In today’s generation, when someone tries to control us, we quickly get irritated and angry. Do you feel the same? Do you know that our ancestors underwent the same torture many years ago? The freedom we are enjoying did not come easily. There is a struggle behind it by freedom fighters in India. The great freedom fighters of India did not care about their lives. They devoted their lives to the motherland of India. In this article, we will learn about India’s freedom fighters and their contributions to the country.

List of Freedom Fighters of India 

Mahatma Gandhi

Bal Gangadhar Tilak

Dr. Rajendra Prasad

Dr. Lal Bahadur Shastri

Sardar Vallabhabhai Patel

Bhagat Singh

Subhas Chandra Bose

Jawaharlal  Nehru

Gopal Krishna Gokhale

Chandra Shekhar Azad

Dadabhai Naoroji

Tantia Tope

Bipin Chandra Pal

Lala Lajpat Rai

Ashfaqulla Khan

Nana Sahib

Sukhdev

Kunwar Singh

Mangal Pandey

V.D Savarkar

Annie Besant

Rani Lakshmi bai

Begum Hazrat Mahal

Kasturba Gandhi

Kamla Nehru

Vijay Laxmi Pandit

Sarojini Naidu

Aruna Asaf Ali

Madam Bhikaji Cama

Kamla Chattopadhyay

Sucheta Kriplani

Kittur Chennamma

Savitribai Phule

Usha Mehta

Lakshmi Sahgal

Dr. B.R Ambedkar

Rani Gaidinliu

Pingali Venkayya

Veerapandiya Kattabomman

Bakht Khan

Chetram Jatav

Chetram Jatav

Bahadur Shah Zafar

Manmath Nath Gupta

Rajendra Lahiri

Sachindra Bakshi

Roshan Singh

Jogesh Chandra Chatterjee

Bagha Jatin

Kartar Singh Sarabha

Basawon Singh (Sinha)

Senapati Bapat

Kanaiyalal Maneklal Munshi

Tirupur Kumaran

Parbati Giri

Kanneganti Hanumanthu

Alluri Sitarama Raju

Bhavabhushan Mitra

Chittaranjan Das

Prafulla Chaki

And the list goes on and on, but these are the top Indian freedom fighters who are known for their immense contributions to the Indian freedom movement.

Top 10 Freedom Fighters of India

There were several freedom fighters of India, below is a list of the top 10 freedom fighters of india.

● Mangal Pandey

Mangal Pandey was the first freedom fighter in India. For the first time, he inspired Indians by presenting the phrase “Maro Firangi Ko.” His uprising catalyzed the first liberation struggle. He was one of the earliest revolutionaries to motivate young Indian soldiers to start the 1857 Great Rebellion and the Indian Mutiny, also called India’s First War of Independence.

Name	Birth	Death/Assasination	Movement Known For
Mangal Pandey	19 July 1827	8 April 1857	The Indian Mutiny

● Jawaharlal Nehru

Jawahar Lal Nehru was born on November 14, 1889, in Prayagraj, where he was known as Chacha Nehru. Mahatma Gandhi’s attempts to free India from the British significantly impacted his fervour for independence. He began as a lawyer and rose to fame as a politician and fighter for Indian independence. He fought in the war for independence, rose to become President of the Indian National Congress, and was named India’s first Prime Minister when the country got its independence. His birthday is celebrated as Children’s Day, as he loved kids very much.

Name	Birth	Death/Assasination	Movement Known For
Jawaharlal Nehru	14 November 1889	27 May 1964	Indian Nationalist Movement

● Mahatma Gandhi

The full name of Mahatma Gandhi was Mohan Das Karamchand Gandhi, also known as “Bapu” and “Father of the Nation.” Gandhi fervently joined the freedom struggle after seeing how Englishmen were ruling India. Before going to South Africa to practice law, he studied law in London. Racism against some Indians inspired him to fight for human rights. In his fight for independence from the British, Mahatma Gandhi led many peaceful protests against them. One of these was the “Dandi March,” in which he walked barefoot from March 12 to April 6, 1930, to get rid of the salt tax.

Name	Birth	Death/Assasination	Movement Known For
Mahatma Gandhi	2 October 1869	30 January 1948	Champaran Movement
			Kheda Movement
			Khilafat Movement
			Non-cooperation Movement
			Quit India Movement
			Civil Disobedience Movement
			Salt Satyagraha Movement

● Subhash Chandra Bose

Subhas Chandra Bose, known as Netaji, was born in Orissa. He joined the Indian National Congress and took part in the movement of civil disobedience. Later, when Gandhiji’s nonviolent method of freedom didn’t work for him, he went to Germany for help. So, he founded the Azad Hind Government and Azad Hind Army, known as the Indian National Army (INA), where he trained and supervised all freedom fighters.

