Mangal Pandey

[spdeshwal]

Ravi ji Namaste!

The Book by Sh. Dilip Singh Ahlawat is Great work. So are your efforts in Translating the great Book.This book as evidence provided by you Gives altogrther different account special in relation to participation of jats in first war of independece as it popularly Known.

My curiosity is about the cartridges greased with beef and other animal fat which is believed to be the immediate cause of revolt that was first intiated by Mangal Pandey.

I don't know how would you rate Discovery of India as historical evidence that supports the cartridge theory which were believed to be greased with animal fat(pig and cow)? It also says that Mangal Pandey( of Bengal Army) was the one who first revolted against that at Barreckpore.This incident is believed to have taken place on 29th March, 1857. This spreaded to other parts of north india via Meerut and Delhi. I may be wrong in my assumptions as i had read the book a few years back.

with regards

 

[vinodks]

Is the book by qanungo available in us? From where did you purchase it? or did you get it from some other source.
Strangely When I looked around And I saw this book listed on a Iraqi web site hosted in UK - link goes to amazon:
http://www.local-news.net/go/44.32/31.98/shop - #3 on the list!!

Jeentender, I got this from http://www.abebooks.com/
they have lots of old books which are not in amazon...

vinod

 

[bharatrattan]

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/JatHistory/message/1602

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1857- THE FIRST WAR OF INDEPENDENCE


THE 1857 SEPOY MUTINY OR WAS IT THE FIRST INDIAN WAR OF INDEPENDENCE ?
.

Dear Ravi,

It was a sepoy mutiny and not war of independence.
If the thing that sparked angst among the soldiers was the ‘animal grease’, in the beginning the defiance had nothing to do with Independence. Later as the soldiers realized the extent to which they could affect the minority British forces, the ambition did expand to coup away the existing ‘Company’s regime. I have no doubts about the opportunism of the ‘Bhikari’ Nawabs, who missed the 'orgy' tradition using Indian women, developing ‘fine arts’ in brothels of Benaras .
‘India’ remains a 'colonial concept', because such political unification only existed after the administration was centralized by the British.
It is funny that religious sentiments were more important than the national identity (which did not exist at that time, but there was a religious identity). The society was badly split, with no commitment to establish a democracy. If the mutiny had succeeded, I have no doubts; India would have gone back into the hands of Nawabs and rajas and that would have been the worst possible thing.
It is not always that you benefit from a seeming victory. Afghans never lost to British, but look where they are presently, and where we are after 700 long years of suppression, first by Mughals and later by British.

Retrospective exaggeration/ interpretation of history for psychological and political benefits, is not something I appreciate. It is best to accept facts to the extent they are true.
I would describe the event a Revolt and not mutiny, which gives the British perspective more precisely . It did play a role in catalyzing anti-British sentiments.
But it was not a war of Independence.

Bharat