The settlement was then burned and the mutineers fled to Delhi and proclaimed Bahadur Shah, the last of the Moguls as Emperor. Whole families, men, women, children and servants, were killed on sight. The mutineers, joined by locals soon degenerated into a fanatic mob which poured into the European settlement and slaughtered any Europeans or Indian Christians there. Meerut witnessed the first serious outbreak of the Indian Mutiny when angry sepoys broke open the town jail and released their comrades, who had refused to bite the new cartridges. Their British officers realized their mistake and changed the grease to vegetable oils, but in this atmosphere of distrust, the mutiny seemed inevitable. As such, biting such a cartridge was sacrilegious to both Hindus and Muslims alike. Was made of cow (sacred to Hindus) and pig (taboo to Muslims) fat. Rumors began to circular among sepoys that the grease Rifle was heavily greased - with animal fat, to facilitate an easier load But the spark was interestingly not so much of religious clashes,Д«ut the grease used in the new Enfield rifle. It was against this backdrop of uneasiness in which the mutiny erupted As the missionaries were mostly British citizens, the Colonial Administration often had to intervene to protect them, which naturally gave an impression of official condolence for Christianity. Evangelical Christian missionaries had little or no understanding and respect for India's ancient faiths and their efforts to convert many natives quickly brought clashes with the local religious establishments. The spread of Christianity was to cause great unease among the Indians. This ofД¬ourse depended on the Indian army, which comprised of Indian troops underД«ritish rule inevitable brought western influences into India. Over the years the EIC expanded by both direct (force) and indirect (economic) means eventually, chasing the French out (after the War of Plassey, 1757) and dominating the whole of the Indian sub-continent.Д«ritish rule in India rested on its military might and as long as theД«ritish army in India was invincible, British rule was assured. The East India Company (EIC) acquired its first territory in Bombay to 1947 when India and Pakistan were granted self rule.

Murder and savagery, which shocked Victorian society.Д«ritish presence in India stretched all the way from the 17th century when The British armies swept across Northern India in an enraged and cruel rampage of rape, But as the suppression developed, the atrocities committed by both sides became obvious. The British saw the India Mutiny as a fight against barbarians who were rejecting the civilizing influence of Victorian Britain.

Thanks to the efficiency of British media coverage, the developments of the mutiny was followed avidly by the British public. In 1857, with the outbreak of the Indian Mutiny, India witnessed its first war of independence against the British. Indian uprisings against British rule, however, were unsuccessful due to the superior technology and organization of the British army. This white supremacy was enforced in Britain's colonies, especially in India and naturally, saw much native opposition. This naturally gave rise to the belief that the British themselves, were the chosen race chosen to bring the benefits of western civilization to the less developed and civilized areas

By the middle of the nineteenth century, the British Empire was the largest and richest empire in the world.

Indian mutiny of 1857