Name	Birth	Death/Assasination	Movement Known For
Subhash Chandra Bose	23 January 1897	18 August 1945	Non-cooperation Movement

● Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel

Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel was born on October 31, 1875 and is known as the Iron Man of India and Bismarck of India. He is famous for being very brave and epic from a young age. He was a lawyer though he left the lawful profession to fight for India’s independence from British control. He was appointed the country’s Deputy Prime Minister following India’s independence and worked to bring princely states into the Union of India.

Name	Birth	Death/Assasination	Movement Known For
Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel	31 October 1875	15 December 1950	Salt Satyagraha Movement

● Lal Bahadur Shastri

Lal Bahadur Shastri, the second prime minister of India, was born in 1904 in Mughalsarai, Uttar Pradesh. After India got its independence, he kept his job as Home Minister until 1964, when he was elected the second Prime Minister of India. As a quiet but active freedom fighter, he joined Mahatma Gandhi’s Salt the Earth Civil Disobedience Movement, the Satyagraha Movement, and the Quit India Movement. As a freedom fighter, he spent a lot of time behind bars.

Name	Birth	Death/Assasination	Movement Known For
Lal Bahadur Shastri	2 October 2004	11 January 1966	Indian Independence Movement

● Lala Lajpat Rai

Lala Lajpat Rai, the great freedom fighter, was born on January 28, 1865; he was also known as “Punjab Kesari.” He was an Indian author and a national freedom fighter for India. After the Jalliawala Bagh event, he became well known because he led the Punjab Protest and the Non-Cooperation Movement. He was a member of the famous Indian National Congress and the Lal, Bal, and Pal trio. He died in 1928 during a Simon Commission protest after a severe British lathi charge.

Name	Birth	Death/Assasination	Movement Known For
Lala Lajpat Rai	28 January 1865	17 November 1928	Indian Independence Movement

● Bhagat Singh

Bhagat Singh took birth in a Sikh family of independence warriors in Punjab. He was a famous Indian revolutionary and controversial figure who died as a proud martyr for his country. He joined the non-cooperation movement in 1921. To promote patriotism in Punjabi youth, he established the “Naujawan Bharat Sabha.” He was hung to death by British colonizers at the age of 23.

Name	Birth	Death/Assasination	Movement Known For
Bhagat Singh	28 September 2007	23 March 1931	Indian independence Movement

● Sukhdev Thapar

Sukhdev Thapar was born on May 15, 1907, in Ludhiana, Punjab. He was an Indian revolutionary who fought for India’s independence alongside Bhagat Singh and Shivaram Rajguru. He was a senior member of the HSRA and was hanged on March 23, 1931, while he was only 23 years old.

Name	Birth	Death/Assasination	Movement Known For
Sukhdev Thapar	15-May-07	23-Mar-31	Indian independence Movement

● Maulana Abul Kalam Azad

Maulana Abul Kalam Azad’s service to the nation didn’t just stop after India became independent. At the age of 16, he took part in India’s independence movement for the first time. In his second term as Congress President, he initiated the Quit India Movement. In 1922, he was conferred the Bharat Ratna. In 1947, he became India’s first education minister. He served the nation for over 50 years and died on February 22, 1958.

Name	Birth	Death/Assasination	Movement Known For
Maulana Abul Kalam Azad	11 November 1888	22-Feb-58	Non-Cooperation Movement

List of Female Freedom Fighters of India

India is a proud country, as it has many female freedom fighters who fought for their country without fear. They still inspire women of today’s generation to fight for their rights. Below is a list of the female freedom fighters of India.

● Rani Lakshmi Bai

Lakshmi Bai was the woman warrior in the history of India who had such a powerful effect on the minds of the Indian people as the Rani of Jhansi. Her courage motivated many Indians to rise against the alien rule. She was the second wife of the ruler Raja Gangadhar Rao (ruler of Jhansi), who protested against the ‘Doctrine of Lapse’. Rani Lakshmi bai denied sacrificing Jhansi and fought courageously as a male during the Revolt of 1857 and died on the battlefield fighting the British forces.

Name	Birth	Death/Assasination	Movement Known For
Rani Lakshmi Bai	19 November 1828	18 June 1858	Indian Mutiny of 1857–58

● Sarojini Naidu

Sarojini Naidu was the Indian National Congress’s first lady president at the Kanpur Session in 1925. She went to the USA with the message of the nonviolent movement from Gandhiji in 1928. When Gandhi was arrested for a protest, Sarojini took the helm of his movement in 1930. In 1931, she went to a meeting with Gandhiji and Pandit Malaviyaji called the Round Table Summit. In 1932, she was elected President of the United States Congress. She was arrested during the protest of “Quit India” and waited in jail for 21 days in 1893 to evangelize the Theosophical Society’s ideals. She was encouraged by the continued struggle for freedom against British rule. She slowly became an active participant after landing in India.

