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Chuar Rebellion

Chuar Rebellion
Part of Indian independence movement
Estate on James Rennell's 1776 map.
Date1766–1834
(68 years)[1][2]
Location
Dhalbhum Estate, Bankura district, Midnapore district, Manbhum District & Bishnupur Estate in British India
(present-day West Bengal & Jharkhand in India)

22°55′N 86°31′E / 22.917°N 86.517°E / 22.917; 86.517
GoalsSelf-governance
Resulted inSurrendered and estates transferred to Jungle Mahals District, and later transferred to Burdwan District & Manbhum District
Parties
Lead figures

Unknown

Casualties
Death(s)Unknown
InjuriesUnknown
ArrestedSubal Singh, Rani Shiromani, Madhav Singha Dev, Raghunath Singh
ChargedTreason, Hanging
Dhalbhum, Bankura, Midnapore & Manbhum is located in India
Dhalbhum, Bankura, Midnapore & Manbhum
Dhalbhum, Bankura, Midnapore & Manbhum
Location of the rebellion

Chuar rebellion, also called the Chuar Bidroha was a series of peasant movements between 1766 and 1834 by the tribal inhabitants of the countryside surrounding the Jungle Mahals settlements of Dhalbhum, Midnapore, Bankura and Manbhum against the rule of the East India Company (EIC).[3][4][5]

Chuar people

See also: Mallabhum_kingdom § Mahals

The literal meaning of Chuar or Chuad or Chuhad is a barbaric, an uncultured or a robber. During the British rule, Bhumijas of the Jungle Mahal area were called chuars (low caste people), their main occupation was hunting of animals and birds and farming in the forests, but later some Bhumij became zamindars and some started working as Ghatwals (feudal lords) and Paiks (soldiers).[6] When the East India Company started collecting revenue for the first time in 1765 AD in the Jangal Mahal district of Bengal, then in this conspiratorial way of the British, the water, forest, land grab activities were first opposed by the people of Bhumij tribe and the revolution was blown against the British rulers in 1769 AD. When the British asked who these people were, their stoic landlords addressed them as Chuar (meaning rude or wicked in Bengali) out of hatred and contempt, after which the name of that rebellion was 'Chuar Rebellion'.

Background

Great famine of 1770-71

See also: Great Bengal famine of 1770

Before the end of 1770, it was officially recorded that one-third of the population had vanished. Depopulation became the greatest concern for the British East India Company. Despite the ongoing famine, the Company continued to pressure local rulers, including the weakened Rajas of Bishnupur and Birbhum, as well as the old zamindars (who had been responsible for tax collection during the Mughal era), to increase revenue.[7]

In Birbhum alone, by 1771, only 4,500 out of 6,000 rural villages remained. Depopulation continued until 1785, and the lands of around 1,600 abandoned villages reverted to jungle.[7] In Bishnupur, hundreds of villages were entirely deserted, and even in the larger towns, fewer than one-fourth of the houses remained occupied. Among the worst affected areas in Bengal were Purnia and Bishnupur, both of which suffered immensely from the famine.[8]

The Company’s revenue demand for 1768-69 was set at £1,524,567, and the actual receipts exceeded that amount. However, by 1770, the receipts had drastically dropped to just £65,355, even though the demand remained at £1,380,269. Despite a good harvest in 1771, vast areas of cultivable land were left unused. By 1772, Warren Hastings estimated that one-third of the population had perished by that time.[7]

Rebellion

1779 map of the Jungle Terry District

In 1767, the tribal revolt started in Dhalbhum and Barabhum and later spread to Manbhum, Midnapore and Bankura[when?] districts of Jungle Mahal. Jagannath Singh Patar at Dhalbhum, Subal Singh at Kuilapal and Shyam Gunjam Singh at Dhadka led this rebellion in 1767-71. The Chuar people intensified this rebellion in the surrounding areas of Manbhum, Raipur and Panchet. In 1782-85, Mangal Singh along with his allies also led this rebellion. The Chuar Rebellion was at its peak in 1798–99 under the leadership of Durjan Singh, Lal Singh and Mohan Singh, but was crushed by the British Company's forces.

