Though in India major William Hodson was considered a psychopath and mass murderer, back in England, he got a name for his line of duty in India. The British Empire looked upon Hodson as a great war hero, notwithstanding the fact that he committed excess in many places while trying to curb the rioting mob in 1857. The empire faced near failure to retain the rule in India and tried hard to glorify the British soldiers who died during the rebellion.
Prior to April 1919 Jallianwala Bagh massacre masterminded by Col. Reginald Dyer and Gov. of Punjab province Sir Michael O' Dwyer, ICS during the Raj, under the EIC's rule (till 1857-58) military officers like col. James Neil (butcher of Allahabad), Gen. Henry Havelock and major William Raikes Hodson had a free run on the natives and committed most heinous crimes on the soils of India without any remorse whatsoever.. The latter was most remembered and considered a celebrated war hero in the British Crown administration because he was the one who in September 1857 apprehended Bahadur Shah Zafar II, the last Mughal king of Delhi, an old man. Though the ruler was not part of rioting by enraged Indian soldiers, the EIC squarely put the blame on him and accused him of having instigated the riots against the company.
The following day on 22 September 1857 major Hodson rode to the enemy camp, near Humayun tomb, Delhi and finally arrested the Mogul princes who were part of the rebellion. While bringing them back to Delhi near the entrance gate - Khooni Darwaza, Hodson stripped the young princes naked and shot them dead point blank. Subsequently their bodies were hung at Kotwali near Chandini Chowk and had the bodies rot in the sun.
In March 1858 in Lucknow, while fighting with the rebels, he was killed and buried on the premises of La Martiniere College, Lucknow, UP. Though dogged by financial irregularity, misappropriation of company funds for personal gains and looting of Indian palaces (kothis) at last, Hodson returned several thousand pounds ( misused by him) to the EIC's treasury in Calcutta.
Because of perpetual and pre-planned glorification back in Britain he almost became a cult figure and is known for his courage and devotion to duty, though on several occasions he violated international military war norms, to the dismay of his colleagues. He was also highly criticized for his intemperate action on the mogul ruler and his heirs.
The Prime Minister Earl of Derby, and the Secretary of State for India Lord Stanley on 14 April 1859 in the parliament paid glowing tribute to Hodson for ending the Delhi siege. Never was he criticized for his cold murder of young Indian princes in Delhi and wiped out the Mogul dynasty in India.
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| PM of Britain Earl of Derby, Earl of Derby, |
Lord Stanley said: ''Nothing is more remarkable in glancing over the biography of Major Hodson that has just appeared than the variety of services in which he was engaged........displaying his personal courage and skill as a swordsman in conflict with the Sikh fanatics; he crowded into the brief space of twelve eventful years the services and adventures of a long life. He died before the reward which he had earned could be received, but he attained that reward which doubtless he most coveted—the consciousness of duty nobly done, and the assurance of enduring military renown."
General Hugh Gough said of Hodson:
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| Gen. Hugh Gough of British indie army.en.wikipedia.org |
Above Image: gen. Huge Gough (14 November 1833 – 12 May 1909) was a senior British Indian Army officer and a recipient of the Victoria Cross..........................
"A finer or more gallant soldier never breathed. He had the true instincts of a leader of men; as a cavalry soldier he was perfection; a strong seat, a perfect swordsman, quick and intelligent"
The prime minister granted his widow special pension through the secretary of state for India in Council, and declared it was "testimony of the high sense entertained of the gallant and distinguished services of the late Brevet-Major W.S.R. Hodson".
Honor from Queen Victoria 1860:
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| Hampton court near London. .viator.com |
Above image: A grace-and-favour home is a residential property owned by a monarch by virtue of his or her position as head of state and leased, often rent-free, to persons as part of an employment package or in gratitude for past services rendered https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grace_and_favour ......................
Quite impressed the way Hodson captured the mogul ruler and his princes and the way he went about and saved the honor of Britain, her Majesty Queen Victoria in 1860 honored Major Hodson posthumously by granting his widow a Grace and favour apartment at Hampton Court Palace "in consideration of the distinguished service of your late husband in India"Grace & Favour;
Memorial:
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| Memorial in Hampton Cemetery, London commons.wikimedia.org |
The British society as a whole considered their soldiers, diplomats and traders in the past centuries as conquerors of a quarter of the planet’s. The colonial administration was careful and and censored the news on their atrocities and oppressive rule in the colonies. They were brainwashed to ignore the unpleasant reality the company and the empire looted countries like India on a large scale unethically and illegally captured the entire Indian subcontinent . They, without fail, impressed on the world that they were destined to dominate a fifth of the world’s population as some sort of benevolent ruler with a mission to bring law, order and free trade to benighted corners of the world. As Indian politician Shashi Tharoor said after all the looting, cheating and exploitation they gave the impression that India became a democracy because of their legacy. George Bernard Shaw once said, The ordinary Britisher imagines that God is an Englishman.’
In the recent past a poll showed that a full 44% of Britons were proud of colonialism, far outnumbering the mere 21% who regretted their country’s dark imperial past. yet another disgusting fact is the ignorant British society voted former PM Winston Churchill, the most famous Briton. .
https://thewire.in/history/a-beleaguered-britain-takes-comfort-in-nostalgia-for-empire
https://fampeople.com/cat-william-stephen-raikes-hodson
https://navrangindia.blogspot.com/2016/11/william-hodson-killer-of-last-mogul.html
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.jpg&description=The British government and Queen Victoria honoring Maj.Hodson who wiped out the moguls in 1857){kind=link}