In 1916, she established the Home Rule League along with Bal Gangadhar Tilak. She carried on this historical movement, intending to attain the Dominion of India. In 1917, she became the first woman to be chosen as president of the Indian National Congress.

Name	Birth	Death/Assasination	Movement Known For
Sarojini Naidu	13 February 1879	2 March 1949	Independence Movement

● Begam Hazrat Mahal

Begum Hazrat Mahal was the wife of the ruler of Lucknow, Wajid Ali Shah. He actively participated against the Doctrine of Lapse in the revolt of 1857. Dalhousie wanted her to surrender Lucknow under it. She gave a little resistance. Though, after the fall of Lucknow, she escaped to Kathmandu.

Name	Birth	Death/Assasination	Movement Known For
Begum Hazrat Mahal	1820	7 April 1879	Revolt of 1857

● Annie Besant

Annie Besant was a well-known political activist, freedom fighter and champion of the anti-Church movement and women’s rights, born on October 1, 1847 in Ireland. 

In the 1870s, She evolved as a member of the National Secular Society and the Fabian Society in England. Being a socialist and having spiritual ease led her to enter the Theosophical Society in 1889. She came to India to evangelize the Theosophical Society’s ideals in 1893. she was encouraged by the continued struggle for freedom against British rule. She slowly became an active participant After landing in India.

In 1916, she established Home Rule League along with Bal Gangadhar Tilak. She carried on this historical movement intending to attain the Dominion of India. Her contribution directed her to be elected as the first female president of the Indian National Congress in 1917.

Name	Birth	Death/Assasination	Movement Known For
Annie Besant	1 October 1847	20 September 1933	Home Rule Movement

● Savitribai Phule

Savitribai Jyoti Rao Phule was born on January 3, 1831. She was one of the major reformers, educationalists, and poets in Maharashtra. Savitri Bai is the first female teacher in India. Along with her husband, she played a crucial role in improving women’s rights in India and also founded the first modern Indian girl’s school in Pune.

Name	Birth	Death/Assasination	Movement Known For
Savitri Bai Phule	3 January 1831	10 March 1897	Indian Feminist Movement

Other Freedom Fighters of India

● Dr Zakir Husain

 The third president of independent India, Dr Zakir Husain, was also the first Muslim president of India. He served as the Vice Chancellor of Jamia Millia Islamia for 22 years (1926-48) and made it one of India’s best educational institutes. He became the first Indian president to die on duty on May 3, 1969.

Name	Birth	Death/Assasination	Movement Known For
Dr Zakir Husain	8 February 1897	3 May 1969	Indian Freedom Movement

● Asaf Ali

When many freedom fighters were jailed daily, Asaf Ali trekked up and fought their legal combats to bail them out. Asaf Ali also participated in the ‘Quit India Movement and did everything he could to help India achieve independence. He was even jailed alongside Jawaharlal Nehru.

Name	Birth	Death/Assasination	Movement Known For
Asaf Ali	16 July 1909	29 July 1996	Quit India Movement

● Maulana Mazharul Haque

Maulana Mazharul Haque was known for social work during the famine of 1897. He donated all his property to encourage education. He also played a significant role in completing the Non-Cooperation Movement, Khilafat Movement and the Champaran Satyagraha. He died on 2 January 1930.

Name	Birth	Death/Assasination	Movement Known For
Maulana Mazharul Haque	22 December 1866	2 January 1930	Indian National Movement

● Abdul Ghaffar Khan

In 1929, Abdul Gaffar Khan evolved the famous Khudai Khidmatgar (“Servants of God”) movement, and it successfully drove it to its Destiny. He was also renowned as Frontier Gandhi. He opposed the partition of India after independence, but he failed. Later, he shifted to Pakistan and initiated a movement for a separate Baloch province. He was jailed many times for the exact cause. He died during a war between the Afghani rebels and soviet forces in 1988.

Name	Birth	Death/Assasination	Movement Known For
Abdul Ghaffar Khan	6 February 1890	20 January 1988	Red Shirt movement (Khudai Khitmatgar)

Unsung Heroes: Lesser known Indian Freedom Fighters

● Tirupur Kumaran

Tirupur founded the Desa Bandhu Youth Association. He organized several protest marches against the colonial government. On January 11, 1932, he was assassinated for flying an Indian nationalist flag that the British had banned. The flag was still in his hands when he died.

