was declared the "Emperor of Hindustan" during the
Indian Rebellion of 1857.
Maveeran Alagumuthu Kone was an early revolutionary against the British presence in Tamil Nadu. He became a military leader in the town of
Ettayapuram and was defeated in battle against the British and Maruthanayagam's forces. He was executed in 1757.
Puli Thevar opposed the
Nawab of Arcot, who was supported by the British. Maruthanayagam Pillai was a commandant of the British East India Company's
Madras Army. He was born in a Tamil
Vellalar caste family in a village called Panaiyur in
British India, what is now in Nainarkoil Taluk,
Ramanathapuram District of
Tamil Nadu, India. He converted to Islam and was named Muhammad Yusuf Khan. He was popularly known as Khan Sahib when he became the ruler of Madurai. He became a warrior in the
Arcot troops, and later a commandant for the
British East India Company troops. The
British and the
Arcot Nawab employed him to suppress the
Polygar (a.k.a. Palayakkarar) uprising in
South India. Later, he was entrusted to administer the
Madurai country when the
Madurai Nayak rule ended. He later fought a war against the British and the Arcot Nawab. A dispute arose with the British and the Arcot Nawab, and three of Khan's associates were bribed to capture him. He was captured during his morning prayer (Thozhugai) and hanged on 15 October 1764 at Sammatipuram near Madurai. Local legends state that he survived two earlier attempts at hanging, and that the Nawab feared Yusuf Khan would come back to life and so had his body dismembered and buried in different locations around Tamil Nadu. In
Eastern India and across the country, Indigenous communities organised numerous uprising against the British and their fellow members, especially
landlords and moneylenders. One of the earliest of these on record was led by Binsu Manki around 1771 over the transfer of
Jharkhand to the
East India Company. Following Binsu Manki's revolt in Jharkhand, numerous uprisings across the region took place, including the rebellion led by
Tilka Manjhi in 1784;
Bhumij Revolt of
Manbhum from 1798 to 1799; the
Chero Uprising of
Palamu in 1800 under the leadership of Bhukan Singh, and two uprising of the
Munda community in Tamar region, during 1807 led by Dukan Mank, and 1819–20 under the leadership Bundu and Konta. A larger
Bhumij Revolt occurred near
Midnapur in Bengal, under the leadership of
Ganga Narain Singh who had previously also been involved in co-leading the
Chuar Rebellions in these regions from 1771 to 1809.
Syed Mir Nisar Ali Titumir was an Islamic preacher who led a peasant uprising against the
Hindu Zamindars of Bengal and the British during the 19th century. Along with his followers, he built a bamboo fort (
Bansher Kella in Bengali) in Narkelberia Village, which gained a prominent place in Bengali folk legend. After the storming of the fort by British soldiers, Titumir died of his wounds on 19 November 1831. These rebellions lead to larger regional movements in Jharkhand and beyond such as the
Kol Insurrection led by Singhray and Binray Manki, where the
Kol (
Munda,
Oraon,
Bhumij and
Ho communities) united to rebel against the "outsiders" from 1830 -1833. , leader of Munda rebellion (Ulgulan) The
Santhal Hul was a movement of over 60,000
Santhals that happened from 1855 to 1857 (but started as early as 1784) and was particularly led by siblings – brothers
Sidhu, Kanhu, Chand and Bhairav and their sisters Phulo and Jhano from the
Murmu clan in its most fervent years that lead up to the
Revolt of 1857. More than 100 years of such escalating rebellions created grounds for a large, impactful, millenarian movement in Eastern India that again shook the foundations of British rule in the region, under the leadership of
Birsa Munda. Birsa Munda belonged to the
Munda community and lead thousands of people from Munda,
Oraon, and
Kharia communities in "Ulgulaan" (revolt) against British political expansion and those who advanced it, against forceful conversions of Indigenous peoples into Christianity (even creating a Birsaite movement), and against the displacement of Indigenous peoples from their lands. To subdue these rising tensions which were getting increasingly out of control of the British, they aggressively set out to search for Birsa Munda, even setting up a reward for him. They brutally attacked the Dombari Hills where Birsa had repaired a water tank and made his revolutionary headquarters between 7–9 January 1900, murdering a minimum of 400 of the Munda warriors who had congregated there, akin to the attacks on the people at
Jallianwallah Bagh, however, receiving much less attention. The hills are known as "Topped Buru" today – the mound of the dead.
