First war of independence: 1857

[ramana]

From Deccan Chronicle 21 May 2006 in Sunday chronicle section.

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Itihaas: By Akhilesh Mithal

March 29 and May 10, 2007, will mark the 150th anniversary of the 1857 uprising of the Indians against the British rule, which some also refer to as the First War of Indian Independence.

<b>This revolt was confined to areas where regiments of the Bengal Army were stationed. It was put down almost immediately in Lahore and the Punjab while in Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, it lasted longer and in some places it continued well into 1858.</b> Indians had no trained generals to work out the strategy, and valour by itself does not win wars.

The British used terror as a weapon to overcome resistance and ensure supine, unquestioning submission to their rule. Village after village lying en route of their vengeful army was surrounded by snipers and set on fire. The terrified men, women and children fleeing the fire were subjected to bird-shot and the activity was looked upon as a sport and called “peppering the nigger”.

All adult males surrendering were questioned by kangaroo courts and those suspected of disaffection by their mere look, were sentenced to death and strung from the tallest trees in village squares, the arterial roads and strict orders issued that the bodies not to be taken down, but left to rot, disintegrate and serve as food for birds of prey when hung, and dogs when the dismembered limbs fell on the ground.

There are no figures available for the civilian casualties on the losing (Indian) side. <b>It would be safe to assume that between a million and two million Indians, all men, women and children, were mowed down in the British march from Punjab in Lahore to Arrah in Bihar. </b>

The terror struck in the hearts of Indians by the mere appearance of a white face remained a potent force for generations. <b>No Indian chose 1857 as a subject for study during the ninety years extension obtained by the British victory. By the time Independence came (1947), folk memory had blurred to the point of obliteration and whatever the British wrote about the Great Uprising became gospel truth.</b>

Indian historians of the 19th and 20th century have not served 1857 well. <b>19th century India was dominated by Bengal. During the 19th century and the first quarter of the 20th, it was said that “What Bengal thinks today, India thinks tomorrow.”</b>

This was because the first lot of people to become familiar with the English language and the new style of writing history were the people of Bengal. <b>Bengalis did not relate to 1957 as they had no role to play in the uprising. On the contrary, some new zamindars created by the British to provide a group of loyalists to their rule held celebrations to felicitate the East India Company on their victories over the rebels.</b>

In 1857, Bengal was still in the collaborative mode. <b>The role model for the educated upwardly-mobile Bengali was Rajah Durlabhram Mahindra (Rai Durlabh), scion of an old Bengal family which was the claiming descent from one of the original five Kayasthas to migrate from Kannauj in the U.P. to Gaur in Bengal during the reign of Lakhan Sen.</b> This worthy member of the Bengali kayasthas was born in 1710 in a family known for its proximity to the court of Bengal sultans. His own career started in the Orissa administration of Alivardi Khan. Rai Durlabh rose steadily in service and when Alivardi Kahan died, he was an army commander with revenue responsibilities in the Diwani administration. Along with Mir Ja’afar, Durlabh Rai also took an oath of remaining loyal to the young Sirajuddowlah at Alivardi’s deathbed.

Soon thereafter, he appears to have realised that his best bet was to back the British. <b>He was instrumental in subverting the loyalty of Mir Ja’afar. At Plassey (23rd June, 1757) neither Durlabh nor Mir Ja’afar fired a single shot for their master against the forces of the East India Company led by Robert Clive.</b>

Mir Ja’afar replaced Sirajuddowlah and was, in due course, himself dethroned and replaced by Mir Qasim. In startling contrast, Durlabhram who drafted the application, made to the Emperor in Delhi for the grant of Diwani to the East India Company, remained in power until his death in 1770.

<b>Bengal was to rise against the British only at the end of the 19th century when people like Khudiram Bose restored the glory of Bengal idealism by sacrificing their lives. Perhaps an official observance of Mangal Pandey’s uprising in March 2007 by the state, will bring Bengal closer to the rest of India and the history of 1857.</b>
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But in fairness a lot of Bengal Army regiments were disbanded. Maybe they had soldiers from Bihar and UP in them. Also note the comment about generalship and role of Bengali historians in wrtiign about the 1857 War of independence.