(A) Identify the following causes of War of Independence 1857.

 Military
 Religious
 Political

Military Causes
 The Indian and British soldiers were not treated equally. The salary was too meagre
to support their families, while the duties of both the British and the Indian soldiers
were more or less similar.
 The Indian soldiers could only rise to the position of Subedar.
 According to the General Service Enlistment Act of 1856, Indian soldiers could be
sent overseas on duty. Indian soldiers dreaded sea voyage and considered against
their customs.
 Numerical strength of the Indian soldiers which was much higher than the number
of the European soldiers which gave courage to them to fight against the British.
 Indians were of the belief that, the British were invincible, but the British were
beaten in the First Afghan War (1838—42). This made the Indian soldiers feel that if
the Afghans could defeat the British, why couldn't they.
 The revolt started over the immediate issue of greased cartridges. (In January 1857
the British announced that they were introducing a new rifle with a paper cartridge
covered in grease to keep the powder dry. Before the cartridge could be loaded, the
end had to be bitten off. However, it was rumored that the grease on the cartridge
was made from the fat of both cows and pigs. The Hindu and Muslims sepoys were
so angered by this that they refused to use the new cartridges.)
 However, there were more deep-seated reasons for discontent amongst members
of the armed forces. Most of the soldiers in the East India Company’s army were
Indian. The sepoys and sowars (cavalry) were almost exclusively India, but the officer
class was almost exclusively British. This caused great resentment. There were also
regular that Muslims, Hindu and Sikh soldiers would be forced to convert to
Christianity and that they might be sent to fight abroad, which was unacceptable to
the Hindus.
 Religious Causes
 The work of missionaries, who were spreading education and Christianity, upset the
masses.
 The combined effect of the British Expansionist Policy, economic exploitation and
administrative changes adversely affected the Indian society as a whole.
 Many Indians feared that Islam, Hinduism and Sikhism were under threat from
British rule. The British always denied this, but they were not believed. It was
probably not the case, but it was true that Christian missionaries came to India to
convert the local population as well as set up schools. In these schools the
missionaries taught Christianity and expected locals who worked for them to give up
their religion and follow the Christian teachings.
 Western missionaries started criticizing Hinduism and Islam to promote Christianity.
 Christian missionaries set up schools and started teaching Christianity. The fear of
Indians was largely due to the activities of some of the activities of some Christian
missionaries. The English also established Chapels and Churches for propagating
Christianity at the expense of the government. Even civil and military officers were
asked to propagate the gospel.
 The religious sentiments of the people were further hurt when a tax was imposed on
the construction of temples and mosques.
 The two policies of Lord Canning and two acts passed by him in 1856 caused more
resentment was the General Services Enlistment Act, which imposed on the Indian
sepoys the obligation to serve wherever required. This forced Hindus for overseas
travelling which was against their religious customs. Religious Disabilities Act:
according to this act if Indian soldiers move outside India they would lose their religion
and would be socially excluded. Therefore many Hindu soldiers refused to work in
foreign lands. After the passing of the law, the use of any religious symbol was also
restricted.
 The introduction of western innovations had unsettled the minds of the ignorant
people. The spread of English education, the construction of railways and telegraph
lines, legislation for the suppression of sati and the remarriage of the widows
stimulated Indians belief that the British were determined to convert the people to
Christianity. The introduction of railways was resented on the ground that people of
all castes would have to travel in the same compartments. The common people did
not appreciate these changes. They looked upon them as foreign innovations
designed to break down the social order to which they were accustomed and which
they considered sacred.
 Parda (Hijab) was ridiculed by them.
 Political Causes:
 Policy of Annexation followed by Lord Dalhousie: The Doctrine of Lapse, all round
annexation of Indian states abolition of titles and pension, etc. had made most of
the Indian Princes and rulers staunch enemies of the British. Lord Dalhousie’s Policy
of Annexation and the Doctrine of Lapse (Governor General Lord Dalhousie (1848-
1856) devised the policy of the Doctrine of Lapse. According to this policy, if an
Indian ruler died without a male heir his kingdom would “lapse” and would become
a part of the Company territory.) made British very unpopular, the rulers of the
different states became bitter enemies of the British. Lord Dalhousie’s policy of
annexation caused uproar among the people of India. The last Peshwa, Baji Rao’s
adopted son Nana Sahib was deprived of the pension his father was receiving. Rani
Laxmi Bai’s adopted son was not given the throne after the death of his father. The
annexation of Oudh without a reason led to a huge uprising. The annexation of
Jhansi, Satara and Nagpur shocked the Hindus as they were predominantly Hindu
states. The remaining Hindus and Muslims who were unaffected became insecure,
lest they meet the same fate.
 Disrespect Shown to Bahadur Shah: The mistreatment of the Mughal Emperor was
another cause of unrest. To make matters worse Lord Dalhousie announced in 1849
that Bahadur Shah Zafar will not be allowed to stay in the Red Fort anymore and
they were compelled to move to a place near obscure Qutab Minar as a sign of
disrespect. To further worsen the situation Lord Canning announced in 1856 that
with the demise of Bahadur Shah Zafar, his successor will not be allowed to use the
imperial titles “king” with their names. This enraged the Muslims, consequently
Bahadur Shah began plotting against the British.
 Disbanding the Armies of the Annexed States: All such states that were annexed by
the company had their troops disbanded. As a result thousands of families lost their
means of livelihood. The disbanded soldiers were determined to take revenge from
the British Company.
 The Annexation of Awadh: Lord Dalhousie annexed Awadh to the British Empire in
Indian under the pretext of misgovernance. It threw thousands of noble’s gentlemen,
officers and soldiers out of job. The British confiscated the estates of the Zamindars
and Tuluqdars. It created dissatisfaction among all classes of the people of Awadh.
 As the British extended their control, the local leaders saw their authority decline.
Lord Dalhousie’s use of the Doctrine of Lapse was particularly unpopular. The
annexation of Oudh in 1856 convinced many Indian leaders that the British were
simply greedy land grabbers.
 Absentee Sovereignty of the British: (India’s Wealth Drained to England) India was
being ruled by British from England. Unlike other rulers like Mughals who spent the
revenue collected from India in India. But in case of the British, Indians felt that wealth
of India was drained to England and wasn’t used for the welfare of Indians.
 The myth about the superiority of the British was shattered when they were badly
beaten in the first Afghan War. Besides that there was a rumor floated around that
with the end of the Revolt of 1857 the British Raj would come to an end. This rumor
created from the fact that the battle of Plassey in 1757 brought about British power
and with 1857 a century would be completed which will mark the end of British rule.
 At a lower level in society there was also resentment at the lack of opportunities for
native Indians in the Civil Service. Added to this, English had replaced Persian as the
official language of the administration and as the language in which education would
be given.
 The composition of the British army which includes Indian soldiers were mere
peasants. Thus any impact on Indian peasants marked discontentment among Indian
Soldiers with British. The policies of Lord Canning and two acts passed by him in
1856 caused more resentment.
General Service Enlistment Act: according to this act, any Indian military personnel
who were posted outside India will not be entitled to get extra allowances. This act
came as a shock to the prospects to the Indian military personnel serving under the
East India Company. Religious Disabilities Act: according to this act if Indian soldiers
move outside India they would lose their religion and would be socially excluded.
 The British officers used English in front of the sepoys and disposed of the men’s
local language that could understand.
 British’s trials were done in special courts and the judgments given by British Judge
was cruel for Indians as compared to the British.
(B) Identify the reasons of Failure of War of Independence.

