Colonial and World War I · 1857

Siege of Delhi

The uprising of 1857 made the old Mughal emperor its figurehead. After Delhi fell he was tried and exiled to Rangoon, ending the Mughal dynasty.

The site of the battle on the 1923 map. Shaded: Republic of Turkey, 1923, French mandate, British mandate or occupation, British protection or influence.

Key facts

When: 1857
Where: Delhi, India
Sides: Rebels under Bahadur Shah Zafar vs East India Company
Commanders: Bahadur Shah Zafar vs Archdale Wilson
Result: British victory
Type: Colonial and World War I
Chapter: 4. Al-Andalus and the Subcontinent

The wider picture: The end of the caliphate

The Ottomans entered the First World War on Germany's side and lost. Britain and France divided the Arab lands under the Sykes-Picot agreement and the mandates that followed, and British troops entered Jerusalem in December 1917. In Anatolia, Mustafa Kemal won the war of independence and declared a republic in October 1923.

See the 1923 map Read chapter 4

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