The first war of independence 1857

THE FIRST WAR OF INDEPENDENCE 1857
A Summery by Bhavishya Gaur – 8th
H

REVOLT OF 1857
The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major, but ultimately unsuccessful, uprising in India in 1857–58
against the rule of the British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf
of the British CrownThe rebellion began on 10 May 1857 in the form of a mutiny of sepoys of the
Company's army in the garrison town of Meerut, 40 mi (64 km) northeast of Delhi (now Old Delhi).

REVOLT OF 1857
It then erupted into other mutinies and civilian
rebellions chiefly in the upper Gangetic
plain and central India, though incidents of revolt
also occurred farther north and east.The rebellion
posed a considerable threat to British power in that
region, and was contained only with the rebels'
defeat in Gwalior on 20 June 1858.
On 1 November 1858, the British granted amnesty to
all rebels not involved in murder, though they did not
declare the hostilities to have formally ended until 8
July 1859. Its name is contested, and it is variously
described as the Sepoy Mutiny, the Indian Mutiny,
the Great Rebellion, the Revolt of 1857, the Indian
Insurrection, and the First War of Independence.

REVOLT OF 1857
Ever since the Britisher had set foot on
India soil the national was losing its
wealth and independence . The the aims
of the British was to exploit the resources
of the country. From 1757 onwards they
won almost every battel against the India
rules and kept on exending their area
under their control.

Causes of the Revolt
Political Causes
The revolt was outcome of the widespread
resentment that had been boiling against the
British for a long time. The sepoys were
dissatisfied with their treatment. The policy of
annexation of Dalhousie especially Doctrine of
Lapse, created fear and resentment among Indian
rulers. The British signed many treaties with the
kings and nawabs but violated them. Indians lot
all trust in British. Awadh had been an ally of the
East India Company but it was annexed on the
plea that the govt. was not functioning properly.
This shocked the nawabs.

Economic Causes
The policy of economic exploitation and the
destruction of the traditional India economic
structure by the British caused widespread
resentment among Indians. Whenever the
princely states were annexed, the British got rent
free land and huge amount of money. The
common people faced unemployment and
poverty. When awadh was occupied by the
British, Nawab’s officials were dismissed and his
army was disbanded. About 60,000 professional
soldiers lost their livelihood.

Social Religious Causes
The social reforms were considered an
interference in the customs and traditions of the
Hindus. Many Indians opposed the introduction
of western culture in India. The Hindu law of
property was changed to enable a Christian
convert to receive his share of ancestral property.
Moreover, the British followed a system of racial
discrimination. The British considered them as
superiors. They advocated a judicial system based
on the principle of equality but in actual practice
it was biased.

Military Causes
The sepoys helped the Britishers to establish
their empire in India. But instead of receiving
awards or promotions they were humiliated
by the British. Their was a discrimination
between the Indian and the British soldiers.
The highest pay given to an Indian sepoy
(subedar) was less than the minimum pay of
a European recruit. The act of 1856 made it
compulsory for new recruit to serve overseas.

Immediate Causes
The cartridges of the new Enfield rifle had a
greased paper cover which had to be bitten
off before the cartridge was loaded into the
rifle. It was said that the greased paper was
made up of beef and pig fat. Both the Hindus
and the Muslims refused to use them as cow
is sacred to Hindus and the pig is detestable
to the Muslim community.

On March 29, 1857 near kolkata , a young
boy Mangal Pandey refused to use the
enfield rifle and shot down his sergeant.
He was arrested, tried and executed.
When this news spread, many sepoys
started the revolt

Indian queen of the Maratha
princely state of Jhansi in North
India currently present in Jhansi
district in Uttar Pradesh, India.
She was one of the leading
figures of the Indian Rebellion
of 1857 and became a symbol of
resistance to the British Raj for
Indian nationalists.

More heroes of this revolution
NANA SAHIB TANTYA
TOPE
KUNWAR SINGH

More heroes of this revolution
BEGUM HAZRAT
MAHAL
BAHADUR SHAH
ZAFAR
…and many
more

Suppression of the Revolt
British army freed Delhi, the
epicenter of the revolt. Bahadur
Shah Zafar was tried and sent to
Rangoon.
His children were killed. The control
of Delhi and imprisonment of
Bahadur shah Zafar broke the
backbone of the mutiny. Luknow was
recaptured in 1858. Rani Lakshmi Bai
was killed and Tantya Tope was
captured and hanged to death.

Causes of failure of revolt
• The Uprising had been planned for months but it broke before the due date. It was
not widespread.
• There was no unity among the rebels. The ideas of nationalism had not yet
developed. There was no common ideology.
• It was limited to north and central India. Gurkhas helped the British to suppress
the revolt.
• The rebels could not match the sophisticated weapons of the British .
• The leadership was neither strong nor gave directions to the rebels. Moreover the
British got timely help from the government of Britain.

Results of the revolt
• The rule of East India Company ended with Queen Victoria’s Proclamation of
Nov. 1 1858. She assumed the title of the Empress of India.
• A secretary of state for India Affairs was appointed to look after the governance of
India with the help of a council. He was called Viceroy.
• The policy of ruthless conquests and annexations of Indian territories was given
up. The Indian princes were given the assurance that their states would not be
annexed and were given the right to adoption.
• Full religious freedom was granted to the Indians. They were also given assurance
that high posts would be given to them without any discrimination.

LETS NOT FORGET THAT GREAT FIRST WAR OF INDEPENDENCE
WHICH BECAME A TRUE INSPIRATION FOR THE LATER FREEDOM
STRUGLES.
JAI HIND!!!
Thank-you! | BHAVISHYA GAUR – 8th
H

The first war of independence 1857

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