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British Reaction To The Sepoy Mutiny, 1857-1858: Major /professor
British Reaction To The Sepoy Mutiny, 1857-1858: Major /professor
APPROVED:
Major / P r o f e s s o r
mor Frotessar
of History
THESIS
MASTER OF A R T S
By
Samuel Shafeeq
Denton, Texas
August, 1970
PREFACE
Page
PREFACE iii
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS v
Chapter
IV. A RETROSPECT 54
59
BIBLIOGRAPHY . . . . .
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
Figure , Page
VI
PROLOGUE
In 185 7 , c r a c k s a p p e a r e d f o r t h e f i r s t time i n t h e
a d m i n i s t r a t i v e s t r u c t u r e of B r i t a i n ' s Crown C o l o n y , I n d i a ,
There had b e e n w a r n i n g s of t h e coining s t o r m , b u t t h e y were
i g n o r e d by o v e r - c o n f i d e n t B r i t i s h o f f i c e r s , Failure to r e -
d r e s s g r i e v a n c e s , however, did not alone cause the m i l i t a r y
i n s u r r e c t i o n known as t h e "Sepoy M u t i n y , " f o r B r i t i s h a g g r a n -
d i z e m e n t and c o r r u p t i o n , m i s s i o n a r y a c t i v i t i e s , and t h e r a p i d
i n t r o d u c t i o n of European i m p r o v e m e n t s , a l l s e r v e d t o e x a c e r -
b a t e t h e f e a r s of s u p e r s t i t i o u s n a t i v e s .
The Mutiny was n o t a n a t i o n a l u p r i s i n g , being confined
t o c e r t a i n u n i t s of t h e Bengal army g a r r i s o n e d a l o n g t h e
Ganges R i v e r from D e l h i t o A l l a h b a d . Indian troops in the
d i s t r i c t s of Madras, Bombay, and Punj a b - - t h e most r e c e n t l y
conquered province — did not p a r t i c i p a t e in the i n s u r r e c t i o n .
There i s no e v i d e n c e t h a t c i v i l i a n s p a r t i c i p a t e d i n t h e
Mutiny or t h a t i t s l e a d e r s advanced any s o c i a l and p o l i t i c a l
2
program.
British policy in the Middle and Far East and concluded that
ing to plan, the city of Meerut was taken, and the "Feringhi
The conspirators swore on the Koran that they would all par-
5
Ibid., IX, 339.
massacre.^
Jhansi, Sepoys led by Rani Luxmi Bai, also shot their offi-
any case, the causes of the Mutiny were varied and complex.
the title and privileges of the newab but transfer the actual
Z7Tl'u
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that it had governed Indians justly and had given them equal-
I J
Indian History, pp. 547-556.
-^Kapore,
13< ^* '»r° 1 sc 1 ey Ilaig and II. II, Dadwell, The Cambridge
2 i India (New York, 19 34), p. 73Tf K7tnuF~§7
Jose
> AlxJgL . ^ 0 W A of tJie Fl)iipire_ (New York, 1910), p. 218.
he sometimes found the role of plaintiff and defendant
long time, and court costs became very expensive. The courts
Indian affairs. They hated the bigoted Muslims and the slimy
Hindus and had nothing but contempt for them. He quoted one
^Elizabeth Longford, Queen' Victoria (New York, 1964),
p. 280; George Douglas, George Douglas, Eighth Duke of Argyll
1823-1900, ed. the Dowager"TTuchess 'oT"Argyl"T~C2"voTsT*" Tendon,
TUTRT)~ IT, 86-89; Kapore, History of India, p. 500.
1
Sir Syed Ahmed Khan, The Cause of the Indian Revolt
(Benares, India, 1857), p. 10".
8
and sweetmeats. . .
and brutal toward one another." 18 Sir John William Kaye has
16
"European Politics," Blackwoods's Edinburgh Magazine.
L XXI C J anua ry - June , 185 7), p. Ts2 ; (le'o r ge ~1J7~lT5¥rce7~l!7jTTSli
Attitude Toxmrds India (Oxford, 1961) , p. 2 35.
the tallow used for this purpose was a mixture of hog and cow
a sacred taboo, and xMuslims would not touch the fat of swine
23
"Crisis of Sepoy Rebellion," London Quarterly and
Hoi born Review, IX (18S7) , 564. . —
11
the past, each soldier in the future would grease his own
the government had come too late to change the minds of the
of imprisonment.
did not create it. They do not single out one cause but con-
24
Annual Register, XCIX (1857), 242, 288-291; J. A.
