Was a lack of unity amongst the Indians the main reason for the failure of the War of Independence 1857-58? Explain your answer. [14]

During the War of Independence 1857, there was a complete lack of unity among the fighting groups though all were fighting against a common enemy, the British soldiers. There was no coordination between different regions of unrest and no attempts were made to bring their strengths together. Some local leaders even helped the British in the war e.g. the ruler of Kashmir sent 2000 troops on the British side. However, there were also some other reasons for the failure of the war.


The sudden outbreak of 1857 war had no defined goals or planning. Different groups were fighting for different causes. Most of the Muslims wanted to restore the Mughal ruler, Bahadur Shah Zafar, but Hindus and Sikhs were not ready to fight for restoring the Muslim Mughal Empire. Many princes were interested in regaining their own feudal powers. A good number of ordinary people remained neutral i.e. they did not take part in the uprising. 


There was no central leadership to motivate people to join the rebellion. There was no central command to provide guidelines, prepare action planes or coordinate between different areas of revolt. The final reason is that the British were very strong to defeat, and they were very determined to suppress the revolt. 


The most important reason for the failure of the war was the strength and position of the British. They were good planners of war strategies. They had sound financial resources and could fight long wars. They had latest warfare tools and their troops were experienced and highly trained in modern methods of fighting. They had efficient means of communication e.g. railways for quick deployment of troops. They had skilled diplomats who knew the techniques of gaining support of local rulers.