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Tatya Tope,one of the greatest heroes of the 1857 Revolt who waged a long guerrilla war even after it was suppressed,regarded as the most dangerous rebel of all.
Thread on his Jayanti today.

Consider this the 1857 Revolt was effectively over, all it's main leaders killed or deposed. But one man refused to give up Tatya Tope as he began a 10 month long struggle against the British.

For close to 10 months Tatya Tope led the British on a wild goose chase over Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan evading them at every turn. He planned to take the Revolt all the way down South, but unfortunately could not.

No resources, no support from the local people, yet Tatya kept frustrating the British for 10 long months. It finally took the betrayal by a local Raja to capture him .

As one of the British officers put it, had there been more like Tatya Tope, they would have well been driven out of India then itself. That was the best tribute to a hero who never really got his due much.

A hero born as Ramachandra Panduranga Yewalkar in a Marathi Desastha Brahmin family in the small town of Yeola near Nashik, on February 16, 1814 to Panduranga Rao Bhat, who served in the court of Peshwa Baji Rao II, and shifted to Bittoor later.

The eldest of 8 children, he was nicknamed as Tatya which became his more popular name. For some time, he served in the Bengal Army, as part of the artillery regiment.

His fiercely independent, self respecting nature, could not accept serving under the British. He left the Regiment and joined the Peshwa’s court, and it’s believed he got the title of Tope here for his expertise with artillery, which accounted for his name.

When the revolt broke out in 1857 and the flames reached Kanpur, the soldiers there proclaimed Nana Saheb as the Peshwa, and their leader, while Tatya Tope began to organize the movement there.

He was appointed as the military advisor by Nana Saheb. When the British, attacked Kanpur via Allahabad, under Brig General Havelock, Tatya led a spirited defense. However by July 16, 1857 the rebels were defeated, and he had to flee Kanpur.

Organizing his forces he reached Bithoor, as he looked for an opportunity to attack Kanpur again. However with Havelock making a surprise raid on Bithoor, he once again had to lead the defense.

Even though the rebels were defeated again, they put up a spirited resistance, that won even the praise of the British officers. However not being disheartened by the defeat, he fled to Gwalior.

He managed to bring the famous Gwalior contingent towards his side, though Scindia was supporting the British. With a huge army he once again attacked Kanpur in November 1857, and this time the British under Major General Windal,had to face a rout and many fled the city.

However the victory was short lived as Sir Colin Campbell, the commander of the British army once again defeated him on December 6, 1857. Tatya fled towards Khari and captured the town, where he got hold of the artillery which was vital importance to the army.

Around the same time, Sir Hugh Rose had laid siege to Jhansi, as Tatya rushed with a force of 20,000 to assist Lakshmibai. Tatya helped the Rani to escape the British, though Jhansi fell as they fled towards Kalpi.

A series of defeats at Kanpur, Jhansi and Konch, made Tatya realize that unless he changed course and tactics, it would well be impossible to defeat the British. Leaving Kalpi in the protection of Rani Lakshmibai, he reached Gwalior in disguise

While Sir Hugh Rose, was celebrating the victory over the rebels, Tatya pulled out a daring counter attack, as he bought over Jayaji Rao Scindia’s army to his side and captured Gwalior Fort.

Along with Rani Lakshmibai, and Rao Saheb, he entered Gwalior in triumph and declared Nana Saheb as the Peshwa. This triumph lifted the spirits of the rebels, but even before Tatya could consolidate his hold, Hugh Rose once again attacked Gwalior.

And on June 14, 1857, Rani Lakshmibai fell fighting the British at Phoolbagh. Though the 1857 revolt was effectively quelled, Tatya Tope, would lead a relentless guerilla struggle against the British for close to one year.

He organized a series of guerilla raids, as the British officers shaken by the sheer intensity bought in their frontline soldiers to counter him. He led the British on a wild goose chase across the ravines, valleys, deep forests of Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.

“Even though the British chased Tatya Tope on their horse for miles together,thousands of time, they were still unable to capture him”.- Sylvester, British writer.

Crossing the Chambal, Tatya passed through Tonk, Bundi and Bhilwara, with the aim of capturing Jaipur and later Udaipur. However Major General Roberts already had reached there, forcing Tatya to retreat when he was 40 miles away from Jaipur.

When he tried to capture Udaipur, Roberts had already secured the city and sent Lt.Col Holmes to capture Tatya, which did not however happen. He had a fierce encounter with the British at Kankroli near Bhilwara, in which he had to face defeat again.

