१८५७ का स्वातन्त्र्य समर (वीर विनायक दामोदर सावरकर - अंग्रेजों द्वारा छपने से पूर्व प्रतिबन्धित महाग्रन्थ)

CAWNPORE AND JHANSI
that the embryo also took a definite shape. And, if the
birth also had taken place at Brahmavarta, the Revolu-
tion would surely not have been so short-lived. But,
before complete development, the thunder at Meerut
brought the Revolutionary child into being, unfortunately
before its time ; it was not, however, left to its fate ; but
strenuous preparations were made in the palace at Brah-
mavarta to sustain and nourish it even under such adverse
circumstances.
At the place of honour sat the proud and noble form of
Nana Sahib, the very incarnation of the Revolutionary
Spirit. His brothers, Baba Sahib and Bala Sahib, and
his nephew Rao Sahib, were there, ready to sacrifice their
lives, wealth, and comfort for the fulfilment of their
leader's noble objects. Beside these sat the man who,
from the low station of a menial servant, had risen in his
master's favour by means of his industry and ability, the
man who had studied the politics and warfare of Europe,
determined to utilise that knowledge in the holy war of
liberating his country from slavery. This was none other
than Azimullah Khan. There also sat the lightning Queen
of Jhansi, aiding now the experience of the Revolutionary
leaders with her magnificent intuition and inspiring them
with her own unbounded love of country and honour. But
in this historical meeting, who is the warrior over there,
sharpening his sword in the direction of the armoury ?
Readers, that hero in the armoury is the celebrated Mah-
ratta Tatia Topé He is the last valiant Mahratta warrior
of the School of Shivaji. There are many people who are
brave, but the valour of this last Mahratta hero was the
sword incarnate drawn by the Mother herself for
her freedom.
Tatia Topé was born in about 1814. His father's name
was Pandurang Bhat. Pandurang Bhat had eight sons
and of them, the second was called Raghunath. It is this
209
14

THE ERUPTION
Raghunath who shines as the brilliant star of liberty in
the galaxy of the heroes of Hindusthan. Pandurang Rao
Topé was a Deshasth Brahmin and was the head of the
charity department, under the late Bajirao Peshwa at
Brahmavarta. In the verandah, Nana Sahib, the Jhansi
Ranee, and Tatia Topé played the games of their child-
hood ! Nana Sahib and Tatia Topé were intimate friends
from childhood. In childhood, these two were trained in
the same school, fitted to perform the heroic deeds which
they did in the great event of their later life. They had
read the Ramayana and the Mahabharata together ; they
had read together the accounts of the war-like deeds of
the Mahrattas, and their young hearts had throbbed to-
gether at the noble inspiration which the stories of Hindu
heroism awoke.
Towards the end of April, Nana Sahib and Azimullah
Khan had travelled through all the chief towns in
Northern India to give the necessary unity to the work
of the secret organisation. They were now waiting for
the appointed time. Suddenly on the 15th of May, the
news of the rising at Meerut and the subsequent freedom
of Delhi came to Cawnpore. At this news of the prema-
ture rising, there was not the least apparent agitation in
the palace of Brahmavarta. In a Revolutionary organisa-
tion are bound up together thousands of separate parts ;
it is unavoidable that some should move too quickly and
others too slowly, some at the appointed signal and others
at the sudden impulse of the moment. The palace at Brah-
mavarta at once understood the situation and decided to
turn the Meerut rising to advantage. But, to take such
an advantage, which was the better course? To follow
Delhi at once or wait till the first week of June according
to the original plan? Of these two alternatives, the latter
seemed preferable and, accordingly, the machinery at
Brahmavarta continued to work secretly.
Cawnpore was, for a long time, an important military
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CAWNPORE AND JHANSI
station of the English. In Cawnpore, there were the 1st,
53rd and 56th Sepoy infantry, and a regiment of Sepoy
cavalry—altogether three thousand Indian soldiers. The
cavalry was wholly in the hands of the English and,
besides, they had about a hundred English soldiers. The
chief officer of the whole army was Sir Hugh Wheeler.
Sir Hugh Wheeler was an old and very popular comman-
der among the Sepoys. He had done good service in the
Sikh and in the Afghan campaigns. The Government knew
full well that the Sepoys were very much attached to him
and nobody entertained any serious suspicion that secret
societies were working among the Sepoy lines at
Cawnpore.
About the 15th of May, a peculiar agitation was to be
seen in the whole of Cawnpore city. At the news of the
doings of the Meerut Sepoys, their Cawnpore comrades
had lost their usual stolidity and looked perturbed. But,
the English authorities heard the news only on the 18th.
As the telegraph communication to Delhi was cut, Sir
Hugh Wheeler sent scouts to obtain correct information
as to the extent of the disaffection. These scouts met on
their way a Sepoy coming from Delhi, but he flatly refused
to give any information to the Feringhis ! It is a great
mystery to English officers how, in 1857, the Sepoys
quickly got from distant points news of which the English
authorities, with their telegraph system, were ignorant.¹
The Sepoys had no necessity of learning of the Meerut
rising after it took place ; for, even a day before the events,
human telegraphs had conveyed to them all detailed infor-
mation ! It is only after the English, at last, got the news
of the Meerut rising that they began to think seriously

