Awadh in Revolt: Why 1857 Was Strongest in Awadh (Class 12 History)
Updated 15 October 2026 · Fact-checked
The revolt of 1857 was most widespread and long-lasting in Awadh because a chain of grievances linked prince, taluqdar, peasant and sepoy. The 1856 annexation exiled the popular Nawab Wajid Ali Shah, the Summary Settlement dispossessed taluqdars and over-assessed peasants, and sepoys recruited from Awadh's villages carried these grievances into the army.
Notice that one act, annexation, hurt every group in Awadh, and their linked grievances joined into one widespread revolt.
Illustration drawn for QuestionBuddy.
Understand Awadh in Revolt
Why this topic matters. Awadh is the case study NCERT uses to explain the depth of 1857. Boards ask why the revolt was so widespread there, why the British wanted Awadh, what taluqdars felt, and why Awadh was the 'nursery of the Bengal Army', with sources such as 'The Nawab has left' and 'What taluqdars thought'. NCERT section 2 with Sources 3, 4 and 7, the Subsidiary Alliance box and section 4.
1. The road to annexation.
| Year | Step |
|---|---|
| 1798 | Subsidiary Alliance devised by Lord Wellesley |
| 1801 | Imposed on Awadh: Nawab disbands his army, British troops stationed in the kingdom, Nawab acts on the advice of the Resident |
| 1851 | Lord Dalhousie calls Awadh 'a cherry that will drop into our mouth one day' |
| 1856 | Awadh formally annexed; Nawab Wajid Ali Shah dethroned and exiled to Calcutta |
| 1856-57 | Summary Settlement of revenue |
Terms of the Subsidiary Alliance: the British protect the ally; a British contingent is stationed in its territory; the ally pays for it; the ally can make agreements or war only with British permission. Deprived of his army, the Nawab depended on the British and could not control rebellious chiefs and taluqdars.
Why the British wanted Awadh: soil good for indigo and cotton; ideal location to be developed into the principal market of Upper India; and by the early 1850s the Marathas, Doab, Carnatic, Punjab and Bengal had been conquered, so Awadh would complete a century of annexation.
2. The loss of the Nawab ('The life was gone out of the body').
- Deposed on the plea of misgovernment; the British wrongly assumed he was unpopular. In fact he was widely loved: many followed him to Kanpur singing songs of lament.
- A contemporary wrote that the town was left lifeless, every street and house crying in separation from Jan-i-Alam; a folk song lamented that the 'honourable English came and took the country'.
- Material loss: the court and its culture dissolved, and musicians, dancers, poets, artisans, cooks, retainers and officials lost their livelihood.
3. The taluqdars dispossessed.
- Taluqdars had for generations controlled land and power: forts, armed retainers (big ones up to 12,000 foot-soldiers, small ones about 200), autonomy so long as they accepted the Nawab and paid revenue.
- After annexation they were disarmed and their forts destroyed.
- Summary Settlement of 1856 assumed taluqdars were interlopers who had gained land by force and fraud, and removed them wherever possible.
- Taluqdars' share of Awadh villages fell from 67 per cent (pre-British) to 38 per cent; in southern Awadh some lost more than half their villages.
- Hanwant Singh, Raja of Kalakankar near Rae Bareli, sheltered a British officer, then told him he would now march to Lucknow to drive the British out, because they had taken his ancestral lands (Source 4).
4. The peasants exposed.
- Officials hoped to settle land with the actual owners, reduce exploitation and raise revenue. In practice revenue rose but the burden on peasants did not fall; large areas were over-assessed, with increases of 30 to 70 per cent in places.
- The old ties broke: taluqdars had been oppressors but also father figures, considerate in hard times and giving loans for festivities. Under the British, peasants faced over-assessment and inflexible collection, with no relief in crop failure.
- So neither taluqdars nor peasants gained; in Awadh the fighting was done by taluqdars and their peasants, many joining Begum Hazrat Mahal in Lucknow.
5. The sepoys.
- Most sepoys of the Bengal Army came from the villages of Awadh and eastern UP; many were Brahmins or 'upper' castes. Awadh was called the 'nursery of the Bengal Army'.
- Old complaints: low pay, difficulty getting leave.
- Changing officer relations: in the 1820s white officers wrestled, fenced and went hawking with sepoys and spoke Hindustani, being disciplinarian and father figure in one; from the 1840s they treated sepoys as racial inferiors, with abuse and violence. Trust gave way to suspicion; the greased cartridges were a classic example.
