Rebel administration in 1857
Topic: The Revolt of 1857 · NCERT: Class 12, Ch 2 "Rebels and the Raj"
Meaning
In 1857, rebels at Delhi, Lucknow and Kanpur tried to set up their own governments. They appointed officials, collected land revenue, paid troops and set up chains of command. Their structure was modelled on the eighteenth-century Mughal world. These governments were built mainly to fight the war, and they did not last long. They show that the rebels were trying to build another kind of power, not just to destroy British rule.
Example
The rebel government lasted longest in Awadh. There the Lucknow court, with Birjis Qadr hailed as leader and Begum Hazrat Mahal leading the fight, kept planning counter-attacks against the British into early 1858.
Don't confuse with
- Plain looting by crowds: attacks on moneylenders and the rich were outbursts against hierarchy. The rebel governments were organised attempts to rule.