Because any revolution though burst suddenly like a Volcano, but there are many external and internal factors work to laid down its foundation. From the Battle of Plassey to , there were a lot of factors that were irritating the masses.
Though the eruption was sudden the masses were suffering since the years. So, people stood up against the misrule of their rulers. It was just a coincidence that the ruling lobby was Christian while ruled were Hindus and Muslims. Moreover such kind of rebellion also took place during the reign of Aurangzeb , who was a Muslim ruler. Till now, in history, the struggle between the ruling and the ruled lobby was because of the ruling pattern of the ruling party.
So, the reason for any revolt or revolution is that masses are not happy by the ruling authority. This is again seemed to be a biased analysis. There is no doubt that the Revolt of started with the rebellion of Indian soldiers with the British Army.
But when the soldiers came out to protest they were joined by all the sections of the suppressed and exploited class. Therefore all these perceptions regarding have their own reality. But in a practical sense, the revolt of was basically the uprising of frustrated people against suppression and exploitation in which the initiative was taken by Soldiers.
Indians were fighting for their personal interest. There was no such a Nation India and was no feeling of Nationalism. Till , there was no nationalistic feeling.
India was divided into various princely states and they all were fighting for their sack. So, India became very easy prey for Britishers to play the game of Divide and Rule politics. Though Revolt of failed to fulfill its basic objective of eliminating British rule in India. But then also it has a very important place in the history of Modern India because of the following reasons. Even in the north, Kashmir, Punjab, Sind and Rajputana kept away from the rebels.
The British managed to get the loyalty of the Madras and Bombay regiments and the Sikh states. Afghans and Gurkhas also supported the British. The eastern, western and southern parts of India were more or less unaffected by the uprising. No broad-based unity emerged among the Indian people during the rebel.
While sepoys of the Bengal army were revolting, some soldiers in Punjab fought on the side of the British to crush these rebellions. Adhesion of the Mughal emperor, turned the Sikhs of Punjab away from the rebellion, as they did not want to return to Islamic rule, having fought many wars against the Mughal rulers.
The Zamindars of Bengal Presidency were the creation of the British. They acted as break-waters to storm. Awadh Taluqdars also backed off, once promises were made by the British to restore their land and titles. The modern educated Indians also did not support the revolt because, in their view, the revolt was backwards-looking. They believed mistakenly that the British would lead the country towards modernisation.
The main problem, however, was lack of unity in the ranks of rebels themselves. Their leaders were suspicious and jealous of each other and often indulged in petty quarrels. The Begam of Awadh, for example, quarrelled with Maulvi Ahmdullah, and the Mughal princes with the sepoy-generals.
Thus, selfishness and narrow perspective of the leaders suppressed the strength of the revolt and prevented its consolidation. Another major factor contributing to the failure of the revolt was the weak leadership of the movement. Indian leaders lacked organisation and planning.
The rebels were poorly organised. The uprisings in different parts of the country were uncoordinated. Often the sepoys behaved in an uncontrolled manner. The rebel leaders were no match for the British soldiers. Most of its leaders thought only of their own interest.
They were motivated by narrow personal gains. They fought to liberate only their own territories. No national leader emerged to coordinate the movement and give it purpose and direction. The rebels were lacking in discipline and a central command and they could not win against a powerful and determined enemy who planned its strategy skillfully.
The rebels were short of weapons and finances. Whatever few weapons existed, were old and outdated. In many areas, rebels fought with swords and spears which were no match for the sophisticated and modern weapons of the British.
The telegraphic system and postal communication helped the British to speed up their operation. The English mastery of the sea enabled them to get timely help from England and crush the revolt ruthlessly. The rebellion swept off the British system of government and administration in India but the rebels did not know what to create in its place. They had no forward-looking plan in mind.
For example, the sepoys of Bengal wanted to revive the ancient glories of the Mughals while Nana Saheb and Tantya Tope tried to reestablish the Maratha power.
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