● Matangini Hazra

Matangini has participated in the Quit India Movement and the Non-Cooperation Movement. During a Quit India movement protest, she was shot three times while marching with the Indian flag. Despite being shot, she kept shouting “Vande Mataram.”

● Kanaiyalal Maneklal Munshi

Munshi was active during India’s freedom movement, especially the Quit India Movement. He was also known as Kulpati. He founded the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan. The number of times the British regime arrested him showed his dedication and passion for an independent India.

● Parbati Giri

Parbati Giri was also known as the Mother Teresa of Western Orissa. Giri served the public socially after independence. Even though she was only 16, she was at the forefront of all movements for freedom, especially the Quit India Movement. She was also imprisoned for two years for taking part in such activities. 

Freedom Fighters of India Images with Names

How Many Freedom Movements Does India Have?

There are few major movements of India. Lets explore the list of Indian Independence Movements.

Movement	Year
The Swadeshi Movement	1905-1911
Home Rule Movement	1916-1918
Khilafat Movement	1919-1924
Non-Co-operation Movement	1920
Champaran Satyagraha	1917
Individual Satyagraha	1940
Civil Disobedience Movement	1930
Quit India Movement	1942

In 2022, we celebrated the 76th Independence Day of India. From the beginning, India’s journey has been a long and hard one, full of many challenges and setbacks. As we live this independent life, it is all because of the freedom fighters who sacrificed their lives for India.

FAQ On Freedom Fighters of India

1) From Which Country India Got Freedom?

Answer: After many decades of struggle, India won its freedom from British colonial rule in 1947. Mahatma Gandhi joined the fight in 1914. He led the country to independence through a method of protest called satyagraha, which did not involve violence.

2) Which City Got Freedom in India First?

Answer: On August 19, 1942, Ballia became the first city to gain independence. It is a city in the state of Uttar Pradesh.

3) Who Was the First Freedom Fighter of India?

Answer: Mangal Pandey is known as the first freedom fighter of India. He recognized it as the forerunner of India’s first battle for independence (a revolt against the British).

4) Who Was the Youngest Freedom Fighter of India?

Answer: Baji Rout was the youngest freedom fighter of India and martyr. He was a boat boy belonging to Odisha who was shot by British police at the age of twelve when he refused to transport them across the Brahmani River at Nilakanthapur Ghat on the night of 11 October 1938.

5) Who is the real hero of Indian freedom?

Subhas Chandra Bose was one of the most successful Indian freedom fighters in history. He was born on January 23, 1897. He was a radical nationalist, and his unwavering patriotism made him a hero.

6) Who was Chacha Nehru?

During the middle of the 20th century, Jawaharlal Nehru or Chacha Nehru was a well-known person in India. He was an anti-colonial patriot, secular humanist, social democrat, statesman, and author. Throughout the 1930s and 1940s, Chacha Nehru was a key figure in the Indian nationalist movement.

7) What was the full name of Mahatma Gandhi?

Mahatma Gandhi’s full name is Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. On October 2, 1869, he was born in Porbandar, Gujarat.

8) Who was Netaji?

Subhas Chandra Bose was an Indian nationalist whose resistance to British rule in India made him a hero among many Indians, and he was known as Netaji by all. 

9) Who is known as the Iron Man of India?

Due to his efforts to maintain India’s unity, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel is referred to as the Iron Man of India.

10) Who was the second Prime Minister of India?

 Lal Bahadur Shastri was the second Prime Minister of India. He was a well-known freedom fighter of India and his tenure as a Prime Minister of India came to an end due to his death in Tashkent.

11) Who was known as Punjab Kesari?

Lala Lajpat Rai was famously known as Punjab Kesari.

12) What was the purpose of the Non-Cooperation Movement?

The noncooperation campaign was an attempt made by Mahatma Gandhi in India during the years 1920 and 1922 to persuade the British government to grant India the right to self-governance, also known as swaraj. Nevertheless, this endeavour was not successful.

13) Who participated in the Satyagraha movement?

Mahatma Gandhi chose Rajendra Prasad, Anugrah Narayan Sinha, and Babu Brajkishore Prasad, all of whom were well-known lawyers, to do thorough research and evaluations of the villages that did indigo farming. They described the atrocities and horrible instances of pain, as well as the overall state of degraded life due to indigo farming. This led to the Satyagraha movement, in which many prominent freedom fighters of India participated.

14) Who was a member of the trio Lal-Bal-Pal?

The political discourse of the Indian independence movement was significantly altered as a result of the contributions of Lala Lajpat Rai of Punjab, Bal Gangadhar Tilak of Maharashtra, and Bipin Chandra Pal of Bengal. This trio was commonly referred to as “Lal Bal Pal.”

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