Thagi befriended travellers to gain their trust, then robbed them
They had gangs of up to 400
1835 - Thugee and Dacoity Department set up
1000 Thagi transported or hung for their crimes
3000 tried and punished in total
Attacks on Sati
Hindus didn’t believe in remarriage, so widows burned themselves alive with their husbands
Estimated 600 deaths in British territory
Abolished in 1829
Outlawed in all of India in 1861
Indians saw it as an interference of culture
Missionaries
The Baptist mission concentrated on education and translation of the Bible into Bengali
Charter Act 1813 removed British blanket on missionaries and more protestants started arriving
Indians saw it as an attempt to westernise them
Economic causes for rebellion
1813 and 1833Charter Acts opened India to free trade as the EIC lost its monopoly
This benefitted British merchants more than Indians
India’s cotton trade suffered as they were swamped by cheap imports of cloth from England
De-industrialisation and impoverishment were rife
Political reasons for rebellion
1848 - The Doctrine of Lapse meant that Britain could take over territories of Indiana princes if they died without a legitimate heir
This united Indian rulers in resentment of the British
Awadh was taken by the doctrine and in 1857 had widespread uprisings
However - also goes against Hindu tradition of heirs, so could be a religious reason
Rebellion failing due to disunity of rebels
Were not a cohesive force
Made up of mutineers, landowners, peasants and unhelpful local leaders
Religious divisions between the Muslims and the Hindus
The other 2presidency armies remained loyal to the British
Rebellion failing due to Britain's ruthless response
82% of soldiers killed in the retaking of Delhi were Sepoys
Punishment in Cawnpore - licking blood off walls, eating pork and beef and being hung
Punishment in Peshawar - 40 men in cannons blown apart
Had modern weapons like the 1853Enfield rifle
Rebellion failing due to loyalty to the British
Many civilians saw British rule as better than the alternative, for example the taxes were lighter than under local leaders
The EIC army supported supported tax collection, so they had no reason to hate the British
The other 2presidency armies remained loyal to the British
Rebellion failing due to Delhi
11th May - Bahodour Shah II was reluctantly restored to his imperial position in Delhi
This was not a successful as he wasn’t young and ambitious enough to be a symbol of rebellion
Rebellion failing due to Lucknow
Sir Henry Lawrence survived an Indian siege for 5 months due to food and ammunition
Died on the 4th July by an exploding shell
But relief came with a force of over 3000, arriving on the 25th of September, 87 days after the siege began
Was a victory for the British and made the Rebels look weak
Rebellion being a success due to Cawnpore
British held out for 18 days till they surrendered on the 27th of June
They were promised safe travel down the river, but fighting broke out and 400 were killed
200 British women and children remained, they were held hostage till the 15th of July, when they were massacred before relief arrived the next day
Showed the rebels were serious and relentless
The role of the East India Company
The Charter Act 1813 - ended their monopoly on trade, except with tea and with China.Missionaries allowed to teach English
The Charter Act 1833 - ended the Company's commercial activities completely and reorganised the administrative system of the British territories
The importance of Bengal
Its president was the governor general of all of EIC territory following the Government of India Act 1833
Army of the Bengal presidency was 2x bigger than the other 2 armies
Land in Bengal was divided into districts under a collector and landlords were settled with rights to land in return for fixed tax liberties
Outbreak of rebellion in Meerut
Rumours of new animal fat gun cartridges spread among sepoys
proved to many of the British plan for Christianisation
85 sepoys refused to load the new rifles in Meerut on 9 May 1857
Led to all 3 sepoy regiments rising up while the British were at church
Massacred local Europeans, including women and children
The positive reforms of Dalhousie
Dedicated Utilitarian and devoted to improving India
Punjab pacified and locked into Company rule, its fertile soil yielding a substantial revenue surplus
First Indian railroads constructed
First telegraph line was laid
Penny Post introduced
The negative reforms of Dalhousie
Doctrine of lapse allowed Britain to control princely states if:
The ruler died without an heir
If the British deemed it as misgoverned
Ruler's titles and powers changed as non-hereditary, making them vulnerable to interference
Dalhousie's annexation of Awadh 1856
Nwab Wajid Ali Shah was the 7th annexed ruler after being accused of being dishonest, despite conforming to Company control
The British then announced they would be taking land away from landowners
Seen as an attack on social order, Awadh had widespread participation in 1857 rebellion
Rebellion ending EIC rule
Government of India Act 1858 ended their rule
India placed under rule of the British Crown under a viceroy
Indians promised religious toleration, equal rights and protection of their rights to their native lands
Rebellion resulting in changes to the army
Proportion of sepoys was limited by 40% and British trooped increased by 50%
Ration went from 9:1 to 3:1
Sepoy recruitment changed to come from loyal regions like Sikh Punjab and Muslim North-west
Troops were allowed to use whatever grease they wanted for guns
Long term lessons of the rebellion
Modernisation and westernisation would not work in India
Policy had to be more cautious
Shifted focus onto infrastructure and railways
Built 1500 miles of railway track by 1861
British imperialists thought India would suffer from famine and chaos if they left, so they stayed
Clash of culture
Christians tried to convert Muslims, Hindus and Sikhs whilst destabilising their social systems
British women trying to find husbands, interracial marriage and mixed race children rejected by Indian society
British saw themselves as racially superior
General Service Enlistment Act
Passed in 1856 by Governor General Canning
Wanted to use the Bengal army with other EIC armies in Burma
Act broke the tradition of Bengali soldiers not serving where they couldn't march as they believed travelling over water would pollute the caste system
Act only applied to new recruits, but the Sepoys feared it would spread