The origin of the Ramachabutara is linked inextricably to the Revolt of 1857. During the revolt, British life and property in Ayodhya and Faizabad were endangered and some landlords offered help to the British and ‘a similar offer was made by the mahants of Hanumangarhi’.14 Once the uprising was suppressed, those who had helped the British were suitably rewarded. All land in Ayodhya was nazul land, and so it was easy for the government to distribute land as reward for services rendered during the revolt.
