UP in 1857 and the Freedom Struggle
2. The 1857 revolt in Uttar Pradesh: Meerut, Kanpur, Lucknow, Jhansi, Faizabad
The revolt spread along the Ganga and the Yamuna. It began at Meerut on 10 May 1857, when sepoys rose and marched to Delhi. Kanpur, Lucknow, Jhansi, Bareilly and Faizabad each developed a rebel leadership of its own, and most fell back to the British by the end of 1858. The sequence of sieges and relief operations is the core of the exam narrative, so learn each centre's dates and its leader together.
| Centre | Key dates | Leader or figure |
|---|---|---|
| Kanpur | Siege from 6 June 1857; surrender 25 June; Satichaura Ghat 27 June; Bibighar 15 July; Havelock retakes 16 July | Nana Sahib |
| Lucknow | Revolt 30 May 1857; Chinhat 30 June; Lawrence dies 4 July; Havelock reaches Residency 25 September; Campbell relieves November; recaptured March 1858 | Begum Hazrat Mahal, Birjis Qadr |
| Jhansi | Jokhan Bagh killings, June 1857; siege by Hugh Rose, late March–early April 1858; Betwa 31 March–1 April | Rani Lakshmibai |
| Faizabad and Awadh | Ahmadullah Shah killed near Powayan, June 1858 | Ahmadullah Shah, the Maulvi of Faizabad |
Lucknow and the Residency. The Company garrison at Lucknow withdrew into the Residency after the rising of 30 May 1857. Henry Lawrence was killed in July, and the Residency held out until Havelock's force reached it on 25 September. Colin Campbell's relief came in November, and the garrison and civilians left on 27 November. Lucknow was recaptured in March 1858, when fighting ended on 21 March.
3. Leaders and the settlement: Hazrat Mahal, Ahmadullah Shah and the 1858 Proclamation
Begum Hazrat Mahal was a junior wife of Wajid Ali Shah, born about 1820 at Faizabad. After 1856 she stayed in Lucknow and, in 1857, had her son Birjis Qadr declared Wali, or ruler, of Awadh, and ruled as regent. After the British recaptured Lucknow she went into exile in Nepal. She died in Kathmandu on 7 April 1879. Her role as regent is the point examiners test.
Ahmadullah Shah, the Maulvi of Faizabad, was born in Faizabad in 1787. He travelled widely to build popular support for rebellion, co-led the Awadh rebel army with Barkat Ahmad, and fought at Chinhat. He was killed near Powayan in June 1858, and the reward offered for him is recorded in the sources.
The Proclamation of 1858. The Government of India Act 1858 ended Company rule and transferred power to the Crown. The Queen's Proclamation was read at Allahabad on 1 November 1858 by Lord Canning, who became the first Viceroy. It promised that treaties would be honoured, that there would be no further extension of territory, and that subjects would be admitted to service without distinction of race or creed. The settlement of land after the revolt favoured many landholders who had submitted, which shaped rural politics in Awadh for decades.
4. Peasant movements and Non-Cooperation: Kisan Sabhas and Chauri Chaura
Peasant organisations came first. The United Provinces Kisan Sabha was set up in February 1918 by Gauri Shankar Mishra and Indra Narayan Dwivedi, with support from Madan Mohan Malaviya. The Awadh Kisan Sabha was formed in October 1920 at Pratapgarh (one local account gives November 1920), with Baba Ramchandra, Jawaharlal Nehru and Gauri Shankar Mishra among its leaders, and it took up bedakhli land and unpaid labour (begar) as its main grievances. Police firing at Munshiganj in Rae Bareli in January 1921 became a symbol of the peasant struggle.
Chauri Chaura. On 4 February 1922 a crowd at Chauri Chaura in Gorakhpur district set fire to a police station, and 22 policemen were killed. Gandhi halted the Non-Cooperation Movement nationally on 12 February 1922. At the Gorakhpur Sessions trial, 225 people were tried, and the court sentenced about 170 (some accounts say 172) to death. On appeal, the Allahabad High Court in April 1923 upheld 19 death sentences, and 19 men were hanged in July 1923.
