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Rani Lakshmibai
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Queen of Jhansi, Rani Lakshmibai

The Rani attired in war gear

Manikarnika
Born

19 November 1835
Kashi, Varanasi, India

Died

Nationality

17 June, 1858
Gwalior, India

Indian

Other names Manu, Chhabili, Bai-Saheb,laxmibai

Occupation

Known for

Queen, General

Her role in the Indian rebellion of 1857,

Siege of Gwalior

Title

Maharani, Rani

Predecessor

Rani Rama Bai

Successor

British Rule in Jhansi

Spouse

Gangadhar Rao Newalkar

Children

Damodar Rao, Anand Rao

Parents

Moropant Tambe and Bhagirathibai Tambe

Lakshmi Bai, the Rani of Jhansi (c.19 November 1835 17 June 1858) (Marathi),a well known as Jhansi Ki Rani, or the queen of Jhansi, was one of the leading figures of
the Indian Rebellion of 1857, and a symbol of resistance to British rule in India. She was the
queen of the Maratha-ruled princely state of Jhansi, situated in the northern part of India.

Contents

1 Early life
2 The 1857 Revolution
3 In fiction
4 In films and television series
5 Historical studies
6 See also
7 References
8 External links

[edit] Early life

Originally named Manikarnika and nicknamed Manu, she was born on 19 November 1835 at
Kashi (Varanasi)[1] to Maharashtrian Karhade Brahmin family, the daughter of Moropant Tambe
and Bhagirathibai Tambe. She lost her mother at the age of four. Her father, Moropant Tambe,
worked at the court of Peshwa at Bithur, who brought her up like his own daughter, and called
her "Chhabili" for her light-heartedness.She was educated at home
Because of her father's influence at court, Rani Lakshmi Bai had more independence than most
women, who were normally restricted to the zenana. She studied self defence, horsemanship,
archery, and even formed her own army out of her female friends at court. Tatya Tope who was
considered as a nightmare by the British during the 'Great Revolt of 1857' was Lakshmi Bai's
tutor. She was married to Raja Gangadhar Rao Newalkar, the Maharaja of Jhansi in 1842, and
became the queen of Jhansi. After their marriage, she was given the name Lakshmi Bai.The Raja
was very affectionate to her. She[2] gave birth to a son Damodar Rao in 1851. However, the child
died when he was about four months old. After the death of their son, the Raja and Rani of
Jhansi adopted Anand Rao. Anand Rao was the son of Gangadhar Rao's cousin.He was later
renamed as Damodar Rao. However, it is said that the Raja of Jhansi never recovered from his
son's death, and he died on 21 November 1853.
Because Anand Rao was adopted, the East India Company, under Governor-General Lord
Dalhousie, had an excuse to apply the Doctrine of Lapse, rejecting Rao's claim to the throne.
Dalhousie then annexed Jhansi, saying that the throne had "lapsed" and claimed the right to put
Jhansi under his protection. In March 1854, she was given a pension of 60,000 rupees and
ordered to leave the palace and the Jhansi fort but it was denied by her

[edit] The 1857 Revolution

Rani Lakshmibai in a 19th century Kalighat painting.

On May 10, 1857 the Indian Rebellion started in Meerut. This began after rumours that the new
bullet casings for the Lee Enfield rifles were coated with pork and beef fat; British commanders
insisted on their use and started to discipline anyone who disobeyed. During this rebellion sepoys
killed many British soldiers and officers of the East India Company.
Unrest began to spread throughout India. During this chaotic time, the British were forced to
focus their attentions elsewhere, and Lakshmi Bai was essentially left to rule Jhansi alone.
During this time, she was able to lead her troops swiftly and efficiently to quell skirmishes
breaking out in Jhansi. Through this leadership Lakshmi Bai was able to keep Jhansi relatively
calm and peaceful in the midst of the Empires unrest. For example, she conducted the haldikumkum ceremony with great pomp and ceremony before all the women of Jhansi to provide
assurance to her subjects and to convince them that Jhansi was under no threat of an attack.[3]
Up to this point, she had been hesitant to rebel against the British, and there is still some
controversy over her role in the massacre of the British HEIC officials and their wives and
children on the 8th June 1857 at Jokhan Bagh.[4] Her hesitation finally ended when British troops
arrived under Sir Hugh Rose and laid siege to Jhansi on 23 March 1858. She rallied her troops
around her and fought fiercely. An army of 20,000, headed by the rebel leader Tatya Tope, was
sent to relieve Jhansi and to take Lakshmi Bai to freedom. However, the British, though
numbering only 1,540 in the field so as not to break the siege, were better trained and disciplined
than the raw recruits, and these inexperienced soldiers turned and fled shortly after the British
began to attack on 31st March. Lakshmi Bais forces could not hold out and three days later the
British were able to breach the city walls and capture the city. Lakshmi Bai escaped by jumping

from the wall at night with her son and fled from her city, surrounded by her guards, many of
them women.[4].

