14 mark Question related to “Result of War” or “Outcome of War”
Q) ‘The War of Independence of 1857 achieved nothing’. Give reasons why you might agree
and disagree with this statement.
Q) To what extent were the outcomes of the War of Independence beneficial for India? Explain
your answer.
1st Paragraph:
The 1857 War led to disastrous consequences. As far as its immediate results are concerned
they brought miseries to Indians in general and to Muslims in particular. There were a few
indirect positive outcomes but mostly the Indians failed to achieve the objectives of the war and
remained colonized for nearly a century.
Result or Outcome:
Bad:
• The defeat strengthened British control over India which now officially became a colony of the
British Empire. The EIC was abolished and India came under the direct rule of the Queen of
England - Queen Victoria was declared the Empress of India.
• The rebels were severely punished. They were blown off from cannons and publicly hanged.
The muslim rebels were sewn in pigskins and left to die.
• The blame of the war fell mostly upon Muslims who suffered most politically, socially and
financially. The British believed that it was their strong faith that made them determined to
restore Muslim rule in India. The Hindus quickly adopted a policy of co-operation which won
them favours from the British.
• The Mughal rule came to an end. Bahadur Shah was exiled to Rangoon, his sons who
participated in the war were beheaded and the royal family was banished from Delhi to the
obscure Qutub saheb.
Good:
• Indians had learned the hard lesson that militarily they were no match to the British. Therefore,
now they would resist British rule politically. As a result Indians began to develop political
awareness and founded political parties.
• The Doctrine of Lapse was abolished. The British government promised to respect local
religious faiths and practices. They also decided to train Indians in politics by introducing
political reforms periodically.
• irrigation schemes were begun
• Indian farmers benefited from new farming methods
• the railway network was extended
Conclusion:
In the final analysis, it seems that the War of 1857 was on the whole a failed attempt by Indians
as it failed to achieve the primary objective of driving the British out of India. Instead, the British
eliminated Mughal rule forever. India would now be governed directly by the British government
for another nine decades.