Page 270

Chapter 2 – The Trial of the King of Dehli, and the Queen’s Proclamation

The capture of Man Singh and Tantia Topi produced all over western and southern India an effect similar to that realised by the pacification of Oudh in the north-western Provinces. The mutiny was now stamped out. The daring of the soldier had to give place to the sagacity and breadth of view of the statesman.

The Queen’s proclamation

Some months before the final blow had been struck, when the rebels had lost every stronghold and been driven to take refuge in the wooded hills and the dense jungles which abound alike on the northern frontier of Oudh and in central India, Her Majesty the Queen had deemed it advisable to issue a proclamation to her Indian subjects, a message of mercy to those who still continued to resist, of promise to all. Before referring more particularly to this proclamation, it will be advisable to refer to some of the events which rendered its issue at the end of 1858 particularly advisable.

Trial and sentence of the King of Dehli

The titular sovereign of India, the King of Dehli, had been brought to trial in the Privy Council Chamber of the palace, the Diwani-Khass, on the 27th of January, 1858. Four charges were brought against him. The first accused him, when a pensioner of the British Government, of encouraging, aiding, and abetting the Sipahis in the crimes of mutiny and rebellion against the State; the second, of encouraging, aiding, and abetting his own son and other inhabitants of Dehli and the north-west Provinces of India, to rebel and wage war against the State; the third, of having proclaimed himself reigning king and sovereign of India, and of assembling forces at Dehli, and of encouraging others to wage war against the British Government; the fourth, of having, on the 16th of May, feloniously caused, or of having been accessory to, the death of forty-nine people of

Page 271

European and mixed European descent, and of having subsequently abetted others in murdering European officers and other English subjects. After a trial conducted with great patience, and which extended over forty days, the king was found guilty of the main points in the charges, and sentenced. to be transported for life. Eventually he was taken to Pegu, where he ended his days in peace199.

A scapegoat required

Meanwhile it had been necessary in England to find a scapegoat for all the blood which had been shed in crushing the mutiny – an event, which, though it seemed at first to give a shock to the prestige of England, had been the means of displaying a power greater and more concentrated than that with which the world had credited her. The reconquest of India is, indeed, the most marvellous military achievement of any times, ancient or modern. If India had at that time been under the rule of the Crown, the natural scape-goat would have been the Ministry of the day. As it was, the blow fell upon the grand old Company which had nursed the early conquests on the eastern coast of Hindustan until they had developed into the most magnificent empire subject to an alien race which the world has ever seen.

The East India Company

The East India Company had not deserved its fate. Its rule had been better and purer, more adapted to the circumstances of the great dependency than would have been possible had its acts and orders been subject to the fluctuations of party feeling. True, it had committed some faults; but it is a remarkable fact, especially in later years, that it had been driven into the commission of those faults by the Ministry of the day.

though the faults she had were more than shared by the Ministry of the day

This remark especially applies to the “crime,” so to speak, of the mutiny. I call it a crime, because the Court of Directors were summoned before the bar of public opinion to answer for it, and were condemned upon it. Now, if, as I believe, the mutiny was due in a great measure to the acts of the Government of Lord Dalhousie, to the denial of the right to adopt, to the shock to public morality caused by the annexation of Oudh and especially by the manner in which that annexation was carried out, then, the Government of England was equally guilty with the Court

Page 272

of Directors, for it was that Government which more than sanctioned the annexation and the antecedent acts to which I have referred. But in times of excitement justice almost always sleeps.

is made that scape-goat

The scape-goat was of the very kind which suited the public humour. He was old-fashioned, pursy, and defenceless. Against him every interest was arrayed. The Ministry, which wanted his patronage; the outsider, who saw an opening to the ‘covenanted’ services; the doctrinaire, on whose mind the idea of a double government grated harshly; these and other classes combined to cast stones at him.

and doomed to death

The great Company was unable to withstand the pressure. It fell, but it fell not without regret and with an honoured name. On the 2nd of August 1858 the Queen signed the Act which transferred its functions to the Crown.

