Sepoy Rebellion

By 1857 the British East India company controlled all of India, including the 260,000 Indian soldiers. The people of India were upset for man reasons. One was the missionaries who were forcing the Hindus and Muslims into Christianity. Those who did not convert were treated like barbarians and were treated rudely. Another reason was the British administrative laws that ruined the peasants and the craftsmen. India became a marketplace for finished English goods, which brought poverty to the craftsmen and peasants, and drained India of its wealth. The main spark in starting the war of Independence was the fact that the cartridge of the British East Indias's Enfield rifle was greased in cow and pig fat. Cows were sacred to Hindus and pig was forbidden by Muslims. This enraged the Indian soldiers. It then all started when Mangel Pande wounded his sergeant with a sword in March 1857. Shortly after this 85 soldiers in Meerut refuse to handle the cartridges, and were punish by being stripped of their uniforms and sent to jail. Enraged people of Meerut broke the soldiers out of the jail and led a mob towards Delhi where there were three regiments of native infantry. At Delhi they united with three other regiments and a mob, then stormed the palace. They and killed Captain Douglass who was commander of Bahadur Shah's personal guard. They then asked Bahdur Shah to reclaim his throne. A large rebel army formed in Delhi, and Delhi was lost by the British. This was a huge hit to the British prestige and could not be ignored. The war for Independence carried on until 1859 until it finally ended with India's victory.

I think that this is very nationalistic because they were fighting back at the people who were treating their country poorly and disgracing their religion and work. The British were taking over India's Market and country and were treating the people of India like barbarians. They even greased the cartridges of their guns in pig and cow fat which was a direct offense to the religions of the Hindu and Muslim's and The people of India could not let this happen for they were proud of their country and religion, and had to fight back to regain their country.

(all sources used were from two handouts)