Rebellion of 1857

                                             Modern Indian History - 1

Indian Rebellion of 1857 :

On 20 March 1857 in Barrackpore, Mangal Pandey refused to use the guns whose catridges was made up of cow's flesh and attacked British officers at the military garrison in Barrackpore. As a result he was arrested and hanged to death on 8 April 1857.

       

On 10 May 1857 the revolt started , this revolt was also called the 'Sepoy Mutiny' or the first war of Independence.Begun in Meerut by Indian troops (sepoys) in the service of the British East India Company, it spread to Delhi, Agra, Kanpur, and Lucknow. The Governor-General at this time was Lord Canning. The riots started from various part of the country. National leader of this revolt was Bahadur Shah Zafar, from Delhi. Begum Hazrat Mahal from Lucknow, Rani Laxmi Bai from Jhansi, Bhakt khan from Bareilly, Tantya Tope, Nana Saheb and Ramchand Padurang from Kanpur and Veer Kunwar Singh from Jagdishpur.

The immediate result of the mutiny was a general housecleaning of the Indian administration. The East India Company was abolished in favour of the direct rule of India by the British government.The Indian army was also extensively reorganized.Another significant result of the mutiny was the beginning of the policy of consultation with Indians. The new council of 1861 was given an Indian-nominated element. The educational and public works programs (roads, railways, telegraphs, and irrigation) continued with little interruption. From here heightened sense of Indian nationalism emerged among the middle class.