MarriotTEngland Since Waterloo (New York, 1922), p. 28;
J<?se, £rowtfh ffTHmpire, p\ 219;" Knight, Popular History! IX,
342; Smith, Oxford ifTstory of India, pp.'176Trbo'S"ir Anthony
Wood
» Nineteenth Century Britain ,"T815-1914 (London, 1960) ,
pp. 21 Kipore,TTr?toiy^"lncTri7 p 7 T 6 5 ; Sir Spencer
Walpole,' A History of HGuiTTn d~FrmTtire Conclusion of the
lndla
» London Quarterly Review, IX (1857), 246: T. Rice
Holmes, ii^istorj o_f tXe~"TudTTTnTfiitiny (New York, 1933),
p. 631; 7T.~1?7"l7arcr ajicTtfTTT'Gooclt,The Cambridge Hi story of
British Foreign Policy (6 vols.; LoncTon, ~T9 Y T J T i I 7"TTT7~ —
12
Crimea.5
3
Dallas to Secretary of State Lewis Cass, London, Aug.
25, 1857, George Mifflin Dallas, A Series of Letters from Lon-
don, ed. his daughter Julia Dallas" rPKTTifdeTpIiTI7*lT6?I7~" " —
P- 198; The Tirco_s_ (London) , Sept. 21, 185 7 , p. 4. The British
inhabitants 51" "Calcutta petitioned Parliament to take some
action against the Sepoy Mutiny. Granville to Canning, London
Aug. 10, 1857, Fitzmaurice, Second Earl Granville, I, 255.
4Evelyn Ashley, Life of Lord Palmerston (London, 1876).
J
pp. 348-349. ~~ "—" — * *
5
Charles C. F. Greville, Leaves from the Greville Diary,
ed. Philip Merre 11 (New York, iTA7T7 pTTy0""T'Georie"'i)ougj as"T^
:^^oj-:o;g'r^phy and Memoirs of George Douglas,' Eighth Duke of
tne Cowager ITuclTesT^inVrgTrrT?. voTsTf roEaTonT
X*/UuJ ^ 1X| JZj.
6
Entry for Dec. 2, 1857, Greville, The Greville Diary,
ed. Philip Whit we 11 Wilson (2 vols.; New^ro~rr;~Ty'2T)~,~n7
55 8; Dallas, Letters from London, pp. 186-187.
15
support for her subjects in. India who faced such great
11, 1857, The Times_ CLondon) announced that the queen had
7
Longford, Queen Victoria, p. 280; Annual Register,
XCIX v(1857),
-* ' J $ 181-llU;
1 w
a-w* Palmerston
l ca-A m v ' x. j u v u to
w Victoria
v Brocket, Sept.
o u p t i
10, 1857, Victoria Letters, III, 313-314;' Black wood's Edin?
feHlSL LXXlTrXlTSS) , 616; The Tii^TTLomioh"):
Sept. 11, 1ST?, 8-10; Palmers ton also"" orHeretT Indians to
observe this day, but Lord Canning re fused to obey his in-
structions, declaring that British authorities should not
disturb the natives' religion.
8t F. Monypenny and George Earl Buckle, The Life of
°W.
Benjamin' Disraeli, Earl" of Be aeon's fie Id (A vols7f CoHaToifT
i , p. 184.
16
proposed:
eye and a life for a life. The widely read Red Pamphlet
just,
British troops, however, did not need the urging after they
sciences , declared:
It is essential. , .that the people of this
country should clearly understand our position
in India and should ascertain how far any mis-
conduct or neglect on our part may have led to
this terrible event.
The Tories characterized the Mutiny as a national revolt. The
the chief Whig organ, argued that the Indian Mutiny was, in
first time that the Company's rule of India had serious de-
government.
ing" than the Crimean War and feared that it would bring
?^
^ V i c t o r i a to Palmerston Windsor Castle, Dec., 1857,
Victoria, L e t t e r s , III, 257-258.
26
Entry f o r Nov, 28, 1857, G r e v i l l e , Memoirs: A J o u r n a l
of t h e Reigns of King George [ V, W i l l i am IV, TiT<T~Ouee n ~ 7 T c r
J o V I a J e t r f W n f y KeeveHTr v o l i T ; 1383387 w i l T r r c n T ^ : ^ 3 g ;
•TtTmaurice, Life of Granville - pp. 262-265 ; entry for March
12, 1858, G r e vTX 1 e 7 *^1 a 564-565.
23
CHAPTER I I ,
in 01 dinary years flowed from the bast,*' but Iter real value to
India, in short, played the role of the goose that laid the
golden egg, and John Bull could not afford to lose her.
n or o\"3in?liSli\?Ule in India
» " Westminster Review, LXIX
t±0,>5J ? 111 -111#
24
r
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25
ests in the East India Company and Indian politics. The Court
inconsistency.
Company and insisted that his only aim was to corect existing
the East India Company, rose to defend the status quo. The
minister the despot of India, who could fill all the impor-
5
Thomas Baring speech, February 13, 1858, Ibid., 1408,
c
.. p (135 8), 17; Monypenny and Buckle,
of igsraeli, TTJ 106; Justin McCarthy, A History of
0ur
Own 'lines , (3 vols.; New York, 1901), II~" B*6T ~ —
28
not only opposed any reform of the East India Company, but
7
Sykes« speech of February 18, 1858. Pari. Debates,
CXLVIII, 1623-1630; Annual Register, C (1858X7 20.
