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'More than a Mutiny, less than a War of Independence' - Do you agree with this description of the Events of 1857-8 in India?
Member rating: No Rating | Words: 1830 | Submitted: Fri Jan 04 2008
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The original outbreaks, of which the one at Meerut is typical, took place in an environment governed by military discipline. They were obviously and classically mutinies (so 'more than a' mutiny1). The mutineers were later joined by others who were not soldiers or in any way bound by military rules. In that obvious additional sense the events were more than 'mutinies' or 'a mutiny', and to use that word to describe the whole is a mistake as well as a slur, intended or not, on the participants. Was it a war? Not in the classic legal sense since there were just hostilities, with no formal declaration, but certainly, with armies of soldiers confronting each other, in the normal sense of the term. Was it a war of independence? One might argue that all wars are wars of independence: the participants seek, whatever the issues, to maintain their freedom of action with...
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