The War of Independence of 1857, the battle for Swadharma and Swaraj, as defined by Veer Savarkar, played a major role in shaping the freedom struggle of India. Although many armed war of independence were fought against both Muslim and British colonial rulers before 1857 and most of them were confined to the provincial level. The War of independence of 1857 had a different history and wider impact and was not confined to a particular province or a leader or a king but had a pan-Indian support base. It was estimated that more than 6000 British soldiers and civilians lost their lives. Lakhs of Indians also lost their lives in the one-year war of Independence and the subsequent famine and epidemic. The War of Independence of 1857 destroyed the basic strength of the British East India Company in India. Hence, the British Crown directly took over the administration of India from the East India Company in 1858. Along with the territories directly ruled by the British, they compelled hundreds of Princely States to accept its paramountcy. Thus the British Raj started a new colonial chapter in the history of India.
Poligars’ War of independence (1795-1805)
The poligars (or palayakkarargal) of South India gave a stiff resistance to the British between 1795 and 1805. The main centres of these strong uprisings were Tinneveli (or Thirunelveli), Ramanathapuram, Sivaganga, Sivagiri, Madurai, and North Arcot. The problem started in 1781, when the Nawab of Arcot gave the management and control of Tinneveli and the Carnatic Provinces to the East India Company. This arrangement caused resentment among the poligars who had, for long considered themselves as independent sovereign authorities within their respective territories. The first War of Independence of the poligars against the Company was basically over taxation, but had a larger political dimension in that the English considered and treated the poligars as enemies. Kattabomman Nayakan, the poligar of Panjalankurichi, led the insurrection between 1795 and 1799. After a fierce battle in which the Company forces were defeated by Veerapandiya Kattabomman, a price was put on the latter’s head. This led to greater rebellion by the poligars. With reinforcements the Company forces were finally able to defeat Kattabomman. Kattabomman fled into the Pudukottai forests. Once again a betrayal—this time by Ettappan, the Raja of Pudukottai, who entered into an agreement with the British—led to the capture of Kattabomman. Kattabomman was hanged in a conspicuous place.
War of independence of Raja of Vizianagaram (1794)
In 1758, a treaty was signed between the English and Ananda Gajapatiraju, the ruler of Vizianagaram, to jointly oust the French from the Northern Circars. In this mission they were successful but the English, as was usual in their case in India, went back on their word to honour the terms of the treaty. Anand Raju died before he could seriously tackle the English. The East India Company went on to demand a tribute of three lakh rupees from Vizayaramaraju, the Raja of Vizianagaram and asked him to disband his troops. This angered the raja as there were no dues to be paid to the Company. The raja supported by his subjects rose up in war of independence. The English captured the raja in 1793 and ordered him to go into exile with a pension. The raja refused. The raja died in a battle at Padmanabham (in modern Visakhapatnam district in Andhra Pradesh) in 1794. Vizianagaram came under the Company’s rule. Later, the Company offered the estate to the deceased raja’s son and reduced the demand for presents.
Resistance of Kerala Varma Pazhassi Raja (1797; 1800-05)
Kerala Varma Pazhassi Raja, popularly known as Kerala Simham (Lion of Kerala) or ‘Pyche raja’, was the de facto head of Kottayam (Cotiote) in Malabar region. Apart from resisting Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan, Kerala Varma fought against the British between 1793 and 1805. The Third Anglo-Mysore War (1790-92), extended English paramountcy over Kottayam in violation of an earlier agreement of 1790 which had recognised the independence of Kottayam. The English appointed Vira Varma, the uncle of Pazhassi Raja, as the Raja of Kottayam. The new raja, to meet the revenue target fixed by the Company, levied exorbitant rates of tax on the peasants. This led to a mass resistance by the peasants under the leadership of Pazhassi Raja in 1793. Pazhassi Raja fought bravely using guerilla warfare, and in 1797 a peace treaty was made. But a conflict over a dispute on Wayanad in 1800 started an insurgent warfare. Pazhassi Raja organised a large force of Nairs which was supplemented by Mappilas and Pathans, the latter being demobilised soldiers of Tipu who had become unemployed after Tipu’s death. In November 1805, the Kerala Simham died in a gun-fight at Mavila Todu near present day KeralaKarnataka border.
Diwan Velu Thampi’s War of independence (1808-1809)
The East India Company’s harsh conditions imposed on the state of Travancore, after both of them agreed to a subsidiary alliance arrangement under Wellesley in 1805, caused deep resentment in the region. The ruler was not able to pay the subsidy and fell in arrears. The British resident of Travancore was meddling in the internal affairs of the state. The highhanded attitude of the Company compelled Prime Minister (or Dalawa) Velu Thampi to rise against the Company, assisted by the Nair troops. Velu Thampi addressed a gathering in Kundara, openly calling for taking up arms against the British to oust them from the native soil. This was later known as the Kundara Proclamation. There was large scale rebellion against the British as a result. A large military operation had to be undertaken to restore peace. The Maharaja of Travancore had not wholly supported the rebellion and defected to the side of the Company. Velu Thampi killed himself to avoid capture. The rebellion petered out.
