The Indian Mutiny of 1857-1858: Causes and consequences

By David A Granger The conflict which came to be known as the Indian Mutiny (also as t he Indian Revolt, the First War of Indian Independence and the Sepoy Mutiny erupted over one hundred and fifty years a!o in May "#$%& The mutiny, in effect, was a prolon!ed period of armed uprisin!s a!ainst British occupation& The 'ritish presence in India, at that time part of the Mo!hul (mpire, be!an in the "% th century when the East India Company ac)uired its first territory in 'ombay& *ver the years, the company e+tended its control and e+panded its territory eventually e+pellin! the French after the 'attle of ,lassey in "%$%, e+actly "-- years earlier& The company.s army comprised 'ritish officers who commanded Indian soldiers, called sepoys (sepahi & Causes The conflict, the cumulative effect of several causes de velopin! for a hundred years, was comple+ in character& These causes arose lar!ely out of the 'ritish policy of westernisation which accelerated markedly in the decade after "#/# durin! the re!ime of the Mar)uess of 0alhousie, the youn!, authoritarian and impetuous 1overnor21eneral& The main causes could be described broadly as political, economic, social, military and !eo!raphical in nature& ,olitically, the most serious issue arose out of the 'ritish introduction of the 'ritish 30octrine of 4apse&3 This doctrine permitted the 'ritish to e+tend their imperial domain at the e+pense of Indian princes by forbiddin! the inheritance of states by persons who were not natural heirs5 it was also e+tended to pensions and princely titles& The result was that several states 6 7daipur, 8hansi and 9o!pur and, finally in "#$:, the state of *udh 6 lapsed into 'ritish soverei!nty& In addition, the policy of e+cludin! Indians from hi!h civil and military offices and from havin! a real role in the runnin! of India rankled& This was a!!ravated by the fact that, by the doctrine of lapse, several Indian princes and nobles were rendered redundant and found no place to fit their rank or e+pectations under the 'ritish system& (conomically, the 'ritish a!rarian policy created widespread distress& Sale 4aws enforced a!ainst defaultin! zamindars and landholders and the resumption of rent2free holdin!s re2 sulted in the dispossession of thousands of families and indi viduals from their estates and farms& This was coupled with a new form of direct assessment of heavy rates on land which many could not afford and, therefore, were evicted from the land& The 'ritish import and e+port policy also disrupted the Indian economy& 'ritish manufactured !oods !lutted the markets, underminin! the sale of Indian cotta!e and craft commodities& Socially, both ;indu and Muslim leaders feared that, as part of its modernisation and westernisation pro!ramme, the 'ritish intended to replace their traditional customs and reli!ions with <hristianity& Thus, the Religious Disabilities Act of "#$: which protected the inheritance ri!hts of converts, the suppression of certain practices 6 particularly saathi , child marria!e and infanticide 6 and !rantin! permission for the remarria!e of widows, were all re!arded with alarm& The unrestricted entry of <hristian missionaries that was permitted

"

