The Revolt of 1857: Causes, Course, Nature and Consequences — Part 9: Glossary

Glossary

1. Subsidiary Alliance: System devised by Lord Wellesley (1798) by which Indian rulers accepted a British military contingent in their territory, paid for it, and surrendered foreign policy control in exchange for British protection.
2. Doctrine of Lapse: Policy under Lord Dalhousie by which states without a natural male heir were annexed to British India; adopted heirs were not recognized.
3. Sepoy: An Indian soldier serving the East India Company or the British Crown.
4. Taluqdar: A large landholder in Awadh who controlled land and maintained armed retainers, paying revenue to the Nawab.
5. Panchayat: A traditional council of community elders; used informally by sepoys to make collective decisions during the revolt.
6. Firangi: A term (of Persian origin) used in Urdu and Hindi to denote foreigners, especially Europeans, often with a derogatory connotation.
7. Ishtahar/Arzi: A proclamation or petition issued by rebel leaders to propagate their cause and urge people to join the revolt.
8. Summary Settlement of 1856: The first British land revenue settlement in Awadh after annexation, which drastically reduced taluqdar holdings.
9. Bell of Arms: The storeroom in a cantonment where weapons and ammunition were kept — one of the first targets of the revolting sepoys.
10. Resident: The representative of the Governor-General posted to Indian states under Subsidiary Alliance; in practice, the real authority in those states.
11. Martial Races Theory: The post-1857 British policy classifying certain communities (Sikhs, Gurkhas, Pathans) as inherently suited for military service, while excluding others (Awadhi, Bihari soldiers) as non-martial.
12. Batta: A special field allowance paid to soldiers; disputes over its reduction contributed to pre-1857 sepoy discontent.