2003 Iraq "News agency reports quoted local people as saying the British troops had been killed not by insurgents but by armed civilians incensed at intrusive British weapon searches in their homes. Specifically, British troops in the Shiite Muslim region were said to have offended Islamic beliefs by searching women's quarters and using dogs to enter homes." 1857 India "The projectile for the new Enfield rifle was part of a self-contained paper cartridge that contained both ball and powder charge. It required only the end to be bitten off and the cartridge then rammed down the muzzle of the weapon. To facilitate this process the cartridge was heavily greased - with animal fat. Sepoys heard and quickly passed on the rumour that the grease was a mixture of cow (sacred to Hindus) and pig (abhorrent to Moslems) fat. Biting such a cartridge would break the caste of the Hindu sepoys and defile the Moslems. The British realised their mistake and tried to have the sepoys make up their own grease from beeswax or vegetable oils, but in the atmosphere of distrust that prevailed in 1857 the damage had been done. The stage was set for a great tragedy to unfold. The mutiny spreads to Delhi with Europeans soon being killed mercilessly throughout Bengal.". Back to Dispatch July 2003 Table of Contents Back to Dispatch List of Issues Back to MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 2003 by HMGS Mid-South This article appears in MagWeb.com (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other articles from military history and related magazines are available at http://www.magweb.com