under the Charter Act, especially in prisons, orphana!es and the army, at the same time was perceived as threatenin!& 1eo!raphically, the !reatest impact of some of these 'ritish policies was felt in one part of the 9orth 6 includin! *udh and the 9orth2Western provinces& (ven some technolo!ical im 2 provements 6 such as the construction of canals and railways and the introduction of the tele!raph which occasionally necessitated the demolition of a temple or shrine or trespassed across sacred !round 6 were re!arded as unwanted and unwarranted intrusions& Finally, the military causes of the mutiny were most directly responsible for i!nitin! the confla!ration& The ratio of Indians to (uropeans in the armies of the three presidencies was about :=" (>/-,--- to /-,--- appro+imately & Indians were abused and treated badly, how 2 ever& Their pay was inade)uate and conditions of service were harsh& 'y the General Services Enlistment Act of "#$:, new recruits were re)uired to serve anywhere in India or overseas& Some sepoys felt that this would result in their becomin! polluted, and losin! caste& Their reli!ious pre?udices had already been offended by earlier re!ulations re)uirin! the removal of caste marks and beards and the wearin!2of turbans with cockades made of leather (which mi!ht have been made either from cowhide or pi!skin & Worse was the introduction of the new breech2loaded 4ee2(nfield rifle which fired a &@-@ calibre cartrid!e that had to manually loaded before firin!& ,rimin! involved bitin! the end of the cartrid!es which the sepoys felt had been !reased with the fat of cows or pi!s, before insertin! them into the chambers of the rifles& This was sacrile!ious to ;indus and Muslims alike and, althou!h their 'ritish officers realised their mistake and chan!ed the !rease to ve!etable oils, suspicion persisted& It was this last imposition which tri!!ered the mutiny at Meerut on the mornin! of "-th May "#$%, which was the spark which i!nited the mutiny& The causes of the mutiny, therefore, were several and had been simmerin! for a lon! period of time but especially from "#/# to "#$%& Many of the innovations were introduced by 4ord 0alhousie& They mi!ht have been intended to modernise India but, at the same time, irri 2 tated and alienated some conservative elements who lost property, presti!e and power by these measures& Consequences With the fall of 1walior on >- th 8une "#$#, thirteen months after the Meerut Mutiny of "- th May "#$%, the 'ritish effectively suppressed the conflict& The conse)uences, however, lasted over ninety years ri!ht up to the time of Indian independence in "A/% and beyond& 4ike the causes, the conse)uences were political, economic, social and military in nature& ,olitically, the 'ritish !overnment chan!ed its entire administrative strate!y for controllin! India in the aftermath of the mutiny& These chan!es were embodied for the most part in the Government o !ndia Act of "#$#, the main provision bein! the transfer of power from the B<ompany. (ie, the (ast India <ompany to the B<rown&. The Indian ra?ahs (traditional rulers were assured that treaties made with them w o u l d be observed and that territorial anne+ation would be curtailed& The people of India were prom 2 ised collectively that their traditional and reli!ious ri!hts would be re spected, that there would be no interference with their customs and that they would not be discrimi nated a!ainst& Clthou!h the life of the titular Mo!hul emperor 'ahadur Shah was spared, he was

>

deposed and, with this, ended some >-- years of Muslim Mo!hul rule in India& Dueen Eictoria was proclaimed empress in "#%% and the 1overnor21eneral was appointed Eiceroy&

4ord 0alhousie The spurious Doctrine o "apse that 4ord 0alhousie introduced was repudiated and the ri!ht of adopted children to succeed to the titles of their princely parents was reco!nised& 'y the !ndian Councils Act of "#:", the Eiceroy3s <ouncil was stren!thened and the central le!islature was e+panded to permit the inclusion of Indians& 'y these measures, the 'ritish be!an the process of admittin! Indians into the hi!her echelons of administration& (conomically, a new a!rarian policy was introduced to !uarantee security of tenure and to fi+ rent for lands& This policy freed cultivators from tedious settlements and e+cessive demands of the state& The Bengal Rent Act of "#$A served as a model for this enli!htened approach to an a!e2old, but ve+atious problem& In addition, a revenue policy was introduced to levy new ta+es 6 personal income ta+, professional license ta+ and a tobacco ta+ 6 which helped to au!ment revenues& The financial system, also, was decentralised by entrustin! some items of ta+ation to local !overnments& These measures, althou!h helpin! to stabilise a!riculture, stimulate production and develop public works, also accelerated the e+port of raw materials to, and the import of industrial manufactures from, 'ritain& Socially, a ma?or conse)uence of the mutiny was the rise of a conservative !entry of ra?ahs and other prominent Indians who remained loyal to the 'ritish& They were embraced as a Bdocile and dependable. class& They even included in their numbers some talu#dars and zamindars who became a buffer between the 'ritish rulin! class and the Indian masses& The mutiny also caused a marked rise in racial consciousness and e+tremism as the 'ritish, seekin! to prevent a recurrence of the violence, ensured that Indians were not placed in positions of power or influence to threaten 'ritish rule a!ain& In military terms, the conse)uences of the mutiny were also far2reachin! & The old Bcompany. army was demobilised and new re!ular forces raised& These were based on the recruitment of soldiers from the so2called martial races 6 Sikhs, 8ats, ,athans and 1urkhas 6 who had

remained loyal to the 'ritish durin! the mutiny, in preference to 'rahmins and other !roups who were re!arded as troublesome& The ratio of Indians to (uropeans was fi+ed at >=" and Indians were precluded from mannin! the artillery and from enterin! certain scientific branches of the army& In !eneral terms, the most si!nificant conse)uences were a break with the old imperial system and the rise of a conscious Indian national movement& The social, political and economic chan!es which took place in the wake of the mutiny opened a new chapter in Indian history leadin! to the stimulation of a!ricultural and industrial development, the stirrin! of political democracy and the stru!!le for independence&
David A. Granger 2007. All rights reserved.