8
Sykes' speech of February 18, 1858, Pari. Debates,
CXLVIII, 115 3, later Sykes speech, 16 35-163*6", 1631?7~~
Annual' Regis ter , C (185 8), 2 7.
29
forth in the first India hill, Disraeli, who was also leader
reading (April 1 9 ) . ^
14
Speech of the Chancellor of Exchequer, March 26, 1858,
Pari. Dcb a t es , CXLIX (1858), 824-825 ; Monypenny and Buckle,
Lite of Disraeli, IV, 128-129.
15
Monypenny and Buckle, Life of Disraeli. IV, 12 8-129.
16
Ibid., p. 141; Disraeli's speech, April 19, 1858,
Debates, CXLIX, 1348-1349; entry for May 10, 1858;
Thomas Richard Metcalf, "Victorian Liberalism and the Indian
E m p i r e T h e Impact of 1857 on British Policy in India "
(.unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, Harvard University, 1959)
pp. 185-187; Greville, Journal, VIII, 191. '
33
sition contended that, since neither the queen nor the cabinet
came to view the attacks upon him as unjust. The fall of the
when the interest of all England had been aroused for twelve
India bill; either that the council or the crown minister had
too much power, but good relations between the two, he ob-
The next day (June 24), the House continued its debate.
offered the bill was read a second time. After several com-
the Indian army. That same day (July 30), the House re-
26
Grabam in the Commons, July 30, 1858, ibid., col.
2336; Palmers ton's speech, ibid. , cols. 2338-Z3TCT, 2347.
39
chapter.
1
Henry George Grey, third Earl Grey (.1802 • 1894) - -whose
father had directed the passage of the Reforu Bill of 1832--
had been, secretary of war and the colonies in the Melbourne
and Russell cabinets.
An
41
its first reading, but died ten days later when Palmerston
3
Speech of Hay 12, 1858, Pari. Debates, CL, 596-598.
42
tliis time.**
4
Annual Register, C (185 8) , 57-5 8.
for the passage of the bill. James Howard Harris, the Earl
hold his question until Lord Derby, the prime minister, was
9
present in the House.
having any sympathy with the petition but contended that the
the bill.
9 Lord Broughton, a Whig, bitterly criticized the
Speech of June 18, 1858, Pari, Debates, CLI, 1-2;
Malmesbury in the Lords, June lF," f8SS', "lITxT., cols. 2-3.
10
Derby speaking in the Lords, July 9 , 185 8, ibid, col.
1146.
appealed to the Lords not to pass the bill until his duties
members. ^
14
Speech of July 16, 1858, ibid,, cols, 1577-1579;
Clanricade 1 s speech, July 16, 18ST, ibid., col. 15 78.
47
ness must be the primary concern of its members and must take
the royal perogative. When the Lords divided on July 16, the
whole. It read:
16
Lord Stanley of Alderly's speech, July 16, 1858, ibid,
col, 1585; Lord Chan ce11o rs s pe e ch, July 16, 1858, ibid.
49
the narrow margin of only seven votes (41 to 34), the Lords
a m
YlTli 'BRITISH PARLIAMENT IN LONDON, ENGLAND
Secretary of
CABINET 0- 'Stole for India-
Council of India
15 MEMBERS
I VICEROY)
\ m /
C INDIA ?
L
Executive
Council
5 MEMBERS
-P
+
6 to 12 additional Native States
members appointed BRI11SU RESIDENT
Legislative
Council by Governor General.
Not less than half
to he non-official.
1
T'HOYINCE OF BOM BAT MADRAS PUNJAB
H
GOVERNOR
Executive
Council Legislative Council
Advocate Gercrcl
end 4 to 3 additional "o'-" '1 \ .-J
members of whom not
less than hedf to he
r*on-o<fic?aL
1
The Structure of British Rule after 1857
was whether Indian troops should be used only for Indian .in-
prevent the crown from using Indian troops, but would require
On July 23, the Indian bill had its third reeding in the
approved the amendment and that sane day passed the India
approved the amended India bill and sent it to the queen for
declared:
2^Albemarle-Shaftesbury debate, July 23, 1858. ibid..
cols. 2007-2009. ™ *
2008 2 0 1 9 b a t ° 011 I n d i a b i i l
» Jul
>r 23
» 1858, ibid., cols.
7S
Bill returned from the Commons, Journal of the Commons
and Lords , CXI I, 46 3.
53
A RETROSPECT
Sikhs and Gurkhas even helped quell it. The Mutiny, there-
for the victims. Later they blamed the Company and its
the cry for Indian reform. Queen Victoria and her Liberal
55
mons but died in that house when the Whig ministry met defeat
for Indian reform and introduced the third bill which he and
on this issue less out of concern for effective reform than for
value of India; and (7) the new India Act was designed to pla-
A
'New York Times 9 Dec. 30 , 1858.
53
Primary Sourcos
2 36-45.
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Unpublished Materials