DECOLONIZATION, Explained [AP World History Review—Unit 8 Topic 5]

What was a significant factor that led to India gaining independence from British rule?

• The British government's proactive decision to grant self-rule after World War I.

• The sustained non-violent resistance movement led by Mohandas Gandhi and the weakening of Britain after World War II.

• A violent uprising by Indian nationalists that forced the British to withdraw.

• The intervention of the United States, which pressured Britain to decolonize.

What was a major consequence of India's independence and the subsequent partition?

• A peaceful transition of power that led to immediate stability and prosperity.

• The establishment of a unified Indian state with a single dominant religious group.

• Widespread violence and displacement as Hindus and Muslims migrated to their respective new states.

• The immediate formation of a strong alliance between India and Pakistan.

What factor often determined whether a colony achieved independence through peaceful negotiation or armed conflict?

• The economic value of the colony to the imperial power.

• The size of the white European settler population within the colony.

• The strength of the colonial power's military presence.

• The level of international support for the independence movement.

What was a significant long-term problem for many newly independent nations that arose from colonial practices?

• A lack of natural resources to support economic development.

• The absence of established trade routes with former colonial powers.

• Arbitrarily drawn colonial boundaries that ignored existing ethnic and religious divisions.

• The immediate imposition of democratic governance structures.