Hi Everyone!! This article will share The Great Uprising of 1857 Questions & Answers.
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The Great Uprising of 1857 Questions & Answers
Question 1: What is Bhatta?
Answer: Bhatta is an additional or special allowance paid for fighting wars in distant places or outside India.
Question 2: Who was Begum Hazrat Mahal?
Answer: Begum Hazrat Mahal was the queen of last deposed Nawab Wajid Ali Shah. The Uprising was organized under her leadership at Lucknow.
Question 3: Name the major centres of the uprising.
Answer: Meerut, Delhi, Bareilly, Lucknow, Faizabad, Kanpur, Jhansi, Arrah are the major centres of the uprising.
Question 4: When was the Queen’s Proclamation issued?
Answer: The Queen’s Proclamation was issued on November 1, 1858.
Question 5: Why did the sepoys refuse to use greased cartridges?
Answer: Before the cartridge was loaded into the rifle, the greased paper which was made of beef and pig fat had to be bitten off. This enraged both the Hindu and Muslim sepoys and they declined to use the greased cartridges as this would violate their religious injunctions of both the communities.
Question 6: Give the names of the rulers who supported the British in suppressing the uprising.
Answer: Kunwar Singh and Bakht Khan were the rulers who supported the British in suppressing the uprising.
The Great Uprising of 1857 Questions & Answers
Question 7: What was the impact of British rule on Indian trade and industry?
Answer:
- The British goods imported into India were subjected to a nominal duty whereas the Indian goods exported to Britain were charged heavy import duties.
- The Indian manufacturers ruined due to the increase of export of cotton goods to India from Britain.
- Similar effect was seen on other industries such as iron-smelting industry which was destroyed due to the cheap imported iron and steel.
- The manufacturing towns and centers got decayed due to the ruin of industry and commerce and their population was driven to overcrowd villages.
Question 8: What were the causes of discontent among the ruling families?
Answer:
- The British policies such as Subsidiary Alliance, Doctrine of Lapse angered many Indian rulers and chiefs as they lost their power and honour.
- The court proceedings were monitored by the Residents due to which the freedom of the rulers was curbed.
- The British did not recognize the claim of the adopted son of Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi as the heir to the kingdom.
- The British refused to continue the pension of ex-Peshwa Baji Rao to his adopted son, Nana Saheb.
- Subsidiary alliance was imposed on Awadh in 1801. Finally, in 1856, on the pretext of misgovernment, Lord Dalhousie annexed the kingdom of Awadh and declared that British rule was needed for proper administration.
- The Company’s sepoy infuriated on the dethronement of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah as most of them came from Awadh.
- Further, throughout the country, a wave of resentment and anger was sent when Lord Dalhousie declared that after the death of the Mughal ruler Bahadur Shah Zafar, his family would be shifted from their residence to the Red Fort.
- Governor-General Canning in 1856 announced that Bahadur Shah Zafar would be the last Mughal ruler and after his death, his descendants would no longer be recognized as kings; instead, they would just be called princes.
- Thus, gradually all the powers of the kings and Nawabs were taken over by the Company which led them to oppose the British.
Question 9: Discuss the role of women leaders in the uprising.
Answer:
Begum Hazrat Mahal
Begum Hazrat Mahal was the queen of last deposed Nawab Wajid Ali Shah. The Uprising was organized under her leadership at Lucknow. She was assisted by the sepoys, peasants and the zamindars. She organized an attack on the British and the Residency building was set on fire by the sepoys at Lucknow. Sir Henry Lawrence, the chief commissioner and some of his loyal sepoys died while defending the Residency.
Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi
She joined the rebel sepoys and fought against the British forces. Sir Hugh Rose occupied the fort and the city of Jhansi. Tatya Tope, the general of Nana Saheb, joined Rani Lakshmibai at Kalpi. They conceived the idea of seizing Gwalior. The Scindia ruler of Gwalior was forced to flee to Agra and Gwalior fell into the hands of the rebel leaders. On hearing the news of the loss of Gwalior, Hugh Rose left Kalpi for Gwalior. A fierce battle was fought and Rani died in the battlefield while fighting heroically.
The Great Uprising of 1857 Questions & Answers
Question 10: How did the British hurt the religious sentiments of the sepoys?
Answer:
- The sepoys were prohibited from displaying religious marks.
- They were forbidden to wear caste and sectarian marks such as a vermilion mark on their forehead, or the turban.
- They were ordered to shave their beards.
Question 11: Write any three factors responsible for the failure of the uprising.
Answer:
- Limited Scope of The Uprising
The uprising was localized and there were many parts of India which were not affected by the uprising at all. It was confined to areas such as Bihar, modern Uttar Pradesh and parts of Madhya Pradesh. The British Indian territories such as Bombay, madras and Western Punjab remained outside the fold of the uprising and not at all affected by it. Many Indian rulers, ruling chiefs and zamindars refused to help the rebels and actively supported the British in suppressing the uprising.
- Unorganised Effort and Lack of Planning
The rebels failed on account of unorganized effort and lack of planning. They were brave but ill-disciplined and unorganized. They worked without any common plan and did not have a definite aim acceptable to all. They lacked an ideology or programme which could be implemented in the captured areas from the British.
- Weak Leadership
Bahudar Shah was too weak and an old person to lead the uprising. All the leaders fought to defend their own territories and neither coordinated nor planned with one another as a unit. No national leader emerged to give purpose and direction to the uprising.
Question 12: How did the Charter Act of 1813 support Christian missionaries?
Answer: This Act supported Christian missionaries in following ways:
- It permitted Christian missionaries to come to India under the license to carry out proselytizing activities.
- They were granted permission to function freely and even allowed to own land.
- Also, police protection was given to the missionaries.
Question 13: Delhi transformed into the centre of uprising.
Answer:
The regiments stationed in Delhi began the indiscriminate massacre of Europeans and the destruction of their house. The sepoys were determined to end British rule. Those who arrived first gathered at the Red Fort, requested the Mughal ruler, Bahadur Shah Zafar to take charge of the campaign. After a great deal of hesitation, Bahadur Shah Zafar agreed and was proclaimed as the Emperor of India. He wrote letters to all chiefs and rulers of India urging them to come forward and organize a confederacy of Indian states to overthrow British rule. The mutineers became the masters of Delhi as the leadership of Bahadur Shah Zafar was nominal and symbolic. Delhi soon transformed into the centre of uprising.
Question 14: Mention any three results of the Great Uprising of 1857.
Answer:
- The Great Uprising of 1857 was the great struggle of the Indians for freedom from the British. The result of the uprising marked the end of the Mughal dynasty. By the end of 1859, the British regained their control over the country. They could not carry on ruling the land with the same policies and introduced major changes in British policies and in the administrative setup of India.
- Lord Canning was the Governor- General during the time of the uprising. He was to continue but was thereafter given the title of Viceroy, that is, a personal representative of the crown.
- The British Government also proclaimed to abstain from all interference with the religious and social customs of the Indian subjects.
So, these were The Great Uprising of 1857 Questions & Answers.