Lord Derby draws up a proclamation for submission to the Queen

No sooner had this act been accomplished than it devolved upon the first Minister of the Crown, the late Earl Lord Derby of Derby, to draw up for submission to the Queen a proclamation, forthwith to be issued by Her Majesty in Council, in which should be set forth the principles on which the administration of India should in the future be conducted. The circumstances which followed the preparation of the first draught of the proclamation by Lord Derby have been given to the world on the highest authority in a work which has brought home to every Englishman and every Englishwoman the enormous loss sustained by the country in the premature death of the illustrious prince whose noble life it so touchingly and so gracefully records200.

Objections taken to the original draught by the Queen and Prince Albert

There were expressions in that draught which seemed to Her Majesty and to Prince Albert in one case to invert, in another to express feebly, the meaning they were anxious to convey. In the memorandum with which the objections to then points were conveyed to Lord Derby, Her Majesty expressed in noble language the sentiments by which she was animated towards the great people of whom she was about to become the Empress, Empress in reality, though not then actually in name. “The Queen would be glad,” continued the memorandum, after referring to the objections taken to the original draught of the proclamation, “if Lord Derby would write

Page 273

it himself in his excellent language; bearing in mind that it is a female sovereign who speaks to more than a hundred millions of Eastern people on assuming the direct government over them, and, after a bloody war, giving them pledges which her future reign is to redeem, and explaining the principles of her government. Such a document should breathe feelings of generosity, benevolence, and religions toleration, and point out the privileges which the Indians will receive in being placed on an equality with the subjects of the British Crown, and the prosperity following in the train of civilisation.”

These objections anticipated by Lord Derby

Before the memorandum containing these noble words had reached Lord Derby, that minister, warned by a telegram from Lord Malmesbury, then in attendance on the Queen, that Her Majesty was not satisfied with the proclamation, had turned his attention to the draught, and discovering in it instinctively the faults which had been noticed by the Queen and Prince Albert, had recast it. In its amended form it met every objection, and corresponded entirely to the wishes of the august Lady in whose name it was to be issued to the people of India.

The proclamation, as finally approved by Her Majesty, ran as follows:–

The Queen’s Proclamation

“Victoria, by the Grace of God, of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, and of the Colonies and Dependencies thereof in Europe, Asia, Africa, America, and Australasia, Queen, Defender of the Faith.

“Whereas, for divers weighty reasons, we have resolved, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons in Parliament assembled, to take upon ourselves the Government of the territories in India, heretofore administered in trust for us by the Honourable East India Company:

“Now, therefore, we do by these presents notify and declare that, by the advice and consent aforesaid, we have taken upon ourselves the said government, and we hereby call upon all our subjects within the said territories to be faithful and to bear true allegiance to us, our heirs and successors, and to submit themselves to the authority of those whom we may hereafter from time to time see fit to appoint to administer the government of our said territories, in our name and on our behalf.

“And we, reposing especial trust and confidence in the loyalty, ability, and judgment, of our right trusty and well-beloved

Page 274

cousin and Councillor, Charles John Viscount Canning, do hereby constitute and appoint him, the said Viscount Canning, to be our First Viceroy and Governor-General in and over our said territories, and to administer the government thereof in our name, and generally to act in our name and on our behalf, subject to such orders and regulations as he shall, from time to time, receive from us through one of our principal Secretaries of State.

“And we do hereby confirm in their several offices, civil and military, all persons now employed in the service of the Honourable East India Company, subject to our future pleasure, and to such laws and regulations as may hereafter be enacted.

“We hereby announce to the native princes of India that all treaties and engagements made with them by or under the authority of the Honourable East India Company are by us accepted, and will be scrupulously maintained; and we look for the like observance on their part.

