1858

1858 would begin as the year had ended, in conflict.

The rebels were still holding their ground, but they were hardly secure. Their losses had been spectacular; the Malwa Field Force had chased them from Mandsaur, and they would now meet its replacement, the Central India Field Force under Sir Hugh Rose. The Jodhpur Legion had been defeated at Narnaul, with their leaders scattered; the Rajputana Field Force would take care of Kotah in the coming months, and the mutiny in Rajputana would soon be declared wiped out. In East Bengal, where one of the final mutinies had occurred in November, the rebel forces were now being chased the length and breadth of the division, with no chance of recovery and no hope of survival.
At Lucknow, Sir Colin Campbell had managed to relieve the Residency more or less under their very noses, and although he had left Lucknow in their hands, Sir James Outram still held the Alambagh, and after Tope’s singular defeat at Cawnpore in December, that station was back in British hands. The rebels, realising their chances on this front had vanished, quickly retreated towards Lucknow, Oudh and Rohilkhand. Further afield, in the Hills of Kumaon, the Rohilkhand rebels were more than meeting their match in a series of battles fought against an enthusiastic army made up mostly of Gurkhas and young British officers, all eager to hold their hills. However, across Oudh and Rohilkhand and in pockets of the North-Western Provinces, the mutiny continued. Yet what had begun in 1857 as a series of victories for the rebels would soon culminate in a series of vicious battles as both sides continued to strive for dominance.

January

1 January	Naini Tal besieged when 1000 insurgents with two guns under Khan Bahadur Khan attack Haldwani.
2 January	Sir Colin Campbell engages the rebels at Kala Nadi.
3 January	Sir Colin Campbell takes Fatehgarh.
6 January	Sir Hugh Rose opens his Central India Campaign.
7 January	The trial of Bahadur Shah Zafar begins in Delhi and will last until 9 March.
12 January	Outram’s force is attacked at the Alambagh.
19 January	Raine’s Column, reinforced by Bombay troops, captured the fortified town of Awah after a five-day siege.
26 January	Sir Hugh Rose begins his blockade of Rahatgarh.
27 January	Brigadier Adrian Hope fights the Battle of Samshabad.
28 January	The EICo delivers a petition to Parliament in London in protest over the government’s proposed changes in the administration, in a futile attempt to block the changes in legislation.
31 January	Following their defeat at Rahatgarh, the rebels consolidate their position at Barodia and lose, establishing an unbroken communication for the British with the west and Sagar.

February

3 February Sir Hugh Rose marches to Saugar and raises the siege .
4 February Sir Colin Campbell and his force return to Cawnpore.
5 February At Ayodhya, the rebels are defeated by the Gurkhas of Jung Bahadur.
7 February Major General G. Whitlock with the Madras Column arrive in Jabalpur, where he was to join with the Millar’s Nagpur Moveable Column to provide support for Roses’ taking of Jhansi.
9 February The Delhi and Meerut divisions are placed under the Punjab Government.
10 February Colonel McCausland with a small Gurkha force repulse 5000 Bareilly rebels at Sunda near Charpura.
11 February Sir Hugh Rose invests Garhakota.
28 February Sir Colin Campbell crosses the Ganges into Oudh.

March

5 March	The rebels begin amassing in the Gorakhpur District; Colonel Rowcroft fights the Battle of Amorha.
10 March	Sir Hugh Rose defeats the Raja of Shahgarh – the whole country between Sagar & Jhansi east of the Betwa River is now in British hands.
11 March	The advance on Lucknow continues
14 March	Sir Colin Campbell begins his re-taking of Lucknow, and completes operations on 21 March.
17 March	Brigadier Stuart takes the fort and town of Chanderi after a siege that lasted 10 days. He then marches towards Jhansi to meet up with Sir Hugh Rose’s force.
21 March	Rose arrives with his siege train before Jhansi. The same day Brigadier Milman is defeated by Kunwar Singh at Atraulia and is besieged at Azamgarh.
22 March	General Roberts begins operations in Rajputana.
23 March	Sir Hugh Rose begins his investment of Jhansi.
29 March	General Lugard is sent from Lucknow to try to relieve Azamgarh.
30 March	Roberts captures Kotah.

