mangal pandey was the first sepoy who refused to use the greased cartridge.
mangal pandey was the first sepoy who refused to use the greased cartridge.
the first sepoy who refused to use the greased cartridge?
mangal pandey
another suggestion they put forward was to introduce a new drill, in which the cartridge was not bitten with the teeth but torn open with the hand. the sepoys rejected this, pointing out that they might very well forget and bite the cartridge, not surprising given the extensive drilling that allowed 19th century british and indian troops to fire three to four rounds per minute. british and indian military drills of the time required soldiers to bite off the end of the beeswax paper cartridge, pour the gunpowder contained within down the barrel, stuff the remaining paper cartridge into the barrel, ram the paper cartridge (which included the ball wrapped and tied in place) down the barrel, remove the ram-rod, return the ram-rod, bring the rifle to the ready, set the sights, add a percussion cap, present the rifle, and fire. the musketry books also recommended that, "whenever the grease around the bullet appears to be melted away, or otherwise removed from the cartridge, the sides of the bullet should be wetted in the mouth before putting it into the barrel; the saliva will serve the purpose of grease for the time being" this meant that biting a musket cartridge was second nature to the sepoys, some of whom had decades of service in the company's army, and who had been doing musket drill for every day of their service. the first sepoy who rebelled by aiming his loaded weapon at a british officer was mangal pandey who was later executed.
causes of the indian rebellion of 1857
a mutiny in several sepoy companies of the bengal army was sparked by the issue of new gunpowder cartridges for the enfield rifle february, 1857. a rumor was spread that the cartridges were made from cow and pig fat. loading the enfield required tearing open the greased cartridge with one's teeth. this would have insulted both hindu and muslim religious practices; cows were considered holy by hindus, while pigs were considered unclean by muslims. underlying grievances over british taxation and recent land annexations by the beic were ignited by the sepoy mutineers, and within weeks, dozens of units of the indian army joined peasant armies in widespread rebellion. the old aristocracy, both muslim and hindu, who were seeing their power steadily eroded by the east india company, also rebelled against british rule. another important source of discontent among the indian rulers was that the british policies of conquest had created unrest among many indian rulers. the policies like the doctrine of lapse, subsidiary alliance deprived indian rulers of their power.
causes of the indian rebellion of 1857