iii. Revolt of 1857 Leaders

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iii. Revolt of 1857 Leaders

The storm centres of the uprising were located in Arrah, Delhi, Kanpur, Lucknow, Bareilly, and Lucknow. Even though they acknowledged Emperor Bahadur Shah’s suzerainty, all of these locations decided their own rulers and continued to be independent.

Leaders	Their contributions
Bakht Khan at Delhi	– Bahadur Shah served as the leader of Delhi. However, the soldiers held true power. – On July 3rd, 1857, Bakht Khan, who had organised the soldiers’ uprising in Bareilly, arrived in Delhi and assumed real power. – He assembled a Court of soldiers made up of both Muslim and Hindu rebels.
Begum Hazrat Mahal at Lucknow	– Begum of Awadh provided the leadership and proclaimed her son, Birjis Kadr, the Nawab of Awadh. – But, Maulavi Ahmadullah of Faizabad, who organised rebellions and fought the British, was the most popular leader.
Rani Lakshmi Bai at Jhansi	– She believed that she had been robbed of her ruling rights in defiance of recognised Hindu law and fought valiantly. – Led the rebels in the region of Bundelkhand against the British. – Battle: East India Company’s forces under Hugh Rose encircled the fort of Jhansi. Tatya Tope and Lakshmibai successfully assaulted the British in Gwalior and proclaimed Nana Sahib as the Peshwa.
Nana Saheb at Kanpur	– Nana Saheb was the leader of the Kanpur regiment. – He attacked the British soldiers of the 53rd Native infantry at Kanpur with Tatya Tope in June 1857. Attack on the British East India Company’s entrenchment under General Sir Hugh Wheeler. Sir Hugh Wheeler surrendered to Nana Saheb in exchange for a secure passage to Allahabad. – Nana Saheb announced himself as the Peshwa or the ruler after expelling the British from Kanpur.
Kunwar Singh at Bihar	– He marched hundreds of miles to reach Mirzapur, Banda, and the area around Kanpur with a war band of Danapur sepoys and the rebel Ramgarh state battalion. – He reached up to Rewa state and returned to Banda and then back to Arrah, where he engaged and defeated the British troops. – He suffered severe injuries and passed away on April 27, 1858, in his ancestral home in the Jagdishpur village.
Tatya Tope at Kanpur	– Rebelled against the British at Kanpur and later at Gwalior. – He’s known for his fearsome guerilla tactics. – In 1857, he captured Kanpur and established the authority of Nana Sahib there. But after being forced to retreat by the British at the Second Battle of Kanpur, he went to Gwalior.