1. " Indeed one of the most remarkable features of the mutiny
   has been the certainty and the rapidity with which the natives were
   made aware of all important movements in distant places. The
   means of communication is chiefly by runners who forwarded mes-
   sages from station to station with extraordinary celerity."—Narrative,
   page 33.
   211

THE ERUPTION
about the secret agitation among the Cawnpore Sepoys.
But Sir Hugh Wheeler was still confident that the agita-
tion was due to the extraordinary nature of the news that
arrived from Meerut and would gradually subside. But
there in the city of Cawnpore and in the Sepoy lines,
everyone saw clearly that the days of English rule were
over. Hindus and Mahomedans held big meetings ; the
Sepoys held secret conferences ; school-masters and stu-
dents discussed the rising ; and everyone in the shops of
the bazaars openly thought out plans. The fire of popular
indignation, so far kept secret, now burst forth openly.
People openly discussed in the streets about driving out
the English and the Sepoys refused to obey all orders
except those given by their Swadeshi superiors.² When
an English lady went to the bazaar to make purchases,
in the usual proud and haughty manner, a passer-by came
up to her and said with a frown, “ Enough of this haughti-
ness now ! You should understand that you will soon be
driven out of the bazaars of Hindusthan ! ” This was
the rude awakening first experienced by the English.
Seeing that it would be folly to keep quiet under these
conditions, Sir Wheeler began to make preparations for
the defence.
His first thought was to select a place of refuge in case
of danger. He selected one near the Sepoy lines, to the
south of the Ganges. He fortified it by entrenchments,
erected places for mounting guns, and even ordered a
supply of provisions to be stored there. But, it is said
that the Indian contractor, without Sir Wheeler’s know-
ledge, put a far smaller quantity of provisions than ordered
for. Sir Wheeler and the English officers believed that,
even if the Sepoys rose, this place would save them from
any material damage. For they would follow the example
of their comrades in other places and march towards Delhi
and would leave the English quietly to go down the
Published by Asian Educational Services, New Delhi, 2014.
2. Nanak Chand's Diary.
212

CAWNPORE AND JHANSI

Ganges and join the army at Allahabad! Sir Wheeler
did not rest with the preparation of this fortified place as
a protection for the English in case of a rising but he
also sent urgent letters to Sir Henry Lawrence at Lucknow
to send reinforcements! But such was the strength of
the Revolutionary propaganda at Lucknow that Lawrence
was crying for reinforcements himself! However, he
immediately sent towards Cawnpore eighty-four English
soldiers, the English artillery under Lieutenant Ashe, and
some cavalry. There was nothing special in these pre-
parations which Sir Wheeler made for the defence of the
English. But the third remedy which he sought for re-
moving the danger to the English power was one which
now appears very extraordinary and yet gives a true idea
of the skill in the Revolutionary organisation of the time.
This was the request made by Sir Wheeler to the Raja
of Brahmavarta to come to save Cawnpore! The news
of Meerut had produced an extraordinary agitation
among the ranks of the Sepoys and the common people
in the bazaars, but the palace of Brahmavarta appeared
as quiet, peaceful, and unruffled as before. It was im-
possible to have discovered even a ruffle on its surface that
would betray the tremendous internal agitation. The
movement among the Cawnpore troops at least put Sir
Wheeler on his guard. But, he never for a moment enter-
tained any adequate suspicion that the Raja of Brahma-
varta would go against him. The man whose crown the
English had trampled under foot only a short time before,
the Nâga snake whom they had only just before enraged
by wilfully treading on his hood, from that man the
English now asked for protection in their hour of need!
The English were not altogether mistaken in this proce-
dure. Nana Sahib was "a gentle Hindu," and how
many cowardly Hindus are there not in India who are
harmless and cringing even when trodden under foot by
the English? In the pious belief that Nana Sahib was
also one of them, Sir Wheeler invited his help. What
better chance could there be for the Prince of Brahma-