5. Revolutionaries and the Congress in UP: Kakori, Ballia and the sessions
Kakori, 1925. On 9 August 1925 members of the Hindustan Republican Association stopped the Number 8 Down train near Kakori, a village near Lucknow, and seized government treasure. A passenger, Ahmad Ali, was killed. The trial convicted Ram Prasad Bismil, Ashfaqulla Khan and Rajendra Lahiri, among others, and Chandra Shekhar Azad, who was never arrested. Lahiri was hanged at Gonda on 17 December 1927. Bismil was hanged at Gorakhpur, Ashfaqulla at Faizabad and Roshan Singh at Naini, all on 19 December 1927.
Ballia, 1942. During the Quit India movement, Chittu Pandey, head of the Ballia district Congress committee, led a short-lived parallel administration on 19 August 1942, after the district magistrate ordered the release of detained leaders. The British returned within about a week and arrested Pandey again. He died on 6 December 1946.
Meerut Conspiracy Case, 1929–1933. In March 1929 the government arrested S.A. Dange and about thirty other leaders, most of them trade unionists and communists, and tried them before a sessions court at Meerut for conspiring to deprive the King Emperor of the sovereignty of British India. The trial ran for about four and a half years, and the verdict of January 1933 imposed long sentences. On appeal in August 1933, the Allahabad High Court, under Chief Justice Shah Muhammad Sulaiman, reduced several of them. The case shows how the British used the courts against the new left, and why Meerut is linked with both the 1857 revolt and the labour politics of the 1930s.
| Year | Venue | President |
|---|---|---|
| 1888 | Allahabad | George Yule |
| 1892 | Allahabad | W.C. Bonnerjee |
| 1899 | Lucknow | Romesh Chunder Dutt |
| 1905 | Benares | Gopal Krishna Gokhale |
| 1910 | Allahabad | William Wedderburn |
| 1916 | Lucknow | Ambica Charan Mazumdar |
| 1925 | Kanpur | Sarojini Naidu |
| 1936 | Lucknow | Jawaharlal Nehru |
6. Personalities: Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi, Mahendra Pratap and later leaders
Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi was born on 26 October 1890 in Allahabad. He founded the weekly Pratap at Kanpur in 1913, later launched its daily edition, and met Gandhi at Lucknow in 1916. He was killed on 25 March 1931 while trying to stop communal violence in Kanpur, and Gandhi praised his blood as the cement that would bind the two communities.
Raja Mahendra Pratap was born at Mursan in Hathras district. He founded the Prem Mahavidyalaya at Vrindavan in 1909, and during the First World War he sought foreign support for Indian independence. On 1 December 1915, in Kabul, he was named president of a Provisional Government of India, a government in exile. The Afghan ruler did not recognise it. He later won the Mathura Lok Sabha seat in 1957 as an independent, defeating Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
Women leaders and later careers. Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit, born at Allahabad, won a seat in the United Provinces legislature in 1937 and became minister of local self-government and public health, the first Indian woman to hold a cabinet post before independence. She became the first woman President of the United Nations General Assembly in 1953. Sucheta Kripalani became the first woman Chief Minister of an Indian state when she led Uttar Pradesh from October 1963 to March 1967.
Key takeaways
- The state was reorganised before 1857: the Ceded Provinces (1801), the North-Western Provinces (1836), and Awadh's annexation in 1856. Those changes explain much of the anger that built into the revolt.
- The 1857 centres each have their own dates: Kanpur (June–July 1857), Lucknow (May 1857 to March 1858), and Jhansi (the spring siege of 1858). Keep each centre's leader with its dates.
- The Queen's Proclamation of 1 November 1858 at Allahabad, read by Lord Canning, ended Company rule and promised no further annexation.
