Hoofbeats. Hundreds of hoofbeats thunder around Lakshmibai, almost as loud as her own heartbeat in her ears. She’s nervous, but determined, her saber held high as she rides into battle.
She twists in her seat to look back over her shoulder, and takes pride in seeing her soldiers charging with her. A cloud billows from the dusty ground, kicked up by the hooves of their horses.

She’s the only woman on this battlefield, but she’s earned their respect – they will follow where she leads. They’re dressed in the same uniform, and have the same goal: fight for their homeland’s freedom.

This was the moment she’d be remembered for, the moment everything had led up to. This was the moment the legend of Lakshmibai was born.
SHOW INTRO

I’m Subhah Agarwal. And this is Goodnight Stories for Rebel Girls.

A fairy tale podcast about the real-life rebel women who inspire us.

On this episode, Rani Lakshmibai, leader of an Indian rebellion. She carved her own path in a world run by men.Lakshmibai was born in the early 1800s along the banks of the Ganges River in the country we now call India. At birth, her name was Manakarnika, a name connected to precious stones and jewels. But her childhood was about far more than pretty things.Manakarnika was an only child, raised by her father. He was an important advisor to royalty, which meant he was busy much of the time. Manakarnika was left to her own devices, to pursue her own interests. And she had plenty.

She learned how to fight with swords, how to read, how to write, and how to ride horses.

In 19th century India, it was highly unusual for a girl to learn to read, let alone learn martial arts, like swordfighting. Manakarnika was able to study these things, in part, because of the caste she belonged to.

The caste system was something that divided people in India into different social classes, or levels. Your level wasn’t decided by what you do, or how you behave. It was determined by the family you were born into.

The highest level included priests and educators. That’s the caste Manakarnika’s father was born into, and so that’s the caste she was born into, as well.

By the time Manakarnika was a teenager, she could fight and ride just as well – or even better than – the boys.

But she never expected to get to use her skills. There were strict rules for what roles men and women were expected to play. Some of those rules came from Indian tradition, but some of them came from the British.

In this era of history, Britain wanted more and more control over trade in the region. The British got that control through something called the East India Company . It was a private business, but one with its own army. So it could also make its own laws.

One of these laws was that if a state had no heir, the East India Company could take over control of that state – the land, the people. Of course, at this time, heirs could only be male.
When she was around 15 years old, Manakarnika got married. In keeping with tradition, she took a new name – Lakshmibai. That name was to honor Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth, beauty, and abundance. Lakshmi was the patron goddess of her new husband, Maharaja Gangadhar Rao. Maharaja translates to “great king” – he was a ruler of one of the small Indian states. Because Lakshmibai was married to the king, she became known as the Rani Lakshmibai, or the queen. She moved to her husband’s state, a place called Jhansi.

Jhansi had a rugged landscape. It was rocky, with ravines, gorges, and windswept hills. Lakshmibai settled into life there, making sure to keep up with her training, whether riding horses or fighting with a saber. Or sometimes? Both. At the same time.

She was known to practice riding her horse with the reins clamped between her teeth, so she could twirl two sabers, one in each hand.

As the story goes, she even trained her ladies-in-waiting in the arts of horseback riding and fighting.In time, Lakshmibai and her husband had a son. An heir.

But tragically, Lakshmibai’s son passed away at three months old. This was heartbreaking – not just for Lakshmibai and her husband – but for the people of Jhansi.
Lakshmibai’s husband took the loss of his son hard. The grief made his already poor health even poorer. He was growing weaker by the day.

As her husband’s health worsened, the couple decided to follow another traditional way to produce an heir: they adopted a child. A five-year old boy.

The King knew that if he died without an heir, it could jeopardize the fate of Jhansi. As his final dying plea, he wrote a letter to British officials saying their adopted son was his true heir. Power should stay within Jhansi.

Soon after, Lakshmibai’s husband passed away. It was an emotional loss for Lakshmibai, with dramatic consequences for the people of Jhansi.

Lakshmibai was recognized as the queen, the Rani, by the people of Jhansi. Even if her son was not recognized as the heir, couldn’t she still lead her people?

The East India Company disagreed. They removed Lakshmibai as queen.

Within a few months, Lakshmibai had lost her son, her husband, and her state.Lakshmibai fought back against the East India Company in the courts. When her own lawyer tried to convince her to back down, she said, (read both normally and theatrically) “I will not give up my Jhansi!”

(seriously, quietly, with determination) She would fight for her state, or go down trying.
As the years passed, rebellion was brewing. Lakshmibai had heard some of these complaints throughout her childhood, but didn’t make too much of them. British control was all she had known.

But many Indians were tired of the British banning local customs, disrespecting their religions, and being violent. While people had many reasons to be angry, what everyone had in common was a desire to be free from British control.

This desire for freedom traveled across the country, and four years after Lakshmibai left the ranks of royalty, a rebellion brewed in Jhansi.

She tried her best to keep the peace. When rumors of rebellion started to spread in Jhansi, the mood at markets and bazaars turned tense.The rebels attacked a British fort, and burned homes. She offered to shelter the British women and children staying in her own home. When the smoke cleared, her attempt to protect the most vulnerable had put her in the good graces of the British officers. They allowed Lakshmibai to reclaim her rightful role as the head of Jhansi.

In this time, she was known for wearing men’s clothing, like a turban, and a sword “decked with gems.”

She kept up the rigorous discipline she’d established in her studies as a child. Each day she woke up before the sun. She would meditate for hours before attending to her duties as ruler. And when she did? She interacted with people, regardless of their caste or social status. Maybe her own experience of learning to swordfight and read – men’s work – broadened her mind. Maybe she knew that people could do more, could be more, than society thought they could. As a leader, she earned the respect not only of her own citizens, but the British as well.

A British military general said that, “her generosity to her subordinates was unbounded.”

But this time of peace and cooperation was not to last. The British wanted total control, and soon they would bring their soldiers to seize it.
The British attacked Jhansi in early 1858, and this time Lakshmibai’s good graces were not enough to save her state. She was forced to flee on horseback in the middle of the night. All her practice riding paid off as she navigated Jhansi’s rugged landscape with her young son tied behind her in the saddle. After a stressful night riding through the rocky gorges, she was able to regroup with the rest of the rebel forces nearby. They gathered to make one final stand, the last battle in the first Indian Rebellion.

The battle started at daybreak. A huge cloud of dust marked where the rebels rode, the charge led by Lakshmibai. The fighting went on for hours. As the British gained ground, Lakshmibai fought in the middle of the fray, rallying her men to her side. But as the day wore on, it wasn’t enough.She didn’t survive that final battle in 1858. The British would keep control of India until 1947, almost 100 more years.
But in the 1940s, when Indians were once again fighting for their freedom from colonial rule, Lakshmibai’s presence was felt. The Indian army formed an all-female army regiment. Their name? The Rani of Jhansi regiment.Lakshmibai’s legacy lives on, even today. Her phrase, “I will not give up my Jhansi,” to this day inspires national pride.

There are children’s stories, blockbuster movies, and countless statues in her honor.

Lakshmibai’s memory has galvanized generations of Indians – of all genders. Lakshmibai never gave up her Jhansi. She never gave up… on what she believed was right.

Lakshmibai’s memory has galvanized generations of Indians – of all genders.
She never gave up on her Jhansi. She never gave up on what she believed was right.

Lakshmibai’s memory has galvanized generations of Indians – of all genders.
She never gave up on her Jhansi. She never gave up on what she believed in

Lakshmibai’s memory has galvanized generations of Indians – of all genders.
Lakshmibai never gave up on her Jhansi. She never gave up on what she believed in.