Mangal Pandey: The First Revolutionary Freedom Fighter who Stood Against the Britishers!!

Mangal Pandey was an Indian soldier who stood up against the Britishers and became the first-ever revolutionary freedom fighter of India to step up for our country’s independence. Mangal was a devoted Indian Brahmin that left British East India shaken after igniting the blaze of freedom.

Mangal Pandey Birth

Mangal Pandey’s birth anniversary is celebrated on July 19 on the occasion of paying tribute to the first freedom fighter of India. He was born on July 19, 1827, in Nagwa which is a village in the upper Ballia district, Ceded and Conquered Provinces (now part of Uttar Pradesh).

Who was Mangal Pandey?

Born in a Brahmin family Mangal Pandey was a devoted Indian with a storming furiousness towards Hinduism. Mangal Pandey took part as a soldier in Bengal Army in 1849. Bengal Army was one of the three presidencies of British India during the British Empire.

First Freedom Fighter of India: Revolutionary Actions

Mangal Pandey took revolutionary action against the British rulers on 29 March 1857 as he encouraged his battalion to revolt against the Britishers and fight for their freedom.

Lieutenant Baugh, the assistant of the commanding officer of the 34th Bengal Native Infantry was informed that Mangal Pandey along with a few more rebellions is marching on the corridors of the regiment’s guard room. Pandey along with his rebellious group was moving with a loaded musket (gun) in their hands and was determined to kill any European soldiers that comes into sight.

Battle Between Mangal Pandey and Lieutenant Baugh

Lieutenant Baugh of the 34th Bengal Native Infantry marshaled towards Mangal Pandey on his horse. Little that he knew, Mangal Pandey was waiting in an ambush to target him. Pandey fired a bullet at Baugh which unfortunately missed him. However, the shot injured his horse and he fell to the ground after the shot.

Mangal Pandey then took out his talwar and slashed Baugh on his shoulder and neck. Baugh’s luck came in handy as one of his supporter sepoys, Shaikh Paltu came to the rescue and provoked Mangal Pandey until Baugh recovered and gained consciousness.

Backup Arrived for Baugh: Mangal Pandey in Trouble

British Sergeant Major Hewson arrived on the field to back up Baugh. Baugh somehow managed to recover from the attack by Mangal Pandey and abruptly asked “Where is he?” to which Hewson replied, “Ride to the right, the sepoy will fire at you“.

Mangal Pandey was fighting with every last grain of courage and even after being held he tried to shoot from his rifle from his foot. At this point, one of the allies of Mangal Pandey, Ishwar Prasad was ordered to arrest Pandey which he denied.

Mangal Pandey Death

Mangal Pandey’s ferocious attempt was a great initiative as the first freedom fight of India. However, it was a menace in sight of Britishers which was punishable with the most strict action.

The first freedom fighter of India Mangal Pandey was brought to trial a week after his audacious attack on Lieutenant Baugh. He was asked by the jury if he was influenced by someone to take action against the regiment to which he denied it and said it was solely his responsibility to take the action and no one else was involved in the action.

The first freedom fighter of India, Mangal Pandey, and his supporter Jemadar Ishwar Prasad were punished with a death sentence by hanging for their audacious attempt of raging against their regiment. Mangal Pandey was executed on 8 April and Jemadar Ishwari Prasad was executed on 21 April. 

Effect of the Rebellion

The 36th Bengal Native Infantry was criticized for its mismanagement and failure in blocking the rebellious attack from Mangal Pandey. Sepoy Sheikh Paltu who courageously took part in blocking Mangal Pandey’s attacks was promoted as havaldar.

Mangal Pandey’s actions and failures of the armed and on-duty sepoys led to the whole regiment being held as unreliable for their purpose. His animosity towards the Birtishers turned into rage against them. The moment was so intense that all the sepoys from the regiment acted as spectators rather than obeying orders. 

What Motivated Mangal Pandey? 

Mangal Pandey’s aggression was a reply to the agony he has suffered from the regiment and British rulers. There are a few factors that motivated Mangal Pandey to take revolutionary actions against the regiment: 

• A wide range of activities led to mistrust in the British army immediately before the Barrackpore event. 
• Cartridges used in the rifles were coated with animal grease. Cartridges had to be bitten before use. The first freedom fighter of India Mangal Pandey and others claimed that it was intentionally done to hurt the religious sentiments of the Hindus. 
• They had a Bible printed in Hindi and Urdu and distributed them among people from other religions. Their prime intention was to alter the Hindus and Muslims from the country into Christianity.

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Indian Rebellion of 1857

Mangal Pandey’s execution led to disbanding of the 19th B.N.I. The battalion was provided with funds so that they could migrate to their hometowns. 

Colonel Mitchell of the 19th B.N.I. and Colonel Wheeler of the 34th B.N.I. were left unsuited for the new regiments that were built to replace the disbanded ones. 

The rebellious attempt of Mangal Pandey led to the start of the Indian Rebellion of 1857 after his execution. The other sepoys were influenced by the action of the revolutionaries and the rage against the Britishers became more common practice. 

Mangal Pandey encouraged V.D. Savarkar from the Indian Nationalist Movement who viewed his motive as one of the earliest manifestations of Indian Nationalism. Modern Indian nationalists portray Mangal Pandey as the first freedom fighter of India and the mastermind behind the conspiracy to revolt against the Britishers. 

Britishers were so much impacted by the revolutionary actions of Mangal Pandey that they started using “Pandey” as a derogatory term for any sepoy that rebelled against them. 

Mangal Pandey Slogan

Mangal Pandey was a revolutionary first freedom fighter of India and for that, he had a few slogans of his own. Actually, they were more of a statement and expression of rage towards the Britishers which were termed Slogans by Mangal Pandey. Here are the slogans used by Mangal Pandey during his revolutionary action against the Britishers: 

• “Haste-Haste Fannsi Chadkar apni jaan gava di, aur badle mein de di ye pawan aazadi”
• “Mann ko khud hi Magan karlo, Kabhi Kabhi Shaheedo ko bhi Naman Karlo”
• “When you protect your country, religion is protected itself”
• “Till today you have seen our loyalty, now you will see our Anger”
• “It is a fight for freedom, freedom with past for coming future”
• “The gun is a very unfaithful lover, anytime it can change its direction, thus, it can’t be trusted”

Mangal Pandey on TV

The first freedom fighter of India, Mangal Pandey was framed in various films and plays so that the country could aspire to learn about the revolutionary fight that he put against the Britishers. Here’s a list of films and literature based on the rebellion of Mangal Pandey:

Films based on Mangal Pandey

Mangal Pandey: The Rising

Stage Play on the First Freedom Fighter of India

The Roti Rebellion

Novels based on our hero

White Teeth

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