Indian Soldiers Mutiny in Vellore

Compiled By: Syed Ali Shahbaz
On July 10, 1806 AD, the Indian sepoys (English corruption of the Persian word 'sipahi' for soldier), rose against the British East India Company in Vellore, south India, in the first instance of large scale resentment against European colonial rule in the Subcontinent, predating by half-a-century the Indian Rebellion of 1857.
The crafty British, who entered as traders, had spread their political and military tentacles in different parts of India, including the Deccan or the South, after treacherously attacking Fath Ali Khan Tipu Sultan of Mysore and seizing his dominions. The Vellore uprising, though brief and brutally crushed by the British, was due to imposing of dress code on the sepoys that offended both the Muslims and Hindus, since it required Muslims to shave their beards, and the Hindus to wear European hats instead of the traditional turban.
This fueled the already simmering nationalist sentiments and the sepoys stormed Vellore Fort, killed or wounded 200 British troops, raised the flag of Mysore Sultanate, and declared Fath Haider the imprisoned son of the slain Tipu Sultan, as king. The uprising was poorly-organised and this enabled the British to rush reinforcements from nearby Madras and brutally crush the uprising, resulting in the death of over 800 Indians in a few hours.