Pazhassi Raja was the prince regent of the princely state of
Cotiote in North Malabar, near
Kannur, India between 1774 and 1805. He fought a guerrilla war with tribal people from Wynad supporting him. He was captured by the British, and his fort was razed to the ground. In 1766 the
Nizam of Hyderabad transferred the
Northern Circars to the British authority. The independent king
Jagannatha Gajapati Narayan Deo II of
Paralakhemundi estate situated in today's
Odisha and in the northernmost region of the then political division was continuously revolting against the
French occupants since 1753 as per the Nizam's earlier handover of his estate to them on similar grounds. Narayan Deo II fought the British at Jelmur fort on 4 April 1768 and was defeated due to superior firepower of the British. He fled to the tribal hinterlands of his estate and continued his efforts against the British until his natural death on the Fifth of December 1771. , was one of the earliest Indian queens to fight against the British colonial power in India.
Rani Velu Nachiyar (1730–1796), was a queen of
Sivaganga from 1760 to 1790. Rani Nachiyar was trained in war match weapons usage, martial arts like Valari, Silambam (fighting using stick), horse riding and archery. She was a scholar in many languages and she had proficiency with languages like French, English, and Urdu. When her husband, Muthuvaduganathaperiya Udaiyathevar, was killed in battle with British soldiers and the forces of the
Nawab of Arcot, she was drawn into battle. She formed an army and sought an alliance with Gopala Nayaker and
Hyder Ali to attack the British, whom she successfully challenged in 1780. When the inventories of the Britishers were discovered, she is said to have arranged a suicide attack by a faithful follower,
Kuyili, dousing herself in oil and setting herself alight and walking into the storehouse. Rani formed a women's army named "Udaiyaal" in honour of her adopted daughter, who had died detonating a British arsenal. Rani Nachiyar was one of the few rulers who regained her kingdom, and ruled it for a decade more.
Veerapandiya Kattabomman was an eighteenth-century
Polygar and chieftain from
Panchalankurichi in
Tamil Nadu, India who waged the
Polygar war against the East India Company. He was captured by the British and hanged in 1799 CE. Kattabomman refused to accept the sovereignty of East India Company, and fought against them.
Dheeran Chinnamalai was a
Kongu Nadu chieftain and
Palayakkarar from Tamil Nadu who fought against the East India Company. After
Kattabomman and Tipu Sultan's deaths, Chinnamalai sought the help of
Marathas and
Maruthu Pandiyar to attack the British at
Coimbatore in 1800. The British forces managed to stop the armies of the allies, forcing Chinnamalai to attack Coimbatore on his own. His army was defeated and he escaped from the British forces. Chinnamalai engaged in
guerrilla warfare and defeated the British in battles at
Cauvery in 1801, Odanilai in 1802 and
Arachalur in 1804. In 1804 the King of
Khordha,
Kalinga was deprived of his traditional rights to the
Jagannath Temple. In retaliation, a group of armed Paiks attacked the British at
Pipili.
Jayee Rajguru, the chief of Army of Kalinga requested a common alliance against the British. After Rajguru's death,
Bakshi Jagabandhu launched an armed revolution against the East India Company's rule in Odisha. This is now known as the
Paik Rebellion, the first uprising against the British East India Company. File:Puli Thevar Statue in his Nerkattumseval Palace 2013-08-12 06-35.jpeg|
Puli Thevar File:Veerapandiya Kattabomman 1999 stamp of India.jpg|
Veerapandiya Kattabomman File:Maveeran Alagumuthu Kone.jpg|
Maveeran Azhagu Muthukon File:Bakshi Jagabandhu.jpg|Statue of
Bakshi Jagabandhu, the leader of
Paika Rebellion File:Stamp of India - 2002 - Colnect 158245 - Sido Murmu - Kanhu Murmu.jpeg|
Sidhu and Kanhu Murmu, leaders of
Santhal rebellion '', which depicts the execution of mutineers by
blowing from a gun by the British.