Statue of Rani Laxmi Bai in Agra

Along with the young Anand Rao, the Rani decamped to Kalpi along with her forces where she
joined other rebel forces, including those of Tatya Tope. The Rani and Tatya Tope moved on to
Gwalior, where the combined rebel forces defeated the army of the Maharaja of Gwalior after his
armies deserted the rebel forces. They then occupied a strategic fort at Gwalior. However, on the
17th of June 1858[5], while battling in full warrior regalia against the 8th (King's Royal Irish)
Hussars in Kotah-ki Serai near the Phool Bagh area of Gwalior, she died. The British captured
Gwalior three days later. In the British report of the battle, General Hugh Rose commented that
the Rani, "remarkable for her beauty, cleverness and perseverance", had been "the most
dangerous of all the rebel leaders".[6]
However, the lack of a corpse to be convincingly identified as that of Lakshmibai convinced
Captain Rheese that she had not actually perished in the battle for Gwalior, stating publicly that:
"[the] Queen of Jhansi is alive!" [7]. It is believed her funeral was arranged on the same day near
the spot where she was wounded.
Rani was memorialized in bronze statues at Jhansi and Gwalior, both of which portray her on
horseback. Another equestrian statue can be seen in Agra, UP.
Her father, Moropant Tambey, was captured and hung a few days after the fall of Jhansi. Her
adopted son, Damodar Rao (formerly known as Anand Rao), fled with his mother's aides. Rao
was later given a pension by the British Raj and cared for, although he never received his
inheritance. Damodar Rao settled down in the city of Indore (Madhya Pradesh). He spent most of
his life trying to convince the British to restore some of his rights. He and his descendants took
on the last name Jhansiwale. He died on May 28, 1906, at the age of 58.

[edit] In fiction

Flashman in the Great Game by George MacDonald Fraser, a historical fiction novel about
the Indian Revolt describing several meetings between Flashman and the Rani.

La femme sacre, in French, by Michel de Grce. A novel based on the Rani of Jhansi's life
in which the author imagines an affair between the Rani and an English lawyer.
Nightrunners of Bengal by John Masters provides a fictional account of the relationship
between a British officer, Rodney Savage, and a rani based on Lakshmi Bai. It was the
American Literary Guild's Book of the Month on publication in January 1951, but faced
some criticism for perceived political views. It is part of a series of historical novels about a
fictional British family serving in India.
Rani, a 2007 novel in English by Jaishree Misra.

[edit] In films and television series

The Tiger and the Flame (1953), one of the first technicolor films released in India, was
directed and produced by Indian filmmaker Sohrab Modi.
Jhansi Ki Rani (TV series)
The Rebel is a new film by Ketan Mehta, and is a companion piece to his film Mangal
Pandey: The Rising. The screenplay is by Farrukh Dhondy from a story by Chandra Prakash
Dwivedi.

[edit] Historical studies

The Queen of Jhansi, by Mahasweta Devi (translated by Sagaree and Mandira Sengupta).
This book is a reconstruction of the life of Rani Lakshmi Bai from extensive research of both
historical documents (collected mostly by G.C. Tambe, grandson of the Queen) and folk
tales, poetry and oral tradition; the original in Bengali was published in 1956. ISBN 817046-175-8

[edit] See also

Central India Campaign (1858)

Indian Rebellion of 1857
Company rule in India
Jhalkari Bai
Subhadra Kumari Chauhan
Nana Sahib
Tatya Tope
Bithoor
Mangal Pandey

[edit] References
1.
2.
3.
4.

^ http://www.copsey-family.org/~allenc/lakshmibai/early.html
^ "Jhansi Lakshmi Bai". http://tribute-time.blogspot.com/2010/02/jhansi-lakshmi-bhai.html.
^ David E Jones, Women Warriors: a History (Brasseys, 2005), 46.
^ a b Rani of Jhansi, Rebel against will by Rainer Jerosch, published by Aakar Books 2007,
chapters 5 and 6

5. ^ http://www.copsey-family.org/~allenc/lakshmibai/smith-gwalior.html
6. ^ David, Saul (2003), The Indian Mutiny: 1857, Penguin, London