What began in May 1857 as a military mutiny by Indian soldiers (sepoys) serving in the British East India Company’s army rapidly escalated into a widespread uprising involving soldiers, displaced rulers, peasants, and urban populations across northern and central India. The Sepoy Mutinies, also known as the Indian Mutiny or the First War of Indian Independence, were a pivotal and tumultuous chapter in the history of British colonial rule in India. Learn how the 1857 Sepoy Mutiny challenged British rule in India, sparked by unrest, cultural tensions, and rebellion against the East India Company's control. It was long described by Western historians as the “Indian Mutiny,” or “Sepoy Mutiny.” In India it is also called the “First War of Independence” and other similar names.
