Making a ‘Peter the Great’ in an Imperial Frontier: Educating ‘Natives’ and Introducing English Language and Roman Script in Manipur

Abstract

English language and Roman script have a ubiquitous presence in the literary scape of Northeast India today. English has emerged as the new lingua franca, and many local languages are currently written with orthographies formulated with the Roman script. Their introduction to the region was through the implementation of colonial policies, especially those concerning the education of ‘natives’ after the treaty of Yandabo in 1826. This paper looks at a colonial educational experiment carried out in the former state of Manipur in the 1830s, and if successful, it was meant to be replicated in other princely states and frontier regions of the British empire. The chapter argues that the experiment was to establish a language and script hegemony in the state by adopting Macaulay’s downward filtration approach in British India. It was to specifically educate the minor raja of Manipur with European disciplines, English language, and Roman script, to emancipate him from the Brahmanical orthodoxy and mould him like Peter the Great of Russia, who was oriental yet an enlightened ruler. Like the Russian czar, the Raja was expected to carry out reforms in the state, sharing the burden of civilising his subjects and other neighbouring tribes with the colonial administration. The chapter will evince the contentious and entangled history of the English language, Roman script, and colonial education in Manipur. It will also contribute to the burgeoning research on colonial education in princely states and argue that despite ‘indirect rule’, the colonial state did not leave most cultural aspects of colonised societies untouched, leaving ineffaceable cultural legacies.

Introduction

The rivalry between the ambitious Burmese empire and the Company authorities in Bengal over territories in the Northeastern region (The North-East Frontier during the colonial period) during the early decades of the nineteenth century led to the recasting of the kingdom of Manipur, often referred in the colonial accounts as Meckley, and located in an old trading route between Bengal and China as a strategically of the colonial state. Manipur and Ava had engaged in several military confrontations in the last century, with the Burmese state gaining upper hand and claiming suzerainty over Manipur during the late eighteenth century. Burmese ambitions in the region led to their confrontations with the company state in Bengal. The Raja of Manipur had already signed treaties with the Company authorities in 1762 and 1763, seeking interventions against the Burmese aggressions. The war between the Burmese and company forces (1824–1826) culminated in the signing of the Treaty of Yandabo (1826), a significant political development in the region. This brought the region closer to the Company state and David Scott was assigned as the first Political Agent of the region to the Governor of Bengal. Two treaties were also signed in 1833 and 1834 between the colonial state and Raja Gambhir Singh, which fixed the volatile boundaries of the state with Cachar. The colonial state, in order to contain the political ambitions of Manipuri rulers and establish a bridgehead in the region, announced the establishment of the Manipur Political Agency. Lord William Bentinck, on 7 February 1835, appointed Lieutenant George Gordon as the first Political Agent of Manipur.

The colonial officials who were given administrative positions in the region encountered a linguistic conundrum in the region. Most of them were frustrated by the insufficient accounts and reports on the languages, literatures and cultures of communities inhabiting the region. Most of the European officers observed that the languages spoken in the region were different from those spoken by what they considered civilised societies. The region was relatively unknown to the them until then, and there are scanty references of the region in literature they were familiar with. The Europeans and Bengali servants of the colonial administration often described the languages of the region in their accounts as ‘rude’, ‘barbaric’, ‘meagre’ and ‘gibberish’ (Naorem, 2022). Hence, the colonial expansion into the region required meticulous and protracted navigation and negotiation with the multiple languages, scripts, and literature of the region. Establishing language-script hegemony in the region emerged as one of the main practices of colonial expansion in the region.

Educating the Raja, Educating the ‘Natives’

Many Political Agents of Manipur Agency believed that the easiest and more sustainable method of overcoming the linguistic conundrum in the state is to educate the ‘natives’, to teach them the English language and the Roman script. Otherwise, they either had to acquire higher level proficiency in the local languages for conducting their daily administration or rely on a small army of local interpreters, dobhashis and translators.¹ Since the 1830s, several Political Agents looked at education as a solution to train a group of ‘natives’ who can read and write English and write the local languages with the Roman characters. They believed that this new educated ‘native’ class will aid in the daily functioning of the Political Agency, and other colonial projects. We do not have much documented knowledge about the pre-colonial educational institutions and practices in the region. Apprenticeship seems to have played an important role in imparting different types of knowledge from the established scholars and masters of various crafts to their apprentices.² There are some stray references to the existence of village schools and madrasas in the early nineteenth century.³ Adam’s Reports on Vernacular Education in Bengal and Bihar does not report anything on the pre-colonial educational practices in the state of Manipur or the Naga Hills, even though it included sections on neighbouring regions like Cachar and Sylhet.⁴

