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I. THE INDIAN NATIONAL MOVEMENT (1 857-1917) tJf,..,,/j~~
'
. "' I
I/
,.:. .
The First war or Independence, 1857
SYLLABUS
The Inc 1 ~ , hon"I
(1857- 19171
r "
· Only the cau ses (political, socio-religious, ,
j economic and military) and consequences
w,ll be tested. (The euents, howeuer need
to be mentioned in order to ma'intain 1
, continuity and for a more comprehensive I
, understanding./
-- - ·--- - -
The process of the British conquest of India
which began from mid- 18th century and the
consolidation of British rule was accompanied
by resentment among the Indians. Hardly a year
passed till 1857 when some part of the country
or the other did not rise in revolt against the
British domination of India. However, these
rebellions were local, scattered and isolated.
They did not pose a serious threat to the British.
Nonetheless, these revolts established a local
tradition of struggle against the foreign rule.
The culmination of this resentment to the
British rule was the First War of Independence
in 1857, in which millions of peasants, artisans
and soldiers participated.
government to its very foundation.
CAUSES OF THE FIRST WAR
OF INDEPENDENCE
The first hundred years of the British rule in
India i.e., from 1757 to 1857, were marked
by British conquests and rapid expansion of
their dominion in India. The combined effect
of the British expansionist policies, economic
exploitation and administrative changes
,1,1,1?,;: '>-/,;.,,,,.,,,~, ,,,,-11, /l ; J. ;,,,.,.y ,,_.,✓~~ -Jrr:1;..
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odv~rncly affected all segments or India n society.
tovemcnt
The ruling classes were disp<>ssessed of their
power; the peasantry was deprived or its land
rights; and the artisans Jost their livelihood.
h,nc J ,57
The middle and upper-classes of Indian society,
particularly in northern India, were annoyed
because of their exclusion from the well-paid
higher posts in the administration. Men who
followed cultural or religious activities, like
priests and scholars, found themselves without
income as they los t their patrons - the
- ,.__ -•◄
Lndian rulers, princes and zamindars, who had
themselves lost their authority. The company's
Indian soldiers were discontent with their low
pay, hard life and the ill-treatment meted out
to them by the Britis h officers. Thus, by 1857,
conditions were ripe for a mass uprising and the ,
accumulated grievances of the people burst forth j
in the form of the First War of Independence. I
POLl'l'ICAL CAUSES I
Th e political reasons whlch antagonised the)
Indian rulers were the following: •
1. Policy of Expansion: The British policy
of territorial expansion and gradual annexation
of the native Indian States was one of the major
grievances of the Indian rulers(Ever since
rt shook the British
the Battle of Plassey (June 1757), the East
India Company's territorial power increased
rapidly. The British tried to ;and their political
power in India by four way i.e., by outright
wars, by the system of bsidiary Alliance,
by adopting the Doctrine of Lapse and on the
pretext of alleged misrule. I!
a.. (a) By Outright Wars;,wjo expand their
territorial power m India and
to safeguard
their economic and political interests the British
waged many wars;)ff!ie Battle of Buxar (1764)
 1
e~tablished the B{itish as masters of Bengal,
, , Bihar and Odish~ As a result of their success
tl (in Anglo-Mysore Wars ( 1767 to 1799), th e East
lndia Company flfltlexed IJlRfJ. of the territories of ,,.
the Mysore State)Aftcr th~tird Anglo•Marathal , ,v
War ( 181 7- 18), the Peshwa s enti re dominions
end all Maratha territori)north and south of
. the Narmada rive(were acquired by the British)
f'{ (Jhe Punjab was annexed in 1849 after the
Sikhs were defeated in the Second An.glo-Sikh
War.)From 1823 to 1856, the British furth er
extef{ded their empire by conquering S indh, Lord Wellesley
ten-.tories of Assam, Arakan a nd Tenasscrim
and Pegu in Myanmar. the Rajput States of Jodhpur, Jaipur, Machen
b) (bl By Subsidiary Alliance; Some Indian · Bundi and the Ruler of Bha ratpur. l. ·
States were brought under the British control c.,)
(c) B~ Uslng the Doctrine of La_,p~ ~
without actually annexing them. This was done Dalhousie, t he G?ve rn or- Ge neral of Lndia)
by followin(the Subsidiary Alliance, introduced ~e:·~any Indian S~ates to t h e - ~
by Lord Wellesley. Subsidiary Alliance was ~t"'
eDoetrine of Lapse~ccording to ~
an agreement between the British East India Doctrine, if an Indian ruler diei:l without a roa1e
Company and the tndian Princely States by virtue heir his kingdom would 1apse', that is, it WouJd
of which these states lost thei.r sovereignty (thecome under the Company's territory in India)
power of a ruler to rule independently without Wh th ruler of Jh · di d •
any outs1·d e ·mtenerence
.J )
to th e B ntis
.. h . Un d er. en etural h • th ans1 m 18SS•
•d e d Rani
. . 1eavi.ng no na eir, e Wl owe was
this system, the Indian rulers, who agreed to . .
the S u b s1.diary Alli anee - ) pensioned and their
. adopted son,
· Anand Rao•
was not re~1sed as a lawful successor to
, accepted the British as the supreme power; 1l\)the throne. be other prominent States which
~urrendered their foreign relations to the were annex d by applying this Doctrine were
East India Company and agreed that they Satara, Jaitpur, Sambalpur, Udaipurand Nagpur.'
would not enter into any alliance with any rv'ld'he principle of Lapse was also applied to take
other power and would not wage wars; · :la.way the tit1e,- and pensions of the rulers of
(~cepted a British Resident at their v)5°me State2(Regal titles of the Nawabs of
headquarters and agreed not to a employ Caniatic _ana Tanjore were taken away)This
any European in their serviee without caused d1scontent among the rulers as well as
consulting the Company; among the people in general.
( i ~ e e d to maintain British troops at their
own cost; and
( ~ a l l y lost their independence.)
The earliest Subsidiary treaty negotiated by
the East India Company was with the Na.wab of
Awadh (Oudh) in 1765 by which the Company
undertook to defend the frontiers of Awadh on
the condition that the Nawab of Awadh would
pay for the expenses of such defence. The other
States which accepted the Subsidiary Alliance
were the Nizam of Hyderabad, the ruler of
Mysore, the Raja of Tanjore, the Sindhia and Lord Dalhousie
 The rulers of Indian Stales believed that
their States were annexed not by the applica tion
of Doctrine of Lapse but by the 'lapse of all
morals' on the part of the Oritish .
J) (di On the PreteJC!._ of Alleg!d Misrule: {11 ; )
1856,Lord Dalhousie annexed Awadh , 0 • the
company's dominions on the pretext of alJeged
misrule.) He declare~ . that Awadh was being
misgovetned and Bnttsh rule was needed to
ensure proper administration.
•~i (Lord Da lhousie justified the anncxat ion
of ,\wadh.~n the pretext of "the good of the Oahadur Shah Zafar Zccnat Mahal
gouemed.'f m the con trary, the people of Awadh, I II

