#history
#memory
Vellore Mutiny.
10 July is the anniversary of the first rebellion against the British in India ,120 years ago.
1857 is considered as the the year of the First War of Independence. However the sepoys of the Vellore Fort had, 50 years earlier, rose in revolt against the British.
On 10 July1806, the Vellore mutiny took place in the South Indian town of Vellore and lasted one full day.
It was the first instance of a large-scale and violent mutiny by Indian sepoys against the East India Company before the Rebellion of 1857.
The immediate cause of the mutiny was the changes in the sepoy dress code. Hindus were prohibited from wearing religious marks on their foreheads, and Muslims were required to shave their beards and trim their moustaches.
General Sir John Craddock, Commander-in-Chief of the Madras Army, also ordered the wearing of a round hat resembling one associated at the time, with both Europeans in general, and with the Indian converts to Christianity.
In May 1806, some sepoys who protested the new rules were sent to Fort Saint George. Two of them – a Hindu and a Muslim – were given 90 lashes each and dismissed from the army. 19 sepoys were sentenced to 50 lashes each, but were pardoned by the East India Company.
In addition to the military grievances, the rebellion was also instigated by the sons of the defeated Tipu Sultan, confined at Vellore since 1799. Tipu’s wives and sons, together with numerous retainers, were pensioners of the East India Company, and lived in a palace within the large complex comprising the Vellore Fort.
On 10 July, the sepoys started the mutiny and raised the flag of the Mysore Sultanate over the fort. Tipu’s second son Fateh Hyder was declared king. Nearly 300 British soldiers were injured.
The mutiny was suppressed by a relief force comprising the British 19th Light Dragoons, galloper guns and a squadron of Madras cavalry, who rode from Arcot to Vellore.
After a formal trial, six mutineers were blown away from guns, five shot by firing squad, eight hanged, and five transported. More than 100 mutineers were later executed after summary military trials.
The three Madras battalions involved in the mutiny were all disbanded. The senior British officers responsible for the offensive dress regulations, were recalled to England, including the Commander-in-Chief of Madras Army, John Craddock. The company refused to pay even for his passage. The orders regarding the new dress code were also cancelled.
– Joy Kallivayalil.