After the establishment of the Manipur Political Agency, the education of the local population became a major priority. Plans were discussed with the raja, Gambhir Singh to set up a primary school to educate the population of the state. The raja, however, did not show much interest in setting up schools for his subjects, and he was busy consolidating and expanding the boundaries of his state, whose independence was recognised by the Treaty of Yandabo in 1826. Often described as recalcitrant and too ambitious by the colonial establishment, his untimely death left a minor prince, Chandrakirti Singh with the regent, his uncle Nara Singh at the helm of the state. These were the circumstances when the Political Agent, Captain Gordon and the colonial administration decided to educate the young minor raja in the western style of education. Gordon believed that the first step for educating the population of the state was to educate the raja, and once the raja was educated, he would take sincere interests in educating his subjects. The Calcutta Christian Observer (C.C.O.) reported the importance of educating the minor raja, which was seen as an opportunity for the colonial government to train him to be a good ruler, unlike other ‘rude’ Indian princes without English education.⁵ This information was based on the reports written by Lt. Robert Boileau Pemberton regarding the affairs of the kingdom of Manipur and the neighbouring regions. Pemberton was a military officer who served in the region as a diplomat and a surveyor during the 1830s and 40 s and left his account of region in private and published documents. The C.C.O. quoted him,

….the raja is a child and must depend on the education he receives, as to whether he becomes a blessing or a curse to his subjects. With a view to deliver him, as far as possible from the danger to which an Indian prince, without a good education to restrain the indulgences of his passions, is particularly exposed, the supreme government has agreed with his guardian to pay one half the expense of an English teacher, and an intelligent native, educated at one of our best seminaries.⁶

Hence, an English tutor was sought by Captain Gordon for giving private lessons to the young raja. Gordon also believed that such education and the tutor’s services should be extended to the youths of the state. Hence, his educational project will not only be confined to the raja himself, but it will also help in creating a class of Manipuri nobility, who are well versed in English language, literature and sciences.⁷ The creation of an educated elite was considered by the colonial administrators as necessary for building the edifice of colonial apparatus in the state and other regions of the Northeastern frontier.⁸ Hence, Gordon argued that education should be extended beyond the walls of the royal palace to the subjects of the raja.

Harish Chandra was subsequently appointed as the raja’s tutor, and he arrived in the state in 1834 after a long journey from Calcutta. He was brought up and educated at the Chitpur school, and it was decided that his salary would be shared by the British government and the Manipuri Durbar. When Gordon met him in Imphal, he described him as having the manners and feelings of a young Englishman, and he hoped that the young teacher will make the raja and other princes of the region like him by educating them.⁹ The arrival of the tutor from Calcutta was also appreciated by the regent, Nara Singh who also expressed his desire to educate his two young sons under the same tutor. A house was sanctioned for the Babu Sahib (the raja’s teacher as addressed by captain Gordon), by the court close to raja’s palace. A room inside the palace was also pointed out by the court, where the young raja will receive his lesson, and a schedule for his lessons was also fixed by the regent. A library with many English books was also established with generous support from the colonial administration and gifts for the raja from the various officers. While all these preparations were being planned, the dowager queen-mother, Rani Kumudini was however quite sceptical with the plan to educate her son in western education, and she instead preferred that the young king learn the ways of his forefathers who ruled the state for centuries. Hence, she refused to present her son to his appointed tutor during several instances.¹⁰