213

THE ERUPTION
varta ! He entered Cawnpore on the 22nd with two guns,
three hundred private Sepoys, infantry and cavalry !
There was a large number of civil and military officers
of the English at Cawnpore. Nana encamped in the very
midst of these English people. Now it was certain that,
if there was a revolt at Cawnpore, the treasury would be
attacked. How best to guard it ? Of course by entrust-
ing it to Nana Sahib ! Soon two hundred of Nana's
Sepoys began to keep guard over it. Collector Hillersden
profusely thanked Nana Sahib and Tatia Topé and it
was even proposed that the English women and children
should, if necessary, go for safety to the Nana's palace
at Brahmavarta !
Here was Mahratta policy ! That Nana should be invited
with his troops to Cawnpore to ‘protect’ the English and
to fight against his countrymen rising for freedom, that
he should take his head-quarters in the English camp,
that a treasure of lakhs of Rupees should be entrusted to
him for better keeping and, above all this, that the English
should thank him for his services ! Here is Mahratta
policy ! Nana paid the English in their own coin. And
all this, only a week before the great upheaval ! From
this it is evident how in 1857, the English were long left
groping in the dark and then pushed down the precipice !
The knowledge that Independence was the goal and War
the means was clearly given to the general populace at
that time ; but, as to who were the leaders, what was the
day of rising, what were the chief centres, all this was
kept so secret that not only the English but even the rank
and file of the Revolutionary society knew not much about
it. The heads of the Central Secret Society and their
faithful servants were the only men who had detailed in-
formation. This brings out the meaning of what we have
said before that there was a secret committee in every regi-
ment. The letter which fell into English hands at Benares
was signed only “From a great leader.” The responsible
leaders conducted themselves in a manner suited to the
214

CAWNPORE AND JHANSI
work of the Secret Society. Even on the day before the
rising, the English had not any adequate inkling about
the plans of Emperor Bahadur Shah, Nana Sahib, or the
Queen of Jhansi ! And, amongst all these, the palace of
Brahmavarta kept the closest and strictest secrecy. The
historian Kaye says : "Nana had not studied in vain
the history of Shivaji, the founder of the Mahratta
Kingdom ! ”
The chief rendezvous of the secret societies of Cawnpore
was the house of Subahdar Tikka Singh. Another place
of meeting for the secret societies was the house of the
Sepoy leader Shams-ud-din Khan. At these secret meet-
ings, two faithful servants of the Brahmavarta palace
household, Jwala Prasad and Mahomed Ali, used to at-
tend on behalf of Nana Sahib. Subahdar Tikka Singh
and Jwala Prasad—both bold, freedom-loving, and pas-
sionately sincere patriots—soon got a hold on the assembly
and the whole army had unanimously sworn to obey
their orders. So, the voice of Subahdar Tikka Singh was
the voice of the whole army. It was extremely necessary
that such a leader and Nana Sahib should personally meet
and settle important points. Besides, the settled pro-
gramme had become useless on account of the Meerut
rising and the consequent confusion. It was therefore
necessary to alter that programme to suit the changed
circumstances, and for this it was decided that Tikka
Singh and Nana should meet.³ In their first meeting, a
long discussion took place. The Subahdar gave assurances
that both Hindus and Mahomedans were ready to rise
unanimously for Swadharma and Swaraj and were wait-
ing only for Nana's orders. After this, it was settled
that another meeting, more secret and of longer duration,
should be arranged to settle the minor details, and the
Subahdar returned. On the evening of the 1st of June,
Nana Sahib, accompanied by his brother Bala Sahib and
3. Forrest's State Papers and Trevelyan's Cawnpore.
215

