UNIVERSITY OF PETROLEUM & ENERGY STUDIES

SCHOOL OF LAW

B.A., LL.B. (HONS.)

SEMESTER I

ACADEMIC YEAR: 2019-20 SESSION: AUG-DEC, 2019

ASSIGNMENT
FOR
History
(CLNL 1031)

Under the Supervision of: Dr. Vinita Singh Chhetri

(TO BE FILLED BY THE STUDENT)
NAME: MUSKAN SINGH

SAP: 500077431
ROLL NO: R450219208
 THE INDIAN REVOLT OF 1857
The Revolt of 1857 is also known as the Great Revolt of 1857 or the sepoy mutiny of 1857
but in the history of india it is known as the first war of independence. British rule
foundation in india was threatened for the very first time in india.It was the landmark in
the history of india’s struggle for freedom. It began as a revolt of the sepoys of the
Company’s army but eventually secured the participation of the masses.The revolt started with
the sepoys working in the british and soon diffuse into local uprisings and rebellions which
involved civilians, artisans, peasantry and the total community of india. Religious
differences can be cited as the prime cause as Indian soliders ere not ready to use the
greased bullets which confines their religious beliefs as well as forced conversions by
Christian missionaries all around in india.
Causes of the revolt
The causes for the revolt of 1987 was can categorized under 1. Economic Causes 2.
Political Causes 3. Social 4. Religion 5. Military and 6. Immediate causes
Economic causes
 In rural areas, peasants and zamindars resented the heavy taxes on land and the forceful
methods of revenue collection followed by the Company.
 Large numbers of sepoys were drawn from the peasantry and had family ties in villages,
so the grievances of the peasants also affected them.
 Many among these groups were unable to meet the heavy revenue demands and repay
their loans to money lenders, eventually losing the lands that they had held for
generations.
 Ignorance of Indian agriculture and their products.
 The british had drained india of all her wealth and natural resources by selfish economic
policies.
 Indian handicraft industries had to compete with cheap machine- made goods from
Britain.

Poltical causes
 Lord dalhousie’s policy of annexation and the doctrine of lapse had made the Indian
rulers angry and insecure.
 He said that if king dies without a natural heir then the kingdom would be annexed by
Britishers.
 Thousands became unemployed when the English, under lord Dalhousie annexed Oudh.
 The Muslim feelings had been badly hurt when after the death of bahadur shah II, lord
canning took away regal titles and mogul palaces.

Social and religious causes

 Due to spread of western education dissatisfaction grew among the Indians.
 Indians believed that under the name of modern and western education the British were
trying to abandon their cultural heritage.
 The abolition of sati and female infanticide, and allowing widow Remarry were threats to
the establishment social structure. Even the introduction of the railways and telegraph
was viewed with suspicion.
 An act in 1850 changed the Hindu law of inheritance enabling a Hindu who had converted
into Christianity to inherit his ancestral properties. Besides, the missionaries were
allowed to make conversions to Christianity all over India. The people were convinced
that the government was planning to convert Indians to Christianity.

Military causes
 Indian sepoys formed more than 87% of British troops in India. They were considered
inferior to British soldiers. An Indian sepoy was paid less than a European sepoy of the
same rank. Besides, an Indian sepoy could not rise to a rank higher than that of a
Subedar.
 The extension of the British empire in India had adversely affected the service conditions
of Indian sepoys. They were required to serve in areas far away from their homes.in 1856
lord canning issued the general services enlistment act which required that the sepoys
must be ready to serve even in British land across the sea.
 The British authorities used to withdraw the allowances after the conquest and
annexation of a province and post the same troops in those very provinces on reduced
salaries. These measures naturally demoralized the sepoys. In 1844 four Bengal regiments
had refused to move to Sindh till extra allowance was sanctioned Mutinous spirit was also
displayed in 1849 by the sepoys in various provinces.

