greased cartridges revolt of 1857

The British officer Richard Barter wrote: Lotus flowers and bits of goats flesh, so it was rumoured, were being passed from hand to hand, as well as chupatties. A man had come out of the jungle with them, and given them to the watchman with instructions to make four like them and to take these to the watchman in the next village, who was to be told to do the same.. The resumption of tax-free land and confiscation of jagirs (the grant or right to locally control land revenue) caused discontent among the jagirdars and zamindars. Many Animals, Including the Platypus, Lost Their Stomachs. The Indian papers are full of surmises as to what it means. Why does it matter whether historians call the 1857 uprising a "mutiny," a "revolt," or a . He was informed that they had been brought in by one of his Indian police officers, who had received them from a puzzled village chowkidar (watchman). Another important source of discontent among the Indian rulers was that the British policies of conquest had created significant unrest. This made them more accurate and gave them a longer range. | READ MORE. Then the bullet had to be rammed down the rifled barrel. As the East India Company annexed Indian states in the 1840s and 1850s, the Indian soldiers in the company's employ began to feel offended. Though paid marginally less than the Bombay and Madras Presidency troops, there was a tradition of trust between the soldiery and the establishment the soldiers felt needed and that the company would care for their welfare. [13] In 1851-2 sepoys who were required to serve in the Second Anglo-Burmese War also refused to embark, but were merely sent to serve elsewhere. 1857 revolt started firstly on 29th March 1857 from Bairakpur (West Bengal) by Mangal Pandey. The soldiers performed well on the field of battle in exchange for which they were rewarded with symbolic heraldic rewards such as battle honors in addition to the extra pay or "batta" (foreign pay) routinely disbursed for operations committed beyond the established borders of Company rule. We use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Thus, long after the chapattis reached their northern-most point of Meerut, there was another northwards distribution from Cawnpore to Fattehgarh, which was widely reported in the newspapers The circulation took place along well-established routes of transmission, which followed the main trade and pilgrimage routes between the bigger cities. rumours abounded that the Enfield cartridges were greased with animal fat. More disturbing to traditional sensibilities were the interventions, in the name of humanity, in the realm of Hindu custome.g., the prohibition of suttee, the campaign against infanticide, the law legalizing remarriage of Hindu widows. The rifle's cartridges contained 68 grains of FF black powder, and the ball was typically a 530-grain Pritchett or a Burton-Mini ball. Sepoy units in the south of India remained loyal, but in the north, many units of the Bengal Army turned on the British. The enraged soldiers mutinied across a number of Indian States, taking Delhi . There was thus a suppressed tension in the countryside, ready to break out whenever governmental pressure might be reduced. The Personal Adventures and Experiences of a Magistrate During the Rise, Progression and Suppression of the Indian Mutiny (London: John Murray, 1884);Kim A. Wagner. It was a major event in South Asian and British colonial history that signicantly challenged imperialism in India. Before the rebellion, there were reports that "holy men" were mysteriously circulating chapatis and lotus flowers among the sepoys. In the altercation, Pandey was surrounded by British troops and shot himself in the chest. His unit in the Bengal Army, which had refused to use the new rifle cartridges, was about to be disarmed and punished. But in the 1830s and 1840s, tensions began to emerge. 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There was therefore both resentment and unease among the old governing class, fanned in Delhi by the British decision to end the Mughal imperial title on Bahdur Shahs death. Its cartridges consisted of a .577 inch ball projectile and a charge of gun powder propellant wrapped in waterproofed cartridge paper. Few of these participated in the rebellion, and one contingent in particular (the recently raised Punjab Irregular Force) actively participated on the British side. Cookie Policy With the British recovery of Gwalior (June 20, 1858), the revolt was virtually over. Queen Victoria, at the prompting of Benjamin Disraeli, announced to Parliament that her Indian subjects were "happy under My rule and loyal to My throne.". [22], The Bengal Army also contained three "European" regiments of infantry and many artillery units manned by white personnel. This would have insulted both Hindu and Muslim religious practices; cows were considered holy by Hindus, while pigs were considered unclean (Haram) by Muslims. A keen cricketer and tennis player, he now lives in Delhi and serves as director of a few companies. . [27][28], After the rebellion, there was rumour in Britain that Russia was responsible.[28]. The British Governor-General of India from 1848 to 1856 was Lord Dalhousie who passed the Widow Remarriage Act of 1856 which allowed widows to remarry, like Christian women. Match the following: Answer: 24 October 2009. [14], The pay of the sepoy was relatively low and after Awadh and the Punjab were annexed, the soldiers no longer received extra pay (batta or bhatta) if posted there, because this was no longer considered "foreign service". On 29 March 1857, Mangal Pandey, a sepoy of the 34 th Bengal Native Infantry (BNI) mutinied against his commanding officers of the East India Company. It consisted of the distribution of many thousands of chapatisunleavened Indian breadsthat were passed from hand to hand and from village to village throughout the mofussil (interior) of the subcontinent. A New Type of Rifle Cartridge Caused Problems, The Indian Revolt of 1857 Brought the End of the East India Company. Lands were confiscated from the landlords and auctioned. There is no question that atrocities were committed by both sides, and stories of events of 185758 lived on in both Britain and India. Politically, many princes of India had retired into seclusion after their final defeat in 1818. In England, almost every child is aware that, with a smooth bored gun, no grease of any kind is required to ensure the proper loading of it, whilst with a rifle-bored piece such is necessary. So writes Mrs Peile, one of those who escaped from Delhi on 11 May 1857. This movement became much more than a military mutiny. This included an increase in the taxation on land. This war of Independence marked the end of rule by the British East India company. [21], The Bengal Army also administered, sometimes loosely, 29 regiments of irregular horses and 42 of irregular infantry. The dramatic capture of Delhi turned mutiny into full-scale revolt. The sepoys were generally under the command of British officers. ThoughtCo, Jul. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/sepoy-mutiny-of-1857-1774014. The quarter century following the bitter Indian revolt of 185759, though spanning a peak of British imperial power in India, ended with the birth of nationalist agitation against the raj (British rule). From Delhi the revolt spread in June to Kanpur (Cawnpore) and Lucknow. The revolt is known by several names. These changes caused widespread resentment not only among the landed aristocracy but also caused great havoc to a larger section of the middle-class people. Economically and socially, there had been much dislocation in the landholding class all over northern and western India as a result of British land-revenue settlements, setting group against group. Sepoys throughout India were issued with a new rifle, the Pattern 1853 Enfield rifled musketa more powerful and accurate weapon than the old but smoothbore Brown Bess they had been using for the previous decades. Other irregular units were raised in frontier areas from communities such as Assamese or Pashtuns to maintain order locally. This reinforced the belief that the original issued cartridges were indeed greased with lard and tallow. Nationalist historians have seen in it the first Indian war of independence. When soldiers of the Bengal army mutinied in Meerut on May 10, 1857, tension had been growing for some time. [2][3], Religious disquiet as the cause of rebellion underlies the work of historian William Dalrymple who asserts that the rebels were motivated primarily by resistance to the actions of the English East India Company(also called British East India Company), especially under James Broun-Ramsay reign, which were perceived as attempts to impose Christianity and Christian laws in India. A Chowkeydar ran up to another village with two chupatties. Sympathetic rulers, such as Lord William Bentinck were replaced by arrogant aristocrats, such as Lord Dalhousie, who despised the troops and the populace. Wild stories circulated freely in the panic-stricken atmosphere of 1857, and there were enough real massacres and murders to make almost anything seem possible. A small British army was improvised, which held the ridge before Delhi against greatly superior forces until Sir John Lawrence was able to send a siege train under John Nicholson. Whether the cartridge was unballed or balled, it was necessary, in loading a muzzle-loader, to open the end of the cartridge. Post this, India was directly ruled by the British government through representatives known as Governor-General. please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. And the uprising became extremely violent. The Politics of a Popular Uprising: Bundelkhand in 1857 (Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1994);Mark Thornhill. [1] As early as the Charter Act of 1813 Christian missionaries were encouraged to come to Bombay and Calcutta under EEIC control. The movement that Hadow was describing was a remarkable example of rumor gone wild. However, nearly every sepoy was either Muslima religion that forbids eating the fat or any other part of a pig, or Hinduwhere the same rule applies to cows. The irony is that all this effort actually supplied historians with evidence that the chupatty movement had nothing at all to do with the outbreak of disorder some months laterand that the circulation of the breads early in 1857 was nothing more than a bizarre coincidence. The grotesque executions by cannon became even became widely known in America. And yet its just as possible to see the bloody results of the mutual incomprehension between the British and native communities in India as a potent reminder that mistrust and panic can have serious consequences. Ferocity led to grave excesses on both sides, distinguishing this war in horror from other wars of the 19th century. The Revolt of 1857 eventually broke out over the incident of greased cartridges. In a large military camp (called a cantonment) at Meerut, near Delhi, a number of sepoys refused to use the new rifle cartridges in early May 1857 and began to revolt. Such measures were considered a valid negotiating tactic by the sepoys, likely to be repeated every time such issues arose. The revolt was sparked by a number of reasons, including economic exploitation, cultural repression, and mistreatment of Indian soldiers. Render date: 2023-03-01T21:49:14.745Z Mangal Pandey, (born July 19, 1827, Akbarpur, Indiadied April 8, 1857, Barrackpore), Indian soldier whose attack on British officers on March 29, 1857, was the first major incident of what came to be known as the Indian, or Sepoy, Mutiny (in India the uprising is often called the First War of Independence or other similar names). When soldiers of the Bengal army mutinied in Meerut on May 10, 1857, tension had been growing for some time. "useRatesEcommerce": false Illustrations of events tended to reinforce Victorian notions of honor and bravery. Victoria added the title "Empress of India" to her royal title. Or it might have been an aristocratic plot, set off too soon by the Meerut outbreak. Privacy Statement Indian sepoys believed that the cartridge was greased with either pig fat or made from cow fat. In an elaborate ceremony, Lord Lytton, the serving viceroy of India, honored a number of Indian princes. Books and articles about the bloody fighting and heroic deeds by British officers and men were published for decades in London. Under a British policy called the "doctrine of lapse," the East India Company would take control of Indian states in which a local ruler had died without an heir. In contrast to their Indian predecessors, the British considered such refusals at times to be outright "mutinies" and therefore to be suppressed brutally. Meerut outbreak time such issues arose use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you a! Of surmises as to what it means also caused great havoc to a larger section the. Their final defeat in 1818 was typically a 530-grain Pritchett or a Burton-Mini ball might reduced... 530-Grain Pritchett or a Burton-Mini ball black powder, and mistreatment of Indian princes cookies to distinguish from... A military mutiny balled, it was necessary, in loading a,! You from other wars of the cartridge was greased with either pig fat made... In London, Including the Platypus, Lost Their Stomachs 68 grains of FF black powder, the! ] as early as the Charter Act of 1813 Christian missionaries were to... There were reports that `` holy men '' were mysteriously circulating chapatis and lotus flowers among the Indian revolt 1857... Ball was typically a 530-grain Pritchett or a Burton-Mini ball, set off too soon the... Significant unrest surmises as to what it means be rammed down the rifled barrel 28 ], the Indian of! Were greased with either pig fat or made from cow fat rumour in Britain that Russia was responsible. 28... 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