THE ERUPTION
his minister Azimullah Khan, came down to the banks
of the sacred Ganges. There stood Subahdar Tikka Singh
and the heads of the Secret Society awaiting him. The
whole company then got into a boat. They entered the
waters of the holy Ganges ; everyone there took an oath,
with the holy water of the Ganges in his hands, that he
would participate in the bloody war for his country's
liberty. Then followed a deliberation of two hours in
which the whole of the future programme was definitely
decided upon, and the company returned. Their secrets
were known to the sacred Ganges alone and in her hands
they were safe ! But this much is well known that, on
the following day, Shams-ud-din came to the house of
his beloved Azizan and told her that within two days the
Feringhis would be destroyed and India would be free !
Shams-ud-din did not give this news of freedom to her
as empty bravado ; for, the heart of this beauty yearned
as much for India's freedom as that of her brave lover.
Azizan was a dancing girl very much loved by the Sepoys;
she was not one, however, who sold her love for money
in the ordinary market, but in the field of freedom it was
given as a reward for the love of country. We will soon
show further on how a delightful smile from her beautiful
face encouraged fighting heroes and how a slight frown
from her dark eyebrows hastily sent back to the field
cowards who had come away.
While the plans of the Revolutionaries were thus ripening,
the terror in the English camp was beyond all description!
Sir Wheeler sighed with relief when he got reinforce-
ments from Lucknow and when the treasure and the
arsenal had been put under the charge of Nana Sahib.
But the English population had lost all courage. The
24th of May was the great Id festival of the Mahomedans.
The English in every town apprehended a rising on that
day. But the leaders in 1857 were not such fools as to
rise on such an easily marked day. To keep peace osten-
tatiously on a day when a rising is expected by the enemy
216

CAWNPORE AND JHANSI
as certain and to burst forth on a day when the enemy
thinks there is no chance whatever of trouble, is one of
the chief means of carrying a Revolution to success.
Therefore, even in Cawnpore, on the day of the Id festival,
there was not the slightest disorder. The English were so
much frightened that morning that Sir Wheeler telegraph-
ed to Lucknow, "There will be a rising to-day inevitably"!
But when, on the evening of the festival, the Mahomedans
paid and received visits as usual, Sir Wheeler was re-
assured. On the day of the birth of Queen Victoria, the
usual salute of guns was not fired in the apprehension that
the Sepoys would be unnecessarily disturbed by the noise!
Some English officers were heartily grieved that, on the
birth-day of Victoria, a salute dared not be fired in her
honour; but what could the poor fellows do? If we look
at the place erected by the English as a refuge in case of
a rising, as has been said before, we shall at once under-
stand how helpless the condition of the English had
become! Someone would purposely set up a rumour that
the Sepoys had risen, as in the story of the wolf and the
shepherd-boy, and caravans of the English would begin
to run through the streets with all possible speed! An
English officer writes: "Whilst I was there, buggies,
palkies, gharries and vehicles of all sorts drove up and
discharged cargoes of writers, tradesmen, ladies, women
suckling infants, ayahs and children—and officers, too!—
In short, if any insurrection took or takes place, we shall
have no one to thank but ourselves, because we have shown
to the natives how very easily we can be frightened, and
when frightened, utterly helpless!" The cowardice exhi-
bited in this conduct of the English, as this officer says,
was thoroughly understood by the populace. When the
entrenched place was being erected, had not Azimullah
said the same to a Lieutenant in a jocular vein? Azimullah
Khan, in his usual sweet voice, asked the lieutenant, "Well,
Sahib, what are you going to call this new building which
you are constructing here?" The lieutenant replied,
"Really, I have not yet thought about it." The smart
217

THE ERUPTION
Azimullah, with a wink in his eye, retorted, " Well, you
can just call it 'the castle of despair.' "
One day towards the evening, a young gallant Englishman,
under the influence of drink, shot a Sepoy. The shot
missed but the Sepoy brought a case against the culprit.
According to usual custom, the soldier culprit was declared
not guilty and released, the reason given being that the
gun went off while the accused was intoxicated! This
decision was the customary one, but alas! the times
had changed! ⁴
At this insult, the whole Lashkar began to mutter among
themselves, " Alright, our guns will also soon go off! "
This became an exciting catch-word among the Sepoys.
When they saw each other, they would say, " Well, now
our guns are to go off, aren't they?" The sarcastic greet-
ing became common in the army. However, they decided
to suppress their anger for the time and not to be hastened
into a premature rising as at Meerut.
To add fuel to the fire, the dead bodies of an Englishman
and his wife were carried down the Ganges to Cawnpore.
This testimony of the rising, in a city somewhere up the
river, began to hold a terrible conversation with the city
of Cawnpore. Oh! Ganges, how many more of the impure
loads have you to carry before you send them to their
ocean home! The English had now been so often deceived
by the cry of " The wolf! The wolf!!" that they were
frequently slumbering when the wolf was really to come.
On the 1st of June, Sir Hugh Wheeler wrote to Lord
4. Trevelyan says:—" The Sepoys, familiar as they were with
the brutality of low Europeans and the vagaries of military justice
would at a less critical season have expressed small surprise either
at the outrage or the decision. But, now, their blood was up and
their pride awake, and they were not inclined to overrate the
privileges of an Anglo-Saxon or the sagacity of the military tribu-
nal."—Cawnpore, page 93.
218

