THE 1857 SEPOY MUTINY-SOME POINTS.

The mutiny was confined to Uttarpradesh, northern MP and Delhi regions alone. It started on 10^th May1857 and concluded with the fall of Gwalior on 20^th June 1858. Other regions of the Bengal Presidency and the Bombay and Madras Presidencies largely remained calm. The Sikh princes of Punjab actively helped the British by providing soldiers and support.

The commanders who fought on the rebels side were:

1.      Bhahadurshah Jafar-The Mughal Emperor only in name as he was fully dependent on the English. But the prestige of the Mughal Emperor was such that in him the rebels found a rallying point.

2.      Nana Saheb-Peshva Bajirao II’s adopted son who was refused the pension Bajirao II was getting and thus turned against the British. After his forces were defeated by the British he chose to escape and disappeared.

3.      Rani Lakshmibai-She is a valiant lady who opposed the British as they applied the doctrine of Lapse and confiscated her state and gave her a pension of Rs 54,000 per annum in 1854. She was killed in battle but her adopted son Damodar Rao for whom she fought ran away and hid in the forests.

4.      Begum Hazrat Mahal—Wife of the nawab of Oudh. Oudh was annexed by the British and the nawab Wajid Ali Shah was exiled to Calcutta in1856. She resented the British for this and rebelled against them. After her forces were defeated by the British she ran away to Nepal and took asylum there. Her son Birjis Quadir was installed as the Nawab in the early stages of the rebellion. After the defeat by the British he accompanied his mother to Nepal.

5.      Kunwar Singh— he was the Raja of Jagdishpur in Bihar. He is a Rajput. By the time the revolt broke out he was 80 years old and his health was failing yet he fought valiantly and died undefeated after sustaining injuries in the battle with the English on 23 April 1858 in which he defeated the British. He died 3 days later.

Surprisingly enough the first 4 figures are always prominently mentioned in our history books but the last receives but a passing mention.

Bahadur Shah Jafar became a leader by virtue of the office he held and not because of his personal strength. All the three Nana Sahib, Rani Lakshmibai and Begum Hazrat Mahal had personal grudges against the British.

Kunwar Singh is no less than the Rani of Jhansi in valor going to battle at the age of 80 and in failing health. Kunwar Singh fought on principle. Also he was the only rebel leader to die undefeated by the British.

Nana Sahib and Begum Hazrat Mahal ran away from the British after their defeat. I would put Kunwar Singh above the Rani of Jhansi because he was equal to her in valour but died undefeated by the British.

It was the Sikh soldiers that helped the British to put down the mutiny and all the Princely states of Punjab like Patiala, Nabha and Kapurthala etc. actively supported the British in this war.