- Village fears passed to the lines and sepoy grievances passed back to the villages, so when sepoys rose, peasants poured into towns to join them.
6. A chain of grievances. Prince, taluqdar, peasant and sepoy each came to identify firangi raj with the end of their world. In Awadh more than anywhere the revolt became popular resistance to an alien order.
7. Fighting and repression in Awadh.
- 30 May 1857: rising in Lucknow; 30 June: British defeated at Chinhat.
- Siege of the Lucknow Residency: Henry Lawrence killed; defence under Colonel Inglis; 25 September: Outram and Havelock break in; twenty days later Colin Campbell relieves the garrison.
- A British officer reported that Awadh villagers melted away before European troops and gathered again (Source 7). Forsyth estimated that three-fourths of the adult male population was in rebellion. Awadh was controlled only in March 1858.
- Besides force, the British broke the landholder-peasant alliance by promising estates back to big landholders: rebels dispossessed, the loyal rewarded. Many died fighting or fled to Nepal.
Key quotations
Short lines worth knowing by heart: who says them, when, and why they matter.
a cherry that will drop into our mouth one day
Lord Dalhousie, 1851 (quoted in NCERT section 2.1): Describing the kingdom of Awadh five years before its annexation.
Shows British intentions towards Awadh.
The life was gone out of the body
A contemporary observer (NCERT section 2.2): On Lucknow after Wajid Ali Shah's exile.
Evidence of the Nawab's popularity and the grief at his removal.
the revolt became an expression of popular resistance to an alien order
NCERT, section 2.3: On the character of the revolt in Awadh.
The key judgement for 'why Awadh' answers.
your countrymen came into this country and drove out our King
Hanwant Singh, Raja of Kalakankar (Source 4): Speaking to the British officer he had sheltered.
Expresses the taluqdars' grievance over the loss of their Nawab and their lands.
Awadh in Revolt: key facts
- Road to annexation
1798 Subsidiary Alliance devised by Lord Wellesley 1801 imposed on Awadh; Nawab's army disbanded 1851 Dalhousie: Awadh 'a cherry that will drop into our mouth' 1856 Awadh annexed; Wajid Ali Shah exiled to Calcutta 1856-57 Summary Settlement of revenue - Plea used: misgovernment.
- Why the British wanted Awadh
Soil good for indigo and cotton Trade could become the principal market of Upper India Empire its annexation would complete a century of conquest - Without his own army after 1801, the Nawab depended on the British.
- The chain of grievances
Prince Nawab exiled; court dissolved; its dependants lost livelihoods Taluqdars disarmed, forts destroyed; share of villages cut from 67 to 38 per cent Peasants over-assessed by 30 to 70 per cent; no relief in hard times Sepoys low pay, difficulty getting leave, racial abuse by officers, greased cartridges - All identified firangi raj with the end of their world.
- Sepoys and villages
Recruitment most Bengal Army sepoys from Awadh and eastern UP Name Awadh, the 'nursery of the Bengal Army' Link village fears reached the lines, sepoy grievances reached the villages Result peasants poured into towns to join the sepoys - Explains the popular scale of the revolt.
- Fighting and suppression
30 May 1857 rising in Lucknow 30 June 1857 British defeated at Chinhat 25 September 1857 Outram and Havelock reach the Lucknow Residency March 1858 Awadh brought under control - Forsyth: three-fourths of adult men in rebellion. Estates promised back to loyal landholders.
How to answer Awadh in Revolt questions
Expect 1-mark items on Dalhousie's 'cherry', the Subsidiary Alliance and the 'nursery of the Bengal Army'; 3-mark questions on why the revolt was widespread in Awadh or why the British wanted Awadh; 4-mark sources on the Nawab's departure, Hanwant Singh or Awadh villagers; and the NCERT essay on why peasants, taluqdars and zamindars joined.
- 1Trace annexation: Subsidiary Alliance (1801), Dalhousie, annexation of 1856.
- 2Explain British motives: indigo, cotton, market, completing conquest.
- 3Describe the Nawab's exile and its emotional and material effects.
- 4Explain taluqdar dispossession with the Summary Settlement figures.
- 5Explain peasant grievances: over-assessment and loss of the taluqdar's patronage.
- 6Link sepoys to villages: nursery of the Bengal Army; officer racism; cartridges.