CAWNPORE AND JHANSI
Canning, “ Unrest and danger are no more. Not only is
Cawnpore safe, but I am soon going to send help to
Lucknow !” And the white troops which had come from
Allahabad actually started for Lucknow ! And that, on
the 3rd of June ! What a wonder that the plot—in which
three thousand Sepoys and the whole city of Cawnpore,
not excluding the dancing-girls, participated—should be
kept sealed from the English and their auxiliary dogs like
Nanak Chand !
The seal was finally broken on the night of the 4th of June.
According to the general programme, by dead of night,
three shots were fired and the buildings already agreed
upon were set fire to ! This was the sign that the time for
bloodshed, destruction, and death had begun. In the
beginning, Tikka Singh’s horse leapt forth and, immediate-
ly, thousands of horses started galloping at a smart pace.
Some started to burn English houses and stables, some
ran to fetch other regiments, and some went to capture
the military flags and banners. When the old Indian
Subahdar-Major, in whose charge the flags were, began
to dispute with the Revolutionaries, a blow of the sword
on his head sent his corpse rolling on the ground.
“ Subahdar Tikka Singh’s Salaams to the Subahdar of
the 1st infantry regiment. He asks the reason why the
infantry is delaying when the cavalry had already risen
against the Feringhis ?” Two galloping cavalrymen gave
this message, and the whole of the 1st regiment came out
with the cries of Victory ! and Country !—Din ! and Desh!
At this, their officer, Colonel Ewart, said, “ Oh ! my
children (Babalôg), what is this ? This disgraces your
loyal character ! Wait, children, wait !” But the Sepoys
did not waste their time in listening to him. In a moment,
the whole regiment marched in military order to join the
cavalry, and then the whole army together marched to the
music of war-songs to the Nana’s camp at Nabobganj !
Nana’s Sepoys were ready at the Nabobganj treasury.
219

THE ERUPTION
They embraced their comrades and, at once, the enormous
treasure and the great arsenal fell into the hands of the
Revolutionaries ! While this was going on at Nabobganj,
there were still two regiments left behind at Cawnpore.
The English immediately called them on parade in order
to keep them in their hands. As the English had the
artillery in their hands, the two regiments together with
their officers stood in arms on the parade ground all night.
At daybreak, the English officers satisfied themselves that
these regiments at least were not rebellious. They were
permitted to go back to their lines and the officers also
began to leave. Now, the Sepoys saw a good chance.
A couple of officers whispered something from a corner,
and suddenly, one of them rushed forward and shouted,
“ God is on the side of Truth ! Brethren, come arise ! ”
At this order, swords began to flash on all sides, and,
seeing the crisis coming, the English artillery opened fire.
But the Sepoys had already gone beyond its range! It was
quite possible for the Sepoys to have killed their officers
at the time, but, without doing so, they went away to
join their comrades at the first opportunity. Thus, three
thousand Sepoys encamped near Nana Sahib at Nabob-
ganj, on the 5th of June. Sir Wheeler had one satisfaction
—that not a single Englishman was killed. He thought
that the Sepoys would, as usual, march towards Delhi,
and the danger to Cawnpore would be over.
And if there had been a lack of able leaders in Cawnpore
as there was in other places, the Sepoys, would, indeed,
have gone to Delhi as Sir Wheeler surmised. But, at
Nabobganj, at the time, there was no such lack of bold
and able leaders. Nana Sahib was there ; his brothers,
Bala Sahib, Baba Sahib, and his nephew Rao Sahib were
there ; Tatia Topé was there ; and Azimullah Khan too
was there. When such brilliant and intellectual leaders
were there, what need had the Sepoys to go to Delhi to
seek one ? The best interests would not be served by
shutting up all the available forces in Delhi alone. The
220