April-June

1 April	Sir Hugh Rose defeats Tatya Tope at the Battle of Betwa River.
2 April	Colonel Lord Mark Kerr and his detachments proceed towards Azamgarh. Captain Sir William Peel dies at Cawnpore.
3 -4 April	Rose takes Jhansi.
6 April	Kerr with 3000 troops defeats the Dinapore Brigade eight miles from Azamgarh.
15 April	General Walpole with orders to make proceed towards Rohilkhand, left Lucknow on 7 April. He fights the rebels at Ruiya (Rhodamhow) and is beaten. Lugard moves on Azamgarh.
17 April	Brigadier Douglas defeats the forces of Kunwar Singh at Mannahar. Rowcroft defeats the rebels at Amorah and Jones defeats the Rohlikhand rebels at Nagul. Whitlock is checked at Kabrai, 24 miles from Banda.
18 April	Whitlock defeats the Nawab of Banda and his forces at Goora Mughali. The next day, Whitlock takes Banda
21 April	Douglas routs Kunwar Singh at Sheopur Ghat. Singh makes his way back to Jagdispur. Brigadier General Jones fights the rebels at Nagina. His victory is decisive, and he reoccupies Bijnor, pushing on towards Moradabad.
22 April	Walpole defeats the rebels at Sirsa.
24 April	Kunwar Singh defeats General Le Grand at Jagdispur, pursuing them back to Arrah.
26 April	Brigadier Coke takes Moradabad. Kunwar Singh dies of his wounds. Jung Bahadur leaves Gorakhpur en route to Nepal.
27 April	Sir Colin Campbell enters Rohilkhand & with Walpole’s force, marches to Shahjahanpore.
30 April	Campbell takes Shahjahanpore. Brigadier Penny is killed at Kakrauli when his column is ambushed.
2 May	Rose marches towards Kunch and Kalpi; a party under Major Gall take the town of Lohari. Moradabad District is given over to the Nawab of Rampore.
3 May	Campbell moves towards Bareilly. The Maulvi of Fyzabad with a large force from Mohamdi arrives at Shahjahanpur and besieges Colonel Hale until May 11. Lugard sets off in pursuit of the late Kunwar Singh’s forces.
5 May	Campbell defeats the rebels at Bareilly.
7 May	Sir Hugh Rose defeats Tatya Tope at the Battle of Kunch and then sets off in the pursuit of not just Tope but the Rani of Jhansi.
10 May	Lugard occupies Jagdishpur.
11 May	Amar Singh, brother of Kunwar Singh, is defeated at Piru in Bihar by Brigadier Corfield, but manages to escape. Brigadier Jones relieves Hale at Shajahanpore but the battle is inconclusive, and Jones is placed on the defensive by the Maulvi.
12 May	Lugard defeats Amar Singh at Jagdispur but the battle is indecisive. Sir Hope Grant fights the indecisive battle Sirsi against Beni Madho.
15 May	A whole cordon of rebel leaders, including Nana Sahib, Khan Bahadur Khan, Ahmadullah Shah, the Begum of Oudh and Firoz Shah, gather close to Shajahanpore to try to dislodge Jones, but he holds their forces off.
17 May	Sir Hugh Rose struggled to contain the mass attacks of rebels outside Kalpi
18 May	Sir Colin Campbell put the rebels to flight at Shajahanpore, but was unable to score a decisive victory as he was outnumbered by their cavalry. He retires to Fatehgarh and allows Jones tofollow the rebels to Mohamdi.
22 May	The Battle of Kalpi. The next day Sir Hugh Rose occupies Kalpi.
24 May	Jones captures Mohamdi Fort.
27 May	After the Battle of Kalpi, the rebel leaders concentrated their efforts on Gwalior. Mr Manson, a political agent is murdered by the Raja of Nargund between Kolapur and Belgaum in the Southern Maratha Country.
30 May–1 June	The rebel leaders attack Gwalior; Scindia is defeated and flees to Agra. Gwalior is in rebel hands. Nana Sahib is proclaimed Peshwa, Rao Sahib is deputy and Tatya Tope his Diwan.
4 June	Lugard again defeats a party of rebels in the Jagdishpur jungles.
9 June	Captain Moncrieff with the Madras troops defeat the rebels at Chuckerderpur in Chota Nagpur but the area remains unsettled until the end of the year.
12 June	Sir Hope Grant in the final and decisive battle in Oudh, defeats 16’000 rebels at Nawabganj between Faizabad and Lucknow.
16 June	Sir Hugh Rose defeats the combined forces of the Kalpi rebels and the Gwalior army at the Battle of Morar, driving them back into Gwalior.
17 June	Five miles from Gwalior, the Rani of Jhansi is killed at the Battle of Kotah-ki-Serai
18 June	Mahomed Hussain is defeated at Harriah by Colonel Rowcroft and is driven from the Gorakhpur district.
19 June	The Battle of Gwalior. Rose defeats the rebels and the next day enters the fort.
20–21 June	General Napier at Morar pursues the Gwalior rebels and the next day, routs them at the Battle of Jaora-Alipur.
29 June	Sir Hugh Rose hands over command to Napier and leaves for Poona.

