Thursday, May 6, 2010

Rani Laxmi Bai of Jhansi

Born in November 1835, Rani Laxmi Bai is the bravest soldier of First War of Indian Independence. Even in her childhood she was known for her bravery. Even though not from royal family she was well versed in horse riding, sword fighting and archery.

At a very young age she was
married to Raja Gangadhar Rao, the Maharaja of Jhansi. After the death of her husband, she adopted a son and appointed him as a successor of Jhansi. But on the pretext that adopted son is not entitled to throne the British annexed Jhansi from her. Rani was not ready to give up Jhansi to Britishers which rightfully belonged to her.

In March 1858, the Britishers attacked Jhansi. With her trusted warriors Rani Laxmi Bai
fought for about two weeks against the British. However, after this great war, Jhansi fell to the British forces. When the situation was not in control, Rani of Jhansi with some of her warriors departed from Jhansi. But regrouped her warriors and she captured Gwalior, which was under the control of British then. Again a fierce battle took place. Rani Laxmi Bai fought with deathless patriotism and martyrdom. However on the second day of battle,on 18th June of 1858 she lost her life at the very young age of 22.


43 comments:

Rakesh Vanamali said...

Brilliant post! She remains a very celebrated icon for her role in the Indian freedom movement!

Anonymous said...

24 will be the age if I calculated correct but anyways, I salute.

Zuzana said...

There is a feel of Jeanne d'Arc to this story.;) Very majestic statue.;)
xoxo

joo said...

Beautiful monument and what a courageous woman!

Greener Bangalore said...

The name Rani Laxmi Bhai is always inspiring and motivating!

Sallie (FullTime-Life) said...

Wow Rajesh -- that's an amazing story, reminds me a bit of the Joan of Arc history from France. Certainly I knew nothing about this (I think as a rule we in the US are not very well-educated about Indian History, I know I'm not.) So thanks for sharing.

Kim, USA said...

The monument just blend well with the blue sky. Happy weekend!

SkyWatchFriday

Sylvia K said...

Terrific, interesting post as always, Rajesh! That was one brave lady, particularly for the period in which she lived! Always love your photos silhouetted against the sky! Have a wonderful weekend!

Sylvia

Carver said...

Wonderful statue against the sky and a very interesting post about a brave woman.

Regina said...

Such a brave woman. A true Maharajah.
Great post Rajesh.
Happy SWF and great weekend.

Tania said...

Great statue and sky!
Wish you a nice weekend:-)

Urmi said...

I appreciate for your excellent and interesting post. Rani Laxmi Bai was a brave and courageous woman. The statue is marvellous.

Anonymous said...

Interesting post about a remarkable woman.

Pearl Maple said...

Great post, it is good to celebrate our female leaders and great sculpture and skies

Verna Luga said...

Hi, flawless sky, great statue .... Have a nice day!

God Bless The Philippines

eden said...

Beautiful capture of the statue. Thanks for sharing. Have a great weekend.

eileeninmd said...

Wonderful statue of a very brave women!

Ebie said...

Your post always bring a lot of history! Great statue!

Pooch Purple Reign said...

a beautiful monument with interesting history
~laura

Rajesh said...

Hobo: Thanks for identifying it. I had quoted the birth year wrongly.

SandyCarlson said...

Stunningly spectacular!

This Is My Blog - fishing guy said...

Rajesh: Such a neat photo.

Unseen Rajasthan said...

Fantastic and Great shot !!What a beautiful and motivating Statue !!

LadyFi said...

What an amazing woman!

Jim said...

Spectacular sculpture.
Sydney - City and Suburbs

magiceye said...

wonderful woman indeed!

Kcalpesh said...

A story every Indian must know! Awesome capture!

Pixellicious Photos

Melusine said...

Very interesting! I did not know women could be warriors in old India, sounds like an amazing and brave woman - thanks for sharing :)

Glennis said...

She died so young but seems to have done a lot in those short days A heroine. Great statue.

Joe Todd said...

Neat photo and history Thanks

Youth_in_Asia said...

Excellent photo and such an amazing history. She did more in her brief 22 years than most of us can hope to do in a full lifetime.

The one with the View said...

WOW!! Great Photo, And History lesson!! Well done!

Pietro Brosio said...

Great monument and very beautiful picture!

Snowbrush said...

I really enjoyed this piece of history. She was to India somewhat as Joan of Arc was to France.

Diane AZ said...

Awesome sculpture of a remarkable woman!

Lowell said...

An impressive statue and a fascinating story told in your commentary! Thanks for the history lesson!

Ann, Chen Jie Xue 陈洁雪 said...

unusual to have a woman warrior, the Chinese also have one, You may have heard of Mulan.

May be Disney will do a movie on yours.

Kristin said...

That was indeed a very brave soldier. One of the very few female warriors too. She died so young.

Thanks for dropping by. Have a nice weekend.

Tara R. said...

A wonderful historical figure. Rani Laxmi Bai sounds like a very brave woman. The statue is impressive.

sujata sengupta said...

Some characters from our history really make the heart swell in pride..The Rani of Jhansi is one such inspirational figure. Lovely picture

Rajesh said...

Rakesh, Joo, Greener, Sylvia, Regina, Carver, Babli, LadyFi, Deepak, Kcalpesh, Melusine, Glennis, Diane, Ann, Jon, Kristin, Tara, Sujata: Thanks, she is a very brave and intelligent lady. One can hear lot of true stories depicting her bravery and intelligence.

Hobo, Zuzana, Sallie, Kim, Spiderdama, ewok1993, Maple, Vernz, Eden, eileeninmd, Laura, Sandy, Bharath, J Bar, Joe, View, Ebie, Pietro, Fishing Guy, Snowbrush, Jacob: Thanks for the appreciation.

S.. Diva said...

Hey Rajesh.. Great post!
I always wanted to do a Central India trip, mostly to uncover the understated places.. this whole series of posts were a very nice read..
btw i also do a bit of travel writing
http://tra-well.blogspot.com

Cheers!
Sneo

Rajesh said...

Sneo: Thanks for the appreciation. Central India has lot of places of interest and history.