Immediate causes
 A new type of rifle cartridge caused problems
 The traditional story of the sepoys’ mutiny is that the introduction of a new cartridge for
the Enfield rifle provoked much of the trouble.
 There is no doubt that conflict over the new rifle cartridges sparked the uprising in 1857,
but the reality is that social, political, and even technological reforms had set the stage
for what happened.
 In January 1857, a rumour spread in the Bengal regiment that the greased cartridge
contained the fat of cow and pig, the former sacred to Hindu and later forbidden to
Muslim.

Outbreak of revolt
The first sign of unrest appeared early in 1857 at Barrackpore and Berhampur in
Bengal; they were, punished. But the sepoys broke out into open revolt at Meerut
on the 10th may, 1857, swarmed into prisons, released their imprisoned comrades,
murdered a few European officers and burnt their houses. General Hewitt, the
incapable commanding officer at Meerut, although he had 2,200 European troops
under him, took no steps to suppress the mutineers, who galloped the next morning
to Delhi, where not a single British regiment was stationed at that time, and
brought it under their control. They massacred many Europeans and destroyed their
houses. Two signallers in the telegraph office, outside the city, warned the
authorities in the Punjab in time by sending them a telegraphic message.
Lieutenant Willoughby, the officer in charge of the magazine, defended it for a few
days with his eight braves up. This caused great losses to the mutineers, who,
however, soon occupied the place and proclaimed the aged nominal king, bahadur
 shah II, whose name still conjured up too many the vanished glories of the once
mighty Mughal Empire, Emperor of Hindustan. The loss of Delhi, which had fallen
into British hands as a result of much hard fighting and diplomacy, dealt a severe
blow to the prestige of the British Empire.

Causes of the failure of the revolt

 Their military equipment was inferior to that of English; for example, their old
muzzle-loaders were outranged by the newly invented breech-loaders of the
English troops.
 While many of the insurgents failed to understand the significance of contemporary
scientific improvements and even dreaded them, the English fully utilized these
advantages for their own benefit. Thus, with a control over a widespread telegraph
system and postal communications, the latter were able to receive and exchange
information from different parts of the country and to modify their course of action
according to the needs of the situation.
 The English were fortunate enough to secure the loyalty of most of the feudatory
chiefs, with the exception of Rani of Jhansi, the Begum of Oudh and some minor
chiefs; and, as has already been pointed out, they received invaluable assistance
from men like sir Dinkar Rao of Gwalior, Sir Salar Jang of Hyderabad, Jang
Bahadur of Nepal, and the Sikhs. In the north-west, Dost Muhammad remained
friendly.
 There was no unity among the rebels. The ideas of nationalism and unity had not
yet developed. There was no common purpose among the rebels. The sepoys of
Bengal wanted to revive the medieval glories of the Mughals. Nana Saheb and
Tantia Tope tried to re-establish the Maratha power. Rani Lakshmi bai fought to
regain her lost state.
 The uprising had been planned for months but it broke before the due date. It was
not widespread. It took place only in the northern and central parts of india.
 The revolt was feudal in character and lacked nationalistic elements.
 The rebels could not match the sophisticated weapons of the British.
 The leaders lacked military skill.

Nature and effects of the revolt

 Historians presented the nature of the revolt revolution of 1857 with different
perspective.
 Some historians have described it as a mere military revolt.
 The revolt was not a thoroughly organised national movement or “a war of
independence”, nor was it a mere military rising. It started as a military outbreak,
which was taken advantage of by certain discontented princes and landlords, whose
interests had been affected by the new political order.
 Some other have called it a religious war against Christians. While some historians
said that it was a struggle for superiority between black and white people.
 Many nationalist Indians call it a planned national movement and first war of
independence.
 The rule of Mughals and peshwas came to an end and a viceroy was put in charge
of the Indian dominion.
 Indian rulers were assured that their states would no longer be taken over. They
were also given the authority to declare their adopted sons as their legal heirs.
 The number of Indian soldiers in the army was reduced, while the number of
British soldiers was increased.
 Full religious freedom was granted to the Indians. They were also given assurance
that high posts would be given to them without any discrimination.
 The rule of east India company ended with queen Victoria’s proclamation of Nov.
1858. She assumed the tittle of empress of India.