Editing Indian independence movement (section)

===Rebellion of 1857===
{{Main|Indian Rebellion of 1857}}
The Indian war of independence of 1857 was a large uprising in northern and central India against the East India Company.<ref name="Chandra 1989 31" /> The conditions of service in the company's army and [[cantonment]]s had increasingly come into conflict with the religious beliefs and prejudices of the [[sepoy]]s.<ref>{{harvnb|Chandra|Mukherjee|Mukherjee|Mahajan|1989|p=33}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{harvnb|Chandra|Mukherjee|Mukherjee|Mahajan|1989|pp=33–34}}</ref> The sepoys were also disillusioned by their low salaries and the racial discrimination practised by British officers in matters of promotion and privileges.<ref name="Chandra 1989 34">{{harvnb|Chandra|Mukherjee|Mukherjee|Mahajan|1989|p=34}}</ref>

The indifference of the British towards native Indian rulers and the annexation of [[Oudh]] furthered dissent. The [[James Broun-Ramsay, 1st Marquess of Dalhousie|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.
[[File:Indian revolt of 1857 states map.svg|alt=Map of India during the Indian Rebellion of 1857.|left|thumb|Map of India during the Indian Rebellion of 1857.]]
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.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://lcweb2.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+bd0018)|title=The Uprising of 1857|publisher=[[Library of Congress]]|access-date=10 November 2009}}</ref>

[[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]].
[[File:Rani of jhansi.jpg|alt=Lakshmibai, the Rani of Jhansi, one of the principal leaders of the revolutionaries who earlier had lost her kingdom as a result of the Doctrine of Lapse.|thumb|[[Rani of Jhansi|Lakshmibai, the Rani of Jhansi]], 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 Empire|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.<ref name="Chandra 1989 31">{{harvnb|Chandra|Mukherjee|Mukherjee|Mahajan|1989|p=31}}</ref> The rebels also murdered much of the European, [[Anglo-Indian|Eurasian]], and Christian population of the city, including natives who had converted to Christianity,<ref>{{harvnb|David|2002|p=122}}</ref> while sparing British men and women who had converted to Islam.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Dalrymple |first=William |author-link=William Dalrymple |title=The Last Mughal: The Fall of a Dynasty, Delhi 1857 |publisher=Penguin Books |year=2006 |isbn=9780143102434 |location=India |publication-date=2006 |page=153}}</ref> 

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.<ref>{{Harvnb|Chandra|Mukherjee|Mukherjee|Mahajan|1989|p=35}}</ref>  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.<ref>{{Harvnb|Chandra|Mukherjee|Mukherjee|Mahajan|1989|pp=38–39}}</ref> 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.<ref>{{Harvnb|Chandra|Mukherjee|Mukherjee|Mahajan|1989|p=39}}</ref> 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.
[[File:"Attack of the Mutineers on the Redan Battery at Lucknow, July 30th, 1857,.jpg|alt=Attack of the Mutineers on the Redan Battery at Lucknow, July 30, 1857|left|thumb|Attack of the Mutineers on the Redan Battery at Lucknow, 30 July 1857]]
The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a turning point. While affirming the military and political power of the British,<ref>{{Harvnb|Heehs|1998|p=32}}</ref> 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.<ref name="WDL">{{cite web |url = http://www.wdl.org/en/item/393/ |title = Official, India |website = [[World Digital Library]] |date = 1890–1923 |access-date = 30 May 2013 }}</ref> At the apex of the new system was a [[Cabinet of the United Kingdom|Cabinet minister]], the [[Secretary of State for India]], who was to be formally advised by a [[Council of India|statutory council]];<ref>{{Harvnb|Heehs|1998|pp=47–48}}</ref> 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, [[Victoria of the United Kingdom|Queen Victoria]] promised equal opportunity of public service under British law, and also pledged to respect the rights of native princes.<ref>{{Harvnb|Heehs|1998|p=48}}</ref> 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 [[Yangon|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.<ref>{{cite book|last=Robert P. O'Kell|title=Disraeli: The Romance of Politics|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0DyWAwAAQBAJ&pg=PT443|year=2014|publisher=U of Toronto Press|pages=443–44|isbn=9781442661042}}</ref>
[[File:Dadabhai Naoroji 1889.jpg|thumb|[[Dadabhai Naoroji]], was one of the founding members of the [[Indian National Congress]].<ref name="INC_BritishRaj">{{citation |last=Nanda |first=B. R. |title=Gokhale: The Indian Moderates and the British Raj |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pI19BgAAQBAJ&pg=PA58 |page=58 |year=2015 |series=Legacy Series |publisher=Princeton University Press |isbn=978-1-4008-7049-3 |author-link=Bal Ram Nanda |orig-year=1977}}</ref>]]