For the Political Agent, Captain Gordon, it was indeed very important for young Chandra Kirti to attend his classes regularly, and he was prepared to insist upon his attending the classes regularly. He thought that very little can be expected during the next two years, as the raja was a young boy who preferred playing instead of taking his lessons, but he wanted to make sure that he takes his lessons regularly.¹¹ He believed that it was best for the kingdom which was now a protectorate of the British administration in the subcontinent. Once the raja made some progress, Gordon believed that it would be the right time to impart similar type of education to the other children of the nobility class, such as the two sons of the regent. He also suggested to Harish Chandra, the royal tutor to learn the raja’s mother tongue, Meiteilon to improve his chances of better communication with the raja and his army of servants who followed him everywhere.¹² Gordon also wrote to Mr Ostell (most probably referring to the popular publisher Ostell and Lepage, based in Calcutta)for twenty-four copies of the English Reader, Nos. 1 and 2, and twelve copies of Nos. 3, and also for six copies of First Geography, and Geography of Hindustan for educating the young raja. A durbar was organised to introduce the tutor to the raja in the presence of the Angam-Athous (nobility) of the state. The raja was presented by the tutor, with gifts, toys, and a letter from the Governor-General Lord William Bentinck himself wishing him for his health and education. This reveals the importance given by the government and the governor-general to the education of the young princes to mould them like young English men. Lord Bentinck played a key role in effecting the English Education Act of 1835, and even frontier states like Manipur was not left out from its subsequent cultural and political repercussions. The Government in Calcutta was very pleased with Gordon’s initiative to educate the princes and other ‘natives’ in the state. The government believed that the education of the young ruler and the aristocracy of the state, under Gordon’s supervision, will lead to moral and intellectual improvement of the population of the kingdom.

Introducing English Language and the Roman Script

The role and importance of various Christian missions and missionaries in introducing modern education, English language and the Roman alphabet in Assam, the Naga Hills and the Lushai Hills have been studied in many works. They painstakingly compiled grammars, primers, vocabulary books, dictionaries, and orthographies for writing languages in the region with the Roman script. They also opened various types of schools to educate the local population. However, in the state of Manipur, as in most of the princely states, missionaries were barred from establishing their missions and carrying out their evangelical work until the emergence of a more direct colonial administration in the state in 1891. Hence, it was mostly left to the Political Agency and the officers posted there to carry out linguistic and educational projects. Gordon, the first Political Agent was a pioneer in this effort. He devised methods for educating the princes and the larger local population of the region. For example, to reduce the burden of learning many scripts for writing different languages such as Meiteilon, Bengali and English, he devised that a Roman character should be used for writing all the languages. If that is successful, he believed that it will be much easier for the administration, as the local population will be able to read and write English, as well as read and write the local languages with the Roman characters. Gordon developed the first ever orthography with the Roman characters to write Meiteilon. He also observed that the region has never seen a press, and if the print is introduced in the state, it will be able to aid mass education of the locals in the coming years and print hundreds of local books in the Roman character. He also commented on the conditions of education and literacy among the tribes inhabiting the hills of the state and he pointed out that they possessed neither literature nor alphabet. Gordon argued that tribes do not need to learn other local languages and local scripts for writing their languages if they embrace the Roman alphabet. Gordon wrote,

they also may gradually adopt the Roman character, and their principal men should learn the English language, as the great means of introducing among them civilisation and general improvement…..indeed for all the people, the Roman character is not only the cheapest and most perfect which they could adapt but owing to the bond of union which it would establish between their languages and the literature of the west, now the great repositories of human knowledge.¹³

So, he also advocated the study of English and the Roman script among the tribes of the state as it had the most advantages among all the languages and scripts. His writings and projects show that the English language and the Romans script, in line with the larger colonial policies in the Indian subcontinent, were drawn on to bring frontier regions closer to the colonial administration, while incurring minimal fiscal expenditure.

Other colonial officers in the region such as Pemberton also shared similar views about education, English language, and the Roman script. In Pemberton’s reports reproduced in various publications in India and Europe,¹⁴ he argued that the death of the conservative Raja Gambhir Singh was a favourable time to introduce the teaching of the English language and Christianity in the state.¹⁵ He commended the work done by Captain Gordon to introduce English education and Roman character in the state. He wrote that the officers and clerks in Manipur Agency should follow the Romanizing system of India to use the character to write Meiteilon. He warned that the court bamons (brahmins) and pundits (court scribes and scholars) asserted strong control over the court, and were hostile to the idea of introducing the English language and the Roman Script, and made all attempts to prevent the raja from learning English.¹⁶ He was thankful that Gordon prevented them from sabotaging the government plan to educate the minor raja and introduce the English language and Roman script in the region. He also wrote that the small population of the state is an advantage since they will only require two or three dozen schools to educate the entire population of the state and suggested that the missionaries should also be welcomed in the state to run these schools.

