A history of the 1857 War of Independence through 9 monuments across Delhi and Meerut

From a series of 26 coloured lithographs by W. Simpson, E. Walker and others, after G.F. Atkinson, published by Day and Son, 1857-58. (Image: National Army Museum, London via Wikimedia Commons.)

As India turns 74 on August 15, patriotic songs will be hummed again, stories of gallantry and valour will be repeated, and homage will be paid to those who laid their lives for a free nation. In the midst of these celebrations, let’s travel back 164 years and walk through the lanes of Meerut and Old Delhi to retrace and remember India’s First War of Independence in 1857.

1. Kali Paltan Temple (Meerut): On May 9, 1857, it was in the courtyard of Kali Paltan Temple that 85 Indian soldiers who refused to use the new Enfield cartridges were tried -  the British snatched their epaulettes and arms, tore their uniform, humiliated and shackled them and later sent them to prison. The name is a misnomer, the temple is not dedicated to Goddess Kali, it is actually an ancient Shiva temple. 'Kali’ is a reference to a darker skin tone and ‘Paltan’ stands for platoon. During 1857, it was a small temple and where the marble courtyard now stands was the drill ground. On May 10, 1857, the soldiers took to rebellion and that's when India’s First War of Independence began.

St John’s Church in Meerut. (Photo: Preeti Verma Lal)

2. St John’s Church (Meerut): Founded in 1819 to serve the military garrison stationed locally, it is the oldest church in North India. On May 10, 1857, the rosaries were bloodied and instead of hymns, the Church reverberated with the agony of the victims and the war cries of those who wanted revenge. The walls are still lined with plaques commemorating those who died in the rebellion; the corners are stacked with broken slats and some grimy marble statues stand as silent witness to the glory gone by.

A tombstone in the Meerut cemetery. (Photo: Preeti Verma Lal)

3. Church Cemetery (Meerut): St John’s Church cemetery is built on nearly 30 acres and has nine graves for people who died on May 10, 1857.

4. The Mutiny Museum (Meerut): Housed near taxi stand, the Government Freedom Struggle Museum in Meerut is dedicated to India’s First War of Independence. Entry to the museum is free; remains closed on Mondays.

5. Delhi Gate (Khooni Darwaza, Old Delhi): Constructed by Sher Shah Suri, Delhi Gate (one of the 13 gates in Old Delhi) became known as the Khooni Darwaza (The Gate of Blood) after British officer Major William Hodson shot dead three princes of the Mughal dynasty - Bahadur Shah Zafar's sons Mirza Mughal and Mirza Khizr Sultan, and grandson Mirza Abu Bakht - on September 22, 1857. It is said that Hodson ordered the three to get down at the spot, stripped them naked and shot them dead at point blank range. The bodies were put up for public display for three days in front of a Kotwali near Chandni Chowk.

Delhi Gate in Old Delhi is also called Khooni Darwaza. (Photo: Preeti Verma Lal)

6. Telegraph Office (Delhi): Much before the Indian sepoys traversed the dirt stretch between Meerut and Delhi, there was a ticker in the two-storied Telegraph Office that still stands on Lothian Road. On May 10, 1857, this Telegraph Office had received a terse ticker from Meerut informing them that the sepoys of the 3^rd Cavalry were being cashiered for their refusal to fall in line. The ticker ominously mentioned that further details would be sent at 4pm. That telegram never came. Bothered, the Delhi signaller blamed it on broken wires, but before he could fix those, the rampaging army had already arrived and the signaller was dead.

The building in Old Delhi that served as the Telegraph Office during the British rule. (Photo: Preeti Verma Lal)

7. Mutiny Memorial & the Topkhana (Magazine, Old Delhi): The grey Mutiny Memorial was erected on April 19, 1902, by the members of the Telegraph Department. Some names and history is etched on the pillar but nothing much can be deciphered now – the vagaries of the weather seem to have erased the etchings. Not too far from the pillar is an arched huge room where the British once stacked their ammunition. It is the famous British Magazine which was then under Lieutenant George Dobson Willoughby of the Bengal Artillery.

On May 11, 1857, Delhi magistrate Theophilus Metcalf had exhorted Willoughby to shield the Magazine from falling into the hands of the mutineers. The marble plaque at head of the main entrance of the Magazine states that for four hours, Willoughby and his men defended it “against the rebels and the mutineers.”

Of course, when Willoughby knew that time was ticking away and the mutineers were not too far, at 4 pm he set the pile of explosives on fire. They say that the bang was so loud that it was heard 50 km away.

Willoughby and his men escaped. The Magazine fell. And as an afterthought, there is another plaque that seems almost like a corrigendum to the first one. The second plaque reads, “The persons described as rebels and mutineers were members of the Indian army in the service of East India Company…”

The Magazine (topkhana) in Delhi. (Preeti Verma Lal)

8. Flagstaff Tower (Old Delhi):  A one-room castellated tower built in 1828 as a signal tower, it was here that several Europeans and their families hid on May 11, 1857, during the Siege of Delhi by the independence rebels.

9. St James’ Church (Skinner’s Church, Old Delhi): Built in 1836 by Colonel James Skinner, the half-British, half-Rajput dare-devil who, in 1803, raised Skinner’s Horse, a cavalry regiment. Skinner was buried in this Church in 1842 in a vault of white marble right under the Communion Table. The Church also houses several graves near the large Memorial Cross erected in memory of the victims of 1857. Skinner’s house still stands in Meerut.

Old Delhi’s St James’ Church, also known as Skinner’s Church. (Photo: Preeti Verma Lal)