HISTORYMarch 9, 2018

1857- the year that changed everything…

Q. Explain how the uprising of 1857 constitutes an important watershed in the

evolution of British policies towards colonial India.(2016)

The British paramountcy was established over India during the tenure of Dalhousie.

After annexing Punjab, he extended his control over Peshawar and Pathan tribes in

the north west of India.

He also annexed a large part of Burma and he extended empire in the east.

The successor of Dalhousie, Lord Canning wanted to extend his control over the

Persian Gulf region.

The revolt of 1857 prevented the grand design of Canning from materializing.

1856

Who was the Governor-General of India during the Sepoy Mutiny?

(a) Lord Canning

(b) Lord Dalhousie

(c) Lord Hardings

(d) Lord Lytton

Answer: a

Causes of the Revolt

Beginning and Spread of the Revolt

Consequences of the Revolt

Uses of cartridges made from cow and pig fat (rumored) in new Enfield rifle replaced the older Brown

Bess. This use of fat was respectively offensive to the Hindus and Muslims

Overseas deployment

Differences in salaries for equal ranks .Special provisions for European soldiers

Refusal to pay Batta (allowance) to Indian soldiers.

Soldiers were considered inferior and higher posts were exclusively reserved for Britishers .

Post Office Act of 1854, withdrew the privilege of free postage so long enjoyed by the Sepoys.

Religious identities seemed to be in crisis as the military authorities forbade sepoys to wear caste and

sectarian marks beards, or turbans.

Regular humiliation at the hands of British officers

The British suffered defeats in 1st Afghan war (1838-1842) shattering the belief of their invincibility.

British suffered major reverses in the Punjab wars (1845-49) and the Crimean War (1854-56).

The Military Causes

The Religious Disability Act of 1850 modified Hindu customs; a change of religion

did not debar a son from inheriting the property of his father.

The rumor was that the English were conspiring to convert the Indians to

Christianity.

Were promised promotions if they accepted the 'true faith'.

Sepoys knew that the army was. maintaining chaplains at state cost.

The threat of conversion

The Political Causes

The political prestige of the British suffered

The paramountcy of the British was established through a number of devices such as direct annexation as

in the case of Mysore and Sindh.

The method of subsidiary alliance though initially designed to help and protect the local rulers against

their wars with the others, also used to create such conditions whereby it led to annexation of these

territories by the British.

Doctrine of Lapse– states under this revolted

The house of the Mughals was humbled when Dalhousie announced in 1849 that the successor to

Bahadur Shah would have to abandon the historic Red Fort .

In 1856, Canning announced that after Bahadur Shah's death the Mughals would lose the title of kings

and would be known as mere princes.

The ruler of which one of the following States was removed from power by the

British on the pretext of misgovernance?(2007)

(a) Awadh

(b) Jhansi

(c) Nagpur

(d) Satara

Answer: a

High rate of taxation

Discriminatory tariff policy against Indian products and destruction of traditional

handicrafts resulted into deindustrialization which resulted in unemployment

The peasants were ruined through exorbitant charges made from their lands by the

new class of landlords established under Zamindari system introduced by the British.

Middle and upper classes, particularly in the North, were hard hit by their

exclusion from the well-paid higher posts in the administration.

The craftsmen were destroyed by the influx of the British manufactured goods

Systems of law and administration: corruption and oppression

The Economic Causes

Foreignness of British rule : racial superiority , no social link

Some reforms like Anti Sati Resolution (1829), Widow Remarriage Act (1856) ,

opening of Western education to girls were unpopular among orthodox Hindus.

The policy to tax religious schools further anguished both Hindus and Muslims.

Racial discrimination by British against Indians, forceful conversion to Christianity

The English described the Hindus as barbarian with hardly any trace of culture or

civilization, while Muslims were dubbed as bigots, cruel and faithless.

Idolatry was renounced and Hindus were dubbed as ignorant and superstitious.

The Socio-religious Causes

The Immediate Cause

When the atmosphere was surcharged with an anti-British feeling the episode of the

greased cartridges provided the spark which turned it into a conflagration.

The new 'Enfield Rifle' introduced by the British in the army needed a special

type of cartridge which had a greased paper cover.

