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REVOLT OF 1857-58 into castes; the people considering themselves
belonging to higher castes do not like to
Causes of the Revolt
mingle with the people of the low castes.
There were many causes of the revolt in 1857. We However, the railways did not discriminate
can classify them under the following headings : them on this basis, so the people belonging to
different castes had to travel and sit together,
Political Causes
which offended the high caste people.
The British annexed territories not only by wars
but by other dubious means too, such as by the q The British considered themselves superior to
Subsidiary Alliance System and the Doctrine of the Indians. They lived in luxurious houses
away from the common people and travelled
Lapse . This made the Indian rulers quite
in separate railway compartments. Not only
discontented with the British.
this, the Indians had to salute the British
q The states of Satara, Jhansi, Nagpur and many whenever they came across one.
others were annexed on the basis of the
q The introduction of English education created
Doctrine of Lapse under which a ruler was not
allowed to adopt a heir to the throne. Rani suspicion in the Indian minds, as they thought
Lakshmi Bai was not allowed to adopt a son that it was being done to propagate
Christianity.
and Nana Peshwa, the adopted son of Peshwa
Baji Rao II, was not acknowledged as the heir q The British government allowed a convert to
to the throne. Christianity to have a share in the ancestral
property. This was perceived as interference
q The British had declared that the Mughals
would lose the status of kings after the death of into the social and religious life of the Indians.
Bahadur Shah Zafar and would have to vacate q The spread of western culture frightened the
the Red Fort. Indian priestly class (Brahmins and Maulvis)
q The annexation of Awadh caused widespread that they would be rendered out of job. So,
unemployment of soldiers, landlords and they incited people that their religion was in
nobles. Moreover, the British army consisted danger.
of a large number of sepoys from Awadh, so q The British interfered with the social life of
they were not contented. Indians. Such laws as the abolition of the Sati
q Other states too were alarmed because they custom, child marriage, infanticide and
were threatened by the British. legalisation of widow remarriage were
considered interference in the social and
q The British treated the Indians with contempt,
as they lived away from the Indians in all types religious life of Indians.
of possible luxuries, while the Indians reeled q The British never considered India their home,
under hunger and poverty. their primary motive here was to make as
much money as possible.
q The British administration was corrupt and the
people were tired of it. Economic Causes
Economic causes aroused much discontentment in
Info Bits the Indians. Indian economy was made
Info Bits
subservient to the British economic interests in
The Revolt of 1857 is often termed as First War of
Independence because different sections of Indian every possible way.
society joined together to oppose the British. q The introduction of machine-made goods in
India threw Indian hand-made goods out of
Social and Religious Causes
market and rendered Indian craftsmen out of
q The Hindu society was, and still is, divided job.
Contemporary Social Science-8
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