Arthur Johnston's 'Narrative of the Operations of a Detachment in an Expedition to Candy, in the Island of Ceylon' is a gripping firsthand account of a military expedition set in the lush landscapes of Ceylon. Johnston's literary style is characterized by a detailed and immersive narration of the events, giving readers a vivid picture of the challenges and triumphs faced by the detachment. The book provides a valuable insight into the historical context of colonial warfare in Ceylon, shedding light on the strategies and tactics employed by the military forces. Johnston's meticulous attention to detail and his ability to capture the essence of the expedition make this book a compelling read for history buffs and military enthusiasts alike. Arthur Johnston, a seasoned military officer, drew upon his personal experiences in Ceylon to write this narrative. His firsthand knowledge of the expedition adds credibility to the account, providing readers with a unique perspective on the events that unfolded. Johnston's expertise in military tactics and his passion for storytelling converge in this captivating book, offering readers a glimpse into a lesser-known chapter of colonial history. I highly recommend 'Narrative of the Operations of a Detachment in an Expedition to Candy, in the Island of Ceylon' to anyone interested in military history, colonial warfare, or historical narratives. Johnston's meticulous research and immersive storytelling make this book a valuable addition to any collection of historical literature.

Winner, 2023 New South Wales Premier's History Awards, General History Prize An imam banished from eastern Indonesia to the Cape of Good Hope in 1780 builds a new Muslim community with a mix of fellow exiles, enslaved people, and even the men tasked with supervising his detention. Nineteenth-century colonial chroniclers invent the legend of the “loyal Malay” warrior, whose anger can be tamed through the “mildness” of British rule. A Tunisian-born teacher who arrived in Java from Istanbul in the early twentieth century becomes an enterprising Arabic-language journalist caught between competing nationalisms. Telling these stories and many more, Michael Francis Laffan offers a sweeping exploration of two centuries of interactions among Muslim subjects of empires and future nation-states around the Indian Ocean world. Under Empire traces interlinked lives and journeys, examining engagements with Western, Islamic, and pan-Asian imperial formations to consider the possibilities for Muslims in an imperial age. It ranges from the dying era of the trading companies in the late eighteenth century through the period of Dutch and British colonial rule up to the rise of nationalist and cosmopolitan movements for social reform in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Laffan emphasizes how Indian Ocean Muslims by turns asserted loyalty to colonial states in pursuit of a measure of religious freedom or looked to the Ottoman Empire or Egypt in search of spiritual unity. Bringing the history of Southeast Asian Islam to African and South Asian shores, Under Empire is an expansive and inventive account of Muslim communal belonging on the world stage.

Excerpt from Narrative of the Operations of a Detachment in an Expedition to Candy, in the Island of Ceylon, in the Year 1804 There, in the hope of promoting the benefit of His Majesty's service; by giving to officers, who may hereafter be employed in the interior of the island, that information which they may not have had the means of obtaining, in regard to a species of warfare peculiar to it, and which has not, to my knowledge, been noticed in any. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Lanka, Ceylon, Sarandib: merely three disparate names for a single island? Perhaps. Yet the three diverge in the historical echoes, literary cultures, maps and memories they evoke. Names that have intersected and overlapped - in a treatise, a poem, a document - only to go their own ways. But despite different trajectories, all three are tied to narratives of banishment and exile. Ronit Ricci suggests that the island served as a concrete exilic site as well as a metaphor for imagining exile across religions, languages, space and time: Sarandib, where Adam was banished from Paradise; Lanka, where Sita languished in captivity; and Ceylon, faraway island of exile for Indonesian royalty under colonialism. Utilising Malay manuscripts and documents from Sri Lanka, Javanese chronicles, and Dutch and British sources, Ricci explores histories and imaginings of displacement related to the island through a study of the Sri Lankan Malays and their connections to an exilic past.