July-September

2 July	General Roberts and the Rajputana Field Force reaches Jaipur in pursuit of Tatya Tope.
8 July	Tatya Tope is opposed by the Nawab of Tonk but his troops betray him and the next day Tope plunders Tonk. Colonel Holmes with his Light Field Force drive the rebels from Tonk.
14-21 July	Brigadier Berkeley operating from Allahabad destroys several forts in Oudh and forms a juncture with Sir Hope Grant, bringing all of southern Oudh under British control.
21-28 July	Hope Grant sets out towards Shahganj to relieve Raja Man Singh who is being besieged by the rebels. The rebels disperse on the arrival of Grant and he relieves Shahganj on the 28th.
1 August	The Bundlea rebels seize Jalaon, but disperse when Colonel Macduff and his column approach from Jhansi. The same time Kunch is attacked by Barjur Singh.
2 August	By Act 22 and 22 Victoria c. 106, all the EICo territories became vested in Her Majesty and the its powers to be exercised in her name. This would take place on 1 November 1858.
3 August	Raja of Narwar (also named Man Singh) captures Paori, 20 miles from Sipri.
7 August	The Court of Directors elect seven members for the new Council of India.
8 August	Roberts catches up with and defeats Tatya Tope at Sanganir on the Nasirabad-Neemuch Road. Tatya and his force retreat towards Udaipur. Tatya Tope would subsequently be checked at the Marwar frontier by the Erinpura force.
13 August	Colonel Horsford is dispatched by Hope Grant to retake Sultanpur but as it the fort is strongly held, he waits for reinforcements. Brigadier Carpenter from the Sagar Field Division defeats 2000 rebels at Kirwi.
14 August	Roberts defeats Tatya Tope again at the Battle of Banas River but Tope regroups and heads off for Rajgarh.
23 August	Paori is retaken by Napier.
25-29 August	Hope Grant meets the rebels outside Sultanpur but the action is inconclusive. The rebels retire towards Amethi and then proceed to Muzaffarnagar. The monsoon rains now halt all proceedings for the next six weeks.
31 August	The disarmed 62nd and 69th BNI mutiny at Multan.
1 September	Captain Ashburner marches against Barjur Singh and his combined forces and defeats them near Mahoni. This also marked the last day of the EICo as a governing power.
2 September	The new Council of India commences its sittings.
15 September	General Michael, who took command of the Rajputana Field Force from Roberts, defeats Tatya Tope at Baiora, near Rajgarh. The rebel army of 10’000 men is dispersed, Tope and the Nawab of Banda flee towards Chaderi, while the Rao Sahib makes for Lalitpur.
16 September	Various British columns continue in their pursuit of Tatya Tope. Brigadier Smith proceeds north, while northeastwards is Colonel Liddell with the Jhansi Force and Brigadier Parke covers Indore and Bhopal from Neemuch, while Michel continues to close in on Tope with the Rajputana Field Force.

October-December

3-8 October	The monsoon ends and the rebels start up the fight again in Oudh by besieging Brigadier Dawson at Sandila.
5 October	Brigadier Eveleigh defeats a body of rebels at Mianganj between Lucknow and Cawnpore.
9 October	Brigadiers Barker and Dawson break out of Sandila and defeat the rebels at Pannu, with considerable losses to their force.
19 October	Tatya Tope is defeated by Michel at Sindwah but the action is inconclusive as the rebels manage to slip away and regroup.
25 October	Michel fights Tope again but again, without capturing the rebel leader.
29-30 October	Beni Madhoo is defeated at Poorwa and Mehndi Hussein is defeated at Sufderganj but refuses to surrender.
31 October	Tope with the main body of his army passes through Rajgarh, and crosses the Narbada river heading for Nagpur. The Nagpur Field Force turns him aside, and he heads instead westwards but is opposed by the Berar Field Force of the Hyderabad Contingent, so he turns northwestwards towards Baroda, into Holkar’s territory.
1 November	The Queen’s Proclamation is read out in India.
3 November	Brigadier Weatherall stoms the rebel fort at Rampur Kussia.
8 November	Sir Colin Campbell, now Lord Clyde, takes the fortress of the Raja of Amethi without a fight and the raja surrenders.
12 November	At Shankerpur, Rana Beni Madho yields his fort and is driven by Campbell northwards with 15000 men to join the forces of Bala Rao.
19 November	Tope arrives at Kargaon and a detachment of Holkar’s troops join his cause.
24 November	Amar Singh and the Bihar rebels retreat towards the Palamau district where they are cornered by Brigadier Douglas and completely defeated at Salia Dhar.
25 November	Sir Hope Grant defeats the Raja of Gonda and occupies Gonda.
4 December	Bahadur Shah Zafar, with his queen, his young son and his half brother, a few women of his zenana embark on the streamer Megera, bound for exile in Rangoon.
6 December	Firoz Shah and Walidad Khan are reported at Aroul. Shah now tries to rejoin Tatya Tope. On the 17th Shah meets Napier briefly at Ranod near Chanderi.
23 December	Grant drives Bala Rao from Tulsipur. Rao now retreats towards Nepal with 6000 men and 15 guns.
24 December	At Pratabgarh Tatya Tope defeats Major Rocke’s force and manages to get past the British as he marches towards Mandsaur. He then marches towards Zirapur, almost directly south of Gwalior.
29 December	Tope and Rao Sahib are again defeated at Zirapur but again evades capture.
31 December	The Bihar rebels are reported to be completely dispersed and the area falls back into the control of the British.

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