Rani Lakshmibai was born on 19 November 1828 [4][5] 

(some sources say 1835)[2][6][7] in the town

of Varanasi into a Marathi Karhade Brahmin family.[8] She was named Manikarnika Tambe and
was nicknamed Manu.[9] Her father was Moropant Tambe[10] and her mother Bhagirathi Sapre
(Bhagirathi Bai). Her parents came from the Tambe village of the Guhagar taluka located in the
Ratnagiri district of Maharashtra.[11] Her mother died when she was four years old. Her father was
the Commander of the war of Kalyanpranth. Her father worked for Peshwa Baji Rao II of Bithoor
district.[12] The Peshwa called her "Chhabili", which means "beautiful " and "lively and cheerful".
She was educated at home and was taught to read and write, and was more independent in her
childhood than others of her age; her studies included shooting, horsemanship, fencing [13]
[14]
 and mallakhamba with her childhood friends Nana Sahib and Tantia Tope.[15][16][dubious  –  discuss] Rani
Lakshmibai contrasted many of the patriarchal cultural expectations for women in India's society
at this time.[17] And she was known for her unique perspectives and her courage to fight against
social norms even in front of the whole society.
Rani Lakshmibai was accustomed to riding on horseback accompanied by escorts between the
palace and the temple, although sometimes she was carried in a palanquin.[18] Her horses
included Sarangi, Pavan and Baadal; according to historians she rode Baadal when escaping
from the fort in 1858. Her palace, the Rani Mahal, has now been converted into a museum. It
houses a collection of archaeological remains of the period between the 9th and 12th centuries
AD.

History of Jhansi, 1842 - May 1857[edit]

Manikarnika was married to the Maharaja of Jhansi, Gangadhar Rao Newalkar, in May 1842[4]
[19]
 and was afterwards called Lakshmibai (or Laxmibai) in honour of the Hindu goddess Devi
Lakshmi and according to the Maharashtrian tradition of women being given a new name after
marriage. In September 1851, she gave birth to a boy, later named Damodar Rao, who died four
months after birth due to a chronic illness. The Maharaja adopted a child called Anand Rao, the
son of Gangadhar Rao's cousin, who was renamed Damodar Rao, on the day before the
Maharaja died.[20] The adoption was in the presence of the British political officer who was given a
letter from the Maharaja instructing that the child be treated with respect and that the government
of Jhansi should be given to his widow for her lifetime.
After the death of the Maharaja in November 1853, because Damodar Rao (born Anand Rao)
was an adopted son, the British East India Company, under Governor-General Lord Dalhousie,
applied the Doctrine of Lapse, rejecting Damodar Rao's claim to the throne and annexing the
state to its territories. When she was informed of this she cried out "Main apni Jhansi nahi
doongi" (I shall not surrender my Jhansi). In March 1854, Rani Lakshmibai was given an annual
pension of Rs. 60,000 and ordered to leave the palace and the fort. [21][22]
According to Vishnu Bhatt Godse, the Rani would exercise at weightlifting, wrestling
and steeplechasing before breakfast. An intelligent and simply-dressed woman, she ruled in a
businesslike manner.[23]

The Revolt of 1857[edit]

Beginning of the Rebellion[edit]
Lachmi Bai, the  Joan of Arc  of India, by Michael White

On 10 May 1857, the Indian Rebellion started in Meerut. When news of the rebellion reached
Jhansi, the Rani asked the British political officer, Captain Alexander Skene, for permission to
raise a body of armed men for her own protection; Skene agreed to this. [24] The city was relatively
calm in the midst of the regional unrest in the summer of 1857, but the Rani conducted a Haldi
Kumkum ceremony with pomp in front of all the women of Jhansi to provide assurance to her
subjects, and to convince them that the British were cowards and not to be afraid of them. [25][26]
Until this point, Lakshmi Bai was reluctant to rebel against the British. In June 1857, rebels of the
12th Bengal Native Infantry seized the Star Fort of Jhansi, containing the treasure and magazine,
[27]
 and after persuading the British to lay down their arms by promising them no harm, broke their
word and massacred 40 to 60 European officers of the garrison along with their wives and
children. The Rani's involvement in this massacre is still a subject of debate. [28][29] An army doctor,
Thomas Lowe, wrote after the rebellion characterising her as the "Jezebel of India ... the young
rani upon whose head rested the blood of the slain". [30]