In early 1799, the Chuars were organized at three places around Midnapore: Bahadurpur, Salboni and Karnagarh. From here they launched guerrilla attacks. Among these was the residence of Rani Shiromani in Karnagarh, who actively led them. According to the letter written by the then collector, the Chuar rebellion continued to grow and by February 1799, they had occupied a continuous wide area of many villages around Midnapore. In March, Rani attacked with about 300 rebels and looted all the weapons of the Company's soldiers in the garh (local fort) of Karangarh. This sequence of attacks and plunder continued till December 1799. It was later led by Jagannath Patar's son Baidyanath Singh and grandson Raghunath Singh. Later, other zamindars, along with the Ghatwals and Paiks, spread this revolt to the entire Jungle Mahal and the surrounding areas, which lasted till 1809. Even after this, the rebellion continued in some areas of Bengal in a sporadic form.

Rebellion at Bishnupur (1788-1809)

Main article: Madhav_Singha_Dev § Revolt

Between 1788 and 1809, the Chuars and Paiks of the Bishnupur and Midnapore parganas revolted against the British East India Company under the leadership of Madhav Singha Dev.[9][10] After the 1810 revolt led by Baijnath Singh of Dampara, which prompted the deployment of military forces, the Ghatwali system in Jaibalea, Bishnupur, was dismantled by East India Company. In its place, new police stations were established across various estates, and the daroga police system was reinstated.[11]

Bhumij rebellion (1832–1833)

Main article: Bhumij rebellion

In 1832–33, again the Chuars of Barabhum, Manbhum, Dhalbhum, Raipur and Midnapore parganas started revolting against the East India Company, under the leadership of Ganga Narayan Singh.

Outcome

Main article: Jungle Mahals
Birbhum, Bankura, Midnapore, Howrah, Hooghly, Burdwan under Burdwan district in 1931.

By Regulation XIII of 1833, the district of Jungle Mahals was broken up. The estates of Senpahari, Shergarh and Bishnupur were transferred to Burdwan District and the remainder constituted the Manbhum District.[12]

Leaders

Sl.
No. 		Leaders zamindars Years Outcome Ref.
1 Jagannath Singh Patar [hi] (Dampara)Ghatshila/Dhalbhum 1766–1790 Hanged [13]
2 Subla Singh/Subal Singh [hi] Kuilapal 1767–1770 Hanged [14][13][15]
3 Samangunjan Dhadka/Barabhum pargana 1767–1771 Defeated [13][16]
4 Raja Jagannath Dhal Dhalbhum 1767 Defeated [17][18]
5 Lal Singh Satarkhani/Barabhum 1782–1799 Defeated [9][19]
6 Durjan Singh Raipur/Bishnupur 1798–1799 Defeated [20][21]
7 Baidyanath Singh/
Baijnath Singh 		Dampara/Dhalbhum 1798–1810 Defeated [22][23]
8 Rani Shiromani (lady) Karnagarh 1799–1812 Died in jail [24]
9 Madhav Singha Dev Bishnupur 1801–1809 Died in jail [25][26][9]
10 Ganga Narayan Singh Barabhum 1830–1833 Defeated [13]
11 Raghunath Singh Dampara/Dhalbhum 1830–1833 Hanged [27][28]

Above list of rebellion at different times.