The C. C. O. argued that it was more beneficial to educate the children of the rich and the nobility, rather than poor children for the elevation of the character of people of the region.¹⁷ The editors of the journal further wrote that proper education of a poor child may benefit himself, but the proper education of children of the elites and the nobility is likely to benefit the entire society, since poor people seldom rise to become eminent people in the society and children of the rich and powerful families will become the leaders and rulers in the future.¹⁸ Hence, they argue that it was more fiscally sound to educate the children of the ‘native’ rulers since they are the future rulers of their respective states. By educating them and teaching them the English language and Roman script, the colonial rulers believed that the princes would have access to European literature and sciences, which will lead to the overall improvement of the country. The editors asserted that English education of the future rajas will create many Peter the Great of Russia in the region, oriental yet enlightened rulers. So, they reiterated the importance of educating the young ruler of Manipur, Chandrakirti Singh at a young age before the court Brahmins poisoned his thoughts with their vile religious fanatism. His education, they believed, is the first step towards emancipating the region and its population from backwardness and the clutches of Brahmins. The young Chandrakirti was meant to be among the first Peter the Greats in the Indian subcontinent. Hence, his tutor was instructed to continuously report to Calcutta regarding the progress of his education and his subjects.¹⁹

The tutor Harish Chandra appears to be aware of his historical role in this colonial project. He wrote to the government on 24th December 1835, about his pivotal role in the region.²⁰ He argued that Manipur state has a small population, however, it is an important state since the state exercises rule over various ‘hill tribes’ from Assam to Arakan, and from Cachar to Burma. He argued that by educating the young raja of Manipur, it will be possible to civilise the population of the state, and in time, civilise the tribes under the control of the state. The ‘hill tribes’, he wrote, will be able to see the changes English language and education brought to their Manipuri brethren in the plains, and subsequently, take up education to imitate them. He believed that the English language will soon emerge as the sacred language of the region since Sanskrit is largely unknown in the region and the local language is ‘poor and uncultivated.’ Captain Gordon’s Manipuri-English-Bengali, a very significant effort in this education project, was also prepared with the help of Harish Chandra and other clerks in the Political Agency such as Ganissor and Brijabasi. This clearly shows how the colonial administration and its officers perceived the role of English education in the region—to bring the state and the surrounding regions under the influence of the colonial administration before their subsequent annexation. Hence, the education of the minor ruler of Manipur was seen as a great experiment by the Indian government, and was constantly monitored by Calcutta and the Governor-General himself who constantly enquired about his progress and sent books, toys and other gifts for the young boy-king.²¹ The Calcutta Christian Observer in 1837, in a note ‘Education in India’, observed, ‘the experiment in Manipur, if successful will arouse the mind of India, and direct its awakened power, and should be repeated in other parts of the region.’²²

This early experiment of educating the young raja and the population of the state however ended abruptly, when the Queen mother Kumudini made an unsuccessful attempt to assassinate the Regent in January 1844, fearing usurpation of the throne.²³ She fled to the British territories in Cachar and later to Dhaka with the young raja seeking protection from the company state. Later in 1844, the throne passed to the Regent, an ageing Nara Singh. This led to the abandonment of Captain Gordon’s ambitious project to educate and civilize the population of the frontier state of Manipur.²⁴ Captain Gordon’s plan to establish two or three dozen schools across the state was abandoned and he also often complained about the lack of enthusiasm among the local population who hesitated to send their children to the schools. In 1837, Captain Gordon also attempted to introduce western education for common people by opening a primary school at Langthabal, another former capital of the rulers of Manipur. It was also not successful due to a lack of interest and suspicions among the common people. Educating younger rajas like Chandrakirti was an important concern for the colonial state and similar projects were taken up in other local states. For example, in the state of Baroda, a young twelve-year-old boy was chosen by the colonial state in 1875 to rule over the state. Maharaja Sayaji Rao’s education, like in the case of Chandrakirti, was given primary importance to secure the loyalty of Baroda to the British empire.²⁵ Apart from learning other languages, he was taught the English language and the Roman script to write the language. The colonial state appointed an Oxford educated Scottish Frederick Elliot as his tutor. Elliot was given the task to shape the young raja to become an enlightened prince who is loyal and can easily mingle with the ruling aristocracy in the British Empire. Few works explore the history of education of princely rajas and education in princely states during the nineteenth century. Teresa Segura- Garcia’s work explores the central role of education in Britain’s civilising mission in India which also included the education of young rajas like Sayaji Rao of Baroda to mould them like Peter the Great of Russia. This chapter shows that such experiment was also carried out in the 1830s in the frontier state of Manipur under the supervision of Lord William Bentinck by attempting to educate the young raja Chandrakirti with English language, the Roman script and European sciences and literature.