had to face more hardships. 111 / 111 1856, Lord Can ning annou nced that after
the death ofBabadur ShaJ1, his successors would
{,') • C[hey had to pay higher land revenue and not be allowed to use the imperial titles with
additional taxes on food, houses and ferric§) their names an d would be known as mere
i-<• (:rhe dissolution of tAe Nawab-Of.-Awadh:6 princes) This decision of the British h',111 the .
atnl)' and administi:at.ion.threw thousands feelings of the Muslims. Consequently{Zeenat 11/
of nobles, officials and soldiers out of jobs) Mahal, the wife ofBaha dur Shah , began plotting
a~inst them. ) •
" • (The British confiscated the estates of the
taluqdars or zamindars)he dispossessed I,,,) 3. Treati✓ent Given to Nana Saheb,&ana L
taluqdars became the opponents of the Saheb was the adopted son of Baji Rao II,•
British rule. the last Peshwa:'fi'he British refused to grant
Nana Sab~b ).ht'°pension they were paying to . ,
1/1 • (The company's sepoys, of whom 75,000 Baji Rao II~ (Nana Saheb was forced to live C.J,
were from Awadh, were the worst affected) at lu\tlPUr, far away from his family seat at
These soldiers had helped the British to Poona)This was widely resented in the Maratha
conquer the rest oflndia. But they resented region. Nana Saheb had inherited wealth from
the fact that their homelands had come the former Peshwa, which he utilised in sending
under foreign rule. The annexation of emissaries to different parts of the country for
Awadh also affected the soldier's financial generating awarene~ among the Indians about .. •
position. They had to pay higher truces on the British policies Nana Saheb also travelJed Ul
the land their families held in Awadh. between Delhi and ucknow to gather support
for the movement) iv)f.w.; loYVJ?;boi,, ~~
Enraged by the humiliating way in which
the Nawab of Awadh was deposed, the people of The other Indian rulers, who were not \
Awadh joined the uprising that broke in 1857. adversely affected, became suspicious, lest they
Awadh played a major role ~ the uprising of should meet the same fate. I
l857Qz.~•h-, 'i~ ~ ~~.(,;~~ -..,.,.,.,w-,d~ - - -- ----:;,;--
~ 2 . Disrespect Shown ~::it; Shah:
i (Bahadur Shah Zafar, the Mughal ruler, was
under the protection of the Company and
received a pension from the British_)The name
of the Mughal King was removed from the coins
minted by the Company.
ii {1n 1849, Lord Dalhousie announced that
successors of Bahadur Shah Zafar would not
be permitted to use the Red Fort as their
palace. They were required to shift to a place
near the Qutab Minar) Raru Laxmi Bai

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the ra ilway eompo r1men ts the hi gher Casie,
lh lower ca s tes were made to sit .
an d \ .
by side:) They believe~ th?t t h e British . 81dc
had
, , roduce d such prnct 1ccs1 lo d efy their en
1n, "' 1 ,, -u.Stt
and religio n .) 1( 1) •
c.) 3 . ~ c f of Racia l DI crimln ation( ~,
Dritill h officer s were rud: and arroga nt towards
th e Indian s. They b ehcve d that they wer
superi or to lndian o/ and . followt;~·, a P<>licy ~
contem pt toward s the lnd1e nsjney d),lbbed lh0
Mus lims es cruel and unfalt'hfu ~ Som~Europ eJ
Nnno Snh~b ofllcers ill-trea ted a nd insulte d lndian s)Such
llnJi Rno II acts of unjus t discrim inatio n a lienate d th
c.) 4 . Absentee- SoveTc.ignty o f the Drltlah: Orltlsh from the Indian masse s. (iJ c
; ?,\bst'n kc Sove reignty of thc7lr 1llsh means that J.)4. corru ption tn_ A~m_in!1tra ti~ : (Th,
'lndia was being ruled by the Dri11sh govern ment pciflce and petty offic ials we re corruP }(the richi,
from Englan d. at a distan ce of thousa nds got a.way with crime but the comm on man was
• of m,Jcs :)rhis was resent ed by the Indian s. looted , oppres sed a nd tortur ed) ;
it lThe eartfer rulers like the Mugha ls, who had /JI.\ s. Oppre Hlon of the Poor_: ~he
conqu,- ...-d Jndi~ h"4 in couFee okime ,0ettled complex
1/ bl d h h
·,,•,• in lndia':l'The revenu e_s they_ collected fro_m the judicia l s~tel! 1 ena e t e nc to Oppress
lndian s"1'" (i
were spent m India only But in the,v L, the poor. lo~g. tortur e and imprisonment
case of Britain , the Indian s felt tliat they were of cultiva tors for their inabili ty to pay arrears
being ruled from Englan d and India's wealth of rent, land revenu e and intere st on debt
was being draine d to Englan d and not utilise d ~\
were quite commol)., Thus, th e growin g poverty
made the poor despe rate and led them to join
I>- for their welfar e.)
~ <,. a genera l uprisi ng in the hope of improving
Q3 hi• Socio-lauGIOIIS CAUSIS ; ,VAJ"Jf_~.,,,.. 0
. their lot.
Toe British govern ment's ;ttefu~ t ~to interfe re
in the social and religio us life of the Indian s
1)6, Activ ities of Mis1io naries : The British q.
were differe nt from Indian s in race, religion and
led to the widesp read fear among the masse s. ·,)sent iment s.Im the
18th centur y, the British
"'')Y."ID.terf erenc e with Socia l Cuato ma: ~ showe d a lriend ly
attitud e towar ds Indian
Some of the social reform s introd uced by religioG:.)'81 e~• bed AO pfll'tieulaF flettl far CA1ir
the British in India were aimed at improv ing own religio n and tfle Comp any even acted as
the condit ions of the people . However, while a truste e of some Hindu temple s ..)iowe ver,
introd ucing such reform s the feelings of th~b~ n the 19th centur
y) this e~wel e t1t1dc1111-:nt ~
people were not taken into consid eration . The e cbeose, (The Britis h began to interfe re with
result was that/th e reform s like the abolition the local religio us and social custom s) They
of Sari (1829), ~e introd uction of the Widow (deno unced idol worsh
ip and dubbe d locafbeliefs
Rema rriage Act (1856) and the openin g of as ignora nce.) ii,'
Weste rn educat ion to girls were not welcom ed After 1813, there was an increa se both in
by the masse s. / the numb ers and activit ies of the Chri9 tiall
"') 2 . App re enaio na abou t Mode rn missio naries . The Indian s thoug ht that tbe
lnno• ation 1: L eople were suspi cious of Gover nment was suppo rting missio naries wbo
• 1 introd uction o moder _p innov ations like would conve rt them to Christ ianity.
II railwa ys and telegr aphi(f here were rumou rs ~ 7 . Feara Regar ding Weste rn Educa tl;>11:
that telegr aph poles .I.ere erecte d to hang_ The Weste rn system
t~o~e who were again st the Britis h rule) 01 edu hon was introduced
in a numb er of schoo ls.~t l829, the Be~
S1mil a,rty ,(orth odox Indian s noted that in Gover nment estab lishe d~ Englis h class 111

