Danapur Mutiny


danapur mutiny
The Danapur uprising  as a part of First War of Independence took place on July 25, 1857 he 'Bengal Army' of the then 'East India Company' was the largest fighting outfit, east of Suez, employing 139,807 officers and 26,087 officers. The largest content of the Bengal Army was stationed at Meerut, which first rose to revolt on May 10, 1857 and that engulfed whole of northern India like 'wild fire'. The sepoys of Danapur (10 miles east of west of Patna) cantonment were the last to join the fight against British masters.
         From inception, William Tayler, the Commissioner of Patna apprehended danger at Danapur Cantonment and therefore urged upon 'General Lloyd, who commanded it, to disarm the sepoys. The latter hesitated in obeying the command in the beginning as he doubted the wisdom of such a harsh decision.On July 24, 1857; Lloyd adopted a middle course.    By show of force Lloyd succeeded in securing the caps from the magazine, without humiliating the Indian sepoys. Believing, he had scored success, he sent European troops to barracks and left to his officers to easy task of collecting the caps from the sepoys.
            All the three native infantry regiments (7th, 8th and 40th), stationed at ARRAH BARRACK, refused to surrender the caps in their possession and broke out in open Mutiny on July 25, 1857 and Europeans were fired upon. The guards at the 'European Hospital' saw the officers running and fired the signal guns.The European patients climbed up to the roof of the hospital and opened fire, killing about a 'dozen of Indian sepoys'. Initially, a good number of sepoys did not join the fighting but they all joined after knowing the assault by the Europeans. In the ensuing chaos, the mutineers hurried towards Arrah (HQ of the then Sahabad District) as most India sepoys hailed from Sahabad region.
            The sprawling campus of ARRAH BARRACK, still exists today. The 'Head quarter of Bihar, Jharkhand and Orissa Sub- Area of the Indian Army' functions from one of its portion. Still, two of the Churches and the hospital campus bear witness to the great uprising of 1857.




Location: Danapur, Bihar, India

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