Causes of Revolt of 1857

A rumour about the grease on a rifle cartridge triggered a rebellion that came close to ending British rule in India within a hundred years of Plassey. That a rumour could do so much damage tells you the real story: the cartridge was a spark, not the fire. The fire had been building for decades in the Company's land revenue, its annexations, and its army — and 1857 is the year it all went up at once.

In two minutes

The Revolt of 1857 had one immediate trigger — the greased cartridge — sitting on top of decades of political, economic, social, religious and military grievance that the Company's own policies had created.

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