Question

Write down the consequences of struggle of 1857. 

Answer 1

The 1857 revolt, failed and crushed by the superior military force of the British, was a significant event of far-reaching consequences in the history of British rule in India. It marks the end of an era of trouble-free exploitation of the British in Indians.

The results of the 1857 revolt may be subdivided as:

1. Constitutional Changes:
   
   
   1. The British crown gave up the policy of secondary isolation and advocated a policy of subordinate combination in respect of native states.
   2. The transfer of power from a trading company to the power of Britain by the Government of India Act of 1858.
   3. In the place of the President of the Board of Control, the Secretary of State for India was appointed. The Secretary of State for India was helped out and helped by a 15-member body of the India Council.
   4. The designation of the Governor General of India was changed to Viceroy.
   5. The administrative machinery in India was centralized effectively due to the development of communications.
2. Changes in the Army:
   1. Before the revolt of 1857, the army of the British in India was divided into two major divisions – king’s forces and the company's troops.
   2. The weapons section was entirely kept under the British.
   3. There were more European soldiers in the army, and the expenditure on the army doubled up.
   4. They reduced the Brahmins from the army and recruited Gurkhas, Sikhs, Jats, and Rajputs of Punjab.
3. Social Effects: India developed the growth of social distance between the Hindus and Muslims, which led to the communalisation of social life and partition of India on communal lines.
   1. There was a setback to the Muslim slim renaissance and efforts of modernity.

Thus, the revolt of 1857 had numerous consequences for the social life of Indians. The British took all the steps to avoid any other revolt in the future. The rearrangement in all the fields of administration was a safety measure for it. The revolt made the British more vigilant.