Begum Hazrat Mahal led the Revolt of 1857 from:

Begum Hazrat Mahal (about 1820-1879) was the wife of Wajid Ali Shah, the last Nawab of Awadh. In February 1856, the British annexed Awadh on the grounds of misgovernment, deposed Wajid Ali Shah and exiled him to Calcutta. The annexation caused great resentment among the people of Awadh, including the many sepoys of the Bengal Army who came from that region.

When the revolt broke out in 1857, Begum Hazrat Mahal took charge of the affairs in Lucknow, the capital of Awadh. On 7 July 1857, she declared her young son, Birjis Qadr, the Nawab of Awadh, and ruled as regent. She organised the rebel forces, along with local landlords (taluqdars), peasants and sepoys. The rebels besieged the British Residency at Lucknow, where British officials and their families had taken shelter. Sir Henry Lawrence, the British Chief Commissioner of Awadh, was killed during the siege. Maulvi Ahmadullah Shah of Faizabad also fought in Lucknow; he had defeated the British at the Battle of Chinhat (30 June 1857).

The British, under Sir Colin Campbell, recaptured Lucknow in March 1858. Begum Hazrat Mahal refused offers of a pension from the British. She rejected Queen Victoria's Proclamation of 1858, issuing a counter-proclamation that criticised British promises. She eventually fled to Nepal, where she was given asylum, and died in Kathmandu in 1879.

She is remembered as one of the bravest women leaders of the revolt. The Government of India issued a postage stamp in her honour in 1984. The Begum Hazrat Mahal Park in Lucknow is named after her.

Other leaders of the revolt:

• Jhansi: Rani Lakshmibai, who died fighting near Gwalior in June 1858.
• Kanpur: Nana Saheb (adopted son of the last Peshwa, Baji Rao II) and Tantia Tope.
• Bareilly: Khan Bahadur Khan.
• Bihar: Kunwar Singh.
• Delhi: Bahadur Shah Zafar and Bakht Khan.

Why not the other options?

• ✗Jhansi was led by Rani Lakshmibai.
• ✗Kanpur was led by Nana Saheb and Tantia Tope.
• ✗Bareilly was led by Khan Bahadur Khan.