This paper had to be bitten off before the cartridge was loaded into the rifle – it

was rumoured that the grease used in the paper was made of beef and pig fat.

This angered both the Hindu and the Muslim sepoys - both the communities felt that

their religions were at stake. The Mutiny began...

Revolt

One group of historians and writers has asserted that the Revolt was the result of

a widespread and well organized conspiracy.

They point to the circulation of chappattis and red lotuses, propaganda by

wandering sanyasis, faqirs and madaris.

They say that many of the Indian regimen s were carefully linked in a secret

organization which had fixed 31 May 1857 as the day when all of them were to

revolt.

It is also said that Nana Sahib and Maulavi Ahmad Shah of Faizabad were playing

leading roles in this conspiracy.

Other writers equally forcefully deny that any careful planning went into the

making of the Revolt.

They point out that not a scrap of paper was discovered before or after the Revolt

indicating an organized conspiracy, nor did a single witness come forward to

make such a claim.

On 29th March, 1857, the Brahmin sepoy, Mangal Pandey of Barrackpore refused to use the greased

cartridge and fired at his adjutant.

The revolt broke out at Meerut on 10th May 1857.

The Meerut soldiers marched to Delhi and proclaimed the aged and powerless Bahadur Shah the Emperor

of India.

Delhi was soon to become the Centre of Great Revolt and Bahadur Shah its great symbol. Bahadur Shah in

return wrote to all chiefs and rulers to organize confederacy to overthrow British regime.

The entire Bengal army soon rose in revolt which spread quickly.

Awadh, Rohilkhand, the Bundelkhand, Central India, large parts of Bihar, and East Punjab all shook off

British authority.

In many princely states, rulers remained loyal to their British administrators, but the soldiers revolted. For

example, in Indore, the Holkars remained loyal but many of the Indore troops rebelled and joined sepoys.

The Spread of the Revolt

Everywhere in Northern and Central India, the mutiny of sepoys triggered popular revolts of

the civilian population. After the sepoys had destroyed British authority, the common people rose

up in arms often fighting with spears and axes, bows and arrows.

In many places, people revolted even before the sepoys did or even when no sepoy regiments

were present.

It is the wide participation by the peasants, the artisans, shopkeepers and zamindars which gave

it real strength as well as the character of a popular revolt, especially in the areas included in

present day U P and Bihar.

Here the peasants and zamindars expressed their grievances by attacking money lenders and

new zamindars, British law court, revenue offices.

Much of the strength of the revolt of 1857 lay in Hindu-Muslim unity. Among the soldiers and

people and among leaders, there was complete cooperation between Hindus and Muslims.

The Spread of the Revolt (2)

The Leaders

Centre Indian Leader(s)

Delhi Bahadur Shah II ‘Zafar’ and Bakht Khan

Bareilly Khan Bahadur Khan

Kanpur 1. Nana Saheb [adopted son of BajiRao II]

2 .Tantia Tope [accountant of Nana Saheb]

3. Azeem Ullah Khan

Lucknow Begum Hazrat Mahal, mother of Birjis Qadar

Jhansi Rani LaxmiBai

Faizabad Maulvi Ahmadullah Shah (Leader of Wahabi movement)

Allahabad Liyaqat Ali

Jagdishpur (Bihar) Kunwar Singh and Amar Singh

Patna Maulvi Pir Ali (leader of Wahabi movement)

On 12th May 1857, Delhi was seized by rebels.

Bahadur Shah II was persuaded to support.

Loss of Delhi was a prestige loss for British.

On 14th September 1857, British attacked.

On 20th September 1857, British regained Delhi.

Bahadur Shah & Zeenat Mahal fled to Humayun’s tomb.

But were followed & captured by General Hudson.

3 sons killed & the king & queen exiled to Rangoon.

The king died in 1862.

DELHI

He was angered by the assertion of authority by the leaders of the sepoys.

He vacillated between the desire to reign as Emperor and the desire to save his

skin in case the Revolt was crushed by the British.

His position was also undermined by his favorite Queen Zeenat Mahal and his

sons who carried on intrigues with the enemy.

His weak personality

Old age

Lack of qualities of leadership

Bahadur Shah II

OUDH (LUCKNOW)

The Nawab of Oudh exiled to Calcutta.