See also

References

  1. ^ Bhattacherje, S. B. (1 May 2009). Encyclopaedia of Indian Events & Dates. Sterling Publishers Pvt. Ltd. p. 97. ISBN 978-81-207-4074-7.
  2. ^ Indian Book Chronicle. Vivek Trust. 1997. p. 11.
  3. ^ "Adivasi Resistance in Early Colonial India Comprising the Chuar Rebellion of 1799 by J.C.Price and Relevant Midnapore District Collectorate Records from the Eighteenth Century". www.ompublications.in. Retrieved 2022-05-27.
  4. ^ Bhattacharyya, Ananda; Price, J. C (2017). Adivasi resistance in early colonial India: comprising the Chuar Rebellion of 1799 by J.C. Price and relevant Midnapore District Collectorate records from the eighteenth century. Manohar. ISBN 978-93-5098-167-2. OCLC 982448451.
  5. ^ Ray, Nisith Ranjan; Palit, Chittabrata (1986). Agrarian Bengal Under the Raj. Saraswat Library.
  6. ^ "चुआर या चुआड़ विद्रोह Chuar rebellion". Retrieved 2022-06-04.
  7. ^ a b c "Forest Tenures in the Jungle Mahals of South West Bengal" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 August 2014. Retrieved 8 August 2014.
  8. ^ Chaudhuri, Nani Gopal (1949). "Some of the Results of the Great Bengal and Bihar Famine of 1770". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 12: 239–244. ISSN 2249-1937.
  9. ^ a b c Das 1984, p. 86.
  10. ^ Mahotsav, Amrit. "Disturbances in Bishnupur, 1788-1790". Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, Ministry of Culture, Government of India.
  11. ^ India's Struggle for Freedom: Role of Associated Movements. Agam Prakashan. 1985.
  12. ^ O’Malley, L.S.S., ICS, Bankura, Bengal District Gazetteers, pp. 21-41, 1995 reprint, Government of West Bengal
  13. ^ a b c d Jha 1967, p. 9.
  14. ^ Mahotsav, Amrit. "The Unsung Hero of Purulia-Subal Singh". Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, Ministry of Culture, Government of India. Archived from the original on 2024-12-16. Retrieved 2025-01-10.
  15. ^ Prakashan, Team Prabhat (2021-01-19). Superfast Jharkhand Gk-Competitive Exam Book 2021: Superfast Jharkhand GK-Competitive Exam Book 2021 by Team Prabhat Prakashan: Superfast Jharkhand GK - Comprehensive Guide for Competitive Exams. Prabhat Prakashan.
  16. ^ Society, Bihar Research (1960). The Journal of the Bihar Research Society. Bihar Research Society. p. 317.
  17. ^ बणणवाल, अदर्ण सनी. झारखंड का संपूणण आततहास (प्रागैततहातसक काल से वतणमान तक) (in Hindi). Nitya Publications. ISBN 978-93-90390-59-5.
  18. ^ Singh, K. S. (2012). Tribal Movements in India: Visions of Dr. K.S. Singh. Manohar Publishers & Distributors. ISBN 978-81-7304-972-9.
  19. ^ Panda, Barid Baran (2005). Socio-economic Condition of South West Bengal in the Nineteenth Century. Punthi Pustak. ISBN 978-81-86791-52-3.
  20. ^ দাস, দেবব্রত. "ব্রিটিশদের বিরুদ্ধে অস্ত্র ধরে রাইপুর". Archived from the original on 2022-03-18. Retrieved 2025-01-09.
  21. ^ "History-BANKURA" (PDF). WBCSMadeEasy.
  22. ^ India's Struggle for Freedom: Role of Associated Movements. Agam Prakashan. 1985.
  23. ^ India's Struggle for Freedom: Role of Associated Movements. Agam Prakashan. 1985.
  24. ^ Murshid, Ghulam (2018-01-25). Bengali Culture Over a Thousand Years. Niyogi Books. ISBN 978-93-86906-12-0.
  25. ^ Guha, Abhijit. "Article on Chuar Rebellion in Forward Press(PDF).pdf". Forward Press.
  26. ^ Dasgupta, Samira; Biswas, Rabiranjan; Mallik, Gautam Kumar (2009). Heritage Tourism: An Anthropological Journey to Bishnupur. Mittal Publications. p. 41. ISBN 978-81-8324-294-3.
  27. ^ "चुहाड विद्रोह के महानायक वीर शहीद रघुनाथ सिंह मुंडा की चालकबेडा में मूर्ति का अनावरण". Rajdhani News. 2020-09-23. Retrieved 2025-01-09.
  28. ^ "State govt to honour heroes of Chuhar rebellion". The Avenue Mail. 2019-02-09. Retrieved 2025-01-09.

Sources

Further reading

Quelle: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chuar_Rebellion