Question

Briefly describe the causes which led to the uprising of rebellion.

Answer 1

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The Indian Rebellion of 1857 had diverse political, economic, military, religious and social causes. An uprising in several sepoy companies of the Bengal army was sparked by the issue of new gunpowder cartridges for the Enfield rifle February, 1857. The cartridges were rumoured to have been made from cow and sow fat.

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Answer 2

The Indian Rebellion of 1857 had diverse political, economic, military, religious and social causes.

An uprising in several sepoy companies of the Bengal army was sparked by the issue of new gunpowder cartridges for the Enfield rifle February, 1857. The cartridges were rumoured to have been made from cow and sow fat. Loading the Enfield required tearing open the greased cartridge with one's teeth. This would have insulted both Hindu and Muslim religious practices; cows were considered holy by Hindus, while pigs were considered unclean by Muslims. Underlying grievances over British taxation and recent land annexations by the British East Indian Company (BEIC) were ignited by the sepoy mutineers, and within weeks, dozens of units of the Indian army joined peasant armies in widespread rebellion. The old aristocracy, both Muslim and Hindu, who were seeing their power steadily eroded by the BEIC, also rebelled against British rule. Another important source of discontent among the Indian rulers was that the British policies of conquest had created unrest among many Indian rulers. In the decade prior to the rebellion, the BEIC imposed a 'doctrine of lapse' (of Indian leadership succession), and the policy 'subsidiary alliance' both of which deprived Indian rulers of some of their sovereignty. One of the main reasons for the revolt was that the British East India Company also started meddling with India's political and financial system. Sepoy units combined with local populations in a major rebellion in 1857 that temporarily unified many Indians across sect, caste, and religious differences.