Who among the following called the revolt of 1857 'a war of independence'?

V. D. Savarkar, in his book 'The Indian War of Independence of 1857', was the first to characterize the revolt as a 'war of independence' - framing it as a nationalist freedom struggle rather than a mutiny or sepoy rebellion. This terminology reframed the event from a military uprising to a political independence movement, emphasizing its anti-colonial nature.