Early revolutionaries of Maharashtra
When talking and petitions bring no result, some people choose harder paths. Tired of British injustice, some young people chose the path of arms; in this lesson we understand their history.
The armed revolutionary movement was the movement that opposed British power with the help of arms, believing freedom would not come by non-violent means. In Maharashtra it was begun by Vasudev Balwant Phadke.
Key idea 1 : Vasudev Balwant Phadke — In 1879 Phadke gathered young men from communities such as the Ramoshi, Koli and Dhangar and tried a revolt against the British. The British arrested him, he was tried in Pune and sent to Aden. He died there in 1883.
Key idea 2 : The Chapekar brothers — In 1896–97 plague came to Pune. People were angry at the harsh measures of Rand, head of the plague committee. The brothers Damodar, Balkrishna and Vasudev Chapekar attacked Rand and Ayerst on 22 June 1897. The Chapekar brothers were hanged in 1898–99.
Key idea 3 : Abhinav Bharat and Nashik — Vinayak Damodar Savarkar and Ganesh (Babarao) Savarkar founded the secret organisation ‘Abhinav Bharat’ at Nashik. Its young members were taught ideas and courage. On 21 December 1909 Anant Kanhere attacked Jackson, the Collector of Nashik.
- Easy : Who was the first armed revolutionary of Maharashtra? — Vasudev Balwant Phadke.
- Medium : In which city were the Chapekar brothers and why were they angry? — Pune; harsh plague measures.
- Exam-type : Where was Abhinav Bharat founded? — At Nashik.
In the figure: Phadke, the Chapekars, Abhinav Bharat and Nashik — the revolutionary events of Maharashtra came in this order.
What happened before the attack on Rand? In 1896–97 plague spread in Pune. Rand headed the committee formed to stop the epidemic. House searches and harsh measures troubled people and anger against the government grew.
What happened after the attack on Rand? On 22 June 1897, after the celebration of Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee, Rand and Lieutenant Ayerst were shot at Ganeshkhind. Ayerst died on the spot and Rand died on 3 July. The Chapekar brothers were hanged later.
What happened before the attack on Jackson? Jackson was the Collector of Nashik. He prosecuted Ganesh (Babarao) Savarkar, who was sentenced to transportation. This angered the young members of Abhinav Bharat.
What happened after the attack on Jackson? On 21 December 1909, at Jackson’s farewell function in the Vijayanand Theatre, Nashik, Anant Kanhere attacked him. In the Nashik conspiracy case several young men were punished; Kanhere was hanged in 1910.
1879 = Phadke; 1897 = Chapekars; 1909 = Nashik (Kanhere).
These revolutionaries came forward not from personal hatred but as a reaction to British injustice; still, this path involved violence and they paid a heavy price.
Memory clue: Remember ‘79-97-09’ — Phadke, Chapekar, Kanhere. Memory clue: three years, three names.
Spot the difference
| Revolutionary | Year | Main point |
|---|---|---|
| Vasudev Balwant Phadke | 1879 | Revolt attempt, Aden |
| Chapekar brothers | 1897 | Pune, harsh plague measures |
| Anant Kanhere | 1909 | Nashik, Jackson |
Practice questions
- 1What is the armed revolutionary movement?
- 2What did Vasudev Balwant Phadke do?
- 3Who founded Abhinav Bharat and where?
- 4What was the reason for the Chapekar brothers’ anger?
- 5What happened on 22 June 1897?
- 6On whom did Anant Kanhere make the attack and where?
- 7What is the link between the plague measures in Pune and the attack on Rand?
- 8What happened next in Nashik after Ganesh Savarkar’s sentence?
Show answers (try them yourself first)
- 1A movement opposing British power with the help of arms.
- 2In 1879 he gathered young men and tried a revolt against the British; he was later sent to Aden.
- 3The Savarkar brothers, at Nashik.
- 4The trouble caused by the harsh measures of Rand, head of the plague committee.
- 5Rand and Ayerst were attacked; Ayerst died on the spot and Rand died on 3 July.
- 6On Jackson, the Collector of Nashik, in the Vijayanand Theatre.
- 7The harsh measures raised public anger and led to the attack of 22 June 1897.
- 8On 21 December 1909 Kanhere attacked Jackson and he was hanged in 1910.
Revolutionaries abroad, in Bengal, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh
A good idea does not stay in one school; it reaches children in many cities. In the same way the idea of revolution spread to London, Paris, Bengal, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh.
In this phase Indian revolutionaries built organisations abroad and also challenged British power at home through secret groups.
