Question

What caused the rebellion in 1857? How did the British react to the rebellion?

Answer 1

The immediate cause of the Indian Revolt of 1857, or Sepoy Mutiny, was a seemingly minor change in the weapons used by the British East India Company's troops. The Company had upgraded to the new Pattern 1853 Enfield rifle, which used greased paper cartridges. In order to open the cartridges and load the rifles, soldiers (known as sepoys) had to bite into the paper and tear it with their teeth. Rumors began to spread in 1856 that the grease on the cartridges was made from a mixture of beef tallow and pork lard. Eating cows, of course, is forbidden by Hinduism, while consumption of pork is forbidden by Islam. Thus, by making one small change to its munitions, the British managed to greatly offend both Hindu and Muslim soldiers. The sepoys' revolt began in Meerut, the first area to receive the new weapons. British manufacturers soon changed the cartridges in an attempt to calm the spreading anger among the soldiers, but this move backfired. The switch only confirmed, in the minds of the sepoys, that the original cartridges had indeed been greased with cow and pig fat.

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Answer 2

CAUSES

A harsh story of the rebel was the brutality that followed it. The rebels generally shot their British officers on rising and were liable for murders at Delhi, Kanpur, and elsewhere. The killing of women and children angered the British, but in fact, some British officers began to take critical actions before they knew that any such killings had occurred. In the end, the retaliation far surpassed the original margins. Hundreds of sepoys were speared or fired from cannons in a craze of British revenge.

REACTION

There were couple ways that the British responded.

1. The standard response, wherein the company law was followed by the straight crown rule.
2. The grassroots level response.