A near-mythical figure in India, Rani of Jhansi is a figure closely associated with the struggle for British independence, and yet she is seldom remembered in the West, beyond perhaps a footnote in the centuries-long occupation of the Indian subcontinent. From her bold defiance towards her country’s traditional gender norms, to her martyrdom at the hands of the British colonizers, her story is one which all draw inspiration can from.
Manikarnika Tambe was born on November 19, 1828, in the city of Varanasi in the Benares State of Northern India. At the time of her upbringing, much of the Indian subcontinent under the control of the British East India Company (EIC), either through direct control, or through the suzerainty of local autonomous kingdoms or states. With a series of trading forts along India’s coastal cities, the EIC began its presence in India as one of the several European trading corporations interested in lucrative commerce with the dominant Mughal Empire. But due to internal weakness within their opponent’s ranks, and the adoption of a clever “divide and conquer” strategy of winning over local lords, the EIC was able to expand its control of India slowly over the course of a century, defeating the otherwise militarily and even technologically superior Mughal Empire. Thus, by the time Manikarnika was growing into a young woman, the banner of the “Company Raj” (the name given to the EIC’s territory) flew over much of India.
Born to an advisor for a local ruler, the status of the Tambe family allowed Manikarnika to receive an education, and have firsthand exposure to the type of strong leader she would aspire to be. In addition to reading and writing, Manikarnika learned marksmanship, horseback riding, and other arts traditionally taught to young men. At the age of 14, she was married to Gangadhar Rao Newalkar, the ruler of the independent princely state of Jhansi. Following the Indian female tradition of renaming oneself after marriage, the new bride was now named Rani Lakshimbai. Despite being the official queen consort of Jhansi, Rani was far from the spitting image of femininity during her time. She did not wear a veil over her face, nor did she shy away from public interactions with commoners and officials alike. Rani’s reign, however, was to be short lived, as the issue of succession became salient to her, and others. Under a policy mandated by the EIC called the Doctrine of Lapse, any state without a clear and legitimate heir was to be absorbed into British control. Unfortunately for Rani, she and her husband were unable to produce and heir, and as Rao’s health worsened, the couple adopted a five year old son to serve as heir to the throne. After the death of Rao in 1853, however, Lord Dalhousie, the incumbent British Governor-General of India, rejected the legitimacy of the new heir, and annexed Jhansi into EIC territory anyway. A shocked and betrayed Rani was removed from the Jhansi royal palace, given pension, and was expected to live the rest of her life in relative obscurity.
Rani’s furor and desire for justice rendered the prospect of inaction impossible, and luckily for her, such sentiments were widespread throughout India, especially in the North. British-imposed social reforms, harsh taxes, and an overall opposition to the presence of an colonizing foreign power, all helped ignite the Indian Rebellion of 1857, the largest of its kind since British hegemony began. Rebelling factions included Mughal remanants, mutineers from the EIC’s armies, and the armies of various states, kingdoms, or rulers, including Rani’s own. Alongside the EIC, several jurisdictions, such as Bombay, Madras, and Bengal, provided support against the rebels, while many others remained neutral. Regardless, Rani was determined to restore the rightful ruler of Jhansi to his throne. As fighting raged throughout the subcontinent, and mutineers massacred the British garrison in Jhansi, Rani reassumed control of her state in the summer of 1857, with the intention of holding it until a deal could be made with the British. But when General Hugh Rose and his forces arrived in March 1858, accounts claim that Rani had a change of heart, and refused to surrender the Jhansi fortress to Rose. A massive bombardment and siege ensued, followed by brutal street fighting. While Jhansi troops, led and inspired by their queen, fought valiantly, Rose eventually won the day.
From Alisha Haridasani Gupta of the New York Times:
As the town burned, the queen escaped on horseback with her son, Damodar, tied to her back. Historians have not reached a consensus on how she managed to pull this off. Some contend that her closest aide, Jhalkaribai, disguised herself as the queen to distract the British and buy time for her to get away.
In the end, the British took the town, leaving 3,000 to 5,000 people dead, and hoisted the British flag atop the palace.
After fleeing the Jhansi fort, Rani met with other rebel leaders at the town of Kalpi, where another clash with British forces would take place. A defeat there forced Rani and her allies to flee regroup in nearby Gwalior, where another army would be raised to face the British once more. In what would become one of the final acts of the rebellion, Rani’s forces engaged with British cavalry in June 1858, with Rani herself leading the charge. The force was defeated, with Rani herself being mortally wounded in combat. According to legend, she was leading a charge while dressed in male military garb, when she was struck by enemy fire. Hugh Rose, her longtime military adversary, commented that “The Indian Mutiny had produced but one man, and that man was a woman.” Per Rose’s personal account, Rani was given a burial with full honors. Not long after the defeat at Gwalior and Rani’s death, the rebellion was quelled, and British rule over India would continue for another century under Crown rule, rather than under the EIC.
Though she was unable to secure all of her aims, Rani of Jhansi’s legacy is one of defiance, both in the face of a great colonial power, and of a stringently patriarchal society. Besides being immortalized in Indian history, she has been the inspiration for countless of films, novels, and songs. Curiously enough, she is also the namesake of the Rani of Jhansi Regiment, an all-female guerilla force raised by Indian nationalists during WW2 to aid in the Axis fight against the British Raj. As present-day news headlines discuss the controversy of British colonialism, as well as the injustices of the Indian patriarchy, Rani of Jhansi is a captivating figure that may yet serve as a symbol for a new India.
History for Empathy 