first war of Independence history icse class 10 short notes socio religious causes
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India got independence from the British rule on 15th August, 1947, but the fundamental struggle that led to freedom has been a long drawn process. The culmination of traditional opposition to the British rule came with the First War of Independence in 1857, in which millions of peasants, artisans and soldiers participated.
The first hundred years of British rule in India from 1757 to 1857, were marked by the British victories and the rapid expansion of their dominion in India.
Beginning of the Uprising
In 1856, the British authorities decided to replace the old fashioned musket (called, the ‘Brown Bess’) by the new ‘Enfield Rifle’. The cartridges to be used in the rifle were greased with fat. The loading process of the Enfield rifle involved bringing the cartridge to the mouth and biting off the top greased paper with the mouth.
A rumor spread out, that the cartridges were greased with the fat of pigs and cows. Soldiers believed that, these cartridges were intentionally greased with animal fat to hurt their religious sentiments.
The revolt first began at Barrackpore, when most of the Indian soldiers refused to use the greased cartridges. As a result, a Brahmin soldier of the 34th Native Infantry at Barrackpore, named Mangal Pandey led an attack on the adjunct of 34th Native Infantry on 29th March, 1857.
After the incident, Mangal Pandey was arrested and hanged on 8th April, 1857. Within a month of this incidence, uprisings started in Meerut, Delhi, Kanpur, Lucknow, Jhansi and at many other places.
Events at Meerut
The mutiny started at Meerut on 10th May 1857. The occasion was the punishment of some sepoys for their refusal to use the greased cartridges. They broke open jails, murdered Europeans, burnt their houses and marched to Delhi. They seized the city and proclaimed the aged Mughal Emperor Bahadur Shah II as the Emperor of India.
Events at Delhi
After reaching Delhi, they killed many British soldiers and surrounded the entire city. The loss Delhi, lowered the respect of the British army. So, in order to achieve their respect again, Sir John Nicholson besieged Delhi with the help of loyal Sikh soldiers. In the end, the British surmounted Delhi and the old emperor Bahadur Shah was taken prisoner. As a punishment, he was ordered life imprisonment and deported to Rangoon, where he died in 1862.