Disunity
 The rebels did not have a common purpose and lacked unity.
 Many refused to fight unless they are harmed directly.
 Nana Sahib only wanted the Doctrine Lapse to be reversed and was ready to come to
terms with British if it is done.
 The British Governor-General, Lord Canning presented a conciliatory policy that if any
rebel gave up, he will be forgiven.
 Following the announcement of the conciliatory policy, few of the leader left the
rebellion and joined hands with the British.
 The rebels harmed and destroyed public and private properties that made the locals
displeased. As a result, they supported the British who stood to regain law and order.
 The reason for lack of unity was that there was no common cause and no common
planning. Muslims wanted to bring back Muslim rule, while Hindus wanted that the
power should be in hands of Hindu rulers such as Marathas.
 Another aspect of lack of unity was that there was no common leader and concept of
nationalism was absent among Indian people. Most of the local fighters were interested
in their personal security and wellbeing.
 Many Indian state rulers sided and helped the British to avoid losing their power. Rulers
of Gwalior, Kashmir, Hyderabad and Nepal were loyal and offered help to British. The Sikh
from Punjab assisted the British to regain Delhi and the ruler of Kashmir sent 2000 troops
to support the British. The leaders of Indian forces did not come to support one another.

British Strength
 The British were much more powerful than the rebellious group.
 Since they have conquered Punjab and Sindh already, the rebellion did not receive any
support from Sindhis and Punjabis in the war of 1857.
 Mughal Emperor, Bahadur Shah II, who was leading the rebellion showed incompetence
during the war.
 The British weaponry was much more advanced and superior giving them an edge over
the rebellion group.
 The British Leaders, Edwards and Neil were much more confident and experienced than
the rebel leaders and fought with complete loyalty towards the Queen.
 No unified leadership and discipline
 There was also an absence of a capable leader who could organize the scattered forces
in to one unit fighting for unified policy and aim. Nana Saheb, Rani Lakshmi Bai, Tantia
Tope, Bahadur Khan, Bakht Khan and Kunwar Singh remained confined to their own
locality. None of them emerged as the leader of the entire movement. As a result, these
freedom fighters lacked discipline and their efforts could not get the required
momentum at national level. On the other hand, the British succeeded against the
rebels because of the determination and leadership of their military commanders like
Havelock, Neill, Nicolson and Hugh Rose.

The Indians had no proper arms, ammunitions and experienced commanders to

assist them.
 The Indians used orthodox weapons against their technologically advanced opponent
and this gave them no unusual advantage.
 The leader of the Muslims in the War, Bahadur Shah II, was interested in poetry than
in warfare and he was old and incompetent to head the rebel forces.

There was no proper planning

 The lack of planning and the disorganization is one of the main reasons why this uprising
was crushed so easily by the British.
 The Indians had no plan or strategy to compete with a force that was twice as powerful
as them (in terms of weaponry). They did not know how to pressurize their opponents
with successive attacks.