- UP's peasant politics began with the UP Kisan Sabha (1918) and the Awadh Kisan Sabha (1920). Chauri Chaura (4 February 1922) led Gandhi to halt Non-Cooperation nationally on 12 February 1922.
- Kakori (9 August 1925) and Ballia (19 August 1942) show two different revolutionary strands. Remember the four Kakori executions: Lahiri at Gonda on 17 December 1927; Bismil, Ashfaqulla and Roshan Singh on 19 December 1927 at Gorakhpur, Faizabad and Naini.
Practice questions (16)
Attempt each one before opening the answer. Every explanation names the tempting wrong option as well as the right one, because that is where marks are lost.
According to the most widely cited account, Mangal Pandey, who attacked British officers at Barrackpore on 29 March 1857, was born in which district of present-day Uttar Pradesh?
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Answer: A — Ballia, in the village of Nagwa
The most widely cited birthplace is Nagwa, in upper Ballia district, which was then part of the Ceded and Conquered Provinces. Gorakhpur is the tempting distractor because Chauri Chaura, a later event, lies in it, but Gorakhpur is not his birthplace. Azamgarh and Ghazipur are neighbouring eastern districts that a candidate may confuse with Ballia.Arrange these events in chronological order.
P. Battle of Chinhat near Lucknow.
Q. Massacre at the Satichaura Ghat, Kanpur.
R. Massacre at the Bibighar, Kanpur.
S. Havelock's force retakes Kanpur.Show answer
Answer: C — Q, P, R, S
The order is Q (27 June), P (30 June), R (15 July), S (16 July) in 1857. Satichaura came before Chinhat, and the Bibighar before Havelock's recapture. The tempting distractor is Q, P, S, R, which places Havelock's recapture before the Bibighar massacre, though the massacre is what made Havelock's return so bitter.Consider the following statements about the siege and fall of Jhansi.
P. Hugh Rose's British force besieged Jhansi in March–April 1858.
Q. Rani Lakshmibai died at Kalpi after escaping from the fort.
R. Tatya Tope's relief army was defeated at the Battle of Betwa in 1858.
S. The Jokhan Bagh killings of Europeans who had surrendered at Jhansi took place in June 1857.
Which statements are correct?Show answer
Answer: B — P, R and S only
P, R and S are correct. Q is false because the Rani escaped at night from the fort and was killed in a cavalry action near Kotah-ke-Serai on 17 June 1858, not at Kalpi. Kalpi is the tempting place because Tatya Tope retreated there after Betwa, but it is not where she died.Which 1857 leader from Faizabad was killed near Powayan in June 1858?
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Answer: D — Ahmadullah Shah, the Maulvi of Faizabad
Ahmadullah Shah, the Maulvi of Faizabad, was killed near Powayan in June 1858. Nana Sahib led the Kanpur rising, Khan Bahadur Khan led in Rohilkhand, and Kunwar Singh was a Bihar leader. These are the tempting distractors because all four were leaders of the same revolt in the same months.In Lucknow in 1857, in what capacity did Begum Hazrat Mahal rule Awadh?
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Answer: C — As regent for her son Birjis Qadr, declared Wali of Awadh
Hazrat Mahal had her son Birjis Qadr declared Wali of Awadh in 1857 and ruled as his regent. Nana Sahib, Damodar Rao and Bahadur Shah Zafar are the tempting distractors, since each was a figure of the revolt, but none of them was her ward.Queen Victoria's Proclamation was read at Allahabad on 1 November 1858 by which officer?
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Answer: B — Lord Canning, the first Viceroy of India
Lord Canning read the Proclamation at the Allahabad durbar on 1 November 1858. Dalhousie is the tempting distractor, because he annexed Awadh in 1856 and so appears in every question about the state, but he was Governor-General before the Crown took over.Consider the following statements about the North-Western Provinces.
