Explain the role of the Enfield rifle in the 1857 revolt.
Answers
start of Indian Mutiny … in the mid-1850s, a new Enfield rifle was introduced into India that required a soldier to bite off the ends of greased cartridges in order to load the weapon. A rumour spread that the lubricant used was either cow or pig lard, which was repugnant to Hindus or Muslims, respectively.…
Answer:
The cartridges of the Enfield rifle had a greased paper cover which had to be bitten off before the cartridge was loaded into the rifle. It was said that the grease composed of beef and pig fat. Both the Hindus and the Muslims refused to use them as the cow is sacred to the Hindus and the pig is detestable to the Muslims.
On March 29, 1857 at Barrackpore near Calcutta, Mangal Pandey, a young Indian Sepoy from Bengal Regiment, refused to use the greased cartridge and shot down his sergeant. He was arrested, tried and executed. When this news spread, many sepoys started the revolt.
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