Revenge & Retribution
The execution of mutineers photographed by Felice Beato, 1858. NAM 1962-11-63-23
When the relief forces under General Havelock arrived, the discovery of the atrocity inflamed British feelings. They left the Bibigarh and well untouched, so that they could stand as reminders to new troops from Britain. It installed in them a desire for revenge. The British were as barbaric in their revenge as Nana Sahib’s men had been. Before being hanged, captured sepoys were forced to lick the blood of the women and children from the walls and floor of the Bibigarh. They were often force-fed with pork or beef before execution, to break their caste.
After Cawnpore there was little room for mercy in British hearts. The Times newspaper called for the execution of every rebel. In the early months of the British recovery, few sepoys were left alive after their positions were overrun. Entire villages were sometimes hanged on suspicion of aiding the rebels. Stories of atrocities were greatly exaggerated by British soldiers and the press, ensuring that retribution was harsh.
The Devil's Wind
Mutineers blown from guns by the Bengal Horse Artillery, 1858. NAM 1978-05-55
Trials of any prisoners were arbitrary and brief, and usually resulted in a sentence of death. Those convicted of mutiny were either hanged, or lashed to the muzzles of cannon and blown away. It was a cruel punishment with a religious dimension. By blowing the body to pieces the victim lost all hope of entering paradise. The people of northern India called the long period of reprisals ‘the Devil’s Wind’.
There were some British officers and administrators who called for lenience towards the Indian people, and who did not believe the myths about mutilation and atrocity. Unfortunately such men were in a minority.