Rebellion of 1857 The Indian war of independence of 1857 was a large uprising in northern and central India against the East India Company. The predominance of members from the upper castes in the army, perceived loss of caste due to overseas deployment, and rumours of secret designs of the government to convert them to Christianity led to growing discontent. The sepoys were also disillusioned by their low salaries and the racial discrimination practised by British officers in matters of promotion and privileges. The indifference of the British towards native Indian rulers and the annexation of
Oudh furthered dissent. The
Marquess of Dalhousie's policy of annexation, the
doctrine of lapse and the projected removal of the Mughals from their ancestral palace at
Red Fort also led to popular anger. The final spark was provided by the rumoured use of tallow (from cows) and lard (pig fat) in the newly introduced
Pattern 1853 Enfield rifle cartridges. Soldiers had to bite the cartridges with their teeth before loading them into their rifles, ingesting the fat. This was sacrilegious to both Hindus and Muslims.
Mangal Pandey was sepoy who played a key part in the events immediately preceding the outbreak of the
Indian rebellion of 1857. His defiance to his British superiors led to his execution, contributing to the first outbreak at
Meerut. , one of the principal leaders of the rebellion who earlier had lost her kingdom as a result of the
Doctrine of Lapse. On 10 May 1857, the sepoys at
Meerut broke ranks and turned on their commanding officers, killing some of them. They reached Delhi on 11 May, set the company's
toll house on fire, and marched into the Red Fort, where they asked the
Mughal emperor,
Bahadur Shah II, to become their leader and reclaim his throne. The emperor eventually agreed and was proclaimed
Shahenshah-e-Hindustan by the rebels. The rebels also murdered much of the European,
Eurasian, and Christian population of the city, including natives who had converted to Christianity, while sparing British men and women who had converted to Islam. Revolts broke out in other parts of
Oudh and the
North-Western Provinces as well, where
civil rebellion followed the mutinies, leading to popular uprisings. The British were initially caught off-guard and were thus slow to react, but eventually responded with force. The lack of effective organisation among the rebels, coupled with the military superiority of the British, brought an end to the rebellion. The British fought the main army of the rebels near Delhi, and after prolonged fighting and a siege, defeated them and reclaimed the city on 20 September 1857. Subsequently, revolts in other centres were also crushed. The last significant battle was fought in
Gwalior on 17 June 1858, during which
Rani Lakshmibai was killed. Sporadic fighting and
guerrilla warfare, led by
Tatya Tope, continued until spring 1859, but most of the rebels were eventually subdued. The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a turning point. While affirming the military and political power of the British, it led to a significant change in how India was to be controlled by them. Under the
Government of India Act 1858, the East India Company's territory was transferred to the British government. At the apex of the new system was a
Cabinet minister, the
Secretary of State for India, who was to be formally advised by a
statutory council; the
Governor-General of India (Viceroy) was made responsible to him, while he in turn was responsible to the government. In a
royal proclamation made to the people of India,
Queen Victoria promised equal opportunity of public service under British law, and also pledged to respect the rights of native princes. The British stopped the policy of seizing land from the princes, decreed
religious tolerance and began to admit Indians into the civil service. However, they also increased the number of British soldiers in relation to native Indian ones, and allowed only British soldiers to handle artillery. Bahadur Shah II was exiled to
Rangoon where he died in 1862. In 1876 the British Prime Minister
Benjamin Disraeli proclaimed Queen Victoria the
Empress of India. The British Liberals objected as the title was foreign to British traditions. , was one of the founding members of the
Indian National Congress. ==Rise of organised movements==