- 7Conclude with the 'chain of grievances' and the length of resistance in Awadh.
Awadh in Revolt in real life
The idea, met in an everyday situation. Answer the question in your own words, then compare with the model answer. The one-line hook is what to remember.
Removing a familiar authority
Suppose a beloved local school principal is suddenly removed by a distant board on the charge of 'mismanagement'. Teachers, canteen staff, parents and students all lose something: jobs, routines, a figure they trusted.
How does this help explain the reaction in Lucknow in 1856?
Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
- Wajid Ali Shah was deposed on the plea of misgovernment, but he was widely loved.
- People followed him to Kanpur singing laments.
- The court dissolved: musicians, poets, cooks, artisans and officials lost their livelihoods.
Answer: The removal hurt both emotions and livelihoods, so a wide range of people blamed the new rulers; this fed popular support for the revolt in Awadh.
Memory hook: Remove the centre, and the whole circle grieves.
Replacing a patron with a system
Imagine a village where the local landlord took a share of crops but lent money for weddings and waived dues after floods; he is replaced by an office that demands fixed tax on a fixed date, flood or no flood.
Why might villagers side with the old landlord against the new office?
Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
- Under taluqdars, peasants paid dues but got help in bad times and loans for festivities.
- Under the British, they faced over-assessment and inflexible collection with no relief.
- In 1857 Awadh, taluqdars and their peasants fought the British together.
Answer: Because the impersonal system removed the safety net; peasants joined their taluqdars in revolt.
Memory hook: A harsh patron beats a heartless rulebook.
Tricks to remember Awadh in Revolt
Short memory aids. Say each one aloud once, then use it on a question the same day.
1-5-6 path
1801 alliance, 1851 cherry, 1856 annexation: '01, 51, 56'.
Use it when: Steps to annexation.
67 to 38
Taluqdars dropped from 67 to 38 per cent of villages: 'from two-thirds to just over one-third'.
Use it when: Summary Settlement figure.
P-T-P-S chain
Prince, Taluqdar, Peasant, Sepoy: 'Please Take Pen and Sign'.
Use it when: Chain of grievances in Awadh.
Awadh in Revolt: solved examples
Ordered from board level to HOTS. Try each one before you open the solution.
Example 1: Nursery of the Bengal Army · 1 mark · MCQBoard level
Which of these best explains NCERT's description of Awadh as the recruiting ground of the Bengal Army?
(a) the British trained their officers in Lucknow
(b) a large majority of the Bengal Army's sepoys came from the villages of Awadh and eastern Uttar Pradesh
(c) the Nawab of Awadh paid for the Bengal Army
(d) the Bengal Army's arsenal was in Awadh
Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
- Most sepoys of the Bengal Army were recruited from Awadh and eastern UP (1 mark).
Answer: (b)
Example 2: The Subsidiary Alliance in Awadh · 3 marks · Short answerBoard level
How did the Subsidiary Alliance of 1801 weaken the Nawab of Awadh even before annexation? (3 marks)
Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
- Terms: disband army; British troops in the kingdom; act on the Resident's advice (1 mark).
- Dependence on the British for law and order (1 mark).
- Loss of control over rebellious chiefs and taluqdars (1 mark).
Answer: The Subsidiary Alliance, devised by Wellesley in 1798, was imposed on Awadh in 1801. The Nawab had to disband his own military force, allow British troops to be stationed in his kingdom and act according to the advice of the British Resident attached to his court. Without an army of his own he became increasingly dependent on the British to maintain law and order, and he could no longer assert control over rebellious chiefs and taluqdars. This weakness later gave the British their plea of misgovernment.
Example 3: Assertion and reason: the Summary Settlement · 1 mark · Assertion-reasonHarder board level
Assertion (A): The Summary Settlement of 1856 reduced the burden of revenue on the peasants of Awadh.
Reason (R): It removed taluqdars wherever possible, assuming they were interlopers.
(a) Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A.
(b) Both A and R are true but R is not the correct explanation of A.
(c) A is true but R is false.
(d) A is false but R is true.
Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
- Revenue rose and the peasants' burden did not fall (over-assessment of 30-70 per cent in places), so A is false; R is true (1 mark).
Answer: (d) A is false but R is true.
Example 4: Why taluqdars and peasants fought together · 3 marks · Short answerHarder board level
Why did taluqdars and peasants of Awadh fight side by side in 1857, although taluqdars had been oppressors? (3 marks)
Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
- Taluqdars lost forts, arms and villages (67 to 38 per cent) (1 mark).
