60-second revision
- Mangal Pandey (34th Bengal Native Infantry) attacked officers at Barrackpore on 29 March 1857; hanged 8 April.
- The revolt began at Meerut on 10 May 1857; sepoys reached Delhi next day and proclaimed Bahadur Shah Zafar emperor.
- Immediate cause: greased cartridges of the new Enfield rifle.
- Leaders: Nana Saheb and Tantia Tope (Kanpur), Begum Hazrat Mahal (Lucknow), Rani Lakshmibai (Jhansi), Kunwar Singh (Jagdishpur, Bihar).
- Governor-General: Lord Canning. Lakshmibai died fighting near Gwalior in June 1858.
- Bahadur Shah Zafar was exiled to Rangoon; Tantia Tope was hanged in April 1859.
- Government of India Act 1858 ended Company rule; Queen's Proclamation read at Allahabad on 1 November 1858.
- V. D. Savarkar called it "The Indian War of Independence"; R. C. Majumdar disagreed.
Causes
| Type | Causes |
|---|---|
| Political | Doctrine of Lapse (Satara, Jhansi, Nagpur); annexation of Awadh (1856); Nana Saheb's pension stopped; announcement that the Mughal title would end after Bahadur Shah |
| Economic | Heavy land revenue; loss of land by zamindars and talukdars; ruin of artisans by cheap British goods |
| Social and religious | Fear that reforms (Sati abolition, Widow Remarriage Act 1856) and missionary activity aimed at conversion; Religious Disabilities Act 1850 let converts inherit property |
| Military | Low pay and poor promotion for Indian sepoys; General Service Enlistment Act 1856 required service overseas; loss of foreign service allowance (batta) |
| Immediate | Cartridges of the new Enfield rifle, rumoured to be greased with cow and pig fat, had to be bitten open |
How it began
On 29 March 1857 Mangal Pandey of the 34th Bengal Native Infantry attacked his officers at Barrackpore near Calcutta; he was hanged on 8 April. The real outbreak came at Meerut on 10 May 1857, when sepoys of the 3rd Bengal Light Cavalry and others freed their imprisoned comrades, killed officers and marched to Delhi. On 11 May they reached Delhi and proclaimed the aged Bahadur Shah Zafar emperor of Hindustan. Bakht Khan, a sepoy commander from Bareilly, later led the rebel army at Delhi.
Centres, leaders and British commanders
| Centre | Indian leader(s) | British officer(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Delhi | Bahadur Shah Zafar (nominal), Bakht Khan | John Nicholson, William Hodson, Archdale Wilson |
| Kanpur | Nana Saheb, Tantia Tope, Azimullah Khan | Henry Havelock, Colin Campbell |
| Lucknow | Begum Hazrat Mahal | Henry Havelock, James Outram, Colin Campbell |
| Jhansi | Rani Lakshmibai | Hugh Rose |
| Jagdishpur / Arrah (Bihar) | Kunwar Singh | Vincent Eyre |
| Bareilly | Khan Bahadur Khan | Colin Campbell |
| Faizabad | Maulvi Ahmadullah | — |
| Allahabad and Banaras | Liaquat Ali (Allahabad) | Colonel James Neill |
Suppression
The British recaptured Delhi in September 1857; Bahadur Shah surrendered at Humayun's Tomb and was later exiled to Rangoon, where he died in 1862. Lucknow was finally retaken in March 1858. Rani Lakshmibai died fighting near Gwalior in June 1858; Sir Hugh Rose is said to have called her the bravest of the rebel leaders. Tantia Tope continued guerrilla war until he was betrayed, captured and hanged at Shivpuri on 18 April 1859. Nana Saheb and Begum Hazrat Mahal escaped to Nepal.
Why the revolt failed
- It was limited mainly to north and central India; the south, Punjab and Bengal stayed largely quiet.
- Many princes, big zamindars and the educated middle class did not join, and some helped the British.
- The rebels lacked a common plan, central leadership and modern weapons.
- The British controlled the telegraph and could bring troops from elsewhere.
Consequences
- Government of India Act 1858: Company rule ended; a Secretary of State for India with a 15-member Council of India; the Governor-General also became Viceroy.
- Queen Victoria's Proclamation, read by Lord Canning at Allahabad on 1 November 1858, promised religious tolerance, respect for princes' rights and an end to annexations.
- The army was reorganised: more European soldiers and Indian units mixed by caste and region.
- The British increasingly followed "divide and rule" and allied with princes and landlords.
How historians describe it
| Historian | View |
|---|---|
| V. D. Savarkar | "The Indian War of Independence of 1857" (1909) — a planned national war |
| S. N. Sen | "Eighteen Fifty-Seven", the official centenary history — began as a mutiny, became a war of independence in some areas |
| R. C. Majumdar | Neither the first, nor national, nor a war of independence |
| Many British writers | A "Sepoy Mutiny" |
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