Public reactions to Imperial events

Question 1

Explain Britons’ reaction to Cawnpore (Indian Rebellion)

Answer 1

• horrified by stories of massacres and tortures.
• thrilled by stories if brave soldiers, e.g. Major-General Henry Havelock who recaptured Cawnpore in July and Lucknow in Sep 1857.
• press turned Havelock into a national hero.
• not mentioned were atrocities by British such as massacre at Jhansi in April 1858.

Question 2

Explain Britons’ reaction to Arabi Pasha’s revolt in Egypt (1882)

Answer 2

• Daily Telegraph recount that rebels killed ‘all the Christians they could find’ in Alexandria.
• The Evening News reported more Europeans had been murdered with ‘further massacres imminent’.
• by incensing the public with the ‘wickedness’ of the rebels, the press made Gladstone’s government decision to intervene decisively in Egypt easier.

Question 3

How did Britons’ react to the invasion of Ndebele territory

Answer 3

• Imperialist literature such as ‘the boy’s own paper’ featured stories portraying soldiery and bravery across the globe.
• included contributions from Colonel Baden Powell who took part in the invasion of Ndebele in 1890s.
  -> later founded the scout movement, urging young male audiences to lead ‘manly and christian lives’.