- Peasants were over-assessed and lost the taluqdar's support in bad times (1 mark).
- Both saw firangi raj as the end of their world; many joined Begum Hazrat Mahal (1 mark).
Answer: After annexation the British disarmed taluqdars, destroyed their forts and, under the Summary Settlement, removed them from many villages, cutting their share from 67 to 38 per cent. Peasants did not gain: revenue rose by 30 to 70 per cent in places, collection became inflexible, and they lost the taluqdar who, though he took dues, had often been a considerate father figure in hard times and at festivals. Both groups therefore suffered under the new order and identified it with the end of their world, so in Awadh the fighting was carried out by taluqdars and their peasants, many joining Begum Hazrat Mahal in Lucknow.
Example 5: Source-based: villagers as rebels · 4 marks · Source-basedHarder board level
Read the source (summarised for this page from a British officer's report from rural Awadh in NCERT) and answer.
The officer wrote that the people of Oude were steadily closing in on the British line of communication from the north. They were villagers, he said, almost impossible for Europeans to pin down: they scattered when troops advanced and gathered again afterwards. The civil authorities reported them to be very numerous and armed with a number of guns.
(i) What does 'Oude' refer to, and when was it annexed? (1)
(ii) What problem did these villagers pose to British troops? (1)
(iii) What does the report tell us about the nature of the revolt in Awadh, and how did the British finally break it? (2)
Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
- (i) Awadh; annexed in 1856 (1 mark).
- (ii) They dispersed before troops and regrouped; threatened communications (1 mark).
- (iii) Popular uprising with huge support (Forsyth: three-fourths of adult males); British reconquered village by village, used force and returned estates to loyal landholders; control by March 1858 (2 marks).
Answer: (i) Oude is the British spelling of Awadh, formally annexed in 1856. (ii) They could not be fought in pitched battle: they melted away before European troops and collected again, while threatening the British line of communication in large numbers and with guns. (iii) The report shows that the revolt in Awadh was not a mere mutiny but a popular uprising of villagers; by the reckoning of the official Forsyth, about three in every four grown men of Awadh had joined the rebellion. The British had to reconquer the countryside village by village, and Awadh came under control only in March 1858. Besides massive force, they broke the unity of landholders and peasants by promising big landholders their estates back, dispossessing rebels and rewarding the loyal.
Example 6: Long answer: the chain of grievances · 8 marks · Long answerHOTS / competency
"In Awadh, prince, taluqdar, peasant and sepoy were bound together by a chain of grievances." Explain this statement and show why resistance in Awadh lasted longer than elsewhere. (8 marks)
Try it first, then show the solutionSolution
- Annexation background and British motives (1 mark).
- Prince: Nawab exiled; grief; court dissolved (1 mark).
- Taluqdars: disarmed; Summary Settlement figures (1 mark).
- Peasants: over-assessment; loss of patronage (1 mark).
- Sepoys: nursery of the Bengal Army; pay, leave, racism, cartridges (1 mark).
- Links between village and sepoy lines (1 mark).
- Length of resistance: Hazrat Mahal, Lucknow siege, Forsyth, March 1858 (1 mark).
- Judgement (1 mark).
Answer: Awadh had been weakened by the Subsidiary Alliance of 1801, which disbanded the Nawab's army. The British coveted its soil for indigo and cotton and its position as the future principal market of Upper India; in 1851 Dalhousie called it a cherry ready to drop, and in 1856 it was annexed on the plea of misgovernment.
The prince's loss came first. Nawab Wajid Ali Shah, wrongly assumed to be unpopular, was exiled to Calcutta; crowds followed him to Kanpur singing laments, and observers wrote that Lucknow had lost its life. The dissolution of the court ruined musicians, poets, artisans, cooks and officials.
The taluqdars, who had held forts and armed retainers for generations, were disarmed and their forts destroyed. The Summary Settlement of 1856 treated them as interlopers and cut their share of villages from 67 to 38 per cent; Hanwant Singh of Kalakankar spoke for many when he said the British had taken his ancestral lands at one blow.
Peasants gained nothing. Revenue rose, with over-assessment of 30 to 70 per cent in places, and collection became rigid. The taluqdar who had helped in bad times was gone.