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II1
 , 1. r
(he Colcutt a Madras a, whi ch was a Muslim / This ruined the Indian indu11try, deprive d
institu tion. Later, English classes were the artisa ns of their income )and reduced the
introduced in Bcnara s Sanskri t College. The avenue s of employment for htbou r. On the other
shifting of emp hasis from oriento l learnin g hand, export of row materia ls and food groms
to Western educati on was not rec-l'ivcd well d eprived Indin of her agrlc.u ltural surplus and
by the people, especially the Pand11s and the (raised the prices of raw matr.na ts) Thus, the
Mau /vis. They saw in ii an allempt to discour age change in th<' nature of India's trade became
traditio nal Is la mic a nd I lindu studies . People an lnstrumcnl for cxpl11il ing India's resources.
started suspect ing that the aim of Western
~'\2< Dnin of Wealth : (Till the Batt le of (I)
educatio n was not to promote literatu re and Plassey ( 1757), the Europea n trader.\ used to
science s but to encoura ge their child ren to b rin~ gold into India lo buy Indian cotton a nd
become Christia ns.
silk) HowevC f'(after the conque st of Bcn&:'U
h) 8. Ta11:ing Religio u, Places / Religio us the Oritish stopped getting gold into India . ..
I 11 )
sentiments of the Indians were h~ rt by the ( They began to purchas e raw materia l for the1
industries in England from the surplus revenue s
officia l policy of tax~g la nds belongi ng to
temples and mosque s)Such lands had been of Bengal and profits from duty-fre e inland -
of plundering
exempted from taxation by previou s Indian -trade) Thus, begun the process
India's raw ma terials, resourc es and wealth ... ~
rulers. The families depend ent on these lands, 111
began to propaga te that tile British were trying by Britain (The cra.nsfer of weoUh from fndic/
to underm ine the religion s of India. to Engtarnl'for which Indio got no proport,orw.le
' econom ic return, is called the Dram of WeQ/lh. >
') 9 . Law or Propert y: f he Religious Disabilities (-rhe drain included the salaries, incomes and (:..✓,,
pct of 1850 change d the 'Hindu Law of Property.) savings of English men , the British expend iture)
\ It enabled a convert from Hinduis m to other in lodia oo tbc pnrr? aae ~ilita ry goods, office
religions to inherit the propert y of his father) esta blishme n9 interest on debts, unnece ssary
The Hindus regarded this as an incentive to give expenditure on the army, etc.
up one's ~cligiou s faith.
e/, 1-J,th "'~t£Yl,~ I,. o 9~ cay of Cottag e Inda•t ries and ,
"r7 EcoHOIIIC CAUSES • ~ ~" ~ Handic rafts: tiieavy duties on Indian s ilk I
The most importa nt reasbn for the popu lar and cotton terliles in Britain desy oyed Indian .•
discont ent was the econom ic exploitation by industrie~. On the other hand, {3ritish goods U
the British . The economic exploita tion took the were im~rte d into India at a nomina l duty:)
following forms : By the middle of the 19th century ,(expor t o( ·;.
cotton and silk goods from India practica lly
\v.'1&p loitatlo n of Econom ic Resour ces:
ceas~ ,6-he art of spinnin g and weaving, wruch IV
':> e British exploite d the lnclian resourc es for for ages had given employ ment to thousan ds
t, eir own benef it~ey made ~~tur allnd ia
of artisans , became extinct)
an econom ic colo! to serve tlie interest s of
\) industri al Englan d India was forced to export,
at cheaper rates, a materia ls like raw cotton
and raw s ilk that the British industries needed
urgently) plantat ion product s (like indigo and
tea); and food grains which were in short supply
in Britain.
(ift) ( India was made to accept readym ade British
goods either duty-fr ee or at nomina l duty
rates, while Indian products we~su bjec!ed
. to high import duties in England The Tndian
!..,handmade goods were unable to pete with
produc ta) Indian Peaaant s before lndepmclence
the cheape r, machine-made British
 The misery of th<' art isans was further
compounded by the disappearance of . their
traditional p alron!\ and buy<-rs- the princes.
cbiefimns and zomindnrs.
~ conomic Decline of Peaa!.Q1Df:{he
(I) pea~ants were dt!lcontcnt wit h th e official Ian~
rt'venue policy°')Ind th e c onsequent loss o
their land. In ffic t, It wns (he peasantry that
bo~ tht' ht"8\')' burden of taxes to provide mon ey
for the tradt' o f tht' Company, for U,e cost of
administ{ation and the wars of British exp1msion
/
_ A overty and F amineJI: ,:British econorn•
.....,..;r.~ ::...:...c.c....::..::-=:::- -f . d "
exploitation , d ecay o . 10 1genou s m dustrieg
. ic
-
high taxation , the dram of wealth, stagnatj ,
of agric ulture a nd exploitation of the Po:11
pcnaanl.s re duced the India n s to ei_<tre,ne P<>ve;::,\
Famines ravaged the coun!ry 1n the secol
half of the 19th ccntu iy, ( rhere. were tl.vclv~
major and numerous minor fam ines between
I 765 and I 857.\The faro.mes were the rcsui
of drought, othd n a tural ~3:la miUe s as wen n!
bad administra tion.(The ~nl1~h gove~rnent did
nothing to lessen p eople s m1sery) r ,, )

