Nature And Character of Revolt

Background

To dismiss the revolt as a sepoy mutiny is to misunderstand its motivations. In 1820, India established British supremacy, or the belief in British rule over Indian political, economic, and cultural life. The British utilized several techniques to seize control of Hindu princely kingdoms that were part of subsidiary alliances with the British. The ancient Indian nobility was being supplanted by British bureaucrats everywhere. Lord Dalhousie pioneered the idea of lapse, an influential British method, in the late 1840s. The British forbade a Hindu monarch without a natural heir from picking a successor and annexed his kingdom when he died or surrendered. To these issues might be added the rising resentment of the Brahmans, many of whom had lost lucrative jobs or had their earnings taken away. Another primary source of worry was the rapid rate at which the entrance of Western ideas was influencing Hindu culture. Missionaries were challenging the Hindus’ religious beliefs. Reforms outside the political superstructure arose from the humanitarian movement. Lord Dalhousie fought to emancipate women and remove all legal restrictions on Hindu widow remarriage during his governor-generalship of India (1848–56). Converts to Christianity were expected to divide the family estate’s property with their Hindu kin.  There was a widespread perception that the British intended to demolish the caste system. The advent of Western teaching techniques was a direct challenge to Hindu and Muslim orthodoxy. The Bengal army erupted because Indians were solely organized in the military arena. Insurgency erupted in response to the introduction of the new Enfield rifle. The sepoys had to bite off the ends of lubricated cartridges to load it. The sepoys believed the grease used to lubricate the cartridges was a mixture of pig and cow fat and that consuming it was a disrespect to both Muslims and Hindus. There is no proof that these materials were employed on the cartridges in question. The impression that the cartridges were poisoned, on the other hand, led to the more significant assumption that the British were attempting to subvert Indian traditional culture. The British, for their part, did not pay enough attention to the rising degree of sepoy dissatisfaction....

Nature And Character of Revolt

Historians have differing perspectives on the nature of the rebellion. The British saw it as a “Military Revolt” that lacked the leadership of any Indian leaders and the assistance of the people. On the other hand, that insurrection was seen as a National War of Independence by Indian patriots. The following are the significant points of view on the nature and character of the 1857 Revolt-• Military Revolt• Attempt for establishing the Mughal Power• Aristocrat Reaction• Peasant Reaction• National Revolution• racial struggle for supremacy between Black and White• struggled between Oriental and Occidental Civilization and Culture• National War of Independence...

Causes Of the Revolt Of 1857

The revolt began as a military insurrection and looked to be the latest in a long line of mutinies, but its roots were deeply rooted in changing times. It received support from a variety of sources of dissent against British rule. Political, economic, military, and social factors all played a role in the uprising....

Outbreak Of the Revolt Of 1857

Barrackpur, India,  the 34th Native Infantrymen refused to use the greased cartridges on March 29, and a sepoy called Mangal Pandey breached the lines and shot at Lieutenant Baugh. Mangal Pandey was apprehended and put to death. Behrampur was also dissolved after disobeying the authorities. Meerut saw the first significant outburst that eventually led to the 1857 Revolt. On May 10, 1857, eighty-five sepoys of the Cavalry Regiment were court-martialed for refusing to use greased cartridges. The sepoys erupted in open rebellion, shooting their superiors and releasing their fellow sepoys, and marching towards Delhi. On May 12, the sepoys stormed Delhi and took the palace, establishing Bahadur Shah II as India’s ruler....