“We desire no extension of our present territorial possessions; and, while we will permit no aggressions upon our dominions or our rights to be attempted with impunity, we shall sanction no encroachment on those of others. We shall respect the rights, dignity, and honour of native princes as our own, and we desire that they, as well as our own subjects, should enjoy that prosperity and that social advancement which can only be secured by internal peace and good government.

“We hold ourselves bound to the natives of our Indian territories by the same obligations of duty which bind us to all our other subjects; and those obligations, by the blessing of Almighty God, we shall faithfully and conscientiously fulfil.

“Firmly relying ourselves on the truth of Christianity, and acknowledging with gratitude the solace of religion, we disclaim alike the right and the desire to impose our convictions on any of our subjects. We declare it to be our Royal will and pleasure that none be in anywise favoured, none molested or disquieted, by reason of their religious faith or observances, but that all shall alike enjoy the equal and impartial protection of the law; and we do strictly charge and enjoin all those who may be in authority under us that they abstain from all interference with the religions belief or worship of any of our subjects, on pain of our highest displeasure.

“And it is our further will that, so far as may be, our subjects, of whatever race or creed, be freely and impartially

Page 275

admitted to offices in our service, the duties of which they may be qualified, by their education, ability, and integrity, duly to discharge.

“We know and respect the feelings of attachment with which the natives of India regard the lands inherited by them from their ancestors, and we desire to protect them in all rights connected therewith, subject to the equitable demands of the State; and we will that, generally, in framing and administering the law, due regard be paid to the ancient rights, usages, and customs of India.

“We deeply lament the evils and misery which have been brought upon India by the acts of ambitious men, who have deceived their countrymen by false reports, and led them into open rebellion. Our power has been shown by the suppression of that rebellion in the field; we desire to show our mercy by pardoning the offences of those who have been thus misled, but who desire to return to the path of duty.

“Already in one province, with a view to stop the further effusion of blood, and to hasten the pacification of our Indian dominions, our Viceroy and Governor-General has held out the expectation of pardon, on certain terms, to the great majority of those who, in the late unhappy disturbances, have been guilty of offences against our Government, and has declared the punishment which will be inflicted on those whose crimes place them beyond the reach of forgiveness. We approve and confirm the said act of our Viceroy and Governor-General, and do further announce and proclaim as follows:–

“Our clemency will be extended to all offenders, save and except those who have been or shall be convicted of having directly taken part in the murder of British subjects.

“With regard to such, the demands of justice forbid the exercise of mercy.

“To those who have willingly given asylum to murderers, knowing them to be such, or who may have acted as leaders or instigators in revolt, their lives alone can be guaranteed; but, in appointing the penalty due to such persons, full consideration will be given to the circumstances under which they have been induced to throw off their allegiance, and large indulgence will be shown to those whose crimes may appear to have originated in a too credulous acceptance of the false reports circulated by designing men.

“To all others in arms against the Government we hereby

Page 276

promise unconditional pardon, amnesty, and oblivion of all offences against ourselves, our crown and dignity, on their return to their homes and peaceful pursuits.

“It is our Royal pleasure that these terms of grace and amnesty should be extended to all those who comply with their conditions before the first day of January next.

“When, by the blessing of Providence, internal tranquillity shall be restored, it is our earliest desire to stimulate the peaceful industry of India, to promote works of public utility and improvement, and to administer its Government for the benefit of all our subjects resident therein. In their prosperity will be our strength, in their contentment our security, and in their gratitude our best reward. And may the God of all power grant unto us, and to those in authority under us, strength to carry out these our wishes for the good of our people.”

The proclamation published throughout India

On the 1st of November, 1858 this noble proclamation was published to the princes and people of India. At Calcutta, at Madras, at Bombay, at Lahor, at Agra, Allahabad, at Dehli, at Lakhnao, at Maisur, at Karachi, at Nagpur, and at every civil and military station in India it was publicly read on that day with every accompaniment of ceremonial splendour which could give importance to the occasion in the eyes of the natives.

and distributed

Translated into all the languages and many of the dialects of India, it was, at the same time, transmitted to all the native princes, and was distributed by thousands for the edification of those of lower rank and position.

