Rani Lakshmibai
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Lakshmibai, The Rani of Jhansi (c. 1828 – 17 June 1858) ([Hindi]- झाँसी की रानी Marathi- झाशीची राणी), the queen of the Maratha-ruled princely state of Jhansi in North India, was one of the leading figures of the Indian rebellion of 1857, and a symbol of resistance to British rule in India.
Early LifeOriginally named Manikarnika at birth, she was born to a Maharashtrian Karhade Brahmin family sometime around 1828 in the Hindu city of Varanasi. An alternate date of 19 November 1835 was asserted by D. B. Parasnis in his biography of the Rani. However, no other credible historian agrees with this date and all the evidence points to 1828. The simplest and most direct evidence comes via John Lang. In his account of his meeting with the Rani in 1854 he mentions that her vakil said she was a woman of about 26 years. Her father Moropant Tambey was a Karhade Brahmin and her mother Bhagirathibai was a cultured, intelligent and religious woman. Born Manikarnika, she was affectionately called Manu in her family. Manu lost her mother at the age of four, and responsibility of looking after the young girl fell to her father. Manu was raised in the court of Baji Rao II, the last of the Maratha peshwas, where her father was an advisor to the Peshwa's brother, Chimnaji Appa. At the Peshwa's court, Manu's father educated her to be a queen, and the young girl underwent extensive and thorough martial training, including riding, fencing and shooting, when she was still a child. MarriageMoropant Tambey traveled to the court of Raja Gangadhar Rao Niwalkar, the Maharaja of Jhansi, when Manu was fourteen years old. Manu was to be married to Gangadhar Rao. She married Raja Gangadhar Rao Niwalkar,in 1842, and became the Maharani of Jhansi. As is customary with Indian royalty, she was given a different name after her marriage, and was henceforth known as Lakshmibai. The ceremony of the marriage was performed at the Ganesh Mandir, at a cost of forty thousand rupees. Lakshmibai gave birth to a son in 1851, but this child died when he was about four months old. In 1853 Gangadhar Rao fell very ill and he was persuaded to adopt a child. He relented only a day before his death, and adopted a distant relative, a boy named Damodar Rao. To ensure that the British would not be able to contest the adoption, the Rani had it witnessed by the local British representatives. Maharaja Gangadhar Rao died the following day, 21 November 1853. AnnexationAt that time, Lord Dalhousie was the Governor General of British India. Though little Damodar Rao, adopted son of late Maharaja Gangadhar Rao and Rani Lakshmi Bai, was Maharaja's heir and successor under Hindu tradition, the British rulers rejected Rani's claim that Damodar Rao was their legal heir. Lord Dalhousie decided to annex the state of Jhansi under the Doctrine of Lapse. The Rani then did the unprecedented: she sought the advice of a British lawyer and an officer of East India Company, Robert Ellis, and appealed her case in London. Although these petitions were well-argued, they were ultimately rejected. The British Indian authorities clearly sought to punish Rani for her presumptuous behavior. They confiscated the state jewels and deducted her husband's debts from her annual pension of Rs. 60,000. She was required to leave Jhansi fort for the Rani Mahal in Jhansi town, as well. But Rani Lakshmibai was determined to defend Jhansi. She proclaimed her decision with the famous words :Mi mahji Jhansi nahi dehnar (I will not give up my Jhansi). Throughout her life, she wanted to secure Jhansi from British annexation and went to the extent of establishing links with various revolutionaries around India. In one of her meetings with Tantia Tope, she even mentioned that Jhansi will set an example of free India. The War of 1857Image:The Ranee of Jhansi-Chambers-1859.jpg
The Ranee of Jhansi, an illustration from Chambers's History of the Revolt in India. London, 1859.
Jhansi became a center of the rebellion upon the outbreak of violence in 1857. Rani Lakshmibai started strengthening the defense of Jhansi and assembled a volunteer army. Women were recruited as well as men and given military training. The rani was accompanied by her generals. Many from the local population volunteered for service in the army ranks, with the popular support for her cause on the rise. In September and October of 1857, the Rani led the successful defense of Jhansi from the invading armies of the neighboring rajas of Datia and Orchha. In January of 1858, the British Army started its advance on Jhansi, and in March laid siege to the city. After two weeks of fighting,the British captured the city, but the rani escaped in the guise of a man, strapping her adopted son Damodar Rao closely on her back. She fled to Kalpi where she joined Tatya Tope. DeathThe Rani met her death on 17 June, during the battle for Gwalior. There is dispute about the exact circumstances of her death. According to contemporary British reports she was mortally wounded by a stray bullet and committed sati. A letter written by T.A. Martin states that,
Epilogue
InfluenceRani Lakshmibai became a national heroine and was seen as the epitome of female bravery in India. When the Indian National Army created its first female unit, it was named after her. Indian poetess Subhadra Kumari Chauhan wrote a poem in the Veer Ras style on her, which is still recited by children in schools in contemporary India. Literature on Jhansi ki Rani
Films about Jhansi ki Rani
TimelinePlease see [1] for a presentation of a Timeline, from the birth Lakshmibai, Rani of Jhansi, until her death. See alsoExternal links
ReferencesMaza Pravas: 1857 cya Bandaci Hakikat by Vishnu Bhatt Godse. Amar Balidani by Janki Sharan Verma Zila Vikas Pustika, 1996–97, Jhansi Meyer, Karl E. and Shareen Blair Brysac. Tournament of Shadows. Washington D.C.: Counterpoint, 1999. gu:રાણી લક્ષ્મીબાઈ hi:रानी लक्ष्मीबाई ml:ഝാന്സി റാണി ja:ラクシュミー・バーイー simple:Rani of Jhansi ur:جھانسی کی رانی | ||||||||||||||||