Paika Rebellion (1817)
The Paiks of Odisha were the traditional landed militia (‘foot soldiers’ literally) and enjoyed rent free land tenures for their military service and policing functions on a hereditary basis. The English Company’s conquest of Odisha in 1803, and the dethronement of the Raja of Khurda had greatly reduced the power and prestige of the Paiks. Further, the extortionist land revenue policy of the Company caused resentment among zamindars and peasants alike.
The major theatre of the 1857 war against the British was in North and Central India, but it spread to the South, including Karnataka and Madras. It was a fact that, for the first time, such a national War of Independence was fought against the alien rulers, which spread all over India. The revolutionaries joined hands for a common cause, and the resistance was heroic. The war was not limited to soldiers, but thousands of ordinary people from all walks of life participated in the agitation. Even though Delhi, Kanpur, Bareilly, Aligarh, Allahabad, Banaras, Bihar, Awadh, Bengal, North WesternProvinces etc, witnessed the major War of Independence. The War of Independence spread into other provinces also.
1857 and South India
According to some writers, the 1857 War of Independence was confined to the North. It was absolutely wrong. It was a fact that the major fights were reported from North and Central India; other parts also responded to the War of Independence, and in some provinces, people were sympathetic to the movement. Though the Bengal Army spearheaded the War of Independence, it consisted of members from all parts of India. The 21st and 27th infantry Regiments of the Bombay Army joined with the revolutionaries. In Madras, the army, but not as in the North. One thousand forty-four sepoys of the Madras Army were court-marshalled for being sympathetic to the struggles. Also, minor eruptions took place in various towns of Madras Province.
While discussing the 1857 war of independence in South India, it should be remembered that the British faced a series of resistances from South India before 1857, especially from 1800 to 1850 period
Meanwhile, the 8th Cavalry was ordered to march from Bangalore to Madras and then to Calcutta. Near Madras, the army put certain conditions on August 17, 1857. Later the Army men declared that they would not go forth to fight a war against their countrymen. As a result, the 8th Cavalry was unhorsed and disarmed. A letter written in the year 1858 from Nagpur said that the sympathisers of the Madras Sepoys were entirely with the insurrection of the army movement, and if they got an opportunity, they would have joined it. They only want a beginning to be made. They were not different from the Bengal.
In Deccan, on September 11, 1857, the East India Company announced that all Indians should surrender their arms to the Company and then get licences to carry arms. This was challenged by the Bedas of Halagali of Karnataka. Immediately the war of independence spread to the nearby areas. The British captured 290 Bedas and hanged 19 leaders of the uprising in the Mudhol market in December 1857.
Nargund Bandaya (war of independence) in 1858 was against the British under the leadership of Baskar Rao Bhave in North Karnataka. Later Bhaskar Rao Bhave was captured by the British and executed in Balgavi on June 12, 1858. In 1857 the representative of Nana Saheb had a secret meeting with Raja Venkatapathy Nayak of Surpur. Meanwhile, the British sent troops to the Fort of Surpur, and in the battle Raja was captured and jailed and subsequently killed in 1858.
Mundaragi Bhimarayais a legendary hero of the 1857 war of independence in Karnataka. He was influenced by the call of Nana Saheb. He started raiding British armouries in various places. In the battle with the British on June 1, 1858, Bhimraya was killed. His supporters and associates faced brutal attacks from the British.
The uprisings in coastal Maharastra also spread to Mangalore (Dakshina Kannada) and Karwar(Uttara Kannada) regions of Madras Presidency. Also, Raichur and Koppal districts under the Nizam, Bijapur and Dharwad under Bombay witnessed many war of independences against the British in 1857. The coastal Karnataka became a refuge for many revolutionaries from Maharastra.
While discussing the 1857 war of independence in South India, it should be remembered that the British faced a series of resistances from South India before 1857, especially from 1800 to 1850 period. But the British crushed all these war of independences against them with an iron hand. Some of the major resistances should be mentioned here. Puli Thevar and Veerapandian Kattaboman, Palayakkaras of the mid and late 18th century in the Madras Presidency, were the great patriots who fought with the British during the initial period. The Marudha Pandyan Brothers war of independenceed against the British between 1799 and 1801 in Tamilnadu. The Vellore Sepoy Mutiny of 1806 was another major resistance faced by the British in Madras. Mysore wars (1767-1799), the War of independence of Pazhasi Raja of Malabar (1792-1805) and Velu Thampi of Travancore (1809) from Kerala need special attention.
Venkatagiri Nayak (1830), Koppal Veerappa (1819), Deshmukh of Bidar (1820), Sindagi War of independence (1824), Rani Chennamagalur and Kittur War of independence (1824), Sangli Rayanna(1829), Nagar Peasant War of independence (1830-31), Coastal Uprisings (1830-31) in Southern Kannada, Kolagunta War of independences (1833-37) etc. were the prominent anti-British war of independences in South India. All these resistances happened independently that helped the British to trounce them. One of the major advantages of the British during the 1857 War of independences was that before the protest in the North, most of the Southern Kingdoms came under the British and to an extent, they crushed all war of independences in the South, especially in the first part of the 19th century.
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