provided to Indians was that it helped create the groundwork for modern education in that country.
• It represented a transition from the traditional indigenous educational system to a structured contemporary educational system.
• Doorway to World Literature: The fact that Macaulay''s Minutes opened a gateway to international literature was another benefit it provided. New literary genres and writing styles were created as a result.
• Served as a Model for Indians: Additionally, it served as a model for Indians to research the country''s current educational system and write reports to raise the standard of education there.

Macaulay’s Minute- Demerits

• Instead of resolving the issue known as "The Oriental-Occidental Controversy," Macaulay''s Minutes was instead fueling the flames.
• Macaulay did not listen to any of the orientalists'' arguments. He aggressively insulted them in addition to rejecting their pleas.
• Although his claim that English was the key to modern knowledge was true, it was not practical to educate Indians at all levels in English at the time because it was the beginning of modern education in India.
• Macaulay''s claim that English only is used as a medium of instruction is unjustifiable. Other Indian languages have also been overlooked.
• The native people were further insulted by his comment that "a single shelf of a fine European library was worth the whole native literature of India and Arabia."
• The controversial "Downward Filtration Theory" presented by Macaulay''s Minutes was responsible for dividing society into two groups: the educated and the uneducated. For Indians, his downward filtration theory proved to be a failure.
• The higher class never assisted the lower class in getting better education and raising the standard of living in their lives. It simply led to the development of individuals like Mohan Lal, who degraded even their wives due to their lack of knowledge.
• It is also incorrect to believe that Macaulay was responsible for the implementation of a new educational policy in India.

Difference Between Anglicists And Orientalists

1. Orientalist:

• Orientalists were the group of people who wanted to give education to Indian people in the Indian language. The emphasis was on the knowledge of the East. They wanted Indians to learn about Indian philosophy, science, and literature. In the Initial stage, company officials favored oriental learning.
• Orientalists were led by William Jones who was a junior judge of the supreme court and linguist. He had a deep interest in Indian philosophy, religion, law, and politics. Henry Thomas Colebrooke and Nathanial Halhed were other officials who supported the orientalist approach, they had an interest in the Indian glory, cultural decline, and future development.
• The interest of these British officials led to the formation of the Asiatic Society of Bengal on January 15, 1784, by Sir William Jones. They started a journal called Asiatic Researches. Other important establishments regarding orientalists were Calcutta Madrasa by Warren Hastings in 1781, and The Banaras Sanskrit college by Jonathan Duncan in 1791.

Aims of the Orientalist

• They wanted to become guardians of Indian culture and hoped to win the hearts of the native people so that it becomes easy to rule them by appearing as protectors of their culture.
• They believed that to bring the glory back and rule properly they need to learn Indian culture and literature which led to a detailed study and translation of the ancient text.
• Most of the orientalists were linguists and their personal interest in learning about India’s rich culture and history favored oriental learning.

2. Anglicist:

• Anglicists were those people who supported the teaching of modern western education to Indian people in the English language. People who favored Anglicists were Thomas Babington, Macaulay, James’s mill, Charles wood, Charles Trevelyan, and Elphinstone. The Anglicists were supported by the most advanced Indians like Raja Ram Mohan Roy.

Aims of the Anglicists

• Anglicists didn’t want to comprise grafting western education on oriental learning.
• They were firm and wanted to utilize the educational grant for spreading western thought and education with practical and scientific knowledge.
• Macaulay was prejudiced, he used to believe that a single shelf of a good European library was worth the whole native library of India.
• They wanted to develop low paid clerk class in India and they would help Britishers by acting as interpreters between the masses and the British.
• They wanted to create a class of persons who are Indian in blood and color but English in taste, opinion, morals, and intellect.
• The period of 1813-1858 was considered the 2nd phase of British economic policy, known as Industrial capitalism, the market was filled with British goods and to increase demand, Britishers need to inculcate western taste in Indians by introducing western education and western superiority.

Lord William Bentinck, became governor-general in 1833. In 1835, to address the controversy he formed a General Committee of Public Instruction under the chairmanship of Lord Macaulay. Lord Macaulay through his famous Macaulay’s minute settled the debate in the favor of Anglicists.

One of the major impact of Macaulay’s Minute was promotion of English as the language of administration and of higher law courts. This led eventually to English becoming one of the languages of India, rather than simply the native tongue of its foreign rulers. Modern ideas, if not education, did reach the masses, albeit not in the form desired by the rulers, but rather through political parties, the press, pamphlets, public platforms, and so on. Modern education only aided this process by making basic literature on physical and social sciences available to nationalists, thereby stimulating their capacity to make social analyses; otherwise, the content, structure, and curricula of modern education served colonial interests.