Was 1857 Revolt a War of Independence

Was 1857 Revolt a war of independence?

What is “war”? Whom is it against? What is “independence”? Independence from whom?

These ideas lead to concept of Modern State.

Concepts of Modern State

What even is a Modern State?

Modern State is characterized by certain elements which were lacking in 1857 Revolt. Understanding these concepts help understand why 1857 Revolt was not a War of Independence. 1.5

Modern Nationalism

• nation supreme
• nation == People who
  • feel one (fraternity)
  • feel equal (equality)
  • feel supreme (liberty)

Consequence of Modern Nationalism

Polity

• democracy, republic
• Fundamental Rights
• no taxation without representation
• responsible govt

Society

• no ascriptive privileges or discrimination
• equality before law

Economic

• democracy: power to people in economy
• no oppression of poor
• freedom of work & enterprise (capitalism)

Modern Politics

• clarity of
  • ideology
  • goal
  • methods
  • reason
  • plan
  • programme
• unified central leadership
• organization as a body for effective implementation of the above
• unity among members of organization
• voice to ideology, goals, methods, plans, programmes etc
  • i.e. press, social media etc

Arguments against 1857 Revolt being a war of independence

• whole india did not participate
  • mostly central and north india participated; that too, the sections which benefited from colonial rule did not participate
    • ryotwari areas, ryot benefited when they became landowners (SCAM-B)
    • Punjab mid-class peasants benefited from canal construction from canal construction
    • Bengal, Zamindar benefited becoming landowners under Permanent Settlement System 1793
    • WEMC benefited from jobs by Brits. Some princes did not lose power. Some taluqdars did not lose land.
• Whole indian army did not participate
• no proper planning
  • revolt was just a spontaneous outburst
• no modern alternative to british rule
  • they wanted to restore old political order

Arguments in favor of 1857 Revolt being a war of independence

• common enemy present (indirect fraternity)
• common hatred against disruptions brought by british rule
  • political annexation, high LR, loss of land, destruction of indian industry
• Sepoys declaration went beyond their selfish grievances
  • high LR
  • inc in chowkidari tax
  • inc in unemployment of artisans and learned men
  • toll tax for travelling on public roads
• dec in status of ruling class $\therefore$ sepoys fighting for all indians
• Hindu-Muslim unity
• common goal of restoring moral order disturbed by British
• all agreed among rebels that capital should be Delhi with Bahadur Shah Zafar as emperor (i.e. unity)
• Rebels did not desire 17th century centralized rule but rather 18th century decentralized setup with provincial autonomy (i.e. federalism)
• did not want british out of their “area”, but rather out of the whole Hindustan (i.e. fraternity)
• $⟹$ element of communication b/w regional leaders (even though not perfect)
• mass movement, not elite movement (i.e. summation of people - nation)
• main initiative of sepoy, not their leaders (i.e. democracy)

Test yourself

Why revolt of 1857 is an important watershed in Indian history?