CAWNPORE AND JHANSI
successful plan would be to harass the English in various
places. Above all, as Cawnpore to a great extent com-
manded the line of communications between the Panjab,
Delhi, and Calcutta, it was necessary to strike a blow at
Cawnpore and capture it. When the Subahdar’s and
Nana’s men had explained all this to the Sepoys, it was
unanimously decided to turn back towards Cawnpore.
The three thousand Sepoys elected Nana Sahib their King
and expressed an ardent desire to see him. When he
appeared, he was hailed with tremendous enthusiasm and
they saluted him with all royal honours. When the elec-
tion of the King was over, with his consent, the Sepoys
proceeded to elect their officers; Subahdar Tikka Singh,
the very life of the Revolutionary centre at Cawnpore, was
elected the chief commander of the cavalry and was given
the title of “General.” New army regulations were issued.
Jamadar Dalganjan Singh was made the colonel of the
53rd regiment, and Subahdar Ganga Din of the 56th regi-
ment. Then, there was a grand procession of the flag of
freedom on the back of an elephant, and on the same day
it was proclaimed by beat of drum that Nana Sahib had
commenced to reign.
After these elections, Nana Sahib did not waste even a
second. When the English received the information that
the Sepoys did not go to Delhi but had stopped on the
way, they entrenched themselves in the new fort and had
their artillery ready. Their number was about one thou-
sand, men, women, and children all told. It was of the
first importance to capture this fortified place, and Nana
Sahib ordered the whole army to march thither. The Eng-
lish were not certain that the Revolutionaries would attack
them; but, early on the morning of the 6th, Sir Wheeler
received a note. It was from Nana Sahib and was
couched in the following terms :—“ We are going to begin
the attack. We want to warn you, and therefore send this
previous notice to you.” When he received this invitation
to fight, Sir Wheeler got ready all his officers and soldiers
221

THE ERUPTION
and artillery men, and made all necessary preparations
for the fight.
The fact that, before beginning the battle, Nana Sahib
gave a previous written notice to the English when it was
in no way called for, is of the greatest importance. The
English would certainly not have shown this generosity
had they been in Nana’s place. Those, who always try
to pour foul disgrace on Nana Sahib’s name, should bend
their heads with shame at this act of natural gallantry !
If we remember these two facts, the saving of the lives of
all English officers at the time of the rising and the twelve
hours’ previous written notice given by Nana Sahib, and
then read the final scenes, we will appreciate better the
real situation at Cawnpore.
Soon after sending the notice of battle to the English
Subahdar (now General) Tikka Sigh went towards the
arsenal and was busy, all the morning, arranging the arms
etc. and sending them to the place of attack. Guns were
pointed against the English fort from the side of the river
as well as from land. The plan of the attack was formed
with true military skill. At the same time, the Cawnpore
town was also in a tumult ! Spinners, sword-smiths, and
people from the bazaar, Mussalmans, and the influential
silver-merchants—everybody took anything that came to
hand and were looking for Englishmen. Offices, courts,
and all English records, old and new, were burnt, and
those Englishmen that forgot to betake themselves to the
fort were killed. It was now mid-day. At about one the
English fort began to be besieged, and, about evening,
the guns began to boom and the attack commenced.
The English had about eight cannon and plenty of ammu-
nition which they had already kept buried in the fort. The
Revolutionaries, also, had captured the arsenal and the
big guns and they too were not hard up for ammunition.
General Tikka Singh had from the first kept the artillery
222

