Writer:Lieutenant Colonel Hassaan Javaid, AEC

While travelling from Kharian towards Jhelum on GT road, and crossing the River Jhelum, one can see to the right, the spire of a church on the skyline of Jhelum city. This church reminds us of the bloody events of 1857. The beautiful tall building of this Anglican church was constructed on the Jhelum River bank, in memory of those British soldiers who were killed by freedom fighters during the great uprising of 1857.

The Indian Mutiny or Sepoy Mutiny, also called First War of Independence, officially began in Meerut on 10 May 1857, when Indian troops of the 3rd Bengal Light Cavalry revolted.1 They refused to use the new Enfield rifle, as there was a rumor that the grease used to lubricate the cartridges was a mixture of pigs’ and cows’ fats. One had to bite off the ends of the lubricated cartridges to load the rifle; a sinful act for both Hindus and Muslims.2

This uprising soon spread to Delhi, Cawnpore, Agra and Lucknow. However, the areas now part of Pakistan remained relatively calm and peaceful, except a few scattered uprisings in the districts of Sialkot, Gugera (present day Okara-Sahiwal) and Jhelum.

In 1857, India was under the British East India Company. Its army consisted two main types of units i.e. British and native which formed the Bengal, Madras and Bombay Armies. Native infantry units were a mixture of British and Indian troops. When news of the revolt started arriving in Lahore and Rawalpindi, which were the main garrison towns in this part of Punjab, it was decided to disarm the native infantry troops. At that time, two infantry units, 14th Bengal Native Infantry (BNI) and 58th BNI were stationed at Jhelum and Rawalpindi respectively.3 24th Regiment (HM XXIV) of Foot, a regular British Army unit, was assigned the task of disarming both native infantry units, to avoid any risk of mutiny at Rawalpindi and Jhelum. It was the same unit which had fought with bayonets at the Battle of Chillianwala in 1849, during the 2nd Anglo Sikh War.

At Rawalpindi, the 58th BNI was disarmed peacefully, however the 14th BNI resisted, but was soon neutralised by British and loyal native troops. It was the first week of July in 1857, when news of disarming the native infantry unit in Rawalpindi, reached Jhelum. Meanwhile a small detachment of the 24th Regiment of Foot, along with guns of the Bengal Horse Artillery, was moved from Rawalpindi to disarm native infantry troops stationed at Jhelum. Those native troops had already realised that they were to be disarmed forcefully.

On 7 July 1857, when native troops at Jhelum were ordered to assemble in the parade ground for the expected disarming, a group of soldiers mutinied and attacked British troops residing in the garrison.4 The Great Uprising had finally reached a small town. The fighters were led by a brave Muslim soldier named Mirza Dildar Baig, also known as Khaki Shah.5 Resultantly, thirty-five British soldiers of 24th Regiment of Foot were killed, or succumbed to their wounds. It was the biggest loss of any British regiment during the great uprising, in this part of India (now Pakistan). The fighters also formed a strong defense against encircling British forces and continued fighting throughout the day. Due to heavy shelling, the fighters slipped away to a nearby village. The following night a significant number of fighters managed to escape while crossing the river, but were caught later by local authorities and killed mercilessly.

Mirza Dildar Baig was a young soldier of the 14th BNI. He was a devout Muslim who was really incensed at the cartridge issue. He organised a large group of native soldiers and revolted. He fought bravely, but was f inally arrested with his fellow fighters. This brave son of the soil was hanged on the river bank, and was buried in Jhelum. Later, a shrine was built over his grave.6

To commemorate their eventful victory, a church was built by the British near the River Jhelum in 1860. St John’s Church is now an important landmark of the city.7 It is a Protestant church with a magnificent building. A marble lectern inside the church hall was erected in 1936, showing the names of those 35 soldiers of HM XXIV Foot who lost their lives in Jhelum during the great uprising of 1857. During the battle, a British gunner, William Connolly of Bengal Horse Artillery, fought hard to suppress the uprising. He was injured during action, and was later awarded the Victoria Cross.

Although the uprising in Jhelum remained unsuccessful like in many other parts of India, people of the area had earned the respect of the British by showing their mettle and fighting skills during combat. Resultantly this region would become the main recruiting area of soldiers for the British Empire during the Great War (1914–18) and World War II.8

Author’s Note

The scribe visited sites in Jhelum to collect data for this article.

Notes

1. The mutiny had already started in the West Bengal town of Barrackpore, as Sepoy Mangal Pandey of 34th Bengal Native Infantry revolted in March 1857, and was sentenced to death by hanging two weeks later, in April 1857.
2. There were many socio-economic and political reasons behind the great uprising of 1857, but the most acute one which sparked it was the use of the Enfield rifle cartridge.
3. Lieutenant colonel G.H.D. Gimlette, A Postscript to the Records of the Indian Mutiny, (Lahore, Sange Meel Publications:2007), 106,176,177.
4. Turabul ul Hassan Sargana, Punjab and The War of Independence 1857-1858 from Collaboration to Resistance (Karachi: Oxford University Press, 2020), 78-79.
5. Anjum Sultan Shahbaz, Tarikh e Jhelum (Jhelum, Book Corner, 2017).
6. ibid
7. ibid
8. S. Leigh, The Punjab and the War (Lahore, Sange Meel Publications :1997).