Anglo-Manipur War

Military Expedition of 1891
Manipur Rebellion of 1891

The sculptures of two dragons in front of the Kangla Palace were destroyed during the war.
Date31 March – 27 April 1891[1]
Location
Kingdom of Manipur
Result British victory, Meidingngu Churachand declared as king[2]
Belligerents
Kingdom of Manipur
Commanders and leaders
British Raj Lord Lansdowne
British Raj Major General H. Colle [1]		 Maharajah Kulachandra Singh  (POW)
Jubraj Tikendrajit  Executed
Strength
+395
2 mountain guns
350 rifles[3][4][5]		 +3,200
2 mountain guns[4][5]
Casualties and losses
4  †
15  (WIA)[4][5]		 +178  †
5  Executed[1]

The Anglo-Manipur War[6] or Manipuri Rebellion of 1891[7][8][9] was a short armed conflict between the British Colonial Forces and the dissenting royal princes of Manipur Kingdom, which was arguably a dependency of the British Empire in India. The conflict began with a palace coup staged by the general (Senapati) of Manipur, ousting its reigning king, and installing a half-brother, the heir-apparent, in his place. The British government took objection to the action and attempted to arrest the general. The effort failed, with the Manipuri forces attacking the British residency and the resident and other British officials getting executed. The British launched a punitive expedition that lasted from 31 March to 27 April 1891. The general and other rebels were arrested and convicted. The British conquered Manipur and did not annex it under British India but governed it as a princely state till 1947.[10][11]

  1. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference sPw was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference JiHx was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "The London Gazette". The London Gazette (26192): 4369–4372. 14 August 1891 – via thegazette.co.uk. As Captain Drury had only 100 rifles of the 2-4th Gurkha Regiment, 50 rifles of the 12th (Burma) Madras Infantry, and 44 mounted infantry of the 12th (Burma) Madras Infantry with him, and as I did not think this force strong: enough for the purpose, I ordered two guns of No. 2 Mountain Battery and 200 rifles of the 2-4th Gurkha Regiment, the whole under the com- mand of Captain Rundall, 2-4th Gurkha Regi- ment, to reinforce Captain Drury. Captain Rundall, on arrival at the scene of action, placed his guns on a hill about 1,000 yards from the entrenchment, and commenced to shell it.
  4. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference jx was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ a b c Cite error: The named reference Gazi was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Mutuwa, Miranda Bembem (2018). "Colonialism and the Princely State of Manipur: Creation of Modern Urban Space in North East India". Proceedings of the Indian History Congress. 79: 448–456. ISSN 2249-1937. JSTOR 26906278.
  7. ^ Majumdar, Rebellion in Manipur, 1891 (1960).
  8. ^ Aitchison, Treaties (1931), pp. 134–135: "While the Manipuris called the British action 'treachery' because they interfered in the internal affairs of an independent kingdom, the latter termed the events of 1891 as 'rebellion'.".
  9. ^ Lee-Warner, The Protected Princes of India (1894), p. 175: 'The proclamation ended thus: "The subjects of the Manipur state are enjoined to take warning by the punishments inflicted on the above-named persons found guilty of rebellion and murder".'.
  10. ^ Sudhirkumar Singh, Socio-religious and Political Movements (2011), p. 46: "Dramatic changes in the socioeconomic realm, political policy, institutional set up and governance of the state were brought in after Manipur lost her sovereignty in the Anglo-Manipuri War of 1891. At the politico-administrative outset, a rigor of deliberations among the colonial policy makers on the political fate of the state, finally concluded to refrain from direct annexation under the British India and instead introduced the rule of British paramountcy. The period of British paramountcy in Manipur can be studied under the two inter-related phases: (a) The Rule of Superintendency 1892-1907. (b) Indirect Native Rule 1907-1947."
  11. ^ Lokendra, N. (1 January 1998). The Unquiet Valley: Society, Economy, and Politics of Manipur (1891-1950). Mittal Publications. pp. 35–38. ISBN 978-81-7099-696-5.