Education for the Raja’s Subjects

The civilising mission of the British Empire through education was also extended to the subjects of the Indian rajas. They were also encouraged to educate their subjects by funding schools and hiring teachers. European officers continuously commented on the lack of interest among the Manipuri state officials in establishing and funding education and schools for the common people. Gen William McCulloch, the Political Agent in the state for a long time after captain Gordon did not report any progress in educating the local population of Manipur during his time in the state. He reported that the education of the subjects of the state was neglected by their rulers. Similarly, subsequent Political Agents of the state such as Dr Robert Brown continuously reported the neglect of education and lack of interest in learning the English language among the ruling elites and common people in the state and the surrounding regions.²⁶ He was concerned with the disinterest among the locals concerning English education, and he reported in 1874 that this was largely due to the caste prejudices against English education among the local people.²⁷ Many colonial officers blamed the local bamons (brahmins) and the court literati class in the state for their failure to attract the common people to the schools established by them, the English language and the Roman script.

In 1878, Lt. Col. James Johnstone also commented on the decline and pathetic state of English education in the state.²⁸ He regretted that he was unable to take further steps in improving education in the state by building another school, as he was busy with settling the boundaries of the state and pacifying the tribes in the southern borders. Next year, he raised the issue of English education and lack of interest among the youths with the Maharaja, Chandrakirti Singh who reclaimed his throne in 1850.The Maharaja continued his education in Bengal during his exile and it appears, from his private letters, that he learnt English and Bengali as well. He replied to Johnstone that the boys in the state were more interested in playing sports such as hockey and polo rather than learning English and how to read and write.²⁹ He further wrote that the upper classes of the state were not interested in encouraging English education as they fear that people will become very independent after getting educated and rise against their rule. Hence, Johnstone planned to open a school within the premise of Political Agency in the capital, where the Political Agents could keep strict surveillance over its functioning. The Maharaja was, however, not willing to fund the construction of the school, so he had to wait for favourable conditions to establish his school. Johnstone was quite disappointed with Chandrakirti’s attitude towards English education, and it appeared to colonial officers like Johnstone that he did not grow up to become like Czar Peter, the reformer. Political Agents like Johnstone strongly believed that people of Manipur state should be educated, and they should learn the English language, otherwise there would not be any material and moral improvement among the population of the state. Without English education, he argued the governance of the state would remain poor, locals could not be employed as clerks in the Agency office, and they had to continuously rely on Bengali clerks to run the affairs of the Agency.

The colonial project to educate the entire population of the state with the raja’s mediation remained a failed project despite Johnstone’s efforts and the establishment of a new school in the state. He was able to open a Middle English school named after himself, Johnstone Middle English School in 1885 with the assistance of senior officials in the court, to promote English language and English education. Johnstone wrote that the question of education, generally, was one that interested him after his success earlier in Keonjhur in the tributary Mahals of Orissa where he established many schools successfully.³⁰ Hence he strongly proposed the establishment of a regular system of education, including religious instructions among the tribes of the Northeast frontier to deliver  them from becoming debased by the ‘Hindoos’ or ‘Mussulmans’ of the neighbouring region.³¹ He was particularly concerned with the lack of schools and education among the raja’s subjects in the hills, because most of them belong to different tribes, like the communities he encountered in Central India.

