The historian who argued that the Revolt of 1857 was 'neither the first, nor national, nor a war of independence' was:

• Majumdar. The historian Ramesh Chandra Majumdar (R. C. Majumdar) argued that the so-called First National War of Independence of 1857 was "neither First, nor National, nor a War of Independence".

His arguments:

• It was not the first: there had been many earlier revolts against British rule, such as tribal and peasant uprisings and earlier sepoy mutinies.
• It was not national: it did not cover the whole of India; large parts of the country, such as the south, Bengal, Punjab and Rajputana, remained largely quiet; many princes and educated Indians supported the British.
• It was not a war of independence: the leaders fought mainly for their own personal and local interests (such as restoring their kingdoms or pensions), and did not have a common aim of freeing India.
• He described it mainly as a revolt of sepoys, joined in some areas by discontented groups.

His book:

"The Sepoy Mutiny and the Revolt of 1857" (1957).

About R. C. Majumdar:

He was a famous Indian historian (1888-1980), who also edited the multi-volume "History and Culture of the Indian People".

Other views on the Revolt:

• D. Savarkar called it the "First War of Indian Independence", in his book "The Indian War of Independence, 1857" (1909).
• N. Sen, in his official history "Eighteen Fifty-Seven" (1957), described it as beginning as a military revolt that developed into a political movement in some areas.
• Karl Marx described it as a national revolt.
• Many British writers called it the "Sepoy Mutiny".

NCERT on the Revolt:

NCERT notes that the British called it a mutiny, while Indian nationalists saw it as the first war of independence; the truth is complex, as it involved sepoys, peasants, landholders, rulers and religious leaders.

Why not the other options?

• ✗D. Savarkar called it the First War of Independence.
• ✗N. Sen wrote the official centenary history.
• ✗Jawaharlal Nehru held a different view.