Aman, a history student, is reading the diary of a British officer posted in North India in May 1857. One entry records that early on 11 May a band of mounted sepoys reached the gates of a royal palace, gathered under the ruler's window and later rode inside to demand his blessing. Surrounded by armed men, the ruler agreed. In the weeks that follow, the officer notes the date on which the sepoys of each cantonment rose, and writes down what the sepoys did first, and next, in every station he hears about.
Whose blessing does the officer's entry describe, and what did it give the revolt?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → Bahadur Shah's, so that the revolt could now be carried on in the name of the Mughal emperor.
Option (1) Bahadur Shah's, so that the revolt could now be carried on in the name of the Mughal emperor. — Correct. The sepoys from Meerut reached the Red Fort in Delhi on 11 May and forced the old Mughal emperor, Bahadur Shah, to bless them. With his blessing the revolt gained a kind of legitimacy, because it could now be carried on in the Mughal emperor's name.
Option (2) Nana Sahib's, so that the revolt could now be carried on in the name of the Peshwa at Kanpur. — Incorrect. Nana Sahib, the adopted son of the late Peshwa Baji Rao II, led the rising at Kanpur. The sepoys at the palace gates on 11 May met the ruler in Delhi instead.
Option (3) Wajid Ali Shah's, so that the revolt could now be carried on in the name of the Nawab of Awadh. — Incorrect. Wajid Ali Shah, the Nawab of Awadh, had been removed from his throne and sent to Calcutta before the revolt. The sepoys of 11 May did not seek his blessing.
Option (4) Birjis Qadr's, so that the revolt could now be carried on in the name of the young Nawab of Lucknow. — Incorrect. Birjis Qadr, the young son of the deposed Nawab, was proclaimed leader at Lucknow later in the revolt. The 11 May blessing came from the ruler in Delhi.
NCERT (2026-27): “Rebels and the Raj The Revolt of 1857 and Its Representations … |