h> in India} For example, in Dcngat,/U,e land
l"l'vrnuc '\\'8S double the amount colle~ed under
the Mughnls. 'Not even e part of this revenue
was spent ort the de,·elopmi-nt of r .cul,ture
\,t or on the welfare of the c uhiveto'\ Increase
m the land revenue forced m any peasants
into indt-btedness or into s elling their lands)
The craditional :,.am.indars we,·c replaced by
merchants and moneylenders. These new
landovo.-ners had no concern for the peasants.
They pushed rents to e.'Corbitant levels and evicted
their tenants in case of non-payment. The
economic decline of the peasants affected
culti\.-ation and led to many famines.
S~ wing Unemployme.nt; The traditional
~ iVcl"v'slslJ· . ~ " "
~ tied given financial supPfrt to scholars, ..::S:::e=v=e:.:.r;::al=-fa-'-c--t-'-o-'-rs c'ntribtf ted to the change in
preachers and men of arts. (!"he coming of
o, the British led to the decline of such rulers
and gradually their patronage came to an en_i)
'Dwl(_all those whq,__depended on their patronage
were impoverished/
/When the native States were annexed lo
th~ritish dominion, thousands of soldiers
and officials in administrative, military and
judicial posts became unemployed because
British policies excluded Indians from high
post~ All these people became bitter enemies
of tlie British rule in India.
6. Jnb uma.n Treatment of Indi&o
, ~ a ton: 1'nciig6 .. ede ma■ !fiighly profitable
( I \ 10 the britishut the conditions under which
the peasants had to work were inhuman)~e
( C' ) peasants were forced to cultivate only l'ridc
in •be 6eld1 chosen by the British)planters ff
(. "))they planted anything else, their crops w re
destroyed, and their cattle wen: carried off as
punishment. )
/!) a. Decline or La~e~ (r1 a_to_~llc :
,:_~ded ansloora:cy which include~ ,
taluqdars and the hercq.!_ta'l landlords wer,
deprived of their estat:, . t cc orcling to th, ti
provisions of the lnam Commission ( 1852), 2O,000
estates were confiscated wbeo the landlords failed,
to produce e~cnce like title-deeds by which they
beld the lend. hese confis~ated la~ds were sold
by public a ction to the highest bidders. Such
estates were usually purchased by merchants
and moneylenders who did not understand the
needs of the tenants and exploited them. Thill
drove the landed aristocracy to poverty without
benefitting the peasantry which suffered under ·•,\
th71 ~i~_!A_f" .J:J~t ~~ revenue. .
1k :f,ofJ,
the attitude of the Indian soldiers towards the
Company. These included the following: Lil
~ l. m-treatment or Indian s oldiers/ The
East India Company established the -B);tish
Empire in lnclia with the help of Indian soldiers~
Despite the fact that lndian soldier?'. were,ar
efficient as their British coun~rparts\ ytiey ~~re
P.()or1y paid, ill-fed and badly house\i\ British
· "t . : authorities forbade the sep6ys from
" :o)
Indian Sepoys in the British Anny
 wearing caste or sectarian marks, beards or of British dominion in India adversely affected the ,
turbans; and they sh ow~ disregard for the se rvice conditions or the sepoys.fTh_ey were I
sentiments of the sepoys/ required to serve in area s away from Their homes
Jo) 2. General Service Enllatme nt Act: without extra payment and additional Bhatia
According to _htttlifional br hcf,\ 11 w1:s 8 tulX>o (foreign service a llowancey (he Post Office Act ii
for a Brahmm 10 cross thr seas.) ~ he Dri t ish or I 854 withdrew ~he privi lege of free postage
Parlin.men I p. lcd the Ge11crol Sc>riiice Enlisrrn,mt enjoyed by sepoys.)
Act in 1856. '/\s per this Act. Indian soldiers ':Ir"> 6. Faulty Diatrlbutlon ofTroop1: £iaces of
could be sent erseas <>n duiy .'the Act did not s trategic importance hke Delhi and Allahibad had
talce mto~ac-count the sent imefu of the Indian no British armies and were wholly held by
soldiers. The Brah~1in so_ldicrs saw in this a the Indian soldiers. Besid~s, En~land was
d11nger t their caste. 1'h1s led to a feeling of engaged in several wars outside India, e.g., the
resentment among them) Pers ian (Iranian) War, the Crimean War and the
l) 3. Larger Proportio n of Indian, ln Chinese War. Indian soldiers had the feeling
tti'e BriffinAn ny: l!ne num'brr ol13niisn troops that the British were in difficulty and the safety
'"iii1nd1a was neve~ very large with the British of her Indian empire depended on them. They
in the ratio as low as one in four rhou snnd) were, therefore, determined lo strike at them al
ealhousie h ad recommen d ed that more Brillsh a suitable time.
soldiers should be recruited in the army'.')This
7 p Performance of Brit.lib Troopa, , m
could not come through . Th~s, it m~de it lasier (fhe Briti:C:: army suffered major reverses in
for the large ~umbethr o f ~~dh1an soldiers to tak~ First Afghan War
t\l'l>
11838-42), in the Punjab Wars
up arms agamst e 8 ntis . I (1845-49) and in the Crimean War (1853-56).
tft) 4, Bleak Prospects of Promotion s: /i\u In 1855-56, the Santhal tribesmen of Bihar
higher positions in employme nt were reseJed.._ and Bengal armed with axes and bows rose up
• , for the British,. irrespectiv e~ their performan_cei against the British, temporarily ~eeping away
~ l)Even(the lnd1an soldiers , ormerly occupymg the British rule from their area) Though the
high positions in the armies of native princes British suppressed the Santhal Uprising, the
kould not rise above the rank of a Subedar. The disasters they suffered broke the myth that the '.:,
'future of the lndiru:1 soldi~,rs was bl.eak without British were invincibl{ It further revealed to thl- 1v
chances of promotJon s):99
.9s. Indian soldiers that tli_e Britis~ army could be
Deprivation of Allowance■ : The extension defeated by the detennmed Indian arm_:)

..............\...
~-- ....... •,
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'-../-·
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...,
, Main Centres of the
First War of Independe nce (1857)
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~
·•• '•
•.tt;;:'o,,.'
INDEX
".,, -
•' ; ,I

.,_ r::::::, Present Exlemal ,i

•
'\..! /'
~
.•
LJ ollndie ~~ ....
_:~_ •: . ·~ ;Jjfr'••-:-··'" .. • ..
.... . . ....: /:. . . . . . ' ..
,.......,..............
. ..~.;
·1 ~........ ;
·.:.... ~ ...• ... -._..,.
·
.,.-r . ,'
• ·~1:11-. • Bnillt
... ~-.. .-
j;·t•~ :

~
~
• ':
. .. F••--~>· 81H
........_.!
.,
t•)
,1 · ··:
(
.... 11

•..
~ • ·:..•-.io:·
••• , ,, • •
•: :,
--bad ,
..itt.11191<11/pi
:r,;_.l,,_
.-... • • .....
•••, •., ••••••••• .:·-..
•! \•,:. ~
---.:-.:..._·,;•
... ,l.::.:.....•..... ···--. ..1:.:;:::_~:.:_.1·····.
.. , · ·...
t ,,,.,•
~-·

.:·...

