Of course, discussing matters in the light of history, with full and
intimate knowledge of everything that had a bearing on the Mutiny, there
are plenty of club-armchair critics who maintain that England could not
do otherwise than win in '57. They always do say that afterward of the
side that won the day.
But then, with history yet to make, things looked very different, and
nobody pretended that there was any certainty of anything except a
victory for the mutineers. All that either side recognized as likely to
reverse conditions was the notorious ability that a beaten and cornered
British army has for upsetting certainties. So the rebels had more
than a little argument as to what steps should be taken next, once the
initial butchery and loot had taken place.