But his wife Begum Hazrat Mahal and 11 year old son continued

to live in Oudh but in very poor condition.

The revolt broke out on 4th June 1857.

Henry Lawrence, the British Resident, with some Europeans with

some hundred sepoys took refuge in a Residency.

Begum seized Residency and killed Henry & some others.

In November, Sir Colin Campbell (Commander-in-Chief)

attacked with Gorkha regiment.

In March 1858, the city was finally recaptured.

The rebels driven to Nepal border to die in bad climate or

captured by Gorkhas.

Nana Sahib, the adopted son of Peshwa Baji Rao was proclaimed the Peshwa.

He led the revolt in Kanpur with Tantia Tope, his assistant.

Declared himself to be Zafar’s governor.

After a fierce battle, General Sir Hugh Wheeler surrendered on 27th June 1857.

Nana Saheb assured safe passage of British to Allahabad.

Angry Indians killed the passing British citizens.

On 6th December 1857 General Campbell occupied Kanpur.

Nana fled to Nepal and Tantia joined Rani Laxmibai.

Kanpur

In June 1857, the troops at Jhansi revolted

Rani Laxmibai (widow of Raja Gangadhar Rao) declared ruler.

On 3rd April 1858, Sir Hugh Rose recaptured Jhansi.

She escaped to Kalpi (near Gwalior) where Tantia joined her after Kanpur was lost.

Both marched to Gwalior.

Sir Hugh Rose also marched to Gwalior and captured in June 1858.

Rani died fighting bravely.

Tantia escaped southward but was betrayed by his friend Man Singh.

Tantia was finally hanged.

JHANSI & GWALIOR

With reference to the ‘revolt of the year’ who of the following was betrayed by

‘friend’ captured and put to death by the British?

(a) Nana Sahib

(b) Kunwar Singh

(c) Khan Bahadur Khan

(d) Tatya Tope

Answer: d

At Bareilly, Khan Bahadur, a descendant of the former ruler of Rohilkhand, was

placed in command.

Not enthusiastic about the pension being granted by the British, he organized an

army of 40,000 soldiers and offered stiff resistance to the British.

In Bihar, the revolt was led by Kunwar Singh, the zamindar of Jagdishpur.

An old man in his seventies, he nursed a grudge against the British who had

deprived him of his estates. He unhesitatingly joined the sepoys when they reached

Arrah from Dinapore.

Maulvi Ahmadullah of Faizabad was another outstanding leader of the revolt.

He was a native of Madras and had moved to Faizabad in the north where he fought

a stiff battle against the British troops.

The Revolt of 1857 exposed the danger involved in allowing a commercial organization to rule over a

country. Consequently, the British Parliament by an Act transferred the control of the Indian government

from the East India Company to the British Crown. The said Act passed on 2 August, 1858, was known as the

Act for the Better Government of India or the Government of India Act, 1858.

Queen Victoria, by a Proclamation announced on 1 November, 1858, directly assumed the responsibility of

the Indian administration in her own hands.

And it was in accordance with the Queen's Proclamation that the honorific title of Viceroy (Crown's

personal representative )was added to the Governor-General of India.

The supreme executive and legislative authority in India henceforth came to be called the 'Governor-

General and the Viceroy'.

Lord Canning, so far known as the Governor-General of India, also became the 1st Viceroy of the country.

The Direct Results

Continued

In her Proclamation, Queen Victoria also announced certain changes in the

governmental policy to be pursued by the British in India.

Secretary of State of India appointed with a council of 15 members to assist him.

The Revolt of 1857 led to an extensive reorganization of the army and the civil

administration.

It must, however, be remembered that in spite of all these bold theoretical statements

hardly any change occurred in the basic exploitative nature of the British rule in India.

Company’s territories were to be vested in the Queen and be governed by her.

While authority over India had previously been wielded by the Directors of the

Company and the Board of Control, now this power was to be exercised by a Secretary

of State for India aided by a Council.

The Secretary of State was a member of the British Cabinet and as such was

responsible to Parliament. Thus ultimate power over India remained with Parliament.

The Crown was empowered to appoint a governor general & governor of

presidencies.

Provision created for Indian Civil Services under the Secretary of State

All property of East India Company were transferred to the Crown

The Government of India Act 1858

Queen Victoria Proclaimed that

No state would be annexed.