Sepoys were sons of these villages: Awadh was the nursery of the Bengal Army. Already unhappy about pay and leave, they now faced officers who treated them as racial inferiors, and the greased cartridges deepened suspicion. Village grievances reached the lines and sepoy fears reached the villages.
Thus each group linked firangi raj with the end of its world. When sepoys rose, peasants poured into towns; taluqdars and their peasants joined Begum Hazrat Mahal in Lucknow; the British were defeated at Chinhat and besieged in the Residency. Forsyth estimated that three-fourths of adult men were in rebellion, and Awadh was subdued only in March 1858.
Resistance lasted longest in Awadh because grievances were shared across every level of society, making the revolt an expression of popular resistance to an alien order.
Where students lose marks in Awadh in Revolt
The slips examiners see most often, and what to write instead.
Mistake: Dating the annexation wrongly
Confusing 1801, 1851 and 1856.
Wrong working
Awadh was annexed in 1801 by the Subsidiary Alliance.
Right working
The Subsidiary Alliance was imposed in 1801; Awadh was annexed in 1856.
Do this: 01 alliance, 51 cherry, 56 annexed.
Usually costs: 1 mark.
Mistake: Calling Wajid Ali Shah unpopular
Repeating the British plea.
Wrong working
The British removed an unpopular ruler.
Right working
The British wrongly assumed he was unpopular; he was widely loved.
Do this: Quote the crowds following him to Kanpur.
Usually costs: 1 mark.
Mistake: Explaining Awadh only through the sepoys
Missing the civilian grievances.
Wrong working
The revolt in Awadh happened because of the greased cartridges.
Right working
Prince, taluqdars, peasants and sepoys all had grievances, linked into one chain.
Do this: Cover all four links.
Usually costs: 2 marks in 8-mark answers.
Mistake: Forgetting the Summary Settlement figures
Vague answers.
Wrong working
Taluqdars lost some land.
Right working
Their share of villages fell from 67 to 38 per cent; over-assessment of 30 to 70 per cent.
Do this: Learn the two number pairs.
Usually costs: 1 mark.
Exam tips
- Asked in: 2024 board paper 61/1/1 Q26(a) (3 marks, why the revolt was especially widespread in Awadh); 2024 board paper 61/4/1 Q27(b) (3 marks, why the British were keen to acquire Awadh); sample paper 2025-26 Q27B (3 marks, the chain of grievances in Awadh); 2024 board paper 61/3/1 Q33 (4-mark source, 'The Nawab has left'); 2025 board paper 61/6/1 Q33 and 2026 board paper 61/1/1 Q33 (4-mark source, 'What taluqdars thought'); 1-mark items such as 2024 61/5/1 Q17 (Dalhousie's 'cherry'), 2025 61/1/1 Q19 (Subsidiary Alliance), 2025 61/6/1 Q17 (why annex Awadh), 2025 61/7/1 Q17 (nursery of the Bengal Army) and sample paper 2024-25 Q16. Answers here are our own.
- Use the phrase 'chain of grievances linking prince, taluqdar, peasant and sepoy'.
- Quote Dalhousie's 'cherry' and the Summary Settlement figures.
- In source questions on Hanwant Singh, 'the people of the land' are the people of Awadh who rose against the British.
- Show why resistance lasted longest: popular support (Forsyth), Begum Hazrat Mahal, control only in March 1858.
Practice questions on Awadh in Revolt
Write each answer on paper first. Open the hint only if you are stuck, and the answer only when you have finished.
Q1 · 1 mark · MCQBoard level
Who devised the Subsidiary Alliance in 1798?
(a) Lord Dalhousie
(b) Lord Wellesley
(c) Lord Canning
(d) Lord BentinckHint
Imposed on Awadh three years later.
Answer
(b) Lord Wellesley.
Q2 · 2 marks · Very short answerBoard level
Give two economic reasons why the British were keen to annex Awadh. (2 marks)
Hint
Crops and trade.
Answer
Its land suited indigo and cotton cultivation, and its position made it the natural place to build the main market of Upper India.
Q3 · 3 marks · Short answerHarder board level
How did the relationship between sepoys and their white officers change between the 1820s and the 1850s, and why did it matter in 1857? (3 marks)
Hint
Father figures to racial superiors.
Answer
In the 1820s white officers kept friendly relations: they wrestled, fenced and went hawking with sepoys, spoke Hindustani and knew local customs, combining discipline with a father's role. From the 1840s officers developed a sense of superiority, treated sepoys as racial inferiors, and abuse and physical violence became common. Trust gave way to suspicion, so when the greased-cartridge rumour spread, British assurances were not believed; the episode is a classic example of this breakdown.