Key idea 1 : Revolutionaries abroad — Shyamji Krishna Varma started ‘India House’ in London; Indian students living there discussed ideas of freedom. Madame Cama spread India’s cause in Europe and in 1907 raised an Indian flag at the conference at Stuttgart in Germany. In 1909 Madanlal Dhingra killed Curzon Wyllie in London and was hanged.
Key idea 2 : Bengal and Punjab — After the Partition of Bengal (1905), secret groups such as the ‘Anushilan Samiti’ organised young people. Khudiram Bose took part in the Muzaffarpur incident in 1908 and was 18 when he was hanged on 11 August 1908. In 1913 the ‘Gadar Party’ was formed in the United States and Punjab; leaders such as Lala Hardayal and Sohan Singh Bhakna were part of it.
Key idea 3 : Kakori — After the Non-co-operation Movement was withdrawn, the ‘Hindustan Republican Association’ was formed in 1924. Its members seized the government treasury being carried on a train at Kakori near Lucknow on 9 August 1925. Ram Prasad Bismil, Ashfaqulla Khan, Roshan Singh and Rajendra Lahiri were hanged in 1927.
- Easy : Who started ‘India House’ and where? — Shyamji Krishna Varma, London.
- Medium : What did Madame Cama do in 1907? — She raised an Indian flag at Stuttgart.
- Exam-type : When did the Kakori incident take place? — On 9 August 1925.
In the figure: London, Bengal, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh — four centres of the revolutionary movement.
What happened before the Stuttgart flag? Madame Cama was a Parsi woman born in Mumbai. Living in Europe, she was linked with revolutionary circles such as Shyamji Krishna Varma’s ‘India House’ and began taking India’s demand for freedom to foreigners.
What happened after the Stuttgart flag? In August 1907, at the International Socialist Congress in Stuttgart, she raised a flag of green, yellow and red with ‘Vande Mataram’ in the middle. Her speech was printed in a German socialist newspaper. It was not like today’s national flag but an early design of that time.
What happened before Khudiram Bose’s hanging? Khudiram Bose was a young man from Bengal. After the Partition of Bengal in 1905 discontent grew there, and at a very young age he joined secret groups such as the Anushilan Samiti.
What happened after Khudiram Bose’s hanging? On 30 April 1908 an attack was attempted on a judge at Muzaffarpur. By mistake two innocent women were killed. In this case Khudiram Bose was hanged on 11 August 1908, when he was only 18 years old.
What happened before the Kakori incident? When Gandhiji withdrew the Non-co-operation Movement after Chauri Chaura in 1922, many young people were disappointed. So in 1924 Ram Prasad Bismil and others founded the ‘Hindustan Republican Association’.
What happened after the Kakori incident? The Kakori case trial lasted about two years. Rajendra Lahiri was hanged on 17 December 1927 and Bismil, Ashfaqulla and Roshan Singh on 19 December 1927. Bismil and Ashfaqulla were close friends though they belonged to different faiths.
1907 = Madame Cama (Stuttgart); 1908 = Khudiram Bose; 1913 = Gadar; 1925 = Kakori.
Madame Cama’s flag was not the same as today’s tricolour; it was an early flag of that time.
Memory clue: Remember ‘07-08-13-25’ — Cama, Khudiram, Gadar, Kakori. Memory clue: say the four numbers like a phone code.
Spot the difference
| Group / person | Place | Feature |
|---|---|---|
| India House | London | Shyamji Krishna Varma |
| Gadar Party | United States, Punjab | Founded in 1913 |
| Hindustan Republican Association | Uttar Pradesh | Kakori, 1925 |
Revolutionaries abroad, in Bengal, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh
In the app you can move this figure with your finger.
Open in the appPractice questions
- 1What was ‘India House’?
- 2Who was Madame Cama?
- 3When was the Gadar Party formed?
- 4When was Khudiram Bose hanged and how old was he?
- 5When and why was the Hindustan Republican Association formed?
- 6Who was hanged in the Kakori case?
- 7What is the link between the Partition of Bengal and the secret groups?
- 8What happened after the Kakori incident and what can we learn from the friendship of Bismil and Ashfaqulla?
Show answers (try them yourself first)
- 1A centre for Indian students in London, started by Shyamji Krishna Varma.
- 2A revolutionary who campaigned abroad for India’s freedom and raised a flag at Stuttgart in 1907.
- 3In 1913.
- 4On 11 August 1908; he was 18.
- 5In 1924; by young people disappointed by the withdrawal of the Non-co-operation Movement.
- 6Ram Prasad Bismil, Ashfaqulla Khan, Roshan Singh and Rajendra Lahiri.
- 7Discontent grew after the partition of 1905 and young people joined secret groups such as the Anushilan Samiti.
