The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against the rule of the British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the British Crown. The rebellion began on 10 May 1857 in the form of a mutiny of sepoys of the Company's army in the garrison town of Meerut, 40 mi (64 km) northeast of Delhi. It then erupted into other mutinies and civilian rebellions chiefly in the upper Gangetic plain and central India, though incidents of revolt also occurred farther north and east. The rebellion posed a military threat to British power in that region, and was contained only with the rebels' defeat in Gwalior on 20 June 1858. On 1 November 1858, the British granted amnesty to all rebels not involved in murder, though they did not declare the hostilities to have formally ended until 8 July 1859.
Events in the year 1857 in India.
Brigadier General John Nicholson, was an Anglo-Irish officer in the British Army who rose to prominence during his career in British India. Born in Ireland, Nicholson moved to the Indian subcontinent at a young age and obtained a commission in the East India Company where he spent the majority of his life helping to expand Company rule in numerous conflicts such as the First Anglo-Afghan War and the First and Second Anglo-Sikh War. Nicholson created a legend for himself as a political officer under Henry Lawrence in the frontier provinces of British India, especially in the Punjab, and he was instrumental in the establishment of the North-West Frontier. Nicholson's most defining moment in his military career was his crucial role in suppressing the Indian Rebellion of 1857, a conflict in which he died.
Najafgarh is a town in the South West Delhi district of National Capital Territory of Delhi, India. It is one of the three subdivisions of the Southwest Delhi district. Najafgarh is located in south western part of Delhi sharing its territory with Gurgaon and Bahadurgarh, Haryana.
The Bareilly district belongs to the state Uttar Pradesh in northern India. Its capital is Bareilly city and it is divided in six administrative division or tehsils: Aonla, Baheri, Bareilly city, Faridpur, Mirganj, and Nawabganj. The Bareilly district is a part of the Bareilly Division and occupies an area of 4120 km2 with a population of 4,448,359 people according to the census of 2011.
General Bakht Khan (1797–1859) was the commander-in-chief of the Indian rebel forces in the city of Delhi during the Indian Rebellion of 1857 against the East India Company.
Kashmiri Gate or Kashmere Gate is a gate located in Old Delhi in UT of Delhi, India. it is the northern gate to the historic walled city of Old Delhi. Built by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan, the gate is so named because it was at the start of a road that led to Kashmir.
The siege of Delhi was one of the decisive conflicts of the Indian Rebellion of 1857.
Historians have identified diverse political, economic, military, religious and social causes of the Indian Rebellion of 1857.
The Battle of Badli-ki-Serai was fought early in the Indian Rebellion of 1857, or First War of Indian Independence as it has since been termed in Indian histories of the events. A British and Gurkha force defeated a force of sepoys who had rebelled against the British East India Company. The British victory allowed them to besiege and ultimately capture Delhi.
The Battle of Agra was a comparatively minor but nevertheless decisive action at the end of a prolonged siege during the Indian Rebellion of 1857.
The regiments of Bengal Native Infantry, alongside the regiments of Bengal European Infantry, were the regular infantry components of the East India Company's Bengal Army from the raising of the first Native battalion in 1757 to the passing into law of the Government of India Act 1858. At this latter point control of the East India Company's Bengal Presidency passed to the British Government. The first locally recruited battalion was raised by the East India Company in 1757 and by the start of 1857 there were 74 regiments of Bengal Native Infantry in the Bengal Army. Following the Mutiny the Presidency armies came under the direct control of the United Kingdom Government and there was a widespread reorganisation of the Bengal Army that saw the Bengal Native Infantry regiments reduced to 45.
The Battle of Najafgarh was a subsidiary engagement of the Siege of Delhi during the Indian Rebellion of 1857. A large Indian force sortied from Delhi, intending to attack the rear of the British force besieging the city. A detachment from the besiegers marched to intercept them, and defeated them while they were disordered by difficult terrain and by quarrels among their commanders.
Dhan Singh Gurjar, also known as Dhunna Singh, was the Indian Kotwal of Meerut, who participated in the 1857 rebellion and led initial actions against the British East India Company in that city.
The Vellore mutiny,or Vellore Revolution, occurred on 10 July 1806 and was the first instance of a large-scale and violent mutiny by Indian sepoys against the East India Company, predating the Indian Rebellion of 1857 by half a century. The revolt, which took place in the Indian city of Vellore, lasted one full day, during which mutineers seized the Vellore Fort and killed or wounded 200 British troops.The mutiny was subdued by cavalry and artillery from Arcot. Total deaths amongst the mutineers were approximately 350; with summary executions of about 100 during the suppression of the outbreak, followed by the formal court-martial of smaller numbers.
Flagstaff Tower is a one-room, castellated tower, built around 1828 as a signal tower, located in Kamla Nehru Ridge near the present-day North Campus of Delhi University in Delhi, India. It was here that many Europeans and their families sheltered on 11 May 1857, during the Siege of Delhi by the rebels at the beginning of the Indian rebellion of that year, waiting for help to arrive from nearby Meerut. Built by the British Indian Army, the building was part of the British cantonment and was used as a signal tower. Before forestation started in 1910, the area where the tower was built was the highest point on the ridge and was mostly barren, covered with low-lying shrub. Today it is a memorial and "protected monument" under Archaeological Survey of India.
The 3rd Bengal Light Cavalry, also known as the 3rd Bengal Native Cavalry, was a locally recruited regiment of the East India Company's Bengal Army. Raised in 1797, the regiment took part in conflicts throughout British India, serving with distinction in the Second Anglo-Maratha War, the First Anglo-Afghan War and the First Anglo-Sikh War, earning various battle honours.
John Arthur Bayley was a British Army infantry officer and grandson of a baronet, who wrote a personal account of his time as an officer on campaign in India. His regiment the 52nd Regiment of Foot took part in quelling the Indian Mutiny and specifically were part of a British assault force that forced a breach at the Kashmir Gate during the Siege of Delhi.
The Indian Rebellion of 1857, which was also known as the Sepoy Mutiny or the First War of Independence, and was a significant uprising against British colonial rule in India from 1857 to 1858, was directed against the authority of the British East India Company, which acted as a self-governing entity on behalf of the British Crown. The rebellion originated on 10 May 1857 when sepoys, Indian soldiers, mutinied in Meerut, a garrison town northeast of Delhi. It quickly spread across the upper Gangetic plain and central India, with additional instances of revolt in the northern and eastern regions.