Q4 · 3 marks · Short answerHarder board level
Why did the removal of Wajid Ali Shah cause both emotional and material distress in Lucknow? (3 marks)
Hint
Love for the Nawab; the court economy.
Answer
Emotionally, Wajid Ali Shah was widely loved; many followed him to Kanpur singing laments, an observer wrote that the town had lost its life, and folk songs mourned that the English had taken the country. Materially, his removal dissolved the court and its culture, so musicians, dancers, poets, artisans, cooks, retainers and administrative officials lost their livelihood. Both kinds of loss turned many townspeople against the British.
Q5 · 1 mark · Assertion-reasonHarder board level
Assertion (A): Taluqdars like Hanwant Singh of Kalakankar could protect individual Britons and still lead their men against the British.
Reason (R): Their anger was aimed at British rule, which had taken their ancestral lands, rather than at every Englishman.
(a) Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A.
(b) Both A and R are true but R is not the correct explanation of A.
(c) A is true but R is false.
(d) A is false but R is true.Hint
Read Hanwant Singh's parting words.
Answer
(a) Both A and R are true and R is the correct explanation of A.
Q6 · 3 marks · Short answerHOTS / competency
Suppose you are a cook in Wajid Ali Shah's household in 1856, and your brother is a sepoy in the Bengal Army. Explain how your family's grievances could have travelled into the army and back. (3 marks)
Hint
Nursery of the Bengal Army; two-way flow.
Answer
The dissolution of the court has cost me my livelihood, and our village has been hit by heavy revenue under the Summary Settlement and the removal of the taluqdar who helped us. My brother, like most Bengal Army sepoys, comes from an Awadh village, so these losses reach his lines through letters, visits and leave. In turn, his fears about the new cartridges, his complaints about leave and the racial abuse of officers come back to our village. When the sepoys rose, people like us were ready to join them in the towns.
Q7 · 4 marks · Short answerHOTS / competency
The British believed the Summary Settlement would help both peasants and the state. Evaluate this policy in the light of what happened in Awadh in 1857-58. (4 marks)
Hint
Aim, result, reaction, reversal.
Answer
Officials assumed taluqdars were interlopers who held land by force and fraud, and hoped that settling directly with the actual owners would reduce peasant exploitation while raising revenue. In practice revenue rose but the peasants' burden did not fall: large areas were over-assessed by 30 to 70 per cent, collection was inflexible, and peasants lost the taluqdars' support in hard times. Taluqdars lost forts, arms and many villages (67 to 38 per cent). Both groups rose together, and Awadh's resistance was the longest. The British themselves effectively admitted the policy's failure when, to break the revolt, they promised big landholders their estates back. So the policy failed its own aims and helped produce the strongest resistance of 1857.
Test your recall
Answer in your head or on paper first, then open the card. Pulling an answer out of memory makes it stick far better than re-reading.
1.When was the Subsidiary Alliance imposed on Awadh?Show answer
1801.
2.Where was Wajid Ali Shah exiled?Show answer
Calcutta.
3.What assumption did the Summary Settlement make about taluqdars?Show answer
That they were interlopers who had gained land through force and fraud.
4.Who led the taluqdars in Lucknow against the British?Show answer
Begum Hazrat Mahal, wife of the Nawab.
5.What proportion of adult men did Forsyth think were in rebellion in Awadh?Show answer
Three-fourths.
6.When was Awadh brought under control?Show answer
March 1858.
Awadh in Revolt: frequently asked questions
Why was the revolt of 1857 so widespread in Awadh?
Because the annexation of 1856 hurt every group: the Nawab was exiled, taluqdars were dispossessed, peasants were over-assessed, and sepoys, mostly from Awadh's villages, shared these grievances.
What did Dalhousie say about Awadh?
In 1851 he called it 'a cherry that will drop into our mouth one day'; it was annexed in 1856.
What was the Summary Settlement of 1856?
The first British revenue settlement in Awadh, which removed taluqdars wherever possible, cutting their share of villages from 67 to 38 per cent, and over-assessed many areas.
Why was Awadh called the nursery of the Bengal Army?
Because a large majority of the Bengal Army's sepoys were recruited from the villages of Awadh and eastern Uttar Pradesh.