Question

Which of the following regions was not a major centre of the Revolt of 1857 ?

• A. Gwalior
• B. Arrah
• C. Singhbhum
• D. Hyderabad

Hint:

The Governor-General of India at the time, Lord Canning, famously remarked that the loyal Indian princes and states (such as Hyderabad, Gwalior, and Nepal) acted as "breakwaters in the storm," without whose assistance the British would have been swept away.

Answer 1

The Correct Option is D

Concept: The Revolt of 1857 was primarily concentrated across Northern, Central, and Eastern India. Large swaths of Western and Southern India, including major princely states like Hyderabad, Mysore, and Travancore, remained largely peaceful or actively assisted the British administration in containing local disturbances.

Step 1: Alyzing the active centers of the rebellion.
Let us review the historical involvement of the locations provided in the options:
• (A) Gwalior: This was a vital geopolitical epicenter in Central India. Although the ruler, Maharaja Scindia, remained loyal to the British, his domestic troops mutinied and joined forces with Tatya Tope and Rani Lakshmi Bai of Jhansi. Gwalior witnessed fierce battles during the fil phases of the revolt.
• (B) Arrah: Located in Bihar, Arrah became a legendary stronghold of the insurrection. The movement here was led by the octogerian zamindar Babu Kunwar Singh of Jagdispur, whose forces defeated British detachments and kept the region destabilized for months.
• (C) Singhbhum: Situated in Chhotagpur (modern Jharkhand), Singhbhum was an important center of adivasi and peasant resistance. Gonoo, a tribal leader of the Kol insurgents, mobilized the local population to fight alongside the rebel sepoys.

Step 2: Assessing the position of Hyderabad.
In contrast, Hyderabad did not serve as a major center of the rebellion.
• The Nizam of Hyderabad, Afzal-ud-Daulah, and his prominent Prime Minister, Salar Jung, chose to maintain absolute structural loyalty to the British East India Company.
• Apart from a single isolated attack on the British Residency led by Turrebaz Khan and Maulvi Allauddin in July 1857, which was swiftly crushed by Nizam’s regular forces and British troops, the state remained quiet.
• The loyalty of Hyderabad prevented the insurrection from crossing deep into Southern India, serving as a critical military buffer for the British. Therefore, Hyderabad is the correct choice as it was not a major rebel stronghold.