Remembering India's first war of Independence: Revolt of 1857

New Delhi: India will be celebrating its 67th Independence day on 15th August 2013, but how many of us today know about the struggle and sacrifices of heroes to free India from the clutches of British colonial empire?India TV pays tribute to the martyrs of freedom struggle and brings to you the great stories of our heroes who sacrificed their lives for the sake of our freedom. Let's start the journey from the first war of independence i.e. Revolt of 1857.It began as a mutiny of Indian sepoys of the East India Company's army on May 10, 1857 in Meerut and soon escalated to other cities of northern and central India, with the major battles confined to UP, Bihar, northern MP and Delhi region. The revolt, also known as India's First War of Independence, was contained only on June 20, 1858 with the fall of Gwalior. The flashpoint was reached when soldiers were asked to bite off paper cartridges for their rifles which they believed were greased with animal fat, namely beef and pork. This was against the religious beliefs of Hindus and Muslims respectively. Bengal, Bombay Presidency and Madras Presidency largely remained clam, and in Punjab, the Sikh princes backed the East India Company by providing soldiers and support. The large princely states of Hyderabad, Mysore, Travancore and Kashmir, as well as smaller states of Rajputana did not take part in the revolt. However, in Oudh (Lucknow) and Jhansi it took the attributes of a patriotic revolt against British presence. Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi become a folk hero in India's nationalist movement. On 29 March 1857 at the Barrackpore parade ground, near Kolkata, 29-year-old Mangal Pandey of the 34th Bengal Native Infantry declared that he would rebel against his commanders. He fired against his sergeant-major and the adjutant. One of the soldiers Shaikh Paltu restrained Pandey from firing. After failing to incite his comrades, Mangal Pandey shot and injured himself. He was court-martialled on April 6 and hanged on April 8. The regiment was disbanded and stripped of their uniforms .Shaikh Paltu was promoted to the rank of Jemadar in the Bengal Army.The word soon spread and in Meerut, Indian troops, led by the 3rd Cavalry, broke into revolt, killing four European men, eight women and eight children. About 50 Indians who tried to defend the Europeans were killed by the sepoys. A total of about 50 European men including soldiers, women and children were killed in Meerut by sepoys and crowds on May 10, the sepoys freed their 85 imprisoned comrades from jail, along with 800 other prisoners. Several British officers and their familes escaped to Rampur and took refuge with the Nawab. The rebel sepoys reached Delhi on May 11. A large number of British officers and their dependants were killed in the revolt that ensued, and several of the British officials fled to Karnal. Mughal emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar eventually agreed to accept the revolting sepoys' allegiance and on May 16, up to 50 Europeans hiding inside the palace or in Delhi were killed. The Sikhs and Pathans supported the British and helped in the recapture of Delhi.The British were slow to strike back at first. Eventually two columns left Meerut and Shimla to fight the revolting sepoys.The two forces met near Karnal, defeated the sepoys at Badli-ki-Sarai and drove them back to Delhi. The British forces consisted of two Gorkha units loaned by the King of Nepal. During the siege of Delhi from July 1 till September 21, the British forces gradually gained the upper hand with reinforcements of British, Sikh and Pakhtoon soldiers under John Nicholson arriving at the Delhi Ridge. On August 30, the rebels offered terms, which were refused. On September 14, the British forces stormed Kashmiri Gate but suffered heavy casualties. After a week of fighting, the British forces reached Red Fort, and by then, Emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar had fled to take shelter in Humayun's tomb. The British retook Delhi. The British troops proceeded to loot and pillage Delhi, and a large number of citizens were killed in retaliation. Bahadur Shah Zafar was arrested, the next day British officer William Hodson shot his sons Mirza Mughal, Mirza Khizar Sultan and grandson Mirza Abu Bakr at the Khooni Darwaza near Delhi Gate. Shortly after the fall of Delhi, the British forces went to Agra, Kanpur and recaptured the cities from rebels. Jhansi was a Maratha-ruled princely state, and the king's widow Rani Lakshmi Bai protested when her adopted son was not accepted as the legal heir and Jhansi was annexed by the British under the Doctrine of Lapse. When war broke out, Jhansi quickly became a centre of the rebellion. A small group of Company officials and their families took refuge in Jhansi fort, and the Rani negotiated their evacuation.However, when they left the fort they were massacred by the rebels over whom the Rani had no control; the Europeans suspected the Rani of complicity, despite her repeated denials.By the end of June 1857, the Company had lost control of much of Bundelkhand and eastern Rajasthan. The Bengal Army units in the area, having rebelled, marched to take part in the battles for Delhi and Cawnpore. The many princely states which made up this area began warring amongst themselves. In September and October 1857, the Rani led the successful defence of Jhansi against the invading armies of the neighbouring rajas of Datia and Orchha.On 3 February the British central India Field Force led by Sir Hugh Rose broke the 3-month siege of Sagar. He then laid siege to Jhansi, captured the city but the Rani fled in disguise. After being driven from Jhansi and Kalpi, on 1 June 1858 Rani Lakshmi Bai and a group of Maratha rebels captured Gwalior from the Scindia rulers, who were British allies. The Central India Field Force quickly advanced to Gwalior. The Rani died on 17 June, on the second day of the Battle of Gwalior probably killed by a carbine shot from the 8th Hussars. The Company forces recaptured Gwalior within the next three days. Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi ha sbeen compared to Joan of Arc by several commentators. From the end of 1857, the British had begun to gain ground again. Lucknow was retaken in March 1858. The British forces hanged the mutineers, including innocent men and women, and blew them away with cannon. Bahadur Shah Zafar was tried for treason by a military commission assembled at Delhi, and exiled to Rangoon where he died in 1862, bringing the Mughal dynasty to an end. In 1877 Queen Victoria took the title of Empress of India and East India Company's rule in India came to an India.