P. The province was formed in 1836 from the Ceded and Conquered Provinces.
Q. Agra was its capital from 1836 to 1858.
R. Allahabad became its capital in 1858.
S. Lucknow was its capital from its formation.
Which statements are correct?Show answer
Answer: D — P, Q and R only
P, Q and R are correct. The province was formed in 1836 with Agra as capital until 1858, when Allahabad took over. S is false: Lucknow was the capital of Awadh, which was outside the North-Western Provinces until 1856 and then under the Chief Commissioner. The tempting distractor is S, because Lucknow is the best-known city of the state.On 1 April 1937, the province's name was shortened to which of these?
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Answer: D — United Provinces, named under the 1935 Act
The United Provinces of Agra and Oudh, set up on 22 March 1902, became the United Provinces on 1 April 1937 under the Government of India Act 1935. Uttar Pradesh is the tempting distractor, since it is the final name, but that name took effect on 26 January 1950.Which pair of leaders is associated with founding the United Provinces Kisan Sabha in February 1918?
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Answer: C — Gauri Shankar Mishra and Indra Narayan Dwivedi
Gauri Shankar Mishra and Indra Narayan Dwivedi set up the UP Kisan Sabha in February 1918, with Malaviya's support. Nehru and Baba Ramchandra are the tempting distractors, because they led the Awadh Kisan Sabha in 1920, which is a later and separate body.After the Chauri Chaura incident of 4 February 1922, which action did Gandhi take?
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Answer: B — Called off Non-Cooperation nationally on 12 February 1922
Gandhi halted the Non-Cooperation Movement on 12 February 1922, eight days after the incident. The Dandi March was in 1930 and Quit India in 1942, and the Lucknow Pact was in 1916. These are the tempting distractors, since each is a famous Gandhian action, but none followed Chauri Chaura.On 4 February 1922, a crowd at which place in Gorakhpur district set fire to a police station?
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Answer: B — Chauri Chaura, a village in Gorakhpur district, in 1922
Chauri Chaura, a village in Gorakhpur district, is where the crowd set the police station on fire on 4 February 1922. Munshiganj in Rae Bareli is the tempting distractor, because the police firing there in January 1921 is the best-known peasant incident of the period, but it is not the Chauri Chaura site.On which date did the Kakori train action take place near Lucknow?
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Answer: D — 9 August 1925
The Kakori train action took place on 9 August 1925, when the HRA stopped the train and seized the treasure. The tempting distractor is 19 December 1925, which is close in season but is not the date of the action; 19 December is the date of the 1927 executions.At which jail was Ram Prasad Bismil hanged on 19 December 1927 in the Kakori case?
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Answer: D — Gorakhpur Jail
Bismil was hanged at Gorakhpur Jail on 19 December 1927. Ashfaqulla Khan was hanged the same day at Faizabad, and Roshan Singh at Naini. Lahiri was hanged two days earlier at Gonda. Each of the other three is a tempting distractor, since all four were hanged in these jails within a single fortnight.Which Congress session held at Lucknow was presided over by Ambica Charan Mazumdar?
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Answer: B — The 1916 Lucknow session, under Ambica Charan Mazumdar
The Lucknow session of 1916 was presided over by Ambica Charan Mazumdar. The 1899 Lucknow session, under Romesh Chunder Dutt, is the tempting distractor because it was also held at Lucknow, but its president was Dutt.Sarojini Naidu presided over which Congress session held in a city of present-day Uttar Pradesh?
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Answer: C — Kanpur, in 1925
Sarojini Naidu presided over the Kanpur session of 1925. Lucknow in 1936 was presided over by Jawaharlal Nehru, which makes it the tempting distractor, because a candidate may recall the Lucknow session of the same decade. Allahabad and Varanasi were the 1910 and 1905 venues.Which woman became the first Indian woman to hold a cabinet post before independence, as minister in the United Provinces legislature in 1937?
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Answer: A — Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit, minister of local self-government
Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit became minister of local self-government and public health in the United Provinces in 1937. Sucheta Kripalani was Chief Minister from 1963 and is the tempting distractor, since she too was a first-woman figure, but of a later office. Sarojini Naidu and Kamala Nehru were not ministers in 1937.