- 8Four were hanged in 1927; although of different faiths Bismil and Ashfaqulla were close friends, showing that people of all faiths can stand together for the country.
Bhagat Singh, Chittagong and later revolutionaries
When a new group of players joins a team, the team’s name and style change. In the same way, after Kakori young revolutionaries built an organisation with a new name and a new idea.
The Hindustan Socialist Republican Army was the revolutionary organisation built by Bhagat Singh and Chandrashekhar Azad in 1928. The Chittagong uprising was the revolt of 1930 led by Surya Sen.
Key idea 1 : Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Sukhdev — In 1928 a meeting in Delhi founded the ‘Hindustan Socialist Republican Army’. After a lathi charge on a procession protesting against the Simon Commission, Lala Lajpat Rai died, and in December 1928 Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Sukhdev and Chandrashekhar Azad attacked Saunders, a police officer. On 8 April 1929 Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt made a protest in the Central Legislative Assembly in Delhi. On 23 March 1931 Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev were hanged.
Key idea 2 : The Chittagong uprising — On 18 April 1930, led by Surya Sen, about sixty young people tried to seize the armoury at Chittagong. On 22 April a battle with British troops took place on the Jalalabad hills. Women such as Pritilata Waddedar and Kalpana Dutt also took part. Surya Sen was hanged on 12 January 1934.
Key idea 3 : Later revolutionaries and the importance of the movement — In 1940 Udham Singh killed Michael O’Dwyer in London; O’Dwyer was the Lieutenant-Governor of Punjab at the time of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. The sacrifices of the revolutionaries awakened patriotism among young people and increased pressure on British rule.
- Easy : When was Bhagat Singh hanged? — On 23 March 1931.
- Medium : Who led the Chittagong uprising? — Surya Sen.
- Exam-type : Whom did Udham Singh kill? — Michael O’Dwyer.
In the figure: Founding of the organisation, the protest in the Assembly, the Chittagong uprising and Bhagat Singh’s hanging — events within four years.
What happened before the Assembly protest? In November 1928 Lala Lajpat Rai, injured in a police lathi charge during the protest against the Simon Commission, died. Angered by this, young men attacked Saunders in December 1928; the officer was killed because of mistaken identity.
What happened after the Assembly protest? On 8 April 1929 Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt threw protest leaflets in the Central Assembly and raised slogans of ‘Inquilab Zindabad’. Instead of escaping they let themselves be arrested. On 23 March 1931 Bhagat Singh, Rajguru and Sukhdev were hanged.
What happened before the Chittagong uprising? In Chittagong Surya Sen was a teacher whom students called ‘Master-da’. He gathered local young people and trained them.
What happened after the Chittagong uprising? The uprising took place on 18 April 1930 and a clash followed on 22 April on the Jalalabad hills; in it twelve revolutionaries and more than eighty soldiers were killed. In 1933 Surya Sen was caught and on 12 January 1934 he was hanged along with Tarakeswar Dastidar.
1930 = Chittagong; 1931 = Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Sukhdev hanged; 1934 = Surya Sen hanged.
Bhagat Singh did not try to escape; he let himself be arrested in the Assembly so that his protest would reach the people.
Memory clue: Remember ‘30-31-34’ — Chittagong, Bhagat Singh, Surya Sen. Memory clue: three numbers in a row.
Spot the difference
| Revolutionary | Event | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Sukhdev | Hanged | 1931 |
| Surya Sen | Chittagong uprising | 1930 |
| Udham Singh | O’Dwyer killed in London | 1940 |
Bhagat Singh, Chittagong and later revolutionaries
In the app you can move this figure with your finger.
Open in the appPractice questions
- 1Who founded the Hindustan Socialist Republican Army?
- 2What did Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt do on 8 April 1929?
- 3Who led the Chittagong uprising?
- 4What happened after the death of Lala Lajpat Rai?
- 5What happened on the Jalalabad hills?
- 6Who was Udham Singh?
- 7Why did Bhagat Singh get himself arrested in the Assembly?
- 8What happened next after Surya Sen’s uprising?
Show answers (try them yourself first)
- 1Bhagat Singh and Chandrashekhar Azad, in 1928.
- 2They threw protest leaflets in the Central Assembly, raised slogans and got themselves arrested.
- 3Surya Sen.
- 4Angered young men attacked Saunders in December 1928.
- 5There was a clash with British troops; twelve revolutionaries and over eighty soldiers were killed.
- 6The revolutionary who killed O’Dwyer in London in 1940.
- 7They wanted their protest to reach the people; escaping was not the aim.
- 8He was caught in 1933 and hanged on 12 January 1934.