Repeating the Experiment with Another Minor Raja

The state of English education in the state and the surrounding regions changed in the last decade of the nineteenth century when the region was brought under more direct administration of the colonial state in 1891. A war broke out between the state and the British forces following an intervention by the later in succession politics. The incumbent ruler Maharaja Kulachandra was exiled to the Andamans with his followers for his role in the uprising against the British. The crown prince was also sentenced to death by hanging for waging war against Queen Victoria. Cap. Maxwell, the Political Agent and the Superintendent of the state, after 1891 decided to find a new ruler who will be more pliant and loyal to the British crown. After consulting the extensive genealogy of rulers of the state he decided to choose a minor prince Chura Chand as the new ruler, and shape him to become an enlightened ruler by educating him.³² Hence, he continued with the old colonial belief that it was important to educate the native ruler of the state for the overall improvement of the state, and after educating the ruler it was easier to educate their subjects. Like Sayaji Rao of Baroda, the young prince from the house of former ruler Nar Singh was summoned from his rural estate to be crowned the new ruler of the state. On 21st August 1891, he was formally issued asanad by the government proclaiming him as the ruler under the guidance of Maxwell.³³ On 27th February 1895, the minor raja, his mother and other relatives paid the Chief Commissioner of Assam who was touring in the state a formal visit at the Agency office. The subject of raja’s education was proposed, and the royal mother and the grandfather agreed that it was a matter of great importance and left the question entirely in the hands of the British government.³⁴ The Chief Commissioner of Assam also considered it advisable to educate the young raja far away from Manipur. He argued that educating the minor king in Manipur will be a great disadvantage and would most probably produce a ruler like the former treacherous rulers, whereas an education outside the state would broaden his mind and might probably induce him to take an interest in the governance of his state.³⁵

On 27th June 1895, Maxwell arranged for the departure of the minor raja and his half- brother to leave for Ajmer for receiving his English education along with other Indian princes.³⁶ He believed that once the raja is given an English education, it will be much easier to educate his subjects. During the absence of the raja from the state, Maxwell started the process of building English schools for educating the local population of the state. He took great interest in the education of the young raja, and continuously monitored the progress of his education through regular correspondences between him and the raja and the school authorities. He was quite happy with the progress made by Churachand in learning English, Hindustani, and horse riding. Churachand was educated at Mayo college from 1895 to 1899, and under Captain J. R. Nuttall’s tuition till 1905, and was a member of the Imperial Cadet Corps from 1905 to 1907.³⁷ Captain Nuttall, from 44th Gurkhas, was appointed as the tutor of the two boys and held the post till May 1905.³⁸

Many existing works have demonstrated the connection between education and the English language with the notion of ‘civilising’ and ‘improvement’ of the lives of the ‘natives’ in the colonies. It was an integral element of the British imperialist ideologies, whether it was Utilitarianism or Evangelicalism. Fernand Braudel wrote that apart from Christianity, Natural Science and Industrial Revolution, the English language was also an important element of western civilisation.³⁹ English education was a significant aspect of the civilising mission of the British Empire in the colonies throughout the globe. Thomas Patterson recently engaged with the notion of civilisation, how it was constructed in history, and how binary concepts like ‘primitive’ and ‘civilised’ were systematically employed by European empires to legitimise their colonial conquests throughout the world.⁴⁰ He further argues that the notion of civilisation or being civilised was integral to the rise of the modern European nation-states, and European philosophers saw it as an essential element of European society that distinguished it from non-European societies and culture and gave them the moral duty to colonise them, and in the process impart civilisation in the colonised society. Hence, he further argues that the defence of colonialism was based on inventing barbarians and other uncivilised societies’⁴¹ and the pursuit of civilising them through various interventions including education and the English language. Hence, it is not surprising to read encounter the constant discussion regarding the education of the rajas, chieftains and their barbaric subjects and the introduction of the English language and the Roman alphabet in the Northeastern frontier of the British empire in the Indian subcontinent, among the colonial officers in Calcutta and those posted in the region.

Conclusion

English Schools, English Language and Roman Script

After 1891, many primary schools were opened in the state under the supervision of the Political Agent such as in Singjamei, Phoijing, Tera, Thangmeiband and Moirang.⁴² Even though missionaries were not allowed to carry out evangelical work in the state, Rev. William Pettigrew was allowed to enter the state on 9th October 1895 to reside among the Tankhul community in the hills to the east of Imphal valley to open a school to educate the members of the Tangkhul tribe.⁴³ He was also appointed as the inspector of schools in the state. New schools were built under Pettigrew in Ukhrul and Maxwell inspected the construction of these schools himself several times. The state also saw a considerable increase in the amount of money spent on educating the subjects. In 1892–93, a sum of Rs 692–15-0 was spent and this increased to Rs 26,911 in 1906–07.⁴⁴ In 1899–1900, a girls’ school was also established to facilitate education for young girls in the state. Many educational institutions such as lower primary schools, upper primary schools, middle English schools, high schools, madrassas and a few Sanskrit tols were funded and opened. The Manipur state administration and the Political Agent made provision for free education in the state. Christian missions such as the American Baptist Mission and the Northeast India General Mission Society were also encouraged to set up schools for the population in the hills of the state. By 1946, out of the 178 educational institutes in the state, 78 were in the hills.⁴⁵