CAWNPORE AND JHANSI
in excellent condition. Nana Sahib’s guns played great
havoc on the English buildings within the fort. When, on
the 7th of June, the artillery of the Revolutionaries began
to do its terrible work, English women and children, who
had never been in such a plight before, began to run about
here and there crying frantically. But habit took away
the terror even of death, and balls flying over the heads
created no greater surprise than birds flying in the air.
Two days after the attack was commenced, the supply of
water in the fort began to fall short. There was only one
well within the fort which was of any use but the Revolu-
tionaries had a keener eye on it than the English soldiers
themselves. The heat of the sun was so strong that the
soldiers would die of sunstroke. All hearts became hard-
ened like stone. The difference between the sexes, and
modesty, vanished. Children died for want of milk and
sorrow killed the mothers. Let alone burying the dead,
but it even became impossible to inquire who was dead
and who was alive. For even while making a list of the
living, some name would have to be scored off. To draw
a true picture of such situations, the best way is to describe
the events of a typical hour. Captain Thomas, relating
his experiences, says : “While Armstrong was lying wound-
ed, Lieutenant Prole came to see him. Just as he uttered
a few words of consolation, a bullet from the Sepoys struck
him in the thigh and he fell down. With his hand on
my shoulder and mine round his waist, I began to lift him
to take him to the sergeant. Before I had gone many steps,
there was a buzzing noise and a bullet entered my shoulder.
I and Prole both fell dying on the floor. Seeing this,
Gilbert Bucks came running towards us. But the enemy’s
bullet came after him, pierced his body through, and he
fell at once in the jaws of Death.” This account of one
hour gives a good idea of the history of those twenty-one
days ! When Sir Wheeler’s son was wounded, his two
sisters and his mother were giving him medical assistance
in a room. But, before he could take the medicine, there
was a fearful explosion and a cannon ball carried away
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THE ERUPTION
the young man's head. While Magistrate Hillersden was
talking to his wife in the verandah, a twenty pound can-
non ball burst on his head and he was blown to pieces.
A few days later, the wall on which the widow was lean-
ing collapsed and she met her death. There were seven
women in a ditch near the fort. A bomb exploded and
not only killed them all, but it also killed the English
soldier who, before the rising, had shot the Sepoy and had
been acquitted as not guilty. So at last the guns of the
Sepoys also went off ! And, when they did go off, it was
in such a manner that succeeding English soldiers will
remember it for ever, even when under the influence
of drink !
In this terrible siege, there were, also, some foolish Indians
who thought it their duty to be faithful to the English.
They were there, in the jaws of death, simply for the sake
of "loyalty" ! An Indian nurse in the employ of the
English lost both her arms by a bomb explosion. Butlers
running about here and there to give hot food to their
masters also fell dead frequently by shells. Indian bhishtis
often risked their lives to give water to the English.
Water was so scarce that children would suck the leather
bags containing water ! Cholera, dysentery, and typhoid
also did not fail to take their revenge on the English.
Sir George Parker, Colonel Williams, and Lieutenant
Rooney died through illness. Those that did not succumb
to shells or sickness went insane from the terrific fright
of the ghastly living cemetery. Such was the pandemo-
nium there. So, in return for the cruel wrongs of a century,
Revenge incarnate was crushing everyone she found in her
terrific jaws for twenty-one days, and was dancing with
a ghastly smile !
While such was the state within the fort, the English guns
placed outside did great service in the fight. Chief officers
of the artillery, Ashe, Captain Moore, Captain Thomson,
and other brave soldiers fought with a splendid valour.
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CAWNPORE AND JHANSI
The English had great hopes of speedy succour from Luck-
now or Allahabad. On account of the strict scouting of
the Revolutionaries, it had become impossible to carry on
correspondence. Still, an Indian messenger had carried
as far as Lucknow a letter by Sir Wheeler, partly in Latin,
partly in French, and partly in English, and packed in
the quill of a bird. It said only, "Help! Help!! Help!!!
Send us help or we are dying! If we get help, we will
come and save Lucknow!" But, the vigilance of the
Revolutionaries was usually so good that hardly any such
messenger from the English camp could get back there
safe. The English often sent scouts, empowering them
to promise lakhs of Rupees if they could find any traitors
in the Revolutionary camp. But not one lived to return
and give information! For example, we will give an ac-
count given by one of the scouts himself. "When Mr.
Shepherd lost his wife and daughter, he undertook the
task of getting information from the Revolutionaries' camp
and sowing dissensions in Cawnpore. He set out in the
disguise of an Indian cook. Hardly had he gone a short
distance when he was arrested and brought before Nana
Sahib. When he was asked about the state of the English,
he began to give false and glowing descriptions as agreed
upon. But seeing that two women, captured just before
he was caught, had told the true story of despair, he got
confused. He was first put in a prison and, on the 12th
of July, he was brought before a court and sentenced to
three years' rigorous imprisonment." From this will be
seen the regard for justice which Nana had, even in the
heat of the war. Though English scouts were thus baulk-
ed, the scouts of the Revolutionaries did their work ex-
ceedingly well. One day, a bhishti (water-carrier) stood,
on a high piece of ground near the English fort and cried,
"Even disregarding the fear of death, since I love the
English so much, I have come to convey to you a piece of
joyful news. An English army with guns has come up
on the other bank of the Ganges. It will start to-morrow to
relieve you. This news has created a perfect consternation
225
15