•
,

l.....~ .
. .: : : . . . 4
 Inf an try at 13 arr ac kp ore
o n Ma rch
Ma ng al Pa nd ey wa s ex ec
uted aft er a co i9, la~
Fo r his fellow s epoy s h
e be ca me 1.111.rii.,.·•
- -- -- -: -: :: :: -:: = - -a
-~ ,
M AI N EV EN TS
Ev en ts a t M ee ru t :
Ne w,. of
In Be ng al sp rea d lik e
a wild fire . ~~ cv,tif
eig hty- five sep oy s re fu s
e d to tou c h the ca '¼r 1
on the pa rad e gr ou nd . 1
.
Th ey we re "'id ,.
I0 ye ars of n go ro us 1m . •
An Art1!-t 's lm p"' s~1 on orn pns on111c nt.sen 1c
O n~ ~
"
,c Flr.11 Wo r ofl nde peu de nce all the sep oy s at Me e ru
t rus he d to the ~ay 11
1./) 8 . La we r Sa lu le!_: Th
e wa ge s of the Ind ian
set free the ir co mr ad es
an d oth er co Jllll <11
so ld1 .-r s we re tll. 1il cq Ev en t• at De lhi : Th e 1"1Vicia •
ua te to su pp or t the ir sol die rs fr
fam 1h es On the oth er ha ·
nd .(t hc Br itis h sol die rs cm ne to De lhi the ne xt mo orn ...
rec cw ed mol'<' lha n eig ht rni ng . Th ey were1.1.-:" '
um cs the sol ary of the by the loc al inf an try . Th
l,Jh~
Ind ian s old ier s)
I •• & ~
t pro cla im ed the ag ed Mu
ey s eized the Ci ~~

~
4v g),al Em per or h 'lrt
. ? Sh ah the em pe ro r of Ind 8
IM M ED IA TE CA US E>
l lffR OD \JCT ION o r TH E E!f
l"tE LD RIF LE
~ J wr ite let ter s to all c hie
u rging the m to org an 1se .
ia. He wa s eoc:
fs an d rul ers fttdl ~
0
~
, j ( In I 85 6, the Br iti sh a con fed era cy of llldJnd11
an
au tho rit ies decid ed :o rep St ate s to tight ag ain st t
lhe old fas hio ne d mu sk et lac e h e Br itis h regime . In tr,
lrallcd the 'Brown Be ss1 pro ce ss the Br iti sh los
f II\. by the ne w 'En fie ld t De lhi .
~ J the En fie ld rifle inv
rifle)
(fh c loa din g pro ces s of
Si r Jo hn Ni ch ols on su
·
olv ed bri ng ing the car tri dg rro un ded Delhi arid
the mo uth an d bit ing off e to aft er fou r mo nth s of att
the top gre ase d pa pe r nc k cap tur ed De!lu. Tht
-..; th the te et h) old em pe ror Ba ha du r Sh
ah wa s found gu~ty ol
(ii t\ {n Ja nu ar y 18 57 . the re wa
s a rum ou r in
aid ing the mo ve me nt. As
so ns we re sh ot de ad in
a pu nis hm en t, his IVl'J
the lkn ga l reg im en ts th fro nt of him. He wai
at the gre ase d car tri dge se nte nc ed to life im pri
ba d the fat of co w or so nm en t an d dcponc,!
pig :)T he sep oy s we re to Ya ng on in M ya nm ar
no w co nv inc ed tha t the wh ere he died in 1862
in t~ uc tio n of gre ase d
ca rtr idg es wa s a de lib era Ev en ts at Lu ck no w:
U te
<\ind Mu sli m religi on s as(__tmo ve to defile Hi nd u
he co w" !f sac red to the wife of the Na wa b of
Begum Ha zra t Mahli,
Aw ad b led the uprisir.;
Hi nd us an d the pig is at Lu ck no w on Ma y 30
a ta bo o to Musli ms~ o. , 18 57 . The city fl'
bo th the Hi nd us an d the rec ap tur ed by the Br iti sh
Mu sli m sol die rs r~ ed in Ma rch 1858. Bcguo
to us e the se ca rtr idg es Ha zra t Ma ha l fle d tow ard
c_i~) wh en the y we re for ced an d sta ge d an up ri sin g s the Nepal frontkr.
to us e th em )
[ BE GI NN IN G OF TH E
UP RI Sm G
)
On Fe br ua ry 26 , 18 57 ,
the 19 th Na tiv e Inf an try
at Be rh am pu r in Be ng
al, ref us ed to acc ep t the
ca rt rid ge s giv en to the
m . Th e reg im en t wa s
d isb an de d as a wa rni ng
to oth er reg im en ts.
Th e se po ys fea red
los s of the i r ca s t e
a nd rel igi on if th ey
ac ce pte d th e gre as ed
ca nr id ge s. As a res ult
Ma ngat Pa nd ey , a sep oy
led an att ac k on the Ad ,
jut an t of the 34 th Na tiv e
M an ga l Pa nd ey Begam Hozr3
C:::16::, IWWW m a: ; • W id

