Insurgent Sepoys : Europe Views the Revolt of 1857

The Revolt Of 1857 In India Has So Far Largely Been Viewed As An Event That Was Of Interest To British And Indian Scholars Investigating The Various Consequences Of British Colonial Rule In India. What Has Remained Out Of The Focus Of Study During The Last 150 Years Is The Possible Impact Of The Revolt Elsewhere, Its So To Say International Dimension: What, In Particular, Was The Reaction In Europe Where Elemental Social And Political Transformations Were Underway. Whatever The Varied Nature Of The Reactions, The Space Given To The Revolt In Many European Newspapers And Journals While It Was In Progress Is Certainly Extensive. What Is More, Representations Of And Reflections On The Revolt Appeared Both During The Event And For Long After Its Suppression, Above All In Forms Of Popular Fiction But Also In Historical Accounts, Letters, Reminiscences And Other Forms Of Writing. The Collection Of Essays In This Volume Ventures Into This Unexplored Terrain And Offers A First Look At Some Of These European Responses.--publisher's Description. German Responses: Theodor Fontane, Edgar Bauer, Wilhelm Liebknecht / Claudia Reichel -- French Counter-narratives: Nationalisme, Patriotisme And Révolution / Nicola Frith -- Freedom And Democracy: The Revolt In The Italian Press / Chiara Cherubini -- A View Of The Revolt In The Spanish Press / Vibha Maurya And Maneesha Taneja -- Hungarian Responses: Between Support And Disagreement / Margit Köves -- Czech Representations Of India And The Rebellion, 1850-1930 / Sarah Lemmen -- Bǔlarska Dnevnitsa: A Bulgarian Response To The Uprising / Rashmi Joshi -- Part Ii: Fact And Fiction -- Retcliffe's Nena Sahib And The German Discourse On India / Anil Bhatti -- The Rebellion Of An Indian Temple Dancer / Carola Hilmes -- The Stirring Story Of The 'cipays': Italian Narrative Responses / Flaminia Nicora -- 'remember Cawnepore': The 'massacre' In The Voice Of Three Italian Narrators / Sharmistha Lahiri -- Emilio Salgari's The Two Tigers: Exoticism, Anti-imperialism And Ambivalence / Alessandro Portelli -- Lost In Translation: Jules Verne And The Indian Rebellion / Swati Dasgupta -- 'a Great Insurrection': Jules Verne And British 'mutiny' Fiction / Suchitra Choudhury -- The Rebellion In A 19th-century Indo-portuguese Novel / Everton V. Machado -- Francisco Luiz Gomes's Os Brahmanes: The Uprising And Anglo-indian Society / Balaji Ranganathan -- El Dragón Del Fuego: A Dramatic Representation Of The Revolt / Vijaya Venkataraman. Editor, Shaswati Mazumdar. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Cover 1 Title 4 Copyright 5 Advance Praise for the Book 6 Contents 8 List of Illustrations 10 Acknowledgements 14 1. Introduction 16 Part I: News and Views 32 2. German Responses: Theodor Fontane, Edgar Bauer, Wilhelm Liebknecht 34 3. French Counter-narratives: Nationalisme, Patriotisme and Révolution 58 4. Freedom and Democracy: The Revolt in the Italian Press 78 5. A View of the Revolt in the Spanish Press 96 6. Hungarian Responses: Between Support and Disagreement 109 7. Czech Representations of India and the Rebellion, 1850–1930 126 8. Bŭlgarska Dnevnitsa: A Bulgarian Response to the Uprising 139 Part II: Fact and Fiction 150 9. Retcliffe’s Nena Sahib and the German Discourse on India 152 10. The Rebellion of an Indian Temple Dancer 167 11. The Stirring Story of the ‘Cipays’: Italian Narrative Responses 186 12. ‘Remember Cawnepore’: The ‘Massacre’ in the Voice of Three Italian Narrators 204 13. Emilio Salgari’s The Two Tigers: Exoticism, Anti-imperialism and Ambivalence 226 14. Lost in Translation: Jules Verne and the Indian Rebellion 236 15. 'A Great Insurrection’: Jules Verne and British ‘Mutiny’ Fiction 252 16. The Rebellion in a 19th-century Indo-Portuguese Novel 266 17. Francisco Luiz Gomes’s Os Brahamanes: The Uprising and Anglo-Indian Society 284 18. El dragón del fuego: A Dramatic Representation of the Revolt 293 About the Editor 304 Notes on Contributors 306 Index 312 The Revolt of 1857 in India has been seen primarily as an event that had repercussions in Britain and the Indian subcontinent. Little attention has been paid to its impact in other parts of the world. This path-breaking volume offers an insight into how the Revolt was viewed in non-English speaking Europe, where it was followed with keen interest. While liberals and conservatives defended or criticised British policies, emerging nationalist movements felt compelled to position themselves vis-à-vis this tumultuous event in distant Asia. Arguing about whether it was a mere ‘mutiny’ or a nationalist ‘revolt’, whether it was justified or an execrable outburst of a barbaric people, they all saw the Revolt as a threat to Britain’s future and dominance not only in India but also in Europe. The Revolt continued to engage the interest of European readers long after its suppression, appearing in various kinds of writings. This volume introduces this significant and till now neglected strand of Europe's encounter with India, including the extensive coverage of the Revolt in newspapers and journals in several European languages (French, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Hungarian, Czech and Bulgarian), as well as its numerous fictional representations.