THE ERUPTION
among the rascally rebels and we, all loyalists, have be-
come ready to join the English!" At this news, the
English imagined that their scouts must have successfully
sowed discord among the Revolutionaries and, also, that
the English army from Lucknow must have arrived. On
the next day, the same bhishti came up and cried, "Vic-
tory to the English! The English army was late on
account of floods in the Ganges; but, now, all is accom-
plished and they are coming. Before the end of the day,
my masters will be victorious." That day passed, and so
also the next; but the strained eyes of the English could
see neither the army of succour nor the loyalist bhishti!
Azimullah, now, knew enough of the misery of the English
camp, and it was not again necessary for the bhishti to
risk his life. The English were often taken in by such
resourceful tricks of the Revolutionary scouts.
After giving notice of the siege on the 6th of June to the
English, Nana Sahib had brought his camp close to the
besieging armies and near by the tent of General Tikka
Singh. When Cawnpore became free, the whole province
became flooded by a great wave of Revolution. Every
day, new Zemindars and princes came with their retinues
and joined Nana Sahib's camp. Nana had now about
four thousand troops under him; but, of these, the artil-
lerymen were the most active in their duties. Here in
one quarter Nanhi Nabob took his stand. When the
rising began, his house and property were ordered to be
confiscated for his fanatical Hindu hatred. But soon,
a compromise took place and he joined that war of free-
dom. The artillery in Nana's charge were manned by the
finest marksmen and old pensioners. While the Revolu-
tionaries were making efforts to set fire to the English
buildings within the fort, an amateur artillery man dis-
covered a new explosive. The first experiment was so
successful that the barracks, which were of immense value
to the English and against which it was thrown, were soon
burnt to ashes! There was so much competition amongst
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CAWNPORE AND JHANSI
the people to join in firing the batteries that women help-
ed men, and old men helped young men in the work. One
quotation will show how, in that season of noble ideals
and inspiration, the masses had risen up. A native
Christian says, " While I sat on a mat disguised as a
Mahomedan, I saw men returning to supply waters to
those who were fighting. Suddenly, one of them came up
to me and said, ' While our countrymen are fighting there,
it is a shame that a young Mahomedan like you should sit
here killing flies! Come there to help at the artillery.' He
also told me that the young son of the one-eyed pensioner
Karim Ali had done a great deed that day. He had made
some discovery and set fire to the English buildings. For
this bravery, he was rewarded with ninety rupees and a
shawl." To sit idly, instead of fighting for the country,
was considered a disgrace not only to a young man but
even to woman ; so, the women of Cawnpore had left their
Zenanas and jumped into the battle-field. But all these
young soldiers and heroic women were put to shame by
the ardour of a beauty which was no other than the
dancing girl Azizan, above-mentioned. She had now put
on a heroic garb. With her rosy cheeks and smiling lips,
she was there on horseback, fully armed. And the artillery
Sepoys would forget all their fatigue at the sight of her.
Nanak Chand says, in his diary, " Armed Azizan is flash-
ing everywhere like lightning ; often she stands in the
streets giving milk and sweetmeats to tired and
wounded Sepoys."
Even while the fight was going on in this manner, Nana
Sahib was making all possible arrangements for the civil
administration. Though it is always a difficult task to
introduce order in the revenue and police departments at
a critical time like that of a Revolution, Nana Sahib first
began the work of giving justice and protection to the
inhabitants. The prominent citizens of Cawnpore were
called together and the man elected by the majority of
them, Holas Singh by name, was given the office of chief
227

THE ERUPTION
magistrate. Nana Sahib gave strict orders that Holas
Singh should protect the citizens from disorderly Sepoys
or bandit villagers. The work of supplying provisions
to the army was entrusted to a citizen, called Mullah. A
court was appointed to settle civil and criminal disputes.
Jwala Prasad, Azimullah Khan, and others were made
judges and Baba Sahib was made the President. From
the few documents of this court that are extant, it is
abundantly clear that those guilty of oppression or dis-
order were severely punished and that great care was
bestowed on the maintenance of order. A man convicted
of a very heinous theft had his right hand cut off. A
Mahomedan butcher was given the same punishment for
killing a cow. Vagabonds without any profession and peo-
ple convicted of small thefts were publicly disgraced in the
streets on the back of a donkey.⁵ Like the Committee of
Public Safety established during the French Revolution,
this court gradually encroached upon all the other depart-
ments. To supply ammunition in case of shortage, to
supply clothes to the army, to try the arrested English
scouts, to punish rogues who wanted to escape—all these
were done by this court. It also gave rewards to those
who discovered English refugees.
The attack of the Revolutionaries on the English fort took
place on the 12th. Rather than take it by a general
assault, the general plan of the Revolutionaries was to
reduce it by harassing the English on all sides by artillery.
They also directed assaults now and then. After both
sides had lost some men the Revolutionaries would retire.
The vigour and courage of the artillery was not equalled
by the cavalry and the infantry. This fault will also be
prominently noticed in the sieges of Delhi and Lucknow;
but, in the siege of Cawnpore also, more importance was
attached to the artillery than to hand-to-hand fight. Not
that the Sepoys were, at all, afraid of death. The valour
5. Thomson's Cawnpore.
228