1'nntu, Top.-
Events at Kanpur: Nnnn Snht•h INI the
s tniggle for indcpt'lld<'llt'<' n1 l<nnpur. Th(' AriliHh
surrcndcrro in June 1857. A li1r11.<' numb1•r of
Englishmen. womt'n 1111d l'11ildn•n ,wrc 1·opturC'd
by an infuriat<'d mob.
Th<' British dC'fcat<'d Nana S11heb in December,
1857. Nana Snheb fled towards Nepal. His gen eral ,
T1mtia Tope. escaped lo Kalpi.
Events in Central India (Jhansi and
Gwalior): The battle began at Jhansi early in
June. 1857. Sir Hugh Rose laid siege to the
fortress of Jhansi in March 1858. Rani Laxrni
Bai resisted but Jhansi was captured by the
British when traitors opened the gates of the
fortress for them. The Rani escaped from the
fortress on the night of April 4, 1858 to join
Tantia Tope at Kalpi.
The Rani died fighting the British on
June 17, 1858 at Gwalior. Tantia Tope was
betrayed by the Gwalior Chief, Man Singh and
was hanged on April 18, 1859.
Events at Other Centres: At Bareilly, Khan
Bahedur, a descendant of the former ruler of
Rohilkhand, took command of the movement.
In Bihar, the struggle was led by Kunwar
Singh, the zamindar of Jagdishpur. He had
been deprived of his estates by the British.
At Faizabad, the leadership was taken by
Maulvi Ahmadullah, who aroused the Muslim
community against the British rule.
Bengal, Rohilkhand, Bundelkhand, Central
India, several parts of Bihar and East Punjab
Chronolog y of Events
February 26, 1851: Uni rs! .among th e soldiers
111 llt,rhnmpur, Dc•ni:nl.
March 2 9 , 1 85 7: Rc~rntm<' n l by Mangal
l'nmky n l llnrrnrkpore .
May 9 , l857: Rr~calmrnt by 85 sepoys of
thr Third Cnvnlry ot Mecrut.
May 10, 185 7: The Srpoys at Meerut broke
0111 oprnly agninst the British nnd headed
lownrtli, Drlhi .
May l l -3 0, 1857: Out breaks in Delhi,
Fcroirpur, Oombny, Barcllly, Allgarh , Eta wah,
0 u londshahr, Lucknow. The Mugha l Emperor
proclaimed as the Emperor of lndla.
June 1857: Uprising at Gwalior , Bharatpur,
Jhansi, Allahabad, Faizabad.
August 1857: Uprising at Indore. Mhow,
S11ugar, Jhelum, Sialkot , etc.
September 1857: Recapture of Delhi by the
E.n glish.
Nouember 18S7: Defeat of the British at
Kanpur.
December J857: Victory of the British at
Kanpur, escape of Tantia Tope.
Jfarc:h 1858: Recapture of Lucknow by the
British.
April 1858: Victory of the British a t Jhanai.
Uprising in Bihar by Kunwar Singh.
June 17, 1858: Death or Rani of .Jhansi.
.lilly-December 18&8: Re-establishment or
British Authority in India.
April 18&9: Tantia Tope captw'ed and banged
to death.
rose against the British policies. In several
States in India, the rulers remained loyal to
the British Government but their soldiers rose
against the British. In most or these places,
common people rose up in arms and fought
with their axes and spears., bows and '"1)WS.
 - -
CONSEQUENCES OF THE FIRST
WAR 01-· lNJlt l'hNOr.Nl'l-
l
Even th o u gh th e u1n ·isi n ~ of 18 57 was ll
s upprt'!IS<'d . it 11hook the Bnti11h rule in lnclifl n
to its vr ry fou ndntiol\. It b rou ght a bout for p
reaching cffcc-1s on lndia.n soc-iospoli hcol life . g
These were: a,
1 . End o r t h ~ Company'• Rule : The ti
mos t sigruficant re11ul1 of 1he upris ing of I 857 a
was the end of the rule of lhe East Indio Q V'
uccn ,ctor1a
~ Company a nd assumption of the Government 0

&,.' (JtJc of India directly by the C~own. This was d~ne 6 n t agcncraJ pardon toaJ I those who
'by-- rhe Government of India Act of 1858 which ? ta ken part in the War except th h.: 8
had the followin g provisions: t,.,(-"',-t-1...(, fµ,i,;..,...- ,• were found gu il ty oi mu rd fose _"'hoi a
er o Bnuth ti
t transfe rred the power to govern subjects ;
i,
ndia from the East India Company to ,. ~ •t best to adva ce th • .
the British Crown.'\ 1'Vl ao ~ s n e mdustrrr, ill
'..:/ India; and it
(ii) \.,,:ffieCompany 's Board of Control and Court . ____. .
of Directors were abolished.l'The power 1'l'J" promote wol!ks of pubhc utility in ln<ii, tl
tc
was to be exercised by the ~ecretary of so as to ensure the material as weUai
Seate for India, aided by a Council)rhe the . moral progress of the ~0£1~ ~
R
e
Secretary of State was a member of the ~ 3 E d f M hat dp h , n
British Cabinet and was responsible to the · n ° ug _ ..!!.,!!I,_!!~ '!!~With lbt
Parliam. cnt . Th us, ~ .. u 1,,_
u,e .....a te power over deatii of Bahadur Shah II, who was deported lo
India remained with the British Parliament. Yangon, the Mughal dynasty came to an end.
( ~ t u a J governance was to be carried on, as Nana Saheb, the last Peshwa, had taken
"C
E
· before, by the Governor-General who was an active part in the u prising and bad Jltd
a
also given the title of Viceroy or Crown's to Nepal after the failure of the uprising. So
C
personal representative. Lord Canning was the office of the Peshwa also came to an end.
the first Viceroy under this Act) Thus.~nded two of the most formidable foes
'Ill
~intments to the Civil Service were to of the British-the Marathas and the Mugh~.
\J
•·· •li;;'~de by open competition\mder rules _4 . Relations with Princely ~tatea/ 'fhc n
W~ =1e~ the Secretary of State. ? Policy of Annexation and the Doctnne of tap1t ii
6(Z · 2 . Queen Victoria'• Proclamation: 'The were~bandoned}Some of the Indian prince.9had b
Queen's Proclamation incorporating the transfer remamed loy~to the British and had helped t:
of governance from East India Co/11pany to the them in suppressing the uprising. Their loyalty
British Crown was made public~at Allahabad, was rewarded with the announcement mat \J
on November 1, 1858, by Lord Canning, the their right to adopt heirs would be respected 1
~ first Viceroy oflndia.► -e proclamation promised and the integrity of their territories guarall1~ 0
that the Government of India would
~ollow a _J>:Olicy of non-interve~tion in social
and religious matters of Indians;
against future annexation.
f In 1876, Queen Victoria assum~
ol-the 'IEmpress of India.•)'he Indian pr,11tht
th~:: h
11
0

~ a t all subject&-Jndiana and Europeans- willingly became junior pat&iers or age~tso~

r
as equals (education and ability would be British Crown because they were pro~•~~tcs.
the basis of all appointments); they would continue as rulers of their
I

