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1. Introduction Processes of social transformation that were perceived as “globalization” at the turn of the 21st century have given rise to new historical questions. These questions throw the narrowness of traditional perspectives of national historiography and "area studies" into clearer relief. There is therefore growing interest among scholars in studying historical interrelation and exchange relations across large regions of the world, the constituent regions of which differ widely in society…

1. Introduction 1.1. Transformations and spacesThe societies of early modern South Asia cannot be understood as distinct social systems each pertaining to their own state. The idea that was formed in Europe in the early 19th century, and that still resonates today, according to which a homogeneous and static political system of “Oriental despotism” formed the inevitable counterpart to an equally homogeneous and static social system based on a caste hierarchy that was supposedly intrinsic to Indian ci…

1. Introduction Colonial wars belong to the context of European expansionism. They include a variety of typical manifestations of physical violence against those colonized and being colonized, which might serve to maintain authority or to establish colonial rule (Colonialism). Colonial wars are to be distinguished from forms of settler violence independent of state action. They become more clearly definable, however, in the 19th century. It was at this late date that they tended to purs…

1. Introduction 1.1. Early modern and modern colonialismAnalysing early modern colonialism within the context of European expansionism is of necessity an attempt to highlight the differences between early modern colonialism and its successors of the late nineteenth and early 20th centuries. As a rule the term colonialism tends to be more widely associated with its varieties of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.This kind of colonialism, especially its late 19th and early 20th century brands, differed from the early modern type as a result of the increa…