The Revolt of 1857 — Causes, Centres and What Changed After

Why This One Year Carries So Many Marks

1857 is the hinge of modern Indian history. Before it, India was governed by a trading company; after it, by the British Crown directly. Almost every institution that later nationalists argued with was designed in the decade that followed.

The naming argument is itself an exam favourite:

• ›"Sepoy Mutiny" — the official British description, treating it as a military breakdown.
• ›"First War of Independence" — the phrase used by V.D. Savarkar in his 1909 book.
• ›"National rising" — how Benjamin Disraeli described it in the British Parliament.
• ›R.C. Majumdar rejected the independence-war label, arguing that neither the leadership nor the aims were national.

You are not asked to settle the argument. You are asked to attach the right label to the right person, which is a memory task and worth an easy mark.

The events themselves run over roughly eighteen months, from March 1857 to the Proclamation of November 1858.

1. On which date did the Revolt of 1857 break out at Meerut?

2. Which British commander recaptured Jhansi from Rani Lakshmibai's forces?

3. Who was proclaimed Emperor of Hindustan by the rebels at Delhi in May 1857?

4. The Doctrine of Lapse, a major political cause of the revolt, is associated with which Governor-General?

5. Queen Victoria's Proclamation of 1 November 1858 was read out at Allahabad by which Governor-General?

6. Begum Hazrat Mahal led the revolt of 1857 at which centre?

7. Which Act transferred the government of India from the East India Company to the British Crown?

8. Who described the events of 1857 as the "First War of Independence"?