| Rani Lakshmibai | |
|---|---|
| Jhansi Ki Maharani | |
The Rani attired in war gear |
|
| Birth name | Manikarnika |
| Born | 19 November 1835 |
| Birthplace | Kashi, Varanasi, India |
| Died | 17 June 1858 |
| Place of death | Gwalior, India |
| Predecessor | Rani Rama Bai |
| Successor | British Raj |
| Consort to | Gangadhar Rao Newalkar |
| Royal House | Maratha Empire |
| Children | Damodar Rao, Anand Rao |
Lakshmi Bai, the Rani of Jhansi (c.19 November 1835 – 17 June 1858) (Marathi- झाशीची राणी लक्ष्मीबाई) was the queen of the Maratha-ruled princely state of Jhansi, situated in the northern part of India. She was one of the leading figures of the Indian Rebellion of 1857 and a symbol of resistance to the rule of the British East India Company in the subcontinent.
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Originally named Manikarnika and nicknamed Manu, Lakshmibai was born at Kashi (Varanasi)[1] to Moropant Tambe and Bhagirathibai Tambe, a Maharashtrian Karhade Brahmin couple. She lost her mother at the age of four. Her father worked at the Peshwa court of Bithoor; the Peshwa brought her up like his own daughter, and called her "Chhabili" for her light-heartedness. She was educated at home.
Because of her father's influence at court, Lakshmibai had more independence than most women, who were normally restricted to the zenana. She studied self-defence, horsemanship, archery, and even formed her own army out of her female friends at court. Tatya Tope, who would later come to her rescue during the 1857 Rebellion, was her mentor.
Lakshmibai was married to Raja Gangadhar Rao Newalkar, the Maharaja of Jhansi, in 1842, and thus became the queen of Jhansi. After their marriage, she was given the name Lakshmibai. The Raja was very affectionate towards her. She[2] gave birth to a son, Damodar Rao, in 1851. However, the child died when he was about four months old. After the death of their son, the Raja and Rani of Jhansi adopted Anand Rao. Anand Rao was the son of Gangadhar Rao's cousin, and was later renamed as Damodar Rao. However, it is said that the Raja of Jhansi never recovered from his son's death, and he died on 21 November 1853.
Because Damodar Rao was adopted, the British East India Company, under Governor-General Lord Dalhousie, applied the Doctrine of Lapse, rejecting Rao's claim to the throne and annexing the state to its territories. In March 1854, Lakshmibai was given a pension of 60,000 rupees and ordered to leave the palace and the Jhansi fort.
On May 10, 1857 the Indian Rebellion started in Meerut. This began after rumours that the new bullet casings for the Enfield rifles were coated with pork and beef fat; British commanders insisted on their use and started to discipline anyone who disobeyed. During this rebellion sepoys killed many British soldiers and officers of the East India Company.
Unrest began to spread throughout India. During this chaotic time, the British were forced to focus their attentions elsewhere, and Lakshmibai was essentially left to rule Jhansi alone. During this time, she was able to lead her troops swiftly and efficiently to quell skirmishes breaking out in Jhansi. She kept Jhansi relatively calm and peaceful in the midst of the unrest in northern India; For example, she conducted the haldi-kumkum ceremony with great pomp and ceremony before all the women of Jhansi to provide assurance to her subjects and to convince them that Jhansi was under no threat of an attack.[3]
Up to this point, Lakshmibai had been hesitant to rebel against the British, and there is still some controversy over her role in the massacre of Company officials, their wives and children on 8 June 1857 at Jokhan Bagh.[4] Her hesitation finally ended when British troops arrived under Sir Hugh Rose and laid siege to Jhansi on 23 March 1858. She rallied her troops and fought fiercely. An army of 20,000, headed by Tatya Tope, was sent to relieve Jhansi and to take Lakshmibai to freedom. However, the British, though numbering only 1,540 in the field so as not to break the siege, were better trained and disciplined than the raw recruits, and these inexperienced soldiers turned and fled shortly after the British began to attack on 31 March. Lakshmibai’s forces could not hold out and three days later the British were able to breach the city walls and capture the city. Lakshmibai escaped by jumping from the wall at night with her son. She fled from her city, surrounded by her guards, many of them women.[4]
Along with the young Anand Rao, the Rani decamped to Kalpi along with her troops, where she joined other rebel forces, including those of Tatya Tope. The Rani and Tatya Tope moved on to Gwalior, where the combined rebel forces defeated the army of the Maharaja of Gwalior after his armies deserted the rebel forces. They then occupied a strategic fort at Gwalior. However, on 17 June 1858,[5] while battling in full warrior regalia against the 8th (King's Royal Irish) Hussars in Kotah-ki Serai near the Phool Bagh area of Gwalior, she died. The British captured Gwalior three days later. In the British report of the battle, General Sir Hugh Rose commented that the Rani, "remarkable for her beauty, cleverness and perseverance", had been "the most dangerous of all the rebel leaders".[6]
However, the lack of a corpse to be convincingly identified as that of Lakshmibai convinced Captain Rheese that she had not actually perished in the battle for Gwalior, stating publicly that: "[the] Queen of Jhansi is alive!".[7] It is believed her funeral was arranged on the same day near the spot where she was wounded. Lakshmibai was memorialized in bronze statues at Jhansi and Gwalior, both of which portray her on horseback. Other equestrian statues can be seen in Agra and Pune.
Her father, Moropant Tambey, was captured and hanged a few days after the fall of Jhansi. Her adopted son, Damodar Rao (formerly known as Anand Rao), fled with his mother's aides. Rao was later given a pension by the British Raj and cared for, although he never received his inheritance. Damodar Rao settled down in the city of Indore, and spent most of his life trying to convince the British to restore some of his rights. He and his descendants took on the last name Jhansiwale. He died on 28 May 1906, at the age of 58 years.
Maza Pravas: 1857 cya Bandaci Hakikat (marathi "My journey: the truth about the 1857 rebellion") by Vishnu Bhatt Godse. Amar Balidani by Janki Sharan Verma Zila Vikas Pustika, 1996–97, Jhansi Meyer, Karl E. and Shareen Blair Brysac. Tournament of Shadows Washington D.C.: Counterpoint, 1999.
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