The Great Rebellion in India, 1857-8

What was the 'Great Rebellion'?

The Great Rebellion in India was a significant event which had a tremendous impact on Britain, and how British India was treated in the future.

By what names is the Great Rebellion known?

The Great Rebellion is also referred to as: the Sepoy Rebellion, the Sepoy Mutiny, the Indian Mutiny, the Indian Rebellion, and the First Indian War of Independence.

When was the 'Great Rebellion'?

The Great Rebellion occurred in 1857-8.

What were the main events of the Great Rebellion?

There were a number of key events in the Great Rebellion.

• ❖ The rebellion started in the town of Meerut, when sepoys in the EIC's army mutinied over orders to use new cartridges, which were smeared with pig and cow fat.
• ❖ The mutiny rapidly spread to different towns and cities, and more Indians joined the mutineers.
• ❖ The rebels committed atrocities on the British, murdering women and children, as well as killing British soldiers. The worst atrocities were committed at Cawnpore.
• ❖ There were two famous sieges at Lucknow and Delhi, which resulted in many deaths before the rebellion was finally crushed.
• ❖ The British also committed many atrocities against the rebels - as well as many innocent Indians. These shocked people back in Britain.

What were the results of the Great Rebellion?

There were important consequences of the Great Rebellion.

• ❖ The British government decided that the East India Company could no longer be trusted to rule India, and the company was disbanded.
• ❖ The British government took full control of the rule of India, and incorporated it into the British Empire. Queen Victoria was made Empress of India in 1876.
• ❖ With new government, the British also realised that their policies had contributed to the rebellion, and looked for ways to make British rule more palatable for the Indians.

What was the significance of the Great Rebellion?

These are some of the ways in which the Great Rebellion was significant.

• ❖ Britain had nearly lost an important imperial possession, along with the wealth that it generated.
• ❖ The British government realised that it needed to change the way it ruled its imperial possessions.
• ❖ The Indians realised that it was possible to gain independence, and the independence movement began to develop after 1858.
• ❖ India became the 'Jewel in the Crown' of the British Empire. It entered a period known as the 'Raj', the grandest period of British imperial rule.