Tatya fled towards the east, trying to cross the Chambal, however the river was in full spate in the month of August. With the British in hot pursuit, however Tatya had no option, but to cross the flooded river, and reach Jhalarpatan, the capital of Jhalawar.

He overcame it’s pro-British ruler,capturing 30 cannons and extorting close to a lakh rupees from the treasury. His intention was to reach Indore, gather the rebels there, and proceed further down South.

He felt that once the Narmada was crossed and he could reach Maharashtra, it would be possible to keep the freedom struggle going and even drive the British out of India.

By early September 1857, Tatya began his journey towards Rajgarh, from where he planned to reach Indore, however the British under Major Gen Michael, surrounded him and his army.

However the British forces being tired, decided to rest for the night and attack next morning. Taking advantage, Tatya along with his force, escaped the siege, and reached Byavara, where he began to set up a barricade.

The British mounted an all out attack on him using cavalry and artillery, defeating him, seizing 24 cannons. Tatya moved towards the Betwa valley, where he took refuge at Sironj for some time .

He reached Ishagarh, looted the treasury after capturing the town as well as securing more cannons. His army was now divided into two parts, one marched towards Lalitpur under Rao Saheb, while he led another unit towards Chanderi.

The British led by Michael, pursued him and defeated him at Magavali on October 10. Crossing the Betwa river, Tatya finally reached Lalitpur, where he met Rao Saheb.

However with the British waiting on the other bank, Tatya decided to change course and cross the Narmada. Finally at the end of October 1857 Tatya crossed the Narmada with 2500 soldiers between Hoshangabad and Narsingapur at the Sarai Ghat near Fatehpur.

However the British were already alerted of his arrival, with reports of saffron flag, betel nut and betel leaf being circulated from village to village, around Chhindwara to awaken the public.

The Dy Comissioner of Nagpur, immediately sent out an alert, as the British were now alarmed at Tatya’s entry into Central India, as they barricaded the entire region. The panic spread among the British in Madras, Bombay provinces too

With his army Tatya, crossed the Pachmarhi hills, and attacked Jamai village, near to Chhindwara, killing 14 soldiers of the Thana there. He travelled towards Multai and reaching there by November, he took a dip in the Tapti river and donated generously to the Brahmins there.

Though the Deshmukh, Deshpande familes of Multai, and some villages joined hands with Tatya, the support from the public was not what he expected really. The British completely secured Betul, closing the roads to the west and south.

Tatya attacked Multai, looting the treasury there, and marched towards Khandwa in the North West direction, passing through the Satpura range in the Tapti valley. By then the British had totally cut off every route in all directions.

Sir Hugh Rose blocked the advance to Khandesh, while General Roberts did the same in Gujarat. It was a tough time for Tatya with no ammunition, logistics or money.

Though Tatya Tope asked his allies and followers to choose their own path, none of them were willing to leave him during such tough times. Such was the loyalty and respect he inspired in his followers, true leader. #Respect.

Though Tatya planned to reach Asirgarh, it was heavily guarded, so he set out to Khargone, after attacking and burning down the Govt Buildings in Khandwa. Khajiya Nayak joined him at Khargone with around 6000 followers, which included the Sardar of the Bhils too.

A fierce battle was fought at Rajpur with the British led by Sutherland, however Tatya once again managed to give the slip, crossing the Narmada. As he reached Indergarh via Chota Udaipur, Banswada, where he was again surrounded by the British from every direction.

Once again he managed to break the encirlement and fled towards Jaipur. However back to back defeats at Dewas, Sikar forced him to take shelter in the jungles of Paron out of sheer frustration, defeated in spirit

He was finally betrayed by Raja Man Singh of Narwar, and on April 8, 1859 he was captured by the British while he was sleeping in the forest. It took a betrayal to finally capture the hero, who evaded the British, who could not be captured even after a massive man hunt.

With all the members of the jury being British, the result of the trial was obvious, as he was sentenced to death, and placed in custody in the fort of Shivpuri on Apri 15, 1859.

Finally on April 18, 1859, he was bought out to be hanged in public. He himself put the noose around his neck, as one more great son of Bharat gave up his life for the cause of freedom. Tatya Tope, what a hero really.

A hero who won even the admiration of the British officers. Percy Cross claimed that Tatya Tope was the most dangerous of the rebel leaders, and had there been more like him, the British would have been driven out of India by then itself. Best tribute to him ever. #Naman

My article on Tatya Tope here, do check out and share on his Jayanti today.
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