First War of Indian Independence (1857)
The first war of independence in 1857 is the most important chapter in the history of Indian independence. This rebellion, called the 'Sepoy Mutiny' by the British, started from a small army camp in Barrackpore, Bengal. A rumor spread that the barrels of the guns imported by the British were covered with paper smeared with ox and pig fat. This cover had to be cut and bitten to load the barrels into the guns. This led to great opposition among Muslims and Hindus. The British considered the Indian soldiers, who were called sepoys and worked for low wages, to be like animals. The sepoys protested in the gun incident under the leadership of a young Bengali named Mangal Pandey. Pandey shot down an Englishman. Mangal Pandey was caught by the army and hanged after trial. This incident took place on April 8, 1857.
Inspired by the brave martyrdom of Mangal Pandey, Indian sepoys started riots in many places in North India. Thus, the stage was set for India's first freedom struggle. Mangal Pandey's martyrdom burned like a firebrand in the minds of Indians. It flared up a month later. It started in Meerut. The sepoys did not even want to touch the gun filled with animal fat. The British imprisoned them. Then the other sepoys came together and broke the prison and freed their comrades. They burned the bungalows of the British. They killed all the Englishmen they saw. These events took place on May 9, 1857! Then the sepoys moved towards Delhi. By then, commoners and landlords who were fed up with the rule of the English, and even kings who had lost their thrones, were with them! They used whatever they could find as a weapon.
The freedom fighters who reached Delhi captured the Red Fort. They found the Mughal king Bahadur Shah, who was imprisoned in a dark cell inside the fort. They requested him to take the crown of the Emperor of India. However, Bahadur Shah's reply was that he was weak and could not become the emperor. The Indian freedom fighters did not retreat. They captured the city with the slogan 'Long live the Emperor of India Bahadur Shah Safar'. At the time when the revolutionaries were fighting against the British in Delhi, such riots were taking place all over North India. They were led by Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi, the Crown Prince of Kanpur Nana Sahib, and his general and expert in stealth, Tantia Tope.
Rani Lakshmibai was a brave woman who showed extraordinary courage on the battlefield. At just twenty-one years old, she dressed as a man and fought on the battlefield. When her fort was surrounded by enemy forces, she decided to fight and die for her motherland. The Queen of Jhansi, who rode towards the enemy army on horseback with her sword drawn, killed the enemy soldiers one by one. It was only when she was finally killed that the British realized that she was a woman. The struggle led by Nanasaheb and Tantia Tope began in June. Although the British camp in Kanpur was completely destroyed, Nanasaheb could not resist the British for long. He withdrew from the battlefield without surrendering to the British. He is said to have spent the rest of his life dreaming of freedom in some remote forest in Nepal!
Seeing that the military revolution would fail, Tantia Tope sneaked into the dense forests of the Vindhya Mountains, blinding the British. Finally, Tope was caught after being betrayed by a loyal follower. Like Mangal Pandey, the British hanged him. Thus, the British brought down the brave fighters who led the First War of Independence one by one. However, the revolutionaries in Delhi managed to hold out without surrendering for four months. Finally, the British army, led by a military commander named John Nickel, reached Delhi and chased away the Indian revolutionaries. They killed Bahadur Shah's sons and grandson and exiled Emperor Bahadur Shah to Burma. With that, India's First War of Independence come to an end.
Leaders of First War of Independence (1857)
The Battles of the Rani of Jhansi
The time when the British were conquering the north and south of India. At that time, many of the local kings had surrendered to the British. Rani Lakshmibai, known as the Rani of Jhansi, was a brave woman who fought against the British. When the king of the state of Jhansi passed away, the East India Company demanded that the country be handed over to them. However, Rani Lakshmibai, the widow of the king, fought against the British. The Rani, who dressed as a man and fought bravely with a drawn sword, was finally killed by the British army. Only then did the British realize that she was a woman.
Nana Saheb
Nana Saheb was one of the local kings who fought against the British after the Rani of Jhansi. When Nana saheb, the crown prince of Kanpur, realized that he would lose his kingdom under the law of succession, he decided to fight against the British. Nanasaheb's childhood friend was the Rani of Jhansi. Their struggles also inspired Nanasaheb to confront the British army. He started the fight in June 1857 with his army commander and a skilled stealth fighter, Tantiya Tope. They destroyed the British headquarters in Kanpur. The nana saheb's army, ready for anything, launched an attack on the British like a suicide bomber. After that the British announced a price of one lakh rupees who capture Nanasaheb. But Nanasaheb, who swore not to surrender to the British, escaped to the Himalayan valleys.
Tantia Tope's stealth war
Tantia Tope was a fighter who led a stealth war against the British in North India during the 1857 rebellion in Delhi along with Nanasahib and the Rani of Jhansi. He was Nanasahib's minister. The British made many attempts to capture Tantia Tope. But they could not capture him. Tantia Tope, who hid in the forests of the Vindhya Mountains, later returned to his homeland in disguise. Unable to subdue him directly, the British finally bribed Tope's friend Man Singh. With the help of Man Singh, the British surrounded Tope's hideout and captured him and hanged him. This was in 1859.
Begum Hazrat Mahal and the Lucknow Rebellion
Begum Hazrat Mahal was the ruler of Awadh, which included Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh. She led a valiant fight against the British during the 1857 revolt. Begum declared her son Birjis Qadr as the next Nawab, but the British did not accept it. Fierce fighting took place in Chinhat and Lucknow. The rebels were able to drive the British out of Lucknow. Later, the British authorities, who arrived with a large army, suppressed the Lucknow rebellion.
Bihar Rebellion and Kanwar Singh
Kanwar Singh was a brave man who led the 1857 revolt in Bihar. He was a wealthy landlord in Bihar. At the age of eighty, he fought against the English East India Company, which had taken the property he had inherited from his father. While returning from the fight, Kanwar Singh was attacked and killed by the English army on the Ganges River.
Facts about First War of Indian Independence 1857
■ The Great Revolt of 1857 is often referred to as the "First War of Independence". The revolt broke out in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, on 10 May 1857.
■ The sudden outbreak of the revolt was due to the Indian soldiers being forced to fire with new types of rifles greased with animal fat.
■ Mangal Pandey was the first martyr of the 1857 revolt.
■ Following the temporary success of the 1857 revolt, the revolutionaries installed Bahadur Shah II as emperor in Delhi.
■ In 1858, the Mughal emperor Bahadur Shah II was exiled to Rangoon by the British.
■ The British called the Revolt of 1857 as the Sepoy Rebellion.
■ Sir. Hurros called Rani Lakshmi Bai the "highest and most courageous leader of the revolutionaries".
■ The revolution was completely suppressed in 1858.
■ V. D. Savarkar called the Revolt of 1857 "India's First War of Independence".
Location of the riots & Leaders
■ Delhi - Bahadur Shah II, General Bhakt Khan
■ Kanpur - Nanasaheb, Tantia Tope
■ Lucknow - Begum Hazrat Mahal
■ Jhansi, Gwalior - Rani Lakshmibai
■ Gwalior - Tantia Tope
■ Bihar - Kanwar Singh
■ Bareilly - Khan Bahadur Khan
■ Faizabad - Maulvi Ahmadullah
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