'
 S. Policy o r Divide and Rule: Mer 1858
the British con tinu ed their policy of 'divide a nd
rule '_by tu~ng the princes agai ns t the people,
province agruns t province, ca ste against caste,
group agains t group and above all, Hindus
against Muslims. They alicnotcd the people from
their rule.rs by giving them s p<'cial protection
and concession s.
The Governme nt cleverly used lhe attractions
of governmen t service to create a split aJong
religiou s lines am ong the educated Indians. The
British also enc:-ouragcd hatred and ill-feeling
among the Hindus and the Muslims so lh Al
they could never challenge th<' British Empire
in India .
e :- Racial Anta,conis m: The British believed
in their racial superiority and they thought
that a social d istance was to be maintained
to preserve the ir authority over the Lndians .
Railway compartm ents, parks , hotels, clubs ,
etc., reserved for ~uropean s onl{ were visible
manifestati ons of this racialis";)
7 . Foreign Policy: India's foreign policy
was dictated by the interests of the British
Government. It fulfilled the two aims of the
British - (a) protection of its Indian Empire;
and (b) expansion of British economic and
commercial interests in Asia and Africa.
The cost of implement ation of these policies
was borne by the lndil!.DS, For instance, India
under the British had to wage wars with her
neighbours like Nepal and Burma (Myanmar)
in which Indian soldiers had to shed their
blood and the lndian taxpayers had to meet
the hea\-y cost of the war.
8. lncreaaed Racial Bittemeu: After the
uprising of 1857, racial bitterness increased.
The British dubbed all Indians as unworthy
of trust and aubjected them to insults and
humiliation. In fact, the entire structure of the
Indian governmen t was remodelled and based
on the idea of a superior race.
9. Religtou 1 Cbange1: The Brltiah
ruJtfs declared emphatically their policy of
non -interferen ce in the religious affair s ,
customs and traditions of the India n s.
l O. Ch1u1;ge~ lri thf' Army: The Indian army
was reorganised aner 18_5~. to prevent theJ
reoccurrcncc of another upnsmg. m the follov.ing
m anncr:, t t J , ' ' I; r ; j • <.l.. ~
(ii( The s trength of European lroops in lndia
. / wos increased) The ratio of European to
lnd,on Lroops was fixed al l ·2 (Bengal
army) an d 2 :5 (Mad ras and Bombay
armies). PractJcolly lhe same ratio was
mnlntained till the Firsl World war.(The
general principle adopted was that the
number of lndi.an sepoys should not ~ ceed
twice that of lhe European troops. ~
@, cturopean troo ps were kept in key
geographic al and military positions )
(Vo desist the Indian soldiers from rising again
against the British rule, the sophisticat ed
weapons and ammunitio n were never
placed under the charge of Indians/'All
Indian artillery units, with the exceptions
of a few mountain units, were disbanded ))
(iv) ~is_criminatio n on the basis or caste,
__,,,., region and religion was practised in the
recruitmen t to the army/
CvtZln order to discourag e nationalis m,
~easur es such as introduction of caste and
. c:mmunity in most regiments werie tak~ )
(vii biewspap ers, journals and nationalis t
~blica tio~iw ere prevented from
reaching the s o ~ o keep the Indian
army separated froiii'
the life of the rest
of the population. I!'~ J.. ·J
11. Economic Exploitati on: The uprising
of 1857 ~ocdnll lhe e,e. ef ,,M:oriol mpu1icm
aact-uahered in the era of economic exploitatio n?
in the following manner: •
~ was turned into a typical colonial
economy, exporting raw material and
importing finished goods.
~ sawy and allowancet or the Secretary
of State and members of the India Council.
 th e ci vil s erv (licers .,.-ere ll l.) 'fhCmo v e m e n t b a d n o c o m mo n &oat
1
onts o n d m1ht"1Y O it eXCCP t fo r th e a n u·- ,o r ,
a la rge d rw •s rc so u rec s , rc1g n ~ n" ~
n o n th e c ountrY c- n s t In d ia " Ill~:
I11 1·1 The =r e x
.- C o m pa ny h a
(1iil P ea s an , pove n s h c d n d c r th e
On ti !h rule
t s we re ,m
lf h c ind ig: p
u )n,
a n ts of Bl ... m en o
Nich olso n , H
c e p ti on al a b 'l ' .
d
1 111es li. ke
t h
t.;
e ~"\
i, 1
r tvoltcd o n e~: \866-68 - avelock , O u lllrt
h la rge s c c T he y fo u gh tr a m, Carn r,~
. dJCJ11fts e tc . t th e to u g h
Uldu sm cs s u in it ia l s ta g e s t b a tt ~
(1v) /R . u ral a s u ch a s h ~, th e es o f t h e
\s i,m ru ng 5 :d 11-. cavin g c oll 1 1 p s ' co n troll e d th . ti u p n5111-- q \
' c v e s 1 tu a o n t' ll .
I rc in fo r~g lt,j
lv\ ~ e In d ia n s h a d to p . h eavy in tu c s ts and were received Crom a b I!>" '
a) ro a d.
" , d cnd,i_on th s ·u s h CG P.• _, in v e st e d "'
IC. \lj in In e_ ~ " '
c d th "e ir \iv) 'f h e B ri ti s h E m p ir e
" 'I d ia,111e B n u s urplus u rc c s in t
h a d fa r su...
ta ~ h in~c~t erm s o f m
ca pt . l in ln d ta UI raih,a \a ntatiOns , : : ~c rials to e n , rn~ ....r~
co a lmU1es, ys. p th e In d ian s
ju te mills . sh • et
ip p in g. c· (v) The m o
.
~,
1 2 . Rl,ic o f v e m e nt d id
'l&tionall1m n o t
1 8 57 - s th : T h e u_p n·S g of d im e n s io n s h a ve n ation~-
<t
e first $ \n ig g l: o le . It c o u ld
fo r h tt dom le o f th e In d S o u th In d ia n o t s p re a d ll)ll (b
fr o m Bn ti sh ia n p p d a n d m o st o ll
•'-• .,.,. ., for th imperialism. f E a s tem or
e rise of th e It p a v e In d ia. S in d Wq,_
u •~ , n a ti a n d R aja st
T he sacnnc o n a l m o v e m e n t. Nepal h e lp e ha n rem a in
cs m a d e b d in th e s ed~
S a h eb a n d y R a n i L a x . B . Nana up p re ssion o
M.angal P a n m l a l, m o v e m e n t. f~
d e y served Bom
o f inspir&tw
n for th e f u a s a source remained loy b a y a n d Madras ~
T h e hCTOic ~ freedom al to th e B ri
su u g g lc a ls fighters. lvil Some o f th tis h .
tr a d ru o n s o o e st a b li sh e e ru le rs o f th
f re si st a n c e d v a lu a b le e In d ia n S ta
to th e British th e b ig z a t' 3 ~
1 3 . W id c u rule. m in d a rs re
in l o f th e m o v e m e n t. fu s e d to jo
ll in d U $ &.a G ulf B e tw ,11 ll-c
d l&ualima: een
of In d e p e n d D u ri n g th e
F ir st W a r
lviil S o m e s e c ti o n s
e n c e , b o th o f th e In d ia
M u sl im s sho th e H in d u s h o st il e to th n society '-lll
wed g re a t e n a n d th e e u p ris in g
fight a g a in st th u si a sm a n m o n e y le n d e . F o r examp
th e a li e n g o v d ztal to rs a n d th e le , lbt 1
u p ri sm g, th emmenL B u Mumbai, K o b ig rnercban
e g u ll betQ/e t a ft e r th e lk a ta a n d C 11 d
Widened. T ca th e two c o profits c a m hennai, whose
h is w a s th m m u n it ie s e fr o m e c o tmD
B ri ti sh p o li c e c o n se q u e w it h th e B ri n o m ic connta
y o f 'Divid n c e o { th e ti s h m e rc h ioni
th e y ~ e a n d R u le z a m in d a rs a n ts . B e side
th e seeds o ' b y w h ic h s, SG!I
f d is se n si o n of Bengal
tw o C0111 between th B ri ti s h . w e re loyal
J1lllllibe. lt
was a delibe e to lilt
so th a t the tw ra te a tt e m p t
o c:ommun Some s e c ti o
to g e th e r to ities m ig h t ne n s o f th e ed
p o se a th re ver come n o t s u p p o rt ucated Indians
in In d ia . a t to th e B ri th e c a u s e a s di!
\:U,,,,l"-"J'l DRAWBAC
KS O F T H
ti sh ru le n o ti o n th a t
th e m a .ccom
th e B ri ti s h
pllsb th e ta s
th e y h a d the
ru le would bt
k of modcrnisa
Vf fll0 &
le
OF IR D E P E E F IR S T W A R ] while th o s e o
p p o s in g th e tiGD
NDENCE w o u ld take B ri ti sh g(JY
T h e follow - th e c o u n tr y tT !l lld
ing were th e b
W a r o f In d d ra w b a c k s \viiil T h e u p r a c k w a rd -
e p e n d e n c e: o f th e F in t is in g w a s
(ii T h e m o o n May31, supposed
v e m e n t d id 1857. B to bell"
not have c c a n ri d g e s in u t d u e to t
p la n s o f m il ommon c id e n t, it b e he~
it a ry a c ti o n g a n much be
le a d e rs h ip . o r a c e n tr a is th e fixed d a te fol!
cd .
d is o rg a n is e d S o th e w h o le p l a n
T h e u p ri s in
p a rt s o f th e g s in d if fe ~
c o u n tr y w e re n t .
u n c o o rd in a re comple NA't V l\ E
te d . tely OP 'M K W
All.
,, 20 HislOrlans a
n d s c h o la rs
th e n a tu re
or th e o u tbhre a v e differen t
vie-NS
a k o f 1 8 5 7, etlP
"v~.,-
Damodar Savarkar, in his book Tile Indian War I 857, it is generally hailed as the First War
of Tndependence described it as "a planned of Independence, because:
war of national independence". Noted historian
(i) It was the first mass uprising in which all
S. N. Sen also beli eves tha t th e upris ing of 1he sections of lndia.n society participa ted
18 57 was a wa r of in<lcpc nc!e ncc. According to
against a common enemy, i.e., the British.
him, the uprising began a s n fight for religion
(ii) It paved the way for Lhe rise of modem
and ended as a war of Independence as the
n11.lional movement. The sacrifices made
revolutionaries wanted to get rid of the alien
by Laxmi Bai, Nana Saheb and Mangal
governmen t and restore l hc old order of which
Pandey served as a source of inspiration
the King of Del hi was the righll\.11 rcprescnta livc.
to the leaders and ~ople to fight for the
Whatever be the nature of the uprising of
independence of India from the British rule.