Due to interventions from the Durbar and the Political Agents who were also often appointed as the president of the Durbar after 1908, there was also a huge improvement in the conditions of primary education, upper and lower, in the state. Teachers in these state-funded schools consisted of Europeans, Bengalis and Manipuris. The number of Manipuri teachers increased as more local population got educated and passed their matriculate or upper primary exams. In 1921, C. S. Mullan, the president of the Manipur State Durbar reported excellent progress in English education in the state.⁴⁶ Johnstone School was upgraded as a high school and was formally recognized by the University of Calcutta and a matriculation class was also created.  The Durbar continued to increase its expenditure on educating the subjects, spending as much as Rs 62,966 in the year 1922–23.⁴⁷ A significant sum of the budget was also spent on giving scholarships to students to pursue higher education outside the state in Assam and Bengal. English language was also introduced in the curriculum at the lower primary level, apart from other languages such as Meiteilon and Bengali. All these reforms help the Durbar and the colonial administration to train an army of locals who can read and write English, and can be easily incorporated into the colonial administration, unlike the court literati class and scribes, who they described as arrogant and undisciplined.

In 1907, Churachand Singh was officially installed as the ruler of the state after completing his education. He then took great interest in educating his subjects and created a school committee in the Durbar to improve the condition of education in the state. The Political Agent was made the secretary of the committee, along with two members from the Durbar. The committee was also responsible for educating the hill subjects of the Maharaja, and state-funded schools were subsequently opened in the hill territory. Political Agents like John Shakespeare also availed the service of the missionaries in running these schools. Regular inspections were carried out by the members of the School Committee. Such inspections also became a regular affair during the annual tours of the Political Agents and other officials of the state. The Department of Education of the state was also established in 1910 with a Deputy Inspector of school and other officials who carried out regular inspections of the schools in the state. The Maharaja continued to take a keen interest in the education of his subjects, and he held charge of the education department and supervised the functioning of schools in the state which received state funding. Churachand became  the reformer-king anticipated by the colonial state, at least in the field of education. He is also known for enforcing a strict practice of Brahmanical traditions in the state including untouchability which is locally known as mangba-sengba.⁴⁸

The main purpose of educating the rulers of the state and their subjects was to create enlightened rulers and a class of locals who will behave like fine Englishmen. It appears that it was more difficult for the Political Agents to convince an adult ruler to take up English education. Hence, the instances of two minor rulers after the first Anglo-Burmese war (1824–26) and the Anglo-Manipuri war (1891) provided favourable opportunities for the colonial administration to take over the education of the two young rulers to train them to be more loyal to the British crown. It is not a coincidence that both the rajas, Chandrakirti Singh and Churachand Singh were knighted for their service to the British Empire during their reign. The early attempts to popularize English education to the subjects of the rajas of Manipur yielded very little success. After 1891, however, English education began to spread in the state after the establishment of many schools under the patronage of the Durbar and the Indian government. Churachand’s two sons were also educated at Rajkumar College at Raipur, under the guardianship of Mr. Stow, the principal of the college.⁴⁹ The state under the direction of the Political Agents continued to spend a huge amount of money annually in educating the young princes, as English education was considered critical in training them to become competent rulers in the future. The two princes, sons of Churach and Singh were also sent to England in 1921 for six months, with the hope that they benefit from their experience of residence in England.⁵⁰ The Indian Government also generously contributed to the expenses of their education, including their travel and residence in England.⁵¹ Captain Gordon’s early experiment with the young Chandrakirti was disrupted by the political developments in the state and perhaps as a result the raja did not fulfil what was expected from him by the colonial state. Maxwell, on the other hand, was more successful with Churachand, whose education was personally supervised by him like a conscientious guardian and as the chapter shows, the raja became a great supporter and patron of English education for his children and his subjects.