Our Past Iii Part I Chapter 5 When People Rebel 1857 And After

Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi wanted the Company to recognise her adopted son as the heir to the kingdom after the death of her husband.

Tips: -

Imp.

(i) British forces are capturing the rebels.

(ii) The artist wants to show the British soldiers who are valiantly advancing on the rebel forces.

The last Mughal emperor, Bahadur Shah Zafar was tried in court and sentenced to life imprisonment. His sons were shot dead before his eyes. He and his wife Begum Zinat Mahal were sent to prison in Rangoon in October 1858. Bahadur Shah Zafar died in the Rangoon jail in November 1862.

The reasons for the confidence of the British rulers abou their position in India before May 1857 are mentioned below:


(i) Since the mid-18th century Nawabs and Rajas had gradually lost their authority and honour. Residents had been stationed in many courts, the freedom of the rulers reduced, their armed forces disbanded and their revenues and territories taken away by stages.


(ii) The Company decided to end the Mughal dynasty. In 1849, Governor-General Dalhousie announced that after the death of Bahadur Shah Zafar the family of the king would be shifted out of the Red Fort. In 1856, Governor-General Canning decided that Bahadur Shah Zafar would be the last Mughal emperor and after his death his descendants would be recognised as princes.

Bahadur Shah Zafar’s decision to bless the rebellion changed the entire situation dramatically. The people could see an alternative possibility, they felt inspired and enthused. It gave them the courage, hope and confidence to act.


The eople of the towns and villages rose up in rebellion and rallied around local leaders, zamindars and chiefs.

(i)Nana Saheb, the adopted son of the late Peshwa Baji Rao, who lived near Kanpur, gathered armed forces and expelled the British garrison from the city. He proclaimed himself Peshwa. He declared that he was a Governor under emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar.

(ii)In Lucknow, Birjis Qadr, the son of the deposed Nawab Wajid Ali-Shah, was proclaimed the new Nawab. He too acknowledged the suzerainty of Bahadur Shah Zafar.

(iii)In Jhansi, Rani Lakshmibai joined the rebel sepoys and fought the British alongwith Tantia Tope, the general of Nana Saheb.

The important changes that were introduced by the British are given below:

(i) The powers of the East India Company was transferred to the British Crown in order to ensure a more responsible management of Indian affairs. The Governor-General of India was given the title of Viceroy, that is, a personal representative of the Crown.

(ii) All ruling chiefs of the country were assured that their territory would never be annexed in future. They were allowed to pass on their kingdoms to their heirs, including adopted son. But they had to acknowledge the British queen as their Sovereign Paramount.

(iii) It was decided that the proportion of Indian soldiers in the army would be reduced and the number of European soliders would be increased. It was also decided that instead of recruiting soldiers from Awadh, Bihar, Central India and South India more soldiers would be recruited from among the Gorkhas, Sikhs and Pathans.

(iv) The British decided to respect the customary religions and social practices of the people in India.

(v)Policies were made to protect landlords and zamindars and give them security of rights over their lands.

A.

D.

Meerut

B.

attacking his officers in Barrackpore

A.

The Rangoon Jail

C.

1859

High Taxes

Revenue

Sati

remarriage

Bahadur Shah Zafar

British Garrison

The name of the Mughal king was removed from the coins minted by the Company.

The rulers were: Nana Saheb and Birjis Qadr.

He was the General of Nana Saheb.

Ahmadullah Shah was a maulvi from Faizabad. He had prophesied that the rule of the British would soon come to an end.

Bakht Khan was a soldier from Bareilly. He took charge of a large force of fighters who came to Delhi.

It was allowed only if they were ready to acknowledge the British Queen as their Sovereign Paramount. The Indian rulers were to hold their kingdoms as subordinates of the British Crown.

The land and property of Muslims was confiscated on a large scale and they were treated with suspicion and hostility.

The British believed that they were responsible for the rebellion in a big way.

Awadh was one of the last territories to be annexed. In 1801, a subsidiary alliance was imposed on Awadh, and in 1856 it was taken over. Governor-General Dalhousie declared that the territory was being misgoverned and British rule was needed to ensure proper administration.

