The essentials
Most of what we know about the rebels comes from British records, but a few rebel proclamations and statements survive. They show what rebels thought and hoped for. The proclamations repeatedly appealed to all sections of the population, irrespective of caste and creed. Many were issued in the name of Muslim princes or nawabs, yet they also addressed the sentiments of Hindus.
The Azamgarh Proclamation of 25 August 1857 listed the grievances of different groups: zamindars (high revenue demands), merchants (British monopoly over trade), government servants (denied high posts and respect), artisans (ruined by British manufactured goods) and religious leaders (fear of attacks on religion). The rebels presented the revolt as a war in which both Hindus and Muslims had much to lose or gain.
Key points
- Unity: An ishtahar (notification) issued in the name of Bahadur Shah appealed to people to join under the Mughal emperor, recalling the coexistence of different communities under Mughal rule.
- Despite British attempts to divide Hindus and Muslims, the revolt showed remarkable unity in many places.
- Against oppression: rebels rejected everything associated with British rule, the "firangi raj": land revenue settlements, foreign goods, and Christian missionary activity.
- Rebels often looked back to the pre-British world; they aimed to restore the authority of older rulers.
- Alternative power: in some places rebels set up structures modelled on the Mughal administration, with appointments for collecting revenue and paying troops, though most of these did not last.
- Rebels also attacked moneylenders and others seen as allies of the British.
Common mistakes
- The rebel vision was not a modern democratic programme; it largely sought to restore an older order.