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Freedom Struggle 1857 1947 MCQs
High-yield multiple choice questions asked in previous years (UPSC, SSC CGL, JKSSB, RRB & State PSCs).
High-Yield Concept Capsule & Key Facts
📌 The highest-yield modern Indian history segment in UPSC, SSC, CDS, NDA, and State PSCs.
The Revolt of 1857 & Early Nationalist Phase
- • Revolt of 1857: Triggered on March 29, 1857, at Barrackpore when Mangal Pandey of the 34th Bengal Native Infantry refused the Enfield greased cartridge; broke out in Meerut on May 10, 1857. Key Leaders: Bahadur Shah Zafar & Bakht Khan (Delhi), Nana Saheb & Tatya Tope (Kanpur), Begum Hazrat Mahal (Lucknow), Rani Lakshmibai (Jhansi), Kunwar Singh (Arrah/Jagdishpur, Bihar).
- • Government of India Act 1858: Abolished Company rule; transferred governance to the British Crown under the Secretary of State for India; Governor-General designated as Viceroy (Lord Canning became first Viceroy).
- • Indian National Congress (INC): Founded in December 1885 at Gokuldas Tejpal Sanskrit College, Bombay by Allan Octavian Hume (A.O. Hume). First President: Womesh Chandra Bonnerjee (W.C. Bonnerjee); attended by 72 delegates.
- • Swadeshi & Boycott Movement (1905): Triggered by Lord Curzon's Partition of Bengal in October 1905; Lal-Bal-Pal leadership; Surat Split of INC in 1907 (Moderates vs Extremists).
The Gandhian Era & Mass National Movements
- • Gandhi's Early Experiments: Champaran Satyagraha (1917 - against Tinkathia indigo system), Kheda Satyagraha (1918), Ahmedabad Mill Strike (1918 - first hunger strike).
- • Rowlatt Act & Jallianwala Bagh Massacre (April 13, 1919): General Dyer ordered troops to fire on peaceful unarmed gathering in Amritsar on Baisakhi day; Rabindranath Tagore renounced his Knighthood.
- • Non-Cooperation Movement (1920-1922): Launched alongside Khilafat Movement; called off abruptly by Gandhi following the Chauri Chaura incident on February 4, 1922.
- • Civil Disobedience Movement (1930): Launched with the historic Dandi Salt March (March 12 - April 6, 1930 from Sabarmati Ashram to Dandi coastline, 240 miles). Gandhi-Irwin Pact signed in March 1931.
- • Quit India Movement (August 8, 1942): Passed at the Gowalia Tank Maidan in Bombay; Gandhi gave the historic clarion call 'Do or Die' (Karo ya Maro); British arrested top leadership under Operation Zero Hour.
| Movement / Event | Year | Key Leader / Viceroy | Core Cause / Catalyst |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revolt of 1857 | 1857 | Mangal Pandey / Lord Canning | Enfield greased cartridges, Annexation doctrines |
| Partition of Bengal | 1905 | Lord Curzon | Divide and rule; sparked Swadeshi & Boycott |
| Jallianwala Bagh Massacre | 1919 | General Dyer / Lord Chelmsford | Protest against arrest of Saifuddin Kitchlew & Satyapal |
| Non-Cooperation Movement | 1920 - 1922 | Mahatma Gandhi | Rowlatt Act, Jallianwala Bagh, Khilafat wrongs |
| Dandi Salt March | 1930 | Mahatma Gandhi (78 followers) | Defying the British Salt Monopoly tax |
| Quit India Movement | 1942 | Mahatma Gandhi (Gowalia Tank) | Failure of Cripps Mission; 'Do or Die' call |
Showing 15 Practice Questions
Q1SSC CGL 2023Easy
Who was the Viceroy of India during the outbreak of the Revolt of 1857?
Q2UPSC CSE PrelimsEasy
The Indian National Congress (INC) was established in December 1885 in Bombay by retired British civil servant:
Q3JKSSB FAA 2022Easy
In which city did the tragic Jallianwala Bagh Massacre occur on April 13, 1919?
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Q4CDS 2022Easy
Mahatma Gandhi's famous Dandi Salt March to initiate the Civil Disobedience Movement started from which place on March 12, 1930?
Q5JKSSB VLW 2023Easy
The historic 'Do or Die' (Karo ya Maro) call was proclaimed by Mahatma Gandhi during which mass movement in 1942?
Q6SSC CGL Tier-1Easy
Why did Mahatma Gandhi call an abrupt halt to the nationwide Non-Cooperation Movement in February 1922?
Q7JKPSC KAS PrelimsMedium
Who was the revolutionary leader who led the 1857 revolt in Arrah and Jagdishpur (Bihar) at the age of nearly 80 years?
Q8NDA 2022Easy
In which session of the Indian National Congress was the historic 'Purna Swaraj' (Complete Independence) resolution adopted in December 1929 under Jawaharlal Nehru's presidency?
Q9SSC CHSL 2022Easy
Who renounced his British Knighthood in deep anguish and protest following the Jallianwala Bagh massacre in 1919?
Q10JKSSB Sub-InspectorEasy
The Champaran Satyagraha of 1917, Mahatma Gandhi's first civil disobedience campaign in India, was waged against the oppressive cultivation of:
Q11UPSC CSE PrelimsMedium
Subhas Chandra Bose revitalized the Indian National Army (Azad Hind Fauj) and established the Provisional Government of Free India in 1943 at:
Q12JKSSB Patwari 2024Easy
The partition of the Indian National Congress into 'Moderates' and 'Extremists' took place in 1907 during which annual session?
Q13CDS 2021Easy
Who authored the famous revolutionary book 'Poverty and Un-British Rule in India', expounding the 'Drain of Wealth' theory?
Q14SSC CGLMedium
The Kakori Train Robbery (1925), carried out by the Hindustan Republican Association (HRA), resulted in the martyrdom of which revolutionaries?
Q15UPSC CSE PrelimsMedium
The Cabinet Mission, dispatched to India in March 1946 to negotiate the transfer of power and frame a constitution, was comprised of which three British cabinet ministers?
Frequently Asked Questions (Freedom Struggle 1857 1947)
Q: Why did Mahatma Gandhi abruptly suspend the Non-Cooperation Movement in February 1922?
Gandhi called off the Non-Cooperation Movement following the Chauri Chaura incident in Gorakhpur district, Uttar Pradesh, on February 4, 1922, where an agitated crowd set fire to a police station, killing 22 policemen. Because Gandhi strictly adhered to total non-violence (Ahimsa), he halted the nationwide campaign.
Q: What was the 'Tinkathia system' opposed by Gandhi in the Champaran Satyagraha of 1917?
The Tinkathia system was a coercive colonial arrangement in Bihar under which European planters legally compelled peasant farmers to cultivate indigo on 3/20th parts of their best agricultural landholding, leaving them impoverished when synthetic German dyes collapsed market prices.
Q: Where and when did Mahatma Gandhi deliver the famous 'Do or Die' slogan?
Mahatma Gandhi delivered his historic 'Do or Die' (Karo ya Maro) address on August 8, 1942, at the Gowalia Tank Maidan (now August Kranti Maidan) in Bombay during the launch of the Quit India Movement.
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