The Sepoy Rebellion was a widespread revolt against the British East India Company's rule in India. By this point, the Company had spread from its origins as a small trading company that had access to a handful of ports at the permission of the Mughal Empire, to the dominant political power within India. It not only conducted trade but also collected taxes and served as a quasi-nation state in its own right. The Sepoy Revolt was in many respects a violent response to the tactics and tendencies carried out by the Company in its control over India.
It should be noted, the Sepoys were the Indian soldiers employed by the Company to defend its political interests. As the Revolt shows, there was a lot of tension between the Company and the Sepoys themselves. In the long term, there was anger about how the Company was spreading its control over India,...
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by assimilating the holdings of Indian princes who had died heirless, as well as concerns about the westernization of Indian culture. However, the immediate spark that caused the Sepoy Revolts was rumor that British rifle cartridges made use of animal fats as a greasing agent. The spread of the rumors inflamed already present tensions and animosities among the Sepoys against the British and resulted in a widespread revolt against Company rule.
The Sepoy Mutiny (Indian Rebellion of 1857) was essentially the birth of Indian nationalism and the protest of Indian rule. The major goal of the uprising was to prevent the assimilation of Indians into Western and British culture. Indians felt that the British wanted to strip them of their ethnic and religious identities. Another goal of the uprising was to slow down the acquisition of Indian lands by the British East India Company. The revolt commenced when the Sepoys, Indians that were under British military command to protect East India Company interests, were forced to use new rifle cartridges. The cartridges were lubricated with cow and pig grease. This was offensive to Indians because of their Hindu and Muslim religious beliefs. The new cartridges demonstrated an unwillingness by the British to respect the culture of Indians and was a microcosm of British imperial attitudes. The widespread nature of the Sepoy Mutiny indicated that this feeling was national and it unified Indians against British rule.
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