The Indian sepoys in the employ of the Company also had reasons for discontent.

(i)They were unhappy about their pay, allowances and conditions of service. Some of the new rules, moreover, violated their religious sensibilities and beliefs.

(ii)In those days many people in the country believed that if they crossed the sea they would lose their religion and caste.

So when in 1824 the sepoys were told to go to Burma by the sea route to fight for the Company, they refused to follow the order, though they agreed to go by the land route. They were severely punished, and since the issue did not die down, in 1856 the Company passed a new law which stated that every new person who took up employment in the Company’s army had to agree to serve overseas if required

The British believed that Indian society had to be reformed.

(i)Laws were passed to stop the practice of sati and to encourage the remarriage of widows.

(ii)English-language education was actively promoted. After 1830, the Company allowed Christian missionaries to function freely in its domain and even own land and property.

(iii)In 1850, a new law was passed to make conversion to Christianity easier. This law allowed an Indian who had converted to Christianity to inherit the property of his ancestors.

The British had tried their best to win back the loyalty of the people.

They announced rewards for loyal landholders would be allowed to continue to enjoy traditional rights over their lands. Those who had rebelled were told that if they submitted to the British, and if they had not killed any white people, they would remain safe and their rights and claims to land would not be denied.

The response of the Indian soldiers in Meerut was quite extraordinary.

On 10 May, the soldiers marched to the jail in Meerut and released the imprisoned sepoys. They attacked and killed British officers. They captured guns and ammunition and set fire to the buildings and properties of the British and declared war on the firangis. The soldiers were determined to bring an end to their rule in the country.

After the British were routed from Delhi, there was no uprising for almost a week.  Then, a spurt of mutinies began in other parts of India.

(i)Regiment after regiment mutinied and took to join other troops at nodal points like Delhi, Kanpur and Lucknow. After them, the people of the towns and villages also rose up in rebellion. They rallied around local leaders, zamindars and chiefs who were prepared to establish their authority and fight the British.

(ii)Nana Saheb, the adopted son of the late Peshwa Baji Rao who lived near Kanpur, gathered armed forces and expelled the British Garrison from the city. He proclaimed himself Peshwa. He delcared that he was a Governor under emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar.

(iii)In Lucknow, Birjis Qadr, the son of the deposed Nawab Wajid Ali Shah, was proclaimed the new Nawab. He too acknowledged the suzerainty of Bahadur Shah Zafar. In Jhansi, Rani Lakshmibai joined the rebel sepoys and fought the British alongwith Tantia Tope, the General of Nana Saheb.

(iv)A situation of widespread rebellion also developed in the region of Awadh. Many new leaders also came up and joined the revolt. Ahmadullah Shah, a maulvi from Faizabad, raised a large force of supporters. He came to Lucknow to fight the British.

(v)In Delhi, a large number of religious warriors came together to wipe out the white people. Bakht Khan, a soldier from Bareilly, took charge of a large force of fighters who came to Delhi.
In Bihar, an old zamindar, Kunwar Singh, joined the rebel sepoys and battled with the British for several months.

Unnerved by the scale of the upheaval, the Company had decided to repress the revolt with all its might.

(i)It brought reinforcements from England, passed new laws so that the rebels could be convicted with ease, and then moved into the storm centres of the revolt.

(ii)Delhi was recaptured from the rebel forces in September 1857. The last Mughal emperor, Bahadur Shah Zafar was tried in court and sentenced to life imprisonment. He and his wife were sent to prison in Rangoon in October 1858.

(iii)The recapture of Delhi did not mean that the rebellion died down completely. People continued to resist and battle the British. So, the British had to fight for two years to suppress the massive forces of popular rebellion. The British took Lucknow in 1858. Rani Lakshmibai was defeated and killed in June 1858. Tantia Tope, who fought a guerrilla war, was finally captured, tried and killed in April 1859.

The people regarded it as the biggest armed resistance to colonialism in the nineteenth century anywhere in the world.

On 29 March 1857, a young soldier, Mangal Pandey, was hanged to death for attacking his officers in Barrackpore.