The Revenge Story Of Udham Singh, Witness To The Jallianwala Bagh Massacre
Gurpreet Sandhu/FlickrAfter witnessing British colonists massacre hundreds of innocent Indians, Udham Singh plotted to kill the commander who ordered it.
After Udham Singh witnessed the Jallianwala Bagh massacre in India that killed at least 400 of his fellow Indians, Singh spent the rest of his life dreaming of getting his revenge.
In early 1919, the Indian independence movement against their British colonists was gaining steam. Indians were growing more infuriated by the harsh treatment of their people which included forced conscription of Indian nationalists and a heavy war tax levied by the British government.
Mahatma Gandhi called for countrywide protests against Britain’s increasingly oppressive practices, and the people of Amristar, where the orphaned Singh was living, were mobilized to take action.
On April 10, 1919, riots broke out in Amristar after the British banished several city leaders for organizing protests. The British colonial lieutenant governor, Michael O’Dwyer, ordered martial law to contain the growing uprising and banned all public meetings outright.
Three days after the riots, around 10,000 people gathered at Jallianwala Bagh, a local park in Amristar, to celebrate the Baisakhi festival. Singh, who was hired to pass out water to thirsty festival-goers, was also present at the park.
Many people who came to the park were unaware of the ban on public gatherings installed by O’Dwyer and the peaceful festival soon turned into a political protest against the British.
Fearing a mass riot, O’Dwyer ordered troops to surround the open-air park. Regardless of who ordered the action, the British troops sealed off the park’s only exit and opened fire on festival-goers until they ran out of ammunition. Chaos erupted as the mass crowds began scaling the park’s walls to escape the hail fire, with bodies quickly piling inside the park’s water wells as people tried to escape the gunfire.
Wikimedia CommonsBullet holes still cover the Jallianwala Bagh massacre wall.
The official death toll reported after the public shooting was 379 with 1,200 wounded but some other reports claim more than 1,500 people were killed in the massacre. Udham Singh was among the lucky ones who escaped the tragedy.
The British government hailed O’Dwyer as the “savior of Punjab” for putting down a revolt. He was never charged for the slaughter of Indian people that happened under his watch and, after enjoying prominent leadership posts, later retired to London. Little did he know his heinous act would soon catch up with him.
On March 13, 1940, O’Dwyer spoke at a meeting of the East India Association and the Royal Central Asian Society, where Singh was also present. In a quick strike, Singh approached O’Dwyer with a hidden gun he smuggled into the event, firing two shots right into his heart. O’Dwyer died instantly.
Udham Singh’s was hanged by the British government a few months later for the murder but his act of vengeance cemented him as a national hero. His remains were returned to India and cremated in his home town. But even long after his death, Singh’s words of defiance still resound when he told the court that O’Dwyer “wanted to crush the spirit of my people, so I crushed him.”
Now that you’ve read these harrowing stories of real-life revenge, learn the story of Mapuche warrior Galvarino, who lost both his hands to Spanish colonizers and later sought his revenge. Next, explore the history of the Onna-Bugeisha, Japan’s badass female samurai.