Cauaea or the F-trat War or Independence

► PoUUcal Cau,e■: Ii) British Policies of Expansion; (ii) Doctrine of Lapse; jiii) Disrespect
shown to Bahadur Shah; (iv) Annexation of Awadh; M Treatment meted out to Nana Saheb
aud Rani Laxmi Bai; 11nd (vi) Absentee Sovereignty of the British.
► Soclo-Reli&iou■ Cau■ea: (ii Interference with sooial customs; (iii Apprehensions about
Modem Innovations; (iii) Policy of Racial discrimination; (iv) Cortuption in Administration
(v) Oppression of the Poor; (Vil Activities of the missionaries; (viii Fears regarding Western
education; !viii) Trucing religious places; and (ix) Law of Property.
► Economic CallNS! (i) Exploitation of Economic Resources; (ii) Drain of Wealth l'rom India;
(iii) Decay of cotlage industries and handicrans: (Iv) Economic decline of the peasantJy;
(v) Growing unemployment; (vi) Anoexatien of Rent-free land and other estates; (vii) Inhuman
treatment of indigo cultivators; and (viii) Poverty and famines.
► IIWtary Cau■e,: (i) Ill-treatment of Indian soldiers; (iii General Service Enlistment Act;
(iii) Large proportion of Indians in the British Anny; (iv) Bleak prospects of promotions to
higher ranks (v) Deprivation of allowances to the Indian soldiers; (vi) Faulty distribution of
troops; (vii) Poor perfonnance of British troops; and (viii) Lower salaries of the Indian aoldle;s,
Jmmetllate Cause
► The cartridges used in the newly introduced Enfield rifle were aaid to 'be greased with the
fat of cows or pigis. The greased paper of the cartridges had to be bitten off with the teeth
before loading them in the rifle. The use of these cartridges angered both the Hindu and
Muslim sepoys.
The Renlts 1111d Bll'ecta or the l'int War or ladepadea.ce
(ii End of the Company's Rule; Iii) Queen V"i.ctoria's Proclamation; (iii) End of the Mugbals
and Peshwas: (iv) Change in relation, with Princely States; (v) Policy of Divide and Rule:
(vi) Racial antagonimn; (vii) Foreign Policy; (viii) Religious changes; (ix) Changes In the Army;

. ---
Ix) Increased racial bitterness: lxi) Economic exploitation; and llrii) Rise
---wbacb or tla• rtnt War or ladepea....._aee
or
nationalism.

(Q Lack of planning, organisation and leadership; (HJ Lack of common ca1.111e; (iii) Lack or
partidpation or all sections of aociety; livl Lack of Resources; (v) Laclc: of nationwid .. ,Jimnsionll;
and (Yi) Beglnplng '4 the movement before the lixed date.