No more intervention in religious matters.

No conversion in religion by force.

No discrimination in recruitment of Army Services.

Note – Victoria became the ‘Empress of India’ not in 1858 but in 1876.

Victoria’s Proclamation

What was/were the object/objects of Queen Victoria’s Proclamation (1858)?

1)To disclaim any intention to annex Indian States

2)To place the Indian administration under the British Crown

3) To regulate East India Company’s trade with India

Select the correct answer using the code given below.

a)1 and 2 only

b) 2 only

c) 1 and 3 only

d) 1, 2 and 3

(2014)

Ans a

The Revolt further widened the difference between the ruler and the ruled.

During the post-Revolt years the British rulers, in order to maintain their supremacy in India,

deliberately followed a policy of communal disharmony (the Divide & Rule policy).

The seed of communal disharmony planted by the English in India sprouted like a poison

tree, and led to the partition of India 90 years later.

Although the British government in India did not pursue a policy of territorial expansion in

India during the post-1857 days, the period was yet marked by a new era of economic

exploitation by the British in India.

From now on the British pursued a policy of opposing the educated middle class and

supporting the landlords and the native princes.

The Indirect Results

Appease certain sections of Indian Society – the ‘divide and rule’ policy

The British government decided not to interfere in the matter of religion of Indians.

This derailed the socio-religious reforms by government

Measures Adopted by the British After 1857

The proportion of Europeans to Indians in the army was raised and fixed at one to two

in the Bengal army and two to five in the Madras and Bombay armies

The older policy of excluding Indians from the officer corps was strictly maintained.

All sensitive posts were reserved only for the Europeans

European troops were kept in key geographical and military positions

Caste based battalions were raised - new units recruited from castes so far under-

utilised by the British & from the minority so-called "Martial Races", such as the Sikhs

& the Gurkhas.

Newspapers, journals, & nationalist publications were prevented from reaching the

soldiers.

Strategic changes in the army

British forces were better equipped with technology and arms.

Limited territorial spread :The revolt didn’t spread to entire country. The southern

and western parts of India remained more or less unaffected.

Lack of complete nationalism- Sindhias, Holkars, Nizam & others actively helped

the British.

Certain classes and groups did not join and, in fact, worked against the revolt.

Big zamindars acted as "breakwaters to storm"; even Awadh tahasildars backed off

once promises of land restitution were spelt out.

Moneylenders and merchants suffered the wrath of the mutineers badly and anyway

saw their class interests better protected under British patronage.

Reasons for Failure

Lack of coordination between sepoys, peasants, zamindars and other classes.

The rebel units did not have a common plan of action, or authoritative heads, or

centralized leadership.

Sepoys were also poorly organized. The sepoys were also ill-disciplined sometimes

behaved more like a riotous mob than a disciplined army.

No vision for the post mutiny institutions & the leaders didn’t have any forward

looking program.

Modern educated Indians viewed this revolt as backward looking, and mistakenly

hoped the British would usher in an era of modernization.

By one estimate, not more than one-fourth of the total area and not more than one-

tenth of the total population was affected.

Continued

Book Author

The First Indian War of Independence-1857-59 Karl Marx

Rebellion, 1857 : A Symposium P.C. Joshi

The Sepoy Mutiny & the rebellion of 1857 R.C. Mazumdar

1857 S.N. Sen

Causes of Indian Revolt Saiyed Ahmad Khan

The First War of Indian Independence V.D. Savarkar

Important Books on the Revolt

“On the whole, it is difficult to avoid the conclusion that so-called First

National War of Independence is neither First, nor National, nor a war of

independence.”

- R.C. Majumadar

• Not just a Sepoy Mutiny - it was not just confined to the sepoys or soldiers, but was

much broader in base. The civilian population, aristocracy, peasants, religious

leaders played active role in the revolt.

• Not completely the First War of Independence – India was merely a geographical

term then; leaders fought for their own personal reasons to get back what they had

lost; there was no broad vision of a unified India. South India remained more or less

unaffected. Also, the war was won by the British through the support of Indians.

Therefore, the exact nature of the revolt was somewhat between these extreme views.

Sepoy Mutiny or 1st War of Indian Independence?