Communications made to the native princes

The first Viceroy of India used all the means in his power to acquaint the native princes that, transferred to the suzerainty and rule of the Queen, they might rely upon the strict observance of all engagements entered into with them by the Company; that her Majesty desired no extension of her dominions, but would respect the rights, the honour, and the dignity of the princes of her empire; that, while their religion would not be interfered with, the ancient rights, customs, and usages of India would be maintained; that neither caste nor creed should he a bar to employment in her service.

And to the rebels still in arms

Lord Canning took every care, at the same time, that the rebels still in arms should have cognizance of the full and gracious terms offered them, terms which practically restored life and security to all

Page 277

those who had not taken part in the murder of British subjects.

Its reception in India by princes and landowners

The proclamation was received by all classes throughout India with the deepest enthusiasm. The princes and landowners especially regarded it as a charter which would render their possessions secure, and their rights – more especially the right so precious to them, of adoption – absolutely inviolate. The people in general welcomed it as the document which closed up the wounds of the mutiny, which declared, in effect, that bygones were to be bygones, and that thenceforward there should be one Queen and one people.

The rebels

Many of the rebels still in the field – all, in fact, except those absolutely irreconcilable – took advantage of its provisions to lay down their arms and to submit to its easy conditions.

The natives draw up loyal addresses expressive of their gratitude

In the great towns of India, natives of every religion and creed, the Hindus, the Muhammadans, the Parsis, met in numbers to draw up loyal addresses expressive of their deep sense of the beneficent feelings which had prompted the proclamation, of their gratitude for its contents, and of their loyalty to the person of the illustrious Lady to whose rule they had been transferred.

The mutiny had really terminated when the proclamation appeared

With the issue of the proclamation the story of the mutiny should fitly close. But those who have accompanied me so far will have seen that in central India the work of warfare was prolonged for six months after its promulgation. In this there is, however, only a seeming misplacement. In the jungles on the Oudh frontier and of central India there survived for that period men who were more marauders than soldiers – men whose continual rebellion was but remotely connected with the original cause of the mutiny, who had offended too deeply to hope for forgiveness. In one notable instance, indeed, that of Man Singh, the quarrel was in no sense a consequence of the mutiny. It was a quarrel between a baron and his feudal lord. Yet it was that quarrel, not the mutiny, nor any fact connected with the mutiny, which kept the dominions of Sindhia in continual disturbance for more than six months. When Man Singh surrendered, those disturbances ceased.

As far as related, then, to the actual mutineers, with but a

Page 278

The proclamation the beginning of a new era.

few exceptions to the Sipahis, and to all the landowners in British territories, the proclamation of the Queen was, in very deed, the end and the beginning – the end of a conflict which had deluged the country with blood, the beginning of an era full of hope, alike for the loyal and the misguided, for the prince and the peasant, for the owner and for the cultivator, for every class and for every creed.

One word more. The history of military events has necessarily almost entirely monopolised the pages of a work the object of which was to record the rise, the progress, and the suppression of the Great Mutiny. In the course of the narrative I have followed so closely the movements of the military combatants that I have been unable to devote to occurrences in districts purely civil the attention which the heroic officers who maintained those districts deserved. The time has arrived when this defect should be remedied. In the volume which follows this, then, will be found a record of the events which occurred, so far as I have been able to ascertain them, in the several divisions and districts which formed the provinces under the rule of the several governors, lieutenant-governors, and chief commissioners who held office in 1857-8.

Footnotes

199. For report of the statement made for the prosecution at the trial and Sir John Lawrence’s report, vide Appendix C.

200. Life of the Prince Consort, vol. iv. page 284.

This collection transcribed by Chris Gage
hosted by ibiblio Support Wikipedia