The Rani of Jhansi's seal

Four days after the massacre the sepoys left Jhansi, having obtained a large sum of money from
the Rani, and having threatened to blow up the palace where she lived. Following this, as the
only source of authority in the city the Rani felt obliged to assume the administration and wrote to
Major Erskine, commissioner of the Saugor division explaining the events which had led her to
do so.[31] On 2 July, Erskine wrote in reply, requesting her to "manage the District for the British
Government" until the arrival of a British Superintendent. [32] The Rani's forces defeated an attempt
by the mutineers to assert the claim to the throne of a rival prince Sadashiv Rao (nephew of
Maharaja Gangadhar Rao) who was captured and imprisoned.
There was then an invasion of Jhansi by the forces of Company allies Orchha and Datia; their
intention however was to divide Jhansi between themselves. The Rani appealed to the British for
aid but it was now believed by the governor-general that she was responsible for the massacre
and no reply was received. She set up a foundry to cast cannon to be used on the walls of the
fort and assembled forces including some from former feudatories of Jhansi and elements of the
mutineers which were able to defeat the invaders in August 1857. Her intention at this time was
still to hold Jhansi on behalf of the British.[33]

Siege of Jhansi[edit]

The storming of Jhansi - Lieutenant Bonus

From August 1857 to January 1858, Jhansi under the Rani's rule was at peace. The British had
announced that troops would be sent there to maintain control but the fact that none arrived
strengthened the position of a party of her advisers who wanted independence from British rule.
When the British forces finally arrived in March they found it well-defended and the fort had
heavy guns which could fire over the town and nearby countryside. According to one
source[34] Hugh Rose, commanding the British forces, demanded the surrender of the city; if this
was refused it would be destroyed. The same source[35] claims that after due deliberation the Rani
issued a proclamation: "We fight for independence. In the words of Lord Krishna, we will if we are
victorious, enjoy the fruits of victory, if defeated and killed on the field of battle, we shall surely
earn eternal glory and salvation." Other sources, for example, [36] have no mention of a demand for
surrender. She defended Jhansi against British troops when Sir Hugh Rose besieged Jhansi on
23 March 1858.
The bombardment of Jhansi began on 24 March but was met by heavy return fire and the
damaged defences were repaired. The defenders sent appeals for help to Tatya Tope;[32] an army
of more than 20,000, headed by Tatya Tope, was sent to relieve Jhansi but they failed to do so
when they fought the British on 31 March. During the battle with Tatya Tope's forces part of the
British forces continued the siege and by 2 April it was decided to launch an assault by a breach
in the walls. Four columns assaulted the defences at different points and those attempting to
scale the walls came under heavy fire. Two other columns had already entered the city and were
approaching the palace together. Determined resistance was encountered in every street and in
every room of the palace. Street fighting continued into the following day and no quarter was
given, even to women and children. "No maudlin clemency was to mark the fall of the city" wrote
Thomas Lowe.[37] The Rani withdrew from the palace to the fort and after taking counsel decided
that since resistance in the city was useless she must leave and join either Tatya Tope or Rao
Sahib (Nana Sahib's nephew).[38]
The place from where Rani Lakshmibai jumped on her horse [39]

According to tradition with Damodar Rao on her back she jumped on her horse Badal from the
fort; they survived but the horse died.[40] The Rani escaped in the night with her son, surrounded
by guards.[41] The escort included the warriors Khuda Bakhsh Basharat Ali (commandant), Gulam
Gaus Khan, Dost Khan, Lala Bhau Bakshi, Moti Bai, Sunder-Mundar, Kashi Bai, Deewan
Raghunath Singh and Deewan Jawahar Singh. [citation needed] She decamped to Kalpi with a few
guards, where she joined additional rebel forces, including Tatya Tope. [38] They occupied the town
of Kalpi and prepared to defend it. On 22 May British forces attacked Kalpi; the forces were
commanded by the Rani herself and were again defeated.