The Sepoy Rebellion was from 1857-1859. It is noted for some infamous atrocities by both the Indian rebels and the British colonialists. One of those incidents was the Siege of Cawnpore. Cawnpore was a garrison town for the British East India Company. Gen. Hugh Wheeler was in command of about 300 British soldiers and several regiments of sepoys. Wheeler had little fear of his Indian troops because he had gone native – learning the language, respecting the customs, and even marrying an Indian woman. His confidence was ill-placed. At first, the rebellion did not effect his Indian soldiers, but that changed after a drunken officer took a shot at one of his sepoys. He was dealt with leniently and this reminded the Indians of the double standard of the British army. When rumors spread that the sepoys were going to be executed, the sepoys joined the rebellion. Wheeler was not worried because he figured they would head out to join the main rebel force, and at first they did. However, a rebel leader named Nana Sahib convinced them to return to lay siege to Cawnpone. Wheeler had already taken refuge in an entrenchment that was ill-suited for defense. There were about 1,000 British in the “fort”. They lacked food and water. The one well was exposed to gunfire. The sanitation was poor so some of the besieged died from dysentery and cholera. Some died of heatstroke. And then there was the constant sniping and bombardment. Occasionally, the rebels assaulted the fort. For instance, Nana Sahib launched a big one on June 23 (the 100th anniversary of the Battle of Plassey), but his men were reluctant because of the rumor that the trenches were filled with gunpowder. In the end, Wheeler accepted Sahib’s promise of safe passage. On June 27, the garrison and civilians were allowed to march to the Ganges River where they were to take passage on boats. Early on, a shot was fired and the Indian boatmen jumped overboard. Some of them overturned fires that set some of the boats aflame. The British opened fire on the boatmen which may have given the rebels an excuse to respond. (But it is also possible the massacre had been planned.) The rebels opened fire, slaughtering the British. Horsemen waded into the water, slashing with their swords. Wheeler was beheaded. It was chaos. Only 4 soldiers managed to survive what became known as the Satichaura Ghat Massacre. It is still unclear if the massacre was premeditated or just a spontaneous eruption by the Indians. 120 women and kids were captured and placed in a villa called Bibighar. What happened there is another story.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Siege_of_Cawnpore
https://collection.nam.ac.uk/detail.php?acc=1971-02-33-106-1
https://www.britishempire.co.uk/forces/armycampaigns/indiancampaigns/mutiny/cawnpore.htm
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