The Sepoy Mutiny

Key Players:

1. The Sepoy Soldiers
2. The British
3. East India Company

What Happened:
Due to the British having Imperialism over India, they began to face economic problems, causing feelings of resentment and nationalism towards the British. In 1857, Sepoy, or Indian soldiers were told that the cartridges of their new Enfield rifles were sealed with beef and pork fat, and that to use these cartridges, the seals were to be bitten off. This offended the Hindu and Muslim Sepoys because the cow is sacred to Hindus, and Muslims do not eat pork. The soldiers who refused to take the cartridges were placed in jail, a bad idea from the British. The day after they were placed in jail, the Sepoys repelled, and they marched to Delhi, being joined by other Indian soldiers there. The Indian soldiers took control of Delhi, and continued on from there.
There was much fierce fighting all over India due to this uprising. It took the East India Company more than a year to regain control over the country. The Indians could have taken control if they had had a stronger leadership and a union between the Muslims and Hindus.


How Successful:
The Sepoy Mutiny was not very successful because the Indians did not have a strong and the Muslims and Hindus were not exactly friendly towards one another. As a result of the rebellion, the British government took direct command of India in 1858. The parts of India that were controlled by the British was called the Raj which referred to the British rule over India from 1757-1947. India was controlled by a British Governor-General, who was directed by policies formed in London by a Cabinet Minister. Because of the Sepoy Mutiny, racist attitudes towards the Indians increased. Overall, the success of this Rebellion was not great. They seemed to have lost more than they had gained.